Chapter VI: Part 6

_Prayer._--O Holy Virgin and Mother of God! deign to succour those who implore your assistance. Cast an eye of compassion upon us, and be moved at the sight of our miseries. O Mother of Grace! have you forgotten men in their tribulations and need, by reason of the sublime dignity to which you have been raised? No, without doubt your heart will be ever interested in our favour, nor can your great mercy ever forget misery so profound as ours. Turn then towards us, and consider the many dangers to which we are continually exposed. God Almighty has constituted you the depositary of His power and of His graces; pour them upon us in abundance, we beg of you. The more powerful you are, the more do I trust, O Mother of Mercy, that you will be singularly merciful to your afflicted children who have recourse to you. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--O Mary! you are able to succour me, and I hope your goodness will not refuse me this favour.

_Practice._--Endeavour to recollect yourself frequently during the day, that you may act with greater purity of intention.

TWENTY-THIRD DAY.

THE BLESSED VIRGIN DID NOT NEGLECT THE DUTIES OF MARTHA.

THE conduct of Martha and Mary give us another touching subject for our meditation. These two sisters well represent to us Our Lady. Like Martha the Blessed Virgin Mary received her Son Our Lord into her house, and into her most chaste womb, when He came into this world, and with incomparable care she always served Him whilst He lived on earth, in reward of which He exalted her in heaven to an unparalleled glory. Like Mary, she listened to His words in uninterrupted silence, and occupied herself only in loving Him. This glorious Virgin exercised admirably in the course of her life the offices of both of these sisters. But as regards the office of Martha, with what care and attention did she not serve Our Lord when an Infant! What diligence did she employ in avoiding the anger of Herod, and all the dangers with which His life was threatened!

Take notice that Our Lord reprehended Martha because she was disturbed and troubled, not because she was careful. Our Lady, like Martha, took great care to serve our Divine Master well--but her care was devoid of all disquiet and anxious trouble. The Saints in heaven are zealous for the glory of God, but are not disquieted. The Angels are careful in all that regards our salvation, and God Himself has care of His creatures, but always in peace and undisturbed calm. To us, miserable creatures, however, this is difficult. Some become suddenly disturbed because they cannot do what they desire; others wish to console and visit the sick, but if they meet with some hindrance they are immediately troubled; others will have a great affection for mental prayer, and although this relates only to God, yet even here human nature enters, and they will be disturbed and troubled if they are constrained to occupy themselves in some other employment.

Now would Martha have been so much troubled if she had had no other end in view than to please Our Lord? No, certainly; because one only kind of food, well prepared, was sufficient for His nourishment, and, moreover, because she saw that the whole pleasure of her Divine Master was to be listened to, as was done by her sister Mary. But Martha mingled a little self-esteem with her desire to provide all that was necessary for our Divine Master; and this moved her to wish that her hospitality, in receiving those who honoured her with their visits, should be recognised. The good lady believed that by this external service she would become a great servant of God, and surpass others; and through love for her sister she wished that she also should be solicitous to serve the Beloved Master, and thus, as she thought, acquire more merit. But our Divine Redeemer was more pleased with the practice of Mary, into whose heart He poured forth, through His divine words, graces surpassing all conception. This was the truth He wished also to inculcate, when He said, that those alone were blessed who should have listened to His word and practised it.

All that anxious restlessness and eager desire to do something for Our Lord, which some devout persons look upon as real virtue, is then a manifest error, reproved by our Divine Master, when He said: _Porro unum est necessarium_--'But one thing is necessary.'

You may ask, in reply, But how are we to prevent being uneasy when we are under an obligation of practising virtue? This solicitude is certainly not blamable, provided it be not overanxious and troubled. Invoke frequently the one beautiful Dove of the Heavenly Spouse, that she may truly obtain for you the heart of a dove, and that you may not only be a dove in your flight towards heaven, by prayer, but also a dove in your nest, and with all those who surround you. Unite the office of Mary with that of Martha: diligently fulfil the duties of your state. Often cast yourself at the feet of Jesus, and say to Him from your heart: O my Divine Master, whether I go or stay, I am all Thine and Thou art all mine. Thou art my only Spouse, and all that I am going to do shall be for Thee.

As the birds have their nests in which to hide themselves when needful, so our heart should select and take possession of some spot every day, either on Calvary or in the Sacred Wounds of Our Lord, or near Him, whither it may retire on every occasion to defend itself in temptations and recreate itself after the many exterior affairs of the day. Happy the soul that can truly say to Our Lord: You are my house of refuge, my secure home; my roof, in time of rain, and my refreshment under burning heats.

A remedy, however, against so many anxious cares and troubles is to copy the practice of Mary, because it was praised by Our Lord Himself, Who called it the best and the one thing necessary. Now, this one thing necessary is nothing else than the exercise of Divine Love, which, as it contains in itself the perfection of all other virtues, produces their acts in due time and place, according to circumstances. In one word, then: _Possess holy Charity, and no virtue will be wanting to you, because all virtues are comprised in Charity._

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

The Most Holy Virgin Mary is compared to an orange-tree laden with fruit, and diffusing the sweetest odour of Lebanon. This means that all her thoughts, words, and actions were so perfect that, like an exquisite perfume, they delighted both Heaven and earth: and that, like the pomegranate, they wore the crown of perfection.--_Pere S. Jure._

The bee sucks honey from flowers without injuring them, and leaves them as entire and fresh as he found them. Devotion has this higher excellence, that it adds new beauty to all that it touches.--_St. Francis of Sales._

Remember that when the bees make honey, they take bitter food; so, also, we can never make acts of greater patience and sweetness, nor form better the honey of excellent virtues than by eating the bread of bitterness and living a life of tribulation.--_The same._

EXAMPLE.

