^^JJ^>i^ (Xmy^ ^JU^lJ 
 
 SIMPLE MEDITATIONS 
 
 ON THE LIFE OF OUR LORD 
 
 First Scries
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of Our Lord 
 
 By the Right Rev. 
 
 JOSEPH OSWALD SMITH 
 
 Abbot of Ampleforth 
 FIRST SERIES 
 
 Second Edition, revised 
 
 CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY 
 
 69 Southwark Bridge Road 
 
 London, S*E« 
 
 1904
 
 Nihil Obstat : 
 
 J. A. Wilson, O.S.B., D.D. 
 
 Imprimatur : 
 
 4- F. A. GASQUET, O.S.B., D.D., 
 
 Abbot of Reading, 
 
 President General of the English Congregation 
 of the Order of St Benedict,
 
 PREFACE 
 jt 
 
 I HAVE been asked by some friends who 
 have seen them to pubhsh the following 
 little meditations. They were originally 
 written without any thought of making 
 them public. When I had written some of 
 them for my own use, I ventured to send 
 one or two to various people who had asked 
 me to help them in their prayer. The way 
 in which they were welcomed by these pious 
 souls encouraged me to write down a large 
 number — many more than are found in this 
 little book — and for some years I have lent 
 them in manuscript to those who were kind 
 enough to ask me for them. 
 
 It is in the hope that they may help some 
 simple souls to overcome the difficulty they 
 havifc found in meditation that I have con- 
 sented to put them in print. 
 
 Ample FORTH Abbe\' 
 
 Feast of A 
 
 0U/^, /lfe3». ^,%02.
 
 NOTE TO SECOND EDITION 
 
 In this second edition a number of small 
 
 changes have been made in accordance with 
 
 the suggestions of friendly critics. 
 
 J. O. S 
 Lent, igo^..
 
 The Birth of our Lord 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 On Mental Prayer ... ... ... ... xi 
 
 On Mortification ... ... ... ... ... xvii 
 
 I. The Annunciation ... ... ... i 
 
 II. St Joseph and the Blessed Virgin 
 
 before the Birth of our Lord ... 5 
 
 III. Mary and Joseph at Bethlehem ... 8 
 
 VI. The Shepherds come to adore ... 17 
 
 VII. The Kings come to adore ... ... 20 
 
 VIII. The Flight into Egypt 23 
 
 IX. The Massacre of the Innocents ... 26 
 
 X. The Life at Nazareth ... .. 29 
 
 XI. The Loss of Jesus at Jerusalem ... 32 
 
 XII. The Finding of Jesus in the Temple 35 
 
 XIII. The Youth of our Lord 39 
 
 XIV. The Death of St Joseph 42 
 
 XV. Our Lord's Parting from our Lady 45 
 
 XVI. Our Lord's Baptism by St John ... 48 
 
 XVII. Jesus led into the Desert ... ... 50 
 
 XVIII. The First Temptation of our Lord 53 
 
 XIX. The Secon Temptation ... ... 56
 
 Contents 
 
 XX. 
 
 XXI. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 XXXI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Third Temptation ... ... 59 
 
 The Ministry of the Angels ... 62 
 
 The Marriage Feast at Cana 65, 68 
 
 The Calling of the Disciples ... 70 
 
 The Life at Capharnaum ... ... 73 
 
 The Beginning of the Preaching ... 76 
 
 The Draught of Fishes ... ... 79 
 
 Driving out the Money-changers... 82 
 
 Jesus distrusted them ... ... 85 
 
 Nicodemus comes to our Lord ... 87 
 
 Our Lord and St John the Baptist 90
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 A Simple Instruction on 
 Mental Prayer 
 
 Mental Prayer is converse with God as 
 with a personal friend. If we could only 
 bring ourselves to treat God as a friend 
 who is intensely interested in everything 
 which concerns us, who has made us to 
 be happy with Him and therefore to know 
 Him very intimately and love Him very 
 dearly, our prayer would surely be easy. 
 
 The revelation of God's idea of friend- 
 ship can be obtained more truly from the 
 idea of friendship which we get from our 
 own experience of our friends than from 
 any hard process of thinking. 
 
 When we know a person really well and 
 like him and come to trust him a little, we 
 find pleasure in talking to him, and by de- 
 grees we come to take delight in telling him
 
 xii Introduction 
 
 everything which concerns us ; we tell him 
 our likes and dislikes, our projects and disap- 
 pointments, our difficulties and our triumphs. 
 Whenever we come to trust such a one, if 
 we are happy enough to know anyone in 
 this way, whatever we are doing, his opinion 
 helps us, and we wonder whether he will 
 praise or blame us. 
 
 God wants us to make a friend of Him, 
 and a most intimate friend, and therefore 
 He wants us to talk to Him about every- 
 thing which interests us in any way. This 
 is prayer — to take Almighty God into our 
 confidence and tell Him all about ourselves, 
 asking His advice and help. " His delight 
 is to be with the sons of men." And though 
 His Son became Man primarily to save us 
 from sin. He came also that He might get 
 nearer to us and might enable us to talk 
 with Him more intimately. Again He came 
 to show us what He would have us do in 
 order to become more friendly with Him. 
 This is the reason why it is good for us in 
 our prayer to take some event in our Lord's
 
 Mental Prayer xiii 
 
 life, or some words uttered by Him, as a 
 kind of subject of our prayer, always re- 
 membering that our Lord did that action or 
 said those words in some way for me. He 
 was weary for my sake, that I might learn 
 even in my weariness to be interested in 
 a poor sinner's conversion, as He was at the 
 well in Samaria. He said, " I thirst," think- 
 ing of me and my tepidity in His service. 
 He healed the lepers, and so on, to teach 
 me something. In this way I become a 
 witness of His life for my own good, just as 
 Jesus would have me be. He wishes me to 
 talk to Him about His own life and His 
 words and actions as they concern myself. 
 Thus His life is the material of prayer. 
 
 Thus you see there are two things to be 
 conversed about — myself and our Lord ; and 
 before we can talk intimately with God, we 
 must have some knowledge of both. 
 
 We must know ourselves, our strength 
 and our weakness, and this knowledge can 
 only be gained if we are very sincere with 
 ourselves. Sincere means pure-minded, i.e.,
 
 xiv Introduction 
 
 not caring to be deceived, and desirous of 
 the truth, however painful it may be to us. 
 We are sincere when we try our best to get 
 at the real truth about ourselves. We gain 
 this truth by careful examination for con- 
 fession. The effort to take pains must be 
 made, if our prayer is to be of any good at 
 all. Without sincerity about ourselves our 
 prayer becomes mere talk, and it is not 
 blessed by our Lord. 
 
 Then comes the knowledge of the life of 
 our Lord. This can be obtained from care- 
 ful reading of the Gospel. It is necessary 
 in this reading to remember two things : 
 first, that it is all about our dearest friend ; 
 and second, that every act and every word 
 is meant for me — was done or spoken in 
 my presence. If you ever had a real friend, 
 were you not curious about his life? Did 
 you not love to hear of anything that had 
 happened to him before you knew him, 
 what his parents were like, what his com- 
 panions were like, what he had done, what 
 he had desired to do, what he had said on
 
 Mental Prayer xv 
 
 various occasions ? Once really love our 
 Lord and you will be just as anxious to 
 know His life; and there are plenty of 
 means by which you may get to know a 
 good deal about Him. If you are really 
 sincere with yourself, and really love our 
 Lord, your difficulties in prayer will vanish. 
 Now as to the reasons why you have 
 failed so far. They are mostly of two kinds 
 — first, that you have taken up the practice of 
 mental prayer not so much because you your- 
 self thought you could make any good out of 
 it, but because some one or other told you 
 it was a good thing ; second, because the 
 method proposed to you did not suit you. 
 The work of the memory, understanding 
 and will was divided up as carefully as if it 
 were a treatise in a philosophical book; you 
 were affected just about as much as if it were 
 philosophy. The words meant very little to 
 you, and the whole thing seemed very diffi- 
 cult and above you, and therefore it did no 
 good. What you require is some very 
 simple, plain method.
 
 xvi Introduction 
 
 The main aids to good mental prayer are 
 sincerity and humility in thinking of self, and 
 a simple, loving knowledge of God. It is 
 a help to take some aspiration fitting the 
 morning's prayer, to repeat now and again 
 during the day. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, meek and humble of 
 heart, make my heart like unto Thine. 
 
 The " Facts in our Lord's life " may be 
 read through slowly : then the " Facts in my 
 own life." If these latter suit you, well and 
 good; if not, they may suggest to you facts in 
 your own life which may show you the con- 
 trast between your life and that of our Lord. 
 The prayer, i.e., the converse with God, is 
 only given to help, and in no way to bind. 
 God grant that some soul may gain some- 
 thing by the use of these little meditations !
 
 On Mortification 
 
 [Not a few of those who have soug-ht for help in 
 prayer, after practising mental prayer for a 
 short time, have asked me to sug-gest some 
 mortification which they might undertake. 
 Indeed, it is impossible for one who is earnest 
 in the practice of mental prayer not to recog- 
 nize the great truth that success in prayer 
 rests a g-reat deal on mortification. The two 
 go hand in hand. The following- note was 
 written in answer to one who wished to do 
 something- out of the ordinary in the matter 
 of mortification : I hope it may be of use to 
 others.] 
 
 In the matter of mortification it is neces- 
 sary to act with advice, and indeed the ad- 
 vice ought always to be that of some one 
 who knows you. Chance advice in this 
 matter is almost always wrong. Hence, you 
 are not too readily to take up practices 
 thrown before you in sermons or spiritual 
 books. Again, even when you have taken
 
 xviii Introduction 
 
 up some practice, you must be careful not to 
 get attached to it, but always be willing to 
 give it up if required. Self-will makes a 
 mortification quite useless, and often turns 
 it into a snare and a delusion. Mortifica- 
 tions which stand in the way of your ordi- 
 nary work are nearly always snares of the 
 devil. Any mortification which you take 
 pride in must be again submitted to your 
 confessor. There are plenty of means of 
 mortifying yourself without doing anything 
 out of the way. You may restrain your 
 tongue by trying to make your voice low 
 and kind. You may restrain your eyes by 
 not looking into other people's business. 
 You may restrain your ears by not listening 
 to conversation about the faults of others. 
 ^ You may find an occasion for going out of 
 the room just as a story is getting interesting, 
 staying when it ceases to be interesting ; you 
 can restrain your hands by not interfering 
 with other people's work unless for charity ; 
 not doing what you know some one else 
 wishes to do. You can mortify your sense 
 
 i
 
 Mortification xix 
 
 of smell by not calling attention to annoy- 
 ance to that sense. Mortification, to be truly 
 such, is always kind, always considers the 
 effect of the action on others. 
 
 You must then take advice ; receive ^Yhat 
 trials are sent to you cheerfully. Be careful 
 always to consider others and what kindness 
 demands. Then your mortification will be 
 blessed.
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of our Lord 
 
 I 
 
 The Annunciation 
 
 J^ac/s in oiir Lord's Life 
 
 From eternity God had determined to take 
 to Himself the nature of man, and yet our 
 Lord did not become man till long after He 
 had created Adam. One reason of the delay 
 was because He did not find anyone per- 
 fectly willing to be His mother ; that is, He 
 did not find anyone willing to submit herself 
 absolutely to His will. When the angel came 
 to the Blessed Virgin Mary and gave God's 
 message to her, she immediately submitted 
 her will. As soon as God's will was made 
 known to her she put aside every trace of 
 hesitation. She wilfully chose God's will. 
 She did not understand it ; she did not know
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 how His will was to be accomplished, but 
 she knew that she was safe in God's hands. 
 She knew He was right and had her interests 
 at heart. He asked her to be His mother. 
 If He had asked her to give up her life 
 she would have been ju^t as willing. Our 
 Lord is always waiting for me to do His 
 will. 
 
 Facts in t?iy own Life 
 How different my life has been ! I have 
 sought first my own way in all things. It is 
 only seldom that I ask myself whether my 
 way is God's way. Sometimes, no doubt, it 
 does strike me to ask myself whether I am 
 following God's will, but even then I am for 
 the most part anxious to defend my own will, 
 and am pleased to hear from anyone that 
 what I will is right. But to give up my own 
 will, to submit in any way, has been a task I 
 have not enjoyed. If what He asked of me 
 has not seemed to me to lead to my own 
 comfort, to my own ease, I have lost heart, I 
 have lost interest, I have found it hard to 
 keep going.
 
 The Annunciation 
 
 Even when I have known that He was 
 asking something of me, I have longed for 
 my own way of doing it ; and when circum- 
 stances or those who are living with me have 
 prevented me having my own way, I have so 
 frequently left the work I had undertaken for 
 God ; I must do God's work in my own way 
 or not at all. 
 
 O Jesus, my kind and good Saviour, how 
 good it was of you to take my nature and 
 make it your own to teach me how worthless 
 my way is unless it is your way also ! How 
 kind it is of you so gently to correct me ! 
 You have not scolded me though I have 
 richly deserved it. How thoughtful it was of 
 you for my sake to choose Mary for your 
 mother, that I might learn from her how to 
 submit myself to others also ! 
 
 Mary, my mother and my model, obtain 
 for me some of the love with which you re- 
 ceived the message of the angel, knowing 
 that it was God's message also. How I 
 should have hesitated if the angel had come 
 to me ! I should have counted all the diffi-
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 culties and crosses, and I should have been 
 unable to face them, for I should have relied 
 on myself and not on God as you did. Help 
 me, poor cowardly creature that I am. Make 
 me think, not of myself, but of my God in 
 all things. 
 
 O my mother, who for your submission 
 to God's will, and for your humility, relying 
 nothing on yourself, but wholly on God, did 
 receive your Jesus and mine as your own, 
 show Him to me, dear mother. Introduce 
 Him to me that I may know Him and love 
 Him better and better day by day. Ask of 
 Him, dear mother, that He would lead me in 
 His way, that He would not leave me to 
 myself. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Behold the handmaid of 
 the Lord ; be it done unto me according to 
 Thy word."
 
 II 
 
 St Joseph and the Blessed Virgin 
 before the Birth of our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Look first at our Lady, and notice how full 
 she is of joy, for she has been chosen by God 
 to be the mother of His only-begotten Son. 
 She sees St Joseph's surprise and anxiety, 
 but she does not give him any explanation. 
 She does not defend herself. She knows 
 well that God will reveal the mystery in His 
 own time and in His own way. 
 
 Then look at St Joseph, and notice how 
 full of love he is for our Lady. He does not 
 understand her state, but he never doubts 
 her virtue. He leaves the explanation to 
 God. Then notice the joy with which he re- 
 ceives the message of the angel, bidding him 
 fear not.
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 How often I have suspected wrong where 
 none existed ! How often I have taken upon 
 myself the task, duty as I called it, of finding 
 out for myself the truth about some one of 
 my acquaintance ! Thus, if anything out of 
 the ordinary happens in the house, I am not 
 happy till I know all about it, especially if 
 any conduct of my sisters or brothers, or of 
 one of the servants excites remark ; or if the 
 priest annoys me, I can never leave the 
 matter alone. 
 
 O Jesus, how I thank you for your kind- 
 ness in giving me this lesson ! It was good 
 of you, Lord, to let St Joseph suffer all the 
 anxiety about your mother. It was good of 
 you to allow your mother to be under sus- 
 picion for my sake. I see now how you 
 would have me act when I suspect wrong. 
 How good of you it was to think of me and 
 my weakness, even when you were so entirely 
 united to one whom you loved more than all 
 the world ! Do not let me be so centred in
 
 St Joseph and the B,V.M, 
 
 myself that I cannot feel for others. And 
 you, dear mother, teach me to be slow to ex- 
 cuse myself, teach me not to feel hurt when 
 blamed, even though the blame is unreason- 
 able. Teach me to leave even my good name 
 in God's hands. 
 
 And you, too, dear foster-father St Joseph, 
 teach me to be kind, especially to those of 
 my own family ; not to be easily annoyed, 
 not to exaggerate what may appear wrong, 
 not to inquire too closely into the actions of 
 my friends, and certainly not to talk of their 
 faults. Gain for me just a little of your own 
 kind, quiet, trustful spirit. Make me less 
 hard in my judgements and less suspicious of 
 all those with whom I live. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, Mary, Joseph, I give 
 you my heart and my soul.
 
 Ill 
 
 Mary and Joseph at Bethlehem 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 Our Lady and St Joseph were the guardians 
 of Jesus. They knew He was coming to 
 them, and were anxious to prepare a fit place 
 for Him. They were hindered at every turn. 
 There was no room in the inns ; no room in 
 private houses. Each family had its own 
 friends. Mary and Joseph did not complain, 
 nor did they cease to look for shelter, but 
 went plodding on from house to house. God 
 would provide. They did not grumble, nei- 
 ther were they annoyed, though they were 
 both so very weary. When at last they found 
 shelter they tried to make the best of it. St 
 Joseph set to work to make the cave as com- 
 fortable as possible for our Lady, using the 
 scanty means at his command — a little straw 
 for the Child to lie upon ; a hurdle inter-
 
 At Bethlehem 
 
 laced with straw to stop the entrance of the 
 cave. Our Lady prepared the swaddhng 
 clothes. Then when Jesus was born she 
 attended to His comfort, and she forgot all 
 the weariness in her joy of His birth. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 When I have anything to do and am crossed 
 or hindered, I let everyone who sees me 
 know my annoyance. I am so often annoyed 
 in the face of opposition that I omit the 
 work I had intended to do. I am not so 
 much annoyed that the work has been hin- 
 dered as that I have been interfered with. I 
 complain, perhaps not openly, but certainly 
 to myself. Then the work suffers. When I 
 am allowed, I do it, but poorly, in a hurry, 
 carelessly, and afterwards I put the blame on 
 those who have opposed me. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for allowing all this 
 trouble for my sake. How kind it was of 
 you to let your mother and St Joseph suffer 
 all this annoyance that I might learn how to 
 act when I have to suffer small crosses and
 
 10 Simple Meditations 
 
 hindrances in my work ! I like to think of 
 you, dear Lord, pleased if any good woman 
 in Bethlehem was kind to your mother. 
 They were not all rough with her, were 
 they ? Some of them were kind to her, at 
 least in their looks, and you blessed them. 
 
 There was no room for you, Lord, but 
 some were sorry that they could not take 
 you in. Ah, let me find room for you and 
 make you warm with my love. I have re- 
 fused to receive you sometimes in Holy Com- 
 munion. I have made excuses, and not 
 roused myself to take you into my heart. 
 
 Mary, my mother, teach me to persevere 
 in spite of difficulties. St Joseph, teach me 
 to make the best of my opportunities to make 
 Jesus welcome. I cannot do much for Him, 
 but 1 can do that little with love. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, Mary, Joseph, make 
 my heart like unto yours.
 
 11 
 
 IV 
 
 The Birth of our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Up to the moment of His birih our Lady 
 had never seen her Son, and He had never 
 seen His mother with His human eyes. He 
 had not seen the world He had created as 
 we see it. He had seen it in a much higher 
 and more perfect way, but not in precisely 
 the same way that we see it. Thus it was 
 all new to Him. He had longed to see His 
 mother's face, and she had longed to see her 
 Child, and to delight His heart with her lov- 
 ing eyes. 
 
 The Nativity is the mystery of kind looks. 
 Gentleness and kindness in look was a gift 
 which our Lord was fond of using. We are 
 told there was one young mm whom He 
 looked upon and loved. It was in the first 
 moment of His life that He consecrated to
 
 12 Simple Meditations 
 
 Himself the power of influencing man by His 
 calm, loving, interested eyes. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE thought little of the good I might 
 do by kind looks. Often when spoken to 
 I do not take my eyes from my work, from 
 the letter I am writing, the book I am read- 
 ing. Often, too, I fail to do good because 
 I find it a trouble to show any interest in what 
 others speak to me about. I have, no doubt, 
 often failed to see what God wished me to do 
 or to see — opportunities of showing kindness. 
 Even when I have seen them, my eyes have 
 shown no sign of interest, have given no en- 
 couragement. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for this lesson. 
 How you must have enjoyed the first 
 look at your mother's face, the first glance 
 of her eyes ! How you loved to look at St 
 Joseph and watch him at his work, and mark 
 the kindness of his ministry to your mother ! 
 Give me, dear Lord, the grace to use the 
 power you have given to me, to look with
 
 The Birth of our Lord 13 
 
 kind regard on your friends for your sake. 
 Teach me to bring joy and not sorrow by 
 the glance of my eyes. However cross and 
 annoyed I may sometimes feel, give me the 
 strength of will to keep my crossness from 
 my eyes. Let me never anger another by 
 my angry eyes. 
 
 O Mary, my mother, I want to thank 
 you for putting our Lord into the manger so 
 that you might see Him more thoroughly, 
 might see the love in His eyes, and that He 
 might teach me the power of kindness in look. 
 
 Aspiration. — Dear Jesus, look upon me 
 and love me !
 
 14 
 
 V 
 
 The Birth of our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 The inconveniences our Lord suffered at 
 the time of His birth were but the first of a 
 long series to which He willingly submitted 
 Himself. He did so in order to help me 
 and give me an example of courage and 
 steadfastness. 
 
 His first experience was that He was an 
 outcast. He was to experience rejection all 
 through His life. Here, as in later events, 
 He would keep by Him some few friends. 
 His heart warmed to our Lady and St 
 Joseph, as it did to all those who in all 
 future time should try to befriend Him : 
 clothing Him in the person of His poor; 
 adorning His house in the Sacrament of the 
 altar where He dwells; teaching Him in the 
 person of the ignorant ; feeding Him in the
 
 The Birth of our Lord 15 
 
 person of His destitute friends ; seeking op- 
 portunities of being kind to members of His 
 body, which St Paul tells us is His Church. 
 He is helpless that we may be kind to Him ; 
 cold, that we may warm Him. 
 
 Facts in my owfi Life 
 I AM always suffering, or fancying that I 
 suffer, inconveniences — not having much to 
 spend, though all my real wants are sup- 
 plied ; not being noticed and made much of 
 by some of my own relations, though there 
 are others who are always thoughtful for me; 
 inconveniences also from sickness, inconve- 
 niences from weather, and the like. I have 
 got into the habit of not showing much an- 
 noyance over most of these things, still they 
 drive me into myself, prevent me from think- 
 ing of the needs and comfort of other people. 
 O Jesus, how much I thank you for going 
 through all these inconveniences for my 
 sake ! How kind of you to submit to rejec- 
 tion, almost by all ; not quite by all. Lord, 
 was it ? Was I included ? Did you see me
 
 l6 Simple Meditations 
 
 reject you, put you out into the cold ? How 
 often I have done so by my laziness, my 
 carelessness, my grumbling ! Teach me, 
 dear Lord, to learn your lesson of not being 
 driven into myself ; always, as you, thinking 
 of others when I am in pain or crossed. So 
 far, I have so often just closed my mouth 
 and sulked when in a bad humour. Teach 
 me to avoid the bad humour for your sake, 
 to give some little comfort to you. How 
 I wish I might have helped your mother 
 and St Joseph ! Ah, I can do it now ; 
 I can be kind to you, not always hanging 
 back because it will take my time when 
 there is some one who can be instructed 
 or cheered or helped in innumerable ways. 
 Let me, dear Lord, have the grace to sacri- 
 fice myself a little to give you pleasure. 
 
 Aspiration. — "Amen, I say to you, if you 
 do it to one of My little ones, you do it 
 to Me."
 
 17 
 
 VI 
 
 The Shepherds come to Adore 
 
 Facts in our Lord ^s Life 
 Our Lord sent the angels to tell the shep- 
 herds that He was born, and to bring them 
 to the cave. The angels were sent to those 
 of least account in the country about Bethle- 
 hem. The shepherds were poor, in all pro- 
 bability, dirty, ignorant men whom most 
 would avoid. But they were sincere and 
 innocent, and these are the ones whom 
 God loves, and whom the angels delight to 
 visit. The angels bring them peace and 
 joy, and lead them to Jesus. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I OUGHT to be a promoter of the interests 
 of Jesus, and there are some at least in the 
 town and round about it to whom I could 
 bring peace and joy, and whom I could help 
 to know Jesus better. There are those who
 
 i8 Simple Meditations 
 
 are poor and ignorant, and some of them, no 
 doubt, dirty. Most people would say that if 
 they need my help they ought to come to me. 
 Jesus sent His angels to such. I know more 
 about Him than most of the poor and the 
 neglected. I can do a great deal for them, 
 not by giving money only — the angels did 
 not bring food or clothing or money to the 
 shepherds. I can do what the angels did. 
 I can teach a little, I can bring peace by 
 advice and kindness ; and I can lead them 
 to Jesus. I have done so very little so far, 
 I will not try to make just a spurt which 
 will not last, but I will try to take opportu- 
 nities which present themselves to do this 
 angels' work for my Lord. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind it was of you to send 
 these angels to the poor shepherds for my 
 sake ! How kind of you to teach me whom 
 you wish me to help, whom to bring to you ! 
 You have been so kind to me to let me know 
 something about you, and to give me some 
 little experience of teaching little ones that 
 I might be able to help others so neglected,
 
 The Shepherds come to Adore 19 
 
 so poor. I do thank you for this. I can 
 then do something for you. How ashamed 
 I have been to do this angels' work ! how 
 touchy about what so and so would think 
 of me if I were to begin ! Ah, Lord, you 
 have shown me what you think of it. Grant 
 me the grace not to hold back from any 
 cowardly motive whenever you send me to 
 the poor. I cannot, dear Lord, give much 
 time, nor have I much of anything to give, 
 but it is good of you to let me do anything 
 for you. Give me grace to see what I carf' 
 do, and courage to do it for your sake. Give 
 me grace to-day to find some one whom I 
 may help. Teach me not to be hard with 
 the poor ; not to make a jest of what they 
 may say to me ; not to use anything I may 
 learn about them in order to make conversa- 
 tion, unless it is edifying. Only let me be 
 anxious to bring good tidings and peace to 
 all to whom you send me, and to lead them 
 to you, dear Lord. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Glory to God in the high- 
 est, and on earth peace to men of good will."
 
 20 
 
 VII 
 
 The Kings come to Adore 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 He began at once to attract men to Him- 
 self. He uses different means with different 
 men. With these wise men He makes use 
 of their knowledge of astronomy. He brings 
 them from a great distance and makes 
 apostles of them. He wishes to attract all. 
 " I will draw all things to myself." These 
 wise men come and offer what they have : 
 gold, their substance in His service ; incense 
 of prayer, their time in His service; myrrh 
 of self-restraint. So in His later life He 
 said : " Blessed are the poor in spirit, for 
 they shall see God." " Amen, I say to you, 
 whatsoever you shall ask in My name it shall 
 be given to you," and " Blessed are ye when 
 ye suffer persecution."
 
 The Kings come to Adore 21 
 
 Facts in viy own Life 
 I ALSO have been drawn by our Lord, but 
 I have held back. I have not followed Him 
 with whole-heartedness. I have found it 
 hard to give for His sake either substance 
 or time. I have grudged Him time for 
 prayer, and the effort necessary for good 
 prayer. I have given Him very litde in the 
 way of mortification, even those which He 
 has lovingly sent me — sickness, uncongenial 
 companions, aches and pains I have not 
 borne very patiently. Any little sacrifice of 
 money or time for the sake of those He 
 has given to me I have hesitated over or 
 given without cheerfulness 
 
 O Jesus, how kind it was of you to show 
 me how mean I have been to you and 
 yours ! Forgive me, Lord, and now at last 
 take my heart and my all. Teach me to 
 give for you. Not to haggle with myself 
 what I ought to part with ; not to consider 
 so much whether I can lawfully retain things, 
 but rather whether I can do without, so that
 
 22 Simple Meditations 
 
 I may be able to be kind to others for your 
 sake. How good of you also to take frank- 
 incense from these wise men ! How little 
 I have given you ! How cold have been 
 my prayers ! how careless ! how hurried ! 
 What little trouble I have taken to learn 
 bow to pray ! How little attention I have 
 given to those who have tried to teach me ! 
 Now, Lord, that you have been so good to 
 me, let me profit by your goodness. Let me 
 not lose the time by laziness, by want of 
 effort. As to mortification, dear Lord, I 
 will follow your kind advice given me by 
 my confessor. Teach me and strengthen 
 me. How foolish I might be in this way 
 if you had left me to myself ! Teach me to 
 willingly take what trials you have sent me 
 or will send me, in the household, in the 
 misunderstanding of others. Let me, dear 
 Lord, learn to be willing to take trouble for 
 your sake. 
 
 Aspiratmi. — Jesus, take from me what 
 you desire ; I will give it freely.
 
 23 
 
 VIII 
 
 The Flight into Egypt 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As soon as Jesus comes to us we turn Him 
 away, and He goes, for the time, only to 
 come back again. So it was always in His 
 life. He was driven from Bethlehem, from 
 Nazareth, from Cana in Galilee, from Jeru- 
 salem, and always returned doing good. So 
 in his flight He would take His Mother and 
 St Joseph with Him, and He would with 
 them and tlirough them do good always. 
 Jesus bore no malice, was always ready to 
 forgive; never on any occasion did He say : 
 "Because you have done so and so against 
 Me, I will not speak to you, I will not take 
 interest in your good." 
 
 Facts ifi my own Life 
 If any one is hard on me, I remember it. If 
 any one refuses to take a word of advice,
 
 24 Simple Meditations 
 
 I close up and never think of trying a 
 second time. No ; I have been bitten once, 
 I will be twice shy, as the saying is. If I 
 am prevented from doing one kind of work 
 I am out of temper for a time, instead of 
 setting to work at something which I can 
 do. If I have been rudely treated at one 
 place, I make up my mind never to go there 
 again. The two methods are rather far 
 apart, are they not? 
 
 Jesus, how kind of you to give me this 
 lesson ! How kind to begin at the very first 
 to show me so plainly how I ought to behave 
 when I receive a rebuff ! Let me have you 
 with me, dear Lord, and Mary and Joseph. 
 In your company I may have strength to act 
 more disinterestedly, less selfishly. I do so 
 wish to learn these little kind, forgiving ways 
 from you, my Lord. I find it so hard, not 
 so much to look as though I did not feel 
 slights and cross words, but really to forgive 
 them at once, to excuse them and think you 
 for them. 
 
 1 am so grateful to you, my Jesus, for
 
 The Flight into Egypt 25 
 
 your kindness in letting me see how I have 
 done wrong. Teach me also to imitate you 
 fully. Give me some of your own strength 
 and love. 
 
 Aspiration. — Make my heart like unto 
 Thine !
 
 26 
 
 IX 
 
 The Massacre of the Innocents 
 
 Fads in our Lord^s Life 
 
 To secure the destruction of our Lord, Herod 
 ordered the slaughter of all male infants up 
 to two years of age in the district of Bethle- 
 hem. He failed to obtain his object, though 
 he was able to inflict a most serious injury 
 on the country. Why did our Lord allow 
 such a butchery ? First, to assert His right 
 to take life when He wishes ; secondly, to 
 show how He can frustrate all the wiles of 
 the world ; thirdly, to be very kind to these 
 children by taking them out of danger and 
 securing heaven for them. They form the 
 bodyguard of our Lord in heaven. They 
 are very close to Him now. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I ONLY look at the present effect of pain and 
 loss, forgetting that all pain may be made
 
 The Massacre of the Innocents 27 
 
 a gift to our Lord. He sends me pain not 
 simply to hurt me, but to give me some- 
 thing to offer to Him ; something which He 
 wants to reward me for. I receive it, but 
 not always willingly. When I hear of pain 
 borne by others, especially the poor, I am 
 inclined to grumble at God's providence. I 
 do not, as I ought, see how His work may 
 be furthered by pain, by loss. As usual, I 
 am mostly thinking of myself; nursing my 
 grievance, instead of willingly and cheerfully 
 enduring, and helping others to endure, what 
 pains He, in His mercy, sends me and those 
 I love. 
 
 O Jesus, it was kind of you to let these 
 poor innocents suffer for their own sakes and 
 for me also. Let me learn the lesson of their 
 death. Teach me that life and ease here are 
 not the end of all. Teach me that your work 
 may always be furthered by my suffering. 
 Let me, not only in word but in deed, cheer- 
 fully take what you give me to suffer, and 
 give it back to you to be used for your own 
 ends. It is not much. Lord, that you ask me
 
 28 Simple Meditations 
 
 to bear. I will not add to the suffering of 
 others by obtruding my own, but I will calmly 
 and cheerfully thank you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Let me suffer for Thee and 
 with Thee, Lord.
 
 2f) 
 
 X 
 
 The Life at Nazareth 
 
 J*ac^s in our Lord's Life 
 
 Jesus was the most holy one on earth. His 
 mother, infinitely below Him in sanctity, 
 came next, and an immeasurable distance 
 above any other. St Joseph came last. This 
 was the order of sanctity. 
 
 The very opposite was the order of obe- 
 dience. The first, with full authority over 
 the others, was St Joseph. The second, our 
 Lady, owing obedience to St Joseph, and 
 claiming obedience from our Lord ; and last, 
 the Infant Jesus, the subject of both. He 
 voluntarily chose the lowest place. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE been given authority over others in 
 many ways, and I have found it difficult not 
 to assume authority where I have none. I 
 
 4
 
 30 Simple Meditations 
 
 try to get my own way with all, not only 
 with those I have some authority over, but 
 also with those who have authority over me. 
 I do give in, indeed, at times, but with a bad 
 grace, and then I do not fail to let people 
 know that what I proposed would have been 
 better. I may not say as much, but I look it. 
 Sometimes I make quite a disturbance over a 
 very trivial matter. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind and considerate it was 
 of you to take the lowest place and be sub- 
 ject so completely to your Mother and foster- 
 father, though by all titles you had absolute 
 authority over both, and an authority, too, 
 which both of them would have been willing 
 to acknowledge. It was kind of you for my 
 sake to be a child and to obey in all things, 
 not questioning, as sometimes you might 
 have done, the wisdom of the orders given ; 
 not correcting St Joseph when he took wrong 
 measurements and made ill-fitting joints, 
 though you knew so much better. Teach me 
 to submit readily, not simply to keep silence 
 and seek for opportunities to change the order
 
 The Life at Nazareth 31 
 
 given. Teach me not to give advice except 
 in a humble way ; not to assert myself, but 
 only the truth ; not to lay too much stress on 
 the capital letter I ; not to jest about orders 
 given or about mistakes made by those who 
 have authority over me. Make me ready 
 cheerfully to do another's will even against 
 my own. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Not my will, but Thine be 
 done ! "
 
 32 
 
 XI 
 The Loss of Jesus at Jerusalem 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 St Joseph took our Lady and her son up to 
 Jerusalem for the feast of the Pasch. Our 
 Lord was twelve years old, and able, as St 
 Joseph thought, to look after Himself; thus, 
 when the feast was over, he was not surprised 
 that Jesus was not with them. He took for 
 granted that He was not far off, and in the 
 evening, when the camping ground was 
 chosen, though tired, he and our Lady went 
 about seeking the Child. They did not find 
 Him with any of their friends and relations, 
 so without delay they returned to Jerusalem 
 to seek Him. They did not find Him at all 
 soon. After three days they found Him in 
 the Temple.
 
