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Letter 1 of St. Mary
Magdalene de' Pazzi to Angelus Pientini, the Superior General of the Dominican Order |
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Angelus Pientini da Corsignano as a Dominican and spiritual father of Alessandro de' Medici, Cardinal Archbishop of Florence. He succeeded his celebrated confere Alessandro Capocchi as preacher at the monastery upon Capocchi's death in 1581.
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Very Reverend Father in Christ and All the Helpers in the essential work, greeting in the sweet Truth and uncreated Wisdom! | |
| I, the unworthy handmaid of the Word Made Flesh and constrained by sweet Truth, write to Your Reverence as to one chosen by that Truth as a means and instrument to help in the essential work ordained from eternity. | |||
| The hour has come when the Word wishes from His servants that this work be realized: I mean, the work of reuniting to Himself His disunified brides, together with all other religious who live today in monasteries in a way contrary to the vocation to which God has called them, by not observing the vows that they have promised to Him. I am writing to you, therefore, to make you understand how this Truth has chosen you, not indeed as a principal agent in this work, but as a helper to dispose the proper and principal agent (the Cardinal). And therefore, on the part of the Word Made Human, I constrain you, together with the other helpers, to lay aside all self-love, all human respect and pretence, and to go forward with all righteousness, with naked truth and sincere words, and to take your place before the slain Lamb, Christ Jesus. (...) | |||
| Purity can not exist when one does not proceed with righteousness and truth. Let now the pure of heart be deprived of the sight of Christ because of the look on the angry face of anyone, even of one in high position! (...) | |||
| Also make sure that the work does not lack what your name of angel (= messenger) implies. Work with your priests and brothers who will cooperate in this work, with that wisdom and prudent that God has given to you. (...) | |||
| And if, in advising your christ (the Cardinal) and telling him the truth, the occasion will arise in which you will see his indignation aroused, remind him with gentleness of those words of the virgin John, that he who think himself without sin deceived himself. (See I Jn 1:8). Do not fear, however, to tell him the truth always; but do not disclose to him all at once all the errors in which he finds himself, and which put such a great obstacle in the way of this work. Please, my Father, clothe yourself in Him Who for our sake gave up His garments and His coat, I mean the slain Lamb. Please clothe yourself; please clothe yourself; please clothe yourself! And do not fear to speak the Truth! Let not the zeal of Him Whom you profess to follow be wanting in you! (...) | |||
| But I see that the fear of his whole Order takes hold of my Reverend Father, and therefore he is silent. It is not that he does not have knowledge of his error and of the goodness of God; but he is wanting in confidence. | |||
| And what remedy is to be taken against such fear, since there are indeed some reasons for it? Let him accept the help of those of whom he has fear; I mean those same Fathers-- but of those who are better founded in the zeal of their enamored Father (St. Dominic)! Let him accept the counsel of those whom he knows are already taught by the Supreme Truth, those who are more enlightened. (...) | |||
| Please, let my Father not find any excuses to give me! Please, let him not find excuses for me! Let him pardon me (for braving) the dignity that is his in that great Sacrifice that he offers. But excuses are not pleasing to God. He does not want them; He does not accept them. Let my Father not excuse himself, therefore; but let him take his place before, and look upon, the Lamb slain on the cross, whence He saw His eternal Father dishonored. Yet He did not refrain from the work on this account, but continued with it, since the greater honor of that eternal Father was to come of it. So will it happen in this work also; for, though it will indeed seem to bring dishonor on your Order, there will be not dishonor, but some confusion from which will then result the greater glory of God and of your Order. | |||
| Do not fall asleep, do not become tepid, do not yield to negligence, and do not look down upon or misjudge the word of the slain Lamb even though these words are spoken by her who is the reason for all ignorance! (...) | |||
| Remember also and ponder well those words of matins that you must have said, perhaps at this hour, because of your bodily infirmity: "They drank the chalice of the Lord and became friends of God." Is it not said that they were friends before they drank the chalice; but first they drank the chalice and then they became friends. Let my Father give me no excuses; let him not give me the excuse of saying: "I am not an apostle." (...) | |||
| I have presumed upon Your Charity, and I have written more at length in regard to some thing. But now let us return to the first principle of my Truth! Remember well those words which that First Truth spoke, namely, that men would know we are His friends ... how, tell me, please? By our love! (See Jn 13:35). And what greater love can there be than to lay down our life for our neighbor? And it there is no greater love than this, neither is there a greater work than helping creatures return to God (See Jn 15:13). (...) | |||
| For our monastery of Saint Mary of the Angels near Saint Fredian's, July 25, 1586. | |||
| from: The Complete Works of St. Mary Magdalen de'Pazzi (Vol 1) translation by Gabriel Pausback,, O. Carm. |
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