The Itty Bitty Path

The gate is narrow
and the way is hard
that leads to life,
and those who find it are few.
(Matt 7:14)

It seems to me that this path has become narrower, rockier, and more treacherous than ever before. Now, the teardrops and sweat of the saints begin to emerge beneath one’s feet; the true test of one’s faith becomes a steeper incline; the bloody footprints of the martyrs, still damp with their sacrifice, glisten in the fading twilight of our times. For the Christian today, it is a path that either fills one with terror…. or calls one deeper. As such, the path is less trampled, evidenced by fewer and fewer souls willing to take this journey that, ultimately, follows in the footsteps of our Master.

The path is even more difficult at this hour precisely because there is a mass apostasy unfolding in which vast portions of the Church have embarked on a much wider and easier road…

…in vast areas of the world the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel. —Letter of His Holiness POPE BENEDICT XVI to All the Bishops of the World, March 12, 2009

As such, there is less and light to see — the light of truth — and fewer souls to journey with. The path is not only narrower, but more lonely. More than ever, “we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

The Way of Love

I believe this path is nothing other than authentic love. Today, there are so many counterfeit paths feigning love; they appear under the titles of “tolerance”, “inclusivity”, “equity”, “sustainable development”, etc. They wear the mask of love, but are devoid of truth, of moral demands, of selfless love.

…for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. (Matt 6:13)

It is the path of political correctness that earns the applause of the worldly. But it is a dead-end.

Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way. (Luke 6:26)

As such, the true prophets of this Way are those who follow the narrow and difficult path of self-renunciation. And here is how…

Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. (Luke 6:28)

Do to others as you would have them do to you. (v. 31)

…love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back… Be merciful, just as [also] your Father is merciful. (v. 35-36)

Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. (6:37)

Bless those who persecute [you], bless and do not curse them. (Romans 12:14)

Do not repay anyone evil for evil; be concerned for what is noble in the sight of all. (12:17)

Rather, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good. (v. 20-21)

The Greatest Obstacles

Even for those who have found this narrow road, there remains the dangerous obstructions of pride. One day it takes the form of a large stone, a boulder of self-satisfaction. “I am not like so-so, and thus, I have it all together”:

Let us always be on the alert and not let this very formidable enemy [of self-satisfaction] penetrate our minds and hearts, because, once it enters, it ravages every virtue, mars every holiness, and corrupts everything that is good and beautiful. —from Padre Pio’s Spiritual Direction for Every Day, edited by Gianluigi Pasquale, Servant Books; Feb. 25th

Or pride may take the form of a deep, dark self-righteous pit into which we stumble, yet thinking we see clearly. “I do this, I worship this way, etc. therefore, I am better, wiser, and more righteous than my neighbor.” But such a soul takes on the sterility, coldness, and darkness of this pit of pride:

For you say, ‘I am rich and affluent and have no need of anything,’ and yet do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. (Revelation 3:17)

Or pride may be like a tree, fallen upon the narrow path. Rather than let it challenge one’s false assumptions and paradigms, they refuse to budge, even for their neighbor so as to help them along the path. For example, those who reject elements of our Sacred Tradition, like the charismatic gifts, prophecy, and mysticism because they don’t understand them. Such people, Jesus warned, become like the Pharisees:

Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away the key of knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter. (Luke 11:52)

On the other hand, St. Paul warns that those who possess great gifts, and yet remain without (authentic) love, are just as misguided.

If I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing… Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. (1 Cor 13:2, Matthew 7:21)

Authentic Love

So what, then, is authentic love? In a word, Jesus. He said, “I am the way,”^[1]John 14:6 and then paved the path with His blood all the way to Calvary. There, the Cross stands as the perpetual icon of authentic love. It is a constant pouring out of oneself for the other — for one’s wife or husband, children, roomate, schoolmate, neighbor, and stranger. It is a giving, in each moment that demands it, of my entire self, withholding nothing, not counting the cost.

Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)

But practically speaking, how?

Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Cor 13:4-7)

It means bearing one another’s faults, putting up with their weaknesses and shortcomings, that is, their lack of authentic love for you in a spirit of gentlelnessa and patience^[2]“Brothers, even if a person is caught in some transgression, you who are spiritual should correct that one in a gentle spirit, looking to yourself, so that you also may not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so you will fulfill the law of Christ.” —Gal 6:1-2 — and to do so without limits.^[3]“Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” —Matt 18:21-22

Today, witnessing Love Grown Cold throughout the world, the temptation to either lash out or simply withdraw from others has perhaps never been greater. Dear Christian, do not be overcome.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. (Matt 5:14-15)

But here is the truth: to shine in this night, to be a beacon in the darkness, to bear love in truth in a world grown cold is to invite both successes and persecution.

‘No slave is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours…. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man. (John 15:20, Luke 6:22)

That is why we are entering the most glorious hour of the Church — the hour of her final witness in this era as she follows her Lord through her own passion, death, and resurrection. It has become an itty bitty path indeed, but what a glorious crown awaits us.

Where is authentic love? Where can I find it? I pray, the next time I meet you…