How Luisa she sees the Divinity of Jesus & the Holy Trinity
Since the confessor told me to explain to him how I see, sometimes, the Divinity of Our Lord, I answered him that it was impossible for me to be able to tell him anything. But, at night, blessed Jesus appeared to me and almost reproached me because of this refusal of mine, and then He made two most luminous rays flash through me. With the first one I comprehended in my intellect that Faith is God and God is Faith. I tried to say a few things about Faith; now I will try to say how I see God - and this was the second ray.
While I am outside of myself, and I find myself in the height of the heavens, I seem to see God within a light; and He Himself seems to be light, and in this light there is beauty, strength, wisdom, immensity, height, depth – without end or boundaries. Even in the air that we breathe there is God Himself being breathed; so, each one can make Him one’s own life, as indeed He is. Nothing escapes Him, and nothing can escape Him. This light seems to be all voice – and without speaking; all operating – while it always rests. It is present everywhere – without occupying anything; and while it is present everywhere, it also has its own center. Oh! God, how incomprehensible You are. I see You, I feel You, You are my life, You restrict Yourself within me, while You remain always immense and lose nothing of Yourself. Yet, I feel I am stammering, and it seems to me that I am unable to say anything.
In order to explain myself better, according to our human language, I will say that I see a shadow of God in all Creation, because in all Creation – somewhere He has cast the shadow of His beauty, somewhere His fragrances, somewhere His light, as in the sun, in which I see a special shadow of God. I see Him as though veiled in this sphere, as the king of all other spheres. What is the sun? It is nothing other than a globe of fire. One is the globe, but many are the rays; from this we can easily comprehend: the globe – God; the rays - the immense attributes of God.
Second. The sun is fire, but it is also light and heat - here is the Most Holy Trinity veiled in the sun: the fire is the Father, the light is the Son, the heat is the Holy Spirit. However, the sun is one, and just as one cannot separate the fire from the light and from the heat, so one is the power of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, who cannot really be separated from one another. And just as fire, in the same instant, produces light and heat, in such a way that fire cannot be conceived without also conceiving the light and the heat; in the same way, the Father cannot be conceived before the Son and the Holy Spirit, and vice versa, but all Three of the Them have the same eternal beginning.
I add that the light of the sun diffuses everywhere; in the same way, God, with His immensity, penetrates everywhere. However, let us remember that this is but a shadow, because the sun cannot reach where it cannot penetrate with its light, while God penetrates everywhere. God is most pure Spirit, and we can represent Him with the sun that makes its rays penetrate everywhere, without anyone being able to grab them with his hands. Moreover, God looks at everything – the iniquities, the evils of men – and He remains always as He is, pure, holy, immaculate. A shadow of God is the sun, which sends its light over rubbish, and remains immaculate; it spreads its light in the fire, and is not burned; in the sea, in the rivers, and is not drowned. It gives light to all, it fecundates everything, it gives life to everything with its heat, and is not impoverished of light, nor does it lose any of its heat. Even more, while it does so much good to all, it has need of no one, and remains always as it is – majestic, resplendent, ever immutable. Oh! how well can one recognize the divine qualities in the sun. With His immensity, God is present in the fire, and is not burned; in the sea, and is not drowned; under our steps, and is not trampled. He gives to all, and is not impoverished, and has need of no one; He looks at everything – even more, He is all eyes, and there is nothing He does not hear. He is aware of each fiber of our hearts, of each thought of our minds, and, being most pure Spirit, He has neither ears nor eyes, and regardless of any happening, He never changes. The sun, investing the world with its light, does not tire; in the same way, God, giving life to all, helping and ruling the world, does not tire.
A man can hide, he can place shades in order not to enjoy the light of the sun and its beneficial influences, but he does nothing to the sun – the sun remains as it is, while all the evil will fall upon man. In the same way, by sin, the sinner can move away from God and no longer enjoy His beneficial influences, but he does nothing to God – the evil is all his own.
The roundness of the sun also symbolizes to me the eternity of God, which has no beginning and no end. The very light of the sun, penetrating, is such that no one can restrict it within one’s eye; and if one wanted to fix on it in its full midday, he would remain dazzled; and if the sun wanted to draw closer to man, man would be reduced to ashes. The same for the Divine Sun: no created mind can restrict It within its little mind in order to comprehend It in all that It is; and if it wanted to try, it would remain dazzled and confused; and if this Divine Sun wanted to display all Its love, allowing man to feel It while he is in his mortal flesh, he would be reduced to ashes.
So, God has cast a shadow of Himself and of His perfections over all Creation; it seems that we see Him and touch Him, and we are touched by Him continuously.
In addition to this, after the Lord said those words - “Faith is God” - I said to Him: ‘Jesus, do You love me?’ And He added: “And you, do you love Me?” Immediately I said: ‘Yes Lord, and You know that without You I feel life missing in me.’
“Well then”, Jesus continued, “you love Me, I too love you – so, let us love each other, and remain always together.” This is how He ended for this morning. Now, who can say how much my mind has comprehended of this Divine Sun? I seem to see It and touch It everywhere. Even more, I feel invested by It, inside and out, but my capacity is so very small – while it seems it comprehends something about God, the moment I see Him, it seems I have comprehended nothing; even more, it seems that I have spoken nonsense. I hope that Jesus will forgive my nonsense.
The devil can speak about virtue, but he cannot infuse it in the soul. This morning, while Jesus made Himself seen, I was afraid it might not be really Jesus, but the devil wanting to deceive me. After I made the usual protests [1], Jesus told me: “Daughter, do not fear for I am not the devil. And besides, if he speaks about virtue, it is a colored virtue, not true virtue, nor does he have the virtue of infusing it in the soul, but only of speaking about it. And if sometimes he shows he wants to make the soul practice a little bit of good, she is not persevering, and in the very act in which the soul does that little bit of good, she is listless and agitated. I alone have the power to infuse Myself in the heart, to make one practice virtues, and suffer with courage and tranquillity, and with perseverance. And besides, when has the devil ever gone in search of virtues? His hunt is for vices. Therefore, do not fear, and be tranquil.”
