33-Day Preparation

FIRST PERIOD
12 DAYS
April 28 - May 9

THE SPIRIT OF WORLD

SECOND PERIOD
7 DAYS
May 10 - May 16

KNOWLEDGE OF SELF

THIRD PERIOD
7 DAYS
May 17 - May 23

KNOWLEDGE OF MARY

FOURTH PERIOD
7 DAYS
May 24 - May 30

KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS

THE DAY OF
CONSECRATION
May 31

FINAL PREPARATIONS

THE TRUE DEVOTION CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY

33 DAY PREPARATION
FROM THE FEAST OF ST LOUIS DE MONTFORT APRIL 28TH
TO THE FEAST OF THE QUEENSHIP OF OUR LADY ON MAY 31ST

(The Consecration will take place on the Feast of the Queenship of Our Lady, May 31st, which also happens to be Trinity Sunday this year)

WHY MAKE THE CONSECRATION TO MARY

REASONS FOR MAKING THE CONSECRATION IN RELATION TO GOD

1.   It is the will of God, as announced by Our Lady at Fatima. The fact that God wants this should be sufficient reason for making the Consecration.
2.  Mary is God's masterpiece and in justice deserves praise above and beyond what we give to anything else except the praise we give to God. God receives much glory when we honor Mary, the work of His hands.
3.  God has made Mary the channel or mediatrix of all graces. It would be an insult not to use the means that God has appointed for the distribution of His graces, and to seek other means instead.
4.  We imitate God's ways by our reliance on Mary in our lives. Just as God chose to enter this world through Mary and chose to rely on Mary for the work of the Redemption, we, likewise, should go to God through Mary and rely upon her for the work of our salvation.

REASONS FOR MAKING THE CONSECRATION IN RELATION TO OURSELVES

1. If we want to save our souls, then there is no better way of saving them than giving ourselves over to Mary.
2. There can be no salvation without the grace of God. This consecration is a surer and safer way of obtaining, increasing and keeping the graces of God.
3. Mary has been given the role of forming the saints of the end times. We are all called to be saints. There is no better school than the school of Mary for teaching, forming and maintaining sanctity.
4. A true devotion to Mary is almost a guarantee of salvation. This has been affirmed by the testimonies of numerous Saints, Fathers and Doctors of the Church. Who in their right mind doesn't want to save their soul?
5. The devils have confessed that they find it more difficult to overcome the true servants of Mary than other souls who have a lesser devotion to Mary.

THE FOURTH PERIOD : THE KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS
The Act of Consecration to Jesus through Mary follows the meditations below

Approaching the Real Goal
In this fourth period of preparation, we approach the goal or real purpose of St. Louis-Marie de Montfort’s True Devotion to Mary. This devotion is simply the shortest, safest and quickest way of knowing, loving and serving Our Lord Jesus Christ—which is also the ultimate purpose of our existence. Yet, as St. Therese of the Child Jesus used to bewail: “Jesus is so little loved, because He is so little known!”

How and Where We Can Learn About Jesus
There are different ways in which we can learn about Jesus. We can read about Him in the Scriptures or the writings of the Saints and theologians of the Church; we can listen to stories about him in sermons or watch videos of His life. All this leads to an intellectual knowledge of Jesus, which illuminates our mind. This is good, but it is not enough! “To know” is not yet “to love.” Knowledge has to come before love, just as the Faith comes before Charity. We cannot love what we do not know. But we need to progress from an intellectual knowledge and intellectual love of Jesus, to a practical knowledge and a practical love of Jesus.

Cross and Communion
Here on earth, two of the principal ways in which we can come to ‘practically’ know and love Jesus are the Cross and Communion. If we were to try and simplify it still further, then the Sacrifice of the Mass would say it all. For the Mass is both a Sacrifice (the Cross) and a Sacrament (Communion). If we want to find Jesus, then we will find Him in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. We arrive at an ever deeper knowledge and understanding of Christ by entering more and more into the spirit of the Mass, which is none other than the spirit of Jesus. It is through the Mass that we accomplish our principal duties towards God—adoration, propitiation, petition and thanksgiving. In the Mass, through the Gospel readings, we continually dwell upon the life and spirit of Jesus.

His spirit is also handed down to us through the writings of His immediate disciples; the Mass imparts to us the sacrificial spirit of Christ that led Him to work tirelessly for the salvation of sinners. It is in the Mass, during Holy Communion, that we enter into a most intimate union with Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by a fruitful reception of that Sacrament, that we are sanctified and transformed into other “Christs” and receive the graces and the strength to continue Christ’s salvific work, as His instruments, in the world around us.

Knowledge Leads to Love
St. Louis-Marie de Montfort’s recommended meditations should certainly help us grow in this knowledge of Our Lord, and, hopefully, once we know more about Him, we will also grow in our love of Him and in our desire to do something for Him. The most effective way of showing our love of Him and furthering the growth of His kingdom, is by taking up our crosses and carrying them out of love of God. Our Lord Himself said: “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23)

If the Head of the Mystical Body—Who is the Way, the Truth and the Life—passed by the way of the cross, then it would be spiritual suicide for the Mystical Body to go in an opposite direction to Its Head. In the Cross is salvation (in cruce salus); in the Cross is satisfaction for sin; in the Cross is peace; in the Cross is the power of conversion; in the Cross is our merit and our glory. Let us boast, with St. Paul, in nothing else but the Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ—a Cross we have the honor of sharing. Thus, this week we will speak of the Cross.

Friends of the Cross
Though St. Louis-Marie de Montfort did not recommend his own work, Letter to the Friends of the Cross, as part of the preparations, we have, nevertheless, included it among the meditations. The most obvious reason for St. Louis-Marie failing to recommend the Letter, is the fact that it was not at that time a published work, and therefore inaccessible to the vast majority of people.

Holy Eucharist
However, Our Lord is not only found in the Cross, He is also present—Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity—in the Holy Eucharist. The Eucharist is both a Sacrifice (of the Cross) and a Sacrament that communicates Our Lord and His graces to us. The Eucharist strengthens us and makes light the burden of the Cross. Our Lord Himself says: “Come to me, all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you. Take up my yoke upon you and learn of me, because I am meek and humble of heart: and you shall find rest for your souls. For my yoke is sweet and my burden light!” (Matthew 11:28-30).

To know Jesus, we must first find Him and where on earth will we find Him, but in the Eucharist? If we ignore Him there, then we seek Him in vain elsewhere—for that is where He primarily wanted to be found, known and adored. It is when we receive Him in Holy Communion that it can truly be said: “The kingdom of God is within you!”

Our Lord could and would do so much more for us, if we would only enter into that intimate union that can be ours in Holy Communion. Yet, today, the world increasingly ignores, neglects and even disbelieves Our Lord’s Real Presence among men.

The Imitation
The Imitation of Christ so rightly says:
“Alas, how little is what I do! What a short time I spend when I am preparing myself for Communion! Rarely am I recollected, rarely free from all distraction! Surely, in the saving presence of Thy Godhead, no unbecoming thought should arise, nor any created thing lay hold of me—for it is not an angel, but the Lord of Angels, Whom I am about to receive as my guest!...Why then am I not more on fire before Thy awesome presence? Why do I not prepare myself, with greater care, to take up Thy holy things?...How great ought to be the reverence and devotion which I and all Christian people should have in the presence of this Sacrament!...Many rush to various places to visit the relics of the saints and are astonished to hear of their wonderful works; they look upon the vast buildings of their shrines and kiss their bones enwrapped in silks and gold....Often, in seeing such things, there is no more than a curiosity of men and the novelty of what they look upon, but with no real repentance and little fruit of better living being carried home.

"But here, in the Sacrament of the Altar, Thou art wholly present and where the abundant fruit of salvation is fully received....In this Sacrament, spiritual grace is conferred; and lost virtue made good in the soul; and beauty, marred by sin, returns....It must be a matter for grief and great pity that, lukewarm and negligent, we are not drawn, with greater affection, to receive Christ.... It is to be greatly lamented that many show such little esteem for this saving Mystery, which makes Heaven glad and preserves the whole world. O, the blindness and hardness of heart that does not more highly prize so unspeakable a gift; and from daily custom, slides away into a disregard of it” (Imitation of Christ, Book 4, chapter 1).

Fervent Efforts
By a much more fervent participation in the Sacrifice of the Mass and a more fruitful reception of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, our understanding and appreciation of the Cross of Jesus will greatly increase, not to mention our growth in the true spirit of Christ, whereby we will be able to say with St. Paul: “…with Christ I am nailed to the cross. And I live, now not I: but Christ liveth in me” (Galatians 2:19-20).

DAILY PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS FOR THE FOURTH PERIOD
The Knowledge of Jesus
The Act of Consecration to Jesus through Mary follows these meditations

SPIRITUAL EXERCISES &
PRAYERS TO BE SAID DAILY THROUGHOUT THE PERIOD DEDICATED TO THE
KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS

DAYS 27-33
(May 25th—May 31st)

BASIC INSTRUCTIONS
THE GOAL: KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS

They should apply themselves during the third week to know Jesus Christ. They can meditate upon what we have said about Him, and say the prayer of St. Augustine which they will find in the beginning of the second part of this treatise. They can, with the same saint, repeat a hundred times a day: “Lord, that I may know Thee!” or: “Lord, that I may see Who Thou art!” They should recite, as in the preceding weeks, the Litany of the Holy Ghost and the Ave Maris Stella, and should add daily the Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus.

1. Pray the Litany of the Holy Ghost; Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus; Jesus Living In Mary; Ave Maris Stella; St. Louis de Montfort's Prayer to Our Jesus (all of these prayers need not be said everyday IF they cause TRUE difficulty).

2. Pray the Holy Rosary, but PRAY IT WELL

3. Pray especially for the GRACE TO GROW IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, not just in theory or in the mind, but pray that this growth of knowledge may go beyond the intellectual, and that it also SHOW ITSELF IN PRACTICE in many ways.

4. Make acts professing your love and affection towards Jesus, together with sorrow for ever having offended Him.

5. Make acts full of faith in Our Lord’s mercy, power and His desire to help you.

6. Beg Jesus for the grace to grow in a 'practical' love of Him; to have a greater attention and love of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass; to have a desire to receive the Holy Eucharist more often; to visit Him in the Blessed Sacrament more often and more sincerely; and for the grace to see Him and love Him in every cross that comes our way.

7. Thank God for all His patience with you until this day; than Him for the countless graces and mercies that you have received from Him through Mary, and beg of Him, through Mary, the graces to amend your life in the future.

8. Read and reflect on the readings posted for each particular day.

9. Make many short prayers ('one-liners') begging the grace to:
(a) look upon and perform the recommended practices seriously (the devil does not want it)
(b) to persevere DAILY in the prayer, spiritual reading, meditation & penance
(c) for the grace to know Our Lord and to see His love, mercy, justice and providence in your life.
(d) for the grace to make a good examination of conscience and a good Confession
(e) to have the strength of mind and heart to MAKE CHANGES and AMEND YOUR LIFE

PRAYERS FOR DAYS 27-33

Litany of the Holy Ghost
Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus
Prayer to Jesus (by St. Louis de Montfort)
Ave Maris Stella
The Holy Rosary

These prayers are also fruitful sources of meditation.

Even though it is not absolutely necessary to say each prayer each and every day, nevertheless try to say as many, if not all, the prayers whenever you can.
Say at least one of the prayers united to each meditation you make. As you sow, so shall you reap. You cannot outdo Our Lord and Our Lady in generosity.

LITANY OF THE
HOLY GHOST

Lord, have mercy on us,
Christ, have mercy on us
Lord, have mercy on us
Father, all powerful,
Have mercy on us.
Jesus, Eternal Son of the Father, Redeemer of the world, Save us.
Spirit of the Father and the Son, boundless life of both, Sanctify us.
Holy Trinity, Hear us.

Holy Ghost, Who proceedest from the Father and the Son,
Enter our hearts.

Holy Ghost, Who art equal to the Father and the Son,
Enter our hearts.

Promise of God the Father, Have mercy on us.
Ray of heavenly light, Have mercy on us.
Author of all good, Have mercy on us.
Source of heavenly water, Have mercy on us.
Consuming fire, Have mercy on us.
Ardent charity, Have mercy on us.
Spiritual unction, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of love and truth, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of wisdom and understanding, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of counsel and fortitude, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of knowledge and piety, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of the fear of the Lord, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of grace and prayer, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of peace and meekness, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of modesty and innocence, Have mercy on us.
Holy Ghost, the Comforter, Have mercy on us.
Holy Ghost, the Sanctifier, Have mercy on us.
Holy Ghost, Who governs the Church, Have mercy on us.
Gift of God, the Most High, Have mercy on us.
Spirit Who fills the universe, Have mercy on us.
Spirit of the adoption of the children of God, Have mercy on us.

