through life we cannot expect to be free from it; and we must try
to find a way of bearing it as well as we can. What is the best
way?
One way, and a very good way, of putting up with this trouble is
to make allowances for the unavoidable prejudice, ignorance, and
imperfection of those who say about us what we know to be false,
who do to us what we know to be unjust. They may not, they do
not, know this as well as we do. "Father, forgive them," said our
Lord on the cross, "for they know not what they do." We think
others are slandering or injuring us through malice; ten to one
they think they are in the right. Probably we ourselves should
act just the same way in their place.
Make allowances, then; give our neighbors more credit for good
intentions; that is one way to put up with this suffering which
we cannot altogether avoid or put a stop to. But a better and
perhaps an easier way is the one recommended by St. Peter in
to-day's Epistle. "Dearly beloved," he says, "Christ suffered for
us, leaving you an example that you should follow his steps. Who
did no sin, neither was guilt found in his mouth. Who, when he
was reviled, did not revile; when he suffered he threatened not,
but delivered himself to him that judged him unjustly."
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He, the holy, the innocent one, was more wickedly and unjustly
accused and judged than any of us sinners have been, or ever can
be; shall we not then bear, if need be, the same treatment for
his sake? To be spoken evil of falsely is to be like him; it is
the mark, the badge of the Christian. This is the example he has
left us that we should follow his steps; shall we refuse to
profit by it?
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_Third Sunday after Easter._
Feast of the Patronage of St. Joseph.
Epistle.
1 _St. Peter ii._ 11-19.
Dearly beloved,
I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims to refrain yourselves
from carnal desires, which war against the soul; having your
conversation good among the Gentiles; that whereas they speak
against you as evildoers, considering you by your good works
they may glorify God in the day of visitation. Be ye subject
therefore to every human creature for God's sake; whether it be
to the king as excelling, or to governors as sent by him for
the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of the good;
for so is the will of God, that by doing well you may silence
the ignorance of foolish men: as free, and not as making
liberty a cloak of malice, but as the servants of God. Honor
all men; love the brotherhood; fear God; honor the king.
Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear, not only to
the good and gentle, but also to the froward. For this is
thankworthy, in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Epistle Of The Feast.
_Genesis xlix._ 22-26.
Joseph is a growing son, a growing son and comely to behold;
the daughters run to and fro upon the wall. But they that held
darts provoked him, and quarrelled with him, and envied him.
His bow rested upon the strong, and the bands of his arms and
his hands were loosed by the hands of the mighty one of Jacob:
thence he came forth a pastor, the stone of Israel.
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The God of thy Father shall be thy helper, and the Almighty
shall bless thee with the blessings of heaven above, with the
blessings of the deep that lieth beneath, with the blessings of
the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of thy father are
strengthened with the blessings of his fathers: until the
desire of the everlasting hills should come; may they be upon
the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the Nazarite among
his brethren.
Gospel
_St. John xvi._ 16-22.
At that time:
Jesus said to his disciples:
A little while, and now you shall not see me: and again a
little while, and you shall see me: because I go to the Father.
Then some of his disciples said one to another: What is this
that he saith to us: A little while, and you shall not see me:
and again a little while, and you shall see me, and because I
go to the Father? They said therefore: What is this that he
saith, a little while: we know not what he speaketh. And Jesus
knew that they were desirous to ask him; and he said to them:
Of this do you inquire among yourselves, be cause I said: A
little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little
while, and you shall see me? Amen, amen I say to you, that you
shall lament and weep, but the world shall rejoice: and you
shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A
woman, when she is in labor, hath sorrow, because her hour is
come: but when she hath brought forth the child, she
remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born
into the world. So also you now indeed have sorrow, but I will
see you again, and your heart shall rejoice; and your joy no
man shall take from you.
Gospel of the Feast.
_St. Luke iii._ 21-23.
