Discernment: A Way Forward for You/th...

We don’t see things as they are. We see things as we are. It is one’s attitude towards life and reality that makes the individual growing or dwindling. Today, we have examples of individuals who grew from tiny to giants and from giants to pathetic. What makes the difference is disposition/attitude/discernment. Bible is full of such examples. Young people are immensely blessed by God’s choicest blessings. Some young people become pro-active and productive in life and others become over-active and yet unproductive. The difference between the two cases is the distance and discernment. Yes the former is close to God in prayer and discernment and the latter is distanced from God and worse still no prayer and no discernment. Dear young friends in Christ, our God never abandons us; he is always there to help, provided we allow him to transform us, like the blind man who cried out “Jesus son of David have mercy on me.” Lk 18: 38.    

 

God surprises us provided we allow God to surprise us. Mary, a young Jewish girl was surprised by God’s invitation, through the angel Gabriel. She could not but believe how God surprised her. As a response, she professed her faith in God through the Magnificat, “my soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour.” Lk 1:47. Magnificat is the fruit of her discernment to say YES to God’s invitation. I believe she made a perfect discernment. After the election of the Pope Francis, he was asked, ‘who is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?’ He was silent for a while and said “I am a Sinner.” By accepting himself as a sinner he in fact affirmed how God surprised him by electing him as the Pope. So much so that he even coined a new word from Latin root word miserando as Mercy-ing. The attitude of the Pope is certainly inspiring because, he admits himself as a sinner and trusts in the infinite mercy of Jesus Christ, who continues to surprise us, from his creation, incarnation and resurrection. I believe, Pope Francis made his discernment and accepted the invitation of Jesus to shoulder the Church in the most challenging times. Meaning to say, the effective change in life happens by spending time with the Lord allowing HIM to transform life. This is what we call Discernment. Discernment is always done in the presence of the Lord, looking at the signs listening to the things that happen, surrendering entire self before the Lord. It is not an easy task.

In discernment we do not centre our self, but Christ. Yes, Christ is the centre in our life. By centring Christ in our life, we avoid the risk of getting self absorbed and self-sufficient. Always we have got to put before us greater God. The Church exhorts us to offer the whole person and our hard work before God the universal potter. It is he who designs us and shapes our present, moulds our future and corrects our past. As a good mud, we need to dispose our entire self before the universal saviour who makes good pots out of mud. Jer 18:6. Therefore, Discernment in life is essential precisely because when we speak and express too much, we run the risk of being misunderstood or misled by our own self appealing. We can form our heart, mind and conscience only by sincere discernment; St Theresa of Avila, St Mother Theresa and St John Paul II are models before us. They did not lose the sight of Christ in life, but had Christ as the centre of their life. This requires much humility, sacrifice and courage, especially at times of humiliation and shame. At this difficult time the only way out and way forward is Prayer. In prayer and meditation one understands that it is not we choose God but it is God who is waiting to embrace and encounter, no matter what invades us down. Thus, discernment is intrinsically linked to prayer and introspection. By this practice one draws oneself to God himself. This is how God goes beyond our thinking to save us. Discernment is always a disposition by which one glorifies God’s magnanimity and gratuitousness. It is an inward attitude that drives us to be inwardly open to dialogue, to encounter and to find God. In this genuine search, one does not fear shame or defeat instead with the help of God’s grace he/she rises high above fear and shame. We have got to pray and discern for God. In prayer we enter into a dynamic of discernment that opens future before us. By this spiritual training God communicates his will through these internal movements. In this context Pope Benedict XVI is one of the best examples who heart and responded to the inner voice of God through his reflected resignation. By this he did an act of courage and humility. From where did he draw strength to make such a surprising decision? Well, the answer is prayer and discernment. It is the discernment that helped him to give way to the new leadership in the Church.

Like saints, let us discern in life through prayer and introspection by which we understand the lowliness of our self and loveliness of God. The beauty of confession makes us understand this reality of God and not the Sin but the sinner. God sees not our sin but his own Child, born in his image and likeness. Therefore, to walk like Mother Mary who said Yes to God and Mother Theresa who made her discernment well and as a result, she is called as the saint of the gutters and Pope Benedict the XVI who surprised the Church with this profound discernment and today Pope Francis who is continuing to surprise the world by his prayer and discernment in his speech and writing. In their example and inspiration let us also strive to Walk in the light of God, Build our life in Christ and Confess to Jesus the saviour of the world. This is all possible only through discernment that opens our inner eyes to God who surprises us. Rom 12:2.

In this post-modern and highly advanced culture the Church is feeling with the heart of a mother for her son or daughter. Therefore, the church decided to discuss about the young people and discernment in the 2018 synod. When the young people listen to the voice of their parents, teachers and elders for sure they will have a way forward. By this integrated way of life one shuns sinful habits and begins to grow like St Mother Theresa and St John Paul II. Thus, in light and the example of the holy family You/th begin to spread the ripples of Christian love. Therefore, Discernment is an essential element in every young and promising child of God. Thus young people grow like Child Jesus, in wisdom and stature.