368. One of the great miracles of divine omnipotence
and a wonder of wonders was the conduct of the most
holy Mary toward the Apostles and disciples of her Son
and Savior Christ. A full account of her wisdom is im
possible to human tongue, and if I would wish to de
scribe no more than what I have been made to under
stand concerning this matter, I would be obliged to write
a large volume. I will touch upon it in this chapter and
as occasion requires in the rest of this history. All that
I can say is very little, yet from it the faithful can infer
enough for their instruction. All those whom the Savior
received into his divine school, were to see and treat
familiarly his most blessed Mother. Hence He infused
into their hearts an especial reverence and devotion
toward that blessed Lady. But though this infused
reverence was common to all, it was not equal in all the
disciples ; for the Lord distributed his gifts according to
his free will in reference to their dispositions and in
accordance with the duties and offices for which each
one was destined. By conversation and familiar inter
course with their great Queen and Lady their reverential
love and devotion was to grow and increase; for the
blessed Lady spoke to all, loved them, consoled them,
instructed and assisted them in their necessities, without
ever permitting them to leave her conversation and
presence unreplenished by interior joy and consolation
greater than they had asked for. Yet the measure of
good fruit derived from them was dependent upon the
disposition of the heart of those that received these
favors.
369. They were all enabled to begin their intercourse
with the Mother of God in high admiration of her pru
dence, wisdom, purity, holiness and great majesty, and
were made sensible of a sweetness in Her inexpressibly
humble and pleasing. This was so ordained by the
Most High, because as I have said in the fifth book,
chapter twenty-second, it was not yet time to reveal this
mystic Ark of the new Testament to the world. Thus,
just as the Lord, however much He wished to break forth
in her praise, could not manifest it in words and concen
trated it within his heart; so the holy Apostles, sweetly
constrained into silence, found a vent for their fervent
feelings in a so much the more intense love of most holy
Mary and praise of her Maker. As the great Lady, on
account of her peerless insight knew the natural disposi
tion of each of the disciples, his measure of grace, his
present condition and future office, She proceeded ac
cording to this knowledge in her petitions and prayers,
in her instructions and conversings with them, and
in the favors She obtained for each in support of his
vocation. Such a loving zeal in the conduct of a mere
Creature so entirely pleasing to the wishes of his Lord,
excited a new and boundless admiration in the holy
angels. Of no less admiration was the hidden providence
of the Almighty by which the Apostles were made to
correspond to the blessings and favors received by them
at the intercession of the most holy Mother. All this
caused a divine harmony of action, hidden to men and
manifest only to the heavenly spirits.
370. Especially signalized for the reception of these
sacramental favors were saint Peter and saint John ; the
former because he was destined to be the vicar of Christ
and head of the militant Church and because he therefore
deserved the special reverence and love of the holy
Mother; the latter because he was to take the place of
the Lord after his Passion in attending
1 upon and con
versing with the heavenly Lady upon earth. As there
fore the government and custody of the mystic Church,
namely of Mary immaculate and of the visible militant
Church, namely the faithful on earth, was to be divided
between these two Apostles, it was no wonder, that they
should be singularly favored by the great Queen of the
world. But as saint John was chosen to serve Mary and
attain the dignity of an adopted son of the Mistress of
heaven, he at once began to experience special urgings
of grace and signalize himself in the service of the
most holy Mary. Although all the Apostles excelled in
devotion to the Queen beyond our power of understand
ing or conception, the evangelist saint John penetrated
deeper into the mysteries of this City of God and re
ceived through Her such divine enlightenment as to
excel all the other Apostles. This is also evident from
his Gospel (John 21, 20) ; all the divine insight therein
manifested he received through the Queen of heaven,
and the distinction of being called the beloved disciple of
Jesus, he gained by his love toward the most blessed
Mother. As this love was reciprocated by the heavenly
Lady, he became the most beloved disciple both of Jesus
and Mary.
