who go hungry to prayer, hungry to Confession and Communion. Almighty God says: "Open thy mouth and I will fill it." And our Blessed Lady sings in her canticle: "He hath fed the hungry with good things." It was because all the saints hungered like this that so much was given them.
The merciful. There is nothing our Lord tells us so often and so plainly as this—that to obtain mercy from God we must ourselves be merciful. If we wish Him to judge us kindly and to forgive our many faults, we must be forgiving and kind. "Be merciful," He says, "as your Heavenly Father is merciful." He tells us that at the Last Day He will say "Come" to those who have been merciful to others for His sake, and "Depart from Me" to those who have been unmerciful to the poor and needy, and therefore to Him. For what we do to His least brethren He counts as done to Himself. If, then, we want to hear His sweet invitation on that dreadful Day, we know how to secure it—"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."
The clean of heart. The reward and the joy of the next life is to see God. There are many joys in Heaven—freedom from pain and care, the delights of the glorified body, the society of the Angels and Saints, reunion with those we loved on earth. But all these are as nothing compared with the Vision of God. It is this that makes Heaven what it is. Without this all the rest would not satisfy us. But to see the All Holy God we must be holy. In Heaven all are clothed with white robes, and the nearer the approach to the Great White Throne, the more dazzlingly white is the raiment. We must be getting ready to join that spotless throng. How? By taking as much pains to keep our soul free
