Contents
Preface to the English Edition 13
JAN. 1 Contemplation of the Holy Face of Jesus 19
2 Vision of the Apostolic College 19
The Resemblance Between Jesus and John 20
3 Jesus as the Good Samaritan 24
4 Those Kissed by God and the Falsifiers 25
Three Crosses: Three Victim Souls 27
5 Vision of the Dormition of Mary 28
6 Epiphany: The Meaning of Gold, Incense, and Myrrh 31
7 The Order of Human Life: Spirit and Flesh 33
8 Satanism as Opposed to Deification through Christ 35
9 The Father's Condemnation of Satanic Religion 39
Christ's Exhortation to Be Souls That Save Others 43
10 Words of the Holy Spirit 45
Vision and Words of Mary 48
A Vision of the Father, Jesus, St. Joseph, St. John, and the Heavenly Church 49
11 St. John's Lesson on Love and Truth: The Falsity of Belief in Reincarnation 55
Mary's Recollection of Meeting St. Joseph: Praise of Joseph's Angelic Purity 58
St. Paul Inveighs Against Reincarnation 61
12 The Charity of Catholics Towards Those of Other Religions 64
13 The Love of Christ's Martyrs 68
Vision of the Death of St. Agnes 69
14 The Love of God in Non‑Catholics 74
15 Jesus' Explanation of Hell 75
Consolation from St. John 80
16 All of the "Lives" Created Through and for Christ 82
17 Commentary on Colossians: The Truth of the Gospel and the Falsity of Human Doctrines 84
19 Lack of Charity as an Obstacle to Conversion 91
20 Commentary on Matthew 10:22; 24:13 and Hebrews 10:35‑38 93
A Vision of the Deposition of St. Agnes the Martyr 95
21 A Day of Contemplation 105
22 Preparation for a Vision 105
23 Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 12 105
25 Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 7 107
27 The Perfect Priest as a Shepherd and the Idols to Which Priests Are Prey 113
29 A Vision of the Last Judgment 118
30 A Changed Countenance During Visions 124
31 Commentary on Ezekiel and the Last Judgment 125
FEB. 3 The Miracle of Regaining Strength 129
4 A Vision of Our Lady of Lourdes 131
6 Commentary on Ezekiel, Chapter 47: The Water of Divine Grace 135
7 A Vision of Jesus with Children 139
8 Commentary on Daniel 3:8‑97: The Importance of Giving Thanks to the Father 147
13 The Visions as a Fruit of Compassionate Love 152
14 Mary's Words for Maria 156
20 The Passion of Jesus and Mary as Saviors 157
John as a Model of Compassionate Love 158
21 Preparation for Easter 166
22 Instructions on Arranging the Dictations for Easter 167
26 Commentary on Psalm 93 168
27 Jesus, John the Baptist, and the Victim Souls 173
28 A Clarification on the Meaning of Certain Contemplations 176
29 A Vision of Paul and the Early Martyrs 176
MAR. 1 The Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicita 186
2 The Wisdom of the Martyrs 193
3 Remarks by Jesus on the Visions 197
4 The Martyrdom of St. Phenicula 197
5 The Innocence of the Martyrs 206
6 The Luminous Harmony of Paradise 212
7 The Ecce Homo Contemplation 214
The Suffering of Mary 215
16 Commentary on the Letter to the Hebrews: The Redemptive Value of Obedience 219
Prayer for Others 224
Maria's Inclusion in a Marian Third Order 225
18 Commentary on Matthew: Jesus as the Altar Sanctifying Man's Offerings 226
19 Commentary on John: The Death of the Just as Holy Obedience 228
22 Procreation and the Holy Dignity of Spouses 232
25 Commentary on Isaiah: The Father's Words on Jesus as the Light Sent into the World 235
28 Perfection as Application of the Gospel 240
29 The Story of Justine and Cyprian: The Victorious Power of the Cross 245
30 The Death of Mary Magdalene 252
APRIL 7 Jesus' Farewell to Mary 259
9 Jesus' Mercy on the Saints in Holding Back the Father's Justice 262
Maria's "Naked Passion" 265
MAY 1 A Vision of St. Francis 272
2 The Trial of Abandonment 273
3 A Moment of Anxiousness 274
4 Mary's Protection 275
5 Resting on Mary's Lap 276
6 Jesus' Agony in Gethsemane 277
7 Words for Maria Alone 277
8 Continued Protection 277
9 Taking Refuge 278
10 More Abandonment 278
11 The Devil as a Lion 279
12 More on the Lion 284
13 A Textual Correction 287
14 The Joys of Mary 291
15 Penance for the Despairing 294
16 Jesus' Refusal to Impede the Passion 296
17 Seeing Jesus Again 299
18 The Ascension and Jesus' Blood 299
20 The Sorrows of Mary 303
21 The World's Hatred for God's Beloved 308
22 A Word on Genesis 309
23 The Good Will of Obedience 310
24 The New Covenant 311
25 A Vision of Paradise: The Trinity and Mary Jesus' Commentary on Isaiah 313