371. The Evangelist besides chastity and virginal
purity, possessed some other virtues which were es
pecially pleasing to the Queen; among them were a
dovelike simplicity, as is manifest from his writings, and
a great gentleness and humility, which made him most
meek and tractable. The heavenly Mother always looked
upon the peaceful and the humble as the most faithful
imitators of her divine Son. On this account the blessed
Queen favored saint John above all the other Apostles and
he himself became more and more anxious to serve Her
with ever increasing reverential love and affection. From
the very first moment of his vocation saint John com
menced to excel all the rest in piety toward the Mother
Mary and to fulfill the least of her wishes as her most
humble slave. He attended upon Her more assiduously
than the rest ; and whenever it was possible he sought to
be in her company and take upon himself some of the bod
ily labors connected with her present life. Sometimes it
happened that the fortunate Apostle competed with the
holy angels in his zeal for thus assisting the great Queen ;
while She still more eagerly sought to perform these
works of humility Herself; for in this virtue She
triumphed over all other creatures and none of them could
ever hope in the least to surpass or equal Her in acts of
humility. The beloved disciple was very diligent in re
porting to the heavenly Lady the works and miracles
wrought by the Savior, whenever She herself could not
be present, and in informing Her of the new disciples
converted by his teaching. He was constantly alert and
studious to serve Her in the least of her wishes, fulfilling
each one of them with a loving eagerness.
372. Saint John also distinguished himself by the
reverence with which he spoke to Mary, for in her pres
ence he always called Her "Lady," or "my Mistress;"
and in Her absence he entitled Her "Mother of our
Master Jesus." After the Ascension of the Lord when
speaking of Her, he was the first to call Her "Mother
of God and of the Redeemer of the world;" and when
speaking to Her, he addressed Her "Mother" and
"Mistress." In her honor he invented also the other
titles calling- Her "The propitiation for sin" and "the
Mistress of Nations." In particular saint John invented
the title "Mary of Jesus," as She was often called in the
primitive Church; and he gave Her that name, because
he knew that the sound of these words awoke the sweetest
memories in the heart of the blessed Virgin. I also desire
to give joyful thanks to the Lord, that without my merits
He has called me to the light of holy faith and to
the religious life, which I profess under this very name
of Mary of Jesus. The other Apostles were well aware
of the favor in which he stood with most holy Mary,
and they often asked him to be their messenger in their
behalf for what they desired to say or ask of their Queen.
The gentle intercession of this holy Apostle often pro
cured for them tokens of the loving kindness of the
sweetest Mother. Concerning1 this intercourse of saint
John with the Mother of grace, I will say more in the
third part and it would be easy to write an extensive
history in merely mentioning the favors and blessings
obtained by saint John from this Mistress and Queen of
the world.
373. Next to saint Peter and saint John, saint James
was most beloved by the blessed Mother. He was the
brother of saint John, and, as we shall see from some
instances to be related in the third part of this history,
he obtained admirable favors at the hands of the great
Lady. Also saint Andrew was among those especially
favored by the Queen; because She knew of his great
devotion to the passion and cross of Christ and of his
being destined to die on it like his divine Master. I will
not stop to speak of her love toward the other Apostles,
for She regarded them all with great affection, some on
account of one virtue, some on account of another, and
all of them because of their connection with her most
holy Son. This affection toward them She showed with
rarest prudence, humility and charity. Magdalen also
had a share in her special love ; for Mary knew that the
love of this woman for her Son was most ardent and
that this great penitent was eminently chosen for the
manifestation of the magnificence of God s mercy toward
men. Most holy Mary distinguished her before the other
women in her familiar intercourse and enlightened her
in regard to most exalted mysteries, by which She in
flamed still more the love of Magdalen toward Jesus and
toward Herself. The holy penitent consulted the heavenly
Lady in regard to her desire of retreating into solitude
in order to live in continual contemplation and penance;
and the sweetest Mother instructed her in the deep mys
teries of solitary life. This life She afterwards em
braced with the consent and blessing of the Queen. Later
on Mary visited her in her retreat in person and by
means of the angels often encouraged and consoled Mag
dalen in the horrors of the desert. The other women,
who were in the company of Jesus, were much favored
by the most blessed Mother; all of them and all the
disciples of the Lord experienced her incomparable kind
ness and they were filled with an intense devotion and
affection toward the Mistress and Mother of grace.
They drew of the treasures of grace from Her as from
a storehouse, where God had laid up his gifts for the
whole human race. I do not dwell longer on this doctrine,
for, aside of its being unnecessary since it is expounded
by our holy Church, it would consume much time to do
it justice.
