Dr. Wojciech Kosek
in collaboration with Beata Krochmal
Please click here to download the same text in format: a/. Word, b/. PDF
Meditations led by nine people:
A, B, D, G, M – women; J, P, W, Z – men.
This translation was published here on 18 Oct 2023.
To see the original Polish text ← click, please!
(Duration of meditations and songs: about 76 min.)
(Duration with recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy: about 87 min.)
Full text of St. Faustina’s Diary ← click, please!
Prayer before beginning the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
(about 12 min)
B Dearest Jesus! Your love draws us… Your voice resounds in the depths of our hearts. We have received You in Holy Communion and abide in sacramental union with You. By the power of Your love, we desire to abide with You in adoration. We wish to abide with You and by Your side in four parts. In the present first part, we wish to consider and give thanks for the gift of the Eucharist. In the second part of our adoration, we wish to walk with You along the painful way from the Upper Room to Golgotha, praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy with meditations. In the third part of adoration, we will open our hearts to the gift of Your presence as the Risen Bridegroom, whose love thirsts for the response of the love of our hearts. In the fourth part, we will abide in prayerful silence until the Jasna Gora Appeal, listening to Your voice as Bridegroom. (1:33)
P Beloved Savior! With belief in Your Divine power, which You grant to us through the miraculous gift of Holy Communion, received in the just-completed Eucharist, we are staying on the prayer now to become co-participants in Your way from the Upper Room to the Garden of Gethsemane. The love of our hearts for You meets Your Heart’s desire, longing for the close presence with You of those who love You. Love seeks union; love seeks co-participation in the life of the loved one. We are with You, O Beloved One! (0:56)
P Song: O Unspeakable Happiness Shone Forth – 1st stanza (0:55)
A Dearest Savior! Behold, a moment ago, the Holy Mass ended. Behold, just now from the altar of the mystery of salvation celebrated by You – the invisible One – the priest has gone away, one who, by the power of union with You through the sacramental priesthood, is for all of us an irreplaceable gift of Your love: without him, there would be no Eucharist… without him, the sacramental making present of Your saving Death and Resurrection would not be possible. O Jesus! Thank You for the gift of the vocation You have bestowed on our priests! O Jesus! We humbly ask You for the grace of new vocations to the priesthood and from our parish! (1:05)
Z Dearest Jesus! We confess with deep faith that participation in the Holy Mass means that during Transubstantiation and receiving Holy Communion, we are genuinely moved to Golgotha, moved to the time of Your dying, to the time two thousand years ago. We confess with faith, O Beloved, that always at the time of the Transubstantiation and receiving Holy Communion, we are moved to Golgotha, to love You there – to be very close to You, to be there together with the sorrowful Immaculate Your Mother Mary, to be there together with the Apostles, to be there together with all believers who have ever participated or will participate in the Holy Mass in the future. (1:09)
G Beloved Jesus! The power of Your Heart’s love for each of us is extraordinary. You loved us so much that You wished that we, too, not only the Apostles, could participate in the events after the Last Supper two thousand years ago. You know the depths of our hearts. You know that the love of our hearts would not find solace if it were incapable of genuinely comforting and sustaining You Himself in the hours of Your most severe trial, in the hours of the most painful of all hours of history… O Jesus! Thank You for the gift that is the Holy Mass! (1:06)
G Song: O Unspeakable Happiness Shone Forth – 2nd stanza (0:55)
J Beloved Savior! Now, when the Holy Mass has been completed, we wish to remain in prayerful adoration to love You with the presence You still crave from us. We know that the Fathers of the Church, the saints, the popes, and the Holy See – unanimously recommend and encourage the believers to remain in prayer after the Holy Mass. Traditionally, this prayer after the Holy Mass is named ‘thanksgiving,’ which comes from understanding it as an opportunity to thank You, O Jesus, for the possibility of participating in the Holy Mass. (0:59)
M We believe, O Beloved Jesus, that the time of our adoration becomes at the same time an opportunity to give thanks for the gift of the Holy Mass, as well as an occasion to go with You from the Upper Room of the Last Supper to the Garden of Gethsemane, and from there onward and upward to Golgotha, and still further – to the Resurrection, the Ascension, and Sending of the Holy Spirit. We believe, O Most Beloved Bridegroom, that now, while the species of the Blessed Sacrament remain still in our bowels, we are in a wonderfully close union with You. (0:56)
M Song: O Unspeakable Happiness Shone Forth – 3rd stanza (0:55)
W Beloved Jesus! We believe and confess that the love of our hearts will find no solace if we do not perceive that, after the Holy Mass, You give us all the opportunity to assist You wholeheartedly in the way You passed from the Upper Room after the Last Supper. We believe that by the power of this Blessed Sacrament, which we keep in the sanctuaries of our bodies, we will truly, and not only in imagination, participate in Your saving way that You passed along with the Apostles from the Upper Room two thousand years ago. (0:57)
D O Jesus, we walk with You along the way from the Upper Room to the Gethsemane, and from there to the Cross of Golgotha and, then, up to the morning of the Resurrection. In this way, we will meditate on passages from St. Faustina’s Diary and recite the Chaplet to Your Divine Mercy. Jesus, guide us toward the fullness of love! (0:33)
Meditations for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
(Duration of the meditations: about 22 min.)
