XI. HOW TO CONVERSE CONTINUALLY AND FAMILIARLY WITH GOD
During the day make frequently an offering of yourself to God, as St. Teresa used to do, saying: Lord, here I am! Do with me what pleases Thee! She used to say that all he who practices prayer should seek is to conform his will to the divine will; and let him be assured that in this consists the highest perfection.
I.
During the day make frequently an offering of yourself to God, as St. Teresa used to do, saying: "Lord, here am I! Do with me what pleases Thee! Declare to me Thy will, that I may do it for Thee; I wish to do it thoroughly." Then repeat, as often as you can, acts of love towards God. St. Teresa used also to say that acts of love are the fuel by which the holy love of God is to be kept on fire within the heart. When the Venerable Sister Seraphine of Capri was one day considering that the mule belonging to the convent had not the power of loving God, she expressed her compassion for it thus: "Poor brute; thou neither know nor can love thy God"; and the mule commenced to weep so that the tears fell in streams from its eyes; so likewise do you, when beholding any animal which has not the capacity for knowing or loving God, animate yourself, who can love Him, to make more frequent acts of holy love. Whenever you fall into any fault, humble yourself for it immediately; and, with an act of more fervent love, endeavor to rise again. When anything adverse happens, immediately make an offering to God of what you have to suffer, bringing your will into conformity with God's will; and ever accustom yourself under all adverse circumstances to repeat these words: "Thus does God will; thus I will too." Acts of resignation are the acts of love that are most precious and acceptable to the Heart of God.
II.
When you have to decide upon anything, or to give any counsel of importance, first commend yourself to God, and then set about your undertaking, or give your opinion. As often as you can during the day, after the example of St. Rose of Lima, repeat the prayer, Deus, in adjutorium meum intende: "Lord, come to my assistance! Do not leave me in my own hands!" And for this end frequently turn to the Image of the Crucified, or to that of the Most Holy Mary, which is in your room; and do not omit to make frequent invocations of the Names of Jesus and Mary, especially in time of temptation. Since God is infinite goodness, His desire of communicating His graces to us is perfect. The Venerable Father Alvarez one day saw our Savior with His hands full of graces, and going about in search of those to whom He might dispense them. But it is His will that we should ask them of Him. Ask, and ye shall receive (John 16:24), otherwise He will draw back His hands, whereas, on the contrary, He Swill willingly open them to those who call upon Him. And who is there that hath called upon Him and God despised him by not answering his prayer? Who hath called upon him and he hath despised him? (Ecclesiasticus 2:12). And David tells us that the Lord shows not merely mercy, but great mercy, to those who call upon Him: For thou, O Lord, art sweet and mild and plenteous in mercy to all that call upon thee (Psalms 85:5).
Oh, how good and bountiful is the Lord to him who seeks Him lovingly! The Lord is good to the soul that seeks him (Lamentations 3:25). If He lets Himself be found even by him who seeks Him not -- I was found by them that did not seek me (Romans 10:20) -- how much more willingly will He let Himself be found by one who does seek Him, and seeks Him, too, in order to serve and to love Him!
To conclude: St. Teresa says that holy souls in this world have to conform themselves by love to what the souls of the Blessed do in Heaven. As the Saints in Heaven occupy themselves only with God, and have no other thought or joy than in His glory and in His love, so also must this be the case with, you. While you are in this world, let God be your only happiness, the only object of your affections, the only end of your actions and desires, until you come to that Eternal Kingdom where your love will be in all things perpetual and complete, and your desires will be perfectly fulfilled and satisfied.
CORAM SANCTISSIMO
THIRTY-FIRST VISIT
Oh, how beautiful a sight it was to behold our sweet Redeemer on that day, when, fatigued by His journey, He sat down, all engaging and loving, beside the well to await the Samaritan woman that He might convert and save her! Jesus, therefore, sat thus on the well (John 4:6). It is precisely thus that this same Lord seems sweetly to dwell with us all day long, having come down from Heaven upon our altars, which are as so many Fountains of grace, where He waits and invites souls to keep Him company, at least for a while, that He may in this way draw them to His perfect love. From every altar on which Jesus remains in the Most Holy Sacrament He seems to address all, saying: O men! why do you fly from my Presence? Why do you not come and draw near to One Who loves you so much, and Who remains thus annihilated for your sake? Why do you fear? I am not now come on earth to sit in judgment, but I have hidden Myself in this Sacrament of love only to do good, and to save all who have recourse to Me: I came not to judge the world but to save the world (John 12:47).
Let us, then, understand that as Jesus Christ in Heaven is always living to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25), so in the Sacrament of the Altar He is continually, night and day, exercising the compassionate office of Advocate; offering Himself as a Victim for us to the Eternal Father, thus to obtain for us His mercy and innumerable graces. Therefore the devout Thomas a Kempis says that we ought to approach Jesus to converse with Him in the Blessed Sacrament without fear of chastisement, and unrestrained, as with a beloved friend, "as one who loves speaking to his beloved; as a friend to a friend."
