BOOK ONE
VISION ONE
God Enthroned Shows Himself to Hildegard
I saw a great mountain the color of iron, and enthroned on it One of such great
glory that it blinded my sight. On each side of him there extended a soft shadow,
like a wing of wondrous breadth and length. Before him, at the foot of the mountain,
stood an image full of eyes on all sides, in which, because of those eyes, I could
discern no human form. In front of this image stood another, a child wearing a
tunic of subdued color but white shoes, upon whose head such glory descended from
the One enthroned upon that mountain that I could not look at its face. But from
the One who sat enthroned upon that mountain many living sparks sprang forth,
which flew very sweetly around the images. Also, I perceived in this mountain
many little windows, in which appeared human heads, some of subdued colors and
some white.
And behold, He Who was enthroned upon that mountain cried out in a strong, loud
voice saying, "O human, who are fragile dust of the earth and ashes of ashes!
Cry out and speak of the origin of pure salvation until those people are instructed,
who, though they see the inmost contents of the Scriptures, do not wish to tell
them or preach them, because they are lukewarm and sluggish in serving God's justice.
Unlock for them the enclosure of mysteries that they, timid as they are, conceal
in a hidden and fruitless field. Burst forth into a fountain of abundance and
overflow with mystical knowledge, until they who now think you contemptible because
of Eve's transgression are stirred up by the flood of your irrigation. For you
have received your profound insight not from humans, but from the lofty and tremendous
Judge on high, where this calmness will shine strongly with glorious light among
the shining ones.
"Arise therefore, cry out and tell what is shown to you by the strong power of
God's help, for He Who rules every creature in might and kindness floods those
who fear Him and serve Him in sweet love and humility with the glory of heavenly
enlightenment and leads those who persevere in the way of justice to the joys
of the Eternal Vision."
1. The strength and stability of God's eternal Kingdom
As you see, therefore, the great mountain the color of iron symbolizes
the strength and stability of the eternal Kingdom of God, which no fluctuation
of mutability can destroy; and the One enthroned upon it of such great glory
that it blinds your sight is the One in the kingdom of beatitude Who rules
the whole world with celestial divinity in the brilliance of unfading serenity,
but is incomprehensible to human minds. But that on each side of him there
extends a soft shadow like a wing of wonderful breadth and length shows that
both in admonition and in punishment ineffable justice displays sweet and gentle
protection and perseveres in true equity.
2. Concerning fear of the Lord
And before him at the foot of the mountain stands an image full of eyes on
all sides. For the Fear of the Lord stands in God's presence with humility
and gazes on the Kingdom of God, surrounded by the clarity of a good and just
intention, exercising her zeal and stability among humans. And thus you can
discern no human form in her on account of those eyes. For by the acute sight
of her contemplation she counters all forgetfulness of God's justice, which people
often feel in their mental tedium, so no inquiry by weak mortals eludes her vigilance.
3. Concerning those who are poor in spirit
And so before this image appears another image, that of a child, wearing a
tunic of subdued color but white shoes. For when the Fear of the Lord leads,
they who are poor in spirit follow; for the Fear of the Lord holds fast in humble
devotion to the blessedness of poverty of spirit, which does not seek boasting
or elation of heart, bur loves simplicity and sobriety of mind, attributing its
just works not to itself but to God in pale subjection, wearing, as it were, a
tunic of subdued color and faithfully following the serene footsteps of the Son
of God. Upon her head descends such glory from the One enthroned upon that
mountain that you cannot look at her face; because He Who rules every created
being imparts the power and strength of this blessedness by the great clarity
of His visitation, and weak, mortal thought cannot grasp His purpose, since He
Who possesses celestial riches submitted himself humbly to poverty.
4. They who fear God and love poverty of spirit are the guardians of virtues
But from the One Who is enthroned upon that mountain many living sparks go
forth, which fly about those images with great sweetness. This means that
many exceedingly strong virtues come forth from Almighty God, darting fire in
divine glory; these ardently embrace and captivate those who truly fear God and
who faithfully love poverty of spirit, surrounding them with their help and protection.
5. The aims of human acts cannot be hidden from God's knowledge
Wherefore in this mountain you see many little windows, in which appear human
heads, some of subdued color and some white. For in the most high and profound
and perspicuous knowledge of God the aims of human acts cannot be concealed or
hidden. Most often they display both lukewarmness and purity, since people now
slumber in guilt, weary in their hearts and in their deeds, and now awaken and
keep watch in honor. Solomon bears witness to this for Me, saying:
6. Solomon on this subject
"The slothful hand has brought about poverty, but the hand of the industrious
man prepares riches" [Proverbs 10:4]; which means, a person makes himself weak
and poor when he will not work justice, or avoid wickedness, or pay a debt, remaining
idle in the face of the wonders of the works of beatitude. But one who does strong
works of salvation, running in the way of truth, obtains the upwelling fountain
of glory, by which he prepares himself most precious riches on earth and in Heaven.
Therefore, whoever has knowledge in the Holy Spirit and wings of faith, let this
one not ignore My admonition but taste it, embrace it and receive it in his soul.
VISION TWO
Creation and the Fall
Then I saw as it were a great multitude of very bright living lamps, which received
fiery brilliance and acquired an unclouded splendor. And behold! A pit of great
breadth and depth appeared, with a mouth like the mouth of a well, emitting fiery
smoke with great stench, .from which a loathsome cloud spread out and touched
a deceitful, vein-shaped form. And, in a region of bright- ness, it blew upon
a white cloud that had come forth .from a beautijill human form and contained
within itself many and many stars, and so doing, cast out both the white cloud
and the human form .from that region. When this was done, a luminous splendor
surrounded that region, and all the elements of the world, which before had existed
in great calm, were turned to the greatest agitation and displayed horrible terrors.
And again I heard Him Who had spoken to me before, saying:
1. No unjust impulse takes the blessed angels from the love and praise of God
No impulse of injustice makes those withdraw in terror who follow God with faithful
devotion and burn with worthy love through affection for Him, from the glory of
heavenly beatitude; while they who serve God merely in pretence not only fail
to advance to greater things but, by just judgment, are cast out from the things
they erroneously suppose they possess. This is shown by the great multitude
of very bright living lamps; they are the vast army of heavenly spirits, shining
in the blessed life and living in great beauty and adornment, because when they
were created by God they did not grasp at proud exaltation but strongly persisted
in divine love. For, receiving fiery brilliance, they acquired an unclouded
splendor, because when Lucifer and his followers attempted to rebel against
the supreme Creator, they, with zeal for God in his and his followers' downfall,
clothed themselves in the vigilance of divine love, while the others, not wishing
to know God, embraced the torpor of ignorance. In what way? At the fall of the
Devil great praise burst forth from these angelic spirits who persevered in rectitude
with God, because with keenest sight they knew that God continues immovable, without
any change of any mutability in His power, so that no warrior can ever conquer
Him. And thus, burning in His love and persevering in righteousness, they despised
all the dust of injustice.
2. Lucifer, for pride in his beauty and power, was cast forth from Heaven
But Lucifer, who because of his pride was cast forth from celestial glory, was
so great at the moment of his creation that he felt no defect either in his beauty
or in his strength. Hence when he contemplated his beauty, and when he considered
in himself the power of his strength, he discovered pride, which promised him
that he might begin what he wished, because he could achieve what he had begun.
And, seeing a place where he thought he could live, wanting to display his beauty
and power there, he spoke thus within himself about God: "I wish to shine there
as He does here!" And all his army assented, saying, "What you wish we also wish."
And when, elated with pride, he tried to achieve what he had conceived, the jealousy
of the Lord, reaching out in fiery blackness, cast him down with all his retinue,
so that they were made burning instead of shining and black instead of fair. Why
did this happen?
3. God would have been unjust if He had not cast them down
If God had not cast down their presumption, He would have been unjust, since He
would have cherished those who wished to divide the wholeness of divinity. But
He cast them down and reduced their impiety to nothing, as He removes from the
sight of His glory all who try to oppose themselves to Him, as My servant Job
shows when he says:
4. Words of Job on this subject
"The lamp of the wicked shall be put out and a deluge shall come upon them; and
He shall distribute the sorrows of His wrath. They shall be chaff before the face
of the wind, and sparks scattered by the whirlwind" [Job 11:17-18]. This means
the flagrant filth of wanton wickedness that emerges from false prosperity, like
a distinguishing mark on the carnal will of those who do not fear God but spurn
Him in perverse rage, disdaining to know that anyone can conquer them, while in
the fire of their ferocity they want to consume whatever they oppose. In the hour
of God's vengeance this filth will be trodden underfoot like dirt; and by the
supreme judgment these impious ones will be cast down in wrath by all who are
under heaven, because they are harmful both to God and to humans. Therefore, since
God does not allow them to have what they want, they are scattered everywhere
among people, tormented by pain in the rage of their madness, because they burn
to possess what God does not allow them to devour. And since they withdraw in
this way from God, they become entirely useless, able to do nothing good for either
God or humanity, cut off from the seed of life by the foreseeing eye of God's
contemplation. For which reason they are given over to misery, wasting themselves
in the flat taste of evil fame, since they do not receive the downpouring rain
of the Holy Spirit.
5. On Hell, which in its voracity keeps souls swallowed up
But the pit of great breadth and depth that appeared to you is Hell, having
within it, as you see, the breadth of vices and the depth of losses. It has a
mouth indeed like the mouth of a well, emitting a fiery smoke with great stench,
because in its voracity to swallow up souls, it shows them sweetness and gentleness,
and with perverse deception leads them to the torments of perdition, where rises
a burning fire with black smoke pouring out and a boiling, deadly stench; these
dire torments were prepared for the Devil and his followers, who turned away from
the Supreme Good, not wishing to know or understand it. Therefore they are outcast
from all good, not because they did not know it, but because in their great pride
they despised it. What does this mean?
6. In the casting down of the Devil Hell was created
In the casting down of the Devil this exterior darkness, full of all kinds of
pains, was created; for these evil spirits, in contrast to the glory that had
been prepared for them, were subject to the misery of many punishments, and in
contrast to the brightness they had had, endured the thickest darkness. How? When
the proud angel raised himself on high like a snake, he received the prison of
Hell, because it could not be that anyone should prevail over God. For how could
two hearts possibly exist in one breast? Likewise, there could not be two gods
in Heaven. But since the Devil and his followers chose proud presumption, therefore
he found the pit of Hell prepared for him. So also the people who imitate them
in their actions become sharers of their pains, according to their deserts.
7. Gehenna is for the impenitent, other torments for those who can be saved
Some souls, having reached the point of damnation, are rejected from the knowledge
of God, and therefore they shall have the pains of Hell without the consolation
of deliverance. But some, whom God has not consigned to oblivion, experience a
higher process and undergo purgation of the sins into which they have fallen,
and at last feel the loosing of their bonds and are delivered into rest. How is
this? Gehenna is ready for those who have impenitently forgotten God in their
hearts, but other torments for those who, though they perform bad works, do not
persevere in them to the end, but at last, groaning, look back to God. For this
reason let the faithful flee from the Devil and love God, casting away evil works
and adorning good works with the beauty of penitence; as My servant Ezekiel, inspired
by Me, urges, saying:
8. Words of Ezekiel on this subject
"Be converted, and do penance for all your iniquities; and iniquity shall not
be your ruin" [Ezekiel 18:30]. That is to say: O you people! who till now have
wallowed in sin, remember your name of Christians, be converted to the way of
salvation, and perform all your works in a gush of penitence, who previously had
innumerable vices and committed many crimes. Thus as you rise from your evil habits,
that iniquity by which you had been soiled will not sink you deep in the ruin
of death, since you cast it off in the day of your salvation. Therefore the angels
will rejoice over you, because you have abandoned the Devil and run to God, knowing
Him better in your good actions than you did when you endured the mockery of the
ancient seducer.
9. The Devil's fraud, which deceived Adam through the serpent
That a loathsome cloud spread out from the pit and touched a deceitful, vein-shaped
form means that from the bottom of perdition the Devil's fraud came forth
and invaded the serpent, who already bore within itself the crime of fraudulent
intention, in order to deceive humanity. In what way? Because, when the Devil
saw Man in paradise, he cried out with great aversion, saying, "Oh! who touches
me in the mansion of true beatitude?" And so he knew that he had not yet perfected
in any creature the malice he had within himself, but seeing Adam and Eve walk
with childlike innocence in the garden of delight, with great wonder he rose up
to deceive them through the serpent. Why? Because he understood that the serpent
more than any other animal resembled him and was eager to accomplish by its deceitfulness
what he could not do openly in his own form. So when he saw Adam and Eve turn
away in soul and body from the forbidden tree, he understood that they were obeying
a divine precept, and that in the first work they began he could very easily throw
them down.
10. Only from Eve's reply did the Devil know the tree was forbidden
For he would not have known that this tree was forbidden them unless he had proved
it by guileful questioning and by their answers. Wherefore in that bright region
he blew upon a white cloud; which had come forth from a beautiful human form and
contained within itself many and many stars because, in that place of delight,
Eve -- whose soul was innocent, for she had been raised out of innocent Adam,
bearing in her body the whole multitude of the human race, shining with God's
preordination -- was invaded by the Devil through the seduction of the serpent
for her own downfall. Why was this? Because he knew that the susceptibility of
the woman would be more easily conquered than the strength of the man; and he
saw that Adam burned so vehemently in his holy love for Eve that if he, the Devil,
conquered Eve, Adam would do whatever she said to him. Hence the Devil cast
out both the cloud and the human form from that region because that ancient
seducer cast out Eve and Adam by his deception from the seat of blessedness and
thrust them into the darkness of destruction. How? By first misleading Eve, so
that she might flatter and caress Adam and thus win his assent, since she more
than any other creature could lead Adam to disobedience, having been made from
his rib. Thus woman very quickly overthrows man, if he does not hate her and easily
accepts her words.
11. What things are to be observed and avoided in marriage
Because a mature woman was given not to a little boy but to a mature man, namely
Adam, so now a mature woman must be married to a man when he has reached the full
age of fertility, just as due cultivation is given to a tree when it begins to
put forth flowers. For Eve was formed from a rib by Adam's ingrafted heat and
vigor, and therefore now it is by the strength and heat of a man that a woman
receives the semen to bring a child into the world. For the man is the sower,
but the woman is the recipient of the seed. Wherefore a wife is under the power
of her husband because the strength of the man is to the susceptibility of the
woman as the hardness of stone is to the softness of earth.
But the first woman's being formed from man means the joining of wife to husband.
