DOCSLIB.ORG

UNDERSTANDING PAUL the Insights of Dom Columba Marmion and Elisabeth of the Trinity

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
UNDERSTANDING PAUL the Insights of Dom Columba Marmion and Elisabeth of the Trinity CELIA KOURIE UNDERSTANDING PAUL The Insights of Dom Columba Marmion and Elisabeth of the Trinity Joseph Columba Marmion (1858-1923) and Elisabeth Catez (1880-1906) – both great lovers of the apostle Paul, and both devoted to the Trinity – what do they have to teach us in today’s secular society? What message can they impart to many who may never have experienced the richness of scripture or the won- der of the divine life in the depths of the human person?1 It is interesting to note that apart from sharing a deep spirituality, based on the ‘gospel’ of Paul, particularly the mystery of living ‘in Christ’ and sharing his divine life, there are one or two incidents in the lives of both Marmion and Elisabeth that bear a certain resemblance. Firstly, both had a mystical experi- ence in their young adulthood which, while it was not dramatic, remained with them for the remainder of their lives, and supported them throughout the var- ious trials of the Christian, and particularly the religious, life.2 Secondly, both experienced a time of distress and doubt just before their commitment to their chosen path.3 Elisabeth died at a very young age, but left behind a spiritual legacy in the form of some occasional writings, one or two treatises, some poetry and a large correspondence – 346 letters written to people in all walks of life. In fact, of the 57 people that Elisabeth wrote to, 50 were lay persons. Dom 1 One of the more recent works on Dom Marmion is by Mark Tierney, Dom Columba Marmion: A biography, Dublin 1994. I was unable to obtain this book in time for the present article. 2 The spirituality of Dom Marmion and Elisabeth is ordinary – not characterised by visions, etc. Dom Marmion states clearly that he has no attraction for any extraordinary graces (M.M. Philipon, The Spiritual Doctrine of Dom Marmion, London 1956, 84). However, an event took place when, as a student on the way to the study-hall, Dom Marmion experienced a ‘light on God’s infinity’ – an experience that was to be of enduring significance throughout his life. Likewise, Elisabeth, during a visit to Père Vallée, her spiritual director, in 1900, became aware of the presence of the indwelling Trinity – an experience which was to ground her spirituality within this great mystery for the remainder of her short life. 3 On the eve of Dom Marmion’s entry into the seminary, he was almost overcome with doubt and struggled within himself whether he should enter. His doubts were overcome, and his chosen path was undertaken. In similar fashion, Elisabeth went through a similar crisis of faith on the eve of her profession in Carmel. We can be grateful that these two heroic people persevered in their faith, and as a result bequeathed such riches by way of their teaching. 38 CELIA KOURIE Marmion was aquainted with the writings of Elisabeth. In a letter written in August, 1919 to Mother Agnes of the Dijon Carmel, Marmion writes, ‘Je con- nais déjà Elisabeth de la Sainte Trinité. […] Cette sainte âme, Sr Elisabeth, avait compris le mystère de Notre Seigneur. Elle l’avait appris a l’école du grand saint Paul, et le Saint-Esprit a rempli son âme d’admirable clartés pour pénétrer dans l’obscurité divine du Sainte des Saints’.4 It is most likely that Elisabeth was a source of spiritual strength for Dom Marmion, and many of his ideas resonate with those expressed in her mystical writings. A central characteristic of the spirituality of Elisabeth and Dom Marmion is its deeply scriptural character. The Bible provided sustenance and inspiration, and the words of Paul formed a deep impression on these two saintly persons. The aim of this short study is to examine a few of the salient aspects of their read- ing of Paul, namely, conformity to Christ, suffering, and also very briefly their understanding of the Trinity. CONFORMITY TO CHRIST For both Dom Marmion and Elisabeth of the Trinity, Jesus is the paradigm, examplar and enabler for his followers, and shows them what it means to be the image and likeness of God. To