INTRODUCTION
1. When I was ready to present
before the throne of God the insignificant results of
my labors in writing the first part of the most holy life
of Mary, the Mother of God, I wished to subject it to
the scrutiny and correction of the divine light, by which I
had been guided in my shortcomings. I was very anxious
to be consoled by the renewed assurance, and benign approval
of the Most High, and to know, whether He wished
me to continue or to bandon this work, which
is so far above my low liness. The Lord responded saying:
"Thou hast written well, and according to our pleasure;
but We desire thee to understand, that in order to
manifest the mysteries and most high sacraments of the
rest of the life of our only and chosen Spouse, Mother
of our Onlybegotten, thou hast need of a new and more
exalted preparation. It is our wish that thou die to
all that is imperfect and visible, and that thou live according
to the spirit; that tho renounce all the occupations
and habits of an earthly creature and assume instead those
of an angel, striving to attain in them a still greater
purity and an entire conformity with what thou art to understand
and write."
2. In this answer of the Most High
I understood, that such a high perfection of life
and habits and such an unwonted exercise of virtues was
proposed and required of me, that, full of diffidence,
I became disturbed and fearful of undertaking a work so
arduous and difficult for an earthly creature. I felt
within myself great repugnance rising up in the flesh
against the spirit. The spirit called me with interior
force, urging me to strive after the disposition, which was
required of me, and advancing as argument the pleasure
of the Lord and the benefits accruing to myself. On
the other hand the law of sin (Rom. 7, 23), which I felt
in my members, opposed the divine promptings and
discouraged me by the fear of my own inconstancy.
I felt a great distaste, which deterred me and a great pusillanimity
which filled me with fear. In this excitement
I began to believe, that I was not capable of treating about
such high things, especially as they were so foreign
to the condition and estate of a woman.
3. Overcome by fears and difficulties,
I resolved not to continue this work, and to use
all possible means to adhere to this determination. The
common enemy knew my fear and cowardice, and, as
his utmost cruelty is more aroused against the weak and
disheartened, he made use of this very disposition to
attack me with incredible fury. It seemed to him, that I
was left without help in his hands. In order to conceal
his malice, he sought to transform himself into an angel
of light, pretending to be very solicitous for my soul
and for my welfare. Under this false pretext he perfidiously
deluged me with his suggestions and doubts; he
represented to me the danger of damnation and frightened
me with punish ments similar to those of the chief
of the angels (Is. 14, 12), since I had sought
in my pride to compre hend, what was above my powers
and in opposition to God himself.
4. He pointed out to me many souls,
who, professing virtue, were deceived by some secret
presumption and by yielding to the insinuations of
the devil; and he made me believe, that in so far as I sought
to scrutinize the secrets of the divine Majesty (Prov. 25,
27), I could not but be guilty of pride and presumption,
thus being already judged. He urged very strongly,
that the present times were ill suited for such matters
and sought to confirm his assertion by what happened
to some well known persons, who were found to labor under
deceit and error. He reminded me of the dread of
the spiritual life in others; how great would be the
discredit, which would arise by any mistake of mine and
what evil effect it would have on those of little piety;
all this I would know by experience and to my regret, if
I persisted in writing about this matter. And as it is
true evidently, that all the opposition to the spiritual
life and the small esteem in which the mystic virtues are
held, is caused by that mortal enemy, so, for the purpose
of doing away with Christian devotion and piety in
many souls, he succeeds in deceiving some and in sowing
the cockle among the good seed of the Lord (Matth. 13,
25). Thus he causes confusion and obscures the true
sentiment concerning it, making it more difficult to distinguish
the darkness from the light. I am not surprised to
see him succeed therein, as the true discernment is the
special work of God and of those, who participate in his true
wisdom, and do not govern themselves only by earthly
insight.
5. It is not easy during this mortal
life to discern true prudence from the false; for often
also the good intention and zeal warp the human judgment,
when counsel and light from on high are wanting.
I had occasion to learn this in the execution of
that which I am about to undertake: for some persons, well
known as devout, not only those who loved me on account
of their piety and desired my welfare, but also those
who were less loving and considerate: all alike at one
time wished to deter me from this undertaking, and also
from the path, which I was going, as if I was proceeding
upon it by my own choice. Their fear of drawing discredit
or confusion upon those who were striving after
piety with me, or upon religion or my neighbors,
and especially upon the convent in which I lived, caused
them anxiety and to me, affliction. I was much enamoured
by the security, which the ordinary paths of the other
nuns seemed to offer; I acknowledge, that this suited more
my own insight and my inclination and desires, and
was urged upon me still more by my timidity and my great
fears.
6. Cast about upon these impetuous
waves, my heart
sought to reach the port of obedience
in order to re
assure me in the bitter sea of
my confusion. To add to
my tribulation, it began to be
rumored about in our
order, that my spiritual father
and superior, who had for
many years directed my soul and
who well understood
my interior trials, who moreover
had commanded me to
write the preceding part of this
history, who would most
likely encourage, quiet, and console
me, was suggested
for removal to a higher office.
The suggestion was not
acted upon, but it occasioned his
absence for many days,
and the dragon took advantage of
all this in order to
pour out against me the furious
river of his wrath
(Apoc. 13, 15). Thus, though in
vain, he exerted all
his malice, on this occasion and
others, to entice me from
obedience and deprive me of the
guidance of my superior
and master.
7. In addition to all the contradictions
and temptations
already mentioned, and many others
not possible to de
scribe, the demon sought to deprive
me of my health,
causing many aches, indispositions
and disorders of the
whole body. He harassed me with
insurmountable sad
ness and conflicting thoughts;
he seemed to confuse my
understanding, hinder correct thinking,
weaken my will
power, and sift me in body and
soul.
7. And it happened
that in the midst of this confusion
I committed some
faults, which were serious enough
in me, although they
were committed not so much in malice
as from human
fraility. Nevertheless the serpent
sought to use them
for my destruction more than any
other means; for thus
having interrupted the flow of
good works, his fury was
let loose to cause still greater
faults in this embarrass
ment by inveigling me to exaggerate
my guilt. To this
he drove me by impious and most
insidious suggestions,
seeking to persuade me, that all
that I had experienced in
the path which I had trodden, was
false and erroneous.
8. As these insinuations, on account
of the faults com
mitted and on account of my continual
consternation and
fears, began to appear plausible,
I resisted them less than
others; and it was only through
the special mercies of the
Lord, that I did not fall entirely
from all belief and hope
in a remedy. But I found myself
so entangled in diffi
culties and surrounded by darkness,
that I may say, the
groanings of death encompassed
me and the sorrows of
hell engulfed me (Ps. 17, 5) inspiring
me with dread of
extreme peril. I resolved to burn
the manuscripts of the
first part of this divine history
and to desist from writing
the second. The angel of satan,
who inspired me with
this resolution, induced me also
to withdraw myself from
the whole undertaking: to put an
end to the pursuit of
the spiritual life, to neglect
my interior life, and not to
communicate about it with any one.
