Mid-week Meditation: Hope And Consolation

Spes, Esperanza, Espoir, Speranza, Mieć nadzieję, Ελπίδα, Pag-asa, Надеяться, 希望, आशा, Tumaini

The person who experiences consolation never gives up in the face of difficulties because he or she always experiences a peace that is stronger than any trial. | Pope Francis

We cannot come to a conclusion about the state of our soul from its suffering or its rejoicing…Consolation indicates, certainly, that the soul has taken a step in the spiritual life, but desolation may be a sign that it is even nearer to the summit. | Jennie Ewing, The Four Consolations of the Holy Spirit

Hope is a lush garden wherein peace resides. Without the nurturing water of God's grace, the edges grow rigid and turn into a wall, casting shadows. The heart risks becoming hardened and lifeless, leaving one paralyzed and lost as negativity creeps in. Weeds of irrationality take over, choking the flowers.

In a recent article, Jenny Ewing at Catholic Exchange (2SEPT2020) provides a brief but beautiful commentary on True Devotion to the Holy Spirit by His Grace Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956), Archbishop of Mexico City. (Edited for length.)

• https://catholicexchange.com/the-four-consolations-of-the-holy-spirit/

Consolations and desolations, much like the seasons, cycle throughout our lives. One often precedes another. God usually showers a soul with consolations in order to strengthen it for an upcoming desert period, but desolations also give way to surges of comfort, too.

The Consolation of Freedom

“If we are not happy, it is because we are not free, because we carry chains we may be unaware of or may even love” (p. 213, Martinez, True Devotion to the Holy Spirit).

Freedom is a consolation of the Holy Spirit, even when we live in unusual, or even inhumane circumstances (think concentration camps and gulags). Viktor Frankl, a psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor, wrote in his classic, Man’s Search for Meaning, that no one can take away one’s interior freedom to choose.

Free will is the ultimate gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Consolation of Union

“…A very solid, intimate consolation, a consolation that makes us forget the troubles of life, or at least enfolds them in the splendor of celestial happiness: the consolation of union” (p. 214, Martinez, ibid.).

It’s hard to breathe some days, isn’t it? When the world overwhelms and our minds are spinning so fast we scarcely have a moment to pause and pray, we feel like we might collapse. I have.

On several occasions, the Holy Spirit intercedes. I am on the brink of a breakdown, and suddenly I catch a glimpse of an unusual bird in our backyard. Or one of my children says something witty. Or a friend stops by with a basket of treats and gifts. (...)

The Consolation of Hope

“If we live the Christian life, we have in our heart ‘the substance of things to be hoped for’ (Heb. 11:1)…And we rejoice in our hope, not only because we trust in the promise of God, but also because we carry within us the guarantee of its fulfillment” (p. 215, Martinez, ibid.).

Sometimes hope is all we have left. The world is in shambles with political polarization, rioting and wars, poverty and corruption, uncertainty with the global health crisis, and personal trials. People are still dying from cancer, struggling with substance abuse, and barely scraping by financially.

Where is the hope?

I think of the moments when I remember the good, beautiful, and true. They still exist. Sometimes we have to look hard to find them, but they are peeking through the cracked bits of our lives. For me, it is the fidelity of a sunrise, the hearty evensong of a backyard cardinal, or a memory of God’s providence.

The Consolation of Pain

“Pain enlightens; there are things we do not comprehend unless we have suffered, because grief sheds some special celestial light over our spirit” (p. 244, Martinez, ibid.).

It can be perplexing to consider pain a consolation from God. I know no one who looks for pain as a sign of God’s favor, though many saints wisely attributed their sufferings to deeper love of God. We don’t really grasp the depth of Jesus’ sacrifice for us until we, too, have suffered in some way.

Suffering can draw us nearer to God’s heart. When my physical and psychological pain cause me great pain, I turn to God all the more. I don’t always hear His voice or feel relief, but I look to the Cross and remember that there is a mysterious purpose for my struggles in this life. Therein lies the consolation.

We must remember that seasons of consolation prepare us for the dry spells in our spiritual walk. Both are gifts. Consolations may come in one of these four unexpected ways, which often seem more like aspects of desolation than comfort. As with many aspects of the Christian life, sufferings and joys mingle together, so that they become indistinguishable from each other.

All of life is bittersweet. And it is good.

Hope and resilience.

Maya Angelou, excerpt from Still I Rise.

You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

The speaker in Angelou's poem refuses the outcome envisioned by a malevolent force. The righteous person, certain of truth, rises to face the challenge and defy the "bitter, twisted lies." Despite injustices, the speaker will rise. As Pope Francis reminds, "The person who experiences consolation never gives up in the face of difficulties because he or she always experiences a peace that is stronger than any trial."

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lopLm7epBg&t=10s

Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries?

ibid.

