Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/1000

1000 Charity motif....

July 9, 1939: Book 19

The motive of christian neighbourly love has become completely different from what it should be from God, and this is due to the fact that humanity is no longer aware of how necessary 'love in itself ' is to return to the father and how everything in the universe is closely interwoven with the concept of love. Love for matter is spiritual death, but love for one's neighbour and thus for God as the creator of all things is spiritual life. Wherever only true love would be active, no spiritual decline could be recorded, but where love for matter predominates, all spirituality is completely lost. Love is the highest thing on earth and points the way to God.... however, if it applies to earthly possessions, it increases matter and pulls downwards.... The more a person is filled with the feeling of love, the more clearly the spirit in him will be able to express itself, but this love must be for God and his neighbour, not for matter. An extremely wrong way of thinking has now brought humanity so far that it is no longer able to distinguish what true, i.e. divine love is.... whether it springs from the heart or has its origin in the physical life of man, in purely physical desires. The person who is driven by inner love to do good incessantly does not think of any earthly reward, but this holy feeling of love is so fused with himself that he cannot help but be lovingly active.... He has the urge to help, comfort and give wherever his (love) help is needed. He does not calculate anxiously, he does not give to his neighbour in a measured way, but is only imbued with deep love for his neighbour, and this is the right love before God, which is also the right path to eternal life.... The human being, however, who only remains in matter, is only intent on increasing matter on earth, i.e. earthly goods, and deriving his advantage from everything. If he now helps his neighbour, it is always only a certain calculation to gain some kind of benefit from it, and pure, unselfish neighbourly love is a concept he does not understand. But calculating love can never have a redeeming effect, and charity is again the greatest factor that must be reckoned with.... Man is supposed to redeem himself through love, but the love of possessions usually takes precedence and prevents him from practicing unselfish love. Consequently, anyone who wants to comply with the divine commandment must willingly renounce matter, he must learn to despise it, only then can pure love fill his heart.... he learns to love God when matter is nothing to him, and thus also his neighbour.... since love is inherent in man, all too often in the wrong sense. Anyone who loves himself more also craves all earthly possessions, and no matter how far away the eternal deity is from him.... he must first willingly surrender everything that binds him to matter.... he must seek to become free of it and mould himself into love.... only then will the human being experience an inner transformation; he will feel the spark of divine love within himself and then cannot help but transfer it to other people, and only then will this be true christian neighbourly love, which has a redeeming effect in the true sense of the word....

Amen

Translated by Doris Boekers