Holy Ghost, inspire us with horror of sin.
Holy Ghost, come and renew the face of the Earth.
Holy Ghost, shed Thy light in our souls.
Holy Ghost, engrave Thy law in our hearts.
Holy Ghost, inflame us with the flame of Thy love.
Holy Ghost, open to us the treasures of Thy graces.
Holy Ghost, teach us to pray well.
Holy Ghost, enlighten us with Thy heavenly inspirations.
Holy Ghost, lead us in the way of salvation.
Holy Ghost, grant us the only necessary knowledge.
Holy Ghost, inspire in us the practice of good.
Holy Ghost, grant us the merits of all virtues.
Holy Ghost, make us persevere in justice.
Holy Ghost, be Thou our everlasting reward.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Send us Thy Holy Ghost.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Pour down into our souls the gifts of the Holy Ghost.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Grant us the Spirit of wisdom and piety.

V. Come, Holy Ghost! Fill the hearts of Thy faithful.
R. And enkindle in them the fire of Thy Love.

Let us pray
Grant, O merciful Father, that Thy Divine Spirit enlighten, inflame and purify us, that He may penetrate us with His heavenly dew and make us fruitful in good works; through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who with Thee, in the unity of the same Spirit, liveth and reigns forever and ever. R. Amen.

LITANY OF
THE SACRED HEART

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
God the Holy Ghost,
Holy Trinity, one God,

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
God, the Holy Ghost,
Holy Trinity, one God,
Heart of Jesus, Son of the eternal Father,
Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Ghost in the Virgin Mother’s womb,
Heart of Jesus, substantially united to the Word of God,
Heart of Jesus, of infinite Majesty,
Heart of Jesus, holy Temple of God,
Heart of Jesus, tabernacle of the Most High,
Heart of Jesus, house of God and gate of Heaven,
Heart of Jesus, glowing furnace of charity,
Heart of Jesus, vessel of justice and love,
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love,
Heart of Jesus, abyss of all virtues,
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all praise,
Heart of Jesus, King and center of all hearts,
Heart of Jesus, wherein are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,
Heart of Jesus, wherein dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead,
Heart of Jesus, in Whom the Father is well pleased,
Heart of Jesus, of Whose fullness we have all received,
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills,
Heart of Jesus, patient and rich in mercy,
Heart of Jesus, rich unto all who call upon Thee,
Heart of Jesus, fount of life and holiness,
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our offenses,
Heart of Jesus, overwhelmed with reproaches,
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our iniquities,
Heart of Jesus, obedient even unto death,
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance,
Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation,
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection,
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation,
Heart of Jesus, victim for our sins,
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who hope in Thee,
Heart of Jesus, hope of those who die in Thee,
Heart of Jesus, delight of all the Saints,

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.

V. Jesus, meek and humble of Heart,
R. Make our hearts like unto Thine.

Let us pray
Almighty and everlasting God, look upon the Heart of Thy well beloved Son and upon the praise and satisfaction which He offers unto Thee in the name of sinners; and do Thou, of Thy great goodness, grant them pardon when they seek Thy mercy, in the name of the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee for ever and ever. R. Amen.

LITANY OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Jesus, hear us.
Jesus, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us
God the Holy Ghost, Have mercy on us
Holy Trinity, one God, Have mercy on us

Jesus, Son of the living God, Have mercy on us
Jesus, splendor of the Father, Have mercy on us
Jesus, brightness of eternal light, Have ...
Jesus, King of glory,
Jesus, sun of justice,
Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary,
Jesus, most amiable,
Jesus, most admirable,
Jesus, mighty God,
Jesus, Father of the world to come,
Jesus, angel of the great counsel,
Jesus, most powerful,
Jesus, most patient,
Jesus, most obedient,
Jesus, meek and humble of heart,
Jesus, lover of chastity,
Jesus, lover of us,
Jesus, God of peace,
Jesus, author of life,
Jesus, model of virtues,
Jesus, lover of souls,
Jesus, our God,
Jesus, our refuge,
Jesus, Father of the poor,
Jesus, treasure of the faithful,
Jesus, Good shepherd,
Jesus, true light,
Jesus, eternal wisdom,
Jesus, infinite goodness,
Jesus, our way and our life,
Jesus, joy of angels,
Jesus, King of patriarchs,
Jesus, master of Apostles,
Jesus, teacher of Evangelists,
Jesus, strength of martyrs,
Jesus, light of confessors,
Jesus, purity of virgins,
Jesus, crown of all saints,

Be merciful, spare us, O Jesus.
Be merciful, graciously hear us, O Jesus.

From all evil, Deliver us O Jesus
From all sin, Deliver us O Jesus
From Thy wrath, Deliver us O Jesus
From the snares of the devil, Deliver...
From the spirit of fornication,
From everlasting death,
From the neglect of Thine inspirations,
Through the mystery of Thy holy Incarnation,
Through Thy nativity,
Through Thine infancy,
Through Thy most divine life,
Through Thy labors,
Through Thine agony and Passion,
Through Thy cross and dereliction,
Through Thy sufferings,
Through Thy death and burial,
Through Thy Resurrection,
Through Thine Ascension,
Through Thine institution of the most Holy Eucharist,
Through Thy joys,
Through Thy glory,

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Spare us, O Jesus.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Graciously hear us, O Jesus.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us, O Jesus.

V. Jesus, hear us.
R. Jesus, graciously hear us.

Let us pray
O Lord Jesus Christ, Who hast said: Ask and ye shall receive; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you; grant, we beseech Thee, to us who ask the gift of Thy divine love, that we may ever love Thee with all our hearts, and in all our words and actions, and never cease praising Thee.

Grant us, O Lord, a perpetual fear and love of Thy holy Name; for Thou never failest to govern those whom Thou dost solidly establish in Thy love. Who livest and reignest world without end. R. Amen.

PRAYER TO JESUS
by St. Louis-Marie de Montfort

O most loving Jesus, deign to let me pour forth my gratitude before Thee, for the grace Thou hast bestowed upon me in giving me to Thy holy Mother through the devotion of Holy Bondage, that she may be my advocate in the presence of Thy majesty and my support in my extreme misery. Alas, O Lord! I am so wretched that without this dear Mother I should be certainly lost.

Yes, Mary is necessary for me at Thy side and everywhere: that she may appease Thy just wrath, because I have so often offended Thee; that she may save me from the eternal punishment of Thy justice, which I deserve; that she may contemplate Thee, speak to Thee, pray to Thee, approach Thee and please Thee; that she may help me to save my soul and the souls of others; in short, Mary is necessary for me that I may always do Thy holy will and seek Thy greater glory in all things.

Ah, would that I could proclaim throughout the whole world the mercy that Thou hast shown to me! Would that everyone might know I should be already damned, were it not for Mary! Would that I might offer worthy thanksgiving for so great a blessing! Mary is in me. Oh, what a treasure! Oh, what a consolation! And shall I not be entirely hers? Oh, what ingratitude! My dear Savior, send me death rather than such a calamity, for I would rather die than live without belonging entirely to Mary.

With St. John the Evangelist at the foot of the Cross, I have taken her a thousand times for my own and as many times have given myself to her but if I have not yet done it as Thou, dear Jesus, dost wish, I now renew this offering as Thou desire me to renew it. And if Thou seest in my soul or my body anything that does not belong to this august Princess, I pray Thee to take it and cast it far from me, for whatever in me does not belong to Mary is unworthy of Thee.

O Holy Spirit, grant me all these graces. Plant in my soul the Tree of true Life, which is Mary; cultivate it and tend it so that it may grow and blossom and bring forth the fruit of life in abundance. O Holy Spirit, give me great devotion to Mary, Thy faithful spouse; give me great confidence in her maternal heart and an abiding refuge in her mercy, so that by her Thou mayest truly form in me Jesus Christ, great and mighty, unto the fullness of His perfect age. Amen.

AVE MARIS STELLA

Hail, bright star of ocean,
God’s own Mother blest,
Ever sinless Virgin,
Gate of heavenly rest.

Taking that sweet Ave,
Which from Gabriel came,
Peace confirm within us,
Changing Eva’s name.

Break the captives’ fetters,
Light on blindness pour,
All our ills expelling,
Every bliss implore.

Show thyself a Mother;
May the Word Divine,
Born for us thy Infant,
Hear our prayers through thine.

Virgin all excelling,
Mildest of the mild,
Freed from guilt, preserve us,
Pure and undefiled.

Keep our life all spotless,
Make our way secure,
Till we find in Jesus,
Joy for evermore.

Through the highest heaven
To the Almighty Three,
Father, Son and Spirit,
One same glory be. Amen.

PRAYER TO MARY
by St. Louis de Monfort

Hail Mary, beloved Daughter of the Eternal Father! Hail Mary, admirable Mother of the Son! Hail Mary, faithful Spouse of the Holy Ghost! Hail Mary, my dear Mother, my loving mistress, my powerful sovereign! Hail my joy, my glory, my heart and my soul! Thou art all mine by mercy, and I am all thine by justice. But I am not yet sufficiently thine. I now give myself wholly to thee without keeping anything back for myself or others. If thou still seest in me anything which does not belong to thee, I beseech thee to take it and to make thyself the absolute mistress of all that is mine. Destroy in me all that may be displeasing to God, root it up and bring it to nought; place and cultivate in me everything that is pleasing to thee.

May the light of thy faith dispel the darkness of my mind; may thy profound humility take the place of my pride; may thy sublime contemplation check the distractions of my wandering imagination; may thy continuous sight of God fill my memory with His presence; may the burning love of thy heart inflame the lukewarmness of mine; may thy virtues take the place of my sins; may thy merits be my only adornment in the sight of God and make up for all that is wanting in me. Finally, dearly beloved Mother, grant, if it be possible, that I may have no other spirit but thine to know Jesus and His divine will; that I may have no other soul but thine to praise and glorify the Lord; that I may have no other heart but thine to love God with a love as pure and ardent as thine. I do not ask thee for visions, revelations, sensible devotion or spiritual pleasures. It is thy privilege to see God clearly; it is thy privilege to enjoy heavenly bliss; it is thy privilege to triumph gloriously in Heaven at the right hand of thy Son and to hold absolute sway over angels, men and demons; it is thy privilege to dispose of all the gifts of God, just as thou willest.

Such is, O heavenly Mary, “the best part” which the Lord has given thee and which shall never be taken away from thee—and this thought fills my heart with joy. As for my part here below, I wish for no other than that which was thine: to believe sincerely without spiritual pleasures; to suffer joyfully without human consolation; to die continually to myself without respite; and to work zealously and unselfishly for thee until death as the humblest of thy servants. The only grace I beg thee to obtain for me is that every day and every moment of my life I may say: Amen—so be it, to all that thou didst do while on earth; Amen—so be it, to all that thou art now doing in Heaven; Amen—so be it, to all that thou art doing in my soul, so that thou alone mayest fully glorify Jesus in me for time and eternity. Amen.

LITANY OF HUMILITY

O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being loved, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being honored, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being praised, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being approved, Deliver me, O Jesus.

From the fear of being humiliated, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being despised, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected, Deliver me, O Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be chosen and I set aside,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be praised and I go unnoticed,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be preferred to me in everything,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may become holier than I,
Provided that I may become as holy as I should,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. Amen.

THOUGHTS ON HER THOUGHTS

► "I ask and command you to have a statue to be made [of Our Lady of Good Success] for the consolation and preservation of ... those faithful souls of that epoch [our present time], during which there will be a great devotion to me" (Our Lady of Good Success).

► “First, so that men in the future might realize how powerful I am in placating Divine Justice and obtaining mercy and pardon for every sinner, who comes to me with a contrite heart. For I am the Mother of Mercy and in me there is only goodness and love.” (Our Lady of Good Success).

► “And second …when tribulations of spirit and sufferings of the body oppress them and they seem to be drowning in this bottomless sea, let them gaze at my holy image, and I will always be there ready to listen to their cries and soothe their pain. Tell them that they should always run to their Mother with confidence and love...” (Our Lady of Good Success).

► "In order to free men from the bondage to these heresies, those whom the merciful love of my most Holy Son has designated to effect the restoration, will need great strength of will, constancy, valor and confidence of the just. There will be occasions when all will seem lost and paralyzed. This then will be the happy beginning of the complete restoration.” (Our Lady of Good Success).

► “But know, beloved daughter, that when your name is made known in the 20th century, there will be many who will not believe, claiming that this devotion is not pleasing to God...A simple humble faith in the truth of My apparitions to you, My beloved child, will be reserved for humble and fervent souls docile to the inspirations of grace, for Our Heavenly Father communicates His secrets to the simple of heart, and not to those whose hearts are inflated with pride, pretending to know what they do not, or self-satisfied with empty knowledge.” (Our Lady of Good Success).

► “Oh, if only human beings and religious knew what Heaven is and what it is to possess God, how differently they would live, sparing no sacrifice in order to enter more fully into possession of it! But some let themselves be dazzled by the false glamour of honors and human greatness, while others are blinded by self-love, not realizing that they are falling into lukewarmness, that immense evil which in religious houses destroys their fervor, humility, self-renunciation and the ceaseless practice of religious virtues and fraternal charity and that child-like simplicity which makes souls so dear to my Divine Son and to me, their Mother" (Our Lady of Good Success).

