WEEK 4: Unite your painful experiences with Jesus
Along with the new tasks, there now came a second stage of anguishing purification known as the passive nights of the spirit. The background to and instrument whereby God effected this in Sister Faustina’s soul was the work for the implementation of the concept of a new congregation. Although she had already realised that the new “congregation” would be a great work in the Church, comprising men’s and women’s congregations as well as lay associations, Sister Faustina thought that Jesus wanted her to leave her mother Congregation and found a contemplative order.
Every time she wanted to leave the Congregation she was overwhelmed by great darkness. She wrote in her diary, No-one can understand or comprehend, nor can I myself describe, my torments. But there can be no sufferings greater than this. The sufferings of the martyrs are not greater because, at such times, death would be a relief for me. There is nothing to which I can compare these sufferings, this endless agony of the soul (Diary 1116). Her soul was being purified in the crucible of spiritual battle. Her mind, will, memory, emotions and all her senses were submitting to God more and more harmoniously and preparing her soul for full union with Him. In the darkness of the passive nights God was granting her moments of respite and great joy. I suddenly saw the Lord Jesus, she described one of these moments, who spoke these words to me: «Now I know it is not for the graces or gifts that you love Me, but because My will is dearer to you than life. That is why I am uniting Myself with you so intimately as with no other creature.» … (Diary 707-708).
The achievement of this objective not only brought Sister Faustina the greatest amount of suffering, but also led her to full union with Jesus, to what is generally referred to as mystical betrothal and mystical marriage. At that moment I was transfixed by the Divine light and felt I belonged exclusively to God, and I experienced the supreme spiritual freedom, the like of which I had never dreamed of before (Diary 1681).
- How does my cooperation with God’s grace look like when I do not understand God’s work in my soul?
- Do I entrust my life to Jesus, trusting that He loves me and wants my greatest good?
- During this week, in difficult moments, with love and dedication, I will repeat in my heart acts of trust in God’s will.
