THE TWO AGONIES OF JESUS IN THE GARDEN AND ON THE CROSS FROM THE BOOK OF HEAVEN

 Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta,

The Little Daughter of the Divine Will:

 VOLUME 9

 July 4, 1910

The agony in the Garden was, in a special way, for the help of the dying; the agony on the Cross was for help at the last moment, at the very last breath.

 Continuing in my usual state full of privations and of bitterness, I was thinking about the agony of Our Lord, and the Lord told me: “My daughter, in a special way I wanted to suffer the agony in the Garden, in order to help all of the dying to die well. Look well at how my agony is combined with the agony of Christians: tediums, sadnesses, anguishes, the sweat of blood – I felt the death of all and of each one, as if I were really dying for each one in particular; so I felt the tediums, the sadnesses, the anguishes of each one within Me, and with my own I offered help, comfort and hope to all, so that, as I felt their deaths in Me, they might all receive the grace to die all in Me, as though in one single breath – with my breath, and to be beatified immediately by my Divinity.

If the agony in the Garden was in a special way for the dying, the agony on the Cross was for help at the last moment, at the very last breath. They are both agonies, but one is different from the other: the agony in the Garden, full of sadnesses, of fears, of anxieties, of frights; the agony on the Cross, full of peace, of imperturbable calm. And if I cried out ‘I thirst!’, it was the insatiable thirst that all might breathe their last in my last breath; and in seeing that many would go out of my last breath, out of grief I cried out ‘Sitio!’ [‘I thirst!’], and this ‘sitio’ still continues to cry out to all and to each one like a bell at the door of each heart: ‘I thirst for you, oh soul! O please, never go out of Me, but enter into Me and breathe your last in Me!’

So, six are the hours of my Passion which I gave to men in order to die well: the three in the Garden were for help in the agony; the three on the Cross for help at the very last sigh before death. After this, who could not look at death with a smile? More so for one who loves Me, for one who tries to sacrifice himself on my very cross. Do you see how beautiful death is, and how things are changed? In life I was despised; the very miracles did not produce the effects of my death; even up to the Cross there were insults… But as soon as I breathed my last, death had the power to change things: all beat their breasts, confessing Me the true Son of God; my very disciples plucked up courage, and even those who were hidden became brave and asked for my body, giving Me honorable burial. Heaven and earth, in full voice, confessed Me the Son of God. Death is something great, something sublime; and this happens also for my own children: in life they are despised, oppressed; those very virtues which, like light, should make those who are around them start, remain half-veiled; their heroisms in suffering, their abnegations, their zeal for souls, cast lights and doubts in those who surround them; and I myself permit these veils, so as to preserve with more safety the virtue of my dear children. But as soon as they die, I withdraw these veils since they are no longer necessary, and the doubts become certainties, the light becomes clear, and this light makes others appreciate their heroism – they pay esteem to everything, even to the smallest things. Therefore, what cannot be done in life, is made up for by death. This, as for what happens down here. That which happens up there, then, is truly surprising and enviable to all mortals.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta,

The Little Daughter of the Divine Will:

  VOLUME 22

June 12, 1927

Relations that exist between Creator and creature, between Redeemer and redeemed ones, between Sanctifier and sanctified ones.  Who it is that will be able to read the Divine characters.

 I was following the acts of the Divine Fiat according to my usual way, in order to repair and bind all the relations between Creator and creature, between Redeemer and redeemed ones, between Sanctifier and sanctified ones, broken by the human will; and my beloved Jesus, moving in my interior, told me:  “My daughter, one who wants to know all the relations existing between Creator and creature, and to keep their bonds in force, must let My Divine Will reign within herself with absolute dominion. 

