Blind Guides
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Monday of Holy Week
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Father James Swanson, LC
John 12:1-11
Six
days before Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had
raised from the dead. They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served,
while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him. Mary took a liter
of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet
of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the
fragrance of the oil. Then Judas the Iscariot, one of his disciples, and the
one who would betray him, said, "Why was this oil not sold for three
hundred days´ wages and given to the poor?" He said this not because he
cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and
used to steal the contributions. So Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let
her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you,
but you do not always have me." The large crowd of the Jews found out
that he was there and came, not only because of Jesus, but also to see
Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. And the chief priests plotted to
kill Lazarus too, because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in
Jesus because of him.
Introductory
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I wish
to accompany You closely on the road to Calvary. If I were to
contemplate You more often as You hang scourged and bloody upon the cross,
I’m certain I would be able to rest in Your love and base my actions on that
one truth. I know that You have loved me with an eternal love: You have
proven it there on the wood of the cross. So I long to respond with
gratitude, peace and the firm determination to spread Your love to everyone.
Petition:
Lord, grant me faith
in Your promise to raise everyone from the dead.
1.
A Willful Blindness: Jesus produces one of his most convincing miracles – a sure
sign that God sent him: He raises someone from the dead. The chief priests
cannot deny this. The deed was not done far away in Galilee. Jesus is right
there, in Bethany, just outside Jerusalem. Lazarus is there too. Anyone who
wants to see can travel the short distance from Jerusalem, over the Mount of
Olives, and visit with Jesus and Lazarus. The chief priests, rather than give
in and accept Jesus as the Messiah, reject him. Their rejection is complete.
They should be able to see that Jesus’ miracle is obviously an act of God’s
divine power, but they refuse to accept it. They can think of no way to
convince people that he is not the Messiah except to kill both Jesus and
Lazarus. Sometimes mere association with Jesus can bring about costly
consequences. How ironic it would have been to be killed for the “crime” of
being raised from the dead…
2.
Harden Not Your Hearts: Logically, if anyone is to accept Jesus as Messiah, it should
be the chief priests, scribes and Pharisees. They are the ones who know
Scripture the best. They are the ones who are supposed to be on the lookout
for the Messiah. By now they should realize that Jesus is doing everything
that the Messiah is supposed to do. Yet with only a few exceptions
(Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea), they fail to acknowledge him as Messiah.
God’s ways are not our ways. God’s plans and actions remain impenetrable to
the rationalistic mind that demands scientific-like proofs even in the
spiritual realm. Hardness of heart makes us see the good works of others as
evil. Do I seek to attune my mind and my heart to God’s ways or do I demand
reasons from him? Often times the cross in our lives does not make sense.
However, we will one day understand it by first accepting and carrying it.
3.
Pride and Envy Can Be Our Downfall: The Pharisees’ problem is pride. They think
they’ve got everything figured out. They think (because they don’t want it to
be true) that Jesus cannot be the Messiah. He doesn’t fulfill their
expectations and they are not prepared to change – to examine themselves to
see if they might be wrong. They are so sure they have it all figured out
that they overlook all that Jesus does to fulfill Scripture. They go even so
far as to overlook his having raised Lazarus from the dead! They clutch at
any feeble excuse to discredit him: “If this man were a prophet, he would
know what kind of woman is touching him” (Luke 7:39); “Search and you will
see that no prophet is to arise from Galilee” (John 7:52). God doesn’t
conform himself to our plans and ideas. He expects us to conform to his.
Conversation
with Christ: Lord
Jesus, faith comes so hard to me. I should be aware of all the good You
have worked in my life. Help me to look with the eyes of faith that
will bring me to an unshakeable belief in You, a faith like that of those who
witnessed Your raising of Lazarus.
Resolution:
Today, I will look
back briefly on my life and try to notice all the things Christ has done for
me, so that by reflecting on these things my faith and trust in him will
deepen.
Excerpts
from the DIARY of Saint Faustina Kowalska
2 When I look into the future, I am frightened,
But why plunge into the future?
Only the present moment is precious to me,
As the future may never enter my soul at all.
It is no longer in my power,
To change, correct or add to the past;
For neither sages nor prophets could do that.
And so, what the past has embraced I must entrust to God.
O present moment, you belong to me, whole and entire.
I desire to use you as best I can.
And although I am weak and small,
You grant me the grace of your omnipotence.
And so, trusting in Your mercy,
I walk through life like a little child,
Offering You each day this heart
Burning with love for Your greater glory.
4 O my Jesus, because of my trust in You,
I weave thousands of garlands, and I know That they will
all blossom.
And I know that they will all blossom
When God's sun will shine on them.
+ O great and Divine Sacrament
That veils my God!
Jesus, be with me each moment,
And no fear will enter my heart.
36 Once I was summoned to the
judgment [seat] of God. I stood alone before the Lord. Jesus appeared such as
we know Him during His Passion. After a moment, His wounds disappeared except
for five, those in His hands, His feet and His side. Suddenly I saw the
complete condition of my soul as God sees it. I could clearly see all that is
displeasing to God. I did not know that even the smallest transgressions will
have to be accounted for. What a moment! Who can describe it? To stand before
the Thrice-Holy God! Jesus asked me, Who are you? I answered, "I
am Your servant, Lord." You are guilty of one day of fire in
purgatory. I wanted to throw myself immediately into the flames of purgatory,
but Jesus stopped me and said, Which do you prefer, suffer now for one day in
purgatory or for a short while on earth? I replied, "Jesus, I want
to suffer in purgatory, and I want to suffer also the greatest pains on
earth, even if it were until the end of the world." Jesus said, One [of
the two] is enough; you will go back to earth, and there you will suffer
much, but not for long; you will accomplish My will and My desires, and a
faithful servant of Mine will help you to do this. Now, rest your head on My
bosom, on My heart, and draw from it strength and power for these sufferings,
because you will find neither relief nor help nor comfort anywhere else. Know
that you will have much, much to suffer, but don't let this frighten you; I
am with you.
