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 are really  engaging  in the  hottest  part  of  Hie struggle.

"Consider Our  Lord's words:  'The  harvest  indeed  is  great,  but  the laborers  are  few.  Pray  ye therefore  the  Lord  of  the harvest,  that  He  send forth  laborers  into  His harvest '  (Matt.  ix.  37,  38). He  tells  us  that  there  is  an abundant  harvest,  and that  the  workers  are  few. One  might  fancy  that  He would  go  on  to  bid  His apostles  hasten  to  gather in  the  harvest.  As  the harvest  is  abundant  and the  workers  are  too  few, the  natural  conclusion at  which  we  should  arrive would  be:  'Hasten,  therefore, and  busy  yourselves about  the  harvest.'  But God's  conclusion  is: 'Pray,  therefore,  pray  the Lord  of  the  harvest  to send  forth  laborers  into His  harvest.'

"There is  much  work to  be  done,  and  for  that reason  there  is  great  need of  prayer — such  is  the divine  argument.  And for  what  are  we  to  pray? That  the  Lord  may  send forth  laborers.  Our  Lord does  not  tell  us  to  have recourse  to  prayer  in  order to  find  peace  in  it,  to fold  our  arms  quietly and  not  trouble  about the  harvest,  to  secure  our personal  salvation  comfortably, being  sheltered from  sun  and  rain.  No indeed.  He  means  prayer to  be  a  work  of  apostolic devotion,  the  first  and foremost  of  such  works inasmuch  as  it  precedes and  procures  the  sending forth  of  the  laborers. Two  things  are  needful, prayer  and  laborers; prayer  comes  first  and the  laborers  follow,  and they  will  not  come  at  all if  there  has  been  no  prayer; and,  in  the  same  way, if  prayer  does  not  call forth  laborers,  it  has  failed in its  object.

"Here, then,  we  have  an indication  of  the  union  of the  two  ministries  and  of their  co-operation  in  the great  task  of  gathering  in a  harvest  of  souls.  They ought  never  to  be  separated, as,  when  deprived of  mutual  support,  one loses  its  life  and  the other  its  object.  If  those leading  the  contemplative life  do  not  pray  for  men of  action,  they  are  in