► “Woe to the world should it lack monasteries and convents! Men do not comprehend their importance, for, if they understood, they would do all in their power to multiply them, because in them can be found the remedy for all physical and moral evils... No one on the face of the Earth is aware whence comes the salvation of souls, the conversion of great sinners, the end of great scourges, the fertility of the land, the end of pestilence and wars, and the harmony between nations. All this is due to the prayers that rise up from monasteries and convents. Oh, if mortals only understood how to appreciate the time given to them, and would take advantage of each moment of their lives, how different the world would be! And a considerable number of souls would not fall to their eternal perdition! But this contempt is the fundamental cause for their downfall!” (Our Lady of Good Success)

YOUR DAILY ROSARY MEDITATIONS

THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES

1. THE ANNUNCIATION

1. And in the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent, from God, into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth.

2. He was sent to a Virgin espoused to a man, whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the Virgin’s name was Mary.

3. And the Angel, being come in, said unto her: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee! Blessed art thou among women!”

4. Who, having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought within herself what manner of salutation this should be.

5. And the Angel said to her: “Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God!”

6. “Behold! Thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son; and thou shalt call His Name Jesus.”

7. “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of David, His father; and He shall reign in the House of Jacob for ever. And of His kingdom there shall be no end.”

8. And Mary said to the Angel: “How shall this be done, because I know not man?”

9. And the Angel, answering, said to her: “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee. And, therefore also, the Holy, which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.”

10. And Mary said: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Be it done unto me according to thy word!” And the Angel departed from her.

2. THE VISITATION

1. A priest, named Zachary, and his wife, Elizabeth, were both just before God, walking in all the commandments and justifications of the Lord without blame. And they had no son, for Elizabeth was barren, and they both were well advanced in years.

2. And it came to pass, when Zachary executed the priestly function, going into the Temple of the Lord in the order of his course before God, for it was his lot to offer incense, according to the custom of the priestly office. And all the multitude of the people was praying outside, at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zachary, seeing him, was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

3. The angel said to him: “Fear not, Zachary, for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice in his nativity. For he shall be great before the Lord; and shall drink no wine, nor strong drink: and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. And he shall convert many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. And he shall go before Him in the spirit and power of Elias; that he may turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children, and the incredulous to the wisdom of the just, to prepare unto the Lord a perfect people.”

4. Zachary said to the angel: “Whereby shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years!” And the angel answering, said to him: “I am Gabriel, who stands before God: and am sent to speak to thee, and to bring thee these good tidings. And behold, thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be able to speak until the day wherein these things shall come to pass, because thou hast not believed my words, which shall be fulfilled in their time!”

5. The people were waiting for Zachary; and they wondered that he tarried so long in the Temple. And when he came out, he could not speak to them―and they understood that he had seen a vision in the Temple. And he made signs to them, and remained dumb.

6. And it came to pass, after the days of his office were accomplished, he departed to his own house. And after those days, Elizabeth, his wife, conceived and hid herself five months, saying: “Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein He hath had regard to take away my reproach among men!”

7. And Mary, rising up in those days, went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda. And she entered into the house of Zachary and saluted Elizabeth. And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.

8. And Elizabeth cried out with a loud voice, and said: “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb! And whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leapt for joy! And blessed art thou that hast believed, because those things shall be accomplished that were spoken to thee by the Lord.”

9. And Mary said: “My soul doth magnify the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. Because He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. Because He that is mighty, hath done great things to me; and holy is His Name. And His mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear Him. He hath showed might in His arm: He hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away. He hath received Israel His servant, being mindful of His mercy: as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to His seed for ever.”

10. And Mary abode with her about three months; and she returned to her own house. Now Elizabeth’s full time of being delivered was come, and she brought forth a son. And her neighbors and kinsfolks heard that the Lord had showed His great mercy towards her, and they congratulated her.
And it came to pass, that, on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child, and they called him by his father’s name―Zachary. And his mother answering, said: “Not so! But he shall be called John!” And they said to her: “There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name!” And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. And demanding a writing table, he wrote, saying: “John is his name!”
And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened, and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came upon all their neighbors; and all these things were noised abroad, over all the hill country of Judea. And all they that had heard them, laid them up in their heart, saying: “What a one, think ye, shall this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him!”

3. THE BIRTH OF OUR LORD AT BETHLEHEM

1. And it came to pass, that in those days there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that the whole world should be enrolled. This enrolling was first made by Cyrinus, the governor of Syria. And all went to be enrolled, everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem―because he was of the house and family of David―to be enrolled with Mary his espoused wife, who was with Child.

2. And it came to pass, that when they were there, her days were accomplished, that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him up in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

3. And there were, in the same country, shepherds watching and keeping the night watches over their flock. And, behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the brightness of God shone round about them; and they feared with a great fear. And the angel said to them: “Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy―that shall be to all the people!”

4. “For, this day, is born to you a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David. And this shall be a sign unto you―you shall find the Infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger!” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army, praising God, and saying: “Glory to God in the highest; and on Earth peace to men of good will!”

5. And it came to pass, after the angels departed from them into Heaven, the shepherds said one to another: “Let us go over to Bethlehem, and let us see this word that is come to pass, which the Lord hath showed to us!” And they came with haste; and they found Mary and Joseph, and the Infant, lying in the manger. And seeing, they understood of the word that had been spoken to them concerning this Child. And all that heard, wondered at those things that were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God, for all the things they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

6. When Jesus therefore was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of King Herod, behold, there came Wise Men from the East to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East, and are come to adore Him.”  And King Herod hearing this, was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And assembling together all the Chief Priests and the Scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ should be born. But they said to him: “In Bethlehem of Juda. For so it is written by the prophet: ‘And thou Bethlehem, the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come forth the Captain that shall rule My people Israel.’”

7. Then Herod, privately calling the Wise Men, learned diligently of them the time of the star, which appeared to them; and, sending them into Bethlehem, said: “Go and diligently inquire after the Child, and, when you have found Him, bring me word again, that I also may come to adore Him.” Who, having heard the king, went their way; and, behold, the star which they had seen in the East, went before them, until it came and stood over where the Child was. And, seeing the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And entering into the house, they found the Child with Mary His Mother, and falling down they adored Him; and opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts―gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And, having received an answer, in sleep, that they should not return to Herod, they went back another way into their country.

8. And, after they were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph, in his sleep, saying: “Arise, and take the Child and His Mother, and flee 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.” Who arose, and took the Child and His Mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and he was there until the death of Herod―that it might be fulfilled, which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: “Out of Egypt have I called My Son.”

9. Then Herod, perceiving that he was deluded by the Wise Men, was exceedingly angry; and, sending soldiers, killed all the male children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the Wise Men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying:  “A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not!” But when Herod was dead, behold an angel of the Lord appeared, in Egypt, to Joseph in his sleep, saying: “Arise, and take the Child and His Mother, and go into the land of Israel. For they are dead that sought the life of the Child.”

10. Who arose, and took the Child and His Mother, and came into the land of Israel. But, hearing that Archelaus reigned in Judea, in the room of Herod his father, he was afraid to go there―and, being warned in sleep, retired into the quarters of Galilee. And coming, he dwelt in a city called Nazareth― that it might be fulfilled which was said by prophets: “That He shall be called a Nazarene.”

4. THE PRESENTATION OF THE INFANT JESUS IN THE TEMPLE

1. And after the days of her purification were accomplished, according to the law of Moses, they carried Him to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord―as it is written in the Law of the Lord: “Every male, opening the womb, shall be called holy to the Lord!”―and to offer a sacrifice, according as it is written in the law of the Lord: “A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”

2. And behold there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Ghost was in him.

3. And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. And he came by the Spirit into the Temple.

4. And when His parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the Law, Simeon also took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said: “Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, according to Thy word in peace; because my eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples―a light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel!”

5. And His father and mother were wondering at those things which were spoken concerning Him.

6. And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother: “Behold this Child is set for the fall, and for the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted; and thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that, out of many hearts, thoughts may be revealed.”

7. And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser; she was far advanced in years, and had lived with her husband seven years from her virginity. And she was a widow for eighty-four years; who departed not from the Temple, by fastings and prayers serving night and day.

8. Now she, at the same hour, coming in, confessed to the Lord; and spoke of Him to all that looked for the redemption of Israel.

9. And after they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their city Nazareth.

10. And the Child grew and waxed strong, full of wisdom; and the grace of God was in Him.

5. THE FINDING OF THE CHILD JESUS IN THE TEMPLE

1. And His parents went every year to Jerusalem, at the solemn day of the Pasch.

2. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem, according to the custom of the feast.

3. And having fulfilled the days, when they returned, the Child Jesus remained in Jerusalem; and His parents knew it not.

4. And thinking that He was in the company of others, they came a day’s journey, and sought Him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances. And not finding Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him.

5. And it came to pass, that, after three days, they found Him in the Temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard Him were astonished at His wisdom and His answers. And seeing Him, they wondered.

6. And His mother said to Him: “Son, why hast Thou done so to us? Behold Thy father and I have sought Thee sorrowing!”

7. And He said to them: “How is it that you sought Me? Did you not know, that I must be about My Father’s business?” And they understood not the word that He spoke unto them.

8. And He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them.

9. And His Mother kept all these words in her heart.

10. And Jesus advanced in wisdom, and age, and grace with God and men.

THE SORROWFUL MYSTERIES

1. THE AGONY OF OUR LORD IN THE GARDEN

1. And a hymn being said, going out, He went, according to His custom, to the Mount of Olives. He went forth over the brook Cedron and His disciples also followed Him. Then Jesus came with them into a country place, a farm which is called Gethsemane. And taking with Him Peter and James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, He said to His disciples: “Sit you here, till I go yonder and pray!” And He began to fear and to be heavy, and grow sorrowful and to be sad. Then He said to them: “My soul is sorrowful even unto death: stay you here, and watch with Me!”

2. And when He was gone forward a little, and was withdrawn away from them a stone’s cast, He fell upon His face, flat on the ground; and He prayed, that if it might be, the hour might pass from Him, saying: “My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from Me--remove this chalice from Me! Nevertheless, not My will, but Thine be done!”

3. And He cometh to His disciples and findeth them asleep, and He saith to Peter: “What! Could you not watch one hour with Me? Watch ye, and pray that ye enter not into temptation! The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh weak!”

4. Again the second time, He went and prayed, saying: “My Father, if this chalice may not pass away, but I must drink it, Thy will be done!” And He cometh again and findeth them sleeping―for their eyes were heavy and they knew not what to answer Him.

5. And leaving them, He went again and He prayed the third time, saying the same words. And there appeared to Him an angel from Heaven, strengthening Him. And, being in an agony, He prayed the longer. And His sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the ground.
And when He rose up from prayer, and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow and saith to them: “Sleep ye now and take your rest! It is enough! Behold the hour is at hand, and the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners!  Rise! Let us go! Behold he is at hand that will betray Me!”

6. And while He was yet speaking, behold, Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, came―and with him a great multitude with swords and clubs―sent from the Chief Priests and the Ancients of the people. Judas, who betrayed Him, knew the place; because Jesus had often visited there―together with His disciples. Judas, therefore, having received a band of soldiers and servants from the Chief Priests and the Pharisees, cometh there with lanterns and torches and weapons.
And he, that betrayed Him, gave them a sign, saying: “Whomsoever I shall kiss, that is He! Hold Him fast and lead Him away carefully!” And forthwith coming to Jesus, and immediately going up to Him, he said: “Hail, Rabbi!” And he kissed Him. And Jesus said to him: “Friend, whereto art thou come? Judas, dost thou betray the Son of man with a kiss?”

7. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon Him, went forth, and said to them: “Whom seek ye?” They answered Him: “Jesus of Nazareth!” Jesus saith to them: “I am He!” And Judas also, who betrayed Him, stood with them. As soon, therefore, as He had said to them: “I am He”, they went backward, and fell to the ground. Again, therefore, He asked them: “Whom seek ye?” And they said: “Jesus of Nazareth!”  Jesus answered: “I have told you that I am He! If therefore you seek Me, let these go their way!” That the word might be fulfilled which He said: “Of them whom Thou hast given Me, I have not lost any one” Then they came up, and laid hands on Jesus, and held Him.

8. And they, that were about Him, seeing what would follow, said to Him: “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” And, behold, one of them that was with Jesus, Simon Peter, having a sword, stretching forth his hand, drew out his sword and struck the servant of the High Priest and cut off his right ear. And the name of the servant was Malchus.
Then Jesus saith to him: “Put up thy sword into the scabbard! For all that take the sword shall perish with the sword! The chalice which My Father hath given Me―shall I not drink it? Thinkest thou that I cannot ask My Father, and He will give Me presently more than twelve legions of angels? How then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that so it must be done? Suffer ye thus far!”  But when Jesus had touched his ear, He healed him.