be conformed to the image of Christ is the high- est aspiration and attainment in the life of the Christian. Jesus shows us what it means to know the Father in mystical simplicity and to live life in a divine way. It is noteworthy that Elisabeth had inscribed on the back of her profession cru- cifix, ‘It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’ (Gal 2:20b) – a clear indication of her desire to be transformed into the image of Christ. Both Elisabeth and Dom Marmion took seriously the words of Paul in Philippians 4:13, and both drew immense comfort from the fact that only in Christ could the process of sanctification take place. Dom Marmion is at pains to illustrate the fundamental fact that Christ is not so much a model to be imitated, but rather sanctity ‘consists in becoming by grace what Jesus Christ is by nature, the child of God. […] If I were asked in what the spiritual life consisted, I would answer: Christ’.5 Thus, for Dom Marmion, life ‘in Christ’ is the Leitmotif of his entire corpus of teaching. Faithfully following Paul, Dom Marmion’s under- standing of what it means to live and move and have one’s being ‘in-Christ’ effects a new awareness of life, the constituent element of which is freedom 4 R. Thibaut, L’union à Dieu dans le Christ d’après les lettres de direction de Dom Marmion, Denée 1957, 299-300. 5 Philipon, The Spiritual Doctrine, 99. UNDERSTANDING PAUL 39 from the old life of law and sin; and a new sense of belonging to an utterly dif- ferent locale of existence (cf Col 3:3). The believer is a member of a new race of redeemed women and men, whose life is characterised by the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23); faith (Eph 1:12); wisdom, strength (1 Cor 4:10); and truthfulness (Rom 9:1). Above all, it is ‘in Christ’ that total and perfect praise can be offered to the Father. For Elisabeth, the powerful Pauline expression ‘in Christ’ or ‘in Christ Jesus’ determined her life as a Christian and as a Carmelite. This formula ‘is a syn- thesis of her entire doctrine and can be understood as the existential response of the young Carmelite to the salvific vocation received from God. Hence her life […] becomes a mystical existence in Jesus Christ, who leads her […] beyond the finite and into the realms of the eternal and infinite God’.6 Trans- formation in Christ is therefore the foundation of Elisabeth’s scriptural mysti- cism, in the very mundane activities of everyday life. It does not presuppose extraordinary states of consciousness, although there may well be ‘mystical touches’ at times, when the window of eternity is opened, and the fresh breeze of the Spirit allows a glimpse into Reality. However, as Dunn speaking of Christ-mysticism states, ‘… union with Christ for Paul is not characterised by lofty peaks of spiritual excitment and ecstasy, experiences of visions, revelations […] or high inspiration but more typically by self-giving love, by the cross – union with Christ is nothing if it is not union with Christ in his death’.7 For Elisabeth such union with Christ is closely allied to her understanding of bap- tism: ‘Par le baptême dit saint Paul, nous avons été entés en Jésus-Christ. Et encore, “Dieu nous a fait asseoir dans les Cieux en Jesus-Christ afin de montrer aux siècles à venir les richesses de sa grâce” […] c’est le baptême qui t’a faite enfant d’adoption, qui t’a marquée du sceau de la Trinité Sainte!’.8 Elisabeth’s mystical insight explicates and illuminates the doctrine of baptism as that which seals and marks the believer in the Trinity. Grounded in Christ, the dis- ciple becomes a new creation, and a sharer in the divine nature. Baptism estab- lishes a fundamentally new direction in life. There is what is called a liminal dimension to baptism: there is a threshold to be crossed in moving from one state of being or social status to another; an abyss to be bridged, a re-condi- tioning of consciousness and a new allegiance, a declaration of the acceptance of Christ’s Lordship. 6 L. Borriello, Spiritual Doctrine of Blessed Elisabeth of the Trinity: Apostolic Contemplative, New York 1986, 49. 7 J. Dunn, Unity and Diversity in the New Testament, London 1997, 195. 8 C. De Meester, Elisabeth de la Trinité: J’ai trouvé Dieu. Oeuvres Complètes, Tome 1a, Paris 1985, 97, 137. 