At that time it came to pass:
When all the people were baptized, that Jesus also being
baptized and praying, heaven was opened: and the Holy Ghost
descended in a bodily shape as a dove upon him: and a voice
came from heaven: Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well
pleased. And Jesus himself was beginning about the age of
thirty years: being (as it was supposed) the son of Joseph.
-------------------
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Sermon LXX.
Devotion To St. Joseph.
_Go to Joseph, and do all that he shall say to you. _
--Genesis xli. 55.
It is Joseph's nearness to Jesus and Mary during his life that
leads us now, when he reigns with them in heaven, to confidently
call upon him for succor in our needs, and especially do we go to
him because to his patronage the whole church has been commended,
that by his intercession he may do for her and each of her
members what he did for Jesus and his Mother when he was in the
flesh.
Wisely has the church made him her protector, for his power with
God must be very great. Of this we can have no doubt, when we
remember that to his care were entrusted the purest and the best
who have ever walked this earth--Jesus and Mary--Jesus, the Son
of God; Mary, his stainless Virgin Mother, whose chaste soul the
Holy Ghost made his dwelling-place, delighted with its beauty.
Above the seats of all the bright angels who serve in the courts
of the Most High Mary's throne was raised, and one day she would
be the angels mistress and queen; Jesus was their Lord, their
Maker, before whom they bowed in lowliest reverence. And yet Mary
was Joseph's spouse, and Jesus rendered him the obedience a son
should give a father. Very worthy must he have been who held so
high an office.
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Joseph was a necessary member of the family. He served as a veil
to screen from the vulgar gaze the deep mysteries of the
Incarnation and Nativity; he led the way into Egypt, and his
faithful arm supported the Mother and the Babe during the
journey; he brought them back to their own land and provided
shelter for them; their daily bread was the fruit of his
labor--in a word, during the boyhood and youth of our Lord they
were entirely dependent upon him.
Such, then, was Joseph's position in the Holy Family; he was the
master and guardian of the household; and this is what the church
would have him be in every Christian family. It is you, Christian
fathers and mothers, who should be especially devout to St.
Joseph, for he is your patron in a particular manner. You, like
him, have the cares of the household upon you; you must provide
for the life and health of the children God has given you; it is
your duty to see that they are instructed in the faith and
attentive to their religious duties, and that they study their
school lessons; you should guard them against the dangers they
must meet with in a great city like this, and keep them away from
those who may lead them to evil; and, above all, you should give
them good example in the practice of virtue. To fulfil your
duties well you need divine assistance. Go to Joseph--go to the
foster-father of Jesus Christ; he will intercede for you, and
obtain the many graces of which you stand in need. Go to him and
tell him all your troubles; you will find him very gracious.
But St. Joseph is the patron not of heads of families alone. The
church would have you all, dear brethren, "go to Joseph and do
all that he shall say to you." From him she would have you learn
a tender love to Jesus, a love manifesting itself in deeds, not
simply in words. Joseph devoted himself to the service of our
Lord, and so should we.
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But how can we presume to say that we love or serve Jesus if we
do not keep his commands; if we neglect our duties as Catholics
and as members of society? Let us show how much we love him by
doing something for him, as St. Joseph did, and let us, like him,
be constant in our well-doing, permitting no day to pass without
some acts of love to God. And if we would hope to make progress
in the ways of God, let us daily "Go to Joseph and do all that he
shall say."
-------------------
Sermon LXXI.
Christ And The Church.
_I have yet many things to say to you,
but you cannot bear them now. _
--St. John xvi. 12
These words were spoken by our Lord in his last discourse to his
disciples. What were those things which he had yet to say to
them, but which they could not then bear?
They were things pertaining to the kingdom of God--that is, his
church, his kingdom upon earth. He was about to leave the world
and go to the Father, but he would leave behind him an organized
body to represent him. During these forty days, then, he sketched
out the plan of the Catholic Church, which the Apostles were to
bring to completion, under the guidance of the Holy Ghost, who
was to teach them all truth.
