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Heavenly vision.
The merits of the Heart of Jesus make up for all our miseries, and the love we have for Him erases our unworthiness. Here is what we read about this in the writings of St. Catherine of Genoa:
God showed her the love with which He had suffered for her. And when her soul saw this great, pure and vehement love of God for her…, she understood at the same time the great malignity of man, and the inconceivable love that God continually exercises towards him, always doing him good almost in spite of himself, and without looking at the evils he does. He never ceases to work with infinite means what is profitable and useful to man, not being irritated by the offences he commits, but expecting and seeking his amendment with pure love, always having in view his eternal salvation.
The Saint also saw what man’s being was, and saw that he was almost as evil and wicked as God is good. This sight plunged her into such despair of herself that, not wanting to waste any more time thinking about it to seek some remedy, she put all her trust in God and said to Him: “Lord, I make an offering of myself to You, because I no longer know what I should do, seeing that I am only fit and proper to make myself a hell. Also, Lord, I would like to make an exchange with You, and give You my evil being in your hands, because You alone can hide it and swallow it up in Your goodness…” Our Lord, having indicated to her that He was pleased with this offering, poured into her heart a ray of love so ardent, fiery and penetrating, that He stripped her in an instant of all attachment to the comforts and joys of this world. This ray of love remained imprinted in her heart along with the five wounds of Our Lord Jesus Christ, which sent drops of blood burning with love and ardent towards man… She saw very clearly what she was, and saw herself as being so restrained and guarded by God that whenever God had abandoned her, she would have been very quick to do all her works with as much malice as the devil. But she did not fear, seeing herself in the hands of God. The sight that tormented her and made her burn was that of God’s ardent love for man; she said that the vehement fire she felt could not be expressed with human language.
