[Transcriber's note: This production is based on https://archive.org/details/fiveminutesermon02unknuoft/page/n6 Pages 46 and 47 are missing from the image file. Additional citations indicated by "USCCB", are based on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Bible found at http://usccb.org/bible/books-of-the-bible.]

Five-minute Sermons
for
Low Masses
on
All Sundays Of The Year,

By
Priests Of The Congregation Of St. Paul.
Volume II.
New York:
The Catholic Publication Society Co.,
9 Barclay Street.
London: Burns & Oates.
1886

Copyright, 1886, by I. T. Hecker.
All Rights Reserved.

Preface.

Repeated and urgent requests from both clergy and laity have induced the publication of this second volume of Five-Minute Sermons. They have all been preached in the Church of St. Paul the Apostle, New York, and published weekly in the Catholic Review. Choice has been made of such as are really little sermons, since there are many excellent manuals from which purely doctrinal instructions may be prepared. Yet they all contain, it is hoped, a solid basis of doctrine plainly put and appropriately illustrated. The main object is, however, to edify, to quicken the moral perceptions, and to move in a reasonable degree the religious emotions.

Nearly all of these sermons may serve as skeletons for discourses of greater length; a fuller treatment of the topics, by means of familiar illustrations and more copious extracts from Scripture, will fit them for use at High Mass, or on Sunday evenings.

Contents.

First Sunday of Advent:
Sermon I. The Spirit of Advent, [14] Sermon II. The Graces of Advent, [16] Sermon III. St. John the Baptist, [18]
Second Sunday of Advent:
Sermon IV. Fair-weather Christians, [23] Sermon V. The Immaculate Conception, [25] Sermon VI. The Total Abstinence Pledge, [28]
Third Sunday of Advent:
Sermon VII. Bad Company, [32] Sermon VIII. The Voice in the Wilderness, [34] Sermon IX. Penance, [37]
Fourth Sunday of Advent:
Sermon X. Fruits of Penance, [41] Sermon XI. Preparation for Christmas, [43] Sermon XII. Christmas Eve, [46]
Sunday within the Octave of Christmas:
Sermon XIII. Christmas Joy, [50] Sermon XIV. New Year's Eve, [52] Sermon XV. The Feast of the Holy Innocents, [55]
The Epiphany:
Sermon XVI. The Testimony of the Spirit, [59] Sermon XVII. Following God's Guidance, [63]

First Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XVIII. The Christian Home, [67] Sermon XIX. Jesus Teaching in the Temple, [70] Sermon XX. How our Saviour takes away Sin, [72]
Second Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XXI. Profanity, [76] Sermon XXII. The Sin of Cursing, [79] Sermon XXIII. Reverence for the Name of God, [82]
Third Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XXIV. Practical Faith, [86] Sermon XXV. Living up to our Faith, [89] Sermon XXVI. The Sacrament of Matrimony, [91]
Fourth Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XXVII. The Ingratitude of Children, [95] Sermon XXVIII. Love of our Neighbor, [98]
Fifth Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XXIX. The Christian Family, [102] Sermon XXX. The Duty of Good Example, [105] Sermon XXXI. Bearing one another's Burdens, [108]
Sixth Sunday after Epiphany:
Sermon XXXII. How to make Converts, [113] Sermon XXXIII. The Blessings of the Faith, [116] Sermon XXXIV. Good Example as a means of
making Converts, [118]
Septuagesima Sunday:
Sermon XXXV. Bodily Mortification, [123] Sermon XXXVI. Sudden Death, [126] Sermon XXXVII Life's Purpose, [129]

Sexagesima Sunday:
Sermon XXXVIII. Perseverance after a Mission, [134] Sermon XXXIX. Good Seed but no Harvest, [137] Sermon XL. The Uses of Temptation, [140]
Quinquagesima Sunday:
Sermon XLI. The Qualities of Christian Charity, [144] Sermon XLII. Delay of Repentance, [147] Sermon XLIII. Lenten Obligations, [150]
First Sunday of Lent:
Sermon XLIV. The Merit of Pasting and Abstinence, [154] Sermon XLV. Difficulties of Fasting, [157] Sermon XLVI. Wasted Opportunities, [159]
Second Sunday of Lent:
Sermon XLVII. The Joy of Penance, [164] Sermon XLVIII. Christian Perfection not Impossible, [167] Sermon XLIX. The Divine Presence in our Churches, [170]
Third Sunday of Lent:
Sermon L. Immodest Language, [174] Sermon LI. Honorary Church-Members, [177] Sermon LII. Half-hearted Christians, [180]
Fourth Sunday of Lent:
Sermon LIII. The Happiness of True Penance, [184] Sermon LIV. Liberty of Spirit, [187] Sermon LV. The Lust of the Eyes, [190]
Passion Sunday:
Sermon LVI. The Precious Blood, [194] Sermon LVII. Christ's Passion, [197] Sermon LVIII. Dangerous Companionship, [199]

Palm Sunday:
Sermon LIX. Hardness of Heart, [203] Sermon LX. Spirit of Holy Week, [205]
Easter Sunday:
Sermon LXI. Easter Joy, [210] Sermon LXII. Easter and the Love of God, [212] Sermon LXIII. The Triumph of Christ, [215]
Low Sunday:
Sermon LXIV. How to use God's Gifts, [219] Sermon LXV. The Christian's Peace, [222] Sermon LXVI. True and Lasting Peace, [224]
Second Sunday after Easter:
Sermon LXVII. The Good Shepherd, [229] Sermon LXVIII. Dead Faith, [232] Sermon LXIX. Suffering False Accusations, [234]
Third Sunday after Easter—
Feast of the Patronage of St. Joseph:
Sermon LXX. Devotion to St. Joseph, [240] Sermon LXXI. Christ and the Church, [242]
Fourth Sunday after Easter:
Sermon LXXII. Evil Conversation, [246] Sermon LXXIII. Temptation, [248]
Fifth Sunday after Easter:
Sermon LXXIV. Sins of the Tongue, [252] Sermon LXXV. Perseverance in Prayer, [255]
Sunday within the Octave of the Ascension:
Sermon LXXVI. After a Mission, [259] Sermon LXXVII. Bearing Witness for our Lord, [261] Sermon LXXVIII. The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit, [263]

Feast of Pentecost, or Whit-Sunday:
Sermon LXXIX. The Holy Ghost in the Church, [268] Sermon LXXX. The Guidance of the Holy Spirit, [271] Sermon LXXXI. The Easter Duty, [273]
Trinity Sunday:
Sermon LXXXII. The Divine Majesty, [277] Sermon LXXXIII. The Mystery of the Holy Trinity, [279] Sermon LXXXIV. The Divine Judgment, [282]
Second Sunday after Pentecost,
and Sunday within the Octave of Corpus Christi:
Sermon LXXXV. Holy Communion, [286] Sermon LXXXVI. The Sacred Heart of Jesus, [289] Sermon LXXXVII. Ingratitude, [291]
Third Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon LXXXVIII. Sinful Amusements, [295] Sermon LXXXIX. Divine Providence, [297] Sermon XC. How to Bear Burdens, [300]
Fourth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon XCI. How to Suffer, [304] Sermon XCII. Good Works done in Mortal Sin, [306] Sermon XCIII. Fishing for Men, [309]
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon XCIV. Forgiveness of Injuries, [314] Sermon XCV. Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, [316]
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon XCVI. The Divine Bounty, [321] Sermon XCVII. Feast of St. John the Baptist, [324] Sermon XCVIII. Idleness, [326]

Seventh Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon XCIX. Mortal Sin the Death of the Soul, [330] Sermon C. False Prophets, [332] Sermon CI. The Last Sin, [334]
Eighth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CII. Spirit and Flesh, [339] Sermon CIII. The Business of the Soul, [342] Sermon CIV. The Judgments of God, [344]
Ninth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CV. Justice and Mercy, [349] Sermon CVI. Neglect of Divine Warnings, [351] Sermon CVII. Living from Day to Day, [354]
Tenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CVIII. Sympathy for Sinners, [358] Sermon CIX. Morning Prayers, [360] Sermon CX. Feast of St. Mary Magdalen, [363]
Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXI. Want of Confidence in God, [367] Sermon CXII. Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, [369] Sermon CXIII. Gratitude, [373]
Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXIV. The Good Samaritan, [377] Sermon CXV. Our Neighbors, [380] Sermon CXVI. Occasions of Sin, [382]
Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXVII. Thanksgiving, [387] Sermon CXVIII. Shamelessness in Sinning, [389] Sermon CXIX. Dangers of Venial Sin, [392]

Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXX. The Poverty of Christ, [396] Sermon CXXI. Brotherly Love, [399] Sermon CXXII. Religion for Week-Days, [401]
Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXIII. The Fruits of a Bad Life, [406] Sermon CXXIV. Sins of Parents, [408] Sermon CXXV. The Law of Charity, [411]
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXVI. Christian Humility, [415] Sermon CXXVII. Vanity, [418] Sermon CXXVIII. Behavior in Church, [420]
Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXIX. Prayer for Sinners, [425] Sermon CXXX. The Christian Vocation, [427] Sermon CXXXI. Erroneous Views of Vocation, [430]
Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXXII. Presumption of God's Mercy, [435] Sermon CXXXIII. Drunkenness, [437] Sermon CXXXIV. The Dignity and Happiness of Obedience, [440]
Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXXV. Lying, [444] Sermon CXXXVI. Truthfulness [447] Sermon CXXXVII. White Lies, [449]
Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXXXVIII. Christian Marriage, [453] Sermon CXXXIX. Mortification of our Lower Nature, [455] Sermon CXL. The Value of Time, [458]

Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXLI. Forgiveness of Injuries, [462] Sermon CXLII. Gossiping, [465] Sermon CXLIII. Mixed Marriages, [467]
Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXLIV. Obedience to the Civil Authorities, [472] Sermon CXLV. Thanksgiving Day [475] Sermon CXLVI. The Communion of Saints, [477]
Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CXLVII. Mixed Marriages, [481] Sermon CXLVIII. Imitation of the Saints, [484] Sermon CXLIX. Heaven, [486]
Twenty-fourth or Last Sunday after Pentecost:
Sermon CL. Marrying out of the Church, [491] Sermon CLI. Joy in God's Service, [494] Sermon CLII. Forgive and be Forgiven, [497]

First Sunday of Advent.

Epistle.
Romans xiii. 11-14,
Brethren:
Know that it is now the hour for us to rise from sleep. For now our salvation is nearer than when we believed. The night is passed, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light; let us walk honestly as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel.
St. Luke xxi. 25-33.
At that time Jesus said to his disciples:
There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars: and upon the earth distress of nations, by reason of the confusion of the roaring of the sea and of the waves, men withering away for fear, and expectation of what shall come upon the whole world. For the powers of heaven shall be moved: and then they shall see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with great power and majesty. But when these things begin to come to pass look up and lift up your heads: because your redemption is at hand. And he spoke to them a similitude. See the fig-tree, and all the trees: when they now shoot forth their fruit, you know that summer is nigh; so you also when you shall see these things come to pass, know that the kingdom of God is at hand. Amen I say to you, this generation shall not pass away, till all things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

Sermon I. The Spirit Of Advent.

It is now the hour for us to rise from sleep.
—Romans xiii. 11.

This life of ours is made up of beginnings. After the rest of the night we have on each succeeding day to begin again our round of work, and then comes the night again, when our work must be laid aside. So, too, does the life of our souls consist in great part of beginnings, though in the great work of saving our souls there should be no such thing as rest. This work must be unceasing, until that night comes wherein no man can work, the night of death, when our great Master shall demand of us an account of our labor. On this day, then, which is the beginning of the Church's year, it is well for us to pause and ask ourselves how we are fulfilling the task that is set before us. Are our souls asleep? Have our consciences been lulled into a false security concerning the state of our immortal souls? Are we careless or indifferent about the one thing needful for us—our soul's salvation?

To each and every one of us to-day come the warning words of the Apostle, "Brethren, know that it is now the hour for us to arise from sleep." Now is the time for us to shake off our slothfulness, to rouse ourselves from our dangerous state of idleness and inactivity, to cast off the works of darkness and clothe ourselves in the armor of light, to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and, arrayed in the strength which he gives, to walk honestly as in the day. "The night is passed," says St. Paul. God grant that for each one of us the dark night of mortal sin may be for ever past and gone; that its terrible gloom may never again settle down upon our souls, shutting out the light of heaven, the pure and radiant light of God's grace. For "the day is at hand," the day of reckoning, the day of wrath and terror, when we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ. The Church to-day warns us of the approach of that time. Year by year, day by day, hour by hour it is drawing nearer. "For now is our salvation nearer than when we believed."

Yes, our salvation if we have been faithful, or our eternal damnation if God's judgment overtake us in the state of mortal sin. Therefore it is that the Church, upon this first Sunday of Advent, lifts up her voice to warn us of the coming of our Lord, telling us of his near approach, and bidding us to prepare to meet him. Will you heed this warning, or will you still put off the day of your conversion to God? Beware! God's warning may be given you to-day for the last time. "Behold, now is the acceptable time"; "it is now the hour to rise from sleep." There is still time for you to turn from your sins and begin again to serve God. Perhaps you have tried before and then have fallen back into old ways and habits of sin. Begin again. We must always be beginning if we would make any progress. We must examine our consciences at the end of each day, and find out how we have offended God, make earnest resolutions for the morrow, and then begin each day with the determination to avoid the faults of the day before. This is a sure means of perseverance.

And this beginning of the Christian year is a good time to take a fresh start in the affairs of our souls. During Advent the Church brings to our minds the consideration of the four last things. Death and judgment, heaven or hell are awaiting us. Begin this day, then, as though it were to be your last day on earth, and on each succeeding day for the rest of your life keep up this practice. "For as lightning cometh out of the east, and appeareth even unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be." "Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness" now at the beginning of this holy season. Drunkenness, impurity, contention, and envy are, alas! far too common amongst us. "Let them be not so much as named among you, as becometh saints," mindful of your high calling in Christ. Then when the Judge appears, he will find you ready to meet him. Having begun each day with the intention of serving God, you will then be ready and fit to begin that day which shall have no end in that heavenly city which "needeth not sun nor moon to shine in it; for the glory of the Lord hath enlightened it, and the Lamb is the lamp thereof."

Sermon II.
The Graces Of Advent.

The night is past, and the day is at hand.
Let us, therefore, cast off the works of darkness
and put on the armor of light.
Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.
—Epistle of the Day.

To-day, dear brethren, we enter upon the season of preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ. For "the night is past and the day is at hand." "The day-spring, the Brightness of the everlasting Light, the Sun of righteousness," is come "to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."

To give light to them that have been unfaithful to God's grace, to call them back—to turn them to a new life—this is the mission of our Saviour; and this is the call he makes upon us to-day—that we should return to him, "the Ruler of the house of Israel, who didst appear to Moses in the burning bush, and gave him the law in Sinai."

You, dear brethren, were taught that law when the first rays of the light of reason lit up your soul. God wrote it on your hearts; you heard it from your parents lips; your teachers bade you love it and keep it. But have you done so? Have you not become like those whom of old God taught, and who would not listen, but went after false gods, who bowed down before idols of gold and silver, of wood and clay?

Have you not bowed down like them when you preferred money-getting to serving God; when you were willing, for the sake of gold and silver, to risk the loss of your immortal souls? Have you not bowed down when you chose to gratify your lower instincts at the cost of your spiritual ruin? Have you not bowed down to idols of clay when you have steeped yourselves in drunkenness, in impurities, in the many sins of the flesh? Oh! surely you have need of the "wisdom that cometh out of the mouth of the Most High" to teach you "the way of prudence." Oh! surely you have need of "the Orient from on high," for you "sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."

But, dear brethren, "the night is past." "Let us, therefore, cast off the works of darkness"; "let us walk honestly." Oh! "put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ." "Behold Emmanuel, our King and Law giver," he for whom the nations sighed and their salvation, has come to save us—to save men whom he has made from the dust of the earth.

Dear brethren, shall we be slow to go to him who comes with healing for our immortal souls? Tell it out among the people, and say, "Behold, God our Saviour cometh. Emmanuel is his name, and his name is great. Behold, he is my God, and I will glorify him; my father's God, and I will exalt him. The Lord our Law-giver, the Lord our King, cometh to save us."

Begin this day to prepare for the joyous feast of Christmas. Cleanse your hearts by prayer and fasting; come to the sacraments and be washed in the blood of your Redeemer; come to his table and break the bread of true friendship, that the joy of your heart may be full when we shall celebrate that day of days, when the Word which "was made flesh dwelt among us." Truly "we have seen his glory," and "of his fulness we have all received." Let us never forget his mercy; let us remember "that it is now the hour for us to rise from sleep."

