Franciscan at Home

“Yo he venido para que tengan vida, y para que la tengan en abundancia.” Juan 10,10

Al colaborar con Jesús en el pastoreo del rebaño en Su Nombre, ¿qué aspecto tiene la abundancia para ti? Con el paso de los años, a través del coacheo directo y al impartir talleres y retiros, hemos identificado las ocho mejores prácticas para tener una vida en abundancia como agente de pastoral.

1. Toma tu cruz y síguelo a Él.
Los tres Evangelios sinópticos incluyen este mandamiento aleccionador de parte de Nuestro Señor (ver Mateo 16, 24-26; Marcos 8,34; y Lucas 9,24). Jesús, como el mejor de los psicólogos, ofrece este consejo, no como una realidad oscura y opresora, sino como una forma para comprender cómo ser un agente de pastoral efectivo. Hay que notar que Jesús dice “toma tu cruz”. Tantas veces en nuestro apostolado, cedemos a la tentación por tomar la cruz de otra persona, pero esto no es el mandamiento de nuestro Señor amoroso. Hay una delgada línea entre ayudar a alguien y cargarle la cruz por esta persona. Debemos orar para pedir la sabiduría para distinguir esta delgada línea, para que no estemos cargando las cruces de los demás.

Además, en los libros sinópticos, hay que fijarse en lo que hace Jesús a continuación. ¡Se lleva a Pedro, Santiago y a Juan y se transfigura delante de ellos (ver Mateo 17, Marcos 9, y Lucas 9,28)! El Señor nos ordena a que tomemos nuestra cruz y que lo sigamos – ¡hacia la Transfiguración! Todas las cruces que cargamos, cuando se unen a la única Cruz de Cristo, resultarán en unas resurrecciones específicas; esa es la garantía divina cuando tomamos nuestra cruz y lo sigamos.

Para reflexionar: ¿Cuáles son tus cruces particulares? ¿Sueles responsabilizarte por las cruces de las personas que pastoreas? ¿Cómo puede Jesús ayudarte a encontrar el equilibrio?

2. Sana tus heridas mayores.
Hay dos respuestas a toda herida física, psicológica, o espiritual: resurrección o infección. Escoge sabiamente. Todo agente de pastoral tiene sus heridas – pequeñas y grandes – en su vida. Es necesario que nos dirijamos con toda intencionalidad a las heridas principales y que permitamos al Espíritu Santo a que las sane para no herir a los demás por estas heridas personales. Los agentes de pastoral que han sanado sanan (por la resurrección), y los agentes de pastoral lastimados lastiman (por infección). Jesús quiere que le dediquemos el tiempo y los recursos necesarios para considerar y sanar las heridas mayores que originaron en nuestra familia de nacimiento, nuestro pasado y nuestro presente.

Típicamente, las heridas se suscitan en el marco de relaciones inseguras, entonces la sanación se dará dentro de unas relaciones seguras. En nuestra vida, estas relaciones han sido: la dirección espiritual, el coacheo católico (y los mejores coaches se dejan enseñar), y terapia de salud mental (los mejores terapeutas están abiertos a la terapia).

No le damos entrada a quienquiera a nuestro santuario de sufrimiento. Tenemos que ejercer prudencia. Un buen lugar para comenzar a sanar heridas mayores es con un sacerdote o diácono de nuestra confianza. Si no puede, o no tiene la capacidad para hacer este viaje contigo, pregunta si conoce un buen director espiritual o terapeuta católico. Si no le pueden recomendar a uno, llama a tu oficina diocesana para el matrimonio y la familia; a menudo esta oficina tiene una lista de terapeutas que han ganado su confianza a lo largo de los años. Al pasar por el proceso de sanación, hay motivos de gran esperanza, con base en lo que leemos en Romanos 8,28: “Sabemos que para los que aman a Dios, todas las cosas cooperan para bien, esto es, para los que son llamados conforme a su propósito.”

San Pablo conocía el poder de las heridas en su vida. Conocía la vergüenza consecuencia del fervor con el que perseguía a los cristianos. Experimentó la traición, pruebas y sufrimientos extremos en su ministerio. Mas, sin embargo, tenía la fe, la osadía, y la valentía para escribir que todas las cosas cooperan para bien. En otras palabras, no son solamente las cosas buenas que hago que le sirven a Dios, sino que todas las cosas cooperan para el bien en el caso de los que aman a Dios. Esta es una garantía divina de que todas tus heridas pasadas y presentes pueden cooperar para bien.

Para reflexionar: ¿Existe algunas heridas importantes psicológicas o espirituales en tu vida que te pide el Espíritu Santo que sanes?

As you partner with Jesus to minister in his name, what does abundance look like for you? Over the years, through direct coaching and providing workshops and retreats, we have identified the following eight best practices for living abundantly as a minister.

