Saint Michael the

Archangel,

Champion of Humility

by Father Mathurin of the Mother of God

Good Jesus , may You find generous souls, Saint Michaels who in every encounter, on every occasion, will react and say to You: Quis ut Deus! Who is like God! Whatever You will, my God, I will. The forces of evil were overthrown and cast into hell when Saint Michael cried: “Who is like God!” Behind him all the faithful Angels rose up, repeating: “Who is like God! He is the One we obey. We will do whatever He wants of us and even more if that is what He wants! We will it, we will accomplish it!” May you all be Saint Michaels this year. 2021 Watchword

The trial of the Angels

Saint Michael’s first intervention in history took place in Heaven. In the first moments of creation, God, in His Infinite Love, created all His beautiful Angels. Their number is incalculable; Holy Scripture speaks of myriads, billions of Angels. They contemplate and adore God, the Most Holy Trinity. Believing in God and in His Trinity is not an act of faith for them. They do not understand God, but they see Him and continually discover Him. God loves His creatures, and He wants to be loved by them. To love God is the purpose of every one of God’s creatures, every free, rational creature. But love requires proof, so God put His Angels to the test. He was expecting to receive the testimony of their love, their fidelity, their inviolable attachment. According to the most universally recognized teaching given in the Church, formulated by many Saints and theologians, God, in order to test the Angels, presented them with His great design: the Word of God made flesh. First He informs the entire Heavenly Court that He is going to create a species that will be called man, which will be of a nature inferior to their own. He also reveals that the second Person of the Holy Trinity, the Word of God, will incarnate, will take a human body and live in the midst of men to show them His love. God then asks all the Angels to worship His will, His plan. Here is the basic idea that I want to explore with you: the Angels must adore the will of God without understanding it. They do not understand the immensity of this design; it is beyond their understanding. God will take the form of a man inferior to them, angelic spirits. He asks them to adore this holy will, to bow down in advance before the Word of God incarnate. But many angels rebelled against God and did not want to accept this divine design. Here we are talking about billions of rebels. According to Tradition, they totaled perhaps one-third of this immense Heavenly Court. There are many factors in their sin: their intelligence does not understand, and they want to argue with God. Imagine! They are creatures and they want to argue with their Creator! Of all the Angels, Lucifer was truly the most intelligent, the most beautiful, the most brilliant ‒ to use our words, for we are poor humans. Conscious of being the most brilliant of the Angels, he does not accept God’s project: The Son of God will incarnate, taking our human nature, which Lucifer regards as inferior to his angelic nature. His pride and self-love cannot accept it. Instead of yielding, he revolts: Non serviam! I will not serve! Many angels follow him in his revolt.

A great battle in Heaven

Happily, a multitude of the Angels accepted God’s design, but one of them was the quickest to do so. His name was to become glorious: Saint Michael. At this moment he was not the highest in the hierarchy of Angels, but rather one of the lowest. Just as every human being has a different degree of intelligence, each Angel has a distinct personality with particular gifts. It is not intelligence that determines the value of a being. We see it in the Angels: Lucifer was the most intelligent and he was the first to revolt. Of what good to him was his beautiful, immense intelligence? Saint Michael, having received an inferior intelligence, immediately adheres to the will of God with all his heart, mind and soul, his entire being. God unveils a plan that he does not understand. But God is his Creator! He owes his existence, his angelic being, he owes everything to Him. Immediately, he understands that God has every right over him and that He can ask for whatever He wants. He is totally attentive, totally submissive, in adoration before the will of God. No sooner were they put to the test than Saint Michael was the first to recognize that God has every right: “God is God: He is the Creator and we adore His will! What You will, my God, I will.” While Saint Michael adores the will of God and submits to it, he realizes that around him there are angels ‒ and not the least of them! ‒ who begin to debate: “Are we going to obey or not? Is this reasonable?” Their angelic reason balks and an argument arises. Even Lucifer, the highest ranking officer of the Heavenly Court, says, “No, this does not make sense! What is this?” You must consider that this happened even more rapidly than you can think, because in the world of spirits, there is no time. For the Angels there is no sunrise or sunset: they are in eternity, before God. Saint Michael sees that Lucifer, by his influence as the greatest, the brightest, the most intelligent Angel, leads a multitude of Angels onto his evil path, his revolt, his disobedience. Saint Michael rises up immediately and takes a stand for God. The Mystical City speaks about it briefly, mentioning the fact as if somehow there had been a lapse of time. The time factor does not exist in Heaven. But it is as though there is an evolution, in our way of speaking, in this exchange among the Angels. It did not happen all at once. Some of them sided almost immediately with the revolt, others sided with God; and according to the Mystical City, it would seem that others were still undecided. They underwent an inner combat: “Will we take God’s side or the side of our reason?” ‒ angelic, of course, but still natural reason. Seeing Saint Michael become the defender of God’s glory, many of these undecided Angels rallied to him. When each one had chosen his side, Saint Michael, zealous for the glory of God, turned to the multitude of disobedient rebels and said to them: “You are judging and evaluating God’s commands. How can you remain in His presence? This is not your place” And he drove them out of Heaven. The Apocalypse says: There was a battle in Heaven. Michael and his Angels took up the cause of God and cast the dragon out. That dragon is the devil.

