“Who would dare to imagine that You, O infinite eternal God, have loved me for centuries, or to be more precise, from the beginning of the centuries?
In fact, You have loved me ever since You have existed as God; thus, You have always loved me and You shall always love me!…
Your love for me was already there, even when I had no existence, and precisely because You loved me, O good God, You called me from nothingness to existence!…
For me Tou have created the skies scattered with stars, for me the earth, the seas, the mountains, the streams, and all the beautiful things on earth…
Still, this did not satisfy You; to show me close up that You loved me so tenderly, You came dow from purest delights of heaven to this tarnished and tear-ridden world, You lived amidst poverty, hard work and suffering; and finally, despised and mocked, You let yourself be suspended in torment on a vile scaffold between two criminals…
O God of love, You have redeemed me in this terrible though generous fashion!…
Who would venture to imagine it?
Maximilian Kolbe is known for offering his life to save fellow prisoners at the notorious death camp at Auschwitz (1894-1941), as cited in Prayers of the Saints, ed. Woodeene Koenig-Bricker (New York: HarperCollins, 1996) 70-71.