Tractatus Prior, Pars Altera, Cap. 25. De magnificih virtutibus beatae virginis et de dolore ac lacrimis eius.

Tractatus Prior, Pars Altera, Cap. 25. De magnificih virtutibus beatae virginis et de dolore ac lacrimis eius.

I bless, praise, and glorify you, holy Mother of God, Virgin Mary, for all the good things and gifts abundantly given to you by God, for your countless virtues and the greatest privileges of grace, by which you shone most brightly among all the saints on earth, so that you might be worthy to be the Mother of God and to hold and nurture the Word of God made flesh in your womb. I bless, praise, and honor you, chosen Mother of God and humble servant of God, for all your loving services and necessary support given to Christ your Son in the flesh, for the various persecutions, hardships, labors, and fatigue you have patiently endured with Him. I bless and praise and glorify you, renowned Mary, Mother and Daughter of the eternal King, for your sweet conversations often held with sweet Jesus, for the divine teachings wisely heard from His mouth and diligently kept in your pure heart, and for the magnificent consolations frequently received from Him, for your excessive joys and divine jubilations arising from His presence and the grace of the Holy Spirit. I bless, praise, and glorify you, my venerable lady, holy Mary, for your most pure and most holy life, which was most pleasing to God and the angels, lived for a long time in great poverty and silence with Jesus, tested by pressures and adversities, left as an example of devoted imitation for all the faithful of Christ, and destined to be of great benefit to the universal Church until the end of the age. I bless, praise, and glorify you, most gracious and devoted Mother of God, Mary, for all your devout exercises and sacred meditations carried out day and night in the law of God, for your fervent prayers, tears, and fasts offered to God with great urgency for the conversion of sinners and the perseverance of the righteous, for your deep compassion with the poor and the sick, with those who are tempted and heavily burdened, for your thirsting desire for the salvation of humankind, which you knew would be redeemed by the bitter death of your Son. Though you loved your only Son with an indescribable love, you did not shrink back from the dreadful assault of the cross, but rather you fully submitted yourself along with your Son to the divine plan. Yet in all your sufferings, you felt deep compassion for yourself and followed Jesus, who was going ahead of the disciples, even to the shame of the cross, not paying attention to their flight nor fearing the cruelty of the Jews, but rather ready to face death with Him than to leave your son in such distress. I bless, praise, and exalt you, most faithful and loving Mother of God, heavenly Mary, for your perseverance in solid faith and perfect love, when, in fear, the apostolic men fled, and some followed you with shame; you alone held the unquenchable light of faith during the passion of your Son, steadfastly bearing no doubt about his future resurrection after three days, just as it was clearly foretold by his own mouth. When all the friends of Jesus were scattered, you, most sorrowful mother, hurried to the place of Calvary with a humble group of women, passing through the raging crowd, so that you could quickly approach your son being crucified and still see him alive, from whom, before he died, you received the word of commendation. I bless, praise, and commend you excellently, holy and immaculate Virgin Mary, for your sorrowful standing by the cross of Jesus, where you stood for a long time, weary and afflicted, according to the prophetic saying of Simeon, pierced by the sword of sorrow; for the many tears you abundantly shed then, for the greatest fidelity and unwavering attachment you demonstrated to your dying Son in His utmost need, for the deep contrition of your heart, which you felt more acutely at His death, because you saw Him hanging dead before you, for that loving embrace in which you received Him from the cross into your motherly arms and laid Him weeping in your bosom, for your mournful passage to the tomb, when you followed the footprints of those carrying the holy body, grieving as you watched Him being placed in the tomb and closed under a great stone, for that sorrowful return from the tomb and entrance to the place of hospitality, where, with many faithful gathered there, you wept abundantly again over the death of your beloved Son, and you drew all eyes to you to mourn. Suffer now, my soul, with the sorrowful virgin, the weeping mother, loving Mary. If you love Mary, you should share in her sorrows in such great pain, so that she may help you in your troubles. Look, the compassionate mother weeps for her only son; Mary, the niece of Cleophas, weeps for her beloved nephew; Mary Magdalene weeps for the healer of her salvation; John weeps for his sweetest master; all the apostles weep for their Lord, who has been taken from them. Who wouldn't weep when so many friends are weeping together? Truly, this lament in Jerusalem is great. So stand here for a moment and learn from the Virgin Mother the lament of her bitter tears, which can stir the depths of your heart. Now she stands by the cross, wounded by great sorrows, once filled with heavenly joy beside the manger. Now she is weighed down by the cries of the Jews, having once been comforted by angelic messages; she is now clothed in a mantle of sorrow, once honored by kings and saints. Now