_The 'Magnificat.'_

The _Magnificat_ is the first Canticle of the New Testament and the most magnificent Canticle of Holy Scripture. It presents us with most sublime ideas of the greatness of God, and is sung on solemn festivals, whilst Priests stand and incense the Altar.

We recite the _Magnificat_ to thank God for all the graces bestowed upon the Most Holy Virgin. It is the only work she ever composed, and contains mysteries far surpassing our understanding. Hence this proverb was familiar amongst the ancient authors when they spoke of one who meddled with things beyond his capacity; such a one would _correct the Magnificat._

The Blessed Juliana had a special affection for this Canticle. Speaking of it one day to the Superior of a convent, she declared that she would not sacrifice the sweetness she experienced in reciting it for all the gold that the convent could contain. She repeated it nine times a day, in memory of the nine months that the Most Holy Virgin bore the Redeemer of the world in her womb; and she desired ardently that all would follow her example, believing it impossible that Mary would not hear those who share in the joy she manifests in this Canticle.

Cardinal J. de Vitry, in the life of Ste. Marie de Ogniez, relates that when this Saint was near death, and was singing the _Magnificat_, the Mother of God appeared to her and told her to receive Extreme Unction, and she remained by her bedside in company with her Divine Son until the Saint expired.

St. Anselm relates of himself that when he was afflicted with various infirmities, which occasioned him the most acute suffering, he was perfectly cured by reciting the _Magnificat._

_Prayer._--August Mother of God, you are the Queen of Mercy, and I am the most miserable of sinners, and consequently your subject. You should then have greater compassion for me than for anyone less sinful. _Eia ergo advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte._

O, our refuge and our advocate, turn one look of mercy towards us; interest yourself in our behalf; be moved to compassion for our evils, and obtain their cure. Deliver us from our miseries, and we shall never cease to sing the hymn of praise to your mercy, of which we have experienced the salutary effects. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--Pray for me, O Mother of Grace, O Mother of Mercy!

_Practice._--Whilst you fulfil the duties of your state in imitation of Martha, endeavour to have your mind and heart turned to Jesus as Mary had.

TWENTY-FOURTH DAY.

MARY IN HER SLEEP.

WE can begin to love God in this life, but it is only in the next that we shall be able to love Him perfectly. In the expression _we_ I do not intend to speak of the Most Holy Virgin, because she is the Daughter of beautiful Love, the one only dove, the perfect Spouse. Yes; the charity of Mary surpassed that of the Seraphim. 'If all the daughters have gathered riches, thou hast surpassed them all.'

The Saints and Angels are compared to stars, but Mary is beautiful as the moon, distinguished amidst the Saints as the moon amidst the stars. As her charity surpasses in heaven that of all the blessed, so did she exercise it with greater excellence on earth; for never having sinned, even venially, her love never met with any obstacle, and thus increased at every instant. What progress, then, must she not have made in the exercise of holy love? Say not that the Most Holy Virgin, like all men, was subject to the necessities of life. It may be said, in the words of the Canticles, that her sleep was the sleep of Love, the celestial Spouse saying, _'I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, that you stir not nor awake my love till she please.'_

The Queen of heaven and earth granted to her chaste body that repose only which was necessary to restore its strength, in order to serve God more perfectly; and we may say that her sleep never interrupted the exercise of holy love, because it proceeded from an act of most excellent charity. Does not St. Augustine teach that we must love our body, that it may serve us in those works which God requires of us, and because it forms part of ourselves, and is one day to share our eternal felicity?

The Most Holy Virgin, indeed, had other reasons to love her body with a virtuous love, because it was not only pure, submissive, and docile to all the functions of holy love and embalmed by Divine sweetness, but it was, moreover, the living source of the Sacred Body of Our Saviour. Thus it belonged to her in an incomparably singular manner, so that before yielding to sleep she could truly say to it, 'Rest from your fatigues, O throne of the Divinity, tabernacle of the new Covenant, ark of all Sanctity; recruit your strength through the repose which I allow you to take.'

Ah! sweet Jesus! what must have been the thoughts of your Most Holy Mother whilst sleep refreshed her body and her heart was watching! We may imagine that her most frequent thought was of her Divine Son, Who had so often slept upon her bosom as the lamb reposes upon the soft wool of its mother. She would also feel that she rested in His adorable side, opened by the lance on Calvary, as a white dove rests in the cleft of a rock. Thus her sleep, which was a sweet repose and an agreeable solace to her body, became a kind of ecstasy to her soul, through the spiritual effects and operations it produced.

