Lest You Remain

so that we always burn with your fire and never be consumed by it; so that we always long for you but be never sated!” It is impossible to understand Fr. Stanislaus, his efforts on the road to faithful- ness to the religious vocation, his sufferings during the establishing of the new community, his apostolic zeal in proclaiming Good News to the poor and forgot- ten, his fervent penance and prayer for the souls in Purgatory, if we do not see in his heart the flames of divine love. Thus, this wish of his does not come as a sur- prise: “Oh love […] my supreme good my ardent love of neighbor - never fail me and never be extinguished in my heart. Be my constant companion: in my every thought, every decision, every intention and action! Do not ever leave me!” In this light we can understand Fr. Stanislaus’s words that he often repeated: “O Lord, increase my suffering so that You may diminish the punishment of the souls in Purgatory.” It was not suffering for the sake of suffering, but it was the matter of greater love that finds its manifestation in suffering. The love consists of gift-giving understood as a meeting, for loving someone means not so much to give something, but to be with this person and to love him/her. Love lays at the root of Fr. Stanislaus’s apostolic involvement. He loved people. When experiencing God’s love, he wanted to be there for them, with love . Each apostolic action has a Christian meaning if it flows from love, if it is a sign from God who loves us; if He reveals to us the Image of a loving and merciful God. Unfortunately, it is possible to choose a road of a seeming love. It is possible for one to serve the others but only in the manner of showing love to oneself, in other words, to get a satisfaction and a feeling of superiority. If one breaks away from the fount of God’s love, one risks losing the disinterestedness in dealings with people, in serving them. Thus, one must constantly take care of being in close unity with God, of the beauty of one’s heart, of the inner transparency. Love and beauty create a mutual condition: true love can only be beautiful, while beauty that enrap- tures us can only be a result of love. In order not to lose our fascination with God’s love we must take constant care of love. It is necessary above all to contemplate God’s love, which manifests itself in the mystery of creation and salvation. Father Stanislaus encourages us to ponder daily this mystery as the fullest sign of God’s love. Our care for love also finds its expression in denying ourselves (making atonement) and in concrete acts of love, not only in talking about it (deeds of mercy, not only talk about deeds of mercy). “Bonum est concretum” said St. Thomas Aquinas. Goodness is concrete. Love is concrete. L EST Y OU R EMAIN W ITHOUT W ORK IN THE V INEYARD OF THE L ORD 218