Chapter 2: Of the happy death of St. Mechtilde, and her reward in heaven— Of the merits and intercession of the saints— And how to offer the Five Wounds of Christ to supply for our defects

The Matins of St. Elizabeth had already commenced, when it became apparent that St. Mechtilde was about to expire ; the community were therefore summoned again from the choir to assist at her happy death. Our Lord then appeared to the dying Saint as a Spouse radiant with beauty, crowned with honour and glory, and said to her tenderly : " Now, My beloved, I will honour you before your neighbours — that is, before this congregation, which is so dear to Me." Then He saluted her soul in an ineffable manner by each of His Wounds, so that each saluted her in four different manners : namely, by a melodious harmony, by an effica cious vapour, by a fruitful dew, and by a marvellous light. Thus did our Lord call His elect one to Himself : the exquisite harmony indicated all the loving words which she had addressed to God, or uttered for the benefit of others ; and these words were fructified exceedingly by passing through the Divine Heart. The vapour signi fied all her desires for the glory of God or the salvation of her neighbour; and these desires were marvellously increased by passing through the Wounds of Jesus. The dew which poured forth so abundantly represented the love which she had for God, or for any creature for His sake ; and it was also greatly increased in sweet ness by these sacred Wounds. The marvellous light signified all the sufferings which she had endured from her infancy, either in body or mind, which were en nobled beyond all human power of comprehension by union with the Passion of Christ ; and that her soul was sanctified thereby, and impressed with the marks of Divine charity.

The enjoyment of these heavenly consolations restored even the bodily strength of the dying religious, as she con tinued aspiring after the joys on which she was so soon to enter. Our Lord then poured forth an abundant bene diction on all who were present, saying : " Moved by the ardour of My love, I desire that each member of My beloved congregation should assist at this transfiguration, and that they should receive as much honour from the blessed in paradise as My chosen ones, Peter, James, and John, who assisted at My Transfiguration on the Mount, received from the other Apostles." Then the religious said : * " Lord, what benefit will they gain from these graces who do not

2 i perceive them by any interior sweetness 1 " He replied : " When a nobleman bestows an orchard on a friend, he does not at once taste the fruit, as he must wait until they ripen. Thus, when I pour forth precious gifts on a soul, she does not perceive their sweetness until they are fructi fied by the exercise of exterior virtues ; but when the skin of earthly pleasures and consolations is removed, then she can taste the interior consolation."

The community now returned to the choir to say Ma tins. At the twelfth Response, 0 lampas, this soul ap peared standing before the Blessed Trinity, praying de voutly for the Church. Then God the Father saluted her lovingly by these words : " Ave, electa mea (Hail, My elect one), who, by the example of your holy life, may truly be called the lamp of the Church, abounding in oil — that is, your prayers for the whole world." Then the Son of God addressed her thus : " Gaude, sponsa mea (Re joice, 0 My spouse), who may truly be called the medica ment of grace, since by your prayers you have obtained the restoration of so many to My favour." The Holy Ghost added : " Ave, immaculata mea (Hail, My spotless one), who may be called the nurse of the faithful, since you have fed and nourished so many spiritually."

After this the Eternal Father conferred on her, by His

" O lampas Ecclesiae, Rivos profundens olei, Medicina gratiae, Nutrimeutum fidel"

The prose Gaude Sion, and the hymn La-tare Germania, are both in honour of St. Elizabeth.

omnipotence, the grace of assisting those who, through human frailty, distrusted the Divine mercy, and of strength ening in them the gift of hope ; the Holy Spirit conferred on her the privilege of enkindling fervour and love in cold and tepid hearts; lastly, the Son of God gave her, through the merit of His most precious Death and Passion, the grace of curing souls enfeebled by sin.

The celestial choirs then chanted, in a clear and sonorous voice, Tu Dei saturitas, oliva fructifera, cujus lucet puritas, ct resplendent opera. At the words cujus lucet, they hon oured the sweet repose which our Lord had taken in her ; at the words et resplendent, they praised the pure intention which had animated all her actions ; in conclusion, all the saints chanted the Antiphon Deus palim omnibus.

