But what would you think if those gifts of the kind father served only to estrange from him the heart of his child? You would, undoubtedly, say that such a state of things was unnatural. Well, so it is, my dear brethren, with us, who, after all, are only children of an older growth. God, our Creator and Father, has given us life and all the things in this beautiful universe to enjoy. And all he asks in return is our love—our hearts. But, remember, he is not satisfied with an imperfect and partial love. He is a jealous God, and will allow no one to share our hearts with him. So that when men fix their affections on the things of this world without referring them to God, and use these gifts without regard to the Giver, they too are acting in an unnatural or, at least, in an irrational manner. Give your whole heart to God, brethren, and then you will enjoy his gifts, and, as St. Paul says, "When Christ shall appear, who is your life, then you also shall appear with him in glory."
Jesus came, and stood in the midst, and said to them:Peace be to you. And when he had said this,he showed them his hands and his side.The disciples, therefore,were glad when they saw the Lord.He said therefore to them again:Peace be to you.—Gospel of the Day.
He stood in their midst. To-day he stands in the midst of us and utters the self-same words, "Peace be unto you." And he shows us his hands and his side, and we are glad. And again he says, "Peace be unto you."
To be at peace with the world is the aim of many men. But to have one's life run smoothly on, to be hindered neither here nor there, to be always in the sunshine and never in the shadow, may bring us peace and gladness, but not the peace and gladness that our Lord would impart. For after his words of gentle salutation he showed them his hands and his side impressed with the wound-prints of his Passion, as if to say: "The peace which I wish you is that which comes after strife, conflict, and sorrow; that peace which is the rest and the reward for labor and endurance."
Yes, dear friends, ours is to strive, to contend with self, with a nature that is fallen, with a proneness to evil, with desires that are selfish and carnal. To contend with the world, to disavow its principles, not to listen to its temptations; to realize and to confess that pleasure, success, ease, money, fame, are not the objects for which a noble soul must seek, but that God is our true end, and that mortification and self-denial, the cross, are the true means to arrive at that end, the way to come to union with God.
To be at peace with the world; yes, I admit that it is a thing to be desired, but only so that we are at peace with Almighty God, too. And how is that peace gained? Only by the keeping of his law. At peace with the world, because the world cannot disturb one at peace with God; this is the Christian's life. But so great a boon is not gained without a strife, as the joy of Easter is not till the sorrow of the Passion has passed.
Our duty, then, dear brethren, is to strive, and to keep the law of God, that first law written on our hearts, that law which he has given to us both by his words and by his life on earth, and which he still repeats to us through his holy church.
Foolish, indeed, are we above all others if our Easter joy is only that of the worldling, and our peace that which the world gives. This is not the peace that comes after looking at his hands and his side; not the joy that the disciples felt as they gazed on the risen Saviour, who stands to-day here in our midst, as he did among those his first followers, and says to us, as he said to them, "Peace be to you."
We may have that peace, my brethren, if we are willing to obtain it and to deserve it as they did. We shall have it descend upon us, if, while we gaze at his hands and his side, we are conscious that we have indeed shared his Passion and cross. May indeed be ours this peace of God, which shall keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them:"Peace be to you."—From the Gospel of the Sunday.
Peace be to you! This is our Lord's Easter blessing, thrice repeated in the Gospel of to-day; and a blessing which all his faithful may obtain. And it is the one for which we are continually seeking, each in his own way, but which we can find nowhere but with him who to-day offers it to us.
What is this peace? Is it freedom from conflict? Is the Christian to have no battle to fight, no enemy to overcome? No, surely our Lord does not promise us such an easy road to heaven as this. "Do not think," he says, "that I came to send peace upon earth; I came not to send peace, but the sword." We must make up our minds, for the sake of the Christian faith, to sustain not only the assaults of the devil and of our own evil passions, but also the opposition of those who should be our friends. "A man's enemies," our Saviour goes on to say, "shall be they of his own household."