Meditation 1.
The Agony of Jesus in Gethsemane
P Song: Garden of Olives – 1-2 stanza (1:20)
P “And His sweat was like thick drops of blood falling on the ground,” St. Luke records in the Gospel (22:44). With You, O Dearest Jesus, I kneel among the trees of the Garden of Olives… Your extraordinary love for me makes it possible for me, by the power of the received Blessed Sacrament, to truly be with You in Your time from two thousand years ago. I am with You, O Beloved One… I keep vigil with You, O Dearest One… I desire through this presence to express all my love toward You… I know that You desire my love… I am with You, O Beloved Jesus… (0:56)
B Sister Faustina noted in her Diary: “O Jesus, give me the power and the wisdom to trudge through this terrible wilderness, to enable my heart to patiently bear the yearning for You, O my Lord. I always experience a sense of holy amazement whenever I anticipate Your approach. You, the Lord of an awesome throne, descend into a miserable exile, stooping down to a poor beggar woman who has nothing except for her nothingness; I cannot offer You the hospitality [You deserve], my Prince, but You know I love You with every tremor of my heart. I see Your condescension, yet Your majesty is not diminished in my eyes. (1:00)
Z I know You love me with a Bridegroom’s love, and for me that is enough, even though a vast gulf separates us, for You are the Creator, and I Your creature. Nonetheless, the only explanation for our union is love, all else is beyond comprehension; love is the only explanation for the inexplicable intimacy with which You attend me. O Jesus, Your grandeur overawes me and I would be astonished and frightened all the time if You Yourself did not reassure me; every time You draw close to me, You first make me capable of being with You.” (Diary, No. 885) (0:55)
A A MOMENT OF SILENCE. Beloved Jesus! As we recite the first decade of the Divine Mercy Chaplet, we unite with You, kneeling in the Garden of Gethsemane before the Face of the Father. (0:19)
Meditation 2.
The Scourging of Jesus
J Song: Let us Love the Lord – 1st stanza (0:42)
J “Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him scourged,” St. John records in his Gospel (19:1). I am with You, O Beloved Jesus… Together with You, O Dearest, I participate in the torment of the scourging … Your love for me makes it possible by the power of the Blessed Sacrament received for me to truly be there with You at the time two thousand years ago. I am with You, O Beloved… I keep vigil with You, O Dearest… I desire to express through this presence all my love for You… I know that You desire my love… (0:53)
G Sister Faustina noted in her Diary: “O Jesus, I feel so sorry for the poor sinners. Grant them the grace of contrition and repentance, be mindful, O Jesus, of Your bitter passion: I know You are infinitely merciful, and I cannot bear the thought of a soul which cost You so much being lost. Jesus, give me the souls of sinners; may Your mercy rest upon them; take away everything from me, but give me their souls; I want to be a sacrificial host offered up for sinners; let the outer shell of my body conceal my sacrifice, just as Your Sacred Heart is concealed in the communion wafer, though of course You are a living sacrifice. (0:59)
W Transform me into Yourself, O Jesus, so that I might be a living sacrifice pleasing unto You; all the time, I want to make it up to You for poor sinners; the sacrifice of my spirit is concealed within my body; no human eye notices it, and that is why it is pure and pleasing to You. O my Creator and Father of great mercy, I trust in You, for You are goodness itself. Souls, do not be afraid of God, trust in Him, for He is good, and His mercy is from age to age forever..” (Diary, No. 908) (0:47)
M A MOMENT OF SILENCE. Beloved Jesus! As we recite the second decade of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we unite to You, who, humbly obedient to the Will of the Father, accept the punishment of scourging for our intention. (0:23)
Meditation 3.
