Meditations for every day in the year: collected from different spiritual writers

Front matter

MEDITATIONS

FOR

EVERY DAY IN THE YEAR

Introduction

[Copy of the Copyright to the first American edition of this work, published at Georgetown, D. C, in 1823, by Joseph Milligan, and printed by J. C. Dunn.]

District of Columbia, to wit:

BE it remembered, that on the twentieth day of March, in the forty-seventh year of the Independence of the United States of America, Joseph Milligan, of the said District, has deposited in this office, the title of a Book, the right whereof he claims as Proprietor, in the words following, to wit :

"Meditations for every day in the year, collected from different spiritual writers. First written in Latin by N. B., translated into English by E. M., in the year 1669, and now revised by Rev. R. Baxter. Every day will I bless thee : and I will praise thy name forever; yea. forever and ever. — [Ps. cxlv. 2.]"

In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States, entitled "An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of Maps, Charts and Books, to the Authors and Proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned.

EDMUND I. LEE,

Clerk of the District of Columbia.

ARCHBISHOPRIC OF BALTIMORE.

Baltimore, June 24, 1884.

Dear Father Neale :

I am glad to learn that you are preparing for publication a new edition of that excellent work, "Short Points for Mental Prayer. " This precious book was originally written in 1639, and was used by Challoner, Walmsly, and other Confessors of the Faith in times of persecution. I hope the volume will have a large sale, not only among your own flock in St. Mary's County, but throughout the country.

Believe me,

Yours faithfully in Christ,

+ JAMES GIBBONS,

Archbishop of Baltimore

[Copy of Approbations given to the first American edition of this work.]

APPROBATIONS.

Ego infrascriptus attente ac sedulo perlegi Hbrum, cui titulus Meditations for every day in the year, revised, etc., by Rev. R. Baxter, in <juo nihil invenio contra fidem vel bonos mores. — Cum vero opus illud optimum mihi videtur inter id generis libros, Christifidelibus ilud impense commendatum esse volo, quod nulli non Christiana* familiae Bibliothecae instar futurum esse existimo.

A. Kohlmann, S. I. Censor.

Washington, 28th February, 1823.

Legi librum cui titu.us, Meditations for every day in the year, recenter quoad linguam prcecipue, a Rev. R. Baxter, S. J. recensitum, in quo tantum abest, ut quid vel fidei vel moribus contrarium repererim, quin potius omnia et orthodoxa, et pia et docta et perutilia invenio. Quapropter ilium nova impressione dignissimum censeo.

Franciscus Dzierozynski, S. I. Censor.

Dat. in Col. Geo. Feb. 12, 1823.

Imprim: C. Neale, Sup.

A. M. D. G.

PREFACE TO THE PRESENT EDITION.

This volume of Meditations is interesting not only from its origin, which is given at length in the Preface to the first American edition, but also from the fact that it is among the first devotional works published in this country. Even prior to its appearance here the English edition was much in use. This, in itself, adds vastly to its historical interest, since it creates, as it were, a spiritual fellowship with those pioneers of the faith who came not only to teach, but prepared to suffer. The first American edition owed its appearance to the exertions of the Rev. Roger Baxter, S.J., a man conspicuous for his learning, eloquence, and zeal in defence of the faith. Though dying at the early age of thirty-four, he was the author of at least two books which earned for him fame in the field of polemics; one, "A Series of Letters between M. B. and Quaero on the Tenets of Catholicity" appeared in 1817; the other, " The Most Important Tenets of the Roman Catholic Church, fairly explained," was published three years later, and even to this day is recognized as a standard controversial work.

This present volume contains Father Baxter's Preface to his edition, which is certain to excite attention, as it embraces the history of the book as well as the method laid down by its author.

We have also included the Approbations given to Father Baxter's edition, and a transcript of the old copyright as likely to prove interesting to the bibliographer. We hope that the present edition, like its predecessors, will prove not only welcome, but be as productive of good to souls.

PREFACE.