26 The Bread and the Wine 320
27 The Life‑Giving Spirit 321
29 Instructions on Maria's Penances 323
30 Commentary on Judith: Invoking God's Help 329
31 To Do the Father's Will 332
JUNE 2 A Vision of the Sacred Heart 336
3 Words from Mary 344
7 Writing in Jesus' Presence 344
11 To Live on a Spiritual Plane Alone 347
12 The Eternal Present of the Victim Souls 352
13 The Host as the Heart of Jesus' Heart 355
14 The Spiritual Wisdom of Paradise 357
The Lesson of the Eagle 358
Jesus' Holy Hour 360
I. "If I Do Not Wash You" 360
II. "One of You Will Betray Me" 364
III. "Love One Another as I Have Loved You" 367
IV. "If You Remain in Me" 370
15 Commentary on the "Breath of Life" and John 17 372
16 Confirmation of the Vision of the Sacred Heart 377
20 The Stars as an Image of Eternal Life 379
21 Jesus' Love and the Perfect Love of Spouses 382
22 Jesus' Consolation in Times of Anguish 389
23 St. Therese of Lisieux as a Perfect Image of the Child Jesus 392
A Vision of the Passion 393
24 The Three Periods of Mary's Pain 397
25 The Merit of Doing God's Will in Suffering 401
26 Seeing Maria's Guardian Angel 402
27 The Command for Abraham and the Consecrated 405
29 The Parable of the Coin 407
JULY 1 Comments by St. John on the Most Precious Blood 410
2 Words for the Little Bride 414
3 The Father's Temple 415
4 A Storm and Temptation 416
5 The Work of the Co‑Redeemers 417
6 A Vision of Nennolina 421
7 The Mission of "Those Set Apart" 423
8 Mary on Her Dormition 424
8‑9 A Vision of the Dormition 425
11 A Priestly Visit and Homesickness 426
12 Mary's Caress 427
13 Therese's Caress 429
14 The Image and Likeness of God 432
A Vision of Therese 436
16 A Lesson on Perfection 439
20 The Little Apostles and the New Pharisees 440
21 Commentary on Psalm 119 444
22 The Story of Cecilia and Valerian 449
23 The Martyrdom of Cecilia 463
25 The Victim as Christ's Incense Altar 468
26 Purity of Heart 473
28 Redemption Through Obedience 479
29 The Father's Encouragement 480
30 Comment on the Turin Shroud 481
31 Let the Dead Bury Their Dead 483
AUG. 2 A Vision of Mary 485
Commentary on Ezekiel 487
3 Life as a War 489
The Comfort of Mary 492
4 The Communion of the Saints and Indulgences 494
5 Encouragement for Christ's "Voices" 499
6 The Ascent to Charity 500
8 The Epiphanies of Jesus 505
9 The Dictations as Jewels 512
10 Jesus as the Divine Helmsman 515
11 Detachment from a Human Way of Thinking 523
14 Notes for Maria's Director 526
16 A Note on the Vision of the Passion 528
19 An Application of Psalm 23 528
20 The Justification for Revealing More Miracles 531
21 The Weak Members of the Mystical Body 533
23 A Scent of Carnations 536
25 The Friday Observance of Our Lady of Sorrows 537
27 A Singular Temptation 539
29 Concern for Priests 540
SEPT. 6 The End of a Time of Suffering 542
10 The "Voices" as Living Monstrances 544
12 The Sacrifices Maintaining the World's Existence 546
13 Jesus' Smile in Gethsemane 549
14 The Flight of Love 550
15 Words from the Charity of God 553
16 A Vision of the Stigmatization of St. Francis 554
18 Jesus' Absolution and Blessing 559
19 Satan's Snares for the Saints 561
21 Silence 564
22 The Treasure in the Heart 564
23 The Order of Gospel Events 566
24 Instructions Regarding the Passages 567
25 The Writings and the "Two Ninevehs" 575
27 Consolation from a Flower 577
28 The Beneficial Effects of the Gospel Pages 580
30 The Hour of Mary's Desolation 581
OCT. 8 The Father's Presence in Man's Spirit 582
11 Commentary on Jeremiah: Patience and Obedience 583
13 Renewal of Strength 588
15 Instructions on the Writings 588
A Perplexing Vision of Mary 589
16 To Obey God Rather Than Men 591
18 A Comparison with Starlight 592
19 The Children of God as Christ's Stars 594
20 Charity as the Yeast of Perfection 597
21 A Pause 602
22 A Prayer in Honor of Christ's Kingship 602
23 A Text to Introduce the Writings 603
24 A Prayer for the Deceased 604
26 A Vision of Jesus as Messiah 605
NOV. 1 A Vision of Maria's Mother 605
3 Single Greeting: "Peace Be with You" 607
9 Vision of St. Catherine of Siena 607
10 Notes on Family Life 608
11 The Company of Jesus 611
12 Something for Souls 613
14 A Conversation on Books 614
16 Passages from Isaiah 618
17 The Spiritually Infirm 619
23 A Suspicion 621
25 The Parable of the Chalice 622
28 Exile and Silence 625
29 Timely Advice and Recollections of a Doctor 626
DEC. 2 Assistance for a Young Priest 630
