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Pentecost Sunday - The Coming of the Holy Ghost

5/31/2020

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                                                                               THE COMING OF THE HOLY GHOST

The disciples and the Blessed Virgin were assembled in the cenacle. For ten days they had been meditating and praying in unison with God, when of a sudden a great noise was heard, as of a violent hurricane, which shook the house in which they were, and then they saw that fiery tongues settled down on the heads of each one of them. They felt themselves illumined, strengthened, encouraged by the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost. They began to speak in different languages. People of every nation had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the great Jewish feast of Pentecost, a feast which was held by them in commemoration of the giving of the law on Mount Sinai to Moses; and all the Jews wished to see the magnificent ceremonies in their temple in Jerusalem.

Though these Jews had come from different places, where different languages were spoken, still they understood what the Apostles said. Such were the wonderful effects which the Holy Ghost produced in the Apostles. They were illumined by a clear, celestial light, which made them understand all the truths of God, and the future Church, and gave them the faculty of forming right judgment in all things that came under their jurisdiction.

This will also be the effect on you, my dear young people, if you beg the Holy Spirit to come into your hearts. You will feel these effects when He has come, and your way of thinking, your old way of judging, will have changed. New thoughts and other desires will grow up in you. You understand what the thoughts of young people are generally; what their hearts are fixed on; what they delight in. The young man and woman want pleasure, enjoyment, plenty of money, and good company, and they care not whether these things are sinful or not. But when the Spirit of God shall come into their hearts they will no longer love what is sinful; they will avoid all such pleasures. Then they will know, too, that all in this world is vanity, and that it is all-important to serve God and love Him.

Not only did the Holy Spirit infuse a great light into the minds of the Apostles He also inspired them with great courage. After the death of Christ, the Apostles had become very much disheartened, and very fretful. They had not the courage to stand up openly and boldly. Before the death of Christ, Peter even denied Christ three times, and the Apostles all fled in dismay when He was apprehended. As soon as the Holy Ghost had come down on them they were changed men; they no longer feared; they confessed Christ before the tribunals of tyrants; they were not dismayed at tortures; they feared neither the sword nor the bitterest death; they braved every danger to preach the Gospel before the nations of the earth.

My dear young people, if you really receive the Holy Ghost into your hearts, you also will courageously profess the faith of Christ, and human respect v^ill not affect you any more. How many, however, are there who in spite of having received the strength and illumination of the Divine Spirit, are weak and infirm in doing good; they fear to speak a word of correction to a wicked companion, who is likely to draw them away from the path of rectitude.

With all the other gifts came that of holy charity upon the Apostles. With what lively flames of love did not their hearts burn towards their neighbor. Charity is the great virtue of the Apostles. With their hearts burning with this divine flame they went forth to enkindle it in all parts of the world, and to set the hearts of all on fire. Their sermons were frequent appeals to the intellect and hearts of their hearers. At. St. Peter's first sermon three thousand were converted, and at another five thousand. St. Peter came out on a balcony, his face all aglow with a holy zeal. It is thus related in the Acts of the Apostles: "Ye men of Israel hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you, as you also know: This same being delivered up, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you by the hands of wicked men have crucified and slain: Now when they had heard these things, they had compunction in their heart, and said to Peter and to the rest of the Apostles: What shall we do, men and brethren? But Peter saith to them: Do penance, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins: and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.'' They were converted, and baptized; they, too, received the Holy Ghost, and after that became zealous members of the holy faith.

Let us pray, my dear young people, that the Holy Spirit kindle in our hearts also this fire, that we may become, like the Apostles, strong in word to persuade people to follow Christ; and that we ourselves show our love for God by openly practising virtue. Happy shall we be if such is the fire of love of God and man in our hearts. But is your heart really inflamed with divine love? Do you not on the contrary feel that you are cold and careless? Few there are indeed among young people who think so much of religion and God that they become enthusiastic to do something for His greater glory. In your younger days, in your school-days, perhaps, you were better; you loved God more tenderly. Now it may be said of you, "You always resist the Holy Ghost." You have the spirit of the world and of sin for your guide, and in this way you sadden the Holy Ghost. We resist the Holy Ghost when we go to confession, and fall back into sin, because we do not reform our lives, as the Holy Spirit asks of us. We resist the Holy Ghost and sadden Him when we follow bad companions, when we are disobedient or impudent to our superiors, who wish to guide us in the paths of virtue. On the contrary we give joy to the Holy Spirit by our good will, and He will fill our hearts with His heavenly graces. Should one of you not yet be confirmed, let him look for an opportunity to receive this sacrament, so that he may receive the necessary virtues which it confers, namely: the spirit of Wisdom, and of Intellect, spirit of Counsel and of Fortitude, of Piety and of Knowledge, of the Fear of the Lord. In order that we may be filled with the Holy Ghost, let us live always a pure, good, and holy life. It is only with those who lead such a life that the Spirit of God remains. We read a beautiful example illustrating this in the Roman breviary. The impious governor Paschasius asked of St. Lucy, is this Holy Ghost in you?" The virgin answered, "They whose hearts are pure, and who live piously, are the temples of the Holy Ghost." "But," said the wicked man, "I will make you fall into sin, and then the Holy Ghost will leave you." To which the virgin Lucy answered, "I will remain faithful to God, and not consent to sin, and the Holy Spirit will double my reward of glory." Then the tyrant had her dragged to a place of infamy. Arriving there she stood so firm in the one spot that no power could move her further, and she had to be brought back, when she said to the tyrant: "You see, now, I am the temple of the Holy Ghost, and He protects me; no power on earth can move me, unless He permits it." In this wise, too, should we fly from sin, and we shall be the temple of God and the habitation of the Holy Ghost. Come, Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, enkindle in them the fire of Thy love. Yes, the Holy Spirit will help us to pray" with inexpressible groans." Let us pray to the Holy Ghost, and in our soul will burn such a flame that we will not be able to resist any longer, we shall run delighted in the odor of the love of God. Then may we repeat the words of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians: "All you are the children of light and children of the day."

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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1st Sunday of Advent - The Day of Judgment

12/1/2019

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The day will surely come when there will be an end to all the wickedness that exists in the world, and no more insults will be offered to God. On this day almighty God will appear in all His glory and terrible majesty as the just Judge of the living and the dead. It will be a day of terror; the sun will be obscured, covered with a thick black veil; the moon will not give light, she will shine blood red; the stars will fall from the heavens, the whole universe will be shaken to its very foundations. On that day it will rain fire from the skies; burning coals will descend and destroy all that is on this earth. That day has been called by the prophets a cruel day, the day of wrath, the day of darkness, of tribulation and of no mercy. On that day God will pour out His wrath, and sinners will have to drink this chalice of bitterness to the dregs. Of this terrible day the Gospel of this Sunday speaks. It ought to be enough for Christians to hear the announcement of these dreadful occurrences once to make them sin no more, but, on the contrary, they hear these threats repeated several times during the year, and still they do not repent of their sins nor amend their lives.

I hope, my dear young people, that you are not of this number, but reflecting today on these solemn words, you will make a firm resolution not to commit a single mortal sin; and thus that dreadful day, so terrible for the sinner, will be for you a day of joy, of glory, of triumph, and the beginning of your eternal reward. When the hour of the great judgment shall arrive, St. Michael, accompanied by many other angels, will give a blast from his trumpet which shall be heard in all parts of the earth; because the sound shall be winged forth by the power of God's omnipotence. "And they shall hear the voice of the Son of God:" Arise, ye dead, and come to judgment." Great and small, kings and princes, rich and poor, learned and ignorant, all shall obey that summons. At the first sound of this blast, the bodies which for centuries have been reduced to dust will return to their former shapes, and will be reanimated by the voice of the Son of God. All shall come forth from their graves, but there will be a great difference among them. The elect will rise with bodies more brilliant than the stars and like to the angels; as St. Matthew says, "Then the just shall shine like the sun." The wicked shall be there in their former bodies too, but so loathsome that it will be to them as well as to their companions a day of horror. No wonder, for the just have risen to a new life but the wicked to eternal death.

Dear children, what would be your feelings if you should see yourselves in such an abominable body? And yet how many there are among the young who, through an inordinate love of their body, never go contrary to their passions, because they wish to indulge in unlawful pleasures. Then the angels will separate the good from the bad. Oh, what a dreadful separation! the wicked to the left, the good to the right; the good father to the right, the wicked son to the left, the good brother to the right, the wicked one to the left; now is the time to separate the wheat from the cockle. Now is the time to bind the cockle into bundles to burn. That young man who looked so deceptively innocent in his life, who appeared so good to his parents, is now the cockle because he was wicked, he and his companions; another seemed so devout, but he, too, is the cockle because his heart was full of sin. All the most hidden sins will then be manifest; those sins which were committed in the dark and in secret places, those sins which through shame were withheld from the knowledge of the confessor, and those sins, mark it well, which were confessed, but without sorrow and without the resolution to do better. Yes, father, mother, sisters, brothers and friends shall know all our secrets. Nahum the prophet says: "I will discover thy shame to thy face, and will show thy [wickedness] to the nations, and thy shame to kingdoms."

But now heaven opens, and the holy cross appears, carried by angels; the cross, the sign of redemption and of life; the wicked shall fall on their faces as if struck by lightning. What cries and shrieks will they utter! But the good will rejoice when they see the cross, and falling on their knees they will cry out: ''holy cross, we hail thee, our only hope! cross, our comfort in life and now our glory and triumph, we adore thee! '' But behold, in this tumult of voices, amid all this thunder and lightning, in the midst of these fiery clouds, appears the dread Judge, clothed in garments of revenge. The terrible Majesty, with eyes burning like coals of fire. What anger, what menacing looks! His anger shall burn like a fire (Ps. Ixxxviii. 47). A red mantle on His shoulders; from His mouth proceeds a two-edged sword. The sinner shall tremble at the sight; the eyes of Christ, the Judge, shall meet the terrified looks of the sinner. The guilty shall also see, but not for his consolation, the sweet face of Mary, the Mother of sinners, and he will exclaim: "Mary, help me! Mother, have pity on me, throw a glance of mercy toward me! Cover me, Mary, with thy mantle! '' But Mary shall turn from him and say: "No longer call me Mother; you are no son of mine: there is no longer time for mercy, but for justice and divine vengeance; I feel no pity for you; when in your life I wished you to be my son, you refused to come to me; now it is too late."

The angels, too, and all the saints of heaven will reaffirm God's dreadful damnation, and turn from you in disgust: ''He will speak to them in His anger." The great Judge will then speak in His wrath to the sinner, and call him to a rigorous account for all his sinfulness, even for the most secret deeds. 'Up to the present I have been silent and patient; now is My time to render you punishment for all your iniquities; give back what thou owest.' If I were your father where was the honor due Me as such? Hardly did you come to the use of reason when you began to insult Me. You arose in the morning and went to bed at night like an animal, without remembering your Creator; you did not know your prayers, but learned early to curse My holy name. Look at your youthful waywardness, your disobedience to your superiors. From your earliest childhood you took a pride in being unruly; you know your thefts, your quarrels, your lies, your filthy practices, by which you rent and soiled the white garment of your Baptism. You went to church only to dishonor Me; at Mass you laughed, talked, and did not pray, but disturbed others in their devotions. Give an account of all this; not only of this, but give an account, too, of the sins which you made others commit. Your companion was innocent, but you corrupted him, and you are guilty of the sins which he afterwards committed. How many souls redeemed by My precious blood you have destroyed! "Give back what thou owest, rise and give an excuse for all this, if you can. Tell Me if thou hast anything to justify thyself. "(Isaias xliii. 26). Will you plead ignorance? Were you not born in a Christian family, where you received holy teachings, and saw many examples of virtue? What advice did your parents, your teachers, and also your confessor give you? You knew the malice of sin, still you persisted in committing it; you knew there would be a judgment, when you would have to give an account of even an idle word; you knew that in your surroundings in the school and on the street that there was cockle sown among the wheat, but you would not be edified by good example. Will you give as an excuse, weakness: that your passions were too strong for you? You could, if you had wished, have made yourself strong, for you had at hand prayer and the sacraments; I gave you My Body as food and My Blood as drink, but they became a poison to you because you received them unworthily. You had the help of the saints, of the angels and of Blessed Mary. How many youths with less strength than you, weaker than you, more tempted than you, and more exposed to dangers, have preserved themselves from the contamination of vice. There is a young man who at home saw nothing but bad example, whose parents had no love for God, still he remained good. After your first communion you were pious for a while. Why did you cease to be pious? Why did not your piety last for life, as it should? Ah, wretch! you shall feel the effects of My anger; the blood which I shed for you will condemn you." The trembling sinner, convicted by the all-wise Judge, will not be able to open his mouth in his defence; he will call upon the mountains to cover him, the flames to destroy him; yes, he will even call upon hell itself to hide him in its bosom.

Then Christ, the Judge, with a sweet smile upon His face, will turn to the elect and say to them: "My beloved and faithful ones, now is the time come when I will reward you for the services which you have so faithfully rendered Me. Yes, I remember the good examples you have shown, the good advice given to your companions, the crust of bread and the glass of water given to the poor in My name. I remember that from your tenderest years you offered Me your innocent hearts. I remember your many acts of love, and while others have forgotten and offended Me, you have always honored, loved, and visited Me. Now has the time come for the great feast in paradise. "Come, ye blessed of My Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.' Come now to eternal rest, come away from poverty to wealth, from tears to joy, from the cross to the crown.'' What joy there will be! Indeed you are the glory of God, for He will acknowledge you before the whole world as His faithful children; worthy of the delights and glory of heaven. Can you imagine a greater honor? "Thou art My servant Israel, for in thee will I glory" (Isaias xlix. 3). You are very happy, my dear young people, when a compliment is paid you by some great personage, and you never forget it. How great then will be your happiness to receive praise from God Himself !

Then again the eternal Judge will change His demeanor,and turning to the wicked will say: "Ah! you miserable beings, what have you to expect from Me? You did not love nor reverence Me in your life; I will not now acknowledge you. I know you not. You did not wish to have part with Me, and now you shall not. Go from my presence; you are objects of my hatred; go, ye damned, into eternal fire. "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire" (Matt. XXV. 41). Cursed by My divine Father, cursed by Me, cursed by the Holy Ghost, cursed by Mary, by the angels and all the saints." What dreadful cries will these wretches send forth on hearing these maledictions! The saints will repeat the curses of God: "Away from here, ye accursed, away from here, ye accursed! "Then the saints will praise God for His justice. These wretches would throw themselves into hell if they could, but God wants them to be witnesses of the triumph of the good; and they must stand there to see it to their own great punishment. These good people whom they ridiculed during life: "They were those whom you held in derision formerly." They will burst with envy, "The sinner shall witness this and gnash his teeth." Ah! indeed we were fools, we were wrong! See that youth whom we laughed at so often because he was pious, and called him scrupulous or a bigot, because he never took part in our wicked talks, plays, and pastimes. There he is now, covered with glory and in triumph, while we are bound in chains, captives of the devil, and prisoners of hell. How foolish were we who considered their life absurd and their end without honor, but now we see them counted among the children of God and among the saints is their lot. The wicked will say, "Yes, we have enjoyed the world and all its vanities, but what has it given us in return? Not happiness, not contentment; what a life of restlessness was ours! There is no peace for the wicked; we surfeited our souls and bodies with sin. Oh! had we done half as much to save our souls as we did to enjoy the illusive joys of our life on earth, we would be saints. "We have grown tired in the way of iniquity and perdition, we have walked in difficult paths."

Then the saints, all robed in white, with palm branches in their hands in sign of triumph, will go joyfully to heaven, there to begin the eternal chant of paradise. The wicked, howling, blaspheming, and despairing, are caught in a terrible whirlpool that starts beneath their feet, sucking them down into eternal perdition: "And these shall go to eternal perdition but the just into life eternal." In this way the great judgment will be accomplished; we shall all see one another in the valley of Jehosophat. I shall see you and you shall see me. Shall we be on the right united with the saints, or shall we be found among the wicked, on the left? Alas, what a misfortune it would be if one of us were to be found among the ranks of the wicked! Shall I, your preacher, be found on the left, arrayed in sacerdotal garments, with the mark of the character of the priesthood impressed on my forehead? St. Jerome so feared this possibility that he retired into a cave and there meditated on the terrible sound of the trumpet which was to call him to judgment, and beat his breast with a rock till it became all livid with blows. "That dreadful voice rings still in my ears, I tremble with my whole body." Should not I, who am not a saint, but a humble priest, fear much more? Jesus, trembling in every limb in fear of that day, I throw myself at Thy feet to implore mercy for myself and for my young hearers. Now Thou art the Father of mercy; then Thou shalt be the inexorable Judge; then it will be too late to ask for mercy. What am I, miserable wretch, going to say; whom will I engage as my patron, when even the just will tremble? Look upon us now, humble and contrite, asking for the pardon of our sins. Never again will we commit a sin, never again will we utter bad words or blasphemies or curses, nor go with bad companions.

Dear Jesus, in Thy goodness make us faithful to Thee and let us not be separated from Thee. Remember, sweet Jesus, that for our salvation Thou didst come down from heaven. By the many sufferings Thou didst endure we pray Thee to have mercy on us and save us; we have cost Thee too much to be abandoned by Thy mercy. Yes; save us, save us, good God, God of mercy, of infinite goodness, save us! Remember, dear Jesus, that Thou didst come to save me: do not then destroy me on that day: Fountain of all goodness,
save me!

Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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SUNDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF THE ASCENSION

5/28/2017

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This was an excellent sermon!
                                                                    THE HOLY GHOST
You have heard, my dear young people, that our good Lord and Redeemer promised today the coming of the Holy Ghost. He foretold, at the same time, the great persecutions that were to follow His leaving this world: but with the grace of the Holy Ghost His people would be able to overcome all these persecutions, which would redound to their own glory
and the spread of the kingdom of God on earth. But why will these persecutions come and the cruelty of the world to the Apostles? They shall be hated, chased from the synagogues,
and if one is murdered, it will be considered a benefit to the human race. Such were the persecutions of the Christians, and they have continued to the present day; under the guise of religion the most barbarous cruelties have been practiced. Is not this the reason, too, that we are so antagonistic to those who differ from us, that had we the power we would pour our wrath upon them? Be this as it may, whence comes it that men are so wicked and so cruel as to persecute the pure and holy Church of God? Simply because "they know not Me nor My heavenly Father."

My dear young people, what terrible persecution you will have to endure, not of fire and sword, but for your faith and morals in everyday life. Your faith is continually assailed by the wrong theories of our day. To have no religion, or to be a Protestant, we leave to future discussion. How many young men lose their faith in the early days of manhood! Young, strong, and healthy, they do not see the end of their days, and they wish to throw off all restraint of religion; they do not want to believe; it is too much to ask them to make an act of adherence to the Catholic faith.

