Today, again, it is Catholic Spain that offers one of her Sons to the Church, that she may present him to the Christian world as a model and a patron. Vincent Ferrer, or, as he was called, the Angel of the Judgment, comes to us proclaiming the near approach of the Judge of the living and the dead. During his lifetime, he traversed almost every country of Europe, preaching this terrible truth; and the people of those times went from his sermons striking their breasts, crying out to God to have mercy upon them,--in a word, converted. In these our days, the thought of that awful Day, when Jesus Christ will appear in the clouds of heaven and judge mankind, has not the same effect upon Christians. They believe in the Last Judgment, because it is an Article of Faith; but, we repeat, the thought produces little impression. After long years of a sinful life, a special grace touches the heart, and we witness a conversion; there are thousands thus converted, but the majority of them continue to lead an easy, comfortable, life, seldom thinking on Hell, and still less seldom on the Judgment wherewith God is to bring Time to an end.

It was not thus in the Christian Ages; neither is it so now with those whose Conversion is solid. Love is stronger in them than Fear; and yet the Fear of God's Judgment is ever living within them, and gives stability to the new life they have begun. Those Christians who have heavy debts with Divine Justice, because of the sins of their past lives, and who, notwithstanding, make the time of Lent a season for evincing their cowardice and tepidity, surely, such Christians as these must very rarely ask themselves what will become of them on that Day, when the Sign of the Son of Man shall appear in the heavens, and when Jesus, not as Saviour, but as Judge, shall separate the goats from the sheep. One would suppose, that they have received a revelation from God, that, on the Day of Judgment, all will be well with them. Let us be more prudent; let us stand on our guard against the illusions of a proud, self-satisfied indifference; let us secure to ourselves, by sincere repentance, the well-founded hope, that on the terrible Day, which has made the very Saints tremble we shall hear these words of the Divine Judge addressed to us: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (St. Matth. xxv. 34)!

Vincent Ferrer leaves the peaceful cell of his Monastery, that he may go and rouse men to the great truth they had forgotten,--the Day of God's inexorable justice; we have not heard his preachings, but, have we not the Gospel? have we not the Church, who, at the commencement of this Season of Penance, preached to us the terrible truth, which St. Vincent took as the subject of his instructions? Let us, therefore, prepare ourselves to appear before Him, who will demand of us a strict account of those graces which he so profusely poured out upon us, and were the purchase of his Blood. Happy they that spend their Lents well, for they may hope for a favourable Judgment!

How grand must have been thine eloquence, O Vincent, that could rouse men from their lethargy, and give them to feel all the terrors of the awful Judgment. Our forefathers heard thy preaching, and returned to God, and were pardoned. We, too, were drowsy of spirit when, at the commencement of this holy Season, the Church awakened us to the work of our salvation, by sprinkling our heads with ashes, and pronouncing over us the sentence of our God, whereby we are condemned to die. Yes, we are to die; we are to die soon; and a Judgment is to be held upon us, deciding our eternal lot. Then, at the moment fixed in the divine decrees, we shall rise again, in order that we may assist at the solemn and terrible Judgment. Our consciences will be laid open, our good and bad actions will be weighed, before the whole of mankind; after which, the sentence already pronounced upon us in our particular Judgment will be made public. Sinners as we are, how shall we be able to bear the eye of our Redeemer, who will then be our inexorable Judge? How shall we endure even the gaze of our fellow-creatures, who shall then behold every sin we have committed? But above all,--which of the two sentences will be ours? Were the Judge to pronounce it at this very moment, would He place us among the Blessed of His Father, or among the Cursed? on his right, or on his left?