374. I will, however, say something of that which has
been made known to me concerning the wicked Apostle
Judas; for it belongs to this history and less is known
of him. It will at the same time be a warning to the
obstinate and an admonition for those little devoted to
the most blessed Mary; for it is a sad truth that there
should be any mortals who entertain little love toward
a Creature so lovable, and One whom the infinite God
himself loves without bound or measure; whom the
angels love with all their heavenly powers, the Apostles
and saints from their inmost souls, whom all creatures
should eagerly strive to love, and who never can be
loved according to her merits. Yet this unhappy Apostle
strayed from the royal road of divine love and its bless
ings. The understanding, which has been given me con
cerning this defection for the purpose of making it known
in this history, is contained in the following paragraphs.
375. Judas was attracted to the school of Christ our
Teacher by his forceful doctrines, and was filled with
the same good intentions which moved the others.
Powerfully drawn by these motives, he asked the Savior
to admit him among his disciples, and the Savior received
him with the bowels of a loving Father, who rejects
none that come to Him in search of truth. In the be
ginning Judas merited special favors and forged ahead
of some of the other disciples, deserving to be numbered
among the twelve Apostles; for the Savior loved his
soul according to its present state of grace and his good
works, just as He did the others. The Mother of grace
and mercy observed the same course with him, although
by her infused knowledge She immediately became aware
of the perfidious treachery with which he was to end his
apostolate. She did not, on this account, deny him her
intercession and maternal love; but she applied Herself
even more zealously to justify as far as possible the cause
of her divine Son against this perfidious and unfortunate
man, in order that his wickedness, as soon as it should
be put into action, might not have the shadow of an ex
cuse before men. Well knowing that such a character
as his could not be overcome by rigor, but would only
be driven by it to so much the greater obstinacy, the
most prudent Lady took care, that none of the wants or
the comforts of Judas should be ignored and She began
to treat him, speak and listen to him more gently and
lovingly than to all the rest. This She carried so far,
that Judas, when the disciples once disputed among them
selves concerning their standing with the Queen (as, ac
cording to the Evangelist [Luke 22, 24], it happened
also concerning the Redeemer), never experienced the
least jealousy or doubt in this matter; for the blessed
Lady in the beginning always distinguished him by
tokens of special love and he, at that time, also showed
himself thankful for these favors.
376. But as Judas found little support in his natural
disposition, and as the disciples, not being as yet con
firmed in virtue and not as yet even in grace, were guilty
of some human failings, the imprudent man began to
compliment himself on his perfection and to take more
notice of the faults of his brethren than of his own
(Luke 6, 41 ). He permitted himself thus to be deceived,
making no effort to amend or repent, he allowed the
beam in his own eyes to grow while watching the
splinters in the eyes of others. Complaining of their little
faults and seeking, with more presumption than zeal, to
correct the weaknesses of his brethren, he committed
greater sins himself. Among the other Apostles he
singled out saint John, looking upon him as an intermeddler
and accusing him in his heart of ingratiating
himself with the Master and his blessed Mother. The
fact that he received so many special favors from Them
was of no avail to deter him from this false assumption.
Yet so far Judas had committed only venial sins and had
not lost sanctifying grace. But they argued a very bad
disposition, in which he wilfully persevered. He had
freely entertained a certain vain complacency in himself ;
this at once called into existence a certain amount of envy,
which brought on a calumnious spirit and harshness in
judging of the faults of his brethren. These sins opened
the way for greater sins; for immediately the fervor of
his devotion decreased, his charity toward God and men
grew cold, and his interior light was lost and extin
guished; he began to look upon the Apostles and upon
the most holy Mother with a certain disgust and find
little pleasure in their intercourse and their heavenly
activity.
377. The most prudent Lady perceived the growth of
this defection in Judas. Eagerly seeking his recovery
and salvation before he should cast himself entirely into
the death of sin, She spoke to him and exhorted him as
her beloved child and with extreme sweetness and force
of reasoning. Although at times this storm of torment
ing thoughts, which had begun to rise in the breast of
Judas, was allayed ; yet it was only for a short time, and
soon it arose and disturbed him anew. Giving entrance
to the devil into his heart, he permitted a furious rage
against the most meek Dove to take possession of him.
