116: Reenergise Yourself

It is very interesting to see that some psychoanalysts describe the difficulties of souls (depression, neurosis,...) as a drop in energy level or simply a lack of energy. Of course they don't mean physical energy but soul-energy. I will not discuss this position, but I just find it interesting to note the way it is described by psychoanalysts as: a drop or lack of soul-energy. If we are not feeling well, sometimes we say that we don't have the “drive”, or that we have lost the “drive” to do something. In my humble view, often we are not psychologically ill, we are just psychologically undernourished. In certain cases both seem to engender the same results.

What is more striking is the passage from St Paul in his letter to the Ephesians: "Draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty Power" (Ephesians 6:10), where a more literal translation would be: “energise yourselves ”. How? Through the Lord... reconnecting with the Lord.

Prayer is a real connection with the Lord where we receive his Power, his energy, his guidance: the Holy Spirit. Prayer is not optional. Prayer reconnects us with our roots, like the trunk of a tree is reconnected with its roots, in order to receive water (sap). Of course in prayer the motivation is not merely to feel better. When I pray it means I spend time with Jesus, to be with Him, and I do it with purity of intention, for his sake alone.

The connection with Jesus occurs from day one, from the day we reply to Jesus' Call, and start to follow him from close. I don't wait to become united with Jesus in order to draw energy from him. That would be Jesus seen as Goal (Jesus-the-Goal), Jesus accessed in fullness. But from day one, Jesus-the-Way adapts himself to my needs, lowers himself and his way of interacting with me, gives me an adapted food - spiritual milk - so I can grow. He offers his support. I try to remain in contact with him as much as I can. He gives me His Spirit who transforms me, step by step, so I start to switch from being guided by earthly drives to being guided by the Holy Spirit's Drive and Energy. "Draw your dynamism from the Lord and from his mighty Power" (Ephesians 6:10).

Therefore it is very important to connect with Jesus, to receive our Energy and Guidance from Him. If the lamp is not plugged into the mains, no electricity will flow. The same applies in our relationship with Jesus: no light, no love, no drive will flow if we do not connect with Him.

Another image of that "connection" with Jesus: Jesus yearns to gather us “as a hen gathers her brood under her wings”. Imagine yourself like a little chick, under the warm protective wing of Jesus, seen as a hen. This image is very warm, very cuddly. It is impressive to see it used by God himself.

When we are gathered under the warm protective wings of Jesus-Hen, what do we get? Comfort, strength, direction, being centred,... This means that we are called to be as close as this to God - here on earth, we are called to have such a relationship with Jesus.

Is this optional? Isn't it vital? Your energy levels depend on it!

67: How to enter in your inner room

Jesus is our Spiritual Master; He teaches us how to pray. Here is what He says: "When you pray, go to your (inner) room, close the door, and pray to your father in Secret" (Mt 6:6).

How can we imagine the 'inner room'?

This video (see at the bottom) uses a diagram to help us "see" the "inner room".

A big green circle represents our "inner room".

This Circle has an inner chamber where God dwells (IV).

This Circle has an outside door (on the left)!

And the chamber (IV), inside, has a door as well.

During the day, and during prayer we can be in any of the three positions shown below (see the three hearts):

1- Outside, busy with the outside world (I).

2- Inside of our inner room (in the green area II).

3- In the inner chamber (IV), with God (the Fire). (we will see later the blue area (III) and what it means)

I guess that we often remain outside of this "inner room" (I). But this is not what Jesus says. On the contrary, He says that we should be "praying all the time", and He says as well: "dwell in Me" (John 15:4).

First: is that diagram accurate?

One can wonder: "is that diagram accurate"?

Well, if we look carefully, we will notice that this representation is following the structure of the Jerusalem Temple.

The Temple has at least two types of places: 1- One where God Himself dwells, the "Holy of Holies":

2- And the rest of the Temple where sacrifices are offered and people can dwell in order to pray and present their praise to God.

As you can see, in the Jerusalem Temple there is a curtain that separates God (the Holy One) from the rest of the Priests and the People.

By his death, Jesus opened a new way for us (He 10:20): 'the curtain of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom' (Mt 27:51) the curtain that separates the Holy of Holy and the Holy (Hekal).

We are able then: to access God directly, to enter His Kingdom, we are able to access God at any time. This is the Christian Prayer: to be introduced in the direct and immediate very Presence of God.

On the diagram, this means that the door of the dwelling place of God in our heart has been opened by Jesus:

How do we pray according to Jesus?

Now, back to Jesus explanation of how to Pray: "When you pray, go to your (inner) room, close the door, and pray to your father in Secret" (Mt 6:6)

Jesus' words are very precise: 'enter the inner room and close the door'.