Thus would I be
able to do penance for my sins,
appease the Lord, pro
pitiate Him, and retain his friendship.
In order to make
sure of the effects of his concealed
malice he proposed,
that I make a vow not to write
any more on account of
the danger of being deceived and
of deceiving; but that
instead, I amend my life, retrench
my imperfections and
embrace penance.
9. With this masque of seeming
virtue the dragon
pretended to establish his damnable
counsels and cover
himself with the skin of a sheep,
while in reality he acted
as a bloodthirsty and devouring
wolf. He persevered
for some time in this attack and
all alone I remained for
fifteen days in a night of darkness,
without relief or consolation either human or divine:
without the former,
because I was without the help
and the counsel of obedience, and without the latter, because
the Lord had inter
rupted the flow of his favors,
his enlightenments and
continual inspiration. Above all
was I distressed by
despair of salvation and in it,
the persuasion, that death
and the danger of my eternal damnation
was approaching; all this was instigated and
fostered in me by the
enemy.
10. But as the aftertastes of his
temptations are so
bitter and end but in despair,
the very disturbance, by
which he upset the whole republic
of my powers and
acquired habits, made me more wary
of fulfilling any
thing which he urged on me and
proposed to me. He
availed himself of the continual
fear, which tormented
me with the dread of offending
God and of losing his
friendship and when, in my doubts,
I applied myself to
works of piety, he sought to draw
me away. This very
fear however made me hesitate at
what the astute dragon
had tried to convince me of and
in this uncertainty I
deferred giving assent to it. My
high regard for obedience also, by which I had been
ordered to write, and the
contrariness of that which I felt
in my interior, helped
me to resist and to recoil at his
suggestions. Above all
the assistance of the Most High
defended me and
permitted not the beasts to snatch
my soul, which amid
sighs and groans confessed Him.
I cannot describe in
words the temptations, combats,
troubles, dismays and
afflictions, which I suffered in
this battle: for I saw
myself placed in such a state,
that in my judgment there
was really no greater difference
between my condition
and that of the damned, except
that in hell there is no re
demption, while in mine it was
still possible.
11. One day, in order to get some
respite, I cried out
from the bottom of my heart saying:
"O woe is me, that
I have come to such a state! and
woe to my soul, which
finds itself therein! Whither shall
I turn, since all the
portals of my salvation are closed?"
Immediately a
strong and sweet voice gave answer
within myself:
"Whither dost thou wish to
go outside of God himself?"
By this answer I perceived that
my cure was at hand in
the Lord, and at the breaking of
this dawn I began to
raise myself from the depth of
the confusion, into which
I was cast, and I felt a powerful
increase in the fervor of
my desires and in the acts of faith,
hope and charity. I
debased myself in the presence
of the Most High and, in
firm confidence in his goodness,
I wept over my faults
with bitter sorrow. I confessed
them many times and
sighing from the depth of heart,
I began to seek again the
former light and truth. And as
the divine Wisdom
comes forth to meet those by whom
it is invoked
(Wis. 6, 17), it advanced toward
me in delight and
cleared away the night of my confusion
and tormenting
afflictions.
12. Presently that bright day broke,
which I had desired so much; the quiet possession
of peace returned;
I enjoyed the sweet love and vision
of my Lord and
Master, and with it I again perceived,
why I should
believe, accept and esteem the
benefits and favors, which
his mighty arm wrought in me. I
gave Him thanks as
far as was in my power; and I saw,
who I was and who
Cod is; that a creature by itself
can do nothing, that it
is nothing, because sin is nothing.
I saw also what man
can do when raised up and assisted
up by the divine right
hand, being much more than can
be imagined by our
earthly faculites. Humbled in the
perception of these
truths and in the presence of the
inaccessible light,
(which is vast and strong, without
deceit or falsehood),
my heart flowed over in sweet affections
of love, praise
and thanksgiving. For now I understood,
that He had
guarded and defended me, so that
in the confused night
of temptations my lamp might not
be extinguished
(Prov. 31, 18); and in the depth
of my gratitude I
annihilated myself to the dust
and humiliated myself
as a worm of the earth.
13. To make this benefit more certain,
I immediately
heard an interior exhortation,
without knowing clearly
from whence it proceeded; while
it severely reprehended
me for my disloyalty and my wrongful
ways, it at the
same time admonished and enlightened,
instructed and
corrected me. It furnished me with
a deep understand
ing of good and evil, of virtue
and vice, of what was
secure, useful and beneficial,
as well as their contraries;
it laid open to me the way of eternity,
gave me a knowledge of the means and of the end,
of the value of life
everlasting, and of the miserable
unhappiness and the so
little considered ruin of endless
perdition.
14. In the profound knowledge of
these two extremes,
I confess that I was dumbfounded
and cast about be
tween the fear of my dreadful infirmity
and the desire
of reaching the happiness, of which
I was unworthy on
account of my demerits. I was full
of the thought of
the kindness and mercy of the Most
High; and the fear
of losing Him: I beheld the two
different ends awaiting
the creatures: eternal glory and
eternal misery; and it
seemed a small matter to me to
suffer all the pains and the torments of the world, of purgatory
and hell itself, in
order to attain to the one and
to avoid the other. And
although I perceived, that the
divine help is assured
to those who seek to make use of
it, yet as I also saw
by this light, that life and death
are in our hands
(Eccli. 15, 18), and that our weakness
or malice may
prevent the proper use of grace,
and that the tree will
lie for all eternity as it once
has fallen (Eccles. 11, 3),
on this account I was overcome
by the deepest sorrow,
which penetrated my heart.
15. This sorrow was increased by
a most severe
answer or inquiry, which came from
the Lord. For
while I found myself thus annihilated
in the conscious
ness of my weakness and danger
and by the thought of
having offended his justice, so
that I dared not raise my
eyes toward Him, He met my speechless
sorrow by the
advances of his mercy, saying to
me in answer to them:
"Which dost thou wish, my
soul? Which dost thou
seek? Which of these ways wilt
thou choose? What is
thy resolve ?" This question
was an arrow to my heart:
for although I knew for certain,
that the Lord knew my
desires better than I myself, the
delay between the ques:
tion and the answer was incredibly
painful to me; I
wished, if possible, that the Lord
should anticipate my
answer and should not show Himself
ignorant of the
response, which I would give. But,
impelled by great
emotion, I made response in words
coming from the in
nermost of soul, and said; "Lord
and omnipotent God!
