 Book 2 Chapter 11 of the Mystical City of God, Volume 3, by the venerable sister Mary of Jesus of Agreda. This Leapervox recording is in the public domain. Book 2 Chapter 11 Christ our Savior celebrates the sacramental supper, consecrating his true and sacred body and blood in the Holy Eucharist, his prayers and petitions, the communion of his Blessed Mother, and other mysteries of this occasion. With great diffidence do I enter upon the treatment of the ineffable mystery of the Holy Eucharist and of what happened at its institution, for raising the eyes of my soul toward the light which encompasses and governs me in the performance of this work, the high intelligence given me of these vast wonders and sacraments reproaches me with my littleness in comparison with the greatness therein manifested. My faculties are disturbed, and I cannot find words to explain what I see and conceive, although all these conceptions are far from the reality that is shown to my understanding. But though ignorant of the terms, and though very unfit for such discourse, I must speak in order that I may continue this history and relate what part the great lady of the world had in these wonders. If I do not speak as appropriately as the matters demand, let my amazement and my lowly condition be my excuse, for it is not easy to yield to the exactions of spoken words when the will is so intent on supplying the defects of the understanding and on enjoying that, which is hopeless and even unbecoming to manifest. Christ had partaken of the prescribed supper with his disciples reclining on the floor around a table, which was elevated from it little more than the distance of six or seven fingers, for such was the custom of the Jews. But after the washing of the feet, he ordered another, higher table to be prepared, such as we now use for our meals. By this arrangement he wished to put an end to the legal suppers and to the lower and figurative law, and establish the new supper of the law of grace. From that time on he wished the sacred mysteries to be performed on the tables or altars, which are in use in the Catholic Church. The table was covered with a very rich cloth, and upon it was placed a plate or salver and a large cup in the form of a chalice, capacious and up to hold the wine. All this was done in pursuance of the will of Christ our Savior, who by his divine power and wisdom directed all these particulars. The master of the house was inspired to offer these rich vessels, which were made of what seemed a precious stone like emerald. The apostles often used it afterwards and consecrating whenever the occasion permitted it. The Lord seated himself at this table with the apostles and some of the other disciples, and then ordered some unleavened bread to be placed on the table and some wine to be brought, of which he took sufficient to prepare the chalice. Then the master of life spoke words of most endearing love to his apostles, and though his sayings were want to penetrate to the inmost heart at all times, yet on this occasion they were like the flames of a great fire of charity which consumed the souls of his hearers. He manifested to them anew the most exalted mysteries of his divinity, humanity and of the works of the redemption. He enjoined upon them peace and charity, of which he was now to leave a pledge in the mysteries about to be celebrated. He reminded them that in loving one another they would be loved by the eternal father with the same love in which he was beloved. He gave them an understanding of the fulfillment of this promise in having chosen them to found the new church and the law of grace. He renewed in them the light concerning the supreme dignity, excellence and prerogatives of his most pure virgin mother. Among all the apostles, Saint John was most deeply enlightened in these mysteries on account of the office imposed upon him. The great lady, from her retreat, beheld in divine contemplation all these doings of her son in the Seneca, and in her profound intelligence she entered more deeply into their meaning than the apostles and the angels, who also were present in bodily forms, adoring their true Lord, Creator and King. By the hands of these angels, Enoch and Elias were brought to the Seneca from their place of abode, for the Lord wished that these fathers, of the natural and of the written laws, should be present at the establishment of the law of the Gospel and that they should participate in its mysteries. All these being present, awaiting full of wonder what the author of life intended to do, there appeared also in the hall, the person of the eternal father and of the Holy Ghost, as they had appeared at the baptism of Christ at the Jordan and at the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. Although all the apostles and disciples felt this divine presence, yet only some of them really were favored with a vision of it. Among these was especially Saint John the Evangelist, who was always gifted with eagle sight into the divine mysteries. The entire heaven was transplanted to the Seneca of Jerusalem. Of such great importance was the magnificence of this work, by which the new church was founded, the law of grace established, and eternal salvation made secure. But for a better understanding of the doings of the incarnate word, I must remind the reader that he possessed two natures in one person, the divine and the human nature, united in one divine person of the word. Hence the proper activities of both natures are rightly attributed to one and the same person, just as the same person is called both God and man. Consequently, when I say that the incarnate work spoke and prayed to the eternal father, it must not be interpreted as meaning that he prayed or spoke in as far as he was divine, since in divinity he was equal to the father. But in as far as he was human, inferior and composed of body and soul as we ourselves are. In this sense, therefore, Christ confessed and extolled the immensity and infinitude of the eternal Father, praying for the whole human race. My Father and Eternal God, I confess, praise and exalt thy infinite essence and incomprehensible deity, in which I am one with thee and the Holy Ghost, engendered from all eternity by thy intellect as a figure of thy substance and the image of thy individual nature. John 10.30. Psalm 119.3. Letter to the Hebrews. Chapter 1.3. In the same nature, which I have assumed in the virginal womb of my mother, I wish to accomplish the redemption of the human race with which thou hast charged me. I wish to restore to this human nature the highest perfection and the plentitude of thy divine complacence, and then I wish to pass from this world, to thy right hand, bearing with me all those whom thou hast given me, without losing a single one of them, for want of willingness on our part to help them. John 17.12. My delight is to be with the children of men. Proverbs 8.31. And as in my absence they will be left orphans, if I do not give them assistance, I wish my father to furnish them with a sure and unfailing token of my inextinguishable love and a pledge of the eternal rewards which thou holdest in reserve for them. I desire that they find in my merits an easy and powerful remedy for the effects of sin, to which they are subject on account of the disobedience of the first man, and I wish to restore copiously their right to the eternal happiness for which they are created. But since there will be few who will preserve themselves in this justice, they will need other assistance, so that they may reinstate themselves and strengthen themselves in the way of justification and sanctification by being continually furnished with new and exalted gifts and favors of thy clemency in their dangerous pilgrimage through life. It was our eternal decree that they should have created existence and participate in our divine perfections and happiness for all eternity, and thy love which caused me to assume a nature able to suffer and welcome the humiliation of the cross. Letter to the Philippians, chapter 2, verse 8. Would not rest satisfied until it invented new means of communicating itself to men according to their capacity and our wisdom and power. These means shall consist in visible and sensible signs adapted to their condition as sentient beings and causing invisible effects in the spiritual and immaterial part of their natures. To advance these high ends for thy exaltation and glory, eternal Lord and Father, in my name and in that of all the poor and afflicted children of Adam, I ask the theot of thy eternal will. If their sins call out for thy justice, their neediness and misery appeal to thy infinite mercy. At the same time I, on my part, interpose all the works of my humanity which is indissolubly bound to my divinity. I offer my obedience in accepting suffering unto death, my humility in subjecting myself to the depraved judgment of men, the poverty and labors of my life, the insults of my passion and death, and the love which urges me to undergo all this for the advance of thy glory and for the spreading of thy knowledge and adoration among all creatures capable of thy grace and happiness. Thou, O eternal Lord and my Father, hast made me the brother and the chief of men, and hast destined them to partake eternally of the joys of our divinity. CHAPTER 1 verse 18 As thy children they are to be heirs with me of thy everlasting blessings. Letter to the Romans chapter 8 verse 17 And as members of my body they are to participate in the effects of my brotherly love. First letter to the Corinthians chapter 6 verse 15 Therefore as far as depends upon me I desire to draw them on toward my friendship and to see them share in the goods of the divinity to which they were destined in their origin from their natural head, the first man. Impelled by this boundless love, Lord and Father, I ordain that from now on men may re-enter into thy full friendship and grace through the sacrament of baptism and that they may do so as soon as they shall be born to daylight, and their desire of re-nacence into grace, which they cannot in their infancy manifest on their own account, shall with thy permission be manifested for them by their elders. Let them become immediate heirs of thy glory. Let them be interiorly and indelibly marked as children of my church. Let them be freed from the stain of original sin. Let them receive the gifts of faith, hope and charity, by which they may perform the works of thy children, knowing thee, trusting in thee, and loving thee for thy own self. Let them also receive the virtues by which they restrain and govern disorderly inclinations, and be able to distinguish without fail the good from the evil. Let this sacrament be the portal of my church and the one which makes men capable of receiving all the other favors and disposes them to new gifts and blessings of grace. I ordain also that besides this sacrament they may receive another in which they shall be confirmed and rooted in the holy faith they have accepted, and become courageous in its defense as soon as they shall arrive at the use of reason, and because human frailty easily falls away from the observance of my law, and since my charity will not permit me to leave them without an easy and opportune remedy, I wish to provide the sacrament of penance. Through it, men, by acknowledging their faults and confessing them with sorrow, may be reinstated in justice and in the merits of glory promised to them. Thus shall Lucifer and his followers be prevented from boasting of having so soon deprive them of advantages of baptism. By the justification of these sacraments, men shall become fit to share in the highest token of my love in the exile of this their mortal life, namely to receive me sacramentally under the species of bread and wine in an ineffable manner. Under the species of bread I shall leave my body, and under the species of wine my blood. In each one of them I shall be present really and truly, and I institute this mysterious sacrament of the Eucharist as a heavenly nourishment proportioned to their condition as wayfaring men, for their sake shall I work these miracles and remain with them until the end of the coming ages. Matthew chapter 28 verse 20 For the strengthening and defense of those who approach the end of their lives I moreover appoint the sacrament of extreme unction which shall at the same time be a certain pledge of the bodily resurrection of those thus anointed. In order that all may contribute proportionately, to the sanctification of the members of the mystical body of the church in which by the most harmonious and orderly cooperation