The Greatest Enemies of Man

When I would think of the greatest enemy of man I'd think of the devil but Jesus explains otherwise in the Volumes.  Man, himself, is his own worst enemy.

He states that self interest poisons creatures.  It enters all who do not surrender to the light of truth and the power of virtue.  Such that the disordered love of self blinds the soul and keeps virtue far from her.

the truth is light to the mind, and with light things can be seen as they are.  But if one does not want to know the truth, the mind is blind and things cannot be seen as they are; and so they raise doubts and difficulties, remaining more blind than before.

Vol. 11, June 29, 1914

“My daughter, the poison of interest has entered into all hearts, and they have become soaked with this poison like sponges.  This pestilent poison has penetrated into monasteries, into priests, into secular.  My daughter, that which does not surrender to the light of truth and to the power of virtue, surrenders before a most wretched interest; and before this poison, the most sublime and excelling virtues fall shattered like fragile glass.”  And while saying this, He cried bitterly.  Who can say the torment of my soul in seeing my most loving Jesus cry!

Vol. 4, January 30, 1901

The human will goes so far as to block the Divine light from entering the soul.  It blinds the creature in her intellect, memory and will.   All bonds with the Divine are broken and she decays from the beautiful origin which she comes from and becomes ugly, even to becoming the daughter of the enemy who engraves his image in her.

the human will causes her to deny her origin, it makes her decay from her beginning; her intellect, memory and will remain without light, and the divine image remains deformed and unrecognizable. The human will breaks all the divine bonds and relationships, and therefore it makes the soul live in the reflections of all passions, in such a way that she becomes ugly and the daughter of the infernal enemy, who tries to engrave his ugly image in her. How many evils does one’s own will not cause! It devastates every good and produces all evils.”

Vol. 19, September 3, 1926

Doing one's own will is more terrifying than if one could stop the course of the sun or any of the elements.  Instead she stops the course of God Himself.  When Adam sinned it was as if he stopped the course of God and immobilized Him from being able to give or even speak to His creature.  It was at that moment that man detached himself from God, from stability, from Divine life.  So now man vacillates in every moment when ruled by his own will.

“My blessed daughter, doing one’s own will is so very grave, that it would be a minor evil if the creature might impede the course of the sun, of the sky, of the wind, of the air, of the water.  And yet this course would cause such disorder and terror that man could live no more.  And yet this great evil would be nothing in comparison to the grave evil of doing one’s own will, because with this she doesn’t impede the course to created things, but to her Creator himself.  Adam with removing himself from our Will stopped the course of the gifts that (He) should give to his beloved creature.   If he might have been able to he would have constrained God to immobility.  Our Supreme Being with creating the creature wanted to remain in continuous correspondence with her, he wanted to give her now one gift and now another.  He wanted to make her so many beautiful surprises not ever interrupted.  Now as [the creature] does her will, thus silently she says to her Creator:  ‘Withdraw, I don’t have anywhere to put your gifts.  If you speak to me I don’t understand you, your surprises are not for me, I am enough by myself’, and with reason she says this, because without my Will that is her primary life, she has lost the life and the capacity where to put my gifts, to understand our celestial language, and she makes herself (a) stranger to our most beautiful surprises.   The creature with not doing our Will loses the divine life, the most beautiful acts, most interesting, more necessary than her creation and of how she was created by God.

“Behold therefore, as man removed himself from our Fiat, he disarranged himself in a way that every step vacillated, because he detached himself, rejected the vital act of his life, and from the stable and permanent act that He should live with him as one life alone, that (is) our Divine Will.  In a way that we feel immobilized by man, because we want to give and we can not.  We want to speak and he doesn’t mind us; it is as if from a distant we make our sorrowful laments heard by saying to him:   ‘Oh, man, finish it, recall in yourself that Will that you rejected!  He doesn’t mind your evils, and if you call Him He is ready to take possession of you and form his kingdom in you, of dominion, of peace, of happiness, of glory, of victory for me and for you.  Oh, don’t want to be enslaved anymore nor live in the labyrinth of your evils and miseries!   (For) such I didn’t create you, but I created you king of yourself, king of all.  Therefore call my Will as life, and he will make you know your nobility and the heights of your post in which you were put by God.  Oh, how content you will be, and you will content your Creator!”

Vol. 30, May 8, 1932

Love of self entraps, blinding the soul, tripping her up leading to disturbances and scrupulosity.  Creatures mistake scruples for sanctity but in fact scruples keeps the soul from true sanctity.  The answer to love of self is obedience.   Obedience kills scruples and leads the soul out of this entrapment.

“My beloved, obedience has an extremely long sight and surpasses the very light of the sun in beauty and in sharpness.  In the same way, love of self is very much shortsighted, so much so, that it cannot take a step without tripping.  And do not believe that this extremely long sight is possessed by those souls who go on always disturbed and in scrupulousness.  Rather, this is a net that love of self weaves around them, which, being very shortsighted, makes them fall first, and then provokes in them a thousand disturbances and scruples, and what they have detested today with so many scruples and fears, they fall into again tomorrow, to the point that their living is reduced to being always immersed in this artificious net which love of self knows well how to weave around them.  This, unlike the extremely long sight of obedience, which is killer of the love of self.  Her sight is so very long and clear, that immediately she foresees where she might slip, and with generous heart she abstains from it and enjoys the holy freedom of the children of God.  And just as darkness draws more darkness, so does light draw more light, and this light arrives at drawing to itself the light of the Word, and uniting together, they weave the light of all virtues.”

Surprised on hearing this, I said:  ‘Lord, what are You saying?  To me it seems that that scrupulous way of living is sanctity.’  And He, with a more serious tone, added:  “On the contrary, I tell you that this is the true mark of obedience, while that is the true mark of love of self, and that way of living moves Me more to indignation than to love.  In fact, when it is the light of truth that allows one to see one’s fault, be it even the slightest, there should be some emendation; but since it is the short sight of the love of self, it does nothing but keep them oppressed, having no development on the path of true sanctity.”