And thus it is to be understood: This union must not be vain or done in forgetfulness
of God, because He Who brought forth the woman from the man instituted this union
honorably and virtuously, forming flesh from flesh. Wherefore, as Adam and Eve
were one flesh, so now also a man and woman become one flesh in a union of holy
love for the multiplication of the human race. And therefore there should be perfect
love in these two as there was in those first two. For Adam could have blamed
his wife because by her advice she brought him death, but nonetheless he did not
dismiss her as long as he lived in this world, because he knew she had been given
to him by divine power. Therefore, because of perfect love, let a man not leave
his wife except for the reason the faithful Church allows. And let them never
separate, unless both with one mind want to contemplate My Son, and say with burning
love for Him: "We want to renounce the world and follow Him Who suffered for our
sake!" But if these two disagree as to whether they should renounce the world
for one devotion, then let them by no means separate from each other, since, just
as the blood cannot be separated from the flesh as long as the spirit remains
in the flesh, so the husband and wife cannot be divided from each other but must
walk together in one will.
But if either husband or wife breaks the law by fornication, and it is made public
either by themselves or by their priests, they shall undergo the just censure
of the spiritual magisterium. For the husband shall complain of the wife, or the
wife of the husband, about the sin against their union before the Church and its
prelates, according to the justice of God; but not so that the husband or wife
can seek another marriage; either they shall stay together in righteous union,
or they shall both abstain from such unions, as the discipline of church practice
shows. And they shall not tear each ocher to pieces by viperous rending, but they
shall love with pure love, since both man and woman could not exist without having
been conceived in such a bond, as My friend Paul witnesses when he says:
12. Words of the apostle on this subject
"As the woman is of the man, so is the man for the woman; but all are from God"
(1 Corinthians 11:12.]. Which is to say: Woman was created for the sake of man,
and man for the sake of woman. As she is from the man, the man is also from her,
lest they dissent from each other in the unity of making their children; for they
should work as one in one work, as the air and the wind intermingle in their labor.
In what way? The air is moved by the wind, and the wind is mingled with the air,
so that in their movement all verdant things are subject to their influence. What
does this mean? The wife must cooperate with the husband and the husband with
the wife in making children. Therefore the greatest crime and wickedest act is
to make by fornication a division in the days of creating children, since the
husband and wife cut off their own blood from its rightful place, sending it to
an alien place. They will certainly incur the deceit of the Devil and the wrath
of God, because they have transgressed that bond God ordained for them. Woe to
them, therefore, if their sins are not forgiven! But although, as has been shown,
the husband and wife work together in their children, nevertheless the husband
and the wife and all other creatures come from the divine disposition and ordination,
since God made them according to His will.
13. Why before the Incarnation some men had several wives
Before the Incarnation of My Son, however, certain men among the ancient people
had several wives at once, as they wished; they had not yet heard the open prohibition
of My Son, Who when He came into the world showed that the right fruit of this
union of husband and wife as long as they live is the fruit manifest in the union
of Adam and Eve, a union to be exercised not by the will of Man but by the fear
of God. For it is better to have this right union, by the arrangement of the prudence
of the Church, than to crave fornication; but you humans ignore this, and pursue
your lusts not only like humans but like beasts.
But let there be right faith and pure love of the knowledge of God between husband
and wife lest their seed be polluted by the Devil's art and divine vengeance strike
them because they are biting and tearing each other to pieces and sowing their
seed inhumanly with the wantonness of beasts. In such a case jealousy will torture
them like a viper, and without the fear of God and without human discipline a
defiled excess of seed will be stored up in them, and often, by the just judgment
of God, this perversity of theirs will be chastised by having those born of them
deprived of limbs and of health in their lives; unless I receive their penitence
and show Myself propitious to them. For if any shall call upon Me in penitence
for their sins, I will accept their penitence for the love of My Son; for if anyone
lifts a finger to Me in penitence, that is, reaches out to Me in penitence and
groaning in his heart, saying, "I have sinned, Lord, before you!" My Son, Who
is the Priest of priests, will show Me that penitence; for penitence which is
offered to priests for the love of My Son obtains the purgation of the sinners.
Therefore, people who worthily do penance escape from the jaws of the Devil, Who,
trying to swallow the hook of divine power, has grievously wounded his jaw; and
now, therefore, faithful souls pass out of perdition and arrive at salvation.
How?
Because the priests at the altar, invoking My name, will receive the confession
of the peoples and show them the remedy of salvation. So, in order to find God
propitious, let them not contaminate their seed by various vices, since those
who emit their semen in fornication or adultery render their children, born of
them thus, unsound. How? Can he who mixes mud or ordure with pure clay make a
lasting vessel? Likewise, will he who contaminates his semen in fornication or
adultery ever beget strong sons? But many work in different ways in their inmost
being, and many of these become prudent toward the world and toward God. And with
these the heavenly Jerusalem is filled; deserting vice and loving virtue, they
imitate My Son in chastity and in great works, carrying in their bodies, as much
as they are able, His martyrdom.
But when I do not wish a person to have children, I take away the virile power
of the semen, that it may not coagulate in the mother's womb; So also I deny the
earth the power to bear fruit when by My just judgment I will to do So. But do
you wonder, O human, why I let children be born in adultery and similar crimes?
My judgment is just. For, since the fall of Adam, I have not found in human seed
the justice that should have been in it, for the Devil drove out this justice
by the taste of the fruit. Therefore I sent My Son into the world born of a virgin,
so that by His blood, in which there was no carnal pollution, He might take away
from the Devil those spoils that he had carried off from humanity.
14. No human or angel but only the Son of God could deliver Man
For neither a human being, conceived in sin, nor an angel, who has no covering
of flesh, could save Man, wallowing in sins and laboring under the heaviness of
the flesh, from the power of the Devil; but only He Who, coming without sin, with
a pure and sinless body, delivered him by His Passion. Therefore, though human
beings are born in sin, I nevertheless gather them into My heavenly kingdom when
they faithfully seek it. For no wickedness can take My elect from me, as Wisdom
testifies, saying:
15. Words of Wisdom on this subject
"The souls of the just are in the hand of God; and the torment of death shall
not touch them" [Wisdom 3:1]. Which is to say: The souls of those who embrace
the path of rectitude with devout affection are aided by the celestial Helper;
so that, because of the good works by which in the height of justice they strive
for Heaven, the torment of perdition does not break them, for the true Light strengthens
them in the fear and love of God. But after Adam and Eve were driven out of the
place of delight, they knew in themselves the work of conceiving and bearing children.
And falling thus from disobedience into death, when they knew they could sin,
they discovered sin's sweetness. And in this way, turning My rightful institution
into sinful lust, although they should have known that the commotion in their
veins was not for the sweetness of sin but for the love of children, by the Devil's
suggestion they changed it to lechery; and, losing the innocence of the act of
begetting, they yielded it to sin. This was not accomplished without the Devil's
persuasion; for that purpose he sent forth his darts, and it did not come to pass
without his suggestion; as he said, "My strength is in human conception, and therefore
humanity is mine!" And, seeing that if Man consented to him he would become a
sharer in his punishment, he said again within himself: "All iniquities are against
Most Powerful God, since He is certainly not unjust." And that deceiver put this
as a great seal on his heart, that Man, who had consented to him of his own accord,
could not be taken away from him.
Therefore I took secret counsel within Myself, to send My Son for the redemption
of humanity, that Man might be restored to the heavenly Jerusalem. And no iniquity
could withstand this counsel, for My Son, coming into the world, gathered unto
himself all who, forsaking sin, chose to hear and imitate Him. I am just and righteous,
not willing the iniquity that you, O human, embrace when you know you can do evil.
For Lucifer and Man each tried at the beginning of their creation to rebel against
Me and could not stand firm, but fell away from good and chose evil. But Lucifer
laid hold of total evil and rejected all good, and did not taste the good at all,
but fell into death. Adam, however, tasted the good when he accepted obedience,
but he longed for evil, and in his desire accomplished it by his disobedience
to God, Why this happened is not for you, O human, to investigate; mortal cannot
know what there was before the creation of the world or what may happen after
the last day, but God alone knows this, except insofar as He permits His elect
to know it.
But that fornication, which is commonly done by people, is abominable in My sight,
for I created male and female from the beginning in integrity and not in wickedness.
Therefore those hypocrites who say it is lawful for them to commit fornication,
with animal appetites, with whomever they wish, are unworthy of My eyes, because,
despising the honor and loftiness of their rationality, they look to the beasts
and make themselves like them. Woe to those who live so and persevere in this
wickedness!
16. Blood relatives may not be united in marriage
I also do not wish the blood of relatives to be mingled in marriage, where the
ardor of family love is not yet weakened, lest there arise shameless love in the
relation of consanguinity; but let the blood of different families flow together,
which feels no blood relationship burning within it, so that human custom may
work there.
17. Example of milk
Milk that is cooked once or twice has not yet lost its flavor, but by the time
it is coagulated and cooked the seventh or eighth time, it loses its qualities
and does not have a pleasant taste except in case of necessity. And as one must
not have sexual relations with a relative who is one's own spouse, so also one
must abhor a sexual relationship with a relative related not to one but to one's
spouse; let no human being join in such a coupling, which the Church by its Doctors,
who established it in great responsibility and honor, has forbidden.
18. Blood relatives could marry in the Old, but not in the New Testament
Under the Old Testament people married their blood relatives by the precept of
the Law, but that was allowed because of their hardheartedness, so that they might
be at peace among themselves and charity be strengthened in them; so that these
tribes would not break My Covenant by dividing and mixing with the pagans in marriage,
until the time came when My Son brought the fullness of charity, changing the
joining of relatives in carnal bonds into marriages with different people in bashful
modesty. Thus, since the Bride of My Son [the Church] now possesses in holy baptism
a bond of My fear and righteous justice, let such joinings of relatives be far
from her; for the embraces of a man and woman related by blood would be wickedly
enkindled into shameless fornication and ceaseless lust much more than those of
unrelated people. I am explaining this by this person [Hildegard], to whom this
human operation is unknown; she is receiving this explanation not from human knowledge,
but from God. What next?
19 A man should be adult to marry and take only a wife of marriageable age
When a male is at the age of strength, so that his veins are full of blood, then
he is fertile in his semen; then let him take in lawfully instituted marriage
a woman who is also at the age of heat, that she may modestly receive his seed
and bear him children in the path of rectitude.
20 On the avoidance of illicit and lustful pollution
But let not a man emit his semen in excessive lust before the years of his strength;
for if he tries to sow his seed in the eagerness of lust before that seed has
enough heat to coagulate properly, it is proof that he is sinning at the Devil's
suggestion. And when a man is already strong in his desire, let him not exercise
his strength in that work as much as he can; because if he thus pays attention
to the Devil, he is doing a devilish work, making his body contemptible, which
is entirely unlawful. But let the man do as human nature teaches him, and seek
the right way with his wife in the strength of his heat and the vigor of his seed;
and let him do this with human knowledge, out of desire for children.
But I do not want this work done during the wife's menses, when she is already
suffering the flow of her blood, the opening of the hidden parts of her womb,
lest the flow of her blood carry with it the mature seed after its reception,
and the seed, thus carried forth, perish; at this time the woman is in pain and
in prison, suffering a small portion of the pain of childbirth. I do not remit
this time of pain for women, because I gave it to Eve when she conceived sin in
the taste of the fruit; but therefore the woman should be cherished in this time
with a great and healing tenderness. Let her contain herself in hidden knowledge;
she should not, however, restrain herself from going into My temple, but faith
allows her to enter in the service of humility for her salvation. But because
the Bride of My Son is always whole, a man who has open wounds because the wholeness
of his members has been divided by the impact of a blow shall not enter My Temple,
except under the fear of great necessity, lest it be violated, as the intact members
of Abel, who was a temple of God, were cruelly broken by his brother Cain.
21. A woman shall not enter the temple after birth or defloration by a man
So a woman, too, when she bears offspring, may not enter My Temple except in accordance
with the law I give her, because her hidden members have been broken, that the
holy sacraments of My Temple may be unviolated by any masculine or feminine pain
or pollution; because the most pure Virgin bore My Son, and she was whole without
any wound of sin. For the place that is consecrated in honor of my Only-Begotten
should be untouched by any corruption of bruise or wound, because My Only-Begotten
knew in himself the integrity of the Virgin Birth. Therefore, let a woman who
breaks the wholeness of her virginity with a man also refrain from entering My
Temple while injured by the bruise of her corruption, until the injury of that
wound is healed, in accordance with the sure instruction of church teaching. For
when His Bride was wedded to My Son on the wood of the cross, she kept herself
hidden until My Son commanded His disciples to teach the truth of the Gospel throughout
the whole world; but afterward she arose openly and publicly preached the glory
of her Bridegroom in the regeneration of the Spirit and water. So let a virgin
who is joined to a husband do the same, namely remain hidden with modest shame
until the time which church opinion appoints for her; and when she has given herself
over to the love of her husband in her concealment, let her come forth openly.
22. Those who have intercourse with the pregnant are murderers
I do not want that work of man and woman to take place from the time when the
root of a little child has already been placed in the woman, lest the development
of that little child be polluted by excessive and wasted semen, until her purification
after childbirth. After that it may be done again, in rectitude and not in wantonness,
for the love of children. Thus the human race may procreate by honest human custom,
and not as foolish people babble when they claim it is lawful to satisfy their
lust at will, saying, "How can we contain ourselves so cruelly?" O humans, if
you pay attention to the Devil, he will incite you to evil and destroy you with
his deadly poison; but if you raise your eyes to God, He will help you and make
you chaste. Do you not desire chastity in your works rather than lust? The woman
is subject to the man in that he sows his seed in her, as he works the earth to
make it bear fruit. Does a man work the earth that it may bring forth thorns and
thistles? Never, but that it may give worthy fruit. So also this endeavor should
be for the love of children and not for the wantonness of lust.
Therefore, O humans, weep and howl to your God, Whom you so, often despise in
your sinning, when you sow your seed in the worst fornication and thereby become
not only fornicators but murderers; for you cast aside the mirror of God and sate
your lust at will. Therefore the Devil always incites you to this work, knowing
that you desire your lustfulness more than the joy of children. Hear, then, you
who are among the towers of the Church! In your fornication do not accuse Me,
but consider yourselves; for when you despise Me and run to the Devil you do unlawful
things, and therefore you do not wish to be chaste; as My servant Hosea says,
speaking of the corrupted people:
23. Hosea on this subject
"They will not set their thoughts to return to their God; for the spirit of fornication
is in the midst of them, and they have not known God" [Hosea 5:4]. Which is to
say: Evil people who do not know God hide the countenance of their heart, and
do not do the various things that would bring it back to true brightness; that
is, they do not see with clear eyes the things that are of God, but nurture evil
in themselves; for, by the Devil's persuasion, the breath of wanton impurity weakens
the virile strength they should have, and they cannot put good faith in God because
the Devil turns them away from the life of felicity.
