At this time of year we are reflecting on the Easter mystery, the cycle of death and new life that is part of life. These words of scripture remind us that in order for there to be growth and new life, there must first be dying and letting go:

Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies it yields a rich harvest. Jn 12:24

Louise de Marillac is a great companion for us as we contemplate this mystery.  Louise wrote these words about her own experience of suffering and loss:

God, who has granted me so many graces, led me to understand that it was His holy will that I go to Him by way of the Cross. His goodness chose to mark me with it from my birth and He has hardly ever left me, at any age, without some occasion of suffering. (Spiritual writings, 711)

Louise never knew her mother, she was rejected by her stepmother, her father died when she was 12 and she was widowed after only a few years of marriage. Louise’s experience of suffering opened her heart. She showed compassion to people in need and in the way that she taught the Ladies of Charity and then the Daughters of Charity. Louise chose ‘The love of Jesus crucified urges us’ as the motto for the Daughters of Charity, which indicates the centrality of the cross in her spirituality.

In our world there is always a lot of suffering, this can affect us personally or we can see all the suffering that is in our world. The message of Easter is that suffering and death do not have the last word. Louise also reminds us that we cannot relieve all the suffering around us but that we can journey with people who suffer.

In the name of God, my very dear Sisters, do not be impatient with your trials, and at seeing yourselves as receiving no other consolation but God’s. Oh, if we only knew God’s secrets when He places us in this state, we would see that this must be the time of our greatest consolation. In fact, you will see a great amount of misery that you cannot relieve. God sees it as well and does not want to give those who suffer greater abundance. Share their trials with them; do all you can to provide them with a little assistance and remain at peace. (Spiritual writings, 397)

Let us continue to support each other in suffering and to look for the moments of new life that are around us.