all must have their proper position I institute the sacrament of ordination to distinguish and mark some of its members by a special degree of holiness and place them above the other faithful as fit ministers of the sacraments and my chosen priests. Though they derive all their powers from me, I nevertheless wish that it should flow from me through one of their number who shall be my vicar and the chief representing my person and act as high priest. Into his keeping I deposit the keys of heaven and him all upon earth shall obey. For the further perfection of my church I also establish the last of the sacraments matrimony to sanctify the natural union of man and wife for the propagation of the human race. Thus shall all the grades of my church be enriched and adorned by my infinite merits. This eternal father is my last will whereby I make all the mortals and heritors of my merits in the great storehouse of grace my new church. This prayer Christ our Redeemer made in the presence of the apostles but without any exterior manifestation the most blessed mother who from her retreat observed and followed him prostrated herself upon the floor and as his mother offered to the eternal father the same petitions as her son. Although she could not add anything to the merits of the works of her divine son, nevertheless as on other occasions she as his helpmate united her petitions with his in order that by her faithful companionship she might move the eternal father to so much the greater mercy. And the father looked upon them both graciously accepting the prayers respectively of the son and mother for the salvation of men. Besides prayer her divine son left the performance of yet another work in her charge. In order to understand what this was it must be remembered as I mentioned in the preceding chapter that Lucifer was present at the washing of the apostles feet and that being forced to remain and witness the doings of Christ in the Seneca he astutely conjectured some great blessings to be intended for the apostles. Although the dragon felt his forces much diminished and altogether unavailing against the redeemer he nevertheless sought with implacable fury and pride to spy out these mysteries for the concoction of future malicious plans. The great lady perceived these intentions of Lucifer and knew that the foiling of them was to be left in her hands. Therefore inflamed by zeal and love for the most high she as sovereign queen commanded the dragon and all his squadrons to leave the hall and descend to the depths of hell. To accomplish this the arm of the Almighty gave new power to the Blessed Virgin so that neither the rebellious Lucifer nor all his hosts could resist. They were hurled into the infernal abysses there to remain until they should again be permitted to issue as witnesses to the passion and death of the savior in order to be finally convinced of his being the messiahs and redeemer, true God and man. Let it then be understood that Lucifer and his demons were present at the legal supper and washing of the feet and also afterwards at the entire passion of Christ. But they were not present at this institution of the Holy Eucharist nor at the communion of the disciples. Then the great queen was raised to a most sublime state of contemplation of the mysteries about to be enacted and the holy angels as to another victorious Judith sang to her of this glorious triumph over the dragon. At the same time Christ our Lord offered up to the eternal Father exalted thanksgiving and praise for the blessings conceded to the human race in consequence of his petition. Thereupon Christ our Lord took into his venerable hands the bread which lay upon the plate and interiorly asked the permission and cooperation of the eternal Father that now and ever afterwards in virtue of the words about to be uttered by him and later to be repeated in his holy church he should really and truly become present in the host himself to yield obedience to these sacred words. While making this petition he raised his eyes toward heaven with an expression of such sublime majesty that he inspired the apostles the angels and his virgin mother with new and deepest reverence. Then he pronounced the words of consecration over the bread changing its substance into the substance of his true body and immediately thereupon he uttered the words of consecration also over the wine changing it into his true blood. As an answer to these words of consecration was heard the voice of the eternal Father saying, This is my beloved son in whom I delight and shall take my delight to the end of the world and he shall be with men during all the time of their banishment. In like manner was this confirmed by the Holy Ghost. The most sacred humanity of Christ in the person of the Word gave tokens of profound dispensation to the divinity contained in the sacrament of his body and blood. The virgin mother in her retreat prostrated herself on the ground and adored her son in the blessed sacrament with incomparable reverence. Then also the angels of her guard, all the angels of heaven and among them likewise the souls of Enoch and Elias in their own name and in the name of the holy patriarchs and prophets of the old law fell down in adoration of their Lord in the holy sacrament. All the apostles and disciples who with the exception of the traitor believed in this holy sacrament adored it with great humility and reverence according to each one's disposition. The great High Priest Christ raised up his own consecrated body and blood in order that all who were present at this first mass might adore it in a special manner as they also did. During this elevation, his most pure mother, St. John, Enoch and Elias, were favored within a special insight into the mystery of his presence in the sacred species. They understood more profoundly how in the species of the bread was contained his body and in those of the wine his blood, how in both on account of the inseparable union of his soul with his body and blood was present the living and true Christ, how with the person of the word was also therein united the person of the father and of the holy ghost, and how therefore on account of the inseparable existence and union of the father, son and holy ghost, the holy Eucharist contained the perfect humanity of the Lord with the three divine persons of the Godhead. All this was understood most profoundly by the heavenly lady and by the others according to their degree. They understood also the efficacy of the words of the consecration now endowed with such divine virtue that as soon as they are pronounced with the intention of doing what Christ did at that time by any priest since that time over the proper material they would change the bread into his body and the wine into his blood, leaving the accidents to subsist in a new way and without their proper subject. They saw that this change would take place so certainly and infallibly that heaven and earth would sooner fall to pieces than that the effect of these words of consecration when pronounced in the proper manner by the sacerdotal minister of Christ should ever fail. The heavenly queen understood also by a special vision how the most sacred body of Christ is hidden beneath the accidents of bread and wine without change in them or alteration of the sacred humanity for neither can the body be the subject of the accidents nor can the accidents be the form of the body. The accidents retain the same extension and qualities as before and each of their parts retain the same position after the host has been consecrated and the sacred body is present in an invisible form also retaining the same size without intermingling of parts. It remains in the whole host and all of it in every particle of the host without being strained by the host or the host by the body. For neither is the extension of his body correlative with the accidental species nor do they depend upon the sacred body for their existence. They therefore have a totally different mode of existence and the body interpenetrates the accidents without hindrance. Although naturally the head would demand a different place than the hands or these a different one from the breast or any other part of the body, yet by the divine power the consecrated body places itself unimpaired in its extent in one and the same place because it bears no relation to the space which it would naturally occupy having thrown aside all these relations though still remaining a quantitative body. Moreover it need not necessarily remain in one determined place only or in only one host but at the same time it can be present in many innumerable consecrated hosts. She understood likewise that the sacred body although not naturally depending upon the accidents as above declared yet does not continue to exist sacramentally in these accidents after the corruption of the species of the bread and wine and this for no other reason than because it was so willed by Christ the author of these wonders. The coexistence of the sacred body and blood of our Lord with the incorrupted species of bread and wine therefore rests upon the arbitrary and voluntary disposition of the creator of this sacrament. As soon as they deteriorate and disappear on account of the natural process destructive of the species for instance as happens in Holy Communion with the sacramental host which is changed and corrupted by the heat of the stomach or when this is effected by other causes then God in the last instant when the species are ready for their last transformation again creates another substance. This new substance being now devoid of the divinity nourishes the human body and finally coalesces with the human form of existence which is the soul. This wonderful creation of a new substance for the assumption of the changed and corrupted species is consequent upon the will of the Lord who wishes not to continue the existence of his body in the corrupted accidents and this process is demanded also by the laws of nature for the substance of man cannot grow except by some other substance which being newly added prevents the accidents from continuing to exist. All these and other wonders the right hand of the Almighty perpetuated in this most aghast sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. All of them the mistress of heaven and earth understood and comprehended profoundly in like manner Saint John the fathers of the ancient law and the apostles who were present perceive these mysteries each in their degree aware of the great blessing contained therein for all men. Mary foresaw also the ingratitude of mortals in regard to this ineffable sacrament established for their benefit and she resolved to atone with all the powers of her being for their shameless and ungrateful behavior. She took upon herself the duty of rendering thanks to the Eternal Father and to his divine son for this extraordinary and wonderful benefit to the human race. This earnest desire dwelled in her soul during her whole life and many times did she shed tears of blood welling forth from her purest heart in order to satisfy for our shameful and torpid forgetfulness. Still greater was my admiration when Jesus our God having raised the most holy sacrament as I said before for their adoration divided it by his own sacred hands. First part took of it himself as being the first and chief of all the priests. Recognizing himself as man inferior to the divinity, which he was now to receive in this his own consecrated body and blood, he humiliated and as it were with a trembling of the inferior part of his being shrank within himself before that divinity, thereby not only teaching us the reverence with which holy communion is to be received, but also showing us what was his sorrow at the temerity and presumption of many men during the reception and handling of this exalted and sublime sacrament. The effects of holy communion in the body of Christ were all together miraculous and divine, for during a short space of time the gifts of glory flowed over in his body just as on Mount Tabor, though the effects of this transfiguration were manifest only to his blessed mother and partly also to St. John, Enoch and Elias. This was the last consolation he permitted his humanity to enjoy as to its inferior part during his earthly life, and from that moment until his death he rejected all such alleviation. The Virgin Mother, by a special vision, also understood how Christ, her divine son, received himself in the blessed sacrament and what was the manner of its presence in his divine heart, all this caused inestimable affection in our Queen and Lady. While he