“Neither physical nor geographical circumstances can restrict the freedom of loving souls.” (St. Bernard of Clairvaux).
The art of true love lies in the ability to integrate everything into something greater when one learns to see it from the perspective of our Heavenly Father. Even suffering and the most difficult circumstances can be overcome when the soul unites with God. In a sense, the soul becomes invincible because it finds the path to union with God amidst all circumstances. Thus, it does not allow itself to be overcome by negative circumstances and retains its freedom.
We have often witnessed this in an admirable way in the lives of martyrs, who, in the face of the torments they endured or that lay ahead, neither lost their courage nor were driven to actions that would have brought them into conflict with God’s will. The opposite was true. In the midst of great distress, they offered God the gift of their lives and remained true to their path out of love for the Lord. The Spirit of strength worked within them, enabling them to seek divine love in all situations and make it present in their lives. God empowered them, and in this way, they preserved their freedom.
This applies not only to martyrdom by blood, however. All circumstances of life should be governed by the Spirit of freedom. Our Father will always grant us this opportunity if we remain in intimate communion with Him. The Apostle to the Gentiles made this clear to us in a powerful statement: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (Rom 8:35–37)
It is the love of God that grants us the freedom of loving souls—a freedom that no one can take away!