Book 4 The Revelations of St. Gertrude Compiled by the Religious of Her Monastery Chapter 1Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 1 As the Saint was watching during the greater part of the night which preceded the Vigil of Christmas, before Matins, and had occupied herself entirely in meditating on the Response De illa occulta, in which she took great pleasure, she was suddenly ravished in spirit, and in her rapture she beheld Jesus Christ reposing sweetly and peacefully in the bosom of His Father; and the desires which were addressed to Him by those who wished to spend this feast with great devotion appeared under the figure of a certain vapor. Then this beautiful and gentle Jesus sent forth from His Divine Heart a light which spread itself over this vapor, which showed them the way in which they should come to Him. As each approach to God, she perceived that those who had recommended themselves humbly to the prayers of the others were led by the hand by persons who surrounded them, and thus they went direct to God in the splendor of this light, which came forth from His Heart: whereas, those who had confided merely in their own efforts and prayers wandered from this path, but arrived at last at the term by a light which came to them from God. As the Saint desired to know with what special grace it had pleased God to communicate Himself to each of her sisters, she immediately beheld them all responding in the bosom of the Son of God, where each was filled with joy according to her capacity and desires. She observed that none hindered the other, but that each enjoyed God as fully as if He had given Himself to each individually; that some embraced Him lovingly, as a Child about to be born for us; that others regarded Him as a faithful Friend to Whom they could therefore disclose every secret of their hearts; while others, pouring forth the whole joy of their souls, caressed Him as a Spouse chosen among a thousand, and more beloved than all- so that each found in Him, in a most pure and holy manner, the accomplishment of her individual desires. Then the Saint came forward, according to her usual custom, and cast herself at the feet of her Lord, saying to Him "O most loving Lord, what should my dispositions be, and what devotion can I offer to Thy most Blessed Mother at this Divine birth, since my bodily infirmity prevents me even from reciting the Hours to which my profession obliges me?" It appeared to her then, Our Lord, moved by compassion for her poverty, gathered together all that she had said for the glory of God or the good of souls during Advent, and offered it lovingly to His sweetest Mother, who was seated in glory at His Side; and to this He joined all the fruits which her words might have produced, even to the end of ages, to supply for any negligence which she might have committed in her service. The Mother of God, having received this offering, appeared as if adorned b it: and Gertrude approached her, beseeching Her to intercede for her with Her Son. Then the Blessed Virgin turned toward Him with a loving countenance, and, after embracing Him, addressed Him thus: "My Beloved Son, I beseech Thee to Thy affection to mine, and to grant to the prayers of this soul, who loves Thee with so much fervor, all she asks of Thee. Then the Saint addressed Our Lord thus: "O Sweetness of my soul! O Jesus, most loving and most desirable! O Dearest of all who are dear"! After having said these and many similar words, she exclaimed: "What fruit can there be in these words, uttered by one so vile?" Our Lord replied: What does it matter what kind of wood is used to stir up perfumes and vases of incense, they always emit the same odour? Thus whenever says to Me 'My sweetest Lord.' ect., what does it matter if they think themselves vile, since My goodness, like perfume stirred up, exhales an odour in which I take extreme pleasure, and which gives to those who move it by their words a sweetness which is to them a foretaste of eternal life? Chapter 2 The next day, the Saint watched for some time before Matins, and occupied herself with reflecting, in the bitterness of her heart, on some impatience to which she had been given way on the preceding evening, in consequence of a negligence of those who attended her. As she heard the first signal for Matins, she was filled with joy, praising God for the announcement that the Feast of the most sweet Nativity of her Lord was so, near at hand. Then the Eternal Father addressed Himself lovingly to her, saying : Behold, I am going to send into your soul the affection which I sent before the face of My only Son to purify the world from in its sins, and I will enkindle it in your soul, that you also may be purified from all the sinful stains of your past negligence, and thus you may be prepared to celebrate the approaching feasts worthily. After this favour, she reflected bitterly on the faults which she had committed, and considered herself a creature altogether unworthy of the graces of God, since a trifling negligence in one of His servants had caused her to give way to such great impatience. But the Divine Mercy instructed her that all the reflections which men made with sorrow for their faults, after they had done penance for them, will serve to prepare them for receiving the grace of God, as scripture teaches: "If the wicked do penance for all his sins... he shall live, and shall not die" (Ezech 18:21). At the second bell for Matins, the Saint again began to praise God; and God the Father spoke thus to her: Behold I will again place in your soul that which I sent before My Son to correct the defects and weaknesses of man, that those defects may be amended which are not for your perfection; for their are certain faults in men, the knowledge of which serves to humble them, and causes holy compunction, and these faults further their salvation; and I permit these defects even in those whom I love most, in order to exercise their virtue. But there are other faults of which they think little, and, what is still worse, they defend them as if they were virtues, and will not be corrected for them. These faults place the soul in great peril of eternal damnation; but from these your soul is now purified. At the third toll of the bell, as she continued to praise God, the Eternal Father filled her soul with all the virtues which had been found in the souls of the Patriarchies, Prophets and the Faithful before the advent of His Son - such as humility, desire, knowledge, love, hope, ect., - that she might celebrate so great a feast worthily. The Lord then adorned her with these virtues as so many brilliant stars, and stood before her saying: My daughter, which would you prefer - that I should serve you, or that you should serve Me? For she enjoyed God in two ways - first by rapture which absorbed her entirely in God, so that she could not explain much of what she learned therein for the edification of others; and secondly; by a grace which God conferred on her of instructing her in Holy Scripture, of what He imparted to her the spirit and meaning, so that it seemed to her as if she conversed with God familiarly, as a friend would with his friend; and this enabled her to be extremely useful to others. God then asked her which she preferred - that He should serve her in the first manner, or that she should serve Him in the second? But as she sought not only her own things, but those of the Lord Jesus, she preferred having the labour of instructing her neighbour for the glory of God, to seeking her own satisfaction by tasting His sweetness; and God appeared well pleased with her choice. As matins commenced, she implored the Divine assistance by the words 'Deus in adjutorium; by the Domine labia mea aperiis, which is repeated three times, she saluted and adored, with her whole heart, her whole soul and all her strength, the infinite power of the Father, the impenetrable wisdom of the Son, and the ineffable goodness of the Holy Ghost - adoring the Blessed Trinity in Unity, and the Unity in Trinity; then at least the first five verses of the Psalm 'Domine quid multiplicati suntm' she approached in spirit to the holy Wounds of Jesus Christ, and embraced them lovingly; at the sixth verse of this Psalm, she prostrated at the Feet of Our Lord, to adore and thank Him for the remission of all her sins; at the seventh, she approached His sacred Hands, and thanked Him for all the favours which she had received during her whole life from His goodness; at the eighth she inclined profoundly before the loving Wounds of His Sacred Side; at the ninth (the Gloria Patri), she united with all creatures in adoring the effulgent and ever peaceful Trinity, and approaching the Heart of Jesus, she saluted it with the deepest affection, extolling it for having hidden within it all the incomprehensible riches of the Divinity. At the first verse of the Psalm Venite, having prostrated once more to adore the Wound of the Lord's Left Foot, she obtained through it a full remission of all the sins which she had committed by thoughts or words. Then she adored the Right Foot at the second verse, and obtained pardon of all the sins of omission by which she had failed in the perfection of her thoughts and words; at the third verse, she turned to the Blessed Wound of the Left Hand and received the remission of all the sins she had committed by act; at the fourth, she received from the Right Hand of the Lord what supplied for all the omissions in her good works; lastly, at the fifth verse she approached the most holy Wound of the Side of her Beloved (which abounds and superabounds in all good), and having kissed it very devoutly in the place from whence the Precious Water sprang forth at the touch of the soldiers lance, she was purged from every stain, made whiter than snow, and adorned with every virtue by His Precious Blood; then chanting the Gloria Patri, and honouring the adorable Trinity as at the preceding Psalm, when singing the Sicut erat, she concluded all in the Heart of Jesus, which contains all that is Divine and satisfying. During the Invitatory Hodie scientis, which is repeated five times in the Venite and twice after it, God purified seven affections in her, which became marvellously ennobled by being united with the affections of Jesus Christ. While they sang the other Psalms, she remained in the presence of the Lord clothed with virtues, as with so many brilliant stars. At this moment, as all her desires tended towards God, she prayed that all which she might do whether exteriorly or spiritually, on the day of the Nativity of her sweet Jesus, might be done to the honour and the glory of the most Holy and Adorable Trinity. When the bell rang for Lauds, Our Lord said to her: As the sound of these bells announce the Feast of My Nativity, I will grant that all which you do on this festival - whether by chanting, reading, praying, meditating, or even by exterior exercises, such as eating and sleeping - shall resound to the praises of the Most Holy Trinity, by union with My desires and love, which were ever in harmony with the Will of God the Father. When they lit the seven candles, she received from God the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit, as far as she was capable, and in proportion even as Jesus Christ was filled with them Himself. As she besought Our Lord, by the condescension with which He willed to be born in a stable, to prepare her heart for His birth, this most clement Lord compiled with her desire, and made a stable in her heart, giving her His omnipotence, wisdom and benignity for a roof and walls. She now beheld with great joy and admiration all the good works which God enables men to perform by His goodness and power; and in which He allowed her to share as a preparation for this feast, attached to these walls like little bells. Then she beheld the Lord Jesus, who imparted new joys and gifts to her, while he was attended by the princes of Heaven After this as the Saint repeated, two hundred and twenty times, "I adore Thee, I love Thee", ect., it seemed to her that at each prayer His members were presented to her to use as instruments of Divine praise; and that afterwards Jesus Christ purified, in a marvellous manner, all her senses, exterior and interior, and renewed them in purifying them, so that they became sanctified by union with His. As the bell rang for Chapter, she again praised God for His Goodness in assisting thereat in person, as had been revealed to Mechtilde her sister; and she knew that He was present by the devotion which she observed in the sisters who assisted at Chapter, and who burned with ardour to see this revelation accomplished, because it seemed as if Our Lord waited with extreme joy until all the community were assembled, being seated in the place of the Lady Abbess, in whose person He appeared to pre- side, but with a marvellous glory, and accompanied by a great number of blessed spirits, who surrounded the throne of His Majesty. When the religious were seated, Our Lord said, as if in a transport of joy: Behold My friends who have assembled here! One of the religious then having said the Jube Domine, and another replying: 'In viam mandatorum suorum,', Our Lord extended His venerable Hand and blessed the convent, saying: I consent to all which shall be done or enacted, reposing on the omnipotence of My Father. Then the religious commenced the words, JESUS CHRISTUS, FILIUS DEI VIVI, IN BETHLEHEM JUDA NASCITUR, all choirs of Angels, hearing the announcement of the birth of their Lord and King were filled with ineffable joy, and fell prostrate on the ground to adore Him. The sisters then commenced the Miserere, according to custom. The Angel Guardian of each religious presented her heart with joy to God; and it seemed as if Our Lord received from each a certain kind of knot or twisted cord, which He placed in His bosom. When those who loved God with the greatest fervour offered Him their hearts, the Angels of the choir of Seraphim, who attended Our Lord and supported Him, disposed those religious for their offering. When the hearts of those who were most enlightened in the knowledge of God were offered, the angels of the Choir of Cherubim came to present their homage. When the hearts of those who exercised themselves most in virtue were offered, the Angel of the Choir of Virtues came to their assistance; and thus also the outer Angels exercised their ministry, according as those whose corresponded to their nature came to offer their hearts to Our Lord. But as for those in whom this revelation excited no more devotion than usual, they were offered to God by the Angels; but their bodies appeared at the same time as if prostate on the ground. Then Gertrude approached her Spouse, and offered Him the first Miserere, which was said for her, exclaiming "O my Loving Spouse, I renounce my own interest in this and I offer it to Thee for Thy eternal praise, that it may please Thee to grant some grace to Thy special friends or mine, as it shall please Thy mercy." Our Lord then received this Miserere as a brilliant and beautiful pearl, placing it in a ring which He had before Him, which was marvellously embellished with precious stones and flowers of gold, saying: Behold, I have placed this pearl which you have offered Me in the center of this ring, that all those who recommend themselves to your prayers or who merely implore your assistance by a look, may derive the same advantage from it as the Jews drew from looking at the brazen serpent, which I caused to be lifted up in the wilderness by Moses. When the Psalms were finished, and the sisters had accused themselves of their faults, two princes appeared, who bore a tablet of gold, which they held before Our Lord. He then opened the knots, which had been hidden in His bosom; and all the words of the Psalms and prayers which had been said were seen under the form of a brilliant and beautiful pearls, each of which shone marvellously, and gave forth a sweet and melodious sound. This brilliancy was an indication of the zeal and love with which these souls endeavoured to please Our Lord and the melodious sound a prediction that the fruit which the whole Church will gather from their prayers would be rendered to them twofold. Gertrude perceived that the Lord effected all these marvels in consequence of the particular devotion which the community had, expecting that He would preside that day at the Chapter. While the names were read from the tablet of those who were to chant of read at Matins, Our Lord looked at them with pleasure, and inclined His Head to those who listened attentively to what was prescribed them with such sensible marks of tenderness, that the tongue of man would fail to describe it; and He consoled those who were grieved that nothing was given them to chant in an ineffable manner. Gertrude who beheld all this in spirit, said to Our Lord: "O Lord, if this community only knew what extreme tenderness Thou hast for them, how those sisters would be grieved whose names were not read out". Our Lord replied: All those who have the desire of singing or reading, although they do not do so, will be treated by Me with the same goodness as if they did; for their will pleases Me as much as their action, and it will be equally rewarded. And all those who listened to what was prescribed them, and received it with an inclination of the head, desiring to accomplish it for My glory, and beseeching Me to aid them to perform it worthily, will so draw down the sweetness of My love upon them, that I will not defer bestowing on them new graces on them as a mark of My approbation. When the Prioress, according to the rules of the Order, accused herself if negligence in the name the Community, before the Lady Abbess, Our Lord spoke thus: I absolve you, by the power of My Divinity, from all the negligence of which you have accused yourself before Me; and whenever you fall again through human frailty, I will pardon you and show you mercy. As they read the seven Penitential Psalms as a penance for their sins of negligence and inattention, each word appeared on the same tablet in the form of pearls; but they were of a dark colour, and arranged near the brilliant ones of which we have already spoken; because these Psalms were repeated through custom, not from special devotion: from whence we may learn, that what is done through custom contributes in some degree to our merit. through custom contributes in some degree to our merit, though God regards as infinitely more excellent and agreeable what is done through devotion. As the verse Gloria tibi, Domine, was chanted at Vespers, the Saint beheld a multitude of Angels flying around the convent, and singing the same words in loud and joyful accents. She then inquired of Our Lord what advantage men gained when the Angels joined thus in their Psalmody. As He did not reply, and she continued to desire this information, she was interiorly told, by Divine inspiration that when Angels are present at our solemnities, they pray to God that those who imitate them in their devotion may imitate them in purity of body and soul. Then she begun to be doubtful, as often happens, whether this thought had come from God, or whether it preceded merely from her own imagination. But Our Lord consoled her by this reply: Do not fear; for your will is so perfectly united to Mine, that you can only will what I do, and consequently you desire only My glory. Be assured the holy Angels are so submissive to your good desires, that if until now they have not prayed for you as you wish, they will henceforth do so with the greatest fervour. And