Spiritus Orationis – the Latin, original title of Spirit of Prayer, is considered the masterpiece of the Venerable Father Justin M. Russolillo, Founder of the Vocationist Fathers and Vocationist Sisters. In my mind and heart, Spirit of Prayer equals and parallels the Confessions of St. Augustine. It reveals his journey toward Divine Union. Through these prayers, we are treated to share in the most intimate conversations between Fr. Justin and the Blessed Trinity; we see the depth of his humility, the heights of his spirituality, the tenderness of his personal relationship as a “soul-spouse of the Trinity.” Fr. Justin’s ultimate goal was “to achieve Divine Union and bring all souls to Divine Union..” In order to achieve Divine Union, he lived what be beautifully states in the formula for the profession of the religious vows of the Vocationist:” O My God and my All, Father, Son and Holy Spirit…I offer, consecrate and espouse all myself to you alone, all myself to you forever…” The offering, the consecration, the espousal is not an act but a way or “state” of life. Prayer is usually defined as “the elevation of the soul to God.” In Fr. Justin we see not only the elevation but also the total immersion and fusion of the soul with God. Directly or indirectly, every prayer should consist of elements of praise, adoration, thanksgiving, reparation and intercession. Praise and adoration are the prevailing elements in Fr. Justin’s prayers. For Meditation Fr. Justin used – and taught us to use – the method of the Three Ways: Purification, Illumination, and Union. The same three elements can be seen also in his prayers with the predominance of the unitive element. It has been particularly interesting to see the illumination, the better understanding go many theological truths that has come alive through the use of these prayers! I have found these prayers of tremendous help to me in moments of fervor as well as in time of spiritual dryness; through them I have grown to appreciate more and more the holiness of Fr. Justin, and most of all I have felt the real care, and love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; I have come to understand the predilection of God who really finds his delight in me and in you and who has called me and you to be “soul-spouse of the Trinity.” I have undertaken the work of translating and publishing this book with the certainty that it will enhance your spiritual growth, will add new dimensions to your life of prayer and encourage you to reach Divine Union. This is my hope and my prayer. Receive it as a gift from Fr. Justin and give it new life through your life of prayer.
ENTERING THE TEMPLE[2]
To the Glory of the Most Blessed Trinity in the Divine Will! 1. Here begins the life of prayer and the prayer of life of a poor human being (alas, too human) who found favor with the Lord, and through his most merciful love, was chosen to be wholly his. 2. In the Communion of Saints, he was given the privilege of making his own the spiritual wealth of the heavenly and earthly worlds, because of the reality of that supernatural life that flows within the holy Catholic Church on earth, in purgatory, and in heaven. 3. In the Holy Family, he saw the highest relationships with God to which a human being may be elevated: the relationship of child of God, seen in Jesus, the Incarnate Word; the relationship of Mother of God, in Mary Immaculate; and, the relationship of Spouse of God in Saint Joseph. 4. In the Divine Trinity – indwelling in the soul of the just through grace – he saw the beginning and the end of his vocation to life, to faith and holiness: Divine Union with the Divine Nature and Persons. 5. The Catholic Church, the Holy Family, and the Blessed Trinity, placed him on an on-going journey of progressive consecrations: from virtue to higher virtue, from one level of perfection to a higher one, and from an intimate relationship with the Lord to a more intimate one. 6. To pass through these, he needed to allow himself to be filled with the spirit of faith, the spirit of prayer and the spirit of penance (in truth, these are not three spirits, but rather the three-fold effect of the action of the unique Sanctifying Spirit.) 7. In this Spirit, he sought the perfection of humility, purity and charity. The spirit of faith generates humility; the spirit of penance preserves purity; the spirit of prayer nurtures charity. 8. He enjoyed beauty in God; he was ever sweet and kind with his neighbor; he was ever firm with himself (beauty being the result of humility; sweetness the result of charity; firmness the result of purity!). 9. With total fidelity, openness, and generosity, he followed the inspirations of grace, the directives of the Church and his own vocation. 10. O my God and my All, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, may your will be done, your love reign, your glory shine, always more in me and in everyone, as in yourself, O my God and my All!
