things of life is a fault deeply rooted in our fallen nature.
That the eager pursuit of wealth is not compatible with God's
service; that it is the peculiar province of the heathen we
indeed know.
{398}
And we know that the human soul is too noble a being to expend
its dearest action to purchase any perishable thing whatever. Yet
very many persons who deem themselves good enough Christians are
quite proud of their success in the heathen's way of life. And
many other Christians fall into downright despair because God has
deprived them of the things that "the heathen seek." Far be it
from us indeed to underestimate the burden of poverty, or to say
that it is an easy thing to suffer it. God knows that it is a
terribly hard thing to be poor; to see one's family suffer actual
hunger; to wander about the streets with no roof to cover one; to
lie helplessly sick and be too poor to get proper food or
medicine. But on the other hand it is wrong to act under such
circumstances as if all were lost, or as if God hated us; that is
the very time to arouse one's faith in God's love and one's
reliance on his promises; to seek his consolation in the holy
sacraments; to raise one's eyes hourly to his countenance by
fervent prayer that he may relieve the burden, or at any rate
grant patience to bear it.
Oh! how few there are who gladly and heartily choose the Kingdom
of God and his justice in preference to the treasures of this
world! How few there are who do so even grudgingly and
doubtfully!
Yet the doctrine stands: to labor for a postponed reward is the
Christian's life, and for a present reward the heathen's. To pass
by a seen and present joy for the sake of an unseen joy is the
Christian's wisdom. To trust the voice of an unseen benefactor--in
a word, to walk in the darkness of a supernatural faith--is
the fundamental virtue of our religion.
-------------------
{399}
Sermon CXXI.
Brotherly Love.
_But the fruit of the spirit is charity._
--Epistle of the Sunday.
Mark these words, brethren; for they describe the Christian
religion, at least as far as its practical effects are concerned.
The presence of the Holy Ghost is known by a kindly disposition,
a friendly feeling towards others, a longing to make others
happy, an affectionate sympathy for their sufferings; and all
this for the love of God. So St. John says: "We know that we have
passed from death to life because we love the brethren." The
necessary result of sanctifying grace is a deep attachment to our
friends and a loving forgiveness towards our enemies. "For all
the law," says St. Paul, "is fulfilled in one sentence: thou
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Kindness of heart,
generosity, self-forgetfulness, done to be like Jesus Christ, is
the beginning and the end of our holy faith.
"I give you a new commandment," said our Lord to his disciples,
"that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you love
one another." Again: "By this shall men know that you are my
disciples if you have love for one another." He thus tells us
what his law is--fraternal charity; that is the newness of life
man got from heaven above; that is the torrent of heavenly
influence rushing down upon us and bearing us away upon its
billows; and that is the mark set upon us by which we know
ourselves, and others may know us, to be the fruit of the Holy
Spirit.
{400}
But somebody might say, How about the love of God? Is not the
love of God the end of all religion? Is it not our first duty to
love God so strongly that we prefer him to all things else, even
our nearest relatives? Is not the love of God the one absorbing
duty of our lives? In answer, my brethren, I have only to say
that that is but another way of looking at the same thing; for
since the coming of our Lord among us God has become man, and we
are born in holy baptism, "not of blood, nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." When our Lord, true
God as he was, took human nature, he took our poor nature just as
it is, saving its sinfulness; and it is his blessed will that one
by one every man, woman, and child in the world should personally
be joined to his divine nature by baptism, and, as St. Peter
says, be made partakers of the divinity he possesses. And even
the poor, unbaptized heathen, they are to be gifted with this
divine privilege by our love for them and our loving efforts to
give it to them. Now do you not see why our Lord, his Apostles,
and his church made so much of the love of one's neighbor? And do
you not see that, whether you begin to love with God or with man,
if you do it along with Jesus Christ, you do it with the God-man,
and therefore always in God and never out of man?