With insidious hypocrisy he sought to deny his sins or
palliate them by alleging other reasons for his conduct:
as if he could ever deceive Jesus and Mary and hide from
Them the secrets of his heart. Thereby he lost his in
terior reverence for the Mother of mercy, despising her
exhortations and openly reproaching Her for her gentle
words and reasonings. This ungrateful presumption
threw him from the state of grace, the Lord was highly
incensed and deservedly left him to his own evil counsels.
By thus designedly rejecting the kindness and the inter
cession of most holy Mary, he closed against himself the
gates of mercy and of his only salvation. His disgust
with the sweetest Mother soon engendered in him an ab
horrence of his Master; he grew dissatisfied with his doc
trines and began to look upon the life of an Apostle and
intercourse with the disciples as too burdensome.
378. Nevertheless divine Providence did not abandon
him immediately, but continued to send him interior as
sistance, although in comparison with former helps they
were of a kind more common and ordinary. They were,
however, in themselves sufficient for his salvation, if he
would have made use of them. To these graces were
added the gentle exhortations of the kindest Mistress,
urging him to restrain himself and to humble himself
and ask pardon of his divine Master. She offered him
mercy in his name and her own kind assistance in ob
taining it, promising to do penance for him, if he would
consent to be sorry for his sins and amend his life. All
these advances did the Mother of grace make in order to
prevent the fall of Judas. She was well aware, that not
seeking to arise from a fall and to persevere in sin was
a much greater evil than to have fallen. The conscience
of this proud disciple could not but reproach him with
his wickedness ; but becoming hardened in his heart, he
began to dread the humiliation, which would have been
to his credit, and he fell into still greater sins. In his
pride he rejected the salutary counsels of the Mother of
Christ and chose rather to deny his guilt, protesting with
a lying tongue, that he loved his Master and all the rest,
and that there was no occasion for amending his con
duct in this regard.
379. It was indeed an admirable example of patience
and charity which Christ, our Savior, and his most
blessed Mother gave us in their conduct toward Judas
after his fall into sin ; for as long as he remained in their
company, They never showed exteriorly any change or
irritation in their behavior toward him, nor did They
cease to treat him with the same kindness and gentleness
as all the rest. This was the reason why the wickedness
of Judas, who necessarily showed signs of his evil state
in his daily conversation and intercourse, remained so
long concealed to the Apostles. For it is not easy, and
perhaps not possible, continually to cover up or hide the
tendencies of one s mind. In matters not depending upon
deliberation we always act according to our character
and our habits, and thus we disclose them at least to the
watchful eyes of those with whom we have much inter
course. But as all of the disciples witnessed the constant
affability and love of Christ our Redeemer and his most
blessed Mother toward Judas, they suppressed their sus
picions and ignored the exterior proofs of his wickedness.
Hence all of them were much disturbed and agitated,
when at the last Supper the Lord told them, that one of
them was to betray Him (Matth. 24) ; and each one
searched his soul, whether the accusation could refer to
his own self. Saint John, on account of his greater
intimacy, had some suspicion of the wicked doings of
Judas and he was made more restless by his love ; there
fore Jesus pointed out the traitor, but only by a sign,
as is related in the Gospel (John 13, 26). Before that
time the Lord had not given the least intimation of what
was passing in the heart of Judas. This forbearance
was yet more wonderful in the most blessed Mary, who,
though the Mother of Christ and a mere Creature, saw
his perfidious betrayal close at hand and about to cause
the death of her own Son, whom She loved so tenderly
as a Mother and as a Handmaid.
380. O ignorance and folly of men ! How differently
do we behave, if we are slightly affronted, though we de
serve it so much! How unwillingly do we bear with the
weaknesses of others, though expecting all men to bear
with ours! How grudgingly we pardon an offense,
though daily and hourly asking the Lord to pardon us
our own! (Matth. 6, 12). How prompt and cruel are
we in making known the faults of our brethren, yet how
resentful and angry at any word of criticism against us!
None do we measure with the same measure with which
we desire to be measured, and we do not wish to be
judged by the same standard as we judge others (Matth.