The path of virtue, the way of
eternal life do I chose,
this do I desire, and in this do
Thou place me; and as I
do not merit it in thy justice,
I appeal to they mercy, and
I offer for myself the infinite
merits of thy most holy
Son and my Redeemer, Jesus Christ."
16. I was made aware, that this
highest Judge remembered the promise, which is
given to the Church,
that He would grant all that is
asked in the name of his
Onlybegotten (John 16, 23), that
in Him and on his
account my petition was granted
and its fulfillment
hastened according to my poor wishes.
Certain conditions
were made and proposed to me by
an intellectual voice,
saying to me interiorly: "Soul,
created by the hand of
the Almighty, if thou wishest,
as one of the elect, to
follow in the path of the true
light and attain the position
of a most chaste spouse of the
Lord, who calls thee, it
is befitting, that thou observe
the laws and precepts of
love. The first thing required
of thee is, that thou reject
entirely all earthly inclinations,
renouncing all and every
affection toward the transient
things, so that thou have
no love or affection toward any
created being, no matter
how useful, beautiful or agreeable
it may appear to thee.
Cherish no created image, harbor
no earthly affection;
let thy will rest in no created
object, except in so far as
thy Lord and Spouse shall command
thee for the wellordering
of thy love, or in so far as thou
canst be aided
thereby to love Him alone.
17.
And when, after thus
reaching this perfect abnegation and renunciation of thyself,
thou shalt have freed
and disentangled thyself from all
earthly things, seek
the Lord, raising thyself with
the swift wings of the
dove toward the high habitation,
in which He, in his
condescension, wishes to place
thy spirit; so that there
thou mayest live in his presence
and have a secure dwelling-place. This great Lord is a
most jealous Spouse and
his love and emulation are strong
as death (Cant. 8, 6).
He wishes to adorn thee and set
thee in a secure place,
in order that thou mayest not issue
from it, or leave his
presence for another, where thou
findst Him not or enjoyest
not his caresses. He, with whom
thou art to conIverse without mistrust, wishes
to sign thee with his own
hand, and this is a most equitable
law, which the spouses
of the great King must observe;
for even those in the
world observe it, in order to show
their faithfulness. It
is due to the nobility of thy Spouse,
that thou observe
a behavior corresponding to the
dignity and position
conferred by Him, wtihout descending
to anything not
befitting this estate or making
thee unworthy of the
adornment lavished upon thee for
entrance into his bridal
chamber."
18. "Next I require of thee,
that thou despoil thyself
with diligence of the vestments
torn by thy faults and
imperfections, soiled by the effects
of sin, and made
odious by the inclinations of nature.
His Majesty wishes
to wash off the stains, to purify
and renew thee with his
beauty, but under condition, that
thou never lose sight
of the poor and despicable vestments
of which thou hast
been divested, so that in the memory
and knowledge of
this benefit, thou mayest spread
the odor of sweetness
for this great King by the nard
of thy humility
(Cant 1, 11), and so that thou
mayest never forget the
return, which thou owest to the
Author of thy salvation.
Thus will He, by the precious balsam
of his blood, purify
thee, heal thy wounds and enlighten
thee copiously."
19. "In addition to all this"
(this voice continued to
say) "in order that thus forgetting
all earthly things
thou mayest be coveted by the highest
King, seek to
adorn thyself with the jewels,
which He in his pleasure
has prepared for thee. The vestments,
which shall cover
thee, are to be whiter than the
snow, more brilliant than
the diamond, more resplendent than
the sun and yet they
will be at the same time so delicate,
that they will easily
be spoiled by any negligence, making
thee abominable in
the sight of thy Spouse. But if
thou preserve them in the purity which He desires, thy
steps will be beautiful
as the Prince s daughter (Cant.
7, 1), and his Majesty
will be pleased with thy sentiments
and thy words. As a
cincture of thy vestment He will
give thee the knowledge
of his divine power and his holy
fear, in order that, having bound thy inclinations, thou
mayest direct thyself by
his pleasure. The jewels of thy
necklace, which adorn
thy neck, signifying thy humble
submission, shall be the
costly stones of faith, hope and
charity. As a clasp for
thy hair (which are the high and
exalted thoughts and
thy heavenly intelligences), thou
wilt have from Him the
infused science and wisdom, and
the embroideries of thy
vestments shall be all the beauty
and richness of the virtues. Thy diligence in performing
what is most perfect
shall serve thee as sandals, and
they laces shall be the
avoidance and restraints, that
thou wilt use in order to
keep from evil. The rings, which
will beautify thy
fingers, shall be the seven gifts
of the Holy Ghost; and
the beauty of thy face shall be
the participation of the
Divinity, which on account of his
holy love, shall shine
therefrom. Thereto thou shalt add
the coloring of confusion for having offended Him,
in order that it may
make thee ashamed of offending
Him in the future, comparing at the same time the coarse
and sordid habits of
the past with those that now adorn
thee."
20. "And because thy own merits
would make but a
poor and miserable return for such
a high espousal, the
Most High wishes to ratify this
contract by singling out,
as if for thee alone, the infinite
merits of thy Spouse
Jesus Christ, and He makes thee
a partaker of all his
possessions and treasures in the
heavens and upon earth.
For all belongs to this supreme
Lord (Esther 13, 11),
and of all this thou shalt be mistress
as his spouse for
thy own use and for the greater
love of Him. But
remember, soul, that in order to
obtain such a gift, thou
must hide all this within thyself,
without ever losing thy
secret; for I warn thee of the
danger of soiling thy
beauty with the least imperfection;
but if at any time
thou committest such an imperfection
out of weakness,
rise from it at once, like a strong
one, and acknowledg
ing it, weep over the small fault
as if it had been, the most
grievous."
21. "And in order that thou
mayest have a dwellingplace
and habitation befitting such a
great estate, thy
Spouse does not wish to set thee
any limit, but it is his
pleasure, that thou dwell in the
infinite regions of his
Divinity and that thou roam about
and disport thyself
through the illimitable fields
of his attributes and perfections.
where the view of the intellect
is without restraint, where the will is delighted
without shadow of
misgiving, and where the inclinations
are satiated without
bitterness. This is the paradise
always delightful, where
the most beloved brides of Christ
find their recreation,
where they gather the fragrant
flowers and myrrh, and
where the infinite is found for
those that have renounced
the imperfect nothing. There will
thy habitation be
secure; and in order that thy intercourse
and companion
ship may be in correspondence with
it, I desire that thou
converse with the angels, holding
them as friends and
companions, and copying from them,
during their fre
quent conversations and intercourse
with thee, their vir
tues by faithful imitation."
22. "Take notice" (continued
the voice) "O soul of
the greatness of this benefit;
for the Mother of thy
Spouse and the Queen of heaven
adopts thee anew for her
daughter, receives thee as her
disciple, and assumes the
place of a Mother and of a Teacher
toward thee. Through
her intercession dost thou receive
those special favors and they are all granted to thee that
thou mayest write her
most holy life. On this account
thou hast been pardoned
without thy merit, and that, which
otherwise thou
wouldst not have reached, has been
conceded to thee.
