Therefore,

which he was to spill in abundance for our remedy. on the eight day of his life, according to the command which God had given of old to Abraham, he submitted himself to that law, whereof he was the author, though he had several reasons for dispensing himself therefrom. For, in the first place, it had been established as a public protestation of the faith of the Messiah, whom the Israelites expected. Now Christ being himself this promises and expected Messiah, he could not expect another, nor consequently be obliged to show by circumcision the faith and hope he had in him.

Secondly, it was the mark of the covenant which he had made with Abraham, whereby he had engaged himself to acknowledge Isaac's posterity for his people and they were to have no other God but the God of Abraham and Isaac, the other nations having been rejected because of their idolatry. But Christ that good shepherd, being come to reunite all the nations of the world without distinction, in one and the same fold, and to save all men who should live and die in his faith and love, needed not to bear the character of a contract which he was to change afterwards, in order to extend it to all nations.

Thirdly, the circumcision of the body obliged the Israelites to eradicate the hardness of their hearts, and all affections contrary to the love and law of God. But Christ, being of an infinite purity, and coming to purify the world, had in himself no evil to eradicate, so that command regarded not him.

Fourthly, as it was a sacrament of the old law, whereby, in making profession of believing and hoping in the Messiah who was to come, they were delivered from original sin; so that sacrament supposed the sin whereof it was the remedy; but our Saviour, being the author of grace, the remission of sins, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, and consequently impeccable both as God and as man, was no less exempt from the obligation of bearing that character of a sinner, than he was remote from all sin; and it was an extreme humility in him, to vouchsafe to subject himself to a law, established for healing an evil so incompatible with his sanctity.

II. The divine love, which finds no obstacle invincible, was pleased to show the greatness of its power, by submitting God himself to a law so unworthy of his majesty. God is so great that he cannot increase; and his greatness appears less in doing great things, than in abasing himself to little ones. Therefore, Christ has testified a greater love to us by subjecting himself to our miseries and to the humble actions of our humanity, than by working the wonders of his power. This ought to confound a certain kind of pride, so common among the children of the age, who are not afraid of committing most grievous sins in the sight

of God, and fear to pass for sinners before men.

Hence it comes, as St. Bernard says, that they have no shame for the evils of their souls, but have it for the remedy which can cure them. Christ, desiring to destroy in us by his example this unreasonable and unjust inclination, observes a quite contrary conduct: for though there is nothing in him but truth, purity, and sanctity; yet he conceals all these perfections under the appearance of sin; he is circumcised, as if he was a sinner; and he takes the remedy of an evil which he has not, to teach us that he cannot be confounded who passes for a sinner, and is not so; but that he who is a sinner and appears not such, is always contemptible in the sight of God.

III. It appears that we owe a particular acknowledgement to Christ for having borne the pain and character of a sinner, in his circumcision; for in the other mysteries of his life and death there always shone, through the appearance of sin, some ray of the majesty which was hidden in him. When he was born weeping and shivering with cold, like the other children of Adam, the angels, the shepherds, and the wise men, came to adore him. When he was presented in the temple as a sinner, the holy old man, Simeon, and Anna the prophetess, published his divinity. When he was pleased to be baptised in Jordan with sinners, the Holy Ghost who appeared upon him in the form of a dove, the voice of the eternal Father which was heard, and St. John who baptised him-declared that he was the Son of God. When he suffered himself to be tempted in the desert, the angels came to serve him as their Lord and master. And when he was weakened and oppressed with fatigues, his miracles manifested his power.

When he permitted himself to be seized in the garden of Olives, he by one word overthrew those that were come to take him. When he was fastened to the cross between two thieves, the sun which was darkened, the earth which quaked, the loud cry which he himself sent forth at his expiring, the centurian who confessed him, and the veil of the temple which was rent, gave all so clear a testimony of his divinity, that even those who had crucified him returned from thence striking their breasts, and acknowledging that he was truly the Son of God. And so on all the occasions wherein he had appeared as a sinner, there was always something that discovered his divinity.

IV. Though circumcision had no other pain but that of the flesh, Christ would have submitted himself thereto for that only reason: for he came into the world with an almost insatiable desire of suffering in expiation of our offences. Nevertheless, that pain must have been very sensible, but as God had commanded it to Josue for all the people before they should enter into the land of promise, Christ, having his perfect reason, felt in a lively manner the pain of that wound, and shed that blood with the same love

which made him pour it out upon the cross, even to the last drop, for our redemption.

V. God had ordained in the old law, that the first-fruits of the product of the earth should be offered him: and because his Son was to be born in so great a poverty that he should have nothing of his own, not even a place where to lay his head, the eternal Father required the first-fruits of the blood of that well-beloved Son; our Saviour submitted himself joyfully thereto, and nothing could hinder him from suffering for us, even at so tender an age: for on the eighth day of his life he gave us the first drops of his blood, which was all entirely to be shed upon the cross, and to flow also after his death by the opening of his side.

Behold what Christ has done for those who pass their first years in ignorance, their youth in disorder, and the rest of their life in shameful obedience to the lusts of the flesh. O what great subjects of confusion would a man, enlightened by the divine light, discover here, for having so ill requited Jesus Christ, who spent no day of his life without labouring for our salvation, and openly expressing his love for us.

