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The Testament and Last Admonition of the Blessed Angela of Foligno Which She Gave unto Her Children, She Being Nigh unto Death
"That which I now speak unto you, oh my children, I speak for no other reason save for the love of God, and because I did promise unto you that I would not willingly carry away with me beneath the earth aught of what I do know which might be profitable unto you.
"That which I am about to say is not of myself, but wholly of God, because it hath pleased His divine goodness to give into my care all His sons and daughters who are in this world, both here and beyond the sea. I have been as careful of them as I was able, and I have grieved for them and have suffered more sorrow because of them than ye would readily believe. Oh my God, now do I render them unto Thee again, and I pray Thee that of Thine ineffable charity Thou do protect them from all evil and do keep them in the way of all goodness, in the love of poverty, contempt, and suffering, and in the transformation and imitation of Thy life and perfection, which it hath pleased Thee to show forth in word and deed and actual life.
"Oh, my beloved sons, I do exhort you in this my last exhortation that ye strive to be little and truly humble and meek, not only in outward works but in the depth of your hearts, in order that ye may be true scholars and disciples of Him who said, 'Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly of heart.'
"Have no care for power, or honours, or being preferred before others, but strive ye to be of no account in order that Christ may exalt you in the perfection of merits and in His grace. Be ye so humble that ye do perpetually esteem yourselves as nothing. Cursed are those self-sufficiencies which make souls proud, such as power, honour and preferment, — fly ye from them, for in them lieth great deception and danger. And greater deception still is there in spiritual self-sufficiency even than in the worldly — that is to say, in knowing how to speak of God, in understanding the Scriptures, in performing great penances and keeping the heart busied over spiritual things. For the spiritually self-sufficient do often fall into error and are more difficult to correct than those who have worldly self-sufficiency. Esteem yourselves, therefore, as nothing, as nothing known or nothing unknown. Of a truth, the soul can possess no better insight or knowledge than to perceive its own nothingness and to remain within its own prison.
"Strive ye, oh my sons, to possess charity, without which there is neither salvation nor merit. Behold, God saith, 'All My things are thine.' Who is there who deserveth this, that all God's things should be his? Verily, there is naught else that deserveth this save the most ardent charity.
"Oh my sons, fathers and brothers, see that ye love one another amongst yourselves and that ye have true charity and love; for if it hath this, the soul deserveth to inherit the divine possessions. And I do exhort you that ye desire not only to have this charity amongst yourselves, but likewise unto all people. For I say unto you that of a certainty my soul hath received more profit from weeping and lamenting over the sins of my neighbour than over mine own. And the world doth scoff at that which I now say, namely that a man may weep for his neighbour's sins as for his own, or even more than for his own, for it seemeth to be contrary unto nature, but the charity which bringeth this about is not of this world.
"Oh my children, strive to possess this charity and judge not any man, even though ye should behold him commit a mortal sin. I do not say that sin should not be displeasing unto you and that ye should not hold it in the greatest horror, but I do say that ye should never judge the sinners, and moreover I say that ye should never despise them, for ye know not the judgments of our Lord God; and many are there who do appear unto men to be condemned unto hell, but who are saved in the sight of God, and many who appear unto men to be saved are reprobate in the sight of God and condemned unto hell. I could tell you of some whom ye have despised, but of whom I have the sure hope that God will lead them back into His own Hand.
"I will make no other testament, saving that I do commend unto you this mutual love and profound humility. And all mine heritage do I leave unto you, the which is likewise that of Christ Jesus, namely poverty, suffering, and scorn. Your life is that of Jesus Christ. Those who shall possess this heritage of the Life of Christ shall be my children, because they are the children of God; wherefore is there no doubt that they shall possess the heritage of eternal life."
