The second sword of sorrow that pierced the heart of Mary was the flight into Egypt. Simeon was the author and instrument in the hand of God of the first sorrow; Joseph was the great figure in her second sorrow. It seems to heighten whatever sufferings we may have to undergo when they are caused by those whom we love. This was the case now, and this sword of sorrow was so much the more cruel as the visitation did not seem to come from God, but from the cruelty of men. In this sorrow the hand of man was raised against the Lord, to put Him out of the way. It was like the crucifixion on Mount Calvary, for His death was intended, and on Calvary really executed. Mary and Joseph had to make arrangements for the hasty journey to an unknown country, in order to guard the Infant Jesus from the persecutions of Herod. Mary had to go to a country where there was no worship of the true God; there were temples only of impure idolatry. Alone, destitute, and wandering about, there was no human consolation in this exile; she was deprived of the practice of her religion, her spirit yearned after the courts of the house of God, with the multitude of worshippers gathered there on feast days; she loved the ceremonies of the old synagogue. In this secret sorrow she passed the days of her exile, until God relieved her by permitting her to return. Prayer. O Heart of Mary, I offer, etc., etc. Eighth Day. The most sorrowful feeling produced in the heart of Mary by her exile in Egypt, was caused by the thought of the hatred man had conceived against the Lord. This adorable Child carefully concealed every manifestation of His divine power. There was never on this earth a more lovable object than this Child, and yet man had turned against Him from the very first moment of His birth. It caused her heart great suffering to see that mankind did not appreciate the presence of the Incarnate Word; that it neglected the consideration of God’s goodness towards it. But how much more does she suffer when she beholds Him an object of persecution! He is a fugitive from the society of those very people whom He comes to save. All this Mary must have felt; for she loved her divine Son with a great natural love, and watched over Him with motherly solicitude. She loved Him also with a divine love, for she knew He was the Son of God, the Redeemer of mankind. This second sword of sorrow was not the transient realization of a mystery, which took place and then was over. No, it was a lasting sorrow, spreading itself over her whole life, for that persecution lasted until He died on the cross amid the shouts of an unfeeling people. Prayer. O Heart of Mary, I offer, etc., etc. Ninth Day.