+February
22, 1931
47 In
the evening, when I was in my cell, I saw the Lord Jesus clothed in a white
garment. One hand [was] raised in the gesture of blessing, the other was
touching the garment at the breast. From beneath the garment, slightly drawn
aside at the breast, there were emanating two large rays, one red, the other
pale. In silence I kept my gaze fixed on the Lord; my soul was struck with
awe, but also with great joy. After a while, Jesus said to me, Paint an
image according to the pattern you see, with the signature: Jesus, I trust in
You. I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and [then]
throughout the world.
49 When I told this to my confessor,[29] I received this for a reply: "That refers to your soul." He told me, "Certainly, paint God's image in your soul." When I came out of the confessional, I again heard words such as these: My image already is in your soul. I desire that there be a Feast of Mercy. I want this image, which you will paint with a brush, to be solemnly blessed on the first Sunday after Easter; that Sunday is to be the Feast of Mercy. 50 + I desire that priests proclaim this great mercy of Mine towards souls of sinners. Let the sinner not be afraid to approach Me. The flames of mercy are burning Me - clamoring to be spent; I want to pour them out upon these souls. Jesus complained to me in these words, Distrust on the part of souls is tearing at My insides. The distrust of a chosen soul causes Me even greater pain; despite My inexhaustible love for them they do not trust Me. Even My death is not enough for them. Woe to the soul that abuses these [gifts].
57 O my Jesus, You
are the life of my life. You know only too well that I long for nothing but
the glory of Your Name and that souls come to know Your goodness. Why do
souls avoid You, Jesus?-I don't understand that. Oh, if I could only cut my
heart into tiny pieces and in this way offer to You, O Jesus, each piece as a
heart whole and entire, to make up in part for the hearts that do not love
You! I love You, Jesus, with every drop of my blood, and I would gladly shed
my blood for You to give You a proof of the sincerity of my love. O God, the
more I know You the less I can comprehend You, but this "non-comprehension"
lets me realize how great You are! And it is this impossibility of
comprehending You which enflames my heart anew for You, O Lord. From the
moment when You let me fix the eyes of my soul on You, O Jesus, I have been
at peace and desired nothing else. I found my destiny at the moment when my
soul lost itself in You, the only object of my love. In comparison with you,
everything is nothing. Sufferings, adversities, humiliations, failures and
suspicions that have come my way are splinters that keep alive the fire of my
love for You, O Jesus.
My desires are mad
and unattainable. I wish to conceal from You that I suffer. I want never to
be rewarded for my efforts and my good actions. You yourself, Jesus, are my
only reward; You are enough, O Treasure of my heart! I want to share
compassionately in the sufferings of my neighbors and to conceal my own
sufferings, not only from them, but also from You, Jesus.
Suffering is a
great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Savior; in suffering
love becomes crystallized; the greater the suffering, the purer the love.
O Divine Sun, in
Your rays the soul sees the tiniest specks of dust which displease You.
72 O Jesus, eternal Truth, our Life, I call upon You and I beg Your mercy for poor sinners. O sweetest Heart of my Lord, full of pity and unfathomable mercy, I plead with You for poor sinners. O Most Sacred Heart, Fount of Mercy from which gush forth rays of inconceivable graces upon the entire human race, I beg of You light for poor sinners. O Jesus, be mindful of Your own bitter Passion and do not permit the loss of souls redeemed at so dear a price of Your most precious Blood. O Jesus, when I consider the great price of Your Blood, I rejoice at its immensity, for one drop alone would have been enough for the salvation of all sinners. Although sin is an abyss of wickedness and ingratitude, the price paid for us can never be equaled. Therefore, let every soul trust in the Passion of the Lord, and place its hope in His mercy. God will not deny His mercy to anyone. Heaven and earth may change, but God's mercy will never be exhausted. Oh, what immense joy burns in my heart when I contemplate Your incomprehensible goodness, O Jesus! I desire to bring all sinners to Your feet that they may glorify Your mercy throughout endless ages.
88 +During
adoration I felt God close to me. A moment later I saw Jesus and Mary. At the
sight of them I was filled with joy, and I asked the Lord, "What is Your
will, Jesus, concerning the matter about which my confessor told me to ask
You?" Jesus replied, It is My will that he should remain here
and that he should not take the initiative of dispensing himself. I asked
Jesus whether the inscription could be: "Christ King of Mercy." He
answered, I am King of Mercy, but He did not say "Christ." I
desire that this image be displayed in public on the first Sunday after
Easter. That Sunday is the Feast of Mercy. Through the Word Incarnate I make
known the bottomless depth of My mercy.
