An excellent meditation book on the rhythms of Fall (Autumn), its downs and ups, as they relate to the downs and ups of life, our spiritual life, and Eternity and Heaven. As Fall technically runs two-thirds into December, this book is excellent for this time of year.
Fall has always been my favorite time of year. I'm not sure why, for, as Fr. Bartunek writes, "The smiles of autumn tend to be a bit reserved. They are not, like the smiles of spring, looking forward eagerly to a bright and glorious summer but looking back on one. Yes, sadness is a part of autumn. Maybe not the largest part, but a hanger-on who cannot be ignored." (P.55)
On PP. 57-59, Father tells of being in a poor village in Mexico during Holy Week missions. Father tried to facilitate a reconciliation between a father and his daughter, but the father couldn't seem to forgive. Father writes, "He couldn't bring himself to forgive his daughter, because he simply didn't know how. He wanted to be able to do so, but he couldn't. His decision had to stand. He couldn't go back on it. ... I can't remember how, but in the end I accepted the intense sadness of seeing that man imprisoned in his resentment, yet I didn't give in to the seduction of discouragement. I entrusted him and his family to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and I threw myself with renewed vigor into the rest of my priestly duties. Maybe I couldn't reach that man, but with God's grace maybe I would be able to reach some others."
What a burden pride is to us poor fallen human beings. As the Scripture asks, "Why are dust and ashes proud?' Humility brings such peace, but how we grate against the humiliations the Lord sends us to acquire this virtue which is the foundation of all virtues. Still, one shouldn't despair and should remember the words of St. Maria Faustina (1905-1938): "Let our judgment of souls cease, for God's mercy upon them is extraordinary. ... Oh, how beyond comprehension is God's mercy! ... God's mercy sometimes touches the sinner at the last moment in a wondrous and mysterious way."
In words that remind me of "Behold, I make all things new" (Rev 21:5), Father writes that with our hand in Jesus', we can count on Him to eventually reverse all our reverses in this world as He leads us to Eternal Life: "To keep our balance, then, all we need to do is keep our hand in Jesus' hand, the hand that made us, and the only hand that can steadily guide us to the more abundant life we long for. ... [A]s long as we live in friendship with God (expressed in Old Testament terms by 'the fear of the Lord'), his faithfulness and love - his unending mercy - will restore all loses and lead us to the life that never fades. ... (God promises) eternal life ... a life so full that it transcends all possibility of loss and sadness" (PP. 88, 35,33)
(See also Jeremiah 31:3; Revelation 21:4)
Father covers discouragement in "Autumn Meditations" (PP. 56,57,59,22), and particularly how we should not give in to it. He also covers Death (PP.103-107), Halloween (P.107), and his personal experience on the set of Mel Gibson's "The Passion Of The Christ" (PP.84-86), among many other subjects.
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