Groundbreaking Course on the Sermon on the Mount

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119: The Starting Point in Spiritual Life

Question: Can you please elaborate on “God loves you”.  How should we as humans in a noisy, difficult and challenging world filled with earthly temptations..... feel... the LOVE of GOD, in quantity, quality or in faith? How to internalise it or tailor it to suit the human being, to use it and benefit from it. To see how this love is conveyed, in order to make good use of it and use it to the maximum without distractions and with optimal fruitful capacity. Like the seed that grows in a favourable and fertile soil.

God is God, and the human being is the most imperfect being, who will die with his weaknesses and illnesses.... It is hard to compare "apples" with a "chalice" for example.....

Awaiting your reply .....with deep gratitude.

Answer: Thank you very much R. for your trust and for your question.

“God is love”, and “God loves you” are expressions that we are used to. But sometimes it is important to enter more deeply into their meaning.

"To Love" means "to give oneself" to the person we love. Take marriage for example: we are called to love, to give our consent, to give ourselves to the other person. It is the same: love is love, love is to come out of ourselves and give ourselves.

So, when we say: “God loves you” it means that He wants to give Himself to you. He doesn’t give gifts or presents, He wants to give Himself, nothing less.

So this is the starting point!

Now, as you say: "we are busy", "we have noise", outside and inside of ourselves. There are temptations: laziness, tiredness, etc.

But we have good will, and we have the Gift of Faith that we received in Baptism, that guides us toward God, and tells us that since He wants to give Himself to us, receiving Him, therefore, is possible. So, the conflict between our busy noisy life and the Life of Receiving Him in us seems only apparent, but in reality it is possible to receive Him - through a Journey of Growth of course.

Faith received in Baptism is a very little Divine Seed planted in us by God and this Seed - Jesus in us - should become the biggest Tree of the garden.

First and foremost we must see: God wants us, He needs us, He has a divine Desire/Thirst to give Himself to us. He is the one who calls us, not we who do so. He is the one who is searching, day and night, for us. He doesn’t shout in order not to put pressure on our freedom, but he shouts silently… It is important to know all the above.

We are invited to open a way in the sea of our busy life to God himself in order to start do the gardening work: ploughing the soil to introduce oxygen, offering Sun, and watering the soil/seed.

The General help of the Grace of God is constantly given to us to fulfil our part: to ask, to knock on the door, to search for Him. If it is given constantly to us, this means we need to use it, enact it. It depends on us to do so. It is a matter of freewill.

If we are really convinced that there is a Way to receive God, that this is what God wants to do to us and that taking time to receive Him in our life is essential, then we can say this prayer:

“Dear God,

I know that you want to give yourself to me,

you know how weak I am, how busy I am, and how noisy is my life,

how I don’t find time to sit down and stay with you,

so please, help me, rearrange my daily schedule

so I can find the right time to listen to you and receive you.”

This small prayer, the prayer of a total beginner but full of good will, is very powerful if it is made with pure intention. After having done this prayer, one has to open his/her eyes to see God starting to fashion a Way, like Moses who opened a way in the sea.

There are two essential parts in this activity of "God to be received", this "Divine Bread" (God himself):

1- one is to sit down and listen to Jesus and put into practice what He says (opening the daily Readings of the Mass),

2- is to sit down and receive Him deeply in us (going back to Jesus' host in our heart, received in the Eucharist).

These two parts, these two activities are vital, because they nourish our Tree, and allow it to grow. They allow us to receive God's love.

These two aspects of the Bread that we need to eat are given to us during the Mass, but even if we attend Mass, we often do not digest the food that we have taken in - we say to you O Lord: "Give us this day our daily Bread"… "our daily bread" is your daily Word that you want to give us to put into practice, "our daily bread" is as well the Fire of your Love and deep union with Jesus received in the Eucharist and taking time afterwards to interiorise Him: His Body, Blood, Soul, Spirit and Divinity.