The following series of Meditations has been long in high repute in England. They were originally collected, a long time ago, from the best ascetical writers, which were then in existence, and there is hardly a meditation book of those days which our author has not ransacked in order to form his work. Tradition says that this little book served in an eminent degree to keep alive the spirit of their religion among the persecuted Catholics of England, for when it was first printed the days of intolerance and religious proscription had not passed away. Independently of the intrinsic merit of the book, these associations give it some degree of interest which it would not otherwise possess. This book was a particular favorite with such men as Bishops Challoner and Walmsly.

The devout contemplative, as well as the ordinary Christian, may use these Meditations with advantage.

The edition used in revising this work was printed in the year 1669. If the language had only been a little antiquated, it would have been better to have reprinted it in its original state; for we have more than one instance of good old books being revised and corrected, and spoiled. But the style was too far removed from the standard of modern language for the book to appear in it before the public, with that credit to which it is entitled. The citations from Scripture, besides, were taken from an older English translation of the Bible, the phraseology of which differs in many respects from the present authorized translation.

The translator of 1669 (Rev. E. Mico), with some trifling changes in phraseology and orthography, gives in his preface the following account of the work: " The author of these Meditations is still living in England, of which he is a native; but his modesty prevents me from publishing his name. But, if his reputation be of any concern to the reader, I think myself bound to tell the world that his singular virtue and talents have placed him for the last twenty years in an eminent employment in his religious profession. He composed this book thirty years ago (1639), in Latin, for the benefit of a private community, in whose spiritual advancement he was interested. The work, though never before printed, has a sufficient approbation from the esteem of all those who have made use of it. Some persons of virtue, talents, and authority have procured manuscript copies of the Meditations, and make use of no other in their daily exercise of mental prayer."

The author's name has not travelled down to us in any other shape than as expressed in the title-page.

HOW TO MEDITATE OR PRAY MENTALLY.

St. Augustine is quoted as saying that "any one who knows how to pray rightly, knows how to live rightly." Many opinions could be cited of holy and learned writers who attach the greatest importance to mental prayer, and for some persons think it even necessary for salvation.

Distant Preparation. — 1. Avoid venial sins and be exact in all duties. 2. Practise some self-denial; guard your eyes and tongue. 3. Have a habit of recollection and union with God. 4. Be patient and kind.

Near Preparation. — 1. Read the subject attentively the evening before, and fix it in the memory. 2. Picture in your imagination some object or scene connected with the subject of meditation. 3. Take a respectful and not too easy posture in meditating. We should try to come to prayer with a disengaged mind and a tranquil heart.

Begin your Mental Prayer by realizing the presence of God, and kiss your crucifix devoutly. Preparatory Prayer: O my God, I offer myself entirely to Thee, and beg of Thee to direct all the powers of my soul to know, honor, love, and serve Thee. Grant, dearest Lord, that I may practise the virtue taught by this meditation. (Recall the picture formed in imagination.)

Then carry on a conversation, as it were, with Almighty God, while you exercise your memory, under- standing, and will (either all together or separately), asking, I. What am I going to think of? (who? where? when? why?) II. What doctrine or practical truth is to be learned from this? III. What reasons or motives for it from authority, reason, experience, or from the subject itself? (Is it becoming? is it profitable? is it agreeable? is it easy? is it necessary?) IV. How have I done in the past? (in thought, word, action; towards God, my neighbor, myself?) V. What must I do in the future? (hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly?) VI. What obstacles are in my way? — (internal, external?) VII. What means must I use? — (determine on one or two things, and no more.)

Finish your meditation by a most fervent address to God the Father, to Jesus Christ, to God the Holy Ghost; also to the Blessed Virgin, the Angels and Saints.

After Meditation, examine yourself as to the preparation for your mental prayer; as to the manner in which you have made the meditation itself (posture, attention place, time). If it has succeeded, thank God; if it has not, find out the cause and resolve to do better next time.

November to Advent

MEDITATIONS.

NOVEMBER

FEAST OF ALL-SAINTS

Christ in the holy Eucharist as head of all the Saints.

"O God, my God! to Thee I watch from the morning light." (Ps. lxii. 2.)

