Seeing

What did you come out into the desert to see,
a reed shaken in the wind? But what did you come out to see?
I know what you saw, and I recall your reaction to what you saw.
Together we are closer to God for what we saw in all we suffered.

Dear God it does hurt so.

t dawned on me, when I pulled my cross from out from under my shirt and I realized there is no one to see it except me; the whole purpose of wearing the habit is to be SEEN.  To be seen  loving, praying and being absorbed utterly into God and His bliss. That was the whole purpose from the beginning. That things went bad from there, is an understatement, and I did not react well.

 But I understood very well, God's purposes in the matter. Those whom I approached were charged by the Church with shepherding His flock, not manipulating and maneuvering people into suffering and humiliation, but that was their will, and they pressed their advantage; I could do nothing but kneel before St. Therese's statue in the dark cathedral, and beg for peace and a little consolation to dull the pain.

They got what they wanted. What happened to them subsequently I will never know. But it hurt; whether it hurt badly enough to constitute reparation of sins, I don't know. My place is more or less quiet and peacful, and there is little else to do but enter into the suffering and submit to God. I have been submitting now for over ten years. Whatever they were afraid of, by now has dwindled away. I was an amusing anecdote.

I got s place to live, auiet in which to be before God, and occasionally, the bliss of being absorbed into Him when I wasn't suspecting it. What they got, I don't really know, but from their remarks, I can only gather that they did not have peace in which to be enclosed and enraptured, and their use of drugs to combat their illness, or their use of alcohol, pretty much states the obvious.

Things should not forever be being dragged up to humiliate me over and over again, but since it is so searingly successful to torment me can only mean it was significant to God Himself. But atonement implies a certain participation, and that makes me happy; that I sensed the urge to approach to the Cross over and over again, asking for the brandedness implied can only speak to His willingness to enter with me. That I hurt, was simple enough, but that I hurt for a decent purpose drew me up into bliss before hIm, and likely always will.

How, I am not certain, but I will be seen. Many times, wearing street clothes only, people have approached me as if I were a religious, even with my cross tucked safely out of sight. The cross is not a source of shame to anyone who loves and realizes that the essence of love is a pain that can't be borne, and the bearing of which is an unbearable weight of blessedness.

My eyes have looked upon God, and He has not allowed me to be killed. For a long time after I returned to the States from 'Nam, I bore a burden for all who were wounded and killed in that country. That I am often reminded over and over again of scenes from the place, tells me He is not finished with me yet, and with all I undertook while I was there. Now I am free. My continuing participation in the cross is a consequence of love; a pure and purging love that brings freedom to all those for whom I bear it. I was not nailed to the cross to the extent that my hands and feet and side or any other part of me exuded a single drop of blood. All that shedding of blood is unseen, and unseeable. For my part, I continue to hope I may stand beside Him on the last day without taint of any sin, and able to see His Face and embrace Him without obstacle.

In The Odor of Sanctity

 In describing that, Laurentin and Corteville inform us that the visionary, who passed in her seventies (long after her fellow other seer, Maximin Giraud), had stigmata and–did Melanie, who so many found controversial–“died in the odor of sanctity”!

How is it one person can prevent honoring someone eho obviouslly exhibits such signs universally recognised? Ego is a terrible adversary for the just.

In the odor of sanctity

The strength of human custom is so great, that even supreme good can be stymied by ordinary human beings, and God help those who do. I suggest that such a thing is unforgiveable. On the other hand, people regularly pain the Immaculate Heart, that replica of the Sacred Heart which implores us so often and in so many ways, to love Her and never stray from beneath Her mantle of protection. They do so with impunity, and a feeling of immunity from punishment because She has not been shown to punish anyone.

They do so with the conviction they have done right, even as they see Her children's lives cut short by evil. They do it anyway.

That is why the answer to the reality is the Rosary, which She has told us time and again is our sheild and our refuge against evil. We may still see it, and still see the grief that evil has perpetrated, but never have we seen that the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart will be overcome except in the pain of grief as She watches Her children suffer. Make no mistake, if She suffers, so do we and so does Jesus. For the abominable sin of not caring and of inflicting that pain, there can scarcely be forgiveness. Yet, if She chooses to forgive, then no one can gainsay Her.

Accordingly, we may say the Rosary, and there is ample opportunity to pray for the conversion of sinners, and to make reparation for the pain of piercing of the Immaculate Heart. I specifically encourage everyone who recites the Rosary faithfully each day, to offer the Rosary to console that Sorrowful Heart which is daily offended countless times. Still She comes to us and speaks to us, piercing the veil of unbelief. We may pray for the forgiveness of sins, but we ought to also offer our sufferings as a gift to the Mother of God as our caresses and consolations meant soley for Her. Our life may scarcely have meaning, as we are so small in the scheme of things, but we are not so small that Mary cannot see us or not know we exist.

We ought to approach God and His Mother in the deepest humility, realizing the perils of our position in the world. We  ought to plead to be forgiven so that there is nothing to prevent us from growing closer to them. 