“In fact, since the life of My Will is present in all Creation, she will form one single life for all created things, and since the life is one, she will understand their language and the relations existing with her Creator.  Each created thing speaks of its Creator, and possesses the legible characters of My Divine Fiat.  But do you know who it is that is capable of hearing their voice, of understanding their celestial speaking, and of reading the Divine characters that each created thing has imprinted within itself?  One who possesses My Will.  She has the hearing to be able to listen to their voice, the intelligence to comprehend them, the eyes to read the Divine characters that, with so much love, her Creator impressed within each created thing. 

“On the other hand, one who does not let My Will reign, finds herself in the condition of one who is deaf and cannot listen, of one who is a cretin and cannot comprehend, of one who has not studied the variety of languages, and as much as one may speak, he understands nothing. 

“In the same way, in order to maintain the relations existing between Redeemer and redeemed ones, and to know them, one must study My Life.  Each of My words, works, steps, heartbeats and pains were all bonds with which I came to bind all the redeemed ones.  But who is bound?  One who studies My Life and tries to imitate Me.  As she imitates Me, she remains bound to My words, works, steps, etc., receives their life, and will have the hearing to be able to listen to all My teachings, the mind to comprehend them, and the eyes to read all the characters impressed within Me in coming to redeem mankind. 

“And if the creature does not do this, the characters of Redemption will be illegible for her; it will be a foreign language for her, and the relations and bonds of Redemption will not be in force.  The creature will always be the one who is born blind to all Our goods with which We wanted to enrich her.  And one who wants to know and receive all the relations and bonds of sanctity, must love the Sanctifier.  The Holy Spirit puts His flames on the way toward one who truly loves, and binds her with the relations of His Sanctity.  Without love there is no sanctity, because the bonds of true sanctity are already broken.”

My Jesus kept silent, and I remained all immersed in the Supreme Fiat.  Then my beloved Good added:  “My daughter, one who lives in My Will drinks light, and just as light is such that, while one sees it and enjoys it, others too can see it and enjoy it, the same for My Will:  in giving Itself to the soul as light and investing her completely, It bilocates her whole interior and gives light to each thought of creature; It bilocates her word and gives light to the words of others; It bilocates her works, her steps, and gives light to those of others.  Light possesses the true and perfect bilocation, and while it is one, it has the virtue of bilocating for each one who wants to enjoy it and see it.  Is the sun not one?  And yet, how many see it and enjoy it? 

“Much more so for the Sun of My Will, that the soul drinks, filling herself completely with Its Light:  though It is one, It has the virtue of bilocating for each act, word, step, etc., and forms the enchantment of Its Divine Light.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta,

The Little Daughter of the Divine Will:

 VOLUME 6 

December 15, 1905

Jesus wanted to be crucified and lifted up on the cross, so that, if they want Him, souls may find Him. 

Continuing in my usual state, I was thinking about the Passion of blessed Jesus; and He, making himself seen crucified, shared with me a little bit of His pains, telling me:  “My daughter, I wanted to be crucified and lifted up on the Cross, so that, if they want Me, souls may find Me.  So, someone wants Me as Teacher for he feels the necessity to be instructed, and I lower Myself to teach him both the small things and the highest and most sublime, such as to make of him the most learned.  Another moans in abandonment, in oblivion; he would like to find a father, he comes to the foot of my Cross, and I make Myself Father, giving him a home in my wounds, my Blood as drink, my Flesh as food, and my very Kingdom as inheritance.  Another one is infirm, and he finds Me as Doctor who, not only heals him, but gives him the sure remedies in order not to fall again into infirmities.  Another one is oppressed by calumnies, by scorns, and at the foot of my Cross he finds his Defender, to the point of rendering calumnies and scorns back to him as divine honors; and so with all the rest.  So, whoever wants Me as Judge finds Me as Judge; whoever wants Me as Friend, as Spouse, as Advocate, as Priest… such do they find Me.  This is why I wanted to be nailed, hands and feet:  to oppose nothing of what they want – to make Myself as they want Me.  But woe to those who, seeing that I am unable to move even one finger, dare to offend Me.”  While He was saying this, I said:  ‘Lord, who are those that offend You the most?’  And He added:  “Those who make Me suffer the most are the religious who, living in my Humanity, torment and lacerate my flesh within my very Humanity; while one who lives outside of my Humanity lacerates Me from afar.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta,

 The Little Daughter of the Divine Will

VOLUME6

 September 26, 1904

The lamp of Grace.  All the pains that Jesus suffered in His Passion were triple. 