[1] Protest is to be intended here as an interior affirmation of the soul, an oath, of her intention not to consent to any temptation of the enemy. In Volume 1, Luisa writes: “Jesus Christ taught me that the most effective means so that the soul would remain free of any vain apprehension, of any doubt, of any fear, was to protest before Heaven, the earth and the very demons, that she does not want to offend God, even at the cost of her life, and that she does not want to consent to any temptation of the devil. And this, as soon as the soul feels the coming of the temptation, in the act of the battle, if she can, and as she begins to feel free - and also during the course of the day. By doing this, the soul will not waste time in thinking about whether she has consented or not, because the mere memory of the protest will already give her calm; and if the devil tries to disturb her, she will be able to answer that if she had the intention to offend God, she would not have protested the opposite. In this way, she will remain free of any fear”….These are “the usual protests.” JMJ.
July 4, 1899
Jesus speaks about disturbance.
This morning, as Jesus renewed in me the pains of the crucifixion, our Queen Mama also was present, and Jesus, speaking of Her, said: “My own Kingdom was in the Heart of my Mother; and this, because Her Heart was never disturbed even slightly; so much so, that in the immense sea of the Passion, She suffered immense pains, Her Heart was pierced through by the sword of sorrow, but She did not receive the slightest breath of disturbance. Therefore, since my Kingdom is Kingdom of peace, I was able to extend my Kingdom within Her, and to reign freely without any obstacle.”
July 9, 1899
Jesus shares His pains in order to continue His Passion.
This morning, Jesus wanted to renew the pains of the crucifixion. First He transported me outside of myself, up on a mountain, and He asked me whether I wanted to be crucified. And I: ‘Yes, my Jesus, I yearn for nothing but the cross.’
As I was saying this, a huge cross appeared; He laid me upon it, and nailed me to it with His own hands. What atrocious pains I suffered in feeling my hands and feet being pierced through by those nails; and what’s more, they were blunt, and it was very difficult and painful to make them penetrate; but with Jesus everything was tolerable. After He finished crucifying me, He told me: “My daughter, I make use of you in order to continue my Passion. Since my glorified body can no longer be capable of suffering, by coming into you, I make use of your body just as I used mine during the course of my mortal life, to be able to continue to suffer my Passion, and therefore to be able to offer you as living victim of reparation and propitiation before Divine Justice.”
July 18, 1899
How Sacramental Jesus and the soul draw and bind each other.
It continues almost always in the same way. This time it seemed to me that in my heart there was Sacramental Jesus, and from the Holy Host He spread many rays in my interior; and many threads came out of my heart, which intertwined with all those rays of light. It seemed to me that Jesus, with His love, would draw the whole of my heart to Himself; and my heart, with those threads, would draw and bind the whole of Jesus to stay with me.
July 22, 1899
How the cross renders the soul transparent. How to avoid the precipice.
This morning my adorable Jesus made Himself seen with a golden cross, all resplendent, hanging from His neck, and in looking at it, He was immensely pleased. In one instant the confessor was there present, and Jesus said to him: “The sufferings of these past days have increased the splendor of the cross; so much so, that in looking at it, I take great delight.”
Then He turned to me and told me: “The cross communicates such splendor to the soul as to render her transparent; and just as, when an object is transparent, one can give it all the colors he wants, in the same way, with its light, the cross gives all features and the most beautiful shapes that can possibly be imagined, not only by others, but by the very soul who experiences them. Furthermore, on a transparent object one immediately detects the dust, the little stains, and even a shadow. Such is the cross: since it renders the soul transparent, it immediately reveals to the soul the little defects, the slightest imperfections, so much so, that there is no masterly hand more capable than the cross in keeping the soul prepared, to render her a worthy dwelling of the God of Heaven.” Who can say what I comprehended about the cross, and how enviable is the soul who possesses it?
After this, He transported me outside of myself, and I found myself at the top of a staircase, extremely high, which had a precipice under it, and, what’s more, the steps of this staircase were movable and so narrow that one could barely put the tips of his toes on it. What terrified the most was the precipice, and the fact that one could find no support whatsoever, and if one tried to cling to the steps, they would come off. The sight of other people, almost all of them falling, put a shiver in the bones. Yet, there was no other way than going through that staircase. So I tried; but after going up only two or three steps, seeing the great danger for me of falling into the abyss, I began to call Jesus to come to my aid. Not knowing how, I found Jesus near me, and He told me: “My daughter, what you have seen is the path which all men go through on this earth[2]. The movable steps, on which they cannot even lean to find support, are the human supports, earthly things, which are such that, if one tries to lean on them, instead of giving him help, they give him a push to fall more quickly into hell. The safest means is to climb almost flying, without touching the ground, by force of one’s arms, with eyes all fixed on oneself - without looking at others, and also by keeping them all intent on Me, in order to receive help and strength. In this way one can easily avoid the precipice.”
[2]
The Path of Penance: Message from the Virgin Mary
"Beloved sons, follow me along the path of penance.
The weapons with which you are to fight my battle are those
of prayer and penance. Today I want to show you the path of penance which is to be traversed by each of you.
The first stage is that of renunciation and self-denial.
It is necessary to renounce oneself, as well as all disordered attachments, passions, immoderate desires, ambitions……
In this way you will mortify egoism which constitutes your greatest peril, the easiest and most customary of the snares by which my Adversary attempts to impede your journey.
Then you will become free interiorly; it will be easy for you to discern in the light the Will of God, and you will find yourselves more suitably disposed to carry it to perfection.
The second stage is that of carrying one's cross properly.
This cross is made up of the difficulties one encounters when one desires to fulfill solely the Will of God, because this involves the task of daily fidelity to the duties of one's state in life. It is a fidelity in which even the very smallest tasks are performed with perfection. Everything is done in the fullness of love; every moment of the day is lived in fulfilling the divine Will.
How precious, above all for you, my beloved sons, is this second stage of suffering!
In this you are shaped into the likeness of Jesus Crucified…..
The third stage is that of following my Son Jesus toward Calvary.