93 +A Short Version of the
Catechism of the Vows[39]
Q. What is a vow? A. A vow is a voluntary promise made to God, to carry out a more perfect act. Q. Is a vow binding in a matter which is the object of a commandment? A. Yes. The carrying out of an act which is the object of a commandment has a double value and merit; and the neglect of such an act is a double transgression and evil, because by breaking such a vow we add to the sin against the commandment, the sin of sacrilege. Q. Why do religious vows have such value? A. Because they are the foundation of the religious life approved by the Church, in which the members bound together in a religious community undertake to strive always for perfection by means of the three religious vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, observed according to the rules. Q. What is the meaning of the words, "strive for perfection?" A. To strive for perfection means that the religious life does not in itself demand that perfection be already attained, but obliges, under the pain of sin, that we work daily to attain it. Therefore, a religious who does not want to become perfect neglects his principal duty of state. Q. What are "solemn" religious vows? A. " Solemn" religious vows are so absolute that, in extraordinary cases, only the Holy Father can dispense from them. Q. What are simple religious vows? A. These are vows which are less absolute - the Holy See dispenses from perpetual and annual vows. Q. What is the difference between a vow and a virtue? A. A vow pertains only to that which is commanded under pain of sin; the virtue goes beyond this and helps in the carrying out of the vow; on the other hand, by breaking the vow we fail in the virtue and do it damage. Q. To what do the religious vows oblige us? A. The religious vows oblige us to strive to acquire the virtues and to submit ourselves completely to our Superiors and to the Rules which are in force; thus the religious gives his own person to the Community, renouncing every right over himself and his actions, which he sacrifices to the service of God. The Vow of Poverty The vow of poverty is the voluntary renunciation of the right over property or to the use of such property with the purpose of pleasing God. Q. What objects does the vow of poverty concern? A. All those goods and those objects which appertain to the Community. We have no longer any right over anything that has been given to us, once it has been accepted, whether an article or money. All these donations and presents, which may have been given us out of gratitude or in any other way, belong by right to the Community. We cannot make use, without violating the vow, of any wages we may receive for work or even any annuity. Q. When do we break or violate the vow in a matter which entails the seventh commandment? A. We break or violate it when, without permission, we take for ourselves anything that belongs to the house; when, without permission, we retain something in order to appropriate it; and when, without authorization, we sell or exchange something that belongs to the Community. When we make use of an object for some other purpose than that intended by the Superior. When we give to, or accept from another, anything whatsoever without permission. When by negligence we destroy or damage something. When, in going from one house to another, we take something with us without permission. In a situation where the vow is broken, the religious is bound to restitution to the Community. The Virtue of Poverty This is an evangelical virtue which impels the heart to detach itself from temporal things; the religious, in virtue of his profession, is strictly obliged to it. Q. When do we sin against the virtue of poverty? When we desire something, contrary to this virtue. When we become attached to something, and when we make use of superfluous things. How many degrees of poverty are there and what are they? A. There are, in practice, four degrees of poverty for one who is a professed religious: to dispose of nothing without the consent of the Superiors (the strict matter of the vow); to avoid superfluities and be content with necessities (this pertains to the virtue); to readily content oneself with things of inferior quality in what concerns one's cell, clothing, nourishment, etc., and to experience this contentment interiorly; to rejoice in extreme poverty. The Vow of Chastity Q. To what does this vow oblige us? A. To renounce marriage and to avoid everything that is forbidden by the sixth and ninth commandments. Q. Is a fault against the virtue a violation of the vow? A. Every fault against the virtue is at the same time a violation of the vow, because here there is no difference, as in the case of poverty and obedience, between the vow and the virtue. Q. Is every bad thought a sin? A. No, every bad thought is not a sin; it becomes so only when the acquiescence of the will and consent are joined to the consideration of the mind. Q. Is there anything, over and above sins against chastity, which is detrimental to the virtue? A. Lack of custody of the senses, of the imagination, of the feelings; familiarity and sentimental friendships are detrimental to the virtue. Q. What are the means by which this virtue may be preserved? A. To conquer interior temptations with the thought of the presence of God, and moreover to fight without fear. And for exterior temptations, to avoid occasions. There are, in all, seven principal means: to guard the senses, to avoid occasions, to avoid idleness, to remove temptations promptly, to remove oneself from all - and especially particular friendships, the spirit of mortification, and to reveal all these temptations to one's confessor. Besides this, there are also five means of preserving this virtue: humility, the spirit of prayer, modesty of the eyes, fidelity to the rule, a sincere devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Vow of Obedience The vow of obedience is superior to the first two. It is, to tell the truth, a holocaust, and it is more necessary because it forms and animates the monastic body. Q. To what does the vow of obedience oblige us? A. By the vow of obedience, the religious promises to God to be obedient to his legitimate superiors in everything that they will ordain in virtue of the rule. The vow of obedience makes the religious dependent on his superior in virtue of these rules for his whole life and in all his affairs. A religious commits a grave sin against the vow every time he disobeys an order given in virtue of obedience and of these rules. The Virtue of Obedience The virtue of obedience goes further than the vow; it embraces the rules, the regulations and even the counsels of the superiors. Q. Is the virtue of obedience indispensable for a religious? A. The virtue of obedience is so indispensable to a religious that, even if he were to perform good actions contrary to obedience, these would be evil and without merit. Q. Can we sin gravely against the virtue of obedience? A. We sin gravely when we scorn the authority or the order of the superior, or when spiritual or temporal harm to the community results from our disobedience. Q. What faults endanger the vow? A. To be prejudiced against the superior, or to harbor an antipathy for him - murmuring and criticism, tardiness and negligence. The Degrees of Obedience Prompt and complete fulfillment - the obedience of the will, when the will persuades the intellect to submit to the advice of the superior. To facilitate obedience, Saint Ignatius suggests, moreover, three means: always to see God in our superior, whoever he might be; to justify in itself the order or advice of the superior; to accept each order as an order from God, without examining it or reflecting on it. General means: humility. Nothing is difficult for the humble.
113 And again, I would like to say
three words to the soul that is determined to strive for sanctity and to
derive fruit; that is to say, benefit from confession.
First word-complete sincerity and openness. Even the holiest and wisest confessor cannot forcibly pour into the soul what he desires if it is not sincere and open. An insincere, secretive soul risks great dangers in the spiritual life, and even the Lord Jesus Himself does not give Himself to such a soul on a higher level, because He knows it would derive no benefit from these special graces. Second word-humility. A soul does not benefit as it should from the sacrament of confession if it is not humble. Pride keeps it in darkness. The soul neither knows how, nor is it willing, to probe with precision the depths of its own misery. It puts on a mask and avoids everything that might bring it recovery. Third word-obedience. A disobedient soul will win no victory, even if the Lord Jesus himself, in person, were to hear its confession. The most experienced confessor will be of no help whatsoever to such a soul. The disobedient soul exposes itself to great misfortunes; it will make no progress toward perfection, nor will it succeed in the spiritual life. God lavishes His graces most generously upon the soul, but it must be an obedient soul.