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These were the many things he had yet to say to them, but which
they could not understand till then, because of their former
imperfect and even erroneous notions of the nature of his kingdom
upon earth. He had spoken of his church before, as it were, in
hints; now he speaks no longer in parables, but plainly. Listen
to the few recorded words of those which he spoke during these
forty days, and you will find in them an outline of the Catholic
Church.
He first asserts his authority to found a kingdom in this world,
saying, "All power is given to me in heaven and on earth"; and
then declares that he commits this same authority to his Apostles
and their successors in the church: "As my Father hath sent me, I
also send you." And, lest any one should say that this power and
authority were given to the Apostles alone and not to their
successors, he bids them go forth into all the world to preach
the Gospel to every creature, and promises them his continual
abiding Presence even to the end of the world. One of the
Apostles he invested with a special authority over the others.
The Good Shepherd would not leave his sheep in this world uncared
for, so he gave to St. Peter and his successors the office of
pastor of the whole church in the words, "Feed my lambs. Feed my
sheep." He also set forth the means of obtaining entrance into
this earthly kingdom of his namely, faith and holy baptism--"He
that believeth and is baptized shall be saved "; and he declared
the blessedness of those who would accept the faith upon the
authority of his church: "Blessed are they that have not seen and
yet have believed."
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He provided a means by which those who should sin after baptism
might find pardon and remission of their sins by instituting the
Sacrament of Penance, giving to his Apostles and their successors
the power to forgive and retain sins: "Whose sins you shall
forgive they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain
they are retained." He had already instituted on the night before
his Passion the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and during those
forty days he undoubtedly gave his Apostles the necessary
instructions concerning the rest of the sacraments of the new
law. The Gospels do not pretend to give us all our Lord's doings
and sayings, as St. John expressly tells us at the end of his
Gospel. But in these recorded sayings of Jesus, during this last
brief time that he spent on earth, we have the written
constitution of the Catholic Church, though but in outline. The
office of the pope as supreme pastor, the plenary authority of
the church, and the necessity of faith upon that authority as a
means of obtaining eternal salvation--all this is clearly set
forth in the words that I have quoted to you.
"Go, teach all nations," said our Lord to his church; and he
added, "teaching them to observe whatsoever I have commanded
you." On our part, then, is required faithful submission to his
teaching, as it comes to us through the voice of his church. It
is only by faith in this teaching and by a diligent observance of
the commandments of God and his church that we can hope to save
our souls and attain to the blessedness which he has promised.
-------------------
{245}
_Fourth Sunday after Easter._
Epistle.
_St. James i._ 17-21.
Dearly beloved:
Every best gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, coming
down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change
nor shadow of vicissitude. For of his own will hath he begotten
us by the word of truth, that we might be some beginning of his
creatures. You know, my dearest brethren, and let every man be
swift to hear, but slow to speak, and slow to anger. For the
anger of man worketh not the justice of God. Wherefore casting
away all uncleanness, and abundance of malice, with meekness
receive the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.
Gospel.
_St. John xvi._ 5-14.
At that time:
Jesus said to his disciples:
I go to him that sent me, and none of you asketh me: Whither
goest thou? But because I have spoken these things to you,
sorrow hath filled your heart. But I tell you the truth: it is
expedient to you that I go: for if I go not, the Paraclete will
not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when
he shall come, he will convince the world of sin, and of
justice, and of judgment. Of sin indeed: because they have not
believed in me. And of justice: because I go to the Father; and
you shall see me no longer. And of judgment: because the prince
of this world is already judged. I have yet many things to say
to you: but you cannot bear them now. But when he, the Spirit
of truth, shall come, he will teach you all truth. For he shall
not speak of himself: but what things soever he shall hear, he
shall speak, and the things that are to come he shall show you.
He shall glorify me: because he shall receive of mine, and will
declare it to you.
