V. THE EXCELLENCE OF THE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE ROSARY
(b)The Apostles' Creed.
"For with the heart, we believe unto justice: but, with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation" (Rom. x, 10).
Dear Brethren: At the beginning of the Rosary, the Apostles' Creed is recited. Everything that we must believe, in order to attain to eternal life, is contained in this Creed. It puts in explicit words all that of which the sign of the Cross is the symbol. Tradition tells us that this profession of faith originated with the Apostles, and for this reason it is called the Apostles' Creed. To be sure not all the dogmas of the Catholic Church are declared in the twelve articles of the Creed, but any dogmas not expressly mentioned are included in the ninth article, which says: "I believe in the Holy Catholic Church." In these words the Catholic declares that he believes everything which the holy infallible Catholic Church teaches and requires of us to believe.
The Creed is, therefore, by its origin, as well as its contents, a truly holy and excellent prayer. It we duly appreciate this beautiful prayer we shall say it with more devotion, to the greater glory of God, and our own good.
I. "I believe in God." With these words I express my firm conviction that there is a God, and that everything that God has revealed is infallible truth, because God is truth itself and can neither deceive nor be deceived. With these words I submit my mind, my reason and my will to the infallible authority of God.
"I believe in God the Father." This means that I believe that in God there are three Persons, of whom the first Person is called the Father because He is the origin of all existence; because from all eternity He begot the Son, who is equal to Him in essence but different in Person. Further, He is our Father because He created us His children.
"I believe in God, the Father Almighty." It is befitting that at the beginning of the Creed the omnipotence of God should be emphasized. Our faith contains many mysteries, which no created understanding can comprehend. Because I firmly believe in the omnipotence of God I profess that to God nothing is impossible.
In His omnipotence, God, the Father, created the world, calling it into existence from nothing. Hence we say: "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth." But God not only created the world, He also preserves and rules it through His omnipotence. As by virtue of His will He created the world, so does God cause it to continue in existence. A building erected by a master hand remains standing even though the master absent himself; yet the world, according to St. Augustine, could not continue to exist for one moment did not God preserve it. This world which God called forth from nothing would, the very moment that God should withdraw His almighty hand, fall back into nothing. "And how could anything endure if thou wouldst not?" Thus we read of God in the Book of Wisdom (ii, 26). Since we are then so utterly dependent upon God that at any moment He could cut the thread of our lives, how greatly should we fear to offend Him?
God not only preserves, but also rules the world; He is solicitous for all things; He orders and governs all things with wisdom and mercy to the end for which He created them. "The eyes of all hope in thee, O Lord: and thou givest them meat in due season. Thou openest thy hand, and fillest with blessing every living creature" (Ps. cxliv, 15-16). Of what little value is a flower which so soon withers? And yet the divine solicitude extends to this humble flower. Indeed, is not the flower of the field clothed more beautifully by the hand of God, than was Solomon in all his glory? What is there about a man of less account than a single hair of his head? And yet each of these hairs is counted, and not one falls from the head without the knowledge and will of God. We see how the care and providence of God extends to all things, even the most insignificant.
God, furthermore, orders and governs all things according to their appointed end. He created the world and all that is in it for His glorification and for the welfare of mankind, and provides in all things that this end may be attained. Nothing can withdraw itself from the rule of God. There is no blind chance, no blind fortune. The prophet Jeremias asks: "Who is he that hath commanded a thing to be done, when the Lord commandeth it not?" (Lam. iii, 37). "Thy providence, O Father, ruleth all things," so we read in the Book of Wisdom. And so God orders and disposes everything in our lives, that we may attain the eternal goal. We have but to commit ourselves to divine Providence and place our trust in God. For this reason we should exclaim with David: "The Lord ruleth me: and I shall want nothing. For though I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils, for thou art with me" (Ps. xxii).
In the first article we profess our faith, therefore, in the omnipotence of God, divine Providence, and all the divine attributes. God has created us and preserves us. But He has done still greater things for us. Is this possible? Yes, for God so loved the world that He sacrificed His only begotten Son for it. And this brings us to the second article, which comprises the truths we must believe of God the Son.
II. When the sin of our first parents had deprived us of the friendship of God as well as of our heirship to Heaven, there came to our rescue the second Person of the Godhead, the only begotten of the Father. The succeeding articles tell us of the love and sacrifice of the Son of God for our race.
The second article is: "And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord." What does this mean? It means I believe that He is the Son of God, God of God, true God of true God. It means I believe that He became incarnate for the sake of our salvation. It means I believe in the doctrines that He proclaimed, in the miracles that He performed. It means I believe in His presence in the holy Eucharist; in the effects of the holy Sacraments which He instituted. It means I believe in His holy Church, to which He transmitted His authority. To believe in Jesus Christ means, furthermore, to believe in His Passion and death, by which He redeemed the world; in His glorious resurrection and ascension. He is the Divine Master, and as such the supreme Lawgiver whom all creatures must obey. He is also the Judge of the universe, and as such will come again one day to preside at the general judgment, when He will judge all men according to their belief, according to the manner in which each one has observed or transgressed His commandments, used or neglected the means of salvation. Then will be the end of time; and mankind will go to its reward or to its punishment once and for all. All this is proclaimed in the articles of faith that treat of Jesus Christ. To believe in Jesus Christ means to believe everything that the Gospel teaches and everything which the holy, infallible Church requires us to believe.
The third chief part of the Creed declares what we must believe of the Holy Ghost, the third Person of the Godhead.
