And, in another place, S. Bernard says, “Meditate on the Passion of the crucified Body, and see if there is any member in it which does not plead for thee to the Father. For thee, that Divine Head was encircled with the prickly tresses of thorns, which were driven into the tender covering of the brain, and so fixed. 4 My people/ says the Lord by His Prophet, 4 have surrounded Me with the thorns of their sins/ It is, therefore, that your head may not ache, or your intentions be wounded, that His Eyes were dim with death, and for a while were darkened, whose brightness illuminates the world. Was it not when they were darkened that darkness covered all the earth, and, with those two great luminaries, other lights were withdrawn ? But all this was done, that your eyes might be turned away, lest they behold vanity ; or, if they did, might shun it. Those Ears which hear in Heaven, ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts/ hear on earth/ 4 Thou hast a devil ;13 4 Crucify Him, crucify Him/ And why this? But that your ears might not be deaf to the cry of the poor, nor be open to words of vanity, or drink in the venom of slander. That beautiful Face, fairer than the sons of men, was besmeared with spittle, injured by blows, regarded with derision. For thus it is written, 4 Then did they spit in His Face, and buffeted Him,. •. saying, Prophesy unto us, who is he that smote Thee ? 9 1 Why was this ? But that thy face might be enlightened, and, being enlightened, may be confirmed, and 4 be no more sad/ 2 That Mouth, which teaches angels and instructed men, which spake and it was done, was now tormented with vinegar and gall ; but this came to pass, that thy lips might speak the words of truth and justice, and confess the Lord thy God. Those Hands, which laid the foundations of the Heavens, are stretched upon the Cross, and transfixed with the sharpest nails, that thine hands may be stretched out towards the poor, that you may be able to say with the Psalmist, 4 My soul is alway in my hand /14 What we have ever in our hand we do not easily forget ; so he who applies his soul to good works, will not easily forget it That Breast, in which are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, was wounded by the soldier’s spear, so that thy breast might be purified from all evil imaginings; and having been purified, might be sanctified, and having been sanctified, might be kept holy. Those Feet, whose footstool we ought to adore, because it is holy, were pierced by the cruel nails and fixed, that thy feet might not hasten towards evil, but run in the way of Thy commandments. What shall I say more ? 4 They pierced My hands and My feet; I may tell all My bones .’15 For thee He laid down His flesh and life, to gain for Himself thy body and spirit. He gave all for all.” Again, 44 Awake now, O my soul, and shake off your dust, and contemplate this wonderful Man, whom, in 4 the mirror of the Gospel,’ 8 you may behold as present. Consider, my soul, who is this, who advances with the mien of a king, and nevertheless is covered with confusion as though the vilest slave. He walks crowned, but His crown brings Him torture. At a thousand points His Blessed Head is wounded. He is arrayed in royal purple, yet this contributes rather to contempt than to honour. He bears a sceptre in His Hand ; but with it they strike His venerable Head. They worship before Him, bending their knees to the ground, and proclaim Him king; but immediately they spit upon His lovely cheeks, strike Him on the mouth, and dishonour His noble neck.
