Christian = Temple, Priest, Victim

Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart

In the latter part of the 19^th century, a humble religious in Germany was accustomed to receiving visits from Our Lord. Like St. Lydwine of Schiedam (d. 1433), St. Marie of the Incarnation (d. 1672), Bl. Elizabeth Canori-Mora (d. 1925) and Ven. Philomena of St. Columba (d. 1868) before her – to name only a few privileged souls – Our Lord would speak with her ‘face to face, as a man is wont to speak with his friend’ (Ex. 33:11).

Ven. Philomena of St. Columba (d. Aug 13, 1868)

The vocation of this noble soul, Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart (d. 1899), was simple: she was, in imitation of Our Lord, to offer herself as a host for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. “Why”, Our Lord would say to her (I am paraphrasing different parts of her writings), “do you not leave the path of fear? Why will you not follow the path of love, which is shorter and easier?… It is My Will to be all for you… Your heart is an altar upon which everything must be consumed by Divine Love.” (As an aside, it is worth noting that St. Marie of the Incarnation, mentioned above, was never led by the path of fear; rather, she made giant strides along the path of Love).

Let me repeat those final words: “Your heart is an altar upon which everything must be consumed by Divine Love.” Are these words directed to a privileged few? Absolutely not. This is the sublime vocation of all souls, and it is to this that we must all aspire with all our being. We must, in a word, offer to God that sacrifice most pleasing to Him, without which all our other sacrifices are a mere farce. And what sacrifice is this? The sacrifice of our will.

It is only when God – Who is spirit (Jn. 4:24) – possess our wills, that can He act freely, thereby glorifying Himself in us: ‘For obedience is better than sacrifices: and to hearken rather than to offer the fat of rams’ (1 Kg. 15:22). Obedience, the Saints tell us, pleases God more than great sacrifices “because obedience has no self-will” (Our Lord to St. Bridget of Sweden).

The next time you are tempted to murmur, remember that Jesus is offering Himself to the Father upon the Altars of our churches for your salvation; your vocation is to unite yourself, as did Mother Adele Garnier* (d. 1924), to this mystical immolation of Christ on the Altar of your heart; “by Him,” writes Dom Gueranger, “the Holy Ghost, Who sacred Fount He is (cf. Jn. 4:14; 7:37, 39), pours Himself out upon man, whereby to adapt him to his sublime vocation, and to consummate, in infinite love (which is Himself), that union of every creature with the divine Word.”

*An article on Mother Adele Garnier:
https://www.clairval.com/lettres/en/2015/04/12/2080415.htm

Concretely, you can unite yourself to Christ by receiving Him in Holy Communion, giving Him the key of your will. Always remember that this is the ‘one oblation’ by which ‘He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified’ (Heb. 10:14). There is no greater aid to holiness. Pray to Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament and you will see that this is true.

Mother Cécile Bruyerè‘s Masterful Explanation of the Christian Vocation

Mother Cécile Bruyerè, 1895

‘But this, for that He continueth for ever, hath an everlasting priesthood, whereby He is able also to save for ever them that come to God by Him, always living to make intercession for us.’ (Heb. 7:24-25)

“Thus the sovereign pontificate is eternal, and it is exercised for ever; not only in the adorable Person of the Son of God, but in that priestly tribe of which He is the Head, ‘a chosen generation, a kingly priesthood’ (1 Pt. 2:9), wherein all are priests, although in different degrees, and all are called to concelebrate with the supreme Pontiff (p. 409).

A temple, a sanctuary, an altar, a victim, the very presence of the living and true God – all these are not sufficient for liturgical worship; there must moreover be a pontiff. Now man is truly a priest, truly a pontiff in the august function which is celebrated in the sanctuary of his own soul: ‘Thou hast made us to our God a kingdom and priests’ (Apoc. 5:10). Every baptised Christian is priest and king in the secret temple of his own soul, although he is but a single living stone of the edifice built by the hand of God, of which edifice our Lord Jesus Christ is the corner-stone. Such, in his first epistle, is the teaching of the Prince of the Apostles: ‘Be you also as living stones built up, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ’ (1 Pt. 2:5).

But to realise all the perfection of this priesthood, man must, freely and voluntarily, offer his sacrifice, after the example of the eternal Pontiff whom we hear insisting on the absolutely free character of His oblation: ‘No man taketh my life away from Me; but I lay it down of Myself, and I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again’ (Jn. 10:18). This liberty, which shows him truly to be a priest, was understood by Isaias, when he said: ‘He was offered because it was His own will’ (Is. 53:7) (‘The Spiritual Life and Prayer’, p. 423-424).

“In order to live in one single act of perfect Love, I OFFER MYSELF AS A VICTIM OF HOLOCAUST TO YOUR MERCIFUL LOVE, asking You to consume me incessantly…”
– From St. Therese’s Act of Oblation to Merciful Love

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An Extremely Powerful Prayer of Thanksgiving For Holy Communion

Some time within the last year or so, I began to pray Mary’s Magnificat as part of my thanksgiving for Holy Communion, in imitation of Bl. Mary d’Oignies and other holy souls who have profited immensely thereby. What profit there is in clinging to the Mother of God, the sole Spouse of Christ! We cannot separate Jesus and Mary: in Christ, we are sons in the Son; in Mary, we are spouses in the Spouse. To be all hers is to the best way to be all His.

In addition to the Magnificat, I also like to add various Scriptural passages, including the first verse of Psalm 102: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and let ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME bless His Holy Name.’