In this sense, then, we cannot hope for peace in this world. No, our lot must be, if we have really enlisted in Christ's army, that of all soldiers: war, and its turmoil. As St. Paul says it was for himself so must it be for us: "combats without, fears within." Struggles for our temporal life; for God has said to Adam our father, and in him to us his children: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread "; struggles far more terrible and momentous for our spiritual life, against flesh and blood, also "against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the world of this darkness," in which a single slip may mean eternal ruin, a single wound instant death.
Where, then, is our peace in this inevitable war, this contest which demands all the energies of our body and soul? What peace can we have while its issue is still uncertain, its events yet unknown? Surely it seems a mockery for our Lord to say, "Peace be to you," when he sends us not peace, but war and its alarms.
But it is not a mockery; he who cannot be deceived also cannot deceive. His words are faithful and true. He has really peace to give us—peace in the midst of combat, calm even in the storm.
When the storm arose on the sea of Galilee, and he was asleep in the boat, his disciples came to him, saying: "Lord, save us, we perish." But he answered: "Why are you fearful, O ye of little faith?" Was there not reason for them to be fearful, to lose their peace of mind, when death was staring them in the face, and all their efforts to save themselves were vain? No, not if they had faith to show that God was with them.
This, then, should have been their peace; this should be ours: the possession of God. He has given himself entirely for us and to us in the battle in which he has placed us. He fights on our side. What, then, have we to fear if we will only keep close to him? We are sure of the victory if we call him to our aid. As St. Paul says, "If God be for us, who is against us? He that spared not even his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how hath he not also with him given us all things?"
Peace, then, we should have in our spiritual combat; but how in the battle for our temporal life? Here we are not promised success; no, it must be defeat, at least in the end. We must lose at last by death all that we seek of the goods of this world. The peace which the world gives is then a delusion; it lasts but for an hour; the shadow of death is upon it. "O death!" says Holy Scripture, "how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that hath peace in his possessions!" Here again, therefore, our true peace is in the possession of him who is eternal; this is the peace which the world can neither give nor take away. All the storms of this world will not shake or disturb him whose house is built on this rock. "Who," again says St. Paul, "shall separate us from the love of Christ; shall tribulation, or distress, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or persecution, or the sword?"
This, therefore, is the true peace of the Christian: confidence in God, indifference to all that is not God. It is the peace of our Lord himself. "My peace," he says, "I give unto you." Let us ask him indeed to give it to us, now and for evermore.
Epistle.1St. Peter ii.21-25.Dearly beloved:Christ has suffered for us, leaving you an example that you should follow his steps. "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth." Who, when he was reviled, did not revile: when he suffered, he threatened not: but delivered himself to him that judged him unjustly. Who his own self bore our sins in his body upon the tree: that we, being dead to sins, should live to justice: by whose stripes you were healed. For you were as sheep going astray: but you are now converted to the pastor and bishop of your souls.Gospel.St. John x.11-16.At that time:Jesus said to the Pharisees: I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for his sheep. But the hireling, and he that is not the shepherd, whose own sheep they are not, seeth the wolf coming and leaveth the sheep, and flieth; and the wolf snatcheth and scattereth the sheep: and the hireling flieth, because he is a hireling: and he hath no care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd: and I know mine, and mine know me. As the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. And other sheep I have, that are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd.
For you were as sheep going astray;but you are now convertedto the pastor and bishop of your souls.—1 St. Peter ii. 25.
To-day is the Sunday of the Good Shepherd, and the church sings in joyful strains: "The Good Shepherd, who laid down his life for his sheep, yea, who was contented even to die for his flock, the Good Shepherd is risen again—Alleluia!" It is in this tender, loving, and, to us, most winning character that our Lord presents himself in the Gospel of to-day—the Good Shepherd, who knoweth his sheep, and acknowledges them as his own, whose tender care for them is so great that he is willing even to lay down his life for their sake, yet with the power to take it again for his own glory and for their eternal good. We are those sheep for whom he died, and for whom he rose again, for they are in the truest sense his sheep who believe in his name, and are gathered into his one fold, the holy Catholic Church.
