“Without the Holy Spirit everything is cold.” (Saint John Vianney).
Saint John Vianney said, “Without the Holy Spirit everything is cold. The Sacraments instituted by Our Lord wouldn’t have saved us without the Holy Spirit. Even the very Death of Our Lord would have been useless without Him. It’s like being given a treasure; it would be necessary for someone to distribute it: the Father gave His Son, the Son gave Himself and the Holy Spirit came to distribute all His graces.”
And I have been reflecting on these words of Saint John Vianney as I have been thinking about the experience of loss and grief that I have witnessed among my loved ones and also in myself during my life…
After all, the apostles surely felt terrible terrible grief in knowing that they would soon lose their Blessed Lord when He ascended into Heaven. Surely – they may have reasoned to themselves – if Christ is God and could raise Himself from the dead, surely then He could choose to stay with us here on earth right now? Why – they may have reasoned to themselves – would God desert them when everything that was to come would be so much easier to bear if only they could physically see their Blessed Lord beside them?
And I am quite reasonably sure that the apostles must have reasoned in this way, because they loved Our Blessed Lord as their most beloved friend with all their hearts. And I, myself, have loved another soul as a most beloved child with all my heart…
You see, I reasoned in this way when my little baby died before he was even born. For years afterwards, prior to my conversion, which occurred through Grace and no merit of my own, I wondered why God would take my child to Heaven when I needed him so right here and now with me on Earth…
But the answer that Christ gave to His disciples is the same answer that applies to me in relation to my little boy…
“But I tell you the truth, it is for your benefit that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7).
You see, my beautiful little child went to Heaven because I had more need of him there than I had need of him on this Earth. And I know this is a firm and peaceful otherworldly purpose because I can see it with the eyes of my faith, even though my mortal eyes cannot see this truth!
It is like when Christ said to His apostles, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is Mine; therefore I said that He will take what is Mine and declare it to you.” (John 16:12-14).
You see, when the apostles were promised the Counsellor – the Holy Spirit – to guide them to the truth, so too was I.
And I see the truth now – with the eyes of faith… And the truth is that my beautiful little saint is the most precious gift of my Beloved to me.
And I know that now, because every time I think of him, my eyes fill with tears. Those tears used to be terrible tears of GRIEF, but through the Grace of conversion, the Eternal Counsellor has come to me, and now I cry only tears of great JOY…
For I know that the Lord has done great things for me… For He gave me a Saint to help me.
And knowing that, I can dance along the Way to Calvary… Because of my little Saint, now I can dance…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
Just beautiful ❤️