I was very pleased, then, to discover the prayer of St. John Eudes at the time of receiving Holy Communion:

My soul doth magnify the Lord.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
Because He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
Because He that is mighty, hath done great things to me; and holy is His Name.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
And His mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear Him.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
He hath shewed might in His Arm: He hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
He hath received Israel his servant, being mindful of his mercy:
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever.
Bless the Lord, O my Soul: and let all that is within me bless His holy Name.
(Lk. 1:46-55; Ps. 102:1)

Why did I write ‘Soul’, rather than ‘soul’? Listen to Our Lord’s words to Ven. Anne-Marguerite Clement (‘Divine Communications’, Vol. II, p. 156, Saudreau, OP):

“Since I have indeed given you My heart, why can I not give you My Soul as well? Yes: I will that It shall be yours, in order that, even as we have but one Heart, so may we also have but one Soul; and so you shall be able to say continually in Me and by Me: Benedic, anima mea, Domino: bless the Lord, O my soul.”

Read also Our Lord’s words to Mother Deleloe (which I have shared before):

“What more can you desire than to have within you the true source of all good, My Divine Heart?… All these great things are yours, all these treasures and riches are for the heart that I have chosen… Draw as much as you desire of these infinite delights and riches.”

Jesus Lives On In The Church (Pt. 3): The Mystical Tradition (cont.)

SOME REVELATIONS ON THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS AND THE MOST BLESSED SACRAMENT (cont.)

(4) A Vision of Bl. Marie d’Oignies
“In the life of Bl. Marie d’Oignies it is related that Our Lord was accustomed, on the occasion of different Feasts, to show Himself to her in the Blessed Sacrament under a form in harmony with the mystery being celebrated.” (‘Christ in His Mysteries’)

(5) A Revelation to Mother Jeanne Deleloë* (d. 1660)
“At Christmastide,” she writes, “during all those solemnities of our Saviour’s Birth, I received great favours; His Majesty often gave me a vivid light so that I knew these divine mysteries as if they were then really taking place.” (‘Christ, the Ideal of the Monk,’ Bl. Columba Marmion)

*“Often, during her ecstasies, she was heard reciting the Divine Office; but a curious thing was that she pronounced the verses alternatively, as if the inhabitants of Heaven were repeating the psalms with her; she recited the whole without omitting a single syllable, whatever was the Office of the day…
We likewise see St. Catherine of Siena asking Our Lord to teach her to read in order to be able to chant the Psalms and praises of God during the Canonical Hours. Often, too, Our Lord walked up and down with her in her cell and recited the Office with the Saint. It was as two religious might have done.” (ibid.)

(6) A Vision of St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi
“God also granted her to see Jesus in the heart of the sisters after they had received Holy Communion; and sometimes she manifested in what form she saw Him in each of them,
He showing Himself to her in some as a child, in others at the age of twelve, and in others still at the age of thirty-three years, in others as suffering and crucified, and in others as risen and glorious; and this diversity occurred according to the various meditations the sisters were engaged in, or according to the capacity and the merits of each of them.” (‘The Life of St. Mary Magdalen De-Pazzi,’ Fabrini)

St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi in ecstasy

(7) Another Vision of St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi
“One morning, it being Easter Sunday, whilst she was mistress of novices, and sitting at the table with unwonted joy and gladness, a novice waitress could not keep herself from asking her the cause of so great a joy. To whom Magdalen made answer: “Because I see Jesus resting in the breast of all the sisters, glorious and risen, as Holy Church to-day represents Him to us; and His presence is the cause of my being so joyful.” (ibid.)

Jesus Lives On In The Church (Pt. 2): The Mystical Tradition

God Deserves Infinite Praise
‘Great is the Lord,’ says the Psalmist, ‘and exceedingly to be praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain’ (Ps. 47:2). Truly, God is worthy of infinite praise: ‘exalt Him as much as you can: for He is above all praise’ (Ecclus. 43:33). How then are we to praise God adequately?

The Chalice of Salvation
The answer is simple: unite yourself to Christ; live by His life (1 Jn. 4:9), by His hidden, Eucharistic life. There is no other way: ‘What shall I render to the Lord, for all the things He hath rendered unto me? I will take the Chalice of Salvation; and I will call upon the Name of the Lord’ (Ps. 115:12-13).

God Alone Can Praise God Worthily
God alone can praise Himself sufficiently. For this reason, God was made man; to this end He established the Church (‘the City of our God’), which offers to Him, upon her Altars (‘His holy mountain’), the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, that is, the perfect ‘sacrifice of praise’ (Ps. 115:17), which mystically renews the offering of Christ on Calvary:

‘For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, My Name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation: for My Name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts’ (Mal. 1:11).

God is ALL
To reiterate: ‘What shall we be able to do to glorify Him? for the Almighty Himself is above all His works’ (Ecclus. 43:30). Be a host. Thus we shall realise, in full, the prayer of Jeremiah: ‘Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed: save me, and I shall be saved, for THOU ART MY PRAISE’ (Jer. 17:14). This is the key to Christianity:

‘Sing to the Lord,
in union with His Bride, the Church, Who lives by His life,
O ye His saints: and,
through the Holy Mysteries,
give infinite praise,
through Christ, the God-Man,
to the memory of His infinite holiness.’
– Ps. 29:5 (the words in italics are mine)

************

SOME REVELATIONS ON THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS AND THE MOST BLESSED SACRAMENT

(1) A Vision of St. Hildegarde of Bingen
“As I gazed upon this Flesh and Blood I saw the signs of the Incarnation, the Birth, the Passion, of Our Saviour reflected in them as in a mirror, and just as we know these events to have been accomplished when the Son of God was on earth.” (‘Scivias’)