If we can but be a tiny votive light in the immense darkness about us, then we can be lost in God, and engulfed in His Sacred Heart and that Sorrowful Heart who is His Mother. How much comfort ought we to receive by steadfastly burning with a shining love. Let us desire to be comfort for our brothers and sisters, especially those in endless suffering, and for Jesus and Mary. Let us stand beside the cross and be engulfed in His passion to the extent we can, and love with all  our ability to love, so that in the end, love blots out the memory of pain and evil. Then our neighbors might see too and be encompassed by it. Our particpation is always increased if He finds us worthy to stand where we are. 

Prayer intentions:

Peace and not war in the world.

The  intention of the Holy Father and priests.

The relief of the suffering of our brothers whom we see suffering.
The healing of our planet.

The forgiveness of sins and reparation for them so that offenders may atone for the sorrow they have caused Jesus and Mary.
That  priests live in peace, forgiven their sins and loving to forgive the sins of sinners.

That all who do not believe should be able to believe and to believe.

That those dying in sin might be forgiven and scape the sad sentence of hell.

For the intentions of souls in purgatory that they may be united at last with Jesus.

That in our last moments the angels surround us and protect us so that we arrive safely at the feet of Jesus and Mary and are welcomed into the eternal enjoyment of their company.

That God may be praised always and everywhere.

Greeting

 On this hallowed day before the feast of all saints, let us give thanks to God for all the countless unknown saints with the joy of all the saints we know !

Let us give thanks to the Lord for all His bounty.

God bless you all,
Sincerely,
Brother Michael of the Cross
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Appearances

 

Child Stigmatic

I never dreamed such a thing possible. Yet, there are many things I find difficult to get my mind around.

It humbles me, as it should. To think of how it is possible to penetrate the scalp with thorns, or pierce the hands and feet with nails, and the side with a sharp lance is the height of the inconceivable. If any one doubts the Lord, they are on dangerous footing, the ground teetering on the brink of a landslide.

Repent now, and save the suffering of hell, or even purgatory. In other words, stop doing what displeases God. Stop sinning, and give the innocent a rest. It is unsettling to realize how our sins must be forgiven, and the Lord afflicts the innocent in order to make reparation for other people's sins. 

It is as if we all have been nailing other people to the cross without realizing, but there it is.

He realizes that we are unaware. The very existance of heaven hell are hidden and invisible to nearly everyone, except the few to whom He reveals such realities.

Certainly, if we saw hidden realities, it must make in indelible impression on the soul. Anyone who who saw Saint Bernadette during an apparition said that it appeared as if she were in Heaven, utterly transformed by the beautiful vision of the Blessed Mother, and the glory of Heaven.

Bernadette,  like many of her age, was subject to tuberculosis, which settled into one of her legs, in the bone, where it caused excruciating pain, which she tried hard not to show to anyone else. But she was a sister, a nun, in a convent, and the truth would not be hidden, and it was the occasion of a conversion of one of the nuns who had been persecuting Bernadette.

That nun repented when she realized she had been persecuting Bernadette, and became Bernadette's helper until her death.

I shudder to think of everyone laid low by the chastisement, considering the nature of the event. Then everyone will know, and see. People will repent and change the course of their lives. After having once seen Our Lady, those to whom She appeared were never the same.

Exactly what the chastisement will be is hard to make out, although in part it will be a destructive even that will strike the whole earth at the same time, similar to previous catastrophes, but impossible to deny or ignore by the most petulant denier of the faith. All will come to faith, and to some it will be the most traumatic event in their life; they will not be the same afterward. Some will even die from the rigours of the event. Thus, the whole earth, and all of every person on earht, will know the truth, that Jesus is Lord and is present always and everywhere. How I wish sometimes that Heaven would be revealed to everyone, as well, and perhaps my ardent wish will be fulfilled.

But before that moment when so much will be reconciled, so much forgiven and so many confronted with the reality of Heaven and earth, that a great conversion of hearts of all people will take place. After that, whether the earth is a scorch and thrown-down ruin, the Lord will be visible and no one will want to offend Him again.

When they realize what He has done, everyone will be occupied witht he Will of God and illuminated by the great truth of who God is and what He has done for us who have sinned.

Sin a monstrous crime, but for the sake of our souls, its nature is hidden except to some to whom God wishes it not to be hidden. Thus some have been chosen to bear the wounds of Jesus, in the midst of the great hiddenness, while everyone else are occupied with the necessity of a next meal and a night's rest and sleep.

To be deprived of sleep is a great hardship in itselt. which is why so many are sleepless. God watches over everyone, especially those who suffer a particular way and offer it to God.

I remind you of simple facts because Heaven is built upon simple facts, thus the simplest among us understand in their own way, things others cannot be aware of.

Perhaps if we keep the vision of the passion of Jesus clearly in our minds, we can avoid the commission of sins and relieve the burden of the Lord who longs that we all be free of sin and standing at His side in bliss, like the St. Bernadette's of the world.

