From 10d04addc9ebb3878fbfac74980923a68c2269b9 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: =?UTF-8?q?Nicol=C3=A1s=20Ortega=20Froysa?= Date: Thu, 11 Feb 2021 13:23:36 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Added new post about Mortification. --- ...-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.cfg | 5 ++ ...02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html | 71 +++++++++++++++++++ 2 files changed, 76 insertions(+) create mode 100644 blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.cfg create mode 100644 blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html diff --git a/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.cfg b/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.cfg new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d5aa216 --- /dev/null +++ b/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.cfg @@ -0,0 +1,5 @@ +filename = 2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html +title = The Importance of Mortification +description = Despite it's enormous benefits to the soul, discipline, and resilience of the faithful, mortification is a practice that has been downplayed recently. It is important that we revive this religious practice and promote it. +created = 2021-02-11 +updated = 2021-02-11 diff --git a/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html b/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8506364 --- /dev/null +++ b/blog/posts/2021-02-11-the-importance-of-mortification.html @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +
+ "The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no + holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle. Spiritual + progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually lead + to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes." + - Catechism of the Catholic Church ยง 2015 +
+ +

Perhaps one of the most undervalued of Christian practices today is +that of Mortification. This is the voluntary endurance of discomfort, +inconvenience, or privation of certain goods (e.g. fasting) so as to +die to the temptations of the flesh and, with a stronger will, be +able to better accept God's Grace and reject the devil's temptations to +sin.

+ +

This all appears to be something very vague, especially for those who +aren't religious or are not accustomed to Catholic terminology. What's +more, the very term Mortification may appear rather intimidating +to some seeing that it derives from the Latin word mortificatio, +meaning "death". And in a sense, there is death involved in an +act of Mortification, but it is a death to the ego.

+ +

So firstly, let's make concrete what are acts of Mortification. These +would be acts of enduring some sort of inconvenience, mentally or +physically. These usually take the form of abstinence of some sort from +something that is not necessarily bad for oneself, but that one may feel +a certain bodily or mental craving for. As such, one rejects their body +or mind's desires so as to pursue something of greater value. An example +of a Mortification of the Flesh (bodily) would be fasting, whereby one +abstains from eating for a time. The body will desire food, and +throughout the period of fasting, one's resolve to complete the period +of fasting may be weakened by temptations throughout the day. But +through an act of the will, choosing God's Grace over one's selfish +desires provoked by the satan, one may persevere. For Mortification of +the Mind, this typically involves mental discipline of doing things we +do not want to do. For many, this may be an abstinence from social +media, an extra hour of studying, finishing that one thing you've had on +your to-do list for ages but have never gotten around to doing, etc.

+ +

As for the spiritual fruits, if it was not already obvious, we gain +discipline and willpower, both things that are of absolute importance in +the Good Fight of the Faith that we battle every day. The question of +resisting the evil one's temptations to sin is one of choosing God's +Grace over our own selfish desires. Is this not the same will power we +train while practicing Mortification? It becomes much easier to say no +to the adversary's temptations if we practice; and what better to +practice with than abstinence from something that is not sinful in and +of itself? If one decides to practice Mortification through fasting, one +learns to resist his temptations to eat throughout the day, yet if he +fails, he has not fallen into sin as it was simply practice. +Mortification is therefore our means of sharpening our swords to fight +off the demons we encounter in our lives, showing them neither mercy nor +compassion; choosing always Good over Evil, God over the satan, the Good +Fight over effeminacy.

+ +

I bring this up now because, as any good Catholic will know, the +liturgical season of Lent is nearly upon us. During the forty days of +Lent we commemorate the forty days which Jesus Christ spent in the +desert fasting, suffering the temptations of the evil one. We are +called, during this season, to follow in the example of our Lord and +practice some kind of Mortification. There are the obligatory fasts on +Ash Wednesday (on February 17th) and Good Friday (on April +2nd), as well as an abstinence from eating meat on Fridays +during the Lenten season (this custom may vary depending on your +location and rite); but we are also called to observe some other form of +Mortification to help us in our struggle towards sainthood. So hopefully +this article helps you, my dear reader, to both understand the +importance of Mortification as well as to choose a Mortification for +this Lenten season.

+ +

God bless you.