Thomas a Kempis. Reflections on the life and sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ

Reflections on the life and sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Preface by the translator (A.P. Lopukhin) Who does not know the famous author of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” that work which represents one of the most precious pearls in Christian literature? This is one of those works in which the spirit of true Christian piety is most expressed, regardless of religious forms, and which therefore retains its significance at all times and will retain it as long as there remains on earth even a single Christian soul thirsting for life in Christ. This correspondence with the deepest needs of the Christian soul explains his extraordinary popularity. It is hardly possible to point out another book that would have had more editions in all Christian languages ​​than the book “On the Imitation of Christ.” It has been calculated that from the time of its publication, for four centuries, not a single month passes in which a new edition of this famous creation does not appear in one language or another. 2 And this is not surprising if we take into account what food it represents for every sincere Christian soul, and it was read with equal delight and tears of tenderness were shed over its pages by humble monks in their cells and kings in their palaces; many poets drew inspiration from him, and many high-ranking statesmen found in him a source of supreme reinforcement. This work has long become the property of our domestic literature, and it is extremely significant that the best translations of it were made by two of our famous state dignitaries - Count M.M. Speransky and K.P. Pobedonostsev, who, having devoted part of their dear time to this work, thereby showed what importance they attached to this small work, from which they obviously drew moral strength for their high and difficult state activities and, having learned from their own experience the beneficialness of its spiritual influence on maintaining the religious and moral spirit, they wanted to make this source of moral life accessible to everyone. 3 But the famous author of the book “On the Imitation of Christ” left behind not only this work. After him there remained a number of other works in which the author’s pious soul was fully poured out, and among these works his “Reflections on the life and sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ” are especially remarkable, which are not only in close connection with the book “On the Imitation of Christ,” but also constitute a necessary addition, or, rather, even an introduction to it. In the book “On the Imitation of Christ,” our Savior is presented as the highest example of religious and moral life, an ideal that every Christian should strive to achieve; but imitation in itself presupposes preliminary acquaintance with the subject of imitation, a thorough study of it in essence and in detail. The pious author of this book was fully aware of this, and therefore he compiled another book, which contains a consistent presentation of the very life of Jesus Christ. This is precisely his “Reflections on the life and suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This work, as we will see, bears all the signs of the authorship of Thomas à Kempis, but nevertheless, it had a very strange fate, which was the reason that it not only did not receive equal fame with other works of the author, but was completely forgotten for centuries and only very recently was brought to light again from the Years of Oblivion by an ardent admirer and deep researcher of the works of Thomas à Kempis, an Anglican learned theologian (now late) Catlewell, who, together with Archdeacon Wright, translated and published it in English in 1892. 4 The appearance of this edition of the newly discovered work of the famous author of the book “On the Imitation of Christ” naturally immediately attracted everyone’s attention, and the book quickly went through several editions. 5 It did not remain unknown to the Russian reading public, since individual chapters of it were published in one of the most widespread spiritual magazines. 6 Now we propose to introduce this book in more detail, in the full conviction that it can serve as a great source of religious and moral satisfaction for many truly pious souls who, not finding satisfaction in the cold theological literature of our overly critical age, will undoubtedly feel the bookish sweetness in the work of a famous author who lived in other times, when the fervor of religious feeling was not cooled by any trends of a skeptical spirit. But before moving on to the book itself, we consider it necessary to outline the not uninteresting story of its very fate, according to which it was in oblivion for so long and only now has again become accessible to all lovers of religious reading. This story reveals to us deeply interesting aspects in the religious life of the society contemporary to the author and, explaining the strange fate of the book, at the same time presents data that can undoubtedly establish that it belongs to Thomas a à Kempis. 7 For the coherence of the essay, we first provide brief information about the life of the famous author. Thomas a Kempis, or by his father's nickname - Gemerken, and in the Latin form - Malleol, was born in 1379 or 1380. in Kempen, a small town 70 miles from Cologne. His parents gave him a good upbringing and in 1395 sent him to the then famous school in Deventer, which was then under the direction of Florence Radevins and the “brothers of common life.” In 1400 he accepted monasticism and entered. to the Augustinian monastery on Mount St. Agnes, near Zwolle, in the Netherlands, he took holy orders in 1113, and in 1429 he was elected subprior. On the occasion of the papal interdict, he left for a while. monastery and settled in Arnheim, but upon his return he again became subprior and died in 1471 in Zwolle in the Netherlands. In addition to the book “On the Imitation of Christ” and “Reflections on the Life of Christ”, the following works remained after it: “The Garden of Roses”, “Valley of the Lilies”, “Self-Conversation of the Soul” (Soliloquium animae), “On the Three Tabernacles” (i.e. poverty, humility and patience), “Speeches to Novices” and the biography of his teacher Florence Radevins. A complete collection of his works - Opera Omnia - was first published in Antwerp by Sommalius, in three volumes, in 1600. But all the other works of Thomas, despite their enthusiastic piety, do not represent anything out of the ordinary literature of that century, and all his glory rests only on his work “On the Imitation of Christ,” to which the work that is the subject of our study can add a lot. The full original title of the work we are interested in is: “De Vitâ et Beneficiis Jesu Christi Salvatoris Nostri Mtditationes et Orationes.” In the table of contents of the third volume of Sommalius's edition of "Opera Omnia" by Thomas à Kempis 8 it is simply called "De Vita Christi Meditationes", and also in the page headings - on one side "De Vita Christi", and on the other "Meditationes". 9 It is in the second edition of the above-mentioned collection of works, it occupies several more than a hundred pages with an index at the end, printed in small print and placed at the beginning of the third volume, in the second column. It is not in the first edition, and, after appearing in this second edition, it completely disappears, somehow strange and completely inexplicable. manner, without any explanation in all subsequent editions. This contributed greatly to undermining the credibility of the work, and also, of course, to the fact that it was almost completely forgotten for centuries. But how do we know that this work was written by Thomas à Kempis? Is there any other evidence, besides his appearance in the second edition, in favor of the fact that he was the author of it? This question must be answered now, since otherwise they can say that its appearance only in this one edition is too weak a basis to build on it any positive statements regarding its affiliation with Thomas a à Kempis. Fortunately, completely apart from the edition of Sommalius, there is much more solid evidence to verify that Thomas a à Kempis was undoubtedly the author of this work. One contemporary but unknown author, shortly after the death of Thomas, gave a brief biography of him. It is not known whether this contemporary of his lived on Mount St. Agnes with Thomas, or in the main monastery in Windesheim, several miles away, or was only closely acquainted with some of his brethren, but in any case, it is obvious that he was well acquainted with what Thomas did and what he wrote. He tells an interesting story about Thomas that. when a wave of fiery piety came over him, he asked his brothers with whom he happened to be in conversation at that moment for permission to leave, under the pretext that someone was waiting for him in his cell. In reality he was going there to interview his Savior. This biographer of his then adds that he recorded the results or fruits of these frequent and sacred interviews with Jesus Christ in some of his books and reflections. 10 This message gives the modern writer reason to say in conclusion that since few knew what exactly Thomas wrote, he intends to deliberately present a list of his works. 11 In this list, at number 34, we find the title of the book we are considering. It is written like this: “Liber Orationum De Vita Domini. Dominus Deus meus, laudare te desidero.” The last words in italics are the same ones that begin the book. and they are given obviously for the purpose of clarifying that this is the work itself, so that no mistake could occur. 12 The author of these pious interviews with Jesus Christ precisely wanted other pious Christians to be able to benefit from the precious thoughts contained in them, but at the same time he wanted to remain unknown to the world, which is quite in accordance with the humility of Thomas a à Kempis, who, striving to show the beauty of piety and set forth its most perfect and Divine Model in all His love, was afraid of the very thought that the world would know about it. that it was he himself who conducted these personal interviews with the Lord Christ. Without a doubt, this was precisely the first reason why he did not put his name on what he wrote, so that many, being unfamiliar with Thomas and his writings, even then made different ideas about who exactly was their author, and mistakenly attributed them to other famous persons. The evidence given is of the highest importance, and must be borne in mind in order to achieve the truth in this regard. This is not the testimony of some distant person living in another country, who knew little or nothing about the life and writings of Thomas a à Kempis except by hearsay; it is not given by a person who would live fifty or a hundred years after the death of the pious writer; it was written by a man who lived during the lifetime of Thomas a à Kempis himself and, as one might assume, not far from the monastery of Mount St. Agnes. It is even possible that he lived in the same monastery as him, or at least in the main monastery of the same brotherhood in Windesheim. Be that as it may, the writer undoubtedly shows in the hagiographical sketch he has given that he had a close and complete acquaintance both with the life and with the works of the pious author. This kind of evidence, we repeat, is very important. It comes from a person who was quite capable of giving us solid information about the personality of the author. The work is clearly indicated, and in the catalog about it, assurance is given that Thomas a à Kempis is the author of the “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ.” If there had been any doubts in this regard, the biography writer would probably have made some remark and the erroneous opinion would have been immediately corrected. If it had been attributed to someone else, then, undoubtedly, he would have reported this too; but since at that time and in that locality we find no other indication of him, the testimony of this modern writer of life may well be accepted as decisive evidence in favor of the authorship of Thomas a à Kempis. In addition, there is other contemporary evidence showing that the book Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ was already in existence at the time of the death of Thomas à Kempis, in 1471. This evidence is all the more important because it is completely unintentional, and yet serves to confirm the evidence already indicated. We find this evidence in Eusebius Amorth, an educated scholastic of the early 18th century, who studied the works of Thomas a à Kempis. While defending the authenticity of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” he did not defend the authenticity of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ,” as a result of which his testimony receives special weight. In doing so, he refers to an ancient codex containing various works (of varying antiquity), found in the Carthusian monastery at Buxheim, in Swabia, in Germany, in which another scribe, a contemporary of Thomas a à Kempis, gives at the end of the two works woven into the codex the dates on which they were copied, which serves as obvious proof that these dated manuscripts were already known at that time. The Carthusians, like the brothers of other orders, were familiar with the Windesheim community, to which Thomas a à Kempis belonged, were in frequent communication with it and enjoyed great respect from it. Thomas hints at them, as it should be noted, in Book I of Chapter XXVI of his work “On the Imitation of Christ.” Hence, frequent friendly relations took place between them, and one of the results of this interaction was the provision of valuable manuscripts to them. for write-off. As a result of this, a copy of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” undoubtedly ended up in the Buxheim Monastery. And the learned scholastic Eusebius Amorth attaches such great importance to the codex in which this work is found that he goes into a detailed description of it. First of all, this codex is in folio; secondly, the entire material consists of papyrus; thirdly, the character of the letter is the same from beginning to end; fourthly, it sets out the very content or title of the books in the codex. And here, among other books on the list, is the following: "Item Meditations in Vitam Christi." Further then, in the same list, the book “On the Imitation of Christ” is mentioned in the following words: “Item liber de Imitatione Christi, qui continent in so quatuor libros.” Then Eusebius Amorth, in the fifth part, gives a more detailed account of the book “On the Imitation of Christ,” because it most interested him as a moralist. 13 Having indicated some of the titles of the four books, he notes other things, such as the fact that each chapter begins with a large capital letter, and so on. In the sixth detail, he notes the signature under these books. And here the copyist notes that the author of the book “On the Imitation of Christ” was “quidarn Frater Thomas” of the Augustinian order of canons regular on Mount St. Agnes, in the diocese of Utrecht, who died in 1471. At the same time, he states, however, that others attribute the essay “On the Imitation of Christ” to John Gerson, the Parisian chancellor. The seventh detail concerns the time of origin of the codex, where it is said that this codex was written in the fifteenth century, that in one of the books it appears that it was copied in 1470 - “qui annus subscribitur Meditationibus Vitae Domini nostri Jesu Christi” - that is, the very work that is the subject of our consideration. The year 1471, it should be noted, also appears on some short works on repentance. The eighth, ninth and tenth details relate to the binding of the codex, to its present owner, and to the name of the person who communicated these details to Amorth, with the addition of a certificate from a public notary. 14 Here, then, we have attested evidence that a copy of the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ was written a year before the death of Thomas a à Kempis, and that it was closely related. or was intertwined with his most famous work, “On the Imitation of Christ,” which thereby forces both of these works to be attributed to the time of Thomas’s life. The last work, as we know, was stubbornly and persistently attributed by some people to Chancellor Gerson, although this issue, one hopes, has now been resolved forever and, of course, does not need further discussion. No such controversy arose about the composition of "Reflections on the Life of Christ." Its authorship was directly and from the very beginning attributed to Thomas à Kempis. And until any definite evidence is presented against this, we can safely consider this work to be the work of this particular pious author. But we also have other interesting data in support of this. In the British Museum there is one early printed book containing, together with another work, which will be discussed below, the first two parts of the “Reflections on the Life of Christ.” The book is printed in large, clear Gothic font. The “Reflections” does not show the name of the author, who apparently wished to remain anonymous, especially since this book was printed in one of the monastery printing houses. This was the case with his most famous work, “On the Imitation of Christ.” Several editions had already appeared before a publication was finally made with his name on it. From here it was later published under other names, until finally the admirers of Thomas a à Kempis considered it their duty to insist on the rights of his authorship. Thomas a à Kempis himself did his best to hide from the eyes of this world, so that this trait even became a special feature of his writings. For the same reason, his name does not appear on these two parts of his “Reflections on the Life of Christ.” This omission not only cannot serve as an objection to the authorship of Thomas a à Kempis, but, on the contrary, clearly tips the scales of probability in favor of the fact that it was written by him. In the work itself, however, there are features that speak even more in favor of Thomas a à Kempis. Many signs show that this work was published in the early years of the advent of printing in Germany. 15 On the book “Reflections on the Life of Christ” not only is there no author’s name, but in fact there is not even a title page for it. Only in the upper corner of the first page, in a font similar to the font of the book itself, are the titles of the two works contained in this volume. The book does not bear the name of the publisher, nor the year it was printed, nor the place, nor the city. not even at home where one could get it. At the beginning of each chapter there is a capital big red letter, which was obviously written, not printed, by a good scribe, generally called a “rubricator.” The pages are not numbered, but instead the sheets are numbered, but in a completely different way than was later customary. In one corner, at the bottom of the front page, is the usual signature, followed by known numbers; a is taken as the first signature, and it continues in numbers up to 8; then the signature b is taken, and also continues to 8, and so on. In addition, the book does not contain permission to print this book, as for the most part happened in religious books up to 1500, and was required after that time. All these features show that printing at that time was still in its infancy. But these particulars seem to point to something even greater. It is believed, and not without reason, that this book came out of one of the presses of the Brothers of Common Life. It is known that they were deeply interested in the new invention, since the existence of many in this community depended on the copying of books for sale. 16 In addition, they themselves had already entered the field of book printing early. And it is not surprising, because they immediately noticed that, thanks to that wonderful invention, they could quickly increase their production, whereas previously they had to spend whole months of labor copying each book by hand. And indeed, they happily took advantage of this new invention, which made it possible to publish books much faster and in any quantity. Schaab, in his essay on the “invention of printing” (Mainz, 1831), suggests that one of the monasteries in Marival probably had its own printing house with its own type as early as 1466. And Delprat mentions several other monasteries that also soon established printing houses. They did their job remarkably well, and the books they published were highly valued. Niel, in his essay on the “Jansenist Church in Holland” (p. 100), says: “Among the most valuable works found in the incunabula of German libraries, the Canons of Windesheim occupy a significant place.” But what further compels the bibliographer, in addition to what has already been said, to consider this remarkable book to have come from the printing press of one of the “Brotherhoods of the Common Life,” is that the two works contained in it belong to two famous members of this pious community. Thus, in view of the fact that the modern biographer of Thomas a à Kempis has included "Reflections on the Life of Christ" in the catalog of books he wrote; that various brotherhoods in many places knew that it was written by him. and that not a single case is known when its authorship was attributed to anyone in the first time after its appearance. to another - in view of all this, it is not unreasonable to attribute this pious work to one who was recognized as a great adornment of the entire brotherhood. All his brethren showed all the more respect for his writings because he himself did not at all seek the glory of this world, rather despised it, solely trying to ensure that people knew and followed Jesus Christ for the sake of Hero Himself. The brotherhood itself was probably the first to print the precious book “On the Imitation of Christ,” and it is very pleasant to note that they were probably the first to print the main parts of another equally precious book, namely, “Reflections on the Life of Christ,” written by their highly revered brother. Another work that follows this book in the same codex, entitled “On Spiritual Ascents,” 17 belongs to another remarkable member of the same community, Gerard Zutphen, an ardent student and lover of the Word of God, who lived before Thomas a à Kempis. The latter gives an outline of Zutphen's life. Gerard's example lit a flame of enthusiasm in the life of Thomas himself, who was then still a young man in the community. Gerard at that time was an ardent advocate of the translation of the Bible into the vernacular, and in his reasoning he gives many convincing arguments in favor of this. In another treatise, he also proposed that the prayers of the church should be pronounced before the people in their native language. 18 "Reflections on the Life of Christ" was thus in close connection with another important work of one of the former members of the brotherhood, distinguished for its learning and spiritual influence, but was placed even before the book "On Spiritual Ascents", as if they were given even more importance. Now who was more interested in the publication of these two works, or more likely to print them, than the members of this brotherhood in one or other of their monasteries? After all, this would have saved them from a significant waste of time and labor on their correspondence, and, moreover, these were the kind of books that they primarily wanted to distribute. Hence it is probable that the "Reflections on the Life of Christ" were first printed in one of the monasteries of this brotherhood. But, be that as it may, what most attracts attention is that this work was printed and published four or five years after the death of Thomas, and was fully recognized as his work, both among the brethren himself and in the entire area where he lived. And this serves us as evidence of their deep respect for Thomas a à Kempis, as well as evidence of how highly they valued this work due to its high dignity. It may be asked why only two parts of the book were printed in this edition, while the others were left out? Although it is difficult to answer such a question without being directly familiar with the circumstances of that time, it can be noted that the essay “On the Imitation of Christ” was dealt with in a similar way. We find that either only his first book was printed, or only three books, while the work consisted of four books. Moreover, if you look at the “Reflections”, you cannot help but notice that their first two parts already occupy half of the entire volume of the book; and if the rest of them were printed, the printers would no longer be able to include Gerard’s works in it. In addition, it was probably considered particularly useful for readers to meditate on the printed portions as they related to the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. Thomas a à Kempis, in the first period of his long life, as we know. copied the entire Bible for himself in four large volumes. What could be more probable than that when he reached the holy Gospels, he often and deeply reflected on the wonderful and blessed life of the Savior? His piously disposed mind had to often return to this, as to a subject that had enjoyed his special attention throughout his long life, and every now and then reproducing in his soul various episodes of this divine history, as they appeared to him. He is quite logical to make them a special subject of his reflections and prayers. This was, obviously, a man who constantly indulged in pious reflections and prayers, and in deep humiliation and sincere reverence had constant conversations with the Lord Christ. All the words and thoughts in these blessed moments spent with Christ were very dear to him, and therefore he carefully wrote down and collected them. And afterwards he seems to have formally collected them together, and compiled them into one coherent treatise for the edification and benefit of other pious people. He did this with the goal of showing them by example how one can use Holy Scripture for one’s eternal salvation - not only by reading and listening to it, not only by listening to sermons and interpretations on it, but also by praying on its basis. According to his example, the words of Scripture could be turned into whole pious reflections, and on every particular, thanks could be given for all manifestations of divine favor and goodness towards us. All this is not just mere considerations. When he began to write his immortal pile “On the Imitation of Christ,” he, apparently, already had in front of him a general outline of “Reflections.” Turning to the first chapter of the first book of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” we read in it the following: “Reflection on the life of Christ (in vitam Jesu Christi meditari) should be our main occupation. His teaching surpasses all that the saints have taught, and he who has the Spirit will find hidden manna in him.” It is interesting to note how this pious writer, at the very beginning of his book, so to speak, directly points out what later became the subject of his special work, which, both in its title and in its content, was the implementation of his thoughts about the benefits of this kind of “Reflections.” And it would be strange if, during the long years of his life after finishing his essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” he did not write such an essay as “Reflections on the Life of Christ,” when this was obviously the sincere desire of his heart, and only he alone could write such a sublime work, both in spirit and in style very close to the excellent essay “On the Imitation of Christ.” From here it is quite reasonable to conclude that Thomas a à Kempis was the author of the “Reflections on the Life of Christ,” especially when we take into account the above-mentioned external data and evidence that already early attributed this work to him and came from persons who were close to him in time and were quite able to give reliable and reliable information about both himself and his writings. Internal evidence also strongly suggests that Thomas a à Kempis was the author of the Meditations on the Life of Christ. If external data already gives full grounds to assert that the true author of this work was Thomas a à Kempis, then consideration of the very contents of the book makes it possible to further establish its authenticity. Although there are some differences in character between the works “On the Imitation of Christ” and “Reflections on the Life of Christ,” this depends rather on the fact that these two subjects required different treatment than on anything else. “Reflections on the Life of Christ” differs from the essay “On the Imitation of Christ” no more than the other undoubted works of Thomas à Kempis differ from each other. “Reflections on the Life of Christ”, like the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” has an ascetic character. Both of these books set themselves the goal of achieving the highest ideal of Christian life, and when using both one and the other, the soul of every sincere Christian who seriously strives for the salvation of his soul will be worried by the same feelings, namely, firstly, that he is too far from what he should be, and this should lead him almost to despair in the impossibility of achieving the highest perfection; secondly, this will make him, more than ever, feel the great need of the Savior, as one who wants and can save him, and therefore must zealously strive for Him for help and salvation; and thirdly, it will motivate him to daily efforts to become like Christ and follow in His blessed footsteps. After all, we must remember that the only correct path to achieving the Christian life is not to lower the ideal of our life to our earthly lusts and infirmities, but to set before ourselves and try to follow the most sublime and most perfect example of humanity, as it manifested itself in Christ. This is precisely the goal that the Gospel itself sets before us, saying: “Be perfect, just as your Heavenly Father is perfect; be holy, for I am holy.” Moreover, the very character of theology, noticeable in one work, is noticeable in another. The teaching and religious views in both works belong to the same theological school, even if they did not testify to the same pen. At that time, among many pious persons, whose main representative and spokesman was Thomas a à Kempis, a sincere desire to apply the gospel truths to life was noticed. Moreover, there are many original ways of expression, maxims, phrases and words that are common in both works. The form of maxims in the essay “On the Imitation of Christ” is distinguished by brevity, expressiveness, exhortation and completeness; we see the same thing in this essay. Many examples could be given in this regard, but this would unnecessarily lengthen our discussion. However, for those. whoever is interested in the question regarding the authorship of this creation would be worth following these points, since this would serve to confirm the data already given above that the “Reflections on the Life of Christ” were written by none other than Thomas à Kempis. Some, however, will ask how it happened that this important work of Thomas a à Kempis was lost from view for so long. Why was no attention paid to it earlier, and why was it not published for the benefit of the Christian world? The reason for this seems to have largely lay in the way the book was initially received. This again leads us to turn to Sommalius, who published three editions of the works of Thomas a à Kempis. He did not publish “Reflections on the Life of Christ” in his first edition, they appear in the second, disappear from the third, and then are never again found in any of the many other publications that appeared under his name. Hence, serious confusion arose as to whether this book was actually written by the venerable and highly revered author of the pious and deeply remarkable book “On the Imitation of Christ.” Some concluded, although on insufficient grounds, that this book was omitted by Sommalius because he was convinced that its author was not Thomas a à Kempis. And this opinion prevailed due to the general unfamiliarity with positive and genuine data in favor of the fact that this essay was written by him. But could there be some other reasons? The exclusion of Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ from so many editions may no doubt go a long way toward explaining why the book was so long neglected and almost forgotten by all but a few, as well as the doubts that have been expressed as to its authorship. It must be remembered that Sommalius does not give the slightest explanation as to why he excluded her. He leaves his readers completely in the dark about this, although he previously assured them that it was written by Thomas a à Kempis, and was one of his works discovered by him. There is something mysterious here, and rumors are associated with this, which involuntarily arouses various bewilderments. The question arises: why did Sommaliy not include this work in his first edition? Did he have any doubts about him then? Then why does it appear in its second edition? and then, why was it excluded again from his third, as well as from all other editions? Is there not some more plausible reason here than the one that is usually given to explain why it was excluded? As for the first point, it can be assumed that at the time when Sommaliy published his first edition, he did not yet know about the existence of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ.” He probably made use of previous lists of the works of Thomas a à Kempis, published by other writers, carefully comparing them with the autograph copies of Thomas a à Kempis, which could be found in the royal library at Brussels in two codices, variously dated 1441 and 1456, and with the manuscripts of some of his other works, kept in the monastery of St. Martin at Louvain; and since “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” were not found in any of these collections, Sommaliy at first did not know about their existence. Subsequently, however, some acquaintance or learned antiquarian could inform him about the existence of this creation, as well as where one could get a copy of it. We can be sure that he examined this copy with great curiosity and pleasure, and made a copy of it for his second edition. This seems to be the most likely explanation for the appearance of this book in its second edition. But why does it disappear from his next edition and all subsequent editions? What should we think about the reason for the exclusion of this work in view of the fact that Sommaliy himself does not give any explanation? Usually, they come to one not unnatural conclusion, which can immediately sway the casual reader in their favor. At first glance, it is quite possible to think that with further research, doubts might have arisen in the soul of Sommalius as to whether the evidence was clear enough in favor of the ownership of this creation by Thomas a à Kempis, and since the data he had was not enough to dispel doubts, he excluded it. As for his complete silence regarding the exclusion, one could say that Sommaliy simply did not want to admit to the mistake he had made, and therefore silently omitted this work in his next third edition, without saying a word about the reason for this. But, in the end, all these are mere assumptions, not based on any sufficient basis. It should be noted that Sommalius himself does not give such an explanation; Such a conclusion is reached only by those who, being amazed by the exclusion of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” from further editions, made by him without any explanation, somehow want to explain the mysterious fact to themselves. A more detailed study of the issue may lead to a different explanation. Sommalius was born in 1534 and died in 1619. His first edition of Thomas a à Kempis's Opera Omnia appeared in 1600 - about one hundred and twenty-nine years after the death of Thomas. His second edition was published in 1607, and the third in 1615 - about four years before his death. All three editions contain a dedicatory message and an appeal to the “pious reader.” But a careful examination of this address in all three editions shows that although they apparently read the same, several words were added to it precisely in the 1607 edition, that is, in the one in which “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” first appear, which words are not in the 1600 edition, but are present in the 1615 edition - a clear sign that the 1607 edition served as a copy for the third publications Sommalius in this addition expresses his joy that he had both health and some leisure, which gave him the opportunity to make up for what was missing in the first edition (quae in prima editione defuerunt). Meanwhile, “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” represent the only significant addition made in this second edition, and therefore he mainly had to have in mind precisely this creation, the absence of which in the first edition, in his opinion, made this edition incomplete. Written in Latin, this remark continued to remain in other publications printed on behalf of Sommalius after his death, and in its place in none of them any remark was made to explain the omission. Hence the only allusion to the "Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ", made by Sommalius himself in the 1607 edition, obviously speaks in favor of the fact that this work was written by Thomas a à Kempis. It’s hard to imagine such a careful publisher as Sommaliy. introduced "Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ" into the second edition of Thomas à Kempis's Opera Omnia, without first subjecting this subject to the most careful consideration and research. In his address "to the pious reader" in all three editions, he says how carefully and diligently he tried to collect only what he was well ascertained to be genuine, on the basis of a comparison with the manuscripts or autographs of Thomas a à Kempis. Like a bear, as he put it, he licked, and like an ostrich he gazed intently at the works of his beloved author. 19 All this points to careful research and careful consideration of the matter: so this learned publisher could hardly have admitted “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” among the works of Thomas a à Kempis, without being thoroughly convinced that this work was written by him. Moreover, when he was so convinced of the authenticity of the creation, he was already seventy-three years old, when his judgment was quite mature, and he was in good health. And one cannot think that he would ever give up an opinion developed after such careful work. Why did “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” disappear from his third edition, namely the 1615 edition, without the slightest remark from the learned publisher? There is obviously a special reason here, which will become clear. when we examine this interesting question more closely. Those who try to explain this silence by the assumption that he excluded “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” from subsequent editions because he himself subsequently doubted its authenticity, and meanwhile was ashamed to admit his mistake, puts forward a motive too unworthy for such a learned and conscientious person as Sommaly was. From him, more than from anyone, one could expect that if it were in his will, then at the first favorable opportunity he would try to correct and explain the mistake into which he fell, so as not to mislead those who trusted him. Meanwhile, Sommaliy does not make the slightest amendment or reservation. This, together with the evidence we have in favor of the fact that this work was written by Thomas a à Kempis, forces us to look for some other reason for its disappearance, some other answer to the question: why was it excluded from the third edition of the complete collection and never appeared afterwards? Some questioned whether there was anything heretical in this work that could prompt its rejection. This work was carefully revised from this aspect; although there are several pages in it, like in the essay “On the Imitation of Christ” (but in larger numbers), which could be considered somewhat extreme, however, there is nothing of the kind in it. which a Roman Catholic or the hierarchy of that church at the time when this work first became known might have considered heretical. Therefore, this could not be a reason for his rejection or expulsion. Nevertheless, although there is nothing manifestly heretical in this work from the point of view of the teaching of the Roman Church a hundred years before the Reformation, yet one cannot help suspecting that when Sommalius published the Meditations on the Life of Christ in its second edition, he did not meet with favor in the highest quarters, and therefore the suggestion was made to him or the printer that permission would not be given for a second edition of it, and that it should. tacitly remove it without making any explanation as to the reason for its exclusion. Sommalius belonged to the Jesuit order, which demanded unconditional obedience to the commands of its authorities, and if this assumption is correct, then since the publication of the works of Thomas a à Kempis was entirely in the hands of those obliged to obey, then the “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” were excluded without the slightest explanation of the reason. Silence about it better served the purpose of those who wished to exclude it, because its exclusion not only prevented its further spread. but it might also cast doubt on its authenticity, and awaken in those already acquainted with it a doubt as to whether it was really written by Thomas a à Kempis. And the manner in which it was removed seems to have fully achieved this goal. Otherwise, it would be difficult, we repeat, to explain the silence of Sommalius when this work again did not appear in his next edition, after he made an unequivocal recognition in the 2nd edition of it as one of the works of Thomas a à Kempis. If he had given an explanation for the reason for his removal, under these circumstances, it would have largely undermined the purpose of those. who wanted to remove it from circulation; because such an explanation would draw everyone’s attention to it and would arouse many rumors undesirable for the hierarchy, and besides, there would be independent people who, simply in defiance of the hierarchy and the Jesuits, would not fail to publish it themselves. 