Exchange

 I have a lot to offer, as a human being, but it seems as if what I have to offer is not needed by anyone. While it is distressing to feel that way as a humn being, God does not enjoy feeling worthless any more than anyone else. It is a sign of our times, that it should be that way, but it is exactly that way.

If people are distressed by messages made by seers have spoken lately, they should meditate very deeply on that moment.

God will show Himself to anyone sincerely loving Him, and He is attracted by the good things we do, especially if it is unselfish and giving, because unselfishness and giving are precise definition of who and what God is.

God has been giving people warnings for a very long time. It was not His transgression that caused us to be expelled from Eden and to suffer death, it was us. That there have been so many wars ought wake us up. War seems to be something engrained in human beings as they are these days. It is equally true that little children do not engage in hate, wars, crimes or violence, it is grown up humans. 

So before the winter comes and the snow starts flying, let us plan to warm to God and bloom in loving Him, because the remedy for our sin is His love. The crucifixion is the starkest  expression of love God has ever made, and every sin pales before His love. 

My heart is open to saving souls and suffering for it, but only God can make it happen in a way that is not demeaning, though whatever happens to us as a result of our willingness to suffer so something meaningful can be offered God is likely going to be demeaning.And before we cry out against injustice, we should examine whether it is us or God that is being demeaned. I can tell you that in the comparison, it is God who has certainly been demeaned a thousand fold more than us.

There is nothing we can say meaningully than "My Lord I love Thee". Let our actions be our statement of love for Him. He tells us to love one another - we should love one another, not worry about reckoning ledgers of who transgressed us or how deeply they may have offended us. We are entirely too fixated on judgements against other people, otherwise war would be something unknown. 

If being so identified with Christ, I have bloody wounds, then so be it; let me be humiliated and my feelings hurt, if that is something efficacious to heal the wounds of the world. Love one another, and you need not be afraid of chastisements. If there is to be a "rapture", know that it is those left behind who may offer something even more precious and substantial toward God, and offer a sacrifice that may truly be worthy. Unselfishness allows God to draw close to us, while selfishness does the opposite.

Let us be more aware of the exchange of our love with God and His love with us.

Solidarity

 

No one gave Jesus a rose on His way to the cross;
we can bring Him one consisting of our love and solidarity.

I watched a video which stated that the universe had no beginning. It took me aback. The holy Spirit told me that the universe indeed had a  beginning, and it has an end. It was punctuated by the life of Christ the Lord, because He came into it  in a particular way, taking on our fleshen life and suffering death.

In a couple months, we will celebrate the coming, or Advent, of Jesus into the world through birth into a human life.

That life had an end in torture, disfigurement and the suffering of crucifixion. May our ends be kinder than that. 

In that life and death was the revelation of the truth of God's love for us, a truth given each of us to discover for outselves and respond and react to it. 

We are asked to believe and trust and affirm, that truth given us, that God loves us, and has loved us always. We must ratify the truth and respond affirmatively and decisively in solidarity.

Politics is part of life, even in spiritual matters. Either we believe and affirm the Lord or we don't. If He asks us to take up His cross in some way, we must still accept or refuse, and take our stand on His side or not.

The seasons of Lent and Advent both ask us to affirm what He asked of us, and to confirm what we said one way or the other. The world may well hold us to account; do we accept the powers of the earth as our soverign and legitimate ruler, or not. each of the martyrs made their statement and surrendered their lives, not their faith. 

The world may grow to be more and more filled with death, suffering and destruction, but what will still  matter most  importantly, will be our affirmation of Jesus, and our decision to remain His friend.

In asking us to follow Him, we choose to be peace for those most troubled, certain that He will give us peace to contain and share with others. The world is certain of the things it thinks will bring us peace; we are the statement that Jesus is Lord. Those who join us in conviction will know peace, and anyone who chooses anything of this world for peace, have been cheated by lies. Those who are thieves are also liars, and their morality is not capable of standing up to the judgement of God. Those enlightened by the presence of Jesus are peace to His people, and to ourselves. Only good and holiness will give that peace, because it is imperishable. 

The universe as we know it is coming to an end, and something wonderful and new is about to be revealed like a splendid dawn.

Observations

 

That I hurt is no mystery to me; where I hurt can be a source of speculation. Sometimes I can figure out why I am hurting by thinking though my day's activities. Then it becomes plain why I hurt. But it can be a test of humility. Then there are days I wonder why He took the pain away, just when I had made a place for it like a stray kitten. To think I can offer consolsation in  making myself available. When i think about the "who" in the discussion is interesting too.

The sun has just finished rising past the mounrains and the clouds, and I may soon need to draw the drapes to block the sun. The sun rises out of the east, and later out of the far southeast. Then, as the seasons change, the sun will rise again from the northeast. The planet will never stop its  motions, and neither will the rest of heaven. It is  no   mystery why so many religious became astronomers as well, since the motions of celestial objects recur over time and life procedes forward through winter and spring.

One can live life in a dread of anticipation or delight, depending on what presents itself. Advent is not far off, nor is Lent. Prepare; make stright the way of the Lord !