After thawing out from the recent winter storm, Shenandoah Valley Catholics packed into the parish hall at Our Lady of the Valley Church in Luray for a half-day retreat, “Faith, Reason and Truth,” Feb. 10.
It was a diocesan homecoming of sorts for speaker Sister Terese Auer of the St. Cecelia Dominicans of Nashville, who taught for 14 years at Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Potomac Shores. Her presentation was a master class in the practical application of the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas.
“I have always loved the truth and helping do what Jesus asked us to do, to pass it on,” said Sister Terese. “It’s what life is all about really — to relish, to delight, to live in the truth.”
But delighting in the truth is a lifelong struggle for many Catholics, especially when regrets come crashing down in middle age, said Sister Terese, stressing that our desires must be purified.
“We all long for a happiness that won’t end,” she said. “Is it possible to be completely happy on this earth? The answer is no. You know why? We must deal with evil that we don’t have control over and we still have unfulfilled desires. It’s our life’s work to make God our ultimate end.”
The problem, she said, is that while most Catholics grasp the objective truth that God is our ultimate end, we tend to misfire when it comes to developing “the subjective aspect of happiness where we choose him over and over again. In midlife, many realize that they’ve made other things their ultimate end,” said Sister Terese. “So, I have these things, but I’m not happy, and I need to switch over and over. We’ve got to try to line up our goals of what we’re seeking. Whether you eat, sleep or drink, whatever you do, do it for him. With him in mind. With him as your end.”
Throughout the four-hour event, retreat attendees took copious notes as Sister Terese, who was accompanied by Sister Martin de Porres, made philosophy come alive. “She does an amazing job of introducing us to and helping us understand the importance of philosophy and how it goes hand in hand with religion,” said parishioner Rose Ann Smythe. “She is just a dynamite presenter and we’re so excited to have her in our tiny little church.”
“I’ve been a Catholic for two years and four days,” said John Shoemaker. “Wow — this is all very exciting to me.”
Jody Mondoro drove from Harrisonburg to attend. “Sister puts things in perspective so eloquently in tracing things back to the ultimate truth,” she said. “It’s just very encouraging and helpful because you can start to think you’re crazy. It’s easy to get it all jumbled up and to have it clarified with her is wonderful.”
The philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas isn’t just for academics, said parishioner Mary Lawler. “The substance of what she is saying is just fundamental to human nature,” she said. “These aren’t arbitrary constructs. They’re actually based on what is going to make us happy.”
The turnout and excitement generated by the event was a milestone occasion for the small parish. “It’s an absolute privilege,” said Father Edwin E. Perez, pastor. “This has been months in progress and it’s a joy to have something like this to offer our parish and surrounding parishes. It’s important to understand the truths of our faith and how philosophy and theology go together. They both serve us so we can get to heaven.”
Sister Terese began the day by emphasizing that the right philosophical approach to happiness is vital. “If you don’t get happiness right, you are never going to get good and evil right,” she said. “The state of happiness I’m talking about must be a good of the soul. It can’t be pleasure. We can’t satisfy ourselves. We’re made to be satisfied by a much greater good.”