But it is not enough to believe; we must also hear his voice. How have we done this in the past? Have we hearkened to his voice as he spake to us through the offices of the church, through the words of our pastors, through the still, small voice of conscience? Alas! we have been as sheep going astray. We have been deaf to his voice, as it has so often spoken to us, bidding us follow him. And, having strayed away from our Shepherd, we have refused to listen to the loving tones of that same sweet voice, calling us back to our place in the flock, but have wandered still further away into the pleasant pastures of sin, where all seemed delight for a time, but where the wolf, the great enemy of our souls, was lurking, waiting for his chance to seize us as his prey for ever.Oh! into what danger have we run by thus wandering from the right path! But now, during the holy season of Lent that is passed, the church has been appealing to us through her solemn offices, and through the earnest words spoken by her ministers, to forsake our evil ways, to leave the deceitful pleasures of sin, and return to where we can alone find pasture for our souls, to the sacraments of the church, wherein the Good Shepherd gives himself to his sheep. Many have hearkened to the call of the Saviour's voice, many have come during this holy time to the green pastures and the still waters, where the Good Shepherd feeds his flock, and, with souls restored and renewed, are prepared and determined to walk hereafter in the paths of righteousness, where he leads the way. Even when at last they shall walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death they will fear no evil, for he will be with them, his rod and his staff shall comfort them.
But there are also many, far too many, who have not listened to the voice of Jesus, as he calls them in this blessed Easter-tide. Poor, wayward sheep, they still wander in paths of their own choosing, which can only lead them into danger and into death. O foolish, wandering ones! take heed ere it is too late to the gentle voice that calls you. Your souls are soiled and sin-stained, and you have need to be washed in the stream which flows from your Shepherd's side, his Precious Blood shed for you when he laid down his life for your sake.Come, wash and be made clean in the Sacrament of Penance which he has ordained for your cleansing. You were as sheep going astray; be now converted and return to Jesus, the pastor, the shepherd, the bishop of your souls. You have been famishing for the food you need for your spiritual sustenance. Come, then, to him who so graciously and tenderly invites you to the table which he has prepared for you. Draw nigh with joy to the heavenly banquet of his Sacred Body and the goodly, overflowing cup of his Precious Blood, that your souls may be fed and have life eternal. Then will you be strong in the presence of your enemies, his mercy will follow you all the days of your life, and you will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever, even in that house of many mansions which he has prepared for those who love and follow him. For he has said of those who hear his voice and follow him: "I give them life everlasting, and they shall not perish for ever, and no man shall snatch them out of my hand." And remember that other promise of his: "He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood has everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day." Yes, poor, lost sheep though we have been, if we now turn from our wayward paths to hear his voice and follow him, he will raise us up at the last day, and place us among his favored sheep upon his right hand, to be glad for ever in the light of his countenance.
That Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts.—Ephesians iii. 17.
Holy Writ teaches us in many places, my brethren, that God dwells in our hearts by charity, and here we are taught that he dwells by faith also. Of course, the meaning is the same. For an elect soul to know Christ is to love him. And even for a reprobate soul to know the truth of religion is that indescribable boon which makes a possible salvation capable of becoming quickly real. How terrible the misfortune of the Calvinist who believes that a bad life necessarily means absence of faith! How consoling to know that our sinful friends, if they have but the true faith, have a seed of eternal life which may yet spring up into a fruitful tree!