Many a man's religion is spoiled in his young days; he seems to have no mind for it, and who knows whether he will ever get the grace of God again to take up that which he throws away. Yes, my dear young people, you give your pastors, your parents, and all who are interested in you, great concern for your future. You will have to undergo many temptations, too, from the flesh, which you carry about you; from the devil, who is everywhere watching to find an opportunity to destroy you; from the world, in which all sorts of evil abound, but you are weak and inexperienced in the midst of this great trial. But you must strengthen yourselves by the thought that the same Spirit of fortitude and wisdom who came upon the Apostles will also descend on you, to shield you from all your enemies. In order that you may receive that holy Spirit, you must prepare yourselves carefully to celebrate the feast of Pentecost with sincerity and earnestness. Let us examine a little the necessity of receiving the Holy Ghost, and how we are to prepare for Him.

Every one of you, my dear young people, knows, as did the prophet Job, that this world which we inhabit is a great battlefield, on which we are surrounded by most stubborn and watchful enemies, and that we have to enter on a struggle with them. Hardly have we come into it, and have reached the use of reason, than the fight begins. These enemies aim
at the soul; the life of the body is nothing to them, they wish to ruin the soul. They are powerful enemies, against whom we can do nothing of ourselves. We can easily see, then, that we need the assistance of the Holy Spirit very much.

In the first place, we must fight with the world, our great enemy. The world has an intelligence of its own; it teaches bad doctrines which, though in appearance are most inviting and even most natural, are wrong in principle. For example, the world has the strong conviction that they alone are happy who enjoy themselves; that while you are young, at least, you ought to enjoy the flower of your youth before it withers; that it will be time enough to give up pleasure when old age makes it insipid. How many such poor deluded souls are about us! The world insists that money makes one happy; that one must always have his purse well filled; that one's whole soul should be fully awake to the means of getting wealth, and heaping it up in abundance. One must be smart; by fair means or foul he must procure money. Money is the god of the world; so much so that it forgets real wealth, which is purity of soul and the possession of heaven in course of time. St. Paul tells us that "they that will become rich fall into temptation and into the snare of the devil, and into many unprofitable and hurtful desires, which hurl men into destruction and perdition."

The world would have us consider in the next place that we must look for honors and esteem; and then running after the false honors of the world we forget the real honor, the true greatness of leading a good life and in the end of being placed in paradise by almighty God. Are these not very deceptive doctrines? How can you discover their fallacy unless the Holy Ghost enlightens you? Not only does the world teach you these fallacies, but like a tutor, it shows you an example of the good fortunes of those who have succeeded in gaining wealth. Look at the great number of successful men in the world that have not a spark of religion and who are proud of it. These men are ashamed to be humble followers of Jesus Christ; their charity is turned into philanthropy; they are ashamed to go to church, to hear Mass or a sermon, to go to the sacraments or to show any sign of Christianity. On the contrary, they make a parade of their vices; they prefer them to following Christ. Such are the consequences of the bad doctrines of the world. How thankful you ought to be that you are not like them. It is only by being enlightened by the Holy Ghost that you will continue to love "the better part."

The devil himself is our great adversary on the battle-field of this world. Of what deception and snares does he not make use to lead us to a fall! "Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion goeth about, seeking whom he may devour." St. Stanislaus Kostka while he was at prayer was visited by the devil: what a horrible object he was, perfectly black and hideous; his eyes shone in his head like ominous lights, which seemed to scatter fire on whatever object he directed them; his mouth was like the opening of hell. Stanislaus put this infernal creature to flight by the sign of the cross, and nothing daunted quietly continued his prayers, thanking God that he had the power of getting rid so easily of such an unwelcome visitor. I suppose the devil visited Stanislaus to disturb his peace of mind or even to fill him with fear; but not for a moment could the Evil One induce this good, holy soul to infringe God's law in the least. You need have no fear of receiving a visit from the devil in person; but he puts on the grab of an angel of light, a serpent of beautiful colors. "It goeth in pleasantly, but in the end it will bite like a snake." The devil shows us sin in its most attractive exterior; he tempts you as he did Eve, and will battle with the same arguments. Eve was afraid she would die, but he assured her, "Not at all; you will not die, and you will have all pleasures, which it will not do to miss."

What of the bad companions you go with, my dear young people? The devil will argue, "What harm? You may do some good, you will have a good time. If there is any one in this
world that is a wearisome fellow, it is certainly a pious chap; a certain degree of wickedness is required to make life spicy. And then why live such a timid existence; what kind of a life is it, when at every turn some one says, 'Don't do that.' You pass your days in listening to  'don'ts.' You have to watch your words and your thoughts, no useless talks, you cannot have the pleasure of sin, even in imagination; what a dismal life it is which is a continual struggle! "Give it all up," says the devil, "and lead a happy sort of life; don't be wicked exactly."

The devil tries by every means in his power to get at your soul by the channels of your body and your senses; by your eyes through your sight, by your ears through your hearing, by your sense of feeling, by your imagination, and in this way he keeps up the attack, until he gets possession of you: he is not satisfied with that mischief, he demands more and more, until at last he has corrupted you completely. There is no rest; down we go, because the descent is so easy, until as disciples of the devil we are more wicked than the devil himself; we can at least do much more harm, for the devil makes use of men to corrupt others, and they become his agents afterwards. Thus the good priest sees thousands of souls continually going over to Satan: souls that were good at one time, but now are entirely lost to God; souls who absolutely refuse to hear of God, and who try to persuade themselves that there is no God.

Another enemy on the battle-field is the flesh. This enemy is so intimately connected with us that we continually carry it about, and it is the occasion of many of our falls. The flesh has so many animal propensities, which are wrong, and unworthy of so noble a master as the God-like soul. The flesh is impure and filthy, and wants to satisfy its appetites, like an animal; it is avaricious to possess a great deal, so that a good time may be assured for the body. Is not the soul, the pure, immortal soul, far greater than the flesh? its difficult task is to discipline the unruly body and bring it under subjection and become master of it. The saints succeeded in so doing, but oh, by what great labor! How perseveringly they mortified their bodies, even to their last breath. But how did they succeed in subjecting this flesh? By the blessed Spirit of God, whom we are expecting at this time and whose feast we are celebrating.

Now, my dear young people, come with me to the place where we will find the Apostles gathered together and the Blessed Virgin in the midst of them. They are quiet and retired, they are praying for the coming of the Holy Ghost, and also for detachment from the things of this world. My dear young people, are your hearts detached from this life? Not yet, you will say, but you are trying to cut off more and more the love you have for the world. Your thoughts are still on the earth: does that not make you forget the heavenly paradise for which you are on trial? For the great feast of Pentecost, the Apostles prepared themselves by devout prayer and holy meditation. They retired to the cenacle, a quiet place, and there waited the pleasure of God to send them the Holy Spirit. How do we poor
mortals generally pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit? I think we do not pray at all, for we have very little devotion to the Holy Ghost; but let us, at least at this holy time, pray to the Holy Spirit, that He may come unto our soul; for prayer will surely bring Him to us.

Lastly, the Apostles had a great desire to receive the Holy Ghost; Our Lord Jesus Himself put this desire into their hearts, and therefore they wished the Comforter to come to them. Let us invoke this Holy Spirit with fervent prayers, and have a great desire for Him, that He may come down to us with His choicest gifts.    
     Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900                    


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The Circumcision of Our Lord - January 1st

12/31/2015

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GOSPEL. Luke ii. 21. At that time: After eight days were accomplished that the child should be circumcised: his name was called Jesus, which was called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Here we are, my dear young friends, at the beginning of a new year. When we look back on the days that have been vouchsafed to us, so full of graces and blessings, we feel that we ought to be filled with gratitude. But when we look at the past, we find that we have frequently done our work badly; that we have outraged God by our carelessness, coldness, and sinfulness. When we consider all this wasted and misspent time, we begin to feel some concern for the future.

How ungrateful we have been to God! Many of us have to bewail lost time, time spent in idleness, pastimes, recreations, and useless occupations; yes, even time spent in sin. Let us now correct all this; be sorry for the past and make firm resolutions for the future. As St. Paul tells us, "See how you walk circumspectly, not as unwise but as wise, redeeming the time." In order that you may be convinced of your great ingratitude to God's kindness, and that you may be determined to remedy the past days of the year, let us examine ourselves a little further. How have you spent all the days of your life? How much good might you have done, and yet have omitted it! How many prayers could you have said, but you were careless about them! How often could you have listened to a sermon and you did not make the effort! You could have frequented the sacraments of confession and communion, but your undevotion and coldness kept you away. How many charitable works could you have done! The opportunities for acts of kindness to others are so frequent, and so pleasing to almighty God and yet you did not perform them. Many and many a day we have lost in looking for recreation, and in performing mere human actions which have no merit attached to them. We read in the Book of Proverbs, "The way of the slothful is as a hedge of thorns."

How have you accomplished the little good you have done? You have said prayers, but in a distracted way and carelessly. You have been to church, but you never thought of the presence of God. You went to hear the word of God, but very little good did you derive from it. And then your sins: of how many have you been guilty? I hope you have not sullied your souls with awful, wicked crimes that make the soul of the youth like hell itself. Can you tell how often you have been disobedient to your superiors; the number of impudent answers given them; the curses, blasphemies against God, the bad example to your companions, those many willful thoughts against purity? Can you give an account of those wicked words by which you have taught sin to others? What a multitude of sins have you not committed! We read in St. Luke that a gardener had planted a fig-tree in his garden; one day he went to look at the plants and shrubs and trees with which his garden was stocked. He came to this tree, and saw that it bore no fruit; it was a healthy, green, luxuriant tree, and yet it bore no fruit; like a lazy, well fed, careless man who takes everything given to him, but makes no return. "Well," said the master, "just look at this tree; for the past three years I have come here and expected at least a little fruit; but there has never been any. Why does this tree take up good space uselessly? Cut it down, and throw it into the fire, and let us have done with it." But the servant said, "Ought you not to try this tree one year more? I will dig about it and cultivate it carefully; perhaps it will surprise us next year."

You, my dear young people, are trees planted by almighty God in the garden of His holy Catholic Church, that you may produce good fruit. Here is a three-year-old tree, and the farmer is tired of waiting. How old are you? You are old enough to have done something long ago. Instead of fruit you have produced thorns. St. Augustine says, "Up to the present I have lived my years badly; they are years lost to me; when I cast a glance on what I have done, my heart fails me, for I see nothing but sin, that cries out against me and rebukes me. My former years have been useless.''

All the creatures of the universe, ministers of divine justice, at the sight of your wickedness have been calling on God to be allowed to vindicate His outraged goodness and mercy by inflicting on you death or sickness. But again the goodness of Our Lord put it off. "Allow that tree to stand one year more." Yes, let him have another year; perhaps he will change his mode of life, will sin no more, but will be converted; will become a good tree and produce beautiful fruit. In the meanwhile, however, the good are injured to a certain extent by this delay; that bad tree ruins the good ones. A youth who neglects devotions, no longer goes to the sacraments, and gives scandal to others, gets into a habit of cursing and swearing, is a tree that produces such unwholesome fruit that other souls are brought to death; why should it not be cut down at once? Yes, the divine Justice says, that tree ought indeed to be cut down; but where there is life there is hope. Our Lord says He desires not the death of the sinner, but that he be converted from his ways and live. In the meantime years and months pass by; he continues at enmity with God; but the divine mercy never deserts him; it follows him always, is about him with heavenly inspirations and clear light, which makes him understand that interior voice which is sometimes amiable, sometimes severe: if amiable, it invites him to Our Lord's embrace and promises reward, consolation and peace; if, on the contrary, it is severe, it threatens punishment and death. His pleasures are turned into bitterness; his conscience gives him no rest, but fills him with a thousand fears; his memory constantly recalls the years of his childish happiness, when he went to church joyfully, and when he prayed to the Blessed Virgin. What joys did he not experience in his prayers! what consolation did he not find in going to holy communion! it was like the peace and happiness of paradise. Such were the means which the divine goodness used to gain the sinner to God, and perhaps all that time he was hard and obstinate in his sins. Perhaps this may even be your case. And if it is, will you not give over your obstinacy and practice Christian virtue? Go to your Father, your tender Friend, to the loving Jesus who has been waiting for you with such a love and who has stretched out His arms to you, to press you to His bosom. Should there be some among you who ought to think of doing better, they are foolish if they do not profit by the time which God has set for them; for that time will soon pass away and then will come the time of reckoning. "For time shall be no more." Oh, have a little sense, and use it for the purpose of your highest interest, the salvation of your soul. "Whilst we have time let us do good.'' "Blessed," says St. Philip Neri, " are ye young people that have a long time before you in which to do good." What great good you can do in your youth and strength; the old man has but a short time before him. Do not wait for the night when you cannot work. "The night cometh when no man can work."

St. Anthony says that if the damned had the time we throw away, and had another chance to live, they would become saints. If they could return to the earth, would they sleep and fool their time away? No; with the experience gathered in the other world they would work day and night, for they know the value of these occasions to gain merits. Thank divine providence that has watched over you with so great care; pray to the Holy Ghost that He may send into your soul that ray of light which will make known to you how important this opportunity of conversion is; that you may be inspired by Him with a strong will to persevere in good. With St. Augustine let us exclaim, "Too late, infinite goodness, too late have we begun to love Thee! infinite love of God, what did we love, when we did not love Thee? Too late have we known Thee and loved Thee, infinite loveliness of God! "

And you, my good young friends, for good I can consider the most of you to be, who constantly endeavor to conquer your bad inclinations and the temptations of the devil; rejoice on this day, for you have cause to be glad at the merits you have gained and which have been laid up for you in heaven; continue to pray to the Holy Ghost that He may give you the grace of perseverance.
Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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20th Sunday after Pentecost - The Healing of the Son of the Ruler 

10/11/2015

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 This miracle took place in Cana of Galilee where Our Lord performed His first miracle of changing water into wine at the marriage-feast. There was there a local ruler who represented
Herod, the king, and held authority in a country where enemies were plenty. This ruler had a very sick son who was not expected to recover; the ruler heard of the coming of Our Lord to the place and he set out in his fatherly solicitude to beg of Him to come to his home and restore his child to health. This ruler knew, of course, that Jesus could do it, but by what power he did not know; he did not know that Jesus was God Himself. But he ascribed to Him a power which was beyond that of man. "You can do it easily, you have only to say a word, and there is nothing impossible to you." "Unless you see signs and wonders, you believe not:" here Our Lord reproved the ruler with a want of sufficient faith; he believed a little, just enough to give him courage to come from his house, and look to Jesus for a cure. This same severe reproof might apply to many Christians; they believe only what suits them. Christianity is not so much a reality as it is a custom, a condition, in which they were born. Doubt is a want of faith. What doubtful propositions and systems do these Christians make for themselves! For instance, as to hell. Many people dispute as to what hell is; they do not know, but some make it a very hot place, while others come to the horrible conclusion that there is no hell; the latter do not want to be troubled by such frightful thoughts of a future life. With them one religion is as good as another; they think that all are in error, and that all try to do a little for man, but in different ways. Fly the company of such Christians, shake off the doubts you may have imbibed, study questions which relate to your religion. St. John the Evangelist once accidentally met Corinthus, the heretic. "Corinthus, the enemy of truth, is here; let us be gone," he said, "lest the house fall upon us." St. Polycarp met the heretic Marcion in Rome; as they came face to face, Polycarp turned away and looked in another direction. Marcion, with bold effrontery, asked, "Do you not know me?" "Yes," Polycarp answered, "I know you to be the
first-born of the devil."

It is not only necessary to avoid people who may make you lose your faith; you should not only love this precious gift and keep it safe in your heart, but you must also show it before the world. How can you do this? You can do it by performing many good works in the spirit of faith. We read that faith without works is dead, and works without faith have no spiritual value. Faith without works is like a body without life, and without breath. As a dead body is no longer a man, so a dead faith is no longer considered faith. A young man who knows that sin is the great evil of the world, and still continues to commit it, cannot be said to have faith. He cannot be said to have faith who knows that God punishes sin with eternal punishment, and yet still remains in sin, though he has the means to put himself in the grace of God. That youth has no faith who knows that God is everywhere, that He sees all things, even the most carefully concealed, and yet contaminates his heart by secret crimes. That young person cannot be supposed to have any faith who, knowing that Christ is ever present on our altars in church, yet behaves as if he were on the street, talking and laughing; not praying himself and disturbing others at their prayers. What is the good of believing in the Catholic Church, and living like a pagan? My good and faithful followers, "without faith it is impossible to please God," as St. Paul said to the Hebrews. Faith will give life to your souls and will nourish them. If
you have a well-grounded, lively faith you will come out victorious from every battle with your passions and sins. You will conquer yourself and your wicked nature.

During a persecution in Japan a young Japanese gave a good example of firm faith. He was advised by his own father to deny the faith, and, refusing, he was compelled to stand without any support, his hands and feet tied firmly. At length, after two days, the tender feeling of the father for his son induced him to loose the bonds. Straightway the youth went to the church of the Jesuits, and the first food he partook of was holy communion. Beg of God, my dear young friends, that you may have a like faith; nourish that faith by reading spiritual books; read lives of the saints and your catechism; but above all avoid wicked books, which are written to undermine the faith of the unwary.

The ruler mentioned in the Scripture did not heed the reprimand which Our Lord gave him, but continued to pray that Our Lord should hasten lest the ruler's son should die. Here we see the constancy of prayer. The father had a great desire to have his son healed, and while he knew Our Lord could do it, he believed that if he continued to ask his petition would be granted. Such also should be our prayers. Have a great desire to do something for the greater glory of God and for your own special benefit and then be constant in your petitions. How cold and careless our young people are at their prayers! They have no spiritual wants, and therefore they lack fervor; they realize their temporal wants more easily, and you will find they desire them more fervently. How few, therefore, are there who throw themselves before the altar of God and with sincerity and fervor say, "Lord, save my soul." How few are there, who, knowing that they are in sin, pray with fear and trembling: "Lord, my soul is dead in Thy sight; make me live again. Thou hast delivered me before from the hands of the devil; deliver me again.'* How few young people are there, who seeing the frequency with which they fall into sin, say fervently to God, "Lord, do Thou keep my mind, my tongue and my hands from falling into sin; give me the grace to avoid the occasions of it and of those companions whom I follow so implicitly." Very rarely are our young people in earnest in their prayers, and that is the reason that they find sin so agreeable, and follow it with such eagerness. At most they say a few  "Our Fathers " and " Hail Marys " with such a miserable disposition that you would be ashamed to call them prayers. They speak the words of the prayers with their lips, but not with the desire that what they ask for may be granted. Will such young people grow up to be good men and women? Will they continue free from sin? By no means. Without the grace of God, it is impossible to keep from sin.and yon will not receive this grace in answer to such, prayers. Let us then, young and old, with real fervor raise our hearts to God, and beg especially for grace to be freed from sin.

When the ruler had again made his demand, Our Lord said, "It is not necessary that I should come down. Go thy way, thy son liveth." The ruler believed the words of Christ, and thanking Him with reverence and gratitude, returned to Capharnaum. On the way he met messengers who had been sent to tell him that his son lived. He asked them at what hour the child became better, and they told him at the seventh hour, the same hour at which Our Lord had said, "Go, thy son liveth." This miracle convinced the ruler that Jesus was the Son of God. When he arrived home he found every one rejoicing. He told them of his meeting with the Messias, and showed them clearly that the healing of the child was due to Him. All were convinced, and all believed.

