charitable in any true sense of those words, in spite of all its
boasting; and it is much to be feared that it never will. After
all, it is not much wonder that it has not; for this is a very
difficult lesson, and one which one must have the help of God to
learn. True tolerance or patience, bearing with others when they
interfere, not with somebody else, but with ourselves, is a fruit
of grace rather than of nature. It cannot be expected from those
who have rejected the grace of God as a needless encumbrance in
the journey of life. If they have the appearance of it, it is
only an outside finish of what is called politeness, put on
merely to save trouble and make things more comfortable on the
whole.
But it is not for Christians who are trying to live by the light
of grace, not of nature; who believe in God and are trying to
keep his commandments; who wish to imitate Christ, and are
receiving the sacraments which should enable them to do so, to
follow the example of such.
{424}
We ought to try to be really tolerant with our brethren, whatever
their faults or defects may be or however much they may put us
out or interfere with our comfort consciously or unconsciously,
"with patience, supporting one another in charity," as St. Paul
says in the Epistle of to-day. And yet must we not confess that
too often we do not even make an attempt to practise this virtue?
Your neighbor offends you in some trifling way, perhaps without
really meaning to do so or knowing that he does; it may be even
by some peculiarity which is not really his fault at all. Do you
put up with it; do you say: "Oh! that is not much; I must take
people as I find them and as God made them, not as I would like
to have them; we all have plenty of defects, and perhaps I myself
am the worst of all"? Do you not rather say: "Oh! there is no
getting along with such a person; I will keep out of his way; I
cannot bear the sight of him; it will be better for us to avoid
speaking," and the like?
This intolerance, which is so common, is simply avoiding a cross
which we ought to carry, not only for the love of God, like all
others, but for the love of our neighbor also; and especially
when it comes from those who are our brethren not only by a
common humanity but by a common faith, who have with us, as St.
Paul goes on to remind us, "one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one
God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in
us all." Try, then, to bear this cross cheerfully, and show, by
so doing, that you really are aiming to fulfil the great
commandments given in to-day's Gospel, by loving God, from whom
it comes, with your whole heart and soul and mind, and your
neighbor, by whom it comes, as yourself.
------------------
{425}
_Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost._
Epistle.
1 _ Corinthians i._ 4-8.
Brethren:
I give thanks to my God always for you; for the grace of God
that is given you in Christ Jesus, that in all things you are
made rich in him, in every word, and in all knowledge: as the
testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: so that nothing is
wanting to you in any grace, waiting for the manifestation of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who also will confirm you unto the end
without crime, in the day of the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Gospel.
_St. Matthew ix._ 1-8.
At that time:
Jesus entering into a boat, passed over the water and came into
his own city. And behold they brought to him a man sick of the
palsy lying on a bed. And Jesus, seeing their faith, said to
the man sick of the palsy: Son, be of good heart, thy sins are
forgiven thee. And behold some of the Scribes said within
themselves: This man blasphemeth. And Jesus seeing their
thoughts, said: Why do you think evil in your hearts? Which is
easier, to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up
and walk? But that you may know that the Son of man hath power
on earth to forgive sins (then saith he to the man sick of the
palsy), Rise up: take thy bed and go into thy house. And he
rose up, and went into his house. And the multitude seeing it,
feared, and glorified God who had given such power to men.
--------------------
{426}
Sermon CXXVIII.
_Why do you think evil in your hearts?_
--St. Matthew ix. 4.
All those, dear brethren, who are trying to lead a holy life have
a great horror of _external_ sins. They will not lie, steal,
murder, or be guilty of adultery or intemperance. Still, I am
afraid a great many of us are awfully careless about
_internal_ sins. We forget that not only the sins which we
openly commit, but those also which we secretly assent to in our
own minds, are offences against God.
You can see this in to-day's Gospel. When our Lord said to the
sick man, "Thy sins are forgiven thee," the Scribes directly said
"_within themselves_, He blasphemeth"; and although they did
not shape this sentence in words, it was accounted to them for
sin, as we can see from the reply of Jesus Christ contained in
the text.