The Journey starts… as it started with Mary, Jesus’ Mother and His best disciple, the one who had Faith in God's Words. In Her the Holy Spirit formed Jesus… with Her and the Holy Spirit God forms Jesus in us, He allows that Seed in us to grow. God said to us: I want to give you a new heart, a heart of flesh (like Mary’s heart)… So this is as well our prayer:

"give me a heart like Mary’s heart.

Form Jesus in me as you formed it in Her…

or, better, like what Nicodemus said:

as an adult, let me be in my real Mother, Mary,

so Jesus can be formed in me.. (see John 3)".

I hope this helps as a starting point.

Two essential ways/means to receive God’s love can be summed up us: sit down and listen to his Word (open the daily readings) and sit down and receive Jesus deeply in you, like the tree receives the Water. The two highlights of the Mass.

Let me add one point about "feeling" or "not feeling" God. The Living Tradition of the Church says the following: believing (which means to open our heart to the Gift of the Holy Spirit, to God's Love) gives us the experience of this Love - and not vice-versa.

Believe first, i.e. open yourself to receive, then you will see, you will experience.

Faith is an opening of the heart that leads to an experience.

In this "experience" we have different levels, like on a very high mountain:

1- the lowest part of the mountain has houses, streets and trees (senses)

2- the higher part of the mountain, has sometimes lakes (feelings emotions), grass

3- the highest parts of the mountain, have rocks that lead to the highest point (mind, will, memory)

4- The highest part of the mountain is not the one we have just mentioned (number 3), it is the part that lies beyond the clouds. This part of the Mountain can see the sun directly (the spirit, or heart)

In our experience of God, some rays, refracted by the clouds could fall in the parts 1, 2, 3. But in fact the real direct Ray of the Sun, God himself, is given only to the Highest part.

This is why we say that "we live with/in Faith": we know that the Sun shines in that highest part. But that highest part in us, is beyond consciousness, it is "supra-conscious". When we receive Communion we know that we have been touched by His Divinity. Where did it happen? In the supra-conscious part of our Mountain: above the clouds (4). So the lower part says: “I believe!” but in fact it is the experience of that Highest part.

In that experience of God let us not be deceived by what falls into the conscious part (1 to 3), we know that He pours Himself into the highest point of the Mountain. If He gives us some crumbs in 1to3 this is fine, but the Substance of His Being is given to us in 4.

114: Intercessory Prayer

Question: If we are not to petition during the Prayer of the Heart (PH) and Lectio Divina (LD), when and how should intercessory prayer happen/take place?

Answer: As an allocated moment (time and space), intercessory prayer should happen at a special time, as a specific type of prayer. During Mass we have a time for it, as we do during the Divine Office (I am sure that in our personal prayer as well we do pray for others).

Your may ask the same question for other types of prayer as well: Prayer of Praise and Prayer of Thanksgiving, "when shall we say them?".

Here I would like to explain more clearly the deep relationship between LD & PH on the one hand and Intercessory Prayer on the other.

It is important to remember that LD is a key unavoidable type of prayer today. It is by far the most transformative type of prayer. Why? Because it allows a part of Christ (today's part of Christ-Word Bread) to become incarnated in us and transform us in Him. The more we are transformed in Christ the more powerful our intercession becomes (acts on God). Jesus explains the relationship between Lectio Divina and the efficiency of our prayer (which has been answered) in the Gospel of St John where He says: if you do my Will (keep my commandments) ask me all what you want (because you'll BE in my Name) and you will receive it, i.e. the Father will grant it to you (see John 15:7).


If LD is done properly, all its transformative power will be enacted. Then PH becomes much more fruitful and even more transformative. Otherwise, if you practise PH without LD, its transformative power is dramatically decreased.


Now let us consider what happens during the PH. While we are practising the PH, the Power of the Holy Spirit is working in our depths and through us will help Lift the entire World to God the Father in the Son, through the Holy Spirit. This is done automatically. The more we are transformed in Jesus, the better it works - automatically. St Therese explains that wonderfully at the end of her Manuscript C, in the Story of the Soul.