1. Through the following prayers, every pure spirit and every great heart can foresee the special relationship to which, in his life of grace, that poor human being[2](alas, too human) was most mercifully called. 2. So that you may not be confused, O pure spirit, O great heart of my future friend, think of the three relationships of the Holy Family, keeping in mind that there can be but one “Filius Dei” (Son of God), and there can be but one “Mater Dei” (Mother of God. 3. All souls, as they are called to holiness, for the very reason that they have been called to life and to faith, so too they can aspire in their sanctification to the relationship of “spouse of God.” 4. Not everyone understands, however, because they do not obey the Gospel. To enter into intimacy with the Lord, one must obey the whole Gospel, with the truthfulness of faith, spurred on by charity, and living a life of good works called for by one’s own religious obligations. 5. I would like the following prayers not to be used as pure formulas; we have enough formulas in the catechism and in the liturgy. I would like them to be used as meditative readings, or, even better, for spiritual study. 6. Are these mental or vocal prayers? I do not know. Vocal prayer, to be true prayer, must also be mental; and every mental prayer must somehow be vocal also in order to be complete. 7. They are divided into verses in the manner of the psalms, as if they were stanzas. As a matter of fact, they heavily reflect some aesthetical laws of the interior rhythm from which…the human spirit could not or would not want to refrain itself? 8. (O how beautiful was the act of the one who was born a poet[3], but in this world he renounced writing poetry, in order to make of his life a poem which could be sung by some beautiful angel in Heaven: the only feast of glory! The only court of love!) 9. I wish that you might capture the particular truth or principle contained in every verse, and that ascetical practice that derives from it. Most of all, I wish you to take from every verse an example of how to assimilate the whole exterior and interior world in your prayer life. 10. O my God and my all…
1. You who have trembled at the thought of death[4], of God’s judgment, of the flames of hell, and of tyranny of the infernal enemy – come to the peace, serenity, and joy of immortal hopes, to receive in you the Divine pledge and the foretaste of Paradise. 2. You who have experienced the vanity of all material things, and especially of profane love or worldly glory, and do not want – as you cannot and should not – turn away from God’s glory, from the love, which is God! 3. You who have felt how great, good, beautiful, sweet, and holy is the Lord to those who fear him, to those who love him, to those who seek him, come and receive his Name on your forehead, his Heart in your chest, his Blood in your arteries, his Spirit in your spirit, and his Life in your life! 4. Brothers, come now to the Church to live the integrity of faith and the universality of goodness. Come; reach out for the summit of virtue! Come to the fullness of all grace in the present, for the enjoyment of every glory and blessedness in eternity. 5. You, who with roses and songs, daily crown Mary the mystical rose[5]of the Church, the song of God, the mystical Ave Maria, do not be satisfied with honoring only the Queen, but rather unite yourselves to the Mother – in her mission of Virgin Mother of the Incarnate Word, Mediatrix and Queen, Teacher and Mother of souls! 6. You, who from every corner of the world pray the “Our Father,” come let us build together that grand Kingdom of God. Let us together glorify the Holy Name of God! Let us fulfill his will, striving on earth for the perfection of charity, the perfection of that Divine Union which reigns in heaven. 7. You who participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and offer Jesus, come, let us praise the Lord for his goodness, let us make reparation for every sin, with the voice of the Blood of Jesus, with the price of the Blood of Jesus! 8. You, who receive Holy Communion, come to the Divine Union, to the nuptials of the spirit, the spiritualization of your entire bring by sanctifying grace. Come to the union with the Divine Nature, through the Indwelling of the Divine Persons in the soul. 9. Come to the Baptism of fire and the Holy Spirit! Come to the state of humility of the servants of all. Come and form the royal soul, the integral and universal soul, the priestly soul, which is indeed the “Soul-Spouse of the Trinity.” 10. O my God and my all…
1. The first Divine Words resound throughout all creation: “Let there be light.” They are engraved in our minds and hearts in a vibrant manner, and we live them in our need for light and heart. 2. This divine need causes in us a divine anguish and leads us to the springs of light; it is really a divine need because it is impressed by God in the soul and leads the soul to God! 3. This is the Gospel – God is light and there is no darkness in him! Even before the revelation that God is love, it is revealed to us and we must know that God is truth. 4. Without the divine being of truth, there cannot be the divine being of love; as without the sun there can be no warmth, as without the Father there can be no Son, so without the Father and the Son there can be no Holy Spirit. 5. After the deviation of original sin, all the need for light is turned to discovery, possession and enjoyment of material and intellectual light, but the need for true spiritual light remains unfulfilled. 6. O Lord, you have marked us with the light of your Face. In every soul, O Lord, there is a mark of the light of your Face. This explains why everyone turns to his equal as to the real light! 7. This is not, however, the light of your Face, O Lord, not the light that is you, yourself, uncreated, infinite light! All the light of human faces, all the splendor of the angels is but a spark of the light of your Face! They are not the light that you are, as they are not you! 8. That is why in its need for light, my heart has repeated and made its own “Let there be light!” and has directed the soul to seek and contemplate the light of your Divine Face. 9. I seek your Face! O Lord, I long to see your Face. Let there be light: Fiat lux! Let your light shine on us. May its brightness enlighten us! Do not hide your Face from me! 10. O my God and my all…
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