The Consecrated Life

We would like to publish some homilies that Fr. Buela has written about the consecrated life. These homilies have been written especially for the Servidoras. We pray that these reflections only draws one closer to God.

Institute of the Incarnate Word

Institute of the Incarnate Word
Priestly Ordinations - Institute of the Incarnate Word

Friday, June 19, 2015

"Spouses of Christ" Servidoras I (II edición), p. 193


I believe that neither a more beautiful nor a more accurate expression can be found to define a religious than to call her a spouse, “Spouse of Christ.” Now I want to put in writing a sermon that I have often preached, which is loosely taken from a classic sermon given by John of Avila in Montilla, in the monastery of Saint Clare.

The honor of the espoused is the honor proper to her spouse, because what affects the espoused also affects her spouse as if it were her own. And so, anything that shames, affronts, wrongs, offends or reviles her is all done to her spouse as well, and anyone who does a favor for the espoused so honors her spouse as if it were done for him instead.

In other words, he who works against a religious works against Christ Himself; whether he hinder their living the religious life, slander them, try to meddle in their community life, work to separate them from their Spouse, which makes him like those who are in favor of divorce, doing the work of the devil. Sometimes, when God permits these actions: they only do the work of carrion crows weeding out false religious who, as if they were masquerading, have only the exterior dress – those who are not Spouses, but widows of Christ. “Widows more than married; not a spouse, but an adulteress to Christ,” says St. Cyprian.

On the contrary, he who helps religious sisters spiritually or materially helps Christ. And “whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink – amen, I say to you he will surely not lose his reward” (Mt 10:42). All that we can do for religious, the Divine Spouse will receive it as though it were done for his service.

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