Saturday, January 31, 2015

Message on the theme of "Soul" by Luz de Maria - Part 1

The human being, created in God's image and likeness, is fully capable of connecting with Him (Gen 1:26). He can love him and get to know him. We are his children, and we can glide through the divine depths so that they remain open for humanity, where our humanity permeates without taking hold of it, since only the "yes" of man from human will is required—rising above human desire in order to unite with Divine Will. It's not a utopia but infinite and incomparable divine love for his children.

Human beings possess dignity – to maintain dominion over living creatures on earth who live alongside them. Dignity as humans, because man is not "something," but “someone.” And that’s the awareness that should exist in everyone—to connect with the Earth and with other human creations, all called to salvation so they can give a response of faith and love, which each individual person alone can do. No human being can provide an answer for others.

Referring to Augustine, I present his feelings: “Those who love God and submit themselves to His Word are divided into two groups: those seeking eternal peace, and those pursuing the material and temporal goods—preferring themselves over God. Although these two groups have been mixed since the beginning of history, they belong in a way to two different peoples or cities: the former belong to the mystical land of the City of God (Jerusalem), while the latter belong to the transient, worldly city (Babylon). From the beginning of time, they stand opposite each other—but through final judgment, they will be definitively separated.”

In this division between these two groups, both want to have the right to happiness. For that we created our God – in order to be happy and holy as Christ is holy, considering that at His Second Coming, Christ comes to his Holy Church. But for man who ascends toward holiness, he must act like the Divine. Here we find God’s mercy—which isn't opaque before the sinner when showing not only desire but willingness to overcome what goes against growth, since few have voluntarily agreed to be pierced by this lance that doesn’t just burn or wound, but magnetizes the soul of human creation with this divine thirst – something granted to a few human creatures who tasted Heaven in advance: The Saints. Man as part of the Church must be holy like Christ is Holy. Every man is called to perform and act so his actions and deeds are copies of those by Christ—in preparation for Jesus’ return.

If man gives, and if he offers ever so much, if he doesn't purify his will, the giving isn’t as God desires it to be. Therefore, even if he wants to be an eagle and rise into heights, if wings contain traces of human desire—they won’t manage to lift up humanity, and this one remains on Earth looking at himself and lamenting.

Modern man moves like people from past generations – swimming in the midst of a current that numbs the human spirit, diverting him away from the right path where eternal life is found. As in previous generations—there are those who abound in darkness disguised as lamps, groping around in the dark and not finding light, seeing light where there’s darkness—mocking Divine Word loudly proclaiming God isn't explaining his word. These fools with a slight shadow of love for God judge and accuse divine will to continue warning its people – whom he promised He wouldn’t leave alone.

Humanity moves between “already” and “not yet”; a “not yet,” not out of mercy, but this generation will face the revelation of the cleansing heaven, as it has offended its Creator more than other generations.

In human blindness, many say: "We are behaving well, we continue to deny sin because we do not sin. We are free, we are saved, those who act out of free will, everything that was forgiven us, we fear nothing because Christ is grace and forgives all..." – Only that grace is justice for the one who lives righteously, and the sinner will repent.

Heaven in its infinite mercy reveals to us its righteousness, which this generation must face. In this burning, deep desire, God warns us when he appears, so that the sinner may change sin into love for his Lord and God, and God saves their soul. Fear, terror, helplessness are feelings allowed to human creatures as the signs of heaven announce themselves before humanity’s disobedience.

Heaven reveals its signs, while man denies these signs. Fear leads to denial of divine omnipotence over finite human existence. God is not afraid but speaks with truth that man does not know because he lives superficially without acknowledging his Creator, and what he doesn't know scares him.

Save the soul… from what?

Save the soul from the same human ego which itself doesn’t know the soul and casts it out of divine will so that it constantly stumbles in darkness.

Guilty or not guilty, man was created by God and plunged into the lethargy of eager worldly comfort, did not hurry because perhaps the Church didn't emphasize pointing this out enough, and human existence has become comfortable in this light spiritual life that no longer demands more from it to go further. Faith has weakened; the spirit of man prefers new technology and even new liberal ideologies which do not require divine action or deeds but are pursued according to each person’s own will.

On one side, we have the half-heartedness of some powerful figures in the Church who don't preach what is approaching in order to preserve believers. In contrast to priests who preach the truth about the future, yet are distant from urban communities so as not to frighten believers. But what about all those souls that ignore or deny the prophecies of the Mother of God which, out of love for her children, points ahead to the dirty, testing paths humanity is taking if it does not turn back? That's why it’s necessary to preach God “at the right and wrong time,” as Paul says.

Save the soul?

The Mother of God has recently insisted more vehemently on saving the soul. We must expand our concept of the soul if we are to possess it.

Let’s imagine the universe… so we think about the human body: a universe outside the flesh that we see at first glance, but what about inside? What happens in the human body?

The universe depends on God; the universe of our bodies which consists not only of the flesh we see, not just airways or digestion or other systems, but also a spiritual body. We are body, soul and spirit: a trilogy.