Cautionary note

As we mentioned above, each one of these billions and billions of Angels has a personality, an intelligence of his own, which varies in different degrees. And if we take the Angel with the least intelligence, that one Angel can hold in check all humans together, with their fine intelligence. Why am I telling you this? Imagine: these Angels, whose intelligence is superior to ours, having eminent gifts like those of Lucifer, were capable of becoming enemies of God and opposing Him. Today as always, the same snare that made Satan fall so low is still being set for human beings. My brothers and sisters, you can understand that our little human intelligence is really not THE reference! Human science discovers things on earth, and we think we are very intelligent. The least of the Angels has possessed the same knowledge for a long time, and transcends all that. By the way, so do the demons! We humans are so focused on our science, our little genius. We put our intelligence on a parallel with the will of God so as not to obey Him, precisely as these rebellious angels did by following their natural intelligence. My brothers and sisters, you understand that this is a warning I am giving to you and to all my brothers on the earth. If human intelligence, if all the sciences combined are not docile, humbly submitted to all of God’s wills, it is dangerous, it even leads to their ruin. We have proof of this with the fallen angels. Relying on their angelic but natural intelligence, they are damned for eternity. Do not trust your intelligence, your knowledge. Do not trust your genius and any other little human talent you may have. Let us profit well from this lesson. When the gifts that God gives us are misused, they can be dangerous! But also, how useful they can be in the service of God, as we see in the holy Archangel Michael. He used his intelligence and all the gifts God had granted him to adore the will of God, to submit, and to defend the cause of God, at that moment and ever since. Seeing his fidelity, God increased in Saint Michael the gifts that were natural to him and raised him high above all the other Angels.

