Br. Gabriel Hüger Sam. FLUHM

Accompanying Texts to his Lectures

HEALING APPROACH TO THOUGHTS

“Lap of Honour“ and Diseases through Negative Thoughts

When we look onto God, trust in Him, absorb His divine thoughts in us, He gives us the blessing. However, when we follow thoughts that are inimical to God, the blessing fails to come and we may even become sick and do “laps of honour“ of failure. Therefore, it is so important to replace sickening, negative thoughts with thoughts of God.
One example is the life of Moses. First he followed his thoughts. With his own power he wanted to rescue the Israelites from the power of the pharao. But he failed, had to flee and spend 40 years of “laps of honour“ in the desert; there he learned not to rely on his own thoughts but to trust in the voice of God. With the power of God he eventually led the people of Israel into freedom and worked astonishing miracles.

Victory through Good Thoughts

David, however, did not let himself be paralysed by thoughts of fear but looked onto God full of trust and called, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And to Goliath he called, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin; but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, ... whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, ... that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.“
(1 Sam 17:37; 45-46)

Path to Health

“Do not give yourself over to sorrow, and do not afflict yourself deliberately. Gladness of heart is the life of man, and the rejoicing of a man is length of days. Delight your soul and comfort your heart, and remove sorrow far from you, for sorrow has destroyed many, and there is no profit in it. Jealousy and anger shorten life, and anxiety brings on old age too soon.“ (Sir 30:21-24)

Healing from Thought-Ties

When we do not pay attention, negative thoughts may consolidate. They may become ties imposed on ourselves and lead to diseases, failure, yes, even to death. Roots of sickening thoughts are a.o. rejection, fear, bitterness, envy, jealousy, greed, worries. They develop through thoughts imprinted on us and ties that are transmitted to us either individually or by society, and which we have absorbed in the course of our life through the short-term and the long-term memory. The short-term memory takes a “snapshot“, the long-term memory takes over and consolidates this negative image through pondering/brooding, repeated experience and inner consent to the situation, which renders sick in the long run.

The healing process is similar to a long-distance run. First, it is important to notice negative thoughts, behaviours and habits, to renounce them resolutely, and then replace them with divine ones. To acquire new habits takes time. By internalising the word of God – be it through repeating bible quotations or the so-called Lectio Divina (contemplation of the Scripture) – new patterns for right behaviours are created in the long run in our long-term memory. This, in turn, leads to health of the soul and strengthens the body.

The Approach to Thoughts According to the Desert Fathers
(according to “Prayer and Self-Recognition“ by Fr. Dr. Anselm Grün OSB, 1984)

As early as in the second century, the Christian monks learned about the delivering and healing approach to thoughts. They observed the thoughts, resolutely renounced the bad thoughts and replaced them with healing quotations of the word of God. To the monk Cassian, prayer with the word of God is an effective remedy to change man internally and to heal him.

The monks discovered that the spirit of man deals with the thoughts. According to the monks, the thoughts stand for tribulations and temptations, for everything that threatens to make us internally sick. Thus, what matters is that we fill the spirit with good thoughts. By thinking of God, by contemplating the word of God and through prayer he may protect himself against bad thoughts and find healing. The right approach to thoughts, therefore, is a remedy to be healed from wounds and diseases.

On the topic treated here, the two depicted folders/brochures (in German and English) with the respective Lectures “God’s Remedy Against
Self-Rejection and Its Diseases“ as well as “God’s Remedy Against Fears“ (in German, Audio-CDs) by Fr. Gabriel Hüger are helpful.

Any of these information media may be ordered/purchased against a donation at the address indicated on the back.

When we think of divine things the evil spirits have no room in us any more. But this is not only a question of room. The thoughts have an impact on the spirit and transform it into what they offer to it. By thinking of God, man slowly finds taste in God. He is transformed into what he thinks. – We thus become healthy because of the healthy thoughts to which we surrender in prayer. In the words of the Scripture, of which we think in prayer, God Himself is in us, God’s holy and at the same time healing spirit.

The method of the monks consisted of three steps/variants:

1st Method: Vigorously turn away from the bad thoughts!
“If you do not vigorously say to the thoughts, “Get way!, they will not go away. Because as long as they have peace, they will not go away.“ (Cassian)

• In silence we trace the thoughts which determine us when we are not occupied.
• Write down your own negative persuasion.
• Renounce them with firmness!

2nd Method: Do not pay attention to the bad thoughts but resort to prayer, look onto God (e.g. Jesus on the cross).
“When a thought torments you, do not look downward but look upward by all means. Instantaneously, the Lord will help you.“ (Makarius)
“I resemble a person who sits under a large tree and sees how many wild animals and snakes are approaching him. If he can no longer ward them off, he hastens to climb up the tree and saves himself. The same holds true for me: I sit in my kellion (monastic cell) and see how bad thoughts are approaching me, and if I cannot fight them any more I flee to God in prayer and am thus saved from the evil enemy.“ (Venerable Father St. John)

• Discover the right word of healing.
• With firmness, hurl the (adequate) word of God at them. Deal with this immediately after you get up; connect e.g. a psalm word with an incident/an action: chime, way to work etc.; it should be taken like a medicine (e.g. three times daily).

3rd Method: When there is an onrush of tormenting thoughts: get up and pray!

• Physical exercise expels negative thoughts and makes (not only) the monk capable of praying effectively. The monk should walk around in his cell or make the sign of the cross.
• Walk around the house, walk a Way of the Cross or go on a pilgrimage, pray the rosary during your walk etc.

St. Antonius Eremita (+ 356)

Advice

We correctly deal with sickening thoughts and bad behaviours by resisting them in the power of God:

• Start today! Start to notice the negative thoughts and replace them today, and not only tomorrow!
• Learn to discern between good and evil. Separate lies from the truth of God. St. Ignatius distinguishes three kinds of thoughts: those coming from God, those coming from oneself, and those coming from the evil (help on this is provided in the aforementioned folders).
• Renounce bad thoughts before they become a sin. Temptation is not yet a sin, as long as one does not agree with it. Admitting it already is the beginning of approval. Therefore it is important to renounce negative thoughts immediately and strictly, “I renounce! – I renunciate! – I express the firm will not to be part of this!“
• Replace the lying thought with a concrete word of God. The battle against your thoughts starts in your head.
• Stop pondering about the past. Self-pity is the “super-glue of hell“ which ties to the past. Let past mistakes and traumas go. Surrender them to Jesus! In the confession Jesus extinguishes your sins. Also forgive yourself then!
• Be on your guard against doubt, disbelief, discouragement and despair. Be patient. God’s time schedule and ways are perfect. Expel sadness with praises. Who thanks God will already receive the next gift from God (cf. St. Therese of Lisieux)
• Have faith in God, as far as the future is concerned. Believe in the word of God, irrespective of what you see. Jesus keeps repeating lectures until we have learned them.
• Be ready to go into the fire (not to flee!). Face your fears and stressors to overcome them. Think that all the good comes from God and that He helps you.
• Protect your eyes, your ears, your heart (bad media, bad company).
• Call Saint Mary Mother of God, the holy angels and the saints for help.

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TEXT: Fr. Dr. Anselm Grün OSB, Fr. Gabriel Hüger Sam. FLUHM – COMPOSITION: Fr. Gabriel Hüger Sam.FLUHM

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Brüder Samariter FLUHM – Kloster Hafnerberg 13 – A-2571 Altenmarkt an der Triesting - © 2017 Sam. FLUHM

LITERATURE USED IN THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
biblegateway.com – Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

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