The Transformation into Love

An excerpt from “One Heart Full of Love” by Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta:

Let us not love by words alone, but let us love until it hurts. It cost Jesus to love us. He even died for us. Now it is our turn to love one another as Jesus loved us. You must not be afraid to say “yes” to Jesus, because there is no greater love than His love and no greater joy than His joy.

All of us must be saints in this world. Holiness is not a luxury for only a few. It is a duty for you and me. So let’s be saints and give glory to the Father. That is why Jesus came to this earth. Being rich, He became poor out of love for us, so that we can be rich and fully share in the happiness of God for all eternity.

We have a mother in heaven, the Virgin Mary, who is a guide for us, a great joy, and an important source of our cheerfulness in Christ. Intercede with her before God. Pray the Rosary so that Mary may always be with you, to be your guide, to protect and keep you as a mother. Introduce prayer into your families. The family that prays together, stays together.

My prayer for you is that you come to understand and have the courage to answer Jesus’ call to you with the simple word “yes.” Also, pray for us that we will not spoil the work God has given us to do.

Jesus, in private revelation given to Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, on February 7, 1937 (Diary #923):

I demand of you a perfect and whole-burnt offering; an offering of the will. No other sacrifice can compare with this one. I Myself am directing your life and arranging things in such a way that you will be for Me a continual sacrifice and will always do My Will. And for the accomplishment of this offering, you will unite yourself with Me on the Cross. I know what you can do. I Myself will give you many orders directly, but I will delay the possibility of their being carried out and make it depend on others. But what the superiors will not manage to do, I Myself will accomplish directly in your soul.

And in the most hidden depths of your soul, a perfect holocaust will be carried out, not just for a while, but know, My daughter, that this offering will last until your death. But there is time, so that I the Lord will fulfill all your wishes. I delight in you as in a living host; let nothing terrify you; I am with you.

Excerpted from a talk by Father Thaddaeus Lancton, Marians of the Immaculate Conception (embedded below):

The sacrifice we are to make is a holocaust—nothing less. The word “holocaust” comes from the Greek meaning “a whole-burnt offering”—meaning everything is burned up. Not part. Because in the Old Testament, in the Temple, there were many sacrifices. There were sacrifices of wheat, of oil; there were sacrifices of doves and birds; but the most important sacrifice was the holocaust. Why? ‘Cause everything was consumed. And Jesus is telling us our sacrifice should not be partial, should not be half-hearted, [but] should be a whole-burnt offering. And that means at each moment to deny ourselves and to do the Will of God.

And it may not be that complicated. For Faustina, much of God’s Will for her was writing this diary that I just read from. And so, it took writing. At other times, it was bringing some tea to some sick sisters who were across the room from her. At other times, it was gardening. But other times, it was sitting at the front door all day and waiting for people who needed help. And yet, she did all of that with love—with great love….

Participating at Mass means what Jesus told Faustina—uniting ourselves, uniting our wills, and becoming a whole-burnt offering with Jesus on that altar. And so, practically, I would challenge you at the Offertory, what do you offer to the Lord? Bring your entire life to Him. Not part of it. And bring your whole self to Him. Because we are called through Baptism to be united to Jesus Christ. And on this earth, that means we’re going to be united with Him on the Cross. And that happens at each Eucharist because we come before the Cross at each Eucharist. And the only way to get to heaven is to get on that Cross. It’s not easy, but it is possible. And that’s why the Father gives us His Son—to strengthen us, to encourage us, and to allow us to be united with Him, so that we’re not alone upon the Cross. And not only does He give His Son, He gives all these saints. He gives Saint Faustina to teach us today how to do this.

Now, when I mentioned participation in the liturgy, it’s important—offering ourselves with Christ. So when I hold the Host and I hold the chalice, offer yourselves—all that you are and all your sins. Be generous. Give all your sins. Jesus told Saint Jerome and Saint Faustina both, “You haven’t given Me everything.” And both of them looked puzzledly at the Lord [thinking], “Of course I’ve given You everything.” Saint Jerome lived in a cave. “I’ve got nothing left.” [Jesus] said, “You haven’t given Me your sins yet, Jerome.” And He told Faustina the same thing. We must throw everything into that holocaust of the Eucharist—to that burning fire of love—so that we ourselves become love. We ourselves are transformed into love, like Faustina was.