« God's affinity with my soul manifests itself in an ineffable hazy caress when I approach him. I think, I feel him close to me; I create, I feel it closer; I love, I feel him closer; I dedicate myself, I feel him even closer. »
(Victor Hugo)Contributions of Victor Hugo on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, God
or DEATH
It doesn't matter who solicits you.
God doesn't ask you to love him, but to help him. « We must learn to give,
while understanding those who only know how to take. »
« If you can be robbed of what you receive, who has the power to rob you of what you give ?
(...) I ask you to live not by what you receive but by what you give, for that alone increases you. And this does not command you to despise what you give. »
« You have to rejoice in being able to give yourself for the benefit of others. Give them plenty, and watch them flee to the bottom of their lair with their hands full of the boons they've gained, they're transported. Give more, give your heart. »
It is a great law here below: one must give.
Each herb gives its fruit, each being gives.
It's the law. Everyone is obligated to it.
We [ Angels and Men ], we are free to do so.
We GIVE freely.
« I would like you to share your experience with as many humans as possible.
Write, write, the world of men is in great need of certainties. He no longer understands his life or his purpose. Let him learn that death is not death. »
(D. Meurois and A. Givaudan, 'Par l’esprit du Soleil')Contributions by Anne Givaudan on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, HEALTH
or DEATH
« Your mission is to open the eyes of those who seek God. »
NOT PARTICIPATE IN DARKNESS
BUT RADIATE LIGHT, ALWAYS AND EVERYWHERE!
AT THEN THE DARKNESS WILL FLEE.
How do you know there is darkness?
What makes a room dark?
The lamp that does not burn.
The lamp is responsible.
Light up men and do not be saddened by the darkness.
Give a little of yourself (Mike Brant)
Give, give, give a little of yourself
When you are happy
When everything is going well for you
Give, give, give every moment
A little bit of your life
Never pretend
▼See more...▼
Give, give, give a little of yourself
Share with those
Who have nothing left already
Give, give, give a little hope
To those who are looking for it
And don't dare to believe in it anymore
Give, give a little warmth
To those who are cold in the heart
And who are all alone on earth
Give them your joys, open your arms to them
Give, give, give without counting the cost
The best of you, friendship
And if one day you are sad
They will not forget, they will come to you
Give, give, give a little of yourself
Share with those
Who have nothing left
Give, give, give a little hope
To those who seek it
And don't dare to believe in it anymore
Give, give a little warmth
To those who are cold in the heart
And who are all alone on Earth
Give them your joys, open your arms to them
Give, give a little more often
Your bursts of laughter, your springtimes
And if one day, you are sad
They will not forget, they will come to you
Give, give, give a little of yourself
When you are happy
When everything is going well for you
Give, give, give every moment
A little bit of your life
Never pretend
Give, give, give a little of yourself
Share with those
Who have nothing left already
Give, give, give a little hope
▲Fold▲
But how can I help
if I am suffering myself?
Two miseries that support each other are diminished.
« Reducing your pain is not the goal; your goal is to use your heightened sensitivity (by suffering) to help others. »
« Their smiles (of the little ones she looks after) make me happy. When we try to do good for others, we do so much for ourselves. Is it possible that humanity as a whole is taking so long to realise this ? »
On the contrary, we read in the book "The Explorer of the Beyond" :
✱ the one who has done evil is the best placed to understand and help the one who is bogged down in it.
✱ he is supported in this task by beings a little more evolved
The fulfillment of our being
« The purpose of our life during our passage on Earth, then after our death, in the various worlds of the beyond, is an increasingly complete realization of our being. »
« Every soul must become aware of itself little by little.
In evolution, the mineral will become vegetable, the vegetable will become animal and the animal will become human. It is the long chain of life. »
(Hélène Bouvier, medium, "Mission of souls in the afterlife")
« The important thing for you is to evolve in order to modify your vibrational state.
The Earth is a domain that allows the soul to modify its vibrations through more or less difficult life experiences. »
(R. Terral-Meyer, 'Lettres de l’invisible')
continued... than him; themselves supported and advised from a higher level. It is therefore a real chain with Heaven that is established for those who ask for help.
✱ one should not wait for a sign from Heaven to do good, nor wait to be elevated oneself, butTO ACT, at our level; the one where the Angels cannot intervene, because "only a man's word can help a man". But they will give us courage, inspiration and protect us. We just have to draw on our experiences, our faults, our failures, our mistakes...
An essential chain
But the suffering of the world is such...
« Every step you take, every hand you extend will perhaps be the first gesture towards improvement, healing. »
(J.-M. Vianney, the priest of Ars)
« Don't look for big things, just do small things with great love. »
« One evening, while walking, I met a little girl in tears. In his eyes I read a sorrow that dazzled me. If I refuse, Lord, to know him, I refuse a part of the world. May this little girl be consoled! Because only then will the world be well. She too is a sign of the world. »
« Listen, for the little one... so much sorrow, so much despair, we must help him, many words have torn his heart. You must open your arms to him.
Help him, because through him, you are helping all of humanity. »
(A. Ray-Wendling, "A Sun Too Late")Contributions by Anne Ray-Wendling on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« What we are accomplishing is just a drop in the ocean, but if this drop did not exist, it would be missing forever in the ocean. »
« In every bulletin, Mother Teresa urged her collaborators not to shy away from the humblest tasks. Nothing is too small, from writing a letter for a needy person to helping the elderly clean their homes or wash their clothes. She repeatedly stressed that the big tasks should be left to others.
She spoke of a woman so lonely that she had come to write letters to herself. These are the lives she urged to illuminate. »
If you sense the other person's distress but you don't know what to say, If from the bottom of your heart you want to relieve it... then don't say anything, look no further. On the contrary, empty yourself. And ask for help.
« (...) if, by a special grace, my little ego disappears, then... the word flows of its own accord, warms the heart, speaks to the whole man and reaches him in his deepest feelings.
