My dear friends:

This letter I would like to share with our dear brother, Fr. Henry, Servant Brother of the Home of the Mother, who passed away in the month of April.

It is an immense joy and a privilege to have a brother like him. He was a chaplain in a hospital and had much love for the sick; he could see from the front row the work of God in the souls of those who suffered. He had a special gift for opening hearts to the grace that awaited them in the sacraments. With his friendliness he brought joy to everyone.

I had the grace of meeting him on some occasions at the hospital when, together with a sister, we helped the chaplains. I always remember him walking through the corridors with his white coat in search of souls. He took advantage of any situation in order to reach people and, truly, he enjoyed his apostolate there. Now, instead of praying for his soul, I commend myself greatly to him. If he had so much love for the sick, how could he not have even more love for his sister who is ill? I speak to him with confidence and, truly, I keep him very present. In the mornings, I make my prayer in our small chapel with the Blessed Sacrament and there I invite him to pray with me the consecration of the day to the Lord and Lauds. I place his photo beside me and I can almost hear him responding to the prayers with his very particular voice. It helps me a lot to see in his gaze the purity and the goodness of God. Now, with that gaze, may he transmit everything that he desired.

He loved intimacy with the Lord very much, it showed in his homilies and his meditations. When he began to become emotional with the Lord, he would say like this: “look, look, look... the Lord is so good to me...” And he would tell us the details that the Lord had had with him. He truly was in love with God and with His Mother, the Immaculate. When he spoke of Her his face lit up with joy. It is truly a grace to have known him, and to think that he is my brother fills me with joy and gratitude.

Dear Fr. Henry, brother, I want to thank you for the example of your life. Thank you for having responded to the call of God. Thank you for your efforts in learning Spanish and for not having given up despite how difficult the subject of studies was for you.

The first time I saw you was in my parish, in Ireland. There you were with your cassock, so tall and so American, always with your smile and kindness. Thank you for transmitting to us simplicity in the relationship with the Lord, like that of a child, and at the same time with a heart set aflame with love for Him and His Mother. You have experienced illness and you know what it is to suffer in silence the pains of each day; you know what it sometimes costs to offer the next step; you know what it is to overcome fear with total trust in the Lord; you know what it is to abandon your life into the hands of God when you do not understand the why of things; you know what it is to find joy in the mystery of suffering. And now, by the mercy of God, you know what it is to enjoy Him. And I can almost hear you say: “it is worth it, it is worth it all.” I now ask you to help me, now that it is my turn to go through illness. I ask you to help me to arrive.

A homily of his speaking about illness has helped me a lot, commenting on this phrase from Sacred Scripture: “many people followed him because they had seen the signs that he did with the sick.” It says as follows:

“Dear brothers, the sick are always very dear to the Lord, and the Lord does much through people with illnesses. I work in the hospital and I see the wonders that the Lord does. I have seen Jesus, who heals sick people. The Lord is capable of performing miracles. He did it two thousand years ago and He continues doing it. He can heal. It is a sign. It tells us: “I am God, I am alive and I have the power to do everything, absolutely everything, and there is nothing impossible for me.” And this must give us much trust in Him, because sooner or later, we are going to suffer something for Him... By providence, I read this article by John Paul II: “For all those who carry on their shoulders the heavy cross of suffering. Dear brothers and sisters, take courage! You have to carry out a most exalted task. You are called to complete in your flesh what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ, in favor of His Body, which is the Church. With your pain you can strengthen wavering souls, call back to the right path those who have gone astray, restore serenity and confidence to the doubtful and anguished. Your sufferings, if they are accepted and offered generously, in union with the Crucified, can make a contribution of the first order in the struggle for the victory of good over the forces of evil, which in so many ways lie in wait for contemporary humanity. In you, Christ prolongs His redeeming Passion. With Him, if you wish, you can save the world.”

 

Long live Saint John Paul II! God can heal but God also performs miracles in the midst of suffering, therefore, He does not always take away sufferings; He gives more, He gives His grace, His love, His strength, His joy of knowing oneself united in His redemptive work. I have seen this! There is a lady who comes to my mind right now... She was a lady who was suffering a tremendous cancer, her body was full of bruises. She was weak, very thin, and always, when I was bringing her communion, her smile fascinated me. This lady was always like this. And one day I approached her and said to her: “Amparo, how is it that you are always so joyful, being ill?” She only looked at me, smiled at me with a very tender smile and said to me: “Father, first, I trust in the Lord; He is my support. Second, I am resigned to what He wants to give me; and third, I have a family that loves me madly. What more do I want?”

 

It is good to think about this... Nothing is impossible for You, but if You want me or someone to suffer something: “Lord, we accept your will.” And not only this, I am going to offer everything that You send me with this trust that I am participating in your redemptive work. When suffering is for Christ and with Christ, it ceases to be heavy. Grace produces in us a type of joy, of knowing ourselves united with Him and seeing that everything that is happening to us or that we have to suffer, has an end, has a goal: the salvation and the conversion of souls.

 

And this, dear brothers, is our lot: to suffer with Christ in order afterward to rejoice with Christ for all eternity. Amen”.