III. The Holy Ghost, the third Person of the Godhead, proceeds equally from the Father and the Son, from all eternity, and is of equal essence with the Father and the Son from eternity.
The Holy Ghost, sent by the Father and the Son, came down upon earth and took charge of the Church founded by Christ, in order to apply through it the fruits of redemption to mankind.
Only in the true Church of Christ can be found the fruits of the redemption; only in her is the true priesthood of the Lord. The fruits of the redemption here on earth are truth and grace, and in the hereafter eternal salvation. The divine truth, as proclaimed by Christ, is alone contained in the holy Catholic Church; and through the co-operation of the Holy Ghost it is preserved uncorrupted in this Church. The Church is the pillar and the beacon of the truth. She can not deviate unto the end of the world one tittle from the doctrine received from Christ, because the Holy Ghost guides the teaching Church in all truth, and sees to it that every truth is understood rightly by her and properly interpreted and explained. Hence, to submit ourselves to the Church's definition of the faith means to submit ourselves to the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost operates in the Church, through the priesthood, and thus applies to the faithful the fruits of the redemption, so as to sanctify them and prepare them for eternal happiness. Thus it is the Holy Ghost who sanctifies us, who makes us holy, as our Father in heaven is holy; who leads us to perfection, as our Father in heaven is perfect.
"I believe in the Holy Catholic Church," is the next article of our Creed. The Holy Ghost lives and operates in the Church. This Church is a "Communion of Saints," a communion of faithful, part of whom have already entered eternal life of bliss, and is called the Church Triumphant; another part is being cleansed from the remnants of sin in the place of purification, and is called the Suffering Church; a third part is still struggling on the battlefield of the world for the crown of eternal life, and is called the Church Militant. All are true members of this great community of saints and children of God, allied through the bond of love. This doctrine is very consoling to us. It opens to us, as it were, even during our earthly life, the portals of eternity. We may enter these in spirit, and seek and find help and consolation amongst our glorified brethren, and also carry help and consolation to our suffering brethren. One thing alone bars us from this glorious communion and shuts heaven against us, and that is sin. But in the Church there is provided for repentant sinners the Absolution from Sins, the remission of sin and its penalty. When we finally die in the grace of God our soul shall enjoy eternal life, and our glorified body shall be joined to it on the great day of resurrection.
This, then, is what we are taught to believe in the Apostles' Creed. When we say this Creed with devotion and perfect faith, we honor and glorify first of all the Blessed Trinity. But we refresh also the teaching of the Gospel in our minds, and thus strengthen our faith. It is an excellent means of awakening exalted sentiments of faith within us, and of inspiring us to a courageous profession of our holy religion.
The Creed is possessed of great power against the temptations of the evil one. The Apostle exhorts us "to resist the devil strong in faith" (I Pet. v, 8), and Holy Scripture calls the faith a shield against which the darts of Satan are broken. Thus is the Creed, according to its origin, and its contents, and efficacy, a holy and excellent prayer. In conclusion, let me quote an exhortation from St. Augustine: "Forget not," he says, "to recite the profession of your faith when you rise in the morning, nor when retiring at night; repeat it frequently, for its repetition is salutary for you, that no forgetfulness may arise. Your creed should be your mirror. Examine yourself therein as to whether you firmly believe everything you profess to believe, and rejoice daily in the possession of faith." Well, then, let us bear in mind this beautiful advice. Let us say the Creed daily, in order to strengthen ourselves in the faith but especially let us say it with great devotion as part of the holy Rosary. If here below we are true to the faith we shall one day behold in reality what we now see only with the eyes of faith, and in this vision enjoy eternal glory and bliss without end. Amen.
VI. THE EXCELLENCE OF THE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE ROSARY
(c)The Glory be to the Father
"Thou art worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory, and honor, and power: because thou hast created all things."—Apoc. iv, II.
Dear Brethren, we know that the "Glory be to the Father" occurs very frequently in the prayers of the Church and in our private devotions. In the Rosary it is repeated with every decade. This prayer of praise is of great significance for the Christian life. In order to understand its meaning better we must join in spirit the choirs of the blessed before the throne of God. Isaias, the great prophet of the Old Testament, to whom was vouchsafed a profound insight into the mysteries of God, had a vision of heaven, and he says, "I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and elevated, and his train filled the temple; upon it stood the seraphims: . . . and they cried one to another, and said: Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God of hosts; all the earth is full of his glory" (Is. vi, I). So also did John, the beloved disciple of Jesus, have the grace to see heaven, and he saw the angels of heaven, and with them the whole army of the saints and all the nations, tribes and peoples, standing before the throne in sight of the Lamb, and with a loud voice they praised God, who sat upon the throne, and the Lamb, who is the Lamb of God (Apoc. vii, 11).
Thus God has made known to us, through both these prophets, in what the unceasing occupation of the blessed in heaven consists. They behold the magnificent beauty of God and praise Him on account of His majesty, power and love, and this occupation of the dwellers in heaven should also be the task of the dwellers upon earth. It is indeed the duty of mankind, and an indispensable obligation. King David acknowledged this when he said: "I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall be always in my mouth" (Ps. xxxiii).
Therefore, our whole life and endeavor should be one uninterrupted "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost."
We will make this obligation the subject of our consideration.
I. The happy inhabitants of heaven as they behold God in His indescribable splendor extol Him with hymns of praise. To know God and to serve Him, to glorify Him, this is the supreme end of man, not only when he is admitted to heaven, but even here on earth. God himself tells us this through the Prophet Isaias. "In order," thus He speaks, "that man should glorify me, therefore have I created him and brought him forth from nothing."