During the Preface of the High Mass, our Lord appeared to St. Mechtilde, drawing her towards Him, and imparting new graces and favours to her soul, as if to prepare her for the enjoyment of eternal beatitude. At last the joyful moment came when she was to pass to the eternal embraces of her Spouse ; and the Lord of Glory, who is so great in His majesty and so tender in His love, invited her to Him, saying : " Come, blessed of My Father, possess the kingdom prepared for you" (Matt. xxv. 34). He reminded her also of the signal favour which He had conferred on her some years before, by giving her His Heart, as He said these words, to be her consolation and protection. Then He said : " And where is My gift ? " In reply, she offered Him her heart, plunging it into His ; and our Lord touched her heart with His, absorbing her into Himself, and putting her in possession of eternal glory, where we hope she will obtain many favours for us by her intercession.

As the usual prayers were recited after her decease, GUI Lord appeared, enthroned in glory, and this soul reposed upon His bosom. As the words, Subvenite sancti Deit occurrite angdi were read, the angels testified their rever ence for her who had been thus honoured by their King ; and they appeared as if adorned by the prayers of this soul, whom they had assisted by their prayers when she received the last anointing. The saints also acted in like manner.

Then the religious asked the deceased to pray for some persons in whom she had a special interest, that they might overcome their defects. She replied : " Now that I see all things in the light of truth, I know that all the affection which I entertained for any one when in the world was but as a drop in the ocean when compared to the love of the Divine Heart for them ; and it is by a salutary provi dence that God permits their defects, that they may be humbled on account of them. Thus they daily attain greater perfection ; and since I know this to be the will of God for them, I can desire and ask nothing else for them but what His wisdom ordains ; and I continually adore this dispensation, and pray that it may be perfectly accomplished."

On the following day, at the Mass Requiem ceternamj St. Mechtilde appeared to place little golden tubes from the Heart of Jesus to those who had a special devotion to her, and thus obtained for them from the Heart of God what ever they desired. Each tube had a golden key, by which — that is, by the following or similar words — they could obtain whatever they desired : " O good Jesus, I beseech

Thee to hear me, through the merits and prayers of St. Mech tilde and Thy other saints, by the mercy which dis posed Thee to pour forth on them, and on other elect souls, Thy favours and graces ; " and we may be assured these words will incline the Divine mercy to comply with our desires.

At the Elevation of the Host, this soul appeared to offer herself with It to God for His glory and the salvation of mankind ; and the Son of God, who refuses nothing to His elect, grew her entirely into Himself, and offered Himself with her to His Father for all in heaven, on earth, and in purgatory. The soul of the deceased now appeared in glory to this religious, who asked her what advantage she had obtained from the recital of the Antiphon Et quo omnia * as many times as she had lived days on earth, and for having had as many Masses of the Blessed Trinity said as she had lived years, in thanksgiving for all the favours which had been conferred on her. She replied : " Our Lord has adorned me with a flower for each repetition of the Antiphon, and by which I draw into me the sweetness of the Divine Heart ; and for each Mass I have received a marvellous and inestimable delight, which affects all the senses of my soul."

On another occasion, when this religious kissed our Lord's Five Wounds in spirit, saying five Pater nosters for the negligences which she might have committed towards Dame Mechtilde in her last illness, because she feared she had not attended her with sufficient care when living, nor prayed for her with sufficient fervour when dead, she be held five beautiful flowers springing forth from our Lord's

Wounds ; and by the virtue which these Wounds com municated to them, they produced and poured forth a sweet and salutary balsam. The religious then said to St. Mechtilde : " 0 elect of my God, accept these flowers which the Divine goodness has produced to supply for my deficiencies ; and may they be for thy glory, and serve to adorn thy triumph ] but do not forget to pray for me, unworthy." She replied : "I prefer leaving these flowers where they are, that I may not be deprived of the honour of having them placed in the Wounds of my Lord ; for I hope, when ever I touch them by my desires, that a healing stream will flow forth from them, for the salvation of sinners and the consolation of the just."