-------------------
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Sermon LXXII.
Evil Conversation.
_And he said to them:
What are these discourses
that you hold one with another? ...
And they said: Concerning Jesus of Nazareth. _
--Luke xxiv. 17-19.
Brethren: Suppose our Lord should stand in our midst to-day and
demand from each one of us, as he did from these two disciples,
What are these discourses that you hold one with another? Do our
conversations, like theirs, contain nothing reprehensible? Would
our answer be as pleasing to God as theirs was? If so, brethren,
we have reason to thank God, and go on our way rejoicing. But of
what do the majority of men most readily converse? It is sad that
we have to confess it, but God and his works, the soul and its
wants are topics anything but agreeable to most of the men of our
day. And so every legitimate means must be resorted to in order
to make the things of God and spiritual conversation at all
palatable.
And you, fathers and mothers of families, what are these
conversations which you hold one with the other? What are the
topics most commonly treated of in your Christian homes? Is it
the virtues of your neighbors that are spoken of and recounted
for your own edification and your children's imitation? Would to
God it were always so! But there are homes supposed to be
occupied by Christians where God's holy name is never mentioned
save to be blasphemed, where the neighbor is never spoken of
except to recall his follies, his vices, or even his atrocious
crimes.
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Christian parents, beware of the scandal your conversations may
give to your family, but especially to your innocent children.
Remember that many a soul to-day steeped in vice received its
first sinful impulse from some unguarded word, some improper
topic of conversation heard in the home that should have been the
nursery of every virtue.
And from you, young men and women, an answer might be profitably
demanded to this important question: What are the conversations
which you most readily indulge in one with the other? Are they in
any way improper, or such that you would be ashamed to have them
repeated in the presence of your parents? If so, then your
discourses are not concerning Jesus of Nazareth, and you are not
following the example of his disciples. But if in your
conversations, following the Apostolic rule, the things that
savor of uncleanness are not so much as mentioned amongst you,
what is to be said about the precious time you squander in idle,
frivolous talk? Remember that time is but the threshold of
eternity, every moment of which is of the highest value to you
now; and this is why on the last great day we shall be held to
account for every idle word. Young men and women, never admit
into your company those whose conversations are unworthy of a
Christian, and especially let your own language be always in
harmony with your high calling.
Indeed, brethren, to all of us this question of our Lord brings
home an important lesson. For if we would lead good Christian
lives we must not only abstain from all that is unbecoming or
scandalous, but we must also regulate with all diligence our
ordinary commonplace conversations.
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Let them be always such that we would not hesitate to repeat them
before God or his most virtuous servants. If we would have our
conversations agreeable to God and men, we should make it a rule
never to speak disparagingly of those _absent_, and never
take advantage of their absence to say anything which we would
not dare say in their presence. And the other rule we should
follow is this: never to say in the presence of others anything
which could give scandal or leave a bad impression.
Brethren, if we think often of this question of our Lord, if we
are diligent in following these rules, our conversations will be
always edifying to our neighbors and useful to ourselves. Then,
if called upon at any moment by our Lord, we can answer with his
disciples, Our conversations are "concerning Jesus of Nazareth."
-------------------
Sermon LXXIII.
Temptation.
_Blessed is the man that endureth temptation;
for when he hath been proved,
he shall receive the crown of life,
which God hath promised to them that love him. _
--St. James i. 12.
These words, my dear brethren, are from the Scripture read in the
Divine Office for to-day. They also, and very appropriately, have
a prominent place in the Office read on the feasts of martyrs
through the year.
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"Blessed is the man that endureth temptation." "Yes," you may
say, "certainly, if a man does endure and resist temptation, it
is a good thing, and one for which he has reason to be thankful;
but for my part, I would rather get along without being tempted."