Let me, my dear young people, make just one more remark: Why did this pagan ruler go to Our Lord? By what means were his eyes opened to the faith? It was certainly by his son's danger. It was the grief in which he found himself. This trial, which to all appearances made him unhappy, was the cause of his joy. Had it not been for the sickness of his son he would not have thought of going to Christ; he would have remained in his unbelief, and he would not have embraced the faith. This should teach us that the misfortunes of this life, the trials which we sometimes have to undergo, are often great graces which Our Lord offers us, for these trials detach our hearts from earth, raise them to heaven, and force us to throw ourselves on the mercy of God. St. Gregory tells us, " That the evils that oppress us force us to go to God.'' See that strong, healthy young man; he enjoys his youth without concern; he is off with his wicked companions, to lie about in idleness, to commit sin without remorse. God strikes him with sickness, and he is thrown on his bed, battling for his life. What a misfortune that a young man in the flower of his youth should be so stricken! Yes, it is a great misfortune in one way, but looked at in another light, it is a blessing. He sins no more; he has time to think that God has sent this affliction to make him better, and in this way he is put on the path to heaven. "A great sickness sobers the mind." The same may be said of all other trials that come to us. Great or small, they are all graces sent to wake us up to a new life. God sends us trials because we are dear to Him. " Whom the Lord loveth. He chastiseth."

St. Ignatius says, "If God makes you suffer much, it is a sign that He wants to make a great saint of you, and if you wish to become great saints, pray God that He may let you suffer much." If you find that God sends you these trials for your sins, repent of them, and bear the suffering with resignation. If you know that you are as good as you can be, and still you suffer, thank God for it. Remember that your crown will be more beautiful when the time of your reward has come. Do not forget that God is a good father, who will not try you beyond your strength, but that He, Himself, with His great consolations, will help you bear the burden.

Source: Sermons for Childrens Masses, Imprimatur 1900


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12th Sunday after Pentecost - The Good Samaritan

8/18/2015

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The Gospel of this day is full of instruction, and could be divided into many and interesting subjects, for it treats of very important affairs. Our Lord called those blessed who had seen the great events of His day: His birth, His preaching. His miracles. Those were really beautiful days which all the religious world, from the time of Adam and Eve, had expected and were waiting for; they sighed for them, prepared themselves for them, and day after day they expected the realization of the promises of God. The prophets of old spoke of those days, and in some cases described very vividly and exactly the Messias. How their imagination must have been stirred to the sublimest pitch when they thought of the loving closeness of God to man, when the Son of God should come down from heaven!

We envy the apostles and disciples of Christ. Although we have the same privileges they had, we would love to have seen the things which they saw and heard the things which they heard. But we, ourselves, are to be envied, because we have so many privileges which others do not enjoy. We are born of Catholic parents, brought up with care in the Christian religion, with priests enough to teach us, confessors in plenty to guide us in the path of virtue: we cannot do otherwise than be good unless we are very careless. If we have not the happiness of seeing Jesus walking about and holding converse with the crowd, have we not Jesus with us in the Blessed Sacrament? We can walk and hold communion with Him every time we receive holy communion. Therefore we might be called blessed. Do we, however, make use of these occasions? Are we grateful for these advantages? Do we ever return thanks for them? Do we visit Our Lord in His church where He is really present in the Blessed Eucharist? You love Jesus, you like to be in His company. Why are you not more frequently in church, especially when public honor is given to the Blessed Sacrament? Are you among the first that press around His altar to do Him homage? God has been so good to us that we do not appreciate this great gift of faith. We lose our faith from the fact of the too great generosity of God. Hence it is that many do not believe that Christ is the light of the world. The wisdom of God is a stumbling-block to many. Let us return to the consideration of the words of the Gospel:

"A certain lawyer stood up tempting Him, and saying, Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?'' My dear young friends, do you ever ask yourselves this question? Did you ever ask any one to direct you in this important affair "to possess eternal life"? It is the great aim of our life to get the possession of heaven. Has your spiritual director, your confessor, ever been consulted on the means of getting to heaven? I am afraid you have not consulted him, that you think it too irksome to speak of such things to anybody, that no one has a right to direct you in the way you should walk. I am sure that when your superiors wish to give you advice and direction, you become impudent and turn saucily upon them. Your confessor wants you to give up drink, which you are beginning to taste and to like; what a struggle there is for your self-indulgence; how you insist on the most favorable terms! Your confessor advises you to give up certain company; those who make up that company will tell you you are a fool to listen to such advice, and may thus make his advice useless. The young are apt to be headstrong, and to be inclined to the gratification of their passions and to carrying out their desires.

What must you do to keep yourselves good?  What must you do to possess eternal life? To this serious question Our Lord gives the following answer, "What is written in the law? how readest thou?" The man answered, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with all thy strength and with all thy mind." Our Lord said, " Thou hast answered right; this do, and thou shalt live." Here is a very plain declaration of what we must do, my dear young friends, to possess eternal life: let me repeat it in a loud voice, " Love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with all thy strength and with all thy mind." What a grand precept this is! Is God loved in this way by all our young people? Are there not many who love their passions more? They love games, their companions, the miserable creatures of this world more; they do not love God, they live without ever thinking of God. Miserable people are they, who by their works show they know not God, much less love Him. St. Catherine of Genoa used to say, " What a horrible misfortune it is not to love God! hell of hells, to be without the love of God!" To love God we must observe His holy law not only one law, but all His laws; never offend Him, and hate sin. You must do His holy will. But to love God, you must know Him. Who is God? He is your Creator, who has loved you from all eternity; before you were brought into the world He knew you, and loved you; He had your ideal in His omnipotent mind, and then brought you out of nothingness by creation.

He is therefore your Lord and Master; were it not for Him, you would not exist. For you. He created this beautiful world, with all that is in it, that renders it so charming hills, woods, green fields, rivers and oceans. For you He created the universe, and set it around this world and bespangled it with stars. All is for your service and all is maintained for you. Does not a God of such infinite goodness merit all your love? Not only is God our Creator, He is also our most loving Redeemer, who came from heaven for our love, who has snatched us from the jaws of hell, who has brought the light of truth to us, who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death; who instituted the Sacraments, who shed His sacred blood for us, who opened for us the gates of paradise, and who now awaits us there to become sharers in His eternal glories. Does not so loving a Redeemer merit our love? Should you not from your tenderest years begin to love and serve so good a Master? Love Him, then, with your whole soul and with all your strength. Does not the whole world which He created show His goodness and call on you to love Him? St. Philip Neri says, "Lord, you being so worthy of my love, so dear, so good, why did you give me but one heart to love you, and a heart that is so small?" The lawyer continued to question Our Lord, "And who is my neighbor? "Our Lord in answer told of an incident which happened in His day. A poor man fell among robbers and was nearly killed. Several people passed by, among them a Levite and a priest, but they went on, without manifesting any signs of sympathy. But there came by a good Samaritan, who placed the poor man on his beast and took him to a place of safety, where he could be cared for. Which among these, asked Our Saviour, acted in a charitable way? The doctor of the law answered. He, of course, who showed mercy."  "Go," said Our Lord, "and do thou in like manner."

There are several important points to be discussed in this story, especially the one of the love which we should show our neighbor: not only in sentiment, but by actual works of mercy. Another point is that this poor man is another figure of sinful mankind. It is certain that the case is a counterpart of the spiritual life; the man that fell among the robbers, who left him half dead on the roadside, is the sinner. When you fall into sin, ah, then you may be sure you have fallen into the hands of the devil, who has come upon you like a robber. And to what a condition has he reduced you! He has robbed you of your precious garment of innocence, which made you so beautiful in the sight of God; he has robbed you of all the treasures you have gathered in your life and which you were carrying with you to heaven. But this is not all: look at the poor soul full of wounds, with barely a little faith left in her, the life of charity nearly extinct, there she lies stretched by the roadside, with no one to help her. Can you imagine a condition more helpless and unfortunate than this? Not able to help yourself and dying for want of care! This dreadful mishap comes to many a youth; he goes along the road happy, full of vigor, but sin has struck him down; his soul is nearly dead, and he cannot move; he is carried along or dragged to the gates of hell, where all at once he awakes with the wails of the damned sounding in his ears. Be on your guard, my good friends, so as not to fall into the hands of those robbers, who will so despoil you that not a vestige of your old goodness will remain. Pray now that if it happen that sin should kill your soul, that Jesus, the good Samaritan, may look for you, pick you up kindly, place you on His beast of burden, and carry you to an inn, where you may recover under His loving care. Jesus is always waiting for such opportunities of succoring poor fallen humanity.


Source:  Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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10th Sunday after Pentecost - The Conduct of the Pharisee and the Publican in the Temple

8/2/2015

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 Our Lord, after having spoken of faith and prayer, addressed Himself to those who thought themselves good and just, telling them the parable of the Pharisee and publican in the Temple. Two men went to the Temple to pray: one was a Pharisee, a proud man, who thought he had always done great things, who was puffed up with his good deeds and boasted of them even to God Himself. The Pharisee asked for nothing, but took all the glory to himself. He stood upright, head erect, and facing the altar, full of pride, he prayed in this manner: "God," he said, "I give Thee thanks that I am not as the rest of men: extortioners, unjust, adulterers: as also is this publican; I fast twice in a week: I give tithes of all that I possess." What did he pray for? Really, nothing; he came to pray, but he broke out in praise of himself. May not this Pharisee be a picture of ourselves? May there not be also some Pharisees among us, my dear young friends? Are there not many who go to church to pray, but forget for what they are there? Ask that young man when he comes out of the church what favors he has asked of God at this most precious time of public prayer. You have been present at Mass, you have recited some prayers, but you did not think of what you were doing. St. Augustine says: "How can you expect that God will attend to your prayers when you do not think of them yourself? "Young people are very apt to enter a church just as the Pharisee did, as if they were going to a place of amusement; their genuflection is a careless jump before the Blessed Sacrament, their heads are raised, their eyes are wandering and in a few minutes they will be able to tell who is present; they notice who comes into the church, and who goes out, and all this while the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is being offered. It is almost impossible to believe it: they are disrespectful here in their exterior deportment, but they would know very well how to behave in company or in the presence of some great one of the world. But many come to church to do worse than the Pharisee: they come to laugh, to talk, and to disturb others who wish to pray; they come to commit sin and make others commit it. The Apostle Paul cried out with zeal, "Have you not your homes, or do you despise the church of God?" as if he wanted to say, have you not places where you can talk and laugh, need you come to the house of God to do this? No good pastor can look at this without concern; he will not allow you to talk, he will step in at once with a reprimand or send you out of church as a punishment.

"My house is the house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves," he would say, using the words of Our Lord when He drove the desecrators out of the Temple. The pagans shame us in this regard; they go to the temple of their false gods with reverence and respect; the Mohammedan never goes into his mosque without taking off his shoes at the entrance and washing his feet as a sign of respect. These idolaters worship false gods made of wood, stone or metal, but with such respect that our outward show of piety and devotion, in many cases, is inferior to theirs. Almighty God, who is thus carelessly treated by His worshippers, will not let such conduct pass unpunished. St. Chrysostom says that the reason of many of our calamities, wars, and famines, is because our churches are not held in sufficient respect, and kept exclusively for the purposes of prayer. Even Socrates, the pagan philosopher, asserts that the desecration of the temple is a sign of the anger of God, and foreshadows great calamities that are about to come upon the nation. The first Christians considered the churches heaven itself: here they came sprinkled with ashes, clothed in sackcloth, with a rope around their waist and humbly kissed the feet of the priest: not only did the common people do this, but even tyrants and kings.

The Emperor Theodosius entered the cathedral of Milan in a poor garment, and when he came to the threshold fell flat on his face, repeating the words of the psalm: "I have been humbled, Lord, exceedingly; quicken Thou me according to Thy word." He remained in that attitude during the sacred functions. St. Gregory of Nazianzen writes of his mother that she was so recollected in church that she never sat down, never spoke, never turned her back to the Blessed Sacrament. These examples show that in former times great outward respect was shown in church. I will not ask you to come to church covered with ashes or dressed in sackcloth; but when you are there assume a respectful posture and ask God to pardon your sins.

Now let us go back to the Gospel; the Pharisee said,  "I give Thee thanks that I am not like the rest of men.'' What pride, what blindness this is! In reality this Pharisee was an impudent sinner. Here he was, in the presence of this great healer of the human race, standing before God with his soul stained by this dreadful malady of pride, yet he utters not a word to ask for help in the sickness of his soul. He should have opened his heart to God in groans and lamentations; he should have recognized the meanness of this vice, and begged of God the grace to overcome it; but the Pharisee never thought he was sinfully proud; that all the good in him was changed into wickedness by this vice. We sometimes feel about the same way, for how often do we hear as an excuse for the want of religion, "I do not steal, nor curse, nor get drunk. I do no man any injury." Supposing you are all that you say, are you therefore free from sin? Are not the bad conversations held with your companions, sins? Are not bad thoughts which kill the soul, sins? I am ready to believe, my young friends, that you are not guilty of great sins, but even so, can you say, " I thank God, I am not like those other young men." Just reflect for a moment; supposing you are not guilty of grave faults ought you on that account be proud? You know well enough that you lack much as followers of Jesus Christ. You commit many venial sins; you know you tell many little lies; you are
frequently disobedient; you have very little devotion, very little respect for God in church; you are careless at your prayers, and by these smaller sins, instead of advancing in the path of virtue, you are going back. Again, you say with some pride, we are not as bad as others, for we have not committed great crimes.

If, my dear young people, by a special grace of God you have not, up to the present, fallen into certain great sins, yet if you continue in your cold way, you will in the course of years certainly fall into them. If pride is your governing vice, you will certainly come to a great fall, for it is the punishment of pride to descend into the most abject humiliation. In the lives of the Fathers, we read of a monk who lived a long time in the desert, doing great penance and practicing many virtues; but somehow he had not that humility which a holy man ought to possess. Almighty God wished to save him and so, to humble him. He sent him a temptation and the monk fell. Instead of keeping your eyes on the wicked so that you may say,  "Thank God, I am not so bad as to be capable of doing that," keep your eyes on young people who are virtuous and exemplary, and ask yourself why you are not as good as they are. These people are devout in church, they frequent the Sacraments, hear the word of God, are obedient to their superiors, patient, mild, polite and modest in thought, word and action. Am I like them? Remember you must acquire all the virtues of the good if you would be good yourself. Even supposing you are doing very well, that you appear to walk in the path of virtue, you cannot consider yourself perfect, and you cannot thank God that you are better than others; for after all you are only like a servant who has merely done his duty and is not worthy of special commendation for that.

Athens was a great school of philosophy and many students flocked to it. In the first years the Athenian student boasted that he knew everything; some years later on he felt that he knew but little, and finally, compared to what he ought to know, he admitted that he knew nothing. It used to be said at that time that the student who had reached that pitch of philosophy was the one most applauded for his success. Solon, the Gentile philosopher, held this principle:  "Of this,'' said he, "I am sure, that I know nothing." I think the same holds true of virtue; the greater opinion we have of our virtue the less we have of it. "When you have done all that is required of you, say you are useless servants."

"We have said enough of the proud Pharisee; let us now consider the publican. Who is that at the farthest end of the church? Why does he not come up and approach the altar? It is the poor, penitent publican. There he stands, beating his breast with shame, and with tearful eyes raised to heaven, cries, "Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner." Yes, truly he was a sinner; but he acknowledged himself as such, he bewailed his sins and received pardon for them at once. We ought to have that same feeling, that we are sinners; we should acknowledge that we are not fit to stand before God in His holy place. Let us with sorrow confess our sins to a priest and say, "Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner." Make a good examination of conscience, that your sorrow may extend to all your faults, none forgotten and none concealed. Make up your mind firmly that you will hate these sins in the future; turn your eyes to the Heart of Jesus, and pray to Him that He, your Judge, may forgive you. "Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner." And when you rise from the feet of the priest, you will hear the sweet words, "Son, thy sins are forgiven thee,
go in peace and sin no more."

St. Francis de Sales says, "When you go to confession, imagine you stand with your sins beneath the cross, that drops of blood are falling on your soul from the wounds of the dying Lord, washing away every stain of sin."

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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9th Sunday after Pentecost - Jesus Weeps Over Jerusalem

7/25/2015

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 The time was near at hand when the Saviour of the world was to suffer for mankind: when the occurrences took place which are related in the gospel of this day. Our Lord was  coming from Bethany and going to Jerusalem; He was to suffer the death of the cross for fallen man.

The news soon spread through the city that Jesus, the great prophet, was about to enter the town, and great was the stir that this news produced. The people came in crowds to the city gates; with palm branches in their hands they met Him, and cried out, "Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord." And wherever He passed they spread a carpet of trees, green leaves, and flowers; they even spread their garments on the ground that He might walk on them. Everything and everybody had put on a festive appearance, and great joy was manifested by all at this public entry into Jerusalem. But, wonderful to relate, Our Lord was not filled with joy at this triumphal entry. He was sad; tears fell from His eyes. Why was this? Because He saw that in a few days this very multitude of people would reject Him; now they believed in Him, but soon they would lose their faith and cry out for His crucifixion. He remembered the many miracles He had wrought, the many kindnesses and graces He had bestowed on them, and the black ingratitude they gave Him in return for all He had done; and this came so vividly to His mind that He wept over the city.

Just as Jesus wept over that ungrateful city of Jerusalem, is He pressed to weep over many Christians, and over the growing generation of young people. Can it be that there are people who make Jesus weep over them? Yes, indeed, and many even among us grown people; we are so easily led astray that the sufferings of Our Lord count as nothing to us. There are many who care nothing for His graces and favors, who disregard, outrage, and offend Him. Who is there that has
not committed sin? And if you have sinned you are the cause of the tears of Our Lord; and if you have sinned often, so often have you made Him say: "I have brought up children and exalted them, but they have despised Me." I have brought up children and given them so many manifestations of My goodness both in the spiritual and natural order, and now that they have grown up they refuse to serve Me; they are worse than the children of infidels. They are the children of the Church, fed by the Bread of angels, and yet they have all the vices of those that are totally ignorant of Me.

The old bishop, St. Polycarp, was accused at the tribunal of the proconsul of being a follower of Christ; and neither by prayers nor threats could his persecutors make him deny his faith. Finally the Proconsul proposed that if Polycarp would pretend to blaspheme the name of Jesus, he should not only be allowed to go back to his see, but there should also be heaped on him honors and riches. To this the old bishop answered: " Eighty-six years have I served the Lord, and during all that time He never did me any wrong; on the contrary He has shown me many favors. Is it reasonable that I should deny my Lord?" In the meantime the stake at which he was bound was set on fire, and Polycarp, full of joy, died a martyr's death. You ought to do the same thing; when the occasion of sin presents itself, you, too, ought to say, "God has never done me any injury; on the contrary He has heaped on me many benefits; how can I be so ungrateful as to disobey Him? "

Our Lord and Redeemer, with tears in His eyes, said of the Jews: "Jerusalem, if thou also hadst known, and that in this thy day, the things that are to thy peace, but now they are hidden from thy eyes!" Indeed the Jews did not know the graces which Our Lord had offered them. He offered them conversion, but by their own fault and malice they refused to listen to Him.

