FROM THE DESK OF PRESIDENT DR. TIMOTHY O’DONNELL
Rejoicing Amid Hardship There can be no doubt that we are living in times of great confusion. The recently canonized John Henry Cardinal Newman wrote to a Mrs. Markell back in 1887:
“...we must remember that there is always a red flickering candle which is beckoning us to visit and spend time with the Best Friend we will ever have .”
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Instaurare
“My apprehensions are not new, but above 50 years standing. I have all that time thought that a time of widespread infidelity was coming and through all these years the waters have, in fact, been rising as a deluge. I look for the time after my life when only the tops of the mountains will be seen like islands in a waste of waters. I speak principally of the Protestant world but great actions and successes must be achieved by the Catholic leaders. Great wisdom as well as courage must be given them from on high, if Holy Church is to be kept safe from this awful calamity, and though any trial which came upon her would be but temporary, it may be fierce in the extreme while it lasts.” As we look about us we see the dissent from Catholic teaching not only in many German bishops, but also surveys that reveal that large numbers of Catholics no longer believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Pew Research Center shows us that three quarters of Catholics believe there is nothing wrong with cohabitation before marriage. The list could go on and on. We must remember though that the world was also very dark when Christ was born and yet when the angels appeared to the shepherds they told them to rejoice and spoke and sang of “tidings of great joy.” Ever since our Christendom fall pilgrimage In The Footsteps of St. Paul, I have been reading and
reflecting on the life of this great apostle—St. Paul, who was beaten, scourged, and stoned so many times. On one occasion, after Paul had been laboring at Lystra, enemies from Antioch and Iconium stirred up a hostile crowd, which savagely stoned Paul, dragged him out of the city, and threw him in a ditch, leaving him for dead. Who would believe that he would rise from that experience and write inspired letters, which have thundered down the ages to still inspire men and women all over our world? Who would believe that after that experience, he could write the following: “But what of it? Provided only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed! In this I rejoice, yes and I shall rejoice…But even if I am made the libation for the sacrifice of your faith, I joy and rejoice with you and in the same way do you also joy and rejoice with me.” (Phil 1:18 and 2:18) This great apostle’s heart can’t be restrained! Despite the hardship, he cries: “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice.” (Phil 4:4) There is great work to be done here at Christendom College and in our troubled yet beautiful world. Together, we will seek to restore all things in Christ. We can make it happen. We can make a difference. When the load seems more than we can bear or we feel discouraged, we must remember that there is always a red, flickering candle that is beckoning us to visit and spend time with the best friend we will ever have. Let us listen to Him, for He loves us so much. Praise be Jesus Christ!
As Instaurare was going to press, the college was actively responding to the COVID-19 virus. Read a statement and watch a video message from Dr. O’Donnell at christendom.edu/virus.