 The Loss of Jesus at Jerusalem 33 
 
 Facts in my mvn Life 
 
 I HAVE often lost Jesus, not by great sins, 
 thank God, but by letting something not 
 Jesus come into my life : laziness, for ex- 
 ample; selfishness in my little properties — 
 our Lord is never with me when I am self- 
 ish ; wilfulness in my methods of work — He 
 is never with me when I am wilful ; careless- 
 ness in my prayer — He is never with me as 
 much or as closely as He would like to be 
 when I am careless in prayer; want ot 
 courage to do what I know to be His will 
 when it may make me seem ridiculous — 
 Jesus is never very close to a coward. And 
 so of other occasions. I have not been used 
 to look for Him very assiduously. I have 
 gone on being lazy ; I have persisted in my 
 wilfulness ; I have been careless for months; 
 I have been sensitive to ridicule ever since I 
 can remember. 
 
 O Jesus, how hard it was for you to leave 
 Mary and Joseph ! but you did it to bring 
 home to me how I ought to seek you.
 
 34 Simple Meditations 
 
 Thank you, dear Lord, for doing so, for 
 hiding yourself that I might learn how to 
 look for you and find you. You put St 
 Joseph and your mother Mary to pain for 
 my sake. Thank you, and may you be ever 
 blessed for the love you thus showed for me. 
 As soon as I am conscious that you are not 
 with me, Lord, through my own fault, give 
 me grace to seek you till I find you. Mary, 
 my mother, help me to find your Son ; help 
 me to know Him better; help me to love 
 Him so intensely that I may at once recog- 
 nize when He is not near me. And holy St 
 Joseph, teach me your own quiet, humble, 
 thorough way of seeking Jesus ; never to lose 
 heart till I find Him and take Him back to 
 myself. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Thy father and I have 
 sought Thee sorrowing."
 
 35 
 
 XII 
 The Finding of Jesus in the Temple 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 At last they come to the Temple and find 
 Jesus with the doctors or teachers of the 
 law, listening to them and asking them ques- 
 tions. All wondered at His prudence and 
 His answers; and His mother said to Him : 
 " Son, why hast Thou done so to us ? Be- 
 hold, Thy father and I have sought Thee 
 sorrowing." Notice how she puts St Joseph 
 first. And Jesus answered : " Why have 
 you sought Me ? Did you not know I must 
 be about My Father's business?" Notice 
 that He was listening to the doctors, though 
 He had given them all the knowledge that 
 they possessed ; asking questions as a disciple; 
 it was His way of bringing the best out of 
 these men. Jesus was always trying to get 
 the best out of those whom He dealt with.
 
 36 Simple Meditations 
 
 He was not asking questions or giving an- 
 swers simply for show. He wanted these 
 men to have an opportunity to allow Him to 
 help them by His grace. 
 
 Then, again, our Lady gives an example 
 of humility. All the authority which St 
 Joseph had over our Lord came to Him 
 because he was Mary's husband. It was 
 through her, and yet she sinks herself and 
 puts him forward. Then again, there is the 
 assertion of our Lord : " Did you not know 
 I must be about My Father's business?" 
 Our Lady and St Joseph in their anxiety for 
 Him were forgetting,— and He would not 
 have any of His friends ever forget — that the 
 business of His Father, that is, the salvation 
 of souls, the salvation of my soul, is the 
 business He has always at heart, is always 
 intensely interested over. 
 
 Facts in my own Life. 
 I AM not a very good listener, especially 
 when anything is spoken of which I know 
 something about. I want to have my word
 
 The Finding of Jesus 37 
 
 in, not in the form of a question as though 
 for information, but in the form of a correc- 
 tion. I, indeed, propose questions some- 
 times ; but mostly when I am not interested, 
 or when I fancy I cannot shine, I prefer to 
 go out. Listening quietly and asking pru- 
 dent questions, not contentious ones, bring 
 the best out of the speaker. Then, again, I 
 prefer to put myself forward if I have a 
 right, and I do not like another to get what 
 recognition I consider belongs to me. I 
 do not think it is fair that another should 
 get praise for what I have done. Again, I 
 am often forgetful of my Father's business. 
 When I get a chance of doing good to 
 others, I am deterred by the thought of 
 what others will say of me. Our Lord sub- 
 mitted to the only word of complaint on re- 
 cord from His mother (she could not have 
 ridiculed Him, but she seemed to be blaming 
 Him) just to show me that I must be ready 
 to face some inconvenience or annoyance 
 when there is question of my Father's 
 business.
 
 38 Simple Meditations 
 
 O Jesus, what a number of lessons you 
 teach me here ! Thank you, dear Lord, for 
 all the trouble you have taken over me. 
 How little I have thought that I was not 
 following in your footsteps when I was so 
 hasty to get away from the talk of visitors 
 or callers. Teach me to endure even stupid 
 talkers for your sake. Teach me to change 
 my manner if I may do your work by so 
 doing. 
 
 Mary, my mother, get me this beautiful 
 lowly spirit to put others first, even though I 
 have the right to be first. 
 
 Jesus, make me unite myself to you 
 always in being interested over souls. I 
 might do so much by a little kindness, a 
 little forgetfulness of self, a little more 
 thought of the duty to be interested over my 
 Father's business. 
 
 Aspiration. — Our Father, who art in 
 heaven, Thy kingdom come !
 
 39 
 
 XIII 
 The Youth of our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 He went down to Nazareth and was sub- 
 ject to Mary and Joseph. His mother kept 
 His words in her heart, and Jesus grew in 
 wisdom and age and grace wilh God and 
 men. This is all we know about the life of 
 our Lord for eighteen years. He is said by 
 the Holy Spirit to have grown in wisdom 
 and in grace, because, though He knew all 
 things and had all grace. He wished to show 
 to men while He was in subjection only that 
 wisdom which might have been expected 
 from a boy of His age; and we know that 
 He always wished to hide from others the 
 great grace which was His during His whole 
 life. So He sat at the feet of Mary His 
 mother, and learned the psalms which He 
 had inspired and the prophecies which He
 
 40 Simple Meditations 
 
 had revealed. Thus His growth in wisdom 
 depended on His subjection. 
 
 Fads in my own Life 
 I HAVE not grown much in wisdom and 
 grace, though I have somewhat in age. I 
 am really wiser in some ways, of course : but 
 in the way in which our Lord would have 
 me grow I have not made much progress. 
 In grace I have been at a standstill for a 
 long time. Perhaps it has been the want of 
 subjection, which was the condition of our 
 Lord's growth, which has stunted my growth. 
 I have not been particularly subject, for 
 example, to the priests of the mission; I 
 have not considered that I should learn 
 much from them or from any members of 
 my family. It never struck me to listen and 
 learn. If St Joseph, even, were to try and 
 teach me how to carve I should feel inclined 
 to go and do something else. On the whole 
 there has not been much subjection in my 
 life. 
 
 O Jesus, to think that you should take
 
 The Youth of our Lord 41 
 
 such trouble to help me ! I am not worth it 
 all, Lord, but I will try to profit by all your 
 love and care. Ah, give me ALary's grace to 
 listen to your words and ponder them in my 
 heart. How little I have had there hitherto 
 except self! Let me find room for you. 
 You were subject to your own creature for 
 me; I will try and be subject to your priest 
 at least for you. 
 
 Ah, let me grow in wisdom to see you, 
 dear Lord, in all things, and to obey you in 
 all those who may help me to grow in grace. 
 Let me, dear Lord, make up for the want of 
 growth so far by a fresh start. 
 
 Aspiration. — Be subject to all men for 
 God's sake.
 
 42 
 
 XIV 
 
 The Death of St Joseph 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 After our Lord returned to Nazareth, He 
 came more fully under the influence of St 
 Joseph, and He loved him most tenderly ; 
 but as He drew near to the time of His 
 missionary life, He saw well to give St 
 Joseph rest. It was necessary that our Lord 
 should stand by Himself. St Joseph's work 
 was done till the Church should be founded. 
 This foundation was to be our Lord's own 
 work. Thus our Lord told St Joseph that 
 his death was at hand, and with all filial 
 affection He prepared him for it, and with 
 our Lady's help closed his eyes and took his 
 soul to remain for a short time in Limbo. 
 Because St Joseph was prepared by our Lord 
 Himself for his death he has been ever since 
 the patron of a happy death.
 
 Death of St Joseph 43 
 
 Facts in my oivn Life 
 God has given me a work to do, and when 
 I have done it or hopelessly failed to do it 
 He will take me from this world. What 
 that work is I cannot tell, and therefore I 
 do not know when He will take me. It is 
 absolutely necessary that I should be pre- 
 pared if I wish to die well. I shall not be 
 properly prepared as long as I have a dread 
 of death which prevents me from thinking 
 calmly about it. I will ask St Joseph to help 
 me to overcome this dread. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for giving me this 
 lesson ; I require it very much. How good 
 of you to let St Joseph die, that I might see 
 the beauty of a holy death, and the com- 
 fort of a death at which you and your 
 blessed mother assist. What has made me 
 so frightened of death is that I think only of 
 what I shall lose by it ; I think only of my- 
 self. Grant that I may think less of myself 
 and more of you. Give me grace to learn 
 how sweet it is to die in peace and in your 
 sacred arms.
 
 44 Simple Meditations 
 
 My dear mother Mary and my holy pa- 
 tron St Joseph, teach me to accustom myself 
 to the thought of death. Be with me in that 
 hour, and with you bring your son. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, Mary, Joseph, may I 
 die in peace in your blessed company.
 
 45 
 
 XV 
 Our Lord^s Parting from our Lady 
 
 Facts in our LonVs Life 
 
 When our Lord was thirty years of age, the 
 time determined at which He was to mani- 
 fest Himself to men had arrived. So far He 
 was known only as the son of Joseph, the 
 carpenter, and known to very few. Now the 
 special work of His life was to begin. Here 
 again, as at that first manifestation in the 
 Temple, He separates Himself from every 
 human tie. Not that Mary would have 
 hindered Him, but for our sakes, because 
 our relations not unfrequently do hinder us 
 in our work for God. For love of us and 
 to encourage us to make sacrifices of affec- 
 tion, our Lord separates Himself from His 
 Mother. 
 
 5
 
 46 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE been buried in my own family. If 
 Almighty God were to make it plain to me 
 that it was His will that I should separate 
 myself from my home, I should, I hope, do 
 so, but I should take it very hard ; I should 
 be very glad if I were told that I need not 
 do so. It is not that I am attached to any 
 individual member, so that if it were for my 
 own ease, or comfort, or benefit, I should 
 not hesitate, but for God's work I should 
 feel inclined to argue the matter and seek 
 for reasons why it was not proper or good 
 that I should leave my home. I feel in- 
 clined to put home first. It may be that 
 there will be some work for God which will 
 necessitate home taking the second place. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for showing me the 
 truth that if you require this sacrifice from 
 me I shall be unfaithful if I do not make it. 
 Mary, my mother, teach me to give up for 
 your Son's sake even my life if it be neces- 
 sary, my affections if called upon. I have
 
 The Parting from our Lady 47 
 
 become attached to one or two who have 
 been kind to me; grant me courage, Lord, 
 to bravely give up these attachments if you 
 call upon nie to do so. I do not wish to be 
 a hindrance to your work in any way. Let 
 me learn also to help others to bear partings 
 which are inevitable ; give me strength not 
 to make them more painful than is neces- 
 sary by breaking down and allowing myself 
 to be weak when I could by my strength be 
 a help to others. 
 
 My dear mother Mary, you knew you 
 were letting your son go forth to rejection, 
 torment and death, but I cannot think of 
 you as hindering Him in any way or making 
 His work more painful. Obtain for me the 
 same courage. 
 
 Aspiration. — All for Jesus !
 
 48 
 
 XVI 
 Our Lord's Baptism by St John 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord presented Himself to St 
 John to be baptized, St John made a diffi- 
 culty. He said it was more fitting that 
 he himself should receive baptism from our 
 Lord. But our Lord wished to show us 
 that it was not wise to stand always on 
 our rights. He wislied to give us an ex- 
 ample of humility, and at the same time to 
 show us how to recognize the office of those 
 who are really below us. His humility was 
 rewarded by His Father, for the heavens 
 opened and a voice was heard saying: "This 
 is My beloved Son, in whom I am well 
 pleased." 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE always found it difficult to humble 
 myself, not that I do not believe in the good
 
 Our Lord's Baptism 49 
 
 of humility, but I shrink from doing any- 
 thing which shows a humble spirit ; I dislike 
 being "taken down." I do not care to ask 
 anyone to do things for me, even my own 
 people, for fear of being beholden to them. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind you are to me, hum- 
 bling yourself for my sake, correcting me by 
 your example ! I am so loth to suffer hu- 
 miliation, and yet do you not teach me, 
 Lord, that it is only by means of humilia- 
 tion that I can follow you ? You do not ask 
 me to do anything which will bring ridicule 
 on me, though you did not shrink from 
 ridicule yourself. You only ask me not to 
 be so careful to avoid a little slight, not to 
 be so afraid of a little word which may give 
 my pride a wound. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me meek and 
 humble of heart.
 
 50 
 
 XVII 
 
 Jesus was led by the Spirit into 
 the Desert 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 After He had been baptized, our Lord went 
 into a desert place to prepare Himself by 
 prayer for His public work. He did not 
 require preparation, but, as was His custom, 
 He was thinking of me. He, the God of 
 all providence, needed no time for prepara- 
 tion, but those who were to come after Him, 
 who were to continue His work, were to seek 
 calmness of mind and strength of purpose 
 where alone it can be obtained — in prayer. 
 So all through His life our Lord, emptying 
 Himself and taking the form of a servant, 
 would always take time to pray, and in order 
 that He might pray with less distraction 
 from without, He so often retired into a
 
 Jesus led into the Desert 51 
 
 desert place. In this instance, as the work 
 He was beginning was very great, He added 
 fasting to His prayer. 
 
 Facts in ?ny own Life 
 I VERY seldom think it necessary to prepare 
 for my work for God. I have not been used 
 by our Lord in His work as much as I might 
 have been, because the work was likely to 
 suffer from my want of preparation. My 
 Lord was always ready to answer any call 
 made by His Father. He teaches me in 
 this place that if I am to be fit, I must pre- 
 pare myself by prayer and by self restraint. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind you are to me ! How 
 patient with me in my negligence ! I do 
 want to be used by you in your work. I 
 cannot be of much use to you, dear Lord, 
 but I do wish at least to follow you. I know 
 well that you have given me this call, even 
 though you have not shown me very plainly 
 what else you wished me to do for you. 
 Give me the grace to listen to your call. 
 Give me the strength to persevere in my
 
 52 Simple Meditations 
 
 prayer and my self-restraint, that in your 
 good time I may do something for you, 
 I know it must be very little for I am so 
 weak, but let me be ready for that little. 
 I see now, Lord, I can do nothing unless 
 I rely on your strength, the strength you 
 give me in prayer. 
 
 Aspiration. — I will follow Thee, Lord ; 
 only show me the way.
 
 53 
 
 XVIII 
 The Temptations of our Lord 
 
 The First Temptation 
 
 Facts in our Lord ^s Life 
 
 After His baptism our Lord retired into 
 the desert and fasted for forty days The 
 devil came to Him and tempted Him to 
 exert His power in order to supply Himself 
 with food : " Command that these stones be 
 made bread." Our Lord knew that many 
 who would love Him would be tempted in 
 the matter of meat and drink, and He would 
 suffer the same temptation to let them know 
 that they do not lose His favour by such 
 temptations, and also to show them how to 
 overcome them. Always thinking of me, 
 He remembers what may be a difficulty to 
 me, and He gives me the lesson: "Not in 
 bread alone doth man live, but in every word 
 that proceedeth from the mouth of God " ;
 
 54 Simple Meditations 
 
 and in another place : "My meat is to do 
 the will of Him that sent Me." 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 How much I have to accuse myself of in 
 this matter ! How eager I am for food ! 
 How nice in the selection ! I am inclined 
 to eat and drink, not because I need food, 
 but because it is within my reach ; I am 
 tempted to take more than is good for me, 
 and sometimes what I know does not agree 
 with me. I scarcely require to be tempted 
 on this point ; I give way so easily. Then 
 after living in this unmortified way, perhaps 
 for years, I read of the long fasts and pe- 
 nances of the saints, and I lose heart; or 
 I have tried a mortification which was be- 
 yond my strength. Whether inimortified or 
 self-mortified, I have been in the wrong. 
 
 O Jesus, how good and kind of you to 
 endure this temptation for my sake ! I do 
 wish, dear Lord, to act according to your 
 will. I may not be allowed to fast, but let 
 me know what you would have me to do in
 
 The First Temptation 55 
 
 other ways. At least I can be less particular 
 in the choice of food ; at least I may restrain 
 myself by not taking food which I know from 
 experience is not good for me. 
 
 I know you will be good to me, dear 
 Lord, in this, as in so many other things 
 you have been good to me ! Would that 
 I might do some little for you. Teach me 
 to keep myself in hand by thinking of you 
 and your words : " Not in bread alone doth 
 man live." 
 
 Aspiration. — To do the will of Him that 
 sent me.
 
 56 
 
 XIX 
 
 The Second Temptation 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord had conquered the first 
 temptation, the devil assailed Him at once 
 with another. This time he began by 
 flattery, as He thought he could in this 
 way persuade our Lord to presumption. Of 
 course it would have been no presumption 
 if our Lord had followed the devil's advice, 
 for at His will He could have raised Him- 
 self from the streets to the pinnacle of the 
 temple, and, without any aid from the angels, 
 have returned to the streets again without 
 any exertion of His body. He would not 
 do it, because He was thinking of me, and 
 He knew that I should be assailed by many 
 suggestions of the devil which I could not 
 follow without presumption. Therefore He 
 here gives me the answer to presumptuous
 
 The Second Temptation 57 
 
 thoughts : " Thou shall not tempt the Lord 
 thy God." 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 Ah nie, how often and how foolishly have 
 I presumed on the mercy of God ! I have 
 put myself in danger of a fall, relying on the 
 strength of my character, on the supposed 
 purity of my motive. I have gone into 
 company that was dangerous. I have 
 trusted myself to read books which I 
 have been warned against, saying to my- 
 self that they would do me no harm. I 
 have been careless about venial sins some- 
 times, though knew that such careless- 
 ness was the usual preliminary to mortal 
 sins. I have presumed, not so much on 
 the mercy of God as on my own strength, 
 and God has now and again let me learn 
 how weak that strength was. In His love 
 of me He has taught me this lesson. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for your condes- 
 cension in allowing Satan to tempt you in this 
 way. You allowed him to molest you, Lord,
 
 58 Simple Meditations 
 
 because you wished me to learn from you 
 how to deal with him. Shall I ever learn to 
 know the voice of the tempter, and be 
 prompt to answer him in your words? 
 O Jesus, I can never come very near to 
 you till I am more careful and more fear- 
 ful of a fall than I have been. Deign to 
 teach me. Give me of your divine careful- 
 ness; give me of your divine promptness. 
 Guard me from myself, for I know the devil 
 can never harm me unless I myself allow 
 him. 
 
 Aspiration. — I will not tempt the Lord 
 my God.
 
 59 
 
 XX 
 
 The Third Temptation 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 The devil had no sooner been repulsed than 
 he returned with another temptation. He 
 suggested that as he had so much power 
 over men he would be able to give our Lord 
 many kingdoms, and that as he had so much 
 power the little service he demanded was not 
 unreasonable : " If falling down thou wilt 
 adore me." There is no hesitation in our 
 Lord's answer : ** Begone, Satan, for it is 
 written, 'The Lord thy God shalt thou 
 adore, and Him only shalt thou serve.' " 
 In the other temptations, when Satan had 
 suggested actions which would show only 
 His folly if our Lord had performed them 
 in the spirit suggested by Satan, our Lord 
 simply met the suggestion and suffered the 
 tempter to remain ; but when, as now, He
 
 6o Simple Meditations 
 
 was tempted to an action which would have 
 been disloyal to His Father, He drives the 
 devil away in confusion. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 Ah me, is it not true that I am much more 
 anxious to avoid what will bring me into 
 ridicule than what will bring religion and 
 the honour due to God into disrepute? If 
 a companion of mine were to tempt me 
 to gluttony or to drunkenness, or to doing 
 something which would cause men to 
 stare at me, I should not allow the sug- 
 gestion for a moment. But if the suggestion 
 is not to go to church, not to take up some 
 devotion honourable to God, or to show 
 some disrespect to God's minister, am I so 
 ready to repel the temptation ? I am afraid 
 not. Raise a laugh against me and I am 
 in arms at once : raise a laugh against 
 Catholic practices or against some too ear- 
 nest priest or nun or companion, and I am 
 ready to join in the laugh. 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for submitting your-
 
 The Third Temptation 6i 
 
 self to these temptations for my sake. It 
 was for my sake that you let the devil over- 
 reach himself, as he did when he suggested 
 that you should for a promise of temporary 
 power forget your Father. I have so often 
 been willing, not indeed to adore the devil 
 but to put up with him in order to get into 
 a fashionable set, to have my name in the 
 papers along with Satan's friends. I have 
 been content to be taken for one that did 
 not belong to you, Lord, one not of your 
 body, which is the Church. How good of 
 you to show me my folly ! I do beg pardon, 
 Lord! 
 
 O my God, I have had my idols in the 
 past ; I will adore only you in the future, 
 (jive me strength to bear even ridicule for 
 you. Give me strength to stand up at once 
 for you. 
 
 Aspiration.— 'Yhtt only, Lord, I will 
 adore.
 
 62 
 
 XXI 
 
 The Ministry of the Angels 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 The angels must have been very near our 
 Lord all through His life, yet only on this 
 occasion is there mention of their ministry to 
 Him. Why was this ? It was not because 
 they could give Him anything which He 
 had not of His own power. It was not as 
 if He had need of comfort, for He is the 
 *' God of all consolation," as St Paul calls 
 Him. It could not be to satisfy any need of 
 His, for He is the God of all, and everything 
 was His own to be used at His will. No, it 
 was not for Himself but for us that we are 
 told the angels ministered to Him. He had 
 vanquished the evil one ; He had driven 
 him away; He had repelled all his tempta- 
 tions. But He thought of poor fearing me,
 
 The Angels* Ministry 63 
 
 who am never sure that I have quite con- 
 quered, never sure that I have not taken his 
 stones as if they were bread, or that I 
 have listened too long to the presumptuous 
 thoughts he suggested, or that I have been 
 quite loyal to my God. The angels came 
 and ministered to Him, to let me know that 
 even while I am in the very heat of tempta- 
 tion they are not far from me ; that I only 
 have to cry out, and they will help me. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I GET so down-hearted after temptation ; I 
 bear up while I am in actual conflict, but 
 afterwards, when the devil has left me, the 
 distress comes upon me — " Have I been 
 firm, quite firm? Has my weakness amounted 
 to disloyalty ? Have I lost God's grace ? " 
 I fancy I could get out of myself a little if 
 only I could rely on someone else ; I should 
 have courage, I should be less cast down. 
 
 O Jesus, how good of you it was to let 
 the angels come and minister to you, though 
 you did not need them ! You allowed it,
 
 64 Simple Meditations 
 
 Lord, for my sake; it was my temptation 
 you were thinking of my weakness you 
 wished to make into strength ; my faint 
 heart you wished to comfort. Help me, 
 Lord, when in trouble, to remember your 
 angels and take courage. 
 
 And you, my good guardian angel, 
 whisper to me when the tempter would 
 have me dwell too long or too greedily on 
 my food; whisper to me, "Not by bread 
 alone does man live"; and when the evil 
 one would suggest that I should presume 
 on God's mercy or on my own strength, 
 do you whisper in my ear : " Thou shall 
 not tempt the Lord thy God." When he 
 tempts me to vainglory or to guilty ambi- 
 tion, or foolish boasting, do you remind me, 
 " The Lord thy God shalt thou adore, and 
 Him only shalt thou serve," and in God's 
 strength I shall be strong and drive the evil 
 tempter away from me, and be consoled and 
 no longer troubled. 
 
 Aspiration. — My good angel guardian, 
 enlighten and protect me.
 
 65 
 
 XXII 
 The Marriage Feast at Cana 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord began His ministry by working 
 this great miracle. It was in pity to the 
 poor people who had not provided sufficient 
 wine for the feast, and in answer to our 
 Lady's request. What actually took place 
 was that, as soon as our Lady saw the need 
 of the friends who had invited her, she 
 simply told our Lord, and then gave to the 
 waiters the only advice that is recorded of 
 her in the Gospel. Seeing from our Lord's 
 look that He was going to give His divine 
 help, she said to the waiters : " Whatsoever 
 He shall say to you, do ye." The incident 
 was of common occurrence among the poor. 
 I, no doubt, should have been disgusted, and 
 have called attention to the folly of the people 
 who had invited more than they could pro-
 
 66 Simple Meditations 
 
 perly entertain. Our Lady's first thought 
 was to help them, and she went the most 
 direct way about it. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 With my friends I should probably act in 
 the same way, that is, I should try not to 
 expose their want of providence ; but with 
 acquaintances only, perhaps I should not be 
 so particular — I should point out that, with 
 proper care, such a thing would not happen. 
 I should not have thought of our Lady's way. 
 It would be something to laugh over after- 
 wards. Now I may see what is the first law 
 of kindness — never to think what amusement 
 I can get out of my neighbour's mistakes, 
 but how I can save them from feeling the re- 
 sult of their folly or wrong-doing. I have 
 usually been quite satisfied with saying : " It 
 serves him or her right ; they should have 
 been more careful." I should never think of 
 asking our Lord to come to their assistance 
 to save them from the annoyance of failure 
 O Jesus, I thank you for showing me
 
 The Marriage at Cana 67 
 
 your and your blessed mother's way of act- 
 ing in these circumstances. Pardon me for 
 so seldom trying to spare people from the 
 effects of their mistakes. I see it is your 
 will that I should always think first what is 
 the kindest thing I can do, and then rely on 
 you to help me to do it. I have so often 
 been negligent and selfish. Let me learn 
 kindness from you and from your blessed 
 mother. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me kind and 
 thoughtful for others.
 
 68 
 
 xxm 
 
 The Marriage Feast at Cana 
 
 Fads in our Lord^s Life 
 
 The wine fails ; our Lady asks for an inter- 
 vention of divine power in order to save the 
 young people from a small disgrace. Our 
 Lord grants her request. Then she gives 
 the only piece of advice that is preserved for 
 us in the Gospel. She turns to the waiters 
 and says to them: "Whatsoever He shall 
 say to you, do ye." They act on her counsel, 
 and in a few moments the water is changed 
 into wine. So it is our Lady's office and her 
 delight to do little services for us, and it is her 
 Son's delight to give us favours through her. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE practically excluded the events of 
 my every-day life from my prayers. They
 
 The Marriage at Cana 69 
 
 are too trivial, I think ; they are so small 
 that it does not seem proper to mention 
 them in my prayers. I like to pray for 
 bigger things — for conversions, for success 
 in some important matter, etc. 
 
 O Jesus, it is kind of you to think of me 
 when you are working such a great miracle. 
 You wished to let me see, dear Lord, how 
 I might appeal to you in quite ordinary 
 difficulties. The wine wanted was very 
 cheap, and they might have procured some 
 from a neighbour, but you wished to let 
 me see that you are always on the look 
 out for occasions of kindness, and that you 
 are always ready whenever your mother 
 asks you to do as she requests. Teach me, 
 Lord, to turn to you through Mary at all 
 times. Make me love you so much that my 
 first thought will be to turn to you in every 
 difficulty. Be kind to me always, dear Lord, 
 and to all who are kind to me. Make me 
 kind to all for your sake. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me always kind.
 
 70 
 
 XXIV 
 
 The Calling of the Disciples 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Two of John the Baptist's disciples were 
 talking with him a few days after the temp- 
 tations when our Lord passed by, and John 
 saidj pointing to our Lord : " Behold the 
 Lamb of God." Andrew and John heard 
 the words, and immediately went up to our 
 Lord and asked Him where He lived. 
 Jesus said to them : " Come and see " ; and 
 He walked with them and stayed talking to 
 them till it was night. Andrew told the 
 good news to his brother Peter; and John, 
 no doubt, told his own relation, James, 
 though in his Gospel he says nothing of 
 what he did, but only tells us of Andrew's 
 zeal. The next day Jesus was walking and 
 talking with the four who had joined Him, 
 when they met Philip, and Jesus said to
 
 The Calling of the Disciples 71 
 
 him, " Follow me," and Philip joined them. 
 He told Nathaniel, who, after a little con- 
 versation with our Lord, joined the disciples; 
 in like manner the rest were called and 
 followed. 
 
 J^ac/s in my own Life. 
 I TOO, whoever I may be, have been called 
 by God to help Him in His work. He may 
 not have asked me to do much, but still it is 
 His work. If He has not given me a very 
 definite call, he has, at least, asked me to 
 follow Him. I have paid very little atten- 
 tion to His call ; I have been afraid that to 
 follow Him might mean more than I wished 
 to do or to give ; I have feared that He 
 might ask too much of me. I see now how 
 I ought to be ready whenever and for what- 
 ever He asks me. Ah me, how negligent 
 I have been ! I cannot expect that He will 
 use me at all if I am not more prompt to do 
 His work than I have been hitherto. 
 
 O Jesus, how backward I am in zeal! j 
 will try to do better in future. How kind it
 
 72 Simple Meditations 
 
 is of you to give me another chance ! O my 
 Lord, I hope no one has suffered through my 
 want of effort. I will come and see you 
 where you dwell in the Blessed Sacrament 
 as often as I can. I will follow you wher- 
 ever you lead me. I will try in your work 
 to forget myself and think only of what I 
 can do for you. I will try my best, without 
 ostentation, to do good and bring joy to 
 others. 
 
 Aspiration. — I will follow Thee, Lord.
 
 73 
 
 XXV 
 The Life at Capharnaum 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Immediately after the marriage feast at 
 Cana our Lord and His mother, His rela- 
 tions and His disciples, went from Nazareth, 
 where His home had been, to Capharnaum. 
 He Himself did not remain long, but after a 
 few days He went through the towns and 
 villages of Galilee on His first missionary 
 journey. 
 
 At Capharnaum He would meet a larger 
 concourse of people than at Nazareth, and 
 there He left His mother. He would ex- 
 perience the inconvenience of changes, the 
 inconvenience of a strange house. He took 
 His mother to a small house near the edge 
 of the lake, and the holy women, her rela- 
 tions, no doubt, accompanied her. Always 
 thoughtful for the comfort of His mother,
 
 74 Simple Meditations 
 
 He foresaw what would happen when the 
 men of Nazareth turned against Him, and 
 our Lady would be freer from molestation at 
 Capharnaum. In a larger town she would 
 be really more private and more secluded 
 than in the little hill town, every member of 
 which knew her. Again, He would be 
 much more frequently with her at Caphar- 
 naum. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 So many things which concern the joy of 
 those I live with are not considered by me 
 of much consequence. I do indeed consult 
 with them, but I feel that it is mostly for my 
 own sake, to save annoyance to myself after- 
 wards, than from any very great desire of 
 consulting their wishes or their comfort. 
 
 O Jesus, I do thank you for your kind- 
 ness to our Lady, your mother and mine. 
 How many nights did you spend with her 
 even when most busy with your preaching, 
 telling her all that was in your heart ! Ah, 
 how little I tell even you, dear Lord, of the 
 things I am interested in ! I have so little,
 
 The Life at Capharnaum 75 
 
 except myself, to talk about. I will strive to 
 follow you here also. I can tell you of no 
 effort I have made for others. I can only 
 tell you of my want of effort. I know, dear 
 Lord, that you are even now going about 
 doing good in the towns and villages. I 
 have been so little interested in your work. 
 Do, dear Lord, if it is your will, let me help, 
 at least, let me not stand in your way in my 
 own case. Help me that I may help your 
 work in my own little way. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me all Thine, 
 and then use me as Thou wilt.
 
 76 
 
 XXVI 
 The Beginning of the Preaching 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As soon as our Lord had attended to the 
 comfort of His mother at Capharnaum He 
 began to go about preaching. The first 
 subject of His discourses was penance, as 
 though continuing the teaching of St John 
 the Baptist : ** Do penance, for the kingdom 
 of God is at hand." In His preaching, 
 though He always spoke as a master, our 
 Lord constantly appealed to the Scriptures 
 and to the holy men of the Jews, and so He 
 was not averse from appearing as a disciple 
 of St John the Baptist, though St John him- 
 self said *' I ought rather to be baptized by 
 Thee," and he might have said " I am Thy 
 disciple," Our Lord, as usual, was not 
 thinking about Himself but about me, who 
 find it so hard to continue another's work.
 
 The Beginning of the Preaching 77 
 
 Facts in ffiy own Life 
 I FIND it very difficult to take up another 
 person's work. If I am called upon to do so 
 I begin by showing the faults in^he work 
 before it came into my hands. I want to 
 make a fresh start, to belittle what has been 
 done, and to magnify what I have done. I 
 try to give the impression that nothing had 
 been done before I began. In many in- 
 stances I know that I could do nothing un- 
 less the way had been made smooth for me 
 by those who have gone before me. 
 
 O Jesus, my own dear Master, how kind 
 it is of you to let me see the pride I have 
 been guilty of! How thoughtful of you to 
 let me see you apparently taking up St John's 
 work ! It is good of you. Lord, to do this 
 just for my sake. How shall I ever thank 
 you enough for all your care of me ? I will 
 try to be less forward. I will try to sink my- 
 self and my own views more than I have 
 done in the past. If only I could see your 
 hand in other people's work as you saw your
 
 78 Simple Meditations 
 
 Father's hand in St John's work, I could 
 more easily follow and be less anxious to 
 assert myself. I do wish to follow you and 
 to help the work you have in hand, and in 
 your strength to do your work, Lord. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Do penance, for the king- 
 dom of God is at hand ! "
 
 79 
 
 XXVII 
 The Draught of Fishes 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord at once attracted great multitudes 
 to Him, and one day, shortly after He had 
 begun to preach at Capharnaum, the multi- 
 tude pressed upon Him so that He got into 
 Peter's boat and taught the crowd from the 
 boat. Wlien He had finished speaking, He 
 told Peter to get into deeper water and let 
 down his net. Peter had been fishing all 
 night and had taken nothing, but at our 
 Lord's word he did as he was told, and at 
 once enclosed a very large number of fish, 
 enough to fill his own ship and also that 
 belonging to St James and St John, who 
 were his partners. Peter at once recognized 
 the power of our Lord and, fearing, fell on 
 his knees, begging Him to leave him be-
 
 8o Simple Meditations 
 
 cause He was not worthy to associate with 
 such holiness. " Depart from me, for I am 
 a sinful man, O Lord." Jesus answered : 
 " Fear not ; from henceforth thou shalt 
 catch men." 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I, TOO, have laboured many years, and seem- 
 ingly with only partial success. I have 
 trusted only to myself, and I have expected 
 more from myself than I had any right to 
 do. And now that our Lord has taken me 
 more closely to Himself and given me His 
 friendship I am just a little afraid that He 
 may want too much of me, and I am in- 
 clined, with Peter, to hold back. I do not 
 indeed ask our Lord to depart from me, but 
 I have seen so little profit so far that I want 
 to know where He is taking me and what 
 He expects of me. I am afraid He may ask 
 me something very hard. 
 
