My Eucharistic Day
By Saint Peter Julian Eymard
Rules And Practices Recommended By Saint Peter Julian Eymard
Dedication And Acknowledgement
Into the hands of Our Immaculate Mother under the title of Our Lady of
the Most Blessed Sacrament this little work is reverently surrendered.
May the Mother of the God-Man, through the Most Blessed Sacrament — the
Fruit of her Immaculate Womb, sanctify the souls privileged and
predestined to constitute Christ's Mystical Body.
This little
work was compiled from the writings of Saint Peter Julian Eymard with
the permission and encouragement of the Blessed Sacrament Fathers.
The persons who are directly responsible for the selection and
arrangement of this material, in deference to the Majesty of him whom
they wish to give first service, ask not to be mentioned by name.
"And behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world." (Matt. 28, 20)
Eucharistic Path
Is it not true that charmed by the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
we find ourselves drawn more and more to the Tabernacle where he keeps
unceasing vigil, longing to bestow upon us his blessings and graces? Let
us then, give ourselves up with all our hearts to the Divine
attraction, for in Jesus alone is to be found all light, all strength,
all consolation, and Jesus is there near us in his Eucharist.
It
is the purpose of this little rule to help those who are dear to the
Heart of Jesus, to go to him more regularly and to leave his presence
with greater benefits.
It will help you to live a Eucharistic life, and to develop it daily to greater advantage.
We have drawn up these simple rules for all, since Jesus wishes to see
all his children gathered about his tabernacle, living by him and in
him.
They are within the reach and practice of all.
The
young child preparing in his innocent heart a dwelling for Jesus, will
learn by them to pray better and to think of his dear Savior more
frequently.
The young man or girl wishing to be faithful to the
God of their first Communion and to the promises of that great day, will
find there in the shelter where their faith and love, perhaps already
attacked by the enemy, may be made secure, and faithful souls will learn
to live at the feet of Jesus Sacramental and to draw from his Heart the
grace to advance rapidly in the way of holiness.
To those
assailed by doubt and discouragement, absorbed by material cares and
drawn into frivolous pleasures, the practice of these simple rules will
be a source of strength; they will find therein the help of him who
during his mortal life, commanded the winds and waves, death and Satan,
and whose only desire in having his abode amongst us is to assure to us
his merciful Heart in his Sacramental Presence in the Tabernacle, and to
offer us a sure refuge.
Let us learn to go there to him where
his love keeps him in our midst, and let us say to ourselves: If our
souls are weak, if our faith is tottering, our prayers tepid, if we need
courage, or are wanting in fervor and love, it is because we do not
seek for the Remedy, there where it is to be found; that is to say, at
the feet of that Jesus who on the roads of Judea healed all ills and who
today living and glorified, is as merciful and as powerful as then,
awaiting us in the Tabernacle to heal our souls and to strengthen,
sanctify, guide and sustain us on the way to heaven.
Let us
then, embrace with good will these few, simple and easy practices, and
let us not be discouraged if led away by the weakness of our human
nature or the cares of business, we may have ill observed these rules,
but let us rather return to them on the morrow with greater confidence.
Let us return to them every day and take pleasure in reading them over
and over. Let us carry them with us everywhere and constantly renew our
desire to be faithful to them.
Above all — and these two points are absolutely essential for any Eucharistic life — never let any day pass without:
Firstly, going (if only in spirit) to lay our soul at the feet of Jesus
present in the Tabernacle, to show him our miseries, as a gardener
exposes a plant to the rays of the sun.
Secondly, reflecting for
an instant in his presence and under his gaze, on the motives, which
have induced him to dwell thus in our midst.
Let us beg him to enlighten our souls and make us understand what our true interests are, and what it is that he asks of us.
Then we may be certain that Jesus will bless us with that powerful benediction which has made saints.
Twelve Rules For A Eucharistic Life
First Rule
In the morning, when you wake, go in spirit to the foot of the
Tabernacle where during the night, Jesus remained out of love for each
one of us.
Make an offering of your day to this gentle Savior,
ask him to bless you, to preserve you from all sin and to give you his
love.
Second Rule
When beginning your morning prayer, place yourself in spirit before the Tabernacle.
Ask Jesus who is there praying for you, to present your petitions to
God the Father, and under his gaze tell, him of your plans for the day,
asking him to bless them.
Third Rule
If
at all possible, attend Mass every morning. The days when this is
impossible choose a moment — preferably after morning prayers — to be
present in spirit at the Holy Sacrifice. Go in spirit before the
Tabernacle and place yourself in the Heart of Jesus.
Unite
yourself to the Masses which are being offered up at that moment — since
there is not a minute of the day or night that the Holy Sacrifice is
not being offered in some part of the world — and offer Jesus to the
Heavenly Father, as a Victim, begging him to pardon in his name, all
sinners, particularly yourself, and ask him to enkindle his love in all
hearts to increase the number of Saints.
Fourth Rule
Never begin any work or occupation of any kind, never perform any
action, nor go out mornings, afternoons or evenings, without having
first gone in thought to the Tabernacle, to ask Jesus for his blessings.
Fifth Rule
Before and after your
midday and evening meals, withdraw for a moment and kneel down. At least
never omit to go at these times in thought, to greet Jesus, whose
presence is so much forgotten by so many of our Catholic people. Recall
to your mind the thoughts, which have come to you at his feet.
Sixth Rule
Send a loving thought towards the Tabernacle several times a day — for
example, when the clock strikes. Tell him how much you wish to love him,
ask him to help you, and say the "O Sacrament," etc. or "Blessed be
Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar."
Seventh Rule
Form the habit of a daily visit to the Most Blessed Sacrament even if
it should have to be when you are on your way to work, so that at the
hour of death, Jesus will in his turn visit you. If time permits, profit
by this visit to put in practice the directions of Rule Nine.
If it should happen that you cannot make your usual visit to the Blessed
Sacrament, make a spiritual visit before retiring and remain a few
minutes in Adoration thinking of him who is in the Tabernacle only
because of his great love for you.
Eighth Rule
When you begin your night prayers, place yourself (as in the morning)
in spirit before the Tabernacle. Ask Jesus to help you pray; and then
under his gaze, humbly examine your conscience. Think that it is Jesus
himself who recalls to your memory what you have done during the day.
Ninth Rule
The Most Important Of All
1. Go and place yourself at least in spirit, before the Tabernacle under the gaze of Jesus.
2. Read over one of the questions, which you will find following this Rule.
3. Pause and reflect for a moment, and think of what your answer will be.
4. Then looking with the eyes of your soul at Jesus who knows your thoughts, say to him:
"Lord, make me understand, make me see, speak to my soul. Speak Lord and thy servant shall hear."
Ask the God of the Eucharist to speak to your mind and heart, even as
he did to those who came to him when he was on earth, and be careful to
keep in your mind the question that formed the subject of your
meditation, asking Jesus to fill and penetrate your soul with it.