We mortals as yet can not behold God as the blessed do in heaven; but we do behold Him in His works, and know Him from His revelation given us through the prophets, and through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
The works through which God has revealed Himself to us are creation, redemption and sanctification. Creation is a vast book which speaks to us unceasingly of God, and it is intelligible to all. If we contemplate the magnificence of the starlit sky we must exclaim with David: "The heavens show forth the glory of God, and the firmament declareth the work of his hands" (Ps. xvlii). Yet not only the heavens, but also the earth shows us, at every step, the omnipotence of God, His wisdom and love. Mountain and valley, forest and field, river and ocean, they all remind us of God, their creator. Every flower of field and meadow is a great masterpiece, which no mortal man could create.
The animal world presents still greater marvels for our consideration. The waters teeming with millions of animals of all kinds, from the smallest jellyfish to the ship-destroying monsters, the beasts of the forest, the birds of the air, they all are called into existence by God, and God has not merely called all these creatures into existence, but His providence preserves them, and not even a sparrow falls from the roof without His knowledge.
But we have not yet considered the masterpiece of creation: man, the creature with an immortal soul, created according to God's own image and likeness. In man body and soul are joined together in a wonderful unity, so that man presents in himself a combination of the spiritual and material.
Man is the masterpiece of creation, and all creation is for his service. "Thou hast made him a little less than the angels, thou hast crowned him with glory and honor; thou hast set him over the work of thy hands" (Ps. viii, 6).
In very truth we may say, therefore, the universe speaks to our mind and heart in powerful and impressive language. This language is its beauty, its appropriateness, its greatness.
But yet more plainly than creation does the redemption proclaim the glory of God. It is "not the immensity of the heavenly bodies," says St. Gregory, "not the brilliancy of the stars, not the adornment of the universe, not the preservation of the world, that point so much to the glory of the divine power and omnipotence, as does that divine condescension to the feebleness of nature."
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, descended from heaven and brought into the world a truer and fuller knowledge of God. The ancient people knew there was a God, but they knew Him not. The knowledge of the true God was drowned in paganism. Even among the Jews small had become the number of those who still possessed an undefiled knowledge of God. In the Old Testament there was only an intimation of the blessed Trinity, not a clear knowledge. Then Jesus Christ brought to us the knowledge of the Triune God. In Him the divine attributes of love, sanctity, justice, wisdom, omnipotence and mercy were presented to our minds so that we can comprehend them. He made known to us the merciful decrees which God had ordained for our temporal and eternal welfare. Through His bitter passion and death He reconciled us to the Father, and acquired for us the heirship of heaven. He founded the Church, the kingdom of God upon earth, and He rules it through the Holy Ghost, who proceeds from Him and the Father.
Through this Church are applied the glorious fruits of the redemption. Through this Church God would sanctify all mankind and lead them to eternal salvation. The Church and the communion of the saints reveal to us God's glory and love far more than all the wonders of the world. A single saint is a greater miracle of the divine grace than the whole universe. The redemption made of earth a preparatory school for heaven, and it behooves us, as St. Augustine says, in this life to give praise to God, because in heaven our work will be an eternal proclamation of the divine praises. Our whole earthly life, as a befitting preparation for heaven, should be an imitation of the life of the blessed in heaven. It ought to be a perpetual praise of God, until after a happy death we are admitted to the ranks of the celestial choirs.
II. Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God, who has brought to us the true knowledge of God, taught us also the true worship of God. After He had accomplished the work of the redemption and had founded the Church, He returned to heaven. Before this, however, He provided that He should also remain here upon earth. He instituted the most Holy Eucharist, the holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and thus remains in His Church until the end of time. Jesus, the Head of the Church, offers Himself to the Father unceasingly in the holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Thus the glorification of God takes place here upon earth as unceasingly as it does in heaven. The praise of God takes place here on earth, furthermore, through the' ecclesiastical hourly prayer, in which all the priests and religious of the Church unite throughout the world. The Church dedicates the Sunday exclusively to the praise and service of God. This day is to remind us of the creation accomplished by the Father, of the redemption accomplished by the Son, and of the sanctification accomplished by the Holy Ghost. On this day especially are the members of the Church invited to contemplate these great works of God, and praise and thank Him for the same.
The entire year has been divided by the Church into three great festival cycles, Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost, and thus is consecrated to the Triune God.
We are exhorted to receive the holy Sacraments, and thus participate in the fruits of the redemption, sanctifying ourselves by a Christian life. A truly Christian life is the best and highest worship of God here below, as it makes us worthy to be associated with the heavenly choirs, there to continue eternally our praises in the blissful vision of God.
We see then how the Church admonishes us to make our whole lives and all our works an unending "Glory be to God." In order that this may be accomplished we must above all things be faithful children and living members of the Church, brethren of Jesus Christ.
