27. The right arm of the Most High, which threw
open the doors of the Divinity to most holy Mary, con
tinued to enrich and adorn at the expense of his infinite
attributes this most pure spirit and virginal body which
He had chosen as his tabernacle, as his temple, and as
the holy city of his habitation. And the heavenly Lady,
engulfed in this vastness of the Divinity, winged her
flight day by day farther away from earthly things, and
transformed Herself more and more into a heavenly
being, discovering ever new sacraments in the Most High.
For as He is the infinite Object of desire, although the
appetite is satiated with that which is received, always
more remains to be desired and understood. Not all the
hierarchies of the angels, nor all men together, have
attained such preferment in blessings, mysteries and
sacraments as this Princess attained, especially as regards
those due to Her as Mother of the Creator
28. On the third day of preparation at which I have
now arrived, having again been prepared as on the first
day, the Divinity manifested Itself anew in abstractive
vision. Too slow and inadequate are our powers for
understanding the increase of the gifts and graces, which
the Most High then lavished on heavenly Mary; and at
this juncture I am at a loss for words to explain even
the least portion of what I peeiyed. I can only express
myself by saying, that the divine wisdom and power pro
ceeded in a manner worthy of Her, who was to be the
Mother of the Word, so as to ensure, as far as is possible
for a creature, that likeness and proportion, which was
due to the divine Persons. Whoever has even a faint
understanding of the distance which lies between the two
extremes, the infinite God and the limited human crea
ture, can comprehend so much the better, what is neces
sary to bring them together and establish a proportion.
29. More and more the Queen of heaven reflected his
infinite attributes and virtues; more and more brilliantly
shone forth her beauty under the touch of the pencil of
the divine Wisdom and under the colors and lights added
to it from on high. On this day She was informed of
the works of creation as they happened on the third day.
She learned when and how the waters, which were be
neath the firmament, flowed together in one place
(Gen. 1, 9), disclosing the dry land, which the Lord
called earth, while He called the waters the sea. She
learned in what way the earth brought forth the fresh
herbs, and all plants and fructiferous trees with their
seeds, each one according to its kind. She was taught
and She comprehended the greatness of the sea, its depth
and its divisions, its correspondence with the streams
and the fountains, that take their rise from it and flow
back into it; the different plants and herbs, the flowers,
trees, roots, fruits and seeds ; She perceived how all and
each one of them serve for the use of man. All this our
Queen understood and penetrated with the keenest insight
more clearly, distinctly and comprehensibly than Adam
or Solomon. In comparison with Her all those skilled
in medicine in the world would appear but ignorant even
after the most thorough studies and largest experience.
The most holy Mary knew all that was hidden from
sight, as Wisdom says (Wis. 7, 21); and just as She
learned it without any fiction, She also communicates it
without envy. Whatever Solomon says there in the
book of Wisdom was realized in Her with incomparable
and eminent perfection.
30. On some occasions our Queen made use of this
science in order to exercise her charity toward the poor
and needy, as will be related in the sequence of this his
tory (No. 668, 867, 868, 1048; III. 159, 423): She had
it under perfect control, and it was as familiar to Her as
the well-trained musician is with his instrument. The
same was true of all the rest of the sciences, whenever
She found it desirable or necessary to make use of them
in the service of the Most High. For She was Mistress
of all of them more perfectly than any of the mortals who
ever did excel in any art or science. She was versed in
the virtuous qualities and activities of the stones, herbs
and plants, and in Her was true what Christ our Lord
promised to the Apostles and first Christians, that
poisonous draughts would not hurt them. This privi
lege belonged to the Queen as a sovereign, so that neither
poison or any other thing could ever injure Her or
cause Her any harm except with her permission.
31. These privileges and favors the most prudent
Princess and Lady always kept concealed, and She made
no use of them for Herself, as I have said, desiring not
to be deprived of a share in the suffering, which had been
chosen by her most holy Son. Before conceiving Him
and becoming his Mother, She was inspired with divine
knowledge and science concerning the passibility of the
Word made flesh. And when She became Mother She
saw and experienced this truth in her Son and Lord him
self and therefore She gave a greater license, or rather
a more strict command, to creatures to afflict Her, since
She saw the results of this activity in their own Creator.
Hence, as the Most High did not wish his only and
chosen Spoue to be continually molested by the crea
tures, even though She herself desired it, He often
restrained them and neutralized their operations, so that
the heavenly Princess, unhindered by them, might occa
sionally enjoy the delights of the most high King.