The crowning of the Lord Jesus with thorns
P Song: Adoro Te Devote – 1st stanza (0:42)
P With You, O Dearest Jesus, I participate in the poignant crowning with thorns… Your love for me makes it possible, through the power of the received Blessed Sacrament, to truly be there with You at a time two thousand years ago. I desire to express through this presence all my love for You… I know that You desire my love… I am with You, O Beloved… With all my heart, I am with You, O Jesus, when You suffer so much for me. (0:47)
D Sister Faustina noted in her Diary: “One day, the Divine presence transfixed my entire being, and my mind was wonderfully enlightened as to His Essence; God allowed me to see His inner life. In spirit, I saw the Three Divine Persons, but One in Essence. He is One, Only One, but in Three Persons, none of Them greater or lesser; there is no difference between Them either in beauty or in sanctity, for They are One. One, They are absolutely One. (0:51)
Z His Love brought me to that knowledge and united me with itself. When I was united with One of the Divine Persons, I was also united with the Second and Third Divine Person, so whenever we unite with One of the Divine Persons, we are thereby united with the other Two, just as much as with the First. They have one will; they are One God, though Triune of Persons. (0:36)
B Whenever One of the Three Persons comes to a soul, by that One will that soul is united with all Three Persons and inundated with the bliss that flows down from the Blessed Trinity; it is the bliss that nourishes the saints. The bliss that comes from the Blessed Trinity makes all creation happy; from it comes the life that enlivens and gives rise to all life whatsoever, life which has its beginning in Him. In those moments, my soul experienced such great Divine ecstasy that words fail me to describe it. ” (Diary, No. 911) (0:52)
J A MOMENT OF SILENCE. Beloved Jesus! As we recite the third decade of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we unite with You, who, humbly obedient to the Father’s Will, receive the pain of being crowned with thorns for our intention. (0:24)
Meditation 4.
The Way of the Cross of the Lord Jesus
A Song: You go Through the Ages – 1st stanza (0:48)
A Together with You, O Dearest Jesus, I participate in such a difficult passage to Calvary… Your love for me makes it possible, through the power of the received Blessed Sacrament, to truly go there with You at a time two thousand years ago. I am with You, O Beloved… I follow by Your side, O Dearest One… I desire to express through this presence my ardent love for You… I know that You desire my love… I am with You, O Beloved One… I am wholeheartedly with You when You exert Yourself so much for me. (0:53)
W Sister Faustina noted in her Diary: “Shrove Tuesday. On the last two days of carnival, I learned of the vast deluge of sins and punishment. All at once, the Lord showed me all the sins committed in the world on that day. I was so terrified I passed out, and even though I am aware of the great depth of Divine mercy, I was surprised God allowed mankind to exist. And the Lord let me know who was supporting the existence of humankind: it is the chosen souls. When the number of chosen souls is complete, the world will cease to exist. For the past two days, I have been offering up Holy Communion in atonement for sins and I said to the Lord, O Jesus, today I am offering up everything for sinners; send the blows of Your justice down upon me, and let a sea of mercy engulf the poor sinners. (1:16)
G And the Lord heard my prayer; many souls returned to the Lord, while I was dying under the burden of Divine justice: I felt I was the object of the wrath of God Most High. By evening, my suffering reached the point of such terrible spiritual abandonment that involuntarily I was uttering cries of woe. I locked myself in my room and started Adoration, in other words Holy Hour. My spiritual desolation and the experience of Divine justice I had been given – that was my prayer, and the cries and pain issuing from my soul took the place of sweet conversation with the Lord. (Diary, No. 926-927) (1:01)
P A MOMENT OF SILENCE. Beloved Jesus! As we recite the fourth decade of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we unite with You, who, humbly obedient to the Father’s Will, undertakes the immense effort of carrying the cross to Calvary for our intention. (0:26)
Meditation 5.
