Part 9

The Angels, and, after them, our first parents, prevaricated through pride. Upon this account, Our Lord, like a wise and loving physician of our souls, applied the remedy to the root of the evil, and came into the world to plant in the place of pride the beautiful and useful virtue of Divine humility, become very necessary on account of the contrary vice being so general. Indeed, so common an evil is pride, that humility can never be sufficiently inculcated; and on this account, our adorable Saviour and our Immaculate Lady would obey the law, not made for them, to teach us to esteem this virtue. For us, who deserve only humiliation and contempt, to abase ourselves is no great thing. However, humiliation acquires an inestimable value when embraced by Jesus Christ and His Most Holy Mother; and this humiliation was continual with them throughout the whole course of their life. Wherefore the Apostle, speaking of the humility of Our Redeemer, said that 'He humbled Himself unto death, even to the death of the Cross'--_Humiliavit semitipsum usque ad mortem, mortem autem crucis_. But if we miserable creatures humble ourselves on some slight occasion, we quickly seek by every means in our power to indemnify ourselves for the transient exercise of this virtue, and the very thought of persevering in the practice of it alarms us. We are convinced, it is true, that we are very imperfect, and yet we desire to be looked upon as holy and perfect, notwithstanding the example of Mary, who consented to be clothed in the semblance of a sinner, although confirmed in grace and possessed of a more than angelic purity.

Observe any other daughter of Eve, and see how eagerly she seeks for honour and esteem; and although this defect be common to all mankind in general, it seems to be more marked in the female sex. Now, Our Lady and glorious Mistress is not the Daughter of Eve according to the spirit, but only according to the flesh, and therefore she always persevered in the most profound humility, and could say in her sacred Canticle of the _Magnificat_ that on this account 'All generations would call her blessed'--_Beatam me dicent omnes generationes_.

How beautiful is it to behold the Holy Virgin presenting herself and the Infant Jesus in the Temple, and making her offering of two doves! Happier is she than all the princes of earth! And what shall I say of the aged Simeon, who takes the Divine Infant in his arms? Let us also embrace Him, let us live and die in these tender embraces.

Place this sweet Jesus in your heart, like another Solomon upon his ivory throne. Let your soul follow His steps, that you may hear the holy words He continually breathes. Remember that your heart should be like ivory in purity and firmness; firm in its resolutions, and pure in its affections.

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Anything we do, however little, will have an inestimable value if it be done for the love of God.--_St. Teresa._

It is an exalted degree of perfection to assimilate and conform ourselves to the spirit of the sacred Infancy of our most humble and most obedient Saviour.--_St. Francis of Sales._

Whoever wishes to acquire virtue, and does not possess humility, is like to one who carries dust in his hands when there is a high wind.-- _The same._

EXAMPLE.

_Punishment of the Profaners of a Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin._

The holy Hermitage of Voiron did not escape the profanations of the heretics. They invaded it with arms in their hands, as if they were going to besiege a fortress; they ill-treated and expelled the Monks, took away the sacred vessels, the papers, documents, indulgences, etc., committed horrible sacrileges, and at last set fire to the place and entirely destroyed it, and rolled the remaining stones down the mountain.

This atrocious impiety was not left unpunished, for soon afterwards all who had taken part in the destruction of the hermitage perished miserably. It is remarkable, however, that in spite of all the devastation effected by these impious men, they could not gain their principal object, which was to carry off the statue of the Most Holy Virgin, which was preserved miraculously.