24. Commendation of charity
But now I will turn to My most loving sheep who are securely placed in My heart,
the seed of chastity. Virginity was made by Me, for My Son was born of a virgin.
And therefore virginity is the most beautiful fruit of all the fruits of the valleys,
and the greatest of all the persons in the palace of the unfailing King; for it
was not subject to the precept of the law, since it brought My Only-Begotten into
the world. Therefore, listen, all those who wish to follow My Son, in the innocence
of free chastity or in the solitude of mourning widowhood: Virginity unspotted
from the beginning is nobler than widowhood oppressed under the yoke of a husband,
even though widowhood, after the grief of the loss of a husband, would imitate
virginity.
For My Son bore many pains in His body and underwent the death of the cross; therefore
you also, in His love, will suffer much anguish when you conquer in yourselves
what was sown in the lust of sin by the taste of the fruit. But though you will
endure in your seed flowing rivulets from the conflagration of lust, since you
cannot be so chaste as to prevent human weakness from appearing in you secretly,
you should in that labor imitate the Passion of My Son and resist yourselves;
that is, extinguish within yourselves the burning flame of lust and other things
of this world, casting out anger, pride, wantonness and other vices of that son
and attaining this victory by a great struggle. These battles are to Me full of
great beauty and much fruit, brighter than the sun and sweeter than the love of
spices; for when you trample under foot the burning lust within you, you imitate
My Only-Begotten in His pains. And when you persevere in this, you will attain
much glory for it in the celestial kingdom.
O sweetest flowers! My angels marvel at your struggle, for you escape from death,
so as not to be polluted by the poisonous mud of the world; you have a carnal
body, but you tread it under foot, and so you will be glorious in their company
since you will appear unpolluted in their likeness. Therefore rejoice that you
thus persevere, for I am with you when you receive Me faithfully and with joy
in your hearts receive My voice; as I show in a secret vision of My beloved John,
saying:
25. John on this subject
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any shall hear My voice and open the
door, I will come in to him and will sup with him, and he with Me" [Apocalypse
3:10]. That is to say: O you who faithfully love Me, your Savior, look and see
how, wishing to aid you, I wait at the tabernacle of your heart, seeing what you
have in the self-knowledge of your conscience, and with the breath of your memory
I knock at your spirit, that its goodwill may open and grant admission. And if
then the faithful heart, which fears Me, hears My knock, I join Myself to him,
embracing him and taking with him the unfailing food, since he offers Me that
sweet taste, himself, in his good works; therefore he too shall have that food
of life in Me, because he loves what brings life to those who desire justice.
26. After Adam was expelled, God closed Paradise in
But, as you see, after Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise, a luminous
splendor surrounded that region, since when they went forth from the place
of delight because of their transgression, the Power of the Divine Majesty took
away every stain of contagion from the place and fortified it with His Glory,
so that from then on it would be touched by no encroachment; which also showed
that the transgression which had taken place there would one day be abolished
by His clemency and mercy.
27. Creation opposed Man because he rebelled against God
And so all the elements of the world, which before had existed in great calm,
were turned to the greatest agitation and displayed horrible terrors, because
when Man chose disobedience, rebelling against God and forsaking tranquillity
for disquiet, that Creation, which had been created for the service of humanity,
turned against humans in great and various ways so that Man, having lowered himself,
might be held in check by it. What does this mean? That Man showed himself a rebel
against God in the place of delights, and therefore that Creation, which had been
subjected to him in service, now opposed itself to him.
28. On the delightfulness of Paradise
But Paradise is the place of delight, which blooms with the freshness of flowers
and grass and the charms of spices, full of fine odors and dowered with the joy
of blessed souls, giving invigorating moisture to the dry ground; it supplies
strong force to the earth, as the soul gives strength to the body, for Paradise
is not darkened by shadow or the perdition of sinners.
29. Why God made Man such that he could sin
Therefore listen and understand me, you who say in your hearts, "What are these
things and why?" Oh, why are you so foolish in your hearts, you who have been
made in the image and likeness of God? How can such great glory and honor, which
is given to you, exist without testing, as if it were an empty case of nothing?
Gold must be tested in the fire, and precious stones, to smooth them, must be
polished, and all things of this kind must be diligently scrutinized. Hence, O
foolish humans, how can that which was made in the image and likeness of God exist
without testing? For Man must be examined more than any other creature, and therefore
he must be tested through every other creature. How?
Spirit is to be tested by spirit, flesh by flesh, earth by water, fire by cold,
fight by resistance, good by evil, beauty by deformity, poverty by riches, sweetness
by bitterness, health by sickness, long by short, hard by soft, height by depth,
light by darkness, life by death, Paradise by punishments, the Heavenly Kingdom
by Gehenna, earthly things by earthly things and heavenly things by heavenly things.
Hence Man is tested by every creature, in Paradise, on earth and in Hell; and
then he is placed in Heaven. You see clearly only a few things among many that
are hidden from your eyes. So why do you deride what is right, plain and just,
and good among all good things in the sight of God? Why do you think these things
unjust? God is just, but the human race is unjust in transgressing God's precepts
when it claims to be wiser than God.
30. Man should not examine the highest things since he cannot the lowest ones
Now tell me, O human: What do you think you were when you were not yet in soul
and body? Truly you do not know how you were created. But now, O human, you wish
to investigate Heaven and earth, and to judge of their justice in God's disposition,
and to know the highest things though you are not able to examine the lowest;
for you do not know how you live in the body, or how you may be divested of the
body. He Who created you in the first human foresaw all these things; but that
same most gentle Father sent His Only-Begotten to die for the people, to deliver
humanity from the power of the Devil.
31. Man now shines brighter in Heaven than before
And thus Man, having been delivered, shines in God, and God in Man; Man, having
community in God, has in Heaven more radiant brightness than he had before. This
would not have been so if the Son of God had not put on flesh, for if Man had
remained in Paradise, the Son of God would not have suffered on the cross. But
when Man was deceived by the wily serpent, God was touched by true mercy and ordained
that His Only-Begotten would become incarnate in the most pure Virgin. And thus
after Man's ruin many shining virtues were lifted up in Heaven, like humility,
the queen of virtues, which flowered in the virgin birth, and other virtues, which
lead God's elect to the heavenly places. For when a field with great labor is
cultivated, it brings forth much fruit, and the same is shown in the human race,
for after humanity's ruin many virtues arose to raise it up again. But you, O
humans, oppressed by the heaviness of the flesh, do not see that great glory God's
full justice has prepared for you, without stain or unworthiness, so that no one
can throw it down. For before the structure of the world was made, God in true
justice had foreseen all these things. Therefore, O human, consider this comparison:
32. Man's condition symbolized by a garden, a sheep and a pearl
The master who seeks to set out a garden without being wearied first chooses a
suitable site, and then, deciding on a place for each planting, reflects on the
fruit of good trees and the utility, taste, fragrance and high esteem of various
spices. And so this master, if he is a great philosopher and expert contriver,
lays out each of the plantings where he sees that it will be most useful; and
then he thinks of enclosing it with great walls, so that none of his enemies can
destroy his planting. Then he appoints his experts, who know how to water the
garden and who collect its fruit and make from it many fragrant things. Therefore
consider well, O human: If that master foresaw that his garden, bringing forth
no fruit or any kind of use, was to be destroyed, why would so great a philosopher
and contriver have made, planted, watered and fortified it so eagerly and with
so much labor?
Hear, therefore, and understand! God, Who is the Sun of Justice, made His splendor
rise over the filth that is Man's wickedness; and that splendor shone with great
brightness, as that filth stank exceedingly. The sun gleamed forth in its brightness,
and the filth putrefied in its foulness; and therefore the sun was embraced by
those beholding it with much greater love than if the filth had not been there
opposite it. But as foul as the filth is compared to the sun, so evil is Man's
wickedness compared to God's justice. Hence justice, being beautiful, must be
loved, and iniquity, being foul, must be rejected.
Into this foulness fell a sheep belonging to the master who had planted this garden.
But this sheep was separated from its master by its own consent, not by his negligence;
afterward the master sought it again with great zeal and justice. Therefore the
choir of angels shone with great honor, for the angels saw a human in Heaven.
What does this mean?
When the innocent Lamb was suspended on the cross, the elements trembled, because
the most noble Son of the Virgin was slain in the body by the hands of murderers;
by His death the lost sheep was brought back to the pastures of life. For the
ancient persecutor saw that because of the blood of (he innocent Lamb, which the
Lamb had poured out in remission of the sins of humanity, he must lose that sheep,
and only then first recognized who that Lamb was; previously he had not been able
to understand how the Celestial Bread, without a man's semen and without any desire
for sin, had become incarnate of the Virgin by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit.
For that persecutor, when first he was created, raised himself up in the haughtiness
of pride, throwing himself into death and expelling Man from (he glory of Paradise;
but God did not will to resist him by His power, but conquered him by humility
through His Son. And because Lucifer derided God's justice, by God's just judgment
he was unable to know the incarnation of God's Only-Begotten. For by this hidden
decision the lost sheep was brought back to life. Therefore, O rebellious humans,
why are you so hardhearted? God did not will to forsake humanity, but sent His
Son for its salvation; thus God crushed the head of pride in the ancient serpent.
For when Man was snatched from death, Hell opened its gates, and Satan cried,
"Alas, alas, who will help me?" And the Devil's whole band was torn with great
agitation, marvelling that there was a power so great they and their prince could
not resist it, since they saw the souls of the faithful being taken away from
them. Thus Man was lifted up above the heavens because through (he Son of God
God appeared in Man and Man in God. Likewise, that master who lost the sheep but
brought it so gloriously back to life had, like (hat sheep, a precious pearl that
slipped from him and fell into the mud. But he, not allowing it to lie in the
dirt, mercifully drew it forth and purified it of (he filth in which it had lain,
as gold is purified in the furnace, and restored it to its former honor with even
greater glory. For God created Man, but the latter at the Devil's instigation
fell into death, from which the Son of God saved him by His blood and brought
him gloriously to the glory of Heaven. And how? By humility and charity.
33. Commendation of humility and charity above all other virtues
For humility caused the Son of God to be born of the Virgin, in whom was found
humility, not eager embraces or beauty of flesh or earthly riches or gold ornaments
or earthly honors. But the Son of God lay in a manger, because His Mother was
a poor maiden. Humility always groans, weeps and destroys all offenses, for this
is its work. So let anyone who wishes to conquer the Devil arm himself with humility,
since Lucifer fervently flees it and hides in its presence like a snake in a hole;
for wherever it finds him, it quickly snaps him like a fragile thread.
And charity took the Only-Begotten of God, who was in the bosom of the Father
in Heaven, and placed Him in the womb of a mother on earth, for it does not spurn
sinners or publicans but seeks to save all. Therefore it often brings forth a
fountain of tears from the eyes of the faithful, thus softening hardness of heart.
In this, humility and charity are brighter than the other virtues, since humility
and charity are like a soul and body that possess stronger powers than the other
powers of soul and bodily members. How? Humility is like the soul and charity
like the body, and they cannot be separated from each other but work together,
just as soul and body cannot be disjoined but work together as long as a person
lives in the body. And as the various members of the body are subject, according
to their powers, to the soul and to the body, so also the other virtues cooperate,
according to their justice, with humility and charity. And therefore, O humans,
for the glory of God and for your salvation, pursue humility and charity; armed
with them, you shall not fear the Devil's snares but shall have everlasting life.
Therefore whoever has knowledge in the Holy Spirit and wings of faith, let this
one not ignore My admonition, but taste it, embrace it and receive it in his soul.
BOOK TWO
VISION ONE
The Redeemer
And I, a person not glowing with the strength of strong lions or taught by their
inspiration, but a tender and fragile rib imbued with a mystical breath, saw a
blazing fire, incomprehensible, inextinguishable, wholly living and wholly Life,
with a flame in it the color of the sky, which burned ardently with a gentle breath,
and which was as inseparably within the blazing fire as the viscera are within
a human being. And I saw that the flame sparked and blazed up. And behold! The
atmosphere suddenly rose up in a dark sphere of great magnitude, and that flame
hovered over it and gave it one blow after another, which struck sparks from it,
until that atmosphere was perfected and so Heaven and earth stood fully formed
and resplendent. Then the some flame was in that fire, and that burning extended
itself to a little clod of mud which lay at the bottom of the atmosphere, and
warmed it so that it was made flesh and blood, and blew upon it until it rose
up a living human. When this was done, the blazing fire, by means of that flame
which burned ardently with a gentle breath, offered to the human a white flower,
which hung in that flame as dew hangs on the grass . Its scent came to the human's
nostrils, but he did not taste it with his mouth or touch it with his hands, and
thus he turned away and fell into the thickest darkness, out of which he could
not pull himself. And that darkness grew and expanded more and more in the atmosphere.
But then three great stars, crowding together in their brilliance, appeared in
the darkness, and then many others, both small and large, shining with great splendor,
and then a gigantic star, radiant with wonderful brightness, which shot its rays
toward the flame. And in the earth too appeared a radiance like the down, into
which the flame was miraculously absorbed without being separated from the blazing
fire. And thus in the radiance of that dawn the Supreme Will was enkindled.
And as I was trying to ponder this--enkindling of the Will more carefully, I was
stopped by a secret seal on this vision, and I heard the voice from on high saying
to me, "You may not see anything further regarding this mystery unless it is granted
you by a miracle of faith."
And I saw a serene Man coming forth from this radiant dawn, Who poured out
His brightness into the darkness; and it drove Him back with great force, so that
He poured out the redness of blood and the whiteness of pallor into it, and struck
the darkness such a strong blow that the person who was lying in it was touched
by Him, took on a shining appearance and walked out of it upright. And so the
serene Man Who had come out of that dawn shone more brightly than human tongue
can tell, and made His way into the greatest height of inestimable glory, where
He radiated in the plenitude of wonderful fruitfulness and fragrance. And
I heard the voice saying to me from the aforementioned living fire: "O you who
are wretched earth and, as a woman, untaught in all learning of earthly teaches
and unable to read literature with philosophical understanding, you are nonetheless
touched by My light, which kindles in you an inner fire like a burning sun; cry
out and relate and write these My mysteries that you see and hear in mystical
visions. So do not be timid, but say these things you understand in the Spirit
as I speak them through you; so that these who should have shown My people righteousness,
but who in their perversity refuse to speak openly of the justice they know, unwilling
to abstain from the evil desires that cling to them like their masters and make
them fly from the face of the Lord and blush to speak the truth, may be ashamed.
