PREFACE.
OUR blessed Lord is the visible expression of God's truth
and of God's love to men, and His temporal mission
contemplated the establishment of that truth and of that love
in the hearts of men. In His redeeming blood we have been
given " the power to become the sons of God "; and His life
and teachings must be the object of frequent meditation for all
those who have their spiritual advancement seriously at heart.
Deep down within our being we experience a longing to know
which would embrace the universe in its compass. Happy in
deed are we if, with the Apostle, we desire not to know any
thing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He is the explanation of all things in heave\
n and on earth. He is the inspiration
of man in youth, his support in full maturity, and his solace
when the battle of life is drawing to a close. Near His Sacred
Heart innocence finds its purest joy and its safest shelter. The
afflicted lay down their burden at the foot of His cross and go
their way rejoicing. The sinner hears fall from His divine lips
words of pardon and comfort, and dares to be a hero for love of
Him Who has forgiven and forgotten all. We feel the weight
of our infirmities and we would have a remedy.
" Come to Me," says Christ, " all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you." The mystery of suffering meets us on every hand, and in Him we are taught " that the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the
