CL 207 [7]
Eternal rest does not mean idleness . . .
because idleness affects the mind
and consequently the whole body
with listlessness, lethargy, insensibility and slumber,
and these are conditions of deadness,
not life,
much less the eternal life
experienced by angels of heaven.
Eternal rest, therefore, is rest
that dispels these states and vitalizes a person,
and this must be something which rouses the mind.
Thus it is some pursuit or employment
by which the mind is awakened,
animated, and afforded delight,
which in turn depends on some useful service
for the sake of which,
in which,
and toward which
it is working.
So it is that the whole of heaven is viewed by the Lord
as a world of useful service,
and each angel is an angel
according to the service he renders.
The pleasure in being useful
carries him along like a boat in a favoring current,
bringing him into a state of eternal peace
and the rest that comes with peace.
This is what is meant by eternal rest from labors.
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