Words of the Father from the book of Madre Eugenia:
“I have always wished to remain in this world among men. So, during the Flood, I was close to Noah, the only just man then. In the other calamities, also, I always found a just man with whom I could stay and, through him, I lived among the men of that time, and it has always been thus. The world has often been purified of its corruption because of My infinite goodness towards humanity. I continued to choose certain souls in whom I was pleased, because through them I could be happy with My creatures, men I promised the world a Messiah. I did all I could to prepare His coming, showing Myself in the figures that represented Him, even thousands of years before His coming! For who is this Messiah? Whence does He come? What will He do on earth? Whom does He represent? The Messiah is God. Who is God? God is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Whence does He come? Or rather, who ordered Him to come among men? It was I, His Father, God. Whom is He to represent on earth? His Father, God. What is He to do on earth? He will make the Father, God, known and loved. (…)
Realize then, o men, that for all eternity I have had but one desire, to make Myself known to men and be loved by them. I wish to stay for ever with them.”
Let us first meditate on the two aspects discussed in the first paragraph of this passage we have just heard.
On the one hand, our Father always sought and found a righteous man to dwell in; someone who opened his heart and spirit to him. In the “Message of the Father”, God’s intention to be among us resounds countless times. And it is a profound desire of the Father that we understand this… Precisely in times of misfortune and need – which, as we saw yesterday, can be rebukes of His love – God is present and remains in our midst. This logically applies to our present crisis situation, so that we should not succumb to widespread fear, much less despair.
The second aspect of this first paragraph is that the Father insists that the purifications are the work of His love. It may be difficult to understand at first sight, when we are confronted with misery and need, especially in these days… However, looking at it more closely, we will notice that such purifications are necessary, both for the world and for the Church.
Speaking recently on the phone with my mother, who is now quite old, she said to me, thinking about the pandemic: “These things happen over and over again… I don’t know why all this happens either. Maybe people need to become simpler and more humble.” It is certainly the wisdom of the ages! Looking at it in the light of faith, we should add: “People must remember who created them; who gave them life. They must convert from the ways of perdition and open the door of their heart to God, so that He can dwell in them.”
In our spiritual path we also know the purifications. In fact, they are necessary, so that we learn to live from the essential and leave behind everything that cannot stand before God and in view of eternity. It is something similar to what happens in the face of imminent death: What is essential in my life? This question is raised again through this epidemic, which so far cannot be stopped.
The mission of the Messiah, Our Lord Jesus Christ, was to make God the Father known among men and to teach them to love Him. This was Jesus’ burning desire, because no one knew the Father and His immense love better than He did! He went out from Him to fulfill His task and to Him He returned. God came to meet us, to the extent that the Second Person of the Holy Trinity became man, to be in our midst, to give Himself to us and redeem us.
It is not so easy to convince people that they are God’s beloved children and that their true essence unfolds only when they live according to this their identity. This applies all the more when God rebukes them! Yet in the Book of Revelation we read that despite the terrible plagues men had to suffer, so that at least in their need they would remember the Lord and call upon him, they did not repent and give glory to God (cf. Rev 16,9). They remained obstinate!
So our insistent prayer to the Lord should be that men will draw the right conclusions from this epidemic and reconsider their lives before God. In the encounter with the One whom the Father sent, His love is manifested in a special way. In Him, the doors are wide open; indeed, He Himself is the door (cf. Jn 10,9)!
By accepting Jesus, we open the door of our heart to God’s presence, so that He can dwell in us: through His Word, in the presence of the Holy Spirit, in the sacraments… And when our eyes begin to open, we will discover the Lord everywhere.
Harpa Dei accompanies the daily scriptural interpretation or spiritual teaching of Br. Elija, their spiritual father. These meditations can be heard on the following website www.en.elijamission.net