The door He is mentioning here is the 'outside door', the door that communicates with the outside world through the senses. Jesus invites us to shut the door.

Jesus invites us to be focused not on the creatures outside, but on God who dwells deep in the 'inner room'. This effort belongs to us and we are invited to do it. This is the least we can do for an instance when we meet somebody for dinner: we are focused on that person, on all what this person is about to say or do.

'and pray the Father': To 'Pray the Father' means that we ought to be with Him, in the inner chamber, to taste His Kingdom, His Light and the Fire of His Love. In order to enter, we need to ask, to knock at the inner door, God's one. This effort shows God our choice, our desire: this is shown on the diagram by the area in blue (III), where we gather all our energy in order to ask God to enter His Kingdom.

When we knock on the door, God opens to us, and lets us in. God always opens to us, He is Our Father, a father cannot close the door to his children: 'ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you' (Mt 7:7). 'ask' to enter inside, where God is dwelling, and God will give you this Grace. 'seek' God inside of you, and 'you'll find' Him. He dwells in you, but you are outside of Him. Therefore, 'knock at' His door, and He'll open to you.

When we are inside, in the Kingdom, experiencing the Love of God, this is Prayer. God pours Himself in us. This is why it is so important not only to always do this movement when we pray but to do it very often throughout the day. It nourishes us and replenishes us.

We should reach a point in our life where we can handle the outside things without letting our heart be outside. Remember what Jesus said: 'your heart is where your Treasure is' (Matthew 6:21). God, His Fire of Love IS our Treasure.

Here below is the video-presentation on "how to enter in your inner room". Don't hesitate to watch it, its not that long (a bit more than 5 minutes), and if you like it, please do share it with your friends. I hope this helps.

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?

44: The rich young man / Perfection

The rich young man

“- Now someone approached him and said, "Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?"

- He answered him: "Why do you ask me about the good? There is only One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments."

- He asked him: "Which ones?"

- And Jesus replied: " 'You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness;
honour your father and your mother'; and 'you shall love your neighbour as yourself.'"

- The young man said to him: "All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?"

- Jesus said to him: "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to (the) poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.” (Mt 19:16-22)

This passage from the Gospel is fundamental. We already addressed it in "Spirituality 23: Fortitude and sacred…" you may come back to it. And now, let us continue to deepen it.

Why this text is important for us Christians? It is important because it places us at the exact junction (or line, or threshold) between the “First Covenant”, and the “New Covenant”, between “being Jewish” and “being Christian”, “following Moses” and “following Jesus”. In doing so, it helps us see the exact difference between the two “economies”*. Otherwise, if we don’t see the difference, why are we Christians?

Note: “economy” is a theological expression that means the way God is dealing with us, the means He gives us. For instance we can say: “the Economy of God in the Old Testament”.

This great text helps us avoiding “being Christian” only by name. Indeed the great risk for us Christians is to become lazy, which means to become technically “Jewish”, not using Christ’s Salvation, and the Holy Spirit.

The difference between the two Covenants, the two Economies, is huge, and should be huge as well practically in our life.

This text of saint Matthew helps us as well learn the possible differences between “Christianity” (real alive Christianity) and any other religion. So hopefully one can live by this difference, taking advantage of it, and living it to the fullest. Otherwise, why being Christians? We might as well adhere to any other religion.

Some people might think that this text is offering us Christians two ways of “being Christian” and therefore creates two categories of Christians:

1- the normal plain people, who live by the Moses Commandments and

2- the people who hear the “call for Perfection” and follow Jesus from closer (consecrated people).

This means that the first lot are still following Jesus but not from close. In fact, for centuries, we made two classes of Christians: the ones who are called to perfection, to holiness, who follow Jesus from close and “the rest of the crowd”, who follow Jesus, but from a certain distance, people who will just have the chance, last minute, to jump into paradise when they’ll die. Saved only by an inch. As if God was calling some, and others no! As if some are born with more muscles, so they can reach Perfection, and others are doomed right from the start!

Of course this duality, this dual vision is wrong, and, thank God, the Holy Spirit, talked to us, through the Council Vatican II and reminded us that the Perfection that Jesus is bringing us, that Holiness, is for everybody. Everybody is invited to Holiness, it is not for an "elite"!

This text of saint Matthew is not the only text that addresses the difference between being Jewish and being Christian, or, if you prefer: between from one hand being “lazy Christian”, a Christian who doesn’t use all the goodness of Christianity and the Gift of God, and from the other hand being a real Christian.

The first one is not mystic, and the second is definitely mystic.

