Tag: catholic

Questionnaire for the Beatification of a Servant of God

What follows is an English translation of the questionnaire used by the Holy See for determining whether a given Servant of God consistently practiced heroic virtue (at least in the latter period of his life) and, therefore, is worthy of being raised to the altars. In other words, it’s a recipe for holiness, and every serious Catholic ought to study it and make it his own.

I don’t know who prepared this English translation, which is available elsewhere online. I had to tweak a few spots where the grammar was sloppy. I will gladly give credit to the copyright holder if there is one.
– Fray Juan Miguel Maria

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Temperance
Were denial of his own will and mortification characteristics of the servant of God?
Did he restrain the motions of anger?
Did he bear persecutions with meekness and patience?
Was he unduly tenacious of his own opinion?
Was he sparing in the use of food and drink?
Did he observe the fasts of the church?
Did he indulge in long hours of sleep?
Was his bed comfortable or uncomfortable?
Was he anxious to be well clothed and well housed?
Did he neglect the comforts of life?
Did he mortify the senses?
Did he love silence and solitude?
Was he modest in his demeanor?

Fortitude
Was he strong and faithful in the duties of his office; tireless in work; patient in persecution, injury, calumny, and trouble of mind? Has he born all these in a cheerful spirit?
Was he always himself not elated by prosperity or depressed by adversity?
Did he despise the honors, riches, and pleasures of the world?
Did he constantly defend the rights of the Church and restrain the immorality of wicked men?

Justice
Was he affable and friendly toward others?
Was he subject to his parents and superiors?
Did he show himself thankful for favors received? And strive to excite gratitude in others?
Did he discharge with justice the office committed to him avoiding all favoritism?
Did he so temper the severity of justice with kindness that no one could ever have just cause of complaint against him?
Did he render unto God due reverence and obedience?
Did he pay veneration to the Saints?
Did he accept the decrees of the Supreme Pontiffs with proper respect and reverence?
Was he exact in the observance of the sacred rites and ceremonies of the Church?
Did he endeavor to promote the worship of God?
Did he respect the rights of all and give them what was due to them?
Did he hate usury and fraud of every kind?

Prudence
Did he direct all of his actions to the attainment of eternal glory as his last end, and select the necessary and useful means?
Did he love simplicity, and was he sincere and true in thought and word, and did he hate all duplicity and falsehood?
Did he seek the advice of prudent men and act on it?
Were all his acts good, and did he first invoke divine aid for their due performance?
Had he a deep hatred of idleness as a source of vice, and did he love meditation and solitude?

Faith
Did he often return thanks to God that he was born in the bosom of the Catholic Church or that he was given the grace of conversion to it, and pray that all would be brought within her fold?
Did he burn with the desire of propagating the faith?
Did he teach the truths of Christianity to the faithful, and did he teach catechism?
Did he rejoice when some erring soul was converted to the Catholic Faith?
Was he grieved when the Church suffered loss or persecution?
Was the decoration of the house of God dear to him, and the observance of the sacred ceremonies?
Did he love devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and endeavor to propagate it? How?
Did he pray long and frequently before the Blessed Sacrament?
Did he show a tender devotion to the Passion of Jesus Christ?  Did he often meditate on the mystery? With what fervor and piety? And did he strive to enkindle this devotion in others?
Did he burn with desire for shedding his blood for the truths of the faith?
Did he venerate the Sacred Scriptures and the writings of the Holy Fathers?
Did he obey the laws of the Church and the commands of his superiors?
Did he show honor to the Sovereign Pontiff and all the ministers of God?
Did he desire to gain indulgences?
Did he hate all bad books and everything opposed to the Faith?
Did he frequently approach the Sacrament of Penance and the Blessed Eucharist?

Hope
Did he firmly hope for salvation from the merits of Christ our Lord?
Did he despise the things of the world and how did he show his contempt?
In trying circumstances, did he place his trust in God alone and have recourse to prayer?
Did he show his hope in God by ardent and pious exclamations?
Did he raise up others to confidence in God?
Did he show desire by word and work to suffer for eternal glory, and did he rejoice at the near approach of death as the beginning of true life?
With what confidence did he practice good works?  Did he strive to excite this confidence in others?
In adversity, was he resigned to the goodness of God and the decrees of His Providence?
Did he direct his desires and all his actions to God as his last end?
Did he bear cheerfully adversity and persecution?
Did he desire with Saint Paul to be dissolved and be with Christ, and did he bear suffering and infirmity with a joyous spirit?

Charity
(To Neighbor – Spiritual)
Did he pray for the conversion of sinners?
How did he relate with his enemies? Did he forgive them, receive them meekly, and pray for them?
Did he prevent discord?
Had he at heart the good name of others?
With what frequency and fervor did he offer up prayers for the souls of the deceased?

(To Neighbor – Temporal)
Did he comfort the afflicted?
Did he excuse, when opportune, the defects of others?
What was his attitude toward the sick?
Did he love the poor, help them according to his ability, and strive to induce others to assist them?
Did he instruct the ignorant and give counsel to those in doubt?
Did he admonish sinners and restore peace and concord among the quarrelsome?
Did he devote himself to the physical and spiritual well being of the sick?

