Congregation of Jesus Mary Joseph

Congregation of Jesus Mary Joseph

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Rev. Fr. Mathias Wolff Speaks about the Integrity of Words and Deeds…

“Laat ons wel op onze hoede zijn. Velen, die door hunne predikatiën en onderwijzingen den hemel aan een aantal anderen geopend hebben, worden nu in de hel gekweld, doordien zij de ware ootmoedigheid niet bezaten, en zich door een ijdel zelfbehagen hebben laten vervoeren; maar ootmoedigen worden in deze strafplaats niet gevonden.” 1

Translation: We must be cautious. Many who have guided others to heaven through their preaching and teaching now suffer in hell because they lacked true humility and were driven by vain ambition. However, the humble do not reside in such a place of torment.2

Fr. Wolff has been a man of integrity in his words and deeds. Some of the narratives, in the book Ravening Wolff, his biographical sketch, reveal the integrity of his words and deeds. He practised what he preached. In this short text, he points to the significance of HUMILITY as a virtue required to enter paradise and the importance of both preaching and living it. One of the examples that reveal Wolff’s integrity regarding the virtue of humility is depicted here in the photo, which contains the signature of Fr. Wolff. 3 Before his signature, he always had a kind of prefix, Bid voor mij armen zondaar, translated as ‘pray for me a poor sinner’. This is one of the many examples from the life of Fr. Wolff wherein the practice of virtue of humility is manifested. Like the woman who anointed the feet of Jesus before all people (Lk 7: 36-50), Fr. Wolff is courageous to practice the virtue of humility by expressing his contrite heart, in the words ‘pray for me a poor sinner’. We dedicate the month of October to the memory of Fr. Wolff as the 31 st of October is his heavenly birthday. During this auspicious month and thereafter, may Fr. Wolff intercede for us so that we, practicing humility, and growing as people of integrity, may be eligible to enter the Kingdom of God. Sr. Anitha Kondaveti

1 Mathias Wolff, Overwegingen en Grondregels, ter Beoefening der Volmaaktheid, Opgedragen aan het Gezelschap van Jesus, Maria, Joseph (Sint-Michiels-Gestel: Ter Boekdrukkerij van het Bisdom van ’s Bosch, in het Instituut voor Doofstommen, 1868), 90

2Machine translated through ‘DeepL Translate’ and rewritten it myself for a better presentation.

3 Scanned copy from the ‘handwritten rules’ of the congregation of JMJ, these were written in 1822, and are now preserved in the Archives of the Soc. JMJ at the Erfgoedcentrum, Sint Agatha, Nijmegen, Netherlands.

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