Yet it is terrible to think of how some men trifle with their faith. Brethren, look at the end and judge the beginning by it. The end of wicked men is damnation, hopeless and eternal. Now, what is the faith in hell? Something that makes the Christian's torment altogether peculiar. There the name of Christian, now so noble, now entitling its bearer to pardon for every sin if but breathed forth with an act of sorrow—there the name of Christian will be a nickname. In one way he will have more faith then than now; he will know more of revealed truth, have a clearer knowledge of heavenly things. But then the hand wounded by the nail, and which now is never out of reach, will be withdrawn finally and for ever.Imagine the agony of a soul in hell, whom each article of faith will cause for ever to wail and weep only this one sentence: "It is all my own fault." Brethren, you may complain that this sort of preaching does not provoke to much mirth. But there are those who should know that for them this ought to be a time of weeping and not of being merry: persons who have faith in their hearts, but not Christ. For see how men in Italy, holding fast to the truth with one hand, have with the other set up the abomination of desolation in the holy place. And see how, in France, men who deem themselves insulted if called anything but Catholics, yet deliberately rob the children of the people of the bread of life by establishing paganism in the schools. And see how many there are among us whose faith, instead of being a rule to live by, an irresistible attraction towards our Lord in a true grief for sin and strict union with him, sealed by frequent Communion, is but something handed down from father to son, like name and color and race—a traditional faith—and this proved by their vicious lives.
But happy are they in whose hearts faith has prepared a dwelling for our Saviour. Our Lord is surely present within us if we are in the state of grace. Hear what he says: "If any one love me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him, and will make an abode with him." He comes, indeed, silently; he hushes the festive greetings of the angels who escort him; he hides the dazzling glory of his ascended triumph, for now it is faith and not sight. But there in the heart he none the less dwells. We live with him. The Christian feels his presence. He has an interior life whose very breath is that presence.He is stamped with our Lord's character. Such a soul is truly and literally calledfaithful—faith-full. And once you are intimately acquainted with him you perceive in his ways and actions that our Lord lives with him. Better yet, he perceives it himself. How different he is from one whose knowledge of religion is mere persuasion of the mind and empty talk! With the true Christian knowledge is power. To know the true faith is for him to know how to live: better yet, to know how to suffer, how to wait, how to love, how to die.
Brethren, this congregation is divided into two parts—those who are to be saved and those who are not. Those of you who are to be saved are those in whose hearts Jesus Christ actually dwells by faith. Those who are to be lost are those whose faith means that Christ has a claim against them, payment of which they will postpone till it is too late.
He delivered himself to him that judged him unjustly.—Epistle of the Day.
I suppose, my dear brethren, that there is no grievance to which we are subjected more common, and certainly there are few more distressing, than that of being judged unfairly by others. As Catholics we are all specially liable to this; we all know how Protestants, even those who profess to be quite friendly to us personally, and who sometimes will say a good word or two for our religion, still calmly assume, as a matter of course, that we believe and practise many things which we and all intelligent and honest men detest and abhor.They say, for instance, that we worship images; that we pay money not only to have our sins forgiven, but even for permission in advance to commit new ones; that we believe the pope to be Almighty God; that we maintain that the end justifies the means; and so on to any extent. It was only a few days ago that it was unblushingly stated in an assembly of one of their sects that the Catholic Church was more guilty in the matter of permitting divorce than other denominations. There seems hardly to be a falsehood about us so gross or so absurd that some of them will not be found to believe and to assert it.
And we of the clergy are more exposed to these slanders than any one else. They say, they take for granted, that we are hypocrites and deceivers; that under a cloak of sanctity we practise all kinds of vice; that we do not believe a word of what we teach; that our only object in our profession is to exercise power or to make money; these things and many others pass current in the world about us, so we are looked upon by many as detestable wretches not fit to live. In us, especially, are our Lord's words fulfilled: "You shall be hated by all men for my name's sake."
But it is not only from outsiders, or in matters where religion is concerned, that we have to put up with false charges and unjust suspicions. In our own private character and actions we all find ourselves liable to them; we find our neighbors and acquaintances judging and even speaking unfairly about us.Priests suffer in this way sometimes from their own parishioners; the laity perhaps from the priest, and often certainly from each other. How frequently we hear people complain of slander or belying from those whom they supposed to be their friends; one would think that it was not the exception, but the rule.
Now all this is certainly very hard to bear. And yet as we go through life we cannot expect to be free from it; and we must try to find a way of bearing it as well as we can. What is the best way?
