We adore You, O Christ, and we bless You, for by Your holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

During my time in the convent, I spent a week on retreat preparing to become a postulant. In my community, the biggest external change from being an aspirant to being a postulant was getting to wear a veil, so we spent a lot of time that week meditating on its significance. One day, I was praying the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary with the Sisters, and during the fourth mystery, the carrying of the cross, I was especially struck by thinking about Veronica using her veil to wipe Jesus’ Face. I realized that receiving my veil was a sign of my calling to comfort and console Jesus and make reparation for sin.

But I no longer wear a veil, and only God knows if it is His plan for me to wear one again in the future. Does this mean that Jesus has rejected my desire to make reparation to His wounded Heart? By no means! In fact, in a way, I share more in common with Veronica now, for we both have removed our veils for love of Christ. Yes, this act has brought suffering, but by offering it up to Our Lord in union with His sufferings, this can be a beautiful way to console Jesus and draw closer to Him.

If you think about it, Veronica’s small gesture of love and compassion really was nothing compared to the enormity of the sufferings Jesus was enduring that day. In the same way, our daily acts, our little acts of charity and suffering may seem little in comparison to all the ways God is offended in our world. But as St. Therese teaches, “Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, nor even at their difficulty, but at the love with which we do them.” In the eyes of the world, Veronica’s act of kindness may not seem to amount to much, but to Jesus it was a precious gift that He rewarded by imprinting the image of His holy Face upon her veil. What Jesus wants most is our love. He thirsts for each one of us and longs for each of us is for us to give Him our heart. Each moment He is knocking at the door of our heart. Let us open to Him and give Him ourselves completely to Him. In this way we can follow the example of Veronica, and by doing so, Jesus will imprint His image ever more and more clearly on the hearts of each one of us, His beloved daughters, as we seek to become more and more like Him.

By Emily.

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