We must diligently and devoutly obey the Commandments, and receive the Sacraments. The light of faith should lead us and hope should draw us heavenward, the love of God and of our neighbors must fill our hearts. He who possesses these virtues is indeed in possession of all other virtues. Love is the bond of perfection, for who so loves God and his neighbor has fulfilled the law. We should make a good intention the first thing in the morning, and renew it frequently throughout the day. This certainly is not difficult. St. Paul exhorts us urgently to make this good intention in the words: "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatsoever else you do; do all things for the glory of God" (I Cor. x, 31)
To make this good intention, the "Glory be to the Father" is especially appropriate. If we utter the same frequently and devoutly we shall makes our lives a continual praising and glorifying of God, a perpetual prayer. Glory be to the Father, who has created us; to the Son, who has redeemed us; and to the Holy Ghost, who sanctifies us. Glory be to the Holy Trinity through all our thoughts, words and works, as glory was to God in the beginning, when He created heaven and earth, as now, and so too through all eternity in heaven. Yes, we will glorify God here below with the militant Church, so that we may be worthy to behold Him one day with the triumphant Church, and to praise Him in blissful rapture for all eternity! Amen.
VII. THE EXCELLENCE OF THE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE ROSARY
(d)The "Our Father"
"Lord, teach us to pray."—Luke xi, I.
Dear Brethren: The holiest, the most beautiful and most perfect, and for this reason the most efficient prayer is the "Our Father."
This prayer comes from Our Lord himself, who gave it to His disciples when they urged that He should teach them how to pray. The "Our Father," therefore, had its origin with God himself, and, therefore, is the holiest of prayers. It is a petition to His heavenly Father, composed by the God-man and bequeathed to us, His brethren. In this petition is contained everything we may ask for. Tertullian says in his writings that the "Our Father" contains not merely the things for which man ought to ask God, but also everything the Lord has taught and ordained, so that the whole Christian doctrine is briefly contained therein. The separate petitions are arranged according to their importance, and follow one another in a most appropriate way. Therefore, the "Our Father" is according to its origin, as also according to its contents and its form, the perfect prayer.
The divine Saviour promised that everything we ask of our Father in heaven He will give us. When we recite the "Our Father" we not merely pray in the name of Jesus, but in His own words. Hence the Lord's Prayer is to God the most pleasing prayer, and for that reason the most efficient and powerful of prayers. It is evident from the history of the Church that the Lord's Prayer has, at all times been held by the faithful in the highest esteem. It was used, as the fathers tell us, not only in public, but also in private devotions.
This holy, excellent and most efficacious prayer forms a part of the Rosary, and we will give it our consideration, in order the better to understand it, to appreciate it more fully, and to say it more devoutly.
I. The "Our Father" consists of a preface and seven petitions. The preface is intended to lift up our thoughts to God. Holy Scripture admonishes us to such preparation, "Before prayer, prepare thy soul: and be not as a man that tempteth God" (Eccles. xviii, 23). When beginning to pray we should present to our mind God as He is enthroned in heaven. We should approach God in humility and reverence with childlike confidence and love. Thus prepared for prayer we will be pleasing to God. To give our mind this disposition is the purpose of the preface: "Our Father, who art in heaven." Hence this preface should be said with devotion and piety.
The seven petitions of the "Our Father" contain everything a Christian ought and may ask for. But what may and should a Christian ask for? For all things necessary and serviceable for the proper fulfilment of his life work. This prayer contains petitions for everything necessary for the attainment of the last end for which we were created, and that is, in the first place, the glorification of God, and, in the second place, our eternal salvation. In the first four petitions Christ teaches us and commands us to beseech for the things that pertain to this last end, and in the last three petitions for protection against the things which hinder the attainment of this end.
1. The glory of God is the first and chief purpose of all creation, as also of redemption and sanctification. It should be the occupation of all mankind, as it is the occupation of the blessed in heaven. We glorify God when we recognize Him as the highest good; when we love Him above all things, with a childlike love, serve Him faithfully, worship Him in all our thoughts, words and actions. As we are unable to do this by our own strength we must seek the assistance of grace, which we do in the words of the first petition: "Hallowed be Thy name." By the words "Thy name" must be understood here, God himself, as He has revealed Himself to us and this petition is equivalent to saying: "Thou, O God, shalt be glorified by us and by all mankind." We ask in the first petition that God may not be blasphemed, but rightly known, truly loved and duly revered. We implore God in this petition to enlighten the heathen that yet stand in the shadow of death, and all unbelievers and heretics, that they may learn to know and adore Him; and to grant sincere conversion to all sinners. We also ask, for ourselves and our fellow Christians, the grace to grow in the knowledge of God, in His love and service and in Christian perfection, so that thereby God may ever be glorified more and more. A truly Christian life is our highest glorification of God, hence to obtain this grace we must diligently pray.
This petition is placed first, because it is the most necessary to the glorification of God and to our salvation. It is also the foundation of the other petitions.
2. In the second petition "Thy kingdom come," a threefold kingdom of God is meant, for the coming of which we pray. It is the kingdom of God about us, in us and above us. The kingdom of God about us is the Church of Christ. Christ founded it as His divine kingdom on earth, to glorify God and lead mankind to Salvation. We ask that God may grant to all men grace to recognize our holy Church asthedivine institution, to submit themselves to her authority, and to become members of this Church find order to properly worship the true God, to glorify Him, and thus work their salvation.
The kingdom of God is within us, when we allow ourselves to be ruled and guided not by the spirit of the world, but by the spirit of God. "Those who are moved by the spirit of God are God's children." In his soul is the kingdom of God established whose faith agrees with the teaching of the Church, who hopes, loves and lives in the true faith.
The kingdom of God above us is the kingdom of heaven. The Church on earth is the kingdom of truth, of grace, of virtue; it will become in heaven the kingdom of glory.
Through this triple kingdom God is glorified on earth and in heaven, and this is the first and chief aim of every created thing. Through this threefold kingdom we gain salvation, happiness and eternal life. That this threefold dominion of God may come to us and to all mankind we ask the Father in heaven in the second petition.