Vol. 4, February 10, 1901





This love of self takes the form of three enemies:  the love of pleasures, riches and honors.  Disordered desires woo a soul that is centered on itself.  They embitter, crush and torture her forming the most powerful enemies, obsessing her, but they will never content her.  Jesus conquered these on Calvary but man refuses these hard won graces.

“My daughter, the most powerful enemies of man are: the love of pleasures, of riches and of honors. These enemies render man unhappy, because they penetrate even into his heart and consume him continuously; they embitter him, they bring him down so much, as to make him lose all happiness.  And I, on Calvary, defeated these three enemies, and obtained for man the grace to conquer them too, giving back to him the lost happiness.  But man, always ungrateful and heedless, rejects my grace and loves these enemies fiercely, which put the human heart in a continuous torture.”   Having said this, He disappeared, and I comprehended with such clarity the truthfulness of these words, that I felt abhorrence and hate for these enemies.   May the Lord be always blessed, and may everything be for His glory.

Vol. 4,October 12, 1900





When one is divided between love of God and love of creatures or pleasures or riches, they are torn and shredded and they live with anxieties, fears and disillusions which embitter them.  Only when the creature makes God her whole focus and becomes alone with Him can God then centralize all of Himself in her.  He refers to this as extraordinary grace.  He likens this to the Sun focusing all of itself on a single plant, imparting all of the effects of the Sun within this one plant while other plants only receive one effect each.  

“My daughter, you are alone with Me, and I am alone with you; and because you are alone with Me, I centralize all of Myself in you.  In fact, since you are alone with Me, I can fill you completely with Myself; there is not one point of you in which I do not take my place; you are transformed into Myself and, as though naturally, the extraordinary grace enters into you.  When the soul is alone with Me, I am free to do whatever I want; I enjoy her, Myself alone, and my love makes Me do such great things with her that I reach the point of folly, and I perform so many of those loving stratagems, that if they could be seen or heard by all creatures, they would say:  ‘Only Jesus knows how to love and can love in a way so astounding, so ingenious and so great.’  With one who lives alone with Me, I act as the sun would, if it could centralize all of its light over one plant.  This plant would receive into itself the whole of the life of the sun, and would enjoy all of its effects, while the other plants receive only one effect each, which is sufficient for the nature of each plant.  But the first one, because it receives the whole of the life of the sun, receives with it all the effects which the light contains.  So I do.  I centralize the whole of my life in her, and there is nothing of Me which I do not let her enjoy.  On the other hand, one who is not alone with Me, because I cannot centralize my life, is without light; she feels within herself the weight of darkness; her being is divided into so many parts for as many as are the things that she cares about.  So, if she loves the earth, she feels divided with the earth; if she loves creatures, pleasures, riches, she feels as though divided into shreds, in such a way that some tear her from one side, some from the other.  Her poor heart lives amid anxieties, fears and bitter disillusions.  All the opposite for one who lives alone with Me.”

Vol. 23, November 10, 1927

Being united to Jesus, in His Divine Will, a soul is not subject to anxiety because everything is done by Jesus and the soul is together with Him.  This is the key to true sanctity, it is devoid of self-esteem, vainglory, and passions as all credit and glory goes to the Divine Will.  Anything else is false sanctity where the soul vacillates falling from pious practices to defects easily.  They deceive themselves when not united to Jesus and instead of honor they find dishonor.  In the end these scruples are revealed as only love of self, resentment, passions hidden under the aspect of good.  While the soul living in the Divine Will is the smile of Jesus and He guards her every act.

So, the enemy cannot bother this child - whether he has done well or badly, little or much - because Jesus Himself did everything, and he together with Jesus. He is the most peaceful; he is not subject to anxiety; he loves no one and loves everyone - but divinely. It can be said that he is the repeater of the Life of Jesus, the organ of His voice, the heartbeat of His Heart, the sea of His graces.

True sanctity, I believe, consists only in this. All other things are shadows, larvae, specters of sanctity. In the Divine Will, virtues take their place in the divine order; while, outside of It, in the human order, they are subject to self-esteem, to vainglory, to passions. Oh! how many good works, how many attended Sacraments are to be cried over before God, and to be repaired for, because they are empty of Divine Will, and therefore without fruits. Heaven willing that all would comprehend true sanctity. Oh! how all other things would disappear.

Therefore, many find themselves on the false way of sanctity. Many place it in the pious practices of piety - and woe to those who move them! Oh! how they deceive themselves. If their wills are not united with Jesus, and also transformed in Him - which is continuous prayer - with all their pious practices their sanctity is false. And it shows how these souls pass very easily from pious practices to defects, to amusements, to the sowing of discord, and other things. Oh! how dishonored is this kind of sanctity Others place it in going to church to attend all the services, but their will is far from Jesus; and it shows how these souls have little care for their own duties. And if they are hindered, they get angry, they cry that their sanctity goes up in the air, they lament, they disobey, they are the wounds of the families. Oh! what false sanctity. Others place it in frequent confessions, in minute spiritual directions, in having scruples about everything; but then they have no scruple that their will does not run together with the Will of Jesus - and woe to those who contradict them! These souls are like inflated balloons: a little hole is enough for the air to come out, and their sanctity goes up in smoke, and falls to the ground. These poor balloons have always something to say, they are mostly inclined to sadness, they live always in doubt, and therefore would like to have a director for themselves, who would advise them, give them peace and console them in every little thing. But they are soon more agitated than before. Poor sanctity, how forged it is.