received his own body and blood, Christ our Lord composed a canticle of praise to the Eternal Father and offered himself in the blessed sacrament as a sacrifice for the salvation of man. He took another part of the consecrated bread and handed it to the archangel Gabriel, who brought and communicated it to most holy Mary. By having such a privilege conferred on one of their number, the holy angels considered themselves sufficiently recompensed for being excluded from the sacerdotal dignity and for yielding it to man. The privilege of merely having even one of their number, hold the sacramental body of their Lord and true God, fill them with a new and immense joy. In abundant tears of consolation, the Grey Queen awaited Holy Communion. When St. Gabriel, with innumerable other angels approached, she received it, the first after her son, imitating his self-abasement, reverence and holy fear. The most blessed sacrament was deposited in the breast and above the heart of the most holy Virgin Mother, as in the most legitimate shrine and tabernacle of the Most High. There the ineffable sacrament of the holy Eucharist remained deposited from that hour until after the resurrection, when St. Peter said the first Mass and consecrated anew as I shall relate in its place. The Almighty wished to have it so for the consolation of the Grey Queen, and in order to fulfill his promise that he would remain with the children of men until the consummation of the ages. Matthew 28.20 For after his death his most holy humanity would not remain in his church any other way than by his consecrated body and blood. This true manna was then deposited in the most pure Mary, as in the living Ark, together with the whole evangelical law, just as formerly as prophetic figures were deposited in the Ark of Moses. Letter to the Hebrews, Chapter 9, Verse 4 The sacramental species were not consumed or altered in the heart of the Lady and Queen of Heaven until the next Consecration. Having received Holy Communion, the Blessed Mother gave thanks to the Eternal Father and to her Divine Son in new canticles similar to the ones the Incarnate Word had rendered for his Father. After having thus favored the Heavenly Princess, our Savior distributed the sacramental bread to the Apostles. Luke, Chapter 22, Verse 17 Commanding them to divide it among themselves and partake of it, by this commandment he conferred upon them the sacerdotal dignity and they began to exercise it by giving Communion each to himself. This they did with the greatest reverence, shedding copious tears and adoring the body and blood of our Lord whom they were receiving. They were established in the power of the priesthood as being founders of the Holy Church and enjoying the distinction of priority over all others. Letter to the Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verse 20 And St. Peter, at the command of Christ the Lord, administered two of the Particles of Holy Communion to the two Patriarchs, Enoch and Elias. This Holy Communion so rejoiced these two holy men that they were encouraged anew in their hope of the Beatific Vision, which for them was to be deferred for so many ages and they were strengthened to live on in this hope until the end of the world. Having given most fervent and humble thanks to the Almighty for this blessing, they were brought back to their abiding place by the hands of the holy angels. The Lord desired to work this miracle in order to pledge himself to include the ancient, natural and written laws in the benefits of the incarnation, redemption, and general resurrection, since all these mysteries were contained in the most holy Eucharist, by thus communicating himself to the two holy men, Enoch and Elias, who were still in their mortal flesh. These blessings were extended over the human race, such as it existed under the natural and the written laws, while all the succeeding generations were to be included in the new law of grace, the Apostles at the Head. This was all well understood by Enoch and Elias, and returning to the midst of their contemporaries, they gave thanks to their and our Redeemer for this mysterious blessing. Another very wonderful miracle happened at the Communion of the Apostles. Amidius and Tretris Judas, hearing the command of his master to partake of Holy Communion, resolved in his unbelief not to comply, but if he could do so without being observed, determined to secrete the sacred body and bring it to the priests and Pharisees in order to afford them a chance of incriminating Jesus by showing them what he had called his own body, or if he should not succeed therein to consummate some other vile act of malice with the divine sacrament. The Mistress and Queen of Heaven, who by a clear vision, was observing all that past, and knew the interior and exterior effects and affections in the Apostles at Holy Communion, saw also the accursed intentions of the obstinate Judas. All the zeal for the glory of her Lord, existing in her as his mother, spouse, and daughter, was aroused in her purest heart. Knowing that it was the divine will that she should make use of her power as mother and queen, she commanded the holy angels to extract from the mouth of Judas the consecrated particles as well of the bread as of the wine and replace them from whence they had been taken. It well befitted her on this occasion to defend the honor of her divine son and prevent Judas from heaping such an ignominious injury upon Christ the Lord. The holy angels obeyed their queen, and when it was the turn of Judas to communicate, they withdrew the consecrated species one after the other, and purifying them from their contact with Judas, the most wicked of living men, they restored them to their place, altogether unobserved by the disciples. Thus the Lord shielded the honor of his malicious and obstinate apostle to the end. This was attended to by the angels in the shortest space of time, and the others then received Holy Communion. For Judas was neither the first nor the last to communicate. Then our Savior offered thanks to the eternal Father, and therewith ended both the legal and the sacramental supper, in order to begin the mysteries of his passion, which I will relate in the subsequent chapters. The Queen of Heaven attended to all, full of wonder and joyful praise magnifying the most high. Instruction Given to Me by the Queen of Heaven Oh, my daughter, would that the believers in the holy Catholic faith open their hardened and stony hearts in order to attain to a true understanding of the sacred and mysterious blessing of the holy Eucharist, if they would only detach themselves, root out and reject their earthly inclinations and restraining their passions, apply themselves with living faith to study by the divine light their great happiness and thus possessing their eternal God in the holy sacrament, and in being able, by its reception and constant intercourse, to participate in the full effects of this heavenly manna, if they would only worthily esteem this precious gift, begin to taste its sweetness and share in the hidden power of their omnipotent God. Then nothing would ever be wanting to them in their exile. In this, the happy age of the law of grace, mortals have no reason to complain of their weakness and their passions, since in this bread of heaven they have at hand strength and health. It matters not that they are tempted and persecuted by the demon, for by receiving this sacrament frequently, they are unable to overcome him gloriously. The faithful are themselves to blame for all their poverty and labors, since they pay no attention to this divine mystery, nor avail themselves of the divine powers, thus placed at their disposal by my most holy son. I tell thee truly, my dearest, that Lucifer and his demons have such a fear of the most holy Eucharist, that to approach it causes them more torments than to remain in hell itself. Although they do enter churches in order to tempt souls, they enter them with aversion, forcing themselves to endure cruel pains in the hope of destroying a soul and drawing it into sin, especially in the holy places and in the presence of the holy Eucharist, their wrath against the Lord and against the souls alone could induce them to expose themselves to the torment of his real sacramental presence. Whenever he is carried through the streets, they usually fly and disperse in all haste, and they would not dare to approach those that accompany him if by their long experience they did not know that they will induce some to forget the reverence due to their Lord. Therefore they make special efforts to tempt the faithful in the churches, for they know what great injury they can thereby do to the Lord himself, who in his sacramental love is there waiting to sanctify men and to receive the return of his sweetest and untiring love. Hence thou canst also understand the strength of those who prepare themselves to partake of this bread of the angels and how the demons fear the souls, who receive the Lord worthily and devoutly, and who strive to preserve themselves in this purity until the next communion. But there are very few who live with this intention, and the enemy is ceaselessly alert in striving to throw them back into their forgetfulness, distraction, and indifference, so that he may not be obliged to encounter such powerful weapons in the hands of men. Write this admonition in thy heart, and since without thy merit the Almighty has ordained that thou receive holy communion daily, seek by all means to preserve thyself in the good dispositions from one communion to the other. It is the will of the Lord and my own, that with this sword thou fight the battles of the Almighty in the name of the Holy Church against the invisible enemies. For in our days they are heaping affliction and sorrow upon the mistress of nations while there is none to console her or to take it to heart. Do thou thyself weep for the same reason, and let thy heart be torn in sorrow? But while the omnipotent and just judge, who is so greatly incensed against the Catholics for having outraged his justice by their immeasurable and continual transgressions, even under the ages of their grand faith, none are found to consider and weigh the fearful damage, nor to approach the easy remedy of receiving the Holy Eucharist with a contrite and humble heart, nor does anyone ask for my intercession. Though all the children of the Church largely incur this fault, yet more to be blamed are the unworthy and wicked priests. For by the reverence with which they treat the Blessed Sacrament the other Catholics have been drawn to undervalue it. If the people see that their priests approach the Divine Mysteries with holy fear and trembling, they learn to treat and receive their God in like manner. Those that so honor him shall shine in heaven like the Sun among the stars, for the glory of my Divine Son's humanity will redound in a special manner in those who have behaved well toward him in the Blessed Sacrament and have received him with all reverence, whereas this will not happen to those who have not frequented this holy table with devotion. Moreover the devout will bear on their breast, where they have so often harbored the Holy Eucharist, most beautiful and resplendent inscriptions, showing that they were most worthy tabernacles of the Holy Sacrament. This will be a great accidental reward for them and a source of jubilation and admiration for the angels and all the rest of the Blessed. They will also enjoy the special favor of being able to penetrate deeper into the mystery of the presence of the Lord in the Sacrament and to understand all the rest of the wonders hidden therein. This will be such a privilege that it alone will suffice for their eternal happiness, even if there were no other enjoyment in heaven. Moreover, the essential glory of those who have worthily and devoutly received the Holy Eucharist will in several respects exceed the glory of many martyrs who have not received the body and blood of the Lord. I wish thee also to hear, my dearest daughter, from my own mouth, what were my sentiments when in mortal life I was about to receive Holy Communion, in order that thou mayest better understand what I say, reflect on all I have commanded thee to write about my gifts, merits, and labors in life. I was preserved from original sin, and at the instant of my conception I received the knowledge and vision of the divinity as thou hast often recorded. I knew more than all the saints. I surpassed the highest seraphim in love. I never committed any fault. I constantly practiced all the virtues in a heroic degree, and in the