"Freedom isn't free". We recognize that sacrifice is what purchased our freedom as Americans. Every time we enjoy a barbecue with friends, take a road trip to visit family, or attend Mass on Sunday, we are engaging in an activity that was made possible by others offering themselves up for our sake. Surrounded by so many goods that were purchased by the selfless offerings, living in a country where we are enamored by stories of self-sacrifice, we have to ask ourselves: what are we willing to give?
In order to attain true freedom, we not only be willing to give our lives, but we must offer up our entire beings in a spirit of generosity and love. St. Teresa of Avila, a 16th century mystic and Doctor of the Church, spoke plainly about the need to suffer and to do so with the proper attitude. While she had no formal education, St. Teresa wrote eloquently about what it takes to find peace thorough union with God in prayer. A key component of our ascent to God is the need to take up our cross.
In his 1989 book Fire within: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and the Gospel - on prayer, Fr. Thomas Dubay S.M. nicely summarizes St. Teresa's teaching on suffering when he explains that "[resignation] is not enough; there must be a generous willed welcome to hardships and dryness in prayer"(1). This attitude towards suffering is exemplified in elite military units. The Army Rangers, Delta Force, and most notably, the Navy Seals all draw men who not only put up with suffering; they seek it out. Brutal conditioning, sleep deprivation, hand to hand combat; these harsh realities are an integral part of the daily life of an elite soldier in combat. In the crucible of suffering, a soldier learns to turn his pain into fuel. His agony becomes a purifying force driving him to sacrifice all for the good of the mission and for his fellow soldiers.
St. Teresa was by no means a soldier, but her methods were no different than these elite military units. She recognized that man's mission is to find peace through union with God in prayer. In order to pray, we need to be free from worldly attachments. I suspect that most of us find ourselves in the state that St. Teresa describes as the second mansion, where we are "still engaged in worldly pastimes, half giving them up and half clinging to them"(2). We know what we need to do in order to grow in holiness and to deepen our prayer, but we find ourselves torn between the things of this world and the things of God. "The world's tug is experienced in several ways: earthly pleasures remain attractive, and they feel almost eternal. The soul finds it hard to give up esteem in the world and a selfish clinging to family and friends. It unreasonably fears doing penances to which it now feels called, and it vacillates, says Teresa, as to whether to return to the first mansions or strive bravely on"(3).
St. Teresa's solution to the pull of worldly things is maddeningly simple: man up and embrace your cross: "there is a need to 'embrace the cross' along with the suffering Lord"(4). We will not escape the world and find true freedom and peace unless we are willing to suffer. Our attitude towards suffering cannot be passive. We must learn to love to toil in the raging furnace of adversity and to seek out Our Lord as we do so.
If there is something in our life that in and of itself is good, but it keeps us from God, then we must do away with it. Does social media keep you from God? Get off of it. What about being on your phone at night? Change your phone's settings so that you can't access it past 8pm. These are simple problems and even simpler solutions. Our Blessed Lord invites us to go a step further: "if thy right eye scandalize thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee. For it is expedient for thee that one of thy members should perish, rather than that thy whole body be cast into hell"(4).
We can all agree that eyes are good things. Much like our hobbies, pastimes, and friendships, our eyes are not inherently evil. Yet, if any of these good things cause us to sin, then they must be removed from our lives with violent force. It's not enough to passively resit a temptation, we must beg for the grace to renounce sin in our lives. After we have turned to Our Lord, then we must summon every fiber of our will to do violence to our sinful impulses and inclinations. We need to learn to hate sin like a soldier learns to hate an unpolished boot, an improperly oiled gun, or a missed belt loop during an inspection. If we condition ourselves to hate sin, then our souls will be truly free to love God.
What do we get in return for our efforts? I cannot promise that they will build a statue of you. You may not live on in the hearts of men. There may be no moving stories of brave and daring feats.
Yet, if we are willing to seek pain and overcome sin in our lives, then "I reckon that the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come, that shall be revealed in us"(5).
(1) Dubay, T. (1989). Fire within: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and the Gospel - on prayer (p. 84). San Francisco: Ignatius Pr.
(2) ibid p. 83
(3) ibid p. 83
(4) Matthew 5:29
(5) Romans 8:18
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