What would become of thee, O soul,
if it were not for
the Mother of mercy? Thou wouldst
already have
perished, if her intercession had
failed thee; poor and
useless would have been thy works,
if, by divine condescension, thou hadst not been
selected to write this
history, but the eternal Father
chose thee for his daughter, in view of this work, and
for a spouse of his Onlybegotten
Son; and the Son received thee
to his close em
braces, and the Holy Spirit selected
thee for his enlight
enments. The document of this contract
and espousal is
written and imprinted on the white
parchment of the
purity of most holy Mary: there
the finger and the power
of the Most High have written it;
the ink is the blood of
the Lamb; the executor is the eternal
Father; the tie
which binds thee to Christ is the
Holy Spirit; the bonds
men are the merits of the same
Jesus Christ and of his
Mother; for thou art but a vile
worm, having nothing to
offer and being expected to give
merely thy free consent."
23. So far the admonishing voice,
which I heard. Although I judged it to be that of
an angel, yet whether
such it was, I could not ascertain
clearly, for I did not
perceive it in the same way as
at other times. Such mani
festations and disclosures accommodate
themselves to
the dispositions of the soul at
the time of their reception,
as for instance it happened to
the disciples at Emmaus
(Luke 24, 16). Many other experiences
I had in order
to overcome the opposition of the
serpent against the
writing of this history, but it
would draw out this intro
duction too much to mention them
now. I continued my
prayers for some days, asking the
Lord to govern and
direct me in order not to make
a mistake, and represent
ing to Him my incapacity and timidity.
His Majesty
persisted in exhorting me to ordain
my life toward all
purity and the greatest perfection,
and in urging me to
continue in it after having begun.
And especially the
Queen of the angels intimated to
me her will many times,
and with great sweetness and tenderness
commanded me
to obey Her as her daughter and
write her most holy
life, which I had commenced.
24. To all this I wished to add
the security of obedience. Without saying anything of
that, which I had
heard from the Lord and from his
most holy Mother, I
asked my confessor and superior
what he would direct
me to do in this matter. He answered
by commanding
me under obedience to continue
and to write the second
part of this history. Finding myself
thus compelled both
by the Lord and by obedience, I
returned again to the
presence of the Most High, where
I found myself one
day in prayer, and, renouncing
my whole self and recog
nizing my insignificance and liability
to err, I prostrated
myself before his Majesty and said:
"My Lord, my Lord,
what wishest Thou to do with me?"
Whereupon I re
ceived the following intelligence.
25. It seemed to me, that the divine
light of the blessed
Trinity showed me my own self full
of poverty and
defects, and severely reprehending
me for them, furnished me at the same time with
the highest doctrine and
salutary directions for a perfect
life, and for this purpose
God purified and enlightened me
anew. I became aware
that the Mother of grace, most
holy Mary, standing
before the throne of the Divinity,
was interceding and
pleading for me. With such assistance
my confidence
took new life and profiting by
the clemency of such a
Mother, I addressed myself to Her
and spoke to Her only
these words: "My Lady and
my Refuge, consider, as a
true Mother, the poverty of thy
slave." It seemed to me
as if She heard my prayer and speaking
with the Most
High, She said: "My Lord,
I wish to receive this use
less and poor creature anew as
a daughter and adopt her
as my own." (Truly this was
the act of a most liberal
and mighty Queen!) But the Most
High answered:
"My Spouse, for such a great
favor as this, what does
this soul bring in return ? She
does not deserve it, being
a useless and destitute worm, and
thankless for our
gifts."
26. O wonderful power of the divine
word! How
shall I describe the effects produced
in me by this answer
of the Allpowerful? I humbled myself
to the depth of
my nothingness and I was filled
with the knowledge of
the misery of creatures and of
my own ingratitude
toward God. My heart sank within
me in sorrow for my
sins and in the desire of obtaining
the unmerited happi
ness of being the child of that
Sovereign. I raised my eyes
full of dread to the throne of
the Most High and my
visage was transported in fear
and hope; I turned toward
my Advocate, and desiring to be
admitted as her slave,
since I did not merit the title
of daughter, I spoke from
the bottom of my heart without
forming any words; and
I heard the great Lady say to the
Lord:
27. "Divine Lord and my God,
it is true, this poor
creature has nothing to offer to
thy justice, but I offer
for her the merits and the blood,
which my most holy
Son poured out for her and with
it I present also the
dignity of Mother of thy onlybegotten
Son, which I received from thy ineffable kindness,
all the works, which
I performed in thy service in having
borne Him in my
womb, and nourished Him with the
milk of my breast,
and above all I offer Thee thy
own bounty and Divinity;
I earnestly entreat Thee to consider
this creature as my
adopted daughter and disciple for
whom I will stand
security. Under my guidance She
will amend her faults
and perform her works according
to thy pleasure."
28. The Most High, (may He be eternally
praised for
hearing the petition of the great
Queen interceding for
the least of his creatures), yielded
to these prayers, and
immediately in the joy of my soul
I felt immense effects,
such as are impossible to describe;
with my whole heart I
turned toward all the creatures
of heaven and earth, and,
not being able to contain my exultation,
I invited them to
exalt for me and with me the Author
of grace. It seemed
to me that I addressed them in
the following words: "O
ye inhabitants and courtiers of
heaven and all ye living
creatures, formed by the hand of
the Most High, behold
this marvel of his liberality and
mercy and bless and
exalt Him for all eternity, since
He has raised from the
dust the most vile of the universe
and has enriched the
most destitute; He has honored
the most unworthy,
though He is the highest God and
the powerful King.
And since you, sons of Adam, here
see the poorest orphan
succored, the greatest sinner pardoned;
issue forth from
your ignorance, raise yourself
from your listlessness and
renew your hope; for if his powerful
arm has assisted me,
if He has called and forgiven me,
all of you can hope for
your salvation; and if you wish
to assure yourselves of
it, seek, seek the protection of
the most holy Mary, ask
Her for her intercession, and you
will find Her to be the
Mother of ineffable mercy and clemency."
29. I turned also to this most
exalted Queen and said
to Her: "Aye, O my Lady, now
I do not call myself an
orphan, since I have a Mother,
and a Mother, who is the
Queen of all creation; I shall
not any more be ignorant,
since I have as Teacher the Mistress
of divine wisdom,
not poor, since I have as Lord
Him, who is Master of
all the treasures of heaven and
earth; I have a Mother,
who protects me; an Instructress,
who teaches and cor
rects me; a Mistress, who commands
and governs me.