least of them I was greater than all the saints in their highest perfection. The intention and object of my actions were most exalted, and my habits and gifts were noble without measure. I imitated my most holy Son most closely. I labored most faithfully. I suffered with eagerness, and cooperated with the doings of the Lord exactly as was becoming to me. I ceased not to exercise my love, and gain new and supereminent merits of grace. Yet I thought myself to have been fully repaid by being allowed to receive him even once in the holy Eucharist. Yea, I did not consider myself worthy of this one favor. Reflect then what should be thy sentiments and those of the rest of the children of Adam on being admitted to the reception of this admirable sacrament, and if for the greatest of saints one holy communion is a superabundant reward, what must the priests and the faithful think when they are allowed to receive it so frequently? Open thy eyes in the deep darkness and blindness which overwhelm men around thee, and raise them up to the divine brightness in order to understand these mysteries. Look upon all thy works as insufficient, all thy sufferings as most insignificant, all thy thanksgivings as falling far short of what thou o'est for such an exquisite blessing as that of possessing in the holy Church Christ my divine Son, present in the holy sacrament in order to enrich all the faithful. If thou hast not wherewith, to show thy thanks for this and the other blessings which thou receivest, at least humiliate thyself to the dust and remain prostrate upon it, confess thyself unworthy in all the sincerity of thy heart, magnify the most high, bless and praise him, preserving thyself at all times worthy to receive him, and to suffer many martyrdoms in return for such a favor. End of chapter 11. Book 2, chapter 12 of the Mystical City of God, volume 3, by the venerable sister Mary of Jesus of Agreta. This Librivox recording is in the public domain. Book 2, chapter 12, the prayer of our Lord in the garden and its mysteries, when his most blessed mother knew of it. By the wonderful mysteries which our Savior Jesus had celebrated in the Seneca, the rain which, according to his inscrutable decree, his eternal father had consigned to him, was well established, and the Thursday night of his last supper, having already advanced some hours, he chose to go forth to that dreadful battle of his suffering and death by which the redemption was to be accomplished. The Lord then rose to depart from the hall of the miraculous feast, and also most holy Mary, left her retreat, in order to meet him on the way. At this face-to-face meeting of the Prince of Eternity and of the Queen, a sort of sorrow pierced the heart of son and mother, inflicting a pang of grief beyond all human and angelic thought. The sorrowful mother threw herself at the feet of Jesus, adoring him as her true God and Redeemer. The Lord, looking upon her with a majesty divine, and at the same time, with the overflowing love of a son, spoke to her only these words, My mother, I shall be with thee in tribulation, let us accomplish the will of the eternal Father and the salvation of men. The great Queen offered herself as a sacrifice with her whole heart and asked his blessing. Having received this, she returned to her retirement, where, by a special favor of the Lord, she was unable to see all that passed in connection with her divine son. Thus she was unable to accompany him and cooperate with him in his activity as far as devolved upon her. The owner of the house, who was present at this meeting, moved by a divine impulse, offered his house in all that it contained to the mistress of heaven, asking her to make use of all that was his during her stay in Jerusalem. And the Queen accepted his offer with humble thanks. The thousand angels of her guard, and forms visible to her, together with some of the pious women of her company, remained with the lady. Our Redeemer and Master left the house of the Seneca with all the men who had been present at the celebration of the mysterious supper, and soon many of them dispersed in the different streets in order to attend to their own affairs. Followed by his twelve apostles, the Lord directed his steps toward Mount Olivet, outside and close to the eastern walls of Jerusalem. Judas, alert to his treacherous solicitude for the betrayal of his divine master, conjectured that Jesus intended to pass the night in prayer as was his custom. This appeared to him a most opportune occasion for delivering his master into the hands of his confederates, the scribes and the Pharisees. Having taken this dire resolve, he lagged behind and permitted the master and his apostles to proceed. Unnoticed by the latter, he lost them from view, and departed in all haste to his own ruin and destruction. Within him was the turmoil of sudden fear and anxiety, interior witnesses of the wicked deed he was about to commit. Driven on in the stormy hurricane of thoughts, raised by his bad conscience, he arrived breathless at the house of the high priest. On the way it happened, that Lucifer, perceiving the haste of Judas in procuring the death of Jesus Christ, and as I have related in chapter the tenth, fearing that after all, Jesus might be the true messiahs, came toward him in the shape of a very wicked man, a friend of Judas acquainted with the intended betrayal. In this shape, Lucifer could speak to Judas without being recognized. He tried to persuade him that this project of selling his master did at first seem advisable on account of the wicked deeds attributed to Jesus, but that, having more maturely considered the matter, he did not now deem it advisable to deliver him over to the priests and Pharisees, for Jesus was not so bad as Judas might imagine, nor did he deserve death, and besides, he might free himself by some miracles and involve his betrayer into great difficulties. Thus Lucifer, seized by new fear, sought to counteract the suggestions with which he had previously filled the heart of the perfidious disciple against his author. He hoped to confuse his victim, but his new villainy was in vain. For Judas, having voluntarily lost his faith, and not being troubled by any such strong suspicions as Lucifer, preferred to take his master's life rather than to encounter the wrath of the Pharisees, for permitting him to live unmolested. Filled with this fear and his abominable avarice, he took no account of the counsel of Lucifer, although he had no suspicion of his not being the friend whose shape the devil had assumed. Being stripped of grace, he neither desired, nor could be persuaded by anyone to turn back his malice. The priests, having heard that the author of life was in Jerusalem, had gathered to consult about the promised betrayal. Judas entered, and told them that he had left his master with the other disciples on their way to Mount Olavet, that this seemed to be the most favorable occasion for his arrest, since on this night they had already made sufficient preparation, and taken enough precaution to prevent his escaping their hands by his artifices and cunning tricks. The sacrilegious priests were much rejoiced, and began to busy themselves to procure an armed force for the arrest of the most innocent lamb. In the meanwhile, our Divine Lord, with the eleven apostles, was engaged in the work of our salvation, and the salvation of those who were scheming his death. Unheard of, and wonderful contest, between the deepest malice of man, and the unmeasurable goodness and charity of God. If this stupendous struggle between good and evil began with the first man, it certainly reached its highest point in the death of the Reparer. For then, good and evil stood face to face, and exerted their highest powers, human malice in taking away the life and honor of the Creator and Redeemer, and his immense charity, freely sacrificing both for men. According to our way of reasoning, it was, as it were, necessary that the most holy soul of Christ, yea, that even his divinity, should revert to his blessed mother, in order that he might find some object in creation in which his love should be recompensed, and some excuse for disregarding the dictates of his justice. For in this creature alone, could he expect to see his passion and death bring forth full fruit. In her immeasurable holiness, did his justice find some compensation for human malice, and in the humility and constant charity of this great lady, could be deposited the treasures of his merits, so that afterwards, as the new phoenix from the rekindled ashes, his church might arise from his sacrifice. The consolation which the humanity of Christ drew, from the certainty of his blessed mother's holiness, gave him strength, and as it were, new courage to conquer the malice of mortals, and he counted himself well recompensed for suffering such atrocious pains, by the fact that, to mankind, belonged also his most beloved mother. All that happened, the great lady observed from her retreat. She perceived the sinister thoughts of the obstinate Judas, how he separated himself from the rest of the apostles, how Lucifer spoke to him in the shape of his acquaintance, and all the rest that passed when he reached the priests, and helped them to arrange with so much haste the capture of the Lord. The sorrow which then penetrated the chaste heart of the virgin mother, the acts of virtue which she elicited, at the sight of such wickedness, and what else she did, cannot be properly explained by us. We can only say that in all she acted with the plentitude of wisdom and holiness, and with the approbation of the most holy trinity. She pityed Judas, and wept over the loss of that perfidious disciple. She sought to make recompense for his malice by adoring, confessing, praising and loving the Lord, whom he delivered by such fiendish and insulting treachery. She offered herself with eagerness to die in her son's stead, if necessary. She prayed for those who were plotting the capture and death of her divine lamb, for she regarded them as prizes to be estimated according to the infinite value of his precious life blood, for which this most prudent lady foresaw they would be bought. Our Savior pursued his way across the torrent of Kedron. On chapter 18 verse 1 To mount Olivet, and enter the garden of Gethsemane, then he said to all the apostles, Wait for me and seat yourselves here while I go a short distance from here to pray. Matthew chapter 26 verse 36 Do you also pray, in order that you may not enter into temptation? Luke chapter 22 verse 40 The Divine Master gave them this advice in order that they might be firm in the temptations of which he had spoken to them at the supper, that all of them should be scandalized on account of what they should see him suffer that night, that Satan would assail them to sift and stir them up by his false suggestions, for the pastor, as prophesied, was to be ill-treated and wounded and the sheep were to be dispersed. Chapter 13 verse 7 Then the master of life, leaving the band of eight apostles at that place, and taking with him St. Peter, St. John, and St. James, retired to another place, where they could neither be seen nor heard by the rest. Mark chapter 14 verse 33 Being with the three apostles, he raised his eyes up to the eternal Father, confessing and praising him as was his custom, while interiorly he prayed in fulfillment of the prophecy of Zacharias, permitting death to approach the most innocent of men, and commanding the sort of divine justice to be unsheathed over the shepherd and to send upon the God-man with all its deadly force. In this prayer Christ our Lord offered himself anew to the eternal Father in satisfaction of his justice for the rescue of the human race, and he gave consent that all the torments of his passion and death be let loose over that part of his human being, which was capable of suffering. From that moment he suspended and restrained whatever consolation or relief would otherwise overflow from the impassable to the passable part of his being, so that in this dereliction his passion and sufferings might reach the highest degree possible. The eternal Father granted these petitions and approved this total sacrifice of the sacred humanity. This prayer was, as it were, the flood gate through which the rivers of his suffering were to find entrance like the reliceless onslaught of the ocean as was foretold by David. Psalm 68 verse 2. And immediately he began to be sorrowful and feel the anguish of his soul and therefore set to the apostles. My soul is sorrowful unto death. Mark chapter 14 verse 34. As these words and the sorrow