you, come and share her joy. If you are not in God's grace do not
let another day go by without making your peace with God. Oh! how
much you are losing, and for what? For some trifling satisfaction
which cannot bring true happiness; some mean gratification of
your lower nature; for sin you are letting slip by the offer of
God's friendship and the joy of a good conscience. Do you want to
die as you are living? If you do not, repent of your sins to-day;
before you leave this church promise God that you will sin no
more; that you will be in fact what you are in name--a Christian.
-------------------
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Sermon LIV.
Liberty Of Spirit.
_By the freedom wherewith Christ has made us free._
These, my dear brethren, are the concluding words of the Epistle
read at Mass to-day. They ought to be of unusual interest to us,
for they speak of a matter which we all care very much about;
which some care so much about that they are willing to fight for
it, and to die for its sake.
If you have listened to these words of St. Paul, which I have
just read, you know what this is of which I speak, and for which
we all care so much. It is freedom or, as we often call it,
liberty. Many, as I just said, will even die, if need be, rather
than abandon it; and indeed thousands, nay millions, have
actually done so. Man feels that he must have it. Life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness he claims as his right.
Especially do people nowadays ask for liberty, and insist on
having it. The child is no sooner out of his mother's arms than
he wants and tries in all things to have his own way. Obedience
is a lesson that he seldom willingly learns. He thinks that when
he is a man he can do as he pleases; and he does not see why he
should not even now. Sometimes he succeeds in having his own way,
in spite of his parents; he runs away from school and, when a
little older, from church; he passes his life among such
companions as he chooses, who help him to get the liberty which
they think they have themselves got, by defying all the laws of
God and of man.
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But is this really liberty which these foolish children, and
young men and women more foolish than children, think they have
got by trampling on all law? No; a thousand times no! It is to
true liberty only as the shadow to the substance, as they find to
their cost before they have travelled very far on this road. They
have but escaped from a light and easy yoke to take on their
necks one far heavier and more grievous, and which becomes more
and more so every day. They have left the service of the kind and
good Master to whom they belonged and entered into that of a hard
and cruel tyrant instead. He has filled them with base and
beastly passions, and made them slaves to these passions. They
are given over, body and soul, to impurity, gluttony, or
drunkenness, or it may be to a mean and miserable greed for
money. At last, perhaps, they try to turn back and shake
themselves free from these accursed lusts, which have fastened on
them, and are draining the very life-blood from their souls; but
it seems that they cannot do so. They set out to do as they
pleased, and how has it ended? In their being bound, hand and
foot, in the slavery of sin.
But what was their mistake? Were they altogether wrong in wishing
for liberty? Is the desire for freedom, which is implanted in us,
all a delusion? Are we never to do as we desire, but always to
have a restraint and a yoke upon us?
No, my brethren, the idea of liberty is not a mistake. We are
right in wishing for liberty, hoping for it, and trying to secure
it in the right way. But the mistake these foolish people of whom
I have spoken make is in going the wrong way in the search for
it: in looking for it in the wrong place.
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Where, then, is liberty to be found? I will tell you; and you may
be surprised at what I say, for it does not sound as if it could
be true; but it is true, nevertheless. True liberty, then, is in
the service of God. Those who serve God best are the freest men
on earth.
But how can this be? I answer, It can and must be very easily and
very plainly. For those who serve God best of all--that is, the
saints in heaven--always do just what they like, and enjoy doing
it most perfectly. They have got rid of all the hindrances that,
more or less, prevent every one here below from doing what he
wishes.
And, of course, those who try to walk in the path of the saints
here on earth also have much of this freedom. The more they learn
to do God's will the more they love it; and so they are always
doing more and more what they like, and more and more easily all
the time; and that is just what liberty is: to do what you like,
and to do it without pain or difficulty.