She says:

"All the saints have understood this, and more especially those who filled the world with the light of the Gospel teachings. Was it not in prayer that St. Paul, St. Augustine, St. John of the Cross, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Francis, St. Dominic, and so many other famous Friends of God have drawn out this divine science which delights the greatest geniuses? A scholar has said: “Give me a lever and a fulcrum and I will lift the world.” What Archimedes was not able to obtain, for his request was not directed by God and was only made from a material viewpoint, the saints have obtained in all its fullness. The Almighty has given them as fulcrum: HIMSELF ALONE; as lever: PRAYER which burns with a fire of love. And it is in this way that they have lifted the world; it is in this way that the saints still militant lift it, and that, until the end of time, the saints to come will lift it."

Intercessory prayer has different levels of power and action. What is more powerful than to pray for somebody or - if it was given to you by the grace of God - to take this person and lift him/her to God and introduce him/her into God's Fire of Love? Here St Therese presents to us the most powerful version of Intercessory Prayer.

It is a duty of love for us to pray for everybody. St Paul says that we have to pray for one another all the time, without excluding any other person. St James in the end of his Letter, mentioning the Prophet Elijah speaks about the power of a prayer that is heard/answered by God. This should grab our attention and invite us to deepen our understanding of Intercessory Prayer.

In addition, one has to remember the relationship between Intercessory Prayer and the  Priesthood of the Faithful. A Priest "prays for" others, like St Paul invites us to do all the time. (This is why we have the Divine Office. But it is something that becomes second nature to us, it is part of the "fabric" of the New Creature that we become in Christ. Being "in Christ" makes the Fire of the Holy Spirit that dwells in Him, pray in us and through us. The Holy Spirit knows how to pray and knows what we should ask for, and the way God wants it. What depends on us is not to pay attention to all that multiplicity of things to pray for. Our duty is just to get closer and closer to Jesus and to the Fire of His Love and be transformed by IT.

St Therese developed those important questions in two different places in that same Manuscript C, in the Story of the Soul:

"Since I have two brothers and my little Sisters, the novices, if I wanted to ask for each soul what each one needed and go into detail about it, the days would not be long enough and I fear I would forget something important. For simple souls there must be no complicated ways; as I am of their number, one morning during my thanksgiving, Jesus gave me a simple means of accomplishing my mission.

He made me [34r°] understand these words of the Canticle of Canticles: “DRAW ME, WE SHALL RUN after you in the odour of your ointments.” O Jesus, it is not even necessary to say: “When drawing me, draw the souls whom I love!” This simple statement: “Draw me” suffices; I understand, Lord, that when a soul allows herself to be captivated by the odour of your ointments, she cannot run alone, all the souls whom she loves follow in her train; this is done without constraint, without effort, it is a natural consequence of her attraction for You. Just as a torrent, throwing itself with impetuosity into the ocean, drags after it everything it encounters in its passage, in the same way, O Jesus, the soul who plunges into the shoreless ocean of Your Love, draws with her all the treasures she possesses. Lord, You know it, I have no other treasures than the souls it has pleased You to unite to mine; it is You who entrusted these treasures to me, and so I dare to borrow the words You addressed to the heavenly Father, the last night which saw You on our earth as a traveler and a mortal. Jesus, I do not know when my exile will be ended; more than one night will still see me singing Your Mercies in this exile, but for me will finally come the last night, and then I want to be able to say to You, O my God:“I have glorified you on earth; I have finished the work you gave me to do. And now do you, Father, glorify me with yourself, with the glory I had with you before the world existed.“I have manifested your name to those whom you have given me out of the world. They were yours, and you have given them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they have learned that whatever you have given me is from you; because the words you have given me, I have given to them. And they have received them, and have known of a truth that I came from you, and they have believed that you sent me.“I pray for them, not for the world do I pray, but for those whom you have given me, because they are yours; and all things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep in your name those whom you have given to me.

“But now I am coming to you; and these things I speak in the world, in order that they may have joy made full in themselves. I have given them your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not pray that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

“Yet not for these only do I pray, but for those who through their word are to believe in me.