By miracles, by prophecies, and by His own words proved from the Old Testament, Our Lord demonstrated that He was the promised Redeemer; but the Jews did not want to know it and closed their eyes to all evidence. This made them unworthy of any extraordinary graces by which their eyes might be opened to the truth. The same thing happens to us when we obstinately refuse grace. "They have eyes and see not, ears and hear not." We abuse the graces given to us, and it is our own fault if we are abandoned to our obstinacy and self-will. When the sinner falls into this dreadful state by his own fault, he makes no effort to arouse himself from his fatal sleep. The ministers of God try to bring him to his senses by prayer, by preaching, by kind and loving threats of the eternal punishment, of the Last Judgment, but he remains obstinate; friends and parents will give advice, but all to no purpose. His heart is hardened. Salutary punishments come upon him in this life, sickness, troubles, mishaps of all kinds, but he will not see that they are meant as graces. Almighty God, seeing that all chastisements and blandishments are in vain, will say, "I have ordered your destruction because you have not profited by My visitation."  Thou hast not known the time of thy visitation.' From henceforth I abandon you, no more will you feel My kind reprimands, no more will light be sent to you, you will fall deeper and deeper; you will die in your obstinacy and come before My judgment-seat, when you will hear Me condemn you to everlasting torment."

Have a care, my dear young friends, not to deserve this severe sentence. Jerusalem was a city dear to Our Lord. What a fair city, a picture of the heavenly Jerusalem, would  she have been, prominent on the beautiful hills of Palestine, had she acknowledged the Lord! "What should I have done for My vineyard, and I have not done it?'' Yes, the greater the graces which God has bestowed on you, the greater should be your efforts to correspond to them. You have been like favorite children, who have received many kindnesses; but you disobeyed God and defiled your sacred bodies by abominable sins. Could not Our Lord say, "If youths less favored than you had done this, I should not wonder, but that you, after so much kindness, should do it, I will not overlook." When the sinner is thus abandoned by God, the same dreadful ruin will happen to him as was foretold of Jerusalem: "For the days shall come upon thee: and thy enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round: and straiten thee on every side: and beat thee flat to the ground, and thy children who are in thee, and they shall not leave in thee a stone upon a stone."

Voices were heard in the Temple, shortly before its destruction, "Let us go away from here, let us leave this place." The angels shall fly; the devils will gather about in numbers; then will be terror and fear of what is to come. The sinner will cry out for mercy, but the Lord will no longer listen to his lamentation. His cries do not proceed from a penitent heart, but from the anguish of despair. Did not almighty God give you sufficient caution all your lifetime, did He not say that He would let you die in sin? The hour has now arrived. Hear Him say: "For a long time you did not think of Me, neither will I turn My thoughts on thee: I leave you now in the power of Satan, to whom you have given your body and soul, and whose bidding you were so anxious to do." If you are in the state of mortal sin, be converted, turn not a deaf ear on God. "Now is the time of your salvation. This may perhaps be your last chance. You have been deaf to God through your life, and God will be deaf to you at your death."

This was the salute which a saint gave to a great sinner whom he met; he had often tried to convert him, but all in vain, and these were the last words he spoke to him. When Our Lord came into Jerusalem on the day of His triumphal entry He went directly to the Temple to preach to those who had welcomed Him. When He reached there He found a great bustle going on; people were buying and selling in this place consecrated exclusively to the worship of God. Our Lord was angry and, making a scourge of ropes, He chased the wretches from the Temple, saying: "My house is the house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves."

Our Lord appeared severe to all who saw Him, but He wished to impress on their minds a very salutary lesson: scrupulous respect for the house of God. The good Jesus, who on all occasions was so mild and so meek, that He said of Himself, "Learn of Me, because I am meek and humble of heart" was indignant. The zeal of the Lord glowed in His soul and He arose in His might and chased the buyers and sellers from the sacred place. Should Our Lord come personally into our churches, what would be His conduct toward some of us, my dear young friends? He would there find His wrath rising within Him, and would chastise those whom He found there; or drive out of the house of God young people who, instead of praying, talk, laugh, and ridicule their neighbors. The house of God is the house of prayer, and should not be used in any other way. Remember what St. Paul says: "If any man violates the temple of God, him shall God destroy."

Let us learn, then, from this severe act of Our Lord how necessary is respect for the place of His habitation on earth. Enter with faith, keeping vividly before your mind that Christ is really present; that this is the great palace of the King of heaven and earth, and that if we would behave in a respectful manner in the palaces of the great of this world, we should also act, but with more seriousness, in the house of God. Enter it with fear and trembling, for God is there and naturally you should fall on your face in prayer and adoration; enter it as the angels would, who come before the face of Jesus with a fervent love for Him.

Another sermon for the children can be found here: http://www.crusaders-for-christ.com/sermons-for-children/category/9th%20sun%20after%20pentecost832e815b77
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                  3rd Sunday after Pentecost - The Lost Sheep

6/13/2015

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Picture
This Gospel is a most consoling one, for it speaks of the mercy of God. Often a sinner who hears himself menaced with the terrible chastisements of that great Last Judgment Day, or with sudden death, or with the never-ending tortures of hell, is not at all moved, but continues in his sins. But when he hears of the great- mercy of God, and listens to such invitations as this,

"Be ye converted to the Lord your God, because He is good and merciful," he yields himself up as conquered, he sheds tears over his transgressions, and a most notable conversion is often the result. If any of you, my dear young people, find yourselves in the unhappy state of sin, and are putting off your conversion from day to day, when you hear to-day's Gospel, treating of the mercy of God; of how much He desires the conversion of sinners; of how well they shall be received into the fraternal bosom of Jesus, I am sure you will abandon the ways of sin and become a victim of divine love.

The Pharisees and people of bad repute were pressing about Our Saviour and listening attentively to His sacred words. But they took occasion to criticize the conduct of Our Lord, and said of Him,

"This man receives sinners, and eats with them." Our Lord knew their thoughts, and refuted them
with the parables of  "The good shepherd" and " The woman and the lost groat."

My dear young people, could Our Lord have given greater proof of His desire that the sinner may be converted and repent? Even in the severe law of the Old Testament, repentance was possible and the wicked invited to conform themselves to it. "I desire not the death of the wicked." "O house of Israel, be converted and do penance." Were these not beautiful expressions of God's sympathy for the poor sinner; do they not show us that the sinner should be converted and live? But much more plainly does the parable of the good shepherd teach us this desire of God.

My dear young Christians, have you ever gone away from God by falling into sin, by giving up the sheepfold of the good pastor? No doubt there are some among you that have. This Good Shepherd did not delay an instant, but rose and went forth into the wild desert of sin to look for you in every place, watching over you, and inviting you to come back. What caresses and kindness did He not shower on you, just to make you look up at Him and recognize Him again! What inspirations did He not infuse into your hearts! What bitter hours of compunction did you not sometimes feel! To what disgrace you were reduced: loss of honor, loss of everything, so that you had to cry out with the prodigal son, "I perish with hunger." When you were the most miserable and abject creature on the earth, did He give you up in disgust? No; the lower you had fallen, the greater was His mercy: even though fallen very low, you were still His lost son. He approached you in the kindliest manner, and said.

"My son, we stand in such relation to each other, that we ought to love each other. Why are you deaf to My entreaties? Why do you continue to commit sin? Not a day passes but you commit new sins. The earth with all its creatures cries to Me to pour My vengeance on your head; but I wish to pardon." Why does the merciful Lord wait so long? The answer is plain from what we have seen: in order that you may have time to be converted and live again in His grace. Will God really forgive us? Can any one doubt that God will not pardon us? Oh, I have been so sinful; from my very childhood I began to offend Him; in fact, my sins have become more numerous than the hairs of my head. Will He still pardon me? Ah, my dear children, do not add to your other sins one which is the blackest of all: the mistrust in God's mercy, by the sin of despair. To despair is nothing
less than condemning yourself to hell. If He did not desire to forgive, why has He waited so long, and so patiently? His desire is to pardon you, provided you are really contrite; provided you say with the prodigal:

"Father, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee." No sooner have you said these words with a heartfelt sorrow than He has already wiped out the account of your sins. "I will not remember all his iniquities."  He will place the kiss of peace on your forehead, He will give you back your heavenly inheritance. He will give all the angels a great feast on this occasion. "I say to you there shall be joy in heaven upon one sinner that doth penance, more than upon ninety-nine just who need not penance." You shall be more dear to God the greater your sins have been. Is this strange, my good young people?

Magdalene was a public sinner, her reputation was very bad; but after her conversion she became dear to Our Lord. How privileged she was in loving Him! how He defended her, and raised His hands in benediction and absolution over her! "Thy sins are forgiven thee, go in peace." Never afterwards did He mention her faults. Margaret of Cortona had also led a scandalous life, but after her conversion Our Lord appeared to her and said, " Thou art My beloved sinner," and told her He would make use of her to bring back other sinners. But I certainly hope I shall not be misunderstood, nor that some may say: "If God is so merciful, I can continue in my dissolute life; at some future time I will ask Him for mercy, and He will pardon me." If such should be an excuse for our sins, God in His justice would withdraw His mercy: it is one thing to ask for mercy for sin, but quite a different thing to remain in sin because God is merciful.

No, my dear young people, never abuse the mercy of God, because then you will excite the wrath of the Almighty against you. Once God has pardoned you who knows whether He will pardon you again; there is certainly a limit to His mercy, otherwise you might say with truth that God encouraged you in your sins. Because God is so merciful will you offend His goodness? Should you not be grateful for past kindnesses?

Ah, my good children, let us hate ourselves for our miserable conduct; let us chastise ourselves for having so long abused the divine mercy. Turn to your Father and throw yourselves into His arms, and He will carry the dear lost sheep back to the fold.

                                                                                                  Source:  Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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2nd Sunday after Pentecost ~ The Great Feast to Which We Are Invited  and  Spiritual Communion

6/5/2015

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We are within the octave of the most beautiful feast of the Church, the feast of Corpus Christi; and the Church wisely chooses the parable of the great feast to which all are invited as the subject of our meditation today. This great feast represents the most august, the most holy Sacrament of the Altar, and with what great solemnity it is celebrated! The altars are magnificently decorated, innumerable lights are lighted, incense ascends in clouds, processions are formed, benediction is given so as to make us understand that the good Jesus is with us, and that hence we should love Him and adore Him. In order that you may be moved to this love, think of the great love, even the excess of love, by which the Lord invites us to so rich, so magnificent a banquet in which He offers His sacred flesh as our food, and His precious blood as our drink.

"A certain rich man made a great feast." Enter the hall of the Last Supper at Jerusalem, where the divine Redeemer sat among His Apostles. Jesus, His face aglow with divine love, turns at the end of the meal to His disciples and tells them that the hour has come when He must return to the Father; but He bids them be not afraid nor dejected, for He will remain with them till the end of time. Then He took bread into His hands, those hands which made heaven and earth, and blessed it and said,

"This is My body which is given for you; do this for a commemoration of Me." In
like manner the chalice also after He had supped, saying.

"This is the chalice of the New Testament in My blood, which shall be shed for you." To understand the great love with which the amiable Saviour did this, consider when this was done.

Not in those days when Our Saviour was going about in His glory, working miracles before the admiring crowd that followed Him. He did not even institute this holy Sacrament when, after having preached and moved the people, a woman cried out,
'
'Blessed is the womb that bore Thee and the paps that gave Thee suck." Not in the days of His triumph, when He had fed five thousand people, and had led them spellbound for days through the country, and they came to take Him by force and make Him king. He did not institute it on that glorious feast. Palm Sunday, when He made His entry into Jerusalem, the houses, the streets, and the gates of the city adorned for His reception, and the people crying out,

"Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." But He instituted this holy Sacrament on that sorrowful night when He was to be apprehended through the treachery of Judas, His apostle, when the soldiers were about to lay violent hands on Him and drag Him most contumeliously to the house of Caiphas. The night on which He was betrayed was the night on which Our Lord instituted the Blessed Sacrament. You will appreciate still more the love of Our Lord in instituting this holy Sacrament by remembering that He foresaw all that was about to happen to Him: the insults, scourging, crowning; the carelessness, coldness, and infidelity of humanity was all before His mind; He saw the want of faith, the want of gratitude among the Christians themselves. He foresaw that the Sacrament would be sacrilegiously used and abused.

That many Christians would eat and drink judgment unto their souls for not discerning the body of Christ. Every day Our Lord goes into hearts that are good, and into hearts that are the abominable residence of the devil. But the love of Jesus overcame all difficulties, and in the excess of His
love He cried out,

"My delight is to be with the children of men,"  He did not wish to remain with us only for a time, but forever, unto the end of the world. It would have been a great favor had He left His body in only one place on this earth, so that it would have been necessary to travel many miles to reach His tabernacle. But, no; He preferred to remain within our cities, near our houses, in our villages, out in the lonesome country, in every church where the Holy Eucharist is kept, and there He remains day aad night. What a great favor it, would have been had He promised us that once in a lifetime we might receive Him. But He desires that we go frequently to Him, and He even binds us by a command that we must receive His body, and drink His blood if we wish to have life in us.

"Amen, amen, I say to you, except you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood, you shall not have life in you." Continually does the good Lord coax us to come to Him, and in familiar intercourse to lay our troubles before Him, that He may carry them for us.

" Come to Me all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you." How sweet and encouraging must not these words sound to the poor sinner. These words,

" Come all," ought to make us run with unbounded confidence, as the invitation implies. But how
do the generality of Christians answer this invitation of Our Lord? Do they often go to the Lord's Supper and eat the Sacred Bread? Many after this kind invitation will stay away, refusing to yield to the loving importunities of Our Lord. They say we cannot come, we love the world more than Thee, we would rather feast on the pleasure of this world than feed on that spiritual food which Thou dost offer us; we are too busy with our worldly affairs, and we cannot come. Will they not deserve the sentence which the master of the feast gave out,

"But I say unto you, that none of these men that were invited shall taste of my supper." If they do not come to this feast they shall not enter heaven. Is there a beggar faint with hunger who, if he was kindly invited by
the king to come into a great banquet hall, there to satisfy himself with delicious food, that would not willingly listen to the invitation, and be glad he had an opportunity of eating at the king's table? He would be a fool if he said,

"I cannot come." The sick man near his death would not refuse a new lease of life and freedom from sickness. Those who remain afar from Jesus are poor, famished beggars, miserable invalids, because they are in want of the food of the soul which Our Lord offers. You see then the blindness and folly of people who refuse to go to Jesus. What a consolation it is to all good Christians to love
God's altar and to go frequently to holy communion. You are therefore the guard of honor of the Blessed Sacrament; defend it now, and show your real faith in it. Keep yourselves steadfast in this holy devotion, this holy adoration. The time will perhaps come when you will no longer have your child-like faith and fervor at the altar. What has become of it? Ah! it is the old story; you fell away and cared no more for this heavenly food.

Let us love this sacred table of Our Lord. Let us ever hunger for the spiritual food, the body of Christ; do not love the banquets of the world, for they will make you forget this heavenly feast. Let it not be said there was a time when you were good; but having begun well, being nourished by the body and blood of Christ, grow in virtue, become good Christian men and women, and faithful to the teaching of your youth; often receive the Sacraments of Confession and Communion. The danger is, that in the course of time you may become careless. Knowing this forgetfulness, join a society which will keep you from bad surroundings and encourage you in the practice of your duty.

                                                                                         Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

                                                                                       SPIRITUAL COMMUNION

"If any man shall hear My voice, and open lo Me the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me."—Apoc. iii, 20.

THESE talks on communion would not be complete if nothing were said of spiritual communion.
Now, the catechism of the Council of Trent, called also the Roman Catechism, because it is the official formulary of the Roman doctrine, uses the following words:

" The shepherds of souls should teach their flock that there is not one manner only of receiving the admirable fruits of the sacrament of the Eucharist, but that there are two: sacramental communion and spiritual communion."

Spiritual communion is little known, and still less practised; and yet it is a special and incomparable source of graces.

"It is, by itself," says Father Faber, "one of the greatest powers of the world." "By it," writes St. Leonard of Port-Maurice, "many souls have attained a high perfection."

To derive from this inestimable treasury all the wealth which it contains it must be understood:
(1) in what spiritual communion consists;
(2) what graces it confers; and
(3) in what manner it may be practised.

In what does spiritual communion consist ? It is, in the first place, a communion; the Council of Trent states this expressly. It is therefore an actual participation in the graces of the Eucharist, although distinct from the sacramental participation properly so called. We have already seen what graces flow into souls from the Eucharist; so that it is enough, in order to estimate the value of spiritual communion, to know that it does truly confer upon us a considerable proportion of those graces. We shall presently see in what measure and to what extent. This communion is effected not externally, as in sacramental communion, but spiritually; that is, internally and mentally, without any material and corporal action; spiritually, that is, again, supernaturally or divinely. It is also called "interior communion," communion of the heart, invisible or mystical communion, because it unites us with Jesus in a secret and mysterious manner, without a visible sign as in sacramental communion. It is also called "virtual communion," because it has the power of making us participate in the fruits of the Eucharist.

What must one do in order to communicate spiritually ?
Is it enough to make acts of faith and love toward Jesus present in the Eucharist ?


No. We must expressly formulate the desire to communicate; and in order that this desire may be sincere we must be so disposed that we could communicate sacramentally, if it were possible. On the other hand, a simple desire, if deep and sincere, no matter how brief and rapid, is
sufficient to constitute spiritual communion. Obviously, the longer the desire is prolonged the more fruitful is the communion. But by a simple impulse of the heart toward Jesus present in the Eucharist we communicate spiritually, we participate in the graces of sacramental communion.

How can this be ?

I will explain.
Our Lord is in the Eucharist for us; and His desire to come into us, to be wholly ours, to possess us, to live in us, is a supreme desire that asks only that it may satisfy itself.

"I am consumed with the desire to give Myself to thee," said our Lord to the venerable Jeanne Marie of the Cross; "and the more I give Myself the more I desire to give Myself anew. After each of thy communions I am like the pilgrim devoured with thirst, to whom a drop of water is given, and who is thereby made to thirst yet more. It is thus that I aspire continually to give Myself to thee." Jesus addresses these very words to each of you.

Jesus wishes to enter your heart every day by sacramental communion; yet even that does not suffice Him; He would come again and again, without ceasing. This divine desire is realised by spiritual communion.

"Every time thou desirest Me," He said to St. Mechtilde, "thou dost draw Me to thee. A desire, a sigh, is enough to make thee possess Me."

Our Lord has often revealed to saintly souls, and in different ways. His ardent desire to unite Himself with us. To the blessed Margaret Mary He said:

"Thy desire to receive Me has so sweetly touched My heart, that if I had not already instituted this sacrament I should have done so at this moment, in order to give Myself to thee."