he is sprinkled with the red blood of his own, whose previously bright appearance was cherished, as he sees hanging among the thieves one whom he had often seen performing many signs among the people. He healed a leper similar to him because of the ugliness of his wounds, whom he had known to have given many lepers their whiteness. He considers the countless sufferings he endured, who drove away all weakness from the sick. He sees death looming over Lazarus, whom he had brought back to life; everything sweet has turned bitter for him, and all joy has become sorrow. The shining star of the sea is engulfed by so many storms of evil; but the mind fixed on God remains unshaken by human wickedness. She stands firm, unwavering in her faith. She keeps her resolve by the cross, holding onto patience, demonstrating fidelity, showing love, not fearing death, nor fleeing from the scorn of the wicked. He bears everything with calmness and strives to conform himself to the humble Son, responding to the fiercest enemies with nothing. He doesn’t shout back at the insolent or show anger at those who provoke him; instead, he draws forth deep groans, weeps with love, grieves anxiously, suffers deeply, and is intensely afflicted. He doesn't get angry at those who crucify Him, but prays for those who do evil, grieves for those who mock Him, and groans for those who blaspheme Christ. Thus, the mother of Jesus stood by the cross, overflowing with tears, bringing comfort to all who were suffering through her gentle example. O all of you who pass by the way of Calvary, look at the sorrowful station of Saint Mary. Look to the right side of the cross and see Mary, the Mother of Christ. Is her sorrow like the sorrow of her Son? Was there ever such a mother in the world, who was so deeply compassionate toward her Son? For she was pierced in her soul by each wound of Jesus, and she became a martyr whenever she contemplated the bloody wounds of her Son. So now, devoted soul, see that you keep these things hidden in your heart. Be gentle and kind, when the time of tribulation comes. Don't let yourself be disturbed or feel desperate if you're taken away from what you love most, or if what you think you need is denied to you. For they are often tested through the greatest burdens of dear friends of Jesus. For if God did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us to endure the gravest punishments, what are you seeking here in joy? If Christ didn’t spare Himself but was obedient and ready to endure the most humble and painful things, why do you fear labor and suffering so much and not rather embrace the harsh and difficult for the love of the Crucified? If the most holy Mother allowed herself to face many adversities in the world, if she was often permitted to suffer and grieve deeply and for a long time, how can you live here without pressures? And if you consider all the friends of God, you'll find that they navigated this life without a narrow trial. So take the example of tireless patience from the image of the Crucified One and His blessed mother, and don’t be afraid to endure a little for your salvation in return for the infinite love of Jesus, so that you may rejoice forever in the promised glory of His presence. Indeed, the most compassionate mother of Jesus knows how to empathize with the afflicted, having learned from what she herself suffered to show mercy to the miserable. She will not forget her poor ones; she will be present to those who pray, and she will help them more quickly when they call upon her, showing kindness to all who serve her. $ O most merciful Jesus, sweet son of Mary, grant me, I pray, the grace of tears for devotion and the wounds of my heart with the deep affection of compassion, with which I may come to know the innermost feelings of your holy mother. Look upon me with those eyes of compassion with which you regarded your mother and your disciple standing and weeping at the cross, when you entrusted one to the other, leaving them with a final farewell filled with such deep affection: "Behold your son, behold your mother." Visit me, I beg you, in your saving grace before my death, and let me hear that voice which blessed John heard from the cross: "Behold your mother," so that, having received this voice, my soul may be defended by you from the fear of the raging enemy.^✦ O most merciful Lady, holy Mary, the most faithful advocate of all Christians, I ask you by all your exceptional merits, by which you have most pleased God, and by all the acts of humanity you have graciously performed for your Son, and by all the tears you have bitterly shed during His Passion, that you would deign to have mercy on me, a poor soul, with your usual compassion, taking care of me with a maternal heart and counting me among those of your servants who are held in special love and embraced. O my only hope, glorious Virgin Mary, come and show me your face before my soul departs from my body, and turn those merciful eyes of yours toward me with kindness and joy, those eyes that have so often looked upon Jesus, the blessed fruit of your womb, and that you have moistened with many tears during His passion. So now, most holy Mother of Jesus, with the sweet company of your virgins and the sacred assembly of all saints, just as you stood faithfully and perseveringly at the cross of your beloved Son until the end, because after your only Son, my Lord Jesus Christ, I find no other comfort so great and swift in my need as you, the most compassionate Mother of all the desolate.