 O my own dear Master, I can trust you ; 
 at least, I want to trust you wholly. How 
 good you have been to me to show me how
 
 The Draught of Fishes 8i 
 
 others, even great saints, have been afraid 
 to follow ! If you had left Peter then, and 
 taken him at his word, what a wreck he 
 would have made of his life ! Give me the 
 grace, like him, to leave all and follow you. 
 You do not ask me, dear Lord, to leave 
 much, only my own will, my own way ; but 
 do let me learn your will and your way, and 
 then give me the courage of St Peter to 
 follow it always. Thus only can I expect 
 to do good to myself and others ; thus only 
 can I catch souls for you. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Leaving all things they 
 followed Him."
 
 82 
 
 XXVIII 
 
 Our Lord drives the Moneys 
 changers out of the Temple 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 Very early in His missionary life our Lord 
 went up to Jerusalem to keep the Pasch. 
 When He went into the Temple He found 
 the outer courts crowded with oxen and 
 sheep, etc., and those who sold these things. 
 They were there for the convenience of those 
 who came to offer sacrifice or to make other 
 offerings in the Temple. Offerings of this 
 kind could be redeemed at a price fixed in 
 the law. The money had to be offered in 
 the old Jewish coinage, hence it was a con- 
 venience to have money-changers in attend- 
 ance. Our Lord saw that these men, both 
 those who sold animals and the money- 
 changers, were trying to make a profit out
 
 Driving out the Money-changers 83 
 
 of His service, and twisting some cords into 
 a lash, He drove them out of the Temple. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I ALSO have been ready to make a profit 
 out of my service of God — not perhaps a 
 money profit, but profit in those things 
 which men value even more than money. 
 If our Lord were to search my thoughts. He 
 would find more care for the good opinion 
 of my friends and neighbours than for His 
 service. I like those who are about me to 
 get the impression that I frequent church, 
 that I live an orderly life for the best and 
 the highest of motives ; but our Lord knows 
 me as I am. He sees my anxiety to be 
 thought well of. In other words, I am 
 making a profit, not for my soul and for 
 eternity, but for myself here out of my work 
 which is apparently good. 
 
 O Jesus, spare me ; do not visit me with 
 stripes, for I am so weak, but teach me 
 gently in your own sweet way how I may 
 put every other motive but your love out of
 
 84 Simple Meditations 
 
 my heart. Your house is a house of prayer 
 in which my heart and my mmd, leaving all 
 other things, should be fixed on you alone. 
 My prayers and my work must be to you 
 and for you. Drive all other motives and 
 all thoughts of self-seeking from my heart, 
 that I may offer you daily a clean oblation 
 of myself. 
 
 Aspiration, — My Jesus, I will do all for 
 love of Thee.
 
 85 
 
 XXIX 
 Jesus distrusted them 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 The strong action of our Lord in driving 
 these self-seekers out of the Temple at- 
 tracted much attention, and many, St John 
 tells us, believed in Him ; " but He did not 
 trust Himself to them, for He knew all 
 men " ; and again, ** He knew what was in 
 man." 
 
 Here our Lord is letting me see at the 
 very beginning of His work what I have 
 found out after many years — not to trust 
 myself to my fellows. Jesus, after much 
 training His disciples, did trust Himself to 
 them ; but how terribly they disappointed 
 His trust! Our Lord knew what was in 
 men, both the good and the evil, the 
 strength and the weakness. These men 
 whom He did not trust were attracted by
 
 86 Simple Meditations 
 
 His miracles ; those whom He did after- 
 wards trust had left that selfish love of the 
 wonderful and had settled down to steady 
 daily constant effort for Him and for His 
 work. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I HAVE never trusted others very much. I 
 find it really hard to tell my thoughts and 
 my inner feelings even to my God, whom 
 I do wish to trust. But the question with 
 me now is whether I am going about the 
 right way to get my Lord and Master to 
 trust Himself to me. He has been very 
 kind to me, and has shown Himself in a 
 way I never saw Him before. How can 
 I keep His trust ? There is only one way> 
 and that is to root out self from all I do. 
 
 O Jesus, make me worthy of your trust. 
 It is what my heart yearns for. It is your 
 love that I want. Do not let me keep to 
 the old way of burying myself in myself and 
 trusting no one. Let me open my heart to 
 trust you and rely on you, so that you. Lord, 
 may trust yourself to me.
 
 87 
 
 XXX 
 
 Nicodemus comes to our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 While our Lord was in Jerusalem for the 
 Pasch, Nicodemus, a ruler, that is, one of 
 the ruling class among the Jews, came to our 
 Lord. He had been struck by what he had 
 heard about our Lord, and he came to in- 
 quire. Nicodemus came at night so that 
 his visit might be secret. Our Lord does 
 not yet trust him because he comes attracted 
 by the miracles ; still he goes a little beyond 
 those who thought only of the miracles : 
 " No man can do these things unless he is of 
 God " — so he comes to inquire. Our Lord 
 graciously instructs him in the sacrament of 
 Baptism, in the duty of faith, and in the 
 mystery of the Incarnation, the mystery of 
 God's love for man. Lastly, He tells him : 
 "He that doth truth cometh to the light," that
 
 88 Simple Meditations 
 
 is, one who deliberately and firmly does 
 what he knows to be right will be certain 
 to be rewarded by the gift of faith and of 
 light which will explain all things. How kind 
 our Lord is with him ! He does not trust 
 him yet, but afterwards when he has lived 
 a few more years and tried to gain our 
 Lord's trust, he is rewarded, and is men- 
 tioned as one of the disciples after the 
 Resurrection. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 Perhaps I have met with opportunities of 
 instructing, or at least of giving some advice 
 to those who were seeking the truth, but I 
 have held back from speaking to them 
 through motives of human respect — I have 
 not dared to reason with people cleverer than 
 myself. Or it may have been that I did not 
 care to give the time and trouble to this 
 work for God. I hope I have not allowed 
 any one to abuse my faith in my presence, 
 but I have sometimes neglected these chances 
 of doing good by my want of care and tact.
 
 Nicodemus comes to our Lord 89 
 
 O my Jesus, I thank you for letting me 
 see how I may, quietly and without fuss, do 
 good to any that ask me questions about 
 religion. I will get them to think for them- 
 selves ; to read useful books ; to pray for 
 light to know the truth and your will in 
 their regard. Jesus, help me to bring others 
 to the light as you brought Nicodemus. 
 
 Give me grace to walk in the truth my- 
 self, and to do the truth always as I know it, 
 that I may have light for my own soul and 
 then help others to you.
 
 90 
 
 XXXI 
 Our Lord and St John the Baptist 
 
 Facts in cur Lord^s Life 
 
 When our Lord began to preach and to 
 baptize, some of St John's admirers came to 
 tell him of the great success which attended 
 our Lord's preaching. They, no doubt, fan- 
 cied that St John would make greater efforts 
 to draw back to himself some of those who 
 had left him to follow our Lord. They were 
 very much mistaken. St John knew his 
 place, and was not going to do anything 
 to hinder our Lord's influence, but rather he 
 wished to do all in his power to further it. 
 " He must increase, but I must decrease," 
 was the answer he gave to the suggestions 
 of his followers. It is proper that, when the 
 real king comes, the ambassador steps down 
 and takes his ordinary rank.
 
 Our Lord and St John the Baptist 91 
 
 Facts in my oivn Lift 
 The reason why I have not succeeded as 
 I might have done in my work for God has 
 been precisely that I never quite forgot my- 
 self; I must not decrease in the esteem of 
 others ; I must not get any rebuff, or I will 
 not continue the work. Though I have 
 scarcely recognized this myself because I 
 have not been clear-sighted enough to see 
 it, no doubt others have seen my selfishness. 
 I have lost occasions of doing good in a 
 humble, quiet way, just as St John would 
 have lost his grace of martyrdom if he had 
 not been so humble. How easy it would 
 be for me to bring a little joy into the lives 
 of others, not by interfering, but by trying 
 to be kind to all for God's sake ; not by 
 being anxious to do great things, but by 
 being contented to do the small and unim- 
 portant things, for which I shall get no 
 praise, but for which only God will get 
 honour ! 
 
 O Jesus, how your saints shame me !
 
 92 Simple Meditations 
 
 I thank you, dear Lord, for letting me see 
 my forwardness, and for recalling me to my 
 proper place. Give me grace to learn the 
 lesson of St John's life. I am willing, Lord, 
 to decrease, to become as nothing, if only as 
 nothing you will use me for your service. 
 I am in your hands ; do with me as you 
 will. Keep me near you, dear Lord, worth- 
 less though I am. 
 
 Aspiration. — To be kind to all for God's 
 sake.
 
 SIMPLE MEDITATIONS 
 
 ON THE LIFE OF OUR LORD 
 
 Second Series
 
 BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 
 
 (Uniform with this Volume.) 
 
 Simple Meditations on the Life of 
 our Lord. First and Third Series. 
 
 Meditations on the Passion. First 
 and Second Series. 
 
 Simple Aids to the Devout Recitation 
 of the Rosary. 
 
 Price Sixpence eacli (net).
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of our Lx^rd 
 
 By the Right Rev. 
 
 JOSEPH OSWALD SMITH 
 
 Abbot of Amplefofth 
 
 SECOND SERIES 
 
 Second Editiont Revised 
 
 CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY 
 
 69 Southwark Bridge Road 
 
 London, S.E, 
 
 1906
 
 Nihil Obstat: 
 
 J. A. Wilson, O.S.B., D.D. 
 
 Imprimatur : 
 
 *i* F. A. GASQUET, O.S.B., D.D., 
 
 Abbot of Reading, 
 
 Preside fit General of the English Congregation 
 of the Order of St. Benedict.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 MEDITATION PAGE 
 
 I. Jesus at the Well of Samaria ... 7 
 
 II. The Sermon at Sichar 10 
 
 III. The Healing of the Ruler's Son ... 13 
 
 IV. Jesus teaching in the Synagogue ... 16 
 V. Healing of Peter's Mother-in-law 19 
 
 VI. Our Lord heals Many 
 
 VII. Jesus stills the Storm 25 
 
 VIII. Our Lord and the Gcrasenes .. 28 
 
 IX. The Cure of the Demoniac 31 
 
 X. The Healing of the Paralytic . 34 
 
 XL The Call of St. Matthew 37 
 
 XII. The Feast at St. Matthew's House 40 
 
 XIII. The Disciples of John the Baptist 
 
 XIV. The Petition of Jairus 
 
 XV. The Healing of the Woman 
 
 XVI. The Healing of Jairus's Daughter 
 
 XVII. The Cure of Two Blind Men 
 
 XVIII. The Cure of the Dumb Man 
 
 XIX. Our Lord returns to Jerusalem 
 
 43 
 46 
 
 49 
 52 
 55 
 5« 
 61
 
 Contents 
 
 MEDITATION' PAGE 
 
 XX. The Man healed at Bethsaida ... 64 
 
 XXI. The HeaUng on the Sabbath ... 67 
 
 XXII. The Jews seek to kill our Lord ... 70 
 
 XXIII. St. Mary Magdalen 73 
 
 XXIV. The Cure of the Withered Hand ... 76 
 XXV. The Sermon on the Mount 78 
 
 XXVI. "Blessed are the poor in spirit" ... 81 
 
 XXVII. "Blessed are the meek" 83 
 
 XXVIII. " Blessed are they that mourn " ... 85 
 
 XXIX. " Blessed are they that hunger and 
 
 thirst after justice " 88 
 
 XXX. " Blessed are the merciful " ... 91 
 
 XXXI. " Blessed are the clean of heart ... 94 
 
 XXXII. " Blessed are the peace-makers "... 97 
 
 XXXIII. " Blessed are they that suffer perse- 
 
 cution for justice sake " 99 
 
 XXXIV. The Centurion's Servant 102 
 
 XXXV. The Widow of Naim 105
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of our Lord 
 
 Second Series 
 
 Jesus at the Well of Samaria 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 On His way from Judea to Galilee Jesus 
 did not, as was customary, go on the east 
 bank of the Jordan, crossing again just below 
 Capharnaum, but He went straight through 
 Samaria. One day, wearied with walking. 
 He stopped near the town of Sichar at a well 
 made by the patriarch Jacob, and there He 
 had a conversation with a woman who came 
 to draw water. He led her gradually to give 
 Him her confidence, and then made use of 
 her to bring her neighbours to Him ; and He 
 made many converts. The woman herself
 
 S Simple Meditations 
 
 was of no repute, but the manifestation of 
 Himself which our Lord was pleased to 
 make to her changed her from a careless, 
 sinful woman into an apostle. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 How careless I have been of spreading the 
 kindness of my Lord among my neighbours ! 
 By God's grace I have not been so careless 
 as was this woman before our Lord took 
 her in hand, but this was owing to His 
 grace only. 
 
 I have been afraid of a word of rebuff or 
 of a thoughtless laugh from some of my 
 friends, and because of my fear I have often 
 neglected to attract others to our Lord by 
 kindness and consideration. Perhaps I have 
 rather repelled my acquaintance by my too 
 great strictness and harshness. I hope no 
 poor lax soul has been kept from becoming 
 a friend of my Lord by my want of kind- 
 ness. 
 
 O Jesus, kind and gentle Master, I thank 
 you for remembering me when you were so
 
 Jesus at the Well of Samaria 
 
 tired. How gently you won this erring soul 
 and made her bring others to you ! Teach 
 me your ways. Be gentle with me, dear 
 Lord. You have been so kind in the past in 
 so many ways ; be kind to me now and teach 
 me to bring your kindness into my daily 
 life. I see now that you wish me to war 
 against the carelessness of my friends and 
 acquaintances more by kindness than by 
 harshness. Teach me still more of your 
 way, and grant me yet more grace that I 
 may not forget the example you have given 
 me. Save me, dear Lord, from a harsh and 
 forbidding manner in your service, and make 
 me always kind and gentle as you were, my 
 Lord and my God. 
 
 Aspiration. — Learn of Me, for I am meek 
 and humble of heart.
 
 II 
 The Sermon at Sichar 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 When the disciples returned from buying 
 food in the town^ they found Jesus talking 
 with the woman at the well. As soon as she 
 had gone they brought Him the food and 
 asked Him to eat, but He refused ; and 
 when they wondered, He said to them : 
 " My meat is to do the will of Him that 
 sent Me, that I may perfect His work." 
 The disciples had taken a great deal of 
 trouble to get food, and they thought that 
 our Lord must do as they wished ; but He 
 would not eat. He wished to teach them a 
 lesson at the very beginning of their time of 
 training — a lesson which would be of much 
 use to them later. After He was gone they 
 would each be more or less independent.
 
 The Sermon at Sichar 
 
 They would rule one of the Churches to be 
 founded by them, and they must be taught 
 at once that it was not their will which had 
 to be done, but the will of Him who sent 
 them. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 God in His mercy has shown me what the 
 obstacle has been which has prevented me 
 from loving and serving Him as I ought. 
 Left to myself, I naturally go my own way 
 and do my own will. I see now that I must 
 put aside for ever this barrier of self-seeking, 
 of self-love. 
 
 O Jesus, my Lord, give me the grace to 
 know your will ! Let me be as wax in your 
 hand, that you may impress your sweet will 
 upon me. Help me to cast aside my own 
 will and to seek only yours. Make me con- 
 stant, so that it may be the meat and drink 
 of my soul ; and let me seek nothing, 
 crave for nothing, enjoy nothing, which is 
 contrary in the slightest degree to your 
 will. Jesus, my beginning and my last end,
 
 12 Simple Meditations 
 
 I will try to conform myself to your holy 
 will in all things ; in your mercy do not 
 ask me to do anything very difficult till 
 by your grace I may be able to do your 
 holy will with all thoroughness. 
 
 Aspiratio7i. — Not my will, but Thine be 
 done.
 
 13 
 
 III 
 The Healing of the Ruler's Son 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 This poor man heard that our Lord had 
 returned from Jerusalem ; and finding his son 
 at the point of death and getting no help 
 from the doctors, he made up his mind to 
 seek this new Teacher who had made Him- 
 self so famous by the wonders He had 
 worked in Jerusalem. He set out from 
 Capharnaum and met with our Lord just as 
 He was entering Cana in Galilee. He simply 
 made his request that our Lord would come 
 down and heal his son. Our Lord put him 
 off at first, but when the ruler persevered, 
 saying : " Lord, come down before that my 
 son die," Jesus assured him, and sent him 
 home believing.
 
 14 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I have been discouraged when my prayer 
 was not granted at once. Perhaps my re- 
 quests have sometimes been quite as un- 
 reasonable as was that of this ruler. Our 
 Lord had had a long walk and was, no 
 doubt, tired, yet the ruler wished Him to 
 go at once another fourteen miles to Caphar- 
 naum. Do not I ask things quite as un- 
 reasonable ? And how little do I really trust 
 in our Lord ! I must see instances of His 
 intervention or I do not think of praying to 
 Him — not that I doubt His power to help 
 me, but I want to have my faith roused be- 
 fore I can remember to turn to Him at once 
 in my difficulties. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind it is of you thus to 
 teach me how to pray ! I will try to-day, at 
 least, to call upon you, no matter how trivial 
 my difficulties may be. Teach me, dear 
 Lord, to be reasonable in my demands from 
 you. How little I have thought of your 
 will in my prayers and petitions !
 
 The Healing of the Rulcr^s Son 15 
 
 Let me learn to leave the answer to my 
 prayers in your hands. Be good to me, 
 Lord, and do not let me lose heart when 
 you seem not to hear me. I know you 
 are listening to me. Lord, always ; let me be 
 content with that, for I know also that you 
 will surely answer my prayers in your own 
 time. 
 
 Aspii-afion. — Not as I will, but as Thou 
 wilt.
 
 i6 
 
 IV 
 
 Jesus teaching in the Synagogue 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 We constantly meet the phrase with which 
 St. Luke describes our Lord's teaching : 
 "He taught with power" — that is, He 
 taught as one who knew what He was 
 teaching. Our Lord had a very direct way 
 of teaching, suited to the simple people 
 whom He was instructing. St. Paul tells us 
 the difference between our Lord's teaching 
 and that of the other teachers of the Jews. 
 He says He did not teach, " it is and it is 
 ?iot,'^ but " // is was in Him." The scribes 
 were for the most part disputing whether a 
 certain doctrine were true or not, therefore 
 they failed to teach anything positively ; but 
 our Lord knew, and therefore taught in a 
 direct way. This was the reason of His
 
 Jesus teaching in the Synagogue 17 
 
 power. Again, He was always anxious that 
 those who heard His instructions should 
 profit by them; He was not seeking praise 
 for Himself but their good. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I have a way of being rather positive in 
 anything I have to teach, but not for the 
 same reason as our Lord ; it is not because 
 I know, but because I think that I know, 
 when I really may be wrong. And this has 
 not been the chief fault of my teaching but 
 rather that I have looked for praise, instead 
 of for the good of those I had to teach. I 
 can see what an amount of influence for 
 good I have lost in this way. How much 
 more I might have done for God had I not 
 been so self-seeking ! 
 
 O Jesus, my own dear Master, teach me 
 also with power, and make something of me 
 even at this hour! Pardon me. Lord, for 
 my blindness and weakness. I see now it 
 has always been myself that has been my 
 chief hindrance in your service. Take me
 
 1 8 Simple Meditations 
 
 into your own chosen company, that I may 
 learn of you how to walk. Teach me to 
 trust no longer to myself, to work no more 
 for myself, but, leaning on you, to work for 
 you always. 
 
 Aspiration. — Speak, Lord, for Thy servant 
 heareth.
 
 19 
 
 Healing of Peter^s Mother-in-Law 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Immediately after leaving the synagogue 
 our Lord went into Peter's house and there 
 found Peter's wife's mother sick of a fever. 
 Peter and his relations besought Him to 
 heal her. Jesus standing over her took her 
 by the hand and commanded the fever, and 
 it left her. She, as soon as she found her- 
 self well again, rose up and ministered to our 
 Lord and His disciples. Up to this He had 
 for the most part made difficulties about 
 working miracles, but in the present case He 
 at once healed this good woman. He did 
 this so promptly, partly for Peter's sake ; 
 partly for the sake of the disciples who 
 needed the food that she had, no doubt, 
 often prepared for them ; and partly for the 
 pleasure which this ministry would bring to
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 the good woman herself. He could quite as 
 easily have entertained the whole company 
 without her help, but He wished to show me 
 that it is a kindness to let others do what I 
 can do myself perhaps better than they. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I am often putting others aside and doing 
 what I think I can do well, rather than 
 letting them have the pleasure of doing it 
 themselves. I tell myself if I see a pained 
 look, that I can do the thing better than 
 others, and that they ought not to be 
 aggrieved. Still I know well that I feel 
 hurt if any one takes work out of my hands. 
 I may well believe that it is not always a 
 kindness to prevent another from doing 
 what I perhaps could do better. At least, I 
 can see how my Lord acted. It would have 
 brought great credit to Him if He had 
 miraculously provided a suitable feast for 
 the disciples, but it was Peter's mother-in- 
 law's proper duty, and he would not rob her 
 of the pleasure of providing the whole enter-
 
 Healing of Peter's Mother-in-Law 21 
 
 tainment. I am afraid I should not have 
 looked at the matter in that way. 
 
 O Jesus, kind and thoughtful Master, I 
 thank you for this lesson! I must often 
 have spoiled the pleasure of others by my 
 habit of trying to do everything myself. 
 Especially in my intercourse with children I 
 have been to blame in this way. 
 
 It is a great secret that you teach me. 
 Lord, and I will try to bear it in mind. 
 You are good to let me know it. Teach me 
 yet more to think of the joy and the pleasure 
 of others and less of myself. I see now. 
 Lord, for you yourself show it me, how I 
 can rejoice in the joy of another and give 
 pleasure simply by interfering as little as I 
 can. I shall get less praise, Lord, but they 
 will have more pleasure. 
 
 Aspiration. — Kind Jesus, teach me your 
 own kind way always.
 
 VI 
 
 Our Lord heals Many 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 The same evening after sunset they brought 
 the sick with all kinds of diseases to Him. 
 " But He, laying His hands on every one of 
 them, healed them.'" The whole city was 
 aroused with the fame of our Lord's miracles, 
 and we can gain an idea of His kindness 
 from the fact that even after a long and 
 tiring day He did not refuse to lay His hands 
 on all. He did not, as He might so easily 
 have done, make excuses and heal just a few 
 of the worst cases, but He went to the door 
 and with great trouble and no little fatigue 
 He put His sacred hands on each of them 
 and healed them.
 
 Ojt Lord heals Many 23 
 
 Jmr/s in viy own Life 
 
 The " many '' are just those I take no 
 interest in and will not trouble about. I am 
 ready to do anything for those who are 
 attached to me, but I try to avoid any work 
 for the many. I give my prayers freely 
 to my relatives and friends, but I do not 
 consider I am called upon to give ever 
 so small a prayer for the many. I give a 
 great deal of kind thought to my special 
 friends, but it does not strike me to excuse 
 the faults of my acquaintances and others, or 
 to think of them as anything but necessary 
 evils. 
 
 O Jesus, how you shame me by your 
 kindness to all ! You, dear Lord, made no 
 exceptions. I thank you for showing me 
 your way. I shall have many difficulties in 
 following your example. I have always 
 preferred to choose the hard things I would 
 do for you, but here you have shown me 
 something difficult, and yet it is much more 
 in your way than anything I should have
 
 24 Simple Meditations 
 
 chosen. Teach me, dear Lord, to be kind 
 to all. I do not wish to be less kind to my 
 friends, but more kind to yours. How 
 much of self has been mixed up with the 
 little good I may have done ! Give me 
 strength to imitate you in your care and 
 trouble for the many. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, help me to be kind to 
 all for your sake.
 
 25 
 
 VII 
 Jesus stills the Storm 
 
 Facts in our Lor(Vs Life 
 
 Our Lord's first journey had brought Him 
 to the shore of the Sea of Galilee. He 
 entered into a boat and His disciples followed, 
 and Jesus lay down in the boat. He was 
 tired, for He had been curing the sick at 
 Capharnaum in Peter's house during the 
 first part of the night. He had risen early 
 and gone out to a lonely place to pray ; He 
 had been wandering with His disciples all 
 day. And as He slept a great storm arose. 
 Then His disciples came and awakened 
 Him, saying : " Lord, save us ; we perish." 
 And Jesus said to them : " Why are ye 
 fearful, oh ye of little faith ? " Then rising 
 up, He commanded the winds and the sea, 
 and there came a great calm. They were
 
 26 Simple Meditations 
 
 quite safe, but our Lord wished to inspire 
 confidence in their hearts that He would 
 not abandon them. 
 
 Facts in my ow?i Life 
 Have I ever doubted our Lord ? Perhaps 
 I cannot remember. But then I have never 
 been in a storm when He has been asleep. 
 Of course I have had my troubles, but per- 
 haps I have never had any serious one. If 
 any great trial should ever come upon me 
 I must never forget my Lord and His love 
 and care of me. He is always there, how- 
 ever tired He seems, and He must often be 
 tired of me. I need not wait for a big 
 storm to awaken Him when He seems to be 
 leaving me to myself. 
 
 O Jesus ! :give me a great trust in you. 
 The apostles had only just known you and 
 they were afraid ; but I have known you all 
 my life. I have known your love and care 
 of me, for you have given me so many proofs 
 of it, dear Lord. Grant that I may never cease 
 to trust you. Often in the past I have let
 
 Jcsits stills the Storm 27 
 
 you sleep. I have forgotten you were near 
 me, and have gone on in my own way as if 
 I had power of myself to do your will and 
 to gain heaven. I have too much need of 
 you, not only to preserve me in storm, but 
 to help me forward in the calm. Oh, how 
 good you have been to me ! Even in the 
 storm you have not allowed me to be lost, 
 for though I let you sleep, your heart was 
 ever wakeful. 
 
 Aspiration. — Lord, save me, or I perish.
 
 28 
 
 VIII 
 
 Our Lord and the Gerasenes 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As soon as they came to land there met 
 Him a man possessed by the devil. He 
 had been out of his mind for a long time 
 and -dwelt naked in a cave, and was a terror 
 to all near. As soon as Jesus came, the 
 evil spirit in the man flung him down before 
 Jesus, and cried out, begging not to be 
 tormented. And when Jesus cast him out 
 he begged to enter a herd of swine near, and 
 Jesus allowed him ; and the herd of swine, 
 under the influence of the evil one, ran 
 violently into the sea and was stifled. Then 
 the people came and in fear besought Jesus 
 to leave their country. They were afraid 
 that He might be asking too much of them if 
 He began by letting the evil spirit destroy 
 their swine in that way. Our Lord took
 
 Our Lord and the Gerascnes 
 
 them at their word, and getting into the boat 
 He returned to Capharnaum. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I am often a little afraid of what our Lord 
 may ask of me. Though I do not really 
 think I should ever ask Him to go away, 
 no matter what He took from me. I have 
 become attached to some things, and it 
 would be dreadful if any attachment could 
 ever make me forget that God is first and 
 must remain first in my heart. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for letting me see 
 that your service is not always easy. I 
 sometimes feel as if I should like to do 
 something hard for you ; but when you ask 
 me, I may not have the courage to do as 
 you wish. Teach me, dear Lord, how I 
 may make myself ready. You know what a 
 poor weak creature I am. Teach me not to 
 give my heart to any person or thing that 
 will prevent my keeping you, my one, true, 
 abiding Friend. But if other love may be in 
 you and for you, you know, Lord, how I
 
 30 Simple Meditations 
 
 should thank you for it. Make me, then, 
 careful of my heart. Let me not deceive 
 myself, but always take care that I be not 
 attached to anything except for your love 
 and service. You have been good to me. 
 Lord, be so always. 
 
 Aspiration. — All for Jesus !
 
 31 
 
 IX 
 The Cure of the Demoniac 
 
 Fads in uur Lord's Life 
 When the crowd of Gerasenes came to our 
 Lord, they found the poor demoniac sitting 
 at our Lord's feet, clothed and in his right 
 mind. As our Lord went down to the boat 
 this poor man begged that he might stay 
 with Him always. But Jesus sent him away, 
 saying : *' (}o into thy house to thy friends, 
 and tell them how great things the Lord hatii 
 done for thee, and hath had mercy on thee." 
 And he went through the whole city, pub- 
 lishing the great things Jesus had done for 
 him. Our Lord would not let this man 
 follow Him, to show us that not all who 
 were worthy or who greatly desired to be in 
 His chosen company were to be allowed to 
 enter. There was work for all, and this 
 man could do God's work better there,
 
 3^ Simple Meditations 
 
 where every one had witnessed his affliction, 
 than by being taken about in His personal 
 company. 
 
 J^acfs in my oivn Life 
 I have sometimes thought that there was 
 nothing for me to do for God that was worth 
 doing here where He has placed me. And 
 yet I know that there is work to be done for 
 God everywhere. I think that unless I am 
 doing great and showy things my work is 
 not worth doing. What God requires of me 
 is to do the ordinary duties of my everyday 
 life in as perfect a way as I can. If I am 
 not called on to leave my home, surely I 
 can find enough to do for Him in it by good 
 example ; by kindness to those about me ; 
 by giving up my own will to the pleasure of 
 others, thus showing the effect of my striving 
 to love and serve God, in all my dealings 
 with my neighbour. If I neglect all this, and 
 look only for what I call higher work, I may 
 be leaving undone the very work God in- 
 tends me to do for Him.
 
 The Cure of the Demoniac 33 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for this lesson. 
 Help me to be faithful in these little things. 
 I see now that when I have been dissatisfied 
 with my plain and insignificant life, it is not 
 you I have been seeking, but myself. Give 
 me also the grace to go into my house to 
 my friends and tell them of your mercy, 
 not by any words, but by the kindness and 
 charity of my life. Let me, dear Lord, bring 
 your charity and your kindness into my own 
 home. Pardon me. Lord, for all my forget- 
 fulness in the past. Be with me and keep 
 me in your love always. 
 
 Aspiratio7i. — Jesus, inflame my heart with 
 Thy love.
 
 34 
 
 The Healing of the Paralytic 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 After the miracle on the coast of the 
 Gerasenes, our Lord sailed back to Caphar- 
 naum. No sooner was His return known 
 than a great number of people came to Him 
 to hear Him preach, and the house was soon 
 thronged. Some men who were carrying a 
 paralytic to our Lord to be healed could not 
 get near to Him. One of the men suggested 
 that they should get up on to the roof and 
 let down the sick man into the room where 
 Jesus was. Our Lord, seeing the poor man's 
 good dispositions and willing to reward the 
 faith and the earnestness of his friends, first 
 forgave him his sins, and then, to convince 
 some who questioned His power over sin, 
 healed the sick man and sent him home 
 carrying the mat on which he had been laid.
 
 The Healing of the Paralytic 35 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have found it difficult to show any great 
 sympathy for strangers. For one or two of 
 my friends I have felt deep sympathy when 
 they have been in distress. In such a case 
 I could, or I fancy I could, do anything for a 
 few of my friends. But a stranger is little 
 or nothing to me. I find it hard to rouse 
 myself to do anything for him. Here I find 
 our Lord showing the greatest sympathy and 
 giving the greatest consideration to this un- 
 fortunate stranger. He always seems to 
 forget Himself and think only of the man 
 whose distress calls for His pity and His 
 help. He might have found a number of 
 excuses for refusing to assist him; I could 
 find any number of excuses. How impor- 
 tunate, how pressing the men were ! They 
 might have waited outside the house till our 
 Lord was able to come out ; their methods 
 of getting at Jesus were rough and ought not 
 to be encouraged ; our Lord had had a long 
 and tiring day, and so on.
 
 36 Simple Meditations 
 
 O Jesus, how kind of you to weary your- 
 self just to show me how I ought to forget 
 myself! Give me some Uttle of your kind 
 power of sympathy for all in distress. I see 
 now, Lord, why you had such a power for 
 good. You were alv/ays unselfish, always 
 kind. No one could think of you as turning 
 a poor man away because you had not time 
 to attend to him. Teach me, dear Lord, to 
 be kind and considerate to all who are in 
 distress. I cannot always give anything 
 except kind words and kind looks. Teach 
 me to give these, not only to my friends, but 
 to those numberless ones who have you only 
 for their Friend. How different my life 
 would have been, dear Lord, if I had learnt 
 from you the gift of sympathy ! Give me 
 some little of that gift, Lord. 
 
 Aspiratio7i. — Teach me to be kind to all 
 for Thy sake.
 
 37 
 
 XI 
 
 The Call of St. Matthew 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 After the cure of the paralytic, our Lord 
 went with His audience to the lake side and 
 on His way passed the custom-house. There 
 the publicans and the tax-gatherers were 
 at work. Our Lord going up to these men 
 picked out one of them, Levi, who was called 
 Matthew, and simply said to him : " Follow 
 Me." Lnmediately Matthew left his em- 
 ployment and followed our Lord. As a class 
 these farmers of the taxes were despised and 
 hated by the Jews ; they were men of their 
 own nation in the employ of the Roman con- 
 querors. Even such men our Lord did not 
 hesitate to join to Himself. St. Matthew 
 never forgot the kindness our Lord had shown 
 to him. He became a most faithful witness
 
 38 Simple Meditations 
 
 of all the subsequent acts of our Lord's life, 
 and has left us the account of all in his 
 Gospel. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I am inclined, like so many of those I 
 associate with, to look upon all those who 
 are below me socially as a class, and often I 
 do not care to know anything about them. 
 I have far too much of the world's regard for 
 persons of rank and position. The rest out- 
 side my own fan;ily circle are to me roughs, 
 or servants, or labourers. I see in this in- 
 stance that our Lord does not look upon 
 people in that way at all Unlike the Jews, 
 who condemned the whole class as publicans 
 and sinners. He appreciates each single one. 
 Of course He had means of knowing the 
 individuals which I have not, but His actions 
 warn me not to condemn any one because he 
 is of such a class or profession. Our Lord 
 always saw the good in each one. I must 
 try to learn the same habit. There is good, 
 or our Lord would not love all as He does.
 
 The Call of St. Matthew 39 
 
 O Jesus, I thank you for your kindness to 
 St. Matthew and for your kindness also to 
 me ! You let me see, Lord, how you would 
 have me look upon all with your kind eyes. 
 I see it will be a long time before I shall be 
 able to offer you a thoughtful kindness in all 
 my judgements of those about me. I thank 
 you. Lord, that you have prevented me from 
 doing any wilful injury in this matter. I 
 must not be content with that, but must strive 
 with your help to see and to appreciate the 
 good in all. If only I could see with your 
 eyes, Lord ! Let me at least study your life 
 and learn your ways, so that I may become 
 more and more like to you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, meek and humble of 
 heart, make my heart like unto yours.
 
 40 
 
 XII 
 
 The Feast at St* Matthew's House 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 In thanksgiving for the kindness of our 
 Lord, St. Matthew invited Him and His 
 disciples to his house and prepared a dinner 
 for them. To meet our Lord, St. Matthew 
 invited also a number of his own acquaint- 
 ances, no doubt of his own class. The 
 Pharisees were shocked at our Lord's going, 
 and asked why He consented to eat with 
 publicans and sinners. Our Lord, hearing 
 this question, said, " They that have health 
 need not the physician, but they that are 
 sick." What our Lord meant these pharisees 
 to understand was that the acknowledgement 
 of sin and repentance for it were necessary 
 before His grace could work in the soul. 
 These proud pharisees were self-justified; 
 they considered they did not need assistance.
 
