Especially at Holy Mass

"Let there be nothing in your carriage, your deportment, or your dress," says St. Augustine, "capable of scandalizing your neighbor, but let everything about you be conformable to the purity and sanctity of your profession."

Hence a servant of God should bear himself with gravity, humility, and sweetness, that all who approach him may profit by his example and be edified by his virtues. The great Apostle would have us, like fragrant plants, giving forth the sweet perfume of piety and filling all about us with the odor of Jesus Christ.

Isn't it time we see more application of this virtue, especially at Holy Mass? Let us pray for this intention.

A fruit which we derive from this exterior modesty is a greater facility in preserving the recollection, devotion, and purity of the soul. The interior and the exterior man are so closely united that good or evil in one is quickly communicated to the other. If order reigns in the soul, its effect is experienced in the body; and the body, if disturbed, renders the soul likewise restless. Each may in all respects be considered a mirror of the other, for the actions of one are faithfully represented in the other.

For this reason, a composed and modest bearing must contribute to interior recollection and modesty, while a restless exterior must be incompatible with peace of soul. Hence the Wise Man tells us:"He that is hasty with his feet shall stumble." (Prov. 19:2).
Thus would he teach us that he whose exterior is wanting in that calm gravity which is the distinctive mark of God's servants must inevitably stumble and frequently fall.

from The Sinners Guide

Shared by Sue