127 + I learned
that I would have help from no one at such moments, and I started to pray and
beg the Lord for a confessor. My only desire was that some priest would say
this one word to me, "Be at peace, you are on the right road," or
"Reject all this for it does not come from God." But I could not
find such a priest who was sufficiently sure of himself to give me a definite
opinion in the name of the Lord. And so the uncertainty continued. O Jesus,
if it is Your will that I live in such uncertainty, may Your Name be blessed!
I beg You, Lord, direct my soul yourself and be with me, for of myself I am
nothing.
131 But I will simply mention here
that these various sufferings had come to a peak, and I resolved to put an
end to these doubts of mine before my perpetual vows. Throughout my
probation, I prayed for light for the priest to whom I was to open up my soul
to its depths. I asked God that He himself would help me and grant me the
grace to be able to express even the most secret things that exist between me
and Him and to be so disposed that, whatever the priest would decide, I would
accept as coming from Jesus himself. No matter what judgment he would pass on
me, all I wanted was the truth and a decisive answer to certain questions. I
put myself completely in God's hands, and [all] my soul desired was the
truth. I could not go on living in doubt any longer although, in the depths
of my soul, I was so very sure that these things came from God, that I would
lay down my life for this. However, I placed the confessor's opinion above
all, and I made up my mind to do as he thought best and to act according to
the advice that he would give me. I looked forward to that moment which would
decide the course of my actions for the rest of my life. I knew that
everything would depend on this. It mattered little whether what he would say
to me would be in accord with my inspirations or quite the contrary; this no
longer mattered to me. I wanted to know the truth and follow it.
Jesus, You can help me! From this moment, I have begun anew. I conceal all the graces within my soul and await whomsoever the Lord will send me. With no doubt in my heart, I asked the Lord himself to deign to help me during these moments, and a courage of sorts entered my soul.
139
Still, a soul which is faithful to God cannot confirm its own inspirations;
it must submit them to the control of a very wise and learned priest; and
until it is quite certain, it should remain distrustful. It should not, on
its own initiative alone, put its trust in these inspirations and all other
higher graces, because it can thus expose itself to great losses.
Even though a soul may immediately distinguish between false inspirations and those of God, it should nevertheless be careful, because many things are uncertain. God is pleased and rejoices when a soul distrusts Him for His own sake; because it loves Him, it is prudent and itself asks and searches for help to make certain that it is really God who is acting within it. And once a well-instructed confessor has confirmed this, the soul should be at peace and give itself up to God, according to His directions; that is, according to the directions of the confessor. 140 Pure love is capable of great deeds, and it is not broken by difficulty or adversity. As it remains strong in the midst of great difficulties, so too it perseveres in the toilsome and drab life of each day. It knows that only one thing is needed to please God: to do even the smallest things out of great love-love, and always love. Pure love never errs. Its light is strangely plentiful. It will not do anything that might displease God. It is ingenious at doing what is more pleasing to God, and no one will equal it. It is happy when it can empty itself and burn like a pure offering. The more it gives of itself, the happier it is. But also, no one can sense dangers from afar as can love; it knows how to unmask and also knows with whom it has to deal.
156 +Once, l
desired very much to receive Holy Communion, but I had a certain doubt, and I
did not go. I suffered greatly because of this. It seemed to me that my heart
would burst from the pain. When I set about my work, my heart full of
bitterness, Jesus suddenly stood by me and said, My daughter, do not omit
Holy Communion unless you know well that your fall was serious; apart from
this, no doubt must stop you from uniting yourself with Me in the mystery of
My love. Your minor faults will disappear in My love like a piece of straw
thrown into a great furnace. Know that you grieve Me much when you fail to
receive Me in Holy Communion.
160 +The crusade
day,[54] which is the fifth of the month, happened to fall on
the First Friday of the month. This was my day for keeping watch before the
Lord Jesus. It was my duty to make amends to the Lord for all offenses and
acts of disrespect and to pray that, on this day, no sacrilege be committed.
This day, my spirit was set aflame with special love for the Eucharist. It
seemed to me that I was transformed into a blazing fire. When I was about to
receive Holy Communion, a second Host fell onto the priest's sleeve, and I
did not know which host I was to receive. After I had hesitated for a moment,
the priest made an impatient gesture with his hand to tell me I should
receive the Host. When I took the Host he gave me, the other one fell onto my
hands. The priest went along the altar rail to distribute Communion, and I
held the Lord Jesus in my hands all that time. When the priest approached me
again, I raised the Host for him to put it back into the chalice, because
when I had first received Jesus I could not speak before consuming the Host,
and so could not tell him that the other had fallen. But while I was holding
the Host in my hand, I felt such a power of love that for the rest of the day
I could neither eat nor come to my senses. I heard these words from the Host:
I desired to rest in your hands, not only in your heart. And at that
moment I saw the little Jesus. But when the priest approached, I saw once
again only the Host.
167 Today
[November, 1932], I arrived in Warsaw for the third probation. After a
cordial meeting with the dear Mothers, I went into the small chapel for a
moment. Suddenly God's presence filled my soul, and I heard these words, My
daughter, I desire that your heart be formed after the model of My merciful
Heart. You must be completely imbued with My mercy.
186 +Today Jesus said to me, I
desire that you know more profoundly the love that burns in My Heart for
souls, and you will understand this when you meditate upon My Passion. Call
upon My mercy on behalf of sinners; I desire their salvation. When you say
this prayer, with a contrite heart and with faith on behalf of some sinner, I
will give him the grace of conversion. This is the prayer:
187 "O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of Mercy for us, I trust in You."
