One of my favorite Catholic Saints has always been St. Josemaria Escriva. For, he was a very practical man of modern times who took a genuine interest in the daily lives of ordinary human beings; he contemplated deeply the problem of how Christians could live in fuller union with Christ while going about their daily lives. Over the years, he has become a trusted advisor: when I want recommendations relating to ordinary issues and uncertainties - I turn to Josemaria. Therefore, when I was confronted with the very real challenge pertaining to Christian relations with those who embrace the homosexual lifestyle, I opened up my copy of “They Way, The Furrow, and The Forge.” Here are some of the most pertinent excerpts, of my own choosing:
“These are the savory fruits of the mortified soul: tolerance and understanding toward the defects of others; intolerance toward his own.”
“You will only be good if you know how to see the good points and the virtues of the others.
That is why when you have to correct, you should do so with charity, at the opportune moment, without humiliating. And being ready yourself to learn and to improve in the very faults your are correcting.”
“When we Catholics defend and uphold the truth, without making concessions, we have to strive to create an atmosphere of charity, of harmony, to drown all hatred and resentment.”
In every one of these gems, Escriva is extremely conscious to always turn his little bits of advice back over to the mind of the Christian: in order to force them into reflecting upon their own failings and sins before choosing to rebuke another. It’s a concerted return to one of my favorite passages from Holy Scripture when Jesus challenges the self-imagined incorruptibles to throw the first stone. This is not meant to leave us paralyzed, but humble enough to recognize our own fallen nature before we see the same in someone else. Escriva also pays particular attention to the way and means at which we go about sharing the Gospel: and, it must be done in the most considerate and Christ-filled way; and this is only successfully accomplished through a disciplined and rigorous devotion to prayer and redemptive suffering. Hence, instead of always looking for the opportunity to reprimand or correct, perhaps spend more time praying for that person or offering small penances for them. As Escriva wrote: “…it’s essential that we should be one with the head - ‘ut omnes unum sint!’ - ‘that all may be one!’ - through prayer and sacrifice.”