are Catholics. But the truth is, that our being Catholics only
gives us greater means of salvation; it is far from making our
salvation sure. We have greater means and helps to save our
souls; but woe be to us if we abuse them! And when we look
around, and see many good and earnest souls, similar, as far as
we can see, to that of the Roman centurion, deprived of the light
that we have, not by their own fault, but by that of their
fathers; when we see them trying to do their best with the little
knowledge and the few helps that they have, must we not fear that
God will take away from us the graces that we despise; that we,
the children of the kingdom, will be cast into the exterior
darkness, while others shall come from the east and the west and
take the place which we have but do not deserve?
Let us, then, each and every one, if we have been unfaithful to
the great graces which we have as Catholics--and which of us has
not been so?--rouse ourselves to our danger. Yes, having the
faith and the sacraments is a great privilege, but is one for
which we must give a most strict account when we stand before the
throne of God.
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Sermon XXV.
Living Up To Our Faith.
_Jesus, hearing this, marvelled;
and said to them that followed him:
Amen I say to you,
I have not found so great faith in Israel_.
--Gospel of the Day.
The love and care of the heathen centurion for his servant should
certainly put to shame many Christian masters and mistresses of
to-day, who not only do not encourage their servants to approach
our Lord at Holy Mass and in the sacraments, but even put
obstacles in their way. However, the lesson to which I wish to
direct your thoughts this morning, and which it is the primary
object of the Gospel narrative to teach, is the immense
importance of living up to the grace and light which God has so
bountifully given us.
A few weeks ago we kept the Feast of the Epiphany, the
manifestation, that is, of our Lord to the Gentiles, to those who
had not till then formed part of the church of God. The Jews
alone, as you are aware, were God's chosen people. To them had
been given the law and the prophets, the temple and the
sacrifices, and--that to which everything else led up--the
promise of the Messias. And all these privileges led them to
think that they were individually very excellent people, and to
look down with contempt upon the rest of the world and everybody
in it. Now, here was a Roman, born and brought up in heathenism,
taught, doubtless, to say his prayers to Jupiter and Venus and
other vile creatures like them, a man holding, too, high office,
commanding a garrison of soldiers, whose duty it was to keep down
a conquered race.
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Well, this man, notwithstanding his bad education,
notwithstanding the pride which, on account of his position, must
naturally have been his, had made greater progress than the
self-conceited Pharisees, with all their advantages, had ever
made or were ever to make. While they lived and died in unbelief,
he had already recognized in Jesus Christ the power of God; and,
laying aside prejudice and pride of place and birth, he sends
humbly to our Lord to ask him to heal his servant.
So clearly did he recognize our Lord's divine power that he did
not think it necessary for him to come to his house. Jairus, the
ruler of the synagogue, as you will remember, would not be
satisfied unless our Lord came down to his house; the centurion,
on the contrary, stopped our Lord while he was on the way,
saying: "Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my
roof; but only say the word and my servant will be healed." So
that our Lord, on hearing it, marvelled, and said: "Amen I say
unto you, I have not found so great faith in Israel."
Now, how does all this apply to us? What lesson can _we_
learn from these events? The answer to this question is easy and
obvious. We are by God's grace the members of the church of God,
and, as such, we are in possession of the means of grace--the
sacraments, the word of God, the intercession and prayers of the
saints, and of innumerable privileges and spiritual treasures.
Above all, and as the source and spring of all spiritual life,
without which everything is valueless and worthless, we have the
gift of faith. Now, faith is necessary; but faith is not
sufficient. Without faith no one can be saved. But we must have
something more than faith.
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The shipwrecked man clings for his life to anything within his
reach; but unless the plank, or whatever else he has got hold of,
is washed ashore, or a boat or some other means of help arrives,
his plank only prolongs his agony. So is it with us. Faith is our
plank; but unless this faith works by charity it will only add to
our condemnation. More than this, it will, if not acted upon, get
weaker and weaker, and be scarcely strong enough to move us to
action. What, then, must we do? Why, we must live as our faith
teaches us. First, we must learn our faith: learn the truths of
our religion; next, we must practise them. If we do not do so we
shall, perhaps, see what those Jews of old saw: the heathen and
those who were outside of the church entering and taking their
places. What our Lord said of them may, perhaps, be said of us:
"I say unto you that many shall come from the east and from the
west, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac in the kingdom of
heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into
the exterior darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of
teeth."
