52: P Pio, the Stigmata and Jesus' Passion

Two days ago I was watching a film on P Pio. P Pio is the first Priest to receive the Lord's Stigmata (His 5 physical wounds: 2 hands, 2 feet, and the side) . For 50 years, he lived what in fact was lived by the Lord during few hours: His Holy Passion.

What a mystery! Jesus comes amongst us, in us, through us, and lives again and again His Unique and unrepeatable Passion.

The amazing thing with P Pio is that what was very common during the first 3 Centuries of Christianity, but lived for only few hours or maybe few days, he lived it for 50 years! I mean by that what the Martyrs went through: participating into the Passion of the Lord, or better said, as the accounts of the Martyrs point it out: Jesus comes in the Martyr and suffers again and again, in His "Mystical Body", His Passion (please do delve in the early accounts of the Christian Martyrs). Martyrs are the Passion of Jesus extended in time.

Some might think that these things are a bit “too much”, or a “catholic deviation”. Well, not really. Remember that saint Luke, in his second work, the Act of the Apostles, when he mentions the first Martyr (Stephen), he takes great care of showing him following the steps of Jesus, almost dying like Jesus (Acts chapter 7): being persecuted, martyred to death, and forgiving his murderers. Saint Luke shows us that if Jesus is seated that the Right Hand of the Father, He is in His "Mystical Body" as well, on earth, continuing his suffering, His Passion and His work of salvation. Salvation has been done once and for ever on the Cross. But this unique Passion has to reach people and in order to do so, Jesus wants us to help Him, to give Him space and time (give Him our existence), so He can come in us, and continue to live His Mystery and His Salvation. There are no two (or more) salvations, there is only one. But this only one needs to reach all humans; and this relies on us. This is why Jesus says (see John 15): be in Me and Me in you, so you can “do” something. The only “action” of the Lord is “to save”. So, in order to let Him save through us, we need to dwell in Him and Him in us.

P Pio is just an example of what should be normal for us. I don't mean that we all have to receive the visible stigmata, but there is plenty to delve in as for "sufferings" in order to help Jesus. Some might still doubt that and would like to allow it only for few exceptions. This is wrong. You may go back to the series of 11 diagrams describing the total length of our Spiritual Journey of growth (please click here). You'll notice that, in the end of our journey, in the descending curve, all of us are invited to “participate to the Passion of the Lord". Note that there is another moment, much before this one, where we meet and benefit from the Passion of the Lord, in order to be purified: this would be in the ascending curve (see the Diagram).

Remember saint Paul, and please consider carefully what he says, because he went through the same journey: “I do not live, but Jesus lives in me”, “I complete in my flesh what lacks in the Passion of Jesus, for the Church His body”, and as well: “I carry in my body the stigmata of Jesus” (Ga 6:17).

I am sure you noticed that powerful expression: “the stigmata of Jesus” (in Greek saint Paul says: “Stigmata”). For people who still doubt that, let us read this long passage of saint Paul. Please do read it, having in mind P Pio, all his life, the 50 years baring the Stigmata of Jesus:

“But we have this Treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing Power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

We always carry around in our body the Death of Jesus, so that the Life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that His life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but Life is at work in you.

It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.” (2 Co 7,7-15)

This passage in itself deserves a long commentary. Don't you think?

38: The Spiritual Journey 11/11

With this final diagram (see below), you have the full picture of our christian journey. Baptism is a Divine Seed: Jesus in us. He needs to grow and reach His fulness, and pursue, through us, His Mission. The stages of growth of that seed are shown in this simple Diagram.

It took us 11 diagrams to move on, from

1- a static vision of Christianity, or better said: a "binary vision" ("on/off": I am in a "state of grace", or I am in a "state of sin"). Many people live their whole Christian life without even imagining the existence of something more. They just try to live their life, as "good christians", and it ends here. They just look forward to “be with God” only after death, as a recompense,

2- through an incomplete vision offered to all, setting the Union with Jesus as its goal, and then we die a little time after. One thinks that we can't reach higher than that, so we have nothing to do except just aspiring more and more to meet God (to die) and be with Him, during eternity,

3- to finally reach the complete vision, "offered to all" as well: a totally Christocentric Road (at the image of Christ's journey itself). An Ascent, of the Mountain (Jesus) and, with Him and in Him, a Descent.

As you can see, the journey is parted in two parts, putting a Cross in between, where the heart of the Cross (the meeting point of the two bars) coincides with the “Union with Jesus”.

Is that whole picture for all of us?

You might say: - “Objection: why would Jesus today want us to go through that second part of the journey? Well, He accomplished His Mission, and doesn't need us." You can then come up with plenty of quotes corroborating what you say.
- I am not the one who said: “there is no greater love than to give one's life to the others”. I am not the one who set the goal that hight.

If reaching the “Union with Jesus” means "experiencing something so amazing on earth", then reaching the fullness of Love (dying like Jesus), is something even "more amazing". If we consider the fact that Jesus is offering us on earth to be united with Him is an amazing sign of His love for us, and a great work He achieved on the Cross, it is certainly greater to see that He is still offering us something greater.

From the point of view of God, what is greater for Jesus: to "save us, and transform us", or "to make us with Him and in Him, saviours"? (certainly the latter)

Jesus Himself said: “you'll do greater things than the one I did” (John 14:12). “God is glorified in His saints”. The Glory that God receives from His saints, i.e. from "earth", is greater than the glory He receives from "heaven". It is still His glory that appears on earth. But it is greater to make of "a sinner" a "saviour with Him", transformed, purified, capable then of doing amazing things, than making a pure being (Jesus Himself) just Save.

Let us remember that our transformation gives God a greater Glory. Let us remember that transforming a sinner into a person capable of loving his brothers with the Love of God and dying for them, is much much greater manifestation of Jesus' Glory on earth. Again: it is always the same Jesus, and the same glory that work in His Saints. But God achieves much much more glory and victory this way.

So, let us, humbly accept our Vocation, in it's fulness, and let us accept to give God a greater Glory, here on earth, on the “earth” of our being.

“Amen, amen I say to you, if you believe in me, you will do the same things that I do. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father.” (John 14:12)

Accepting the full picture

As you see, we needed 11 diagrams in order to be introduced to the complete vision of our "Christian journey". Do you think it would have been possible to show you the full vision from day one? Would you have been able to “see” the full picture from day one? to digest it? to understand it? And to simply accept it? I really would be very interested to know that. You know why? Because it is of the utmost important for the Church, for the salvation of our brothers to have from day one the full vision. It nourishes our act of Hope, the Theological act of Hope. Without hope, and without clear hope, our act of hope doesn't really work and doesn't really make us grow and walk toward the goal. The "Act of Hope" is the propeller of Christian life.
Each Christian should have a full understanding of the whole journey, in order to prepare himself for it. We need to nourish our act of hope correctly, so we are propelled correctly in Life.

We can't constantly claim that “we are all called to Holiness” and be sort of helpless when it comes to describe the goals, the means, the entire journey. Wouldn't you agree?

We need to find ways and means to help each christian to really know how great is his/her call, how amazing is the love of God that He not only wants to save us (unite us totally with His Son, through a journey of purification) but wants us to help Him, wants us to receive a greater and more powerful love: to love our brothers, working in their salvation, not with our poor vision/means, but with Him in Us, performing “greater things”.

Please do enrol in this complete vision, please do come and help us. Put your energy, put your enthusiasm at the service of the greatest cause of all: showing the Way.

(We continue the journey...)