When it's me talking, the verbiage is worthless, and above all without communion with the other person. When ‘it’ speaks, everything is simple and beautiful. The speaker and the listener each receive a golden nugget. »
(Jeanne Guesné, 'The Great Passage')Contributions by Jeanne Guesné on the theme of:The WAY, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« If I can pick up his thoughts before he speaks, I allow myself to pass on the message to be given through his voice. But if I don't want to intervene in this way, I capture my little medium's thoughts and act without using his words, but by formulating my thoughts. This is how we can change the course of your verbal exchange during a discussion or even a conference. »
( R. Terral-Meyer, 'Letters of the Invisible' )
To those who have been enlightened
« Those who know have no right to remain silent. »
« All of you who have received the good word, who are enlightened, instruct the ignorant, spare nothing, give yourselves; you will be helped. Be blades of grass; no matter if you are trampled on or misunderstood, no one knows what can spring from a soul. »
« There are many who have received signs in one form or another. Yet they are silent!
Do not be afraid to bring your witness of faith and consolation to a world steeped in mourning, despair and the disappointments of unfinished works. »
« Mom, a wreath of love should be made by uniting the hearts of mothers who have lost a child. We must compose spiritual families. There are beings who seek each other to assemble their sorrows and their hopes. You have to create the link. »
« We are responsible for our neighbors and our brothers, for those who need our understanding, for those who have stumbled, for those who have fallen. »
« Most of us believe that we have no right to 'interfere' [in the life of others]. We think: "It does not concern us". In fact, of course, that concerns us, my guide taught me: All God asks of you is to try. »
If it seems to us that a piece of advice can help someone to open their eyes to their attitude, then it must be expressed; but taking a lot of precautions:
✱ Let's prepare our talk; it's not about throwing out "truths". Let us extricate from our heart all vanity « You have to forget yourself to grow; if the individual exalts himself on his own importance, the road immediately turns into a wall. »
✱ The interview should take place in private, in a quiet place, when the person is available and somewhat willing. « You must have the courage to warn, to guide those who err on the yardstick (on the base) of the Commandments of God.
In order to help your brothers, you must observe them well and gauge their behavior [before talking]. In order not to pervert your action you must be humble. »
If, despite our precautions, the person we claim to be helping gets offended, then so be it: our silence has not played into the hands of Evil and we have sown a seed.
« We must not be put off by difficult approaches, but resolutely extend our helping hand, even if it must be rebuffed. »
« You, son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman. You must listen to the word that comes out of My mouth and warn from Me. When I say to the wicked one, "Wicked one, you will die", if you do not speak to turn the wicked one from his way, this wicked one will die in his iniquity, and I will demand his blood from you again. But if you warn the wicked and he does not turn away, he will die and you will save your soul. »
(Ezekiel, XXXIII)
« We are responsible for our neighbors and our brothers.
And who is our neighbor? The one who lives next door, or the one who lives on the other side of the world? Neither really one nor really the other, but the one who needs our understanding, the one who stumbled, the one who fell. »
« Often people are afraid to say what they think and end up becoming hypocrites because they are afraid of offending the susceptibility of the listeners. The truth must be told, even if it is hard to hear and unpopular. »
(Gandhi)Contributions of Mahatma Gandhi on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
We may fear that the person will turn against us. Experiences made, it is not so. By applying the above precautions, the person (even angry) inevitably comes to realize that it is for his own good that we have warned him and that we absolutely do not want to interfere in his life. « Speak good words of gentleness, kindness, indulgence; on one word may depend the whole life of one of your brothers. You can give much with the appearance of giving very little, if you give wholeheartedly.
You say a word of encouragement and it seems to you that the soul has not understood it, remains closed, restive, and you believe you have spoken in a vacuum. But, in God's appointed hour, when that soul seeks, it will remember your words. Nothing is lost. »
« If I can give someone joy with a word or a song, if I can show someone that they are on the wrong track, I will not have lived in vain. »
(Martin Luther King, the day before his assassination)Contributions of Martin Luther King on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« You will be responsible to God for the souls you could save, for negligence is a crime. You are guilty if you do not erect the cross on the road of your brothers who abandon themselves to the fatal slope. »
« Do not remove the pebbles on the road of your neighbour, you would prevent him from carrying out his mission.
You'd be preventing him from carrying out the mission for which he wished to return.
Don't let yourself be suffocated either, like the ivy that clings to the tree to kill it. Draw the limits beyond which others must not enter. You owe others the Light for the road, not to do the way for them. It would no longer be Love, because you would prevent them from being fulfilled. »
(A. Ray-Wendling, "A Sun Too Late")Contributions by Anne Ray-Wendling on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« I (guide, having lived through many incarnations) know only too well this attractive power which consists in wanting to remove the stones from the path of others... Do not try to substitute yourself for the guides. Because of you, these beings are regressing. You become a signpost that they blindly follow. And they influence you negatively with their narrow-mindedness. They suck you down without you noticing. »
« When a soul comes to earth for certain lessons or for spiritual evolution, the last thing it needs is to be given the solution. »
(J. Van Praagh, 'Dialogues with the Beyond')Contributions by James Van Praagh on the subject of:The WAY
, LIFE
or DEATH
Do not chew the food in advance! Give differently!
Put in front of the trials, in front of the tasks!
Seduce, attract in your wake! Don't drive by the hand!
You can even jostle the uncertain one a bit.
