OF

HIK IMINHIP THE BIS1I0F OF OTTAWA,

Establishing the dévotion oi' the Fort y Hours in ail the parishes and missions oi' the Diocèse.

JOSEPH THOMAS DUHAMEL

Ey the mercy oi' G-od and the i'avour oi' the Holy Apostolic See, Bishop of Ottawa.

Tu the Clergy, to tlie Religions Communilies, and to ail ihr faithful of O/tr Diocèse, — Health and Bénédiction in Our Lord.

Oor Dkarly Belovbd Bketiihen,

What should hâve become oi' ctfi but for Jésus Christ } aska the Citholic Oateohism ; and the ans wer is : We should hâve been ail lost. Without religion, no one «an hope to be eternally saved. Now, JetUS Christ is the foundation ol" religion, acording to thèse words of the Apostle Saint Paul: Fundamentum tnim aliui netno potest pouere preeter id quod posUum est, quod été Christus Jésus (1, Oo*. III, II) : " For other Foundation no man can lay, but thaï which is laid; vrhich M .lesus Christ." Withoul our Lord, I hère can l>e no

salvation ; without Him, ail else couki uol procure the eternal happiness of man.

Therefore, the Christian's every thought, every word, and every action should be for Jésus Christ. He is the goal we should ail strive for without ceasing. He is the means by which man may attain his last end. He, with His Heavenly Father and the Holy Grhost, is the reward of the Blessed in heaven.

It follows that it is necessary to know Jésus Christ : Hœc est vita œterna, ut cognoscant te solum Deum verum, et quem misisti Jesum Christum (John, XV1T, 3) : " This is eternal life, that they may know thee, the only true G-od, and Jésus Christ whom thou hast sent." It is also necessary to discharge towards Him the duties which justice and gratitude exact of us, for it is in Him that we hâve rédemption, the rémission of sins (Col. I, 14)

In order to assist ail and every one of you, Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, to fulfill thèse serious obligations, we purpose to-day to discourse concerning Our Lord, and to propose to you a dévotion in His honor, the dévotion of the Forty Hours.

Àt the very moment of the fall of our first parents, G-od delivered to them the promise of a Ivedeemer, in thèse words addressed to the serpent : " I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed, and she shall crush thy head " : Inimicitias ponam inter te et mulierem et semen taum et semen iltius: ipsa conter et caput tuum (G-en. III, 15).

From that moment the Lord begins to prépare the way for the accomplishment of this promise. He préserves it as a precious remembrance in the hearts of men. He chooses a people amongst whom is to be

born the blessed fruit of the woman who shall crush the wicked serpent 's head. He so disposes of the affairs of this nation, that the expectation of a Saviour controls its existence. " This people," says a distinguished Catholic writer^, " has but one doctrine, one polity, one destiny, one fixed idea ; it is to announce, to

préfigure, and to await the Messiah This is the one

object of their aspiration. Nothing else can divert them from this, and they abandon themselves entirely to it ; not during one or two centuries, but during thirty

consécutive centuries Abraham, Jacob, Moses,

David, Isaias, Daniel and so many others, patriarchs, legislators, kings, pontiffs, anchorites, appear from time to time only to renew this grand hope, to prépare the way for One greater than they ; for Him who is to corne ; for the Star of Jacob ; for the Desired of the nations ; for Him in whom they shall be ail blessed, etc."

But when shall this Redeemer appear ?

One day the senators who composed the great council of the Jews sent from Jérusalem priests and lévites to Saint John the Baptist, to ask him : Who art thon ? And he replied : " I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness : Make straight the way of the Lord: Ego voz cl amant is in désert o : Dirigite viam Domini (John I, 23). Then wishing, notwJthstanding their designs, to confess Him who was corne to save the world, but whom the world knew not : Et mundus eum non cognovit (John I, 10), John the Baptist cried out : Media autem vestrum stetit, quem vos nescitis (John I, 26) : There hath stood one in the midst of you whom you know not : it is he who shall corne after me to communicate true light to men, who is so much preferred before me that I am not worthy to loose the latchet of his shoe ; Ipse est qui jtost me ven-

