Reflect on these words: "And he gave it to his disciples, and said, Take ye, and eat," &c. It must have been a great cause of confusion to the apostles, when they beheld their Saviour distribute to them his sacred body, not merely that they might adore it, or that they might preserve it as an inestimable relic, but that they might make it their food. Be thou also penetrated with the most profound humility.
What am I, O God of majesty and glory, or who am I, that thou shouldst deign even to look on me? Whence am I honoured with so unspeakable a favour, as that my Lord and my God should come and visit in person such a miserable and vile worm of the earth? How dare a being more contemptible than nothing, approach so holy a God, eat the bread of angels, and feed on thy divine flesh! Ah, Lord! it is too much; I am not worthy of so great a favour; I shall never, no never, deserve it.
O King of heaven and earth! adorable Sovereign! the Author and Preserver of the universe! behold, I annihilate myself before thee, protesting that I would humble myself as much for thy glory, as thou dost here for my salvation. I acknowledge, with the most profound respect, the infinite, grandeur of thy divine Majesty and my own miserable baseness. The contemplation of one and the other fills me with inexpressible confusion. Can I possibly say more, my dear Saviour, than to confess, with the utmost humility, in the words of the centurion: "Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof; say but the word, and my soul shall be saved."
In consequence of the words pronounced by our Saviour when he consecrated the bread and wine, "This is my body," &c; "this is my blood," &c; the apostles received what Christ then gave them as his _real body_ and _blood_. Do thou now, in like manner, make a most lively Act of Faith of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the blessed Eucharist.
Since thou, omnipotent God, whose almighty words are creative, productive, and effective; since thou, O eternal Truth, who canst neither deceive nor be deceived; since thou, I say, hast declared that thou art _really_ and _actually present_ under the appearance of material bread, I therefore implicitly believe it; for what greater proof can I require of the truth of this mystery, than thine own infallible word? Yes, my dear Saviour, I openly confess, and am inwardly convinced, that it is thou thyself I am going to receive; thou who for my sake wast born in a manger; thou who for my redemption didst die on a cross, and who, though now gloriously seated on thy heavenly throne, still continuest on earth, under the sacramental veils, to feed and nourish the souls of men. { 122} Were I to behold thee with my corporal eyes, and examine the impression of the wounds thou didst receive in thy sacred hands and sides, as St. Thomas did, still I could not say with more confidence than I now do, that _thou art my Lord and my God!_ I do not demand a miracle as a proof of thy real presence; no, Lord, let me rather have the whole merit of faith; for thou hast said, "Blessed are those who believe and do not see."