266. Eleventh Friday of Ordinary Time
Meditations no. 254 (unofficial computer-aided translation)
Practising Christian poverty in the world.
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Our Lord speaks to us today about the need to be detached from possessions. This attitude is fundamental for anyone who wants to follow him closely. He wants his disciples to be detached from all earthly things, to enable them to set their hearts on the wealth of heaven. For, he tells us, where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The Gospel shows us many ways to practise poverty. Our Father selected one of them in particular as being especially applicable to ordinary Christians living in the world. My daughters and sons, think about the fidelis dispensator et prudens, quem constituit dominus supra familiam suam, ut det illis in tempore tritici mensuram: the faithful and wise steward, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time.
You must each have the mentality of the mother or father of a Christian family, a big, poor family. That is the measure of our poverty. I thank God our Lord, because I can see that that is how you do live.
Our position as ordinary people called by God to sanctify ourselves in the middle of worldly affairs means that we have a specific way of practising Christian poverty - simply being the man or woman in the street: ordinary Christians immersed in the bloodstream of society, whom our Lord wants to be saints and apostles, in the very midst of our work, sanctifying ourselves in it - and, through it, helping others to sanctify themselves as well Be convinced that it is there that God awaits you, with all the love of a Father and Friend.
This spirit leads us, for example, to make sure we receive fair payment for the work we do, and likewise to be fair in paying the people who work for us or with us. Because, as our Father taught us, by doing your daily work well and responsibly, not only will you be supporting yourselves financially: you will also be contributing in a very direct way to the development of society, you will be relieving the burdens of others, and maintaining countless welfare projects, both local and international, on behalf of less privileged individuals and countries.
With Godâs help we can live in the world without being worldly, and move freely among worldly possessions, with total self-control and in independence of them. We can put them to good use in the service of God and souls, for this is what the special grace of our vocation impels us to do.
Practising detachment in a natural way.
For the members of the Work our job and social standing are what determine the specific way we each practise poverty. We imitate the example of Jesus Christ, who always behaved naturally. So much so, our Father comments, that Judas had to arrange a sign in order to single him out: Whomever I kiss, that is he. There was nothing peculiar about Jesus, and I must say I am greatly touched by this rule of behaviour of our Lord who passed through life as just one more among men.
John the Baptist, who had a special vocation, wore a garment of camelâs hair and ate locusts and wild honey. Our Saviour wore a seamless tunic, ate and drank as the others did, rejoiced at their happiness, was moved by the sorrows of his neighbours, and did not refuse the rest and shelter that his friends offered him. He made no secret of the fact that he had earned his living for many years working alongside Joseph the craftsman. This is the way we should behave in this world: as our Lord did. I could sum up my advice very briefly as follows: we ought to go about in clean clothes, with a clean appearance and, most important of all, with a clean soul
It is worth noting that even our Lord, who preached such marvellous detachment from worldly goods, at the same time went to great lengths not to waste them. After the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves, whereby he had so generously satisfied the hunger of over five thousand men, he said to his disciples, âGather the fragments that are left over, lest they be wasted.â They therefore gathered them up; and they filled twelve baskets. If you reflect carefully on this whole scene, you will learn never to be mean or miserly, but rather how to be good administrators of the talents and the material resources God has given you.
Following this example that we see in our Lord, who is our model, I preach that detachment is self-dominion. It is not a noisy and showy beggarliness, nor is it a mask for laziness and neglect. You should dress in accordance with the demands of your social standing, your family background, your work⌠as your companions do, but to please God: eager to present a genuine and attractive image of true Christian living. Do everything with naturalness, without being extravagant I can assure you that in this matter it is better to err on the side of excess than to fall short. How do you think our Lord dressed? Havenât you pictured to yourself the dignity with which he wore his seamless cloak which had probably been woven for him by our Lady? Donât you remember how, in Simonâs house, he was grieved because he had not been offered water to wash with before taking his place at the table? No doubt he drew attention to this example of bad manners to underline his teaching that love is shown in little details. But he also wants to make it clear that he stands by the social customs of his time, and therefore you and I must make an effort to be detached from the goods and comforts of the world, but without doing anything that looks odd or peculiar.
Poverty in our Centres.
The personal poverty we practise is part and parcel of our corporate poverty. When I read in St Luke how our Lord misit illos praedicare regnum Dei et sanare infirmos, he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal; and how he told them nolite portare sacculum neque peram neque calceamenta, carry no purse nor bag nor sandals, I get very moved indeed.
Because in these early years, just as our Lord sent his disciples out, I am sending my children out to open up new apostolates: as poor as the first disciples, with our Lordâs blessing from heaven and mine here on earth.
In the Centres of the Work too, which are Christian family homes, we live in poverty, in accordance with our secular vocation, although some people cannot understand this. What they are used to, our Father wrote, years ago, is that any foundation which calls itself Catholic is a gloomy-looking place, with no sort of homely warmth, and the kind of cleanliness, if at all, that youâd find in a hospital or barracks. They seem not to have homes of their own, because they just canât understand that Opus Dei houses are our home. This is why there is warmth and flowers, the place is clean and well-cared for, and there is a lovely family atmosphere about it. But there are no riches in our houses at all
Donât allow people to call our cleanliness riches. If there is anything valuable in our houses it is in the oratories, for the service of God, for divine worship. Everything else is welcoming, simple and cheerful, with Godâs grace and your own simple good taste. You make every Centre and every house into an attractive place which suits the purpose itâs intended for: a place for apostolate and a peaceful family home, where Godâs children can live and rest.
The lay, secular way we practise poverty is detailed for us by our Founder as follows: As far as I am concerned, one of the signs that weâre aware of being lords of the earth and Godâs faithful administrators is the care we take of the things we use: keeping them in good condition, making them last, and getting the best out of them, so that they serve their purpose for as long as possible and donât get spoilt or go to waste. In the Centres of Opus Dei you will find the decoration simple, attractive and, above all, clean, because poverty in a home is not to be confused with bad taste or with dirt.
Our Blessed Lady did all she could to keep her little house in Nazareth looking nice; she kept Jesusâ and Josephâs clothes clean, and the cooking things well scrubbed. We ask her to make sure that this same way of practising the virtue of poverty may always shine out in our personal lives and in the life of our Centres.