"To him that overcometh will I give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." - Revelation. 2:7

"To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receivith it." - Revelation. 2:17

"To him that overcometh, and keepth my works until the end, to him will I give power over the nations" - Revelation. 2:26

"To him that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white rainment, and I will not blot his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father and the angels of heaven." -Revelation. 3:4,5

"To him that overcometh will I give to sit with me on my throne, even as I overcame, and am set down with my Father in His Throne." - Revelation. 3:21

We may wonder what the "transforming union" amounts to in terms of the individual's daily life. What is different afterwards? How is one changed? The easiest answer is to say that one's consciousness is filled with spiritual joy. This joy becomes the basis of an ongoing sense of "wellbeing" in a world where one is at home with nature and all of creation.

Whereas, before the transformation, one was alone in one's personality and individual consciousness, an "existential man," and joy was dependent on people, favorable circumstances and events, such things are significantly less important afterwards. The existential man finds himself alone in a Universe where he feels like a stranger living in a subtle sense of alienation and pain. The fully transformed man finds himself "at home" in a Universe which has characteristics of kinship with his flesh and blood body.

He is at home in the world. Instead of finding a Universe of alienation, he finds "Brother Sun and Sister Moon." He finds a friendship with nature and all the being of creation. He delights in the animals, trees, waterways, forests, moods of weather, and changing skies in which he lives with ongoing delight. If he is married, like Adam before the Fall, he takes supreme delight in the gift of the beautiful mate who shares his life in a world.

For one thing, the transformed man no longer experiences being "alone" in the world, He realizes that the much vaunted state of consciousness called "existentialism" is just the natural state of fallen man, "gutting it out" in a world of ups and downs without God. He is aware of a spiritual companionship that eliminates any feelings of being alone. This same companionship, or ongoing contemplation within his soul, brings subtle joy and feelings of "completeness" as a spiritual human being.

His spirit is imbued with the Spirit of God Which causes him to engage in an ongoing, mental conversation with the Son and His Beloved Spiritual Father. At night he is at peace and dreams sweet dreams. In the morning he awakens with a sense of positive expectation looking forward to a new day. For he has experienced the prophesy of Isaiah in his own life: "Those who trust in the Lord shall run and not grow weary, they shall rise up on eagles's wings, and their spirits shall ever be renewed. They shall spend their days like David, singing and rejoicing before the Lord."

Perfect Union of Transformation in Love:

St John of the Cross says:

"Wherefore, although it is true that, as we have said, God is ever in the soul, giving it, and through His presence conserving within it, its natural being, yet He does not always communicate supernatural being to it. For this is communicated only by love and grace, which not all souls possess; and all those that possess it have it not in the same degree; for some have attained more degrees of love and others fewer. Wherefore God communicates Himself most to that soul that has progressed farthest in love; namely, that has its will in closest conformity with the will of God. And the soul that has attained complete conformity and likeness of will is totally united and transformed in God supernaturally. Wherefore, as has already been explained, the more completely a soul is wrapped up in the creatures and in its own abilities, by habit and affection, the less preparation it has for such union; for it gives not God a complete opportunity to transform it supernaturally. The soul, then, needs only to strip itself of these natural dissimilarities and contrarieties, so that God, Who is communicating Himself naturally to it, according to the course of nature, may communicate Himself to it supernaturally, by means of grace."(St John of the Cross, Ascent of Mt. Carmel, Book III, Ch.5)

"Here, in the transforming union, the soul enjoys the continual presence of the Holy Trinity and scarcely does she recollect herself than she experiences this eneffable union and divine operation, that is, the very life of God infused into her own, and sees Him working and living in her as the soul of her life and the life of her soul. Before such wonders of divine love she enjoys ineffable delights, although she no longer loses the use of her senses and is comforted in such a way that she can receive these communications without neglecting the interests of her Spouse, but to all the rest she is as though alienated and oblivious. (Ibid)

"This is a state in which the soul derives so much from the Lord that it appears as though He forgets Himself in cherishing and regaling her to whom He wishes to unite Himself. And He does so in such sweet, friendly and merciful ways that they are far beyond our powers of description and can be understood only to a limited degree...His love and mercies are very strong chains and very swift wheels which rush the soul along into the arms of Him Who so sweetly calls her and so strongly binds her to Himself that even death itself cannot snatch her from Him. She is the mistress of the wealth of her Lord and God, Whose power pacified all the people in her house who had caused in her such a state of disturbance."(Ibid St John) (Note that the power of the Lord reduces the power of the people of her house, such as sexual concupiscense, which becomes greatly subdued, placing it under the control of reason, a gift of joy and grace in the married state, and now a much less powerful threat to the order of the house)

Comments from some who have arrived at the Spiritual Marriage:

"From now on she is so devoid of anything that is her own, that she no longer considers the love she feels in her soul to be her own, but to belong to her Master Who completely possesses her; thus the gifts which until now whe seemed to be receiving are no longer "things received", but are sure possessions.(Fr John Arintero)

"Now it seems to me," wrote the V. Mariana de San Jose, "that never will He leave me nor I leave Him, because the bonds of His love are very tight, and communication is of a much greater perfection than that known until now. It is such a brotherly and friendly relationship that it is impossible to make any meaningful comparison with any enjoyed in this life...He has given me such great dominion that in all truth and security I tend to my own needs through this Lord Who so lovingly cares for me, and He has taught me how I must give assistance through Him, and not from my own resources, and has done so in words so tender that they cannot be repeated...

"Here, then, all the soul's desires are satisfied, for she has now succeeded in receiving the mystical kiss for shich she so longed, and become so intimately united with her God, her source of happiness, that she has become one single spirit with Him. She now not only works in all things with the power of Christ, and is moved by His Spirit, but is so possessed of this Divine Spirit as Lord and Giver-of-Life, that she seems to live the life of Christ; He living in her rather than she in herself. This demands such an intimate kind of renewal and transformation that it affects not only the faculties, but also the very essence of the soul, for it is a true process of "deification."

"Here the holy soul," says Blosius, "dissolves and swoons; dead to herself, she now lives only for God...so that she who previously was cold now burns; she who was dark now shines; she who was hard-hearted is now soft."

"Each of the perfect soul's aspirations," writes St Mary Magdalen de Pazzi, "in some way draws the Divine Word from the bosom of the Father into her own. Possessing the Word in this way, she becomes like antoher Word through he intmate and loving union with Him. Just as the Word greatly longs to communicate Himself to all His creatures, so she feels an ardent desire to communicate herself to others, that is, to communicate to them the Word which she possesses within her together with all His gifts and graces."

Father John Arintero states:

"These are the inextinguishable fires of love and the lamps of divine flames with which from now one this happy soul will burn and flare up before the Lord, as He communicates Himself more and more, and always in a renewed way. Here the words of the Savior are fulfilled, "Father I have made Your name known to them , so that the love with which You love Me may be in them." Oh, how sacred and exceedingly wonderful are the mysteries of the Christian Religion! The Divine, Glorified Love of heaven is enjoyed here in advance! For this reason the Divine Spouse here charges the soul to attend carefully to this divine seal that is imprinted within her, and to keep her heart closed to affections alien to divine love, living like a chest sealed by His loving hand with which she keeps His treasures, and not using her arms for anything save the works of His divne service."

ST JOHN OF THE CROSS ON PERFECT UNION:

"In this interior union," writes St. John of the Cross, "God communicates Himself to the soul with such genuine love that no mother's affection, in which she tenderly caresses her child, nor brother's love, nor friendship is comparable to it. The tenderness and genuiness of the love by which the infinite Father favors and exalts this humble and loving soul reaches such a degree, that the Father Himself becomes subject to her in His exaltation...And He is as solicitous in favoring her as He would be if He were her slave and she His god.

"In comparison to the perfect, the communications that are granted to the imperfect soul cannot be very strong or very intense or very spiritual, as is required for Divine union with God, by reason of the weakness and corruption of the sensual nature which has a part in them. Hence arise the raptures and trances and dislocations of the bones which always happen when the communications are not purely spiritual--that is, are not given to the spirit alone, as are those of the perfect who are purified by the second night of the spirit, and "in whom these raptures and torments of the body no longer exist," since they are enjoying liberty of spirit, and their senses are now neither clouded nor transported.

"And so with the perfect soul, its youth is renewed like the eagle's and it is clothed with the new man, which, as the Apostle says, is created according to God. This is naught else but His illumination of the understanding with supernatural light, so that it is no more a human understanding but becomes Divine through union with the Divine. In the same way the will is informed with Divine love, so that it is a will that is now no less than Divine, nor does it love otherwise than divinely, for it is made and united in one with the Divine will and love. So, too, is it with the memory; and likewise the affections and desires are all changed and converted divinely, according to God. And thus this soul will now be a soul of heaven, heavenly, and more Divine than human.

"For in this communication of love to the perfect, He exercises in some way that very service that He says in the gospel He will render to His elect...that is: girding Himself...He will minister to them. He is occupied here in favoring and caressing the soul like a mother who ministers to her own child and nurses it at her own breasts. The soul thereby comes to know the truth of Isaias' words: 'You shall be carried at the breast of God and upon His knees you will be caressed.'"

