Saint Augustine, Philippe de Champaigne, c.1645-50 (Detail) – (Source)
On Saint Augustine – A Prayer of M. Hamon
O God, who, after having shown to us in Saint Augustine the very excess into which corrupt nature causes us to fall, hast also caused us to see in him the strength and the empire of Thy Grace over our hearts, grant us, we beseech thee, so perfect a knowledge of our extreme misery and of Thy infinite mercy, that, expecting everything from Thee, and nothing from ourselves, we might hope fully in Thee by defying ourselves completely.
O God, who in embracing Saint Augustine with Thy Love, and in elevating him above all men by the knowledge of Thy Truth, hast placed him in Thy Church as a fiery and shining lamp, so that he might illuminate and defend her by his doctrine, and console and edify her by his sanctity; grant, by the help of his charitable intercession, that we might imitate his virtues; and, at his example, rejoicing only in the truth, and having taste only for the fruits of charity, we might despise this mortal life by the hope and feeling of the all-divine life which Thou hast promised us; so that, loving Thee alone, we might also place all our happiness in Thee alone.
Thus we beseech thee by Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(From Jean Hamon, Entretiens d’une âme avec Dieu, New Edition (Avignons, 1740), pp. 405-06; original translation by The Amish Catholic)
Some great news to finish the month. Angelico Press has released the first book by (or about) Mother Mectilde de Bar in English, The Mystery of Incomprehensible Love: The Eucharistic Message of Mother Mectilde of the Blessed Sacrament. Translated by a Benedictine Oblate and with a foreword by the Prior of Silverstream, this book of meditative excerpts is sure to inject a new and healthy dose of sound French spirituality into the veins of the modern Church. It will also, I hope, help generate new scholarly interest in the considerable spiritual contributions made by Mother Mectilde.
What follows is an original translation of L’Horloge de la Passion, a brief meditative text written by the Solitaire of Port-Royal, Jean Hamon (1618-1687), a doctor of medicine, mystic, and exegete. Hamon wrote L’Horloge for the sisters of Port-Royal to use during perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, perhaps during the Triduum. Perpetual adoration was a central feature of life at Port-Royal from 1647, when Mère Angélique returned from the unsuccessful venture of the Institut du Saint-Sacrement.
Each hour represents a different mystery of the Passion and is calibrated to follow the Passion narrative in real time. Hamon concludes with several prayers, probably composed first in Latin and then put into the vernacular. I have take the liberty of reproducing the Latin below while translating from the accompanying French.
This document, though originating from the heyday of Port-Royal, was only published in 1739 in the post-Unigenitus ferment of Jansenist print culture. It remains a very edifying text and a testament of the vitality of the spiritual life that characterized those wayward ascetics clustered around Port-Royal. I offer it here both out of historical interest for those who, like me, look at Port-Royal for academic reasons, and because I felt that such a text may be of some use and consolation to the faithful in this very unusual Holy Week, when death hedges us all around.
Christ on the Cross, Philippe de Champaigne, before 1650 (Source)
L’Horloge de la Passion
At six o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ washes the feet of His Apostles. Humility. Help to our neighbor.
At seven o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ institutes the Most Blessed Sacrament. Recognition and perpetual memory of this benefit.
At eight o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ prays to His Father for the salvation and union of His Elect. To renounce everything that can stops us from being one with Jesus Christ and our brethren.
At nine o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ is sad even unto death. Confidence in the weakness of Jesus Christ, who is our strength in our dejection and our miseries.
At ten o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ prays to His Father to take away the chalice of His sufferings. Submission to the will of God.
At eleven o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ enters into agony. To resist sin with courage.
At midnight: Jesus Christ, after having turned back the Jews by a single word, allows himself to be caught. To see God in all that man cause us to suffer.
At one o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ allows himself to be carried off by the Jews. Sweetness and humility in ill-treatment.
At two o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is presented to the High Priest. To revere God in secular and ecclesiastical authorities.
At three o’clock in the morning: Renunciation and penance of St. Peter. Fidelity in confessing the name of Jesus Christ. Humble return to Him after our falls.
At four o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is presented before the Council of the Jews. To listen to the word of God as being truly His word. To adorer the Truth, never to raise ourselves against it.
At five o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ mocked and outraged by the servants of the Priests. To suffer humbly both scorn and injuries.
At six o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is brought before Pilate. Adoration and imitation of the silence of Jesus Christ, when we are accused.
At seven o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is sent to Herod. To pass as foolish before men even though we be truly wise.
At eight o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is scourged. To take part in the sufferings of Jesus Christ and His members.
At nine o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is crowned with thorns. To adore Jesus Christ as our King. To suffer with him, is to reign.
At ten o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ is condemned to death. To die to one’s self is to live in Jesus.
At eleven o’clock in the morning: Jesus Christ carries His Cross. Let us carry ours after him; he carries it with us.
At noon: Jesus Christ is crucified. To attach ourselves to Jesus Chris, and to desire to be attached by Him to the Cross.
At one o’clock in the afternoon: Jesus Christ is lifted up upon the Cross. To raise our eyes and heart towards the mysterious and divine Serpent.
At two o’clock in the afternoon: Jesus Christ speaks to His Father, to the Blessed Virgin Mary His Mother, and to St. Jean. Attention to these divine words that comprehend our duties.
At three o’clock in the afternoon: Jesus Christ gives up the ghost. To adore His death; to unite ours to him.
At four o’clock in the afternoon: The open side of Jesus Christ sheds blood and water. Rest in the Side and in the Wounds of Jesus Christ. To honor the Sacraments established in the Church.
At five o’clock in the evening: Jesus Christ is buried, and placed in the tomb. To be buried with Him. To hope for the Resurrection.