Sermon III.
St. John The Baptist.

The angel said to him: Fear not, Zachary,
for thy prayer is heard;
and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son,
and thou shalt call his name John;
and thou shalt have joy and gladness,
and many shall rejoice at his birth.
—Luke i. 13.

These words, my brethren, were spoken by the Angel Gabriel to Zachary, the father of St. John the Baptist, while he was engaged with his religious duties in the temple at Jerusalem. Before giving the account of the angel's visit St. Luke informs us that Zachary and his wife, Elizabeth, were both acceptable to God and obedient to the divine law. There are few who have received such commendation in the pages of Holy Scripture. It might have been surmised that Zachary led a good life, practising the virtues and avoiding the vices, since he belonged to the Jewish priesthood. Yet we find that his wife, Elizabeth, is mentioned as deserving equal praise with himself, for it is stated that "they were both just before God, walking in all the commandments and justifications of the Lord without blame."

Such is the brief account that St. Luke has given of the parents of St. John the Baptist. Though brief, it is enough to show that any son might well feel proud of parents such as they were—blameless in the sight of God. For many years they had lived together in the hill-country of Judea, conscientiously performing their duties, and cherishing the hope that they would be rewarded for their good actions. Like the rest of the Jews who remained faithful to the laws promulgated by Moses and the prophets, which God had made for Israel, they prayed earnestly for the coming of the Messias, the Orient from on high, who was ardently expected to descend from his throne in heaven in order to enlighten those in darkness and in the shadow of death, directing their steps into the way of peace. While serving God by strict fidelity to the commandments, they did not anticipate that an angel would be sent to visit them; they did not know until advanced in age that a son would be born to them who would be called the prophet of the Most High, the precursor of the son of David, appointed to prepare his ways.

That this blessing was unexpected is shown by the fact that Zachary hesitated to believe the message of the Angel Gabriel, and on account of this hesitation, this mistrust of the good tidings that God sent to him, he was deprived of the use of speech for several months. After the birth of St. John the Baptist his tongue was again endowed with the power to speak, and his words on that occasion, spoken under the influence of inspiration, have been preserved in the grand canticle known as the Benedictus, which is justly assigned to a prominent place in the Office of the Church.

These considerations enable us to perceive what sort of a home St. John the Baptist had while he remained with his aged parents. From the knowledge we have of them, there is no reason to think that they were deprived of anything requisite to make their home happy and comfortable. Early in life, however, St. John manifested a peculiar preference for the lonely desert. In a special manner he was sanctified before his birth, and received the gifts of the Holy Ghost in an extraordinary degree. It was not because his fellow-creatures had proved deceptive, nor because sad experience had taught him that the glittering charms of the world are transient and wither into dust, that he resolved to live like a hermit, separated from his relatives. Joyfully he abandoned his family privileges, with all that seems to make life among men pleasant, and went forth among the wild rocks in the mountain solitudes to live alone with God. Why was it that he made such a strange choice? The answer is, that God directed him to leave houses and lands, his home and kindred, and endowed him with the heroism needed for a solitary, penitential life. In obedience to the will of God, acting under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, he practised unusual mortification. He selected coarse raiment, made of camel's hair; he used a strange kind of food; he abstained entirely from the use of wine. By deeds of heroic penance, by extraordinary acts of self-denial, combined with the performance of his other duties, he advanced in the way of perfection. During this season of Advent we should invoke his intercession, and strive to remove the obstacles that impede the way of the Lord and the action of His grace in our sanctification.

Second Sunday of Advent.

Epistle.
Romans xv. 4-13.
Brethren:
What things soever were written, were written for our instruction; that through patience and the comfort of the Scriptures, we might have hope. Now the God of patience and of comfort grant you to be of one mind one towards another, according to Jesus Christ: that with one mind, and with one mouth, you may glorify God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore receive one another, as Christ also hath received you unto the honor of God. For I say that Christ Jesus was minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers. But that the Gentiles are to glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: Therefore will I confess to thee, Lord, among the Gentiles, and will sing to thy name. And again he saith: Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people. And again: Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and magnify him, all ye people. And again Isaias saith: There shall be a root of Jesse; and he that shall rise up to rule the Gentiles, in him the Gentiles shall hope. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing: that you may abound in hope, and in the power of the Holy Ghost.
Gospel.
St. Matthew xi. 2-10.
At that time:
When John had heard in prison the works of Christ, sending two of his disciples he said to him: Art thou he that art to come, or look we for another? And Jesus making answer said to them: Go and relate to John what you have heard and seen. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he that shall not be scandalized in me. And when they went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: What went you out into the desert to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went you out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Behold they that are clothed in soft garments are in the houses of kings. But what went you out to see? A prophet? yea, I tell you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written: Behold, I send my angel before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee.

Sermon IV.
Fair-Weather Christians.

What went you out into the desert to see?
A reed shaken with the wind?
—Gospel Of The Day.

Our Lord asked this question of his disciples, my brethren, regarding his precursor, St. John the Baptist, whom also they had followed in his time. "Why," said he, "did you take such trouble to see him? Why did you think so much of him? Was it because he was like a reed shaken by the wind? No, but because he was just the opposite of that. You thought highly of him, you honored him as I myself honor him, because he did not shake and tremble at the breath of popular opinion; because he was not afraid of the world, or of all the powers that are in it; because he only thought of God, and of his duty; of the work that he had been sent to do."

But would our Saviour be able to praise us so highly, my brethren, if he should come down now in our midst? Would he not say rather that we were indeed like reeds, turning to one side or another, according to the wind that happens to be blowing? I am afraid that he would have too good reason to find fault with the words and actions of many who call themselves Christians, an who even pass for pretty good ones.

Who are these people whom he would find fault with? There are plenty of them. They are what I should call fair-weather Christians. They go to church regularly, perhaps, and to the Sacraments, it may be, quite often; when they are with pious people they can be just as pious as anybody else. They say their prayers not only in church, but at home, too; they certainly try in a way to be good; sometimes at least they would not say or do anything wrong of their own accord. And when they are alone they do very well, too; they resist many temptations, and avoid a great deal of sin. They are not what one would call hypocrites; far from it; they have a good many virtues, within as well as on the outside.

But the trouble with them is that they have little or none of what is commonly called "backbone." Alone or in good company they are all right; but take a look at them on the street, in the shop or factory, at their work or their amusements with their associates, and they do not stand the test so well. They laugh at every vulgar, filthy, and impure word that any one else pretends to think is funny and wants them to laugh at, or if they do not laugh out right they give a miserable, cowardly smile. They hear something said about the faith which they know is a vile falsehood, but they say nothing in reply; perhaps they even allow that there is some truth in it. It takes a long while for any one to find out that they are Catholics who does not guess it by their names or know where they go to church; it takes a great deal longer to find out that they are supposed to be good ones.

Now, what is the reason of this contemptible sneaking and meanness in those who ought to be brave and generous soldiers of Christ? It is just one thing. These people do not love God enough to dare to displease any one else for his sake. Most of them have got pluck enough when something else is concerned. They would resent an insult to themselves; perhaps for years they have not been on speaking terms with many people on account of some trifling slight or injury. But when God's honor and love are concerned, the first breath of disapproval keeps them from standing up for him, as the reed bends with the gentlest breeze which strikes it.

Yes, that is the difficulty; these good people do not love God enough to stand up for him as all Christians worthy of the name should do. Let them think of this seriously. For if one does not love God enough to offend bad men for his sake, how can he love him above all things? And if one does not love God above all things, how can he be saved?

Sermon V.
The Immaculate Conception.

The beautiful feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin being so near at hand, let us consider it this morning. The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, then, my dear brethren, is simply this: that our Blessed Lady, though the offspring merely of human parents, like the rest of us, and naturally liable to inherit original sin from them as we have inherited it from ours, was nevertheless by the special providence and decree of God entirely preserved from it.

She was preserved from it entirely, I say. This may be understood in two ways. First, it was never in her. It was not taken from her at the first moment of her existence, as it has been taken from us at baptism; no, it was not taken from her, for it was not in her even at that first moment.

Secondly, she was entirely saved from its effects, not partly, as we have been. None of its consequences remained in her, as I have said they do in us. No, she was as if there had never been such a thing; except that her Son willed that she should suffer together with him, on account of its being in us.

