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Pope Benedict XVI On Community Prayer

BENEDICT XVI: AT MOMENTS OF DIFFICULTy  I HAVE FELT THE SUPPORT OF YOUR PRAYERS

Vatican City, 9 May 2012 (VIS) – “From the first moment of my election as Successor of St. Peter I have always felt supported by the prayers of the Church, by your prayers, especially at moments of greatest difficultly, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart”, said Benedict XVI today during his general audience. “Constant choral prayer is also an important way to overcome any trials that may arise on life’s journey, because it is by being profoundly united to God that we can also be profoundly united to others”.

As part of a series of catecheses dedicated to the early Church, this morning the Holy Father focused his remarks on the last episode of St. Peter’s life recounted in the Acts of the Apostles, when he was imprisoned by Herod Agrippa then freed by an angel of the Lord.

The Pope reminded the 10,000 faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square that, while the Apostle was in prison, the Church prayed for him constantly. Thus, the Holy Father explained, “the power of the Church’s incessant prayer rose up to God; the Lord listened and sent His angel to ensure the Apostle was freed by an inconceivable and unexpected act of liberation”.

The Pope then turned to consider Peter’s actions while in prison, and the fact that he was sleeping which the angel came. “In such a critical and dangerous situation, this may seem strange, but it actually denotes tranquillity and trust”, he said. “Peter trusted in God, he knew he was surrounded by the solidarity and support of his followers and so abandoned himself entirely into the hands of the Lord. This is how our prayer must be: assiduous, united with others, an expression of complete trust in God Who knows us in our most intimate selves and looks after us”.

Once free, Peter went to the house of Mark’s mother where many disciples were gathered in prayer. As in other episodes in the Acts of the Apostles, so also on this occasion “the response of the community to difficulties and peril was to entrust themselves to God, to intensify their relationship with Him”, Pope Benedict said. In this context he also dwelt on another moment of difficult faced by the early Church, motivated by envy and disputes within the community. According to St. James, who recounts the episode, there were two reasons for the crisis: the fact that people allowed themselves to be dominated by their passions, especially selfishness, and the lack of prayer. That situation will change, the Apostle says, if the entire community prays together, assiduously and cohesively. This recommendation, the Pope explained, is “also an important call for us and for our communities, both small communities such as the family, and larger communities such as the parish, the diocese and the Church as a whole”.

The liberation of St. Peter, the Holy Father concluded, “tells us that the Church, and each one of us, must suffer difficulties, but the incessant vigilance of prayer supports us. … With constant and trusting prayer the Lord frees us from our chains and guides us. … He gives us serenity of heart to face the difficulties of life, even rejection, opposition and persecution. … The Apostle Peter, though in chains, was calm and certain that he was not alone: the community was praying for him, the Lord was close. He knew that ‘the power of Christ is fully expressed in weakness'”.

 

 

 

 

 

‘The Kingdom of The Divine Will in the midst of creatures.  Book of Heaven. 

 The call of the creature to the Order, the Place and the Purpose for which he was created by God’

 

PASSAGES ON THE BENEFITS OF ACTS DONE IN THE DIVINE WILL FROM THE BOOK OF HEAVEN

 

Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta, The Little Daughter of the Divine Will:

 

 

 VOLUME 35

January 2, 1938

In the Divine Will, miseries and weaknesses turn into the Most Beautiful Conquests.  All that is done in the Divine Volition is first formed in Heaven.  The entire Celestial Court participates, and these Acts descend to benefit the earth. 

I continue my flight in the Divine Volition, thinking to myself:  “Living in the Divine Will is almost unbelievable.  How can one Live in It, when the miseries and the weaknesses that one feels… the encounters, the circumstances, are so many that even while one feels them, it seems that the Divine Will wants to Invest all with Its Light and burn everything up with Its Love, so that nothing other than Its Will and Love may exist between Itself and the creature?”

But as I was thinking this, my dear Jesus, who is always on guard to spot anything passing in me that is not His Will, said:  “My good daughter(Luisa), My Jealousy for one who Lives in My Will is such that I do not tolerate one thought, one weakness or anything else that does not have life in It.  You(Luisa) must know that to begin Living in My Will takes a decision on the part of God, and a firm decision on the part of the creature, to Live in It.  Now, this decision is animated by a New Life—a New Divine Strength, so as to render the creature unconquerable by any evils or circumstances of life.  This decision is not subject to changes, because when We decide, We do not deal with children who play with their decisions, but with the one who We know must persevere.  Therefore, We give of Ourselves so that she may not give up.  She may feel the miseries, the evils and the weaknesses, but this doesn’t mean anything, since these things die before the Power and the Sanctity of My Will—they feel the pain of death and run away; even more so, because the miseries are not born of the human will, that is sunk inside My Will and therefore cannot want anything but what I want.  Many times My Will even uses these miseries to make of them the Most Beautiful Conquests; laying Its Life upon them, to form Its Kingdom, impose Its Dominion and convert the weaknesses into Victories and Triumphs.  To one who Lives in My Will, all things must serve as the expression of the Most Beautiful Love that the creature gives to the One who forms her Life—almost as stone, brick and even scrap material serve to the one who wants to build himself a beautiful house.

