“Father, they are your gift to me.” // John 17: 24 (From Gospel for the Memorial of St. Bernard)
I quickly opened the envelope addressed with my name and began reading the contents of the letter right there in the chapel. I was going to enter a Carmelite Monastery very soon and any amount of spiritual encouragement was like balm to my soul. This friend shared a quote that a priest mentioned in a homily: “The Lord gives back to us the gift of ourselves.” I only realized afterwards, while listening to the audio version of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux’s writings while in the convent—the Saint whom the Church honors today—that this quote was based on his writings.
In Chapter Five of his work On Loving God, he writes, “In the first creation He gave me myself; but in His new creation He gave me Himself, and by that gift restored to me the self that I had lost” (source). Before entering the convent I thought I knew who I was, that I had so much to give, that I had found what I was looking for. However, upon entering the enclosure of Carmel, all of my securities fell to the ground and only the Lord could restore what had been shattered in me: my dreams, my longings, myself. During that year in the convent, the Lord remade me and gave me back to myself.
The Father takes us and remakes us through the merits of His Son, restoring to us our giftedness, our dignity, the truth of who we are. Our identity as gift—as one meant to be given and received in love—takes on an even deeper meaning when we understand that Christ not only gained this for us through His sacrifice on the Cross, but that He did this as the Father’s will. The Father wanted to give us as a gift to the Son, but first gave the Son as a gift to us. And in the beautiful mystery and exchange of love that is the Trinity, Christ wants to give us right back as gifts to the Father.
Sister, you and I were created on purpose, with care, as gifts to be treasured.
Rocio Hermes is a Dominican-born, US-raised, stay-at-home mom who is excited about building community, baking desserts, and writing poetry. She holds a Master’s degree in Theology and has lived in Ethiopia as a missionary. Rocio now lives in Israel with her German husband and their son. She is a contributing author to Blessed Conversations: Dwell as well as Teaching Author on Blessed Conversations: Gift, a Study on the Eucharist. You can read more from her at graceandmercyblog.com.
Rocío Hermes es una mama de casa nacida en República Dominicana y criada en Estados Unidos, a quien le entusiasma construir una comunidad, hornear postres y escribir poesía. Tiene una maestría en Teología y ha vivido en Etiopía como misionera. Rocío ahora vive en Israel con su marido alemán y su hijo. Es autora colaboradora de Blessed Conversations: Dwell. Puede leer más sobre ella en Graceandmercyblog.com.
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