 The Feast at St, Matthew's House 41 
 
 To all who own their need, our Lord is 
 always ready to give His help. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 At times I feel rather satisfied with myself. 
 I have thought myself better than many of 
 those I come across. Not that I really think 
 myself very good, God knows ! I know I am 
 very imperfect. Still I have had the thought 
 that I would never get much better and that 
 there was not much need of trying. Thus, 
 though I hope I have not been a pharisee, I 
 have been at such times more nearly related 
 to the Pharisees than to St. Matthew. 1 can 
 own my faults and imperfections in general, 
 but if it comes to owning myself wrong in 
 some definite particular I find a difficulty in 
 doing so. It hurts me to have my imper- 
 fections pointed out. If only I were sure 
 that the correction were prompted by care 
 for my welfare I could bear it more easily. 
 
 O Jesus ! give me the grace to acknowledge 
 my weakness and also the grace to be strong 
 in overcoming myself. I will trust you,
 
 42 Simple Meditations 
 
 Lord ; do you help me. I can be sure of 
 your love which prompts every little trial to 
 my pride. Let me see your love behind 
 every correction I receive from those around 
 me. Then I shall be willing to take it from 
 every quarter. It is your way, dear Lord, 
 to make me better and more worthy of you. 
 I have resisted your kindness in the past. 
 Grant me the grace to resist no longer, but to 
 resign myself into your loving hands. Do 
 to me as you will, only give me the grace to 
 make the best of your kind care. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, strengthen me in faith, 
 hope and charity.
 
 43 
 
 XIII 
 
 The Disciples of John the Baptist 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 As our Lord was leaving the table of St. 
 Matthew, some disciples of St. John came, 
 and asked Him the very personal question : 
 " Why do the pharisees and the disciples of 
 John fast often, but Thy disciples do not 
 fast ? " Our Lord answered that their time 
 for fasting was not yet come, and then 
 explained the true principle of all such 
 austerities — that they must be suited to 
 the individuals. You do not put new wine 
 into old bottles, nor patch old cloth with a 
 new, strong piece ; but you put new wine, 
 which has yet to ferment and stretch the 
 skins in which it is contained, into skins that 
 are capable of stretching; and new cloth 
 must be sewn on to new cloth, and not on
 
 44 Simple Meditations 
 
 to threadbare pieces, or the very strength of 
 the new will make the worn parts more 
 liable to tear. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I sometimes think that those in authority 
 are too easy with me when they refuse to 
 allow me to fast or to take up other austeri- 
 ties. I know that I ought not to be the judge 
 in these matters ; at the same time, I like to 
 have my own way. Our Lord here teaches 
 me that I must only take up such practices 
 of mortification as are suited to me, and that 
 I am quite safe if I follow the advice of my 
 confessor. 
 
 O Jesus ! I will try to give up my own 
 will in these things, for I know you have 
 said that obedience is better than sacrifice. 
 I know also that in my case obedience is not 
 unfrequently sacrifice. Therefore, giving up 
 my will to you in the person of those who 
 have a right to advise me, I will try to be 
 obedient, cheerfully and promptly. I am 
 not worthy to do great things for you as did
 
 The Disciples of John the Baptist 45 
 
 so many of your saints ; make me more and 
 more worthy. Give me cheerfulness in your 
 service that I may follow you in the 
 obedience with which you were obedient 
 even unto death. 
 
 Aspiration. — "Not my will, but Thine be 
 done."
 
 46 
 
 XIV 
 
 The Petition of Jairus 
 
 Facts iti our Lord^s Life 
 
 As our Lord was talking and discussing 
 with the disciples of St. John, a ruler of the 
 synagogue came to Him in great distress 
 and begged Him to come down to his house : 
 " Lord, my daughter is even now dead, but 
 come, lay Thy hand on her, that she may 
 live." This profession of faith merited the 
 immediate answer of oyr Lord's compliance : 
 "Jesus rising up, followed him with His 
 disciples." Our Lord saw that this was a 
 case in which words would only weary the 
 poor father. How differently He treated 
 different people asking a favour from Him ! 
 Some He put off two or three times, as the 
 Syrophcenician woman; some He instructed 
 in the duty of faith, and purified their hearts
 
 The Petition of Jairus 47 
 
 before granting their prayer, as the man who 
 had a son sick at Capharnaum. 
 
 Facts i?i my own Life 
 I expect my prayers to be answered at 
 once, and if they are not, I lose heart. If 
 they are answered I take all the credit to 
 myself, or I fail to thank God for His good- 
 ness to me. Then, again, with what hesita- 
 tion I pray for some things ! I see how 
 simple and direct the prayer of this poor 
 man was. He just told our Lord that he 
 was in distress. He told Him what that 
 distress was, and showed that he had the 
 most complete confidence in our Lord's 
 power to help him. I am often in distress ; 
 my soul is sick with anger, with hard judge- 
 ment of others, and so on ; and my impulse 
 when this is the case is not to seek the 
 gentle touch of our Lord's hand in Holy 
 Communion, but to avoid it. 
 
 O Jesus ! I see what you want of me. 
 Give me the grace to do your will. I will 
 not stay away from you, dear Lord, just
 
 48 Simple Meditations 
 
 because I have been vexed or put out, but 
 owning my fault, I will come to you and ask 
 you to lay your kind hand on me. Teach 
 me to trust you. Oh, how I have neglected 
 you in my prayers ! With what little faith 
 and trust and persistence have I prayed ! 
 Give me grace to acknowledge your power 
 and to rely on it. I know that you love me, 
 and only desire me to ask you in order to 
 grant all that I ask. 
 
 Aspiratiofi. — Jesus, strengthen my faith, 
 my trust and my love.
 
 49 
 
 XV 
 
 The Healing of the Woman 
 
 Facts hi our Lord^s Life 
 
 As our Lord was going to the house of 
 Jairus, a woman of good standing who had 
 suffered for twelve years from a troublesome 
 complaint, came near Him in the crowd, 
 and with great faith took hold of His cloak, 
 for she said : " If I shall touch but the hem 
 of His garment I shall be healed. ' And as 
 soon as she had touched it she felt that she 
 was healed ; and though she would willingly 
 have proclaimed the grace she had received, 
 her humility prompted her to hide herself. 
 Our Lord, who of course knew what had 
 taken place, said : " Who hath touclied My 
 garments ? " And when the disciples were 
 telling Him that it was impossible to keep 
 the people from pressing upon Him, He 
 looked about to see the woman who had
 
 50 Simple Meditations 
 
 been healed. Then she, trembling, threw 
 herself at His feet, and confessed the whole 
 truth. And Jesus said : " Daughter, thy faith 
 hath made thee whole ; go thy way in peace, 
 and be thou whole of thy disease." 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have touched, not the garments only, 
 but the very Body and Blood of our Lord, 
 oh, how often ! and yet the ailments of my 
 soul which have been with me all my life 
 are with me still — my selfishness, my conceit, 
 my unkindness. There must be something 
 wanting in my confessions and communions 
 that this should be the case. Perhaps it is 
 the want of the fervour, faith, and humility 
 of this woman whom our Lord healed with a 
 touch of the hem of His garment. I have 
 been near Him very often, but the virtue has 
 not gone out from Him, because my faith was 
 not such as to make me whole. 
 
 O Jesus ! how little use I have made of 
 all the means of grace you have so kindly 
 thrown in my way ! I have not looked with
 
 The Healing of the Woman 51 
 
 real trust to you. Now that you have 
 attracted me to yourself, let me get closer 
 and closer every day. I want to love you 
 and serve you. Dear Jesus, let nothing come 
 between you and me. Let nothing ever 
 separate me from you, my Lord, my God, 
 my All. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, help me to correspond 
 faithfully with all the graces you give me.
 
 52 
 
 XVI 
 
 The Healing of Jairus's Daughter 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As our Lord was still speaking to the woman 
 whom He had cured, the servants of Jairus 
 came and told him that his daughter was 
 dead, and begged him not to trouble our 
 Lord any further. But Jesus hearing it, said : 
 " Fear not ; believe only, and she shall be 
 safe." Then Jesus went forward with His 
 disciples. And when He came to the house 
 He would not permit any of the crowd to 
 enter with Him, only Peter and James and 
 John, and the father and mother of the 
 maiden. Then our Lord turned out the 
 musicians so as not to alarm the child un- 
 necessarily ; and going in. He took the child 
 by the hand and said to her : " Maid, arise." 
 And the soul came again into her body, and
 
 The Healing of Jairus's Daughter 53 
 
 He restored her to her parents, and told them 
 to give her something to eat. He also told 
 them not to publish what had been done. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 Here I see our Lord thinking most carefully 
 of the comfort of this little child. The music 
 which would only frighten her, the crowd 
 which would be sure to alarm her must be 
 got rid of. Her father and mother are to be 
 there to prevent her from being disturbed by 
 the presence of others. She must be put at 
 once at her ease by having something to eat. 
 How little in my life have I taken thought 
 for the comfort of others ! There are a few 
 that I would take some trouble to please, 
 l:)ut I should like them to know that I had 
 done so. 
 
 O Jesus, how your unselfish, thoughtful 
 kindness puts me to shame ! I have scarcely 
 recognized that I was called upon to take 
 tliought for the comfort and ease of those 
 near and dear to me, and you show me how 
 I ouLfht to be concerned about even those
 
 54 Simple Meditations 
 
 who are nothing to me. I cannot think of 
 the convenience or comfort of others, and 
 you always contrive for that of the merest 
 child you have to do with. Teach me, dear 
 Lord, in all my deaUngs with others to seek 
 the kind way, the considerate way, your way 
 always. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me generous.
 
 55 
 
 XVII 
 
 The Cure of Two Blind Men 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As our Lord was leaving the house of Jairus 
 and going to His Mother's house or St. Peter's, 
 two bhnd men followed Him, crying out : 
 " O Son of David, have mercy on us." Our 
 Lord went on, apparently taking no notice 
 of them ; but when He came to the house, 
 seeing they had followed Him closely, He 
 turned to them and said : " Do you believe 
 that I can do this unto you ? " They said 
 to Him : " Yea, Lord." Then He touched 
 their eyes, saying : " According to )'Our faith 
 be it done unto you," and their eyes were 
 opened. Our Lord strictly charged them to 
 let no man know the cure that He had 
 worked in them ; but they, going out, spread 
 His fame in all that country.
 
 5 6 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts ifi my oiim Life 
 
 What should I have done if our Lord had 
 let me follow Him apparently without paying 
 any attention to me? In all probability I 
 should have done what I so often do if 
 people do not attend to what I say or ask — 
 I get vexed, or feel aggrieved, or let my 
 pride get the better of me, and I say, " I 
 will just let them see that I can get on with- 
 out them." The idea of taking the rebuff 
 and persevering in my petition would scarcely 
 strike me. Then again, when I have been 
 heard, instead of being really grateful for the 
 favour done me, I pride myself on getting 
 what I wanted ; it has been my idea, my 
 doing, and so-and-so has come round to my 
 wish. I am not really anxious to give the 
 one who has done me the favour, the credit 
 for anything. It has been a case of getting 
 as much self-satisfaction as I could, not of 
 giving as much praise as I could to another. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for your kindness 
 in showing me how weak I have been in this
 
 The Cure of Two Blind Men 57 
 
 way. Would that I could forget myself 
 more ! Give me grace at least to persevere 
 in my petitions to you. Give me grace to 
 be generous in my acknowledgement of your 
 favours. Lord, I have thought of you so 
 little when once I have got what I wanted. 
 Let me give you all praise and all thanks 
 always. I thank you, dear Lord, for all you 
 have given me or will give me in the future. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, meek and humble of 
 heart, make my heart more like yours.
 
 58 
 
 XVIII 
 
 The Cure of the Dumb Man 
 
 Facts i?t our Lord's Life 
 
 As our Lord was going out of Capharnaum 
 they brought Him a dumb man possessed 
 by the devil. And when He had cast out 
 the devil the dumb man spoke, and the 
 multitude were in admiration, but some 
 said, " He casteth out devils by Beelzebub, 
 the prince of devils." These cavillers our 
 Lord met in argument, and reduced to 
 silence. There were always two sorts of 
 people who witnessed our Lord's actions and 
 heard His words — those who in simplicity 
 watched His deeds and carefully stored up 
 His words, and those who watched Him that 
 they might accuse Him, and listened to 
 Him and questioned Him that they might 
 throw ridicule or reproach on His teaching.
 
 The Cure of the Dumb Man 59 
 
 Facts in my o:v?i Life 
 In the actions and words of God's priests 
 I find myself among the cavillers. Their 
 acts are too formal or too unguarded. They 
 are always, to my eyes, too " something or 
 other." Their words, the only ones I take 
 notice of, are either mistakes (at least, I 
 remember them in order to ask some one 
 else whether they are mistakes or not) or 
 they are, to my mind, ridiculous, and I 
 remember them so that I can hold the priest 
 up to ridicule. Yet I know that they do and 
 have done and said many good things. 
 These, too, I remember, but only to compare 
 with some fault of another. " Father So- 
 and-so was so particular over the altar," is 
 remembered and mentioned only to em- 
 phasize how negligent Father So-and-so is, 
 and so on. There is no doubt at all that 
 I should be more on our Lord's side if I 
 remembered only good deeds and words, or 
 at least related only these to others. 
 
 O Jesus ! teach me to restrain my tongue
 
 6o Simple Meditations 
 
 when speaking of your priests. Let me 
 always remember that I am helping you 
 more by dwelling on their good side, and 
 exposing only that in conversation. Help 
 me, dear Lord, to help your work, and not 
 to be an hindrance to you ; for it is as easy, 
 with care, to help you as to stand in your 
 way. 
 
 Aspiration. — O Jesus, cleanse my heart and 
 my lips, that I may never offend Thee in my 
 words.
 
 6i 
 
 XIX 
 
 Our Lord returns to Jerusalem 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 In the midst of all the fame which began 
 to go before and to follow Him because of 
 His miracles, our Lord took the long journey 
 to Jerusalem for one of the great festivals. 
 Our Lord undertook these journeys princi- 
 pally for the sake of His disciples. As they 
 were walking from place to place He took 
 two or three of them with Him, and talked 
 to them of their own souls and of the work 
 He wished them to do. He took infinite 
 pains in instructing them, so that these poor 
 ignorant men might be able to plant the 
 Church. At the places where they stopped 
 our Lord gave more general instructions, 
 and was busy teaching them by His example 
 how to treat each other. Thus He made a
 
 62 Simple Meditations 
 
 long journey, which most people consider a 
 nuisance, into an occasion for doing good 
 and advancing the kingdom of His P'ather. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 My tendency is rather to find excuses for 
 not doing little acts of charity than to find 
 occasions when I might do them. Then I 
 suddenly become conscious that I have not 
 done anything for God, and I begin to try 
 and find something which will be easy, or 
 will take the least time, or offer the least 
 chance of ridicule. Of course I know that I 
 ought not to make myself a nuisance to 
 others by introducing pious subjects in con- 
 versation, but I need not be averse from 
 taking them up when others begin them. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind you always were in 
 seeking the good of those with whom you 
 lived ! How kind to show me how in a 
 simple way I may follow you ! How well 
 you employed these long weary journeys ! 
 Teach me also to listen to your inspira-
 
 Our Lord returns to Jerusalem 63 
 
 tions. Let me be always at your feet, dear 
 Lord. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Speak, Lord, for Thy 
 servant heareth."
 
 64 
 
 XX 
 
 The Man healed at Bethsaida 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 The first thing we hear of our Lord on 
 getting to Jerusalem this time is His visit 
 to the Pool of Bethsaida. We are told an 
 angel came at certain times into the pool, 
 and the water was moved, and the first man 
 who got into the water after this movement 
 was healed. Our Lord found here a man 
 who had been waiting patiently for thirty- 
 eight years. He must have almost given up 
 hope. He had a pitiful life before him — no 
 provision for his old age, simply the alms of 
 the people who came to the pool. Our 
 Lord knew all this, and in His kindness was 
 pleased to reward the man's patience. He 
 said to the sick man : " Wilt thou be made 
 whole?" The poor man explained his
 
 The Man healed at Bethsaida 65 
 
 hopeless case to Him, and our Lord said, 
 "Arise, take up thy bed, and walk; " and 
 immediately the man was made whole. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have found many who thought they had 
 no one to help them, and I, too, have been 
 tempted to think that there was no one who 
 could really help me in my spiritual life. I 
 have seen that others have been called and 
 have made great advances, and I seem to 
 have been left to wait and wait, and get 
 very little better. Patience, no doubt, is 
 very easy to advise, but it has not been easy 
 to practise in my case. I will try to rejoice 
 in the good fortune of others, and leave 
 myself to my Lord, who has been so much 
 more kind to me than I deserved. 
 
 O Jesus ! pardon me for my want of trust 
 in you. Pardon my restlessness, my 
 anxiety. You will be kind to me as you 
 always have been. I will try to put no 
 obstacle in the way of your goodness to me 
 I will wait, not for an angel, but for you 
 
 5
 
 66 Simple Meditations 
 
 dear Lord. Teach me to be ready when 
 you come to me that I may make the most 
 of your favours. 
 
 Aspiration. — "In Thee, O Lord, I have 
 trusted ; let me not be confounded for 
 
 ever."
 
 67 
 
 XXI 
 
 The Healing on the Sabbath 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 Some Jews standing near saw the lame man 
 who had been healed at the Pool of 
 Bethsaida carrying his bed. They therefore 
 stopped him and told him it was not lawful 
 to carry his bed on the Sabbath day. He, 
 in all simplicity, told them that He who had 
 healed him told him to take up his bed and 
 walk. These men were ready to find fault 
 with the most virtuous and charitable actions 
 of their neighbour. Our Lord submitted 
 Himself to this kind of criticism in order to 
 show us how false most of our criticism is. 
 
 Facts i?i my ow?t Life 
 
 I wonder if I should have been shocked 
 at seeing this poor man carrying his bed on 
 a Sunday, or doing something that I had
 
 68 Simple Meditations 
 
 been brought up not to do. Even if I am 
 not shocked at such things, I often talk as 
 if I had a right to criticize everybody 
 and everything. And yet, when I take the 
 trouble to think of it, I find that I really do 
 not know enough of my neighbours' motives 
 to be able to form a right judgement. 
 Especially is this the case with priests, who 
 seem to do at times things that I cannot 
 understand or that I do not agree with. 
 Of course my duty is clear in this matter, if 
 only I had the courage to do it. I ought to 
 notice everything which I can use in their 
 praise, and leave the rest to God, unless it is 
 my duty to notice and correct what is 
 wrong. 
 
 O Jesus ! I have much to beg pardon for 
 in this matter. I have let so much of my- 
 self come into my opinion of others. Grant 
 me, Lord, to see you in all who are yours, 
 but especially in your priests. This may be 
 hard to do sometimes, but I will at least 
 try. I see how I shall be helping you more 
 by speaking well of all that arc yours. Let
 
 The Healing on the Sabbath 69 
 
 me see with your kind eyes the good that is 
 in all, and let me leave the wrong, if there is 
 any, to you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, kind Saviour, make 
 me kind to all for your sake.
 
 70 
 
 XXII 
 
 The Jews seek to kill our Lord 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord saw that the Jews were 
 angry with Him, He began to address them, 
 claiming His right to put aside the law if He 
 wished. He claimed the power over life and 
 death : " For as the Father raiseth up the 
 dead and giveth life, so the Son also giveth 
 life to whom He will." Again, He claimed 
 to be the judge of all men, both on earth 
 and after death. He saw that it was oppor- 
 tune that He should assert Himself. He 
 told them that He was sent by the Father 
 with full power. He did not rely on His 
 own statement, but convinced them by 
 works which were plainly divine, and He 
 appealed to the Scripture. He did not 
 demand glory from them ; He was not 
 anxious for that. He put before them as
 
 r 
 
 The Jews seek to kill our Lord 7 1 
 
 the end of their actions, the glory which His 
 Father had given Him and would give to 
 them also, if they did His will and took His 
 testimony. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Here my Lord shows me that at times I 
 may be called upon to take a stand and 
 refuse to be turned aside by the opinion of 
 those about me. But how differently He 
 nakes His stand ! It is not to gain the 
 goodwill of others, except so far as that 
 goodwill is the will of His Father. My first 
 idea is not to give any explanation if my 
 conduct is complained of, but to shut my- 
 self up in myself. I do not care to take the 
 trouble to put the matter on right principles. 
 I rely more on its being my will than on its 
 being God's will. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for teaching me 
 my duty in so many different ways — some- 
 times by your deeds, sometimes by your 
 words. Let me always have the grace to 
 take all in the way you wish me to do. Let
 
 72 Simple Meditations 
 
 me ever put your will first. Grant me the 
 strength not to look for my own glory, but 
 in all that I do or say to seek your glory, 
 and to be glad if for your sake I have to 
 suifer neglect and dishonour. 
 
 Aspiration. — Glory be to the Father, and 
 to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
 
 XXIII 
 
 St. Mary Magdalen 
 
 Facts in uur Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord arrived in Jerusalem, He 
 was invited to the house of a rich man 
 named Simon whom, no doubt, He had 
 cured of leprosy. AV'hile He was there 
 Magdalen, who had led a sinful life but had 
 been converted by His preaching, came in, 
 full of love and desiring to give a mark of 
 her faith. She brought with her a box of 
 precious ointment, and seeing our Lord 
 there waiting for supper, she poured the 
 ointment upon His head. She came another 
 time just before His Passion and washed 
 His feet with her tears, and wiped them 
 with her hair. This time she simply anointed 
 our Lord's head. She brought the most 
 costly ointment she could obtain ; nothing 
 was too good for our Lord.
 
 74 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I cannot give our Lord much, but do I 
 honestly give Him the very best, or only 
 the remnants of those things which I can 
 give ? Do I give Him the first and the best 
 of my love, or do I only think of this when 
 I feel that I am left and forsaken by others ? 
 My time in prayer to Him — how grudgingly 
 I have given this ! 
 
 O Jesus, how ashamed I am when I com- 
 pare the love and generosity of St. Mary 
 Magdalen with my own ! What a contrast 
 is her life after her conversion with mine ! 
 With what love and tervour she turned to 
 you, never once looking back ! My Jesus 1 
 give me some of the great love and fervour 
 of this true penitent. Much has been for- 
 given me ; oh, may I also love you much ! 
 How kind and good you were to her ! Be 
 kind also to me. If I could only learn to love 
 you as Magdalen did I could do so much 
 for you ; 1 should be then more ready to 
 sacrifice myself for you and for your friends.
 
 St» Mary Magdalen 75 
 
 Give me a great love of you, dear Lord. 
 Do not deny me. 
 
 Aspiration. — O Jesus, I want to love you 
 with my whole heart.
 
 76 
 
 XXIV 
 
 The Cure of the Withered Hand 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 On a certain day Jesus went into one of the 
 synagogues, and there was a man whose 
 right hand was withered. The pharisees 
 therefore asked our Lord if it was lawful to 
 heal on the sabbath day. They asked this 
 in order to get something wherewith to 
 accuse Him. Our Lord explained the great 
 law of charity, which is beyond all human 
 law, and even dispenses from all positive 
 divine law. The law of love which He 
 came to preach made it lawful to disregard 
 other law for the sake of charity. The law 
 of resting from servile work, which had been 
 so strictly interpreted by the pharisees, was 
 held as an excuse for not healing the sick. 
 Our Lord explained that the law of love was 
 supreme.
 
 The Cure of the Withered Hand 77 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I have been inclined to make any excuse 
 to save myself from doing little kindnesses 
 to my neighbour. I am unwilling to do 
 some little service for some one because they 
 seem selfish or ungrateful. I prefer my own 
 work to the good, or at least the pleasure, of 
 my neighbour. I catch at any excuse ; often 
 I have not such a good excuse as these 
 Pharisees had. Am I, like them, putting 
 hindrances in the way of God's work? I 
 may easily do so by omitting to do little 
 things which would in time help our Lord's 
 work in the world. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for showing me in 
 so many ways how I may serve you and help 
 others to serve you. Help me to rouse 
 myself and to be more generous with you. 
 I will try to consider little acts of kindness 
 not as a burden, but as a work of love. Let 
 me study your way, and enable me to follow 
 it loyally. 
 
 Aspiration. — " Speak, Lord, for Thy 
 servant heareth."
 
 78 
 
 XXV 
 
 The Sermon on the Mount 
 
 Facts i?i our Lord's Life 
 
 After being before the world for a sufficient 
 time to be known and sought after (for 
 wherever He went at that time we hear that 
 the people flocked to Him) our Lord began 
 the systematic teaching of His disciples and 
 the people. A large number of people had 
 followed Him from all parts of Galilee and 
 Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the country 
 beyond the Jordan. This was the time He 
 had chosen. He was never in a hurry. 
 Thoughtful kindness was our Lord's great 
 characteristic, and He knew that He had to 
 prepare men's hearts for His teaching. By 
 acts of kindness and careful instruction 
 wherever the people came to listen to Him,
 
 The Sermon on the Mount 79 
 
 He prepared for the announcement of the 
 new gospel — the gospel of lowliness, meek- 
 ness, poverty, and self-restraint. 
 
 Fads in my own Life 
 I am inclined to lose heart both with 
 myself and with those around me. I am in 
 such a hurry, that if I am not perfect at once 
 I feel that I never shall be. Now I know 
 that our Lord will treat me according to 
 my perseverance, and not according to my 
 progress. He is different from men, who 
 judge so much by results. He does not 
 object to slow progress, so long as it is con- 
 stant. He was daily teaching His apostles, 
 and yet for nearly a year He kept from them 
 the first principles of His gospel. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for bringing this 
 fact to my mind. I need it, Lord, very 
 much. I know how imperfect I am. Give 
 me grace to persevere. Perseverance in 
 your service I know means progress. I will 
 try to be humble in my failures, but never 
 let me give up my resolution. I have
 
 So Simple Meditations 
 
 chosen you, Lord, and I cannot do without 
 you now. 
 
 Aspiration. — O Jesus, vouchsafe this day 
 to keep me without sin.
 
 8i 
 
 XXVI 
 
 ** Blessed are the poor in spirit '^ 
 
 J^ac/s in our Lord's Life 
 
 At the beginning of this as it were official 
 statement of the New Law, our Lord places 
 the Beatitudes. These are tests of belong- 
 ing to the new order. In them we find the 
 principal differences between the New Law 
 and the Law which had been in the world 
 hitherto. He begins with a love of poverty. 
 Blessed are the poor, that is those, whether 
 poor or rich, who are poor in spirit. These 
 are they who do not set their hearts on 
 riches; who are not only willing, but de- 
 sirous, to be without that which riches bring. 
 To these our Lord promises the kingdom 
 of Heaven. The whole world looks up to the 
 rich, and has from the beginning desired the 
 effects of riches. Our Lord points out the 
 better way, and has given us a perfect 
 
 6
 
 82 Simple Meditations 
 
 example of the worthlessness of riches for 
 obtaining true happiness even in this life. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 I may not have really set my heart on 
 riches, but I like the ways of rich people — 
 their comfort, ease, refinement. And how 
 jealous I am of the things I call my own ! 
 I have not been accustomed to glory in 
 poverty, but rather the reverse. I have 
 regarded poverty only as something to be 
 dreaded, forgetting how my Lord chose 
 poverty as His companion from the manger 
 to the cross. 
 
 O Jesus ! give me this spirit of poverty. 
 Let me see how noble it is to give up all 
 that will end here for the treasures you have 
 in store for me in heaven. I know that I 
 can never advance far in the path of perfec- 
 tion unless I am more detached than I am 
 now. Make me ready to give up all for you, 
 who have done so much for me. 
 
 Aspiration. — What can I render to you, 
 my God, for all you have given to me ?
 
 B3 
 
 XXVII 
 
 '^ Blessed are the meefc*^ 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord gives as the second mark of His 
 disciples that they shall strive after meekness. 
 They shall not put themselves forward ; they 
 shall be content to be put aside. His own 
 example was most striking ; it was the mark 
 He gave of His own teaching. It is the 
 virtue He tells us all to learn from Him : 
 *' Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble 
 of heart." The reward He offers is one 
 which may be taken in many senses. " They 
 shall possess the land." The "land" may 
 be the Promised Land on earth, i.e.^ joy and 
 peace and contentment ; or it may mean the 
 Promised Land in heaven. ithcr sense 
 
 it is a great reward.
 
 §4 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 Meekness is one of the virtues that I have 
 practised very little. It is not one that has 
 attracted me much. I like my own way, and 
 in anything I am interested in I like to have 
 a prominent place. In many ways I can see 
 that my meekness requires a good deal of 
 cultivation. There is no virtue I know 
 which seems to grow so slowly. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for letting me see 
 how imperfect is my imitation of you. Give 
 me courage to persevere in acquiring this 
 virtue in which I am so lacking. Let me 
 not turn back, but give me strength to press 
 on very steadily. Let me see your meekness 
 always, and imitate it at all times ; then you 
 will give me joy and peace of heart here and 
 rest and the possession of your own self for 
 ever in heaven. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, meek and humble of 
 heart, make my heart like unto yours.
 
 85' 
 
 XXVIII 
 
 ^^ Blessed are they that mourn'' 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Thp:re are two instances in our Lord's life 
 where it is recorded that He wept — the first, 
 before He raised Lazarus to life ; the second, 
 when He was on His triumphal procession 
 into Jerusalem just before His Passion. He 
 allowed Himself to mourn in this way for my 
 sake; to teach me how I ought to go through 
 the like trial. On the first occasion, the 
 death of Lazarus, He wished to feel the full 
 force of the sorrow for the death of a friend; 
 He loved Lazarus, and was filled with grief at 
 his death. In the second instance He wished 
 to feel the pang of neglect, for He knew 
 that the city would reject Him and crucify 
 Him, and would go on in its sin till it called 
 for the vengeance of God. Yet His mourning 
 for Lazarus did not prevent Him from com-
 
 86 Simple Meditations 
 
 forting his sisters, Martha and Mary, nor 
 from exerting not only His human but His 
 divine power in the most effective manner ; 
 and His mourning over Jerusalem did not 
 prevent Him from doing all He could to 
 save all in the city. He did not leave 
 untried one single effort to make the neglect 
 He foresaw into devotion and love. 
 
 Facts i?t my ow?i Life 
 
 Sorrow usually drives me into myself and 
 makes me forget others. I am weak, and I 
 let my weakness affect those about me. The 
 reason is the same which I find for most of 
 my faults — I think too much of myself and 
 too little of how I may be a help to others. 
 Again, neglect, or any suspicion of neglect, 
 drives me upon myself, and makes me give 
 up trying to do good to those who show me 
 the neglect, instead of making me try the 
 harder. 
 
 O Jesus, how much I have still to learn 
 from you! How your divine unselfishness 
 makes me see what a selfish creature I am !
 
 ** Blessed are they that mourn '' 87 
 
 How ashamed I am of my weakness when I 
 see your divine strength ! My dear Jesus ! 
 make me generous, make me strong. I will 
 mourn indeed, but with your help I will 
 strive at the same time to be a comfort to 
 others. Comfort me when my time of 
 mourning shall cease. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, comfort me.
 
 88 
 
 XXIX 
 
 ** Blessed are they that hunger and 
 thirst after justice^' 
 
 J^ac^s in otir Lord's Life 
 Our Lord's hunger and thirst for justice 
 were exemplified in His life from the begin- 
 ning to the end : He came that the justice 
 of His Father might be satisfied ; He suffered 
 that sin might be atoned for. The reason 
 He came as a child was that children might 
 for love of Him have their due. The reason 
 why He preached was that the poor might 
 have the Gospel preached to them. The 
 justice He always hungered for was that 
 others should have their due. The blessing 
 He received was that others might be brought 
 to love God, and so obtain heaven. He 
 was always for others, with not a thought 
 of self.
 
 ^'Blessed are they that hunger'' 89 
 
 Facts in viy 07 vu Life 
 As long as I have justice done to me I 
 am careless of what is due to others. My 
 own wrongs, or imagined wrongs, fill my 
 mind much more than others' rights, I fret 
 because my faults or mistakes are the only 
 things taken notice of; I little think how 
 often I pass over the good qualities of others, 
 and see only their faults. I forget how 
 little attention I pay to the good advice 
 which is given to me at times, and yet I am 
 annoyed when the advice I give is not fol- 
 lowed. So the blessing I wish for from my 
 hunger and thirst after justice is my own 
 way, and not, as in our Lord's case, the only 
 satisfying love of God. 
 
 O Jesus, how different is my hunger and 
 thirst for justice from yours ! If only I could 
 always see your way, and hunger for your 
 rights, how much better and happier I should 
 be, and how much more progress I should 
 make in your love ! Teach me, dear Lord, 
 to hunger and thirst as I ought. I will
 
 90 Simple Meditations 
 
 leave the blessing to you in your own time. 
 Bless me with your love, that I may love you 
 with all my heart. Oh, may you never be 
 forced to deprive me of your love ! 
 
 Aspiration. — My God, fill me with love 
 of you.
 
 91 
 
 XXX 
 
 ^^ Blessed are the mercifuP^ 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 The mercy which our Lord showed to 
 sinners was most marked. He was even 
 called the friend or associate of sinners and 
 publicans. He chose one of His disciples 
 from this latter class. So, too, He tells us 
 by His prophets that He prefers mercy to. 
 sacrifice. It is one of the most difficult 
 lessons to learn from our Lord. 
 
 Facts in my oivn Life 
 
 Notice how frequently we fall into the 
 fault of pulling our neighbour's character to 
 pieces. Is not gossip mostly of that kind ? 
 The young grumble at their elders, and the 
 elders seem never tired of showing each
 
 92 Simple Meditations 
 
 other what a poor opinion they have of their 
 juniors. Thank God, we are not to be 
 judged by our fellows ! 
 
 I am afraid I have not been very careful 
 to avoid unkind judgements about others. 
 I have been exacting at times. If people 
 have anything to say against me, I am 
 usually ready with an excuse which I con- 
 sider a good one. If I were a little more 
 merciful I should be able to see how others 
 have or may have a good excuse for things I 
 blame them for. The true, merciful way is 
 to try and put myself in the place of those 
 whose conduct I blame, but in order to do 
 this I must put aside my prejudices, when 
 I should find that there is not so much to 
 blame as I thought. 
 
 O Jesus ! give me the grace to look at 
 others with your kind eyes. Make me kind 
 and merciful with those I love, with those I 
 meet, with those whose conduct I hear dis- 
 cussed. I know, dear Lord, that you who 
 found an excuse for your very executioners, 
 will be merciful to me if I show mercy to
 
 '^Blessed are the merciful " 93 
 
 others. Teach me, if I judge at all, to judge 
 with your own divine mercy. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me merciful, that 
 I may obtain mercy.
 
