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| Lucifer's confusion about Christ being the messiah |
During
the whole course of the Passion Lucifer with his demons moved about, eagerly
spying out all the circumstances of each event in order to ascertain whether
Christ the Lord was really the Messias and Redeemer of the world. On the one
hand the miracles seemed to argue the truth of his suspicions, on the other
very often the doings and the sufferings, so much like those of weak human
nature, argued the contrary.
The strongest argument for the truth of his
suspicions was Lucifer’s personal experience of the power of the Redeemer, when
He said “I am He,” which caused him and all his associates to fall prostrate,
annihilated in the presence of the Lord; and this had happened only a short
time after he had been permitted to issue from hell, whither the demons had
been hurled from the Cenacle. It was true, Mary had routed them from the hall
of the last Supper; yet Lucifer with his ministers connected it with the power
exercised by Jesus and they could not but admit, that this power of both Mother
and Son was something altogether new and unexperienced by them. When he had
received permission to rise from his fall in the garden, he conferred with the
rest and expressed his opinion, that this could not be merely human power, but
without doubt the power of One, who is God and at the same time man. “If He shall die, as we have planned, He
will accomplish the Redemption of man and satisfy the justice of God; then our
sway will cease and all our intentions will be frustrated. We have erred in
seeking his death. If now we cannot prevent his death, let us see how far his
endurance will go and excite his enemies to torture Him with most impious
cruelty. Let us stir up their fury against Him; let us suggest to their minds
new insults, affronts, ignominies and torments to be inflicted upon his Person;
let us drive them to vent upon Him all their wrath in order to exhaust his
patience, and let us carefully study the results.”
Satan trying to find out about Christ messiah ship
These proposals the
demons sought to realize, although, on account of the hidden mysteries alluded
to above ,they found that not all of their plans succeeded. Whenever they
incited the executioners to inflict tortures unbecoming his royal and divine
Person, the Lord would not permit such indignities farther than was becoming,
while He gave free scope to their inhuman barbarities and savage fury in all
the rest.
The
great Lady of heaven, Mary, likewise interfered in order to curb the insolent
malice of Lucifer; for She was well aware of all the designs of the infernal
dragon. At times She would make use of her sovereign power as Queen to prevent
some of the hellish suggestion to reach the ministers of the Passion; at others
She prevented their execution by her prayers, or She enlisted the service of
her holy angels to drive away and confuse the persecutors of her Son. Those
sufferings, which by her great wisdom She knew, that her Son wished to undergo,
She permitted, fulfilling in all things the divine will.
