Christians are fighters

From my SSPX Subscription: Bishop de Galarreta's Tradition Days' conference 10-22-2012 | DICI On Saturday, October 13, 2012, on the occasion of the Tradition Days in Villepreux (France), Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta gave this conference, in which he analyzes the state of the relations of the Society of St. Pius X with Rome. Dear confreres, dear religious, very dear faithful, dear friends, My intention is to speak to you about the qualities of the spiritual, Christian, Catholic militia, about the conditions that the combat for the faith must assume, and obviously to tell you a few words about the situation of the Society vis-à-vis Rome. The Book of Job says: “Militia est vita hominis super terram et sicut dies mercenarii dies ejus” (Job 7:1). Man’s life on earth is a time of military service, and his days are like those of a mercenary. This is Scripture, the Book of Job, that offers this very interesting image. If the life of every man on earth is a combat, then much more so the life of the Catholic, of the Christian who is baptized and confirmed and therefore engaged in this combat for Christ the King. And I would say that if the life of every Christian is a combat, then the life of a Christian today is par excellence a struggle, a combat, a time of service. In this sentence we find a statement of the necessity of combat; it is necessary, it is our human condition, and that is not something new; always and everywhere people have had to fight. There is a combat in life, but above all a combat in order to win eternity, which implies many things. This is why a combative spirit is necessary. What is required on the part of a soldier? Certainly, that he be capable of struggling, of fighting, that he be courageous and valiant. This very short text refers to Providence, because both a soldier and a mercenary are at the service of a master, and therefore we battle for God, we fight for Our Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus Christ is our Head, He is our Master, but He is also the Lord of history, and His Providence governs all particular circumstances. St. John of the Cross says that everything is Providence, in the sense that everything that happens to us is sent to us in an altogether conscious and deliberate way by Providence. A supernatural view of the combat of faith A soldier, then, and a mercenary struggle and fight for a victory, and if life here below is a combat, that means that the victory is not on this earth. If our whole life is a combat, that means that our victory is in Eternity. I think that we have to keep this supernatural, Faith-filled view of combat. We struggle in this life on earth for an eternal crown. But that does not mean that you are to be demobilized, because a Christian, a Catholic knows that this combat is waged in this life, that it is very real, that one must fight. But knowing that the definitive victory is found in Eternity, we do not really need, so to speak, to have victory in this life, if God does not want it, since our victory, ultimately, is to win Eternity both for us and for those dear to us. Moreover this short verse from Job shows us other aspects of this combat, for example: it is laborious - laborious in the etymological sense of the word. The combat for the Faith, the supernatural, spiritual combat, involves sufferings and trials, contradictions, and even defeats in this life. St. Teresa of Avila has one very beautiful passage in which she says that what is demanded of the Christian is not to win but to struggle, or rather she shows that fighting for the Faith is already the Christian’s victory. And one author said: Indeed, God does not require victory of us, but He requires that we not be vanquished. This reflection is quite interesting