‘It will come to pass in the last days,’ God says, ‘that I will pour out a portion of my spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. (Acts 2, 17)

The Milk and Wheat Campaign

Dear brothers and sisters,

Our great worry at Fundacao Terra at the moment is lacking the ability to supply our children with milk and bread. I ask if you could get in touch with your friends and tell them that until the mother’s day (in Brazil this is celebrated on the second Sunday of May) we need to have milk (powdered milk) and wheat (as we make the bread ourselves) to feed these who we serve with all dedication so that we do not have to witness them suffer from hunger at home.

I ask you on behalf of those who are unable to ask. Help us to help them…

Your contribution can be made towards our UK Community Account on the following:

Bank: HSBC – Account Name: Fundacao Terra – London

Branch Sort Code: 40-06-21

Account Number: 02359413.

With all my zeal and attention,

In Christ.

Father Airton Freire – servant.

Meditations (Three Ways)

Father Airton Freire

(Writings of the Earth, Vade Mecum)

One day, having passed the time of intense consolations, the soul sees itself as being deprived of any will of its own. It feels abandoned in itself and by God. The skies, having become leaden, seem to transmit a withdrawal from any plea or desire. We then enter the dark night meant for the purifying of senses.

Left to the limitations of its own condition and having already experienced the joy of knowing God’s love in itself, the human soul suffers and endures in different degrees, weakness as well as the anguish of discouragement, in a way it has never known before.

“If it is possible, let this cup pass me by” (Mathew 26,39).

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15,34).

“I am thirsty” (John 19,28).

“My soul is sorrowful to the point of death. Wait here and stay awake with me” (Mathew 26,38).

More than sayings, such expressions tell of what is experienced as the relinquishment of one’s own will. Extreme want transforms what was before the joy of full consolation into grace. Destitution, which purifies those who feel themselves as not being heard anymore, is an emptying of the will. “Let it be as you, not I, would have it” (Mathew 26,39).

The dark night, the chastening of senses, makes the soul understand that “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15,5).

At this point, one must strive to avoid any offence to God caused by the condition inherent to our humanity. This is the first degree of humility. One avoids sin because it is sin.

As the human soul submits its desires to the Lord’s desire, it becomes more aware of the signs of times and follows the narrow path of “doing only what is His divine will”, in order not to offend the beloved One. In agreement to God’s will, the soul acquires the second degree of humility.

When one comes to feel, with no resistance, the living desire of desiring nothing except the one desire in which everything is fulfilled, for that one desire corresponds, exactly, to what God wants, then, the human soul has reached the third degree of humility.

We can explain the process of our growth in holiness by summarizing these steps as follows:

The purgative way, whereby the soul receives the inscription of the first degree of humility: one avoids committing sin, specially the most grievous ones. These are times of great unrest.

The illuminative way, which corresponds to the second degree of humility: one avoids committing even the smallest sin, because it is an offense to God.

Finally, the unitive way, which corresponds to the third degree of humility: when your desire matches God’s desire. One loves God because He is the Father of all Mercy.

When the crossing of the desert is over, a journey of the soul in darkness and fears, one finally enters a condition never experienced before.

Once again, more intensely than what was ever experienced before, the human soul is established in a state of coexistence, visibly enlightened and consoled, close to the One from which it was never really parted.

However, by God’s mercy, according to His divine will, the three ways, regardless of the degrees of humility already attained, can accompany a soul all along its life.

After all, God is God.