Today’s spiritual reading is on the interior life of Legionaries. When we were preparing for the formation of Curiae officers, we also discussed on how to discern the grace of God; when we contact other people, how should we start our conversation, what should we say? Discernment must be of good quality to achieve perfection. If we need to pursue holiness, it means that we are not yet at the state of perfection, what should we do? “Interior life means one’s thoughts, desires and affections converge on our Lord. The model for achieving this is Our Blessed Lady …… charity grew in Mary during her whole life”. The first thing we have to do is to read the Bible, and the best way is to read the Handbook in conjunction with the Bible. We should apply the Lord’s teachings in our daily lives so that we can practise the Word of God which conceals the wisdom of life. In today’s Gospel, it mentioned “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” which are no longer applicable. To be holy is to love, love everyone. Selfishness and partiality today make people only aware of their own self, there are many human weaknesses in our daily lives, the root of which is in the heart. When people’s hearts are directed to their own self, that will be the root of evil. If people’s hearts are directed towards God, that will be the source of all goodness. Hence, we need to “glorify God”, and only through “glorifying God” can we convert people’s hearts. Since we have already joined the Legion of Mary, the more we need is to “glorify God” so as to sanctify ourselves. God’s love is without boundary and unconditional, until we achieve ultimate happiness. We need to have the spirit of humility to achieve holiness. “All of holiness consists in the love of God, all of the love of God consists in doing his will.”
In the Comitium/Regia annual report, we can see the sharing of praesidia. Now that we have to lead all Legionaries in Hong Kong, and eventually, we need to go to Macau also, this is a daunting task! Prayer, mortification or self-denial, Sacraments can help us to convert people, as a follower of Christ and a Legionary, we have a heavy responsibility. The Legion of Mary is not a working organization but a spiritual group! Only if we can work hard to “glorify God”, God will naturally provide us with more members. Extension allows us to grow among the interaction of love, new members are the motivation for growth of a praesidium. The Handbook states: “All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love …… All the faithful are invited and obliged to holiness and the perfection of their own state of life. (LG40,42) Holiness is a practical attainment”. All parishioners are invited under different circumstances to respond to God’s calling, let us dedicate ourselves to “glorify God”, people will certainly be attracted to join the Legion of Mary. Let’s work hard and encourage each other!
Spiritual Director
Fr. Francis Tam
19 February 2023