Crucified Christ by Viktor Vasnetsov
For 40 days we have watched Jesus prepare for His final battle on Calvary. All His life He has trained for this day. He was born for this!
And so are we. The life of a Christian is a constant battle. Against ourselves, the world, and the powers of darkness. As Gaudium et Spes states, “man is obliged to wrestle constantly if he is to cling to what is good (37),” and it was no different for St. Faustina. In her Diary, St. Faustina speaks often about the constant spiritual battle, giving us many great thoughts to keep and encourage us on the way:
“My Jesus, despite Your graces, I see and feel all my misery. I begin my day with battle and end it with battle. As soon as I conquer one obstacle, ten more appear to take its place. But I am not worried, because I know that this is the time of struggle, not peace. When the burden of the battle becomes too much for me, I throw myself like a child into the arms of the heavenly Father and trust I will not perish. O my Jesus, how prone I am to evil, and this forces me to be constantly vigilant. But I do not lose heart. I trust God’s grace, which abounds in the worst misery [606].”
This battle is fought first on our knees, our favorite chair, standing, walking, or before the Lord Jesus in an adoration chapel, for no one can remain in the fray unless he first prays. And this includes the elderly. There is no retirement from spiritual combat. As St. Faustina explains, “Old age does not dispense one from the combat [517],” and also, she explains, the beginner, the pure and the sinner:
“A soul arms itself by prayer for all kinds of combat. In whatever state the soul may be, it ought to pray. A soul which is pure and beautiful must pray, or else it will lose its beauty; a soul which is striving after this purity must pray, or else it will never attain it; a soul which is newly converted must pray, or else it will fall again; a sinful soul, plunged in sins, must pray so that it might rise again. There is no soul which is not bound to pray, for every single grace comes to the soul through prayer [517].”
Don’t grow weary of the spiritual warfare but trust that you belong to a “chosen race” (1Pt. 2:9) and a “royal priesthood” (1Pt. 2:9) carrying the King’s royal blood in our veins and further renewed each time we receive His Most Precious Blood at mass. St. Faustina explains our origins and divine genetic makeup of the soul… in your heart of hearts, you know who you are:
“The soul knows it comes from a warrior race. It is now much more aware of everything. It knows that it is of royal stock. It is concerned with all that is great and holy [517].”
God is building up a generation of royal souls who know how to fight! Hence, Jesus exhorts St. Faustina into battle by reminding her that she is the daughter of a king fighting in foreign lands, but that very soon she will enter His Heavenly Kingdom,
“But child, you are not yet in your homeland; so go, fortified by My grace, and fight for My kingdom in human souls; fight as a king’s child would; and remember that the days of your exile will pass quickly, and with them the possibility of earning merit for heaven. I expect from you, My child, a great number of souls who will glorify My mercy for all eternity.” [1489]
Jesus trains St. Faustina to be like a noble and fearless knight of the middle ages, who knows no retreat or flight from the threshold of battle:
“I want you to become like a knight experienced in battle, who can give orders to others amid the exploding shells. In the same way, My child, you should know how to master yourself amid the greatest difficulties, and let nothing drive you away from Me, not even your falls [1823].”
St. Faustina knows and understands that the battle is endless here on earth, and she resolutely fixes her gaze on heaven, as if she were looking at a guiding star or the very sun, careful never to lower her gaze from the homeland:
“Oh, how sweet it is to toil for God and souls! I want no respite in this battle, but I shall fight to the last breath for the glory of my King and Lord. I shall not lay the sword aside until He calls me before His throne; I fear no blows, because God is my shield. It is the enemy who should fear us, and not we him. Satan defeats only the proud and the cowardly, because the humble are strong. Nothing will confuse or frighten a humble soul. I have directed my flight at the very center of the sun’s heat, and nothing can lower its course. Love will not allow itself to be taken prisoner; it is free like a queen. Love attains God.” [450]
Beautiful fighting words! But the reality of the war is that it is a painful road that leads to the cross where there are blood, tears, and guts all over the place making the best of souls think twice as St. Faustina explains:
“A soul that is united with God must be prepared for great and hard fought battles. After these purifications and tears, God abides in the soul in a special way, but the soul does not always cooperate with these graces [121],” [from the], “General exhaustion due to a new way of life, intense spiritual combat and experiences…[24].”