Our Lord charged St. Margaret of Cortona to remind a monk of the word of St. Augustine :

"Beheve, and thou wilt have eaten;" that is to say, make an act of faith and desire towards the Eucharist, and you will be nourished by that divine food.

To the blessed Ida of Louvain, during a mass at which she could not communicate, Jesus said:

"Call Me, and I will come !" "Come, O Jesus I" she cried at once, and felt herself filled with happiness as though she had really communicated.

And after a spiritual communion of which she tasted the full delight, St. Catherine of Siena heard our Lord say to her:

"In such manner and place as may please Me I can, I will, I am able marvellously to satisfy the holy
ardours of a soul that desires Me." This desire of Jesus to unite Himself to us is infinite and all-powerful; it knows no other obstacle than our liberty. Jesus has multiplied miracles in order to enclose Himself in the host that He may give Himself to us. What does it cost Him to work one miracle the more, to give Himself to us directly without the intervention of the sacrament? Is He not master of Himself, of all His graces, of His divinity ? And if, being called by a few words, He descends from heaven into the host between the hands and at the will of the priest, will He not descend directly from heaven into our hearts if He is called by the ardour of our desire ?
O marvellous power of the human soul ! O power of a sincere desire, inspired by love ! Power which allows each one of you to realise for herself, in a certain manner, what the priest accomplishes for all the faithful !

Hagar, flying to the desert and seeing that her child was dying of thirst, sent up a despairing cry to heaven, and a spring of pure water welled forth immediately to save mother and child. Cry, therefore, to God, telling Him your desire, and God will reply to you in causing a spring of eternal life to well forth from His heart to sanctify your soul ! A poor savage has no priest to baptise him, but he sends the voice of his desire up to God: behold him baptised ! A poor sinner turns to God. In the midst of her confusion she lifts her eyes towards the infinite Goodness; she thirsts for love and forgiveness: behold, she is forgiven !

You cannot approach the holy table; either you have already communicated or some obstacle prevents you. Gaze upon the host in the tabernacle with eyes of longing; declare your hunger and thirst to Jesus. Say to Him :

"Jesus, come; I die without Thee!" Jesus will hasten: you will have communicated.

During mass the priest takes the host between his hands; he recollects himself, he bows himself, and he speaks a few words. Immediately the heavens open; Jesus hastens, at the voice of His friend who calls Him: behold Him between the hands of the priest ! And you, pious soul ! Meditate profoundly; shape an ardent wish within your heart. Touched and urged by this desire, Jesus will hasten to His well-beloved : behold Him in your heart !

O ineffable Goodness, O infinite generosity, O unbounded munificence, O bewildering love ! It is no longer God who is sovereign Master; and the creature is no longer servant. The creature becomes the sovereign mistress of God; and God makes Himself the eager and obedient servant of the creature.

"I come not among you," said Jesus, "to be served, but to serve." Spiritual communion is truly an infinite power given to the creature over the Creator, to the pious soul over Jesus !

Father Faber is right: " Spiritual communion is one of the mightiest powers in the world!"

How express the innumerable fruits which spiritual communion brings us ?

All is summed up when we say that it is a communion; that is, a participation in the Eucharist and the graces of sacramental communion. The Council of Trent, speaking of the usage of the admirable sacrament of the Eucharist, distinctly states that " some receive it spiritually: these are those who, partaking in desire of the celestial bread which is set before them, taste the fruits and the benefit of the sacrament." Thus, according to the Council of Trent, and according to all theology, spiritual communion is a spiritual manducation of the body of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore all that we have said of the fruits of sacramental
communion is also true of this, although in a different manner and in a less degree.

The first effect of spiritual communion is therefore to increase our union with the humanity and the divinity of the Word made flesh. This is its principal effect, its essential advantage; all other graces received proceed from this.

Briefly they are as follows: Fervour is revived. "Spiritual communion," says the Cure d'Ars, "revives the soul as a bellows does the fire which is covered with ashes and about to die. When we feel the love of God growing cold, let us make hastily a spiritual communion !" Poor heart ! it so easily loses its heat, so soon becomes covered with ashes !

Spiritual communion revives the fire and makes the flames of fervour break forth anew. In the midst of our trials during this pilgrimage here below sadness is forever taking possession of us; and our hearts become filled with heavy mists.

communion dissipates this mist like the morning sun; it brings joy back to the heart and sets the soul at peace. It also keeps us in a state of recollection; it is the best means we have to preserve us from the dissipation of our thoughts, from frivolity and all the wanderings of the spirit and imagination. It accustoms us to keep our regard fixed upon Jesus, to preserve a sweet and constant intimacy with Him, to live always heart to heart with Him.

Our Lord one day showed the pious Paula Maresca a golden ciborium containing her sacramental communions and a silver ciborium containing her spiritual communions; He thus marked their relative value.
 
It detaches us from all that is merely sensible and earthly; it makes us disdain passing vanities, the pleasures of this world, which are only for a time.

"It is the bread of the heart !" said St. Augustine. "It is the healing of the heart !"

It keeps the heart from all that is impure and imperfect, it transforms it and unites it closely to the heart of Jesus. It renders our relations with Jesus more tender and familiar. It makes our devotion to Him warmer and deeper. It enables us to taste more fully the charm and sweetness of His presence.

" When I make the sign of the cross," writes St. Angela of Foligno, " and place my hand on my heart, in saying, "The Son '. . . I experience a rush of love and a great tenderness, because I feel that Jesus is there."

Spiritual communion places Jesus there, in the very centre of our heart; His presence is permanent and brings us infinite happiness.

Spiritual communion has also a wonderful efficacy in effacing venial faults and remitting the penalties of sin. Pious souls who communicate spiritually often and well will be exempt from the flames of purgatory. Jesus will bear them straight from earth to heaven, as He did the soul of Joan of Arc, which was seen at the moment of her death to mount directly to paradise in the form of a pure white dove.

Spiritual communion will give to those souls which have communicated well a surprising glory in heaven. Our Lord told St. Gertrude that every time we regard the sacred host with devotion we augment our eternal happiness, preparing for ourselves blessings above in proportion as we have multiplied our desires full of
love and longing for the Holy Eucharist here on earth. Souls that have often communicated in spirit will shine in heaven with peculiar splendour, and will taste especial joys, sweeter and more holy than those known to others.

Spiritual communions, day by day increasing our desire to receive Jesus, urge us to sacramental communion, prevent us from missing it by our own fault or negligence, send us to communion more frequently, and dispose us to communicate better and to receive more abundant fruits therefrom. Spiritual communion is, according to the testimony of all the saints, the best preparation for sacramental communion.

Remember, too, that spiritual communion may be offered for the sake of our neighbour; either on behalf of the hving or the dead. St. Margaret Mary recommended spiritual communion on behalf of the souls in purgatory.

" You will greatly comfort these poor afflicted souls," said she, "by offering spiritual communions on their behalf, in order to redeem the bad use they have made of sacramental communions."

Finally, you must understand that you receive all these benefits and graces which flow from spiritual communion according to your dispositions; that is, according to the value of your desires. The more intense your desire to communicate, the purer, the more prolonged, the more fully will you participate in the fruits of the Eucharist and all the favours which we have enumerated; and this without other limits than the ardour, extent, and keenness of your desires.

The saints are unanimous in exalting the marvels of spiritual communion. They go so far as to say, with the venerable Jeanne Marie of the Cross,

"that God by this means often fills us with the same graces as in sacramental communion "; and with St. Gertrude and Father Rodriguez, that

"sometimes the graces are still greater, for," says the latter, "although sacramental communion is in itself of a greater efficacy, yet the fervour of desire may compensate for this inequality."
 
What more precious encouragement to spiritual communion could be given ? How can one urge you further to make such communions frequently .'' When will you make them ? You will do so always during mass, when you attend without being able to communicate sacramentally.

" You must," says Rodriguez, "devour the divine food with the eyes of the spirit. You must open the mouth of the soul, with an ardent desire to receive the celestial manna, and to savour its sweetness slowly in the heart."

You will make a spiritual communion, according to the advice of St. Alphonsus Liguori, at the beginning and the end of your visits to the blessed sacrament. What a wonderful manner of employing this precious time ! Jesus is really there, a few paces distant, filled with the desire to come to you. Long for Him with the same ardent desire, and He will come and unite Himself to you in a consoling intimacy. You will leave the church inflamed with love.

You will make a spiritual communion in the morning, as soon as you have awakened from
sleep.

"At your awakening," said our Lord to St. Mechtilde, "long for Me with all your heart. Draw Me to you by a sigh of love, and I will come, I will perform in you all your works, and I will suffer in you all your pains."

You will communicate in spirit after your prayer, or at the end of your meditation, on finishing your spiritual reading, before or after reciting the rosary, and at night as you fall asleep. You may communicate spiritually ten times, twenty times a day, as often as you will; for a few short moments suffice, a few words of prayer directed to Jesus present in the Eucharist imploring Him to come to you. It is not the time that signifies; it is the ardour, the vehemence of the desire, the hunger and thirst of the soul, the eagerness of the heart.

As for the formula, the best will be that which comes most spontaneously, most sincerely from the inmost recesses of your being. That in which you put the most love, and above all the most tender, pure, generous, and disinterested love; that in which you feel most sure of making Jesus feel that you love Him for Himself. You will say to Him :

"O Jesus, come; oh, come ! I have need of Thee; my soul sighs and languishes apart from Thee; I hunger and thirst after Thee; all is dreary when Thou art not here !" O Jesus, I cannot live far from Thee; I die without Thee. O Father, Friend, O Wellbeloved, come, I beg Thee, come ! O Love, Love, instil into my heart all the ardour of the seraphim and all the most radiant feelings of Thy divine Mother !
 
"O infinite Love, come Thou Thyself and love in me; come, and kindle in my heart all the most ardent desires that have consumed Thine own ! " Above all, O Love, may I love Thee for Thyself ! May I forget myself, lose sight of myself, lose myself in Thee ! Enter into me, that I may live no longer, that Thou alone mayst live in me ! As Thy Father is glorified in Thee, so be Thou glorified in me ! Take all that is in me to make it Thine forever !" Enter into me to continue Thy works. Thy prayers, Thy virtues, Thy sufferings. Thine expiations. Thy merits !

" O Jesus, O Well-beloved, nothing for me, but all for Thee, and forever ! Enter into me, live in me, that we may be consummated in one!"

Thus you will make your spiritual communions, or in other terms still warmer, with expressions yet more ardent. Often even you will say nothing, you will remain silent, for the lips become incapable of formulating the desires of the heart when the heart is carried away and ravished by divine love ! Then it is unspeakable suffering not to be able to express what one feels. But Jesus sees this inner suffering, and to Him it is perfect homage; it fills Him with joy, for it reveals more love than all the words and cries of the most impassioned heart.

And all these desires, all these impulses, all these feelings that Jesus Himself awakens within you, and which He feels more than you—I leave you to think whether He will not reward them. By the ardour of their desires for spiritual
communion, the saints have often obtained miracles. Hosts have left the hands of the priest and given themselves spontaneously to them. Angels, sometimes the Blessed Virgin, or St. John, or our Lord Himself, have appeared to them and given them the sacrament. You will not be granted such miracles. No matter, if you do really, though invisibly, obtain the same graces. And these graces you will receive, if you consider, on the one hand, the worth and value, the excellence and the nature of spiritual communion; and if, on the other hand, you will remember with what ease you can effect it, at any hour of the day or night.

How ungrateful then you would be, how culpable and inexcusable, if, understanding spiritual communion and the incalculable riches which it contains, you were not to resort to it, at least once a day, and much oftener still ! For of all the means of sanctification is there one which is more within your reach, more efficacious, and more marvellous ?

Source: Holy Communion, Imprimatur 1923
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1st Sunday after Pentecost - The Virtue of Charity

5/30/2015

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                                                     THE VIRTUE OF CHARITY

The great lesson today, my good young people, is, that we should be kind-hearted, merciful, and charitable. The saints, the friends of God, were charitable. What did they do for their fellow-men? Did they possess a thing and not give it away? Did they spare themselves in any way in their labors for the benefit of others? They tried to be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful, and if we wish to be perfect, we must endeavor to be the same.

Then Our Lord wished us to be very careful in our judgment of others. "Judge not, that you may not be judged." Be careful of being suspicious, lest you form rash judgments accordingly. Do not put a bad construction on others' actions; do not ascribe bad motives to them. When a man does a good act, do not suspect him of a bad motive, and thus lead yourself and others to question the merit of it. St. Augustine says, "If you have charity for others, you will wish only what is good for them." A good and wise teacher of morality gives this beautiful lesson: ''Humility does not see the faults of others; simplicity does not believe them; charity does not disclose them." But, you will say, am I to be such a fool, that if I see my companion doing wrong, I am to believe he is doing good? Do not, of course, think an evil action a good one; that would be nonsensical; but may there not be many extenuating circumstances which will make him less culpable? Pray for the culprit with charity in your soul, and think what you would be, had not God kept you from sin; what falls would have been yours; what disgrace; consider your frailty, and ask yourself sincerely, "Why am I still good? Does it depend on myself?" 0, no, you must admit, it was a special providence that cared for you more than for others. They fell deeply; you, too, would have fallen and further; but the mercy of God held on to you for its own ends.

A good monk who witnessed the sad fall of a soul in the
spiritual life, said in the most compassionate tone, "Alas, it is his turn today; it may be mine tomorrow." Our Lord commands us to forgive injuries, saying, "Forgive, and you shall be forgiven." How easily we are aroused to anger, and how hard it is to come forward, with open hand and open heart, to meet a friend who has offended us, and take him back to our confidence. The slightest disagreement repels us from each other, and immediately there seems to be an impassable gulf, which shame and stubbornness or our own meanness will not allow us to bridge. "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart." Do you know when you can refuse to look your companion kindly in the face? When he comes to you to lead you into sin; then your anger and zeal may show itself, and you may let him know that you are no friend of his; a man who injures your soul cannot be looked upon with indifference. But in all other things, be careful to keep charity; forget and forgive injuries. Our Lord in another Gospel tells us, "If we love one another, God abideth in us and His charity is perfected in us." What a beautiful example of this virtue have the first Christians given us; even the pagans used to admire them in their charity and love towards one another. What fights and grudges are often seen among our young men; if they have anything against another, they take the law in their own hands, and undertake to punish the offender. Give that up, and look for no revenge; revenge and punishment really belong to God; let Him take charge of your grievance, and at the same time pray fervently to God, that He deal lightly with your enemy and not punish him.

Our Lord gives us a great example of forgiveness to our enemies. What did Our Lord do for His enemies? He prayed to His heavenly Father: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Jesus was God Himself, and to do any injury to God ought naturally to bring down the anger of the Deity on the offender. He could have sent a legion of angels against them, or He might have allowed fire
and brimstone to fall upon them and consume them. But not so with God. He waits patiently, sending His grace into their poor hearts to see if they would become better. The saints did the very same thing; for they loved their enemies and performed many acts of kindness for them, forgetting every injury that was committed against them.

Our Lord in teaching charity certainly could not omit one great act of charity. He asks us to practise almsgiving. My dear young people, you have not yet the means of giving alms of your own; hence you are not obliged to observe this command; still learn early to feel for the poor. Do not laugh at their poverty, their dirt, their tattered garments, or their roughness; have compassion on them, show sympathy for them, and help them if you can. " Reach out your hand to the poor." What you give to the poor shall not be thrown away, it will return to you again sometime, in divine blessings. What do we see good people do, not to speak of saints? They are kind-hearted and hospitable, they share their possessions with others to a certain degree. It is not necessary to give our all, but to give a little from it. Our Lord has promised great things to those who have acted in this spirit of charity. He will repay us with a measure that is well heaped up, well shaken down and overflowing.

We have to carry a good record of charity toward our neighbor to the judgment-seat of God, for there this very question will be discussed. Our Lord has already described that judgment in the Gospels: "When the Son of man will come in His majesty He will say, I was hungry and you gave Me to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me to drink. Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these My least brethren, you did it to Me." Our Lord gives a parable about the blind leading the blind; they both fall into the ditch. The parable is plain enough; a blind man would not entrust himself to another blind man to be led. And yet it is done frequently in the spiritual life. Do you not entrust yourself
to the guidance of blind companions? You are blind already, because your passions do not allow you clear judgment, and you consult some one on your imaginary difficulty. The devil is ready for you, he knows your dilemma, and at the right time he brings one who will advise you according to his ideas; these ideas coincide with your own, you are confirmed in your evil resolution, and both of you fall into the ditch of sin. The priest sees this very often. Not a day passes but young men and women of his parish go off with their blind counsellors. How have they fallen into those sins?

"Ah, my dear father, a bad guide, a bad companion led me astray, and reduced me to this condition; once I was pure, I did not even suspect there were such sins; but I was led into them, and now I have satisfied my taste for them. I have ruined my life, and I am a miserable wreck." But this is not the worst of it; that we have been led into sin is bad, but far worse is it to stay in sin and to continue to indulge in those vices. It is related by Thomas Cantiprates of a companion who was led astray and died a horrible death without having time to go to confession. He died with these words in his mouth,

"I am now going to hell but what about him who dragged me into sin ?"

If he said this before he was judged, what would his words be when he stood at the gates of hell, and looked back at his fearful loss for a never-ending eternity. You wish to go to heaven. Well, then, choose for yourself a good priest, a good confessor; chosen from among thousands, as St. Francis de Sales used to say. Pray fervently to Our Lord, that as He sent the archangel Raphael to guide Tobias, so He will send you, if not an angel, a man of angelic qualities; and to him yield up your guidance entirely. This man, enlightened by God, will show you the way that leads to eternal life.

"Make your ways and your doings good, and I will dwell with you."

St. Philip Neri, when he observed a youth who governed   himself well, frequented the Sacraments, and allowed himself
to be directed by a good confessor, used to say,

"If he does not go to heaven, who will?"

Our Lord in His sermon on the mount says,

"Why seest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye and seest not the beam that is in thy own eye."

You hypocrite, take first the beam from your own eye; then you may be able to remove the mote from your brother's. We see the smallest defect in others, but of our own great shortcomings we make not the least difficulty. Thomas a Kempis tells us,

"In others we blame the smallest failings, whilst the greater defects in ourselves we pass over lightly."

You notice a slight disobedience in your companion, and you cry out in astonishment, "What insubordination!" You see another talking in church. "What little piety he has!" you say. Another has been caught in a lie; you never forget it; in your eyes he is a liar forever. In short, you see the mote in your brother's eye. Since you know that you are sometimes guilty of these very failings yourself, do you ever say to yourself, "You unruly fellow, you liar, you wretch without devotion "  Therefore study to know yourself, and by frequent examination of conscience learn your own condition. Be humble, for humility is pleasing to God, and you will not be of the number of those of whom Jesus Christ speaks,

"Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thy own eye and then shalt thou see clearly to cast the mote out of thy brother's eye."