Therefore, O diffident mind, who are taught inwardly by mystical inspiration,
though because of Eve's transgression you are trodden on by the masculine sex,
speak of that fiery work this sure vision has shown you."
The Living God, then, Who created all things through His Word, by the Word's Incarnation
brought back the miserable human who had sunk himself in darkness to certain salvation.
What does this mean?
1. On God's omnipotence
This blazing fire that you see symbolizes the Omnipotent and Living God,
Who in His most glorious serenity was never darkened by any iniquity; incomprehensible,
because He cannot be divided by any division or known as He is by any part of
any of His creatures' knowledge; inextinguishable, because He is that Fullness
that no limit ever touched; wholly living, for there is nothing that is
hidden from Him or that He does not know; and wholly Life, for everything
that lives takes its life from Him, as Job shows, inspired by Me, when he says:
2 .Words of Job on this subject
"Who is ignorant that the hand of the Lord has made all these things? In His hand
is the soul of every living thing and the spirit of all human flesh" [Job 12:9-10].
What does this mean? No creature is so dull of nature as not to know what changes
in the things that make it fruitful cause it to attain its full growth. The sky
holds light, light air, and air the birds; the earth nourishes plants, plants
fruit and fruit animals; which all testify that they were put there by a strong
hand, the supreme power of the Ruler of All, Who in His strength has provided
so for them all that nothing is lacking to them for their use. And in the omnipotence
of the same Maker is the motion of all living things that seek the earth for earthly
things like the animals and are not inspired by God with reason, as well as the
awakening of those who dwell in human flesh and have reason, discernment and wisdom.
How?
The soul goes about in earthly affairs, laboring through many changes as fleshly
behavior demands. But the spirit raises itself in two ways: sighing, groaning
and desiring God; and choosing among options in various matters as if by some
rule, for the soul has discernment in reason. Hence Man contains in himself the
likeness of heaven and earth. In what way? He has a circle, which contains his
clarity, breath and reason, as the sky has its lights, air and birds; and he has
a receptacle containing humidity, germination and birth, as the earth contains
fertility, fruition and animals. What is this? O human, you are wholly in every
creature, and you forget your Creator; you are subject to Him as was ordained,
and you go against His commands?
3. That the Word was and is indivisibly and eternally in the Father
You see that that fire has a flame in it the color of the sky, which burns
ardently with a gentle breath, and which is as inseparably within the blazing
fire as the viscera are within a human being; which is to say that before
any creatures were made the Infinite Word was indivisibly in the Father; Which
in course of time was to become incarnate in the ardor of charity, miraculously
and without the stain or weight of sin, by the Holy Spirit's sweet freshness in
the dawn of blessed virginity. But after He assumed flesh, the Word also remained
inseparably in the Father; for as a person does not exist without the vital movements
within his viscera, so the only Word of the Father could in no way be separated
from Him.
4. Why the Son of God is called the Word
And why is He called the Word? Because, just as a word of command uttered by an
instructor among local and transitory human dust is understood by people who know
and foresee the reason he gave it, so also the power of the Father is known among
the creatures of the world, who perceive and understand in Him the source of their
creation, through the Word Who is independent of place and imperishable in His
inextinguishable eternal life; and as the power and honor of a human being are
known by his official words, so the holiness and goodness of the Father shines
through the Supreme Word.
5. By the power of the Word of God every creature was raised up
And you see that the flame sparks and blazes up. This is to say that when
every creature was raised through Him, the Word of God showed His power like a
flash of flame; and when He became incarnate in the dawn and purity of virginity,
it was as if He blazed up, so that from Him trickled every virtue of the knowledge
of God, and Man lived again in the salvation of his soul.
6. God's incomprehensible power made the world and the different species
And the atmasphere suddenly rises up in a dark sphere of great magnitude.
This is the material of Creation while still formless and imperfect, not yet full
of creatures; it is a sphere, for it is under the incomprehensible power of God,
which is never absent from it, and by the Supernal Will it rises up in God's great
power in the twinkling of an eye. And that flame hovers over it like a workman
and gives it one blow after another, which strike sparks from it, until that atmosphere
is perfected and so Heaven and earth stand fully formed and resplendent. For
the Supernal Word, Who excels every creature, showed that they all are subject
to Him and draw their strength from His power, when He brought forth from the
universe the different kinds of creatures, shining in their miraculous awakening,
as a smith makes forms out of bronze; until each creature was radiant with the
loveliness of perfection, beautiful in the fullness of their arrangement in higher
and lower ranks, the higher made radiant by the lower and the lower by the higher.
7. After the other creatures Man was created from earthly mud
But then the same flame that is in that fire and that burning extends itself
to a little clod of mud, which lies at the bottom of the atmosphere; this
is to say that after the other creatures were created, the Word of God, in the
strong will of the Father and supernal love, considered the poor fragile matter
from which the weak frailty of the human race, both bad and good, was to be produced,
now lying in heavy unconsciousness and not yet roused by the breath of life; and
warms it so that it is made flesh and blood, that is, poured fresh warmth
into it, for the earth is the fleshly material of humans, and nourished it with
moisture, as a mother gives milk to her children; and blows upon it until it
rises up a living human, for He aroused it by supernal power and miraculously
raised up a human being with intelligence of body and mind.
8. Adam accepted obedience, but by the Devil's counsel did not obey
When this is done, the blazing fire, by means of that flame which burns ardently
with a gentle breath, offers to the human a white flower, which hangs in that
flame as dew hangs on the grass. For, after Adam was created, the Father in
His lucid serenity gave to Adam through His Word in the Holy Spirit the sweet
precept of obedience, which in fresh "fruitfulness hung upon the Word; for the
sweet odor of sanctity trickled from the Father in the Holy Spirit through the
Word and brought forth fruit in greatest abundance, as the dew falling on the
grass makes it grow. Its scent comes to the human's nostrils, but he does not
taste it with his mouth or touch it with his hands; for he tried to know the
wisdom of the Law with his intelligence, as if with his nose, but did not perfectly
digest it by putting it in his mouth, or fulfil it in full blessedness by the
work of his hands. And thus he turns away and falls into the thickest darkness,
out of which he cannot pull himself. For, by the Devil's counsel, he turned
his back on the divine command and sank into the gaping mouth of death, so that
he did not seek God either by faith or by works; and therefore, weighed down by
sin, he could not rise to true knowledge of God, until He came Who obeyed His
Father sinlessly and fully.
And that darkness grows and expands more and more in the atmosphere; for
the power of death in the world was constantly increased by the spread of wickedness,
and human knowledge entangled itself in many vices in the horror of bursting and
stinking sin.
9. Abraham and Isaac and J acob and the other prophets drove back the darkness
But then three great stars, crowding together in their brilliance, appear in
the darkness, and then many others, both small and large, shining with great splendor.
These are the three great luminaries Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, symbolizing the
Heavenly Trinity, embracing one another both by their works of faith and by their
relationship in the flesh, and by their signs driving back the darkness in the
world; and, following them, the many other prophets both minor and major, radiant
with many wanders.
10. The prophet John, glittering with miracles, foretold the Son of God
And then a gigantic star appears, radiant with wonderful brightness, which
shoots its rays toward the flame. This is the greatest prophet, John the Baptist,
who glittered with miracles in his faithful and serene deeds, and pointed out
by their means the true Word, the true Son of God; for he did not yield to wickedness,
but vigorously and forcefully cast it out by works of justice.
11. At the Incarnation of the Word of God the great counsel was seen
And in the earth too appears a radiance like the dawn, into which the flame
is miraculously absorbed, without being separated from the blazing fire. This
is to say that God set a great splendor of light in the place where He would bring
forth His Word and, fully willing it, sent Him there, yet not so as to be divided
from Him; but He gave that profitable fruit and brought Him forth as a great fountain,
so that every faithful throat could drink and never more be dry. And thus in
the radiance of that dawn the Supreme Will is enkindled; for in the bright
and roseate serenity was seen the fruitfulness of the great and venerable counsel,
so that all the forerunners marvelled at it with bright joy.
12. Humans must not scrutinize God's secrets beyond what He wishes to show
But you, O human, who seek in the way of humans to know more fully the loftiness
of this counsel, are opposed by a concealing barrier; for you must not search
into the secrets of God beyond those things the Divine Majesty wills to be revealed
for love of those who trust in Him.
13. Christ by His death brought back His elect to their inheritance
And you see a serene Man coming forth from this radiant dawn, Who pours out
His brightness into the darkness; and it drives Him back with great force, so
that He pours out the redness of blood and the whiteness of pallor into it, and
strikes the darkness such a strong blow that the person who is lying in it is
touched by Him, takes on a shining appearance and walks out of it upright.
This is the Word of God, imperishably incarnate in the purity of unstained virginity
and born without pain, and yet not separated from the Father. How? While the Son
of God was being born in the world from a mother, He was still in Heaven in the
Father; and at this the angels suddenly trembled and sang the sweetest praises
of rejoicing. And, living in the world without stain of sin, He sent out into
the darkness of unbelief His clear and blessed teachings and salvation; but, rejected
by the unbelieving people and led to His Passion, He poured out His beautiful
blood and knew in His body the darkness of death. And thus conquering the Devil,
he delivered from Hell his elect, who were held prostrate there, and by His redeeming
touch brought them back to the inheritance they had last in Adam. As they were
returning to their inheritance timbrels and harps and all kinds of music burst
forth, because Man, Who had lain in perdition but now Stood upright in blessedness,
had been freed by heavenly power and escaped from death, as through My servant
Hosea I have stated thus:
14. Words of Hosea on this subject
"The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hidden. The sorrows of a woman
in labor shall come upon him; he is an unwise son; for now he shall not stand
in the contrition of the sons. I will deliver them out of the hand of death, from
death I will redeem them. I will be your death, O Death; I will be your destruction,
O Hell!" [Hosea 13:11-14]. What does this mean? The Devil's perverse iniquity
is bound by heavy fetters, since he does not deserve that God's zeal should release
him; for he has never rightfully acknowledged Him as do those Who faithfully fear
Him. For the Devil always raises himself against God, saying, "I am God!"; and
he always goes astray over the Blessed One of the Lord, opposing the name of Christians
because of Him. Thus his malice is so ingrained that his sin, cruelly committed
in filthy pride, can never deserve by any reparation to be covered by salvation.
Therefore he will be in perpetual pain, as a Woman in labor is afflicted by despair
when she doubts she can survive the opening of her womb. For this misery will
remain with him, that he is forsaken by beatitude because the wisdom of the sons
flees from him, and he does not come to himself, as that man came to himself Who
returned to his father from his wickedness.
Thus he will never stand trusting in that action by which the children of salvation
in the Heavenly Son crush death in its hardened iniquity, which the cunning serpent
brought forth when he suggested deceit to the guileless first man. But since those
children despise the poison of that unclean advice and look to their salvation,
I will deliver them from slavery to idols; for idols are by their deceptiveness
in the power of perdition, and for them the unfaithful forsake the honor of their
Creator, entangling themselves in the Devil's snare and doing his works at his
will.
And so I will redeem the souls of those who love and worship Me, the Holy and
the Just, from the pain of Hell; for no one can be released from the Devil's fetters,
which bind him with bitterest death by his transgression of God's precepts, except
by the redemption of Him Who will redeem His elect with His own blood. This is
how I will slay you, O Death, with utter destruction, for I will take from you
the thing you think to live by, and you will be called a useless corpse; at the
height of your strength you will lie prostrate, as a corpse without the soul lies
prostrate awaiting decay. For when the happy souls are mercifully raised up (O
celestial bliss through the new Man, Who will not be a party to poisonous deception,
the fountain of living water will drown you. Thus also to your confusion I will
be your destruction, O Hell!, when My strong power will take from you your ill-gotten
spoils, so that you too, justly despoiled, will never again appear whole and laden
with riches, but will lie prostrate and confounded forever, bearing wounds and
decay.
15. The Son of God rising from the dead showed Man the way from death to life
And, as you see, the serene Man Who has come out of that dawn shines more brightly
than human tongue can tell, which shows that the noble body of the Son of
God, born of the sweet Virgin and three days in the tomb (to confirm that there
are three Persons in one Divinity}, was touched by the glory of the Father, received
the Spirit and rose again to serene immortality, which no one can explain by thought
or word. And the Father showed Him with His open wounds to the celestial choirs,
saying, "This is My beloved Son, Whom I sent to die for the people." And so joy
unmeasurable by the human mind arose in them, for criminal forgetfulness of God
was brought low, and human reason, which had lain prostrate under the Devil's
persuasion, was uplifted to the knowledge of God; for the way to truth was shown
to Man by the Supreme Beatitude, and in it he was led from death to life.
16. The risen Christ appeared frequently to His disciples
But just as the children of Israel, after being liberated from Egypt, wandered
in the desert for forty years before coming into the land flowing with milk and
honey, so too the Son of God, rising from the dead, showed Himself for forty days
to His disciples and the blessed women who wept and had a great desire to see
Him. This He did to encourage them, lest they should waver in faith and say, "We
did not see Him, so we cannot believe that He is our salvation!" He showed Himself
to them frequently, to strengthen them that they might not fall.
17. When Christ ascended to the Father His Bride was given many ornaments
And He makes His way into the greatest height of inestimable glory, where he
radiates in the plenitude of wonderful fruitfulness and fragrance. This is
to say that the Son of God ascended to the Father , Who with the Son and the Holy
Spirit is the height of lofty and excelling joy and gladness unspeakable; where
that same Son gloriously appears to His faithful in the abundance of sanctity
and blessedness, so that they believe with pure and simple hearts that He is true
God and Man. And then indeed the new Bride of the Lamb was set up with many ornaments,
for she had to be ornamented with every kind of virtue for the mighty struggle
of all the faithful people, who are to fight against the crafty serpent.
But let the one who sees with watchful eyes and hears with attentive ears welcome
with a kiss My mystical words, which proceed from Me Who am life.
VISION SIX
Christ's Sacrifice and the Church
And after these things I saw the Son of God hanging on the cross, and the aforementioned
image of a woman coming forth like a bright radiance from the ancient counsel.
By divine power she was led to Him, and raised herself upward so that she was
sprinkled by the blood from His side; and thus, by the will of the Heavenly Father,
she was joined with Him in happy betrothal and nobly dowered with His body and
blood.