40 CELIA KOURIE Dom Marmion, commenting on Paul’s description of the baptised as a ‘new man’ – one who has ‘… put on the new nature, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness’ (Eph 4:24) – speaks of our being ‘plunged into the sacred waters’ and being ‘born to the Divine life’.9 Baptism effects a reconditioning of consciousness and a change in allegiance – all the more apparent in the early church, when Baptism was conferred on adults after a long period of preparation, and the newly baptised was given a white garment symbolising the purity of their new lives. Believers are now dead to sin and alive in Christ Jesus. Marmion is at pains to point out that this new life of the bap- tised is yet ‘only in a state of germ’.10 It has to develop.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Spiritual Direction St. Stephen Harding Theological College And
    Spiritual Direction St. Stephen Harding Theological College and Seminary Courses numbered 100-499 are appropriate for CEP, Certificates, S.T.L. and Th.B. studies. Courses with combination numbers, 100-499/500+ may be used for above or graduate studies. Regardless of numbering, a course may only be applied once. Courses with 500+ numbers are to be used for graduate studies only. The letters after the course text indicate the publisher. See “Textbook Resource List.” SDIR: The Spiritual Direction series focuses on conversion, spiritual friendship, transforming self and community with many practical applications. Also a number of “Lives of the Saints” are given as role models and inspiration. SDIR 104/504: Eucharistic Devotions: History, Theology, Psychology and Praxis (3) Three textbooks are used in this course: • Prayers and Devotions for Eucharistic Holy Hour (ID), no author given • Eucharistic Devotion (ID), no author given • In the Presence of Our Lord: The History, Theology, and Psychology of Eucharistic Devotion, by Fr. Benedict Groeschel (CML) SDIR 301/501: Morality and Human Sexuality (3) In Pursuit of Love: Catholic Morality and Human Sexuality, by Vincent Genovesi (MG) SDIR 302: Pastoral Approaches to the Demonic (2) Two textbooks are used in this course: • The Devil, by Delaporte (AP) • The Devil and How to Resist Him, by Gerald Vann (SIP) SDIR 303: Angels and Demons, Scripture, St. Thomas Aquinas and Church Teaching (2) Two textbooks are used in this course: • Angels and Demons, by Peter Kreeft (IP) • Angels and Devils, by Joan Carroll Cruz (LMC) SDIR 304/502: Introduction to Christian Ethics (2) • Christian Ethics, an Introduction; ed.
    [Show full text]
  • Dear Student: on Behalf of Fr. Abbot John T. Brahill, O.S.B., the Monks of Marmion Abbey Along with the Faculty and Staff Of
    Dear Student: On behalf of Fr. Abbot John T. Brahill, O.S.B., the monks of Marmion Abbey along with the faculty and staff of the Academy, I welcome you as a member of a unique community—the Marmion Family. We invite you to be a part of the rich academic and religious traditions of Marmion and ask that, in turn, you share your personal talents and skills with others. Join us in creating a school community - a special place - where we strongly support each other in our common goals and respect each other's diversity in order to provide a lively and wholesome campus life for all. This Student Handbook serves as a guide to foster that kind of life. An awareness of the customs and regulations of the Academy as contained in the handbook will help you to benefit from the many opportunities available to you at Marmion and will assist you in working harmoniously with others. It is thus my hope that your Marmion Academy experience will be a happy one that produces growth in both wisdom and God's grace. May he bless your every activity. In Christ James J. Quaid, Ph.D. Headmaster August 1, 2012 1 ROOTS OF MARMION THE LIFE OF ST. BENEDICT: St. Benedict was born in the year 480 in Nursia, a small village in central Italy. Little is known of his parents except that they were of Roman nobility. Benedict cherished his twin sister, Scholastica, especially as one from whom he could expect sound counsel. When Benedict was yet a young man, he was sent to Rome for his education in the fine arts.