20 But that's not all. It is certainly a curious fact that between the death of Thomas a à Kempis and 1607, only one printed edition of a portion of the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ is known to have existed. As we have already seen, reference is made to three separate manuscript copies, which in themselves clearly point us to Thomas à Kempis as its author. But they were probably very rare at first, and now a manuscript of this work can hardly be found. How can one explain such an early withdrawal of this creation from public use? From the similarity of the very title of this work with the title of the work “On the Imitation of Jesus Christ”, and from its division into four parts, which also makes it similar to the four books of the work “On the Imitation of Jesus Christ”, as well as from the fact that Thomas a à Kempis himself says in this inimitable work about the salvific nature of “meditating on the life of Jesus Christ” in general, it can apparently be concluded that he sincerely wished that the “Meditations” were considered a direct continuation or addition to his main work. Moreover, from the fact that the two most important parts of the Meditations were published at the very introduction of printing and so soon after the death of its author, as well as from the fact that the book itself is completely in the nature of the works of Thomas à Kempis, one cannot help but see how much respect this work was already early enjoyed by everyone. Based on these considerations, we can rightly conclude that, next to the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” the pious author valued “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” more than his other creations and wanted all those who admired his first creation to diligently read the latter. And it would not be too much to say that, like the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” constitute true sweetness for every Christian soul. Why, however, did they try to remove this work from circulation in the public, so that after the death of Thomas a à Kempis it could no longer appear in print or be distributed in written copies? Since all this “Brotherhood” lived under the oath of unconditional obedience to their superiors. then we can be sure that the suggestion given from above about the undesirability of disseminating the “Reflections” among the people was carried out without any hesitation or opposition. The public might know little or nothing as to the reason for the disappearance of this creation, and soon everyone might lose sight of it and forget it. This, apparently, is the only reasonable basis that makes it possible to explain the extreme rarity of copies of this creation, as well as why so little is known about it, and why it is now an unexpected novelty for the Christian world. That at that time many books were banned and often completely lost sight of is well known to anyone who has studied the history of that time. Already in 1186, Berthold, Archbishop of Mentz, banned the printing and sale of books without his special permission throughout his province, and some books were not allowed to be published. But even before this time, in England, handwritten copies of the Wikliphon translation of Holy Scripture were condemned and banned by Archbishop Arundel. Many of them were small in volume, and thus escaped destruction, since they were easy to hide, even if carried in a side pocket. And in 1601, Pope Alexander VI issued a bull in which he condemned the printing in some provinces of books “containing various errors and harmful teachings, even hostile to the Christian faith” - as the views of the reformers were considered at that time. The Pope issued an order that in the future nothing should be printed except with the permission of the Archbishop. It must be remembered that in those days it was by no means an easy matter to disrespect or nullify the commands of the pope, or the archbishops who acted on his inspiration. What could be more probable in such a case than that the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ were already early suppressed by the highest authority, because this work favored the views of the reforming party in the church, which was so zealously striving for a revival of true and sincere religion - a revival that lay so close to the heart of Thomas a à Kempis, and was so zealously supported by his writings? It is also known that some hierarchs, especially in the 15th century, not only opposed the reformatory party, but were not even averse to excommunicating its adherents from the church and its sacred institutions: so that many pious people whom the church should have kept for itself were forced, as a result of such an unreasonable attitude towards them, to move away from the church and organize religious services and communion on their own. There is nothing incredible in the fact that hierarchs of this kind were not averse to banning and preventing, as far as it was possible for them, all creations that, in their opinion, in one way or another contributed to the strengthening of this transformative party. Meanwhile, “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” could well be classified as such creations, not only by the very nature of the book, but also because this work was first published along with a treatise by Gerard Zutphen, who publicly insisted that reading the Bible should be allowed for everyone, and the prayers of the church should be pronounced in the vernacular. This alone could cast a strong shadow of suspicion on him. It is known that many among Roman Catholics highly valued Thomas a à Kempis and his works, and at one time there was even a rumor that he would be canonized. But both now and then, among the papists there was a party that strongly opposed him, and for one reason or another, whether on the basis of information about the prohibition of one of his creations by some authority, or because he could contribute to the reform movement with his pious writings, not a single pope has yet decided to include him among the saints. Thomas Becket and Thomas Aquinas are both included among the saints: but for some reason that remains unclear, such an honor is not given to Thomas a à Kempis, although, of course, the glory of his name did not suffer from this. Thus, if “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” was banned early, its opponents largely achieved their goal; so that Sommalius, a hundred years after the death of Thomas a à Kempis, apparently knew nothing about this creation of his, when he published his first edition of the Complete Collection of His Works. And that this prohibition was secret and was carried into effect without any external noise, this is further confirmed by the fact that Sommalius contributed this work when he published his second edition. After all, if he knew that this composition was prohibited in higher spheres, then he would as a true son of the Roman Church, of course, in no case would he place this work among the works of Thomas a à Kempis. And that Sommalius, when he learned of this prohibition, and when it was suggested to him not to publish this work any more, completely obeyed the suggestion of his bishop, we can directly conclude this from the fact that he released “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” from his third edition without the slightest explanation of the reason. No honest and consistent learned man would have done this on his own, after he had once published them as the work of Thomas a à Kempis, and was fully convinced that it really belonged to him. Sommalius, after careful research, not only recognized the “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” as the work of Thomas a à Kempis. but he obviously treated them with special respect and especially valued this work of his, as completely saving for souls, capable of attracting them to Christ as their Savior. In support of this point, direct reference may be made to the note of recommendation which he placed on the title page in the following manner: “This little book, touching the life and loving goodness of Christ, will be useful both to those who are accustomed to pray aloud, and especially to pastors and preachers, who may henceforth (if they please) extract pious, reverent, and spiritual thoughts, which they can profitably offer to their hearers.” Here, obviously, the publisher directly and deliberately draws the reader’s attention to the work he is publishing. In addition to this, he inserted a small preface - a "Prologue", which, although not written by him, since it was found in the earliest edition of the "Reflections on Life" about 1475, was undoubtedly approved by him, since it explained how useful this work could be to sincere Christians. Beginning with the title, “On the Profitability of the Life of Jesus and His Sufferings,” the preface continues: “If you want to be completely cleansed from vices, to remain nobly in virtues, to be highly enlightened in the Scriptures, to triumph gloriously over your enemies, to find abundant consolation in adversity, to reverently celebrate holidays, to be able to lament in fasting, to weep tenderly in prayers and to be zealously inflamed in meditation, to remain firmly in good deeds, to be filled with spiritual joys, to indulge in the exaltation of the spirit, to enjoy divine definitions, to die blissfully at the last hour, to reign forever in heaven, then practice the life and suffering of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whom the Father sent into the world to set an example of suffering for everyone, and to lead his followers into the eternal Kingdom. Therefore, love Christ, follow Jesus, kiss the Crucifixion.” Although the name of Sommalia is associated with the publication of the “Complete Works” of Thomas a à Kempis not only in three editions that were published during his lifetime, but also published after his death, one can still think that “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” was excluded from the third edition not by his own decision. One can be sure that, regardless of ecclesiastical authority, he held to the end of his life the conviction that its author was Thomas a à Kempis. In clarifying this confusing issue, some are ready to think that the interests of the publication could pass from the hands of Sommalius into the hands of a printer or bookseller, who could act independently, publishing what seemed to them inauthentic. But this assumption does not stand up to criticism simply because, simply for commercial reasons, it would be unprofitable for the sale of works to publish an incomplete edition of his works. After all, Sommaliy himself, in his second edition, stated that the first edition. which did not include Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ, was incomplete. In this case, releasing the third edition without this creation would hardly mean counting on the favor of the public. No, it is clear from everything that there was some other power behind the scene, which, for its own purposes, carried out its purpose independently of the beliefs held by others, and did not allow or give its sanction to a new edition of the "Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ" in a new edition of Thomas's "Complete Works." And this will become even more likely when we take into account the religious controversy that then began regarding the authorship of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ.” It would be useful to say a few words about this. A special party came forward, which tried in every possible way to deprive Thomas à Kempis of the right to be considered the author of this so highly valued work, and was fully in agreement with its goal of casting doubt also on his authorship of the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ - a work which many considered favorable to the Reformation. John Gerson, the chancellor of Paris, who acted a few years before Thomas a à Kempis, and then John Gersen, the Benedictine abbot of Vercelli, who lived about two hundred years before him, were boldly presented as the authors of the book “On Imitation.” Cajetan put forward the authorship of the latter on the most empty grounds, and the Benedictines at first laughed at the boldness and absurdity of such a supposition, but later, when they came to thinking that as a result of this the glory and fame of their order could significantly increase, they themselves took up this matter, provided him with all possible support and supported the assumption put forward by him. In 1616, Cajetan published a copy of the work “On the Imitation of Christ” in Rome, and attributed it to Abbot Gersen, because at first he was completely unsure about the authorship. But then, in 1621, Rossweid published his Vindiciae Kempenses, and subsequently wrote other treatises in defense of Thomas a Kempis. Cajetan and the Benedictines, however, were irresistible, and in 1638 they received permission from the Index congregation to print the work “On the Imitation of Christ” under the name of Gersen. The controversy became very fierce, and almost inflamed the whole of Europe. The Parliament in Paris, with the help of learned men, undertook a thorough investigation of the controversial issue, and two years later ended the matter by prohibiting the publication of the work "On the Imitation of Christ" under the name of Gersen, and allowed the canons regular to publish it under the name of Thomas a à Kempis. This brief indication of the events which have caused so much excitement will suffice for our purpose. But it should be noted that since the opposition party did not succeed in overthrowing the credit of Thomas à Kempis as the author of the book On the Imitation of Christ, it also failed to a certain extent in its attempt to undermine the credit and his authorship in relation to the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ, although it excluded this work of his from the Opera Omnia of the Kempis monk. Some think that no steps were taken on the part of the admirers of Thomas a à Kempis to protect the rights of Thomas, or to ascertain his authorship in relation to this latter work, after it had thus been unjustly and unreasonably rejected. But this is far from true. At first, as one might assume, the defense of his authorship was limited to verbal reasoning. Then, however, more effective measures were taken, and in 1626 a small volume was published in Cologne. containing 516 pages of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ”, and was authorized by church permission, and the name of Thomas à Kempis was directly listed on it as the author. The title of this book differs somewhat from the title in the edition of Opera Omnia made by Sommalius in 1607; but from comparison it is clear that this, word for word, is one and the same work. Its title reads: “Orationes in Totam Vitam Christi. Auctore Thoma à Kempis. Ex antiquis manuscriptis Thomas Gratinus, Provinciae Col.Ord.F.F. Eremit. S.Aug. Diffinitor eruebat.” Giving his approval to the verse "Orationes", the Librorum Censor says: "Neque quidquam Christianis moribus et dogmatibus contrarium habeant." Therefore, the Roman Catholic authorities are in another province, not that one. in which Opera Omnia was published, directly states that in this work there is no heresy and nothing contrary to Christian morality and dogmas. It is important to note the date of this valuable book because it tells a whole story. It has already been suggested above that some people were dissatisfied with the prohibition of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” in the third edition of Sommalia from 1615. Not hoping for restoration, they naturally decided to publish this creation separately. It may be thought that at first some protest was made on this subject by the supporters of Thomas à à Kempis, and they expressed the desire that the “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” should be reintroduced in the next edition of the Opera Omnia. If so, then the greater was their disappointment, because in 1625 the fourth edition appeared, and again these “Reflections” were not in it; Moreover, it was apparently impossible to expect that this creation would be printed by those who had Opera Omnia at their disposal. Therefore, they wasted no time, and less than a year had passed when, in 1626, “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” was printed and published directly as the work of Thomas a à Kempis, with the full consent of the hierarchy in the Cologne province. This was done, as may be supposed, not only as a protest against those who insisted on the exclusion of the Meditations from the Opera Omnia, but also with a view to declaring to the whole world the authenticity of this work, that is, that it was written by Thomas a à Kempis, and to express the desire that he should be fully recognized as its author. Thus, this struggle for his copyright of the "Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ" only increases its importance to us even more, and makes us look upon it as a treasure. re-opened for general use: just as the dispute that was so long and hotly waged between the opponents of Thomas and the defenders of his rights to authorship in relation to the book “On the Imitation of Christ” led to the fact that this book began to enjoy even higher respect in the public. It would also be worth noting that in 1664 a translation of “Reflections” was made and published in Paris. on the Life of Christ" by Thomas Carr, confessor of the regular canonesses of the Augustinian order, and he also attributes this creation to Thomas a à Kempis. During this heated controversy, Thomas Carr published a sensible work for the purpose of showing that Thomas a Kempis was undoubtedly the author of the book “On the Imitation of Christ,” and then he soon declared that the same pious father was also the author of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ,” and of this he assures the pious sisters, for whose use he printed this work, putting on it the name of Thomas a Kempis. 21 Whatever, therefore, may have been the cause of the sudden and unusual exclusion of the Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ from the Opera Omnia of Thomas a à Kempis in the edition of 1615, it is very significant that men soon afterwards appeared who, being representatives of the great party, staunchly supported the rights of Thomas to his authorship. In addition to the 1626 edition, one can also note a small valuable edition of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ,” completed in Cologne in 1623 by Thomas Gratian. Then, in addition to the edition printed in Paris for Thomas Carr in 1664, both of which present this creation as the work of Thomas a à Kempis, we can also point out a Spanish edition made three years before Carr's edition. This is a rare and valuable book, in a beautiful quarto, containing in its entirety the "Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ" in 320 pages, translated by the famous Don Francesco Borgia, who ascribes this work directly to Thomas a à Kempis, 22 from which further appears. that although this work was met with such disapproval by a well-known party, nevertheless many talented and learned people considered these “Reflections” to be the undoubted creation of Thomas a à Kempis and recognized it as one of his main and most influential works. 23 In our time, of course, the gospel history of the earthly life and suffering of Jesus Christ, thanks to the wide and ubiquitous dissemination of the New Testament in the languages ​​of all nations, as well as numerous scientific and popular expositions of “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ,” is accessible even to the simplest people. This was absolutely not the case in the time of Thomas a à Kempis, and from this we can understand what a great treasure “Reflections on the Life of Jesus” is. Christ" were at that time for all sincere Christians. This precious work was for them a small Gospel, which illuminated their souls and implanted in their minds the entire depth of the Gospel truth. It could be for them a guide who, completely revolving in the area of ​​sacred storytelling, introduced them to its very spirit. In these touching pages the reader's attention is drawn to various events from the earthly life of our Savior, and each of them serves as a source of deep edification and teaching. Thomas à à Kempis's "Reflections" may also be important for our time. The details of the life of Jesus Christ are now, of course, developed immeasurably more fully than before, but these details are mostly presented from a purely historical point of view and are therefore limited only to its external side. In the work of Thomas a à Kempis we can receive something much more important than just an external understanding of the Gospel story: it prayerfully introduces us into the very spirit of the Gospel, leads us to the deepest inner communion with the Lord Christ, which alone can illuminate our soul with a supernatural light and put us on the right path to achieving eternal life. This is precisely the goal that Thomas a à Kempis himself had in mind, as he clearly speaks of in his essay “On the Imitation of Christ”: “Remember what you have set for yourself as a goal, and imagine the image of the Crucified One. Looking at the life of Jesus Christ, with good shame, you can be ashamed that you have not tried enough to be consistent with it, although you have been standing for a long time. on the path of God. A monk, when he diligently and reverently exercises himself in the most holy life of the Lord and in His suffering, will find everything here in abundance that is useful and necessary for him, and there is no need for him to look for anything better than Jesus. Oh, if only Jesus crucified would penetrate into our hearts, how quickly and in what completeness would we learn everything.” 24 Or in another place he says the following: “Let your thoughts be directed to the Most High, and let your prayer ascend to Christ unceasingly. If you do not know how to contemplate what is above and heavenly, calm your soul in the suffering of Christ, and dwell in His holy wounds with love. When you fall reverently to the precious stripes of Jesus, you will receive great consolation in sorrow, and you will not care much about human contempt, and every word of reproach will be easy for you." 25 Thomas à Kempis thus constantly exhorts everyone to engage in “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ.” He wanted to directly lead people to Christ Himself in order to learn from Him Himself, for no matter how excellent, meaningful and fascinating the teachings of His servants and the sayings of His saints may be, in any case it is even better for us to come to the Teacher Himself and learn from Him Himself. His life, simply, truthfully and touchingly told, is the best book for teaching the true life of a Christian. And it is not difficult to see all the irreplaceable benefits of such close prayerful communication with Christ. Even if in everyday life it often happens that when a person constantly has communication with another person who stands on a higher moral level than he himself stands, then gradually and imperceptibly he rises above himself and becomes like the one whose whole life he so rightly admires; so that in a few years a remarkable change for the better takes place in him. The same thing, only to an even greater degree, happens to those pious souls who constantly live with Jesus Christ, always having His life before them, learning daily and hourly from Hero. As a result of closer fellowship with Christ, they not only draw closer to Him, but begin to love Him more deeply, trust in Him more completely, and become more like Him throughout their lives. Reflections on sorrows and hardships, on shame and rejection, on the cross and suffering, as well as on the terrible death that He voluntarily suffered for us - all this is deeply instructive for us and can generate in us a spirit of self-sacrifice and self-denial, a readiness to use all our lives and all our means, abilities and gifts for the good of others. The soul learns to constantly focus on Christ the Savior until His image is indelibly imprinted on it. Those who day after day and year after year constantly have His life before them and prayerfully follow in His blessed footsteps are miraculously transformed. Over time, this most sacred exercise will be reflected even in appearance, so that people will “know of those who were with Jesus.” What the Apostle Paul says will happen to them: “We all, with open face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Cop. 3:18). As to the contents of the book itself, the reader should not seek in it a complete historical narrative, or any critical exposition of the life of Jesus Christ: it is rather a vivid picture of great events or sketches written by the pen of a deeply pious and loving follower of our Lord. In these essays, firstly, the most significant circumstances of His life are separately revealed before our eyes, and made the subject of fervent thanksgiving. Then, secondly, each event is made the subject of special reflection, and thus the naked feelings are reverently raised to Christ, and the sacred flame of true love for Him is kindled in them. And thirdly, after the heart has thus been piously exercised in an enthusiastic acknowledgment of all that Christ has done and suffered for us, the reader, with the author, offers a sincere prayer that he may enjoy the fruits thereof, and be worthy to walk in the blessed steps of His most holy life. This entire book is a prayerful interview of the Christian soul with its Savior Christ - an interview, having learned from personal experience the sweetness and salvation of which, the pious author, by publishing his creation in the world, wanted to give others the opportunity to experience the same spiritual happiness. In order to let Russian readers experience this spiritual happiness, we intend to offer them the newly discovered work of Thomas a à Kempis in a complete Russian translation from the Latin original. In the “Church Bulletin” we have already offered readers short excerpts from “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ,” but in the absence of the original, we used the English translated text by Wright and Kettlewell. Now, after a long search, we have managed to find abroad, through antiquarian means, a Latin copy of the “Mediations” of the now very rare Cologne edition of 1717. In this edition the book is entitled: Meditationes piissimae Fr.Thomae à Kempis Ord. Canonic. Regul. de Vita et Passione Domini Nostri Jesu Christi. Opusculum luce nondum hucusque donatum e Manuscripto Bibliothecae Societatis Jesu Paderbonensis. Coloniae Agrippinae. Sumptibus Wilhelmi Metternich Bibliopolae. Sub Signo Gryphi. Anno MDCCXVII. Cum Permissu Superiorum et Privilegio. The book has two approvals - from the Librorum Censor ordinarius" and the "Apostolic Archpriest", who both find that there is nothing in the book "against the Orthodox faith (Ortodoxae fidei) and good morals," and it can be very useful for inciting piety among the faithful. Then follows the table of contents and the book itself opens with the “Prologue”, which is already given above. The peculiarities of this edition include the interlinear notes made in places, which were obviously made by the hand of a censor or editor in order to put forward specific teachings of the Roman Church, supposedly not sufficiently prominent in the text of Thomas a à Kempis itself. The notes concern such subjects as the invocation of saints and the Virgin Mary, the veneration of relics and, most importantly, the recognition of the “indestructible unity of the church under one supreme head” - that is, the Pope (p. 89), and even polemics with Luther and Calvin (p. 113). The polemical nature of these notes serves as direct confirmation of the above assumption about the reason for the withdrawal of this book from public circulation. The overly Christian character of the book seemed to the Roman hierarchy not sufficiently Roman Catholic to allow it to be read by all at that time, a dangerous time for the papacy! From a comparison of the English translation with the Latin original, it is clear that in the first significant cuts were made against the original: many phrases and even entire chapters were excluded where the “Reflections” relate especially to the glorification of the Mother of God - obviously with the aim of putting the stamp of Protestantism on the entire work and making it more acceptable for the Protestant world. Our translation, being made from the Latin original, will more fully and accurately express the thoughts and feelings of the famous author. Book one. Prayerful Reflection Chapter 1. Prayerful Invocation to Glorify God for His Greatness with Great Thanksgiving and Heartfelt Reverence Lord my God, I desire to praise You, for I know that I was created to praise You. Open my mouth to Your praise, to sing the glory of Your name. Call my heart to You, drive away all despondency, pour out grace, kindle love in me, so that I can pay You due tribute of thanksgiving. Remove wickedness from Your servant, cleanse me from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, so that my lips worthily glorify Your holy name. But who can worthily praise the immeasurable dignity of Your greatness? Behold, all the powers of heaven, all the holy angelic powers are not able to worthily praise the incomprehensible majesty of Thy glory - how can a weak man - dust and worm? For the sake of Thy praise, every creature, every mind, every tongue and word of speech is weak. So what? Should I stop praising because I cannot adequately praise You? Or should I shut up and become completely dumb, because I realize that I am unclean and incapable? May such ingratitude depart from me, may I not cease to praise You, Whom every creature should praise, and especially a reasonable person, to whom You have bestowed such blessings above others. O Father of mercy and God of infinite goodness! I truly recognize and confess from the bottom of my heart that I am a most unworthy sinner before You, for whom it is more fitting to ask for forgiveness with a downcast face, crying and crying, than to praise and glorify Your name with profaned lips. But I am confident in Your most merciful goodness and infinite mercy: from the depths of my heart I long to praise You, begging the compassion of Your mercy, so that you do not despise me like a worthless, insignificant and rotten corpse, do not deprive me of the praise of Your majestic name, but excite my whole womb with reverent joy of the heart and inflame it to praise. Your praise, Lord God, is Yours, and you cannot be praised by anyone more worthy than by You, Who is the Creator, Almighty and Ruler of everything, from Whom everything has its origin, virtue and power, prompting the praise and glorification of Your name. Therefore, all creation should praise and always bless You; but You are above all praise, although the mind, reflecting on Your dignity, would like to praise You in Yourself for Your greatest goodness. May Your essence, Your indescribable omnipotence, Your incomprehensible wisdom, Your ineffable sweetness and Your immeasurable holiness praise You, my incomprehensible God. May Your most excellent goodness, Your abundant mercy, Your eternal virtue and Your ineffable greatness praise You, my God. May Your infallible truth, Your immutable justice, Your inexhaustible light, Your clearest knowledge and Your imperishable essence praise You. May Your most righteous justice, Your providential dispensation, Your calmest governance and Your invincible power praise You. May Your greatest dignity, highest goodness, best sweetness, most beautiful beauty, and Your most excellent love for mankind praise You. Let every name and every word that can be spoken and proclaimed of You praise You and exalt You forever. May the most honorable Queen of heaven, the most glorious Virgin Mary, praise You, and with all the heavenly host extol Your constant greatness forever. Thousands of thousands of angels who serve You with reverence, may they praise You and sing praises of endless thanksgiving to Your name, and may the darkness of those on high citizens always stand before You, praise You with great praise, and worship You with the most worthy reverence. And for my sake, may all this most joyful assembly of the Heavenly Dwelling praise You with the most reverent and most pleasant joy, praise and glorify You forever. May all the glorious desires of the saints, and all the honeyed eloquence of the teachers, the considerable virtues and most perfect actions in honor of Thy name, performed by the general choir of creation, praise Thee, and magnify Thee with the most sublime voice, with which only Thy most holy name of the Divine can bless Thy most holy name forever. Let all Your saints and chosen ones, whose names are written in the Book of Life, praise and glorify You with unceasing praise; and for the complete remission of my sins, for a good death and a happy outcome, for the avoidance of eternal condemnation and the acceptance of heavenly glory, may I beg You, so that I may be worthy to enter into a state of eternal salvation with You. Amen. Chapter 2. About the creation of the first man and his disastrous fall I bless and thank You, Holy Trinity and indivisible Unity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the One true God Almighty, Who, to demonstrate the ineffable generosity of Your goodness, at the beginning created heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them, but above other creatures, with a special honor of dignity, exalted man to Your image and likeness, creating him capable to dominion, wise in understanding, innocent in life. I praise and glorify You for this greatest gift, with which You adorned man in paradise with abundant sweets, so that he would have everything for his life, for management, and have everything for Your constant glorification. I praise and glorify You, Most Holy God, for Your excellent mercy and ineffable the mercy with which You delivered from eternal condemnation a person who had betrayed You and was ungrateful for all Your good deeds, placing him outside the paradise of sweetness for his guilt in order to perform repentance. For his sin, he was worthy of eternal condemnation, and did not deserve any forgiveness, and yet You did not punish him with all the severity of Your righteousness, but with the tenderness of ineffable mercy laid on him the burden of worthy repentance, and after a long time granted the coveted oil of indulgence, and this was done so that Your rational creation, having fallen into sin through its own wickedness, would be saved by grace. Therefore, every faithful soul should thank You, not exalting itself in its virtue, and not boasting about the justification of its merits. After all, we are Your creatures, my God, we exist by Your goodness, from Your bounties we receive what we have, but, due to the wickedness of our lives, we fall and sin. If, with the help of Your mercy, we did not rebel and strengthen ourselves again, we would always strive for the worse and would remain in evil. Therefore, we pray for Your mercy, most merciful God, we remember the abundance of Your mercy, we sing with sweet voices, we preach excellently, so that by deeds of thanksgiving we may offer You a sacrifice of pious devotion for the many immeasurable mercies that You have fully shown to us, sons of wickedness, sold under the yoke of sin. Amen. Chapter 3. About the renewal of man and the promise of the coming of Christ I bless and thank You, Lord God Almighty and Merciful, Whose nature is goodness, Whose will is power, Whose work is mercy, for Your immeasurable mercy and gracious goodness, by which a person, deceived by the devil’s malice and struck by the poison of a deadly infection, did not fail to deliver from the multitude of errors and burdens of sin, to appeal to life repentance and to a state of righteousness, giving him hope of forgiveness, and instilling consolation in receiving salvation through the promise of Your saving coming. And so that a person could not excuse his wickedness through ignorance, You often reminded him of his error, giving the law, subjecting him to executions, performing open truth over sinners, multiplying signs, promising future benefits, so that in this way those who would turn to Your reverence and understanding of the truth would not be excused. For for five centuries, through patriarchs, judges, priests, kings and prophets, from Abel the righteous to John the Baptist, Your Forerunner, You did not cease to proclaim, promise and foreshadow Your longed-for coming with wondrous signs and many broadcasts, so that through so many heavenly predecessors who proclaimed Your mysteries, You would arouse our thoughts to faith, and our weak feelings brightly Inspire by the living examples of many fathers. Amen. Chapter 4. On the Redemption of the Human Race by the Mystery of the Word Incarnate I bless and thank You, Lord God, Creator and Redeemer of the human race, for Your great love for mankind, by which you deigned to restore the miraculously created man even more miraculously. Although hitherto we were Your enemies, and ancient death reigned over the entire wicked generation, You remembered the words of Your mercy, and looked from the great height of Your glory into this vale of weeping and misery, saw the great misery on earth, the heavy yoke of the sons of Adam; and, touched by the tenderness of Your deepest love for mankind, deigned to give us hope of peace and redemption. For when the fulfillment of times came, You came from on high to visit us all, and fulfilled the desire of the prophets about the appearance of the perceived incarnation, appearing among people as true God and true man. I bless and praise You, our Savior Jesus Christ, for Your greatest humiliation, by which You were worthy to choose a poor virgin as Your Mother, deigning for her to also be betrothed to a poor carpenter, namely Joseph the righteous and a holy man. I bless You for Your most worthy incarnation and for the reverent angelic gospel with which the angel Gabriel most reverently greeted the blessed Virgin Mary, announcing to her the divine mystery of the incarnation of the Son of God from her. I praise and glorify You for the greatness of the faith of the Virgin Mary, for her firm obedience and tender response, and for all the virtues that she especially showed when she so humbly answered the gospel archangel: “Behold, the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to your word.” I praise and glorify You, eternal wisdom of the Father, for the all-praising condescension of Your unattainable height into the dark prison of our mortality, and for Your purest conception from the Virgin Mary, accomplished by the influx of the Holy Spirit, in whose virgin womb, overshadowed by the ineffable power of the Most High, He formed Your most holy flesh from immaculate flesh virgins You, the true God, consubstantial with the eternal Father, again became one body with us without being infected by sin, in order to make us one with You by the Spirit through our adoption as sons of God. I praise and magnify You for the voluntary outpouring of Your bounty, for your humane taking upon Yourself our capacity for suffering, humiliation, frailty and mortality, in order to fill us with Your abundance, save us with Your suffering, elevate us with Your humiliation, strengthen us with Your weakness, and lead us with Your mortality to the glory of immortality. I praise and extol You for Your long dwelling, for which You experienced cramped conditions for nine months in the maiden womb as a Baby, awaiting the proper time of birth, although according to Divinity You have neither time nor years, but You Yourself established everything in time and proper order. O condescension worthy of love and praise, with which You, being a God of immeasurable glory, did not disdain to become a despised worm, and with which, having done everything without labor, for the sake of our liberation you deigned to accept our illnesses. O sweetest Jesus, light of eternal glory, insofar as You have become lesser in humanity, so far have You shown me You have become greater in goodness; To the extent that you became worse for my sake, you are dearer to me. Amen. Chapter 5. About the Nativity and Poverty of Jesus Christ I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Consubstantial Father, who, born before the beginning, deigned, out of his great self-abasement, to be born in a dirty stall and recline in a cramped manger. I praise You, most beloved Jesus, for Your glorious origin, for Your glorious birth from the immaculate Virgin Mary, for Your poverty and humiliating reclining in such a small and low cradle. Who can worthily reflect on the highest God, who was so humbled for the sake of man? Oh, what thanks must the human race give You, for the sake of whose redemption You experienced the cramped conditions of the manger! Oh, boundless mercy! Oh, wonderful sweetness! Oh, sweetest humanity! - to see God born as a little child, wrapped in poor swaddling clothes and placed in a cramped manger in front of the animals! Oh, incomprehensible humility! – The Lord of all masters has deigned to become a fellow servant of His servants! But even this seemed not enough to You, Lord, that You, being my Creator, became my Father: You deigned to also become my brother and my flesh, in all the fullness of human nature, but without perceiving anything from its ancient decay. Oh, Christmas is higher than nature, but for the restoration of nature, with wonderful grandeur, surpassing the usual order of births and with divine virtue comforting us in our lamentable births! Oh, how happy and gracious is Your Nativity, sweetest Jesus, child of the glorious Virgin, glorious offspring of Your Mother Mary! It purifies every birth, transforms our condition, resolves condemnation, tears up the handwriting of the condemned nature, so that even he who grieves because he was born under condemnation from the root of Adam, may he rejoice in Your immaculate Nativity, trusting that by Your grace he has been most blessedly reborn. I thank You for Your voluntary and glorious Nativity, Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, through whom we have gained access to grace, we stand in it, and are confident in the hope of the glory of the sons of God that has been again promised to us from above. You are the guarantee of our redemption. You are the eternal hope of all, and to You we, humble sinners, flow, for You first sought us out when we had not yet known You. Oh, sacred and sweet childhood, which infused true innocence into human members, by which each age returns to blissful infancy and becomes like You - not in the smallness of the members, but in the humility of feelings and piety of morals. Grant me, most merciful Jesus, to imitate the holy steps of Your humiliation and poverty - You, Who, in order to give all people an example of virtue and a way to achieve eternal salvation, desired to be born of the Virgin Mary at midnight. Grant me, with all the angels and all the powers of heaven, whom You have made joyful heralds of Your Christmas, to sing to You with a reverent soul. Amen. Chapter 6. About the inconveniences and needs of Jesus born in poverty I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your gracious enduring of many inconveniences at the very beginning of Your Nativity, and for the bitter taste of extreme poverty. For when You, O God, were born into the world, You chose the night time for secrecy and the cold of winter for Your joy. You did not look for brilliant royal chambers for Your royal dignity, but chose a cramped bed for the cover of Your tender infancy. Oh, poverty is beyond all poverty! You, the ruler of the Universe and who prepared leather clothes for the first man and decorated the sky with stars, the earth with flowers and the cattle with hair with wonderful variety, barely had clothes to swaddle! O holy poverty of the Son of God! - she is more precious than all the riches of this world, and hardly anyone can imitate her. Who among those born has ever endured such cramped conditions? What scripture, what language, or what examples show that any saint from the very beginning of life suffered such poverty? Therefore, with all my heart, I offer the most sincere praise to You, Christ, glorious Youth, beloved Child, begging Your goodness to grant me with a loving heart to accept the gifts of Your holy poverty and, by Your grace, to endure the hardships of poverty with a spirit of patience. You came down from heaven to make poverty dear to us and became poor according to us - You, who yourself always remain rich and abundant. I praise You for accepting our poverty and weakness, for You loved us so much that, having laid down Your royal diadem, You deigned to be numbered among the sons of Adam, as one of them, taking on precisely their mortal nature, although always remaining free from any stain of guilt. Amen. Chapter 7. About the childhood of Jesus crying I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the joy of angels, the consolation of the unfortunate, for the tears and cries of Your infancy, with which you mournfully mourned the sins of the sons of Adam. Wonderful deed, amazing condescension! God, whom the angels praise in heaven, cries like a baby; Who gives the essence of life to all as the Almighty, sucks the mother's breasts like a mortal. He who speaks with thunder and waters the earth with rain, holds himself in his bosom and is carried in his arms! This is how the lowest is combined with the highest, the human with the divine! After all, I am cleansed by the cries of Your crying childhood, my sins are mourned by Your tears. Therefore, to Your sorrows, O Lord, I owe more to the fact that I have been redeemed than to the works that I have created. Oh, how should I grieve for my sins, if You, Lord, did not cease to mourn them? Oh, how severe were the wounds of my soul, if You shed such abundant tears for them. And yet, it is not surprising and not contrary to reason to think that out of compassion You shed tears like this for those for whom You came to shed blood in order to wash us from our sins. Therefore I praise You, beloved Jesus, and I will always praise You for Your loving compassion towards me, a miserable sinner. Chapter 8. About the Mammalian Child Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, inexhaustible source of life, for Your nourishment from the breasts of the Virgin Mary, whose sacred milk You fed on, Being the Shepherd of All, the food and bread of angels. Oh, the inexpressible sweetness of divine condescension towards the human race! Who can worthily appreciate all the greatness of the mystery and grace that God sucks the flesh's breasts and feeds on the milk of the Virgin! Oh, with what sweetness of love for mankind You, Lord, unite with me, and condescend to the insignificance of human weakness! Oh, great