Daily Reading for April 22
O Christian soul, O soul rid of death’s burden and restored to life, O soul redeemed and liberated by the Blood of God from wretched servitude, exert thy faculties, remember how thou hast been raised, consider thy redemption and thy setting free! Ask of thyself anew what is the power that saved thee, and where it is found; make it thy business to ponder thy salvation, and thy delight to contemplate the same. Shake off disinclination, rouse thyself to effort, constrain thyself to think about these things. Enjoy the Saviour’s kindness, and let love for thy Redeemer kindle thee. Chew on his words, as on a honeycomb; suck out their flavour that is more than honey-sweet; swallow their healthful sweetness down. Chew by thinking, suck by understanding, swallow by loving and rejoicing. Chew happily, suck thankfully, swallow delightedly.
What, then, is the power and might that saved thee, and where is it found? Christ raised thee up from death, assuredly; he was the Good Samaritan who healed thee; he was the Good Friend who laid down his own life to buy thee back and set thee free. Christ, I say. The power that saved thee, therefore, is the power of Christ.
From “A Meditation on Human Redemption” by Anselm of Canterbury, in Prayers and Meditations of St. Anselm (Mowbrays, 1952).