In order that what we ask for in the second petition may be attained we must comply with the third petition: "Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven." Almighty God is the supreme ruler of heaven and earth. All creatures in heaven and earth must submit themselves unconditionally to His holy will. God makes His will known to us through His commandments, and through His holy Church. We must be ready and willing at all times to do the will of God, and to submit to it in all things. We must obey His commandments, we must gladly and humbly submit ourselves to His dispensations, no matter what they may be. That God's will may at all times be done by us, and in us, and in all things, this should be our ardent desire, not with a servile fear but with filial love, as Jesus has taught us by His word and example. But this far surpasses our own strength and for this reason Jesus teaches and enjoins us to beg the Father that He may grant to us and to all mankind the grace to do at all times His holy will. By this faithful submission of our wills to the will of God we glorify God in the most perfect way.
3. In our earthly pilgrimage to heaven we require divine assistance in order to live our corporal and spiritual life according to the divine Will. For this reason Christ instructs us to pray in the fourth petition: "Give us this day our daily bread." That means: Give us, O God, what we stand in need of for body and soul that we may live according to Thy holy will.
We depend upon God in all things. He is our Creator and also our Preserver. We could not live a single moment without his aid. As we are composed of body and soul our wants are twofold, we have requirements for the body and others for the soul. We stand in need of food, shelter and clothing for body. All, rich and poor alike, must petition God for these, for each one stands in God's hand. God can cast the rich man down like Job, and free the poor man from all want. The word bread includes all necessities of life. "Give me neither beggary nor riches: give me only the necessaries of life" (Prov. xxx, 8).
That we are told to pray for our daily bread should remind us that we must not be too solicitous for the morrow. He who gives unto us to-day will also provide for us to-morrow if we humbly ask Him. We say:Ourbread, because it is our duty to earn it in an honorable manner by industry and labor. "He who toils not, shall not eat." We say alsoourbread, and notmybread, because we wish the poor who can not help themselves to have it as well as we ourselves, and we must share it with them as much as our means allow.
As our body requires nourishment, so does our soul. The food of the soul is the word of God, and the Bread of Life that came down from heaven. We must partake of this Bread of the soul by hearing the word of God, by reading and meditation, and by receiving the Sacraments.
Thus has Jesus in the four first petitions taught and commanded us to ask for everything that is necessary for the attainment of our last end. In the three remaining petitions He instructs us to pray for protection against all things which are obstacles to the attainment of that end.
II. In these three petitions we ask that everything may be averted that would hinder us from attaining our true goal, our salvation and the glorification of God.
1. This obstacle, however, is sin and its evil consequences and these three petitions have reference to sin and its evil consequences. We, like all men, are sinners, and in our sins we can not worship God properly, nor can we attain our salvation if God does not show mercy to us. For this reason we humbly implore God in the fifth petition: "Forgive us our trespasses." In these words we implore God to grant unto us and to our fellow men a sincerely contrite heart and to graciously forgive us our sins and the punishment due for them. As a condition of forgiveness, however, God exacts from us that we forgive those who have offended us, as fully as we desire that God forgive us. Therefore, we add: "As we forgive those who trespass against us."
2. In the sixth petition we implore God that He would graciously preserve us from falling into sin. "Lead us not into temptation." With these words we urge God that He should keep from us temptation to sin, or, if through temptation He desires to try us, that He grant us abundant graces to conquer it. Temptations do not come from God, but from our own nature, from Satan and from the world. God permits them in His wisdom to try our love for Him, to preserve us in humility, and to strengthen us, to animate our zeal for virtue and to increase our merits. God will assist us in temptation if we are exposed to it without any fault of ours.
Those, however, who court the danger will perish in it. They can not expect divine assistance who wilfully seek temptation and sin.
3. The seventh and last petition is "But deliver us from evil." After asking God not to lead us into temptation we urge Him to preserve us from evil of soul and body. We confidently trust God to guide us according to His wisdom and mercy, and to deliver us from everything which is an obstacle to our salvation, even if in our own shortsightedness we may think it good and desirable.
We conclude the "Lord's Prayer" with the little word "Amen," which is equivalent to "So be it." With this single word we confirm all our petitions. It means: "O God grant us these things for which we have just prayed."
Truly this prayer, taught us by Our Lord, is of high dignity and importance. It is not alone a prayer, but a sermon as well. It is a prayer which comprises in itself all other prayers. It is a prayer of praise, of thanksgiving and supplication. It is, therefore, appropriate for all occasions. Are you discouraged and faint-hearted, go and say the "Our Father." The thought that you have an all-merciful Father in heaven will lift you up, inspire you with confidence and comfort you. Do self-love and pride strive for the mastery within you, go and say, "Hallowed be Thy name." Is anger and malice in your heart, say, "Forgive us our trespasses at we forgive those who trespass against us." If impatience is your fault say, "Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven." When beset by temptation invoke God: "Lead us not into temptation," and in trial and adversity beseech God: "Deliver us from evil."
O that this holy and sublime prayer would be properly understood and appreciated. What blessings it would produce everywhere. May then our contemplation contribute with the blessing of God toward our own love of this wonderful prayer and greater devotion in its recital.
VIII. THE EXCELLENCE OF THE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE ROSARY
(e)The Hail Mary.
"And the angel said to her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women."—Luke i, 28.