True peace

The example of Saint Michael is full of lessons for us. Before sin, all the Angels in Heaven had a great love for one another. Divine love united them and absolute harmony reigned among them. We cannot even imagine this angelic love. As a result of the angels’ rebellion against God, it is no longer the same. Saint Michael rose up: “We can no longer be your friends. You are the ones who made that decision. All my love, all my attachment, all my fidelity is to God my Creator. You rebel against Him? Get out! Get out!” When we poor humans, blinded by our fallen nature and deceived by the evil one, commit sin, God gives us chances to redeem ourselves. That was not the case with the Angels. When they sinned, they sinned in the light. They had this unique occasion to prove their love to God. Saint Michael felt it: “You do not want to be in conformity with God, you rebel against Him, then you become my declared enemies, irreconcilable enemies.” Anything that was not absolutely in conformity with God was immediately rejected from the mind and soul of Saint Michael. This is strong language, is it not? It is the truth. I insist because it is very important, it is what we are living through today. This story has been going on from the dawn of time until today. We human beings are far more ignorant, we do not see clearly, we are limited, and easily we want to be friends with those who are opposed to God, “for the sake of peace.” For the sake of peace, we are ready to make every compromise. Imagine if Saint Michael had wanted to make peace with Lucifer! “For the sake of peace, we will try to make a compromise before God between you and us” Would we have had Saint Michael? Would we have had the faithful Angels? There is no compromise in the cause of God. We adhere to God, we adhere to His will or we do not. Today more than ever, everyone is talking about peace. They hold meetings of all kinds, they even gather together with the enemies of God, “for peace” The more people talk about it, the more war spreads. Peace is preached falsely by the world. Many good people think this is wonderful. “Finally the world will come to peace!” There is no greater diabolical lie than to seek peace outside the will of God, outside the path that God came to draw out for us. Peace! Peace! The devil makes the whole world dance to this word ‒ so beautiful, so sweet, so gentle to our ears. Such peace is diabolical if it is not according to God. If the will of God is not put first, we will never know true peace. When the Word of God incarnates, what is His first message to humanity? He is silent, He is a little baby in a manger who does not yet speak. He sends His Angels to speak to us. And what is the message they give us? Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will, that is, those who want God’s will. Men who want what God wills are at peace, even when all hell is in revolt. Do you think Saint Michael the Archangel lost his peace when he saw Lucifer and his band of rebels all around him? No, he did not lose his peace. It was God acting through His Archangel. Whereas Lucifer lost his peace, to the point of becoming Satan, which means “adversary.” Jesus said, I have not come to bring peace, but the sword. That is, all those who do not want to follow Me will be run through with the sword. That sword will also personally touch our fallen nature. As long as our will is not submissive, as long as it does not assent to the will of God, the sword will come and cut us to pieces. Peace on earth to men of good will. My brothers and sisters, under the name and the protection of Saint Michael, we will work for peace by really saying to God, as he did, that we adore His holy will. We humbly adhere to each of His wills manifested in His commandments, in His Gospel, in the Church and in our superiors. We also submit with love and resignation to all the events and trials that His Divine Providence permits in our lives. This is how true peace will come in each one of us and in the world.

First champion of humility

Saint Michael’s zeal came from a profound humility. One might say that he was the humblest of the Angels. It was Saint Michael who made the first, the most profound, the most total act of humility. He submitted, he bowed down before the will of God, whatever it was. “My God, if You decide that man shall be set above us, I adore Your will, I submit. Whatever You will, my God, I adore.” This disposition prompted him to utter that famous cry: Who is like God? “Well, who is like God for us to begin negotiating with Him, arguing over His will? Who is like God? He is the Creator. Even though He has endowed us with eminent gifts, we are His creatures. Who is like God, to resist Him and to seek anything but His divine will?” Saint Michael’s humble submission to God gave him this invincible strength against Satan. He was afraid of absolutely nothing. And yet, Lucifer and his retinue were superior to him, both in intelligence and ability. Michael was not afraid of them. His humble submission to God gave him such strength and boldness that he would not back down before anyone. “You do not want the will of God? Who is like God? Out of here! Get out!” His submission was his mighty weapon against the devil. My brothers and sisters, I am speaking to you about this today because this combat against the enemies of God is more present than ever. More than ever we must fight against everything that is contrary to God. It is in this same sentiment, in this Quis ut Deus ‒ Who is like God, it is in this act of humility in which we adore all the wills of God that our strength against all the enemies of God will reside. Here, God has raised up this little Work to proclaim the truth to the world, to overcome the forces of hell. How will this little Community overcome the forces of evil? The same way Saint Michael and the good Angels did. Each of us must bow down before God and say: “My God, I adore Your will. It is my only reference, the only desire of my life, no matter where You want to lead me, no matter how lowly You want me to be. All I want, my God, is Your will.” Saint Michael the Archangel is our model. In this test of the Angels in Heaven, he adored the Word of God incarnate because he loved Him, no matter what appearance He was hiding under. He loved his God. According to the Mystical City, the Angels also understood that the Word of God would have a Mother and that in advance they would have to bow down before the Mother of God. Again, while many rebelled, Saint Michael was in total veneration and submission before the Word of God and His Mother. He is the first one in the entire history of creation who perceived this great mystery of the Incarnation of the Word in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and who loved it with his entire being. Because of that, I personally like to think that more than any other, he has the power to obtain for us this knowledge, this love, this service of God, this service of Jesus and His Mother.