...

the poor and false sanctity of the balloons is subject to continuous inconstancies, and while it seems that the balloons of their sanctity swell so much as to seem to be flying in the air at a certain height, to the point that many, and even the directors, are amazed - soon they are disillusioned. One humiliation, one preference of the directors toward someone else, is enough to make these balloons deflate, for they believe this is a theft against them, considering themselves the neediest. Therefore, while having scruples about trifles, they then reach the point of disobeying. Jealousy is the woodworm of these balloons, which, consuming the good they do, keeps sucking air from them, and the poor balloon deflates and falls to the ground, reaching the point of dirtying itself with earth. Then the sanctity that was in the balloon appears. And what does one find? Love of self, resentment, passions hidden under the aspect of good, almost to have occasion to say: ‘They have made themselves the amusement of the devil.’ So, of all their sanctity, nothing was found but a mass of defects, apparently disguised as virtues. But then, who can say everything? Only Jesus knows the worst evils of this false sanctity, of this devout life without foundation, because it leans on false piety. These false sanctities are the spiritual lives without fruit, sterile, which are the cause of who knows how much crying for my lovable Jesus. They are the ill feeling of society, the worries of the very directors, and of families. It can be said that they bring with themselves a noxious air that harms everyone.

Oh! how so very different is the sanctity of the soul who lives in the Divine Will! These souls are the smile of Jesus; they are far away from everyone, even from the very directors. Only Jesus is everything for them; therefore, nobody worries because of them. The beneficial air that they possess embalms all; they are the order and the harmony of all. Jesus, jealous of these souls, makes Himself actor and spectator of whatever they do – there is not one heartbeat, breath or thought which He does not regulate and dominate. Jesus keeps this soul so absorbed in the Divine Will that she can hardly remember that she is living in the exile.

Vol. 12, August 14, 1917

God wants to be in relation with man in everything but man, by doing his own will, broke all relations with Him and instead placed himself in relations with his enemies; sin and passions.  Only by living in the Divine Will can order be re-established.

Everything I contain I placed in relationship with man - relations in the order of all created things, and to him I gave primacy over everything.

“Now, by withdrawing from my Will, man broke all these relations, and placed himself in relationship with sin, with passions, with his fiercest enemy. Therefore, the soul who lives in my Will rises so high as to leave everyone behind; she places herself in order between Me and her; she gives herself back to the origin, and places all broken relations in force. All created things form her cortege and recognize her as their legitimate daughter, feeling honored to be dominated by her. The purpose for which they were created, to be commanded and to obey her slightest wishes, is already accomplished.

Vol. 13, January 3, 1922

This union with God, living in the Divine Will, being alone with God, takes firm resolution.  When someone tries to mix the human with the Divine action they blind themselves and can vacillate.  With determination and resolution one can shut the doors to the enemies of the soul.

I remembered the needs that M. had told me, and I prayed Our Lord to answer him. In the meantime, I seemed to see him with a silver-colored garment; a black veil descended from his head, covering part of his eyes, and this veil seemed to communicate itself to another person who was behind him. I could not understand anything of this, and blessed Jesus told me: “The silver-colored garment that you see on him is his purity in operating, and the black veil is the ‘human’ that he mixes with it. This human that he mixes is like a veil which, covering the light of truth that shines in his mind, sometimes makes him act with fear, or to content someone else, and not according to the truth which my Grace makes shine in his mind.”

And I: ‘Lord, grant him what he told me, for it is something that regards your glory very much.’ And He: “For an irresolute soul, temporizing gives time and space to the enemies to wage battle; while by not giving them time, and by showing oneself resolute and unshakeable, the doors are closed to the enemies, and one has the good of not even exposing oneself to the brawl. So, if he wants to reach his goal quickly, these are the means, and I will be with him, and he will be victorious. And then, the very ones who are most opposed to him will be the most supportive, and will admire him the most, seeing that he has undone their human views.”

Vol. 8, January 23, 1908

Hard won virtues that are not guarded by the Kingdom of the Fiat are always in danger.  Passions can upset and cast them down.  Only the Divine Will continually vivifies and nourishes the virtues and can safely guard them from all evils, but when the human will sets itself against the Divine Will, God will often use Creation and Redemption for justice to strike against man instead of the good they were meant to bring to him.

The virtues that are not under the continuous dominion of my Fiat are subject to continuous dangers and continuous oscillations; passions have the ways open to put everything upside down and cast virtues and sanctity to the ground, formed with many sacrifices. If the continuous vivifying and nourishing virtue of my Will is not present, which closes all doors and all ways to all evils, the human will has door and ways to let the enemy, the world, self-esteem, miseries, disturbances, enter, which are the wood worm of virtues and of sanctity; and when there is the wood worm, there is not sufficient strength to remain firm and persevering in good. Therefore, everything is unsafe when my Divine Will does not reign.

Moreover, the evil that Our Divine Will does not reign in the midst of creatures is so great, that all things are in continuous oscillation. Our very Creation, all the goods of Redemption, are intermittent, because, not finding Our Fiat reigning in the human family, they cannot always give the same goods. Even more, many times We have to make use of Creation and Redemption to arm them against man, because the human will puts itself against Ours, and We, by justice, have to strike them in order to make them comprehend that, because Our Will is not reigning, the human rejects Our goods and forces Us to punish them. The very glory which the creature gives Us through Creation and Redemption is not fixed, but it changes at each act of the human will. Therefore, the small interest which the creature was to give Us - her love and her glory which she should give to Us because We have given so much to her - is not even a fixed revenue, but everything is intermittent, because Our Will alone has the virtue of rendering unshakeable and continuous Its own acts, and those of the one in whom It reigns. So, until Our Divine Fiat reigns, everything is unsafe; the Creation, the Redemption, the Sacraments – they are all in danger, because the human will now abuses, now does not recognize the One who has so much loved it and benefited it, now tramples Our very goods under its feet. Therefore, until Our Will reigns, which will spread the divine order, Its firmness and harmony, and Its perennial day of light and of peace in the midst of creatures, everything will be in danger for him and for Us; Our things themselves will remain in the nightmare of danger, and will not be able to give to creatures the abundant goods which they contain.”

Vol. 26, April 28, 1929

A soul without the Divine Will becomes a city besieged by enemies, but the enemies are from her own will.  Her will can not unite her and she is torn between her thoughts, desires, affections, and love.  She is tormented, torn in different directions and is lead away from her origin into ever worsening evils.  Only the Divine Will can unite her making her strong against all evils.