You see, then, brethren, if you want to keep your conscience
clear, you must not only avoid external but even internal sins.
Indeed, I think the sins which we commit internally are even more
deadly than the external ones. First, because they always precede
the open offence; as our Lord says in another place, "From the
heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries,
fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies." Now, you
will see at once that "evil thoughts" come first on the list, by
which I think our Lord wishes to intimate that they are the root
of all the others.
Again, evil thoughts, whether they are against charity, or
against chastity, or against faith--whether they are thoughts of
pride, of hatred, or envy, or avaricious thoughts--insomuch as
they are concealed from the sight of others, do not cause the
same shame to the guilty person as an overt act would. Thus,
being the more easily committed, they are the more frequent and
the more deadly.
{427}
Lastly, dear friends, evil thoughts pollute the mind and heart,
and in proportion as they and their darkness enter, God and his
brightness leave. To indulge in evil thoughts is to defile the
stream at its fountain-head and poison all the river below.
Be on your guard, then, dear brethren, against this insidious
enemy.
Perhaps evil thoughts against faith may assail you. Cast them out
before they have time to enter fully into the mind. Many, better
perhaps and holier than you, have in times past become heretics,
apostates, enemies of God's church because they did not trample
at once upon these beginnings of evil. You may be assaulted by
imaginations against holy purity. Stifle them, I beseech you, at
once, or they will grow in strength and gain in frequency till
they have buried the grace of God, peace of mind, and strength of
intellect in one common and unhallowed grave. You have all
doubtless heard of the avalanche which happens in regions where
the mountains which rise from the great valley and tower above
the nestling valleys are covered with perpetual snow. Perhaps it
is a slight puff of air, or the light tread of the mountain goat,
or it maybe nothing but the brushing of a bird's wing that
detaches the ball of snow; but be that as it may, the particle,
once started, rushes down the mountain-side, gathering strength
as it hurries on, leaping from one precipice to another, till
finally, having swept everything before it, the enormous heap
falls upon the peaceful village and buries everything in "a chaos
of indistinguishable death."
{428}
Yet in the beginning that avalanche was but a ball of snow. So it
is with evil thoughts against faith, chastity, charity, humility,
and all the other virtues. Once let them start and you can never
tell in what awful ruin they will end.
Nip evil thoughts, then, in the bud; and as chief remedies I
would say:
1. Fill your mind with good thoughts. A vessel cannot be full
of two liquids at the same time. Think of heaven; think of God,
of Jesus, of Mary and her pure spouse, St. Joseph.
2. Remember the eye that sees the secrets of all hearts, and
Him who saw the thoughts of the Scribes in the Gospel of
to-day.
3. Remember that you can commit a mortal sin by thought as well
as by deed.
Lastly, picture to yourself One ever standing by your side,
with wounded hands and pierced heart, "whose name is faithful
and true, whose eyes are as a flame of fire, and on his head
many diadems; who is clothed with a garment of blood," and who
cries to you night and day, "Why do ye think evil in your
hearts?"
Rev. Algernon A. Brown.
---------------
Sermon CXXIX.
_And Jesus seeing their faith,
said to the man sick of the palsy:
Son, be of good heart,
thy sins are forgiven thee._
--St. Matthew ix. 2.
These words of our Lord must have been something of a surprise to
the paralytic and his friends; welcome they must have been, but
still unexpected, and to some extent disappointing. For the sick
man had not been brought to Christ to have his sins forgiven; and
that favor had not been asked, at least no request had been made
for it in words.
{429}
The paralytic himself must have wished it, it is true, for God
never forgives our sins unless we desire forgiveness; but he did
not say so, and his mind, like those of his bearers, was probably
more occupied with his bodily than with his spiritual cure.