One way, and a very good way, of putting up with this trouble is to make allowances for the unavoidable prejudice, ignorance, and imperfection of those who say about us what we know to be false, who do to us what we know to be unjust. They may not, they do not, know this as well as we do. "Father, forgive them," said our Lord on the cross, "for they know not what they do." We think others are slandering or injuring us through malice; ten to one they think they are in the right. Probably we ourselves should act just the same way in their place.
Make allowances, then; give our neighbors more credit for good intentions; that is one way to put up with this suffering which we cannot altogether avoid or put a stop to. But a better and perhaps an easier way is the one recommended by St. Peter in to-day's Epistle. "Dearly beloved," he says, "Christ suffered for us, leaving you an example that you should follow his steps. Who did no sin, neither was guilt found in his mouth. Who, when he was reviled, did not revile; when he suffered he threatened not, but delivered himself to him that judged him unjustly."He, the holy, the innocent one, was more wickedly and unjustly accused and judged than any of us sinners have been, or ever can be; shall we not then bear, if need be, the same treatment for his sake? To be spoken evil of falsely is to be like him; it is the mark, the badge of the Christian. This is the example he has left us that we should follow his steps; shall we refuse to profit by it?
Epistle.1St. Peter ii.11-19.Dearly beloved,I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims to refrain yourselves from carnal desires, which war against the soul; having your conversation good among the Gentiles; that whereas they speak against you as evildoers, considering you by your good works they may glorify God in the day of visitation. Be ye subject therefore to every human creature for God's sake; whether it be to the king as excelling, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of the good; for so is the will of God, that by doing well you may silence the ignorance of foolish men: as free, and not as making liberty a cloak of malice, but as the servants of God. Honor all men; love the brotherhood; fear God; honor the king. Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward. For this is thankworthy, in Christ Jesus our Lord.Epistle Of The Feast.Genesis xlix.22-26.Joseph is a growing son, a growing son and comely to behold; the daughters run to and fro upon the wall. But they that held darts provoked him, and quarrelled with him, and envied him. His bow rested upon the strong, and the bands of his arms and his hands were loosed by the hands of the mighty one of Jacob: thence he came forth a pastor, the stone of Israel.The God of thy Father shall be thy helper, and the Almighty shall bless thee with the blessings of heaven above, with the blessings of the deep that lieth beneath, with the blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of thy father are strengthened with the blessings of his fathers: until the desire of the everlasting hills should come; may they be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the Nazarite among his brethren.GospelSt. John xvi.16-22.At that time:Jesus said to his disciples:A little while, and now you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me: because I go to the Father. Then some of his disciples said one to another: What is this that he saith to us: A little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me, and because I go to the Father? They said therefore: What is this that he saith, a little while: we know not what he speaketh. And Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him; and he said to them: Of this do you inquire among yourselves, be cause I said: A little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me? Amen, amen I say to you, that you shall lament and weep, but the world shall rejoice: and you shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman, when she is in labor, hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but when she hath brought forth the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. So also you now indeed have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice; and your joy no man shall take from you.Gospel of the Feast.St. Luke iii.21-23.At that time it came to pass:When all the people were baptized, that Jesus also being baptized and praying, heaven was opened: and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape as a dove upon him: and a voice came from heaven: Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased. And Jesus himself was beginning about the age of thirty years: being (as it was supposed) the son of Joseph.
Go to Joseph, and do all that he shall say to you.—Genesis xli. 55.
It is Joseph's nearness to Jesus and Mary during his life that leads us now, when he reigns with them in heaven, to confidently call upon him for succor in our needs, and especially do we go to him because to his patronage the whole church has been commended, that by his intercession he may do for her and each of her members what he did for Jesus and his Mother when he was in the flesh.
Wisely has the church made him her protector, for his power with God must be very great. Of this we can have no doubt, when we remember that to his care were entrusted the purest and the best who have ever walked this earth—Jesus and Mary—Jesus, the Son of God; Mary, his stainless Virgin Mother, whose chaste soul the Holy Ghost made his dwelling-place, delighted with its beauty.
