BIND GOD'S HANDS AND disarming HIS ANGER
Let us look a little closer at the next two metaphors that use the Diary to contribute to reducing God's anger and postponing God's punishments. The image of restraining God’s hands intending to punish, and the image of disarming God's anger. It turns out that these metaphors can also be perfectly interpreted in the sense of increasing the union love with Christ, and thus attracting to Him even those who seemed irrevocably turned away from Him.
In our daily meditation, we have already indicated several times that Catholic piety likes to present intercession for sinners as interfering with God in punishing people for their sins. " On one occasion - notes Saint Faustina - the Lord said to me, My daughter, your confidence and love restrain My justice, and I cannot inflict punishment because you hinder Me from doing so." (Dairy 198).
The Lord Jesus explains to her in new formulations that she restrains his hands not so much in prayer as in her love: " I bestow many graces only because of you. I also withhold My punishments only because of you. You restrain Me, and I cannot vindicate the claims of My justice. You bind My hands with your love "(Diary 1193). " Do not tie my hands, My daughter." (Diary 818) - of course, not a complaint, but words of satisfaction, spoken by Him who wants to be such a strong bond of love restrained. "The prayer of a humble and loving soul - Jesus himself explains to Faustina the importance of prayer for sinners - disarms the anger of My Father and draws down an ocean of blessings.” (Dairy 320).
Many times, we learn from the pages of the Diary that such prayer is hard work and unimaginable torment. Here is the entry from April 25, 1936: “On that day, the suffering in my soul was more severe than ever before. From early morning, I felt as if my body and soul had separated. I felt that God’s presence had penetrated my whole being: I felt all the justice of God within me; I felt I stood alone before God.” (Dairy 653). Three months later, Sister Faustina writes: “I spent this whole night in prayer. I meditated upon the Lord’s Passion, and my soul was crushed by the burden of God’s justice. The Hand of the Lord touched me.” (Dairy 661)
The subject of agony in the Diary would deserve a separate study. Here, let us pay attention to the fact that with the word "agony" Faustina emphasizes not only the indescribable horror of her agony during such a prayer, but even more so – to put to death the old self: "Inner torment for more than two hours. Agony.... Suddenly, God’s presence pervades me and I feel as though I am coming under the power of the just God. His justice pervades me to the marrow; outwardly I lose strength and consciousness. With this, I come to know the great holiness of God and my own great misery. A great torment affects my soul; the soul perceives its deeds to be not without blemish. Then the strength of trust is awakened in the soul, which longs for God with all its might. Yet it sees how miserable it is and what utter vanity everything that surrounds it. And face to face with such holiness, Oh, poor soul........" (Diary 672).
It is not, therefore, that the holy benefactor prays for sinners, but desiring to love all those whom her Divine Beloved loves, she lets herself be filled with such - coming from above - love that kills the old self and transforms her into the new self, created new self according to God, in righteousness and true holiness.
“That you should put away the old self of your former way of life, corrupted through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created in God's way in righteousness and holiness of truth.” (cf. Eph 4: 22-24). With this unites herself even more deeply with Christ and extends His reign to others; sometimes even the greatest sinners lead to repentance and conversion.
It should be noted that during such intercessory prayer man does not even think about himself or even deepen his love for Christ. The only desire is then a mystical identification with Christ, above all with the crucified Christ, and thus bringing God's mercy to those who seem irreversibly closed to it. During such a prayer, the praying person intensively increases in love - but this is somewhat not intentional - it is simply the truth of love that until it has not fully enveloped us, making the loving person also filled with love. This will be until we come to "until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ." (Eph 4:13). It is, however, that the intercessor for others does not think about his own growth in love at all, indeed makes his love similar to the absolutely selfless love of Christ the Lord.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george