Our fathers were seized with fear when thou, O Vincent, didst put these questions to them. They did penance for their sins, and, after receiving pardon from God, their fears abated, and holy joy filled their souls. Angel of God's Judgment! pray for us, that we may be moved to salutary fear. A few days hence, and we shall behold our Redeemer ascending the hill of Calvary, with the heavy weight of his Cross upon him; we shall hear him thus speaking to the Daughters of Jerusalem: Weep not over Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children: for if in the green wood they do these things, what shall be done in the dry (St. Luke, xxiii. 28, 31)? Help us, O Vincent, to profit of these words of warning. Our sins have reduced us to the condition of dry dead branches, that are good for nought but to burn in the fire of divine vengeance; help us, by thy intercession, to be once more united to Him who will give us life. Thy zeal for souls was extreme; take ours under thy care, and procure for them the grace of perfect reconciliation with our offended Judge. Pray, too, for Spain, the country that gave thee life and faith, thy Religious Profession and thy Priesthood. The dangers that are now threatening her require all thy zeal and love; exercise them in her favour, and be her faithful protector.

O glorious Apostle and worker of miracles, St Vincent Ferrer, new angel of the Apocalypse and our kind protector, receive our humble prayers and obtain for us a copious shower of divine favors. By that love with which thy heart was inflamed, obtain for us from the Father of mercies the pardon of all our sins, confirmation in the Faith, and perseverance in good works; so that by living as good and fervent Christians we may become worthy of thy powerful patronage. Extend thy patronage also to our bodies, and free us from our infirmities. Protect our lands from the violence of tempest and hail, and keep misfortune far from us. Thus, blessed by thee in the goods of soul and body, we shall be ever devout to thee, and one day see thee in heaven, there with thee to praise God forever and ever. Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ, who wiliest that no man should perish, and to whom supplication is never made without the hope of mercy, for Thou saidst with Thine own holy and blessed lips: "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, shall be done unto you"; I ask of Thee, O Lord, for Thy holy name's sake, to grant me at the hour of my death full consciousness and the power of speech, sincere contrition for my sins, true faith, firm hope and perfect charity, that I may be able to say unto Thee with a clean heart: Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit: Thou hast redeemed me, O God of truth, who art blessed forever and ever. Amen.

First Prayer: Most faithful St. Vincent, you who with so much zeal extended the faith of Jesus Christ, grant, I pray you, that uniting my works to my faith, I may have, like you, a living faith; that till the last moment of my life, I may desire to live and die in the faith which you had, and that, like you, I may be able to say to my Lord: "I believe, O Lord, I believe."

Second Prayer: O most amiable St. Vincent, grant that after your example I may unite my hope to my faith, resting solely on the bounty of the Lord. And though I own myself unworthy, on account of the numberless sins which I have committed, yet I nourish in the depth of my heart a firm hope of being able to bless and extol throughout eternity, the mercies of my God.

Third Prayer: O most good and kind St. Vincent, you who are all inflamed with charity, obtain for me the grace to love God above all things, that burning with a holy love, I may never offend my God through interest, or for the sake of any worldly pleasure; but that I may for ever love Him, and implore His Divine Love. "Diligam te, Domine: diligam te, virtus mea" (Psalm xvii. 2).

Fourth Prayer: O most humble St. Vincent, you who have the most profound sentiments of humility, obtain for me from our Lord, I beseech you, this virtue, that I may forever fix my thoughts on my misery, my imperfections, and my nothingness. Grant that I may never be assailed by pride, and that, in order to keep myself humble and little in my own estimation, I may have always present to my mind, this great truth, "God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble." "Deus superbis resistit, humilibus autem dat gratiam" (James iv. 6).

Fifth Prayer: O most pure St. Vincent, who until death preserved unstained the beautiful lily of your virginity, vouchsafe that I may keep my mind pure in the sight of God, that I may have a horror of every impure thought, and that, through your intercession, God may grant my prayer. "Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a right spirit within my bowels." "Cor mundum crea in me, Deus, et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis" (Psalm 1. 12).

Sixth Prayer: O great St. Vincent, you who were a martyr of penitence, obtain for me from God the spirit of compunction and a true sorrow for my sins, that I may weep over them, and detest them with a truly contrite heart, and that I may thus receive God's pardon of them, which I humbly implore. "A contrite and humble heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise." "Cor contritum et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies" (Psalm 1. 19).