 94 
 
 XXXI 
 ** Blessed are the clean of heart '' 
 
 Mic^s in our Lord's Life 
 
 Because our Lord was God and Man He 
 was blessed with the sight of His Father 
 always. As God, He could not be without 
 the closest union with God ; as Man this 
 blessed union was communicated to Him 
 because of the close union between His two 
 natures in one person. The cleanness of 
 heart which merited this blessing for His 
 human nature consisted in the perfect con- 
 formity between His divine and human will. 
 As Man He spoke when He said : " Not 
 My will, but Thine be done." Cleanness of 
 heart consists in not letting our love rest on 
 any object except in God and for God. 
 That our Lord kept His whole love for His 
 Father alone is evident from the way in 
 which He always worked for His P^ather, and
 
 ^^ Blessed are the clean of heart'' 95 
 
 disregarded all thought of His own ease and 
 comfort. It is our self-seeking which pre- 
 vents us from seeing God and His will. 
 
 Facts in my own Lije 
 
 I do not think I should really leave what 
 I knew to be God's will in my regard, but I 
 am not quite so sure that my heart is clean 
 enough to let me see His will very clearly. 
 I am afraid to make an effort to see clearly, 
 because of the sacrifice such clear sight might 
 entail. For instance, I am told that I ought 
 to be less selfish or less self-seeking, but I 
 am afraid to begin to act on the advice given 
 me on account of what I may have to give 
 up. Yet I know that if I did so I should by 
 God's grace see His will more clearly. 
 
 O Jesus ! cleanse my heart that I may see 
 you very clearly when you show yourself to 
 me. I know that now I cannot see you 
 except in a dark manner. Make me very 
 faithful to what I do see, and very anxious 
 to know you better and to follow you more 
 closely. Let me judge of all earthly love by
 
 9 6 Simple Meditations 
 
 the test : Does it make me love you better 
 and forget myself, or does it draw me away 
 from you ? 
 
 Aspiration. — O my Lord ! I do want to see 
 you. Make me clean of heart that I may see 
 you and enjoy you for ever.
 
 97 
 
 XXXII 
 
 '^ Blessed are the peace-makers'' 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 There was one occasion in our Lord's life 
 when this love of peace-making was very 
 evident. It was during His Passion, when 
 He allowed Himself to be made a butt and 
 a laughing-stock in order to bring Pilate 
 and Herod together, and make them friends., 
 "for they had been enemies one to the 
 other." 
 
 Again, the title Prince of Peace was one 
 of those given to Him in prophecy ; and in 
 His last discourse to the disciples the last 
 legacy He gave was His peace : " My peace 
 I leave to you. My peace I give to you." 
 So throughout His life He was always seeking 
 to bring peace to all hearts. 
 
 7
 
 9^ Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I, too, desire peace, but it is mostly that 
 I may be left alone, and be able to go on in 
 my own way. The peace which would come 
 if I did not seek myself is a stranger to me. 
 It was because our Lord was always ready 
 to give way that He was so full of peace. 
 If I see such conduct in others, I call it 
 weakness. Yet I see that when there was no 
 question of the honour due to His Father, 
 our Lord always gave way. Especially is 
 this the way with His Mother : He changed 
 the time of His manifestation at her bidding 
 at Cana in Galilee. I myself know that I 
 have found much more peace when I have 
 sought occasions of giving way to others. 
 
 O Jesus ! I will try yet harder in the 
 future. Let me sit at your feet and learn 
 this lesson of you. What a reward, too, 
 you offer for all who seek to make peace — 
 "to be called the children of God." 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, give me your peace.
 
 99 
 
 XXXIII 
 
 '* Blessed are they that suffer per- 
 secution for justice sake '' 
 
 Facts m our Loi'd's Life 
 
 As our Lord sanctified sorrow by His 
 example, so He rendered the state of per- 
 secution blessed by suffering it all through 
 His life. Even before His birth he had to 
 suffer in the neglect His Mother suffered. 
 As soon as He was born He had to fly from 
 persecution. All through His public life 
 He felt He was persecuted by His own 
 people, and at last was condemned to death 
 and suffered the most painful form of death. 
 And not only in open and bodily persecu- 
 tion, but also in the second form mentioned 
 did our Lord suffer: "Blessed are ye when 
 men shall revile you and say all manner of
 
 loo Simple Meditations 
 
 evil against you untruly." No one was re- 
 viled as our Lord was, yet He suffered all 
 meekly, thinking of the reward which He 
 was purchasing for me, and showing me how 
 to gain it. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have sometimes thought I should like to 
 do and suffer something hard for God, and I 
 have been humbled when I found how I 
 took little annoyances, which can only by 
 exaggerating be called sufferings. A slight 
 is quite enough to put me out of temper. 
 These little things, if borne patiently, mean 
 a high place in heaven, and the power of 
 doing much more for God than I have done 
 so far. 
 
 O Jesus ! let me learn this lesson from 
 you better than I have done in the past. 
 Teach me to be ready to bear any annoy- 
 ance for your sake. It is only very little 
 that I can do, but let me do that little cheer- 
 fully, for I know that the more these things 
 are against my natural inclinations the more
 
 *' Blessed are the persecuted'' loi 
 
 they will unite me to you, my Lord and my 
 God. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, teach me how to 
 suffer.
 
 102 
 
 XXXIV 
 
 The Ccnturion^s Servant 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 A CENTURION, who had been good to the Jews, 
 had a favourite servant who was sick even 
 unto death. When he heard that Jesus was 
 once more in Capharnaum he sent to some 
 of the chief men among the Jews, and asked 
 them to intercede for him with our Lord. 
 When these men came to our Lord they told 
 Him what He already knew, that this gentile 
 was a good friend to the Jews. Jesus at 
 once went with them, and when He came 
 near the house the centurion met Him and 
 spoke to Him in words full of faith : "I also 
 am a man subject to authority, having under 
 me soldiers; and I say to this one, 'go,' and 
 he goeth." Thus he acknowledged that in a 
 much more authoritative way our Lord who 
 was God, and as God subject to no man,
 
 The Centurion's Servant 103 
 
 could command the disease to leave his 
 servant. Our Lord responded to the man's 
 faith, as He always did, and cured the 
 servant without going to the house. Our 
 Lord listened patiently both to the Jews and 
 the centurion, and was prompt to do as they 
 wished Him. 
 
 Facts in my oivn Life 
 
 I am inclined to interrupt people who are 
 talking about anything I know better than 
 they ; and if for any reason they are in 
 my bad books, the impulse is irresistible. 
 Then from my interference comes vexation. 
 Our Lord knew very much better than the 
 Jews or the centurion all they had told Him, 
 still he listened attentively. It was this 
 forbearance which made so many come to 
 Him a second time in their difficulties, while 
 my impatience prevents many from coming 
 a second time to me. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for your kindness 
 in thinking of me and my failings, and 
 showing me how to correct them. Give me
 
 I04 Simple Meditations 
 
 the grace to follow your kind example. I 
 have many opportunities of making myself 
 more like you, for there are not a few who 
 make me feel impatient. Bear with me, 
 Lord ; do not leave me, though I am so slow 
 to follow you. Help me to be more careful 
 not to interrupt, not to put people right 
 unless it is really necessary. 
 
 Aspiration. — My kind Jesus, make me 
 kind after your example.
 
 I05 
 
 XXXV 
 The Widow of Nairn 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 About this time, when our Lord was on 
 one of His missionary journeys, He came to 
 a city called Naim, and His disciples and a 
 great multitude were with Him. As they 
 came to Naim they were met by a small 
 sorrowful procession — a poor widow follow- 
 ing the body of her only son. Jesus made 
 the multitude that followed Him stand aside, 
 and He advanced, and addressing first the 
 mother. He comforted her: "Weep not." 
 Then, to follow His comforting words by 
 deeds, for He never rested with words 
 only. He stopped the procession, and then 
 worked a beautiful miracle — " Young man, I 
 say to thee arise." Our Lord's first thought 
 was for the sorrowing mother; "He gave 
 him to his mother."
 
 io6 Simple Meditations 
 
 Our Lord was always thoughtful for those 
 in trouble, and He wishes me to be thought- 
 ful too. He wants me to give kind thoughts, 
 words and deeds to those about me, high or 
 low, rich or poor, befriended or neglected, 
 who are in trouble. 
 
 Facts i?i my own Life 
 
 I have shirked this way of following my 
 Lord, I have sought for reasons to excuse 
 me rather than to urge me to be prompt in 
 giving consolation. Sometimes I have even 
 thought that a little affliction would do my 
 neighbour good, but my Lord shows me 
 that a little consolation always does more 
 good. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for letting me see 
 your way; let me never lose sight of it again. 
 You have taught me to think first of kind- 
 ness, next of any other virtue, and last of all 
 of myself. How slow I am to learn your 
 lessons ! I am so ready to pu* myself first. 
 I want others to have consideration for me, 
 and when they do not, I am annoyed, and
 
 The Widow of Nairn 107 
 
 feel that I cannot be kind to them. But 
 you, dear Lord, always put yourself aside, 
 and were always kind. How like the world 
 it would have been if you had made the 
 little procession stand aside while you and 
 the multitude entered the city. 
 
 Aspiration. — My Jesus, put kindness into 
 my heart, that I may be kind to all. 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY 
 THE CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETV, LONDON.
 
 SIMPLE MEDITATIONS 
 
 ON THE LIFE OF OUR LORD 
 
 Third Series
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of our Lx^rd 
 
 By the Right Rev, 
 
 JOSEPH OSWALD SMITH 
 
 Abbot of Amplefofth 
 
 THIRD SERIES 
 
 CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY 
 
 69 Southwark Bridge Road 
 
 London, S.E. 
 
 1905
 
 Nihil Obstat: 
 
 J. A. Wilson, O.S.B., D.D. 
 
 Imprimatuf : 
 
 1^ F. A. GASQUET, O.S.B., D.D., 
 Abbot of Reading, 
 
 President General of the English Congregation 
 of the Order of St. Benedict.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I. The Deputation from John 7 
 
 II. "Whom went ye to see ? " ... 10 
 
 III. The Children in the Market-place 12 
 
 IV. The Holy Women 15 
 
 V. His Mother and His Brethren ... 18 
 
 VI. The Parable of the Sower 21 
 
 VII. " Let your Light shine " 24 
 
 VIII. The Wheat and the Cockle ... 27 
 
 IX, The Mustard Seed 30 
 
 X. The Leaven 33 
 
 XI. The Treasure hidden in a Field ... 36 
 
 XII. The Son of the Carpenter 39 
 
 XIII. Herod heard the Fame of Jesus ... 42 
 
 XIV. The Loaves and Fishes 45 
 
 XV. He went up the Mountain alone ... 48 
 XVI. The Wind was contrary 51 
 
 XVII. He came walking on the Sea ... 54 
 
 XVIII. " It is I ; fear ye not " 57 
 
 XIX. Peter walking on the Water ... 60
 
 Contents 
 
 
 
 PAGE 
 
 XX. 
 
 The Wind ceased 
 
 . 63 
 
 XXI. 
 
 The Hem of His Garment ... 
 
 . 66 
 
 XXII. 
 
 The People's Question 
 
 • 69 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 Our Lord's Answer 
 
 . 72 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 " This Saying is hard " 
 
 . 75 
 
 XXV. 
 
 Many went back 
 
 . 78 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 " Will you also go ? " 
 
 . 81 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 " Lord, to whom shall we go ? " . 
 
 . 84 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 " One of you is a Devil " ... 
 
 . 87 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 The Objection of the Pharisees . 
 
 . 90 
 
 XXX. 
 
 The Canaanite Woman 
 
 • 93 
 
 XXXI. 
 
 Jesus passed from thence ... 
 
 • 96 
 
 XXXII. 
 
 A Day of Healing 
 
 • 99
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 on 
 
 the Life of our Lx^rd 
 
 The Deputation from John 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 As the people began to flock round our 
 Lord, St. John the Baptist wished to know 
 for certain if the time was come for him to 
 retire. He therefore sent two of his dis- 
 ciples to our Lord to ask Him plainly if He 
 was the Messias, or whether John was still 
 to expect another. Our Lord would not 
 give him a direct answer, but only told him 
 through his disciples the facts which were 
 sufficient for him to form an opinion. As 
 the disciples from John were in the com- 
 pany of Jesus He healed many, and worked
 
 8 Simple Meditations 
 
 miracles of all kinds, and preached con- 
 stantly to the poor. Then in answer to the 
 question, " Art Thou He that is to come, or 
 look we for another ? " He told them to tell 
 John what they had seen and heard : " The 
 blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are 
 cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, 
 to the poor the gospel is preached." 
 
 Facts in my ow?t Life 
 
 I, too, am sometimes perplexed and long 
 for a clear word from God or from His 
 minister when the facts are quite sufficient 
 for me, when what I hear and see, joined 
 with an unselfish courage, are all I need to 
 make me act as our Lord would wish me. 
 It might have been for the sake of his dis- 
 ciples that St. John sent to inquire, for it is 
 scarcely possible that he should have been 
 in doubt himself. But still, the answer of 
 our Lord is an answer to me in all per- 
 plexity. I have quite enough facts to 
 enable me to make up my mind, only I 
 will not let my heart decide — perhaps
 
 The Deputation from John 9 
 
 because I live in hope that the time has 
 not yet come when I am bound to act 
 strongly, and side, once and for all, with 
 my Lord. 
 
 O Jesus ! give me this courage. I am 
 such a coward. I am so afraid to listen 
 to you sometimes. I want you now to 
 speak to me quite plainly. I know I cannot 
 be excused if I am putting myself in danger. 
 You and my own soul are all I must consider. 
 Give me courage. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, strengthen me.
 
 lO 
 
 II 
 ^'Whom went yc to scc?'^ 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 When the deputation from John the Baptist 
 had left our Lord, He began to speak to 
 those about Him concerning John. After 
 rejecting the ideas that John was sought 
 after because of his fickleness ("a reed 
 shaken by the wind"), or his riches ("a 
 man clothed in soft garments"), or merely 
 his preaching ("a prophet"), He told them 
 the true place which St. John held in the 
 work of their salvation : "An angel sent 
 before the Lord to prepare His way." So 
 our Lord would point out to me the true 
 place I ought to occupy in His work : an 
 angel — a messenger — before His face. 
 
 Fads in my own Life 
 I like to attract people. Still I know that 
 I do not always act as an angel before my
 
 ^'Whom went ye to see?'' n 
 
 Lord's face to prepare His way. It is mostly 
 my own way that I want to prepare. I do 
 not act in our Lord's interests as I promise 
 to do in my prayers. I do not altogether 
 forget myself or I should not find it so 
 difficult to do acts of charity, such as 
 visiting the sick or those in trouble. If I 
 could only see things as St. John did, 
 I should be much more ready to work for 
 God ; much more ready to sacrifice my 
 time and my pleasure than I have been. 
 
 O Jesus ! I am so often asking you to 
 show me how I can do something for you. 
 How easy it would be for me to be an angel 
 before your face ! I am very far from being 
 an angel in my temper, and in my will to 
 give myself up to your service; but with 
 your help I can and I will try to be more 
 of a messenger of good than I have been. 
 I do not ask you to let me do hard and 
 heroic things, but I do want to please you 
 by the earnestness with which I mean to do 
 the ordinary work of my life. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me constant.
 
 12 
 
 III 
 
 The Children in the Market-place 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord was speaking about St. John 
 the Baptist, the way in which His words were 
 received made Him use the figure of children 
 in the market-place who were never satisfied. 
 The Pharisees and lawyers complained of 
 St. John that he was too severe, and then 
 complained of our Lord that He was too lax. 
 St. John was preaching penance, and they 
 would not hear : our Lord was preaching 
 love, and giving an example of love, 
 and they called Him a drinker of wine, a 
 friend of sinners. He did not expect that 
 they would all Usten to Him, but He knew 
 that some few favoured ones would do so ; 
 therefore, in spite of all His enemies had to 
 say, He continued doing good in His own 
 kind way.
 
 The Children in the Market-place 13 
 
 Fads in my own Life 
 
 I fret if nothing comes of my efforts for 
 others, and I am hurt if any one suggests 
 that I am rather a failure. I want any good 
 I may have done to be acknowledged. What 
 an awful thing to have to own to myself that 
 I am not contented with the good opinion 
 of my Lord, but must seek for that of people 
 whose opinion I do not usually value. Now 
 by the example of our Lord I ought to know 
 that if I am doing His work I must not 
 expect more recognition than He Himself 
 obtained from men. 
 
 O Jesus ! I so often forget that I am doing 
 your work, and that it is by your opinion 
 only that my work is to be judged. If I 
 could only remember this, I should not be 
 downhearted ; for you are a much kinder 
 Judge than others. Dear Lord, you will 
 not overlook one little act of mine ; you 
 never forget ; you count everything I have 
 ever done for you, and will certainly give it 
 its full value when I stand before you to be
 
 14 Simple Meditations 
 
 judged. Give me the grace to be content to 
 wait for your verdict and not to be anxious 
 about the good opinion of those I live with. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, be not to me a judge, 
 but a merciful Saviour.
 
 15 
 
 IV 
 The Holy Women 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 It is recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke 
 that certain pious women who had received 
 favours from our Lord " ministered to Him 
 of their substance " during His journeys 
 through the cities and villages. Whether 
 they followed Him from town to town, or 
 simply made it a duty to entertain Him and 
 His disciples when they came their way, we 
 do not know ; but we are certain that they 
 did so minister, and that He was entertained 
 by them. The Evangelist, after mentioning 
 Mary Magdalen, Joanna and Susanna, says, 
 " and many others who ministered to Him 
 of their substance." That our Lord was 
 pleased to receive this devotion on the part 
 of the pious women is evident from the fact 
 that He gave them the privilege to be near
 
 1 6 Simple Meditations 
 
 Him in His Passion, when even the disciples 
 had left Him ; He allowed them to minister 
 to His body in preparing it for the grave ; 
 and He rewarded them all in the person of 
 St. Mary Magdalen by appearing to her 
 before He was seen by His disciples. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have done some little ministry to our 
 Lord, and I have been glad to do it. But 
 I have not always recognized that I must 
 not expect more honour during my life than 
 our Lord allowed to those who were good to 
 Him whilst He was on earth. I have looked 
 for appreciation, and I have been hurt 
 because others did not value my work at 
 my own estimate. I ought to know that 
 want of appreciation is a special gift of our 
 Lord. He gave the holy women a pre- 
 cedence in suffering, a prominent place by 
 the Cross. 
 
 O Jesus ! I am so weak, I can bear suffer- 
 ing and disappointment so badly ; but I ask 
 you to give me the courage not to expect
 
 The Holy Women 17 
 
 consolation here. Let me be satisfied with 
 discouragement, and persevere though I 
 am not appreciated. I desire, above all, to 
 serve you for yourself, dear Lord, and 
 not for myself. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, inflame my heart with 
 the desire of pleasing you alone.
 
 i8 
 
 His Mother and His Brethren 
 
 Facts in our LortVs Life 
 
 On one occasion when our Lord was teach- 
 ing the multitude, our Lady and some of the 
 disciples joined the crowd, and the rumour 
 reached Him that His mother and His 
 brethren stood on the outside of the crowd, 
 and wished to speak to Him. Our Lord 
 went on with His instruction, only remarking 
 that His mother and His brethren were those 
 who heard His word and kept it. He knew 
 quite well that His mother did not want 
 Him to leave the work He was engaged 
 upon, and He saw the chance of letting me 
 see that I must not allow social duties, 
 which might easily wait, to interfere with 
 any work I am doing directly for Him.
 
 His Mother and His Brethren 19 
 
 Facts in my 07vn Life 
 
 How often have I exaggerated the im- 
 portance of some small household duty, 
 knowing that it would prevent me from that 
 work for God which He particularly asked 
 of me ! How much more readily I have 
 found excuses for leaving my spiritual duties, 
 than for doing them ! Now I see that 
 thought of myself, rather than love of duty, 
 has prompted these excuses ; for in most 
 cases I have usually found work to do 
 which is more to my natural taste than that 
 which I have neglected. For example, 
 when I might have done an act of kindness 
 by visiting some poor person who was not 
 very clean, I have been quick to discover 
 some other work which I liked better, and 
 which hindered this act of charity. 
 
 O Jesus ! I have shirked the work which 
 you have given me the opportunity of doing 
 for you. It is indeed good of you to 
 associate me with you in your work which 
 you gave as a special mark of your mission :
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 " The poor have the Gospel preached to 
 them." Oh, make me more regularly kind 
 and thoughtful for your poor, in spite of any 
 annoyances I may meet with. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, Father of the poor, 
 make me rich in grace through kindness to 
 the poor.
 
 21 
 
 VI 
 
 The Parable of the Sower 
 
 Facts m our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord exercised great discretion in the 
 words He spoke to the Jews. From His 
 disciples He hid nothing, explaining what- 
 ever they asked Him ; to others He spoke 
 only in parables; to some He would not speak 
 at all. When He spoke to the Apostles 
 He knew whether they were ready to receive 
 His message ; and when He saw that they 
 understood Him, and were prepared to act 
 on His advice. He spoke openly and at great 
 length. What He did was to find the good 
 ground, and when that was found. He gave 
 as much seed as the ground could bear 
 When He knew, as in Herod's case, that 
 His words would be of no avail, He did not 
 open His mouth.
 
 2 2 Simple Meditations 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Do I not sometimes speak when I know I 
 shall only add fuel to the fire ? If I were in 
 authority I might be obliged to speak even 
 though I knew that what I said would have, 
 no effect ; but I have been wanting in the 
 discretion so eminently manifested in our 
 Lord's life. Mostly I have thought, not so 
 much of how other people failed, but of how 
 their failure to do what seemed to me their 
 duty annoyed or inconvenienced me. Our 
 Lord always took the other view. He spoke 
 when He knew it was for their good, not 
 having any regard for His own convenience. 
 I should have been tired of waiting for the 
 gradual development of the proper spirit in 
 the case of the Apostles. I should have 
 launched out and made them frightened to 
 speak to me, and then their training would 
 have been imperfect. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for your kindness 
 in being so patient with me. I know I do 
 harm at times with my inopportune words.
 
 The Parable of the Sower 23 
 
 Make me less hasty, dear Lord ; let me 
 never do harm by my tongue, but, always 
 thinking of your example, strive to do good 
 rather by my life than by my words. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me less hasty.
 
 24 
 
 VII 
 
 ''Let your Light shine '^ 
 
 luzcts in our Lord's Life 
 
 *' I AM the true light," said our Lord of 
 Himself. His light is that of charity ; the 
 pure, disinterested love of God. Thus 
 throughout His life He always showed 
 Himself anxious that the honour of His 
 Father should be acknowledged. He was 
 seemingly careless of His own honour. 
 He did not seem to mind when He was 
 called a glutton and a wine-bibber; but 
 when He was called a blasphemer He ob- 
 jected and showed that He only cared for 
 His Father's honour. So again, He did 
 many miracles in secret, but when there was 
 occasion of seeking His Father's honour, 
 He did not hesitate to work the most 
 stupendous miracles before large crowds of 
 people.
 
 Let your Light shine'' 25 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I cannot say I do not think at all of God's 
 honour, for I do consider Him sometimes, 
 but I do not forget my own ; and where His 
 honour stands on the one side and a little 
 ridicule on the other, I find that often the 
 honour of God has not been a strong enough 
 motive to induce me to chance the ridicule. 
 Yet I am not satisfied to hear myself called 
 weak in these things. The fact is I rely too 
 much on myself and not enough on my 
 Lord in whom is my strength. The diffi- 
 culty is to know how I am to change, 
 because it is so easy to stand up for God 
 and His side in a way which will set others 
 against Him. I should act more in accord 
 with our Lord's example if I were to be more 
 thoughtful for God's honour than my own, 
 and willing for my work to be for the most 
 part secret so long as God's honour did not 
 suffer. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for your kindness 
 in thus helping me to be more like you. I
 
 26 Simple Meditations 
 
 do wish it, my dear Lord. In my heart I 
 really do not care about being honoured 
 and thought much of, especially if such 
 honour is taken from you. In my own little 
 way, Lord, I do love your glory and the 
 glory of your house. Be kind to me, dear 
 Lord, and let not my weakness ever lead me 
 to hazard the honour of my Father who is in 
 heaven. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, my Lord, make me 
 more like you.
 
 27 
 
 VIII 
 
 The Wheat and the Cockle 
 
 Facts ill our Lord's Life 
 
 The stories our Lord told the people are 
 very precious, for He Himself has said that 
 He chose to speak in parables. The teaching 
 He came down to impart was put in this 
 form. He often does not explain, but just 
 tells a story and leaves it. 
 
 The story of the wheat and the cockle is 
 as follows : — A good, honest, hard-working 
 farmer had put good wheat into the ground, 
 and went home, trusting that in due time 
 he might reap an abundant harvest. About 
 the time that the first green blades appeared, 
 the labourers on the farm noticed a number 
 of weeds among the wheat, and finding all of 
 one kind, it was evident to them that they 
 had been deliberately sown. They reported 
 this to the master, and offered to go over the
 
 28 Simple Meditations 
 
 whole field, weeding out the cockle. The 
 master would not allow them, as they would 
 only have done harm by treading down the 
 young and tender wheat. Both must grow 
 till the harvest, when proper instruction 
 would be given to the reapers ; the cockle 
 would then be burnt, and the wheat gathered 
 into the barns. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 How impatient I have been over such 
 inconveniences as I have had to suffer ! I 
 am in such a hurry to put matters straight, 
 and the straightening is, for the most part, in 
 some one else's conduct — insignificant things 
 which make as little difference as the cockle 
 seems to have made to the wheat. I only 
 make matters worse by interfering and trying 
 to make things right in other people's lives, 
 which our Lord wishes to leave for a time. 
 
 O Jesus ! make me more and more for- 
 bearing, more and more patient, especially 
 with those with whom I come in daily con- 
 tact. Make me ever ready to excuse what I
 
 The Wheat and the Cockle 29 
 
 do not understand, and not to see faults 
 unless I am quite sure that I do understand. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me patient with 
 others as you are with me.
 
 30 
 
 IX 
 
 The Mustard Seed 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord was constantly reminding His 
 disciples of the necessity of care in small 
 matters, and the importance of apparently 
 little things. In this parable He teaches 
 the lesson that what is little at any time may 
 be of great importance afterwards. The 
 particular little thing which our Lord re- 
 ferred to in the parable may be anything 
 in our own lives of which we are inclined to 
 think very lightly, but which, if properly 
 attended to, may bring us grace upon grace. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 For example, it may be a little patience 
 in listening to the conversation of some one 
 who may be in a disputatious humour. I
 
 The Mustard Seed 3^ 
 
 get annoyed, and encourage my annoyance 
 by letting a number of other little annoy- 
 ances come to my mind; and then I dwell 
 on the sum of them till I get out of temper 
 and say things which change the nonsense 
 that at first is innocent into vexation. This 
 brings out words which make all feel un- 
 comfortable and ready to snap at each other. 
 I put this down to the original nonsense, 
 but it might just as easily be put down to 
 my want of patience and kind forbearance. 
 Or again, I neglect some little duty, such as 
 the instructing of one who will listen to me ; 
 then the opportunity of giving the instruction 
 passes, and I blame the priest for not doing 
 his duty. 
 
 O my good Jesus ! it is like you to let me 
 see these little things in which I fail. Give 
 me grace to be more careful over the little 
 things which you have left to my own self. 
 I can trust big things to you, O Lord, and I 
 do so ; but I want your help also in the 
 smaller things. I see what an effect they 
 may have if I am not careful. Make me
 
 32 Simple Meditations 
 
 watchful, vigilant, and careful, and deter- 
 mined not to act in a hurry. Help me to 
 be bold in cases where I know I can do 
 good, instead of being fearful because I 
 may make myself appear foolish. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, good and kind, make 
 me good, kind, and patient like you.
 
 33 
 
 The Leaven 
 
 Facts i)i our Lord^s Life 
 
 Our Lord in His preaching used every 
 little fact as an assistance to His work. 
 Here was a common event in the life of 
 every family — the simple duty of making 
 good bread. In the baking of bread it 
 is necessary to prepare the meal or flour 
 by introducing into it a new substance 
 which will transform it. By itself flour is 
 not wholesome, but carefully prepared and 
 leavened, it forms the staple food of many. 
 So it is with many things in life. Annoyance 
 from others, leavened by patience and kind- 
 liness, instead of leading to anger, sulking, 
 and sin, becomes the very food of holiness. 
 Ease and freedom from necessary work, 
 instead of being a fruitful ground for all that 
 is wrong, if it be leavened with a charitable 
 
 3
 
 34 Simple Meditations 
 
 spirit, becomes a real blessing, not only to 
 myself, but to the poor and neglected in my 
 neighbourhood. The lesson is to find out 
 what it is that will leaven my life, and give 
 it time to work good in me. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I am in such a hurry that I never give any 
 process a chance. Just as the yeast requires 
 time to work, so every little exercise I am 
 advised to use requires time. I cannot over- 
 come the habits of years in a day, and it is 
 unreasonable of me to expect to do so. In 
 my dealings with others, how much waste 
 there has been for want of the leaven of 
 patience ! In my prayers, how much I miss 
 for want of the leaven of quiet persistence ! 
 In all my work for God, how much I miss 
 for want of the leaven of forgetfulness ot 
 self! 
 
 O Jesus, teach me your lesson, and give 
 me the leaven which will transform me from 
 an easily annoyed to a patient child of yours; 
 from a selfish, wilful child to one who forgets
 
 The Leaven 35 
 
 self for you, and leaves her own will for 
 yours. Let me learn the value of time, and 
 strive to have the patience which will give 
 your action a chance, your love a proper 
 scope, so that I may become yours always 
 and in all things. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me patient.
 
 36 
 
 XI 
 
 The Treasure hidden in a Field 
 
 Fads tn our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord continually shows us how much 
 we are to be willing to give up for the trea- 
 sure of a holy life. He Himself was ever 
 ready, not so much for Himself, but for the 
 sake of His disciples, to give up all that He 
 had or might have had. Good name, posi- 
 tion, comfort, love — He would part with all 
 to secure a useful lesson for us. With His 
 power of working miracles, there is no posi- 
 tion He might not have obtained ; but He 
 frequently put aside that power when the 
 exercise of it might have robbed Him of 
 ignominy or reproach, especially during His 
 Passion, for He came to show us how to use 
 the treasure of the Cross.
 
 The Treasure hidden in a Field 37 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 How little I am willing to give up for the 
 treasure of virtue, for charity to others, for 
 the advance of my prayer, for the good of 
 my neighbour ! How I grudge every little 
 sacrifice ! How I have to struggle to keep 
 the small amount of treasure I have pur- 
 chased ! If I were left to myself, I should 
 be just as selfish as ever, just as careless of 
 good. How little I am willing to sacrifice 
 myself for a hidden treasure, a treasure no 
 one can see ; no one can praise me for — a 
 restraint in word ; a restraint in appetite ! 
 All these things are very valuable to me, but 
 they make no show. If they did, if they 
 brought me honour or deference, or more 
 apparent result, I might be willing ; but 
 because they are hidden with Christ in God 
 I think little of them, and am not ready to 
 make any sacrifice to secure them. When 
 shall I learn the true value of things ? 
 
 O Jesus ! by your constant self-denial, by 
 your carelessness for praise, by your lavish
 
 3S Simple Meditations 
 
 seeking for reproach, by your thoughtfulness 
 for others, teach me to value the facts of 
 my Hfe at their true worth. Teach me to 
 be content to have my treasure hidden from 
 men. My Httle charities, how small they 
 are ! and yet if kept for you, how precious ! 
 Let me not allow them to depreciate in 
 value by being exhibited. My little self- 
 denials, let me not turn them into self-praise 
 by making a show of them ; but, having 
 found a few little treasures, let me keep 
 them for you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, my Lord, my treasure !
 
 39 
 
 XII 
 The Son of the Carpenter 
 
 Facts ift our Lord^s Life 
 
 When our Lord came amongst His own He 
 found that, however much others upheld and 
 valued Him, those who knew Him in His 
 youth thought nothing of Him. He was to 
 them one of themselves. All His relations 
 were known to them and were much as the 
 rest of the villagers. The virtue which was 
 to make such a mark in the world, to bring 
 in a new era in religion, to impress all the 
 human race, to lead so many souls to a pure, 
 restrained, and self-denying life, was unseen 
 by them. He was nothing to them but the 
 son of a carpenter. How successfully He 
 had hidden His light ! How Httle had He 
 exalted Himself ! How little He had taken 
 advantage of all the means in His power of 
 attracting the notice and the respect and
 
 40 Simple Meditations 
 
 the love of those who lived about Him ! 
 Others had come to know Him and appreciate 
 Him, but His own received Him not. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 It has been a hard thing for me also that 
 those who know me best appreciate me least. 
 I used to think that I was worthy of appre- 
 ciation ; for some time I have been learning 
 that folk have esteemed me at my true value. 
 My Lord in this episode of His life put 
 Himself in the same circumstances, and 
 subjected Himself to the same rejection, to 
 show me how to act ; to show me that the 
 appreciation of man was of no value. He 
 was His Father's beloved Son in whom He 
 was well pleased ; and He was content that 
 it should be so. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you most sincerely 
 for giving me this lesson. Make me worthy 
 of your love and appreciation, and of that 
 of your holy Mother, and I shall be satisfied. 
 I have looked for the support of those you 
 have given to me as members of my family.
 
 The Son of the Carpenter 41 
 
 and I have failed to gain it. Do you take 
 charge of me. Take me in hand, and make 
 me worthy of you and of your Father who 
 is in heaven. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me worthy of 
 you.
 
 42 
 
 XIII 
 
 Herod heard the Fame of Jesus 
 
 Facts i?i our Lord's Life 
 
 When oar Lord had embarked on His 
 missionary life, His fame spread slowly, and 
 it was not till after the first year that Herod 
 heard of Him. After the murder of St. John, 
 Herod was in constant dread of the judge- 
 ment of God coming upon him. When he 
 heard of our Lord's wonderful force as a 
 preacher, the report of His daily life, and of 
 the miracles which He constantly worked, he 
 imagined that St. John had risen from the 
 dead, and was in some mysterious way going 
 to bring the vengeance of God upon him ; 
 whereas our Lord would have been only too 
 glad to receive him to repentance and forgive 
 the crime he had committed. When he per- 
 sisted in his lewd life and showed no signs of 
 repentance, our Lord during His Passion
 
 Herod heard the Fame of Jesus 43 
 
 refused to speak to him ; but now He was 
 ready to forgive, though his sins were red as 
 scarlet. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have never committed such a crime as 
 Herod, but in other ways I have rejected the 
 grace of God and frightened myself, instead 
 of taking the first opportunity of making my 
 peace with God. I know I need not be 
 frightened, for my Lord is always ready to 
 pardon me. The devil sometimes uses this 
 fright to prevent me from going to Holy 
 Communion ; but I know that then I am not 
 acting up to my Lord's word, " Come to Me 
 all you that are heavily burdened." I can 
 laugh at others for neglecting Holy Com- 
 munion on light grounds, but I do the same 
 myself when my turn comes. 
 
 O Jesus ! teach me to trust you and to 
 love you. Make me fear to sin, but let me 
 never fear to come to you when I have 
 sinned. Your love is always ready to take 
 me back, l^each me not to exaggerate my
 
 44 Simple Meditations 
 
 faults at any time ; and unless I am certain 
 that I need confession, pardon me if I come 
 to you for relief and for strength when I 
 have in some minor way been unfaithful to 
 you. Your arms are wide enough to encom- 
 pass all my faults. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, draw me to yourself.
 
