Vigils Reading – St Clare
THE MIRROR
WITHOUT CLOUD
A letter from St Clare to Blessed Agnes of Prague
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Happy indeed is she who is granted a place at the divine banquet, for she
may cling with her inmost heart to him whose beauty eternally awes the blessed
hosts of heaven; to him whose love inspires love, whose contemplation
refreshes, whose generosity satisfies, whose gentleness delights, whose memory
shines sweetly as the dawn; to him whose fragrance revives the dead, and whose
glorious vision will bless all the citizens of that heavenly Jerusalem. For he is the
splendor of eternal glory, the brightness of eternal light, and the mirror
without cloud.
Queen and bride of Jesus Christ, look into that mirror daily and study well
your reflection, that you may adorn yourself, mind and body, with an
enveloping garment of every virtue, and thus find yourself attired in flowers and
gowns befitting the daughter and most chaste bride of the king on high. In this
mirror blessed poverty, holy humility and ineffable love are also reflected. With
the grace of God the whole mirror will be your source of contemplation.
Behold, I say, the birth of this mirror. Behold his poverty even as he was
laid in the manger and wrapped in swaddling clothes. What wondrous humility,
what marvelous poverty! The King of angels, the Lord of heaven and earth
resting in a manger! Look more deeply into the mirror and meditate on his
humility, or simply on his poverty. Behold the many labors and sufferings he
endured to redeem the human race. Then in the depths of this very mirror,
ponder his unspeakable love which caused him to suffer on the wood of the
cross and to endure the most shameful kind of death. The mirror himself, from
his position on the cross, warned passersby to weigh carefully this act, as he
said: All of you who pass by this way, behold and see if there is any sorrow like
mine. Let us answer his cries and lamentations with one voice and one spirit: I
will be mindful and remember, and my soul will be consumed within me. In
this way, queen of the king of heaven, your love will burn with an even brighter
flame.
Consider also his indescribable delights, his unending riches and honors, and
sigh for what is beyond your love and heart’s content as you cry out: Draw me
on! We will run after you in the perfume of your ointment, heavenly spouse. Let
me run and not faint until you lead me into your wine cellar; your left hand rests
under my head, your right arm joyfully embraces me, and you kiss me with the
sweet kiss of your lips. As you rest in this state of contemplation, remember your
poor mother and know that I have indelibly written your happy memory into my
heart, for you are dearer to me than all the others.