9. And Jesus said―to the Chief Priests, Magistrates of the Temple and the Ancients, that were come unto Him: “You are come out as it were to a robber, with swords and clubs, to apprehend Me! I sat daily with you, teaching in the Temple, and you laid not hands on Me! But this is your hour and the power of darkness!”
Now all this was done, that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then the disciples, all leaving Him, fled away. And a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and they laid hold on him. But he, casting off the linen cloth, fled from them naked.

10. Then the band and the tribune, and the servants of the Jews, apprehending and holding Jesus, bound Him and led Him away to Annas first, for he was father-in-law to Caiphas, who was the High Priest of that year, and then to Caiphas, where the Scribes and the Ancients were assembled. But Peter followed afar off.

2. THE SCOURGING OF OUR LORD AT THE PILLAR

1. And when morning was come, all Chief Priests holding a consultation with the Ancients of the people and the Scribes and the whole Council, took counsel against Jesus, that they might put Him to death. And the whole multitude of them, rising up, binding Jesus, led Him away from Caiphas to the governor’s hall and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor. They went not into the hall, that they might not be defiled, but that they might eat the Pasch.

2. Pilate, therefore, went out to them, and said: “What accusation bring you against this Man?”
They answered and said to him: “If He were not a malefactor, we would not have delivered Him up to thee!” And they began to accuse Him, saying: “We have found this Man perverting our nation, and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that He is Christ the King!”

3. And when He was accused by the Chief Priests and Ancients, He answered nothing.
Then Pilate saith to Him: “Dost not Thou hear how great testimonies they allege against Thee?”
And He answered him not a word; so that the governor wondered.
And Pilate again asked Him, saying: “Answerest Thou nothing? Behold in how many things they accuse Thee!”
But Jesus still answered nothing; so that Pilate wondered exceedingly.

4. Pilate therefore said to them: “Take Him you, and judge Him according to your law!”
The Jews therefore said to him: “It is not lawful for us to put any man to death!” That the word of Jesus might be fulfilled, which He said, signifying what death He should die. But they were more earnest, saying: “He stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place.”
But Pilate, hearing “Galilee”, asked if the Man were of Galilee. And when he understood that He was of Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent Him away to Herod, who was also at Jerusalem in those days.

5. And Herod, seeing Jesus, was very glad; for he was desirous of a long time to see Him, because he had heard many things of Him; and he hoped to see some sign wrought by Him. And he questioned Him in many words.
But He answered him nothing.
And the Chief Priests and the Scribes stood by, earnestly accusing Him. And Herod, with his army, set Him at nought, and mocked Him, putting on Him a white garment, and sent Him back to Pilate.
And Herod and Pilate were made friends that same day; for, before, they were enemies one to another.

6. And Pilate, calling together the Chief Priests, and the Magistrates, and the people, said to them: “You have presented unto me this Man, as one that perverts the people; and, behold I, having examined Him before you, find no cause in this Man, in those things wherein you accuse Him. No, nor Herod neither! For I sent you to him, and behold, nothing worthy of death is done to Him!”
But they cried again, saying: “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”
And he said to them again: “Why? What evil hath this Man done? I find no cause of death in Him. I will chastise Him therefore, and let Him go!”
But they cried again, saying: “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”

7. Pilate, therefore, went into the hall again, and called Jesus. And Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked Him, saying: “Art Thou the king of the Jews?”
Jesus answered: “Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or have others told it thee of Me?”
Pilate answered: “Am I a Jew? Thy own nation, and the Chief Priests, have delivered Thee up to me! What hast Thou done?”

8. Jesus answered: “My kingdom is not of this world. If My Kingdom were of this world, My servants would certainly strive that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now My Kingdom is not from hence.”
Pilate therefore said to Him: “Art Thou a king then?”
Jesus answered: “Thou sayest that I am a king. For this was I born, and for this came I into the world―that I should give testimony to the truth. Everyone that is of the truth, heareth My voice!”
Pilate saith to Him: “What is truth?”

9. And when Pilate said this, he went out again to the Jews, and saith to them: “I find no cause in Him! But you have a custom that I should release one unto you at the Pasch! Will you, therefore, that I release unto you the King of the Jews?”
Then they all cried again, saying: “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.
Pilate said to them: “What shall I do then with Jesus, that is called Christ?”
They
all said: “Let Him be crucified!”
The governor said to them: “Why? What evil hath He done?”
But they cried out the more, saying: “Let Him be crucified!”
And the whole people answering, said: “His blood be upon us and our children!”

10. But they insisted with loud voices, requiring that He might be crucified; and their voices prevailed. And Pilate seeing that he prevailed nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, taking water, washed his hands before the people, saying: “I am innocent of the Blood of this just Man―look you to it!”
And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required. And he released unto them Barabbas, whom they had desired―who, for murder and sedition, had been cast into prison; but he had Jesus scourged and delivered up to their will.

3. THE CROWNING OF OUR LORD WITH THORNS

1. Then the soldiers of the governor led Jesus away into the hall, the court of the palace, and they called together unto Him the whole band; and stripping Him, they put a scarlet cloak about Him.

2. And plaiting a crown of thorns, they put it upon His head, and a reed in His right hand.

3. And they began to salute Him, and, bowing the knee before Him, they adored Him. And they mocked Him, saying: “Hail, King of the Jews!”

4. And they took the reed and struck His Head with the reed. And they did spit on Him and they gave Him blows.

5. And after they had mocked Him, they took off the purple cloak from Him, and put on Him His own garments, and led Him back to Pilate.

6. Pilate therefore went forth again, and said to them: “Behold, I bring Him forth unto you, that you may know that I find no cause in Him!” Jesus therefore came forth, bearing the crown of thorns. And Pilate said to them: “Behold the Man!” When the Chief Priests, therefore, and the servants had seen Him, they cried out, saying: “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”

7. Pilate said to them: “Take Him you, and crucify Him! For I find no cause in Him!”
The Jews answered him: “We have a law; and according to the law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God!” When Pilate therefore had heard this saying, he feared the more. And he entered into the hall again, and he said to Jesus: “Whence art Thou?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

8. Pilate therefore said to Him: “Speakest Thou not to me? Knowest Thou not that I have power to crucify Thee, and I have power to release Thee?”
Jesus answered: “Thou shouldst not have any power against Me, unless it were given thee from above. Therefore, he that hath delivered Me to thee, hath the greater sin!”

9. And from henceforth Pilate sought to release Him. But the Jews cried out, saying: “If thou release this Man, thou art not Caesar’s friend! For whosoever maketh himself a king, speaketh against Caesar!”
Now when Pilate had heard these words, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat, in the place that is called Lithostrotos, and in Hebrew Gabbatha. And it was the Parasceve of the Pasch, about the sixth hour, and he said to the Jews: “Behold your King!” But they cried out: “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!”

10. Pilate said to them: “Shall I crucify your King?” The Chief Priests answered: “We have no king but Caesar!” Then, therefore, he delivered Him to them to be crucified. And they took Jesus and led Him forth.

4. OUR LORD CARRIES HIS CROSS TO CALVARY

“And bearing His own Cross, He went forth to that place which is called Calvary, but in Hebrew, Golgotha” (John 19:17).

1. And after they had mocked Him, they took off the cloak from Him, and put on Him His own garments, and led Him away to crucify Him.

2. And bearing His own Cross, He went forth to that place which is called “Calvary”―but in Hebrew, “Golgotha.”

3. And there were also two other malefactors, led with Him, to be put to death.

4. And going out, they found a man named Simon, who passed by, coming out of the country of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and of Rufus. And they forced Simon to take up His Cross.

5. And there followed Him a great multitude of people, and of women, who bewailed and lamented Him.

6. But Jesus turning to them, said: “Daughters of Jerusalem! Weep not over Me; but weep for yourselves, and for your children! For behold, the days shall come, wherein they will say: ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the paps that have not given suck!’”

7. Jesus said to them: “Then shall they begin to say to the mountains: ‘Fall upon us!’ and to the hills: ‘Cover us!’ For if in the green wood they do these things, what shall be done in the dry?”

8. Pilate wrote a title, also, and he put it upon the Cross. And the writing was: “Jesus of Nazareth, The King of the Jews.”

9. This title, therefore, many of the Jews did read―because the place where Jesus was crucified was near to the city―and it was written in Hebrew, in Greek, and in Latin.

10. Then the Chief Priests of the Jews said to Pilate: “Write not, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am the King of the Jews’!” Pilate answered: “What I have written, I have written!”

5. THE CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH OF OUR LORD

“And it was the third hour, and they crucified Him” (Mark 15:26).

1. And it was the third hour when they were come to the place which is called Calvary, they crucified Him there. And Jesus said: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!” The soldiers, therefore, when they had crucified Him, took and divided His garments, and they made four parts, to every soldier a part, and also His coat. Now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.
They said then one to another: “Let us not cut it, but let us cast lots for it, whose it shall be!” that the Scripture might be fulfilled, saying: “They divided My garments among them; and upon My vesture they cast lots.” And the soldiers indeed did these things.

2. And they put over His head the written inscription of His cause: “This is Jesus the King of the Jews.” And with Him they crucified two thieves; the one robber on His right hand, and the other on His left, so that the Scripture was fulfilled, which saith: “And with the wicked He was reputed.” And they sat and watched Him.

3. And they that passed by, blasphemed Him, wagging their heads, and saying: “Vah! Thou that destroyest the Temple of God, and in three days dost rebuild it! Save Thy own self! If Thou be the Son of God, come down from the Cross!”
In like manner also the Chief Priests, with the Scribes and Ancients, mocking, said: “He saved others; Himself He cannot save! Let Christ the King of Israel come down now from the Cross! If He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the Cross, that we may see and believe! He trusted in God; let Him now deliver Him if He will have Him! For He said: ‘I am the Son of God!’ He saved others; Himself He cannot save!”
And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming to Him and offering Him vinegar, and saying: “If Thou be the King of the Jews, save Thyself!”
And the self-same thing the thieves, that were crucified with Him, also reproached Him with and reviled Him.

4. And one of those robbers, who were hanged, blasphemed Him, saying: “If Thou be Christ, save Thyself and us!” But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying: “Neither dost thou fear God, seeing thou art condemned under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man hath done no evil!” And he said to Jesus: “Lord! Remember me when Thou shalt come into Thy Kingdom!”
And Jesus said to him: “Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with Me in paradise!”
And it was almost the sixth hour.

5. Now there stood by the Cross of Jesus, His Mother, and His Mother’s sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalen. When Jesus, therefore, had seen His Mother and the disciple standing, whom He loved, He saith to His Mother: “Woman, behold thy son!” After that, He saith to the disciple: “Behold thy Mother!” And from that hour, the disciple took her to his own.

6. And when the sixth hour was come, the sun was darkened and there was darkness over the whole Earth until the ninth hour. And, about the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying: “Eli, Eli, lamma sabacthani?” That is: “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” And some that stood there and heard, said: “Behold, this Man calleth Elias!” And the others said: “Let be! Let us see whether Elias will come to deliver Him!”

7. Afterwards, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said: “I thirst!” Now there was a vessel set there, full of vinegar. And immediately, one of them running, took a sponge and filled it with vinegar and hyssop and put it on a reed. And they, putting a sponge full of vinegar and hyssop, put it to His mouth and gave Him to drink. Jesus, therefore, when He had taken the vinegar, said: “It is consummated!””

8. And Jesus, again crying with a loud voice, said: “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit!” And after saying this, bowing His head, He gave up the ghost. And the veil of the Temple was rent in two, from the top to the bottom. And the centurion, who stood over against Him, seeing that, crying out in this manner, He had given up the ghost, seeing what was done, glorified God, saying:  “Indeed this was a just Man! Indeed this Man was the Son of God!” And all the multitude of them that were come together to that sight, and saw the things that were done, returned striking their breasts.

9.Then the Jews, because it was the Parasceve, that the bodies might not remain on the Cross on the Sabbath day—for, at the time of the Pasch or Passover, it was a great Sabbath day—besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. The soldiers, therefore, came; and they broke the legs of the first and of the other, that was crucified with Him.
But after they were come to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers, with a spear, opened His side, and immediately there came out blood and water. For these things were done, that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “You shall not break a bone of Him.”  And again another Scripture saith: “They shall look on Him Whom they pierced.” And he that saw it, hath given testimony, and his testimony is true. And he knoweth that he saith true; that you also may believe.

10. And all His acquaintances, and the women that had followed Him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things. Among whom was Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joseph, and Salome: who, also, when He was in Galilee, followed Him, and ministered to Him, and many other women that came up with Him to Jerusalem.
And when evening was now come, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counsellor, who was also himself looking for the Kingdom of God, came and went in boldly to Pilate and begged the Body of Jesus. But Pilate wondered that He should be already dead. And sending for the centurion, he asked him if He were already dead. And when he had understood it by the centurion, he gave the Body to Joseph. And Joseph, buying fine linen and taking Him down, wrapped Him up in the fine linen, and laid Him in a sepulcher, which was hewed out of a rock. And he rolled a stone to the door of the sepulcher. And Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of Joseph, beheld where He was laid.