 45 
 
 XIV 
 The Loaves and Fishes 
 
 Facts i?t our Lord's Life 
 
 When our Lord had heard that John the 
 Baptist was dead and buried, He went by 
 boat into the desert, and the multitude 
 followed him on foot. When He had 
 prayed He came forth and found a great 
 multitude, and took compassion on them 
 and healed their sick. As evening drew on, 
 His disciples wanted Him to send the 
 crowds away that they might go to their 
 homes, for there was no village near where 
 they might find food. But Jesus, knowing 
 that He could provide for them, said, "They 
 have no need to go ; give you them to eat." 
 They said, " We have here only five loaves 
 and two fishes." And Jesus took the loaves 
 and, looking up to heaven, blessed and broke 
 and gave to His disciples They gave them
 
 46 Simple Meditations 
 
 to the crowd and all were satisfied ; and the 
 fragments filled seven baskets. Then He 
 sent the disciples away whilst He dismissed 
 the people. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 How often my thought is the same as that 
 of the disciples : How can I get out of doing 
 a kindness to people ? My idea is often to 
 get them away before I shall be obliged to 
 entertain them; before anything will be 
 expected of me. I say to myself : " I really 
 cannot be expected to do this or that. Let 
 them look after themselves." But I see that 
 my Lord takes the matter quite differently, 
 and teaches His disciples to think what they 
 can do rather than what they cannot do. He 
 will help all to try to do what they can. He 
 will be there, and render what would be 
 lavishness without Him mere common polite- 
 ness. 
 
 O Jesus ! how good of you to show me 
 your way so clearly, and make me feel how 
 far I am from following your lead ! how
 
 The Loaves and Fishes 47 
 
 prone to think only of myself and my own 
 comfort, how little to consider those who are 
 in need ! Charity in word and deed never 
 really interferes with my own work ; and if it 
 appears to do so I am not following my Lord 
 if I make the interference evident. Teach 
 me, Lord, to follow your own considerate 
 way, giving myself and what I have to others 
 when they need it. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me kind to all 
 for your sake.
 
 48 
 
 XV 
 
 He went up the Mountain alone 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord had just worked a great miracle 
 and shown that He had power over nature 
 such as had seldom been exercised; He 
 had multiplied the loaves so that one loaf 
 fed a thousand people. Yet as soon as 
 they had left Him He went alone to pray. 
 No matter what His power or His occupa- 
 tion, He never omitted prayer, though for 
 Him every wish was a prayer. 
 
 He had in view my case with all my 
 occupation, partly self-imposed, and He 
 wished to teach me not to fancy that I 
 could abandon prayer. He had to thank 
 His Father for the kindness He had been 
 enabled to show to the people, and to beg 
 for protection for His disciples, who were 
 now in a storm on the lake.
 
 He went up the Mountain alone 49 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Have I learnt this lesson that my Lord 
 so carefully and so constantly teaches me ? 
 I fear not ; or at least that I have not 
 learnt it thoroughly. I often make excuses 
 about my prayers, or put them off till late, 
 and then I cannot say them properly. A 
 little more courage, a little more energy, and 
 I might be much more regular. Then, 
 again, do I thank God as much as I ought ? 
 Do I think of my friends during prayer, 
 or only just repeat the words without any 
 special reference to the needs of others ? 
 I do, indeed, pray for my special friends, 
 but of all who are in distress, of all who 
 are fainting in the way, ^ic, I think very 
 little. Yet this is what our Lord teaches 
 me. He had always compassion on the 
 multitude. O Jesus ! Lord of the whole 
 earth, give me a little of your universal 
 sympathy. I can show you at least in my 
 prayers that I am attempting to follow you. 
 In charity, indeed, there is little I can do. 
 
 4
 
 5° Simple Meditations 
 
 You have not bestowed on me the means 
 to give much, but you have given me the 
 power of universal kindness in my prayers. 
 
 O Jesus ! have mercy on the dying ; 
 bring aid to the faiHng ; give joy to the 
 sorrowful. Give me more your own spirit 
 which is not confined to your friends, but 
 reaches to all that need your help, even 
 though they are estranged from you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, let me love all and 
 pray for all.
 
 51 
 
 XVI 
 
 The Wind was contrary 
 
 Facts ill our Lord's Life 
 
 The disciples were quite accustomed to 
 rough weather. They were used to fishing 
 on the lake during the night when storms 
 arose. They had gone at our Lord's bid- 
 ding, and they knew they were still in His 
 thoughts and prayers. They did not lose 
 heart though He was not with them. They 
 were glad of a good wind, and so long as 
 they had that they did not much mind 
 about the weather. Even when everything 
 was against them they for the most part 
 took things calmly after the manner of 
 sailors. Our Lord chose His disciples 
 from among sailors and fishermen because 
 this calm manner was such a valuable 
 ground to work on. When they came to
 
 52 Simple Meditations 
 
 understand our Lord their trust in Him was 
 boundless. 
 
 Facts ill my oivn Life 
 
 How little calm there is in my way of 
 acting. The smallest trifle puts me out, 
 makes me discontented, destroys my calm. 
 I long for some one to sympathize with 
 me. I know quite well, if I will give myself 
 time to think, that my Lord is not only 
 in sympathy with me but is helping me, 
 giving me grace upon grace. Graces which 
 I heed so little ; graces to enable me to 
 forget myself and my little trials ; graces 
 to bind me to trust in Him and be dis- 
 trustful of myself. What a lesson He gives 
 in the calmness of these poor, ignorant 
 men, who loved Him and thought little of 
 themselves ! 
 
 Dear Jesus, it is kind of you to take so 
 much trouble over such a worthless thing 
 as I am. Here am I, after coming so near 
 to you, going away again, showing all my 
 old want of calm and of trust, for calm-
 
 The Wind was contrary 53 
 
 ness comes from trust and cannot last 
 without it. 
 
 Ah Jesus ! am I losing my trust ? Do 
 not let me, dear Lord. I wish with all my 
 heart to have a firm, an intense, an abiding 
 trust in you. I may lose my trust in all 
 else, but do not let me lose it in you. You 
 will always be by me. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, help me ; protect me ; 
 calm me.
 
 54 
 
 XVII 
 
 He came walking on the Sea 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 All through the night He left them ; and 
 just as day was breaking He came to them. 
 They were wearied with rowing, for the wind 
 was contrary. They had slept little, for the 
 sea was rough. And just as they were able 
 to make out the shore and know where they 
 were, they saw Him walking towards them, 
 and they were afraid, thinking it was an 
 apparition. 
 
 During the night they had borne the 
 storm and His bodily absence, for they 
 knew He was with them in spirit, but when 
 He really came they were afraid. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I am brave at times ; I ask for hard things 
 to do,, and generally behave as if nothing
 
 He came walking on the Sea 55 
 
 would upset me, and then when our Lord 
 really does come — when with a little thought 
 I could know that He is with me, and that 
 He is asking some little self-restraint or extra 
 charity to those of my own household — I get 
 afraid, that is, flurried, and think it is not 
 He but some other who is by me. Then I 
 lose control of myself, either acting in an un- 
 restrained way, or showing temper, or for- 
 getting some quite plain precept of my 
 Master. Ah me ! how forgetful I am some- 
 times ! I get perturbed over nothing when I 
 should know that it is only a kindness on my 
 Lord's part to show me how I ought to do 
 some little thing for Him. 
 
 Jesus ! how patient you are with me, 
 and how impatient I am with almost all 
 with whom you have placed me ! 
 
 1 thank you. Lord, that you have not 
 allowed me to be tormented with scruples. 
 How could I have stood them ? If in your 
 kindness to me you ever subject me to such 
 trouble, give me grace not to forget you ; let 
 me recognize you even then. Let me see
 
 56 Simple Meditations 
 
 you at all times and be without fear as you 
 come to me. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, my kind and good 
 Lord, make me to trust you and not miss 
 the moment of your coming.
 
 57 
 
 XVIII 
 
 '' It is I ; fear ye not '' 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 As soon as our Lord was within speaking 
 distance He tried to alleviate the fear which 
 had fallen upon the disciples with this 
 beautiful sentence : " It is I ; fear ye not." 
 In all His training of the disciples we see 
 how He relied upon this childlike confidence. 
 How few have I found in whom I could have 
 real confidence ! These disciples had been 
 thrown upon themselves by their trade ; in 
 their boat on the lake they were frequently 
 obliged to rely on themselves. A sudden 
 storm threw them at once on their own 
 resources. Our Lord had been trying to 
 bring in another and a more stable and 
 trustworthy source of strength. He and His 
 law and His love were to be first, and their
 
 58 Simple Meditations 
 
 own experience and strength second. *' It 
 is I ; fear ye not." 
 
 Facts in my ow?i Life 
 
 Here is a lesson I can learn. I have been 
 thrown in somewhat the same manner on 
 myself. Early in life, perhaps, I was given 
 responsibility without proper experience. I 
 learnt to look to myself for extra work, and 
 found, as so many in like circumstances find, 
 that the more I relied on myself the less 
 would any one help me. I have been 
 proud of that I have done, but I have found 
 later on that my work has not been so 
 excellent as I once thought it. It will take 
 me a long time, and cost me many trials 
 before I learn to distrust myself, and to 
 place my trust in my Lord, if I intend to 
 make any progress in His love. In other 
 small duties I could do the work required 
 without much reference to my God ; but if 
 I am to work for my own soul I must rely 
 on Him. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind of you to take any
 
 *'It is I; fear ye not^' 59 
 
 interest in me ! You have been so kind to 
 me, and so considerate, hitherto. I have met 
 you with so Httle trust. But now that I 
 hear you saying to me, " It is I ; fear ye 
 not," I will trust you with my whole heart. 
 Give me the grace to go to you without fear ; 
 and to go with you wherever you wish to 
 lead me. Give me the grace not to draw 
 back in your service. 
 
 Aspiration. — " It is I ; fear ye not."
 
 6o 
 
 XIX 
 
 Peter walking on the Water 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As soon as Jesus had said, " It is I ; fear 
 ye not," St. Peter, as usual, wanted to test 
 the truth of what our Lord said. Peter was 
 always going his own way, and he was 
 rebuked by our Lord for this more than 
 for anything else. He tried to prevent our 
 Lord going to Jerusalem to die for the 
 salvation of men, and was rebuked by the 
 words, "Get thee behind me, Satan." 
 Then he tried to break m on our Lord's 
 meek conduct in the Garden of Olives, and 
 drawing a sword, struck the servant of the 
 high priest, and was again rebuked. 
 
 During the Passion, Peter's trust in himself 
 was punished by his fall and denial of our 
 Lord, for which he wept during all the rest 
 of his life. So here he would put to the
 
 Peter walking on the Water 6i 
 
 test our Lord's word, and our Lord to 
 humble him allowed him to sink as soon 
 as his heart failed him. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Peter's way was almost always the wrong 
 way ; yet how he persisted in it ! My way 
 has proved very seldom right, and yet how 
 I stick to it ! How little good I have done 
 either to myself or to others by follow- 
 ing my own way ! Yet how slow I am 
 to take up another way, and how annoyed 
 I still get if crossed ! Our Lord has allowed 
 me to walk confidently where others 
 would be afraid to step ; where others 
 would have relied on advice, taken counsel 
 and followed it, I have just gone my own 
 way. 
 
 O Jesus, how kind and good you have 
 been to me ! How forbearing, when I have 
 been overbearing with others ! How meek, 
 whilst I have been self-assertive ! I do wish 
 to learn and to practise your way in all 
 things. You are teaching me, dear Lord
 
 62 Simple Meditations 
 
 let me not grow weary of learning, I see 
 so little progress that I am inclined to give 
 up. Do not let me sink like St. Peter, but 
 be ever ready to support me. 
 
 Aspiration. — Lord, save me or I perish.
 
 63 
 
 XX 
 
 The Wind ceased 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord always brought peace to His 
 friends. Though He said that He came not 
 to bring peace but the sword, yet His last 
 words to His disciples were : " My peace I 
 give unto you ; not as the world giveth peace 
 do I give it unto you." To Peter He brought 
 peace, sometimes through rebuke, sometimes 
 by letting him see his weakness, sometimes 
 by His sweet support after his fall, as in 
 this instance. So to many of the sick and 
 blind and lame in Israel did He bring 
 peace. So it was here. The boat was 
 calmed as soon as Jesus entered it. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 The effect of my presence is not by any 
 means so peaceful. Very often I do not
 
 64 Simple Meditations 
 
 bring any change at all, but sometimes I 
 leave a company in a much less peaceful 
 state than I found it. The secret of our 
 Lord's peacefulness was that He gave relief 
 to pain and anxiety. " Be of good heart, 
 daughter, thy sins are forgiven thee," is one 
 of His sayings. There is relief in this and a 
 taking away of annoyance, and a forgetting 
 the cause of anxiety. Is my influence in 
 the same direction ? or is it not rather like 
 rubbing a sore place ? a calling attention to 
 a neglect, an allusion to a fault. I know my 
 tendency is always to remind people of what 
 they ought to do or what they ought to have 
 left undone. Our Lord did this at times, but 
 opportunely, when it would not vex or annoy. 
 O Jesus ! I feel hopeless in this matter. 
 It is kind of you to remind me so often of 
 my failure. I wish, Lord, to learn your 
 sweet, peaceful way. Ah ! if I could only 
 put myself out of count as you did ! if I 
 could leave well alone when the striving 
 after what I think the better will only bring 
 annoyance. What would have happened,
 
 The "Wind ceased 65 
 
 Lord, if every time I had been a little wrong 
 you had suddenly called me to right it ? 
 I should have given up long since. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, help me to bring peace 
 to all.
 
 66 
 
 XXI 
 
 The Hem of His Garment 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 When the boat came to shore the Apostles 
 found themselves in the country of Genesar. 
 As soon as our Lord was recognized, the 
 people sent word into the whole country, 
 and they brought all their sick to Him and 
 besought Him simply to let them touch the 
 hem of His cloak ; and as many as did so 
 were healed. This was such a simple, child- 
 like desire, so full of humility and con- 
 fidence, that our Lord's heart went out to 
 them, and His divine power healed them. 
 Humility and confidence are the two virtues 
 which He especially loves ; whenever He 
 finds them He is always most generous in 
 the favours He bestows. The reason He so 
 loves these virtues is that with them He can 
 teach all things — without them it is almost
 
 The Hem of His Garment 67 
 
 impossible to teach anything. The picture 
 our Lord gives us of the Pharisee in the 
 parable of the Pharisee and the Publican is 
 just the opposite ; He spoke it to those who 
 " trusted in themselves as just and despised 
 others," and the lesson He draws is that He 
 could make nothing of such people. They 
 had to be humbled and to lose confidence 
 in themselves before His influence could 
 touch them. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have been used to other ways than these. 
 I have acted sometimes as if humiHty and 
 confidence were not becoming to me ; as if 
 they were childish instead of childlike. I 
 still at times find it rather hard to put aside 
 that trust of myself which has grown with my 
 growth and been confirmed by my bringing 
 up ; and I have wondered why I did not get 
 nearer to our Lord. I was not content with 
 the hem of His garment. I was not ready 
 to give Him full confidence. I was not 
 anxious to know what His will was, so much
 
 68 Simple Meditations 
 
 as to show that what others had done I 
 could do also. I was anxious not to be left 
 behind, as I thought. Ah me ! how much I 
 have still to learn ! 
 
 Dear Jesus, be kind to me. It is not 
 pleasant to think these things, but if it be 
 your will, let me be humbled, that I may learn 
 to put my trust in you. The hem of your 
 garment is good enough for me if by my 
 humility and confidence I may find a way 
 to your heart. Jesus, my Lord, be kind to 
 me still. I do not deserve your kindness, 
 but I trust in you. Make me humble. 
 Make me as far as can be forgetful of myself. 
 Make me content with little things so long 
 as it is your will that I should gain your 
 grace by little things. 
 
 Aspiration. — Lord, let me but touch the 
 hem of your garment.
 
 69 
 
 XXII 
 
 The People's Question 
 
 Facts hi our Lord's Life 
 
 The morning after the miracle of the loaves 
 the people saw that the other ship which had 
 been at the place of the miracle was still 
 there, and they knew that Jesus had not 
 gone in the Apostles' ship, but had remained 
 to set them on their journey. They con- 
 cluded that He had stayed the whole night 
 in the hills praying, and so made as quickly 
 as they could to the same place, seeking 
 Him. They had experienced His kindness ; 
 the power of His words had gone to their 
 hearts, and they were anxious to hear Him 
 speak again to them. When they came to 
 the scene of the miracle they could not find 
 Him, so they took ship and came to 
 Capharnaum. There they heard where He 
 was, and sailing again across the lake they
 
 70 Simple Meditations 
 
 came to Genesar. Coming to Jesus they 
 asked for an explanation : " Rabbi, when 
 comest Thou hither ? " Here we have a 
 sample of the earnestness and the persistence 
 of all who seek our Lord and find Him. 
 They follow as closely as they can. They 
 do not hesitate to undergo fatigue. They 
 are not content till they find Him. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 These people were only just beginning to 
 know Jesus, and they took all these pains to 
 get to Him. I have known Him, and per- 
 suaded myself that I have loved Him, for 
 years, and yet how soon I get discouraged ! 
 The smallest rebuff, the slightest upset, and 
 I cease to look for Him. I sit down and 
 count the cost. I busy myself with myself. 
 I recount to myself my difficulties; I omit 
 my prayers ; I make others feel how badly 
 I am being used. These men just forgot 
 themselves and made every effort to get to 
 Jesus. Ah ! if only I could keep up my 
 efforts ! If only I could go on in spite of
 
 The People's Question 71 
 
 annoyance ! I must learn this. I do not 
 mean just regularity in my prayers, but more 
 the quiet, persistent effort to follow as closely 
 as I can the example of my Lord. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for rebuking my 
 want of persistence. It is good of you not 
 to tire of me, even though I grow weary at 
 times and feel inclined to stop to rest by the 
 way ; to leave for a time the path you have 
 put me on, and go back to my own selfish, 
 hard way. Do not lose sight of me, Lord. 
 Still beckon me on ; still keep me near you. 
 Encourage me to follow till I gain you for 
 ever. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, draw me to yourself, 
 and always keep me near you.
 
 72 
 
 XXIII 
 Our Lord's Answer 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 The question the people put to our Lord 
 was one of curiosity. They could not under- 
 stand how He had got to Genesar, but they 
 did not ask Him plainly, " How did you 
 come here ? " but " When did you come ? " 
 Our Lord would not satisfy their curiosity — 
 He has very little regard for curiosity — they 
 should have been contented to have found 
 Him. It was always the same throughout 
 His life. He never cared to satisfy curiosity ; 
 and in this instance He rebuked the people. 
 They appeared to take interest in His teach- 
 ing, but He told them that they were following 
 Him because He had fed them : *' Labour 
 not for the meat which perisheth, but for 
 that which endureth." He did not mince
 
 Our Lord's Answer 73 
 
 matters, but spoke quite openly ; yet they 
 were still curious : " Give us a sign that we 
 may believe." They chose the test which 
 would satisfy them, and reminded our Lord 
 that Moses had given their fathers manna in 
 the desert. Our Lord replied by teaching 
 them the mystery of the Blessed Sacrament. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have not recognized in my life how little 
 my Lord likes curiosity, nor how much it 
 takes hold of me sometimes. It seems part 
 of my nature ; I seem scarcely able to keep it 
 under — what so and so is doing ; why he 
 or she did not do such and such a thing. 
 Such little things seem of so much impor- 
 tance. And why is it so ? Not because I 
 am really any better when my curiosity is 
 satisfied, but because I just like to know. 
 It is such a waste of time, and so fruitless ! 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for this rebuke 
 which you have given me. If only I were 
 half as earnest in getting to know you as I 
 am in trying to know some little useless fact,
 
 74 Simple Meditations 
 
 some bit of gossip, some unimportant bit of 
 news ! 
 
 Pardon me, Lord, and give me the grace 
 to practise self-restraint in this matter. I see 
 you do not like my curiosity. Pardon me 
 for the past, and help me in the future. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, let me think of you 
 and be content.
 
 75 
 
 XXIV 
 
 ''This Saying is hard'' 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 As soon as the people were quiet, our Lord 
 began to explain to them the mystery of the 
 Blessed Sacrament, and they questioned His 
 every assertion. Very patiently He went on 
 to explain that a firm faith is necessary before 
 the effects of the Body and Blood of our 
 Lord can be wrought in the communicant. 
 Then He asserted the fact that He would 
 give His Body for the meat of those who 
 desire to have life everlasting. This the 
 people rejected as impossible. They had 
 asked for a sign that He was as great as 
 Moses, and when He gave them what they 
 required they refused to believe, and some 
 murmured. He might have tempered what 
 He had said, but He would not, for He was 
 now delivering the message given to Him by
 
 76 Simple Meditations 
 
 His Father. He therefore once more asserted 
 that His Flesh and His Blood were to be the 
 nourishment of the world. Therefore many 
 of His followers murmured, saying, "This 
 saying is hard, and who can hear it ? " Jesus 
 simply repeated His doctrine, and then gave 
 the secret of their incredulity, that is, that they 
 had not merited the grace from His Father 
 by which they might believe. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 The faith of these men failed because they 
 had failed to be faithful in their daily lives, 
 and my practice fails for the same reason. I 
 have not deserved to be helped. I know, for 
 instance, quite clearly that I shall be rewarded 
 for my constancy of effort in restraining my 
 appetite for things which do me no good by 
 an enlivening of my faith which will carry 
 me through the day in the close intimacy 
 with my Lord; yet I will not correspond 
 with the grace given, and thus fail to gain the 
 further grace. I know quite well that if I am 
 careful over my prayers I shall do good for
 
 ''This Saying is hard" 77 
 
 my Father who is in heaven ; but I let 
 almost anything take me from my prayers, if 
 not bodily, at least mentally, and then I 
 wonder that I have not power to control my 
 temper or keep myself from interfering where 
 my interference only creates annoyance and 
 does no good to any one. 
 
 O Jesus ! let me be more particular in the 
 future. I see every hour of my life has a 
 relation to every other, and that I cannot be 
 truly faithful at one time unless I am faithful 
 in all. 
 
 Strengthen my weakness. How weak I 
 am, only you know, Lord. Be kind to me. 
 I wish to be your own faithful child ; let me 
 have all the graces necessary. Do not reject 
 me for my carelessness. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me faithful.
 
 78 
 
 XXV 
 
 Many went back 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 These backsliders must have caused our 
 Lord a great deal of pain. He had come to 
 teach them and to save them, but unless they 
 received the teaching, or at least did not 
 wilfully reject it. He would not give them 
 the salvation. They had quite sufficient 
 grounds to believe His word. They had 
 seen Him perform a very wonderful miracle 
 when He multiplied the loaves and fed five 
 thousand people with five small loaves. Yet 
 because they could not understand, or be- 
 cause they were afraid that He would expect 
 more from them than they were ready to 
 give, they turned their backs on Him and 
 left Him. What it meant to them to leave 
 Him they scarcely knew. How many falls 
 from grace ! How much blindness of heart I
 
 Many went back 79 
 
 Some of these men, perhaps, swelled the cry 
 of the crowd— " Crucify Him." Ah me ! 
 how little we count the cost of a deliberate 
 infidelity to our Lord ! He is goodness 
 itself, and even though we turn our backs on 
 Him and leave Him, He is ready to receive 
 us again at once if we will walk with Him 
 once more. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Do I count what it may mean to me when 
 I am wilfully unfaithful to my Lord ? I 
 know it is only in seemingly little things that 
 I have any temptation to turn from Him. 
 I find no difficulty in accepting His word 
 in matters of faith, but I am constantly find- 
 ing it hard in the little crosses of life. Just 
 a little charity not to impute a base motive to 
 some one's action ; just a Httle restraint not 
 to speak when I know my words will only 
 irritate; and I refuse to make the sacrifice, 
 to listen to my Lord urging me. Just a little 
 care not to meddle in other people's business, 
 and I insist on iiiterfering.
 
 8o Simple Meditations 
 
 O Jesus ! I do not wish to turn my back 
 on you ; I do not want to leave you ; I wish 
 to walk with you always. I am so weak and 
 so easily turned from the path you point out 
 to me. Do not let me leave you, Lord ; and 
 if I ever do, let it be only for a moment — 
 not for long, O Lord ; not for long ! Let me 
 appreciate the danger I run by my small 
 infidelities. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, keep me close to you 
 in life, and be with me at death and then for 
 ever.
 
 XXVI 
 «Wm you also go?" 
 
 Fads ill our Lord's Life 
 
 How our Lord was grieved by the desertion 
 of His followers is evident in the touching 
 question He puts to the chosen twelve : 
 " Will you also go ? " It was a crucial point 
 in His life. He had exerted His miraculous 
 power by feeding the multitude in the desert, 
 and then walking on the water to lead up to 
 the doctrine He had most at heart — the 
 central mystery of the new dispensation; and 
 in spite of all His care a great number of His 
 followers left Him and walked no more with 
 Him. It seemed as if failure stared Him in 
 the face. Still, He held to His doctrine ; 
 even if the twelve had left Him, after all His 
 kindness and love. He would have set to 
 work to train others to do His work. The 
 answer to His question meant a great deal to 
 
 6
 
 82 Simple Meditations 
 
 Him, but He did not lose heart and give up 
 the struggle as I would have done. His 
 " Will you also go ? " brought out all the faith 
 of the band, and Peter spoke for all : " To 
 whom shall we go ? " And Jesus let us see 
 that it was what He expected. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I fancy I am not easily put off from any- 
 thing I take up, and, indeed, it is true in 
 things which are appreciated or that I have 
 got into the way of doing. But in my 
 religious or spiritual life it is somewhat 
 different. Sometimes I have given up for 
 long periods some of these exercises, such as 
 meditation, spiritual reading, etc. I have 
 not thought much of each little neglect, and 
 have been rather shocked at times to find it 
 has stretched over so many days or weeks. I 
 always have an excuse, though I know it has 
 scarcely ever been a valid one. For instance, 
 in my spiritual reading I have often been 
 negligent because I have not taken the trouble 
 to get a suitable book, though I willingly
 
 ''Will you also go?'' 83 
 
 take such little trouble over some temporal 
 matter. I do not take trouble, though I 
 know my Lord demands it of me. 
 
 O Jesus ! make me more constant in 
 my service of you. I see how little I have 
 deserved the grace of perseverance, which is 
 the crown of fidelity in small things. I will 
 try, Lord, to take the trouble necessary to 
 secure my few minutes' spiritual reading. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me more con- 
 stant.
 
 84 
 
 XXVIl 
 
 ^^Lord, to whom shall wc go}** 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 Our Lord came from heaven to take us all 
 back with Him. He attached the disciples 
 to Himself, and of all His disciples He 
 chose out twelve quite ordinary men to be 
 His special friends. When He had died for 
 love of man He drew many more to Him- 
 self : ''I will draw all to Myself." He did 
 not draw men for His own sake but for 
 theirs. These twelve were the sample of 
 so many who in future time should feel the 
 attraction of His life and of His words, and 
 cleave closely to Him. He longs for all, 
 but many do not allow themselves to feel 
 the power of this attraction. They are taken 
 up with work for themselves, or with self- 
 love, and they will not give a fair chance to 
 that love of Him which would attract them
 
 ''Lord, to whom shall wc go?'' 85 
 
 and make true men and women of them. 
 If they do so there is no Hmit to the love 
 our Lord bestows on them, as from this time 
 to His death He never left His disciples 
 except to pray and to suffer. 
 
 Facts in my oum Life 
 
 I have felt the attraction of my Lord for 
 years. I have not given it a fair chance, 
 indeed, but I have never wilfully or for a 
 long time left Him, and He has shown His 
 love in ways I am quite conscious of. He 
 has allowed me to come to Him very 
 frequently in Holy Communion, He has 
 been very kind to me at such times, but 
 all the same I have not been as faithful or 
 as careful as I ought when He has been so 
 lavish with His favours. How little I have 
 deserved His love and goodness, yet He 
 has freely given them to me. 
 
 O Jesus ! it is good of you to take me so 
 to yourself. It has been heartless of me not 
 to be more faithful, more loving in return. 
 I have been attracted to other things. By
 
 86 Simple Meditations 
 
 your grace I have never wholly left you, 
 but I have been cold in my service, loth to 
 listen to your voice. I have so often put 
 obstacles in your way that I have at times 
 endangered the permanence of my love. I 
 do not wish to leave you, my Lord and 
 Master. Make me more whole-hearted in 
 your service. 
 
 Aspiration. — To whom shall I go but to 
 you?
 
 87 
 
 XXVIII 
 ^*One of you is a DeviP^ 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 During the whole of our Lord's missionary 
 life He was in constant communication with 
 Judas, who was to betray Him. See with 
 what care He tried to bring the best out of 
 him. Judas had every chance that the rest 
 had; he was not, indeed, admitted to the 
 inner circle consisting of Peter, James, and 
 John ; but neither were the other apostles. 
 He had the advantage of those long talks 
 with our Lord which must have been so 
 precious to one who was anxious to learn 
 how to live and to do God's work. He was 
 more trusted than the rest, for he was the 
 one chosen to provide for all. And all the 
 time he was a devil. All the time our Lord 
 knew him for what he was. It is the most 
 terrifying incident in our Lord's life that He
 
 88 Simple Meditations 
 
 should have been so kind to, so careful in 
 the training of, Judas, knowing that He was 
 to be a viper in His bosom. It should make 
 me very careful about my sincerity in serving 
 Him. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 Have I in no way acted the part of Judas? 
 It is not good for me, I know, to dwell on 
 such thoughts often, but it is a part of our 
 Lord's message to me, and I must at times 
 face the question. Some have thought that 
 Judas did not wish to betray our Lord, but 
 simply to force Him to assert His power. 
 In this view though he might have been and 
 was mistaken and perverse, he was no traitor. 
 In other and more catholic views Judas is one 
 who had every opportunity of becoming a 
 saint, and was not faithful in his service : he 
 grew fonder and fonder of money so that at 
 last he was not able to resist the temptation 
 to make money out of his Friend and Master. 
 Here I have something I can take to myself 
 — not that I am over-fond of money ; but is
 
 One of you is a Devil '' 89 
 
 there no other hindrance to my love of our 
 Lord that I am letting grow stronger and 
 stronger without seeing where it is going to 
 lead me ? If there is, I must be doubly on 
 my guard, for my Lord is asking me now 
 to beware lest I betray Him. 
 
 O Jesus ! be kind to me and let me not 
 by any act of mine betray you. Let 
 nothing, however small, however dear, stand 
 between us. It is kind of you to frighten 
 me a little now and then lest I should forget 
 myself and your great kindness to me. 
 Should I ever be going to betray you, oh, 
 do not let me. I will listen to you, and 
 I will be on my guard. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, have mercy on me 
 and pardon me, and strengthen me in the 
 future.
 
 90 
 
 XXIX 
 
 The Objection of the Pharisees 
 
 Facts in our Lord^s Life 
 
 All through His life our Lord was particular 
 about the observance of the law, but He 
 made a distinction between the law and 
 the sectarian and peculiar practices of the 
 Pharisees. This one, of always washing 
 before meals, is one we might have expected 
 our Lord to be particular about ; but though 
 He loved cleanliness as much as any Phari- 
 see, He would not answer them when they 
 came to ask Him why He did not insist on 
 His disciples washing their hands before 
 sittting down to a meal. Our Lord told 
 them that it was not such things which 
 really counted in life, but the words and 
 thoughts of the heart. The Pharisees thought 
 that all who were not zealous for the law
 
 The Objection of the Pharisees 91 
 
 (according to their sect) were reprobate. 
 Our Lord tells them that they have no right 
 to judge His disciples, as what really was 
 important was within and hidden from 
 them. 
 
 Facts in my own Life 
 
 I have set up a standard by which I 
 condemn many of those I come across. 
 I see now that I can never be sure that they 
 may not be pleasing to God even though 
 they displease me. All have not had as 
 good opportunities as I have of knowing the 
 right, though God knows I have made very 
 little use of my opportunities. Perhaps if I 
 took more notice of my own deficiencies and 
 less of my neighbour's, I should be pleasing 
 God more. It is not external behaviour 
 which is of value, but gentleness and kind- 
 liness of heart. 
 
 O Jesus ! let me learn to judge myself 
 strictly and all others lightly. Let me 
 change my usual plan of having justice only 
 for my neighbour and mercy only for myself.
 
 92 Simple Meditations 
 
 Help me, dear Lord ! I see it is your way ; 
 I know, therefore, it ought to be my way, for 
 in all things I want to follow you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, make me merciful to 
 others.
 
 93 
 
 XXX 
 
 The Canaanite Woman 
 
 Fads in our Lord's Life 
 
 There came to Him a woman of those 
 parts, beseeching Him to heal her daughter. 
 And Jesus took no notice of her. But she 
 went on crying out after Him so much that 
 the disciples begged Him to send her away. 
 And Jesus turning to her said, " I was not 
 sent but to the sheep that are lost of the 
 house of Israel." But she cried out simply, 
 '' Lord, help me." Jesus again refused her, 
 saying, *' It is not good to take the bread 
 of the children and cast it to the dogs." 
 Still she persisted : " Yea, Lord ; for the 
 whelps also eat of the crumbs which fall 
 from the table of their master." Our Lord 
 was touched, and said, "O woman, great 
 is thy faith. Be it done to thee as thou 
 wilt." And her daughter was cured from 
 that hour. Here we sec our Lord bringing
 
 94 Simple Meditations 
 
 out before His disciples the best qualities of 
 this poor woman. They were for turning 
 her away, but He did not allow this. He 
 only gave her an opportunity of showing 
 how great was her faith. He even used 
 what to her must have sounded hard and 
 unkind words; but really they were kind 
 words, because they brought out all that was 
 admirable in her — her love of her daughter ; 
 her courage to brave even rebuke and abuse 
 for that love ; her great faith in the power 
 and the mercy of our Lord. 
 
 Facts in my oitm Life 
 
 How seldom my words and actions bring 
 out the best in those I have to deal with ! 
 I look for faults and find them. If I were 
 to look for goodness, I should, no doubt, 
 find that quite as easily. It takes me a long 
 time to learn this lesson which my Lord is 
 so persistent in teaching me. In my own 
 people how often others see virtue and 
 goodness when I only find reason for an- 
 noyance !
 
 The Canaanite Woman 95 
 
 O Jesus ! let me begin now at least, 
 though late, to have an eye for what is good 
 and worthy of praise in others, instead of 
 only for what seems to me to be blameable. 
 If others were to treat me as I treat them, 
 how should I escape blame? I feel it 
 intensely when only my omissions are 
 noticed, and what I have done well is 
 passed by. May not others feel the same ? 
 Give me, dear Lord, your own kind eyes 
 for all that is good in those whom I have 
 to deal with. 
 
 Aspiratio?i. — Jesus, make me kind in my 
 thoughts and my words.
 