because I, as their King, have made you in some sort a queen they are so supposed to obey you, that if you anything from them, they will endeavour to accomplish it the moment you desire it. After Vespers, as the relics of the convent and the image of the Blessed Virgin were carried in procession as usual, the Saint felt grieved that her illness had prevented her from reciting a number of prayers and performing some acts of devotion which she wished to offer to the Mother of God on this solemn Feast; but she found herself at the same time filled with an unction of the Holy Spirit, so that she offered her the sweetest and most noble Heart of Jesus Christ to supply for all her negligence. The Blessed Virgin received this offering with great satisfaction and pleasure, because she considered this Heart as the most honourable gift which could be offered her, as it contained every good. Chapter 3 On the night of the Nativity, at Matins, as the Saint continued these exercises, Our Lord, to correspond with her movements of fidelity and devotion, drew her entirely to Himself, so that, by a sweet influence of His Divinity in her soul, and by a reflux of knowledge which passed from her soul to God, she knew all that was chanted at Matins, whether Responsories or Psalms; and this knowledge gave her ineffable and incomprehensible joy. While this continued, she beheld all the Saints standing before the throne of the King of kings, reciting Matins with great devotion, for His Divine honour and glory. Remembering several persons who had been recommended to her prayers, she said, with great humility "How can I, who am so unworthy, pray for persons who stand praising Thee with such labour and devotion, since my infirmity prevents me from following their example?" Our Lord replied: You can very well pray for these persons, for I have hidden you in the bosom of My Paternal goodness that you may ask and obtain from Me, whatever you will. "But my Lord" replied the Saint, since it pleases Thee that I should pray for them, I beseech Thee to appoint a time in which I nay do so with fidelity, in a manner worthy of Thee, and with utility to them without losing the happiness with which Thou dost honour me in partaking of Thy celestial joys". To this Our Lord replied: Recommend each to My Divine Kindness and Love, since it is this Love that has made Me descend from the bosom of My Father to serve men. When she had named each individually, Our Lord won by His tender love, supplied the needs of each by a most loving compassion. After this, the Blessed Virgin appeared to her seated honourably near her Divine Son; and while the Dedcendit de caelis was chanted, Our Lord appeared to recall the extreme goodness which had made Him descend from the bosom of the Father into that of the Virgin, and He looked so lovingly upon His Mother as to mover her very heart; and by His embrace He renewed all the joys which she had when in the world in His holy Humanity. She also beheld the sacred and virginal womb of the Mother of God, which was clear as crystal, and in which Our Lord appeared in the form of an Infant, and flew promptly and lovingly to her heart; by this she understood that, as the Humanity of Christ fed upon her virginal milk, so did His Divinity feed on the purity and love of her heart. At the response, Verbum caro factum est, the Incarnation of Jesus Christ, she heard Him saying Whenever anyone inclines at these words, from gratitude and devotion, giving Me thanks for having become Man for his sake, I also incline to him, by a pure movement of My goodness; and I offer, from My inmost Heart, al the fruit and merit of My Humanity to God the Father, that the eternal beatitude of this person may be doubled. At the words et veritatis, the Blessed Virgin came forth with the double ornament of her virginity and her maternity, and accosting the first sister on the right side of the choir, She embraced her closely, presenting Her Divine Son, whom She held in Her arms; and in this manner She proceeded to each sister, allowing each to embrace this incomparably amiable Child. Amongst those who were thus favoured, some held Him in their arms most carefully appearing very anxious that He should suffer no inconvenience; others on the contrary, neglected these precautions and permitted His head to hang down in a very painful manner. By this she understood that those who had no will but that of God rested the Head of the loving Jesus on a soft pillow, that supported Him, by their goodwill; while those whose wills were inflexible and imperfect allowed the Head of the Infant Jesus to hang down inconveniently. Therefore , my beloved let us empty our hearts and consciences of all self-will, and offer our hearts to Our Lord with full and entire obedience to His good pleasure, since He only seeks our spiritual advancement; why should we, even by the merest trifle, the repose and consolation of so delicate and tender an Infant, who comes to us with such goodness and love? At the Mass Dominus dixit, Our Lord again imparted to her a knowledge of all that was said, which gave her ineffable joy. Then from the Gloria in excelsis to the words Primogenitus Mariae viginis matris, she began to think that the title of only Son was more suitable than that of first born, because the Immaculate had only brought forth this Son, whom she merited to conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost; but the Blessed Virgin said to her sweetly: Call My Beloved Jesus My first born rather than My only begotten, for I brought Him forth first; but after him, or rather by Him I have you His brethren and My children when I adopted you as such by the maternal affection which I have for you. At the Offertory, the Saint, in spirit beheld the sisters offering to Our Lord all the devotions which they had performed during Advent. Some placed them in the bosom of the Divine Infant, whose image had been impressed on their souls; and the Blessed Virgin inclined toward each with unparalleled condescension, placing her Divine Son so that He could receive His Hands what they offered: others appeared to advance toward the altar, and remained in the center of the choir, where they offered their prayers to the Blessed Virgin and to Her Son; but He was not placed so that He could receive them, and made signs to that effect. She understood from this, that those who placed their offerings in the bosom of the Child Jesus, were they who were united to the Lord with their whole hearts, wherein He was spiritually born, and that the Blessed Virgin assisted them in this with all Her power, rejoicing with them in their devotion and spiritual advancement; but those persons who had offered their gifts in the center of the choir were they who only thought of the Birth of Our Lord on the Festival, and because they were reminded of it by the special devotion of the Church. Then this blessed soul approached the King of Glory, to present Him the good will of those who would have accomplished many things had they not been hindered by a lawful cause. And she was instructed in spirit that all the prayers which had been made with devotion were placed as pearls in the tablet, and that the goodwill of those who would have performed the same devotions, had they not been occupied, and who grieved and consequently humbled themselves for this omission, should be placed in the chain with which Our Lord's bosom was adorned, and that they would obtain such advantage from this nearness to the Heart of Jesus, that they would be as if they had the key of a treasure which contained all they could desire. Chapter 4 For the Feast of St. John the Evangelist The Apostles and Evangelist St. John appeared to this virgin as she prayed one day during Advent. He was clothed in a gold collared habit, covered in golden eagles, which signified that, though this Saint was elevated to the highest contemplation, even while in the body, he always sought to humble himself by the consideration of his own unworthiness. As Gertrude began to consider these ornaments, she perceived a red light shining from under the golden eagles, from which she learned that St. John always commenced his contemplation by the remembrance of the Passion of the Lord, which he has beheld with his own eyes, and which he had never ceased to mourn in his inmost heart; and thus by degrees to the sublimity of the Divine Majesty, which he contemplated without pain by the eyes of the soul, as far as it is possible for man to do. He had also two golden lilies on his two shoulders - on the right was written, in marvellous characters, the words of the Gospel: Discipulus quem diligebat Jesus; and on the left: Iste custos Virgin; to mark the singular advantage which he enjoyed of being called, and of being the disciple whom Jesus loved above the rest of His Apostles, and of having been found worthy by Christ Himself to receive from Him the charge of His Mother before He expired, on account of his surpassing purity. The Apostle had a magnificent rational on his breast, to indicate his prerogative of having reposed on the bosom of Jesus during the last Supper. The words: In principio erat verbum (In the beginning was the Word) were written in letters of living gold, to show the marvellous virtue of the words contained in his Gospel. Then St. Gertrude said to Our Lord: "O most loving Lord, why is Thy beloved one manifested to a creature so unworthy as I am?" Our Lord answered: If any person says a Paster noster daily in honour of this Apostle, reminding him of the sweet fidelity with which his heart was filled when I taught him this prayer, he will not fail to obtain for whoever prays thus the grace of persevering faithfully in virtue, even to the end of his life. This Apostle also appeared to the Saint as she assisted at Matins, on His Feast, when she applied with special fervour to her usual exercises. Gertrude then recommended some of the religious of whom she had charge very fervently to him; he received her prayer very lovingly, and said. "I am like my Master in this - that I love those who love me" The Saint inquired: "What grace, then and what benefit can I hope for, who am so unworthy on your dear Feast?" "Come" he replied: "come with me, thou elect one of my Lord. and let us repose together on the sweetest bosom of the Lord, in which all the treasures of beatitude lie hidden". Then taking her up in spirit, he presented her to our living Saviour; and having placed her on His right, he placed himself on the left, and reposed there. Then he exclaimed, pointing reverently to the bosom of Jesus: "Behold, this the Saints of saints, who draws to Himself all that is good in Heaven and on earth!" Then she inquired of St.John why he had placed himself on the left hand, and had given the right to her. He replied: "It is because I have become one spirit with God and am able to penetrate where flesh cannot enter; but you are not yet able to penetrate into such high things, because you are still in the flesh. I have therefore placed you at the opening of the Divine Heart, from whence you may drink in all the sweet consolations which flow from it with such impetuous abundance, that is capable of satisfying all who desire to taste thereof. " Then, as she felt the constant pulsations of the Divine Heart, and rejoiced exceedingly thereat, she said to St. John: "Beloved of God, didst thou feel those pulsations when you wert lying on the Lord's breast at the Last Super?" "Yes" he replied; "and this with such plenitude, that liquid does not enter so rapidly into bread than the sweetness of those pleasures penetrated my soul, so that my spirit became more ardent than water under the action of a glowing fire." "And why" she inquired: "have you neither said nor written anything of this for our edification?" He replied: "Because I was charged with instructing the newly formed Church concerning the mysteries of the uncreated Word, that those truths might be transmitted to future ages, as far as they would be capable of comprehending them, for no one can comprehend them entirely; and I deferred speaking of these Divine pulsations until later ages, that the world might be aroused from its torpor, and animated when it had grown cold, by hearing of these things". Then as she contemplated St. John reposing on the bosom of Our Lord, he said to her: "I now appear to you in the same form as when I lay on the bosom of My beloved Lord and only Friend at the Last Supper; but if you wish it, I will obtain for you the favour of beholding me in the form in which I now enjoy the delights of Heaven". And as she desired this favour very ardently, she beheld an immense ocean within the Heart of Jesus, in which St John appeared to float with ineffable joy and perfect freedom; and she learned that the Saint became so filled and inebriated with the torrent of pleasure which he tasted in God that a vein came from his heart, whereby he poured forth the sweet waters of the Divinity - that is to say, his instructions, and above all, his Gospel - over the face of the earth. On another occasion during the same feast, as the Saint took great satisfaction in the frequent praises which were given to the Apostle for his perfect virginity, she asked this special friend of God to obtain by his prayers that we might preserve our chastity with such care as to merit a share in his praises. St John replied:"He who would participate in the beatitude which my victories have won, must run as I ran when on earth" Then he added: "I frequently reflected on the sweet familiarity and friendship with which I was favoured by Jesus, my most Loving Lord and Master, in reward for my chastity, and for having watched so carefully over my words and actions that I never tarnished this virtue in the slightest degree. The Apostles separated themselves from such company as they considered doubtful, but mixed freely with what was not (as it is remembered in the Acts, that they were with the women, and Mary the Mother of Jesus); I never avoided women when there was an opportunity of rendering them any service, either of body or soul; but I still watched over myself with extreme vigilance, and always implored the assistance of God when charity obliged me to assist them in any way. Therefore these words are chanted of me: In tribulatione invocasti me et exaudivi te (Psalm 80:8). For God never permitted my affection to render anyone less pure; wherefore I received this recompense from My beloved Master, that my chastity is more praised than any other Saint; and I have obtained a more eminent rank in Heaven, where, by a special privilege, I receive with extreme pleasure the rays of this love, which is as a mirror without spot and the brightness of eternal light. So that, being placed before this Divine love, whose brightness I receive each time that my chastity is commemorated in the Church my loving Master salutes me in a most sweet and affable manner, filling my inmost soul with such joy, that it penetrates into all its powers and sentiments like a delicious beverage. And thus the words, Ponan te sicut signaculum in conspectu meo, are sung of me; that is, I am placed as a receptacle for the effusions of the sweetest and most ardent charity." Then St. Gertrude, being raised to a higher degree of knowledge, understood by these words of Our Lord in the Gospel, "In My Father's house there are many mansions" (John 14:2); that there are three mansions in the heavenly kingdom, which correspond with three classes of persons who have preserved their virginity. The first mansion is for those who like the Apostles, fly from what is doubtful, but associate freely with others, who vigorously resist all temptations, and if they fall perform worthy fruits of penance. The second mansion is for those who avoid alike the doubtful and that which appears safe; carefully shunning what might prove an occasion even of temptation; and chastise their flesh, subduing it so that it can no longer rebel against the spirit; to this rank belong St. John the Baptist and other spiritual persons, who are also placed in the second mansion after they have been prevented gratuitously by the mercy of God and have cooperated faithfully with His graces, so as to avoid evil and to exercise themselves in the practice of good. The third mansion is for those who, prevented by the sweetness of the benedictions and grace of God, have a natural horror of all evil; but who nevertheless, in the different accidents of life, find themselves sometimes with the wicked, but always detest evil and adhere to good, endeavoring to render both their own conduct and that of others perfectly irreproachable. Such persons draw marvellous fruit from the human affections, which they have in common with others, since they fear because of their affections, and humble themselves, watching over their hearts with greater diligence; as St Gregory says: "It shows a good conscience to fear a fault where there is none." In this class St John obtained the first rank. Hence these words are chanted on his Feast: 'Quivicerit, factiam illum columnam in templo meo,' for whoever conquers nature - that is, his affections - becomes as a pillar whereon God can repose while pouring forth the abundance of His sweetness, Et scribam super eum nomen meum; that is, to imprint him upon the visible marks of His Divine friendship. Et nomen civitatis novae Jerusalem; that is, he shall receive, both exteriorly and interiorly, a particular recompense for each person whose spiritual welfare he has procured on earth. St Gertrude was favoured also with another vision, referring to the same subject; for as she began to consider why the Church extolled the virginity of St John the Evangelist more than that of St John the Baptist, God who knows the thoughts of men, caused her to see the two Saints in a vision. St. John the Baptist was seated on the elevated throne, in the middle of the sea, separated from all the world; St John he Evangelist stood in the midst of a furnace, surrounded on all sides by flames. As the Saint beheld this, and marvelled thereat, Our Lord said to her, for her instruction: Which do you consider most wonderful to see - the Evangelist not burning, or the Baptist not consumed? From this she learned that there will be a great difference between the reward of these whose virtue has been assaulted and of those who have preserved it in peace. One night, also when the Saint was engaged in prayer with great devotion, she beheld St John approaching Our Lord, resting upon Him, and embracing Him very lovingly and ardently. Then, as she cast herself humbly at the feet of Our Lord, to implore pardon for her sins, St John said to her with great condescension: "Do not let my presence trouble you; behold one whose love will suffice for thousands; behold a mouth in which each will find a special sweetness; behold an ear which will guard inviolably all the secrets confided to it." As they chanted the words, Mulier ecce filius tuus, Gertrude beheld a marvellous light, which came forth from the Heart of God, and shone upon St John, obtaining for him the respect and veneration of all the Saints. She also saw the Blessed Virgin manifesting a special joy toward him when she was called his mother; and the beloved disciple saluted her also with the deepest respect and affection. Also, when the words were chanted which referred to the particular privileges of friendship which the Saint had received from His Divine Master, such as these: Iste est Joamnnes, qui supra pectus Domini in caena recbuit,, and Iste est disciplulus quem diligebat Jesus, as he appeared surrounded with a new light