I. Imagine yourself among the blessed angels and Saints in heaven, contemplating the face of God: and consider, 1. How great are the glory, riches, beauty, and majesty of that infinite Being. "Thousands of thousands minister to Him, and ten thousand times a hundred thousand stand before Him." (Dan. vii. 10.) 2. Think how great is His power; for " whatsoever the Lord pleased He hath done in heaven, in earth, in the sea, and in all the depths." (Ps. cxxxiv. 6.) 3. How great is His wisdom. "Great is our Lord, and great is His power, and of His wisdom there, is no number." (Ps. cxlvi. 5.) 4. How great, too, is His immensity; "for He is higher than the heaven; deeper than hell; longer than the earth; and broader than the sea." (Job xi. 8.)

II. This Majesty so great, this Head of all the Saints, whose memory you celebrate this day, does not disdain to enter the humble habitation of your soul. He even desires it Himself; for He says, "My delight is to be with the children of men." (Prov. viii. 31.) Not, indeed, that He stands in need of you, who are but dust and ashes; but because He wishes to enrich your poverty with the infinite treasures of His divinity. Reflect, therefore, who you are and who He is, and exclaim with the Royal Prophet, "What is man, that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man that thou visitest him?" (Ps. viii. 5.)

III. You must prepare your soul for the arrival of so great a guest. "Be prepared," says the prophet Amos, to meet thy God, O Israel." (Amos iv. 12.) Wherefore, purify it first, as perfectly as you are able, not only from all mortal guilt, but also from all venial sin. "Blessed are the clean of heart," says Jesus Christ, "for they shall see God." (Matt. v. 8.) Enkindle afterwards in your soul an ardent love, that you may long retain your heavenly guest with you; for He says, "If any one love Me, we will come to him and make our abode with him." (John xiv. 23.)

For Meditations on week days, see page 26 and following pages.

FIRST SUNDAY AFTER ALL-SAINTS.

Christ in the Sacrament as King.

"To-day I will dine with the king." (Esther v. 12.)

[This and the other Meditations for the Sundays of this month are to be placed between week and week, as they come in their turn.]

I. Jesus Christ is truly a king; the King of kings and Lord of lords. His empire does not extend over one nation only, but over heaven and earth, angels and men. "I am appointed King by Him over Zion" (Ps. ii. 6), and not for a limited time only, as are the kings of the earth, but "forever and ever." (Ex. xv. 18.) Consequently, every service and duty, all homage and tribute which subjects owe to their prince, are due in an eminent degree from you to your King. Examine whether you have hitherto performed your duty.

II. What would you do were some earthly prince or potentate to visit you? How carefully would you put your habitation in order, lest anything might offend the prince's eyes! How much more pains ought you to take to adorn your soul, and render it a fit habitation for the King of heaven, who condescends to visit you in the holy Eucharist! "A house is preparing, not for man," as the prophet says, "but for God." (1 Par. xxix. i.) The women mentioned in the book of Esther, spent a whole year in preparing themselves to appear but once before king Assuerus: "For six months they were anointed with oil of myrrh, and for other six months they used certain perfumes and sweet spices." (Esther ii. 12.) How much greater care ought Christians to employ in preparing themselves to appear worthily before their Lord!

III. Princes of this world are accustomed to send before them furniture and provisions befitting their dignity, to the place which they intend to visit. Entreat Jesus Christ to do the same in your regard, to relieve your spiritual poverty. Besides, if you wish to entertain Him, as He desires, you must divest yourself of every carnal and worldly affection, and listen with all submission to His interior inspirations. "Incline thine ear and forget thy people, and thy father's house," says the royal psalmist, "and the King will greatly desire thy beauty." (Ps. xliv. 11.)

SECOND SUNDAY AFTER ALL-SAINTS.

Christ Your Father

"I will arise and go to my father." (Luke xv. 17.)