“You(Luisa) must know that before she enters to Live in Our Will, We purify everything—We cover and hide everything inside Our Love, so that we won’t see anything but Love in this creature.  Once Our Love has hidden everything—even the miseries—she takes her place inside Our Will; further, every time she performs her acts, she is purified first, and then Our Will Invests her, making of her whatever It wants.

“My daughter(Luisa), in My Will there are neither judgments nor judges; so Great and so much is the Sanctity, the Order, the Purity and the utility of Our Ways, that all have to lower their foreheads and adore whatever We do.  Therefore, do not lose Peace—don’t think about the miseries and the circumstances.  Leave them at the Mercy of My Will, so that It may make of them Its Portents of Love.”

After this, He added:  “My daughter(Luisa), all that the creature does in My Divine Will is first formed in Heaven—in the Eternal Day that doesn’t know the night.  The entire Celestial Court is already aware that one creature of the earth took refuge in her Celestial Fatherland, which is already her own—but to do what?  To enter into the Center of the Fiat and call Its Power and Its Creative Virtue, in order to give It the opportunity to Operate in her act.  O, with how much Love she is welcomed—not only by the Divine Volition, but also by the Most Holy Trinity!  They harmonized her to themselves; they embalm her act, and blow in it with their Creative Power, making such Great Wonders out of that act—making the whole of Heaven feel such Joy and Happiness—that all make the Celestial Regions resound with harmonious voices:  ‘Thank you, thank you.  You have given us the Great Honor of being spectators of Your Will Operating within the act of the creature!’

“Heaven is widened by New Joys and New Happiness, so that all remain bound and grateful, calling her, all together—‘Our Welcomed.’  This more than Celestial creature feels Loved by God with a Double Love—she feels inundated by New Seas of Grace.  Just as she rises up to Heaven, bringing her acts and letting God form wonders in them, so she descends again, becoming the Bearer of all that God Operated in her act.  She floods the earth and invests the whole of Creation so that all may receive the Glory and the Joy of the Marvels that the Divine Fiat Operated in the act of the creature.  There is no greater homage, love and glory that she can give Us, than to let Us do whatever We want in her acts.

“We can do the Greatest Wonders without anybody giving Us anything—and even without anybody telling Us anything—just as We did in the Creation.  Nobody said anything to Us, but still, how many Wonders did We not Create?  But then, there was nobody—no one who could give Us even a sigh as a pretext for Our Love, and as a refuge in which to place Our Creative Wonders.  But now, there are those who can tell Us and give Us the variety of their little acts—even the natural ones; since nature is Ours too, and We can use anything to form the Greatest Marvels in the creature.  Our Love gets more of a taste for it—Our Power remains more exalted in doing Our Greatest Wonders inside, rather than outside of the little circle of the act of the creature.  After all, these are the usual pretexts of Our Love that, in order to give, goes in search for the opportunity to do it, and to say:  ‘She gave to me, and I gave to her.  It is true that she is small, but she didn’t keep anything for herself.  Therefore, it is right that I give everything to her—even Myself.’”

  

VOLUME 35

March 6, 1938Oppressions and melancholies have no reason to exist in the Divine Will.  They form the clouds and the bitter little drops that embitter God and the creature.  Prodigies of abandonment in the Divine Volition.  How all created things remain animated by one who Lives in the Fiat.

The Sea of the Divine Volition never ceases to plunge me inside Its waves, as if It wanted nothing to enter into me other than Its Light, growing in me through Light and heat, and the Life of Its Will.  But in spite of everything I felt oppressed, with an air of melancholy, for the circumstances, alas, too painful, of my poor existence down here.  They formed clouds around me as if to prevent me from enjoying the Beauty of the Light, and the gentleness of the warmth in which the soul remains fecundated, reborn and growing within her very Creator.

And my sweet Jesus, Who Jealously watches over my poor soul, all Goodness told me:  “My good daughter(Luisa), Courage!  The oppressions, the melancholies and the thoughts of the past have no reason to exist for one who Lives in My Will.  These are notes that clash with My Notes of Joy, Peace and Love, and form feeble sounds that sound awful to Our Divine Ears.  They are like bitter little drops that, thrown into Our Divine Sea, try to embitter It; while by Living in Our Will, we make the creature the owner of Our Seas of Joy and Happiness, and if necessary, We arm her with Our Power so that all may be propitious and nothing may do any harm, since nothing has power against Our Will.  Even more, Our Will has the Power to flatten and to crush anything, like dust under the empire of an impetuous wind.