of glory, which distinguished him from the other Saints; and for this they praised God with their whole souls, which caused the blessed John to rejoice greatly. At the words Apparuit caro suo, she understood that by the form under which Our Lord visited St John He renewed in him all the sweetness of that mutual friendship which he had enjoyed during his mortal life. Therefore the Apostle, changed as it were into a new man, tasted in some degrees the joys of eternity; and this principally in in three things, for which he thanked God when he was dying. For he said first: "I have seen Thy face, and I am renewed thereby." Secondly: "The sweetness of Thy perfumes, Lord Jesus, has enkindled eternal desires within me". And thirdly: "Thy voice is full of sweetness". For the virtue of His presence had imparted the vigour of immortality; the strength of His Divine vocation had replenished him with the sweetest hope; and his gentle words had filled his soul with surpassing gladness. Again as they read that he rose up to follow Jesus, he appeared to dispose himself to follow Him in Heaven; and she knew that St John had such a full and entire confidence in the goodness of his beloved Lord and Master, that he hoped that he would die without feeling the pains of death; and he merited to obtain this favour because it was the greatness of his love, and not the fear of death, which had caused him to desire it. Then the Saint began to marvel how it could be, when it was inferred from Scripture, St John had not tasted the pains of death, because he had suffered so deeply in spirit at the foot of the Cross, that is should be said now, this privilege had been granted to him for his confidence. But Our Lord replied: I have rewarded My elect in Heaven with a special glory for his virginity, and for the compassion which he had at My death; but I have also recompensed his lively hope, which made him believe that I would refuse him nothing, by withdrawing him from the world without permitting him to experience the pains of death, and by having preserved his body from corruption. Chapter 5 On the Feast of the Circumcision, St Gertrude offered certain salutations of the sweet name of Jesus, which had been compiled by devout persons; and these salutations appeared before God with the brilliancy of stars, and in the form of white roses; from each of which hung a little golden bell, which gave forth the sweetest melody, and caused ineffable pleasure to the Divine Heart of Jesus. As she uttered the words: "Hail Jesus, most loving, most benign, most desirable!" ect., she desired very ardently to find other expressions to add to the name of Jesus, that His Heart might be still more touched thereby; but the earnest love with which she sought to accomplish this exhausted her strength, and Our Lord moved with pity, as it were vanquished by her love inclined toward her, and embraced her with exceeding love, saying: Behold, I have imprinted My name upon your lips, that you may bear it before the whole world; and whenever your lips move to utter it, it will surround before Me as a most harmonious melody. After this she found the name of Jesus written on the upper part of her soul, in characters of living gold, which appeared which appeared like shining stars emitting a soft light. The word JUSTICE was written in the same manner on the lower part. By the inscription "Jesus", which signifies Saviour, she understood that she was to manifest Him to all as the source of life and salvation; by the inscription "Justice", she understood that she was to represent all the rigors of Divine justice to those whose minds were hardened, that the fear of God's judgments might serve to deter them from evil, if they would not be won by His mercies. Then she said to Our Lord: "O sweetest Love! I beseech Thee to give our congregation, which always belongs entirely to Thee, a new year's gift, even as a bridegroom does to his bride". Our Lord replied: Be renewed in the spirit of your mind (Eph 4:32). She answered: "O Father of Mercies, do not forget to circumcise all our imperfections on this blessed festival of Thy holy Circumcision!" To this Our Lord answered: Circumcise yourself by meditating on your Rule. "O loving Lord" she replied, "Why dost Thou reply to me so seriously, since Thou knowest that if Thou dost not assist us with Thy grace, we shall fail in our endeavours; for Thou hast Thyself said that it is not possible for us to do any good without Thee". Then Our Lord, s if won and carried away by the words of the Saint, placed her soul in His bosom, and said to her with great sweetness: Yes I desire that you should cooperate with Me in this; and all those amongst you who, at the commencement of this year; repent with all their hearts, for My love of the faults which they have committed against their Rule, and resolve to avoid them for the future, shall obtain this favour -that I will be to them as a kind master, who holds the child whom he teaches in his arms, to point out his letters to him, to efface his imperfections, or to supply his defects; and thus My Mercy will amend their defects, and My paternal love will supply their negligence. And if they forget any duty through dissipation of mind, I will supply it to them by the reflections which I will cause them to make on it. He added: Those who endeavour to turn their minds from all which they know to be displeasing to Me, and who endeavour to please Me in all things, shall receive the light of My Divine Heart to direct their thoughts; and I will so dispose their works, that they shall be able each year to offer Me a new gift, which will not be unworthy of My acceptance, and which will be salutary for them. As the Saint prayed for a person who had asked that she would obtain from God for her, as a New Year's gift, that her heart might always remain faithful to him in prosperity and adversity, Our Lord replied sweetly: I accept the desire of this person for whom you pray as a most acceptable New Year's gift; but as it is right that I should give her what she asks in return, I wish that this gift should be shared between us; that is should be advantageous to her, and agreeable to Me; that it should be redouned to My glory on the one hand, and that it should continually impart new ornaments of virtue to her on the other. For, as a mother, when she is teaching her child to work, guides her hand by her own knowledge, so also I use My eternal wisdom in teaching this person to prepare these gifts. Then the Saint understood that the pearls with which these gifts were to be embellished were the holy desires and good sentiments which drew the soul to God, such as fear, love, hope and joy such -like, the least of which is not overlooked by God when He labours for the salvation of our souls. As she prayed then for many other persons, and especially for one whose soul had lately become troubled, and as Gertrude believed, through her, Our Lord said to her: I am using her very affliction and trouble to expand her heart and to open her hands, that she may receive more abundantly and suitably the gifts which I have prepared for her. "Alas Lord!" exclaimed the Saint, "was it necessary that I should be the scourge with which Thou didst purify this soul? Our Lord answered: Why say Alas! when those who thus purify My elect, without any intention of afflicting them, but on the contrary, compassionating their sufferings with all their hearts, are as a gentle rod in My hands, and their merit increases in proportion as the souls are purified? Chapter 6 On the Feast of the Epiphany this holy soul offered to God, in imitation of the Three Kings for myrrh, the Body of Jesus Christ, with all merits of His Passion, for the remission of all the sins of men, from the first to the last of the human race; for incense, the Soul of Jesus Christ, with all His holy actions, for the negligence of the whole world; for gold, His Divinity, with all its perfections and joys, in satisfaction for the defects of all creatures. Then Our Lord appeared and presented her offering as a most worthy New Year's gift to the most Holy and august Trinity. As He passed through the midst of Heaven, all the celestial court inclined profoundly before Him to honour this gift, as men prostrate before the Holy Sacrament when it is present. As she prayed devoutly for a certain person who had asked her to offer the oblation which she had made before the Epiphany for her, Our Lord appeared to her, bearing this offering through the midst of Heaven, to present it to God the Father; and she saw that all the celestial court considered the offering of great value. From this she learned that when we offer our prayers, or any other gift to God, the celestial court praises and extols Him for our devotion; and when a soul, not satisfied with its own actions and prayers, offers with them those of Jesus Christ - which are infinitely more perfect - the value of his offering cannot be increased, and is worthy to be presented to the Most Holy Trinity. On another occasion, on the same feast, as the words of the Gospel were read, "And falling down they adored Him; and opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts" (Matt: 2:11), the Saint, animated by the example of the Magi, and transported with zeal, rose to prostrate herself devoutly and humbly at the feet of Our Lord Jesus Christ; adoring Him for all in Heaven, on earth and under the earth; and finding nothing worthy to offer Him, she sought anxiously and eagerly amongst all creatures to find something which she could present to her only Love. And as she thus searched, she beheld some vile and miserable creatures, who contributed nothing to the glory of the Saviour, and these she endeavoured to bring back to Him Whom all creatures are bound to serve. Then, in the fervour of her desires, she gathered up in her heart all the fears, grief's, pains and inquietudes which had been suffered by creatures, not for the Divine glory, but because of human infirmity; and these she offered to the Lord as myrrh. Then she charged herself with all the pretended sanctity of hypocrites, Pharisees, heretics and other such persons, and offered this to God as incense. Then she took all of the falsehood and impurity which had been in the hearts of men, and offered it to God as gold, while her heart burned with desire to reproduce all the insubordination of creatures into a profound subjection to their Creator. And as she offered these things to God they appeared like shinning gold purified in the furnace. As Our Lord accepted all of this with great satisfaction, and collected these New Year gifts as if they were precious gems for His diadem, He said to the Saint: Behold the gems that you have offered Me; I consider them of great value, and I will always bear them on the diadem which adorns My Head in memory of your singular affection for Me, that they may increase My glory in My celestial court even as an early monarch adorns himself with the rarest and most precious jewel in his kingdom. Then the Saint remembered a person who had often asked her to make some offering for her in that day; and she asked the Lord what He would wish her to offer. He replied: Offer Me her feet, her hands and her heart. The feet indicate the desires; and this person desires to make a return to Me for My Passion, let her endeavor to suffer patiently all pains of body and mind, in union with My Passion, for the glory of My Name, and the benefit of My Spouse, the Church; and I will accept this as Myrrh. As the hands indicate action, let her endeavour to unite all her actions, whether corporal or spiritual, to the perfect actions of My most Holy Humanity, and all her actions will obtain thereby a most marvellous excellence; and I will reserve them as an incense of the most fragrant odour. As the heart indicates the will, let her always humble herself to all and be guided by a prudent counsellor, that she may know My Will, and then let her accomplish it freely and cheerfully; I will accept this union of her will with My Divine Will as an amalgam of pure gold, which can never be separated. Then as the Saint prayed for certain persons who had been specially recommended to her, she beheld our Divine Lord, with a kind of bag under his left arm, so arranged that He could easily put His right hand therein; and here He placed the prayers which she had offered, to reserve them for the benefit of His special friends. And as she offered for each what they had requested, she beheld these petitions arranged before Our Lord as so many beautiful New Years gifts with which He adorned the souls of those who approached Him with less perfect dispositions, She knew that the fidelity, or rather the confidence, of these persons in recommending themselves to her prayers, had merited this special favour from God, inasmuch as they were not concerned whether she offered these prayers from herself or from them, provided that they were acceptable to God. Chapter 7 For the Second Sunday after Epiphany. on the Sunday Omnis, St. Gertrude prepared herself, by a spiritual confession, to behold the Sacred Face of the Lord, as the faithful do on this day at Rome; and she presented this Face to herself as all disfigured by her sins, and cast at the feet of the Lord, to ask pardon for all her transgressions. Then He lifted up His venerable Hand, and blessed her thus: I grant you, by the bowels of My Mercy, the pardon and remission of all your sins; and that you may truly amend your life, I enjoin you this satisfaction - that each day during this year you will perform this action in union with, and in memory of, the mercy by which I grant you this indulgence. The Saint accepted the satisfaction with great thanksgiving; but fearing her frailty, she said: "But what should I do, O Lord if I should fail in this, through my negligence?" Why should you fail in so easy a matter? He replied; for I will accept the least thing which you do with this intention, if it be only a pebble or a straw from the ground, to utter a single word, to show kindness to anyone, to say the Requiem aeternam for the faithful departed, or to pray for sinners or the just. The Saint was exceedingly consoled by this, and began to pray for her particular friends, beseeching Our Lord to grant them the same favour. He granted her petition, and said: All who wish to share with you in the satisfaction which I have imposed on you, will also receive a similar indulgence and remission of their sins. And then extending His sacred Hand, He gave her His benediction a second time. After this He said: Oh, what an abundant benedictions I will pour forth on him who returns to Me at the end of this year with works of charity exceeding the number of his sins! But the Saint exclaimed distrustfully: "how can this be, since the heart of man is so prone to evil. that scarcely an hour passes in which he does not sin in many ways?" Our Lord replied: Why should you think this so difficult, where there are so many that please Me, and there is nothing, however difficult, which My graces cannot accomplish. "Lord" inquired Gertrude, "what will you give who accomplishes this in Thy strength?" I can give you no better answer than this, He replied, That I will give 'what eye has not seen nor ear heard, neither had it entered into the heart of man to conceive.' (Cf. 1 Cor: 2:9). How happy will he be who has practiced this devotion for a year, or even for a single month, since he may expect the same reward from the liberality of His God! On the following day, as she prayed for those who communicated according to her advice, but could not approach the Sacrament of Penance, on account of the absence of their confessor; it appeared that Our Lord clothed them with a white robe, as a sign of their innocence, adorned with precious stones which had the form and the scent of violets, as a type of the humility with which they had followed her advice. A rose colored mantle was also given them, covered with flowers of gold, which signified the loving Passion of Our Lord, in virtue of which they obtained a worthy preparation for Communion. Let them be seated near me, said Our Lord, that it may be known that it is not by accident, but on purpose, that the first place is kept for them; because from all eternity it has been ordained that those who have followed your advice shall receive extraordinary favours from me today; and those who have communicated without confessing and without asking your advice, resting on the goodness and grace of God, shall receive a rose colored mantle with gold flowers, and shall also be seated at the table of the Lord. Those who, through humility and compunction, had abstained from Communion, appeared as if standing before the table, and rejoicing in its delights. Then the Lord moved by His own mercy, blessed them with His Hand saying these words: All those who meditate frequently on the vision of My Divine Face, attracted by the desires of love, shall receive with in them, by the virtue of My Humanity, a bright ray of My Divinity which shall enlighten their in most souls, so that they shall reflect the light of My countenance in a special manner in eternity. Chapter 8 On the night of the Feast of St. Agnes, the beloved of God, as Gertrude rejoiced greatly for the glory which the love of this Saint had given to Our Lord, and for the words she had uttered which gave such joy to the heavenly court, she exclaimed: "Alas, Lord, what joy and consolation would I not have experienced at hearing these words chanted, if my infirmity had not prevented me"! Our Lord replied: I reserve this for you in myself; and either in this life, or in the next you shall taste other consolations, which will be all the sweeter to you because they will have less of the insipidity of your own will. From this she understood that nothing can diminish the spiritual welfare of the elect, unless through their own fault. As they read the sixth Lesson (which related with St Agnes was accused of being a Christian from her child, and so bewitched by magic that she called Jesus Christ her Spouse), St. Gertrude exclaimed sorrowfully: "Alas, my Lord and my God, what does not Thy Divine Majesty suffer from men" Our Lord replied: The perfect love that unites Me and Agnes satisfies Me for all these indignities. "O Lord" replied the Saint, "grant to all they elect the grace to attach themselves so inviolably to Thee, that Thou mayest no longer think of the injuries by which men outrage Thee." On the Feast of St. Augustine, as God showed Gertrude the merits of many Saints, she desired to know something of the merits of St. Agnes, whom she had loved from her very infancy with the greatest tenderness and devotion. Our Lord yielded to her desire and prayer, and showed her that great Saint, so united to His Heart as to indicate her extraordinary innocence, and to manifest the truth of what has been said by the Wise Man, that Incorruption bringeth near to God(Wis 6:20); for she seemed so near God, that it appeared as if no one in Heaven could equal her innocence and love. From this she learned that there is not an instant in which God does not place before Him the devotion and joy which the holy souls either have felt or will yet feel from the sweet words of St. Agnes which are recited by the Church, and that He causes the pleasure which He finds therein to pour forth from His Heart into that of this holy virgin, which is so intimately united to His, while she becomes marvellously adorned thereby with new jewels, casting rays of light every moment into those souls who rejoice into her devotion. Chapter 9 For the Feast of the Purification