« (...) If she doesn't ask your opinion, it's because her soul knows she needs this failure to progress. So shut up and listen without saying a word. You yourself don't listen to me when I want to save you the trouble. There have even been times when you've been angry with me for stating an opinion you didn't seek. Always wait for someone to give you the green light before interfering in your neighbor's life. Telling isn't necessarily waiting for advice. »
« To want to help is to absorb the thoughts of others. Some are poisoned. You must learn to protect yourself from them, otherwise they will become yours without you realizing it! If you are fed too many negative thoughts
, you will no longer be able to join the plan of your guides... The worries, the sorrows, the bitterness of others are so many clouds in your Heaven; if you accept them as a reality, they will mask your own sunshine, your joie de vivre. »
This message reminds us that the process of helping involves total self-commitment, and that if you don't feel strong enough, it is better to settle for a benevolent silence, or a kind word.Sylvie Lorain-Berger's Guide recommends that she first listen the one who are suffering
Excerpt from the page : "Human relations"
:
The exchange, to listen
_ _
« I sometimes worry about Westerners' habit of thinking in terms of black/white opposition, for/against, forgetting the interdependence and relativity of facts, too often neglecting the inevitable zone that exists between two points of view. »
« During a dialogue, many men feel immediately prompted to express their approval or an objection, thus projecting onto the sounds heard the reaction of personal feelings; whereas everything should be silent in itself, that both assent and response should be silenced.
We must learn to listen to others, pay all our attention to receiving information about what they say.
Whether it is pleasant or not, pleasant or unsympathetic, only one thing must occupy our soul: what is happening in the being which emits the sound. We thus acquire, by disregarding our own person, the ability to vibrate in unison with another being.
Through the words, we then hear the inner voice of another soul. Sound becomes the best agent for perceiving soul and spirit. »
following..., to resonate with his soul as he expresses his pain. And before giving any advice, ask our guide to inspire us, or invite him to speak through our mouths. If you do not perceive anything, then remember that a benevolent silence is already considerable.
« Developing compassion is not about adding suffering to our own suffering. If the suffering of the person we are helping invades us, we are ineffective. »
« Arnaud speaks to his parents who remained on earth : I would like you to forget me more often! Think of your lives, of your common life by placing first and foremost your love, which draws its essence from Love. Organize your life from you ; live for each other and don't go for actions that are too difficult. You hold within you and between you a spiritual jewel, the true key to the eternal future. Complete your nest. »
Arnaud does not push his parents towards a selfish attitude, but encourages them to first realize their couple, that is to say establish a solid base, before considering supporting others. « Be careful: you must see the full value of your SelfExcerpt from the page: "Taking-back-control"
:
Every being is connected to their inner Self, which is connected to God.
Our inner being
« In you there are two characters, one terrestrial, stuck to matter, mired in its heaviness, and the other celestial, letting itself be carried by the light. The moment you conceive your two poles, you become greedy for unity and begin your quest for purity. But that's also where the trouble begins! In the innocence of unconsciousness you found a certain tranquility, operating in the same patterns for generations, fit to taste the pleasures of the flesh.
However, as soon as your consciousness opens to greater lucidity, your thirst for clarity comes up against the shadows.
In the grip of an existential despair, your mind then plays monumental tricks on you. You become the prey of grief, terrible doubts, loneliness and your impatience.
We are with you more than ever in these wanderings. Because then we recognize in you the flame, the inner fire.
Then begins an interior dialogue between your soul, which has already recognized us, and us who are your servants, your companions on the way. At your side, ready to support you in the difficult passages, smiling at your stammerings as a child of light.
In your heart of hearts, ego of earth and soul of light manifest themselves to each other and show themselves in turn. There is no point in adjusting them with a master's hand, there is no point in wishing for their fruitful friendship. Their role is not to oust each other. Thus you grow, by making in you the union of your part of incarnated man and your part of brilliance of light. It is there, in the balanced axis between these two aspects of yourself, that you touch that you touch the new dimension that allows you to Over-Live (among earthly torments). Then your personality of light irrigates your being incarnated in matter for a happy birth: that of the new Man in you, an incarnated reflection of the Father Creator. »
following...before you can see the full value of someone else. You must first know the holiness of your Self before you can recognize the holiness of someone else. If you put the cart before the horse (as most religions ask you to do) and recognize someone else's holiness before yourself, you will one day resent it. »
You are “the helper”.
Your mistake is to want to distribute the grain without waiting.
Be patient. You can't cut the grain in half.
Bury it deep,
It will grow and multiply,
And then you can share it!
But bury the grain deep...
Deep in the ground,
And let the earth close in on it for a long time...
A long time...
You hardly wait to distribute it.
This is your mistake.
Be patient like the earth, from which you are taken
And you will bear many fruits.
« No one can serve others if he is not sufficiently centered on himself.
However, most of those who say « I will serve men when I am at peace with myself » will never be in the state of purity and tranquility to which they aspire... They will never be there because they pose a condition to the gift of love. »
(D. Meurois and A. Givaudan, 'Par l’esprit du Soleil')Contributions by Anne Givaudan on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, HEALTH
or DEATH
« It's about striving to become better through constant efforts; to pay the utmost attention to ourselves and to others. » ( Mother Teresa )
« Reaching out to others should be the goal of our existence. This gives meaning to life, because love governs life.
The egoist cannot understand it. Even if he has everything he wants, he lacks the essential: the love of others, the happiness of sharing. From then on, he cannot have a harmonious life. »
( Christine André, 'Listen, you need to know' )Contributions by Christine André on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
ou DEATH
« A heart that refuses to listen to others prefers to imprison itself in its own solitude. »
"By opening up and giving oneself to dialogue with others, one begins to transcend one's individual existence and becomes one with oneself and with others."
« I'll tell you about the hearing. If you open your door to the tramp and he sits down, don't blame him for not being different. Don't judge him. For what he first craved was to be there somewhere, in someone's house with his heaviness, his baggage of memories, his labored breathing and his stick in a corner. It was to be there in the warmth and in the peace of your face, just with all his past, which is not in question and all his defects as if undressed. His crutch that he no longer feels since you don't ask him to dance. And then he reassures himself, and the milk you pour him he drinks it, and the bread you break he eats it and the smile you give him is a warm coat like the sun for a blind man.
