Patience

One of the "seven spiritual works of mercy" is "patience". This is sometimes also referred to as "bearing wrongs patiently". Americans are pretty lousy at this. It seems as though modern American culture views bearing wrongs patiently to be an evil rather than a virtue. Some view it as a sign of weakness; which I find to be amazingly ignorant. The only people who would ever consider bearing wrongs patiently to be weak, are those who have never actually tried to do so. It is one of the most difficult actions to endure being treated wrongly and to show grace and forgiveness to the wrongdoer.

Of course, it much easier to be grumpy, whine, fuss, complain, and make everyone else miserable along with us, than to bear wrongs with patience. We are like that, are we not?We want what is easier even if it is bad for us. People want this largely because it makes them feel good (at least in the short term). This is an area of life that we can all learn from. I encourage everyone to plan ahead for this Lent and work to strengthen their resolve to practice "patience". Pre-lent (the "gesimas") is only a few weeks away so now is the time to start thinking about it.

What would our families, and our whole parish for that matter, look like if every one of us grew in our ability to bear wrongs with patience? What would our workplace and schools look like? What would our communities look like? Could we possibly change the world around us simply by doing what Christ did when He went through His passion? He beared the wrongs that were heaped on Him for our salvation; can we not do the same for others?