acts of thanksgiving after the mass (layman)

Acts of Love and Thanksgiving after the Mass,

For the Use of Lay People

“Deus qui dedisti nobis regale sacerdotium…The priesthood is royal for all Christians, but especially for those whom God has called to his Work. We all have a priestly soul.” Meditation St. Joseph, our father and lord, March 19, 1968.

Eternal Father, you sustained the Chosen People while they were crossing the desert, “God rained down manna for their food and gave them bread from heaven.” Now, you send me your beloved Son, as my nourishment, to be by my side as I move along in the pilgrimage of my life. The priest has just celebrated the memorial of the death and resurrection of Jesus; in baptism, you empowered me to offer here that sacrifice united to the priest and to the entire Church.

My beloved Jesus, I adore you as you come to me under the humble appearances of bread and wine; you have become food and drink for my soul. May your coming to my soul be infinitely blessed! My God, I adore you with profound reverence, I give you thanks from the innermost corners of my heart for so many benefits; I am sorry for not being able to thank you adequately.

But how could a humble peasant reciprocate, giving thanks adequately, if his king were to visit him in his rustic abode? He could only throw himself down to his king’s feet and silently admire and praise such honor.

Now, I fall prostrate before you, my divine King, my most sweet Jesus, and I adore you from the abyss of my wretchedness. I unite my adoration to the adoration that the blessed Virgin Mary rendered to you when she received you in her most pure womb. I would like to keep loving you with the same love she loved you. I unite myself to the adoration that all the angels and saints render to you in heaven.

My loving Redeemer, you descended from heaven to this altar today to give me strength and unite me to yourself in an everlasting Covenant. Through the work of the Holy Spirit and the ministry of the priest, you made your sacrifice of Calvary present in this place. And how did I reciprocate? Alas! How many times, disobeying your precepts, I despised your grace and rejected your love. Ungrateful soul that I am! My good Jesus, I am confident that you have granted me remission for my sins. If you have not spared my sins yet, just now, I beseech you, forgive me, o infinite Goodness, for I am wholeheartedly sorry for having offended you.

My Jesus, I wish I had loved you constantly. I should have been burning with love only for you; at least, from the day I saw clearly, for the first time, that you were calling me to seek personal sanctity and spread your love. You washed me clean in baptism and endowed me with the baptismal priesthood. Anointed with the chrism of the Holy Spirit, I was confirmed as a soldier of yours. You have chosen me as an apostle and a friend from among thousands of people; in a special way, you turned me into another christ, Christ himself, to devote myself to the work that God the Father performs through you, God the Son. What else could you have done so that I would love you? I thank you because you give me time to make up for what I have omitted. I want to love you with all my heart. I want to admit in my heart no other love but yours; you bound me up to love you back by pampering me with so many benefits!

My God and my all! You are my God. What could riches be for me? What honors? What are all the enjoyments of this world? You, Jesus, are everything for me. From now on, you shall be all my wealth, my only love. I will tell you with St. Paulinus, “Let the rich keep their riches, the kings keep their kingdoms; Christ is my glory and my kingdom. Let rulers enjoy their power and rich people their riches, you alone, my good Jesus, shall be my treasure and possession.”

Eternal Father, as a son of yours, I have offered to you the sacrifice of the body and blood of your Son today and I have received him in my heart. For the love of your Son, increase my faith; grant me, I beseech you, perseverance in your grace and the gift of your holy love. I commit to your protection the pope, bishops and priests, my brothers and sisters, my entire family, my friends and my enemies, the souls under my care, those of purgatory and all sinners.

“Blessed are you among women… blessed are you who believed,” Elizabeth cried out filled with the Holy Spirit. My mother Mary, teach me to have a strong faith in your Son Jesus. Mother of Jesus, obtain for me the grace of an ever-increasing faith, holy perseverance and love for God.

O infinite Goodness! O infinite Love! God gives himself completely to me; He becomes entirely mine! Heart of mine! Gather up all your affections and get attached intimately to your Lord, who comes to you on purpose, to join you, and to be loved by you.

