“It is good and worthy to suffer the unfavourable things of this life, whatever they may be, in a way that no agitation of spirit manifests itself outwardly, nor those who suffer them be too overwhelmed, nor complain about the others who make one suffer, nor pretend to take revenge against the evildoer. But it is better to suffer the evils not only with exterior meekness,but also without complaint or murmur against the oppressor, without being outraged or inwardly upset. It is, finally, best to a high degree to suffer the evils not only without disturbance of spirit, but also with joy and a desire to suffer more, in order to be able to offer that suffering as a gift to the Lord and to be able to follow him more closely with the cross.” (El amante de Jesucristo. Barcelona 1848, p. 108).

GLORY IN THE CROSS OF CHRIST

While Claret was in Madrid from 1859 on, a storm of persecution erupted against him. Shortly after, Claret began to concentrate his imitation of Christ to suffer for love and in union with what Jesuss suffered for him: “everything that gives me pain I will suffer for the love of Jesus and in union with what he suffered for me” (Resolutions in 1861, AEC p. 695).  That is the reason why he wrote in the definition of the missionary: “he delights in privations, welcomes work, embraces sacrifices, smiles at slander, and rejoices in suffering.” (Aut 494).  These are expressions that some do not get to understand but they are the key for explaining the process of being conformed to the patient Christ that Claret was living, just at this stage in Madrid as royal confessor. Few people know his booklet Comfort for a Slandered Soul (can be seen in EE pp. 219-236), where the key can be found for understanding that process.

He writes in his autobiography:  I contemplated Jesus Christ and saw how far I still was from suffering what Jesus Christ suffered for me, and so I became calm. In the same year I wrote the booklet entitled “Comfort for a Slandered Soul” (Aut 798).  It deals with the literary fiction that he sees reflected and to which he devotes two chapters to focus attention on the persecutions and slanders that Jesus suffered and the comforting words he had spoken.

We could also do this exercise of purification. Go and read the steps in which suffering is the protagonist in the life of Jesus and compare them with ours. Learning to suffer is one of the unfinished assignments of the Christian. Claret chose the way of looking at the suffering of Jesus. We could choose the same. Possibly, many of the bad moments of our life we will overcome, and those moments can become a great source of comfort