194 +March 27. I desire to
struggle, toil and empty myself for our work of saving immortal souls. It
does not matter if these efforts should shorten my life; it is no longer
mine, but belongs to the Community. I want to be useful to the whole Church
by being faithful to my Community.
195 O Jesus, today my soul is as
though darkened by suffering. Not a single ray of light. The storm is raging,
and Jesus is asleep. O my Master, I will not wake You; I will not interrupt
Your sweet sleep. I believe that You fortify me without my knowing it.
Throughout the long hours I adore You, O living Bread, amidst the great drought in my soul. O Jesus, pure Love, I do not need consolations; I am nourished by Your will, O Mighty One! Your will is the goal of my existence. It seems to me that the whole world serves me and depends on me. You, O Lord, understand my soul with all its aspirations. Jesus, when I myself cannot sing You the hymn of love, I admire the singing of the Seraphim, they who are so dearly loved by You. I desire to drown myself in You as they do. Nothing will stem such love, for no might has power over it. It is like lightning that illuminates the darkness, but does not remain in it. O my Master, shape my soul according to Your will and Your eternal designs!
206 The next day, after Communion,
I heard the voice saying, My daughter, look into the abyss of My mercy and
give praise and glory to this mercy of Mine. Do it in this way: Gather all
sinners from the entire world and immerse them in the abyss of My mercy. I
want to give Myself to souls; I yearn for souls, My daughter. On the day of
My feast, the Feast of Mercy, you will go through the whole world and bring
fainting souls to the spring of My mercy. I shall heal and strengthen them.
209 In my sufferings, I do not
seek help from creatures, but God is everything to me. And yet, it often
seems that even the Lord does not hear me. I arm myself with patience and
silence, like a dove that does not complain and feels no bitterness when its
children are being taken away from it. I want to soar into the very heat of
the sun, and I do not want to stop in its vapors. I will not grow weary,
because it is on You that I am leaning-O You, my Strength!
+ For the Greater
Glory of God.
The Eight-day
Retreat before Perpetual Vows.
218 I am beginning
the retreat today. Jesus, my Master, guide me. Govern me according to Your
will, purify my love that it may be worthy of You, do with me as Your most
merciful Heart desires. Jesus, there will be just the two of us during these
days until the moment of our union. Keep me, Jesus, in a recollected spirit!
224 To suffer without complaining,
to bring comfort to others and to drown my own sufferings in the most Sacred
Heart of Jesus!
I will spend all my free moments at the feet of [Our Lord in] the Blessed Sacrament. At the feet of Jesus, I will seek light, comfort and strength. I will show my gratitude unceasingly to God for His great mercy towards me, never forgetting the favors He has bestowed on me, especially the grace of a vocation. I will hide myself among the sisters like a little violet among lilies. I want to blossom for my Lord and Maker, to forget about myself, to empty myself totally for the sake of immortal souls-this is my delight.
227 +In the midst of trials I will
try to see the loving hand of God. Nothing is as constant as suffering-it
always faithfully keeps the soul company. O Jesus, I will let no one surpass
me in loving You!
239 Prayer during the Mass on the day of the perpetual
vows. Today I place my heart on the paten where Your Heart has been placed, O
Jesus, and today I offer myself together with You to God, Your Father and
mine, as a sacrifice of love and praise. Father of Mercy, look upon the
sacrifice of my heart, but through the wound in the Heart of Jesus.
May 1, 1933. First Day. Union with Jesus on the day of perpetual vows. Jesus, from now on Your Heart is mine, and mine is Yours alone. The very thought of Your Name, Jesus, is the delight of my heart. I truly would not be able to live without You, even for a moment, Jesus. Today my soul has lost itself in You, my only treasure. My love knows no obstacles in giving proof of itself to its Beloved. The words of Jesus during my perpetual vows: My spouse, our hearts are joined forever. Remember to Whom you have vowed... everything cannot be put into words. My petition while we were lying prostrate under the pall.[69] I begged the Lord to grant me the grace of never consciously and deliberately offending Him by even the smallest sin or imperfection. Jesus, I trust in You! Jesus, I love You with all my heart! When times are most difficult, You are my Mother. For love of You, O Jesus, I die completely to myself today and begin to live for the greater glory of Your Holy Name. +Love, it is for love of You, O Most Holy Trinity, that I offer myself to You as an oblation of praise, as a holocaust of total self-immolation. And through this self-immolation, I desire the exaltation of Your Name, O Lord. I cast myself as a little rosebud at Your feet, O Lord, and may the fragrance of this flower be known to You alone.
242 +O
God, how much I desire to be a small child.[71] You are my Father, and You know how little and weak I am. So I
beg You, keep me close by Your side all my life and especially at the hour of
my death. Jesus, I know that Your goodness surpasses the goodness of a most
tender mother.
248 The
words of the Bishop [Rospond[73]],
spoken at the ceremony of the taking of perpetual vows: "Accept this
candle as a sign of heavenly light and of burning love." While giving
the ring: "I betroth you to Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father Most
High; may He keep you unblemished. Take this ring as a sign of the eternal
covenant you are making with Christ, the Spouse of Virgins. May it be for you
the ring of faith and the sign of the Holy Spirit, that you may be called the
bride of Christ and, if you serve Him faithfully, be crowned [as such] for
all eternity.
249 +Jesus, I trust in You; I trust in the ocean of your mercy. You are a Mother to me.
274 Jesus gave me the grace of
knowing myself. In this divine light I see my principal fault; it is pride
which takes the form of my closing up within myself and of a lack of
simplicity in my relations with Mother Superior [Irene].
