1 CHRISTIAN HUMAN FORMATION Women of Prayer St. Martin’s Parish Gaithersburg Presented by Father Avelino Gonzalez 16 August 2008

2 STAGES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE STAGES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE Religious psychology recognizes a spiritual “evolution” in three stages:  1. The preliminary unity of the human person; fragile and unstable  2. The conflict between the spiritual and the material  3. Final integration of the human person  The spiritual life in the human person begins with an unexpected event or “birth” called conversion (“born from above” John 3:3)  Described as a turning point where there is an illumination of the conscience as to the insufficiency of the previous life  Produces a spiritual “springtime” in the interior life that brings uncompromised joy  Brings awareness of profound filial love from the Father  This experience however produces a spiritual shadow on the soul as one’s own Cross becomes clearly evident  Involves painful tension between two states that seek to exclude the other  Brutal experience of falls and impotency causes one to cry out that God is too demanding; that our Cross is heavier than everyone else’s.  Habit of obedience and trust eventually makes the Cross lighter

3 The Holy Family is Model of Christian Life Spiritual Intellectual Relational Apostolic Mary = Woman, Spouse, Mother = Marian Heart St. Joseph = Man, Husband, Father = Josephite Heart Child Jesus = Youth, Son = Heart of the Child Jesus Relational Spiritual Intellectual Apostolic Four Pillars of Human Formation Four Pillars of Human Formation Personal Relationship with Jesus Christ

4 RELATIONAL PILLAR Dealing with other human beings on an individual level  Become a bridge for others to meet Christ  Develop interpersonal skills for apostolic work  Show respect for every person:  A sense of justice  Genuine compassion  Become affable, hospitable, open and encouraging to others; Be forgiving and consoling  Know ourselves: be aware of the social and cultural atmosphere in which we have been conditioned

5 RELATIONAL PILLAR (cont)  Correct our notions of authentic love through a personal love for Jesus Christ  Develop a clear and strong understanding of authentic freedom  Self mastery over selfishness and individualism  Openness to others  Generosity in service to others

6 SPIRITUAL PILLAR Communion with God and searching for Christ  Spiritual formation is:  The core of becoming a fully integrated person. “Our hearts are restless until they rest in the Lord” (St. Augustine, Confessions)“Our hearts are restless until they rest in the Lord” (St. Augustine, Confessions)  Ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit  Consists in a deep communion with Jesus Christ: A filial attitude towards the FatherA filial attitude towards the Father A trustful attitude towards the ChurchA trustful attitude towards the Church

7 SPIRITUAL PILLAR (cont)  Union with God is achieved by a consistent and unceasing search for Him:  Faithful meditation on the Word of God  Active participation in the Church’s holy mysteries  Service of charity towards the “little ones”

8 SPIRITUAL PILLAR (cont)  Knowledge of the Word of God:  Makes conversation with God easy  Detaches us from evil  Nourishes our heart with the thoughts of God  Results in our evaluating persons, things, events and problems through the lens of faith  Leads to a life inspired and motivated by Jesus Christ  Prayer is:  The first and fundamental manner of responding to the Word of God  A dialogue that becomes a sharing in the filial conversation between Jesus and the Father

9 SPIRITUAL PILLAR (cont)  The Eucharist is the high point of Christian prayer. It is the summit and source of the sacraments.  It is necessary and urgent to rediscover the beauty and joy of the Sacrament of Penance.

10 INTELLECTUAL PILLAR Understanding the Faith and participating in the light of God’s mind  To seek to acquire a wisdom which is open to and directed towards knowing and adhering to God  To defend the Faith and to account for the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:15)  To form critical discernment in a culture that is marked by relativism and pluralism.  To engage in apostolic ministries

11 INTELLECTUAL PILLAR (cont)  The study of philosophy and theology:  Is crucial to intellectual formation  Leads to deeper understanding and interpretation of the human person  Develops a reflective awareness of the relationship between the human spirit and truth  Human sciences are of considerable use to the understanding of man and the development of society.

12 APOSTOLIC PILLAR To make the faithful true servants of God after our Lord Jesus Christ, the Suffering Servant  All the pillars of Christian human formation must fundamentally have an apostolic character:  How to represent Christ to humanity  How to transform the world into the Kingdom of Heaven—the most basic obligation of being a child of God

13 APOSTOLIC PILLAR (cont)  Apostolic formation develops by means of:  Mature reflection  Practical application  Being rooted in the Holy Spirit  Apostolic action:  Enlivens the Church  For the faithful, is first exercised in the context of the local parish Building up of the local parish community takes precedence, but does not exclude apostolic activities outside the local parish Building up of the local parish community takes precedence, but does not exclude apostolic activities outside the local parish All parish apostolic work should be subject to the local pastor All parish apostolic work should be subject to the local pastor