The servants of God, then, have their liberty, because they have
got free from sin, which is the only obstacle to it. And this
freedom from sin is the gift of Christ, it is the fruit of his
Passion; it is, then, the liberty which he has given us. It is
ours if we wish it. Try, then, my dear brethren, in this holy
season of Lent, when his graces are so abundantly poured out, to
gain that freedom which they will surely give us, that "freedom
wherewith. Christ has made us free."
-------------------
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Sermon LV.
The Lust Of The Eyes.
_Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather reprove them.
For the things that are done by them in secret,
it is a shame even to speak of._
--Ephesians v. 11, 12.
Some weeks ago, my dear brethren, we had occasion to speak of the
horrible and filthy vice of impurity, which is every day dragging
into hell thousands of souls with the mark of the cross of Christ
on them, and washed in vain with his Precious Blood. As was said
then, many Christians do not seem to realize the enormity of sins
against the Sixth Commandment--at least those of thought and of
the tongue; to which may be added those coming from the use of
the other senses, especially that of sight.
An immodest imagination or desire, wilfully entertained or
enjoyed, is a mortal sin, and gives the soul so harboring it
instantly into the power of the devil. Let us hope that no one
having the Catholic faith will doubt this, or think it too strict
a doctrine; for it is the unanimous consent of all the teaching
authority in the church from the beginning, amply supported also
by Holy Scripture. What shall we say, then, of wilful and
deliberate gazing at immodest pictures, or of reading matter
directly calculated to inflame impure passions, and certain to
have its effect?
Now, I hardly need to say that a city like this is full of these
temptations coming through the eyes into the heart. The good and
pure instinctively avoid them, and scarcely know that they exist;
accustomed to watch the slightest movements of their souls to
evil, and instantly to repress them, they shrink with horror from
those filthy words and pictures on which others eagerly gaze.
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They know that, as the Apostle says, it is a shame to speak of
these things, a greater shame to write or to read of them, a
greater shame yet to expose them to sight, to incite temptation
by them, and thus to destroy the souls for which Christ died.
I say that the good and pure are not likely to be caught in this
net of Satan; by this I mean those who have been warned of the
evil, who understand its danger, and from well-formed habits of
virtue set themselves resolutely against it. But there are others
who are good and pure--in their baptismal innocence, perhaps;
young, at any rate, and unused to sin, at least of this kind--who
are not forewarned and forearmed like those of maturer years,
who, seeing bad pictures in papers sold even at stores otherwise
of good repute, and kept, perhaps, by Catholics, do not fully
understand how bad they are, and are led to look at them with
pleasure, to learn evil which they knew not of, and thus to
contract habits of sin which they will never overcome.
Now, what does our Lord say of those who thus put temptation in
the way of the young and innocent? You all know his words: "He
that shall scandalize one of these little ones who believe in me,
it were better for him that a millstone should be hanged about
his neck, and that he should be drowned in the depth of the sea."
Strong words these, but they are those of the Divine Wisdom, and
beyond correction by human lips. Yes, it is better to die, better
even to die in the state of sin, than to add such a sin as this
to our number.
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Let us beware, then, not in any way, however indirect, to give
sanction or encouragement to this work of the devil in our midst.
"Have no fellowship with these works of darkness, but rather
reprove them." Do not buy or even take up for a moment the
indecent papers or books now unfortunately so common among us;
still more, do not sell them; do not allow them to be in the
house; do not suffer your children to look at or read them; do
not frequent places where they are to be had. Set your faces
resolutely, for the honor of God and the Catholic name, as well
as for your own souls sake, against this plague of immodest
literature, which has assumed such fearful proportions and become
so bold and unblushing in these days in which we live. Think
nothing to be light or of little moment in this matter; mortal
sin is much easier in it than you may believe.
-------------------
{193}
_Passion Sunday._
Epistle.
_Hebrews ix._ 11-15.