It will be worth our while to see why our Saviour chose to give
them this surprise; why he did not cure the sick man first and
forgive him afterwards. That might seem to be the more natural
way: to restore him first to bodily health, and then to move him
by gratitude to repentance and conversion. Still, when we come to
consider it I think we shall hit upon two very good reasons for
his course, and that without very much reflection. The first
reason, then, for our Lord doing as he did, was to show us that
the health of the soul is more important in his sight than that
of the body, and hence requires our first attention. The second
follows from the first: it was to remind us that, such being the
case, we cannot reasonably expect bodily health or any other
temporal blessing if we neglect to reconcile ourselves to God.
Now, these are two things that all of us, my dear brethren, must
certainly know very well, otherwise they would not occur to our
minds so readily. But in spite of this we too often fail to give
our knowledge a practical application.
How few there are, strange to say, who really act as if the
health of their souls were of more importance than that of their
bodies! Take, for instance, in proof of this, a fact which we
have often seen recorded lately in the daily papers. The yellow
fever, you will hear, has appeared in some Southern town, and
what has been the result?
{430}
All the inhabitants, who could leave the place immediately did
so, perhaps taking the very next train, and, it may be, leaving
their property in the hands of strangers. Well, we may think this
a little cowardly and foolish, considering that, after all, there
would not have been, perhaps, more than one chance in ten even of
sickness, if they had stayed; but still we cannot blame them, for
we feel that we should very likely have done the same ourselves.
But how many would act in this way in the presence of a spiritual
danger, though it were much more certain and imminent than that
of the body in this terrible Southern plague? Ask yourselves the
question, you who remain contentedly in unnecessary occasions of
sin, with much more than one chance in ten, nay, with an absolute
certainty, that your soul will be not only sick but dead as long
as you remain there; ask yourselves if you value the health of
your soul more than that of the body; see if you practise what
you must believe if you are a Christian--that it is better to die
even to-day in a state of grace than live for a moment in that of
sin.
Well, whether you act on this belief or not. Almighty God does.
He shows you that, as I have said, in this Gospel of to-day. And
it follows that you cannot please him or be in his grace as long
as you do not do for your soul what you would do for your body;
that is, as long as you do not remove it from needless dangers.
That is the first practical lesson to be learned from our Lord's
action in the cure of the paralytic.
{431}
And the second is that, if we hope to obtain from God temporal
favors out of the natural order of his providence, we must first
provide for our souls, which come first in his estimation. And
yet many people seem to expect him to reverse the order which he
has established. They promise conversion if they obtain the
temporal blessing which they want. They may succeed through his
abundant mercy; but the better and the surer course would be to
think of the soul first and the body afterward. "Seek first," and
he says, "the kingdom of God and his justice, and all things
shall be added unto you."
And remember that this must be the real disposition of your
souls, if you would be saved. The catechism tells you that the
only contrition which will obtain forgiveness, even in the
sacrament of Penance, must be what is called "sovereign"; that
is, "we should be more grieved for having offended God than for
all the other evils that could happen to us." Think well of this,
and you will be able to add a good deal to what I have had time
to say.
-------------------
{432}
_Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost._
Epistle.
_Ephesians iv._ 23-28.
Brethren:
Be ye renewed in the spirit of your mind: and put on the new
man, who, according to God, is created in justice, and holiness
of truth. Wherefore, putting away lying, speak ye the truth
every man with his neighbor: for we are members one of another.
Be angry, and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your anger:
Give not place to the devil. Let him that stole, steal now no
more, but rather let him labor, working with his hands that
which is good, that he may have to give to him who is in need.
Gospel.
_St. Matthew xxii._ 2-14.
At that time:
Jesus spoke to the chief priests and Pharisees in parables,
saying: The kingdom of heaven is like to a man being a king,
who made a marriage for his son. And he sent his servants to
call them that were invited to the marriage: and they would not
come. Again he sent other servants, saying: Tell them that were
invited: Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my beeves and
fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come ye to the
wedding. But they neglected, and went their ways, one to his
farm, and another to his merchandise. And the rest laid hands
on his servants, and, having treated them contumeliously, put
them to death. But when the king heard of it he was angry, and,
sending his armies, he destroyed those murderers and burnt
their city. Then he saith to his servants: The wedding indeed
is ready: but they that were invited were not worthy. Go ye
therefore into the highways, and as many as you shall find,
invite to the wedding. And his servants going out into the
highways, gathered together all that they found, both bad and
good: and the wedding was filled with guests.
