Page:Thecompleteascet02liguuoft.djvu/56

 at our  burial  and  be  left,  while  we  are  mouldering  in  our graves. The shadow  of  death  will  cover  and  obscure all the  grandeur  and  splendor  of  this  world. He only, then, can  be  called  happy  who  serves  God  in  this  world, and by  loving  and  serving  him  acquires  eternal  happiness.

O Jesus! I am  truly  sorry  for  having  hitherto  made  so little  account  of  Thy  love. Now I  love  Thee  above  all things, and  I  desire  nothing  else  but  to  love  Thee. Henceforth Thou  only  shalt  be  the  sole  object  of  my love,  Thou  only  shalt  be  my  all;  and  this  is  the  only  inheritance  I  ask  of  Thee;  to  love  Thee  always,  both  in this  life  and  in  the  next. For the  merits  of  Thy  bitter Passion, give  me  perseverance  in  all  virtues. Mary, mother of  God,  thou  art  my  hope.

i. Every  one  desires  to  die  the  death  of  the  saints, but it  is  scarcely  possible  for  the  Christian  to  make  a holy  end  who  has  led  a  disorderly  life  until  the  time  of his  death;  to  die  united  with  God,  after  having  always lived at  a  distance  from  him. The saints,  in  order  to secure  a happy  death,  renounced  all  the  riches,  the  delights,  and  all  the  hopes  which  this  world  held  out  to them,  and  embraced  poor  and  mortified  lives. They buried themselves  alive  in  this  world,  to  avoid,  when dead, being  buried  forever  in  hell.

O God! for how  many  years  past  have  I  deserved  to be  buried  in  that  place  of  torments,  without  hope  of pardon,  or  of  being  able  to  love  Thee! But Thou  hast waited in  order  to  pardon  me. Truly, then,  am  I  sorry from the  bottom  of  my  heart  for  having  offended  Thee, my sovereign  good;  and  have  pity  on  me,  and  do  not permit me  to  offend  Thee  any  more.