Brethren:
Christ, being come a high-priest of the good things to come, by
a greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that
is, not of this creation: neither by the blood of goats, nor of
calves, but by his own blood, entered once into the Holies,
having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats
and of oxen, and the ashes of a heifer being sprinkled,
sanctify such as are defiled, to the cleansing of the flesh:
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who by the Holy Ghost
offered himself unspotted unto God, cleanse our conscience from
dead works, to serve the living God? And therefore he is the
mediator of the new testament: that by means of his death, for
the redemption of those transgressions, which were under the
former testament, they that are called may receive the promise
of eternal inheritance in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Gospel.
_St. John viii._ 46-59.
At that time:
Jesus said to the multitude of the Jews:
Which of you shall convince me of sin? If I say the truth to
you, why do you not believe me? He that is of God, heareth the
words of God. Therefore you hear them not, because you are not
of God. The Jews, therefore, answered and said to him: Do we
not say well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus
answered: I have not a devil; but I honor my Father, and you
have dishonored me. But I seek not my own glory; there is one
that seeketh and judgeth. Amen, amen, I say to you: if any man
keep my word, he shall not see death for ever.
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The Jews therefore said: Now we know that thou hast a devil.
Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest: If any man
keep my word, he shall not taste death for ever. Art thou
greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets
are dead. Whom dost thou make thyself? Jesus answered: If I
glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father that
glorifieth me, of whom you say that he is your God. And you
have not known him, but I know him. And if I shall say that I
know him not, I shall be like to you, a liar. But I do know
him, and do keep his word. Abraham your father rejoiced that he
might see my day; he saw it, and was glad. The Jews therefore
said to him: Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou
seen Abraham? Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say to you,
before Abraham was made, I am. They took up stones therefore to
cast at him. But Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple.
-------------------
Sermon LVI.
The Precious Blood.
_The Blood of Jesus Christ his Son
cleanseth us from all sin._
--1 Epistle St. John i. 7.
We all know, my dear brethren, that when a man is born into the
world he is born _unclean_ before God. He is then _so_
unclean that he is not fit to associate with the sons of God and
heirs of the kingdom of heaven. He is then so unclean that he can
never be anything but an outcast from God until he is made clean.
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Is there any way in which he can be made clean? Yes, for when he
is baptized he is made a new creature; he is cleansed from the
stain of original sin, made a child of God and heir of the
kingdom of heaven. He is then so pure and holy that if he die
immediately he will go, to a certainty, straight to heaven. For
baptism applies the Blood of Christ to his soul, and he is become
truly clean. But suppose he does not die immediately after
baptism, how is it with him then? If he keep his baptismal
innocence, so far as never to commit a mortal sin, he still has a
right to go to heaven. He can then demand of God permission to
enter heaven.
Can he, however, demand this permission to enter heaven
immediately after his death if he has committed only venial sin?
That depends entirely upon his contrition at the moment of death.
If he is not so sorry for all his sins that his contrition is
[not] perfect, then he can't enter heaven immediately, but must
go to purgatory to be made perfectly pure, so that he can be
taken into heaven.
I have said that baptism applies the Blood of Christ to the soul
and makes man pure and innocent. Now, baptism is a sacrament. It
is the first one and is necessary to salvation. Without it no man
can enter heaven, nor even purgatory, for the purgatorial state
is the first and lowest state of blessed and holy souls who must
go to heaven in the end. But the blood of Christ is applied to
the soul of man in other ways, although baptism must come in in
the first place.
In what other ways is the Blood of Christ applied:
First, by the Sacrifice of the Mass. For by the Mass we repair
our sins, get grace to keep from sin, and make our purgatory
shorter in consequence. He who hears Mass daily makes the best
prayer that a man can make, and he is more certain to have his
prayer answered. He also helps the living and the dead, and
brings down upon himself and his own special graces from God.
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Secondly, the Blood of Christ is applied to our souls by the
Sacrament of Penance. Men defile their souls by sin, by
_mortal_ sin after baptism. He who receives the Sacrament of
Penance worthily--that is, with true sorrow for all mortal sin,
with a firm determination to lead a good life and repair the
wrong he has done--that man receives again the grace of God that
restores his soul to eternal life.