During his life, how often I found Him turning his glance with desire toward Jerusalem, where He would one day go to be betrayed, arrested, judged by his own, condemned, scourged, crowned with thorns and crucified. How greatly Jesus longed for this moment. He was always journeying toward the consummation of his Pasch [A] of love and immolation for you……
Never lose courage. Today the voices of condemnation are for you the shouts of those who reject and challenge you. Sins, committed but then justified and no longer atoned for, are for you the painful strokes of the scourge. The errors, which threaten to estrange great numbers of souls from the faith, are for you the crown of thorns.
Beloved sons, you see now described for you the road you must travel to reach a genuine experience of conversion…….
It is the simple and evangelical road, pointed out to you by my Son Jesus when He told you: `He who wishes to come after Me, let him renounce himself, take up his cross each day, and follow Me.' (cf. Mt 16:24)…….
[A] (n) (P)asch in Hebrew means: Immolation of a lamb, sacrificed and consumed as in the Passover meal. In the case of Jesus, He is the Lamb of God sacrificed and consumed. Used in the lower case, (p)asch is meant to signify the priests being the lambs of God sacrificed and consumed for the salvation of others.
July 28, 1899
The cross is the noblest mark in the soul.
This morning, my adorable Jesus came with an appearance all admirable and mysterious. He was wearing a chain around His neck, hanging over His whole breast. At one end of the chain, one could see something like a bow; at the other end, something like a quiver full of precious stones and gems, which formed an ornament of the most beautiful sort on the breast of my sweet Jesus. He also had a lance in His hand. While in this appearance, He told me: “The human life is a game; some play pleasure, some play money; some, their own lives, and many other games that they play. I too delight in playing with souls; but what are these jokes that I make? They are the crosses which I send. If they receive them with resignation and they thank Me for them, I amuse Myself and I play with them, delighting immensely, receiving great honor and glory, and letting them make the greatest gains.”
As He was saying this, He began to touch me with the lance; from the bow and the quiver came out all those precious stones that were contained in it, and they turned into many crosses and arrows that wounded the creatures. Some of them, but extremely few, rejoiced, kissed them, and thanked Him, engaging in a game with Jesus; others then, would take them and throw them in His face. Oh! how afflicted was Jesus left, and what a great loss for those souls! Then Jesus added: “This is the thirst which I cried out on the Cross, such that, unable to quench it entirely at that time, I delight in continuing to quench it in the souls of my dear ones who suffer [3]. So, when you suffer, you come to give a refreshment to my thirst.”
As He came other times, and I prayed Him to free the confessor, who was suffering, He told me: “My daughter, don’t you know that the noblest mark I can impress in my dear children is the cross?”
[3a] Jesus is speaking about the work of co-redemption by us:
The Work of Co-Redemption: Message from the Virgin Mary
“Assent to my plan, beloved sons, and allow yourselves to be formed by your Mother. Thus I am able, more and more, to associate you with my maternal work of co-redemption.
Jesus is the only Redeemer because He alone is the mediator between God and men. He has however willed to take into partnership in his redemptive work all those who have been redeemed by Him, so that the merciful work of his love may shine forth in a greater and more wonderful way.
Thus you, who have been redeemed, can co-operate with Him in his redemptive work. He in you, who are so intimately united with Him so as to form his very Mystical Body, can gather in your day the fruit of what He accomplished once for all on Calvary.
I am for you the perfect model of your co-operation in the redemptive work accomplished by my Son. In fact, as Mother of Jesus, I have become intimately associated with Him in his work of redemption. If the cross was his scaffold, the pain of my Immaculate Heart was like the alter on which my Son offered to the Father the Sacrifice of the new and eternal covenant.
As Mother of the Church, I was also intimately associated with Jesus in the accomplishment of his redemptive work, which is carried out in the course of history, by offering to all men the possibility of accepting that salvation which He obtained for you at the time of his bloody immolation. Thus the more numerous they are who attain salvation, the more fully is the masterpiece of his divine love realized.
My task as Mother is that of helping my children in every way to attain salvation; and today still, it is that of co-operating in a very special way in the redemption accomplished by my Son Jesus. My role as true Mother and Co-Redemptrix will become manifest to all.
I want to carry out this action today through you, my beloved sons. This is why I have wanted to withdraw myself into the desert of your life, where I have set up my safe refuge. In this way I mold you as a mother so that, through you, I may carry out the great work of co-redemption. And so, I call you to prayer, to the perfect offering of yourselves, to suffering, to self-immolation. I lead you along the way of the cross and gently I help you to climb Calvary in order to transform you all into sacrificial victims pleasing to the Father, for the salvation of the world.
This is the time of my silent action. In the desert of your life, I daily work the great prodigy of transforming you more and more, that Jesus Crucified may again live in each one of you. When this work of mine is completed, the greatness of the loving plan which I am now carrying out will become apparent to the whole Church. My merciful work of co-redemption has now become more necessary and urgent than ever.
The task which the Most Holy Trinity has entrusted to me will be acknowledged by all; I will be able to exercise my great power fully, so that the victory of my Son Jesus may shine forth everywhere, when He will restore, through you, his glorious reign of Love.”
[3b] In the message from September 19, 1899, Jesus mentions that the pains of his Passion is a gift to us: “You, however, rise more, and dive into the immense sea of Hope, which is made of all my merits that I acquired in the course of my mortal life, and of all the pains of my Passion, which I also gave to man as gift.”
July 30, 1899
Do not judge your neighbor.
It continues almost always in the same way. This morning, as Jesus transported me outside of myself according to His usual way, we passed through the midst of many people, and the majority of them were intent on judging other people’s actions, without looking at their own. My beloved Jesus told me: “The surest means to be upright with one’s neighbor is to not look at all at what they are doing, because looking, thinking and judging is all the same. Besides, by looking at his neighbor, one comes to defraud his own soul; therefore it happens that he is not upright either with himself, or with his neighbor, or with God.”
After this, I said to Him: ‘My only Good, it has been a while since You gave me even just a kiss.’ And so we kissed each other. Then, almost wanting to correct me, He added: “My daughter, what I recommend to you is to preserve and cherish my words, because my word is eternal and holy as I am Myself, and by preserving it in your heart and profiting from it, you will have your sanctification and will receive an eternal splendor as recompense, produced by my word. By doing otherwise, your soul would receive a void, and you would remain my debtor.”
August 2, 1899
Correspondence to Jesus.