John Burgnard, a native of Chablais, who had embraced the heresy of the Bernese, and was the leader of these profaners, had no sooner reached the hermitage, than he mounted the Altar to carry away the statue of the Most Blessed Virgin. He threw a rope round its neck, and descending from the Altar was walking out of the Church, dragging the statue after him, and uttering at the same time these words: 'Come along with me, come along with me, little black woman' (the face of the statue was black); 'if you are as powerful as the Papists say, let me now have a proof of it. Why do you allow yourself to be thus shamefully dragged on the ground? Why do you not defend yourself?' He had no sooner uttered these blasphemies than the statue became immovable. The wretched man, finding that he was unable to drag it further, turned his head round to see what was hindering him, and by a second miracle his head remained turned in that direction, so that he could never again place it in its right position; and, moreover, he became crippled in an arm and a shoulder. Being obliged to leave the statue, he left the spot with great difficulty, and bore the chastisement of his impiety throughout his life, giving an undeniable proof of the sovereign power of the Queen of Heaven. But more terrible is the fact that he persevered in heresy, and died in despair in the presence of many of the parishioners of Bons. Amongst these were Michael Novello and Claude Ippolito Cortager, who gave testimony of this fact on oath A.D. 1629.

His Highness Duke Charles Emmanuel, when at Tortona during the time that St. Francis of Sales was converting the people of Chablais, verified the fact we have related, and ordered the secretary of the Town Corporation to register it, that the miracle might be transmitted to posterity. (See 'Life of St. Francis of Sales,' by Augustus de Sales.)

_Prayer._--Holy Virgin! when you presented your Divine Son to the Eternal Father, you became dear to all the Heavenly Court. O present also our hearts, that, fortified by grace, we may never fall into mortal sin!

Most humble Virgin! when you placed the adorable Jesus in the arms of the aged Simeon, you filled his soul with, heavenly sweetness. O place our hearts in the hands of God, that He may fill them with His Divine Spirit! Most diligent Virgin, you co-operated in the redemption of the world, when you redeemed your Son Jesus with two turtle-doves; be pleased to redeem our hearts from the slavery of sin, that they may be always pure and holy before God. Most clement Virgin! when you heard from the lips of the holy Simeon the prophetic announcement of all your dolours, you submitted yourself quickly and perfectly to the Will of God. O help us to support always with patience and resignation all the tribulations of life!

Most merciful Virgin! bymeans of your Divine Son you illuminated the Prophetess Anna with supernatural light, so that she magnified the mercies of God and acknowledged and proclaimed Jesus as the Saviour of the world. O fill us with heavenly grace, that in the abundance of joy we may be able to reap the precious fruits of Redemption. Amen.

_Ejaculation._--O Mary! watch over me.

_Practice._--Take every possible care to-day not to commit any sin, however venial it may seem.

SEVENTEENTH DAY.

MARY, THE MODEL OF PERFECT OBEDIENCE, IN THE MYSTERY OF THE PURIFICATION.

LET us consider in this meditation how our adorable Saviour and His Most Holy Mother united perfect obedience to profound humility.

Our Lord preferred the death of the Cross rather than fail in obedience. 'Jesus Christ,' says the great Apostle, 'was obedient unto death, even to the death of the Cross'--_Factus obediens usque ad mortem, mortem autem crucis_. And what signal obedience did not Mary exercise at the death of her Son, the only object of her heart's affection! She stood firm and constant at the foot of the Cross, pierced with the sword of sorrow, perfectly resigned to the Will of the Eternal Father. All the actions of Our Divine Saviour were regulated by obedience, as He Himself declared, saying: 'I am come not to do My Will, but the Will of Him that sent Me'--_Descendi de coelo non ut faciam voluntatem meam sed voluntatem ejus qui miset Me_. Thus He teaches us that the Will of His Heavenly Father was the sole guide of all His thoughts. Notice Our Lady's life, and you will always see her obedient. So highly did she esteem this virtue of obedience, that she obeyed the command to espouse St. Joseph, although she was bound by a vow of virginity. She always persevered in the practice of this virtue, and as the mystery of the Purification shows us, she presented herself in the Temple, that she might observe the Law she was not bound to observe. Thus her obedience was the more precious as it was voluntary. Indeed, this is the only virtue that she has recommended to the practice of mankind. The Gospel tells us that when she spoke to the attendants at the marriage of Cana, she said to them: 'Whatsoever He shall say to you, do'--_Quodcumque dixerit vobis facite_. Here she teaches the practice of holy obedience, which is inseparable from the virtue of humility, because it springs from this virtue. Only those who are truly humble subject themselves to the Will of God.