and amazing mystery, when, being God, consubstantial with God the Father, and true man from the virgin mother, You are recognized together as the Son of the wife and the only begotten of the Father. glory! One and the same is the participant in human affairs and the Lord whom the Angels worship. Therefore, I praise You and bless You for Your ineffable mercy, for which You were not ashamed to feed on your mother’s milk, showing that You received true descent in the flesh from the Virgin Mother. O You, who, having nourished everything Yourself, was content with such humble food, feed my soul with the food of the sacred word, and grant me to serve You with thanksgiving while I remain in this weak bodily state. Amen. Chapter 9. Concerning the Circumcision of the Child Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, Author of purity, Guardian of the highest innocence, for the painful circumcision of Your most tender flesh, according to the establishment of the Mosaic Law, to which You made Yourself subject in everything, although free from all defilement. I praise You for the first shedding of Your innocent blood, which You shed for us on this Day. O most meek Lamb of God, what is the condescension of Thy love, what is the virtue of Thy patience, when Thy holy and blameless flesh, at such a tender age, accepted the pain of circumcision, which it did not deserve! After all, I have sinned, and You bear the punishment for sin; I was conceived and born in sinful guilt, and You, born without sin, accept the mark of retribution. Was there anything vicious or excessive in You that required satisfaction? But since I did not make full satisfaction to You for my sins, therefore You stood in my place by Your mercy, and gave medicine to my soul through the cruel circumcision of Your flesh. But it is not surprising that You suffered circumcision when You even prepared to be killed for us all. You gave yourself all to me, all of you were consumed for my benefit. O good and most merciful Jesus, having received fleshly circumcision in Your innocent body, circumcise all my members with a spiritual stone, and in accordance with Your life, arrange all my actions, direct my morals. All that is carnal in me, cut off and destroy everything; cut off whatever you find unnecessary, and bind everything vain and vain with the rigor of Your teaching, so that, cleansed from vices and adorned with the honor of virtues, I may be honored to have the constant love of Your holy name and to be a partaker of the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen. Chapter 10. Of the new naming of the sweetest name of Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, for the sake of naming You a new, saving and venerable name, by which You are called Jesus. First it was announced by an Angel into the ears of the blessed Virgin Mary, later it was revealed to Saint Joseph in a dream, and today it was given to you by your parents. O sweetest name of Jesus, blessed above every name in heaven and on earth; By Your name, O Jesus, may Your praise be to the ends of the earth. From the rising of the sun to the west, let Your all-praised name be most worthy glorified from now on and forever. This most holy and revered name was assigned to You by the Father from eternity, but was revealed to people in time; There is no other name given to people under heaven, in which they must be saved. Let every generation of heaven, earth and hell bow to You, and let every tongue confess Your holy name, for You, Jesus Christ, are our salvation and redemption. O sweetest Jesus, how dear is Thy name throughout the whole earth, Thy name is exalted above the name of Solomon, and above all the kings who were before him and who came after him; Therefore, let all the kings of the earth worship You, and let all nations and languages ​​serve You, for You, Lord, are our God and the Savior of all Christians. Oh, sweet and saving name of Jesus, healing every ailment, illuminating minds, delighting hearts, casting out sorrow, taming anger, establishing peace and harmony, nourishing philanthropy and giving joy in sorrow. This highest and most gracious name was brought from heaven to earth by the archangel; it was proclaimed by the apostles. throughout the entire universe, holy martyrs suffered for him, confessors loudly proclaimed him, sacred virgins loved him ardently, old men and young men praised and sang him, and thousands of thousands of believers would rather suffer death than renounce the honey-melting name of Jesus. This saving name is now worshiped by Kings and princes, preached by priests and Teachers. He is especially revered and loved by all the faithful of Christ, who, renouncing the world and the devil, hope to be saved in the name of Jesus. Jesus is the salvation and protection of all those in whose souls faith and love abide. O sweetest Jesus, my only salvation, write Your blessed name in my heart, not in letter, but in spirit, so that it may be and remain so strongly imprinted forever. so that neither prosperity nor adversity turn me away from Your love. May it be for me a strong refuge in the face of the enemy, consolation in sorrow, advice in doubt, liberation in cramped conditions, elevation in the fall, edification during life, a warning against error and the surest guide to the heavenly fatherland through all the dangers of temptation. Amen. Chapter 11. About the appearance of Jesus and about the pious offering of gifts to Him by the Magi I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of kings of the earth, for Your glorious appearance to the three wise men-kings. For when You were born in Bethlehem of Judea, You did not hesitate to reveal Your Majesty to the people of a distant people, to whom You showed Yourself in a state of holy poverty, leading them with the heavenly luminary to the despised dwelling of Your habitation. Oh, great and wonderful God, who, having alone arranged everything and performed great deeds in heaven, for example, however, was not ashamed to appear before kings and nobles to the poor and humble; for You did not give a brilliant appearance to either the place or the dwelling assumed for us, but in the same place and in the same clothing You showed Yourself equally to both shepherds and kings. I praise Your ineffable mercy for the firstborn of the pagans and for the calling of foreigners, whom I brought from the countries of the East through secret inspiration to the light of faith. In Israel, among its princes, there were not those who would strive with such glory and faith to find the place of Your birth, like those foreigners whose faith was clearer and whose piety turned out to be more ardent. I will praise You for the wonderful illumination of the nations, which shone so gloriously in the dark hearts of the eastern pagans that they followed with undoubted faith across the vast expanses of the earth the sign that appeared to them in heaven. I worship You reverently with the pious Magi, and wishing to follow in their footsteps, I reverently offer You three gifts that contain great sacraments: kneeling, they brought You gold as a sign of royal dignity, incense in honor of divine greatness, and myrrh as a sign of perceived mortality. Therefore, most merciful to the King of kings, Lord, Ruler of slaves, Jesus Christ, accept the mystical offering from the hand of Your poor servant, which today, through the intercession of the blessed kings, I bring to You in addition. I bring to You, first of all, right faith, firm hope and first love, indestructible to the end. Believing that You are the King of heaven and earth, I worship You, the true God, the only begotten Son of the eternal Father, and I confess that for my salvation You accepted a mortal body from the Virgin Mary: accept the other three gifts, containing the sweetness of fragrance. I repay You what I myself received from You, namely, leaving for the sake of Your love all the blessings of this world, I do not want to possess anything in this life as my own, but I want to be satisfied with common food and simple clothing, and this is a moral offering of precious gold. I also add the gift of incense, which means a censer of reverent prayer for one’s own sins; I pray with cries and tears, offering You great thanks for many blessings, and grieving for all those who are in trouble. This means offering You incense and incense pleasing to You. I also bring myrrh to You, in remembrance of Your greatest suffering, wishing to walk the path of perfection in the severity of my own self-mortification. For when, out of love for You, I: remember the bitterness of Your suffering, then I bring You choice myrrh, and when I conquer bad desires within myself and renounce my own will, then I crush the strongly fragrant myrrh on the millstone of my heart in order to prepare a worthy offering for You. Oh, how happy I would be if I could bring my Jesus a bunch of myrrh, that is, all Your work and sorrow, gathering together all the bitterness of Your suffering, for with such a mixture of myrrh and incense a faithful soul is usually aroused to zeal for correction, to perform repentance and to mortify passions. I offer You, Jesus Christ, thanks for the greatest glory of this day, which you adorned with three glorious miracles: today, under the guidance of a star, You brought three kings to Your manger, today You were baptized by John in the Jordan, today You made wine from water at a wedding, and in all this you openly showed Yourself to be God and man. I pray to You, humble and meek Lord, do not let me be carried away by Herod’s lies, namely, worldly honors, or the lusts of the flesh; but through the merits of the holy kings, as well as the prayers of Your most honorable Mother, lead me, under the guidance of angels, along the right path to the Kingdom of Heaven, where I may be honored to see You in unceasing light. Amen. Chapter 12. About the purification of the blessed virgin Mary and the bringing of the baby Jesus into the church I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the Author of purity, for Your humble offering to the church of God, where with sacrifices and gifts, as one of the sons of Adam, You were brought by your parents and, like a sold slave, were redeemed with silver shekels. I bless You, Most Holy Redeemer of the world, Your humble obedience to the divine law, for without any debt of sin, to show us an example of true obedience and obedience, You subjected Yourself in everything to legal institutions. I bless You for the greatest humility of Your most blessed Mother, and for her voluntary submission to the establishment of the law, because, although being a holy Virgin both before and after birth, she did not refuse to submit to the rite of purification. O most glorious offering! Oh, sweetest satisfaction! For she was free, perfect and free from all guilt! What will I bring, or what will I repay You, my Lord God, for everything that You have given me - what can I, a poor and pitiful sinner, an insignificant person, give, if not by completely giving You my body and soul? Oh, how I need cleansing to wash away my sins! How useful is due satisfaction for deeds - to me, so defiled by many sins. Therefore, I appeal to You, most blessed Lord Jesus Christ, praying that You will deign to satisfy for me, and with Your purest offering will wash away all my sins, so that I, purified and alien to the world, may enter the church of Your heavenly dwelling, and always glorify Your name. Pray for me and You, gracious Mother of God, glorious Virgin Mary, may my sins be forgiven, so that I may be given time for repentance, and a firm indication for correction, with the help of divine grace; and what I lack in thanksgiving for God’s good deed, fill for me, most pious Mother, standing with your most beloved Son in the face of the Glory of the Father. May Your virgin purity cleanse my impurity, both spiritual and physical, May Your love for mankind inflame my coldness, May Your humility bow down my pride, May Your voluntary obedience crush the obstinacy and stiff-neckedness of my own will. I offer myself into Your hands and Your beloved Son, and whatever I do, yes. will always be at your service. I bring a pair of turtledoves, sincere contrition, firstly grieving over sins and negligence, and then hoping for eternal joys. I joyfully sacrifice two pigeon chicks to the Lord, maintaining the pure simplicity of my heart, wishing not to repay anyone with evil for evil, and especially to overcome evil with good, in which you grant me the ability to abide, O good Jesus, who was brought to the church today from the humble Virgin Mother, and was received into the loving hands of the righteous and revered husband Simeon. Chapter 13. About the persecution of Jesus and His flight into Egypt. I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the highest King of kings, for the sake of the persecution raised against You and the sorrow inflicted on You in Your infancy, when You fled from the most wicked king Herod, and was forced to leave Your fatherland as an exile and wanderer, and secretly enter the country of Egypt, from which in ancient times with a strong hand you led the children of Israel. I praise and glorify You for this difficult journey and long wandering, which I endured in a foreign country, living for seven years among barbarian peoples and people, eight different from You in morals. Oh, how vile wickedness is to want to kill the Author of life, and expel the King of heaven from one’s own fatherland! Oh, how many tears would be shed if anyone saw how the tender and beautiful Baby with the Tenderest Virgin Mother fled under the cover of the darkness of the night and went into a land that he did not know! His patience during this persecution was truly extraordinary, and it teaches all the faithful soldiers of Christ that they too must endure persecution from the wicked. I praise and glorify You, Lord Jesus, for Your blessed return from Egypt, for Your second arrival in the Fatherland, and for living together with your parents in the city of Nazareth, where You innocently lived with your neighbors and friends, leading a poor life in humble communion with your mother and the righteous Joseph. Grant me, beloved Jesus, at least to a small extent to imitate this Your patience, not to be angry at the insults inflicted, but to humbly yield to an angry person, to endure if someone is angry or reviles me, or insults me in some way, and even to earnestly pray for his salvation, not to be indignant at a person, but rather to lay all this on the ancient serpent who tempted him. Let me maintain peace with my brothers, follow them with love, and patiently endure with them every need for earthly blessings for the glory of Your name. Amen. Chapter 14. About the holy infants beaten by Herod for the name of Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the hope of infants, the glory of the humble and the crown of all saints, thinking about the slaughter of so many thousands of innocent youths who were killed for the sake of Your name. I praise and glorify You for the firstborn of martyrdom, whom You were worthy to withdraw from this world without any sin in heart and body, bestowing the merit of martyrdom on those who did not yet know how to use reason. I bow before the wonderful righteousness of Your decisions in all Your deeds, for You exalted the humble and innocent with eternal glory, but cast down the proud Herod and his accomplices with eternal shame into the underworld. I continually beseech Your piety, most innocent Jesus, teach me the innocence and humility of these little ones and to follow their lives, so that, putting aside all obstinacy and self-exaltation among my fellow men, I may be more meek, pure, humble, patient and watchful, and may no lust of the flesh disturb me, and may the perfect mortification of vices protect me from all harm. Amen. Chapter 15. About the presence of Christ in the church I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the Author of humility and the highest Teacher of eternal truth, for the amazing example of Your humility, and for the light of the wisdom hidden in You, shown to people, when for the sake of the holiday, together with your parents, You went to Jerusalem, offering sacrifices of praise and holy prayers to God the Father, and as a twelve-year-old boy sat among the teachers, humbly listening to them and wisely asking, turning the gaze of all those present to Himself. I praise and exalt You with special reverence for Your respectful obedience, which I showed before my parents, who searched for You for a long time and carefully and found You, when You, the Lord of heaven, humbly obeyed their command and immediately renounced Your own will; although they did not understand the words You spoke, You, as the most obedient son of Your blessed mother, immediately went with them from Jerusalem to Nazareth. O sweetest Jesus, most beloved Youth, Mirror of all holiness and virtue, teach me to break the obstinacy of my own will, to lovingly accept the advice of elders, to reverently attend the church of God, to listen attentively to Thy word, to preach Thy teaching, to honor the teachers of the church, to humbly obey those in authority, and in perfect obedience to joyfully serve Thee all the days of my life. Amen. Chapter 16. Of the holy and hidden life of the humble Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, for the most excellent holiness of Your life, which You long and secretly led with your parents in Nazareth from the twelfth to the thirtieth year of Your life, living with them in great poverty, in humility and obedience. I praise and exalt You with all my heart for your most humble stay among Your fellow citizens, during which You endured the fact that they called and considered You the son of a carpenter, and did not openly show, for the understanding of Your Divinity, the signs of Your Divinity. Oh, the humility of Christ! How much do you humble the pride of my vanity, and how much by a bright example do you admonish me to avoid exhibition before people, to shy away from the worldly crowd, to prefer to live in secret, to desire to be known only to God, to be concerned above all with salvation, not to speak before people with edification, but rather to diligently observe the word of life until the call from above is made to bear fruit. Help me, good Jesus, sweetest Teacher, to contemplate with a watchful heart the image of Your immaculate life, and to devote myself entirely to You, to always love solitude and hermitage, to completely withdraw from worldly things, to perceive with great love everything Thine and Divine, and in the secret place of the heart to keep the book of Thy life. Amen. Chapter 17. About the baptism of Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the source of goodness and the spring of virtues, for the humble acceptance of holy baptism in fulfillment of all righteousness, for the voluntary submission to the hands of Your Forerunner, from whom you deigned to be baptized in the Jordan, consecrating us the waters of baptism, and to all those who are baptized, small and great, setting an example, so that they humbly accept the sacrament of saving rebirth, if they want enter the dwelling of the Kingdom of Heaven. After all, we were washed in Your baptism; this sanctification benefited us, and not You, Who had no stain of sin. I praise and glorify You, O most high and venerable Head, the angelic spirits worship You for Your humble inclination, condescension and humiliation in the Jordan to wash away our sins. I bless and glorify You for the revelation of divine mysteries, for the open demonstration of the presence of the highest Trinity, for the opening of the entrance to eternal life, for the miraculous illumination of Your blessed forerunner, John the Baptist, for the most humble answer and his prompt obedience. O Jesus, Most High King, how you bowed down today for me, a wicked sinner, and how many gifts of divine grace you declared to me: look at me and have pity on all my sins, which I have committed in many different ways, openly and secretly. I pray to You, baptize me with spirit and fire: in many ways I have offended Your goodness, therefore, wash me further from my wickedness, cleanse me from my sin, for no one is pure from birth, not even a baby can be called such on earth, except You, the only pure and Purifier, the only saint and Sanctifier, who has the power to forgive people their sins according to the multitude of Your bounties. I pray to You, Lord, that my soul may live by Your grace; do not remember my former sins, but renew my youth like an eagle. Forgive my sins, make me vigilant in the future, and grant me new grace to proclaim the eternal glory of Your Divinity Amen. Chapter 18. About the fasting and temptations of the invincible Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, for Your sacred fast, which You, in order to give us an example of abstinence, performed alone for forty days and nights in the desert, where, as a hermit, with the beasts of the earth, without human consolation, but not deprived of an angelic community, by this feat you set a great example of hermit life to all the pious. I praise and glorify You, Jesus Christ, food of angels and delight of men, for the long exhaustion of hunger, for the wonderful abstinence and cruel exhaustion of Your most holy body, for the many reverent vigils, for the sacred and purest meditations, zealously committed in the solitary desert. I praise and exalt You forever for your strong struggle against the devil, for enduring various misfortunes from the evil tempter, for rejecting all his wicked suggestions, for a reasonable response from Scripture to his proposal, for a glorious victory over three main vices, to the eternal shame of Satan and to the strengthening of our weakness by being savedly perfect. I praise and reverently adore You on my knees together with the holy angels who worthily serve You, praying for food of life, for the help of grace, for consolation in sorrow, for reinforcement in temptation, for protection from the slander of the enemy, while I remain in the desert of this age. I believe and confess that You are Christ, the Son of God, God and Lord of angels, Creator of the human race and Redeemer, who in the weakness of our body experienced everything and was tempted by everything, so that, in Your mercy, out of compassion for us, you could heal us from the infirmities of sin. Oh, merciful Jesus, the strongest Champion, who fasted so severely for me, who so courageously fought and won, grant me also to courageously fight against the world, the flesh and the devil and with an unshakable heart to drive away all attacks of temptation; Send Thy holy angels, servants of light and peace, to console me in exile, so that they may visit me more often, faithfully protect me, greatly help, graciously console me, bless me more often, so that they may bring me healthy and saved to You, my Jesus Christ, at the end of this life, in happy joy. Amen. Chapter 19. Of the Holy Preaching and Saving Teaching of Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, good Shepherd and most faithful Guardian of Your sheep, for your loving care, for the salvation of souls and for your zealous desire to preach the word of God to the people, to whom, after Your exodus from the desert, You came to preach the kingdom of heaven, and proclaimed the saving trumpet throughout all Judea, so that everyone would repent, rejected the life of this world and strived for the blessings of heaven. O sweetest Jesus, with what zealous diligence You went through villages and squares, cities and fortified places to convert sinners, heal the broken-hearted and give forgiveness to those who sincerely repent. I praise and glorify You from the depths of my whole heart for Your mellifluous teaching and Your fiery preaching, spread throughout Galilee and Judea, so that Your great glory spread far and wide throughout all nations. Blessed be Thy sacred lips and most gracious tongue, with which You have spoken the sweetness of all heavenly life, inspired thoughts of eternal truth, and also to the whole world the true and wonderful light of the whole world, which You Yourself have proclaimed through the voice of the Fathers. I pray to You, beloved Jesus, best of teachers, grant me to drink with thirsty breasts from the sources of Your teaching, to listen diligently, to understand wisely, to taste sweetly and to properly carry out all the exercises according to the sacred utterances of Your lips, for never will I find the path to perfection so quickly and clearly as in the clearest mirror of the Holy Gospel, opened to me and to everyone for reading. In You, Lord, the source of eternal wisdom, the light of life and the fullness of all sweetness abounds and abides. Incline my heart to Your broadcasts, open my ears to the words of Your mouth, open my eyes so that they do not see vanity, quicken me by the path of Your life; for although the gospel style seems simple and easy, it is deep and lofty, full of heavenly secrets, for the perception of which the whole world is not enough. Amen. Chapter XX. About the Glorious Signs and Favor of Jesus I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the Power of God and the Wisdom of the Father, for Your glorious signs and extraordinary miraculous deeds with which You magnificently illuminated the world, and inclined the minds of the faithful to believe in You, making it clear with clear and open testimonies and radiant signs that You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God, who came to this world for the redemption of people. I praise and glorify You for Your endless love for mankind, that You have shown Yourself to be generous and benevolent to all nations, so that both the poor and the weak, and even the worst sinners, would dare to come to You, giving them full opportunity to be with You and touch You. Blessed are Your eyes, the clearest suns, which You mercifully raised upon the crowds of people coming to You, compassionate with them with such love that You did not allow them to go home without reinforcement, and with a few loaves and small fish, performing a miracle, You abundantly satisfied them. once and again many thousands of people. Blessed are Your venerable hands, which You quickly extended to various sick people, and with the touch of Your most holy body quickly drove away all sickness and disease. Blessed are the most precious ones, often tired for the salvation of souls and covered with dust, Your feet, with which You walked the earth hither and thither, sowing the word of life everywhere, teaching openly, now in the mountains, now in the open field. As a testimony to Your sacred teaching, You performed various miracles, raising up the paralytic, giving sight to the blind, cleansing lepers, casting out demons, and divinely raising the dead. O glorious Jesus, the light of the world and the salvation of Your people Israel, our life, strength and glory, look mercifully at my weakness, and drive out all passion from my heart, illuminate my inner hair, so that I can see the light of heaven. Open the ears of my understanding, that I may hear what my God speaks within me. Raise me from my laziness so that I may ascend from virtue to virtue, direct my steps according to Your commandments, and strengthen my weak hands for zealous work. Cleanse me from carnal leprosy, deliver me from furious anger, take away the exaltation of pride, deliver me from the impulses of envy, protect me from the greed of the belly, drive out the ulcer of greed, suppress the lust of voluptuousness. May the gravest passions of the aching soul and the hidden slander of demons be healed by You, Lord Jesus, and driven out by the word of Your power. No one can heal these spiritual wounds and perform internal signs of holiness, unless You alone, Almighty God, Who speaks - and everything is done, commands - and immediately Your word is fulfilled. Say to my soul: cleanse yourself, and it will be cleansed; say to the unclean spirit, which often tempts and troubles Me: come out of man and do not enter him again. Tell my soul in any distress: I am your salvation, do not be afraid - say just one word, and my soul will be healed. Amen. Chapter 21. About the examples and good behavior of Jesus, and about His sorrows in this world I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, example of holiness, example of good morals, source of virtues, fragrance of life, praise of patience, for all Your virtues and sweetest morals, for extraordinary meekness and the best examples once shown before Your disciples and all the people of Israel, among whom You mercifully called the hearts of the simple to Your love. But through the meekness of Your lips You moved even the cruel hearts of sinners to repentance, showing even the learned an example of edification in all Your deeds and teachings. I praise and glorify You for all the inconveniences and needs of Your body endured in this world, which You deigned to undergo for mortal worms, Having Himself become mortal, from birth to the suffering of the cross, often enduring hunger and thirst, cold and heat, labor and fatigue, grief and fear with all the meekness of my heart. I praise and glorify You for the many and severe persecutions, for the malicious deceits and undeserved blasphemy to which You were often subjected by the scribes and Pharisees, as well as for the great ingratitude and envious reproach that were rewarded to You for such countless benefits and famous miracles, gloriously performed among the people. I praise and extol You for Your boundless love for mankind in the conversion and salvation of all people, for the frequent and all-night vigils spent in prayer, for the cries and tears poured out of compassion, for the joy and greeting of all pious converts to the faith, for the majestic gratitude and inner elevation of the mind from such wonderful Thy deeds, to the praise and glory of Your Heavenly Father, worthily accomplished. O venerable Jesus, the brightest mirror of life! Grant me, Thy poor servant, who has hitherto lived an evil life, in pious contemplation, to behold Thy holiest and sweetest life, and to perform all my actions and movements according to the example of Thy life, so that I may learn to be meek and humble in heart, sober in life, simple in attire, may I be bashful in face, mature in walking, calm in mind, silent in lips, prudent in action, careful within and without, watchful in prayer, zealous in meditation, diligent in work, patient in reproach, quick in obedience, ready for every good thing, not sluggish, not careless, not sad, not rebellious, not disorderly, not loud, but pious, calm, joyful and modest. Amen. Chapter 22. About the Feast of Vai and the Humble Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the merciful Savior of the world and the merciful Redeemer of the human race, for the manifestation of Your amazing humility and the ineffable greatness of piety, which today I deigned to show when I climbed on the back of an insignificant donkey with my bare feet, and when I entered the holy city of Jerusalem with a huge crowd and the praises of the youths. I praise and glorify You, glorified Jesus, son of David, for the solemn veneration shown to You today by the people of Israel, from whom You were recognized as King and great Prophet, and were proclaimed with loud voices. I praise and glorify You for Your wonderful love and invincible meekness. that You deigned to humbly and voluntarily come to the murderers, by whom, as You knew, You would soon be killed, for whose sins and malice You shed tears, predicting to them what disaster would follow in the future after this present joy. I praise and glorify You for Your fiery zeal against the wicked, when soon entering the church, You expelled the sellers and buyers from Your Father’s house because they made the house of prayer a den of thieves, and just as You showed Yourself to be severe for the wicked and greedy soul-sellers, so You also showed Yourself meek and merciful for the poor and weak, abundantly offering the word of teaching and doing healing. Oh, the highest goodness of the Son of God! Who will speak Your power, O Lord, and proclaim all Your praises? Remember me, Jesus, in Your blessing, visit me with Your salvation, come, beloved Jesus, and lead me into the holy city of Jerusalem - . not the one who beats the prophets, but who was created in heaven, where the supreme citizens abide in the highest unity; mount the donkey's foal, taming all the frivolous and vain movements of my flesh with the bridle of self-restraint. It is good for me to bear my Lord and submit to Your foot, not to resist the commandment of obedience, but to bear the burden imposed with patience and meekness; not to stop working and spiritual progress, so that I do not go another way, but succeed in my holy intention, until, with Your help and guidance, I enter the highest Jerusalem, where there is eternal peace. From there, together with the Jewish youths, I reverently exclaim to You: Hosanna to the son of David, save me in the highest; Rejoice, King of the world, Savior of the house of Israel, whose coming the prophets proclaimed from the beginning of the world and whom the Jewish people today, rejoicing, receive with doxology of praise. I worship You, I glorify You, Who came, in the name of the Father, to redeem us from the hand of the enemy, and through Your precious blood to reconcile us again with God the Father. I beg You, Lord, to enter the church of my heart, and whatever unclean and nasty you find there, cleanse and remove from me. Drive out from Your tabernacle various types of worldly things, images of places and persons. Overthrow the tables of coins, so that the passion of greed does not prevail. Stop the noise of the traders of cattle and pigeons, so that the wealth of earthly things does not weaken heavenly thoughts. Take a scourge made from the ropes of Thy fear, and with great zeal, drive out from me all daydreaming and evil thoughts, which are often instilled in church during prayer by the worst merchant - the devil, so that my soul, severely tempted and carried away by various dreams, does not bow to them and suddenly perish. Come to the rescue, mighty Jesus, and do not let me be carried away by the snares of the devil and my own wickedness. Save me from evil, strengthen me in goodness, so that I may avoid the danger of eternal condemnation and enter with You into the tabernacle of heavenly Jerusalem. Amen. Chapter 23. About the Lord's Supper, at which, after the representative lamb, Jesus Christ established the sacrament of His precious body and blood I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, source of the bread of life and salvation, for Your most holy participation in the last supper with Your disciples, which I have long wanted to celebrate with great desire. You, Lord, king of heaven and earth, with your poor disciples, in the presence of the wicked Judas, ate at the same table and from the same dish, and during the meal meekly offered words of sacred edification, trying with a blessed admonition to turn Judas himself from his malice. I praise and glorify You for the endless generosity of Your most excellent love for mankind, that after eating the Passover lamb, for the completion of the eternal covenant, You then for the first time established the sacrament of Your most precious body and blood, in remembrance of Your suffering and Your eternal love, distributing this sacrament with Your blessed hands for consumption, with special reverence to all the disciples, as well as to all those who follow. by them and the presbyters consecrated by them, showing the very image of consecration, and then, until the end of centuries, granting them full power to celebrate the Eucharist. Oh, an extraordinary and wondrous manifestation of philanthropy! Oh, the exceeding bounty of divine goodness, where the Giver Himself comes as a gift, and what is given is entirely the same with the Giver. Oh, amazement is beyond astonishment, and sweetness is beyond all sweetness, to have God truly present, wonderfully hidden in the sacrament, - God, whom the holy angels worship as exalted above them in heaven, and who appears to them in all splendor. O worthy and never forgotten remembrance, in which the faithful soul remembers its death as dead, and finds life in its Beloved Whom it receives. So that I may worthily begin to receive communion of this most holy sacrament, grant me. sweetest Jesus, a heart contrite for sins, a clear conscience in confession, an exalted mind in prayer, strong faith, great hope, ardent desire, tearful piety, reverence with love, jubilant joy with trembling, deep desire with sincere thanksgiving and true humility deeply emanating from the heart to please the height of Thy divine Majesty. Amen. Chapter 24. On the washing of feet and the sacred conversation of Jesus at the Last Supper I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, most exalted Holy of holies, for this greatest example of Your deepest humility and slavish obedience, which You showed and left for us to imitate, when You, Most Holy God, deigned with Your blessed hands, with kneeling, to thoroughly wash, wipe and kiss the feet of Your humble servants, that is, the poor fishermen Out of Your love for mankind, You did not fail to wash the feet of Your most insidious traitor, although he himself, ungrateful for such benefits, remained stubborn in his vileness, remaining completely dirty and not washed inside. Oh, the wonderful kindness of the Teacher to such a lawless student! Oh, the most wonderful attentiveness of the most gracious Lord to the most wicked servant, who was in such bitterness that neither the closeness of cohabitation, nor humane treatment, nor the sweetness of conversation could be averted from the crime he had planned. I praise and glorify You for reclining for a long time at this most holy supper, at which You performed so many wonderful deeds of love for mankind, so that neither time nor moments will be enough for a worthy memory of it. I praise and glorify You, Jesus, the best Comforter, the sweetest Teacher and the strongest Strengthener, for the last long divine conversation, filled with the fire of love for mankind and the honeycomb of sweetness, which, after the washing of the feet and the departure of Judas the traitor, You again spoke with a loud voice to Your disciples, trying to strengthen and console their sad hearts against threatening misfortunes, giving the right the promise of Your resurrection, and with the greatest eloquence assuring them of their confirmation with the coming of the Comforter, of their taking from this exile to the heavenly dwelling of Your Father. Towards the end of this sacred conversation, You entrusted everyone equally, in true unity of heart, to God the Father, saying: I want, Father, that they all may be one, just as We are one. From here You, together with your disciples, entered the garden, distant from the noise of the people and suitable for secret prayer, where you prepared Yourself for the beginning of sorrow and sacred suffering, thus saying: sit here and watch with Me, while I go and pray there. I pray to You, most gracious Jesus, my Teacher and Lord, grant me, the worst sinner and Your most unworthy disciple, to reverently reflect on such a heavenly subject and on living examples of Your deeds. Grant me, especially with a light heart, to incline my cruelest neck to all humble deeds and with slavish obedience to completely overcome the pride of shame, so that not only to pious brothers and friends, but even to persons who are contrary to me, with perverted morals or members, I learn to render the service of piety. Let it not be hard for me to ask for forgiveness of my negligence, when You, my God, were not ashamed to bend Your most holy knees before Your disciples for washing. Help me to take advantage of the example of Your admonition, which I hear and read from You; I am truly sinful and overwhelmed by many evil passions, which is why I need great cleansing to wash away my sins. So, I stretch out my hands to You and humbly bow the knees of my heart, begging that You deign to wash not only my feet, but also my hands and head, diligently and cleanly. I have sinned many, many times against You in thought, word, deed and neglect; Wash me, Jesus, from all the filthiness of my sins, cleanse me from all uncleanness of flesh and spirit, so that, fully cleansed, I may have a share with You in eternal bliss, which You promised to grant to all Your beloved who endure temptations with You. Open the mind of my heart to a clear perception of the sweetest sermon of Your lips spoken at the supper; for these are words of the most ardent love for mankind, the sweetest consolation and the highest reason. Write a new commandment in my heart, so that my soul will burn with sincere love for mankind. Strengthen me in every difficulty, and in place of worldly joy fill me with the sweetest joy of the Holy Spirit. Give me true peace of heart, which the world cannot give; give the Spirit of the Comforter, whom the world does not see or know. Come, Lord Jesus, and deign to make your dwelling place with me, so that You may dwell in me and I in You alike may dwell together. Amen. Book two. Reflection on the sufferings of Christ, according to the writings of the four evangelists Chapter 1. About the sale of Jesus by the treacherous traitor Judas I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, supreme goodness and eternal greatness, that You were unjustly sold for such a low and insignificant price, for you were sold for thirty pieces of silver by your own disciple. I praise and glorify You for Your meekest tolerance towards the treacherous disciple, for You did not move against him, and not only did not loudly declare, but did not even show others his wickedness, after such a deed did not excommunicate him from office and sacred communion, although you foresaw that he was in a hurry to betray You. Oh, most meek Lord Jesus Christ! What is Your patience and my impatience! Woe to me that I can tolerate so little from my brother, if he says or does anything against me. You supported Your disciple Judas without reproach at a time when he was selling You and was already Your future traitor; I immediately become angry over a small offense, and invent various motives to avenge myself or to excuse myself. Where is my meekness? Where is my patience? Help me, good Jesus, and communicate the virtue of Your meekness more abundantly to my heart, for without Your special grace and inspiration I cannot have the blessing of peace among so many misfortunes in this life. Amen. Chapter 2. About the sorrow and fear of Jesus suffered for our sakes I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, all the faithful Guardian and Redeemer, for the painful beginning of Your bitter suffering, for the extreme sorrow of Your soul, for the anxiety and fear of the weak nature of the flesh, which you voluntarily accepted for us, when at the coming hour of betrayal You began to become despondent, fearful and grieve, and this sorrow was not ashamed to admit openly in the ears of Your disciples, saying: My soul is sorrowful even unto death. Oh, the wonderful construction of God! You, Lord of virtues, Who a little before strengthened others to achieve feats, are now likened to the weak, as if deprived of strength and spirit. You did this in order to better strengthen Your weak and cowardly (disciples), so that anyone, severely tempted, would not despair of forgiveness and salvation; Therefore, if anyone less able to bear or tolerate something contrary to the flesh turns out to be more fearful and sorrowful, let him say what he reads that You said: not as I want, but as You want. I beg You, most beloved Jesus, my only hope in all sorrow and distress, let me with a compassionate heart recognize the painful beginning of this blessed suffering, and from the sorrowful beginning little by little move on to a more bitter contemplation, so that in the individual passions of Your sorrows I may better find a saving cure for my soul. Grant me a patient spirit to endure, for the glory of Your name, sorrows and all kinds of misfortunes, so as not to fall into despair from the many different sorrows of the heart, but to please Your eternal destiny to completely renounce myself. Amine. Chapter 3. About the threefold prayer of Jesus, about His bloody sweat and angelic reinforcement, and renunciation of one’s own will I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, stronghold of angels, refuge of the inconsolable, for Your zealous prayer and humble prostration on earth, when with a bowed face, with bowed knees, You reverently and sincerely begged Your Heavenly Father, so that, if possible, the cup of suffering would pass by, adding, however, always: not as I want, but as You. I praise and glorify You for your strong struggle against the fear of death and the