Premise
Scrolling through the words of the dialogue between the poor soul and the Voice, which later declared itself to be that of Our Lord Jesus the Christ, I perceived some echoes of the Word that Jesus uttered two thousand years ago in Palestine and those of the Word of God when he drew from a stiff-necked people the people of Israel (Ex 33: 5). Even in revealing Himself to the poor soul, the Voice has done things slowly, as one who discreetly enters the heart, but first of all he wants to make himself known, not immediately to reveal himself for who he is, but allows time so that the creature can understand, and then communicates his project about her and the Work, which would be formed, in order to establish a more solemn, ardent, practical cult of the Holy Spirit.
Behold, this would be a journey between the Words of Revelation and those of the Voice, without any claim of completeness or scientificity, to establish a connection between these and those, a parallel that makes you guess that it is precisely the Lord who speaks and not only speaks. In fact, beyond the word, there are also attitudes of the Lord that give a precise meaning to the word that he pronounces and they are significant to his divine nature combined with that of human nature.
Therefore, the reading will be structured according to the order of the messages in the blue book “Divine Power of Love”, trying to identify in the message an echo, a fact, a word or a meaning that has a resonance in Revelation. From this, for personal edification, simple conclusions will be drawn.
Chap. 1 – I have chosen your heart as a small shelter, let me enter, I need love
In this first affirmation of the Voice, the choice of the heart of the poor soul, considered a refuge, the fact of being able to enter it and the need for love, would seem to have resonance.
The Choice
The choices the Lord makes in the Bible are many, often made through prophets or events. They are always choices that, in the judgement of people and according to their experience, cannot be successful. How can a people of shepherds be successful? It would have been better to rely on the Assyrians, the Babylonians or the Egyptians, more culturally and technically evolved populations, in all respects. But with the Lord, no! He relies on and trusts a small people of shepherds, politically, culturally and technically insignificant for the time, makes a promise to them in the person of Abraham that becomes an alliance with Moses and a reality in Christ. The Lord’s choice always falls on simplicity, deficiency of means and humility. The first example that comes to mind is the choice of David (1Sam 16:1-13). Samuel is sent by the Lord to the house of Jesse, with a horn full of oil to anoint the new consecrated, since Saul, who was chosen by the Lord as the first king of Israel, had not proven himself worthy. It is true that the Lord chooses, but people are always free to reject what the Lord has thought of him. One by one, Samuel examines seven of the eight Jesse’s sons, but the Lord rejects them all, telling Samuel that he has rejected them “Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the Lord looks into the heart.” The last, David, the youngest of the family who was doing the most humble work, that is grazing the flock, is precisely the consecrated, the anointed, the one whom the Lord chooses as king of Israel and Scripture says that ” and from that day on, the spirit of the Lord rushed upon David.” He was full of the spirit of the Lord. However, we must always be conscious of the fact that this did not prevent him from sin. It seems that the Voice has made the choice of humility and hiding, this time too. I would see precisely in this choice of humility and concealment the voice of the poor soul, chosen among many others, precisely for her qualities which are not those appreciated by men. This is because the Lord sees the heart!
We could find other references in the scriptures such as the choice of Joseph the son of Abraham to save the people affected by famine (Gen 37:1ff), the call of the prophet Amos (Am 7:14f) or that of Jeremiah (Jer 1:4-10) who from simple herdsmen and farmers are called by the Lord to perform works they would never have dreamt of (Jer 1:10). These are choices of simplicity and concreteness, choices made considering the freedom of the chosen subject and always for great purposes.
The Lord Sees the Heart
The choice of the heart of the poor soul as a small refuge, as a humble and pure dwelling, recalls one of the Beatitudes of the Gospel of Matthew (Mt 5:8): “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.” This is literally what happened to the poor soul. It helps us to understand St Gregory of Nyssa [i] : “What is free and pure from all sordid desire, this is certainly addressed to the author and prince of peace, Christ. Those who draw and derive from him, as if from a pure and uncorrupted spring, the feelings and affections of his heart, will present, with his principle and origin, such similarity as he may have with his spring water, which flows into the stream or shines in the amphora.
In fact, the purity that is in Christ and the purity that is in our hearts is the same. But Christ’s is identified with the source; ours, on the other hand, comes from him and flows into us, dragging with it the beauty and honesty of thoughts, so that a certain coherence and harmony appears between the inner man and the outer man, since thoughts and feelings, which come from Christ, regulate life and guide it in order and holiness.”
We can recognize in these words the attitude, the predisposition of mind, the will of the poor soul. She did not see God, but spoke with Him, confided in Him, received affection and invitations, and, with the eyes of faith, this is much more than seeing him!
A small shelter
These words of the voice make one think of a makeshift shelter, a place where you can rest and stay in peace as well. A comfortable and robust place made up precisely for that purpose. Here comes to mind the hospitality that a lady of Shunem gave to the prophet Elisha (2Kgs 4: 8ff) who used to go to her. She and her husband prepared him a little room on the roof to accommodate him on his frequent visits. A room with all the comforts of the time: “a bed, table, chair, and lamp” to make the living room as good as possible. The prophet found himself at ease, and with the Lord’s help he wanted to reciprocate hospitality with a great gift: a son for a woman who had not been able to have it. In the poor soul, her heart is the refuge, her great faith and the love shown and lived are the hospitality, and the spiritual filiation is the gift of so many people who still consider her message interesting and formative for their lives.
Let me in
But there is a step still to be taken by all of us, admitted that we have the heart ready to host him: let him in, because (Rev 3:19-21): “Those whom I love, I reprove and chastise. Be earnest, therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, (then) I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me. I will give the victor the right to sit with me on my throne, as I myself first won the victory and sit with my Father on his throne.” If we were to prepare our heart, but then never let it him in, we wouldn’t have done anything interesting. Only if we open the door to him, then we will find the goal of our existence, which will be not only eating with him, but, and above all, sitting with him on his throne which is the same of the Father. This promise I would see fulfilled precisely in the life of the poor soul who has been reprimanded and educated, prepared her heart and opened it in the presence of Christ. She dined with him at the Eucharistic canteen and now, we all hope, that she is on the throne with him, out of his grace and mercy.
I would end, therefore, with an appeal of St. John Paul II [ii]: “Brothers and Sisters! Do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power!
[…] Don’t be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!
To his saving power open the boundaries of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization, and development. Do not be afraid.
[i] From the Treaty “The Perfect Ideal of a Christian”
[ii] Homily of John Paul II for the inauguration of his pontificate, Sunday, 22 October 1978