When she had made an end of saying these things, she placed her hand upon the head of each person, saying —
"Blessed be ye, both of the Lord and of me, oh my children, ye and all the others who are not here present. And even as it hath been signified and shown forth unto me by the Lord, even so do I give this eternal blessing unto you who are present and unto those who are absent, and may that same Christ Himself give it unto you with the Hand whereby He was nailed upon the Cross. Amen."
The Passing Away of the Blessed Angela
About the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (at which time she passed away unto Christ), as she lay very sick, she said, "The Word is made Flesh," and after a long silence, as though she were returning from some other place, she said, "Oh, every creature faileth, and the whole of the angelic understanding sufficeth not to comprehend this." Then she added, "My soul is washed and cleansed in the blood of Jesus Christ, the which was as fresh and warm as though it had but this moment issued from the body of the Crucified."
After this she said: "Christ Jesus, the Son of God, hath now presented me unto the Father, and these words have been spoken unto me —
"'Oh bride and fair one, oh thou who art beloved of Me with perfect love, of a truth I would not that thou shouldst come unto Me with these exceeding great sufferings, but I would thou shouldst come with the utmost rejoicing and with joy unspeakable, even as it is seemly that the King should lead home the bride whom He hath loved so long, and clothed with the royal robe.'
"And he showed me the robe, even as the bridegroom showeth it unto the bride whom he hath loved a long time. It was neither of purple nor of scarlet, nor of sendal, nor of samite, but it was a certain marvellous light which clothed the soul. And then He showed unto me the Bridegroom, the Eternal Word, so that now I do understand what thing the Word is and what it doth mean — that is to say, this Word which for my sake was made Flesh. And the Word entered into me and touched me throughout and embraced me, saying, 'Come, My love, My bride, beloved of Me with true delight — come, for all the saints do await thee with exceeding great joy.' And He said again unto me, 'I will not commit thee in charge unto the blessed angels or other saints that they should lead thee unto Me, but I will come personally and fetch thee and will raise thee unto Myself, for thou hast made thyself meet for Me and pleasing unto My Majesty.'"
Now when she was nigh unto the time of her passing away (being the day before it), she did often repeat, "Father, into Thy Hands I do commend my soul and my spirit." Once, after repeating these words, she said unto us who were present —
"Now hath an answer unto those words been given unto me, and it is this: 'It is impossible that in death thou shouldst lose that which hath been impressed upon thine heart in life.'"
Then did we say unto her, "Wilt thou, then, depart and leave us?" And she made answer — "A long time have I hidden it from you, but now will I conceal it no longer. I say unto you that I must needs depart."
And upon that same day ceased all those sufferings with which for many days previously she had been grievously tormented in all her limbs, both within and without, and afflicted in many ways. And she did then lie in such repose of the body and cheerfulness of spirit that she appeared as though she already tasted somewhat of the joy which had been promised unto her.
Then did we ask of her whether that aforesaid joy had yet been granted unto her, and she replied that the above-mentioned joy had commenced.
And in this repose of body and cheerfulness of spirit she lay very joyfully until the hour of Compline on the Saturday, surrounded by many of the brethren who did administer the Holy Mysteries unto her. And upon that same day, that is to say, upon the Octave of the Innocents, at the last hour of the day she gently fell asleep and rested in peace. And that most holy soul was set free from the flesh, and being drawn into the abyss of the divine infinitude, it received from Christ, its Bridegroom, the garment of innocence and immortality, in order that it might reign together with Him. And unto this same place may He likewise bring us, through the virtue of the Cross, the merits of the Virgin, His Mother, and the intercession of this our mother, the Blessed Angela. Amen.
End of the Testament and Passing Away of the Blessed Angela.
The venerable bride of Christ, Angela of Foligno, passed from the shipwreck of this world unto the joys of heaven, which had long been promised unto her, in the year of our Lord's Incarnation, one thousand, three hundred and nine, on the fourth day of January, in the time of Pope Clement the Fifth.
"That which I now speak unto you, oh my children, I speak for no other reason save for the love of God, and because I did promise unto you that I would not willingly carry away with me beneath the earth aught of what I do know which might be profitable unto you.
