Week 19 Questions

Question 1

Dona Lucilia pleads with her son, literally, on ” bended” knee, “… never again to leave things to the last minute.”  Dr. Plinio was totally surprised by this display. He would, understandably, have been preoccupied with this important occasion from his own perspective, unaware of the anxiety his dear mother was experiencing.

It should be within the family setting that we learn to get along – to respect others’ needs.  It is, though, a life-long struggle, learning to accommodate the legitimate demands of others, while gracefully achieving our own reasonable requirements.

What are the virtues we must pray for and practice in order to achieve this goal?

Question 2

Dona Lucilia sees that her son – now “Dr.” Plinio on account of his law degree – “… would perform great deeds. “These prophetic words are the result of her observations of his “…militant defence of the Church” in discussions and intellectual debates and disputes. At the time, these were mainly lively conversations with relatives at family meals, where it was sometimes admitted that his “… arguments were astonishingly logical and very difficult to dismantle.”

We can recall that young Plinio was exposed to this sort of intellectual stimulation from an early age.

For many of us, now, it seems like a feat just to have a meal together. One that included discussion of lofty philosophical ideas would be remote indeed.

Can we arrange for our families and ourselves to listen to important topics being spoken of?

So much of Dr. Plinio’s orations are available.

Can you arrange to obtain some of these?

Question 3

After an appropriate and natural consideration of entering the married state, it seemed clear to Dona Lucilia that her son’s life “… would be fully consecrated to a high ideal that might require sacrifices on his part, such as remaining single.”

As Dr. Plinio became fully involved in his work with the Marion Movement, events unfolded to reveal this to be true.

It requires great care – observing and encouraging the possibility of a religious vocation being correct for our children while at the same time not crowding out their own decision.

How can this best be done?