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The ahal TINI whii 10X 14X 18X 22X 28X 30X 1 y 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X • ^»? ■ ■ ■ 'Li 'J«»'5'' The copy filmed here het been reproduced thenks to the generosity of: Netionel Librery of Csnede L'exempleire fllmA f ut reprodult grAce h le gAn^rosltA de: BIbllothAque netlonale du Canada The Images appearing here ere the best quality possible considering the condition and legibility of the original copy and in keeping with the filming contract specifications. Las Images sulvantes ont tt€ reprodultes avec le plus grand soln, compte tenu de la condition et de la nettctA de rexemplaire f ilmA, et en conformlt6 avec lea conditions du contrat de filmaga. Original copies In printed paper covers are filmed beginning with the front cover and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, or the back cover when appropriate. 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IMaps, plates, cherts, etc., mey be filmed et different reduction ratios. Those too lerge to be entirely Included in one exposure ere filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right end top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams Illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre filmte A des taux de reduction diff6rents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reprodult en un seul cllchA, 11 est filmA A partir de i'angle supArleur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'Images nicessslre. Les diagrammes sulvants lllustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 6 6 A hv • • • • " ■ • • • • •••• • • • . • • • . • • •• • • •••• • •• • •• • BI I • • ■:k: • ••• ALL GLORY TO THE BLOOD OF JESUS ! • • . I DEVDtion to tl^ftecious BlDDd, • • • FOL^T)Wbt) BY • • A CHOICE SELECTWN OF PRAYERS AND 1s^*js:rcises • •• •••• IN ITS HONOR. • • " Thou art wortjiy, Lord, to take the book, and to opej^ the seals thereof : because Thou wast slaiB'Wid has redeemed us to God, in Thy Blood, out of every tribe, and tongue, and peoplfej and nation.-^- Apoc. v. 9. PERMISSU SUPERh MONTBEAIi : 1887 »■ t *'i Bishop's Palace, ' * ' ' Jan. 16, 1886. Rev. Mother: Having had the j\Al(fwing pages duly ex- aminedj I give them Jw^ • hearty approbation ; ••••• earnestly hoping that J4^^ ynay have a wide circulation amongst yow^ MrS^lish-speaking friends, and cause the Precious •Modd to he better known and loved. With this hope, I remain, Rfiy^ Mother, Your^PJeiPi^tedlyinour Lord, • •• • • ••• • • • •••• \**6ishop of St. Hyacinthe. • ••• Rev. Mother Superior. Monastery of the Precious Blood, • • =** All Diary tD the BlDDdnf Jesus! 1886. ^ly ex- ')ation ; I wide 4 riends, known rdy ^ nnthe. DEVOTION TO THE. PRECIOUS BLOOD. ITS C1IARACTRKI8TIC<)* M'8.^8PIRIT, AND ITS FRUITS. •* Q ^ [Extract from Father' '^Taber's Admirable Work, " The Phk«5>i<^US BiiOOD»'»] " All devotions hjjv^ jiheir characteristics, all of them have their ^o,«vil theological meanings. We must say something,:, therefore, of the char- acteristics of the DeVolt-ij^n to the Precious Blood. We will take the firat, Devotion to the Precious Blood is the devotiori^ expression of the promi- nent and characteristic teachings of St. Paul. St. Paul is the Apostle of r^de^ming grace. It shows that the true significance -^f ^every thing is to be found in the scheme of redemption, apart from which it is useless to discuss the firoblems of -vreation. It is a revelation to us of oh^, character of God and the work of Jesus. ^ " Another characteristic of the Devotion to the Precious Blood is th$ w^y in which it brings out and keeps before us €he principle of sacrifice. Sacrifice is peculiarly the Christian element of holiness ; and it is principally the element which corrupt nature dislikes and resists. Now all the forms, and images, and associations, and pictures, and ideas, of the Devotion to the Precious Blood breathe sacrifice. Their fragrance is the odor of sacrifice. Their beauty is the austerity of sacrifice. \ They tease the soul with a sense of dissatisfaction and distrust with whatsoever is not sacrifice. In time they infect us with a love of sacrifice : and to gain this love is to have surmounted the first ascent of holiness. " It is another characteristic of the Devotion to the Precious Blood, that it does not usurp the place of other devotions, buj by its growth makes ' more room for them. It«mingles in a most natural way with the l)evotion tp tftir Blessed Mother. It is an additional splendotJlJxftvery one of her mys- teries. It forms of itself a»e€»arate devotion to our dearest Lady, as the Ici^tain of the Precious Blood, a devotion of th^ jnOs^ inexpressible ten- derness, a devotion to hcjjjmmaculate Heart and sinless blood. T**** " Devotion to the Pr^tjift Blood also supplies us with an additional A)rfla of devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. The'IMvotion to the Precious Blood in the Chalice may be considered not merely as an additional form %€• ^votion, but an addi- tional devotion to the Bl^Ssed Sacrament; while the special adoration of I6e* trecious Blood, when we are kneeling before tBie tabernacle, is a form of devotion bringing mucl;,|Jp{jtrine before us, and enabling us better to comprehend the august rea- lities of that tremendous. ^Sacrament. But the closest alliance of the ^ev^tion to the Precious Blood is with the devoticftf to the Sacred Heart. The Precious Blood is the wealth of the Sacred Heart. The Sacred Heart is the symbol of the Precious Blood ; yet not its symbol only, but its palace, its fountain, its home. ** Its use as a power of intercession is another characteristic of the Devotion to the Precious Blood. It is the special office of our Savior's Blood to plead. Its very existence is the mightiest of prayers. It was the power by which God redeemed man. It is the power by which man prevails with God. It was the oblation, the mere foresight of which made God overflow the world with mercies. It is the oblation, the real repetition of which, upon the altar, is the continuance of the world's right to the Maker's forbearance. In this respect, the Devotion to the Precious Blood has a more lively and intimate reality than other devotions. " Many revelations from the other world testify to the peculiar devotion of the dead to the Precious Blood Souls in Purgatory have been allowed to appear, and to tell how, in their patient land of woe, it is blood, and only blood, the Blood of the Adorable Mass, which can quench the flames. Prayers for the conversion of sinners naturally seek their efficacy in the oblation of the Precious Blood. The Precious Blood shed itself for their conversion. Conversion is its principal occupation on earth. Prayer for the exaltation of the Church spontaneously flies to the Precious Blood ; for the Church is the peculiar creation of that Blood. If we pray for the intentions of the Sovereign Pontiff, it is the spirit-guided will of the Church we are assisting to its accomplishment. In all these things we are exercising devotion to the Church, in which devotion the Precious Blood only awaits our invi- tation in order to join us with impatient love. " There is yet another characteristic, which the history of this Devotion suggests to us, — its pecu- liar alliance with the Immaculate Conception. The Precious blood is the very instrument which re- deemed the world. The Immaculate Conception was the first, as it is the grandest, victory of re- demption. The Immaculate Conception was for 6 the sake of the rrecioiw Blood. It was for tht assuring of its purity and the protecting of its honor. The Precious Blood raised up the moun- tains of the Immaculate Conception by the subter- raneous heavings of its fiery love, and then flowed down from the summits as a sweet fountain for the gladdening of the nations. The Immaculate Con- ception is therefore actually part of the devotion to the Precious Blood. It is creation's richest offer- ing, made by the Queen of creatures, who thus in the jubilee of her sinless dawn, crowned the Pre- cious Blood by being crowned herself with its choicest crown. " But let us look more minutely into the spirit of this devotion, as witnessed by the fruits it produces in the soul. First of all it breeds in us an inex- hausted, loving wonder of the common things of faith. People are attracted by miracles and by strange heroisms of inimitable sanctity. We ought to be attracted by them. But to the thoughtful and to the loving, the common things of the faith are a hundred times more attractive. Now, the Precious Blood is the commonest of all super- natural things, the most accessible the most uni- versal. It enters into all the commonest things of religion with an unfastidious ubiquity, and the devotion to it partakes of the universality which belongs to itself. . . . What can give us more confidence in God than the study of the Precious Blood ? Who can doubt Jesus when He bleeds ? Whether we look at the grandeurs of the Precious Blood, its liberalities or its tendernesses, the result of our contemplations is a steadfast, childlike con- fidence in God. Out of this comes generosity with God, that other of our great wants. Another gift of this devotion is a vehement and intelligent »f hatred of siii. If we hated sin as we ouj^ht to liato it, purely, keenly, manfully, we 8houid sorrow for our sins more abidingly. The love of souls is another grace which comes from the spirit of this devotion. Of all things that can be named the love of souls is perhaps the most distinctively catholic. Of all single expressions of the Sacred Heart it is the broadest. It unites, as nothing else dose, cha- rity to God and man. It will increase in ns, in proportion as we grow in devotion to 'the Precious Blood. " The effect of this devotion upon our devotion to our Blessed Lady may be well named as one of its graces. It makes Mary magnify Jesus and Jesus magnify Mary. It must also obviously impart to us a special love of the Sacred Humanity. It ad- mits us into the most secret recesses of our Lord's Human Life. WTio can doubt but that the devotion to the Precious Blood is also a devotion to the Eternal rather? Think of the immensity of the Father's love for that redeeming Blood! Only its value could enrich the glory of the Creator, which the creature's sin had striven to impoverish. Our devotion to the Blood of His Son is only an .imi- tation of the Father's complacency therein. " Such is the Devotion to the Precious Blood. It is a glory and ornament to the Church. It is the life of the living, and the thirst of the Holy Dead. It is the song of Angels. It was the light of all Mary's darkness, and the jubilee of all her woes. It was the device of the Holy Ghost and the de- votion of His love. It was the choice and the com- placency of the Eternal Father. What more can we say ? Sweet worship of the Blood of God ! em- bracing all theology in itself. Dear Fountain, that rises in the heart of God's human Mother and 8 flows down over the glorified souls of men into the Bosom of the Eternal Father, while those countless souls, like the pebbles of the stream, make ever- lasting music as it flows ! All glory and all worship be to that mysterious River of the City of God, whose Spirit-fashioned streams are carrying us with such breathless swiftness to our home, — our home with the mortal Mother and the unbeginning Father of the Eternal Son ! " Reasons for a special Devotion to the Precious Blood in out own day. ■t The following lines, taken from the writings of a learned religious author, may serve to impress us with the peculiar utility and fitness of this devotion, as regards the special needs of our time : ....