AFTER CONSECRATION: The Lens of Mercy 149 Marian missionaries - ----- ------ Divine of --------------------------- mercy 3. What a sweet joy it is to dtink that God is Just, i.e., dtat He takes into account our weakness, that He is perfectly aware of our fragile nature. And because the human heart of Jesus is united to and burns with Divine Love, his desire to love and to be loved infinitely surpasses our own desires. And from her pierced Heart, we obtain the grace to have hearts that open up to receive the love and mercy pouring forth from the Sacred Heart of Jesus (see Lk 2:35). I say it has the potential, because its up to ns whether or not well let it. Well, the Offering to Merciful love is all about helping us grow in compassion, and it begins with having compassion for Jesus. that the more You want togive, the more You make us desire. Really. You have great and incom prehensible rights over My Heart, for you are a daughter of complete trust (Diary, 718). It basically consists of making a prayer of desire to receive Jesus in Holy Communion. Therese of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face. The Child Jesus part should be clear in light of the saints emphasis on the importance of having a childlike trust in God. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows he was despised, and we esteemed him not: as one destroyed (cf. Isnt the Mass the most powerful prayer? Its true that were not going to fully understand the whole path. He promised to give great graces through the image,191 and its become a source of healing for tens of millions of people throughout the world. Read the latest magazines about 33-Days-to-Merciful-Love-A- and discover magazines on Yumpu.com XX English Deutsch Franais Espaol Portugus Italiano Romn Nederlands Latina Dansk Svenska Norsk Magyar Bahasa Indonesia Trke Suomi Latvian Lithuanian esk Unknown Its like this: Is trust an act of love? Were sorry for our sins, and we ask for the grace to be merciful to one another in our deeds, words, and prayers. divine Justice!88 So, whats going on here? Of course not. See Catechism, 411,511,975. Think of it! Wonderful. (By the way, I'm going to be using the words trust and faith pretty much interchangeably because in Thereses teaching, theyre more or less the same.) $14.95. The word magnanimity comes from the Latin words magnus, meaning great, and animus, meaning soul. So, its a kind of great-souled-ness that moves a person to aim high in the spiritual life. Now, according to Therese, we dont fully borrow the Lords perfect love until we get to heaven by heaven, I mean both heaven-heaven (where we go when we die) and heaven-on-earth (where we go on Sundays). Its these kinds of ordinary sinners who often have to fight the temptation to doubt Gods tender love for diem and these are the fortunate ones! True greatness isnt based on the judgment and assessment of mortals. Now, Therese was deeply affected by Jansenism during her younger years. O my God! I created you and hold you in existence. During her life, she wasnt famous or well known. Tired of being on such a roller coaster of spiritual ups and downs, I decided to read just about everything St. Therese ever wrote, trying to find out if the Little Way really could help someone like me to become a saint. 136 Ibid., p. 224. 189 In my opinion, the best translation of St. Thereses autobiography Story ofa Soul is by John Clarke, OCD. When we compare, then, the mystery of Gods infinite, burning love for us with our own weak efforts to love him in return, it humbles us, lowers us, reduces us, and crushes us to the dust but it doesnt destroy us. (See Appendix One.) On die other hand, when we stub our toe or have a terrible headache, its hard not to focus on ourselves, and then we really notice the pain. One more thing regarding the last objection: When we take the graces that others dont want, were actually giving them a second chance to receive those graces. Its a beautiful thing to weep with those who weep (Rom 12:15) and to comfort those who are in any affliction with the same con solation we have received in Christ (see 2 Cor 1:4). I say that because Jesus doesnt just want to pour out his rejected Merciful Love on individuals, like St. Therese. Mary gently lowers you to the foot of 166 33 DAYS TO MERCIFUL LOVE the Cross, where the blood and water again begin to flow down from the Lords pierced side and into your emptiness, into the poverty of your ecce. Most Blessed Trinity, I desire to Love You and make You Loved, to work for the glory of Holy Church by saving souls on earth and liberating those suffering in purgatory. My power is made perfect in weakness. Bring me, through Mary, to the Fountain of Mercy. Search the history of over 778 billion Please give me such trust in Gods Word that I might even hope against hope. 220 Regardless of the day on which this offering is first made, its a good idea to renew it on Divine Mercy Sunday, which is a day of great grace and the preeminent feast for the devotion to Divine Mercy. 