Thirdly, in Holy Communion we receive the Body and Blood of our
Lord Jesus Christ in a hidden manner, but in deed and in truth.
The consecrated Host is the eternal and ever-living God himself.
You know, my dear brethren, the strength of this divine food. How
it gives new energy to the soul, destroys the power of
concupiscence, banishes, or at least weakens, temptation, always
giving us the grace to hold our own against the world, the flesh,
and the devil. _And there are Catholics who refuse to make this
Communion once a year!_
But there is one thing that ought to be said here. A Catholic
ought never to consider as useless, or as almost useless, any one
of the sacraments. This too many do as regards confession. They
underrate it. They think, therefore, it is no good unless they
receive Communion every time they go to confession. Now this is a
grave error. One is _not_ obliged to go to Communion every
time he goes to confession. Those who cannot go to Mass nor
Communion, on account of their business or employment or work
keeping them away, can at least go to confession very often
during the year. All such an one has to do is to prepare himself
carefully, step into the rector's house, make his confession, and
go on to work again. If he but make an arrangement with some one
of the priests he can always be heard at once. Frequent
confession is a wonderful help to a good life and a happy death.
-------------------
{197}
Sermon LVII.
Christ's Passion.
_Which of you shall convince me of sin?_
--John viii. 46.
To-day, dear friends, is Passion Sunday, and our long Lenten
pilgrimage is nearing its end. Heretofore our thoughts have been
on ourselves, our own shortcomings, our own sins. Now we stand,
as it were, on the hill overlooking the Holy City, and see before
us, as a map unrolled, the scene of our Redeemer's agony:
Bethany, the olive-garden of Gethsemani, and, further on, the
barren mount of Calvary, with its three crosses standing forth,
black and cruel, against the fair blue sky.
Now our thoughts turn from ourselves to our Lord. We have seen
what the effect of sin has been on us. Now we look and see, and
our shame should deepen as we see, what sorrow and tears and
agony it has brought on the eternal Son of God.
To-day the cross is veiled, the pictures are shrouded in
mourning, the "Gloria" ceases to be sung. So our sins covered our
dying Lord as with a garment, and sorrow chokes the voice of holy
church, fills her heart to overflowing, and stills all her songs
of praise.
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What is this veil which obscures the cross of Jesus Christ and
makes his Passion of no effect? O dear brethren! is it not our
sins? What platted the crown of thorns, and drove those sharp
spikes deep into his sacred head? Our selfish pride. What sent
those nails through his hands and feet, fixing them to the tree
of shame? Our wicked deeds and our wanderings from the path of
duty. What parched his tongue with such burning thirst? Our
shameless indulgence in drink. What pointed the spear of the
impious Roman soldier, and hurled it deep into the Sacred Heart,
whence issued the red torrent of the Precious Blood? Our
inordinate appetites and sinful lusts. As often as we sin we
crucify our dearest Lord afresh.
"Which of you shall convince me of sin?" What more could I have
done for my vineyard which I have not done? I came down from
heaven; took upon myself the form of a servant, the likeness of
sinful flesh; set you a perfect example how you should walk; was
led as a lamb to the slaughter; was scourged, spit upon, mangled,
crucified; what could I have done more? Which of you shall
convince me of sin? Which of _you_, my brethren? How many
graces and blessings do you not owe to that crucified Lord? In
how many sore temptations have you not been defended and
strengthened? In how many bitter sorrows have you not been
comforted? From how many shameful falls have you not been raised
up? O Christian soul! for whom Christ died, look upon that
bleeding, suffering, dying Saviour, and, if nothing else will
move you, let those ghastly wounds, which your sins have made,
plead with you. Acknowledge your transgressions: abase yourself
in the very dust.
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Let that sacred Passion plead with you, that infinite love plead
with you, that Precious Blood plead with you, those last tender
words plead with you, and teach you, for their sake and your
soul's sake, to love the Lord more dearly, to dread sin more
effectually, and never, as long as you live, to add to that heavy
burden by any wicked deed of yours.