Blessed art Thou amongst all women,
wonderful among
all creatures, admirable in heaven
and on earth, and let
all confess thy greatness with
eternal praises. Since it is
not easy or possible for the least
among creatures, the
lowest worm of the earth to give
Thee any return: receive it then from the divine right
hand and in the divine
vision, where Thou standest in
the presence of God enjoying Thyself through all eternity:
I shall remain thy
acknowledged and bounden slave,
praising the Almighty
as long as my life shall last,
since his liberal mercy has
so favored me, as to give me my
Queen as my Mother
and Teacher. Let my loving muteness
praise Thee, since
my tongue has not words or terms
adequate for doing
it; for all of them are strained
and limited."
30. It is not possible to describe
what the soul feels
during such mysterious favors.
They were the source
of great good to my soul, for immediately
I was made
aware of a perfection of life,
and of works for which I
fail to find terms. But all this,
the Most High told me,
was given to me on account of the
most holy Mary and in
order to write her life. It was
intimated to me, that by
ratifying this blessing, the eternal
Father chose me to
manifest the sacraments of his
Daughter; that the Holy
Spirit poured out his light and
inspirations that 1 might
declare the hidden gifts of his
Spouse; and that the most
holy Son appointed me to manifest
the mysteries of his
most pure Mother Mary. And in order
that I might be
come capable of this work, the
Holy Trinity enlightened
and bathed my soul in a special
light of the Divinity and
the divine power touched up my
faculties as with a
pencil, furnishing them with new
habits for the perfect
execution of this work.
31. The Most High also commanded
me to strive to
imitate with all my heart, according
to my weak powers,
all that I should understand and
write about the heroic
virtues and the most holy operations
of the heavenly
Queen, guiding my life according
to her example.
Knowing how unfit I am for the
fulfillment of this obli
gation, the same most kind Queen
offered to me anew
her favor, help and instruction
for all that the Lord
commanded and pointed out to me.
Then I asked for
the blessing of the most holy Trinity
in order to begin
the second part of this heavenly
history. I felt that all
three persons of the Godhead conferred
their blessing
upon me. Issuing from the trance,
I sought to wash
my soul in the Sacraments and,
full of contrition for
my sins, in the name of the Lord
and of obedience, I
set myself about this work for
the glory of the Most
High and for his most holy Mother,
the ever immaculate
Virgin Mary.
32. This second part comprises
the life of the Queen
of the angels from the mystery
of the Incarnation to
the Ascension of Christ our Lord
into heaven, which is
the principal and the most important
part of this history,
for it includes the whole life
and mysteries of the Lord
himself with his Passion and most
holy Death. I wish
only to remark here, that the graces
and blessings
conceded to most holy Mary in preparation
for the
Incarnation, began to flow from
the moment of her
Immaculate Conception; already
at that time, in the
intention and the decree of God,
She was the Mother of
the Word. But in the measure as
the realization of the
Incarnation drew nigh, the favors
and gifts of grace con
tinued to increase. Although they
seemed to be all of
the same kind and nature from the
beginning, yet they
continued to augment and increase;
and there are not
terms new and varied enough to
equal in their signifi
cance these increases and advances
in the blessings conferred. Thus it becomes necessary
in this narrative to
measure all by the infinite power
of the Lord, who,
giving* much, retains enough to
give infinitely more,
while the capacity of each soul,
and especially the soul
of the Queen of heaven, is in its
way infinite, being
able to receive ever more and more.
And this happened
with the soul of holy Mary, until
She arrived at a summit
of holiness and participation of
the Divinity, to which no
other creature has attained nor
will ever attain in all
eternity. May the Lord himself
enlighten me, that I
may follow up this work according
to his divine pleasure.
Amen.
BOOK ONE BOOK III, I OF II PART
Contains the most Exquisite Preparations of the Almighty for the Incarnation of the Word in Mary most Holy; the Circumstances Accompanying this Mystery; the Exalted State, in which the Blessed Mother was placed; her Visit to Saint Elisabeth and the Sanctification of the Baptist: Her Return to Nazareth and a Memorable Battle of the Virgin with Lucifer CHAPTER I. THE MOST HIGH BEGINS TO PREPARE IN MOST HOLY MARY THE MYSTERY OF THE INCARNATION; THE EVENTS OF THE NINE DAYS PRECEDING THIS MYSTERY, ESPECIALLY THE HAPPENINGS OF THE FIRST DAY. 1. In order that her most faultless life might be to all an example of the highest holiness, the Most High had placed upon our Queen and Mistress the duties of a spouse of saint Joseph which was a position requiring more inter course with her neighbors. The heavenly Mistress, finding Herself in this new estate, was filled with such exalted thoughts and sentiments in the fulfillment of her duties, and ordered all the activities of her life with such wisdom, that She was an object of admirable emulation to the angelic spirits and an unparalleled example for men. Few knew Her and still fewer had intercourse with Her: but these happy ones were so filled with that celestial influence of Mary, that with a wonderful joy and with unwonted flights of spirit they sought to express and 23 24 CITY OF GOD manifest the light, which illumined their hearts and which they knew came from Her. The most prudent Queen was not unaware of these operations of the Most High; but neither was it yet time, nor would her most profound humility as yet consent to their becoming known to the world. She continually besought the Lord to hide them from men, to make all the favors of his right hand redound solely to his praise, and to permit Her to be ignored and despised by all the mortals, in as far as his infinite goodness would not be offended thereby. 2. These prayers were accepted by her divine Spouse with great benignity and his providence arranged all things in such a manner, that the very light, which incited men to proclaim her greatness, at the same time caused them to be mute. Moved by divine power, they refrained from expressing their thoughts, inwardly praising the Lord for the light, which they felt within them selves. Filled with marvel they suspended their judgment, and leaving behind the creatures, they sought their Creator. Many turned from sin at the mere sight of Her; others amended their lives; all were affected at seeing Her and experienced heavenly influences in their souls. But immediately they forgot the source of these influences; for if they could have remained in her presence, or could have retained the memory of her image, and if God had not prevented it by a mystery, nothing would have been able to divert their attention from Her and all would have sought Her without wavering. 3. In such fruitful occupations and in augmenting the gifts and graces from which all this good proceeded, our Queen, the Spouse of Joseph, busied Herself during the six months and seventeen days, which intervened between her espousal and the Incarnation of the Word. I cannot pretend to refer even briefly to her great heroic acts of THE INCARNATION 25 all the virtues, interior and exterior, to all her deeds of charity, humility, religion, and all her works of mercy, the alms and benefactions; for this exceeds the power of the pen. The best I can do is to sum up and say: that the Most High found in most holy Mary the fulfillment of all his pleasure and of his wishes, as far as is possible in the correspondence of a creature with its Creator. By her sanctity and merits God felt Himself as it were obliged, and, (according to our way of speaking), compelled, to hasten his steps and extend the arms of his Omnipotence to bring about the greatest of wonders conceivable in the world before or after: namely the Incarnation of the Onlybegotten of the Father in the virginal womb of this Lady. 4. In order to proceed with a dignity befitting Himself, God prepared most holy Mary in a singular manner during the nine days immediately preceding this mystery, and allowed the river of his Divinity to rush impetuously forth (Psalm 45, 5) to inundate this City of God with its floods. He communicated such great graces and gifts and favors, that I am struck dumb by the perception of what has been made known to me concerning this miracle, and my lowliness is filled with dread at even the mention of what I understood. For the tongue, the pen, and all the faculties of a creature fall far below any possibility of revealing such incomprehensible sacraments. Therefore I wish it to be understood, that all I say here is only an insignificant shadow of the smallest part of these wonders and ineffable prodigies, which are not at all to be encompassed by our limited words, but only by the power divine, which I do not possess. 