THE HOLY FATHER AND THE CHILDREN

New Zealand Tablet, 13 June 1912, Page 15

THE HOLY FATHER AND THE CHILDREN

TOUCHING ADDRESS TO THE LITTLE FRENCH PILGRIMS

The following is the full text of the address delivered by the Holy Father to the French First Communicant pilgrims in the Sistine Chapel on Low Sunday:— I thank you, my dear children, for the consolation that you bring me in finding myself in the midst of you when I reflect that I represent Jesus Christ Himself, who delighted in those like you, and said to His Apostles, ' Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven.' And more; I have a special reason for thanking you, my dear children, because this solemn demonstration of your love for the Pope, which has cost you the fatigues of a long journey, gives me the opportunity of rejoicing in your docility in accepting the invitation which our Lord addressed to you by my mouth, when for the first time, in spite of your tender age, you received Him in most Holy Communion.

We read in the Gospel that the Divine Redeemer called one day to Him a child like you, and, placing him in the midst of. His Apostles, said: ' See that ye despise not one of these children, for, I say to you, their angels always behold the face of My Father Who is in heaven.' Alas! these heavenly guardians are too often saddened and horrified, when they discover in the souls that have been confided to them the depravation and the stains of sin; but the angels of the children are never distracted by their anxiety from the blessed

vision of God, Whom they see face to face in His eternal light,- and find Him ever in their soul, where He is reflected as in a mirror of innocence, purity, and truth.

Lifted Above the Angels.

But if that is true of all, as of the one like you, whom our Lord called into the midst of His Apostles, what would He have said of you, my dear little children, who have received Himself, with His divinity and His sacred humanity, in Holy Communion, in which you have joined your body with His body, your blood with His blood, in which your heart has beat with His? What would He have said of your holy angels above whom you are lifted by the participation in the Holy Eucharist, because they have not received this grace which has been granted you, to nourish yourselves with Jesus Christ, to become one with Him, to unite yourselves to Him even so far as to take /to yourselves in some manner His divine nature and infinite perfections? And see, my dear children, the graces which come from this blessing. By this communication of Himself, this loving Saviour grants to our intellect the truth, to our will justice and holiness, to our heart goodness; insomuch that the faithful who communicate can with truth say with St. Paul, ' Jesus Christ is my life; I live; it is no more I that live; it is Jesus Christ Who lives in me ' —' Mihi vivere in Christus est. Vivo jam non ego, vivit vero in me Christus.'

Effects of Holy Communion.

.Therefore, inasmuch as God is spotless purity, ho who unites himself to Jesus Christ in Holy Communion, rising like an innocent dove from the muddy waters of this miserable world, takes wing and seeks refuge in the bosom of God, of Him Who is purer than the spotless snows which crown the mountains. If God is infinite beauty, he who unites himself to Jesus Christ draws to himself the admiration and the loving regard of the angels, who, if they could feel any passion, would feel jealous of such a favor. If God is charity by essence, the faithful united to Jesus Christ is as one transported in a blessed ecstasy; charity transfigures him; it is seen in all his outward appearance and in his countenance, in the burning aspirations of his heart, in the sweetness of his words which flow like honey from his lips; in all about him love is manifested. Lastly, if God is goodness itself and goodness in the language of the Holy Scriptures is the same thing as perfection, the faithful who is united to Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist finds in the virtue of this Sacrament all perfection and all holiness; he draws from it the strength to rise above himself, to aspire to eternal happiness and despise the false goods of this world as powerless to satisfy his desires. Like the chariot of fire of the Prophet Elias, it draws him away from here below, and while he still lives on this earth it transforms him into a dweller in heaven, enjoying a peace and a happiness that no tongue can express for, according to the Holy Scriptures, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive what things God hath prepared for them that love him,' and thus is fulfilled the promise of Jesus Christ: 'He that eateth this bread hath eternal life'—' Qui manducat meam carnem et Dibit meum sanguinem habet vitam aeternam He says not that he will have, that it is reserved for him in the future, ' habebit,' but that he has it already, habet, and that he holds the sure promise of it

Counsel.

My dearest children, I thank God with you once more tor the great grace that He has granted you, and it delights me to salute you as angels, nay, as rivals surpassing the angels in happiness through this privilege or the Holy Communion, which unites you intimately }??* P°T?- m the Pipation in His adorable body and blood, His divine nature and His infinite perfections. To these felicitations I will add some counsel that I pray you to engrave well on your memories. You have tasted these blessings from God, of which I have spoken to you, before arriving at full and entire knowledge of them, because at your age, the holy affections of the heart are still waiting for the perfect development of the intelligence; so I recommend to you first of all as the fruit of your visit to the Pope, a resolution and

solemn promise to continue the catechism for a long time yet. It is thus, by prefecting yourselves with diligence and love in the knowledge of Christian doctrine, that you will learn, among' the other truths of our holy religion, that the Divine Eucharist is the centre of faith, the final end of all other devotion, the source of all good, the consummation of all the other sacraments, the epitome of the divine mysteries, the stream of all the graces, the balm of all sorrows, the bread of life, the viaticum which strengthens us for the journey towards eternity, the promise and the enjoyment in anticipation of eternal happiness. My dear children, my dear First Communicants, you have received our Lord for the first time, but that is not enough. Each day we ask God for the bread to sustain life in our bodies ; so, too, we need the heavenly bread which gives life to our souls. Therefore, the second counsel I give you will be to approach frequently, if you cannot do so ''daily, the Eucharistic Table, to unite yourselves to your Saviour. And you will visit Him frequently in the solitude and silence of His tabernacle, whence you will hear Him addressing to you this invitation full of love : ' Come to Me all who are hungry and I .will satisfy you; all who are burdened and oppressed, and I will give you relief, peace and consolation.'

Finally, my last wish, my dear children, is that the love of our Lord may so reign in you that it may transform you into so many apostles, zealous for His glory; you will be the treasure of your families, to whom your good conduct will be a consolation and whom your example alone will lead more frequently to Holy Communion ; at school you will provoke- by your piety the emulation of" your fellows; in the parish all will look on you as guardian angels; everywhere indeed, all around you, by your prayers, your goodness, the very power of your modesty, you will contribute, so far as in you lies, to the conversion of sinners and the return to Jesus Christ of the unbelieving and the indifferent.. While addressing to you, my very dear children, this counsel and these wishes, I impart with all my heart to you, to your young companions, in France, to your fathers and mothers and all vour relations, the Apostolic Benediction.'