have mercy on us.

It is, in this way,

the highest act of prayer that we can perform the best way of carrying out our Lord's own words, "Ye shall ask in My Name:" it is bringing His Death and Passion before His Father, and pleading for ourselves and for others through It.

II. What are the benefits which this Sacrament is intended to convey to us? I may say, in general, everything that we can desire for our souls; for Christ's Body and Blood are nothing else but Christ Himself. If then we take into us and eat His Body and Blood, we take and eat Christ Himself. This is what He says, in express words:"He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me."* Everything, therefore, that is in Christ, passes into us when we take this Sacrament. For it is so, we know, with what we eat and

St. John vi. 57.

drink, with our bodies. If the food be sour, or sweet, then it gives to our bodies its own sourness or sweetness. If medicine which we take be bitter, and be suited to cause strength, then our bodies receive from it bitterness and strength at the same time. And God employs the sign of meat and drink for this Sacrament to teach us that He does the very same thing for our souls by this Sacrament, which He does continually for our bodies by our daily food. Now Christ has all good things in Himself. When we feed upon Him, therefore, we can have all good things, any one and every one which we wish for. If we wish that we knew God better, and that we were more wise about our salvation, or that we were more gentle, or more patient, or more loving to each other, or more honest, or that we took more care about our words, we can have all this

through the Sacrament, for Christ has all these things. He has all knowledge, all wisdom, gentleness, patience, love, and everything besides. So that, by taking Him in this Sacrament, we can have any one of these graces, and all of them, if we desire it.

But there are two benefits which we derive from this Sacrament, which are specially mentioned in the Catechism; or we may say the benefits of this Sacrament are there mentioned under two heads: "the strengthening and refreshing of our souls." The use of bread and of other things which we eat is to give nourishment and strength to our bodies; the use of wine and other strong drinks is to refresh and revive and invigorate us. For our growth and general improvement we need food to eat; when we are wearied, or faint, or low, wine or something of that kind is most acceptable and useful.

In the same way, in this Holy Sacrament we have Christ given us to nourish and strengthen our souls, to make us able to overcome the temptations to sin which Satan brings before us, to make us more holy, more fond of heavenly things, that, as St. Peter says, we may "grow in grace."* But there are times, as every one knows who really tries to serve God, when we find it more difficult than usual. The temptation has come on more powerfully or more constantly than before, we are almost tired out with fighting against it; new temptations seem to start up as soon as we have got the better of an old one; friends seem to desert us; we have fallen into some unexpected trouble; or we have brought some great trouble upon ourselves, either by a mistake or by some fault of our own; or we feel unhappy, low in spirits, and we cannot

* 2 Pet. iii. 18.

Our Duty to receive this Sacrament. 11

tell the reason; we think God is angry with us, that He has forsaken us, or that our sins are too great to be forgiven. Then this Sacrament is given us to refresh and revive us; Christ comes to us then to cheer up our spirits, to assure us that He loves us still, and is not going to leave us, that He will help us all the more against sin the more we want His help; so that we can go back after the Sacrament happy and cheerful, certain that we are not forsaken, and that we can get the better of our sins. These low feelings then are not intended to keep us away from the Sacrament; but they should make us more anxious to go to It, because It is specially intended to cheer us up and refresh us by driving them away.

III. I am come to the third point, the duty of all persons to receive this Sacrament. 1. It is Christ's plain and