5. On the first day of this most blessed novena the heavenly Princess Mary, after a slight rest, according to the example of her father David and according to the 26 CITY OF GOD diurnal order and arrangement laid out for Her by the Lord, left her couch at midnight (Psalm 118, 62), and, prostrate in the presence of the Most High, commenced her accustomed prayer and holy exercises. The angels, who attended upon Her, spoke to Her and said: "Spouse of our King and Lord, arise, for his Majesty calls Thee." She raised Herself with fervent affection and answered: The Lord commands the dust to raise itself from the dust." And turning toward the countenance of the Lord, who called Her, She added: "Most high and powerful Master, what wishest Thou to do with me?" At these words her most holy soul was raised in spirit to a new and higher habitation, closer to the same Lord and more remote from all earthly and passing things. 6. She felt at once, that She was being prepared by those illuminations and purifications, which at other times She had experienced in some of the most exalted visions of the Divinity. I do not dwell on them, since I have described them in the first part (Part I, 620-629). The Divinity manifested Itself not by an intuitive, but by an abstractive vision; however so clearly, that by it She understood more of this incomprehensible Object, than what the blessed see and enjoy by intuition. For this vision was more exalted and more profound than the others of that kind; since this heavenly Lady made Her self more capable day by day and, because She made such perfect use of graces, She disposed Herself for ever greater ones. Moreover, the repeated enlightenments and visions of the Divinity continually enabled Her to respond more and more befittingly to its infinite operations. 7. In this vision our Princess Mary learned most high secrets of the Divinity and of its perfections, and especially of Gods communications ad extra in the work of THE INCARNATION 27 % creation. She saw that it originated in the goodness and liberality of God, that creatures were not necessary for supplementing his Divine existence, nor for his infinite glory, since without them He was glorious through the interminable eternities before the creation of the world. Many sacraments and secrets were manifested to our Queen, which neither can nor should be made known to all; for She alone was the only One (Cant. 6, 8; 7, 6), the chosen One, selected by the highest King and Lord of creation for these delights. But as her Highness in this vision perceived this impulse and inclination of the Divinity to communicate Itself ad extra with a force greater than that which makes all the elements tend toward their center, and as She was drawn within the sphere of this divine love, She besought the eternal Father with heart aflame, that He send his Onlybegotten into the world and give salvation to men, since in this manner He should satisfy, and, (speaking humanly), execute the promptings of his Divinity and its perfections. 8. These petitions of his Spouse were very sweet to the Lord, they were the scarlet lace, with which She bound and secured his love. And in order to put his desires into execution He sought first to prepare the tabernacle or temple, whither He was to descend from the bosom of the eternal Father. He resolved to furnish his beloved and chosen Mother with a clear knowledge of all his works ad extra, just as his Omnipotence had made them. On the first day therefore, and in this same vision, He manifested to Her all that He had made on the first day of the creation of the world, as it is recorded in Genesis, and She perceived all with greater clearness and comprehension, than if She had been an eye-witness; for She knew them first as they are in God, and then as they are in themselves. 28 CITY OF GOD 9. She perceived and understood, how the Lord in the beginning (Gen. 1; 1, 5), created heaven and earth; in how far and in what way it was void, and how the darkness was over the face of the abyss; how the spirit of the Lord hovered over the waters and how, at the divine command, light was made, and what was its nature; how, after the darkness was divided, it was called night and the light day, and how thus the first day was made. She knew the size of the earth, its longitude, latitude and depth, its caverns, hell, limbo and purgatory with their inhabitants; the countries, climes, the meridians and divisions of the world, and all its inhabitants and occupants. With the same clearness She knew the inferior orbs and the empyrean heaven; how the angels were made on the first day; She was informed of their nature, conditions, diversity, hierarchies, offices, grades and virtues. The rebellion of the bad angels was revealed to Her, their fall and the occasion and the cause of that fall, though the Lord always concealed from Her that which concerned Herself. She understood the punishment and the effects of sin in the demons, beholding them as they are in themselves; and at the conclusion of the first day, the Lord showed to Her, how She too was formed of this lowly earthly material and endowed with the same nature as all those, who return to the dust; He did not however say, that She would again return to it; yet He gave Her such a profound knowledge of the earthly existence, that the great Queen humiliated Her self to the abyss of nothingness; being without fault, She debased Herself more than all the children of Adam with all their miseries. 10. This whole vision and all its effects the Most High arranged in such a way as to open up in the heart of Mary the deep trenches that were required for the foundations THE INCARNATION 29 of the edifice, which He wished to erect in Her: namely so high a one, that it would reach up to the substantial and hypostatic union of the human and divine nature. And as the dignity of Mother of God was without limits and to a certain extent infinite, it was becoming that She should be grounded in a proportionate humility, such as would be without limits though still within the bounds of reason itself. Attaining the summit of virtue, this blessed One among women humiliated Herself to such an extent, that the most holy Trinity was, as it were, fully paid and satisfied, and (according to our mode of under standing) constrained to raise Her to the highest position and dignity possible among creatures and nearest to the Divinity itself. In this highest benevolence his Majesty spoke and said to Her: 11. "My Spouse and Dove, great is my desire of redeeming man from sin and my immense kindness is as it were strained in waiting for the time, in which I shall descend in order to repair the world; ask Me continually during these days and with great affection for the fulfillment of this desire. Prostrate in my royal presence let not thy petitions and clamors cease, asking Me that the Onlybegotten of the Father descend in reality to unite Himself with the human nature." Where upon the heavenly Princess responded and said: "Lord and God eternal, whose is all the power and wisdom, whose wish none can resist (Esther 13, 9), who shall hinder thy Omnipotence? Who shall detain the impetuous current of thy Divinity, so that thy pleasure in conferring this benefit upon the whole human race remain unfulfilled? If perhaps, O my Beloved, I am a hindrance to such an immeasurable benefit, let me perish before I impede thy pleasure; this blessing cannot depend upon the merits of any creature; therefore, my Lord and 2-4 30 CITY OF GOD Master, do not wait, as we might later on merit it so much the" less. The sins of men increase and the offenses against Thee are multiplied; how shall we merit the very blessing, of which we become daily more unworthy? In Thee thyself, my Lord, exists the last cause and motive of our salvation; thy infinite bounty, thy numberless mercies incite Thee, the groans of thy Prophets and of the Fathers of thy people solicit Thee, the saints sigh after Thee, the sinners look for Thee and all of them together call out to Thee; and if I, insignificant wormlet, on account of my ingratitude, am not unworthy of thy merciful condescension, I venture to beseech Thee, from the bottom of my heart, to speed thy coming and to hasten thy Redemption for thy greater glory." 