First of all, I wish you a very Blessed Easter - and I see from all the faces of the people whom I have met this morning that everyone is very content and pleased with all that has taken place. I wish to congratulate our new member of the Catholic Church - our good son, [ ... ]: welcome! I wish also to thank our Priests for their beautiful sermons, advice and help throughout the Retreat and congratulate you, too, Father [ ... ], for your forty-fifth anniversary - I am sure you will make it to fifty, Father! I thank you also, Father [ ... ], for your lovely statement in reference to the connection between the two countries, Canada and Australia.

So far the Retreat has been very inspiring for all - especially both Father Broussard and myself, in particular - but also for all souls, because everyone benefits in some way from the Teachings of Christ. If you are open to His Spirit, then God can Teach you.

As you have noticed, the talks by the two Fathers comprised only part of the hour, so now I have to fill-in the rest - but I have already had thoughts of doing that, anyway. There are many subjects which I could choose to speak about - and they would take many hours - but there is a subject that I do want to speak about: it is exemplified in the parable in relation to the man who owned the vineyard. At the end of the day he handed out wages to the people who worked in his vineyard and, as you know, some of the people came very late in the picture; some worked for only an hour, some worked for two, some worked for five and others worked even for ten - but they all received equal wages! That parable has a parallel here, too.

You may ask yourselves: why does God give us so much time? We complain to God - I do, too - hurry up God, You're too slow! Get on with the job, bring forth the result of these Prophecies so we can get on with our job! Of course, God simply smiles. Mind you, I have said that to Him myself quite a few times. He doesn't "dong" me on the head, he only smiles! But there is a lesson which can be learned in all of this in considering this vineyard situation. It is also related to the Virtues so very much - and the lack of them!

I wish to speak about being envious - jealous - of each other's gifts, for I see this amongst you, even though collectively we are, in the main, good Catholics. Some become jealous because someone else receives something that they did not; they complain about it! But isn't the Master the Master of the Gifts, and isn't He entitled to hand them out according to His Desires? If that was not the case we could be very jealous of our Holy Mother, for She was human just like us!! I could say to God: "Why was She allowed to be sinless? Why didn't I receive that Grace"? We do not have the right to ask that!! God is the Master of the such Gifts, so He gives to whom He Wishes, when He Wishes and how He wishes - and to the degree that He wants to bestow it. If someone receives an Apparition of Our Lady, should we become envious of that soul and say: "Why didn't God Appear to me - I am just as good as that person"! As soon as you utter such nonsense you have committed a sin; you have expressed envy.

This is a very important subject to contemplate because, despite the fact that many of you have been Blessed with extraordinary gifts from God, some are showing envy of others who have received the similar gifts - which may be equal in proportion, but given in a different way - so therefore sets about complaining to another soul, saying: "Well, why did he get that; what right does she have to be there, or to do that"? Whoever it is has that right because God gave it to them; it is a gift from God!!

Remember, any position that God allots you - whether you are a Priest, or Religious, a Third Branch Member, a Fourth Branch Member; whether you are going to be a King or a Queen; whether you are going to be an Apostle, or Disciple, a Prophet, a Seer, a worker in the garden - that is God's business. Just like the man who owned the vineyard - it was his vineyard - and if he wanted to give the man who came in the final five minutes of the workday the same wage as the one who started at the very beginning, is it not his prerogative? Should we then challenge the Master and say: "It is not right that You do this, because I should get the same - or even more, because I worked harder"!! You do not have that right; you don't have that authority.

No-one should think that way because, first of all, envy breeds contempt - for God, for another soul, for the Gift and for those who have received it. And a further down the track it may breed hatred, leading a bit further down the track to killing the soul of the antagonist with pride, where that person then wishes evil things upon the one who has been Graced, rather than Blessing God that that soul has been given the opportunity to further His Work through the Gift that has been bestowed, and to treasure that Gift within the recipient.

Be careful that you do not fall into such a trap, for there is no need for such base emotions. God has an abundance of such Graces, sufficient for all souls. Those to whom God gives much will be given even more if they respond to God in a true "fiat" of love; God cannot be outdone! That is why He pours more upon a soul who may have already received a lot. You can look upon the 'Little Pebble' as an example of that. Look at all the things that God has poured out to me in abundance - and still more: He still has a heap more to come!

There are many, by the way, who covet this seat which I hold, believing that they are more worthy. They might be! Thinking that they are more holy. They may be! Thinking they have all the qualifications to be the last Vicar - yes, they may well have all the knowledge in the world - but it is not God's Will!! And instead of receiving more Graces they receive the opposite, for God withdraws when a soul smacks up against the Virtues related to Charity. So there is no need to be jealous of any soul - rather praise God for it; thank God that He is pouring out these Graces upon that soul because, over all, not only that soul, but you and I become beneficiaries of that Gift as well, for every Gift that God gives to the Church - which is the Mystical Body; His Own Body - benefits from those Gifts. Likewise - as Father explained yesterday - any sin committed in this way brings demerit and harm to the Mystical Body. In this case, the Community.