Yet another might say: But, Father, what about the sacraments,
and what about the practice of prayer, and what about the laws of
the church? I answer by a comparison: Why do men plant and then
reap a field of wheat? That they may in due time get the grain,
make bread of part for themselves and families, and sell the rest
to their neighbors.
{401}
Now, some may use the very old-fashioned way of thrashing out the
grain by the tread of oxen, and others by the beating of the
flail, and others by the great, roaring thrashing-machine. The
last way is the quickest and cleanest and best. So our Lord, when
he became man, invented the sacraments; he established his church
as the new and best way of obtaining the ripe fruit of the Holy
Spirit, and that way he commands us to use. So the man who really
loves his neighbor as himself learns to do it by using our Lord's
methods, the sacraments, and he cannot get along without them.
So, brethren, cultivate more and more this sweet Christian virtue
of fraternal love; and especially in your families. When the
children cry, when they are sickly and peevish, when others are
cross and exacting, when some are dull and stupid, when the meals
are too late or the food is not cooked right, when the
thousand-and-one annoyances of living with others vex and harass
you, remember that you are a Christian, and that loving patience,
great good nature, fondness for friends--to say nothing of zeal
for the conversion of poor sinners--are virtues that will win you
the kingdom of heaven.
-------------------
Sermon CXXII.
Religion For Week-days.
_No man can serve two masters. ...
You cannot serve God and Mammon._
--Gospel of the Day.
{402}
What does our Lord mean by this, my brethren? "No man," he says,
"can serve two masters." "Why," you might perhaps answer, "I do
not see any difficulty about serving two masters. What is to
prevent a man, for instance, after his regular hours of work are
over, from hiring himself out for the evenings to some other
employer, if he has strength enough to spare? Or, if he can make
such an arrangement, why should he not work for one in the
morning, and another in the afternoon? And are there not, in
fact, many people, teachers, for example, who give private
lessons, who have a great number of employers whom they agree to
serve at stated times?"
Yes, this seems true enough. It seems so true that I believe
there are many people who, in spite of our Lord's statement to
the contrary, divide their service between God and Mammon. They
hire themselves out to the devil, or at least to the world during
the week, and when Sunday comes round, and they put on their good
clothes, they change their master at the same time, and, at least
for the time that they are in church, read certain words out of
their prayer-books, in which they offer their service to God. And
they do not appear to think that there is anything strange about
this. They think that, of course, decency requires that God
should want part of their time for his service, and that he is
quite reasonable in only asking for one day out of seven; but
that he should have any claim on them during the part of the week
that he does not specially reserve does not seem to occur to
their minds. That is the time engaged to the other master--that
is, to their worldly interests or pleasures. They find no
difficulty in reconciling the service of God and Mammon at all;
they can be good Christians and also men of the world like others
without the slightest trouble.
{403}
But I seem to hear some one say, "Father, are you not pushing
this matter rather too far? Surely one cannot be in church or
saying his prayers at home all the week. Some people may find
time to come to early Mass and all the devotions, and live what
you may call a pious life generally; but I have to go to my
business or my family will starve. What would you have me do?"
Well, I will tell you. I do not find fault with any one for
attending to his business during the week, and working as much as
he is obliged to provide for himself and his family properly; but
I must say, by the way, that many people, under this excuse, fall
into the snare of avarice, and work early and late to hoard up
riches which neither they nor their family need, and which, left
to their children, is only too likely to be an occasion of sin.
However, I repeat, no one is to be blamed for attending to the
proper duties of his state of life; for working at his business,
if it is a legitimate and useful one. But what one is to be
blamed for is for attending to it as if, instead of being God's
business, as it ought to be, it was no business of his at all; as
if he had nothing to say about it, and his laws did not apply to
it. The delusion that too many Christians are under is that their
religious life and their life in the world are entirely separate
concerns; that religion, morality, God's laws in general, have
nothing to do with politics, business, buying or selling, or what
they call practical affairs. They say, If we did not do as others
do about these things, we could not get on at all; so they calmly
take for granted, even, perhaps, in the confessional, that such
things have no moral aspect whatever.