The Apostles, right from the beginning, felt the urge to clarify the difference, because they saw the richness that Jesus is bringing, and they saw that many seemed to follow Christ but didn’t get to experience these richnesses. Remember in the book of the Acts when saint Paul met people who were following Jesus, who heard of John the Baptist but didn’t receive the Holy Spirit. Here is the text:

“Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.” (Acts 19:1-6)

So the Apostles felt the need to clarify that huge risk of living a Christian life only by name, and not having the experience of the Holy Spirit.

Saint Mathew, for instance, built his Sermon on the Mount explaining how each Person of the Trinity enters in our life, influences it and changes it (the Son (chapter 5), the Father (chapter 6), the Holy Spirit (chapter 7), see this Blog). If you take the second part of chapter 5, you’ll see that it is structures in a way to show the clear difference between Moses Law and Jesus Law. “They said to you” (this refers to Moses) and “I say to you”, this is Jesus.

The difference between what each one says is simply huge: it is the difference between "what is possible to practice with our own strength" (Moses Law), and "what is impossible to do with our own strength" (Jesus Law). "Not to kill" is ok, it is possible not to kill. But not to think badly or speak badly about our brothers, this requires a total change of the engine (the soul, the heart). This is why Jesus came: to take away that old heart of stone, and put another one, a heart of flesh (see Ez 36:26). He can do that. And this will then allow Perfection to happen.

We can’t separate that Gospel of the rich young man, from that second part of chapter 5 of Matthew, with it’s 5 injunctions: “I say to you…”.

Saint Paul as well, in both his letters to the Romans and to the Galatians addresses the central issue of the difference between the “Law of Moses” and the “Law of Jesus”. He calls the latter one: Faith. And what is Faith for saint Paul? Opening your heart to receive what you don’t deserve: the love and the salvation of Jesus on the Cross. In other words: the Holy Spirit who can act in you and change you.

John as well, in his Gospel, offers a whole journey of transformation - through 6 signs + the Big one (the Cross) - that will allow us the reach the union with Jesus (experience his Resurrection, and receive his Holy Spirit).

So when Matthew (and the other parallel accounts in Mark and Luke) tells us about this encounter between Jesus and this young man, he is not just telling us a minor detail. He is addressing a central point that each Christian should study and understand.

Note: when Jesus replies to the young man, he doesn’t immediately jump into the “great things” (like the Perfection of the Law He is bringing, and leaving everything and following Him), He just starts from the beginning: “did you follow what Moses said?” In other words, in order to “start to follow Jesus” one has to be prepared, one has to be ready for it, and has to have fulfilled the requirements.

Hummm! It is not “either Moses or Jesus”. It is “Moses, then, greater than Moses: the Perfection of Moses: Jesus”.

Jesus is the one who makes, in Him, everything alive.

43: The unavoidable mystical dimension of Christianity 2

(Continuation of "Spirituality 16a")

In John chapter 6, when Jesus starts to say that He is “the Bread” and that that Bread is his own flesh (not “body” but “flesh”) and his own blood, people were shocked.

And the good thing is that John, the Apostle, is underlining the fact that people were shocked. John is not avoiding the difficulty inherent to the “mystical dimension” that Jesus is offering: eating his flesh and drinking his blood.

“- Too close!” “- Too intimate!” The least you can say.

John gives us the spontaneous reaction of some people: "How can this man give us (his) flesh to eat?"

Did Jesus drop it? John doesn’t seem to say that, on the contrary.

Did Jesus say to himself: “ok, this is too difficult for them, I will then stop speaking about this difficult topic, let change the subject”, or “let us dilute it a bit and make it milder”? No, He didn’t. Seriously, we should be surprised by the fact that Jesus kept going on.

He just simply continued on His track. He even emphasised the difficulty, and, to a degree, He made it more difficult. He tried to explain, develop, expand:

"Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (John 6)

Later, in that same text of John 6, John will say that, at this junction, some stopped following Jesus.

Facing the "Mystical Dimension" of our own faith

Each Christian has one day to face the “mystical dimension” of his/her faith, responsibly, as an adult, and decide which side he/she wants to take. To enter deeply in this mystical dimension, or just trop his Christian faith.

Jesus won’t change his plan just because “we don’t like it”, or “we have some difficulty to grasp it”. He is ready to help though, if we are opened, if we ask for His help. But he won’t avoid the “mystical dimension”.

- What is mystical? - “Mystical” can be surprisingly confusing. But it is real, and it is deeply the core of becoming a Christian. When Jesus invites us to “eat his Flesh” (John 6), to “dwell in Him” (John 15), when saint Paul says: “it is not me who lives but Jesus who lives in me”, we are simply in the “mystical” dimension.