6 Filling Jesus' Cradle 631
7 Incomprehension and Consolation 632
8 Waiting 633
10 The Need for Understanding of Troubled Souls 633
13 A Vision of Christmas Angels 636
15 Too Many "Doctors" 637
16 A Kiss 640
18 An Explanation of Jesus' Silence 640
26 A Farewell Message 642
27 The Eucharist as the Greatest Miracle 643
28 A Prayer for Blessing the House: An Invocation of the
Hearts of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph 645
30 Thanksgiving After Coming Back Home 646
The Notebooks, 1944 is the second volume to appear in English of three works already published in Italian under the title of Quaderni which contain additional visions and dictations received by Maria Valtorta during the period extending from 1943 to 1951, when she contemplated and recorded the events which would constitute her major opus on the life of Christ.
The text of this translation is accompanied by references to other works by the writer, a number of which are available in English, and readers are also provided with biographical information shedding light on The Notebooks and numerous annotations concerning the Gospel episodes which were revealed to her while these passages were being written.
The material selected for publication in this volume embraces a vast and varied array of topics ranging from visions of the Crucifixion and of the early Christian martyrs to commentaries by Christ on multiple facets of revealed truth and his redemptive and sanctifying action.
Within the scope and variety of the subjects dealt with, however, a central underlying theme is Maria Valtorta's personal experience of intense purification and trial, especially during the period in which the seriously infirm writer was forced by wartime evacuation to leave her home in Viareggio and spend months in unfamiliar surroundings. In 1944, particularly in April, she was subjected to an excruciating state of "spiritual abandonment" in which we can discern the characteristic marks of a profound "night of the spirit," as described by St. John of the Cross and undergone by all the great Christian mystics in preparation for definitive union with the Holy Trinity, or "mystical marriage." The term used in the Valtortan writings for this supreme consummation of Trinitarian love in the human spirit is "fusion. "
This time of deep trial and progressive elevation included a growing identification with Christ Crucified and the Sorrows of Mary which was augmented by numerous revelations concerning the Passion. As a counterpoint to certain painful states bringing the writer to the brink of despair, abundant consolations were also provided in the form of even the physical proximity of Jesus and Mary and a striking sequence of contemplations and locutions involving some of the greatest saints: John the Apostle, Paul, Joseph, Francis of Assisi, Mary Magdalene, Margaret Mary, Therese of the Child Jesus, and Catherine of Siena. This succession of unexpected encounters with brothers and sisters in the Mystical Body of Christ produces a living sense of one of the core realities of Catholic faith, the "Communion of the Saints," wherein the perfect joy and peace of the inhabitants of the Heavenly Jerusalem are intimately associated with the pain and tribulation of those still engaged in spiritual combat on earth.
Perhaps the image which best summarizes the content of these Notebooks of 1944 is that of the "song of love," which forcefully recalls the biblical "Song of Songs." At the beginning of the year, Christ says, "...I gave you my heart as a pillow and my mouth as music and linen, which dried your tears with its kiss and relieved your pain with its song of love" (January 9). A description of Heaven received on March 6 is expressed as follows:
Paradise sings with words of light. It is light. It is the glowing of light that forms these solemn, powerful, soft chords, in which there are the trills of children, the sighs of virgins, the kisses of lovers, the hosannas of adults, and the glory of seraphim. They are not songs like those of the poor Earth, where even the most spiritual things must be clothed in human forms. Here there is the harmony of splendors producing sound. It is an arpeggio of luminous notes rising and falling as the splendors change, and it is eternal and always new, for nothing is weighed down with old age in this eternal Present.
