How to pray in moral anguish. Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene shows the way,

“O Truth, light of my soul, do not permit the darkness to frighten me. You have allowed me to walk in it, and now I am in obscurity. But even from the darkness, even from there, I have loved You.

I have sinned, and I have remembered You. I have heard Your voice behind me, inviting me to come back; I heard it with difficulty because of the noise of my rebellious passions.

Here I am again at Your spring, burning with thirst. Let nothing hold me back henceforth. Let me drink at Your spring, and live…

“As the heart pants after the fountain, so does my soul sigh for You, Lord!

My soul thirsts for You, O God, the living source; when shall I go to appear in Your presence?’ O fount of life, vein of living water, when shall I reach the waters of Your sweetness in this desert land, dry and full of rocks, and see Your power and glory, and quench my thirst with the waters of Your mercy?

I thirst, O Lord, I thirst for You, living fountain.

“O fire that ever burns and is never consumed, enkindle me! O Light that shineth ever and is never veiled, illumine me! Oh! if I could only burn with Your flame, O sacred fire!

How gently You burn; how secretly You shine; how wonderful it is to be enkindled by You! Woe to those who do not burn with Your love! Woe to those who are not illumined by You, O true Light that enlighteneth every man. O Light that filleth the world with Your brightness.

“I give You thanks, who illumine me and deliver me, for You have enlightened me and I have known you. Late have I known You, O eternal Truth! You were in the light and I was in darkness. Late have I known You, O ancient Truth; late have I known in darkness, and I did not know You, for I had no light without You, and without You, there is no light!” (St. Augustine).

— Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene, O.C.D

Prayer is grace. We can still pray. This is grace.

For our own fallen souls. This is grace. And we cannot forget to pray for others, even as we pray for ourselves, because “love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)

Not just for ourselves but for the most fallen. Heal us all.  This is grace. For those in prison suffering deep regrets, darkness and anxieties. This is grace.  For those in despair. This is grace. For those living in terrors. This is grace. For those suffering from depression and anxiety. This is grace. For those addicted to substances or pornography. This is grace. For those rejected or despised. This is grace. For those misunderstood. This is grace. For those who commit capital crimes and war crimes. This is grace. For all who suffer in any way, especially those most in need of  Your mercy. This is grace. For all the holy souls in Purgatory. This is grace.

St. John of the Cross writes,

“Let Your divinity shine on my intellect by giving it divine knowledge, and on my will by imparting to it the divine love, and on my memory with the divine possession of glory.

Let us so act that by means of this loving activity we may attain to the vision of ourselves in Your beauty in eternal life. That I be so transformed in Your beauty that we may be alike in beauty, and behold ourselves in Your beauty, possessing now Your very beauty.”

+ Aridity and Spiritual Progress

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