THE GLORIOUS MYSTERIES

1. THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD FROM THE DEAD

1. And when the Sabbath was past, when it began to dawn towards the first day of the week, there was a great earthquake. For an angel of the Lord descended from Heaven, and coming, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it. And his countenance was as lightning, and his raiment as snow. And for fear of him, the guards were struck with terror, and became as dead men. Later the guards came into the city, and told the Chief Priests all things that had been done. And they, being assembled together with the Ancients, taking counsel, gave a great sum of money to the soldiers, saying: “Say you: ‘His disciples came by night, and stole Him away when we were asleep!’ And if the governor shall hear this, we will persuade him, and secure you!” So they, taking the money, did as they were taught: and this word was spread abroad among the Jews―even unto this day.

2. Very early in the morning Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought sweet spices, so that, coming to see the sepulcher, they might anoint Jesus. Mary Magdalen came first unto the sepulcher, when it was yet dark; and she saw the stone taken away from the sepulcher. She ran, therefore, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith to them: “They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulcher, and we know not where they have laid Him!”

3. Meanwhile, with the sun being now risen, the other women arrived at the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared. And they said one to another: “Who shall roll us back the stone from the door of the sepulcher?” For it was very great. And looking, they saw the stone rolled back. And entering into the sepulcher, they found not the Body of the Lord Jesus. They saw a young man, sitting on the right side, clothed with a white robe―and they were astonished. They were afraid and bowed down, their countenance towards the ground. And the angel answering, said to the women: “Be not afraid! For I know that you seek Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified! Why seek you the living with the dead? He is not here, but is risen. Remember how He spoke unto you, when He was in Galilee, saying: ‘The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again!’ He is risen! He is not here! Come, and see the place where the Lord was laid. Now go quickly, tell His disciples and Peter that He will go before you into Galilee; there you shall see Him, as He told you!”

4. But they going out, fled from the sepulcher with fear and great joy, running to tell His disciples. For a trembling and fear had seized them: and they said nothing to any man; for they were afraid. And going back from the sepulcher, they told all these things to the Eleven, and to all the rest. And these words seemed to them as idle tales; and they did not believe them.

5. In the meantime, Peter went out, and that other disciple, and they came to the sepulcher. And they both ran together, and that other disciple did outrun Peter and came first to the sepulcher. And when he stooped down, he saw the linen cloths lying; but yet he went not in. Then cometh Simon Peter, following him, and went into the sepulcher, and saw the linen cloths lying, and the napkin that had been about His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but apart, wrapped up into one place. Then that other disciple also went in, who came first to the sepulcher, and he saw and believed. For, as yet, they knew not the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. The disciples therefore departed again to their home.

6. Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalen, out of whom He had cast seven devils. Mary, having returned again to the sepulcher, stood outside, weeping. Now as she was weeping, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulcher, and she saw two angels in white, sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the Body of Jesus had been laid.
They said to her: “Woman, why weepest thou?”
She said to them: “Because they have taken away my Lord; and I know not where they have laid Him!”
When she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing; and she knew not that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her: “Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou?”
She, thinking it was the gardener, saith to Him: “Sir, if Thou hast taken Him out of here, tell me where Thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away!”
Jesus said to her: “Mary!”
She, turning, said to Him: “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Master).
Jesus said to her: “Do not touch Me! For I am not yet ascended to My Father! But go to My brethren and say to them: ‘I ascend to My Father and to your Father, to My God and your God!’” Mary Magdalen went and told the disciples: “I have seen the Lord! And these things He said to me!”

7. In the meantime, Jesus met the women, saying: “All hail!” But they came up and took hold of His feet, and adored Him. Then Jesus said to them: “Fear not! Go, tell My brethren that they go into Galilee, there they shall see Me!”
The women told these things to the Apostles. And these words seemed to them as idle tales; and they did not believe them. And they hearing that He was alive, and had been seen, did not believe. And after that He appeared in another shape to two of them walking, as they were going into the country. And they going told it to the rest: neither did they believe them. At length He appeared to the Eleven as they were at table: and He upbraided them with their incredulity and hardness of heart, because they did not believe them who had seen Him after He was risen again.

8. Two disciples, the same day, walked to a town which was sixty furlongs from Jerusalem, named Emmaus. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And while they talked and reasoned, Jesus Himself joined them. But their eyes were held, that they should not know Him.
And He said to them: “What are you talking about and why are you so sad?”
And Cleophas said to Him: “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, and how our Chief Priests and princes delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. We hoped, that it was He that should have redeemed Israel! Today is the third day since these things were done and some women of our company, who were at the sepulcher, and not finding His body, came and frightened us, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, who say that He is alive!”

9. Then Jesus said to them: “O foolish, and slow of heart to believe in all things which the prophets have spoken! Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and so to enter into His glory?” And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them, in all the Scriptures, the things that were concerning Him.
And as they drew near to the town where they were going, they constrained Him; saying: “Stay with us, because it is towards evening, and the day is now far spent!” And He went in with them. And it came to pass, whilst He was at table with them, He took bread, and blessed, and broke, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him: and He vanished out of their sight.
And they said one to the other: “Was not our heart burning within us, whilst He spoke in this way, and opened to us the Scriptures?” And rising up, the same hour, they went back to Jerusalem: and they found the Eleven gathered together, and those that were staying with them, saying: “The Lord is risen indeed!”

10. Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, who is called “Didymus”, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him: “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them: “Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe!” And, after eight days again His disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said: “Peace be to you!” Then he saith to Thomas: “Put in thy finger here, and see My hands; and bring here thy hand, and put it into My side―and be not faithless, but believing!” Thomas answered, and said to Him: “My Lord, and my God!” Jesus saith to him: “Because thou hast seen Me, Thomas, thou hast believed! Blessed are they that have not seen, and have believed!”

2. THE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD INTO HEAVEN

1. And the Eleven Disciples went into Galilee, and Jesus led them out as far as Bethania, unto the mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And seeing Him they adored: but some doubted.

2. They, therefore, who were come together, asked Him, saying: “Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” And Jesus, spoke to them, saying: “It is not for you to know the times or moments, which the Father hath put in His own power.”

3. And Jesus said to them: “All power is given to Me in Heaven and in Earth. But you shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the uttermost parts of the Earth. Go ye into the whole world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. Teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.”

4. “He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved: but he that believeth not shall be condemned.”

5. “And these signs shall follow them that believe—In My Name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay their hands upon the sick, and they shall recover.”

6. “Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world!”

7. And the Lord Jesus, after He had spoken to them, lifting up His hands, He blessed them. And it came to pass, whilst He blessed them, He departed from them, and was carried up to Heaven while they looked on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. He now sitteth on the right hand of God.

8. And while they were beholding Him going up to Heaven, behold two men stood by them, in white garments, who also said: “Ye men of Galilee, why stand you looking up to Heaven? This Jesus, Who is taken up from you into Heaven, shall so come, as you have seen Him going into Heaven!”

9. Then they adoring went back from the mount, which is near Jerusalem, that is called Olivet, and with great joy returned to Jerusalem, which is within a Sabbath day’s journey.

10. And when they reached Jerusalem, they went up into an upper room, where abode Peter and John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James of Alpheus, and Simon Zelotes, and Jude the brother of James. All these were persevering with one mind in prayer with the women, and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and with His brethren.

3. THE DESCENT OF THE HOLY GHOST AT PENTECOST

1. And when the days of the Pentecost were accomplished, they were all together in one place.

2. And suddenly there came a sound from Heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

3. And there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them.

4. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they began to speak with divers tongues, according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak.

5. And when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded in mind, because that every man heard them speak in his own tongue.

6. And they were all amazed and astonished, and wondered, saying one to another: “What meaneth this?” But others mocking, said: “These men are full of new wine!”

7. But Peter standing up with the Eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke to them: “Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you, and with your ears receive my words! For these are not drunk, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day!”

8. “Ye men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man approved of God among you, by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you―as you also know. This same Being delivered up, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you, by the hands of wicked men, have crucified and slain. Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the sorrows of Hell, as it was impossible that He should be held by it.

9. When they had heard these things, they had compunction in their heart, and said to Peter, and to the rest of the Apostles: “What shall we do, men and brethren?” But Peter said to them: “Do penance, and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins―and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost! The promise is to you, your children and to all that are far off, whomsoever the Lord our God shall call!”

10. And with very many other words did he testify and exhort them, saying: “Save yourselves from this perverse generation!” They, therefore, that received his word, were baptized; and there were added in that day about three thousand souls. And they were persevering in the doctrine of the Apostles, and in the communication of the breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul―many wonders also and signs were done by the Apostles in Jerusalem, and there was great fear in all. And all they that believed, were together, and had all things common. Their possessions and goods they sold, and divided them to all, according as everyone had need.

4. THE ASSUMPTION OF OUR LADY INTO HEAVEN

1. “Lift up your eyes to Heaven” (Isaias 51:6).

2. “Look up to Heaven and see, and behold the sky, that it is higher than thee” (Job 35:5).

3. “They shall make themselves wings like those of an eagle, and shall fly towards Heaven” (Proverbs 23:5).

4. “Who mounteth above the Heaven of Heaven” (Psalm 67:34).

5. “If I ascend into Heaven, Thou art there” (Psalm 138:8).

6. “And He had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of Heaven” (Psalm 77:23).

7. “God give thee the dew of Heaven” (Genesis 27:28).

8. “Then hear thou from Heaven, and do justice to thy servants” (2 Paralipomenon 6:23).

9. “Hear thou from Heaven their prayers and their supplications” (2 Paralipomenon 6:35).

10. “Hear thou from thy dwelling place, that is, from Heaven, and show mercy!” (2 Paralipomenon 6:21).

5. THE CORONATION OF OUR LADY IN HEAVEN

1. “Be thou faithful until death―and I will give thee the crown of life!” (Apocalypse 2:10).

2. “When the Prince of pastors shall appear, you shall receive a never fading crown of glory” (1 Peter 5:4).

3. “Behold, I come quickly! Hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown!” (Apocalypse 3:11).

4. “Thou shalt put her on as a robe of glory, and thou shalt set her upon thee as a crown of joy” (Ecclesiasticus 6:32).

5. “God will clothe thee with the double garment of justice, and will set a crown on thy head of everlasting honor” (Baruch 5:2).

6. “Thou shalt be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God” (Isaias 62:3).

7. “That thou mayest receive a crown as an ornament of grace” (Ecclesiasticus 32:3).

8. “And a great sign appeared in Heaven―a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” (Apocalypse 12:1).

9. “With the crown set upon her head, to show her beauty to all … for she was exceedingly beautiful” (Esther 1:11).

10. “A jewel upon thy forehead and earrings in thy ears, and a beautiful crown upon thy head” (Ezechiel 16:12).

DAY 33 of 33 : PRAYERS & MEDITATIONS

Sunday, May 31st
DAY 33 of 33
FIRST MEDITATION
Will You Drink of His Chalice?
taken from St. Louis Marie de Montfort's Letter to the Friends of the Cross.
(if you cannot manage to make all the meditations, do not worry, make as many as you can)

PUNISHMENT IS NECESSARY—WHERE? THAT IS OUR CHOICE!

If we agree to God’s punishing here below, this punishment will be dictated by love. But if the punishment due to our sins is held over for the next world, then God’s avenging justice, which means fire and blood, will see to the punishing. Suffering and still more suffering, without merit without mercy and without end!

Do we think of this, my dear Brothers and Sisters, when we have some trial to undergo here below? Blessed indeed are we who have the privilege of exchanging an eternal and fruitless penalty for a temporary and meritorious suffering, just by patiently carrying our cross. What debts we still have to pay! How many sins we have committed which, despite a sincere confession and heartfelt contrition, will have to be atoned for in Purgatory for many a century, simply because in this world we were satisfied with a few insignificant penances! Let us settle our debts with good grace here below in cheerfully bearing our crosses, for in the world to come everything must be expiated, even the idle word (Matt. 12:36) and even to the last farthing. If we could lay hands on the devil’s death-register, in which he has noted down all our sins and the penalty to be paid, what a heavy debit we would find and how joyfully we would suffer many years here on earth rather than a single day in the world to come.

WILL YOU DRINK OF HIS CHALICE?

Do you not flatter yourselves, Friends of the Cross, that you are, or that you want to be the friends of God? Be firmly resolved then to drink of the chalice which you must necessarily drink if you wish to enjoy the friendship of God. “They drank the chalice of the Lord and became the friends of God” (Common of Apostles, Lesson 7). The beloved Benjamin had the chalice while his brothers had only the wheat (Genesis 44:14). The disciple whom Jesus preferred had his Master’s heart, went up with Him to Calvary and drank of His chalice. “Can you drink my chalice?” (Matt 20:22). To desire God’s glory is good, indeed, but to desire it and pray for it without being resolved to suffer all things is mere folly and senseless asking. “You know not what you ask (Matt. 20:22) . . . you must undergo much suffering” (Acts 14:21): you must, it is necessary, it is indispensable! We can enter the kingdom of Heaven only at the price of many crosses and tribulations.

