A poem: TO A PASSIONIST

Clad in a vestment wrought with passion-flowers;
Celebrant of one Passion; called by name
Passionist: is thy world, one world with ours?
Thine, a like heart? Thy very soul, the same?

Thou pleaders an eternal sorrow: we
Praise the still changing beauty of this earth.
Passionate good and evil, thou dost see:
Our eyes behold the dreams of death and birth.

We love the joys of men: we love the dawn,
Red with the sun, and with the pure dew pearled
Thy stern soul feels, after the sun withdrawn,
How much pain goes to perfecting the world.

Canst thou be right? Is thine the very truth?
Stands then our life in so forlorn a state?
Nay, but thou wrongest us: thou wrong’s our youth,
Who dost our happiness compassionate.

And yet! and yet! O royal Calvary!
Whence divine sorrow triumphed through years past:
Could ages bow before mere memory?
Those passion-flowers must blossom, to the last.

Purple they bloom, the splendour of a King:
Crimson they bleed, the sacrament of Death:
About our thrones and pleasaunces they cling,
Where guilty eyes read, what each blossom saith.

1888.

And today, as every day, but today especially so, we must look to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Every beat we hear, every drop of Blood we perceive, we MUST cry out: Jesus, mercy! Jesus, meek and humble of Heart, make our hearts like unto Thine! Our life cannot stop at the accusation against ourselves. Our life cannot avoid that reality, that human condition, wherein we struggle – struggle and yet not lose hope. Our life must be integrated, not sentimental, but integrated, wherein that beat of the Heart of Jesus is recognized as fleshy – the most proper of fleshiness, of Man; and, that, in the same heartbeat, we rest and perceive the heartbeat of God. 

And, in other news, the Patristics project, a compilation of the Sunday readings with commentary from the Church Fathers, has begun. Some more support is still needed, please consider helping and more importantly please share the news of this project – I am really excited about this one. More can be learned here: Patristics Project Donate.

With my heart, I see.
I see only the Victim, darkened,
Darkened by impunities, though not His own.
Snuffed, yet not as dim as a smoking candle.
I hear the cry of mankind,
Deafened by the tears of a Mother, so pierced with sorrow.
I see a Blood, so Precious;
Abandoned, It falls.
I see and hear but can do nothing.
Oh, how piercing is the humility, as the lips of a mother, purely soft, depart from the Feet of such a Sacrifice;
The Mother given over to the Father’s will.
“Not mine, but yours.”
In the shadow of her Mantle,
Consoled I rest, for even she, the Victim’s Mother,
Is unable to bear forth her shoulder,
A shoulder so accustomed to the weight of a crying Son,
A joyful Son,
A weary Son.
He thirsts.
The milk of her comfort, not for Him anymore,
But for mankind, parched,
Unable to recognize its own void.

Mother so tender, yet fierce in her pain.
Her heart is pierced once more.
The sons of men placed in her embrace,
An embrace which hushed the cries of the newborn babe,
Nursed the child in His first days, and,
Soothed the boy, the young man, the Man in His agony.
Her eyes once up, now turn toward man,
As Her Son takes the breaths of encroaching death.
To Him, her eyes wish to go, but the earth is waning;
It needs a Mother.
He draws His last breath while she is tending.
The Son is gone, the earth is dark.
Spear thrown down. His love consummated.
His Blood flows, as well as water.
Trickling, it flows through dense, cold air.
Pity, yet Dignity, pours forth. A reminder to the Virgin of her wanting children.
Still, she pleads once more to fill her arms with her Son, though dead.
His bones unbroken, His wounds pierced.
She wants to cling, to never let go of the fragrant, pure Victim.
In her gaze as a Mother, she cries to man,

“Behold, the Lamb. Behold, my Son.”

The blue sky is darkened, no more is uttered.
No Ave’s come forth.
The angels are silent.
A silence awaiting the Rising Son.
A darkness.
It is a darkness which only allows for the light.

I pray you have a Blessed Pentecost and that you ask every day for the assistance of the Holy Ghost, for His Gifts and His Inspiration.

A quick update, exams will finish this week and I will finish packing up my room. I’ll be moving at the start of the coming academic year to another community under the patrimony of St. Philip Neri. Er Pippo, as he is affectionately called here in Rome, will become an even closer friend, as I strive to learn from him his apostolic ways, as the “third apostle of Rome”.

I ask for your prayers as continue in these efforts, and your patience, as I haven’t been able to give much time to blogging. The Easter Fast of social media was very helpful in preparation for Pentecost. It is important to find times of the year, outside of Advent and Lent, where we can do prolonged periods of abstinence from something.

And, in other news, the Patristics project, a compilation of the Sunday readings with commentary from the Church Fathers, has begun. Some more support is still needed, please consider helping and more importantly please share the news of this project – I am really excited about this one. More can be learned here: Patristics Project Donate.

A Blessed First Saturday of the month, this month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

In our prayer, let us not forget that we are before the Lord. This forgetfulness can take on many forms: we can consider our prayer as insignificant, we can throw away the rubrics or actions which have been handed down to us, we can make up rubrics or actions, we can become so fixated on rubrics and the external form of worship….

We are at an interesting time in the life of the Church. Christ tells us: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Mt 9:13) – if we partake in the Sacrifice of Christ, and forget His mercy, His love, His motive – then we make liars of Christ as He hangs on the cross.

We can’t know or make a judgment about the interior lives of others. But we can look at ourselves. Are our eyes fixed on the Lord when we pray? Especially when we assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass…

As most of you are aware, Filii Passionis has been striving to provide pertinent and profound print publications, in a clean and affordable style, for the Catholic striving to deepen his or her faith.

It has come to our attention that a resource is needed to help priests, religious and faithful alike in delving deeper into the texts of the Holy Mass. Something that seems to be lacking is a comprehensive resource in an accessible form for a fuller understanding of the readings (Epistles and Gospels) of the traditional liturgical year. With that in mind, our next book project will be assembling from the Church Fathers and the Medieval Fathers, in a classic hardcover form, a compiled resource for easy reflection and study on the Scripture readings for Sundays and Major Feasts throughout the year.

We began a crowdfunding effort at the onset of this project for a couple of reasons: 1, to complete the project in a timely manner during the course of this coming summer; and, 2, this will permit Filii Passionis to provide work for students currently studying in Rome. GO HERE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THIS PROJECT. Again, your help is needed in spreading news about this campaign and effort.

Please spread the news about this campaign – we are very excited to provide this work, for our own growth and development in preparing it, and for the fruit that will come from the work, assisting a study of the Scriptures, the liturgical year, and a greater depth in the spiritual life. 

For those who donate over $200 to this project, you will receive a complimentary copy of the compilation and a copy of our most popular publication: Meditations from the School of Jesus Crucified. [For these donors: Please include your address in the comment form for your donation to receive your complimentary books].

And as always, check out our publications HERE. Everything is presently discounted.