There is no room for this; therefore, work towards the Virtues which dispel envy; harbour no jealousy, because it is counter-productive and harmful - it is not a Christian Virtue!! We have room in our hearts only to praise God and thank Him for all the Blessings we receive - and in this way you are able to nurture your own soul because you then support in your heart the person to whom God has handed that Gift. You do not have to verbally praise the soul because they have that Gift, nor are you permitted to make comparisons with what you or others may have received, for that Gift has come from the Messiah. Simply honour God, just as we honour Our Lady for the gift of Her own Fiat which She gave to God. We honour Her because She responded to God in a most extraordinary manner, and because She practised a Virtue - as a matter of fact, all Virtues. Likewise, we must do the same, becoming 'helpers' of each other to obtain holiness - because the idea of practising the Virtues is that we become holy as quickly as possible and that we become dedicated to God's cause and effect - because His cause and effect has to do with His choice of what He desires of each individual soul.

Therefore, when we respond by helping a soul attain the privileges which God has offered - in, perhaps, a position of some kind - we then help the recipient to maintain it, to persevere and to go even higher than that: to be sanctified through the position that God has given. That should be an ample reward for you, as supporter! And remember - the more we receive from God, the more responsible we become before God and man. That is why the Virtues must be practised in an heroic way - not just simply as it is done in the general Church; it must be far beyond that. That is what makes people Saints. What Saints do that is different from the average person is: they respond to God, totally - one-hundred percent, not eight-five!! That is why they became Saints; they realise that because from God all things come, all things must return back to God, because He is the Giver - just as Love must return back to the One Who gave it - that is, God! And you have to cram into your heart of hearts all the Virtues - and the Virgin Mary has spoken about the Virtues very often, the reason being is that they are not practised anywhere near enough. If they were, they wouldn't have to be brought to your attention!

So remember, dear souls, be very, very attentive and watchful. Stay awake; do not fall asleep; don't let your soul become like a fortress without any support. You must remain awake, just like the Seven Virgins who kept their lanterns lit, and full of oil, as Father Broussard mentioned. They remained obedient and awake to God's calling at any time. That also has to do with us remaining alert, because the Evil One never sleeps; we do, but he doesn't. So every moment that he is able to he attacks you - especially when your guard is down. How? - through your lack of Virtues; that is, when you don't practise them!

Usually this occurs not when you are strong of mind but, rather, when you are sleepy, and sometimes even in a physical way, when you are dog-tired and worn out; when you have had a hard day at work, or in the home - becoming a little lax through irritability; that's when the Devil attacks. It shows you what a coward he is; he is too afraid to attack when you are strong, because you have the strength to overcome him through the Virtues.

Be on guard, because he lurks around every corner; around every thought. He lurks around visual effects and the senses. So be careful when you are dealing with this matter. Do not be envious of one another, but rather thank God that each soul is Blessed by God in the individual gifts and talents that they have. Go to that soul and encourage them to go forward, being strong and remaining firm in their convictions, so that person - and you - can say each day: "Thy will be done, Lord". It has to be said each day, and each moment - not once a year or when, occasionally, it occurs to you.

And for those who take Vows as Brides of Christ and Brides of the Church, or Grooms of the Church: persevere in the Gifts that God gave you through the Vows, because they are a special Consecration to God Himself. Therefore, you belong to God, totally, in a singular way.

It is like a man and a woman getting married: by taking their Vows they become one. A Priest and a Religious also become one with Jesus and His Church, once they take the Vows, for it is not they that speaketh, but Christ that speaketh; it is not they who live, but Christ Who Lives in them. Thus they become the symbol of Jesus in the world.

For we who are lay people: we must support the Religious in their vocation, not pull them down. Some look at the Religious and say: "Well, they are no different than the lay people". It is true in some cases - but they need support because they also live in the world, as you and I do, and they need the support of our love, our prayers, our tolerance and our sacrifices. We must help them to be the 'shining light' in a world of darkness, rather than being on the critical side, always criticising what they are not.

In reality, there is a lot of negativity in many souls because they would rather look at the weaknesses and the sins of another, forgetting about looking at themselves first. Many souls point the finger, constantly, and say: "Goodness me, he's a bad person. He's a bad Priest; she is a bad Religious" - without looking at themselves. Keep the judgements to yourself, first of all - forget about judging everybody else; keep it to yourself. The Judge lives in the Tabernacle - let Him do the job; He knows the job much better than we do, for He knows the soul, intimately. Sure, we have general judgements every day of the week, but we are not speaking about that. Be more on the positive side; always look at the good - and further the good in souls, because it is with the good that you can work. Even if that soul, like all souls, has a weakness, it is by good that you will overcome the weak, for you can be supportive of the good; thus you help to control the weakness, or perhaps even remove it.