Since, then, Thou thus give me permission, let me, O my hidden King and Lord, now open my heart to Thee with confidence, and say: O my Jesus! O enamored of souls, I well know the injustice men do Thee. Thou love them, and art not loved by them; Thou doest good to them, and receive insults; Thou desire to make them hear Thy voice, and they give Thee no ear; Thou offer them graces, and they refuse them. Ah, my Jesus, and is it true that I also at one time joined these ungrateful creatures in thus displeasing Thee? O God, it is but too true! But I am determined to amend and to endeavor, during the time that I have to live, to make up for the displeasure I have caused Thee, by doing all that I possibly can to please Thee and to give Thee consolation. Tell me, O Lord, what Thou dost wish from me, and I will execute all without reserve: make known Thy will to me by means of holy obedience, and I hope to accomplish it. My God, I now resolutely promise Thee that I will never, from this day forward, omit what I know to be the more pleasing to Thee, even were it to cost me the loss of all: relatives, friends, esteem, health, yea life itself. Let all perish, provided Thou art pleased. Happy loss, indeed, when all is lost and sacrificed to satisfy Thy Heart, O God of my soul! I love Thee, O sovereign Good, worthy of love above every other good; and in loving Thee I unite my poor heart to all the hearts with which the Seraphim love Thee; I unite it to the heart of Mary, to the Heart of Jesus. I love Thee with my entire self; Thee alone will I love, and Thee alone will I always love.
Ejac. My God, my God, I am Thine, and Thou art mine!
A Spiritual Communion here follows for which an Indulgence of 60 days is granted by the Church:
AN ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
My Jesus, I believe that Thou art truly present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love Thee above all things, and I desire to possess Thee within my soul. Since I am unable now to receive Thee sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace Thee as already there, and unite myself wholly to Thee; never permit me to be separated from Thee.
VISIT TO MARY
Blessed Amadeus says that our most blessed Queen Mary is always in the divine Presence, acting as our advocate, and interposing with God by her prayers, which are most powerful: "The most blessed Virgin stands before the face of her Creator, interceding with her most powerful prayers for us." "For," he adds, "she well sees our miseries and our dangers, and as our most clement and sweet Lady compassionates and succors us with a mother's love."
Thou, my advocate and my most loving Mother, thou even now see the miseries of my soul; thou see my dangers and pray for me. Pray, pray, and cease not to pray, until thou see me saved and thanking thee in Heaven. The devout Blosius tells me that thou, O sweet Mary, art, after Jesus, the certain salvation of those who are thy faithful servants. Ah I this grace I now ask of thee: grant me the happy lot of being thy faithful servant until death; that after death I may go to bless thee in Heaven, where I shall be certain never more, as long as God is God, to leave thy sacred feet.
Ejac. O Mary, my Mother, grant that I may be ever thine.
Concluding Prayer.
Most holy Immaculate Virgin and my Mother Mary, to thee, who art the Mother of my Lord, and Queen of the world, the advocate, the hope, the refuge of sinners, I have recourse today: I, who am the most miserable of all. I render thee my most humble homage, O great Queen, and I thank thee for all the graces thou hast conferred on me until now, particularly for having delivered me from hell, which I have so often deserved. I love thee, O most amiable Lady; and for the love which I bear thee, I promise to serve thee always, and to do all in my power to make others love thee also. I place in thee all my hopes; I confide my salvation to thy care. Accept me for thy servant, and receive me under thy mantle, O Mother of Mercy. And since thou art so powerful with God, deliver me from all temptations, or rather obtain for me the strength to triumph over them until death. Of thee I ask a perfect love of Jesus Christ. From thee I hope to die a good death. O my Mother, for the love which thou bears to God, I beseech thee to help me at all times, but especially at the last moment of my life. Leave me not, I beseech thee, until thou sees me safe in Heaven, blessing thee, and singing thy mercies for all eternity.
Amen. So I hope. So may it be.
Indulgence of 300 days for above Prayer.
THE PRACTICE OF THE LOVE OF JESUS CHRIST
XLIV. HE THAT LOVES JESUS CHRIST WISHES WHAT JESUS CHRIST WISHES
I.
For obedience to be perfect, we must obey with the will and with the judgment. To obey with the will signifies to obey willingly, and not by constraint, after the fashion of slaves; to obey with the judgment means to conform our judgment to that of the superior, without examining what is commanded. St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi remarks on this: "Perfect obedience demands a soul without judgment." To the like purpose, St. Philip Neri said that, in order to obey with perfection, it was not enough to execute the thing commanded, but it must be done without reasoning on it; taking it for certain that what is commanded us is for us the most perfect thing we can do, although the opposite may be better before God.