(2) Another Revelation of St. Hildegard of Bingen
Words of the Eternal Father: “Hence these mysteries shine before Me in the Heavenly places; for I have not forgotten them, but they will appear before Me in great brightness, like the dawn, until the end of the world.” (‘Scivias’)

Bl. Columba Marmion: “Doubtless we must never forget that under the Eucharistic species is found only the substance of the glorious Body of Jesus, such as it is at present in Heaven, and not such as it was, for example, in the crib of Bethlehem.
But when the Father looks upon His Son Jesus in the Heavenly splendours, what does He behold in Him? He sees the One Who lived thirty-three years upon earth for us; He beholds all the mysteries that this mortal life contained, the satisfactions and the merits whereof these mysteries were the source; He beholds the glory that His Son gave Him in living each of them.” (‘Christ in His Mysteries’)

St. Gertrude in ecstasy

(3) A Revelation to St. Gertrude the Great
“It is related in the life of St. Gertrude, that one day, on the Festival of the Ascension, when she received the Sacred Host from the hand of the priest, she heard Jesus say to her: ‘Behold Me: I come, not to bid thee farewell, but to take thee with Me to Heaven, and present thee to My Father.'” (‘Christ in His Mysteries’)

The Saints are Eager to Share Their Spiritual Goods

St. Mechtilde on the Feast of St. Agnes
“St. Mechtilde, when chanting… the responsory, ‘Amo Christum’ (“I love Christ”), interiorly complained to Our Lord that she had not, like Agnes, loved Him with her whole heart from childhood. Upon which He said to St. Agnes:
“Give her all that thou hast.”

By that word St. Mechtilde understood that God has conferred upon the Saints the privilege of being able to bestow all that His grace has worked in them upon those who (i) love them,
(ii) who thank Him, in their name,
(iii) and delight in the gifts He has bestowed on them.

St. Agnes, having done as Our Lord desired, Mechtilde was filled with ineffable joy, and asked the Queen of Virgins to give thanks for her [Agnes] to her Divine Son. Mary, complying with her request, gave her [Mechtilde] a share of all her riches, so, with them and the gifts of Agnes, she loved, honoured, and fully glorified God, for the past and for the present.

O admirabile commercium! Oh, most precious friendship with the Saints! We give them our praises, our thanksgivings, our love; and they, in return, make us participators in
all the gifts which God has so lavishly bestowed upon them for His glory.”
(Rev. Andre Prevot, SJ, ‘Love, Peace, and Joy: A Month of the Sacred Heart According to St. Gertrude,’ Benziger Brothers)

A Powerful Practice: Communicating in Honour of the Saints
Next time you participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, unite yourself to the Divine Victim and offer Him – an infinitely pleasing, living Oblation – to the Father in honour of a Saint or Saints. Also, receive Holy Communion in honour of a particular Saint, asking them to give you a share in their riches. A suitable petition would be the following: ‘I beseech thee that in me may be thy double spirit.’ (4 Kg. 2:9)

Do this often and you will see that the Saints do not forget! In this way do we discover one of the many reasons why the great Bl. Cardinal Schuster wrote the following: “The love of God is displayed chiefly through the Divine Liturgy.” (p. 149, vol. 3, ‘The Sacramentary’)

The Power of Praise: A Sublime Revelation Given to St. Mechtilde

A Sublime Revelation to St. Mechtilde
On a certain day, while the Benedicite* was being sung in choir, Our Lord addressed these words to St. Mectilde:

“Whenever anyone sings that hymn, or a similar one [e.g. Psalms 148 – 150] in which all creatures are summoned to praise God, those creatures all come spiritually into My presence and praise Me for that person and for all men in general for all the benefits I have given them.” (Pt. 3, Ch. 7)

[*i.e. The Benedicite. This is a text based on Chapter 3 of the book of Daniel, the first verse of which is: ‘BENEDICITE omnia opera Domini, Domino: All ye works of the Lord, bless the Lord.’]

A Biblical Foundation
If this seems far-fetched, listen to St. Paul:

‘For all things are yours,
whether it be Paul, or Apollo, or Cephas,
or the world,
or life,
or death,
or things present,
or things to come;
for all are yours;
and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.’
– 1 Cor. 3:22-23

And yet again:

‘He that spared not even His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all,
how hath he not also, with Him, given us all things?’
– Rom. 8:32

This ought to be the source of all our confidence! The treasury of Christ’s riches are ours! We access these riches by faith. This explains Our Lord’s words to St. Mechtilde: “CONFIDENCE BY ITSELF CAN EASILY OBTAIN ALL THINGS.”

A Model of Confidence
There are many: St. Therese, Bl. Columba Marmion, St. Gertrude, Sr. Benigna Consolata, St. Gemma Galgani, etc. But let’s take another example: Mechtilde of Magdeburg (another holy Mechtilde). “She took all Christendom,” writes Bl. Columba Marmion, “in the arms of her soul to present it to the Eternal Father that it might be saved.
‘Let be,’ said Our Lord to her, ‘it is too heavy for thee.’
‘No, Lord,’ replied the Saint, ‘I will lift it up and bear it to Thee with Thine own Arms, that so Thou mayest bear it Thyself upon the Cross.’

“This Divine Life that Jesus possesses personally and in its plenitude, He wills to communicate and lavish upon us:
I am come that they may have life,
and may have it more abundantly.”
– Bl. Columba Marmion

 

A Calendar of the Littlest Souls

Why such a Calendar?
To encourage devotion to some of the “littlest souls” mentioned in the previous post (novenas, spiritual reading, spiritual friendship, etc.). Why? Because most of us are very weak and imperfect souls, and these holy souls can help us in different ways to attain a greater union with God. It is no coincidence that, in recent times, God has raised up so many souls that speak of littleness, abandonment, confidence, Divine Mercy, etc.