Tenth Rule
If during the day, some trial or trouble should come to you, go at once
in spirit to the Tabernacle and confide it to Jesus. In contradictions
speak to him at once, asking him to make you patient. If you should
happen to be alone, go in spirit to keep him company. He is so often,
abandoned by us, in his Tabernacle. Your own isolation will then seem to
you less painful. If you are suffering go and rest your tired head on
his Heart, and tell him your trials.
Eleventh Rule
In your thoughts, accustom yourself to stay as constantly as possible
under the gaze of Jesus — under this grace, this all-powerful virtue,
which comes from the Tabernacle.
Show him your soul, and with
you the souls of all dear to you. As the Jews of old brought their sick
to him to be healed, so will you go to him, being content to offer him
from time to time the following fervent supplication:
"Lord, you know my desires, Lord, heal my soul! Lord, make me see! Lord, make me love you"
Twelfth Rule
Work without ceasing to realize in your thoughts the Real Presence of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Give him your first thought, your first glance when you enter the
church. Let him be the center of all that takes place there, prayers or
ceremonies, sermons or instructions.
Let all your prayers pass
through his lips for he is present in the Sacred Host. Place in his
Heart all your good thoughts and wishes. Learn to adore him in his
Eucharist that you may know how to adore him in Heaven. Perform all your
pious exercises under his gaze, for he is watching you from the
Tabernacle.
Under his gaze receive the Sacrament of Penance. Have but
one desire, to approach the Holy Table daily and strive with all your
might to realize your desire. May the Eucharistic God become daily more
and more your best Confidant and your most intimate Friend. Pray, work
and live in him, by him, with him, in order to live with him for all
eternity.
Sunday
Before The Altar Throne
Who Is There?
Let us remember that he who is in the Host is the God who made us, who
has given us everything, who loves us and who alone can understand the
secrets of our hearts.
Christ the Second Person of the Holy
Trinity, who became man, born of the Virgin Mary, is present. The same
Jesus Christ still is with us, really, truly and substantially. He will
remain with us till the end of the world.
Why Is Jesus There?
Jesus is in the Host because he loves us and could not leave us alone
on earth, because he knows our miseries and wishes us to be able always
to find therein the Heart of a friend, a Heart that will answer to ours.
What Does Jesus Do In The Host?
He
adores his Heavenly Father. He thanks him for all benefits and
blessings, makes reparation for our sins and prays for us, and the whole
world. Because he loves us, he is thinking of each one of us in
particular. He is there hour by hour, preparing for us the graces, which
we need. He looks for us; he is waiting for us, ready to welcome us.
What Does Jesus In The Host Wish?
Jesus wishes us to go to Him as we would go to our Father . . . asking
him for all that we need with the implicit trust of a child and
confiding to him our joys, our wishes, our hopes and fears and the souls
dear to us.
What Does Jesus In The Host Wish Us To Remember?
That he loves his Heavenly Father and each one of us. That all earthly
things pass quickly . . . worldly positions may be lost, friends
disappear, and little by little even our illusions pass, but Jesus
remains in the Host, loving us always with the same affection.
What Does Jesus In The Host Teach Us?
Jesus is there to help us to go to Heaven, to find in erty nor misery
is a disgrace or a misfortune, that if we possess his friendship and
know that we can find him in the consecrated Host, we have found a Pearl
of great price, which no man can take from us.
What Does Jesus In The Host Ask Of Us?
Let us not forget that intimacy is born of conformity. That Jesus in
the Host is silent, and desires us to be silent in regard to our
neighbor and ourselves, and sacrifice for him the thousand useless
trivial thoughts.
Monday
Who Is There?
In the Host there is the Infant-God who came upon earth for love of us,
the same Jesus who worked and suffered for us, who consoled the
afflicted, pardoned sinners and did good to all.
Why Is Jesus There?
Jesus is there to help us to go to Heaven, to find in his Presence and
his love the assistance we need, to purify us in his Precious Blood in
the Holy Sacrifice and to nourish us in Holy Communion.
What Is Jesus Doing In The Host?
Jesus in the Host is praying for us. Every morning he offers himself on
the altar for our needs. He asks the Father to have mercy on our sins .
. . he intercedes for each one of us and obtains for us all graces,
especially that of a happy death.
What Does Jesus In The Host Wish?
Jesus wishes that we should go to him present in the Host (as the
Apostles of old went) . . . to ask of him light in times of doubt, and
in moments of temptations and danger to find a refuge in his Heart . . .
to ask him to teach us to accept his holy Will.
Of What Does Jesus In The Host Remind Us?
He reminds us that the free indulgence of our passions only produces
sadness and bitterness, that afflictions are numerous here below, that
living in the Host Jesus alone gives the only true joy, and that near
him there is no sorrow without hope.
What Does Jesus In The Host Teach Us?
Let us remember that if Jesus labored it was to teach us that labor is a
law of expiation, and an obligation to all and not a humiliation, that
he who works while thinking of him, present in the Blessed Sacrament,
proves his love to Jesus, merits his graces, and will be rewarded by
him.
What Does Jesus In The Host Ask Of Us?
Jesus asks us to imitate him in his patience and meekness. He tolerates
the indifferent, who pass him by without a salutation, the tepid, who
approach him without love, the sacrilegious and those who profane him.
For love of him, let us bear with those who weary us, those who are
ungrateful, those who hurt or offend us.
Tuesday
Who Is There?
He who is there is the same Jesus who in the Garden of Olives, seeing
in advance each one of us, wept for our miseries and suffered for our
sins. The God who carrying his Cross, thought of us, and who suffered
and died for each one of us.
Why Is Jesus There?
Jesus is there that we may find him who is our help in dangers and
temptations. He is there to lift us after we have fallen, to offer us
his love, and the courage we need.
What Does Jesus Do In The Host?
Let us remember that for each one of us and at each moment, by his
abasement Jesus in the Host offers reparation to the Divine Majesty, for
the revolts of our pride by his poverty, for our want of detachment and
by his privations for our impatience, our indifference, and our daily
faults.
What Does Jesus In The Host Wish?
He wishes that we should go to him like the sick in Judea and show him
our soul and all its miseries. That we should abandon ourselves to him,
and come and purify ourselves, in the Holy Sacrifice, strengthening
ourselves at the Holy Table.
Of What Does Jesus In The Host Remind Us?
He reminds us that our hearts, made for God can have no satisfaction
except in him, that we shall be restless until we find him, that he is
in the Tabernacle to answer to this need of our hearts, to give himself
to us and to bring us peace.
What Does Jesus In The Host Teach Us?
To remember that if he chose to be despised and humiliated, it was to
teach us that we are wrong when we seek, above all else, the approbation
of man. That what we call honor and respect are of no value before him:
all that is needful is to love and serve him.
What Does Jesus In The Host Ask Of Us?
Let us not forget that Jesus accepts the abasement of his Host, the
decay of his Temples and the want of care and respect on the part of
those who surround him, that we may learn to imitate him by depriving
ourselves of unnecessary things, and if he desires it, to accept even
the privation of things necessary.
Wednesday
Who Is There?
He who is there is the same Jesus who in the Garden of Olives, seeing
in advance each one of us, wept for our miseries and suffered for our
sins. The God who carrying his Cross, thought of us, and who suffered
and died for each one of us.
