Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/3138

3138 Spiritual distress.... sorrow and tribulation....

May 29, 1944: Book 41

People do not yet realize where they are drifting to, for their thoughts are too focused on earthly events to pay attention to their spiritual state. They fear for their earthly life and for the loss of earthly possessions. But they are indifferent to the salvation of their souls because they deny it and do not allow themselves to be instructed. Nor will the divine intervention teach them to think differently, for they will also try to explain it in earthly terms and never accept their lack of faith as an indirect cause. And this is why the adversity on earth has assumed such proportions, there is no human being who does not feel it, and the believer will not remain unaffected by it either, after all, his attitude towards it should motivate his fellow human beings to join his faith, which gives people the strength to endure everything God allows to come upon them. People lack this faith and consequently do not see a spiritual cause in their earthly adversity either, and consequently they do not remedy this adversity by changing their life, by living a way of life which is entirely in accordance with God's will. But they cannot be helped other than that suffering and affliction is their constant companion until they have detached themselves from earth and everything that concerns earth, until they think of their relationship with the creator of heaven and earth and try to improve this relationship of their own free will, only then will they become indifferent to earthly matter, death is before their eyes every day, and only then will they realize that their life must have a different meaning, and they try to fathom this meaning, they call themselves to account and seriously ask themselves whether and how they have fulfilled the divine commandments, for once they believe in a power before Whom they will have to answer one day they also acknowledge God's commandments, and this belief now comes alive in them, it impels them to inner changes and also to eager activity towards those who still think completely earthly and make no effort to change. But they will not always be successful. Where the desire for earthly possessions is too strong, the human being is distant from all spiritual thoughts, he is only interested in world events, he suffers unspeakably from them but only ever for worldly reasons, he never considers the hardship of those who are severely affected precisely because their souls are in great need. For divine love still wants to save them before it is too late, He still wants them to come to realization and therefore lets the earth go through external tribulation so that a few will still be saved whose hearts are not yet completely hardened....

amen

Translated by Doris Boekers