Detachment from the World - Cardinal Bacci

Detachment from the World

1. It is very difficult to detach ourselves from worldly affairs and remain always united to God. Nevertheless, St. Ignatius of Loyola often exclaimed: "How ugly the earth seems when I look towards Heaven!" The Saints saw the things of this world in the light of God. They recognised how insignificant this world is beside the infinite splendour of God. They realised that earthly things cannot satisfy the human heart nor assuage the restlessness of the soul which was created for God. We, on the other hand, become too attached to worldly goods. It may happen that our hearts become absorbed in them. Let us reflect on the unimportance of this world. There are myriads of stars in the firmament, many of which are far larger than our earth or sun. Some, like Andromeda, are 250,000 light-years distant from us; others, like the Triangle, are 280,000 light-years away, while still others are probably much farther. All obey exactly the plan of their Creator. How tiny our earth is by comparison! How insignificant we ourselves are! Why should we become so attached to the things of this earth? God alone is great. He alone should occupy our minds and hearts. We have been made for Him alone.

2. This is not the same as saying that we should have no interest in worldly affairs. Far from it. It is our duty to think about them and make provision for the future. We cannot and should not look for miracles from God. We may have obligations to ourselves or to our family or to our position in life. We are in this world to work, not to surrender to apathy or inactivity. We must engage in worldly activity in so far as our circumstances demand it. Nevertheless, our hearts should not be engrossed in earthly things, for they belong to God. In the midst of our other preoccupations we should adore, love and thank God, the Giver of every good, our Creator and Redeemer.

3. St. John Bosco said that we should work as if we never had to die. But we should also be as detached from worldly things as if we had to die in one hour. A man who works like this can accomplish wonders, because he is not working for himself, but for God. We should work and pray with our feet on the earth and our minds in Heaven. We should seek God, not ourselves, in everything which we do. Let us remember that one moment in Heaven is worth infinitely more than all the pleasure, love, and vanity of the world.