You take pride in being God’s children and you do well; but you should also rejoice in the lashes your good Father has given you and in those He still means to give you; for He scourges every one of His children (Proverbs 3:11; Hebrews 13:56; Apocalypse 3:19). If you are not of the household of His beloved sons, then—how unfortunate! what a calamity!—you are, as St. Augustine says, listed with the reprobate. Augustine also says: “The one that does not mourn like a stranger and wayfarer in this world cannot rejoice in the world to come as a citizen of Heaven” (Sermon 31:5 and 6). If God the Father does not send you worthwhile crosses from time to time, that is because He no longer cares for you and is angry at you. He considers you a stranger, an outsider undeserving of His hospitality, or an unlawful child who has no right to share in his father’s estate and no title to his father’s supervision and discipline.

THE SCHOOL OF JESUS CHRIST

Friends of the Cross, disciples of a crucified God, the mystery of the Cross is a mystery unknown to the Gentiles repudiated by the Jews and spurned by both heretics and bad Catholics, yet it is the great mystery which you must learn to practice at the school of Jesus Christ and which you can learn only at His School. You would look in vain for any philosopher who taught it in the Academies of ancient times; you would ask in vain either the senses or reason to throw any light on it, for Jesus alone, through His triumphant grace, is able to teach you this mystery and make you relish it.

Become proficient, therefore, in this super-eminent branch of learning under such a skillful Master. Having this knowledge, you will be possessed of all other branches of learning, for it surpassingly comprises them all. The Cross is our natural as well as our supernatural philosophy. It is our divine and mysterious theology. It is our philosopher-stone which, by dint of patience, is able to transmute the grossest of metals into precious ones, the sharpest pain into delight, poverty into wealth and the deepest humiliation into glory. He amongst you who knows how to carry his cross, though he know not A from B, towers above all others in learning.

Listen to the great St. Paul, after his return from the third Heaven where he was initiated into mysteries which even the Angels had not learned. He proclaims that he knows nothing and wants to know nothing but Jesus Christ crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2). You can rejoice, then, if you happen to be a poor man without any schooling or a poor woman deprived of intellectual attainments, for if you know how to suffer with joy you are far more learned than a doctor of the Sorbonne (University in Paris) who is unable to suffer as you do.

THINK, REFLECT, MAKE SOME RESOLUTIONS
(Meditation, for it to be true meditation, is always about making resolutions,
otherwise it is merely pious spiritual reading or spiritual musing).

Our Lady said that God wishes to establish devotion to her Immaculate Heart throughout the whole world.
THEN SEND A LINK FOR THIS TRUE DEVOTION CONSECRATION TO MARY TO OTHERS.
This is not meant for you alone, but for others. Otherwise you are like the man from the Parable of the Talents, who received one talent and buried it in the ground. His master was angry with him and took away what had been given to him. Do not bury the True Devotion to Mary Consecration, but share it!

Sunday, May 31st
DAY 33 of 33
SECOND MEDITATION
The Greatest Act of Your Day
taken from The Three Ages of the Interior Life by Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange
(if you cannot manage to make all the meditations, do not worry, make as many as you can)

The sanctification of our soul is found in a daily more intimate union with God, a union of Faith, confidence, and love. Since this is true, one of the greatest means of sanctification is the highest act of the virtue of religion and of Christian worship, participation in the Sacrifice of the Mass. For every interior soul, the Mass ought to be the eminent source from which spring the graces we need in the course of the day, the source of light and of warmth, similar, in the spiritual order, to the sunrise in the order of nature. If we had a profound understanding of the value of daily Mass, we would see that it is like a spiritual sunrise that renews, preserves, and increases in our souls the life of grace, which is eternal life begun. Too often, however, the habit of assisting at Mass degenerates into routine for want of a spirit of Faith, and then we no longer receive from the Holy Sacrifice all the fruits that we should. Yet the Mass ought to be the greatest act of each of our days, and, in the life of a Christian, more notably of a religious, all other daily acts, especially all the other prayers and little sacrifices that we ought to offer to God in the course of the day, should be only the accompaniment of that act.

The excellence of the Sacrifice of the Mass, says the Council of Trent, comes from the fact that it is the same Sacrifice in substance as that of the Cross, because it is the same Priest who continues to offer Himself by His ministers; it is the same Victim, really present on the altar, who is really offered; only the manner of offering differs: whereas on the Cross there was a bloody immolation, there is, in the Mass, through the double consecration, a sacramental immolation through the separation, not physical but sacramental, of the Body and Blood of Christ. Thus the Blood of Jesus, without being physically shed, is sacramentally shed.

This oblation, which is the soul of the Sacrifice of the Mass, has an infinite value, which it draws from the divine person of the Word made flesh, principal Priest and Victim, whose immolation continues under a sacramental form. St. John Chrysostom writes: “When you see the ordained priest at the altar raising the sacred host toward Heaven, do not believe that this man is the true (principal) priest, but, raising your thoughts above what strikes the senses, consider the hand of Jesus Christ invisibly extended.”

The priest, whom we see with our eyes of flesh, cannot penetrate all the depths of this mystery, but above him there is the intellect and will of Christ, the principal Priest. If the minister is not always what he should be, the principal Priest is infinitely holy; if the minister, even though very good, may be slightly distracted or occupied with the exterior ceremonies of the sacrifice, without penetrating their inmost meaning, there is above him One Who is not distracted and Who offers to God with full knowledge reparatory adoration of infinite value, supplication and thanksgiving of limitless power.

The effects of the Mass which relate immediately to God, such as reparatory adoration and thanksgiving, are always infallibly and wholly produced with their infinite value, even without our concurrence, even if the Mass, provided that it be valid, should be celebrated by an unworthy priest. However, the effects of the Mass which relate to us are poured forth on us only in the measure of our interior dispositions. According to St. Thomas and many theologians, the effects of the Mass which relate to us are limited only by the measure of our fervor. The more fervently we assist at Mass, the more grace we get. The greater the Faith, confidence, piety, and love, with which one assists at it, the greater are the fruits he draws from it.

Sunday, May 31st
DAY 33 of 33
THIRD MEDITATION
Visiting Our Lord
taken from The Three Ages of the Interior Life by Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange
(if you cannot manage to make all the meditations, do not worry, make as many as you can)

We may use different ways to assist well at Mass, with Faith, confidence, true piety, and love. We can be attentive to the liturgical prayers, which are generally beautiful and full of unction, elevation, and simplicity. We can also recall the passion and death of the Savior, of which the Mass is the memorial, and think of ourselves as standing at the foot of the cross with Mary, John, and the holy women. Again, we can apply ourselves to rendering to God, in union with Christ, the four duties that are the ends of the sacrifice: adoration, reparation, petition, and thanksgiving. Provided we pray, even while piously saying the Rosary, we assist fruitfully at Mass. We may, like St. Jane de Chantal and many saints, with great profit continue our mental prayer during the Mass, especially if we are inclined to a pure and intense love, somewhat like St. John resting on the breast of Jesus at the Last Supper.

But whatever way we follow the Mass, one important point must be insisted upon. We must, above all, unite ourselves profoundly with the oblation of Christ, the principal Priest; with Him we must offer Him to His Father, remembering that this oblation pleases God more than all sins displease Him. We should offer ourselves also more profoundly each day; offer particularly the trials and contradictions that we already have to bear and those that may present themselves in the course of the day.

Blessed Angela of Foligno tells us: “I have not a vague thought, but the absolute certitude that if a soul saw and contemplated any of the intimate splendors of the sacrament of the altar, it would take fire, for it would see divine love. It seems to me that those who offer the sacrifice, or who take part in it, ought to meditate profoundly on the deep truth of the thrice holy mystery, in the contemplation of which we should remain motionless and absorbed.”

Our visit to the Blessed Sacrament should remind us of each day’s Mass, and we should call to mind that though there is no sacrifice, properly so called, for it ceases with the Mass, Christ, really present in the tabernacle, continues to adore, to pray, and to give thanks. At every hour of the day we ought to unite ourselves to our Savior’s oblation. As the prayer to the Eucharistic heart says: “He is patient in waiting for us, eager to hear and grant our prayers. He is the fountain of ever new graces, the refuge of the hidden life, the master of the secrets of divine union.” In the presence of the tabernacle, we ought “to be silent in order to listen to Him, and leave ourselves in order to lose ourselves in Him.”

The soul tending to Christian perfection ought to live more and more by the Eucharist, not only by assistance at Mass but by frequent and even daily Communion. The Eucharist is thus the greatest of the sacraments, for it contains not only grace, but the Author of grace. It is the sacrament of love, because it is the fruit of love that gives itself and because it has for its principal effect to increase in us the love of God and of souls in God.

All created life needs to be fed: plants draw their nourishment from the secretions of the earth; animals feed on plants or other living creatures; man nourishes his body with material and appropriate food; he nourishes his mind with truth, especially divine truth; he should nourish his will with the divine will to be accomplished daily in order to reach eternal life. In other words, man ought to find his nourishment especially in Faith, hope, and love. The acts of these virtues obtain for him, through merit, an increase in supernatural life.

But the Savior offers him still another and more divine food; He offers Himself as the food of souls. To St. Augustine, Christ said: “I am the food of the strong; grow and thou shalt feed on Me. But thou shalt not convert Me into thyself as the nourishment of thy body, but thou shalt be changed into Me.”

As material bread restores the organism by repairing its losses, the results of labor and fatigue, so the Eucharist repairs the gradual loss of strength which results from our negligences. As the Council of Trent says, it frees us from venial sins, restores to us the fervor which we lost because of these sins, and preserves us from mortal sin.

Moreover, ordinary nourishment increases the life of the body in a growing child. Now, from the spiritual point of view, we ought always to grow in the love of God and of our neighbor until death; thus we advance in our journey toward eternity. That we may grow in this way, the Eucharistic bread always brings us new graces. Thus supernatural growth does not stop in the saints, as long as they continue on their way toward God: their Faith becomes daily more enlightened and more lively, their hope more firm, their charity more pure and ardent. Little by little they advance from resignation in suffering to the esteem and love of the cross. Through Communion all the infused virtues grow with charity; and through ever more fervent Communions, they may reach a heroic degree. The gifts of the Holy Ghost, being permanent, infused dispositions connected with charity, also grow with it.

Lastly, as material bread is pleasant to the taste, the Eucharistic bread is sweet to the faithful soul, which draws from it a comfort and sometimes a spiritual well-being that is more or less felt.

Very providentially, as we end our preparation for our Consecration to Jesus through the hands of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we have these two feasts side by side, just as Jesus and Mary were side by side. Today, May 30, 2013, we celebrate the feast of Corpus Christi. Tomorrow, May 31, we celebrate the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin, and we shall make it a ‘royal’ day by crowning her, either for the first time or by renewal, with the Act of Consecration that we shall make on that day. We shall place ourselves as jewels in her crown. Perhaps we may not yet be gleaming, shining and sparkling jewels; perhaps ‘rough diamonds’ might be a better expression, that still need to be hewn, ground and polished, but, if not quite the finished product (jewels in actu), then at least jewels in the making (jewels in potentia).

Let us on this final day of preparation, beg of the Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, the grace of an increasing knowledge, appreciation, love and devotion to both the Eucharistic Christ and His Immaculate Mother.

Sunday, May 31st
DAY 33 of 33
FOURTH MEDITATION
Rules For Carrying the Cross
taken from The Secret of the Rosary by St. Louis de Montfort
(if you cannot manage to make all the meditations, do not worry, make as many as you can)

FOURTEEN RULES FOR CARRYING THE CROSS

But mere suffering is not enough. For even the devil and the world have their martyrs. We must suffer and bear our crosses in the footsteps of Jesus. Let him Follow Me: this means that we must bear our crosses as Jesus bore His. To help you do this, I suggest the following (abbreviated) rules:

RULE 1: Do not, deliberately and through your own fault, procure crosses for yourself. You must not do evil in order to bring about good. You should never try to bring discredit upon yourself by doing things improperly, unless you have a special inspiration from on high. Strive rather to imitate Jesus Christ, who did all things well (Mark 7:37), not out of self-love or vainglory, but to please God and to win over His fellowmen. Even though you do the best you can in the performance of your duty, you will still have to contend with contradiction, persecution and contempt which Divine Providence will send you against your will and without your choice.