of Christ our Lord contain such great mysteries for our instruction I will say something of what has been shown to me and as far as I can understand concerning them. The Lord permitted this sorrow to reach the highest degree both naturally and miraculously possible in his sacred humanity. This sorrow penetrated not only all the lower faculties of his human life insofar as his natural appetites were concerned, but also all the highest faculties of his body and soul by which he perceived the inscrutable judgments and decrees of the divine justice and the reprobation of so many for whom he was to die. This was indeed by far the greater source of his sorrow as we shall see farther on. He did not say that he was sorrowful on account of his death, but unto death, for the sorrow naturally arising from the repugnance to the death he was about to undergo was a minor fear. The sacrifice of his natural life, besides being necessary for our redemption, was also demanded as a return for the joy of having in his human body experienced the glory of the transfiguration. On account of the glory then communicated to his sacred body. He held himself bound to subject it to suffering, deeming that a recompense of what he had received. This we see verified also in the three apostles, who were witnesses as well of the glorious as of the sorrowful mystery. This they themselves now understood, being informed thereof by in a special enlightenment. Moreover, the immense love of our Savior for us demanded that full sway be given to this mysterious sorrow, for if he had caused it to stop short of the highest, which that sorrow was capable of, his love would not have rested satisfied, nor would it have been so evident that his love was not to be extinguished by the multitude of tribulations. CHAPTER 8. At the same time he showed thereby his charity toward the apostles, who were with him and were now much disturbed by perceiving that his hour of suffering and death, which he has so often, and in so many ways, foretold them, was now at hand. This interior disturbance and fear confounded and confused them without their daring to speak of it. Therefore the most loving Savior sought to put them more at rest by manifesting to them his own sorrow unto death. By the sight of his own affliction and anxiety they were to take heart at the fears and anxieties of their own souls. There was still another mystery contained in this sorrow of the Lord, which referred especially to the three apostles, Saint Peter, John and James. For, more than all the rest, they were imbued with an exalted conception of the greatness and divinity of their Master, as far as the excellence of his doctrine, the holiness of his works, and the power of his miracles, were concerned. They realized more completely and wondered more deeply at his dominion over all creation, in order that they might be confirmed in their belief of his being a man capable of suffering. It was befitting that they should know, as eyewitnesses, his truly human sorrow and affliction. By the testimony of these three apostles, who were distinguished by such favors, the Holy Church was afterwards to be well fortified against the errors, which the devil would try to spread against the belief in the humanity of Christ our Lord. Thus would the rest of the faithful have the consolation of this firmly established belief in their own affliction and sorrow. Interiorly enlightened in this truth, the three apostles were exhorted by the author of life by the words, Wait for me, watch and pray with me. He wished to inculcate the practice of all that he had taught them and to make them constant in their belief. He thereby reminded them of the danger of backsliding and of the duty of watchfulness and prayer, in order to recognize and resist the enemy, remaining always firm in the hope of seeing his name exalted after the ignominy of his passion. With this exhortation, the Lord separated himself a short distance from the three apostles. He threw himself with his divine face upon the ground and prayed to the Eternal Father. Father, if it is possible, let this chalice pass from me. CHAPTER 26 verse 38 This prayer Christ our Lord uttered, though he had come down from heaven with the express purpose of really suffering and dying for men, though he had counted as not the shame of his passion, had willingly embraced it and rejected all human consolation, though he was hastening with most ardent love into the jaws of death, to affronts, sorrows, and afflictions, though he had set such a high price upon men, that he determined to redeem them at the shedding of his lifeblood. Since by virtue of his divine and human wisdom, and his indistinguishable love, he had shown himself so superior to the natural fear of death, that it seems this petition did not arise from any motive, solely coming from himself, that this was so, in fact, was made known to me in the light which was vouchsafed concerning the mysteries contained in this prayer of the Savior. In order to explain what I mean, I must state that on this occasion Jesus treated with the Eternal Father about an affair which was by far the most important of all, namely, in how far the redemption gained by his passion and death should affect the hidden predestination of the saints. In this prayer Christ offered, on his part, to the Eternal Father, his torments, his precious blood and his death for all men, as an abundant price for all the mortals, and for each one of the human born, till that time, and yet to be born to the end of the world. And on the part of mankind, he presented the infidelity, ingratitude and contempt, with which sinful man was to respond to his frightful passion and death. He presented also the loss which he was to sustain, from those who would not profit by his clemency, and condemn themselves to eternal woe. Though to die for his friends and for the predestined was pleasing to him, and longingly desired by our Savior, yet to die for the reprobate was indeed bitter and painful, for with regard to them the impelling motive for accepting the pains of death was wanting. This sorrow was what the Lord called a chalice, for the Hebrews were accustomed to use this word for signifying anything that implied great labor and pain. The Savior himself had already used this word on another occasion, when in speaking to the sons of Zebedee he asked them whether they could drink the chalice which the Son of Man was to drink. Matthew chapter 22 verse 20. This chalice then was so bitter for Christ our Lord, because he knew that his drinking it would not only be without fruit for the reprobate, but would be a scandal to them and readown to their greater chastisement and pain on account of their despising it. First letter to the Corinthians chapter 1 verse 23. I understood therefore that in this prayer Christ besought his father to let this chalice of dying for the reprobate pass from him. Since now his death was not to be evaded, he asked that none if possible should be lost. He pleaded that as his redemption would be super abundant for all, that therefore it should be applied to all in such a way as to make all, if possible, profit by it in an efficacious manner, and if that was not possible he would resign himself to the will of his eternal father. Our Savior repeated this prayer three times in different intervals. Matthew chapter 26 verse 44. Pleading the longer in his agony in view of the importance and immensity of the object in question. According to our way of understanding there was a contention or altercation between the most sacred humanity and the divinity of Christ. For this humanity, in its immense love for men who were of his own nature, desired that all should attain eternal salvation through his passion. While his divinity, in its secret and high judgments, had fixed the number of the predestined and in its divine equity could not concede its blessings to those who so much despise them, and who of their own free will made themselves unworthy of eternal life by repelling the kind intentions of him who procured and offered it to them. From this conflict arose the agony of Christ in which he prayed so long and in which he appealed so earnestly to the power and majesty of his omnipotent and eternal father. This agony of Christ our Savior grew in proportion to the greatness of his charity and the certainty of his knowledge that men would persist in neglecting to profit by his passion and death. Luke chapter 22 verse 44. His agony increased to such an extent that great drops of bloody sweat were pressed from him which flowed to the very earth. Although this prayer was uttered subject to a condition and failed in regard to the reprobate who fell under this condition, yet he gained thereby a greater abundance and secured a greater frequency of favors for mortals. Through it the blessings were multiplied for those who placed no obstacles. The fruits of the redemption were applied to the saints and to the just more abundantly and many gifts and graces of which the reprobates made themselves unworthy were diverted to the elect. The human will of Christ conforming itself to that of the divinity then accepted suffering for each respectively for the reprobate as sufficient to procure them the necessary help if they would make use of its merits and for the predestined as an efficacious means of which they would avail themselves to secure their salvation by cooperating with grace. Thus was set in order and as it were realized the salvation of the mystical body of his holy church of which Christ the Lord was the creator and head. As a ratification of this divine decree while yet our master was in his agony the eternal father for the third time sent the Archangel Michael to the earth in order to comfort him by a sensible message and confirmation of what he already knew by the infused science of his most holy soul for the angel could not tell our Lord anything he did not know nor could he produce any additional effect on his interior consciousness for this purpose. But as I related above Christ had suspended the consolation which he could derive from his human nature from this knowledge and love leaving it to his full capacity for suffering as he afterwards also expressed himself on the cross in lieu of this alleviation and comfort which he had denied himself he was recompensed to a certain extent as far as his human senses were concerned by this embassy of the Archangel. He received an experimental knowledge of what he had before known by interior consciousness for the actual experience is something super added and new and is calculated to move the sensible and bodily faculties. Saint Michael in the name of the eternal father intimated and represented to him in audible words what he already knew that it was not possible for those to be saved who were unwilling that the complacence of the eternal father in the number of the just although smaller than the number of the reprobate was great that among the former was his most holy mother a worthy fruit of his redemption that his redemption would also bear its fruits in the patriarchs prophets apostles martyrs virgins and confessors who should signalize themselves in his love and perform admirable works for the exultation of the name of the most high among these the angel moreover mentioned some of the founders of religious orders and the deeds of each one many other great and hidden sacraments were touched upon by the Archangel which it is not necessary to mention here nor have I any command to do so and therefore what I have already said will suffice for continuing the threat of this history during the intervals of Christ prayer the evangelists say he returned to visit the apostles and exhort them to watch and pray lest they enter into temptation Matthew chapter 14 verse 41 Mark chapter 14 verse 38 Luke chapter 22 verse 42 this the most vigilant pastor did in order to show the dignitaries of his church what care and supervision they were to exercise over their flocks for if Christ on account of his solicitude for them interrupted his prayer which was so important it was in order to teach them how they must postpone other enterprises and interests to the salvation of their subjects in order to understand the need of the apostles I must mention that the infernal dragon after having been routed from the Seneca and forced into the infernal caverns was permitted by the savior again to come forth in order that he might by his malicious attempts help to fulfill the decrees of the Lord at one fell swoop many of these demons rushed to meet Judas and in the manner already described to hinder him if possible