Page 245 - spiritual_accompaniment_montreal_archdiocese

PASTORAL LETTERS

It is within the soul that the thirst for infinity reverberates, the desire for an undying
love, the hope of bearing fruit that will last (St. John). My heart beats in the soul and it
wants to beat forever (cf. Péguy).

The soul is invisible, yet it is still visible. When I forget it, it is at the expense of my
humanity; it diminishes my strength to live and love freely. The weakness that occurs in a
body that does not breathe properly is a sign that the body is made to breathe, so too, the
weakness that pervades a life without love is a sign that life itself needs to breathe. I exist,
body and soul, and I am made to breathe, body and soul. I am a body that must breathe, but
I am also a soul that must breathe. The body is made to breathe the surrounding air. The
spiritual soul is made to breathe God who is Spirit.

The soul that breathes is a soul that prays. As all saints testify, prayer is the breath of
the soul. To become aware of the soul is to become aware of prayer. To discover prayer is to
discover the soul. Prayer is the most humblest of states and actions, in which I recognize
that I am a creature of God.

In prayer I stand before God, Infinite and Eternal, whom I adore by prostrating
myself, body and soul. I yield to Him: Holy God, I adore you from the depths of my heart
(cf. the angel at Fatima), and into your hands I commend my life and spirit (cf. the Cross
of Christ). In God’s presence, I discover who I am: I am created in the image of God, I am
loved by God, and I am called to love God and others. God’s commandment itself reveals to
us precisely who dwells in our hearts, but we no longer hear: You shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength, and your neighbour as
yourself (cf. Bible).

When I experience the deepest aspiration to love unconditionally to the “nth
degree,” when this desire leads me to endure suffering and pain, I am also experiencing
that my soul is profoundly thirsty for goodness and truth, beauty and unity (cf. Zundel).

I am a soul comprising mind and heart. I am a soul that animates a body, a mind open
to God, a heart made to love and be loved.

(cont’d)

Collection of texts by the Most Rev. Christian Lépine 245