    [Show full text]
  • St. Gregory the Great St. Gregory the Great
    St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church & School Pastor Rev. Michael W. Davis January 10, 2021 Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord Parochial Vicars Rev. Eliseus Ezeuchenne Rev. José Lopez Rev. Khiet Pham Permanent Deacon Deacon Bill Horton Transitional Deacon Deacon Jeremy Lully Mass Times Saturday 8:30 a.m. Daily Mass Saturday Vigil 4:00 p.m. Vigil Church 4:15 p.m. Overflow Vigil Parish Center as needed Sunday 7:30 a.m . Church 9:00 a.m. Church 10:30 a.m. Church 12:00 p.m. Church 1:30 p.m. Spanish Church 3:00 p.m. Spanish Church 6:00 p.m . Church Weekdays 7:00 a.m. & 8:30 a.m. Wednesday 7:00 p.m . (Spanish) Church Office Business Hours Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Closed for Lunch 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m . 200 N University Dr. Plantation, FL 33324 www.saintgreg.org (954) 473-6261 Mission Statement “Together, sharing the faith, and building a future, in Christ .” MASS SCHEDULE & I NTENTIONS presider Schedule Sunday, January 10, 2021 Saturday , January 16 8:30am (Fr. Pham) 7:30am † Doris & Luis H. Tovar …(Maria Palomino) 9:00am † Emory W. Lanier, Jr. 4:00pm (Fr. Davis) 10:30am For the People of Saint Gregory 4:15pm (Fr. Pham) (Parish Center) 12:00pm † Francis O’Rourke …(The D’Antonio Family) 1:30pm † Ismael Ramirez …….(Su Familia) Sunday, January 17 3:00pm † Ely Escobar .………..(Ofelia & Bill Kushner) 7:30am (Fr. Davis) 6:00pm † Lee Nexar …………..(Deborah Harper) Monday, January 11 9:00am (Fr.
    [Show full text]
  • Columba Marmion: Correspondance 1881–1923 (Review) Marcel Albert O.S.B
    Columba Marmion: Correspondance 1881–1923 (review) Marcel Albert O.S.B. The Catholic Historical Review, Volume 96, Number 1, January 2010, pp. 158-159 (Review) Published by The Catholic University of America Press DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/cat.0.0600 For additional information about this article https://muse.jhu.edu/article/369532 [ This content has been declared free to read by the pubisher during the COVID-19 pandemic. ] 158 BOOK REVIEWS Columba Marmion: Correspondance 1881–1923. Edited by Mark Tierney, R.-Ferdinand Poswick, and Nicolas Dayez. (Paris: François-Xavier de Guibert. 2008. Pp. 1361. €55,00 paperback. ISBN 978-2-755-40318-3.) Blessed Columba Marmion, O.S.B., was born in Dublin in 1858. During his studies at the Holy Cross College, Clonliffe, and at the Roman College of the Propaganda Fide,he was deeply formed by the neo-Scholastic theology of his teachers.After his ordination as a priest in 1881, Edward McCabe, the arch- bishop of Dublin, sent him as a curate into a parish for one year. After that, Marmion taught as a professor of philosophy and languages at Clonliffe. In 1886, the twenty-seven-year-old priest entered the Benedictine Abbey of Maredsous in Belgium, which had been founded by the Benedictine Congregation of Beuron in 1872. From 1899 to 1909, Marmion was sent as prior to the Abbey of Keizersberg at Leuven. During this time, he became acquainted with many members of the Catholic University of Leuven, among them the later archbishop of Malines, Désiré-Joseph Mercier. In 1909, Marmion was elected abbot of Maredsous.
