MYSTERIOUS REAL SOLIDARITY
Those who belong to
Christ must live to the full the whole life of Christ. One
must grow to the maturity of Christ, (...) pass through Gethsemane
and Golgotha. And all the suffering that may come from the outside
are nothing compared to the dark night of the soul, when the divine
light no longer shines and the Lord's voice is no longer heard. God
is always there, but He is hidden.
The sufferings and
death of Christ continue in His Mystical Body,
and in each one of the members of this Body. Suffering and death are
the destiny of every man. But if he is a member of the Mystical Body
of Christ, his suffering and his death assume by way of the divinity
of the Head an expiatory, co-redemptive. (...)
So, the
one who is tied to Christ will persevere unshaken even in the dark
night of the subjective distance from God and God's absence; perhaps
the divine economy of salvation uses its torments to free someone who
is objectively chained by sin. Therefore “voluntas tua”! Even,
and precisely within the darkest night.
Edith Stein
(La vita come totalità , Città Nuova, Roma 1990, pp. 204-205)
(La vita come totalità , Città Nuova, Roma 1990, pp. 204-205)
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An Experience of Life:
I had accumulated
stress. For a while, I succeeded in not making this a burden on the
family, but at some point I realized that there was tension between
Elke and me and this reflected on the children. Any little problem
was enough to make them quarrel and they did not accept any rule of
order. In addition, I no longer had the time and calm to do the
little things at home, such as preparing the dishwasher, as is my
wont, or clear the table, and so on. So I could not continue.
I began to talk with
an open heart with my wife, I told her everything that was weighing
on me: the mistakes made, my worries, not being able, in short,
everything. Together we helped each other. We remembered a phrase
from the Gospel: “Cast all your anxieties on Him” (1 Peter 5:7).
This particular situation remained, but it was dealt with
differently; I gave the preoccupations to God and to me there
remained only the occupations. With Elke we saw each other with new
eyes, not looking any longer at the mistakes we made. Now in the
house one can breathe; the children are always lively, but in peace.
A.P., Germany
