Jesus, may my sorrows not be poison! May they visit me as often as needed: may they grieve my soul, may they fill it to the brim, I will gladly endure that, I agree to it in advance. However, make it so that the bitterness and need that overwhelm me never become bitterness and need of rebellion or despair. Bring near to me in such moments the infinity of your agony. Make it so that by repeating in my heart the words that were torn from your lips in the excess of your suffering for people, I may feel how my anxiety suddenly dissolves in yours like a tear in the ocean. Make it so that it ceases to be selfish, that it may begin its work of redemption. Grant me before death the privilege of sensing, if only for a moment, the mystery of your redemptive night and your abandonment.
(Cardinal Charles Journet /1891–1975/, The Seven Words of Christ on the Cross)