On the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, as the Saint rejoiced in spirit at the first sound of the bell for Matins, and said to Our Lord,: "My heart and my soul salute Thee, O loving Saviour, at the sound of the bell which announces the Feast of the Purification of Thy most holy Mother, " He replied condescendingly: And the bowels of My pity knock at the gates of Divine Mercy for you, to obtain the full remission of all your sins. As the bell for Matins ceased to ring, Our Lord wished to recompense her salutation a thousand fold, and said to her: O joy of My Heart, My Divinity salutes Thee; and I send you all the merits of My holy Humanity, to enable you to pass this festival in a manner pleasing to Me. Some months after, as she desired to hear what was chanted in choir, and grieved for the infirmity which detained her in bed, she said complainingly: "O Lord, if distance did not prevent me from hearing, how my heart would rejoice for each word chanted at Matins!" But Our Lord answered: My spouse, if you know what is chanted in choir, turn to Me, and contemplate attentively what passes within Me, and you will not fail to find what will satisfy you. Then she knew in spirit that the Lord took unto Himself all the good that holy souls were doing in the Church, and that, having purified and perfected it in Himself, He offered it in eternal praise to the Most Holy Trinity; and that, drawing into His Divine Heart the good works which were done for the glory of God, He ennobled and perfected them; and she perceived that while the works united to the members of Jesus Christ operated in the soul a good of inestimable value, those which He drew into His Heart surpassed the others in perfection and excellence, even as a living man exceeds in dignity one who is dead. After this, as she heard the second Response,a and grieved that she had not heard the first, which was Adorna thalamum, she said to Our Lord: "Teach me, I implore Thee my Beloved, how I can adorn the couch of my heart, so that it may please Thee. "Our Lord replied: Open your heart to Me, and let Me see therein the images which you know to be most pleasing to Me. From this the Saint understood that Our Lord is exceedingly pleased when we open our hearts by remembering His sufferings, and thanking Him for His benefits. As they sang Post partum virgo, St. Gertrude saw the Blessed Virgin wiping away all stains from the religious of the convent; and hiding them in a corner, she placed herself before them, so as to conceal them from the eyes of Divine justice. During the Antiphon Beata mater, at the word Intercede she saw the Blessed Virgin, elevated and radiant with glory, offering to her Son, Who is the King of kings, after a gentle embrace, all the devotions of the sisters in union with her own. But as Gertrude still complained of the obstacles which were caused by her infirmities, Our Lord said to her: If Simeon and Anna - I mean the effects of your infirmity - still hinder you from attending the Divine Office, come forth with Me on Mount Calvary, where you will find a young man full of beauty and affection to place you upon a cross. She therefore followed Him there in spirit, and the memory of the Passion caused a marvellous delight in her soul. Then she went forth by a gate on the northern side, and entered into a magnificent temple, where she beheld the blessed old man Simeon standing near the altar, and uttering these words as he prayed: "When will He come? When shall I behold Him? Shall I live until He comes?" And, as he repeated the same and similar words, he felt his soul thrilled within him, and turning round suddenly, he beheld the Blessed Virgin before the altar, holding in her arms the Infant Jesus, the most beautiful of the children of men. As soon as he beheld Him, he was enlightened by the Holy Ghost, and recognized the Redeemer of the world; and then taking Him into his arms with great joy he exclaimed: Nunc dimittis servum tuum, DSomine; at the words quia viderunt oculi mei. he kissed Him lovingly; and at the words quod parasti, he lifted Him before the Ark, to offer Him to God the Father as the salvation of His people. The Ark then became brilliant with light, and the image of the Infant Jesus appeared therein resplendent with beauty, which signified that He was the consummation of all the sacrifices of the old and new covenants. Then Simeon exclaimed, in the fervour of his love; Lumen ad revelationem gentium, and returned the Child to His Mother, saying: Et tuum ipsius animam pertransibit gladius. The the Blessed Virgin offered two young doves for Her Divine Son, which indicated the innocent lives of the faithful, who, like doves, reply in sweet murmurs to all evil, and collect pure grain - that is, endeavour to follow the example of the Saints; and those who act thus redeem the Lord Jesus, when they fill up and accomplish what Our Lord has left for them to do. At the eighth Response, Ora pro nobis, ect., the Queen of Virgins knelt before God as the mediatrix between Him and the religious, praying for each individually; but her Divine Son raised her up respectfully, and placed her bear Him on the throne of His glory, granting her full authority to command what she would. Then she desired the Choir of Powers to surround the convent, and to defend it mightily against the wiles of the ancient enemy. The Angels immediately obeyed the orders of the Queen of Heaven, and joining their shields together, encompassed the convent on all sides. Then St Gertrude said to the Blessed Virgin: "O Mother of Mercy, will not those who have not assisted in choir have a share in this mighty defence?" The Holy Virgin replied: They have a share in it, and so will all those who, here or elsewhere, preserve the true spirit of religion; but if any fail in religious observance, and are not earnestly seeking to attain perfection, they will not merit to be under the protection of the Angels. To this Our Lord added: Let those who desire to live under so powerful a protection make shields for themselves - in this manner; narrow below that is, toward themselves - by humility, and large above - that is, toward Me - by a full and perfect confidence in My goodness. When the Versicle Ora pro nobis was sung at the procession, the Blessed Virgin appeared to place her Son gently on the altar, and then prostrating devoutly before Him, She interceded for all the congregation; and this Royal Child inclined toward her, to signify that He not only heard Her prayers, but that He would also accomplish all that His beloved Mother desired Chapter 10 For Septuagesima Sunday On the Sunday Circumdederunt, St Gertrude, though still very weak, desired ardently to receive the Sacrament; but although she had prepared herself with great fervour; she abstained by the advise of her spiritual mother, through discretion. As she offered this privation to God, she found herself standing before the Lord; and He inclined sweetly toward her, placing her in the bosom of His paternal goodness, saying to her, with the caresses and affability of a mother to her child: Since you abstain from receiving Me purely for Me, I will keep you in My bosom, so that no exterior labour may trouble you. The Saint, being overwhelmed with delight on the bosom of Our Lord, said to Him "O most loving Spouse, since the whole world is seated in wickedness (1 John:5:19), and opposes Thy glory at this time more than at any other by the excesses into which it plunges, I desire with all my heart that my congregation should be employed in making reparation to Thee. Therefore, if Thou wilt deign to acknowledge me as Thy servant, so alas so unworthy, and accept me as Thine ambassador, I will gladly announce some special exercise fro Thy love to all who are devoutly disposed, in order to honour Thee in reparation for the sins now committed". Our Lord replied: Whoever will be My Ambassador on this occasion will have this reward - that all which He gains for Me will be acquired and gained for himself. From this she learned that all who labour to instruct others, either by their words or their writings, for the honour of God and the advancement of their neighbour's salvation, will receive a reward even to endless ages from the fruit which has been drawn from their books or their instructions. He then added: Whoever offers Me the satisfaction of his corporal necessities, such as eating, drinking, sleeping and saying in his heart or with his lips: Lord I take this food (or whatever it may be) in union with the love with which Thou didst perform the like action when on earth, for the glory of Thy Father and the salvation of men: praying that in union with My Divine love, it may serve for the salvation of all in Heaven, on earth and or in Purgatory - each time he makes this offering, he presents Me with a strong shield to protect Me against the insults and outrages of sinners. Then as the sisters communicated at the Mass, Our Lord placed Gertrude tenderly at the loving Wound of His Side, and said to her: Since discretion obliges you to abstain from receiving Me corporally in the Sacrament, drink now from My Heart the sweet influences of My Divinity. Having drunk of this torrent of sweetness and delight, as she thanked Our Lord devoutly for it, she saw all those who had communicated that day standing in the presence of the Lord, Who gave to each a marvellous beautiful habit, and a special gift, which enabled them to prepare themselves worthily for Communion. As they obtained these great favours through the merits of Gertrude, they also offered to Our Lord in their turn the advantages which they had received through her, for the increase of her glory and merit. From this she understood that those who dispose themselves for Holy Communion by particular prayers and devotions, and who nevertheless abstain for good reasons, as through obedience or humility, are replenished by God with the torrent of Divine delights, while their preparation for Communion contributes to prepare others, and the fruit which others derive thereby returns to their advantage. Then St Gertrude exclaimed: "O Lord, if it true that those who abstain from Communicating receive such great fruit, is it then more advantageous to abstain?" Our Lord replied: By no means; for those who approach the Sacrament for love of My glory as the delicious nectar of the Divinity, and are adorned with the incomparable splendour of My Divine Virtues. "Lord" inquired the Saint "what will happen to to those who abstain from Communion on account of their negligence, and yet pass the day in the same negligence?" He replied: They render themselves still more unworthy of Communion, and they deprive themselves of the fruit of the Communions made on that day throughout the Church. Then the Saint continued: "Tell me, I beseech Thee, O Lord, why it happens that certain souls, who judge themselves unworthy of Communion, and apply themselves less earnestly to prepare for it, are nevertheless pressed by a so ardent desire to receive Thy sacred Body, that it grieves them exceedingly to abstain on the days appointed for receiving It?" Our Lord replied: This happens to them by a special grace of My Sweet Spirit; as a king, who is always accustomed to the court, naturally prefers the pleasure which he always enjoys there, to the satisfaction which others find in roaming through the streets and squares. Chapter 11 For Sexagesima On the Sunday Exurge, as she was still confined to bed, she heard the words Benedicens ergo, chanted at Matins: and reflected on the sentiments of joy and devotion which she had so often experienced in listening to this Response, she exclaimed: "O Lord, Thou knowest with what fervent love I have often chanted this Response and many others when I carried up before Thy Throne of glory, and there intoned each note and word in Thy Heart, as on a most sweet organ. But alas now that I am infirm, I neglect many things." My beloved one replied Our Lord: I can testify to the truth of what you say, and I know that you have often chanted these words most sweetly on the organ of my Divine Heart; therefore I am now going to chant for you in return, Then He added: Even as I swore to My servant Noe (Noah) that I would no more destroy the earth with a flood, so do I swear to you also, by My Divinity; that all those who listen to your advice with humility and avail themselves of it to regulate their lives, shall never perish, but shall assuredly attain to Me safely and without wandering, Who am the Way, the Truth and the Life; and I confirm this oath to you by the seal of My Most Holy Humanity. "O Eternal Wisdom" replied Gertrude, "since Thou forseest all the excesses and crimes into which men will again precipitate themselves, why didst Thou make so solemn a promise in their favor that Thou wouldst not again destroy the world by a deluge?" Our Lord replied: I made it to strengthen them in their good resolutions during the calm of prosperity, so that in the storm of affliction they may be bound in honor to keep their promise. Then she said: "O Lord God, wilt Thou teach Thy handmaid how to build an ark for Thee during this week?" Our Lord replied: You can build an ark in your heart, which will be very pleasing to Me; but observe carefully that there were three chambers in Noe's ark; the birds were in the highest, men in the middle, and beasts in the lowest. Thus you should divide the day into three parts; from early morning until Noon, (None) return to Me thanks, on the part of the whole Church and from the very bottom of your heart, for all the benefits which I have bestowed on men from the creation of the world to the present time, and especially for the signal benefit which I confer on them by immolating Myself to God the Father daily, from day break until Noon, on the Altar for their salvation, while men employ themselves in feasting and debaucheries, without a thought of gratitude. If you therefore study to repair their faults, and supply for their lack of thanksgivings, you will gather birds into the first stage of your ark. From Noon (None) , until Vespers, by attaching yourself firmly to the exercise of good works, and by uniting them to those performed by My sacred Humanity, in satisfaction for the negligence and ingratitude of men, who refuse to correspond with My benefits, you will enclose men in the center of the ark. From Vespers you may reflect and consider in the bitterness of your heart how men have the impiety to add to their ingratitude an infinity of crimes which excite My anger, and by offering in atonement all the bitterness and pains which I suffered in My Passion and Death, though I was innocent; and thus you may enclose beasts in the lowest part of the ark. Then she said to the Lord: "As I have asked this instruction of Thee so earnestly, I cannot feel certain that Thou O best of Teachers, hast taught it to me." He replied: You ought not to esteem it less because I have given it to you on account of the earnest desire you expressed; for I have created your senses for my service. Was it not a more wonderful thing to say, 'Let us make man to Our own image and likeness,' when I created him with deliberation and counsel, than to say, when I created other things: 'Let there be light? She replied: "If I availed myself of this authority to introduce this exercise for the benefit of others, someone else might introduce other things, which might not be an effect of Thy Divine grace". Our Lord replied: Add this caution: whoever knows in his heart that his will is so united to Mine as never to dissent from it, either in prosperity or adversity and who acts and suffers in all things purely for My glory, may certainly affirm that whatever he learns interiorly is from Me, if it is useful to others, and not contradictory to Scripture. Then the Lord stood before this soul, and said: Now queen and lady, console Me as I have consoled thee; and having said this, He inclined lovingly towards her. But this soul being overwhelmed with amazement at such unheard of condescension, exclaimed, with the deepest humility, from her inmost heart: "Ah Lord, Thou art the Creator, and I am but a creature!" As she uttered these words, her soul was drawn and united to God in a marvelous manner, and enjoyed with Him the sublimest beatitude. Then she said to the Lord: "Vouchsafe, O Father of Mercy, to give a little rest to Thy servant, who is weakened by the remedies she has used, that I may communicate worthily today." He replied: Then union with Me, which you now enjoy, will render you stronger than any bodily repose which you could take. While Mass was being celebrated, as she complained in the presence of God that her infirmity prevented her from hearing it. Our Lord said to her: Repeat the Confiteor. When she had concluded, He pronounced these words: May My Divinity have mercy on you, and pardon you all your sins! and extending His venerable Hand, He gave her His benediction. Then the Lord took her into His arms and said: And God created man to His own image. Then He signed her eyes and ears, her mouth and her heart and her hands and her feet; and sweetly repeating these words each time, He renewed His image and resemblance in her soul. On the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, a day on which people in the world commit the greatest excesses in eating and drinking, St Gertrude heard the bell ringing for the workmen's breakfast, and exclaimed with a sigh: "Alas my Lord, how early in the day men begin to offend Thee by their gourmandising!" But Our Lord replied: Do not grieve my beloved; those who are now summoned to the meal are not of the number of those who offend Me by greediness, since this reflection is a warning to them to apply to work; and I take as much satisfaction in seeing them eat, as a man would seeing his horse refreshed when he needed its labor. Chapter 12 For the Saturday before Quinquagesima On the Saturday before Quinquagesima Sunday, as St Gertrude disengaged herself from all exterior cares, and recollected herself in prayer, she was received into the bosom of the Divine goodness, where she enjoyed the sweet influences of His delights with such perfect power, that it appeared to her as if she was disposed of the kingdom of Heaven and earth with her Spouse. The day passed in these spiritual delights; but toward evening she began to be troubled about a trifling matter, so that she no longer enjoyed them. At last, before Matins, as she passed the greater part of the night in disquiet, which prevented her from sleeping, she besought Our Lord that He would remove this obstacle to her enjoyment of His Divine delights, if it was for His glory. The Lord replied: If you desire to soothe My pains, you must bear your own, and stand at My left, so that I may recline upon you, and look into your heart, where the sweet concert of your holy desires, your perfect confidence in Me and the ardor of your zeal for the eternal salvation of all mankind, may move Me powerfully. appeasing My justice. Further: as the rich treasures of your heart will be open to Me, I may impart them to those who are in need, and whose wants and necessities you would desire to relieve as far as you could. For if you stood on My right hand, that is in prosperity, you would deprive Me of those delights. Then the Saint asked Our Lord to prescribe some exercise by which she might serve Him lovingly during these three days, on which men commit so many crimes and excesses. Our Lord replied: You could not please Me better than by suffering patiently all that grieves or tires you, whether interior or exterior, in memory of My Passion, and