in which men should have been made wholly one, was become, by the malice of false teachers, the subject of separation.  I beheld whole nations thus snatched out of his bosom, and deprived of any participation in the treasure of graces left to the Church.  Finally, I saw all who were separated from the Church plunged into the depths of infidelity, superstition, heresy, and false worldly philosophy; and they gave vent to their fierce rage by joining together in large bodies to attack the Church, being urged on by the serpent which was disporting itself in the midst of them.  Alas! it was as though Jesus himself had been torn in a thousand pieces!

So great was my horror and terror, that my Heavenly Spouse appeared to me, and mercifully placed his hand upon my heart, saying:  ’No one has yet seen all these things, and thy heart would burst with sorrow if I did not give thee strength.’

I saw the blood flowing in large drops down the pale face of our Saviour, his hair matted together, and his beard bloody and entangled.  After the vision which I have last described, he fled, so to speak, out of the cave, and returned to his disciples.  But he tottered as he walked; his appearance was that of a man covered with wounds and bending beneath a heavy burden, and he stumbled at every step.

When he came up to the three Apostles, they were not lying down asleep as they had been the first time, but their heads were covered, and they had sunk down on their knees, in an attitude often assumed by the people of that country when in sorrow or desiring to pray.  They had fallen asleep, overpowered by grief and fatigue.  Jesus, trembling and groaning, drew nigh to them, and they awoke.

But when, by the light of the moon, they saw him standing before them, his face pale and bloody, and his hair in disorder, their weary eyes did not at the first moment recognise him, for he was indescribably changed.  He clasped his hands together, upon which they arose and lovingly supported him in their arms, and he told them in sorrowful accents that the next day he should be put to death,—­that in one hour’s time he should be seized, led before a tribunal, maltreated, outraged, scourged, and finally put to a most cruel death.  He besought them to console his Mother, and also Magdalen.  They made no reply, for they knew not what to say, so greatly had his appearance and language alarmed them, and they even thought his mind must be wandering.  When he desired to return to the grotto, he had not strength to walk.  I saw John and James lead him back, and return when he had entered the grotto.  It was then about a quarter-past eleven.