This morning my adorable Jesus made Himself seen all afflicted …and Jesus told me: “The iniquities that rise from the earth up to Heaven are so many, that if prayer, and souls who are victims before Me, were missing for a quarter of an hour, I would make fire come out of the earth and inundate the people.” [4] A high level of cooperation in the work of co-redemption; see [3] above.
Then He added: “See how many graces I was to pour upon the creatures, but since I find no correspondence, I am forced to retain them within Myself; even more, they make Me change them into chastisement. Be careful, you, oh my daughter, to correspond to Me in the so many graces I am pouring into you, because correspondence is the open door to let Me enter into the heart and form in it my dwelling. Correspondence is like that good welcome, that esteem, which is used with people when they come to visit us, in such a way that, drawn by that respect, by those affable manners used with them, they are forced to come again, and reach the point of not being able to detach themselves. Everything is in corresponding to Me, and according to how souls correspond to Me and treat Me on earth, so will I behave with them in Heaven. Making them find the doors open, I will invite the whole Celestial Court to welcome them, and I will place them on the most sublime throne; but it will be all the opposite for those who do not correspond to Me.”
August 7, 1899
About our nothingness.
This morning my lovable Jesus was not coming. After much waiting and waiting, finally He came; my confusion and annihilation was such that I was unable to tell Him anything. Jesus said to me: “The more you annihilate yourself and come to know your nothingness, the more my Humanity, unleashing rays of light, will communicate to you my virtues.”
I said to Him: ‘Lord, I am so bad and ugly as to be horrifying to myself. What must I be before You?’ And Jesus: “If you are ugly, I am the One who can make you beautiful.” And in the act of saying this, He sent a light from Himself to my soul, and it seemed that He would communicate His beauty to it. Then, embracing me, He began to say: “How beautiful you are – but beautiful of my own beauty; this is why I am drawn to love you.”
August 8, 1899
A resigned soul is rest for Jesus.
…He told me: “Resignation absorbs all that can be painful and disgusting to one’s nature and renders it sweet. And since my Being is peaceful, tranquil, in such a way that, no matter what may happen in Heaven and on earth, It cannot receive the slightest breath of disturbance, resignation has the virtue of grafting these very virtues of mine into the soul. A resigned soul is always at rest; and not only herself, but she also makes Me rest peacefully within her.”
August 10, 1899
On justice, and the fruits of justice: truth and simplicity. How Jesus remains wounded by simplicity.
…He told me: “My Justice has been withheld for a long time, and with reason It wants to take revenge on the creatures, who have dared to destroy every justice within themselves. Ah! yes, I find nothing just in man. He has counterfeited himself completely in his words, in his works and steps; everything is deception, everything is fraud, everything is injustice, which have penetrated into his heart, in such a way that, inside and out, he is but a bilge of vices. Poor man, how you have reduced yourself!”
While saying this, He was swinging the rod He had in His hand, in act of wounding man. I said to Him: ‘Lord, what are You doing?’ And He: “Do not fear. See, this ball of fire will cause fire, but will only strike the evil – the good will receive no harm.” [5] There would be no harm to the souls of the good. The suffering that the good might bear would be the cause for reparation to God in the work of co-redemption, see [3] above, and for their gains in sanctity. .
After this, He added: “The daughter of justice is truth. Just as I am the Eternal Truth, as I do not deceive, nor can I be deceived, in the same way, the soul who possesses justice makes truth shine in all her actions. Therefore, since she knows by experience the true light of truth, if someone wants to deceive her, since that light which she feels within herself is missing, she immediately recognizes the deceit. And so it happens that with this light of truth she does not deceive either herself, or her neighbor, nor can she be deceived. The fruit produced by this justice and by this truth is simplicity. Another quality of my Being is to be simple, so much so, that I penetrate everywhere; there is nothing that can prevent Me from penetrating inside; I penetrate into Heaven and into the abysses, into good and into evil. However, my Being, most simple, by penetrating even into evil, does not get dirty; even more, it does not receive the slightest shadow. In the same way, through justice and truth, gathering into herself this beautiful fruit of simplicity, the soul penetrates into Heaven, she enters into the hearts to lead them to Me, she penetrates into everything that is good; and if she finds herself with sinners, in seeing the evil that they do, she does not get dirty because, being simple, she immediately brushes it off, without receiving any harm. Simplicity is so beautiful, that my Heart remains wounded at one gaze alone of a simple soul. She is the admiration of Angels and of men.”
August 22, 1899
Jesus communicates to her His virtues.
My dear Jesus continues to come, all lovable and majestic. While in this appearance, He told me: “The purity of my gazes shines in all your operations, in such a way that, rising again into my eyes, it produces a splendor for Me, and it cheers Me from the filthy things that creatures do.”
I remained all confused at these words, so much so, that I did not dare to tell Him anything; but Jesus, encouraging me, began to say: “Tell Me, what do you want?” And I: ‘When I have You, is there anything more I could possibly desire?’ But Jesus, more than once, asked me again to tell Him what I wanted. And I, gazing upon Him, saw the beauty of His virtues and said to Him: ‘My most sweet Jesus, give me your virtues.’
And He, opening His Heart, made many distinct rays come out of His virtues, which entered into my heart, and I felt all of myself being strengthened in the virtues. Then He added: “What else do you want?” And I, remembering that during the past days, because of a pain that I was suffering, my senses were prevented from losing themselves in God, said to Him: ‘My benign Jesus, let it be that the pain may not prevent me from losing myself in You.’ And Jesus, touching with His hand the part of me that was in suffering, mitigated the bitterness of the spasm, in such a way that I can recollect and lose myself in Him.
September 5, 1899
How Jesus operates perfection little by little.
This morning I found myself in such disheartenment and I saw myself so bad, that I myself rendered myself unbearable. When Jesus came, I told Him of my pains and the miserable state I was in, and He said to me: “My daughter, do not want to lose heart. It is my usual way to operate perfection little by little, and not everything in one instant, so that the soul, in seeing that she is always lacking something, may push herself and make all efforts in order to reach what she lacks, with the purpose of pleasing Me more and of sanctifying herself more. And I, drawn by those acts, feel compelled to give her new graces and celestial favors, and in this way a commerce, fully divine, forms between the soul and God. Otherwise, if the soul possessed within herself the fullness of perfection and therefore of all virtues, she would not find ways by which to strive, to please Me more, and so the tinder with which to start the fire between creature and Creator would be missing.”