The following dates are included:

• D.O.B.
• Date of Death
• Feast Day – if applicable (Trad. = Traditional Calendar; New = New Calendar)

Some important preliminary points:

• The “littlest souls” are principally to be imitated in their voluntary littleness – i.e. in their audacious, childlike and total abandonment of self to the infallible, immutable, adorable and infinitely perfect Will of God.
• We should not, and indeed cannot, imitate the saints/Saints in everything. No two souls are the same; God leads all to Himself in a somewhat unique manner. His Will alone sanctifies souls.
• St. Therese, the youngest Doctor of the Church, has in some sense been held up by holy Mother Church as the flag-bearer for “little souls.” Her message is fundamentally universal.
• Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, is also Mother of the Church. It follows, then, that she is Mother of all the Little Ones. (For the sake of simplicity, Our Lady’s Feasts have not been included on this calendar, nor have the Feasts of St. Joseph.)

CALENDAR (by Month)

January 1: Death of Marie Therese Desandais (d. 1943)
January 2: Birth of St. Therese (1873)
January 3: Death of Ven. Mother Anne-Margaret Clement (d. 1661)
January 6: Birth of St. Gertrude the Great (b. 1256)
January 7: Death of Ven. Louis de Blois (d. 1566)
January 7: Birth of St. Bernadette Soubirous (b. 1844)
January 14: Birth of Sr. Mary Aimee de Jesus (b. 1839)
January 16: Death of Mother Marie Madeleine Ponnet (d. 1914)
January 27: Death of Dom Pius de Hemptinne (d. 1907)
January 29: FEAST DAY, Trad., of St. Francis de Sales (New: January 24)
January 30: Death of Bl. Columba Marmion (d. 1923)

February 3: Death of Mother Yvonne-Aimee (d. 1951)
February 4: Birth of Sr. Josefa Menendez (b. 1890)
February 4: FEAST DAY, New, of Bl. Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus
February 6: Death of Ven. Marthe Robin (d. 1981)
February 18: FEAST DAY, Trad., of St. Bernadette Soubirous (New: April 16)
February 22: Birth of Rhoda Wise (b. 1888)
February 24: Death of Fr. Paul of Moll (d. 1896)
February 25: Birth of Fr. Lukas Etlin (b. 1864)

March 3: Birth of Fr. Willie Doyle (1873)
March 7: Birth of Fr. Paul of Moll (b. 1824)
March 12: Birth of St. Gemma Galgani (b. 1878)
March 13: Birth of Ven. Marthe Robin (b. 1902)
March 15: Birth of Ven. Louise Margaret (b. 1868)
March 15: Birth of Marcel Van (b. 1928)
March 27: Death of Bl. Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus (d. 1967)
March 30: Birth of Bl. Alexandrina da Costa (b. 1904)

April 1: Birth of Bl. Columba Marmion (b. 1858)
April 6: Birth of Sr. Consolata Betrone (b. 1903)
April 8: Birth of Therese Neumann (b. 1898)
April 11: FEAST DAY, Trad./New, (and Death) of St. Gemma Galgani (d. 1903)
April 12: Death of St. Teresa of the Andes (d. 1920)
April 16: Death of St. Bernadette Soubirous (d. 1879)
April 21: Birth of Dom Pius de Hemptinne (b. 1879)
April 26: Birth of Sr. Mary of the Holy Trinity (b. 1901)
April 30: Birth of Bl. Dina Belanger (b. 1897)

May 4: Death of Sr. Mary Aimee de Jesus (d. 1874)
May 7: Birth of Ven. Mother Anne-Margaret Clement (b. 1593)
May 8: Birth of Ven. Fulton Sheen (b. 1895)
May 13: Death of Ven. Maria Margit Bogner (d. 1933)
May 14: Death of Ven. Louise Margaret (d. 1915)
May 24: Death of Sr. Gertrude Mary (d. 1908)
May 25: Birth of St. Padre Pio (b. 1887)

June 8: FEAST DAY, New, (and Death) of Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart (d. 1899)
June 23: Birth of Pere Lamy (b. 1853)
June 25: Death of Sr. Mary of the Holy Trinity (d. 1942)

July 7: Death of Rhoda Wise (d. 1948)
July 10: Death of Marcel Van (d. 1959)
July 13: FEAST DAY, Trad., (and Birth) of St. Teresa of the Andes (b. 1900) (New: April 12)
July 16: Birth of Mother Yvonne-Aimee (b. 1901)
July 18: Birth of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity (b. 1880)
July 18: Death of Sr. Consolata Betrone (d. 1946)
July 20: Birth of Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos (b. 1615)

August 6: Birth of Sr. Benigna Consolata Ferrero (b. 1885)
August 16: Death of Fr. Willie Doyle (d. 1917)
August 21: Birth of St. Francis de Sales (b. 1567)
August 25: Birth of St. Faustina (b. 1905)

September 1: Death of Sr. Benigna Consolata Ferrero (d. 1916)
September 4: FEAST DAY, New, (and Death) of Bl. Dina Belanger (d. 1929)
September 8: Birth of Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart (b. 1863)
September 18: Death of Therese Neumann (d. 1962)
September 23: FEAST DAY, New, (and Death) of St. Padre Pio (d. 1968)
September 30: Death of St. Therese (d. 1897)

October 3: FEAST DAY, New, of Bl. Columba Marmion
October 3: FEAST DAY, Trad., of St. Therese (New: October 1)
October 5: FEAST DAY (and Death) of St. Faustina (d. 1938)
October 13: FEAST DAY, New, (and Death) of Bl. Alexandrina da Costa (d. 1955)
October 28: Birth of Sr. Gertrude Mary (b. 1870)