And where do you see that you give him something, if you don't give him the essential which is the hearing, the very one which can make your relations with your deadliest enemy so noble? What recognition do you expect to draw from him by the burden of your presents? He can only hate you if he leaves your home lost in debt. »
« There are simple ways to remind the afflicted that their plight matters to us. Bring them dinner from time to time, help them clean their house, send them a card of encouragement, call them once a week to inquire about their condition. The slightest effort on your part will mean a lot to them.
Also know how to use delicacy. For example, instead of asking them if they're okay, ask them if they're holding up. The unfortunate can hardly hope for more at the moment. Don't give them "be strong!" »
(Allison Dubois (medium))Contributions by Allison Dubois on the theme of:The WAY, LIFE
or DEATH
- How to help this woman who has lost her child?
« Start by rendering material services to him, doing his administrative procedures, his shopping, his cooking, taking care of his other children, and if possible, hosting one.
Let her talk all she wants about the missing child. For your part, evoke the happy memories you have of him. Let her pour out and cry. At first, it is not good to hold back tears. And if, as often happens, she blames herself, insist that she has nothing to be ashamed of. Tell him that, on the other side, the child will be welcomed by members of his family who left before him, or by female entities whose mission it is.
Avoid the tone of commiseration and phrases like: " You are young, you will have another child. "
(Jean Prieur, "The country after")Contributions by Jean Prieur on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
The home visit
« The servants of the poor will remember to always begin with those who have someone close to them and end with those who are alone, so that they can be with them longer. » (Vincent de Paul)
Extracts from the April 2023 magazine of the Society of St Vincent de Paul
« Our volunteers who visit the brother or sister in material, psychological or spiritual suffering, try to relieve them of the evils of our time by their simple presence, their listening but also, by the frequency of their visit.
As a helper, you have to accept the limit of influence that you can have over the person being helped, even to defend their interests. » (Hubert Derache, president)
« The visit is apparently the simplest action to carry out, but from experience, it appears complex. » (Hubert Derache) « The encounter is not primarily intended to 'rescue' the other, but to 'meet' them. » (Alain Durand)
The first contacts
« When I enter a person's home, it is Moses who takes off his shoes facing the burning bush. It's sacred to enter people's homes. We arrive on tiptoe.
The volunteer offers a precious commodity that is often lacking in professionals: time. » (Dominique Garnier) « When we go to someone's home, we go there in the spirit of being invited. Before entering into his intimacy, one remains first on the threshold. » (Sophie Marshal) « Going to someone's home requires confronting what, for oneself, would be inconceivable. » (Meghann Marsotto) « It can take a long time for the current to flow. Very precarious people often live in shame, isolation, fear of the gaze of the other. They were victims of discrimination, rejection. » (Sophie Marshal)
We bring "outside" with us.
« When I arrive in the intimacy of the person well dressed, with my hair, well in my skin, it can be a form of aggression for some.
When you are dealing with someone unpleasant, it can be the expression that the person does not support his situation and she blames you for being in better shape. » (Dominique Garnier) « Sometimes, however, it is enough to find “the key”, a center of common interest. » (Sophie Marshal)Otherwise, there is a catch-all: humor, (self-)derision.
The approach
« Above all, it is important to listen to the person, what is important to them, what they want to make progress on as a priority, to encourage them to express their personality beyond the apparent shortcomings. » (Sophie Marshal) « Never make a decision in place of the person visited. » (Listening training) « Some make conversation, others read, others render small practical services. We can share a coffee or better do something together, like baking a cake or a simple walk. » (Meghann Marsotto) « You have to take the time to discover the other, their lifestyle, to respect their rhythm as much as possible. Some cognitive disabilities lead to the need to repeat, to say things more slowly, to ensure that the message gets through, to accept the time for assimilation, not to want to fill in the silences at all costs, to allow time to formulate a response... » (Sophie Alric) « To marvel, to congratulate the person for what they have done (knitting, embroidery, canvas, layout of the room, etc.”) (Listening training) « You have to protect yourself – because you can be exhausted or bruised; but beware of indifference. The word of the other must not ricochet on us. » (Regine Racine) « The virulence of the prophets' and Christ's apostrophes has no other purpose than to shake us out of our indifference. »
('Sister Emmanuelle's Farewell')Contributions by Sister Emmanuelle on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
Balance the exchange
« Give, receive, and return.
If in my head I talk about helping, doing something for someone... it's imbalance, I'm going to create a debt. » (Marcel Mauss) « A friendly relationship is difficult when the balance tips more to one side. You have to find a way to enter into a relationship of exchange; what the accompanied people very often want.
We must not be satisfied with having a clear conscience because despite ourselves, we can behave hurtfully. Like declining a gift considering the low income of the person. We must allow this gesture to rebalance things and allow the restoration of dignity, the release of charity. We must accept to receive and not trivialize what we receive, even if it is something very simple. Thus, we give back to the person some power over us. » (Yves Darel)
Take notes
« Noting our observations makes it possible to follow the evolution of the relationship, take up again a delicate thread, not to forget anything, to put things in perspective or to understand them differently with hindsight. » (Sophie Marshal)
The Prayer of the Staircase
« My God, how difficult it is sometimes to go on a visit!... I have my own concerns, and I dread the inertia and the entanglement in the difficulties of the person I am going to visit. Lord, allow me to see you through this suffering brother or sister. Guide me, inspire me. »
A contribution, sometimes in two directions
« The volunteer brings his empathy and his sense of listening, which are not always easy to establish during the first visits. The goal is for the person visited to regain their dignity and self-confidence, often lost over the hardships they have gone through. The visitor then feels the infinite joy of receiving more than he has given. » (Hubert Derache) « People at the end of life offer a vision that we don't have because we are not at that stage of the journey. It's very rich. » (Regine Racine)
Testimony
« A series of difficulties led my husband and me to the streets. ATD Fourth World allowed our son to take a vacation in the mountains. That's how we made friends with the volunteers who helped us with the steps to find a job and housing.