The second light concerns speaking. I sometimes talk too much. A thing could be settled in one or two words, and as for me, I take too much time about it. But Jesus wants me to use that time to say some short indulgenced prayers for the souls in purgatory. And the Lord says that every word will be weighed on the day of judgment. The third light concerns our rules. I have not sufficiently avoided the occasions that lead to breaking the rules, especially that of silence. I will act as if the rule were written just for me; it should not affect me at all how anyone else might act, as long as I myself act as God wishes. Resolution. Whatever Jesus demands of me regarding external things, I will immediately go and tell my superiors. I shall strive for childlike openness and frankness in my relations with the superior.
279 God made known
to me what true love consists in and gave light to me about how, in practice,
to give proof of it to Him. True love of God consists in carrying out God's
will. To show God our love in what we do, all our actions, even the least,
must spring from our love of God. And the Lord said to me, My child, you
please Me most by suffering. In your physical as well as your mental
sufferings, My daughter, do not seek sympathy from creatures. I want the
fragrance of your suffering to be pure and unadulterated. I want you to
detach yourself, not only from creatures, but also from yourself. My
daughter, I want to delight in the love of your heart, a pure love, virginal,
unblemished, untarnished. The more you will come to love suffering, My
daughter, the purer your love for Me will be.
288
+Once when I was having a long talk with Jesus about our students, encouraged
by His kindness, I asked Him, "Do You have among our students any who
are a comfort to Your Heart?" The Lord answered [that] He has, but
their love is weak, and so I put them in your special care-pray for them.
O great God, I admire Your goodness! You are the Lord of heavenly hosts, and yet You stoop so low to Your miserable creatures. Oh, how ardently I desire to love You with every beat of my heart! The whole extent of the earth is not enough for me, heaven is too small, and boundless space is nothing; You alone are enough for me, Eternal God! You alone can fill the depths of my soul.
+The
Mystery of the Soul. Vilnius, 1934
299 When, on one occasion, my confessor told me to ask the Lord Jesus the meaning of the two rays in the image,[77] I answered, "Very well, I will ask the Lord." During prayer I heard these words within me: The two rays denote Blood and Water. The pale ray stands for the Water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the Blood which is the life of souls... These two rays issued forth from the very depths of My tender mercy when My agonized Heart was opened by a lance on the Cross. These rays shield souls from the wrath of My Father. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him. I desire that the first Sunday after Easter be the Feast of Mercy.
305 It is my
greatest desire that souls should recognize You as their eternal happiness,
that they should come to believe in Your goodness and glorify Your infinite
mercy.
306 I asked the Lord to grant me
the grace that my nature be immune and resist the influences that sometimes
try to draw me away from the spirit of our rule and from the minor
regulations. These minor transgressions are like little moths that try to
destroy the spiritual life within us, and they surely will destroy it if the
soul is aware of these minor transgressions and yet disregards them as small
things. I can see nothing that is small in the religious life. Little matter
if I am sometimes the object of vexation and jeers, as long as my spirit
remains in harmony with the spirit of the rules, the vows and the religious
statutes.
O my Jesus, delight of my heart, You know my desires. I should like to hide from people's sight so as to be like one alive and yet not living. I want to live pure as a wild flower; I want my love always to be turned to You, just as a flower that is always turning to the sun. I want the fragrance and the freshness of the flower of my heart to be always preserved for You alone. I want to live beneath Your divine gaze, for You alone are enough for me. When I am with You, Jesus, I fear nothing, for nothing can do me harm.
308 1934, Holy Thursday. Jesus
said to me, I desire that you make an offering of yourself for sinners and
especially far those souls who have lost hope in God's mercy.
352 At the chapter, Mother
[Borgia] stressed a life of faith and fidelity in small things. Half way
through the chapter, I heard these words: I desire that you would all have
more faith at the present time. How great is My joy at the faithfulness of My
spouse in the smallest things. Then I looked at the crucifix and saw that
Jesus' head was turned towards the refectory, and His lips were moving.
When I told Mother Superior about it, she answered, "You see, Sister, how Jesus demands that our life be a life of faith."
+New Year 1935
360 Jesus likes to intervene in the smallest details of our life, and He often fulfills secret wishes of mine that I sometimes hide from Him, although I know that from Him nothing can be hidden. There is a custom among us of drawing by lot, on New Year's Day, special Patrons for ourselves for the whole year. In the morning during meditation, there arose within me a secret desire that the Eucharistic Jesus be my special Patron for this year also, as in the past. But, hiding this desire from my Beloved, I spoke to Him about everything else but that. When we came to refectory for breakfast, we blessed ourselves and began drawing our patrons. When I approached the holy cards on which the names of the patrons were written, without hesitation I took one, but I didn't read the name immediately as I wanted to mortify myself for a few minutes. Suddenly, I heard a voice in my soul: I am your patron. Read. I looked at once at the inscription and read, "Patron for the Year 1935-the Most Blessed Eucharist." My heart leapt with joy, and I slipped quietly away from the sisters and went for a short visit before the Blessed Sacrament, where I poured out my heart. But Jesus sweetly admonished me that I should be at that moment together with the sisters. I went immediately in obedience to the rule.
367 +On one occasion, Jesus gave
me to know that when I pray for intentions which people are wont to entrust
to me, He is always ready to grant His graces, but souls do not always want
to accept them: My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and
especially for poor sinners. If only they could understand that I am the best
of Fathers to them and that it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed
from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the
tabernacle as King of Mercy. I desire to bestow My graces upon souls, but
they do not want to accept them. You, at least, come to Me as often as
possible and take these graces they do not want to accept. In this way you
will console My Heart. Oh, how indifferent are souls to so much goodness, to
so many proofs of love! My Heart drinks only of the ingratitude and
forgetfulness of souls living in the world. They have time for everything,
but they have no time to come to Me for graces.
