Thee with all my heart. Give me the grace to put on Thy livery and follow Thy footsteps.

O Sovereign King! I mourn that I have so often abandoned Thee! when I was in the world I spake as the world; I had no other king than Cæsar, but I tell Thee now that I have no other king than JESUS CHRIST. Thou art my king, and my Sovereign, and Thee only will I serve and obey—and if I obey the kings of the earth it shall be because Thou commandest it; beyond this I recognize no other King but Thee, to Whom be all honour and glory, throughout all ages. Amen.

Prayer.

All praise, glory, and honour, be to Thee, O LORD JESUS CHRIST, Who didst suffer Thyself to be condemned to the ignominious death of the Cross, that Thou mightest redeem us from eternal death. May the remembrance of this Thy exceeding love be imprinted on my heart, and may I love Thee, and reverently contemplate Thy bitter Passion. O give me grace that I may neither be disturbed by the illwill of others towards me, nor rashly judge or detract from others, or willingly listen to those who do so; but may I, as far as possible, speak well of all men, and bear their defects with holy compassion and charity. Do Thou, O LORD, mercifully grant that I may follow Thee in glory and in shame, through evil report, and good report; and faithfully serve Thee, and seek Thy honour, and choose rather to suffer adversity with Thee, than to enjoy all the things of this life without Thee. Amen.

XVI. CHRIST, BEARING HIS CROSS, IS LED AWAY TO

BE CRUCIFIED.

Gospel Harmony.

S. Matt. xxvii. 31; S. Mark xv. 20, 21; S. Luke xxiii. 26-31; S. John xix. 16, 17.

For

lamented Him. But JESUS,
turning unto them said, Daugh-
ters of Jerusalem, weep not for
Me, but weep for yourselves,
and for your children.
behold, the days are coming, in
the which they shall say, Blessed
are the barren, and the wombs
that never bare, and the paps
which never gave suck. Then
shall they begin to say to the
mountains, Fall on us; and to
the hills, Cover us. For if they
do these things in a green tree,
what shall be done in the dry?

Reflections.1

The gracious LORD received the heavy Cross, with a calm and cheerful mind, and carried it with an ardent desire for the glory of His FATHER and the salvation of men. He here shows the mirror and perfection of the spiritual life; for whoever aspires to a sincere and holy life must, with CHRIST Himself 1 See also Williams, pp. 271-281.

Z

take up the cross freely, and bear it faithfully and perseveringly. And if it should so please GOD, we must suffer ourselves to be deprived and stripped of all temporal goods, and of the aid and consolation of friends, as well as of spiritual consolation and sensible comfort, without murmuring or impatience.

O Christian man! suffer thyself to be mocked, and cheerfully bear reproaches, detractions, and injuries for the love of God; and when thou art afflicted with grievous injuries from men, with temptations of devils, it behoves thee to preserve humility and patience. Whosoever then would be a faithful Christian must neither depart from JESUS, in life or death, in prosperity or adversity, nor ask to be delivered from His cross, but patiently suffer whatever may seem fit to the LORD. He suffered for us, leaving us an Example to follow His steps, to bear our cross willingly and daily; for our whole life, as Christians, is a cross and martyrdom.

Meditations.

Is it possible, O my Saviour! that Thou wouldst carry Thy heavy cross, exhausted as Thou wert by the afflictions Thou hadst already endured? Thou knewest that this burden was beyond Thy strength, but still Thou didst submit to it without resistance. O GOD of goodness! nothing seems impossible to Thy love. The cries of the people, the cruelty of the robbers, the rage of the Pharisees, outrages, unkind words, insults, yea, all Thy sorrows are renewed, strength fails Thee, and Thou renewest Thy love, Thy obedience, and the

desire Thou hadst to suffer for me. Let all créatures bless, adore, glorify and love Thee; for Thou, O my Divine Saviour, bearest on this Cross all the sins of the world, and it is that which makes Thy burden so heavy.

Whilst Thou didst walk upon earth, Thy Sighs reached heaven, and drew down Thy FATHER'S Mercy upon poor sinners; and Thou didst open to them the path of glory, which had been till then unknown in the world. Thou didst maintain a deep silence, but this silence was heard from afar, inviting all men to follow Thee. It was in this particular that Thou didst appear the Leader of all the just, and declaredst war against sin, hell, and the flesh. It was in this that Thou discoveredst the secrets of Thy love, and confirmedst by Thy Example that which Thou hadst so often taught by Thy precepts. Whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after Me, cannot be My disciple. S. Luke xiv. 27; S. Matt. xvi. 24.

O JESUS, my Saviour, my King, my true life, and Sovereign good, suffer me not to be excluded from that blessed company, who have gone along the way of the Cross; for, alas, what would become of me, if I go not therein? and where would the way lead me in which I would go, if I am not in that of the Cross ? Lead me with Thee, LORD, that I may never lose sight of Thee, or of Thy Cross. I would follow and imitate Thee, and would rather be crucified with Thee, than taste all the delights of life without Thee.

My flesh, always feeble, groans under the Cross, and endeavours to detach itself from it; but cannot the spirit of suffering, which Thou, O Saviour, hast ex

hibited, change this infirmity into courage, and aversion into love? O, when shall I love the Cross, and have all my happiness and consolation in suffering much for Thee? Thou knowest, O LORD, that I walk more surely, that I approach nearer to Thee, and am more devout and faithful when the cross presses upon me, than when it leaves me. Although, therefore, the flesh rebels, regard not, LORD, my complaints. Afflict and crucify me, only do Thou sustain my weakness, that I may be enabled to bear the Cross, which Thou layest upon me, and never ask to be delivered from it.

O GOD of love! how rich and happy are they who follow Thee in bearing Thy Cross! The Cyrenian followed Thee, because Thou wilt always go first in suffering, that those who are crucified and afflicted, in seeing Thee before them, may be led, enlightened, and animated by Thy Example.

O true form and state of a servant! All Thy former actions, O Saviour, were, though painful, yet free; this, as it is in itself servile, so it is tyrannously enforced; enforced more upon Thee by Thine own love to mankind than by their power and despite. It was Thy FATHER that "laid on Thee the iniquity of us all;" it was Thine Own mercy that caused Thee to bear our sins upon the Cross, and to bear the Cross, with the curse annexed to it, for our sins.

Prayer.

All glory, praise, and adoration be to Thee, O LORD my Saviour, Who, for love of me, didst undergo great