Our Lady had no fear of being disobedient, because she was not obliged to obey the Law, but she shunned its very shadow. Many would have misunderstood her conduct, if she had not gone to the Temple to offer her Divine Son and perform the ceremony of her Purification. She would, therefore, remove all suspicion of disobedience, and at the same time teach us not merely to avoid sin, but also its very appearance, and the occasions which may expose us to it. Let us learn, also, not to be satisfied with the testimony of our conscience alone, but to try to remove from others every occasion of thinking ill of us and of our actions.

The example of Our Saviour and of His Most Holy Mother should animate us to submit not only in those things that are commanded us, but in those that are merely of counsel, that we may thus become more dear to the Divine Goodness. O God! is it then so great a work to subject ourselves to obedience, when for this alone we have been sent into the world, and when the Supreme King, to Whom all things should be subject, practised it?

We must learn then from the example of our adorable Saviour and of His Most Holy Mother, to be docile, pliable, and easily ruled, not only for a certain time, and in some actions, but even unto death. But two fundamental conditions of this virtue of Obedience must be observed. These are--firstly, that to obey perfectly we must love God Who commands; and secondly, we must love the action that is commanded. All the faults committed against obedience proceed from the want of one of these conditions. Many love the thing commanded, but not God Who commands it. For instance, some will perform their devotions, not out of obedience to the Will of God, but on account of the consolation they experience in this exercise. In this there is nothing but self-love; and it will be perceptible by the repugnance, or discontent, which is felt in the performance of those observances that are not according to our inclinations. In this case, it is plain that it is not God Whom we love, but only the thing that He commands. If we loved God Who commands, our hearts would be indifferent as to our occupation, because in all we should be equally sure to find the Will of God.

Others will love God Who commands, but not the action commanded. These will say: I know very well that it is the Will of God that I should do this or that, but I feel so great a repugnance, that I cannot resolve to do it, and were I to strive to obey, the person who, in the name of God, desires me to perform the action, enjoins it so ungraciously, as to rob me of all the satisfaction I might experience in an act of obedience.

The source of all our difficulties is that we obey readily only when our superiors accommodate themselves to our natural inclinations. On all other occasions, the smallest obligations appear to us difficult and disagreeable. It is therefore evident that we do not regard God Who commands us through another, but we look at the person who speaks to us in His Name, to see how he is clothed so to speak; that is to say, we look only at his external deportment. O God! what a mistake! We ought to submit to the Will of God in obedience, without any exception, and from whatever quarter the order may come; and not only love God Who commands, but also the thing that is commanded; _taking the command and placing it upon our heads_--that is, in our inmost heart, to execute it with all fidelity and sincere goodwill.

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Bless God for having given you Mary as your Mother. Imitate her, and consider what a blessing it is for you to have so powerful an advocate in Heaven.--_St. Teresa._

Humility cannot subsist without love, nor love without humility--and one can never be acquired without the other.--_The same._

The more we mortify our natural inclinations, so much the more do we merit to receive supernatural inspirations.--_Francis of Sales._

EXAMPLE.

_A Conquest of the Blessed Virgin's._

Father Paul Stub, a Barnabite, became a conquest of grace, and an Angel in virtue and learning, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He himself thus relates his conversion in his excellent book for the Month of Mary, entitled 'The School of Mary':

'A Protestant youth set out from the North, in 1826, to take a post at Genoa, in the family of the Consul of Sweden and Norway, who was a very good Catholic. But the wife of the Consul, fearing that this youth might by his conversation have an evil influence on a nephew who lived with them, went to the sanctuary of Our Lady of Graces, and made the following prayer to the Queen of Heaven and Earth:

"'O Mary! if you see that this Protestant youth will become a Catholic and be virtuous, then let him arrive, but if otherwise, send his ship to America."