-------------------
Sermon XXVI.
The Sacrament Of Matrimony.
I think you are all persuaded, my brethren, of the wrong and the
danger of Catholics going to a Protestant minister for marriage;
and similar ones can be given why we should not go before a
magistrate for that purpose. It is plain that the authorities of
the State are not the right persons to assist officially at the
sacraments of the church.
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It would be just as proper to ask the mayor to baptize your
children as to go to him for marriage. To refer the matter of
your marriage to him, however fine a man he may be personally,
would be to acknowledge the right of the civil authority to take
charge of religious affairs; and such a right Catholics cannot
admit.
Besides, the magistrate labors under the same difficulty as a
Protestant minister in conducting a Catholic marriage, of not
knowing the laws of the church on the subject, and the
impediments which may make the marriage invalid; that is, which
may make it, though seemingly good, in reality no marriage at
all. You know, for instance--to speak of this a little more
fully--that the Catechism says that you should not marry within
certain degrees of kindred; very well, it is not only forbidden
to marry within these degrees, but a marriage within these
degrees is not recognized by the laws of the church as a real and
true marriage, and the parties have to be married over again, at
least privately, if it is ever found out. And there are some
other impediments which have the same effect. It is of no use to
publish all these and try to explain them; many mistakes would be
made, and matters would only be come worse. No, to be safe in all
affairs of this kind you must go to those who have made a special
study of it; just as you find out the law of the State from your
lawyer, and not from a book. Go, then, to the priest; he is the
one who has made a special study of the law of the church, and
the only one.
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In order to make sure that Catholic marriage shall be contracted
before the priest, a law has been made, and binds in some
countries, and in some parts even of this country, making it
invalid, or null and void, if contracted without the presence of
the parish priest of at least one of the parties. This does not,
however, hold just here. But there is a very special and urgent
law in this diocese, and in many others, forbidding the going to
a Protestant minister for marriage, and reserving the absolution
for this to the bishop, or some one authorized by him. Catholics,
therefore, who are guilty of such a rash act get themselves into
a very unpleasant position; still, they must, of course, try to
get out of it sooner or later, and if any one finds himself in
this predicament the only sensible thing to do is to come at once
to the priest, who will help him as far as possible. All sins can
be forgiven, and all mistakes rectified, if one has the right
dispositions.
One word more on this most important subject. Some people seem to
imagine that the difficulty which may come, especially in a mixed
marriage, of avoiding the Protestant minister, may be got over by
going both to him and to the priest, and going through the form
of marriage twice. Now, let it be understood that this course
cannot be thought of for a moment; for by it not only is the law
broken which I have just mentioned, but a profanation of the
sacrament also is committed by endeavoring to make the contract
to which it is attached twice in the same case. It is as if one
tried to be confirmed twice. No, in this matter there can be no
compromise; a marriage in which a Catholic is a party must be put
in charge of the Catholic clergy, and of no one else, except as
far as mere settlements of money and the like are concerned.
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Go, then, to the priest for marriage; do not think of doing
anything else. But do not go to him, as I have said some people
do, for the first time just at the moment you want the ceremony
performed, and expect him to marry you off-hand; for there are
some very important preliminaries to be settled first, and it may
take some time to settle them.
-------------------
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_Fourth Sunday after Epiphany._
Epistle.
_Romans xiii._ 8-10.
Brethren:
Owe no man anything, but that you love one another. For he that
loveth his neighbor, hath fulfilled the law. For "Thou shalt
not commit adultery. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness. Thou shalt not covet." And
if there be any other commandment, it is comprised in this
word: "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." The love of
the neighbor worketh no evil. Love, therefore, is the
fulfilling of the law.