tttrus est eu jus non sum dignus ut solvam ejus

eorrigiam calceamenti (John I, 27). Who is lie of whom

' Auv. Nichola

the great John the Baptist so speaks ? Listetn ! John seeing Jésus coming towards him, exclaimed : It is He, it is the Lamb of G-od ; behold Him who taketh away the sins of the world ; Ecce Agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccatum mundi (John, I, 29;. And he gives évidence thus : (John, 1, 32) " I saw the Spirit coming down as a dove from heaven, and he remained upon him." Quia vidi spiritum descendentem quasi columbam de cœlo, et mansit super eum. It was at the baptism of Our Lord that the Precursor witnessed this prodigy. The Holy Evangelist déclares that on that occasion, and at that very same moment, a voice from heaven was heard saying : " This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased ; " Et ecce vox de cœlis dicens : Hic est filins meus dileclus, in quo milti complacui (Matt. III. 17). He is, therefore, the long expected of the nations of the world.

Now, who is Jésus Christ ? Who can describe His perfections, whom we call, and who truly is the Only Son of the One Grod ; who is the uncreated Wisdom and Splendor of the Uncreated Himself ; who has appeared in our midst, fuîl of grâce and truth, to make known to man the wonders of the Divin ity ?

Jésus Christ is the image and the figure of the substance of the Father, a reflection of His perfections, another Himself, for He is con ubstantial with the Father. Jésus Christ is the Grod of heaven and earth, the King of kings, Eternal, PowTerful like the Father, forming but One wTith Him in the indivisible Tiinity.

Jésus Christ is the Eternal word clothed with human nature.

Jésus Christ is Grod and man together. As man He is boni subject to the law ; as man, He becomes a slave, He carries the heavy load of the sins of the wrorld, and dies. As Grod, He is thelaw-giver ; as Grod, He delivers us from the most abject slavery it is pos-#

sible to conceive of. As Grod, lie triumphs and teaches soûls how to triumph over their enemies. As Grod, He is victor over death.

Jésus Christ is the Man-G-od ; a Divine Person, a Person who is Grod. His Divine heart is the depositary of the treasures of wisdom, of knowledge, of science, of piety, and of holiness.

Jésus Christ is born of the Virgin Mary. The child of poverty, a manger serves Him as a cradle. A miraculous star announce* His birth to the world ; angels welcome Him with heavenly strains, and holy men with bénédictions. Magi as well as shepherds adore Him, and kings, who hold their thrones by the tyrantiicaî use of power, tremble with fear. Masterof every science, Sovereign Lord of ail, He teaches the truths that are to be beheved, and the virtues that are to be practised. He heals the sick, and raises the dead to life. He gives good example in renderingto His Father the homage that is His due, and in paying the tribute money, but at the same time, He exacts and receives tribute from the sea. Saviour of the world, He expires on the cross, and at that very moment proves that He is G-od. His dead body is buried, and He "ornes forth livinir from the tomb.

The holy Evangelists and Apostles, divinely inspired, the Fathers and Doctors of theChurch, continually repeat to us that in Jésus Christ are realized the promises of God, and the prophecies and figures oftheOld Law, and the Church teaches us that in Jésus Christ alone can w<> find salvation. from the beginning of the world until tho end of âges : Et non est in <ili<> <ili<in<> sa/us (Acts. IV, 12).

h is not thcn surprising, Oui* Dearly Beloved Brethren, to heaï the Apostle Saint Paul cry ont in lioly enthusiasm, in a transport of faith, and hope, analove: " Jésus Christ jresterday, and to-day, and

the same fore ver : " Jésus Christus lien et hodie, ipse et in sœcula (Heb. XIII, 8).

The Apostle would hâve us nnderstand that Jésus is with us, and always wili remain, and that it is His delights to be with the ehildren of men : Deliciœ meœ, esse eu m filiis hominum (Prov. VIII, 31). Yes, and it is in the Holy Eucharist that He lias taken up His abode with us.

Hère are the proofs :

One day Jésus Christ was preachingat a short distance from the sea of Gralilee, toa great multitude who had followed Him. Seeing that the people were without food, Our Lord multiplied five barley loaves aud two lishes, so that five thousand men, besides the women and ehildren, were filled, and there remained fragments sufficient to fill twelve baskets.