“Father, I will that where I am, these also whom you have given me may be with me, that they may see my glory which you have given me, because you loved me from the foundation of the world. And I have made known your name to them, and will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and I in them.”" (Manuscript C)

In fact Thérèse is explaining the Common Priesthood of the Faithful, received in Baptism, in Jesus-Priest. And a few pages afterwards she gives a further explanation of her new way of praying, her new way of practising the Prayer of the Heart:

“Mother, I think it is necessary to give a few more explanations on the passage in the Canticle of Canticles: “Draw me, we shall run,” for what I wanted to say appears to me little understood. “No man can come after me, unless the FATHER who sent me draw him,” Jesus has said. Again, through beautiful parables, and often even without using this means so well known to the people, He teaches us that it is enough to knock and it will be opened, to seek in order to find, and to hold out one’s hand humbly to receive what is asked for. He also says that everything we ask the Father in His name, He will grant it. No doubt, it is because of this teaching that the Holy Spirit, before Jesus’ birth, dictated this prophetic prayer: “Draw me, we shall run.”

What is it then to ask to be “Drawn” if not to be united in an intimate way to the object which captivates our heart? If fire and iron had the use of reason, and if the latter said to the other: “Draw me,” would it not prove that it desires to be identified with the fire in such a way that the fire penetrate [36r°] and drink it up with its burning substance and seem to become one with it? Dear Mother, this is my prayer. I ask Jesus to draw me into the flames of His love, to unite me so closely to Him that He live and act in me. I feel that the more the fire of love burns within my heart, the more I shall say: “Draw me,” the more also the souls who will approach me (poor little piece of iron, useless if I withdraw from the divine furnace), the more these souls will run swiftly in the odor of the ointments of their Beloved, for a soul that is burning with love cannot remain inactive. No doubt, she will remain at Jesus’ feet as did Mary Magdalene, and she will listen to His sweet and burning words. Appearing to do nothing, she will give much more than Martha who torments herself with many things and wants her sister to imitate her. " (Manuscript C)

All that Thérèse is describing happens in the same movement of the Prayer of the Heart. Jesus attaches people to us (without us doing it or knowing it), so when we do the PH we perform, as well, our Priestly duty of intercession. In the Prayer of the Heart we offer our being to Jesus and are immersed in Him. The more we are transformed in Jesus the more we are like a sponge, unknowingly absorbing all the persons Jesus wants us to carry. They are like our mystical body ("Union with Jesus" is union with a portion of his Body). So whenever we do the Prayer of the Heart (The more we are transformed in Jesus, the more PH becomes more and more constant in us), and we are then immersed (with them) in His Fire. The Power of the Holy Spirit in us is lifting not only us but all our mystical body.

[Many more things occur during the PH, and this is just to reply to your question and show the deeper levels of Intercession and their relationship with our level/degree of transformation in Jesus and with the practice of the PH.]


In conclusion we can say that it is not really possible to separate deep powerful intercession from our being, from our PH.

When somebody asks us to pray for him/her, or we just remember to pray for a certain person/intention, let us not forget that (in my eyes) the most powerful, perfect and pure way to do it is to entrust this intention to Our Lady, by saying one "Hail Mary" and that's it. If your remember again this person/intention, you may just redo that again: say the "Hail Mary", entrusting this person to Mary. St Therese used to say that Our Lady knows better the will of God (what to say to God and how to say it), we don't. In this sense she is called "Throne of Wisdom", because the Wisdom of God, Jesus, is dwelling in her in His absolute perfection while it is not the case for us. We either carry too much the person, or worry too much, or are busy too much in dealing and arranging the life of others, forgetting our utter ignorance. And all this is not intercessory prayer, but impurity added to our way of dealing with God.

I hope this helps.

68 : How to 'dwell in Jesus'

Jesus says to us: 'Dwell in Me as I dwell in you' (John 15:4) How can we dwell in Him ? How does He dwell in us?

First let us see where and how Jesus dwells in us?

By our Baptism, Jesus takes our heart as His dwelling place. He is in the deepest part of our heart.

We can visualise our heart like a Circle. Jesus is in the deepest part of it.

