Mortification

The passage from My Meditation on the Gospel (The Confraternity of the Precious Blood, http://confraternitypb.org) that I read this morning was about Mark 14:37-42. When I read the line "Could you not keep watch for one hour?" I wondered about the significance of "one hour." Why one hour? Why not more or why not less?

Jesus says what He means and means what He says. Knowing He knew well our human nature, Jesus wasn't asking Simon for something that he could not achieve. Jesus' use of the words "keeping watch" is another interesting part of this passage. When you minimally interpret "keeping watch" as meaning "time of prayer” you take away the length of time for which you should "keep watch" daily. One hour of prayer a day. Sounds like a lot.

But given, the many different forms of prayer, one hour is not really much. A Rosary takes most 20 minutes; a Divine Mercy chaplet about ten – this gets you to about 30 minutes. Add another 30 minutes of reading (prayerful reflection of the Bible, or maybe Theology of the Body) and that hour is gone before you know it. The trouble is where one finds that hour. Actually, the real trouble is where one makes that hour to do this.

If you want to be the best at anything it takes practice and discipline. Athletes understand this; musicians understand this. Prayer also takes practice and it also takes discipline. But isn’t following Christ take discipline? Christ Himself was the perfect example of discipline. He was in total control of Himself at all times. He never lost control while He was preaching. He never lost control on His way to Calvary.

Prayer is essential to mortification. Mortification is a method of bringing oneself under control. It allows you to be more in tune with your intellect instead of your emotions. It is a way to achieve self-mastery. Mortification means “putting to death” through self-denial old habits that stand in the way of being what Matthew Kelly calls “the best-version-of-yourself.” The best-version-of-yourself is another way of “being perfect (whole and complete) as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”

“The man who has not learned to mortify (put to death old bad habits) himself, has within himself the enemies of peace and goodness. He is easily around against those who thwart or oppose his selfish desires. He sees the obligations of others, but he remains blind to his own. He blames little things in others, while he excuses bigger faults in himself.”

(The Confraternity of the Precious Blood, http://confraternitypb.org)