Staying close to Jesus
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS
In our lives, spiritual and otherwise, the main thing we should realize is that HE must increase, and I/we must decrease. As we progress, we see our vocation with gratitude for it is a gift of God to us. We strive to honor this new relationship with God by keeping watch, by consciously trying to reduce even venial sins in our lives. The burden of sin keeps us from loving God and therefore it also keeps us from loving one another. When we stray away from Jesus, we drag our aching soul to that lonely, hallowed spot within the shadow of Gethsemane.
If we are to follow in the footsteps of Jesus among our brothers and sisters in the way of Saint Francis of Assisi, it can only be done in a quiet and understated way to have any chance of succeeding. Our "self" or our ego has no place in this concept. The "self" is a "sly, elusive sprite, clever and shrewd, defying even death." It is very destructive. Self is the enemy of the Will of God. Our "self" is what Jesus died for on the Cross. Self is arrogant and must be humbled. Self is ambitious and does not serve us well in charity. Self must be put in chains and eradicated from our life. Jesus has called everyone to intimacy with Himself. It is a soul's highest possible achievement. Few try to reach that high. And most of those are religious in cloisters. Franciscans can reach that high too, if they try hard and learn to recollect their minds. Prepare your soul to become the habitat of the Presence of God.
TV and cellphones tend to disturb our efforts to stay close to God. When not praying, I watch TV, mostly EWTN (always good) beginning with the 8AM (ET) Holy Mass. I pray the “Liturgy of the Hours” (LH) and a Rosary each day, for many years now. Afternoons I watch TV, a movie if I can find one with social redeeming value: G, PG, PG13 and rarely lower than that. I like veterinarian shows, medical, etc. There’s plenty of very good educational stuff out there. It is beneficial to be ordered and consistent in praying. I do the LH MP following Holy Mass, followed by the Rosary; EP and NP after evening meal. The rest of the day is a toss-up between computer work, answering email, writing stuff, etc., and watching TV. Some household tasks, and trying to exercise a little. There is very little social interacting, as I live alone and most of my friends (in my age bracket) are in Heaven. Not having a car isn’t a great problem. I do have friends who help get me to Holy Mass on Sundays. Getting to doctors is more complicated but it get’s done too.
The month of May is a great month, the birds are back. Birds bring us song, makes the outdoors lively. There aren’t many birds here but some.
There was a time in my life when I was in my thirties and forties, when I was active in tagging/banding birds, but that’s a nice memory. The friends I did this with have moved on. So have I. May is also the month dedicated to the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God and our mother. She has the ear of her Son, Jesus, and so she is a great intercessor. She helps us stay close to Jesus.
Getting back to “getting oneself recollected,” when I was a monk, we used to line up in a long hallway before entering Chapel. The purpose of this wait-time was to get recollected, to calm down, bury thoughts not conducive to prayer and meditation, so that in Chapel we’d be ready for God. We called that “Statio” (L). No longer in religious life, I’ve found it beneficial to use a short time to calm down prior to engaging in prayer, especially getting away from electronic interference (cellphone calls, etc.). Contemplative monks, by the way, generally did not watch TV. Good programs from EWTN sometimes, but never longer than an hour per day.
Will probably talk more on this subject in the future. Be at peace and stay close to Jesus.
Fred Schaeffer, OFS
2 May 2025