Meditation: The Choice of a State of Life: Conformity to the Holy Will of God in the Choice (8): Intentions for Our Last Holy Communion

Intentions for Our Last Holy Communion

HOLY COMMUNION is the most precious and effective means given us by God to render to Him all the honor and service we owe to Him. To prepare for a holy death, we should make a point of taking one day of this exercise to dispose ourselves for an exceptionally well prepared Communion, marked by extraordinary devotion and approached with as much care and recollection as if it were to be our last.

We should offer this special Communion to our Lord:

1. In honor of all that He is in Himself and towards us

2. In thanksgiving for all the effects of His love for His Father and for all creatures, but especially for us

3. In satisfaction for all the dishonor and pain given Him by all the sins of the world, especially by our own

4. For the fulfilment of the plans of His Divine Providence for all men, especially for us

Dispositions for Our Last Holy Communion

Let us offer ourselves to the Eternal Father, begging Him to unite us with the surpassing love of His paternal heart when He received His Son Jesus Christ into His bosom on the day of the Ascension. Let us give ourselves to Jesus and beg Him to unite us with the most ardent love and profound humility with which He instituted the Holy Sacrament of the Altar, on the eve of His death. Let us offer ourselves to the

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Blessed Virgin, to St. John the Evangelist, to St. Mary Magdalen and St. Mary of Egypt, and all the other saints, praying that they may cause us to participate in the love and fervor, the humility , purity and sanctity with which they received Holy Viaticum.

Let Us Ask Our Dear Lord to Accomplish and Complete

All his Holy Designs in Us

After we have received Communion and made the usual thanksgiving to our Lord with unusual fervor, let us adore His divine plans from all eternity for us. Let us beg Him to remove all the obstructions we have ever placed in the way of their operation. Let us beg Him fervently not to let us die until He has completed the plans of His goodness and the work of His grace in our souls. Let us give ourselves to Him with a great desire and mighty resolution to work manfully to consummate His work in us, and to destroy in ourselves everything that might stand in His way, so that we may be able to repeat to Him, on the last day of our life, His words to the heavenly Father on Good Friday: Opus consummavi quod dedisti mihi ut faciam, I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do" (John 17, 4).

Ejaculatory prayer:

"He that eateth this bread shall live for ever." Qui manducat hunc panem vivet in aeternum (John 6, 59).

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Extreme Unction

Let Us Adore Jesus as Author of Extreme Unction

0 JESUS, I adore Thee as the author of the Holy Sacrament of Extreme Unction, and as the source of its priceless graces, which Thou hast acquired and merited for us by the shedding of Thy Precious Blood. I refer to Thee all the graces Thou didst ever produce in souls through Extreme Unction. I bless Thee a thousand times for all the glory Thou hast given to Thyself by this last Sacrament. I adore the infinite design of Thy Providence in the institution of Extreme Unction and I surrender myself to the accomplishment of Thy divine Plan for me according to Thy holy will. I implore Thee most humbly to grant me the grace of receiving this Sacrament at the end of my life. And if I should not be able to receive it, I implore Thee to produce in my soul, by Thy great mercy, the same graces I would acquire by its reception.

0 Jesus, I adore Thee in the holy anointing of Thy sacred body in the last days of Thy life by St. Mary Magdalen, and at Thy burial by St. Nicodemus and St. Joseph of Arimathea. I offer Thee all the holy unctions ever performed, in this last Sacrament, upon the bodies of all Christians who have received it or ever shall do so, in honor of and homage to the divine anointing of Thy deified body.

Let Us Ask Jesus to Prepare Our Souls to Receive

Extreme Unction and All its Attendant Graces

0 Good Jesus, I adore Thee as High Priest to Whom, before all others, belongs the right of conferring all the Sacraments. I give my

self to Thee as High Priest and implore Thee to inspire in my soul an the dispositions required for the fruitful reception of Extreme Unction and to produce in me all the graces represented by its consoling ceremonies.

In order to dispose myself for its reception, 0 my Saviour, behold r cast myself down at Thy feet, accusing myself most humbly before Thee and Thy heavenly court of all my sins, most humbly begging Thy forgiveness with all the humility and contrition I can muster, with my whole heart imploring Thee, together with Thy Blessed Mother and all the angels and saints, to ask forgiveness from Thy Eternal Father, and to offer to Him in satisfaction for my sins the full measure of Thy infinite merits and sufferings.

0 Good Jesus, come into my soul and into my heart. Come to bring me Thy holy peace and to destroy in me all that might disturb the peace and repose of my spirit. Come unto me, and with Thy Precious Blood purify me of the foulness of my sins. Come to grant me full and total absolution, indulgence and remission of all my sins.

0 Most Kind Jesus, I offer Thee all the senses and members of my body and all the powers of my soul. Anoint me, I beg Thee., with the sacred oil that ever flows from Thy divine Heart, that i s , with the oil of Thy grace and mercy and, by this heavenly anointing, cleanse me of the evil effects of my sins. 0 Dearest Jesus, I offer Thee the holy employment of bodily senses and spiritual powers ever made by Thy Divine Self, by Thy Blessed Mother and all the saints, in satisfaction for my abuse or misuse of the members and senses of my body and the faculties of my soul. May it please Thee to grant me the grace to employ them in future only for Thy pure glory.