This holds good not merely for Religious, but likewise for seculars living under obedience to their spiritual directors. Let them request their director to prescribe them rules for the guidance of their affairs, both spiritual and temporal; and so they will make sure of doing what is best. St. Philip Neri said: "Let those who are desirous of progressing in the way of God submit themselves to a prudent confessor, whom they should obey as in God's place. By so doing, we are certain of not having to render an account to God of the actions we perform." He said, moreover, that we must place faith in the confessor, because the Lord will not permit him to err; that nothing is so sure of cutting off all the snares of the devil as to do the will of others in the performance of good; and that there is nothing more dangerous than to wish to direct ourselves according to our private fancy. In like manner St. Francis de Sales says, in speaking of the direction of the spiritual father as a means of walking securely in the path of perfection: "This is the maxim of all maxims."
O Jesus, I give Thee my whole heart and all my will. It was at one time, alas! rebellious against Thee; but now I dedicate it wholly to Thee. "Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?" Tell me what Thou require of me, and lend me Thy assistance; for I will leave nothing undone. Dispose of me and of all that concerns me, as Thou please; I accept of all, and resign myself to all. O Love deserving of infinite love, Thou hast loved me so as even to die for me; I love Thee with my whole heart, I love Thee more than myself, and into Thy hands I abandon my soul. On this very day I bid farewell to every worldly affection, I take leave of everything created, and I give myself without reserve to Thee; through the merits of Thy Passion receive me, and make me faithful unto death. My Jesus, my Jesus, from this day forward I will live only for Thee, I will love none but Thee, I will seek nothing else than to do Thy blessed will. Aid me by Thy grace, and aid me, too, by thy protection, O Mary, my hope.
II.
"Seek as ye will," says the devout Avila, "you will never so surely find the will of God as in the way of this humble obedience, so much recommended and so practiced by all the ancient servants of God." The same thing is affirmed by St. Bernard, St. Bernardine of Sienna, St. Antoninus, St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa, John Gerson, and all theologians and masters of the spiritual life; and St. John of the Cross said that to call this truth in question is almost to doubt of the Faith. The words of the Saint are: "Not to be satisfied with what the confessor says is arrogance and a want of faith." Among the maxims of St. Francis de Sales are the two following, most consolatory for scrupulous souls:
Firstly, a truly obedient soul was never yet lost.
Secondly, we ought to be satisfied on being told by our spiritual director that we are going on well, without seeking to be convinced of it ourselves.
It is the teaching of many doctors, as of Gerson, St. Antoninus, Cajetanus, Navarrus, Sanchez, Bonacina, Cordovius, Castropalao, and the doctors of Salamanca, with others, that the scrupulous person is bound, under strict obligation, to act in opposition to scruples, when from such scruples there is reason to apprehend grievous harm happening to soul or body, such as the loss of health, or of intellect; wherefore scrupulous persons ought to have greater scruple at not obeying the confessor than at acting in opposition to their scruples. To sum up, therefore, all that has been said in this chapter, our salvation and perfection consist: (1) In denying ourselves; (2) In following the will of God; (3) In praying Him always to give us strength to do both one and the other.
What have I in heaven, and besides thee what do I desire upon earth? Thou art the God of my heart and the God that is my portion forever (Psalms 72:26). My beloved Redeemer, infinitely amiable, since Thou hast come down from Heaven to give Thyself wholly to me, what else shall I seek for on earth or in Heaven besides Thee, Who art the Sovereign Good, the only Good worthy to be loved? Be Thou then, the sole Lord of my heart, do Thou possess it entirely; may my soul love Thee alone, obey Thee alone, and seek to please no other than Thee. Let others enjoy the riches of this world, I wish only for Thee: Thou art and shalt ever be my Treasure in this life and in eternity.
I will not despair of becoming a saint on account of the sins of my past life; for I know, my Jesus, that Thou didst die in order to pardon the truly penitent. I love Thee now with my whole heart, with my whole soul; I love Thee more than myself, and I bewail, above every other evil, ever having had the misfortune to despise Thee, my Sovereign Good. Now I am no longer my own, I am Thine; O God of my heart, dispose of me as Thou please. In order to please Thee, I accept of all the tribulations Thou mayest choose to send me -- sickness, sorrow, troubles, ignominies, poverty, persecution, desolation -- I accept all to please Thee: in like manner I accept of the death Thou hast decreed for me, with all the anguish and crosses which may accompany it: it is enough if Thou grant me the grace to love Thee exceedingly. Lend me Thy assistance; give, me strength henceforth to compensate, by my love, for all the bitterness I have caused Thee in past time, O only Love of my soul O Queen of Heaven, O Mother of God, O great advocate of sinners, I trust in thee!
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