Now, my brethren, I hope you all understand this; for a great deal of nonsense is talked about this matter, especially by Protestants, most of whom have not the least idea what is meant by the Immaculate Conception of our Blessed Mother, and who yet object to it just as bitterly as if they did. They either confound it with her virginal motherhood, in which they themselves believe and yet seem to object to our believing it, or they accuse us of saying that she was divine like her Son, our Lord. If they would only examine they would find that what the Church teaches is simply this: that our Lady is a creature of God like ourselves, having no existence at all before the time of her Immaculate Conception; but that she is a pure and perfect creature, the most pure and perfect that God has ever made; immaculate, that is to say, spotless; free from any stain or imperfection, especially from the fatal stain of original sin. And that the reason why God made her so was that she was to be His own mother, than which no higher dignity can be conceived. If they object to this, let them do so; but let them at least know and say what they are objecting to.

Let us hope that some Protestants, at least, will not object to this doctrine when they understand it. But perhaps some of them may say: "This is all very good, but what right has the pope, or any one else at this late day, to make it a part of the Christian faith?" And it may be that even some Catholics will find the same difficulty.

I will answer this question now, though it is a little off of our present subject, on account of the prominence which has been given to it of late. The answer is simply this: The pope has not added any thing at all to the Christian faith in defining the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. He has no more done so than the Council of Nicæa did in defining the doctrine of the Divinity of our Lord.

You remember, my brethren, perhaps, that from this council the Nicene Creed, which is said or sung at Mass, takes its name. It was called together to condemn the errors of some who maintained that our Lord was not truly God. And it solemnly defined that he was. Very well; was that adding anything to the Christian faith? Of course not; it was simply declaring what the Christian faith was, to put an end to the doubts which were arising about it. That is plain enough, is it not?

Now what was it that the pope did in defining the Immaculate Conception? Exactly the same thing. He defined what the faith really was to put an end to doubts about it. The only difference was, that those who opposed or doubted the Immaculate Conception of our Lady were not so much to blame as those who opposed or doubted the Divinity of our Lord, or even in many cases not at all to blame. It was not such a prominent part of the faith, and had been more obscured by time. But the action of the pope and the council in the two cases was just the same.

Sermon VI.
The Total Abstinence Pledge.

The angel said to him: Fear not, Zachary, for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John; and thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great before the Lord; and shall drink no wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother's womb; and he shall convert many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. —Luke i. 13-16.

My brethren, the message brought from heaven by an angel deserves careful examination, because the angel acts as a messenger from God. A little reflection will convince us that the message delivered to Zachary by the Angel Gabriel contained a very peculiar prediction concerning the total abstinence from wine and strong drink, which St. John the Baptist practised throughout his life. In other matters no special directions were given regulating his acts of self-denial. No mention is made of his raiment in the angel's message; neither was any information communicated in regard to his choice of food. Hence there is a special significance in the declaration which the Angel Gabriel put forth when he predicted that St. John the Baptist would abstain from the use of wine and strong drink. This passage of Holy Scripture, therefore, furnishes a strong proof in favor of total abstinence. In the Book of Leviticus, x. 9, and in the Book of Numbers, vi. 2, as well as in the writings of the prophet Jeremias, xxxv. 61-69, there are texts to be found which show that total abstinence was recognized long before the birth of St. John the Baptist. But on account of his intimate relations with the Holy Family, and on account of the extraordinary approval bestowed upon him by our Lord, by which he was canonized, so to speak, before his death, St. John the Baptist is the most prominent of all the total abstainers mentioned in the Bible.

Considered as an antidote, an effectual safeguard against the degrading vice of intemperance, the practice of total abstinence is now defended not only by examples from Holy Writ, but also on arguments based on common sense and experience. It is regarded as the heroic form of the virtue of temperance, which may be meritoriously practised by those who have never been addicted to drunkenness. The determination to renounce even the lawful use of strong drink is especially commendable as a means of self-preservation for young men. More than any other class of society, they are assailed by temptations to excessive drinking; and by unwise and unscrupulous friends they are often taught to regard drunkenness as a pardonable weakness. Undoubtedly, then, it is a wise act for a young man at the present time to erect a strong barrier, a wall of defence, to protect himself from a most dangerous and destructive vice. For occasional and habitual drunkards, however, who wish to reform and live in state of friendship with God, total abstinence is not a mere act of heroism, but something indispensably necessary. The pledge for them is simply a firm purpose of amendment, a manifestation of their desire to avoid that which they know has been for them a proximate occasion of sin. In many cases total abstinence, though it may be a stern remedy, is the only sure preventive of intemperance, and is imperatively demanded for the spiritual and temporal welfare of numerous families. The man who has offended God and debased himself by drunkenness cannot obtain an unconditional pardon. To obtain forgiveness from God he must have a sorrow for past offences, a determination to do better in the future, and a willingness to atone for his sins. What he must do in the future to secure his safety can be ascertained by examining his past experience. By the application of these principles, especially in the tribunal of penance, the growth of virtue is fostered and the progress of vice is retarded. In this way the Church proclaims to each individual the great lessons which St. John taught by the banks of the Jordan. To all of her children she repeats during this season of Advent the admonition uttered long ago by the voice crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord; make straight his paths.

Third Sunday of Advent.

Epistle.
Philippians iv. 4-7.
Rejoice in the Lord always: again, I say, rejoice. Let your modesty be known to all men: The Lord is nigh. Be not solicitous about anything: but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your petitions be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasseth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Gospel.
St. John i. 19-28.
At that time:
The Jews sent from Jerusalem priests and levites to John, to ask him: Who art thou? And he confessed, and did not deny: and he confessed: I am not the Christ. And they asked him: What then? Art thou Elias? And he said: I am not. Art thou the prophet? And he answered: No. They said therefore unto him: Who art thou, that we may give an answer to them that sent us? what sayest thou of thyself? He said: I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Isaias. And they that were sent, were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said to him: Why then dost thou baptize, if thou be not Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet? John answered them, saying: I baptize with water; but there hath stood one in the midst of you, whom you know not. The same is he that shall come after me, who is preferred before me: the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to loose. These things were done in Bethania beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Sermon VII.
Bad Company.

In one of his epistles (2 Timothy iii. 1-5) St. Paul speaks of dangerous times for Christians, when "men shall be lovers of themselves, covetous, haughty, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, wicked, without affection, without peace, slanderers, incontinent, unmerciful, without kindness, traitors, stubborn, puffed up, and lovers of pleasure more than of God; having an appearance, indeed, of piety, but denying the power thereof."

At the present time there is in the world, especially in populous cities, no small number of men who have the combination of vices so forcibly described by the Apostle St. Paul. In some places they may be in the majority, and have the power to enforce their depraved views on their righteous neighbors. By their slanders they can revile virtue; by their blasphemies they endeavor to bring odium on God's plan of ruling the world. Their hatred of religion is manifested not only in the regulation of personal affairs, but also in their business methods, and in their utterances on public questions. If these stubborn, puffed-up lovers of sensuality, traitors to God, who are without affection and without peace, could be assigned to a reservation in some corner of the world, their range of influence would be kept within a definite area. But they are like their master the devil, roaming from place to place, every where seeking the destruction of men's souls.

Hence it is an important matter, and especially for Catholic young men, to consider the injurious results of the unavoidable contact with those in the world who are more or less infected with erroneous views, or have become the victims of debasing vices. Such characters are to be found in nearly every department of business. It often happens that a young man, when he begins to work, is obliged to enter a sphere beyond the control of his parents, where he will be in close proximity to blatant infidels, who claim an intellectual superiority on account of their unbelief. Business engagements may compel a Catholic young man to be within hearing of shallow sceptics, who take every opportunity to ask questions—not to get information, but merely to ventilate their contempt for all religious teaching. These hostile influences have produced in many of our young men very deplorable results. By a sort of indifference, resembling the dry rot, they have allowed themselves to get into a very unsafe state of mind regarding their duties to God.

Enlightened self-interest should prompt every young man to keep a sharp lookout for all that is injurious to him. He may have the best religious training, together with the virtuous surroundings of a good home, but these will not be sufficient without his own personal activity. If he selects by preference heretics and freethinkers as the companions of his leisure hours; if he is so puffed up with the idea of his own ability that he can find no Catholic associates worthy of his notice; if he is so confident of his own strength that he habitually neglects to receive Holy Communion, he has become a traitor to the King of Heaven. Our Lord wants his followers to attain the highest standard of human excellence. To those who love him and fearlessly keep his commandments he gives the courage which belongs to true manliness; and their piety has power to surmount every obstacle on the way to heaven.

