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Agony in the
Garden - many sins crushed His Bleeding Heart.
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MEDITATION XI
SECOND
WEDNESDAY
Jesus charged
with the Sins of the Whole World.
Iniquitates
eorum ipse portabit.
He bore their
iniquities. Isaias 53: 11
Consider that the divine Word, in becoming man, chose not only to take
the form of a sinner, but also to bear all the sins of men, and to satisfy for
them as if they were his own: He bore their iniquities. Father Cornelius adds,
as if he had committed them himself. Let us here reflect what an oppression and
anguish the heart of the Infant Jesus must have felt, who had already charged himself
with the sins of the whole world, in finding that the divine justice insisted
on his making a full satisfaction for them.
Well did our Lord know the
malice of every Sin, whilst, through the divine light which accompanied him, he
knew immeasurably more than all men and angels the infinite goodness of his
Father, and how infinitely deserving he is of being revered and loved. And then
he saw drawn up in array before him an innumerable number of transgressions
which were to be committed by men and for which he was to suffer and die. Our
Lord once showed to St. Catharine of Sienna the hideousness of one single
venial sin; and such was the dread and sorrow of the saint that she fell
senseless to the ground. What, then, must have been the sufferings of the
Infant Jesus when, on his entrance into the world, he saw before him the
immense array of all the crimes of men for which he was to make satisfaction!
And then he knew in
particular every sin of each one of us: He had regard to every particular sin,
says St. Bernard of Sienna. And Cardinal Hugo says that the executioners caused him exterior pain by crucifying him,
but we interior pain by sinning against him. He means that each one of our sins
afflicted the soul of Jesus Christ more than crucifixion and death afflicted
his body. Such is the beautiful recompense which has been rendered to our
divine Saviour for his love by every one who remembers to have offended him by
mortal sin.
Affections and Prayers
My Beloved Jesus, I, who have offended Thee, am not worthy of Thy
favors, but through the merit of that pain which Thou didst suffer, and which
Thou didst offer up to God at the sight of my sins, and to satisfy divine
justice for them, give me a share in that light by which Thou didst see their
malice, and in that hatred with which Thou didst then abominate them. Can it
then be true, my amiable Saviour, that ever since Thou wert an infant, and in
every moment of Thy life, I have been a murderer of Thy sacred heart, and a
murderer more cruel than all those who crucified Thee? And I have renewed and
increased this suffering every time I have repeated my offences against Thee? O
Lord! Thou hast indeed died to save me; but Thy death will not save me, if I do
not on my part detest every evil, and have true sorrow for the sins I have
committed against Thee. But even this sorrow must be given me by Thee. Thou
givest it to him that asks it of Thee. I ask it of Thee through the merits of
all the sufferings Thou didst endure on this earth; give me sorrow for my sins,
but a sorrow that will correspond to my transgressions. Help me, O Lord! to
make that act of contrition which I now intend to do. O eternal God, supreme
and infinite Good! I, a miserable worm, have dared to lose respect for Thee,
and to despise Thy grace, I detest above every evil and abhor the injuries I
have committed against Thee; I repent of them with my whole heart, not so much
on account of hell, which I have deserved, as because I have offended Thy
infinite goodness. I hope for pardon from Thee through the merits of Jesus
Christ: and I hope also to obtain, together with Thy pardon the grace of loving
Thee. I love Thee, O God, who art worthy of infinite love, and I will always
repeat to Thee, I love Thee, I love Thee, I love Thee; and as Thy beloved St.
Catharine of Genoa said to Thee, while she stood in spirit at Thy feet, O Thou
crucified one, so will I also say to Thee now that I am standing also at Thy
feet, My Lord, no more sins, no more sins! No, for Thou indeed dost not deserve
to be offended, O my Jesus, but Thou only deservest to be loved. My blessed
Redeemer, help me. My mother Mary, assist me, I pray thee, I only ask of thee
to obtain for me that I may love God during the time that is left me in this
life.
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