As I looked
at the word detachment in the English dictionary, it is defined as - a state of
being disinterested, impartial or aloof; which is quite the opposite of the
supernatural detachment that we’re going to consider.
True
detachment, on the contrary is the process of continuously living the heroic
virtues; of generosity in self-giving, courage in dying to self, fortitude on
self-denial, charity on interest in other’s needs. It demands greatness of
heart that can only be achieved when one has true relationship with our Lord, through
our life of piety; in prayer, mortification and sacrifice. So, detachment then can be defined as self-denial, self-renunciation or freedom.
Jesus said,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and
follow me”. This is the condition of true discipleship, to die to self and
taking up our cross. We know this is not an easy task, but with faith and
confidence in the Lord, it is possible. We can
repeat throughout the day these aspirations; “Not a day without the cross”, “Lord, help me to take up my cross and
follow thee”, “Lord, help me to die to self that you may live”.
In the
gospel of the rich young man who runs to Jesus and asked, “Good teacher, what
must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said, “Why do you call me good? No
one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit
adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your
father and mother.’”
We are all
seeking for the true Good-that is God alone. And by
moral standards the rich young man is a good man; he prays, he doesn’t defraud
or cheat, he kept the commandments. But there is still something missing, he’s
not complete. Jesus said, “You lack one
thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have
treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” This is God’s invitation to all of us-
Jesus is inviting us to a vocational love of commitment, to make something
greater. We need to correspond to his invitation; the emptying of our
hearts is so essential in following our Lord so he can feel us with his love,
we need to empty our hearts from stuff. These are the little things that we do, the day to day work that we
offer to God.
A common
misconception about happiness is that if one attains all the goals he/she
desire, then one will be happy. However, the reality is just the opposite. Attachment is the great fabrication of
illusions! Why? Because nothing is absolute. God is the only objective truth that can give us happiness.
And we know
the rest of the story of the rich young man, he went home sad because he has great possessions and he
was too attached to his wealth. Attachment
then only leads to suffering; in envy, lack of confidence, hatred, fear, anger.
Detachment on the other hand leads to freedom, peace of mind and heart, serenity,
contentment and desire to serve others.
Detachment
is presented to us in countless different ways throughout the Bible; Abraham, who did not hesitate to offer his son to God, the Samaritan woman, who did not cling to her jar where water is precious, the Canaanite mother, who was not offended of what the Lord said, the woman who broke her alabaster jar and anointed our Lord with expensive oil, Peter
and the disciples who abandoned everything.
We can learn
much from the poor widow whom Jesus praised, who puts all her living in the
treasury box. She is a strong woman who doesn’t shy away from what people will
say, but rather she is daring, determined, courageous and has total abandonment
in God’s hands. And Jesus praised her
for her generosity. He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put
in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings
for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”
This is
something we can consider in the presence of our Lord; How do we
live the virtue of poverty and detachment. Are we generous like the poor widow
who give wholeheartedly all she has? Do we give ourselves to others in need? Do we bring to our prayer our financial
contributions? Do we keep a vigilant attitude and self-discipline not to cling
on things, people and out will? We need to
draw some practical ideas on ways how to live the virtue of poverty and
detachments in our family. Poverty doesn’t mean shabbiness, but cleanliness
order, good home management and using our time well.
Jesus said,
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasure on earth, where rust and moth consume,
and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in
heaven.
St. Josemaria in homilies "Friends of God", said; “I
want you to be completely convinced that, if we really want to follow Our Lord
closely and be of real service to God and the whole of mankind, then we must be
thoroughly detached from ourselves, our intellectual talents, our health, our
good name, our noble ambitions, our triumphs and successes.
I would also
include — because your decision ought to go that far — the high ideals which
lead us to seek only to give all the glory to God and to praise him. We can
ensure our detachment by tailoring our will to this clear and precise rule:
'Lord, I want this or that only if it pleases you, because, if not, I'm not the
slightest bit interested.' By acting in this way, we are dealing a mortal blow
to the selfishness and vanity that lurk in every conscience. At the same time,
we will find true peace of soul through this selfless conduct that leads to an
ever more intimate and intense possession of God.”
Resources; St. Josemaria.org, St Josemaria Institute Podcast,
SoundCloud; Spiritual Batteries