{404}
This is a great delusion and a fatal blunder. A Christian has got
to be a Christian first, last, and all the time; one cannot be a
Catholic on Sunday, and to all intents and purposes a Protestant
or an infidel during the week. If you can't get on on the
principle of serving God and trying to find out and do his will
on Monday as well as on Sunday, then all I have to say is, "Don't
get on." I dare say there is some truth in your complaint; a man
who manages his business and daily life generally, as if there
was no God in the world, will probably make money faster, and
have in some ways a better time, than one will who believes in
God and tries to do his will. Very well, then, if you prefer this
world to the next, act according to its standard Sunday, Monday,
and all the time; but don't try to cut inside of it and get a
pass to heaven on the ground that you have used another standard
now and then.
-------------------
{405}
_Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost._
Epistle.
_Galatians v._ 25; _vi._ 10.
Brethren:
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let
us not become desirous of vainglory, provoking one another,
envying one another. And if a man can be overtaken in any
fault, you, who are spiritual, instruct such a one in the
spirit of mildness, considering thyself, lest thou also be
tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so shall you fulfil
the law of Christ. For if any man think himself to be
something, whereas he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. But let
every one prove his own work, and so he shall have glory in
himself only, and not in another. For every one shall bear his
own burden. And let him who is instructed in the word
communicate to him that instructeth him, in all good things. Be
not deceived, God is not mocked. For what things a man shall
sow, those also shall he reap. For he that soweth in the flesh,
of the flesh also shall reap corruption. But he that soweth in
the Spirit, of the Spirit shall reap life everlasting. And in
doing good, let us not fail. For in due time we shall reap, not
failing. Therefore, whilst we have time, let us do good to all
men, but especially to those who are of the household of the
faith.
Gospel.
_St. Luke vii._ 11-16.
At that time:
Jesus went into a city called Naim: and there went with him his
disciples, and a great multitude. And when he came nigh to the
gate of the city, behold a dead man was carried out, the only
son of his mother; and she was a widow: and much people of the
city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion
on her, and said to her: Weep not.
{406}
And he came near and touched the bier. (And they that carried
it stood still.) And he said: Young man, I say to thee, Arise.
And he that was dead sat up and began to speak. And he
delivered him to his mother. And there came a fear on them all:
and they glorified God, saying: That a great prophet is risen
up among us: and God hath visited his people.
-------------------
Sermon CXXIII.
The Fruits Of A Bad Life.
_Be not deceived, God is not mocked;
for what things a man shall sow,
those also shall he reap._
--Epistle of the Day.
One would think, my dear friends, that the Apostle would hardly
have needed to remind any one having common sense, or even a
little experience, of such an obvious truth as this. Surely no
one expects, when he plants some kind of seed, to have some other
kind of crop come from it. "Do men," says our Divine Lord,
"gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?" No, we are all
well aware that if we want to grow any kind of grain or fruit we
must sow the seed or plant the tree which produces it.
And yet, strange to say, though we all do acknowledge this law of
nature in everything outside of ourselves, we fail to apply it to
ourselves, and especially to our souls. In matters simply
pertaining to the body we do indeed know that the cause will
produce its effect. If we sow the seed of some fatal disease in
ourselves we expect it to break out and run its course; we do not
believe that, as a rule, tears or even prayers are going to stop
it.
{407}
But when it comes to the soul, many Christians seem to think that
everything regarding it may be shifted at their own will; that
they may go on for years sowing the seeds of all kinds of
abominable vices in their souls, and that, later on, whenever
they may desire, all this work can be undone in a moment, and
those souls, which sin has rotted through and through, can be put
right back where they were as they came from the baptismal font,
or even set on a perfect level with those in which the seed of
every virtue has been implanted and carefully nurtured from
childhood.