host of bitter sufferings, which You began with such divine love to drive out all human fear. I praise and thank You for the abundant outpouring of Your bloody sweat, when, in spiritual anguish, You prayed fervently and, contrary to nature, abundantly shed bloody drops from your body. I adore and praise You for your humble acceptance of angelic consolation, which You, the Creator and Ruler of heavenly spirits, did not disdain to accept to reinforce our insignificance from angelic service, so that we, fearful, would try to resort not to transitory consolation, but to heavenly help. Oh, sweetest Jesus, with what flame of love You loved me, and so zealously deigned to pray that even, in addition to ordinary moisture, from the great desire to suffer You shed hot blood on the ground. I praise and exalt You with constant honor, the greatest Lover of Mankind of my soul and the only example of my life, for Your complete self-sacrifice, for the renunciation of Your own will and the natural inclinations of sensuality, for which I naturally feared punishment and death, and yet without any opposition, when the hour of suffering came, I voluntarily and freely gave myself to the will of the Father, saying: Father, not My will, but Thine be done. And with this word You sublimely glorified the Heavenly Father, gave us a great promise, powerfully defeated the devil, and openly showed to all Your faithful an image of perfection, a sign of salvation and the path of the highest virtue. Oh, ever-worshipped and ever-memorable Jesus! I pray to You with the deepest sincerity, grant me to benefit from the fruit of this threefold prayer of Yours, and with a perfect heart to imitate the example of Your renunciation in the accepted feat of piety. Grant also to me, who hesitate, to courageously subordinate the flesh to the spirit, to renounce all carnal fear, to often resort to prayer, to remain vigilant in prayer, to piously nourish hope for Your help, to faithfully entrust to You the outcome of every thing, to reject the desire to reject any personal will, and to always have a spirit ready for all suffering. Amen. Chapter 4. About the voluntary march of Jesus to suffer and about His great meekness in the hour of betrayal I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, our Liberator and Savior, for Your voluntary readiness to suffer, when You, after a threefold prayer offered to God the Father, went straight out to meet Your worst enemies who arrived on the dark night, together with Your traitor, the most wicked Judas, with a large crowd, as if to catch a robber, with swords and swords, torches and weapons, and said to them: Whom are you looking for? This is Me. If you are looking for Me, leave them to go. At this first voice of Your virtue, all their proud courage was confused, and great confusion ensued, for, immediately retreating back, they suddenly fell to the ground: what would have happened if twelve legions of angels had arrived at Your call? But since You came to suffer, you did not want to use divine power, but only the most blessed condescension. You showed with your humble word what you could do in your power. But You allowed the wicked to prevail over You at this hour in order to show that You suffer according to Your own will, in order to complete the work of our redemption and fulfill the writings of the prophets. I praise and glorify You, most innocent Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, for Your ineffable meekness and incomparable virtue of humility, that You did not rebel against the most insidious traitor, did not reject his presence with indignation, but honored even a friendly interview, with usual friendliness calling him a friend, and even Your sweetest lips, which he was not worthy, lovingly offered him, saying: “friend, why did you come?” He even wanted to correct his madness, deceit and wickedness with humble speech: “Judas, do you betray the son of man with a kiss?” But, oh woe! not ashamed of justice, not softened by friendship, he did not restrain his hands from the gravest crime, but the one who was a friend of the apostles became the leader of the villains: he gave them a sign, saying: whomever I kiss, He is, take Him. O most wicked disciple of the most pious Teacher! O most treacherous servant of the most faithful Master! Oh, how wonderful is humility, how great is Your patience, most gracious and meek Jesus, for with such persecution and treacherous betrayal You did not forget about old friendship and tenderness, but for a great crime You hastened to perform the blessing of healing, when you healed the ear of the high priest’s servant, cut off by a disciple, with the sacred touch of Your hand, and reproached Your defender himself for wounding attacking, saying: Put your sword in your place; Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me? for this is how it must be. I pray to You, Lord my God, grant me, a weak reed, the greatest patience in adversity, so that sudden fear does not seize me, and fiery passion does not inflame me for retribution when insults from enemies come at me, or they reproach me for what I consider myself innocent of. Let me not be afraid of the accuser, but accept slander with a good heart, and consider as my friend the one who cruelly oppresses and oppresses me. May indignation not be aroused in me by the cruelty shown to me, and the memory of the insult inflicted upon me may not live in me, but may Your most blissful toleration of evil strengthen me to voluntary patience, with the desire to endure the worst for the sake of Your love. Amen. Chapter 5. About the capture, binding and taking of Jesus to the priest Anna I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the hope of the saints and the strength of affirmation of those who remain in every tribulation, for Your violent captivity from hated people, for the daring laying on of sacrilegious hands that tried to detain You, for their brutal glances against You and the threatening ringing of weapons, for the strong and cruel binding of You, for the rude and hostile holding, for the hasty and quick withdrawal, and disrespectful treatment of You, with insulting pushing, when the wicked and rude servants, with a furious cry, dragged You to death, and Your most beloved disciples fled, and from afar looked at You with sad eyes and sorrow. O King of kings, Lord, ruler over all creation, and alone among mortals free, as You voluntarily suffered to be seized by worthless hands, and so insultingly led away by people whom You Himself created and to whom He always did good! Alas! how grave a sin was committed against You, how insane an insult was inflicted on Omnipotence, when You, the Liberator of souls, were bound with the ropes of the condemned, and pure from all sin, were taken away in chains as the worst of thieves. But You deigned to bear all this with the greatest patience for us, the highest example of virtue, the meekest Jesus, in order to give us an example of extraordinary meekness and to most obviously fulfill the word of Isaiah: like a lamb before the shearer is silent and does not open His mouth, he is sacrificed because He Himself willed. Compassionate, my soul, about the sorrow and captivity of the most beloved Lord your God, who voluntarily suffered all this for the sake of your sins; deeply sorrow, and may your eyes be moistened with weeping, because for your sake they treated the Only Begotten Son of God so unworthily. Look what the most shameless dogs, the most wicked Jews, are doing, how they are holding Jesus in chains, and leading him bound to Annas and Caiaphas, the head of the priests! But He does not resist when they take Him, does not complain when they bind Him, does not resist when they lead Him, does not curse when they betray Him, but walks like a meek one, is silent like a lamb, follows like a child, endures like one humble. I pray to You, my God, that the bitterness of this sorrowful captivity of Yours may come more often into my heart, and especially in the morning, may it arouse in me zeal for sacred prayer, may it drive out all laziness, and may it make me quick and cheerful to remain in Your praise, in order to constantly repay something through labor for Your love. Born at night, you were betrayed, captured and bound with ropes during the night. I, too, will remember Your name at night, O Lord, thinking how much You suffered for me, a wicked sinner; May your heavy bonds bring me true freedom; may they restrain me from useless wandering, and may they keep me in Your service under strong obedience. May it not be difficult for me to overcome and crush myself, but may I lovingly follow the commands of my elders along the path of obedience, and may I not resist being led where I do not want, when what I am commanded is pleasing to You. May I never turn out to be rebellious, never quarrelsome, impudent, noisy, but may I always be pious, obedient, ready and not obstinate - to fulfill Your commandments, and with humble piety to observe the rites and institutions of the Holy Church. Bow my neck to the established rules, and bind my hands with holy deeds; wandering and spending time in idleness will always be disgusting for me, but living under obedience and conquering my own passions will always be desirable for me, cruel and rebellious, so that I can, even in a little suffering, correspond to Your captivity and Your bonds with my inner mood. Amen. Chapter 6. About the abandonment of Jesus in the hands of enemies and the flight of His disciples I bless and thank You, Lord Christ, Good Shepherd, Good Teacher, for Your greatest grief in that extreme need, when, abandoned by all Your disciples and those known to You, You were alone among the most cruel enemies; for Your brothers and closest friends, who promised to die and give their souls for You, as the time of death approached, they all immediately left You and fled. I praise and glorify You for the painful compassion of Your heart, with which You sympathized with the confusion and dispersion of Your disciples, when they, seeing You, the Shepherd, placed among the wolves, all, as You predicted to them, scattered like sheep of the flock. Oh, what despondency, what sorrow and what fear were in the hearts of the disciples when they saw how their Lord and Teacher, abandoned by everyone, was so violently taken and dragged to death; but You, Lord, Who knew everything and would not allow anything without a reason, allowed such weakness in the chosen members for their future good; for from this incident, having recognized their own weakness, they became more compassionate towards the weaknesses of their brothers, and after that at all times, with greater excitement and delight of spirit, they remained humble and devoted. Oh, how useful it is for me to diligently contemplate this place, and never think anything highly of myself; for when from time to time a certain grace of new zeal comes to me as I pray, I do not know how long it will last, or what may threaten me in times of temptation. If the pillars of heaven, the apostles, the disciples of Christ, were confused in the hour of sorrow, then what should we think about the most insignificant and pitiful man if even a slight temptation rose up against him? Some, Lord, gravely accuse the holy apostles that they so suddenly left You and, struck by fear, tried to flee; but they themselves do not see how much they themselves daily, out of love or hatred, turn away from the truth. I pray to You, most beloved Lord, do not let me reach such a hardening of heart as to renounce Your holy commandment, but to follow You wherever You go - into life or into death; not to run from You in times of calamity, and not to follow the paths of my lusts, leaning toward sins, but, for the sake of Your love and virtue, courageously expose myself to labor and various disasters, so that through my own laziness I do not lose You, the highest good. Let no pride come upon me from any good deed, and let me not say arrogantly to Peter that I myself am superior to anyone. or being equal to others. May the fall of St. Peter and the flight of the apostles be a warning to me from sin, and not a temptation; May their return to repentance be my great hope of receiving mercy after the fall. For no one is so holy as to never fall into any venial sins. When it happens that I am abandoned by friends and acquaintances, or when I am much reviled by my beloved as a stranger and useless, then grant me, as a special medicine, to remember the most painful abandonment and rejection of You, and to voluntarily deprive myself of all human consolation, so that I may be honored, even in the slightest, to conform to Your trials. Forgive me, most merciful Jesus, that I have offended You so often, that I have so frivolously given myself over to vanity, and that I have not diligently kept my heart in what I have vowed. For every day I look back, and how much time I spend in things that are of no use to anyone! and, alas, I do not listen to Your suffering. You have walked a narrow path before me, and I walk with dry eyes, as if Your sorrows do not concern me. Remember my insensitive heart, and pour into me a loving memory of Your bitterest suffering. Amen, Chapter 7. About bringing Jesus to Anna and striking Him on the cheek I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Leader of life and Author of our salvation, for Your appearance before Anna the priest, where, being asked about many things, You were cruelly struck on the cheek for your humble and righteous answer. I praise and glorify You, most glorious King Christ, for this dishonor and strangulation inflicted on You at the hands of a shameless servant, when, in response to Your lips, he gave You a powerful blow in the face, saying: “Is this how you answer the high priest?” - to which You, most gracious Jesus, with an unperturbed mind and lips, did not fail to give a meek answer, saying: “If I said bad, show me that it is bad; and if it is good, why do you beat Me?” Oh, most wicked and most despicable slave, who was so not afraid to strike the loving face of his Creator with evil hands! Oh, how inexpressible the virtue of meekness was manifested in You, most revered Jesus, when You did not avenge such an offensive blow with sudden retribution, but judiciously corrected the spirit of the striker. Look, faithful servant of Christ, and test whether you can bear a blow to the cheek for the love of Jesus; Now, if you can’t bear a cruel word without emotion, how can you bear a blow to the cheek? You grieve over the unjust insult of your Lord, but rather you should grieve that you feel so powerless to endure even small insults for the honor of Christ. You imagine something great, you think about something excellent; but you become indignant at the first voice of the slanderer and find yourself more weak than you thought; run to Jesus and beg Him more persistently for the virtue of patience. O good Jesus! virtue and strength of an indignant soul, teach me to accept grief and slander with a calm heart, and also let me not defend myself from unrighteous reproaches raised against me with indignant lips, but let me overcome them with meek humility; or if it is necessary to say, then with blissful calmness of speech, let me respond to hostility. Put right and kind speech into my mouth in the presence of all my enemies, and when the hand of the wicked rages against me, give me, most gracious Jesus, like an invincible shield, a humble and imperturbable peace of mind. Chapter 8. About Peter's threefold denial and his bitter weeping after Jesus looked at him I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Seer of the future, Who, as a warning to Your most zealous disciple, Peter, predicted his fall. I will praise You for the regrettable dishonor of You through the threefold denial of the Apostle Peter; for then You were especially dishonored when, to the question of the inferior, he denied that he did not know You, saying: “I do not know this man.” I praise and exalt Your name forever for that gracious glance with which You deigned to look mercifully at blessed Peter, so that immediately, realizing his guilt at the cock crowing twice, and immediately leaving the midst of the wicked, he with great contrition of heart bitterly mourned the grave sin of his renunciation. And he, not like the most unfortunate Judas, did not fall irrevocably into the abyss of despair, but with the help of Your ineffable mercy and the richest bounties of Your mercy, often recalling the test of his piety, with bitter tears he turned to the means of saving repentance, and found for himself the wide open door of infinite mercy. Oh, the inexpressible mercy of the Savior! O inexhaustible, open source of divine mercy, most excellent goodness, from which the sinner receives hope of forgiveness, and the righteous receive generous gifts of grace! Oh, who will allow me to find a source of tears so that with blessed Peter I can worthily mourn my sins, so that through the intercession of His merits I may be worthy to receive remission of my sins and the grace that was once lost. Peter fell, overcome by the fear of death, denying the truth three times; and every day I insult the eternal truth in many ways, deviating from the path of truth at every opportunity. When Peter fell, he rose up in repentance; I fall often, rise slowly, cry rarely, look after myself poorly, and do not avoid dangers enough. Peter wept bitterly, taught by the fall, avoided reasons for sin, acquired the secret of crying, and with abundant prayers washed away what had been contaminated by careless words. Oh, happy tear, which so quickly washes away the sins we have committed and which even restores lost grace! Remember me, Saint Peter, and have pity on me, a weak sinner, carried away by many heavy passions, so that I do not fall under the burden of vices, and extreme sorrow does not take possession of me after committing evil, for you have great compassion for all those who fell before, and you know with what mercy the Lord helped you. Help, pious shepherd, the lost sheep, free the fallen from all uncleanness, comfort the sad, strengthen the sad at heart, protect me from the evil one, protect me from manifold temptations, and bring to you the soul of the brother for whom Christ died into the kingdom of supreme bliss. Oh, good, most merciful Jesus, I ask with sincere sighs, look at me with the most gracious eyes with which you looked at Peter after his denial of You, and abundantly pour out the grace of holy compassion on me to wash away what I have voluntarily or unwittingly committed against You. Hear the groaning of my heart, heal the contrition of an evil conscience, kindle the light of new grace, do not let the soul of the repentant perish, for which You were subjected to all sorts of sorrows and untruths, and even a terrible death on the cross. Chapter 9. About the taking of Jesus to the high priest Caiaphas and about His false accusation I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, High Priest and Eternal High Priest, for the shameful removal of You from the house of Annas to Cephas, the head of the priests, where the scribes and elders gathered to invent evil counsels against You. Oh, what evil joy they were filled with when they saw You brought to them in chains, Whom long before, with all their desire, they could not take, for Your hour had not yet come. But this was the hour of their power of darkness, permissively granted to them by God, in order to satisfy the furious hatred that had been hidden for a long time, and to openly bring into action their inveterate malice - to You for glory, for the faithful to salvation, and for the unfaithful to eternal punishment. I praise and glorify You, O venerable Jesus, for Your humble standing before the head of the priests and before all the elders of the people, who boldly look at your beloved face Yours, when You were cruelly accused by false witnesses, eloquently questioned by the supreme high priest, furiously implored for the true answer, slanderously accused of blasphemy, and finally loudly condemned to death by everyone. I praise and glorify You, most gracious Jesus, for the extraordinary crimes and lies brought against You innocently, for Your humble reverence and long-preserved silence among such prolix accusers, to whom you did not show the slightest sign of argument or murmur, but an example of the greatest meekness. Look with sincere eyes, pious follower of Christ, what excellence of humble patience shines in Jesus, and how many unworthy reproaches He, whom the powers of heaven praise, was forced to listen to. It is for this true answer that He is accused of blasphemy, although everyone who speaks about Christ in this way is themselves clearly blasphemers and committing the gravest crime; truly, not believing in Jesus, the Son of God, they with a perverted mind commit all kinds of furies against Hero; He endures and is silent, and when he is trampled underfoot by the wicked, he conquers and triumphs all the more. Moreover, you, faithful soul, stop complaining about the insults caused to you, and do not want to take revenge on your enemies, endure and humble yourself under the burden of temporary misfortunes, and do not want to prosper at this time, when Christ prefers humiliation. Be ashamed, proud man, of honors and high places. lush and elegant clothes, when Christ reduced Himself to extreme poverty. It is a shame for you to seek human favors and be carried away by earthly sweets, when Christ preferred everything opposite. Oh, venerable Jesus, greatest beauty and meekness, give me, an unfortunate sinner, the desired grace of Your patience, and teach me by Your living examples not to be afraid of reproaches and evil fears, and also not to be at all embarrassed by false accusations, but to sincerely desire forgiveness for the sins I have committed, and with complete humility to submit to You and my authorities, in order to more abundantly receive my gifts. the same mercy, and for what has been received, offer the most reverent thanks to You. Amen. Chapter 10. How they mocked Jesus, spat on Hero, blindfolded him, struck him on the cheek and beat him with a cane. I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, honor and glory of the saints, for the gravest contempt and most indecent treatment You suffered, when, after the death sentence from cruel slaves, You were subjected to so many reproachful words, and were even struck with cruel blows to the head and face. Alas, Your most beautiful face, the vision of which the angels delight in, was disfigured by the most vile spitting of the Jews, and was also subjected to strong blows from outstretched palms, so that along with the tears from the eyes, blood undoubtedly flowed down the cheeks. Your tender neck was cruelly crushed by the roughest and furious fists; Your brightest eyes, which are always open to the righteous, were closed with clownish mockery; Your venerable head, exalted above all creatures, was cruelly struck by the wicked hands of sinners, who insulted You with mocking cries, saying: prophesy to us, O Christ, who struck You. Who, Lord, can hear, without great groaning and sorrow of heart, the manifold insults to You? The greatness of Your patience surpasses any degree of human patience, and the severity of such reproaches cruelly oppresses the loving hearts of the pious. Your friends were estranged from You, You were rejected by those you knew, You became an object of contempt and reproach for those who hated You for no reason and their eyes sparkled angrily. Oh, joy of the heavenly army, Lord God, why do You tolerate the wicked mocking You like this, spitting on You and strangling You as the most wicked of people! Oh! The furious Jews amused themselves all night with mocking and reproaching You, and, satiated with Your torment, they made Your face almost unrecognizable. But in You abided an indestructible meekness and an incomparable beauty of soul, which the wicked tormentors could not crush. For having suffered so much for the sake of Your chosen ones, You have become even more beautiful and dearer to the inner vision of the mind, which sees, O Most High God, that You innocently suffered all this for the sake of love. I beg You, most patient Jesus, by reflecting on the excessiveness of the great mockery You endured, teach me to take heed of my own worthlessness, and how justly I deserved by my great sins, let me be subjected to ridicule and reproach from people. Have pity on my unworthiness, and strengthen my heart to endure harsh words from people when reproach for my crimes is expressed to my face; With the greatest meekness, you endured many false words for me, an unfortunate sinner, because you were extremely humble, enduring both bonds and blows without a murmur. Oh, how unlike I am to You, how far I am from true humility, for even for a slight insult or a harsh word I stop loving a person! And when, for the sake of a lesson useful to me, I should offer great thanksgiving, I, on the contrary, without fruit, impatiently fall into despondency. I pray to You, Lord, forgive me these sins of mine, for I have often offended You with my frivolity, I have not kept my heart in purity of conscience, and I have not obeyed You and every reasonable institution with due reverence, as I should have deserved. Give me saving sorrow with a source of tears, give me love of obedience, in remembrance of the blows You have suffered, give me a strong hand of patience to withstand cruel accusations, and consider myself worthy of contempt. May the cruel blow to Your head be the taming of all my bodily sorrows, and may the mocking closing of Your eyes restrain the curiosity of my eyes; Let the shameful spitting on Your beautiful face suppress all carnal lust in me and teach me not to be carried away by what shines on the outside, but rather to honor what the virtues of the soul hide inside. May the mockery committed against You drive away from me all frivolity and empty fun, and may the extreme disgrace of Your dignity destroy in me every desire for honor, and may it always incline me to self-denial and humiliation. Amen. Chapter 11. About the bringing and standing of the Lord Jesus Christ before Pilate I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Most Righteous Judge of the living and the dead, for this shameful bringing of You to the ruler Pilate. When morning came, at an early hour, all the heads of the priests having gathered together, and forming a wicked council to put You to death, they led You, bound in bonds by the hands of their servants, to an uncircumcised man and a pagan ruler, reviling Your innocence with the gravest accusations, and daring to call Him a villain and a troublemaker of all the people, Whom the prophets of old with great praise proclaimed the Savior of the world. Oh, the terrible wickedness of the Jews, who wanted, through false witnesses, to accuse an innocent person, to kill the Author of life, to crucify Christ the King, to condemn the Holy and Righteous One to the most vile death. Let all who persecute You be embarrassed and ashamed, for they are worthy to suffer the heaviest punishment. I praise and glorify You, O venerable Jesus, for the great righteousness of Your behavior and worthy standing before the judgment seat of Judge Pilate, where You, like a gentle lamb, in the presence of Your accusers stood imprisoned, with your head bowed, your eyes lowered, with a calm face, uttering few words, with a suppressed voice, ready to endure all kinds of reproach and blows. Look and think now, pious disciple of Christ, how your Lord and Savior, the King and Judge of all, endures that He is brought to trial, voluntarily and humbly submits to earthly authority, thereby giving you an example of the most saving obedience, so that you, being truly guilty of many sins, learn, in case of accusation, to humbly endure everything when you are accused by others. Humbly submit to the judgment of the authorities, and do not dare to oppose the authority established by God, if you want to avoid the punishment of hell, but for the love of Jesus, patiently endure unjust condemnation, if something serious were brought against you. May the wonderful patience of God not disappear from your heart amid so many crimes falsely charged against Hero; Therefore, follow in the sacred footsteps of the bound Jesus, begging for forgiveness and grace, that He may forgive you all your sins, and rather here on earth, in His mercy, correct Your crimes, than, preserving them until the next, condemn you forever. Have pity, O good Jesus, have pity on me, a sinner, for my soul trusts in You; breathe in the good Spirit, which would inflame me with zealous success, so that I may learn from the fullness of my heart to be humble, bow and submit to my authorities, and endure everything that is commanded to me. Let me not be afraid of human judgment, and not accept accusations with indignation, but instill in me the desire to reflect, endure and humble myself, so that the passion of exaltation is completely trampled and my own will is reduced to nothing, and so with disdain for myself, let my love for You increase more and more, and ascend higher and higher, Amen. Chapter 12. How the Lord Jesus was disgraced by Herod I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, eternal wisdom of the Father, the highest truth and infinite virtue of God, for this shameful mockery and bitter ridicule with which You were disgraced and ridiculed by Herod and his army. Herod himself had long wanted to see You and, spurred by curiosity, hoped that You would perform some sign; but when You did not give him an answer to the voice of his question and did not show a sign, which was then useless, because it was an hour of suffering, and not of performing signs, he soon became angry, he ceased to reverence You, and considering You unreasonable, arrogantly despised You and, having dressed You in white clothes, ridiculed You and sent You to Pilate. I praise and glorify You, glorious Jesus, for your many languorous and painful walks, when through the streets and squares of Jerusalem from place to place, from judge to judge with mocking cries, You were led and led away, somewhere cruelly accused, and somewhere disgraced, and when, after many interrogations and lengthy investigations, they demanded that You be crucified on the cross. Oh, how extraordinary patience was manifested in You along this path, which did not fall under so many blows of mockery. The memory of public ridicule of You greatly crushes a cruel soul, makes an angry one compassionate and calls a pious one to cry. Behold, You, the Most High God, are humbled as the most insignificant, You, the All-Powerful, are reproached as the most pitiful, You, the All-Wise, are ridiculed as a fool, You, the Most Innocent, are condemned as the greatest villain. Woe to me, an unfortunate sinner, oppressed by the great weight of sins, for by my own deeds I am worthy to suffer eternal punishment; but for me, You, gracious, Holy and righteous God, did not disdain to be subjected to ridicule and reproach, in order to save me, the unfortunate one, from the reproach of demons and eternal death. I pray to You, most gracious Jesus, whom no cruelty or reproach could harden, take away from me all that is vain and frivolous, so that I may learn to be content with fine clothing, for it is unreasonable that earth and ashes should need decoration or refinement in clothing, when You, the King of heaven, were subjected to ridicule and mockery in white clothing. Bring Your reproach and mockery before my eyes, and teach me to follow You along the path of contempt and to rejoice in my own reproach, not to trust in the sons of men, nor in the princes of this world, nor in the power of friends, but with all my heart to despise everything earthly with all its lovers. Let me follow You, Lord Jesus, the author of my salvation, with unbreakable constancy and always keep in mind how many reproaches You endured for me, the unworthy. Amen. Chapter 13. About the taking of the Lord Jesus from Herod to Pilate and about the furious cry of the Jews: crucify, crucify Him! I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, eternal joy of the saints, for the great and daring confusion of the furious Jews against You, frantically shouting: take him, take him, crucify him! Oh, what is the rage of the unfortunate Jews! How inhumane is the cruelty of the high priests and Pharisees. whom no fear restrains from killing, no reason prevents from shedding innocent blood. The pagan judge is inclined to some mercy, and the Jews are hardened to even stronger malice; Pilate is trying to justify You, looking for a way to let You go, assuring that he does not find in You any reason for death; But the Jews, who have forgotten about all good things, persist, shouting: if you let this go, you are not a friend of Caesar, for anyone who makes himself a king is an enemy of Caesar. Oh, how falsely they invent this against Your humility! You did not seek temporary honors either in word or in deed, and after performing a miraculous sign, when the people, saturated with a few pieces of bread, wanted to make You king, You soon escaped into the inaccessible mountains, staying there alone in prayer. But not content with these evil accusations, they bring something even worse than before in order to arouse the spirit of the judge to commit Deicide: we, they say, have a law, and according to our law He must die, because he made himself the Son of God. The ruler hears this, is afraid and asks: where are you from? He asks what the truth is, but receives no answer. Since the Jews persistently demand the death sentence, the wicked agrees to this most wicked demand, convinced by their extraordinary persistence and (desire for) the favor of the elders. Oh, how cruel and shameful was the slander heard about the Blessed Jesus throughout all Jerusalem: Crucify, crucify Him! Who among those who love did not sympathize and cry when, even by chance, they heard furious cries about the cross against their beloved Lord Jesus. Oh, what a sad voice, what a deadly cry filled the ears of the most blessed Virgin Mother then, when the cruel verdict of the people and the rebellious demand of the cross were loudly proclaimed by the lips of all. Groan, reverent servant of Jesus, and draw from the recesses of your heart the spirit of contrition, know with what sorrow the heart of the Mother of God was shaken when her blessed Son was demanded to be shamefully hanged on the cross. The one who hears how angelic voices constantly sing in heaven: Holy, Holy, Holy, now He hears how the cursed tongues of the Jews are heard, exclaiming: take, take him, crucify him! Whom a little earlier on the holiday of Vai the youths praised with joyful voices, now with the change of time they madly demand the same Jesus to be crucified, saying: not this one, but Barabbas. Contemplate this hour carefully, lover of the passion of Christ, and against the evil cries of this age, tightly close the ears of your heart and do not incline your ears to the wicked cries about the crucifixion of Jesus. I tell you, faithful soul: it is more salutary to think about this than to contemplate the stars in the sky. If you truly love Jesus, then you will not pass this place without bitter weeping. When the world is against you and exposes you to many reproaches, then do not resist either with slander or with the means of your opponents, but remember the most patient Jesus and how meekly He endured slander and let the mocking cries pass by with a deaf ear. When even your good deeds will be turned into evil and many will resist your instruction, not wanting to listen to your words, meekly endure all this, remembering the meekness of Christ, whom they insulted with the cry: crucify, crucify Him. Know that on the path of God you will have to endure many opponents, and you will not please God before you are tested for Hero in various sufferings. After all, He himself said to his beloved: blessed will you be when people revile you and mock you for the sake of the Son of Man. Follow the innocent Jesus, who was reviled on earth by evil people, but chosen from all eternity by God and crowned with glory and honor in heaven. Let not passing slander prevail over you, for God has prepared for you a pledge of eternal glory. So, I beg Your eternal love for mankind, most loving Jesus Christ, give my heart the grace of great compassion and inflame it with such a fire of love for You, so that I joyfully endure all slander and accusations with a humble soul, and may I not be afraid of the fears and reproaches of men, but may I desire to imitate You with all my might through the reproach of the cross. Strengthen me against the lusts of the flesh and allow me to crucify destructive impulses with worthy scourging and wash away sins already committed with tears with tears and not willingly agree to any vicious act. Help me in all spiritual despondency and tightness of heart and protect me from the slander of the enemy with the sign of the life-giving Cross, which, although it was prepared for You as a reproach, may it be for healing for me, so that I reverently offer You the sacrifice of praise through the victory of the Holy Cross. Amen. Chapter 14. About the scourging, nakedness and binding to the pillar of Our Lord Jesus Christ I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, most gracious Patron of all who trust in You, for Your shameful nudity in the face of Your mockers, when, by the cruel command of the wicked ruler, the Praetorian soldiers were ordered to take off Your clothes, strip You completely to the flesh, tie You with stiff ropes and severely beat and scourge You with sharp rods. a villain and the worst criminal - to please the angry priests who sought to devour Your soul and with sorrow bring it down to hell. I praise and glorify with the utmost praise, especially for the strongest binding of You to the most rigid pillar, in order to free us from the bonds of our sins and restore us to eternal freedom. I praise and glorify with constant thanksgiving for the cruelest scourging of You, for the severe individual blows and the sharpest cutting of Your most holy and tender body, when the cruel scourges mercilessly struck Your virgin body, tearing it deeply, adding wound to wound and inflicting blow after blow, so that nothing in You remains unaffected, but so that countless sources of precious blood Yours, like the crimson streams of a river, flowed abundantly from many wounds in order to wash us from the old abominations of our sins and our souls, to cleanse us with Your precious blood from all condemnation. Alas, alas, Lord, how great is the rage of the most wicked Jews, how cruel are the hearts of the tormentors, who were not afraid to scourge You, the most beautiful of people, without any reason, but like giants they rebelled against You and did not spare You in anything. Oh, holy Youth, beloved Youth of my Lord, what have You done. worthy of such bitterness? Absolutely nothing. because I, a lost man, became the cause of all this contrition and humiliation of Thy. Woe to you, the multitude of my sins, for the remission of which it was necessary for the Son of God to undergo such cruel torment! Remember the Lord's scourging, O pious soul, redeemed by the crimson blood of Christ, and with a feeling of compassion render to Him the debt of earnest thanksgiving. O you, pious servant of God, living under the strict rite of monasticism, direct the eye of your meditation here more often, for if something cruel happens to you, unpleasant for the flesh, endure it all, and when you think about Jesus it will be easy and bearable for you. When you are subject to punishment for your sins or even sent to correction for your misdeeds, then remember how the most innocent Jesus was stripped of his clothes for you and cruelly scourged, and be ready for a voluntary feat in memory of the passion of the Lord and His atonement for all your sins. Kneel humbly, take off your head covering, take off your clothes, bow your neck and subject your whole body to strict correction and reverently sigh under the blows of self-punishment; for I was born for punishment and my sorrow is always before Your face. Wash me from my wickedness and cleanse me from my sin. I have sinned against You alone and done evil before You, and therefore I justly deserve punishment. It is better to voluntarily submit to temporary punishment now than to be condemned to eternal torment later. Those who now avoid being scourged with Jesus will in the future be excluded from the Kingdom of Christ, as unworthy sons. Oh, sweetest Jesus, who was so cruelly scourged for me, a wicked sinner! Let me, with a sorrowful heart, contemplate all the places of Your wounds and reverently kiss them with fiery love, for I feel that from them emanates for me the fragrance of life and the means of eternal salvation. Light in me the flame of Your boundless love, with which You proved that You loved me when You deigned to endure with the greatest patience so many blows of the scourge for Your condemned servant. Grant Thy gracious help to my weakness in bearing the burden, so that, overwhelmed by intense grief, I may not fall into despondency and not be subjected to excessive despair, but, remembering the unjust scourging of You, be the meekest in all sorrows. Make me a participant in Your patience and, with fatherly scourging, prompt me to correction, so that, humbly scourged, I may become more favorably disposed toward You at the present time and ascend more gloriously with You in the future, where all the saints rejoice in the eternal triumph of patience, surpassing all fear of evil. Amen. Chapter 15. About the exposure, ridicule, crowning and defeat of the head of our Lord Jesus Christ I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, glorious King and brilliant crown of eternal glory, for the many unheard-of ridicule and annoyances to which the wicked tormentors again began to subject You, when You were brought into the judge’s praetorium by unworthy soldiers, where, at a meeting of the entire army, You were vilely stripped of Your clothes and again mockingly dressed in a scarlet robe, so that we, deprived of all virtue, may be clothed with the cover of Your holiness and adorned with Your goodness. I praise and glorify You with the special reverence of my compassionate heart for Your most severe punishment, which You endured with the greatest patience in the crown of thorns of Your sacred head for us, despised worms. Your blessed head, sanctified above all the Nazarenes, was so tightly crushed by sharp thorns that it was most cruelly pierced to the tenderest marrow and from it wide streams of blood flowed down your neck and ears, over your eyes and cheeks, and Your meek face, barely dry from the spitting of the Jews, everything became bloody and ugly. Oh, it is truly a deplorable sight to see the Son of God so shamefully and cruelly crowned, although no one could convict Him of sin. Alas, how cruel is the pack of warriors who were not afraid to pierce such a holy, so beautiful, so noble and venerable head with thorn needles and even dared, under the guise of greeting, to mock the King of the Angels himself, to hit Him and disgrace Him in front of everyone. Oh, meekest Jesus, most loving King, crown of those who hope, strength of those who despair, bliss of those who reign, model of all who follow You - what humiliation are you subjected to for me, how cruelly are you tormented, how many sorrows are you subjected to and how unspeakable punishments do you give yourself up in order to save me from eternal shame and the torment of hell, to cleanse me from lusts wicked and crowned with unfading glory and honor in heaven. I praise and glorify You for the reproachful greeting and false worship given to You, when the perpetrators of cruelty, kneeling before You, gave You cruel slaps in the face, mockingly showed You respect and, mockingly calling You King, shouted with wicked lips, saying: Hail, King of the Jews. Look, mortal man, slave of sin, how much grief and reproach the Only Begotten of the Eternal Father is subjected to for you. Open the ears of your mind and respond to Pilate’s cruel cry with a pious groan and cry. Behold, man, he said: if there are any rudiments of piety in you, then sigh and weep with the Creator of the universe. I praise and bless You, venerable Jesus, for this contemptuous mockery, when in Your right hand, instead of a royal scepter, a fragile cane was given, to intensify Your humiliation - as if You were a mad thief of royal dignity. I praise and extol Thee for the cruelest blows upon Thy blessed head, when the merciless people and the cruelest tormentors, raising their canes high, struck Thy holy head with frequent blows and, spitting on Thee a second time, threw foaming saliva at Thee from their mouths with poisonous tongues. Come out, daughters of Jerusalem, and see King Solomon wearing the crown with which his mother, the