Saturday 14 October 2017

All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well...

On one occasion our good Lord said: Every kind of thing will be well; and on another occasion he said: You will see yourself that every kind of thing will be well.  And from these two the soul gained different kinds of understanding.  One was this: that he wants us to know that he takes heed not only of things which are noble and great, but also of those which are little and small, of humble men and simple, of this man and that man.  And this is what he means when he says: Every kind of thing will be well.  For he wants us to know that the smallest thing will not be forgotten.  Another understanding is this: that there are many deeds which in our eyes are so evilly done and lead to such great harms that it seems to us impossible that any good result could ever come of them.  And we contemplate this and sorrow and mourn for it so that we cannot rest in the blessed contemplation of God as we ought to do.  And the cause is this: that the reason which we use is now so blind, so abject and so stupid that we cannot recognize God's exalted, wonderful wisdom, or the power and the goodness of the blessed Trinity.  And this is his intention when he says: You will see yourself that every kind of thing will be well, as if he said: Accept it now in faith and trust, and in the very end you will see truly, in fullness of joy.

                              - Julian of Norwich, Showings (long text), 32nd Chapter

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