RULE 2: Should your neighbor be scandalized, although without reason, at any action of yours which in itself is neither good nor bad, then, for the sake of charity, refrain from it, to avoid the scandal of the weak. This heroic act of charity will be of much greater worth than the thing you were doing or intended to do.
If, however, you are doing some beneficial or necessary thing for others and were unreasonably disapproved by a hypocrite or prejudiced person, then refer the matter to a prudent adviser, letting him judge of its expedience and necessity. Should his decision be favorable. you have only to continue and let these others talk, provided they take no means to prevent you. Under such circumstances, you have Our Lord’s answer to His disciples when they informed Him that Scribes and Pharisees were scandalized at His words and deeds: “Let them alone; they are blind.” (Matt. 15:14).

RULE 3: Certain holy and distinguished persons have been asking for and seeking, or even, by eccentricities, bringing upon themselves, crosses, disdain and humiliation. Let us simply adore and admire the extraordinary workings of the Holy Spirit in these souls. Let us humble ourselves in the presence of this sublime virtue, without making any attempt to reach such heights, for compared with these racing eagles and roaring lions we are simply fledglings and cubs.

RULE 4: You can, nevertheless, and even should, ask for the wisdom of the Cross, that experimental knowledge of the truth, which, in the light of Faith, shows us the deepest mysteries, among others the mystery of the Cross. But this can be had only through hard toil, profound humiliation and fervent prayer. If you need that perfect spirit (Psalm 50:14) which enables us to bear the heaviest crosses with courage that sweet, kindly spirit (Luke 11:13) which enables us to relish in the higher part of the soul things that are bitter and repulsive and which gives the soul that knows how to make good use of it a share in the friendship of God (Wisdom 7,14), ask for this wisdom, ask for it constantly, fervently, without hesitation or fear of not obtaining it. You will certainly obtain it and then see clearly, in the light of your own experience, how it is possible to desire, seek and relish the Cross.

RULE 5: If, inadvertently, you blunder into a cross, or even if you do so through your own fault, then humble yourselves interiorly under the mighty hand of God (1 Peter 5:6), but do not worry over it. You might say to yourself: “Lord, there is another trick of my trade.” If the mistake you made was sinful, accept the humiliation you suffer as punishment. But if it was not sinful, then humbly accept it in expiation of your pride. Often, actually very often, God allows His greatest servants, those who are far advanced in grace, to make the most humiliating mistakes. This humbles them in their own eyes and in the eyes of their fellow men. It prevents them from seeing and taking pride in the graces God bestows on them, or, in the good deeds they do, so that, as the Holy Ghost declares: “No flesh should glory in the sight of God” (1 Corinthians 1:29).

RULE 6: Be fully persuaded that through the sin of Adam and through our own actual sins everything within ourselves is vitiated, not only the senses of the body, but even the powers of the soul. So much so that as soon as the mind, thus vitiated, takes delight in poring over some gift received from God, then the gift itself, or the act, or the grace, is tarnished and vitiated and God no longer favors it with His divine regard. Since looks and thoughts of the human mind can spoil man’s best actions and God’s choicest gifts, what about the acts which proceed from man’s own will and which are more corrupt than the acts of the mind? So we need not wonder, when God hides His own within the shadow of His countenance (Psalm 30:21), that they may not be defiled by the regards of their fellow men or by their own self-consciousness. What does not this jealous God allow and do to keep them hidden! How often He humiliates them! Into how many faults He permits them to fall! How often He allows them to be tempted as St. Paul was tempted (2 Corinthians 12:7) ! In what a state of uncertainty, perplexity and darkness he leaves them! How wonderful God is in His saints, and in the means He takes to lead them to humility and holiness!

RULE 7: Be careful not to imitate proud self-centered zealots. Do not think that your crosses are tremendous, that they are tests of your fidelity to God and tokens of God’s extraordinary love for you. This gesture has its source in spiritual pride. It is a snare quite subtle and beguiling but full of venom. Acknowledge that you are so proud and sensitive, that you magnify straws into rafters, scratches into deep wounds, a meaningless word into an outrageous, treasonable insult. Acknowledge that the crosses God sends you are really and truly loving punishments for your sins, and not special marks of God’s benevolence. Admit that He is infinitely lenient when He sends you some cross or humiliation, in comparison with the number and atrocity of your sins. Admit that the patience you put into suffering is more tinged than you think with natural human motives. You have only to note your little self-indulgences, your skillful seeking for sympathy, these confidences you so naturally make to friends, or perhaps to your spiritual director, your quick, clever excuses, the murmurings, or rather the detractions so neatly worded, so charitably spoken against those who have injured you. Why I should never finish if I were to point out all the ways and byways human nature takes, even in its sufferings.

RULE 8: Take advantage of your sufferings and more so of the small ones than of the great. God considers not so much what we suffer as how we suffer. To suffer much, yet badly, is to suffer like reprobates. To suffer much, even bravely, but for a wicked cause, is to suffer as a martyr of the devil. To suffer much or little, for the sake of God, is to suffer like saints. Proud human nature would likely ask and seek for the huge, conspicuous crosses even to the point of preferring them and embracing them. But to choose small, unnoticeable crosses and to carry them cheerfully requires the power of a special grace and unshakable fidelity to God. Do then as the storekeeper does with his merchandise: make a profit on every article; suffer not the loss of the tiniest fragment of the true Cross. It may be only the sting of a fly or the point of a pin that annoys you, it may be the little eccentricities of a neighbor, some unintentional slight, the insignificant loss of a penny, some little restlessness of soul, a slight physical weakness, a light pain in your limbs. Make a profit on every article as the grocer does, and you will soon become wealthy in God, as the grocer does in money, by adding penny to penny in his till.

RULE 9: The love you are told to have for the Cross is not a sensible love, or a love in the feelings, for this would be impossible to human nature. It is important to note the three kinds of love: sensible love, rational love and love that is faithful and supreme; in other words, the love that springs from the lower part of man, the flesh; the love that springs from the superior part, his reason; and the love that springs from the supreme part of man, from the summit of his soul, which is the intellect enlightened by Faith.

God does not ask you to love the Cross with the will of the flesh. It was this aspect of His human nature which Our Lord referred to when He cried out, in the Garden of Olives: “Father, . . . not My will but Thine be done.” (Luke 22:42). If the lower powers of Our Lord’s human nature, though holy, could not love the Cross without interruption, then with still greater reason, will our human nature, which is very much vitiated, repel it.

There is another love for the Cross which I call rational, since it springs from the higher part of man, his reason. This love is wholly spiritual. Since it comes from the knowledge of the happiness there is in suffering for God. Though this rational and perceptible joy is beneficial, even very beneficial, it is not an indispensable part of joyous, divine suffering.

This is why there is another love, which the masters of the spiritual life call the love of the summit and highest point of the soul and which the philosophers call the love of the intellect. When we possess this love, even though we experience no sensible joy, or rational pleasure, we love and relish, in the light of pure Faith, the cross we must bear, even though the lower part of our nature may often be in a state of warfare and alarm and may moan and groan and thus we repeat with Jesus Christ: “Father . . . not My will but Thine be done” (Luke 22:42), or with the Blessed Virgin: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to Thy word” (Luke 1:38). It is with one of these two higher loves that we should accept and love our cross.

RULE 10: Be resolved then, dear Friends of the Cross, to suffer every kind of cross without excepting or choosing any: all poverty, all injustice, all temporal loss, all illness all humiliation, all contradiction all calumny, all spiritual dryness, all desolation, all interior and exterior trials. Keep saying: “My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready” (Psalm 56:8). Be ready to be forsaken by men and angels and, seemingly, by God Himself. Be ready to be persecuted, envied, betrayed, calumniated, discredited and forsaken by everyone. Be ready to undergo hunger, thirst, poverty, nakedness, exile, imprisonment, the gallows and all kinds of torture, even though you are innocent of everything with which you may be charged. Add to these dreadful misfortunes all the temptations with which God allows the devil to prey upon you, without pouring into your soul the least feeling of consolation. Firmly believe that this is the summit of divine glory and real happiness for a true, perfect Friend of the Cross.

RULE 11: For proper suffering, form the pious habit of considering four things:

(1) THE EYE OF GOD: God is like a great king, who from the height of a tower observes with satisfaction his soldier in the midst of the battle and praises his valor. What is it on earth that attracts God’s attention? It is the soul who is fighting for Him against riches, against the world, Hell and himself, the man who is cheerfully carrying his cross.

(2) THE HAND OF GOD: Every disorder in nature, from the greatest to the smallest, is the work of His almighty Hand. The Hand that devastates an army of a hundred thousand (4 Kings 19,35) will make a leaf drop from a tree and a hair fall from your head (Luke 21,18). If anyone is loading you with insults and casting stones at you, say to yourself: “I must not mind, I must not take revenge for this is an ordinance of God. I know that I have deserved every abuse and it is only right that God punish me.” God bears you up with one Hand, of infinite power and wisdom, while with the other He chastises you.

(3) THE WOUNDS & SORROWS OF JESUS: Hear His words: “All ye that pass along the thorny and crucifying way I had to follow, look and see. Look with the eyes of your body; look with the eye of contemplation, and see if your poverty, nakedness, disgrace, sorrow, desolation are like unto Mine. Behold Me, innocent as I am, then will you complain, you who are guilty” (Lam. 1,12). The Holy Ghost tells us, by the mouth of the Apostles, that we should keep our eyes on Jesus crucified (Galatians 3:1). There is the solution to your every problem, the means you have to vanquish all your enemies.

(4) YOUR CROWN: Lift up your eyes, behold the beautiful crown that awaits you in Heaven if you carry your cross as you should. That was the reward which kept patriarchs and prophets strong in Faith under persecution. It gave heart to the Apostles and martyrs in their labors and torments.

RULE 12: Never murmur or deliberately complain about any created thing that God may use to afflict you. It is important to note the three kinds of complaints that may arise when misfortune assails you. The first is natural and involuntary. This happens when the human body moans and groans, sobs and sighs and weeps. If, as I said, the higher point of the soul submits to the will of God, there is no sin. The second is rational. Such is the case when we complain and disclose our hardship to some superior, or physician who is able to remedy it. This complaint may be an imperfection, if too eagerly made, but it is no sin. The third is sinful. This happens when a person complains of others, either to rid himself of the suffering they cause him, or to take revenge. Or else when he willfully complains about the sorrow he must bear and shows signs of grief and impatience.

RULE 13: Whenever you are given a cross, be sure to embrace it with humility and gratitude. If God, in His infinite goodness, favors you with a cross of some importance, be sure to thank him in a special way and have others join you in thanking him. Do as that poor woman did who, through an unjust lawsuit, lost everything she owned. She immediately offered the last few pennies she had, to have a Mass said in thanksgiving to Almighty God for the good fortune that had come to her.

RULE 14: If you wish to be worthy of the best crosses, those that are not of your choice, then, with the help of a prudent director, take on some that are voluntary. If you are truly Friends of the Cross, then, without your knowing it, love, which is always ingenious, will discover thousands of little crosses to enrich you. Then you need not fear self-conceit which often accompanies the patient endurance of conspicuous crosses and since you have been faithful in a few things, the Lord will keep His promise and set you over many things (Matthew 25:21-23): over many graces He will grant you; over many crosses He will send you; over much glory He will prepare for you.

THE TEXT OF THE TRUE DEVOTION CONSECRATION TO MARY
with meditations on the key points

Act of Consecration to Jesus Christ,
the Incarnate Wisdom, by the Hands of Mary

O Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom! O sweetest and most adorable Jesus! True God and True Man, only Son of the Eternal Father and of Mary, always Virgin! I adore Thee profoundly in the bosom and splendors of Thy Father during eternity, and I adore Thee also in the virginal bosom of Mary Thy most worthy Mother, in the time of Thy Incarnation.

I give Thee thanks that Thou hast annihilated Thyself, taking the form of a slave in order to rescue me from the cruel slavery of the devil. I praise and glorify Thee that Thou hast been pleased to submit Thyself to Mary, Thy Holy Mother, in all things, in order to make me Thy faithful slave through her.

But, alas! Ungrateful and unfaithful as I have been, I have not kept the promises which I made so solemnly to Thee in my Baptism. I have not fulfilled my obligations; I do not deserve to be called Thy child nor yet Thy slave; and as there is nothing in me which does not merit Thine anger and Thy repulse, I dare not any more come by myself before Thy most holy and august Majesty. It is on this account that I have recourse to the intercession of Thy Most Holy Mother, whom Thou has given me for a mediatrix with Thee. It is through her that I hope to obtain of Thee contrition, the pardon of my sins, and the acquisition and preservation of Wisdom.

Hail then, Immaculate Mary, living Tabernacle of the Divinity, where the Eternal Wisdom willed to be hidden and to be adored by angels and by men! Hail, Queen of Heaven and earth, to whose empire everything is subject which is under God! Hail, O sure Refuge of sinners; whose mercy fails no one! Hear the desires which I have of the Divine Wisdom, and for that end, receive the vows and offerings which in my lowliness I present to Thee.

I (here say your own name), a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism: I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before.

In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God, in time and in eternity.