The death of the Lord Jesus on the cross
M Song: I Greet You – 1st stanza (0:56)
M Together with Mary, O Dearest Jesus, I participate in that most poignant drama of Your dying on the cross at Calvary… Your love for me makes it possible, through the power of the received Blessed Sacrament, to truly be with You and Mary there, at the time two thousand years ago. I am with You, O Beloved… I keep vigil by Your side, O Dearest… I desire to express through this presence all my love for You… I know that You desire my love… I am with You, O Beloved Jesus… I am with You with all my heart, O Beloved, when You suffer so much, when You, out of love for me, give Your life so that I may live forever. (1:06)
Z Sister Faustina noted in her Diary: And when I was resting on His sweetest Heart, I said to Him, “Jesus, I have so much to tell You.” And the Lord said graciously, “Speak, daughter.” I started pouring out all my heartache: “I care very much for the whole of mankind; some people do not know You at all, and those who do not love You as You deserve to be loved; then again I see that sinners are offending You so terribly; then I see the great oppression and persecution of the faithful, especially of Your servants; and then I see a lot of souls flying blindly into the terrible abyss of Hell. (1:06)
D You see, Jesus, that is the pain rending my heart and attacking my bones; even though You are bestowing Your special love upon me and showering streams of Your joy upon my heart, all that has not obliterated the suffering I have told You about, which is piercing my poor heart all the more keenly. O, how much I want all of mankind to turn trustfully unto Your mercy, and then my heart will feel relief, seeing Your Name glorified. (0:47)
J Jesus listened to the outpourings of my heart respectfully and with interest, as if He knew nothing about these things, trying not to show that He knew, which made me feel more relaxed to talk about it openly. And then He said to me, “My daughter, these outpourings of your heart are pleasing to Me; and by saying the Chaplet you are bringing mankind closer to Me.” After these words, I saw that I was alone, although the Divine presence is in my soul all the time. (Diary, No. 929) (0:45)
B A MOMENT OF SILENCE. Beloved Jesus! As we recite the fifth decade of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we unite with You, who, humbly obedient to the Father’s Will, gives Your life to save us from eternal death. (0:24)
Meditations after praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
(Duration of the meditations here: about 42 min.)
W Beloved Jesus! Abiding in Eucharistic union with You, we passed from the Upper Room of the Last Supper to the Garden of Gethsemane, and from there – under the dramatic circumstances of delivering You to death – the whole way to Golgotha. Together with Immaculate Mary, St. John, and women named Mary – we were with You when, from the height of the cross, You descended into the world of the dead, into the Abyss. Being exceptionally united with You – thanks to the Eucharistic species abiding in us – we experienced with You also our dying, although in a way inaccessible to our senses. With You, we were given to enter the hour of our death – a time whose position on the clock of history is hidden from us but realistically exists in the near or distant future… To You, O Christ-Eucharist, we sing the song… (1:28)
W Song: I Greet You – 2nd-4th stanza (2:48)
A Beloved Savior! The time of death for each of us will end our temporal struggles for love. The more we give of ourselves in mortality, the more deeply we come to know and love You, present in various ways in our midst, but in an absolutely unique way under the Eucharistic species – the greater intimacy with You and the whole Holy Trinity we will experience forever, in eternity. It is on our personal earthly commitment to cooperate with the grace that the shape of the humanity of each of us forever depends. We believe that You, O Christ, who defeated the devil and came out of the Abyss in the act of Resurrection, are now also leading us out of the nooses with which we have tied our souls and rendered them somehow incapable of the fullness of love. To You, O Christ the Conqueror, we sing the song of praise. (1:27)
A Song: Winner of Death – 1st stanza (0:51)
P Beloved Savior! We believe, instructed by the Church, that it is on our personal temporal commitment to cooperate with Your grace that the shape of the humanity of each of us for eternity depends. We believe death ends the possibility of gaining oneself for loving God and neighbors. However, we do not always sufficiently consciously live in this truth… We do not always think that the time of merit relevant to the greatness of the glory of heaven ends with death. [1] We do not always remember that God desires such perfection in eternal life for each of us as we choose to achieve in the earthly life through acts of sacrificial and generous love. After all, the measure of eternal perfection is love precisely… We believe that You, O Christ, who overcame the devil and came out of the Abyss in the act of Resurrection and bring us out now from the shackles with which we have tied our souls and made them somehow incapable of the fullness of love. To You, O Christ the Conqueror, we sing the song of praise. (1:48)