** The Blood of Jesus excites our con- fidence in the highest degree We tremble at the sight of our sins, but let us heed the words of the great Apostle : * Christ died for us Being now justified by His Blood we shall be saved from wrath through Him." (Rom. v.) Since It was shed to obtain the remission of sin, let us apply It to our souls and no longer fear. This Blood is ours. It is our treasure. With this precious gold, writes St. Ambrose, we can purchase every grace. How could our heavenly Father refuse aught that is asked in the name of his Son's Precious Blood ? How powerful is the prayer which the Church so earnestly urges upon us : * Help Thy servants, O Lord, whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Pre- cious Blood.' *• When St. Catherine of Sienna, that passionate fj tl d •>. ) the tless ever- :ship God, g us —our ining he igs of 3SSUS otion, r con- at the of the • • saved nee It apply lood is s gold, grace, tit that Hood? rch so mts, O ly Pre- aonate lover of this admirable devotion wished to work any of those numberless wonders with which her life is replete, she earnestly invoked the Blood of Jesus ; then full of confidence she would exclaim : ' I will," and nothing resisted this word : she healed the body ; she converted souls But it is especially at the hour of death, that we will ap- preciate the priceless advantages of this devotion, when, filled with awe at that dread moment, we can realize that the Blood of Jesus was shed for the very purpose of expiating sin and opening the gates of heaven. What an ineffable hope of par- don will we not then entertain, if, during our life, we have frequently paid our homage of praise and adoration to this price of our Redemption. Then, indeed, can we exclaim : ' Blesssd are they that wash their robes in the Blood of the Lamb . - . and may enter in by the gates into the city." (Rev. xxii.) . . . . " The Precious Blood has doubtless always been honored in the Church by devotion to the Passion and Holy Eucharist, but It requires. It exacts a particular homage in our days, since hell, whose hatred for It is extreme, has caused It to be particularly trampled upon and despised. . . . . Careless and indifferent Christians, though well aware that it was sin which caused Its most painful effusions, incessantly commit the self-same sins. Jesus complains of this, by the mouth of the Prophet : * Of what avail is My Blood ? * and asks for some return for the word's ingratitude towards the Price of our salvation. •* The Church " which Jesus has purchased to Himself by His Blood,' has heard the voice of her divine Spouse. She who is ever inspired by the IJoly Spirit, has n^aijifested in our days, her wish 10 that a epeoial w(M^hip should be offevod to the Price of our salvation. .... She has erected in a church at Rome, a Confraternity devoted to honoring the Precious Blood, and has permitted everywhere similar asso- ciations to be established. The exercises of the Month of the Precious Blood have been approved of and numerous indulgen^os granted in favor of prayers and practices performed in honor of the Blood of Jesus Christ. " At St. Hyacinthe, P. Q., a Confraternity of the Precious Blood has been established since 1868 ; It is affiliated to that of Rome and numbers nearly sixty thousand members. A Community of Con- templative Nuns, devoted to the Perpetual Adora- tion of the Precious Blood and to a life of constant Reparation for the insults and outrages offered to It, was founded at the same place in 1861, and is in a flourishing condition. It has prospered in a truljr marvellous manner, considering its purely spiritual aim and works, a House having already been established both in Montreal and Toronto." In order to favor the devotion and earnest de- sires of its many friends, the following pages have been prepared, that by joining in the self -same prayers and devotions of the Community, a closer tie may bind them, a more pleading powerful voice may da":y ascend towards the throne of God, to supplicate pardon for His guilty creatures. -sV CDNFRATERNITY of the PRECIOUS BLDDD, Affiliation to the Confraternity of the Precious Blood is assuredly the most powerful means of practising in a fitting manner, devotion towards the Price of our salvation. In those places where it is established, this devotion is entertained and re- newed by the instructions which are given at the reunions, by the prayers said in common, by th^ mutual encouragement and example of its mem- bers, but even where no public exercises are held, its members nevertheless derive great advantages, since the very act of affiliation to the Confraternity is an express proof of the worship which they would fain pay the Precious Blood, one well cal- culated to draw down upon them many blessings, since they can thereby lay claim to numberless indulgences, and share in all the merits and good works of all religious bodies and of all the regular Orders of both sexes. (Rescript of the 30th Sept. 1852.) In order to become a member of the Confrater- nity, it is sufficient that one's baptismal and family names be inscribed in the register of the Associa- tion ; it would also be well to state the name of the parish to which one belongs. Applications for ad- mission may be addressed to the Director of the Confraternity at St. Hyacinthe. The latter has the necessary faculties for enabling pastors, and others of the Rev. Clergy, to receive members into the Association, by inscribing, for the time being, the names of now members in a register from which, 12 later, they will be copied into that of the Confra- ternity proper. These Aggregators enjoy the per- sonal favor of a " privileged altar" once a week. No special obligation is imposed upon the mem- bers of the Confraternity, but, in order to be ani- mated by its spirit they should, from time to time, give themselves to the meditation of the Passion of Jesus Christ and other practices in honor of the Precious Blood. Among the numerous indulgences granted to the members of the Confraternity, are : A Pj^bnaby iNDULaBNOB. — On the date of admiBsion, under the usual conditions : Confession, Communion, and prayers for the intention of the Holy Father. A PiiBNABY Indulgence.— Once a month, on any day at one's choice : Confession, Communion and a visit to a church. A Plbnary iNDUiiGENCE. — Daily, if one meditates for one hour every day [or prays vocally J, in honor of the Passion and the borrows of the Blessed Virgin, under the usual con- ditions. A Plenary Indulobncb. — At the hour of death if, after having received the last Sacraments, with contrite heart, one invokes aloud, or at least in one's heart, the Holy Name of Jesus. A Plenary Indulgbnob. — On the following feasts : The feast of the Precious Blood on the Ist Sunday of July, the feasts of Christmas, the Epi|)hany, Easter, the Immaculate Conception, the Purification and Assumption, the Holy Ro- sary, Saints Peter and Paul and our Lady of Succor, May 24. Sbtbn Years and Seven Quarantines. — For every visit to any church, a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, to a Cru- cifix, or a statue of Mary ; for assisting at Mass or at any service of the Confraternity of the Precious Blood. Condi- tions : Contrition, Tisit to a church, prayers for the intentions of our Holy Father. N. B. — All these indulgences are applicable to the souls in Purgatory. « a ei All Glory to the Blood of Jesus ! i Offerings of the Precious Blood i AND Holy Way of the Cross, As made Daily by the Entire Community of the PRECIOUS BLOOD, at three o'clock P, M,y precisely, TO (Commemorate our ford's Sacred ^ssion # §eathf AND FOR THE Conversion of Sinners, ^^ And I shall see the Blood, and shall pass (Tver you ; and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you,^^ — Ex. xii. 13. ^htjce IDMei^ings of the ifi^riecioue Blood. FIRST OFFERING. Eternal Father! in union with the mo8t holy and Immaculate Virgin, in her name, and together with all the hlessed in heaven and the elect upon earth, I offer Thee the Precious Blood of Jeeus 14 i J Christ, in thanksgiving for the gilts and privileges conferred on Thy most obedient daughter, espe- cially in her Immaculate Conception. I offer Thee also this most Precious Blood for the conversion of all sinners, for the propagation and exaltation of our holy faith, the preservation and prosperity of the Sovereign Pontiff of Rome, and according to his intention. Glory be to the Father, etc. SECOND OFFERING. Eternal and Incarnate Word ! I offer thee Thy most Precious Blood in union with the most holy and Immaculate Mary, in her name, and together with all the blessed in heaven and the elect upon earth, in thanksgiving for the gifts and privileges conferred on Thy most loving Mother, especially in her Immaculate Conception. I also offer Thee Thy most Precious Blood for the conversion of ail sinners, for the propagation and exaltation of our holy Faith, for the preservation and prosperity of the Sovereign Pontiff of Rome, and according to his intentions. Glory be to the Father, etc. i .THIRD OFFERING. Holy and Eternal Spirit! I offer Thee the most Precious Blood of Jesus-Christ, in union with the most holy and Immaculate Virgin, in her name, and together with all the blessed in heaven and the elect upon earth, in thanksgiving for the gifts and privileges conferred on Thy most faithful Spouse, especially in her Immaculate Conception. I also X. 15 ofEer Thee this most Precious Blood for the Gon- version of all sinners, for the propagation and exaltation of our holy faith the preservation and prosperity of the Sovereign Pontiff of Rome, and according to his intentions. Glory be to the Father, etc. A PiiffNAKY Indulgenob once a month if said daily, under the usual conditions. 300 days, each time. (Pius IX, June 18, 185i.) Stations or the ®koss. FIRST STATION. JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world. The sentence of death pronounced against Thee, Jesus, is a decree full of iniquity both on the part of the Jews who demand it, of Pilate who pronounces it, as well as on that of all mankind whose sins are the sole caiise thereof. The Just One suffers instead of the guilty, hell has lost its rights, the mystery of our justification is accom- plished ! Oh ! that by a sincere and constant repentance, I might efficaciously participate therein. We beseech Thee, therefore, help Thy servants whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy . Precious Blood. Holy Mother ! deign to imprint deep in my heart the Wounds of my crucified Jesus. 16 SECOND STATION. JESU8 IS MADE TO BEAR HIS CROSS. We adore Thee, etc. O JesuB ! Thou art worn out with grief and pain, yet the cruelty of Thy murderers takes a wicked pleasure in laying upon Thee the heavy burden of the Cross. divine Redeemer ! Thou offerest this new suffering to Thy Eternal Father, to atone more fully for our sins. My God! when will I lay my hand in earnest to works of true penance ? We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. THIRD STATION. iil JESUS FALLS THE FIRST TIME UNDER HIS GROSS. We adore Thee, etc My Saviour, Thou fallest under the weight of the Cross, or rather under the burden of my innumer- able sins. O divine Jesus ! how eloquently does the weaknesa of Thy sacred humanity reveal the greatness of the pain which crushed it, and the excess of Thy penance ! May Thy powerful grace aid me to walk eagerly in Thy bloody footsteps! We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. i is» rf/ '■■^.^._ 17 FOURTH STATION. uln, zked 'n of this more my i Be. f the mer- does Ithe 1 the ;race 8! vm JESUS MEETS HiS AFIFLICTEB MOTHER. We adore Thee, etc. Jesus and Mary meet Mary beholds the Face of her adored and only Son covered with spittle and blood Jesus looks upon the face of a tender and beloved Mother, bathed in tears more bitter than the very bitternes^ of death. " Mother I leave thee, and willinglj^ go to my death to save ungrateful man." " Go, my Son, !eave Thy Mother — and by Thy death may all be saved. " O ineffable martyrdom of maternal love and filial piety, whose depths Eternity alone can fathom ! what earthly sacrifice can hereafter seem too great as an expiation for my sins ! We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. FIFTH STATION. THE CYRENEAN HELPS JESU8 TO CARRY HIS SRdSS. We adore Thee, etc. ' If Simon the Cyrenean is forced to help Jesus carry His Cross, it is because the malice of the Jews fears lest He die before reaching the summit of Golgotha, and they be thus deprived of the frightful pleasure of seeing Him delivered up to the infamous horrors of the Cross. O good Cyrenean, I long to share your burden and sympathize with His pains ! I wish above all to cling to him, to suffer with Him, through Him and for Him. Dear Jesus I by this union it is not we who carry Thy 18 ! Cross, but Thou who bearestours, and who by Thy grace dost enable us to change it into an instrument of life. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. SIXTH STATION. VERONICA WIPES THE FADE OF JESUS. We adore Thee, etc. l*^ Insults and reproaches are ever increasing. . . . At His every step, the Face of Jesus, that Face which Angels adore, receives new marks of indi- , gnity. At this sight Veronica is so carried away with indignation that notwithstanding the soldiers, notwithstanding the threatening cries of the cla- moring multitude, she would fain repair this ou- trage as far as in her lies, by a public act of generous piety. O my God! how long will the bonds of human respect hold captive my loyal homage ! No, no, dearest Master ! away with human weakness — no more cowardly timidity when there is question of Thy service and glory ! We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. SEVENTH STATION. JESUS FALLS THE SEGOSID TIME. We adore Thee, etc. The second fall of our Redeemer under the weight of the Cross should remind us of our falls and relapses into sin. Who can count them? •V. i-'j'-^' 19 ri»y ent Arise, O my soul, hasten to return to Gocl, and tremble lest thou fall back into thy former ways. He who so often turns aside from the safe path will surely perish. Let us then keep guard over all our thoughts, all our words, and all our ways. Watchfulness is our sole security. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. ^'ace indi- way iers, I cla- 5 ou- ;t of the loyal iman there i ^ [• the falls lem 7 EIGHTH STATION. JESUS SPEAKS TO THE DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM. We adore Thee, etc. What a consolation for the daughters of Israel to hear once more the voice of their divine Saviour : " Weep not over Me ! " O Jesus ! to soothe our ills Thou forgettest Thine own. Sweet Mystery ! meant to awaken our trust notwithstanding our faHs. Yet, that foolish presumption may not lead us beyond the limits of a rightful confidence, let us listen to these warning words : " If in the green wood they do these things, what shall be done in the dry ? " O my God ! may blended confidence and fear be henceforward the salutary potion of my soul! We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. , NINTH STATION. JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME. We adore Thee, etc. As Jesus nears the summit of Calvary, He falls the third time. Alas ! what a stricking picture of 20 those who after spending many years In the faithful discharge of their duties and even in tlie ardent pursuit of perfection, fall on the eve of receiving their crown. What a subject for sc^rious and pro- found reflexion! What a powerful incentive to generous perseverance ! Lord, grant that this grace be mine! I ask it of Thee by all Thy painful .struggles up the blood-stained way to Calvary. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. ' \ T TENTH STATION. JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS GARMENTS. Si' We adore Thee, etc. The Son of the Vigin Mary is stripped of His garments. . . . . " My God," had He said to His Father by the mouth of the Prophet. " Thou alone 'lowest the mystery of My shame and con- fusion." Yet, these are necessary, to give back to the Supreme Majesty that glory of which man's pride had wished to rob It : these are necessary , in order to reinstate man himself in this gl*^' v ^^ S' U he had lost through sin. Pride stripped us of our garb of innocence and with it, of our dignity and glory ; tr ae gl ry will only be restored to us through prr.f Dund humiliations and the contempt of self. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. 4 pro- to race nful I T * 21 ELEVEVTH STATION. JESUS is NAILED TO THE CROSS. We adore Thee, etc. () .rpsus ! my divine Redeemer ! the hour of Thy cinicliixion has come at last Adorable \"ictim, I see Thy Feet and Thy Hands nailed to the wood of Thy sacrifice How the cruelty of the deicides triumphs, how it gluts over the tortures of the sufferer ! Yet the divme Lamb utters not a moan — not one sigh ! His unalterable gentleness confounds the barbarity of His enemies. He prays for them — He pleads for their forgive- ness — He deems Himself happy in suffering for their salvation. Pains . . Nails . . Thorns . . for these He longs, for these He thirsts. O Jesus ! give me to comprehend this thirst and share it with Thee. ' We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. TWELFTH STATION. JESUS DIES ON THE GROSS, We adore Thee, etc. My Jesus ! My Savior and dearest Master ! Thou diest on tiie Cross. how beautiful is Thy death. Thou dipst of love ! . . . . All Thy thoughts, all Thy acts, even to Thy last sigh, are thoughts of love, words of love, acts of love. St. John, Thy beloved disciple, tells us that God is love. O Jesus ! Thou art our Grod, for Thou art all lore ! At Thy last sigh, all creatures publish Thy sovereign power. The earth trembles. . . . The heavens are darkened. my God ! It is by the practice of Christian perfection, that I, Thy disciple, must prove that Thou art the God and the King of my heart. Jesus help me, for without Thee I can do nothing ! We beseech Thee, etc. - : ^ Holy Mother ! deign, etc. '■-'■- THIRTEENTH STATION. JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS. * We adore Thee, etc. O blessed Mother ! who can fathom the mystery of desolation into which thy tender and loving heart is plunged ! It is not by one sword only that thou art transpierced. I see as many buried in thy soul as there were instruments in the Passion of thy Son ; and yet, I behold thee in the attitude of most perfect resignation, because thou, too, wishest, above all things, to accomplish the Will of thy God, despite the bitterness of the draught. Thou knowest that at the bottom of the cup lies hidden the world's salvation, and for our sake thou wouldst drain it to the dregs sorrowing heart of Mary ! I have; been the cause of thy dolors, thou wilt be henceforth the object of my tenderest and most constant devotion. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother ! deign, etc. i % 23 ^ .. FOURTEENTH STATION. JESUS IS LAID IN THE SEPULCHRE. We adore Thee, etc The hatred of the tleicides is satisfied, Jesus is in tlie sepulchre. His Voice which condemned vice and launched anathemas against hardened hearts, need no longer be feared. Death has si- lenced His tongue for ever! Thus boasted the Jews, thus still boast the impious and the deicides of our own day. For them, Jesus is no more. He is a lifeless God Ye are mistaken, ye wilfully blind. Jesus Christ lives and reigns for- ever and ever ! His death is regeneration. . . . His death is life Eternal life! Would we draw of this immortal life in His adorable Blood ? . . . . Let us not cease to meditate, to contemplate and bless His Passion and His Death. We beseech Thee, etc. Holy Mother, deign, etc. DEPROFUNDIS. From the depth I have cried to Thee, O Lord, Lord hear my voice. Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication. If Thou, O Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, Lord who shall abide it ? For with Thee there is merciful forgiveness, and by reason of Thy Law I have waited for Thee, O Lord. 24 My soul hath relied on His word ; my soul hath hoped in the Lord. From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord. Because with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him plenteous redemption. And He shall redeem Israel from all his ini- quities. Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen. I * ^ h et h i$ ^ ^ (§even §fferings of the Srecious §lood. Recited every evening for the intentions of persons recommended to the prayers of the Community. I. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son, my Saviour and my God, for my dear mother, the holy Church, that she may enlarge her borders and be magnified in all the nations of the earth, for the safety and well-being of her visible head, the Sovereign Roman Pontiff, for the cardinals, bishops and pastors of souls, and for all the ministers of Thy sanctuary. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving be to Jesus, who with His Blood hath saved us. II. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son my Saviour and my God, for peace and union among all Catholic kings and princes, for the humiliation of the enemies of our holy faith and for the welfare of all Christian people. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc. III. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son my Saviour and my God, for the repentance of unbelievers, for the uprooting of heresy, and for the conversion of sinners. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc, 26 IV. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son, my Saviour and my God, for all my kindred, friends, and enemies ; for the poor, the sick, and wretched, and for all for whom Thou, my God, knowest that I ought to pray, or wouldst have me pray. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc. V. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son, my Saviour and my God, for all who, this day are passing to the other life ; that Thou wouldst save them from the pains of hell, and admit them quickly to the possession of Thy glory. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc. VI. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son, my Saviour and my God, for all those who love this great treasure, for those who join with me in adoring It, and honoring It, and who strive to spread devotion to It. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc. VII. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the merit of the Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy well-beloved Son, my Saviour and my God, for all my wants, spiritual and temporal, in aid of the holy souls in purgatory, and chiefly for those who most loved tUi3 Bloody the price of oi^r redenjption, and who i 27 were most devout to the sorrows and pains of most holy Mary, our dear Mother. Glory be to the Father, etc. Blessing and thanksgiving, etc. 300 Days Indulobncb — Plen. Indulg. once a month, un- der the usual conditions, if recited daily. •— Pius vll, Sept. 1817. ■ 4<» « ChapelEt of the frecious BlDDd. Indulobncb. — 7 years and 7 quarantines, once a day. Plbn. Indul. — Once a month, if recited daily. Pius VII, Oct. 1815. V. Deus, in adjuto rium meum intende. R. Domine, ad ad- juvandum me festina. V Gloria Patri, etc. R. Sicut erat, etc. V. Incline unto my aid. OGod! R. O Lord! make haste to help me. V. Glory be to the Father, etc. R. As it was in the beginning, etc. FIRST MYSTERY. Our most loving Saviour shed His Precious Blood for us, for the first time on the eighth day after His birth, when, to fulfil the law of Moses, He was circumcised. While, then, we think on all that Jesus did to satisfy God's justice for our 28 wanderings, let us excite ourselves to true sorrow for them, and promise, with the help of His powerful grace, to be henceforth truly chaste in body and in soul. Our Father, Jive times. Glory be to the Father, once. 01 ci ti 01 u V. Te ergo qusesumus f amulis tuis subveni quos Pretiosa Sanguine rede- misti. V. We beseech Thee, therefore, help Thy ser- vants whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Pre- cious Blood. 