ashamed to make our offering of prayer in a humble posture, that is, on our knees, or ashamed of our poor relations, and here is the Mother of GOD walking by the side of a poor carpenter, too poor to offer a lamb, and so humbly offering her little best!

And we may learn also the danger of delay. We may learn never to put off. We are certain to lose by it. If Mary had delayed her Act of Thanksgiving at the appointed time, she would at least have missed the greeting of holy Simeon. And so we should not "defraud" ourselves "of the good day," nor "let the part of a good desire overpass

us.

This rule is of almost universal application. Whenever a good thought comes into our hearts we must close with it at once, and act upon it as soon as we can. We may say to it as Jacob said to the Angel, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." Whenever a secret inclination comes upon us to pray, we must never defer or even check it, and this wherever, or with whomever we may be.

It is not only our inclination, as we might think, which prompts us, but really GOD's Holy SPIRIT: or when the Church bell finds its echo in our hearts, we must be careful not to let trivial things stand in the way of its summons, whether to make the offerings of our worship or of our duty to GOD, or to receive the Cup of Salvation," or to "call upon the Name of the LORD," or "to pay our vows in the presence of all His people."

VIGIL OF S. MATTHIAS, APOSTLE AND MARTYR.

XIV. On the humility and child-like disposition of S. Matthias.

S. MATT. xi. 25.-" Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes."

S. MATTHIAS has many claims upon our love and affection. The little we are told about him in Holy Scripture is much in point of importance. In him we see the first continuation of that essential doctrine of the Church called Apostolic

succession. He was very especially an answer to the prayers of the Apostles. He was, although not mentioned before, at least not mentioned by his name of Matthias, one who was constantly with the little band of the LORD and His

Disciples. Perhaps from the fact of his not having been by name mentioned before, and from our knowledge that he "companied with JESUS and the Twelve" all the time the LORD "went in and out among them," we may infer that S. Matthias was of a very humble and retiring disposition, and of a simple, child-like character. This supposition would fit in well with the Church's choice of the Gospel for his festival, and also we may remark how, though no such name as the "Just man," or "Justus," is added to his, as with Joses, who was also "appointed" for election to the Apostolate, yet "the lot fell upon Matthias," and GOD answered the Prayers of the Apostles by choosing him. Then, again, we cannot but feel that the very election of S. Matthias in the place of the traitor Judas

is another point not to be lost sight of as a solemn warning, chiefly to the Clergy, but also to all of us. And the warning

is this "Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." If Judas could for three years have been in close and constant companionship with the LORD JESUS, and yet could have betrayed Him to certain death, or at least danger, for Thirty wretched pieces of silver, how much we all should feel the danger of the temptation to fall away. One thing, at least, which caused the fall of Judas was probably his refusal to believe in our LORD'S teaching in the sixth chapter of S. John's Gospel, in His Blessed Presence in the Holy Eucharist; our LORD expressly says (S. John vi. 64): "There are some of you that believe not," and immediately it follows, "For JESUS knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray Him." But, besides being a disbeliever, Judas was not only a thief, but a hypocrite. He disbelieves. He asks at the Last Supper whether he should be the traitor. "Is it

I," he asks with the rest, when the LORD had said, "One of you shall betray Me:" and yet he knows full well who it should be. To finish the accumulation of wickedness, and to steel his heart, or to avoid detection, he probably makes a Sacriligious Communion: if so, the Presence which should be a blessing causes his condemnation. He received, as the wicked do, the outward and visible form without the inward and spiritual grace; he received the Sacrament without its virtue. He received to his condemnation the Judge, and not the Saviour: Satan not only now stood "at his right hand," but (Ps. cix. 5) entered into his heart, and took full possession of it. He refused the light, and darkness reigned over his soul: he went out to betray his LORD, and “it was dark." Dark! for the light of grace was quenched in his soul. Darker! He receives the price of his Maker. Darkest! He repents, but there is no grace to his repentance. It is the repentance of Despair. He casts away the last of GOD's gifts, his life. He raises his hand