Prayers – That one can say in adoring the Death of Jesus Christ
Ut beatam horam Mortis tuae adoramus, Domine, da nobis ut horam mortis nostrae, quam solus nosti, perfecto corde & vivendo & moriendo adoremus.
Vouchsafe unto us grace, O Lord, that in adoring the hour of Thy Death, we might adore, in living and dying with a heart perfectly submitted to Thine commands, the hour of our death, that is known to none but thee.
Domine Jesu, qui mori voluisti ne moreremur, sed de morte ad vitam transiremus, recordare Mortis tuae in tempore mortis meae, cum nec tui nec mei recordari potuero.
Lord Jesus, who hast desired to die to deliver us from death, and to cause us to pass from death to life, remember Thou Thy Death at the hour of mine, when I will be no longer in a state to think of either myself or Thee.
Mortem meam quae poena peccati est, tutetur & protegat Mors tua, quae tollit peccata mundi, ut jam pie cogitando quia mortuus es, tunc moriendo non moriar.
May Thy Death that nullifies the sins of the world be my protection in death, which shall be the penalty of sin; and in thinking with piety that Thou art dead, in dying even may I not die.
Versetur semper ante oculos meos tempus Mortis tuae, quae mihi sit fons vitae, cum vita mea defecerit, ut in Morte tua vitam invenire possim qui in vita mea mortem singulis diebus invenio.
May Thy Death always be present to me, so that it may be unto me a source of immortal life when I will lose this corruptible life; and instead of often finding death in my life, may I find life in Thy Death.
Fac, Domine, semper conjungam cogitationem Mortis tuae cogitationi mortis meae, ut quod in morte mea amarum esse potest, benedictione Mortis tuae dulcescat; sicque vitae permanentis amore, mortis transeuntis levem ictum non reformidem.
Vouchsafe unto me the grace, O Lord, of ever uniting myself to the thought of Thy Death in the remembrance of mine, so that what there might be of bitterness in my death might be sweetened by the blessing of Thine; and thus that the love of an eternal life might cause me not to dread anything of the blow, so light, of a voyaging death.
Bene vivam, Domine, ut bene moriar. Ut bene vivam, vivam de te. Ut bene moriar, moriar in te,. Vitam meam informet Vita tua, ut sancta sit; & mortem meam defendat Mors tua, salus nostra, ut sit salutaris,
Vouchsafe unto me the grace, O Lord, of living well, that I may die well. May I live in Thee, that I might live well: and to die well, may I die in Thee. May Thy life be the rule of my life, so that it may be holy; and may Thy Death, which is the cause of our salvation, safeguard my death so that it may procure unto me salvation.
Christ on the Cross. Another treatment of the Passion by Philippe de Champaigne. c. 1655. Given by the artist to his sister Marie, a Beguine in Brussels. (Source)
For this Friday in Passiontide, we have another offering in the Lenten Spirituality Series. This time it comes from the great Cardinal Pierre de Bérulle (1575-1629), mystic, founder of the French Oratory, and sponsor of the Carmelites of France. Immersed in the Fathers and dedicated to the reform of the clergy initiated at the Council of Trent, Bérullewas perhaps the most influential writer of the French School of Spirituality. His vast corpus has been rarely translated in English, so I present my own translation here from hisOeuvres Complètes, pg. 1045-46. In this excerpt from the “Opuscules Divers de Piété,” we encounter one of the key themes of the French School – the interior life of Christ.
Jacques Sarazin’s monument for Cardinal de Bérulle (1575 – 1629), formerly at the chapel of the Carmelite nuns of the Rue Saint-Jacques, and now in the Louvre (Source)
Of the Interior Sufferings of Jesus – Of the Sentiments of the Son of God in Regards to His Most Holy Passion
…
If so many holy souls have been sacredly occupied with pious, devout, and admirable sentiments with regards to the Cross, the Son of God, who is the source, the principle, and the exemplar of the life of His saints, will not have been removed therefrom. On the contrary, He will have been occupied and filled with the same advantage that His incomparable life has over the life of the saints.
We adore and admire in the Son of God two types of life: the life of glory and the life of the Cross; two lives in the Son of God, two very different lives, two very busy lives, without either one of these lives and occupations impeding the other. On the contrary, that [life] of glory dignifies the sufferings of Jesus, in that they are established in the self-same glory: that only belongs to Jesus and to His sufferings, that had had these two privileges, to be established in the divine life, in the glorious life; instead of the sufferings of the saints that are only established in human life, in the holy life. The life of the Cross testifies to His grandeur and His power of finding and taking the same place of glory.
Each life has its object, its knowledge, and its sentiment, as it appears in the human life of the senses; how much more in the spiritual and divine life? The life of glory has its object, its light, and its suffering, which is its sentiment. The life of the Cross also has its object, its light, its suffering. The devout life has its objects, its thoughts, its sentiments. Oh! What are the sentiments of the life of glory! What are the sentiments of the life of the Cross!
These sentiments of the Son of God, in regard to the Cross, had been, as soon as its arrival in the divine life, glorious and passible, continuing during the whole course of His life, even unto death; some of anguish and others of languor towards His cross: Baptismo habeo baptizari, et quomodo coarctor donec perficiatur! “And I have a baptism wherewith I am to be baptized: and how am I straitened until it be accomplished?” (Luke 12:50 DRA)
These sentiments had been universal as those of glory, which spread through the soul, the powers, and the glorified body. His agony is one the sentiments of the Cross that had occupied and filled all parts of the Son of God’s body; because, by this mystery, all the parts of His body had been rendered capable and sensitive in view of the Cross.
Besides this mystery of agony…these sentiments of the life of the Cross occupied the heart, the soul, and the spirit of Jesus; everything therein had been penetrated, His heart had not waited even to be pierced by the lance to be pierced by this pain; this pain had wounded it living and the lance had pierced it in death.