 96 
 
 XXXI 
 
 Jesus passed from thence 
 
 Facts in our Lord's Life 
 
 "And when Jesus had passed away from 
 thence He came nigh to the Sea of Galilee." 
 How very much of our Lord's life is con- 
 tained in such a sentence as the above ! 
 He went all the way from Capharnaum to 
 the sea-coast seemingly just to receive the 
 declaration of faith of the poor mother of 
 Canaan, and we hear nothing else of His 
 doings. Of course there must have been 
 many incidents, but we are not told them. 
 St. John says that if everything which our 
 Lord did and every word He spoke were 
 recorded the whole world could not contain 
 the books. In our modern life we advertise 
 ourselves so much. Every little thing which 
 can bring us praise, or even attention which
 
 Jesus passed from thence 97 
 
 is not always praise, is remembered and 
 brought out in conversation. It is to avoid 
 this kind of thing that religious have to keep 
 silence at meals, the worst time of the day 
 for self-advertisement and for uncharitable 
 depreciation of others. 
 
 Facts in 7ny ow?i Life 
 
 I have been a good deal to blame in this 
 matter. If I do not tell the whole table my 
 own good deeds I am not particular to keep 
 them altogether to myself. I use the chance 
 for pouring out all kinds of gossip, some of 
 it not always charitable. I find it rather 
 hard not to boast of what I have done, and 
 am never unwilling to hear others exaggerate 
 what I think is to my credit ; for, after all, it 
 does require a little exaggeration before my 
 acts can be praised at all. 
 
 O Jesus ! I thank you for all your kind- 
 ness and forbearance with me, which I so 
 little deserve. I will try, after your example, 
 to keep what I do to myself, especially when 
 I know that I should get praise for it. I 
 
 7
 
 9^ Simple Meditations 
 
 will try not to be vexed when I am not 
 praised ; when my work is criticized and 
 shown to be poor. 
 
 Aspiratio7u — Jesus, meek and humble of 
 heart, make my heart like yours.
 
 99 
 
 XXXII 
 A Day of Healing 
 
 Facts i?i our Lord^s Life 
 
 '• And there came to Him a great multitude, 
 having with them the dumb and bHnd, etc., 
 and cast them down at His feet." See how 
 little is made of a long day of healing. To 
 go from one to the other, to speak kindly to 
 each, was the method which our Lord used 
 on other occasions, and we may well believe 
 that He did the same now. It was a long, 
 fatiguing process, and nothing is said of it. 
 \Ve can see Him always cheerful, thoughtful 
 of each, kind and considerate to each. He 
 was not glad when each of the loathsome 
 patients was finished with : He was just 
 self-forgetful, and thoughtful only of those 
 who were before Him. What a lesson ! 
 
 Facts in viy ow?i Life 
 How differently I deal with the poor and 
 with those that I help ! How much of self
 
 Simple Meditations 
 
 I bring into my charity ! For example, I 
 prefer to go to some before others ; I am 
 glad when my visit is over ; I say, " I have 
 finished that, thank goodness ! " I am con- 
 sidering myself, and self only, all the time. 
 " Do they care for my coming ? Do they 
 think any better of me ? " If only I could 
 just forget myself, my little charities would 
 be so much more welcome. I know this is 
 the case with people whom I like to visit. 
 I never ask myself whether they think any 
 better of me for coming. Ah ! if only I 
 could put aside this miserable self ! O my 
 good Lord ! how patient you are with me ! 
 How much I think of a little, and it is so 
 little I do for you ! There are you toiling 
 all day and every day for others without any 
 thought of yourself, and what recognition 
 did you get ? None, or scarcely any ; and 
 the very ones you were kind to turned 
 against you. 
 
 Aspiration. — Jesus, teach me to be forget- 
 ful of myself, and to think only of you and 
 your friends.
 
 SIMPLE AIDS 
 
 TO THE DEVOUT RECITATION OF 
 
 THE ROSARY
 
 Simple Aids 
 
 to the Devout Recitation of 
 
 The Rosary 
 
 By the Right Rev. 
 
 JOSEPH OSWALD SMITH 
 
 Abbot of Ampleforth 
 
 CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY 
 
 69 Southwark Bridge Road 
 
 London, S.E* 
 
 1905
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 Introduction : 
 
 
 How to say the Rosary 
 
 ... 7 
 
 The Joyful Mysteries : 
 
 
 The Annunciation 
 
 ... IS 
 
 The Visitation 
 
 ... i8 
 
 The Nativity 
 
 ... 22 
 
 The Presentation 
 
 ... 26 
 
 The Finding in the Temple 
 
 ... 30 
 
 The Sorrowful Mysteries : 
 
 
 The Agony in the Garden 
 
 ••• 35 
 
 The Scourging at the Pillar 
 
 ••• 39 
 
 The Crowning with Thorns 
 
 ... 44 
 
 The Carrying of the Cross 
 
 ... 49 
 
 The Crucifixion 
 
 ••■ 54 
 
 The Glorious Mysteries : 
 
 
 The Resurrection 
 
 ... 59 
 
 The Ascension 
 
 ... 64 
 
 The Descent of the Holy Ghost 
 
 ... 69 
 
 The Assumption 
 
 ... 74 
 
 The Coronation 
 
 ... 79 
 
 The "Our Father" 
 
 ... 83
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 How to Say the Rosary 
 
 There is little doubt that much time is 
 wasted over the Rosary of our Lady, be- 
 cause those who use it will not allow them- 
 selves time enough to say it well. 
 
 If the Rosary were carefully said, it would 
 help us, perhaps, more than any other vocal 
 prayer to bring the life of our Lord into our 
 own lives. 
 
 No one can teach us the real meaning of 
 that life and its application to our own so 
 well as our Lady, for she of all others knew 
 the life of our Lord best, and takes the most 
 interest in our life. 
 
 Let us take her, then, as our guide, and 
 ask her in all simplicity that, whilst she 
 listens to our prayers, she would teach us 
 
 7
 
 8 Introduction 
 
 the life and spirit of her Son. If we trust 
 her she will most certainly help us. The 
 holy Rosary, used reverently and devoutly, 
 is the best means of putting ourselves under 
 the guidance of our Mother in our study of 
 the life of our Lord. 
 
 To allow the life of our Lord a chance of 
 being before our minds whilst we pray, a 
 more detailed presentation of the mysteries 
 of the Rosary than is usual becomes neces- 
 sary. The mere statement, " the Third 
 Mystery, the Nativity," which is so often 
 deemed sufficient, is, from my own ex- 
 perience, plainly not so. 
 
 In the method which follows an attempt 
 has been made to place each mystery more 
 vividly before the mind, and to present it 
 in such a way that we may see how it 
 may concern ourselves. This detailed 
 presentment of the mystery may be valuable 
 to us also, apart from the use it serves in the 
 devout recitation of the holy Rosary. It will 
 help us in meditation if we are accustomed 
 to practise that form of mental prayer ; and
 
 How to Say the Rosary 9 
 
 it will, moreover, give us a means of studying 
 the spirit of our Lord's life as it concerns 
 ourselves. Thus it will lay the foundation 
 of that prayer of aspiration to which all 
 devout souls should tend. This prayer of 
 aspiration is one which I find many devout 
 souls unwilling to practise. Its very free- 
 dom, which the older masters of the spiritual 
 life looked upon as one of its great virtues, 
 is to so many who have been accustomed to 
 modern methods of meditation a cause of 
 suspicion. Why this is so it is difficult to 
 understand. My own belief is that many 
 devout souls waste a great deal of time in 
 the prayer of meditation which they might 
 most profitably employ for their souls' good 
 and for the benefit of others if they would 
 have the courage to pass out of meditation 
 to the prayer of aspiration. 
 
 The great masters of prayer tell us that 
 after a sufficient exercise of meditation the 
 soul which is called to the exercise of mental 
 prayer, and through it to union with God, 
 should by the use of acts of the will occupy
 
 10 Introduction 
 
 more and more of the time devoted to medi- 
 tation, leaving gradually the direct work of 
 the understanding and trusting itself to the 
 goodness and kindness of God, pass imme- 
 diately from the presentation of a fact in our 
 Lord's life (or other matter of their prayer) 
 to fervent acts of the will. By degrees these 
 immediate acts, as they are called, lead the 
 soul to more pure acts which have little or 
 no connection with the fact or mystery con- 
 sidered, until it comes to pass that acts of 
 resignation, desire of God's presence, longing 
 for a time when all infidelity of life will pass 
 away, &c., become the constant habit of the 
 soul. After all, the good God does not need 
 the thoughts of our minds or understanding, 
 but in many passages of Holy Scripture He 
 has shown that He does most intensely de- 
 sire the acts of our will. The submission 
 of our will under His holy guidance leads us 
 necessarily to the prayer of aspiration. 
 
 The next point is to convince ourselves 
 that the " Hail Mary " is not a mere for- 
 mula. This has been made plain, I hope.
 
 How to Say the Rosary ii 
 
 in the address which is written after the 
 statement of the mystery. Herein I have 
 attempted to show that the " Hail Mary " 
 contains the elements of all the prayers we 
 may wish to offer to our Lady, asking her to 
 help us to learn our Lord's life, and to bring 
 the spirit of it into our own. 
 
 But, more than this, I have tried to show 
 how the " Hail Mary " may be used in the 
 prayer of immediate acts. 
 
 When reading the paraphrase over it will 
 be well to dwell on any thought which may 
 strike one in order to give that thought a 
 chance of recurring to one's mind at other 
 times. As the habit of calling to mind the 
 thoughts which were fruitful during the time 
 of prayer grows it will be followed by the 
 habit of raising the heart to God in fervent 
 aspirations. The growth of this habit, fos- 
 tered by humility and kindness, will speedily 
 prepare the soul for the prayer of aspiration, 
 and then the aspirations used during the 
 time given to prayer will overflow into the 
 rest of the life till we come to actually
 
 12 Introduction 
 
 fulfil St. Paul's precept of praying without 
 ceasing. 
 
 It will be well for those who have the 
 time to read the paraphrase on the " Hail 
 Mary " which is given for each mystery ; 
 and if it expresses the meaning they would 
 wish the " Hail Mary " to have, to keep at 
 least one of the petitions in mind whilst the 
 decade is being said. 
 
 Some may feel inclined to use these 
 mysteries and prayers for the daily medi- 
 tation ; and if they appeal to any individual 
 they may be used very profitably in this 
 way. Any well-known vocal prayer can be 
 turned in this manner into profitable mental 
 prayer. 
 
 I can well imagine that many who are 
 living busy, active lives will be inclined to 
 put aside this Httle book as evidently not 
 meant for them. Many lives are so busy 
 that a suggestion that extra time is needed 
 for a particular exercise is deemed a sufficient 
 reason for leaving that exercise alone. Now 
 in the case of the holy Rosary so many have
 
 How to Say the Rosary 13 
 
 formed the habit of saying it daily that if one 
 can see how the recitation can be improved 
 appreciably, and the time required for that 
 improvement is shown to be inconsiderable, 
 perhaps even the busiest may be induced to 
 take that necessary time. 
 
 The busiest people can find time for a 
 quarter of an hour once a week — say on 
 Sunday afternoon. One quarter of an hour 
 once a week spent carefully over one decade 
 of the Rosary, will go a long way towards 
 making the recitation during the rest of the 
 week more real and more of a prayer than it 
 was before ; and in about three months all 
 the decades of the Rosary will have been 
 gone through. If we have not much time it 
 is impossible to learn a lesson quickly, but 
 with a little time used perseveringly and 
 patiently much can be done. 
 
 After each mystery I have added a few 
 acts which may be used with profit by such 
 as feel themselves drawn to this kind of 
 prayer.
 
 THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES 
 t. The Annunciation 
 
 Picture our Lady praying in her room or 
 in the Httle garden. The subject of her 
 prayer, as ever, is that she may become 
 more united to God. The angel appears, 
 and ]\Iary is afraid, not because of his 
 presence but because of the honour he shows 
 her. She does not know how the design of 
 God revealed to her by the angel is to be 
 accomplished, but she immediately resigns 
 herself into God's hands : " Behold the 
 handmaid of the Lord ; be it done unto me 
 according to Thy word." She recognizes 
 at once how greatly her consent will further 
 God's work in the world and in the souls of 
 men. She sees that it is to be through 
 Jesus that men are to be united to God.
 
 i6 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 Hail^ Mary! for the kindness of thy 
 consent to be the means of bringing Jesus 
 to me. Full of grace ^ for the Source of all 
 grace has come to thee. The Lord is with 
 thee all thy holy life by desire; most inti- 
 mately and actually for the nine months 
 thou didst bear Him in thy womb ; and in 
 the most perfect union with thee during His 
 life upon earth, which is only more perfect 
 now in heaven. Blessed art thou amongst 
 women, chosen by God as the means of 
 bringing His Son nearer to all men. 
 Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. In 
 Him we are united to our Beginning and 
 our last End, God, blessed for ever. Holy 
 Mary, Mother of God, great though thy 
 dignity be, think not of thyself only as I 
 have done so often, but of us all, of me. 
 Fray for iis sinners, for me so unworthy, so 
 careless hitherto to imitate thy love and 
 holiness. Do not leave me any longer 
 without thy Son. Let me never leave Him 
 by negligence, by self-seeking, by conceit. 
 Now^ when I so much need help and
 
 The Annunciation 
 
 encouragement ; aiid do not forget me 
 at the hour of my death. Keep me in thy 
 hand at that hour and show me thy Son. 
 Arneu. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, united to your Mother, 
 draw me also near to you. 
 
 Mary, my Mother, keep me united to 
 your Son. When shall I leave all that 
 keeps me from you, my Lord and my God ? 
 Make my will all yours. Do not become 
 tired of me. Lord, because of my want of 
 fidelity.
 
 i8 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 2. The Visitation 
 
 Mary and Joseph, hearing of their cousin 
 EHzabeth's joy, go to congratulate her. In 
 the hill country, quite apart from the world, 
 these friends of God meet. They are 
 almost His only friends on earth. Mary 
 and Jesus with her are, as usual, thinking 
 of others, rejoicing with those that rejoice, 
 sympathizing with those who suffer and 
 sorrow. Not only the extraordinary joys 
 and troubles attract their sympathy and 
 their love, but the daily, common wants of 
 life. Our Lord and His holy Mother wish 
 to have part in every little event of our lives. 
 They wish to be friends to us at all times, 
 and only require us to be ready to take 
 them into our confidence. They only wait 
 for our will. They have come to the home
 
 The Visitation 19 
 
 of St. Elizabeth that Mary may assist her 
 and comfort her. Do thou also, dear 
 Mother, come to me in my need and bring 
 thy constant quiet joy with thee ! 
 
 Our Lady was able to do much for her 
 cousin; much quiet household work which 
 only St. Elizabeth could appreciate. Many 
 a little burden she could take which was a 
 relief to her aged cousin. It was these 
 little works of kindness that our Lord 
 rewarded so signally by revealing to St. 
 Elizabeth the great dignity of His Mother. 
 
 Hail^ Mary ! I greet thee for thy kindness 
 to St. Elizabeth and to me in all my trials and 
 in all my joys. The Lord is with thee^ and 
 thou wilt bring Him to me. Bring me also to 
 Him, good Mother. Blessed art thou a7nongst 
 women., bringing joy to all. Bring to me 
 also the joy of thy Son's presence. Blessed 
 is the fruit of thy womb., Jesus. His delight 
 as thine is to be with the children of men. 
 Ask Him to encourage me in despondency, 
 to strengthen me in failure, to support me in
 
 20 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 effort, and to crown me and those who are 
 kind to me in heaven. Holy Mary^ so close 
 to God, tell me of His loving care for me, 
 which I have scarcely realized. Mother of 
 Godj revealing Him to me, draw me to 
 Him more and more. Fray for iis sin?iers, 
 do not abandon me if I ever withdraw 
 myself from thy divine Son and thee. 
 JVow, when I have to struggle and take 
 such pains to be faithful ; now, when I need 
 so much help. A7id at the hour of my deaths 
 come with thy Son and His priest. Teach 
 me to see thy visitation then and to rejoice 
 in it. Make my death the happy entrance 
 into thy company for ever. Be kind to me 
 in life ; be kind to me in death, and make 
 me kind as thou wert to all. Af?ien. 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, draw me to imitate your 
 divine Mother in my love of those who are 
 related to me. When shall I be able to 
 leave myself and care for others? 
 
 Dear Mother Mary, cause of our joy, 
 teach me to bring joy to all. Teach me to
 
 The Visitation 21 
 
 leave myself. Let me share your Son with 
 you. Let me share Him who when on 
 earth went about doing good. Kind God, 
 make me kind always.
 
 22 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 3* The Nativity 
 
 Picture the scene to yourself. The rough 
 cave, as comfortable as the short time 
 St. Joseph had for preparation would allow 
 him to make it. The ox, which was stabled 
 there, giving up its manger. The ass which 
 had carried our Lady from Nazareth. There 
 is a shelter indeed, but little else. The 
 good God is satisfied with so little if the 
 heart is given to Him. 
 
 Our Lady is contemplating her divine 
 child in the manger. This is the first time 
 that Mary has seen her Son ; the first time 
 our Lord has used His eyes to look at her 
 face. How His eyes must have ached for a 
 sight of Mary, His Mother ! In her arms 
 He can only half see her, so for both their 
 sakes it is better He should be at a little 
 distance. Then again. He wants to see
 
 The Nativity 23 
 
 St. Joseph, and all that he has done for the 
 comfort of Mary and Himself. He knows it 
 all already, but not by human means, and 
 this is what He came for-, to lead me by 
 human means to His Father. It is only for 
 a few moments He need be laid in the 
 manger, for He sees everything so quickly. 
 How His eyes change as He sees the eyes 
 of Mary ! What an infinite love is in them ! 
 He holds out His little hands to her ; He 
 must know her through those too, and in 
 her He knows us. Then as He stretches 
 out His arms to His Mother she takes Him 
 to her breast, and the few moments of 
 separation have but added to the fervour of 
 her embrace. 
 
 Hail, Mar)\ the first object of the human 
 eyes of Jesus, beg Him to cast those loving 
 eyes on me. Full of grace, both natural and 
 spiritual, the object of the eyes of Jesus. 
 The Lord is with thee. Thou hast Him all 
 to thyself, and yet thou art anxious that we 
 should share Him with thee, because it was
 
 24 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 for us thou didst bring Him forth. Keep 
 me near Him ahvays. Blessed art thou 
 amo?igst wouien^ in the sight and hearing 
 and near presence of the Source of all 
 blessing. Share thy blessedness with me. 
 I have thought of Him so little ; now at 
 least I wish to know Him and love Him 
 with my eyes, my hands, my lips and my 
 whole person. Blessed is the fruit of thy 
 womb, Jesus, the cause of all our joy. Holy 
 Mary, Mother of God and my Mother, show 
 me thy Son that I may love Him, and that 
 nothing may ever come between us. Pray 
 for us sinners, for me, so careless, so forgetful 
 of thy Son. Pray for me, lest having known, 
 I may forget Him and let self come in 
 again. Now, as I see my Jesus ; now, that 
 I have turned to Him and need all thy 
 tender love to keep me in His sight. And at 
 the hour of my death, that then I may never 
 leave Him, but be with Him for ever. 
 Amen.
 
 The Nativity 25 
 
 Acts. — O Lord my God, why cannot I give 
 you the little you are asking of me? It is 
 so little and yet I hesitate. It will cost me 
 a little restraint. Take it, Lord, for your 
 Mother's sake. Make me so full of love 
 that I shall no longer hesitate. O Jesus, 
 fill me with your own resignation, your own 
 detachment. Draw me to you. I will try 
 to work for you, to forget myself.
 
 26 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 4» The Presentation 
 
 Our Lady had to offer her Son to God in 
 the Temple ; and when He had been 
 accepted by the priests in God's name she 
 was allowed to purchase Him back again. 
 She did so by offering two doves, which 
 offering was considered by the law to be 
 within the means of the poor. Our Lady 
 was ready, nay anxious, to give all she had, 
 but she was pleased to show us that He may 
 be purchased by the poor in spirit for such 
 little things. At the ceremony there are 
 present — Jesus, making a full oblation of 
 Himself to His Father for us ; Mary, show- 
 ing her love by offering her Son to God, 
 and yet glad to have Him back again, hers 
 once more, and hers by another title; 
 Joseph, quietly contemplating the scene, and
 
 The Presentation 27 
 
 carrying the doves, the price of the redemp- 
 tion of Jesus ; Simeon, full of joy because 
 God has been so good to him as to let him 
 see the Christ ; content now to die — " Now 
 Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, 
 according to Thy word in peace, because my 
 eyes have seen Thy salvation." Lastly, 
 Anna, the prophetess, carefully watching 
 all so that she may tell the good news to 
 others. 
 
 Hail^ Mar}\ full of grace ^ ready to make 
 whatever sacrifice God demanded, obtain for 
 me the strength to make any sacrifice asked 
 of me — of my own will in little things ; of 
 my comfort of body ; of the comfort of 
 intercourse with those I love. Help me to 
 see that these little sacrifices are the price 
 I have to pay to bring my Lord back to me. 
 The Lord is with thee, not to be separated 
 from thee for years. Get me the grace never 
 to lose Him again by my infidelity. Blessed 
 art thou amo7tgst women. Blessed for showing 
 me how little I have to do to have thy Son
 
 28 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 with me. Blessed is the fruit of thy ivonib^ 
 Jesus. Holy Mary^ so united in will to the 
 will of God. Mother of Goddjn.^ my Mother, 
 thinking of me, interested in me, ready to 
 bring me to Jesus. Pray for us sinners^ for 
 me, so slow to sacrifice my time, my inclina- 
 tions, my prejudices for the sake of Jesus. 
 Pray for me that I may help others to Jesus. 
 Never let me rob any one in the slightest 
 degree of the intercourse of Jesus. Now^ 
 while I am living in the strength of the 
 sacrifices made by thee and thy Son. And 
 at the hour of my death., that I may be ready 
 to leave all that I love on this earth and 
 come to thee and Jesus. Offer me then to 
 thy Son that I may be taken to His Sacred 
 Heart for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, I offer you myself, worthless 
 though I am. Receive me at the hands of 
 your Mother, and give me back to her that 
 she may teach me all you would have me 
 know. I do offer you, Lord, all I am, all 
 that I desire, all that I can do. It is so
 
 The Presentation 29 
 
 little, Lord ; let me offer it in company with 
 you that it may be of value because this 
 offering is made in union with you. Do not 
 reject my offering, Lord. Make me sincere 
 in my oblation. Let me keep nothing 
 back.
 
 30 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 5. The Finding in the Temple 
 
 Trusting our Lord thoroughly, our Lady 
 and St. Joseph pursued quite contentedly 
 their first day's journey out of Jerusalem. 
 There were many groups in which our Lord 
 might be. He might be with His relations 
 from the little town of Nazareth. They had 
 no fear for Him. They busied themselves, 
 no doubt, in conversation about Him. They 
 were united in prayer with Him. He was 
 not with them indeed, but they were not 
 afraid of Him as our parents were of us 
 when we were children. And so during the 
 whole day they were going further and 
 further away from Him, unsuspecting their 
 loss. Towards evening when they had 
 selected a spot to rest for the night, Jesus 
 was not with them, and they went about
 
 The Finding in the Temple 31 
 
 from one group to another of their friends 
 and acquaintances seeking Him. Then at 
 last the full blow fell upon them. He was 
 not to be found. Blaming themselves they 
 went from tent to tent, again from group to 
 group, and at last wearied out they waited 
 for the morning. When morning came they 
 retraced their steps as quickly as possible, 
 but not neglecting to inquire wherever there 
 was a halting-place. How often they 
 described Him to strangers whom they met 
 on the road ! How minutely they told His 
 features. His dress, His manner ! And all 
 in vain ! When they came to Jerusalem 
 there was still enough light to enable them 
 to go from house to house where He was at 
 all likely to be, but still in vain. Again 
 blaming themselves they spent the night in 
 prayer and watchfulness. They still hoped, 
 but the light of their life was gone. Jesus 
 was lost. They blamed themselves, though 
 they knew it was through no fault of theirs 
 He was separated from them. The next 
 morning as soon as it was light they sought
 
 32 The Joyful Mysteries 
 
 Him in the old places where they had been 
 already, and they tried to think of houses 
 they may have overlooked. They were hot 
 and weary when they went up into the 
 Temple, and there in a small side chamber 
 they found Him among the doctors about 
 His Father's business. 
 
 Hail^ Mar\\ so disconsolate at the loss of 
 Jesus, make me feel what it is to have Him 
 with me so that I may be able to take in- 
 finite pains not to lose Him. Full of grace 
 and su'stained by grace through those bitter 
 days; sustain me if I should seem to lose 
 Jesus by dryness in prayer. Sustain me, 
 dear Mother, when my hour of trial comes. 
 The Lord is with thee^ for thou didst never 
 doubt His goodness even when He left thee. 
 Give me thy help, dear Mother, that I may 
 never doubt my Lord whatever trial He may 
 send me. Teach me to trust Him always, 
 knowing that though I may feel desolate 
 and disconsolate He is about His Father's 
 business. Blessed art thou amongst ivome?i^
 
 The Finding in the Temple 33 
 
 teaching us to bear what God sends us for 
 our good. 
 
 Blessed is the fruit of thy womb^ Jesus. 
 Blessed when kind, blessed when seemingly 
 hard, blessed art Thou, Jesus, whatever 
 happens. Holy Alary, even in dejection 
 united in will to God ; encouraging St. 
 Joseph. Mother of God^ left when there 
 was a question of His Father's business in 
 order to teach me to be willing to be left by 
 all I love if it is God's will. Pray for us 
 sinners who think so much of ourselves, and 
 so little of our Father's business. Pray that 
 I may earnestly seek Jesus if I lose Him. 
 Teach me to seek Him in all the common 
 occupations of life, that at least I may find 
 Him in prayer and go down to Nazareth 
 with Him and live familiarly with Him all 
 my life. Now, even if everything seems 
 easy, that I may gain the grace to bear 
 up when my loss comes. And at the 
 Iwur of my death, pray for me and also 
 for those whom no one loves but Thy 
 Son and thee, that then we may find 
 
 3
 
 34 The Finding in the Temple 
 
 Jesus and go home with Him for ever. 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, how often I have lost 
 you, and lost you through my own fault ! 
 Grant that I may never lose you again. 
 But if it be your holy will to take yourself 
 from me for a time, grant, sweet Lord, that 
 I may seek you till I find you. Let me 
 find you, dear Jesus, especially in the 
 temple of my own heart. Be constant about 
 your Father's business there, that I may 
 love you and serve you with my whole 
 heart.
 
 The Agony in the Garden 35 
 
 THE SORROWFUL 
 MYSTERIES 
 
 I. The Agony in the Garden 
 
 The Last Supper was finished. Our 
 Lord had spoken to the disciples and 
 offered His last prayer in company with 
 them. He led the Apostles out into the 
 Garden of Gethsemane, and retiring into 
 the recesses of the garden with Peter and 
 James and John, He left them also, for the 
 burden He was now to take on Himself He 
 alone could bear. He wished, indeed, for 
 their sympathy and for ours, but the burden 
 of the sins of the world was one He would 
 carry Himself. Retiring a little, He allowed 
 the sight of all the sins of the whole world 
 to be present before Him. All my sins He
 
 36 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 would look upon, not in general only but in 
 detail. The union of His human mind with 
 His divine nature enabled Him to make 
 every sin of mine the object of His whole 
 attention. My forgotten sins. The sins I 
 have not acknowledged. The sins I have 
 tried to hide even from myself. He saw 
 them all, and the sight was so appalling that 
 His Precious Blood forced itself through the 
 pores of His skin and stood in drops upon 
 His brow and fell like tears to the ground. 
 His human heart forced Him to come to me 
 in the persons of His chosen disciples for 
 sympathy and I had none to give Him. 
 Thrice He came and thrice I was indifferent, 
 and yet in spite of my sins which were 
 torturing Him, and in spite of my coldness 
 He would go on with His Passion, for He 
 loved me with an infinite love, a love 
 that even my unfaithfulness could not 
 quench. 
 
 In our Lady He saw no sin, no want of 
 thoroughness, no unfaithfulness. Her He 
 would not have by Him lest He might forget
 
 The Agony in the Garden 37 
 
 my sin, my want of love. To her I will 
 have recourse that she may teach me to 
 imitate her innocence and her constant 
 fidelity. 
 
 Hail^ Mary ! sinless one, and yet ready 
 to bear the burden of my sins for love of 
 me. Full of grace^ never sullied by sin 
 thyself, strong to bear the effects of my sin. 
 The Lord is with thee^ not bodily in this 
 mystery, but in spirit, for thou alone wert 
 like Him in thy purity and in thy capacity 
 to bear with the sins of the world. Blessed 
 art thou a??io?igst women^ exercising a true 
 woman's prerogative, bearing pain and dis- 
 tress for others. Blessed is the fruit of thy 
 womb, Jesus. Blessed by all men, but by 
 me especially, to whom He has been so good 
 and so kind. Holy Alary, with thy heart 
 ever directed to God thy Son ; Mother of 
 God and my Mother, loving me a poor 
 sinner, though I caused thy Son and thee 
 such suffering. Pray for us sifiners, for me, 
 so careless of the pain my sins may cause.
 
 38 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 Now^ that I may grieve for all the suffering I 
 have caused thy Son and thee. And at the 
 hour of my deaths that I may then receive the 
 fruit of all thy love. Amejt. 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, how could you be so kind 
 to me who am so sinful, so faithless ? How 
 can you still bear with me? I do not 
 deserve your love. Lord. I am not worth 
 your pains. Still do not abandon me. 
 Jesus, I rely on you. You have borne the 
 sight of my sins and wept tears of blood 
 over them. Give me tears of repentance 
 that I may be united to you at least in 
 mourning over my own sins. 
 
 Dear Mother, sinless Virgin, love me still, 
 and help me in spite of myself
 
 The Scourging at the Pillar 39 
 
 2. The Scourging at the Pillar 
 
 No sooner had Pilate consented to the 
 death of our Lord than he delivered Him to 
 the soldiers to be scourged. Barabbas had 
 been chosen and our Lord had been rejected. 
 The soldiers bound our Lord to the pillar, 
 and taking off the garment with which Herod 
 had clothed Him they brought thongs and 
 scourges, and in relays they most cruelly 
 scourged Him. He was in the power of the 
 Roman soldiery, and therefore the limit 
 prescribed by the Jewish law did not apply 
 to Him. He was scourged, we are told, as 
 a slave. The Roman soldiers quartered in 
 Jerusalem, would have no delicacy in the 
 brutal punishment they were inflicting. 
 They were practised in the art of inflicting 
 punishment with the scourge. They were, 
 as some contemplatives tell us, bribed to
 
 40 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 make our Lord suffer the greatest possible 
 torture. When they were weary of their 
 brutal sport there was no sound spot left on 
 His back or His chest. His body was one 
 bleeding sore. 
 
 Our Lord had no need to undergo this 
 excessive torment. It did not redeem man. 
 Man was redeemed by the blood our Lord 
 shed on the cross, by His death on the 
 cross. This previous shedding of His blood 
 was redundant. It did not atone for sin. 
 What object, then, could He have had? 
 He wished to show us how much He loved 
 us, and loved each soul, for He saw that 
 these excessive, superabundant, and seemingly 
 useless sufferings would help us to gauge 
 the depth of His love ; and He also saw 
 some of us, myself in particular, ready to 
 find excuses for not doing or suffering some- 
 thing which we see will help some other 
 soul to love Him, but which we find a diffi- 
 culty or distaste in doing. 
 
 Mary was not present in body at the 
 scourging, but she was united Jo Him most
 
 The Scourging at the Pillar 41 
 
 closely in the will to do and suffer whatever 
 might help a single soul to love God more. 
 She was always with Him, and in this spirit 
 she united herself to Him during the bitter 
 scourging. 
 
 Hail, Mujy ! ever ready to do God's will, 
 ever ready to sacrifice thyself, ready to take 
 up difficult and unselfish methods when 
 thou didst see thou mightst help a soul to 
 love thy Son. Full of grace, obtain for me 
 the grace to be generous in the service of 
 God. The Lord is ivith thee. Show Him 
 also to me. Show me His meekness, His 
 love, His ungrudging, unselfish service. 
 Show me all these beauties of His character 
 that I may learn to follow Him even when 
 He asks me hard things which go against 
 the grain. Blessed art thou amongst wojneii. 
 Blessed in being so close a follower of thy 
 Son in gentle care of such a negligent, self- 
 loving child as I am. Blessed is the fruit of 
 thy ivo77ib, Jesus. Did He not give thee, 
 dear Mother, all these qualities that He
 
 42 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 might take them from thee, His Mother? 
 Thy generosity it was that He inherited, 
 thy love. Holy Mary, sanctified by putting 
 God first ahvays, and thyself second. Mother 
 of GodsLud devoted to Him as only a mother 
 can be; watching every opportunity of 
 pleasing Him, no matter what trouble or 
 pain or annoyance it may cost. Pray for 
 tis simiers, for me most selfish, most un- 
 generous, thinking first of self. It will be 
 so difficult to change myself, dear Mother. 
 Pray for me that I may in time learn some- 
 thing of thy Son's generosity. Now — pray 
 for me now, that I may make good use of 
 my opportunities. Obtain for me the grace 
 to learn generosity from all about me, and 
 be ready now to serve Him with a whole 
 heart. And pray for me also at the hour 
 of my death, that I may at the call of God 
 willingly, cheerfully and generously die how, 
 where and when He wills. A??ien.
 
 The Scourging at the Pillar 43 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, my too loving Lord, why 
 did you endure so much for me ? Was it, 
 Lord, to make me love you? Why then 
 am I so backward ? Why am I so cold ? 
 Dear Lord, give me grace to be generous 
 with you. Give me your own generosity, 
 that I may suffer willingly at your call, and 
 not only suffer, but work generously for you 
 and for your friends.
 
 44 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 3» The Crowning with Thorns 
 
 Our Lord is taken into the barrack-room of 
 the Roman soldiers, and there He is treated 
 like a fool. Everything that He had said or 
 that had been said about Him at His trial is 
 used simply to give sport to these rude men. 
 They were ingenious in their contemptuous 
 abuse of Him. They had heard Pilate ask, 
 "Shall I crucify your king? "and the idea 
 of the King of the Jews suggested the royal 
 state, and this they would give Him in 
 mockery. They seated Him on a throne 
 improvised from the rude furniture of their 
 guard-room. They found Him a sceptre in 
 a reed one of them had taken as a trophy of 
 some expedition, but there was no crown. 
 One of them bethought Him of a thorn-tree 
 just near, and running out he brought back 
 a long branch full of sharp long thorns. It
 
 The Crowning with Thorns 45 
 
 took a few moments to twist the branch into 
 the form of a crown. They must be careful, 
 for the thorns gave an ugly wound. When 
 the improvised crown was finished the joke 
 was greeted with loud laughter. Now they 
 had their mock king with all his royal 
 surroundings. They were careful in put- 
 ting the crown on His head, not because of 
 any respect they had for Him, but for the 
 care they had for their own fingers. When 
 in position they beat the crown down upon 
 His head, for it must be secure. The 
 pain was most intense. Why did He suffer 
 this ? Because so many of us are so touchy 
 about being laughed at, about our words 
 being turned so as to appear ridiculous ; 
 because we lose our temper and become 
 annoyed. He would show us how to bear 
 this trial — a serious and hard trial. After 
 suffering this mockery during the whole 
 night, the crowning as a mock king, merely 
 to keep these soldiers in a good humour ; 
 after carrying the sceptre our Lord gives 
 His first prayer on the cross for these very
 
 46 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 men, and excuses them to His Father: 
 "Father, forgive them, for they know not 
 what they do." Mary was not present, 
 though united most closely with her Son all 
 the time. Her presence would have been a 
 relief to Him which He did not wish to feel. 
 