from consummating the treacherous bargain as they could not dissuade him they turned their attention to the other apostles suspecting that they had received some great favor at the hands of the Lord in the Seneca what this favor was Lucifer sought to find out in order to counteract it our savior saw this cruelty and wrath of the Prince of Darkness and his ministers therefore as a most loving father and vigilance superior he hastened to the assistance of his little children and newly acquired subjects his apostles he roused them and exhorted them to watch and pray against their enemies in order that they might not enter unawares and unprovided into the threatening temptation he returned therefore to the three apostles who having been more favored also had more reasons for watchfulness in imitation of their master but he found them asleep for they had allowed themselves to be overcome by insidious disgust and sorrow and in it had been seized by such a remissness and luke warmness that they fell asleep before speaking to them or waking them the Lord looked at them for a moment and wept over them for he saw them oppressed and buried in this deathly shade by their own sloth and negligence he spoke to Peter and said to him Simon sleep is thou could us not thou watch one hour and immediately he gave him and the others the answer watch ye and pray that you enter not into temptation mark chapter fourteen verse thirty seven for my enemies and your enemies sleep not as you do that he represented Peter especially was not only because he was placed as head of the rest and not only because he had so loudly protested that he would not deny him and was ready to die for him though all the others should be scandalized in him and leave him but also because Peter having from his whole heart made freely these protests deserve to be corrected and admonished before all the rest for no doubt the Lord chastises those whom he loves and is always pleased by our good resolutions even when we afterwards fall short in their execution as happened with the most fervent of all the apostles saint Peter when the Lord came the third time and woke up all the twelve Judas was already approaching in order to deliver him into the hands of his enemies as I shall relate in the next chapter let us now return to the Seneca where the queen of heaven had retired with the holy women of her company from her retreat by divine enlightenment she saw most clearly all the mysteries and doings of her most holy son in the garden at the moment when the savior separated himself with the three apostles Peter John and James the heavenly queen separated herself from the other women and went into another room upon leaving them she exhorted them to pray and watch lest they enter into temptation but she took with her the three Marys treating Mary Magdalene as the superior of the rest secluding herself with these three as her more intimate companions she begged the eternal father to suspend in her all human alleviation and comfort both in the sensitive and in the spiritual part of her being so that nothing might hinder her from suffering to the highest degree in union with her divine son she prayed that she might be permitted to feel and participate in her virginal body all the pains of the wounds and tortures about to be undergone by Jesus this petition was granted by the blessed Trinity and the mother in consequence suffered all the torments of her most holy son in exact duplication as I shall relate later although they were such that if the right hand of the Almighty had not preserved her they would have caused her death many times over yet on the other hand these sufferings inflicted by God himself were like a pledge and a new lease of life for in her most ardent love she would have considered it incomparably more painful to see her divine son suffer and die without being allowed to share in his torments the three Mary's were instructed by the Queen to accompany and assist her in her affliction and for this purpose they were endowed with greater light and grace than the other women in retiring with them the most pure mother began to feel unwanted sorrow and anguish and she said to them my soul is sorrowful because my beloved son is about to suffer and die and it is not permitted me to suffer and die of his torments pray my friends in order that you may not be overcome by temptation having said this she went apart a short distance from them and following the Lord in his supplications she as far as was possible to her and as far as she knew it to be conformable to the human will of her son she continued her prayers and petitions feeling the same agony as that of the savior in the garden she also returned at the same intervals to her companions to exhort them because she knew of the wrath of the demon against them she wept at the perdition of the foreknown for she was highly enlightened in the mysteries of eternal predestination and reprobation in order to imitate and cooperate in all things with the redeemer of the world the great lady also suffered a bloody sweat similar to that of jesus in the garden and by divine intervention she was visited by the archangel saint gabriel as christ her son was visited by the archangel michael the holy prince expounded to her the will of the most high in the same manner as saint michael had expounded it to christ the lord in both of them the prayer offered and the cause of sorrow was the same and therefore they were also proportionally alike to one another in their actions and in their knowledge i was made to understand that the most prudent lady was provided with some class for what was to happen in the passion of her most beloved son and on this occasion she sent some of her angels with a towel to the garden in which her son was then perspiring blood in order to wipe off and dry his venerable countenance the lord for love of his mother and for her greater merit permitted these ministers of the most high to fulfill her pious and tender wishes when the moment for the capture of our savior had arrived it was announced to the three marys by the sorrowful mother all three bewailed this indignity with most bitter tears especially mary magdalene who signalized herself in tenderest love and piety for her master instruction which mary the queen of heaven gave me my daughter all that thou has understood and written in this chapter will serve as a most potent incentive to thee and to all the mortals who will consider it carefully estimate then and weigh within thy soul how important is the eternal predestination or reprobation of the souls since my most holy son looked upon it with such great anxiety that the difficulty or impossibility of saving all men added such immense bitterness to the death which he was about to suffer for all by this conflict he manifests to us the importance and gravity of the matter under consideration he prolonged his supplications and prayers to his eternal father and his love for men caused his most precious blood to ooze forth from his body on perceiving that the malice of men would make them unworthy of participation in the benefits of his death the lord my son has indeed justified his cause and thus having lavished his love and his merits without measure for the purchase of man's salvation and likewise the eternal father has justified himself in presenting to the world such a remedy and in having made it possible for each one freely to reach out for such widely different lots as death and life fire and water ecclesiasticus chapter 15 verse 71 but what pretense or excuse will men advance for having forgotten their own eternal salvation when my divine son and I have desired and sought to procure it for them with such sacrifices and untiring watchfulness none of the mortals will have any excuse for their foolish negligence and much less will the children of the holy church have an excuse since they have received the faith of these admirable sacraments and yet show in their lives little difference from that of infidels and pagans do not think my daughter that it is written in vain many are called the few are chosen matthew chapter 20 verse 16 fear this sentence and renew in thy heart the care and zeal for thy salvation conformable to the sense of obligation arising from the knowledge of such high mysteries even if it were not a question of eternal salvation for thee thou shouldest correspond to the loving kindness with which I manifest to thee such great and divine secrets that I call thee my daughter and a spouse of my lord should cause thee to pay no attention to any visible thing and embrace only love and suffering for his sake this I have shown thee by my example since I applied all my faculties continually to these two things with the highest perfection in order that thou mayest attain this I wish that thy prayer be without intermission and that thou watch one hour with me that is during the whole of thy life for compared with eternity life is less than one hour yea less than one moment with such sentiments I wish that thou follow up the mysteries of the passion writing them feeling them and imprinting them upon thy heart End of Chapter 12 Book 2 Chapter 13 of the Mystical City of God Volume 3 by the venerable sister Mary of Jesus of a Greta this Librivox recording is in the public domain Book 2 Chapter 13 Our Savior is delivered into the hands of his enemies by the treason of Judas and his taken prisoner the behavior of the most holy Mary on this occasion and some of the mysteries of this event While our Savior occupied himself in praying to his father for the spiritual salvation of the human race the perfidious disciple Judas sought to hasten the delivery of Christ into the hands of the priests and Pharisees at the same time Lucifer and his demons not being able to divert the perverse will of Judas and of the other enemies of Christ from their designs on the life of Christ their creator and master changed the tactics of their satanic malice and began to incite the Jews to greater cruelty and effrontery in their dealings with the Savior as I have already said several times the devil was filled with great suspicions lest this most extraordinary man be the messiahs and the true God he now resolved to ascertain whether his misgivings were well founded or not by instigating the Jews and their ministers to the most atrocious injuries against the Savior he imparted to them his own dreadful envy and pride and thus literally fulfilled the prophecy of Solomon wisdom chapter 2 verse 7 for it seemed to the demon that if Christ was not God and only a man he certainly must weaken and be conquered in these persecutions and torments if on the other hand he was God he would manifested by freeing himself and performing new miracles similar motives urged on the priests and Pharisees at the instigation of Judas they hastily gathered together a large band of people composed of pagan soldiers a tribune and many Jews having consigned to them Judas as a hostage they sent this band on its way to apprehend the most innocent lamb who was awaiting them and who was aware of all the thoughts and schemes of the sacrilegious priests as foretold expressly by Jeremiah's Jeremiah chapter 11 verse 19 all these servants of malice bearing arms and provided with ropes and chains in the glaring torch and lantern light issued from the city in the direction of Mount Olivet the prime mover of the treachery Judas had insisted upon so much precaution for in his perfidy and treachery he feared that the meekest master whom he believed to be a magician and sorcerer would perform some miracle for his escape as if arms and human precautions could have ever availed if Jesus should have decided to make use of his divine power as if he could not have brought this power into play in the same way as he had done on other occasions should he now choose not to deliver himself to suffering and to the ignominies of the cross while they were approaching the Lord returned the third time to his apostles and finding them asleep spoke to them sleep ye now and take your rest it is enough the hour is come behold the Son of Man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners rise up let us go behold he that will betray me is at hand Mark chapter 14 verse 41 such were the words of the Master of Holiness to the three most privileged apostles he was unwilling to reprehend them more severely than in this most meek and loving manner being oppressed they did not know what to answer their Lord as Scripture says Mark chapter 14 verse 40 they arose and Jesus went with them to join the other eight disciples he found them likewise