                                            Source: Sermon's for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900
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Low Sunday - The Visit of Our Lord to His Disciples -   The Unbelieving Thomas

4/11/2015

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Picture
The Apostles were gathered in an upper room, away from interference, for fear of the Jews; there they discussed the events of the last days in the life of their Master, and the appearance He deigned to make to Mary Magdalene. In the evening while they were at supper. Our Lord appeared in the flesh, though the doors were securely locked. The place shone brightly with His presence, and in a reassuring tone He said to them, "Peace be with you!" and showed them the wounds of His hands and feet. The disciples were happy, and again He said to them, "Peace be with you!"

My dear young people, you all love peace and are looking for it. Where is it likely to be found? You look for it in most unlikely places; you find strife, deception, and sorrow. Sometimes you look for peace in the enjoyment of pleasures, in the diversions of the world; you deck yourselves with roses; you say,

"Let not this opportune time pass by; let us crown ourselves with roses before they fade."

But you find no peace; there is always a great vacuum which cannot be filled. The pleasures you have enjoyed have passed too quickly; they have often left a bitter remembrance, and the riches of the world give no contentment. Consider the great and wise Solomon, king of the Jews; according to his own admission, he sought and enjoyed every pleasure; he had a grand throne, great riches, his table was laden with costly food, and he had innumerable servants. There was no kingdom equal to his in splendor and wealth. Of all men Solomon should have been the happiest and yet he was not happy; the more he possessed, the more he was disgusted with the insignificance of these things; he saw in it nothing but vanity and affliction of spirit. Why was Solomon obliged to confess, that amid all his riches, his honors, and his power, he met with no satisfaction, no peace, but felt disappointed?

It was this: our hearts are made for God and to enjoy the pleasures of heaven; for that reason the enjoyments of this world can never satisfy us, or give us peace.

My dear young people, try to realize this in the beginning of your days. The things of this world look very attractive and promising in our youth, but years will open our eyes to the true state of things. Be not deceived, but begin by giving everything its proper value; love God alone, and that will give you peace, contentment, and happiness. It is certainly a lamentable fact that sin becomes the great source of enjoyment to many of our young people. So blind and wayward are they, that although they know that sin begets nothing hut misery and disgust, they still live on in that sad state. They eat the bread of iniquity and drink the wine of sin. Stronger and stronger grows the fierce fever of passion the more it is indulged, until it can be compared to nothing but a tempestuous, angry sea, threatening with destruction everything that is found in its way.

Oh, blessed days of innocence, when you had not tasted the seductive poison of sin! When a little lie, or a disobedience to your parents, gave you terrible disquiet of conscience. In those happy days you sat content at the frugal table, you loved your home and passed the evening in the bosom of your family. Then you had no idea what bitterness of heart or a disquiet mind meant; but there came a time when for the first time
you said, "Jesus, I will serve Thee no more." From that moment you felt the stings of conscience. You were like the fratricide Cain, who restlessly wandered about, afraid that every man was his mortal enemy. The rivers threatened to drown him, the hills to fall on him, the valleys to bury him alive. He 'had the dreadful thought in his mind that those who found him would kill him.

Would that we could realize the fact that to know God and to love Him is the only source of peace! Thomas a Kempis says, "That God, the eternal and infinite, who fills all things, is the real comfort of the soul and the real joy of the heart." Give testimony to that which you have experienced during these days of the paschal feast. You have made your peace with God by means of a good confession tell me, did you not feel a heavenly joy in your soul when the priest raised his hands to give you absolution? Did you not feel as if new life had been infused into your body and soul? And you, my dear young people, who have had the
grace of partaking for the first time of the Bread of angels: did you ever experience such happiness; did you ever feel greater consolation? What a difference there is between serving the good God and serving that cruel monster, the devil! If you have as yet never felt the consolation of serving God, now is the time to make a small effort, and God will reward you with a peace the world cannot give. When the first Napoleon was congratulated on a certain great victory he had gained, and his friends told him it was the most glorious day of his life, he said, "No, the most happy day of my life was the day of my first communion."

After Out Lord had twice saluted the Apostles with "Peace be with you,'^ He breathed on them saying, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." Impress these words on your memory, for they are the proof of the divine institution of confession. God gave His disciples and their successors the power of forgiving sins. What a great benefit did Our Lord bestow on mankind by this act! He saw that many who had been regenerated by the waters of Baptism would again fall into sin. He gave us this sacrament as a plank thrown to us after shipwreck. You cannot deny, however, that this divine gift is often abused. Some have the temerity to say, "We will commit this sin, and then confess it and it will be forgiven." Never load your souls with such a sin of presumption. Use that great grace for your salvation and not for your damnation.

When Our Lord visited the Apostles on this occasion, Thomas was not with them. When he came in they gathered about him, relating the occurrence, "We have seen the Lord," spoken to Him, and touched Him. Thomas answered, "Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." What an exhibition of human weakness! What incredulity, what obstinacy in following out his own views and despising the united testimony of the other ten! What presumption to lay down the law of evidence to Our Lord! Well it was that he had a master so full of love. Eight days afterwards Our Lord appeared again. the doors being shut, and this time Thomas was with them. The Lord had come especially to convince Thomas. Calling him He said, "Put in thy finger hither, and see My hands, and bring hither thy hand, and put it into My side: and be not faithless, but believing." So struck was Thomas by the goodness of the Master, so overcome with sorrow for his fault, that he fell down before Our Lord and cried out, "My Lord and my God." The Lord then said, "Because thou hast seen Me, Thomas, thou hast believed; blessed are they who have not seen and have believed."

There are many Thomases among us Christians, and even more incredulous than Thomas, who say, "Unless I see I will not believe." For example they do not understand certain doctrines of the Church; they deny them and are half infidels. A day will come, and perhaps it is not far distant, when they will have to acknowledge the truth of those doctrines; and severe punishments will be dealt out to them for their wickedness and impiety; they are so unbelieving, that if Christ were to appear again before them, they would maintain that it was not He.

My dear young people, do not choose such as these for your companions; avoid the conversation of those who do not respect religion; be careful of the books you read. The writings of out present day are full of infidelity. The best Protestant and infidel writers make most ridiculous charges against the holy faith. Doubts are raised concerning fasts; modem scientific discoveries are so distorted that they must needs throw discredit on religion. The young are especially entrapped by this apparent show of reason. Avoid such books, that you may not be affected by their teachings. You must not say that you ought to know the objections to our religion. If you study enough, and can refute them, well and good; but if your knowledge is insufficient you will lose your faith.

St. Aloysius Gonzaga, when a child, had a certain book and tried to find out what it was. He could decipher enough to see that it was against religion, so he threw it into the fire and ran to wash his hands, because they had touched such a blasphemous work.

In matters of faith, drive away with great care every temptation; renew every day your promises of fidelity; tell God that with His grace you will be His constant follower and ask Him to enlighten and strengthen your faith. You may be sure that there is a great foundation of truth in your religion; that good and wise men have taught and believed it, such as St. Jerome, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, and many others who have been the glory of the Catholic Church.

Blessed is he that shall have preserved his faith, for it is a precious gift. One day you will see the truths plainly revealed, though now some things may strike you as not in accordance with what the world believes. You will be glad at the hour of your death, when you will have the consolation to be comforted by that religion which you have professed in your lifetime.

"Blessed are they that have not seen, and have believed."

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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Quinquagesima Sunday - Prediction of Our Lord's Passion -                 The Cure of the Blind Man

2/13/2015

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Picture
In this Gospel the Church teaches us something of the Passion of Our Lord. About this time of the year a certain part of the world is going crazy with carnival; people imagine it great fun when they put on masks, dance, and walk about in processions. But the Church wishes her children
to think of the Passion of Our Lord, and on these days she asks them to be more zealous and fervent. Sin is the cause of the Passion of Our Lord; we crucify Our Lord again and make Him an object of mockery. We have not the same customs here that exist in Europe at carnival time, but by degrees they are creeping in here, too;
let us consider the great damage it does to the young people of those countries, and draw from it a lesson which will be very useful to us. We can also judge from it what would be the consequence of following similar indulgences at any time of the year. These applications can be made to our picnics, moonlight excursions, and dances. On the approach, of the carnival the Church redoubles her prayers, and puts on the garb of penance, because so many sins are committed; for this reason, too, the saints of the Church, the friends of God, do more penance that God may be kind to the people who are indulging in these excesses. St. Francis de Sales used to call the carnival days hours of pain and grief to the Church. What disorders, dissoluteness, unlawful relaxations are committed in those days! St. Vincent Ferrer used to think of the approach of those days with horror, for, with unbounded license, people would commit sin after sin without giving themselves time to think. St. Catharine of Sienna was accustomed to cry out with groans, "Oh, what an unhappy time! what a diabolical time!" Day and night she would invoke Our Lord. When the carnival is open you may well say that heaven is closed. The reprehensible things about the carnival are things that are considered dangerous at all times, such as masquerade balls and theatres. St. John Chrysostom considered the theatre the worst place, where the vilest spiritual diseases may be contracted. St. Augustine called the theatre of his day the pomp of Satan. St. Cyprian speaking of it says it is the innovation of the devil; apply all this to picnics and balls too. Now, my good young people, whom would you rather believe; would you rather believe your own passions that drag you into considering these things small matters; would you rather believe our modern, loose Christians, who consider the theatre the school of virtue? Or would you not rather believe those great doctors whom I have quoted, who studied much, and who were enlightened by almighty God? You will say that you always criticise the title of a play before you go. That is nonsense;
you know that the name of a play does not give a clue as to whether it is moral or not. What about masquerade balls? The dance is one of the greatest occasions of evil, especially for young people. A youth that loves the ball-room will sooner or later fall into grave sin.
"He who jokes with the devil," says St. Peter Chrysologus, "cannot reign with Christ." St. John Chrysostom declared vehemently against dancing; he says it is the innovation of the devil, and those who engage in it cannot escape the snares of the devil. All the saints have said the same thing.

During these days of the carnival, especially, let us not form part of the world that has gone crazy, we may say. There is no objection to modest recreation nor to simple enjoyments. Endeavor to compensate Our Lord Jesus for so many sins committed during this time. With great love, visit a church where the Blessed Sacrament is exposed, pray, and receive from Him spiritual joy of which the world knows nothing. In this way you will not put your salvation in jeopardy nor will you, as often happens, ruin the health of the body, as is frequently the case. I myself have seen on the last days of the carnival a funeral procession, and on asking for whom such display was made, was told that it was the funeral of a youth of sixteen years. A few days previously he had taken part in the carnival procession; he had gone to the theatre and to a masked ball. Here he had become overheated, caught cold, contracted pneumonia, and in a few days died. Had he obeyed his parents, had he been reasonable in his enjoyments, he might have saved his life. But let us return to the Gospel; while Jesus was in the vicinity of Jericho, a poor blind man who sat by the wayside begging, hearing the approach of a great crowd, asked what this might be. They told him that the Great Prophet, the Son of David, was passing by. Then he raised his voice as high as he could, and cried out,

"Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me." Can you not easily see in this poor blind man the figure of a poor sinner? How terrible is the blindness of
sinners! They know that by sinning they lose God, that God who created them and redeemed them; they know that theyhave lost the right to heaven; they sin frequently and without any remorse. What blindness thus to insult almighty God, in whose presence they commit these sins; that God who could annihilate them or could at any moment precipitate them into the flames of hell! Sometimes, by the grace of God, the blind sinners open their eyes to the real state of their souls; they see their misery and their danger, and return to God while it is yet time, and break the chains that hold them bound to the servitude of the devil. Then they ask themselves: Who is this Jesus who is passing by? The truth will suddenly shine on their souls. This is the Saviour of souls, the healer of the blind and of all diseases, especially of the soul. Then in earnest they will raise their voices to Our Lord and cry out in humility and compunction of heart, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me." But you know that the world does not like these exhibitions of piety, the fashionable world does not want to be disturbed by these cries. The passions so natural to our frailty and increased by indulgence, are urged on by the devil, who gives us occasions of sin. Our old companions who continue in theirevil course would like us to do the same; these lay their hands on the mouth of the sinner that he may not cry out, and tell him that he should be ashamed to make such an outcry. This is the inner voice that we feel; the voice of conscience that admonishes us and the voice of the body that speaks of enjoyments that are the death of the soul. How the sinner hates to be disturbed by these contending claims! The good voice is hated by the sinner, and he tries to silence it. Again he shuts his eyes and listens to the wicked voice, so that joyously and carelessly he goes on sinning. He has abused once more the grace of the voice of God speaking to his soul. Sinners become ashamed of having ever been modest and pure in word and action, ashamed of ever having loved God, and ridicule the holy maxims of the Gospel. What blindness and
perversity this is! Should any of my hearers be of the number of those who have been blind, let them arouse themselves by prayer, and then the grace of light will also come to them. How tearfully and sadly St. Augustine describes these dreadful days of his own blindness, "I went from one disorder to another, from one precipice to another, like one that was blind."

When Jesus heard His name called in that strong way. He stopped, and gave orders that they should bring the poor man to Him. "What wilt thou that I should do for thee? " asked Our Lord with the most loving condescension.

"Ah, Lord, you see what I need. I am a miserable blind man, give me the light of my eyes." What a beautiful prayer, how short, how affectionate it was, what great good it accomplished. This same petition we too should continually make. "Lord, that I may see." This spiritual blindness, ignorance, and darkness must be removed; we must be able to see clearly. Give me intelligence, that I may know things rightly, that I may from my earliest days know the wickedness of sin, for now in my blindness it looks so attractive and so beautiful. Lord, make me see the great danger there is in the world, that I may be on my guard and not fall a willing prey to the wiles of Satan. Lord, let me know what company I must avoid, let me see the foolishness of thinking much of riches, excepting in so far as I may be able to use them for the good of others. It is vanity to indulge the appetites of the flesh and to desire that which, if consented to, will bring upon me great punishment. Let me, Lord, see the vanity of wishing for a long life; give me the grace to be contented with a short one and so to labor during it that I may enjoy the heavenly sight of paradise. The good Lord answered the prayer of the blind man, saying, " Thy faith has cured thee," and immediately the eyes of the blind man received their sight. Filled with joy he followed Our Lord, giving Him praise, and all the people who saw the great miracle also gave praise to God. See, my
young people, what grateful recognition you owe to almighty God for the corporal and spiritual light of your body and soul. How often has God given the power of vision to your soul! You certainly remember the darkness in which your soul was cast when you fell into mortal sin. Bodily blindness may bring some good to the soul, for then we cannot see the dangerous occasions which might lead us into sin; the alluring aspect of the objects of our passions cannot be seen by us, and hence cannot excite our imagination; but the blindness of the soul gives the devil power over us. As soon as God enlightened your soul you saw the dangerous situation in which you were. He stretched out His hands to raise you up, and what appeared to you so beautiful and attractive now looked so hideous that you were terrified, and willingly fled from it. What a great grace this was to you! He made you know what was good, and gave you grace to love it.

Thank almighty God for these spiritual gifts, praise Him for being so good to you. We cannot sufficiently appreciate whatGod has done for us in giving understanding and light to our soul; but we will know it when, after witnessing the damnation of many souls, we will at last find ourselves in heaven.

Source:  Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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Sunday Within the Octave of Christmas

12/28/2014

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                           THE PRESENTATION OF OUR LORD IN THE TEMPLE
Christmas is over; with the angels we have sung the beautiful anthem, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will." We have witnessed the tears of the Child Jesus, but we know that those tears were tears of lave, and for that reason, they did not distress us, but gave us consolation.

Today, with the joy of Christmas still in our hearts, we come with the Holy Family and other pious people to the Temple to witness the ceremony of the Presentation. The first time Our Lord goes out into the world. He directs His Mother to carry Him to church. The moral I wish to draw from this Gospel, dear young people, is, that you should think much of the house of God on earth. We must also imitate the example of Christ and while in church beg our dear Lord to inflame our souls more and more with His holy love. There are many who do not love the Church, through some depravity of heart, or the bad example of others. Will such be dear to Jesus? Will He love such as these? Jesus weeps for them.

Mary and Joseph heard the great prophecy which Simeon had spoken; they wondered at it, they thanked God for the light bestowed upon Simeon, and also that they had been made instruments of His divine providence.

We, too, my dear young people, must rejoice at the honors which God gives His Son, as we must weep when we see Him suffer. Yes, when you see Our Lord honored, feel joyful and be happy; when you see Him despised, be sad of heart. Is not this Jesus your good God? your beloved Redeemer who shed His precious blood for you? Can you witness the outrages which are heaped upon Him without resenting them, or at least trying to hinder them? What would you say of a son who saw his father badly used, and looked on carelessly and coldly? Should not a boy feel a natural impulse to defend his father by word and deed? Well, he that loves Jesus Christ should at least feel compassion when His holy religion is insulted. St. Teresa once said that a soul which loves Our Lord would sooner die than see Him despised or neglected. Elias the prophet, not to witness the wickedness of the Jewish people, hid himself in a cave, and there prayed that God would take him out of this life rather than he should see Him offended.

After Simeon had congratulated Mary and Joseph on their glorious future, he spoke of the sorrows that awaited Mary. "This child is set for the fall and the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be' contradicted; and thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed." What a terrible prophecy this! Is it possible that this Child, who has come to this world for the salvation of His people, should indeed be the cause of the damnation of many? To whom will He be a ruin? to many in Israel, in the true church. He will be a ruin to infidels and heretics who will not believe in Him; a ruin to the proud who will not bow their heads in humility and faith, and to many Christians. But what Christians will be damned by the coming of Christ? Those who are so only in name; who do the works of the heathen and live in sin; who offend and blaspheme Our Lord, even though they were brought up Catholics. This divine Infant will also be the ruin of many young people, of those who from their earliest childhood cared little for Him, drove Him from their hearts to make room for the devil. He will be the utter ruin of those who, not content to lead bad lives themselves, lead others astray by giving bad example or by bad conversation.

The divine Infant is presented today in the Temple. There is nothing dreadful about Him now; but one day they shall see Him, fierce as a lion; they shall see Him as a God, scattering His thunderbolts among sinners; He will demand of them the strictest account of all their works, of all the souls they have ruined, and of whose eternal damnation they have been the cause. May this prophecy not be realized in you. Then it will be too late to please Him; no more time for mercy, but for justice.

There was once a young man at the point of death, who had led a bad life; the priest came and presented the crucifix to him to kiss, saying, "Here, my son, is your hope." The young man fixed his eyes on the cross and said, "Yes, you say truly. He is my hope, but He is now the cause of my despair," and these were his last words. Be you, my dear young people, faithful to Jesus, try to know Him well, do not offend Him, but love Him with a great love; then He will be your salvation and eternal life. But, Mary, my mother, what is that prophecy which Simeon makes concerning you: "Thy own soul a sword shall pierce"? In her subsequent life we see the prophecy verified. A sword of sorrow pierced her very soul, when she saw her divine Son insulted, made an object of hatred, crowned with thorns, and cruelly nailed to a cross. Our minds cannot realize the pain which Mary had to suffer. We know that our sins have been the cause of the Passion and death of Our Lord. Let us, therefore, weep all our life for the sins we have committed, and not renew the Passion of Our Lord or the sufferings of Mary.