I. Almighty God, though He be infinitely powerful and rich, and in regard to whom all His creatures are as "a drop of a bucket, and as the smallest grain of a balance" (Is. xl. 15), does not disdain to be called, and to be really, our Father. He condescends in some respect to be our only Father; for Jesus Christ says, "Call none your father upon earth, for One is your Father who is in heaven." (Matt, xxiii. 9.) Christ Himself would be styled by a special title the "Father of the world to come" (Is. ix. 6), and not content with this, He assumes something more than even the affection of a mother: "If she should forget her child," He says, "yet will not I forget thee." (Is. xlix. 15.) Reflect deeply how Christ performs both of these offices. — He not only gives us a spiritual life, but He nourishes us with His own most precious body and blood.

II. Consider how, like another prodigal son, you have abandoned a father so good and so affectionate; and employed yourself in feeding swine. He is, however, still ready to receive you again, and clothe you with His costly robe; for, "as a father hath compassion on his children, so hath the Lord compassion on them that fear Him; for He knoweth our frame." (Ps. cii. 13.) He awaits you to-day in the Eucharist, and with open arms wishes to embrace you. Dispose yourself, then, to receive Him in the most worthy manner.

III. To dispose your soul in the best manner to receive Jesus Christ, you must, in the first place, humbly beg pardon for your offences committed against Him. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee." (Luke xv. 18.) Secondly, you must form a resolution of never more abandoning Him; but of imitating the perfection of your heavenly Father, according to the words of the Apostle: "Be ye therefore followers of God, as most dear children." (Eph. v. 1.) You must, therefore, with a filial confidence, represent to your heavenly Father all your weaknesses and your wants when He visits you, for if "fathers know how to give good gifts to their children, how much more will your Father from heaven give the good Spirit to those who ask Him." (Luke xi. 13.)

THIRD SUNDAY AFTER ALL-SAINTS.

Christ your Brother.

"Who shall give thee to me, for my brother, sucking the breasts of my mother, that I may find thee without, and kiss thee." (Cant. viii. 8.)

I. To make us more sensible of His love for us, Jesus Christ has adopted not only the name of our Father, but even that of our Brother. Thus, by placing Himself on a certain equality with us (which is accustomed to be the case between brothers), he insinuates Himself in a more familiar manner into our favor, "for which reason," as St. Paul writes, "He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name to My brethren." (Heb. ii. 11, 12.) " Go tell My brethren," He says, "that they go into Galilee." (Matt, xxviii. 10.) Reflect what an honor it is to be the brother of so great a prince; "and if," as the wise man says, " a brother helped by a brother is like a strong city" (Prov. xviii. 19), what help and comfort may you not expect to receive from such a brother!

II. Reflect on your cruel conduct towards your brother; for you have sold him not for twenty pieces of silver, as did the sons of Jacob their brother Joseph, but perhaps for some transient or degrading passion. Like another, and a more guilty Cain, you have murdered this innocent brother Abel of yours, by your sins, and nailed Him to a cross. Yet He has forgiven you, and now invites you to Himself, saying with Joseph, " I am Joseph, your brother; be not afraid; come to me and I will give you all the good things of Egypt, that you may eat the marrow of the land." (Gen. xlv. 4.) And what is this marrow of the land, but His own most precious body and blood, " the corn of the chosen ones, and wine which maketh virgins spring forth." (Zach. ix. 17.)

III. How ought you to meet this divine brother of yours? Imitate Jacob, who went with great presents to meet his angry brother Esau. (Gen. xxxiii. 10.) Let your presents be first " a contrite and humble heart," (Ps, 1. 19), which He will never despise. Secondly, a firm determination of never sinning again "against your brother." (Gen. xlii. 21.) Thirdly, a desire of imitating His virtues, in order that, by rendering your life and conduct like His, He may appear to be what He really is, " the first-born among many brethren." (Rom. viii. 29.)

FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER ALL-SAINTS.

Christ your Master.

"The Master is come and calleth for thee." (John xi. 2S.)

I. How ignorant mankind generally are in heavenly things, and in the great affair of salvation! We often "call evil good, and good evil;" we " put darkness for light, and light for darkness." (Is. v. 20.) We often make virtues of our vices, and real virtue we consider folly. To remedy this moral defect in man, the eternal Wisdom of the Father descended from heaven to be our Master, and teach us the ways of truth. "Ye call me master and Lord," He says of Himself, " and ye say well, for so I am." (John xiii. 13.)