If she also represented to herself her future glory, like Joseph, the saviour of Egypt, and saw herself clothed with the sun and the moon under her feet--that is to say, surrounded by the glory of her Divine Son, and resplendent with the glory of the Saints who form her crown as she rules over the universe, of which she is the Queen; or if, like Jacob, she foresaw the wonderful fruits that Angels and men would obtain through the Redemption, O! conceive, if possible, children of Mary, the delights caused by such spiritual entertainments!

There is one kind of diamond which has this special property--that nothing can diminish its fine water or the brilliancy which nature has given it. The Heart of the Virgin Mother, like this diamond, never ceased to glow with the sacred fire of love that she had received from her Divine Son. However, though the brilliancy of precious stones does not diminish, yet it does not increase; whilst the love of the Most Holy Virgin never remained in the same state, but made continual and incredible progress until she entered heaven. With good reason, then, is Our Lady called the Mother of pure Love--that is to say, the most lovable amongst all creatures, and the most beloved by her only Son, Who is loved by her as the most lovable and loving of Sons.

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Forgetfulness of God is the sleep of the soul. The soul has been asleep all the time that it has forgotten its God.--_St. Augustine._

The sleep of the Saints is a prayer before God.--_St. Jerome._

It is great blindness and misery to seek repose where it is impossible to find it.--_St. Teresa._

EXAMPLE.

_Devotion to the 'Salve Regina.'_

St. Bernard is celebrated for his love of the Blessed Virgin and for the praises he has rendered to her. His language is of such sweetness, that it surpasses that of all preceding ages for beauty and tenderness in discoursing of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This saint seems to have gathered together and made his own all the most loving affections of the most fervent servants. Mary was his ruling thought, and he could not restrain the transports of his heart when he spoke of her. The very mention of her name sufficed to render him ecstatic. With good reason, then, did Peter the Abbot of St. Remigius, at Rheims, say to one of St. Bernard's adversaries: 'If you have the courage to touch the pupil of Mary's eye, write against St. Bernard.'

This Saint was commissioned to preach the second general Crusade throughout Europe, and when he had traversed France, Belgium and the Rhenish countries, he retired to the Abbey of Effinghem, to recollect his soul in that pious solitude. One evening the Monks were moved to tears by a discourse of St. Bernard's in praise of Mary, and they begged him to intone the _Salve Regina_, which they sang every evening before her image. As the Saint could not excuse himself, he devoutly intoned the _Salve_ with his powerful voice, and was accompanied by all the Monks. When the sweet words _Et Jesum benedictum fructum ventris tui, nobis post hoc exilium ostende_ had been sung, all were silent (because at that time the anthem ended with these words). However, the inspired voice of Bernard continued, and he gave expression to the sentiments of his heart in the three invocations with which it is now concluded: _O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria!_ These words were afterwards adopted by the whole Church.

It is in commemoration of this event that the _Salve Regina_ is solemnly sung every evening in the Cathedral of Spire.

St. Vincent de Paul used to say that no prayer is so suitable to us miserable exiles in this valley of tears as this: _Salve Regina, Mater misericordiae . . . Ad te clamamus, exules filii Hevae._

St. Philip Neri, having heard the confession of a famous criminal, spoke thus to him: 'My son, I shall require but little from you, and if you fulfil it I assure you that you will be saved. Promise me to place all your confidence in the Most Blessed Virgin, the Mother of Divine Grace, and for this purpose recite the _Salve Regina_ seven times every day in her honour, and kiss the ground the same number of times, saying: "I may die this moment."' The penitent made the promise and kept it. He died holily fourteen years after, full of gratitude and love towards his good Mother Mary.

_Prayer._--Most amiable Heart of Mary, object of the complacency of the adorable Trinity, and worthy of the veneration of Angels and of men; Heart like unto that of Jesus Christ and its most perfect image; Heart full of goodness and compassion for our miseries! Oh, break the ice of our hearts, turn our affections towards the adorable Heart of Our Saviour, and impress on them the love of your virtues. Watch over Holy Church, protect it, and be to it an impregnable fortress, so that it may be secure amidst all the assaults of its enemies. Be you our way to God, our succour in our trials, our consolation in sufferings, our strength in temptations, and our refuge in persecutions. Above all things assist us at the point of death, when hell will exert all its efforts for our eternal ruin. Let us then, indeed, experience the power you have over the Heart of Jesus, that we may find a secure asylum in the bosom of His Mercy, and then, with you, praise Him throughout ages and ages. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--I sleep, O Mother, but my heart watches.

_Practice._--Endeavour to be reflecting upon some eternal truth when you fall asleep.

TWENTY-FIFTH DAY.

MARY ON CALVARY IS THE MOTHER OF ALL CHRISTIANS.

OUR Beloved Saviour had instituted the Sacrament of Love that He might remain amid His children. He had poured forth all His Blood for us, and He wished moreover to bequeath us a legacy in the last Testament of His Love. But what more could He give us? He casts a compassionate look upon His tender Mother, who stands immovable at the foot of the Cross with His beloved disciple. It is not to enrich her with His grace, for she already possessed it most excellently; nor is it to promise her glory, she was sure of it; but it is to infuse into her heart, before He died, a more tender and ardent love for men than she yet possessed. 'Woman,' says He to her, pointing to the beloved disciple, _'behold your son!'_ What an exchange was this! The servant instead of the Only Son--the creature in place of the Creator! And yet she does not refuse it, well knowing that she accepted for her children, in the person of John, all the followers of the Cross of Jesus, and that she was to become the beloved Mother of all Christians.

