JANUARY 4TH

 

POVERTY OF JESUS IN THE CRIB

“And she brought forth her first-born Son and wrapped Him up in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn” (Luke 2-7).

First Prelude: Represent to yourselves the wretched stable and the hard crib in which the Divine Child reposes.

Second Prelude: O Divine Saviour, teach us by Thy example to esteem, and cheerfully to practice holy poverty.

FIRST POINT

JESUS TEACHES US TO ESTEEM POVERTY

Faith teaches us that this poor Child, bedded on straw, in the manger at Bethlehem, is He of Whom the Psalmist says: “The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof: the world and all they that dwell therein” (Ps. 23, 1). Why is it that the Lord, Who has the wealth of all creation at His command, chooses poverty for His inseparable companion through life? Why does He despise all splendor, all excess, all convenience, to be the poorest among the poor? Jesus willed to sanctify poverty, since He wills it to be the portion of His elect in this life, that He might insure to them the riches of heaven. O precious virtue, up to the time of Christ but slightly recognized among men, how wert Thou exalted at the crib! How has Jesus, Himself, exalted thee and animated thousands for thee! How many, O my Jesus, have been taught, by Thy example, patiently to suffer poverty and privations and thus to enrich themselves for heaven! Countless souls, enamored of Thee, have voluntarily despised the goods of his world, to embrace Thy life of renunciation.

Animated by such an example, we will, with all our heart, renew our vow of poverty, at the crib of the Divine Child. We will thank Jesus for having called us to the practice of this virtue, which contains in itself the secret of sanctity. Earthly goods fetter the heart and hinder it from raising itself to God; but the heart free from all earthly desires and affections, cleaves to God and is inebriated with the delights that result from this loving and intimate union. We will thank our dear Saviour for having atoned for our sins, by a life of extreme poverty. Let us say with a great saint: “Thou wert poor, O Jesus, to enrich me—yea, to enrich me with graces and everlasting goods.” Do we manifest our esteem and love of holy poverty by cheerfully bearing all the privations met with in religious life?

SECOND POINT

JESUS TEACHES US HOW TO PRACTICE HOLY POVERTY

“Let us consider,” says St. Charles Borromeo, “the profound poverty and abasement that the King of Heaven chose at His birth.” His dwelling is poor; poor, His crib; Mary, His Mother, is poor, everything about Him breathes poverty, and, yet He shares His poorly shelter with the irrational creatures. Such is the advent of the Creator of the world, such the royal splendor of His holy Nativity. Religious poverty, which we have the happiness to profess, requires that we love it, especially in its effects—namely, hunger, thirst, cold, fatiguing labors, privations and the contempt that it frequently elicits from the world. This truly evangelical virtue requires many great sacrifices, but Jesus generously requites all that we suffer for love of Him, so that afflictions and privations are as naught. Therefore, St. Magdalen of Pazzi admonished her religious: “Rejoice in misfortune and affliction, because after a little while you will receive a crown of eternal glory, and for a slight privation you will enjoy bliss without end.” Are we animated with an ardent love of poverty at the sight of Jesus, Who in order to redeem and enrich mankind, subjects Himself to a life of suffering and privations? Though it is impossible for us to imitate Jesus in the excess of His poverty, yet love of our Divine Spouse, and love of that sweet bond that unites us with Him, ought to make us ingenious in choosing for ourselves what is least gratifying and most fatiguing to nature.

Are these my sentiments? Have I ever complained of the effects of the poverty I have vowed to God?

Affections: O my beloved Saviour, how little and poor art Thou for love of me! To elevate me, Thou dost abase Thyself; to enrich me with grace in this life, and with everlasting glory in the world to come, Thou art the poorest of all the children of men. Full of reverence and grateful love, I kiss, in spirit, Thy poor crib; and with all the fervor of my soul renew my holy vow of poverty renouncing all attachment to earthly things, and willingly, yea, cheerfully accepting the privations, discomforts and the apparent forgetfulness of creatures. By the merits of Thy poverty, O my Jesus, replenish me with the wealth of Thy divine wisdom and love; enrich me with graces and virtues, that Thou mayest be my sole good here and in eternity.

Resolution: I will deposit the little privations that I meet with today, as an oblation at the feet of Jesus in the crib.

Spiritual Bouquet: “He has become poor that He might enrich us through His poverty” (Cor. 2, 9).

Prayer: Take, O Lord . . .

These meditations come from a treasured old volume, copyright 1925 by Frederick Pustet Co., Inc. They are presented here exactly as found in the original book—word for word—and carry the quiet, steady tone of a guide long used in convents around the world. Yet their simplicity and directness remain just as helpful for anyone seeking a more prayerful, faithful daily life.