And I heard the voice from Heaven saying to Him: "May she, O Son, be your Bride
for the restoration of My people; may she be a mother to them, regenerating souls
through the salvation of the Spirit and water."
And as that image grew in strength, I saw an altar, which she frequently approached,
and there each time looked devotedly at her dowry and modestly showed it to the
Heavenly Father and His angels. Hence when a priest clad in sacred vestments approached
that altar to celebrate the divine mysteries, I saw that a great calm light was
brought to it from Heaven by angels and shone around the altar until the sacred
rite was ended and the priest had withdrawn from it. And when the Gospel of peace
had been recited and the offering to be consecrated had been placed upon the altar,
and the priest sang the praise of Almighty God, "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of
Hosts," which began the mystery of the sacred rites, Heaven was suddenly opened
and a fiery and inestimable brilliance descended over that offering and irradiated
it completely with light, as the sun illumines anything its rays shine through.
And, thus illuminating it, the brilliance bore it on high into the secret places
of Heaven and then replaced it on the altar, as a person draws in a breath and
lets it out again; and thus the offering was made true flesh and true blood, although
in human sight it looked like bread and wine.
And while I looked at these things, suddenly there appeared before my eyes
as if in a mirror the symbols of the Nativity, Passion and burial, Resurrection
and Ascension of our Savior, God's Only-Begotten, as they had happened to the
Son of God while He was on earth. But when the priest sang the song of the innocent
Lamb, "O Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world;" and prepared to
take the Holy Communion himself, the fiery brilliance withdrew into Heaven; and
as it closed I heard the voice from thence saying, "Eat and drink the body and
blood of My Son to wipe out Eve's transgression, so that you may be restored to
the noble inheritance." And as other people approached the priest to receive the
sacrament, I noticed five modes of being in them. For some were bright of body
and fiery of soul, and others seemed pale of body and shadowed of soul; some were
hairy of body and seemed dirty in soul, because it was pervaded with unclean human
pollution; others were surrounded in body by sharp thorns and leprous of soul;
and others appeared bloody of body and foul as a decayed corpse in soul. And all
these received the same sacraments; and as they did, some were bathed in fiery
brilliance, but the others were overshadowed by a dark cloud.
And when these mysteries were finished, as the priest withdrew from the altar
the calm light from Heaven, which, as said, had shone round the whole altar, was
drawn up again into the secret places of Heaven. And again I heard the voice
from the supernal heavens, saying to me:
1. The Church was joined to Christ in His Passion and dowered with His blood
When Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, hung on the tree of His Passion, the Church,
joined to Him in the secret mysteries of Heaven, was dowered with His crimson
blood; as she herself shows when she often, approaches the altar and reclaims
her wedding gift, carefully noting with what degree of devotion her children receive
it when they come to the divine mysteries. Therefore you see the Son of God
hanging on the cross, and the aforementioned image of a woman coming forth like
a bright radiance from the ancient counsel; and by divine power she is led to
Him. For when the innocent Lamb was lifted up on the altar of the cross for
human salvation, the Church suddenly appeared in Heaven by a profound mystery,
in purity of faith and all the other virtues; and by the Supreme Majesty she was
joined to the Only-Begotten of God. What does this mean? That when blood flowed
from the wounded side of My Son, at once salvation of souls came into being; for
the glory from which the Devil and his followers were driven out was given to
humanity when My Only-Begotten suffered temporal death on the cross, despoiled
Hell and led the faithful souls to Heaven. Therefore, in His disciples and their
sincere followers faith began to increase and strengthen, so that they became
heirs of the celestial Kingdom. Hence that image raises herself upward so that
she is sprinkled by the blood from His side; and thus, by the will of the Heavenly
Father, she is joined with Him in happy betrothal. For when the strength of
the Passion of the Son of God flows burningly forth and rises to the height of
the celestial mysteries, as the perfume of spices diffuses itself upward, the
Church, fortified by that strength in the pure heirs of the eternal Kingdom, is
faithfully joined by the high Father's decision to the Only-Begotten of God. How?
As a bride, subjected to her bridegroom in her offering of subordination and obedience,
receives from him a gift of fertility and a pact of love for procreating children,
and educates them as to their inheritance. So too the Church, joined to the Son
of God in the exercise of humility and charity, receives from Him the regeneration
of the Spirit and water to save souls and restore life, and sends those souls
to Heaven.
Therefore she is nobly dowered with His body and blood; for the Only-Begotten
of God conferred His body and blood in surpassing glory on His faithful, who are
the Church and her children, that through Him they may have life in the celestial
city. How?
2. God conquered the ancient serpent by His Son's humility, not His power
By giving His body and blood to sanctify those who believe; and so the Heavenly
Father delivered Him up to the Passion for the redemption of the peoples and conquered
the ancient serpent through Him in humility and justice. He did not want His Son
to conquer by His power and strength, for God is just and does not will iniquity,
as the Psalmist declares, saying:
3. Words of the Psalmist
"Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, or stood
in the way of sinners, or sat in the seat of the pernicious" [Psalm 1:1]. What
does this mean?
God is the Father of all the bliss and happiness of His creatures and shows many
and various signs in them; and the Incarnation of His Son dripped with the sweet
taste of delight, for in Him the heavenly virtues built many mansions through
which humanity can return to the supernal Kingdom, which is darkened by no shadow
of death. And thus the strongest powers of virtue were shown to be in the Heavenly
Father, for it was He through His Only-Begotten who slew death and broke Hell;
and on the last day He will make the world anew and better.
Therefore, He has not, through any wavering of His heart, wandered away into the
paths of the evil spirits, who forsook the truth and seized on the lie. How? They
wanted to use the lie to divide the truth. How? By trying to overthrow the Ancient
of Days, Who was before days and hours began; and by yearning to make a partner
for Him of the ancient serpent, who before time began was not. But that could
not and should not be, for there is one God. And therefore the Devil is a liar,
for he withdrew from God and forsook life to find death. And so, indeed, God did
not stand in the path that sinners walk; He condemned Adam's choice and did not
love his sin, but when he was seduced by the Devil He drove him from Paradise.
And He did not reign in any seat of wicked power, as does the whole human race,
which is bound up with death and sits in its shadow because it arrogantly deserted
(?)BREAK(?)
blood shall groan in that person because the flesh and blood of My Son have been
carelessly treated by that person, as the earth quaked and people were shaken
by fear when My Son gave up His spirit on the cross.
60. The mystical secrets of the Lord's body and blood must not be looked into
But if you, O human, say to yourself in your vacillating heart, "How did the oblation
on the altar become the body and blood of God's Son?" I will answer you: Why,
O human, do you ask this, and for what purpose do you inquire about it? Do I require
you to know it? Why do you peer into My secrets about the body and blood of My
Son? You should not seek out these things, but only keep them diligently and accept
them in fear and veneration. Do not pause at this mystery any longer, for you
must not tempt Me so rashly. What are these things to you? Only seek after Me
by sure faith. For when I look into all your faith, I do not ask you to know what
is the nature of the body and blood of My Son, or how this mystery is consecrated
on the altar. And who asks you, O human, to stand in fire and not feel its burning?
No one. So do not rashly peer into My secrets, lest you be wounded thereby. But
if in your devout mind you wish to seek them, do so in diligent prayer and weeping
and fasting, as your early Fathers certainly sought and often found them. And
when you have thus sought and found, you will give what is left to the Holy Spirit.
But let those who approach those sacraments come not by devious paths but by the
right way, lest they be cast out from them and suffer ruin in soul. How?
61. Churchmen who go in by wrong ways imitate the Devil, Baal and crucifiers
The evil deceiver who wrongly usurps the chair of the episcopal office without
being elected or properly anointed, and the wicked robber who expels his pastor
by the whispers of his henchmen and violently invades his throne, will either
undergo grave expiation by their own will or incur serious condemnation by My
wrath. For they are in the worst possible state of bitterness, imitating the one
who wanted the highest honor for himself and was cast out of glorious happiness
into death, and following Baal, who so deluded himself that he wrongly named himself
a god and was given over to destruction. And if in their lying and presumptuous
wickedness they pretend to confer My holy orders, those who receive from them
ordure rather than orders are accounted in My sight no more than those who are
jestingly appointed by children in their games to be laughed at by people. As
this kind of thing is nonsense among people, so what these intruders pretend to
do in their deceit is mockery to Me.
Thus their edifice is wicked and cannot stand, for it is a void. And if they appeared
to set up anything in My temple in holy orders, it must be abolished, for it has
no righteousness and is thus worthless. Let them, therefore, turn back from their
temerity, lest they share the punishment of him who sought more than he should
have and was thrown from the summit into the abyss. And the butcher who insanely
approaches My altar without the anointing of the priestly office, as if I were
as great an impostor as he is a jester, and rashly touches the table consecrated
to My name to offer the sacred oblation without having the qualifications, does
not fear to wound My Son with dire torment. How? As the unbeliever assails God
with his incredulity, and the madman in his insanity runs into burning fire, so
this one, not knowing that I am God or feeling My burning fire, casts off his
fear of Me and does not love My mercy; but, with unanointed lips, he dismembers
those words My Only-Begotten gave His bride when He dowered her with His body
and blood, and thus wounds My Son. And it will be said to this rash attacker:
"Who touches My Son, so arrogant and unanointed?"
But he who thus approaches My altar and presumes to invoke My Son with the secret
words tries to wound Him not because he can put him to any pain, but because he
fearlessly and presumptuously touches Him. If he persists without penitence in
this contempt, he will stand in the place of punishment among those who causelessly
wounded My Son. Lest he feel these torments, then, let him adopt as his own the
lamentation of affliction and never again presume to approach the ministry of
My altar. And let those who hold some church office that involves serving under
a priest never presume to usurp his ministry unjustly, for if they wrongfully
claim that righteousness for themselves, they may justly be judged unformed and
rough and rejected for the construction of the edifice of the Church. For I will
that My ministers shall be pure in My sight, without deceit and without stain.
How? They should be duly chosen to approach My altar, and once there they should
serve Me without impurity. How?
62. Priests should observe chastity like the apostles
Let them not look to an earthly marriage, for they have chosen a spiritual one.
How? By entering upon My service. And if any of them suffers from the burning
lust of the flesh, let him subdue his body with abstinence and fasting and chastise
himself with cold and scourging. And if after all he defiles himself with a woman,
let him fly from that contamination as from a burning fire or a deadly poison
and cleanse his wounds with bitter penance; for I wish to be served in chastity.
How? Because My Son was the height of chastity, and He represented in Himself
all ecclesiastical ranks. How? Those that serve, proclaim, preach and offer. How?
He touched service in His circumcision, proclaimed by His prophecies, preached
Himself to humanity, and at last offered Himself as a living sacrifice on the
altar of the cross. And He gave Himself as a burnt-offering in chastity; so let
those who seek to offer a burnt-offering to Him on the altar imitate His chastity,
They must not only guard chastity in others but preserve it in themselves. How?
As a priest should keep himself from contamination with a woman, let him also
keep himself from himself; let him take care not to arouse defilement in himself
by the touch of his hands, so that the clamor of lust may not make a sinful tumult
within him, For the crime of Adam, which brought death to Man, aroused his senses
to fornication; so let people restrain their flesh so as not to undergo a shameful
death. How? My Son conquered death and gave them life; and since He assumed flesh
in the integrity of virginal chastity, those who desire to serve Him ought also
to be chaste, as is written in the divine command:
63. Words of Moses on this subject
"Be ready against the third day, and come not near your wives" [Exodus 19:15].
What does this mean? You who wish to serve God alone, be prepared with willing
hearts for the day of His serenity, when the holy and ineffable Trinity will truly
appear and show Its wonders in a great miracle, And if you wish to be worthy to
draw near to Him, take care not to join in carnal unions of physical love, so
as not to mingle your blood with blood that is deemed weaker. You, O My priests
and other ministers, who fight under a spiritual name, beware of this, for the
apostles to whom you have succeeded did not divide themselves between opposites
or leave you such an example.
64. A priest should not have two marriages
For I do not want priests to have two unions, one of spiritual and one of carnal
desire; the priest should be married to the justice of God, and treat it as his
wife, with which to nourish and teach the rest of the people as a father brings
up and teaches his children, How is it appropriate for a priest to maintain in
the right proportions two different and opposing marriages? How? One carnal and
the other spiritual:
65. How the Devil may be the priest of bad priests
The priest is the pastor and father of the people who have physical marriages;
so if he has one to the same extent, who will be his priest? No other priest could
be his superior, since all priests are ministers of a single office, except the
Devil, who is appropriate as his priest because he has imitated the Devil in hiding
poison under honey. How? As the Devil hides evil under good, so do such priests,
who love their own dishonor better than chastity, try to hide a carnal union under
a spiritual marriage, like poison under honey. But, since My Son is wholly chaste,
those who touch His body and blood on the altar should also love chastity, as
it is written:
66. Words of the Law on this subject
"A priest shall not take to wife a harlot or a base prostitute or a woman repudiated
by her husband; for he is sacred to his God and offers the bread of God" [Leviticus
21:7-8]. What does this mean? Let one who is appointed to offer sacrifice to God
not love the Devil, the common author of all filth and wickedness, or degrade
his senses in such a way that when he tries to bear My yoke he will instead have
to follow the will of his flesh, contrary to the justice of God and the examples
of the ancient saints; lest he come by bad deeds to the impurity that was spurned
by those ancient fathers, who knew it to proceed from the breath of the ancient
serpent. Let him therefore leave this filth and become a lover of the righteousness
of God; for he is sacred to God in holiness, and thus removed from carnal desire
and the deeds that bring children into the world. And so, sober and unpolluted,
he may offer that bread which is placed on the table of consecration for human
salvation. What does this mean? That sacrifice, which is the life of the living
and the refreshment of souls and the mirror of all the virtues, which shine in
holy innocence through chastity, is free from every stain; and therefore those
who offer the sacrifice should be free of filthy pollution and hold themselves
back from feasts and drunkenness, jesting and laughing, and light and undisciplined
behavior. Let them be held in the reverence that becomes successors of the ancient
fathers who set them up and in the dignity proper to their honorable patrons.
