Dr. Wojciech Kosek
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Meditations led by three people:
A, M – women; W – man.
This translation was published here on 10 Jan 2024.
To see the original Polish text← click, please!
(Duration of meditations: about 31 min.)
Full text of St. Faustina’s Diary at www.saint-faustina.org ← click, please!
W When the long-awaited day of the beatification of the Servant of God, John Paul II, arrived, it turned out that the beatification was set by God’s arrangement for the Feast of Divine Mercy. Let us, therefore, open the Diary of the Secretary of the Divine Mercy, Saint Faustina of the Blessed Sacrament, so that we can now prepare with her to attend the Holy Mass. (0:39)
A “1804 The grandest moment in my life is when I receive Holy Communion. Every time I receive Holy Communion, I am longing to receive it, and for every Holy Communion I thank the Holy Trinity. If the angels could be envious, they would envy us two things – first, receiving Holy Communion, and secondly, suffering. 1805 Today, I am preparing for Your coming like a bride preparing for the arrival of her Bridegroom. My Bridegroom is a great Lord. Heaven cannot contain Him. The Seraphim, who stand closest to Him, cover their faces and continuously say, “Holy, Holy, Holy.” This great Lord is my Bridegroom. For Him the Choirs sing, the Thrones prostrate themselves before Him, the sun fades before His brilliance. And yet this great Lord is my Bridegroom. O heart of mine, stop wondering at the way others praise Him, you have no time for that, for He is approaching and He’s already at your door.” (1:39)
M “1810 Today I am making ready for the arrival of the King. What am I, and what are You, O Lord, King of glory – immortal glory. O heart of mine, do you realise Who is coming to you today? ‘Yes, I do, but strangely enough, I cannot comprehend it.’ Oh, but if it were only a king, but it is the King, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. All might and power trembles before Him. Today He is coming into my heart. But I hear Him coming, I am going out to meet Him and invite Him in. When He entered into the abode in my heart my soul was filled with such tremendous respect for Him that it fainted in awe, falling at His feet. Jesus gives it His hand and graciously allows it to sit next to Him. He comforts it, saying, ‘See, I have left the throne of Heaven to unite with you. What you see is just a tiny portion of the reality, and already your soul is swooning out of love, but how astounded your heart will be when you see Me in all of My glory! But I want to tell you that the eternal life must start already here on Earth through Holy Communion. Each Holy Communion makes you better able to abide with God for all eternity.’ (1:57)
W How wonderful is the love Jesus bestows on us! How wonderful is the love He experiences in the heart of Saint Faustina! How wonderful is the love He also longs to experience in our hearts! And us? And we are still on the way to this love… we are still seeking strength from Jesus to love Him more and more fully… Let us now listen attentively to the words of Jesus’ complaint, which He entrusts to His beloved Faustina in trust… Let us listen and entrust ourselves to His divine merciful love, capable of creating love in us: (0:57)
A “1385 19 November 1937. Today after Holy Communion, Jesus told me how much He wants to come to human hearts, ‘I want to unite with human souls; it is my delight to unite with souls. Know this, My daughter, that whenever I come into a human heart in Holy Communion, My arms are full of all manner of graces and I want to give them to the soul, but some souls do not even pay any attention to Me, they leave Me on My own and are busy with other things. Oh, how sad I am that souls have not recognised Love. They treat Me like an inanimate object.’ I answered Jesus, ‘O Treasure of my heart, the only object of my heart, delight of my soul, I want to worship You in my heart, just as You are worshipped on Your throne of eternal glory. My love wants to recompense You at least in part for the coldness of such a large number of souls. O Jesus, here is my heart, a dwelling for You and You alone, to which nothing else has access, You alone may rest in it as in a beautiful garden.’” (1:42)
W Jesus longs for love… longs for a response to the love with which he comes to each person at the moment of Holy Communion. However, how often it is not the love longing to meet the Bridegroom but insensitivity that welcomes Him on the thresholds of human hearts! Jesus knows that not only does His love suffer humiliation at this moment, but simultaneously, the person with such a heart does not live to the fullness of his humanity. Probably many believers, when they come to the end of their life, will experience with sadness what St. Faustina writes about in another place: (0:58)