Until we be introduced into the sanctuary of the life of the Son of God, let us adore these sentiments – so divine and so vast – upon a subject so grand.
There are three different principles of these admirable sentiments: thought, light, and the powerful hand of God himself, imprinting these sentiments immediately upon the heart and the spirit of Jesus. The light of glory, clearly seeing God in His grandeur and His essence, had perhaps been employed in its efficacy to operate these divine sentiments. Thoughts at once devout, luminous, and efficacious, but ordinary for the Son of God, had also operated sentiments in His soul, albeit inferior to those that the light of glory and the immediate hand of God had worked there.
Abandonment on the Cross is one of these sentiments imprinted by the Eternal Father immediately.
This week’s contribution to the Lenten Spirituality Series comes from Jean de Bernières-Louvigny (1602-1659), a pious lay mystic who lived and died in Caen. From his hermitage in this rainy Norman town, Jean de Bernières gave himself over to profound experiences of contemplative prayer. His spirituality, as expressed in the two volumes of his Le chrestien intérieur (Paris: 1661), was deeply indebted to the apophatic tradition of mystical theology. Although a solitaire, Jean de Bernières was engaged in ecclesiastical and charitable networks that included some of the greatest spiritual figures of his day. He was a member of the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement in Caen and corresponded with such notable individuals as St. François de Montmorency-Laval, Bishop of Québec, and Mother Mectilde de Bar, Foundress of the Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. He met the latter at Caen; she became, as it were, a dear friend. Translated into German in the eighteenth century, Jean de Bernières had an important influence on the trajectory of Pietism in that country. He has, as far as I can tell, never been fully translated into English. What I produce below is my own translation, in the hope it may offer some aid to pious souls in this time of temptation. The excerpt comes from the Second Volume, Book V, Chapter II of Le chrestien intérieur, pp. 6-11. I would add, for those who take an interest in such matters, that one of the extra difficulties in translating Jean de Bernières is that he uses Norman French vocabulary that no longer appears in standard French. I hope I have managed to capture his sense here.
May the Blessed Hermit Jean de Bernières pray for us in this time of penance. (Source)
To commune worthily, one must place oneself in a state conformed to that of Jesus, in the Blessed Sacrament.
Jesus Christ wishes to give Himself to us in this august mystery, in a state of death with respect to the life of the senses, but as a source of life with respect to the interior life, the divine life, the life of grace, the life of contemplation and continuous application to the grandeurs of God His Father; a life poor and annihilated [aneantie] in exteriors, but entirely brilliant with majesty, and infinitely rich under the veil of the species that hide it from the eyes of the world. It is with these dispositions that that He comes to present Himself to us, wishing as well that we too should present ourselves to Him with dispositions conformed to His.
The Humanity that He gives to you in Communion has been elevated to the divine life by the hypostatic union; we too must be such by grace, that our understanding would be elevated to a high knowledge, and our will to a sublime sentiment of love of God, and that our soul would live the life of grace. O sublimity of the life of grace, you are so admirable, you are so high, you are so ineffable! You raise man from earth to heaven, and you make him live in God, and even of God, because you dispose him to live on the earth from the same substance by which the Blessed live in heaven. O great life of grace, you are poor to the exterior, but very rich in the interior: you seem low, but you are most high: you have ravished me with you beauty, I can no longer live a moment without thee, who make [me] live from a divine life, who places the soul in the heart of God, and who disposes her to see God placed in her heart.
Since the beauty of this life manifests itself to the soul, she leaves everything to embrace it, and everything else seems to her naught but death and corruption; we abandon the world, honors, and riches; we condemn ourselves to penances, to mortifications, to poverty, so as to live this divine life; and we feel a holy hunger for this adorable food that nurtures the soul. O that I might know it, my God, and that I might follow it, this divine life, so little known to the world, practiced by so few in the world, that also does not find itself altered by the waters of Thy eternal fountains! O Jesus, draw me after Thee in the actions of the life of grace, which is in its full exercise in misery and scorn. Draw me, Lord, I run after Thee in the odor of Thy perfumes. What pleasure, my soul, to behold you walking as a giant in the ways of grace, nourished and fortified in your course with the bread of grace: Ambulavit in fortitudine cibi illius usque ad montem Dei.
To live in one’s own death, as Jesus seems to us in the Blessed Sacrament, to lose one’s glory in contempt, to be ravished when one is annihilated [aneanti] and sacrificed; this is proper to the life of grace. Making everything dead to the exterior, it brings life to the interior, and gives principally the spirit of prayer, putting it almost continuously in exercise in the soul, applying itself to this infinite and incomprehensible Being that it adores, unable to comprehend It, and annihilating itself [s’aneantit] before Him, unable even to admire His divine grandeurs, as annihilated [aneanties] in the Eucharist. O my soul, how great is your vileness, how extreme your poverty! What is man, that You should have remembrance of him, Lord, and that You should visit him, and that You should take Thy delight from coming to dwell personally with him? His soul is drawn from nothing, and his body is nothing but a little mud, and Thou deignest to set Thine eyes upon him! How is it that this creature, so dirty, so minuscule, so coarse, could receive the infinite majesty of God? Humble thyself to the bottom of thy nothingness, and confess thy baseness, my soul. Lower thine eyes, and swear that thou art unworthy to turn them only towards that formidable grandeur; but be still more moved with admiration, of recognition and love of such excessive goodness, which deigns well to annihilate itself [s’aneantir] in that incomprehensible mystery, to bring itself to you even unto your nothingness.