Our Saviour eonsidered that this was a favorable occasion to discourse of the tSacrament of His bodv and blood, which He wished to distribute to millions and millions of soûls, in every quarter of the globe and throughout ail lime, unto the consummation thereof : / am, said He, the bread of life. Your falhers

did eat marina in the désert and are deal / am/he living

bread which came doivn from lieaven : lf an;// ma h eat of this bread, he shatl tve fo rêver : and the bread that .1 witt gice, is my flesh for the life of /he world. The Jeivs therefore strofe among themselves, saying : Hovj can this mon giée us lus flesh toeat ? Tlien Jésus said to them : Amen, amen, I snj unto y ou : Exempt y ou ml of the flesh of the Son of mav, and drink his blood, yo u shatl not hâve tife in y ou. He that ealeth my flesh anddrinketh my blood, hath everlasting lije, and I witl raise him up in the last day. For m y flesh is méat indeed : and my blood is drink indeed (JohnVr, 41-50).

The Jews, the disciples of Jésus, understood thèse words in their literal sensé ; they understood

that Jésus Christ really wished to give them His body for food and His blood for drink, and many of ihern went back, and walked no more with Him. Jésus sufTered them to go, and as He had nothing to changé in the promise He had made, He asked the Apostles : Will you also go mmy ? (John VI, 68) showingby this, that they ail understood His words in the only sensé they conveyed ; for if not, Ile would hare entered into explanations, as on other occasions, to retain the disciples in His company.

Let us now see, Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, how this promise of Our Lord was accomplished. The institution of the Eucharist is described almosl in the same terms by Saint Mat the w. Saint Mark, and Saint Luke. Opening the Grospel according to Saint Matthew, at chapter XXYI, vv. 26-28, we read : And whilst they were at supper, Jésus took bread, and blessed, and, broke and gave to his disciples, and said : Take ye, and eut: This is my body. And taking the chalice he gave tkanks : and gave to them, saying : Drink ye ail of Uns. For this is my blood of the new Testament which shall bc shed for many unto remission of sins. If you recall Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, the words of the promise of Our Lord, and compare them with thèse, you will cry out from the joy of your hearts : Oh ! yes, Jésus has admirably fuliilled His promise ; He has given us, indeed, His adorable body as food, and His precious blood as drink. But what should crown our joy is that Our Lord fins not instituted the Holy Eucharist for one supperonly, but forever. Inorder to perpetuate it, He commanded His Apostles and their sivcessors to renew the ceremony He had just performed saying : " Do this for a commémoration of me " : Hoc facile in mearn commemorationem (Luke XXII, 11*). Saint Paul, in his lirst Epistle t<> the Corinthiens, bears indisputable testimony to this in the following words: The chalice of bénédiction, which we bless, is if ><<>! the <-ommunûm o/ tlie blood ot Christ ? An<l the bread which we brcalr. is il not th? partaking <>f the h<>dy of the Lord ?

Fw I hâve reœivcd of the Lord that which also I delivend unlo you, that the Lord Jésus, tke saune night in which he was belrayed,look bread, and giving Ikanks, broke and said : Take ye and eat : this is my body which shall be delivt red for you : this do for the commémoration of me. In like mariner also the chalice, after he had supped, saying : This chalice is the new Testament in my blood : this do ye as often as you shall drink, jor the commémoration of me. For as often as you shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice, you shall sheiv the death of the Lord unlil he corne. Therefore, whosoever shall eat tins bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and oj the blood, of the Lord. But let a mon prove himself : and so tel him eat of that bread, and drink oj the chalice. For he thaï cate'h and drinketh umvorthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body oj the Lord (I Cor. X. 16, and XL 23-29).

The Apostle clearly expresses his belief in the Real Présence of Jésus in the Saerament of His Love. In order to make it more distinct, he déclares that whoever shall imrtake unworthily shall be guilty of the Body and the Blood of the Lord ! This belief of Saint Paul is the faith of ail the Apostles ; this faith of the Corinthians is the belief of ail who wish to be the disciples of Jésus Christ. The Holy Fathers, who are regarded by the unh^ersal Church as the exponents of Apostolic doctrine, bear irréfutable testimony to the Real Présence of the Body and the Blood of Jésus Christ in this Saerament.