So let them not live doubly in two roles, and walk at the same time in the secular
and the spiritual way; for it is hard to serve two masters at once, as My Son
testifies in the Gospel, saying:
67. Words of the Gospel on this subject
"No one can serve two masters" [Matthew 6:24]. What does this mean? No one who
is clothed in mortal flesh can offer two masters similar and equal service, because
of the weakness of his senses and his body. What does this mean? He cannot serve
at once the Lord of Righteousness and the lord of injustice. Why? Because righteousness
casts out Injustice, and injustice assails righteousness. And so too a priest
cannot at once and with equal devotion have the handmaid and the mistress, carnal
marriage and spiritual companionship, for these two cannot exist side by side
in perfection; for the carnal assails the spiritual, and the spiritual bears down
the carnal. Thus My friend Paul, knowing this to be so, shows My will when he
says:
68. Words of the Apostle on this subject
"A bishop therefore should be blameless, the husband of one wife" [1 Timothy 3:2].
What does this mean? One who is superior to others in a spiritual office must
regulate his life so that no scandal of offense or reproach will be found in it.
How? A priest should not have two roles and be at the same time the husband of
a physical wife and of a spiritual spouse; but he should be the husband of one
wife, namely the holy Church, which is one in My Son because she arose as one
Church in Him. But though the Church is one, she has many husbands, entering into
marriage with the priests of My Son who are daily in His service; yet she remains
an intact virgin, for in her the faith is uncorrupted. And therefore Paul, My
vessel, did not say she was the wife of one husband; for she is joined in marriage
to all those priests who will arise in My Only-Begotten till the last day, when
the immortal and unfailing nuptials will take place. And those who minister to
the altar under the priests are also husbands of the same wife, as Paul said,
offering My faithful doctrine to humanity:
69. Again Paul on this subject
"Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, who rule well their children and their
houses" [1 Timothy 3:12]. What does this mean? Let those who render service to
the priests and assist them be the husbands of one wife by faithful marriage.
And who is this wife? The chaste Bride who can be injured by no corruption, as
a woman is corrupted when she loses the flower and innocence of virginity, which
she had at the beginning of her marriage when not yet corrupted by her husband.
So let these bridegrooms live so faithfully with this righteous wife as to offer
good examples of virtue to those regenerated by their help in the Spirit and water;
let them live to labor in their office, which lies within the rampart of the Church,
with faithful care, as a secular man devotes his care to maintaining his children
and his house.
For My friend Paul displays that Bride to the priests and the other ministers
of My altar so that they will choose her as their wife and not seek a carnal spouse.
For neither Paul nor My Son's other disciples nor the rest of the Fathers who
were their followers ever served as an example to them that they should take a
carnal spouse and desert the spiritual wife, who had been their first choice.
For a priest who is so stubborn in sin that he does the will of his flesh and
illicitly takes a wife commits adultery; for he deserts his true wife, the Church,
who was betrothed to him by his spiritual office, and as his will pleases unchastely
marries another. It may be difficult for him to restrain his ardor, but let him
restrain himself from these desires for the sake of heavenly love, as My Son shows
in the Gospel, saying:
70. The three kinds of eunuchs
"There are eunuchs who were born so from their mothers' wombs; and there are eunuchs
who were made so by other people; and there are eunuchs who have made themselves
eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven's sake. He that can receive this, let him receive
it" [Matthew 19:12]. What does this I mean? There are some men who have come forth
from their mothers' wombs: with a bodily coldness or impotence, which makes them
unable to have wives; and so they will receive no reward for this continence,
except in suffering no penalties for the deeds of sin they did not do. And there
are some men who are maimed in body by the will of others, and so cannot give
pleasure to their flesh in the deeds of marriage; but they also do not deserve
praise for containing themselves, for although they cannot do the burning deed
they often burn with wickedness in their wills. And there are other men, those
who take the spiritual way, who deprive themselves of what their bodies might
easily accomplish, because they scorn and reject carnal bands for the glory of
the celestial inheritance; and these shall have the greatest praise and the blessed
reward.
And My priests and all who do service to My altar should imitate these last with
all their hearts, that they may receive the crown of continence amid the rapture
of celestial joy. So if a person can follow this example in his heart, desiring
beatitude enough to conquer the body and cast out carnal desire, let him with
ardent devotion repress his flesh and abandon the idea of carnal union; and so
he will capture heavenly companionship.
71. He who cannot contain himself must not become a priest or minister
But he who cannot contain himself, and burns with carnal desire, should not become
a priest or any other kind of minister for the sake of pride or avarice, lest
he then fall into carnal delights and so sustain great damage. For those who approach
My altar as ministers shall keep their bodies from contamination with women, and
never for any reason enter into marriage, but voluntarily keep themselves chaste
in My righteous service. If they are otherwise, they should avoid the holy service
of My altar.
72. Why the primitive Church let married men become priests but does not now
It is true that certain people who had previously subjected themselves to the
world were at one time allowed to minister. But these were people who had received
the carnal yoke before and not after entering My service; and afterward they cast
off this yoke, and then the Holy Spirit by His miracles brought about in them
praise and celebration. This was granted as an unusual measure at the beginning
of the Church's rise, because there were so few priests; but now the Church is
adult and strong, and her ministers are many. This is like Church opinion on another
prohibition of the same sort: At the beginning of the world it was granted to
men to marry women most closely related to them, because there were so few people,
whereas now that people are so multiplied it is forbidden. For the shapeless and
rough stones customarily laid in the foundation of a building, and afterward the
beautiful and well-formed stones are chosen for the walls. And so in the ChurchÕs
infancy the priests who were available were installed in office, but now the whole
complement can be obtained among the spiritual people who are fitted for the priesthood,
not being occupied with the secular burden of earthly bonds. For it is not fitting
that the father of a family, following the rules for earthly marriage, should
be called as My messenger in the priesthood. Therefore hear this comparison:
73. Analogy of the king
A certain very powerful king gathered a small army and carefully observed its
performance. Seeing that it was untrained in an army's business, he chose out
of it some men of the common people whom he perceived as suitable for leadership,
and set them over the army, for the offspring of the nobles had not yet matured.
But later, when the army was larger and there were adult noblemen in it, the king
set that army in order and promoted dukes and counts from the nobler classes to
command it, as justice required. What does this mean?
The King of Heaven, Whose power is over all, started the Church by gathering a
little army of believers. Scrutinizing it most closely, He saw that it was as
yet infirm and weak with regard to suffering in body for His name so He set Peter
over it to bind and loose, who had been one of those who had lived an earthly
life. And after Peter, He cleansed others who had imbibed the taste of the earthly
and been stained by temporal things, and set them up in the office of judgment
and mercy; for He knew that, having embraced the Catholic faith, they were wise
and faithful both in caring for souls and in sustaining bodies. For the glowing
dawn that burns up human contagions in the fire of love for chastity had not yet
diffused its flowers of sweetness widely among people. But now the churchly race
has been multiplied and widely disseminated through the whole length of the world,
and the glory of the Church's honor has been nobly strengthened; and so the supernal
King has benignly and fittingly bestowed both secular and spiritual gifts on people,
and chosen those who most honorably preserved their sobriety and chastity by Church
law and God's justice to be priests and other ministers of the divine offices.
Wherefore, O human, many spiritual people have now arisen who want to fight the
world and the Devil, and who hasten to approach My altar in chastity and bodily
restraint; and so I will that My priests should appear in My sight uncontaminated
by earthly marriage. For in the Old Testament priests were commanded to keep themselves
from contamination with women when they approached My altar; and in the New Testament
that command was brought to full perfection for My priests, so that whereas the
ancient priests observed chastity for an hour, these new ones will fulfil it from
the beginning of their boyhood to the end of their old age. And as I refused to
receive the sacrifice from the ancients when polluted by connection with women,
much more do I want My Son to be handled by the new priests only in a state of
chastity.
74. Immature and unconsecrated men must not receive churches
Let no one who is immature and unconsecrated receive a church; and let him not
presume to seek several churches. For if one who is young in years and without
priestly consecration dares to take a church or, having one, tries to subjugate
several, he is a transgressor against justice and a destroyer of strict judgment;
he is like one who dares to commit fornication before the lawful time and without
lawful marriage, or who has a legitimate wife but hastens to defile himself in
adultery with other women.
75. Priests should be elected by Christian people from the good and healthy
Priests of wise thoughts and manly minds are to be chosen from every people that
calls itself Christian, such that they will come to My service in right order
with proper anointing and willing mind. Those who are crippled in any of their
members should not approach the office of My altar, for in the Kingdom of Heaven
there will be no trace of disabilities in human souls; and therefore I do not
want anyone defective in limb to stand at My altar. But these will not be separated
from the Kingdom of Heaven because they are weak in body and defective in members,
as long as their souls are healthy and they seek Me in the purity of good works.
I do not wish, however, that they should take part in the ministry of My altar,
but that they should humbly fulfil their virtue in good works.
76. Women should not approach the office of the altar
So too those of female sex should not approach the office of My altar; for they
are an infirm and weak habitation, appointed to bear children and diligently nurture
them. A woman conceives a child not by herself but through a man, as the ground
is plowed not by itself but by a farmer, Therefore, just as the earth cannot plow
itself, a woman must not be a priest and do the work of consecrating the body
and blood of My Son; though she can sing the praise of her creator, as the earth
can receive rain to water its fruits. And as the earth brings forth all fruits,
so in Woman the fruit of all good works is perfected. How? Because she can receive
the High Priest as Bridegroom. How? A virgin betrothed to My Son will receive
Him as Bridegroom, for she has shut her body away from a physical husband; and
in her Bridegroom she has the priesthood and all the ministry of My altar, and
with Him possesses all its riches. And a widow too can be called a bride of My
Son when she rejects a physical husband and flees beneath the wings of My Son's
protection. And as a bridegroom loves his bride with exceeding love, so does My
Son sweetly embrace His brides, who for love of chastity eagerly run to Him.
77. Men and women should not wear each other's clothes except in necessity
A man should never put on feminine dress or a woman use male attire, so that their
roles may remain distinct, the man displaying manly strength and the woman womanly
weakness; for this was so ordered by Me when the human race began. Unless a man's
life or a woman's chastity is in danger; in such an hour a man may change his
dress for a woman's or a woman for a man's, if they do it humbly in fear of death.
And when they seek My mercy for this deed they shall find it, because they did
it not in boldness but in danger of their safety, But as a woman should not wear
a man's clothes, she should also not approach the office of My altar, for she
should not take on a masculine role either in her hair or in her attire.
78. God will judge all perpetrators of fornication, sodomy and bestiality
Let those who approach My altar appear in My sight in chastity, as also should
those who desire to receive the sacrament of the body and blood of My Son, lest
they should fall into ruin. For many are found among both spiritual and secular
people who not only pollute themselves in fornication with women but also assume
a heavy burden of condemnation by contaminating themselves in perverted forms.
How? A man who sins with another man as if with a woman sins bitterly against
God and against the union with I which God united male and female. Hence both
in God's sight are polluted, black and wanton, horrible and harmful to God and
humanity, and guilty of death; for they go against their Creator and His creature,
which is in them. How?
God united man and woman, thus joining the strong to the weak, that each might
sustain the other. But these perverted adulterers change their virile strength
into perverse weakness, rejecting the proper male and female roles, and in their
wickedness they shamefully follow Satan, who in his pride sought to split and
divide Him Who is indivisible. They create in themselves
by their wicked deeds a strange and perverse adultery , and so appear polluted;
and shameful in My sight.
And a man who sins with a woman by this same method of perverted fornication is
a voracious wolf of wickedness. How? A person would seem perverted and harmful
to other people if he threw away beautiful clean food and ate the ordure that
comes out of the body in digestion; and these are in My sight equally unworthy
and unclean, since they forsake the proper way of uniting with a woman and seek
in her an alien sin. And a woman who takes up devilish ways and plays a male role
in coupling with another woman is most vile in My sight, and so is she who subjects
herself to such a one in this evil deed. For they should have been ashamed of
their passion, and instead they impudently usurped a right that was not theirs.
And, having put themselves into alien ways, they are to Me transformed and contemptible.
And men who .touch their own genital organ and emit their semen seriously imperil
their souls, for they excite themselves to distraction; they I appear to Me as
impure animals devouring their own whelps, for they wickedly produce their semen
only for abusive pollution. And women who imitate them in this unchaste touching,
and excite themselves to bodily convulsions by provoking their burning lust, are
extremely guilty , for they pollute themselves with uncleanness when they should
be keeping themselves in chastity. Hence both women and men who elicit their own
seed by touching themselves in the body do a filthy deed and inflict ulcers and
wounds on their souls; for they will not keep themselves in a state of chastity
for love of Me. What does this mean? When a person feels himself disturbed by
bodily stimulation, let him run to the refuge of continence, and seize the shield
of chastity, and thus defend himself from uncleanness. How? Let him cast out the
tares from the wheat, which is to say, let him separate the clamor of lust from
the sweetness of chastity.
And whoever thus casts out of himself the taste for lust is very sweet and lovable
to Me. But, O humans, you cast away chastity and love lust when you fornicate
not only with other people but even with animals; thus you send your seed not
into what lives but into what is dead, and you forsake what is equal to you and
desire what is subject to you and serves you. Therefore the elements cry out against
you, saying, "Alas, alas! our rulers join with us in the mingling of their seed!"
And thus they show their grief at My anger against your deeds. Why then do you,
knowing yourselves human, convert your intelligence into bestial stupidity? Did
I create you to join with animals? Never. And when you unite with them, the guilt
of the most bitter crimes falls upon you, because you scorn the plan I made for
the joining of male and female. For whoever transforms himself by his deeds into
a depraved follower of his own desires, and pours out his semen with an animal,
brings on himself great ruin, as Satan cast himself down by his perversity when
he tried to be like God.
Therefore, all you who contaminate yourselves with perverted pollutions, resist
your desires; chastise your bodies, and give yourselves over to true and bitter
penance with weeping and fasting and torture of your flesh and severe blows, lest
you send yourselves impenitent into an excess of cruel guilt.
79. Pollution that occurs in sleep
I want men not only to keep themselves clean of impurity while awake, but also
to purify themselves properly from the pollution that happens to them in sleep.
For if the semen of a man who sleeps and dreams is stirred up unawares, I do not
want him to approach the sacramental office of My altar in that condition of ardent
heat; he should first calm that ardor in himself, as it is written:
80. Words of Moses on this subject
"If any man among you is defiled in a dream by night, he shall go forth out of
the camp, and not return until he washes himself with water in the evening, and
then he shall return into the camp after sunset" [Deuteronomy 13:10-11]. What
does this mean? If among the laborers in My service there is anyone who is defiled
in a dream while he sleeps at night, he should separate himself from the company
of those who serve My altar and not presume to join in the mystery until his injurious
heat has passed and he has cleansed himself from the fire of his lust in the bath
of penance, with confession and compunction of heart. And after that penance has
done its work and illumined his heart, let him return in love of chastity among
those who faithfully defend themselves against impurity, and worthily and honorably
approach that sacrament, which is wholly in sanctity.