Jewish synagogue, crowned him on the day of His suffering. Look how He comes out, with what humiliation and reproach He is brought to the judgment seat of Pilate, in order to present Him all the more humiliatingly before everyone. How sad it is to see all this, truly painful to think about, but reverent love encourages compassion. Here comes the most patient and meek Jesus from the judge’s praetorium, having on His head a crown of thorns and a scarlet robe. Perhaps the rage of the treacherous people will at least move somewhat towards a feeling of compassion at the sight of how excessively He is dishonored and distressed. But alas, alas, the angry crowd became even more furious, and when the ruler exclaimed in front of everyone - behold the man, they shouted even more horribly: take him, take him, crucify him! Hearing all this and deepening within yourself, tremble, be horrified by the extraordinary nature of the sorrow, most devoted friend of Jesus, strike your chest, shed tears and prostrate yourself before the face of the crowned Jesus, who bears the image of a king and yet is plunged into the embarrassment of a most despised servant, and in order to distract you from the search for vain glory and destroy the wound of pride in you, gave Himself over to the most terrible torments. Be ashamed to follow worldly glory, O man of earthly condition, when you see that the most blessed head of the Lord is subjected to such disgrace. Be ashamed under your thorn-crowned Head to be a pampered member, and when the highest greatness is inclined to accept cruelty and reproach, do not covet a pampered life, but rather zealously indulge in the strictest asceticism. Be ashamed, all of you, sons of pride, who strive to raise your heads higher and higher in order to appear more worthy than others, when thereby you become the worst. Be ashamed to proudly enter into the presence of Jesus, scourged and crowned with thorns, you who adorn yourselves with jewels and silks, who clothe your mortal body with gold and silver, who wear beautiful coverings on your heads for show, and who do not look upon the work of your redemption, although you have been redeemed with such cruel torments. Be comforted, you poor, needy and everyone despised in this world, because in your weaknesses and shortcomings you are more like Jesus than the rich man in his wicked ways, clothed in purple and fine linen. And you, humble monk, do not be ashamed to dress in your coarse and patched attire, for special glory to you before God and His angels if, with poor clothes, you are more elegantly clothed in holy goodness. It is a great shame for a monk when he demands clothing made of fine material, although he has renounced the world, died for it, and in all respects doomed himself to poverty forever. Oh, what true and sweet consolation the sad monk receives in his grief, who often in his sad heart reflects on the cruel crown of Jesus. Therefore, as soon as you feel distressed, remember all the thorns Jesus endured, and it will be easier for you to bear it, even if others grieve you to the extreme, or with great pain strike you on the head, or, what is especially hard, torment you with various thorns of slander. It is immeasurably more blessed now to endure with the humiliated Jesus, to bear the crown of thorns with the crowned Jesus, to endure many sorrows, than to subsequently be subjected to hellish torment for a sinful life and, which for the condemned is harsher than any torment, to be forever separated from the most gracious face of the Savior Jesus and the sweetest community of all the blessed. Oh, how joyful and undaunted will he appear before the face of the Eternal King at the last and terrible judgment seat who is now not ashamed to bear the reproach of His reproaches and the torment of bodily suffering. Oh, how pleasing and dear to God is the soul and how fruitful are its reflections when it is inwardly distressed by the sufferings of Jesus, in its heart, sick with His wounds, and because of His death moved by loving sorrow. I grieve for You, good Jesus, suffering and meek, cruelly scourged for me, vilely ridiculed and cruelly crowned, and in order for me to be more contrite, I pray to You for the grace of heartfelt contrition; Having humbly prostrated myself before You, I worship Your venerable Majesty, despised in human nature. With reverent lips, I sincerely beg that You would visually imprint this humiliated image of Your face on my heart and clearly imagine what kind of appearance it had at that hour when, like a disgusting leper, You were rejected by everyone and, crowned with thorns, shamefully brought out into public disgrace. May this saddest image enter into the recesses of my heart and so deeply crush and torment me that all worldly curiosity will disappear from my eyes, all carnal lust will die completely, yet may everything that is bitter and base be sweetened and become pleasant for Your sake. May Your passions overcome evil feelings in me, and may Your gravest sorrows soften my everyday sorrows. May the remembrance of Your sacred crown, reverently and deeply contemplated, be a great consolation for me in the midst of adversity and may it strengthen me against attacks of frivolous wandering. The mind, occupied with the divine and devoted to contrition, is freed from harmful thoughts and protected from the flying arrows of the enemy. Wash me, Lord Jesus, from every stain of self-interest, clothe me with true virtues and give me courage in reproach, so that I may learn to endure meekly when circumstances oppress me, and let me not be indignant if instead of new clothes I am given old ones, or instead of the best ones, the coarsest ones. May I not grumble against those who laugh at me, may I not argue with those who reproach me, but remembering Your crown of thorns, I will calmly endure for my salvation all the torments and reproaches that beset me. Break the cruelty of my heart and with one sharp thorn from Your head pierce it into the very middle, so that all the bad blood of the flesh will pour out from the wound inflicted and may the strong inciter of sacred love for You remain there forever, until I am completely cleansed from the thorns of vices and thistles of temptations and may I be worthy to receive the seeds of virtues with dignity. So, may the land of my heart, infected with the original curse, receive a new blessing from the outpouring of Your holy blood, so that instead of the thorn of envy, a rose of love will grow in me, instead of a nettle of lust, a lily of chastity, instead of a thistle of vanity, a violet of humility, instead of a thistle of obstinacy, a flower of meekness. Amen. Chapter 16. About the unrighteous condemnation of our Lord Jesus Christ to death I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, author of life and model of justice, for unjustly condemning You to death without any guilt, although even a murderer and rebel was unworthily spared. Oh, truly a perverse trial and an ill-fated exchange, when even a great rebellion was ready to occur among the people, and the judge could not appease the cruelty of the Jews, which is why he sat down at the judgment seat and pronounced an unrighteous sentence against You, so that Barabbas the thief would be released alive, although he was guilty of death for a villainous crime, and You, pure from all guilt, would be condemned to the most vile death. Alas, such is the judgment of this world, and how long has justice been trampled upon when the wicked have begun to rule. This is how the Righteous One perishes, and there is no one who would free Him. Oh, horror! The truthful is accused of lying, the pious is scourged by the wicked, the innocent is betrayed instead of the guilty, the thief is preferred to Christ, and Barabbas is released from his bonds instead of Jesus of Nazareth. The lamb is exchanged for the wolf, the saint for the sinner, the best for the worst. The lost man is delivered before the true God: night is preferred to light, the vice of virtue, the death of life, clay to gold, a shard to pearl, vile to the noble. Who, hearing this, will not cry? Who will not be inflamed against the Jews? Who would not reproach the judge? Although he washed his hands, as if making excuses before people, although he was guided by the fear of Caesar, as if forced by the insistence of the Jews, he, however, was not entirely clean of complicity: he knew that out of envy they betrayed Him. It would have been better to lose temporary, honorable power than to condemn an ​​innocent man whom he knew to be righteous; It would be more beneficial to lose the whole world than to sin against God and kill Christ. Oh, how terrible the judgment will be for the wicked and unfaithful on the last day, when the Judge God, now unjustly condemned, will appear in the glory of his majesty! Then all the faithful and pious will rejoice - those who now deeply grieve over the unrighteous condemnation of Jesus Christ will then rejoice and be glad; those who now patiently bear the burdens of this world will receive retribution for unrighteousness. Oh, sweetest and most merciful Lord, who was unjustly condemned by the ruler Pilate and condemned to the shame of the cross, grant me to humbly endure the condemnation pronounced against me, not to condemn my superior unreasonably and generally not to revile anyone who accuses me with reproachful words, but following Your example of patience, to maintain the virtue of silence similar to Yours, not to consider humiliation from the strongest as painful, but to leave everything to You. judgment, for a servant is not greater than his master. Although He who is the Judge of all was unjustly judged, You did not resist the violence of your enemies, although You were not guilty of everything; how much more appropriate is it for me to endure and undergo monastic punishment, because I often sin in many ways! Help me, most gracious Jesus, to cheerfully bear the yoke of submission and the vine of correction, and in all adversities to remember Your sorrows. Amen. Chapter 17. About the carrying of the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ and about His procession to the place of Golgotha I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the true vine, the path of life, our salvation, for Your most difficult and shameful bearing of the cross before all the people, which You humbly deigned to bear with the greatest patience, laying it upon yourself for the redemption of the entire human race, so that the lost sheep, long sought and diligently found, could be brought on your own shoulders to the gates of heaven. I praise and glorify You, glorious Standard-Bearer of the Christian army, for Your humiliating and shameful removal, when with the heavy wood of the cross laid upon You, You were shamefully led away for the famous city, in which You previously performed many signs and teachings with glory, and now with the people rising up against You in cruel madness, as an accomplice of thieves and the leader of robbers, You you are counted among the worst people and sentenced to hang on the highest tree. I praise and glorify You, most glorious Jesus, for this cruel and most tedious toil and most painful procession You have undertaken for us - for all the steps of Your feet imprinted on the earth, for the extraordinary fatigue of Your body, weakened by previous torments, for the difficult descent and ascent along an indirect path with the burden of the cross, for hasty persistence and shameless the treatment of You by vile tormentors, who forced You to go faster and sternly urged You, roughly pushed You back and strongly pulled You forward, repeatedly pushing back and forth, when, extremely depressed and bent, You slowed down Your path, for you were forced to carry an unbearable burden to the place of crucifixion. Alas, alas, You have never made such a procession, You have never walked such a harsh path, You have never worn such a painful yoke. I praise and exalt You for this greatest reproach from the wicked people who led, tortured and insulted You - for the many shameful speeches uttered about You, for the criminal slander against Your innocence, falsely spewed along the way, for the impudent rejoicing of the enemies, who greatly rejoiced at Your cruel death and Your shameful hanging. Among so many evils that surrounded You from everywhere, You walked like a blameless Lamb led to the slaughter, thinking about our salvation, grieving over the blindness of the Jews and mourning the malice of Your enemies. I praise and bless You with the most reverent feeling of my heart for the abundant tears of Your loved ones, shed out of compassion for You, for the reverent community of merciful women who mourned You with bitterness when they, with lowered gazes, little by little followed You. You are their pitiful cry; turning to them, he forbade them, saying: “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your sons; for if they do this to a green tree, what will happen to a dry tree?” Oh, what was the cry of all your loved ones then! How great were the sobs of the holy women, who, struck by an extraordinary feeling of compassion, looked at You, although they could not approach You or free You from the bonds of death. But what boundless sorrow seized and struck the mother’s womb of the Virgin Mary when she saw how her only beloved Son was led to death with the tree of the cross on his shoulder! Oh, with what great willingness would Your blessed parent, the most pious Virgin Mary, herself bear the heaviest burden of the cross in Your place, and, if it were possible, how willingly would she die for You, if she knew that it was pleasing to You! But if She could not and did not have the right to do this physically, then she completely survived in spirit; for the more she loved, the more she compassionated, the more she suffered, and truly bore the cross with You. None of those who love You have experienced Your sorrow as deeply as the loving soul of Your beloved Virgin Mother, with her most excellent love for mankind. There is no doubt that Your most zealous follower Mary Magdalene, already almost exhausted by the bitterness of tears, would also with loving joy willingly, together with the Virgin Mother, take up Your cross and quickly bear it in Your place. Your inner sorrow was aggravated by various other circumstances, in addition to those that were depressing from the outside, namely the dispersion and great fear of the disciples, the grave confusion of many and the unbelief of those who did not hope for Your resurrection, for with the exception of the one, Glorious Virgin, the faith of others wavered or seemed to dry up. Oh, pious disciple of Christ, hasten and you too become a bearer of the mystical cross, try to follow in the footsteps of your Redeemer if you want to achieve eternal joys. Do not be afraid of the short labor of repentance, do not diminish the severity of the feat, but consider moderate and easy what holy obedience requires. If it seems difficult to you to obey the vow in everything, then remember how Christ obeyed the most severe commands for you, even to the point of death on the most shameful cross. Therefore, observe the strict rule of the Fathers, do not abandon the path that leads to the Kingdom, avoid the easier lot, which usually leads the lazy to a dark end. Truly you bore the holy cross when you entered monasticism, and you tied yourself even more strongly to the cross when you made a vow: living holy and correctly according to religion is the same as imitating the crucifixion. You bear the cross joyfully if you are zealous in service; if you bear it reluctantly and with murmuring, then you will not receive the glory of Jesus, but the punishment of the wicked thief. If you endure everything diligently and joyfully, then you defeat the devil. Do not be afraid of the severity of obedience, do not count the length of days: the love of Christ and the sweetness of a good life will lighten the burden of your labors; you have a predecessor in harsh life and a leader of exemplary goodness - Jesus, the Son of God, the great patron of the cross, who fully experienced the full weight of the cross. Follow the Savior along the path of the cross, never neglecting religion and never weakening the vow of a zealous monk, and you will be saved forever. If you wanted to enjoy the pleasures of this age or enjoy your own affairs and desires, then you had to remain in this world; now, having followed Christ along the path of religion, firmly keep the vow that you made; pray to Jesus. may he help you: whoever helped you to begin good before, will help you to finish it happily. O most beloved Jesus, leader of the kings of the earth, ruler of the angels, glorious standard-bearer of all Christians, who bore His cross on His own shoulders in the face of the mad Jews for the salvation and example of your servants. Grant me, in my laziness, to follow You in this Procession and do not reject me to the appointed limit of death, but lead my wandering soul from the body of sin to Mount Golgotha, the mountain of myrrh and incense, where You were crucified and died for me, so that I may abide there with You under the cross, under the cover of the banner of the cross. Let me make a beginning with new zeal and not follow the frivolity of the indifferent, but always with the eyes of my heart contemplate Your crusader image and avoid all curiosity of the fickle. If You are the leader along the narrow path and the companion of my wanderings, a helper in various circumstances and vicissitudes, a comforter in adversity, a co-worker in many labors undertaken for the sake of Your name, then help me to bear the burden even in the heat of the day, so that I may observe the rules of piety at all hours and in all sacred exercises. Let me also, in times of misfortune and misfortune, especially remember Your heaviest weariness under the burden of the cross, for the small burden that I bear will become completely insignificant if we remember the greatness of Your heavy cross. So, I will willingly and joyfully bear the yoke of the religion I have accepted, always trusting in Your gracious help, for if for a short time You deigned to burden me to enhance the merits of my humility, then later You will help at the appropriate time and in the appropriate manner. By Your mercy, teach me to break my own will, to be content with little and not to seek freedom to wander. Let my hands be busy, let my heart meditate on the Holy Scriptures; May all my members serve You, may all my feelings be bound by strict rules, and may I count my insignificance among the true crusaders. Drive far away from me worldly thoughts, and remove all lust of the flesh, so that I do not get carried away with external affairs, do not enjoy empty fables, but strive for inner self-deepening, indulging in secret contrition, and constantly mourning the cries for various crimes and negligence, so that I may fill in what is lacking for the perfection of virtue, follow the path of Your contemplatives who know how to to rise with the mind above everything temporary. I will mentally and jealously remember Your cross, lovingly borne for me, so that in a similar way I may come to the love of the cross and daily surrender to You in complete obedience, and for so long I will bear the burden placed on me and will never boldly resist it until I reach the place of longed-for peace and salvation. Amen. Chapter 18. About the naked crucifixion and long hanging on the high cross of our Lord Jesus Christ I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, gracious Creator of man and restorer of his corrupted nature, for the shameful nakedness of You before the tree of the cross, where in the sight of all the people, in the face of the blasphemous robbers prepared for execution, You were publicly exposed, and shamefully naked, vilely deprived of all Your clothes, given as booty, You stood there with great confusion and trembling. Girdled only with a narrow linen and crowned with a crown of thorns instead of a diadem, You were made a disgrace and reproach to everyone; not using anything from this world, you, as an exile and wanderer, even as the poorest of all the poor, were deprived of all human consolation. Just as the first Adam, settled in paradise before his fall, walked naked in freedom, so now You, in a similar form, ascend crosswise to restore the lost paradise, from which he was expelled for sin and was deprived of it for a long time, in order to again restore to him his lost innocence, clothe him in the robe of virtue and make him again worthy of eternal life; For this purpose You deigned to be stripped of Your clothes, to be filled with sorrows and reproaches, and finally oppressed Your bitterest self with death. I praise and glorify You, the most ardent zealot of our salvation, for Your most cruel prostration on the hardest tree of the cross, on which You were mercilessly laid for the most acute awakening of Your hands and feet and driving in huge nails, the sound of which could be heard from afar and struck the hearts of the spectators to tears. Alas, alas, You were nailed so tightly to the cross that from the ruptured veins of your body, from its four extremities, abundant streams of Your precious blood flowed; It was so tightly stretched in length and width, like skin stretched on a tympanum, that all the joints of Your members separated, and all Your bones could be clearly counted. Thus You allowed the wicked to pierce Your hands, so that the grave debt of Adam, who stretched out his sinful hands to the forbidden tree, could be extinguished by Your sacred hands nailed to the cross, and with pious blood wash away the stain of ancient crime. I praise and glorify You for lifting You onto a high cross and hanging for a long time on a tree, greatly despised and cursed by all Jews then, but now blessed by all Christians with the greatest honor above all the trees of the forest. You hung on it for three hours or more for our salvation, performing great and wonderful mysteries. cross, which had to bring the greatest benefits to the whole world. You were lifted up from the earth, so that the pious hearts of believers would lift up grief to You, so that they would not indulge in base pleasures, in order to soften the loving hearts of those reverent for compassion for You and more strongly inflame their zeal with the image of the cross, in order to powerfully and clearly triumph over the forces of the air, to humbly plead for criminals and to give complete remission to all truly repentant, so that everything that is in heaven and on earth, through Your death with love pacify and restore completely. Behold now the mountain, most faithful servant of Jesus, and with a sorrowful heart and sad face contemplate God and your Redeemer hanging on the high shoulders of the cross. Here your beloved puts Himself before you naked for contemplation, stands with nailed feet, awaits your approach, desires your free arrival, stretches out His most loving arms, shows open wounds, bows its head to kiss, graciously wanting to accept you and forgive all your sins. Approach the cross fearlessly, touch the image of the cross with love, embrace passionately, hold tightly and reverently kiss, prostrate here, lie down here, lean to the holy ground, do not retreat from the cross in order to be worthy of receiving even a single drop of flowing blood, or to hear the words of someone speaking from the cross, or to be present at a painful death. The same land that received the dying Jesus will also receive you, and where Jesus was buried, there may your resting place be, so that with whom you are one in spirit, let the tomb of the body be one. Render to Him the debt of mourning, enter into the recesses of your heart, so that the Crucified One will find you pious and mourning, a grateful disciple, reverent, self-absorbed and lovingly taking part in His wounds, so that the whole world may be crucified for you and you for the world, may Christ alone be life for you, and may dying with Him be your greatest gain. Do not boast in anything except the cross of your Lord Jesus Christ, do not trust in your own merits, because in the cross of Jesus lies all your salvation and redemption, and in it you must completely place all your hope: through it you are given remission of sins, from it the riches of merit are poured out, through it rewards are given to the righteous and rewards for labors are given according to the merits of individuals. Learn from the example of the Crucified One to throw off earthly burdens and remove your heart from everything harmful to inner freedom, move away from all passions and lusts, and abide in the pure nakedness of truth, in order to simply and sincerely imitate the naked Crucified One through contempt of yourself and every transitory substance and be able and worthy to ascend to the cross. Enduring human contempt and reproach for the sake of the fiery love of the suffering Savior, learn to rejoice in your humiliation; mourn the evil deed of another and pray that all will improve for the better. Consider yourself worthy of contempt, wish salvation for your enemies, do not place much hope in people, for there are few who are loyal in times of trouble and few are constant friends. Let this not be surprising to you and do not be upset by it: Christ himself knew how few friends are and how many enemies are. He always did good, but received great ingratitude. Trust in the crucified Leader and good Ruler, remain with Him on the cross even in times of adversity, and you will receive grace and victory over all those who oppress you. Prepare a place for Him and open the way of God’s grace with humility and reverent contrition, so that you can receive and taste the consoling sweetness from the sufferings and wounds of Jesus. How sweet it is to endure reproach and contempt for His holy name! Love to be alone with yourself, avoid objects of entertainment, seek consolation in the cross, resist sensuality, beware of temptations, do not indulge in frivolity, remain silent about what does not concern you, and try diligently to preserve your inner goodness, for it is not fitting for a person devoted to suffering to amuse himself with laughter, and it is wicked to act frivolously. The suffering of the Crucified One teaches us all this, and blessed is the one who bases his daily exercise on it: he will prosper well before his fellow brothers, will taste the fruit of the tree and will always rejoice. Look, Most Holy Father, into the face of Your Christ, hanging on the cross for me; be merciful to me, a sinner, burdened with many chains of sins, for the sake of the glorious merits of Your Only Begotten, nailed with nails and doused in crimson blood. He was wounded to cleanse my iniquities, He will satisfy You for everything, He will answer You for me. I present Him as a pledge, I choose Him as a defender, my intercessor, I take Him as defendant for my guilt: He will cancel all condemnation, He, the blessed, sacred fruit of a girl’s womb, will voluntarily give satisfaction for every sin of mine. You, most merciful Father, deign to listen to him with wonderful goodness and special favor - my eternal salvation, to everlasting hope and consolation, beneficial even now at the present time, and necessary even after death. O good and gracious Jesus, beloved Son of God, who, at the command of the Father, deigned to take on the nature of our flesh without the stain of sin and to lift it up on the altar of the cross for the salvation of the world, have pity on me, Thy servant, asking for forgiveness and grace: forgive me all my sins, recent and old, committed against You in knowledge or ignorance, according to Your goodness and infinite merit Your suffering. Your merits surpass the wickedness of all people, and the power of Your propitiation is greater than any of my wickedness, no matter how much I commit it. Therefore, I run to You under the cover of the cross, trusting in the most abundant mercy; I strive for You from the depths of my heart, seeking a means for my salvation. I worship the sign of the holy cross, I honor the banner of the cross, I kiss the mark of the cross, I pray to the cross. Hear me, the unfortunate one, accept Your fugitive, heal the broken-hearted, justify the sinner; I will not leave You and will not depart from You until I receive grace. I beg You, Lord Jesus, crucify me, bare my heart from all worldly things, lift me up with Your hands to the height of the cross, so that I may follow You wherever You go, I want to be with You poor and naked, as if an exile in this world and an unknown person, close and dear to You and alien to everything earthly. Bind my flesh with Thy fear, so that I may not incline to lust; Pierce my hands, so that I may not remain slothful; Pierce my feet, so that I may be more stable and more firmly able to bear labors and sorrows. May Your nails pass through the very middle of my heart, and may they pierce me with a saving wound, so that with great contrition I will be shed in tears and, out of a feeling of love, renounce myself. Cause me sorrow, increase my reverence, and may nothing be sweeter to me, may nothing abide in my heart more firmly than You, Jesus Christ, crucified. Amen. Chapter 19. About the five wounds of our Lord Jesus Christ and the outpouring of His precious blood I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the most gracious author of our salvation, the generous giver of forgiveness and the most patient bearer of human wickedness, for all the sorrows and individual blows, as well as the bloody wounds that were cruelly inflicted on Your noblest and most tender body, so that from the sole of your foot to the top of your head there was no place for You free from torment and torment, but everywhere or a flaring bruise, or a painful wound, or purple blood flowing quickly throughout the body. I praise and glorify You with the most worthy reverence, with the deepest obedience of mind, for the most abundant outpouring of Your most precious blood from Your five sacred wounds and from all large and small wounds, pouring out life-giving moisture more precious than any balm, for the most complete healing of my sins. Oh, meek Jesus, how much You were tormented by cruel servants, we were so perforated that all the strength of Your body was exhausted, and with the veins wide open, not a small drop of blood remained in You, but how much of this sacred moisture was contained within You, living and dead, You gave it all for the reverent use of our souls and as a guarantee of our salvation. These five precious wounds are glorious signs of the highest love, full of Divine goodness: in them the sinner receives firm support and does not despair even with a guilty conscience. In them is the medicine of life, the richness of grace, the fullness of condescension, the generosity of forgiveness, the door of the promised glory. Whatever crimes I have committed, no matter how much I have indulged in the lusts of the flesh, I wash, cleanse and correct all this in these five sources. I praise and glorify You, Christ, the only and beloved Bridegroom of the holy Church, for Your invaluable love for mankind, by which You deigned to redeem my soul with the blood of Your covenant from the bonds of unholy sin, to cleanse me from all sins, to endow and adorn me with the merits of Your virtues, so that it could worthily combine and unite with You and now become holy by grace, after in your kingdom your radiance is blessed in glory. Listen diligently, faithful soul, see how great and glorious He redeems You, who created You by gracious goodness, in His image and likeness; not with corruptible things, not with silver and not with gold, you were redeemed from original guilt and from many of the most committed sins that you committed voluntarily, intentionally and wickedly, but with the precious blood of the immaculate Lamb Jesus Christ, who not only shed His blood on the cross for your cleansing, but also deigned to leave it for you even to drink in the cup, consumed with true reverence in the sacrament of communion, in which The everyday sins of this world are forgiven and resolved. Alas, how severe punishment does he deserve who will neglect the blood of the covenant of faith and will not give due thanksgiving for the wounds of the Crucified One. Try to thank the Benefactor who loved you so much, so generously, with at least a short prayer or reverent meditation at some hour of the day or night. Many believers, inflamed by the fire of His love, with pious thirst shed their blood for Hero; even more, for the cup of blood, humbly shed tears of bitter contrition, sharing in His suffering with severe feats of repentance. From their example, learn to crucify your flesh with its vices and lusts, courageously resist temptations, bear the yoke of voluntary obedience even to death, sacrifice a contrite spirit for the sacraments of blood on the altar of the heart to the Redeemer Christ, in constant meditation remember the benefits of Christ and in the deep wounds of Jesus, as in the gorges of a rock, seek refuge from the face of the enemy and persecutor. Help me, most merciful Jesus, in every need and overwhelming struggle. Stretch out Your hands over me and with Your right hand protect me always; Give me reverence in my heart, truth in my lips, virtue in my deeds. Cleanse me from all impurity and vices, heal my wounds with Your precious blood. May there remain in me nothing dark, nothing unholy, nothing contagious, but may Your blood, shed abundantly, cleanse me from all guilt and sanctify me in everything, so that my whole spirit and soul may appear pure before You, my Creator, at the coming of the final judgment, for for their redemption You suffered such severe torments and squandered the wealth of an invaluable treasure. Amen. Chapter 20. About Jesus' prayer for enemies 26 I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, source of piety and goodness, for Your most perfect prayer; For Your enemies and for those who crucified You, You prayed with outstretched hands on the cross, asking for their forgiveness and graciously excusing their crime, saying: Father, let them go, for they do not know what they are doing. This is the word of true sweetness and grace, which is sufficient to soften the stiff-necked nature of every sinner and turn him to repentance. Oh, sweetest Jesus, how inclined You are not to admit (guilt), how easy it is to please You, how gracious You are to regret! Oh, how great is the riches of Your mercy, O Lord, for all those who love You. when You showed Yourself so gracious even to furious enemies. Even while hanging on a high cross, You did not burn with indignation at Your crucifiers for revenge on Your tormentors, and did not pray for the earth to swallow them up alive or for fire from heaven to burn the wicked at that moment, but poured out the sweetest word of love for mankind, like life-giving heavenly dew, on Your cruelest enemies, saying: Father, let them go. In this, Your special love for mankind was revealed with invincible meekness, which could not be overcome or forced to stop praying. They shouted: crucify, crucify Him, and You say: Father, let them go. They drove in the sharpest nails, and You excuse their most vile crimes, saying: They don’t know what they are doing. Oh, Your most amazing goodness, Christ. But, alas, what is the perversion of a stubborn people who are not touched even by such philanthropic words. Therefore, You suffered more for their blind wickedness than for your own offense, and You were more depressed by such atrocities than by the pain of all the wounds inflicted on You. They tried to do the most wicked thing they could, and You rewarded them with the most savior thing you could show. Therefore, the greatest best goodness was to pray for such villains, so that they would turn from their crimes and recognize You as the true Son of God, who came in the flesh. Thus the memorable word of the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled, which was truly proclaimed about You: He bore the sin of many and became an Intercessor for the criminals (Is. 53:12). Which sinner will despair of forgiveness when even those who crucified the generous Giver of forgiveness experienced such goodness? Do not despair, my soul. Although you are guilty of many crimes, although you are mired in various passions and are subject to many temptations, however, unfortunate one, you still have the hope of life, the compassion of goodness is open to you, as witnessed by the cross, nails, spear and all the bloody wounds of Jesus. Having entered the deep wounds of the Crucified One, kiss the places of the wounds, embrace the tree of life with loving hands, hold up the surest banner of your salvation - Jesus, hanging on the cross, worship Him with a reverent heart, sincerely surrender to Him and rely entirely on Hero; for if He was so merciful to His enemies, then He will be even more merciful to you, who grieve over your sins. But if you want to be heard as quickly as possible, if you want to receive the grace of the Redeemer and be rewarded with complete mercy, you too, from the bottom of your heart, forgive your brother his sins against you; Do not impute to him a little, so that God does not impute to you a lot, and pray for his salvation as for your own. By doing this, you will find grace and become a son of the Most High, imitating Jesus, who commands us to love our enemies and pray for those who offend us. Moreover, you will gain great boldness at the end of your life if, having suffered unjustly, you learn to forgive all insults and pour out reverent prayer for your debtors. This sacred prayer for their enemies pleased the apostles, crowned the martyrs with glory, ennobled the confessors, adorned the virgins, and made all the saints like Christ and worthy of eternal life. I pray to You, most merciful Lord Jesus, who, out of a sense of love for mankind, deigned to pray for His enemies, deign to ask the Father with similar fiery love for mankind for me, that He may completely blot out all my sins and mercifully absolve me from the punishments that I deserve for them. Let me perceive good and firm trust in Your goodness, so that I will not fall into despair because of the greatness of my sins, but with a believing mind I will recognize that You came into the world to save sinners and was pleased to suffer for the wicked, to be crucified and to die. May Your selfless prayer poured out for my enemies on the cross be useful for my salvation, and give me the great hope of forgiveness, so that I do not at all value what has been done through my merits, but may be worthy to receive it through Your most holy intercession. Let me run freely and safely under the shadow of Your wings and, with the invincible sign of the Holy Cross, protect myself from all fear of the primordial enemy. Extend, I pray to You, the widest possible embrace of Your hands over me during my refuge under Your cross, so that my poor and sorrowing soul does not fear or despair, no matter at what hour it is recalled from this world, and accept me, an unfortunate sinner, who in everything trusts not in his own works, but in Your mercy. Amen. Chapter 25. 