Is the speaker simply mocking an unidentified persecutor? The author is expressing the confidence of someone who knows that no one can take away their inner freedom. The struggles are real. The desolation is real. Strengthened by the truth, a free individual can uphold their own dignity without belittling others.

You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes,

You may kill me with your hatefulness,

But still, like air, I’ll rise.

ibid.

It is all too easy to be consumed by our wounds and to view the world through a lens of anguish and anger. The saying goes: holding a grudge is like drinking the poison and expecting the other person to die. A grudge is fundamentally irrational. In the Sacrament of Penance, we find God waiting for us with an unfathomable love, a love of living water that cleanses the sin that clings to and burdens the heart. God gives grace to those who open their hearts to Him.

Be honest and kind with yourself and others.

Let us be mindful of our ongoing need for perspective in spiritual and temporal matters. The most effective place to gain perspective is in the confessional. There, in the Sacrament of Penance, we encounter the truth and mercy of God. This sacred space provides us an opportunity to reveal our innermost thoughts and actions to help us acquire a deeper understanding of ourselves and our relationships. In turn, this clarity can steer our interactions, encouraging compassion and humility in our daily lives.

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

ibid.

We can nurture 'perspective making' by steering clear of gossip and unnecessary distractions, and by dedicating time daily for self-reflection and a thoughtful examination of conscience. 

Lord Jesu, by Thy grace, grant me to behold this day as Thou dost. Guide me to discern the impediments I have set against Thy peace, truth, love, and hope. Vouchsafe unto me the ability to ponder upon my thoughts and deeds as Thou seest my life, and aid me to render thanks for Thy blessings, or to repent of any trespasses. Amen.

What sparks creativity, fosters kindness, and cultivates generosity? For starters, prayer. It opens us to God, the One who created us and knows us better than we know ourselves.

Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh (1914-2003)

First of all, it is very important to remember that prayer is an encounter and a relationship, a relationship which is deep, and this relationship cannot be forced either on us or on God. The fact that God can make himself present or can leave us with the sense of his absence is part of this live and real relationship.

If we could mechanically draw him into an encounter, force him to meet us, simply because we have chosen this moment to meet him, there would be no relationship and no encounter. We can do that with an image, with the imagination, or with the various idols we can put in front of us instead of God; we can do nothing of the sort with the living God, any more then we can do it with a living person. Our relationship must begin and develop in mutual freedom.

As the saying goes, "pray as you can, not as you cannot." The Rosary is a magnificent prayer. Many find solace in the Daily Office, i.e., Mattins and Evensong. Whatever path you feel drawn to, make yourself available to God.

Do not fear what may happen tomorrow. The same loving Father who cares for you today will care for you tomorrow and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace, then, and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginings. | Saint Francis de Sales

Pope Leo, at the Jubilee of Consolation 2025 (Vatican News):

https://www.youtube.com/live/pp0D-xkn1RI

“In times of darkness, even when all outward appearances suggest otherwise, God does not abandon us,” he said. “Rather, it is precisely in these moments that we are invited more than ever to place our hope in the closeness of the Savior who never forsakes us.”

The Pope noted that those who suffer look around for someone to offer some form of consolation, but often find no one.

At times, he added, tears are the only consolation we find, a consolation of which he said we should never be ashamed, since they express our weak and tested humanity’s silent cry.

We may find ourselves questioning the nature of evil and how God can let evil exist. Yet, said the Pope, we should turn to Sacred Scripture to help us journey from questioning to faith.

If we turn our questions into pleas and supplications for justice and peace from God, we turn our hope to Jesus, who is the bridge between God and humanity.

“Consolation is found when faith stands ‘firm and stable,’ where it was once ‘unformed and hesitant’ like a boat in a storm,” said Pope Leo. “Where there is evil, we must seek the comfort and consolation that can overcome it and give it no respite.”

The Pope noted that the testimonies of Ms. Foley and Ms. Di Mauro Montanino reveal the truth that “pain must not give rise to violence,” since love can conquer hatred.

Forgiveness, he said, offers us a foretaste of the Kingdom of God on earth, breaking the cycle of evil and establishing justice grounded in God’s mercy.

“The Church, some of whose members have unfortunately hurt you, kneels with you today before our Mother,” he said. “May we all learn from her to protect the most vulnerable with tenderness!”

Pope Leo XIV invited everyone to allow God to comfort us in our pain, rather than relying on our own strength of will.

“Our loved ones who have been separated from us by sister death are not lost and do not fade into the void,” he said. “Their lives belong to the Lord, the Good Shepherd, who embraces them and holds them close.”

Stay close to Jesus, the Lamb of God that takest away the sins of the world. Jesus is our hope and consolation.

The Collect for Peace

O GOD, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed; Give unto thy servants that peace which the world cannot give; that both our hearts may be set to obey thy commandments, and also that by thee, we, being defended from the fear of our enemies, may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.