May the Lord be always blessed!
September 16, 1899
Effects and value of suffering only for God.
…He told me: “The life of the heart is love. I am like an infirm person who is burning with fever, and keeps looking for refreshment, for a relief, in the fire that devours him. My fever is love; but from where do I extract the refreshments and the reliefs which are most suitable for the fire that consumes Me? From the pains and toils suffered by souls beloved to Me, only for love of Me. Many times I wait and wait for that moment in which the soul turns to Me to tell Me: ‘Lord, only for love of You do I want to suffer this pain.’ Ah, yes, these are the reliefs and refreshments most suitable for Me, which cheer Me and dampen the fire that consumes Me.”
After this, He threw Himself into my arms, languishing, in order to rest. While Jesus was resting, I comprehended many things about the words spoken by Jesus, especially about suffering for love of Him. Oh! what a coin of inestimable value! If we all knew it, we would compete with one another to suffer more. But I believe we are all shortsighted in knowing this coin so precious, and this is why one does not come to having knowledge of it.
September 25, 1899
Luisa, defender of Jesus and of creatures.
In my mind I was thinking: ‘If these writings ended up in someone’s hands, that person might say: “She must be a good Christian if the Lord gives her so many graces”, not knowing that in spite of all this I am still so bad. Here is how people can deceive themselves, both in good and in evil. Ah! Lord, You alone know the truth, and the depth of the hearts.’ While I was thinking of this, blessed Jesus came and told me: “My beloved, and what if people knew that you are my defender and theirs!”
And I: ‘My Jesus, what are You saying?’ And He: “What? Is it not true that you defend Me from the pains that they give Me by placing yourself between Me and them, and that you take upon yourself the blow that I am about to receive, as well as that which I should pour down upon them? And if sometimes you do not receive it upon yourself, it is because I do not permit it; and this, to your great sorrow, to the point of lamenting to Me. Can you perhaps deny it?”
‘No Lord, I cannot deny it, but I see that it is something that You Yourself have infused in me – this is why I say that it is not because I am good, and I feel all confused in hearing You speak these words to me’
September 26, 1899
Oppositions to writing. How the Most Holy Virgin is a portent of grace. Abstractive sight and intuitive sight.
This morning, as my adorable Jesus came, He carried me outside of myself, but to my greatest sorrow I saw Him from behind, and as much as I prayed Him to let me see His most holy Face, it was impossible. In my interior I kept saying: ‘Who knows whether it is because of my oppositions against obedience when I write, that He does not deign to show His adorable Face.’ And while saying this, I cried. After He let me cry, He turned around and told me: “I take your oppositions into no account, because your will is so identified with Mine, that you cannot will but what I Myself want. So, though it is repugnant for you, at the same time you feel drawn to do it as by a magnet; therefore, your repugnances serve for nothing other than to render the virtue of obedience more embellished and bright. This is why I don’t pay attention to them.”
Afterwards, I looked at His most beautiful Face, and in my interior I felt an indescribable contentment; and turning to Him, I said: ‘My most sweet Love, if it is just me, and I take so much delight in looking at You, what must it have been for our Queen Mama, when You enclosed Yourself in Her most pure womb? What contentments, how many graces did You not give Her?’ And He: “My daughter, the delights and the graces that I poured into Her were such and so many, that it is enough to tell you that what I am by nature, our Mother became by grace; more so since, She having no sin, my grace was able to lord freely within Her. So, there is nothing of my Being which I did not give to Her.”
At that instant, I seemed to see our Queen Mother as if She were another God, with this difference alone: that in God it is His own nature, while in Mary Most Holy it is acquired grace. Who can say how stupefied I was left; how my mind was lost in seeing a portent of grace so prodigious? So, turning to Him, I said: ‘My dear Good, our Mother had so much good because You let Yourself be seen intuitively. I would like to know: and to me - how do You show Yourself? By abstractive or by intuitive sight? Who knows whether it is even abstractive at all.’ And He: “I want to make you understand the difference that passes between one and the other. In the abstractive, the soul contemplates God, while in the intuitive she enters into Him and obtains the graces – that is, she receives into herself the participation in the Divine Being. How many times have you not participated in my Being? That suffering, which seems almost natural in you; that purity, such that you reach the point of feeling as if you did not have a body; and many other things – have I not communicated this to you when I have drawn you to Myself intuitively?”
Ah Lord, it is so true! And I – what thanks have I rendered to You for all this? What has been my correspondence? I feel blushing at the mere thought of it. But, O please! forgive me, and let it be known of me, in Heaven and on earth, that I am an object of your infinite mercies.
October 1, 1899
Jesus speaks with bitterness about the abuses of the Sacraments.
This morning lovable Jesus continued to make Himself seen in silence, but with a most afflicted appearance; He had a thick crown of thorns driven onto His head. I felt my interior powers silent – they did not dare to say a single word; but in seeing that He suffered very much in His head, I stretched out my hands and, very carefully, removed the crown of thorns. But, what a bitter spasm He suffered! How His wounds opened more and His blood poured out in torrents! In truth, it was something that tortured the soul. After I removed it, I put it onto my head, and He Himself helped so that it might penetrate inside; however, everything was silence on both sides.
But, what was my surprise when, after a little while, I went about looking at Him again, and I saw that, with the offenses that were given, they were putting another one on the head of Jesus! Oh, human perfidy! Oh, incomparable patience of Jesus, how great you are! And Jesus kept silent, and almost would not look at them so as not to know who His offenders were. Again, I removed it, and as all my interior powers woke up with tender compassion, I said to Him: ‘My dear Good, my sweet Life, tell me a little bit – why do You no longer tell me anything? It has never been your usual way to hide your secrets from me. O please! let us speak together a little, for in this way we will pour out a little bit the sorrow and the love that oppress us.’