I understood that, even if I had fallen low, it was not necessarily final. It's hard to be rejected by society, by family. We had to rebuild ourselves as parents, as a couple. » (Pascalina)
« Apart from the exchange, it is only shriveling.
I am no longer interested either in the vanities, or in the anger, or in the pretensions of men, or in the goods that may fall to me, or in the evils that may strike me, but in that alone in which I exchange myself. »
« My colleagues are surprised that I invest myself so much in the emotional relationship. They mention the necessary "therapeutic distance", a safeguard for the patient as well as for the therapist: do not touch, do not speak (I encountered the same disapproval for my visits to Nursing home: you have to keep a distance - physical and moral, under no circumstances mention your own problems, space out visits...). »
( Marie de Hennezel, psychologist, 'The intimate death' )
« Humility of heart does not require that you humble yourself but that you open up. This is the key to exchanges. Only then can you give and receive. And I don't know how to distinguish these two words for a same path. »
« These rivers which die sterile, not having been, along the banks, changed into trees, changed into grass, changed into food for men.
(...) Life only has meaning if it is exchanged little by little.
(...) Those who exchange nothing become nothing. And life will not have served to ripen them. And time flows for them like a handful of sand and loses them. And what have I to give to God in their name? »
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, confided at the end of her life:
«I have to learn to receive, to say thank you, but also patience and surrender. Throughout my life, I gave, gave, but I never knew how to receive. Today is my lesson: learn to receive love, care, discover in my turn what it is to be mothered. I realized that I had built a great stone wall around my heart to protect me from injury. But this wall also stood in the way of love. »
« Receiving is different from accepting. Receiving is first of all a gift, that of oneself. Miserly he who does not give the light of his face in exchange for your offering. Stingy the earth which does not become more beautiful when you have sown seeds on it. »
« I have never initiated a political discussion with a guard. I listened to them. You have more impact when you respond to someone who asks you a question. If you speak without being asked, people may blame you and you will not convince. »
( Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964, released in 1990 )
« The great charity is to listen; but very few people are so detached from themselves as not to bring their individuality into play. »
« In the shanty town of Cairo, Abbé Pierre shook the dirty hands of the rag pickers with warm friendship. He said nothing, not knowing Arabic, but he looked at them with extraordinary intensity. We were all deeply moved.
In France, one day I experienced this look. In a courtyard a North African stood with his back against a wall, looking aggressive. The memory of Abbé Pierre suddenly came back to me, so I tried to put my heart in my eyes. Surprised that a French woman would show him this friendship, he looked left and right. It hurt me! I entered the building, but when I came out, he was waiting for me. He took a step towards me, and I towards him. He held out his hand to me and I took it. We said nothing, but our two hands have clasped and our gazes were exchanged with such warmth that each of us heard this message: "You are my sister, I am your brother, I love you". »
('Sister Emmanuelle's Farewell')Contributions by Sister Emmanuelle on the theme of:The WAY, LOVE, LIFE or DEATH
( Marie de Hennezel, psychologist, 'The intimate death' )
Shake hands, of course, warmly, fraternally. But also squeeze the shoulder in a friendly way, run your hand over the upper back as if for a light massage. And even, why not, hug him if you feel that the other person needs it.
The prisoners
« Inmates have always aroused my compassion. I have visited a great many of them. Their distress seems appalling to me. What a wound their past has left them, what anguish their future gives them! Driven to violence by sad circumstances, they are rejected and as if caged by a terrified society, in a position of defense.
Their past is none of my business. The prisoners are human beings, brothers. Deep down, where does their destiny come from? largely from the environment. Which led me to say to them: "I could have been in your place if I had had to face your temptations; and you in mine if you had been, like me, preserved." »
('Sister Emmanuelle's Farewell')Contributions by Sister Emmanuelle on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« For a prisoner, every visit has an importance that is difficult to explain in words. Routine is the supreme law of a prison, and each day is in every way similar to the one that preceded it: same faces, same dialogues, same smells, and same omnipresent feeling that outside there exists an exciting world to which you have no access. A visit is always an unforgettable event, because it breaks the monotony and the whole world literally floods into the cell. »
( Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964, released in 1990 )
« The power of the spirit transforms the prisoner into a free man. It's only my bones and flesh that are trapped behind these thick walls. »
( Nelson Mandela )
And the criminals?
"The best we can do for those who are incarcerated is to awaken them to the sanctity of life and to help them reintegrate into society.
I know it seems unrealistic, but if we kill a person before the soul has served its time on earth, we take away any chance of reform and rehabilitation. It only takes a moment to see the Light of God and be transformed.
The door to growth and awakening must remain constantly open."
(J. Van Praagh, 'Dialogues with the Beyond')Contributions by James Van Praagh on the subject of:The WAY
, LIFE
or DEATH
“These are beings in great suffering who are lost inside themselves. So, instead of showering them with reproaches, send them light, kindness, compassion, love. Even if they reject you, keep trying! Know that it’s not you they’re rejecting, it’s themselves. Many parents feel helpless, pushed away and think that their children don't love them. While it is themselves that they do not love. Like all beings on earth, they feel a duality, even if it is unconscious: the soul "pulls" on one side and the personality on the other, which creates an internal conflict. And the human personality likes ease; for example, it is easier to pour yourself a drink than to get up and say that you are going to do things differently.
Often the teenager or adult who fills himself with video games or food lacks nothing materially, but they feel an emptiness within themselves. Hear their dull calls. Open that hole in their hearts, even if you think they aren't listening to you. Speak to them heart to heart, soul to soul and do not use reproach or your fears. »
( V. Bobée et V. Germont, 'Follow your soul, it knows the way' )
_ _
« Who goes to the end of the earth to serve sees his ambition disappointed. » (Gandhi)Contributions of Mahatma Gandhi on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
The difficulty of helping
**
« To bring back the lost, you have to leave your home and your comfort, and go find them where they are. The Messiah who would only seek to save the Righteous is not the real one. More than the saints, the disbelievers need salvation. »
« [...] I don't know how you're going to be able to help him, but I think you'll find out. In life, it's often like that. We accept or we refuse. If you accept, you will find within yourself the answers you need. »
« You have to have known suffering to find the words and the means to relieve that of others.