II. How willingly and attentively you ought to listen to this Master, "in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge!" (Col. ii. 3.) "The principal incitement to learn," says St. Ambrose, "is the excellency of the master." What master can be more excellent than Christ Himself, who being the infinite and uncreated wisdom of His Father, can neither deceive nor be deceived? "The Queen of the South came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, a greater than Solomon is here." (Matt. xii. 42.) He is ready in the Eucharist to receive you, and teach you the science of Saints, and the ways of salvation, if you present yourself with proper dispositions.

III. A due preparation is necessary on your part, if you wish to listen with profit to the lessons of this divine master. He requires that His scholars should be, first, pure from all sin; "for wisdom will not enter into a malicious soul, nor dwell in a body subject to sin:" (Wis. i. 4.) 2. Humble and little in their own eyes; for He says to His Father, "Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to little ones;" (Matt. xi. 25.) 3. Mortified and detached from worldly things; for, "whom shall He teach knowledge? and whom shall He make to understand the hearing? Those who are weaned from the milk, who are drawn away from the breasts." (Is. xxviii. 9.) Take care, then, that you be thus disposed and prepared to meet Him.

The End of Man. I.

I. What were you a hundred years ago? Absolutely nothing; and so you would have been forever, if God had not deigned to give you an existence. He could have given to the original matter, of which you were made, an infinite number of other forms, but he was pleased to endow it with a rational soul, and give you a being among men. But for what object? Not to trifle away your time and existence in folly, not to pursue the honors and pleasures and vanities of this world, and to terminate your lives like irrational creatures. "The Lord has made all things for Himself." (Prov. xvi. 4.) It is your duty then to serve and worship Him in this world, that you may attain life everlasting in the next.

II. Consider the excellence of this end. Every other living creature is formed stooping to the earth, and is possessed of a soul that ends with its body. Man alone is raised to the sublime dignity of blessing and praising his Creator in a rational manner, and after a short life spent virtuously, of being crowned with immortal glory. With good reason holy David, full of wonder, exclaims, "What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? — Thou hast made him a little less than the angels, Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor, and hast set Him over the works of Thy hands." (Ps. viii. 5.)

III. Consider under what obligations you are to your Creator for so great a favor; and how diligently you ought to direct your whole life to His honor and service. These ought to be the only object of your actions, and even of your thoughts. Wherefore say with the prophet, "I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall be al- ways in my mouth." (Ps. xxxiii. 1.) "You were born for heaven; take care that you do not degenerate from the lofty thoughts of the sons of God" (Father Azevedo), "take care that you do not carry in an upright and straight body a crooked soul;" that is, a soul unnaturally inclined to the fleeting objects of this world.

The End of Man. II.

I. Since the object of your existence is to praise and serve God alone, and since the means relating to any end are good or bad only, inasmuch as they help us to attain that end or withdraw us from it; so it is evident that you ought to make use of creatures only inasmuch as they further the attainment of that object, and to avoid them when they withdraw you from it. Therefore you are not to desire riches, honor, nor the conveniences of this life, nor even health, unless they help you to praise and serve God. Wherefore the devout author of the Imitation of Christ says well: "Better is the humble peasant, that serves God, than the proud philosopher, who neglecting himself, meditates on the course of the heavens."

II. Examine if you possess any disordered affections for the objects mentioned above. Examine whether you be willing to suffer poverty, reproach, sickness, and even death itself, if God's glory could be increased by it. Offer yourself to your Creator, with perfect indifference to all things. Say with the prophet, "My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready" (Ps. cvii. 28); and with Christ, "Not as I will, but as Thou wilt." (Matt. xxvi. 39)

III. How irrationally those men live who in their actions pursue any other object than God, who misspend their time in seeking honors, riches, and pleasures! Their conduct is as foolish as would be that of the mariner, who, wishing to sail to the north, steers towards the east — neither will arrive at the end of his journey. Of such the prophet speaks when he says, "You have sowed much and brought in little; you have eaten but have not had enough; you have drunk, but have not been filled with drink. " (Agg. i. 6.) In fine, " they spend their days in wealth, and in a moment they go down to hell." (Job xxi. 13.) Do not follow their example.