And He: “My daughter, you are the relief in my pains. However, know that I do not tell you anything because you always force Me not to chastise the people. You want to oppose my Justice, and if I do not do as you want, you remain disappointed, and I feel more pain for not keeping you content. Therefore, in order to avoid disappointments on both sides, I keep silent.” And I: ‘My good Jesus, have You perhaps forgotten that You Yourself suffer after You have made use of your Justice? It is seeing You suffer in the very creatures that makes me more than ever alert in forcing You not to chastise the people. And then, seeing the creatures themselves turn against You like many poisonous vipers, such that they would almost take your life if it were in their power, because they see themselves under your scourges, and they irritate your Justice even more…. I don’t have the heart to say the Fiat Voluntas Tua.’
And He: “My Justice can take no more. I feel wounded by everyone – by priests, by devout people, by the secular, especially because of the abuse of the Sacraments. Some do not care about them at all, adding scorns; others, who attend them, turn them into a conversation of pleasure; and others, not satisfied in their whims, because of this reach the point of offending Me. Oh! how tortured my Heart is in seeing the Sacraments reduced to painted pictures, or like those statues of stone which seem to be alive and operating from afar, but in drawing near them, one begins to discover the deceit. Then, one goes about touching them, and what does he find? Paper, stone, wood - inanimate objects; and here is how they are disenchanted completely. This is how the Sacraments have been reduced for the most part – there is nothing but mere appearance. What to say, then, about those who remain more filthy than clean? And then, the spirit of interest that reigns among the religious – it is something to be wept over! Don’t you see how that they are all eyes where there is a most wretched penny, to the point of degrading their dignity? But where there is no interest they have neither hands nor feet to move a tiny bit. This spirit of interest fills their interior so much that it overflows outside, to the point that the secular themselves feel the stench of it, and scandalized by it, make this the cause for not giving credence to their words. Ah! yes, no one spares Me. There are some who offend Me directly, and some who, though they could prevent so much evil, do not bother doing it; so, I do not know to whom to turn. But I will chastise them in such a way as to render them incapable, and some I will destroy completely. They will reach such a point that the churches will remain deserted, with no one to administer the Sacraments.”
Interrupting His speaking, all frightened, I said: ‘Lord, what are You saying?! If there are some who abuse the Sacraments, there are also many good daughters who receive them with the due dispositions, and who would suffer very much if they could not attend them.’ And He: “Too scarce is their number; and then, their pain for not being able to receive them will work as reparation for Me, and to make them victims for those who abuse them.” [6] Again, the work of co-redemption; see [3] above. Who can say how tormented I was left by this speaking of blessed Jesus? But I hope He will placate Himself out of His infinite Mercy.
October 7, 1899
How she sees Jesus indignant with the people. The state of victim holds back the chastisements.
… to my highest sorrow I saw Him almost indignant with the people. Immediately I said to Him: ‘My good Jesus, I pray You to make peace with the world.’ And He: “Daughter, I cannot. I am like a king who wants to enter into a house, but that house is full of filthy things, of rot and of many other dirty things. The king, as king, has the power to enter into it, there is no one who could prevent him, and he could even clean that house with his own hands, but he does not want to do it, because it is not decent for his royal person to descend to such lowness; and until that house is cleaned by others, in spite of the fact that he has the power, the will, and a great desire, to the point of suffering for it, he will never deign to set foot in it. So I am. I am the King who can and wants, but I want their will – I want them to remove the rot of sins before I enter and make peace with them. No, it is not decent for my royalty to enter and make peace with them; on the contrary, I will do nothing but send chastisements. The fire of tribulation will inundate them everywhere, to the point of knocking them down, so that they may remember that a God exists – the only One who can help them and free them.”
And I, interrupting His speaking, said to Him: ‘Lord, if You want to lay hands to chastisements, I want to come – I don’t want to be on this earth any more. How will my heart be able to endure in seeing your creatures suffer?’ And Jesus, assuming a benign appearance, told me: “If you come, where shall I go to dwell on this earth? For now let us think about being together down here, for we will have much time to be in Heaven – the whole of eternity. And then, too soon have you forgotten your office of acting as my mother on earth. So, while I chastise the people, I will come to take refuge and to dwell with you.”
And I: ‘Ah! Lord, what is the purpose of my state of victim for so many years? What good has come to the peoples? You used to tell me that You wanted me victim in order to spare the people, and now You show how these chastisements, instead of happening many years ago, are happening later – nothing more and nothing less than this.’ And He: “My daughter, don’t say this, I have been forbearing for love of you, and the good that came from this has been that while terrible chastisements were to rage for a very long time, because of this they will be shorter. Is this not a good – that instead of being under the weight of a chastisement for many years, one remains under it only for a few? Moreover, during the course of these past years, with wars and sudden deaths, they should not have had the time to convert, but they did, and were saved – is this not a great good? My beloved, for now it is not necessary to make you understand the purpose of your state for yourself and for the peoples, but I will show it to you when you come to Heaven, and on the Day of Judgment I will show it to all nations. Therefore, do not speak like this any more.”
October 21, 1899
Earthly goods must serve for the sanctification of man, not as his idols. The cause of chastisements.
After going through most bitter days of privation, I was feeling tired and exhausted in my strengths, though I kept offering those very pains, saying: ‘Lord, You know how much it costs me to be without You; but I resign myself to your Most Holy Will, offering this most bitter pain as a means to attest my love and to placate You. These bothers, annoyances, wearinesses, coldnesses that I feel, I intend to send to You as messengers of praises and of reparations for myself and for all creatures. This I have, and this I offer You. Surely You accept the sacrifice of the good will, when one offers You what he can with no reserve – but, come, for I can take no more.’
Many times I had the temptation to conform to Justice, thinking that I myself was the cause of His not coming. In fact, in these past days, Jesus had told me that if I did not conform, I would force Him not to come and not to tell me anything any more so as not to grieve me. But I did not have the heart to do it, more so, since obedience did not consent to it either. While I was amid these bitternesses, first a light came, with a voice saying: “Insofar as man meddles in earthly things, so does he move away and lose esteem for eternal goods. I gave riches that they might use them for their sanctification, but they have used them to offend Me and to form an idol for their hearts; and I will destroy them, and their riches together with them.”
After this, I saw my dearest Jesus, but so in suffering, offended and indignant with the people as to strike terror. Immediately I began to say to Him: ‘Lord, I offer You your wounds, your Blood, the most holy use You made of your senses during the course of your mortal life, to repair for the offenses and for the bad use that creatures make of their senses.’