Why Is Jesus There?
Jesus is there that we may find him who is our help in dangers and
temptations. He is there to lift us after we have fallen, to offer us
his love, and the courage we need.
What Does Jesus Do In The Host?
Let us remember that for each one of us and at each moment, by his
abasement Jesus in the Host offers reparation to the Divine Majesty, for
the revolts of our pride by his poverty, for our want of detachment and
by his privations for our impatience, our indifference, and our daily
faults.
What Does Jesus In The Host Wish?
He wishes that we should go to him like the sick in Judea and show him
our soul and all its miseries. That we should abandon ourselves to him,
and come and purify ourselves, in the Holy Sacrifice, strengthening
ourselves at the Holy Table.
Of What Does Jesus In The Host Remind Us?
He reminds us that our hearts, made for God can have no satisfaction
except in him, that we shall be restless until we find him, that he is
in the Tabernacle to answer to this need of our hearts, to give
himself to us and to bring us peace.
What Does Jesus In The Host Teach Us?
To remember that if he chose to be despised and humiliated, it was to
teach us that we are wrong when we seek, above all else, the approbation
of man. That what we call honor and respect are of no value before him:
all that is needful is to love and serve him.
What Does Jesus In The Host Ask Of Us?
Let us not forget that Jesus accepts the abasement of his Host, the
decay of his Temples and the want of care and respect on the part of
those who surround him, that we may learn to imitate him by depriving
ourselves of unnecessary things, and if he desires it, to accept even
the privation of things necessary.
Thursday
The Desires Of Our Eucharistic Lord
"I Long To Be Loved By Men"
By his Presence among us at all times, Jesus restores to us the joys of
Paradise. He permits us to speak familiarly with him, to find him
whenever we desire and to remain near him as long as we wish.
Three centuries ago our Lord drew aside the veil, which hides him from
us, in favor of one of his most humble servants. Our Lord showed himself
to St. Margaret Mary, kneeling before the Tabernacle, and presented to
her his Heart — the Heart which had led him to condemn himself to the
annihilation of the Eucharist, in order to be the Friend, the Consoler,
the Refuge not only of chosen souls but of all who suffer. Looking
through the veil which hid the future, our compassionate Savior saw our
souls beset by doubts, overcome by sadness and exhausted by the trials
of life, weak and without energy like our bodies, dragging rather than
walking along the way to Heaven, and Satan making every effort to have
us forget the gentle words which the Divine lips had uttered —
"Come unto me all you who labor and I will refresh you."
"Come to me who am with you in the Eucharist until the consummation of
the world. It is not those who are well but the sick who need the
doctor, and I came not only for the just, but for sinners. In the
Tabernacle where my love keeps me present day and night, I am still he
who would not break the bruised reed nor quench the smoking flax."
Finally, we should realize that it is our misery and sinfulness that
gives us a right to go to him, that the most miserable are always the
first to be admitted to his Heart and are the objects of his tender
solicitude.
He comes to humble and simple souls to remind us all
that he is there in the Host and on the altar for us, who have nothing
to offer to God, his Father, neither love, fervor nor courage; so it is
for us to take and offer him in place of what is wanting in us.
He is there day and night pleading for us, ready to make good our
weakness. He protects us from Divine Justice as soon as we take refuge
in his Heart and which we should do, like a child who when ashamed,
guilty or hurt, seeks refuge in the arms of its mother.
If
anything could wound his Heart now, it would not be so much our failures
and our daily faults, as our forgetfulness of his merciful tenderness
and our want of confidence in his unchangeable love.
No one need
be discouraged unless he be ignorant of the sacrifices to which Jesus
submitted in order to shut himself up in the Blessed Sacrament, because
in this way he could be our Friend and Mediator.
Yet we, to whom
he has revealed these mysteries of his love, continue to doubt his
infinite tenderness for each one of us . . . his extraordinary desire
for our happiness! To doubt, we must never have fixed our gaze on the
Host — never in our thoughts counted the humiliation to which our good
Master has had to submit in order to remain in the fragile Host
submitting to our wills and to our mercy.
Oh!, however weak,
cowardly and miserable we may be, we cannot refuse him the only reward
which he desires and which is to have us throw ourselves into his arms
and there abandon our anguish and sorrow.
Can we be ungrateful
to the point of inflicting on him the supreme humiliation of doubting
the tenderness of his Heart, we the chosen confidants of his love? Such
is the misery of our poor nature, for even good Christians may be heard
to ask — "Of what use is my life? I do not know how to pray or to do any
good."
How mistaken are these souls so dear to Jesus, in
thinking they are useless! One moment's reflection would suffice to show
them that love and prayer and everything good are within their reach.
Even while they give way to desolation, Jesus concealed in order to
belong to them in a more tender and intimate way is waiting for them in
the Host, his hands and his Heart filled with the graces which would
give them courage and smooth out the difficulties of the way, if only
they knew how to go to him.
Christian souls, have you ever
meditated on the gentleness, which attracted little children, the
sorrowful, and even sinners to Jesus?
Have you ever pictured to
yourselves the welcome that Martha, Magdalen, Lazarus, the disciples and
friends of Jesus gave their Divine Master? Have you read attentively
those pages of the Gospel, which show them surrounding him with tender
respect, sweet familiarity and entire confidence?
Why do we not go to him with the same trust, the same loving and respectful familiarity?
Is he not the same Jesus of Judea and Galilee, the same Jesus who
showed himself to Magdalen, to Thomas and the others after his
Resurrection? He has veiled the rays of his glory in the Blessed
Sacrament so as not to frighten us, but is he not always just as
indulgent, just as loving; bearing in his sacred hands and feet the
marks of his unquenchable love and in his Heart the wound which laid it
open to all?
Why, then, do we not recognize him? Why do we seek
him in heaven, where he reigns in glory but where we cannot reach him,
instead of in the Host, which is so accessible to us?
Plead with
him by the tenderness of his Heart to tear from the eyes of our soul
the veil of the Sacred Species which conceals him in the Sacrament,
crying out like the blind man of Jericho "Lord, grant that I may see!
In the light of faith let us throw ourselves at his feet, and say to
him — "I will not leave you till you have blessed me and taught me to
know you."
Friday
The Friendship Of Our Eucharistic Lord
"I Will Be With You All Days."
Let us remember that near the Host we share the happiness of Mary and
Joseph, the Shepherds and the Magi, the Apostles and the Holy Women,
since we have the same Jesus with us in the most intimate union, and can
speak to him heart to heart as they did.
And now, we recall to
you, how, by his Eucharistic Presence among us, our Divine Master wishes
to calm our fears and doubts, how he dispels the sad thoughts which the
devil all too often suggests, to turn us from the service of God, by
inspiring disgust for prayer and Holy Communion. Jesus wishes to save us
from our present trials and from discouragement, which is truly the
greatest of all evils. We desire particularly to draw your attention to
the manifestation of his Sacred Heart, which serious reflection will
show us, is not merely a shining revelation but the sweetest
encouragement, since in it we can clearly see the beginning of an era of
mercy, of tenderness and love for poor humanity.
