Carmel is a Vocation of Love
If we sincerely want to change the world, we have to start with ourselves, from the inside out. The strongest man is the one who has conquered himself.
Carmel is a way of life that heightens our spiritual awareness and enlarges our hearts through love. Heaven means 'expansion.' The more we love, the more we are capable of love. The command that Jesus left us sounds simple and easy when we read it, but it loses something in the translation when we try to put it into practice: "Love one another, as I have loved you." (Jn. 15:12) This is not a selfish love concerned with getting something or whether the other person deserves our love. God loves us unconditionally. We must allow God's selfless love to grow and develop within us, and control and restrict our self-centeredness. "He must increase, I must decrease." (Jn. 3:30) I live now not I, but Christ lives in me." (Ga. 2:20)
As John the Baptist recognized divinity looking out through human eyes, we begin to see Him in all of our brothers and sisters - and lives accordingly. "A man who does not love his brother that he can see, cannot love God Whom he has never seen." (Jn. 5:20) "We shall be like Him." (1 Jn. 3:2)
The more aware we are of the God within us, the more we are aware that He is in everyone else. We begin to see past the 'outer wrapping' to that gift inside that is the real treasure. We experience the oneness of all humanity as children of God, our Father, caring and concerned for the rights of all. Mother Teresa of Calcutta and her nuns rescue the sick and dying from the sidewalks of India because they see Christ in His distressing disguise of the poor. "I tell you solemnly, insofar as you did this to one of the least of the brothers of mine, you did it to Me." (Mt. 25:40)
The Beatific Vision will not consist solely of gazing on God for our own enjoyment, but sharing the God-vision, seeing through the eyes of the Beloved the many unique reflections of the Godhead, and loving them as He does. Our heavenly existence has its beginnings on earth. "Life is the childhood of our eternity." (Goethe)
Like the many-faceted mirrored globe that revolves on the ceiling of many parties and dances, flashing back every color of the rainbow from the single light source, countless souls through history reflect something of the grandeur of God. As the father of a large family is not content until all of his children are home; our heavenly Father is the same. "So dear a son to Me, a child so favoured, that after each threat of mine I must still remember him, still be deeply moved for him, and let my tenderness yearn over him." (Jer. 31:20) "It is never the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost." (Jn. 6:39)
Love is forgiving. The teaching of Jesus to forgive our enemies is, at the same time, beneficial to ourselves. When people carry a grudge, the resentment smolders within them, often bothering them more than the person it is aimed at, for the other person may not even be aware that there is a problem. In practicing detachment, we should first eliminate the unkind words, the uncharitable thoughts and acts that we cling to. "What goes into the mouth does not make a man unclean; it is what comes out of the mouth that makes him unclean." (Mt. 15:11) When we plan on 'getting back at someone', or we constantly criticize and talk about people, we cause unrest not only in ourselves, nut in others when we should be instruments of peace. "Be kind, be kind, and you will become saints." (Pope John XXIII) "Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart." (Mt. 11:29) "When He appears a second time it will not be to deal with sin but to reward with salvation those who are waiting for Him." (Heb. 9:28)
The world is troubled about the possibility of a nuclear holocaust. "When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed, this is something that must happen, but the end will not be yet. For nation will fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes here and there, there will be famines. This is the beginning of the birth pangs.." (Rv. 20:2)
The final battle is between the forces of god and evil. Through the communion of saints we are communicating with all the souls who have achieved their birth into eternal life and are now participating in the divine nature, loving with God's own powerful, all-embracing love. They are concerned for us as younger brothers and sisters, for they love as the Father loves. As we learn to allow God's will to surface more and more within us, we are tapping this power, drawing on this energy. The growing love of billions of souls on earth, joining with the perfected love of countless souls transformed in God, is an unconquerable force. God is Love, and Love conquers all.
"In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph" (Fatima message) "I have come to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were blazing already." (Lk. 12:49) The beams of light and love radiate through our souls and outward to the world, to bring God's healing power to earth. "I will pour out my spirit on all mankind." (Jl. 3:28)
In order for the spiritual to operate in the physical world we must cooperate. God respects the freedom He gave us. At Christmas time a father may give his child money to buy the parents gift. The child is happy to be able to give something to express his love. The parents are touched by the gift, and do not consider that they gave the child the money in the first place, but if the child kept the money for himself, the parents would not be pleased. God has given us free will, and He does not take it back, but given generously, it is an expression of our love. Love is a commitment of the will. "O my Sisters, what strength lies in this gift [of the will]! It does nothing less, when accompanied by the necessary determination, than draw the Almighty so that He becomes one with our lowliness, transforms us into Himself, and effects a union of the Creator with the creature." (Way of perfection, 33, 11)
God awaited Mary's consent that she would become the Mother of Jesus. Even though she did not entirely understand, she took the first steps in faith, and surrendered her will completely through her 'fiat': "Be it done unto me according to Thy word." (Lk. 1:39)
As we surrender our will to His, God is able to use us as His instruments. We become more supple and flexible in His hands. "As the clay is in the potter's hand, so you are in Mine." Jer. 18:6) "It is written in the prophets: They will all be taught Thy word." Jn. 6:45)
"Prepare in the wilderness a way for Yahweh. Make a straight highway for our God across the desert, then the glory of Yahweh shall be revealed and all mankind shall see it." (Is. 40:1) "I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of Heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her husband." Rv. 21:2)
The new Jerusalem is not a geographical place but a spiritual kingdom, a state of being. Each soul is a bride to Christ. "For now your Creator will be your husband." (Is. 54:5) "Like a young man marrying a virgin, so will the One Who built you wed you, and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so will your God rejoice in you." Is. 62:5)
The new Jerusalem is each soul individually, and the Church and all mankind collectively. "Jerusalem the holy city, coming down from God out of heaven. It had all the radiant glory of God and glittered like some precious jewel of crystal-clear diamond . . . . The foundations of the city wall were faced with all kinds of precious stone." (Rv. 21:10, 19) Like the ants each carrying their grain of sand, we all have a stone to contribute of varied color and brilliance. St. Teresa writes in her Interior Castle: "We consider our soul to be like a castle made entirely out of a diamond or of very clear crystal, in which there are many rooms, just as in heaven there are many dwelling places." (1,1) "Insofar as I can understand, the door to entry to this castle is prayer and reflection." (1, 7)
"you see this city? Here God lives among men. He will make His home among them; they shall be His people, and he will be their God; His name is God-with-them. he will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there will be no more death, and no more mourning or sadness. The world of the past has gone." (Rv. 21:3) "I saw a new heaven and a new earth." (Rv. 21:1)
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done!
From "Welcome to Carmel"
Teresian Charism Press
1525 Carmel Rd
Hubertus, WI 53033