The Blessed Virgin once appeared to St. Lutgard, looking very sad; the saint asked her why it was so. Mary replied, "How can I be joyful when so many, day after day, give me new cause of sorrow by again crucifying my most holy Son?" She also appeared to Blessed Mcoletta Franciscana with her Child covered with terrible wounds, and said, "See how sinners treat my Son, inflicting on Him mortal wounds, and giving me also fresh cause of sorrow." St. Alphonsus says that when we sin we take the hammer, and most unmercifully pierce the hands and feet of Jesus with nails, and then we turn on Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and plunge the sword of sorrow deep into her soul.

But let us follow the story of the Gospel: There was in the Temple at the same time a woman, the daughter of Phanuel of the tribe of Aser; she was eighty years old, and after the death of her husband, had remained about the Temple serving the priests and engaged in prayer; she knew Our Lord at once, adored Him, and proclaimed Him the Saviour; then, filled with the Holy Ghost, she told them of the marvels of God's mercy, who had at last sent the Messias.

You see, my dear young people, how that holy woman who served Our Lord in silence and retirement, deserved so great a grace, so great a light of inspiration, as to be enabled to know Jesus. You, also, should love retirement, love to be near Our Lord in the Temple; speak often to Jesus in prayer, and then the Saviour will bring light to your souls, and speak to your hearts words of eternal life.

But there is something else to be considered in the story of this saintly old woman. We have in our cities and villages many who imitate this St. Anna. Let me say something in praise of these: they would willingly remain in the church, day and night, if they were permitted. We call them devotees. They are peculiar in their ways, considered crazy, derided by the good and bad as useless people; but perhaps they are high in the esteem of God. God gives more light to the simple and unpretending than to the philosophers who are puffed up with the pride of their intellect, and use it only to despise what they do not approve.

You remember that beautiful story of St. Catherine; she had a great dispute with some learned professors in one of the universities of Alexandria, Egypt, and in the presence of the Emperor Maximian, she so convinced them of their errors, that many became Christians and afterwards suffered martyrdom.

It is told of another martyr, who was a poor ignorant man, a laborer in the field, but who had studied Our Lord crucified; this man, when he had been judged guilty of disrespect to the gods and was condemned to death, made such a grand appeal to the emperor, that the tyrant himself acknowledged he was acting only from hatred of the Christian religion and not for the love of truth. These devotees in the sight of the world are useless, but we know that they have consecrated their lives to the service of God. There are also monks and nuns who spend much of their time in prayer. Are these people to be called pious idlers? Do they encumber the face of the earth, and should they be scattered as they have been in some countries? 0, how poor and miserable human beings are! They let vice walk openly in the world, and take little trouble about it; but when poor Religious gather together to pray, it makes them desperate, and they do not stop until they have succeeded in suppressing them. The Gospel ends by telling us that Our Lord lived at Nazareth, and grew in age and grace before God and man.

My dear young people, strive to grow in goodness, in virtue, and in sanctity, for it is the will of God that we all should be saints.

Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900
 
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The 22nd Sunday after Pentecost - The Tribute to Caesar

11/9/2014

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 Though the Pharisees often heard the instructions of Our Lord, they never drew any benefit from them. On this day they came to Our Lord, and proposed this question to Him,

"Tell us, what dost Thou think. Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?'' In this way, instead of trying to learn something of benefit to their souls, they became more blind. They were full of hatred of Our Lord, and full of jealousy because the people considered Him a prophet, and their intention was to destroy the respect which the multitude had for Him. Here was a question which they thought would certainly lead Our Lord into their meshes.

"Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar?" The Jews hated the Roman dominion over them; they were a downtrodden race, and were obliged to furnish a throne and money for the Roman governor, while their religion was in confusion; and sometimes two high priests were contending for the chief office. So the Pharisees said to themselves,

"If this man consents to pay tribute to Caesar he will be hated by the people; and if on the contrary he disapproves of it, the government will have a case against him for inciting the people to resist lawful authority." Jesus confounded the Pharisees by His divine wisdom. 

"Why do you tempt Me, ye hypocrites ?'' He asked. You have a very bad reason for this question you are not honest. Our Lord was affable and kind to the greatest sinners who came to Him in the sincerity of their hearts; but with these double-faced Pharisees He had no patience. He called them vipers, impostors, whitened sepulchres, fair without, but most loathsome within. Does not Our Lord teach us here the hatefulness of the vice of hypocrisy, and how He detested it?

My dear young friends, there are hypocrites among Christians, among our youth. Many young people wish to appear like angels in the eyes of their superiors; before their parents
they are careful not to say a bad word, while with their companions they do and say most scandalous things. They hide their sins so carefully that no one suspects them of any wickedness: even in the confessional they do not make known their great sins, and deceive the priest, the minister of God.

There are hypocrites everywhere; in the sanctuary, in the choir, in sodalities, in the church, and at the sacraments. Never pretend to a devotion that you have not it is disgusting. Be not servers of the eye of man, but serve God in all sincerity. Men may praise you for your piety, honesty, and truthfulness, but God sees deep into the heart; you do not
deceive God. You may gain some temporal advantages by deceiving men, but God's time for punishment will come, and then to your shame, your hypocrisy will be made manifest to the world. We read in Job that, "dissemblers and crafty men provoke the wrath of God.''
"Show me the coin of the tribute," said Our Lord. "Whose image and inscription is this?" He asked. They answered, "Caesar's." Then He said, "Render, therefore, to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that axe God's."

The Pharisees were struck with the wisdom of the reply, and must have been covered with shame before the assembled multitude. St. Bonaventure asserts that this coin represents the soul of man, impressed with the image of God. A precious thing, of great value, is the soul in the eyes of God, and it derives its value from the blood of Christ. Our soul, my dear young friends, when gifted with the grace of the Redeemer is a most beautiful object; it is an angel hidden in a body of flesh, a beautiful spirit, radiant with thought and understanding.

A soul in mortal sin has impressed on it the image of the devil. ^'What has become of me?" St. Augustine asks. ''My soul, whither have your sins led you?" That bright image of God which was on you is there no longer; all is changed. "How has the gold changed its color! "Bewail your condition, my dear young people, if you should find yourselves in a state of sin. St. Jerome says, most lamentingly, "This I bewail, that you do not feel that you are dead; this I bewail, that you do not sorrow for yourselves."

Yes, young people who are in sin ought to weep continually; all  night instead of closing their eyes in sleep, they ought to keep them open to shed tears; they ought not be able to eat, play or study, so great should be their concern. But do they weep? Oh no! these miserable blind beings enjoy themselves, and never stop to think that God hates them. Oh, raise your eyes to tlie crucified Saviour, see His thorn crowned head has He not sacrificed it for your soul? Those bloodstained eyes, those colorless lips, those hands pierced with nails, those feet cruelly wounded and that side opened by a lance did He not sacrifice all for our salvation? Are you going to allow His sacred Passion to be wasted so far as you are concerned? Jesus has purchased you with His blood, and you are His if you remain faithful to Him. " Take great care of your souls," and Jesus will be satisfied with His purchase and will not consider His Passion too great a price for your soul.

"Give to God the things that are God's.'^ Let us, for a moment, think of this. What do we owe God, that we must give Him ? To God we owe honor and glory. Do we give this glory to God? Do we not give honor rather to men, to those especially who hold positions of dignity. When you enter the magnificent palace of the millionaire, how well-dressed you are, what politeness you assume, so that people may consider you well-bred; you tiptoe up the hall and in a humble whisper ask the servant to take in your card, to see whether you may be admitted; should you have the happiness of an audience, you hardly speak aloud and you put your demands in the most honeyed words. If such is our respect for men, what is not due to almighty God from a human being?

Give to God, therefore, a little of the respect which you show to creatures. God does not wish for a false respect. He wishes you to be free, gracious, and spontaneous in your worship of Him; to assume a pious attitude in church because you are watched is not a worship of God; to say your prayers night and morning for form's sake, or because your parents insist on it, is hardly to be considered meritorious; for it is an unwilling prayer. Does God consider these acts worthy of Him when they are forced from you? He will not look at them with pleasure. He will say to you as He said to the Jews of old, "You celebrate great feasts, and hold certain days solemn, but
they are not My feasts, they are yours, because you want them for your own purposes and not for My glory; they excite My indignation but not My mercy toward you." This forced devotion is similar to the mock adoration which the Jews and soldiers offered Our Lord in the hall of Pilate's palace, when
they said,

"Hail, King of the Jews!" and made genuflections before Him; and at the cross, when the Jews cried out: " Let Him now come down from the cross and we will believe Him." God looks at the heart. He pays little attention to our exterior actions; a good, strong, fervent, cordial intention is as good in the eye of God as is the execution of the noblest human action. Give then to God the honor and glory that are due to Him; there is no need to force the youth who is in earnest to honor God in church, or when he hears Mass or goes to the sacraments; he does it of his own free will and with the greatest devotion. Yes, my dear young people, give to God that honor, freely, not through routine or custom. With a great heart, give glory to God. Serve Him with a great heart, joyfully and with willingness, and then you can say with truth that you have given to God the things that are God's.

Source:  Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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18th Sunday after Pentecost -                                         "Son Thy Sins are Forgiven Thee" 

10/12/2014

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Our divine Redeemer, who came down from heaven, was continually active in the work of the salvation of men by constant preaching and by journeyings up and down the land of Palestine in search of poor, miserable sinners to bring them hack to God. He healed them all, for " the power of the Lord was to heal them."

Among the many parables given by Our Lord, let us meditate on the one of today's Gospel. One day Our Lord was in a boat and had Himself brought across the lake of Genasareth to His own city Capharnaum. They called Capharnaum His city, because He made His home there in the house of Simon, when He was in the vicinity. He had left Nazareth long before, and seldom went back to the place. No man is a prophet in his own country, and the inhabitants of Nazareth were incredulous, and used to ask, "Is not this the carpenter's Son? Whence, therefore, hath He all these things?"
Capharnaum was quite a large city, situated at the head of Lake Genasareth; there was, in a small way, considerable inland commerce and fishing there and the people seemed more approachable than at other places. When they heard that Jesus had come a great crowd ran to the house where He was, filled it, and even blockaded the approaches to it. It was with difficulty that a poor cripple, a man who had lost the use of all his limbs, was brought there. As it was not possible to get in by the door, the man's friend climbed to the roof and making a hole in it, they lowered the sick man into Our Lord's presence. The kindness of those who assisted in this act was certainly very great, for a great deal of labor was required. Our Lord Himself was pleased with this exhibition of faith, and at once took notice of the sick man who was laid before Him. Great was the charity that these men exhibited when they undertook to bring the paralytic to Our Lord. But Our Lord did not consider the body at first; He thought of the soul, and began by forgiving the man's sins. When we are sick, all sorts of advice is offered to us, and the doctor is at once sent for; this is as it should be. My young friends, when you hear that one of your relatives is sick you ought to show an interest in him and do what you can for him; when your friends and companions fall sick, show by your sympathetic manner that you feel an interest in their welfare and in their health; you are thus practising one of the works of mercy, which is very important. Nothing is more beautiful than to see young people helping their companions, and faithfully remaining at their side until the sick ones are cured, or until death comes; parents and relatives will willingly yield their places to them, for they know how affectionate young people can be to one another. But you ought to help particularly, when you find that your friend is sick unto death in sin; then you ought not delay trying to revive him. Go out and find those who do not hear Mass, who will not go to confession, and talk to them, that you may gain them. This is an acceptable gift to God, and He will reward you accordingly. Our Lord did not cure the poor man that was brought to Him at once. God has His time for everything. When we pray we often think that our prayer is not heard because we do not see a miracle wrought at once, but God's time is according to God's wisdom for our own good.

Our Lord said to the sick man, "Have confidence: thy sins are forgiven thee." Why did He wish first to forgive his sins and then to cure him of his bodily ills? Because sin is the great evil, in fact, is the only evil in the world, and sickness is only a consequence. If we say all miseries, sickness, death, and starvation are nothing, who will believe us? In fact most people in this world will not understand this; they take no account of sin; these people do not want to know that their own poverty and wickedness and that of millions of others are the result of sin. In Deuteronomy the Scripture says that " The Lord will strike thee with want, fever, and cold, on account of thy infidelity." You see that God deals out punishment and reward, even here on this earth, though we do not see it. Let us look at the happenings of the world not like an atheist, but like one who believes that God holds the world in His hands, and regulates its events according to His supreme will. Here is a young man who has fallen into a very serious sickness. His friends say he caught cold, or did not take care of himself that he was careless or neglectful; often, were they to look below the surface, they would find more than carelessness or neglect they would find that his illness was but the consequence of his sins. Much of the poverty and evil on this earth could be avoided did people lead better lives, and try to conform themselves to the teachings of Our Lord and Saviour; to avoid temptations, or to have recourse to fervent prayer when temptations do come. We know, of course, that God often afflicts those He loves best with many physical ills ^but if He does He gives reward a hundredfold in the end; and gives them, too, a patient endurance and resignation under all their sufferings. However, the fact remains that most of the troubles in this world come from sin, and since this is a fact we ought to learn to avoid sin, fear it, abhor it, and let it never become our master.

The Scribes who heard Jesus say "Son, thy sins are forgiven thee," immediately cried out, "He blasphemeth; who can forgive sin but God only?" Jesus was God, and to prove it He said, "Which is easier to say to the sick of the palsy, thy sins are forgiven thee, or say. Arise, take up thy bed and walk?"  You will say, that to man both are equally impossible, that God alone can do this. To prove to them, then, that He was God and could forgive sins. He commanded the sick man to arise and walk. No sooner had Our Lord pronounced these words than the man not only arose and left the bed he had not stirred from in a long time, but was able to remove the bed from the house to which he had been carried. The people who had witnessed this miracle praised God for the power He possessed of forgiving sins and of healing so hopeless a case. The Pharisees looked on in stupid wonder, but did not accept the grace of conversion. Here we have a picture of many Christians and of many young men who hear of the wonders of God, but continue in their wicked lives, and remain obstinate unbelievers.

Nothing that God may do seems to move them. My good young friends, you certainly know from your early education that God has given you the great Sacrament of Penance, for the forgiveness of sins, to help you to get to heaven. Baptism is great indeed, because it makes us children of God; but it is also necessary that there should be another sacrament which, when Baptism has been once received will again cleanse us and supply again and again the necessary grace to become friends of God. Great indeed was the mercy of God when He instituted the Sacrament of Penance. But does the sinner avail himself of this means of grace? Many abuse it, and use it rather as an encouragement to crime. "I will go on in my manner of life" says the sinner, "and when I have a great deal to confess, I will unburden myself." He will wait until a large mimber is preparing for the sacrament and then he hopes to get through easily; he thinks that this sacrament can be received at any time; "when the opportunity presents itself I will go." he says. Will you,my dear young man, take poison because you have at hand an antidote for it? Will you carelessly inflict a deadly wound on your body because a doctor can be procured at any time? How insane would such an act be! Still there are many of this foolish class. Not only are there many who abuse the graces of this sacrament by an unworthy reception of it, but a number have not the proper disposition for receiving it. You ought to examine your conscience before going to confession. Do you review your life since your last confession so as to place your duties before you? And if you have your sins ready in your mind, do you accuse yourself with real sorrow, or do you only say an act of contrition by word of mouth? You surely know that it is not the mere recital of your sins which is the great requirement in the sacrament of confession; you know that without sorrow there is no forgiveness. It includes also a resolution of future amendment. You go to confession not only to receive the forgiveness of past sins, but you must see to it that you lead a better life in the future. I will say nothing of those who avoid the confessional as they would a pest. These are like people in a shipwreck, who would not grasp at a plank by which they might keep afloat and be saved. They evidently wish to be damned and to go to hell. Take this lesson on confession to heart; use it for your salvation and if you should fall into sin, you can turn to God again. He will receive you with open arms, as He received the prodigal son: "The son that was lost is found again." Go to the minister of God's justice, the priest, with sorrow; tell him your frailties, bewail them with bitterness, resolve that in the future you will avoid all occasions of sin, and watch over your passions carefully in order that you may not fall. And these consoling words will sink deep into your soul, "Have confidence, my son, thy sins are forgiven thee; go in peace."

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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16th Sunday after Pentecost - The Observance of Sunday

9/28/2014

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Our divine Lord went about, continually doing good to all; He instructed the ignorant, healed the sick, brought the dead to life, and freed those possessed of the devil. All these benefits ought to have made Him beloved by all; many did love the good Jesus, but there were others who hated Him, and were constantly persecuting Him. So far did their hatred go, that long before the time appointed by Providence for His death they sought to apprehend Him, and once indeed they even took up stones to put Him to death, but He made Himself invisible to them and walked away unmolested. His goodness was a stumbling-block to them. The same thing will be found among Christians; it is hard to believe, but there are Pharisees among us; there are people who hate those who are doing good. They do not wish to be good themselves, and they can not bear that others should be.

As soon as they hear that some one has distinguished himself by good works, they try to detract from his work; they talk against it, and blacken his character as well as the act itself.
This is so abominable and ignominious a disposition that you cannot find worse it is something of the nature of the sin of Cain. Abel, the good and pious husbandman had given to the Lord as a sacrifice the wheat of the field, and for this the fire of God's love descended on the offering and consumed it. So angry did Cain become, that he could no longer bear his brother, and conceived the terrible idea of murdering him. He invited him to go with him to a field, with the ostensible purpose of looking at something in which both were interested. There he took a club and killed Abel. What a horrible thing was this first murder, the result of envy. Could not Cain have been as good as Abel? One was better
than the other, and consequently God loved him more. Envy is the devil's principal vice, and one reason why he wishes to do so much injury to human kind. We manifest this same murderous disposition when we practice envy for any reason  whatever, but especially when we feel envious of others who are better than we are. It is a most disagreeable trait of character not to like the good qualities of our neighbor.

There are many young people who by jokes and ridicule lead others astray, and make themselves willing and effective tools of Satan. They diminish the number of saints in heaven and rob many of the society of Our Lord, and by destroying their chance of going to heaven make His sacred blood ineffectual in their case. Of such as these I would ask, do you not fear, do you not tremble, to heap up against yourself the anger of almighty God? Think of this seriously, cease your envy against your brethren who wish to serve God, guard against the ruin of souls by scandal, seek to encourage others to practice virtue, to bring many over to the following of Christ, and your reward will be exceeding great.

While the Pharisees were closely watching Our Lord, there was a man among the audience sick of the dropsy. Turning to the Pharisees Jesus asked them, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath-day?" Our Lord had often healed on this day of rest, but they had taken offence at it, and made it a cause of accusation. But now they did not answer. Then Our Lord took the sick man by the hand, healed him and sent him away. And turning to the Pharisees He said: "Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fall into a pit and will not immediately draw him out on the Sabbath-day?" And they could not answer Him. Our Lord could but pity the blindness of these men.