In the Temple, the old man Simeon gave back the child Jesus to his Mother; he kept him in his arms only one moment and he remained exultant. Right now I am far happier than Simeon; you, Jesus, are in me and will remain with me as long as I wish.

My lovable Redeemer, I embrace you, my love and my life. I unite myself to you; do not reject me. Have mercy on me! There was a time in my life when I cast you off from my soul and I broke away from your friendship. But, from now on, I will prefer to lose my life one thousand times rather than to lose you again, my greatest Good. Forgive, Lord, all the offenses that I have committed against you, and have compassion on me. I am sorry for all these transgressions; I would like to die of compunction.

Even though I have sinned against you, you want me to love you: “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart.” O my Lord, who am I that you desire my love? Since you desire it, I want to remain loving you. You wanted to be present and active in all corners of the world, through the apostolic activity and ordinary work of this unworthy servant. You wanted to suffer death for me; you gave me your flesh as nourishment and strength for my soul. I want to detach myself from everyone and everything that may keep me away from you; I want to love and embrace you only, my beloved Savior and to spread your love.

Who shall separate me from the love of Christ? O beloved Redeemer; whom shall I love but you, who are infinite goodness and worthy of infinite love. Who shall be my treasure in heaven but you, whom I love while on earth? God in my heart, God my inheritance, God forever! Truly, my God, where could I find, in heaven or on earth, someone better than you? Or someone who loved me more than you?

Thy kingdom come. O good Jesus, I beseech you, take command of all my heart; I offer it entirely to you. Take possession of it for ever. Drive away from it any affection that is not directed to you. I choose you forever as my only wealth and inheritance: Deus cordis mei, et pars mea, Deus, in æternum.

May my plea always be: Jesus, give me your love and your grace, and I shall be absolutely rich. That I may love you and be loved by you, thus, I will be completely satisfied. I do not desire anything other than this; I do not seek anything else.

Nevertheless, Lord, you know my weakness; I have not been faithful to you. Thus, continue helping me with the grace of your Holy Spirit, always acting in my soul, and never permit me to be separated from your pure love. Do not let me break away from you. I am telling you this now; I want to say it always. Grant that I may be able to repeat it until the end of time: Ne permittas, ne permittas me separari a te.

O blessed Mother Mary, my hope, you stood sorrowful at the foot of the cross actively cooperating with the redemption accomplished by your Son; obtain from God a double gift for me: perseverance in sanctity and in the love of God and an increasing zeal to spread his love; I shall request no more.

Ah! My Lord, how could I have offended you so many times, knowing that, by sinning, I displeased you infinitely? Pardon me, I implore you, through the merits of your passion. Tie me fast with the bond of your love. Do not allow the stench of my sins separate me from you. Make me recognize more and more your goodness and love, which is your essence, and your charity with which you loved me.

You wanted to make present your sacrifice, here, and allowed me to offer it united to the priest; I desire, from now on, good Jesus, to dedicate myself entirely to you. You fastened me to yourself with countless proofs of your charity; never let me go away from you, I beseech you. I love you, my God, and I want always to love you. Having known your love, how could I live removed from you, without your grace?

For so long you have endured my insolence when I was living without your grace. I thank you for that and also for granting me more time to love you. Had I been destroyed then, I would not have been able to love you any longer. But since I can still love you, I want to love you with all my strength, most sweet Jesus. And I choose, from now on, to do your will in everything.

I love you, o infinite Goodness; I love you more than I love myself. And since I love you, I give you my body, my soul, my mind and my entire will. Do with me, Lord, as you please; dispose of me as you wish; I accept whatever you will. I ask for nothing else; just grant me the grace of loving you forever. Give earthly goods to those who yearn for them; I desire nothing else but to love you and to be loved by you, to persevere in your grace. Everything is important for me insofar it leads me to you, increases my love for you, and leads others to you.

Father, my Father! Leaning upon the pledge of your Son, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask anything of the Father, he will give it to you in my name,” I, your son, ask you perseverance in holiness, which is the grace of loving you with all my heart, and an ever-increasing thirst for souls. From now on, I promise to fulfill your will completely in everything.

