In the catechism of public welcome, Pope Francis elaborated another element of spiritual discernment, namely self-knowledge. “Even the spiritual life has its own code: these words touch the heart because they touch our most sensitive places,” said the Pope.
(Vatican news network) On the morning of October 5, Pope Francis hosted a public reception in St. Peter’s Square, which was attended by thousands of pilgrims. In his catechism, the Pope continues to reflect on the theme of “discrimination”, inviting us to dig into our soul to “know ourselves”, that is, to recognize what makes us happy and what makes us miserable and makes us give in.
“A good discernment also requires us to know ourselves”, the Pope said. “In fact, discerning the human factors that involve us: memory, intellect, will and emotion”. “We often don’t know the difference because we don’t know ourselves enough and, as a result, we don’t know what we really want.”
It is from this “conversing of the life of faith with the inadequate dimensions of our humanity, cognition and emotion” that “spiritual doubts and vocational crises” arise. “We don’t know what we want, we don’t know enough about ourselves.” Thus, the Pope quoted devotional writer Thomas Green in his book Wheat and Weeds:
“I am convinced that the greatest obstacle to true discernment (and true growth in prayer) is not the invisible and intangible attributes of God, but our lack of self-knowledge, and our reluctance even to know what we really are. . Behind everyone hides a mask, not only in front of others, but also when we look in the mirror “.
“We are all tempted to pretend to be ourselves, even in front of ourselves,” said the Pope. “Forgetting the presence of God goes hand in hand with our ignorance of ourselves in our life, ignoring God and us. themselves, ignoring our character traits and our deepest desires. “
“Knowing ourselves is not difficult, but it is laborious: it involves a patient work of digging into the heart, requiring us to be able to stop and ‘turn off the autopilot’ to be aware of the way we do things, the emotions in us, and thoughts. applicants who often strike us without us even realizing it. “
Knowing ourselves also requires knowing how to distinguish between “excited emotions and spiritual choices”. This, the Pope explained, is the awareness that «what I feel is not what I believe in; what I feel is not what I want ”. This is to “recognize the sometimes distorted ways in which we see ourselves and reality”.
“It is a grace to perceive it”, the Pope said. In fact, “we often misjudge reality on the basis of past experiences that have a huge impact on us and limit our freedom to fight for what is truly precious in life”.
Later, the Pope used the informational word “password” to explain the truth of knowing oneself. “Even the spiritual life has its own code: these words touch the heart because they touch our most sensitive places”, he said.
“The seducer, the devil, knows these keywords very well, and it is important that we know them too, so as not to find ourselves in situations in which we would not want to find ourselves. Temptation does not necessarily imply bad things, but it is often ignorant, excessively important. Presented. In this way, he hypnotizes us with the fascination these things cause in us. These things are beautiful, but illusory, unable to keep their promises, leaving us with an emptiness and a sadness in the final feeling. This sense of emptiness. and sadness is a sign that we are ‘on’ a wrong path and that we are lost “.
These things “may be degrees, careers, relationships, all of which are commendable in themselves, but if we are not free in the face of these things, we have unrealistic expectations, such as asserting our worth.” For example, the Pope said: «When you think about a study you are doing, do you think only of improving yourself, for your own benefit or in the service of society? From this we see that the intention of each of us is a thing “.
“It is important to know ourselves, to know the code of our heart, to know what we are most sensitive to, to protect ourselves from those who try to persuade us with words, but also to know what it is for us”, the Pope What really matters is to identify what which is in vogue right now or a superficial and catchy slogan.
The Pope concluded that the best help in getting to know each other is “an examination of conscience”. To develop this good habit, “Sit back and review our day and learn to note in our evaluations and choices what we value most, what we are looking for and why, and what we ultimately find what.”
“Above all, learn to recognize what satisfies the heart. Because only the Lord can say what we are worth … No obstacle or backlash can stop his tender embrace”.
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