VI. It is not without reason that our Saviour was content that our salvation should cost him so dear: his design was to make us comprehend how much more he esteemed us than everything else that he had created. The creation of man cost him no more than that of an insect; he made all things by the sole motion of his will, without care or labour; and he would have been but little concerned at the loss of other creatures: therefore, if he has done and suffered so much for preserving that of man, it was, that man should be sensible how much he loved us; and that if our creation was so easy to him, our redemption cost him infinitely dear. It is for this reason that St. Paul affirms, we are obliged to sacrifice our bodies and souls in his service-because we have been bought with a great price.-1 Cor. vi. 20. It is true he could, if he had pleased, have redeemed us for less: but what was sufficient for our salvation was not sufficient for his love; and nothing less was requisite for satisfying this, than a laborious life finished by the death of the cross.

St. Cyprian adds, that God did not desire to redeem us at a small expense, lest the facility of the remedy might augment our liberty of sinning: for we are so inclined to evil, that if Christ had suffered less for delivering us from thence, we should not have sufficiently comprehended the danger which sin draws us into; and if, after everything our Saviour has endured, we still sin with so great a facility, what should we have done if he had not shown us, by the greatness of his labours and sufferings, how much he hated sin ? Let everyone therefore examine what the disposition of his heart is, in regard of so many disorders committed without

shame or caution, considering at the same time, that our Saviour did not spare his own infancy, and that a death full of sorrows and reproaches was necessary for satisfying his desire of purchasing our salvation.

VII. Children had their names given them in circumcision; for this reason, Christ was pleased that his holy name, which signifies a Saviour, should be written, as one may say, upon his flesh, with that very blood, which he was one day to shed for our salvation. St. Bernard affirms, in conformity to the holy Scripture, that this name was not given him then for the first time, but that he had brought it with him from heaven, and it was only declared in circumcision; because Christ being essentially the salvation of the world, he was to bring at his birth a name conformable to what he was. Men commonly bear names which agree not with them, since they are not truly what those names signify. The names of riches, treasure, majesty, greatness, and excellency, cannot suit those to whom they are given, because they have not really those qualities; but Christ is the true salvation of our souls, he has, by his own nature, everything that the name of Jesus signifies, and was pleased that this name should be published on the first day of his shedding that precious liquor, which was to be the cure of all our wounds.

VIII. The prophet Isaias (viii. 3. ix. 6) had given him the names, Hasty to take away the spoils, Emmanuel, Admirable, Counsellor, God, Strong, Father of the world to come, Prince of Peace, and several others, which are all included in the name of Jesus, and are only explanations of it. For, in order to be truly a Saviour, he ought to be earnest in drawing souls from the power of the devil, from the tyranny of sin, and from the darkness of blindness; he ought to be a God conversing with men, the master and author of an admirable doctrine for dissipating all our errors; he ought to make peace between heaven and earth, to be the father of eternal life, to open the gate of heaven, and to reign with the elect in all future ages.

IX. The Son of God has expressed much more love to us, by taking this name, than we can imagine. God was pleased of old to be called the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, his faithful friends that he might honor them thereby, and in them all their posterity; but the Son of God, seeing he had scarce any friends left in the word, took his name from his own enemies, whom he designed to gain to his friendship; and in the same manner as God honoured some of his servants by joining their name to his, our Lord was pleased also to honour all men, and to regard them as his friends, how great sinners soever they were, by causing himself to be called their Saviour.

Moses can no longer glory of being the only friend of God,

because he beheld him face to face; nor all the patriarchs, because they treated familiarly with him; God has granted us a much greater favour, when he vouchsafed to clothe himself with our nature, to live as a sinner amongst us, to die between two sinners, and to be called our Saviour in heaven and on earth. His name is thereby become terrible to hell, glorious in the world, adorable in heaven, sweet to the just, salutary to sinners, our safety in dangers, our rest in labour, our help in need, our hope in this pilgrimage, our support in fear, our comfort in sadness, the source of all our blessings, and the remedy of all our evils.

CONTEMPLATION.-On Christ in his Circumcision.-I. Now is the moment, O divine Jesus! wherein thou art going to begin to satisfy the desire thou burnest with, of shedding thy blood for sinners. Make me enter into that furnace of love, that I may behold therein the fire which consumes thee, and the earnestness wherewith thou expectest those first pains which thou art to suffer for us. I owe thee no less, O Lord! for the love and joy thy heart feels on that account, than for the punishment thou endurest, and the profit I receive from thence. Where can we find, O my God! a love like thine? Oh, that my heart was going to thee, as thou art coming to me! But, alas! I have delayed my conversion so long, I am always remiss in thy service: and eight days appears so many years to thee through impatience of suffering for me, and of giving me the first fruits of thy blood. Here thou employest neither violence, law, nor threats, for bringing me to thee, and though the law of circumcision binds not thee, yet thou submittest to it, because it is a law of suffering, that thou mayest show me that law of love which renders thee the victim of sinners. II. Break thou with love, O my heart! for a God so full of goodness; be thou opened and dilated, that I may receive him. Thou findest nothing difficult, O my God! when thou art to express thy love to me; the tenderness of thy age, the greatness of thy majesty, and the severity of a law, which was not made for thee, prevent thee not from doing it. The greater, more independent, and absolute thou art in thyself, the more amiable thou appearest to me in humbling thyself for me. Thy love is the only law thou followest; thou dost everything because thou lovest; and thou sufferest because thou lovest. But, Lord! who is he whom thou lovest? Thou seest nothing in me that is worthy of thy love, unless my sins draw down thy compassion, and give thee reason to show the infinite treasures of thy mercy towards the greatness of my misery.

III. It was not enough for thy love to become man, to be born an infant, poor, weeping, and subject to our miseries: thou wouldst also appear a sinner, and receive in thy most pure flesh the remedy of sin, though sin be so remote from thee, that if thou wert capable of sinning thou wouldst not be what thou art.