A Prayer Before Receiving The Viaticum.
O my blessed Redeemer Jesus Christ, I firmly believe thou art really present in this venerable sacrament, which I am now about to receive by way of viaticum. I believe it contains thy sacred body and blood, accompanied with thy soul and divinity. I desire to receive this heavenly banquet for thy honour and glory, and the good of my soul, that I may be happily united to thee. I desire to commemorate thy sufferings as thou hast commanded. But how shall I dare to approach thee?—so wretched a worm, to so infinite a majesty! so filthy a sinner, to so infinite purity and sanctity! It is therefore in thy mercy that I place my whole trust; and since thou art pleased to invite thyself into so poor, so wretched so mean a cottage as this of my breast, vouchsafe, I beseech thee, to grant me those graces, and that reverence, humility, and devotion, which may prepare a fit abode for thy reception. Cleanse my soul from every foul stain of sin, clothe it with the nuptial garment of charity, and adorn it with all virtues. I come to thee, like Magdalen, that I may be delivered from all my evils, and that I may embrace thee, my only good. I detest with my whole heart, all the sins of my past life, because they have offended thy goodness. I desire to lay them all down here at thy feet, to be cancelled by thy precious blood. I am sorry for them, and will be sorry for them as long as I live. I will bewail them in the bitterness of my soul. They are many and grievous, it is true; yet they are nothing when compared to thy boundless mercy, and to the infinite ransom of thy precious blood. Forgive me, then, sweet Jesus, for thy mercy's sake; have pity on me and save me, since thou forsakest none that place their hope in thee. I love thee, my God, with my whole heart and soul, and above all things in heaven and on earth! at least I earnestly desire so to love thee, and consecrate myself eternally to thee. O come and take full possession of my heart for ever; I offer it to thee without reserve; O come and inflame it with the celestial fire of thy divine love, and let nothing in life or death ever again separate me from thee. O sweet Jesus, prepare me for a worthy reception of the blessing thou art now about to bestow on me. I adore and worship thee, humbled in mind and body, and confess myself to be nothing but dust and ashes in thy presence. It is my confidence in thy goodness that makes me presume to approach thee, for I cannot but acknowledge myself infinitely unworthy. Domine non sum dignus, &c.
For a Prayer after receiving the Viaticum, see page 128.
A Prayer Before Extreme Unction.
O Lord Jesus Christ, who, in the abundance of thy mercy, hast provided powerful resources for relief in all our necessities, grant me grace to have recourse to them with such worthy dispositions that my soul may partake of all those great advantages and salutary effects which thou hast appointed in their institution. Thou hast instituted the sacrament of Extreme Unction for the benefit of the sick, who, in the extremity of life, stand in need of more graces, more helps, and more consolation, than ever. I now desire to receive this heavenly medicine, for the ends for which it has been instituted. I am willing to be anointed, as thou hast commanded by thy apostle St James. Grant, I beseech thee, that this holy Unction may produce in me all its happy fruits, by healing my soul from the ulcers of sin, by fortifying me against all temptations, by supporting me in the hour of anguish and distress, and by preparing me for a happy passage out of this life, or whatever may be thy holy will. Shouldst thou foresee that my health may be conducive to thy greater glory, and expedient for my eternal salvation, let this be the means to restore it. I absolutely submit myself to thy divine will and pleasure. I wish not to live but to serve thee. Dispose of me as thou knowest best; do with me as thou pleasest. All I desire is the accomplishment of thy most holy will. Give me health or sickness, life or death; give me whatsoever thou pleasest: not my will, O Lord, but thine be done: it is a greater happiness to fulfil thy will, than to enjoy ten thousand lives. O how happy should I be, if the destruction of my body could repair the injury I have offered to thy divine Majesty! My eyes, alas! have seen vanities; my ears have been open to detractions, to profane and unprofitable discourses; my tongue has many ways offended thee, both in speaking and tasting; my hands have contributed to my follies; my feet have often gone astray in the paths of vanity and sin. By this holy anointing, and the prayers of thy church, pardon me, O Jesus, all the sins I have ever committed by these my five senses. Let those avenues through which sin has made its way into my soul, be now shut to the world; let my eyes be open to thee alone, my Jesus; let my ears be now attentive to thy commands, and to thy call; let my tongue be solely employed in crying out for mercy; let my prayers ascend like incense in thy sight; let my hands be lifted up to heaven for pardon; let my feet walk in thy ways; and let my heart be the living temple of the Holy Ghost. Into thy hands, O dear Jesus, I commend my spirit. In thee I will live, in thee I will die, in thee I will abide, and in thee I hope to possess eternal rest and heavenly joy for ever and ever. Amen.
A Prayer After Extreme Unction.
O my God, thou hast created, redeemed, and sanctified me; thou hast preserved me in many dangers both of soul and body; thou hast nourished me with the adorable sacrament of thy body and blood, and granted me the grace to receive the rights of thy church, preferably to so many others, who are carried off by a sudden death, without being favoured with those succours and graces which thou hast bestowed upon me, a most ungrateful sinner. For these and all thy other blessings, I offer thee innumerable thanks. O that I had as many tongues and hearts as there are stars in the heavens, atoms in the air, and creatures in the universe; how willingly would I employ them all in praising, loving, and glorifying thee! To thee I resign my heart: receive it as a holocaust. Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit: receive me, O dear Jesus, in thy mercy; receive me into thy loving arms, which were stretched forth on the cross for my redemption; receive me into the embraces of thy infinite charity. I do not desire to be freed from my pains; thou knowest what is best for me: do but take from me all murmuring, and give me patience to suffer whatever thou willest, and as long as thou pleasest. Should it be thy divine pleasure to inflict on my weak body and languishing soul greater punishments than I now suffer, my heart is ready, O Lord, my heart is ready to accept them, and to suffer in whatever manner and measure may be most conformable to thy will. This one grace I most earnestly beg of thee, my God—that I may die the death of the just, and be admitted, after the sufferings and tribulations of this transitory and sinful life, into the kingdom of thy glory, there to see and enjoy thee, in the company of the blessed, for a never-ending eternity. Amen.
Short Acts Of Virtue In Time Of Sickness.
I acknowledge, O Lord, that I am a sinner; accept, therefore, of what I now suffer, in atonement for my sins. Help me to receive with submission and resignation, whatever afflictions thou shalt please to send me.