Chapter 45: Of the tender pleading of Jesus for His enemies

I BLESS You, and give thanks to You, O Lord Jesus Christ, Fountain of love and sweetness, for Your most perfect charity, and most devoted prayer on behalf of Your enemies, and of those who were crucifying You. With Your hands stretched out upon the cross You did plead for them, imploring pardon for them, and making loving excuses for them, in the words: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do " — words sa full of sweetness and of love that they might well have softened the heart of the most hardened of sinners, and have led him to repent. O most sweet Jesus, how ready are You to forgive, how easily are You appeased, how plenteous are You in mercy! How vast, O my Lord, must be the stores of Your tender mercies towards those who love You, when You could show forth such loving kindness towards Your savage enemies; when, raised aloft upon Your cross, You were not moved to anger against Your crucifiers, and did not seek to be revenged upon Your tormentors, did not pray that the earth might swallow up alive those wicked men, or that fire from heaven might consume them in a moment; but did shed forth upon Your cruel enemies, like healing dew from Heaven, the words: " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." In this was manifested Your most excellent charity and Your unspeakable tenderness, which nothing could overcome, nothing could hold back from loving intercession. They were crying out: " Crucify Him, crucify Him! " and You say: " Father, forgive them." They pierced You with hard nails, and You make excuses for their foul iniquities, in the words: " For they know not what they do." O Christ, how wondrous is Your love!

But alas for the obstinacy of the stiff-necked people, whose hearts were not touched by words so full of love. You did feel more anguish on account of the blindness of their malice, than on account of the wrong which was being done to You: and the working of so great wickedness caused You more pain than the torture of all the wounds which had been inflicted on You. They did You all the harm they could; and You did repay them by doing for them Your best. The best and most loving thing You could do for men so wicked, was to pray that they might be turned from their evil ways, and might confess that You, the Son of God, had truly come in the flesh. And thus were fulfilled those memorable words of Isaias, which of old he had spoken concerning You: "And He has borne the sins of many, and has prayed for the transgressors," that they may not perish.

When to those who crucified the Pardon-Giver so great loving-kindness was shown, who can despair of the forgiveness of his sins? Cease, then, O my soul, to despair, self-accused though you be of so many sins. Entangled as you are in the snares of so many evil lusts, assailed as you are by so many temptations, you have still, unhappy one, the hope of life: bowels of mercies yearn for you — of this the Cross, the Nails, the Lance, all the blood-stained Wounds of Jesus are witnesses. Hide yourself, O my soul, hide yourself within the deep Wounds of the Crucified, kiss the wales of His Stripes, clasp with loving arms the Tree of life, hold fast to that most sure pledge of your Salvation, Jesus hanging on the Cross. Devoutly adore Him, commit yourself to Him in full assurance of faith, put yourself wholly into His hands; for He, Who so abounded in love to those who hated Him, will surely be yet more gracious to you, when you are sorrowing for your sins.

But if you would be heard speedily, if you would find grace at the hands of your Redeemer, and would obtain mercy from Him in all its fullness, you too must, from the bottom of your heart, forgive your brother his trespasses against you. Forgive him the few small matters in which he has offended you, that God may forgive you your many sins against Him; and pray for his salvation as much as for your own: so doing, you shall find grace; and, by imitating the example of Jesus, Who bade us love our enemies, and pray for them that persecute us, you shall become a child of the Most High. If, when suffering unjustly, you will school yourself to forgive the wrong done you, and will lovingly pray for those who have trespassed against you, you shall lay up for yourself, against the hour of your death, a store of sure and certain hope. It was this holy prayer which won for the apostles the blessedness of Heaven, which gave to martyrs their crown, which made Confessors renowned, which adorned Virgins, and made all the Saints Christ-like and meet for everlasting life. O most gracious Lord Jesus, Who of Your infinite love did vouchsafe to pray for Your enemies, vouchsafe, I beseech You, in the same spirit of charity, to pray the Father for me, that He will grant me full pardon for all my sins, and will of His great mercy deliver me from the punishments which they have deserved. Grant that I may have a perfect and unwavering trust in Your love and mercy, and that I may not give way to despair on account of the greatness of my sins; but may remember, in the full assurance of faith, that You came into the world to save sinners, and did will to suffer, to be crucified, and to die, for the ungodly- May, then, that prayer for Your enemies, which, in fulfilment of this Your blessed purpose. You did pray upon Your Cross, bear fruit to the salvation of my soul; and grant to me, I pray You, a sure hope of obtaining pardon through it; that so I may be found meet to obtain, through Your most holy intercession, that which by my own merits I could never hope to win. Grant me boldly and fearlessly to seek refuge under the shadow of Your wings, and to be kept by the invincible sign of Your Holy Cross from all fear of the old enemy. As I haste to lay hold upon Your Cross, spread over me, I beseech You, the shelter of Your arms; that so, whenever my last hour shall come, my helpless and sorrowing soul may neither be afraid nor despair; and take, I pray You, to Yourself, me, a miserable sinner, trusting not at all to my own works, but solely to Your great mercy.