Finally, 0 Most Amiable Jesus, may it please Thee to give me Thy holy blessing. Ask the Beneficent Father and the Holy Spirit to bless me with Thee, so that this divine and mighty benediction may destroy in me all that displeases Thee, and transform me utterly into eternal benediction and praise of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Ejaculatory prayer:

"Come, Lord Jesus." Veni, Domine Jesu (Apoc. 22, 20). 183-

The Last Will and Testament of Jesus and the One Which

We Should Make in Its Honor

The First Three Bequests of Christ's Last Will

0 JESUS, I adore Thee in the last days of Thy life. I adore every aspect and event of these last days, but especially Thy divine Testament pronounced in the Canacle, on Mount Olivet and from the Cross. I adore, bless and glorify the supreme love for Thy Father, the most burning charity towards us and all the other holy dispositions of Thy last Testament to mankind.

The last will of Our Saviour comprises five bequests:

The first bequest is to His enemies, for, 0 wonder of wonders, 0 immensity of goodness, His first word and first prayer on the Cross is for His enemies, begging the Father to pardon them, in the very hour when they were blaspheming and crucifying Him.

The second bequest is to the Heavenly Father, the final gift of His holy soul with these words"Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit" (Luke 23, 46). These words were uttered not only with reference to His deified soul, but to my soul and the souls of all who belong to Him, which were present at that moment before His sight, and He looked upon them as His veritable possession, forming all together but one soul by virtue of their most intimate union with Himself. When our dying Saviour said to the Father: Pater, in manus tuas commendo spiritum meum, He spoke for Himself and for me; He didst commend my soul together with His into the hands of the Eternal Father, addressing this prayer to Him who is at once Thy Father and mine, in Thy Name and my own, against the hour when my soul shall leave my

body. And He made the offering of my soul with the same love with which He said Pater or Father i n general, not My Father in particular, to show that He regarded Him not only as His special Father, but as the common and universal Father of all His brethren and members. He prayed to Him not only for Himself in particular, but also in general for all who belong to Him, with filial confidence and love, as much for Himself as for them, for which may He be loved and blessed forever.

The third bequest in His will concerns the Blessed Mother, to whom He didst give the friend who was most dear to Him after herself, the beloved disciple, St. John the Evangelist. At the same time there were represented in the person of St. John all the other disciples and children until the end of Time. When He said to Mary the words, "Woman, behold thy son" (John 19, 26), He gave her not only St. John, but all other Christians to be her children. Reciprocally, in saying to St. John the words: "Behold thy Mother" (John 19, 27), He gave to him and also to all Christians, represented i n his person, His most precious possession in the order of created beings, namely, His most Blessed Mother, He gave her to them to be their Mother just as she was His Mother, imparting to them His precious relationship and character with her. That was the reason He called her no longer His Mother, but Mulier, "woman" to show the transfer to us of His relationship to her as Son, and the gift to us, as Mother, of her who was to cease to be His Mother for a time by reason of her Son's death. And so, Jesus bequeathed me in His will to His Blessed Mother, not only as a servant and subject, but actually as a son: Mulier, ecce filius tuus. He gave her to me not only as my Queen and Lady, but in the most honorable and lovable character there is--that of a Mother. 0 love! 0 excess of goodness! May the whole world be transformed into love for so great a goodness!

The Last Two Bequests of Christ's Will

The fourth bequest in His will is particularly ours and concerns us so diversely that it seems to have been made for us alone.

1. During His last days on earth, He expressed a surpassing and extraordinary love, assuring us that the Father loves us as He loves Him (John 17, 23), and that He dost love us as the Father loves Him (John 17, 9). And He consequently urges us to love one another as He has loved us (John 13, 34)

2. He likewise commended us with most particular affection to the most exalted and powerful persons most dear to Him, by Whom He is most loved in heaven and on earth-that is, His Eternal Father and His divine Mother. Just before setting out on the road to Calvary, He addressed a beautiful prayer to the Father: "Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom thou hast given me.... Not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me" (John 17, 1 1 - 2 0 ) . While hanging on the Cross, He placed our souls in His hands together with His own, as has been said. He also commended us to His divine Mother.

3. We share in His will because in His last, solemn and public prayer, He obtained from the Heavenly Father the greatest favors that we could ask for, or could obtain from God. Here are the prayers He addressed to Him for us: "Father, I will that where I am, they also whom thou hast given me may be with me" (John 17, 24), that is, that they should have their dwelling and take their rest with Him forever in the bosom and Heart of His Father. "Just Father .... that the love wherewith Thou hast loved me, may be in them" (John 17, 25-26), that is, to say: Love them as Thou lovest Him, love them with the greatest, the most burning and most divine love that could ever possibly exist. Look upon them as Thou dost regard Him; love them with the very heart with which Thou lovest Him; treat them as Thou dost treat Him; give them all that Thou givest Him. "That they may be one, as thou, Father, in me and I in thee; that they also may be one in us ... I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect

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in one" (John 17, 21-23). What love! What more could He ask the Father for us?

