A Little Book of Eternal Wisdom [51]
that, in Thy real
presence, Thou hadst given testimony of Thyself.
Eternal Wisdom.--The less the testimony, the purer thy faith and the
greater thy reward. The Lord of nature operates with such secrecy a blessed
increase in many a fair tree, that no eye nor other sense can perceive it
till it is accomplished. Now, I am not an exteriorly working good, but an
interiorly shining light; an interiorly working good which is so much the
nobler as it is the more spiritual.
The Servant.--Alas! how few men there are who perceive this, who weigh
thoroughly what they receive. They draw near like the rest generally, in an
ill and inconsiderate manner, and, therefore, as they go up empty, they come
away without grace. They do not ruminate their food so as to ponder what
they have received.
Eternal Wisdom.--To the well prepared I am the bread of eternal life,
to the little prepared the bread of dryness, but to the unprepared I am a
deadly blow, an eternal curse.
The Servant.--O Lord, what a terrible thing is this! Lord, whom dost
Thou call the well prepared, the little prepared, and the unprepared?
Eternal Wisdom.--The well prepared are the purified, the little
prepared such as cleave to temporal things, but the unprepared are the
sinful who continue by will and by deed in mortal sin.
The Servant.--But, tender Lord, if at the time a person is heartily
sorry for his sins, and strives, to the best of his ability, to rid himself
wholly of them, conformably to Christian precept, how is it then with him?
Eternal Wisdom.--In such a case a man is, for the time, no longer in
sin.
The Servant.--Lord, in my opinion, it were one of the greatest things
this world could accomplish, if any person, while living in this temporal
state, was able to prepare himself worthily enough for Thy reception.
Eternal Wisdom.--That person was never yet born; nay, if a man had the
native purity of all the angels, the sanctity of all the saints, and the
good works of all mankind, he would yet be unworthy.
The Servant.--Ah, beloved Lord, with what trembling hearts ought not
persons so unworthy, so deprived of grace, as we are, to approach Thee.
Eternal Wisdom.--If a man only does his best, nothing more is required
of him, for God completes what is left incomplete. A sick man should cast
aside all reserve, and should approach the physician whose attendance is his
cure.
The Servant.--Lord, beloved Lord, which is better, OFTEN, or SELDOM, to
receive Thee in the Blessed Sacrament?
Eternal Wisdom.--For him whose grace and devotion perceptibly increase
by it, to receive Me often is profitable.
The Servant.-- But, Lord, if a man in his own opinion remains the same,
and cannot prove that he either increases or decreases by it in holiness, or
if he is often visited by spiritual dryness, how should he then behave
himself?
Eternal Wisdom.--A man, provided only he does his part, should not
withdraw himself because of spiritual dryness. For the salvation of that
soul which by God's will suffers from spiritual dryness is often
accomplished as nobly in the light of pure faith alone, as in great
sweetness. I am a boon which, turned to account, increases, but which, saved
up, wastes away. It is better to approach once a week with a deep sense of
real humility, than once a year with an overweening self-approbation.
The Servant.--Lord, at what time does the influence of grace from the
Blessed Sacrament take place?
Eternal Wisdom.--In the very moment of actual reception.
The Servant.--Lord, but what if a man have a fervent desire for Thy
bodily presence in the Sacrament, and he must yet be deprived of it?
Eternal Wisdom.--Many a man after being filled with Me, goes away
hungry, and many a man obtains Me, though the table be empty; the former
merely receives Me bodily, the latter enjoys Me spiritually.
The Servant.--Lord, has that man any advantage who receives Thee bodily
and spiritually, over him who only receives Thee spiritually?
presence, Thou hadst given testimony of Thyself.
Eternal Wisdom.--The less the testimony, the purer thy faith and the
greater thy reward. The Lord of nature operates with such secrecy a blessed
increase in many a fair tree, that no eye nor other sense can perceive it
till it is accomplished. Now, I am not an exteriorly working good, but an
interiorly shining light; an interiorly working good which is so much the
nobler as it is the more spiritual.
The Servant.--Alas! how few men there are who perceive this, who weigh
thoroughly what they receive. They draw near like the rest generally, in an
ill and inconsiderate manner, and, therefore, as they go up empty, they come
away without grace. They do not ruminate their food so as to ponder what
they have received.
Eternal Wisdom.--To the well prepared I am the bread of eternal life,
to the little prepared the bread of dryness, but to the unprepared I am a
deadly blow, an eternal curse.
The Servant.--O Lord, what a terrible thing is this! Lord, whom dost
Thou call the well prepared, the little prepared, and the unprepared?
Eternal Wisdom.--The well prepared are the purified, the little
prepared such as cleave to temporal things, but the unprepared are the
sinful who continue by will and by deed in mortal sin.
The Servant.--But, tender Lord, if at the time a person is heartily
sorry for his sins, and strives, to the best of his ability, to rid himself
wholly of them, conformably to Christian precept, how is it then with him?
Eternal Wisdom.--In such a case a man is, for the time, no longer in
sin.
The Servant.--Lord, in my opinion, it were one of the greatest things
this world could accomplish, if any person, while living in this temporal
state, was able to prepare himself worthily enough for Thy reception.
Eternal Wisdom.--That person was never yet born; nay, if a man had the
native purity of all the angels, the sanctity of all the saints, and the
good works of all mankind, he would yet be unworthy.
The Servant.--Ah, beloved Lord, with what trembling hearts ought not
persons so unworthy, so deprived of grace, as we are, to approach Thee.
Eternal Wisdom.--If a man only does his best, nothing more is required
of him, for God completes what is left incomplete. A sick man should cast
aside all reserve, and should approach the physician whose attendance is his
cure.
The Servant.--Lord, beloved Lord, which is better, OFTEN, or SELDOM, to
receive Thee in the Blessed Sacrament?
Eternal Wisdom.--For him whose grace and devotion perceptibly increase
by it, to receive Me often is profitable.
The Servant.-- But, Lord, if a man in his own opinion remains the same,
and cannot prove that he either increases or decreases by it in holiness, or
if he is often visited by spiritual dryness, how should he then behave
himself?
Eternal Wisdom.--A man, provided only he does his part, should not
withdraw himself because of spiritual dryness. For the salvation of that
soul which by God's will suffers from spiritual dryness is often
accomplished as nobly in the light of pure faith alone, as in great
sweetness. I am a boon which, turned to account, increases, but which, saved
up, wastes away. It is better to approach once a week with a deep sense of
real humility, than once a year with an overweening self-approbation.
The Servant.--Lord, at what time does the influence of grace from the
Blessed Sacrament take place?
Eternal Wisdom.--In the very moment of actual reception.
The Servant.--Lord, but what if a man have a fervent desire for Thy
bodily presence in the Sacrament, and he must yet be deprived of it?
Eternal Wisdom.--Many a man after being filled with Me, goes away
hungry, and many a man obtains Me, though the table be empty; the former
merely receives Me bodily, the latter enjoys Me spiritually.
The Servant.--Lord, has that man any advantage who receives Thee bodily
and spiritually, over him who only receives Thee spiritually?