11 SECOND MYSTERY. Jesus in the Garden of Olives, shed His Blood for us in such streams that it bathed the earth around. This He did at the vision He then had of the ingratitude with which men would meet His love. Oh ! let us then repent sincerely for the past, considering how poorly we have met the countless benefits of our Lord, and resolve henceforth to make good use of His graces and holy inspirations. Our Father, Jive times. Glory be to the Father, etc. We beseech Thee, etc. THIRD MYSTFRY. Jesus, in His cruel scourging, shed His Blood when, from His lacerated skin and wounded flesh, on every side, that Precious Blood flowed in streams, while our gentle Lord kept offering It to His eternal Father in payment of our impatience and t w ^>v. 29 our wantonness. Mow is it, then, that we do not curb oiu' anger and self-love ( Oh ! let us hencet'orth try to be more patient in our trials, to despise ourselves, and to bear in peace the injuries men do us. Our Father, Jive times. Glory be to the Father, etc. We beseech Thee, etc. FOURTH MYSTERY. The sacred Head of Jesus poured forth Blood when it was crowned with thorns, all for our pride and evil thoughts. And shall we continue to nourish haughtiness and to foster foul imaginations and the evil thoughts of our minds 7 Henceforth let there be ever before our eyes our utter nothing ness, our misery, and our weakness, and with generous hearts let us resist the evil suggestions of the devil. Our Father, five times. Glory be to the Father, etc. We beseech Thee, etc. FIFTH MYSTERY. Oh! what streams of Blood our loving Jesus, laden with the heavy wood of the Cross, on the mournful way to Calvary, poured forth from His veins ! Then were the very streets and ways of Jerusalem through which He passed, bathed with His Precious Blood. And all this was done in satisfaction for the scandals and bad examples by which His own creatures had led others astray on the way to ruin. Ah ! who can tell whether we, too, are not of this unhappy number? Who knows how many our bad example has thrust down 30 f U) hffll ' And have we, flr)ne nothin.f? to remedy thin evil ' AImh ! If-t. uh heneefr)rth endeavor to do all we eari t/ nave houIh l*y word ard example, rnakinj:,' oiirselve.s to all a pattern of a good and holy life. <)\iT Vhth(-r. five ^Imen. Olory be to tlie Father, etc. We be.seech Thee, etc. *. SIXTH MYSTERY. Morf; and yet more Blood flowed from the Itedffarier of mankind, in His most barbarous erucifixion, when His veins and arteries were rent and broken, and the saving balm of life eternal, whieh blotted out all the crimes and enormities of a whoh; world, flowed in ton-ents from out His hands and feet. What man is he who still will choose to continue in his sin, renewing thus the cruel crucifixion of the Son of God? Bitterly, bitt(;rlv will we weep then for our bad deeds, and at th(! f(;et of God's minister detest them; now will we mend our evil ways and henceforth begin a truly Ghristian life, with the thought ever in our hearts r)f all the Blood which our eternal salvation cost the; Saviour of men. Our Father, ^ve iimes, etc. (;iory be to the Father, etc. W(; beseech Thee, etc, SEVENTH MY'STERY. Last of all, Jesus shed His Blood when He was dead, when the lance opened His sacred side and cleft His loving Heart; and with the Blood gushed forth water, to show us how His Blood was all pour(;d out, even to the last drop, for our salvation. 31 ( ) infinite goodness of our Redeemer ! wlio wiil not love Thee ? What heart wiil not melt away for very love of Thee wh6 hast done all this for our rf'demption? Our tongues want words to praise Thee : wherefore, wc invite all the creatures upon earth, all '^e angels and all the saints in paradise, and, most of all, our dearest Mother, Mary, to bless, to praise, an . to hymn Thy most Precious Blood ! Yes, glory to the Blood of Jesus, now and forever throughout all ages ! Amen. Our Father. Jive times. , Glory be to the Father, etc. We beseech Thee, etc. -'■-■- <* PRAYER. i Most Precious Blood of life eternal, price and ransom of the world, whose saving streams nourish and cleanse our souls, ever pleading man's cause before the throne of heavenly mercy ! from the depths of my soul I adore Thee : fain would I, were I able, make Thee some compensation for the outrages and wrongs Thou dost ever suffer from men. Thy creatures, and, most of all, from those who, in their rashness, cease not to blaspheme Thee. Who will not bless this Blood of infinite value ? Who not burn for love of Jesus, who shed It all for us '? What were I but for this Blood which hath redeemed me *? Lost, assuredly lost. boundless love, which gave to us this saving balm beyond all price, welling from the fount of immeasurable love ! give to all hearts, to all ton- gues, power to praise, hymn and thank Thee now and for ever, and throughout; all eternity ! Amen •^2 V. Thou hast redeemed ii», O liOrd ! in Thy Blood. R. And made us a kingdom to our God. Let us pray. Ahnighty and everlasting God, who hast appoin- ted Thine only-begotten Son the Saviour of the world, and hast willed to be appeased with His Blood : grant us, we beseech Thee, so to venerate this price of our salvation, and by its might so to be defended upon earth from the evils of this pre- sent life, that in heaven we may rejoice in Its ever- lasting fruit. Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen. Most merciful Jesus, lover of souls ! 1 1 pray Thee, by the agony of Thy most Sacred Heart, and by the sorrows of Thy Immaculate Mother, wash in Thy Blood the sinners of the whole world who are now in their agony, and who are to die this day. Amen. Heart of Jesus, once in agony, pity the dying. 100 days indul.— Pius IX., Feb. 1850. '• May Thy Blood, shed for us, O Lord Jesus Christ, obtain for me the remission of all my sins, my negligences, my ignorance ; may It strengthen, increase and preserve within me, Faith, Hope, Charity, Grace, and every virtue, may it bring me to everlasting hfe ; may It deliver the souls of my parents and of all those for whom I am bound to pray" —St, Catrahinjs of Siknna, 88 Lord Jesus Christ who didst deign to shed so freely for us, Thy most holy and Precious Blood, grant us to feel its admirable virtue and salutary aid by Its continual influence in our souls. Thou who livest and reignest,;world without end. Amen. t 'h u fffering6 of the ^reciou^ ||lood. By Sr. M. Maodalen de Pazzi. most Holy Word ! I offer Thee Thy priests, and in their behalf I offer Thee whatever is most dear to Thee in heaven and on earth, in union with all Thy most Precious Blood, and I pray Thee to enable them to have a right conception of their high dignity, and to hold in extreme abhorence whatever can dishonor that dignity or contaminate their lives. O Divine Word ! I offer Thee all poor sinners, and in their behalf I offer Thee the Precious Blood and Water which issued from Thy sacred side when pierced by the lance. I pray Thee to wash the stains from their souls in this Blood and Water, and to grant, that, through a timely repen- tance, they may, by returning love for love, make amends for the sins they have committed against Thee. O Eternal Word ! I offer Thee all the faithful sons of Holy Church, Thy Spouse, the members of that body of which Thou art the Heart and I offer Thee in their behalf the most Precious Blood which Thou did'st shed in Thy scourging ; I pray Thee to cause Ihem to remember the solemn re- 84 nouncement of the world, the flesh and the devil, which they made in the bxptism, so that they may lead such lives as will not bring discredit on the faith which they profess. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the intense pains which Thy only-begotten Son did suffer, during the tnree hours that He was nailed to the Cross for love of us ; j)articularly when, in the intensity of His grief and abandonment. He exclaimed : " My God! My God! why hast Thou forsaken Me'?" I offer them to Thee in behalf of all those who are iii their agony, together with the Blood that flowed from His five Wounds ; that they, by the power of this Blood, may be fortified and defended against all temptations, and may reach the port of eternal bliss. O most merciful Word ! I ofier to Thee all the holy souls in Purgatory, and in their behalf I offer Thee Thy most Precious Blood. I beseech Thee to grant that this sacred fount of comfort may incessantly flow to mitigate their pains, and to has- ten their release, that so they may quickly come to be united to Thee in that glory for which they are destined. Amen. M lit cu ci( m ot I J< B v< The Blood in the Hysteries of the llosarv. The Annunciation. We offer Thee, Lord Jesus, this first decade in honor of Thy merciful Incarnation ; through this mystery and the intercession of thy most holy a 35 Mother, we ask of Thee the grace of a deep humi- lity. Our Father, once. Hail Mary, ten times. Gloiy be to the Father, etc. PR A YER. O Jesus ! Thou who didst draw from the Imma- culate bosom of Mary the first drops of the Pre- cious Blood wherewith the world has been redee- med, I thank Thee for this gift far surpassing every other gift. The Visitation. i We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee love of our neighbor. O Jesus ! Thou who didst apply Thy Precursor John the Baptist, the merits of Tny redeeming Blood, deign to deliver our captive souls from sla- very of sin and hell. The Birth of Our Lord. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the spirit of poverty. O Child Jesus, adorable Infant! scarcely art Thou born, when with loving impatience Thou awaitest the hour of Thy Circumcision, to shed for us the first drops of Thy Precious Blood. Blessed a thousand times be Thou for this wondrous token of Thy love. -r^ry4» ?J MM^ 4j iwai jiH 36 Thk Presentation of the Child in the Temple. We offer Thee, etc We ask of Thee purity of soul and body. I adore Thee. Jesus, offering to Thy Father Thine own most precious Blood, in place of the figurative victims sacrificed in the Temple. Blood of the spotless Lamb, purify our souls ! The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the gift to find Thee by grace and never to be separated from Thee by sin. " To do Thy Father's will "—such, Jesus, is Thy only desire, as Thou sittest in the midst of the Doctors at Jerusalem ; to give out the last drop of Thine adorable Blood for the accomplishment of this adored will— such is the burning thirst of Thy Heart! The Agony in the Garden. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee contrition for our sins. O Jesus, best beloved ! I adore Thy Precious Blood gushing forth from every part of Thy Sacred Body, from the very violence of Thy love. Sacred bath of the Blood of Jesus, strengthen my soul in its last agony. The Flagellation. We offer Thee, etc. We ask sf Thee the spirit of penance and mor- tification. I € 1 37 Lther the ►lood Jesus, my Redeemer! I adore Thy Precious Blood streaming forth under the scourges of Thy executioners. O sacred fount! cleanse Thou my heart from all its iniquities. The Crowning with Thorns. . We offer Thee, etc. We ask to be delivered from pride and self-love. Lord Jesus ! with deepest adoration and respect fain would I dry the Precious Blood trickling from Thy mangled brow. Thou art my Master and my King ; let me ne'er glory save in Thee alone. The Carrying of the Cross. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the gift of patience. Lord Jesus ! with loving adoration will I venerate the sacred foot-prints marked by Thy Precious Blood, which trace the royal road to Calvary. Faithfully will I follow them, since they lead to eternal glory. The Crucifixion. We offer Thee, etc. We ask death of self and gentleness towards our enemies. O dearest Lord ! suffer me to apply to Thy trans- pierced Feet my guilty lips, and lay thereon a reverential kiss of love, that with Mary Magdelen I may receive upon my wretched head, the infinite price of my redemption. Blood of my Crucified Jesus, purify my soul, inflame it with Thy love ! ^MkiuiMMtrmnnm 38 The Resurrection. We offer Thee, etc. We ask a true conversion and perseverance. My Lord and my God! I adore Thy Precious Blood, that Pledge of our redemption, shedding forth Its incomparable brilliancy through Thy glorified Wounds. Blood of Jesus, life of our souls, drive far from me all langour, all infidelity in Thy divine service. n f *f , The Ascension. ^ We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee a longing desire for our true home — ^heaven. Jesus ! triumphing in Thy Ascension, I adore Thy Precious Blood, our powerful advocate with Thy Eternal Father. Oh ! may Its victorious song ever drown the horrible clamors of our iniquities. The Descent of the Holy Ghost. