Dear Friends,
Some of you have been asking me what will be our topics for reflection and discussion in the Cabrini Community. To be honest, we have just started putting together the ideas for reflection so we do not know what the topic will be a year from now. However, I can tell you that for the first year of Cabrini Community gatherings we will be preparing introductory videos, scripture reflections and questions to guide you through what would traditionally be called the Habits of Discipleship or Christian Virtues.
Philosophers over the centuries have described virtue as an “excellent trait of character. It is a disposition, well entrenched in its possessor—something that, as we say, goes all the way down, unlike a custom such as being a tea-drinker—to notice, expect, value, feel, desire, choose, act, and react in certain characteristic ways. To possess a virtue is to be a certain sort of person with a certain complex mindset.” Virtues or habits of discipleship do not happen by accident. They are formed in us and they are chosen by us just as any habit was at its very beginning. Like any habit, virtues may be difficult to practice at first. With regular practice the habit becomes easier and, in time, becomes a deep-down part of who you are so that it would be difficult to act against such a virtue or habit.
Through word and example, Jesus taught his disciples to live a certain way. St. Paul taught those who had become Christian by his teaching to live a certain way. Those teachings have been lived and held in high honor for two thousand years. We should be able to make a list of these virtues without much thought or be able to describe a Christian person easily. However, the reality is that we live in a world that is not dominated by Christian thought and often confuses the world’s teaching with Christian teaching. A good example of this is “busyness”. People will often say they are busy with a kind of pride, but can you imagine Jesus ever giving that answer – even though he was busy? Busy is not a Christian virtue.
What we will do, for at least the first year in our Cabrini Communities, is to hold individual Christian habits or virtues up to the light each month and invite your discussion and reflection on those virtues. We want to help you be regularly called back to the essence of your life in Christ. We want to help you find a group of companions who can help you recognize the manipulative ways of the world, to reject values based on possessions, accomplishments, social media hits, or physical looks. We want you to be able to celebrate things like a deep period of prayer, a true sabbath rest, a freeing act of forgiveness, or an unconditional act of charitable service.
We are not focusing on the Habits of Discipleship simply to give you one more thing to do in your long list of things. In fact, some of the Habits might be doing less rather than doing more. For in reality, the things you do as a disciple of Jesus are all about grace, God taking our little offering of time and action and using it to transform us into the people we were previously unable to be; people who desire to live lives of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22).
Spiritual habits — things like prayer, study and service — become ingrained into the habitual structures of our lives, but the real outcome we are looking for is the Spirit to flow freely throughout our lives. Habits are about the transformation of the human person into the image of Jesus Christ. And in time, we will become people able to respond to life as Jesus would if he were to live our lives.
Peace,
Fr. Damian