Third Page
In Easter Week, 1889, she wrote:
"When I went into the church a little after five on Easter Sunday morning I
had hardly knelt to adore Him present in the most holy Sacrament of His Love,
when He drew me so entirely into Himself that I know not what I saw or Heard for
some time; but when the powers of the soul again began to act He represented
Himself to me (I think) as we see Him in the pictures of the Sacred Heart and
His Sacred Head radiant as a sea of light and a glorious sun shining to its very
depths and acting on the affections, motives, and entire workings of the Sacred
Heart and raising them even as the sun draws up the vapours from the ocean. In
this light, I saw distinctly formed figure of a silvery dove which I understood
was the Holy Ghost, and rolls of glory (I was going to say clouds but that is
hardly correct) or pillars as a rainbow appeared above which I felt represented
the Eternal Father. The whole formed an Eye which I knew to be the Eye of God in
Unity. And from it I understood that our dear Blessed Lord wished His Sacred
Head to be specially worshipped as the 'Seat of Divine Wisdom' and the powers of
His Human Soul adored therein, as it is the seat of the intellectual powers of
man
He has so many times as I have before told you revealed to me His intention of
crowning the devotion of the Sacred Heart in this point and I think when He
spoke of the wonders He would work in our midst that He referred to some
manifestation to this end."
On April 27th, she wrote in a tone of triumph and in a trembling hand as though
still rapt in ecstasy:
"Our Divine Lord says the time is at hand when the Wisdom of the Father
shall be adored and the Love of God for man shall be revealed in the Light which
shineth in darkness and enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world. It is
the Will of our dear Blessed Lord that His Sacred Head be adored as the Seat of
Divine Wisdom: not the Sacred Head alone, (I mean as we worship His Sacred Hands
and Feet) no, but the Head as the shrine of the powers of the Soul and of the
faculties of the Mind and in these the Wisdom which guided every affection of
the Sacred Heart and motions of the whole Being of Jesus our Lord and our God.
It is not His Divine Will that the attributes or abstracts of the soul or mind,
or that Divine Wisdom which guided governed and directed all in Him, (the God
Man) should have distinct worship, but that they should all be specially
honoured and His Sacred Head adored as their Temple. And our dear Blessed Lord
has shown me too how the head is also the centre of all senses of the body, and
that this devotion is the completion, not only of the devotion of the Sacred
Heart, but the crowning and perfection of all devotions; and He showed me how
the adorable Trinity at His baptism revealed to the world this special devotion,
for His Sacred Humanity is the tabernacle of the thrice holy Trinity; and that
St. John had specially spoken of this devotion for the Most High revealed to him
that he should be thus worshipped before the end of the world, and he spoke of
it as a magnificent city, etc. seeing the multitudes of variety and beauty and
splendour of this seat of Divine Wisdom. It is a world of infinite magnitude, a
sea of fathomless depths, a never setting sun of light inaccessible and
immeasurable heights of untold mysteries of perfection and beauty. Our dear
Blessed Lord did not positively state the precise time that this should be made
a public devotion but He gave me to understand that whoever should venerate His
Sacred Head in this manner should draw down on themselves the choicest gifts of
Heaven; and those who shall try by words or means to hinder or reject it shall
be glass that is cast down, or as an egg that is thrown to the wall, that is
that they shall be shattered and become as naught, and shall be dried up and
wither as grass on the housetop.
"Our beloved Spouse also let me know that it was in this church that He would manifest to the world the manner etc, etc. that He wished to be honoured and the time, and all concerning this most wonderful devotion. And I think it is that soul that is drooping as the vine under the weight of heavenly gifts and saturated through and through with the Precious Blood, that is His Infinite Wisdom He has ordained to make known His holy Will to the world. For He continually shows me this precious soul so dear to Him, and frequently before He makes known to me anything concerning this heavenly devotion (to His Sacred Head) He comforts me also with it. For when I feel my poor heart breaking with sorrow at the coldness in which He is treated and the way He is betrayed even by His priests He shows me this soul as His consoler and refuge this lily in which He delights, and the will of this holy one blending so completely with His that they seem as one, this understanding in which the light of God shines as the midday sun in the clear waters of a spring, and that memory that is always recollected in God, that heart that pants languishes for Him and wastes itself away in longing desire to be dissolved and be one with Him for all eternity.
Oh my God how much You have taught me in this soul which You drew from the same
abyss of nothingness as myself, and yet, through her ready compliance with Thy
adorable Will in all things, Thou hast raised her to a pinnacle of perfection
which but very few saints have ever reached. Oh my God how wonderful are Thy
works and how incomprehensible Thy judgments and unsearchable Thy ways. For this
jewel of Thy house is a wonder to the angels and Thou Thyself hast shown me that
(she) this soul is one of the centre pieces of Thy Sacred Heart. I know not
whether this soul is a priest , or even a male or female saint, but I know you
will join with me in thanking God for all He has done for it, and allowing us,
unworthy as we are, to live and worship before this same tabernacle where in His
Love He deigns to listen to us as well as to this great servant of His Sacred
Heart.
I think our dear Blessed Lord shows me this soul to humble me, for I always feel
that I am sinking away in the abyss of my own nothingness whenever He allows me
to see it, and yet my whole soul seems to overflow with gratitude to Him for
raising this soul to such perfection, and love, and admiration at His work and
delight beyond utterance at His reserving her (I mean the soul) to comfort and
console to love and adore Him as she does. And this last week, after our Beloved
Lord has shown me the greatness of His gifts to this saint, He has made me feel
what black ingratitude it would be if she refused to fulfill His designs. I
understand that of course it will be a great humiliation for her to undertake
the great work which I think He intends, and I pray for and compassionate her
exceedingly, yet I burn with desire to see His holy Will accomplished and say
with her and for her "Thy holy will be done, for Thou art my light and
strength Thou art my protector and Helper, what shall I fear."
Although I have no curiosity to know who this chosen one is, yet I feel an
ardent desire to be near her and to render her some service, to go and meet her
as St. Elizabeth went to meet our Blessed Lady our dear Mother Mary at the time
of the Visitation."
The above is the first allusion in Teresa's letters to this wonderful soul,
though she seems to have known about it as far back as at Wigan, for Miss Ryland
recalls her asking quite simply one day: "Do you know that Father Wells
directs a saint? I wonder who it is. If I knew I might do something for her,
perhaps wash for her. Have you any idea who it is?"
After this she often writes of it to Father Powell, begging him to ask for
prayers and longing to be allowed to do something for this chosen one.
"Oh my Father pray fervently for me and ask that soul so dear to His Sacred
Heart to pray for me also. And is it too much of me to ask of you to let me
render some service to this soul that so I may imitate Him a little Who has
lavished on her such wonderful gifts. It seems so strange to me that you should
never mention this holy one to me (not by name) but by telling me of her, that
feeling the influence of her presence I might love Him and glorify His holy name
more for all He has done for her. For surely she is a glory to His Name."
Again she says:
"Oh my Father may I do something for this one so dear to Him? I will not
offend their humility in any way. I would not thus beg of you dear Father but I
feel it would be a great service to my poor soul and I would not breathe one
word of it - but just as you wish. I do not think I should be disheartened at
seeing them doing so much for Him. I think I should feel I could get them to
love Him for me and I would really try to learn the lessons Jesus would show me
in them."