Sermon VIII.
The Voice In The Wilderness.

Make straight the way of the Lord.
—John i. 23.

This expression, dear brethren, is no new one in Holy Scripture, and it fell on no unaccustomed ears. More than seven hundred years before Jesus Christ the great prophet Isaias spoke about "the voice of one crying in the desert: Make straight in the wilderness the paths of our God." Again, three hundred years later, another prophet, Malachias, wrote: "Behold, I send my angel, and he shall prepare the way before my face." Again, about six months before Jesus Christ was born, an aged priest, Zacharias, took his own little child, who was only eight days old, in his arms, and in the beautiful hymn of the Benedictus says of him: "Thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Most High; for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his way."

You know, dear brethren, who this little child was, who was the burden of all this prophetic song. You know it was St. John the Baptist. And you know, too, the mighty work he had to do.

And now, in this morning's Gospel, it is St. John the Baptist himself speaking: "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Make straight the way of the Lord."

Now, how is this "way of the Lord" to be "made straight" in the spiritual desert of our hearts? Well, the prophet Isaias tells us that there are five things which we have to do in this matter: The first, "every valley shall be exalted"; the second, "every mountain and hill made low"; the third, "the crooked become straight"; the fourth, "the rough ways plain"; and the fifth, "the glory of the Lord revealed."

He begins, you see, by telling us that the valleys must be exalted. And don't you think that these "valleys" are a very good likeness of all the things which we have left undone in our lives? All these abysses of idleness, of neglect, of carelessness, of indifference, which lie in the wilderness of our sinful past, these have to be filled up. Christ our Lord cannot come to us so long as there are such great holes in the road. We must set to work and "exalt" them by throwing into our religious life all the pains and care and diligence and faithfulness we can.

Then there are the "mountains and hills," which must be made low. For oftentimes, when the Evil One sees that a man cannot be altogether discouraged from serving God, then he turns round and persuades him that he is serving God very well indeed; that he may be proud to think how often he has resisted temptation, how often overcome difficulties, how often done great things for Christ's sake.

So arise the vast mountains of pride and self-will and self-conceit. But be sure our Lord will not climb over these to come to you. You must first get them out of the way. They must be made low, if you would enter into life: for it is written, "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble."

Then the "crooked places"—I suppose you know what they are—all crooked ways of lying and deceit and untruthfulness. We call a truthful person straightforward, because he does not turn about to this side or to that in what he says, but goes straight to the truth. Well, whatever is not straightforward is crooked, and the crooked path is one which Christ will not walk in. So we must try every day to go on more and more straightforwardly with what God would have us do, according to the saying in the Proverbs, "Let thine eyes look straight on, … decline not to the right hand, nor to the left, and the Lord will bring forward thy ways in peace."

Once more: there are the "rough places." Rough tempers, rough words, and rough manners; such feelings as spite, and anger, and ill nature, and revenge; as cutting and cruel words, and quarrelling and fighting. Such rough places must be made very plain and smooth if the road is to be fitted for the feet of our meek and gentle Lord.

And, lastly: "The glory of the Lord shall be revealed." So shall it indeed be to those that are found worthy to enter into the kingdom of heaven. But what that glory is who shall tell? St. John could not. "Beloved," he says, "we are now the sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be." St. Paul could not, for when he was caught up into heaven he tells us that he heard words "which it is not granted to man to utter." Isaias could not. "From the beginning of the world," he says, "they have not heard; the eye hath not seen, O God! besides thee, what things thou hast prepared for them that wait for thee." All we know is, that this glory shall be very great. And if we serve God faithfully here we shall one day see it, and shall one day know. We shall awake after his likeness and be satisfied therewith.

Sermon IX.
Penance.

For now the axe is laid to the root of the tree.
—Matthew. iii. 10.

St. John Baptist, my brethren, as you know, retired to the desert at an early age, and led there an austere and solitary life, eating coarse and unpalatable food, abstaining from wine and strong drink, cutting off all unnecessary enjoyments of the senses, and giving himself up to prayer and meditation. What was his special motive in this extraordinary course of penance? It was that he might worthily prepare himself for the office which had been as signed to him—that of disposing men's hearts to recognize and receive our Lord when he should come as their Redeemer. It was by penance alone that those hearts could be so disposed, and he was to be specially the apostle of penance; hence he had to give a signal example of it in his own person; for preaching, however eloquent, is of comparatively little effect unless the preacher practises the virtues to which he exhorts others; and the power of his preaching will be in proportion to the illustration which it finds in his own life.

Therefore, though it was not necessary for St. John, sanctified as he was even before his birth, to cut off all other sources of pleasure in order to fill his soul with the joy that comes from the love of God, and though he had no sins to atone for, for his life had been free from blame, still he took up this course of penance in order to show forth even more plainly than by his words the need that his hearers would have, in their measure, to do likewise, if they were to share in the redemption to come.

For now, as he told them, the axe was to be laid to the root of the tree. God's chosen people, the Jews, whom he had specially watched over for so many years, whom he had often chastised and corrected, and had brought back to his favor when they profited by his visitations, they were no more to be thus dealt with. The tree which had sprung from the seed of Abraham was not to be allowed any longer to stand with merely some lopping and pruning; no, now, if it still would not bring forth the good fruit of a thorough and genuine penance, it was to be cut down and cast into the fire. It was the supreme test which was approaching; if the people whom he had chosen would stand it, they should still retain their place; otherwise they should be rejected as a nation, and only those among them who would truly turn to their God should be saved.

My brethren, St. John is still preaching this doctrine of penance to us. The Church of the New Law is not on her trial, as was that of the Old; no, her Divine Founder has promised that she shall endure to the end of the world. But we, each one of us, have to take the words of his precursor to ourselves. We are called by the name of Christ; yes, but that will not save us. St. John said to the Jews: "Think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham for our father." So we are not to think ourselves as belonging to Christ, unless we have cast out from our hearts and souls what puts a fatal obstacle to his entrance into them. His axe will be laid to our root also, unless we on our part lay the axe to the root of our sins.

What is this root of sin in us? It is just this desire of sensual indulgence against which St. John in his life as well as in his doctrine came to make the strongest of protests. If we wish not to bring forth the fruits of sin, we must lay the axe to its root. We must practise penance and mortification, not indeed always to the degree in which he practised it, but at least so far as it is necessary that we may keep the law of God. We must not dally with those things which are dangerous to us, innocent though they may be to others. Our Lord has told us that if even our eyes and hands themselves are an occasion of sin we must pluck them out or cut them off; if, then, there be anything we enjoy, but can really do with out, we must not make a pretext of the good use which we might make of it if it really is plain that we will abuse it, but must resolutely cast it away. If we would avoid the bitter fruit which will naturally grow we must lay the axe to the root of the tree.

Fourth Sunday of Advent.

Epistle.
1 Corinthians iv. 1-5.
Brethren:
Let a man so look upon us as the ministers of Christ, and the dispensers of the mysteries of God. Here now it is required among the dispensers, that a man be found faithful. But as to me it is a thing of the least account to be judged by you or by human judgment: but neither do I judge my own self. For I am not conscious to myself of anything, yet in this am I not justified: but he that judgeth me, is the Lord. Therefore judge not before the time; until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise from God.
Gospel.
St. Luke iii. 1-6.
Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Cæsar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and Philip his brother tetrarch of Iturea and the country of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilina, under the high-priests Annas and Caiphas: the word of the Lord came to John, the son of Zachary, in the desert. And he came into all the country about the Jordan, preaching the baptism of penance for the remission of sins: as it is written in the book of the words of Isaias the prophet: A voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled: and every mountain and hill shall be brought low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways plain And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.

Sermon X.
Fruits Of Penance.

Bring forth therefore fruit worthy of penance.
—Matthew. iii. 8.

St. John Baptist in these words, my dear brethren, teaches us, as he taught those who came to him, that penance, if it be true and genuine, must bring forth its proper fruit. Every repentance, if it be sincere, every confession, if it be really good, must be followed by a good life. If any confession is not so followed, it must needs be a delusion; though it should have been accompanied by torrents of tears, and the sins exposed as perfectly as God himself knows them.

And, moreover, the tree which brings forth the good fruit should continue to bear it; it should not only for a few days or weeks give this proof that it is what it should be, and then have him who planted it come to seek fruit on it and find none.