26 That Mary is the New Eve is derived from Sacred Scripture, taught by the early Fathers of the Church, and faithfully held throughout the Tradition of the Church. Perhaps it makes us say, But what about all those poor people who arent getting the graces that Im taking? Well, first of all, keep in mind that the 33 DAYS TO MERCIFUL LOVE 84 graces well be receiving have already been rejected. Its exactly what we need, namely, his mercy entering into our emptiness. My old friend -ZTLfrom college had said to me on the phone, You need to do for the Offering to Merciful Love of St. Thercse of Lisicux what you did for Marian consecration. Let me unpack that a bit. Nor did she hear about the Child Jesus going around town changing water into apple juice and multiplying cookies. And also: [E]ven if I were to be told of Gods justice and of how even the pure spirits tremble and cover their faces before Him, saying endlessly, Holy, which would seem to suggest that my familiarity with God would be to the detriment of His honor and majesty, [I would reply,] O no, no, and once again, no! (ibid, 947). How do we know that? Yes, I believe. The word conse cration means to set apart for God. Holy Spirit, fire of mercy. Rather, he judges the heart. 154 33 DAYS TO MERCIFUL LOVE Now, on this topic of God not needing us, Id say that Exodus 3:14 puts it best. Indeed, we tend to diink in a worldly, Jansenist way that says we must earn Gods love by being perfect, strong, and without sin. She provides powerful testimony to how good and truly merciful God is. I always feel, however, the same bold confi dence of becoming a great saint because 1 dont count on my merits since I have none, but I trust in Him who is Virtue and Holiness. Also, she herself helps open our hearts to receive that mercy. And so God uses another woman, a New Eve, to help heal the wound that the old Eve caused a New Eve, a woman, who was announced from die beginning, a woman who would be at enmity with Satan, a woman whose offspring would crush die serpents head (see Gen 3:15). Of course, the root of the worlds darkness is sin. They sincerely dont realize that theyre sinners. Todays Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit, fire of mercy. (Or maybe it was die other way around.) Well, consider the following. Copyright 1975, 1976, 1996 by Washington Province of Discalced Carmelites ICS Publications 2131 Lincoln Road, N.E. These words moved me deeply, and although I pretended not to hear them, I understood them very well and had no doubt about them (429). In this way you will console My Heart. 56 Catechism, 1846. Notice how, having stated the goal (becoming a saint), Therese clearly realizes that she is helpless when it comes to attaining it. 33 days is a long time to be on retreat, and it just might happen that, despite our good intentions and best efforts, we'll miss a day (or days) of the readings and prayers. Well, we have done something wrong and again, not just one thing, but lots of things. So, not wanting to gather merits with downward facing, grasping hands, Therese wants to appear before the Lord with upward facing, poor, and empty' hands that are ready to receive Gods gift of himself. My grace is not lost; if the soul for whom it was intended does not accept it, another soul takes it (1017). I mean, Jesus tends toj,radzr//vheai our hearts as we live the Offering. Based on the book, 33 Days to Merciful Love, by Fr. Login to YUMPU News Login to YUMPU Publishing 183 Story ofa Soul, pp. 109 Cited in van Dijk. I can assure you that He is grieved over this. And because she was so little and trusted completely in Divine Mercy, she believed that Gods mercy would surely rush to the lowest place her little soul! 1 understood AFTER CONSECRATION: The Lens of Mercy 143 that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime beauty, and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wild flowers. Hes looking for families who want to receive his gifts of mercy, love, peace, and joy. But how did she do it? On the same page, Foley goes into further detail about Zelies excessive fear and what it was like for her, growing up in a home that was dominated by a certain atmosphere of austerity, constraint and scrupulosity. 34 Full quote: She becomes emotional very easily. After all, its trust that opens the floodgates of Gods mercy, allowing it to come rushing down, down, down into little souls.72 What a revolution in Catholic spiritual theology! After all, it was the devil himself who said to St. John Vianney, If there were three upon earth like you, my kingdom would be destroyed.156 Just three! He spoke about mortal sin, and he described a soul in the state of sin and how much God hated it. Okay, now get ready actually, you XJalready are ready. Hearing such things, Id think to myself, Maybe the Little Way is too big for me, and Id get depressed. 33 days to merciful love retreat companion pdf. And I myself can attest to that fact. Its like this: Jesus suffers from a terribly painfill heart condition, so hes written for himself a prescription for medication that will relieve him of his agony. It would be wonderful to pray it As Abraham had the stars and Mary had the words of Elizabeth, you have Thereses smile. Never before had I prayed with such inner power as I did then (474). 43 See endnote 126. There are moments and there are mysteries of the divine mercy over which the heavens are astounded. That way, you can have the whole day to reflect on it. That was her night of faith. 