Saint Michael, defender of men

The devil has always had a hatred for man; this becomes more and more obvious every day. He hates man; he hates him so much that he wants to destroy him out of envy. For Saint Michael the Archangel it is quite the contrary. Since he loves God, he loves everything that God loves. Seeing this tremendous love of God for man, instead of it making him jealous, he began to love men. He is the first created being who truly loved men. Saint Michael became the defender of men because he truly loves them with a love that is totally celestial, totally angelic ‒ and far more, a love that is divine. When we love, we perceive the secrets of the beloved. His love for God made him penetrate this love of God for man. Imbued with this love, all his angelic energy is dedicated to bringing man to his end: to know, to love and to serve God during his time of trial, to be happy with Him for all eternity, with Saint Michael and the other Holy Angels. It is good to think about this, to contemplate this love of Saint Michael and the Holy Angels for us. The first ones to employ the word angel were the Hebrews; the word means messenger. According to Holy Scripture, when God gives a name, it is to indicate a function. These sublime spirits, these intelligences superior to all other intelligences, will be put in the service of man. It is good to think about this in order to discover God’s love for us. I don’t know what connotation this thought engenders in your heart, in your soul. God creates these beings who are far superior to men, and He calls them messengers, as if the duty of these Angels were reduced to being His errand boys with men. It is almost incredible to look at it this way, yet that is the name God gives them. The Angels are therefore God’s messengers to man, and then they bring the messages of men back to God. In the presence of the Word of God incarnate and of His Mother, seeing themselves delegated as messengers, the Angels grasped the immensity of this love of God for man. What, then, is the greatness of man? This is what the reprobate angels felt: How much God loves man! They had the impression that He preferred man to them. Full of envy, the rebellious angels began to hate man and to swear his ruin. Whereas the good Angels, instead of being jealous, loved man because God loved him and they loved God. And when our first parents were deceived by the vile serpent, all the good Angels wanted the salvation of man just as God wanted it. I suppose that Saint Michael and the good Angels must say, as we would put it in everyday speech: “These men... what’s their problem? Don’t these men realize the tremendous, infinite love of God for them? Their hearts are in darkness, their minds are clouded. The earth attracts them in a terrible, horrible way! They are truly blind.” That is why Saint Michael and the Good Angels are so active around us, in order to wake us up a little, to make us understand God’s love for us. I am going to quote a little text from the life of Saint Colette (1380-1447), the reformer of the Poor Clares. Satan appeared to her one day in the form of a roaring lion. When she saw him, she cried out: “Oh, you wretch, you have lost God, get out of here!” ‒ And here we see the incessant contempt of the demon for humans. ‒ The devil replied: “Little creature, do you know what you are saying? Do you know what it means to have lost God?” And he repeated, trembling, “To have lost God, to have lost God! No created intelligence can understand the extent of this irreparable misfortune! To have lost God means to be excluded from all good, all happiness, because all happiness is in Him. The pain of fire is nothing compared to the loss of God” This means: You humans do not even know what it means to have lost God! If you did, you would do anything to never lose Him, or to get Him back as soon as possible when you have had the misfortune of having lost Him. Saint Colette answered Satan: “And the thing that makes hell what it is, is that it will last for all eternity.” – “Eternity! Eternity!” repeated Satan with a cry capable of cleaving rocks. “If Christians understood you, we would never succeed in making them offend God.” This little event in the life of Saint Colette speaks for itself. Blessed eternity is to be with God. The eternity of hell is to be separated from God. If only we understood this! We have our whole life to understand it, my brothers and sisters.

