Almighty God, in the ancient Law, had bestowed an infinity of blessings upon His chosen people; but they were given according to measure. In the Law of Grace, however, He had no sooner seen His Beloved Son ascended into heaven than He opened His Hands to pour forth His graces and gifts upon all the faithful, according to the prophecy of Joel, that supra omnem carnem—'over all men' would He diffuse His Holy Spirit.
If we desire to receive this Divine Spirit, let us beg Our Lord to bestow Him upon us through the merits of his Most Holy Mother, the glorious Virgin Mary, and through the love He bore to her; and we shall thus, like the Apostles, be with Mary the Mother of Jesus. We shall never understand how necessary is this condition. St. Elizabeth had no sooner spoken to the Most Holy Virgin than she was immediately, says St. Luke, 'filled with the Holy Ghost.' Nor is this a subject of wonder, because Mary is the Spouse of the Holy Ghost, the Daughter of the Eternal Father, and the Mother of the Eternal Son.
The Evangelist St. Luke, by observing that men and women were assembled in the room, admonishes us that we must all hope to receive the Holy Ghost; but he mentions in particular the presence of Mary the Mother of Jesus, to insinuate that she was there as the Queen of the Apostles. How mistaken, then, are those who say that we honour the Most Holy Virgin too much! This august Virgin, it is true, had already received the Holy Spirit and the fulness of grace in the Annunciation, but in the upper room she received a great superabundance of grace.
Whoever, then, desires to receive the Holy Ghost, let him unite himself to Mary; because he who separates himself from her, does not gather but scatters. Let us serve her, honour her, that He Who comes into our hearts, by her mediation, may also receive us by the same mediation.
To conclude, we may learn a very useful lesson from the words of St. Luke about the Disciples when they had received the Holy Ghost: 'All spoke in divers tongues according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak'—Prout Spiritus Sanctus dabat eloqui illis; that is, that though all spoke, yet they did not speak in the same manner. The Apostles preached the new Law; and those who did not preach publicly, animated one another to praise and magnify the Lord. Let us, however, understand that there is an efficacious method of speaking without even uttering a word, and it is by the good example which we give to our neighbour.
David says: 'The heavens declare the glory of God. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.' These words signify that the beauty of the heavens invites men to admire the magnificence of the Creator. Indeed, when on a clear night we contemplate the beauty of the heavens, we do not feel less animated to admire and adore the Omnipotence and Wisdom of God, Who has studded it with such beautiful stars, than when we observe the inaccessible light of the sun in its full meridian splendour. What conclusion are we to draw from all this but that we, who are something more than all the rest of creation (since all things were made for us, and not we for them), should, by our good example, announce the glory of God more perfectly than the heavens and the stars. Good example is a silent but a most efficacious influence. In this manner we can all preach, although we have not all received the gift of tongues. Is it a less wonder to see a soul adorned with many sublime virtues than to see the heavens decorated with magnificent stars? How much, my God, do I need the Spirit of strength when I feel myself so weak and infirm! However, I glory in my infirmity that the Power of my God may dwell in me. Let us glory in our weakness, which makes us fitting receptacles of the Power of God. May He grant that this sacred fire, which can entirely change us into Him, may transform our hearts into His pure Love, that we may be all love and not lovers only. May He grant me also to receive and make good use of the gift of understanding, that my mind may be more enlightened to penetrate clearly the sacred mysteries of our holy Faith; for this understanding has a wonderful power to subjugate the will to the service of Him Whom it recognises to be so good and so worthy of love, Yet, as true love is active, we need counsel, that we may be able to discern how to exercise this love; and then our soul is excellently endowed with the sacred gifts of Heaven.
May the Holy Spirit, Who favours us with His gifts, form our whole consolation, and be eternally adored by my mind and by my heart! May He be always our wisdom and our understanding, our counsel and our fortitude, our knowledge and our piety, and fill us with the spirit of the fear of the Lord.
SPIRITUAL FLOWERS.
Mary is the root of Jesse, upon whom the Holy Spirit rested. The Son of the Virgin is the flower thereof; a red and white flower, chosen amongst thousands—the flower upon which the Angels gaze with continuous desire; a flower whose fragrance renews life; a flower of everlasting bloom, whose beauty is incorruptible, and whose glory will never fade.—St. Bernard.
Mary is the root of that beautiful flower upon which the Holy Spirit rests with the fulness of His gifts. Whoever then desires to obtain the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost, must seek the flower upon the stem; because we reach the flower through the stem, and through the flower we find the Holy Spirit, Who thereon reposes. Let us go to Jesus, through Mary; and by means of Jesus, we find the grace of the Holy Spirit.—St. Bonaventure.