How many of this age fall to despair when instead they could seek the heights from which man has fallen into our current ruin. Let us think of the words of St. Augustine:
Bad times! Troublesome times! This men are saying. Let our lives be good; and the times are good. We make our times; such as we are, such are the times.
St. Augustine: Sermon 30 on the New Testament
The evil of this present time should not been seen as an insurmountable obstacle, but as a challenge set forth in front of us by our Lord so that by his grace we might “overcome evil with good(Romans 12:21).”
God never brings anything to fruition without purpose. So follows that each of our individual existences, willed by God to begin at our appointed time, have the ability to bear good fruits. Even if born on uneven ground with others whom God also willed to life, the ability of each us to rise to those same battlements of eternity with whatever physical, spiritual, or mental blessings(or lack thereof) God bestows upon us is hindered not.
In fact, the pattern of bestowing or withholding blessings by God is to such extent as to give us the best possible path to Heaven. In this manner the withholding of a grace is a grace in and of itself. A prayer unanswered in the manner in which we asked is a prayer answered in the way most beneficial to God, and by extension most beneficial to our mind, body, and soul.
Harmony of Mind, Body, and Soul
Since we are created beings, and our Lord created us with a mind, body, and soul meant to work in unison, it only follows that progress in one of these disciplines must be accompanied with progress in the other two.
No man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.
Socrates
Likewise no man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of mental or spiritual training. The talents which God has granted us in this life are meant to be cultivated into skills and used for the greater glory of God. Any form of evil which afflicts us, just as from the Crucifixion came the Resurrection, is meant to be conquered and turned to good.
How each of us chooses to cultivate these three disciplines depends on how we are called. There is no man left without a vocation- this much is common between us all. And the overarching work of each vocation is the same as God’s purpose in creating creation- to cultivate and share the love and beauty of existence. Love is the viral virtue which underpins every vocation one may be called to(Marriage, Priesthood, etc.).
If misery loves company, love demands it tenfold. The Passion of our Lord is not called such without reason. What could possess a man to suffer such affliction if not a love tenfold his misery?
When one begins to see beauty as God sees it, he cannot help but wish to share this with others. In Marriage with his family, in Priesthood with his flock, in all things an admiration of beauty demands company to share it with.
This love is the motivation underpinning existence. When working in the discipline of mental, physical, or spiritual training(altogether towards the imitation of Christ), do so with intent to glorify God by your work.
Calculated Abandon
With the establishment of the beauty of creation, and a duty to improving ourselves by cultivating this beauty, as core tenets of the Catholic faith, this love must naturally be turned outwards and sent into the midst of the evil we despise.
The Passion of our Lord was calculated before time itself. And despite the agony that accompanied Christ he entered willingly into his Passion with complete abandon. Worldly reason would have him seek self preservation. Christ knew however that a future glory would outweigh his current suffering.
All of human history follows this simple pattern- temporarily alleviate current suffering, or endure to a future glory that outweighs all.
It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.
Julius Caesar
To fight evil is never easy when our concupiscence would have us join it. Our very being itself betrays us. Long gone are the days of conventional warfare. This 4th generation warfare(see 4th Generation Warfare Handbook) requires a breed of man firmly rooted in objective truth- that is, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. To fight a spiritual war requires us to endure. We very well may not live to see the full fruits of our labor. And yet our knowledge of God invites us to abandon such worldly reason and replace it with the assurance of Eternity. Not reckless abandon, but a calculated abandon to the providence of God.
The Artisan Spirit
The Devil assails us on all fronts: mind, body, and spirit. Just as the powerful men in Rome had their hearts converted to Christ, so Satan has turned the hearts of powerful men in our businesses, governments, and cultural institutions away from the service of those to whose care they’ve been entrusted and instead to pride and self indulgence. As a result the cornerstone of our culture is now rooted in a rejection of Christ.
These institutions must be reclaimed for Him. Not in a rebellious nature, but in a constructive manner. One in which we build up, not tear down.
As God created us out of love, likewise we ought to create out of love for Him. We ought to utilize art, music, film, television, radio, the internet, etc. for our craft as Christ utilized the wood of the earth for his. For Christ was a craftsman before he was crucified on the material of his craft.
The life of our Lord was a work of art written across time itself. Every breath taken, every drop of blood shed, every betrayal, and every triumph- planned since before time itself, now carved into eternity. The works we perform in our lifetime are fleeting. Wood rots, stone crumbles, music fades. But their effect on the soul are permanent. A soul stirred to the Heavens by our works will forever outlast the instruments of their salvation.
A single soul is worth all we can afford, even unto death. This Christ assuredly proved.
Manifest Destiny
To this end is our mission in these short lives we live. Beauty was never meant to be hidden. Love was never meant to be kept to ourselves. Pay no heed to the evil which seeks to suffocate us. Firmly fix our gaze beyond the fleeting evil of this world and to the eternal Good of the next.
Perfect our talents in the midst of evil. Work good works in the sight of evil. Let Christ and his Mother be seen through us. Let the triumph of the Resurrection be seen as we purify evil from our souls.
Become craftsmen, poets, artists, warriors, athletes, musicians, filmmakers, sculptors, architects, engineers, lawyers, judges, professors, historians, scientists, archaeologists, entrepreneurs, business directors, diplomats, farmers, cultural influencers, bankers, journalists, fathers, mothers, etc. in the service of God- ever mindful not to use His gifts against Him, but for the expanse of His Kingdom.
God would not have sent us here for no reason. Each of us has some role to play. Each of us has something within us to merit being worthy of joining the ranks of our brethren in such dire times.
Only in this manner can we reclaim creation for its creator.
The Guide and I into that hidden road Now entered, to return to the bright world; And without care of having any rest
We mounted up, he first and I the second, Till I beheld through a round aperture Some of the beauteous things that Heaven doth bear;
Thence we came forth to rebehold the stars.
Dante’s Inferno: Canto XXXIV: End