Without my Divine Will the creature becomes as a besieged city, in which the enemies constrain her to die of hunger, and torture her in all (her) members, with this difference, that the executioners that tear (her) members are her own will, they are not enemies that torment her, but she herself makes herself enemy of herself. If you might know the sorrow that I feel when I see souls torn to shreds, every act of her will is a division that she forms between God and her, it is a move away from the beauty of her Creation, it is chilling herself from the true and pure love, it is losing herself from her origin, it is preparing herself, if the will precipitates into grave evil, or an anticipated hell, or a purgatory if the evil is slight. The human will is as gangrene to the body that holds (the) virtue of making the flesh fall in shreds and of deforming the beauty of the creature. Poor souls without my Divine Will, because He alone holds the unitive virtue that uniting everything together, the thought, the desire, the affection, the love, the human will, he gives the beautiful form united to the soul of the creature. Instead without my Will the thought wants one thing, the will another, the desire wants another, the affection another, in a way that they struggle among themselves, they become entangled, they are divided. Ah! There is no peace, nor union without my Will, she lacks one who puts the cement there, in order to reunite the divided parts and render her strong against all the evils, that can rise up. Therefore your Jesus does none other than cry over the ruins of these, more than Jerusalem thrown into confusion, that instead of knowing their Messiah they refused to acknowledge Him and they gave Him death.

Vol. 31, March 5, 1933

The Divine Will and the human will are fierce enemies of each other.  The human will is the only one who can stop God from giving and establishing His throne within her.  If one just strives to do the Will of God they will always be subject to waver and put their own will back in action.  Only by living in the Divine Will can the soul be a secure citizen of Heaven and no longer prey to earthly enemies.

...be attentive, because this is about placing in safety that Eternal Will which, with so much love, wants to dwell in the creatures. But It wants to be known, It does not want to be like a stranger, but wants to give Its goods and become Life of each one. However, It wants Its rights, Its place of honor; It wants the human will to be put aside – the only enemy for Itself and for man. The mission of my Will was the purpose of the creation of man. My Divinity did not depart from Heaven - from Its throne, while my Will not only departed, but descended into all created things and formed Its Life in them. But while all things recognized Me, and I dwell in them with majesty and decorum, man alone drove Me away. But I want to conquer him and win him, and therefore my mission is not ended. So I called you, entrusting to you my own mission, that you may place the one who drove Me away on the lap of my Will, and everything may return to Me in my Will. Therefore, do not be surprised at the many great and marvelous things I may tell you for the sake of this mission, or at the many graces I may give you; because this is not about making a Saint, or saving the generations. This is about placing a Divine Will in safety, that all may return to the beginning, to the origin from which all came, and that the purpose of my Will may have its fulfillment.’”

Vol. 17, May 4, 1925

“My daughter, courage, do not fear. I have told you this, and I have showed you how all of Heaven is bound to that Will of Mine which reigns in you, so that you may never surrender to your will, because the Divine Will and the human will are the fiercest enemies of each other. And since the Divine Will is stronger, holier, more immense, it is befitting that Its enemy – the human will – remain under Its feet, and serve as the footstool of the Divine Will. In fact, one who must live in my Will must not consider himself a terrestrial citizen, but must regard himself as a citizen of Heaven. And it is with just reason that all the Blessed feel shaken, because one who lives with their same Will is thinking of letting the human will enter the field – cause of disorder, which has never entered the celestial regions. You must be convinced that by living of my Will, the life of your will is ended - it no longer has reason to exist. This is why I have told you many times that living in my Will is very different: those who do my Will are free to give their own and to take it back, because they live as terrestrial citizens; but one who lives in It is bound to an eternal point, flows together with my Will, is surrounded by an impregnable fortress. Therefore, do not fear, and be attentive.”

Vol. May 21, 1925

The enemy had access to the earthly Eden and man fell.  In the divine Eden he can not enter, nor does he want to enter as he would be burned more than the fires of hell.  The devil can not even approach one who is completely in the Divine Will with temptations because his lies are exposed and he would be ridiculed, and mockery is something that he can not stand.  It was Jesus' test in the desert that closed the way to the devil.  He can not enter enter the Kingdom of the Fiat so the children of the Divine Will are safe.

The enemy had access to the terrestrial Eden, and the first sin was committed; in the divine Eden entrance is precluded to the devil, to passions and to weaknesses. Even more, he does not want to enter, knowing that my Will would burn him more than the very fire of hell; and upon merely feeling the sensation of It, he flees; and you will give start to the first acts in the divine manner, which are immense, eternal, infinite, and embrace everything and everyone.”

Vol. 12, March 3, 1919

“My daughter, one who is completely in my Will is not subject to temptation, because the devil does not have the power to enter my Will. Not only this, but he himself does not want to enter because my Will is light, and before this light the soul would recognize his tricks very easily and would therefore make fun of the enemy. The enemy does not like this mockery, which is more terrible for him than hell itself; so he does all he can to stay away from her. Try to get out of my Will, and you will see how many enemies will swoop down on you. One who is in my Will carries the flag of victory always high, and none of the enemies dares to confront this impregnable flag.”

Vol. 11, December 14, 1912

You must be my echo, in whom I must form the deposit from which the Kingdom of my Fiat must arise. Follow Me step by step, and you will feel the life, the heartbeat, the happiness of this Kingdom which I contain within Me, and which wants to come out in order to reign in the midst of creatures. And my love for It is so great, that if I allowed the infernal enemy to penetrate into Eden, I will not allow him to set foot in the Eden of the Kingdom of the Fiat. And this is why I permitted that he draw near Me in the desert – to debilitate him and put an end to his steps, and to close the way for him, that he might not dare to enter. Don’t you yourself feel how your presence terrorizes the enemy and he takes flight so as not to see you? It is the strength of my victory that hurls him down, and, feeling confused, he flees. Everything is prepared; there is nothing left but to make it known.”

Vol. 23, February 9, 1928

The Divine Will and the human will are truly enemies and they are in battle with one another, but there is a Divine twist.  Jesus fights with the creature when He reveals His knowledges about the Eternal Fiat, revealing His love, the joys and happiness of the Divine Will in order to overcome the human will and subdue it.  God gives the creature the weapons that she needs in order to battle with and overcome God Himself in order to obtain the Kingdom.  Both sides win with the establishment of His Kingdom.