    [Show full text]
  • Sponsa Verbi: the Virgin Consecrated to Christ
    Sponsa Verbi: The Virgin Consecrated to Christ By Blessed Columba Marmion, abbot (1858-1923) Blessed Columba Marmion was born in Dublin in 1858 and given the name Joseph Aloysius. Ordained a priest in 1881, he later entered the Benedictine abbey of Mared- sous and made his solemn profession in 1891. He preached retreats in Belgium and in the United Kingdom, and gave spiritual direction to many communities, particularly those of Carmelite nuns. Columba Marmion was elected the third Abbot of Mared- sous in 1909. He died during a flu epidemic on 30 January 1923. Pope John Paul II beatified him on September 3, 2000. His optional memorial is observed on October 3. Sponsa Verbi, translated here by Dom. Francis Izard, O.S.B., is a series of conferences Blessed Columba gave to the Benedictine nuns at the Abbey of St. Scholastica at Maredret (France).1 In them Abbot Columba comments on St. Bernard of Clairvaux’s Commentary on the Canticle of Canticles that had especially struck him during his convalescence in the summer of 1918. These passages from the great Doctor indicate the conditions necessary for the soul aspiring to become the spouse of the Word. SUMMARY. –The Consecrated Soul is invited by the Word to the dignity of Spouse – This teaching is based on Holy Scripture and the Liturgy – The amazingness of the divine condescen- sion which is revealed has its source in Love – How St. Bernard draws the portrait of the Soul espoused to the Word. The greatest gift made by God to the human creature is that of his supernatural adoption by grace into Jesus Christ the Word incarnate.
    [Show full text]
  • Dec 2019 Magazine Web.Pdf
    A Message from the Office of the President Dear Dear Friends, May God’s peace be with you as we prepare to celebrate our Savior’s birth this Christmas. On behalf of the monks and all of us here at Marmion, I wish you and your loved MARMION ones a very Blessed and Merry Christmas! The News Magazine of Marmion Abbey Our faith teaches us that God became man in Jesus Christ and Academy for our salvation so that we could share in God’s own life through Christ. The opening prayer for Christmas Mass December 2019 | Vol. 70, No. 1 during the day states this truth succinctly: “O God, who wonderfully created the dignity of human nature and still more wonderfully restored it, grant we pray, that we may share in the divinity of Christ, MARMION is published three who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” In his book, Becoming Christ, Father Wulstan Mork, times a year (December, April, O.S.B. (+1986) of our abbey, reminded his readers in his own unique way of this fundamental August) by Marmion, 1000 Butterfield Road, Aurora IL, truth: “We need a mental shaking up. Christ is alive and living and with each one of us who are living by 60502. his life. He is alive because he is life and Christianity is Christ giving his life to the human race.” (p. 10) St. Benedict in his Rule for monks teaches that prayer is an absolutely foundational aspect of our Publisher: daily faith lives. Prayer helps us to grow in our life in Christ and expand our hearts and minds Rt.
    [Show full text]
  • Carmelites of the Holy Face of Jesus
    Carmelites of the Holy Face Holy Family Carmelite Hermitage O.Carm Corran, Leap, Co. Cork, Rep. of Ireland. Website: carmelitesholyface.com Issue 10 - February 2020 “The whole head is sick, and the whole heart is sad...” Isaias 1:5 Dear Friends and Benefactors, During the holy season of Lent as we commemorate more especially the sufferings of Christ in His Passion, we are drawn to meditate also upon the Passion of the Church, His Mystical Body. Although it has been the theme of several of our previous newsletters, it is a vast subject with many different aspects on which we can focus. It is of great importance that we should not lose sight of the fact that the Church has been suffering Her Passion ever since Vatican II, since it is a reality which has affected all of Her members; and so we return to this topic as the theme of this Lenten newsletter. Many of our readers may be familiar with the concept of the Church as a Body, with Christ as Her Head and we, Her members; since it is a thought frequently expressed in the Epistles of St. Paul. The visible hierarchy, and especially the Pope as the Vicar of Christ, have always been understood as representing the Head of the Mystical Body. Today more than at any other point in history, the words of Isaias may be applied to them; for truly “the whole head is sick” – infected with the deadly cancer of modernism and all other errors which proceed from it. This poison has spread from the visible head throughout the Body to such an extent that it is scarcely recognisable as the Catholic Church founded by Our Lord Jesus Christ; at least if we judge by appearances.