November 5: Death of Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos (d. 1692)
November 7: Birth of Mother Marie Madeleine Ponnet (b. 1858)
November 8: FEAST DAY of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity
November 9: Death of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity (d. 1906)
November 16: FEAST DAY, Trad./New, of St. Gertrude the Great
November 17: Death of St. Gertrude the Great (d. 1302)
November 19: FEAST DAY, Trad./New, (and Death) of St. Mechtilde (d. 1298)

December 1: Death of Pere Lamy (d. 1931)
December 2: Birth of Bl. Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus (b. 1894)
December 9: Death of Ven. Fulton Sheen (d. 1979)
December 15: Birth of Ven. Maria Margit Bogner (b. 1905)
December 16: Death of Fr. Lukas Etlin (d. 1927)
December 28: Death of St. Francis de Sales (d. 1622)
December 29: Death of Sr. Josefa Menendez (d. 1923)

[If you see anything that needs updating, please let me know!]

Meet the Littlest Souls…

“The LITTLEST SOUL that loves Me,
becomes a Paradise for Me.”
– The Child Jesus (from St. Therese’s Christmas play, 1894)

Meet the Littlest Souls: 
[i.e. Some of the “littlest souls.” For a brief explanation of this term, see the tab at the top of the page, titled ‘A Call to All Souls.’]

**Some links have been provided throughout this blog post for those who wish to learn more about some of these holy souls.

Mary, Mother of God
and Mother of the Church
+
‘For whatsoever he commanded, Esther [a figure/type of Mary] observed: and she did all things in the same manner as she was wont at that time when he brought her up, a LITTLE ONE.’ (Est. 2:20)
33 Reasons to Consecrate Yourself to Mary: 
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2017/08/15/33-reasons-to-consecrate-yourself-to-mary/

St. Joseph, Foster-Father of Jesus Christ
+
“May Your almighty arm uphold me! I place myself entirely into Your loving, Fatherly arms.”
– St. Joseph (p. 47, ‘The Life of Saint Joseph…’, Ven. Maria Cecilia Baij, O.S.B.’)
Why You Should Love St. Joseph:
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2016/03/19/why-you-should-love-st-joseph/

St. Therese of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face
Born: January 2, 1873
Died: September 30, 1897
+
“It is needful to remain little before God and to remain little is to recognize one’s nothingness, expect all things from the good God just as a little child expects all things from its father…”
‘St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower of Jesus’:
https://archive.org/details/saintthaeraeseof00thaeuoft

Sister Françoise-Thérèse (i.e. Léonie Martin, sister of St. Therese)
Born: June 3, 1863
Died: June 17, 1941
+
“I wish to stay small, so that I can have the audacity to believe that I will not go to Purgatory.”

Sr. Benigna Consolata Ferrero

Born: August 6, 1885

Died: September 1, 1916

+

“Souls the most miserable, the most weak, the most infirm, are the best clients of Love, the most desired by the Divine Mercy.”
– Jesus to Sr. Benigna Consolata
‘The Tendernesses of the Love of Jesus for a Little Soul’:
https://archive.org/details/sisterbenignacon00como
‘Vademecum Proposed to Religious Souls’ (a favourite of St. Faustina):
https://archive.org/details/vademecumpropose00ferruoft

St. Faustina Kowalska
Born: August 25, 1905
Died: October 5, 1938
+

“O my Jesus, You yourself must help me in everything, because You see how very little I am, and so I depend solely on Your goodness, O God.”
‘Divine Mercy in My Soul – The Diary of St. Faustina’:
https://archive.org/details/St.FaustinaKowalskaDiary

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity
Born: July 18, 1880
Died: November 9, 1906
+
“Perhaps we may know of faults and infidelities on our part; let us abandon them to love which is a consuming fire, and thus we shall have our Purgatory.”
‘The Praise of Glory: Reminiscences of Sister Elizabeth of the Trinity’:
https://archive.org/details/praiseofgloryrem00eliziala

Ven. Mother Anne-Margaret Clement
Born: May 7, 1593
Died: January 3, 1661
+
“For I love little ones, I communicate Myself to them, and My pleasure on earth is to be with the humble.”
– Jesus to Mother Anne-Margaret Clement

Bl. Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus
Born: December 2, 1894
Died: March 27, 1967
+
“It seems to me that the mission of the little Blessed [now St. Therese] is to spread divine love in souls in the form which God wills for our times.”

Ven. Mária Margit Bogner
Born: December 15, 1905
Died: May 13, 1933
+
“I am so small that the good God will not have the heart to throw me into the fire.”
‘The Life of the Venerable Maria Margit Bogner’:
http://visitationspirit.org/2013/11/a-life-of-venerable-sister-maria-margit-bogner-vhm/

Mother Marie Therese Desandais
Born: 1876
Died: January 1, 1943
+
“Give to God the joy of your confidence; cry out to your Merciful Love. You can never see in this life what an act of faith and trust is worth in Heaven.”
– Jesus to Mother Marie Therese Desandais

Marcel Van
Born: March 15, 1928
Died: July 10, 1959
+
“God wants the lessons of love that He taught me before in the secret of my soul to live on in this world, and He has deigned to choose you as a little secretary to carry out His work, which He wishes to entrust to you.”
– St. Therese to Marcel Van
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2010/08/brother-marcel-van-spirtual-brother-of.html

Dom Pius de Hemptinne
Born: April 21, 1879
Died: January 27, 1907
+
“God is love. The love which our heavenly Father bears to us is the primary cause of our sanctification.”