{433}
And the king went in to see the guests, and he saw there a man
who had not on a wedding garment. And he saith to him: Friend,
how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? But he
was silent. Then the king said to the waiters: Having bound his
hands and feet, cast him into the exterior darkness: there
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called,
but few are chosen.
----------------------------
Sermon CXXX.
_Let him that stole,
steal now no more._
--Ephesians iv. 28.
These words, dear friends, are taken from the Epistle appointed
to be read to-day, and contain a most useful lesson.
Now, I know the words "steal, stealing, thief, etc.," have a very
ugly sound.
People have a horror of them. The worst insult you can give to
any one is to say, "You are a thief." Still, in spite of this
feeling, we know that sins against justice are very often
committed.
Public men steal from public moneys. Employees rob their
employers, children steal from their parents, servants from their
masters, trustees from those whose affairs they have under
control, and so on. From the time that Judas put his hand into
the bag and filched from the scanty funds of his Master and his
brethren, down to this present day, there have been Catholics who
have so far forgotten themselves and "the vocation to which they
are called" as to steal. Do you doubt this? Take up the first
daily paper that comes to hand, and you will have evidence in
black and white.
{434}
Now, there are three ways in which we can commit the sin of
stealing: first, by taking that which does not belong to us;
secondly, by unjustly retaining what does not belong to us; and,
thirdly, by injuring what is not our own. First, then, we must
not take what is not our own. Now, this you all know so well that
I need only say a few words about it. Brethren, the man, woman,
or child who takes money, articles, clothing, or what not from
another, without their consent and knowledge, is a thief!
When such persons creep to the till, the box, the desk of their
neighbors, with stealthy tread and bated breath, to take what
does not belong to them, God sees them, God's angel sees them;
and, could they but hear it, they would be aware of a hundred
voices crying aloud, "Thou shalt not steal." You are a thief! You
are a thief!
If you steal you must restore. Having stolen, you will find it
very difficult to restore even when you have the money. If you do
not restore (being able) you will go to that "outer darkness
where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth." Oh! then, "he that
stole, let him now steal no more."
Again, we must not retain what is not our own, for this also is a
species of stealing. First under this head comes paying our just
debts. "Brethren, owe no man anything," says St. Paul. Now, my
friends, if you contract debts, and then when the time comes you
do not pay them, but use the money for other purposes, you are
unjustly retaining what is not your own, and thereby commit a sin
against justice. There are some people who "want" (as the saying
is) "to have their cake and eat it."
{435}
They run in debt, they enjoy the things obtained on credit, and
then when the time comes to pay they want the money also.
Brethren, the motto of every Catholic ought to be, "Pay your
way." When we leave our debts long without liquidation we not
only destroy our credit, but we practically steal from our
neighbor.
Then we must be careful also to pay our debts to God by
supporting our pastors and our churches. It is a solemn command
of God that we should give to the support of church and priest.
It is our duty. It is a debt _owing_ to God. If you do not
give of your means to this holy purpose you rob God--you steal
from the Almighty by retaining what belongs _by right_ to
church and pastor. Ah! then, "he that stole, let him now steal no
more."
Lastly, we can sin against justice by injuring property or goods
which belong to our neighbor. Now, my friends, if we hire a house
or lands, or if we take some official charge of our
fellow-Christian's goods, we ought to be as careful of these
things as if they were our own. If we, through our carelessness,
our neglect, allow another's property to be damaged, lost,
lessened in any way in value, we steal from him just that much.
Be careful, then, of these sins against justice. Do not rob your
fellow-men. Do not retain what is their due; do not injure their
goods or property. Remember the great God who sees you. He is not
only perfect charity; he is also perfect justice, and with his
justice will he one day judge.
Rev. Algernon A. Brown.
----------------------------
{436}
Sermon CXXXI.
