Season 2. Ep 32. Relationship

“Where one alone may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord is not easily broken.” (Ecc 4: 12) We are created physically connected to our mother, and our destiny is the Communion of Saints, the perfect fulfillment of Holy Mother Church. Yet, isolation and loneliness are becoming rampant in our world. The first form of asceticism explored on Physically Spiritual is growing in relationship.

Video Version

Audio Version

Timestamps

2:30 Review of Asceticism

3:30 Asceticism & Health

10:30 Relationships as Asceticism

15:00 Relationships & the Body

20:00 Relationships in Revelation

30:30 Living in Relationship

Notes

Intro to Asceticism - https://www.becominggift.com/post/asceticism

“Ascesis - The practice of penance, mortification, and self-denial to promote greater self-mastery and to foster the way of perfection by embracing the way of the cross” Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), p. 867

“And Augustine says: walk like this human being and you will come to God. It is better to limp along on the way than to walk briskly off the way. For one who limps on the way, even though he makes just a little progress, is approaching his destination; but if one walks off the way, the faster he goes the further he gets from his destination.” Aquinas, Commentary of John 14: 6 -https://aquinas.cc/la/en/~Ioan.C14.L2.n1870

“grace does not destroy nature but perfects it, natural reason should minister to faith as the natural bent of the will ministers to charity. Hence the Apostle says: "Bringing into captivity every understanding unto the obedience of Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5).” - Aquinas ST I 1.8 ad2 - https://www.newadvent.org/summa/1001.htm#article8

Nature and Relationships

A 2019 study by YouGov reveled 27% of Millennials report they have no close friends and 30% report that they have no one to confide in - https://today.yougov.com/topics/lifestyle/articles-reports/2019/07/30/loneliness-friendship-new-friends-poll-survey

“Loneliness has been estimated to shorten a person’s life by 15 years, equivalent in impact to being obese or smoking 15 cigarettes per day. A recent study revealed a surprising association between loneliness and cancer mortality risk, pointing to the role loneliness plays in cancer’s course, including responsiveness to treatments.” - https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/loneliness-is-harmful-to-our-nations-health/

Blue zones - https://www.bluezones.com/2012/04/friends-nourish-the-body-and-soul/

Mirror Neurons - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY1HAJGpyVw

Introduction to Polyvagal Theory - https://www.becominggift.com/post/tiger

Revelation and Relationships

“It is not Good for man to be alone.” Gen 2: 18 - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/genesis/2

“The “affirmation of the person” is nothing other than welcoming the gift, which, through reciprocity, creates the communion of persons; this communion builds itself from within,” St. John Paul II - General Audience 1/16/80 - http://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/audiences/1980/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_19800116.html

 “The communion of the Holy Trinity is the source and criterion of truth in every relationship. It is lived out in prayer, above all in the Eucharist” CCC, 2854 - http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a3.htm

The story of “The Fall” - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/genesis/3

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. [...] And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.” John 1: 1-3 & 14 - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/1

Living in Relationships

“In the New Covenant, prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their Father who is good beyond measure, with his Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Spirit. The grace of the Kingdom is "the union of the entire holy and royal Trinity . . . with the whole human spirit." Thus, the life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and in communion with him. This communion of life is always possible because, through Baptism, we have already been united with Christ. Prayer is Christian insofar as it is communion with Christ and extends throughout the Church, which is his Body. Its dimensions are those of Christ's love.” CCC, 2565 - http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s1.htm

Baptism - https://www.becominggift.com/post/baptism

“In order to listen, it is necessary to keep quiet. I do not mean merely a sort of constraint to be physically silent and not to interrupt what someone else is saying, but rather an interior silence, in other words, a silence that not only is directed toward receiving the other person’s words but also reflects a heart overflowing with a humble love, capable of full attention, friendly welcome and voluntary self-denial, and strong with the awareness of our poverty. The silence of listening is a form of attention, a gift of self to the other, and a mark of moral generosity. It should manifest an awareness of our humility so as to agree to receive from another person a gift that God is giving us. For the other person is always a treasure and a precious gift that God offers to help us grow in humility, humanity, and nobility. I think that the most defective human relationship is precisely one in which the silence of attention is absent.” - Robert Cardinal Sarah, The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise, 143.