Saint Ignatius, disciple of Saint Peter, speaking of the Grnostics, says : " They abstain from theEucharist and prayer, because they confess not that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Saviour."

Saint Justin, in the second century, writes : " "We call this food the Eucharist. No one can partake thereof who does not believe in the truth of our doctrine, who lias not been purihed by the remission

of sins and régénération, and who does not lead a lif'e conformable to the teachings of Christ. For we do not receive it as common bread and drink : but, as by virtue of the word of G-od, Jésus Christ Incarnate was made flesh and blood for our salvation, even so we hâve been taught that the Eucharist, being consecrated by the prayer that contains his divine words, is both the flesh and blood of the same Incarnate Jésus."

Origen, in the third century, says in a homily on the G-ospel relating to the Centurion : " When you partake ofthis incorruptible banquet, when you eat and drink of the Body and Blood of the Lord, then the Lord enters beneaih y our roof."

Saint Cyril of Jérusalem, in the fourth century, in his fourth instruction on the holy Mysteries, discoursing on the Body and Blood of Jésus Christ, speaks as follows : " He Himself having declared, This is my Body, who shall doubt henceforward ? And He having said, This is my Blood, who shall ever doubt, saying : This is not his blood. He, once at Cana, in G-alilee, turned water into wine, which is akin to blood ; and is He undeservi ng of belief, when He turned wine into blood ?

Saint Augustine, in the fifth century, says: "The bread which you see on the altar, after being sancliiied by the word of G-od, is the body of Christ. This chalice, after being sanctified by the word of Grod, is the blood of Christ."

But why multiply quotations ? To-day, with the exception of Protestants, who reject the évidence of proofs, ail Christian communions admit, and proclaim their belief, in the Real Présence of Jésus Christ in the Holy Sacrament.

The Présence of Our Lord in the Eucharist, which takes place ai the Boly Mnss, is the accomplishxnenf

of this prophecy of Malachias : " From the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the G-entiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name aclean oblation : " Ab oriu solis usque ad occasum, magnum est nomcn meum in gentibus ; et in omni loco sacrificatur, et offertur nomini meo oblatio munda — (Mal. I, 11.)

This is a certainty of which you are convinced, Our Dearly Beloved Brethren. Jésus Chiist occupies the history of the world from the création to the présent time, and He will remain to fill it until the end, according to His own promise : " Behold I am with you ail days. even to the consummation of the world " : Et ecce ego vohiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem sœculi — (Matt. XXVIII, 20).

Let us give free course tô our joy : The Emmanuel lias appeared, the Word is made flesh, Jésus is corne to dwell amongst us. He is corne to cast fire on the earth, and He wills that it be kindied : Ignem veni mittere in terram et quid volonisiut accendatur ? (Luke XII, 49). The earth on which the Saviour casts fire is the human heart ; and the flame that He enkindles is love.

To love Jésus Christ, to love Him in the Holy Eucharist, — this is our duty and our happiness. Who can understand the infinité splendor of G-od concealed under the Eucharistie species ? Who can explain to man ail that is contained in the Holy Eucharist ? The Eucharist confirms the right of those who partake of it to enter one day into eternal rest. For, indeed, Our Lord has said : " He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood,hath everlasting life." And the Church,seizing the full meaningof thèse words ofher Divine Founder, in the présence of the Eucharist, cries out in admiration : 0 sacred banquet in which we receive the pledge of eternal life ! (Office of the BlessedSacram<mt).

The Holy Eucharist générâtes hère on earth a heavenly lif'e. Natural food is changed into the substance of those who eat thereof, and becomes their blood and their flesh. So whoever eateth worthily of the bread of the Eucharist, the nourishment of the soûl, is transformed into Christ, and becomes a new créature who can say with Saint Paul : " Our conversation is in heaven " : Nostra autem couver satio in cœlis est (Phil. III, 20).

The Holy Eucharist gives the soûl a fore-taste of the glory of eternity, since it contains Jésus Christ as He is in heaven. Hence the Christian can say in ail truth : I now possess as viaticum Him whom I shall afterwards possess as a reward.

Therefore it is that the Church rejoices in the Présence of Jésus Christ. She repeats every day the words of the Prophet : Introibo ad aliare Dei, ad Deum qui lœtiftcat juventutem meam (Ps. 42) : " I will go in to the altar of Grod, to G-od who giveth joy to my youth.

