Letters of Madam Guyon Part 5

UNION OF SOULS IN G.o.d.

The a.s.surance you give me of the union of your soul with mine, is a great consolation. It is a union to which my heart fully responds, not in a way of emotional transport, but in the depths of peace; there is nothing of nature in it. It is a union in Jesus Christ. We are one in a sense of our lost condition, and one in self-abandonment. Oh!

blessed oneness with Christ, where all evils perish; and there remains only the casualties inseparable from the state of humanity. How wonderful is this operation--the sacred mingling of a poor creature with its G.o.d, where all the evils of our fallen nature, are removed from the depths of the soul, and the soul, in its elemental being is lost in its original! There all the little ones are united in Him,--these little drops of water rea.s.sembled in the divine ocean! How swiftly do the streams embrace each other, and flow into one channel, when the obstructions are removed! When souls become pure in Jesus Christ, they flow into one another with the same rapidity. Purity of soul consists in an entire separation from self, and re-union with G.o.d.

The soul _can_ return to self; it has the power, and therefore is not infallible.

Our union, my dear friend, is independent of the relish or disrelish of all created things and events. You could not be separated from me without being separated from G.o.d; for it seems to me, that I am one with him, and inseparable, and you are the same; and thus, we are one in Him, and one with each other.

Ever yours, in the heart of Jesus.

SECRET OPERATIONS OF GRACE.

My heart has been tenderly united to you, during all my bodily sufferings. In proportion as the outward man has been reduced, G.o.d seems to be more the life of my soul. Although the operations of G.o.d upon your soul may be less marked than formerly, they are no less real.

There is a secret fire in your heart, which burns continually, although imperceptibly. This keen and continual operation enfeebles you, because it consumes so rapidly the more sensible and marked operations of the soul. This is, I apprehend, your ordinary state; with occasionally the unction of the oil of grace poured upon the concealed fire, to give you a sweet and clear manifestation of the loving presence of G.o.d.

You bear two marked results of the divine presence--interior recollection, and a continual _amen_ in your heart; a true and just response to all G.o.d's dealings with your soul.

I realise a very close union with you. This union is not in the emotions, and not in the will of man, but in the will of G.o.d. It is a union, from which I could no more separate myself, than from G.o.d; it is a fulfillment of the prayer of our Lord, "that they may be one, as we are one." It is a union which death cannot interrupt, but will substantiate more and more fully in G.o.d.

Ever yours, in our Lord.

TO A YOUNG FRIEND.

You are very dear to me, my child. Do not think I have forgotten you.

G.o.d alone can render you happy. Give yourself wholly to him, never more to take yourself back. Love him with all your heart. Retire often within the closet of your heart to commune with G.o.d. Do not pray to him in a constrained and formal manner, but all simple and natural.

G.o.d loves better the affectionate language of the heart, than, the cold and discursive thoughts of the intellect. The prayer of love softens the heart.

Do not shrink from your ordinary duties. We are often more united to G.o.d, in our daily avocations, than in retirement. The reason is, our good Father holds us more closely, when we are most exposed to temptations. Endeavor to maintain, at all times, harmony and oneness with G.o.d. You have only to abandon yourself wholly to divine love, and perform all the duties that devolve upon you. Do not be restive, and thus mar G.o.d's beautiful design and operation upon your soul. Place in his bosom of rest, all your inquietudes, and allow him to carry you, as a little child is borne by its mother. This little one has only to regard, lovingly, the smiles of its tender mother.

G.o.d will give you a wise discernment as to food and drink, and all the pleasures of life. He calls us to a temperate life, but not to a life too austere. We should avoid the _too much_ and the _too little_ in eating and drinking.

I pray our divine Lord, to enlighten, strengthen and comfort your heart.

LETTER TO HER SPIRITUAL GUIDE.

The state in which I find myself, my Father, takes away from me entirely, the liberty to address you any longer as my Spiritual Guide.

I realize so great a detachment from all things, that there remains in me only a triumphant, dominant love, which acknowledges no master but Love. It is my experience, that the closer the union of the soul with G.o.d, the more it is separated from all dependence on the creature. I find also, that the secret operations of divine love upon the soul, cannot be expressed. These operations do not consist in sweet and flattering expressions, neither in consolations, in the ordinary way, but in the discovery of mysterious truths; truths, which give so profound a knowledge of G.o.d, that the soul can find no language to give expression to these views.

To speak, and to act, is the same thing with G.o.d. "He spake, and it was done." When the divine Word operates in the soul, without any obstruction, the soul becomes what this Word wills it should become.

When Mary Magdalene was made whole, it was no more Mary Magdalene, but Jesus Christ, who lived in her. St. Paul says, "I live, yet not I, Christ liveth in me." In the same manner, the Word is incorporated into my soul.

Some time since, there was given me a view of the States of Mary, the mother of our Lord. I was alone in my chamber, and my soul was completely filled with divine love. The divine Word seemed to say within me, "I will show thee the chief work of my hands,--a perfect nothing in itself,--the heart of Mary." In this manner was conveyed to me, the inexpressible love of G.o.d for men--his operation in pure souls.