Yet how often do we find sinners who come to confession with what would seem to be the best dispositions very soon back just where they were before! How discouraging it is to the priest to find the fruits of a mission which seemed to be so promising reduced down almost to nothing for so many who seemed to profit by it; to spend long hours, to wear away his strength, instructing, exhorting, and absolving, and to have so little return from his labor for God and for souls!

What is the reason of all this failure of what began so well? Of course it is partly that the tree planted by the grace of God in the Sacrament of Penance was not tended afterwards. Its life was not supplied to it, as it should have been, by the frequent renewal of confession and reception of Holy Communion. But there was a difficulty further back than that; a want of something at the start, which, indeed, was the reason that the sacraments were not regularly received. What was this difficulty? It was a want of a thorough earnestness; of an understanding of the greatness of the work that was undertaken, and of a real determination to sacrifice everything in order to accomplish it.

It is a great undertaking which one commits one's self to in coming to reconcile himself with God after a sinful life. The task is not merely to examine his conscience, to tell his sins plainly and without concealment, and to feel heartily sorry for them; that is a great part of it, but by no means all. There is a great deal left, and that is to leave them for good; to quit company with them for ever. And this is not such an easy matter. When, one has lived so that his whole pleasure has been in sin, in drunkenness and debauchery, in filthy conversation, in bad actions and bad thoughts, it will perhaps seem almost like giving up life itself to part with them. The penitent sinner has not all at once become an angel; his whole nature has been warped and twisted out of place by sin, and, though the guilt of the sin has gone, the effects are there; his soul, like a limb out of joint, has much to suffer before it can get set right again.

A man must make up his mind, when he comes to serve God after serving the devil, that he has got an uphill road to travel; if he does not, he will not persevere. Labor and suffering, self-denial and mortification, he has to face these manfully. His consolation, his happiness, as well as his strength, have got to come from God. If one understands this he will seek that happiness and that strength again where he first found it—in confession and Communion. But if he does not, if he thinks that all will go right now without any more trouble, his old nature and habits will claim their dues, and he will soon be back in his sins again.

Yes, we must cut right down to the root of sin if we wish to bring forth the fruits of penance, and must make up our minds to suffer the pain that this cutting will bring. Occasions of sin must be avoided, appetites must be denied, contempt and ridicule must be faced; we must pray, we must struggle, we must resist even to blood; we must put our former life to death, that Christ may live in us. For, as St. Paul tells us: "If we be dead with him, we shall live also with him; if we suffer, we shall also reign with him." There is no other way.

Let us not shrink from this pain and this conflict; that would be the greatest mistake of all. But let us understand it, that when the trial comes, as it surely will, it may not find us unprepared.

Sermon XI.
Preparation For Christmas.

Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
—Matthew iii. 3

We are such unprofitable servants that we have much to do to prepare the way of the Lord in our hearts. If we have done all that is required of us we are, nevertheless, unprofitable servants, and unless we believe this we are spiritually blind.

The better the opinion which we have of ourselves the worse is our spiritual condition. The good opinion, than which nothing can be more false, which we have of ourselves prepares the way for a fall into sin.

The way of the Lord, the way of salvation, is found by humility, which always leads to penance.

The holy Council of Trent says that "the whole Christian life ought to be a perpetual penance." How few realize this, because they think they are what they really are not! Now, if penance be the life of the Christian in the state of grace, it must be a crying necessity for one who is in the state of sin. What food is to the starving man penance is to the soul in this unhappy state.

Penance is the preparation required of us for the coming feast of Christmas. This is the lesson of Advent. For four weeks the purple vestments, the prayers and ceremonies of the church, and the fasts on Fridays have been appealing to our eyes and ears, if not to our hearts, to prepare in this way. The wise man views the obligation which he is under to do penance as very urgent. He banishes timidity and cowardice and puts his hand to the plough with courage and confidence.

The foolish man hates to hear of penance, because his passions have got the mastery. When asked to keep the commandments and fulfil the duties of his state, he says: "I cannot." To bridle his passions and give up bad habits seem to him too hard a task.

Now, if you should consult any man who has done penance faithfully, so as to persevere in God's grace for years, he would say the foolish man's view of penance is a false one. God is more merciful and lenient than we imagine. It is the devil who dresses up penance as something repulsive.

In urging upon you to prepare for Christmas by penance my first words are: "Take courage." "Taste and see how sweet the Lord is."

St. Leo says "the cause of the reparation which we make for our sins is the mercy of God." It is our way of loving him who first loved us. How well the prophet Isaias describes this penance when he says: "The Lord says, I will lead the blind in the way in which they have not known; in the ways which they have not known I will make them walk. I will change their darkness into light, their crooked ways into ways that are straight, I will accomplish these words in them and will not abandon them. I am found," says God, "by those not seeking me, and I have appeared openly to those who have not asked for me."

We see by these words how much the grace of God assists us, and how God mercifully forgets our past sins when we do penance sincerely.

But our penance must be sincere. We must "bring forth fruit worthy of penance," says St. John the Baptist, the precursor of our Lord.

It matters not if we are "the offspring of vipers," as the holy Baptist called the multitude who approached him for penance, provided "we lay the axe to the root of the tree."

Now, the words of the prophet, instead of repelling sinners, attracted them. The publicans who were farthest from God came and asked: "Master, what shall we do?" And they received the gentle …

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… which should be our chief one at Christmas, now that the days of innocent childhood are past. We do not hate sin from our hearts; we even cling to it; at best we make compromises with it. Mortal sin, perhaps, we try to avoid, but venial faults do not trouble us; this is the best that can be said for most of what may be called good Christians. And how many there are who come outwardly to worship before the manger of Bethlehem, but with hearts entirely turned from their God, who lies there in cold and poverty for their sakes, pleading with them for his sake to give up their sinful habits! How many go on offending him at this holy time, with out repentance, almost without remorse!

Hatred of sin; yes, that is what we want if we would be happy at Christmas. And now is the time to learn to hate it. For surely the love of God comes easier to us now, if we will only try to obtain it, than at any other time, unless, perhaps, on Good Friday, when we see the sacrifice now begun accomplished. And the love of God is the hatred of sin, which is the only thing which he hates, the one cause of all his pain.

Do not let this Christmas go by, then, my dear brethren, without the joy which should come with it. Do not let this opportunity pass of acquiring that love of our dear Lord which will make you really hate and trample under foot all that offends him, and which will make you rejoice beyond measure that he has put it in your power to do so. Pray, now, at least that you may learn to love him; that you may enter into the joy of knowing not merely that he can save you, but that he has saved you from your sins.

Sunday within the Octave of Christmas.

Epistle.
Galatians iv. 1-7.
Brethren:
As long as the heir is a child, he differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all: but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed by the father: even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent his Son, made of a woman, made under the law: that he might redeem those who were under the law; that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because you are sons, God hath sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying: Abba, Father. Therefore now he is no more a servant, but a son. And if a son, an heir also through God.
Gospel.
St. Luke ii. 33-40.
At that time:
Joseph, and Mary the mother of Jesus, were wondering at these things, which were spoken concerning him. And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother: Behold this child is set for the ruin, and for the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted. And thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed. And there was a prophetess, called Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser; she was far advanced in years, and had lived with her husband seven years from her virginity. And she was a widow until fourscore and four years; who departed not from the temple, by fastings and prayers serving night and day. Now she at the same hour coming in, gave praise to the Lord; and spoke of him to all that looked for the redemption of Israel. And after they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. And the child grew, and waxed strong, full of wisdom: and the grace of God was in him.

Sermon XIII.
Christmas Joy.

Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy.
—Luke ii. 10.

There is hardly any one, my brethren, who lives where this feast of Christmas is kept who does not feel a special joy in it. Why do we say that "Christmas comes but once a year," if not because we feel that there is nothing else that can take its place? We look forward to it months beforehand; when it comes, we keep it as long as we can and let it go with regret. Why is it that it has such a warm place in our hearts?

Is it merely that it is by common consent a great holiday; that it is a breathing-place in the bustle and hurry of life, a time for meeting our friends, for giving and receiving tokens of affection and regard, a time of feasting and making merry? This has some thing to do with it, but it is not all. For if this were all it would be possible to make by law a holiday like this, which no one has ever succeeded in doing. The early settlers of this country, in a mistaken zeal against church festivals, endeavored to make a substitute for Christmas; but the failure of their attempt has driven their descendants back to the observance of this feast, though not to the church which gives it to them.