Gospel.
_St. Matthew viii._ 23-27.
At that time:
When Jesus entered into the ship, his disciples followed him;
and behold a great tempest arose in the sea, so that the ship
was covered with waves, but he was asleep. And his disciples
came to him, and waked him, saying: Lord, save us, we perish.
And Jesus saith to them: Why are you fearful, O ye of little
faith? Then rising up he commanded the winds and the sea, and
there came a great calm. But the men wondered, saying: Who is
this, for even the winds and the sea obey him?
-------------------
Sermon XXVII.
The Ingratitude Of Children.
_Brethren: owe, no man anything._
--Epistle of the Day.
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We are all debtors, brethren, for we all have some accounts to
settle up. There are debts we shall never be able to redeem,
debts that are just, pressing, and lasting as long as we are in
this life. Such, for instance, is the debt we owe to God.
The fact of his having created us, of having brought us out of
nothing, of having given us immortal souls imaged after himself,
would alone put us under the gravest obligations to him; but what
is that compared to the debt we owe God for having redeemed us at
a nameless price, by nothing less than the Precious Blood of his
own beloved Son; and, furthermore, what is all this in comparison
with the debt we owe God for our sanctification, for the
priceless gift of his Holy Spirit dwelling within us, breaking
away the mist of error and ignorance that clouds our intellect
and hides from our vision the eternal truth; that gift that
endows us with strength and fortitude, with the courage that
comes from conviction, with the power that makes us triumph over
every weakness, every unruly passion, every snare of our enemy
the devil, over every thought, word, and action that makes us
unworthy of sonship with God, brotherhood with Christ, and the
heritage of an eternal crown?
This debt, dear brethren, is in general obvious enough; but,
while we recognize it, How often do we find in our experience
that men neglect, and shamefully neglect, debts that are
dependent on and derived from the debt they owe Almighty God; men
who neglect debts that are as grave and binding as those which
are due to the God from whom they are derived!
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Now, brethren, if there is any injustice in this world more
flagrant than all others, more worthy of condemnation and
detestation, more certain of the visitation of God, it is this:
the neglect of our duty to our parents. "Owe no man anything." Do
we owe _them_ nothing? Do we not owe them much? Is there a
time in our lives when that debt is not binding?
Ah! dear brethren, and what do we see in the world about us?
Ingratitude, the vice of monsters, forgetfulness of ties that are
nearest, dearest, and holiest. Young men, growing up into adult
age, who, in their vain seeking after pleasures, become so
blinded to duty, so debased in their appetites, so completely
transformed into the incarnation of selfishness, as not only to
disregard the law of God, but the very instincts of nature--sons
who would rob and starve their parents to satisfy their mean and
low appetites.
The ingratitude of children to parents is a crying sin of our
times. Let us be alive to it. Let the young men and women of our
day remember that they are bound to satisfy these grave and
serious obligations; that they are not to heedlessly put
themselves into any state that will debar them from redeeming the
debts they owe, from recompensing for all the care, toil, and
money expended upon them.
"Owe no man anything." Take heed of this warning also, all you
who contract debts without the slightest hope of paying them; see
to it that the clothes you wear, the food you eat, the pleasures
you indulge in are paid for; see to it that they are not
purchased by the labor and money which belong to others. You who
live in fine houses, who keep yourselves in costly array, who
deny yourselves no pleasures, however extravagant, take heed!
Whose money pays for it?
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Can you stand up and with a clean heart proclaim that this is
honest? As you sit here to-day, do the words of the Apostle offer
no rebuke to you, do you not feel their sting?
O brethren! let us be sparing in our debts; let us owe no man
anything. The man without debts exalts himself in the eyes of his
fellow-men and secures for himself a good conscience.
-------------------
Sermon XXVIII.
Love Of Our Neighbor.
_He that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law._
--Epistle of the Day.
