TOOLS WITH WHICH WE MAKE OUR IMAGE
  This Is the Image of the Man Who Is to Be Your King

A very easy question, who can name the seven sacraments for me? Try to get them in the right order.

Once upon a time the people of a country called Orania had no leader. They wanted someone to be their king. There was a wise old man named Stephen who lived off in the woods by himself. To him the people went for help. "Whom shall we make our king?" they asked him. Stephen told them to come back again the next day and he would decide for them. That night Stephen drew a picture of the noblest and kindest and bravest man in the country. In the morning when the people returned, he gave them the picture and said, "This is the image of the man whom you must make your king." The people were pleased with his choice and went away rejoicing.

The children of this parish need a king too. You found a picture at your place this morning. It is the picture of the noblest, kindest, and bravest man who ever lived. All this year we have been speaking to you about the image of Christ. Again I repeat — in the words of the wise man, Stephen, "This is the image of the Man whom you must make your king." Jesus Christ must be the king of your hearts. He is your king because He created you out of nothing. He is your king because He redeemed you by His blood. You are His by right of conquest in the war with Satan. Christ is your king and you must obey all his commands.

His kingdom is divided into seven towns. All His subjects dwell in one or other of these towns. As they go through life they move on from one to the other. They are his seven sacraments. Baptism is the first town. Penance is the second. And so on till you come to Extreme Unction which is the last of all. In the next few weeks we will see more about each sacrament. We will stop in one town a week for seven weeks. We will go on a conducted sightseeing tour of the kingdom of Christ.

Christ takes care of our souls just as carefully as our parents take care of our bodies. We need things for our bodies and Christ has given us these same things for our souls. For our bodies we need life. We are given that in birth. For the soul Baptism is birth. We need food for our bodies. The Eucharist is the food for our souls. We need strength. Confirmation strengthens our souls. If we are sick we need to be cured. Penance heals the sickness of our souls. We need people to rule over us. Christ has provided the Sacrament of Holy Orders, to give us those who will take care of our souls. Most people marry. Christ has made marriage a sacrament. We need someone to care for us when we are dying. To take care of our souls at death Christ has given us Extreme Unction. Christ takes care of our souls just as carefully as our parents take care of our bodies. That shows that He is the kindest man who ever lived. Not only the kindest but the bravest, the most noble man who ever lived. The Man whose picture was given to you this morning. This is the picture of the Man whom you must make your king.
Source:  Heavenwords, Imprimatur 1941

"My dear children, let us love not in word, neither with the tongue, but in deed and truth."

You all know the saying: actions speak louder than words. This morning's text is just St. Paul's way of saying the same thing. I f we love God we will do more than talk about it. We will do something about it. We will love Him in deed and in action.

A man who was visiting a cancer hospital watched a nun as she moved from bed to bed taking care of the patients. She moved like an angel of mercy, treating the patients as if she loved them — and she did. The more ugly and repulsive the patients were, the kinder the nun was to them. The man said to her, " I would not do that for a million dollars." "Neither would I," answered the Sister. "I do it for the love of God." She was loving God in deed and in action.

Another man said to another nun as he watched her in another hospital performing the same tasks of mercy to other patients —he said to her,

"What unpleasant things you have to do." She replied,

"I do not have to do them. I am allowed to do them. I do them for the love of God."

She was loving God in deed and in action.

A young boy was given two dimes by his mother on a Sunday morning. One was for the collection in church and the other was for candy. On his way to church he dropped one of the dimes. It rolled and fell down the sewer. He said to himself, "I wonder which dime I lost? Was it God's dime or mine?" He came to the right conclusion, and proved that he could love God in deed and in action as well as in word.

People know that if we really love God as we should our actions will show it, and if we do not our actions will show that also. A priest once went to pay a man one of the parish bills. When the bill was paid the man went to make out a receipt. The priest said,

"God saw me pay you. I don't need a receipt." The man replied,

"I do not believe in God." "Then," said the priest,

"I think you had better give me a receipt.":

Take time out during this week and check up on yourselves. Is your love for God just something that means a lot of empty words or is it something that carries itself over into your actions? You say the Our Father every day, yet if you do not forgive others their trespasses, then it is just a lot of empty words for you. You say in the Hail Mary "Now and at the hour of our death." If you are not ready for death then they are just empty words without any meaning for you. Check up on yourselves and see whether your lives are guided by the text, "Let us love not in word, neither with the tongue, but in deed and truth."
Source:  Heirs of the Kingdom, Imprimatur 1949