_And he sent his servants,
to call them that were invited to the marriage:
and they would not come._
--St. Matthew xxii. 3.
We cannot for a moment hesitate, my dear brethren, as to who is
represented, in this parable of our Lord, by the king who made a
marriage for his son. It is God the Father; and it is his Divine
Son for whom he has made the marriage. And that marriage is the
union of our human nature with his divinity; it is what we call
the Incarnation. And those who were first invited to this
marriage, to partake of its benefits, are the Jews, who were
first called to the church, to whom alone our Lord himself
preached, and who were the first objects of the labors of his
apostles; but who would not answer the invitation, even
persecuting and putting to death those who gave it, and thus
causing it to be given to others--that is, to ourselves--the
city of Jerusalem being at the same time destroyed, together with
the national existence of the Jewish people, as a punishment for
their rejection of the Gospel invitation.
We Gentiles have accepted what they, his chosen people, refused.
We have come by faith and holy baptism to this marriage of the
King's Son, for we are within the fold of his Holy Catholic
Church. But having done so, we are now all invited to sit down at
the marriage feast. It does not satisfy his love for us that we
should simply be within the four walls of his house; he wishes
that we should also partake of the good things which he has
prepared in it for the refreshment of our soul--that is to say,
the special graces which come to us only by means of the church,
and which are not found outside: particularly the sacraments,
and, most of all, the great and wonderful Sacrament of the Altar,
in which he has given us his Precious Body and Blood for the food
of our souls.
{437}
This, then, is pre-eminently the marriage feast of which he has
invited us to partake, now that we are within his house. It is
the Holy Communion. One would think we would be only too glad to
do so. You would not expect to find wedding guests insulting
their host by refusing to taste of the refreshment prepared for
them.
But how is it in fact? As he has had to send all over the world
by his messengers, the apostles and their successors, through its
highways and byways, to find people, not rich and great, as he
might expect, but poor, humble, and despised, to fill up his
house, so he has to send round among those guests whom he has
secured, to beg them to eat at his table. He has been obliged not
only to ask them but to entreat them, and even to command them,
under penalty of being turned out of his doors by
excommunication, if they refuse. And in spite of all this, there
are so many that do refuse that he does not carry out this
threat, lest even his house should be deserted.
Is not this a shame? Is it not too bad that we, his miserable and
unworthy guests, who have no right to be in his church at all,
should have to be compelled to receive the food which he has
prepared for us in it? More especially when we remember what that
food is; that it is himself, his own Body and Blood; for such is
his love that nothing else seemed to him good enough for us.
{438}
Here it is, this royal banquet, waiting for us all. Every day we
are allowed to receive it. And yet how few there are who do so!
If any one should go to Holy Communion once a month he is
regarded rather as presumptuous than obedient. In spite of our
Lord's repeated request, his people do not seem to believe that
it is his will that not only a few but all of them should
frequently come to receive him in this sacrament of his love.
Of course, if you are to do his will in this matter, you must in
others too. This feast is not for those who continually and
obstinately break his laws. But how often you can approach it is
a question for those to whom it has been entrusted to decide. Let
the responsibility rest on your confessor, not on yourself. Do
not let it be said that you, who are invited, will not come. Let
not our Lord have to reproach you with ingratitude. Let not his
table be deserted through your fault. The communion-rail is the
place for all, not for a few. Come, then, often to it, if not for
your own sakes, at least for the sake of Him who so longs to see
you there and who has done so much for you.
-------------------
{439}
_Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost_.
Epistle.
_Ephesians v._ 15-31.
See, brethren, how you walk circumspectly: not as unwise, but
as wise: redeeming the time, for the days are evil. Wherefore
become not unwise, but understanding what is the will of God.
And be not drunk with wine, wherein is luxury, but be ye filled
with the Holy Spirit. Speaking to yourselves in psalms and
hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing and making melody in
your hearts to the Lord: giving thanks always for all things,
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to God and the Father:
being subject one to another in the fear of Christ.
Gospel.
_St. John iv._ 46-53.