CHAPTER XX Of the tender pleading of Jesus for His enemies
CHAPTER XX
Of the tender pleading of Jesus for His enemies
I BLESS Thee, and give thanks to Thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, Fountain of love and sweetness, for Thy most perfect charity, and most devoted prayer on behalf of Thy enemies, and of those who were crucifying Thee. With Thy hands stretched out upon the cross Thou didst plead for them, imploring pardon for them, and making loving excuses for them, in the words: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”—words so full of sweetness and of love that they might well have softened the heart of the most hardened of sinners, and have led him to repent. O most sweet Jesus, how ready art Thou to forgive, how easily art Thou appeased, how plenteous art Thou in mercy! How vast, O my Lord, must be the stores of Thy tender mercies towards those who love Thee, when Thou couldst show forth such loving kindness towards Thy savage enemies; when, raised aloft upon Thy cross, Thou wast not moved to anger against Thy crucifiers, and didst not seek to be revenged upon Thy tormentors, didst not pray that the earth might swallow up alive those wicked men, or that fire from heaven might consume them in a moment; but didst shed forth upon Thy cruel enemies, like healing dew from Heaven, the words: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” In this was manifested Thy most excellent charity and Thy unspeakable tenderness, which nothing could overcome, nothing could hold back from loving intercession. They were crying out: “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” and Thou sayest: “Father, forgive them.” They pierced Thee with hard nails, and Thou makest excuses for their foul iniquities, in the words: “For they know not what they do.” O Christ, how wondrous is Thy love!
But alas for the obstinacy of the stiff-necked people, whose hearts were not touched by words so full of love. Thou didst feel more anguish on account of the blindness of their malice, than on account of the wrong which was being done to Thee: and the working of so great wickedness caused Thee more pain than the torture of all the wounds which had been inflicted on Thee. They did Thee all the harm they could; and Thou didst repay them by doing for them Thy best. The best and most loving thing Thou couldst do for men so wicked, was to pray that they might be turned from their evil ways, and might confess that Thou, the Son of God, hadst truly come in the flesh. And thus were fulfilled those memorable words of Isaias, which of old he had spoken concerning Thee: “And He bath borne the sins of many, and bath prayed for the transgressors,” that they may not perish.
When to those who crucified the Pardon-Giver so great loving-kindness was shown, who can despair of the forgiveness of his sins? Cease, then, O my soul, to despair, self-accused though thou be of so many sins. Entangled as thou art in the snares of so many evil lusts, assailed as thou art by so many temptations, thou hast still, unhappy one, the hope of life: bowels of mercies yearn for thee—of this the Cross, the Nails, the Lance, all the blood-stained Wounds of Jesus are witnesses. Hide thyself, O my soul, hide thyself within the deep Wounds of the Crucified, kiss the wales of His Stripes, clasp with loving arms the Tree of life, hold fast to that most sure pledge of thy Salvation, Jesus hanging on the Cross. Devoutly adore Him, commit thyself to Him in full assurance of faith, put thyself wholly into His hands; for He, Who so abounded in love to those who hated Him, will surely be yet more gracious to thee, when thou art sorrowing for thy sins.
But if thou wouldst be heard speedily, if thou wouldst find grace at the hands of thy Redeemer, and wouldst obtain mercy from Him in all its fullness, thou too must, from the bottom of thy heart, forgive thy brother his trespasses against thee. Forgive him the few small matters in which he has offended thee, that God may forgive thee thy many sins against Him; and pray for his salvation as much as for thy own: so doing, thou shalt find grace; and, by imitating the example of Jesus, Who bade us love our enemies, and pray for them that persecute us, thou shalt become a child of the Most High. If, when suffering unjustly, thou wilt school thyself to forgive the wrong done thee, and wilt lovingly pray for those who have trespassed against thee, thou shalt lay up for thyself, against the hour of thy death, a store of sure and certain hope. It was this holy prayer which won for the apostles the blessedness of Heaven, which gave to martyrs their crown, which made Confessors renowned, which adorned Virgins, and made all the Saints Christ-like and meet for everlasting life.
O most gracious Lord Jesus, Who of Thy infinite love didst vouchsafe to pray for Thy enemies, vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, in the same spirit of charity, to pray the Father for me, that He will grant me full pardon for all my sins, and will of His great mercy deliver me from the punishments which they have deserved. Grant that I may have a perfect and unwavering trust in Thy love and mercy, and that I may not give way to despair on account of the greatness of my sins; but may remember, in the full assurance of faith, that Thou camest into the world to save sinners, and didst will to suffer, to be crucified, and to die, for the ungodly. May, then, that prayer for Thy enemies, which, in fulfilment of this Thy blessed purpose, Thou didst pray upon Thy Cross, bear fruit to the salvation of my soul; and grant to me, I pray Thee, a sure hope of obtaining pardon through it; that so I may be found meet to obtain, through Thy most holy intercession, that which by my own merits I could never hope to win. Grant me boldly and fearlessly to seek refuge under the shadow of Thy wings, and to be kept by the invincible sign of Thy Holy Cross from all fear of the old enemy. As I haste to lay hold upon Thy Cross, spread over me, I beseech Thee, the shelter of Thine arms; that so, whenever my last hour shall come, my helpless and sorrowing soul may neither be afraid nor despair; and take, I pray Thee, to Thyself, me, a miserable sinner, trusting not at all to my own works, but solely to Thy great mercy.