Fabiola : or, The church of the catacombs - Digital Repository Services

living in His fear, and dying in His favor, we may enjoy one
the other forever. Your good Nephew,
"WAITER DE L&LE, Priest."*
To Father Mordaunt he wrote :
" MOST REVEREND AND MOST DEAB FATHER,-
"As in duty I am bound never to forget you, -who have ever
had so tender and fatherly care of me, BO now, especially,
I must in uo ways omit to write to you, being the last time I
I am to end
must salute you ; for, unworthy though I be,
my days in the just quarrel of my Lord and Master, Christ
JESU.
"
Alas, Father ! what other thing can I desire than to suffer
with Chi ist, to be reproached with Christ; to be crucified
with Chri-t, to die a thousand deaths that I may live for ever
with Christ ? for if it be the glory of a soldier to be made like
his lord, God forbid I should glory in anything but the cross of
my crucified Lord. My greatest desire is to suffer ; and I
would I had as many lives to offer as I have committed sins.
Dear father, prepare yourself always to suffer, and animate
your spiritual children. God give me strength and courage,
and make me glorify his glorious name by my death. Let me,
therefore, dear father, be made partaker of your good prayers ;
TYBOESE.
and say, I beseech you, and procure others to say, some
masses for my sinful soul. Commend me to all our most dear
fathers and brothers of the Soriety of Christ my JESUS, in
whose prayers, labors, and sacrifices as I have a sh-ire, so have
I a great confidence. I have comfort in Christ JESU and his
Blessed Mother, my good Angel, and all the Blessed Saints ;
and I have much comfort in the valiant and triumphant mar-
tyrs that are gone before me, and I do trust much in their
good prayers.
" Once again, adieu ! I take my last leave of you,
mit you
and com-
to Christ JESU.
" Your poor debtor and Son,
WALTER DE LISLE, Priest."*
The last was addressed to Blanche and to Mary :
" MOST DEAB AND LOVING CHILDREN IN OUB LoHD,
" Be of good courage ; hereafter at the pleasure of God,
we shall meet in heaven : do not then weep, do not
we do for that you are hanged, drawn and quartered.' Dear
children, it is the favorablest, honorablest and happiest death
that ever could have chanced unto me. I die not for linavery,
but for verity ; I d e not for treason, but for religion ; I die
not for any ill-demeanor or offence committed, but only for my
f iith, for my conscience, for my priesthood, for my blessed
Saviour, Jesus Christ. We are not made to eat, drink, sleep, to
go bravely, to fe^d daintily, to live in tbis wretched vale Continually
; but to serve God, to please God, to fear God, and
to keep His commandments, which, when we cannot be suffered
to do, then rather must we choose to lose our lives than to
e our lives. Be of good cheer, then, my most loving children,
and cease from weeping ; for would you not be lad to
see me a bishop, a king, or an emperor? How glad, then, may
you be to see me a martyr, a saint, a most glorious and bright
star in heaven ! My sins are great, I confess, but I flee to
God's mercy ; my negligences are without number, I grant,
but I appeal to my Redeemer's clemency I have no boldness
;
but in His blood, His bitter passion is my only consolation. It
is comfortable th;it the prophet has recorded that 'He hath
writt/ n IM in Jlix hands.' Oh, that He would vouchsafe to
write Tlini -; If in our hearts. All that dulls me has been delay
* CbaUouor.
of my deatn it was not without cause that our Master said
;
]lm',rir, 'Qwoi /' for I had hoped e:
"l8
casting off the bod
glorified wounds of my sweet Saviour, nittiug