Ah! my dear brethren, this is a great and a terrible mistake.
Hear the words in which St. Paul continues: "He that soweth in
his flesh, of the flesh also shall reap corruption; but he that
soweth in the spirit, of the spirit shall reap life everlasting."
"He that soweth in his flesh, of the flesh also shall reap
corruption." Here is the great evil of sin, which repentance,
however sincere, cannot utterly undo. True contrition will, no
doubt, especially if accompanied by the Sacrament of Penance,
take away the guilt of sin; but unless it be very intense, and
accompanied by an extraordinary love of God, like that of the
great saints, it will not, in releasing from guilt, remedy all
the deformity which long-continued habits of vice have worked in
the soul. Yes, sorrow may come in such an overflowing torrent as
to break down and sweep away all obstacles in its path; but how
often does it come so? To have such sorrow for sin is a rare and
remarkable grace from God which the sinner has no right to
expect.
{408}
All this is specially true, as the words of the Apostle teach us,
of the sins of the flesh, such as drunken-ness and impurity. The
body will hang on to sin after the soul has given it up, and will
drag the soul again down with it. Oh! that those who are addicted
to these horrible sensual habits would realize their danger, and
feel the net which the flesh has been weaving round their spirit.
But no; they go on from week to week, from month to month,
making, it may be, now and then a feeble effort to escape; but
too often it can be seen after each confession, though they are
indeed on their feet again, that the odds against them are
greater than ever, and that their weapons are dropping out of
their hands.
Brethren, grace is powerful, surely; but you are much mistaken if
you think it is going to destroy and make of no effect the law of
nature. Rouse yourselves to the combat which is before you while
there is yet time; for the time may come, and perhaps sooner than
you think, when the corruption of the flesh will quench the
feeble spark of contrition which God has hitherto given you, and
in which lies your only hope.
-------------------
Sermon CXXIV.
Sins Of Parents.
_And Jesus said, Young man, I say to thee, arise._
--St. Luke viii. 14.
{409}
Many mourning parents, brethren, are represented by the poor
widow of Naim, told of in this day's Gospel; and their mourning
is for sons dead in mortal sin. These are indeed days of many and
various vices, and our young people are far from being exempt.
Blasphemy and religious indifference; neglect of prayer, Mass,
and the sacraments; drunkenness and impurity; such are the
plague-spots on the spiritual corpses of many of our young
people.
Yet, alas! as parents raise their eyes to our Lord's gracious
countenance and beg his pity, they should sometimes confess that
they are not without blame for their misfortunes. Many parents
spoil their children by bad example. For if they profane the name
of God in the midst of their families, they need not be surprised
to find that in after-years their children have no reverence for
God or for his church or his sacraments. Fathers who come home
smelling strong of drink, and now and then plainly intoxicated,
may indeed hope to save their own souls by thorough repentance,
but are likely enough to have drunkards among their children.
Parents who tolerate improper language in the household, and can
laugh at a double-meaning joke, and see no harm in a lascivious
dance or a doubtful novel, need not be surprised to find that
their daughters have lost maidenly reserve, and that their sons
are given to open debauchery. Parents who neglect their Easter
duty, and who easily excuse themselves from Sunday Mass, need not
be surprised if their children fall quite away from the practice
of religion and even from its belief.
Now, it often happens that children who have been treated too
leniently while quite young are treated too severely when a
little older. Too much authority should not be used with boys and
girls who are some years in their teens.
{410}
With them authority is at best a medicine, and not a food. To
strengthen a boy's virtue, to make him love religion, to give him
a bright notion of the next world and of the value of his soul,
the exercise of authority is one means, but perhaps the least
useful of all. In some cases authority can only do harm. To make
a person who has full use of reason a good Christian it is
necessary to put him in the way of intelligent instruction, by
giving him good, readable religious matter, books or papers; by
persuading him by such inducements as an occasional little
present, and by a continual interest in his progress, to keep his
place at Sunday-school; by introducing and discussing religious
topics in family conversation, and by interesting him to attend
sermons and lectures. Meantime let there be many kind words and
much sympathetic conduct, forgetfulness of past offences,
patience with natural difficulties and with youthful folly; let
all this go beforehand and authority will find nothing left to
do.
