grace which God intends to bestow on man; and this privilege is acknowledged by the Church when she salutes Mary by the title of Mother of divine grace, pray for us.'

APPLICATION. While meditating on the wonderful privileges of our dearest Mother, and especially on the last we have mentioned,-that she is the channel of grace which falls from heaven upon earth,-ask yourself if your devotion and your habit of having recourse to our Lady is all it should be, or if it is not capable of a great increase, and if this be not the reason why you make so little progress, and have such little success in your works of zeal.

AFFECTIONS and RESOLUTIONS.

POINT III. Privileges given to Mary after the
Incarnation.

CONSIDERATION. First privilege: She was exempted from the curse which fell on sinful Eve-In sorrow shalt thou bring forth children '-in consequence of her Immaculate Conception. Second privilege: She was made worthy to bear the title, which no other can, of coöperatrix in the redemption of the human race. Third privilege: When her life on earth was ended, she had none of the suffering or the regret that other human beings have; her death was a transport of love. Fourth privilege: She was carried to heaven by the angels not only in soul, as the saints are, but in body and soul, clothed with all the gifts of immortality.

APPLICATION. You can have a large share in these privileges of our Lady. Be zealous in bringing back lost sheep to the fold of Jesus Christ, and you will really coöperate in the work of redemption. Endeavour to live like a true religious, and you will certainly share the joys of heaven in body and soul with Mary. COLLOQUY with our Blessed Lady.

JULY 4.

HYPOCRISY AND JEALOUSY OF THE PHARISEES.

1st Prel. Imagine you hear Jesus replying to the false accusations of the Pharisees.

2d Prel. Ask for a humble and compassionate heart.

POINT I. The Pharisees accuse the Disciples of Jesus.

CONSIDERATION. Jesus, having fulfilled all the paschal duties, left Jerusalem and returned into Galilee. 'And it came to pass,' says St. Luke, 'on the second first sabbath as He went through the corn-fields His disciples, pressed by hunger, plucked the ears and did eat, rubbing them in their hands.' The law expressly allowed this to be done (Deut. xxiii.); but the Pharisees, who prided themselves on their exact observance of the sabbath-day, condemned it as a crime, saying, 'Why do ye that which is not lawful on the sabbathday?'

APPLICATION. It is easy to see through the cloak of zeal under which the Pharisees tried to hide their jealousy; and every one condemns and detests their conduct. But as this hideous passion easily finds access into the hearts even of religious, we should see whether we can discover any marks of it in ourselves. The following are some of them: Narrowly to observe the conduct of those we dislike, to spy out their actions, relate their slightest faults with malice and exaggeration, to judge them harshly, to put an evil interpretation on all their actions, even their intentions. Find out from these

signs what you ought to think about yourself. AFFECTIONS and RESOLUTIONS.

POINT II. Jesus defends His Disciples. CONSIDERATION. The accusation made by the Pharisees was likely to bring discredit on the disciples, and to strengthen the people in an erroneous belief. Our Lord therefore enlightened them, defended His disciples, and put their accusers to silence. And He said to

them, have you never read what David did, and they that were with him?' And then He continued: The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath; therefore the Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath also.'

APPLICATION. We should learn from this that we may keep silence when personally attacked, but not when the glory of God, the rights or doctrines of the Church, or the welfare of our neighbours, are in question. To be silent then, when we can answer the accusation, would be a withholding of the truth, and cowardice, and would in some cases cause us to share in the guilt. 'There is,' says the Wise Man, 'a time to keep silence, and a time to speak.' Happy is he who has learnt this wise discernment, and rules his life accordingly. How have you acted? Have you not been generally more prompt and eager in defending your wounded self-love than in supporting and defending the cause of God? AFFECTIONS and RESOLUTIONS.

POINT III. Jesus confounds the Pharisees.

CONSIDERATION. Our Lord, wishing to let the Pharisees see that He could read the secrets of their hearts, and that He well knew they were actuated by jealousy only, said to them: If you knew what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, you would never have condemned the innocent.'

6

APPLICATION. Let us take care never to deserve a similar reproof; never to speak or act from secret malice hidden under the garb of virtue; never to observe the letter rather than the spirit of God's commandments and our rule; never to be harsh and unmerciful in our judgments of our brethren, blaming and condemning them on slight grounds or from appearances only. Examine yourself on these points, acknowledge and lament over the faults you may have committed; and that you may not fall into them again, beg earnestly of our Lord to increase in you paternal charity and humility. COLLOQUY with our Divine Lord.

JULY 5.

THE CHOICE AND VOCATION OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES.

1st Prel. Imagine you see Jesus Christ at the moment when II. proclaims the names of the twelve Apostles.

2d Prel. Beg for grace to correspond faithfully to the grace of vocation.

POINT I. Our Lord's Choice of His twelve Apostles.

CONSIDERATION. The Lord began the second year of His ministry by an act of the greatest importance for the future. He founded the Apostolic College, and thus laid the foundation of His Church, which was to perpetuate His mission among men. 'He called unto Him His disciples, and He chose twelve of them, whom He would Himself, whom also He named Apostles: Simon, whom He surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who is called Zelotes, and Jude the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was the traitor.'

APPLICATION. From out of the numerous disciples who followed Jesus, He chose twelve only,-a mystical number, typified seventeen centuries before by the twelve princes or chiefs of the twelve tribes of Israel. Glorious and happy was the lot of those whom the Son of God chose out by a grace of predilection. He chose twelve whom He would Himself. Let us rejoice with them and for them; and let us rejoice also because our Lord has chosen us in preference to so many others who were more worthy. AFFECTIONS and RESOLUTIONS.

POINT II. Circumstances of His Choice.

CONSIDERATION. Our Blessed Lord made an extraordinary preparation for this choice. The evening before,' says St. Luke, 'He went out into a mountain, and He passed the whole night in the prayer of God.'

No,

Had He any need of this retreat, of this night-long prayer, that His choice might be a good one? answers St. Ambrose; but it was His will to give us an example, and to teach us an important lesson.

APPLICATION. Our Lord thus teaches us by His example, 1st, Never to undertake any important matter without taking counsel of the Father of Lights, without earnest prayer; 2nd, When we pray, to withdraw as much as possible from the world, from the turmoil of life. How have I followed this divine teaching? In what way can I, or ought I, to amend my conduct? AFFECTIONS and RESOLUTIONS.

POINT III. Particulars of this Choice. CONSIDERATION. Most singular and inexplicable does it appear to us to find among the chosen twelve the traitor Judas. Was our Lord, then, deceived in him, or did He really call him to the apostolate ? Interpreters tell us that our Lord chose Judas because He earnestly desired to have him for an Apostle. Judas ruined himself by his treason; but our Lord still chose him, to teach us that a man who has received the most excellent gifts of God has still the power of using or abusing them as he chooses, and that those who are called to the holiest state may still be lost, and ought therefore to work out their salvation with fear and trembling, as St. Peter tells us; and it teaches us to distinguish between the body and an individual, between the office and the man.

APPLICATION. We ought to derive great profit from these lessons for ourselves and for the instruction of others. To those who fear God, says the Apostle, all things work together for good; the treachery of one should make us tremble and mistrustful of self, the perseverance of the others should give us great confidence in the omnipotent grace of God.

COLLOQUY.