FR. J. ARINTERO ON PERFECTION:

"Here, then,"in marriage, writes Fr. J. Arintero, "all the soul's desires are satisfied, in as far as this is possible in this life; for she has now succeeded in receiving the mystical kiss for which she so longed, and has become so intimately united with her God...her only source of happiness...that she has become one single spirit with Him. She now not only works in all things with the power of Christ, and is moved by His Spirit, but is so possessed of the Divine Spirit as 'Lord and Giver-of-Life,' that she seems to live the life of Christ; He living in her rather than she in herself. This demands such an intimate kind of renewal and transformation that it affects not only the faculties but also the very essence of the soul, for it is a true process of 'deification.'

"All the great mystics agree that no words are able to communicate the perfection of this state and the intimacy of this most happy union. They compare the soul to a sponge soaked in the water of the sea, to an iron placed in the fire, to two candles standing so close together that they give off a single flame...but they believe they are still far from explaining it. However, there is still a difference between the two which obliges the soul to recognize her own insignificance and the infinte holiness of Him Who sought to elevate her in this way." (Fr. Juan Arintero,O.P., Song of Songs, p 514)

Fr. J. Arintero tells us, "The soul now advances with such grace, majesty and glory, that often she cannot fail to arouse the admiration of all and even to overcome her greatest enemies. She no longer advances in this way in appearance only, as she did before, but now ascends leaning sweetly and firmly on her Beloved from Whom she can never more be separated; and so she moves radiant with His divine beauty and enjoying His happiness with delights that are a foretaste of glory.

"The spiritual delights and pleasures of loving souls are many. Let us here mention seven. The first is 'joy,' which is a kind of smile which visits the soul, and then passes away, something she cannot describe except to say that she regularly receives it. The second is 'spiritual happiness,' from the love of God, as a result of which the soul, interiorly and exteriorly, constantly walks joyfully in the Lord, with a serene and peaceful countenance, with a happiness of which St. Paul says, 'Rejoice in the Lord, always!'

"The third is 'spiritual rapture,' which is an impulse of great joy which transports the soul out of herself and inebrieates her so that she can understand nothing but God, and depriving her of all human discretion. The fourth is 'sensible devotion,' effected by the love of God which reaches even the soul's appetite through which she offers herself to Christ. The fifth is 'sweet tears,' which come from dwelling on the passions of Christ, which enkindles love. The sixth is a 'tenderness' and inner liquefaction which seemingly causes her to dissolve at the breath of the Spirit and words of love that come to her from God.

"The seventh is the pleasing 'company' of the Spouse, for it seems to the soul she has Him always in her heart, and is enjoying His presence with great delight. But greater than all of these is the union of the faculties with Christ, when the soul no longer seems to walk on her own feet or to work with her own strength, but all that she thinks, speaks and does is as though Christ were living within her and doing all her works."(Fr. Arintero, Song of Songs, p. 537)

ST JOHN OF THE CROSS ON TRANSFORMING UNION: (Experienced in its fulness by the perfect in heaven and, to an extent beyond exaggeraton, by those brought to transforming union in this life)

"There is a certain faculty which God will there give the soul in the communication of the Holy Spirit, Who, like one breathing, raises the soul by His divine aspiration, informs it, strengthens it, so that it too may breathe in God with the same aspiration of love which the Father breathes with the Son, and the Son with the Father, which is the Holy Spirit Himself, Who is breathed into the soul in the Father and the Son in that transformation so as to unite it to Himself; for the transformation will not be true and perfect if the soul is not transformed in the Three Persons of the Most Holy Trinity in a clear manifest degree.

"This breathing of the Holy Spirit in the soul, whereby God transforms it in Himself, is to the soul a joy so deep, so exquisite, and so grand that no mortal tongue can describe it, no human understanding, as such, conceive it in any degree; for even that which passes in the soul with respect to the communication which takes place in its transformation wrought in this life cannot be described, because the soul united with God and transformed in Him breathes in God that very divine aspiration which God breathes Himself in the soul when it is transformed in Him.

"In the transformation which takes place in this life, this breathing of God in the soul, and of the soul in God, is of most frequent occurrence, and the source of the most exquisite delight of love to the soul, but not however in the clear and manifest degree which it will have in the life to come. This, in my opinion, is what St. Paul referred to when he said: "Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying Abba, Father." The blessed in the life to come, and the perfect in this, thus experience it.

"Nor is it to be thought possible that the soul should be capable of so great a thing as that it should breathe in God as God in it, in the way of participation. For granting that God has bestowed upon it so great a favor as to unite it to the most Holy Trinity, whereby it becomes like God, and God by participation, is it altogether incredible that it should exercise the faculties of its understanding, perform its acts of knowledge and of love, or, to speak more accurately, should have it all done in the Holy Trinity together with It, as the Holy Trinity itself? This, however, takes place by communication and participation, God Himself effecting it in the soul, for this is "to be transformed in the Three Persons" in power, wisdom, and love, and herein it is that the soul becomes like God, Who, that it might come to this, created it to His own image and likeness.