But the more she rejoices in His Présence, the more she feels called to offer Him her homages, and honor Him with ail her pomps. On certain occasions, she prays her Divine Spouse to come out of His tabernacle and remain exposed to the worship of His children. "Then," says the Holy Council of Trent (Sess. XIII, ch. V.) uthe Holy Eucharist, although instituted to be the spiritual food of the faithful,

merits none the less our adoration It is right that

there should be festival days established, so that ail Christians may, by some particular démonstration, show their gratitude for the Divine Grâce of Kedemption."

The hearing of Mass, holy communion, visits to Jhe Blessed Sacrament, especially when it is exposed to public vénération, are so many ways of showing to Jésus Christ our love and our gratitude.

\ onr dévotion to, and \ « » 1 1 r confidence in Ont Lord give us reason to belie\re tlial you will receive with joy, the announcement of the establishment of the Forty Hours in this diocèse. This beautiful dévotion cannot be bnt dear to yon, for it will assist yon in the fulfillment of ail your duties to Oui* Savionr ; it will move you to consecrate your hearts forever to Jésus ; it will préserve you in the practice of Christian virtue ; it will give you an occasion to repair the outrages offered to the Sacred Heart of Jésus.

You will then corne, Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, during the solemn Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. which will be held in our churches, you will corne to adore your Grod, to prove your love for Him in His concealment, to pray for the Church, for the Pope, and for Country — to ask Him for the grâces you requirc, and by your acts of faith, of piety, and of gratitude, offer réparation for ail the outrages done Him.

Most precious Indulgences are attached to this dévotion. To obtain them, confession and communion are required, besides the visit to the Blessed Sacrament. You will, therefore, approach the holy tribunal ol Penance with a lively and sincère contrition, and corne to the holy Table with a heart innamed with the lire of charity.

In establishing the Forty Hours, it is with regret We hâve to state : lst. That as yet it is not possible to hâve the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament on every day of the year, owing to the fact that our churches and chapels are not sumciently numerous ; 2nd. That almost everywhere, it is very dimcult, if not impossible, to hâve the Exposition during the night. Let us hope, Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, and let us offer fervent prayers to Grod, that circumstances may change, and it shall no longer be impossible to h#ve a perpétuai Exposition. What consoles us is, that the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will everywhere

|UÎ<

continue suflieientiy long to allow al] the faithfnl fco visit the church duri iil: that time.

Wherefore, the holy naine of G-od being invoked, we decree as follows : —

lst. In virtue of an Induit ad quinquennmm of Pope Léo XIII, bearingdate the twenty-sixth January oi' the présent year, authorizing Us to this eftéct, the pious Exercise of the Forty fîours is established in this Diocèse, to be held successively in ail parishes, missions, and chapels of Religions Oominuiiities, as inany days as possible during the year, and even al night in places where we shall perceive no sciions dilficulty, so that our prayers bffered at the fecl of Jésus Christ really and substantially Présent, ma. y ascend like incense before the throne of Grâce and Divine G-oodness.

2nd. The opening of the Forty Hours shall take place in the Cathedra! of Ottawa on the Krst Sunday in Advent, the 30th ol this month. This holy Exercise shall commence on the same Sunday in the same church every year.

3rd. The Exposition shall bc held in the other churches and chapels on the days appointed on a list ad hoc, which will be forwarded every year to parish priests, missionarh s, and others.

4th. On thèse occasions, the Partieular Instructions prescribed therefor must be exactly ibllowed. You will lind them aihxed to the présent Pastoral Letter.

Shall the présent Pastoral Letter be read at the prone in ail churches and chapels where public office is held, and ai chapter in Religions Communi-

ties, the iirst Sunday ait ci [ta réception, and also

every year on the Sunday preceding the opening of the Forty Hours in the church where this Exercise is to be held.

Griven at Ottawa, under Our hand and the seal of Our Diocèse, and countersigned by Our Secretary the twenty-first November, being the Feast of the Présentation of the Blessed Virgin, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine.

t J. THOMAS, Bp. of Ottawa.

By Command, M. J. Whelan, Priest,

Secretary.