44 Behold, my soul, how that Man by all is pressed and insulted. He is ordered to carry the weight of His Cross, to bear His ignominy to the place of execution. They give Him myrrh and gall to drink. On the Cross He is raised, and He cries, ‘ Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do/ Who is this, who does not give vent to one word of complaint, of threatening, or malediction against those accursed ‘ dogs/ amidst all His sufferings, but His last word was one of blessing on those unjust men, such as had never been before heard ? Whom hast thou ever seen, my soul, so meek, so loving ? But draw closer to Him, who is worthy to be regarded with the greatest admiration and compassion. Behold Him, stript of His raiment, torn with stripes, bound ignominiously to the Cross by the iron nails, in the midst of two thieves, given gall and vinegar to drink, pierced, when dead, in the side by the spear, with rivers of blood flowing forth from His five wounds, His Hands, His Feet, His Side. O, my eyes, begin to weep, my soul to melt with compassion at the wounding of this most lovely of the sons of men, whom you behold amid such meekness, oppressed by so many sufferings.” Again, “Look down, O Lord, Holy Father, from Thy sanctuary, from Thy dwelling on high in the heavens, and behold this sacred offering, which our great High Priest offers to Thee, Thy Holy Child, the Lord Jesus, for the sins of His brethren, and pardon the multitude of our offences. Behold the Blood of our Brother, Jesus, cries unto Thee from the Cross — Behold, I am crowned with glory and honour. At the Right Hand of Thy Majesty He stands for us before Thy Face ; for He is our Flesh and our brother.” Again, “Look, O Lord, upon the Face of Thine Anointed, who is obedient to Thee, even unto death ; let not those wounds depart from Thine eyes for ever, that You may remember what a satisfaction He has paid for our sins. Would that our sins, whereby we have deserved Thy wrath, were placed in one scale of the balance, and all that Thine Innocent Son endured for us in the other. Certainly that Passion would be the greater. and thus the more worthy of exciting Thy mercy towards us, than our sins of calling forth Thy wrath. O that every tongue might thank Thee, O Lord and Father, for the abundance of Thy goodness, who spared not Thine only begotten Son, but delivered Him up to death for us, to the end that we might have so faithful an Advocate in the heavens before Thee.” Again, “And to Thee, O Lord Jesus, most brave Champion, what thanksgiving can I render which shall be worthy of Thee — I, a man, dust and ashes, and vile clay? For what for my salvation wouldst Thou have done, more than Thou hast done? From the sole of Thy foot, even to the top of Thy head, Thou hast been plunged in an abyss of suffering, that Thou mayest extricate me from all suffering. And the waters entered even into Thy Soul. For Thou didst give Thy Soul over unto death, that Thou mightest restore mine, already dead. Lo, Thou hast bound me to Thyself by a twofold debt, by what Thou hast given me originally, and by that which Thou, by suffering, hast restored to me. I am debtor to Thee, for my life, twice given to me : once, at Creation, again in Redemption. What, then, can be more fully Thy due than my life? But for Thy precious Life, Thy Soul so troubled, what can I repay Thee ! For if I could offer Thee heaven and earth, and all their garnishment, it would all fall infinitely short of what Thou hast given me. Thy gift must precede all return on my part, for I am myself Thy gift : it is, therefore, only through Thy gracious condescension that I can offer Thee any return whatever. I ought to love Thee with all my heart, all my mind, all my soul, all my strength ; and to follow Thy footsteps, who didst deign to die for me ; but how can I do this, except through Thee ? My soul shall cleave unto Thee, for all my strength depends on Thee ?” Thus also S. Bernard. And you have, indeed, in S. Bernard, mellifluous and most lovely outpourings on the Passion of our Lord. See that you imbibe them. And, with the aid of these passages, go over with all your heart’s devotion the account of our Lord’s Passion, because meditation thereon surpasses all other, for the Passion is the most efficacious part of His Life. Now, let us turn to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
← Chapter 84 · Contents · Chapter 86 →
Footnotes
-
S. Luke i. 68. ↩
-
S. Luke xxi. 28. ↩
-
Is. lii. 2. ↩
-
Ps. xxiv. 7. ↩
-
berm. xi. in Cant. ↩
-
Serm, xx. in Cant. ↩
-
Ps. cxxx. 7. ↩
-
Gal. vi. 14. ↩
-
Is. liii. 5. ↩
-
Serm. xxv. in Cant. ↩
-
Serm. xxviii. in Cant. ↩
-
Serm. lxi. in Cant ↩
-
Matt. xxvi. 67, 68. * 1 Sam. L lS. ↩
-
Ps. cxix. 109. ↩
-
Ps. xxii. 16, What follows in this chapter is mostly from S. Anselm. ↩