The teaching is to love one another: to be present and kind and giving. Mystical communion is not the goal. This giving of self, this emptying of self, are the way to mystical communion.
Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on us.
May we be the instruments of that mercy!
"Love one another as I have loved you."
We resolved to follow the Lord Jesus Christ into the depths of the heart. And to remain there.
Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me.
Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me.
Lord Jesus Christ, son of the living God, have mercy on us.
We went there, down there, and waited for the Lord. And He revealed Himself to us: His blessed radiance overwhelming us and leading us home.
Francis said, "My soul is an empty altar, bare, stark. My soul is an empty altar where sacrifice is offered every day. Every day. He had asked me, 'Do you want a share in this?' And I, being young, said, 'Yes.' Of course, I did not know what I was saying. Not that I regret that assent - I do not. But living in this way, being held on this Way, well - let's just say I had no idea the cost, what would be required.
"Now I am destroyed by this offering. I am destroyed by the perpetual sacrifice. Still, I am maintained here: not against my will, for I do say yes. Somehow, I am maintained by His will. I sit in this stillness and wait. Wait and assent to the sacrifice as it goes on here." And he pointed with two fingers toward his heart.
Francis said, "Listen. Your pain is great. Why are you carrying this? Why do you think that you should carry it? Let go. Let go into the Lord God. If you are unable to do that, loosen your grip a bit. If even that is too much for you, ask Him to come in. Wait. See what happens."
Francis said, "We went down into the nothingness of all things and wanted only to remain there. And we did for long periods. It was painful to return and some of us wept when we did. We had been allowed to taste the essence. We had seen how things really are. We knew. And we did not want to leave that awareness to go about in the world. We knew that which had been revealed to John, that we were in this world and not of it."
I asked, "How do you deal with the accusation that you are merely living in an escapist fantasy in which you tell yourself that you are one of the special ones, and thereby avoid the meaninglessness of real life?"
Francis closed his eyes and was still.
I was afraid that I had hurt him. But he had gone within and I knew from past encounters that it might be some time before he said anything. I resolved to wait with him in the stillness.
Francis said, "The great mistake is thinking that you can or should be able to stay sober by yourself. You cannot. Indeed, in God's economy, you should not. We are communal beings. Every recovering addict knows in his gut that he has not achieved sobriety. Sobriety is gift. When one grasps at it, it slips through one's fingers like water. Allow all of this to be, and be freed from the burden of self."