We must truly love the state of interior captivity, where the soul, bound and tied up, stays in the obscurity of its prison. This state will honor the captivity of Jesus enclosed under the little host. This divine Lord place himself in a little prison for our love. The King of Glory is restricted under these small species, and thereby a captive and prisoner of man, He renders Himself, it seems, his slave, giving Himself entirely to him; He suffers, so to speak, and dies for him, and communicates to him all the merits of His Precious Blood. O divine Captive, captivate my heart so strongly, that it may never more return to natural liberty; but that all destroyed and annihilated [aneanti], it may not live another life than the superhuman, nor may it enjoy any other liberty than that of Thy children.
Each time that one takes Communion, Jesus Christ giving Himself entirely to all, there are all new obligations that we contract to live entirely for Him, and to render all our actions divine. It is necessary therefore for a good soul not to say: I have not such time to prepare myself for Communion; because she must not aim at another thing by all the actions of her life, but to receive the Bread of Life, in order to live the life of Jesus, and to persevere perpetually in similar dispositions to those that appear to us in the Blessed Sacrament.
The great reforming Abbess of Port-Royal, Mère Angélique Arnauld (1591-1661), is chiefly remembered today for her memorable role in the early phases of the Jansenist controversy. This is somewhat unfortunate, as the reform at Port-Royal was considerable and widely admired by such eminent figures as SS Francis de Sales and Jeanne-Françoise de Chantal. Leaving aside any historical question of Mère Angélique‘s actions in the Jansenist affair, I put forth my own translation of what is, I believe, a salutary text published long after her death. I would add that a Catholic may believe that the five propositions are heretical while also believing the nuns of Port-Royal were very badly treated by the authorities of church and state. The text is excerpted from Entretiens ou conferences de la reverende mère Marie-Angelique Arnauld (1767), pg. 331-34.
Philippe de Champaigne’s iconic double portrait of (l-r) Angélique and Agnès Arnauld, sisters and Abbesses of Port-Royal. (Source)
To have a part in the inheritance of Jesus Christ, one must suffer with Him: and what suffering did He endure? He suffered pains in his body: He suffered in His goods, because He desired to be born poor, and to endure the inconveniences of poverty: in His honor, for all the world knows in what fashion He was treated. Thus, if we desire to enjoy glory with Him, it is necessary to suffer with Him and like Him. I say to you in truth, my Sisters, that whosoever does not embrace mortification, he piles up affliction on affliction, not only for the life eternal, but also for the present…
The greatest need that we have is to adore God, and the greatest fault that we commit is not to do so. If therefore we beg of God the grace to adore Him, we remedy our greatest need, and in adoring Him, we repair our greatest faults. I wish that we would be so truly in this spirit of adoration, that we would have no other thoughts than to offer all creatures and ourselves in continual sacrifice to God. This would be a holocaust that would be more agreeable than all the prayers that we know how to say. Believe me: this would be the true way to obtain all the graces that are necessary for us. It is properly that which Our Lord said unto St. Catherine of Sienna: Think of me, and I shall think of thee. Consider, I pray you, the Blessed Virgin: she knew God from the moment of her conception, and from that moment she never ceased adoring Him…She followed Him with simplicity in time: she allowed herself to marry with the same simplicity; she received the quality of Mother of God in a profound adoration of His divine grandeur: her whole life was nothing but a perfect dependence on God. At the wedding at Cana, she contents herself with representing to her Son the necessity that she sees; and after having understood His response, she says to the servants: Do whatever he tells you; as if she had desired to say: I do not know what He wants to do, but obey that which He commands of you; if he says nothing unto you, do nothing…
It seems to me that it suffices to know that God is our Father, and after that what anxieties can we have in this life? When one has a Father at once wise, rich, good, and powerful, one fears nothing: but if he comes to die, we pity these poor orphans, fearing lest a tutor dissipate all their goods; but this is what cannot happen with God. So I do not understand how it can happen that one has so much mistrust of the mercy and the providence of God; do we therefore lack faith? Many times I find myself in rather disagreeable affairs, and He has always granted me the grace of handing over the event to His divine providence. One time in particular I found myself in a situation that was entirely difficult, and that was of no small importance; it put me in a great anguish, because I could see no daylight there. A good person wrote to me that when we do not see any remedy for things according to human prudence, God knows that we don’t know. This calmed me very much, so that all my anxieties ceased, and I have always believed so firmly in the providence of God, that nothing could shake me, because I know that He guides everything.
There are many candidates for the title of “Greatest Preacher in Christian History,” but my money’s on Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet (1627-1704), “The Eagle of Meaux,” Bishop and Tutor to the Grand Dauphin of France.Famed in his own day for the clarity of his doctrine, the incisive vigor of his spirituality, and the dazzling versatility of his oratorical skill, Bossuet stands as one of the late flowers of the Grand Siècle. Trumpet of the Gallicans and Hammer of Quietism, Bossuet nevertheless is not merely to be regarded as a relic of dusty seventeenth-century controversies. He still has much to teach us. In this excellent passage, excerpted from a recent translation and edited collection of hisMeditations for Lentby Christopher O. Blum (Sophia Institute Press, 2013), we can see the essentially ascetic cast of Bossuet’s mind. This was the same man who, in a felicitious turn of phrase, elsewhere referred to the Rule of St. Benedict as “a little abridgment of the Gospel.”The relevant passage can be found on pages 10-12 of the source text.
Portrait of Bossuet by Charles Sevin de la Penaye, after Hyacinthe Rigaud, c. early 18th century (Source)
“Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied” (John 14:8). God alone suffices, and all we need to possess him is to see him, because in seeing him, we see all his goodness, as he himself explained to Moses: “I will make all my goodness pass before you” (Ex. 33:19). We see all that attracts our love, and we love him beyond all limits. Let us join St. Philip in saying with all our heart, “Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied.” He alone can fill all our emptiness, satisfy all our needs, content us, and make us happy.