Standard-bearer of the Cross

The Church has composed a hymn in honor of Saint Michael the Archangel that we find in the missal on his feast day. In the second stanza we sing: “Thy thousand thousand hosts are spread, Embattled o’er the azure sky; But Michael bears Thy standard dread, And lifts the mighty cross on high.” These hosts are all the Angels. To Saint Michael it is reserved to carry the standard of the Cross as his trophy. This prerogative is his by right because he was the first to fight and work for the glory of God. Saint Michael loved the will of God so much! And the more God’s will has been made manifest throughout the course of history, the more he has loved it. When he saw the Word of God making the choice of salvation by the Cross, and when he saw Satan, his adversary, obsessed with bitter hatred for the Cross, the Holy Archangel became the greatest lover of the Cross, although he would never be able to die upon a cross. Satan, seeing the supreme good, the salvation that comes by it, became the greatest enemy of the Cross. As much as Satan hates it, so much does Saint Michael love it, so much does he work to have the Cross loved by the souls that God has entrusted to him. The Cross is not for the Angels, it is the prerogative of men. Not only are we humans entitled to this trophy, but Jesus makes an urgent invitation concerning it in the Gospel: If you want to follow Me, take up your cross, carry it, let it be your standard. Take up your cross! Sometimes we let complaints escape us: “Oh, it’s no joke! Carrying the cross really hurts!” We lament. We must follow Jesus and carry our cross. For Saint Michael, it is an honor to carry the Cross. Let us ask him to communicate to us this glory of carrying our cross, to make us understand the honor that God is giving us by calling us to walk behind Him with His Cross. If we could understand this with our heart, we would stop despising our crosses, we would stop moaning and murmuring. May the Cross be our glory as it was the glory of the Saints. See Saint Louis Mary de Montfort, lover and apostle of the Cross. Saint John of the Cross, Saint Teresa of Avila, Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Mother d’Youville, Saint Peter the Apostle ‒ name all the Saints, they all found their glory in the Cross. Aware of the greatness of the Cross, Saint Peter loved it intensely. He knew that it identified him very closely to Jesus. Condemned to die upon a cross like his Divine Master, it was too great an honor for him! “I, Peter, a vile sinner, a renegade, am going to die like Jesus upon a cross? That is too great an honor!” It was a real drama for him. He sought a compromise ‒ not to suffer less, but because he was convinced that he did not deserve the honors given to his Master. So Peter said, “Crucify me head down!” Roman law did not specify the direction in which the cross was to be set, so the executioners inverted it. Saint Peter died on an inverted cross. At the end of time, at the Last Judgment, Jesus will appear with His Cross. Many Saints go so far as to assume that it will be Saint Michael who will carry the Cross of Jesus. This is a hypothesis, but I mention it to show you the greatness of the Cross and the greatness of Saint Michael for having willed God’s will. He adored all the wills of God profoundly, even those that did not concern him personally. For men, salvation comes by the Cross. We might say that the Cross is not for the Angels; and yet, Saint Michael saw that the Cross was for them too. By this sign, God manifested His love to man. Saint Michael adhered so much to God that he became a participant in that love.

The Immaculate Virgin and Saint Michael

I would like to read something from chapter twelve of the Apocalypse, which you know well. A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. And being with child, she cried out in her travail and was in the anguish of delivery. And another sign was seen in heaven, and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads seven diadems. And his tail was dragging along the third part of the stars of heaven, and it dashed them to the earth. The Church interprets this passage as representing the third part of the angels who rebelled against God. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, that when she had given birth, he might devour her son. In this woman, you recognize the Mother of God. Satan, very attentive, wants to devour Her Child, who is indeed the Son of God, the Messiah. The devil wants to prevent the accomplishment of this messianic mission. He thought he had devoured Him, that is, eliminated Him, exterminated Him, destroyed Him by the Cross. But His Cross was our salvation. The sacred text continues: And she gave birth to a male child, who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that there they may nourish her a thousand two hundred and sixty days. You remember the message that was given to us here: “The Church is in the desert; it is the desert that protects the Church.” The Church must remain in the desert for the time being in order to be protected. And there was a battle in Heaven; Michael and his angels battled with the dragon... This was an event that took place in Heaven even before the creation of man, which has also taken place on earth and will happen again. And the dragon fought and his angels. And they did not prevail, neither was their place found any more in heaven. And that great dragon was cast down, the ancient serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, who leads astray the whole world; and he was cast down to the earth and with him his angels were cast down. And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “Now has come the salvation, and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been cast down, he who accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him through the blood of the Lamb and through the word of their witness, for they did not love their lives even in face of death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell therein. Woe to the earth and to the sea, because the devil has gone down to you in great wrath, knowing that he has but a short time. Saint John speaks of the blood of the Lamb. There is a great mystery surrounding the blood of the Lamb, surrounding the blood of Jesus. We know that it is by His blood that He works out the redemption of men. There is a mystery here which is beyond us, and which we will understand only in Heaven. The blood of the Lamb was shed with an incomprehensible love; it is truly a gift of God. By His blood, He proves His love to men. When the dragon saw that he had been cast down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But to the woman were given the two wings of the great eagle, so that she could fly into the desert in her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time away from the face of the serpent. Without comprehending the succession of times and half times, we can see here that the place where the woman takes refuge is like an ark, to be protected from the serpent’s rage and the ocean of lies and evil that covers the earth. Those who truly want to adhere and submit completely to the will of God are protected in the desert and safe from the serpent. And the serpent cast out of its mouth after the woman water like a river, that it might carry her away by the river. But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the river which the dragon had cast out of its mouth. And the dragon was angry against the woman, and went to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. This twelfth chapter of the Apocalypse speaks of Saint Michael and the Woman who fight together and will win the great victory over the devil. A great battle is in store for them. It has already taken place, and it will happen again. We do well to place ourselves under such good guardianship: that of the Mother of God and Saint Michael. With them we are well protected.

