Mary, Our Advocate with Our Judge by Fr. Francis Doyle, 1879 I. If ever man stood in need of an advocate to plead for him with all the earnestness which love inspires, it will surely be when he is summoned into the presence of Jesus Christ, to give an account of his stewardship. This manifestation of ourselves before the judgment-seat of God, is one of those certainties which await us in the life to come; and no man can reflect seriously upon it, without a shudder of genuine terror. For truly, "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God,"--to close our eyes upon the world, and upon all that is dear to us, and to open them in the dread presence of that awful Majesty, Who is holiness itself. In His presence the Angelic spirits themselves are not pure, His power is unlimited, and from His sentence there is no appeal. If we bear these things in mind, and then give a glance at the life we have been leading, we shall rouse up our sluggish senses, and begin to feel keenly the need we have of an advocate such as our dear Lady is. Look back upon the past! What has been your behaviour, for example, towards that trusty guide, conscience, which God has given to you, to direct you aright, to cry out with a warning voice, when your feet begin to wander from the straight path? Have you not closed your ears to its reproaches, and drowned its voice with your loud excuses? If so it will stand at the bar of Divine Justice, to bear witness against you. Its voice will be heard there, and its testimony will be beyond suspicion. You will, perhaps, say: "I have confessed all my sins." But have you had true sorrow for them? Alas! what do you think of your confessions, now that you call to mind how carelessly you prepared for them, and how little heed you took to amend afterwards? If they have not been well made,--if the negligence has been gross and culpable, "what will you say to the Lord when He shall arise to judge?" Has your conduct been any better, even with regard to the Most Holy Sacrament? It may be, that your sluggishness and your carelessness have made you profane the body of the Lord. If to these things we add your actual sins, your sins of thought, your sins of word, your sins of deed, is there not good reason for you to fear and tremble, in anticipation of the rebuke which will break from the lips of your Judge, and of the terrible sentence of condemnation which will follow it? With truth, then, may each one of us exclaim: "What shall I do when God shall rise to judge, and when He shall question, what shall I answer Him?" II. At the hour of death, the remembrance of a careless and sinful life, is a fruitful source of wellgrounded fear; but at the same time, if we have turned to God from our sins, and have tried to make reparation for them, we need not lose courage, for we have a very powerful advocate with Jesus, in the person of His dear Mother. She will not desert us in that trying moment. It is the last time her influence can be exerted in our behalf, and she will use it with our Judge, to make Him propitious to us. Her influence is indeed very great. It is the influence of the best of mothers, with the most loving and dutiful of sons. Can such a Son withstand the prayers of such a Mother, when He beholds her at His feet, with pleading look and streaming eyes, asking mercy for those whom He disdained not to call, and to look upon as His brothers? He hears the thrilling tones of her low, sweet voice, --whose word of humble submission to the decrees of God, drew Him from the heights of heaven, and clothed Him with our human nature. He beholds those pure and spotless hands outstretched in supplication. They laboured for Him; they tended and cared for Him; they were laid with caressing fondness upon His head in childhood, and pressed His infant form with loving tenderness to her burning heart. Surely Jesus will not turn a deaf ear to the pleadings of such an advocate! He will smile graciously upon the trembling child who appears before Him. He will not remember the past. He will blot it out from His records, and we shall then be able to approach His awful throne, to give an account both of the good and of the evil we have done. The evil He will forget; from the good He will take away all its imperfections, and will then crown it with an everlasting reward. III. We must, however, remember, that if we wish to have the most holy Mother of God for our advocate, it will not be sufficient for us merely to say that we desire this. Action must be joined to will, and then some result will follow. For, just in the same way as it would be useless for us to wish for a lawyer to plead our cause, unless we also took the trouble to seek one out and to explain our case to him, so is it equally futile to wish for Our Lady's advocacy, unless we take measures to secure it. What then, you will ask, are we to do, in order to make her an earnest pleader for us, at the bar of Divine Justice? The very first step to be taken, is to give up all habits of sin. She will not interest herself in any one who will not do this, unless, indeed, it be to pray for him unto God, that his heart may be moved to make this most necessary resolve. For sin is continually scourging, and crowning with thorns, and crucifying that Jesus, Whom she loves most tenderly. Therefore, in her eyes, sin is a most hideous monster,--the most abominable of all evils. Hence, if you hug this offspring of hell close to your breast, you need not expect her to exercise her influence with Jesus, nor to plead your cause before the throne of Mercy, when you are summoned to give an account of the deeds which you have done in the body. After giving up sin, you must ever put great confidence in the Blessed Virgin. Out of humility, you must deem yourself unworthy of all favour from God, and frequently ask Our Lady to pray for you, and to present your petition to Jesus. You must look upon her as your model, and try to tread in her footsteps. She was humble, and had a low esteem of herself,--you must not take pride in your family, nor in your talents, nor in your appearance. She was mild and gentle; she sought not her own profit; she was truthful and honest,--you also must aim at these virtues. Be kind to your companions, and restrain your anger. Be unselfish, and ever scorn lying, and cunning, and deceit of every kind. She was most pure, being without spot or stain, both in her conception, and throughout her whole life. Also try to keep your heart pure. Fight down your unruly nature, reject evil thoughts, stifle evil desires, and like a noble Christian, scorn to do anything which would disgrace yourself in the eyes of God and of His holy Angels. If you do this, or at least, try to do this, though with numberless failures, you will be very dear to the heart of the Blessed Virgin. If you are weak and fail, she will still love you for your goodwill, and by her powerful intercession, will obtain of Jesus that grace which will at length make you a strong and perfect Christian. She will stand by you in the day of trial, she will aid you against your enemies, and you will soon be able to lead a sinless life. Then when death comes, and ushers you into the presence of your Judge, she will be by your side, and will lift up those spotless hands, and plead with that eloquent voice, to whose petitions Jesus never yet turned a deaf ear. Happy will you be, for when she lifts up her voice in prayer, God will not remember your sins. He will deal leniently with you, and will receive you with a smiling face into His heavenly kingdom. http://catholicharboroffaithandmorals.com/