594. October 2, Founding of Opus Dei (III)

Meditations no. 523 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

Opus Dei exists to carry out God’s will.

My dearest children: in my conversations with you I have repeatedly pointed out that the enterprise we are engaged in is not a human one, but a great “supernatural enterprise,” which from the beginning fulfilled exactly all the conditions to be truly called without boasting the Work of God. We form part of this work by divine election-ego elegi vos (Jn 15: 16)-in order to be imitators of Jesus Christ our Lord in the world, “sicut filii carissimi,” as beloved children (Eph 5: 1).

The Work of God has not been thought up by a man to solve the sad situation of the Church in Spain since 1931.

Many years ago God inspired it in an inept and deaf instrument, who saw it for the first time on October 2, 1928, the feast of the holy guardian angels.

Today we celebrate a new anniversary of the founding of Opus Dei. We want to be very united to our Father and the Father, and to all our brothers and sisters, thanking God for his great mercy and the immense love shown us by calling us to his Work.

Our Father said on one October 2nd: God wanted to sow the marvellous seed of his Work in the heart of that poor priest, so that it would begin in a hidden way, without noise, yet decisively and stubbornly. Scripture says that God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong, God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are (1 Cor 1: 27-28). And he also certainly looks for instruments which, besides their smallness, have sufficient defects to be put to use, so that it may be seen even more clearly that the Work is his. I had and still have the defect of the people of my land. I am stubborn.

My children, what shall I tell you today, which is a day of thanksgiving for all of us? That we have to raise our hearts to God. I do so with my words and my heart. You should do the same thing now, without speaking. But we all must raise our hearts to the Lord our God and tell him, gratias tibi, Deus, gratias tibi! Thank him with your whole heart, because he has deigned to seek us out like a tiny grain of salt, a speck of light, in order to add all of his salt and all of his light, and thus bring about all over the world such wonders in the service of souls, in the service of the Church.

The essence of the Work is sanctification through professional work.

My children, once more I can hear the words of Isaias, Dicite iustum quoniam bene (Is 3: 10). What shall I tell my children? Tell them that they are doing well, very well! You may ask me, “Father, but what about this or that defect of mine?” I have many defects, my children. But as long as we struggle to get rid of our defects, we are souls of interior life. We are on the road to sanctity. We are pleasing to God, and we make all of the pathways of earth divine.

There is not a single noble human task on earth that cannot be divinized, that cannot be sanctified. There is no work that we ought not to sanctify and make sanctifying. This is the essence of the Work, my children. After two thousand years, we have reminded all humanity that man has been created ut operaretur (Gen 2: 15), in order to work. We have the obligation to work, each in his ordinary task in the midst of the world, in his job or profession. And we must do so with great joy, with enthusiasm and optimism, drawing good from everything, because omnia in bonum! Everything is for the good.

My children, let us give thanks to God the Father, to God the Son, to God the Holy Spirit. And let us give thanks to our Lady. Open wide your heart! Your heart and your arms: both of your arms opened wide on the Cross! All souls fit in our heart, without distinction of race, language or faith. We love all souls! We do not make any exceptions, nor have we ever done so.

My sons and daughters, today is a day for rejoicing. Some will ask me, “Father what about the 2nd of October, 1928?” That day, God in his providence wanted to give birth to a tiny seed within the womb of his holy Church, the Catholic Church, which is universal because it is Roman. Today this tiny seed is bearing fruit in countless persons of every race in so many countries.

We have to thank our Lord for this, and also our mother holy Mary, and the holy guardian angels who are our marvellous “accomplices” in all our apostolates. And then, my children, humility, we need a lot of humility. And a great love for freedom, for each one’s personal freedom! We are here, my Lord, for a very supernatural reason. For me, it is the most supernatural one: because we want to be here, because we freely wanted to respond to your call!

God counts on our cooperation to do Opus Dei on earth.

The Work is going forward, our Father wrote in 1940, on the basis of prayer: of my prayer, and my wretchedness, which in God’s eyes is what brings about the fulfilment of his Will; and of the prayer of so many souls, priests and laity, young and old, healthy and sick, whom I’ve gone to for help, certain that God would listen to them, asking them to pray for a particular intention which, in the beginning, only I knew about. And by the prayer, mortification and work of those at my side: these have been our sole but great weapons for the struggle.

Thus the Work is being carried out, and will be carried out, in all sectors of society: in hospitals and universities; in catechism classes in the poorest neighbourhoods; in homes and wherever men congregate; among the poor, the rich and people of every social standing, so that the message God has entrusted to us may reach everyone.

The Work has set out to fulfill this mission straightforwardly, generously, sincerely, without any subterfuge or special patronage, without constantly seeking the best place in the sun or the most attractive flower. Our “sun” is inside us, and our apostolate is carried out-as it must be-in the street, and is directed to everyone.

In these early years when we are beginning, writes our Father in 1940, I’m filled with deep gratitude toward God. And at the same time, my children, I think about how much yet remains to be done in order to sow the universal, catholic seed that Opus Dei has come to spread in every land throughout the world.

Therefore, I rely on the prayer, mortification, professional work and joy of all of you, while I constantly renew my trust in God: universi, qui sustinent te, non confundentur (Ps 24: 3); no one who places his hope in God will be confounded.

The years have gone by, although still few for an institution that must last, with God’s grace, as long as there are men on earth. And God has poured forth his blessings everywhere. Our Father’s words are truer than ever: Today the Work has the aroma of a ripe field (cf Gen 27: 27). Seeing the fruitfulness of our apostolate, we don’t need faith to realize that God has blessed our work abundantly. Years ago, when giving thanks to God in my prayer, I serenaded the Work with a song from my homeland: Little bud, little bud, / you are already becoming a rose. / The time is quickly drawing near / to whisper something in your ear. My children, today you have in your hands some beautiful, splendid roses, although they also have thorns. It is the moment to remain awake and enkindled, in order to gather up and present to Jesus and his holy Church the harvest that has cost so much effort.

The Work was born and has developed under the mantle of holy Mary, Queen of Angels and Mother of Opus Dei. Our Lady will keep our heart always enkindled with the desire to employ all our strength in carrying out Opus Dei on earth.