By reflecting, by feeling concerned by their suffering, we find the means to come to their aid. »
« Your personal journey aims to raise you to levels where suffering no longer exists. Remaining in the same feelings as those of your protégés does not help them in any way... Feeding on them leads you towards depression. »
« It would be futile for me, if I were a liar, to want to inculcate frankness in my children. How to initiate others to dominate themselves if you are unable to do so yourself. So I had to constantly be a lesson in things for those around me. Basically, they are the ones who have become my masters. »
(Gandhi)Contributions of Mahatma Gandhi on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« One can only communicate to others what one is deeply oneself. Hence the importance of building oneself internally to the point of being able to reflect oneself in others. »
☞ Cf. chapter above
"Work first on our own elevation"Message received by Sylvie Lorain-Berger (medium) from her deceased brother: « Your open-mindedness has brought me a lot. I, in spite of myself, bathed in the scent of spiritual knowledge, and my soul was inspired by it to develop. Even if I didn't want to hear your statements, my soul fed on this knowledge. It was all in my subconscious.
At the time of my release I remembered your words and it helped me a lot; I could have remained in a certain obscurity… Believing in nothingness, some deceased live it…. »
«For a believer, no proof is necessary. For a skeptic none is enough. » (folk wisdom)
In the face of disbelief
* *
« Even if someone rises from the dead, they will not be convinced. »
(Gospel of St Luke 16.31)
« I believe more and more that everyone only believes what they want to believe. »
(Father François Brune)
« Do not be afraid to repeat my words; fear neither laughter nor mockery. Think of God who has been ridiculed, mocked.
If one soul out of a hundred is saved, it doesn't matter that ninety-nine remain deaf. The mission that I assign to you will have borne fruit. Have courage.
Lead a holy crusade by breaking up to men the heavenly manna that I send you. The hungriest will come around you, and you will satisfy some of them. Take no pride in the good you will do, you are only an interpreter.
We must seek to enlighten the unbelievers. Mom that I love, I would even let you go to the torture to hear you cry out to the incredulous before dying:
"There is the truth". This certainty will save so many souls that the struggle need not be feared. »
« People should beware of meand even accused of prostitution if I only published what appealed to the general opinion. It is not my intention to convince or even convert anyone. I consider my job to be the transmission of research. Those who are ready for it will believe me and those who are not will argue with rationalizations and pedantry.
(...) Do not seek to prove. Your task is not to prove. People who have their spiritual quadrant open will find their own checks. Those who don't have anything open will say you're crazy. You will be laughed at. You won't convince anyone, strictly anyone. »
« The violent attacks of which I was the object on the part of well-meaning people revealed the fear they felt in the face of little-known phenomena. »
(Bishop James Pike, 'Dialogue with the Beyond')
« Mom, here you are again routed for a few scratches.
The mystery of heavenly things should rarely be a subject of conversation. Never put me in question, except in the houses of peace.
Do not make an effort to demonstrate that the truth is true. The truth is not proven, it is felt. The love of God cannot be learned, it is a desire. »
Introduction by D. Meurois and A. Givaudan in a book :
« We address ourselves to logical beings whose minds are open and not to those who have decided once and for all not to question anything fundamental. »
(D. Meurois and A. Givaudan, 'Par l’esprit du Soleil')Contributions by Anne Givaudan on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, HEALTH
or DEATH
« If a person does not believe in a truth, however obvious it may seem, that truth does not exist. »
« If I give these demonstrations (free), writes medium Rosemary Altea, it is not for the purpose of proving that there is life after death. It is impossible for me in such a short time. My hope is to provide my audience with enough elements to allow them to reflect, to begin a journey of discovery towards a new awakening, to realize that life and death are different from what they believed.
In fact, I just sow little seeds, and pray that with God's help they will take. What I hope is that the people who come to listen to me leave asking themselves:"Is it possible? Could there be some truth in what she says?"And from these questions, some may feel the need to go further. »
« Dear earthly friends, be bold in bringing your knowledge to others. And above all, let your heart speak. »
(R. Terral-Meyer, 'Lettres de l’invisible')Contributions by Rosine Terral-Meyer on the theme of:The WAY, LIFE
or DEATH
« The important thing is that you sow the seeds. Don't worry about whether people believe or not. The seed is sown, and everyone has their free will to make that seed grow or not. You keep it up. »
« If I help with the ego, I will act out of self-interest, making those I help depend on me.
If I love and if I act, I give food but I also explain how to become independent. To help and to love is to ensure that others can emit the life force that animates them, it is to make them free. »
« Your willingness to serve should in no way be personal. Your ego is not concerned with the question because it is only the influx of your heart. Also you cannot fail in the Service you offer to the world.
You become a channel of Love. A bridge looms across you through which the Gift is offered. »
(D. Meurois and A. Givaudan, 'Par l’esprit du Soleil')Contributions by Anne Givaudan on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, HEALTH
or DEATH
True generosity
« You give, but very little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
You often say: "I will give, but only to those who deserve it".
The trees in your orchards do not speak thus, nor the flocks in your pastures.
They give so that they may live, for to them to withhold is to perish. »
(Khalil Gibran, "The Prophet")
«Where did you hide the money for the orphans?
- My son, if you dig in such a place, you will find three rolls of coins. The first is ours, the third also, the second is for the orphans. If a thief comes he will take the first one. If the earth decomposes, it is the third that will be damaged. »
« One day, abbot Pierre said to me: Loving is when you hurt, I hurt. I understood that too impatient to take action, I didn't take the time to let the other's wound penetrate me, while becoming his sister, "carrying his pain within me", I could hand in his hand, seek with him the remedy for our pain.
