(written in 2003)
I was
so glad to hear the news on the beatification of Fr. James Albeione this coming
spring. He was the founder of the Daughters of St. Paul, whose mission is to
proclaim the Good News through mass communication.
When I think of Fr. Alberione, the first thing coming to my mind is the virtue of obedience. Among the three religious vows, obedience is considered a spiritual way of listening to an inner voice for the sake of God’s will. Obedience is to seek and practice the better cause which can be expressed as love, compassion, goodness, justice, and kindness.
There are two kinds of obedience: obedience as docility and obedience as fantasy. It is necessary to keep the balance between these. Obedience as docility (or docile and faithful obedience) is simply explained as obedience humbly following God’s will without serious inner resistance, conflict, or confrontation. Obedience as fantasy (or fantastic and creative obedience) means the utmost positive, active, and responsible participation toward creation. Fantastic obedience accompanies considerable pain because it demands self-denial, perseverance, and sacrifice. These two kinds of obedience are intertwined in the process of discernment toward God’s will. In other words, God’s will is realized by means of both docile obedience and fantastical obedience.
I think Fr. James Alberione practiced both meanings of obedience. His docile obedience is revealed by his strong conviction of divine providence throughout his life. His constant total trust in the hands of God has clearly been revealed in his autobiographical writings called “AD” (Abundantes Divitiae Gratiae Suae), the charismatic history of the Pauline Family. His docile obedience is deeply rooted in his faith. Especially on the night that divided the 19th century and the 20th century, he spent four hours in the Cathedral of Alba in Italy in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Then, a special light came from the Blessed Sacrament: “Come to me all of you.” He firmly believed that the Pauline Family was born from God’s will.
He also showed his gentle trust in God’s will in many ways. He even wrote in the so-called “promissory note” that “Seek first the kingdom of God and his justice. All else will be given you besides.” It was the pact of alliance between God and the community. He knew how to trust in God: “There are always so many imperfections, defects, errors, gaps, and doubts in man’s actions that he has to place everything in the hands of divine mercy and let himself be guided. He should never force the hand of providence!” He always asked himself, “Is this necessary? Do I have the right intention? Would we do this if we were at the point of death?” If the answers were in the affirmative, trust was put in God.
The above-mentioned absolute confidence in the divine providence made his life of obedience easier. However, obedience was not always easy and simple for him. There were many difficult moments in the history of the Pauline Family that he founded. Even though he didn’t directly mention the conflict coming from the fantastical obedience, I can observe some tension between his inner confrontation and his firm trust leading to the docile obedience. His fantastical obedience is revealed in three dimensions – fantastical obedience while listening to a voice in a dream or prayer; fantastical obedience moving from attachment to detachment; fantastical obedience living a life of sacrifice and waiting.
We sometimes dream a dream when we have to decide on something difficult, serious, important, or crucial in our lives. It was during the hard trial of his illness, during the first years of his undertaking when Fr. Alberione heard the voice of the divine master being with him always. Listening to a voice in a dream or prayer in the midst of difficulties is surely one example of fantastical obedience. When he had to undergo the strongest pain, he had a dream and listened to God’s voice to persevere.
The pain always remained like a thorn fixed in his heart, but he didn’t lose it. He also heard that “You can make a mistake, but I never do. The vocations come only from me, not from you.” In a dream he had afterward, he felt he was given an answer. Jesus said, “Do not be afraid, I am with you. From here I will cast light. Be sorry for sins.”
Fr. Alberione’s fantastical obedience on the way from attachment to detachment is clearly seen in the following three events. The first event was about the entrance of the seminary. He had to quit the seminary of Bra because the seminary didn’t accept him. He was truly humiliated to stay at home for the time being and then enter another seminary. However, he didn’t give up his goal to be a priest and accepted all the situations. He pursued God’s will to the end in spite of people’s various responses.
The second event was about his work. It was not easy for Alberione to leave his work at the service of the diocese under the guidance of Bishop Re. When the Bishop advised him to leave so as to dedicate himself wholly to the congregation, he felt sorry and wept especially because he was attached to the diocesan work of publishing a newspaper. Nevertheless, he accepted God’s will.
The third heroic obedience was given when the Sacred Congregation for Religious advised him to merge the Sister Disciples of the Divine Master with the Daughters of St. Paul. Fr. Alberione actually planned to have two distinct Congregations. However, in communicating the Decree of the Holy See to the Sister Disciples, he said in his letter as follows: “To us, nothing is sweeter, surer, and more meritorious than obedience: this time it concerns a great act of obedience!”
He was certain about God’s will regarding the Sister Disciples. Even though the disposition of the Church was unfavorable, he chose the surest path – obedience – without hesitation. After the trial, he later had the joy of seeing the plan that was so dear to him realized in full. Thus, his humility and endurance were rewarded. It was really the victory of fantastic obedience.
Fr. Alberione’s fantastical obedience in the acts of sacrifice and waiting is clearly seen in the history of the Pauline Family. Our congregations had to endure in many ways to be recognized with each specific mission. Each congregation is the result of continual sacrifice, dedication, waiting, painful wavering, offering, hard work, and prayer. He was truly a man of docile and fantastic obedience. No matter how difficult it is, he accepted various situations with courage and trust.
His life of obedience was truly faithful and creative at the same time. He first prayed and made others pray. He consulted others and obeyed. He always tried to find out the way to be sure what was God’s will. When he was sure that God wanted it, he didn’t hesitate anymore. When a contrary opinion was expressed, he said with a serenity that “it’s a matter of different viewpoint.” His followers also didn’t a question but obeyed when they knew his desire.
The
Korea Times/ Thoughts of the Times/ Feb. 5, 2003
No comments:
Post a Comment