Dear Brethren: To-day there is offered for our consideration one of the sweetest of prayers of our holy Religion. It is the "Hail Mary," or Angelical Salutation, which we say so often, particularly in the Rosary. Considered in its origin, its contents, and in its efficacy it is beautiful and sublime, and, with the exception of the Lord's Prayer, the most excellent. Its origin is to be had in the words which the Archangel Gabriel addressed to blessed Mary, ever virgin. To these have been added the words of St. Elizabeth on the occasion of Mary's visit, and the holy Church has completed the prayer with a consoling supplication. Its very origin, therefore, makes this prayer a holy and venerable one.
The words of salutation are brief, but they contain everything that one could ever say in praise of the Virgin Mother of God.
The petition includes briefly everything for which we may ask Mary.
Let us then give our attention to this beautiful prayer in the name of Jesus and Mary, His blessed mother.
I. I said, that in the first part of the "Hail Mary" all the privileges and glories which made the blessed Virgin so worthy of praise are contained. A closer examination will show us how true this is. Let us transport ourselves in spirit to Nazareth, to the quiet little room where Mary is praying in deepest devotion. Suddenly there enters this room one of the most exalted spirits that stand at the throne of the Creator. What does this messenger from heaven desire of this humble virgin, unknown to the world? He desires no less than her participation in our redemption. The only begotten Son of God, in His infinite love for mankind, has offered to take upon Himself human nature, to atone for our sins and to redeem us. The time appointed by God's providence, when this great work was to be consummated, had now come. Mary, in the divine counsels, is destined to be the mother of the Saviour. The celestial messenger appears to bring this message to her, and to obtain her consent. God desired that Mary should voluntarily cooperate in the redemption.
Mary cooperated in our redemption by proving herself worthy to be called to the divine motherhood, as far as this is possible for a human being. This she did by cooperating faithfully with the abundance of grace granted her by God, and thus proving herself worthy to become the mother of the Saviour. Through her virginity she rendered herself worthy according to the body, and through her most profound piety and humility according to the spirit. Both virtues stand forth most brilliantly in the annunciation of the angel. But she wished rather to forego the exalted dignity of divine motherhood, than relinquish the virginity which she had dedicated to God. And when the highest dignity which can be bestowed upon a creature was announced to her, she called herself the handmaid of the Lord. Mary, when convinced of the will of God, humbly consented, saying, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word."
Through this consent Mary conferred upon the world an unspeakable great blessing, for which we should be eternally grateful to her. By this consent she became the second Eve, me spiritual first parent of the redeemed race.
The angel, recognizing in Mary his future queen, now reverently set forth in brief words all the prerogatives which God had granted her, and was about to bestow upon her. These prerogatives are: (1) the fulness of grace which God had already granted unto her; (2) the dignity of mother of God which He now granted her, and, finally (3), the veneration and glorification which on account of this fulness of grace and this dignity she would partake of in heaven and earth.
The first privilege, fulness of grace, which she had received from God, the angel expressed with the words "full of grace." These words mean: thou art filled with all the divine graces in a measure possible to no other creature; thou hast received to the full all graces. As God will exalt thee to a dignity beyond that of the most exalted spirits of heaven, so He has granted you more and greater graces than even to the Seraphim and Cherubim. Now since thou hast cooperated in a perfect manner with all these graces, thou hast become the most virtuous, the holiest, the most perfect of all creatures. Therefore, art thou worthy to become the mother of the Most High.
Mary's second privilege which the angel mentioned was her elevation to the dignity of mother of God. "The Lord is with thee," that is, God has bestowed upon thee every grace, and, finding thee worthy, thou art to be the mother of His Son, to cooperate in the redemption and the salvation of the world.
In the words "The Lord is with thee" is expressed the intimate relationship of Mary to God, accomplished by the Incarnation. Not merely through the fulness of His grace and love is God with her, but even according to the flesh God is intimately united to her.
Mary's third privilege announced by the angel is the exalted veneration which she merits for her dignity and sanctity. The angel expresses this in the words "Blessed art thou among women." The angel had reference to the promise given by God in Paradise, that there would come a woman who should crush the serpent's head. He had in mind also the renowned women of the old law who had rescued the people of God from peril and oppression, and who were for this reason blessed by the people, such as Judith and Esther. These heroic women were glorious prototypes, pointing to Mary who was to crush the serpent's head, to destroy the designs of Lucifer, and to save the human race from destruction. Yes, truly, Mary is blessed by God among all women, and is herself an infinite blessing for the entire world. The Lord hath done great things in her. She realized this herself, in those prophetic words, "Behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed, for he that is mighty hath done great things to me, and holy is his name." And so it has been, and ever will be, as long as the sun illumines the earth. For more than nineteen centuries the people and nations have joyfully repeated the angel's words, "Blessed art thou among women." By precept of the Church we add the words "and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus," in order to join to our praise of Mary that of Jesus, from whom and on whose account she received all her privileges, and for whose sake she receives all this praise.
II. After the prayer of praise in the "Hail Mary" there follows the prayer of supplication which the Church has added. This supplication is "Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death. Amen." A short petition, but a significant one by which we invoke Mary's intercession in all our needs. The words holy Mary, mother of God, form the opening of this petition. They repeat the truth contained in the prayer of praise, and are at the same time calculated to arouse our confidence in Mary. The name "Mary" alone should awaken our confidence in the blessed Virgin, because the name Mary means sovereign. Mary, is indeed a sovereign, a ruler. As mother of the King of heaven and earth, she is the Queen of heaven and earth, and our lady, our queen as well. Mary means also star of the sea. As star of the sea Mary is to mankind what a kindly star is to the sailor who finds himself on the stormy waters. This world resembles an ocean, where storms and perils abound to the menace of body and soul. The winds and storms of temptations rise, the dangerous rocks of oppression threaten, the stormy waves of passion, of pride, of ambition, of avarice, of anger, envy, revenge, avidity beat upon us. All these dangers trouble the heart and fill it with sorrow and fear. And as the star leads the sailor to a safe haven, so Mary is to us the kindly star that inspires us with consolation and confidence and brings us rescue.