Let us then empty our heart of all other things, for if the Father alone suffices, then we have no need for sensible goods, less for exterior wealth, and still less for the honor of men’s good opinion. We do not even need this mortal life; how then can we need those things necessary to preserve it? We need only God. He alone suffices. In possessing him we are content.
How courageous are these words of St. Philip! To say them truthfully, we must also be able to say with the apostles: “Lord, we have left everything and followed you” (cf. Matt. 19:27). At the least we must leave everything by way of affection, desire, and resolution, that is, by an invincible resolution to attach ourselves to nothing, to seek no support except in God alone. Happy are they who carry this desire to its limit, who make the final, lasting, and perfect renunciation! But let them not leave anything for themselves. Let them not say: “This little thing to which I am still attached, it is a mere nothing.” We know the nature of the human heart. Whenever a little thing is left to it, there the heart will place all its desires. Strip it all away; break from it; let it go. To own things as though one had nothing, to be married as though one were not, to make use of this world as though one were not using it, but as though it did not exist, and as though we were not a part of it: this is the true good for which we should strive. We are not Christians if we cannot say sincerely with St. Philip, “Show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied.”
It is from the very depths of faith that these words are spoken, and it is in a certain sense from the very foundation of nature itself. For in the depths of our nature we sense our need to posses God, that he alone is capable of fulfilling our nature, and that we are anxious and tormented when separated from him…Man, abandoned to himself, does not know what to do, nor what to become. His pleasures carry him off, and these very same pleasures destroy him. With each sin of the senses he gives himself a killing blow, and he not only kills his soul by his intemperance, in his blindness and ignorance he kills the very body that he would flatter. Since the Fall, man is born to be unhappy…We do not know how to desire or ask for what we need.
St. Philip’s words teach us everything. He limits himself to what Jesus taught us is the one thing needful. Lord, you are the way.
In the wake of recent tragic events, here is a litany (adapted from here) to the saints of France. May they pray for us, for France, and for the faithful of that great nation.
V. Kyrie, eléison. R. Christe, eléison. V. Kyrie, eléison.
V. Christe, audi nos. R. Christe, exáudi nos.
V. Pater de cælis, Deus. R. Miserére nobis.
V. Spíritus Sancte, Deus. R. Miserére nobis.
V. Sancta Trínitas, unus Deus. R. Miserére nobis.
Holy Mary, pray for us. Holy Mother of God, pray for us. Holy Virgin of virgins, pray for us. St. Michael, pray for us. St. Gabriel, pray for us. St. Raphael, pray for us. All you Holy Angels and Archangels, pray for us. St. John the Baptist, pray for us. St. Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin, pray for us. All you Holy Patriarchs and Prophets, pray for us. Holy Mary, pray for us. Holy Mother of God, pray for us. Holy Virgin of virgins, pray for us. Our Lady of Paris, pray for us. Our Lady of La Salette, pray for us. Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us. Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, pray for us. Our Lady of Rocamadour, pray for us. Our Lady of Pontmain, pray for us.
St. Peter, pray for us. St. Paul, pray for us. St. Andrew, pray for us. St. James, pray for us. St. John, pray for us. St. Thomas, pray for us. St. James, pray for us. St. Philip, pray for us. St. Bartholomew, pray for us. St. Matthew, pray for us. St. Simon, pray for us. St. Jude, pray for us. St. Matthias, pray for us. St. Barnabas, pray for us. St. Luke, pray for us. St. Mark, pray for us. St. Mary Magdalene, pray for us. All you holy Apostles and Evangelists, pray for us. All you holy Disciples of the Lord, pray for us. All you holy Innocents, pray for us. All you holy Virgins, pray for us.
St. Abbo of Fleury , pray for France and the whole world. St. Adelaide of Italy , pray for France and the whole world. St. Adelelmus of Burgos , pray for France and the whole world. St. Adelelmus of Flanders , pray for France and the whole world. St. Adelin of Séez , pray for France and the whole world. St. Aderald , pray for France and the whole world. St. Aimo , pray for France and the whole world. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque , pray for France and the whole world. St. Albert of Montecorvino , pray for France and the whole world. St. Alexander (martyr) , pray for France and the whole world. St. Andrew of Trier , pray for France and the whole world. St. Anselm of Canterbury , pray for France and the whole world. St. Anthony the Hermit , pray for France and the whole world. St. Antoninus of Pamiers , pray for France and the whole world. St. Artaldus , pray for France and the whole world. St. Ascelina , pray for France and the whole world. St. Auspicius of Toul , pray for France and the whole world. St. Auspicius of Trier , pray for France and the whole world. St. Aventinus of Tours , pray for France and the whole world. St. Leonie Aviat , pray for France and the whole world. St. Aymard of Cluny , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Baldwin of Rieti , pray for France and the whole world. St. Madeleine Sophie Barat , pray for France and the whole world. St. Bernard of Clairvaux St. Bernard of Thiron , pray for France and the whole world. St. Siméon-François Berneux , pray for France and the whole world. St. Berno of Cluny , pray for France and the whole world. St. Bertrand of Comminges , pray for France and the whole world. St.Joan Elizabeth Bichier des Ages , pray for France and the whole world. St. Julie Billiart , pray for France and the whole world. St. Jean-Louis Bonnard , pray for France and the whole world. St. Pierre Dumoulin-Borie Bourgeoys , pray for France and the whole world. St. Jean de Brébeuf , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Canus Natus , pray for France and the whole world. St. Clotilde, pray for France and the whole world. St. Noël Chabanel , pray for France and the whole world. St. Peter Chanel , pray for France and the whole world. St. Jane Frances de Chantal , pray for France and the whole world. St. Colette of Corbie , pray for France and the whole world. St. Jean-Charles Cornay , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Antoine Daniel , pray for France and the whole world. St. Marie-Nicolas-Antoine Daveluy , pray for France and the whole world. St. Denis, pray for France and the whole world. St. Dionysius of Vienne , pray for France and the whole world. St. Domnin, pray for France and the whole world. St. Pierre-Henri Dorie , pray for France and the whole world. St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, pray for France and the whole world. St. Louis Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Ebontius , pray for France and the whole world. St. Élisabeth of the Trinity, pray for France and the whole world. St. Elzéar of Sabran , pray for France and the whole world. St. Émilie de Villeneuve , pray for France and the whole world. St. Émilien of Nantes, pray for France and of the whole world. St. Estelle , pray for France and the whole world. St. John Eudes , pray for France and the whole world. St. Peter Julian Eymard , pray for France and the whole world.
