SR
Chapter 10VisiteSS.1.10

Visita X

The King's Open Audience

The author invites the soul to abandon worldly vanities and seek the constant, accessible presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.

O fools of the world, says St. Augustine—wretched ones, where are you going to satisfy your heart? Come to Jesus, because only from him can you be given the contentment you seek: Wretched ones, where are you going?1 The good you seek comes from him.2 My soul, don't still be so foolish yourself; seek only God: Seek the one good in which all goods are found (St. Augustine).3 . And if you want to find him quickly, there he is close beside you: tell him what you want, for he stays in that tabernacle for this very purpose—to console you and answer your prayer.4 St. Teresa says: Not everyone is allowed to speak with the king; the most anyone can hope for is to have a third person speak to him on their behalf. To speak with you, O King of glory, no third persons are needed; you always make yourself ready to give audience to everyone in the Sacrament of the altar. Anyone who seeks You always finds You there and speaks with You one-on-one. And then, even if someone does manage to speak with the king, how hard does he have to struggle for it? Kings grant an audience only a few times a year, but You, in this Sacrament, grant an audience to everyone night and day, whenever we desire it.

Surrender to Divine Love

A prayer of total self-offering and union with the holy will of God, inspired by the love found in the Eucharist.

O Sacrament of love, whether you give yourself in Communion or remain upon the altars, you know how, with the loving attractions of your love, to draw so many hearts to yourself that, in love with you and astonished at such goodness, they burn with happiness and always think of you: draw my miserable heart to yourself as well, for it still longs to love you and to live as a servant of your love. For my part, from this day forward I place all my interests, all my hopes and affections, my soul, my body—everything—in the hands of your goodness. Accept me, Lord, and do with me as you please. I do not want to complain any longer, O my Love, about your holy dispositions: I know that all of them, coming from your loving Heart, will all be loving and for my good.5 It is enough for me that you will them; I want them all too, both in time and in eternity. Do whatever you will in me and with me; I unite myself completely to your will, which is entirely holy, entirely good, entirely beautiful, entirely perfect, and entirely lovable. O will of my God, how dear you are to me! I want to always live and die united and bound close to you. Your pleasure is my pleasure; I want your desires to be my desires. My God, my God, help me; from this day forward, make me live only for you, only to will what you will, and only to love your lovable will. Let me die for love of you, since you have died for me and been made food for me. I curse those days when I did my own will, so deeply to your displeasure.6 I love you, O will of God, as much as I love God, since you are the same as God. So I love you with all my heart, and I give myself entirely to you. — James.7 O will of God, you are my love. Spiritual Communion.

The Treasury of Graces

A devotional reflection on the intercession of Mary, the Mother of God, as the surest path to holiness and salvation.

To Mary. The great Queen says: "With me are riches." . . that I may enrich those who love me (Prov. 8:18 and 21). Let us love Mary if we want to be rich in graces. The Idiot calls her Treasurer of graces.8 Blessed is the person who turns to Mary with love and confidence. My Mother, my hope, you can make me holy; from you I hope for it.9 — Giac.10 Most amiable Mother, pray for me.11 Prayer of St. Andrew of Candia, or else of Jerusalem.12 I greet you, full of grace; the Lord is with you. I greet you, instrument of our joy, through whom the sentence of our condemnation has been revoked and turned into a judgment of blessing. I greet you, temple of the glory of God, sacred house of the King of heaven. You are the reconciliation of God with humankind. I greet you, Mother of our joy. Truly you are blessed, for you alone among all women have been found worthy to be the Mother of your Creator. All nations call you blessed. O Mary, if I place my trust in you, I will be saved. If I am under your protection, I have nothing to fear, because being your devoted servant is to possess the sure weapons of salvation, which God grants only to those he wills to save.1314 Giac.15 We take refuge under your protection, holy Mother of God.16

Read the original Latin

O pazzi del mondo, dice S. Agostino, miseri, dove andate per contentare il vostro cuore? Venite a Gesù, perché da lui solo vi può essere dato quel contento che voi cercate: Miseri, quo itis? bonum quod quaeritis ab ipso est. Anima mia, non esser tu ancora così stolta; cerca solo Dio: Quaere unum bonum, in quo sunt omnia bona (S. August.) . E se lo vuoi presto trovare, eccolo a te vicino: digli quel che vuoi, ch'esso a questo fine sta in quel ciborio per consolarti ed esaudirti. Dice S. Teresa: Non è permesso ad ognuno parlare col re; il più che ciascheduno può sperare è di fargli parlare per terza persona. Per parlare con voi, o Re di gloria, non vi vogliono terze persone; voi sempre vi fate trovar pronto a dare udienza a tutti nel Sacramento dell'altare.

Ognuno che vi vuole, ivi sempre vi trova e vi parla da tu a tu. E poi, benché alcuno arrivi a parlare col re, quanto ci ha da stentare? I re danno udienza poche volte l'anno; ma voi in questo Sacramento date udienza a tutti notte e giorno, semprecché noi la vogliamo.

O Sacramento d'amore, che o vi doniate nella comunione o ve ne state sugli altari, sapete colle amorose attrattive del vostro amore tirarvi tanti cuori, che innamorati di voi, attoniti a tanta bontà ardono felici e pensano sempre a voi: tiratevi ancora il miserabile cuor mio, che ancora desidera d'amarvi e vivere servo del vostro amore. Io per me deposito da oggi avanti tutti gl'interessi miei, tutte le mie speranze e gli affetti miei, l'anima mia, il corpo mio, tutto in mano della vostra bontà. Accettatemi, Signore, e disponete di me come vi piace. Non voglio no più lamentarmi, o amor mio, delle vostre sante disposizioni: so che tutte uscendo dal vostro Cuore amoroso, tutte saranno amorose e per mio bene. Mi basta che le vogliate voi, le voglio anch'io tutte e nel tempo e nell'eternità. Fate tutto quel che volete in me e di me; io mi unisco tutto alla vostra volontà ch'è tutta santa, tutta buona, tutta bella, tutta perfetta, tutta amabile. O volontà del mio Dio, quanto mi sei cara! Voglio sempre vivere e morire unito e stretto con te.