Receive, O benignant Virgin, this little offering of my slavery, in honor of, and in union with, that subjection which the Eternal Wisdom deigned to have to thy maternity, in homage to the power which both of you have over this poor sinner, and in thanksgiving for the privileges with which the Holy Trinity has favored thee. I declare that I wish henceforth, as thy true slave, to seek thy honor and to obey thee in all things.

O admirable Mother, present me to thy dear Son as His eternal slave, so that as He has redeemed me by thee, by thee He may receive me! O Mother of Mercy, grant that I may obtain the true Wisdom of God, and for that end receive me among those whom thou lovest and teachest, whom thou leadest, nourishest and protectest as thy children and thy slaves.

O faithful Virgin, make me in all things so perfect a disciple, imitator and slave of the Incarnate Wisdom, Jesus Christ thy Son, that I may attain, by thine intercession and by thine example, to the fullness of His age on earth and of His glory in heaven. Amen

EXTRACT FROM THE ACT OF CONSECRATION

“Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom! O sweetest and most adorable Jesus! True God and True Man, only Son of the Eternal Father and of Mary always Virgin! I adore Thee profoundly in the bosom and splendors of Thy Father during eternity, and I adore Thee also in the virginal bosom of Mary Thy most worthy Mother, in the time of Thy Incarnation.”

MEDITATION

In his little book, Love of Eternal Wisdom, St. Louis-Marie de Montfort gives us a valuable abridgment of his spirituality which can be summed up in the words of St. Paul: “Christ living in us.” Christ lives in all Christians who are in the state of grace. In the great majority, however, the Christian life is only, as it were, in its embryo and never really gets beyond that embryonic stage. St. Louis’ aim is to develop that embryo until Christ has come to the fullness of His age in us. That is, until we have become perfect Christians.

According to Montfort this perfect Christian life is acquired by an ardent desire, continual prayer, universal mortification and a tender and true devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Among these four means, Montfort stresses devotion to Mary as the surest, the easiest and the quickest way to the perfect development of the Christ-life in us. We see this doctrine embodied in the renowned prayer: Jesus vivens in Maria, which, translated, reads as Jesus Living in Mary.

O Jesus living in Mary,
Come and live in Thy servants,
In the spirit of Thy holiness,
In the fullness of Thy might,
In the truth of Thy virtues,
In the perfection of Thy ways,
In the communion of Thy mysteries,
Subdue every hostile power
In Thy spirit, for the glory of the Father. Amen.

EXTRACT FROM THE ACT OF CONSECRATION

“I give Thee thanks that Thou hast annihilated Thyself, taking the form of a slave in order to rescue me from the cruel slavery of the devil. I praise and glorify Thee that Thou hast been pleased to submit Thyself to Mary, Thy Holy Mother, in all things, in order to make me Thy faithful slave through her.”

MEDITATION

A slave obeys his master’s will. What did our Master say to us? “Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart!” It is this humility, this meekness, this gentleness that we should set as our goal. Meek does not mean weak! It is said that grace operates suaviter et fortiter —that is to say gently and firmly. It was this gentleness, yet firmness, that made souls flock to Christ. St. Francis De Sales so rightly says: “A spoonful of honey attracts more flies than a hundred barrels of vinegar.” It is this gentleness, yet firmness, that we should seek to acquire in the months and years following our Consecration.

As Divine Wisdom became Man for the purpose of drawing the hearts of men to love and imitate Him, He was pleased to clothe Himself with all human gentleness and kindness, in such an attractive and visible manner, as to present no defect nor unsightliness. This same disposition, towards gentleness, should also be our goal—it is something that will not be acquired overnight, but only when that seed of the True Devotion starts to take root in us and begins to grow into that gentle, yet strong, Tree of Life that is Mary.

If we consider Him in His origin, He is but goodness and meekness. He was born of the sweetest, the most tender and the most beautiful of all mothers, the Immaculate Mary. If you would appreciate the gentleness of Jesus, then consider first the gentleness of Mary, His Mother, whom He resembles by His pleasing character. Jesus is Mary’s child; in Him there is no haughtiness, no harshness, no unpleasantness; and still less, infinitely less, in Him than in His Mother, because He is Eternal Wisdom; He is gentleness and beauty itself. There should be no place for haughtiness, pride, harshness, sarcasm, etc., in our lives. These are the weeds that will choke the Tree of Life before it even has a chance to grow!

The Prophets foretold that because of His gentleness, “He would not break the bruised reed, nor quench the smoking flax,” which means that because of His abundant mercy He will not allow the loss of a poor sinner, even though the sinner may be broken-down, blinded, depraved by sin, and having already as it were, one foot in hell—unless the sinner should compel Him to do so. What does the name of Jesus, which is the proper name of Incarnate Wisdom, signify, if not an ardent charity, an infinite love and attractive meekness? Jesus, Savior, He Who saves man, and Whose characteristic is to love and to save man.

Jesus is gentle in His looks, in His words, in His actions. The face of this loving Savior is so serene and gentle that it charmed the eyes and the hearts of those who beheld Him. The shepherds who came to the stable to see Him were so spellbound by the serenity and beauty of His face, that for several days they remained to gaze upon Him in rapture. The Kings, exalted as they were, had no sooner than seen the loving features of this beautiful Child, laying aside their dignity, they fell on their knees by His crib. Tradition tells us that when Jesus was still very young, afflicted people and children in the vicinity went to see Him to find comfort and joy.

Jesus is also gentle in His words. When on earth, He conquered all by the meekness of His words. Never was He heard to cry out loudly or to argue heatedly. This was foretold by the Prophets. Those who listened to Him with good will, were charmed by the words of life which fell from His lips. They said: “Never did man speak like this man.” Those who hated Him, were surprised upon hearing His eloquence and wisdom. Never did a man speak with such meekness and unction. Whence did He have so much wisdom in His speech?

Multitudes of poor people left their homes and families to go and hear Him, even in the desert. They spent many days without eating and drinking, but they were filled by the meekness of His words. This meekness of His words was the bait which drew the Apostles after Him; it was the balm which healed the most incurable, and which comforted the most afflicted. To the disconsolate Mary Magdalen He spoke but one word, “Mary,” and she was overwhelmed with joy and happiness.

Finally, Jesus is gentle in His actions. This gentleness may be observed throughout the whole course of His life. It was said of Him that “He hath done all things well.” Which means all that Jesus Christ did, was done with such exactitude, wisdom, holiness and meekness, that nothing faulty or wanting can be found in what He did. Let us consider how gently this loving Incarnate Wisdom acted in all His ways.

The poor and the little children followed Him everywhere as one of their own. When they came near Him He embraced and blessed them. O, what sweetness and kindness! The poor, seeing Him dressed like the poor, simple in His manners, without ostentation or haughtiness, enjoyed His company. They stood by Him against the rich and the proud, when these calumniated and persecuted Him. He, in His turn, praised and blessed them upon every occasion.

But who will explain to us the gentleness of Jesus in His dealings with poor sinners? His gentleness with Mary Magdalen, the public sinner? His gracious condescension in converting the Samaritan woman? His mercy in pardoning the adulterous woman? His charity when He sat down to eat with public sinners in order to win them?

Did not His enemies take His great kindness as a pretext to persecute Him, saying that He countenanced the transgression of the law of Moses, and tauntingly called Him the friend of sinners and of publicans? How kindly and humbly did He not try to win over the heart of Judas who intended to betray Him, when He washed his feet and called him friend! And how charitably did He ask the pardon of God, His Father, for His executioners, pleading their ignorance as an excuse!

Oh, how beautiful, how meek, how charitable is Jesus, Incarnate Wisdom! How loving and gentle He is with all of us, poor sinners whom He came to seek visibly in this world, and whom He now seeks invisibly every day! Do you think that Jesus, now that He is triumphant and glorious, is any the less loving and condescending? On the contrary, His glory perfects, as it were, His mercy. He wishes to forgive rather than to be exalted, and to display the riches of His mercy rather than those of His glory.

EXTRACT FROM THE ACT OF CONSECRATION

“But, alas! ungrateful and unfaithful as I have been, I have not kept the promises which I made so solemnly to Thee in my Baptism. I have not fulfilled my obligations; I do not deserve to be called Thy child nor yet Thy slave; and as there is nothing in me which does not merit Thine anger and Thy repulse...”

MEDITATION
Most probably, the devil has at some point or another tried to make us feel totally inadequate and unworthy in the making of this Consecration. For some of us may well have been “ungrateful and unfaithful” to this tremendous grace that God has given us in being able to make this Consecration.

We are, or at least have been, sinners. Perhaps some of us have even been great sinners. How true, then, will be the words which we will pronounce on the day of Consecration: “I have not fulfilled my obligations; I do not deserve to be called Thy child nor even Thy slave; and as there is nothing in me which does not merit Thine anger and repulse, I dare no longer come by myself before Thy most holy and august Majesty.”

Yet, there was no sinner that Our Lord was not prepared to receive—He forgave and accepted Mary Magdalen amongst his followers, the woman caught in adultery and possessed by seven devils! He accepted the confession of guilt by the Good Thief on the cross, at the very last moment of his sin-infested life! He was even prepared to forgive Judas, who had betrayed Him to his enemies, trying to hint at this readiness by calling him “friend”! How then, can He refuse to accept us miserable sinners, when Scripture also says: “Is it my will that a sinner should die, saith the Lord God, and not that he should be converted from his ways and live?”

EXTRACT FROM THE ACT OF CONSECRATION

“I dare not any more come by myself before Thy most holy and august Majesty. It is on this account that I have recourse to the intercession of Thy Most Holy Mother, whom Thou has given me for a mediatrix with Thee. It is through her that I hope to obtain of Thee contrition, the pardon of my sins, and the acquisition and the preservation of Wisdom.

“Hail then, Immaculate Mary, living Tabernacle of the Divinity, where the Eternal Wisdom willed to be hidden and to be adored by angels and by men! Hail, Queen of Heaven and earth, to whose empire everything is subject which is under God! Hail, O sure Refuge of sinners; whose mercy fails no one! Hear the desires which I have of the Divine Wisdom, and for that end, receive the vows and offerings which in my lowliness I present to Thee.”

MEDITATION

The greatest means of all, and the most wonderful of all secrets for obtaining Mercy and keeping God’s grace in our souls, is a tender and true devotion to the Blessed Mary. No one but Mary has ever found grace with God for herself and for the whole human race. No one but Mary has had the power to conceive and give birth to Him, and no one else has the power to bring Him to life in the soul of a sinner, as it were, through the operation of the Holy Spirit in the souls of those chosen by Him.

It is to the Mother of Mercy that we turn, asking her to turn those Eyes of Mercy towards us. For if she pleads to God on our behalf, then we can be sure that He will turn His Justice to Mercy, just as her pleading made her Son turn water into wine at Cana. How many sinners owe their salvation to this Merciful Mother! Listen to what the saints say of this Compassionate Queen:

St. Bernard says that: “She is impetuous in mercy, she is resistless in mercy. The duration of her mercy is unto the limits of the earth. The height of her mercy is unto the lowest abyss of sin and sorrow. She is always merciful. She is only merciful. She is our Mother of Mercy.”

St. Albert the Great says: “They who are not thy servants, O Mary, shall perish.” While St. Bonaventure repeats the same thought, saying: “They who neglect the service of Mary shall die in their sins....For them, from whom Mary turns away her face, there is not even a hope of salvation.”

The renowned St. Ignatius of Antioch, a martyr of the 2nd century, says: “A sinner can be saved through the Holy Virgin, who, by her merciful prayers, obtains salvation for so many, who, according to strict justice, would be lost.”

O, happy the souls who have won the favor of Mary! The Fathers of the Church tell us that Mary is the immense ocean of the perfections of God, the great storehouse of all His possessions, the inexhaustible treasury of the Lord, the treasurer and the dispenser of all His gifts. It is the will of God that since He gave His Son to Mary, we should receive all through her hands, and that no heavenly gift should flow down upon the earth without passing through Mary as through a channel.

Of her plenitude we have all received. If there is any grace, any hope of salvation in us, it is a gift which comes to us through Mary. She is so truly the Mistress of God’s possessions, that she gives to whom she wills and as she wills, all the graces of God, all the virtues of Jesus Christ, all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, all good things in the order of nature, of grace and of glory.

Mary is the secret magnet which, wherever it is, draws Christ so powerfully that He cannot resist. This magnet drew Him down upon earth for the benefit of all men in general, and it still draws Him in particular every day to every man who possesses it. Once we possess Mary we shall easily and in a short time possess the Divine Wisdom through her intercession. Of all the means to possess Jesus Christ, Mary is the surest, the easiest, the shortest way and the holiest.

Were we to practice the most frightful penances; were we to undertake the most painful journeys and the most laborious works; were we to shed all our blood for the acquisition of the Divine Wisdom, all these efforts would be useless and insufficient to obtain Him without Mary’s intercession and solicitude. But if Mary speaks a word in our favor; if we love her; if we bear the mark of her faithful servants who do her will; then we shall quickly and easily possess Divine Wisdom.