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our souls. Jesus ! Iiadore Thy Precious Blood, peacefully streaming together with the Gifts of Thy Holy Spirit, through the veins of Thy mystical Body, the Holy Church, blood of Jesus, renew the strength of this Thy cherished Spouse, in the midst of her present trials. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the grace of a happy death. 1 adore Thee, O my Jesus, as thou leadest into 39 the heavenly fatherland, Mary the Ark of the new Covenant. How in very deed, could she long remain away from Thee ? . . . Is it not Thy Blood which pulsates in her Immaculate Heart 'i The Coronation of Mary. We offer Thee, etc. We ask of Thee the conversion of sinners, the perseverance of the just and the deliverance of the souls in Purgatory. O Jesus ! grant us to persevere unto the end, that one day we may be crowned with Mary, and bless throughout eternity the love which made Thee shed Thy Precious Blood for our salvation. §eads of the 33 §fferings OF THE Precious Blood of our Jesus Christ, Id Ho.ior of His 33 Years upon Earth. ■ \ ■ Form the intenUon ofgniniug the Indulgence for the suffering Souls in Hurgatory On the large bead say : Our Father, Hail Mary Glory be to the Father, and the verse : ' *' Through thy sword -jtiorced Heart, sweet Mother. We, the Blood of Christ, our Brother Offer at our Father's throne.'' * On each of the three beads say the " Offering : '' " Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the Precious Blood of Jesus, in satisfaction for my sins, and for the wants of the Holy Church," in honor of the three hours agony, adding to each, " and for all the in- tentions of Mary at the foot of the Cross ; " then one " Glory be to the Father, etc." with the verse as above. To each "Offering" of the first decade, add: " and in thanksgiving for all the graces Thou hast bestowed upon me." To each " Offering " of the second decade : " and for the conversion of sinners." To each " Offering " of the third decade : " and for all the intentions for which Jesus shed His Blood. On each of the intermediate beads say : " Glory be to the Father," etc., and the verse : " Through Thy sword-pierced Heart," etc. Other intentions may be added to the "Offering, at pleasure. Conclude with the yy \ S PRAYER. O afflicted Mother of our Redeemer ! who stand- ing at the foot of the Cross, didst so painfully share in all the sufferings of Thy Divine Son, deign to accept from Thy unworthy child this little tes- timony of love and gratitude, add what is wanting, remove what is defective, that these oblations of the Precious Blood of Thy Jesus being presented by Thy pure hands, may be graciously received at the throne of mercy, and our petitions mercifully % 41 granted through the merits of the Blood of the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost liveth aud reigneth one God Almighty, forevei\ Amen. ,Act of (§onsecration to the (precious §lood, « Blood of Jesus, inebriate us ! Jesus, beloved Saviour, present in the taber- nacle as the strength, the joy and food of souls, behold me eager to consecrate myself forever to Thy Precious Blood, and to pledge to Thee an in- violable fidelity and love. Moved to grief at the remembrance of Thy sufferings, the sight of Thy Cross, and the thought of Thy Blood which so many ungrateful souls outrage and despise, fain would T, by this consecration of my entire being, gladden Thy Heart and cause Thee to forget my own, as well as my brethren's offences. No longer will I live. O Jesus, save by Thy Blood and for Thy Blood ! May It ever be my treasure and the dearest object of my love. O merciful Eedeemer ! deign to look upon me as a perpetual adorer of Thy most Precious Blood, and accept my prayers, works, and sacrifices, as so many acts of reparation and love. Blood of Jesus ! united to all the hearts that love Thee. I beg Thee to receive the offering of my life, that it may be devoted wholly to 1 hy glory and love. O Heavenly Wine, that maketh virgins and martyrs ! flood Thou my soul, from which, as from a living chalice. Thy grace may well forth, both over those that love Thee, and especially on poor sinners who offend Thee, Teach me how to honor 42 Thee and have others honor Thee, O source of blessings and graces ! Grant me this grace, that I may win all cold and hardened hearts to Thee, and make them feel how far Thy consolations surpass those of earth. O Blood of my crucified Lord ! detatcli me from the world and the spirit of the world ! enkindle in me the love of suffering and sacrifice, that I may follow in the footsteps of St. Catherine of Sienna, who so loved Thee, and whom I this day choose as my special advocate with Thee. O most Precious Biood ! be Thou my strength in the trials and struggles of our exile, so that, in the hour of death I may bless Thee ior having been the consolation and sanctification of my life, before being in heaven the everlasting theme of my praise and love Amen. ,d of ^ii^mutim. BY THE OFFERING OF THE MERITS OF JESUS TO HIS FATHER, TO OBTAIN MERCY. As recited after the midnight oflfice. Eternal T?ather ! turn away Thine ej es from the hideous '.pectacle of our sins, and in lieu of this hateful sight, look rather upon the Face of Thy Beloved Son which we offer Thee ; the vc^'ce of His Blood pleads for mercy in our behalf. Consider, Eternal Father, the Agony of Jesus in the Garden of Olives, the sweat of Blood which welled forth from His Body and soaked the very earth. These do we offer Thee, to appease Thy justice and ?e of hat I 1, and rpass draw down Thy mercy upon us, and upon all sin- ners, the grace of conversion. We offer Thee, Eternal Father, the streams of Blood which gushed forth from the innumerable wounds of Jesus' sacred Body, when torn by the scourges at the pillar. Deign, () most merciful Father, to accept this adorable Body, as a repa- ration for the outrages which sinners commit in their body, neath the very eye of Thy most pure and holy Majesty. We offer Thee the sacred Head of Jesus, all mangled by tliv3 crown of thorns, in reparation for the wicked plans conceived in the guilty minds of countless sinners, and we ask for them the grace of repentance and of a serious application to thoughts of their salvation and eternity. We conjure Thee, O offended Father, to look upon Thy Beloved Son, laden with His Cross and watering with His Blood the path that leads to Cal- vary. We offer Thee this painful and ignominious journey, in reparation for the criminal conduct of wretched sinners, who ever run in the ways of ini- quity, and wallow in the mire and filth of sin Eternal Father ! consider the Wounds of the sacred Body of Thy Son Jesus, and deign to apply to us, the merits of the Blood, shed in the midst of such excessive pain. May Thine outraged mercy deign to accept the offering of these bloody Wounds as an expiation for the sins of mer, and a healing balm for all our spiritual maladies Eternal Father ! consider Thy beloved Son fast- tened to the Cross by enormous nails, satiated with outrages, blasphemed, His sacred side opened by the lance and giving out, drop by drop, His Precious Blood for our salvation. In contemplating Him thus, deign to remember Thy mercies and to receive this 44 infifnite reparation which we offer Tliee together with our unworthy practices of immolation and penance. Eternal Father ! look upon the adorable Face of Jesus, all bruised and covered with Blood. We offer It to Thee to appease Thy just anger awakened by the sight of the tace of all poor wretched sinners so hideously disfigured by their sins. Finally, O Eternal Father, cast Thine eyes on Thy dead Christ, the victim of our iniquities. Consider His Cross all bathed in His Precious Blood ; yield to Thy tender mercy at the sight of this prodigal effusion of His Blood ; be moved by the Blood which gushed forth from His Sacred Heart even alter His death, because of Its burning love, and grant us mercy, in view of the Reparation which lie offered Thee throughout His Passion and His death. Amen. I O Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, shed that Thou mightest show mercy to all men, behold ! we draw near to Thee ; flow Thou upon us in Thy lavish abundance ! Behold our heads, our hands, our will, our understanding, our memory, our affections, our works, our interior and exterior sense. Bathe them all for all are sin-stiined ; purify them all, for all are corrupt ; heal all, for all are sick. Do Thou so change us by Thine admirable virtue, that we may unite ourselves to Thee, O infinite purity ! Cleanse U8, adorn us, save us, crown us ! Amen. (This prayer, compo3ed for the Indians by the Missionaries of olden days, was found in the church of Michilima Kinac, the State of Michigan, the I9th of July 1832, and sent to Home the 8th of Feb. 1833. It bears these letters : A. M. D. G.,1724.) iitfering of the precious (§lood, FOR THE CONVERSION OF SINNERS. . , Occasionally used like the preceding act. O thrice holy God, who didst give Thine only Son to be the Redeemer of the world ; who didst will that this same Son should shed the last drop of His Pre- cious Blood for very love of man, and who beholdcst in our days this adorable Blood horribly profaned by sacriligious communions, blasphemies against Thy holy Name and the most abominable sins ; would that I could at this moment, offer Thee a just reparation for these crimes, and whilst making reparation to Thine outraged gloi y, contribute by my feeble prayers to arrest the arm of Thy just wrath. Unable to do so of myself, I have recourse to the voice and heart of the Mother of Sorrows, who herself gave this, divine Blood, who saw It flow in such abundance on Calvary's heights, and who now contemplates It trampled under foot by the sins of men. In union with this afflicted Mother, I offer Thee, then, ( ) my God, the effusion of this Precious Blood as It ran in the mystery of the Circumcision ; when it watered the Garden of Olives ; when it flooded the Pretorium and the streets of Jerusalem ; when It gushed forth in torrents on the Cross, and those last precious drops which tinged the Roman soldier's lance. In the name of this adorable Blood, grant to sinners the grace of salvation, to the just an increase of love, to all a large share in the merits which It has amassed for us. Pardon us, O Lord, in the name of 40 this divine Blood ! Meed Its supplicating voice . . . . Remember that It is the Blood of Thy beloved Son in whom thou art well pleased, and in the Name of whom, Thou hast promised to grant all our petitions. O Precious Blood of Jesus, cleanse and purify all sinners I Amen. Eternal Father ! I offer Thee the Precious Blood of Jesus in satisfaction for my sins and for the wants of holy Church, loo days indulgence. — Pius VII, Sept. 1817. (t)- (Qoasiderations for the (^east OF THE (§reciotts (§lood. (When Pius IX, returned to the Holy City^ from his exile at Gaeta, he issued a decree to the whole world, instituting a feast of the Precious Blood on the first Sunday of July, thus ttamping upon the fea t a character of thanksgiving, and making an historical monument of a vicissitude of the Holy See, a perpetual Te Deum for a deliverance of the Vicar of Christ). '^he §even §lood (§heddings. ** To w'le Heart of Jesus already enamored of suflfer- ing, seven days were enough for the tranquil