When we enter in our heart, what do we see inside of it?

We have 3 areas where we can be:

1- A green area (see the previous diagram): this area is the place where we are when we are in ourselves, immersed in our thoughts and feelings.

2- A blue area: this area symbolises the effort we make in order to move toward Jesus-God, dwelling inside of us: we knock on Jesus’ door, we ask the Holy Spirit to allow us inside, in order to be with Jesus.

3- A white area: this area is where Jesus is. This is His Kingdom, where He introduces us, putting us in direct contact with the Fire of His Love. (see the diagram below)

Therefore, during the day, and during prayer we can be:

I- Outside of our heart (see the diagram below: the heart to the left)

II- Inside of our heart: in the green area

III- Asking Jesus to enter in Him

IV- Dwelling in Jesus, with the Fire of His Love

As you can see, we are not necessarily “dwelling in Jesus”. This is why Jesus invites us insistently: ‘dwell in Me, as I dwell in you’.

We can easily understand that if we “dwell in Jesus” our daily acts/work will be different. It is from that Meeting inside of us with Jesus that we draw Energy, Light and Love for our daily life.

This is why Jesus says ‘without Me you can do nothing’ (John 15:15)

‘Dwell in my Love’ (John 15:9)

48: The call for Holiness for married people

For Married people there is a "call for Holiness"; but a "call" means that in married life there is a time spent "before the call" and another "after the call".

We all know that holiness can be achieved through all forms of life: being single, married, priest, consecrated (monk, religious, …). By the Grace of Jesus, all forms of life can be transformed into means to achieve holiness. In saying that, we refer to the Council Vatican II, more precisely to chapter V of the Document called: “Lumen Gentium” (see here): “The universal CALL to holiness in the Church”. Here are some quotes:

“in the Church, everyone whether belonging to the hierarchy, or being cared for by it, is called to holiness, according to the saying of the Apostle: "For this is the will of God, your sanctification".” (LG 39)

“The followers of Christ are called by God, not because of their works, but according to His own purpose and grace. They are justified in the Lord Jesus, because in the baptism of faith they truly become sons of God and sharers in the divine nature. In this way they are really made holy. Then too, by God's gift, they must hold on to and complete in their lives this holiness they have received.” (LG 40)

“it is evident to everyone, that all the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status, are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity” (LG 40)

As a consequence: “all the faithful of Christ are invited to strive for the holiness and perfection of their own proper state. Indeed they have an obligation to so strive” (LG 42)

A Call is a Call

Recently I was pondering on the issue of the “obligation to strive for holiness” and noticed that, very easily, the “call” can be transformed into a natural “obligation” for all. The difference between a unique “supernatural call” from Christ to a specific person, and an "obligation for all Baptised people", is huge and should be explained.

As you can see, the word “call” is used various times in the quotes. We, obviously, have the same expression in all other documents of the Church (ordinary teaching of the Popes and the Bishops, the Catechism,…).

Let us first consider the reality of the “Call to holiness”, all its aspects and implications:

1- The call has a goal: to start the journey toward holiness is something.

2- A “call” is a grace. A “grace” is by definition “free”, and depends totally on the freedom of God.

3- It is a grace received at a certain point in our life (not before), according to the wisdom of God, and in the form and intensity His wisdom sees and decides. Placed in time.

4- The “call” involves Jesus Himself, directly, personally.

5- The “call” means that Jesus has the priority and the initiative in calling us: as He says in the Gospel: I called you, you didn't invite yourself.

6- The “call” involves the direct, efficient and transformative Action of the Holy Spirit.

7- It involves, at the receiving end, from the faithful the following acts: sitting down, listening, pondering, discerning, responding to this Call/grace, using the means involved in this call, in order to be able to respond to it on the long term.

Baptism: The normal call, for instance to priesthood or to religious life, means that the person was first baptised, confirmed... had a “normal active christian life”... then, at a certain point in their life, they heard this “Call” from Jesus. (Sometimes the “call” grows progressively like a gentle dawn. But it is still a personal “call” from Jesus.)