4. We share in Thy will because He gave us the most rare and precious gift, His Eternal Father to be our Father, praying Him to love us as He loves Thee, as His children with sublime paternal love. He gave us His Blessed Mother to be our Mother. He gave us His most Holy Body in the Eucharist, His holy Soul on the Cross in death with the words: "I lay down my life for my sheep" (John 10, 15). He gave His Precious Blood to the very last drop, His life, merits, sufferings, humanity and divinity, as expressed in these words: "The glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them" (John 17, 2 2 ) . He gave us all without reserve. How admirable is His goodness, poured forth for us in the very hour when we were causing Him to suffer so many evils I How can we love Him so little and think so seldom of Him? How can so great a love be held so cheap and be so despised by those whom He so loves?

The fifth and last bequest in His will was made on Mount Olivet when, departing from the apostles and ascending into heaven, He gave His holy blessing. We share in this bequest also, for i n imparting His blessing to the holy apostles and disciples He blessed all of us, each one in particular, for we were all just as much present in His sight then as we are now. May heaven and earth bless the Author of all gifts, and may all things in heaven and earth be transformed into eternal blessings of Him!

Such are the five clauses of His admirable will, in honor of which I desire to draw up My own testament.

Our Spiritual Wu.l Should be Made in Honor and

Imitation of Tim Will of Jesus

1. 0 Most Kind Jesus, in honor of and in union with the love with which Thou didst shed Thy Precious Blood and die for Thine enemies and pray to the Eternal Father to pardon those who crucified Thee, with my whole heart I fully forgive all those who have ever offended or

injured me, and I implore Thee to grant them full pardon. I offer myself to Thee to do and suffer whatever may please Thee for their sake, even to shed my blood and die for them, if necessary. So, too, in all the humility I can muster, I beg all whom I have ever offended or displeased in my whole life to forgive me, and I give myself to Thee to make whatever satisfaction to them Thou mayest desire.

2. In honor of and in union with the exceeding great love, the most perfect confidence and all the other dispositions with which Thou didst commend Thy soul and all the souls that belong to Thee into the hands of the Father, I surrender my soul, with the souls of all those for whom I am bound to have special concern, into the gentle hands and the most loving heart of the Divine Father, who is m y God, my Creator and my Most Lovable Father, that He may dispose of them according to His good pleasure. I trust that His infinite goodness will place them with Thy soul, Good Jesus, in His fatherly bosom, there to love and bless Him eternally with Thee, according to the desire of Thy soul, expressed in the words: "Father, I will that where I am, they also whom thou hast given me may be with me" (John 17, 24).

3. In honor of and in union with Thy great charity in giving all Thy friends and children to Thy most Blessed Mother, I resign into her hands all those entrusted to my care, imploring Thee, good Jesus, to commend them Thyself to Thy Virgin Mother. I implore her with my whole heart, by Thy very great love for her and hers for Thee, and by the same love with which Thou didst give her Thy friends and children, to look upon them henceforth as her children in a more special way, and to be their Mother.

4. In honor of and in union with the exceedingly powerful love whereby Thou didst commend me to Thy Father on Thy last day, and didst beg Him, on my behalf, for such great favors, giving me all that was most dear to Thee, with such extraordinary tokens of that love, urging me also to love m y neighbor as Thou didst love me: I commend to Thee all those whom Thou knowest I should commend particularly to Thee, and I beg Thee on their behalf for all that Thou didst ask for me on Good Friday from Thy Eternal Father. I abandon myself to Thee to love Thee as Thou lovest the Father and as the Father loves

Thee. I give myself also to Thee to love my neighbor as Thou didst love me, and to shed my blood and give my life for him, if it is Thy holy will.

5. 0 Jesus, God of all blessings, I adore Thee in the last moment of Thy sojourn on earth, upon Mount Olivet, as Thou didst leave the earth to ascend into heaven. I adore Thee giving Thy most holy blessing to Thy Blessed Mother, Thy apostles and disciples; I adore the exceeding great love and all the other dispositions which filled Thy divine soul when Thou didst impart this supreme blessing as i s related in the Holy Gospel (Luke, 24,50).

0 Good Jesus, behold me prostrate at Thy feet, in union with the humility and the other holy dispositions of the Blessed Mother and the holy apostles and disciples as they received Thy blessing. I most humbly implore Thee, by all Thy love for them, and theirs for Thee, to give now to me and to all I have commended to Thee, Thy most holy blessing, so that by the power of that divine blessing all that displeases Thee in me may be destroyed and I may be altogether transformed into everlasting praise, love and benediction of Thee.

Ejaculatory prayer:

"Father into thy hands I commend my spirit." In manus tuas commendo spiritum meum (Luke, 23, 46).

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Our Last Agony and the Moment of Death