"That which I am about to say is not of myself, but wholly of God, because it hath pleased His divine goodness to give into my care all His sons and daughters who are in this world, both here and beyond the sea. I have been as careful of them as I was able, and I have grieved for them and have suffered more sorrow because of them than ye would readily believe. Oh my God, now do I render them unto Thee again, and I pray Thee that of Thine ineffable charity Thou do protect them from all evil and do keep them in the way of all goodness, in the love of poverty, contempt, and suffering, and in the transformation and imitation of Thy life and perfection, which it hath pleased Thee to show forth in word and deed and actual life.
"Oh, my beloved sons, I do exhort you in this my last exhortation that ye strive to be little and truly humble and meek, not only in outward works but in the depth of your hearts, in order that ye may be true scholars and disciples of Him who said, 'Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly of heart.'
"Have no care for power, or honours, or being preferred before others, but strive ye to be of no account in order that Christ may exalt you in the perfection of merits and in His grace. Be ye so humble that ye do perpetually esteem yourselves as nothing. Cursed are those self-sufficiencies which make souls proud, such as power, honour and preferment, — fly ye from them, for in them lieth great deception and danger. And greater deception still is there in spiritual self-sufficiency even than in the worldly — that is to say, in knowing how to speak of God, in understanding the Scriptures, in performing great penances and keeping the heart busied over spiritual things. For the spiritually self-sufficient do often fall into error and are more difficult to correct than those who have worldly self-sufficiency. Esteem yourselves, therefore, as nothing, as nothing known or nothing unknown. Of a truth, the soul can possess no better insight or knowledge than to perceive its own nothingness and to remain within its own prison.
"Strive ye, oh my sons, to possess charity, without which there is neither salvation nor merit. Behold, God saith, 'All My things are thine.' Who is there who deserveth this, that all God's things should be his? Verily, there is naught else that deserveth this save the most ardent charity.
"Oh my sons, fathers and brothers, see that ye love one another amongst yourselves and that ye have true charity and love; for if it hath this, the soul deserveth to inherit the divine possessions. And I do exhort you that ye desire not only to have this charity amongst yourselves, but likewise unto all people. For I say unto you that of a certainty my soul hath received more profit from weeping and lamenting over the sins of my neighbour than over mine own. And the world doth scoff at that which I now say, namely that a man may weep for his neighbour's sins as for his own, or even more than for his own, for it seemeth to be contrary unto nature, but the charity which bringeth this about is not of this world.
"Oh my children, strive to possess this charity and judge not any man, even though ye should behold him commit a mortal sin. I do not say that sin should not be displeasing unto you and that ye should not hold it in the greatest horror, but I do say that ye should never judge the sinners, and moreover I say that ye should never despise them, for ye know not the judgments of our Lord God; and many are there who do appear unto men to be condemned unto hell, but who are saved in the sight of God, and many who appear unto men to be saved are reprobate in the sight of God and condemned unto hell. I could tell you of some whom ye have despised, but of whom I have the sure hope that God will lead them back into His own Hand.
"I will make no other testament, saving that I do commend unto you this mutual love and profound humility. And all mine heritage do I leave unto you, the which is likewise that of Christ Jesus, namely poverty, suffering, and scorn. Your life is that of Jesus Christ. Those who shall possess this heritage of the Life of Christ shall be my children, because they are the children of God; wherefore is there no doubt that they shall possess the heritage of eternal life."
When she had made an end of saying these things, she placed her hand upon the head of each person, saying —
"Blessed be ye, both of the Lord and of me, oh my children, ye and all the others who are not here present. And even as it hath been signified and shown forth unto me by the Lord, even so do I give this eternal blessing unto you who are present and unto those who are absent, and may that same Christ Himself give it unto you with the Hand whereby He was nailed upon the Cross. Amen."