 Hail^ Mary ! even in this scene of 
 mockery worthy of all honour. Full of 
 grace — ah ! get me the grace not to be so 
 touchy, so liable to sulk when a rude or 
 unkind word is said to me. The Lord is 
 with thee — the object of thy deepest sym- 
 pathy. Help me to rest in that thought 
 when I am mocked and treated with scorn ; 
 when I am laughed at for my piety, &c. 
 Let me rest in the thought that meekness 
 makes me nearer to Jesus, meek and humble 
 of heart. Blessed are thou amo?igst women. 
 Humble Virgin, willing to be thought nothing 
 of, willing that Jesus should be treated with 
 scorn for my sake, to teach me how to bear 
 ridicule and rebuffs. Blessed is the fruit of 
 thy womlfy Jesus, meek and humble of heart.
 
 The Crowning with Thorns 47 
 
 How different from me with my pride and 
 my sudden temper ! Holy Mary, thinking 
 not of thyself, but of God's will^ accepting 
 willingly poverty or reproach, or whatever 
 He sends. Mother of God, and therefore 
 joined to Him in love of lowliness, in desire 
 to be thought little of so as to attract men 
 and lead them to God. Fray for us sinners, 
 so proud, so careless about God's will, and 
 especially for me in my deaHngs with my 
 friends. A'^ozv pray for me when I find 
 things easier, that I may gain good habits 
 which will be strength to me later. And at 
 the hour of my death, that by accepting slights 
 which Jesus sees are good for me, by joy- 
 fully acknowledging that I count for nothing, 
 that it is well that I am not made much of, 
 I may be more like to my scorned, derided 
 Lord and dearer to thee, my Mother Mary. 
 Amen. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, my King, be always King of 
 my heart. Grant that I may bear also 
 mockery and ridicule in your service.
 
 48 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 Mary, my Mother, I grieve for you. 
 
 O Jesus, come to me and rule me as my 
 King ? Let me prepare for you not a mock 
 but a real throne in my heart. Let me give 
 you a real sceptre and acknowledge you as 
 my only King. Let me crown you with the 
 crown of generosity, and be ever more 
 generous in my service of you.
 
 The Carrying of the Cross 49 
 
 4. The Carrying of the Cross 
 
 Mary waits for our Lord at a most difficult 
 part of the road, praying all the time. She 
 feels every sharp stone which wounds His 
 feet. She feels every jolt of the cross on 
 His shoulder, every tug of the cord with 
 which He is led by the soldiers, every drag 
 of the clothes over the wounds made by the 
 scourges. She is most closely united to 
 Him. She knows that the sight of her will 
 give Him as much pain as pleasure. Her 
 sympathy gives Him relief, but her suffering 
 makes His more intense. When He comes 
 near they exchange glances, and both renew 
 the offering they have often and often made 
 together, accepting all that may in any way 
 attract those whom He and she would love. 
 They both pray that their friends in all time 
 may have the courage to bear little things or 
 
 4
 
 50 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 great as God may will. The lesson of this 
 mystery is one of cheerful perseverance in 
 the bearing the burden put upon us. 
 
 How cheerfully our Lord bore this cross ! 
 He was sore and bruised, yet He made no 
 excuse. He made no complaint. "Weep 
 not for Me," He said, as if to say, " I have 
 willingly taken this cross upon Myself It 
 represents the burden of sin, fashioned by 
 each soul that I love. I would lighten that 
 burden ; I would bear it all Myself." And 
 yet the good Lord allowed another, not His 
 Mother, but a common man, to help Him. 
 At first, no doubt, unwillingly, but afterwards 
 cheerfully and joyfully, Simon of Cyrene 
 assisted Him. 
 
 Hail^ Mary, full of grace, teaching me 
 the fortitude necessary in my dull routine 
 life. Love of Jesus and of those whom 
 Jesus loved was the reason of thy fortitude. 
 Le me not do my work for any other motive. 
 Let me give my Lord a proof of my love in 
 all I do or suffer. The Lord is with thee.
 
 The Carrying of the Cross 51 
 
 May He also be with me in my daily work 
 and in the burden of uncongenial occupa- 
 tions. Blessed art thou a??iongst women, 
 teaching them not to flinch when called 
 upon to bear annoyance and weariness. 
 Blessed is the fruit of thy 7Vomb, Jesus, 
 "who bore our sins on the tree." It was 
 my burden Thou wast bearing up the hill, 
 with Mary watching there. Be kind to me, 
 and let not my burden be beyond my 
 strength. Thou hast promised it, dear 
 Lord. Be kind to me, and help me to 
 bear any great sacrifice if Thou askest it. 
 Do not leave me to myself; do not abandon 
 me. Holy Mary, ever united to God both 
 in joy and in pain. Mother of God and my 
 Mother, by the suffering Thou didst endure 
 as the Mother of Jesus, help me to lighten 
 His load. If the soldiers would have allowed 
 thee thou wouldst have taken the whole 
 cross and borne it alone ; let me by avoiding 
 sin, by not being a cause of sin to others by 
 my temper, my unreasonableness, my want 
 of humility, my obstinacy, let me take a little
 
 52 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 off the weight of the cross. Never let me 
 add to it. Pray for us sinners^ especially 
 for me, so thoughtless in causing annoyance, 
 so careless of the results of my actions if 
 only I can be thought in the right. Teach 
 me to think less of myself and more of how 
 I may reheve my Lord of His burden. Now^ 
 when I am trying to serve God more faith- 
 fully ; now, when I find it easy to think of 
 thy Son and thee, that I may gain a habit 
 which may last with me. Atid at the hour 
 of my deaths teach me to bear the burdens I 
 shrink from, to bear them with Jesus and 
 thee, till I recognize the bearing of the cross 
 as the safest way to God for ever. Amen. 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, sharing your cross with 
 one who was of little account, share it also 
 with me, who am of no account ! At least, 
 when I can help you, Lord, allow me to do 
 so. Make me faithful that I may be allowed 
 to help you. 
 
 Mary, my Mother, help me to bear my 
 own cross : bad habits I have fallen into ;
 
 The Carrying of the Cross 53 
 
 the difficulties in the service of God which 
 my sins have brought upon me. When shall 
 I so sympathize with you and your Son that 
 I may be willing to do and to suffer for 
 Him ? When shall I help to lighten the 
 burden of His friends, the poor, the neglected, 
 the abused ?
 
 54 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 5. The Crucifixion 
 
 As the former portion of His Passion had 
 been without reserve, so the last act on the 
 cross was most complete. He would leave 
 nothing undone that could attract the 
 sympathy and love of men. He Himself 
 told the disciples just before His Passion 
 that if He were lifted up He would draw all 
 things to Himself. He draws us by His 
 merciful thought for His executioners, giving 
 them the only excuse that could be found — 
 *' Father, forgive them, for they know not 
 what they do." He attracts us by His 
 divine kindness to the poor thief; by His 
 gift to us of His own Mother ; by His 
 allowing Himself to feel that desolation 
 which is such a severe trial to His servants. 
 " My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken
 
 The Crucifixion 55 
 
 Me?" He draws us to Himself by the in- 
 tense longing He exhibits for our soul's 
 good — "I thirst." He draws us also to 
 admire and to love Him by the very com- 
 pleteness of His work for our salvation — ■ 
 " It is consummated." Lastly, He draws 
 us by His divine trust in His Father — 
 " Father, into Thy hands I commend My 
 spirit." He parts with the last drop of His 
 Blood, and our Mother consents to His 
 sacrifice, consents willingly to His death. 
 The crowd still jeer at Him, though He 
 is suffering death for their sakes. I am 
 at the foot of the cross also. I do not 
 jeer, thank God ; but even here I will not 
 be wholly generous. I still refuse to give 
 up some pet habit, refuse something that 
 Jesus asks me to give Him. O Jesus ! do 
 not ask of me too hard a sacrifice, for I am 
 so weak ; but do Thou give me the grace 
 and the courage to give Thee whatever Thou 
 seest to be for my good. 
 
 Hail^ Mary! so completely resigned to
 
 56 The Sorrowful Mysteries 
 
 God's will, so generous, not hindering, but 
 freely helping thy Son in His great sacrifice ; 
 how different thou art from me who am so 
 selfish, so greedy of little enjoyments ! Put 
 into me the spirit of resignation. I do not 
 ask that I might not care, or that I might 
 not feel the sacrifice, but I ask that, caring 
 much and feeling most intensely, I may 
 have the courage to relinquish whatever my 
 Lord asks of me. Full of grace ^ trusting in 
 grace, resting on grace, not on self, as I have 
 done. The Lord is with thee^ now more 
 especially when thou art losing Him. Blessed 
 art thou a?7io?igst ivomen, for here beneath 
 the cross thou dost teach all to centre their 
 love on God, to study only His will, to love 
 only what He would have us love. Blessed 
 is the fruit of thy womb^ Jesus. Blessed in 
 the love He had for me ; blessed in the help 
 He has given me ; blessed in the wish He 
 has given me to know and love Him better. 
 O Jesus ! if it be Thy will, let me also love 
 others for Thy sake, but let me never be so 
 attached to any one, dear Lord, that I may
 
 The Crucifixion 57 
 
 become blind to Thy attractions, deaf to Thy 
 voice. Holy Mary, ever with thy will united 
 to God's will. AfotJier of God, and yet giving 
 up thy Divine Son at the call of God, /ray 
 for us sinners, especially for me, that I may 
 have the courage to sacrifice my pleasures 
 and my joys in the interests of Jesus. Now, 
 when I am willing to do all that is asked of 
 me, that I may gain courage to do the same 
 when I shall find it more diflficult. And at 
 the hour of my death. If ever I leave my 
 Lord, help me at least to return to Him then 
 and love Him with my whole heart, and all 
 else in Him and for Him. Amen. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, draw me to yourself. Fill 
 me with your generous, whole-hearted 
 spirit that I may have no reserves in 
 your service. When shall I allow myself to 
 feel the full force of that sweet attraction ? 
 Preserve me from being a hindrance to 
 others, from standing between any soul and 
 you. Dear Mother Mary, give me of your 
 own resignation, your own generous love,
 
 58 The Crucifixion 
 
 that I may take you to my own and learn 
 your spirit and your love till my life is 
 finished and I join you in your praise of 
 our Lord for ever and ever. 
 
 N
 
 The Resurrection 59 
 
 THE GLORIOUS 
 MYSTERIES 
 
 1. The Resurrection 
 
 Our Lord appears first to His Mother, then 
 to Magdalen, and then to the Apostles. He 
 brings joy everywhere. He has no thought 
 except for their joy. How exquisite is His 
 thoughtfulness for Magdalen ! The poor 
 sinner who has given her poor and ap- 
 parently ruined life to Him, and whose life 
 and love have been accepted by Him, is 
 called by her name when most dejected, 
 when almost distracted by the loss of Him. 
 ** Mary ! " and she called Him by the dearest 
 title, " Master ! " — the one who teaches me, 
 leads me, loves me, cares for me — Master, 
 my Master. Mary, His Mother, is with
 
 6o The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 Him at that moment, not in body, but in 
 heart ; and even in her triumph and joy 
 caring for this poor repentant sinner, loving 
 her whom her Son loved, and glad that He 
 should leave herself because He was pleased 
 to be kind to poor Magdalen. 
 
 So also is she willing to procure joy for 
 me, and to let her Son come to me and call 
 me by my name, if only through the faithful 
 following of her teaching, and the imitation 
 of her life, I can bring myself to acknowledge 
 her Son as my Master in all things. My 
 Master He is in prayer, letting no business 
 interfere with it. My Master in charity, 
 never thinking of Himself. My Master in 
 prudence and reasonableness, never asking 
 another to do what He Himself is not willing 
 to do. My Master in fortitude when His 
 Father's business demanded it. Thus He 
 must be to me a Master indeed, and His 
 Mother will teach me how I am to follow 
 Him in all things till I am able to rise from 
 the grave of self, and can bring His joy into 
 other lives.
 
 The Resurrection 6i 
 
 Haii^ Mary! loving all those who love 
 thy Son ; unselfishly letting Him go from 
 thee for another's sake as thou didst unsel- 
 fishly let Him leave thee to be crucified. 
 Full of grace and willing to use the grace 
 given to thee for others and for me also, dear 
 Mother. The Lord is tvith thee first and last 
 and always, but especially when He is kind 
 to those that love Him. Oh send Him also 
 to me, that I may love Him as Magdalen 
 did — wholly, without reserve, giving up at 
 His word all other love. Let me be ready 
 to give up whatever He may ask me that 
 He may visit me and call me by my name. 
 Blessed art thou a??io?igst zuomen, teaching all, 
 and me in particular, what it is that Jesus 
 loves, and what He wishes me to do that I 
 may be worthy to know Him. Blessed is the 
 fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Blessed in the 
 hope He has given me by His Resurrection ; 
 blessed in the love He has taught me by 
 His care for thee and Magdalen and the 
 poor frightened Aposdes. Holy Mary, 
 knowing God's ways and determined not
 
 62 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 to hinder them for the sake of any joy of 
 thy own. Mother of God and my Mother, 
 showing me Jesus. Teach me how to love 
 Him and serve Him unselfishly, purely, 
 carefully. Pray for us sinners, and especially 
 for me, as thou didst pray for Magdalen, 
 converting her from sin by thy prayers, and 
 rejoicing her heart by thy generous gift of 
 thy Son. Pray for me, dear Mother, that I 
 may not hesitate to give up my own joy 
 when it is for another's good. Nozv, when 
 joy is very precious to me that I may not 
 think too highly of it, and may not value it, 
 however great it may me, above the love of 
 my Lord. And at the hour of my death, when 
 I, too, shall triumph over death and come to 
 thee. Make me happy in that hour by send- 
 ing me Jesus to comfort me and to call me 
 by my name, that I may go to Him and be 
 with Him for ever and ever. Avien. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, my Master, take possession 
 of me. Teach me and guide me, my Lord 
 and Master. Teach me all goodness, and
 
 The Resurrection 63 
 
 let me not reap only sorrow and anxiety 
 from your service, as I have so often done 
 hitherto. In your goodness give me some 
 little of the joy of your Resurrection.
 
 64 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 2. The Ascension 
 
 Our Lord had been for forty days with His 
 disciples. He had confirmed them in the 
 faith He had given to them. He had con- 
 tinued His instructions, and after the Passion 
 and Resurrection they were more capable of 
 understanding Him. He had brought many 
 things to their minds which they had heard 
 and forgotten or only partially understood, 
 and now He is going to leave them. He 
 had promised to be with them always even 
 to the end of the world, but it was expedient 
 for them that His bodily presence should be 
 taken from them. It was necessary that they 
 should fight the battle of their life, not in- 
 deed without His help, but still in a manner 
 by themselves. " It is expedient for you 
 that I go." Our Lady, too, had enjoyed
 
 The Ascension 65 
 
 much intercourse with Him, and had learnt 
 how she might be of use to the young 
 Church; how she might see it through its 
 first fervour; how she could help to keep 
 alive the ideals her Son had implanted in 
 the hearts of His followers. Our Lord gave 
 them all His last instructions, and as He 
 was speaking to them He raised His hands 
 in blessing, and whilst He blessed them 
 He Himself was raised from the earth, 
 and a cloud received Him out of their 
 sight. 
 
 Our Lady, the disciples, and the holy 
 women kept their eyes fixed upon Him as 
 long as He was to be seen, and they were 
 brought to the earth again by the voices of 
 the angels, who told them of His second 
 coming, and warned them that they must 
 prepare for that coming by fidelity to the 
 teaching they had received. And they went 
 with great joy to Jerusalem. Our Lady, too, 
 was full of joy, for she knew it was the will of 
 God that she should remain and do much 
 for her adopted children. 
 
 5
 
 66 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 Hail^ Mary! in thy new life separated 
 from and yet most united to thy Son. Teach 
 me to bring Him into my life; to receive 
 His blessing with joy. Full of grace, the 
 dispenser of grace in this new, lonely, but 
 most happy life. The Lord is with thee as 
 He may also be with me, blessing all I do, 
 inspiring me to labour for His interests, 
 quietly, unobtrusively, leaving the reward to 
 Him, wholly trusting Him ; trusting all those 
 who lead me to Him. Blessed art thou 
 amongst ivomen, left forlorn as so many are, 
 such as are wives and mothers, having only 
 Jesus to trust in. Teach me to know Him 
 and to love Him though I see Him not. 
 
 Blessed is the fruit of thy womb^ Jesus. 
 Blessed because of His kindness to me \ 
 blessed because of all the helps He gives 
 to me ; blessed especially because He has 
 not left me an orphan. O Jesus ! leave us 
 not orphans spiritually. In Thy goodness 
 and Thy kindness be good and kind to me. 
 Holy Mary^ even here willing only what God 
 wills. Willingly taking St. John and the rest
 
 The Ascension 67 
 
 of the disciples and me instead of Jesus. 
 Oh, teach me to do God's will always. 
 Mother of God and my Mother ; Mother of 
 God, and yet letting Jesus leave thee. Ah ! 
 let me not leave thee, dear Mother. Let not 
 those I love leave thee. Be kind, too, to 
 those who have no one to love them. Do 
 thou love them and help them. Pray for us 
 sinners^ for me who so easily lose all thought 
 of Jesus after Holy Communion or after 
 prayer. Pray for me that I may always live 
 with my Lord present in my heart. Now^ in 
 joy and sweetness of a new life ; a?id at the 
 hour of deaths pray for me that with thee and 
 all the Saints I may be united to Jesus for 
 ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 Acts. — Jesus, in your glory do not forget 
 me. Though you are withdrawn from my 
 sight let me not forget you. Still make your 
 home in my heart, and rule everything I do. 
 I can do nothing without you. Keep me 
 constant by your divine example. How 
 much I have to thank you for. Lord ! You
 
 68 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 have always been most kind. Let me not by 
 my negligence force you to say, " I know 
 you not." But in j^our own time receive me 
 to the place you have gone to prepare for 
 me. Mary, my Mother, be as interested in 
 my life as you were in the life of the infant 
 Church.
 
 The Descent of the Holy Ghost 69 
 
 3* The Descent of the Holy Ghost 
 
 Ten days after the Ascension our Lady and 
 the disciples were gathered together. They 
 had spent the time since our Lord had gone 
 from them in prayer. " They were ahvays in 
 the temple praising and blessing God." On 
 the morning of the feast of Pentecost they 
 were gathered together. They did not know 
 how the Holy Spirit was to come to them. 
 They were quietly waiting because of their 
 great trust in our Lord. Yet the Holy Spirit 
 came suddenly, not without warning, for 
 they had been told, yet suddenly. They 
 were all prepared. There was no traitor 
 among them, and therefore they all received 
 according to their needs and the needs of 
 the Church. The Holy Spirit brought them 
 the confirmation of their faith and fortitude
 
 70 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 which should enable them to preach the 
 faith to others. He instilled into them the 
 spirit of kindness and consideration of which 
 our Lord had given them so many examples. 
 Hitherto the Apostles had been inclined to 
 be self-assertive, even when they were so 
 weak. Now in the strength brought them 
 by the Holy Spirit they were humble and 
 meek, after the example of our Lord ; and 
 because of that humility and meekness they 
 were made strong to do the very arduous 
 work before them. Our Lady had from the 
 first learnt the sweet humility of her Son, 
 and therefore when the disciples failed she 
 had always been strong, for she relied not at 
 all on herself. 
 
 Hail^ Mary^ full of grace ^ ever growing in 
 grace, knowing thy dignity and thy strength 
 as the Mother of Jesus, yet relying on thy 
 humility, teach me to be humble of heart. 
 Teach me to rely no longer on myself, but 
 on the grace given to me by my Lord. The 
 Lord is with thee by His Holy Spirit. The
 
 The Descent of the Holy Ghost 71 
 
 Lord has always been with thee, never 
 leaving thee. Get me the grace to be so 
 careful and conscientious a follower of thee 
 that the spirit of my Lord may be with me — 
 the spirit of reliance on His priests ; the spirit 
 of humility and trust in Him. Put aside in 
 me all self-assertion, and let me learn the 
 kindness and meekness which Jesus taught. 
 Blessed art thou amongst womcji. Blessed 
 in thy strength which is not thine but God's, 
 the only source of true strength. Blessed in 
 thy weakness so readily acknowledged, so 
 thankfully accepted. Blessed in thy deal- 
 ings with the disciples. Take me also under 
 tliy guardianship. Blessed is the fruit of 
 thy womb^ Jesus ^ promising the Comforter 
 and sending Him according to promise. 
 Blessed in His care for me ; blessed for the 
 joy and comfort He has sent me. Holy 
 Mary, Mother of God, and apparently not 
 needing another incoming of the Holy 
 Ghost, but receiving Him for our sakes. 
 Never content with the amount of grace 
 received, ever opening thy heart for more,
 
 72 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 make me also ready to accept the graces 
 Jesus offers me, though they may cost me 
 trouble, and perhaps anxiety. Pray for us 
 sinners^ especially for me, so careless of 
 grace, so easily kept by human respect from 
 using the means of grace, so easily turned 
 from prayer. Pray for me, dear Mother, 
 that I may ever enlarge my heart for the 
 grace of fortitude and of meekness so that I 
 may grow more and more like to Jesus and 
 dear to Him. Nozv^ whilst the spirit of 
 Jesus is with me that I may correspond 
 with that grace and merit all that is needed 
 for my hfe hereafter. And at the hour of my 
 deaths that then, too, the Holy Spirit may 
 strengthen me and make me cheerful to 
 accept God's will. A^nen. 
 
 Acts. — O Jesus, I thank you for your 
 kindness in sending the Holy Spirit upon 
 the Apostles and upon the Church. Send 
 Him also to me. Let Him bring all things 
 to my mind that I may never forget your 
 holy law. Holy Spirit, come to me and
 
 The Descent of the Holy Ghost 73 
 
 make me constant in prayer. Make me 
 constant in humility and in love of the holy 
 Church. Make me mindful of all that you 
 are doing for the Church now. Let me see 
 your influence, and thank you for it always.
 
 74 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 4* The Assumption 
 
 When the time of her death appointed by 
 her Son arrived, it found our Lady full of 
 ever-increasing graces, ready to join our 
 Lord in heaven. That her pure soul should 
 go to heaven where it had been in desire 
 during her whole life, it was necessary that 
 she should die. The separation of her most 
 pure soul from her most chaste body she 
 offered as a last sacrifice to her divine Son. 
 The disciples laid her body in the tomb, and 
 some few days afterwards, coming to the 
 tomb to satisfy St. Thomas's devotion, they 
 found the body was not there, and concluded 
 that their Lord and Master had given His 
 divine Mother this last privilege, and taken 
 her body into heaven so that she might at 
 once enjoy the full and complete glory
 
 The Assumption 75 
 
 destined for her in body as well as in her 
 soul. Our Lord wished for His own sake 
 that our Lady should be body and soul in 
 heaven. He desired the same also for our 
 sakes. She was designed by God as the 
 dispenser of His personal favours to us ; 
 and as He took our flesh that He might be 
 in perfect human accord with us, so He 
 wished His Mother to be to us not a 
 separated soul, however holy, but a com- 
 plete human being, body and soul. He 
 wished this in order to inspire us with more 
 confidence in her. 
 
 Hail, Mary ! my Mother, my advocate at 
 the throne of God, gain for me some of the 
 strong desire that filled thy breast, to be 
 near thy Son, to know Him and love Him in 
 a close personal love. Teach me to be afraid 
 when I find myself forgetting Him. Full of 
 grace, by which thou wert so closely joined 
 to God. Help me who am so far away from 
 Him, who so often forget Him and His 
 interests. Beg of Him to pour His grace
 
 y6 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 into me that I may have some of that per- 
 sonal love of Him which filled thy breast. 
 T/ie Lord is with thee for ever now. Ah ! if I 
 should ever leave Him, let the love of Him 
 which I desire, and which thou wilt obtain 
 for me, bring me back again to Him. 
 Blessed art thou amongst women. Blessed 
 on earth, doubly blessed now in heaven. 
 Blessed by thy close personal union which 
 Jesus allowed thee, and which thou didst 
 guard so well. Let me also live always with 
 my Lord, and be blessed in a like manner. 
 Let nothing come between Jesus and 
 myself; let nothing take my heart from 
 Him. Blessed is the fruit of thy zvomh^ Jesus. 
 Blessed for His love of thee which would not 
 let Him leave thy most pure body in the 
 tomb. Blessed for the love He has also for 
 me. How kind He has been to me ! Kind 
 always, kind everywhere. May I never lose 
 that kindness. What a thought that I may, 
 if I am not careful, make my kind Jesus 
 angry with me ! Holy Mary^ so humble 
 though God wishes to glorify thee, even
 
 The Assumption 77 
 
 here cheerfully submitting to His will. Let 
 me also take praise and commendation in 
 the same spirit as thou didst, passing it all 
 on to my Lord. Mother of God, having 
 power with Him, power to command. Use 
 thy power for me. Let me ever advance in 
 the love of my Lord till I may love Him 
 with the same personal, intense love which 
 belonged to thee as His Mother. Fray for 
 us sinners, and most especially for me who 
 am so kindly treated by my Lord that I may 
 not become unworthy of His favours. Now, 
 when I feel His love and thine helping me, 
 that I may prepare myself for a time when 
 things may not be so easy. And at the hour 
 of death, oh, pray for me then that I may go 
 to Jesus to be with Him for ever and ever. 
 Amen. 
 
 Acts. — How good of you, Lord, for my 
 sake, to take your Virgin Mother into 
 heaven body and soul ! You show me, 
 Lord, that you wish for my personal love 
 and service.
 
 78 The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 Dear Mother Mary, I congratulate you on 
 this great favour. Intercede for me, dear 
 Mother, that my body may not be to me a 
 drag in my spiritual life.
 
 The Coronation 79 
 
 5» The Coronation 
 
 When our Lady entered heaven it was fitting 
 that she should be acknowledged as the 
 Queen of heaven, and therefore we love to 
 think of the glory given to her by her Son 
 under the image of the greatest earthly glory. 
 She is the Queen of sanctity, and as such has 
 a particular regard for all who are striving to 
 follow her in the path of perfection. She is 
 our patroness and protectress. Amid all her 
 glory she thinks of us — our wants and 
 difficulties. Raised so high in heaven she 
 sees all the more clearly our troubles great 
 or small, and takes not only a universa 
 interest but a most personal and particular 
 interest in all that concerns us. As Queen 
 of heaven and dispenser of the manifold 
 gifts of grace won by her Son, she is able to 
 help us at all times. She will use her power
 
 8o The Glorious Mysteries 
 
 to the full if we will only acknowledge her 
 queenship and unite with all the Saints in 
 giving her all the glory in our power. 
 
 Hail^ Mar}\ surrounded by the saints, let 
 me be among those who stand about thee. 
 Full of grace ^ empty of self that grace might 
 take the place of self. Look upon me so 
 full of self that grace can find very little 
 room. Help me, dear Mother, to root out 
 of myself my own will so that I may be filled 
 with thy spirit which is the Spirit of God. 
 The Lord is with thee, now for ever, thy crown 
 and thy joy. Thou hast been the cause of 
 our joy. Be ever, dearest Mother, the cause 
 of joy to me that in gladness, casting aside 
 fear, I may have my Lord always with me. 
 Blessed art thou amongst wometi, showing us 
 how we may share in thy blessedness by not 
 seeking self, but by seeking Jesus thy Son. 
 Blessed is the fruit oj Thy womb, Jesus. 
 Blessed in His sufferings; blessed because 
 He has prepared a place for me in heaven. 
 Let me not make myself unworthy of Him
 
 The Coronation 8i 
 
 and thee, dear Mother. Holy Mary^ ever 
 seeking God and His will in joy as in sorrow, 
 Mother of God, now that thou art in heaven 
 and enjoying to the full the company of thy 
 Son, look down upon me so much in need of 
 encouragement, and give me some little of 
 thy joy that I, too, may have Jesus with me. 
 Pray for ys sifi?iers, and especially for me, 
 that I may cheerfully and joyfully do the 
 work God has given me, for thou knowest 
 so well the value of cheerful service. Thou 
 knowest that I lose much by want of cheer- 
 fulness, lose much for myself, and lose also 
 the power of bringing joy to others. Now^ 
 in my little daily crosses, in my want of 
 sympathy with those around me ; help me to 
 bear my own trials bravely that I in my turn 
 may by God's grace help others. A fid at 
 the hour of ?ny death, do not forget me then. 
 Take me under Thy special care in that hour 
 that full of joy I may come to thee, not 
 repining at the loss of anything on earth, 
 but rejoicing to come to Jesus and thee 
 for ever. A??ie/i. 
 
 6
 
 82 The Coronation 
 
 Acfs. — JesuSj my King and my God, I 
 thank you for the honour you have done to 
 your Mother. In your mercy allow me, 
 unworthy though I am, to join you and your 
 Saints in thus honouring the Mother you 
 have given to me. 
 
 Mary, my Queen and my Mother, have 
 a care of me. Bring me nearer and nearer 
 to your Son day by day. Grant me so to 
 persevere in my devotion to you that I may 
 be acknowledged as your devoted servant, 
 your subject, your child.
 
 The "Our Father" 83 
 
 THE "OUR FATHER" 
 
 Besides the "Hail Mary" the "Our Father" 
 enters into the holy Rosary, so that these 
 little helps would not be complete without 
 something about this prayer being said. 
 
 The great beauty of the " Our Father " 
 is that it was given to the disciples by our 
 Lord Himself, and in answer to the request 
 that He would teach them how to pray. 
 
 It may be used in so many ways. It would 
 be too long to give a paraphrase of the "Our 
 Father " for each mystery. But the general 
 intention of the Rosary, as explained in the 
 Introduction, will allow us to use it in relation 
 to the Life of our Lord. 
 
 Our Father, shown to us by Thy 
 Son in His life amongst us, manifested 
 by Him as I'hou wert never known by
 
 84 The *'Our Father" 
 
 men before, encourage us to think of 
 Thee under this loving title; no longer to 
 stand in dread of Thee as the Almighty God, 
 but to be willing to run to Thee always as 
 our Father who art m heaven^ yet coming to 
 us at all times, and taking Thy rest in our 
 hearts with Thy Son and Thy Holy Spirit, 
 making our hearts glad. Give me grace so 
 to imitate Thy Son Jesus that where Thou 
 art I may be with Thee. 
 
 Hallowed be Thy name. To praise Thy 
 holy name must be the work of my life. Let 
 me learn how to honour Thy name by 
 studying the method which Thy own Son 
 has taught me in His life. This, I know, 
 my Father, is Thy wish, for it was Thou 
 who didst send Him to us that we might 
 learn how Thou dost wish us to honour Thee. 
 
 Thy kingdom come^ in the world, in the 
 Church, and in the hearts of men. Set 
 up Thy kingdom in my heart. Estab- 
 lish Thy throne there that I may give 
 Thee all honour at all times in Thy own 
 palace. Let me be Thy own, subject to
 
 The *' Our Father" 85 
 
 Thee at all times and in all things. Grant 
 me so to live that the kingdom of my Lord 
 and Saviour, Thy Son, may be established 
 for ever in me, that I may do nothing but 
 what Thou, my King and Father, wishest 
 me to do. Ah, me, how often I have rebelled 
 and tried to set up another king, even myself 
 in Thy place ! That Thy kingdom may be 
 with me always grant that Thy will be done. 
 I must not try to bend Thee to my will as I 
 have tried to do so often in my prayers, but 
 in searching lovingly in the life of Thy Son 
 which was lived from first to last to do Thy 
 will, I will try to learn what Thy divine will 
 is. In my prayer to Thee I will try to leave 
 what may seem to me to be worth praying 
 for that thou mayst do just Thy will with me 
 in all things. 
 
 Thy ivill be do?ie, then, on earth here 
 where Thou art hidden from us, though 
 so close in love and care; here where 
 we must search and take trouble to find out 
 what Thy will is ; here where we may make 
 mistakes as to what Thy divine will is.
 
 86 The **Our Father" 
 
 As it is in heaven — there there will be no 
 difficulty, Father. There we shall see Thee 
 even more plainly than we can see our Lord 
 Thy Son, for we shall have Thy will in us. 
 Would that it were so now that I might so 
 have Thee in the centre of my soul that my 
 will should be Thy will, and the whole force 
 of my will should be that it was Thine, 
 wholly resigned to Thee, moved only by 
 Thee, directed only to Thee. 
 
 Give us this day our daily breads not 
 only the food of the body which we 
 take from Thy hand, but that bread of 
 life which Thy Son, urged by Thee, 
 spoke amongst us : "I speak the things My 
 Father gives me to speak." And not only 
 this blessed bread of the word of Thy Son 
 and Thy word, given me each day in my 
 prayer, but give me also daily that other 
 Bread which is no longer bread but the Body 
 of Thy Son, if not in the Holy Sacrament, at 
 least spiritually. Give me a great desire for 
 this Bread of life and salvation. 
 
 And forgive us our trespasses^ the daily,
 
 The "Our Father" 87 
 
 hourly infidelities I am guilty of. It is 
 good for me that I fail so often, Father, 
 for my failure forces me to fly to Thee 
 for forgiveness. Remember me, my God, 
 Thy son, Thy child, however erring and 
 wilful, and help me to turn to Thee and 
 never to be tired of turning to Thee again 
 and again, for I know that Thou lovest mercy. 
 Make my faults less and less that I may more 
 readily obtain forgiveness when I do fail. 
 As we forgive them that trespass against us. 
 Let me learn Thy own forgiving way, dear 
 Father. Thou art so kind ; make me kind 
 after Thy example, that I may be ready to 
 forgive if any offend me. Make me forgive 
 without reserve as freely and as completely 
 as I hope Thou hast forgiven me. 
 
 A?td lead us not into temptation. How 
 can I expect my Father to lead me into 
 temptation unless it be for my good ? 
 If I am to be subjected to this trial 
 do Thou, Lord, uphold me and let me 
 trust in Thee and turn at once to Thee. 
 How lovingly Thy Son allowed the dis-
 
 88 The **Our Father" 
 
 ciples to be tempted that they might 
 learn their own weakness and be forced to 
 see that their whole strength lay in trust in 
 Thee ! Do not let me fail in any temptation 
 that may be for my good. 
 
 Deliver us from evi/, more especially 
 evil of the soul, which is sin. May I 
 by Thy power be kept free from all wilful 
 sin. If it be Thy will, let other evils 
 come upon me, but be gentle with me. 
 Father, for I am so weak ; and unless Thou 
 support me I shall be able to bear but little. 
 Help me, then, and strengthen me, and 
 purify me by suffering if it be Thy holy will, 
 but do not let me ever leave Thee whatever 
 pains I have to bear. Thy will be done. 
 Amen. 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY 
 THE CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY, LONDON.
 
 B 000 003 109 6