Grant, O Lord, we beseech Thee, by the merits of the spouse of Thy most holy Mother, that what our unworthiness cannot obtain may be given us by his intercession with Thee, Who livest and reignest with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen.
April. The Passion: Meditations for Every Day of Lent.
During the month of April we generally celebrate Holy Week, and so this month is dedicated to the Passion of Our Lord. The followers of Christ should be acquainted with the history of their leader, Jesus, the Master; they should know what He has endured for His followers, and they should think frequently of His sufferings, especially in Lent, when the Church, in all her offices, keeps the commemoration of the Passion foremost in her mind. There are many things to be done during this month. You ought to recite the stations of the cross privately, or be present when they are publicly performed; hear sermons on religious topics, practise a little fast or abstinence. This last is not so much to do, yet God takes note of it, and makes a great fuss over it, like a father that has received an insignificant present from his child. Take from any book the meditations on the Passion, read them slowly, and with sympathy; slowly, so as to be able to follow the recital and to be able to realize it; with sympathy, that you should bring to it a feeling for Our Lord, and show that you are touched with all that He endured for you. The God-man going to a disgraceful death, after a most apparently unsuccessful life, should make us feel for the loving Jesus. St. Augustine remarks that nothing is so useful to our advancement in the spiritual life, as daily to meditate on the Passion of Our Lord. Certainly the most appropriate time for these considerations and prayers is during Lent, which happens about this time.
We shall give forty short considerations for every day in Lent. They can be begun upon Ash Wednesday; we will then strive to gain spiritual benefit from these considerations, by perusing them with piety and with a great love for our crucified Lord. Before the time of Augustine, Origen writes that it is impossible for a man to remain in sin, as long as he often remembers the [pg 137] sufferings of Our Lord, and nothing will so inflame our hearts with love for Christ. Father Alvarez said that so many Christians are lost, because they ignore the treasures that are concealed in the Passion of Our Lord; and he led his penitents to perfection by enjoining on them frequent contemplation of the Passion. St. Francis de Sales tells us, “That every wound of Our Lord is a tongue, which teaches what the Lord suffered for us.” What flames of love will naturally burn in our hearts, when we see the love with which Our Lord regarded us! Happy, therefore, the soul who will find leisure for this holy exercise of the mind and heart. “You will draw water with joy from the fountains of the Saviour.” The sinner will receive confidence in the mercy of God, and know that his case is not so desperate as long as he has the wounds of the Lord to plead to the Father for mercy and forgiveness—for all our transgressions have been laid upon the shoulders of Jesus.
How, then, can we have any fear, says St. Paul, that God will refuse us His graces? “He that spared not even His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all.”