81. One who burns strongly should not add flame to his fire
But one who burns strongly in lust either asleep or awake should take care not
to add flame to his fire. How? Let him not inflame himself by those foods that
stir up lust. He should humbly abstain from the flesh of animals that come forth
from their mothers naked and without covering, that is, beasts; for there is a
fire of heat in them that is not as great in the flesh of birds, which are not
born uncovered but as an egg covered with a shell, and therefore have less inflammatory
power. And he should also abstain from excessive wine, lest by too much drinking
his veins become filled with noxious blood and wickedly heated with ardent fire.
82. One who is weighed down by vices should seek God's mercy in confession
But if anyone labors under too great a number of these tendencies and is not able
to resist them by himself, let him with devoted purpose seek Me and humbly uncover
to Me the wounds of his heart. How? Let him lay bare these wounds to Me by making
a humble confession to a priest. And why this? Because true confession is a second
resurrection. How? The human race was slain by the fall of the old Adam; the new
Adam by His death raised it up. And so the resurrection of souls arose in the
death of the new Adam. And so a person should confess his sins, as the old Adam
did not; for he concealed his transgression instead of confessing it. How? He
did not confess it by repenting, but concealed it by accusing the woman. Hence
confession was instituted, to raise people up after they fall. And so anyone who
confesses his sins to a priest for love of Me rises again from death to life;
as the woman who purged herself from her impurity with tears at the banquet in
the presence of My Son was snatched away from uncleanness.
83. The remedy of purgation was long prefigured in the ancient fathers
This remedy of purgation was long prefigured in the ancient fathers. How? Before
the Law the patriarchs and prophets were the consolation of humanity; under the
Law the high priests and the ordinary priests were its instruction; and then the
apostles came and brought true righteousness in My Son, so that many people hastened
to them and devoutly implored their help. And thus from the time of Adam to the
time of the apostles there were always some who by celestial inspiration consoled
and instructed people and helped them in their miseries. And the apostles also
showed people, by their preaching and many miracles, that Man had fallen by the
Devil's tempting into death and could never rise again by himself, but was snatched
from death by My Son. How? By His being in the world and performing many labors
in the body, and at last being nailed to the cross for the world's redemption.
So faithful people, to gain salvation, should follow this pattern with their priests.
How? They should seek the help of My Son, because when they repeat the ancient
crime of Adam after baptism they cannot rise from their fall by themselves. And
therefore they should seek counsel as if from the patriarchs and prophets, and
derive instruction as if from the high priests and the ordinary priests, and accept
help as if from the apostles, laying bare their wounds and displaying their sins
truly and purely. How?
They should confess their sins to the priest, who is the minister of My Son, with
devoted heart and mouth. And then the priest will give them a remedy of penance
and bury their sins in the death of My Only-Begotten. And then they will rise
again to life and glorify the Resurrection of My Son.
84. One who refuses to confess his sin deceives himself
But one who refuses to lay bare the wounds of sin, and follows his own wishes
by trying to cure them himself in silence without the help of another, is deceiving
himself. For he wishes to be his own priest, but without the help of another he
cannot rise; as Man did not rise up and stand by himself but was saved by My Son.
Hence let one who desires to be saved never despair of confessing his sins, even
at the end of his life.
85. A dying man without a priest may confess to another person or to God only
And if someone in the hour of death seeks a remedy for his wounds of sin but does
not have a priest near to whom to confess them, let him show them to any other
person who is there at the time; or, if he is dying so suddenly that there is
no one there, let him lay them open to Me with his heart's utmost affection, while
he is still in the body with which he did them and I will regard the devotion
of his heart and not reject his penitence.
86. No one should despair at the weight of his sins
Therefore, let no one despair because of the weight of his iniquity; for if he
despairs of My mercy, he shall not rise again to life. One who struggles with
despair and at last reduces it to nothing has delivered himself; he has been strong,
and manfully conquered. But one whose mind is so inflamed that he does not seek
the remedy of salvation is not to be helped; for when he could have found Me,
he refused to seek Me. And so, let each person not neglect himself while he has
time, but seek the refuge of pure confession, as My Son commanded the leper in
the Gospel, saying:
87. Words of the Gospel
"Go, show yourself to the priest, and offer your gift, which Moses commanded for
a testimony to them" [Matthew 8:4]. What does this mean? You who are foul with
sins and want to cleanse yourself of them, go with good intention and show them
to the priest, My minister, by pure confession; and offer with devout heart the
gift of true penitence, which by God's will was foreshadowed by the man who was
removed by divine power from the many floods of earthly iniquity. And thus those
who formerly saw you befouled with evil deeds may now testify that you are purged
from them by bitter penitence as in the furnace of trial. But, O human, if a sinner
conceals his deeds in his secret heart, who will be a witness to his penitence?
No one. Therefore let each person manifest his sins, that he may have a witness
to his penitence.
88. Sins should be blotted out by alms and by bodily satisfaction
And let one who desires to practice penitence for his sins turn to alms as a source
of help. How? When a person's weak body falters in the work of penitence, his
alms will hasten to help him. And because it is hard for a person to practice
penitence with just and proper harshness, let him take alms as his mother, so
as to accomplish with her what is so laborious for his body. For a mother does
not cease to help her child in time of need, even when he has been brought up
already; and so too alms give aid to a weak body when a person is penitent, even
if he seems to be strong in doing penance and punishing his body. So let a person
punish in his body the evil works he has done in his body through the lust of
the flesh, so as to wash away from his body by bitter penance the deeds that were
dear and sweet to his flesh. For bitter penance, with its helpmeet alms, heals
in people the deadly wounds Of sin. How? A person represses himself by castigation,
but he can refresh himself by alms. How? Because alms represent My mercy. How?
When a faithful person helps the poor with his substance for love of Me, he keeps
My commandments, because he devotes his mercy to the needy for the honor of My
name; just as I do not withdraw My grace from those who seek me in purity of heart.
And whoever helps the poor in this way, refreshing them with alms for mercy's
sake, is exceedingly lovable to Me, for he has a merciful heart; which fulfils
what is written:
89. Words of the Book of Wisdom
"Place your treasure in the commandments of the Most High, and your alms shall
bring you more profit than gold" [Ecclesiastes 29:14]. What does this mean?
Think justly and rightly, and take some of your material wealth, which you hold
in your bosom and embrace in your heart; as the One Who is above all people commands,
divide it, for God has ordered you to turn aside from evil and do good. Let your
heart's good will overflow, so that you will not be among the last sheep; sanctify
yourself before God by giving of your substance to refresh those in want, and
God will give you His mercy in your misery. And if you do this, the compassion
you have on one without treasure will be worth more to you than if you could ascend
a high mountain and in your pride possess its gold. How? Because it is better
for you to give a little to the little ones in humility than to possess and enjoy
the kingdom of the world; if you did the latter, God's reward of mercy could never
be yours because of the weight of your pride, for you would not have had pity
for the poor in your heart.
90. The elements of the world are the pit of human pleasures
Hence the elements are the pit of human pleasures, as they show by their ways.
How? By bringing God's vengeance upon those who are sinning. Therefore, O human,
renounce the empty avarice which will wreck you, for your true inheritance is
eternal life; leave evil and do good, and so renounce harsh malevolence. And,
to follow the way of mercy, give of your substance to the poor, and thereby imitate
God Who is merciful.
91. One who gives or receives alms must not do so in vain
Therefore, O human, no liar can deny that you who thus help the poor are fulfilling
My will. How?
You should give your alms to the poor as I mete out My grace to you. But let not
those who receive alms take them vainly or avariciously. What does this mean?
There are many who love laziness and do not want to labor with their bodies to
feed themselves, or to do good works with their spirits to help their souls; they
are like the beasts, who understand justice neither with their souls nor with
their bodies. And if they persevere in this, without correction and without penitence
for their apathetic wickedness, they are unworthy in My sight. But there are also
many who suffer bodily necessity and receive alms in fear of Me, and pray and
work for those who weigh out mercy to them, and avoid filthy and evil deeds. And
among these are many from whom I have withdrawn earthly riches in order to give
them celestial wealth.
92. Seekers of poverty, riches and honor are rewarded by their intention
Those who gladly suffer poverty for My name's sake are extremely lovable to Me;
but those who are greedy and would gladly possess earthly riches but cannot lose
the reward of this labor. And one who seeks riches in order to satisfy not his
greed but My will has a good intention, and I will reward him with honor. One
who desires the power of an office for his own boastful pride and not for the
glory of My name is to Me like a putrid corpse; but one who seeks it desiring
from it not his pride but My honor will be glorious in My kingdom. And so priests
should take on the office of spiritual government not for their own sakes but
for Mine, that they may rule more surely and devoutly over My people. How?
93. Priests should admonish the people about confession
They should teach, admonish, exhort and urge My people to keep the law of God
worthily and fittingly. And pastors should always be thinking this over; and they
should warn and exhort the people not to continue in their sins without confession
and without penitence, but to tread evil deeds underfoot and do good ones. And
if the people do not obey their priests when they so admonish, the people will
incur the guilt and the priests will not be blamed for negligence.
94. Priests who do not use their office's authority are not priests but wolves
But if priests do not show the people the authority of their office, they are
not priests but ravenous wolves, for they hold their office by robbery as a wolf
cruelly snatches a sheep, doing their own will instead of caring for the sheep.
And, because they live perversely, they are afraid to teach true doctrine to the
people; they consent to iniquity as to a lord, for they harbor carnal desires,
and they close the door of their heart to a helper as if to a stranger; for justice
is of God.
95. The elements wail to God at the iniquity of priests and Heaven notes it
Therefore, O ye pastors, wail and lament your crimes, which proclaim your iniquity
in dire tones, so that the very elements hear their clamor and join in their wailing
before My presence. How do you dare to do your office and touch your Lord with
bloody hands, in perverse filth and adulterous wickedness? By your uncleanness
you shake the foundations of the earth. How? Because you do not fear to touch
your Lord while foul with such crimes, I bring great griefs and oppressions upon
the earth; and so I avenge the flesh and blood of My Son, for in this horror you
not only cruelly shake the earth but by your filth contaminate Heaven. How?
When you touch your Lord in the stench of uncleanness, as a swine tramples pearls
into the mire, the heavens receive your iniquity and shower upon the earth the
sentence of My judgment. You should have gone before the people in true justice
and with divine law, shining for them with good works, so that when they followed
you they would avoid tripping on any stumbling-block; and instead you stain My
people with greater iniquity than that with which they stain themselves, giving
them a bad and evil example. You should have been a shining jewel, by whose light
they could have perceived and entered the path of rectitude; but your example
is death to them, and they can find no measure in your iniquity. How can you be
their shepherd when you seduce them so? And how will you answer for them, when
you cannot give an answer for yourselves? Therefore weep and howl, before Death
carries you off. For why do you not consider your own honor, which is given you
for the sake of other people? What does this mean?
96. Priests have the power of binding and loosing
That you, rather than others, have received in My Son the keys of Heaven; which
are righteous decisions of just judgment made in the knowledge of the Scriptures,
as long as you consider rightly what it is you should bind. What does this mean?
When people stubbornly oppose themselves to My Law, you must inspire them with
fear of My judgment. And if they do not then correct themselves, extend over them
your power of binding. How? You will bind these rebels in My words with a clear
voice, and show them the power of the binding; for their stubbornness they are
bound in My sight, as My Son showed to the Church's first pastor, saying:
97. Words of the Gospel
"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven. And whatsoever you shall bind
on earth, it will be bound also in Heaven; and whatsoever you shall loose on earth,
it will be loosed also in Heaven" [Matthew 16:19]. What does this mean? I, Who
have all power in Heaven and earth, by My grace give to you, My devout imitators,
those judgments that touch the dignity of the Kingdom of Heaven. As you see people
sin on earth, you will bind the wicked deed on earth with just judgment, and it
will be entangled in its wickedness and bound in Heaven; it will be separated
and driven out from Heaven, for in the heavenly mansions there is no freedom and
no place for iniquity. But after I withdraw a person's soul from his body, you
will not extend your judgment over him, for that judgment is Mine. Likewise, if
a transgressor is penitent, you will loose on earth the chain you fastened on
him in his rebellion, and it will be loosed in the secret places of Heaven, for
God does not reject the groans of a devout heart. But after the person's death
you will pray for his soul, but you cannot then absolve it from being bound.
98. No one is to be bound without a grievous fault
But, O priests, who have received this power thus from My Son, you shall not in
anger of heart bind any person in My words unless he has committed a grievous
fault; you will consider most carefully before you bind anyone. You will use My
words of ecclesiastical censure to separate from My church anyone who cannot be
restrained by shame before other people, or by fear of Me, or by your prayers
and precepts, but seeks to persevere in his iniquity. But you shall not bind an
innocent person; for when you bind such a one you bind yourselves in bands of
dire guilt.
99. One who is bound when innocent must ask to be loosed for God's honor
And if anyone has been bound while innocent, contrary to right, he must ask to
be loosed for the honor of My Name; yet humbly and submissively, for if he is
stubborn he might incur the guilt of pride. But this is the purpose of that binding:
that one who perversely refuses to obey Me or the precepts of his superiors may
be separated by My word from celestial things. Thus Adam, when he disobeyed Me,
was by My command cast out of Paradise. And until he repents and obeys, he shall
not be received into the company of the faithful; as the human race was recalled
to the celestial country by the martyrdom of My obedient Son.
100. Rebels who refuse to return to Christ and ask mercy imitate the Devil
But one who rebels and refuses to return to Christ in humility, and continues
in this arrogance, will join the company of those who keep a stone for a heart
and remain in infidelity; and such people refuse to know the glory of the Church's
beatitude. For one who is so obdurate that in his wickedness he will seek no mercy
imitates the ancient serpent, who, when he deceived the first man in Paradise,
was saying within himself:
101. Words of the Devil
"I was thrown out of Heaven when I tried to fight with my angels against the army
of the Most High; I could not resist Him, and He conquered me. But now I have
found Man on earth, and I will avenge myself mightily by working my wrath on him.
For I will accomplish in Man on earth that which I tried to do in Heaven, and
make myself like the Most High. And if God is just, that power will not be taken
from me, for Man will consent to me and disobey God."
Saying these things to himself, the Devil arrayed all his arts against Man, and
Man withdrew from God and adhered to the Devil; and the Devil bound him so closely
to himself that Man worshipped him instead of God and denied God, his Creator.
