Maxim Monday: The Pursuit of Holiness

Maxim 44:
Never do anything which contradicts the pursuit of holiness.

The process of selecting a Maxim for these weekly reflections is, itself, becoming a process of prayer. Partly because of the liturgical season of the year and partly because of whatever seems to be going on during the week, I just can’t be pinned down to reflecting on these Maxims in order of appearance. What seems to be happening is that the next Maxim seems to be choosing me rather than me choosing it.

As we continue to live this season of Lent, Maxim 44 cuts right to the core of what Lent is about. The words are so direct. Here Médaille is calling us to be single-minded and focused on the aim [there’s Maxim 1 again] of our vocation. The image it conjures up is of a straight path.

Life is rarely that uncomplicated but this brief little Maxim is quite powerful in that it challenges us not to get side-tracked by anything that pulls us away from God’s desire for us…God’s desire for the universe. In the midst of the ordinary  yet ever-complicated events of our daily lives, this is easier said than done.