16 Ibid., 17. Alright, so, lets spend today reflecting on the six para graphs of the Offering that we covered today. Not only that, but her Son is the most lovable child of all. .MK Okay, so I havent yet figured out how to renew the Offering to Merciful Love with every beat of the heart. Will you let her give you the gift of the Little Way and her Offering to Merciful Love? Its that simple. After all, that cuts right to the heart of the Little Way, which is really all about heaven. Recall that our trust problem began with the fall of Adam and Eve. After all, shes a creature like us. Mary, Our Mother of Mercy, help us to faithfully live our Offering to Gods Merciful Love. Truly blessed is she who provides us with such a personal and perfect example of trust! Finally, I believe, my God, that you can and will make me into a saint, even if I w'ont see it, even if I have to struggle all my life against vice and sin, even if I have to wait until the very end. to be Yourself my Sanctity! Todays Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit, fire of mercy. But that didnt bother her not in the least. 177 See Ahern, p. 84. 175 The last clause, and those of the Blessed Mother, is particularly appropriate for those who have consecrated themselves totally to Jesus through Mary. Instead of becoming discour aged, I said to myself: God cannot inspire unrealizable desires. Not necessarily. Because of what she went through on Calvary. 180-1. As we learned on Day 13, in many ways were living in a time of unprecedented dark ness and evil. 72 Regarding trust being the key to receiving Gods mercy', Jesus told St. Faustina: The graces of My mercy are drawn by means of one vessel only, and that is trust. So, thats the catch! Michael Gaitley, MIC, this 33 Days to Merciful Love Group Retreat goes even deeper than the book alone and explores new material on the heart of St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s Little Way, uncovering the power of trust in the face of personal darkness, inspiring participants to become great saints amid ordinary circumstances, and . Prophets & Kings__1890__the Seventh Day Adventist Bible study. Jean Baptiste Saint-Jure and St. Claude de la Colombiere and translated by Paul Garvin (Rockford, Ill.: TAN Books and Publishers, 1984), we read the following, which also ties in with Thereses idea that well learn on Day 21, namely, that the Offering to Merciful Love causes one to become a martyr of love: [I ]t is the teaching of great masters of the spiritual life that a person who, at the point of death, makes an act of perfect conformity to the will of God [i.e., an expression of unshakable trust] will be delivered not only from Hell but also from Purgatory, even if he has committed all the sins in the world. But here God was calling on Abraham to sacrifice Isaac! Lets visit this humble nun and listen to her advice, as one of her own religious sisters once did: On the initial day of the retreat, I was visited by one of the sisters who had come to make her perpetual vow s. She confided to me that she had no trust in God and became discouraged at WEEK ONE: What Is Trust? I dont hasten to the first place but to the last; rather than advance like the Pharisee, I repeat, filled with confidence, the publicans humble prayer. Infinite harshness? This offering seemed great and very generous to me, but I was far from feeling attracted to making it.w After reading these lines, one can almost hear the sighs of relief from all little souls. So, her aim is to love God with his own perfect love. We can be set on fire. Even though the world is immersed in darkness, our situation isnt hopeless. Mother Agnes replied, Oh, no, never; she constantly repeated it, and her whole life revolved around it. Finally, in Genesis 22, God put Abrahams faith to the ultimate test when he commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. 171 Saint John of the Cross, The Living Flame of Love, commentary on stanza 1, line 6 (cited in Gaucher, p. 221). In fact, Ive often heard that when people first meet her in her writings, they think, I cant relate to her. They say, What do I have in common with a girl who grew up in a sheltered home, lived in a cloistered convent, and died at just 24-years-old? But then, as they get to know her more, theyll often say, I relate to her more than to any other saint. FINAL FIVE DAYS: Synthesis and Review 123 So, why do people relate so much to someone who, on the surface, seems difficult to relate to? For instance, maybe we felt it at Mass when we received Holy Communion, when we read a passage from Gods Word, when we stood before a majestic sunset, or when we received the tender love of a spouse, parent, or friend. Were too focused on the beloved who suffers. Its about accepting diat we are to put up with ourselves with all the darkness of our weakness, brokenness, and sin widiout getting discouraged. So, I will say no more, especially because weve already covered the heart of all this during the retreat, namely, the idea of recognizing our litdeness. The wound, then, is clearly about God. Its to trust that he will make us into great saints, even if we dont see it happening, even if we struggle with the same sins day after day, even if we have to wait for the grace of great holiness until the very end of our lives. Recall that in the France of Thereses day, the heresy of Jansenism had a deep influence on Catholic spirituality. It seems to me that if You were to find souls offering themselves as victims of holocaust to Your Love, You would consume them