Later (June 15), Jesus also uses the figure of song to describe the protection which He offers the infirm writer, along with John the Apostle and Evangelist, symbolized by the "eagle":
This little 'voice' of mine, like that of a small sparrow remaining with its wings extended to follow the flight of the eagle because it would like to follow it to hear its song and repeat it to its companions‑for the royal eagle does not oppress the little sparrows, but makes friends with them, even in prison-deserves to have the impetuous current of the royal flight carry its smallness, incapable of heights, off to the heights of Paradise and to have the eagle defend it, under the protection of its powerful wings, from kites and falcons and enable it, on the solitary rock, to feed on morsels which the eagle shreds for it. For the eagle loves it.
It loves this little voice very much. And it has thus rebaptized it 'John,' so that it will be defended by the apostolic eagle, in addition to the Divine Eagle, and learn its song from ours, and have peace in the shadow of our fortitude, warmth from the Sun to which we carry it off, and food from what we give it. I defend it‑John and I.
On July 13 the writer notes, "I have been very ill since yesterday afternoon on account of my heart. Whereas yesterday morning, after the Mother came, I was so relieved, physically as well, that I even sang a love song to Jesus which I composed, both music and lyrics." Towards the end of the year, on granting a vision of the heavenly hosts over Bethlehem, Christ says, "Look. May the first comfort of Christmastime be given to your suffering: the song that filled the horizons on the night which saw my birth. With their love the angels sing 'Peace on earth to men of good will.' They sing peace to you."
Indeed, the authenticity of these "private revelations" granted to Maria Valtorta can best be gauged by the intensity of the Divine Love throbbing symphonically through all these passages, like beats of the Sacred Heart. On February 20, Christ repeated to the writer a central reflection He had previously affirmed: "You will not be great because of the contemplations and the dictations. These are mine. But because of your love. And the highest love lies in sharing sorrow."
These writings are in fact a continuous witness to a basic tenet of the New Testament: "God is Love" (1 John 4:16). In her locution on May 13, Our Lady states that her "theology... has only one key word: 'Love.' I am Queen of the Heavens because I have understood this theology as no other creature has." The same entry contains a further. counsel:
Let there be a point in you, the deepest one, which, in the midst of a whole wounded, stricken, agonizing being stupefied by pain, exhausted by the devil's assaults, nauseated by life events, and tossed about like a ship in a storm, is able to remain still and alive in love. A point in you which has this one mission‑to love‑and fulfills it for your mind, heart, and flesh. And let that point be your sanctuary. Let the altar be there with the lamp which is always lit, with flowers which are always fresh, and with praise which is always resounding.
In a complementary passage on June 15, Christ says, "For those who always take the liberty of reproaching Me for my words, I say, if they don't understand them, let them study theology. They reflect what theology teaches." A theology based on human erudition alone does not, however, suffice, for such thinkers have only the "single wing" of knowledge and lack the "other one" of "total charity" in being "learned, but not loving."
Similarly, in a locution on January 14, Jesus reveals that the supreme measure of all religion is divine charity:
O lukewarm Catholic Christians, how often my Word shines and becomes light in the hearts of those who are not your brothers and sisters in Catholicism, but who surpass you in love for Christ and, even if they do not know Christ, in love for the true God, whom they feel‑although He is unknown to them‑to be living eternally in his Creation! In truth I tell you that the Spirit of God knows no limitation and becomes the Teacher of Truth for many...
... It is always He, the Third Divine Person, who prepares the way for Me in the hearts that have not yet received Me as Truth and waters them for Me so that my Truth, deposited like a seed borne by the divine wind, will become a large tree in them in which all the virtues may take up their dwelling. Prior to Me, He baptizes present‑day pagans (and by "pagans" I mean all non‑Catholics)... He baptizes with the fire of true love.
As we move into the Third Millennium of Christianity, the writings of Maria Valtorta, who offered herself to the Father as a "victim soul" alongside Christ the Redeemer, sing to us the enduring hymn of this "fire of true love" guiding our passage from human history into the fullness of eternal life.
Rome
August 28, 1998
David G. Murray
Today I have had only the joy of contemplating the Holy Face of Jesus.
Perhaps my Good Jesus reckoned He had spoken to me enough in the dictation of December 31, 1943, which began on that day and ended at 2:30 a.m. on January 1, after a few hours' interruption due to external factors of which you' are well aware and which are a torment for me, for I would like to be able to devote myself to listening to Him alone. Perhaps He has wanted to act this way because, in addition, poor Maria has been gasping today like a pike pulled out of the water and was feeling really ill from 3 to 9 p.m., with breathlessness and palpitation that were quite impressive and plunged me into drowsiness before usual, so quickly that I was left with the three cushions, in such fashion that I am aching all over.
But I am happy because I have seen Him. Especially his blessed eyes. I sank into that living, magnetic sapphire and emerged from it gloriously. And after these few words in that blessedness, I recollect myself so that He will remain as my company throughout the night.
January 2