1st Week after Epiphany: Tuesday

Summary of the Morrow’s Meditation

We will meditate tomorrow on the second general characteristic of the life of Christ, and we shall see: 1st, that this Divine Saviour is our Head; 2nd, that this title imposes serious obligations upon us. We will then make the resolution: 1st, to maintain union with Jesus Christ within us by frequent and loving aspirations; 2nd, to respect in ourselves and in our neighbor the character of members of Jesus Christ. Our spiritual nosegay shall be the words of the Apostle: “Ye are the body of Christ and members of one member” (I. Cor. xii. 27).

Meditation for the Morning

Let us adore Jesus Christ, who, after having bought us as our Redeemer, communicates to us, as our Head, the fruits of the redemption. Let us thank Him for this goodness, and let us beg of Him to enable us to understand the excellence of the title of Head which He has been pleased to take in relation to us, and the obligations which this title imposes upon us.

FIRST POINT

Jesus Christ is our Head.

Jesus Christ, says St. Paul, is the Chief or the Head of a body of which we are the members. He is, says St. Paul, a Vine, of which we are the branches; whence it follows that, as the head and the members form but one sole body, as the trunk and its branches, the stock and the shoots, form but one and the same vine, so Jesus Christ and Christians form but one whole; that, as the members derive all their life from one head, as the branches live only by union with the vine, so the Christian derives the whole of his supernatural life from his union with Jesus Christ. This union begins at baptism, which grafts us upon Jesus Christ (Rom. vi. 5); it is sealed by confirmation, and is maintained by the Eucharist (John vi. 57); and when sin has broken it, it is renewed by penance and extreme unction. Lastly, in the ordinary course of life, it is nourished in us by faith (Eph. iii. 16, 17), grace, and love; and the more faith, grace, and love render this union intimate, the more the Christian spirit lives in us. This spirit languishes if the union is weakened, and it dies all at once if it be broken. It is a misfortune all the more to be dreaded, because this union is the principle of all our merits; without Jesus Christ our works are nothing (John xv. 5); all is dead in us, as the body is dead when it is separated from the head. On the contrary, when we are united to Jesus Christ, our prayers, our sufferings, our least works become infinitely meritorious; they procure heaven and its eternity. It is from Jesus Christ, as our Head, that all our good thoughts proceed, all the pious movements, all the interior graces which make saints. Hence those grand words of St. Paul: “I can do all things in Him who strengthened me” (Philipp. iv. 13). Hence Christian confidence: “There is now, therefore, no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. viii. 1). Jesus Christ communicates to them, as to His members, all His rights upon grace here below, all on glory in eternity. How happy is life in this union, even amidst labor and fatigue! How sweet and full of hope is death! God, before whom I am to appear, is the adorable Head of which I am a member. He lives with me, He lives in me; how shall I not hope in Him?

SECOND POINT

What are the Obligations Laid upon us through this Title of Members of Jesus Christ, our Head.

We ought, 1st, to keep our heart and body in a state of perfect purity. It would be indecent to be an impure and fastidious member under a Head which is holy and crowned with thorns; to ally together ambition, vanity, and effeminacy with the humility, modesty, and innocence of the Saviour: the vices and the baseness of man with the perfections of God. We ought, 2nd, to have tender charity for all Christians. As soon as they are members of Jesus Christ and form with us but one body, of which this adorable Saviour is the head, it is as though we wounded Jesus Christ in the apple of His eye when we offend them (Zach. ii. 8). Even if they are imperfect or vicious; even if they are our enemies, we ought to love them as we love our defective members, as Jesus Christ loves them. We ought, 3rd, to love Jesus Christ tenderly, strongly, and without variation. As soon as we are made one with Him, we ought to lose our heart in His; we ought to interest ourselves in all that touches Him, weep and make reparation for the outrages inflicted on Him, sigh over the trials of His Church and rejoice over its glories. The head cannot be struck or even threatened but the whole body is moved, and the hand stretched out to protect it. Hence it is that the saints were so sensitive to the interests of Jesus Christ; shed tears on seeing Him offended, whilst meditating upon His Passion and uniting themselves with Him by communion. Is it thus we fulfil our duties of members of Jesus Christ? Do we lead a life worthy of such a Head? Do we love our brethren, and do we treat them as the very members of Jesus Christ? Lastly, are the interests of Jesus Christ, of His glory and of His Church, dear to our hearts, and do we protect them as the members protect the head when it is in peril?

Resolutions and spiritual nosegay as above.