Above the seats of all the bright angels who serve in the courts of the Most High Mary's throne was raised, and one day she would be the angels mistress and queen; Jesus was their Lord, their Maker, before whom they bowed in lowliest reverence. And yet Mary was Joseph's spouse, and Jesus rendered him the obedience a son should give a father. Very worthy must he have been who held so high an office.
Joseph was a necessary member of the family. He served as a veil to screen from the vulgar gaze the deep mysteries of the Incarnation and Nativity; he led the way into Egypt, and his faithful arm supported the Mother and the Babe during the journey; he brought them back to their own land and provided shelter for them; their daily bread was the fruit of his labor—in a word, during the boyhood and youth of our Lord they were entirely dependent upon him.
Such, then, was Joseph's position in the Holy Family; he was the master and guardian of the household; and this is what the church would have him be in every Christian family. It is you, Christian fathers and mothers, who should be especially devout to St. Joseph, for he is your patron in a particular manner. You, like him, have the cares of the household upon you; you must provide for the life and health of the children God has given you; it is your duty to see that they are instructed in the faith and attentive to their religious duties, and that they study their school lessons; you should guard them against the dangers they must meet with in a great city like this, and keep them away from those who may lead them to evil; and, above all, you should give them good example in the practice of virtue. To fulfil your duties well you need divine assistance. Go to Joseph—go to the foster-father of Jesus Christ; he will intercede for you, and obtain the many graces of which you stand in need. Go to him and tell him all your troubles; you will find him very gracious.
But St. Joseph is the patron not of heads of families alone. The church would have you all, dear brethren, "go to Joseph and do all that he shall say to you." From him she would have you learn a tender love to Jesus, a love manifesting itself in deeds, not simply in words. Joseph devoted himself to the service of our Lord, and so should we.But how can we presume to say that we love or serve Jesus if we do not keep his commands; if we neglect our duties as Catholics and as members of society? Let us show how much we love him by doing something for him, as St. Joseph did, and let us, like him, be constant in our well-doing, permitting no day to pass without some acts of love to God. And if we would hope to make progress in the ways of God, let us daily "Go to Joseph and do all that he shall say."
I have yet many things to say to you,but you cannot bear them now.—St. John xvi. 12
These words were spoken by our Lord in his last discourse to his disciples. What were those things which he had yet to say to them, but which they could not then bear?
They were things pertaining to the kingdom of God—that is, his church, his kingdom upon earth. He was about to leave the world and go to the Father, but he would leave behind him an organized body to represent him. During these forty days, then, he sketched out the plan of the Catholic Church, which the Apostles were to bring to completion, under the guidance of the Holy Ghost, who was to teach them all truth.
These were the many things he had yet to say to them, but which they could not understand till then, because of their former imperfect and even erroneous notions of the nature of his kingdom upon earth. He had spoken of his church before, as it were, in hints; now he speaks no longer in parables, but plainly. Listen to the few recorded words of those which he spoke during these forty days, and you will find in them an outline of the Catholic Church.
He first asserts his authority to found a kingdom in this world, saying, "All power is given to me in heaven and on earth"; and then declares that he commits this same authority to his Apostles and their successors in the church: "As my Father hath sent me, I also send you." And, lest any one should say that this power and authority were given to the Apostles alone and not to their successors, he bids them go forth into all the world to preach the Gospel to every creature, and promises them his continual abiding Presence even to the end of the world. One of the Apostles he invested with a special authority over the others. The Good Shepherd would not leave his sheep in this world uncared for, so he gave to St. Peter and his successors the office of pastor of the whole church in the words, "Feed my lambs. Feed my sheep." He also set forth the means of obtaining entrance into this earthly kingdom of his namely, faith and holy baptism—"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved "; and he declared the blessedness of those who would accept the faith upon the authority of his church: "Blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed."He provided a means by which those who should sin after baptism might find pardon and remission of their sins by instituting the Sacrament of Penance, giving to his Apostles and their successors the power to forgive and retain sins: "Whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain they are retained." He had already instituted on the night before his Passion the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and during those forty days he undoubtedly gave his Apostles the necessary instructions concerning the rest of the sacraments of the new law. The Gospels do not pretend to give us all our Lord's doings and sayings, as St. John expressly tells us at the end of his Gospel. But in these recorded sayings of Jesus, during this last brief time that he spent on earth, we have the written constitution of the Catholic Church, though but in outline. The office of the pope as supreme pastor, the plenary authority of the church, and the necessity of faith upon that authority as a means of obtaining eternal salvation—all this is clearly set forth in the words that I have quoted to you.
