352. Twenty-first Monday of Ordinary Time

Meditations no. 320 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

Our life is simple, ordinary.

Jesus continues to instruct the multitudes. Now he feels bound to forewarn his disciples against the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, who preach the commandments of Moses’ law without fulfilling them themselves: But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you shut the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who would enter to go in.

The Work teaches us sincerity and simplicity, and a disdain for pretence, since the spirit of Opus Dei is simple, candid and genuine. It is based on Sacred Scripture, which is inspired by God, who is infinitely simple and who says of himself that he is the true God, that he is truthful, that he is Truth itself.

Our dedication should have the naturalness and simplicity of souls who are unconditionally committed to fulfilling God’s will. We live amid the world’s activities, practising a profession not as a tactic, but because it is our chosen place in life. Ours is a call to seek the fullness of Christian life where we are, in our work most likely the same job we had before being in Opus Dei. We have no need to go into the world, since we have never left it; there God called us, and there we remain. A man of faith who practises a profession, whether intellectual, technical or manual, feels himself and is in fact at one with others; he is the same as others, with the same rights and obligations, the same desire to improve, the same interest in facing and solving common problems.

The Catholic who is prepared to live in this way will, through his daily life, give a proof of his faith, hope and charity: a simple and normal testimony without need of pomp and circumstance. The vitality of his life will show the constant presence of the Church in the world, since all Catholics are themselves the Church, because they are members in their own right of the one People of God.

What joy we feel as we contemplate the total naturalness of the early Christians. The difference between Christians and the rest of mankind is not a matter of nationality, language, or customs, says a writer of the time. Christians do not live apart in separate cities of their own, speak any special dialect, or practise any eccentric way of life. Our life is as simple as that. Its oddness is that it is not odd. We strive to live in accordance with our faith, without affectation of any kind. Our way of life and what we think are manifest to all.

Simplicity in our interior life.

Above all, our interior life should be simple. Without any pretence, we raise our hearts to God like little children. The Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. For us, our Father God’s loving gaze is a call to be simple and sincere in his presence. Lord, St Augustine asks, before whose eyes the abyss of man’s conscience lies naked, what thing within me could be hidden from you, even if I would not confess it to you? In all our dealings with God, we shun formality. It is true that piety has its own good manners, especially in the liturgy; but respect and reverence are no reason for coldness or artificiality. We put our whole heart into the Norms. That’s why, our Father wrote, I don’t like to use the word “observance” when speaking about fulfilling our duties of piety. You already know my criteria for private devotions. If they are long they should be forbidden. And if they are short - and few and constant - we should set them aside some days, with freedom of spirit, so that we never come to see them as an obligation and get scrupulous about omitting them.

Any unnecessary complication repels me. I like order and light, clean water and fresh air. The spirit of the Work leads us, by the hand we might say, to be interiorly simple.

I’m not very fond of solemnity, our Founder sometimes said. Our life is unceremonious, but consistent. And he urged us to be simple in the way we treat our Lord: Put your head frequently round the oratory door to say to Jesus: “I abandon myself in your arms.”

Leave everything you have - your wretchedness - at his feet.

In this way, in spite of the welter of things you carry along behind you, you will never lose your peace.

In our ascetical struggle we need to see ourselves as we really are. We need to accept our own limitations and realize that God sees them all and counts on them. We should not be dismayed at our weakness, since it leads us to lean humbly on God’s strong arm.

Naturalness towards those around us.

We are open about our ties to Opus Dei, since they come up frequently in our constant apostolate wherever we work. Relatives, friends and colleagues living and working alongside us soon learn, among other personal matters, that we belong to the Work. And we speak to them about it in ways they can understand. As with other families, our Father explained, there are certain minor things we don’t share with just anyone. Thus we follow the advice from the Book of Proverbs: secretum extraneo ne reveles, do not disclose a secret to a stranger. Because some things, while being very dear to us, for others could be an occasion for laughter and ridicule. Here too, in this house that we all belong to, there are quite minor things, usually quite edifying, which could be seen as a joke by people who do not belong to our Family.

For example, I usually tell such people: I bet you don’t know my fourth surname? Do I hide it from others? Is there something mysterious or dishonourable about it? No, not at all. I simply have no reason to tell you my grandmother’s maiden name. However, if one of my children were to ask, as you belong to my family, as you belong to the Work, I would answer straight away: “My fourth surname is Blanc” (our Father’s maternal grandmother’s name being Florencia Blanc).

But if someone else were to ask me, you can be sure I wouldn’t answer, or - at best - I might ask: “What does it matter to you anyway?”

Nor do we wear signs on our backs stating that we are good Christians, or are striving to be.

It would be childish to proclaim our inmost convictions to the four winds. And it would be unnatural, and inconsistent with the secular nature of our vocation, to expect to be treated by others or to let them treat us in a way that is different from that which is in keeping with our place in the world. Our calling determines our relationship with God and the Work; it does not define our status in society.

Naturalness leads us to act in conformity with our faith and to scorn duplicity in thought, word and deed. We do not hide our dedication or our faith, but neither do we make them a distinguishing feature of our life in society.

Precisely because of our secularism, our Father wrote, you’ll need courage - sometimes great courage, given the circumstances of our age - to make your faith present: “tangible” would be a better way of putting it. May people see your good works and noble purpose, even in the face of criticism or opposition, for there will always be those who get hold of the wrong end of the stick.

Bear witness to your faith without any pious display, by simply fulfilling your duties as Catholics and working people.

Live your Christian life naturally. Reflect Christ like a plain, clear mirror that doesn’t distort and produce a caricature. If you are plain and clear, like that mirror, you will reflect Christ’s life and you will pass it on to others. The life of our Lady was natural and simple, a faithful reflection of the life of Jesus. Let us learn from Mary how to follow her Son with the same straightforward simplicity.