It was shown me, that her silence and acquiescence in the will of G.o.d; her entire self-crucifixion and hidden life were worthy of imitation; and that this same love which had operated so powerfully upon this soul, emptied of self, desired to draw other souls also to her states, and to make an effusion of the same grace and love in them, as in her.

O divine love! how great are thy wonders, how marvellous thy operations on human hearts! My soul is lost in the depths of thy secret wonders!

Silence, silence--only silence!

I write to you, my Father, for the last time, to bid you a final adieu.

I can no longer listen to any other teachings, than this divine Word of eternal Truth, which is spoken in the depths of my heart. But however far separated from you, in the relation of Director, you are very near and dear in the affections of my heart; in that pure love, which is alone the operation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

GLORY OF G.o.d THE ONE DESIRE.

What have we to desire in heaven and on earth, only the glory of G.o.d?

But it is necessary to desire the glory of G.o.d as he desires it. He who has absolute power over the heart of man, has a plan of operations; he does all things in their time; he waits until the hour is come. In coming into the world, our Lord could have converted the world at once, and destroyed all its vices; but the economy of his wisdom did not so direct. When I hear our Lord say, "_Mine hour is not yet come_," and wis.h.i.+ng neither to advance nor r.e.t.a.r.d, for a moment, the hour that his Father had appointed, I am plunged into my nothingness. We are only instruments in his hands, which he may lay aside, or use according to his good pleasure. We should be so dead to self, as to be indifferent, whether he makes use of us or not.

Remain, therefore, my dear friend, in the hand of G.o.d. Let him accomplish in you, and by you, all his good pleasure, whether to cast down, or build up. G.o.d knows how much I love you.

SPIRITUAL UNION AND AID.

Spiritual union, is a state of the soul very clear in my perception, although I may not be able to give you a definite impression of this state. In order to benefit you, it became necessary for me to enter into your state, to have an experimental knowledge, an endurance and suffering of the same state. By this experience I have been brought into closer relation to G.o.d, partaking more fully of the Christ-like nature by being rendered capable of bearing the infirmities of others.

And I have had, also, a clearer idea of that quality of G.o.d, whereby he multiplies holy souls, by the communication of himself. In this experience, the soul appears to be in G.o.d, and G.o.d in her, as first cause, drawing and penetrating the soul nearest to himself, and by penetration, in this soul, drawing, through her instrumentality, many other Souls.

Although, by these powerful rays the soul itself may seem to penetrate and draw other souls, yet it is G.o.d who draws them by his efficiency; and he communicates this efficiency, most powerfully, to those in closest contact with himself. So pure and transparent is this soul, that there seems to be no s.p.a.ce between the first Mover and the souls moved by the agent or instrumentality. There is a difference between the ray and the body of the sun, although it is difficult to separate the ray from the sun. It is the divine ray, which is transmitted through this soul, as the natural ray through the medium of the atmosphere. These same rays, transmitted through many souls, and from soul to soul, unite them in one common centre, and thus the bond of filiation is complete in G.o.d. I may not express myself so as to be understood. May your light supply, what is wanting in clearness of expression.

LIVE IN THE PRESENT.

Do not expect, my dear E., that the will of G.o.d will be made apparent to you in any extraordinary way. The most remarkable events occur naturally. It was by an order of the Emperor, that Joseph, being of the house and lineage of David, went to be taxed at Bethlehem, where the holy child Jesus was born. The fountain of water was near to Hagar, when she laid down the child to die with thirst. Behold G.o.d, my friend, in the present arrangement of his providence for you, and submit wisely to pa.s.sing events. He sees the end from the beginning, and plans wisely for his children. O, how good to submit our limited view to his far sight, reaching through time and eternity!

Remember, the present moment comes to you, as the moment of G.o.d. Use it for his glory, and every succeeding moment. Thus the present becomes the eternal moment, for which we must render account to G.o.d.

May G.o.d be All in All to us in every pa.s.sing moment, now and forever.

HOW TO ADMINISTER REPROOF.

A single word, spoken in the spirit of Christ, with humility and sweetness, will have more weight, in correcting others, than many words uttered in our own spirit. The reason is this: when pa.s.sion mingles with correction, although the truth may be spoken, Jesus Christ does not cooperate with us. Therefore, the person is not corrected by what we say, but, being opposed to the manner of correction, is more confirmed in the evil. In proportion as Jesus Christ speaks by us, without us, or without the minglings of self, his word is efficacious, and turns the heart of the person to whom we speak, to receive what we say. I know there are some who resist, knowingly, _his_ word, but our pa.s.sionate zeal does not correct them.

It is important to wait the moment of G.o.d to collect others. We may see real faults, but the person may not be in a state to profit by being told their faults. It is not wise to give more than one can receive. This is what I call _preceding_ the _light_,--the light s.h.i.+nes so far in advance of the person, that it does not benefit him.

Our Lord said to his apostles, "I have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now."