7, 1, 2). All this is perversity and darkness, a breath
from the mouth of the hellish dragon, who wishes to
stem the flow of the most precious virtue of charity and
disconcert the order of human and divine reasonableness ;
for God is charity, and he who exercises it perfectly is in
God and God is in him. Lucifer is wrath and vengeance
and all those that yield to these vices follow the devil,
who is leading them on to all the vices opposed to the
good of the neighbor. Though the beauty of this virtue
of charity has always filled my heart with the desire of
possessing it fully, nevertheless I see, as in a clear
mirror, that I have arrived not even at a beginning of
this most noble virtue as exhibited in these wonders of
divine charity toward the most ungrateful disciple Judas.
381. In order that I may not incur the blame of con
cealing what belongs to this chapter, I will mention
another cause of the ruin of Judas. When the number
of the Apostles and disciples increased, the Lord resolved
to appoint one of them to take charge of the alms re
ceived ; thus to supply the common needs and pay the
imperial tribute. Jesus made known his wishes to all
indiscriminately without addressing Himself to any one
in particular. While all of them feared such an office
and sought to evade it, Judas immediately strove to
obtain it. In order to secure his appointment he humbled
himself so far as to ask saint John to speak to the most
holy Queen and induce Her to arrange this matter for
him with her Son. Saint John yielded to the request
of Judas and spoke to the most prudent Mother; but
She, knowing that this request of Judas was not proper
or just, but proceeded from ambition and avarice, did
not wish to propose it to the divine Master. The same
kind of influence Judas sought to bring into play through
saint Peter and other Apostles, without success; for the
Lord in his goodness wished to stay his ruin, and justify
his cause before men, if He should grant the request.
At this resistance the heart of Judas, already corrupted
by avarice, instead of quietly yielding, was consumed
with unhappy desires for the office, and the devil stirred
up thoughts of vilest ambition, such as would have been
most improper and wicked in any one, and hence were
much more culpable in Judas, who had been a disciple
in the school of highest perfection and who had lived in
the light of the Sun of justice and its beautiful Moon,
Mary ! Neither in the day of abundant graces, when the
Sun Jesus lighted his paths, nor in the night of temp
tations, when the Moon Mary disclosed to him the wiles
of the poisonous serpent, could he have failed to become
aware of the wickedness of such suggestions. But, as he
flew from the light and cast himself willfully into dark
ness, he presumed to ask most holy Mary in a direct
manner for her influence in obtaining his object. He
had lost all fear and hid his avarice in the cloak of
virtue. Approaching Her, he said that he had made his
request through saint Peter and saint John, with the sole
desire of diligently serving Her and his divine Master,
since not all would attend to the duties of this office
with proper solicitude; and that, therefore, he now asked
Her to obtain the position of purser for him from the
Master.
382. The great Lady answered him with extreme
gentleness: "Consider well, my dearest, what thou
askest, and examine whether thy intentions are up
right. Ponder well, whether it is good for thee to seek
that which all thy brethren fear and refuse to accept,
unless they shall be compelled thereto by the command
of their Lord and Master. He loves thee more than
thou lovest thyself and without doubt knows what will
benefit thee; resign thyself to his most holy will, change
thy purpose, and seek to grow rich in humility and pov
erty. Rise from thy fall, for I will extend thee a helpful
hand and my Son will show thee his loving mercy." Who
would not have yielded to these sweetest words and
such urgent advice, spoken by such an amiable and
heavenly Creature as was most holy Mary? But this
fierce and adamantine heart was not softened or moved.
On the contrary, the soul of Judas was offended and
enraged against the heavenly Lady for thus offering him
a means of escaping from his dreadful danger. Bound
less ambition and avarice roused his fury against Her
who seemed to hinder him in his projects and he con
sidered her well-meant advice as an insult. But the
most meek and loving Dove pretended not to notice his
obstinacy and said nothing more to him at that time.
