Part 2, lesson 3. That the sacrifice of the altar is the same as that of the cross; and that our Lord carries to it the same dispositions that he had upon the cross

Q. Give me, if you please, the explanation of what you said above, that is, that the Holy Spirit continues to operate in the soul of Christ, the same sentiments that he once began to work in it; and that our Lord carries every where these same operations, whether in the heart of the faithful, or in the most holy Sacrament, or in the bosom of his Father?

A. This is a very important question, the explanation of which will be exceedingly useful to resolve three great difficul ties, one relating to the holy sa crifice of the altar; the other to the communion of the faithful; and the third to prayer, both mental and vocal. Before com mencing to explain it, it is neces sary to know this fundamental truth, that our Lord is the mas terpiece of his Father, called in Scripture the work by excel lency.*

The patriarchs and prophets,

• Domine, opus tuum, in medio annorum vivifica illud. Habac. iii, 2.

who sighed continually after him, called him so, and among others the prophet David, who said of him:* the great work of God is Christ, whose interior is all filled'with the praise and acknowledgment of the gran deur of his Father, whom he alone praises more fully than all heaven and earth, than all the angels and saints. Our Lord is not only the praise of his Father; he is also the immense reservoir of the good ness and magnificence of God over the church; and, accor ding to the language of St. Paul, it is in him and by him, that God the Father has poured * Ps. ex, 3.

upon us his holy benedictions.* This fire, which the Holy Spirit once enkindled in our Lord, is never extinguished ; and the same interior fervor, which was in him upon the cross, and prompted him to sacrifice him self to the glory of his Father, arid operate our salvation, con tinues to burn in him in the holy sacrifice of the altar, and will continue until the end of the world. By this you may under stand something of our Lord, and see how he is the mas terpiece of God, and the per fect sanctuary of the Holy

• Benedixit nos in oinni benedictione spirituali, in ccelestibus, in Christo Eph. i, 3.

Spirit, filled with sentiments of devotion, bj which he ren ders an infinite honor to the divine majesty.

By this, again, is clearly ex plained the difficulty of heretics, who say that the sacrifice of the altar, is only the commemoration of that of the cross, on account of these words of our Lord, falsely and maliciously under stood : Do this in remembrance of me.* For we know that it is the same host that is offered, that it is the same interior, the same dispositions of heart, the same Jesus Christ who is present in the sacrifice of

• Hoc facite in meam coinmemorationem. Luc. xxii, 19.

the jiltarj_as well as upon the cross; and thus, that it is the same sacrifice continued, and to be continued until the end of the world, although under a different form. Upon the cross, our Lord appears spilling his blood to the last drop, shedding bitter tears, and praying in a loud voice; upon the altar, he appears in silence, and has no sensible marks of his human nature; so that when he said to his apostles, Do this in remembrance of me, it was only to warn them that, in offering in this true sacrifice of the altar his person hidden un der the appearance of bread, they should remember the charity, which he so visibly showed upon calvary and the cross, and his devotion towards his Father, wKicnhe displayed in the eyes of all the world. Now, learn that, in our Lord, as well as in the rest of Christians his members, the principal is not the exterior part of the work, but, the secret and interior operation of the Holy Spirit, the author and principle of all good works; and that it is in this, that God takes most pleasure. As the august inte rior of Christ is the same upon the cross. as upon the altar, whether under the appearance of bread or the veil of the flesh ; it is also what we ought to esteem and honor most in the sacrifice of our Lord, which commenced upon the cross, and is continued upon the holy altar.

Q. I will endeavor, with the aid of our Lord, to study well before God the explanation of this difficulty, to profit by it, especially at mass, remember ing the death and passion of our Lord, and the pledge he gives us therein, of his love, at the same time that he is there pre sent, overflowing with charity for us. By this, I will excite myself powerfully to serve this good master, and suffer every thing for his love. But is this all the fruit that you intend me to draw from this lesson ?

A. This is enough for the pre sent; I am very glad that God opens jour mind to make you understand Christian truths and the profit that you ought to draw from them.