12. When the Princess of heaven had finished this prayer, She returned to her ordinary and more natural state; but anxious to fulfill the mandate of the Lord, She continued during that whole day her petitions for the Incarnation of the Word and with the deepest humility She repeated the exercises of prostrating Herself to the ground and praying in the form of a cross. For the Holy Ghost,, who governed Her, had taught Her this posture, by which She so highly pleased the most blessed Trinity. God saw, in the body of the future Mother of the Word, as it were the crucified person of Christ and therefore He received this morning sacrifice of the most pure Virgin as an advance offering of that of his most holy Son. INSTRUCTION WHICH THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN GAVE ME. 13. My daughter, the mortals are not capable of understanding the ineffable operations of the arm of the Omnipotent in preparing me for the Incarnation of the eternal Word. Especially during the nine days, which THE INCARNATION 31 preceded this exalted sacrament was my spirit elevated and united with the immutable being of the Divinity. I was submerged in the ocean of his infinite perfections, participating in all those eminent and divine effect, which are beyond all presentiment of the human hearts. The knowledge of creatures communicated to me penetrated into their very essence, so that it was more profound and piercing than that of all the angelic spirits, though their knowledge of creation, on account of the beatific vision, is altogether admirable. Moreover the images of them all were impressed upon my mind to be used by me according as I desired. 14. What I wish of thee today is to take notice how I used this knowledge and to imitate me according to thy power with the help of the infused light, which thou hast received for this purpose. Profit by the knowledge of creatures by making of them a ladder to ascend unto God thy Creator; so that thou mayest seek in all of them their first beginning and their last end. Let them serve thee as a mirror from which the Godhead is reflected, reminding thee of his Omnipotence and inciting thee to the love, which He seeks in thee. Be thou filled with wonder and praise at the greatness and magnificence of the Creator and in his presence humiliate thyself to the dust. Shun no difficulty or suffering in order to become meek and humble of heart. Take notice, my dearest, that this virtue of humility was the firm foundation of all the wonders, which the Most High wrought in me; and in order that thou mayest esteem this virtue so much the more, remember that of all others, it is at the same time the most precious, the most delicate and perishable; for if thou lose it in any respect, and if thou be not humble in all things without exception, thou wilt not be humble in anything. Remember thy earthly and corruptible nature, and be not ignorant of the fact, that the Most High has providentially formed man in such a way that his own existence and formation intimate and re hearse the important lesson of humility never allowing him to be without this salutary teaching. On this account He has not formed him of the most excellent material, and has concealed the noblest part of his being in the sanctuary of his interior (Exod. 30, 24), teaching him to weigh as in a balance on the one side, the infinite and eternal existence of the Lord, and on the other, his own ignoble material existence. Thus he is to give unto God what belongs to Him, and to himself what belongs to his own self (Matth. 22, 21). 15. Most zealously I attended to this adjustment, be coming an example and guide therein to all the mortals. I wish that thou also do it in imitation of me, and that thou zealously study to acquire the humility, which pleases the Most High and myself, who desire thy true advancement. I wish that thy perfection be built up in the deep trenches of thy own self-knowledge; in order that the deeper its foundations are laid, to so much the higher and more exalted perfection may rise the edifice of thy virtue. Thus thy will shall find a most intimate conformity with that of the Lord, who looks down from the eminence of his throne upon the humble of the earth. CHAPTER II. THE LORD ON THE SECOND DAY CONTINUES HIS FAVORS IN PREPARATION FOR THE INCARNATION OF THE WORD IN THE MOST HOLY MARY. 16. In the first part of this history (Part I, 219), I mentioned, that the most pure body of Mary was conceived and perfectly formed within the space of seven days. The Most High wished to work this miracle, in order that this most holy soul might not have to wait so long as the souls of ordinary mortals. He wished it to be created and infused before the usual time, (as it also really happened), in order that this beginning of the reparation of the world might have some similarity to the beginning of its creation. This correspondence again took place at the coming of the Redeemer so that, having formed the new Adam, Christ, God might rest as one who had strained all the powers of his Omnipotence in the greatest of his works; and that He might enjoy the most delicious Sabbath of all his delights. And as these wonders necessitated the intervention of the Mother of the divine Word, who was to give Him a visible form, and as She was to unite the two extremes, man and God, it was proper that She should bear relation to both. Her dignity was inferior only to that of God and superior to all that was not God; to this dignity belonged also a proportionate knowledge and understanding, as well of the highest essence of the Divinity, as also of all the inferior creatures. 17. Following up his intention, the supreme Lord continued the favors, by which He wished to dispose most holy Mary for the Incarnation during nine days, as I have begun to explain. On the second day, at the same hour of midnight, the Virgin Mary was visited in the same way as described in the last chapter. The divine power raised Her up by the same elevations and illuminings to prepare Her for the visions of the Divinity. He manifested Himself again in an abstractive manner as on the first day, and She was shown the works performed on the second day of the creation. She learnt how and when God divided the waters (Gen. 1, 6), some above and others below, establishing the firmament, and above it the crystal, known also as the watery heaven. Her in sight penetrated into the greatness, order, conditions, movements and all the other qualities and conditions of the heavens. 18. And in the most prudent Virgin this knowledge did not lay idle, nor remain sterile; for immediately the most clear light of the Divinity overflowed in Her, and inflamed and emblazoned Her with admiration, praise and love of the goodness and power of God. Being transformed as it were with a godlike excellence, She produced heroic acts of all the virtues, entirely pleasing to his divine Majesty. And as in the preceding first day God had made Her a participant of his wisdom, so on this second day, He made Her in corresponding measure a participant in the divine Omnipotence, and gave Her power over the influences of the heavens, of the planets and elements, commanding them all to obey Her. Thus was this great Queen raised to Sovereignty over the sea, the earth, the elements and the celestial orbs, with all the creatures, which are contained therein. 