102. By the Son of God's Incarnation humanity was led out of the darkness
But when humanity was lying in a great darkness of infidelity and could not raise
itself, I sent My Son for its salvation, miraculously incarnate of the Virgin,
true God and true man. What does this mean? That His Divinit truly came forth
from Me, the Father, and His Humanity truly took flesh from, the Virgin Mother.
What does this mean? O human, you are soft and delicate of body, but hard and
inflexible in your incredulity. For a stone can be smoothed for a building, but
you are unwilling to be soothed by the faith Yet listen. As a person who has a
beautiful jewel in a box puts it in a metal setting to show it to people, so I,
Who had My Son in My heart, willed him to be incarnate of the Virgin to save the
lives of those who believe. But if I had given Him a physical father, who would
He be then? Not My Son, but My servant; and that could not be. He, born of the
Virgin, ate, drank, lay down to sleep and experienced bodily miseries, but He
never felt the taste of sin in His flesh, for He had assumed flesh not through
a lie but through truth. What does this mean? Other people, because of Adam and
Eve's transgression, are born from the taste of delight, which is to say through
a lie and not the truth. But My Son did not originate so, but was born in sanctity
from the most chaste Virgin to redeem humanity. For like cannot loose like from
a chain; a greater one must come who can save him. What does this mean? That no
person born in sin could deliver sinful humanity from the perdition of death.
Therefore My Son came, without sin; He conquered death and mercifully delivered
humanity therefrom.
But let the one who sees with watchful eyes and hears with attentive ears welcome
with a kiss My mystical words, which proceed from Me Who am life.
VISION ELEVEN
The Last Days and the Fall of the Antichrist
Then I looked to the North, and behold! five beasts stood there. One was like
a dog, fiery but not burning; another was like a yellow lion; another was like
a pale horse; another like a black pig; and the last like a gray wolf. And they
were facing the West. And in the West, before those beasts, a hill with five peaks
appeared; and from the mouth of each beast one rope stretched to one of the peaks
of the hill. All the ropes were black except the one that came from the mouth
of the wolf, which was partly black and partly white. And lo, in the East I saw
again that youth whom I had first seen on the corner of the wall of the building
where the shining and stone parts came together, clad in a purple tunic. I now
saw him on the same corner, but now I could see him from the waist down. And from
the waist down to the place that denotes the male he glowed like the dawn, and
there a harp was lying with its strings across his body; and from there to the
width of two fingers above his heel he was in shadow, but from there down to the
bottom of the feet he was whiter than milk. And I saw again the figure of a woman
whom I had previously seen in front of the altar that stands before the eyes of
God; she stood in the same place, but now I saw her from the waist down. And from
her waist to the place that denotes the female, she had various scaly blemishes;
and in that latter place was a black and monstrous head. It had fiery eyes, and
ears like an ass', and nostrils and mouth like a lion's; it opened wide its jowls
and terribly clashed its horrible iron-colored teeth. And from this head down
to her knees, the figure was white and red, as if bruised by many beatings; and
from her knees to her tendons where they joined her heels, which appeared white,
she was covered with blood. And behold! That monstrous head moved from its place
with such a great shock that the figure of the woman was shaken through all her
limbs. And a great mass of excrement adhered to the head; and it raised itself
up upon a mountain and tried to ascend the height of Heaven. And behold, there
came suddenly a thunderbolt, which struck that head with such great force that
it fell from the mountain and yielded up its spirit in death. And a reeking cloud
enveloped the whole mountain, which wrapped the head in such filth that the people
who stood by were thrown into the greatest terror. And that cloud remained around
the mountain for a while longer. The people who stood there, perceiving this,
were shaken with great fear, and said to one another: "Alas, alas! What is this?
What do you think this was? Alas, wretches that we are! Who will help us, and
who will deliver us? For we know not how we were deceived. O Almighty God, have
mercy on us! Let us return, let us return; let us hasten to the covenant of Christ's
Gaspel; for ah, ah, ah! we have been bitterly deceived!" And lo, the feet of the
figure of the woman glowed white, shining with a splendor greater than the sun's.
And I heard the voice from Heaven saying to me:
1. The five ferocious epochs of temporal rule
All things that are on earth hasten to their end, and the world droops toward
its end, oppressed by the weakening of its forces and its many tribulations and
calamities. But the Bride of My Son, very troubled for her children both by the
forerunners of the son of perdition and by the destroyer himself, will never be
crushed, no matter how much they attack her. But at the end of time she will rise
up stronger than ever, and become more beautiful and more glorious; and so she
will move sweetly and delightfully to the embraces of her Beloved. And this is
mystically signified by the vision you are seeing. For you look to the North,
and behold! five beasts stand there. These are the five ferocious epochs of
temporal rule, brought about by the desires of the flesh from which the taint
of sin is never absent, and they savagely rage against each other.
2. The fiery dog
One is like a dog, fiery but not burning; for that era will produce people
with a biting temperament, who seem fiery in their own estimation, but do not
burn with the justice of God.
3. The yellow lion
Another is like a yellow lion; for this era will endure martial people,
who instigate many wars but do not think of the righteousness of God in them;
for those kingdoms will begin to weaken and tire, as the yellow color shows.
4. The pale horse
Another is like a pale horse; for those times will produce people who drown
themselves in sin, and in their licentious and swift-moving pleasures neglect
all virtuous activities. And then these kingdoms will lose their ruddy strength
and grow pale with the fear of ruin, and their hearts will be broken.
5. The black pig
And another is like a black pig; for this epoch will have leaders who blacken
themselves with misery and wallow in the mud of impurity. They will infringe the
divine law by fornication and other like evils, and will plot to diverge from
the holiness of God's commands.
6. The gray wolf
And the last is like a gray wolf. For those times will have people who
plunder each other, robbing the powerful and the fortunate; and in these conflicts
they will show themselves to be neither black nor white, but gray in their cunning.
And they will divide and conquer the rulers of those realms; and then the time
will come when many will be ensnared, and the error of errors will rise from Hell
to Heaven. And then the children of light will be pressed in the winepress of
martyrdom; and they will not deny the Son of God, but reject the son of perdition
who tries to do his will with the Devil's arts.
And these beasts are facing the West; for these fleeting times will vanish
with the setting sun. For people rise and set like the sun, and some are born,
and some die.
7. The five peaks and the five ropes
And in the West, before those beasts, a hill with five peaks appears; for
in these peaks is symbolized the power of carnal desire. And from the mouth
of each beast one rope stretches to one of the peaks of the hill; for each
of those powers will extend throughout the period in question. All the ropes
are black except the one that comes from the mouth of the wolf, which is partly
black and partly white. For the length of the ropes indicates how far people
are willing to go in their stubborn pleasures; but though the one that symbolizes
greed is partly black and puts forth many evils, yet some will come from that
direction who are white with justice. And these latter will hasten to resist the
son of perdition by ardent wanders, as My servant Job indicates about the righteous
doer of justice, when he says:
8. Words of Job
"The innocent shall be raised up against the hypocrite, and the just shall hold
to his path; and to clean hands he shall add strength" [Job 17:8-9]. Which is
to say:
One who is innocent of bloody deeds, murder and fornication and the like, will
be aroused like a burning coal against one who deceives in his works. How? This
latter speaks of honey but deals in poison, and calls a man friend but stifles
him like an enemy; he speaks sweet words but has malice within him, and talks
blandly to his friend and then slays him from ambush. But one who has a rod with
which to drive away vile brutes from himself walks in the light of the shining
sun on the righteous path of his heart; he is raised up in the sight of God as
a bright spark and a clear light and a flaming torch. And so, bearing in himself
the strongest and purest works, he puts them on like a strong breastplate and
a sharp sword, and drives away vice and wins virtue.
9. The Church will shine in her justice until the time of Antichrist
And therefore, in the East you see again that youth whom you first saw on the
corner of the wall of the building where the shining and stone parts come together,
clad in a purple tunic, now standing on the same corner. For here is the Sunrise
of Justice, the Son of Man, manifest to you to confirm the truth afresh through
His mysteries and miracles; still presiding over the union of reflective knowledge
and human deeds, having shed His blood by the will and goodness of the Father
for the salvation of the world. So now you can see him from the waist down;
for now you see Him in the strength of His members who are His elect, and He will
flourish as Bridegroom of the Church, with many obscure signs and wonders, until
their number is complete. And from the waist down to the place that denotes
the male he glows like the dawn; for until the time of the son of perdition,
who will pretend to be the man of strength, His faithful members will be perfected
in fortitude and He will be splendid in the justice of His righteous worshippers.
So, in the same place, a harp is lying with its strings across his body;
which signifies the joyful songs of those who will suffer dire torments in the
persecution that the son of iniquity will inflict upon the chosen, torturing their
bodies so much that they are released from them and pass over into rest.
10. The Church's faith will be in doubt until the witness of Enoch and Elijah
And from there to the width of two fingers above his heel he is in shadow.
For, from the time of the persecution the faithful will suffer from the son of
the Devil until the testimony of the two witnesses, Enoch and Elijah, who spurned
the earthly and worked toward heavenly desires, faith in the doctrines of the
Church will be in doubt. People will say to each other with great sadness, "What
is this they say about Jesus? Is it true or not?"
11. Before the end of the world the Devil will perish and the truth be known
But from there down to the bottom of the feet he is whiter than milk. That
is to say that, by the testimony of those same witnesses who await the eternal
reward when the son of perdition is defeated, before the world ends the Son of
Man will be brilliantly and beautifully seen in the Catholic faith. The truth
will be plainly shown in Him, and the falsity of the son of iniquity rejected
in every way, as My servant David testifies when he says:
12. Words of David
"The king shall rejoice in God; all they that swear by Him shall be praised; for
the mouth of them that speak wicked things is stopped" [Psalm 62.:12.]. Which
is to say: The profound knowledge of the beautiful human language that gives voice
to the will and disposition of God is a great measure of human stature; and it
makes music at the altar of God, for it knows Him. And when the hissing and gaping
of the Devil, which taints human minds with shame, is forsaken in the time of
desperation, the blessed will be praised in minds that sing, and they will make
a flowing path of words to the pure fountain of the mighty Ruler.
13 When justice grows cold the Church will undergo suffering and persecution
And you see again the figure of a woman whom you previously saw in front of
the altar that stands before the eyes of God, standing in the same place.
For the Bride of the Son of God is shown to you again, to reveal the truth, always
present to the pure prayers of the saints and, as was said before, offering them
up devotedly to the eyes of Heaven. But now you see her from the waist down;
for you see her in her full dignity as the Church, replete with the full number
of her children, in the mysteries and wonders by which she has saved so many.
And from her waist to the place that denotes the female, she has various scaly
blemishes. This is to say that, though she is now flourishing worthily and
laudably in her children, before the time in which the son of perdition will try
to perfect the trick he played on the first woman, the Church will be harshly
reproached for many vices, fornication and murder and rapine. How? Because those
who should love her will violently persecute her.
14. Antichrist will horribly rend the faithful and cruelly tear humanity
And thus in the place where the female is recognized is a black and monstrous
head. For the son of perdition will come raging with the arts he first used
to seduce, in monstrous shamefulness and blackest wickedness. It has fiery
eyes, and ears like an ass', and nostrils and mouth like a lion's; for he
runs wild in acts of vile lust and shameful blasphemy, causing people to deny
God and tainting their minds and tearing the Church with the greed of rapine.
It opens wide its jowls and terribly clashes its horrible iron-colored teeth;
for with his voracious and gaping jaws he evilly infuses those who consent to
him with his strong vices and mordant madness.
15. The son of perdition, unable to be gentle, will try to persecute
And from this head down to her knees, the figure is white and red, as if bruised
by many beatings; for the son of perdition will try to seduce people by evil
deceptions, and at first speak to them flatteringly and gently, but then try cruelly
to pervert and force them. And then the Church will know purity of faith in her
children, but anguished and bloody terror and the tribulations of many sufferings
for herself.
16. The Church near the end of the world will be bathed in righteous blood
And from her knees to her tendons where they join her heels, which appear white,
she is covered with blood. For at the time near the end of the world when she
must endure assault, until the coming of the two witnesses of Truth who will keep
the Church together by their strength, she will suffer most terrible persecutions,
and the blood of those who despise the Destroyer will be most cruelly shed. What
does this mean? When the son of perdition is strengthened through deceit, and
derives confidence from his perverse teachings, the Church, as she hastens on,
will be bathed in the noblest blood; and then she will be fully constructed as
the celestial dwelling. For you, O streets of Jerusalem, will then shine with
the purest gold which is the blood of the saints; the Devil will be extinguished
for persecuting the members of the Supernal King, and his great terror will be
reduced to naught.
17. We are now in the seventh millennium
But, O ye people who desire to dwell in those streets, flee from the Devil and
adore God, Who created you! For in six days God completed His works, and on the
seventh day He rested. What does this mean? The six days are the six numbered
epochs; and in the sixth epoch the latest miracles were brought forth in the world,
as God finished His work on the sixth day. But now the world is in the seventh
epoch, approaching the end of time, as on the seventh day. How? The prophets have
completed their utterances, My Son has accomplished His will in the world, and
the Gospel has been preached openly throughout all lands; and throughout the times
of this full number and more years after it, despite the diversity of human customs,
the world has remained as it was well-established by Me.
18. Why God now utters new mysteries by the mouth of an unlearned person
But now the Catholic faith wavers among the nations and the Gospel limps among
the people; and the mighty books in which the excelling doctors had summed up
knowledge with great care go unread from shameful apathy, and the food of life,
which is the divine Scriptures, cools to tepidity. For this reason, I now speak
through a person who is not eloquent in the Scriptures or taught by an earthly
teacher; I Who Am speak through her of new secrets and mystical truths, heretofore
hidden in books, like one who mixes clay and then shapes it to any form he wishes.
19. God's warning to the learned not to spurn these words but exalt them
O fruitful and rewarding teachers! Redeem your souls and loudly proclaim these
words, and do not disbelieve them; for if you spurn them, you condemn not them
but Me Who am Truth. For you should nurture My people under My law, and care for
them until the time for their supervision is past, and all cares and labors cease.
But from now on the predestined epoch is approaching, and you are hastening toward
the time when the son of perdition will appear. Grow therefore in vigor and fortitude,
My elect! Be on your guard, lest you fall into the snare of death; raise the victorious
banner of these words, and rush upon the son of iniquity. For those who forerun
and follow , the son of perdition whom you call Antichrist are in the way of error;
but as for you, follow the footsteps of Him Who taught you the way of truth, when
He appeared with humility and not with pride in the world in the body. Hear therefore
and understand.