P Song: Winner of Death – 2nd stanza (0:51)
G O Holy Spirit, the extraordinary Gift of the Father and the Son to believers! Opening our hearts to Your mysterious presence, we earnestly ask You: Enable our hearts to love the Lord Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist! Enable our eyes to see the Invisible One coming lovingly to meet His beloved ones… Enable our ears to hear the words of divine love that Jesus speaks to each of us. O Holy Spirit! Grant us to rest in the love that our hearts will unite in awe of the love of the beloved Jesus… Holy Spirit, pray in us, we humbly ask You… (1:06)
G Song: Come Holy Spirit – 1-2 stanza (1:04)
Z An encounter with God Himself, an encounter with the Creator of the Universe – this is an extraordinary experience, an experience that becomes our participation. In the space illuminated by the flame of candles and the light of lamps, in the space of the temple erected centuries ago by our fathers – extraordinary things are taking place … God Himself is here … God Himself is here … God Himself is here … Angels adore God here … People adore God here … God is here … God is here … Yes, yes … God is here … He is here, and He loves with His very presence … (0:54)
Z Song: Jesus, Veiled in the Sacred Host – 1st stanza (0:26)
M You are here… You are here as God-Man… You are latent under the species of the Most Holy Host… You are here with us and for us… You are here with me and for me… You are here, and You love… You love, therefore You are here… You love by giving the grace by which You drew me to Yourself… You called me to this present celebration of our mutual love… You have called me by the name, so I am here… You have invited me, uttering in the depths of my soul the name You gave me at Baptism – so I am here… I am here, Jesus, because I love You… I am here because You love me… O Jesus, we are here together… we are in the time of our mutual love… (1:08)
M Song: Jesus, Veiled in the Sacred Host – 2nd stanza (0:26)
J I turn to You from the depths of my heart with a question: What do You expect from me, God Incarnate, God hidden under the species of the Most Holy Host? For what have you been waiting for a long time, and do not find in me the fulfillment of this longing?…. For what do You look longingly when I once again come here, to Your / our home, to meet with You? In what should evince my ability to make You happy, O Bridegroom Jesus? For what do You longingly look, looking into my heart?…. What am I unable or unwilling to surmise in my relationship to You? (1:02)
J Song: Jesus, Veiled in the Sacred Host – 3rd stanza (0:26)
D Behold, now is the time of love toward You, Bridegroom Jesus. Behold, now is the time chosen by You… The time of love… What is this time? What is love? Do I love You… Do I take pleasure in You… Time of love… What is this time? Is it a time of looking fondly into the eyes of the Beloved?… a time of listening to the beating of the Heart of Incarnate Eternal Love?… Is it a chosen time for me, a time longingly awaited, a time of meeting of the highest degree? Is this sacramental time, the time that began to run from the moment I received You in Holy Communion, so vital to me that it is the most important?…. Is it a sacred time for me, Your time above all times… the time for our mutual, spousal, exclusive, conjugal love?.. (1:20)
D Song: Be Hail, Living Host – 1st stanza (0:43)
W Who are You for me, O Almighty One, coming to me in Holy Communion in so incredibly humble manner? Who are You to me, O Inconceivable God, coming under the species so inconspicuous of the Most Holy Host? Do I love You as You desire to be loved? … How much do I love You, O Jesus-Host? How much do I care about Your happiness in the relationship with me? Do I care about making You happy, O Dearest One? Do I care about seeking the source of my happiness in the happiness that Your Heart lives through our complete relationship of spousal love? Does my heart deeply feel that true love for You lives longing to make You happy? (1:14)
W Song: Be Hail, Living Host – 2nd stanza (0:43)
