St Robert Bellarmine, Doctor of the Church A deadly pitfall lies hidden in the desire of some to pour themselves out in works of zeal for God’s glory, to which the evil spirit not uncommonly urges those whom he sees full of zeal. It is evident even to one little versed in the way of the spiritual life that a multiplicity of external occupations, even though good and meritorious in …
Jesuit
September 17, 2014
I realise in a way I never did before that God created me for His service, that He has a strict right that I should serve Him perfectly, and that every moment of my life is His and given to me for the one end of praising and serving Him. I recall with horror how often I have wandered from this my end, what an appalling amount of time I …
September 13, 2014
St Peter Claver SJ St. Peter Claver was one of those generous heroic souls whom God sends upon this earth to serve as a stimulus to our zeal, to urge us on to dare and do great things for His glory. Alone he stood upon the beach of that reeking haunt of sin, Cartagena, and saw the galley-ship vomit forth its human living burden of slaves. He saw these …
September 9, 2014
St Ignatius To be indifferent does not mean to desire things which are hard to nature, but a readiness and determination to embrace them when once the will of God is known. In this sense I think I am indifferent about going to the Congo. But I must force myself to be willing to accept the way of life which God seems to be leading me to and wants me …
September 7, 2014
St Alberto Hurtado 1901-1952 Today is the feast of St Alberto Hurtado, a Jesuit saint from Chile. He was canonised by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005, and is renowned for his social work and love of the poor. Contacts in Chile also tell me that he is remembered among the Jesuits there as a devotee of Fr Doyle. He apparently distributed literature relating to Fr …
August 18, 2014
EWTN radio in Ireland and the UK will broadcast an interview about Fr Doyle this weekend. It will air at 8am (Dublin/London time) on Saturday and 12 noon on Sunday. I don’t know if those outside Ireland and the UK will be able to access the programme online at that time. However, I will post links to the interview after the event. The programme will also feature an interview about Fr …
August 8, 2014
Continuing our narrative today, it is hard not to be struck by the extraordinary good humour of Fr Doyle. The “cathedral” to which he refers was, of course, just another dug out or shell hole somewhere in a battlefield. His final comment about being glad not to be asked to say the rosary with bombs falling around him is classic Irish wit. It is important to remember that these letters …
August 8, 2014
St Ignatius Four Dangers to be Feared after a Retreat: 1 . Dissipation: There, it is over; amuse yourself. 2. Toning Down: Too much, too many, too hard, too often, too etc. 3. Putting Off: Wait a little, rest yourself, take your time. 4. Cowardice: You’ll never do it; you’re no good; it will be the same old story. And Four Remedies: 1. Presence of God: No, it is not …
August 3, 2014
We have no more reports from Fr Doyle until August 5th, and we shall take up his narrative once again on that date. What we do know about these days is that Fr Doyle and his men had a few days rest before facing the trauma of battle once again. This might be an appropriate place to give the following excerpt from O’Rahilly’s biography which includes an excerpt of a …
August 2, 2014
We continue Fr Doyle’s account of July 31, 1917 directly after he left off yesterday. Again what is most noticeable is Fr Doyle’s good humour and cheerfulness, even in the midst of this awful war. It was 1.30 a.m. when our first halting place was reached, and as we march again at three, little time was wasted getting to sleep. It was the morning of July 31st, the Feast of …
July 31, 2014