St. Gemma Galgani
Born: March 12, 1878
Died: April 11, 1903
+
“Fear nothing, for the Heart of Jesus is the throne of Mercy, where the miserable are the most readily received.”
– Jesus to St. Gemma Galgani
A Website Devoted to St. Gemma:
http://www.stgemmagalgani.com/

Père Lamy
Born: June 23, 1853
Died: December 1, 1931
+
“I have only to ask; I hear the humble and trustful prayer of little ones.”
– Our Lady to Père Lamy
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2009/11/pere-lamy-father-john-edward-lamy.html

Mother Marie Madeleine Ponnet
Born: November 7, 1858
Died: January 16, 1914
+
“Heaven, Heaven’s glory, is measured by love, according to the annihilation, according to the confidence that expects everything and receives everything.”
– Our Lord to Mother Marie Madeleine Ponnet
A Few Samples of Her Writings, etc.:
http://visitationspirit.org/?s=marie+madeleine+ponnet

Fr. Paul of Moll
Born: March 7, 1824
Died: February 24, 1896
+
“God does not demand of you, in order to be a child of love, that you should do more than you are able to do, but all He says to you is, “My child give me your heart!” And I add thereto, “Do everything for love of Jesus.”
‘The Very Rev. Fr. Paul of Moll: A Flemish Benedictine and Wonder-Worker of the 19th Century’:
https://archive.org/details/veryrevfatherpa00speygoog

Ven. Louis de Blois (Blosius)
Born: October, 1506
Died: January 7, 1566
+
“He intimately knows thy weakness, and mercifully consoles thee in the Gospel, where the holy Angels are related to have sung at the Birth of Christ those words most ardently longed for: ‘Peace to men of good will’ (St. Luke, ii. 14). They said not, Peace to men of great or of perfect holiness… but in order that the weak and the little ones who are of good will might receive consolation, they joyfully said, ‘Peace to men of good will.'”
‘A Book of Spiritual Instruction’:
https://archive.org/details/bookofspirituali00bloi

Sr. Josefa Menendez
Born: February 4, 1890
Died: December 29, 1923
+
“Do not forget that it is your nothingness and littleness that act as magnets to attract Me to you.”
– Jesus to Sr. Josefa Menendez
‘Beautiful Words of Our Lord to Sr. Josefa Menendez’:
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2012/10/06/beautiful-words-of-our-lord-to-sr-josefa-menendez/

Fr. Lukas Etlin
Born: February 25, 1864
Died: December 16, 1927
+
“Often during your work raise your heart to God with an act of love.”

Rhoda Wise
Born: February 22, 1888
Died: July 7, 1948
+
“You will win many souls through your devotion to the Sacred Heart and the Little Flower.”
– Jesus to Rhoda Wise
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2010/03/rhoda-wise-american-mystic-stigmatic.html

St. Mechtilde
Born: 1241
Died: November 19, 1298
+
“Every desire that a soul has ever had to possess Me is inspired by Me…”
– Jesus to St. Mechtilde
‘The Life of St. Mechtildis’:
https://archive.org/details/lifeofstmechtild00rome
‘Tender Words of Our Lord to St. Mechtilde’:
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2012/08/26/tender-words-of-our-lord-to-st-mechtilde/

St. Gertrude the Great
Born: January 6, 1256
Died: November 17, 1302
+
“As a tender mother soothes the troubles of her little one by her kisses and embraces, so do I desire to soothe all your pain and grief by the sweet murmur of My loving words.”
– Jesus to St. Gertrude
‘The Life and Revelations of St. Gertrude’:
https://archive.org/details/thelifeandrevela00gertuoft

St. Francis de Sales
Born: August 21, 1567
Died: December 28, 1622
+
“Little children live in great confidence; they never think that their father either wishes to beat them, or is preparing an inheritance for them; but only think of loving him, because they are carried in his arms, and are cherished and provided for in every way by the care of their good father.”
‘The Consoling Thoughts of St. Francis de Sales’:
https://archive.org/details/TheConsolingThoughtsOfStFrancisDeSales

Ven. Louise Margaret de la Touche
Born: March 15, 1868
Died: May 14, 1915
+
“… offer yourselves as holocausts to be consumed in the fire of Love, in order that this Love may be diffused throughout the world and inflame souls.”
– Jesus to Ven. Louise Margaret

Bl. Dina Belanger
Born: April 30, 1897
Died: September 4, 1929
+
“My Heart so loves souls that to obtain the affection of a single one, though it were the most miserable, the least worthy, I would have suffered infinitely more than I did during My whole mortal life, had it been possible.”
– Jesus to Bl. Dina Belanger
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2010/09/blessed-dina-belanger-mother-ste-cecile.html

Mother Yvonne-Aimée of Jesus
Born: July 16, 1901
Died: February 3, 1951
+
“Above all, try and do ordinary things well. The opportunity to do great things comes rarely and you are quite capable of doing them when it does come. Just concentrate on doing the little things really well.”
– Jesus to Yvonne-Aimee
‘Merciful Revelations to Sr. Yvonne-Aimee’:
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2015/10/04/merciful-revelations-to-sr-yvonne-aimee-d-1951/

St. Teresa of the Andes
Born: July 13, 1900
Died: April 12, 1920
+
“In the end, I offer myself entirely to Jesus. I want to lose my nothingness in the abyss of His infinite love and power.”

Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos
Born: July 20, 1615
Died: November 5, 1692
+
“Thou only failest, dear soul, in being too fearful. Why dost thou doubt, and what canst thou fear when thou art protected by the Most High, who can do and does all for thee? Thou canst not fail in hope in Him without wronging His love; that love which banishes all distrust between true lovers.” 
– An angelic revelation to Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos
The Life and Revelations of Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos:
https://littlestsouls.wordpress.com/2016/03/24/the-life-and-revelations-of-sister-jeanne-benigne-gojos/

Sr. Consolata Betrone
Born: April 6, 1903
Died: July 18, 1946
+
“Tell the world how good I am, how like a parent, and how in return I desire only love from My creatures.”
– Jesus to Sr. Consolata Betrone
Short Bio and Some Revelations:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2010/02/servant-of-god-sr-consolata-betrone.html

Sr. Mary of the Holy Trinity
Born:
Died: June 25, 1942
+
“I love you because you cannot do without me, and because I long to see you happy; I love you because I have given my life for you.”
– Jesus to Sr. Mary of the Holy Trinity
Short Bio and Some Revelations:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2009/11/sister-mary-of-holy-trinity-poor-clare.html

 Ven. Marthe Robin
Born: March 13, 1902
Died: February 6, 1981
+
“I often talk about her [St. Therese]. She is such a ‘big sister’ to me, so close, whose doctrine based entirely on love was so beneficial to my soul during the time of great darkness and no less great solitude, in which I found myself.”
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2009/11/marthe-robin-mystic-stigmatic-victim.html

Bl. Alexandrina da Costa
Born: March 30, 1904
Died: October 13, 1955
+
“I want you in My Arms with the same simplicity of a baby in those of its mother. Give Me your heart to place in Mine in order that you will have no other love but for Me and for the things that are Mine.”
Short Bio:
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2009/11/blessed-alexandrina-da-costa-mystic-and.html

Sr. Gertrude Mary
Born: October 28, 1870
Died: May 24, 1908
+
‘You do not believe firmly enough that I love you with most tender affection. You are not sufficiently penetrated with the thought that you must be like a child with Me. There is in you too strong a feeling of fear and I wish you to exchange it for a feeling of filial love.’
– Jesus to Sister Gertrude Mary
‘Sister Gertrude Mary: A Mystic of Our Own Days’:
https://archive.org/details/sistergertrudema00leguuoft

Fr. Willie Doyle
Born: March 3, 1873
Died: August 16, 1917
+
“Kneeling at the grave of the Little Flower I gave myself into her hands to guide and to make me a saint.”
‘Father William Doyle, S.J.:
https://archive.org/details/fatherwilliamdoy00orahuoft
‘Scruples and Their Treatment’:
https://fatherdoyle.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/scruples-and-their-treatment.pdf

Sr. Marie-Aimee de Jesus
Born: January 14, 1839
Died: May 4, 1874
+
“And I for My part have given you a fear, but it should make you overcome all others; it is the fear of mistrusting Me.”
– Jesus to Sr. Marie-Aimee de Jesus

Bl. Dom Columba Marmion
Born: April 1, 1858
Died: January 30, 1923
+
“Saint = Child of God.”
‘Christ, the Ideal of the Monk’ (a useful book for all Christians):
https://archive.org/details/ChristTheIdealOfTheMonk

Therese Neumann
Born: April 8, 1898
Died: September 18, 1962
+
“Die to yourself more and more, but keep always the simplicity of a little child.”
– St. Therese to Therese Neumann (Sept 30, 1925)
‘Konnersreuth, A Medical and Psychological Study of the Case of Teresa Neumann’:
https://archive.org/details/konnersreuthmedi00rwhy

Ven. Fulton Sheen
Born: May 8, 1895
Died: December 9, 1979
+
“It does not require much time to make us saints; it requires only much love.”
‘The World’s First Love’:
https://archive.org/details/worldsfirstlove013240mbp

Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart
Born: September 8, 1863
Died: June 8, 1899
+
“Is not My strength superior to every weakness?”
– Jesus to Bl. Mother Mary of the Divine Heart
Short Bio (c.f pp. 245-249, ‘Maria of the Sacred Heart):
https://archive.org/details/holinesschurch00kempuoft

St. Padre Pio
Born: May 25, 1887
Died: September 23, 1968
+
“Charity is the greatest gift: it is in this virtue that the soul is sanctified.”
A Website Devoted to St. Padre Pio:
http://padrepiodevotions.org/

St. Bernadette Soubirous
Born: January 7, 1844
Died: April 16, 1879
+
“… bring virtue out of my weakness and glorify yourself in my misery, O my Jesus, the only refuge of my soul.”
‘Our Lady of Lourdes: Lourdes, its Grotto, Apparitions and Cures’:
https://archive.org/details/ourladyoflourdes00walsuoft

St. Mary Magdalene
+
“Thou gavest me no kiss; but she, since she came in, hath not ceased to kiss my feet.”
– Jesus (Lk. 7:45)

 

 

 

 

 

Ven. Maria Giuseppina Teresa Marcucci (d. February 10, 1960)

 

 Let us give our soul to Him, telling Him that we long to love but Him alone ; let Him do all, for we are
feeble and childish, and it is such joy to be the little
babe of the good God !” (St. Eliz)

 

Jesus to Mother Anne Margaret Clement: ‘I offered Myself to death through obedience and because I loved you. If you love Me you will sacrifice yourself as I did, being obedient in little things as in great. That is the martyrdom of the soul that loves Me perfectly.’ (p. 259–260, Vol. 2)

Jesus to Mother Clement: ‘I am your certain hope. You must never begin to be mistrustful. The souls that love Me are always full of hope, and their trust in expecting everything from My love prevents them from ever being confounded.’ (p. 213, Vol. 1)

 

 