Jesus, you became a victim for me; you gave yourself to me; I want to give myself to you; I want to offer you my entire being. You told me, “Give, my son, you heart to me.” Here you have it, Lord; here you have my heart and my soul. They are yours; I dedicate myself entirely to you, what I am, what I have, my work and my apostolic activity.

Even so, eternal Father, you know I am weak. Help me. Do not let my will run away from you by sinning against you. Do not permit it in any way. Grant that I may love you permanently. Grant that I may love you as much as a son of yours should, as Saint Josemaría did. Just as your Son, dying on the cross, cried out with a loud voice, “Consummatum est,” I also would like to claim, in the day of my death, that I have kept your commandments, that I have been faithful to your will.

Grant me the grace to run to you, always, in every temptation and danger of sin; that I may never fail to implore your help.

O blessed Mother Mary, you told us, “Do whatever my Son, Jesus, tells you.” I know you can ask anything from God; you are powerful in your petitions to God. Request this grace for me: that at the time of temptation I may find always shelter in the Heart of Jesus and seek you as my refuge.

Jesus, my Lord, I realize how hard it was for you, and how much you had to suffer so that I may have life. You died for me, you resurrected and opened the gates of heaven for me, and you sent the Holy Spirit to remain constantly with me. You made it easy for me to love you. Yet, why was I so ungrateful? How many times I exchanged your grace with depraved enjoyment and desires! And I lost you, my Lord and my God. I went after material benefits and pleasures that cut me off from you. Showing no gratitude, I was carried away from you. Forgive me, my God. I beg pardon for my offenses and the ingratitude they entailed; with all my heart I regret my wrongdoings. And I hope for clemency from you, who are infinite Goodness. If you were not infinite Goodness, I would be in despair, and I would no longer dare to implore your compassion and mercy. I thank you, my love, because you did not send me at once to hell, which I deserved; you have been patient with me for so long. I should be attracted to love you, my God, merely by taking into consideration your patience with me. Who could ever put up with me, but you, who are God of infinite compassion and mercy? For long you have been inviting me to love you; I do not want to resist your love any longer. Here I am; I give myself entirely to you. Enough with my prolonged life of sin; now I want to love you!

I adore you, o supreme Good of mine. I worship you, o infinite Goodness, with the Father and the Holy Spirit. I love you, my God, who deserves infinite love. And I want to repeat always, in the present time and in eternity, I love you, I love you.

My God, how many years have I squandered without loving you, without growing in that love! Instead, I wasted these years sinning against you, unconcerned for the good of the others.

Nevertheless, my Jesus, your body and blood are my hope. I shall never cease loving you –so I hope. I do not know for how long I will survive; yet, I offer you entirely whatever is left of life for me, be it short or long. I would like to die as Saint Joseph did, surrounded with your love and that of my mother Mary.

Up till now you have been waiting for me, my beloved Lord. Now, I want to please you unquestionably; I want to love you, semper amare, teque solum diligere volo. Where is my happiness? Where is my honor? What are my riches? Only you, my God, only you are and will always be my love and my all.

Yet, I can do nothing without the help of your grace. Pierce, I beseech you, my heart; inflame it with your holy love; join it together with your heart, and join it in such a way that I may never separate from you. You promised to love those who loved you: Ego diligentes me diligo. Now, I love you; pardon my audacity, but I would request, please, love me too. Do not let me do anything that may hinder your love for me in any way. I know that anyone who is not in love, is dead. Deliver me from this death, for it is death not being able to love you. Grant that I may always love you, and that you may be able to love me; thus, our love will be everlasting; you and I will never break up. Grant me this grace, Eternal Father, through the love of Jesus Christ. Grant it to me, delightful Jesus, in attention to your merits for which I hope to love you for ever, and, in turn, to be loved by you.

Holy Mary, Mother of God and my mother, Saint Joseph, my father and lord, you too intercede for me before Jesus.

O God, Father of infinite majesty; here I am, a traitor, who failed so grievously in his duty, prostrated at your feet! Time and again you refrained from punishing me for my sins; and I, despising your protection and rejecting your gifts, covered you with wounds again. Out of blindness, others have sinned in darkness; I did it in the light, knowingly. Yet, hear the voice of your Son, who is now in my heart. He is pleading on my behalf for pardon and compassion. Spare me, o infinite Goodness, for the love of Jesus Christ, because I am heartily sorry for having offended you, my Father.