Seventh Prayer: O St. Vincent, you who wrought such wondrous miracles, you will never reject the humble supplications of those who consecrate themselves to your worship. I beseech you to be my Protector in life and in death. In life to help me in my necessities; in death to assist my soul, that it may attain eternal salvation, and that thus, having glorified God through you on earth, I may glorify Him with you in heaven, forever and ever. Amen.

O God, Who by the salutary preaching of Blessed Vincent, Thy confessor, didst mercifully call the multitude of the people to the ardor of Thy love and to the fear of the terrible judgment, grant, we beseech Thee, that through his merits and intercession, we may stand secure at that awful judgment, and enjoy Thy promises in eternal beatitude. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

In the middle of the fourteenth century there dwelt at Valencia, in Spain, a pious couple, who were not less distinguished by birth than by the virtues which adorned their lives. These were William Ferrer, a descendant of an ancient Catalonian family, and Constance Miguel, the daughter of a naval officer and kinswoman of the Bishop of Valencia. They had already been blessed with two children, when a third was born to them on the 23rd of January, in the year 1350.

History affirms that certain remarkable signs preceded the birth of this child of benediction. One night while the father slept, he dreamed that he entered the church of the Dominicans at Valencia, when one of that Order was preaching to the multitude from the pulpit, and that the preacher, turning towards him, addressed him in these words: "I felicitate you, William; in a few days you will have a son who will become a prodigy of learning and sanctity; he will be the object of your delight and the honour of your house; the world will resound with the fame of his wondrous deeds; he will fill heaven with joy and hell with terror; he will put on the habit which I wear, and will be received in the Church with universal joy, as one of its first Apostles." Then it seemed to him that the people, who had attentively listened to what was said, thanked God with a loud voice for the marvellous news, and offered him their felicitations likewise. Delighted at these consoling predictions, he joined his thanksgiving to that of the multitude. When he awoke, he related to his spouse all that had transpired in the course of his dream, and they resolved to confer with their kinsman, the Bishop. To William's account of what had occurred Constance added two things equally singular, which she had herself experienced; the first was that from the commencement of her pregnancy she had felt none of the pains which usually accompany that state; and the second, that she frequently fancied she had heard the child, which was near its birth, give utterance to cries like to the barking of a little dog,--a circuмstance much resembling the vision of the Blessed Jane of Aza, the mother of St. Dominic.

The prelate clearly understood the meaning of these mysterious signs, and said to them: "Rejoice in the Lord; the child which you are about to bring into the world will be a worthy son of St. Dominic, and will be called to do much good among the people by his preaching. Take great care of him, and educate him holily, that he may correspond to the singular graces with which God will endow him."

As if to confirm the high opinion which was conceived of this child, God was pleased to work, while it was still in the maternal womb, by its mediation, a remarkable prodigy. Constance went one day to visit a blind woman on whom she was wont to bestow a monthly alms, and having given it to her as usual, she added, "My daughter, pray God that the child which I bear may arrive safe." The blind woman bent her head on the mother's bosom and said, "May God bestow that favour on you!" At the same instant her material blindness left her, and being suddenly illuminated in her soul with prophetic light, she exclaimed, "Madam, it is an angel you have, and it is he who has cured me of my affliction." The child, like another John the Baptist, applauded the words of the poor woman by leaping in the womb, and the mother herself gave testimony of it.

Such were the signs that preceded the birth of Vincent Ferrer. This birth was an event for the whole city. The principal inhabitants made it a point of duty to accompany the new-born to the baptismal font. Besides a municipal deputation, three of the chief magistrates were present; and as they could not agree on the name that was to be given to this predestined child, the priest who administered the sacrament was divinely inspired to name him Vincent, a name that was in every way adapted to his future destiny, inasmuch as he would one day attack so vigorously and conquer so gloriously, sin, the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Constance was unwilling that her son should be committed to the care of a strange nurse. This child was too precious to allow any one but herself to bestow on him the cares which tender infancy requires, cares which are doubtless wearisome, but nevertheless alwavs sweet to a mother's heart. She was amply rewarded for this devotedness on her part, for the little Saint gave her but small trouble. Seldom did he cry, and he would remain tranquil wherever his mother placed him. When not asleep in his cradle, he was peaceful and almost recollected. His open eyes would search eagerly for his mother, without being moistened with tears. Nature exhausted her gifts in his behalf. To a charming disposition, with which she endowed him, he joined also a countenance that was so sweet, well-shaped, and sympathetic, that all delighted to gaze upon him and to caress him.