"How this can be so cannot be explained in any other way than by showing how the Son of God has raised us to so high a state, and merited for us the "power to be made the sons of God." He prayed to the Father, saying: "Father, I will that where I am they also whom You have given Me may be with Me, that they may see My glory which You have given Me."

"That is, "that they may do by participation in Us what I do naturally, namely, breathe the Holy Spirit." He says also: "Not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in Me; that they all may be one, as You, Father, in Me, and I in You, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that You have sent Me. And the glory which You have given Me, I have given to them: that they may be one as We also are one. I in them and You in Me, that they may be made perfect in one, and the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have also loved Me," -- that is, in bestowing upon them that love which He bestows upon the Son, though not naturally as upon Him, but in the way I speak of, in the union and transformation of love.

"We are not to suppose from this that our Lord prayed that the saints might become one in essence and nature, as the Father and the Son are; but that they might become one in the union of love as the Father and the Son are one in the oneness of love. Souls have by participation that very God which the Son has by nature, and are therefore really gods by participation like unto God and of His society.

"St. Peter speaks of this as follows: "Grace to you and peace be accomplished in the knowledge of God, and Christ Jesus our Lord; as all things of His divine power, which pertain to life and godliness, are given us by the knowledge of Him Who has called us by His own proper glory and virtue, by Whom He has given us most great and precious promises: that by these you may be made partakers of the divine nature."

"Thus far St. Peter, who clearly teaches that the soul will be a partaker of God Himself, and will do, together with Him, the work of the Most Holy Trinity, because of the substantial union between the soul and God. And though this union is perfect only in the life to come, yet even in this, in the state of perfection, which the soul is said now to have attained, some anticipation of its sweetness is given it, in the way I am speaking of, though in a manner wholly ineffable.

"O souls created for this and called to this, what are you doing? What are your occupations? Your aim is meanness, and your enjoyments misery. Oh, wretched blindness of the children of Adam, blind to so great a light, and deaf to so clear a voice; you do not see that, while seeking after greatness and glory, you are miserable and contemptible, ignorant, and unworthy of blessings so great.

"The song of the sweet nightingale."

"Out of this "breathing of the air" comes the sweet voice of the Beloved addressing Himself to the soul, in which the soul sends forth its own sweet song of joy to Him. Both are meant by the song of the nightingale. As the song of the nightingale is heard in the spring of the year, when the cold, and rain, and changes of winter are past, filling the ear with melody, and the mind with joy; so, in the true intercourse and transformation of love, which takes place in this life, the bride, now protected and delivered from all trials and changes of the world, detached, and free from the imperfections, sufferings, and darkness both of mind and body, becomes conscious of a new spring in liberty, largeness, and joy of spirit, in which she hears the sweet voice of the Bridegroom, Who is her sweet nightingale, renewing and refreshing the very substance of her soul, now prepared for the journey of everlasting life.

"That voice is sweet to her ears, and calls her sweetly, as it is written: "Arise, make haste, My love, My dove, My beautiful one, and come. For winter is now past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers have appeared in our land, the time of pruning is come: the voice of the turtle is heard in our land."

"When the bride hears the voice of the Bridegroom in her inmost soul, she feels that her troubles are over and her prosperity begun. In the refreshing comfort and sweet sense of this voice she, too, like the nightingale, sends forth a new song of rejoicing to God, in unison with Him Who now moves her to do so.

"It is for this that the Beloved sings, that the bride in unison with Him may sing to God; this is the aim and desire of the Bridegroom, that the soul should sing with the spirit joyously to God; and this is what He asks of the bride in the Canticle: "Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come; my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hollow places of the wall, show me your face, let your voice sound in my ears.

"The ears of God signify the desire He has that the soul should sing in perfect joy. And that this song may be perfect, the Bridegroom bids the soul to send it forth, and to let it sound in the clefts of the rock, that is, in the transformation which is the fruit of the mysteries of Christ, of which I spoke just now. And because in this union of the soul with God, the soul sings to Him together with Him, in the way I spoke of when I was speaking of love, the song of praise is most perfect and pleasing to God; for the acts of the soul, in the state of perfection, are most perfect; and thus the song of its rejoicing is sweet to God as well as to itself.

"Your voice is sweet," says the Bridegroom, "not only to you, but also to Me, for as we are one, your voice is also in unison and one with Mine." This is the Canticle which the soul sings in the transformation which takes place in this life, about which no exaggeration is possible."

And in the last book of the Bible, God tells us how He will honor those believers who demonstrate an "overcoming faith," as they are tested by the World, the Flesh, and the Devil, and arrive victorious at Perfect Union:

See "Perfect Union"