...do you want to know when you fight with Me and I with you?   I fight when I manifest to you the knowledges about my Eternal Fiat.  So, each saying, each knowledge, each simile about It is one fight and one battle that I make with you in order to win your will, put it in its place, created by Us, and call it, almost by dint of fighting, into the order of the Kingdom of my Divine Volition; and as I do it with you in order to subdue your will, I start it in the midst of creatures.  I fight with you when I teach you the way which you must follow, what you must do in order to live in my Kingdom, and the happiness, the joys, which you will possess.  In sum, I fight by dint of light, which my knowledges contain; I fight by dint of love and by the most touching examples, in such a way that you cannot resist my fight; I fight by means of promises of happiness and joy without end.  My fight is persistent, nor do I ever become tired – but to win what?  Your will, and in yours, those who will recognize Mine in order to live in my Kingdom.  And you fight with Me when you receive my knowledges, and placing them in order in your soul, you form the Kingdom of my Supreme Fiat within you; and fighting with Me, you try to win my Kingdom.  Each one of your acts done in my Will is a fight that you make with Me.  In each round you do through all created things, to unite yourself to all the acts that my Will does in all Creation, you call all Creation to wage battle in order to win my Kingdom, moving my very Will dominating in all created things, so as to wage battle on my Will Itself in order to establish Its Kingdom.  This is why, in these times, the wind, the water, the sea, the earth, the heavens, are all in motion more than ever, waging battle against creatures as new phenomena occur - and how many more will occur - destroying people and cities: because in battles it is necessary to dispose oneself to suffer losses, and many times also on the part of the winner.  There have never been conquests of kingdoms without battle, and if there have been, they have not been lasting ones.  You fight with Me when, investing everything I did and suffered in my Humanity – that is, my tears, my most intimate pains, my prayers, my steps, my words, and even the drops of my Blood – you impress in them your ‘I love You’, and for each one of my acts you ask for the coming of the Kingdom of my Supreme Fiat.  Who can tell you the fight you make with Me?  You move my very acts to wage battle on Me, that I may surrender and grant you my Kingdom.

Therefore, I fight with you, and you fight with Me. This fight is necessary – to you, in order to win my Kingdom; and to Me, in order to win your will and to begin the battle in the midst of creatures, so as to establish the Kingdom of my Supreme Will. I have my own Will, and all of Its very Power, Strength and Immensity in order to win; you have my Will Itself at your disposal, all Creation and all the good I did in Redemption, in order to launch a formidable army to wage battle and win the Kingdom of the Supreme Fiat. See, each word you write is also a fight that you make with Me - one more soldier that joins the army, which must win the Kingdom of my Will. Therefore, be attentive, my daughter, for these are times of fight, and it is necessary to use all means in order to win.”

Vol. 20, February 19, 1927

Love of God, Love of Neighbor / True Charity

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.  One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:  “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22: 34-40

Mark and Luke also all have similar passages.  We've all heard the many discourses on charity but none have been so revealing to the Love of God and Love of Neighbor as is found in the Volumes.  Charity is only true and perfected when done solely to please God.  Only in this way will it bear good and lasting fruit when it is stripped of everything else. 

 “My daughter, only then is Charity perfect when it is done for the sole purpose of pleasing Me; and only then is it called true Charity and is it recognized by Me, when it is stripped of everything.”

Vol. 2, May 12, 1899

If there is any self interest involved, in the giver and/or the receiver, Charity is not true and it produces smoke, blinding the eye and creating a void.  Then the fruit of this type of "charity" ends in nothing.

it seemed that He wanted to tell me something which wounded His Sacred Heart.  Finally, the last time He came, He told me:  “My daughter, true charity must be disinterested on the part of one who does it, and on the part of one who receives it.  If there is interest, that mud produces a smoke which blinds the mind, and prevents one from receiving the influence and the effects of divine charity.  This is why in many works that are done, even holy, in many charitable cares that are performed, one feels as though a void, and they do not receive the fruit of the charity they do.”
Vol. 4, July 31, 1902

I said: ‘My dear Life and my all Good, it is true that there are some bad rich people, but there are also some good ones, like the many devout ladies who give alms to the churches, and your priests who do so much good to all…’
“Ah! my daughter, keep quiet, and don’t touch this key, so very sorrowful for Me. I could say that I do not recognize these devout ladies. They give alms where they want, to obtain their intent, to hold people at their service; they spend even thousands of lire for those who sympathize with them, but then, where it is necessary, they do not deign to give a cent. Could I say that they do it for Me? Could I recognize these actions of theirs? You yourself can recognize whether they do it for Me from these signs – if they are ready for any bare necessity; if they do not differentiate by giving much where it is not so necessary, and refusing to give little where it is necessary. One can well say that there is no spirit of true charity or upright operating. So, my poor are put into oblivion also by these devout ladies. And the priests? Ah! my daughter – that is even worse. They do good to all?! You deceive yourself. They do good to the rich; they have time for the rich. By them also the poor are almost excluded; for the poor they have no time; for the poor they have not a word of comfort or help to tell them; they send them away, reaching the point of pretending they are ill. I could say that if the poor have moved away from the Sacraments, the priests have contributed to this, because they have always taken their time to confess them, and the poor grew tired and no longer came back. But then, if a rich person would show up, it is all the opposite: they would not hesitate one instant; time, words, comforts, help…, they would find anything for the rich. Could I say that the priests have a spirit of true charity, if they reach the point of picking the ones to whom they should listen? And what about the others? They either send them somewhere else, or oppress them so much, that if my grace did not help the poor in a special way, the poor would have been banished from my Church. True charity and upright spirit – only rarely do some priests have them, but as for the rest, I could say that these have departed from the earth.”
Vol. 8. June 31, 1908

A sign of true Charity is the love of the poor, from those for whom one can not hope for anything in return other than the love of God.  This kind of Charity, which begins in God and ends in God, bears good fruit.

