Which catholics hurt themselves

E-mail this to a friend Printable version. The Magazine answers Christ was scourged before the Crucifixion, Christians believe. Self-flagellation is only practised by a very small minority of Catholics.

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In addition, Cardinal Cottier said, while "suffering itself is an evil and a scandal that must be alleviated," Christians can also try to deal with suffering the way Christ did, by transforming his suffering and death into "the total gift of himself for our salvation.

Pope John Paul, like St. Paul in the New Testament and other saints throughout the centuries, are examples of uniting oneself "to Christ with self-sacrifice and by participating in his sufferings," the cardinal said. Jesuit Father Mihaly Szentmartoni, director of the Spirituality Institute at Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University, said ascetical practices from fasting to moderate flagellation are centuries-old methods of self-discipline and exercising one's freedom.

Father Szentmartoni said in written responses to questions about Pope John Paul's use of self-mortification, reported in a book by Msgr. Slawomir Oder, postulator of the late pope's sainthood cause, that throughout Christian history saints have chosen asceticism as a method for unleashing and perfecting their personal freedom.

They wanted "to be free from the bonds of the body, of sleep, of food, of undesired thoughts," he said, adding that the religious vows of poverty, chastity and obedience are "institutionalized expressions of this desire to be free. At the same time, Father Szentmartoni said, "corporal penitence can become pathological in two ways: if it becomes an aim in itself" to demonstrate that the person can always take more pain, or "in cases where it is self-punishment for some real or imagined sin.

Especially when considering the use of ascetical practices, "spiritual direction is essential for spiritual growth," he said. As with any form of growth or maturity, self-discipline is a gradual process. With teen-agers, who "have an innate need for high ideals and for exercising their will," he said, it is important to start by offering them models and heroes, particularly biographies and writings about the saints.

Then, he said, they should be encouraged to give up some of their free time and to leave their comfort zones by engaging in direct service to the poor. Oder's book about Pope John Paul. Asked about the late pope's self-mortification, he said, "It does seem like something from another age, but it is not.

It is an instrument of perfection, not just in religious life, but in human life. Whenever a person wants to achieve excellence, sacrifice is necessary, the cardinal said. Whether striving for holiness or for excellence at work or on the sports field, he said, "it requires denying oneself, making extraordinary efforts. Send your thoughts and reactions to Letters to the Editor. Learn more here.