So I turn to you, you-chosen souls, will you also fail to understand the love of My Heart? Here, too, My Heart finds disappointment; I do not find complete surrender to My love. So many reservations, so much distrust, so much caution. To comfort you, let Me tell you that there are souls living in the world who love Me dearly. I dwell In their hearts with delight. But they are few. In convents too, there are souls that fill My Heart with joy. They bear My features; therefore the Heavenly Father looks upon them with special pleasure. They will be a marvel to Angels and men. Their number is very small. They are a defense for the world before the justice of the Heavenly Father and a means of obtaining mercy for the world. The love and sacrifice of these souls sustain the world in existence. The infidelity of a soul specially chosen by Me wounds My Heart most painfully. Such infidelities are swords which pierce My Heart.
510 In no way do I seek
perfection inquisitively, but I probe into the spirit of Jesus and fix my
eyes on His deeds as summarized in the Gospel. Even if I lived a thousand
years, I would not exhaust what is contained there.
570 On one occasion, I saw Jesus in a bright garment; this was in the greenhouse. [He said to me,] Write what I say to you. My delight is to be united with you. With great desire, I wait and long for the time when I shall take up My residence sacramentally in your convent. My spirit will rest in that convent and I will bless its neighborhood in a special way. Out of love for you all, I will avert any punishments which are rightly meted out by My Father's justice. My daughter, I have inclined My heart to your requests. Your assignment and duty here on earth is to beg for mercy for the whole world. No soul will be justified until it turns with confidence to My mercy, and this is why the first Sunday after Easter is to be the Feast of Mercy. On that day, priests are to tell everyone about My great and unfathomable mercy. I am making you the administrator of My mercy. Tell the confessor that the Image is to be on view in the church and not within the enclosure in that convent. By means of this Image I shall be granting many graces to souls; so let every soul have access to it. 571 O my Jesus, Eternal Truth, I fear nothing, neither hardships nor sufferings; I fear only one thing, and that is to offend You. My Jesus, I would rather not exist than make You sad. Jesus, You know that my love knows no one but You. My soul is absorbed in You. 572 Oh, how great should be the ardour of every soul who will live in that convent, since God desires to come and live with us! Let everyone remember that if we religious do not intercede before God, who will? Each of us should burn like a pure sacrifice before the majesty of God, but to be pleasing to God, each one should unite herself closely to Jesus. It is only with Him, in Him and through Him that we can be pleasing to God.
591
Jesus, You know how ardently I desire to hide so that no one may know me but
Your sweetest Heart. I want to be a tiny violet, hidden in the grass, unknown
in a magnificent enclosed garden in which beautiful lilies and roses grow.
The beautiful rose and the lovely lily can be seen from afar, but in order to
see a little violet, one has to bend low; only its scent gives it away. Oh,
how happy I am to be able to hide myself in this way! O my divine Bridegroom,
the flower of my heart and the scent of my pure love are for You. My soul has
drowned itself in You, Eternal God. From the moment when You yourself drew me
to yourself, O my Jesus, the more I have known You, the more ardently I have
desired You.
650 O my Jesus, my Master and Director,
strengthen and enlighten me in these difficult moments of my life. I expect
no help from people; all my hope is in You. I feel alone in the face of Your
demands, O Lord. Despite the fears and qualms of my nature, I am fulfilling
Your holy will and desire to fulfill it as faithfully as possible throughout
my life and in my death. Jesus, with You I can do all things. Do with me as
You please; only give me Your merciful Heart and that is enough for me.
O Jesus my Lord, help me. Let what You have planned before all ages happen to me. I am ready at each beckoning of Your holy will. Enlighten my mind that I may know Your will. O God, You who pervade my soul, You know that I desire nothing but Your glory. O Divine Will, You are the delight of my heart, the food of my soul, the light of my intellect, the omnipotent strength of my will; for when I unite myself with Your will, O Lord, Your power works through me and takes the place of my feeble will. Each day, I seek to carry out God's wishes
718
After Holy Communion, I heard these words:- You see what you are of
yourself, but do not be frightened at this. If I were to reveal to you the
whole misery that you are, you would die of terror. However, be aware of what
you are. Because you are such great misery, I have revealed to you the whole
ocean of My mercy. I seek and desire souls like yours, but they are few. Your
great trust in Me forces Me to continuously grant you graces. You have great
and incomprehensible rights over My Heart, for you are a daughter of complete
trust. You would not have been able to bear the magnitude of the love which I
have for you if I had revealed it to you fully here on earth. I often give
you a glimpse of it, but know that this is only an exceptional grace from Me.
My love and mercy knows no bounds.
723 +
Today, I heard these words: The graces I grant you are not for you alone,
but for a great number of other souls as well... And your heart is My
constant dwelling place, despite the misery that you are. I unite Myself with
you, take away your misery and give you My mercy. I perform works of mercy in
every soul. The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy.
My mercy is confirmed in every work of My hands. He who trusts in My mercy
will not perish, for all his affairs are Mine, and his enemies will be
shattered at the base of My footstool.
992 + I am going
forward through life amidst rainbows and storms, but with my head held high
with pride, for I am a royal child. I feel that the blood of Jesus is
circulating in my veins, and I have put my trust in the great mercy of the
Lord.
1139 Oh, what pain
it causes my heart when I see a nun who has not the religious spirit! How can
one be pleasing to God when one is inflated with pride and self-love under
the pretense of striving for God's glory, while in fact one is seeking one's
own glory? When I see such a thing, it gives me very great pain. How can such
a soul be united closely with God? Union with the Lord is out of the question
here.
1170 June 30, 1937.
Today, the Lord said to me, I have wanted to exalt this Congregation many
times, but I am unable to do so because of its pride. Know, My daughter, that
I do not grant My graces to proud souls, and I even take away from them the
graces I have granted.