There can be no doubt, my brethren, that the saving of our souls
sometimes seems to be a very troublesome business. There are so
many laws and commandments binding on us, so many sins which we
are likely to commit; and if we break any of these laws in any
grievous way--if we are guilty, that is to say, of mortal sin
our--salvation is lost till such time as we repair our fault. Yet
it may seem that we are surrounded by so many rocks on our voyage
through life that it is almost useless to try to steer clear of
them; and, if we may judge by their actions, many Christians
actually come to the conclusion that there is no use in trying to
keep their ship off these rocks. They make up their minds that
spiritual shipwreck is unavoidable, and that the only way to
reach the port of heaven is to be towed in on a raft which can be
made out of the sacraments at the last moment.
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But really our salvation is not such a complicated and intricate
affair if we would only look at it in the right way. The course
which we have to follow is not such a difficult one to bear in
mind and to keep. There are many commandments, it is true; but
they all have the same spirit, and if we have that spirit they
will all come quite easy.
What is the spirit? Our Lord has told us. It is the love of God,
and of our neighbor for God's sake. The love of God and of our
neighbor gives us a short cut to the kingdom of heaven; if we are
guided by it, we shall not come near the dangers that seem so
many and so threatening.
Let us see how this is; how is this love going to work to keep us
in the safe and sure track? It is not so hard to see. For what is
it to love any one; how do we act towards one whom we really and
truly love? Are we always trying to give him no more than we can
help, and keep as much as we can for ourselves? Do we try to have
our own way as much as possible, and never to step out of it for
his sake, unless compelled by force or threats?
No, of course not. We keep far away from what will offend him. We
always are trying to find out what will please him best. So if he
is not unreasonable, and if he knows our desire and intention,
the danger of offending him disappears.
Well, it is just so in the matter of serving God and keeping his
law. The continual mortal sins into which Christians fall, and
which it seems so hard to avoid, are due to their trying to run
too near the rocks. No wonder they so often get wrecked in these
dangerous waters. They are all the time striking on the
commandments, and the whole sea seems full of them because they
try to sail as near them as they can. If they would only give
them a wide berth, and keep out in the deep ocean of the love of
God, sin and its forgiveness would not cause so much anxiety and
trouble.
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If we would only ask ourselves what will please God best, and try
to give him all that he desires, as we should if we loved him as
he deserves to be loved, and as we do with others whom we really
do love--if we would do this instead of trying [to see] how far
we can have our own way and yet come out right in the end, the
whole matter of saving our souls would have a very different
aspect. Now, why not try to follow this line? It is no fanciful
thing beyond our power. Plenty of Christians have done it before
us, and are doing it all the time.
But if we do not feel prepared, or are a little afraid to commit
ourselves to this course just yet, at least we could endeavor to
have some love for our neighbor, and make some sacrifice for him.
We have St. Paul's word for it, you see, that even he who loves
his neighbor will be sure to fulfil the law. Yes, we may feel
quite sure if, by a generous love of our neighbor, we keep far
off being wrecked on the last part of the Ten Commandments, that
we shall run clear of the first part as well.
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_Fifth Sunday after Epiphany._
Epistle.
_Colossians iii._ 12-17.
Brethren:
Put ye on therefore, as the elect of God, holy, and beloved,
the bowels of mercy, benignity, humility, modesty, patience,
bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if any
have a complaint against another: even as the Lord hath
forgiven you, so do you also. But above all these things have
charity, which is the bond of perfection: and let the peace of
Christ rejoice in your hearts, wherein also you are called in
one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in
you abundantly, in all wisdom: teaching and admonishing one
another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing in
grace in your hearts to God. All whatsoever you do in word or
in work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving
thanks to God and the Father by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Gospel.
_St. Mathew xiii._ 24-30.
At that time:
Jesus spoke this parable to the multitude, saying: The kingdom
of heaven is likened to a man that sowed good seed in his
field. But while men were asleep, his enemy came and oversowed
cockle among the wheat, and went his way. And when the blade
was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared also the
cockle. Then the servants of the master of the house came and
said to him: Master, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field?
whence then hath it cockle? And he said to them: An enemy hath
done this. And the servants said to him: Wilt thou that we go
and gather it up?