Marriage: In a parallel way, we may say that a married couple receives the Sacrament of Marriage and lives with it normally. Then, I do believe that for the couple as well, they can receive the “call” for holiness, either early in their married life, or later... often one of the members of the couple (husband or wife), rarely both (it would be a huge grace).

As you can see the “call” is not something “automatic”, or "spontaneous", or “done at will”, even if we are baptised and are supposed to strive to holiness. Being baptised doesn't necessarily mean that we heard Jesus' Call or that we hear it every day. Baptism can be neglected, as a dormant seed in the earth of our being, waiting for the “right moment” to wake up.

What I would like to point out to is that when we say that “marriage is a way for holiness”, we might sort of forget all the dynamics of the “Call”. In fact, before a certain moment in their life, the married couple doesn't necessarily have that call (both, or each separately). Potentially it is there, included within the sacrament (of Marriage), like it is the case for the Sacrament of Baptism, but it is there “dormant”, waiting for Jesus' visit to the couple or to one of them. In one word: the married couple needs to receive/hear the “call” for holiness, and, in the mean time, they might have things to achieve before being able to “hear” the call.

“all are called to Holiness”: in fact, we can understand that statement in two ways at least:

1- Either: “there is a call that all will receive one day”. The “call” is potentially present, but activated only at a certain point in time.

2- Or: “all are already in a journey that leads to holiness”. It means: being married is a way for holiness. The “call” is actively present from day one (baptism, marriage).

There is a big big difference between the two, even if that for many persons the two are not opposed. What might be “new” to many of us is to become aware that: before, during or after marrying, we'll receive a “call for Holiness”. So we need to be prepared for it.

It is not because we are married, that we are supposed (without a “call”) to reach holiness. We need to “hear the call”, we need to discern the “call”.

You might object: - does this means that many couples, married in the Church, can just stay married in a state of apathy, without doing anything for their holiness? Does this make, within married people, two categories?

- Well, theoretically and mostly practically: “yes”. We are all baptised, but not all of us did receive a direct personal call to holiness. Do you see what I mean?

It is not because I am baptised that I am supposed to be on my way for holiness. No. On the contrary. One day, I will receive the call for holiness, the call to follow Jesus.

Notice: all my life before the call is not empty or without meaning. It is just a different life that deserves all its respect and requires as well from us to do many things. Before receiving the call for holiness there is a call for maturity, a preparation. Remember the rich young man. When he meets Jesus, he asks him: “what am I supposed to do in order to reach eternal life (instead of “eternal life” you may put: “holiness”, “perfection”)?” In His reply, Jesus didn't start mentioning “holiness”! On the contrary, He wanted to ensure that the foundations of this person are sound; so He said to him: did you fulfil Moses Commandments? In these commandments we have all the foundations of human life. Among the 10 Commandments one can extract the duties of the husband and wife within Marriage.

This doesn't mean YET that, by receiving the Sacrament of Marriage, there is a “call” for holiness. First things first. Shocking maybe, for many, but true. Jesus didn't start to speak about holiness. He said: “did you fulfil Moses commandments?”. We perfectly know that these commandments are not the call for holiness/perfection. They are the foundation.

In the series of Signs of the Journey that leads us to the Union with Jesus, saint John doesn't start with holiness. He starts by offering us Mary, the New Even, Mother of our Faith (John 2), then he shows us how Jesus heals the son of a man (and indirectly the man himself) (John 4), then Jesus heals a paralysed man who doesn't have any friend in the world, and can't do anything in his life (John 5). So Jesus works first on 1- Our Roots 2- our close relationships (son, father, partner..) 3- our work, action in the world..

It is only after these fundamental steps that Jesus starts to do greater things, call us, and make us “cross the Sea” (John 6).

I hope you can see the difference between these steps in spiritual life and what the “call for holiness” means and involves.