joys of Bethlehem, joys over whose tranquility the shadow of Calvary was already cast. The stainless Mother had only one short octave of the Precious Blood for her own delight. She saw it in the almost transparent vase of the Infant Body. Through the veil of snowy skin she saw its purple streams. She knew It was that Blood which the justice of the Father sought after. She knew how severely His sanctity thirsted for its shedding. Need He begin redeemmg all at once ? Nay. He cannot redeem yet. Can He not rest ? Let the child shed His Blood, and then He will be content to rest : and so He shed it in the Cir- cumcision. Striuige thought ! there were seven days during which our Blessed Lord was nameless. Now with the Blood comes the sweet Name of Jesus, as if He had no right to it until He shed His Blood. In-patient Blood I Vet Its first ^ct was to put Itself 48 t beneath the law, It will begin by obeying, though it is in no wise bound to such obedience. ** Long years have passed since that cruel New Year's Day of the guiltless Babe of Bethlehem ; and now another scene opens to our view. It is the agony in the Gr^'den. Jesus kneels there. He is now a grown-up man. To-morrow men will crucify His blessed Body, and pour out His Blood like water. But to-morrow is not soon enough. To-ni^ht His adorable Soul, that King among creatures, will itself crucify His Body. He will suffer a martyrdom to- night even more mysterious than that martyrdom on Calvary. See now what that Soul is doing. It gathers round It all the sins of men, manifold, multitudinous, pondc-ous. Over its beautiful sanctity It puts on all this hideous apparel, which burns like 'poison and like fire. Then It lifts up Its hand, that mighty Soul, as if with more than Samson's strength It were about to pull down the big heavens upon Itself; and It draws down upon Itself the huge storm of God's eternal justice and overwhelming wrath, and then lies crushed beneath it, a plaintive Human Life almost extinguished, and only not extinguished because it is a Divine Life as well Drop by drop, unnaturally through the burning pores of the skin, the beads of blood ooze out. They stand upon His Brow, and then roll down His Face. They clog His Hair. They blind His Eyes. They suffuse every limb as in a universal Sweat of Blood. They ruddy the olive roots Truly, if ever suffering was beautiful, it was the woe which the paschal rnoon behead beneath the olive trees that night, "The sun in the heavens and the shadows in the streets mark it to be about nine of the morning, in Jerusalem. It is the hour of the Third Blogd' 4^ Shedding, the Scourging. This is the most intolerable of all the mysteries of our Blessed Saviour's Passion. Our Lord is left in the hands of the vilest satellites of criminal justice. There is neither the pomp of a court, nor the pageant of an execution. He is at the mercy of the vilest and most abhorred of men. Then the sounds ! ihe dull soupds of the scourges as they fall upon the living Holy, of*tH^ lies, monotonous yet various, changing as tho vfrhips are changed, and then the wet sound as the ihhrJigs become soaked with Blood,— who can bear than } The echoes from the houses in the place, and lli« Spiritual echoes from out the mdignant, meek he:(rt, of the outraged Mother,— are they not fearful also; ? J V The sound as of light falnng rain, which we know to be the Precious Blood, *n\Wgles with that still fainter sound, as of the almost majuiible bleating of a dying lamb, which we know •to be the Voice of God, complaining with that inextinguishable human tender- ness. ••••• j^** Whose heart does tipj:jeap up at the thought of such a mystery, — the Coronation of the Creator by His creatures . . .• . ! . but, it is another Blood- ShfcdWipg, the Crowning of Thorns With jest, and jibe, and he,athen oath, the rough work is speedily accomplijibecj. They thrust the crown upon His Head with fiide, vehemence. It is not round. It will not fit. They force the spikes into His skin ; and the Blood comes, blackly and slowly, and with excruciating pain, and one of them, not without loud, jocose applause, takes a heavy reed and beats the crown into the Sufferer*s Head. Long spikes go under the skin of the forehead, and come out above the eyes. He trembles from head to foot with the intolerable agony. His lips are bloodless with the extremity of endurance. But the face of a sleeping I ' child is not more sweet than His, nor its heart more calm He has grown more beautiful ; now that he is crowned. O Precious Blood ! Lover of God's Dominion ! Thou hast thirsted for Th> kingdom long ; but with what strange and startling ritual hast Thou ordained Thy Coronation ! "The fifth Blood-Shedding is the way of the Cross that singular mystery qf tne Passion in which the Hearts of Mother and St)*in 'Jiitherto to outwaid eye divided, meet in one currppj, and flow together till the end. The sight of*.1ii«gry's face quickens the beating of His Heart, and jti^^s the Blood flow more freely. He leaves his footppints in the way ; and they are of blood. He i&fwints the likeness of His features on the napkin of • v e*rbnica ; and the impres- sion is in Blood. They the** brush against Him are stained with Blood. They 'tlt^t walk after Him dye their sandals in His Blood. • "His march to Calvary is a perfect triumph of the -Preciuus Blood. It covers everything. It clings to thia .meanest objects. Then also the Cross and the Precious Blood are now for the first time united. It i^ *flie union of the two in which the secret virtue of* redeeming grace resides. Now the weight of the Cross, -a^ we have seen, opens old wounds and causes new* ones. The Blood and the Cross are together now! fhis is the Betrothing, and the Marriage will be on."Caf¥ary. " The Precious Blood haV found at last a home, which is seemingly dearer to It than the Sacred Heart. It is the wood of the Cross. It flows very slowly now as if It would prolong Its delight in lowing. The Cross is wetted by It and the wood is darkened. Mary's hands are red. The dear Magdalen has an unconscious consciousness that the Blood of her love is upon her hair The seven words too are the voices of His Blood. Each word is a ravi- a nl 61 rt more at he is God's ingdom lal hast i Cross ich the »d eye her till ns the V more '; and of His npres- im are m dye alvary :overs Then )w for wo in sides. 3pens dand hing, ome, [eart. now The med. IS an love i too ravi- shing melody, in which the Eternal Word utters himself with human utterance The soul flutters over them as over hollow seas, and well nigh faints with love — then death accomplishes itself, so far as it was a natural death, by the shedding of the Blood, " Is there to be more Bloodshedding still ? Why, like a miser on his death-bed, had the Precious Blood hidden that little, tre«^sure? It was that the dead Body might shed ^ Blood. It was to proclaim love's victory over deaths Hence the Seventh Blood- shedding, the Piercing o^'tTje* Sacred Heart. As the Head in the Crowning l|^(I^Wen jealous of the Body in the Scourging, and so fijd claimed the joy and dignity of a Bloodsheddingrui itself, so now the Heart was jealous of the Hands 'afifi Feet. It envied them their dripping wells o^ 4ifie'. It grudged them the beauty of their eternal •^fpmata. Even when dead, the Sacred Heart has >r/^istible attractions. The soul of Jesus beneath the earth felt the dear similar constraints of that graud .{ieart ; and so the Hea t wooed the lance of th$» centurion, and the hidden Blood sprang forth, ba|ifiied as if in gratitude its heathen liberator with all -the cleansing graces of inversion, and stole |e»tly down the side of Jesus, kissing the Flesh whicn'ft'had animated so long." * I (Aspirations ior ^ach §ay. or THE MONTH- 0:F JUL Y. J.: ••••' O blood of my crucifietJtlL'^us, dwell in my soul to purify it ? O Blood of.m^ j:rucified Jesus, dwell in my heart to inflame it C.^^* Blood of my crucified Jesus, dwell in my mind.t(5Vnlighten it. O Blood of my crucified Jesus, dwell* 4n*my thoughts to elevate them ! O Blood of my/j^riifified Jesus, dwell in my every action to sanctify them ; in every power and faculty of my being, that all within me may exalt Thy might, proclaim Thy hewefits and publish Thy mercies ! • •• • li' Queen of Angels ! Heaven's delight ! Mary Imma- culate ! Mother of the Cjrucified One and mine own ! let me draw from thy virgi^ml^oul all that is wanting in mine, to glorify the fk;epious Blood which has merited for roe the joys of eternal life. 3 Blood of my Jesus ! transform me into the likeness of my Crucified Love ; at my last hour plUnge me wholly into Thyself, O purifying stream, and bear me safe into the harbor of Eternity. 53 O Blood ! Thou art my life, my strength, my joy, my treasure, my hope, my happiness for time and for Eternity. O Precious Blood, I love Thee, . . . I will love Thee ever ? 5 r soul to dwell in crucified Blood of ) elevate ill in my war and «alt Thy sh Thy J Imma- ne own ! y^anting lich has likeness nge me 3ear me O dearest Lord, make »haste ! open to me Thy Heart, that I may eseape from the hands of the enemy who seeks my ill^.*^ Heart of my Jesus ! sub- merge me in the mighty torrents of Thy Blood. ■■*i <> > , O viL) God, I thank* >Thee, I bless Thee, through the Blood of Jesus, foi' ^11 the mercies which Thou hast showered upom p;ie' especially for having re- vealed to me the great mystery of the Blood of the Cross and the Blood,^^ J^e Altar. • » » '• • 7 No, no. . . . ;I/ear nothing. . . . . I am clothed with the BlddS^of my Saviour, I am marked and impregnated with the sign of my Redemption. 5 •) %4' 8 O Blood of the Divine Lamb, grant me true hu- mility, the meekness of the Sacred Heart, the spirit of reparation of th^ Mother of Dolors. O Life-giving Blood ! I ask of Thee the ardor of the Seraphim — the zeal of an apostle — the simplicity of faith of a child — the candor of a virgin — the purity of the Angels. 54 ■fi \\ hi. It .!|i ( ) Blood of • y Jesus ! I would wish to love »r.ught so much as Tiiee .... to desire uaught but Thee .... to feed on Thee alone .... to die for very love of Thee. • • O Love, Sacred Pelica5),;wlio feedest Thy little ones upon Thine own Blooi«for so to xhing a proof of Thy tenderness what Jw^lThee in return? My heart's blood . . mj Igv^ ? . . . Alas ! I have none ! O give me wSftJ Thou askest — grant me a love : strong, generous and constant. •••• Oh ! how sweet it is tcr suffer ! Nature indeed complains, but the heart is (i»i«t«e*it, it craves for pain that it maybe purified and dfaw near to Thee, my crucified I.ove O my JesflsVin thi name of Thy Blood, satisfy its eager cravihgs. ^ 12 • • O priceless V.ctim ! I faiij* wcJwld see all through the roseate mist of Thy Bloolf h*ear naught but Its touching pleadings, act ever in union with Its divine oblation and for Its glory. 13 Eternal Father ! accept the Blood of Thy beloved Son fesus, as an expiation for my sins, as a constant thanksgiving for Thy countless favors 55 O Blood of the sublime Victim of the Cross ! Blood which hast opened to me the gates of heaven, Blood which beaiest with Thee infinite treasures of grace — O Precious Blood ! flow in lavish profusion on the Church Thy Spouse, and on Thy ministers, her faith- ful guardians ; fill th'em% with wisdom, humility, charity aud zeal, that.ty Thy virtue they may win countless souls to Thy^lp;va • « 1 1 . O consuming Bloods! an^nihilate within me all that is earthly, enkindle ^ii^^*^ ^^ devastating fires of love ! O mighty Blood ! inflame all hearts with Thine impetuous, saving zeal.* ',% To supply for my pow^erlessness, to aid my grateful heart, come, ye glorious Angels, in very multitudes, come render homag^ 'i6 the Blood which has re- deemed me ! O mystical' Virgins ! hasten in count- less numbers and sin^ for me in gladdest strains. Glory to Christ wKd tiath regenerated me in His Blood I ) ■) i 17 Look down upon me, most merciful Father, deign to look upon me clothed in the Blood of Thy Son ; forget my miseiy, and through Its merits grant me : a knowledge of my own nothingness, an habitual remembrance of Thy blessings, of Thy divine per- fections, of Thine ineffable beauty, of Thy mfinite goodness. 