"Duc in altum" - Put into the deep

As I was accompanying a nun in our seminary library she asked me, "Brother, how did you find your vocation?" I felt the curiosity was off-topic since we were minding her thesis about the Trinity and mine on Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI's relativism. I just answered "through prayer."

Jesus tells Simon in the gospel today to "put out into the deep" (Lk. 5:1-11). The disciples were catching fish for almost the whole night but caught nothing. It was their expertise. Their families for generations were fishermen and here comes a carpenter from Nazareth who tells them to lower their nets. Simon would have complained "What do you know of this, you are only a carpenter!" Yet through their obedience, they caught so much than what they have expected.

Recalling the point when I was deciding to enter the seminary or pursue a professional career, it was a serious moment of prayerful discernment. It was in prayer that I heard the call. In prayer we hear the Lord speak and He listens. It is a communion of two hearts - that of the Creator with His created. It is a meeting of a deer longing for panting streams (Ps. 42:1-5) and the life-giving water that whoever drinks will not be thirsty (Jn. 4:14).

Our questions and search for meanings all find their answers in prayer. St. Thomas Aquinas once believed that the best books in the world is the crucifix. Life's answers are not found in the many voluminous books and academic researches but in the meditation of the cross. When we fix out eyes on Jesus, when we tune our ears to the beating of His heart, when we lift our hands in adoration so too does He gaze on us, so too does He listens, so too does He stretch out his hands to embrace our humanity.

Where did I find my vocation? In prayer I know God led me to a place of refreshing springs. It may not be the land of milk and honey but surely it is the vineyard of the Lord where much work is to be done. He tells me to "put out into the deep" and though I have my personal hesitations - still I obey. This is the challenge for all, especially for Christians. God wants us to win souls for Him but we must first allow ourselves to be caught by His net of love. He calls us to different paths of life: some for the married life, others to different religious vocations, and some to the holy celibate life. Wherever and whatever He calls us to be, let not our response be a deaf ear but an open spirit of acceptance in His wisdom and divine plans. Jesus said, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men." Are we ready to leave our boats and follow Him? He calls us to put into the deep, duc in altum - will we?

Servus Servorum Dei

"Blessed Gregory, raised upon the throne of Peter,
sought always the beauty of the Lord
and lived in celebration of that love."

The Four Doctors of the Church (1632) by Abraham Bloemaert
St. Augustine, St. Jerome (in hermit), St. Ambrose, and St. Gregory (in papal tiara)

The papal title "Servus Servorum Dei" - Servant of the servants of God- was first used by a humble pontiff who wanted a monastic life instead of the more glorious ecclesiastical positions of the medieval period (c. 5th cent.). Pope Gregory the Great was iconic with his choice of a lowly title when what determines a man's dignity in his time was the title and office he holds. The highly ranks of kings, princes, and emperor were to no avail for him; much more for even the prestigious ecclesiastical ranks of bishoprics and cardinals. Gregory, later acclaimed with an antecedent of greatness, is now exulted in the glory of God's high altars. In his humbles service to the Church of God, in him is likewise fulfilled the Blessed Mothers canticle of praise: "He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly."

Gregory's life was a sign of contradiction. When most of the clerics were being abusive and blinded by the vast wealth of the Church's power, here is he being the ruler of the one true Church showing how a true leader must be - as a servant for many. Here is the model of a true Christian, one who lives by the Word of the Lord. With his personal wealth he founded six monasteries in Sicily and one in Rome. He devoted his strength to the propagation of the faith through missionary activities in uncharted terrains. This is a man who tirelessly worked for the Lord's vineyard and sought only to give all glory due to the Most High and not for himself.

He was instrumental in the development and restoration of the beauty of the Latin liturgy and office in his time. In music, he propagated the use of the heavenly chants (now known as the "Gregorian Chants") that elevated both mind and soul in worship. Gregory is known as the Father of Christian Worship for he was able to transcend what is truly divine in the liturgical actions of his times. His aim was to aid the people in order to find meaning and a refreshing spring in moments of worship, as it is, an encounter with God.

Servus servorum Dei - one who is humble enough to place himself below others in order that he could serve them. This is the example of Jesus and this is the challenge to all Christians. We are called to serve and true service bear much fruit when its glory is rightly given to exult God, the fount of all holiness.

The Power of Touch

Man is in touch with everything. Modern technology has availed much that almost all can be done literally at the "click" of the fingers. But with all these happening around, man is slowly loosing his identity and gradually descending in touch with the Divine. Touch brings forth a sense of closeness- a relationship that though apart can tie a bond. No one touches a stranger; nonetheless, even a sick person is rarely touched. There is fear. Unless they are relatives or close friends, to touch each on is not illicit.

The power of touch is an energy of relationships. Day by day, God touches our lives. He cares. He may seem far away but in the depths of our hearts, He comes to us giving love. The hand of God is at work and He never ceases to keep in touch. The fresco of Michelangelo (1511-1512) where the Creator is touching the tip of Adam's finger shows how the Lord wants to have a relationship with His creatures. But the question is, does man still raise his hands to reach God?

The question that arise is not a question whether man can comprehend the immensity of God's wisdom but one that scrutinizes if he still recognizes a Creator. The humanism of the modern world has exulted man's rationality but void God of His rightful throne. Man sought for answers and questions on truth. He has taken sides on different ideological perspectives yet God remained to be the answer and the truth.

This is the age where everything can be touched. Has man touched God who revealed Himself even before? Ironically, God who has shown Himself through His own will is still being searched for. The great Saint Augustine said in his Confessions,

"Late have I loved Thee, O beauty so ancient!

Late have I loved Thee!

Lo, Thee were within bit I outside, seeking there for Thee..."

Man continues to search for answers but deep within him is the One who knows everything. The power of touch is a relationship between the one who touches and the one who is touched. God touches man. Would man have the courage to touch God? When we come to recognize the power of God in our lives, then and only then shall we be able to behold the true glory of man. Wisdom is acquired from the feet of the One who is Master of all.