    [Show full text]
  • Friars' Bookshelf 55
    The Spiritual Doctrine of Dom Marmion. By M. M. Philipon, O.P. Trans­ l~ted from the French by Matthew Dillon, O.S.B. Westminster, Md., The Newman Press, 1956. pp. 221. $3.50. The publication of a book which summarizes the doctrine of a master of the spiritual life is a noteworthy event. But when that summary is done by one who in his own right is recognized as an authority on spiritual matters, then it is doubly welcome. Such a book is Father Philipon's The Spiritual Doctrine of Dom Marmion. It is unnecessary here to expound upon the tremendous influence which the directives of Dom Marmion have exerted. That his works have found translators in dozens of languages attests to the fact that he is without peer as a spiritual writer of the 20th century. The genial Irish Benedictine, who spent his monastic life in Belgium, left to the Christian world a series of books and notes, which for all their depth and beauty, have but one motive and end: to make all men become by grace what Jesus Christ is by nature, the child of God. This was the fundament of all his teaching; everything was done for, or subordinated to, love of Christ. His doctrine is simple; so too are his writings. They mirror the resplendent simplicity of Christ. Father Philipon has divided his relatively short work into five parts. The first and lengthiest treats of Dom Marmion's personal life and spiritual progress. No attempt is made to improve upon Dom Thibaut's Dom Columba Marmion, a model of biographical lit­ erature.
    [Show full text]
  • Bl. Columba Marmion Catholic.Net
    Bl. Columba Marmion Catholic.net Roman martyrology: In the monastery of St. Benedict in Belgium, Blessed Columba Marmion, who was born in Ireland and ordained a priest, he became abbot of that Benedictine monastery, where he distinguished himself as the father of the monastery, guide souls in the way of holiness and its rich spiritual doctrine and eloquence. Etymology: Latin name meaning "dove" Beatification date: September 3, 2000 by Pope John Paul II at Saint Peter‘s Basilica, Rome, Italy. SHORT BIOGRAPHY Born April 1, (Holy Thursday) 1858 at 57 Queen Street, Dublin, Ireland as Joseph Aloysius Marmion. Son of an Irish father, William Marmion, and French mother, Herminie Cordier. He entered the seminary in Dublin, Ireland in 1874, and studied at the College for the Propagation of the Faith in Rome, Italy from 1876. Ordained in Rome on 16 June 1881. He dreamed of becoming a missionary monk in Australia, but spent several years as a parish priest in Dublin. Curate in Dundrum, and professor at the seminary at Clonliffe from 1882 to 1886. Chaplain and spiritual director of a Redemptorist convent and a women‘s prison. In 1886 he renounced his promising ecclesiastical career, and entered the Benedictine Abbey of Maredsous in Belgium, taking the name Columba. Nearly 30 at the time of his noviate, and forced to learn a new language at the same time, he persevered and made his solemn profession on February 10, 1891. Helped found the abbey of Mont César at Leuven, Belgium; served as its prior, spiritual director, and professor of theology and philosophy to younger monks.