383. After his interview with most holy Mary, the
avarice of Judas would not allow him to rest; casting
off all modesty and natural shame (and the least spark
of faith), Judas now resolved to apply to his divine
Master and Savior. Clothing himself like a consummate
hypocrite in the garb of a sheep, he went to his Master
and said: "Master, I wish to fulfill thy wishes and
serve Thee as thy purser and as the dispenser of the
alms which we receive; I will look to the interests of
the poor, fulfilling thy doctrine that we should do unto
others as we wish them to do unto us, and I will see to
it that alms are distributed according to thy wishes,
more profitably and orderly than hitherto." Such reason
ing the specious hypocrite boldly used, committing many
enormous sins in one and the same act. For, first of all
he lied, concealing his real intention. Then, being am
bitious of an honor which he did not merit, he neither
wished to appear in his true light nor did he wish to be
in truth what he merely pretended to be. He also
blamed his brethren, discrediting them and praising him
self : the ordinary course of those who are ambitious.
What is especially to be noticed in this conduct of Judas
is that he showed his loss of infused faith; for he at
tempted to deceive Christ, his divine Master, by wear
ing the cloak of hypocrisy. For, if he had firmly believed
that Christ was true God and man who penetrated into
the secrets of the heart, he could not have hoped to be
able to deceive Him; nor would he have attempted such
double dealing, not only because he would have known
Christ as the omniscient God, but because he would not
have hoped to impose upon the infused and beatific
science of Christ as man. Hence Judas had lost belief
in all these prerogatives, and to his other sins, added the
sin of heresy.
384. What the Apostle says in his first letter to
Timothy was literally fulfilled in this treacherous dis
ciple : "For they that will become rich, fall into tempta
tion and into the snares of the devil and into many un
profitable and hurtful desires, which drown men into
destruction and perdition. For the desire of money is
the root of all evils; which some coveting have erred
from the faith and have entangled themselves in many
sorrows" (I Tim. 6,9). All this happened to the perfid
ious and avaricious disciple, and his avarice was so much
the more blamable, since he had the striking and admir
able example of Christ and of his Mother and that of the
whole apostolic company before his eyes; and they all
accepted only very moderate alms. But the wicked dis
ciple imagined that on account of the great miracles of
his Master and the multitudes which followed and
gathered around Him, the alms and offerings would in
crease and he could have at his disposal large amounts.
Seeing that his expectations were not realized, he was
much disappointed, as he plainly showed on the occa
sion of the anointing of the Lord by Mary Magdalen
(Mark 14, 4) ; his desire of gathering in alms induced
him to estimate the value of the ointment at three
hundred pence and to complain that this money was
withheld from the poor, among whom it could have been
distributed. He was moved to say this because he
regretted very much not to lay hands on it himself;
little cared he for the poor. He was highly incensed
against the Mother of mercy because She distributed
such generous alms among the poor; against the Lord
because He would not accept large donations, and
against the Apostles and disciples because they did not
ask for them. All this vexed him sorely because his
purse was thereby kept empty. Some months before the
Death of the Savior, he began frequently to avoid the
other Apostles, absenting himself from their company
and from the Redeemer; for the intercourse with them
was getting irksome to him, and he joined them only in
order to collect what donations he could. During these
times of absence the demon inspired him with the
thought of breaking entirely with the Master and of
delivering Him over to the Jews.
385. But let us return to the answer given to Judas
by the Master, whom he asked to make him purser. We
shall see how hidden and terrible are the judgments of
the Most High. The Redeemer wished to ward off from
him the danger which lay behind this request and which
threatened the avaricious Apostle with final perdition.
In order that Judas might not excuse himself under plea
of ignorance, the Lord answered him : "Dost thou know,
Judas, what thou seekest and what thou askest ? Be not
so cruel toward thy own self as to solicit and seek to
obtain the poison and the arms which may cause thy
death." Judas replied : "Master I desire to serve Thee
by employing my strength in the service of thy faithful
followers and in this way I can do it better than in any
other; for I offer to fulfill all the duties of this office
without fail." This daring presumption of Judas in
seeking and coveting danger, justified the cause of God
in allowing him to enter and perish in the danger thus
sought and coveted. He resisted the light (Eccli. 15,
17), and hardened himself against it, water and fire
was shown him, life and death : he stretched forth his
hand and chose perdition. The justice of the Most High
was made clear and his mercy was exalted, since He had
so often presented Himself at the portals of this hardened
heart, whence He had been spurned in order to make way
for the devil. Later on I will mention further particu
lars of the wickedness of Judas as a warning to mortals;
for I do not wish to prolong this chapter too much and
they will fit better into other parts of this history. What
mortal, subject to sin, will not be seized with great
fear when he thus sees one of his fellow-beings, who
belonged to the school of Christ and of his blessed
Mother, who was reared in the light of his doctrines
and miracles, who performed the same wonders as the
rest, in so short a time pass from the condition of an
Apostle into that of a demon? transform himself from
an innocent sheep into a ravening and bloodthirsty wolf?