56 I 18 Take pity on me, O sweetest Jesus, slake my burn- ing thirst, I so pine for Thy Blood .... yes ! I pant for those c isuming flames which will set me all on fire with Ic . 19 Behold me near The€, Searest Master, to be watered with that Precious ©lood, flowing 'a torrents from Thy ruddy Wound^. t.Wash away the stains from my soul ; restore to it«Hffiost innocence — clothe it with purity — enkindle it\ ii tfie flames of Thy love. 2(3.: • •• • Lord, drown in the*fl,qpiiti of Thy Precious Blood the sins of the whole; world. This one desire consumes my soul. In the i^m^ of Thy Blood, hear me! /• 21«»*»/ 1 am tempest-tossed, exiled "and weary. O fath- omless sea of my Saviour's t^lood, receive me .... be my harbor .... my jjiojne ! • • • « * 22 O Blood, o'erflowing witlj**l5r^, flood Thou my soul ! O Blood, deluge of ditiii^ mercy, bottomless abyss, submerge, drown, annihilate all my miseries, reanimate my feeble virtues. 23 Master, turn not away Thy loving eye from Thy poor servant, but in the name of Thy Blood, purify me ! O Love ! O Love ! .1 languish an d^. die if Thou forsake me. 57 24 Yes, I believe sustain my life bless my death . . . tl e I^lood of Jesus will • . . the Klood of Jesus will . . . I will contemplate eter- nally the marvels ot His mercy towards my soul, for . . . , I am the price of His Precious Hlood, I already bear on my brow the seal of the cross. 25 my soul, be not sad, be no longer troubled, but cry out with a boundless trust : Jesus, for love of me shed all liis Blood .... for love of me He died upon the Cross .... Its virtue will ob- tain me mercy and open to me ihe gates of heaven. 1 die daily ! . . . . with Christ I am nailed to the Cross, O good Cross ! O Precious Cross ! thou appearest to me dyed In the Blood. To-day and forever I esp >use thee .... my glory will be to wear thee and to die, pressing thee to my heart. O bloody Cross, hold me captive ! O holy Cross, be ^ le seal of my heart ! 27 O Blood of my beloved Saviour, in Thee do I place alt my hope ; I trust myself to Thy life-giving waves for time and for eternity. 28 O Jesus ! may our love make Thee forget our own ingratitude and that of sinners. Grant that with Thy 58 Blood and through Thy Blood we may make some atonement to Thy Father's offended justice. 20 O Jesus, spouse of Virgins ! Thou who feedest amongst the lilies and roses, how canst Thou deign to rest in my poor heart so full of thorns and briars ; My God, I understand .... Thou comest not to rest, but rather to water with Precious Blood this barren soil and transform these worthless plants into roses and lilies. I see .... I feel .... I believe ... I admire ... I love . . . I give thanks. 30 May I Forget myself, if ever I forget Thee, O Blood of my crucified Saviour ! May I become speechless, if ever I cease to recall Thy mercies ! M ay they ever be the theme of my grateful song ! 31 May the blessing of the Precious Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, descend upon all the Associates and remain with them forever ! Amen ! Amen ! Amen ! Benediction, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, honor, and power, and strength to our God, and to the Lamb forever and ever. Amen. ^cditationA for each dai) of the Week, IN HONOR OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD, Monday. T/ie Precious Bloody Its Value, Price and Virtue. *' Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold and silver, but with the Precious Blood of Christ, as ota Lamb unspotted and undefiled. — I Peter i. 18-19. Happy indeed the faithful soul who thinks on these words and knows how to profit by them ! And this Precious Blood, already so pure in Its origin has become, through the mystery of the Incarnation, th6 Blood of a God, What an incomprehensible gran- deur ! The Blood of a God .... who can fathom the meaning of this word ? ^ The Blood of a God is something so precious, Its value, Its virtue, is so great, that one single drop would more than have sufficed to save the entire world, yei behold what God has done ! " The Son of God will die," exclaims St. Bernard, " that by this saving balm our wounds may be healed," O Christian soul, did not thy wounds entail eternal death, the Son of God would not have shed His Blood to heal them. What still more proves the value and inestimable price of the Blood of Jesus is, that He chose It as the irresistible proof of His love. The same Saint adds : 60 t! f.' "Jesus gave His Blood in lavish profiu>ion, that the greatness of the gift might show forth the greatness of His love" Consider, too, the virtue of this adorable iilood. It frees man from the slavery of the devil, opers to him the kingdom of heaven, puts him in possession of the inheritance of God, and makes him, from a son of Adam, the adopted Son of God. The great Doctor, St. Jerome, calls the Blood of Christ the key of pa- radise, " for," says he, *' heaven was opened as soon as the Son of God had, (by the offering of His Blood) paid its price " The adorable Blood of Jesus Christ may be considered as a continual holocaust whose supplicating voice ever pleads mercy for sinners, and calls down upon earth, torrents of graces and bless- ings. Will not this thought attract us to the taber- nacle and make us find theie our sweetest joy. The Precious Blood is also that mysterious wine, *' that wine which maketh virgins," which raises the soul above the things of earth, and enables it to attain the very purity of the Angels. He who drinks this wine with the prcper dispositions, st^on acquires the wisdom of the perfect ; he walks — he runs— and strengthened like the prophet Elias, he reaches the utmost heights of the mountain of God. Wine re- joices the heart of man, 'tis love that rejoices the soul ; the faithful soul is led into the mystic cellar of her Beloved and there partakes of a heavenly wine, which establishes in her heart the reign of pure love. *' Give wine to those whose heart is embittered," says Holy Scripture, "let them drink and forget their miseries." Oh ! how well I know the taste of that wine, my Jesus, 'tis the Wine of the Eucharistic Cup. Shall not such thoughts raise my mind high above the things of earth ? should they not excite in me a boundless esteem for this priceless gifi, Jesus' dying Bll Tl 61 legacy 1 O may my heart, all aglow with divine love, be transformed into an altar, from which the incense of gratitude aud love will unceasingly send out its sweetest pfjrfumes, and awaken in all souls the deep- est feelings of praise and thanksgiving towards the Precious Blood. Spiritual Bouquet. — '* O divine balm, O Precious Blood, who can comprehend Thy value, Thy price, Thy virtue!" ,.. \A- Tuesday. ' The Blood in the Tabernacle^ " This Is the Blood of the Testament which God hath enjoined unto you." Heb. ix., 20. Faith teaches, that after the words of the consecra- tion, the adorable Blood of the Son of God is as truly present under the appearances of bread as under those of wine ; where it otherwise, the Church would preserve the Holy Eucharist under both species. Therefore, O faithful soul, as often as you draw near the aUar, you find there both the Sacred Flesh and the 1 recious Blood of our Kedeemer. In all her rites and ceremonies, in her processions, at the Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, the Church addresses her worship as well to the Blood as to the Body of Jesus Christ, for the two, though perfectly distinct, are yet inseparably and forever united. Faithful soul, have you ever realized that the Blood of your Jesus is really and truly present within the tabernacle ? 62 The life of man is in the blood; now, as the life of the body conies from the blood, we may well say that the principle of evil in man, is his^ blood ; therefore did God lay upon the blood the expiation of siti. The mission of the Precious Hlood is to wash, to purify the soul. The weight of divine justice will rest upon the Blood, which will be shed, that It may become the covenant of the alliance between God and man, the reconciliation between the Creator and the creature. St. Paul considered a sacrifice of blood to be so necessary, that he did not hesitate to say : "Without blood there is no remission of sin." But whose blood will possess this mighty power ? Ah! Christian soul, you know it well, 'tis the Blood of Jesus, the Son of the Most High ; and kneeling near the^tabernacle, moved by these thoughts, will you not ask yourself, " but where is this Blood ?" and^faith and love will answer : " the Blood you seek is there . . . . behind the tabernacle door It is there so near with all the merits which Jesus "acquired;by His sufferings ^ . . . . with the infinite power It possessed on Calvary's heights. (> consoling thought ! and why is it there ? .... thatjlt may ever call to heaven more loudly than did the blood of Abel. It pleads but oh ! 'tis for mercy, and far more eloquently than • that innocent blood did for vengeance ; and mercy descends from on high and pours forth upon us tor- rents of ineffable blessings. " O eminent {dignity, O sublime grandeur of the : Precious Blood, which by^Its presence in our tabein- ll acles might well excite the jealousy of heaven !" Faithful soul, behold considerations truly fit to nourish your piety and make you consider as pain- 63 fully short the hours you spend in adoration before the tabei nacle door. Spiritual Bouquet.^" \\e\\K)\d I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world." Matt, xxviii, 20. . ■ I - I , ■ . Wednesday. • ' On Reparation, "Coulcl ye not watcu one hour with me?" Matt, xxvi., 4v. Let us endeavor to-day, to console our dearest Lord, forgotten and despised by so many ungrate^al hearts, yet pining for loving and faithful souls, w lo, by a spirit of reparation, will seek to appease the justice of His Father, and force Him to grant that mercy and those gifts which He longs far more eargerly to bestow than we to receive. He would fain see us mourn with Him, weep like Him, and in Him, with Elim and through Him offer to His offended Father, the tears, the sufferings, the Blood of a Man- God. Oh ! how powerful is reparation when united to that of Jesus ! It turns evil into good, often uli-^s making us more pleasing in His sight than we were before our fall, for the fleece of the bleeding i^amb with which we clothe ourselves, endears us to the Heart of our merciful Father, and gives Kim a glory greater than that of which sin robbed Him. O consoling doctrine ! My Jesus ! how shall we testify to Thee our gratitude and love } . . . . We will have recourse to the priceless merits of Thy Passion, we will glory in accomplishing those things that are wanting of Thy sufferings, we will 64 offer Thee Thy spotless life — Thy words — Thy acts — Thy virtues — to atone for all our sinful thoughts, and deeds, and words, and above all, we will offer Thee the chalice of Thy Blood, at least uniting in spirit to Its daily oblation ; for Thy Blood is an all powerful advocate, an irresistible prayer of thanksgiving, of praise, an ever-pleading voice for pardon and mercy which has never been disregarded. " "Pardon, O fesus, for the coldness and infidelity which Thou still findest, perhaps, in us. Deign to bless our desire of being henceforward passionate lovers of the worship and glory of Thine adorable Blood, and render fruitful the resolution we now take of repairing the outrages Thou receivest by \)c\^ fervor z.Vidi frequency of our Communions." Spiritual Bouquet. — " Blessed and praised for ever- more, be Jesus who hath redeemed us with His Blood." Thursday. The Blood in the Chalice. " I will take the Chalice of Salvnion and call upon the name of the Lord.'