32. There is another special favor, which the most
holy Mary received for the benefit of the mortals on the
third day and in that vision of the Divinity; for during
this vision God manifested to Her in a special way the
desire of his divine love to come to the aid of men and
to raise them up from all their miseries. In accordance
with the knowledge of his infinite mercy and the object
for which it was conceded, the Most High gave to Mary
a certain kind of participation of his own attributes, in
order that afterwards, as the Mother and Advocate of
sinners, She might intercede for them. This participa
tion of the most holy Mary in the love of God and in
his inclination to help Her, was so heavenly and powerful
that if from that time on the strength of the Lord had
not come to her aid, She would not have been able to
bear the impetuosity of her desire to assist and save man
kind. Filled with this love and charity, She would, if
necessary or feasible, have delivered Herself an infinite
number of times to the flames, to the sword and to the
most exquisite torments of death for their salvation. All
the torments, sorrows, tribulations, pains, infirmities She
would have accepted and suffered; and She would have
considered them a great delight for the salvation of
sinners. Whatever all men have suffered from the be
ginning of the world till this hour, and whatever they
will suffer till the end, would have been a small matter
for the love of this most merciful Mother. Let therefore
mortals and sinners understand what they owe to most
holy Mary.
33. From that day on, we can say, the heavenly Lady
continued to be the Mother of kindness and great mercy,
and for two reasons : first, because from that moment She
sought with an especial and anxious desire to communi
cate without envy the treasures of grace, which She had
comprehended and received; and therefore such an ad
mirable sweetness grew up in her heart, that She was
ready to communicate it to all men and to shelter them
in her heart in order to make them participants of the
divine love, which there was enkindled. Secondly, be
cause this love of most holy Mary for the salvation of
men was one of the principal dispositions required for
conceiving the eternal Word in her virginal womb. It
was eminently befitting that She should be all mercy,
kindness, piety and clemency, who was Herself to con
ceive and give birth to the Word made man, since He
in his mercy, clemency and love desired to humiliate Him
self to the lowliness of our nature, and wished to be born
of Her in order to suffer for men. It is said : like begets
like: just as the water partakes of the qualities of the
minerals through which it flows ; and although the birth
of Christ originated in the Divinity, yet it also partook
of the conditions of the Mother as far as was possible.
She therefore would not have been suitable for concur
rence with the Holy Ghost in this conception, in which
only the activity of the man was wanting, if She had not
been endowed with perfections corresponding to those of
the humanity of Christ.
34. The most holy Mary issued from this vision with
ever increasing fervor, and during all the rest of the day
She occupied Herself in the prayers and petitions com
manded Her by the Lord. The heart of her Spouse was
wounded with love, so that (according to our mode of
thinking") He already longed for the day and the hour
when He should rest in the arms and recline at the breast
of his Beloved.
INSTRUCTION WHICH THE MOST HOLY QUEEN GAVE ME.
35. My dearest daughter, great were the favors which
the hand of the Most High showered upon me in the
visions of the Divinity, vouchsafed me during the nine
days before his conception in my womb. And although
He did not manifest Himself intuitively and altogether
unveiled, yet He did it in an exalted manner and with
such effects as are reserved to his wisdom. In the re
membrance of what I perceived in this vision, I rose to
the true perception of the position which God held in
comparison to men and men in comparison to God; my
heart was inflamed with love and was torn with sorrow ;
for I realized the immensity of his love towards mortals,
and their most ungrateful oblivion of his incomprehensible
goodness. Many times would I have died at the thought
of these extremes, if God himself had not comforted and
preserved me. This sacrifice of his servant was most
pleasing to his Majesty and He accepted it with greater
complacency than all the holocausts of the old Law; for
He beheld my humility and delighted in it very much.
Whenever I performed these exercises, He showed great
mercy to me and to my people.
36. These sacraments, my dearest, I manifest to thee
in order to encourage thee to imitate me, as far as is
possible will thy weak forces aided by grace. Look
upon the works, which thou hast learnt of, as a pattern
and example to be closely followed. Meditate much, and
weigh over and over again as well in the light of grace
as in that of reason, how exactly mortals ought to cor
respond to this immense kindness of God and to his
eagerness to assist them. Compare at the same time the
heartless obduracy of the children of Adam. I wish
that thy heart be softened in affectionate thankfulness
toward the Lord and melted in sorrow at these unhappy
proceedings of men. I assure thee, my daughter, that
on the day of the general adjustment, the cause of the
greatest wrath of the just Judge shall be man s most
ungrateful forgetfulness of this truth ; and the confusion
of men on account of this wrath shall be such, that on
that day they would of their own accord cast themselves
into the abyss of pain, if there were no ministers of divine
justice to visit this retribution upon them.
37. In order to avoid such an abominable fault and
in order to forestall such a horrible chastisement, renew
in thyself the memory of the blessings, which thou hast
received at the hands of his love and infinite clemency;
and remember that God has distinguished thee in prefer
ence to the souls of many generations. Do not make the
mistake of considering these great favors and special
gifts as conferred on thee for thyself alone: they were
conferred also for the sake of thy brethren : for the divine
mercy is extended to all men. Therefore the return,
which thou owest to the Lord, must be made first for
thyself and then for thy brethren. And because thou art
poor, offer up the life and merits of my most holy Son,
and with them, all that I have suffered by the forces of
my love. Thus wilt thou make thyself pleasing to God
and tender some recompense for the ingratitude of
mortals. In all these things exercise thyself repeatedly
many times, remembering in the meanwhile what I
thought and felt in similar acts and exercises.
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