M “1185 9 July 1937. In the evening, one of the sisters who had died visited me and asked me to offer up a day of fasting for her, along with all the spiritual exercises I did that day. I said I would. 1186 Next day in the morning, I offered up an intention for the day, everything for that sister. For a while during Mass, I could feel her suffering, in my soul I felt such a terrible hunger for God that I thought I would die of longing so very much to unite with Him. It did not last long, but I learned what the yearnings of souls in Purgatory are like. (0:57)
W The longing of souls for God, the longing for union with Love… Is it not true that every woman and every man thirsts for true love?… Despite this, it is a tiny group of those who have discovered the extraordinary opportunity to unite with Divine Love during Mass and Holy Communion, and even smaller those who love Jesus, physically present in them still after the liturgy is over… We heard Jesus’ complaint a moment ago: (0:48)
A “Know this, My daughter, that whenever I come into a human heart in Holy Communion, … some souls do not even pay any attention to Me, they leave Me on My own and are busy with other things. Oh, how sad I am that souls have not recognised Love. They treat Me like an inanimate object.’”(0:29)
W If I do not discover the extraordinary closeness of Jesus when I receive Him in Holy Communion, I do not even know that I am contracting a spiritual disease: frigidity. It consists in receiving Jesus in such a way as if it was not Him but only a piece of white bread that was in me after the Eucharist was over. It is what Jesus’ words of complaint mean: They treat Me like an inanimate object. (0:39)
M In order to understand Jesus’ complaint more fully, it is worth realizing how we behave towards the guests we invite. The invitation I extend to someone I love means that I want to lavish that person with my time and attention and that I want to be with that person. Inviting a person close to me means that I will not even think to accentuate my effort to be with him, for example: “Behold, I am now sacrificing my highly precious time for you; behold, I am now offering something for you…” No, in relations between friends, it is entirely different! Friends enjoy every opportunity to be with each other. Friends to God first and foremost, and secondarily and to each other express gratitude for the opportunity to be together. Such a relationship of gratitude, cordiality, and joy is the source and secret of a truly happy life. (1:26)
A We, however, do not receive Jesus in the same way as our friends. It is the reason He complains to St. Faustina: They treat Me like an inanimate object. To Jesus, who loves me so much, I do not give to experience my joy of union with Him in Holy Communion. Well, I may throw a few small moments in sacrifice on the tray of our meeting… and I am already justified… to run on, to plug Jesus into my daily plans. My thoughts are clustered around my affairs,… my plans,… my duties – everything I must undertake immediately after the liturgy! My life is still far from true friendship with Him, from real encounters in which we look into each other’s eyes and not at the watch … that can accurately measure seconds of the wasted time… (1:19)
W Jesus does not want us to be spiritually ill. He wants my fervent love because He wants me to live life to the fullest! Jesus has chosen all of us for great intimacy with Himself; Jesus has personally called each of us into the community of His Church and into this smaller community – the Community of the Perpetual Rosary, which continually loves Him and works with Him for the good of the whole Church. Vocation is a great gift of His love. Vocation requires our willing cooperation with Him. How painfully, then, Jesus must have felt the decline of spiritual life in more than one place in the Church, in more than one chosen heart, when He said: They treat Me like an inanimate object. How painfully he must have felt this since elsewhere in the Diary, he confided in such poignant words to his beloved Faustina: (1:27)