The Duty of Man towards God. I.

I. The whole duty of man in regard to his God is comprised in this short sentence: " Decline from evil and do good." (Ps. xxxvi. 27.) These are the two principal points in a Christian life; they are the two wings on which we must fly to heaven. In regard to the first branch of a Christian's duty, the declining from evil, " the life of man upon earth" is declared in Holy Scripture to be "a continual warfare" (Job ix. 28); and Christians are termed soldiers, because it is their duty to stand on their guard, and resist the suggestions of the enemy and his temptations to sin.

II. In this warfare we are to combat sin, even to death; we must never desist, or think ourselves secure, but always stand under arms with watchful care and fear. Job, with all his virtue, examined and feared the smallest of his actions. David, though a man according to God's own heart, did in his own emphatical language continually "sweep his spirit." (Ps. lxxvi. 7.) The Baptist, although sanctified in his mother's womb, led a retired and austere life, for fear "lest (as the Church sings of him) he might stain his life with a slight fault of the tongue." St. Paul, though he was confirmed in grace and rapt to the third heaven, notwithstanding said of himself, " I so fight, not as one beating the air. But I chastise my body and bring it into subjection." (1 Cor. ix. 26.) Consider nothing then too difficult in order to avoid sin.

III. We must not only avoid the actual commission of sin, but also shun every consent of the mind to it. "Beware thou consent not to sin at any time." (Job iv. 6.) Resist every suggestion to sin, and all taking of pleasure in it; for as St. Gregory remarks, " In suggestion is the seed of sin, in delectation the nourishment, in consent the perfection or consummation." Examine what caution you employ, and what guard you place over your thoughts, words, and actions; how you avoid the occasions of danger and resist the suggestions of the devil, the world, and the flesh. Assume, with the saints of God, your spiritual arms; they are prayer and mortification. With these you will be enabled to achieve a glorious victory, and merit an immortal crown.

The Duty of Man towards God. II.

I. The second branch of the Christian's duty is to labor in the exercise of good works, in order to please his Creator. Wherefore, heaven is sometimes spoken of in Holy Writ as "a valuable pearl;" at other times as a " treasure hidden in a field " (Matt. xiii. 44), which we are to discover with pains and labor, and to sell all that we have, to purchase; sometimes, again, as a prize, which we are to gain by running the race of virtue and perfection (1 Cor. ix. 24), and everywhere as the crown and reward of meritorious actions. It is your duty to per- form the part of an industrious merchant, and by good works to "lay up to yourselves treasures in heaven." (Matt. vi. 20.)

II. Consider the motives which ought to induce you to labor in the pursuit and increase of virtue. 1. The will of your heavenly Father, "For this is the will of God — your sanctification." (1 Thes. iv. 3.) 2. The name of Christian, whose profession is sanctity; and therefore Christians are called by the Apostle "a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation." (1 Pet. ii. 9.) 3. The examples of Saints of both sexes, of all ages and conditions. By these examples St. Augustine frequently encouraged himself, by inquiring, "Cannot you do what such and such have done?" viz., tender youths and timorous virgins. 4. The greatness of the reward. "Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven." (Matt. v. 12.)

III. Consider the many helps which God has afforded you for your spiritual profit. 1. His divine word, communicated to you in Holy Scripture, sermons, and pious books, by which He informs your understanding and inflames your will. 2. His holy grace, which He is always ready to give you, to enable you to commence, prosecute, and complete any good work. 3. The sacraments, instituted by Christ, to give us a spiritual life, and to nourish and strengthen us in it. 4. The life, merits, and passion of our Saviour, "who is the way, and the truth, and the life." (John xiv. 6.) And, "who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a people acceptable, zealous of good works." (Tit. ii. 14.) Let not these helps be thrown away on you.