Brethren, do not suppose that it is always best to _force_
one to do what he ought to do; try rather to induce him, to
attract him. St. Francis de Sales says: "You can catch more flies
with one drop of honey that with a barrel of vinegar"; and he
also says: "For every ounce of good advice add a pound of good
example."
Therefore it is that so many scolding parents end by becoming
weeping parents. Parental authority, which should be merely the
supremacy of all that is worthy of affection, has made home
hateful and driven the children into occasions of sin--the saloon
and the low theatre for the boys, the stolen interview and the
common dance for the girls.
{411}
But, some one might say, what if your child has got beyond you
and will be bad in spite of every best endeavor on your
part--what then? Well, at any rate there is no sense in railing
at him. If you can not make him better, what is the sense of
making him miserable? And is not then the very time to lay him,
spiritually speaking, in his coffin, and lead our Lord up to him,
and, kneeling down, say: O Lord! have pity on me, for this is my
dear son, dead in mortal sin? Say but the word; touch his dead
soul with thy loving hand; stir him up to repentance!
Many such prayers cannot be said without producing their effect:
the resurrection of your child's soul from the death of mortal
sin.
-------------------
Sermon CXXV.
The Law Of Charity.
_Bear ye one another's burdens,
and so you shall fulfil the law of Christ._
--Epistle of the Day.
The law of Christ, dear brethren, is essentially a law of
charity. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole soul
and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind, and thy
neighbor as thyself." This is the whole law of Christ summed up,
and it is plain that this is a law of love. But the Apostle bids
us bear one another's burdens that we may fulfil this law, which,
as is evident from the text just quoted, imposes upon us the love
of our God and of our neighbor. How, then, will the bearing of
others burdens help us to serve God better?
{412}
That we have burdens, and some of us rather heavy ones, is clear
enough; and that most of us are only too willing to have some one
help us to carry them will be, I think, generally agreed to.
Every one has his own difficulties; every one has something which
he would like to get rid of if he could, because it interferes
with his comfort. Now, I do not think the Apostle wished us to
suppose from his words that God would have us free each other
from _all_ suffering, since that is not possible, as we know
that hardship forms a necessary part of our probation. We must
expect to have something to suffer always.
But what he would have us do, it seems to me, is to help each
other by counsel and material aid, to make what otherwise might
be almost unbearable easier to carry. "My yoke is sweet and my
burden light." This is the spirit he wishes us to strive after.
It is an unselfish spirit he desires for us, such as will make us
forget our own sufferings in ministering to the wants of others.
He wants us to cultivate charity; to look beyond ourselves and
our own interests, and take up the troubles of our brethren.
But you say to me: "I do not see what advantage there is in all
this; if I take another's burden, I am but adding to my own." It
is just here that our really helping each other appears. It is by
this very assistance we give our neighbor that we fulfil the law
of Christ, which demands suffering of us. For by our sympathizing
with others and sharing in their difficulties our own burdens
become lighter. If we simply took care of ourselves and were
forgetful of all the rest of the world, we would chafe beneath
our load; we would be so wrapped up in ourselves that nothing
could persuade us that our sufferings were the very best things
that could befall us.
{413}
By helping our neighbor we help ourselves. We are led to be
reconciled to our lot, to expect nothing more from God for
ourselves than what we see others getting. We know that they have
as just a claim upon him as we, yet they have their troubles as
well as we. The road to heaven is open to all, but all must take
what they get as they go along, and be thankful for it and make
no comparisons. All get a goodly share of what is disagreeable to
nature on the way; our own portion differs only in kind and
quantity from that of others.