"Go, teach all nations," said our Lord to his church; and he added, "teaching them to observe whatsoever I have commanded you." On our part, then, is required faithful submission to his teaching, as it comes to us through the voice of his church. It is only by faith in this teaching and by a diligent observance of the commandments of God and his church that we can hope to save our souls and attain to the blessedness which he has promised.
Epistle.St. James i.17-21.Dearly beloved:Every best gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change nor shadow of vicissitude. For of his own will hath he begotten us by the word of truth, that we might be some beginning of his creatures. You know, my dearest brethren, and let every man be swift to hear, but slow to speak, and slow to anger. For the anger of man worketh not the justice of God. Wherefore casting away all uncleanness, and abundance of malice, with meekness receive the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.Gospel.St. John xvi.5-14.At that time:Jesus said to his disciples:I go to him that sent me, and none of you asketh me: Whither goest thou? But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow hath filled your heart. But I tell you the truth: it is expedient to you that I go: for if I go not, the Paraclete will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he shall come, he will convince the world of sin, and of justice, and of judgment. Of sin indeed: because they have not believed in me. And of justice: because I go to the Father; and you shall see me no longer. And of judgment: because the prince of this world is already judged. I have yet many things to say to you: but you cannot bear them now. But when he, the Spirit of truth, shall come, he will teach you all truth. For he shall not speak of himself: but what things soever he shall hear, he shall speak, and the things that are to come he shall show you. He shall glorify me: because he shall receive of mine, and will declare it to you.
And he said to them:What are these discoursesthat you hold one with another? …And they said: Concerning Jesus of Nazareth.—Luke xxiv. 17-19.
Brethren: Suppose our Lord should stand in our midst to-day and demand from each one of us, as he did from these two disciples, What are these discourses that you hold one with another? Do our conversations, like theirs, contain nothing reprehensible? Would our answer be as pleasing to God as theirs was? If so, brethren, we have reason to thank God, and go on our way rejoicing. But of what do the majority of men most readily converse? It is sad that we have to confess it, but God and his works, the soul and its wants are topics anything but agreeable to most of the men of our day. And so every legitimate means must be resorted to in order to make the things of God and spiritual conversation at all palatable.
And you, fathers and mothers of families, what are these conversations which you hold one with the other? What are the topics most commonly treated of in your Christian homes? Is it the virtues of your neighbors that are spoken of and recounted for your own edification and your children's imitation? Would to God it were always so! But there are homes supposed to be occupied by Christians where God's holy name is never mentioned save to be blasphemed, where the neighbor is never spoken of except to recall his follies, his vices, or even his atrocious crimes.Christian parents, beware of the scandal your conversations may give to your family, but especially to your innocent children. Remember that many a soul to-day steeped in vice received its first sinful impulse from some unguarded word, some improper topic of conversation heard in the home that should have been the nursery of every virtue.
And from you, young men and women, an answer might be profitably demanded to this important question: What are the conversations which you most readily indulge in one with the other? Are they in any way improper, or such that you would be ashamed to have them repeated in the presence of your parents? If so, then your discourses are not concerning Jesus of Nazareth, and you are not following the example of his disciples. But if in your conversations, following the Apostolic rule, the things that savor of uncleanness are not so much as mentioned amongst you, what is to be said about the precious time you squander in idle, frivolous talk? Remember that time is but the threshold of eternity, every moment of which is of the highest value to you now; and this is why on the last great day we shall be held to account for every idle word. Young men and women, never admit into your company those whose conversations are unworthy of a Christian, and especially let your own language be always in harmony with your high calling.