So shall, a few days hence, the veil be lifted from the cross,
and our sorrow be turned to joy, for when the Lord of Glory shall
arise we too shall arise with him, and reign with him in glory
for evermore.
-------------------
Sermon LVIII.
Dangerous Companionship.
_Walk circumspectly; not as unwise, but as wise._
--Ephesians. v. 15-16.
To-day, my dear brethren, I propose to make a few remarks on the
dangerous occasions of impurity, so common in these times.
The danger of which I wish specially to speak is that which comes
from the familiar acquaintance which now exists to such a great
extent, and is taken so much as a matter of course, between young
persons of different sexes. This undue familiarity is too common
everywhere in this country; and more than anywhere else in a city
like that in which we live. Young women here with us, even though
they be Catholics, and good enough Catholics in some respects,
seem to forget, or rather never to begin to realize, the laws of
decorum and modesty which well-instructed persons, even though
not professing to be specially religious, have hitherto rightly
taken for granted.
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To take a flagrant instance. A priest, being a man educated
according to the rules of respectable society, is unspeakably
surprised when he for the first time hears some young woman,
apparently of a careful conscience, ask him if it is a sin to
flirt. For what is this which is called flirting? It is simply
deliberately and wantonly acting in a way to attract the
attention of particular persons of the opposite sex, to make
signals which are to be understood as marks of preference for, or
of desire of acquaintance with, some young man or men whom she
may chance to see on the street. A sin to flirt! How can you ask
such a question? Why, outwardly and at the first appearance, the
act is not very different from that of an abandoned woman seeking
to attract those whom she thinks will notice her. The intention,
of course, in your minds is often comparatively harmless, it is
true; but by outward standards the act is simply disreputable.
Furthermore, it shows a feeling which any lady, really worthy of
the name, would hesitate to show even to one whose character she
well knew to be good, and who had for a long time given to her
respectful and proper attentions. A woman or girl who flirts
seems to be, if she is not in reality, lost to all sense of
decency; and those are almost as much so who shamelessly walk at
night up and down the avenues in the hope of attracting
attention.
This seeking to form unknown acquaintances of the opposite sex or
to attract special attention among them is, then, a thing which
no Catholic girl should think of, if she has any sense of shame.
But when such acquaintances are formed by an introduction in
itself proper, they should be very carefully considered.
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For a young woman to make one of the other sex her friend or
familiar companion, as she well may one of her own, is a thing
which should be unheard of. She should have but one such friend,
and he should be one who has acted honorably to her by proposing
to her to take the honorable part of her husband, and whom she
has before God and in her conscience felt to be worthy, and
accepted by a binding engagement. Before that, and to all other
men, politeness with proper and modest reserve should be the
constant rule, affection and familiarity out of the question. And
yet we find girls keeping company, as it is called, and that
without any sort of serious guarantee of the purposes of the
other party, not only with one after another, but even with more
than one at once.
For the reasons, plain enough, on which these directions rest,
promiscuous assemblies of both sexes, such as those to be found
at certain gatherings, now unfortunately so popular, are full of
danger, and had far better in all cases be avoided. A freedom of
manners prevails in them--to say nothing of direct temptations to
the senses--and an ease of making acquaintance, which opens a
free door to sin. I do not wish to be too severe, but, as a rule,
I do say, leave such places alone. Young women, respect
yourselves; demand the respect of others. There is the moral in a
nutshell.
-------------------
{202}
_Palm Sunday._
Epistle.
_Philippians ii._ 5-11.
Brethren:
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery himself to be
equal with God: but debased himself, taking the form of a
servant, being made to the likeness of men, and in shape found
as a man. He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath exalted
him, and hath given him a name which is above every name: that
in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are
in heaven, on earth, and in hell. And that every tongue should
confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the
Father.
Gospel.
_St. Matthew xxvii._ 62-66.