Sister Faustina Kowalska: Her LIfe and MIssion

tinue to kg-ep this same simplicity and o6edience. lHave confidence in Qod; you are on the right path and in good hands, in good hands, in Qod's hands." (Op. cit. para. 257). Following step by step a fte r S is te r F au s tina and read ing h e r writings with care, we have the opportunity to observe a t close qua rte rs h e r simply heroic a ttem p ts to s tand before the a l ta r as a worthy spouse of the Lord. As she understood m a tte rs , above all i t was necessary to clarify and arrange two m a tters: com­ munion with Jesus , and work for Him, both th a t undertaken by herself, and th a t which He requested of her. She tried to do th is resolutely ignoring th e un ­ p leasan tness and hum iliation th is afforded her, since she believed th a t in th is way she was fulfilling the will of God. Her whole a tten tion was concentrated upon these two problems. Meanwhile, Je su s - as we shall see in a moment - wanted something more. He wished th a t she, as His spouse, would place h e r whole self a t th e disposal of His love for sinners, and th a t , like Himself, she would make a sacrifice of he rse lf to God to atone for the ir sins. He wished th a t no t only should she faithfully follow His instructions, b u t also th a t she should supplement His sacrifice both passively and actively: passively, through bearing hum ilia tions w ithout com­ p la in t - all those un ju s t judgm en ts on her, spiteful deeds and tormenting; actively, through h e r perm anen t readiness to give charitable aid and service to her neighbour w ithout counting th e cost she would have to pay, even to emptying he rse lf completely. Here we en ter the g rea tes t mystery of the intimacy of the soul with God when the Son of God wishes to b ring the soul closer to Himself by including its fate with His own. Je su s did no t make th is reque s t suddenly. He did not shock His spouse. He wished th a t she decide herself, fully conscious of what she was doing. He had therefore for years prepared and made h e r used to the idea of 136