The Daily Prayer-Book/Blessed Leonard's Method

METHOD OF HEARING MASS BY SAINT LEONARD OF PORT MAURICE.

The Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas, tells us that we have all four special debts which we owe to Almighty God, answering to the four great ends for which Jesus Christ instituted the Holy Sacrifice of the Altar. These are: —

1. To praise and honour the infinite Majesty of God, in acknowledgment of His supreme dominion over us.

2. To satisfy Almighty God for the sins we have committed against Him.

3. To thank him for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us.

4. To implore His divine grace and assistance.

The method for hearing Mass here given is especially conformable to the spirit of the Church, whose wish it is that we should, when assisting at Mass, unite our intention to that of the priest, who offers up the Holy Sacrifice for the four ends just mentioned; by so doing we shall be able, according to St. Thomas, to pay, in the most efficacious manner, the four debts which we have contracted with Almighty God.

As soon, therefore, as the Mass commences, while the Priest humbles himself at the foot of the altar, and says the Confiteor, make a short examination of conscience, an act of true contrition, beg pardon of God for your sins, and invoke the assistance of the Holy Spirit and of the Blessed Virgin, that you may hear Mass with all reverence and devotion.

Then divide the Mass into four parts, in which you will pay the four great debts, in the following way: -

ADORATION.

1. From the beginning to the Gospel you will pay your first debt of honouring and praising the Majesty of God, who is worthy of infinite honour and praise. Humble yourself, therefore, with Jesus; acknowledge your own nothingness; confess sincerely that you are but utter nothingness in the presence of His immense Majesty; and then with great modesty and recollection, with humility of heart and body, say —

O my God, I adore Thee, and acknowledge Thee to be the Lord and Master of my soul. I protest that all that I am, all that I have, I have from Thee; and since Thy exceeding Majesty demands an infinite homage and worship, and I, a miserable creature, am utterly unable to acquit myself of this great debt, I offer Thee the humiliations and the homage which Jesus offers to Thee upon the altar. That which Jesus does, I intend to do likewise, in union with Him. I humble and abase myself before Thy Majesty; I adore Thee with the humiliations of Jesus Himself; I rejoice and am full of joy that the blessed Jesus offers up to Thee for me an infinite honour and worship.

Close your book, and continue to make in your heart several acts of joy at the thought that God should be thus infinitely honoured; and say again and again —

Yes, my God, I rejoice at the infinite honour which this Holy Sacrifice gives to Thy Majesty; I delight in it; I rejoice as much as I know how, as much as I can.

Be not anxious to bind yourself to these words, but follow the promptings of your own devotion, keeping yourself recollected and united to God. In this way, how fully will you pay your first debt!

CONTRITION.

2. In the second part, which is from the Gospel to the Elevation, you will pay the second debt. Cast a glance upon your many grievous sins, consider the immense debt you have contracted with the Divine justice, and say with a humble heart —

Behold, O my God, the traitor who has so often rebelled against Thee! Alas! with deepest sorrow I hate and detest my grievous sins; and I offer Thee in satisfaction for them the satisfaction which Jesus gives Thee upon the Altar. I offer Thee all the merits of Jesus, the Blood of Jesus; Jesus, God and Man, who as a Victim is sacrificing Himself again for me; since upon that Altar my Jesus is my Mediator and my Advocate, by His most Precious Blood He is imploring pardon for me. I unite myself to the voice of that loving Lord; and I ask mercy for all my grievous sins. The Blood of Jesus cries to Thee for mercy; my sorrowful heart also cries to Thee for mercy. Ah, my beloved God, if my tears move Thee not, let the sighs of my Jesus move Thee; and that mercy which He obtained for all mankind upon the Cross, why should He not obtain it for me upon this Altar? Yes, I hope that, in virtue of that most Precious Blood, Thou wilt pardon me all my sins, which I will never cease to lament even to the last moment of my life.

Close your book, and repeat several times acts of true interior and earnest contrition. Give vent to your affections, and in silence, but in the depth of your heart, say to Jesus— My beloved Jesus, give me the tears of Peter, the contrition of Magdalene, and the sorrow of those Saints who, once sinners, became afterwards true penitents, so that in this Mass I may obtain a complete pardon of all my sins.