15: The power of Christianity

Participating to His Resurrection

Saint Paul says that he would like us to experience the Power of the Resurrection of Jesus (Phil 3,10). One can expand a lot on the spirituality of the participation to Jesus’ death in order to participate to his Resurrection. We may call it rightly “Spirituality of Baptism” (see Rm 6,1-5). By contemplating Jesus Crucified, an exchange can happen: we give Him our burdens, our sins, our sufferings, our difficulties, and we take His Yoke: the Holy Spirit, that purifies and transforms our inner being. We, then, experience the Transformative Power of His Cross.

His Session at the Right Hand of the Father

Without questioning at all the validity, necessity, power and efficiency of this spiritual exchange, we may explore more of that “Power made available to us” by Christ and make one more step: delving in his “Ascension into heaven” and His “Session at the right hand of the father”.

In fact The Risen Son of Man, finishes His Journey not at the Resurrection, but at the Ascension and Session at the Right Hand of the Father. This is the final destination of His Humanity: the closest possible to the Father (in the Trinity).

The Unity between the Head and the Body in one Mystical Person

Let us consider our relationship with Jesus. In fact we have one Total Mystical Christ, composed by the Head, Jesus-Christ, and his Body, us. The Head is seated at the Right hand of the Father, and the Body is here on earth, but is deeply and mystically linked to the Head. The relationship between the Head and the Body is to be compared to a tie, a bond that is so powerful that it is unbreakable, indestructible. Divine Life, the Holy Spirit, is constantly flowing from the Head to the Body.

It is more than a union, it is a unity, a “mystical unity”, an identity. This is why Jesus identifies Himself with His Body, saying to Saul who is persecuting Christians: “why do you persecute Me?” (Acts 26,14).

How to receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit

The Power to receive from Jesus is simply the Holy Spirit. All the Power of Christianity lays in the Communication of the Holy Spirit.

How can we receive the Holy Spirit in a more powerful way?

The more we Dwell in Jesus, the more we receive the Outpouring of His Holy Spirit. This is why Jesus said two things:

1- You should rejoice that I am going to (sit at the right hand of) the Father (see John 14-16), because I’ll be sending you the Holy Spirit.

2- (While I will be seated at the Right hand of the Father) “Dwell in Me” (John 15) because this is the way to receive directly from Me the Holy Spirit.

This is why the Priest, during the Mass, says: “lift up your hearts”; so Jesus, who is seated at the right hand of the Father, can take our hearts and put them in His Heart, so we are enabled to receive the Holy Spirit.

The Power of Christianity

Stephen says that he sees « the Son of man standing on the right hand of God » (Ac 7:56). Why this statement is perceived by the Jews who didn’t become Christians as blasphemous (see Acts 7:57-58)? While for us, Christians, being able to see the Son of Man at the Right Hand of the Father is the highest achievement, and the most powerful outpouring of God? Why Jesus’ victory (to sit at the Right Hand of the Father), reaching such closeness with His human nature to the very Nature of God, is blasphemous?
In may religions, including actual Judaism, it is not at all conceivable to be that close to God. It is blasphemous because God is considered as being only High, but never that Close to us His creatures. Or, said in a different way: our human created nature can never reach God, where He IS. Let us remember that the reason why Jesus is killed (I mean the decision made by the Jewish authorities at that time) is that He declared himself being God, equal to God (see the Passion according to S. John)!
What a privilege for us to know that this is not true!
What is Blasphemous to some is the highest Power to others. Let us at least use this Power given to us!

We are all invited to meditate and contemplate this great mystery: the fact that part of us, Jesus the Head, in His Human Nature, is already at the closest to the Father. So let us be actively "in Him", using our freedom to benefit from that incredible privilege.

Let us benefit from this Power

He (as a man) is already reigning in heaven, united with the Father. Contemplating Him (seated at the right hand of the Father), we contemplate our victory. We contemplate were our heart should be, all the time.

This is how we can be in the world but not from the world (John 15:18-20; 17:16), from Christ seated at the Right Hand of the Father. Contemplating, we are united with Him, and we receive the Holy Spirit… like Rivers of Water (John 7:38)... This is the Prayer of the Heart.
Let us practise the Prayer of the Heart... constantly...
Constantly, and actively, be "in Him"... to receive his Holy Spirit...

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