B O Jesus, O God most beloved! The relationship of spousal love, to which You wished to invite each of us personally, was foretold and prepared centuries ago through the history of Israel, through the experience of the love relationship between God and Israel. The prophet Ezekiel (Ezek 16:4-6) recorded such poignant words of God addressing Israel: “As for your birth, the day you were born your navel cord was not cut; you were neither washed with water nor anointed, nor were you rubbed with salt, nor swathed in swaddling clothes. No one looked on you with pity or compassion to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out on the ground as something loathsome the day you were born. Then I passed by and saw you weltering in your blood. I said to you in your blood: Live, grow!” (1:29)
P O Jesus, O most excellent God! I am moved to the depths by the words you speak to Israel. This first stage of the relationship, when Israel-bride experienced God’s love, bringing her out of a situation of mortal danger right after birth, turns into a nuptial stage years later. God expresses it this way through the prophet (Ezek 16:7-9): “Grow like a plant in the field. You grew and developed; you came to the age of puberty; your breasts were formed, and your hair had grown, but you were still stark naked. Again, I passed by you and saw that you were now old enough for love. So I spread the corner of my cloak over you to cover your nakedness; I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you; you became mine, says the Lord God. Then I bathed you with water, washed away your blood, and anointed you with oil.” (1:29)
A Beloved Jesus! I try to find in this prophecy my personal experience of love with You. This love is between You and each of us… Washing in the waters of Baptism is the time right after birth. Marriage after years of growth is the time of First Communion for many of us; for others, the time of Confirmation… “Then I passed by and saw you weltering in your blood. I said to you in your blood: Live, grow! … Grow like a plant in the field. You grew and developed; you came to the age of puberty… Again, I passed by you and saw that you were now old enough for love… I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you; you became mine, says the Lord God. Then I bathed you with water, washed away your blood, and anointed you with oil.” (1:25)
Z Jesus-Savior! With the words of the prophet Ezekiel, You speak to the heart of each of us. You make me realize that to Your merciful love, I owe life, to bring me out of a situation of threat to life, out of a situation of hostility from those who wish me ill… To Your love, I owe growth in humanity, flourishing in the beauty for which You created me, brought me out of nothingness… However, Your love does not end there. For behold, there came a day in my life when You wished to invite me to enter into a profound relationship of mutual bestowal – You wished to marry me, to bind yourself to me with an oath of faithful spousal love… (1:08)
G Jesus-Savior! With the words of the prophet Ezekiel, You speak to the heart of each of us. You make me realize that to Your merciful love, I owe life, to bring me out of a situation of threat to life, out of a situation of hostility from those who wish me ill… To Your Love, I owe growth in humanity, flourishing in the beauty for which You created me, brought me out of nothingness… However, Your love does not end there. For behold, there came a day in my life when You wished to invite me to enter into a profound relationship of mutual bestowal – You wished to marry me, to bind yourself to me with an oath of faithful spousal love… (1:08)
G Song: Be Hail, Living Host – 3-4 stanza (1:26)
J Looking with the eyes of the spirit at You, O Jesus, hidden in the bowels under my heart in the species of the Most Holy Host, I ask You: Do You find the longed-for answer of love in my heart? Am I able to love You as You desire to be loved? I ask about the quality of my love for You, who loves me infinitely. I ask about my love because I know that my heart is capable not only of loving but also of betraying… I ask because I find in the experience of the love that unites God and Israel the warning spoken by Ezekiel in the next fragment of this prophecy: the prophet describes here first the greatness of the endowment and then the greatness of the betrayal born in the heart of the endowed bride. These are the words addressed to Israel-bride through Ezekiel: (1:22)
M “I clothed you with an embroidered gown, put sandals of fine leather on your feet; I gave you a fine linen sash and silk robes to wear. I adorned you with jewelry: I put bracelets on your arms, a necklace about your neck, a ring in your nose, pendants in your ears, and a glorious diadem upon your head. Thus you were adorned with gold and silver; your garments were of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. Fine flour, honey, and oil were your food. You were exceedingly beautiful, with the dignity of a queen.” (Ezek 16:10-13)
