Several Short Treatises on Suffering
from the Saints
We cannot avoid taking up our own Cross, for out of
Suffering and Death comes Resurrection
and Union with God.
What kind of Suffering are we talking about? Does it have to be long
Fasts, Penances and Hair Shirts? For many of us this
would be an easy way out. If we take Life as it is, and try to live every moment in Obedience
to the way Jesus taught us, we will find more than enough
Suffering. To behave Patiently, Gently,
Lovingly, towards everyone we meet, can demand a Deeper, more
Agonizing Suffering than any Scourging we might inflict on ourselves. The
Ordinary Events of Life will provide us with a Daily Cross. And if we accept them
Willingly, they will be our way of Sanctification.
Some people have the idea that Christianity is a kind-of Stoicism. They imagine that if a Christian
Suffers X-Number of Crosses
in his Life, he will get X-Degrees of Glory
in the Next. But Christ told us that it is our
Suffering that will be changed into Joy. We don't
Suffer and then get Paid, Sufferings
are not to be borne for Wages. They are creating our Glory.
That is the Mystery of the Cross.
Jesus was Obedient to the
Father until Death.
He fulfilled the Plan of the
Father because He shared the same
Spirit, the same Love.
Whilst going through the Painful process of trying to
Die to ourselves this Lent, in order to become open to
God's Will, we will have noticed that whenever our lifestyle Conflicted with the
Gospel Message there was real Suffering. We will have collected some
Wounds. The Risen Christ bears
His Wounds to reveal His Glory.
Our Wounds, gained in Dying in
Obedience to our Heavenly Father, will
reveal our Salvation.
The Blessed Virgin Mary on Suffering
If the Eternal Father chooses a Soul to the
Grace of becoming among the Elect,
He will order that Soul to become similar to
His Only Begotten Son while on Earth. But in what way should this
Soul be like His Son? In
Love and Acceptance of Sufferings. If you follow your
Jesus in these Two (2) Ways, then the
Eternal Father will recognize His Holy Son in you.
The Souls chosen by the Eternal Father to
offer their lives, must strive to Save as many other
Souls as possible. This can be done through Fervent Prayer, through the
Practicing of Love, through Meekness,
Humility and Self-Denial, but above all,
through the Patient Acceptance of Sufferings.
I believe that My Motherly Heart will find
among my children Souls who Love God with the
Love of the Martyrs.
My children, even in the time of the greatest Trials,
hold My Motherly Hand with Unbounded Trust. Come together with
me to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
He is your Strength in your Earthly Pilgrimage. Thus, Strengthened by Him
daily, you will march toward your Eternal Dwelling Place of Happiness where you will
recognize each other in Glorious Ecstasy, you who
Sacrificed your lives for the Glory of God and the
Salvation of Souls. Then My Holy Son
will embrace you to His Flaming Heart, and He
will immerse you in the Ecstasy of the united Love of
the Trinity. In this State of Eternal Bliss you will
rejoice forever together with those Souls who were able to gain
Eternal Life because of your Selfless Life Sacrifice.
No matter how Heavy your Suffering on Earth,
it will last but a Short Time. Rejoice while you Suffer,
because you are proceeding toward a Sure Goal, and at the end of this road your
Heavenly Mother is waiting for you to embrace you
with the Eternal Love of the Trinity.
My children! I am calling you to Apostolic Privilege.
You are chosen to Suffer Martyrdom of the Heart
for the Sins of others. And by this Voluntary Life
Sacrifice -- coming from your Good Heart --
God will be able to pour out the Flood of His Mercy. Think about that!
My Beloved Children! If you carry Patiently
the Little Thorn from the Cross of
My Son that
He has given to you, you can Save countless
Souls from Eternal Damnation. Thus, holding the hand of your
Heavenly Mother, you too will Partake in the
Work of Redemption. My children! Do not
ask-for Sufferings, but always accept with
Humility and Selflessness, those that the
Lord hands to you.
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen on Suffering
The great difference between a Christian and a Pagan
in such a Trial is that the Christian receives
Suffering; he even speaks of it as coming from the Hands of
the Crucified; the Unbeliever, however, finds no place for it in the
Universe because it negates his Egotism; it cancels out his
Love-of-Pleasure, and it begets an Inferno within him.
A Cross to the Christian is
outside him and therefore Bearable; the double Cross on the inside of the
Unbeliever is Insoluble,
Unbearable.
Saint Francis de Sales on Suffering
The Everlasting God has in His Wisdom foreseen from Eternity the Cross that He now presents to you as a Gift from His inmost Heart.
This Cross He now sends you He has considered with His All-Knowing Eyes, understood with His Divine Mind, tested with His Wise Justice,
warmed with Loving Arms and weighed with His Own Hands to see that it be not one inch too large and not one ounce too heavy for you.
He has Blessed it with His Holy Name, Anointed it with His Grace, Perfumed it with His Consolation, taken one last glance at you and
your Courage, and then sent it to you from Heaven, a Special Greeting from God to you, an Alms of the all-Merciful Love of God.
St Francis de Sales
Saint Alphonsus Liguori on Suffering
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And when God sends us Crosses, let us
not only be Resigned, but let us also thank Him, since it is a Sign that
He means to Pardon our
Sins and Save us from
Hell.
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Audio Treatises on Suffering
An 8 minute homily by Father Leo Clifford
on your Cross and Suffering
A short 6 minute Spiritual Reflection
on Suffering by Father Frank Pavone
An excellent talk by Father Robert Spitzer
on how Suffering can be the most
meaningful moments of our lives
by Father Paul Hinnebush, O.P., STM
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