200- The Prophetic Creed

The Christian spiritual journey has two large consecutive periods of growth. Each one is triggered by a specific Call and a Conversion and each has its own creed and teaching content. The formation that belongs to the first period is called Catechesis and it follows immediately after Baptism. One of the main elements of Catechesis is the Creed: a summary of the fundamental and vital elements of Faith that enable us to be saved. In former times, the formation that belongs to the second period was called Mystagogy. Sometimes it immediately followed Baptism, but often it occurred a while afterwards. It is often triggered by “Second Conversion”. Mystagogy is more than just a deeper understanding of the mysteries present in the Sacraments. It is an enlivening and deepening of the life of the Faithful, a unique, personal and immediate experience of the Risen Lord and following Him in the Power of the Holy Spirit.

In the early centuries, Mystagogy, this new stage of growth, developed and became more apparent through the quest for God in the Desert: monasticism. A baptised person would hear the Lord’s call to go deeper into the faith and seek perfection. He would actually leave the world and go into the Desert to search for Union with the Lord and live for Him only. (See the Life of St. Anthony written by St. Athanasius, who is also the author of the Nicene Creed.) If we look at the Church as a whole we can say that she has three functions represented in three different bodies, perfectly united and interrelated: the Kingly function (Pope and Bishops), the Priestly (Parish and Parish Priests) and the Prophetic one (Monks and all who have heard the Call to follow Jesus).

It is important to understand that within the “Universal Call to Holiness” that originates in Baptism, there is a significant distinction between “knowing that we are all called” and actually “hearing the Call and starting the journey”. The first period of growth belongs to the Baptismal life in the Parish: living Catechesis to the full. While the second period belongs to the “call of the desert”, “call for perfection” or simply “Jesus’ personal call to follow Him”. The Call for perfection is emblematically mentioned in the Gospel story of the rich young man who asks Jesus to tell him how to reach Perfection. The Lord divides his answer into two stages:

1- the necessity to practise Moses’ Commandments first

2- to go and sell everything, give the money to the poor and go and follow Jesus.

We may consider that the first stage ensures Salvation, while the second offers Union with Christ and full realisation of the “Gift of God” (John 4:10).

At this juncture in the life of the Faithful, something new is started: a Call to follow Jesus from close up, to plumb new depths of Baptism. It is true that being baptised gives us potentially the capacity to follow Jesus! But, significantly, at a certain point in our life, hearing Jesus' Call, is something different and vital. The new journey as of now has its own "rules" and its own "set of beliefs" or “Creed”! This “new” Creed is not opposed to the common Creed, on the contrary, it proceeds from it and deepens it. If we consider that the Creed as we know it is the creed of the Catechumens and the recently baptised and confirmed, we can then consider that there is another Creed that serves as a framework for this new period of growth.

The elements that constitute this Creed are twelve as in the first Creed. They are the main vital truths that command the entire vision of the new period of Spiritual Growth. In fact, the second conversion introduces us to a new world and this Creed – our new contemplative eyes – allows us to contemplate it in its entirety. Without these vital truths one would not be on the orthodox path. Thus, one should now be able to say:

“I believe in *Jesus' Call, in time; *Jesus’ Promises; *the stages of Growth of Spiritual Life; *the different levels of the Action of the Holy Spirit in us; *Our Lady's role in our spiritual life; *the necessity of the assimilation of the Sacraments; *the Full Development of the Virtues; *the necessity of determination, perseverance and the Pascal dimension of the Cross; *the need for appropriate Formation; *union with Christ’s Mystical Body; *a different level of Apostolate; *the Eternal Father's Providence, Love and Mercy. Amen.”

Saying this Creed often, strengthens the belief in the elements of the commitment to answer Jesus’ Call.

Here follow short indications regarding each article of the Prophetic Creed. It goes without saying that each one of these deserves a long explanation and presentation.