Yes, we all feel that the joy of Christmas is a thing not made to order. It comes from a source which lies in the very mystery which we commemorate; and, even though we do not meditate or reflect on it, the stream from this source diffuses itself through our life and sweetens all the other joys which come at this time. And they come because of it; we make merry outwardly because we are, and have cause to be glad at heart.

And what is this cause and source of joy? Is it because Christ our Lord has come to save us from sin and eternal ruin? No, it is not simply that; for we celebrate our salvation, our redemption, our ransom from the power of death and hell more specially at Easter than now. That is the festival of our Lord's triumph and our deliverance; it should and does open heaven to our souls, and give them a promise and almost a foretaste of it. But still it does not come home to our hearts as this beautiful time of Christmas does.

And no wonder; for at Easter we cannot but feel that our Lord, though triumphant and glorious, and promising us a share in his triumph and glory, still is separated from us. He has passed the portals of death, he has risen from the grave, he has put on immortality. We cannot follow him where he has gone till we have freed ourselves from all the stains of earth, till we have been purified and washed by penance in his Precious Blood. He has passed from mortal to immortal life, and it is the raising of the mortal to the immortal, of earth to heaven, that Easter celebrates. And this, though indeed it is the object of all our hope, is so high that we, sinners that we are, cannot fully make it our present joy. But Christmas is heaven come down to earth. It is the God of heaven condescending to us; taking our weakness upon him, sympathizing with us, and asking us for sympathy and love. He hides his majesty and glory; he veils the splendor of his face; he puts aside all that could distinguish him from ourselves. He invites us to come to him with out fear; he asks only that, sinful though we be, we should try to love him as he loves us. Christmas is the sight of the Creator begging for the love of his creatures, and humbling himself that he may obtain it; that is the reason why it goes to the heart of all who have any heart to give.

Let us then, in this happy season, enter into this joy which is the cause of all the rest which we have, which is so easy for us, which has come to our doors, and only asks that it should be let in. But let the love which goes with it be not a mere passing feeling, to bear no fruit in our lives. Let it bring us indeed to him who has come down to us; let our joy be crowned and perfected by a real return of our hearts to him who has done so much to win them; let us receive him in deed and in truth in his holy sacraments, and never let him go again.

Sermon XIV.
New Year's Eve.

Be sober.
2 Timothy. iv. 5.

Brethren, those two little words of St. Paul in the epistle of to-day contain excellent advice, especially to-day, on the eve of the new year. How much woe it would hinder, how many families it would save from ruin, how many souls from hell, could they be made a common watchword in any large city in this country during the year 1883!

But do you wish me to tell you the easiest way to be sober? It is to take the total abstinence pledge. What does a man do when he takes the pledge? Just what the farmer does who, seeing that his fence is about high enough to keep the cattle out of the grain, makes it just one rail higher; for he knows that there may be one beast wilder than the rest who will leap over an ordinary fence. So a prudent man, seeing the ravages of the vice of intemperance among his friends, dreads some taint of it hidden in his own nature; dreads some moment of weakness during the passing of the convivial glass, or during some depression of spirits or foolish mirth. So he puts all danger out of the question by the pledge. For if there be danger from an inherited appetite or from a convivial disposition, or from prosperity or adversity, there is no mistake about this: the man who does not drink a single drop cannot drink too much.

But again: what does a man do who takes the pledge? Just what the kind mother does who wants to induce her sick child to take the bitter medicine—she tastes it herself. The pledge is taken by a man who may not need it for his own sake, but who loves another who does need it. It is taken in order to give good example. It is not only a preventive for one's self, but for those who may be led by our influence. It is one great means that fathers and mothers use in order to save their children from the demon of drunkenness. Oh! how pleasing to God are those parents who practise total abstinence by way of good example! Oh! how blessed is the home from which intoxicating drink has been utterly banished! How wise are those parents who thus teach their children that intoxicating drink, though it may be used with innocence, must always be used with caution! Children reared in such a home know well enough how to avoid treating, frequenting saloons, and convivial habits of every sort. Such parents not only obey the Apostle's injunction, "Be sober," but do the very best possible thing to induce those whom they love to obey it also.

But once more: what does a man do who takes the pledge? He offers something to God in atonement for the sin of drunkenness. And herein is the best use of the pledge. It combines all the other good purposes of it. It puts the top rail of double safety on the fence that keeps the beast out of the garden of the soul; it sets up the strong inducement of good example; but more than all it consecrates everything to God by uniting it to our Lord's thirst on the cross.

Brethren, why was it that, when our Lord suffered agony of soul, he complained in such words as would be apt to move the drunkard more than any other sinner: "O my Father! if it be possible, let this cup pass from me." "O my Father! if this cup may not pass away from me except I drink it, thy will be done." Is there no special significance in his choice of those words? And listen to the account St. John gives of our Lord's physical agony: "Jesus, knowing that all things were accomplished that the Scriptures might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst! … And they filled a sponge with vinegar and put it to his mouth. When Jesus, therefore, had received the vinegar he said: It is finished! And he bowed his head and gave up the ghost." Thirst was the only bodily torment he complained of. Had he no special purpose in this?

So the man who takes the pledge suffers thirst in union with Christ and for the love of God to atone for sins of drunkenness.

That is why it does not settle the matter against taking the pledge when one can say he does not need it. Our Lord had no need to suffer thirst. He could say, I own all the cool fountains in the world, and all the strengthening wine of the world is mine, and I might drink and never need to thirst for my own sake; but I love the poor drunkard, and for his sake I will die thirsting for a cool drink and tasting only bitter vinegar. And the Catholic total abstainer says: "O Lord! permit me to bear thee company in thy bitter thirst."

Sermon XV.
The Feast Of The Holy Innocents.

And Herod sending killed all the men-children that were in Bethlehem and in all the confines thereof from two years old and younger.
—Matthew ii. 16

Who is not shocked by the recital of Herod's cruelty? Carried away by pride and ambition, and the fear of losing what he had usurped, this tyrant tried to put to death the King of Kings by the murder of the holy innocents. Who in our day are like Herod? Those who murder innocent children. Fiendish mothers, desiring, perhaps, to cover their shame or to escape the labor of bearing and bringing up children, take the lives of their unborn infants. Those, too, who knowingly sell or give or advise the use of drugs calculated to destroy the life of the unborn—all such commit Herod's crime. Yet how often this crime is nowadays committed!

Woe to these wretches! Woe to the Herod-like physicians who, for any reason whatsoever, directly prescribe or use means to prevent child-birth! Herod met his punishment in a bad death, and his soul went into a hell of eternal torments. What must the murderers of little children expect?

But I have another cruelty to cry out against. It is that of those who destroy the "little ones of Christ" by neglecting to instruct their little children in the way of salvation. The law of God requires that children as soon as they have the use of reason, which is about the age of seven years, should know the elements of the Christian doctrine, should know the necessity of avoiding sin, and should be taught the practice of virtue; also, that children, as soon as they are able to sufficiently profit by receiving Holy Communion, should do so. No child should ever be allowed to go beyond the age of twelve years without having made First Communion. Many can receive First Communion at nine or ten years of age, and perhaps younger. Confirmation should be received as soon as First Communion. Parents are guilty before God if they do not require their children to keep the commandments of God and his church from their earliest years until they leave the parents charge. How many parents do their little ones a deadly injury by not sending them regularly to Sunday-school! What is it to bring up children to burn in the flames of hell for ever, as some Christian parents do? It is simply soul-murder. It deserves no better name. Have you been guilty of soul-murder? If so, hasten to repair the evil as much as you can. You can never do it wholly, but you must do what you can. There is yet another cruelty towards "the little ones" of Christ. It is to scandalize them by your bad example. Instead of learning by your example to adore our Blessed Lord, to love and reverence his Blessed Mother and the saints, they, perhaps, learn to take God's holy name in vain. Your falsehoods teach them to lie; your dishonesty teaches them to steal. Your anger and quarrelling teach them to be stubborn and disobedient. Ah! Christian parents, be careful how you hang this millstone of scandalizing the little ones of Christ about your necks.

Finally, you destroy your children by not correcting their faults. You wink at the evil which they do. You fail to punish them, regardless of God's honor and their good. If you do punish them, it is not "correction in the Lord," but you do it to gratify your satanic rage. Some fathers and mothers are not worthy of the name. The dignity and responsibility of fathers and mothers are very great. See that you are faithful to the obligations which belong to your high and holy state.

The Epiphany.