19. This sovereignty and supreme power belonged to the dignity of most holy Mary on account of the reason THE INCARNATION 35 mentioned above; and besides for two other special ones; the first: because this Lady was the privileged Queen, exempt from the common law of sin and its consequences: therefore She was not to be put in the same general class with the insensate sons of Adam, against whom the Omnipotent armed the creatures (Wisd. 5, 18) for vengeance of his injuries and for the punishment of their frenzy. For if they had not in their disobedience turned against their Creator, neither would the elements nor their dependencies have been disobedient toward them, nor would they have molested them, nor turned against them the rigor and inclemency of their activity. And if this rebellion of the creatures is a punishment of sin, it could not justly extend itself to the most holy Mary, who was immaculate and without fault. Nor was it just, that She should be less privileged than the angels, who were not subject to these consequences of sin, or deprived of the dominion over the elementary powers. Although most holy Mary was of corporeal and terrestrial substance, yet She raised Herself above all corporeal and spiritual creatures, and made Herself Queen and Mistress of all creation. In this, therefore, She deserved so much the higher credit, as it was the rarer and the more precious. More must be conceded to the Queen than to her vassals, more to the Mistress than to the servants. 20. The second reason is, because her most holy Son was Himself to obey this heavenly Queen and his Mother. Since He was the Creator of the elements and of all things, it follows naturally that they should obey Her, to whom the Creator subjected Himself, and that they should be commanded by Her. Was not the person of Christ himself, in so far as his human nature was concerned, to be governed by his Mother according to the 36 CITY OF GOD constitution and law of nature? This privilege of sovereignty tended also greatly to enhance the virtues and merits of most holy Mary, for thereby that which in ourselves is usually done under constraint and against our will, was performed by Her freely and meritoriously. This most prudent Queen did not use her sovereignty over the elements and the creatures indiscriminately and for her own alleviation and comfort; but She commanded the creatures not to suspend their activities and influences in as far as they would naturally be painful and inconvenient to Her. For in these things She was to be like her most holy Son and suffer conjointly with Him. Her love and humility did not permit Her to withhold and suspend the inclemencies of the creatures in her regard, since She knew how valuable suffering is and how estimable in the eyes of the Lord. 21. Only on some occasions, when She knew that it was not for her benefit but necessary for her Son and Creator, the sweet Mother restrained the force of the elements and their influences, as we shall see farther on during her journey to Egypt and on other occasions, where She most prudently judged it proper, that the creatures recognize their Creator and reverence Him, or protect and serve Him in some necessity (Infr. 543, 590, 633). What mortal will not marvel at the knowledge of such a new miracle? To see a mere earthly creature, yet One clothed with the sovereignty and dominion of the whole creation, esteem Herself in her own eyes as the most unworthy and insignificant of the creatures, and, in these humble sentiments, command the wrath of the winds and all the rigors of the natural elements to turn against Her and under obedience fulfill her command ! In obeying Her, however, these elements, full of reverence and courtesy toward such a Mistress, THE INCARNATION 37 yielded to her wishes, not in vengeance of the wrongs of their Creator, as they do in regard to the rest of the children of Adam, but in order to respect her commands. 22. In the presence of this humility of our invincible Queen, we mortals cannot deny our most arrogant vanity and presumption, or rather our audacity, since, seeing that on account of our insane outrages we merit the furious rebellion of the elements and of all the harmful forces of the universe against us, we complain of their rigor, as if their molestations were an injury. We deprecate the rigor of the cold, we complain of the exhaustion of heat; all painful things we abhor, and we condemn with all energy these ministers of divine justice and seek our own comforts and delights, as if they were to last forever and as if it were not certain that we are only drawing therefrom a heavier punishment of our faults. 23. But returning to the consideration of the knowledge and power given to the Princess of heaven and the other gifts preparing Her worthily for the position of Mother of God, we can understand their excellence, for we see in them a certain infinity or boundlessness, participating of the Divinity, and similar to that which was afterwards possessed by the most holy soul of Christ. For She not only knew all creatures in God, but comprehended them in such a way as to master them and at the same time reserve capacity for knowing many others, if there had existed more to be known. I call this knowledge an infinity, because it seems to partake of the qualities of infinite knowledge and because, in one and the same action of her mind and without successive advertence, She saw and perceived the number of the heavens, their latitude and profundity, their order, motions, qualities, their matter and form; the elements with all their changes and accidents: all of these She 38 CITY OF GOD knew at the same time. The only thing the most wise Virgin did not know was the immediate end of this knowledge until the moment of her consent and the fulfillment of the ineffable mercy of the Most High. She continued during these days her most fervent prayers for the coming of the Messias, according to the command of the Lord. And He had given Her to understand that He would not tarry, as the time destined for his arrival was at hand. INSTRUCTION WHICH THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN GAVE ME. 24. My daughter, from what thou art going to learn of the favors and blessings conferred upon me in preparation for the dignity of Mother of God, I wish thee to perceive the admirable order of his wisdom in the creation of man. Take notice, therefore, that his Creator made him out of nothing, not in order to be a slave, but in order to be the king and the master of all creation (Gen. 1, 26), and in order that he make use of creatures in sovereignty, command and mastery; yet at the same time man was to recognize himself as the image of his Maker and the work of his hand, remaining more de voted to God and more submissive to his will than the creatures to man; for all this was demanded by justice and reason. And in order that man might not be with out information and knowledge of the Creator and of the means of perceiving and executing his will, He added to his natural light a greater one, more penetrating, more limpid, more certain, more free and extensive, namely the light of divine faith, by which man might know the existence of God and of his perfections, and conjointly THE INCARNATION 39 with these, his works. Furnished with this knowledge and dominion man was established in good standing, honored and enriched, having no excuse for not devoting himself entirely to the fulfillment of the divine will. 25. But the foolishness of man disturbs this order and destroys this harmony, when, being created as the lord and king of creatures, he enslaves himself, subjecting himself to them, and degrading his dignity in using visible things not as a prudent master, but as an unworthy vassal. For he debases himself beneath the lowest of creatures, by losing sight of the fact that he is their superior. All this perversity arises from the use of creatures not for the service of the Creator through well ordered faith, but for the indulgence of the passions and the delights of the senses. Hence also arises man's great abhorrence of those things which are not pleasing to the senses. 26. Thou, my dearest, look faithfully toward thy Creator and Lord and in thy soul seek to copy the image of his divine perfections: lose not the mastery and dominion over creatures, let none of them infringe upon thy liberty; but seek to triumph over all of them, allowing nothing to interpose itself between thee and thy Creator. Subject thyself gladly, not to the pleasurable in creatures, since that will obscure thy understanding and weaken thy will, but to the adverse and the painful resulting from their activity. Suffer this with joyous willingness, for I have done the same in imitation of my Son, although I had the power to neutralize their molestations and had no sins to atone for.