17 October 2019
Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr
One day Jesus gave his followers this warning: “Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets whom your fathers killed” (Luke 11:47). The purpose of this warning is not to dissuade people from building memorials to the prophets. On the contrary, it is important to study history and to reflect upon the contributions made by great men and women, and to erect memorials in their honor. These memorials can inspire us to do great deeds like the prophets once did, but…
They can also mislead us. They can make us forget that every one of us is capable of achieving not only great good, but also great evil. They can make us so enamored of the heroes and heroines of the past that we presume that we would have done as they did. On the contrary, we might just as well have been their persecutors. Who knows, I could have sought the life of the prophet Elijah, God forbid. I could have clamored for the death of Jesus Christ, God forbid. I could have worked at a Nazi concentration camp, God forbid. I could have become a stool pigeon in a Soviet Gulag, God forbid.
I am my own unique person, but I also carry a lot of baggage in common with all humanity. Among that baggage is my capacity for doing great good and great harm, and my vulnerability to being manipulated by the circumstances. God forbid that I become morally complacent. This is why, in his Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius has the exercitant meditate so frequently and so often on his or her own sins and shortcomings. We need God to help us to do what’s right, especially in trying circumstances.