M “1702 Towards the end of the Stations of the Cross that I was making, Jesus started complaining about the souls of religious and priests, that there was little or no love in chosen souls. ‘I shall permit monasteries, convents and churches to be destroyed.’ I replied, ‘But Jesus, there are so many souls praising You in monasteries and convents.’ The Lord replied, ‘That praise is wounding My Heart, because love has been banished from monasteries and convents. Souls with no love or dedication, souls full of egoism and self-love, souls that are haughty and conceited, souls full of guile and deceit, lukewarm souls just warm enough to keep themselves alive. My Heart cannot stand it. All the graces I send down on them every day are wasted just as if I were pouring them onto rock. I cannot tolerate them, for they are neither good nor bad. I have called monasteries and convents into being to sanctify the world; a powerful flame of love and sacrifice is to blaze forth from them. But if they do not repent and are not enkindled by their first love, I shall send them into this world’s annihilation … How are they to sit in the promised city for the judgement of the world, if their sins are more heinous than those of the world – they neither do penance nor make reparation … Oh, heart that received Me in the morning, at midday you rage with hatred in the most diverse forms against Me. Oh, heart that I have specially chosen – was it just for you to make Me suffer more? The world’s great sins wounding my Heart are like scratches on its surface, but the sins of a chosen soul pierce It right through…’ 1703 When I wanted to stand up for them, I could find nothing to justify them, and not able to think at that moment of anything in their defence, anguish gripped my heart, and I wept bitterly. At that, the Lord looked at me and comforted me with these words, ‘Don’t cry, there are still a great number of souls who love Me dearly, but My Heart wants to be loved by all of them, and since My love is great, therefore I shall chide and punish them.’” (3:20)
W The Heart of Jesus desires love from every monk. Moreover, it desires love from each of us. It desires as great love as possible from all of us. As we heard a moment ago, a severe violation of the laws of love is not only transgressing the Ten Commandments, but also treating Jesus like an inanimate object. Even though we have not chosen to live a religious life, this does not mean that Jesus does not desire great love from us, too. It is necessary to desire such great love for Jesus, love as great as possible. Therefore, it is worthwhile to lean still on this poignant complaint of Jesus: They treat Me like an inanimate object. Let us listen to a short story that will help us, as it were, measure the temperature of our love for Jesus: (1:12)
A They were pretty young when they met and fell in love. Their wedding and the first years of marriage were filled with joy at the way of life together, with mutual forbearance in the school of loving each other. One day, they had to part – war broke out, and he had to go to the front to defend the Fatherland. The war did not allow them to be together physically; however, they were still with each other spiritually. They missed each other… and wrote letters and talked on the phone. However, the war continued, and they missed each other more and more… letters no longer arrived, and phone lines were broken. He was somewhere far away from her; she was far away from him… Their love, however, did not stop… (1:12)
W And finally, the war slowly began to die down… The first soldiers were already returning to her village, welcomed by their relatives. She asked about him; they, however, knew nothing about him. She missed him all the more, waiting with hope for his life, for life with him… (0:28)
A One day, his companion returned – from him, she already knew that her dearest was alive! From then on, her longing was accompanied by joy at what seemed to be his imminent arrival. After some time, the letter carrier came and brought the first letter from him after years… In it, he assures of his mad love and the hope of an imminent meeting… She carried this letter on her heart and often secretly kissed it… This is the first harbinger of his presence… However,… it is, however… only a harbinger; it is not yet him… Several days passed and finally… she heard his voice – he called from someone in the border town. He returns in two days; they will be together again! (1:07)
M The train’s wheels are gradually slowing down, and the sound of brakes can already be heard. The small rural station is empty… no, no! There is a young woman adorned with a wonderful garland of fragrant roses. The door of the first carriage opens, and a young soldier leans out… looks, and yes!…. he waves his hand at her and finally jumps briskly onto the platform. They are already together, happy at their closeness. They cannot hold back tears of happiness… he is alive… she is alive… and their love is alive… their mutual love has not died! Now, even deeper – deeper than at the time of their first seeing – they are convinced that they love each other truly. They walk, holding hands, going home, to their home… I guess that is what it was worth waiting so long for… Yes, it was worth waiting and loving… They can be truly husband and wife again – together, for two… (1:23)