As I was in my usual state, I heard a voice saying to me:  “There is a lamp which is such that whoever draws near it can light as many little flames as he wants; and these little flames serve to form a crown of honor around the lamp, and to give light to the one who lit them.”  I said to myself:  ‘What a beautiful lamp this is; it has so much light and so much power, that while it gives to others as much light as they want, it remains always what it is, without being impoverished in light.  Who knows who possesses it!’  While I was thinking of this, I heard someone say:  “The lamp is Grace, and God possesses It.  Drawing near it signifies the good will of the soul to do good, because as many goods as one wants to draw from Grace, one can draw.  The little flames that are formed are the different virtues which, while giving glory to God, give light to the soul.”

Then, after this, I saw blessed Jesus for just a little, and He told me:  “My daughter…” (and this, because I was thinking of how Our Lord let Himself be crowned with thorns, not once, but as many as three times; and since those thorns, broken, remained inside His head, as the crown of thorns would be driven in again the thorns which were already there would penetrate deeper.  And I said:  ‘My sweet love, why did You want to suffer this painful martyrdom as many as three times?  Was one time not enough to pay for our evil thoughts?’)  …So, making Himself seen, He said:  “My daughter, not only was the crowning with thorns triple, but almost all the pains I suffered in my Passion were triple.  Triple were the three hours of agony in the garden; triple was the scourging, as they scourged Me with three different types of lashes; three times did they strip Me, and as many as three times was I condemned to death:  at nighttime, early in the morning, and in broad daylight.  Triple were my falls under the Cross; triple the nails; three times did my Heart pour out blood:  in the garden by Itself; in the act of the crucifixion from Its very center, when I was stretched well on the Cross – so much so that my body was all dislocated and my Heart was smashed inside and poured out blood; and after my death, when my side was opened with a lance.  Triple were the three hours of agony on the Cross.  If one wanted to ruminate on everything – oh, how many ‘triples’ he would find!  And this was not by chance, but everything was so because of divine disposition, to render the glory due to the Father complete, as well as the reparation owed to Him by creatures and the good to be earned for creatures themselves.  In fact, the greatest good that the creature has received from God was being created in His image and likeness, and endowed with three powers – intellect, memory and will – and there is no sin that the creature commits in which these three powers do not concur.  So, she stains and disfigures the beautiful divine image that she contains within herself, using the gift to offend the Giver.  And I, in order to restore this divine image in the creature and to give God all the glory that the creature owed Him, concurred with all my intellect, memory and will, in a special way with these ‘triples’ suffered by Me, in order to render both the glory due to the Father and the good which was necessary for creatures complete.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta,

The Little Daughter of the Divine Will

 VOLUME 8 

May 3, 1908

Effects of the circulation of the Divine Will in the soul. 

Continuing in my usual state, I felt Our Lord near me for just a little, and He told me: “My daughter, with the soul who does my Will, my Will circulates in her whole being like blood. So, she is in continuous contact with Me, with my power, wisdom, charity, beauty – she takes part in all that is Mine. As she no longer lives of her own volition, her volition lives in Mine; and as Mine circulates in hers, hers circulates in all of my Being, and I feel her continuous contact. And as I feel touched by her continuously, you cannot comprehend how drawn I feel to love her, to favor her, to answer her in everything she asks – if I denied it, I would deny it to Myself. Besides, all things considered, since she lives in my Will, she asks for nothing but what I Myself want. This is what she wants, and this alone makes her happy, for herself and for others, because her life is more in Heaven than on earth. This is the fruit that my Will produces – to beatify her in advance.”