Holy Mary, mother of God! As mother of God Mary possesses the power of mediation with her divine Son. The angels and saints all together can not have the influence that Mary exercises. The holy fathers and teachers refer to this power, when they say Mary is omnipotent through her intercession, as God is omnipotent in Himself. Thus the opening of the supplication inspires veneration and confidence in Mary. With this veneration and confidence then we ask, "Pray for us sinners." Thou, the holy one, the powerful and good, pray for us miserable sinners, not worthy to approach God and be heard. Pray for us in all our temporal and spiritual necessities, in every danger of body and soul. Pray above all, to obtain for us the grace of a perfect conversion and repentance, and the grace of perseverance until the end of life. Pray for us, holy Mary, mother of God, now, while it is yet time for us to merit salvation, but pray for us especially when that solemn and sad hour of death has arrived. In that dark hour will be decided our eternal destiny; at that dread hour forsake us not, Pray for us now, and at the hour of our death.
We have seen what an excellent prayer the Hail Mary is. It follows that it is also an efficacious prayer. When the Hail Mary was uttered for the first time by the Archangel it ushered in the most stupendous of all miracles. And whenever we devoutly repeat this salutation with faith and confidence, it will be for us also a means of grace and blessing. Whenever you salute Mary, says St. Bernard, she returns the greeting, she gives you in return consolation and blessing.
Let us then recite this beautiful and excellent prayer most diligently and piously, and let us give special preference to the devotion of the Rosary which is a garland woven to blessed Mary from this prayer of praise. The quarter of an hour spent in reciting the beads will bring us blessings in life and a happy death. How we shall rejoice when we behold Mary face to face and greet her with the words: Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus, to whom be praise for all eternity. Amen.
IX. THE PRAYER TO INCREASE THE THREE DIVINE VIRTUES
"And now there remain faith, hope, and charity, these three: but the greatest of these is charity."—I. Cor. xiii, 13.
Dear brethren, in beginning the Rosary one Our Father and three Hail Marys are said in supplication for the three divine virtues. These virtues are called divine because they have God for their Author or their object. In Baptism these virtues are infused into the soul together with sanctifying grace. Through sanctifying grace, received in Baptism, we are made children of God. From that moment there is imposed upon us the duty, as soon as we shall be able to use our reason, of thinking, speaking and acting as behooves the true children of God. This duty we perform if we imitate the example of Jesus Christ, and if we endeavor to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. But as this cannot be done by human power, the Holy Ghost has willed to enable us to do so, by imparting to us, in Baptism, the three divine virtues. By the infused grace of faith God gives us a supernatural light, in addition to the natural light of our reason, with the aid of which we may comprehend His revelations. God bestows upon us thus, through the virtue of faith, a share in His own wisdom. The supernatural grace of hope turns our thought heavenward, gives us an incentive to co-operate with grace.
The supernatural virtue of charity renders us capable of loving God in a worthy and meritorious manner and of loving that which God loves.
As the child arrives at the age of discretion, and obtains the right use of reason, he is obliged to practise these virtues, and thus I strengthen his soul and grow in grace.
We are obliged to awaken frequently faith, hope, and charity towards God and our neighbor, in a practical manner. By the possession, practise and application of these three divine virtues we attain to Christian perfection. The more we learn to know these virtues, the more zealous we shall be in practising them, the more earnestly we shall strive for their increase, the more incessantly shall we pray for them.
Let us, therefore, take these three divine virtues for the subject of our consideration.
I. Faith is the first of the three divine virtues; it is the foundation of the other virtues. Without faith in God, in His revelations and promises, there can be no Christian hope, no Christian charity. For this reason faith is the foundation of virtuous living: Christian faith is a virtue infused by God into our souls by which we are enabled to believe firmly all that which God has revealed and which the infallible Catholic Church proposes for our belief.
An act of faith requires the use of the understanding and the use of the will. The mysteries surpass our natural understanding; they are, furthermore, to be believed in a supernatural manner, and we require, therefore, the supernatural light of faith, added to the natural light of our understanding, and we require also that our natural willpower be strengthened by the supernatural power of grace. This light and this power we receive in Baptism. The supernatural light of faith qualifies us to understand that the truths revealed by God are divine.
In order to believe it does not suffice to know the divine truths as the Church teaches them, we must also, of our own free will, assent to them, and acknowledge as divine truths even those mysteries which surpass our human understanding. To that extent faith is a matter of the will. God, through the light and the power of the grace of faith, comes to the assistance of our reason and will, in order that we may confidently submit both to divine revelation, that is, to God. In order that the infused virtue of faith may be meritorious for us, we must co-operate with grace by readily submitting our understanding and our will to divine revelation. Then this virtue of faith will not only be an infused one but, also, will be an acquired one and thus become a meritorious virtue. This actual and acquired virtue is for every adult the first condition of salvation. Still the acceptance of the divine doctrine is alone not sufficient for salvation. We must live in accordance with our faith; we must do good and shun evil. Such is the teaching of faith. "He truly believes who practises what believes," says St. Gregory, and St. James tells us that "Faith without works is a dead faith and avails nothing to salvation." A living faith is the first condition and the beginning of salvation. Eternal happiness consists, as we are aware, in the vision of God. The living faith is a beginning of this vision. We know God through the Christian faith, but only as in a mirror. "Now I know in part: but then I shall know even as I am known" (I. Cor. xiii, 12).