 

“My daughter, the sign to know whether one has true charity is that he loves the poor. In fact, if he loves the rich and is available for them, he may do so because he hopes for something or obtains something, or because he is in sympathy with them, or because of their nobility, intelligence, eloquence, and even out of fear. But if he loves the poor, helps them, supports them, it is because he sees in them the image of God, therefore he does not look at roughness, ignorance, rudeness, misery. Through those miseries, as though through a glass, he sees God, from whom he hopes for everything; and so he loves them, helps them, consoles them as if he were doing it to God Himself. This is the good kind of true virtue, which begins from God and ends in God. On the other hand, that which begins from matter, produces matter and ends in matter. As bright and virtuous as charity may appear, if the divine touch is not felt, both the one who does it and the one who receives it become bothered, annoyed and tired, and if necessary, they even use it to commit defects.”
Vol. 8, September 2, 1908

We are indeed called to love God with all our heart, all our soul and all our mind.  So if we are to love our neighbors as ourselves it can only be done for love of God in order for it to be true Charity.  Loving one's neighbor only because the image of God is in each person, anything outside of this is not true Charity and God himself states that he loves creatures because they are made in His image.  

As I was in my usual state, I was praying for certain needs of others, and blessed Jesus, moving in my interior, told me:  “For what purpose are you praying for these people?”  And I:  ‘Lord, and You, for what purpose did You love us?’  And He:  “I love you because you are my own thing, and when an object is one’s own, one feels compelled to love it – it is like a necessity.”  And I:  ‘Lord, I am praying for these people because they are your own thing, otherwise I would not have interested myself.’  And He, placing His hand on my forehead, almost pressing it, added:  “Ah, it is because they are my own thing!  This is how the love of neighbor is all right.”
Vol. 6, November 8, 1903

“My daughter, true charity is when, in doing good to his neighbor, one does it because he is my image.  All the charity that goes out of this sphere cannot be called charity.  If the soul wants the merit of charity she must never go out of this sphere of looking at my image in everything.  It is so true that true charity consists in this, that my very charity never goes out of this sphere.  I only love the creature because she is my image; and if by sin she deforms this image of mine, I no longer feel like loving her – on the contrary, I abhor her; and I only preserve plants and animals because they serve my images; and the creature must modify all of herself on the example of her Creator.”

Vol. 6, September 8, 1905

Even the concept of loving oneself has to be done only through the lens of the love of God.  If the creature thinks of itself it will think of it's miseries and weaknesses and become absorbed in itself.  One bad thought leads to another until the creature is as drowning in misery.  We are to keep our minds and thoughts on God and living in His Will, loving Him alone.  So that each good act will call the next and God Himself will burn our miseries in the furnace of His love.

 

Whence I continued to think of the birth of the little King Jesus, and I said to him:  “Dear Little Baby, tell me, what did you do when you saw so much human ingratitude to so much of your love?”
 
And Jesus:  “My daughter, if I had held account of human ingratitude to so much of my love, I would have taken the way to go to heaven from it; hence, I would have grieved and embittered my love and changed the feast into mourning.
“So do you want to know what I did in my greatest works in order to make them more beautiful?  With pomp and with the greater show of my love I put everything aside, human ingratitude, sins, miseries, weaknesses, and I gave the course to my greatest works, as if these (things) were not so.  If I had wanted to mind the evils of man, I would not have been able to work great works, nor put into field all my love; I would remain impeded, suffocated in my love.  Instead, in order to be free in my works and in order to make them how much more beautiful I can make them, I put everything aside, and if needs be I cover everything with my love, in a way that I don’t see but love and my Will, and thus I go ahead in my greater works and I do them as if no one had offended me.  Because for our glory nothing must be missing to the decorum, to the beauty and the greatness of our works.
“Therefore I would like that you also do not occupy yourself with your weaknesses and with your miseries and with your evils, because how much more one thinks of oneself, so much more one feels weak, so many more evils drown the poor creature, and the miseries tighten themselves stronger around her.  By thinking of them, weakness feeds weakness, and the poor creature goes falling more, the evils take more strength, (and) the miseries make her die of hunger; instead, with not thinking of them, by themselves they fade away.
“Instead, all to the contrary with good.  One good feeds the other good; one act of love calls the other love; one abandonment in my Volition makes one feel in oneself new divine life, so that the thought of good forms the food, the strength, in order to do the other good.  Therefore I want that your thought does not occupy itself with other than to love me and to live in my Will.  My love will burn your miseries and all your evils, and my Divine Volition will constitute himself (as) your life, and with your miseries he will make use of them in order to form the footstool where to erect his throne.”
Vol. 35, December 25, 1937

The more we strip ourselves of self love, not focusing on ourselves but focusing on God more and more, the more we acquire the knowledge of heaven and the love of God.  The reverse is also true that if the soul knows nothing of the supernatural and feels no love of God it is because she is filled with love of self and the pleasures of the world.

“The more the soul strips herself of natural things, the more of supernatural and divine things she acquires.  The more she strips herself of the love of self, the more of the love of God she acquires; the less she tires herself in knowing human sciences, in enjoying the pleasures of life, the more knowledge she acquires of the things of Heaven, of virtue, and the more she will enjoy them, as the bitter ones will convert into sweet.  In sum, these are all things that proceed at the same rate, in such a way that, if one feels nothing of the supernatural, if the love of God is extinguished in the soul, if one knows nothing about virtues and the things of Heaven, and finds no pleasure in them, then he knows reason very well.”
Vol. 5, August 3, 1903

This stripping can only happen when the soul is united to Grace continuously.  Otherwise death will accomplish this, but the first is a blessed death allowing them to cling to the eternal, letting go of that which is passing.

“And why, my daughter, can the soul, united to Grace, not do in advance everything that death must do to her nature?  That is, making it die in advance, for love of God, to everything to which it will have to die?  But only those who dwell continuously with my Grace come to have this blessed death, because by living with God it is easier for them to die to everything that is fleeting.

