Legionary Angelic Sweetness: The Gentle Approach, Not the Harsh Reproach
18 September, 2016: Rev. Frank Giuffre/Philadelphia Senatus
Reading, Handbook, p. 281-282 (end with “… hope to accomplish?”)
Let me tell you about a few of my favorite stories in the Bible. I like the one in Luke’s Gospel where the shepherd goes after the lost sheep, and when he finds it, he beats it for its disobedience. Then there is the one where Jesus, upon hearing that a few towns refused to welcome Him, allows James and John to call fire down from heaven to obliterate them. Then there is the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, where Jesus, as soon as she comes up to draw water, blasts the woman for her sins, saying she will suffer damnation unless she repents.
Of course, these stories are not in your Bibles. They are not in mine, either, because they are not in Revelation at all. Jesus certainly never taught or acted in such a way toward a lost or struggling soul – and He never could. His was always sweetness, patience, gentleness, and docility in seeking to bring souls back. Even when Jesus had to be firm, direct, or blunt to correct a person, he did so as a last resort, and always with charity. Jesus knew that men and women need more motivation for making a change than just a few threats. They need hope. They need love. They need to believe in the good that God has planned for them and, at the same time, to believe that they are “good enough” to receive this gift anew. Jesus seems to want souls back, not out of fear, but out of desire – a desire Jesus stirs by treating each one with respect and gentleness, giving them a taste of the compassion of a God who loves each person in spite of his or her sins and who is ready to embrace them with open arms as prodigals-returned.
What was the way of Jesus must be our way in the Legion whose spirit is that of Mary’s “angelic sweetness” (H, 12) and whose mission of “dealing with the outcast and the sinner” must entail, as the Handbook states, the qualities “of sympathy and unwavering gentleness” (H, 281). This involves approaching souls in a loving, respectful, and serene manner so reflective of Isaiah’s “Suffering Servant” who breaks not the “bruised reed” nor “quenches the smoldering wick” (Is 42:3). This means acting after the example of the Father’s Chosen Servant, Jesus, who did not come “to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:17). That is why the legionary must avoid all harshness, anger, and crudeness, convinced of the damage it can do to a fragile heart, heeding the warning given in the Handbook that the member who “says something or does something that departs from the sweetness which should characterize the Legion, may be opening an artery with fatal results” (H, 195).
Certainly, no one is asking that we compromise the Truth, but only that we adopt a Christ-like approach in communicating it and drawing others to it. We must remember that our role as evangelizers is to be, as Pope Francis has insisted, not the club of a warden, but the compassionate face of the God of Mercy. That is why in outlining the tactics that are most conducive in reaching souls, the Holy Father writes these words: “It is true that in our dealings with the world, we are told to give reasons for our hope, but not as an enemy who critiques and condemns. We are told quite clearly: ‘do so with gentleness and reverence’ (1 Pet 3:15) and ‘if possible, so far as it depends upon you, live peaceably with all’ (Rom 12:18) … [striving to] overcome ‘evil with good’ (Rom 12:21)” (EG, 271). These tactics should come as no surprise to us. From experience, we know that when we have gone astray, we were likely brought back by one who approached us kindly and gently. And what has worked for us, we must put to work for others, making a way of life this counsel of St. Paul: “We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak” (Rom 15:1).
Pope Francis once challenged the faithful that they “like the Good Samaritan, [should] … not be ashamed of touching the wounds of those who suffer, but try to heal them with concrete acts of love.” This is precisely our role as members of the Legion: not to cause wounds, but to heal wounds by exposing them to the salve of God’s mercy. And we will be most effective in that role if we operate with sweetness and gentleness.