* — Ps. 115 When our Lord presented to His disciples, the mysterious cup in which He had poured the wine, He said: "This Chalice is the new Covenant in my Blood. St. Paul calls it the Chalice of benediction, and why ? Is it not the source, the principle, the cause of every blessing } Who can reveal the sublime mysteries contained in the Chalice t Jesus tells us the new Covenant is there, Yes | the 65 lets — and Thee frit to ^erfuJ Jg, of lercy IdeJity gn to lonate )rable take fervor ever- 1 His name , the He my ion, the ime th^' Covenant consummated in the adorable Biood of the Christian Chalice ; therefore every grace which this Covenant draws down upon man, all the dignities, all the glory, all the supernatural privileges which Jesus confers upon us, His brethren, all are to be found in the Chalice. But the Chalice remains but for a moment upon the altar, that the priest may hold it in his hands and raise it toward heaven, saying : Father, we offer Thee the Chalice of Salvation. Great God! what then transpires between heaven and earth ! The Chalice appears to me, as it were, suspended in the vast immensity of space, hovering over the world without touching the sky, yet joining the two. The Father beholds the Chalice of His Son, and therein also, all His humiliations, His pains, His sufferings, rising like an incence of sweet-smelling perfumes from that sacred Cup ; He is glorified . ... His justice is disarmed the thundei bolts of His wrath are wrested from His hands . . , . mercy and justice meet ! . . . . My God ! is not the Chalice worthy to excite the deepest feeling of a lively faith, the transports of a burning love } What a powerful remedy for Our ills ! what a balm for every trial ! C) faithful souls, may you never lose sight of these consoling truths. The Blood of Jesus in the Chalice — there is your all. Do you ignore it "i Oh, no ! but how often do we not forget it. St. John Chrysostom affirms that millions of angels surround the Chalice ; could it be otherwise? But it is for man, for sinners, for their salvation, that the Blood of Jesus remains upon earth Faithful souls, be of the number of those adoring angels— come — prostrate before the Chalice — adore — expiate — love. C6 Spiritual Bouquet — "I shall see the Blood and shall pass over you .... and the plague will not be upon you when I strike the ; land."* Friday. ■'• ' ^ r-^-vr.,- ,■■■-' The Blood and the Cross, ** Let Him be crucified His Blood be upon us ' and our children. " — Matt! xxvii, 23-25. " Away with Him Crucify Him ! *' Who is this man ? What has He done to call down upon Himself such cries of ven- geance and wrath ? Who is He ? . . . . It is Jesus, the Son of the Eternal, the Word of the Father , . . . , It is the Son of Mary, of that s])otless Virgin more pure, more holy than the angels .... that mangled Flesh was conceived in her chaste womb by the power of the Holy Spirit that Blood which soaks the pavement of the Pretorium is the Blood of a God ! What has He done, you ask ? " He went about doing good." Wearied by the clamors of the people, frightened by their threats, the iniquitous judge washes his hands of this Blood which is going to wash away the sins of the world, and yields into the hands ot His enemies Him whose innocence he has publicly proclaimed. The Cross awaits Jesus, or rather Jesus awaits tbj Cross, far more eager to receive it than the Jews to give it ; laden with the wood of His sacrifice, the new Isaac begins the painful ascent of Calvary. Jesus is a victim, a voluntary victim, urged onward by the two- fold desire of repairing the insult offeredto His Father and of saving the human race, and, to attain this end, no pain, no ignominy is too great, since His desire to suffer is ever greater than the suffering in- flicted The infinite sanctity of an offended God, requires an infinite reparation which Jesus alone can offer ... The altar is raised .... the divine victim extends Himself upon the wood of the sacrifice, and soon are heard the echoes of Golgotha repeating the dread sounds of the hammer which nails a God- VI an to the instrument of His torture. Blood flows in torrents from Mis Hands and Feet . . . . half-closed gashes are re-opened a^id It trickles down the pale and trembling form. Some- times blackish spots appear around the wounds, again It flows red and blood-like . . , . fainter and fainter, yet proving that [t is giving Itself out still. This is the moment of our Redemotion ! Now is the Blood accomplishing the work for which It came on earth. Yet Jesus is left well nigh alone ; few things ot Him, men continue in th-rir busy ways, pleasures engross their attention, sin entices them, and the Precious Blood is shed in vain ! . . . . Behold how the price of our salvation has been treated ! Grief, indignation, zeal, fill our hearts, but, enlightened by the light of faith, must we not confess ourselves more guiltv still t Was not the Saviour's Cross raised over our childhood's cradle ? Did not our mothers consecrate our baby lips by teaching them to murmur the sweet name of Jesus ? yet, have we not forgotten these lessons } . . . . have we not, by sin, trampled under foot the Precious Blood, and made useless in our behalf, the sufferings and merits of the Redeemer ? 4^r m / 68 My Jesus, mercy ! I confess my shame. I have sinned by every sense and faculty of my soul and body ; but on the day of Thy Passion, Thou didst shed Thy Blood from every pore, to appease, to atone, to sanctify ! . . . , O adorable Blood, be Thou forever blessed and piaised for this life-giving hope ! Spiritual Bouquet, — " He has loved me and deli- vered Himself for me." . •• • . . . ■•' ^. .-' . ^ . :■ .'■-■ •■ ' - "' ^^ ,;.. „.. Saturday. .- .> •,.:;■• >!.■■. Mary and the Precious Blood. '•' '*' *• Glorions things are spoken of thee O City of God." ^ — Ps Ixxxvi., 3. Let us consider to-day the close union which exists between the mystery of the Redeeming Blood of Jesus and that of the Immnculate Conception of Mary, a union so striking, that in adoring this divine Blood, we naturally turn towards Its source, to admire there the great marvel which is the fruit of Its future merits ; for it is from the Immaculate Conception of Mary that the stream of the Precious Blood of Jesus commenced Its grand majestic course, flowing through the mystical body of His Spouse, and by her Sacra- ments vivifying the Church even t > the end of time. O let us glorify the Blood of Jesus for having kept so beautiful and so pure, the I.ily of Israel destined one day to fill the world with its chaste perfume. Let us congratulate Mary on having received in her soul the most fruitful and abundant dew ot that Immaculate Blood in which she was not regenerated like us have and didst Je, to [d, be fiving (J9 through Baptism, but preserved, chosen, and pri- vileged by a spotless and unparalleled purity. And we, who so frequently welcome into our hearts the Son of Mary — we, in whose veins the same sinless Blood so often flows — shall we not too seek, to prepare a fit dwelling-place for Him, by imitating Ma'-y's purity, by cultivating in our souls those tender plants amongst which He loves to feed ? We have lost our first innoce ice, what then shall we do better than have recourse to those fountains of grace which Jesus has left us in the Church ? Oh ! yes, let us frequently wash our souls in the sacramental bath of penance ; let us seek a heavenly dew in the life- giving Blood of the Eucharist ; let us seek courage and strength in the mystic chalice, and plunge therein not our souls alone; but the souls of all whom we love. The Blood of the Laml) i- a healing balm for the sick, a vivifying potion for the weary, an inex- haustib'e treasure to all who ihir-t for Its virtue, '• O Jesus! Son of the Immaculate Virgin and divine Spouse of virgins deign to make us pure and in a measure immaculate in Thine eyes, by covering us with the roseate dew of Thy Blood, and by teaching us how to imitate the chaste Virgin, Thy Mother and ours." Spiritual Bouquet— '' T\io\x art all fair, O Mary, and the stain of original sin is not in thee " M ■Jfil ■'1 70 blJNDAY, The Fruits of the Precious Blood, <( By their fruits ye shall know them"'— Matt. vii*. t.6. The grace which the Blood of Jesus Christ pours into the soul, fills it with so great an abundance of peace and joy, that the Prince of the Apostles does not hesitate to say : '* by the sprinkling of the Blood of Jesus Christ may an abundance of grace and peace be multiplied unto yoiL [t is of this grace the Holy Spirit speaks when He >>ays that "grace is like unto a paradise by reason of its blessings/' that is to say, according to St. Thomas, the soul becomes a garden rmto God by the various fruits which grace produces. The soul that is watered by the sweetness of the Blood ot Christ brings forth the flowers of virtues and the fruits of goodly deeds, that is : deeds useful and favorable to our neighbor, all kinds of truth, truth in word, and deed, and act, uprightness in our thoughts and in all our undertakings. () truth, art thou the fruit ordinarily to be found in those who drink of the Precious Blood ? Alas ! all around me seems false — so few things bear the seal of truth, yet many, so many partake of this life-giving Blood. Again, the faithful soul is compared to a tree which, being well watered, bears its fruit m due season. It is written in Holy Scripture : " I will water my gar- den of plants and I will water abundantly the fruit of my meadow," and St. Thomas explains these words thus : I will water with the Blood ot Jesus Christ the garden of the soul ; I will satisfy her hunger with the fruit of good works and she herself will eat of this fruit in her heavenly home. These spiritual fruits are 71 called by the great Apostle, fruits of light. I know well what one thinks of a tree which being carefully fiurtured, still produces naught but leaves, though ot :is nature, it should bring forth fruit pleasing to the tye and palatable to the taste. Jesus in the parable of the barren fig-tree, gives me to understand what will be the misfortune of the soul that refuses to give Him the fruits of good works. "I have chosen you," says Jesus, but He immediately adds : ** that ye may bear fruit." The fruits then which the soul should produce when it is watered by the Precious Blood, are those of piety and devotion. Why is it that these virtues do not grow and increase in my soul, so often sprink- led with this refreshing dew ! Can it be that the Blood ot Jesus so often courses through my veins, yet leaves me cold, insensible towards Him, with so little piety and devotion ? O adorable Saviour, I will endeavor to become worthy frequently to draw near the banquet of Thy Blood, and by Its merits strive to adorn my soul with the leaves, the flowers and the fruit which should be the growth of my participation in the Chalice of salvation. Spiritual Bouquet, — **How much more shall the Blood of Christ . . . cleanse our conscience from dead works, to serve the living God." ytnhm k i}i$ Jv$tkm llxroir. -♦-•- Glory be to Jesus I Who in bitter pains, Poured for me the life Blood, From His sacred veins. Grace and life eternal In that Blood I find ; Blessed be his compassion, Infinitely kind I Blessed through endless ages Be the precious stream, Which from endless torment Doth the world redeem. There the fainting spirit Drinks of life her fill j There, as in a fountain Laves herself at will. O the Blood of Christ ! It soothes the Father's ire,j Opes the gates of heaven, Quells eternal fire. Abel's blood for vengeance Pleaded to the skies ; But the Blood of Jesus For our pardon cries. Oft as it is sprinkled Or our guilty hearts, Satan in confusion, Terror-struck departs. Oft as earth exulting Wafts its praise on high, Hell with terror trembles. Heaven ia filled wi\ h joy. Lift ye then your voices, Swell the mighty fiood ; Louder still and louder. Praise the Precious Blood ! (lOo days indulgence once a • Vl ..* : .'* ' ( ■ « t A # ..' -. . •■. ■' ■■*■■ .... i, >arts. S n high, ables, it h joy. ■ ! I15) •• - ^ ■' • .f ■*c. ' * _ ^^'^^