We must
accustom ourselves to see Jesus in the Host, just as he really is, a
living Person with a Heart filled with love and tenderness. A real
Person, who loves us, and wishes to have us come to him as to one whom
we love above all others. With such reflections, love will be quickly
enkindled in our hearts.
How indeed is it possible not to love
with all our heart one so gentle, so defenseless and even unable to beg
for the respect and love for which he longs and to which he has every
right? It is his love for us, which made him choose this helpless
condition, this Host, which delivers him to our love as well as to our
scorn and neglect.
Let us not complain of our coldness, our
distractions and frivolous or evil thoughts, which assail us in our
prayers. Why not substitute for our poor, weak prayers those of our
Eucharistic God? He is there in the Host, to be not only our Victim and
our nourishment but also our Mediator with God the Father.
When
you feel yourself incapable of prayer, instead of tiring your mind with
useless efforts come to the Tabernacle. There, in your thoughts, lift up
Jesus Sacramental to the Heavenly Father and say to him, "In the name
of your Son, have pity on me . . . have pity on my loved ones."
Such a prayer will be all-powerful with the Heart of God. There is much
virtue in these simple words . . .
They are worth the most sublime
prayers! These words spoken by the weakest, humblest soul, can obtain
all from the Savior.
Did not Jesus promise? — "All whatsoever
you shall ask the Father in my name, he will give to you." . . . The
Good Master does not say: "That for which you ask without distractions
or . . . with the most tender devotion and sensible fervor." . . . No,
he says: "What you ask in my name . . . "
Ah! Believe me, the
only truly efficacious prayer is the one that feels its own weakness,
and feels it deeply and which does not rest on itself but is united to
the Heart of Jesus.
Do we not feel that our poor prayers in
themselves are nothing? Even were we angels, could we think that our
voices would have any virtue before the Infinite Majesty of God? But if
our prayers pass through the Heart and lips of the hidden God of the
Host, then they will be no longer the voices of only weak creatures
disfigured by original sin ascend to God, but the voice of Jesus which
cried to the Heavenly Father from the Cross, "Father, forgive them, for
they know not what they do."
What prayer did the Good Master
praise?
Was it St. Peter's when, in ecstasy he cried out, "Lord, it is
good to be here" . . .? No, the prayer which seemed to call forth his
admiration was that of the poor pagan woman who brought her daughter to
his feet, because she was tormented by a devil . . . that woman who
apparently he rebuked but who persisted in spite of all, trusting in
that kindness of which she had heard such wonders.
Another
prayer praised by our Lord was that of the poor publican who,
understanding his wretchedness, profoundly humiliated himself, saying
from the depths of his heart, "Lord, have mercy on me a sinner . . ."
The less we trust in ourselves, and the more we trust in the mercy of
Jesus, the more we shall touch his Heart. Jesus does not ask for long
prayers, beautiful thoughts and well-arranged sentences. He would rather
have one word from our hearts, a humble avowal of our helplessness, an
appeal to his merciful tenderness, and the surrender of our hearts, our
thoughts, our wishes and our will into his hands. Should the voice of
Satan whisper, "Of what use is it to stay there before the Host, with
your heart cold and your mind distracted, prolonging a prayer which you
do not know how to say?," my answer would be to show him the humble
plant which is fading at the foot of the altar, the little burning lamp
consuming itself before the Host.
How much Jesus loves those
souls, who knowing how weak and useless they are, remain peaceful and
humble before him, saying. "Here I am, helpless, and useless but at
least this hour of my life will be spent before you."
Again, you say, "I do no good . . . I always fall back into the same faults, my life is useless. Why am I not sad?"
Dear Souls, were I not afraid of hurting your feelings I would tell you to be ashamed of such words!
Does not the Blood of Jesus count? — that blood, which is offered up
every day on the altar to purify your soul and to which you can unite
your intention?
Saturday
The Sacrificial Offering of Our Eucharistic Lord
"He loved me and delivered himself for me."
We have with us in the Host one whose presence is the unaltering bliss
of the angels and the saints. To be with God is the happiness of Heaven.
And here I am with him. Like the saints I praise and adore him. Like
the blessed who possess him in the Beatific Union, I can possess him by
the Eucharistic Union or Holy Communion.
If we only could
understand the value of one Mass! The infinite value of this Sacrifice
far surpasses our negligences, our miseries and even our faults.
We do not half realize how great a treasure God has placed in our hands
or how great is the gift which we can offer him every time we present
to him his Son on the altar, regardless of the unworthy creature who
makes the offering.
We can renew this offering at all hours and
at every moment of the day and night, by uniting ourselves to the priest
who in some part of the world has just consecrated; or we can unite
ourselves to the Heart of the great High Priest, Jesus, who in the Host
offers himself to his Father without ceasing and renders him a homage
which is entirely worthy of him.
At God's tribunal many good
souls will be surprised to find to their credit so many good works,
simply because they knew how to offer them to God the Father through
Jesus. This they did regardless of their own merit and with no sensible
fervor. They did this at times when it seemed to them that they were
wholly undeserving but yet with childlike confidence, and so it will be
that a multitude of souls will have been helped, strengthened and saved
by this offering of Jesus immolated on the altar.
Through him they
become purified of those numberless imperfections which so greatly
afflicted them on earth, and all because they understood where to go
when their discouraged souls needed the Blood of the Lamb. If in
addition they have offered up the many trials, sorrows and sacrifices
brought to them each hour of the day, hiding and abandoning themselves
in the Sacred Heart of Jesus, letting him make amends for their failures
as he recommended to St. Margaret Mary then they will see their deeds
so defective in themselves, all impregnated with the Precious Blood and
clothed with an incomparable value. They will even as the Vilest metals
dipped in gold, take on a glittering brilliance, They will see that it
was not in vain that they sought refuge in the Divine Heart, that it was
not in vain that they abandoned themselves to his infinite mercy.
Understanding that they could not not depend on any creature here below
and still less on themselves, they came to the Divine Prisoner, crying
to him, "Have pity, I have no one but you."
Would we not feel
moved by pity if some one came to us in deepest affliction, and said,
"You are all I have?" Would we not feel obliged to help? Would we not
want to prove that it was not useless to appeal to our heart? How then
could it be that the most merciful, the most sympathetic Heart, the
Heart of the God who put into our hearts a spark of the abundance of his
own pity, could remain insensible to our cry of distress? This would be
inconsistent.
If among those who read these words there be
anyone suffering from painful, inexplicable feelings which bind the
soul, oppressing it and spreading over it profoundest darkness, if there
be any one weighted down by weariness or dreadful temptations who feel
that they are losing everything — Faith, Love and Hope — that God
himself seems to be turning from them, that Heaven is closed to them and
that death is in their souls, I implore you, come to the Host. Throw
yourself at his feet and cry out to him, "I have none but you, save me
by your love and by the Wound of your Heart."
Then abandon
yourself to him. Leave your soul in his hands, as the Canaanite woman
confided to Christ her daughter who was possessed of an evil spirit . . .
In his name I say to you: "No, you will not perish . . . " Never during
his mortal life nor in his Sacramental state has Jesus repulsed or
abandoned anyone who had recourse to him.