[...] No one can escape preoccupation with himself, including in the most disinterested action. But it can occur a phenomenon of fusion. I remain myself, but I suffer from what the other suffers. »
('Sister Emmanuelle's Farewell')Contributions by Sister Emmanuelle on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
«What do you eat every day? inquired the Maggid (a rabbi circa 1780 in Eastern Europe) to a wealthy man.
- Nothing, almost nothing. Dry bread with salt, and I drink water, nothing else.
« Not well, » said the Maggid, displeased, « not well at all. I order you to eat white bread and cakes; and drink sweet wine. "But why, Rabbi?" exclaimed the penitent, stupefied.
– Listen: if you are satisfied with dry bread and water, you will end up thinking that the poor can subsist on pebbles and spring water. If you eat cakes, you will give them bread. »
« Rejoice in the shock that has been imposed on you for it has stripped you of a thickness. You were too attached to the good that could be done through you.
As soon as one uses one's gifts in favor of others, one becomes an actor who puts on a show, one plays one's character, one must be careful. The supreme state is to make oneself and not express oneself in any way (to fade away completely) . Then the real one-on-one with God begins. »
- I feel more and more how much I am not pure. How to help in this state?
Everything is pure that is in its place.
You are impure only when you are not in your place.
« According to man, what is given somewhere is stolen elsewhere. Thus have constructed us the forgetfulness of God and the use of commodities.
(...) True love cannot be spent. The more you give, the more you have left.
(...) Do not economize here, because it is not a question of goods that one saves when it is a question of the movements of the heart.
(...) I ask you to live not from what you receive, but from what you give, because that alone increases you. And your fruit is worth only if it cannot be returned to you. »
Two eggs ; in one is the germ of life,
in the other not.
It is not given to you to know [ which ] until the incubator comes.
From the heat the germ hatches,
but the germless egg rots.
The germ, you cannot give it away,
but you can make it hatch.
Don't you care
(to know if the egg has a germ or not) ,
but smolders!
Only give heat!
[ "Dialogues with the Angel" ]Love, help, protect, assist, guide. Do not worry about knowing if your gesture will bear fruit, you cannot know it.
« Bring joy.
A smile is contagious, and the harder it will be for you, the more valuable it will be.
Offering a smile is our first act of love. » ( Mother Teresa )
« God loves the hilarious giver. »
( St.Paul )
« Giving is good, you still have to know how to give!" »
« Sow love! God makes you grow, don't forget that. The plowman works through the rain, the scorching sun, the ice and the wind, but God will bless your efforts. »
« Like a canal that remains indifferent to the amount of water that passes through it since the water does not belong to it, you must consider everything that fate gives you as coming from God and good to pass on. »
[ Elisabeth Haich, "Initiation" ]At every moment, let us strive to be a channel.
A channel that retains nothing for itself.
Heaven has so much to give and Earth so much to receive.
- How can I help ?
It is HE who helps through you.
WHO HELPS IS THE BRIDGE
BETWEEN THE HELPED AND THE ETERNAL HELP,
BUT ONLY AS LONG
AS NECESSARY. « It's our 'little self', which in its vanity wants to help more than is necessary, because helping makes he important. »
The air, although invisible and impalpable, keeps a ship of thousands of tons afloat. Likewise, although invisible and impalpable, love keeps us alive.
We refloat a ship by injecting it with air,
We restore the taste for life by breathing love.
A word, a hand, a look, a presence is enough.
THE FORCE THAT ELEVATES:
IT IS THE GIFT OF SELF, THE OFFERING OF SELF.
What is self-sacrifice?
The animal is centered on itself.
He only enjoys what is his.
Her air, her food, her baby.
If he is well, he rejoices in everything.
He lives in a circle that calls "himself".
What is inside the circle it absorbs,
because it centers everything on itself.
It is just the opposite in man,
HIS measure [what God expects of us] and your joy is
what you radiate beyond the circle.
The man is filled [filled with god], he shines –
and that is never enough, so his joy is immeasurable.
IF ALL IS JOY AROUND YOU,
THE MEASURE IS RIGHT.
« Once your feet are on the path of renunciation, from the very first steps, you will encounter suffering. Because the heart of man is naturally instinctively preoccupied with itself, this renunciation is a wrenching! But do not fear suffering, fear evil. »
« We are coming to a very delicate point of interpretation, that of the sponsorship of action by love. This principle has been greatly misunderstood, and this misunderstanding has led to resentment, which has caused people to stray from the path. For centuries you have been told that action driven by love must be guided by the highest good of the other. But I tell you this:
The person trying to "do good" for the sake of the other (ie forgiving quickly, showing compassion, continually ignoring certain behaviors) becomes resentful, angry, bitter. »
« It is not desirable to do charity out of duty. I tell you: you have duties only towards yourselves, only towards your own qualities; cultivate them, and your charity will become love. »
« The true meaning of charity will always be directed towards giving oneself to others. This help can be material, without alms, but also spiritual or simply time devoted to a single person. How many patients in your hospitals suffer more from loneliness than from illness? »
« Your good deeds become an investment. Abandon this way of seeing. Sow, throw, give, with no spirit of return. The desire to help through charitable works or grand undertakings all too often hides the appetite for success and dominance. The spirit of the one who conceives them must first have passed through the purifying fire of renunciation. Otherwise it is the self which tries, in disguised forms, to manifest itself. »
« The sacrifice that founds Beings takes the name of Charity when it honors God through his human image. But if we only give to the individual, Charity takes on the appearance of an unacceptable approach. The dignity of the individual demands that he not be reduced to vassalage by the largesse of another. It would be paradoxical to see the haves claim, in addition to the possession of their goods, the gratitude of the have-nots.