Although Our Lady gave birth to none but our adorable Saviour, yet, in a spiritual sense, she brought forth all Christians in the Person of Our Saviour; because this Blessed Seed has begotten us all by His death. A seed when planted produces a tree, from which are produced other seeds, all of which may be said to belong to the original fruit from which the tree came forth. Thus, as the Most Holy Virgin brought forth this mystic Seed, which when cast on earth, budded and brought forth many other seeds, she has consequently brought us all forth and has become the Mother of us all. How much we ought to love the Son and the Mother! for they are our Divine parents, and it is impossible to love one without loving the other. [1]

As Holy Church wishes to teach us to go to Jesus through Mary, she directs that the Angelical Salutation should follow the _Our Father_, that we may thus petition, through her, for all benefits, both spiritual and temporal, as far as these latter are conducive to our eternal salvation. We also implore the intercession of Mary in order to receive the Holy Ghost, as it was through her that St. Elizabeth received His gifts.

Honour and revere with especial love the holy and glorious Virgin Mary, for she is the Mother of Our God and Saviour Jesus Christ, and therefore our most excellent Mother. Let us then have recourse to her as little children; let us cast ourselves upon her bosom on every occasion, and at every moment, with perfect confidence. Let us appeal to her maternal love, endeavour to imitate her virtues, and cherish in our heart the true sentiments of children.

In the ancient Law much honour was paid to the Ark, in which were preserved the manna, the rod of Aaron, and the tables of the Law. With much greater reason should we honour this living Ark of the new Covenant. Indeed, what does the manna prefigure but the Divinity of the Son of God, come down from heaven to unite Himself with our humanity? He is, also, the Miraculous Rod and the Living Stone upon which the commandments of the Law of Grace were written, being engraved upon His Sacred Body by the scourges, the thorns, the nails, and the lance. The immaculate bosom of Our Lady is then incomparably more worthy of honour than the ancient ark which prefigured it.

O Most Holy and Most Happy Lady, raised in Paradise to the highest degree of beatitude and happiness! we beg you to have compassion on us who groan in the desert of this world. You are in the abundance of delights, and we in the abyss of miseries; obtain for us strength to endure our tribulations virtuously, always leaning on your Beloved Son, the only pledge of our hopes and remedy of our evils. O Glorious Virgin, pray for the Church, assist the Holy Father, the Prelates, Bishops, and all Superiors; and assist England especially, which by your devoted servant St. Edward, was consecrated to you as your dowry: _Dota Mariae_. (Translator.)

You are the Mother of Jesus, Who has deigned to become our Brother, and hence you are our Mother; why, then, shall we not cast ourselves into your arms with perfect confidence, invoking your maternal love and imitating your virtues? O God, what a blessing for us to be sons of such a Mother! If we love and serve her with a truly filial love, she will enrich us with her favours. And, meanwhile, let us present her with the flowers of every virtue: but, above all, with the lily of purity, the rose of ardent charity, and the violets of holy humility and simplicity. She loves nothing so much as hearts deepened by humility, opened by simplicity, and enlarged by charity; and she prefers to be in the company of souls near the manger and at the foot of the Cross; that is, with the poor and the afflicted, in order to succour and console them.

[1] Happy the soul who, like a good child in regard of her parents, sees only Jesus and Mary, converses only with Jesus and Mary, and whose only joy and desire in this world is to know Mary in Jesus and Jesus in Mary. This is a wonderful means, given us by God, of spending our lives holily during our sorrowful sojourn in this present life.-- (J. J. OLIER.)

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Mary is like a lily amidst thorns: she loves and suffers at the same time. When the thorns are blown about by the wind, they tear the lily on all sides; but it revenges itself by causing to exhale, through the apertures of its wounds, a sweet fragrance, which perfumes the thorns that have so cruelly wounded it. In imitation of Mary, figured by the lily amidst thorns, let your only revenge for your afflictions be to increase your love for those who are the cause of your pains.--_Pere Avrillion._

Mary is compared to the white lily, on account of her innocence and exemption from all sin; and as the lily is beautiful amongst the thorns where it has sprung up, so was Mary distinguished amidst the women of Judea. The lily loses nothing of its whiteness, although amongst thorns, and the august Virgin, tortured in the Person of her Son, by the Jewish Deicides, preserved the innocency of her soul and the purity of her heart, rendering good for evil.--_St. Francis of Sales._

Mary is that most beautiful and lofty cedar, from which God detached the finest branch, to transplant it on Calvary.--_The same._

Lose not sight of eternity, and the adversities of this life will not trouble you.--_The same._

EXAMPLE.