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And he said: No, lest while you gather up the cockle, you root
up the wheat also together with it. Let both grow until the
harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the
reapers: Gather up first the cockle, and bind it into bundles
to burn; but gather the wheat into my barn.
-------------------
Sermon XXIX.
The Christian Family.
_Bearing with one another._
--Epistle of the Day.
No doubt you have often read about the oasis in the desert: a
place of tall, shady trees, soft, green grass, and a great spring
pouring out sweet, cold water. There the hot and dusty caravan
stops, though it be miles out of the way; the heavy burdens are
thrown off, and men and animals rest and drink and rest again.
For one long, burning day they lie about on the grass and look
off from their shady refuge over the yellow, sandy desert. They
sleep and are rested; and as the cool dews of evening fall they
take a last drink and creep away on their journey, sighing to
think of the long and weary tramp to the next oasis.
Dear brethren, the oasis in the desert of this world is the
Christian family. The father of the family "shall be like a tree
which is planted near the running waters." It is indeed but a
feeble word to say that the influence of a good father is like
the deep shade of a noble tree in the heat of summer, His
influence is like the grace of God. Indeed, there is nothing in
all this world so much like the presence of God as the influence
of a Christian father.
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When the instinct of the Christian people would give a name to a
good priest they called him father. What is more edifying than
the virtue of a good father? In him are chiefly to be seen those
manly virtues which are the highest form of human excellence:
hearty love, self-restraint, open frankness joining heart, hand,
and voice in one. In him you admire that steadfast application to
religious things, that regular use of prayer and of the
sacraments, that clear knowledge of doctrine and ability to
converse about it, that utter absence of frivolity, that
intelligent practice of good reading. He is contented with his
lot, and yet labors with steady, persistent industry. In
prosperity he is modest and frugal. In adversity he is cheerful,
a strong wall for others to lean against. He loves home and is
fond of his wife. Gladly will he tend the babes while the mother
gets the Sunday Mass, or of a Saturday evening while she goes to
refresh her weary soul with a good confession. The company of his
children is to him a foretaste of Paradise. He is not sour, nor
is he brutal or harsh. He is not above making the children laugh
or joining in their play; to make them happy and help them save
their souls is his greatest joy.
Then there is the mother of the family, whose life is one
unbroken round of acts of affection. The spirit of sacrifice, the
craving to bear others burdens, is her spirit. You know how a
good mother watches at the sick-bed the livelong night, passing
back and forth through the dark rooms, listening to every
breathing, answering every sigh with a comforting word, or a cool
drink, or a soft caress. Only the next world will reveal to us
the loveliness of such devoted souls; here we catch but a glimpse
and an echo of it.
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The accents, the tones of the voice, the very silence, the
manners, the ways of a good mother diffuse what Scripture calls
the fragrance of ointments around her household. You know, too,
how she saves and pinches to keep off debt, to dress the children
neatly, to save a penny to give them a holiday, to save a dollar
for hard times or a spell of sickness. And all this sacrifice is
a matter of course with her. But the truest glory of a mother is
her patience. The patient mother is the valiant woman of
Scripture. She is the woman who smothers her anger; who will
suffer the impertinence of an unruly child in silence; who
forgets as well as forgives; whose admonition or correction is
the reluctant tribute of a tender heart to the child's
well-being. Do you want to know how she is able to do this? The
secret of it is that she finds time--in the heavy duty of being
everybody's servant--to attend to religion; to belong to the
Rosary Society and make her monthly Communion; to give alms to
the poor from her hard savings; to visit and watch with sick, or
afflicted neighbors. It is, in a word, because she ever gazes in
spirit upon that Holy Family where Mary was mother that she is
able to be a good Christian mother.
When I began I intended to say something of the good boys and
girls; while we have been engaged with father and mother the
children have passed by. Perhaps we shall overtake them next
Sunday.
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Sermon XXX.
The Duty Of Good Example.
_Use your endeavor to walk honestly
towards them that are without._
1 Thessalonians iv. 11.