Saturday, May 20 : Saint Raphael Arnaiz Baron

If the world only knew what it means to love God, even just a little, it would love its brothers and sisters too. When we love Jesus, when we love Christ, we necessarily love what he loves. Didn’t he die for love of us? For, by transforming our hearts into the heart of Christ, we feel and perceive its effects, and the greatest of these is love: love of the Father’s will, love towards all who suffer, who are weary, the brother who is far away, whether he be English, Japanese or a monk, love for Mary. In any case, who can understand the love of Christ? No one. Yet there are some people who possess a few little sparks, very hidden, very silently, and without the world knowing it. Oh my Jesus, how good you are! You do everything so wonderfully well. You show me the way and you show me the end. The way is your sweet cross, sacrifice, self-renunciation, sometimes the bloody battle that ends up in tears on Calvary or in the Garden of Olives. The way, Lord, is to be the last, the sick one, the poor one… But never mind! To the contrary!… These renunciations are a pleasure when they stir up charity, faith, hope in the soul. This is how you transform thorns into roses. And the end? You are the end, and nothing else but you. The end is to have eternal possession of you in heaven, together with Mary, with all the angels and saints. But this will be up above, in heaven. And to encourage people who are wretched, weak, fearful like me, you sometimes make yourself known in the heart and say: «What are you looking for? What do you want? Who are you calling? Look, see what I am. I am the Truth and the Life»… Then, Lord, you fill the souls of your servants with inexpressible sweetness that we ponder in silence and hardly venture to explain. O my Jesus, how much I love you in spite of what I am. And the more poor and miserable I am, the more I love you. I will always love you; I will hold you tight and never let you go: I don’t know how else to say it.

maronite readings – rosary,team