by doing whatever you find most difficult; and you would do most effectually by controlling and restraining your senses. Whoever acts thus in memory of My Passion may hope for a great reward from Me. "But" continued the Saint, "I desire ardently to know from Thee, O most loving Teacher, what sufferings are most capable of appeasing the just anger which Thou feelest during these three days of excess". Our Lord replied: You can do nothing more acceptable to Me than to say the Pater nester three times, or the Psalm Laudate Dominum, omnes gentes (Praise the Lord all ye peoples); and at the first repetition, offer to God all the weariness and labors of My Heart for the salvation of men; and suffer or labour, praise or give thanks, in reparation for all the unlawful pleasures in which the human heart indulges at this time. At the second repetition, offer to God My Father all the abstinences and mortifications of My lips, whether in eating, speaking, preaching, or praying, in satisfaction for all the sin of the tongue now committed. At the third repetition, offer to God My Father all the actions and movements of My most holy Body, and of each member thereof, with all the bitterness of My Passion and Death, in satisfaction for all the sins which men commit now against their own salvation. At the hour of Terce, Our Lord appeared to St. Gertrude in the position in which He was when tied to the pillar between two executioners, one of whom tore Him with thorns, and the other bruised Him with a whip full of large knots; both striking His Face, which seemed so disfigured, that her very heart melted away with compassion; nor could she restrain her tears whenever she recalled that mournful spectacle during the day, since it appeared to her that none upon the earth had ever been so cruelly used as her sweet Lord Jesus. Even the very pupil of the eye was torn and inflamed, both by the thorns and the blows from the scourge. It appeared also to her that her Lord turned His blessed Face from side to side; but when he turned it from one executioner, the other struck it still more furiously; then He turned to her, and exclaimed: Have you not read what is written of Me: Vidimus eum tanquam leprosum?" - We thought Him a leper. (Is, 53;4). The Saint replied: "Alas, Lord, what remedy can we find to soothe the agonizing pains of Thy Divine Face!" Our Lord replied: The most efficacious and the tenderest remedy which you can prepare for Me is to meditate lovingly on My Passion, and to pray charitably for the conversion of sinners. These two executioners represent the laity, who offend God openly, striking Him with thorns, and the religious, who strike Him still more unpitiably with the knotted cords of secret sins. But both offend Him to the face, and outrage the very God of Heaven. She then understood that the Passion of Our Lord is read in the Gospel that it may be re-called to mind by His special friends, for His glory and for the good of the Church; that the scourging is mentioned therein twice according to the vision which she beheld; and that charity is recommended in the Epistle to exercise us in the love of God and our neighbor; suffering with God all the opprobriums which men made Him suffer, and pitying the neighbors for the misery to which they reduce themselves by offending God in this manner. At Mass the Saint began to invoke the Divine assistance in the words of the Introit; but Our Lord appeared to use the same words in addressing her as if He needed her assistance against the evils and cruelties then exercised against Him saying to her: You are My beloved one; be My protector, by your resolution of being My defense against all those who injure Me and treat Me with contempt; for I come to you to hide Me. Then the Saint embraced her Lord, striving with all her power to draw Him into her very soul; but she became so ravished in God, that she did not know whether the sisters stood or sat in the choir. When she was told that she was not conforming to the accustomed usage, she besought Our Lord that nothing might be observed of what was passing within her. He replied: Let your love keep your place near Me; and as for yourself, you can attend to your exterior deportment. "O must loving Lord", she replied "if it is true that my love can keep my place near Thee, I hope that reason will suffice to guide my exterior conduct, that I may love Thee more freely". And she obtained this gift from God, she still followed exactly the common exercises of the other religious. Chapter 13 On the night of Quinquagesima Sunday of the Lord Jesus appeared to Gertrude, seated on a throne, and attended by John the Evangelist, who sat at His feet, writing. As she inquired what he wrote, Our Lord replied: I have desired him to note carefully on this paper the service which the community rendered Me yesterday, and I will also have those noted down which they will render Me on the two following days; so when I am enthroned as Judge by My Father, I may render to each, after her death, god measure for what she had done; that the fruit of My Passion, which is the source of all the merit and excellence the actions of men can have, may render this measure pressed down; and that this parchment, which I will bring to My Father may render the measure so heaped up, that it will pour forth abundantly: and this is for the services which they render Me at a time when men overwhelm Me with injuries by their debaucheries; for as I never fail in fidelity, I cannot be wanting in justice to those who serve Me. Furthermore, although King David acknowledged during his life the services which his friends had rendered to him, still he recommended Solomon to show favor after his death to the children of Berzellai the Galaadite, and to admit them to his table, because they came to meet him when he fled from Absolom. For as the services which we render in adversity are far more esteemed than those which are rendered in prosperity, so I esteem far more the services which are offered to Me now, when the world offends Me so much more than at any other time. As St John sat and wrote, she saw him dipping his red into the horn which he held in his hand, and then the writing appeared black; but when he dipped his reed into the loving Wound of the Side of Jesus, the writing appeared rose colored; in some places it was diversified with black and gold. She understood by this, that the black writing signified the works which were done by the religious through the custom, such as fasting, ect; which all religious communities commence now; that the red letters, diversified with black and gold, indicated the works which were done in memory of our Lord's Passion, to obtain grace or other similar intentions. But these works which were done purely for the glory of God and in union with the Passion of Christ, for the salvation of all mankind, without any view of self-interest, of grace, or merit, were written in letters of pure gold; and these works would obtain the greatest reward from God, since what is done purely for the love and glory of God is the highest merit and value, and increases beyond all measure the recompense of eternal life. The Saint also perceived spaces between the writing; and as she inquired what this signified, Our Lord replied: As your community is accustomed to remain with Me at this time, and to offer your petitions in honor of My Passion, I have caused each thought and word to be inscribed here; in the vacant places all that you have done in memory of My Passion, and not from mere custom, is inscribed. But how could all our actions be thus acceptable?" inquired Gertrude. They would be so replied Our Lord if your fasts, vigils and regular discipline were performed in memory of My Passion, and were offered to Me in union with the mortification of My senses which I practiced during My Passion. For although I could have silenced My accusers by a single word, I was as a sheep led to the slaughter; I inclined My Head humbly, and cast My eyes to the ground, never opening My lips before My Judge, or replying to even one of the false accusations which were brought against Me. "Ah!" exclaimed Gertrude, "teach me, O best of teachers, how to perform even one action perfectly in memory of Thy Passion." Our Lord replied: When you are praying, extend your arms to represent the manner in which I extended Mine to God My Father in My Passion; and do this for the salvation of every member of the Church, in union with the love with which I stretched out My arms on the Cross. If I do this", she replied, "I must hide myself in a corner, for it is far from being customary." Our Lord replied: If anyone prays thus with his hands extended, without fear of contradiction, he pays me the same honor as one would do solemnly enthroned as a king. St. Gertrude also observed in these writings, that the actions of those who, for the love of God, gave good advise to others, were noted down; from which we perceive the exceeding goodness of God, who not only delights in procuring our salvation, but even seeks to recompense doubly the least good that we do. Then the Saint said: "OLord, why is it that St John has been chosen to write these things rather than our holy father St. Benedict, who belongs to our own Order?" Our Lord replied: I have chosen My beloved disciple because he has written of the love of God and the neighbor, therefore is most fit for this office; for I have confidence in him that he will record what is most suitable to My power and My Divinity, as well as what will be most for your advantage. On Ash Wednesday St Gertrude came to Our Lord, the person of the Church, and with the Church, offering to Him the penance of the fast for the Church; and she was received by Him with so many token of love, and in so favorable a manner, that she learned indubitably, and by experience, the strength and tenderness of the affection which Christ has for the Church His Spouse, in whose person she approached Him. Chapter 14 On the Sunday Invocabit as Gertrude felt unable to receive the Body of Our Lord, she besought Him with her whole heart to supply, by His forty days' fast, for the dispensations which her infirmity obliged her to accept. Then the Son of God rose up and knelt before His Father, with a joyful countenance, saying: I, who am Thy only Son, co-eternal and consubstantial with Thee know, by My inscrutable wisdom, the defects of human weakness, as man could not know; therefore do I abundantly compassionate this weakness, and desiring to supply for it perfectly, I offer Thee, O holy Father, the restraints of My blessed Mouth, in atonement for all sins of omission and commission of which the tongues of men are guilty; I offer Thee O just Father, the restraints of My Ears for all their sins of hearing; I offer Thee the restraints of My Eyes for all their sins committed by seeing; I offer Thee the restraints of My Hands and Feet for all the sins of those members. Lastly, I offer to Thy Majesty, O most loving Father, My Divine Heart for all their sins of thought, desire or will. Then the Saint stood before God the Father, clothed in a red and white garment, and adorned with many ornaments. The white robe indicated the innocence conferred on her soul by the mortifications of Christ; the red signified the merits of His fasts; and the diversity of ornaments, the many ways and exercises by which Our Lord labored for our eternal salvation. Then the Eternal Father took this soul thus adorned, and placed it at a banquet between Himself and His only Son. On the one side, the splendor of the Divine omnipotence overshadowed her, to enhance her apparel and her dignity; on the other side, she was illuminated by the light of the inscrutable wisdom of God the Son, which had adorned and embellished her with the treasures and perfections of His life. Between these two lights there was an opening, through which might be seen the humble sentiments which this soul had of her baseness and defects; and her humility pleased God so much, that it won for her the tenderest affection of this Almighty King. Then Our Lord placed before St Gertrude the three victories, which are mentioned in the Gospel of the day, under the form of different kinds of food, that they might serve her as an antidote against the three vices to which men are most subject - namely, delectation, consent and concupiscence. First, He manifested to her the signal victory which He had gained over the devil, who tempted Him to the pleasure of eating, when he asked Him to the pleasure of eating, when he asked Him to change the stones into bread, and Our lord wisely answered him, that the man doth not live by bread alone; and He desired her to offer it to God, in satisfaction for all the sins which she might have committed through love of pleasure, and to obtain strength to resist such temptations for the time to come. For the more we yield to temptations, the less capable we are of resisting them; and each may thus offer Our Lord's victory for their own needs. Our Lord then gave her His second victory for the remission of all the sins which she might have committed by consent, and to obtain grace for the future to resist these temptations efficaciously; and each may also offer this victory, for the same end, and with the same advantage, to obtain from God the pardon of all sins of thought, word or act, and grace to avoid falling for the time to come. Lastly Our Lord gave her His third victory as a remedy against avarice, which desires the goods and advantages of earth, and to obtain strength to resist this temptation. During the Epistle at Mass, the Saint applied herself to nothing the virtues mentioned therein, which she thought might be most useful to practice or to teach others; and as she felt she needed the gift of understanding, she said to the Lord "Teach me, O Beloved, which of these virtues will please Thee best; for, alas, I am not specially earnest in any! Our Lord replied: Observe that the words In Spiritu Sancto (in the Holy Ghost) occur in the middle of these victories. As, therefore, the Holy Spirit is a good will, study above all things to have this good will, for you will gain more by it than by any other virtue, and it will obtain for you the perfection of all virtue. For whoever has perfect will to praise Me, if he could, more than all the world, or to love Me, thank Me, suffer with Me, or exercise himself in the most perfect manner in all kinds of virtue, will certainly be recompensed by Divine liberality more advantageously than one who has actually performed many other things. Then the Holy Spirit appeared before Gertrude, enlightened in a marvelous manner that place where the depravity and imperfection of her soul could be seen; so that, the virtue of this Divine light having entirely removed her defects, she found herself happily immersed in the Source of eternal light. Chapter 15 The second feria after the Sunday Invacabit, as these words were read in the Gospel, "Come ye blessed of My Father; for I was hungry," ect., St Gertrude said to Our Lord: "O my Lord, since we cannot feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty, because our Rule forbids us to possess anything of our won, teach me how we may participate in the sweet blessings with which Thou hast promised in this Gospel to reward works of mercy." Our lord replied: As I am the the Salvation and Life of the soul, and as I continually hunger and thirst for the salvation of men, if you endeavor to study some words of Scripture every day for the benefit of others, you will bestow on Me a most sweet reflection. If you read with the intention of obtaining the grace of compunction or devotion, you appease My thirst by giving Me an agreeable beverage to drink. If you employ yourself in recollection for an hour each day, you give Me hospitality; and if you apply yourself daily to acquire some new virtue, you clothe Me. You visit Me when sick, by striving to overcome temptation, and to conquer your evil inclinations; and you visit Me in prison, and solace My afflictions with the sweetest consolations, when you pray for sinners and for the souls in Purgatory. He added: Those who perform these devotions daily for My love, especially during the holy season of Lent, will most certainly receive the tenderest and most beautiful recompense which My incomprehensible omnipotence, My inscrutable wisdom, and My most loving benevolence, can bestow. Chapter 16 On the Second Sunday of Lent On the Sunday Reminiscere, St Gertrude, being favored with singular marks of the love and tenderness of her Spouse, such as no human could describe, besought Our Lord to indicate some practice which might be profitable during this week. Our Lord replied: Bring Me two kids - I mean the souls and the bodies of all mankind. The Saint understood from this that she was required to make satisfaction for all mankind; and then, impelled by the Holy Ghost, she said the Pater nester five times, in honor of the Five Wounds of Our Lord, in satisfaction for all the sins which men had committed by the five senses; and three times for the sins committed by the three powers of the soul -, namely by reason, temper, and concupiscence; and for all omissions or commissions: offering this prayer with the same intention, and for the same end, as Our Lord had formed it in His sweet Heart; that is to say, in satisfaction for all the sins of frailty, ignorance, or malice, which man had opposed to His omnipotent power, His inscrutable wisdom and His overflowing and gratuitous goodness. When Gertrude offered this prayer, Our Lord appeared to take an incredible pleasure therein, and made the Sign of the Cross on her from her head to her feet; blessing her, and then embracing her, He led her to His Father to receive His benediction also. God the Father also received her with great condescension and magnificence, and blessed her in so ineffable a manner, that He gave her as many benedictions as He would have given to the whole world if it had been prepared to receive this favor and grace. This prayer may be offered to God during this week to obtain the pardon of our sins and omissions, and in satisfaction for the sins of the Church, that we may obtain the effect of so salutary a benediction through the merits of Jesus Christ, Who with such condescension and goodness has deigned to be the Spouse and Head of His Church. Chapter 17 Third Sunday in Lent On the Sunday Oculi, as the Saint desired, as usual to conform her devotions to the Church's offices, she asked Our Lord to teach her how she should occupy herself during this week. He replied: As in chanting your Office during this week you record how Joseph was sold by his brethren for twenty pieces of silver, recite the Pater nester thirty-three times, and thus purchase the merit of My most holy Life, which lasted for thirty-three years, during which I labored for the salvation of men and acquire to the whole Church, for the salvation of men and My eternal Glory. As the Saint complied with this direction, she perceived in spirit that the whole Church was like a spouse adorned and embellished in a marvelous manner with the fruit of the perfect life of Jesus Christ. Chapter 18 For the Fourth Sunday in Lent On Laetare Sunday, as the Saint sought for some instruction from Our Lord how to spend this week, He replied to her: Bring those persons to Me whose souls you prepared seven days since, through the virtue of My Life; for they must eat of My table. She replied: "How can I do this? For myself, however unworthy I am, I will venture to say, that if I could bring to Thee all the children of men, in whom Thou dost take