The Prayer for the Second Sunday of Advent by Adolphe Baudon de Mony “The time in which we are, Lord Jesus, is dedicated by your Church to the expectation of your Coming”

“Rod of Jesse, who You raise up among the peoples to serve them as a Sign of Salvation, receive the homage of my love. You are the Wise God, in Whom the Spirit of Counsel dwells, the Mighty God who is the avenger of innocence, the God of Light who confounds false science with impiety. How can I not love You with all the strength of my soul, as the sovereign Greatness and the sovereign Majesty? How others love the vile dust of the world! Let them find their happiness in the splendors of the century, in the applause of the crowd, in shameful pleasures. For my part, I only feel consolation at the foot of Your altars, and in front of Your tabernacles; I only aspire to the Joy of possessing You endlessly in Heaven and of seeing You there face to Face, throughout Eternity. My God, how little the world loves You! How rare are those who aspire to prayer, to a retired, silent life! How, on the contrary, we are fleeing You! How afraid we are of meeting You on the path of our passions and our miseries! And yet, You are the supreme and spotless Beauty, You are the Good in essence, You are the Infinite. As for me, I want to love the beauty of Your house and the splendor of Your glory. Nourished by Your blood, I live with You and in You. Let it be for Eternity, Lord! The time we are in, Lord Jesus, is dedicated by your Church to the expectation of your Coming; but the closer we approach the Christmas Feast, the more this expectation is full of confidence. People of Zion, here is the Savior who comes to save the nations, and the Lord will make His voice full of majesty heard, and your hearts will be glad. Yes, the Savior is coming. He comes into faithful souls to strengthen them, to console them, to fill them with the Love of Heaven. He comes to ungrateful souls to call them to Himself and bring them into the Heavenly Sheepfold. The spiritually blind see, the lame walk towards Heavenly Life, sinners shed the leprosy of iniquity, the hardened hear the Holy Word, children whose death the Church mourns rise from their graves, and the poor are Evangelized. How these great spectacles must boost my confidence! I too was one of these blind people, of these lepers, of these deaf; I was one of those deaths. But Jesus spoke to me, and He healed me. So I hope and trust, because what He has begun, He will finish; this Conversion of my soul which He has prepared, He will complete it. Mary, my tender Mother, pray with me that it may be so, and that after returning to God, I will not present the sad spectacle of new falls and new scandals. Lord Jesus, You will be faithful to fulfill Your promises and to justify my hope; but I too must be faithful to You. And first, I am slow to listen to the inspirations of your Grace; when it comes to pleasure or my interest, I pursue it with ardor; when it comes to my Salvation, to your Holy Law, I constantly wait and postpone until tomorrow. How many falls, however, would I have avoided, if when You told me to pray, to flee this occasion, to resist this slight temptation, I had listened to your Voice; How many Graces would I not have gained, if I had listened to your Holy Spirit who warned me with His indescribable groans! Then, what cowardice in the good I did! What weakness in defending yourself in social gatherings! What timidity for Your interests and Your glory! My God, I know that it costs my weakness; but no matter, I no longer want to be ashamed of You in front of men; if I have to bear their blame, I will accept it; if I have to be persecuted by them, I will receive with joy their contempt and their hatred. One is not a Christian to be showered with honors, surrounded with homage, and I want to be faithful to You not only until Tabor , but up to Calvary. Holy Angels, hear my resolution, present it to Jesus, Your divine Master, and help me to courageously execute it. I will be excited about Hope in the Goodness of God, and I will never be discouraged either by my faults or by external obstacles.” Amen