St. Bridget of Sweden
Now, I think, is as good a time as any to admit to a prejudice, to the truth that I have an instinctive distaste for anything, that in the representation of a saint smacks of Hollywood. Just recently, I was offended by just such an image of St. Teresa of Avila, as she appears on the front cover of a recent edition of the "Interior Castle." I was so aggravated by it, that my instinct was to paste it out; but I thought better of it, and not from fear of eternal damnation. And most disturbing of all, for me, are effeminate images of Christ. The hallmark of a saint, for me, is that they look lived in: men and women who, (to use a colloquialism), have been, "knocked about a bit": whose features bear the unmistakable signs of hardship: of endless good works and concern for souls.
Well recently I came across just such a person; St. Bridget, not the Irish Bridget, but Bridget of Sweden, who, widowed, brought up her own large family, before going on to found a religious order, and leave for posterity, a rich vein of spiritual writings. She died in 1373, at the age of 70.
What follows, (an excerpt from her writings), is taken from the Office of Readings for July 23; and apart from its obvious spiritual worth, the passage is striking for its focus and energy:
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A Prayer to Christ our Saviour
Blessed are you, my Lord Jesus Christ. You foretold your death and at the Last Supper you marvellously consecrated bread which became your precious body. And then you gave it to your apostles out of love as a memorial of your most holy passion. By washing their feet with your holy hands, you gave them a supreme example of your deep humility.
Honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. Fearing your passion and death, you poured forth blood from your innocent body like sweat, and still you accomplished our redemption as you desired and gave us the clearest proof of your love for all men.
Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. After you had been lead to Caiaphas, you, the judge of all men, harshly allowed yourself to be handed over to the judgement of Pilate.
Glory be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, for the mockery you endured when you stood clothed in purple and wearing a crown of sharp thorns. With utmost endurance you allowed vicious men to spit upon your glorious face, blindfold you and beat your cheek and neck with cruellest blows.
Praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. For with the greatest patience you allowed yourself like an innocent lamb to be bound to a pillar and mercilessly scourged, and then to be brought covered with blood, before the judgement seat of Pilate to be gazed upon by all.
Honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. For after your glorious body was covered with blood, you were condemned to death on the cross, you endured the pain of carrying the cross on your sacred shoulders, and you were lead with curses to the place where you were to suffer. Then, stripped of your garments, you allowed yourself to be nailed to the wood of the cross.
Everlasting honour be to you, Lord Jesus Christ. You allowed your most holy mother to suffer so much, even though she had never sinned nor ever even consented to the smallest sin. Humbly you looked down upon her with your gentle loving eyes, and to comfort her you entrusted her to the faithful care of your disciple.
Eternal blessing be yours, my Lord Jesus Christ, because in your last agony you held out to all sinners the hope of pardon, when in your mercy you promised the glory of paradise to the penitent thief.
Eternal praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, for the time you endured on the cross the greatest torments and sufferings for us sinners. The sharp pain of your wounds fiercely penetrated even to your blessed soul and cruelly pierced your most sacred heart till finally you sent forth your spirit in peace, bowed your head, and humbly commended yourself into the hands of God your Father, and your whole body remained cold in death.
Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. You redeemed our souls with your precious blood and most holy death, and in your mercy you led them from exile back to eternal life.
Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. For our salvation you allowed your side and heart to be pierced with a lance; and from that side water and your precious blood flowed out abundantly for our redemption.
Glory be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. You allowed your blessed body to be taken down from the cross by your friends and laid in the arms of your sorrowing mother, and you let her wrap your body in a shroud and bury it in a tomb to be guarded by soldiers.
Unending honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. On the third day you rose from the dead and appeared to those you had chosen. And after forty days you ascended into heaven before the eyes of many witnesses, and there in heaven you gathered together in glory those you love, whom you had freed from.
Rejoicing and eternal praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, who sent the Holy Spirit into the hearts of your disciples and increased the boundless love of God in their spirits.
Blessed are you and praiseworthy and glorious for ever, my Lord Jesus. You sit upon you throne in your kingdom of heaven, in the glory of your divinity, living in the most holy body you took from a virgin's flesh. So will you appear on that last day to judge the souls of all the living and the dead; you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.
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Cormac E McCloskey