SS. Peter Faber, Felix, Fortunatus, and Achilleus, pray for France and the whole world. St. Floribert of Liège, pray for France and the whole world. St. Pierre Fourier, pray for France and the whole world. St. Andrew Fournet , pray for France and the whole world. St. Frederick of Liege , pray for France and the whole world.
St. François-Isidore Gagelin , pray for France and the whole world. St. Charles Garnier , pray for France and the whole world. St. Gaugericus , pray for France and the whole world. St. Geneviève, pray for France and the whole world. St. Gens, pray for France and the whole world. St. Gérard of Brogne , pray for France and the whole world. St. Goneri of Brittany , pray for France and the whole world. St. Goswin , pray for France and the whole world. St. René Goupil , pray for France and the whole world. St. Guarinus of Sitten , pray for France and the whole world. St. Théodore Guérin , pray for France and the whole world. St Guirec , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Hilary of Poitiers , pray for France and the whole world. St. Hugh of Noara , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Laurent-Joseph-Marius Imbert , pray for France and the whole world. St. Isabelle of France , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Joan of Arc, pray for France and the whole world. St. Joan of France, Duchess of Berry , pray for France and the whole world. St. Isaac Jogues , pray for France and the whole world. St. John of the Grating , pray for France and of the whole world. St. Judoc , pray for France and the whole world. St. Julian the Hospitaller , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle , pray for France and the whole world. St. Catherine Labouré , pray for France and the whole world. St. Benedict Joseph Labre , pray for France and the whole world. St. Jean de Lalande , pray for France and the whole world. St. Gabriel Lalemant , pray for France and the whole world. St. Lambert of Vence, pray for France and the whole world. St. Jeanne de Lestonnac, pray for France and the whole world. St. Leudwinus, pray for France and the whole world. St. Louis IX, King of France, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Magloire, pray for France and the whole world. St. Jeanne-Marie de Maille , pray for France and the whole world. St. Malo, pray for France and the whole world. St. Joseph Marchand, pray for France and the whole world. St. Marie of the Incarnation, pray for France and the whole world. St. Louise de Marillac, pray for France and the whole world. SS. Louis Martin and Marie-Azélie Guérin, pray for France and the whole world. St. Maurice of Carnoet Méen, pray for France and the whole world. St. Louis de Montfort, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Nazarius, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Odo of Cluny, pray for France and the whole world. St. Ormond, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Paternus of Auch Patiens, pray for France and the whole world. St. Vincent de Paul, pray for France and the whole world. St. Paulinus of Trier , pray for France and the whole world. St Mary Euphrasia Pelletier , pray for France and the whole world. St. John Gabriel Perboyre , pray for France and the whole world. St. Peter of Juilly , pray for France and the whole world. St. Peter of Tarentaise , pray for France and the whole world. St. William Pinchon , pray for France and the whole world. St. Prosper of Aquitaine , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Quintian of Rodez , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Raymond of Barbastro , pray for France and the whole world. St. Raymond of Toulouse , pray for France and the whole world. St. Richard of Vaucelles , pray for France and the whole world. St. Richardis, pray for France and of the whole world. St. Roch , pray for France and the whole world. St. Émilie de Rodat , pray for France and the whole world. St. Benildus Romançon , pray for France and the whole world. St. Elizabeth Rose , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Francis de Sales , pray for France and the whole world. St. Saturnina , pray for France and the whole world. St. Augustin Schoeffler , pray for France and the whole world. St. Serenus the Gardener, pray for France and the whole world. SS Severinus, Exuperius, and Felician, pray for France and the whole world. St. Sigo , pray for France and the whole world. St. Bernadette Soubirous , pray for France and the whole world. St. Stephen of Obazine , pray for France and the whole world. St. Theobald of Dorat , pray for France and the whole world. St. Theodard , pray for France and the whole world. St. Theophilus of Corte , pray for France and the whole world. St. Thérèse of Lisieux , pray for France and the whole world. St. Thérèse Couderc, pray for France and the whole world. St. Claudine Thévenet , pray for France and the whole world. St. Joan Antidea Thouret , pray for France and the whole world. St. Tironensian Order , pray for France and the whole world. St. Torpes of Pisa , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Marie Thérèse Vauzou , pray for France and the whole world. St. Venant de Viviers , pray for France and the whole world. St. Théophane Vénard , pray for France and the whole world. St. Veranus of Vence , pray for France and the whole world. Sy. Emily de Vialar , pray for France and the whole world. St. John Vianney , pray for France and the whole world. St Vincent of Digne , pray for France and the whole world.
St. Walric, abbot of Leuconay , pray for France and the whole world. St. William of Æbelholt , pray for France and the whole world. St. William of Breteuil , pray for France and the whole world. St. William of Donjeon , pray for France and the whole world. St. William of Gellone , pray for France and the whole world. St. William of Pontoise , pray for France and the whole world. St. Wivina, pray for France and the whole world.