However terrible the
state of your soul may seem to you, however unfortunate or even guilty
you may feel, do not shy from him, do not lose courage but cling to your
Jesus even as a drowning man clings to a rope. Stay near the Host for
his Heart is ever watchful. Who can tear you away if you do not wish to
leave? Has he not said, that he himself will be your Defender? Remember,
his Word has never deceived anyone.
I implore you, do not
listen to satan who wishes to drive you away. Stay with Jesus who is
there in the Sacred Host, for from him even as in the days of his mortal
life, there will come forth that powerful virtue which heals and saves.
It is for you that he is there, for you that He offers his
Blood, his Wounds and his Merits. It is when you are there prostrate at
his feet, that his Blood flows over your soul, that he covers you with
his merits, that he hides you in his Wounds and in his Heart.
If
you but understood the gift of God, if you but knew him who waits for
you all the day long even as he waited at the well of Jacob for the
Samaritan woman you would realize that it is there that he has desired
to cover you with his protection and his love, it is there that he
wishes to be your Savior and your Friend, it is from there that he will
come to you in your last hour if you have gone to him during your life
and it is there that he will receive you into his Heart to conduct you
to eternal happiness.
May our sweet heavenly Mother obtain for
us all the grace to understand more and more the greatness of the Gift
of the Eucharist, and may these pages resound to the Glory of her
Eucharistic Son.
Examine Your Conscience in the Morning
Under the Eyes of Jesus in the Host
On awakening, make the sign of the cross.
On arising say:
"O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine! All praise and all
thanksgiving be every moment thine. Blessed be the Holy and Immaculate
Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God."
Adore
our Lord as your King who has called you today to work in his amiable
service and for his honor and glory. Render him this day the homage of
your mind, your heart, your body and your life for he deserves it all.
Thank
our Lord for having kept you alive; thank him for all the graces
received during your life (baptism, first communion, vocation). Rejoice
at the honor and the happiness of spending this whole day in union with
our Divine Lord in his Sacrament of love: such a day may be worth an
entire life, the whole of Paradise.
Acknowledge
your weakness and your defects in your particular vocation. Confess
your offenses of yesterday. Detest the power of self-love, the
feebleness of your will, the distractions of your mind. Promise our Lord
that you will correct your ruling passion; foresee the occasions of
relapse and the opportunities of practicing opposite virtues. Remember
your resolution for this month and determine for yourself a certain
penance in case of failure to keep it.
Ask our Lord for the
grace of being more faithful today. Recommend yourself to the Blessed
Virgin, to your Guardian Angel and begin work with the help of God's
grace.
Consecrate the whole day to our Eucharistic Jesus.
Place yourself in spirit, in his presence and humbly adore him on his
nearest throne of Perpetual Exposition or in the nearest Tabernacle.
O sweet Jesus, your goodness and your might
Have brought me to this morning's light.
Keep and preserve me every hour,
From sorrow, sin, temptation's power.
Grant me your blessing, Lord, this day,
On all I think and do and say.
Jesus for your help I plead.
Mary for me intercede.
After making this offering, form your intention to gain all the
indulgences of the day. Then hasten to the church for your morning
prayers, Holy Mass and Communion.
Morning Prayers
Most holy and adorable Trinity, one God in three Persons, I believe
that you are here present; I adore you with the deepest humility and
with my whole heart render to you the homage which is due to your
sovereign majesty.
Act of Faith
O my
God, 1 firmly believe that you are one God in Three Divine Persons,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I believe that your Divine Son became man
and died for our sins, and that he will come to judge the living and the
dead. I believe these and all the truths which the holy Catholic
Church teaches, because you have revealed them, who can neither deceive
nor be deceived.
O my God, relying on your infinite goodness and
promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace
and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and
Redeemer.
Act of Love
O my God, I love
you above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because you are all
good and worthy of all my love. I love my neighbor as myself for the
love of you. I forgive all who have injured me and ask pardon of all
whom I have injured.
Say the Our Father, Hail Mary and the Creed.
Adorable Jesus, my Savior and Master, model of all perfection, I
resolve and will endeavor this day to imitate your example; to be like
you, mild, humble, chaste, zealous, charitable and resigned. I will
redouble my efforts that I may not fall this day into any of those sins
which I have heretofore committed (here name any besetting sin), and
which I sincerely desire to forsake. I have the intention to gain all
the indulgences I can in favor of the poor souls in Purgatory.
O my God, you know my poverty and weakness, and that I am unable to do
anything good without you; deny me not 0 God, the help of your grace,
proportion it to my necessities, give me strength to avoid anything evil
which you forbid and to practice the good which you have commanded and
enable me to bear patiently all the trials which it may please you to
send me.
Morning Offering
O my God, in a spirit of
adoration, thanksgiving, reparation and petition I offer you the actions
and sufferings of this day in union with the Eucharistic Heart of
Jesus, in order to render to that adorable Heart dwelling among us, the
debt of justice and love due to his august Presence, and moreover to
offer to your Divine Majesty through him, with him and in him the glory
that he himself renders you here on earth. Lastly, I make this offering
to obtain by means of that Almighty Mediator peace for the Church,
salvation for our country and all the other graces for which we call on
you.
The Holy Eucharist is the continuation of the Incarnation. — The Word made Flesh, became the Bread of our soul.
Three times a day, stop a minute to thank God for his wonderful blessing, by saying the Angelus.
An Adorer's Daily Life
When possible begin your day with Holy Mass and Holy Communion.
Remember that Jesus in the Sacred Host is the same God-Man who while on
earth toiled and suffered for you. The same Jesus who consoled the
afflicted, forgave sinners and was kind to all. To you also going to
your various duties, Jesus should be ever present and your actions
should be performed under the gaze of our Lord in his Sacrament of Love.
If you have received him in the morning, as is expected of you, bring
him to whatever place you go, that the Eucharistic influence may pervade
all you do and all with whom you come in contact. Offer your work to
Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament.
The Eucharistic soul now
and again will turn his thoughts in the spirit of faith to the
Tabernacle or the Throne of Exposition, and every hour if possible will
say the "O Sacrament most Holy." At noon he will keep a few minutes for
his examen and give thanks to Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament,
paying him a visit if possible.
How to Make a Holy Hour
The Divine King is ever ready to grant us an audience and to admit our souls to the intimacy of his love.
We come to his Eucharistic Throne to render to him our homage of
adoration, receiving in return his blessing and his love, encouragement
and strength, light and grace to see and follow his holy will, together
with the power to practice virtue and thereby become more like unto the
divine Model after whose image we have been made.
"I have given you the example that you may do likewise."
Saint Peter Julian's Eucharistic Method
There are several methods of meditation and all are good, but Saint
Eymard suggests one which is truly Eucharistic since it is taken from
the four ends of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. It is so simple that any
Catholic practicing it, may become competent and progress in sanctity
and the spiritual life. It unifies still more our life with the
Eucharistic life of our Lord whose purpose in coming into this world,
dying on the cross and in continuing the sacrificial act, was really to
render to his Heavenly
Father, the supreme duty of adoration,
thanksgiving, reparation and petition which fallen humanity had failed
and still fails, to adequately fulfill.