II. The second of the divine virtues is hope. Christian hope is a virtue infused into our souls by which we confidently expect of God everything which He has promised us through the merits of Christ. God has promised us eternal happiness, also all things which we stand in need of, and that are profitable for us in our endeavor to attain eternal happiness. Jesus has merited these for us, and God has promised them to us for the sake of the merits of Jesus Christ. And because God has promised them to us we must confidently expect and hope for them, because God is omnipotent, merciful and faithful to His promises.
This Christian confidence in God is bestowed by the virtue of hope, infused into our souls at Baptism. We must frequently exercise it in order to make it conducive to salvation.
The virtue of hope is based upon the virtue of faith. Faith informs us of the promises of God, and that He is all-powerful and faithful in fulfilling His promises. Without faith Christian hope would not be possible. This the Apostle Paul teaches in his Epistle to the Corinthians, in plain words: "Faith," he writes, "is the substance of things hoped for" (Heb. xi, i). Hope is really, therefore, an active faith in the mercy and generosity of God. Christian hope is just as necessary for salvation as faith. "For we are saved by hope." Thus the Apostle writes in the Epistle to the Romans (Rom. viii, 24). Hence, when we lose hope we forfeit our salvation.
Christian hope is in part desire, in part confidence. It is a lively desire for eternal happiness, for the possession of God and for the means which aid us in gaining salvation. It contains in itself a heartfelt desire for forgiveness of sins, and for liberation from the punishment due to sins. It includes an ardent longing for a virtuous Christian life. It is that hunger and thirst for justice of which Christ speaks in the eight Beatitudes. As God is the supreme good, combining every other good, so our desire for the blessed possession of God must be the sincerest, indeed, the sole, desire of our hearts. All other things we may desire only on God's account, and only in so far as they are the means to help us to the possession of God. Whoever experiences this desire will zealously pray for all things; he will be a man of prayer.
Christian hope is not only desire, but also confidence. God has promised us forgiveness of our sins and the grace to do the good that is required of us. He has promised us after a Christian life the eternal happiness of heaven. He is ready to fulfil His promises. The fulfillment of the divine promise depends, however, upon our own co-operation, upon our sincere good-will, upon our co-operation with grace. Our confidence must, therefore, never become presumption. The Apostle admonishes us to work out our salvation in fear and trembling. St. Francis de Sales calls confidence in God and distrust in ourselves the two balancing poles by the help of which we are enabled to keep our equilibrium. To distrust ourselves, and to have the fullest trust in God, this is the essence of Christian hope.
Christian hope is an essential condition for eternal happiness. By hope we anticipate life eternal. It is to us a pledge and a foretaste, and when we shall pass into eternity with this living hope, our hope will be transformed into possession of that which we have hoped for the possession of God, the supreme good.
III. Charity, the third of the divine virtues, is the virtue infused by God into our souls which enables us to love God above all things, and for His sake to love our neighbor as ourselves. That such divine charity surpasses human power is quite evident. It is inseparably united to sanctifying grace. He who possesses sanctifying grace possesses also the virtue of divine charity. He who loses sanctifying grace through mortal sin, loses also divine charity. The virtue of charity is a participation in the divine charity with which God loves us. It is a divine commandment that we must love God with our whole heart, with our whole soul, with our whole strength, and that we must love our neighbor as ourselves, for God's sake. To give oneself wholly to God, to prefer Him to all things, rather lose all things than offend Him, to seek to accomplish His holy will in all things, to observe His commandments, to offer up to God every thought, word, and deed, to work and suffer for God, to live and die for God, this is the true love of God.
"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them; he it is that loveth me." Thus speaks the Son of God (John xiv, 21). To love God in this manner is made possible for us by the divine virtue of charity, received in Baptism. We may, however, co-operate with it and so fulfil God's commandments. Only in this manner does the infused virtue become an acquired and meritorious virtue. The Christian virtue of charity is the greatest of all virtues. It presupposes faith and hope because we must believe and hope in God before we can love Him: charity gives life to faith and hope. Without charity, faith and hope are dead and avail not for salvation. Who so loves not remains in death. Charity is not merely the greatest of all virtues, but it contains all Christian virtues; it is the essence of the Christian life. Through Christian faith we participate in the divine knowledge, through hope in the divine power, and through charity we participate in the divine justice and sanctity. Christian charity renders us holy, as the heavenly Father is holy, and perfect as the Father in heaven is perfect. It is charity which here on earth unites us with God. "He who abides in charity abides in God and God in him." It is a virtue which continues for all eternity, when faith has become the vision, and hope the possession, of God.
The love of God is inseparably united to the love of our neighbor; for, as St. Augustine says, there are two commandments but only one charity, because there is no other charity with which we love our neighbor than that with which we love God. Who so says that he loves God, but does not love his neighbor, in him there is no divine charity.
We have seen, therefore, how the three divine virtues are the foundation of the Christian life, and that their practise constitutes Christian life. The true worship of God consists in practising these virtues which, at the same time, are the sole way to eternal bliss. Progress in the Christian life keeps pace with the activity of these