    [Show full text]
  • Monastic Recommended Reading
    MONASTIC RECOMMENDED READING: MASTERS: 1. St Benedict, Rule 2. St Gregory of Nyssa, Ascetical Works (On Virginity, The Christian Life, Perfection, etc.) 3. St Gregory the Great, Pastoral Care 4. St. John Cassian, Conferences. 5. St John Climacus, The Ladder 6. St John of the Cross, Ascent of Mount Carmel, Dark Night of the Soul, Living Flame of Love 7. St. Maximus the Confessor, The Ascetic Life The Four Centuries on Charity 8. St Teresa of Avila, Life, Way of Perfection 9. St Therese of Lisieux, Autobiographical Writings, Letters 10. Thomas à Kempis, Imitation of Christ CHURCH DOCUMENTS: 1. Directives for Formation (Feb 2, 1990). 2. Essential Elements in the Church’s Teaching on Religious Life (May 31, 1983). 3. Fraternal Life in Community (Feb 2, 1994). 4. Instruction: Starting Afresh from Christ: A Renewed Commitment to Consecrated Life in the Third Millennium (June 14, 2002). 5. Instruction: The service of authority and obedience (May 11, 2008). 6. Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation: Vita Consecrata (March 25, 1996). 7. Religious and Human Promotion (April 25-28, 1978). 8. The Contemplative Dimension of Religious Life 9. Identity and Mission of the Religious Brother in the Church (October 4, 2015) BENEDICTINE READING LIST: 1. Benedictine Monachism; Butler 2. Benedictine Monasticism; Daly 3. Benedictine Monasticism; Schroll 4. Benedictine Pioneers in Australia; Birt 5. Benedictines Through the Changing Centuries; Hilpisch 6. Christian Monasticism; Knowles 7. Commentary on the Holy Rule of St. Benedict; Delatte 8. Dialogues, Book 2; St. Gregory the Great 9. Greater and Lesser Rules; St. Basil 10. Institutes and Conferences; Cassian 11.
    [Show full text]
  • Bl. Columba Marmion
    Abbot Columba Marmion, OSB Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB Pope John Paul II beatified Columba Marmion on September 3, 2000. Someone told me that Abbot Marmion said there were two kinds of saints: fat ones and thin ones, and he intended to be a fat one. His resolve seems to have paid off. Joseph Marmion was born in Ireland on April 1, 1858, of a French mother and an Irish father. He went to the seminary and was ordained a priest in Rome on June 16, 1881, for the Archdiocese of Dublin. He was a curate in a parish for one year and professor of philosophy for four years. Then he decided to become a Benedictine. He entered the Abbey of Maredsous in Belgium, since there were no Benedictine monasteries in Ireland. He took the name of Columba, taking as his patron the extraordinary fifth-century Irish monk Columcille of Iona. In 1899 he was appointed prior of the newly founded monastery of Mont Cesar (now Kaisersberg) at Leuven, the site of a great Catholic University. He spent ten years there, serving as prior and professor of theology, while offering much spiritual direction and many retreats. He served as confessor to Cardinal Mercier. Then, on September 28, 1909, he was elected the third abbot of Maredsous, which then had over 150 monks. He chose to be blessed as abbot on October 3, because it was the Feast of the Holy Rosary and the Feast of St. Gérard de Brogne. Abbot Marmion had a devotion to both. St. Gérard was an important medieval monastic figure (d.
    [Show full text]
  • Dom Columba Marmion. a Precursor and Logistical Survey for Springtime
    www.marmion.be – Dom Columba mamrion – Courrier n° 14 © Maredsous Christ et, en Lui, à la personne du Père dont il a cherché à accomplir la volonté. Il a pu, ce faisant, proposer une théologie fondamentalement axée sur l'espérance puisque par son souci d'obéir il sort de son ego, de ses limites ; il voit les choses de plus haut. Il a ses détracteurs, les travers de l'existence, la sienne et celle de son environnement. Dans un égal recours à l'intelligence de la foi et au cœur de la consécration, il a encouragé le disciple du Christ à la reconnaissance du Mystère de Dieu en sa propre vie, à l'aventure étonnante d'une filiation divine. Il a proposé et il propose encore un mystère d'harmonie où la personne se sent appelée à marcher “sur les chemins de la Paix”, devise de Maredsous. Luc Moës, o.s.b. Dom Columba Marmion A precursor and logistical survey for Springtime 1. His Beatification It seems to me very important in tackling any approach to the understanding of the message of D. Columba Marmion, to give some reflections on the honour which the Church has given him, in proclaiming him Blessed. It may, at the same time, be helpful to recall the ceremony which took place in St. Peter’s Square, on 3 September 2000, in front of an immense crowd of people, to beatify three other witnesses to the faith, among whom were Popes Pius IX and John XXIII. What should we think about the Church proclaiming someone a saint or a blessed? Is she right in acting thus? For Protestants, Christ alone is Holy or Blessed.
    [Show full text]