delight, I would willingly traverse the whole world with bare feet from this moment until the day of judgment, and carry them in my arms to Thee, to correspond, in some manner with Thy infinite love. And were it possible for me to do so, I would divide my heart into as many portions as there are men living in the world, to impart each a share in the good will which is most pleasing to Thy Divine Heart." Our Lord replied: Your goodwill suffices and satisfies Me perfectly. Then she beheld the whole Church marvelously adorned and presented to the Lord, Who said to her: You shall serve this multitude today. Then St Gertrude cast herself at the feet of her Spouse, being divinely inspired, and kissed the Wound of His Left Foot, in satisfaction for all the sins which had ever been committed in the Church, by thought, will or desire, beseeching Our Lord to give her for this purpose the perfect satisfaction which He had made by washing away the sins of all men. Our Lord then imparted this grace to her under the form of bread, which she immediately offered Him with thanksgiving, and which He received with great condescension, and raising His eyes to His eternal Father blessed it,a and gave it to her to distribute to His Church. The she kissed the Right Foot of Our Lord, in satisfaction for the omissions of the faithful in good thoughts and desires, and in good will, beseeching Our Lord to impart to them a share in that perfect satisfaction which He had made for the debts of all men. Then she kissed the Wound of the Left Hand, in satisfaction for the sins of the whole world, whether committed by word or deed, beseeching Our Lord to grant the merits of His words and actions for this intention. She then kissed the Wound of His Right Hand, in satisfaction for the omissions of good words and works, beseeching Our Lord to impart the plenitude and perfection of His action to supply what was deficient in His Church. At each of these offerings she received bread, and returned each portion to Our Lord, who blessed it and gave it to her to distribute to the Church. Then she approached the loving Wound of the Side of Jesus and embracing it with her whole heart, besought Him to supply to His Spouse the Church what was wanting to her perfection and merits, even after He had so perfectly expiated her sins, and so fully supplied for her defects, so that His Divine Life - which is agreeable in the sight of God the Father, and shines with such surpassing brightness - might become her crown and everlasting beatitude. Then the Saint rejoiced for the grace which God had given her, and distributed these loaves as one would a dessert after a meal, and said to Our Lord: "Ah, Lord, what wilt Thou give me for Thy Spouse the Church, instead of the fish which are mentioned in today's Gospel?" Our Lord replied: I will give you all My most perfect actions to distribute to those who have neglected to serve Me as much as they ought to have done, and all the most noble actions of My Soul to atone for their coldness and want of fervor in praising Me for the benefits which they have received from Me. By the loaves which Our Lord presented to the Saint she understood that when ever anyone performs a good action for God - even if it be only to say a Pater nester or Ave Maria, or any other prayer for the Church - that the Son of God receives it as if it were the fruit of His Holy Humanity, and offers it to God His Father, blessing it by this benediction, so that it may be distributed for the good and advancement of the whole Church. This devotion may be performed by anyone who says five Pater nosters in honor of Our Lord's Five Wounds, kissing them in spirit, and praying for all sinners who are in the bosom of the Church, to obtain the remission of their sins and negligence, if they hope firmly to receive this grace from the Divine goodness. Chapter 19 For the Feast of St. Gregory, Pope. As St Gertrude heard Mass on the Feast of St. Gregory, and offered him singular testimonies of veneration and devotion, he appeared to her full of majesty and glory; and she thought that he equaled all the Saints in merit. He was a Patriarch, by the careful and paternal diligence with which he watched, night and day over the Church which had been confided to him; a Prophet, since in his admirable writings he had discovered the snares and deceits of the ancient enemy, and had given advice and remedies against his wiles, so that he was more glorified than any of the Prophets. He equaled the Apostles from his inviolable and faithful attachment to God in prosperity and adversity; and by his zeal in the promotion of the Gospel. He resembled the martyrs and confessors by his great bodily austerities and the ardent love which he had for religion and holiness. Above all, he excelled in chastity; and as a recompense for every thought, word or work which had been accomplished to preserve the purity of his body and soul, or to teach others to preserve the same treasure. Our Lord then said to Gertrude: Consider, now how suitable this Psalm is to this elect soul - According to the mulitiude of my sorrows in my heart, thy comforts have given joy to my soul (Ps 93:10) - since he has been recompensed by these inestimable delights for all the pain he suffered in word or works, or even in thought. At his death, which is commemorated today, his body did not rejoice because it had to pass through the torrent of death; and the whole Church, as well as those who stood round him on that day, were exceedingly afflicted at being deprived of so affectionate and thoughtful a father. But now on the same day, there is the greatest joy when his solemn Feast is observed. Then St Gertrude said to her Lord: "What glory hast Thou gained by the writings of this Saint, which hast so enriched and enlightened the Church?" He replied: My Divinity and My Humanity find extreme delight therein and he himself enjoys the same delights with Me whenever the Church recites any of his writings, and whenever any one is moved by them to compunction, excited devotion, or influence by love. And for this he receives the same honor from the celestial court as a soldier or a prince whom the king clothed in his own garments and fed at his own table. He added: St. Augustine and St. Bernard whom you love so much, and the other Doctors of the Church, enjoy the same honor and the same prerogative, each according to the merit and the utility of his labors. While the twelfth Response was chanted, which commences with the words, O Paster, St Gregory knelt before God, and lifted up his hands interceding for the Church. Then the Lord opened His Divine Heart, that he might take what he would; and the Saint placing both hands therein, took from thence the grace of Divine consolation, and poured it forth for the necessities of the Church. Then she beheld the Lord encircling him with a magnificent cincture of the purest gold. This cincture indicated the justice of God, which withheld him from descending on the earth - suspending him in the air, to prevent him from bestowing these graces on the ungrateful and unworthy, but permitting him to give them freely to those who desired and merited them. Chapter 20 The Feast of glorious St. Benedict On the feast of the glorious father St Benedict, St. Gertrude assisted at Matins with special devotion to honor so excellent a father, and she beheld him in spirit, standing in the presence of the effulgent and ever-peaceful Trinity, radiant with glory. His countenance was full of majesty and beauty; his habit shone surpassingly; while bright and living roses seemed to spring forth from his limbs, each rose producing another, and these others, the last surpassing the first in fragrance and beauty, so that the holy father, blessed both by grace and by name, being thus adorned, gave the greatest pleasure to the adorable Trinity and the heavenly court, who rejoiced with him because of his beatitude. The roses which thus sprang forth from him signified the exercises which he had used to subjugate his flesh to his spirit, and all the holy actions which he had performed, and also those of all whom he had drawn by his persuasions or induced by his example to leave the world and live under regular discipline, who, following him in this royal road, had attained, or will yet attain, to the port of the celestial country and to life eternal, each of whom is a subject of particular glory to this great patriarch; and for which all the Saints praise God, and congratulate him continually. St. Benedict also carried a scepter, which was marvelously embellished on each side with precious stones of great brilliancy. As he held it in his hand, the side which was turned toward him emitted a glorious light, which indicated the happiness of those who had embraced his Rule and amended their lives, and on their account God overwhelmed him with inconceivable joy. On the other side which was turned towards God, the Divine Justice shone forth which had been magnified in the condemnation of those who had been called to this holy Order, but who had rendered themselves unworthy of it, and therefore had been condemned to eternal flames; for it is just he whom God has called to the holiest of Orders should be most severely punished if he lives an evil life. Now, as St Gertrude offered the blessed father the recital of the entire Psalter in his honor, on part of the community, he appeared exceedingly rejoiced, and he offered the verdure with which he was adorned for the welfare of those who sought his protection with pure hearts, and walked in his footsteps by faithful observance of his Rule. While the Response, Grandi Pater fiducia morte stetit preciosa, was chanted, St Gertrude said to him: "Holy father, what special rewards have you received for your glorious death?" He replied: "Because I gave up my last breath while I was in prayer, I now emit a breath of such surpassing sweetness, that the Saints delight to be near me." The She besought him, by his glorious death, to assist each religious of that monastery in their last hour. The venerable father replied: "All who invoke me, remembering the glorious end which God honored me, shall be assisted by me at their death with such fidelity, that I will place myself where I see the enemy most disposed to attack them; thus being fortified by my presence, they will escape the snares which he lays for them, and depart happily and peacefully to the enjoyment of eternal beatitude." Chapter 21 As St. Gertrude heard the bell for the Chapter on the Vigil of the Annunciation, and endeavored to recollect herself in God, she beheld the Lord Jesus and His Virgin Mother seated in the place of the Superior, and waiting with great tranquility until the sisters had assembled, receiving each as she entered with the tenderest marks of friendship and affection. When the Feast of Annunciation was read in the Martyrology, Jesus turned to His Mother and saluted her with such goodness and condescension, as to renew in her that sweet and inestimable joy which she had felt when His Divinity took flesh in Her womb, and united itself to our nature. When the community began to recite the Miserere, Our Lord placed each word in the hand of His Virgin Mother under the form of pearls of different colors. She saw that the Blessed Virgin had a quantity of sweet perfumes in her blossom, which she mixed with the pearls - that is, with the prayers of the religious - which Her Son had presented Her. The Saint understood that these perfumes signified the crosses which the religious had suffered on the preceding day, without having given any occasion for them; and when she marveled why these crosses were represented as perfumes, Our Lord told her: As a delicate person is more pleased with perfumes than with any other present, so do I delight in the hearts of those who suffer their trials with humility, patience and thanksgiving, abandoning themselves entirely to My paternal goodness, which converts both prosperity and adversity to their good. As Gertrude began to reflect why Our Lord had instructed her now and on many occasions by corporal visions, He recalled to her mind the words that had been chanted that day of the closed gate which the Prophet Ezekiel had seen, and said to her: As I have explained the manner and order of My Incarnation, Passion and Resurrection to the prophets by mystical figures and similitudes, so I use sensible things to make men comprehend what surpasses the apprehension of their senses. For this reason, no one should esteem spiritual things less because they are represented under corporal images, but rather should endeavor to render themselves capable thereby of tasting the sweetness contained therein. While the Ave Maria was chanted at Matins, St. Gertrude beheld three streams, which flowed with a gentle impetuosity from the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost into the Heart of the Blessed Virgin, and flowed back again from Her Heart with the same impetuosity to its original source. The Saint understood by this that the Blessed Virgin is most powerful after the Father, most wise after the Son, and most benign after the Holy Ghost. She knew also, when anyone recited the Ave Maria with devotion, that these three streams sweetly encompassed the Blessed Virgin, and then returned to their source in the Heart of Jesus Christ, and from them little streams of joy and salvation flow forth on the Saints and Angels, and especially on those who recite the Angelic Salutation with devotion, which renews in them all the benefits which they acquire by the Incarnation of the Son of God. Each time also that they recited any words referring to the chastity of the Blessed Virgins such as these: "Domus pudici pectoris; clausa parentis viscera, " ect; all the Saints rose up, and reverenced her as their Queen and Mistress, returning most fervent thanks to God for all the favors which He had granted to men through Her. The Archangel Gabriel appeared also, as if arrayed in a new brilliancy each time that the Annunciation was mentioned, which was effected by his ministry; at at the name of St Joseph, the spouse of the Virgin Mother, all the Saints made a profound inclination to him, testifying, by the serenity and sweetness of their looks, that they rejoiced with him for his exalted dignity. During Mass, at which St. Gertrude communicated, she beheld the Mother of God, gloriously adorned with every virtue; and she prostrated humbly at her feet, beseeching her to dispose her to receive worthily the august Sacrament of the Body and Blood of her Divine Son. The Blessed Virgin then gave her a magnificent necklace, which had seven rays or points, to each of which a precious stone was attached, and these stones indicated the signal virtues which had pleased Our Lord most in His Blessed Mother. The first was Her exquisite purity; the second, Her faithful humility;the third, Her ardent desires; the fourth, Her clear knowledge; the fifth, Her unquenchable love; the sixth, sovereign pleasure which She took in God; the seventh, Her peaceful tranquility. When St Gertrude appeared before Our Lord with this collar, He was so won by the brilliancy of her virtues, that He inclined lovingly toward her; drawing her to Himself, and enclosing her as it were in His bosom, He honored her with His pure and holy caresses. At the Antiphon for the Magnificat - Arte mirabili - the Holy Spirit appeared to come forth from the Heart of Our Lord like a soft wind, which gently moved the collar with which the Saint was adorned, chanting this Antiphon as on a musical instrument in honor of the Most Holy Trinity. Then, at the words of the Gospel Ecce ancilla (Behold the Handmaid), St Gertrude saluted the Mother of God with great devotion, recalling to her the ineffable joy which she had experienced when she abandoned herself and all that concerned her, with perfect confidence, to the Divine Will. The Blessed Virgin replied to her, with a look of serenity: When anyone reminds Me devoutly of this, I will truly be to them what they ask in the hymn Monstra te esse matrem, which is used on this Feast showing Myself in truth the Mother of the King of Glory and the advocate of men, using my power with the King to succor them, and assisting them with the tenderest compassion. When the Antiphon Haec est dies was chanted at the words "Hodie Deus homo factus est," the community prostrated, to honor the glorious Incarnation of Our Lord, and the Son of God, remembering the love which had made Him become man, rose from His regal throne, and, standing before His Father, said to Him: Eternal Father, My brethren are come to Me. (CF. Gen. 46:31). And the Eternal Father was moved to compassionate and show grace to these brethren for whom His only and beloved Son interceded thus lovingly and tenderly, with infinitely more affection than Pharaoh felt for Joseph when he rejoiced with him at the arrival of his brothers. As St Gertrude inquired what devotion would be most acceptable of the Blessed Virgin at this time, She taught her that anyone who recited the Ave Maria (Hail Mary) devoutly forty-five times each day during the Octave, in memory of the time Our Lord had remained in Her Holy Womb, they would render Her the same service as if they had attended Her with the greatest care from the moment of the conception to the time of the birth; and as she could have refused them nothing under such circumstances, so now she would be equally willing to give all they asked. The Saint was then instructed to say the Ave Maria (Hail Mary) in this manner: at the words Ave Maria, to desire consolation of the afflicted; at the words "gratia plena" to ask grace for those who had it not; at "Dominus tecum," to pray for sinners; at "benedicta tu in mulierbus", to ask grace for those who had begun to live well; at "benedictus fructus ventris," to pray for the perfection of the elect; to repeat the words "Jesus splendor- paternae charitatis," that all may know Him; and "figura substantiae ejus" to obtain Divine love; for these words - "Jesus splendor of the Father's glory, and image of His substance" - should be repeated at the end of each Ave Maria. Chapter 22 On the Sunday Judica, St Gertrude having offered her body and soul to Our Lord, that she might suffer therein, in honor of His Passion, whatever affliction He might be pleased to send her, her offering was accepted graciously; and the Saint, impelled by Divine inspiration, commenced to salute and adore the different members of Our Lord's Body which had suffered for us during His Passion. As she saluted each member, a Divine splendor shone forth from each, which enlightened her soul, by means of which the innocence which Our Lord acquired for His Church was communicated to her. When she was thus enriched and adorned with the innocence of Jesus Christ, she said to Our Lord: "Teach me, O Lord I beseech Thee, how I can worthily honor Thy Divine Passion with the innocence with which Thy goodness has endowed me. Our Lord replied: Reflect frequently with gratitude and compassion on what I, your Lord and Creator, suffered in My long agony and prayer when the vehemence of My desires and My love caused Me to bedew the ground with sweat of blood; offer Me all your actions and all that concerns you, in union with the entire submission with which I said these words: 'My Father Thy Will be done', and so receive all that happens to you, whether painful or agreeable, with the same love with which I send it to you for your salvation. Be grateful in prosperity, uniting yourself with love which made Me send it to you, condescending your weakness, that temporal prosperity