And Jesus, assuming a serious look, almost thundering, said: “Do you know how the senses of creatures have become? Like the screams of fierce animals which, with their roars, drive men away, rather than letting them get close. The rot and the multiplicity of sins that spurts out from their senses is such, that they force Me to flee.” And I: ‘Ah! Lord, how indignant I see You. If You want to continue sending chastisements, I want to come; otherwise, I want to get out of this state. Why remain in it, since I can no longer offer myself as victim to spare the people?’ And He, addressing me with seriousness, so much so that I felt terrified, told me: “You want to touch the two extremes – either you want Me to do nothing, or you want to come. Are you not content that people are spared in part? Do you think that Corato is the best, and the least in offending Me? And my having spared it, compared to other towns – is this something trivial? So, content yourself and calm yourself, and while I occupy Myself with chastising the people, you – accompany Me with your sighs and with your sufferings, praying Me so that the very chastisements may turn out for the conversion of the peoples.”
October 22, 1899
The cross, a way strewn with stars.
Jesus continues to make Himself seen afflicted. The moment He came, He threw Himself into my arms, His strengths completely exhausted, almost wanting refreshment. He shared with me a little bit of His sufferings, and then He told me: “My daughter, the way of the cross is a way strewn with stars, and as one walks through it, those stars change into most luminous suns. What will be the happiness of the soul for all eternity in being surrounded with these suns? Furthermore, the great reward I give to the cross is such that there is no measure, either of width or of length – it is almost incomprehensible to the human minds; and this, because in bearing crosses, there can be nothing human – all is divine.”
October 24, 1899
The cause of chastisements: the love of God for creatures.
This morning my adorable Jesus came and transported me outside of myself, into the midst of the people. Jesus seemed to look at creatures with eyes of compassion, and the very chastisements appeared as infinite mercies of His, come out from the most intimate place of His most loving Heart. Then, turning to me, He told me: “My daughter, man is a product of the Divine Being, and since Our food is love, always reciprocal, alike and constant among the Three Divine Persons, since he came out of Our hands and from pure, disinterested love, he is like a particle of Our food. Now, this particle has become bitter for Us; not only this, but the majority of them, by moving away from Us, have made themselves pasture for the infernal flames and food for the implacable hatred of demons, Our capital enemies as well as theirs. This is the main cause of Our sorrow for the loss of souls: because they are Our own – they are something that belongs to Us. Likewise, the cause that pushes Me to chastise them is the great love I have for them, to be able to place their souls in safety.”
And I: ‘Ah! Lord, it seems that this time You have no other words to say but of chastisements. Your power has other means to save these souls. And then, if I were certain that all the pain would fall upon them and You would remain free, without suffering in them, I would resign myself; but I see that You are already suffering very much from those chastisements You have sent. What will happen if you continue sending more chastisements?’
And Jesus: “Even though I suffer, love pushes Me to send heavier scourges, and this, because in order to make man enter himself and recognize what his being is, there is no means more powerful than making him see his own self undone. It seems that other means make him grow bolder; therefore, conform to my Justice. I see well that the love you have for Me pushes you very much not to conform to Me, and you don’t have the heart to see Me suffer, but my Mother also loved Me more than all creatures - no one can equal Her; yet, in order to save these souls She conformed to Justice and She resigned Herself to see Me suffer so much. If my Mother did this, could you not do it yourself?” And as Jesus was speaking, I felt my will being drawn so much to His, that I almost could no longer resist conforming to His Justice. I did not know what to say, so convinced I felt; however, I have not yet manifested my will. Jesus disappeared, and I remained in this doubt - whether I have to conform or not.
October 25, 1899
The echo of the love of God, and the echo of the ingratitude of creatures.
My most sweet Jesus continues to manifest Himself almost always in the same way. This morning He added: “My daughter, my love toward creatures is so great that it resounds like an echo in the celestial regions, it fills the atmosphere and diffuses over the whole earth. But what is the correspondence that creatures give to this loving echo? Ah! they requite Me with an echo of ingratitude - poisonous, filled with every kind of bitternesses and sins; with an echo almost deadly, fit only for wounding Me. But I will depopulate the face of the earth, so that this echo resounding with poison may no longer deafen my ears.”
And I: ‘Ah! Lord, what are You saying?’ And Jesus: “I act just like a pitying doctor, who has the extreme remedies for his children, and these children are full of wounds. What does this father and doctor do, who loves his children more than his own life? Will he let these wounds become gangrenous? Will he let them perish for fear that by applying fire and knife they may suffer? No – never! Though he will feel as if those instruments were applied on himself, in spite of this he takes hold of the knife, rips and cuts the flesh open, and applies to it the poison, the fire, to prevent corruption from advancing further. Even though many times it happens that in these operations the poor children die, yet this was not the will of the father doctor – his will was to see them healed. So I am. I wound in order to heal them, I destroy them in order to resurrect them. If many perish, this is not my Will, it is only the effect of their wicked and obstinate will - it is the effect of this poisonous echo that they want to keep sending Me unto seeing themselves destroyed.”
And I: ‘Tell me, my only Good, how can I sweeten for You this poisonous echo that afflicts You so much?’ And He: “The only means is that you always do all your actions with the sole purpose of pleasing Me, and that you employ all your senses and powers for the purpose of loving Me and of glorifying Me. Let your every thought, word, and everything else, want nothing but the love you have for Me; in this way your echo will rise pleasant to my throne and will sweeten my hearing.”
October 28, 1899
Who am I, and who are you?
This morning my lovable Jesus came in the middle of a light, and looking at me, as though penetrating me everywhere, so much so, that I felt annihilated, He told me: ‘Who am I, and who are you?”
These words penetrated me deep into the marrow of my bones, and I could see the infinite distance that passes between the Infinite and the finite, between the All and the nothing. Not only this, but I could also see the malice of this nothing, and how it had covered itself with mud. It seemed to me as like a fish that swims in the water; so was my soul swimming in rot, amid worms and many other things, which are fit only for striking horror to the sight. Oh! God, what an abominable sight! My soul would have wanted to flee before the sight of God trice Holy, but with two more words He binds me; and these are: “What is my Love for you? And what is your requital for Me?”
