PREFACE

My Dear Reader and Brother in Jesus Christ:

SINCE the spirit of devotion that has urged me to write this book, animates you to read it and makes us the happy children of the same loving Father, should you ever hear any person say I might have spared myself the labor, there being already so many learned and celebrated works which treat of this subject, I beg you to answer that our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Adorable Sacrament, is such an abundant fountain that the more it flows the fuller it becomes, and the fuller it is the more it flows, which signifies that the most Holy Eucharist is so great and so sublime a mystery that the more we say of it the more remains to be said. If St. Alphonsus could say with all truth of the Passion of our Lord, “that eternity will not suffice to meditate adequately upon it,” we may affirm the same of Jesus Christ hidden in the Blessed Sacrament, and with a thousand times more justice apply to our subject what St. Augustine says in praise of the Blessed Virgin, viz: that all the tongues of men, even if all their members were changed into tongues, would not be sufficient to praise her as she deserves.

“Worldly lovers are accustomed frequently to mention and praise those whom they love, that others also may praise and applaud them ; how poor and weak should we then consider the love of those who call themselves lovers of the Blessed Sacrament, and yet who seldom speak of it or think of endeavoring to inspire others with a love of it. The true lovers of the most Blessed Sacrament do not act thus; they speak of it, praise it everywhere, in public and in private; whenever it is in their power they try to enkindle in the hearts of all those ardent flames of love with which they themselves burn for their beloved Jesus.

The object of this little book is, then, to make Jesus, in the Blessed Eucharist, more generally known and better loved. Our Divine Saviour is ready to bestow innumerable graces through this Sacrament, which are lost in consequence of the ignorance and indifference of men. When the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar is not revered and loved, scandals will abound, faith will languish, and the Church mourn. On the other hand, if this Sacrament be worthily frequented, peace will reign in Christian hearts, the devil will lose power and souls will be sanctified. “As many as received Him to them He gave power to be made the sons of God.” It has seemed to me that a work explanatory of the prominent points of this mystery, written in a simple and familiar style, would greatly contribute to remove the obstacles to a right appreciation of this wonderful Sacrament of Divine love ; and with this conviction I have ventured to lay the following pages before the public, trusting, with the blessing of God, they may prove useful to many souls.

As Almighty God in His goodness imparts His favors to His faithful followers in divers ways, some times by enlightening their minds in a supernatural manner, and even conversing with them familiarly as it were, and as the nature of this work is intended to be practical, not controversial, I have thought it expedient for the edification of pious souls to introduce into it, after the manner of the Holy Fathers, both some revelations made to certain saints, and several miraculous facts concerning this mystery. I know there are some persons who, boasting of being free from prejudices, take great credit to themselves for believing in miracles but those recorded in the Holy Scriptures, esteeming all others as tales and fables for foolish women. But it will be well to remember here a remark of the learned St. Alphonsus, who says, “that the bad are as ready to deride miracles as the good are to believe them ; adding, that, as it is a weakness to give credit to all things, so, on the other hand, to reject miracles which come to us attested by grave and pious men, either savors of infidelity which supposes them impossible to God, or of presumption which refuses belief to such a class of authors. We give credit to a Tacitus, a Suetonius, and can we deny it without presumption to Christian authors of learning and probity. There is less risk in believing and receiving what is related with some probability by honest persons and not rejected by the learned, and which serves for the edification of our neighbor, than in rejecting it with a disdainful and presumptuous spirit.” Hence Pope Benedict XI V. says: “Though an assent of Catholic faith be not due to them, they deserve a human assent according to the rules of prudence by which they are probable and piously credible.”

Now should the Reverend Clergy deem this publication ever so little calculated to promote devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, the compiler will believe himself amply rewarded for his labor if they encourage its circulation.

Michael Müller, C.S.S.R.
St. Alphoxsus’, Baltimore, Md.
December 8th, 1867.