_The 'Regina Coeli.'_

Baronius and St. Gregory of Nyssa relate that in the year 690 the city of Rome was in danger of becoming a desert, on account of the number of persons who became victims to a terrible pestilence. St. Gregory, surnamed the Great, successor to Pope Gelasius II., who had fallen a victim to this disease, saw that all human precautions and resources were of no avail, and he resolved to have recourse to the Mother of God. He gave orders that the picture of the Most Holy Virgin--which is believed to have been painted by St. Luke--should be carried in a general procession of all the Clergy and laity, as far as Santa Maria Maggiore. The violence of the plague was such that eighty persons perished during the procession; but before its termination an Angel was seen in human form above Adrian's Tower (called afterwards the Castle of St. Angelo, in memory of this event), sheathing a sword tinged with blood, as in the time of David; and from that moment the pestilence completely ceased. At the same time many voices were heard in the air, singing: _Regina coeli, laetare, alleluia; quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia; resurrexit sicut dixit, alleluia_-- 'Rejoice, O Queen of Heaven, for He Whom you deserved to bear has risen, as He said, from the grave; God be praised.' The Holy Pontiff immediately added: _Ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia_--'Pray to God for us, God be praised.'

This having occurred at Easter, the Church from that time ordered all the Clergy and faithful to recite this Antiphon during Paschal season.

_Prayer._--Oh! most desolate of Mothers! what a sword has pierced your Heart! All the blows which wounded your Son Jesus fell upon you. By His pains you were tortured, by His wounds you were torn. His last adieu renewed all your sorrows; but when He breathed His last sigh with what anguish was your heart oppressed, O Mother of love and of sorrow! Obtain, I beg of you, that I may follow your example in loving and suffering! Yes, Queen of Martyrs, let me share your martyrdom. Love gave you the Cross, let the Cross fill my heart with love; and if, to enable me to love, it be necessary that I suffer and die, obtain for me this grace, that I may love all that comes to me from God, whether it be sorrows, afflictions, or death. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--Pray for me, O Queen of Martyrs!

_Practice._--When you are tempted to complain, or to be impatient under opposition, reflect upon Mary at the foot of the Cross.

TWENTY-SIXTH DAY.

MARY AFTER THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST.

GOD placed two beautiful luminaries in the heavens on the fourth day of the Creation; one called the _greater_, the other the _lesser light_; the former to rule over the day, the latter, over the night. Although God decreed that darkness should succeed the day, He, the increated Light, would not allow the night to be entirely deprived of light. When, in His Providence, He wished to create the spiritual world in His Church, He placed in it, as in a Divine firmament, two great luminaries. The greatest is Jesus Christ, Our Saviour and Master--an abyss of light, and the source of splendour, the true Sun of Justice; the lesser luminary is the Most Holy Mother of this Divine Saviour; a most glorious Mother, resplendent and beautiful as the moon.

The Son of God came down upon earth, like the sun upon our atmosphere, to clothe Himself with our humanity, and formed our light and day; a most longed-for day, which lasted about thirty-three years, during which time He illumined the Church with the splendour of His miracles, His example and His doctrine. But the hour having at last arrived when this precious Sun was to set and cast Its rays over the other hemisphere--that is, heaven--what else could remain on earth but darkness and obscurity? And, in fact, night quickly spread around--the night of the many persecutions raised against the Apostles. But that its darkness might be more tolerable, it also had its luminary in the person of the Most Holy Virgin, who remained with the disciples and the faithful, after the Ascension of her Divine Son. This we learn from St. Luke: the Most Holy Mary was with the disciples in the upper room on the day of Pentecost, and persevered with them in communion and prayer.

Jesus Christ would leave her still in the world: firstly, that as a luminary she might be the comfort of the faithful immersed in the night of tribulations; secondly, that by surviving her Divine Son she might acquire greater merit, so that it might be truly said of her-- many daughters have gathered riches, you have surpassed them all; thirdly, that her presence might be a convincing proof against the heresy that arose after the Ascension of Our Lord, which held that He had not taken a natural Body but one merely in appearance. Thus, even in her lifetime, were verified in her regard the words of Holy Church, 'You, august Virgin, have destroyed all heresies.'

The Most Holy Virgin lived after the Ascension of her Divine Son until she reached the age of sixty-three; and thus this mystic Ark of the new Covenant dwelt under tents in the desert of this world.

Our Divine Lord, wished that His Most Holy Mother should, after having been an example to virgins and to mothers, become the model of widows by her modesty and her love for the hidden life. Widows may be compared to the little lowly violet, which has no brilliancy in its colour but has a scent which, without being too strong, is marvellously sweet. Oh, what a beautiful flower in the Church is the Christian widow! Lowly, through humility, and without splendour in the eyes of the world, since she flies from it; she is unable to meet the gaze of men when her heart no longer desires their love.

The Apostle St. Paul orders his disciple St. Timothy, to honour those _who are widows indeed;_ that is, those who are so in heart and mind. 'Blessed,' says Our Lord, 'are the pure of heart and poor in spirit.'

Widows in spirit and in desire are deserving of the highest esteem; for what means the word 'widow' but need and destitution. Honour, then, be rendered to those who are such in mind and heart, for they are humble and their Protector is the Lord!

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Let it be your desire to see God, your fear to lose Him, your sorrow not yet to possess Him, and your joy to do everything that can lead you to Him; you will then live in the abundance of peace.--_St. Teresa._

Remember that you have but one soul; that you will die but once; that you have but one life, and that a very short one; but one glory, and that eternal; your heart will then detach itself from everything.-- _The same._

The soul that loves God lives more in the next world than in this; because the soul lives more in the object of its love than in the subject which it animates.--_St. John of the Cross._

The true widow of the Church is a little March violet. By her devotion she spreads a sweet perfume. She usually keeps herself hidden under the leaves of her abjection, and her mortification is seen by her quiet, modest demeanour.--_St. Francis of Sales._

EXAMPLE.

