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Monday, July 09, 2007

De diligendo Deo ~

I would be searching for You to love if I only knew I could reach You. But I don't even know Who You are. To love You I need to have something I can grasp onto.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

When we finally have Him we won't want anything or anyone other than Him: the beatific vision.

Anonymous said...

I liked this statement of Bernard: "The cause of loving God is God himself." You apparently think that our motives alone bring us to Him.

Charles said...

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Hello, Charles:

My name is Buzz Marzolf; I live in Hudson, Wisconsin. I came across your blog while doing a little Google research on St. Bernard of Clairvaux. On July 9, 2007 you had made reference to De Diligendo Deo, and--after scanning through some of your other entries I came to realize that we are kindred spirits in many respects.

Thank you for your hope-filled insights regarding our new President-Elect, Barack Obama, and for the profound data you have provided regarding the escalating cost of the war in Iraq, and the other, more positive and constructive alternatives toward which those staggering dollar amounts could be put.

I--too--am a retired teacher (high school math and physics). I began my teaching career at the archdiocesan seminary in Detroit (Cardinal Mooney Latin School, Sacred Heart Seminary) and taught there until it closed in the 70s. I then moved back to my home town (St. Paul, MN) and continued teaching until 1996.

I had majored in philosophy at the Jesuit university in Detroit (University of Detroit), and one of my favorite courses, Theories of Love, was taught by one of my favorite professors (Jules Toner, S.J.).

I seem to remember that Father Toner had a great love for all that Saint Bernard stood for and believed in, and he was so eager to share his beliefs with his students. Among the works we studied was De Diligendo Deo, and the one quote I remember from that treatise is--in Father Toner's words--"The true lover seeks no reward, but invariably finds one."

In a conversation with a friend yesterday I used that quote, but--in a senior moment--could not recall the words De Diligendo Deo! Amazingly, when I Googled --"The true lover seeks no reward St. Bernard of Clairvaux" your blog was among the many sites which came up, and its very first entry was De Diligendo Deo (July 9, 2007).

As has probably happened with you as well, Charles, there have been numerous times in my life when--for no apparent reason--there has been an unexpected, serendipitous surprise ending on various occasions when I have reached out to someone simply because it was the right thing to do, and not because I expected anything in return.

This is getting long, and it's also getting late (2:25 a.m.). I am grateful for your blog, Charles, and I so enjoyed reading some of your entries, along with several of the poems you have written. I am going to put your blog into my "Favorites" box, and I will try to stay in touch in the days ahead.

I was unable to place this note into your blog's "Comments" portion; if you are able to do that, please share what I've written with others. Thank you sincerely.
Respectfully,
Richard A. Marzolf