I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write in a book what you see and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamum, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” 12 Then I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands. (Rev 1:10–12)
The Spirit transported John, so he could be attentive to the great things that it pleased God to show him for the usefulness of the church. John describes all the circumstances. It was, he said, on the Lord’s Day, a day destined for repose and tranquility, of calm and peace. I heard behind me a great voice like a trumpet, so strong and loud that I could not ignore it. This strong voice was the voice of the Son of God who would be heard to the ends of the earth.
John must write what he sees to tell future generations as an infallible sign what must happen in the coming centuries, and in all the ages of the church, and within the individual soul. Asia is one of the largest parts of the world, a place of conquest for Jesus Christ, where the book must be taken into the seven cities of this part of the world.
Then I turned to see whose voice spoke to me, which shows that this vision was representative and outside of him. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks. These seven golden candlesticks are the seven spirits of heaven and the seven gifts of the Spirit for the church.
And in the midst of the lampstands I saw one like the Son of Man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash across his chest. (Rev 1:13)
Jesus Christ is always in the midst of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, and where he lives, the seven gifts are found. The long robe represents his purity and innocence and the golden sash signifies his love.
His head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire. (Rev 1:14 )
His head represents his superior part; therefore, the whiteness signifies his integrity. His hair was also very white, to signify his simplicity and purity of thought, as well as his antiquity. He is as eternal as God, although he came into time as a man incarnate by taking on a mortal body. His eyes were like a flame of fire because the Word is the knowledge of the Father. He is the eye and strong as the Word. But love made him change his figure and take a human soul and body with eyes and organs like ours, whose knowledge has rapport with ours, although it is under his hypostatic union. As his love made him take this form, his eyes appear like fire, for us to understand that he is light and heat. He does not only enlighten us but warms us with his love. His eyes also represent Divinity. The mutual and reciprocal gaze of the Father and the Son produces a love as great and infinite as this gaze. God gazes upon us with love.
His feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of many waters. (Rev 1:15)
The Son of Man’s feet of polished bronze represent his humanity. When hit, the sound of bronze is the cry of all the sins of the world. On him fall the blows of our sins. The furnace of his Divinity composed of fire and flames made his feet of fire as he walks to us out of love to save us. His voice is like the sounds of many waters, strong and full, because by his Word strong and profound graces are given to us. He is like a river that sprinkles and floods the whole soul, making it fertile.
In his right hand he held seven stars, and from his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining with full force. (Rev 1:16)
The seven stars are the gifts of the Holy Spirit that he distributes with grace to humans. He gives us knowledge about himself according to the different capacity of souls. In his hand he holds all the graces that save humanity. The sword of his Word has two sides to cut off sin and everything that is opposed to his work. The sword cuts away all that is in us of Adam that has insinuated itself into the soul. His face represents the glory of his beautiful soul in his hypostatic union.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he placed his right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last.” (Rev 1:17)
As soon as you appear to us, O my divine Savior, humans fall as though dead because all that is within us of Adam dies. We need to die so that we give place to the new Adam and let the new Adam do his work. But we are not to be afraid because he places his right hand on us and supports our soul. When it seems that all is going to die and end in disaster, we find a greater salvation, a stronger life, and more assured support. Do not be afraid, he says to the soul, because I am the first and the last. “It is I,” he says, “that you find when you enter into the Way. You also find in me the last consummation. I said that it was good that I go away, and that is the beginning (John 16:7). The soul must lose sight of my first coming and that she must lose the light and feeling of me for a long time. So this new revelation appears entirely extraordinary and frightens her all the more, because she has lost the sight of me for a long time and also because my second advent is very different from the first, because now she has rapport with me. I am therefore the beginning and the end of all things. Whoever is the first among the saints is also the last, because all their holiness is found contained in me. Everything is reunited.”
And the living one. I was dead, and see, I am alive forever and ever; and I have the keys of Death and of Hades. (Rev 1:18)
O Word of God! You are the One who is. You are the Principle of all beings. There is no being who does not emanate from you. You have life in you, and nothing has life that does not participate in your life. However, even though you are the essential life who came into the world only to give life to humans, you had to suffer death. As you were immortal by nature, you wanted because of your generous love and charity to take a mortal body so that you could destroy death in us by submitting to death. Therefore, you were dead, O Essential Life, you submitted to a voluntary death to deliver all humanity from a necessary death. You have been among the dead, but you are now living to die no more, and you have entered into all your rights. You have destroyed death by your same death that appeared to leave you destroyed. Instead, you destroyed death and received essential life in your womb. You were given death and rested in full life. My Savior holds in his hands the keys of Death and Hades. O Love, if you close a door, who can open? If you open, who can close? Opening and closing are done according to your will. But I say that the soul trusts you has a singular advantage because no one is put into hell without you opening the door. You close this door for those who trust in their own merit and you open your breast to those who recognize themselves as unworthy.
Now write what you have seen, what is, and what is to take place after this. 20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. (Rev 1:19–20)
Jesus Christ again called to John to write all that he has seen. Revelation shows what Jesus Christ has said and done since his resurrection. John is not only writing what is to take place but what Jesus Christ is speaking.
These words of Revelation are admirable. We see well the dignity of the pastors since Jesus Christ himself compares them to angels who are in his hand like stars to enlighten and guide people. What virtue and wisdom do we see in them? We have to watch them as brilliant stars, like distinguished lights in the sky of the church? If pastors are like stars, the faithful who compose the church, must be in a perfect union, as they are like a golden lampstand that it to say in love, burning like fire and illuminated with the same light.
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but