The Passing Away of the Blessed Angela
About the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (at which time she passed away unto Christ), as she lay very sick, she said, "The Word is made Flesh," and after a long silence, as though she were returning from some other place, she said, "Oh, every creature faileth, and the whole of the angelic understanding sufficeth not to comprehend this." Then she added, "My soul is washed and cleansed in the blood of Jesus Christ, the which was as fresh and warm as though it had but this moment issued from the body of the Crucified."
After this she said: "Christ Jesus, the Son of God, hath now presented me unto the Father, and these words have been spoken unto me —
"'Oh bride and fair one, oh thou who art beloved of Me with perfect love, of a truth I would not that thou shouldst come unto Me with these exceeding great sufferings, but I would thou shouldst come with the utmost rejoicing and with joy unspeakable, even as it is seemly that the King should lead home the bride whom He hath loved so long, and clothed with the royal robe.'
"And he showed me the robe, even as the bridegroom showeth it unto the bride whom he hath loved a long time. It was neither of purple nor of scarlet, nor of sendal, nor of samite, but it was a certain marvellous light which clothed the soul. And then He showed unto me the Bridegroom, the Eternal Word, so that now I do understand what thing the Word is and what it doth mean — that is to say, this Word which for my sake was made Flesh. And the Word entered into me and touched me throughout and embraced me, saying, 'Come, My love, My bride, beloved of Me with true delight — come, for all the saints do await thee with exceeding great joy.' And He said again unto me, 'I will not commit thee in charge unto the blessed angels or other saints that they should lead thee unto Me, but I will come personally and fetch thee and will raise thee unto Myself, for thou hast made thyself meet for Me and pleasing unto My Majesty.'"
Now when she was nigh unto the time of her passing away (being the day before it), she did often repeat, "Father, into Thy Hands I do commend my soul and my spirit." Once, after repeating these words, she said unto us who were present —
"Now hath an answer unto those words been given unto me, and it is this: 'It is impossible that in death thou shouldst lose that which hath been impressed upon thine heart in life.'"
Then did we say unto her, "Wilt thou, then, depart and leave us?" And she made answer — "A long time have I hidden it from you, but now will I conceal it no longer. I say unto you that I must needs depart."
And upon that same day ceased all those sufferings with which for many days previously she had been grievously tormented in all her limbs, both within and without, and afflicted in many ways. And she did then lie in such repose of the body and cheerfulness of spirit that she appeared as though she already tasted somewhat of the joy which had been promised unto her.
Then did we ask of her whether that aforesaid joy had yet been granted unto her, and she replied that the above-mentioned joy had commenced.
And in this repose of body and cheerfulness of spirit she lay very joyfully until the hour of Compline on the Saturday, surrounded by many of the brethren who did administer the Holy Mysteries unto her. And upon that same day, that is to say, upon the Octave of the Innocents, at the last hour of the day she gently fell asleep and rested in peace. And that most holy soul was set free from the flesh, and being drawn into the abyss of the divine infinitude, it received from Christ, its Bridegroom, the garment of innocence and immortality, in order that it might reign together with Him. And unto this same place may He likewise bring us, through the virtue of the Cross, the merits of the Virgin, His Mother, and the intercession of this our mother, the Blessed Angela. Amen.
End of the Testament and Passing Away of the Blessed Angela.
The venerable bride of Christ, Angela of Foligno, passed from the shipwreck of this world unto the joys of heaven, which had long been promised unto her, in the year of our Lord's Incarnation, one thousand, three hundred and nine, on the fourth day of January, in the time of Pope Clement the Fifth.
"So let us be confident, let us not be unprepared, let us not be outflanked, let us be wise, vigilant, fighting against those who are trying to tear the faith out of our souls and morality out of our hearts, so that we may remain Catholics, remain united to the Blessed Virgin Mary, remain united to the Roman Catholic Church, remain faithful children of the Church."- Abp. Lefebvre