The book, The Month of the Holy Souls, presents daily considerations for the month of November in the form of meditations and practical examples. The example for today is as follows.

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EXAMPLE

Gerson, Chancellor of the University of Paris, who was as renowned for virtue as he was for eloquence, relates in one of his writings, that a mother who had been long forgotten by her son, was permitted by God to appear to him, to tell her sufferings and solicit his prayers. “My son,” exclaimed she, “my dear son, think a little of your poor mother, who suffers so much. Reflect on the frightful torments which Divine Justice makes me endure in expiation for the sins of my mortal life. But the greatest of all these torments is remorse, the deep regret I feel for having loved God so little, who had granted me so many graces; for having offended so great, so holy a God, so enlightened a Judge, such a tender Father, such a generous benefactor. Oh, it is this thought which overwhelms and kills me at every moment; this gnawing worm is like to a sharp dagger which stabs without causing death, which tortures day and night, and draws from me tears of blood.

At the same time I am forced to cry out in striking my breast: ‘My God, Thou art just; if I suffer cruelly it is through my own fault, through my very great fault.’ 0 my son, if you still love me, take pity on me, draw out this dagger deliver me from the worm that gnaws me, and open heaven to me. One other thing I ask of you, my loved son, serve God better than your mother did, and when death comes, die with tears of repentance and a contrite heart.”

The youth was faithful to his mother’s warnings; he prayed much for her, and he himself died the death of the just.

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This anecdote comes from Month of the Souls in Purgatory by Abbé Berlioux, originally published in English in the year 1886. This book contains meditations and an example story for each day of the month. In an effort to preserve short inspiring stories from our Catholic past, every day for the month of November you can find the example story for the day published on the website under people/stories.

The same author also published similar books for the months of March (St. Joseph), May (Our Lady), and June (Sacred Heart). We are planning to post the stories for these months in the future, as well as re-publish a collection of these four books as a set, so be sure to check back in a few months.