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88.1
First Point
Saint John was so specially loved by Jesus Christ that he is called
his well-beloved disciple above everyone else. Saint John himself, not
wishing out of humility to name himself in his Gospel, does not call
himself anything but the disciple whom Jesus loved.[i]
Here are the ways the Savior showed him his special love: he
allowed John to rest his head on his chest;[ii]
he revealed to John the highest mysteries of his divinity and of his holy
humanity; when dying he chose him to take his place and be the adoptive
son of his holy Mother.[iii]
Saint Jerome gives us no other reasons for such a special love on
the part of Jesus for Saint John except that he always remained a virgin.
This was what made him so worthy of the friendship of Jesus, to whom this
virtue is especially dear.
You are in a state where you need to be honored by the friendship
of Jesus; cherish very specially, then, this favorite virtue of Jesus, so
that this divine savior may love you tenderly and take pleasure in being
with you, for his delight is to be with pure persons. Also, apply yourself
much to prayer, in which Jesus will teach you secrets that remain unknown
to most people.
88.2
Second Point
If Saint John was much loved by Jesus, he also loved Jesus very
much. The first sign he gave of this love was that he gave up everything
in order to follow him.[iv]
If Saint John followed Jesus to Mount Thabor where he manifested
his glory to his apostles, [v]
he also accompanied him to Calvary,[vi]
where he appeared as an object of malediction,[vii]
although all the other disciples had abandoned him.[viii]
He was, then, the only apostle who followed Christ even to death, for he
wanted to be the witness of his sufferings right up to the end.[ix]
He was also the first to be at the tomb of Jesus Christ to make
sure of the truth of his resurrection,[x]
and to be able afterwards to announce it to the others.
See what his tender love made Saint John do in order to respond to
the love of Jesus for him. Reflect often that since Jesus gave himself
entirely to us and for us, we, too, should give ourselves totally to him,
do everything for him, and not seek ourselves in anything. Our whole care
should be to detach ourselves from all things, in order to attach
ourselves to God alone, because nothing is equal to him, and he is the
only one to whom we can securely give our hearts.
88.3
Third Point
The love Jesus had for Saint John and Saint John had for Jesus
produced a reciprocal love of Saint John for the Blessed Virgin, and of
the Blessed Virgin for Saint John. From the moment when Jesus, dying on
the cross, entrusted his holy Mother to his dear disciple and gave him to
her as her son,[xi]
Saint John always kept the Blessed Virgin close to himself, and gave her
all the marks of tenderness that a son can have for his mother. He took
care of her in all her needs, and the Blessed Virgin in return honored
Saint John with her protection before God.
If we have love for Jesus and are loved by him, we cannot fail to
be deeply loved by the Most Blessed Virgin. For, since there is such a
very close union between Jesus and his most holy Mother, all those who
love Jesus are specially loved by him greatly honor Mary, and are also
deeply cherished by this holy Mother of God. Let us make ourselves worthy
of this tenderness of the Blessed Virgin, and to obtain what we desire
from her more easily let us address ourselves to Saint John; as her dear
son in place of Jesus, he will secure for us from he what by ourselves we
cannot obtain.
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While
this meditation does not allude to the apostolic work of the Brothers,
there is a relationship with the Brothers’ spirit of zeal in the
mediation’s focus on love for Jesus; this might be considered as a
companion to the previous mediation on Saint Stephen, which focuses on the
spirit of faith, for zeal is the second element of the spirit of the
Institute. This feast is of very early origin in the church.
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