Now, while at the first words I would have wanted to flee, frightened, from His presence, at these second words - “what is my Love for you?” - I found myself sunken, bound by His Love from all sides; so, my existence was a product of His Love - if this Love ceased, I would no longer exist. It seemed to me that the beats of my heart, my intelligence, and even my breath, were a product of His Love. I was swimming in Him, and even if I wanted to flee, it seemed impossible for me to do it, because His Love surrounded me everywhere. My love, then, seemed like a little drop of water thrown into the sea, which disappears and can no longer be distinguished. How many things I comprehended – but if I wanted to tell them I would be too long.
Then Jesus disappeared, and I was left all confused. I saw myself all sin, and in my interior I implored forgiveness and mercy. After a little while my only Good came back; I felt all soaked with bitterness and sorrow for my sins, and He told me: “My daughter, when a soul is convinced that she has done evil in offending Me, she already performs the office of Magdalene, who bathed my feet with her tears, anointed them with balm, and dried them with her hair. When the soul begins to look into herself at the evil she has done, she prepares a bath for my wounds. In seeing her evil, she receives bitterness and feels sorrow for it, and by this she comes to anoint my wounds with a most exquisite balm. From this knowledge, the soul would want to make a reparation, and in seeing her past ingratitude, she feels love arise within her toward a God so good, and she would want to lay down her life to attest her love; and this is the hair which, like many gold chains, binds her to my Love.”
October 29, 1899
The formation of the interior dwelling for Jesus.
My adorable Jesus continues to come, but this morning, as soon as He came, He took me in His arms and carried me outside of myself. Being in those arms, I comprehended many things, and especially that in order to be in the arms of Our Lord freely, and also to enter into His Heart with all ease and to go out of It as the soul best pleases, and not to be a weight or a bother for blessed Jesus, it was absolutely necessary to strip oneself of everything. Therefore, with all my heart, I said to Him: ‘My dear and only Good, what I ask of You for me is that You strip me of everything, because I see well that in order to be clothed again by You and live in You, and for You to live again in me, it is necessary for me to have not even a shadow of what does not belong to You.’ And He, all benignity, told me: “My daughter, the main thing so that I may enter into a soul and form my dwelling is total detachment from everything. Without this, not only can I not dwell in her, but not even any of the virtues can form its abode in the soul.
After this, once the soul has made everything go out of herself, then do I enter, and united with the will of the soul, we build a house. The foundations of it are based on humility, and the deeper they are, the higher and stronger the walls will be. These walls will be built with the stones of mortification, cemented with the purest gold of charity. After the walls have been built, I, like a most excelling painter, plaster it and form the most excelling paintings - not with lime and water, but with the merits of my Passion, represented by the lime, and with the colors of my Blood, represented by the water. This serves to protect it well from rains, from snows, and from any shock. Then come the doors, and in order for them to be solid like wood and not subject to woodworms, silence is necessary, which forms the death of the exterior senses. In order to keep this house, a guardian is necessary to watch over it everywhere, inside and out. And this is the holy fear of God that guards it against any inconvenience, wind or anything else that might threaten it. This fear will be the safeguard of this house, which will make one operate, not out of fear of penalty, but out of fear of offending the master of this house. This holy fear must do nothing other than do everything in order to please God, with no other intention.
Then, this house must be adorned and filled with treasures. These treasures must be nothing other than holy desires, and tears. These were the treasures of the Old Testament, and in them they found their salvation; in the fulfillment of their vows, their consolation; in sufferings, strength. In sum, they placed all their fortune in their desire for the future Redeemer, and in this desire they operated as athletes. A soul without desire operates almost as if dead; everything is boredom, bother, rancor – even the virtues themselves; there is nothing that she likes, and she walks almost crawling on the path of good. All the opposite for the soul who desires: nothing is a weight for her, everything is joy; she flies, and even in the pains she finds her tastes. This, because there was an anticipated desire, and the things which are first desired, then are loved; and as one loves them, one finds the most pleasant delights. Therefore, this desire must be accompanied before this house is built.
The ornaments of this house will be the most precious stones, the most expensive pearls and gems of this, my Life, always founded upon suffering – and pure suffering. And since the One who dwells in it is the giver of every good, He places in it the endowment of all virtues, He perfumes it with the most gentle odors, He makes the loveliest flowers exude their fragrance, He makes a celestial melody resound, of the most pleasant. He makes one breathe an air of Paradise.”
I forgot to say that one must see whether there is domestic peace; and this must be nothing other than the recollection and silence of the interior senses.
After this, I continued to be in the arms of Our Lord, and I was all stripped. In the meantime, I saw the confessor there present, and Jesus told me (but it seemed to me that He wanted to joke with me to see what I would say): “My daughter, you have stripped yourself of everything, and you know that when one is stripped, someone else is needed who would take care of clothing him, of nourishing him, and who would give him a place where he can stay. Where do you want to stay – in the arms of the confessor, or in mine?” And as He was saying this, He did the act of placing me in the arms of the confessor. I began to insist that I did not want to go, and He insisted that He wanted it. After a little bit of arguing, He told me: “Do not fear, I keep you in my arms.” And so we remained at peace.
October 30, 1899
Threat of chastisements for Rome.
This morning my benign Jesus came all afflicted, and the first words He spoke to me were: “Poor Rome, how you will be destroyed! In looking at you, I cry over you!” And He was saying this with such tenderness as to arouse compassion. But I could not understand whether it was only about the people, or also the buildings.
Since I had the obedience not to conform to Justice, but to pray, I said to Him: ‘My beloved Jesus, when it is about chastisements, one must no longer argue, but only pray.’ And so I began to pray, to kiss His wounds, and to make acts of reparation. And while I was doing this, every now and then He would say to me: “My daughter, do not use violence on Me. By doing this, you want to use violence on Me by force. So, calm yourself.”
And I: ‘Lord, it is obedience that wants it so – I am not the one who does this.’ He added: “The river of iniquities is so great as to reach the point of preventing the redemption of souls, and prayer alone, and these wounds of mine, can prevent this raging river from absorbing them all into itself.”