may lead you to think of spiritual joys, and to hope for them; receive adversity also in union with the charity with which My paternal love sends it to you to prepare you for eternal good. Then St Gertrude resolved to say the following prayer during the remainder of the week, saluting the Sacred Limbs of the Son of God with these words: "I salute you, O precious Limbs", and she perceived that this pleased Our Lord; and if we desire the same grace, let us use the same prayer. During the Mass which followed, as the words of the Gospel Daemonium habes were read, she was grieved in her inmost soul for the contempt offered to Our Lord; and as she could not endure to hear these words, she exclaimed in the depth of her heart, in the sweetest and loving manner; "Hail vivifying Gem of Divine nobility! Hail most loving Jesus! Unfading flower of human dignity. Thou art my Sovereign and my only Good". And this benign Lord, to reward these testimonies of affection, inclined tenderly toward her, and whispered to her: I am thy Creator, Redeemer and Lover. I left My beatitude to redeem thee by a bitter death. Then all the Saints, being rapt in admiration of the marvelous friendship which He manifested to her, praised God for it with the greatest joy. Our Lord then said to her: Whoever salutes Me, as you have done, in reparation for the blasphemies and outrages which are poured forth on Me throughout the world, when he is tempted at the hour of his death and accused by the demon, will be consoled by Me with the same words with which I have consoled you and I will testify the same affection toward him; and if the Saints were thus amazed at the words I whispered into your ear, how astonished and amazed will be the enemies of his soul when they shall see him so marvelously consoled by My goodness! Chapter 23 On the Feast of Palms, as Gertrude was filled with the delights of Divine consolation, she said to Our Lord: "Teach me, I beseech Thee, O Beloved, how I can go forth to meet Thee today, Who art approaching Thy Passion for my salvation". Our Lord replied: Give Me an ass to ride, a troop of people to precede Me with acclamations, another troop to follow Me with praises and another to minister to Me. You will give Me an ass to ride, if you acknowledge with a contrite heart that you have failed to be guided by reason, and have had more understanding than a beast of all that I have done for your salvation. This negligence has caused you to lose My sweet tranquility, so that when I thought to find some consolation in you, it was necessary for Me to purify you by some exterior or interior suffering. And thus I was obliged to suffer in you; for my love, which could not restrain itself, obliged My goodness to compassionate you in all your adversities. But when you give Me the conveyance which I desire, I shall be satisfied. You will given me a troop of people who will make acclamations before Me, when you receive Me with full affection in the name of all men, in union with the love which made Me your Lord and your Creator, enter Jerusalem for the salvation of the World, and in satisfaction for all those who have failed to thank Me worthily, and with perfect affection, for this great grace. You will give Me another troop to follow Me with praises when you avow sincerely that you have never imitated the example of My perfect life as you should; and if you offer Me such a fervent will, that if you could you would urge all men to imitate what is most perfect in My Life and Passion, and this for My honor and glory and pray that you obtain the grace to imitate Me in true humility, patience and charity (the virtues which I exercised most during My Passion), desiring with the utmost ardor to follow My example. You will give Me those who will attend Me, if you confess that you have never defended My truth and justice as you ought, resolving firmly to defend them for the future, both by your words and actions. He added Whoever presents himself to Me in these four ways will not fail to obtain life eternal as the reward for his piety. Then, as she was about to communicate, and offered her whole heart to God with great fervor, she beheld it opening in its charity, as Jerusalem opened to receive Our Lord. He entered therein under the form of a young man bearing a scourge with three cords, which signified the work of our Redemption; the first cord indicated the labors of His Sacred Body; the second, the devout intentions of His most holy Soul; the third, the excellent and incomparable virtue of His Divinity, which always co-operated together in Jesus Christ. Our Lord then touched her gently with the scourge, to remove from her all the stains and dust of human frailty and negligence. After this, He placed the scourge in the center of her heart. The three cords appeared to form a throne for Our Lord to rest upon; as He seated Himself thereon, each of these little cords produced a green branch, which was covered with flowers. The first of these - that is, the virtue of His Divinity - grew up behind Him, and served as a shade for His Head; the others were on the right and left, and emitted a most agreeable fragrance. As she chanted the words, "O Crux, ave, spes unica, at Terace, St Gertrude offered Our Lord the devotions of all those who would salute Him that day while reciting it at the Canonical Hours. Then Our Lord presented her devotion and zeal, in the form of a flower, to all those for whom she had made the offering; and this flower gave them great spiritual joy and beauty. "If this can be so advantageous to my sisters" said the Saint, "what wilt Thou give to those who apply themselves after the procession yet more fervently to serve Thee and adore Thee? Our Lord replied As your sisters present Me with three different kinds of devotion, I will place these three flowers before them. Some of them desire to have devotion which they find they have not, and they offer Me their exterior labors and exercises: to these I will present the flower that springs forth from the labors and exercises of My Body. Other abound in sweet devotion, and offer Me their fervent desires; and I will refresh them with the flower which proceeds from the pure intentions of My Divine Soul. Others again, whose will is so united to Mine that they are one spirit with Me, offer themselves entirely to Me, that I may do with them what I will; and to these I will present the noble flower of My Divinity. After the procession, as the community made an inclination at the Gloria, laus and prostrated at the Fulgentibus palmis, Our Lord presented them with the flower of His Bodily exercise, to console, fortify and preserve them in His service, giving them to understand by this that He would ennoble their labors by the merit of His own. One of the sisters then came to St Gertrude to implore her to take some food, on account of her extreme weakness; but as she could not bear to take anything until she had heard the Passion, according to her usual custom, she besought Our Lord to tell her what she ought to do. He replied: Refresh yourself, My beloved, in union with the love with which I refused the wine mingled with myrrh and gall when I had tasted it. As she returned thanks for the favor, Our Lord presented His Heart to her, saying: I present you therein with the desire which made Me refuse to drink, that I might give you to drink. Drink then freely what I, a skillful Physician have prepared for you. This wine, mingled with gall and myrrh, was offered to Me that I might die more speedily; but the desire of suffering yet more for men prevented Me from drinking it. You, on the contrary, must take the food which is necessary for you, with the same love, that your life may be prolonged for My service. This wine and myrrh was mixed with gall; therefore you must also do three things in memory thereof. First you must perform all your actions cheerfully for My glory; this is indicated by the wine. Secondly, you must use the conveniences of life to enable you to suffer for My love; and this is indicated by the myrrh, which preserves from corruption. Thirdly: you must be very willing, for My love, to be deprived of the joys of Heaven, and to remain in this valley of misery; and this is indicated by the gall. Each time that you use the necessaries of life with these intentions, I will regard you as you would a friend who has taken a bitter potion in order to leave you one which is sweet and palatable. St Gertrude, when eating, was always accustomed to repeat these words: "May the virtue of Thy Divine love incorporate me wholly unto Thee, O most loving Jesus!" And when drinking, she said: "O most amiable Jesus, pour forth and preserve in my inmost being that Divine charity which reigns so powerfully in Thee, that is may penetrate me entirely, distilling itself into all the powers of my body and soul". The Saint having inquired of Our Lord how He would accept the same offering from others, He replied: Those who use the same words as I have taught you will receive the same testimonies of affection from Me as I have shown you. As the words of the Passion, Emisit spiritum (He yielded up the ghost) were read, St Gertrude prostrated on the ground saying "Behold me, O Lord, prostrate on the earth in honor of Thy Precious Death, beseeching Thee, by the excessive love which caused Thee to die, Who art the life of all, that Thou wouldst destroy in me all that displeases Thee." Our Lord replied: Cast from you all the vices which you desire should die in you, and draw into you, by the virtue of My Spirit, those perfections of Mine which you desire to possess; and be assured that your sins will be pardoned, and that you shall feel the salutary effects of what you have thus drawn from Me into yourself; and each time that you endeavor to combat the vices which you have cast out, or to obtain the virtues with which I have inspired you, you will gain the double advantage - of obtaining the victory, and of feeling the fruit of My Passion. After the midday meal, St Gertrude retired to rest in a state of extreme lassitude and weakness - not to sleep, but rather to avoid the importunate visits with which she was overwhelmed, saying to Our Lord: "I withdraw myself from the conversation of creatures, in memory of the salutary instruction which Thou didst give me today, and to occupy myself with Thee, My Love and my All, beseeching Thee to speak to my soul." Our Lord replied: As My Divinity repose in your weariness. As the Saint perceived that those who came to her feared to interrupt her, thinking she slept, she asked Our Lord if she should tell them that she was not sleeping, that they might do as they wished; but He replied: No, let them merit by their exercises of charity the rewards which I desire and rejoice so much to give for it; for there is nothing more useful to men than such exercises. Then He added I will propose two subjects on which you may meditate; for there is nothing more useful in this life than for men to weary themselves in these labors, in which I take repose and delight, and to perform works of charity toward their neighbor. On the evening of the day on which Our Lord went to Martha and Mary in Bethania, as St Gertrude ardently desired to entertain Our Lord, she addressed herself to a crucifix, and, having kissed the Wound of Our Lord's Side with the tenderest affection, she besought Him that He would vouchsafe to accept the hospitality of her heart, not withstanding her unworthiness. The Lord, who hears those why cry to Him, presented Himself to her, and said to her caressingly: Behold, here I am; what will you give Me? The Saint replied:" My only Salvation, my true, my true and only Good, alas! I have nothing to present to Thy Divine magnificence, but I offer my whole being to Thy Goodness beseeching Thee to prepare within me all that Thou knowest to be pleasing to Thee." Our Lord replied: If you desire that I should act as I will with you, give Me the key of your heart, that I may leave or take away whatever I please. "And what is this key?" inquired the Saint. He answered: It is your will. She understood by these words that those who desire to entertain Our Lord should give Him the key of their own will, abandoning themselves entirely to His good pleasure, with perfect confidence that His goodness will order all things for their salvation. Then Our Lord entered into her heart, and enjoyed therein all the Divine delights which He desired. After this, St Gertrude being inspired by God, saluted the precious Body of Our Lord by repeating these words three hundred and sixty five times: Non mea, sed tua voluntas fiat, amantissime Jesu (Not my will but Thine be done, O most loving Jesus") and she knew that He accepted this with great satisfaction. She then inquired if Our Lord would be pleased if certain persons, who desired to celebrate this Feast with devotion, should be guided by what she had written, taking Esther for her subject, and commencing with the words\; \egredimini, filiae Jerusalem, He replied: I have this Feast so much at heart, that if anyone takes pains to celebrate it with devotion, he shall have this honor - that, in the life eternal, besides the recompense of his other good works, I will prepare a feast for him which shall be worthy of the magnificence of My royal liberality. Chapter 24 On Wednesday in Holy Week, at the words In nomine Jesu, St Gertrude bend her knees in honor of this most worthy Name, to repair all the negligence which she had committed in this matter, and, perceiving that Our Lord was pleased with this, she knelt a second time at the word 'caelestium' to supply of the negligence of the Saints when in this life, in regard to the honor which they owed to God. When she had done this the whole celestial court with great sentiments of gratitude, thanking God for having given this grace to her, and praying for her. At the word terrestrium, she made another genuflection, in satisfaction for the faithful in praising God; and then the Son of God imparting to her with singular joy the fruit of all the devotions which had been offered to Him through out the whole Church. At the word 'infernorum', she also knelt to atone for the negligence of the damned. Then the Son of God arose, and stood before His Father, saying: It is My right to condemn, since Thou hast given Me all power, and by an equitable judgment I have consigned them to eternal flames. Therefore I receive with such satisfaction the reparation which Gertrude has made for them, that the reward that I reserve until she is capable of the enjoyment of beatitude could not be comprehended by any mortal. While the Passion was read, at the words, Pater, ignosce illis (Father forgive them"), St. Gertrude besought Our Lord earnestly, by the love which made Him pray for those who crucified Him, that He would be pleased to pardon all those who had ever offended Him in anything. At this petition all the Saints rose up in admiration, beseeching God to pardon her all her faults which she might have committed on their solemnities or festivals. Then the Son of God presented Himself also before His Father, offering the merit of His holy Life, in satisfaction for all the faults which the Saint had committed in thought, word or deed. As they read the words, "Today shalt thou be with Me in Paradise," she knew in spirit that no one could obtain the grace of penitence in his last hour, if he had not rendered himself worthy of it by performing some good action during his life; and that the good thief had obtained the favor of entering into glory the same day as Our Lord, because, by the grace of God, he had seen and reprehended the injustice of his companion in crime, and could not bear to hear him pouring forth reproaches on One who knew to be innocent, and had acknowledged himself deserving of the punishment which he suffered. Therefore God showed him mercy. Chapter 25 On Holy Thursday, as Lamentations were chanted at Matins, St Gertrude wept before God the Father, in the bitterness of her heart, for all the sins which men had committed against the Divine Omnipotence. At the second Lamentation, she wept before God the Son for the sins which they had committed, through ignorance, against His ineffable wisdom. At the third Lamentation, she wept before the Holy Ghost for the sins committed, through malice against His goodness. Then, at the verse Jesu Christe, when the Kyrie eleison was chanted, she approached the most sweet Heart of Jesus, and embracing it very devoutly on the part of the Church, she obtained the remission of all sins which had been committed by thoughts, desires or precerse will. At the Christe eleison, she embraced the blessed Mouth of Our Lord, and asked pardon for all the sins of the tongue. Then. at the Kyrie eleison, she kissed Our Lord's Hands, and obtained pardon of all the Church's sins of act. Lastly, when people chanted the Kyrie eleison five times, after the hymn Rex Christe, she kissed the Five Wounds of Our Lord, to obtain pardon for all the sins of the five senses. While she did this she beheld five streams of grace gushing forth impetuously from the Five Wounds, and pouring themselves all over the whole Church, purifying it from all stains and impurities; thus she knew that she had received the full fruit of what she had done at the Lamentations and at the Kyrie eleison. This practice may be followed during the three last nights of Holy Week with a perfect confidence of obtaining the same advantage thereby. As the words 'Oblatus est quia voluit', were chanted at Lauds, Our Lord said to Gertrude: If you believe that I was offered on the Cross to God My Father only because I willed it Myself, believe also that I now desire to offer Myself for each sinner to God My Father, with the same love with which I offered Myself for all men in general. Therefore there is no person, however sinful, who may not hope for pardon, by offering My Passion and death to God My Father, provided that he believes firmly that he will obtain this grace, and that he is persuaded that the memory of My sufferings is the most powerful remedy against sin, when joined to a right faith and true penance. As St Gertrude heard the words of the Gospel, Coepit lavare pedes discipulorum', she said to Our Lord: "O God since I do not merit that Thou shouldest wash me Thou Self, how happy I should be if I might merit at least to be washed from my sins by one of the Apostles, that I might be more worthy to approach Thy precious Body and Blood." Our Lord replied: I have washed away all your stains, and also those of all whom you have taught to ask for purification from seven worldly affections. Then the Saint said: "Alas, Lord! it is true that I have taught this to others, and have intended to do it myself; but in teaching them, I have neglected it myself." Our Lord replied: I accept your goodwill for the act; for My goodness is such, that when anyone has the will to perform a good action, I count it as done, and recompense it as if it were accomplished, even if human frailty prevents its accomplishment. Before communicating, she said to Our Lord: "Behold Lord I offer Thee all the petitions of those who have been recommended to my unworthy prayers." He replied: ou have enkindled as many flames in My Heart as there are persons for who you pray. "Ah Lord!" she said, "teach me how to enkindle this fire in Thy Divine Heart for every soul in the Church". You will do this, He answered by practicing four things; 1. By praising Me for all men who I have created in My image and likeness. 2. By thanking Me for all the good which I have done for them, or which I might yet do for them. 3. By grieving for all the obstacles which they put to My grace. 