W You were renowned among the nations for your beauty, perfect as it was, because of my splendor which I had bestowed on you, says the Lord God. But you were captivated by your own beauty, you used your renown to make yourself a harlot, and you lavished your harlotry on every passer-by, whose own you became. You took some of your gowns and made for yourself gaudy high places, where you played the harlot… You took the splendid gold and silver ornaments that I had given you and made for yourself male images, with which also you played the harlot. You took your embroidered gowns to cover them; my oil and my incense you set before them”. (Ezek 16:14-18) (1:13)
W Song: Be Hail, Living Host – 5-6 stanza (1:26)
D Most beloved Jesus! In the space of our meeting with You, hidden under the whiteness of the Most Holy Host, resounded the words of poignant reproach, addressed by God to Israel-bride, words of loving disappointment because of the immaturity of the chosen one to abide in faithful mutual love. The words of loving complaint reach my heart also, move me, and allow me to reflect on the quality of my love for You. Listening to Ezekiel’s prophecy, I ask in the depths of my heart: Am I also failing You? Am I also betraying You? Do these very words of complaint also apply to me, the words with which You show that indeed You as my Bridegroom have been met with a loving drama of marital betrayal… Jesus, do I love You? (1:21)
P Beloved Savior! Israel was betraying You because the abundance of crops (the selfless gift of Your love to the Chosen One!) served not for sacrifice in the Jerusalem temple. You, the God of Israel, established this temple as a place of offerings made for You. However, Israel sacrificed the abundance of crops to numerous idols in many places… The crops of the land, the sign of Your love, became in the heart and through the hands of the chosen one the object of Your great bitterness. Israel did not love You, Israel no longer had a heart for You, Israel betrayed You… This bitter experience teaches us about the heart of man, a heart that is capable of such great ingratitude, of causing such enormous disappointment to the only God, the One who loves and bestows selflessly… (1:18)
P Song: Be Hail, Living Host – 7-8 stanza (1:26)
B Jesus! This experience from Israel’s history makes us look into our hearts with an anxiety-filled question: Am I betraying the only Savior, Jesus? Is Jesus the most important person for me? Do I see in Jesus all my hope, the source of happiness, the source of life that will never pass away? Do I perceive the Eucharistic celebration as the source of my power to live in unity with Christ and the Church? Beloved Savior! With help to refine and purify our hearts comes the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which, in its 2001 document titled Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy. Principles and Guidelines (No. 11), warns [2]: (1:09)
Z “History shows that, in certain epochs, the life of faith is sustained by the forms and practices of piety, which the faithful have often felt more deeply and actively than the liturgical celebrations. Indeed, ‘every liturgical celebration, because it is an action of Christ the Priest and of his Body, which is the Church, it is a sacred action surpassing all others. No other action of the Church can equal its efficacy by the same title or to the same degree.’ ” The congregation elsewhere stresses that it is a significant error in the spiritual life when it “lacked a sufficient emphasis on the centrality of the Paschal mystery of Christ, foundation, and summit of all Christian worship, and its privileged expression in Sunday.” (No. 41). (1:22)
A Dearest Savior! These instructions of the Congregation allow us to see what an irreplaceable role the Holy Mass plays in our relationship with You, during which we receive You in Holy Communion as the One who passes the paschal way through the valley of death to new life. We humbly ask You to renew in us the capacity to love You during and after the Eucharist, when after receiving the Holy Communion, You are in our bowels as in a tabernacle. Grant by Your Divine power such a transformation of our hearts that we may be able to fulfill the desire of Your Heart, which You entrusted to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque: “I thirst with such a terrible thirst to be loved by men in the Blessed Sacrament that this thirst consumes Me. Yet I find no one trying to quench it according to My desire by some return of My love.” [3] (1:35)
J Dearest Jesus! Here is a confession and, simultaneously, a commitment for us: “I thirst with such a terrible thirst to be loved by men in the Blessed Sacrament that this thirst consumes Me.” It is how we desire to love You. Are we able to do so? If You do not help us, we will not be able to… However, we believe that You can help us with Your grace. We will now remain silent for a while to listen attentively to Your voice, the voice of the Bridegroom, the voice of the Shepherd, the voice of the Savior. Speak, O Lord, in the depths of our hearts. Speak, O Lord, because Your handmaids and servants are listening. Amen. (1:00)