I know that, for the love of Jesus Christ, you were gladly appeased towards the sinner: “Through Christ He was pleased to reconcile to himself all things.” Through the same love of Christ be also appeased towards me. Through Jesus, I am your son too. Do not throw me away from your face, even so I deserve it. Grant me your forgiveness and let your Holy Spirit change my heart. Cor mundum crea in me, Deus.

Do this, my Father, at least for the honor that you deserve, because you chose me as an apostle to place the cross of your Son, Jesus, on top of all ordinary human activities. Make me live as a son of yours should. Give me the kind of heart such person should have to be able to love you permanently.

Let your Holy Spirit take possession of my poor heart. Extinguish, I beg you, and destroy in me all inordinate earthly affections with the fire of your love. From now on, make me grateful to you for the many benefits you bestowed on me, and for the great love with which you loved me. If, in the past, I spurned your friendship, now I value it higher than all the wealth of the world. Being accepted by you means more to me than all riches and pleasures of heaven and earth.

Abba Father! For the love of Jesus Christ, disengage me from all material attachments. You wanted your disciples to be disengaged from all worldly allurements so that they live only for you, for your service, and for your glory. Since I know you want this from me, I resolve to do it; but you, please, continue helping me with your grace. Carry me entirely towards you.

In work and in adversity, Lord, give me patience and willingness to serve. Make me a mortified Christian for love of you. Give me a spirit of true humility, so that I will rejoice when others think of me as deficient and even wretched. Teach me to do your will; show me what you would like me to do; I will carry it out to the end. Yes, Lord, I have heard the silent cry of your people, “Give us Christ; only Christ; always Christ!” And I want to be an image of Christ for them. Let your Holy Spirit remove from me what disfigures the beauty of this image.

My God, receive this sinner who wants to love you. Until now, I have sinned grievously against you, but now I want to love you and be yours. My Father God, I want and I hope to love you forever. Thus, I want to love you much in this life, to be able to love much in eternity.

And because I love you, I also want you to be known and loved by all. Lord, since you called me to apostleship and the salvation of souls, help me to turn everything I do into prayer and apostolate.

I hope to obtain all these benefits through your merits, my Lord Jesus. Mary, my mother, intercede for me. While Jesus offered and immolated his flesh on the cross, you, mother, offered and immolated your spirit; teach me to be united to the sacrifice of your Son.

Good Jesus! How could you have chosen me to follow you closely from among thousands worthier than me! I, who turned my back on you over and over again, and rejected your grace in exchange for a mirage of gratification! Most lovable Jesus, I feel the pang of guilt and I regret my sins wholeheartedly. Tell me, did you forgive my sins? I hope you did. Certainly, you have been my Redeemer not only once, but every time you have absolved me. Ah, my Savior, I wish I had never offended you! I wish to hear again what you told the paralytic: “Your sins are forgiven.” O wash me more and more from my guilt and cleanse me from my sin. Lord, let me feel received into the embrace of your grace by bestowing in me a greater sorrow for my faults.

Into your hands, Lord Jesus, I commend my spirit; you have redeemed me, my God and supreme Truth. O divine Shepherd! Once, you descended from heaven to seek me, a lost sheep, and, every day, by the work of the Holy Spirit and the ministry of the priest, you descend on the altar for my sake. You laid down your life to give me life everlasting; do not abandon me. Into your hands I commend my soul; receive it according to your great mercy, and let me never be separated from you.

You shed your blood entirely for me. Te ergo quaesumus, tuis famulis subveni, quos pretioso Sanguine redemisti –Come then, Lord and help your people, bought with the price of your own blood. Now, you are my elder brother and my defender, not so much my judge. Request from your Father my absolution; send me the living water of the Holy Spirit –light for my mind and fortitude for my will– so that I may love you with all my soul. Grant that I spend the rest of my life in such a way that, when I be looking at you as my judge, I may contemplate you reconciled.