overcome and oppressed by their great sorrow and fallen asleep the Master then gave orders that all of them together mystically forming one body with him their head should advance toward the enemies thereby teaching them the power of mutual and perfect unity for overcoming the demons and their followers and for avoiding defeat by them for a triple chord is hard to tear as says Ecclesiastes chapter 4 verse 12 and he that is mighty against one may be overcome by two that being the effect of union the Lord again exhorted all the apostles and forewarned them of what was to happen already the confused noise of the advancing band of soldiers and their helpmates began to be heard our Savior then proceeded to meet them on the way and with incomparable love magnanimous courage and tender piety prayed interiorly oh sufferings longingly desired from my inmost soul ye pains wounds of fronts labors afflictions and ignominious death come come quickly for the fire of love which burns for the salvation of men is anxious to see you meet the innocent one of all creatures well do I know your value I have sought desired and solicited you and I meet you joyously of my own free will I have purchased you by my anxiety in search for you and I esteem you for your merits I desire to remedy and enhance your value and raise you to highest dignity let death come in order that by my accepting it without having deserved it I may triumph over it and gain life for those who have been punished by death for their sins Hosea chapter 13 verse 14 I give permission to my friends to forsake me for I alone desire and am able to enter into this battle and gain for them triumph and victory Isaiah chapter 53 verse 3 during these words and prayers of the author of life Judas advanced in order to give the signal upon which he had agreed with his companions Matthew chapter 26 verse 48 namely the customary but now feigned kiss of peace by which they were to distinguish Jesus as the one whom they should single out from the rest and immediately sees these precautions the unhappy disciple had taken not only out of avarice for the money and hatred against his master but also on account of the fear with which he was filled for he dreaded the inevitable necessity of meeting him and encountering him in the future if Christ was not put to death on this occasion such a confusion he feared more than the death of his soul or the death of his divine master and in order to forestall it he hastened to complete his treachery and desired to see the author of life die at the hands of his enemies the traitor then ran up to the meekest Lord and as a consummate hypocrite hiding his hatred he imprinted on his countenance the kiss of peace saying God save thee master by this so treacherous act the perdition of Judas was matured and God was justified in withholding his grace and help on the part of the unfaithful disciple malice and temerity reached their highest degree for interiorly denying or disbelieving the uncreated and created wisdom by which Christ must know of his treason and ignoring his power to destroy him he sought to hide his malice under the cloak of the friendship of a true disciple and all this for the purpose of delivering over to a frightful and cruel death his creator and master to whom he was bound by so many obligations in this one act of treason he committed so many and such formidable sins that it is impossible to fathom their immensity for he was treacherous, murderous, sacrilegious, ungrateful, inhuman, disobedient, false, lying, impious, and unequaled in hypocrisy and all this was included in one and the same crime perpetrated against the person of God made man on the part of the Lord shone forth his ineffable mercy and equity since those words of David were fulfilled in an imminent manner with them that hated peace I was peaceable when I spoke to them they fought against me without cause Psalm 119 verse 7 so completely did the Lord fulfill this prophecy that when in answer to the kiss of Judas he said friend where to art thou come he sent into the heart of the traitorous disciple a new and most clear light by which Judas saw the atrocious malice of his treason the punishment to follow if he should not make it good by true penance and the merciful pardon still to be obtained from the divine clemency what Judas clearly read in those few words of Christ was friend take heed lest thou cause thy perdition and abuse my meekness by this treason if thou seek my friendship I will not refuse it to thee on account of this deed as soon as thou art sorry for thy sin consider well thy temerity in delivering me by false friendship and undercover of a false peace and a kiss of reverence and love remember the benefits thou has received of my charity and that I am the son of the virgin by whom thou has been so often favored and rejoice with motherly advice and counsel during thy apostolate even if it were only for her sake thou should is not commit such a treason as to sell and deliver her son in no wise does her loving meekness deserve such an outrageous wrong for she has never been unkind to thee but although thou has now committed this wrong do not despise her intercession for she alone will be powerful with me and for her sake I offer thee pardon and life since she has many times besought me to do so I assure thee that we love thee for thou art yet in life where there is hope and where we will not deny thee our friendship if thou seek it but if thou refuse it thou wilt merit our abhorrence and eternal chastisement and pain the seed of the divine words took no root in the heart of this unhappy reprobate it was harder than adamantine and more inhuman than that of a wild beast resisting the divine clemency he finally fell into despair as I shall relate in the next chapter the signal of the kiss having been given by Judas the lord with his disciples and the soldiers who had come to capture him came face to face forming two squadrons the most opposite and hostile that ever the world saw for on the one side was Christ our Lord true God and man as the captain of all the just supported by the eleven apostles the chieftains and champions of his church with innumerable hosts of angelic spirits full of adoring wonder at the spectacle on the other side was Judas the originator of the treason filled with hypocrisy and hatred and many Jews and Gentiles bent on venting their malice with the greatest cruelty surrounding these were Lucifer and a multitude of demons inciting and assisting Judas and his helpers boldly to lay their sacrilegious hands upon their creator with unfathomable love for suffering and great force and authority the Lord then spoke to the soldiers saying whom seek ye John chapter 18 verses 4 through 5 they answered Jesus of Nazareth Jesus said to them I am he by these inestimably precious and blessed words Christ declared himself as our redeemer and savior for only by offering himself freely to redeem us by his passion and death could our hope of eternal life ever rest on firm foundation his enemies could not understand or fathom the true meaning of these words I am he but his most blessed mother and the angels understood them as did also to a great extent the apostles it was as if he had said I am who am Exodus chapter 3 verse 14 as I have said to my prophet Moses for I am of myself and all creatures have their being and existence from me I am eternal immense infinite one in substance and attributes and I have made myself man hiding my glory in order that by means of my passion and death to which you wish to condemn me I might save the world as the Lord spoke with divine power his enemies could not resist and when his words struck their ears they all fell backwards to the ground John chapter 18 verse 6 this happened not only to the soldiers but to the dogs which they had brought with them and to the horses on which some of them rode all of them fell to the ground and remained motionless like stones Lucifer and his demons were hurled down with them deprived of motion and suffering new confusion and torture thus they remained for some seven or eight minutes showing no more signs of life than if they had died oh word of God so mysterious and meaning and more invincible in power let not the wise glory before thee in their wisdom and astuteness nor the powerful in their valor Jeremiah chapter 9 verse 23 let the vanity and arrogance of the children of Babylon be humbled since one word from the mouth of the Lord spoken with so much meekness and humility confounds destroys and annihilates all the power and pride of man and hell let us children of the church also learn that the victories of Christ are gained by confessing the truth by giving place unto wrath letter to the romans chapter 12 verse 19 by showing meekness and humility of heart Matthew chapter 11 verse 29 by overcoming and being overcome with dove-like simplicity by the peacefulness and resentment of sheep free from resistance of furious and ravenous wolves sadly our divine Lord contemplated the picture of eternal damnation exhibited in them and listened to the prayer of his most holy mother to let them rise for upon her intercession his divine will had made that dependent when it was time for them to come to themselves he prayed to the eternal father saying my father an eternal god in my hands thou hast placed all things John chapter 13 verse 3 and has consigned to me the redemption required by thy justice I wish to satisfy it and give myself over to death with all my heart in order to merit for my brethren participation in thy treasures and the eternal happiness held out to them by this expression of his efficacious will the Lord gave permission to that whole miserable band of men demons and animals to arise and be restored to the same condition as before they're falling down the second time the Savior said to them whom seek ye and they again answered Jesus of Nazareth the Lord answered most meekly I have already told you that I am he if therefore you seek me let these go their way John chapter 18 verse 8 with these words he gave permission to the servants and the soldiers to take him prisoner and execute their designs which without their understanding it meant nothing else than to draw upon his divine person all our sorrows and infirmities Isaiah chapter 53 verse 4 the first one who hastened to approach in order to lay hands upon the master of life was a servant of the high priest named Malchus in spite of the fear and consternation of all the apostles St. Peter more than all the rest was roused with zeal for the defense of the honor and life of the divine master drawing a cutlass which he had with him he made a pass at Malchus and cut off one of his ears severing it entirely from the head John chapter 18 verse 10 the stroke would have resulted in a much more serious wound if the divine providence of the master of patience and meekness had not diverted it the Lord would not permit that any other death in his own should occur at his capture his wounds his blood and suffering alone should rescue to eternal life the human race as many of it as are willing nor was it his will or according to his teaching that his person be defended by the use of arms and he did not wish to leave such an example in his church as one to be principally imitated for her defense in order to confirm this doctrine which he had always inculcated he picked up the severed ear and restored it to its place perfectly healing the wound and making Malchus more sound and whole than he was before but he first turned to saint peter and represented him saying put up thy sword into the scabbard for all that shall take it to kill with it shall perish does thou not wish that I drink the chalice which my father hath given me thinkest thou that I cannot ask my father and he will give me presently many legions of angels for my defense but how then shall the scriptures and the prophets be fulfilled John chapter 18 verse 11 Matthew chapter 26 verse 53 the saint peter the head of the church by this loving exhortation had been taught and enlightened that his arms for the establishment and defense of the church were to be spiritual and that the law of the gospel does not inculcate battles in conquest with material weapons the conquest of humility patience meekness and perfect charity which overcome the demon the world and the flesh that divine virtue would triumph over its enemies and over the power and intrigues of this world that arms for attack and defense were not for the followers of Christ our savior but for the princes of the earth to safeguard their earthly possessions while the sword of the church was