Brother Giles' Desk

  Today, I want to share a conversation I recently had with Veronica about whether we should be forthright or polite when asked how we are doing. This is an important question for many Christians who want to live with honesty and integrity but don’t want to burden others.   VERONICA  A question has been on my mind for a few days now, and I would love your perspective. To start off—it isn't good to complain, right? And people, in general, don't like people who complain a lot. Plus, it's not healthy to complain. .  At the same time, it's not good to be dishonest. So, when you have longer periods of time when you aren't doing well and someone asks you "How are you doing today?" for a few days in a row, should you answer with "I'm fine" (and would that be dishonest and inauthentic?) or with "I'm not doing all that well" (and risk becoming a broken record of complaints)?   BR. GILES Your question is a good one, and it

Monasticism today originated in the desert, with men (and some women) going out there to "fast and pray and do battle with the devil." They began as hermits and eventually grouped together under the guidance of a spiritual father (or mother.) You'll see both holiness in the desert and recognize that it's the place where demons wander. That's nothing to be afraid of; it's simply reality. The desert is where followers of Christ have traditionally gone to find their Lord and do battle with His Enemy.   The desert, a place of tranquility and isolation, offers a unique opportunity for solitude. It's a place where one can feel alone, even in the presence of others. In this environment, if one surrenders to the silence and listens, they can hear the voice of God.   It's also a place where other voices can be sensed. I'm not very worried that faithful Christians will succumb to these other voices. They don't listen to them very much, and so the

He is Risen! From Brother Giles Today is a day of great rejoicing in the Church and in the world. Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed! For many of us, it marks the end of Lent, a time of prayer and fasting, a time of focus on the sufferings of Christ. We do this so that we may share in His glory, and that is all good and true. But it's not enough. That's because we have a tendency to look at the negative. It's perfectly understandable; we are part of a fallen race, the human race. Yes, Christ is Risen and He has redeemed us, but despite our best efforts, we still sin anyway. But what if...what if we're looking at it the wrong way? I've said in a previous post that the Passion of Christ wasn't His suffering and death, it was His Passion to create life. God is Happy, and He wants us to be Happy. He wants YOU to be happy   (" I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." Jn 10:10, and      "I have said these things to you so that My

From Brother Giles We in the West have a tendency to compartmentalize everything human. We speak of three or four loves (C.S. Lewis wrote about five). Then the tendency is to think of them as separate and different. But does that make sense? "God is Love," not "God is 3, or 4, or 5 loves." The problem we have when we compartmentalize love into separate components is that we feel that we must shut down anything which doesn't fit into our previous definition of that compartment. This can lead to a false understanding of chastity as "Don't touch this, don't think that." Now, to be sure, we must be very careful here. Those rules are all true and very important. We must not get rid of them, as has always been a temptation when people feel that rules are oppressive. Having said that, the problem with seeing chastity in terms of following rules is that, while those rules tell us when we've strayed off the path of chastity, they don't tell us a

From Brother Giles On Holy Saturday, we mourn the loss of Our Lord, knowing that He will arise again. But did you ever consider how shattering this week was for Our Lady in particular? (We could also call this shattering the sword that pierced her Heart.) She knew that her Son would have to be crucified and be raised again, but her profound participation in His Passion had, I think, the effect of shattering her in her inmost being. And sure, she rejoiced when she saw Him raised from the dead, but I think that shattering didn't go away in a single moment. I once heard a priest say that some people need to be broken, "and I don't mean broken like you break a horse. I mean like you throw a vase on the ground and shatter it."' He was referring to stubborn young people, but maybe the same principle applies even to holy people? Consider what Our Lord did for us on the Cross, something that we often overlook in light of His Sacrifice—He gave us His mother: "Son, beh

From Brother Giles Jesus has spent the night alone, in a cell, contemplating both the events at Gethsemane, and the sham trial in front of the Sanhedrin. His disciples have all fled. This is probably the loneliest moment of His life. The trial itself was a sham in every way. There were many rules regarding justice under Jewish Law, and they were all geared towards acquittal. For example, if no one spoke up for the defendant, he was automatically released, because he had no advocate to stand up for him. Furthermore, no Jewish trial could be conducted at night, because dark business (a trial for a capital offence) could not be conducted at night. Also, Caiaphas could not "adjure" Jesus to tell the truth about His being the Son of God. It was forbidden under Jewish Law to order a defendant to incriminate himself, and any self-incriminating testimony was considered invalid. The fact that Caiaphas even asked the question was grounds for immediate dismissal of the charges. Then the