A way through

“...it was no raving that you saw today, but accept it, and believe it, and keep yourself in it, and strengthen yourself with it, and trust yourself to it, and you will not be overcome.”

Near the end of her visions, after briefly doubting that she has truly been given anything, Julian is strengthened with the encouragement that she can safely accept and trust what has been revealed to her, and in that trust, cannot be overcome. As she herself understands, she will still experience temptation, trouble, and distress, but she cannot be overcome by any of them.

This was an especially potent reassurance in a society with limited ideas of hygiene, and prone to epidemics of diseases that were largely fatal—the plague, ergotism, and others—and which Julian knew. She was witness to the fear, anxiety, and grief and anger of helplessness that such upheavals provoked, and saw the soporifics people latched on to in order to avoid dealing with the fear and helplessness. Our age has its own soporifics, but the fear, and the loss of the illusion of control, is the same as in Julian’s day.

God does not offer Julian a cure for her trouble and distress, instead he offers her, and us, a way to deal with it, to confront our helplessness and the unquiet chaos within us without undue fear. What is asked of us is trust. After the time of her visions, Julian no doubt had to test God’s assurance against continuing incidents of disease, political upheaval, civic unrest, economic uncertainty, and more. Having set in writing this reassurance and her reflections with her other visions, we can be confident she was not overcome by the fears of her times.

The same message is for us: to believe and trust in what was shown to her, which Jesus showed to all of us, and that in this trust and source of strength, in all our temptations, troubles, and distress, we will be tempested, but we will not be overcome.

Recent Issues

February 2024

January 2024

December 2023

November 2023

October 2023

July 2023

May 2023

January 2023

December 2022

October 2022

September 2022

July 2022

May 2022

April 2022

March 2022

January 2022

December 2021

November 2021

October 2021

June 2021

May 2021

April 2021

February 2021

January 2021

December 2020

October 2020

September 2020

August 2020

July 2020

June 2020

May 2020

April 2020

March 2020

February 2020

January 2020

December 2019

November 2019

October 2019

September 2019

August 2019

July 2019

May 2019

April 2019

March 2019

January 2019

December 2018

November 2018

October 2018

September 2018

August 2018

July 2018

June 2018

May 2018

April 2018

March 2018

February 2018

January 2018

December 2017

November 2017

October 2017

September 2017

June 2017

May 2017

April 2017

March 2017

February 2017

January 2017

December 2016

November 2016

October 2016

September 2016

August 2016

July 2016

June 2016

May 2016

April 2016

March 2016

February 2016

January 2016

December 2015

November 2015

October 2015

September 2015

August 2015

July 2015

June 2015

May 2015