Message of Abbot Paul - Saturday 15th October 2022

Today the Church celebrates the great Spanish Carmelite reformer and mystic, St Teresa of Avila, known as St Teresa of Jesus, who died at the age of 67 in 1582. As well as radically reforming the Carmelite Order, she was also a great teacher of the way of contemplative prayer, often described as mental prayer or the prayer of quiet. You might well have read some of her writings, especially The Inner Castle and The Way of Perfection. She also wrote an Autobiography. Considering she was a 16th century woman, an enclosed nun and a mystic, she has had and continues to have an extraordinary influence on the Church as well as on the non-Christian world. We ask for her intercession and the grace to follow her teaching and example. She also had a powerful sense of humour: we can all do with that today in the difficult times in which we live, that combined with a deep trust in God.

 Today’s Gospel reading consists of three sayings of Jesus addressed to his disciples, as found in Luke, (Lk 12: 8-12). The first is about bearing witness to Christ, or standing up for him, not being afraid or ashamed of declaring openly, even in difficult circumstances, our allegiance to Jesus and the Gospel. “I tell you, if anyone openly declares himself for me in the presence of men, the Son of Man will declare himself for him in the presence of the angels. But the man who disowns me in the presence of men will be disowned in the presence of God’s angels.” The second saying is related to the first. “Everyone who says a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.”

What does it mean to blaspheme against the Holy Spiirit? Blasphemy against the Spirit, the unforgivable sin, is the ongoing hardening of our hearts against the Holy Spirit who is trying to lead us to repent of sin and believe in Christ. Furthermore, it is an issue of the heart that manifests itself in our words. This hardening of the heart, that results in denying that Jesus is the Son of God, will cause us to become unrepentant and unforgiving and to not seeking forgiveness for ourselves.

 The third saying is somewhat different and encourages us not to run away from persecution that might come our way on account of our faith. “When they take you before synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how to defend yourselves or what to say, because when the time comes, the Holy Spirit will teach you what you must say.” We are not to worry, because, whatever happens, when the time comes, the Holy Spirit will give us the words we need to speak up for our faith before whoever is persecuting us. When reflecting on the lives of the martyrs, these words always come to mind. Will we have the opportunity to bear witness of Christ? If not to the extent of shedding our blood, at least by the choices we make in life.