Dear Friends in Christ:
I hope you and your loved ones have recovered from Hurricane Beryl. Please remember to pray for all of our Gulf Coast neighbors impacted by the storm. While our area was not as severely impacted as others, we all know what storms and floods can do. That is why we always pray for safety from storms and hurricanes. While natural disasters such as the recent hurricane can bring disruption and destruction, they can also bring and shine a light on the good. One of the good things that such disasters can bring about is the better part of our humanity. Neighbor helping neighbor is a good blessing. How many wonderful incidents have taken place in the last days because of the goodness and charity of so many? People welcoming neighbors into their homes; neighbors, friends, and even strangers, helping to clean up and make repairs, are beautiful examples of care for others. These acts of charity and goodness can never be mandated or replaced by government fiat, program, or policy (as beneficial and needed as they are). These acts of love come from the human heart.
Another good that so often accompanies these times of trial is a greater appreciation of how blessed we are. Turn off the power for a few days and we discover how blessed we are to live in a time and place with air conditioning and so many conveniences. My family did not have air conditioning in our home until I was in High School! In school, every student learned how to write and do schoolwork without getting our paper damp from perspiration! Still another “blessing” is when we have to toss spoiled food from the freezer. How is that a blessing? While it is never good to waste food, it does remind us of the abundance we have when so many others around the world do not even have food to survive. While none of us desire or like it when the power goes out, it can be a time for working on our patience and gratitude. Getting angry and cursing the dark never works. Recognizing that, in a sense, we are helpless in the situation, and knowing that there are thousands of people working at all hours of the day and night and that many are away from their homes and families, should turn our anger into understanding and our helplessness into gratitude.
Disasters are trials. They are tests to see who we really are. Are we for real or do we just talk? In life, like school, “cramming at the last minute and hoping for the best” is not a very good strategy for success. Practice and forming good habits on the other hand are great keys to success. The way to deal with life in times of trial is to keep our priorities straight and practice the virtues every day. If our priorities are properly ordered in the good times, they will be there to help us in times of trouble. What are the priorities that God gives us for our true happiness in this world and in the next? God First, Others Second and then Ourselves (Mt 22:38-39). When these are our priorities in daily life, we can more easily live the virtues of Prudence, Justice, Temperance, Fortitude, Faith, Hope and Love! The Catechism teaches us that “A virtue is a habitual and firm disposition to do the good.” (CCC #1803). Being virtuous and living a virtuous life is its own reward but it also pays dividends!
Stay cool and be holy!
In Pace Christi,
Fr. Troy