the Saviour of all nations would appear in the land of the Jews. Hence it was, that about this time many were on the look-out for the appearance of the famous star predicted by the false prophet Balaam more than a thousand years before, which was considered to be a sure sign of the birth of the expected Messiah. The history of the appearance of this star to the three wise men, or, as they are often called, the three kings, is thus related in the Holy Scripture.

ADORATION OF THE MAGI.

"When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of King Herod, behold there came wise men from the East to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the East and are come to adore him.

"And King Herod, learning this, was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And, assembling together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ should be born. But they said to him, In Bethlehem of Juda, for so it is written by the prophet: And thou, Bethlehem, the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda, for out of thee shall come forth the captain that shall rule my people Israel.' Then Herod, privately calling the wise men, learned diligently of them the time of the star which appeared to them; and, sending them into Bethlehem, said, Go and diligently inquire after the child, and when you have found him, bring me word again, that I also may come and adore him.

"Who, having heard the King, went their way; and behold the star which they had seen in the East, went before them, until it came and stood over where the child was. And seeing the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And entering into the house, they found the child, with Mary, his mother; and, falling down, they adored him. And, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And, having received an answer in sleep, that they should not return to Herod, they went back another way into their own country " (Matt. ii.).

Thus, my dear children, did our B. Lord, at his first coming into the world, call the Gentiles, that is to say, all other nations besides the Jews, in the persons of the three wise men, to adore him, showing thereby that he came to open to all mankind the gates of heaven. In memory of this great event, the Church has instituted a solemn festival, which is called the Epiphany or Appearance of the star, and sometimes Twelfth Day, because it falls on the 6th of January, the twelfth day after Christmas.

SEVENTH INSTRUCTION.

Fourth Article-Jesus Christ-His Passion and DeathThe Sign of the Cross.

Q. What is the fourth article of the Creed?

A. The fourth article of the Creed is "Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried."

The fourth article of the Creed, my dear children, is about the Sufferings, Death, and Burial of our B. Lord. The whole life of Jesus Christ, from his Birth in the stable to his last expiring sigh upon the cross, was indeed a life of suffering; but this article treats only of the torments which he endured immediately before his Death, and which we commonly call his Sacred Passion. The Apostles' Creed says that he suffered under Pontius Pilate, because at that time Pontius Pilate was Governor of Judea; the Jews being no longer a free people, but subject to the Romans, who had sent Pontius Pilate to rule over part of their country. It was to him that the Jews accused our B. Redeemer, for they had no power to crucify any one themselves. Pilate was a weak man, and, though he declared our Lord to be innocent of the charges brought against him, he nevertheless condemned him to the cruel death of the cross to please the Jews, and for fear of them making some complaint against him to the Roman Emperor; for they said, "If thou release this man, thou art not Cesar's friend" (John xix. 12). Thus, a fatal human respect led him to commit a crying act of injustice, and to crucify the Son of God.

Q. What were the chief sufferings of Christ?

A. The chief sufferings of Christ were-First, his agony and his sweat of blood in the garden; secondly, his being scourged at the pillar, and crowned with thorns; and thirdly, his carrying his cross, his crucifixion and his death between two thieves.

Q. What are all these sufferings called?

A. These sufferings are called the Passion of Jesus Christ.

In these answers, my dear children, are enumerated the principal sufferings which our B. Lord endured for the

love of us, and which we commonly call his Passion, a Latin word which of itself means Suffering. You will notice that the different torments here mentioned are the same as those which are commemorated in the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary, namely, the Agony in the garden, the Scourging at the pillar, the Crowning with thorns, the Carriage of the cross, and the Crucifixion; so that you see that the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary contain in themselves a short history of our Lord's Passion.

The first great suffering, which our B. Redeemer endured in his Passion, was his agony and his sweat of blood. This took place in the garden of Olives, whither our Lord, on the night before he was crucified, had gone to pray, accompanied by his three Apostles, Peter, James, and John. Having left them at a little distance, he began his prayer, but became so overcome with the sight of our sins and ingratitude, and the natural fear of the torments he was about to endure, that he fell into a cruel agony of mind and body, and drops of blood came trickling down like sweat from every pore of his skin. It was on this occasion that he thrice repeated that beautiful prayer, Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me. But yet, not my will, but thine be done" (Matt. xxvi. 39; Luke xxii. 42). Then an angel appeared from heaven to comfort him; and Jesus, knowing that it was his Father's Will that he should now enter upon his Passion, arose, and called his sleeping Apostles to come with him to meet the traitor Judas, who was at that moment entering the garden to apprehend him.