Vol. 6, May 9, 1905

This is so true that God does not even want the soul to think about herself or worry about possibly sinning.  Indeed doing so makes one stagnate on the way of sanctity.  Instead the soul should look at all things in the light of God, the pleasing and the mortifying as coming from God and as a distinct love of God for the soul.  And the soul is to take all of these things in life as love of God and return them all to God as love.  This purifies her, sanctifies her and she advances quickly without even noticing it. 

Having read about a soul who had scruples about everything, and who feared that everything might be sin, I was thinking to myself:  ‘And I? How lax I am!  I too would like to think that everything may be sin so as to be more attentive not to offend the Lord.’  Then, when blessed Jesus came, He told me:  “My daughter, this is nonsense, and the soul remains stuck on the path of sanctity, while true and solid sanctity consists of receiving anything which may happen to her or which she may be doing, be it even the most indifferent thing, as a specialty of divine love, just as it would be if she found a food enjoyable or disgusting.  A specialty of love in the enjoyment, thinking that it is Jesus that produces that enjoyment in the food, and that He loves her to the point of giving her pleasure even in material things.  A specialty of love in the disgust, thinking that He loves her so much as to produce that disgust for her in order to make her similar to Himself in mortification, giving her, Himself, a little coin that she can offer to Him.  A specialty of divine love if she is humiliated, if she is exalted, if she is healthy, if she is infirm, if she is poor or rich.  A specialty of love her breathing, her sight, her speech – everything, everything; and just as she must receive everything - everything as a specialty of divine love, she must give everything back to God as a special love of hers.  So, she must receive the wave of the love of God, and must give to God the wave of her love.  Oh, what a sanctifying bath is this wave of love!  It purifies her, it sanctifies her, it makes her advance without her realizing it; it is a life more of Heaven than of earth.  This is what I want from you.  Sin, and the thought of sin, must not exist in you.”

Vol. 7, January 5, 1907

This is the essence of true charity.  Doing all for God, receiving all from God, returning all to God.  God is always the focus, the purpose and the goal.  And just as fire converts everything it touches into fire so the creature is seen to possess true charity only when she converts all things into love of God.

Now I will say what Jesus had told me about charity: “My daughter, true charity, with its power, can convert all things into love. Look at fire: all varieties of wood and any other thing - it converts them all into fire; and if it did not have the power to convert everything into fire, it could not be given the name of true fire. The same for the soul: if she does not convert all things into love – both supernatural and natural things, joys and bitternesses, and everything that surrounds her – she cannot be said to possess true charity.” Now, as He was saying this, He let many flames come out of His Most Holy Heart, which filled Heaven and earth, and then, uniting together, formed one single flame. And He added: “Continuous flames of love come out of my Heart, and to some they bring love, to some pain, to some light, to others strength, etc. And because they come out from the center of the furnace of my love, even though they do different offices, since one is the purpose – to send love to the creature – they are all flames which, uniting together, form one single flame. The same for the creature: even though she does different things, the purpose must be love, so as to be able to make of her actions as many little flames which, uniting together, will form the great flame that will burn everything and will transform her completely into Me. Otherwise, she will not possess true charity.”

Vol. 15, June 15, 1923

Jesus explains how there are two types of fire.  Earthly fire, symbol of human love, is subject to limitations and is neither solid nor fixed, mixed with smoke it stings the eyes and it's light is limited.  The fire of the sun, symbol of divine love is fixed, immutable, gives to all without taking anything and illuminates all.  But God's love goes unrecognized and unrequited.  God longs for us to reciprocate His love for us with His same divine love.

 

This morning my always lovable Jesus came for just a little, and told me:

 

“My daughter, my love is symbolized by the sun.  The sun rises majestically, but while it rises, it is always fixed and never rises.  With its light it invades all the earth; with its heat it fecundates all plants; there is no eye which does not enjoy of it.  One could say that there is almost no good on earth which does not come from its beneficial influence.  How many things would not have life without it?  And yet, it does everything without clamor, without saying even a word, without demanding anything.  It gives no bother to anyone; on the contrary, it does not even take up any space on earth which, in turn, it invades with its light.  Men can do whatever they want with it; even more, while they enjoy the good of the sun, they pay no attention to it, and they keep it in their midst, unobserved.   

“Such is my love, symbolized by the sun.  Like majestic sun, it rises in the midst of all; there is no mind which is not irradiated by my light; there is no heart which does not feel my heat; there is no soul which is not embraced by my love.  More than sun, I am in the midst of all, but - ah! how few pay attention to Me.  I remain almost unobserved in their midst; I am not requited, and yet I continue to give light, heat and love.  If some soul pays attention to Me, I go mad, but without clamor, because, being solid, fixed, truthful, my love is not subject to weaknesses.

“Just so would I like your love for Me; and if it were so, you too would become sun for Me and for all, because true love possesses all the qualities of the sun.  On the other hand, a love which is not solid, fixed, truthful, is symbolized by earthly fire, which is subject to variations.  Its light is not capable of illuminating all; it is a very gloomy light, mixed with smoke.  Its heat is limited, and if it is not fed with wood, it dies down and turns into ash; and if the wood is green, it sputters and smokes.  Such are the souls who are not completely for Me, as my true lovers.  If they do a little bit of good, it is more clamor and smoke that comes out of their actions than light.  If they are not fed by some human bother - even under the aspect of sanctity, of conscience - they die down and become colder than ash.  Their characteristic is inconstancy:  now fire, now ash.”

Vol. 11, August 12, 1912

God Himself teaches mankind how he should love Him.  Creation is none other than the outpouring of the Divine Being, this is His love for His creature.  Creation teaches man about the love of God for man and how man should love God in return.

