THE WATCHES OF THE SACRED PASSION, WITH BEFORE AND AFTER. CHAPTER I. PRELIMINARY. Do this, our Blessed Lord said on the last night of His life on earth, Do this for a commemoration of Me (St. Luke xxii.), that is, do this in remembrance of Me. His dying wish, then, is to be remembered by us. His parting request to us is, "Remember Me ". The Blessed Eucharist is instituted, and the Holy Mass established, to be the sacrifice to the Lord by ordinance, continual and everlasting (Ezech. xlvi. 14), in order that we may remember our Blessed Lord and not forget Him. Forget not the kindness of thy Surety, for He hath given His life for thee, is a word addressed to us by the Holy Ghost (Ecclus. xxix. 19). We are touched by the pathetic appeal of holy Joseph to his fellow-prisoner, the king's chief butler, now set free and about to leave the prison: Only remember me, when it shall be well with thee, and do me this kindness: to put Pharao in mind to take me out of this prison: for I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews, and here without any fault was cast into the dungeon (Genesis xl.). Immeasurably more earnest and more moving is the appeal of our Blessed Lord to us from the tabernacle, Remember Me, only remember Me, for without any fault do I lie here forgotten in this prison. Only remember Me when it shall be well with thee. Yes, and also when things go ill with thee, remember Me. Only remember Me. This is the dying petition of Jesus, meek and humble of Heart. Does He ask too much of us? Is His a request too large, too bold, too hard? |