True Charity being the exercise of a cult rendered to Man, beyond the individual, imposes to fight the individual in order to grow Man there. Exclusively based on movements of pity towards individuals, our misunderstood charity forbids us any educational punishment. »
« My conception of love would make it unbearable to give a free meal to a healthy person. This practice led to the degradation of the nation by encouraging laziness, idleness and even crime. »
(Gandhi)Contributions of Mahatma Gandhi on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« Charity is proper to the human race and compassion belongs to the world of light.
Charity is limited, because the mind quickly brings the ego into it. Charity is proud, arrogant and rarely succeeds in freeing itself from the mind which always organizes things according to some return. We don't want to show that we are expecting something in return, but the mind manages to manifest itself until it produces sadness if nothing comes back.
In your earthly language, the word compassion suggests a sharing of suffering. In my cosmic vision, I define it as the overflow of an energy coming from the heart or the center of the person towards another person. Compassion is infinitely gratuitous, as gratuitous as the tree which offers the abundance of its leaves to the sun in spring. It could be called the charity of God. »
« Christ has no body on earth, except yours. He has no hands or feet on earth but yours. You are the eyes with which He compassionately watches over the world. You are the feet with which He walks to do good. »
( Thérèse d'Avila )
« With the sword of truth you must fight against the shadow of error to help secure the victory of the divine on earth, but with spiritual weapons to bring peace. You have to reunite what has been separated, torn apart. »
« It's not by executing the sick that we stop a disease, but by strengthening the capacities of resistance.
(...) As with the epidemic, we prefer to strengthen the good rather than destroy the evil. All periods of turbulence have seen “providential” figures emerge, that is where we act. We don't work miracles, but in the doomed city we seek out good men and women, those who are willing to fight within their means. We give them the energy if we find the courage in them.
We inspire them if they have the will. We strengthen them if they are sincere. You still have to find them.
The fifth level is that of the martyrs, the "providential" men, those who ensure their destiny serenely, at the service of the community. The strength that is theirs cannot be subdued either by arms, or by threat, or by temptation. They have crossed the boundaries of fear and covetousness. »
In a message transmitted by Anne Ray-Wendling, we find the difficulty of Heaven in finding human interveners to relay its action: « I am fulfilled by your presence, thank you, Madame (the medium) , for helping me. I have divine permission. Here everything is Light, but I especially suffer from seeing the Earth being torn apart. This lack of love towards others is the hardest thing to accept. »The grandfather insists on the urgency of finding beings who are, on Earth, relays of Love and Light, bridges between them and us, because he says:« The Earth is in very bad shape, and its negative vibrations prevent it from rising. Your land is tearing itself apart. The lack of Love, hatred, here is the catastrophe. Help us, my little ones. »They [those of Heaven] need us, our “earthly vehicle”, and we, we need their Light and their Love.
(A. Ray-Wendling, "A Sun Too Late")Contributions by Anne Ray-Wendling on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
In the beginning: the wax is cold, the air is cold.
Who lights the flame?
The air ? - No. Wax ? - No.
The flame that already burns.
The bond is he who transmits the fire. (man must burn with faith and love in order to ignite other men)
I'm falling asleep and Roland forces me to write this: « I plunged you into the calm of the countryside to make you reap sheaves of light; you now have your hands full of sparkles, go out on the paths to sow. I know you would like to remain inactive, but the time for rest in our gardens is over. Take your pilgrim's staff and go talk about God.
You will now have to work, to apply yourself to teaching consolation, to transfigure tears, to relieve the cosmos of all these pains which wither on themselves. This source of inner withdrawal (Cf. "Turning inward") closes the aerial circuit of our power (of our help) . »
« Lighten your hearts, this is your mission, I will help you.
Console the weak, the unhappy, the unfortunate who will always believe themselves small among those who have succeeded. Console those who fail and who think of retreating because they walk on paths that lengthen as they struggle. They are already on the way to renunciation.
Man must believe in his future life. Half of the universe mourns its departed, a quarter perhaps is inconsolable; imagine the volume formed in the universe by all her tears. River of pain that flows between the shores of indifference and happiness. I beg you, help all this human love to be transfigured.
After your death, your footprints must remain luminous on the paths that lead to God. These steps of clarity will serve as guides for those who will come after you. »
You are my denser equal.
We cannot act.
We can only be silent words.
But if the word and the hand are united,
then anything is possible.
If you believe I have a voice – I can speak.
If you don't believe it – I'm mute.
We come down through your faith,
because faith – that's the bridge.
« What we take for genius is the work of the angel in us. This is how mighty, brilliant, and remarkable works are born, and the higher goal of mankind can be realized.
In history, the greatest artists, scholars or heroes are beings who by a powerful charitable intention have sought only to help others. They have thus risen above what we perceive as our limits to achieve true greatness. »
(Karen Goldman, 'The Book of Angels')Contributions by Karen Goldman on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
or LIFE
Conclusions on aid
_ _
God asks us to love our neighbour, but not to take on his burden. This would be to claim to supplant the guides who watch over its true good.
But if the person suffers? No need to pray for her relief, Heaven doesn't need this reminder. Let's enlighten her on the why of Life and the trials that punctuate it. Let us invite her to open her soul to receive support from Heaven.
A woman, spiritualist and medium, asked God in her prayers to soften the cruel trials that her father was going through. His spiritual guide told him: « Simply ask for him the strength to bear them with patience and resignation, reminding him that everything has its reason for being in human existence. »
« How to redistribute Love?
Reread the parable of the sower in the Gospel. The seeds are the Love and teaching of God. Give without discrimination. They won't sprout right away, but you will have planted them. Give, hand wide open, but without smothering the other. Don't let yourself be suffocated either, as by the ivy clinging to the tree. »
(A. Ray-Wendling, "A Sun Too Late")Contributions by Anne Ray-Wendling on the subject of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
or DEATH
« " Love your neighbor as yourself. " Find in these words the whole philosophy of life. »
Contributions of Victor Hugo on the theme of:The WAY
, LOVE
, LIFE
, God
or DEATH
An essential chain