Reign, I beseech you, in my heart with your love; make me all yours. My beloved Savior, make me always remember how great the love with which you loved me is, and how much you had suffered to save me; make me realize how hard you labored to provoke my love for you. O how much you had to pay for my love –Ah, quanto ti costò l'avermi amato! I want to love nothing apart from you – for this you made me your brother, friend, and disciple.

My Lord Jesus, I want to please you in everything. I love you and I do not want to put my heart in anything that may separate me from your love. Make me humble and patient in my work, meek in disappointments. May I despise worldly complacency. Let the Holy Spirit keep my heart away from inordinate attachment to creatures, and assist me to throw away any affection that would not lead me to you.

I implore and hope for all this, through the merits of your passion. O Jesus, my source of joy, lovable Jesus! O bone Iesu, exaudi me!

My mother Mary, Spouse and Temple of God the Holy Spirit, Spes mea, Sedes Sapientiæ! Hear my plea and intercede for me before Jesus.

Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. Most lovable Jesus, you came again this morning to make present here the sacrifice of your cross, and to sustain me; I thank you wholeheartedly.

Since you came to me, talk to me, please, and tell me what you want from me; I promise I will do everything. I do not deserve to have a conversation with you any more. Repeatedly, I have refused to listen to your voice. You were calling me to your love, and I –showing no gratitude– turned my back on you. It is true, I made penance for my sins, but still, I am sorry for them. I know you have forgiven me. Tell me what you want me to do; I am prepared for anything you want. Paratum est cor meum.

If only I had loved you constantly, my God! But, woe to me! How many years I have squandered! Yet, your Holy Spirit who remains constantly within me, your precious blood and your promises give me hope to make up for the wasted time. From now on, I desire to use my time loving you and keeping you happy.

I love you, my Redeemer; I love you, my God. I desire nothing else but to carry on loving you with all my heart; I wish I could lay down my life for your love, seeing that you desired to suffer death for my love. I shall repeat with St. Francis: “Joyfully I would die for your love, because, joyfully, you chose to die for my love.”

Jesus, you gave yourself entirely to me; you gave me your blood, your merit, your life; you suffered torment and agony for me; exhausted, you retained nothing. Thus, I give myself totally to you; I offer to you all my enjoyment, all my rest and recreation, all my work, my body, my will, my soul; I do not have anything else to give you. If I had, I would give it to you. Having you, my beloved Jesus, is sufficient for me. Having you is having it all. “Quien a Dios tiene / nada le falta / sólo Dios basta.”

Lord, that I may always be faithful to you! Prevent me from going away from you; keep me from changing my will. I hope I will never do, my Savior, through the merits of your passion.

I was taught, “No one was frustrated who hoped in the Lord.” Thus, I place all my trust in you. In you, Lord, have I trusted; let me not be confounded for ever. All my hope is in you, my God, and I want to remain firm in this same hope until the end of time. All snares of the devil I will drive back if I remain in you. “In te, Domine, speravi, non confundar in æternum.”

My elder brother Jesus, you are Almighty, make me holy. Make me love you more and more. I want never to omit or neglect any action that would increase your glory. I want to please you in everything I do, to persevere till the end. Remain with me forever! How happy would I be if I lost everything but found your love! For this purpose you brought me to the world, for this purpose you made me an apostle; I want to live my life serving you. As Saint Josemaría considered, “If life didn’t have as its aim to give glory to God, it would be detestable –even more, loathsome.”

I do not deserve presents, but punishment; punish me then as you wish, provided that your grace is not taken away from me.

You loved me without limit, o infinite charity, o infinite Goodness, in the same measure I love you and shall love you evermore. Forever will I love the Holy Will of God! My Jesus, you died for me; if only I could die for you and achieve, with my death, that all loved you! Jesus, infinite Goodness, infinitely lovable, I love you above everything!

Most blessed Virgin Mary, pull me up to God; increase my trust in you. Make me always seek you as my refuge. Make me holy by interceding for me before your Son, Jesus; I ask this of you, my mother.

Adapted from the writings of St. Alfonsus M. of Liguori (1696-1787)

Charles Belmonte