After receiving the
Viaticum, his one prayer had been to be able to speak with his favourite
disciples, and that God would give him words of truth, with the strength
to pronounce them. Now he felt that the Spirit filled his breast.
"Come near to me," he said.
The fair-haired youth, his face stained with silent tears, passed before
the others, and knelt beside the bed. The master placed his hand on the
youth's head, and continued:
"Remain united."
The painful unspoken words wrung their hearts still more cruelly, but
each one felt that Benedetto was about to give forth a last flicker of
instruction, of counsel, and they all checked their sobs. Benedetto's
voice sounded; amidst the deepest silence:
"Pray without ceasing, and teach others to pray without ceasing. This is
the fundamental principle. When a man really loves a human being, or an
idea of his own mind, his secret thoughts are ever clinging to his love,
while he is attending to the many various occupations of his life, be it
the life of a servant, or the life of a king; and this does not prevent
his attending carefully to his work, for he has no need to speak many
words to his love.
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