“The quality of a civilization is measured by the respect it has for its weakest members. There are no other criteria for judgment.”
these are the words of the “servant of God” Jerome Lejeune, a medical geneticist and the first president of the Pontifical Academy for Life. Lejeune researched the condition Trisomy 21 as the cause of Down Syndrome and was a leading voice along with Pope St. John Paul II in defending and promoting human life. He was a French pediatrician and geneticist who worked in the area of chromosome abnormalities. He opposed the use of amniocentesis prenatal testing for eugenic purposes, especially for elective abortions and sex-selection abortions.
At his September 22 Angelus Address from St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis spoke of “being great.” What did he mean by that? He explained that while people can get caught up in the pursuit of power and greatness, true power is found in the humility of being a servant to the most vulnerable. He offered this reflection based on the Gospel of that Sunday where the disciples were discussing who among them was the greatest. Their concept of what it meant to be great was about power and influence and so they were ashamed to reveal what they were speaking about to Our Lord. Then, Jesus reminds them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” It was then that Pope Francis posed the question, “Do you want to be great?” He then said, “Make yourself small, put yourself at the service of all.” By doing that, we renew ourselves as we care for the weakest among us. “True power is taking care of the weakest, this makes you great!”
‘LITTLE WAY’ OF HOLINESS
At the beginning of October, we celebrated the life and legacy of Saint Therese of Lisieux, October 1, who was all about littleness. In her convent life, she attempted to show her love not by great or heroic things, but by little actions done for God and her sisters. She struggled to come to this realization, because in her heart, she wanted to be heroic, courageous, and go to foreign lands to be martyred. Yet, at the young age of 15, she entered a cloistered Carmelite convent in Lisieux, France. Behind the convent walls, she still had a yearning in her heart and finally came to realize:
“O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my call is love. Certainly, I have found my proper place in the Church, and you gave me that very place, my God. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction.”
Her “little way” of holiness, being content as a tiny flower in God’s garden, has inspired many people. She wasn’t afraid to be little, hidden, simple. She had great ambitions for her spiritual life and desired to make the greatest sacrifices for God, but she discovered that it would be lived out in the context of loving others.
The Little Flower discovered the essence of the Sermon on the Mount, summarized in the statement, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.” In her littleness and simplicity, St. Therese embraces Our Lord’s vision of the world by letting go of what she wanted. In so doing, she discovered a radical poverty and dependence on God that allowed her to accept the primacy of love. Again, recalling our Holy Father’s words at Saint Peter’s Square, “Make yourself small, put yourself at the service of all. True power is taking care of the weakest and this makes you great.”
As we plunge toward the National and local elections in November, let us be mindful of the weakest, the most vulnerable, the voiceless of our society, those who have no safety net, no protection, “from the womb to the tomb.” Let all of us be converted to a view of life that is sacred and precious. Nothing can take away our humanity, not a government or another person. Let us remember the words of Venerable Jerome Lejeune, “The quality of a civilization is measured by the respect it has for its weakest members. There are no other criteria for judgment.” Let us remember the words of Pope Francis, “True power is taking care of the weakest—that makes you great!”
AMENDMENT 3: VOTE NO
The upcoming election is on everyone’s mind these days and of course Amendment 3 is one of the major issues. If passed, Amendment 3 will have far reaching effects and many people have accused those who oppose this amendment as scaremongering. The position of the Catholic Church is very simple: life is precious, life is sacred, because life is so fragile and vulnerable it must be respected. We believe the science that says life begins in the womb at conception. The Catholic Bishops of Missouri have created a statement which you can find on p. 3 of this edition of The Mirror. Life will be victorious!
“Oh Sacramento Santísimo, oh Sacramento Divino, toda alabanza y toda acción de gracias sean tuyas en todo momento..”
Published in the October 25, 2024 issue of El espejo.
Photo Credit: catholictradition.org