New Edition: St. Albert the Great's Cleaving to God in Latin & English

[Shin]

A new edition of St. Albert the Great's book, 'On Cleaving to God' or 'De Adhaerendo Deo' in both English and Latin has been released, for those who appreciate a little Latin while they read, students, etc.

Hopefully this will be the first of other small bi-lingual works to encourage greater fluency and familiarity with Latin -- there is nothing like reading them side-by-side to pick up more and more.

While I believe the Latin source was free of typographical errors, my Latin is completely insuffiicent to verify that decently, it's truly nearly insufficient to rather boldly do something with such a small work as this as a bi-lingual edition.

So I will be trying to find someone with enough Latin to give it a better read through than I have soon enough. But it appears all well enough to my poor eye at this point.

[Brigid]

Sounds like a wonderful addition. 

[Shin]

It's a short but power-packed book.

I truly like those. Very helpful for folks.

[Shin]

Martin did you not pick this up and read this once?  

Any more thoughts to share from it?

[Shin]

A small further update, also to St. Anselm's 'Why God Became Man' we added the Latin edition to the library as well.

As the work is short, 85 pages, someday we may do a combined version Latin/English of this one.

Trying to host more Latin editions as time goes by... or at least link to, space depending.

[martin]

Martin did you not pick this up and read this once?  

Any more thoughts to share from it?

Yes Shin I've downloaded this book and it is a treasure.
It's one of those books that I find after reading a certain chapter there is so much contained there that I could take this lesson alone and have enough to meditate on and practice for the rest of my life.

I have a few comments on the following paragraph from chapter 2.

Certainly, anyone who desires and aims to arrive at and remain in such a state must needs above all have eyes and senses closed and not be inwardly involved or worried about anything, nor
concerned or occupied with anything, but should completely reject all such things as irrelevant, harmful and dangerous. Then he should withdraw himself totally within himself and not pay any attention to any object entering the mind except Jesus Christ, the wounded one, alone, and so he should turn his attention with care and determination through him into him - that is, though the man into God, through the wounds of his humanity into the inmost reality of his divinity. Here he can commit himself and all that he has, individually and as a whole, promptly, securely and without discussion, to God's unwearying providence, in accordance with the words of Peter, cast all your care upon him (1 Peter 5.7), who can do everything. And again, In nothing be anxious (Philippians 4.6), or what is more, Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain you.

He starts by saying we must cast out all worries and consider these as dangerous distractions from contemplation of God and goes on to say about relying totally on His providence, (these things we've been discussing earlier in the week) by handing all our troubles over to the Lord.

There's enough in this one passage, really, that I find it hard to move on from for fear I fail to interiorize the lesson it contains and allow doubts to creep in again.. I say this because by nature (or by grace, I don't know which as yet) I'm not very prone to worry and recently I've been feeling rather guilty about this.. I feel I don't take situations or apparent misfortunes seriously enough and troubling myself much over this, as I know this could well be due to a careless attitude or lack of sensitivity on my part to things that I really ought to be anxious and to at least some degree be worrying about.

Having been wondering about these things I started to read this book not knowing what to expect from it and from the first few paragraphs I was drawn to read on. Having come to the above passage I feel more confident about not permitting anxiety to take hold of me and giving into the temptation to join in with others in seeing doom and gloom ahead regarding the economy and a hundred other things.

Everyone seems to be caught up in the dire predicament of the Irish recession with the worst still to come but the strange thing is, I view it as an answer to prayer, and dread an economic recovery coming before a spiritual one. In feeling this way I keep asking myself if I'm completely heartless in not considering the turmoil that's taking place in peoples lives with job losses, pay cuts increased taxes imminent, and the possible total economic collapse of my own country.
I don't yet know for sure whether I'm looking at the situation in the wrong way but I do so long for the day when Ireland will once again put it's trust in God instead of money.

I feel the answer is in the above passage and the more I read it the more I don't want to join in on the worry.

[Brigid]

I also feel guilty about not worrying about my financial predicament more than I do or taking more physical action to avoid the 'worst'. I have seen how people's actions have nothing to do with what He chooses (or allows) to have happen, however I'm from a family that is over-anxious anyway and in a culture that idealizes independence.
I do worry out of habit, however not near as much as my family or others in the culture would in a similar circumstance (except Catholic friends, who tell me not to worry and that He will take care of me).

[Shin]

Ah, 'pray, hope, and don't worry'..

'Look at the lilies of the fields'..

How difficult it is to put aside nagging worries! But I need to reread what Martin has cited again and again I think and make a stronger effort to realize it too!

[Shin]

Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain you.

[martin]

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124:7-8 ...

[Shin]

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124:7-8 ...

Blessed be God.
Blessed be His Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, True God and True Man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the Great Mother of God, Mary Most Holy.
Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her Glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the Name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be Saint Joseph, her most Chaste Spouse.
Blessed be God in His Angels and in His Saints.

. . . Blessed be the Name of Jesus.

[martin]

O how much the Divine Praises can draw us awawy from worldly desires.

I LOVE them so much.

Indeed, Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.

and blessed be God in His angels and in His saints.

[Shin]

Truly the angels and saints love them too, and we are in good company!

[Brigid]

O how much the Divine Praises can draw us awawy from worldly desires.

I LOVE them so much.

Indeed, Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.

and blessed be God in His angels and in His saints.

Amen! Amen!