The four great acts of
adoration, thanksgiving, reparation and petition comprise our entire
duty towards God, the whole of Christian Life.
First Quarter — Adoration
First adore our Lord in his divine Sacrament by the exterior homage of
the body. As soon as you perceive his adorable presence in the sacred
Host, genuflect profoundly and with extreme reverence as an evidence of
your faith and love. Adore him in union with the Wise Men when
prostrating themselves to the earth, they adored the infant God, cradled
in a humble manger and wrapped in swaddling-clothes. After this first
silent and impulsive act of homage, adore our Lord by an act of faith.
This act is needed to awaken the senses and render them susceptible to
the influences of devotion. It will open to you the heart of the Divine
Master and the treasures of his grace. Be faithful to it with simplicity
and devotion.
Offer now to Jesus the homage of your whole being, specifying the homage of each particular faculty of your soul.
Offer him your mind to know him better, your heart to love him, your
will to serve him, and your body with all its senses, that each may
glorify him in its own way.
Offer him your thoughts, so that the
Eucharist may be the dominating thought of your life and may reign over
your heart and its affections; call Jesus your God and your King and
desire no other aim in life than to serve, to love and to glorify him.
Give him your memory, that it may dwell on him alone and thus desire to
live but for him, in him, and through him.
Since your adoration
is in itself so weak and imperfect, unite it to the adoration of the
Blessed Virgin at Bethlehem, at Nazareth, in the Cenacle, on Calvary,
and before the tabernacle. Unite it to the adoration of holy Church and
all pious souls who are adoring our Lord at this moment, and with the
heavenly court, glorifying him in Heaven; then your adoration will share
in their merit and holiness.
Second Quarter — Thanksgiving
Adore the immense and personal love of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.
That you might not be left lonely and orphaned in this land of misery
and exile he instituted the Holy Eucharist in such a way that he abides
with you always to be your consoler and comforter. Thank him then with
all your heart and with all your strength. Thank him in union with all
the Saints.
Wonder at and admire the fact that in his
sacramental state Jesus conceals his divine and human glory that you may
not be dazzled or blinded by their splendor and effulgence. He veils
his majesty that you may dare to approach him familiarly and speak with
him as friend to friend.
He retains his power and holds it captive that
he may not punish or frighten you. He hides from you his wondrous
perfections that your weaknesses may not be discouraging. He tempers
even the ardors of his divine love, the love of the Sacred Heart, lest
you could not support its strength and its tenderness. He permits his
divine goodness alone to escape and to radiate from the Sacred Host as
the rays of the sun shine through a light and fleecy cloud. Oh, how good
he is, your sacramental Jesus!
He receives you at all times,
day or night. His love knows no repose. He is ever full of goodness to
you. He forgets your sins and your imperfections when you visit him, to
testify only his happiness, his delight at your visit. It would seem
that he needed you to make him happy. Oh, thank this dear and loving
Jesus with all the effusion of your soul. Thank the heavenly Father for
having thus given you his divine Son.
Thank Jesus for once more becoming
present upon the altar for you personally and through the ministry of
the priest.
Invite heaven and earth, angels and men, to join you
in thanksgiving, in blessing, in glorifying our Lord for his marvelous
love.
Contemplate with wonder the humiliations of the
sacramental state which Jesus has taken upon himself for love of you. He
is even poorer in the Holy Eucharist than in Bethlehem, for there he
had his mother.
From heaven he has only brought his grace and
his love. How obedient he is! He yields a meek, prompt obedience to
every one, even to his enemies.
Admire his humility. He descends
to the borders of annihilation, uniting himself to the common and
inanimate appearances of the sacred species, whose frail elements have
no consistency other than that given them by the word of the Almighty
and which continually preserves them. His immortal love for us is the
chain that binds him until the end of the world.
His living presence in
our midst should be our heaven on earth. Unite your thanksgiving to that
of the Blessed Virgin, before the incarnation, (and above all, at Holy
Communion.) With her repeat in joyous accents the Magnificat of your
thanksgiving: "O Jesus, how good, how loving, how lovely you are in this
Divine Sacrament!"
Third Quarter — Reparation
Adore your Eucharistic Lord and offer him reparation in the name of so many who forget to adore and ask him forgiveness.
Ask of your beloved Master forgiveness for so much ingratitude and
forgetfulness, for so much lack of reverence and respect on our part and
on the part of those who claim to believe in his true presence among
us. It is too often those whom he has most loved, most honored and most
enriched with his gifts and graces who offend and dishonor him most in
his holy Temple by their irreverence — who crucify him anew by tepid or
even sacrilegious Communions.
O divine Jesus, could you have
believed that the very greatness of your love would furnish man with an
object for his malice and that he would turn against even your most
precious gifts and graces!
Have I anything with which to reproach myself? Have I ever been negligent or unfaithful to you?
Adore Jesus and seek to make reparation for the negligence, profanation
and sacrilege with which he so frequently meets. With this intention
offer all the sufferings that you must endure during the day or the
week. Impose on yourself some penance for your own sins and those of
your relations, and for those whom you have disedified by your want of
devotion or even by your levity in church.
But since all your
satisfactions and penances are so few and so worthless in reparation for
such great sins, unite them with those of Jesus Christ, your Savior on
the Cross.
Gather up in spirit the Precious Blood and offer the prayers
and sufferings of the crucified Jesus to the heavenly Father, and seek
mercy for yourself and all sinners. Unite your reparation to that of his
Immaculate Mother at the foot of the Cross, and through her you will
obtain from Jesus all that you ask.
Fourth Quarter — Petition
Adore our Lord in his most divine Sacrament, pleading unceasingly for
you, showing to his heavenly Father his sacred wounds, his sacred Heart
pierced with the lance, in order to obtain mercy for you and yours and
unite with his prayers and his intentions.
Jesus asks his
heavenly Father to bless, to exalt and to defend his Church; he bids him
to make it better known, better loved and served among men. Pray for
the Holy Church in the person of the Vicar of Jesus Christ, so tried and
so persecuted, that God may deliver him from his enemies, that he may
convert them and bring them humbled and repentant, to his feet.
Jesus prays continually for the sacred priesthood, that its members may
be filled with the grace and unction of the Holy Spirit: that they may
grow in all virtues and be consumed with zeal for his glory and the
salvation of the souls he has purchased with his death on the Cross.
Pray earnestly for your Bishop (or Archbishop), that God may spare him,
bless and console him and grant success to his zealous desires for God's
greater glory. Pray for your pastors that they may grow in the virtues
of their state and may be enlightened and strengthened in their
solicitude for and direction of the flock confided to their care.
Pray that God may grant to Holy Church many saintly vocations to the
priesthood. A holy priest is the greatest gift of heaven. He can bring
down the blessing of God upon a whole city.
Pray for all
religious orders, that they may be ever fervent and faithful in their
apostolic vocation, and that all on whom the hand of God is laid may
have the grace to answer the divine call to the religious life and to
persevere therein. One saint may save an entire nation, and his prayers
are a surer safeguard and protection to his country than the might of
armies.