1248 I experience a desire to make reparation to the Lord
Jesus in a way which corresponds [to the offense]. Today I wore a chain belt
for seven hours in order to obtain the grace of repentance for that soul. In
the seventh hour I felt relief as the soul experienced interiorly the
remission of its sin, although it had not yet gone to confession. For sins of
the flesh, I mortify the body and fast to the degree that I am permitted. For
sins of pride, I pray with my forehead touching the floor. For sins of
hatred, I pray and do some good deed for a person whom I find difficult. And
thus I make amends according to the nature of the sin of which I am aware.
1442 +
When I arrived at Midnight Mass, from the very beginning I steeped myself in
deep recollection, during which time I saw the stable of Bethlehem filled
with great radiance. The Blessed Virgin, all lost in the deepest of love, was
wrapping Jesus in swaddling clothes, but Saint Joseph was still asleep. Only
after the Mother of God put Jesus in the manger, did the light of God awaken
Joseph, who also prayed. But after a while, I was left alone with the Infant
Jesus who stretched out His little hands to me, and I understood that I was
to take Him in my arms. Jesus pressed His head against my heart and gave me
to know, by His profound gaze, how good He found it to be next to my heart.
At that moment Jesus disappeared and the bell was ringing for Holy Communion.
1563 And at that
very moment I saw myself in some kind of a palace; and Jesus gave me His
hand, sat me at His side, and said with kindness, My bride, you always please Me by
your humility. The greatest misery does not stop Me from uniting Myself to a
soul, but where there is pride, I am not there.
When I came to myself, I reflected on what had happened in my heart, thanking God for His love and for the mercy that He had shown me.
1701 I asked the Lord today that
He might deign to teach me about the interior life, because of myself I can
neither understand nor conceive anything perfectly. The Lord answered me,
I was your Teacher, I am and I will be; strive to make your heart like unto
My humble and gentle Heart. Never claim your rights. Bear with great calm and
patience everything that befalls you. Do not defend yourself when you are put
to shame, though innocent. Let others triumph. Do not stop being good when
you notice that your goodness is being abused. I Myself will speak up for you
when it is necessary. Be grateful for the smallest of My graces, because your
gratitude compels Me to grant you new graces...
1702 Towards the end of the Way of
the Cross which I was making, the Lord Jesus began to complain about the
souls of religious and priests, about the lack of love in chosen souls. I
will allow convents and churches to be destroyed. I answered,
"Jesus, but there are so many souls praising You in convents." The
Lord answered, That praise wounds My Heart, because love has been banished
from convents. Souls without love and without devotion, souls full of egoism
and self-love, souls full of pride and arrogance, souls full of deceit and
hypocrisy, lukewarm souls who have just enough warmth to keep them alive: My
Heart cannot bear this. All the graces that I pour out upon them flow off
them as off the face of a rock. I cannot stand them, because they are neither
good or bad. I called convents into being to sanctify the world through them.
It is from them that a powerful flame of love and sacrifice should burst
forth. And if they do not repent and become enkindled by their first love, I
will deliver them over to the fate of this world...
How can they sit on the promised throne of judgment to judge the world, when their guilt is greater than the guilt of the world? There is neither penance nor atonement. O heart, which received Me in the morning and at noon are all ablaze with hatred against Me, hatred of all sorts! O heart specially chosen by Me, were you chosen for this, to give Me more pain? The great sins of the world are superficial wounds on My Heart, but the sins of a chosen soul pierce My Heart through and through...
1703 When I tried to intercede for
them, I could find nothing with which to excuse them and, being at the time
unable to think of anything in their defense, my heart was seized with pain,
and I wept bitterly. Then the Lord looked at me kindly and comforted me with
these words: Do not cry. There are still a great number of souls who love
Me very much, but My Heart desires to be loved by all and, because My love is
great, that is why I warn and chastise them.
1742 Be praised, merciful God, One God in the Holy
Trinity,
Unfathomable, infinite, incomprehensible, immersing themselves in You, their minds cannot comprehend You, So they repeat without end their eternal: Holy. Be glorified, O merciful Creator of ours, O Lord, Omnipotent, but full of compassion, inconceivable. To love You is the mission of our existence, Singing our eternal hymn: Holy... Be blessed, merciful God, Eternal Love. You are above the heavens, the saphires, the firmaments. The host of pure spirits sings You praises, With its eternal hymn: Thrice Holy. And, gazing upon You, face to face, O God, I see that You could have called other creatures before them. Therefore they humble themselves before You in great humility, For well they see that this grace comes solely from Your mercy. One of the most beautiful spirits would not recognize Your mercy, And, blinded by his pride, he drew others after him. Angel of great beauty, he became Satan And was cast down in one moment from heaven's heights into hell. Then the faithful spirits cried, "Glory to God's mercy!" And they stood firm in spite of the fiery test. Glory to Jesus, the Christ abased, Glory to His Mother, the humble and pure Virgin. After this battle, the pure spirits plunged into the ocean of Divinity; Contemplating and praising the depths of His mercy, They drown in His mercy and manifold light, Possessing in knowledge the Trinity of Persons, the Oneness of Godhead.
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-2, 36, 49-50, 57, 72, 88, 93, 113, 127)
(Diary of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-131, 139-140, 156, 160,
167,186-187)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-194-195, 206, 224, 227, 290, 218, 239)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-242, 248-249, 274, 279, 288, 299)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-305-306, 308, 352, 360, 367, 510)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-570-572, 591, 650, 718, 723, 992)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1139)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-IV-1248)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-V-1442)
(Diary of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-VI-1563, 1701-1703, 1742) |
Abril 14, 2014
Blind Guides-Divine Mercy Miracles Meditations
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