We talk so much about the soul. Why is it that we speak so much about taking care of the soul? Why is this so? Because the soul is closer to us because it’s within us. If I say “soul” to you, what do *you* think the soul is?

The soul covers us internally and extends “outward.” When I speak of inside, I imagine something real that has life, weight, energy, circulating through our bodies like blood. The soul circulates and protects our spiritual organism so that we become a reflection of it depending on the treatment we give ourselves and then to others.

We can be good or evil creatures; the soul faces something very complex that we establish ourselves: Good and Evil, Light and Darkness, and with our free will, choose what will encounter our soul, which is God’s creation.

The soul is God's creation, and it is good because everything created by God is good. It is man who is challenged by the devil through his evil passions, the world, and the flesh—helpers of evil—presented to him as something good.

Through its similarity to God, the soul possesses three qualities: memory, understanding, and will. Since the soul is connected with the body, this memory and understanding are very important things we’re called to: The intellect. Our salvation depends on how we use our intellect.

So we're called upon to question in order to read, grow—to strengthen reason and therefore intelligence—and that opens us up to what we know, to what hasn't been said but is true.

Christ brings us new news; his love is constantly moving, leading us from knowledge to knowledge within the novelty of the message, so our intellect and behavior lead us to this passion for souls—like a reflection of the Divine.

If I limit myself and voluntarily position myself as if I were in four walls, only understanding what has already been told me, then I’m limiting my intelligence from looking beyond the boundaries that I have imposed on myself.

Creatures like the saints had to come—and I mention my favorites among them: Saint Theresa, Father Pio, Francis of Assisi, Catherine E. Ana Maria Valtorta, Saint Augustus and many more—who through love and reason knew they needed to live a different kind of life in order to penetrate this first level and rise above it where Christ speaks and the child doesn’t know who is speaking, saying: “I don't see him, I don’t see him and look everywhere but can’t find him.”

They—the saints—only had to approach God more closely and be willing for Him to show them and remove the veil they carried, and they became holy creatures equipped with gifts of the Holy Spirit.

We all have the gifts of the Holy Spirit but we didn’t want to nurture an opening in spiritual intelligence that allows us to say “Yes, yes,” because when we learn something new, we say "No, no!" And Christ wants us to say “Yes, Yes!”

Through this human behavior, the soul grows and the reaction shouldn’t be whether it's "to my liking" or not—whether to have “Christian etiquette” or not. Behavior is each person’s inner willingness to open themselves up to these new things that Christ has always wanted to bring his people. It might even seem contradictory to us, but if we look at the substance of Christ’s word, we see he wanted to show us further things—things one doesn't generally learn.

Mother said: "Wherever the holy Rosary is prayed, My Legions come to bless," and in how many homes is the Rosary actually prayed? There are some where it isn't even prayed because a “light” spirituality is lived. They live sociability, not spirituality. Therefore, the spiritual must be separated from the worldly, and we need to learn to obey Christ, His will, and Our Mother’s call.

These emotional states affect the soul: anger, rage, envy, revenge, harsh words—misdeeds suppress the soul because I stifle it with my actions and reactions, preventing its further development but rather causing regression.

Anger, fear, anxiety – all of this is directed against the soul, as the feelings we have fall back upon it. Augustine says that we can divide people into two groups: those who love God and submit to His word seeking eternal peace, and those who desire material things and temporal goods preferring to love themselves instead of God. And we are mixed within these groups. Therefore, the Word says, “the wheat is mingled with weeds” (Mt 13:24); but no one wants weeds, and perhaps even a part of them doesn’t want to be weeds either.

Since the beginning of human history we have been mixed together and live in this complex debate trying to define the soul and spirit instead of striving to act differently—according to God's way.

But yes, we must know what the soul is, and now we understand that it isn’t an invention but a manifestation of our spiritual body which feels, increases or decreases, has energy – a divine substance providing similarity with God occupying and filling the body.

So we need to remember that feelings, desires, reactions fall back upon the soul, and those who live aligning their souls according to Divine commandments will be present in the mystical City of God; while those who disobey and lead their souls away from reason are distanced from divine spiritual intelligence—they’ll go to eternal fire or Babylon, as we may call it.

Let's be wise. Everything has been revealed to us in Holy Scripture, or through private or public revelations of the Mother, like those at Fatima.

Is no one obligated to believe the Revelations? Yes, but the Word says: “Test everything; hold fast what is good.” (1 Thess 5:20) Don’t throw away Divine words—the moments will come when thirst for this word becomes very strong and it might be too quiet.

The understanding of all creatures forms in a wise person, and whoever refuses to go beyond that, refusing to listen to a Word, leads the individual to stand before treasure but despises opening it out of fear—and then when they want to open it, the treasure is already moldy.

Daily trials strengthen faith if faith rests on correct understanding and gift of creature towards God. Otherwise, the creature remains a mere creature alone looking at God as an Unknown being far removed from it. Amen.