27 About the sorrowful compassion of the Blessed Mother and about the mutual entrustment of blessed Mary and Saint John I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, all those who grieve, the Comforter, for Your sorrowful gaze, with which You mercifully looked at Your most beloved Mother, who stood at the cross and was struck by the deepest sorrow. You alone knew the greatness of her sorrow, penetrating into the innermost recesses of her heart. You had no one on earth more beloved than Your Virgin Mother, and she loved no one more than You, God, her Son, whom, although born of her, she recognized as the Lord of all and her Creator. Seeing now hanging on the cross the One Whom she most loved, she remained more in You than in herself, and as if completely driven out of herself, and she herself seemed to hang in spirit, crucified with You, although physically she stood below the cross with tears. I praise and glorify You for Your extraordinary compassion with which You then filially sympathized with Your most sorrowful Mother, who truly considered all Your sorrows to be hers and mourned all Your wounds as if she were her own, and was even more tormented by new torments, the more with maternal eyes she saw the blood on Your body or when she heard Your voice addressed to her from the cross. I praise and glorify You for Your most gracious speech, with which You addressed Your sorrowful Mother in a short word, entrusting her to Your beloved disciple John, as your most faithful patron, and, binding the virgin to the Virgin with the indestructible bonds of love for mankind, said: Behold Your son; then to the student: behold your Mother. Oh, the happy combination and blessed gift that combined and sanctified virgin chastity. In these words You showed a sense of caring and respect for Your pious Mother, for whose consolation You gave a virgin disciple and in your place placed, as it were, another son who corresponded to her pure life and would wisely take care of her needs. Out of Your filial care, You arranged it so that the holy and immaculate Virgin Mother was not deprived of faithful service, so that she would not be left alone in the world and not seem alien among the Jews when she was deprived of Your sweetest presence. May it be pleasing to You, most blessed Mother of God Mary, this holy order of Your Son and this good delegation. Accept with gratitude the disciple whom your Son Jesus has appointed for you. This is John the Apostle, a virgin, chosen and most beloved among others, meek in disposition and gracious in speech, honorable in face, modest in movement, sober in life, humble in dress, inclined to obedience and ready to obey. This is the most beloved disciple, known to you by family, bright in glory, pious in mind, virgin in body, pleasing to God, amiable to all, worthy of Your community in everything, Mother of God. I know that it was always pleasing to You and was pleasing to eat everything that was pleasing to Your Son; therefore, especially desire what He commanded, who in all his deeds sought not his own will, but the glory of the Father. Therefore, I have no doubt that it will be pleasing to you that at the hour of His departure He left you John in His place. Accept you too, Saint John, the desired treasure entrusted to you; accept the venerable Mother of Jesus, the Queen of Heaven, the Lady of the world, your beloved aunt, your mother’s sister - the Blessed Virgin. Hitherto, the blessed Virgin Mary was called your aunt by right of the flesh, but now, by a more sacred rite, by Divine right she will be called your Mother - by the special grace given to you. And you, who previously in the flesh were called the son of Zebedee, the brother of James the Elder and a relative of the Lord the Savior, later became a disciple of Jesus, now you will be called by a new name - an adopted son, and now with filial love you will serve her in everything. Do what Christ commands, fulfill the word of the sacred commission, and you will be loved by everyone and revered by the whole world. Blessed John did as Jesus told him on the cross; because from that hour the disciple took her to him, took care of her, served diligently, and, like his own mother, reverently obeyed and loved her from the heart. Rejoice and be glad, most blessed John, about the pledge entrusted to you: the most precious thing that Christ had in the world, He entrusted to you with confidence; He enriched you greatly when he left you as an inheritance the Most Holy Mary, whom even the holy angels cannot adequately praise. Christ entrusted the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to Saint Peter, and he made you the guardian of his Mother. The Most Holy Mary was once betrothed to Saint Joseph, but now she is entrusted to you a second time. The angel said to him: Do not be afraid to accept Mary your wife; The Lord of the angels says to you: here is your Mother. Just as Joseph was not absent from the Virgin at the birth of the Son, so you are not absent from the Mother during the suffering of Christ and even for a long time after His ascension to heaven. If the most blessed John the Baptist had lived, then by right of kinship and by the feat of chastity, it seems to me, he would have been a very suitable minister and a glorious patron; but since Joseph was no longer there (nothing is said about him, whether he was alive then or died), John was killed in chains long ago, Jesus was dying and will soon be taken from the eyes of the Mother, then you replace for her all these persons dear to her and be in the place of Christ as a pledge of the son taken from her, entrusted by the Lord Jesus, which will be very pleasing to your brother James and all the other apostles and none of your friends will envy you, but every godly person will sincerely rejoice in you. You have earned this great reward by the great wealth of your virtues, namely by complete renunciation of the world, love of Jesus, kindness of morals, virgin chastity, peace of mind, freedom of soul, purity of conscience and piety of your life. Accept the Mother of Christ into your care and you will receive great grace: you will receive many and high benefits from her, for you will be edified by her words, learn from her examples, find help for yourself in her prayers, be touched by exhortations, be exalted with love for mankind, be inflamed with reverence, be lifted up by contemplation, be filled with joy, be overwhelmed with joy and enjoy heavenly gifts. From her lips you will hear divine secrets, you will comprehend the incomprehensible, you will see the miraculous, you will understand the inexpressible; in her presence you will become more chaste, you will become purer, you will be holier, and you will forever remain more pious. Her look is modesty, her speech is prudence, her action is justice, her reading is Jesus, her meditation is Christ, her contemplation is God. The beauty of her face shines like light, her venerable face inspires respect in everyone; her grace purifies every beholder, her speech destroys all evil, and in general such is the dignity of the Most Holy Mary that in her purity and beauty she surpasses all the saints, and you are given to her as a guardian by the Most High King of heaven. Therefore, render diligent service to her, give honor, zealously take care of her, now standing at the cross, stay close to the Blessed Virgin, support her with your hands, embrace the Most Holy Mary, support the despondent, comfort the crying, cry even with the crying, sigh with the sighing, walk with the one walking, stand with the standing, sit with the sitting, do not leave mourner, do the work of mercy and then prepare for the burial of the dying Jesus; take His Mother with you to the burial place, take him back to the city, bring him into the house; comfort the comforter of all the inconsolable, be a guardian angel, although the last one is more worthy of giving comfort than you. During his spiritual anguish, Christ was consoled by an angel; although He was not in need, He nevertheless desired a visit from one who was lower than Him, and did not reject the comforter. Here, most beloved John, what kind of obedience are you called to, this is what kind of Virgin is entrusted to you and what kind of Mother is entrusted to your care! Therefore, I humbly ask you, earnestly pray for me, a sinner, so that I too may be inflamed with the love of Christ and may not turn out to be careless of the praise of the Blessed Virgin and insensitive to her sorrow. Chapter 26. About the high virtues of the Blessed Virgin and about her sorrow and tears I bless, praise and glorify You, Most Holy Theotokos Virgin Mary, for all the blessings and gifts abundantly given to you by God, for the countless virtues and the greatest grace-filled advantages with which you gloriously shone on earth before all the saints, in order to become worthy of the Mother of God, to carry in your womb the Word of God incarnate from you and with blessed hands to lift, dress and carry It. I bless, praise and glorify you, most glorious Mother of God and humble servant of God, for all your loving services and for all the necessary care shown to Christ, your Son according to the flesh; for all the persecutions, labors and hardships meekly endured with Him. I bless, praise and glorify you, beloved Mary, Mother and daughter of the Eternal King, for your sweet conversations, which you often had with the sweetest Jesus; for the divine speeches from His lips, which she listened to wisely and carefully preserved in her immaculate bosom and remembered sweetly in her heart; for the sublime consolations that you often received from Hero, for your great joys and divine rejoicings, which I long and zealously sought and which in His presence, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, I experienced. I bless, praise and magnify you, my most venerable Lady, Most Holy Mary, for your purest and most holy life before God, most glorious before the angels, lived for a long time in great poverty and in silence with Jesus, experienced by various adversities and misfortunes, left to all the faithful in Christ as an example of pious imitation and until the end of centuries became a model for the Universal Church. I bless, praise and glorify you, most blessed and pious Mother of God, Most Holy Mary, for all your pious exercises and holy meditations in the Law of God, performed day and night, for the most ardent prayers, fasts and tears shed before God with great zeal for the conversion of sinners and for the strengthening of the righteous; for your deep compassion for the poor and weak, the tempted and heavily burdened; for your constant concern for the salvation of the human race, redeemed by the bitter death of your Son. Although you loved your Only Begotten Son with inexpressible love, you did not dissuade Him from ascending to the terrible cross, but you, together with your Son, completely subordinated yourself to the Divine command. Therefore, in all His sufferings, you greatly sympathized with Him and even to the shameful cross, you fearlessly followed the walking Jesus, not paying attention to the flight of the disciples and not fearing the rage of the Jews, ready to suffer death with Him rather than leave the Son in such a disaster. I bless, praise and exalt you, most gracious and most loving Mother of God, most blessed Mary, for your firmness, strong faith and perfect love for mankind; when all the apostles fled from fear, and only a few fearfully followed, you alone with the greatest constancy retained the unquenchable flame of faith during the suffering of Your Son, not at all doubting His future resurrection after three days of death, as was clearly predicted by His own lips; when all those close to Jesus were scattered, you, most sorrowful Mother, together with other humble women, went to the place of Golgotha, passing among the furious cries of the people, in order to quickly approach the place of the crucifixion of the Son and still see Him alive in the flesh and, before dying to Him, receive from Hero the word of pious delegation. I bless, praise and gloriously magnify You, Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin Mary, for Your mournful standing at the cross of Jesus, where for a long time, tired and sad, You stood, according to the prophetic sentence of Simeon, pierced by the sword of sorrow; for the many tears that you shed abundantly, for the greatest devotion and irresistible affection that you showed to your Son in extreme need; for the grave contrition of your heart, which you felt especially strongly at the sight of His martyrdom; for your deplorable appearance when you saw Him hanging dead in front of you; for your pious embrace with which you accepted Him from the cross into your motherly arms and laid Him sobbing in your bosom; for your sad departure to the place of burial, when with sorrow you followed those carrying His holy body, seeing how they laid Him in a tomb and covered Him with a heavy stone; for her mournful return from the monument and entry into the dwelling, where, with many faithful gathered there, she again, with new tears, repeatedly mourned the completed death of your beloved Son and turned the eyes of everyone to herself with compassion. Have compassion, my soul, for the sorrowful Virgin, for the weeping Mary, for the grieved Mary; if you love the Most Holy Mary, then sympathize with her in such sorrows, and she will help you in your sorrows. Here the pious mother mourns her only Son, Mary of Cleopas mourns her dearest nephew, Mary Magdalene mourns the doctor for her salvation, John mourns the sweetest Teacher, all the apostles mourn the Lord taken from them. Who wouldn't cry when so many are crying? Truly great was the mourning in Jerusalem at that time; Stay there, at least for a little while, and learn to cry from the Most Holy Mother of the Virgin, whose bitter tears can move you to the depths of your soul. Here at the cross now stands, ulcerated with grievous wounds, who only recently before was filled with heavenly joys; the one who previously delighted in the angelic speeches is now depressed by the cries of the Jews; now she is clothed in a veil of sorrow, who was formerly glorified by the holy kings; She who previously shone with a bright face is now bathed in the crimson blood of her Son. She sees hanging among the robbers the One whom she had often seen performing many signs among the people; like a leper, disfigured by wounds, she sees Him, about whom she knew that He gave cleansing to many lepers; finds Him subject to countless sorrows, who drove away all burdens from the weak; contemplates the One embraced by death, who returned the deceased Lazarus to the state of life: all joy for her turned into sadness and sweetness into grief. This is how many storms of evil surround the bright star of the sea, but are not overcome by the storm of human wickedness. Having fixed her thoughts on God, she stands at the cross, maintaining firmness, having patience, showing devotion, showing love, not being afraid of threats of death and not avoiding the reproaches of those who slander; She meekly and calmly resembles her humble Son, does not answer anything to her most furious enemies, she does not utter any offensive words and does not show any indignant movements, but utters only the deepest groans, weeps bitterly, grieves heavily, sincerely sympathizes, and is deeply torn; He is not angry with the crucifiers, but prays for the evildoers, grieves for the mockers and groans for the blasphemers of Christ. So the Mother of Jesus stood at the cross, shedding tears, giving consolation to all the distressed with her meek example of patience. Oh, all of you who walk the path of Golgotha, look at the sorrowful standing of the Most Holy Mary, stand on the right side of the cross and look at the Christ-bearing Mary, does anyone else have a sorrow similar to her sorrow; Is there such a mother in the world who would sympathize with her son with such love? For while she was tormented for all the members of His body, she herself suffered with him in her soul and endured as much torment as the sight of her Son’s bloody sores. Try, O pious soul, to experience all this with your heart. Be meek and strong when the time of grief comes, do not lose heart and do not despair if you are deprived of what you love most, or denied what you consider necessary for yourself: Jesus’s dearest friends are often tested with the greatest sorrows. After all, if God did not spare His own Son, but gave Him over to the most severe torments for all of us, then why should you seek joy here? If the most holy Christ did not seek them, being obedient and ready even for the highest shame and torment, will you really be afraid of labor and sorrow, and not rather, out of love for the Crucified One, accept all sorts of hardships and difficulties? If He allowed even His Holiness Mother to experience so many sorrows, if He allowed Her to often be upset and grieve greatly, and also to cry for a long time, how can you live without grief? And if you pay attention to all the chosen ones of God, you will find that not one of them sailed through this life without a severe trial: therefore, take the example of tireless patience from the image of the Crucified One and from His blessed Mother, and you will not be afraid to endure anything for the sake of your salvation in retribution for the infinite love of Jesus, so that at the revelation of His promised glory you will receive eternal joy. The Most Blessed Mother of Jesus knows how to graciously sympathize with the dejected; from what happened, she learned to ardently pity those in need, does not forget about her poor, listens to those who pray, quickly helps those who call on her, and is close to all those who serve her. Oh, most merciful Jesus, sweet Son of your Mother, I ask You, grant me the grace of reverent tears, and wound my heart with a feeling of sincere compassion, with which, as I know, the womb of Your pious Mother was struck. Look at me with those blissful eyes with which you looked from the cross at the Mother and the Disciple, standing at the cross and crying when You entrusted them one to another, leaving them Your last greetings saying: here is your son, here is your mother! I ask You, visit me with Your salvation before my death and let me hear that voice that Blessed John heard from the cross: Behold your mother, so that... Having heard this voice, my soul was completely protected from the fear of the angry enemy. Oh, my most merciful Lady, Most Holy Mary, most faithful helper of all Christians, deign to have mercy on me, poor, for all your extraordinary merits, with which you greatly pleased God, and for the special love for mankind with which you most kindly treated your Son, and also for all the tears that you most bitterly shed during His suffering; With your usual maternal kindness, accept my prayer and enroll me in the host of those slaves who enjoy your special love. Oh, my only hope, Glorious Virgin Mary, come and show me your face, before my soul departs from the body, mercifully and graciously turn your most merciful eyes on me, with which you often looked with joy at Jesus, the blessed fruit of your womb, and with which during His suffering you watered many tears. Be with me, most holy Mother of Jesus, together with the pious host of your virgins and with the sacred council of all saints, as you faithfully and firmly stood even to the end with your beloved Son, dying on the cross, because after your only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, I have not yet found such great and quick consolation in need as you, the most blessed Mother of all the inconsolable. Amen. Book three. Reflection on the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and His appearances. Chapter I. About the most victorious triumph over death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ and His most joyful resurrection from the grave I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, for Your most victorious triumph over death and for Your glorious and all-joyful resurrection from the grave, in which You lay dead for us for three days and three nights, buried with many tears, hidden from human eyes and covered with a large stone, so that Your friends and disciples could neither touch nor see You. There, treacherous soldiers guarded You with strong weapons, so that You would not rise from the dead and escape their hands, or so that somehow Your disciples would not secretly kidnap You and imperceptibly carry You somewhere else, and would not begin to honor You as God, and would not say among the people that You have risen from the dead. · But true wickedness lied to itself and all the cunning of the enemies, all the power of Pilate, all the riotousness of the people, all the wickedness of the priests, all the experience of the scribes, the entire council of elders and Pharisees, who tried to remove Your holy name from the lips of men, turned into nothing. Truly there is no counsel against the Lord, and earthly power cannot prevail against the Most High, carnal wisdom is powerless against the wisdom of God, and vile deceit cannot deceive the omniscient God. For he who founded the earth on His firmament and set a limit to the sea and created everything by weight, number and measure, also knew the time and hour of His resurrection, just as he knew the time of birth and the hour of death. Therefore, after the night had passed and as dawn approached, You, most merciful Jesus, with a glorified body, in great joy and with inexpressible splendor, rose alive and joyful from the imprisoned tomb. Just as at Christmas You came from the virgin womb of Your Most Holy Mother, the Virgin Mary, with the inviolability of her ever-virginity, accessible to You, the only God, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit in this so divine sacrament and amazing miracle, unheard of for centuries, so You sanctified this most sacred festival in honor of Your resurrection, brighter than the sun and worthy of all other holidays of the year, so that all Believers all over the earth performed it with the most joyful hearts, in a rite established forever, with sweet voices in songs and psalms, and repeatedly shouting hallelujah, solemnly in blissful remembrance with thanksgiving, they most worthily glorified. On this very night, in view of the angels who rejoiced with You in the glorious triumph over death and in the destruction of hell, You, King Christ, mercifully opened the doors of eternity to us, as you had previously predicted to Your disciples, and when they themselves did not yet know, you joyfully clothed yourself in the robe of Your glorious body. Then all the princes of darkness cried out and groaned from the brightness of Your face in human nature, and great fear seized the soldiers who were guarding the tomb in full armor: they became as if dead from the shaking of the earth and the unusual vision of angels for them; for the Angel of the Lord, descending from heaven and shining with a snow-white light, rolled away the great stone from the tomb, completely opening the way for the holy women coming with precious spices to anoint Jesus in the tomb, so that they could fully approach and see that the tomb is empty and there is no Jesus, for He has risen. I praise and glorify You, most powerful King of kings, Lord Jesus Christ, Prince of heaven and earth, Benevolent Creator of all things, for the strong defeat of hell and the strong binding of proud Lucifer, cast into the lake of blazing fire and stinking brimstone. I praise and glorify You for the great defeat of the demonic power and its villainy against the human race. The devils can no longer do as much as they would have liked and as much as they usually did before Your incarnation and suffering: all the shame and advice of the Jews, which was prepared for You through punishment on the cross among the two thieves, was turned into righteous retribution upon their heads. And now You have already risen, destroyed the kingdom of hell and crushed all demonic power with the sign of the Holy Cross and subdued their pride under the feet of Your humble servants, whom You chose from this world. All now, both noble and low Christians, joyfully place on themselves the sign of the Holy Cross and wear it with confidence on their foreheads in honor of Your name against the fear of the ancient serpent and against the slander of every Jew, infidel and pagan, who hitherto hate the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God, for the salvation of the crucified world. I praise and glorify You. Most Gracious Jesus, for Your gracious visit to the saints of the Old Testament in the abyss of hell and for the liberation of all the faithful souls resting in the bosom of Abraham, who for a long time with great desire awaited Your descent into hell and with a mournful voice, as the Holy Church sings, reverently cried out to You: the Longed One has come, for whom we waited in the darkness, so that on this night He might bring out the prisoners from dungeons. Rejoice now especially, you, the first-born father Adam, the natural source of the human race, with your noble wife Eve, created from your side in paradise, because Christ came from your family, born of the Virgin, and was slain on the cross for the liberation of you with all your sons who were guilty with you, who rested in faith in Hero and with the hope of heavenly grace, namely, to deliver you from the hand of hell, from the house of prison, from the jaws of death, from the mouth of lions and from the fear of the worst demons, and with all your holy race and beloved company of angels, with the sweetest rejoicing in songs, return to the paradise of sweetness and eternal bliss. Rejoice also, holy patriarch Abraham, father of many nations, with your holy, faithful wife Sarah, about the incarnation of Christ promised to you and completed in the present holiday, the day of which you have long awaited and desired to see. You firmly believed, and were truly honored with a joyful face to see Christ, the giver of the Kingdom of Heaven, born from your seed. Rejoice also, old Father Isaac, about the glorious vision of Christ and His descent into hell, about which before your death you prophesied and in the blessing of your son Jacob in mysterious words you gloriously foretold Christ as blessed above all the saints and, proclaiming Him, said: this is the smell from my son, like the smell from a full field that the Lord blessed; whoever curses you will be cursed and whoever blesses you will be filled with blessings. Therefore, hearing and reading this, I thank You, my God, and above all the names of saints I bless Your sweet name, sweetest Jesus Christ, so that both here and in eternity I may be worthy to be blessed by You with the elect, to be filled with heavenly blessings and to be blessed with the holy angels. Rejoice also, Jacob, the strongest fighter, on this day especially in the heavenly glory and the jubilant sight of Jesus Christ, about Whom, among the blessings of your sons, you once zealously and praying predicted: I will wait for your salvation, Lord. Oh, truly a sweet word for the pious to hear, filled with joy. Oh, the saving word, in which the name of Jesus is mysteriously sealed, long desired by the patriarchs and prophets, patiently awaited and finally revealed with their own eyes: for there is no other name under heaven given to men, by which it is fitting to be saved, like this sweetest Name of Jesus, from eternity to eternity, above all, forever blessed. This same Jesus, the Savior promised by God, born of the Virgin according to the law, suffered on the cross, rose on the third day and fulfilled everything that the holy patriarchs and all the prophets predicted about Him. Now speak openly, O holy James, in the joy of Your heart, speak of Christ, who appeared in the glory of His Father before the angels of God: I already see my Lord face to face, and my soul is saved. What more could you wish for and could you have anything more blessed? If you had great joy when you saw the angel, then how you should rejoice now that you have been honored to see the Lord of the angels himself! If your spirit came to life when you heard: Joseph your son is alive and rules over all the land of Egypt, then how much more should you rejoice in Christ, who, having risen from the grave, will never die again, but will reign over everyone in heaven and on earth! Oh, all of you, holy patriarchs and prophets, kings and judges of the Jews, elders and youths, virgins and faithful widows, priests and Levites, teachers and scribes, spirits and souls of the righteous, holy and humble in heart, rejoice and be glad today in the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior, praise and exalt Him forever, for He came to visit us and make everyone glad, waiting for the redemption of their people Israel. I pray to You now, most gracious Jesus Christ, the true salvation of my soul, and all my hope in this mortal life from my youth and even to old age and at every day and hour: do not leave me, poor and weak, among the misfortunes and temptations that beset me in many different ways. Strengthen me, my God, in every tightness of my heart, for the sake of the merits of Your most holy sufferings, the strongest sorrows and the most abundant tears of Your most blessed Mother Mary, which out of compassion and at the sight of Your wounds, standing at the cross and weeping bitterly, poured out; Make me also glad for the sake of the merits of all Your beloved saints - the patriarchs, prophets and apostles and all the saints who are already rejoicing in the kingdom of heaven. Remember, O Lord, Thy holy word, which He said, that many from the east and the west will come and lie down with Abraham. Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven. Make me, I pray to You, Lord, a participant in this holy society and heavenly meal in the Kingdom of Heaven, for today You have risen from the grave in a glorified body and promised the joy of eternal life to all who love You with the angels in heaven. Amen. Chapter 2. About the reverent visit to the Holy Sepulcher of our Lord Jesus Christ I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Comforter of all the sad and mourning, for the reverent visit of the holy women who, with the rising of the sun early in the morning, came to Your tomb in order to see with their own eyes everything that happened on that most holy night, blessed among all holy nights. I praise and extol the holy zeal of the holy women and noble ladies who hastened to anoint Thy most holy body, because early, when there was still darkness and others were fast asleep, they hastily arose and immediately went, as soon as possible, reverently and secretly to Thy tomb, carrying the incense they had prepared for anointing. Oh, what sorrow in their hearts, how many tears there were in their eyes, when along the way they passed by Golgotha ​​and saw the cross, or when they noticed the traces of Your suffering and reflected on all Your wounds. Oh, what sorrow oppressed them and made them weep when they saw the tomb itself and said to each other: who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb? And it is not surprising that they cried, because they knew that they could not roll away such a great stone from the tomb with their own strength. Fear prompted them to leave here, but love convinced them to go forward and not be afraid of the warrior guards. Oh, if Peter and John were here, one would hope that they would willingly help you, although this stone was so large that even ten strong men could hardly roll it away. But it was better, O good women, that the apostles stayed at home and prayed for you there so that God would preserve you and fulfill your desire, than if they came here at danger to themselves and were killed by soldiers. From here even greater sorrow would have arisen and would have depressed you more, for after our Lord there would have been no disciples left of Him. What will you do and where will you go? - I ask you. Stop and pray, do not be afraid, but move forward confidently, trusting in the Lord, because soon help will come to you from heaven and you will receive a good answer from the Angel, who knows what happened to the Lord who was buried before. The Lord knows your heart, knows who you are and where you came from, what you carry in your hands and what you hide under your clothes. The sweetest fragrance from your aromas ascends before the Lord God among the heavenly faces and the holy angels delight in the fragrance of your holy prayer and the fiery love that you have for Jesus, and the pious zeal that you now show. Love conquers everything and fears no one; love does not cease until it reaches the vision of the beloved: therefore, hurry up, go forward and be silent, carefully examine the tomb, and if it turns out to be open, boldly enter it; if you do not dare to enter, then wait a little and pray, look up to heaven, knock on the door with a cry and tears until an Angel descends from heaven and tells you: do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus crucified; come, see the place where they laid the Lord: He is not here, as you see, but He has risen, as He predicted to you. If you firmly remember His words, then you should not doubt His resurrection at all. Love for Jesus drew you away from this world, love for Him has now brought you to the tomb; the love of Jesus strengthened you in times of suffering; love for Him will make you glad with His resurrection. Wait a little and you will undoubtedly see Him; Do not look for Him already lying in the tomb or in Bethany dining with Martha, but sitting in glory at the right hand of the Father, not in a boat sailing with Peter, but reigning over all the faces of the angels, not preaching on the mountain, but ruling over all creation in heaven and on earth. Remember how He predicted: the Son of Man must be crucified and on the third day rise from the dead. Therefore, go now, comforted and strengthened by the Angel, go quickly and bring good news to all your friends, proclaim great joy to the grieving disciples. Let them not despair that they have forsaken the Lord and all fled, and return them to the hope of forgiveness; but especially tell Peter, who denied Hero three times, and therefore did not cease to cry most bitterly: let him not despair, but trust in the great and special goodness that was often shown to him, for today he will undoubtedly see Him and sincerely rejoice; tell him everything that you saw and heard, for truly our Lord Jesus Christ rose on this night. Oh, Saint Peter, stop crying, get up immediately and go, run with Saint John immediately to the tomb and look at the shrouds and cloths of Jesus lying there. Believe the words of the angels who say that Jesus has risen and lives and wants to go to Galilee and appear to his disciples there. Rejoice and rejoice in Christ, Saint Peter, glorious co-shepherd of the Church, for the Good Shepherd, who deigned to die for you and your sheep on the cross, has risen. How sweet is the answer that came from the mouth of the Angel to the consolation of the hearts of the oppressed and gives hope of forgiveness to sinners following the example of blessed Peter and many other saints who, after their fall, rose up even stronger. Blessed is God, who does not leave the sorrowful in heart and meek in spirit, saves and strengthens them in faith when they are not looking for anyone but the One and do not want to see. Oh, holy women, how many good things you heard from Jesus, when Christ met you on the way and said: Rejoice, sisters! Hold His feet tightly and do not let Him go until He blesses you. Kneel before Him on the ground and lovingly greet Him with words of peace, and from me also humbly begging for forgiveness. Oh, if only I were worthy to have such grace of reverence with tears as you had at the sight of Him; I hope that He will willingly listen to you based on the holiness of your merits and the offering of your holy prayers to Him. I praise and glorify You, most gracious Jesus, for Your greatest mercy and gracious speech, for the joyful greetings of Your words with which You greeted the holy and pious women who met You, allowing them to touch Your most sacred feet nailed to the cross, brighter than the sun, purest of snow, most beautiful of precious stones, more precious than gold, and more more fragrant than any ointment and balm. Oh, most glorious Jesus, I thank You very much that You sent Your holy angel from heaven to roll away the great stone from the tomb, to drive away with fear the wicked guards from Your holy place, where You rested like a strong lion in His cave, to prepare for men and women free entry into the tomb, to console all who mourned You as dead and buried, to strengthen weak souls who were wavering in faith in Your resurrection, to rejoice with all the good about Your victorious outcome from the underworld and about the blessed opening of the gates of heaven. During the crucifixion, such sorrow seized their souls that they lost all faith and hope in Your future resurrection, although You often predicted this through Your mouth. Therefore, they could not accept any consolation from mortal man until they visited Your tomb early and heard with certainty from the Angel that You have risen, and saw with their own eyes and touched with their hands Your glorious feet as a sign of confirmation of the truth, and especially when after all this, after the consolation of Your gracious greeting given to them, You entrusted to them the duty of joyful proclamation, worthy of all acceptance and honor, with great favor he consoled them and gently encouraged them with His words, saying: do not be afraid, go, tell My brothers, that they may go to Galilee, where they will see Me. Oh, how joyful these words are for the ear, how sweet for reflection, how useful for recollection and for dispelling worldly fables! Oh, how blessed are the eyes that have seen the Lord, how pure are the hands that touched the Lord, how holy are the lips that kissed Him, how quick are the holy feet to walk, how swift are they to run, how ready are the hearts to obey, how joyful are the lips to proclaim to the disciples that the Lord has risen! After many sorrows on Friday, in view of the inglorious cross of Jesus, all the more joys appeared on the Easter holiday, from the glorious news of His resurrection, the reproach of the Jews turned into the greatest joy of the apostles and the shame of the cross into a means of eternal salvation, the tears of the saints turned into the song of angels and the wounds from whips and nails into the remission of our sins. Oh, sweetest Jesus Christ, kindle in my heart love for Your holy and blessed name, which is above all the saints in heaven and on earth, so that I can remember and seek You every early morning together with Mary Magdalene and her companions in the tomb of my heart, die completely to this world and reverently, with silence and secret prayer, constantly abide with You. Remove the hardness of the heart from me, the laziness of the body, the drowsiness of the eyes; pour in the grace of contrition, increase joy and reverence for the glory of Your holy name for the worthy glorification of Him with sacred solemnity; accept the first kiss of my lips as a sacrifice of constant praise through the mediation of the holy angels, who guard Your tomb with great reverence and honor, so that they faithfully protect me day and night from all dangers to body and soul. Be with me, Lord, especially after prayer, so that I do not wander my eyes and do not bring any empty dreams into the divine and do not neglect You in the holy place, where I should look with great reverence and piety at the face of Your glory, so that, being completely raptured to heaven during prayer, I can forget about everything that is in this world, and with a pure heart be completely united with You. What is everything under heaven if not vanity of vanities? Truly, in comparison with heavenly joys, every triumph of this world is nothing before You. Grant me, my God, the beauty and glory of the angels, to meditate on all the words and meaning of the psalms and other songs and hymns sung and read in the Church of God, as far as I am able to perceive and understand in the state of my frailty, until I come to You, the true Light, illuminating my darkness and highly rejoicing all citizens of heavenly Jerusalem. On this holy day of the great holiday, instead of ointments of incense composed of myrrh and frankincense, accept the frequent and bitter secret sighs of my lips for all my sins and negligence, committed in word and thought, so that now, as a new man, renewed in spirit and clothed in a white robe, I may be deemed worthy to appear among Your reverent disciples pure and joyful with humble confession. my sins. I also bring to You, instead of valuable aromas prepared from balsam and honey, all the pious desires of my heart and the holy exercise in all piety in praise of the Holy Trinity and in honor of Your joyful resurrection with the singing of angels and the rejoicing of all the saints in the faces of heaven. Amen. Prayer to the holy angels, guardians of our lives I pray to you, holy angels and archangels, servants of the King of the Most High, dressed in clean clothes and filled with heavenly blessings, be merciful to me, a weak sinner, now and at all times, help me, with God’s help, wandering in the exile of this world, help those in need of healing and strengthen the weak against the slander of the demon and vicious passions, clothe me in white robes, instruct me in holy living, strengthen me in faith, hope and love of God, so that, crying with those who mourn and rejoicing with those who are joyful and with all the good, and always giving thanks, I will succeed in true virtues performed for the glory of God. May God be all in all, blessed, praised and glorified forever. Chapter 3. About the appearance of Christ to Mary Magdalene in the form of a gardener I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Creator of all things and Knower of all mysteries, for Your loving appearance, in which You deigned to appear to the most blessed Mary Magdalene, Your most zealous follower, standing at the tomb and weeping, in the form of a gardener, simply talked with her and revealed to her many hidden secrets of Your Divinity and humanity, and special mercy towards her, before all mortals, he assured her of Your glorious resurrection and, after tearful questioning and careful research, made her very happy. I praise and extol You for Your benevolent visit and sweet conversation with the inconsolable Mary Magdalene, when You, turning to her, asked her: why are you crying and who are you looking for? O good Jesus and sweetest Teacher, You know everything before it happens: why do You ask her about what You know best? You know that she is looking for nothing else and does not desire anything else than You alone, whom she loves truly more than anything and, not finding You in the tomb, grieves and cries, because she has lost the best thing she had in the whole world. As soon as she thinks about You, as soon as she hears a conversation about You, or sees Your tomb, or visits the cross, or everything that only relates to You, her heart immediately worries and she cries, because love does not want to calm down until it finds what it loves, does not hold what it seeks, does not have what it desires. Do not be angry, Lord, if she cries before You today, on such a great holiday and holy day of Easter, because all this comes from love for You and from the great reverence with which she treats You and which did not allow her to sleep or calm down, but prompted her to get up even before dawn to anoint You; not finding You, she cries and grieves extremely for You, and, blazing with such love and inflamed with such desire, she asks about You. If she could fly, then like an angel she would fly to You through all the mountains and hills and even above the stars of heaven, to look for You in the sky, even above the cherubim and seraphim. to find You in Your Kingdom, to see You sitting on the highest throne of Your Father. But this is not given to her on this day, just as it is not given to others to admire with the Apostle Paul to the third heaven, but only to those for whom it is prepared from Your Father and predestined by God at the proper time. Oh, gracious Comforter of grieving souls, take pity on the crying Mary, help the sick one, talk to the loving one; say just one word - and her sorrow will be healed. Say Thy name, O Lord, that Thy voice may be heard in her ears, and her spirit may immediately be encouraged; show Your most beautiful face, O Jesus, and her soul will rejoice most sweetly in You; call her by her own name, and she will immediately stop crying. Why do You hide Your face from the one who loves and so carefully seeks and weeps bitterly from You? Why do you impersonate someone else and appear in the form of a gardener, when You yourself are her beloved Lord and Teacher, Lord by reign, Teacher by teaching? Say: I am Jesus, whom you are looking for, be silent and do not cry and be calm. But, good Jesus, what good do you want to achieve by this and for what reason do you hesitate to satisfy the desire of her soul? I know that You do and do everything with great wisdom, that You do not deceive anyone and cannot deceive, because You are truly a good and righteous God over all and righteous in all Your ways. Therefore, You hid the light of Your face from the weeping Mary so that she would not recognize You, in order to even more strongly arouse in her the desire of her heart for You, to test the strength of her patience, to purify her even more through sorrow and despondency, and after prolonged sorrow and many tears, to lead her to even greater joy. In this, You, as a great consolation to the pious who are in sorrow, showed an example of patience and repentance to Saint Mary, who, although much beloved by You and adorned with great gifts, yet in this life, for the increase of her merits and for the improvement of other Christians, was often grieved, sad and in poverty, and at times despaired, but was not completely abandoned and despised. Oh, how wisely and kindly You act, O Lord, with Your chosen ones, now grieving them, now comforting them, until You bring them to Yourself in the eternal peace of the heavenly paradise. They must be tested by various kinds of temptations and be refined like gold in the fire of grief, and in order to be fit for the Kingdom of God and worthy to benefit from the heavenly vision, they must take from Thy hand all that is sufficient for them as the best gift and foretaste of eternal life, which Thou hast promised to the godly soul, abiding in weeping and prayer, as Mary Magdalene did before Thee today. Oh, how good You are, O God of Israel, to those who have a right heart, who seek You in truth and humility, with sorrow and weeping, just as Mary sought You and found You. For everything that we look for with special zeal and find with special difficulty, we love all the more when we have it and keep it more carefully. After a long fast, bread seems tastier, and after a bitter drink, water seems sweeter to the drinker; after the night the day seems more beautiful to the eyes and after the cold the fire is all the more pleasant; after sorrow the harp sounds sweeter and after hard work peace and sleep are sweeter; after cruel wars, peace is more pleasant for the irritated; the stars sparkle brighter when the cloud disappears, the birds sing more joyfully at sunrise; just so the sorrowful soul is renewed like an eagle when Christ comes with grace. All this was fully revealed in the beloved Mary Magdalene, who, after much sobbing, was abundantly consoled by the Lord. Oh, how great is Your goodness, O Lord, which You have shown to those who fear You! Truly You are the hidden God, as Isaiah says, and besides You there is no other like You, who has so wisely arranged everything for Your beloved. O gracious Jesus, eternal wisdom of the Father! How piously and humbly You lived among people, teaching them what is useful and saving, to despise earthly things, to love heavenly things and to endure sorrows. How sweet was Mary's conversation with Jesus, the Savior of the world, with the King of Angels, with the Lord of lords, with the Prince of the supreme citizens, with the Ruler of all ages. Truly, Lord, if Mary had known You completely, she would not have taken You for a gardener and would not have turned to You as a stranger, saying what You are doing there or what You are looking for. Master, she says, if You took Him, tell me. Oh, Mary, how can you speak like that to Him about whom you do not know what power He has? Where do you get such strength that you boldly say: I will take Him? How can you say that you will be able to carry such a great man alone? Tell me where you want to take Him, who gave you the right to take what you did not put? You don't know what you're saying; Call your friends first. Discuss what you say, whether you can together carry the One Whom you seek; but of course you cannot, because you are tired of the journey and weakened by fasting and crying yesterday and from not finding the holy body of Christ today. O Mary, if you are here alone and others have gone away, what will you do? Ask this gardener to help you search and carry where you need your Beloved, Whom you love and Whom you are looking for. In relation to the One for whom you weep and often sigh, no one can help you and comfort you better than this very gardener, no one knows better if he wants to say where the Lord is taken or where the Lord is hidden. Believe that out of great compassion He came here to show you where He is who you are looking for, and who took Him from the hump at night. Oh, how great is the desire of this holy woman, constantly searching and crying! I pray to You, Lord, immediately and briefly say at least one word, by which Your dove, hearing Your voice, will recognize You and will sing to her bridegroom with joy and stop groaning. She is looking for you, she desires you, angels are not enough for her, no creations are enough and no human consolations are enough. Speak, Lord, because Your servant, Your most pious visitor, will hear You with joy; speak to her, as You often spoke to Your beloved hostess. Mary is her name, and from no one does she hear a call with greater joy than from You, Who is her only hope. She wants nothing more: You are everything to her. O Mary, recognize Jesus by whom you are known, love him by whom you were first loved, respond with love to your beloved Teacher, the gardener of your heart: Lord, Teacher, I thank You that You appeared to me, behold, I already have the One Whom I was looking