> [[350-designs-of-peace-and-love|← 350. Designs of Peace and Love]] | [[-divine-intimacy-toc|TOC]] | [[352-interior-trials|352. Interior Trials →]] # 351. Passive Purification PRESENCE OF GOD - My God, illumine my way, that I may not go astray in the midst of the darkness of tribulation. ## Meditation 1 Although it is possible for us to enter the night of the Spirit by A generous practice of total renunciation and an intense exercise of the theological virtues, we will never be able to penetrate into its deepest part if God Himself does not place us there. Only He can deepen the darkness which envelops us in this night, so that we may be reduced to nothingness in all, to the point of attaining the purity and poverty of Spirit which are required for union. Far from taking the initiative, our task is then reduced to accepting with love, to enduring with patience and humility all that God disposes for us In order not to resist the divine action, we should remember that God generally purifies souls through the ordinary circumstances of life. In the life of every Christian, every apostle, every religious, there is always a measure of suffering sufficient to effect the purification of the spirit. These are the sufferings which God Himself chooses and disposes in the way best suited to the different needs of souls; but, unfortunately, few profit by them because few know how to recognize in the sorrows of life the hand of God who wishes to purify them. Illness, bereavement, estrangement, separation from dear ones, misunderstandings, struggles, difficulties proceeding sometimes from the very ones who should have been able to give help and support, failure of works that were cherished and sustained at the price of great labor, abandonment by friends, physical and spiritual solitude —these are some of the sufferings which are met with more or less in the life of every man, and which we will find in ours. We must understand that all such things are positively willed or at least permitted by God precisely to purify us even to the very inmost fibers of our being. In the face of these trials, we must never blame the malice of men, or stop to examine whether or not they are just; we must see only the blessed hand of God who offers us these bitter remedies to bring perfect health to our soul. St. John of the Cross writes: “It greatly behooves the soul, then, to have patience and constancy in all the tribulations and trials which God sends it, whether they come from without or from within, and are spiritual or corporal, great or small. It must take them all as from His hand for its healing and its good, and not flee from them, since they are health to it” (LF > 2,30). ## Meditation 2 Let us consider how great a spirit of faith is necessary to accept from the hand of God all the circumstances which afflict and humble, contradict and mortify us. It will sometimes be easier to accept heavy trials which come directly from Our Lord, such as illness and bereavement, than other lighter ones where creatures enter into play, and for which, perhaps, we experience greater repugnance. The immediate action of creatures, especially if their malice has a share in it, makes it more difficult for us to discover the divine hand. A greater spirit of faith is necessary here, that we may pass beyond the human side of circumstances, the faulty way of acting of such and such a person, and find, beyond all these human contingencies, the dispositions of divine Providence, which wills to use these particular creatures, and even their defects and errors, to file away our self-love and destroy our pride. The counsel given by St. John of the Cross to a religious will be very useful for us in such cases: “Thou must know that those (who are in the convent) are no more than workers whom God has placed there only that they might work upon and chisel at thee by mortifying thee. And some will cut at thee through words...others in deed...others by their thoughts, neither esteeming nor feeling love for thee... and thou must be subject to them in all things, even as an image is subject to him that fashions it and to him that paints it and to him that gilds it” (P, 15). Profoundly convinced that God guides and disposes all for the good of those who love Him, the soul of faith sees in every person a messenger from our Lord, charged by Him to exercise it in virtue, particularly in that which it lacks most. Instead of rebelling and being indignant because of some want of consideration or even some really unjust treatment, it bows its head and accepts all humbly, as the most suitable treatment for curing its faults and imperfections. This must be our conduct, if we wish to draw profit from all the trials that God places in our path. In each instance we must keep ourselves from posing as a victim, from protesting, from complaining, or from retaliating. Whatever suffering may come to us from creatures has only one true explanation: Our Lord wishes to purify us, and is beginning to do it precisely through these exterior tribulations. Let us be persuaded that all serves greatly for our spiritual progress, because before attaining to union with God, it is necessary to be reduced to nothingness, that is, to be established in profoundest humility. ## Colloquy “Teach me, my God, to suffer in peace the afflictions which You send me that my soul may emerge from the crucible like gold, both brighter and purer, to find You within me. Trials like these, which at present seem unbearable, will eventually become light, and I shall be anxious to suffer again, if by so doing I can render You greater service. And however numerous may be my troubles and persecutions...they will all work together for my greater gain though I do not myself bear them as they should be borne, but in a way which is most imperfect” ([[teresa-of-avila-saint|T.J.]] [[tj-life-ccel-toc|Life]], 30). “O grandeur of my God! All the temptations and tribulations which You permit to come upon us, absolutely all, are ordered for our good, and if we have no other thought, when we are tried here below, than that of Your goodness, this will suffice for us to overcome every temptation. “O Word of God, my sweet and loving Spouse, all power in heaven and on earth is Yours. You confound and put to flight every enemy. As for me, I am extremely weak; I cannot see, being filled with misery and sins; but by Your slightest glance, O Word, You put all these enemies to flight, like bits of straw in the wind; first, however, You permit them to give battle to Your servants, to make these, Your servants, more glorious. And the greater the grace and light You want to give Your servants, that they may love and know You better, the more do You try them by fire and purify their hearts like gold, so that their virtues may shine like precious stones. “By Your power, O divine Word, You confer strength for the combat, and he who wishes to fight manfully for Your glory must first descend into the most profound knowledge of self, yet all the while raising his heart to You, that he may not be confounded” ([[mary-magdalen-dei-pazzi-saint|St. Mary Magdalen dei Pazzi]]). --- ## Reference T.J. - [[teresa-of-avila-saint|Saint Teresa of Jesus]] Way - [[tj-way-ccel-toc|Way of Perfection]] Life - [[tj-life-ccel-toc|The Book of Her Life by St. Teresa of Jesus]] # References LF - [[jc-living-flame|Living Flame of Love by Saint John of the Cross]] P - [[jc-precautions-cautions|Precautions (Cautions) by Saint John of the Cross]] T.J. - [[teresa-of-avila-saint|Saint Teresa of Avila]] Life - [[tj-life-ccel-toc|Life by Saint Teresa of Avila]] Way - [[tj-way-ccel-toc|Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila]] --- ![[bibliography#^biblio-di]] > [[350-designs-of-peace-and-love|← 350. Designs of Peace and Love]] | [[-divine-intimacy-toc|TOC]] | [[352-interior-trials|352. Interior Trials →]]