St. Augustine said that God is more anxious to give graces to us than we are desirous to receive them from him, and St. John Chrysostom said that our Saviour has a greater desire to pardon us than we have to be pardoned.
St. Alphonsus de Liguori explained: “And the reason is that goodness, as philosophers say, is of its own nature diffusive; it is moved by its nature to diffuse itself in benefits to others. God, therefore, being infinite goodness, has an infinite desire to communicate Himself to us his creatures and make us share his goods. Hence arises the great compassion which he has for our miseries.”
St. Alphonsus wrote, “Our Lord revealed to St. Gertrude that our confidence offers such violence to him that he cannot possibly refuse to hear us in everything we ask ofhim. The same thing was said by St. John Climacus: ‘Prayer exercises a holy violence upon God.’ Every prayer offered with confidence, as it were, forces God, but this force is acceptable and pleasing tohim. Therefore, St. Bernard writes that the Divine Mercy is like an inexhaustible fountain, from which whosoever brings the larger vessel of confidence, carries away the greater abundance of graces.”
Our Lord told St. Faustina Kowalska: “The graces of my mercy are drawn by means of one vessel only, and that is – trust. The more a soul trusts, the more it will receive. Souls that trust boundlessly are a great comfort to me, because I pour all the treasures of my graces into them. I rejoice that they ask for much, because it is my desire to give much, very much. On the other hand, I am sad when souls ask for little, when they narrow their hearts.”
Blessed Bartolo Longo (1841-1926) experienced the mercy of God through Our Lady. Bartolo was raised in a faithful Catholic family that prayed the Rosary daily. But when he studied law in Naples, he began to regularly visit the mediums. He was initiated into their secret doctrines and was even anointed a satanic priest. Bartolo soon found himself paranoid and miserable. He was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. But his family prayed for him and one night, Bartolo heard the voice of his long-dead father crying out to him, “Return to God!” Horrified, Bartolo visited a friend who lived nearby, Professor Vincenzo Pepe. his friend was shocked at his appearance and exclaimed, “Do you want to die in an insane asylum and be damned forever?” Bartolo agreed to meet with a Dominican priest, Father Alberto Radente. After a month of direction, study and prayer, Bartolo was received back to the sacraments.
Bartolo made his last visit to a seance, holding up the Rosary and crying out, “I renounce spiritualism because it is nothing but a maze of error and falsehood.” he also stood up in the middle of cafes and student parties and denounced occult practices.
But Bartolo continued to struggle with memories of his past. He recalled: “Despite my repentance, I thought: I am still consecrated to Satan, and I am still his slave and property as he awaits me in hell. As I pondered over my condition, I experienced a deep sense of despair and almost committed suicide.” However, he remembered Father Radente’s exhortation: “If you are looking for salvation, propagate the Rosary. It is the promise of Mary. He who propagates the Rosary shall be saved.”
“With the boldness of desperation, I lifted my face and hands to the sky, turning to the celestial Virgin: ‘If it is true,’ I cried, ‘that you promised St. Dominic that whoever spreads the Rosary would be saved, I will be saved, because I will not leave Pompeii without having spread your Rosary! … No one answered … a faraway echo of bells reached my ears and shocked me: the Angelus of noon was ringing. I knelt and articulated the prayer that in that hour a world of believers dedicated to Mary.”
Bartolo lived in Pompeii, where he began Rosary groups, organized Marian processions, and began work on a shrine to Our Lady of the Rosary. Today, New Pompeii is a city dedicated to Our Lady where many corporal works of mercy continue to be performed in her honour.
To comment send us a letter to the editor here.
祿茂.朗高藉著聖母找到慈悲
聖奧斯定說天主渴望給予我們聖寵比我們願意接納祂的聖寵更殷切，金口聖若望說我們的救主願意寬恕我們比我們要接受寬恕為甚。聖亞豐索、利格里解釋說：『理由是，如哲學家稱，美善的本性是擴散的；由它自身的本性驅動去為他人廣施恩惠。天主因為本是無限美善的，有無限的願望將祂自己傳達給我們(祂的創造物)，讓我們分享祂的財富。 因此，祂對我們的苦難產生了極大的同情。』
聖亞豐索寫道：『我主顯示給聖女日多達，說我們的信賴給祂是這般的暴力，至祂不大可能拒絕去聆聽我們向祂請求的每一件事。同樣聖若望，克利馬古說：「祈禱把一份神聖的暴力加於天主。」但這力量為天主所接納，所悅納。所以聖伯納德寫，神聖的慈悲是像一永不止息的泉水，在那樣，無論誰，帶來較大的器皿，可以取得較多的聖寵。』
我主告訴聖女傳天娜說：『我慈悲的恩寵由一器皿而來—信賴。一個靈魂多一點的信賴便能多獲一點。靈魂們能有無止境的信賴是我一份大的安慰，因為我將我寵愛的寶藏全部傾注給他們。我高興他們要求更多一點，因為我的意願是多給一點，更多的一些。另一方面，我憂傷，如果他們以狹隘的心只要求少許。』
真福祿茂.朗高（1841-1926）藉著聖母體驗到天主的慈悲。祿茂在一個天主教的家庭長大，這家庭每天誦念玫瑰經。但在他於那不勒斯修讀法律時，他開始經常地探訪招魂者
。他被授了一神秘的教義並差點便被擢升為撒但的司祭。祿茂不久發覺自己多疑和痛苦。他在精神崩潰 的邊緣。但他的家人為他祈禱，一晚，祿茂聽到他去世已久的父親的聲音，呼叫著他：『回歸天主！』驚恐的他走訪了一位住在附近的朋友，文森佐教授。他的朋友也為之震驚便說：『你想死在一精神病院並受到永罰嗎？』祿茂同意去見，阿爾貝托·拉登特神父、一位道明神父。在一個月的帶領，研讀和祈禱後，祿茂再次領受聖事。
祿茂作最後的一次探訪招魂會，拿起玫瑰喊叫：『聲明棄絕通靈術，因為它不是什麼，只是錯誤和虛假的迷宮。』他更在咖啡館，學生聚會的中央棄絕迷信的行為。
但祿茂繼續在過去的記憶中掙扎。他回憶：『盡管我悔悟，我想：我想我仍獻於撒但，我仍是牠的奴隸和財物，牠在地獄中等著我。當我沉思於自我的情況中，我感到深深失望之情，以至要面臨自殺。』然而，他記得拉登特神父的鼓勵：『如果你是在尋找救恩，推廣玫瑰經。這是瑪利亞的承諾。推廣玫瑰經的都能得救。』『以絕望中的勇敢，我仰面和舉手向天，轉向天上的童貞女呼求：「如果這是真的你應承聖多明我，誰推廣玫瑰經就可得救，我會得救了，因為我不能推廣玫瑰經我不會離開龐貝城！」…沒有人回答…一個遠遠鈴聲的回音傳我耳中，震驚著我：中午三鐘經的鈴聲。我跪下並誦出在這刻世界的信徒都奉獻於瑪利亞的祈禱。』
祿茂住在龐貝城，在那裡，他開始他的玫瑰組，組織聖母巡遊。並開始為玫瑰之母聖地工作。今天，龐貝城是一座奉獻給聖母的城市，那裡有為光榮她而作很多慈善活動繼續不息。