4. By praying generally for all, that each may perfect himself in the state in which My Providence has placed him, for his own good and for My honor and glory. On another occasion, on the same solemnity, as Gertrude prayed with great recollection, Our Lord appeared to her, even as He had appeared on earth on the same day. He seemed to pass this day in extreme anguish and bitterness, since all that He was about to suffer was continually present to Him; for, being the tender Son of a tender mother, He experienced beforehand the most lively and excessive suffering, anticipating death in all its terrors, and the inhuman cruelty and barbarity of His executioners. As Gertrude felt this in spirit, she was so moved to compassion that she would have employed therein all the strength of her heart, had it been increased a thousand times; but at last the violence of her love and her desire over powered her, and she fainted away. Our Lord then said to her The same love which made Me suffer such extreme pains and affliction for the salvation of men makes Me also suffer now in your heart, immortal and impassable as I am, by the intimate compassion with which it is penetrated for the salvation of My elect, in consideration of My afflictions and bitternesses. Therefore, in return for the compassion which you have had for my sufferings, I give you the whole fruit of My Passion and Death, to ensure your eternal beatitude. Further, your heart shall have this honor, that when ever the Wood of the Cross is adored, which was the instrument of My sufferings, your soul shall feel the fruit and effects of the compassion which is manifested to Me today; and I will always grant you whatever you ask, and prosper your wishes. He added Whenever you desire to obtain anything from Me, offer Me My Heart, which I have so often given you as a token of our mutual friendship, in union with the love which made Me become Man for the salvation of men; and I give you this special mark of friendship, that this shall be presented to whomsoever you pray for, as a rich man would present a coffer to his friend to supply himself there from with all he needed. "I beseech Thee, O Lord," continued the Saint, "to tell me what words Thou didst address to Thy Father in thine agony." Our Lord replied: The words I used most frequently were these 'O Entirety of My Substance!'. At Mass, whilst the secret prayers were being said, before the religious had received Communion, the Lord Jesus appeared to her in a state of extreme weakness, as if He were about to give up the ghost; and this so touched her, that she also felt as if about to expire. She continued in this state until the time for Communion, when she beheld a marvelous vision; for she saw the Priest elevate a Body which was far larger than his own; and by the virtue and power of his word, he bore Him who bears all things. The Saint then understood that the strange feebleness which the Son of God appeared to suffer, indicated the excessive love with which He desired that we, who are as His Benjamins, His beloved ones. should be united to Him in Holy Communion; that the ardor with which He desired this delight caused this weakness; that He was reduced to this state by the violence of His love, so that He might be more easily touched and carried by the hands of the priest. She learned also on another occasion that everytime we look on the Host, which contains the Body of Christ, with desire and love, we increase our eternal merit; and that our enjoyment in the other life will correspond with that which we have had in devoutly regarding this precious Body on earth. Chapter 26 The Memory of Our Lord's Passion was so profoundly engraven on the soul of the Saint, that it became as honey to her lips, as music to her ears, and as a transport of joy to her heart. One Good Friday, as she heard the summons to Compline, she felt the same anguish in her heart as if she had been told that her dearest friend was about to expire, and she recollected herself to think yet more lovingly of the Passion of her Beloved. Her union with God became so intimate, that on this day and the following she was scarcely able to attend to anything exterior or sensible, unless obliged to do so by charity, of which she always made great account, and this that she might the more surely entertain Him within her who is love; for St John said "God is charity.... If we love one another, God abideth in us, and His charity is perfected in us" (1 John 4:8, 12). She continued in this rapture the remainder of the day, and during the whole of the following day (Holy Saturday). What she experienced therein was such, that no human intellect could explain it; for she was so perfectly united to and absorbed in God, by the tenderness of her compassion, that she was entirely dissolved therein; and this was no imperfection, but rather the very height of perfection, as St Bernard teaches when writing of the words of the Canticles: "We will make a chain of gold" (Cant 1:10). "When the soul is wrapt in contemplation, and a flash of heavenly light comes to illuminate it, the Divine infusion accommodates itself to sensible things, either to temper its brilliancy or to instruct its doctrine, and thus shadows the purity and splendor of its rays, to enable the soul to receive it, and to communicate it to others. I believe that these images are produced in us by the Holy Angels. Therefore, let us attribute to God what is perfectly free from corporal images, and to the Angels those which are more sensible". We must not, therefore, consider that what God Himself infuses into the soul in secret is of less value. Nevertheless, we have passed over many things for this reason, which might have been related here, and which are indeed worthy of being recorded. Still, we have gathered some of the sparks of Divine love which flew forth from the burning furnace of the Passion of Christ upon this soul. On one Good Friday, at the hour of Prime, and the Saint returned thanks to God for having appeared before a Gentile and an idolater as His judge, she beheld Our Lord enthroned in great majesty with God His Father, while all the Saints prostrated before Him, thanking Him profoundly for having freed them from eternal death by His own death. As the Passion was read, at the word Sitio (I thirst), Our Lord appeared to offer her a golden cup to receive the tears of compassion which she had shed for his death. And as the Saint felt her whole soul melting into tears, and yet discretion obliged her to keep them back, she asked Our Lord what would be most pleasing to Him. Then it appeared to her that a pure rivulet sprang from her heart, and proceeded to Our Lord's lips, and He said These are the tears of devotion which you have restrained from a pure intention. At Terce, as she remembered Our Lord's crowning with thorns, His cruel scourging at the pillar, His weariness and the agony of His shoulder, wounded by carrying the Cross, she said to Him: "Behold my sweetest Love, I offer Thee my heart, desiring to suffer therein all the bitterness and anguish of Thy dear Heart, in return for Thy love in bearing the undeserved torments of Thy Passion; and I beseech Thee, whenever I forget this offering through human frailty, to send me some sharp bodily pain which may resemble Thine." He replied: Your desires are sufficient. But if you wish Me to have unbounded pleasure in your heart, let Me act as I please therein, and do not desire that I should give you either consolation or suffering. Then as the Passion was read, which says that Joseph took the Body of Jesus, she said to Our Lord: "That blessed Joseph was given Thy most holy Body; but what share wilt Thou give of Thy Body to my unworthiness?" Then Our Lord gave her His Heart under the form of a golden thurible, from which as many perfumes ascended to the Father as there had been persons for whom the Lord died. When the prayers were said after the Passion for the different Orders in the Church according to the usual custom, as the priest knelt, saying Oremus delectissimi, she saw all the prayers which had been made throughout the Church ascending together like fragrant incense from the thurible of the Divine Heart, so that each prayer by this union became marvelously sweet and beautiful. Therefore we should pray for the Church on this day with great devotion, in union with the Passion of Our Lord, which renders our prayers more efficacious before God. On another occasion, on the same day, the Saint ardently desiring to make some return to her Beloved for all His sufferings, said to Him: "O my only Hope and Salvation of my soul! Teach me how to make some return to Thee for Thy most bitter Passion". Our Lord replied: He who follows the will of another and not his own, frees Me from the captivity which I endured when bound with chains on the morning of My Passion; he who considers himself guilty, satisfies for My condemnation, at the Hour of Prime, by false witnesses; he who renounces the pleasures of sense, consoles Me for the blows which I received at the hour of Terce; he who submits to pastors who try him, consoles Me for the crowning with thorns; he who humbles himself first in a dispute, carries My Cross; he who performs works of charity, consoles Me at the hour of Sext, when My limbs were cruelly fastened to the Cross; he who spares himself neither pain nor labor to withdraw his neighbor from sin, consoles Me for My Death, which I endured at the hour of None for the salvation of the human race; he who replies gently when reproached takes Me down from the Cross; lastly, he who prefers his neighbor to himself, lays Me in the sepulcher. On another Good Friday, as Gertrude besought Our Lord to prepare her for a worthy Communion, she received this reply: I am hastening to you with such ardor that I can scarcely contain it; for I have gathered into My bosom all the good which My Church has done or said or thought today in memory of My Passion, to pour it forth into your soul at Communion for your eternal salvation. The Saint replied: "I give Thee thanks, O my Lord; but I desire greatly that this favor may be granted to me in such a manner that I may impart it to others when I wish to do so". He replied: And what will you give Me, my beloved for such a favor? Gertrude replied: "Alas Lord I have nothing worthy of Thee; but nevertheless I have this desire, that if I had all that Thou hast, I would give it to Thee, so that Thou might dispose of it as Thou wouldest". To this Our Lord replied lovingly: If you indeed desire to act thus towards Me, you cannot doubt that I desire to act thus towards you; and even more so, since My Goodness and Love so far exceeds yours. "O God" she exclaimed, "how shall I come to Thee, when Thou comest to me with such abundant goodness?" He replied: I require nothing from you but to come to Me empty, that I may fill you; for it is from Me that you receive all which makes you agreeable in My sight. She understood that this emptiness was humility, which made her consider herself destitute of merit, and made her believe that without the grace of God she could do nothing, and that what she did do was utterly worthless. Chapter 27 As St Gertrude prayed fervently before Matins on the blessed night of the Resurrection, the Lord Jesus appeared to her, full of majesty and glory. Then she cast herself at His feet, to adore Him devoutly and humbly, saying: "O glorious Spouse, joy of the Angels, Thou Who hast shown me the favor of choosing me to be Thy spouse, who am the least of Thy creatures! I ardently desire Thy glory, and my only friends are those who love Thee; therefore I beseech Thee to pardon the souls of Thy special friends by the virtue of Thy most glorious Resurrection. And to obtain this grace from Thy goodness, I offer Thee in union with Thy Passion, all the sufferings which my continual infirmities have caused me." Then Our Lord having favored her with many caresses, showed her a great multitude of souls who were freed from their pains, saying: Behold I have affection; and through all eternity they will acknowledge that they have been delivered through your prayers, and you will be honored and glorified for it. She replied: "How many are they?" He answered: This knowledge belongs to God alone. As she feared that these souls, though freed from their pains, were not yet admitted to glory, she offered to endure whatever God might please, either in body and soul, to obtain their entrance in to that beatitude; and Our Lord won by her fervor, granted her request immediately. Some time after, as the Saint suffered most acute pain in her side, she made an inclination before a crucifix; and Our Lord freed her from the pain, and granted the merit of it to souls, recommending them to make her a return by their prayers. After this, the Saint impelled by the fervor of her love, presented herself before her Spouse, and said to Him: "O my only Love, as I have nothing which can render me worthy to appear before the King of kings, and as I cannot correspond in any degree to Thy love, all I can do is to give Thee all the life and strength of my body and soul as long as I live, to honor Thy Glorious Resurrection". Our Lord replied: I regard this offering of your love for Me as a royal scepter, which I will bear gloriously before the most Holy Trinity, and in the sight of all the Saints. To this Gertrude answered: "Although Thy grace has prompted me to make this offering, nevertheless I fear on account of my own instability, lest I should forget what I have promised Thee". But Our Lord replied: And what will it matter if you do? For I will not allow what you have once given Me to escape from My Hand; but I will always preserve it, as a proof of your love for Me; and whenever you renew your intention, this scepter will be adorned with flowers and precious stones. When the Alleluia was chanted at the invitatory, the Saint animated all the powers of her body and soul to recite the Matins of the Resurrection with devotion, saying to Our Lord: "Teach me, I beseech Thee, O Master full of sweetness, in what manner I can best praise Thee by the Alleluia which is so often repeated on this Feast". Our Lord replied: You can praise Me by the Alleluia, by uniting it to the praises which the Saints and Angels constantly offer Me in Heaven. You will observe that all the vowels, except the o, which signifies grief, are found in this word; and that instead of this o, the a is repeated twice. At the first a, you will praise Me with the Saints for the glorious immortality by which the sufferings of My Humanity and the bitterness of My Passion were rewarded; and at the e, praise Me for the sweet and ineffable joy which gladden My eyes in gazing upon the Most Holy Trinity; at the u, unite yourself with the delight which I find in hearing the concerts of praises in honor of the Blessed Trinity which are sung by the Saints and Angels; at the i, enjoy the sweet perfumes and odors which I find in the Presence of the Most Holy Trinity; at the second a, which is put in place of the o, rejoice that My Humanity, which was formerly passible and mortal, is now filled with Divine immortality. After this, as she continued to recite the Matins, she was taught each Psalm, each Response, and each Lesson, the sense which best corresponded with the solemnity of so great a day, and which best expressed the inconceivable pleasures which a soul enjoys when it is united to God. Chapter 28 On Easter Monday, as St Gertrude besought Our Lord before communicating that He would be pleased to supply, by the merits of this august Sacrament, for her past negligence in religious observance, He presented her to His Father clothed in a religious habit, which appeared to be made of as many pieces as she had been years in the convent - the first piece representing the first year, the second the next year, and so on. The habit had no folds in it. The days and hours were noted in each year, with the thoughts, words and actions, good or bad, even in the most trifling particulars; and the end for which she had performed each action was also carefully marked, whether for her own salvation, for the glory of God, or for the good of others. he abstinences and her refreshments; what she had done through obedience or of her own free will; the little stratagems she had used that she might be told to do what she wished, or her address in extorting such obediences - all these were to be seen therein; these last actions appeared to be fastened to her habit by a little wet mud, and as if ready to fall from it. But when the Son of God had offered His holy and perfect life for her, she saw the habit covered with plates of transparent gold, pure and clear as crystal. Her whole life, and all that had ever been defective in her conduct, even to the very least particular, now appeared in the light of truth and was known to God and all His Saints; for not even the smallest stain or imperfection could be concealed. From this Gertrude understood that God forms, as it were a representation of each person's life; and that, while He remembers no more the sins which have been effaced by penance, according to the word of the Prophet, "I will not remember all his iniquities" (Ezech. 18:22), there still remains some marks of our faults, that we may be reminded to praise His goodness for having pardoned them, and for having poured forth His favors upon us as if we had never offended Him; so also the good works which we have done shine like beautiful flowers, that we may give glory to Him by whose help and assistance we have accomplished them, and that they may be a continual source of joy to us, that we may adore and love God, who being One in three Persons, lives, reigns and works in us all the good we do. Chapter 29 At Communion on Easter Tuesday, St Gertrude asked Our Lord to renew the espousals which He had formed with her in spirit by faith, by religious profession and by the entirety of her virginity. Our Lord replied caressingly, that He would not fail to do what she asked; and inclining towards her, He embraced her soul, renewing therein all her devotion. And as He thus embraced her, He gave her a brilliant necklace adorned with precious stones, and thus reformed all her past negligence in her spiritual exercises. Chapter 30 On Easter Wednesday, she besought Our Lord that she might become fruitful in good actions, by virtue of His adorable Body. He replied: I will certainly make you fruitful in Myself, and I will use you to draw many to Me. She replied: "How canst Thou others to Thee through me, since I am such an unworthy creature, and have almost lost the talent I once had of instructing and conversing with others?" Our Lord answered: If you now had that facility of speaking, perhaps you would think that it was by this you won souls. Therefore I have deprived of it in part, that you may acknowledge that the grace which you possess of touching the hearts of others comes from My special grace, and not from the power and attractiveness of your words. Our Lord then appeared to draw her toward Him inwardly saying: Even as I draw My breath, so will I draw to Myself all who submit lovingly and devoutly to you for My sake, and I will make them advance daily in perfection. End Book 4, Page One Continued Book 4 Page 2 >>>> Advertisement Introduction Book 1 Book 2 Book 3 Book 4 Book 5 Links Angel News The Eucharist On Purgatory Home "Typed by: Sue Burton, Sacred Heart Publications UK. @Copy right Sue Burton & Marianne Eichhorn. This page was made exclusively for this website by: Cath Art Creations