for; I already see the one for whom I cried, and He touched me much more than I thought. Happy is the day and blessed is the hour in which you were honored to see everything after the visitation and conversation of the angels, when you heard the angelic speech and the sweet word that He said to you: go to My brothers and tell them: I ascend to My Father and your Father, My God and your God. Mary did as Jesus commanded her, and immediately went without hesitation without any doubt, proclaiming to the disciples the good, joyful news that after much sorrow and weeping she had seen her Lord. Oh, how blessed were those tears, poured out from a pure heart and fiery love: they are much sweeter than the precious aromas prepared in an alabaster vessel for anointing. Therefore, I pray to You, most merciful Jesus Christ, according to the compassion of Your mercy, with which You deigned to visit and console Saint Mary Magdalene, who was in the greatest sorrow, show me the same Thy mercy when my soul is saddened and burdened with bodily labor or heartfelt anguish from some passion harmful to me or from the innermost deprivation of sweet grace Yours, due to some fault better known to You than to me, or even under the pressure of an evil conscience, when the memory of future judgment frightens me due to negligence and everyday laziness and when I neglect good. I indulge in empty worries. I pray to You, Lord, do not remove me during my sorrow, so that I do not despair of the forgiveness of my sins, but according to Your infinite goodness, show me the help of Your mercies, which from century to century will continue over all who with all their hearts seek and desire to love You, and with your usual goodness give me the grace of Your consolation, which I especially desire, and propitiated by the prayers and tears of the Most Holy Mary, show After my bodily death, I receive the saving joy of Your face. Amen. Chapter 4. About the great merits and gracious advantages of Saint Mary Magdalene I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, heavenly Physician, Who for the salvation of our souls came into this world to save sinners and through repentance to graciously call Himself into the Kingdom of Heaven and who, deigning to be born of the Virgin Mary, did not disdain to be touched, washed, wiped, anointed and kissed by a crying and repentant sinner Maria. O gracious Jesus, Son of the living God and merciful Savior of the world, You mercifully granted to the most blessed Mary Magdalene in this life many blessings and great grace-filled advantages, for when she renounced all worldly vanity and turned entirely to You, You mercifully accepted her repentance, forgave her all her sins and freed her from all punishment while she was crying; You inspired great contrition in her heart and, so that she would not despair of forgiveness, you gave the grieving grace of Your consolation; inflamed her soul with the fire of the Holy Spirit, revived her with the sweetness of Your love, commanded her to go in peace in hope and exhorted her not to return to the past, but taught her to remain in holy life and true piety; did not say a single cruel word to her and did not reproach her for a single sin, did not reveal to anyone what she had done, but rather excused her and exposed the good that she had done, and set her up as an example of a holy life. Invited to the house of Simon the leper, you were more delighted with the tears of Mary than you were satiated with the food of the Pharisee. When she touched You, You did not disdain, when she anointed You, You did not deviate, put your feet up, bowed your head, did not reject the kiss, blessed her with your lips, sanctified her with your hand, cleansed her with a touch; in a word, he saved her, saying: Your faith has saved you; go in peace. Oh, how sweet is the word spoken from the lips of God, filled with grace and mercy, worthy of constant remembrance with great thanksgiving! You entered the house of Mary and Martha as a guest, as if to friends: there, joyfully received, You spent the night and calmed down, there you ate and drank what was offered to You and Your disciples, who were so needy and poor, who did not have even an obol in their sums. There was no noise, no shouting, no jokes, no laughter, no idle talk was heard; with great reverence and severity the humble Teacher sat there at the table; the poor ate with the poor; there You were a table mentor and teacher of theology, and instead of wine, You offered words of eternal life to Your dearest friends; there he gave prudent instructions to Martha, the servant, and Mary, who enjoyed pleasant leisure and diligently listened to the words of Your mouth, graciously forgiving her and worthily praising her life devoted to high contemplation. When her sister greatly reproached her for her idleness, and Judas the traitor murmured at the pouring out of precious incense on You, You justly defended Mary, and when she herself was modestly silent in response to reproaches, You immediately answered in her place, exposing the good and keeping silent about the bad, When Mary mourned her brother Lazarus, who died and was buried, you wept with her, condoling with her distressed friends, so that many said: that’s how He loved him. Oh, what a good glory and honest life was Lazarus, whom Jesus loved when he was alive, whom he raised when he died, with whom he dined when he was resurrected. Oh, gracious Jesus, giver and rewarder of all blessings, You did not forget about the devoted service that was often rendered to You in the house of Mary and Martha, but you rewarded for small things with great benefits, for physical things with spiritual things, for temporary things with eternal ones. What else can I say? No one can easily retell or comprehend all the benefits shown to people then, or fully comprehend all the signs and wonders that You performed in Galilee, in Nazareth, in Bethany, in Jerusalem, in Judea and in all the regions of the holy land before all the people and Your disciples as a testimony of the truth, so that they would believe You in all Your wonderful and Divine words and deeds, for truly You are the Christ, the Son of God, who came into the world for salvation. people. Oh, how exalted You are in heaven, how humble You were on earth. How good and blessed You are for people, saving them! How harsh and terrible for demons, driving them out! How merciful You are to those who repent, how severe to evildoers, how compassionate to the sorrowful, how kind to those in need, how comforting to those who mourn! Who else can be such a faithful friend in everything, such a powerful helper in need, as You, our helper and our God! Oh, what great joy You brought to those sisters when you exclaimed: Lazarus, come out! - and immediately the one who was dead came out, obeying You, the Lord of life and death. Therefore, You said to Your disciples, as Your vicars and shepherds of souls: allow him and let him go. Vouchsafe, Lord, to release me from all the bonds of my sins, so that I may die peacefully, come to You joyfully, and with the holy angels, with Mary and Martha, praise You and never sin again. Amen. Chapter 5. About the great contrition of Saint Mary Magdalene during the suffering of the Lord Eternal praise and glory be to You, sweetest Jesus Christ, for the greatest piety of Mary Magdalene and her reverent cry during Your holiest and most bitter suffering. She was not content with merely following You during Your life. followed You through the cities and villages to see Your signs and wonders, worthy of all praise and honor, which You performed by divine power, but followed You with persistence and weeping even during Your suffering, until death on the cross together with the Most Holy Mary Your Mother and with many other pious holy women who sympathized with You and wept bitter tears along the way for You innocent death and the most shameful cross. All the time, as soon as she could see You, she followed the cross, crying, sighing, condoling, noticing the traces of Your feet, wringing her hands, beating her chest, wetting her face with copious tears and wiping her eyes. After all, she couldn’t do anything more, she couldn’t help anything better than to sincerely sympathize, cry bitterly all day and night and constantly remember Your sorrows. She considered all Your wounds as if she were her own, and the more she loved You, the more she sympathized and cried. Seeing You naked, nailed to the cross, she stood at the cross with Your Mother as close as she could, and struck by the greatest sorrow, she did not want to move away from the cross for anything in the world, but until Your death she remained with You and Your mother with the greatest devotion. When she saw how You died on the cross with a great cry, her soul, out of extreme sorrow, seemed to freeze with compassion. Food and drink departed from her lips, sleep fled from her eyes; she only wanted to cry, and living longer without You in this world seemed most bitter. If she had not completely submitted to Your will, she could hardly have remained in the flesh after Your death: her frequent crying shows how without Your presence nothing was joyful for her in this life. But, O Mary, strengthen yourself a little in such distress together with the Mother of the Lord and Her sisters for the sake of the love of Your beloved hanging on the cross. Do not leave the Most Holy Mother, do not depart from the most sorrowful Virgin Mother of Jesus, even if you are no longer able to see such great sobbing and hear such crying. Sorrow with those who mourn, weep with those who weep, so that you may rejoice with those who rejoice in the glory of the Risen One. O most gracious Lord Jesus, Mary did as You inspired her, as You foretold and commanded; she truly preserved the reverence that remained in her for the burial of Your body. She did not forget about Your word, did not sell the incense, as Judas urged, but kept it in an alabaster vessel, added more to it and prepared it for You. Truly a friend is known in need, and the test of love is revealed in action. Holy. Most pious Mary, loving You, proved this during her life with her deeds, and during Your death and burial with great crying and loving care. She omitted nothing that pertained to the proper burial of Your holy body, clothing it, anointing it, wiping it, folding and sewing the linen and reverently placing the cloth for the proper decoration of Your holy body. During all this time, she cried incessantly and the only consolation for her was that she was with You and was honored to help Your Mother with all your other followers and saw that everything was done properly at the burial of Your holy body. When the tomb was tightly locked and sealed, a new cry and cry was heard, as if it was no longer possible to see You in this world, the One with whom she had previously had such close communication in spiritual life and joy. And although the tomb was closed, she did not want to immediately move away from the place in which the treasure of the world lay hidden, but until sunset she sat weeping with other pious women, until their tears were exhausted from loving sobs coming from the depths of their hearts, as it is written about them: the women, sitting at the tomb, wept, mourning the Lord. Oh, who will give me such compassion when thinking about Thy holy passion, my Lord Jesus Christ, which the most pious Mary Magdalene had on Friday, when she saw how You were crucified, died and buried and, as it were, despised, ridiculed and neglected by everyone. But thanks be to You, long-suffering Jesus, this false rumor about You did not last long, and after three days You conquered and overthrew Your enemies, rising from the dead. Truly, O Lord, has Thy word been fulfilled, which Thou didst foretell concerning Mary Magdalene before Thy disciples in praise of her good works: truly I say unto you, wherever the Gospel is preached in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her. Truly, the fragrance of her anointing filled your whole house: the Universal Church of believers spread widely throughout the entire earthly circle, brightly illuminated by the apostolic teaching and confirmed by Divine truth. The glory of her piety is described by the apostles and evangelists and subsequently proclaimed by preachers and teachers: she is especially glorified and an annual festival is celebrated in her honor in the holy church, by all the clergy and people of both sexes, on the day when her most blessed soul moved from this world to You, our Lord Jesus Christ, in Your eternal abodes. Amen. Oh, Magdalene, full of Christ's sweetness, Having shone with sevenfold grace like a clear spring, Remember me, glorious bride of Christ! Chapter 6. About the joyful and reverent appearance of Jesus Christ to His Most Holy Mother, secretly imprisoned in the upper room I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, incarnate and born of the Virgin Mary for our salvation, for Your glorious and true resurrection, now accomplished, especially for Your most joyful and mysterious appearance, with which I deigned, before all Your holy friends and holy wives close and beloved to You, to most graciously appear to Your Most Holy Mother Thy Mary, who prayed in the innermost chamber of her house, where Thou reverently greeted her, and tenderly comforted and strengthened her, and Thy bodily appearance in the robe of gaiety and in the glory of immortality made her fully joyful. It was righteous and pious to think about Your piety in this way, and so befitted the honor of Your Most Holy Mother, for You are good and merciful in all Your deeds. All the faithful should reverently believe this, for He who taught us to honor parents and console the sad, He first of all visited His Most Holy Mother, who grieved over His suffering, and by His presence freed her from all sorrow and sorrow and made her very happy. Although she did not go with other pious women to visit Your tomb, not out of laziness, of course, or fear, or from extreme sorrow, but knowing for sure that You would rise again and firmly hoping that on the third day You would come to her, she remained at home, and being in holy prayers, with great desire awaited Your coming and therefore was the first to be honored to see You, because she loved and desired You most of all, I believed in You and did not doubt at all. If she was called blessed and praised for believing the words of the angel Gabriel when he announced to her the holy mystery of the Incarnation, then how much more should she be blessed and praised when she believed in You, her Son, born of her, in all Your works, and although others doubted, she remained firm and did not waver in anything. What indescribable joy was filled at that hour by the Most Holy Mary, Your Mother, when she saw You, her Son, in pure radiance, adorned with a glorious body above the light of the sun and the beauty of all the stars! How greatly and deeply her spirit rejoiced in You, Jesus, God her Savior, all the days of her life in this world! How attentively she examined with her eyes your glorious body, which before that she bitterly mourned when it was cruelly struck by frequent blows, was nailed to the tree of the cross, was pierced in the right side by a spear from the centurion Longinus, and finally, killed, lay imprisoned in a coffin. Therefore, now that You have appeared in glory, the Most Holy Mary became all the more joyful, and was filled with new consolations, she who during her suffering grieved more than anyone else and wept more than others and dragged many with her to weeping. Then You, Lord, fulfilled Your word, which you promised during the supper as a consolation to Your apostles and truly justified on Your grieved Mother, saying: I will not leave you orphans, I will come to You and see you, and your heart will rejoice and no one will take your joy away from you. He did well, most gracious Jesus, by filially visiting His beloved Mother, greeting her with reverence, speaking tenderly with her, heartily comforting her, showing her a joyful face and driving away all sorrow and sorrowful tears from her eyes. At the sight of You, all sorrow and sorrow fled away; when You spoke to her, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, rested in her heart more than in the apostles, filling her entire interior with great joy. Having once at a wedding, at her admonition, transformed water into the best wine, now upon your return from the underworld, having defeated Your enemies, with even greater power and miracle you transformed death into life, the cross into glory, mother’s crying into rejoicing and the fear of the disciples into constant joy. You did not send an angel or an archangel, nor Michael, nor Gabriel, nor Raphael as Your solemn messengers, nor any noble worldly warriors, beautiful in appearance, adorned with gold, silver and precious stones, to visit Your Mother, the Queen of heaven, our beloved Lady, but You yourself are the King of glory, Jesus Christ, early in the morning, when none of the people knew it and no one appeared messenger, He personally came to visit and console Your most blessed Mother, who stood in prayer and with great faith awaited Your return from the grave in a glorified body. She knew that this was exactly how it had to be fulfilled, as You predicted with Your own lips and as the holy prophets predicted long before about Your suffering and Your resurrection. Truly this is a day of joy that You have created, and it is more glorious, brighter, sacred and joyful than all the days of the year and truly should be glorified with special honor among the holy days. I praise and glorify You with all Your saints in heaven and with all the faithful in this world for the tender conversation and intimate conversation that You had with Your Most Holy Mother Mary in her upper room, closed from all worldly noise, talking with her about the divine secrets of the Kingdom of God, about the joys of heaven, about the faces of angels, about holy souls brought out of hell and placed with Enoch and Elijah in the sweetness of paradise. Oh, if only I were there, heard Your sweet words and stood near the mysterious window, listening carefully to all the words that my Lord Jesus Christ spoke to His Mother about the rejoicings of the supreme citizens, inaccessible to any external person. What joy would my heart rejoice, Lord, if I could hold back even a small word to console myself in the dangerous exile of this world! But it is true that these were words that a person should not say, but should be kept secretly and thought in a joyful heart. Blessed is the one who has known such rejoicing and rises above all earthly contemplation, who stays all day with Jesus Christ and the Most Holy Mary and does not care or think about what is happening in this world. I think that no mortal was worthy to participate in this interview, but only angels and righteous souls who followed their Lord with all reverence and joy everywhere. And this interview was so sublime and heavenly, and this visit to the Most Holy Mother in her house was so sweet that even the apostles were not allowed to come at this time, and they could not hear the wonderful messages that at that hour Christ, glorified by the Father, expounded to his blessed Mother, filled with grace. Therefore, I would rather leave all this to the holy angels and to You, Lord Jesus. and I humbly ask for forgiveness for all my sins and negligence, although You reveal Your secrets to the little ones and feed the hungry with heavenly bread. Oh, most gracious Jesus Christ, after Your most bitter suffering and joyful resurrection, You appeared with great speed to Your Most Holy Mother Mary, calm and joyful, and filled the inconsolable and sorrowful with inexpressible new joy, have pity on me, a pitiful and weak sinner, often in grave grief in the exile of this world. So today I fall on my face before You, earnestly knock with great feeling on the door to Your blessed Mother and pray that You, during my grief, deign to visit me, console me, strengthen me and deliver me from all evil sadness and vain joy. And now, with new zeal and great reverence, inflame my heart to Thy praise and preserve me, so that, throwing away all earthly vanity, I learn to seek the highest and, together with the Most Holy Mary, often think about the eternal and divine and rejoice in You alone. Oh, who would give me, an insignificant one, to sincerely think about this and to abide here with the Lord Jesus, so that the whole world with all those devoted to him would become sad for me and quickly disappear from my memory. Oh, that You, sweetest Jesus, together with Your most gracious Mother and Your Holy angels, would love me most, sweeten and enkindle my heart: visit me more often, bless me more abundantly, preserve me in piety, and after the misfortunes of this life, lead me safely to Your heavenly joys. Amen. Chapter 7. About the appearance of Jesus Christ to Saint Peter in secret and about the latter’s flight with John I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Supreme Shepherd of the Holy Church and faithful High Priest before God for us, for Your greatest goodness and ineffable mercy, which You showed in many ways to Your most blessed apostle Peter, and for the divine words that You spoke, for the secret visions in which You often appeared to him. You chose him ahead of the other apostles, made him the shepherd of the souls of the faithful, and after Your departure from this world to the Heavenly Father, you entrusted him with tending Your sheep. After the threefold renunciation, You did not reject him from Your love, but immediately with the glance of Your grace returned his heart to the bitterest tears, You mercifully and completely forgave him for every sin he committed before You and, after a heavy fall, mercifully restored him to a primacy position. This is the source of all mercy and the inexhaustible flow of heavenly gifts for those who repent and cry for the sins they have committed. O most gracious and generous Giver of forgiveness and Distributor of heavenly grace, most sweet and beloved of all your saints and friends from eternity, Lord Jesus Christ. You never cease to do good and pour out grace on everyone who flows to You, who repents with all their hearts and humbly asks for forgiveness. I praise and especially glorify You for Your greatest favor, because today You truly appeared to Saint Peter, Your beloved apostle, in some hiddenness, more visible to You than to me, as a special consolation for him, which he so greatly needed: the more he sinned, the more he needed help and consolation. There is no better Comforter, no more powerful Guardian of souls, like You, Jesus, our Creator and Comforter. I thank You, most gracious Jesus Christ, all the sorrowing and fallen, Heartbreaker and Transformer, Who helped Your lost sheep in time - Peter, so that, suppressed by extreme sorrow, he would not despair of forgiveness or doubt Your resurrection, not finding Your holy body in the tomb. Therefore, as a gracious and wise physician of distressed souls, You sent Your holy angel to console and return Peter to the hope of forgiveness, and he, turning to the wives with tender words, ordered to say to Peter: go, he said, quickly and tell his disciples and Peter that Christ has risen. O good and holy Angel, how well and opportunely You called Peter by his usual name, given to him by the Lord during his apostolic calling and dignity, so that he would not despair because of his threefold renunciation of his beloved Lord and Teacher. Hearing that the angel called him by name and greeted him in a friendly manner through the holy women, his soul rejoiced and with new confidence he quickly ran with John to the place of the tomb, forgetting about all labors and sorrows, and when he saw that everything was accomplished by the Lord as the women had conveyed to him, and the holy angel said, who does not tell lies, but is a witness of the truth and a faithful messenger of the most holy resurrection, the spirit of life immediately revived in him and the firm hope of eternal salvation was resurrected. Delighted internally and rejoicing in the Lord, he longed to see the Lord in person and wanted the Lord to personally appear to him, as he had previously appeared to Mary Magdalene. As she was the first among wives, so may I be at least second or third among husbands or last among His apostles and disciples; in general, whatever seems good and righteous to Him, then let it be done to me according to His good pleasure for the salvation of my soul. I sincerely desire to see my Lord, to be completely reconciled with Him and to find consolation in the words of His mouth. May Thy mercy descend upon me, O Lord, and I will live and no longer be proud of myself. Remember, I pray to You, all Your meekness and the holy prayer that You offered to the Father for me and prayed for sinners on the cross; Come, good Jesus, and do not delay, You, my hope and the salvation of my soul, show me Yourself and I will be saved and will rejoice more joyfully when I see You on this holy day of Easter. This is how it all happened when the Lord accepted the pious vows of the beloved Apostle Peter, for the good and merciful Jesus immediately appeared to the apostle who was searching and quickly ran to Him, gave forgiveness to the weeping one, graciously blotted out all the guilt committed against Hero out of fear at night, and, moreover, zealously exhorting him, strongly inflamed in him the confession of His holy name and eternal love. Oh, how infinite the goodness of Christ is, worthy of all praise and filled with heavenly sweetness! Let none of the fallen despair of forgiveness, and let no one who has been saved be proud of the grace given to him from heaven foolishly. How great is the sign of mercy today clearly shown by the Lord on St. Peter! Therefore, the angels rejoice, the archangels rejoice, sinners are encouraged, the lazy are excited, all the faithful peoples of God praise for the great mercy of the Lord and for the condescension towards the blessed Peter, who was fully established in the faith of Christ! Oh, what a tender and friendly conversation Jesus Christ had then with the Apostle Peter, giving him the kiss of peace, and how joyful and peaceful his heart again became at the sight and conversation of the risen Christ, his most beloved Lord. O beloved, Saint Peter, venerable apostle, chosen shepherd of the church, remember this day and the great feast of Easter, on which you were reconciled with the Lord and freed from all sin by the gift of the Holy Spirit. Remind me now of me, a poor and unworthy sinner before the gracious Lord during my grief and despondency, and after my lamentable expulsion from this world, give me, after leaving the body, a sure refuge and a reliable guide to heaven; open to me the doors of paradise through the suffering and death of Christ, promised for all who repent until the end of this age; save me from the slander of the ancient enemy, deliver the one who prays from the torment and darkness of hell, for God has given you all the kingdoms of the world and the keys of heaven to open the door of life to those who knock, who will finally repent with all their hearts and turn to God with full faith. Hear me, most blessed Peter, pious shepherd of the church and glorious prince of the earth, so that I may learn to mourn my sins worthily and through you may be worthy to receive forgiveness from the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Chapter 23. About the appearance of Christ to the seven disciples who were fishing on the Sea of Tiberias I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, Creator of the universe, Ruler of heavenly and earthly, angels and men, great and small, rich and poor, living on earth and working in the sea, for Your obvious appearance after Your glorious Resurrection to Your seven disciples, who worked on the Sea of Tiberias in fishing to obtain a livelihood and to support the poor and sick from righteous labors, pleasing to God and people, permitted by the true law and divine institution due to the great good that comes from them, in order to avoid idleness and unprofitable spending of time. I praise and glorify You, most gracious Jesus, the visitor of those who labor and the helper of those in need and grief, the giver of good advice to those in need for maintaining temporary life on earth and on the waters. I bless You for Your blessed standing on the seashore in contemplation of the works of the disciples, who, lovingly united and mutually helping each other, did their work in order, with the usual skill they took fishing equipment, without shouting or arguing: Peter, as I think, sat at the helm of the boat as a helmsman and the most familiar with fishing, and others were ready, at his command and direction, to take on difficult work, if by chance some storm arose; James and John, both sons of Zebedee, who grew up in a similar craft, which they learned from their father, an elder most experienced in this matter, sat firmly and skillfully at the oars, and their companion Thomas, a strong and faithful man, prepared to drag the net - with Saint Nathanael, tested in the law of God, ready to help him in this good work, with other disciples whom I do not know, probably with Saints Simon and Judas, dear acquaintances and friends. Having settled in this way, they worked all night, rowing, pulling nets and sweating, but until the morning they caught nothing. Therefore, no longer hoping to catch fish, they thought to stop the business completely if God did not take care of them. But he made such a great difficulty in fishing so that later, when the Teacher and Lord Jesus came and gave them advice, there would be great joy. On the previous night, Jesus was not physically with them in the boat, as He often used to be with them before, therefore they caught little or nothing at all, as He predicted to them that without Me you cannot do anything. But do not despair of this, beloved disciples, for often a sad morning, with God’s help, turns into a clear noon. Wait a little and call on the good Lord Jesus and you will have good luck after a lot of work. This is what happened when Jesus appeared and said to them: cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will catch a lot, although before in My absence they could not catch even a little. I praise and glorify You, most providential Jesus, for Your gracious love for the poor fishermen, who do not have reliable provision, and no church income with which to live, but who through the labor of their hands obtained the necessary means of life. In such a need, You, good Jesus, helped your poor, asking them if they had anything to eat, and lovingly inquiring about their food. Children, do you have any food? No, they answered. A short answer to the almighty Lord God, who knows everything from eternity, to whom every heart and every secret is open, everything that lives in the sea and swims in the sea. Therefore, You, good Jesus, took pity on their poverty, as you once did on the hungry people in the desert, quickly, in a word, giving advice and help to those who obey You. With good faith, trusting in God and not in their art, they cast the net on the right side of the boat, as the Lord commanded, who from the seashore helped them with His word without any oars. And so, with the help of Jesus, their net was filled with so many fish that they could not drag it to land. These are the essence of the gifts of God, which surpass human power. Seeing this and performing such a great miracle, the disciple whom Jesus loved said to His companions and especially to Peter: This is the Lord. Hearing this, Peter rejoiced with very great joy and such love was kindled in his heart that, forgetting about everything and leaving everyone in the boat, he immediately threw himself into the water and, girding his tunic, went to his Lord Jesus, whom he loved above every holy name, blessed forever. Oh, with what reverence and with what faith he burned, and bowed his wet knees before You, Lord Jesus, bowing and honoring Your face, the brightest sun, always contemplated by the holy angels, and at that time appeared to him and his companions for consolation, but was completely hidden from the nobles and rich of this world, as well as from all careless idle lovers. O good and sweetest Jesus, do not turn Your face away from me, no matter what work I do, come and help me in singing, reading, meditation and writing. Remember me in goodness, and when evil suddenly befalls me, then I will always bless You with my heart and lips and patiently endure everything for Your glory and for my love for You. Visit me at night, when they call me to the morning service, so that I immediately get up with my brothers to sing psalms and help them, just as the apostles all stayed together that night to catch fish and worked until the day came and You came and gave them a blessing: with Your arrival and with Your blessing, their net was filled with many and all kinds of fish. Therefore, I ask You, Lord, by Your prevenient and subsequent grace, deign to fill me with such sweetness of inner thanksgiving during prayer, so that many long psalms will be more pleasant for the one praying than great fish, for the sweetness of the spirit is greater than the sweetness of bread: the spirit gives life, the flesh oppresses; the spirit cleanses and pleases, the flesh defiles and depresses; the spirit obeys God, but the flesh often resists Him and causes harm; the soul is better than the body, the life-giving spirit is higher than the decaying body. Sweet is the world, but sweeter and higher than all is God, who creates everything and rules everything. Blessed be You in everything, Lord Jesus Christ, my God, the One who works great miracles on the sea and on earth. With your chosen friends You eat, feast and prepare for them a sacred and spiritual meal in hymns and psalms, which is sweeter than any earthly food and exquisite drink. Amen. Chapter 24. About Christ's meal with the same disciples I praise and thank You, Lord Jesus, Comforter of the sorrowful, merciful to the poor, nourisher of the hungry, strengthener of the weary, for the bodily meal with Your disciples and for the abundant catch of great and many fish by the hands and labors of Your beloved disciples in the sight of Your eyes, and for the power of Your words when You said to them: Cast the net on the right side of the boat and it will be found there. the great grace of God; for you are the Creator of all things and the caretaker of all the needy and fearful, who do not have barns full of food and bags of denarii hidden in chests. Woe to those who trust in their chests, where thieves can steal and viciously destroy everything. I praise and glorify You, most glorious Jesus, for the friendly invitation of the disciples and the poor fishermen - Your disciples - to eat with You after a long fast and the hard work of fishing, when You said to them: Come, taste: I have prepared for you, tired and hungry, bread and fish baked on burning coals; if any of you need to warm up. let him come to the fire and warm himself; If your clothes are dirty or your boots are wet, let him wash it quickly and dry it over diluted burning coals. You know what I once did for you before My suffering, washing your feet and drying them, and what speech I made to instill in you humility and love, admonishing you for a long time with My example. And now, after My resurrection, I appear to you to likewise make up for what has gone before, earnestly admonishing you and eating with you. I do not need food out of necessity, but to show you the truth of My glorified flesh, I now speak to you and eat. So now eat with Me soberly in love, in moderation and in silence, abstaining from vain things, as I taught you and as you saw in Me and often heard. Never a vain word came from My mouth, but always only that which was pleasing to My Father and useful and fruitful for others. Witnesses to this are the holy Gospels, spread throughout the world, in which there is nothing vain or obscene. Be content now with the little food that I prepared for you, My children, when you said: We have no food. Do not covet a fat goose or a chicken cooked with spices, which befits gluttons and not religious and reverent brothers and sisters, but be content with simple food, bread and fish, graciously provided to you by the grace of God. But perhaps this will not be enough for you due to the arrival of strangers and the begging poor, whom you should not reject, but rather have the opportunity to kindly accept and console. Therefore I say to you, do not be discouraged because you have little, but trusting in Me, eat of the fish that you have now caught in great abundance and with joy of heart. Hearing this, Simon Peter, quick and ready to obey, immediately goes out and, with the help of his companions, pulls a net onto the ground filled with one hundred and fifty-five large fish, and everyone marveled, giving thanks to God the Father and to You, His Son, Jesus Christ, whom they saw present and recognized through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, no one dared to ask: who are You, who stand here with us, speak and eat? For everyone truly knew that You are our Lord Jesus Christ, who rose from the imprisoned tomb alive and immortal, and revealed Himself to us. I praise and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, beloved friend of all the pious, sweet guest of the soul, joyful table mate among Your brothers and friends, for Your good food and friendly meal, which You prepared for Your beloved, tired from long labor in fishing, inviting them to the meal and distributing bread to them with Your hands, with Your mouth blessed, and fish, baked in the same way on the fire, abundant in love and seasoned with special sweetness. Oh, how sweet was the taste of the food that Jesus Himself prepared and He Himself was the steward at the table and the baker. And what can I say even more? Truly joyful was the meal that Jesus and his disciples had then, but even more glorious. More worthy and joyful is the sacred flesh of His precious body and blood. which is happening in the church today; in it Jesus himself is tasted and not consumed, the remembrance of His sufferings, which He bore for our sake, is made, the mind is filled with grace from the presence of Jesus in the joy of the heart, although in itself it is often empty and cold. In this same sacred meal, a pledge of future glory is given to the pious soul for the consolation and nourishment of spiritual life in this pilgrimage, until Christ comes to receive her to Himself, delivering her from all labor and sorrows of present misfortune, into eternal rest with His holy disciples in the house of His Father, where she will neither hunger nor thirst, but will forever rejoice with Him. Reluctantly I remain aloof from this kind and joyful fellowship of my brethren and from the sweet table of Jesus with His disciples on the seashore. I wish and ask from the depths of my heart that I too become at least one of the least disciples of Jesus in this life through contempt for the world and for everything that passes, not according to my merits and labors, but through the grace of Bohr and the mercy of my Lord Jesus Christ, so that in His future Kingdom I will be worthy of a visit and consolation from Hero, so that with all the saints I may be joyful and blessed in glory. Amen. Chapter 25. About the conversation of Jesus Christ with St. Peter and St. John the Apostle about love for Him I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, most gracious Lover of mankind and wisest Teacher of the little, for the sweet conversation with St. Peter about love for You, especially when You asked him three times and, honorably calling him by the name of his father and deliberately expressing what could especially please and excite strong jubilation, because, talking with him, You asked him about sincere love, saying: Simon the Jonah, do you love Me more than these? I praise and glorify You, most worthy Jesus, for Your ineffable goodness and mercy, that You did not reproach St. Peter for his sin, gravely committed against You, but rather asking him about his love for You, the more zealously excited him, although he was fully aware of his love, and he instilled it in his brothers who were there. Moreover, You proclaimed to the entire church throughout the world what dignity and holiness the Apostle Peter had before You in perfect love even after his fall, so that some fallen one, forgetting about himself, would not think irreverently about him - about the one with whom You, Lord, spoke so lovingly and ate. I praise and greatly glorify St. Peter, Thy apostle, my patron for Thy sake, for his direct and sincere answer to Thy words: eliminating all arrogance and thoughtlessness in speech, not preferring himself in love over all others, he teaches me to think humbly, to reason prudently, to answer questions wisely and to truly and firmly confess the Christian faith. To the glory of the Holy Trinity, he said three times: just as he denied three times out of fear, so now again, believing with all his heart and without any doubt, he said three times: I love You, I love You, I love You. And what else? - You, Lord, know that I love You. O Saint Peter, what will you say if people who do not see your heart do not believe you? I say to my Lord, I proclaim loudly and constantly confess with my mind and heart: Lord, You know everything, You know that I love You; Lord, You have tested me and known me; You knew my condition when I denied You, and You knew my rebellion, when I cried bitterly and sincerely repented. You have forgiven, forgiven me, Lord, when I sinned before You; You have forgiven me everything for the sake of Your holy name: how sweet is Your mercy, and many of Your mercies are above all my deeds from century to century. I praise and glorify You, sweetest Jesus, for your faithful and loving entrustment of your lambs and sheep to the hand and pastoral care of Your beloved follower the Holy Apostle Peter, whom I called from fishing to the care of souls and the governance of the church, from the boat to the episcopal seat, from thin nets to the royal priesthood, from poor parents to the high priest. a ministry that had never belonged to any of the brethren before. According to Thy great mercy and according to the generosity of Thy goodness, Thou hast appointed him as Thy faithful vicegerent, not for the destruction or insult of some young lamb and the weak sheep entrusted to him, but for the protection and comfort, for the edification and salvation of all the faithful - great and small throughout the entire circle of the earth. Therefore, by broadcasting a living voice, he entrusted everything to St. Peter and inspired all the other shepherds of the church, saying: feed My lambs, feed My sheep, small and great, rich and poor, whom I have redeemed with My blood. Remember, Saint Peter, what you were like before I called you from the boat to apostolic dignity and what you have become now, even after your threefold renunciation, according to My special mercy and grace to the greatest glory and greatness. So you became the supreme shepherd of the church not for your glory, but in order to zealously seek My glory, the glory of My Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit and preserve peace among those subordinate to You. I praise You, most beloved Jesus, for your gracious conversation with St. Peter and St. John, especially your beloved ones, when You graciously edified Peter, strengthened him by pious example to suffer on the cross, and destined John, the beloved youth, to preach and write the highest and most useful mysteries of the holy church, and to the consolation of many faithful preserved it for a long time with his providential goodness. Therefore, when Peter asked about the death of John, You answered briefly: I want him to remain in the body for teaching the whole church and special care for My Mother, whom I entrusted to him from the cross; I want him to live long and sublimely write everything about My divinity, about the Incarnation, about suffering and resurrection, as I saw with my own eyes and often heard from My lips, until I come to him personally and take him to Myself with hope. What do you want, Peter? You follow Me: follow Me, carrying a cross for Me, which will serve to your greatest honor if you suffer a similar death on the cross for Me. When all this had been said and everything had been peacefully arranged, a bodily and not a spiritual meal ended, one which is better experienced in reverent meditation and prayer than in a long conversation. I pray to You, most gracious Lord, Jesus Christ, glorious Physician of the languishing soul, guide me, amidst the various worries and misfortunes of this mortal life, on the direct path to the heaven of Your glory; drive away from me the ulcer of pride in reading and singing before my best