_A Courageous Son of Mary._

The Saints are accustomed to say 'My Mother' when speaking of the Blessed Virgin Mary; and some time ago, under the influence of this idea, a touching scene took place. A countryman was at Leipsic, a town which may be called the heart of Protestantism, where he entered by mistake the hall of a university, in which some Lutheran Doctors were disputing upon religion. He was recognised as a fervent Catholic, by a medal attached to his rosary hanging from his pocket; and he soon became the object of the bitter derision of the Lutherans.

The good man, without being disconcerted, took a dollar from his old purse, and, throwing it on the table where the Doctors were seated, exclaimed, 'Well, then, who will bet with me which of us is the most learned in matters of religion?'

The president laid down his piece of money; and then casting a glance of contempt upon the peasant's rosary, said to him, 'What is the name of the Mother of God?' The pious peasant replied, in a most respectful tone of voice, 'Her name is Mary.' Then, quickly turning to the Doctor, he said, 'Tell me the name of _my_ Mother.'

This question contained a mystery; a Catholic would have penetrated it. and would have replied, 'She is called Mary.' However, the Protestant Doctor was not sufficiently instructed to understand it. He remained silent, filled with spite at the ingenious and pious trick of the countryman, who, judging that he had come off victor, took up the two pieces of money, and said, with admirable calmness, 'Gentlemen, when you dispute again upon religion, I beg of you to let me know.' He then retired; and the lesson was as perfect as it was well merited.

_Prayer._--O Mary, my Sovereign! O Mother of my Saviour! You are blessed amongst all women, pure amongst all virgins, the Queen of all creatures. All nations call you Blessed. Let me exalt your greatness as much as it is possible for me to exalt it, and love you, as much as I can love you. May I call upon you continually and contribute to make you honoured, as far as I am able. I should wish to see the whole universe prostrate at your feet, and all hearts burning with your love, that they may all love your Divine Son, as you loved Him in this world, and will love Him for all eternity. I earnestly entreat this grace, O my Mother, although I acknowledge and confess myself unworthy to obtain it.

_Ejaculation._--O Holy Virgin, enable me to speak of your greatness.

_Practice._--Examine if the virtues of Mary are to you as that lesser luminary in whose light you walk on in the way that leads to Paradise.

TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY.

MARY IN THE UPPER ROOM AT JERUSALEM.

THE Eternal Father bestowed an incomparable gift upon the world when He gave it His Only Son. Jesus Christ Himself said: 'God hath so loved the world as to give it His Only Son;' and St. Paul exclaims: 'How has He not with Him given us all things?'--_Quomodo non etiam omnia cum illo nobis donavit?_

Almighty God, in the ancient Law, had bestowed an infinity of blessings upon His chosen people; but they were given according to measure. In the Law of Grace, however, He had no sooner seen His Beloved Son ascended into heaven than He opened His Hands to pour forth His graces and gifts upon all the faithful, according to the prophecy of Joel, that _supra omnem carnem_--'over all men' would He diffuse His Holy Spirit.

If we desire to receive this Divine Spirit, let us beg Our Lord to bestow Him upon us through the merits of his Most Holy Mother, the glorious Virgin Mary, and through the love He bore to her; and we shall thus, like the Apostles, be with _Mary the Mother of Jesus_. We shall never understand how necessary is this condition. St. Elizabeth had no sooner spoken to the Most Holy Virgin than she was immediately, says St. Luke, 'filled with the Holy Ghost.' Nor is this a subject of wonder, because Mary is the Spouse of the Holy Ghost, the Daughter of the Eternal Father, and the Mother of the Eternal Son.

The Evangelist St. Luke, by observing that men and women were assembled in the room, admonishes us that we must all hope to receive the Holy Ghost; but he mentions in particular the presence of _Mary the Mother of Jesus_, to insinuate that she was there as the Queen of the Apostles. How mistaken, then, are those who say that we honour the Most Holy Virgin too much! This august Virgin, it is true, had already received the Holy Spirit and the fulness of grace in the Annunciation, but in the upper room she received a great superabundance of grace.

Whoever, then, desires to receive the Holy Ghost, let him unite himself to Mary; because he who separates himself from her, does not gather but scatters. Let us serve her, honour her, that He Who comes into our hearts, by her mediation, may also receive us by the same mediation.

To conclude, we may learn a very useful lesson from the words of St. Luke about the Disciples when they had received the Holy Ghost: 'All spoke in divers tongues according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak'--_Prout Spiritus Sanctus dabat eloqui illis;_ that is, that though all spoke, yet they did not speak in the same manner. The Apostles preached the new Law; and those who did not preach publicly, animated one another to praise and magnify the Lord. Let us, however, understand that there is an efficacious method of speaking without even uttering a word, and it is by the good example which we give to our neighbour.