Procurator of God

The most classic, traditional image of Saint Michael is the one in which he is piercing the dragon with one hand and holding a scale in the other. The scale indicates that Saint Michael the Archangel presents souls to God at the moment of death, as attested by many Saints. As in a court of justice, Saint Michael is the general advocate, the accredited procurator of God for all human beings. The Virgin Mary has a predominant role, but the role of one does not detract from the other’s. In the particular judgment, Saint Michael presents the works of men to God, weighing good and evil. We might also regard him under another aspect. His scale weighs the soul: Did it really want the will of God? Did it humbly submit to EVERY will of God? Judgment is based on this. When the soul failed, did it regret it? Did it really have remorse, contrition? This is where the Precious Blood comes into play. Saint Michael puts the weight of the Precious Blood on one side of the scale. The soul that wills the will of God adheres to the Redemption, adheres to the path of suffering that Jesus willed when He went up Calvary. When the sinful soul acknowledges its sin, regrets it, weeps over it, asks God forgiveness for it with true sorrow, and at every failure, adheres again to the will of God, when it accepts suffering in reparation, the weight of the Precious Blood still prevails. That soul is judged according to the level of its adherence to the will of God, according to the measure of the sorrow it has had in relation to all that has offended God in its life. This is what makes the right platter on the scale prevail. Saint Michael presents the soul to God. He knows how to recognize a soul humbly submitted to God. He observes souls, he is very attentive to help us in practicing these virtues.

All-powerful prayer

In order to live this teaching, we must pray humbly. Everyone must pray on his own, but there is a special power in collective prayers. Jesus said, Wherever two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them. That is why we organize special days of prayer: the world is in such great need of them! Instead of commenting on events and repeating that things are not going well, let us enter into prayer, let us turn to God. Let us adore His will and accomplish it. All our prayers should be directed towards this goal. “My God, we pray to You for the grace to do Your will, and to accomplish it with all the love in our heart as Your very first Saint, Michael the Archangel, did. Humbly, he adored the will of God, he loved it. That is what we want to do.” If we do this, my brothers and sisters, we will have in our hands the most powerful weapon for defeating the devil. Saint Michael the Archangel provided proof of it. The battle was settled very quickly because Michael bowed down before God and adored His will humbly, lovingly. He loved his God, he loved all the wills of God. May your heart be really convinced of this truth. And may all your prayers be for this intention, for yourselves personally and in favor of our brothers and sisters on earth. We have a role as intercessors. We are not here to talk, debate and seek solutions. The solution has been found: this is it. Saint Michael found it instinctively. His love for God made him fall directly upon the solution. May it also be ours. Some people are afraid when they see the situation in the world getting worse. Why be afraid? You are in God’s hands. Do not be afraid. Do what God expects of you and He will take care of the rest. If He needs martyrs, so much the better! The first twelve Apostles were all martyred. Eleven of them died as martyrs. Saint John did not die from it, but they tortured him by plunging him into a vat of boiling oil. By a miracle, he came out of it alive, even invigorated, so they sent him to forced labor. He was condemned to work in the salt mines at the age of ninety. He was an old man! Saint John went there with his heart full of love. The Apostles are somewhat idealized, but they were simple people like us. They gave their lives to God with tremendous love. There is no need to be afraid. We must go wherever the will of God sends us. If the will of God tells you: “You are going to continue stirring cement” then stir cement. If it tells you to rake little pebbles, then rake little pebbles. If it tells you to peel vegetables or wash dishes, do it good-heartedly, with love, to obey God. Do not lose your peace over earthly things. Think of the glory of God. May Saint Michael give you a little of his courage, a little of his strength, a little of his love for the will of God! Did Saint Michael think about what he might have to suffer when the Lord put him to the test? “I might be scorned” He did not know what strength God would give him. He bowed down from the outset: “My God, I want Your will, I love it. I humble myself before Your will. And if You want to lower me even further, if You want me to be beneath man, I will lower myself even further.” It was immense for an Angel to stoop lower than man, so immense that a third of the Angels did not pass the test. Saint Michael did not think about that for a second. For him it was nothing to stoop before a man if God asked for it. This must be your way of thinking, my brothers and sisters. Let us pray for this intention: May God give this grace to me and to all of you, to serve the Lord without fear. The only thing we must fear is disobeying God. I am not afraid of Satan, the enemy. I am only afraid of not obeying God. “My God, be attentive. Protect me. I know myself, I am afraid of myself. I do not want to disobey You. I want nothing in me to be against Your will.” If wicked men made us suffer, if they even killed our body, that is nothing. Be convinced of this, my brothers and sisters. Do not be afraid. If God asks you for one thing or another, do not begin to think in a human way: “Oh, things are going so badly in the world. What is going to happen to me?” Do not think about that. Think of God, think of His glory, think of His service, think of loving Him. Be afraid of offending Him. Be afraid of your arrogance, your pride that holds your nose up in the air. That is the only fear you should have. It is the only evil. The rest is nothing.