W The story of more than one love from the war… Or perhaps the story of Jesus’ love for you and your love for Jesus… Do you… miss Him when you see the hands on the church steeple approaching all too slowly to the coveted hour of Mass? (0:28)
A Do you feel your heartbeat intensify as He gradually approaches during the Eucharist like that soldier at the end of the war struggle… Do you hear His voice? – dearest voice coming from the pages of the Holy Scriptures? Do you recognize these sacred pages as His written declaration of love, His love letter that He sent you? Do you hear in the words of the homily the whisper of His lips, on which is your name? (0:42)
M Do you hear these words of Jesus (see Matt 26:26–28; Mar 14:22–24; Luke 22:19–20; 1Cor 11:24–25) – a confession of love – “Take and eat, this is My Body given for you”… “Take and drink, this is My Blood, poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins”… “ Do this in remembrance of Me”… Do you believe, do you know that now He, your Beloved, is speaking to you most tenderly, that here now He is assuring you that soon…, soon He will come to take you into His embrace? (0:43)
W Is your heart adorned with a fragrant garland of virtues, so that He may be delighted when He passes from the priestly hands to your mouth?… (0:14)
A Do you gaze into His eyes with delight from that moment onwards, that behold, now you are already together, that behold, the long-awaited moment of happiness has arrived… has arrived and is lasting?… (0:17)
M Moreover, when you hear the sound that announces the end of the celebration, will you run immediately to other people… abandon Him for… after all… as always… abandon as always Jesus…. for important things will you abandon Him? Will He, who from such distant spaces came to love you, yearn again until… until the clock strikes the hour of the sacred celebration, in which you for Him sacrifice the whole hour, and in it a few small moments… of your special closeness?… (0:49)
W So must the story of love, the story of more than one love, have a different ending? (0:10)
A Here is the train which is slowly moving from a rural station. The increasing rumble of the steam engine can be heard. The young soldier had a few moments of happiness with his wife. He looked into her eyes and hugged her. She, however, already has to run to important things… she already has to hurry… (0:27)
M The train starts, and in it is he, a young soldier… He knows that he has to wait again… A small rural station has its own little laws. The train can not be here too long… It is understandable… The train must rush to bigger cities… Probably there it will be longer… Probably there happy are those who meet on the run… However, do they really meet?.. (0:36)
W Dear St. Sister Faustina! Teach us to love Jesus and intercede for us to have true love for Him whom you have gifted with true love! (0:19)
A Dear Holy Father John Paul II! We ask you to intercede for us to Him whom you love, so that we too may love Him as you love Him… so that we may love Him as He desires… and as He deserves! He, the King of kings and the Lord of lords! (0:27)
M Now, a few minutes before the Holy Mass, let us listen to a few passages from St. Faustina’s Diary to ignite the love of our hearts for Jesus, who is arriving to be very near to each of us and to receive love from each of us: “1822 Today, my soul wants to show Jesus its love in a special way. When the Lord entered my heart, I threw myself down like a rosebud at His feet. ‘I want the fragrance of my love to rise up continually to the feet of Your throne. You see, Jesus, my whole heart is in this rosebud for You; not only now, at this very moment, when my heart is ablaze with love, but also throughout the day I shall be showing how much I love You by being faithful to God’s grace.’” “1824 Today, my heart is trembling with joy. I long for Jesus to come into my heart. I miss Him very much, and my longing heart is ablaze with a love that is growing stronger and stronger. When Jesus arrived, I threw myself into His embrace like a little child. I told Him how happy I was. Jesus listened to the outpourings of my love. When I apologized to Him for not having prepared for Holy Communion, but instead for having kept thinking that I wanted to tell Him as soon as possible how happy I was, Jesus replied, ‘I am pleased most of all by the kind of preparation with which you have welcomed Me into your heart today. Today, I shall bless your joyfulness in a special way. Nothing will spoil your joy and happiness today…’”