St. Michael: “Make known to men the great power which I have with the Most High. Tell them,” he says, ” to ask of me
all they wish. Tell them that my power in favour
of those devoted to me is without limit. Make
known my greatness.” ^ Several times, now, on
different days, our Lord reveals to her that ” He
would add two precious jewels to His Heart for its
perpetual glory ; ” — by which she understands (i)

Wisdom from the Writings of Saintly Souls (on a Range of Topics)

The Father’s Love for the Mystical Body, the Church

1. “The more God sees His Son in each one of us, the more abundantly He showers His gifts on us.” (p. 98, ‘The Spiritual Doctrine of Dom Marmion’)

Authentic Christianity: “For me, to live is Christ”

2. “A spiritual life which does not depend entirely on Christ is false, empty, absolutely useless; ‘Without Me you can do nothing.” (p. 54, ‘The Spiritual Doctrine of Dom Marmion’)

Without Jesus, We Cannot Bear the Cross

3. Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos: “… at the beginning of Mass I saw our Lord stooping, as if bearing a heavy burden, and He said to me, I take upon myself the suffering of My daughter.” (p. 402, Life)

The Delight of the Elect: Perfect Union with God

4. Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos: “One day the interior voice said to me: God renders the blessed like Himself; yes, Benigne, My elect by seeing Me are in such wise transformed in Me that they have no other will than Mine; their love springs from My Love.” (p. 341, Life)

The Alpha and the Omega

5. Our Lord to Ven. Louise Margaret: “Infinite Love envelops, penetrates, and fills all things. It is the only source of life and of all fertility; It is the eternal principle of beings and their eternal end. If you wish to possess life and not be sterile, break the bonds that bind you to yourself and to creatures and plunge into this abyss.” (p. 4, ‘The Love and Service of God, Infinite Love,’ TAN Books)

Hell Exists because God is Good

6. Ven. Louise Margaret: “No, if there were no Hell, I could not love Thee… If there were no Hell, three splendid jewels would be wanting to the crown of Thy sublime perfections; there would be wanting justice, power and dignity.” (p. 10, TLGIL)

“I desire mercy”

7. From the Life of Bl. Elizabeth Canori–Mora: “Another time He revealed to her and placed before her eyes the sins of His own Ministers and of the public Magistrates. Elizabeth was so much surprised that she was filled with profound indignation, and opened her lips to cry out for justice against these unknown delinquents; but Our Lord prevented her, and said in a tone of love and tenderness: “Ah! My daughter, cry for mercy, not for justice. I wish not the death of the sinner, but that he should be converted and live.” Whilst saying these ineffable words He directed upon her from His Heart a ray of pure and living light; then he added: “May this ray of light serve you to protect men against the anger of Divine Justice.” (p. 184)

The Blood of Jesus Cries for Mercy

8. St. Gemma’s Guardian Angel: “Look at what Jesus has suffered for men. Consider one by one these Wounds. It is Love that has opened them all. See how execrable sin is, since to expiate it, so much pain and so much love have been necessary.” (p. 194, Life)

Imperfections: A Treasure for the Soul of Good-Will

9. Jesus to Sr. Consolata Betrone: “… you will commit faults, infidelities, and imperfections; and these will help you to advance, for they will cause you to make many acts of humility.” (p. 41, JATTW)

The Cross is a Gift

10. Jesus to St. Gemma (appearing to her with the Cross on His shoulders): “Gemma, wilt thou have it, My Cross? See, this is the present I have prepared for thee.” (p. 174, Life)

A Model of Patience in Suffering

11. From the Life of Sr. Gertrude Mary: “On her bed of agony, coughing incessantly, she murmurs this word of love: Every fit of coughing is a cry to Heaven.”

Heaven on Earth

12. Sr. Gertrude Mary: “The air which I breathe near the Tabernacle is not the same as elsewhere, for it is already that of Paradise. I know this by experience.”

What the Damned Would Give to See God

13. From ‘The Dogma of Hell, Illustrated by Facts Taken from Profane and Sacred History,’ by Rev. F.X. Schouppe:

“A holy priest was exorcising a demoniac, and he asked the demon what pains he was suffering in Hell.

“An eternal fire,” he answered, “an eternal malediction, an eternal rage, and a frightful despair at being never able to gaze upon Him who created me.”

“What would you do to have the happiness of seeing God?”

“To see Him but for one moment, I should willingly consent to endure my torments for 10,000 years. But vain desires! I shall suffer forever and never see Him!”

How to Best Please God

“My child,” said Our Lord to St. Gertrude, “you canst do nothing more gratifying to Me than to submit patiently to all the tribulations that befall you.”

‘If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.’ (Mt. 16:24)

“Fear nothing. I Myself will supply whatever is lacking in you.” (Jesus to St. Lutgarde)

“I know very well that they can do nothing without My grace; but let them begin the task courageously, full of trust in My help, and I will deliver them from all difficulty and trouble. Let them come to Me who await them with open arms on the Cross.“ (Jesus to St. Catherine de Ricci)

Our sinfulness and weakness is no obstacle to God’s goodness. “…God is nothing other than power itself, wisdom itself, goodness itself…” (Jesus to St. Bridget, Bk 2, Ch 26). “The soul that most annihilates itself,” said the Heavenly Father to Sr. Jeanne Benigne Gojos, “is best absorbed in Me. THE BEST MEANS OF HOLDING FAST TO ME IS TO REALISE MY IMMENSE GOODNESS.”

“Am I not able,” said Jesus to Mother Mary of the Divine Heart, “to kindle fire with dead wood? The greater your wretchedness, the more glory there is for Me in lovingly stooping and lowering Myself towards you.”