1- Jesus' Call, in Time	Second Conversion. Entering into a personal relationship with Jesus. Hearing the Call. Following Him closely. Jesus is the Groom. Jesus is The Everything.
2- Jesus’ Promises	Jesus Promised us: 1- Union with Him / Acquisition of the Holy Spirit. 2- Fullness of Love. Life is: becoming one with the Son, being embraced by the Father, breathing the Holy Spirit.
3- The Stages of Growth of Spiritual Life	Union of will. Deep purification. Betrothal. Spiritual Marriage. Flares of the Holy Spirit. To love God as we are loved by Him. Participation in the Lord’s Passion. Dying out of Love.
4- The Different Levels of the Action of the Holy Spirit in us	Inner Master of the sanctification. Personal and direct action in us. General vs. Particular Help of the Grace of God. How to be in Synergy with the Holy Spirit. Human vs. Divine Modality. Necessity for Transformation. The Transformative line of our journey. A deeper understanding of the Scriptures.
5- Our Lady's Role in our Spiritual Life	It is under her care and maternity that the journey is achieved. Necessity for a total and constant entrustment to Her. Her Faith is transmitted to us.
6- The Necessity of the Assimilation of the Sacraments	There is a necessity to assimilate the Sacraments: the sacramentality of the Word of God (Lectio Divina) and the Eucharist (Prayer of the Heart). Living in the presence of God.
7- The Full Development of the Virtues	Virtues (Faith, Hope, Love), the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit need to grow in us. Two types of Contemplation (Lectio Divina, Prayer of the Heart). Participation in the Lord’s Passion. Humility – Detachment – Love, practised heroically.
8- The Necessity of Determination, Perseverance and the Pascal Dimension of the Cross	How narrow is the door and the Path! Necessity of courage, endurance and resilience. Meaning of suffering. Learning to unite it to the Cross. Temptation. The different types of ‘nights’.
9- The Need for Appropriate Formation	Necessity of: Formation – Spiritual Direction – Spiritual Friendship.
10- Union With Christ’s Mystical Body	The Whole Christ is Head and Body (the Church). We can’t divide up Christ. We need to be united to both.
11- A Different Level of Apostolate	New Modalities of Apostolate develop throughout the journey of growth. Being united with Jesus’ Mystical Body engenders a new dimension of apostolic zeal. Transformed by the Holy Spirit into a living flame, our spirit, together with Him, sends out flares toward others, giving them the Holy Spirit in turn.
12- The Eternal Father's Providence, Love and Mercy	Everything works for the good of whomever commits to this path. God's Providence embraces us: the help of the Angels, the Communion of Saints, St. Joseph’s vigilant help.

167: Spiritual "Topography"

A- Kerygma - Catechesis - Mystagogy

Please find below a video about the different levels of Christian Formation. You may read further below as well about the complete list of different stages of Formation.

See as well the video playlist here.

B- The Complete Journey

We may take the following picture and the physical journey from point 1 to point 10 as a good description of the complete Spiritual Journey. (please see a previous complete description of the Spiritual Journey according to the Gospel (17 posts on this Blog), click here.)

1 to 2: Kerygma

1 to 2: Kerygma: Five steps that lead us to (2) where we consider that we are following Jesus: a- Initial Trust, b- Spiritual Curiosity, c- Spiritual Openness, d- Spiritual Seeking, e- Intentional Discipleship.

2: Intentional Discipleship i.e. Conversion. Receiving Christ in ones life. Starting to follow Him.

2 to 3: Catechesis

2 to 3: Basic Adult Catechesis: learning the four parts of the Catechism: a- the Creed (what we believe in), b- Liturgy and the Sacraments, c- how we live, live with Christ, d- how do we pray.

3: Second Conversion

3 to 5: Mystagogy

3 to 4: Initial Spiritual Growth (St Teresa of Avila 4th Mansions). The supernatural starts, i.e. the direct and personal action of the Holy Spirit.

4 to 5: Stabilisation, rooting in God's will. "Union of will" (see St Teresa of Avila 5th Mansions). First liberation for the Body's Rule. Comparable to the crossing of the Red Sea.

5 to 8: Mysticism

5 to 6: Radical change is God's way of dealing with us. Deep purification. Desert. Changing the way we follow Jesus, from human to divine. The night that makes the Saints. The climbing is almost vertical.

6: Spiritual Engagement. Entering the Promised Land.

7: Spiritual Marriage with Jesus. Full Union with Jesus: "it is not me who lives, bt Jesus who lives in me". There is no obstacle between Jesus and the Human being. Entering the 7th Mansion of St Teresa of Avila. (Equivalent to building of the Jerusalem Temple: indwelling of God in the Temple.)

7 to 8: Enjoyment of Marriage. See St John of the Cross, Spiritual Canticle, the Stanzas after Spiritual Marriage (excluding the last 5).

9 to 10: Apostolic Life - Witnessing

8 to 9: Increase in the transformation and participation into God's Being and operations, and intensity of the action of the Holy Spirit in us: the soul starts the "sparkling". (see St John of the Cross the 5 last Stanzas of the Spiritual Canticle and the "Living Flame of Love") "a pure act of love is more precious in the eyes of God and the soul, and more profitable to the Church, than all other good works together" (St John of the Cross, Spiritual Canticle B, Stanza 29,2) See as well the Act of Oblation to the Merciful Love of God of St Therese, and its effects.

