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Saturday 21 June 2014

Word of Encouragement Before Communion, and Admonition of How One Should Comport Oneself Afterwards, on the Eve of Corpus Christi

From Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of  Christ:
If thou hast not devotion, but rather feelest thyself dry, be instant in prayer, cease not to groan and knock; cease not until thou prevail to obtain some crumb or drop of saving grace...
Thou comest that thou mayest be sanctified by Me, and be united
to Me; that thou mayest receive fresh grace, and be kindled anew
to amendment of life. ....But thou oughtest not only to prepare thyself for devotion before Communion, thou must also keep thyself with all diligence therein after receiving the Sacrament; nor is less watchfulness needed afterwards, than devout preparation beforehand: for good watchfulness afterwards becometh in turn the best preparation for the gaining more grace.
On the way to the Communion service this morning at the nursing home, I was skimming a piece in Magnificat, where someone spoke of awareness of her unworthiness before the enormity of the gift of the Eucharist,  but the encouragement she received by reading St Faustina, b recognizing that the Body and Blood of Christ are also a remedy, which reminded me a little of earlier parts of the fourth book of Imitation of Christ, the one on the Blessed sacrament.

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