brothers in the choir, in edification, or in writing sacred books for our monastery, so that I do not exalt myself and compare myself with the most learned and sharpest in mind, this is Thy gift for them, so as not to lose me the fruit of good deeds now and in the future, eternal reward with You in heaven; preserve me during a strong storm from anger and brotherly indignation, so that I may be attentive to the lives of others and condescendingly endure their failures, and so excuse their shortcomings, as You, good Lord, taught Your disciples, long and often suffering from them and exhorting them to perfection. Let me follow You and St. Peter with the cross, patiently enduring bodily labor and heartbreak even to the point of death. Allow me, an unworthy sinner, according to Your great mercy, together with St. Thomas, Your truthful and faithful apostle, to touch and mentally touch Your sacred wounds and daily meditate on them during worship, in the cell, at the table, in every place and at all times, with thanksgiving, out of love for Your holy Name and for the glory of the Holy Cross. Grant me, together with St. John, Your Apostle, to love You with a pure heart and body, especially to honor Your Most Holy Mother Mary, entrusted to Him, and to read, hear and heartily perceive His Holy Gospel with love, and, as it were, to rest on Your chest, to neglect all earthly things and to contemplate the heavenly mysteries with Him in the Apocalypse. Lord, have mercy on me and protect me from all vile vices with the help of the blessed Apostle James; Strengthen me in virtue and piety, so that I may resist the vile and terrible seductions of the devil, which are very disgusting and vile for You and Your holy angels. Let me also crush the pride of the mind, curb the lust of the belly, guard the door of the heart and mouth with all my feelings. Grant me, Son of God, to drink the cup of Your sufferings with the sons of Zebedee for the remission of all my sins and with them and with all Your saints to rejoice with You in the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen. Chapter 26. About the appearance of Christ to the eleven disciples on Mount Tabor in Galilee I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of heaven and earth, who weighs the mountains and holds the earth in Your hand, who sits above the cherubim and seraphim, who contemplates the deeps, who walks above the stars of heaven, You who contemplate the ends of the earth and know everything before it happened. I bless, praise and glorify You for Your joyful, glorious and sublime appearance on Mount Tabor to Your eleven disciples, as You clearly and truly promised them before Your suffering, saying: I will smite the Shepherd and the sheep of the flock will be scattered, then I will rise again and precede you in Galilee. First, You predicted to Your beloved disciples two very sad events, namely the defeat of the Shepherd, understanding that You yourself would be defeated by the Jews, and then the scattering of the flock that would follow, their flight and crying from fear of punishment and death; but so that they would not despair from the great burden of evil, You immediately added two very comforting and joyful events, assuring them of Your glorious resurrection on the third day and of your joyful appearance to them in a certain and most familiar place for them, on the holy Mount Tabor in Galilee, on which you once performed many signs and wonders before Your disciples and all the people. Oh, Galilee, holy land, the fatherland of Christ, where Nazareth is located, that flourishing city in which the Blessed Virgin Mary lived and illuminated with her sweet presence, from which came for us the eternal joys of our salvation, described in the holy Gospels. I praise and glorify You, Jesus, for Your great mercy, that You commanded Your disciples to come to a certain and holy place, removed from worldly worries, suitable and chosen for listening to divine commands - that place in which before the three faithful witnesses Peter, James and John, with a voice from heaven, clothed and adorned with majestic love for mankind, for the confirmation of the faith of the disciples before Through Your suffering, You appeared in a mysterious revelation. But in the clearest appearance after Your most glorious resurrection, You revealed Yourself to Your most numerous disciples, confirming the faithful, assuring those who doubt, edifying and delighting all the pious with Your presence and the authority given to You from the Father over everything in heaven and on earth. Hearing this from Your lips, all those present worthily bowed to You and glorified Your holy name, and falling on their faces before You, with joy and with the greatest reverence they sang a new song to You, the True God, because they knew such great and wonderful mysteries about the Holy Trinity that no one could fully express them. O glorious and joyful vision! Oh, the most sublime and divine revelation and inexpressible joy in the hearts of the holy apostles! I praise and glorify You, sweetest and meekest Jesus, that You spoke so graciously with Your disciples on the mountain, revealing to them the true faith about the Holy Trinity and communicating the true image for the baptism of the faithful in a stream of water for the remission of sins: in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen. I believe that with these very words I was baptized by a faithful priest and by faithful parents, taught and raised in the right and universal faith, in the holy church. I thank You, Christ, from whom comes every good for man with the hope of eternal salvation; at the end of this life, deign to bring me to her and help me with holy merits and save me from future heaviest punishments. My job is to pray, and Yours is to help. I am weak and fickle, but You are good and very merciful, You can deliver me from all sorrow and bring me with You to the mountain of glory. O good Jesus, my Savior and my God, I cry to You, I sigh and pray to You day and night, until I come to You with the help of Your only grace, for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, my God, forever and ever. Amen. Chapter 27. About the Ascension of the Lord and His Appearance in the Upper Room to the Disciples Gathered Together I bless and thank You. God. Jesus Christ, King of glory, Creator of heaven and earth, Lord of angels and Savior of men, humbler of the proud and comforter of the humble, that by your own power you have been exalted today above the cherubim and seraphim and above every angelic dignity and every high creature. In the sight of Your disciples, with a joyful face and a glorious body, dressed in light like a robe, with the singing of angels, with the sounds of trumpets and jubilant hymns, You ascended and, having defeated the prince of this world, showed to your chosen friends the path to eternal life and glory, to all those whom you called from the world and established to follow the path of the heavy cross. O Lord my God, how wonderful is Your name throughout the whole earth, how gloriously the King of heaven ascended into the kingdom of His Father, with what glory and honor He was crowned above all His saints and most worthily sat down at the right hand of His Father because He gave His soul to death and deigned to die for the wicked, in order to revive His people and give them to sit at Your throne in the Kingdom Yours, which You prepared for him before the creation of the world according to Your great mercy and goodness, and not according to his merits and not according to human virtue. Oh, what is the dignity of the human condition, that human nature, united with God in person, rises above every creature in heaven and on earth. Therefore, with dignity, with thanksgiving and due praise, Thy name, sweetest Jesus, should be sung by all creatures in heaven, on earth and under the earth, and let them bow their knees before Thy face, let them adore the face of Thy glory, kiss the footstool of Thy feet, and above all else let Thy glorious and holy Name be exalted and praised forever. I praise and glorify You for Your gracious visit and final appearance to Your reclining disciples, who gathered in the upper room and spoke reverently about You and especially wanted to see Your presence, and how they rejoiced. when You came to the table for their special consolation. For as soon as they got ready to eat, drink and talk, they were always preceded by a conversation about God, about the Kingdom of Heaven, about peace, love and virtues, about the salvation of souls, but they took less care of food and drink and thought after everything else. Having everything in common, they did not demand special and exquisite dishes, for the common life of the saints is rich and sufficient, but those who seek special benefits are deprived of good communication and are rarely satisfied. I especially praise You, Eternal and Highest King, for your loving meal with the poor Your apostles, not with kings and high priests, not with the rich men of this age, for whom both You and Your disciples, whom You chose from this world and separated from the fellowship of the wicked, were hated. I thank You that before ascending into heaven, You visited and strengthened Your weak and fearful disciples, abandoned amid the troubles of this age, and revealed to them many wonderful things about the past and the future, so that, having been comforted by Your words, they would not lose heart when enduring disasters for Your Name. I praise and glorify You, Lord Jesus Christ, most glorious Teacher of teachers, the best of all teachers of theology, for every word that You taught to Your disciples and to all the people openly and secretly with many most beautiful and mysterious parables of teaching; for simple instructions accessible to listeners; for the correct interpretation and clear presentation of divine messages in the books of Moses and the prophets, containing evidence of the truth; for all your holy deeds and glorious miracles that you previously performed in the world and ordered to be preached throughout the world. I praise and gloriously bless You, most beloved Jesus Christ, Eternal Shepherd, for your kind care for Your humble and poor flock, dwelling among the worthless people. Having joyfully visited them today in the upper room, after edifying and reproaching them for their cruel unbelief, He led them out of Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives, so that they could see Your open and clear ascension to the heavenly glory of Your Father after a long journey in this life in fulfillment of all righteousness and obedience, which is rightly perfect. There, in the presence of Your Most Holy Mother, together with the most reverent Mary Magdalene and other wives and Your beloved disciples, I again talked with them with great zeal about the Kingdom of God and the renunciation of the world, about the grace expected in the future and the descent of the Holy Spirit that was to take place in a few days, reproaching the curious question of some about the end of the world, which did not concern them. Having said this and giving a blessing with your sacred hands, and saying farewell with your lips, You ascended with Your glorious body, with Your divine power, into the highest heavenly abodes of the saints, and You were surrounded by countless armies of angels, all the inhabitants of heaven rejoiced with all the patriarchs, prophets and ancient righteous people, whom You powerfully redeemed with Your hand from hell and laid to rest in the paradise of sweets even to this day. With all these glorious and jubilant hosts of saints, You joyfully, openly, omnipotently and gloriously ascended to the royal, high heavenly throne, which from time immemorial has been specially prepared for You alone. I praise and thank You many times, Only Begotten Son of God, for this heavenly and indestructible blessing with which You blessed Your Most Holy Mother, and all Your holy apostles, and all Your disciples, gathered on the top of the Mount of Olives, where Your feet stood and where, in memory of Your name, You left the sacred footprints of Your feet, imprinted, as they say, on the earth. Therefore, I kneel before You, I praise and prayerfully ask You, my Lord. O King of Glory, I kiss the image of the Holy Cross, making a cross on the ground or on the floor as a sign of Your love and for the consolation of my heart in this present exile. I magnify You for everything and with all Your saints, for the greatest joy, for today’s triumph, which has never been seen or heard before either in heaven or on earth, for human nature is now highly exalted and forever seated at the right hand of the Majesty of the Father. Amen. Chapter 28. About the appearance of angels in white robes I bless and thank You, sweetest Jesus Christ, and reverently offer thanks to You on this holy day, that after Your departure from the apostles and entry into heaven with the angels, You sent angels, messengers of the heavenly army, dressed in white robes, to comfort Your orphans, who looked, but could not follow You into heaven, and they said to them: men O Galileans, why do you stand and look at heaven? Why are you surprised at this amazing, never-before-seen miracle? God can do anything; God, who created man, ascends with rejoicing, as was predicted about Him in the psalm; But you, having seen Jesus, must proclaim and testify to others, as you were commanded. So this Jesus, who was taken from you, will come again, just as you see Him ascending into heaven, but will come then with great power and glory to judge the living and the dead. Now He has appeared to the meek and humble among you on earth, in order to bring the humble and those who follow Him into the Kingdom of Heaven. Remember now, I pray to You, dear Jesus, in Your glory, about my poverty, remember and have pity on me, an exile and wanderer, abandoned in this vale of tears, groaning and crying among the various temptations and anxieties of this life, which very often turn my heart away from the blessings of heaven. Draw me to you, most blessed Jesus, so that I may follow in the footsteps of holy desire and fiery love, if I can no longer follow You with my bodily legs; May I follow You along the path of Your humility and Your humanity, if I am no longer worthy and cannot see You at the height of Divine Majesty. Oh, blessed vision - to clearly see God in myself, as the angels and all the saints in heaven see Him perfectly, and now I truly know why my desire can never be satisfied, my desire can never be completely calmed by any earthly good, until I am united with You, my God, in heaven and am freed from all evil. For this reason, You preceded me, preparing the way to the Father and the place to stay with You and granting me forgiveness of sins through the wounds of Your wounds, so that I would have great boldness now and in the future before You, according to the multitude of Your mercies and the greatness of Your merits with the prayers of all saints and angels. O good Jesus, do not forsake me: You are my love, You are the desire of my soul, My Savior and my Redeemer, my hope from my youth, my expectation and all my hope until old age, You who have performed great miracles by Your power. I will love and praise You above all else with all Your saints for all Your blessings, sincerely thanking You, as long as I am a stranger and an exile in this life of my lament. And now return, my soul, together with the Most Holy Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and His apostles from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem, seek heartfelt peace and tranquility from all the troubles of this age, ascend with them to the magnificently decorated upper room, where the old Passover ended and a new one was established through the all-honorable sacrament of the body of Christ given to the apostles, entrusted to them. Therefore, think carefully, being in silence and solitude, call on God in prayer and with pious meditation prepare for the upcoming feast of Pentecost, so that with greater zeal you can receive the Holy Spirit along with the apostles, who, having abandoned all earthly consolation, in the secret upper room, expected new joys from Christ from heaven. Remember also the blessings of God from the beginning of the world until now, and especially talk with the blessed Virgin Mary about all the words and deeds of Jesus her Son, described in the Gospel from the day of His birth until the present day, when He gloriously ascended to the Father, without, however, leaving His beloved Mother, whom He especially left for the comfort of the weak, to confirm the faith of the apostles and other faithful, because it is more complete and more accurately than anyone, she knew about all the deeds and miracles that Jesus performed on earth. Amen. Conclusion. From the Feast of Pentecost to the apostolic preaching and the spread of the most holy name of our Lord Jesus Christ Chapter 1. On the Feast of Pentecost: about the sending of the Holy Spirit to the disciples I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, most gracious Comforter of the poor, sweetest Visitor to the weak and most powerful Helper of the afflicted, for Your most certain promise of heavenly gifts from the heights of the heavenly abode and from the Father of lights, for Your boundless generosity, and for the wonderful outpourings of the manifold grace of the Holy Spirit on Your disciples in Jerusalem gathered, where they stayed together in the upper room, praying and fervently awaiting the consolation of the Holy Spirit from heaven, and like pious hermits, removed from the worries of this age, remaining in peace and silence, putting aside all earthly cares and striving for the highest and eternal blessings, they prepared in reverent prayers to receive the fullest gifts of grace. I praise and glorify You, most worthy Jesus Christ, King of the holy angels, for the most joyful holiday of this day, for the solemn blessing and priestly consecration of the holy spring and baptism by the power of the Holy Spirit, in which all the faithful, baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity, are cleansed from all sins, become partakers of eternal life and are worthy to be heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven and co-celebrants of the angels by the grace of the Spirit Saint. I praise and glorify You that You have adorned this day with many wonders, signs and gifts and commanded Your faithful to celebrate with joyful reverence at all times. On this very day in ancient times, through Moses, the first law was given on Mount Sinai to Your people, who came out of the land of Egypt, freed from the heavy yoke of slavery, to sacrifice to You in the desert, where You gave them sweet manna from heaven to eat, in memory of which You commanded to bring You a new sacrifice from the new fruits of the earth in thanksgiving every year forever on this venerable day, and now in the New Testament, when you omnipotently ascended to heaven above the heights of the angels, illuminated this holy day with even greater grace, blessed and sanctified it, and instead of sweet manna sent Your Holy Spirit to Your apostles in a visible sign from heaven, when tongues of fire appeared above them with a great noise, so that they would be inflamed with love and, being ready and capable of preaching, would zealously proclaim everything, as the Holy Spirit inspired and gave them to proclaim Your great works, which You gloriously performed in the holy land for our salvation: there were very many of these miracles and they are incomprehensible to people, but with God everything is possible and not difficult. Then what the glorious prophet Isaiah foretold was fulfilled: the law will come out of Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Such miracles have never been heard of as today, because in one day so many faithful men and wives received the Holy Spirit with a visible sign in tongues of fire, prophesied in clear words, interpreted divine scripture and spoke with the voices of all languages ​​and peoples, and unlearned people, without studying books, were so quickly and completely taught in the school of God by the Holy Spirit and with the gift of much knowledge they began to connect miracles and many signs. Oh, wonderful and ineffable power of the Holy Spirit, with which You fill everyone you visit, making them zealous, wise, humble, reverent, joyful and strong: there is no slowdown in learning where the Holy Spirit dwells, the inner Teacher, revealing heavenly secrets to the little ones, for He knows what is necessary for the salvation and benefit of others. He especially instructs His disciples and secret followers to despise this world, not to be proud, but always to condescend to the humble, to humble oneself before others, to run away from honors, to examine and bemoan one’s own shortcomings, to quickly correct oneself and, without arrogance, to humbly confess that which reproaches one’s conscience, that which is worthy of confession and contrary to the Holy Spirit, even if it seems unimportant or small to people. Amen, Chapter 2. About thanksgiving to Christ for His incarnation, suffering, resurrection, ascension and sending of the Holy Spirit with a great abundance of gifts Sweetest Lord Jesus Christ, who loved my eternal salvation! I am a small and weak man, unworthy of any consolation, of any good, I bless and thank Thy most holy name with all Thy saints and chosen ones forever. And I especially thank You, my God, that according to Your great love for mankind and mercy, You wanted to become a man for my sake, to take on my nature, to be supernaturally conceived by the Holy Spirit, to be miraculously born of the pure Virgin Mary, to eat milk, to be circumcised and brought to the church, in order to cleanse me from all impurity of soul and body and teach me to live soberly, piously and chastely at all times. I thank You even more for Your most sacred and bitter suffering in all the days and hours of my life, that You deigned to suffer for me, to be crucified, to die and to be buried, so that by Your innocent death I might be saved from eternal death and strengthened by Your example to endure disasters. I thank You even more joyfully that for my consolation You rose from the grave on the third day and with great joy appeared to Your disciples in the imprisoned upper room, so that I would not despair during my adversity or in some calamity and danger, but would have good hope in You that You will deliver me from present evil, and firm hope that on the last day you will resurrect me along with the elect into eternal life. I thank You even more reverently from the depths of my heart and with my lips I rejoice at Your solemn procession and glorious ascension in the presence of Your Most Holy Mother and Your other disciples, because You departed before me to prepare a place for me with Yourself and through Your suffering and cross to open to me the Kingdom of Heaven, where You already live and reign in the eternal glory of Your Father with the angels, until You come again to judge the living and the dead at the end of this age, as those two holy angels taught us, out of joy on this holy holiday in white robes, which then appeared to Your disciples, who looked up to the stars of heaven after You. Oh, blessed eyes that were honored to see You in the flesh, and how blessed are the ears that heard You speaking about the Kingdom of God, for nothing could be sweeter to hear and nothing more blessed to possess. After all, for my sake, You ascended to the high heavenly abode, where, above all the ranks of angels, is the dwelling of the blessed, who already reign with You in the greatest glory, so that all my hope would ascend to the mountain and rush to You, would not remain with the lower one and would not want to enjoy it. For everything is vain, destructive, everything is disastrous that is not my God, everything must be rejected and despised, everything that distracts me from my God and prevents me from reverently praying and contemplating heavenly things. Therefore, I ask You, most gracious Jesus, King of eternal glory, remember me, the poor one, in the Kingdom of Your Father and now send me from heaven the Comforter Spirit for true consolation with new zeal and abundance of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Chapter 3. Prayer for the gifts of the Holy Spirit against various diseases of the soul Come, come, Holy Spirit, with all Your gifts and drive away from me Satan, who with his dreams often scatters me in my prayers and pious meditations; Come, sweetest Spirit, envelop the helix of my heart with the most life-giving flame of Thy love and destroy all carnal lust in me, so that the incense of grace-filled gifts with the rain of tears flows out of great contrition for my sins, with the sweet remembrance of all Thy deeds. Come, best Comforter, and lead me out of the prison of dark sorrow with the light of inner joy, with the hope of repose for my little work; Strengthen my mind against melancholy and labors, excite me with Your words in singing and psalms. Against the movement of anger give me the shield of patience; Against the elevation of pride, instill in me, O God, the fear of death and eternal Gehenna. For who will not fear the power of Your wrath and endless punishment? Against vain glory and self-aggrandizement, let me see my own weakness and the virtues of others; teach me to remain silent against frivolity of words; against frivolous laughter, make me cry and sigh, for it is better to cry bitterly than to laugh foolishly; against the curious and vain spectacle, present to me Jesus crucified; against decorated clothing, show me rottenness with worms; against the lusts of the flesh, open for me the tombs of the dead; against the cup of wine let me drink the gall and vinegar of Christ; against the vain rumors of this age, raise up to me divine speeches; Close my ears against long fables, so that this poison does not enter through them; against idleness in the streets and squares, bind my hands and feet with the bonds of Thy fear, so that I do not fall into various temptations; against evil sadness and despondency, pour into me the grace of Thy holy anointing; against gloomy suspicion towards someone, instill in me more respect for my neighbors; against the insult done to me, give me patience not to desire revenge, so as not to lose the crown in heaven promised to those who endure; against various diseases of the soul, give me the saving medicine of Your virtue and the flowers of holy teachers; against my bad habit, give me the strength to overcome nature for the sake of eternal life; against the burden of labor, let me keep my heart calm through reverent prayer; against the embarrassment of many calamities, grant me to have good trust in You, according to Your greatest goodness and according to the merits of the Saints, O gracious and Holy Soul, Helper in sorrows. Amen. Chapter 4. On asking for the grace of reverence during worship and on the praise of angels in heaven Oh, the wisest Teacher of teachers, Oh, the best Healer of all doctors, the Holy Spirit, the comforter, You can teach the ignorant in one word and instantly and completely heal all the sorrows of the body and soul. I pray You, graciously help me in every place and time and graciously pour out the grace of reverence into my heart during prayer, meditation, singing and reading, so that I can reverently and carefully fulfill my hours and vows. Without You, all prayers are useless and turn out to be unworthy of God’s hearing, and without You I can do nothing good. Pray for me according to Your goodness and fill me in everything in which I am lacking due to my weakness. Against the fear of the night and the horror of the devil, give me the shield of faith and with the sign of the Holy Cross, as an invincible shield, protect me, so that the evil enemy, the tempter of my soul, does not prevail against me; against fatigue during long night vigils and even longer readings, let me reflect on what great reward awaits me in heaven; against the difficulty of frequent abstinence from food and drink, give me the virtue of fasting and courage to work, forgiveness for the sins I have committed, protection against committing them in the future, protection from punishment, due hope for eternal bliss in the Kingdom of God with the elect. Against laziness during worship, stir me up by singing on the Psalter and the harp with David’s words inspired by the Holy Spirit, and reveal to me the hidden manna in the dry letter and the precious aromas contained in the thin vessel. To the one who reverently prays, many secrets are revealed that are completely hidden from the frivolous and lazy. Against drowsiness during the morning service, strike me more strongly, so that I quickly wake up to listen to what the Lord says to me in the Holy Scriptures, in the hymns and songs of the saints, to excite my heart to my God in heaven and to oblivion of what is happening on earth. Drive away from me all weakness of the flesh and open the ear of my heart, so that in the excitement of my mind I may be worthy, in honor of the Holy Spirit, to contemplate the mysteries of heaven and hear the voices of the holy angels praising and reverently singing the praises of God on the highest throne. Oh, that I were one of them in heaven, to sing with them in chorus: holy, holy, holy. They are never lazy and never cease to praise their Creator, because, filled with the Holy Spirit, they glow with love, shine with snowy purity, smell the sweetest fragrance, sing joyfully and sweetly, begin together, praise strongly, fall silent together, triumph with love, rejoice with joy and are indescribably delighted in God Who can fall asleep from boredom with such singing if he thinks about such a blissful and great joy of the angels in heaven! Who would not awaken from the harmony of heavenly organs and the sweet voice of many singers, singing in agreement throughout all ages: holy, holy, holy! When the gates of heaven move from the great cry of angels, should insignificant people remain silent? When the stones of the heavenly church cry out and all nine ranks rejoice before the Lord, should monks and nuns sleep on earth? The sun and moon serve God with their light. are you sleeping? Let this not happen. Stay awake, righteous ones, says blessed Paul, and do not sin, do not sleep, do not be lazy, do not fuss and do not disagree, but with all reverence and reverence stand and sing, and for the glory of God with thanksgiving sacrifice the sacrifice of the voices. Joyful praise of the lips is pleasing to God if the body is awake and the pure spirit is awake within. The greatest joy in meetings and the greatest sweetness in organs and chants is harmony in voices, joy in faces, honesty in morals. Oh, how wonderful and holy is the community where the Holy Spirit, the Teacher, is present, and among the brothers there is love in the heart, truth in the mouth, piety in action, peace everywhere without deceit and fear of deception. This is true brotherhood, which can never be broken by quarrel or labor. to be upset by grief, for the love of God is poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which is given to the humble, contrite and poor, meek and peace-loving, day and night ready for every good deed and for the praise of God. These are the signs of the Holy Spirit, who until now performs many good deeds among his faithful, distributing to each individual separately, according to his will, if they are inclined to receive grace and diligently guard their hearts in every action and thought. It is a great and difficult task to restrain the heart from wandering during prayer and to unite the mind with God in spiritual contemplation, and if our spirit is weak in goodness and leans towards vain things, then the Holy Spirit, again coming to us, reproaches, crushes, wounds, anoints and heals our heart. He teaches and illuminates, humbles in everyday infirmities and inwardly exalts with consolations, excites with fervent prayers and cleanses with bitter tears. O Sanctifier of all the faithful, Ruler and Guardian, forgiver of all sinners, Restorer of innocence and Comforter of the sorrowful, Holy of Souls, Holy of God! Oh, merciful and gracious Lord, strengthener of the fearful, most gracious Comforter, turn for me all evil into good and all good into the best, sorrow into joy, error into truth, ignorance into true knowledge, sloth into jealousy, fear into love, every bodily good into a spiritual gift, every earthly desire into the heavenly, everything that passes into the eternal, everything human into the divine, everything created and finite into the highest infinite and unlimited good, for You are my God and my Savior. Oh, my true, eternal salvation, my God, protect me from all present evil, forgive the past and deliver me from future dangers through the generous grace of the Holy Spirit, which you poured out today with abundant blessing from the heart of the apostles for preaching your word to all nations. Amen. Chapter 5. About the preaching of the apostles and about the proclamation of the most holy name of our Lord Jesus Christ throughout the entire earthly circle for the salvation of people I bless and thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, most beloved Nazarene, Son of God, eternally blessed above all holy men and women, that today with the coming of the Holy Spirit in the visible fire You sent to the earth, You so invisibly inflamed the hearts of the faithful with the love and praise of Your holy name that soon through Your blessed apostles Your name was glorified Father above all the names of the saints, and they, casting aside fear, began to publicly preach, praise, proclaim and magnify and openly proclaim before all the people in Jerusalem and among the pagans and extol, glorify and idolize day after day, so that finally, with the increase in the number of Your disciples, such piety and such brotherly love arose among all faithful husbands and wives that there was one faith in the minds and one piety in deeds and everyone had one heart and one soul out of true love in God, not each seeking what belongs to him, but what is Christ’s, and everything that was his own was made common in the holy primitive church, which gathered in the Holy Spirit. Such was the joy, peace and harmony between them that no one called anything his own or anything of his own that he owned, but everyone had everything together in God and joyfully distributed it to those in need. The holy apostles initially learned this kind of holy gospel life from our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and then they tried to preserve it, and dying for the faith of Jesus Christ, they kept it until the end of their lives. I praise and bless You, Holy Father, Almighty and Eternal God with Your Only Begotten Son and the Holy Spirit the Comforter, for all Your good deeds and spiritual gifts, which You once showed to Your chosen friends and holy patriarchs and prophets: to them through the Holy Spirit You in words and signs long ago revealed the secrets of Your wisdom and the judgments of Your mouth and especially the mystery of Your incarnation, and after Your coming, O good Jesus, You added even greater mysteries of the scriptures and clearly set them out, and what these babies could not understand until then, You graciously postponed until the message of the Holy Spirit. But what is especially surprising and praiseworthy is that You suddenly illuminated the dull minds of the apostles with the fire of the Holy Spirit, and those chosen from the vanity of this age and who surrendered to You completely taught them above the wise men of this world and strengthened them for the conversion of the whole world. I praise and glorify You, most glorious Jesus Christ, Enlightener of the entire human race, for the conversion and gathering of many peoples, whom You have gathered from different parts of the world and from multilingual peoples into the unity of the Catholic faith and apostolic teaching, in order to together praise Your sweet and holy name in hymns, psalms and spiritual songs, in all places and churches, in various monasteries and assemblies gathered for the most reverent celebration of a holy holiday in honor of the Holy Spirit, when in the church, in the presence of all the people with princes and nobles, all those many miracles that were performed at that time are remembered, all the divine things that the Holy Spirit did for the salvation of believers from the beginning of life on earth and will not cease to do until the day of judgment. If God is for us, then who can be against us? Therefore in the psalm the Holy Spirit exhorts the faithful, saying in the assemblies bless the Lord God from the fountains of Israel; how the youth Benjamin, in rapture of mind, contemplated the heavenly and rejected everything earthly. Blessed are those servants who joyfully rush to the praise of God and joyfully bless God together with the angels; blessed are those who despise external things and turn their inner hearts to God in order to receive the grace of the Holy Spirit, through whom they conquer all carnal love and resist the devil. The power and grace of the Holy Spirit is greater and stronger in good than the spirit of malice in evil. I bless and praise You, most glorious Jesus, for the great grace and wisdom that You gave to Your apostles to preach Your word with boldness before all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth, and especially for the firmness and steadfastness of those who, during the persecution of the holy citizens, remained steadfast in the faith, joyfully enduring reproach for Your name, although they were cast into dungeons, scourged, tormented by hunger and tortured with various punishments. All this seemed easy and insignificant to them for the crown of eternal life and the greatness of future glory, just as Blessed Paul says: suffering: the present time cannot be equal to the future glory that will be revealed in us, And this glory You, most beloved Jesus, Son of God, deigned to bestow on me by Your most gracious mercy and by the immeasurable grace of the Holy Spirit after the difficult and dangerous exploits of this life through the most gracious and the most glorious intercession of all Your saints. You live and reign with the Father and the same Holy Spirit—God, three in persons, one in being, equal in glory—to the endless ages of ages. Amen. To God is always thanksgiving, to God is glory, to God is honor, strength and power forever and ever. Amen. This work has just appeared in Russian in the translation of St. Slavnitsky in the appendix to the magazine “Russian Pilgrim”. Unfortunately, the translation was made not from the Latin original, but from an English translation, which of course deprives it of the necessary proximity to the original. But, in addition, this Russian edition also reflected the shortcomings that plague the English edition with its Protestant tendency, noted in the introduction (see “Christian Reading” for January, p. 71). In view of this, we dare to think that our translation, as made from the original and therefore closer and more accurately expressing the thoughts and feelings of the pious author, is by no means excluded by the appearance of the Russian translation of Father Slavnitsky. There were more than 2,000 publications in Latin, and more than 1,000 publications in French, not to mention publications in other countries and in other languages. The work "On the Imitation of Christ" early became accessible to Russian admirers, since its first Slavic translation dates back to 1637, therefore, made 22 years after the third Sommali edition of "Opera omnia of Thomas a à Kempis. Then there were many other translations and publications. The translation of Count M.M. Speransky was published in St. Petersburg in 1819 and 1821. The newest translation by K.P. Pobedonostsev, made “from the newly discovered original manuscript,” went through several editions and served to widely disseminate this deeply edifying work among the Russian reading public. See “Description of 432 St. Petersburg manuscripts.” Theological Academy" of A.S. Rodossky, St. Petersburg, 1894. Meditations on the Life of Christ by Thomas à Kempis. Transl. and edit, by archd. Wright and Rev. S.Kettlewell, with a Preface by the latter. Oxford and London 1892. At the same time it was published in New York under the same title. Already in 1895, the English press noted the appearance of the 3rd edition. See “Church Bulletin” for 1895 No. 51–52 and 1896 No. 12. This magazine has the honor of being the first in Russia to pay attention to this work and introducing it to its readers for the first time. In this critical and bibliographical essay we make use of the detailed research of Kettlewell (in his Preface to the English edition of the Meditations), who, with his learned research, finally established the authorship of Thomas a à Kempis in relation to the book “On the Imitation of Christ” and whose word in this area has a completely authoritative meaning. 2nd ed., Antwerp, 1607, small 4-to. Other titles given to it are as follows: – “Liber Orationum De Vita Domini”: Manuscript of a modern biography writer, late 15th century. – “Meditationes in Vitam Cliristi“, Baxheim Manuscript – “Orationes in Totam Vitam Cliristi:“ 1626, Cologne – “Orationes y Meditaciones de la Vida de Iesu Christo, X.S.”, 1661, Brussels But they all refer to the same essay. See Eusebius Amort, Moralis Certitudo pro Ven: Thoma Kempensi, 4-to, Augusta Vindelicorum, 1674, p.145. Having said that the pious elder died in 1471, he precisely continues: “Et quia multos Tractatus scripsit et dictavit in vita, et pauci sciunt, quomodo intitulantur vel vocantur, ideo tabulam de ejus Tractatibus et Libris hic intitulare et scribere intendo, ut omnes qui legunt vel audiunt, possint scire, quot sunt“. In exactly the same way, the biography writer notes individual books of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ,” which are found separately, thus: “ 5. Libellus sententiarum et verborum bumilis Jesu. Alias ​​vocatur de Imitatione Christi, scilicet: Qui seqnitur me“. "Secundus Tractatus. Vedpit Dei intra vos est." The words in italics are the same ones that begin the first and second books of the essay “On the Imitation of Christ.” See Eusebius Amort, in his Moralis Certitiido, pp.144-147. Eusebius Amorth is known as the author of “moral theology” and therefore the book “On the Imitation of Christ” was of greatest interest to him. See Amort, Moralis Gertitudo, pp.152–154. The book in question supposedly dates back to 1475. See Buschius, Chronicon, Windesemense, Antverpiae, 1621, 8-vo, vol.I, cap.II, pp.6, 7; à Kempis, Chronicon Sanctae Agnetis, also Antverpiae, 1621, 8-vo, cap. Ill, p.11; à Kempis, Vita Gerardi Magni, cap.IX, 2, 3, Opara, 1607, p.771. “De Spiritualibus Ascensionibus“. See Kettlewell's Thomas à Kempis, and the Brothers of Common Life) 1882, vol.1, pp.206–306. In relation to them he was like a bear, “quae frequenter lambendo expolire atque efformare consuevit.” He was like an ostrich: “quae non incubando, sed fixis oculis ova, din multumque intnendu pulltis exeludit... tam saepe autographa vidi, legi, revolvi, et cum priori editione tam sedulo contuli, adeo ud up serem me ad cam perfectionem omnino castigaitonem adduxisse, ut merito animo conquiescere debeam.” Critics less familiar with the matter claimed that “Reflections on the Life of Jesus Christ” was written by Bonaventure; others attributed this work to Rudolf of Saxony, a 14th-century Carthusian. But the thoughts of the latter do not have the slightest resemblance to the thoughts of Thomas a à Kempis - neither in subject matter nor in language; they are much lower than them (See Opera Onmia of St. Bonaventure, Moguntia. 1609; Meditationes de Vitâ Christi, in the sixth volume, fol. 334–401; Ludolphus de Saxonia Vita Christi, Strasbourg, 1471, fol.; and Meditationes de Vita Jesu Christ" Nürnberg, 1473, fol.). Since Carr's translation was directly made for the English nuns in Paris, only a few copies were printed. This creation is now very rare. Carr's real name is Miles Pinckney. He died in 1674. In these wonderful words: “Compuesto por el Venerable Thomas de Kempis, Canonjo Regular de la Orden de San Augustin, MDCLXI. A translation of Meditations on the Life of Jesus Christ was made early into English, by Henry Lee in 1700. But in this edition so many reflections and other references to Holy Scripture have been added by the translator himself that it is difficult to say what really belongs to Lee and what belongs to Thomas a à Kempis, whose name appears on the book. “On the Imitation of Christ”, book I, chapter XXV, edition 8 by K.P. Pobedonostsev, p.54. “On the Imitation of Christ,” book II, chapter I, p.59. Chapters 21–24 will be included in a separate edition of Reflections. Chapters 21–24 will be included in a separate edition of Reflections.