The Path to Holiness

Consider: man is obliged to acknowledge God out of gratitude and out of respect for his own intelligence.

Out of gratitude. God created man and granted him the ineffable gift of life and provided him with the super-ineffable gift of Grace. When man lost Grace through his own fault, he heard a great promise being made to him: “I will give Grace back to you”. It is God, the offended party, Who says so to the offender, as if He, God, were guilty and obliged to make amends. And God keeps His promise. Behold, I am here to give Grace to man. God has not confined Himself to giving only what is supernatural, but He has lowered His Spiritual Essence to provide for the coarse necessities of man’s flesh and blood, and He gives the heat of the sun, the relief of water, corn, vines, all kinds of trees and all races of animals. Thus man received from God all the means of life. He is the Benefactor. Man must be grateful and show his gratitude by endeavouring to know Him.

Out of respect for one’s own reason. A madman and an idiot are not grateful to those who cure them, because they do not understand the true value of the cure. And they hate those who wash them and feed them, who accompany them and put them to bed, who watch that they do not get hurt, because beastly as they are on account of their illness, they mistake cures for tortures. The man who fails in his duties towards God disgraces himself, a being gifted with reason. Only a fool or an idiot cannot tell his father from a stranger, a benefactor from an enemy. But an intelligent man knows his father and his benefactor and takes pleasure in knowing him better and better, also with regards to things of which he is unaware, as they happened before he was born or before he was helped by his father or benefactor. That is what you must do with the Lord to show that you are intelligent and not brutes.

But too many people in Israel are like those fools who do not know their father or their benefactor.

• Creation
• Giving thanks to God
• Gratitude - Recognition
• Intelligence
• Knowing God
• Knowledge
• Man - God's creature
• Man - King of Creation
• Reason
• Thanks

You must know that God can speak everywhere and privately to the spirit of man and instruct him in His doctrine.

• God
• How to perfect and sanctify yourself
• Soul
• Words of wisdom

Do not be afraid that by being alone you may be led into error. No. If you do not want, you will not be unfaithful to the Lord and to His Christ. On the other hand, he who just cannot stay away from the Messiah should know that the Messiah opens His heart and stretches out His arms to him and says: “Come”. Come, whoever wishes to come. Stay here, whoever wishes to stay. But both the former and the latter should preach Christ by means of an honest life. Preach Him against the dishonesty that nestles in too many hearts. Preach Him against the levity of the numerous people who do not know how to persevere faithfully and forget their ornaments and sashes of souls called to the wedding with Christ.

• Apostolate - Evangelism
• Discipleship - Following Jesus Christ
• Dishonesty
• Infidelity
• Lightness - Frivolity
• Loneliness - Isolation
• Loyalty
• Messiah

All human things are straw, only the supernatural is gold. And a human being cannot even describe it.

• Gold
• Humanity of men
• Spiritual wealth
• Words of wisdom

Always bear in mind that one achieves more by means of kindness than by intolerance and that you are a man as well. So examine yourself and consider how easy it is also for you to fall and how you become upset when you are reproached too frankly.

• Anger - Irascibility
• Apostolate - Evangelism
• Humanity of men
• Humility
• Reproach
• Severity - Intransigence - Toughness
• Softness
• Weakness
• Words of wisdom

It is painful to part from one’s son. We mothers would always like to be with our children. But we are giving them for a great cause, and we will not lose them. Not even death can take our sons away from us, if they and we are in grace in the eyes of God. But ours are still on the earth, even if by the will of God they are torn from our bosoms to be given to the world for its good. We can always join them and even the echo of their deeds is like a caress to our hearts, because their deeds are the scent of their souls.

• Apostolate - Evangelism
• Death
• Family martyrdom
• Life and death
• Parents and children
• Priests

They are also discussing the tour they are about to make, towards the fertile plains before the sea. And the names of past glories come to light again, giving rise to stories, questions, explanations and friendly discussions.

«When we reach the top of this mountain, I will show you all the areas in which you are interested. They may suggest you thoughts for your sermons to the crowds.»

«But how can we do that, my Lord? I am not capable» moans Andrew, and Peter and James join him. «We are the most unlucky ones.»

«Oh! In that case I am no better. If it was gold or silver, I could talk about it, but about these things…» says Thomas.

«And what about me? What was I?» asks Matthew.

«But you are not afraid of the public, you are debating» replies Andrew.

«Yes, but on different matters…» retorts Matthew.

«Of course!… But… Well, you already know what I would like to say, so just imagine that I have already told you. The fact is that you are worth more than we are» says Peter.

«Listen, My dear. There is no need to be sublime. Simply say what you think, with your firm belief. Believe Me, when one is convinced, one can always persuade others» says Jesus.

But Judas of Kerioth implores: «Give us some hints. An idea put forth properly may be useful in many ways. I think these places have been left without one word about You. Because no one seems to know You.»

«The reason is that there is still a strong wind blowing from the Moriah… It makes sterile…» replies Peter.

«It is because it has not been sown. But we will sow» retorts the Iscariot, who is sure of himself and happy after his first success.

• André (apostle)
• Apostolate - Evangelism
• James of Zebedee (apostle)
• Judas de Kérioth (apostle)
• Matthew (apostle)
• Preaching of the apostles
• Simon-Pierre - Simon de Jonas (apostle)
• Thomas (apostle)

Simply say what you think, with your firm belief. Believe Me, when one is convinced, one can always persuade others.

• Apostolate - Evangelism
• Words of wisdom

See those who are sleeping? Do you know how many thoughts they are turning over in their minds even while sleeping? And all those among the disciples? Do you think they will be faithful until everything is accomplished? Look: let us play this old game that you certainly played when a boy (and Jesus picks a round fully ripe dandelion growing among the stones. He raises it gently to His mouth, blows and the dandelion dissolves into tiny umbrellas, which wander in the air with their little tufts on top of the tiny handles). See? Look… How many have fallen on My lap as if they were in love with Me? Count them… They are twenty-three. They were at least three times as many. And the others? Look. Some are still wandering, some have fallen because of their weight, some, which are proud of their silvery plume, are haughtily rising higher, some are falling into the mud that we made with our flasks. Only… Look, look… Of the twenty-three that were on My lap, seven more have gone. That hornet flying by was enough to blow them away!… What were they afraid of? Or by what were they allured? Were they afraid of its sting? Or were they allured by its beautiful black and gold hues, or by its graceful appearance, its iridescent wings?… They have gone… Following a deceitful beauty. Simon, the same will happen to My disciples. Some will go because of their restlessness, some because of their inconsistency, their pride, their dullness, their frivolity, their lust for filth, some for fear, some because of their foolishness. Do you think that in the crucial hour of My mission I shall have beside Me all those who now say to Me: “I will come with You”? The tiny tufts of the dandelion, which My Father created, were more than seventy… and now there are only seven left on My lap, because some more have been blown away by this puff of wind that has caused the thinner stems to flutter away… It will be like that. And I am thinking of how much you have to struggle to be loyal to Me…

• Discipleship - Following Jesus Christ
• Infidelity
• Loyalty
• Parables
• The Parable of the Dandelion

Offer this little sacrifice so that these souls may become hungry for Me.

• Atonement - Reparation
• Rejection of God and Jesus Christ
• Sacrifice and immolation
• Salvation of a soul
• Soul
• The fruitfulness of suffering