Part ten, Chapter X1: "he Hath Put Down the Mighty from Their

"he Hath Put Down the Mighty from Their

Seat, and Hath Exalted the Humble"

THE time being ripe when the Father of Mercy was pleased to fulfill His intention from all eternity to save mankind, His divine wisdom, whose resolutions are impenetrable, willed to employ means to that end which apparently bad no capacity for or conformity with the greatness of this mighty work. What are these means? Here they are. God sent His Only-begotten Son into the world in a perishable and mortal state, in such abjection and lowliness that He Himself says, "I am a worm and no man" (1): bearing as a tide of honor in Scripture, Novissimas Virorum, (2) "the most abject of men." This adorable Father wills His Only-Begotten Son, generated in His bosom from all eternity, and equal to Him in all things, to be born of a Mother who is in truth most holy, but so lowly and humble in her own eyes and in the eyes of the world that she esteems herself the least of all creatures.

Furthermore, this divine Father, wishing to provide helpers and coworkers to work with His Divine Son in this supreme work of redemption of the world, chose twelve poor fishermen without learning, eloquence or any other qualities that might have distinguished them among men. He sent these twelve fishermen throughout the land to destroy a religion based on conformity with human inclinations, a religion rooted for several thousand years in the hearts of men, and to establish instead a completely new religion which is opposed to the first and contrary to all the inclinations of human nature.

These twelve poor fishermen went everywhere to preach and establish this new faith while destroying the first religion. But how were they received? Everyone row up against them-the great and the lowly, the rich and the poor, men and women, the learned and the ignorant, (1). PS. 21, 7. (2). Isa. 53, 3.

losophers and priests of false gods, kings and princes; all men in general expended every effort to oppose the preaching of the Gospel which twelve fishermen strove to proclaim. They were seized and cast into prison with chains on their hands and feet, they were treated like rogues and magicians, they were beaten, burned, stoned, crucified; in short, they were made to suffer all the most atrocious torments.

But what happened? They emerged victorious, they triumphed gloriously over the great, the powerful, the wise and all the monarchs of the world. They annihilated the religion, or rather the irreligion and abominable idolatry which hell had established throughout the world, and they established the Christian faith and religion in its stead. Finally, they became the masters of the world, and God bestowed on them the principality of the earth: "Thou shalt make them princes over all the earth." (3)

God upset the thrones of kings and the pulpits of philosophers; He conferred the first empire of the world to a poor fisherman, whom He elevated to such eminent power and glory that rulers and magnates considered it a great honor to kiss the dust of his sepulchre and the feet of his successors. What is all that, if not the fulfilment of this prophecy of the Blessed Virgin, Deposuit potentes de sede, et exaltavit humiles. "He hath put down the mighty from their seat and hath exalted the lowly and humble?" Notice that these words, as well as the other phrase of this inspired canticle, although expressed in the past tense, deposuit, nevertheless implies the past, present and future because they are uttered in a prophetic spirit. Indeed, the fulfillment of this prophecy has appeared manifestly i n past centuries, and will continue to appear more and more in the ages to come, until the end of the world.

In past centuries, did not divine Might put down the proud Saul and replace him with the humble David? Did God not confound and destroy the arrogant Aman and the proud Vasthi to replace them by the humble Mardochai and the pious Esther? Did not Josue destroy more than thirty Chanaanite kings, turning their kingdoms over to the people of Israel?

Did not our divine Saviour deliver mankind from the bondage of the demons who before His Incarnation had subjected the world to their cruel tyranny? Did he not banish the rebellious angels from heaven and the fallen man from paradise? And did He not restore mankind, after he had humbled himself through penance to the grace of His Creator? Did He not banish the godless Diocletian from his imperial throne to replace him with the pious Constantine? Did He not drive out the arrogant Eugene and give the throne of his empire to the humble Theodosius? (3). Ps. 44,17.

dosius? Did He not exterminate the high priests, the Scribes and the Pharisees, to transfer their authority to poor fishermen chosen to share with Him the throne of His divine Justice, and the power which His Father had given Him to judge men and angels?

Thus it is that Christ humbles and destroys the great and powerful of this earth who misuse their power, and exalts the lowly and humble who practice the words of the Apostle: "Be you humbled therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in the time of visitation." (4) This Christ has always done from the beginning of the world; and He will continue until the end of time, even to the coming of the antichrist, who through his abominable pride will attempt to exalt himself even above God Himself: "Who opposeth, and is lifted up above all that is called God." (5) But He who annihilated Himself in order to confound the arrogant and exalt the humble will kill him with a single breath: "The Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth," (6) casting him into the lower depths of hell; and having resuscitated His two prophets Elias and Enoch, He will bring them publicly and gloriously into heaven to shame their enemies who behold them.

0 Queen of humble hearts, extinguish the accursed arrogance which reigns within us and replace it in our hearts with the humility of thy Son and thyself, so that we thy children may resemble our most adorable Father and most amiable Mother. (4). 1 Pet. 5, 6. (5). 2 Thess. 2, 4. (6). ibid. 8. 316-