St. Zachary of Vienne, pray for France and the whole world.
Louis XVI, pray for France and the whole world. Marie-Antoinette, pray for France and the whole world. Cardinal Bérulle, pray for France and the whole world. Monsieur Olier, pray for France and the whole world. Madame Élisabeth, pray for France and the whole world. Mère Thérèse de Saint-Augustin, pray for France and the whole world. Mère Mectilde de Bar, pray for France and the whole world. Mère Yvonne-Aimeé de Jésus, pray for France and the whole world.
All ye holy martyrs, pray for France All ye holy kings and queens, pray for France and the whole world. All ye holy bishops, pray for France and the whole world. All ye holy priests and deacons, pray for France and the whole world. All ye holy monks and nuns, pray for France and the whole world. All ye holy virgins, pray for France and the whole world. All ye holy men and women, pray for France and the whole world.
PRAY FOR FRANCE.
Ye holy men and women, Saints of God, R. intercede for us. Be merciful R. spare us, O Lord. Be merciful R. graciously hear us, O Lord. From all evil, R. deliver us, O Lord. From all sin, R. deliver us, O Lord. From Thy wrath, R. deliver us, O Lord. From sudden and unprovided death, R. deliver us, O Lord. From the snares of the devil, R. deliver us, O Lord.
From anger, hatred, and all ill-will, R. deliver us, O Lord. From the spirit of fornication, R. deliver us, O Lord. From lightning and tempest, R. deliver us, O Lord. From the scourge of earthquake, R. deliver us, O Lord. From plague, famine and war, R. deliver us, O Lord. From everlasting death, R. deliver us, O Lord. . Through the mystery of Thy holy Incarnation, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy coming, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy nativity, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy Baptism and holy fasting, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy Cross and Passion, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy Death and Burial, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy Holy Resurrection, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through Thy wondrous Ascension, R. deliver us, O Lord. Through the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, In the day of judgment, R. deliver us, O Lord.
SUPPLICATION FOR VARIOUS NEEDS
We sinners, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst spare us, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst pardon us, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst bring us to true repentance, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst govern and preserve Thy Holy Church, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst preserve the Bishop of the Apostolic See, and all orders of the Church in holy religion, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst humble the enemies of Holy Church, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst grant peace and true concord to Christian kings and princes, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst grant peace and unity to all Christian peoples R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst call back to the unity of the Church all who have strayed from her fold, and to guide all unbelievers into the light of the Gospel R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst confirm and preserve us in Thy holy service, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst lift up our minds to heavenly desires, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst render eternal blessing to all our benefactors, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst deliver our souls and the souls of our brethren, relations and benefactors from eternal damnation, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst grant and preserve the fruits of the earth, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst grant eternal rest to all the faithful departed, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. That Thou wouldst graciously hear us, R. we beseech Thee, hear us.
Son of God, R. we beseech Thee, hear us. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, R. spare us, O Lord. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, R. graciously hear us, O Lord. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, R. have mercy on us. Christ, R. hear us. Christ, R. graciously hear us. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison. Christe, eleison. R. Christe, eleison. Christe, eleison. R. Christe, eleison. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison.
Our Father (in silence until) And lead us not into temptation, R. but deliver us from evil.
V. O God, come to my assistance; R. O Lord, make haste to help me. V. Let them be confounded and ashamed; R. those who seek my life. V. Let them be rebuffed and disgraced, R. those who wish me evil. V. Let them be turned away blushing for shame, R. those who say unto me: Aha! Aha!. But let all those who seek Thee: R. rejoice and be glad in Thee. And may they always say: “Great is the Lord”, R. all those who delight in Thy salvation. V. But I am afflicted and poor , R. O God, help me. Thou art my helper and deliverer, R. O Lord, do not delay. Amen. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. V. Save Thy servants. R. My God, who hope in Thee. V. Be unto us, O Lord, a tower of strength. R. In the face of the enemy.
V. Let not the enemy prevail against us. R. Nor the son of iniquity have power to harm us. . V. O Lord, deal not with us according to our sins. R. Nor render unto us according to our sins.
V. Let us pray for our Sovereign Pontiff Holy Father Pope Francis.
R. That The Lord preserve him and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies. V. Let us pray for our benefactors. R. Deign to grant, O Lord, for the sake of Thy Name, eternal life to all those who do good to us. V. Let us pray for the faithful departed. R. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord: and let perpetual light shine upon them.
R. Amen. V. May they rest in peace. R. Amen. V. For our absent brethren. R. Save Thy servants who hope in Thee, O my God. V. Send them help, O Lord, from Thy holy place. R. And from Sion protect them.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer. R. And let my cry come unto Thee. V. The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit.
Collects: Let us pray:
O God, Whose property is always to have mercy and to spare, receive our petition; that we and all Thy servants who are bound by the chain of sin may, by the compassion of Thy goodness mercifully be absolved.
Graciously hear, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the prayers of Thy supplicants and pardon the sins of those who confess to Thee: that in Thy bounty Thou mayest grant us both pardon and peace. In Thy clemency, O Lord, show unto us Thine ineffabile mercy; that Thou mayest both free us from sins and deliver us from the punishments which we deserve for them.
O God, who by sin art offended, and by penance appeased, mercifully regard the prayers of Thy people making supplication to Thee; and turn away the scourges of Thy wrath which we deserve for our sins.
Almighty and everlasting God, have mercy upon Thy servant, N, our Sovereign Pontiff: and direct him according to Thy clemency into the way of everlasting salvation: that, by Thy grace, he may desire those things which are pleasing to Thee, and accomplish them with all his strength.