We have the three-dimensional world space: 3D. We can add “time” as a fourth dimension. I don’t want to go into a mathematical marathon to add more dimensions, I am just pointing out to the "normal" human being that we already can easily grasp the existence of 4 dimensions. The 2D is simply a photo you are watching. A 3D, is a body, in 3D. If the body moves, we have 3D + time (motion).

The “mystical dimension” is one more dimension that is totally necessary for Christian life.

In order to understand the “mystical dimension”, let me use an analogy, just to open the way to this “new dimension”:

Did you ever watch any episode of “Drop Dead Diva”? It is the story of a 24 years old girl, Deb, who is an aspiring model (you can imagine the body), who has a car accident, reaches heaven, and then comes back to earth but in the body of a 32 years old big girl, Jane, who is a lawyer, and who just died.

The soul (and spirit) of a person, Deb, falls into the body (and the brain) of another person: Jane.

Note: Of course I am not at all going to address the issue of "is this possible or not". For Christianity it is simply not acceptable, for one body is for one soul, numerically this body is for this soul, in a unique and definitive way. I am just taking this TV series case as an analogy. Many people accept that "mystical" game, even if it is not possible to have it in real life, so I just hope it may helps us to get closer to the daily Christian "mystical dimension".

"Transformed", "not "lost"

When Paul says: “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Ga 2:20), of course it is not at all identical to Jane’s case in “Drop Dead Diva”, but it has a sort of a remote similarity that opens the way to the real things.

When Jesus grows in us, and becomes more alive (remember the "Spiritual Marriage" or "union with Jesus-God" we saw previously), we still have all our being (our soul is not lost or replaced by Jesus' one like in Jane's case). We still have our body, our soul, and our spirit. We don't loose any part of our being. They are renewed, purified, elevated. We are just "inserted", "rooted" in Jesus' humanity and transformed in it but not lost. "Improved", but not lost.
Our body is in Jesus’ body, our soul, is in Jesus’ soul, our spirit is in Jesus’ spirit. All our human nature (body, soul and spirit) is in His human nature. All our human nature - dwelling in His human nature - is united to his divinity as well. Remember that His human Nature is united to the Divine Nature of the Second Divine Person of the Trinity.
The following diagram helps us "visualise" the "new life" "in Jesus":

The "human being" on the right (each one of us) is invited to enter in the humanity of Jesus (on the left). Saint Augustine says about Communion: we think we eat Him, but in fact He eats us. The three arrows show us that our body enters (is rooted) in Jesus' body; the same for our soul and for our spirit.
"entering" in fact is a very weak word. We should say that we are transformed in Him. Transformation, again, doesn't mean we loose our humanity, our body, our soul, our spirit. They are enriched, Christ grows in them, and starts to take more and more a greater "space" in us, and moves us, acts through us. We don't loose our will, but our will is transformed in His.
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus says that when she does good things to her sisters, in fact Jesus in her is acting and doing them. She didn't mean that her personality is lost, but she means that Jesus is alive in her, and has a greater influence, and moves her in a higher and new way. Again: she doesn't loose her will, her freedom.
As you can notice on the diagram, Jesus' humanity (the square that includes His body, soul and spirit) is placed in the Divine Person of the Logos (the large rectangle), the Second Person of the Trinity, and is united to it.

It is like as if you uproot a plant, “our humanity” (body, soul and spirit), and root it in Jesus’ Person (the Logos Incarnate).
Rooted in Jesus, it is like we acquire a mystical person.

34: The Spiritual Journey 8/11

The Descent

With this 8^th diagram, we start a totally new part of the journey, the second and final part: the descent.

The descent, at the imitation of Christ.

Once we reach the “union with God”, once we reach the top of the mountain, we are not meant to loose that state, but we are meant to imitate Jesus, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man,
 he humbled himself
 by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross!” (Phil 2:6-8) Having reached the Union with Jesus, He is our Master, our example, we are not higher than Him, we are just invited to become like him. “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” (Luke 6:40) Like him, we have to start our descent.

When Jesus is humbling himself, He never stops from being God. Something similar happens to the person that reaches "Union with Jesus". When we reach the Union with Jesus-God, we do not stop from being united with Him, deep deep in us, but we do strive to imitate Him, in order to continue the application of the Salvation to our brothers and sisters. We are lead by the Holy Spirit toward this descent.

Paradoxically, after the Union with God, it is not death that is awaiting for us (as many manuals of Spiritual Theology seem to say), but the second part of our journey: continuing Jesus' Journey on earth.

