Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/3968

3968 Turning inwards.... Detachment from the world and its matter.... Achievement of truth....

February 5, 1947: Book 49

The greater a person's desire for truth the more deeply he will penetrate it. To God, as the Giver of truth, nothing is hidden, and therefore He also knows and answers every question moving a person's heart; and thus you humans can easily increase your knowledge if only you let God, the Eternal Truth, speak to you, that is, if you attentively listen to your inner voice, which will always instruct you correctly. You have to look for the answer within yourselves, you should not expect it to come from outside, then you will be instructed directly, and you can be certain that it will be utter truth. Hence you should take notice of what He says to you:

Do you want to serve Me or the world.... do you want to gain My favour or do you want to attain other people's admiration? Your will alone determines your actions and innermost thoughts, and therefore a spiritual rebirth will only ever be possible when you are moved by the utmost desire to be in contact with Me, when you look for Me and completely withdraw from the world in order to unite with Me.

But how can you detach yourselves from the world since, after all, you have to live in it and see yourselves faced by earthly obligations which you should not neglect? How can you establish the heartfelt relationship with Me while you constantly live amongst your fellow human beings and are thus time and again required by them?

Only through turning inwards, through a withdrawal into seclusion which, however, can take place everywhere and at any time depending on your will, and which will proceed more sincerely and unhindered the less external impressions a person receives. A most intimate contact with Me requires detachment from all matter, for I Myself, as pure eternal Spirit, exist outside of matter, even though matter itself is My emanated solidified strength, yet it is always situated at a certain distance from Me.

Anyone who wants to look for and find Me first has to turn his will away from matter, but since he nevertheless still lives within matter, since he has a physical body, he has to withdraw into his innermost being.... Then he will find Me, and the complete detachment from matter will take place when the physical eye is shielded from every external impression, when it is closed and no longer receives physical images, for they are reflected in a person's soul and disturb its silent contemplation and union with its spirit. Spirit and matter are opposite concepts and will always remain in opposition to each other, and since I Myself as a pure Spirit want to be active within you, you first will have to achieve this inner separation from matter and then you will come closer to Me, but you will never be able to establish a close contact with Me as long as your eyes and senses are held captive by external impressions....

I want that you only desire My presence, that you have no space for anything else in your hearts, and that you muster the will to relinquish all earthly things for My sake and the sake of My presence, that you mentally detach yourselves from everything opposing Me.... And all matter is spirit in opposition to Me.... I also want human customs to be avoided where possible, for they distract from an inner composure if they are not thoughtlessly observed, or they will be automatically performed and are then equally worthless. Anyone who sincerely looks for Me first has to sever his contact with the world, and everything that is not spiritual belongs to the world, that is related to earthly matter, that is taken in by the human being's physical senses, thus everything that keeps the soul captive, that prevents it from uniting with the spirit within itself. Only when this detachment is accomplished it is able to talk to Me as it is My will, so that I Myself can work in the human being's heart with My love and grace.

And I truly favour the silent, profound worship; it can never be replaced by external customs and actions which automatically affect the human being's thoughts, which have to distract him from what is essential, from the purely spiritual contact with Me. I look into every person's heart and truly don't require any external evidence of your love for Me, and depending how you approach Me you will be considered by My love and grace, and you yourselves determine the extent. Although you will not act wrongly by performing external ceremonies, by observing human customs, but you harm yourselves by reducing the flow of My love and grace yourselves as long as any other thought but Myself still finds room in your heart. You should approach Me in spirit and in truth, then My eyes will look upon you favourably.... and then you will feel the blessing of such intimate contact in yourselves, then you will feel My presence and be happy.... And yet you will remain profoundly humble in your happiness, because you will be aware of the extraordinary grace that is bestowed upon you by the fact that I take abode in your hearts, and humility will increase the amount of grace....

Amen

Translated by Heidi Hanna