'The ship arrived safely at Genoa, and the boy entered on his situation. He was edified by the examples of virtue that he witnessed, but had no thoughts whatever of becoming a Catholic--until after some time, when he was in trouble, calling to mind the devotion which Catholics bear to Our Lady, he said to her: "O Mother of Jesus! it is the first time that I invoke you, but if you do me the favour I desire I will invoke you all my life."

'The favour was obtained most completely, and after that time the young man began to pray to God to know the truth, entered upon the study of religion, and became a Catholic in 1829, to his own great joy and that of many others. He afterwards took the Religious habit, and has since exercised his zeal for the glory of the Most Blessed Virgin in preaching; and, to give her a new proof of his gratitude, he composed this little book in her honour.'

_Prayer._--Most pure Virgin! obtain for me the grace to understand henceforth the Divine sweetness of union with God. May my adorable Saviour abide with me under the veil of Faith as He dwelt with you in the seclusion of a hidden life! May He live in me through the union of my heart with His adorable Heart as He lived in you, forming one heart and soul with you! Oh that henceforth I may know how to love, to desire, and to relish only Jesus! May He alone, during the whole course of my life, be my strength, my life, the heart of my heart, the soul of my soul, that after having been frequently nourished with His virginal Body, which was conceived and born of you a Virgin, I may be able to say with the Apostle: '_I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me_.' Amen.

_Ejaculation._--My heart is prepared to obey you in everything, O my Mother!

_Practice._--Do everything you do to-day be done in the spirit of obedience.

EIGHTEENTH DAY.

THE FLIGHT INTO EGYPT.--TRUST IN PROVIDENCE.

THE unspeakable joy which Mary and Joseph experienced after the birth of Jesus was of short duration.

The Angel of the Lord came again to visit Joseph in sleep, and said to him, 'Arise, and take the Child and His Mother and fly into Egypt, and be there until I shall tell thee, for it will come to pass that Herod will seek the Child to destroy Him.'

See how the heavenly messenger treats Mary and Joseph, precisely as if they were true Religious! How many pretexts might they not have found to be dispensed from obeying? Could we not wait till to-morrow? might they have said. What provisions have we for so long and tedious a journey? Who knows what we may have to suffer from the Egyptians, the declared enemies of the Israelites? Who will give us shelter in that country? These and a thousand other excuses would have been made by us had we been in their place. But perfect models as they were of submission and of confidence, they set out without delay, certain that God would provide for all their necessities. And so it proved, for they found lodging and food, either by means of the trade exercised by St. Joseph, or by the alms bestowed upon them.

That we may not lose even one of the many instructions given us in this touching mystery, let us consider first that Our Lord, the Eternal Wisdom, does not Himself take the charge of His Family. Being perfect God and perfect Man, He already possessed the use of reason, and from the first instant of His Conception He could have made known to Joseph and to His Blessed Mother all that was to happen to them. However, God the Father had conferred upon the Angel Gabriel the care of the Holy Family, and therefore Our Lord would take no part in it. The Angel commands and is obeyed most faithfully, although he was inferior to Jesus and also to Mary, who, as Mother of God, was endowed with greater graces and perfections than all the celestial spirits.

