When the holidays are sorrowful
Remedies from St. Thomas
Remedies from St. Thomas
The holidays are often a time when sorrow can be overwhelming in the lives of people who have experienced recent, or even not-so-recent, deaths or other tragedies or difficult changes. St. Thomas Aquinas offers us many remedies to sorrow, some of which may be particularly helpful during the Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas seasons.
The holidays are often a time when sorrow can be overwhelming in the lives of people who have experienced recent, or even not-so-recent, deaths or other tragedies or difficult changes. St. Thomas Aquinas offers us many remedies to sorrow, some of which may be particularly helpful during the Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas seasons.
One remedy to sorrow that St. Thomas gives is doing good to others. In this edition of Great Lakes Bay Catholic, you can read about the opening of the Cathedral Free Clinic. Participating in that mission or a ministry at your parish in some way (financially or through prayer or volunteering) would be one such way that you could do good and which may help in looking outside of your own sorrow, and using that sorrow to push you toward greater charity.
Another remedy to sorrow that St. Thomas suggests is the contemplation of truth. Taking time to reflect this Advent on the humility of God becoming man in the Incarnation, in order to ultimately, suffer, die and rise for us, is another way to put our sorrows in the perspective of God’s eternal plan for us—our salvation! Going to Holy Mass a little bit more (perhaps adding a weekday Mass to your routine), praying the Rosary, reading Holy Scripture—all of these are ways to lift your mind to the things that do not pass away and experience some of the hope of this holy season. Anna, who we read about in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, is one example of a holy woman who had lost her husband and then devoted her life to prayer in the temple, and whose prayer allowed her to recognize the Messiah when he was presented in the temple.
May our sorrows lead us to a purity of heart that allows us to recognize the Lord in our lives now, and most importantly, when we see him face-to-face at the moment of death. May these days of longing, of waiting and of rejoicing prepare our hearts to welcome the Lord more fully into our lives with all of the joys and sorrows we experience.
Whole & Holy is written by members of the Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Michigan. The Sisters were founded in 1973 in the Diocese of Saginaw and are committed to providing comprehensive healthcare. The Sisters contributing to this column are trained in fields such as social work, psychiatry and social work. They strive to provide excellent healthcare through the professional training they receive and are sustained in their work through their common life of prayer.