Instead of aiming “higher”, toward a death that will give us God, we are invited to look down, to go down, following Jesus, the Logic of Redemption. We are invited to start a new journey of great achievements. Note that the frame remains Christological.

So from a Greek (Greek Philosophers) vision of the climbing journey toward the One, we switch to a christian, christological, vision. This point is fundamental in order to have the right global vision of the whole journey, in its entirety.

What has been achieved until now (the Union with Jesus), allows us, allows Him in us, to perform “great works”, “completing in our flesh” the work of Salvation, or better said: the application of the Salvation obtained by Christ on the Cross on our brothers and sisters.

It is only “being rooted in Jesus” that something so high could be achieved, with total synergy between Christ and us.

Let us now read carefully this 8th Diagram, it deserves all our attention:

Seeing the diagram, first of all one has to notice the curve. Once one reached the top of the mountain, there is curve, a descending curve. If part of our being remains “on top of the Mountain” (the spirit (and therefore the whole being) remains united to Jesus), the rest of our being (soul and body) has to come down, be mystically united to our fellow brothers and sister (by the Holy Spirit), in order to help them, helping Jesus' apply his Redemption to them. Of course all our being is now rooted in Jesus.

Secondly, one has to notice that this descending journey of the soul, after “the Union with Jesus-God” is following Jesus' journey. There is nothing “new”, there is no new journey. The Disciple now is much more at the resemblance of his Master. The Master is alive in him. The disciple is not inventing another journey, the Truth is that he has flesh, like the Son of Man, and the latter is in fact his role-model, showing the way for him.

The second part of the journey has the following main stages:

1- Acquisition of the Holy Spirit

2- Turning toward the depth of Charity (the curve)

3- Enrolled in participating into Christ's Passion

4- Death, out of love, giving our life to our brothers (martyrdom or equivalent)

This is a rapid outline. A lot should be said about each stage, and all what is happening inside.

The “mystical dimension” in the disciple's life is constant. It has been inaugurated by the Union with Jesus. Of course it started to exist and grow much before, with the Growth of Charity in us, during the purification time.

It would be good to see the diagram, to contemplate it and meditate on the various quotes and thoughts that are on it, in order to engage in this “turning point”: from the ascent to the descent.

Again: the "descent" is not about loosing Jesus, it is about letting Charity (the Power of Love of the Holy Spirit in us) guiding us toward “greater things”. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12) The works we do in the descending curve are much “greater” than the ones done in the ascending curve. Why? The reason is simple: the Union with Jesus makes all the difference. The Merit of any act after the union is different. This is why it is very urgent to grow in love and in the quality of love, then to make ourselves busy, noisily busy, with a thousands of things, thinking that we serve the Lord, forgetting that the One Who gives efficiency to our acts is the Holy Spirit.

Let us read what saint John of the Cross says:

“Observe, however, that if the soul has not reached the state of unitive love, it is necessary for it to make acts of love, as well in the active as in the contemplative life. But when it has reached it, it is not requisite it should occupy itself in other and exterior duties—unless they are matters of obligation— which might hinder, were it but for a moment, the life of love in God, though they may minister greatly to His service; because an instant of pure love is more precious in the eyes of God and the soul, and more profitable to the Church, than all other good works together, though it may seem as if nothing were done. Thus, Mary Magdalene, though her preaching was most edifying, and might have been still more so afterwards, out of the great desire she had to please God and benefit the Church, hid herself, nevertheless, in the desert thirty years, that she might surrender herself entirely to love; for she considered that she would gain more in that way, because an instant of pure love is so much more profitable and important to the Church.

When the soul, then, in any degree possesses the spirit of solitary love, we must not interfere with it. We should inflict a grievous wrong upon it, and upon the Church also, if we were to occupy it, were it only for a moment, in exterior or active duties, however important they might be. When God Himself adjures all not to waken it from its love, who shall venture to do so, and be blameless? In a word, it is for this love that we are all created. Let those men of zeal, who think by their preaching and exterior works to convert the world, consider that they would be much more edifying to the Church, and more pleasing to God—setting aside the good example they would give—if they would spend at least one half their time in prayer, even though they may have not attained to the state of unitive love. Certainly they would do more, and with less trouble, by one single good work than by a thousand: because of the merit of their prayer, and the spiritual strength it supplies. To act otherwise is to beat the air, to do little more than nothing, sometimes nothing and occasionally even mischief; for God may give up such persons to vanity, so that they may seem to have done something, when in reality their outward occupations bear no fruit; for it is quite certain that good works cannot be done but in the power of God.

O how much might be written on this subject! this, however, is not the place for it.” (Spiritual Canticle B, 29:2-3)

(To be continued...)

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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