David says: 'The heavens declare the glory of God. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.' These words signify that the beauty of the heavens invites men to admire the magnificence of the Creator. Indeed, when on a clear night we contemplate the beauty of the heavens, we do not feel less animated to admire and adore the Omnipotence and Wisdom of God, Who has studded it with such beautiful stars, than when we observe the inaccessible light of the sun in its full meridian splendour. What conclusion are we to draw from all this but that we, who are something more than all the rest of creation (since all things were made for us, and not we for them), should, by our good example, announce the glory of God more perfectly than the heavens and the stars. Good example is a silent but a most efficacious influence. In this manner we can all preach, although we have not all received the gift of tongues. Is it a less wonder to see a soul adorned with many sublime virtues than to see the heavens decorated with magnificent stars? How much, my God, do I need the Spirit of strength when I feel myself so weak and infirm! However, I glory in my infirmity _that the Power of my God may dwell in me_. Let us glory in our weakness, which makes us fitting receptacles of the Power of God. May He grant that this sacred fire, which can entirely change us into Him, may transform our hearts into His pure Love, that we may be all love and not lovers only. May He grant me also to receive and make good use of the gift of understanding, that my mind may be more enlightened to penetrate clearly the sacred mysteries of our holy Faith; for this understanding has a wonderful power to subjugate the will to the service of Him Whom it recognises to be so good and so worthy of love, Yet, as true love is active, we need counsel, that we may be able to discern how to exercise this love; and then our soul is excellently endowed with the sacred gifts of Heaven.

May the Holy Spirit, Who favours us with His gifts, form our whole consolation, and be eternally adored by my mind and by my heart! May He be always our wisdom and our understanding, our counsel and our fortitude, our knowledge and our piety, and fill us with the spirit of the fear of the Lord.

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Mary is the root of Jesse, upon whom the Holy Spirit rested. The Son of the Virgin is the flower thereof; a red and white flower, chosen amongst thousands--the flower upon which the Angels gaze with continuous desire; a flower whose fragrance renews life; a flower of everlasting bloom, whose beauty is incorruptible, and whose glory will never fade.--_St. Bernard._

Mary is the root of that beautiful flower upon which the Holy Spirit rests with the fulness of His gifts. Whoever then desires to obtain the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost, must seek the flower upon the stem; because we reach the flower through the stem, and through the flower we find the Holy Spirit, Who thereon reposes. Let us go to Jesus, through Mary; and by means of Jesus, we find the grace of the Holy Spirit.--_St. Bonaventure._

Give your soul to God a thousand times in the day; fix your interior eyes upon His sweetness, in imitation of Mary; place Him upon your breast as a delicious nosegay, and make every possible effort to excite within you an impassioned love for this Divine Spouse.--_St. Francis of Sales._

There is no doubt that he who perfumes the world by the odour of his good example, thus teaching others the way of justice, will one day shine in eternity as a most splendid star in the firmament.--_The same._

EXAMPLE.

_The Prayer 'Memorare.'_

St. Francis of Sales had received, in his youth, a miraculous proof of the protection of Mary. Being assaulted by a violent temptation to believe himself reprobated by God, he experienced such anguish that he compared it to the sorrows of death and the torments of hell. After a month passed in these desolating trials, earnestly desiring to be delivered from them, he humbly prostrated himself before a statue of the Blessed Virgin, and with great confidence recited the _Memorare_, beseeching Our Lady to obtain from her Divine Son that, if he should ever have the misfortune of being eternally separated from his God, he might at least love Him during the present lifetime with all his powers.

The Most Holy Virgin could not be deaf to such a petition, and Francis quickly recovered the peace of heart he had lost. From that time he had the greatest confidence in this prayer, and recited it in every difficult undertaking, and recommended it warmly to all whom he directed.

'I remember,' says the Bishop of Belley, 'to have learnt this prayer from him, and in order to impress it more deeply in my heart, and to make use of it in all my afflictions, I wrote it down at the beginning of my breviary. I know, moreover, that he commended it much to the Nuns of the Visitation. He wished it to be repeated above all in times of great temptations, because the Mother of God is as terrible to the enemy as an army in battle array; the blessed fruit of her womb having crushed the head of the infernal serpent.'

It is generally believed that St. Bernard was the author of this prayer.

_Prayer to ask for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost._--August Spouse of the Holy Ghost, Most Holy Virgin Mary, the inexhaustible source of grace, deign to obtain for me from your Divine Spouse the gift of Wisdom, which may detach me from the goods of the world, and make me love those of heaven; the gift of Understanding, which may teach me my duties; the gift of Counsel, which may enlighten me in the way of salvation; the gift of Fortitude, which may sustain my weakness; the gift of Knowledge, which may teach me the eternal truths; the gift of Piety, which may render the service of God sweet to me; and the gift of Fear, which may inspire me with a holy respect and tender love towards the God of infinite mercy. Ah! my continued resistance to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit have rendered me unworthy of such a benefit, but, aided by your prayers, I confidently hope to obtain from the author of _every perfect gift_ the graces that are necessary to live holily in this life, and thus one day attain to the eternal beatitude of heaven. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--Pray for me, O Spouse of the Holy Ghost.

_Practice._--Accustom yourself in every difficulty to say at once: _O Mother of Good Counsel, inspire me!_

TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY.

HOW PRECIOUS IN THE SIGHT OF GOD WAS THE DEATH OF MARY.

