Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/8673

8673 True church service requires a Father-child relationship....

November 14, 1963: Book 91

Many people believe that they think and act religiously, but they lack the right attitude towards Me.... They certainly think of Me as their God and Creator, but not as their Father, and thus they do not establish the relationship of a child to its father. As a result they will not confide in Me in prayer either, they only see the distant almighty God in Me to Whom they are subjected as human beings, and Whom they rather fear than love.... because they are still unable to recognise My true nature.

And again it has to be explained that the degree of a person’s love determines his correct attitude towards Me.... that love will recognise the Father, Who is love Himself, and that the human being will then strive for Me with love and call to Me as My child. Only then can one speak of a person’s ‘religious’ way of life, because this way of life will lead back to Me for sure. But as long I Am still a person’s distant God and Creator Who, due to His might, will have to be feared, there is little prospect that the person will approach Me with love. He will merely fulfil, as a matter of formality, things which are demanded of him by his church. He is only motivated by his upbringing to conduct himself accordingly but this will not guarantee a change of his inner being, which is the purpose and goal of earthly life.

Consequently, if you humans experience heavy strokes of fate they are only intended to make you come alive, to forego mere formality and start thinking more about God, Who created you.... to start pondering why you are living on earth, and then voluntarily surrender yourselves to the power to Which you owe your life: because your indifferent attitude about Me will not result in your spiritual advancement.... However, if you seriously want to know what your God and Creator requires of you during your earthly life you are certain to find out. First of all you should ponder the nature of your God and Creator, and the urge to act with love will be aroused in you.... because this is My voice with which I Am speaking to your conscience and initially making Myself known to you.

By following the voice of your conscience you will come closer to Me, and then you will also establish the kind of connection with Me which corresponds to the relationship between a child and its father.... My gentle voice will always direct you towards actions of love which will bring you the light of knowledge and with it an understanding of My nature, Which is Love Itself.... Then you will leave ‘empty formalities’ behind and become alive in your essence and actions. You will no longer perform formal acts but begin to lead a second life next to your earthly life.... You will have set out on the spiritual path, since due to your new life of love you will be inwardly driven towards Me.

And thus you know that everything which tends towards love, is taught by love and is the activity of love, is good and acceptable to Me. For love is the indicator of truth and also the indicator of a person’s spiritual maturity who, as My representative, wants to lead his fellow human beings to Me. As long as he has no love himself, his 'preaching' will be without strength too; it will be a formal, lifeless service without benefit to anyone because I Myself Am distant from him, since only idle words are spoken which can never reach My ear. Only the close relationship with Me established through love will make your thinking, willing and actions come alive. Only then will you come to life yourselves, because as long as you are without love you are still dead.

And thus, taking part in a 'church service' is always just an external formality, and there can be no question of My presence as long as you humans only believe in a God and Creator but do not find the right attitude towards Me.... First you have to come to the Father as children and trustingly talk to Me, only then can you be sure that I Am close to you. And then your faith will also have come alive, because a ‘child’ will always endeavour to fulfil its Father's will. It will no longer just comply with external formalities but desire My presence with all its heart, which it will certainly also receive.

I only want you to come alive, to abandon useless habits and customs which you were taught to observe, but which are and remain completely worthless for your soul. You will only be able to love Me when you recognise Me as a Father, and only then will you fulfil the purpose of your life on earth.... Only then can you mature, which is always achieved by love alone....

Amen

Translated by Heidi Hanna