This is a thought which is very likely to occur to those who are
in earnest about saving their souls, and are therefore afraid
that they may give way to temptation, commit mortal sin, and be
lost. They are inclined to envy others who seem to have a good
and innocent natural disposition, and sometimes they may,
perhaps, wish that they themselves had died in their baptismal
innocence, before temptation and sin were possible.
Now this wish is not altogether wrong; it is certainly pleasing
to God for us to desire that it might be impossible to offend
him, and that our own salvation might be made secure. But it is a
mistake, when he does allow temptation to come on us without our
fault, to think that it would be better for us if he had not done
so.
It is a mistake, and why? Because far the greater part of us
cannot acquire supernatural virtue in any high degree, give much
glory to God, or be entitled to much reward at his hands, without
a good deal of temptation. If it would please God to infuse all
the virtues into our souls without any trouble or labor on our
part, it might indeed be very well; but this he is not bound to
do, and generally he does not choose to do it. He prefers that we
should obtain our virtues partly by our own exertions. And as we
will not pray or meditate, do penance or mortify ourselves enough
to accomplish this end, there is no way to make any virtue strong
and hardy in us except by forcing us to oppose its contrary vice.
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It is quite easy to seem very pleasant and good-natured when one
has no crosses or provocations; but let a sharp or insulting word
be said, and it will soon be seen how much real patience there is
in this seeming good-humor; perhaps passion will flame out all
the more violently for being long in repose. But if one's
patience is often tried, and stands the test by means of our own
earnest struggles, it will become after a time something which we
can really count on.
This, then, is one good in temptation, that it makes our virtue
really strong and solid for future use. But another value of it
is to enable us to make acts at the very moment which will have
an eternal reward and merit, and which we should never make were
we let alone. Let one be tempted by impure thoughts for a day,
and faithfully resist them; in that day he will perhaps have done
more to please God and obtain merit and glory in heaven than in a
year of ordinary life.
So if temptation comes without our own fault, we may indeed
rejoice and count ourselves blessed, as St. James says; for it is
indeed an earnest of the crown of life which our tried and
strengthened souls shall win, and which shall be decked with the
innumerable gems which our battles with sin have merited. But let
us not allow it to come by our fault, for then we cannot hope for
a blessing with it. "Lead us not into temptation," we say every
day; profitable as the contest may be to us, it would be
presumption to offer ourselves to it, or to ask from God an
opportunity for it. Let us wait till he chooses to call us to the
strife, and then thank him for the trial which shall give us,
with his help, the crown of life which he has promised to those
who love him, and for his love hate and resist sin.
-------------------
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_Fifth Sunday after Easter._
Epistle.
_St. James i._ 22-27.
Dearly beloved:
Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your
own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word, and not a
doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his natural
countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself, and went his
way, and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he
that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty, and hath
continued in it, not becoming a forgetful hearer, but a doer of
the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man
think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue, but
deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion
pure and unspotted with God and the Father, is this: to visit
the fatherless and widows in their tribulation; and to keep
one's self undefiled from this world.
Gospel.
_St. John xvi._ 23-30.
At that time Jesus said to his disciples:
Amen, amen I say to you, if you ask the Father anything in my
name, he will give it you. Hitherto you have not asked any
thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive: that your joy may
be full. These things have I spoken to you in proverbs. The
hour cometh when I will no more speak to you in proverbs, but
will show you plainly of the Father. In that day you shall ask
in my name: and I say not to you, that I will ask the Father
for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have
loved me, and have believed that I came forth from God. I came
forth from the Father, and am come into the world; again I
leave the world, and I go to the Father. His disciples say to
him: Behold now thou speakest plainly, and speak-est no
proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things, and that for
thee it is not needful that any man ask thee. In this we
believe that thou camest forth from God.
-------------------
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Sermon LXXIV.
Sins Of The Tongue.
_And if any man think himself to be religious,
not bridling his tongue, but deceiving his own heart,
this man's religion is vain._
--St. James i. 26.