Tea at Trianon: Spiritual Armor

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, June 9, 2014

Spiritual Armor

How bad relationships can make us spiritually vulnerable. To quote:

As the Catechism teaches, demonic temptation, oppression, obsession and possession all aim at the demonic goal of associating a person with the devil’s revolt against God. The fallen angels refused to serve God and his plan of salvation. The perennial revolt is against the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ sent to be Savior of humanity. Therefore, let us deepen our devotion and gratitude for the greatest gift of the Incarnation!

The greatest spiritual armor you can possess is your intimate relationship with the Person of Jesus Christ who is Lord! The deeper your relationship with Jesus Christ becomes, the greater strength you have to resist the devil and his works because it is Christ in you—the indwelt Spirit of the Living God that defends you from evil.

The most important step to being protected from the evil one or to become free from his grip is to solidify our relationship with the Person of Jesus Christ. How? Through sacramental life: more Holy Communions (assuming one is in the state of grace), Confessions and prayer: the Holy Rosary, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, the Liturgy of the Hours, more scripture and spiritual reading, more retreats, spiritual direction, more fellowship at the parish or cenacles of prayer, more service to the poor, greater charity in the home toward spouses, children, parents, siblings. These are the living stones that build a strong spiritual edifice around our hearts.

We must guard the heart for God alone. Who and what fill your heart? Who and what occupy your thoughts? Evil spirits enter and exit through our five human senses and prudence requires that we guard these always. The structure of the five sense organs of the human body is: vision, hearing, smell, taste and touch. What are you looking at, hearing, tasting or touching? Invite God into each sense area asking Him to continually sanctify your senses. (Read more.)