Das_Jüngste_Gericht_(Memling)
But, we are not alone! Amidst the dragons, their minions and the condemned souls of hell, there are also angels and saints fighting by our side. We are surrounded by a panoramic view of invisible warriors as far as the eyes can see:
“Always fight with the deep conviction that I am with you. Do not be guided by feeling, because it is not always under your control; but all merit lies in the will…I will not delude you with prospects of peace and consolations; on the contrary, prepare for great battles. Know that you are now on a great stage where all heaven and earth are watching you. Fight like a knight, so that I can reward you. Do not be unduly fearful, because you are not alone [1760].”
Finally and most importantly, God Himself is fighting for us by sending us special graces of Divine Mercy to save our souls and those of others. Graces pouring from His Immolated Heart upon His Cross of Glory, made present in the Holy Eucharist… “My child, that you may answer My call worthily, receive Me daily in Holy Communion. It will give you strength.” [1489] Yes, Jesus Himself carries and supports us when we are knocked off our battle steeds, laying mangled and defeated upon the battlefield. As He explains to St. Faustina:
Let it be confirmed and engraved on your heart that I am always with you, even if you don’t feel My presence at the time of battle [1498].” “Do not fear, My little child, you are not alone. Fight bravely, because My arm is supporting you; fight for the salvation of souls, exhorting them to trust in My mercy, as that is your task in this life and in the life to come [1452].”
Recommended Reading
Divine Mercy Diary
Saints who Battled Satan
Read
Thank you much ; reading the passages together do bring a fresh
perspective and hope with them .
St.Faustina and all of heaven , pray for us all as we consecrate us all , our families , to You , Divine Mercy .
http://divinemercyforamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/act-of-consecration.pdf
Thank You my Lord , for Your mercy and patience with us all ;
teach us too, to be be meek and patient , trusting in Your aid .
God bless !
Thank you for the consecration prayer link. It is very nice especially with the bishop’s Imprimatur.
What I think is most astounding to me is that the battle’s St. Faustina faced often came at the hands of her religious sisters. She faced internal doubts, doubts of her by priests in the confessional, illness, contradiction between what Jesus told her and outward events, and attacks from devils. But the battles that she reports that help me the most are the battles of opposition, scorn, mockery, neglect in illness, and even cruelty from the sisters she lived with. In my own piety I imagine all religious sisters to be holy and kind, and most solicitous of their fellow sisters in religion. St. Faustina makes only charitable mention of some of the difficulties she faced from those within the convent, but they are enough to try any soul’s patience and make anyone want to lash out in anger.
And it is these things that help me most, because I see if even a religious sister can suffer such unkindness, spite and meanspiritedness from fellow religious, I should not be surprised to encounter such things from people at work, in public, or my family. I can learn from St. Faustina how to fight these battles: with patience, and kindness, forgiveness, and prayer, like a knight defeating the ugly attacks on my personhood; like Jesus did amid the tortures of His Passion; the mocking, and whipping, and spitting at Him, the cruelty of those who just wanted Him dead.
St. Faustina’s diary is a treasure trove of spiritual advice. I have read it several times, and I always find something new and helpful each time I read it.
Yes, it is true that to be like Christ, or close to Christ, we will be attacked by those closest to us, fellow Catholics, Priests, and of course family. Just like Christ was crucified by his own people.
Soul: Lord, there is another obstacle on the road to holiness. Because I am faithful to You, I am PERSECUTED and suffer much.
Jesus: It is because you are not of this world that the world hates you. First it PERSECUTED Me. PERSECUTION is a sign that you are following in My footsteps faithfully. [Diary paragraph # 1487]