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

 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

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

 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

 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

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

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

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

       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.

"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

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

                       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