rapidly; it seems to me, too, that You would be happy not to hold back the waves of infinite tenderness within You. And now, to confirm my resolve and to console you for so much rejection of your mercy, I OFFER MYSELF, THROUGH THE HANDS OF MARY IMMACULATE,176 AS A VICTIM OF HOLO CAUST TO YOUR MERCIFUL LOVE, asking you to consume me incessantly, allowing tire waves of infinite tenderness shut up within you to overflow into my soul, and that I may thus become a martyr FINAL FIVE DAYS: Synthesis and Review 127 of your love, O my God, and a gift of mercy to so many others. Not only that, but Mary had to watch her child go tlirough a suffering worse than anyone has ever had to bear. Now realize this: Each inhale can be a spiritual communion. He has anticipated the movements of the Holy Spirit and given us means by which to suck the marrow out of this year of Mercy. It was actually all about faith, not love. Conrad de Meester explains Thereses teaching on this point: Therese knew how God's life could lie hidden below the sur face of a human psyche and temperament, and that some souls were much closer to God than might be apparent if they were judged merely by their struggles and inhibitions. Her Divine Son, my Beloved Spouse, told us in the days of His mortal life: What soever you ask the Lather in my name he will give it to you!" 255-283. But why is there sin? But then Id go back to Thereses writings and find hope again and then Id listen to the thieves of hope again. I dont know. His answer changed my life: T&r way you live trust is by praise and thanksgiving, to praise and thank God in all things, Thats what the Lord said to St. Faustina. Well, when we say fiat, its the APPENDIX ONE: Living the Offering 163 magic word diat unlocks the gate, and once this gate is unlocked, look out! She does not wait for the wounded to knock on her doors, she looks for them on the streets, she Endnotes 183 gathers them in, she embraces them, she takes care of them, she makes them feel loved. Be happy like Therese, who believed that He will undoubtedly awaken before my great eternal retreat. Be happy like Therese, who, despite feeling far from being a saint, trusted that God would eventually make her into a great one. A less obvious one is Trinity Sunday, which is the anniversary of when St. Therese first received her inspiration to offer herself to Gods Merciful Love. Final Fivt Days Synthesis and Review For four weeks, weve been reflecting on what a consecration to Divine Mercy (St. Therese-style) is all about and weve covered a lot of material. Seeing this very moment from the Cross, Merciful Love willed a new age in Salvation History to coincide with the dawn of the third Christian millennium. Todays Prayer: Spend the day pondering the meaning of trust as it is summarized in these three words: Distrust, Blessing, and Grace. I want to console You for the ingratitude of the wicked, and I beg of You to take away my freedom to displease You. 60 Cited in With Empty Hands, p. 104. 46 59. The average Christian in our day struggles with attachments, addictions, deliberate venial sins, and even potentially grave sins. Its to let him pour out that rejected love into our own sinful but contrite hearts. 31 Cited by Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter Divini Amoris Scientia, October 19, 1997,10. Emphasis added. Michael Gaitley has done is again. Maybe youre not quite ready. Yes. Let me explain. DAY 2 Our Father in Faith Yesterday, we learned that its all about trust. And while we find this key in words spoken about Mary at the time of the Visitation, the words themselves refer back to her response to the angel at the Annunciation. 19 Ibid. She is therefore blessed, because she has believed, and continues to believe day after day during the years of the hidden life at Nazareth.16 So, the hidden life of the Holy Family all that time from Jesus childhood and adolescence that we hear almost nothing about in Sacred Scripture was not only hidden from us but, in a certain sense, was hidden from Mary, too! Right again. Confidendy, I stated my conclusion, And so 40 33 DAYS TO MERCIFUL LOVE the best way to remove that thorn and console him is to fra# him. Michael, youre absolutely right. Great! I said to myself, Its all about trusting Jesus in order to console him. At that point, 1 thought I was all set. She knows that all our justice, that is, all our own efforts, are stained in Gods eyes. Its the truth that God loves us, that God loves you, no matter what. How We Can Console Jesus Saint Therese frequently wrote about her desire to console Jesus, and as we learned on Day 20, that was her main motivation in making the Offering to Merciful Love. Ive often pondered these questions, and what follows are three answers that, I hope, will help us live the Offering to Merciful Love with the same generous spirit as the Saint of Lisieux. Now, lest we think that Therese is alone in boldly speaking about not fearing God and being so familiar with him, we read the following from St. Faustina: Even if I were to hear the most terrifying tilings about Gods justice, I would not fear Him at all, because I have come to know Him well (Diary, 589). 