Pray for the fervor and perseverance of pious souls in
the world who are vowed or devoted to the service of God. They too, are
religious, and have greater need of prayer and assistance, because they
face greater dangers and sacrifices.
Ask of God the conversion
of some great sinner. Nothing gives greater glory to God as such
marvelous manifestations of his mercy and grace.
Then pray for
yourself, that you may spend your days in a manner pleasing to God. Pray
for the holy souls in Purgatory. Make a little bouquet of your
sacrifices, offer it to Jesus, and ask him in return for his loving
benediction.
Your Life of Adoration
We apply this method to our adoration.
Now we must bear in mind that adoration is a dialogue.
The adorer must speak to our Lord, and listen to him.
As in everything else we must prepare ourselves for adoration —
"My Son, before meditation prepare thy soul."
Prepare, therefore, the day of your appointment with our Lord. Read
over the subject of your meditation before going to church and endeavor
to be practical and consistent with your devotions toward your God.
Every Christian should reproduce in himself this ideal of the life of Christ.
"I seek not my own will, but the will of him that sent me." (St. John, 8, 29)
"For I do always the things that please him." (St. John, 5, 30)
Speak to Our Lord
Eucharistic Adoration has for its object the Divine Person of Our Lord
Jesus Christ present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. In this Sacrament he
lives, he wishes us to speak to him and he will speak to us.
Everyone may speak to our Lord. Is he not there for all? Does he not say: Come ye all to me?
This familiar converse between the soul and our Lord is true
Eucharistic meditation; it is adoration. Everyone has the grace for it.
To succeed in it, and to shun routine and dryness of the heart, however,
the adorers should draw their inspiration from their own attraction of
grace or from the different mysteries of our Lord's life: from the
Blessed Virgin or the virtues of the saints, in order to honor and
glorify the God of the Eucharist by all the virtues of his mortal life,
as well as by those of the saints, of whom he was the means and the end,
and of whom he is today the crown and the glory.
Look upon your hour of
adoration as a heavenly hour, an hour in Paradise. If you go to it as
if you were going to heaven to the Divine Banquet, you will long for
this hour and hail it with joy.
Quietly nourish in your heart
the desire for it. Say to yourself: "In four hours, in two hours, in one
hour, I shall go to an audience with the Lord of grace and love. He has
invited me." If the hour proves difficult to nature, rejoice even more.
Your love will be increased on account of the hardship it entails. That
is a privileged hour. It will count for two. If through infirmity,
sickness or any other impossibility you cannot make your adoration, be
sad for a moment. Then adore in spirit and in union with the other
adorers of that hour.
Come As You Are
Go to our Lord just as you are. Make a simple meditation. Exhaust your
own fund of piety and love before you make use of books. Love the
inexhaustible book of humility and charity. However, it is well to take
with you a pious book, in order to recall your thoughts when your mind
wanders or when your senses are dull. Remember that our good Master
prefers the poverty of our heart to the most sublime thoughts and
affections borrowed from others.
Understand well that our Lord desires
our own heart, and not that of others. He wants the thought and the
prayer of your heart as a natural expression of love for him. To be
unwilling to go to our Lord with one's misery and one's humiliating
poverty, is often the fruit of subtle self-love, of restlessness or
tepidity, and yet that misery and poverty are what our Lord prefers to
every other gift. He loves it. He blesses it.
Glorify the grace
of God, without which you can do nothing. Open your heart to heaven as
the flower opens its chalice to the rising sun, to catch its beneficent
dew.
You are entirely powerless to act? Your mind is in
darkness? Make the adoration of the poor mendicant of the Gospel. Rise
out of your poverty that he may enrich it, for that is a masterstroke
worthy of his glory.
You are in a state of temptation and
distress? You are urged in thought to forego your adoration under the
pretext that you are offending God and that you dishonor him more than
you serve him? Hearken not to so groundless a temptation. Make the
adoration of fidelity to Jesus against self-love. No! You do not
displease him. You rejoice your Master who is looking at you and who has
permitted satan to tempt you. He expects from you the homage of
perseverance up to the last moment of the time that should be
consecrated to him.
Let confidence, simplicity and love lead you to adoration.
Do you wish to be happy`? Live then, continually in the goodness of
Jesus Christ, which is ever longing for you. Contemplate in Jesus the
work of his love for you, the beauty of his virtues and the light of his
love. With us the fire of love passes quickly, but Jesus' truth remains
forever.
Begin By Loving Him
Begin all
your hours of adoration with an act of love: this will open your soul
to his divine action. It is because you begin by self that you pause on
the way or if you commence by any other virtue other than love, you
wander from the true path. Does not the child embrace the mother before
obeying her? Love is the only portal to the heart.
Do you wish to rise
high, in the realms of love? Speak to Love of himself. Speak to Jesus of
his heavenly Father whom he loves infinitely. Speak to him of the
labors that he undertook for his Father's glory, and you will rejoice
his Heart. He will love you more. Speak to Jesus of his love for all
men. That will dilate both his Heart and your own with joy and
happiness. Speak to Jesus of his holy Mother whom he loves so tenderly,
and you will renew for him the happiness of a good Son. Speak to him of
his Saints, in order to glorify his grace in them. The true secret of
love is likened to that of St. John the Baptist, to forget self, in
order to exalt and glorify the Lord Jesus.
True love looks not
at what it gives but only at what the beloved merits. Jesus, pleased
with you, will speak to you and your heart will open to the rays of that
Sun as the flower bathed and refreshed by the dews of night, opens
under the beams of the radiant orb of day. His encouraging voice will
penetrate your soul like fire consuming the substance which offers no
resistance. Like the Spouse in the Canticle, you will exclaim: "My soul
melts with joy at the voice of my beloved." You will hear him in silence
or rather in the sweetness and most powerful action of love. You will
become one with him. What most unfortunately checks the growth of grace
and love in our soul is that hardly have we reached the feet of our good
Master before we begin to speak to him of ourselves, our sins, our
defects, our spiritual poverty. In doing so we tire our minds by the
sight of misery, our heart grows sad under the thought of our
ingratitude and infidelity. Sadness gives rise to pain, pain to
discouragement, and it is only by humility in bearing our trial that we
escape from this labyrinth in the freedom of God.
Let us avoid
this imperfection, and as the first movement of the soul ordinarily
determines the following action, we must direct our first movement to
God and say to him: "O my good Jesus, how glad I am to see you! What
satisfaction I find in spending this hour with you and in telling you my
love! O how good of you to call me! How sweet of you to love so poor a
creature as I am! O yes! I, too, wish to love you!"
Live His Life
Love then opens to you the door to the Heart of Jesus. Enter and remain therein; love and adore the Master.
In order to adore Jesus well, we must remember that he is really
present — as a living person — in the Most Blessed Sacrament. There he
glorifies, and continues all the mysteries and virtues of his mortal
life. We must remember that the Holy Eucharist is Jesus Christ, past,
present and future; that the Holy Eucharist is the highest development
of the Incarnation and the mortal life of the Savior; that Jesus Christ
therein gives us all graces; that all truths culminate in the Eucharist;
and that in naming the Holy Eucharist we have said all that can be said
since the Holy Eucharist is Jesus Christ.