“How bad it sounds to Us when We notice that a creature in Our Will is afflicted or oppressed!  And since she Lives in Our Volition, from the one Will that animates Us, We are forced to hear her afflictions and oppressions.  Setting Ourselves aside when the creature feels afflicted is not of Our Divine Being—not of Our Love.  Rather, We make use of Our Power, and We inundate her more with Our Love, so that We may see her again with a smile on her lips, and with Joy inside her heart.  And then, the thought of the past is really absurd—it is like wanting to claim Divine Rights.  You(Luisa) must know that all the beautiful and good things that the creature has done are deposited inside Ourselves, attesting to her love and the glory she gives Us, and forming her crown for her first entrance into Our Celestial Fatherland.  Therefore, the most Beautiful act of the creature is to throw herself into Our Arms—abandon herself—letting Us make whatever We want to make of her, in time as well as in Eternity.  Only then, do We get all the savor of making her one of the most Beautiful statues to adorn Our Celestial Jerusalem.”

Then He added:  “My daughter(Luisa), when the creature abandons herself in Our Will, Our Satisfaction is so great that she pours into Us, and We pour into her, giving her Our New Life, New Love, New Sanctity and New Knowledge of Our Supreme Being.  When the creature abandons herself in Our Divine Volition, We can make the Greatest Prodigies and the most surprising Graces in her, since Our own Will will receive and deposit what We want to give to the creature.  By abandoning herself in Our Will, she storms Heaven, and her empire is such that she imposes herself over Our Divine Being, enclosing It within her littleness; while she, triumphant, encloses herself within Our Divine Womb.

The Heavens are amazed, and the Angels and the Saints remain ecstatic; all feel a New Life flowing within themselves, by virtue of the act of abandonment of the creature, while still a pilgrim.  And finding her abandoned in Our Fiat, We find that We can do whatever We want—she lends herself completely to Our Power.  So We begin the Work, and form in the soul many little fountains of Love, Goodness, Sanctity, Mercy, and so on.  In this way, when Our Love wants to Love, We set those little fountains of Love in motion with Our Omnipotent Breath, and she Loves Us, letting so much Love overflow from the fount, as to float the entire Celestial Court.  When We want to use Goodness, Mercy or Grace, We set these founts in motion, and the earth remains floated by Our Goodness and Mercy – and some are converted, some receive Graces….

“We could do all this directly by Ourselves, but We feel more delighted and pleased in using the founts that We Ourselves have formed inside the creature.  Through her, We feel more moved to use Our Mercy toward all.  We have Our Intermediary between Heaven and earth, who, in her abandon, makes Us pour Graces and makes Us Love all the creatures with New Love.  Therefore, the more you are abandoned in Our Will, the more Magnanimous We will be toward you and toward others.  And all—at least the more disposed—will find New Strength and New Guidance.”

I remained surprised, and He added:  “My good daughter, how I wish that all knew what it means to Live in My Divine Volition. It seems incredible, but do you know why?  Because they don’t know what My Will is, and the whole series of Prodigies that It can do and wants to do in the creature.  So, not knowing It, they believe it’s impossible that My Will can do in the creature all that I’m saying.  O, if they knew It!  What It does and says is little—it is the Knowledge that puts Us on the way to the creature, and prepares Our Place, forming the space in which to put Our Unheard-of Prodigies.  It is Knowledge that forms the eyes to be able to view and appreciate Our Divine Wonders.  All is a Prodigy for one who Lives in Our Will. 

“You must know that, as a creature does her acts in My Will, all created things remain animated by her will and word.  All things possess a voice:  some say, ‘Love,’ some ‘Glory,’ some  ‘Adoration,’ some others ‘Thank you,’ and others still, ‘Blessing’ to our Creator.  What Harmony they form in the atmosphere, what a sweet Enchantment—to such extent that We feel Enraptured.  But whose voices are these?  The voices of those who Live in Our Will.

“It happens as when voices and chants are ingeniously enclosed inside instruments of wood and of metal.  The instruments sing and speak.  It is the same for the one who Lives in My Will:  her love to see Me Loved and Glorified is such that she encloses her will, her voice and her love inside the created thing; and some narrate to Me the story of My Love, some sing of My Glory; it seems that all things have one thing to tell Me.  O, how Happy I feel, seeing that the creature masters the entire Creation, and, Queen as she is, animates all and makes Me Loved by all.  O, how sweetly she resounds to Our Divine Hearing!  I gave her all, and she gives Me all—so I return all again.”

 

Fiat!!!

 

 

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