More about interior life

A secret, an open secret: these world crises are crises of saints.

God wants a handful of men 'of his own' in every human activity. And then… 'pax Christi in regno Christi — the peace of Christ in the kingdom of Christ'.

Your Crucifix. — As a Christian, you should always carry your Crucifix with you. And place it on your desk. And kiss it before going to bed and when you wake up: and when your poor body rebels against your soul, kiss it again.

Don't be afraid to call our Lord by his name — Jesus — and to tell him that you love him.

Each day try to find a few minutes of that blessed solitude which you so much need to keep your interior life going.

You write: 'Simplicity is the salt of perfection. And that's what I lack. I want to acquire it, with his help and with yours.'

Neither his nor mine will fail you. — Use the means.

'Man's life on earth is a warfare': so said Job many centuries ago.

There are still some easy-going individuals who are not aware of the fact.

That supernatural mode of conduct is a truly military tactic.

You carry on the war — the daily struggles of your interior — far from the main walls of your fortress.

And the enemy meets you there: in your small mortifications, your customary prayer, your methodical work, your plan of life: and with difficulty will he come close to the easily-scaled battlements of your castle. And if he does come, he comes exhausted.

You write: 'My joy and my peace. I will never have real happiness if I have not peace. And what is peace? Peace is something closely

related to war. Peace is a consequence of victory. Peace demands of me a continual struggle. Without a struggle I will never have peace.'

What depths of mercy there are in God's justice! For, in the judgments of men, he who confesses his fault is punished: and in the Judgment of God, he is pardoned.

Blessed be the holy Sacrament of Penance!

'Put on the Lord Jesus Christ', says Saint Paul to the Romans. It is in the Sacrament of Penance that you and I put on Jesus Christ and his merits.

War! 'War', you tell me, 'has a supernatural end that the world is unaware of: war has been for us…'

War is the greatest obstacle to the easy way. But in the end we will have to love it, as the religious should love his disciplines.

The power of your name, Lord! As a heading to my letter I had written, as always, 'May Jesus watch over you.'

And he replies: 'The "May Jesus watch over you" of your letter has already helped me out of more than one tight corner. May he also watch over all of you.'

'Now that our Lord is helping me with his usual generosity, I will try to respond by being even more "considerate" in my ways.

So you told me. And I had nothing to add.

I wrote to you and said: I'm relying on you: you'll see what we can do…!' — What could we do, except rely on Him!

A missionary. — You dream of being a missionary. Another Francis Xavier… And you long to conquer an empire for Christ. Japan, China, India, Russia… the peoples of the North of Europe, or America, or Africa, or Australia?

Stir up that fire in your heart, that hunger for souls. But don't forget that you are more of a missionary 'obeying'. Geographically distant from those apostolic fields, you work both 'here' and 'there': don't you — like Xavier — feel your arm tired after administering baptism to so many?

You tell me, yes, that you want to. Very good: but do you want to as a miser longs for gold, as a mother loves her child, as a worldling craves for honours, or as a wretched sensualist seeks his pleasure ?

No? Then, you don't want to.

What zeal people put into their earthly affairs: dreaming of honours, striving for riches, bent on sensuality. Men and women, rich and poor, old and middle— aged and young and even children: all of them the same.

When you and I put the same zeal into the affairs of our souls, we will have a living and operative faith: and there will be no obstacle that we cannot overcome in our apostolic undertakings.

To you, who like sports, the Apostle's argument should appeal: 'All the runners at the stadium are trying to win, but only one of them gets the prize. You must run in the same way, meaning to win'.

Recollection. Seek God within you and listen to him.

Encourage those noble thoughts, those holy desires which are awakening in you… A single spark may start a conflagration.

Apostolic soul: Jesus' intimacy with you — so close to him for so many years! — doesn't it mean anything to you?

It's true that I always call our Tabernacle Bethany… Become a friend of the Master's friends: Lazarus, Martha, Mary. And then you won't ask me any more why I call our Tabernacle Bethany.

You know that there are 'evangelical counsels.' To follow them is a refinement of Love. It is said to be the way of few. At times I feel it could be the way of many.

'Here is a man who started to build and was unable to finish!'

A sad commentary which, if you don't want, need never be made about you: for you possess everything necessary to crown the edifice of your sanctification: the grace of God and your own will.

References to Holy Scripture
References to Holy Scripture
References to Holy Scripture
References to Holy Scripture
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