If you are constantly on the critical side, you leave no room to see the good - therefore, the Words of Our Lord are so very clear: "Why point-out the splinter in someone else's eye when you have a plank in your own". It is so important, because unless you take all these things seriously - and I mean very seriously - you cannot live the Virtues; it is impossible. You cannot then claim to be a follower of Our Lord. Sure, you may say it in words, but God looks deep into the heart. Remember when Mary of Magdala burst into the room of one of the Pharisees, while Jesus was eating with them? She came up to Our Lord, kissed His Feet, washing Them with her tears - the heart was speaking. The Pharisees and others who were there didn't look at the heart, they looked at the external person. They knew her only as the adulteress; fornicator - that's all they saw. They did not see that that little soul had a heart full of love and compassion; did not see that she had a very difficult life - and the reason why she was in prostitution was for the sake of survival; she was driven into it.

Jesus saw, immediately, the real Mary of Magdala. Yes, she was full of sin; but Our Lord forgave her. I bet you anything that the Pharisees and others did not, because they judged from external observations, not internal; because they had a large plank in their eyes, so deep and so wide they could not see beyond it. And that is what happens with souls who become envious. They are too preoccupied with their own thoughts and their own needs and desires: what they believe they should be given because they are what they are - chosen by God - so that means, according to them, that they have a right over other souls. They don't!

Everything we receive is a Gift from God. God can give and God can take away. It is not necessarily given because you merited it. Many people believe that the souls who are privileged by God, to see God, to hear His Voice, to smell His perfume receive this as a reward from Him because they are good; that they have deserved that. No, dear souls, often that is not so - nor do they necessarily gain merits, nor lose them - it is simply a Gift from God. In other words, God - Who is the Instrument Who gives as He pleases also takes away, as He pleases. But it is His affair, and nobody else's. So, therefore, whoever receives, be happy, be peaceful and be glad - and praise God for it. And if you see another soul benefit from these beautiful Blessings that we have, thank God for it, and praise Him for it - that's all!

In that way, you yourself receive the same Blessings, perhaps in different ways - because God multiplies Blessings. That is why it is said that the more you have, the more God will give to you. Those who have little - even that will be taken away from them if they do not appreciate the Gifts that they have received.

Most of our prayers are based upon asking; very few upon saying "Thank-you". We have a list of requests for Our Lord, every day. It's very long, actually - it's a litany: can I have this; how about this; what about that; how about a few more of these?, etc., etc.. But how often, when you go through that list, do you say: "Thank You, Jesus, for my brother; thank You, Jesus, for making my sister a Queen; thank You, Jesus, for choosing an Apostle; thank You, Jesus, for the Blessings I received today, for the food I have, for the clothing I have, the roof that is over my head, for the work, for my friends, my enemies - thank You, Lord! Thank You for even allowing temptations in my life because You are trying to teach me something, to make me holy. Because it is true that I hang-on to You, and only onto You". So let your eyes always focus on Jesus at all times, and in that way - no matter how rough the seas may become - you will not sink into the sea.

Remember when Saint Peter was walking on the water? The reason he walked on water was because he had faith - and because he kept his eyes only on Jesus. The moment his attention drifted from Christ he began to sink! That's what is called "the temptation". All of our lives we are assailed with temptations; this is why you must hang-on to the rudder of the ship - and that is Christ. Hold on to it tightly, and never let go - not for your brother nor your wife and children, your possessions, nor for anyone else. Follow only Our Lord; nobody else.

Dear souls, as I have told you many times before: we are created only for God. We are not created for anyone else - spouse, brothers, sisters; you are not created for your children; you are not created for anybody on this Earth - you are created for God. God has a Plan for you - which is that you have a spouse, that you have children, that you have a mother and father, etc., etc.. Through that Plan, ultimately, you will reach Paradise. All those souls who are placed in your path are there for a purpose: so you become edified by them and they become edified by you, through example - and the more you become like Christ, the more they will be either attracted to you - or repelled by your presence, because he who comes in contact with the Spirit of God either converts, or is repelled - and you can see that when you enter a room which contains many souls. If you are holy - and have a spirit that is likened unto God - then you are a magnet within that crowd; thus, Christ then draws souls to Himself through you. But if there is a soul that has a bad spirit, or is far away from God - generally speaking - he veers away from you; does not want to come anywhere near you, or attacks you, or criticises you, or persecutes you.

I have seen this happen in my own life, many, many times - because the Spirit of God draws souls - and sometimes even those who are very grave sinners.

So I urge you to remember my words to you relating to this matter of envy: not to be jealous of another's gifts; not to think that you are in the position to judge another soul because they have those gifts. Rather, retain humility, which is the corner-stone of all Gifts, and the corner-stone of all Virtues.

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