O God, from Whom are holy desires, right counsels, and just works: grant to Thy servants the peace which the world cannot give; that our hearts may be devoted to the keeping of Thy commandments, and that, being removed from the fear of our enemies, our times may be peaceful through Thy protection.
Inflame, O Lord, with the fire of the Holy Spirit, our hearts and our desires; that we may serve Thee with a chaste body and please Thee with a clean heart.
O God, the Creator and redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the souls of Thy departed servants the remission of all their sins; that through pious supplications they may obtain the pardon they have always desired.
Direct, we beseech Thee, O Lord, our actions by Thy holy inspirations and carry them on by Thy gracious assistance; that every prayer and work of ours may always begin with Thee and through Thee be happily ended.
Almighty and everlasting God, Who hast dominion over the living and the dead, and art merciful to all whom Thou foreknowest shall be Thine by faith and good works: we humbly beseech Thee; that they for whom we intend to pour forth our prayers, whether this present world still detains them in the flesh, or the world to come has already received them out of their bodies, may, through the intercession of all Thy Saints, and in Thy compassionate goodness, obtain the pardon of all their sins. Through Christ our Lord.
The Lord be with you. R. And with Thy spirit.
R. Amen. V. May the almighty and most merciful Lord graciously hear us. R. Amen.
R. Amen. V. And may the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. R. Amen.
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti.
Amen. Prayer of Pius XII for France (1937)
Mère céleste, Notre-Dame, vous qui avez donné à cette nation tant de gages insignes de votre prédilection, implorez pour elle votre divin Fils ; ramenez-la au berceau spirituel de son antique grandeur. Aidez-la à recouvrer, sous la lumineuse et douce étoile de la Foi et de la vie chrétienne, sa félicité passée. Regina pacis ! Oh ! Oui ! Soyez vraiment au milieu de ce peuple qui est vôtre la Reine de la paix, écrasez de votre pied virginal le démon de la haine et de la discorde. Faites comprendre au monde, où tant d’âmes droites s’évertuent à édifier le temple de la paix, le secret qui seul assurera le succès de leurs efforts : établir au centre de ce temple le trône royal de votre divin Fils et rendre hommage à sa loi sainte, en laquelle la justice et l’amour s’unissent en un chaste baiser. Et que par Vous la France, fidèle à sa vocation, soutenue dans son action par la puissance de la prière, par la concorde dans la charité, par une ferme et indéfectible vigilance, exalte dans le monde le triomphe et le Règne du Christ, Prince de la Paix, Roi des rois et Seigneur des seigneurs.
Amen.
May the prayers of Our Lady see this house rebuilt swiftly and mightily again! (Source)
In Lent, I often return to the words of the great Bishop of Cambrai, François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon. He is a perennially refreshing source of spiritual wisdom and guidance. Since we are finally in Passiontide, I thought this excerpt from Fénelon’s sermon on prayer, “The Saints Converse with God,” would be greatly edifying for all those of my readers keeping up with the Lenten Spirituality Series.
A portrait of Fénelon in excellent blue-purple episcopal garb (Source)
We must pray with perseverance. The perfect heart is never weary of seeking God. Ought we to complain if God sometimes leaves us to obscurity, and doubt, and temptation? Trials purify humble souls, and they serve to expiate the faults of the unfaithful. They confound those who, even in their prayers, have flattered their cowardice and pride. If an innocent soul, devoted to God, suffer from any secret disturbance, it should be humble, adore the designs of God, and redouble its prayers and its fervor. How often do we hear those who every day have to reproach themselves with unfaithfulness toward God complain that He refuses to answer their prayers! Ought they not to acknowledge that it is their sins which have formed a thick cloud between Heaven and them, and that God has justly hidden Himself from them? How often has He recalled us from our wanderings! How often, ungrateful as we are, have we been deaf to His voice and insensible to His goodness! He would make us feel that we are blind and miserable when we forsake Him. He would teach us, by privation, the value of the blessings that we have slighted. And shall we not bear our punishment with patience? Who can boast of having done all that he ought to have done; of having repaired all his past errors; of having purified his heart, so that he may claim as a right that God should listen to his prayer? Most truly, all our pride, great as it is, would not be sufficient to inspire such presumption! If then, the Almighty do not grant our petitions, let us adore His justice, let us be silent, let us humble ourselves, and let us pray without ceasing. This humble perseverance will obtain from Him what we should never obtain by our own merit. It will make us pass happily from darkness to light; for know, says St. Augustine, that God is near to us even when He appears far from us.
A portrait of Mother Mectilde de Bar adoring the Blessed Sacrament. (Source)
Sometimes readers ask me about more information on Mother Mectilde de Bar (1614-1698), the saintly foundress of the Benedictine Nuns of Perpetual Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. I would of course direct those who read French or Italian to any of the several biographical studies about Mother Mectilde that have come out in those languages. However, I would perhaps more eagerly urge my readers to a series of recent posts at Vultus Christi presenting what is, I believe, the first English translations of some of Mother Mectilde’s spiritual letters. Here they are with the titles the translator has given them at VC.
And on top of all that, there’s a letter from the lay mystic Jean de Bernières to Mother Mectilde. Bernières is a good example of someone who, though posthumously condemned as a “Quietist,” is now being recovered as a source of valuable mystical insight. We have seen the same happen to Benet Canfield before, and it may yet occur to someone like Pietro Matteo Petrucci. More work needs to be done in this area. At any rate, translation of these early modern mystical works is badly needed.
Both as a practicing Catholic and as an historian of early modern Catholicism, I am encouraged that these works are being put into English for the first time. The English-speaking world is now getting a much better sense of the importance of this unique tradition within the Benedictine family. More translations, we are told, are coming. I eagerly await their publication.
The Amish Catholic 
