Joan of Arc didn’t have to die. In fact, Joan recanted her statements about her visions and voices. Her execution was mitigated to life in prison. Two days later she took back her recant and with that her hope of survival. Why?
This is really why Joan of Arc stands for truth. She could have saved herself, after all it’s only words. Just say the words, “I made it all up and I recant them”, make everyone happy and continue on your way. Right?
Indeed, Joan’s human side believed that to be the case. Death is a strong motivator. Yet, she could not in good conscious do this. She would know of the lie. Everything she had said was true. To take that back would diminish the spiritual import of all she had said and done.
This was such a test. She realized to live with such a lie, would be to not truly live at all. It would be a fate worse than death. For truth ceases to be truth when compromised and when we lose sight of truth, what do we have?
Sacrifices of the type Joan made are rarely understood in today’s world. This is the sacrifice of deep spiritual work. The kind that alchemizes lead into gold. The sacrifice all the harder because Joan had given herself a way out when the time came by denying her truth. She is just one of many saints, martyrs and masters that have made the ultimate sacrifice.
If I had a dollar for every time someone said to me, “Why did I come here? This sucks! I must have been crazy.” Yes, this is often said light-heartedly but too often it is not. We came here to learn sacrifice. We came here to teach sacrifice. Our soul wants to sacrifice for its own good and the good of the collective. Sacrifice purifies us.
Do you think Jesus couldn’t have saved himself? When they were taunting him, “If you are the Son of God come down from the cross and save yourself,” do you really think he could not have done so? He who created miracles?
The ego loves to dramatize it all but if you knew the other lives that you have lived, you would know that this life is actually very easy for most of us. For every sacrifice we are richly rewarded. Without these sacrifices we cannot reach unconditional love, truth and justice.
Few of us will have to sacrifice life or limb this time around, only the ego and the illusion it creates. The ego often balks at the most minuscule sacrifices but let’s keep things in perspective with sacrifices of the past. Doesn’t sacrificing our human desires seem a small trade off for creating New Earth and ascending our soul?
Today we are all called to stand strong in our truth. This requires sacrifice. Not the harsh death sentence that St. Joan faced but the sacrifice of staying true to your heart. It’s much easier to go along with the crowd or ignore the truth in your heart than it is to express it.
Sacrifice comes when we must voice our own truth even when it goes against the mob and we are threatened with ostracism. We may have to sacrifice long held relationships or face not just the displeasure, but pure vitriol and violence from those who disagree with us. The dark forces are pressing us everyday not to speak out against the evil that is slowly and insidiously creeping into our society.
St. Joan chose to reaffirm her truth because to not do so would mean she would have to step out of the light and into the darkness. It would have left her separated from God and the heavenly beings she was so connected to. She would have life, but it would have been an empty life not worth living because it would have become bereft of spiritual and moral truth.
We face this same choice. To sacrifice our truth for comfort and appeasement is to sacrifice our spiritual and moral anchor and succumb to the darkness that surrounds us. Is that a life worth living?
In Memory of Joan of Arc, who was executed on this day, May 30, in 1431.
Written by Marla Kelly