(To God)
Was his mind always fixed on God and in union with God, and by what acts, words, or aspirations was this union made manifest?
Did he hate sin and take care to preserve himself free from every defect?
Did he speak often of God?
Was his prayer constant and fervent?
Did he remain long in prayer before the most Blessed Sacrament?
Did he lead others in the practice of prayer? How?
Did he meditate on the Passion of Christ?
By what acts did he show his devotion to the Passion?
How did he show devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary?
Did he prevent the commission of sin, and feel sorrow for it when committed by others?
Did he endeavor to inflame others with charity toward God?
Did he by fasting and mortification bring the flesh into subjection that he might be more pleasing to God?
Had he a supernatural desire for affliction, contradiction, and contempt, and how did he bear them?
Did he endeavor with all his might to excite others to praise the divine goodness?

Septuagesima Season:Preparing for the Pilgrimage Unforgettable

A pilgrimage to the Holy Land can be an unforgettable, life-changing event.

Now imagine making a pilgrimage not just to the physical places where the history of salvation unfolded (Nazareth, Bethlehem, Jerusalem…), but to the events themselves. Imagine that you could step into a time machine and go back 2000 years to witness the events with your own eyes. Imagine reclining in the Upper Room with Our Lord and His Apostles during the Last Supper, and standing at the foot of the Cross as Christ offers Himself in sacrifice to the Father.

That would be worth far more than a few thousand dollars (the typical cost of a pilgrimage). And if someone offered you a free seat on that pilgrimage, you wouldn’t miss it for the world.

What if I told you that that’s exactly what Our Lord is offering us this year? It’s called Holy Week. Too many Catholics look at Holy Week superficially, as if it were a mere historical reenactment of past events. If you want a good historical reenactment, you can find one at places like Gettysburg and Antietam, where they put on costumes to give us a visual idea of the great battles that shaped our history. That’s fun; it’s educational; it’s probably worth your time and money, and your children will remember it for years to come. But that’s not what happens during Holy Week.

During Holy Week, something happens similar to what science fiction literature calls “a ripple in time.” Imagine time as a sheet of paper. One end of the paper is the year 33 AD. The other end is the year 2024. The two ends appear to be very distant, but if you fold the paper… the two ends meet. They touch, and the events of 33 AD and 2024 AD become one.

This happens, in one sense, every time the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is offered. Holy Mass is the unbloody renewal of the Sacrifice of Calvary. Our Lord doesn’t suffer or die again. He did that once and for all, but in a mysterious way, we become present at the events that took place on Good Friday, and those events become present here and now in this church.

During Holy Week, especially, this happens in a very vivid and sustained way. And if we make the proper preparations, we can step onto that time machine and join Our Lady and St. John at the Foot of the Cross and at the empty tomb on Easter morning.

This is why the Church gives us not only a whole season to prepare for Holy Week (that’s called Lent), but another season to prepare for preparing for Holy Week. We have the Pre-Lenten Season, which begins on Septuagesima Sunday.

During these next 2 ½ weeks, we should prepare a strategic game plan so we can hit the ground running when Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. Here are some suggestions for making those preparations well.

  1. Take the “Questionnaire for the Beatification of a Servant God,” which is used by the Holy See in determining whether a given soul practiced heroic virtue, and therefore is worthy of being raised to the altars. Spend a little time with it each day. Take note of your weak points and strong points.
  2. Pray a novena to Our Lady of Sorrows, asking her to reveal to you your predominant fault. In St. Luke’s Gospel, the prophet Simeon tells her: “thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that, out of many hearts, thoughts may be revealed” (2.35). Our Lady plays a special role, given her by God, in revealing the secrets of hearts. Each one of us has a predominant fault: it could be pride, vanity, sensuality, indolence, etc. That fault is like a plug at the bottom of a barrel. If you pull it out, all the foul liquid of your vices will empty out. Which brings us to the third point…
  3. Prepare a strategic game plan for Lent. It should focus, in particular, on rooting out that predominant fault and replacing it with the opposing virtue. If the fault is pride, the opposing virtue is humility. If the vice is irascibility, the opposing virtue is meekness, etc. You should study that virtue and look for occasions to practice it. Remember also that this work requires divine grace. Only Our Lord can reach into the human heart and transform it, so you have to pray and invite Our Lord to do His work.
  4. Your strategic game plan should include three things: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Lent is a time for intensifying our prayer life. This could include attending daily Mass if you don’t do so already, multiplying your Rosaries, or meditating daily on Our Lord’s Passion. Fasting should involve more than just giving up chocolate and abstaining from meat on Fridays. The current fasting rules, even during Lent, are rather wimpy. Fast in such a way that it costs you something, but without damaging your health. Almsgiving could involve monetary donations to charitable causes, but it can also be volunteering your precious time for works of charity. The point is to grow in generosity and detachment.
  5. There’s one thing that EVERYONE should include in their game plan. That’s a “black fast” from social media. By “black fast,” I mean total abstinence. There’s nothing which does more to numb or destroy one’s spiritual life than addiction to those glowing screens. The black fast means no Facebook, no Twitter, no YouTube videos, no video games. If you have to watch a video for work or school, then so be it, but cut out all the rest. Then cherish the silence and learn how to connect with God, with your neighbor, and with the concrete, three-dimensional world around you.

With a strategic game plan like this, you will experience Holy Week more intensely than in years past. You won’t just be an outsider looking in, but a participant in those dramatic events, and you’ll arrive at Easter Sunday transformed. You’ll begin to experience the peace that comes from being freed from your vices, the joy of intimacy with God, and a foretaste of the final Resurrection.