But this is not all. Observe the order that reigns in this Holy Family. Who can doubt that Our Lady was superior to St. Joseph in discretion, as well as in all the other qualities required for good government? And, nevertheless, the Angel does not inform her of all that is to be done, but he informs her Spouse, St. Joseph. It might appear strange that he addresses himself to him rather than to Mary, the Mistress of the house, who carries the Treasure of the Eternal Father. Had she not every reason to be offended at this proceeding of the Angel, who seemed thus to ignore her? She could undoubtedly have said to her Spouse, 'Why should I go into Egypt, when neither my Son nor the Angel have made it known to me?' But Our Lady is silent, and obeys with all simplicity, without being in the least concerned that the Angel had only spoken to St. Joseph. She knew well that all had been ordained by God; she does not even inquire the reason, but the knowledge that such is the Will of God is sufficient to secure her prompt submission. It is thus God acts towards men--to teach them holy and loving submission. A merely human mind does not wish to yield and to adore the secret mysteries of God and of His Most Holy Will until it is able to ascertain _the why and the wherefore of this and that_. A thousand reasons are brought forward as of greater discernment or experience, and so on; but they only cause disquiet, ill-temper, and complaints. From the time we begin to criticise everything disturbs us. Let us be satisfied to know what God wants of us, and let this suffice. But (some will say) who can assure us that such is the Will of God? This shows that our hearts would prefer that God should manifest everything directly to us by means of secret inspirations, or that He should send an Angel to announce to us His Will. And yet he did not thus reveal it even to Our Lady, but wished her to come to the knowledge of it through St. Joseph, to whom she was subject, as to her superior. Our self-love would like to be instructed sometimes by God Himself by means of ecstasies, visions, etc. We indulge ourselves in follies such as these that we may not be subject to the common and ordinary path of subjection to our rules and our superiors. Let it suffice for us to know that God wills our obedience without reflecting on the mental capacities of those who command us, and we shall accustom ourselves to walk with all simplicity in the happy road of holy and tranquil humility, which will render us pleasing to God. O! how many wonderful examples of obedience to the Will of God did not this glorious Virgin leave us during her whole life, and, above all, in her flight into Egypt! Whither, O glorious Virgin, do you direct your steps with that little Infant in your arms? I am going into Egypt, she replies. But why do you go there? Because it is the Will of God. For how long? As long as it pleases God. When will you return? When He shall command me to do so. But when you return will your heart be more happy than at present? O no, certainly not. And why? Because I fulfil the Will of God equally in going, in remaining there, and in returning. When you return, will you go into your own country? She replies, I know no country but the accomplishment of the Will of my God in everything.

O admirable example of obedience! Let us, in imitation of the Blessed Virgin, endeavour to submit to authority at all times and in every circumstance, whether it be pleasing to us or not. Let us go with all simplicity even as far as Egypt--that is, into the midst of enemies-- because God Who sends us there will know how to protect us, and assuredly we shall not perish. On the contrary, if we remain in Israel with our enemy, self-will, it will certainly be the destruction of us. In imitation of Mary and Joseph, let us answer the suggestions of the enemy of our soul when he urges us to disobedience in these words: _Deus providebit_--'God will provide.' O my God! happy we if we could accustom ourselves to answer our heart always thus when it becomes anxious, and thus banish all solicitude and trouble. Great indeed is the confidence which God asks of us in His Paternal care and Providence; but why do we refuse it to Him when we know that no one has ever been deceived in Him, but, on the contrary, has always reaped therefrom the most copious fruits? And was not this the promise which Our Saviour made to His Apostles when He urged them to this loving confidence? 'Your Father in heaven knoweth that ye have need of these things.'

SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.

Obedience has the property of changing the flower of our desires into the fruits of good works. Shun singularity as far as possible, and do not make yourselves different exteriorly in any way from others.--_St. Teresa._

As the best honey is gathered from the flowers of the thyme, which is a small and bitter herb, so when virtues are exercised in the bitterness of the most humble tribulations, they become truly excellent.--_St. Francis of Sales._

As the sun gives its heat no less to a rose amidst a thousand other flowers than if it were alone, so Our Lord does not diffuse His love the less upon one soul because He also loves an infinity of others. The power of His love never diminishes on account of the multitude of rays that it diffuses, but is always unchangeable in its immensity.-- _The same._

EXAMPLE.

_The Excellence of the 'Hail Mary.'_