to be spiritual reaching rather the soul than the body then Christ our lord turning toward his enemies and the servants of the Jews spoke to them with great majesty and grandeur you are come as it were to a robber with swords and clubs to apprehend me I sat daily with you teaching in the temple and you laid not hands on me but this is your hour and the power of darkness Matthew chapter 26 verse 55 Luke chapter 22 verse 53 all the words of our savior contain the profoundest mysteries and it is impossible to comprehend them all or explain them especially those which he spoke at his passion and death well might these ministers have been softened and made ashamed of their wickedness by this reprehension of the divine master but they were far from it because they were of the accursed and sterile earth drained of the due of virtue and human kindness nevertheless the author of life wish to admonish them of the truth to that extent thereby their malice would be so much the more inexcusable and the sin and all the others committed in the very presence of the highest holiness and justice would have its due correction and they themselves a powerful help for conversion if they should desire it moreover it would thereby become evident that he knew all that was to happen that he delivered himself into their hands and over to this death of his own free will for these and for many other sublime reasons the Lord spoke the above words penetrating their inmost mind for he knew and fully understood the cause of their malice hatred and envy namely because he had publicly represented the vices of the priests and Pharisees because he had taught the truth and the way of life to the people because he had by his example and his miracles captured the good will of the humble and the pious and brought many sinners into his friendship and grace he reminded them that one who had power to bring about all these results in public and who could not be apprehended in the temple or in the city in which he taught could certainly not be captured in the open field without his consent he clearly made them sensible that the reason of their failing to do so before was because he himself had not given his permission to men or demons until the hour chosen by himself in order to signify to them that the hour of his being captured ill treated and afflicted had come he said this is your hour and the power of darkness as if he had said to them until now it was necessary for me to be with you as your master for your instruction therefore I did not permit you to take my life but I desire to consummate by my death the work of the redemption consigned to me by my eternal father and therefore I now permit you to take me prisoner and to execute your will upon my person there upon they fell upon the most meek lamb like fierce tigers binding him securely with ropes and chains in order thus to lead him to the house of the high priest as I shall presently relate the most pure mother of christ our lord was most attentive to all that passed in his capture and by means of her clear visions saw it more clearly than if she had been present in person for by means of her supernatural visions she penetrated into all the mysteries of his words and actions when she beheld the band of soldiers and servants issuing from the house of the high priest the prudent lady foresaw the irreverence and insults with which they would treat their creator and redeemer and in order to do what was within her power she invited the holy angels and many others in union with her to render adoration and praise to the lord of creation as an offset to the injuries and affronts he would sustain at the hands of those ministers of darkness the same request she made to the holy women who were praying with her she told them that her most holy son had now given permission to his enemies to take him prisoner and ill treat him that they were about to make use of this permission in a most impious and cruel manner assisted by the holy angels and the pious women the faithful queen engaged in interior and exterior acts of devoted faith and love confessing adoring praising and magnifying the infinite deity and the most holy humanity of her creator and lord the holy women imitated her in the genuflections and prostrations and the angelic princes responded to the canticles with which she magnified celebrated and glorified the divinity and humanity of christ in the measure in which the children of malice increase their irreverence and injuries she sought to compensate them by her praise and veneration that she continued to placate the divine justice lest it should be roused against his persecutors and destroy them for only most holy mary was capable of staying the punishment of such great offenses and the great lady not only placated the just judge but even obtained favors and blessings from the divine clemency for the very persons who irritated him and thus secured a return of good for those who were heaping wrongs upon christ the lord for his doctrine and benefits this mercy attained its highest point in the disloyal and obstinate judice for the tender mother seeing him deliver Jesus by the kiss of feigned friendship and considering how shortly before his mouth had contained the sacramental body of the lord with whose sacred countenance so soon after those same foul lips were permitted to come in contact was transfixed with sorrow and entranced by charity she asked the lord to grant new graces whereby this man who had enjoyed the privilege of touching the face where on angel's desire to look might if he chose to use them save himself from perdition in response to this prayer of most holy mary her son and lord granted judice powerful graces in the very consummation of his treacherous delivery if the unfortunate man had given heed and had commenced to respond to them the mother of mercy would have obtained for him many others and at last also pardon for his sin she has done so with many other great sinners who were willing to give that glory to her and thus obtain eternal glory for themselves but judice failed to realize this and thus lost all chance of salvation as i shall relate in the next chapter likewise when the great lady saw all the servants and soldiers who had come to take him fall to the ground at his divine word she in company with the angels broke out in a song of praise of his infinite power and of the virtue of his humanity which thereby renew the victory of the most high over pharaoh and his troops in the red sea exodus chapter 15 verse 4 she exalted the lord of hosts because he was about to deliver himself in an admirable manner to suffering and death in order to save the human race from the captivity of lucifer then she besought the lord to permit all these dumbfounded and vanquished enemies to regain their senses and to arise she was moved to the petition by her most generous kindness and deep compassion for these men created by the lord according to his own image and likeness on the other hand she wanted to fulfill in an imminent degree the law of loving our enemies and doing good to those who persecute us inculcated in practice by her own son and master matthew chapter 5 verse 44 and finally because she knew that the prophecies of holy scripture were to be fulfilled in the redemption of man although all these were infallible this did not hinder the most holy mary from giving voice to her prayer and thereby moving the most high to grant these favors for in the infinite wisdom and in the decrees of his eternal will all these means were foreseen as producing these effects in the manner most conformable to the foreknowledge and foresight of the lord but it is not necessary to enter into further explanation of such mysteries at present when the servants of the high priest laid hands on and bound the savior the most blessed mother felt on her own hands the pains caused by the ropes and chains as if she herself was being bound and fettered in the same manner she felt in her body the blows and torments further inflicted upon the lord for I have already said this favor was granted to his mother as we shall see in the course of the passion this her sensible participation in his sufferings was some kind of relief of the pain which she would have suffered in her loving soul at the thought of not being with him in his torments instruction which the queen of heaven most holy mary gave me my daughter in all that thou art made to understand and write concerning these mysteries thou drawest upon thyself and upon mortals a severe judgment if thou does not overcome thy peace a land enmity in gratitude and baseness by meditating day and night on the passion and death of christ crucified this is the great science of the saints so little heated by the worldly it is the bread of life and the spiritual food of the little ones which gives wisdom to them and the want of which starves the lovers of this proud world wisdom chapter 15 verse 3 in this science I wish thee to be studious and wise for with it thou canst by thyself all good things wisdom chapter 7 verse 11 my son and lord taught us this science when he said I am the way the truth and the life no one cometh to my father except through me john chapter 14 verse 6 tell me then my daughter if my lord and master has made himself the life and the way for men through his passion and death is it not evident that in order to go that way and live up to this truth they must follow christ crucified afflicted scourged and affronted consider the ignorance of men who wish to come to the father without following christ since they expect to reign with god without suffering or imitating his passion yay without even a thought of accepting any part of his suffering and death or of thanking him for it they wanted to procure for them the pleasures of this life as well as of eternal life while christ their creator has suffered the most bitter pains and torments in order to enter heaven and to show them by his example how they are to find the way of eternal rest is incomparable with the shame of not having duly labored for its attainment he is not a true son of the father who does not imitate him nor a good disciple who does not follow his master nor a good servant who does not accompany his lord nor do i count him a devoted child who does not suffer with me and my divine son but our love for the eternal salvation of men obliges us who see them forgetful of this truth and so adverse to suffering to send them labors and punishments so that if they do not freely welcome them they may at least be forced to undergo them and so be enabled to enter upon the way of salvation and yet even all this is insufficient since their inclinations and their blind love of visible things detains them and makes them hard and heavy of heart they rob them of remembrance and affection toward these higher things which might raise them above themselves and above created things hence it comes that men do not find joy in their tribulations nor rest in their labors nor consolation in their sorrows nor any peace in adversities for altogether different from the saints who glory in tribulation as the fulfillment of their most earnest desires they desire none of it and abhor all that is painful in many of the faithful this ignorance goes still further for some of them expect to be distinguished by god's most intimate love others to be pardoned without penance others to be highly favored nothing of all this will they attain because they do not ask in the name of christ the lord and because they do not wish to imitate him and follow him in his passion therefore my daughter embrace the cross and do not admit any consolation outside of it in this mortal life by contemplating and feeling within thyself the sacred passion thou wilt attain the summit of perfection and attain the love of a spouse bless and magnify my most holy son for the love with which he delivered himself up for the salvation of mankind little do mortals heed this mystery but i as an eyewitness assure thee next to the ascending to the right hand of his eternal father nothing was so highly esteemed and so earnestly desired by him as to offer himself for suffering and death and to deliver himself up entirely to his enemies i wish also that thou lament with great sorrow the fact that judas in his malice and treachery has many more followers than christ many are the infidels many the bad catholics many the hypocrites who under the name of a christian sell and deliver him and wish to crucify him anew be well all these evils which thou understandest and knowest in order that thou mayest imitate and follow me in this matter