Power of Saint Michael

I recommend that you pray to Saint Michael the Archangel, who is also the special patron of the Holy Church. Let us invoke him in a special way, let us implore him, for God has given him a very special power. All the Saints have exceptional powers, and we experience their power of intercession before God. But apart from the Blessed Virgin Mary, our good Mother, in a way Saint Michael is superior to all the others. Let us contemplate his examples. When God announced His plan to create man, a plan that humiliated Lucifer and the rebellious angels, the Angel Michael did not have the example of any Saint before him to help him react, not even the example of the Incarnate Word of God. Faced with this design which might humble his angelic condition which was superior to that of man, Michael did not adopt a natural way of reasoning. He bowed down before God, he willed what God willed. He is our model. He is the first one who lived this absolute fidelity to God. Because of this, God gave him a special power to help those who want to be faithful to Him, want to obey Him, want to be humble, want to be His true servants. More than any other, Saint Michael the Archangel has a special power of intercession. Do not hesitate to invoke him. Great Saint Michael the Archangel, show us your power. Obtain for us the courage to love. Obtain for us the true love of the will of God that will cause us to fear no suffering, no abasement, no humiliation, no human displeasure.

Let Us Pray! – To be souls filled with God Renounce all things Be attentive to God Lovers of the Cross Docility to the Holy Spirit – So that all things may be renewed Prayer – To be true servants of God Fidelity in the little things – May the designs of God be fulfilled Faith in the action of Providence Prayer and Penance Adoration of Jesus Host – To live in intimacy with God The reading of the Gospel – May God’s Kingdom come! Prayer – To hasten the hour of salvation for the Church and the world Invitation to fight – May God find these generous souls Be true – With grace and truth Patience – Graciously! Do violence to ourselves – To attain holiness The summit of Adoration No one can serve two masters The anguish of God What is most pleasing to God Aging is a Grace Secret of Happiness – The Beatitudes The true essence of the Holy Church of Jesus Christ ADVENT Prepare the Way of the Lord ADVENT Prepare the Coming of Jesus ADVENT Awaken Thy Power, O Lord, and come! CHRISTMAS Beside the manger CHRISTMAS He came unto His own and His own received Him not… EASTER Jesus, Light of the World Purgatory, an instrument of Divine Mercy A page from the Gospel – Jesus lost and found in the Temple The Feast of the Visitation and of the Magnificat The Assumption of the Virgin Mary The Secret of the Rosary Mary, Mother of God and our Mother Glorious Saint Joseph, our Model Saint Michael the Archangel, Champion of Humility