An extraordinary event contributed not a little to increase his renown in the city. Vincent was yet in his cradle, and had hardly begun to lisp, when Valencia was desolated by a continued drought. Public prayers were offered up to obtain a refreshing rain, but not a cloud appeared in the sky. The whole population groaned under the calamity, and Constance shared the common affliction, when, one day, expressing her uneasiness, she heard the child in swathing clothes distinctly pronounce these words: "If you wish for rain, carry me in procession, and you shall be favourably heard." Cheered as well as surprised at these miraculous words, Constance hastened to the city magistrates to impart to them her message; the latter, considering on the one hand the probity and good sense of the mother, and on the other the marvellous signs which had already drawn public attention on the child, decreed that the procession thus indicated should take place. The little Vincent was carried triumphantly, and scarcely had the procession terminated than the sky became suddenly overcast, and copious rains fell for several hours upon the parched earth. This, and other miracles, bore Vincent's name to the court of the King of Aragon. Queen Eleanor, coming to Valencia, caused him to be taken to her palace that she might see him and caress him.

In learning to speak, the child learnt also how to pray, and was instructed especially in the mysteries of faith. These instructions were imprinted on his soul as upon soft wax, but when once they had taken root they attained the solidity of bronze. There was no need to teach him twice the same lesson on religious matters. This sacred seed bore in his heart its salutary fruits. Penetrated with a sovereign fear of God, and animated with a great desire for good, he carefully avoided everything that could, in the smallest degree, tarnish his innocence.

From his fifth year he showed an intelligence far above his age, which inspired his companions and others with singular veneration for him. He began to study when only six years old, and his masters discovered in him a keen intelligence and a soul full of ardour, which enabled him in a short time to make rapid progress in the knowledge of grammar and letters.

At the age of seven years Vincent entered the clerical state, and was even provided with an ecclesiastical benefice. At twelve his mind was so fully developed as to enable him to penetrate into the difficulties of philosophy, and he devoted two years to that abstract study. In fine, he commenced in his fourteenth year his theological course, and applied himself to this latter science till the time when he began seriously to think of determining the state of life to which the voice of God called him. At this period of his life the virtues of the youth had in nowise slackened. Their growth, on the contrary, was visible, for grace is never weakened in a soul which faithfully responds to its advances. It was his custom to assist daily at Mass, and his greatest delight was to serve the priest. His prayers were long and fervent. He had a tender devotion to our Lord's Passion. He said habitually the Little Office of the Cross, to which he added that of the Blessed Virgin. He fasted regularly on Wednesday and Friday every week. His tenderness for the poor led him into a thousand kinds of good works which charity suggested to him. But what we wish chiefly to remark in our Saint are the dispositions which he manifested from his earliest years for his future calling to the Apostolate.

When yet a child Vincent would commit to memory the leading points of the sermons at which he assisted, and repeat them to his family round the domestic hearth. Frequently drawing away his schoolfellows from their games, he would gather them around him, then mounting a hillock or fence, would recite to them with earnestness, grace, and unction, whatever his recollection inspired him with, imitating the gestures and movements of the preachers whom he most admired. He continued the same practices as he grew up. Thus, during the years of his boyhood, he accomplished much good among the youth of his own age, by speaking to them of God, of the soul, and of heaven. His example stamped on them a living impression. All looked upon him as a saint, so much did the grace of miracles appear to increase with his years. Many essayed to imitate his virtues and to walk in his footsteps, whom he lovingly directed by his good counsels.