“Charity.  Charity is nothing but an outpouring of the Divine Being, and this outpouring I have diffused over the whole Creation, in such a way that all Creation speaks of the love I have for man, and all Creation teaches him how He must love Me - from the largest being to the most tiny little flower in the field. 
“See”, it says to man, “with my sweet fragrance and by always facing the sky, I try to send an homage to my Creator.  You too, let all your actions be fragrant, holy, pure; do not offend my Creator with the bad odor of your actions.  O please, o man”, the little flower repeats to us, “don’t be so senseless as to keep your eyes fixed on the earth; but rather, raise them up to Heaven.  See, up there is your destiny, your fatherland – up there is my Creator and yours who awaits you.”
The water that flows continuously before our eyes also says to us:  “See, I have come out of darkness, and I must flow and run so much until I go and bury myself in the place from which I came.  You too, O man, run - but run into the bosom of God, from which you came.  O please! I beg you, do not run along the wrong paths, the paths which lead to the precipice; otherwise - woe to you!”
Even the wildest animals repeat to us:  “See, O man, how wild you must be for all that is not God.  See, when we see that someone is approaching us, with our roars we strike so much fear that no one dares to come close to us any more, to disturb our solitude.  You too, when the stench of earthly things - that is, your violent passions – are about to make you muddy and fall into the abyss of sins, with the roars of your prayers and by withdrawing from the occasions in which you find yourself, you will be safe from any danger.”  And so with all the other beings – it would take too long to tell them all.  With one voice they resound among themselves, and repeat to us:  “See, O man, our Creator made us for love of you, and we are all at your service.  And you, don’t be so ungrateful – love, we beg you; love, we repeat to you; love our Creator.”
After this, my lovable Jesus told me:  “This is all I want:  love God and your neighbor for love of Me.  See how much I have loved man – and he is so ungrateful. 
Vol. 2, March 13, 1899

“Indeed, my daughter, my love poured out in torrents toward the creature in each created thing.  I told you somewhere else, I confirm to you now, that as my uncreated love created the sun, it placed in it oceans of love.  And in each drop of light that was to inundate the eye, the step, the hand, and everything of the creature, my love ran within it; and almost pounding sweetly upon the eye, the hand, the step, the mouth, it gives her my eternal kiss and it holds out my love to her.  Together with the light runs the heat, and pounding on her a little more strongly, almost impatient for the love of the creature, to the point of pelting her, I repeat to her, more strongly, my eternal ‘I love you.’  And if the sun, with its light and heat, fecundates the plants, it is my love that runs for the nourishment of man; and if I extended a heaven above man’s head, studding it with stars, it was my love that, wanting to delight man’s eye, also at night, spoke to him my ‘I love you’ in each sparkling of star.  So, each created thing holds out my love to man; and if it were not so, Creation would have no purpose; and I do nothing without purpose.  Everything was made for man; but man does not recognize it, and he has turned into sorrow for Me.

“Therefore, my daughter, if you want to soothe my sorrow, come often into my Will, and, in the name of all, give Me adoration, love, gratitude and thanksgiving for all.”

 Vol. 12, January 9, 1920

Now is we are to love God and God alone and our neighbor for the love of God, how are we to do this.  Jesus states that as Creation teaches man how he should love God so the Redemption teaches him how he should love his neighbor.

“My daughter, the heavens along with all Creation point out the love of God; my wounded Body points out the love of neighbor, so much so, that with my Humanity, united to my Divinity, from two natures I formed one and I rendered them inseparable, because I not only satisfied divine Justice, but I operated the salvation of men.  And so that everyone assumed this obligation of loving God and one’s neighbor, I not only made them one, but I reached the point of making of it a divine precept.  So, my wounds and my Blood are many tongues that teach everyone the way to love one another and the obligation that all have to care for the salvation of others.”
Vol. 3, June 18, 1900

After this, I seemed to see Him crucified, and since the Lord had shared with me, not only His pains, but some sufferings of another person, He added: “This is true charity:  to destroy oneself in order to give life to others, to take upon oneself the evils of others, and to give Me one’s own goods.”
Vol. 4, July 23, 1901

It is only by the soul living in the Divine Will and doing all her acts in Him that the blindness of man can be remedied and the darkness which enshrouds the earth can be cleared.  Only in this way can man be free and Jesus as well will be free, free to love and give as He wants, to love to the full reach that He wants to love and man will love his God with God's same Divine Love.  Loving God with all one's heart and with all one's soul and with all one's mind is a feat which can only be done in the Divine Will.  This will then also allow God to love us wholly and completely as He so longs to do.  The prisons will be opened and the chains broken and both man and God will both cry out; "Freedom, Freedom!"

“My daughter, how much darkness.  It is such that the earth seems covered with a black mantle, to the point that they can no longer see – they have either become blind, or have no light in order to see; and I want not only divine air for Me, but also light.  Therefore, let your acts be continuous in my Will, so you will make not only air for your Jesus, but also light.  You will be my reflector, my reverberation, the reflection of my love and of my very light.  Even more, I tell you that as you do your acts in my Volition, you will erect tabernacles.  Not only this; as you keep forming thoughts, desires, words, reparations, acts of love, many hosts will be unleashed from you, because they are consecrated by my Will.

“Oh! what a free outpouring my love will have.  I will have free field in everything - no more hindrance; as many tabernacles as I want, so many will I have.  The hosts will be innumerable; at each instant we will communicate each other, together; and I too will cry out:  ‘Freedom! Freedom!  Come all into my Will, and you will enjoy true freedom!’  Outside of my Will, how many hindrances does the soul not find; but in my Will she is free.  I leave her free to love Me as she wants; even more, I tell her:  ‘Lay down your human guises - take the divine.  I am not stingy and jealous of my goods; I want you to take everything.  Love Me immensely; take - take all my love, make it your own; my power, my beauty – make it your own.  The more you take, the happier your Jesus will be.’  The earth forms few tabernacles for Me; the hosts are almost numbered.  And then, the sacrileges, the irreverences that they do to Me – oh! how offended and hindered is my love.  In my Will, instead, no hindrance – there is not a shadow of offense; and the creature gives Me love, divine reparations and complete correspondence; and she substitutes together with Me for all the evils of the human family.  Be attentive, and do not move from the point at which I call you and want you.”

 Vol. 12, February 27, 1919