The Scourging at the Pillar and the Crowning with thorns, the two next sufferings of our Lord here mentioned, took place at the house of Pilate, the Roman Governor, wherefore they are joined together in the words of the catechism. When our innocent Redeemer, after suffering the most barbarous treatment from the Jews throughout the whole night, had been condemned to death by Pilate, he was given up by him into the hands of the soldiers to be scourged and afterwards crucified. These cruel men stripped Jesus of his clothes, then tied him to a pillar, and scourged him barbarously with leathern

thongs. The number of the stripes which they gave him. was revealed to St. Bridget to have been above five thousand. The whole ground about was covered with blood, and our B. Lord would have expired under the cruel torture, had he not supported himself by a miracle for fresh sufferings. And, indeed, no sooner had he been scourged, than "the soldiers, platting a crown of thorns, put it upon his head, and put on him a purple garment. And they came to him and said, Hail, king of the Jews, and they gave him blows" (John xix. 2, 3). This torment of the Crowning with thorns was inflicted on our Lord by the sheer cruelty of the Jews, for he was not condemned by Pilate to suffer this barbarous torture. It was done in mockery of his kingly power; for the Jews had accused our Lord of seeking to make himself king, and he himself had admitted to Pilate that he was a king, though he spoke of a spiritual, and not of an earthly kingdom. The pain and agony which Jesus suffered from this cruel crowning must have been intense, for the thorns of that country are long and sharp, and were on this occasion driven in by the blows of his persecutors. Pilate himself, when he beheld our B. Redeemer reduced to this pitiable state, was touched with compassion, and, hoping that the Jews, if they saw him, would be moved to some feelings of pity, brought him out to them with the crown of thorns on his head, the purple garment on his shoulders, and the reed in his right hand, and introduced him to them, saying, "Behold the Man." But it was all in vain; the Jews only called the more loudly, "Crucify him, crucify him" (John xix. 5, 6). The Carrying of the cross, the Crucifixion, and the Death of our Lord between two thieves, are next mentioned in the catechism. No sooner had the unjust judge Pilate pronounced sentence of death, condemning our B. Lord to be crucified, than the heavy cross, on which he was to suffer, was laid upon his bleeding shoulders, and he was made to carry it through the streets of Jerusalem and up the hill of Calvary to the place of public execution. Weak, and fainting with hunger and thirst and loss of blood, he fell to the ground several times in the course of this painful journey. His enemies

seeing this, and fearing that he would die on the way, obliged a man named Simon, of the city of Cyrene, whom they met coming into Jerusalem, to help Jesus to carry his cross. This no doubt is to teach us that if we wish to follow our B. Lord to heaven, we must walk in his footsteps, bearing our cross after him by submitting patiently to the labours and sufferings of this short life, and embracing them willingly for the love of God.

It was by the cruel punishment of Crucifixion that our loving Jesus finally accomplished our Redemption. Having arrived on the summit of Calvary, he was rudely seized by the executioners, again stripped of his clothes, laid upon the cross, and pierced through the hands and feet with large iron nails, which were driven by repeated strokes of the hammer through his Sacred Flesh deep into the wood of the cross. The cross was then raised in the air, and amid the jeers of the people allowed to fall with a heavy jolt into the hole prepared for it. Who can ima

gine the horrible sufferings which our B. Lord endured during this cruel torment, and which he bore with such patience through love for us, that the Holy Scripture compares him to a meek and gentle lamb, which makes no resistance and utters no complaint when violence is offered it? "He shall be dumb as a lamb before his shearer, and he shall not open his mouth" (Isa. liii. 7). For three hours that Jesus hung upon the cross, he suffered all the horrors of the most cruel martyrdom. His body was racked with pain, and his heart was torn with grief at the sight of our sins and ingratitude. He had also to endure the scoffs of the soldiers, the mockery of the Jews, and the reproaches of the impenitent thief, one of the two who were crucified with him. The sight of his afflicted Mother standing at his feet, with her heart pierced by a sword of sorrow, also caused him great anguish, and, to crown all, he was seemingly abandoned by his Heavenly Father, his soul being deprived of all comfort and plunged in deep desolation. Yet, in the midst of all these torments he thought of us, prayed for us, and loved us, as his seven last words show, particularly that by which he gave us to the B. Virgin to be her children, and asked her