1. Take up your cross and follow him.
All three synoptic gospels include this sobering commandment from our Lord (see Matthew 16:24-26, Mark 8:34, and Luke 9:24). Jesus, as the best psychologist, offers this advice not as a dark, oppressive reality, but as a way to understand how to be an effective minister. Note that Jesus says “take up your cross.” So many times in ministry, we are tempted to take up another person’s cross, but this is not the commandment of our loving Lord. There is a fine line between helping someone and actually carrying their cross. We must pray for wisdom to see this fine line, so that we are not carrying the crosses of others.

Furthermore, in all three synoptics, notice what Jesus does next. He takes Peter, James, and John and is transfigured before them (see Matthew 17, Mark 9, and Luke 9:28)! The Lord commands us to take up our cross and follow him—to the transfiguration! All the crosses we personally carry, when united to the one cross of Christ, will result in specific resurrections; that is a divine guarantee when we take up our cross and follow him.

For reflection: What personal crosses do you carry? Do you tend to take responsibility for the crosses of the people to whom you minister? How can Jesus help you find balance?

2. Heal your major wounds.
There are two responses to any physical, psychological, or spiritual wound: resurrection or infection. Choose wisely. Every minister has major and minor wounds in life. We need to intentionally address the major wounds and allow the Holy Spirit to heal them so we don’t hurt others with them. Healed ministers heal (through the resurrection), and hurting ministers hurt (through infection). Jesus wants us to devote the time and resources necessary to address and heal the major wounds from our family of origin, our past and present.

Typically, wounds happen in unsafe relationships, so the healing will happen in safe relationships. In our lives, these relationships have been: spiritual direction, Catholic coaching (the best coaches are coachable), and mental health therapy (the best therapists are open to therapy).

We don’t admit anyone into our sanctuary of suffering. We need to be judicious. A good place to begin to heal major wounds is with a trusted priest or deacon. If they are unable or not equipped to journey with you, ask if they know of a good spiritual director or Catholic therapist. If they do not, call your diocesan office of marriage and family; many times this office has a list of therapists who have earned trust over the years. As you go through the healing process, there is cause for great hope based on Romans 8:28 “All things work together for the good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose.”

St. Paul knew the power of wounds in his life. He knew shame as a result of his previous zeal for persecuting Christians. He experienced betrayal and extreme trial and suffering in ministry. And yet, he had the faith, the audacity, and the courage to write that all things work for the good. In other words, not just the good things I do can be used by God, but all things work for the good for those who love God. This is a divine guarantee that all your past and present wounds can work for the good.

For reflection: Are there any major psychological or spiritual wounds in your life that the Holy Spirit is asking you to heal?

Peter Kreeft writes his own reflective poem on the following poem by Christopher Derrick:

He's a terror, that one:

Turns water into wine,

Wine into blood—

I wonder what He turns blood into?

“We, the ordinary people of the streets, believe with all our might that this street, this world, where God has placed us, is our place of holiness.”

A brief survey of our world should be evidence enough that we are sorely in need of virtue. In need of a disposition for the good, beautiful, and true, as well as strength to choose them over what is bad, ugly, and false. Even within our own personal lives, the call to holiness requires both supernatural grace (what God does) and human virtue (what we do to participate in becoming who God made us to be). One of the principal responsibilities of any parent, teacher, or catechist is to help form their children/students with a vision of what a virtuous life looks like and how to acquire and grow in virtue. Most of us are familiar with the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, as well as the cardinal virtues of prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude that build from and are strengthened by the theological virtues. However, many are not as familiar with virtue of magnanimity: the virtue of desiring and doing great things

In early April 2018, Pope Francis released his Apostolic Exhortation Rejoice and Be Glad, in which he invites us to respond generously to God’s invitation to holiness of life. We are called to be holy disciples of the Lord; but we need to learn from the witness of saints who have gone before us, not just officially canonized saints but also saintly people next door or in our extended family.

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God is always at work in the hearts of his children. When catechists become aware of the mystery of the Triune God at work in the hearts of the children we serve, we naturally respond with humility and a desire for greater obedience to God, the Master Catechist.

Sofia Cavalletti and Gianna Gobbi, cofounders of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd knew how to bow before the mystery of God at work in children, as is evident from this quote they wrote in a letter to catechists in Canada:

"It happens that in being with children we will sense the presence of a force, mysterious and silent, which does not belong to us, and we will treasure it as an inestimable privilege to be granted at times to “see” it working within the child. As Elijah did on Mount Horeb when he heard the “tiny, whispering sound,” at moments like this we too will want to “cover our face” in beholding the presence of God" (1Kgs 19:13).[i]

If we fail to acknowledge the reality of this always-present mystery, we are tempted to rely on our own education, training, experience, or skills as catechists to produce something we can measure. Rather than bow in humble obedience before God’s mysterious ways, we may become frustrated at not being able to share all we know. An inordinate focus on our own successes or failures as catechists impedes our growth in humility, an essential virtue in our work.

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