DEVOTIO NOSTRUM REMEDIUM EST

[Quill_ 20]

DEVOTIO NOSTRVM REMEDIVM EST

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FOREWORD

In my recent work on the Rosary of St. Kristoff, it has given me reason to consider the importance of prayer. It had been my intention to continue in a series of tracts upon the nature of love and its relationship to our faith, and to GOD. However, this I feel is more pressing of a thing, and that it is better to touch upon the subject while it is fresh upon my thoughts. I pray that this shall be both educational and edifying for the reader, and that these words might be taken into consideration, for theirs is of an importance most grave in guiding the Canonist upon the path that has been laid forth in the virtues of the Lord our GOD.

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WHAT IS PRAYER?

A layman might tell you simply; and there are two ways that I oft hear this, either that prayer is a solemn plea to GOD and His Saints, or that prayers are meditations to draw oneself nearer to GOD. There is truth in both of these things, and I will say that prayer is both of these things at once, and much more than that. True, sincere prayer is of the heart, and the heart is full with the life that GOD has gifted unto mankind. It should be said then, that prayer is of GOD, and it belongs to GOD. Without GOD, man does not know virtue, and without virtue, he does not know prayer, for prayer is, as love, a fruit of virtue.

 

I argue then that prayer is a fruit of virtue, and moreover, that prayer is a balm to soothe the soul. It is the great, nurturing remedy that is written of within the Scroll of Virtue.

 

VIRTUE 5:5-8

5 And as I have created for you the struggles of the world, so too do I create the struggles of the spirit. 6 And as I have created the struggles of the world and the spirit, so too do I bring their remedies. 7 For I have given you the pains of the world, and I have given you their cure. 8 And you shall know the trials of this theater of virtue, and know that they shall strengthen you.

 

As GOD has laid forth the struggles of the earth, and the struggles of the soul, so too does he gift us the remedy for these trials. Some theologians may argue instead that this cure is the sacrament of baptism, wherein we are married to the Church, and in turn, given in the wholeness of our spirit to the Lord GOD. I say that they are wrong, for to enter into the Church does not take away the pains of this world. It does not banish the spiritual struggles which we suffer through each and every day; no! It only magnifies them, and makes them all the more dire, for when a man becomes a Canonist and knows true his faith in GOD, the pain of sin becomes so much more profound, and the agony of being embattled in sin, and against all the evils in this world do not lessen, but become greater the more we strive towards a closeness with GOD.

 

Recall that to pray is to gird the spirit! It is the spiritual armor of men. It is the sacrifice that we raise unto the Lord. If sin is the sickness, then prayer is the cure. And prayer must not be lukewarm, but full with the sincerity of faith! When we pray; when we ask forgiveness for ourselves, or for others, and for the Saints to lay their hands upon us in prayer from on high, do so with tears! For man is unworthy of this wellspring of mercy and love which flows from the glory of the Lord, and yet he bestows it onto those who will receive it, and asks nothing in return but that we embody that love and mercy, and know Him as our own.

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THE PRAYER RULE

Now that we have established an understanding of prayer and its profound importance, I shall turn my focus to the reason for writing this, the Prayer Rule. It is of dire importance that each and every Canonist possesses a prayer rule, and it is the duty of one’s spiritual father to bestow onto them a rule, and guide them in it so that they might build this most important of habits, for a Canonist who is armed with prayer shall never fear to forget the Lord GOD, but carry Him with them always; both in their hearts and upon their lips. I am not afraid to admonish those shepherds who neglect their flocks in this way; a priest who is not diligent in prescribing a prayer rule to each and every one of his parishioners invites into his midst the sin of sloth, for without prayer to temper the heart and soul, one might entreat an idleness of faith and love for the Lord. Yet, sloth is only the beginning of the worries that befall those who lack for that spiritual armor and the girding of true faith. To exist without prayer is to open one’s heart to all manner of evils; a man might go and do confession and uphold the sacraments in his daily life, but if he does not know prayer, then he does not know GOD and how can a man who does not know the Lord be anything but a pitiless sinner?

 

Therefore, the parish priest, and even the Bishop must be unceasing in their care for those who fall underneath their spiritual care. Like I have mentioned, prayer is a cure given to us by GOD; a divine panacea to eradicate the very sin that dwells within us. And if prayer is this cure, this medicine, then the priesthood must treat a prayer rule as a prescription that shall keep the members of their flock in good spiritual health. The Bishop must give unto his priests and acolytes this panacea, and they the laypeople to whom they serve the sacraments, or else this sickness is allowed to fester and worsen. And GOD forbid that the priesthood themselves should not keep to a prayer rule; for how can a man be called a spiritual father, and hold in his trust the salvation of all the people in his care, if he himself is mired in sin because he is not conscientious in his own prayers? The answer is simple; he cannot.

 

With the importance stated, I offer the following recommendation to those priests and monastics who find themselves lacking in a prayer rule of their own, and to all the Canonist lay people who have found themselves in this state of neglect. You priests who neglect your faith through a lack of prayer, and thus betray those who trust in you, take up the Little Office of Saint Jude, as established by Saint Pius of Sutica for the explicit purpose of providing a prayer rule that might be utilized, universally, across the Church. Moreover, take up the Rosary of St. Kristoff, and pray it with reverence and love for GOD and His Saints. And to you laypeople, beseech the wisdom of your priests, and if that fails, take upon yourselves the same, the Little Office and the Rosary, and know that prayer is the divine medicine; the fruit of virtue shall never rot.

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CONCLUSION

To pray is to know GOD, and it is only through Him that we may be cured of the sickness that is sin. Be diligent in your prayers, as you are diligent in the duties of your vocation. Bear up the Word of God and live according to His virtue. Ere you arm yourself with steel, take up a prayerbook; faith is the greatest weapon of them all, for the Word of God is magnified above all things. Keep a prayer rule, build that habit, and do not stray from it. To struggle is virtuous, and prayer shall steel you against all the evils of this words.

 

May the blessing of Almighty God, our loving Father, in the tender care of our Holy Mother Church, rain down upon you and remain with you forever and ever.

 

St. Amyas, St. Kristoff, St. Pius, pray for us.

 

God love you,

PRESBYTER IUDAS ADRIANVS FSSCT

 

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P.S: Attached are copies of the Little Office of St. Jude and the Rosary of St. Kristoff for use in personal devotions.

 

THE LITTLE OFFICE OF ST. JUDE

THE ROSARY OF ST. KRISTOFF