Make many acts of this sort, with great recollection, and rest assured that you will thus most fully discharge all the debts which you have contracted by so many sins.

THANKSGIVING.

3. In the third part, which is from the Elevation to the Communion, consider the many and wonderful blessings you have received, and in exchange for them offer to Almighty God a gift of infinite value, the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ; invite all the Angels and all the Saints to thank Him for you in this or the like manner —

Behold me, my most loving God, laden with blessings, both general and particular, of body and soul, which Thou hast bestowed upon me, and which Thou wilt still bestow upon me, in time and in eternity. I see that Thy mercies towards me have been, and are, infinite. I am ready to pay Thee for them, even to the last farthing: wherefore, in gratitude and in payment for them, behold this Divine Blood, this most Precious Body, this innocent Victim, which I present to Thee by the hands of the priest. I know that this offering which I present to Thee is sufficient to pay Thee for the gifts Thou hast bestowed upon me. This gift of infinite value is of itself worth all the gifts which I have ever received, or ever shall receive, from Thee. Ye holy Angels, and all ye blessed Saints of heaven, help me to thank my God, and offer to Him, in thanksgiving for His blessings to me, not only this, but all the Masses which are at this moment being celebrated throughout the whole world; so that His loving-kindness may receive a complete recompense for all the blessings which He has given me, and which He will give me for ever and ever. Amen.

Oh, how pleased is our good God with such a thanksgiving! Oh, how is He satisfied by this one offering, which, being of infinite value, is worth more than all other offerings put together! And in order to excite yourself the more to this devotion, invite the whole court of heaven to thank Him for you; invoke those Saints to whom you are more specially devout, and say to them in the inmost depths of your heart—

O my beloved Saints and advocates, thank the goodness of God for me, that I may not live and die ungrateful; beg of Him to accept my good will, and to have regard to the loving thanksgivings which Jesus in this Mass is offering to Him for me.

Do not be content with saying this once only, but repeat it again and again; and be assured that in this way you will completely acquit yourself of this great debt.

SUPPLICATION.

4. In the fourth part, which is from the Communion to the end of the Mass, after having made a spiritual communion while the priest is communicating sacramentally, consider God to be within yon; open your heart, and ask Him for many graces, believing that Jesus then unites Himself with you, and prays for you: therefore, enlarge your heart, and do not ask for trifling things, but ask for great graces; for great is the offering which you make to God, namely, that of His Divine Son. Say, then, with a humble heart —

O my God, too well do I know how undeserving I am of Thy favours; I confess my exceeding unworthiness, and that for my many grievous sins I do not deserve to be heard by Thee. But how canst Thou refuse to listen to Thy Divine Son, who prays upon the Altar for me, and offers Thee His Blood and His Life? Hear, I beseech Thee, my most beloved God, the prayers of this my great Advocate, and for His sake grant me all the graces Thou knowest to be necessary for me to accomplish the great work of my eternal salvation. And now I take courage to ask of Thee a general pardon for all my sins, and the grace of final perseverance. Moreover, I beg of Thee, O my God, trusting in the prayers of my Jesus, all virtues in an heroic degree, and all those efficacious aids which I require to become a Saint. I also ask of Thee the conversion of all unbelievers, and of all sinners, and particularly of those who are related to me either by ties of kindred or by spiritual affinity. I ask of Thee the deliverance, not of one soul only, but of all the souls in Purgatory; bring them all forth, so that, by the efficacy of this Divine Sacrifice, that prison of purification may remain empty. Convert the souls of all the living, so that this miserable world may become for Thee a paradise of delight, where we may love, reverence, and praise Thee in time until we come to praise and bless Thee for all eternity.

Ask then, ask for yourself, for your children, friends, and relations, ask that all your wants, both spiritual and temporal, may be supplied. Ask also for the fulness of all blessings upon the Holy Church, and for its deliverance from all evils; and ask, not with lukewarmness, but with great confidence, and be assured that your prayers, united to the prayers of Jesus, will be heard.

As soon as the Mass is over, make an act of thanksgiving to Almighty God; and leave the Church with a heart full of compunction, as if you were coming down from Mount Calvary.