Page:ThePathToHeaven.djvu/501

 things, and  I  discovered  that  therein  alone"  were  the  perfection of  justice,  the  plenitude  of  science,  the  riches  of salvation,  and  the  abundance  of  merit.  You  also,  my brothers,  should  form  to  yourselves  a  nosegay  of  the Passion  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  adorn  your  bosom  with  it, and  there  let  it  remain;  for  if  you  have  it  thus  before your  eyes,  meditating  on  the  bitter  sorrows  of  our  Lord, you  will  more  easily  bear  your  own  sufferings,  being assisted  by  the  help  of  Jesus  Christ.  May  God  be  blessed through  all  eternity!  Amen."

In this  exercise  we  divide  the  Passion  and  the  history  of the  death  of  Jesus  Christ  into  twenty-four  parts,  in  order to meditate  upon  them,  either  collectively  or  one  by  one, at certain  times  to  be  determined  upon  beforehand.

Admire the excess  of  his  charity,  and  at  the  remembrance  of  it, thank our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  for  his  sufferings  and  merits,  of  which he granted  us  a  share  at  this  time;  say  to  him  with  love  and  devotion:

Blessed be  the  hour,  O  my  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  which thou didst  desire  to  suffer  the  dolours  of  thy  Passion. I unite all  my  actions  and  all  my  sufferings  to  this  adorable mystery. I beseech  thee,  by  thy  divine  merits,  O  Jesus, to vouchsafe  to  remember  me  at  the  hour  of  my  death, and to  grant  me  pardon  and  mercy.

Admire the humility  with  which  Jesus  washed  the  feet  of  his disciples, and  his  love  which  induces  him  to  give  himself  to  us  to  be our  food.

Blessed be  the  hour,  O  my  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  which thou didst  institute  the  divine  sacrament  of  the  altar. I unite all  my  actions  and  all  my  sufferings  to  this  adorable mystery; I  implore  thee,  O  Jesus,  by  thy  divine  merits, to vouchsafe  to  remember  me  at  the  hour  of  my  death, and to  grant  me  pardon  and  mercy.