92 Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus, OCD, I Want to See God: A Practical Synthesis of Carmelite Spirituality, trans. This fire of mercy needs to be passed on to the world. Looking at a picture of two children with Jesus, she said: The other little one does not please me as much; hes acting like an adult. My mortifications consisted in breaking my will, always so ready to impose itself on others, in holding back a reply, in rendering little services without any recognition, in not leaning my back against a support when Endnotes 195 seated, etc., etc. And isnt he the one who inspired these desires in the first place? So, whether you want to deepen your love of Divine Mercy or have a devotion to St. Therese, 33 Days to Merciful Love is the book for you. It remains only for us not to oppose Gods action (Diary, 283). May this 196 33 DAYS TO MERCIFUL LOVE message radiate from this place to our beloved homeland and throughout the world. Now, St. Therese knew all this, so she tried to perfectly fulfill the commandment of love but she couldnt do it. But thats why I called. I asked him what he meant. 45 Regarding Therese being a victim of bullying, an outcast, and loner who couldnt join in the games of the others or comb her ow n hair, see Story ofa Soul, pp. Why couldnt Jesus work many miracles in his hometown of Nazareth? Thereses expressed desire is no less remarkable: She wants to console Jesus, a desire that she repeats later (see paragraph 6), a desire thats a particularly important concept in her spirituality.122 Actually, Thereses desire to console Jesus responds to an objection some might have, namely, that the goal of the Offering is selfishly all about Thereses own personal sanctity. (The Poetry of Saint Therese ofLisieux, trans. This most blessed among women lived a hidden life in an unknown little town while bearing the same burdens of countless ordinary people. I say that because, during his homily for the dedication of the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow Lagiewniki, Poland, on August 17, 2002, the Pope entrusted the whole world to Divine Mercy and included a passage from the Diary of St. Faustina that speaks of the Lords final coming: Today, therefore, in this Shrine, I wish solemnly to entrust the world to Divine Mercy. Blessed is she who believed in the impossible. Of course, as weve already learned, St. Therese helps us with this. Now, as weve learned, the threefold means to that goal involve trusting, trying, and recognizing. Moreover, such holiness is not a human work but, rather, Gods work, a work of Divine Mercy rushing down to the lowest place. Are you beginning to love Thereses way of humble confidence in Divine Mercy? Week Three will treat the Offering to Merciful Love. And by the way, if you plan to make your consecration in a group setting, see the note at the bottom of page 137. From the cloud, bolts of thunder and flashes of lightning were springing into his hands; and from his hand they were going forth, and only then were they striking the earth. Also, the fact that, on the Cross, Jesus is a victim to divine Justice certainly does not exclude him from being a spiritual victim in other ways. Repeat for the remaining four decades Say the Eternal Father (6) on the Our Father bead and then 10 For the sake of His sorrowful Passion (7) on the following Hail Mary beads. Do we understand, then, why Jesus loves it when we go to him as we are, sinfulness and all? Its to allow our hearts to become more like die heart of St. Francis of Assisi, who, in his great compassion for Jesus, went around weeping and crying out loud, Love is not loved! Maybe we cant yet fully give him our trust I know I couldnt. Well, lest we mistakenly diink we just need to luck back, eat ice cream, and wait for our canonizations, St. Therese shares with us an illuminating metaphor of a litde child at the bot tom of a staircase (probably the rough stairway of perfection). You have too much fear before the good God. We also have to keep trying to grow' in holiness. Faith is a gift of grace. She knew that after God con quers us and humbles us with his love, he then saves us with love by giving us his own divine love. Yes, in the midst of an ordinary, mundane life, she had extraor dinary faith, hope, and love that are accessible to us all. And why is that? -- Week two: The little way -- Week three: The offering to merciful love -- Week four: Into the darkness -- Final five days: Synthesis and review Emphasis added. Obviously, after we inhale, well need to blow the air back out (exhale). As the first drops of this blood and water touch your face, you take a deep breath in, fiat. M. Verda Clare, CSC (Chicago: Fides Publishers Association, 1953), p. 25. Using the same 33-day preparation format, 33 Days to Merciful Love journeys with one of the most beloved saints of modern times, St. Thrse of Lisieux, and concludes with a consecration to Divine Mercy. Actually, I think we need more dian just a statement. DAY 15 What It's Not Probably the best way to begin to understand die Offering to Merciful Love is to contrast it with what its not. But if all that isnt enough to convince us to choose to make the Offering to Merciful Love, then maybe this will: If we make and live the Offering, we need not fear purgatory. Of course, the joy hasnt always bubbled over, and sometimes Ive w avered from the Little Way and lost my peace, but for the most part, its been a deep and growing peace and joy for 15 years. 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