From venial sins, Judas proceeded to most grievous
and horrible crimes. He yielded himself to the devil,
who already suspected that Christ was God and who
began to exercise the wrath he had against the Lord
upon this unfortunate disciple strayed from the little
flock. If then the fury of Lucifer is just as great and
much greater after having learnt to his cost that Christ
is the true God and Redeemer, what hope has the soul
of escaping this inhuman and cruel enemy who so ve
hemently and furiously seeks our eternal damnation ?
INSTRUCTION GIVEN TO ME BY THE MOST HOLY
QUEEN OF HEAVEN.
386. My daughter, all that thou hast written in this
chapter is a most important warning for all those that
live in the flesh and in the imminent danger of losing
their eternal happiness. It should teach them to seek my
most kind and powerful intercession and to fear the
judgments of the Most High; for in this lies an effica
cious means of salvation and of meriting higher reward
for the Lord. I wish to remind thee once more, that
among the secrets revealed to the beloved John at the last
Supper, was also this, that he had become the beloved
disciple of Christ on account of his love toward me, and
that Judas fell because he despised the mercy and kind
ness which I had shown him. At that time, also, the
Evangelist understood other great mysteries communi
cated and wrought in me ; that I should take part in the
labor and suffering of the Passion and that he should
have special charge of me. My dearest, the purity which
I require of thee must be greater than that of an angel;
and if thou strive after it thou wilt become my dearest
child, as saint John, and a most beloved and favored
spouse of my Son and Lord. His example and the ruin
of Judas should continually serve thee as a stimulus
and as a warning, to seek only after my love and to be
sincerely thankful for the love shown thee without thy
merit.
387. I wish thee also to understand another secret
hidden from the world : namely, that one of the most
vile and horrible sins before the Lord is the little esteem
in which the just and the friends of the Church are
held, and especially the little veneration shown toward
me, who was chosen for his Mother and am the cause of
the happiness of all men. If the failure to love the
enemies and contempt of them is so displeasing to the
Lord and to the saints of heaven (Matth. 18, 35), how
shall He bear with such treatment of his most dear
friends, whom He holds as the apple of his eye and in
deepest affection? (Ps. 33, 16). This counsel thou canst
never bear in mind too much in this mortal life, and it
is one of the signs of reprobation to hold in abhorrence
the just. Beware of this danger and judge no one,
especially those that reprehend and admonish thee
(Matth. 7, 1). Do not allow thyself to desire worldly
things, least of all any office of superiority; a desire
which allures the human sense, disturbs the judgment
and obscures reason. Envy no one his honor, nor the
possession of any earthly thing, nor seek to obtain from
the Lord anything else than his love and friendship.
Man is full of blindest inclinations, and if he does not
restrain them, he will begin to ask for that which will
cause his eternal perdition. Sometimes the Lord, accord
ing to hidden judgments, grants these petitions in punish
ment for wicked desires and of other sins, as it happened
with Judas. Such souls receive earthly reward for any
good actions which they may have performed during
mortal life. If thou wilt look into the deceptive course
of the lovers of this world, thou wilt see that they con
sider themselves fortunate, whenever they attain all that
they desire according to their earthly inclinations. This
only hastens their greater misfortune; for they, having
received their reward, cannot expect any in the eternal
life. But the just, who despise the world and meet with
many adversities, are withdrawn and shielded from
danger, because the Lord denies them the temporal
goods, which they desire and ask for. In order that
thou mayest not fall into such danger, I exhort and com
mand thee never to hanker after nor to seek earthly
possession. Separate thyself from all; preserve thy will
free and independent; never desire for anything beyond
what is God s pleasure, for He will assume charge of all
those that resign themselves to his divine Providence.
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