9 to 10: Apostolic Life. Witnessing to Christ. Participating into various trials. Participating into Jesus' Passion. "I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I am completing in my flesh what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for His body, that is, the church." (Col 1:24) "For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished [my] course, I have kept the faith: " (2 Tim 4:6-7) See St Therese's Trial. See Mother Teresa last 50 years.
9 to 10 could have in it various stages, a variety of "states", trials and experiences. All are like the extension of Jesus' Life.

10: Christian Death: true Martyrdom (at least the inner one). See St John of the Cross, Living Flame of Love, Stanza 1 last verse ("Tear through the veil of this sweet encounter!") commentary. See St Therese's Death as an example.

(Please see as well a previous complete description of the Spiritual Journey according to the Gospel (17 posts on this Blog), click here.)

Solid Foundations Course Lent-Easter 2016

Exciting new course to for those looking to build solid foundations for spiritual growth…

Dear friends,

We are delighted to let you know that the School of Mary will be running an introductory course to the spiritual life starting in February 2016. 

Solid Foundations (previously known simply as “the first level course”) is for all of us who have found our feet in starting to practice our faith (weekly Mass, some prayer) but who now want to know “is there something more?” and “how can I start to draw closer to the Lord?”. 

The Solid Foundations course draws on the insight and practical advice of the great spiritual writers including St John of the Cross, St Teresa of Avila and St Therese of the Child Jesus to help us understand the basics we need to put in place and the part we are invited to play to begin to grow in our relationship with God… and how much more lies in store!

The course has been broken into three sections so that those wanting to complete the full course in one year can do so, but equally those who can only do a more limited number of Saturdays can choose to do just one or two of the sections now and the rest at a future point:

· Solid Foundations – Praying with Scripture will run on 27^th February, 5^th and 12^th of March

· Solid Foundations – How the spiritual life works takes place on the 16^th and 23^rd of April

· Solid Foundations – Praying with the Heart will happen on the 11^th, 18^th and 25^th of June

The course will run at St Mary of the Angels, in Bayswater and, as the venue has limited capacity and we expect demand to be high, participants will need to register and pay a deposit in advance.

Please see below for further details on the course and how to register. If you have any questions then please do contact us on schoolofmarylondon@gmail.com.

The School of Mary

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What topics does this course cover ?

This course looks at how we can grow in relationship with God, what gets in the way and what can help.  Participants will have the opportunity to put the teaching into practice for themselves and there will be time for question and answer sessions in each section so that people can make sure they grasp the content and begin to make it their own. 

What topics are covered?

The course draws on the teachings of three Doctors of the Church who focus on the spiritual life – St Teresa of Avila, St John of the Cross and St Therese of the Child Jesus – and focuses on three key areas:

1. Praying with Scripture: understanding how to pray with Scripture, what to expect when we begin to pray in this way and the opportunity for some hands on practice

2. How the spiritual life works: looking at the shape of the spiritual life, the role of Our Lady and the guiding principles which we need to understand in order to start to co-operate more easily with what God is inviting us to

3. Praying with the heart: finding our bearings with contemplative prayer – what it is, how to pray in this way and what to bear in mind as we find our feet… as well as the chance to put it all into action

Where and when will the course be taking place?

The course will take place at St Mary of the Angels, Moorhouse Road, Bayswater, London, W2 5DJ from 10am to 4:30pm on the following Saturdays: 

· Solid Foundations – Praying with Scripture: 27^th February, 5^th March and 12^th March 

· Solid Foundations – How the spiritual life works: 16^th and 23^rd April

· Solid Foundations – Praying with the heart (moving into contemplative prayer): 11^th, 18^th and 25^th of June

The course will be taught by Jean Khoury, a theologian who has studied and taught Spiritual Life in the Church for over 20 years. As well as lecturing world-wide on spiritual life and meditation, Jean is the author of several books, articles and studies on spiritual life and the founder of the School of Mary, a 3 level formation in spiritual life (www.amorvincit.com). Jean obtained a degree in Philosophy from the Institut Catholique de Toulouse (France), a Licence in Theology from the Teresianum (Rome) and a Masters in Spiritual Theology from the Institut Catholique de Toulouse (France). He is currently completing his PhD in Spiritual Theology at the Angelicum (Rome) with Monsignor François-Marie Léthel. 

How much will the course cost?

The cost for the course is £25 per day / £200 for the full course. As the venue has limited capacity and we expect demand to be very high, participants will need to register and pay a deposit of £75 in advance with any remaining balance to be paid on 27th February.

Please email schoolofmarylondon@gmail.com to register your interest and we will send on details of 
how to make payment by bank transfer or cheque.

Should you have any questions about the course then please don’t hesitate to contact us by email at schoolofmarylondon@gmail.com

www.amorvincit.com