ACCORDING to the common opinion of the Doctors of the Church, when the Blessed Virgin Mary had attained the age of sixty-three she died, or rather, she slept the sleep of death. But how is it, some will say, that Our Lord, Who loved His Holy Mother so tenderly, did not grant her the privilege of exemption from death, since death is the wages of sin, and she had never sinned? How contrary are such thoughts to those of God, and how far removed are such judgments from His! We know that death became precious when Our Lord permitted that its blow should fall upon Him, on the Tree of the Cross. Certainly, the Most Holy Virgin thought it no advantage or privilege not to die, but she always desired death, for she saw it lovingly embraced by her Divine Son. He had rendered it so sweet and desirable that the Angels would consider themselves most fortunate to be able to die, and the Saints looked upon it as a happiness, and therefore experienced great consolation in it. Our adorable Saviour, who is Life Itself, gave life to death by His own death, so that to those who die in the grace of God, it is the beginning of eternal life.

Consider this Queen, dying of a fever, that was sweeter to her than health, because it was the fever of Divine love, which, by burning up her heart, consumed it so completely as to open to her soul the way by which it flew into the arms of her Divine Son.

All the Saints die in the habit of holy Love; but some amongst them die in the exercise of this Divine love; others, on account of it, as the Martyrs; and others, by its power. But the most sublime degree of holy love is to die of love itself; and this occurs when the soul is so inflamed by charity that it can no longer be detained by the bonds of the flesh.

If it be true that such as is _the life of a man such will be his death_, what else can have been the death of the Most Holy Virgin but the death of love? This is certain; because she who is called in the language of Sacred Scripture, the _Mother of fair Love_ could only die the death of love. We read not of ecstasies and raptures in the life of Our Lady, and for this reason, that they were continual. She loved God with so tender, so strong, and so ardent a love, at the same time so tranquilly, and with so much peace, that although her love went on increasing, the increase was not impetuous, but she continually, and almost imperceptibly, hastened towards this so greatly desired union of her soul with God, like a river that calmly flows to the ocean.

The hour having then arrived when the Most Holy Virgin was to leave the earth, Divine Love separated her soul from her body, and incomparably pure as it was, it flew directly to heaven. Ah! what obstacle could detain her whom the Celestial Spouse calls 'His beloved, all fair and without spot'? Our imperfections and the stains of our sins are the only obstacle to our entrance into heaven at the moment of our death; and it is these that are the origin of the flames of Purgatory.

The Saints are ever burning with the fire of Divine love; and by their exemplary lives spread a continual odour of sanctity in the presence of men and of God. This odour is incomparably increased at their death; hence the Prophet says: 'Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of the Saints.'

If, then, the Saints are odoriferous and burning lamps, what shall we say of the Most Holy Virgin, whose perfection immeasurably surpassed that of all the Saints united together? If in life she was a Burning Lamp, fed with the perfumed oil of every virtue, what a fragrance must she have exhaled at the hour of her death! So great was this fragrance that young virgins, as we read in the Canticles, were attracted by it: 'We will run after thee to the odour of thy perfumes,' 'the young maidens have loved thee.'

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

The soul of Mary was released from her body as naturally as fragrance sent from a flower and as the ripe fruit falls from the tree.--_St. Francis of Sales._

As the palm conceals its flower until the heat of the sun causes it to expand, so the just soul conceals the flowers of its virtue by humility, until Our Lord, by calling her to Paradise, gives the highest degree of perfection to her love.--_The same._

The thought of death is not sad for a soul who loves God, because it is the beginning of her eternal happiness.--_St. John of the Cross._

O Death, most beautiful Death! wherefore shall we fear thee, if in thee is found life? He alone should fear thee who has persevered in sin until his last breath.--_St. Teresa._

EXAMPLE.

_Letters addressed to the Most Holy Virgin._

Persons filled with lively faith often write letters to the Blessed Virgin Mary, placing them at the feet of her image, or upon their heart, on some solemn occasion; and this practice is very dear to her.

It is no new practice: for we see, from the Sacred Books and the history of the Church, that the most remarkable men made use of it to obtain some special grace. King Ezechias carried into the Temple the insulting letter addressed to him by Zennacherib, and laid it on the Altar as if to invite Almighty God to read it, and his prayer was heard, as we read in the Fourth Book of Kings.

The Emperor Theodosius, about to fight against Eugenius, wrote to St. Ambrose, to beg him to recommend the expedition to the God of armies. The Saint, during Mass, took the letter into his hands, and presented it to God. The result of the battle is well known.

When the Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas, met with some difficult passage in Holy Scripture, he wrote down the difficulty and placed it on his heart when he went to celebrate Mass, and the difficulties vanished.

Our Lord looks upon prayers addressed to the Blessed Virgin and to the Saints as though they were made to Himself. If we wish to obtain some grace, let us write a letter to Mary, and place it upon our heart before we approach Holy Communion. St. Stanislaus Kostka, desired to die on the Eve of the Assumption, that he might assist at its celebration in heaven. He wrote a letter to Our Blessed Lady for this purpose, and, on the feast of St. Lawrence, placed it on the Altar, asking the Saint to present it to the Queen of Heaven. The same day he was attacked by a most burning fever, and after four days went to celebrate the feast of his dear Mother Mary in heaven.