II

Gratitude, O..D. B. B. is not our only duty towards Our Lord, for the immense benefit of the Holy Eucharist. You are not ignorant of the outrages to which He has exposed Himself for your sake, not only during His passion, but during all ages in the sacrament of His love. To the blasphemies of impiety and heresy have been

superadded the horrible sacrilege of unworthy communions and the indifference, alas ! too frequent among the christians of our age.

You will therefore come, ©. D. B. B. during the solemn exposition, you will come and repair by your acts of faith and of piety, of love and of gratitude, all these outrages offered to your God. Let each parish, each family, each faithful endeavor to console the adorable heart which has loved men so much. You will for a time interrupt your labor to come and give yourselves up to Him and enjoy the ineffable sweetnéess of His presence. His mercy keeps Him captive in your midst, you will not abandon Him to a solitude which would prove your want of faith and condemn your lukewarmness.

You will vie with one another in zeal for the adorning of your church. God undoubtedly does not ask of you a richness which you cannot afford to give ; heaven and earth, with all their treasures, are His, but He requests above all you heart, and He values much more the mite offered with great good will, than the gorgeous decorations presented with coldness and indifference.

And do believe, O. D. B. B,, that this divine Saviour, who is rich in mercy (Eph. 2. 4.), will not allow himself to be overcome in generosity. In the Blessed Sacrament, as in heaven, 7e his always livine Lo make intercession for us (Heb: 7. 25). From His throne, He shall cast looks of beneficence upon each one of you ; His hand shall not cease to bless you ; His inexhaustible treasures shall be opened unto you: y people, He said to Jeremiah (31. 12.), shall come and shall give praise in Mount Sion : and they shall flow together to the good things of the Lord...Z will turn their mournine into 707, and will

comfort them, and make them joyful after their sorrow.

You will therefore all come and adore Our Lord during the solemn exposition. Let all, in each family, who can repairito the church, make it a duty to come and present their homage to Him W40 Lath delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated us into the kingdom of the son of His love, in Whom we have redemption through His blood, the remission of sinus ; Who is the image of the invisible God... through Whom all thines havé Gcen reconciled wnto God (Coloss. 1. 13441)

You will come, old men already hanging over your gravè, and adore in. His temple Him who shall soon console your agony in the holy viaticum, before appearing to you in the majesty of the supreme judge.

You will come, christian parents, who desire to draw down upon you and upon your family, the blessings of God. You will bring with you all your children, who are your joy and your crown (Philip. 4. 1.), that the look of the Divine Saviour resting upon them,'may for ever confirm in their tender hearts, the lessons and examples of faith and of piety which you give them.

You will come, just and faithful souls, and pour out your heart before Him Whom you love, for Whom you labor and sustain so many combats; at the feet of Jesus the divine oracle shall be verified ; 7e that is just, let him be justified still : and he that is holy, let him Ge sanclified still (Apoc. 22. 11.).

You will come also, poor sinners, who drag along sighing the claim of your iniquities. Approach with confidence : We have a great high-priest that hath passed into the heavens, Fesus the Son of God : wha has

. because you shall have refused nothing to this God of love.

compassion on our infirmilies, for He has been tempted in all things like as we are, without sin : let us 20 there- , fore with confidence to the throne of grace : that we may obtain mercy, and fine grace in seasonable aid (Heb. 4. 14). Yout soul has been so dear to Him that He has shed for its sake even the last drop of His blood ; why would you dread coming in His presence to ask Himthe strength you need to obtain eternal happiness ?

And you, poor sick and infirm, who cannot come out of your dwellings, be consoled. ‘Turn your looks towards the Church ; transport yourselves in heart to the feet of Jesus to adore Him, to love Him and to beseech Him as you would before His altar; and Jesus will bless your heart, hear your prayer, give you His grace, His strength, His light to guide you, His patience to bear your infirmities, and you will thus have no reason to envy those who shall have gone to the Church.

You will not confine yourselves, O. D. B. B., only to this visit to the Blessed Sacrament exposed ; you will also approach the tribunal of penance with a sincere contrition and the holy communion with a heart burning with love and gratitude. It is the desire of Our Lord Himself Who has given His body and His blood under the eucharistic kinds, to be united to you as intimately as possible, Vour happiness will then be complete

The exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will continue a sufficient time for all the parishioners to come to the Church and offer up their adorations. And thus shall be exactly verified that saying of a prophet, who, after having enumerated all the gates through which the various tribes of Israël might enter intothe new Jerusalem,

: announces that /4e ame of the city from that day was :

The Lord is there ; et nomen civitatis : Dominus ibidem (Ezech. 48. 35.).

Happy the parish of which it may be said, Dominus ibidem, The Lord is there to visit, to sanctifry, to blessit !

Happy the family which, after having adored Jesus, shall t de back to its dwelling, however poor and humble it may be, the grace, the love, the blessing ofthe Saviour of the world ! As at Bethleem, the angels shall sing over that house, the canticle of Glory be to God in the highest ; and on earth peace to men of good will (Luke 2. 14). The Lord is there ; Dominus ibiden.

Happy every one of the parishioners who shall have fulfilled with faith and piety this duty of gratitude, of reparation and of love ; it will be said also of his heart that it has become the sanctuary of Jesus. ÂDominus tbidem !

You will not be content, ©. D. B. B., with praying. for yourselves and your families. The Holy Catholic Church, our mother, is passing at this moment, through one of the most agitated epochs of her long and laborious career ; the Supreme Pontiff, our father, is exposed to persecution : the sanctuaries of the holy city are in the power of the enemies of our religion ; the œcumenical council of the Vatican is suspended ; Europe is at every moment threatened with frightful catastrophes ; secret societies are being every where organized to conspire in darkness ; one would almost think that humanity is writhing in a last and painful agony.

Our own dear country, although comparatively more calm and happy, is not secure from all commotions, and from one moment to the other the counter-blow of the

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