Il gusto tuo è il gusto mio: i desideri tuoi voglio che siano i desideri miei. Dio mio, Dio mio, aiutatemi, fate che da oggi avanti io viva solo per voi, solo per volere quello che volete voi, solo per amare la vostra amabile volontà. Muoia io per amor vostro, giacché voi siete morto per me, fatto cibo per me. Maledico quei giorni in cui ho fatta la mia volontà con tanto vostro disgusto. Io v'amo, o volontà di Dio, quanto amo Dio, giacché voi siete lo stesso che Dio. V'amo dunque con tutto il cuor mio, a voi tutto mi dono. - Giac. O volontà di Dio, voi siete l'amor mio.

La comunione spirituale.

A Maria. Dice la gran Regina: Mecum sunt divitiae. . . ut ditem diligentes me (Prov. VIII, 18 e 21). Amiamo Maria, se vogliamo essere ricchi di grazie. L'Idiota la chiama Thesauraria gratiarum.

Beato chi con amore e confidenza ricorre a Maria! Madre mia, speranza mia, voi mi potete far santo, da voi lo spero. - Giac. Mater amabilis, ora pro me.

Orazione di S. Andrea di Candia o pure di Gerusalemme. Vi saluto, o piena di grazia, il Signore è con Voi. Vi saluto, o istrumento della nostra allegrezza, per cui la sentenza di nostra condanna è stata già rivocata, e cambiata in un giudizio di benedizione. Vi saluto, o tempio della gloria di Dio, casa sagra del Re de' cieli. Voi siete la riconciliazione di Dio cogli uomini. Vi saluto, o Madre della nostra allegrezza. In verità Voi siete benedetta, poiché Voi sola fra tutte le donne siete stata degna di esser la Madre del vostro Creatore. Tutte le nazioni vi chiamano beata.

O Maria, s'io metto la mia confidenza in Voi, sarò salvo. S'io sarò sotto la vostra protezione, nulla ho a temere, perché l'esser vostro divoto è l'avere certe armi di salute, che Dio non concede, se non a coloro che vuole salvi. Giac. Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, sancta Dei Genitrix.

Scripture echoes

  1. Ps.22.1;Matt.27.46For the Director. Upon the Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David. Matt.27.46 — And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'
  2. Deut.6.5;Matt.22.37And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Matt.22.37 — And he said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.'
  3. Prov.8.18Riches and honor are with me—enduring wealth and righteousness.
  4. Prov.8.21That I may endow those who love me with substance, and fill their treasuries.

Notes

  1. 1Italian embeds the Latin cry Miseri, quo itis?; rendered in English for Modern Readable register while keeping the Augustinian apostrophe.
  2. 2Source sentence is entirely Latin (bonum quod quaeritis ab ipso est), continuing the Augustine citation; translated into English rather than left untranslated.
  3. 3Latin citation Quaere unum bonum, in quo sunt omnia bona rendered in English; attribution S. August. kept as St. Augustine.
  4. 4ciborio rendered as tabernacle (Eucharistic dwelling/presence); Italian can mean ciborium vessel or tabernacle housing the Sacrament.
  5. 5Italian 'disposizioni' rendered as 'dispositions' for providential arrangements of God's will; 'Cuore' capitalized in source and kept as 'Heart'.
  6. 6Italian 'disgusto' is strong; rendered as deep displeasure rather than crude disgust, to keep devotional register while preserving the force of offense to God.
  7. 7Source is only the truncated citation marker '- Giac.' (Italian abbreviation for Giacomo / James). No verse text is present in this segment; rendered as the English book name and flagged for review.
  8. 8L'Idiota is the medieval writer Raymond Jordan, who signed himself Idiota ('the simple/unlearned one'). Thesauraria gratiarum is left as the traditional Marian title 'Treasurer of graces'.
  9. 9Italian far santo can mean either 'make me holy' or 'make me a saint'; rendered as make me holy for plain modern English while keeping the sanctifying sense.
  10. 10Abbreviated attribution fragment only (- Giac.); likely a truncated source citation, not continuous prose.
  11. 11Latin litany petition (Litany of Loreto: Mater amabilis); kept in the familiar English litany form rather than paraphrased.
  12. 12Candia is the older name for Crete; St. Andrew of Crete is also known as Andrew of Jerusalem. The source presents both attributions.
  13. 13Italian 'divoto' is Marian-devotion language for a faithful client/devotee of Mary; rendered 'devoted servant' rather than bare 'devotee' for natural English while keeping the relational sense.
  14. 14'armi di salute' could be 'weapons of salvation' or 'arms for safety/salvation'; 'salute' here is soteriological (salvation), not bodily health.
  15. 15Abbreviated attribution or label left unexpanded. Likely Italian short form for Giacomo (James) or another source tag; less likely 'giaculatoria' (brief prayer) introducing the following antiphon.
  16. 16Latin Marian antiphon Sub tuum praesidium embedded in the Italian visit; rendered in modern English rather than left in Latin. 'Genitrix' kept as 'Mother of God' (standard liturgical English for Dei Genitrix).

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