The Catholic Prayer Book and Manual of Meditations/Devotions to the Sacred Passion of Our Lord
DEVOTIONS TO
The Sacred Passion of our Lord
“ I live in the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and
delivered himself up for me.” — St. Paul , Gal. ii. 20.
“ Surely he hath borne our infirmities and carried our sorrows. He was wounded for our iniquities, he was bruised for our sins. And we like sheep have gone astray; every one hath turned aside into his own way; and the Lord hath laid upon him the iniquity of us all.”— Isaias. liii.
“ There is nothing which is more efficacious for curing the wounds of our conscience, or enkindling in our hearts the fervent love of Jesus Christ, than continually to meditate on his sorrows and sufferings.” — St. Bernard.
HOW fervently did St. Augustine pray for the grace of being devout to the Passion of Jesus Christ! O sweet Jesus! deign to engrave thy wounds in my heart, that thy sorrows and thy love may be ever present to my thoughts. May the remembrance of thy sufferings inspire me with patience under the trials of life; and may the consideration of thy love excite in my soul a corresponding feeling of devoted undying affection.”
St. Paul exhorts us to reflect often on the sufferings of our Blessed Redeemer. “ Let us,” says the Apostle, “ run by patience to the fight proposed unto us: looking on Jesus, the author and finisher of faith, who, having joy proposed unto him, underwent the cross, despising the shame, and now sitteth on the right hand of the throng of God. For think diligently upon him who endureth such opposition from sinners against himself, that you be not wearied, fainting in your minds.” — Heb. xii. Thus does the inspired Apostle call upon us to think diligently upon the sufferings of Jesus, in order that we may not fail in the service of God, but make progress in the way of Christian virtue.
“ Let us learn to love Jesus Christ, who is our Saviour, our God, and all our good. For this end. I beseech thee to give every day some time to reflection on his Passion. In it thou wilt find every motive to hope for eternal life and to love God, on which depends our salvation. All the saints have made it their delight to meditate on Jesus Christ in his Passion, and by this means alone they become saints.” — St. Alphonsus.
Resolve, therefore, now and again to pray like St. Augustine for the grace of devotion to the Passion, and to recite daily some prayer in gratitude to Jesus Christ for all he has done and suffered to save your soul from everlasting torments, and prepare for it a place in the kingdom of heaven.
[Every day, about noon (at your work or employment if you like), say five Paters and Aves in honour of the sufferings of Jesus and the sorrows of the Blessed Virgin. This devotion is an easy one, and quite within the reach of every Christian, no matter how much occupied; moreover, it has great indulgences attached to it; and lastly, it will help you to be habitually mindful, not only of the sufferings of our Blessed Redeemer, but also (and this too is of much importance) of the sorrows of his most afflicted Mother.]