Chapter 25: For Holy Thursday

Of offering the merits of Jesus Christ to obtain pardon fur the sins of the Church— Of His love in the adorable Sacrament of the Altar.

ON Holy Thursday, as the Lamentations were chanted at Matins, St. Gertrude wept before God the Father, in the bitterness of her heart, for ail the sins which men had committed against the Divine Omnipotence. At the second Lamentation, she wept before God the Son for the sins which they had committed, through ignorance, against His ineffable wisdom. At the third Lamentation, she wept before the Holy Ghost for the sins committed, through malice, against His goodness. Then, at the verse Jesu Christe, when the Kyrie cleison was chanted, she approached the most sweet Heart of Jesus, and embracing it very de voutly on the part of the Church, she obtained the remis sion of all the sins which had been committed by thoughts, desires, or perverse will. At the Christe eleison, she em braced the blessed Mouth of our Lord, and asked pardon for all the sins of the tongue. Then, at the Kyrie eleison, she kissed our Lord's Hands, and obtained pardon of all the Church's sins of act. Lastly, when the people chanted the Kyrie eleison five times, after the hymn Rex Christe Bhe kissed the Five Wounds of our Lord, to obtain pardon for all the sins of the five senses. While she did this. she beheld five streams of grace gushing forth impetuously from the Five Wounds, and pouring themselves out over the whole Church, purifying it from all stains and impuri ties ; thus she knew that she had received the full fruit of what she had done at the Lamentations and at the Kyrie eleison.

This practice may be followed during the three last nights of Holy Week, with a perfect confidence of obtaining the same advantage thereby.

As the words, OUatus est quia voluit^ were chanted at Lauds, our Lord said to St. Gertrude : " If you believe that I was offered on the cross to God My Father only because I willed it Myself, believe also that I now desire to offer f " He was offered up because He Himself desired it ; and He Himself carried our sins." Ant. at Lauds for Maunday Thursday.

Myself for each sinner to God My Father, with the same love with which I offered Myself for all men in general. Therefore, there is no person, however sinful, who may not hope for pardon, by offering My Passion and Death to God My Father, provided that he believes firmly that he will obtain this grace, and that lie is persuaded that the memory of My sufferings is the most powerful remedy against sin, when joined to a right faith and a true penance."

As St. Gertrude heard the words of the Gospel, Coepit lavarepedes discipulorum she said to our Lord : " 0 God ! since I do not merit that Thou shouldest wash me Thy self, how happy should I be if I might merit at least to be washed from my sins by one of Thy Apostles, that I might be more worthy to approach Thy precious Body and Blood." Our Lord replied : "I have washed away all your stains, and also those of all whom you have taught to ask for purifi cation from seven worldly affections." Then the Saint said: " Alas, Lord ! it is true that I have taught this to others, and have intended to do it myself ; but in teaching them, I have neglected it myself." Our Lord replied : " I accept your good will for the act ; for My goodness is such, that when any one has the will to perform a good action, I count it as done, and recompense it as if it were accom plished, even if human frailty prevents its accomplish ment."

Before communicating, she said to our Lord : " Behold, Lord, I offer Thee all the petitions of those who have been recommended to my unworthy prayers." He replied : " You have enkindled as many flames in My Heart as there are persons for whom you pray." "Ah, Lord!" she said, " teach me how to enkindle this fire in Thy Divine Heart for every soul in the Church." " You will do this," He answered, " by practising four things : 1. By praising Me for all men whom I have created in My image and likeness. 2. By thanking Me for all the good which I have done for them, or which I may yet do for them. 3. By grieving for all the obstacles which they put to My grace. 4. By praying generally for all, that each may perfect himself in the state in which My providence has placed him, for his own good and for My honour and glory."

On another occasion, on the same solemnity, as Ger trude prayed with great recollection, our Lord appeared to her, even as He had appeared on earth on the same day. He seemed to pass this day in extreme anguish and bitterness, since all that He was about to suffer was continually present to Him ; for, being the tender Son of a tender mother, He experienced beforehand the most lively and excessive suffering, anticipating death in all its terrors, and the inhuman cruelty and barbarity of His executioners.

As Gertrude felt this in spirit, she was so moved to compassion that she would have employed therein all the strength of her heart, had it been increased a thousand times ; but at last the violence of her love and her desire overpowered her, and she fainted away. Our Lord then said to her : " The same love which made Me suffer such extreme pains and affliction for the salvation of men, makes Me also suffer now in your heart, immortal and impassable as I am, by the intimate compassion with

;Esset delicatae Virginia delicatissimua filing. which it is penetrated for the salvation of My elect, in con sideration of My afflictions and bitternesses. Therefore, in return for the compassion which you have had for My sufferings, I give you the whole fruit of My Passion and Death, to insure your eternal beatitude. Further, your heart shall have this honour, that whenever the Wood of the Cross is adored, which was the instrument of My sufferings, your soul shall feel the fruit and effects of the compassion which is manifested to Me to-day; and I will always grant you whatever you ask, and prosper your wishes." He added, " Whenever you desire to obtain anything from Me, offer Me My Heart, which I have so often given you as a token of our mutual friend ship, in union with the love which made Me become Man for the salvation of men; and I give you this special mark of friendship, that this shall be presented to whomsoever you pray for, as a rich man would present a coffer to his friend to supply himself therefrom with all he needed." " I beseech Thee, 0 Lord," continued the Saint, " to tell me what words Thou didst address to Thy Father in Thine agony." Our Lord replied : " The words I used most frequently were these : * 0 Entirety of My Sub stance!'"*

At Mass, whilst the secret prayers were being said, before the religious had received Communion, the Lord Jesus appeared to her in a state of extreme weakness, as if He were about to give up the ghost ; and this so touched her, that she also felt as if about to expire. She continued in this state until the time for Communion, when she beheld a marvellous vision ; for she saw the priest elevate a

"O integritas substantiae meee j" see 1 Thess. v. 23: "That your whole (integer) spirit," &c,

Body wliicli was far larger than his own ; and by the virtue and power of his word, he bore Him who bears all things. The Saint then understood that the strange feebleness which the Son of God appeared to suffer, indicated the ex cessive love with which He desired that we, who are as His Benjamins, His beloved ones, should be united to Him in holy communion • that the ardour with which He desired this delight caused this weakness ; that He was reduced to this state by the violence of His love, so that He might be more easily touched and carried by the hands of the priest. She learned also on another occasion, that every time we look on the Host, which contains the body of Christ, with desire and love, we increase our eternal merit ; and that our enjoyment in the other life will correspond with that which we have had in devoutly regarding this precious Body on earth.