Let the Holy
Eucharist be the beginning and end of the meditation of the mysteries,
the virtues, the truths of religion. It is the furnace though truths are
only the flames. Let us start from the furnace and we shall spread
abroad its flames. What is more simple than to find resemblance between
the birth of Jesus in the stable and his sacramental birth on the altar
and in our hearts?
Who does not see that the hidden life at
Nazareth is continued in the Host of the Tabernacle, and that the
Passion of the Man-God is renewed in the Holy Sacrifice at every moment
of time and in all places of the world?
Is not our Lord meek and humble in the Blessed Sacrament as he was during his mortal life?
Is he not always the Good Shepherd, the Divine Consoler, the Friend of the heart?
Happy the soul who knows how to find Jesus in the Eucharist and in the Eucharist all things else!
Jesus the Divine and Perfect Adorer
Adoration
See with what perfection Jesus renders to his Father the duty of adoration.
To adore is to recognize by works and with mind, heart and will, the
excellence of God; that is to say his supreme majesty, his infinite
perfection of greatness and of power. No one knows, sees or comprehends
all these perfections as Jesus does. "No one knows the Father except the
Son," says Jesus. What praises escape from his Soul to the Glory of his
Father. Jesus sees all, praises and reveres, honors and exalts all that
is in the Divinity of his Father. What a perfect Adorer in spirit and
in truth! God sees his own Son — equal to him in all things — as the
divine Victim who renders him more honor and glory than all angels and
saints together. How great is the glory which redounds to him from the
voluntary subjection of this King of Kings, of this Lord of Lords, true
God of true God, annihilated before him through love for you and for me.
Oh, all you who might be afraid to come to adoration, because you feel
so unworthy, or because you experience difficulty, you have no reason
for not fulfilling your duty of adorers. Here is Jesus Christ who is
infinitely worthy. Offer to God, therefore, his adoration, his praise,
his love to supply what is wanting in your adoration as God deserves to
be adored in spirit and truth.
Thanksgiving
The second duty of religion consists in acknowledging by the act of
thanksgiving, the liberality of God and all his benefits which the
creature receives without ceasing, from the inexhaustible source of all
Good. To properly accomplish this duty we should understand how good,
how beneficial, how generous and how merciful is God who owes nothing to
anyone. It is necessary moreover, to understand his gifts, their
excellence, their value, their extent and their number and lastly how to
use these gifts of God for his glory. But Jesus alone is capable of
paying to God the whole debt of gratitude which he merits. He alone has
sounded the depths of his mercy, the riches of his treasures. He sees
all his gifts in all creatures. He sees them in himself and yet he says,
"I seek not my glory but the glory of the Father who sent me."
From tabernacles all over the world rises an incessant hymn of
thanksgiving to God and it is Jesus who chants it in the name of all
creatures of whom he is the Head, and all of whose graces are the fruit
of his Blood, of his suffering, of his death. Give thanks, therefore,
with Jesus Christ. Your gratitude united to the gratitude of Jesus will
then be infinite. Think of all the supernatural gifts received from the
time of Baptism until now, of all the Sacraments received; think of the
Gift of Gifts, the Holy Eucharist.
"—How wonderful the Church is
to give us God and to keep him for us. How can we ever thank God for
it? Of ourselves we cannot, but with our Lord himself who has given us
this Gift above all Gifts, himself in the Blessed Sacrament, we can."
Reparation
The third great duty of religion is reparation.
Since sin entered the world, it is not possible to have religion toward
God which does not contain reparation and expiation of sin. In order to
offer to God a reparation equal to the infinite offense, there must be a
victim of infinite price and a priest whose holiness is also infinite.
The Priest and Victim is Jesus Christ; he offered himself upon the
Cross; he offers and immolates himself upon the Altar every day as the
Victim of expiation destined to appease the anger of God, to satisfy his
justice and to obtain mercy, pardon, merit and graces for us. What a
perfect and sweet Victim offering the most holy, the most perfect of
lives to immolation.
The Life of Jesus from the beginning to the end is
that of a Victim delivered up to the divine Justice, a Victim of poverty
and labor, a Victim at Bethlehem and Nazareth, a Victim in the desert
and on the banks of the Jordan asking Baptism, as if a sinner. St. John
the Baptist exclaims, — "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins
of the world," victim on Calvary and on the altar. Oh, what humiliation,
what annihilation for the Master of the world, for the creator of
heaven and earth.
"Greater love than this no man has, that a man lay
down his life for his friends."
If only the horrible,
unspeakable torture of Gethsemane had ended there, but no, — all the
causes of his suffering and death are renewed every day, — disguised
Pilates and Herods are still raging against him.
The cry is heard again
and again in our day, "We don't want him to reign over us"; the rods of
heresy and schism would tear his sacred flesh anew; the thorns of pride
and indifference, flourishing as never before, would again pierce his
brow; the nails of concupiscence of the flesh, of the eye, of desire
that bind so many to a sinful world would once more nail him to the
Cross and have, as it were, tied him to the Host of sacrifice to save
others from the tyranny of a sensual world. Truly can we not hear the
cry from the tabernacle, — O, my people, what is there that I should
have done for you that I have not done?
We were present in his three hours of agony; we were the criminals; we are the guilty ones.
In his infinite love he offers the means to make reparation. In the
Most Blessed Sacrament Christ, the glorious King of Angels and of men,
our good Lord, adores, appeases and satisfies the justice of his Father,
offers him his past sufferings, his present humiliations, his poverty,
his obedience and his love to compensate for the injury, for the crime,
for the ingratitude and for the sins that are rampant in the world.
Come and unite your meager atonement to that of the Divine One and you
will be made clean and pleasing to God. Come and make reparation for
your sins and the sins of the world. Will you not come and make
reparation for all the ingratitude of the world; for those who do not
love him, who do not want to serve him and who refuse to come to him?
Petition
The fourth great duty is that of prayer and supplication. Man refuses
to render the duty of supplication. He trusts in himself and his
strength, and does not pray. But the Word Eternal became incarnate that
he might pray to God. He prayed on his knees with sighs and tears, day
and night. Our tabernacles are now the sanctuaries of his prayer: I pray
for those you have given me, O Father, that where I am they also may
be. This prayer is for you, adorers of the Blessed Sacrament. Whatever
you will ask the Father in my name it will be granted to you; until now
you have not asked anything; ask and you shall receive.
Complete
this meditation with your personal thoughts. Remember when you come to
adore our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, you may unite yourself to him.
Be you poor or rich, saint or sinner, he welcomes you all, wants you
all. Listen to what he says to you — "Because you have confessed me
before men I will confess you before my Father in heaven."
By
your adoration, not only do you perform a sacred and sweet duty, not
only do you come and draw at the source of all grace and life but you
will also have the glory which Christ himself has promised, the glory to
be proclaimed and recommended to his Father in Heaven, — "I will
confess to you before my Father" — the grace I wish you all in the name
of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