The Jews were such exact observers of the laws of the Sabbath-day that they even abstained from doing works of charity. Our Lord on this occasion wished to teach them that it was not wrong to do a good action on this day; in fact that it was the day on which such things should be done. Let me make a few reflections on the manner of sanctifying the feasts of the Church. The Catechism of the Council of Trent tells us that we sanctify the day by hearing Mass, receiving communion, and hearing the word of God. But what do our young people do on feast days? How few there are who give ear to the command of the Church to hear Mass; they would rather go and enjoy themselves, drinking and carousing: if they assist at Mass they are there only in body; their mind is engaged on subjects totally foreign to what is going on; their eyes wander here and there, they talk and laugh, even at the most sacred parts of the Mass, or when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed; month after month passes, even year after year, and they do not approach the sacred tribunal of penance or go to holy communion. They ought to hear the word of God, but do they perform this duty?

And even should they be present at a sermon, do they remember any of the salutary lessons given by the preacher? The sanctification of the feasts of God's Church is a positive
and clear command. We read in the Scriptures, that "the rest of the Sabbath is sanctified to the Lord." Are they not very wicked who do as they please on holy days or who commit sin on these days? What have they to expect from the judgments of God?

Once when the Israelites were wandering in the desert, preparatory to the time when they were to be admitted into the Promised Land, a man was discovered gathering kindling wood on the Sabbath-day; he was brought to Moses and Aaron and the assembled tribes of Israel. The decision was that he should be kept securely in prison until they had received word from God what was to be done. God's order was that he should be taken outside the camp and stoned to death.

This world was not made by almighty God simply for our pleasure, nor were the days given us for the same purpose; in short God has reserved to Himself certain days, which we should consecrate to Him. These occasions are like days of mercy and grace, on which, for a while, at least, we withdraw from the things of this world, in order to raise our eyes and our hearts to God. Sanctify, then, these days; do not desecrate them by unlawful work, by dissipation or by sin. I know that those who are advanced in years ought to  give you a good example in this regard. We often find avaricious old men and women, working at their trades or spending hours in playing cards, or in games. But be not infected by their wickedness. Even should unscrupulous employers or your parents command you to work on Sunday or a holy day, say openly and frankly, "I will not work ^I
will obey God rather than man.' '' Do not content yourself by doing only a little of God's will on these days; do all that is required for their sanctification. Hear Mass with great devotion and listen to the word of God preached by His ministers. See how our forefathers, even in times of persecution, observed the feasts of the Church! They descended into the catacombs of Rome, heard Mass, and went to communion; there they remained engaged in holy discourse, exhorting one another to give up life and liberty for Jesus Christ. The mother would point out to her children the tomb of a father, brother or daughter, who had given up life for Christ, and inspire them with courage to remain faithful to the end. Remember we are the children of the saints, and should live and die as they lived and died.

Our Lord wishes also on this occasion to give to the Pharisees a lesson of humility. It was their custom, on account of their rank and their pretended piety, to look for the places of honor at the table. The very humiliation which sometimes befell them ought to have taught them better. For often when one of them had taken the first place at the table the master of the house would be obliged to say to him, "There is a great friend of mine here who must sit at my side, so you will have to go down lower and make room for him." They should have understood that they ought to take the last place, and then, if they merited a better one, the master of the house would certainly ask them to go up higher; then they would be honored before all the guests. For "whosoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled, and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted." Be humble, therefore; do not place yourself above others, nor try to make them stepping-stones for your own greatness.

No one can ever follow out these rules of the Gospel without prayer. By means of this powerful weapon, you will obtain humility and you will lead a happy life, for the more humble you are the more will you be exalted and freed from ambitious desires that rob you of your peace of mind. Remember that the more you shall be humbled and despised in this world the greater will be your reward in heaven.


Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900


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15th Sunday after Pentecost - Christ Raises the Widow's Son

9/21/2014

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       CHRIST RAISES THE WIDOW S SON TO LIFE
Behold here a bright, joyous and lively youth, snatched from the enjoyment of life by death. He is being carried out of the town to be buried, and he was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. Friends were walking after the bier, the disconsolate mother resting on the arm of a friend. The widow had suffered a great loss, for this son was her sole support, her help, her consolation; her sorrow affected the whole community, and all went forth to show their sympathy. It is absolutely true, and it seems foolish to state such a truism, that every man must at some time die.

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It is appointed unto men once to die." Death does not respect time, place, person or age; it comes at the appointed hour. Death will grasp those who are to be its victims in any place, on land or on sea, in the house, in the church, wherever he finds them, he cuts the thread of life and the end has come. In the midst of pleasure, many deaths are known to have occurred, even in the mad whirl of the dance.

Death does not wait for an opportune time; when you are ready, or when you have gained the object of your ambition, or finished a certain work which you were to do, day or night, it is all alike to him; old age, of course, has to go; youth is so frequently called that he cannot promise himself any time; the average life of man is twenty-two years, and even during this time you may be called upon at any moment. Neither is death restricted in the mode of his execution. He needs no fever, no convulsions, no consumption, in short no particular sickness; he cuts off the thread of life just because your race is over. Look at the fish still struggling in the water to gpt away from the angler; it is soon drawn to the shore, palpitating and jumping, and a few moments will seal its doom, soon all ,will be over. The net is perhaps enveloping as, too; we are as lively as ever and think little of death, but the net will be drawn to the shore and the end has come.

Many are called out of this world without the least warning. One drops on the road, another drowns, one is struck by lightning, another is cut down by the hand of an assassin; all these never dreamed that death was so near, and thought they had many more years to live.

Our Lord tells us the hour of death is very uncertain, for  He says: "Watch ye, therefore, because you know not the day nor the hour. ... Be you also ready, because at what hour you know not the Son of man will come." He even tells us that He steals secretly upon us.

"The day of the Lord shall so come as a thief in the night.'^ Death may come to you in your sleep, or when you are at play. Cannot death as easily cut your life short when you are committing sin? And if death should come upon you without giving you time to prepare for the dread future, not even by a single good thought, what would become of your soul?  Might it not be possible that you would find yourself in hell? When this is possible is it not presumption and temerity to remain one day in mortal sin? Who of us, even for a short time, would like to lie alongside a corpse, and yet we go to bed without hesitation when our soul is dead in sin. Do we not know that mortal sin hastens death; for we read that " the sting of death is sin." It is not fasting, abstinence or mortification that shortens life, but the sins, the vices, the passions we are subject to. Those bad communions, those sacrilegious confessions, our cold ingratitude shorten our lives. "The years of the wicked shall be shortened," and again we read: He "was wicked in the sight of the Lord and was slain by Him." Of one who committed a heinous crime it is said "for that the Lord struck him, because he had done a detestable thing."

Once when Anastasius in his dreams was plotting great cruelties against the people, he saw before him a man of horrible appearance who had a book in which was written his sins: "See," he said, "I shall take fourteen years from the number of your days." Anastasius woke up, but was not certain whether he ought to treat the dream as a warning or as a foolish delusion. A few days afterwards thunder and lightning came down from a clear sky. Anastasius was terror-stricken, for an interior voice seemed to say to him that this terrible demonstration, was intended for him; thereupon he hid himself in a closet, but a stroke of lightning came down and killed him in his hiding-place.

Do not these texts of the Bible and these simple anecdotes prove to us that God has sometimes shortened the lives of sinners? We can conclude, therefore, that all sins, not perhaps so markedly, but as surely, bring about the same consequences.

And this ought to be a lesson to you, my dear young friends, for would you not call a halt to your sins if you knew positively that you were shortening your days by exciting the wrath of the Almighty, to say nothing of the sickness that indulgence in vice brings about?
The thought of the nearness of death is a salutary means to curb our passions. Look at the flower; no sooner is its beauty fully developed than its decay is at hand. Look at the waters of the fountain; for a while they sparkle in the basin in which they are born, but they soon run away and are seen no more. Look from your window at the glorious sun shining brilliantly in the zenith, and then setting behind the horizon for the night; remember that all this is a figure of death. Holy Job kept the memory of death in his mind, comparing it sometimes to the rapid passage of a runner, to the leaf blown along by the wind, to the flower, to the passing storm. But what conclusion does light-hearted youth draw from the short-lived pleasures of this world? On them there is produced no serious impression. If our life disappears like a speck of dust, let us enjoy it while we may. even though in doing so we sin. Ah, my dear young friends, this is all wrong; you should work as though this were the last day of your life; pray as though it were for the last time; go to confession and communion as if they were the last you were to make. This is the way to make your life profitable, and then the Judge will be a welcome visitor, because you are prepared for Him, and you have not been taken unawares.

"Blessed is that servant, whom when his lord shall come, he shall find so doing." Wake up, my good young people, and do something for eternity; give up those vices and sins which will be your eternal damnation; bewail the crimes which have so far led you astray, and God will take you by the hand, raise you from death, and give you eternal life.

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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14th Sunday after Pentecost - No Man Can Serve Two Masters

9/14/2014

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No man can serve two masters, especially if they give contrary orders, and are enemies, for we love the one and hate the other. In pagan times men used to adore Mammon as the god of riches in order that he would procure money for his worshippers. Mammon and God are enemies and are opposed to each other, therefore they cannot be served by the same person at the same time. You are, then, my dear young friends, this day to choose which of these two masters you will love and obey. The masters that lay claim to your souls are God and the devil. The world and the devil wish you to serve^ them! The devil seeks by promises of a happy, contented life, to gain yon to his side. Let me at the very outset tell you that these promises are false; while they appear to be good gifts they are in reality misfortunes. When the devil in paradise tempted Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit he held out great inducements to them. " You shall be as gods" he said. But none of that happiness was ever realized; our first parents were cursed by almighty God, the sign of condemnation was set upon their foreheads, they were driven out of paradise and had to gain their bread by the sweat of their brows. Still the world will say, "Come, let us enjoy all the good things of this earth; crown yourselves with roses and enjoy the happiness and joyousness of your youth; I will make you contented and give you honors and riches." Great and brilliant are the promises held out to us by the world, and who knows but we will yield to them?

In that event our case will be like that of the prodigal son, who put himself under the mastership of the world' and the devil; away from his father's house he thought he could enjoy himself without interruption, but there came a time when, despised by all, he became a swineherd, poor, without clothing, and suffering from hunger, with not even the husks that were fed to the swine to eat.

Supposing that for some years you should enjoy life to its full extent, lawlessly and without restraint, what would your feelings be at the hour of death? You would then experience the most bitter remorse. A great man when on his death-bed had his young son brought to him. "My son," he said, "do not believe in the promises of the world as I have believed; let me impress two things on your mind that are absolutely true: one is, that you will have but little pleasure in this world, and the second, that you will have much sorrow if you have enjoyed those pleasures unlawfully.'' If the devil is your master in life he will certainly be your master in eternity; he will be your companion, and not a peaceful one, or one that you will enjoy, but he will torment you in every way that his cruel ingenuity can suggest. Looking at this master in this light, do you really want to serve him? And yet you do serve him when you imitate him in his wickedness.

Your other and your real master is God. He, too , is anxious that you should serve Him. He is yearning after your soul. He is a beggar of souls. How different is He from that miserable creature, the devil! how good and loving God is!  It is true He places a burden on you, but it is sweet and light. He desires that you take the cross on your shoulders and follow Him, and not only in the end, but even during your labors and trials, you will possess peace and consolation. You will understand that the serving of God is a calling so high 'and so noble that it is equal to a royal dignity. And when this life is at an end He will share with you His own glory in heaven.

What does it mean to have God not only on earth by grace, but to possess Him in heaven in all His glory? We cannot realize this while we are in the flesh; we see it only as it were in a glass. In heaven all your faculties will be full of life, your memory will be a life of universal recollection of the past; your intellect will understand the mystery of God's infinite goodness; your eyes will see heavenly and agreeable sights; your ears hear the most beautiful music. Is it not, then, really sad that we have to prove the necessity of the love of God, in order to induce us to do some-good; is it not awful that we should leave God and cling to that impious tyrant, Satan? There are so many people in this world who give Tip the service of God to associate with the prince of darkness, people who revel in wickedness and hate virtue.

You ruthlessly drive God out of your soul when you have a bad thought, or when you do a wicked action, and you set the devil up in your heart as its master and dictator. Say with determination to the devil, "Get behind me, Satan; never will I have anything to do with you;" but to God cry out, "Thou art the God of my heart and my portion for all eternity." Our divine Redeemer, after having told us that no one can serve two masters, that God must be served alone, gives us some clear and beautiful instructions which need no explanation. He says, "I say to you, be not solicitous for your life, what you shall eat, nor for your body, what you shall put on God provides with munificence for the birds of the air, gives them what they need and keeps them alive. How beautifully He decks the field with flowers then how much more will He provide for us! Do not always think of earthly advantages, for the Gentiles, the pagans, and the worldlings look for these things. Still, notwithstanding all these promises of a good father, what anxiety do we not feel about the
comforts of life, our health; what fear we have of death. This is to a certain extent a want of faith and trust. "God, who giveth to beasts their food, and to the young ravens that call upon Him,'' will not desert us, though sometimes the prospect looks dark and discouraging. Ah, I hear somebody say, God does not provide for me; I work for myself; but in things over which I have no power, in sickness or poverty, where is His arm? Let this be my answer: If you would remove all misery and poverty from this world, first remove sin, and there will not be so much suffering. Who are those that are poor? They are the lazy loafers who do nothing, the frequenters of drinking-places, who earn no money or spend their earnings in the saloon. Perhaps God strikes them with poverty to show them that they ought to act differently. The crimes of the human race are often the cause of its sufferings.

We read in Leviticus the threats that God made to the people of Israel, unless they remained faithful to Him: "I will quickly visit you with poverty and burning heat, which shall waste your eyes and consume your lives; you shall sow your seed in vain, which shall be devoured by your enemies." "Trust in the Lord and dwell in the land, and thou shalt be fed with its riches." If you have this confidence in God, He will be specially kind to you, and you shall want for nothing.

The saints have always had this trust in God, and even when  they gave away all they had, did they starve, or were they in want? They put their trust in Providence and were never disappointed. Let your greatest and first solicitude be to look for the kingdom of God and His justice, and all things else will be given you in due time.

Therefore look first for the kingdom of God. But, my dear young people, do we do this? Oh, there are so many who have their eyes constantly fixed on the earth and never raise them from it to look up to heaven. They think of nothing but this life, as if they were to remain here forever; as if the day would never come when they would be called out of the world; they are entirely occupied with the enjoyment of life; they have nothing before them but the goods and honors of this world. And thus they renounce their right to heaven; they seek not the kingdom of God and His justice. Poor, deluded beings! They are attracted by the false promises of the devil, which will never be realized, for these promises are further and further from fulfillment and the sinners pass their lives in a vain hope. My dear young people, be not deceived nor follow the example of the wicked; have your eyes fixed on God in all your work. "I am thy protector and thy reward exceeding great." The pilgrim pays little attention to the beauty of the scenery and the great possessions of the rich; his aim is to get to his fatherland as soon as possible; and we, following his example, should study the shortest paths to our celestial home. "Seek ye, therefore, first the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you."
                                                        Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900


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2nd Sunday after Easter - The Good Shepherd

5/4/2014

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                       THE GOOD SHEPHERD
"I AM the Good Shepherd." This Our Lord says of Himself. Our Lord had other titles, as Jesus, Saviour, Redeemer, Master, Advocate, King of peace, Our Reconciliation, all signifying His love for mankind.

Are you, my dear young people, glad of the title of good Shepherd, which Our Lord gives Himself? Yes, the title is a beautiful one; it is full of consolation and of love. He gives Himself this title in order to gain our affection and our entire heart. How good Jesus is to us. His lambs and sheep! What care does He not take of us? He speaks to our hearts words of eternal life, and His holy inspiration illumines our mind and makes us know His goodness. He takes us up tenderly, and brings us to delightful pastures. He nourishes our souls with His holy word, by the words of His priests; He feeds us with bread which is not of this world, the Bread of angels. His sacred Body and Blood. Was there ever a shepherd who gave his body and blood for food to his flock? Generally the flock is a source of revenue, support, and sustenance to the shepherd; but not so in the case of this Good Shepherd. He supports and sustains His flock.

Of course the shepherd will fight for his flock, he will use every means in his power to protect it from ravage, but the Good Shepherd gives His life for His flock. 0, infinite love! What pains and suffering didst Thou not endure for Thy sheep! Just think of Jesus crucified; look at Him nailed to the cross; see that face all covered with bruises; those eyes half closed with blood; those shoulders torn by stripes; that side opened by a lance; those hands and feet pierced with nails, and that head crowned with sharp thorns. All this, all these wounds, the Good Shepherd suffered for His poor lost sheep. Then what should we do on our part? Oh, give Him at least a little recognition, gratitude, obedience, and love if nothing more than to receive Him on the great festivals of the year. This good Shepherd will love you with all affection and give you His choicest blessings.

There are, on the contrary, many restless, ill-regulated, sickly, plague-stricken sheep who have to be thrown out of the flock, because they continually disobey Him and make Him feel the sadness of having shown kindness in vain. He would like to bring them to good pastures that they might recover from their maladies, and become useful members of the flock again, but they will not listen to His voice. He calls them to the use of the sacraments, but it is in vain; He calls them about Him to be His escort and companions, but they would rather be far away from Him; they want to feed their souls on poisonous food; they do not like the restraint of being near the holy Jesus. They have left the fountains of living water which ran to eternal life. They have looked for water and found filthy broken cisterns.

Among you, my dear youthful friends, there are many wayward sheep also. This Good Shepherd seeks to bring them back to the fold, but many are obstinate, blind, and wicked, and will not hear His voice. He invites them with sweet and coaxing words; He makes them feel the qualms of conscience; He embitters the cup of vice from which they are drinking and takes peace and happiness away from them. But these wicked sheep will not listen and continually say by their works,

"No, I will have nothing to do with you." What more should this Good Shepherd do to gain them and to bring them back to His flock? Can you suggest something? Is it possible that God will not succeed in attracting them to Him? Will He not succeed when He promises them the kingdom of paradise? He must and will get angry some time; He will abandon them and deny them the help of His grace, and then they will fall from one sin to another.

How many young people, my dear friends, are in such a state. In early youth they become vessels of wrath, and if God still tolerates them, the day of vengeance will come, the day on which God will separate the bad from the good. And to the bad He will say,

"Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire."

Now, there is still time to change your way of living; you can become the well-loved lambs and sheep of the flock of Christ, instead of being the despised rams that the Shepherd does not tolerate near Him. Go to Him and show your sorrow, and He will take you on His shoulders, for He is waiting and looking for you. He is watching you in your wanderings, and at the first sign of repentance, of weakness, or of fainting. He hastens to your side. He raises you on His shoulders, and carries you back to the fold which you would not have been able to reach with your wasted strength.

My young friends, we are all sheep of the flock of Christ; we are His by redemption and by the grace of almighty God. Be always obedient to Him, hear His voice, and walk continually in His footsteps. Would you walk securely in the midst of this world, so full of danger and snares? The only means is to allow yourselves to be guided by God. If you would please the divine Shepherd, imitate Him in His divine virtues, in His kindness and obedience, like good sheep who are willing to be led. The divine Shepherd having loved His flock on this earth, will call them all to the enjoyment of heavenly pastures and will quench their thirst "At the torrents of joy" which He provides for us in heaven.

Source: Sermons for Children's Masses, Imprimatur 1900

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