Indeed, brethren, to all of us this question of our Lord brings home an important lesson. For if we would lead good Christian lives we must not only abstain from all that is unbecoming or scandalous, but we must also regulate with all diligence our ordinary commonplace conversations.Let them be always such that we would not hesitate to repeat them before God or his most virtuous servants. If we would have our conversations agreeable to God and men, we should make it a rule never to speak disparagingly of thoseabsent, and never take advantage of their absence to say anything which we would not dare say in their presence. And the other rule we should follow is this: never to say in the presence of others anything which could give scandal or leave a bad impression.
Brethren, if we think often of this question of our Lord, if we are diligent in following these rules, our conversations will be always edifying to our neighbors and useful to ourselves. Then, if called upon at any moment by our Lord, we can answer with his disciples, Our conversations are "concerning Jesus of Nazareth."
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation;for when he hath been proved,he shall receive the crown of life,which God hath promised to them that love him.—St. James i. 12.
These words, my dear brethren, are from the Scripture read in the Divine Office for to-day. They also, and very appropriately, have a prominent place in the Office read on the feasts of martyrs through the year.
"Blessed is the man that endureth temptation." "Yes," you may say, "certainly, if a man does endure and resist temptation, it is a good thing, and one for which he has reason to be thankful; but for my part, I would rather get along without being tempted." This is a thought which is very likely to occur to those who are in earnest about saving their souls, and are therefore afraid that they may give way to temptation, commit mortal sin, and be lost. They are inclined to envy others who seem to have a good and innocent natural disposition, and sometimes they may, perhaps, wish that they themselves had died in their baptismal innocence, before temptation and sin were possible.
Now this wish is not altogether wrong; it is certainly pleasing to God for us to desire that it might be impossible to offend him, and that our own salvation might be made secure. But it is a mistake, when he does allow temptation to come on us without our fault, to think that it would be better for us if he had not done so.
It is a mistake, and why? Because far the greater part of us cannot acquire supernatural virtue in any high degree, give much glory to God, or be entitled to much reward at his hands, without a good deal of temptation. If it would please God to infuse all the virtues into our souls without any trouble or labor on our part, it might indeed be very well; but this he is not bound to do, and generally he does not choose to do it. He prefers that we should obtain our virtues partly by our own exertions. And as we will not pray or meditate, do penance or mortify ourselves enough to accomplish this end, there is no way to make any virtue strong and hardy in us except by forcing us to oppose its contrary vice.It is quite easy to seem very pleasant and good-natured when one has no crosses or provocations; but let a sharp or insulting word be said, and it will soon be seen how much real patience there is in this seeming good-humor; perhaps passion will flame out all the more violently for being long in repose. But if one's patience is often tried, and stands the test by means of our own earnest struggles, it will become after a time something which we can really count on.
This, then, is one good in temptation, that it makes our virtue really strong and solid for future use. But another value of it is to enable us to make acts at the very moment which will have an eternal reward and merit, and which we should never make were we let alone. Let one be tempted by impure thoughts for a day, and faithfully resist them; in that day he will perhaps have done more to please God and obtain merit and glory in heaven than in a year of ordinary life.
So if temptation comes without our own fault, we may indeed rejoice and count ourselves blessed, as St. James says; for it is indeed an earnest of the crown of life which our tried and strengthened souls shall win, and which shall be decked with the innumerable gems which our battles with sin have merited. But let us not allow it to come by our fault, for then we cannot hope for a blessing with it. "Lead us not into temptation," we say every day; profitable as the contest may be to us, it would be presumption to offer ourselves to it, or to ask from God an opportunity for it. Let us wait till he chooses to call us to the strife, and then thank him for the trial which shall give us, with his help, the crown of life which he has promised to those who love him, and for his love hate and resist sin.