Epistle.
Isaias lx. 1-6.
Arise, be enlightened, O Jerusalem: for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For behold darkness shall cover the earth, and a mist the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall walk in thy light, and kings in the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thy eyes round about, and see: all these are gathered together, they are come to thee: thy sons shall come from afar, and thy daughters shall rise up at thy side. Then shalt thou see and abound, and thy heart shall wonder and be enlarged; when the multitude of the sea shall be converted to thee, the strength of the Gentiles shall come to thee. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Madian and Epha: all they from Saba shall come, bringing gold and frankincense: and showing forth praise to the Lord.
Gospel.
St. Matthew. ii. 1-12.
When Jesus, therefore, was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of King Herod, behold, there came wise men from the East to Jerusalem, saying: Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and we are come to adore him. And Herod the King hearing this was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him: and assembling together all the chief priests and Scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ should be born. But they said to him, In Bethlehem of Juda; for so it is written by the prophet: "And thou Bethlehem, the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come forth the ruler who shall rule my people Israel." Then Herod, privately calling the wise men, inquired diligently of them the time of the star's appearing to them; and sending them into Bethlehem, said: Go and search diligently after the child, and when you have found him, bring me word again, that I also may come and adore him. And when they had heard the king, they went their way; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, until it came and stood over where the child was. And seeing the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And going into the house, they found the child with Mary his mother, and falling down, they adored him; and opening their treasures, they offered him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having received an answer in sleep that they should not return to Herod, they went back another way into their own country.

Sermon XVI.
The Testimony Of The Spirit.

For whosoever are led by the Spirit of God
they are the Sons of God.
—Romans viii. 14.

The end of our pilgrimage, like that of the three wise men, my brethren, is union with our Lord. Of course union with God, through his power and his being present everywhere, always exists, whether we are his friends or not. But the state of grace is the union of love. By that union God rules our souls. By that union the Holy Spirit of God, the third person of the most Holy Trinity, really dwells within us. In the state of grace we are brought into loving contact with the divine Spirit. Now the Apostle, in the words of our text, wishes to teach us one effect of that wonderful union. "For the Spirit himself giveth testimony to our spirit that we are the sons of God." That is to say, when the Holy Spirit enters into your heart he announces his coming, he assures you of his friendship, he excites within you a sentiment of filial affection for your Heavenly Father. How could it be otherwise? Could God be long in our hearts and we be altogether ignorant of it? Of course he does not take away the natural fickleness of our minds; the star sometimes shines faintly, or even for a while disappears from view. God does not reveal himself as he is; he does not interfere at all with his external work in the holy church; he does not substitute his interior action on the soul for that exterior action of visible authority and sacramental symbols. It is, indeed, by means of this external order that the Holy Spirit enters into our hearts; it is, besides, only by means of the church's divine marks, her divine testimony, her divine influence in the sacraments, that we can be quite sure that Almighty God has come down into our souls. Yet the Holy Spirit really has a secret career within us. "Deep calleth unto deep"; that is, the infinite love of God calls into life our little love. He has his inner church in our souls, so to speak; or rather he brings into his spiritual and hidden temple all that is outside, spiritualizes the external order, joins the purely mental with the sacramental, and, having set our faces in the right direction and started our feet moving in the right road, he sets us to thinking right, he stirs up noble aspirations, he purifies our feelings, and finally gives us testimony that it is really himself, the Spirit of God, who has thus been at work making our inner life such as befits the sons of God.

Now, my brethren, as I said before, this testimony of God within us is not like the splendors of Paradise bursting upon the soul; nor is it so very plain as to be able to stand alone without the external criterion of his church as a testimony of God's friendship, except now and then in the case of some great saint. Yet there are many things in our inner life that, if we study them over a little, show that God has been acting upon us. What else is that wonder of the world called the faith of Catholics? Who else but the Spirit of God could give such power to believe very mysterious truths, such a stability to wavering minds, such a humility of belief to proud minds? And what except divine love could be as sweet as the taste the soul enjoys in the reception of the sacraments? Call to mind the utter transformation of soul that so often takes place at First Communion; remember the flood of divine influence at your Christian marriage; remember how after that death-bed scene your broken heart was cured of its despair when you turned to God; remember how at missions or during seasons of penance, or at one or other festival, it seemed to you that heaven was beginning before its time. All this is God's work on your life. The tender emotion at hearing the divine promises, the loving regret for sin, the joy of forgiveness, the imagination filled—plainly by no human means—with images of celestial peace, the understanding as clear of doubts as heaven of clouds, the will strong and easily able to keep good resolutions, sometimes the very body sharing the lightness and vigor of the soul—what is all this but the embrace of the Holy Spirit? And if one says he does not feel it, and yet hopes he is in the state of grace, I answer that he will not be long deprived of it. Or it may be he is tepid; his soul is not able to feel any more than a hand benumbed with cold; his ear not hearing because his attention is too much fixed on the voices of the world to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. His eye is too much dazzled by the false glitter of the world to catch sight of the star that leads to our Lord's feet.

Sermon XVII.
Following God's Guidance.

Be ye, therefore, followers of God,
as most dear children.
—Ephesians. v. 1.

My dear brethren, these are not words of counsel or good advice; they are words of command, written by St. Paul. This command is to follow God, and to follow him as most dear children, obediently as the Magi did of old. What is it to follow God? It is to do at least as much as we do when we follow any one great man. How do we act then? We seek to be with him a great deal. We listen to his every word. We do as he does. We adopt his views of things. We repeat what he teaches. Neither do we dare to differ from him, for fear that people will say that we have no sense; nor do we venture to act in any manner opposed to his ways of doing. In a few words, a man who is followed is the leader in fashion, in taste, and style. Everybody approves his ways, and imitates them. His friends have also the friendship of the world, simply because they are his friends. Any one whom he approves and recommends is listened to and followed because he has recommended him. If we want to follow God, he does not really require, outwardly, any more than men require of us to follow them.

But how can we do this?

First: Seek to be with God a great deal. Where is he, that we may find him? God is everywhere, and is always found by looking for him and seeking for him diligently in prayer; for prayer keeps us near to God and God near to us. And he is always on the altar: hear Mass not only on Sundays but now and then on week days; visit the Blessed Sacrament.

Secondly: Listen to his every word. God speaks to our souls in prayer, not with a voice like the voice of a man, but in his own sweet and quiet way. We must listen attentively to hear the gentle words of God, not with our outward ears of the body, but with the ability to hear that is within our souls; the ability of the soul to hear the voice of a spirit speaking to our spirit. God also speaks to us through his Holy Word in the Sacred Scriptures, in the Epistle and Gospel set apart for each Sunday of the year, in the writings of holy men and women, in the teachings of Christian parents and friends. But the most important way in which God has taught, and continues to teach us all, is by means of his church. When we listen to her words, in sermons and other instructions, we hear the Word of God.

Thirdly: Do as God does. Try to be like him, and him alone. Take care to do always the thing that is right. Try hard to be loving, merciful, forgiving, and gentle to all, even your enemies. When we have anything to do, we must say, Would God do this way or that way? When we meet with cruel treatment from others, with ingratitude and base injustice from those we love, we must say at once, How does God treat those who do these things? How does he treat me, notwithstanding my many, many sins? I shall go and do to these bad people as he has done to me. I shall even bless them, as he has blessed me.

Lastly: If we want to follow God, at least as well as we follow a great man whom we have made a leader among us, we are sure to honor his friends, and obey those he sends to us in his name. Who are these? Not only all good people, but especially our pastors and spiritual directors. The pastor or parish priest is a man sent by God to make sure of the success of God's work in his parish. Any one who follows God in that parish unites heart and soul with his priest to help him carry out his plans. If any one wants to get the greatest amount of merit for his good deeds, he is sure to get it by following first these plans. For the priest stands as a father among his children. He knows the good and the bad, the rich and the poor. He knows what is best for each. He is the best adviser as to what ought to be done, and as to the way it is to be done. In charities he is certainly the best leader. Private works and charities are good, it is true; but the first duty, after one's own necessities are cared for, is to follow the order of God, in aiding the parish work through the parish priest and his assistants. We may safely say that one act done for God, in union with those put over us by him, is worth in heaven, and here also, many good works done simply because we like to do them our own way.

To follow God, then, is to follow as dear children. We must consent to be led by God in all things connected with duty, just as little children are led by their fathers and mothers. We must take care, at least, that we follow his lead, and not show more honor to others than we do to him.

First Sunday after Epiphany.

Epistle.
Romans xii. 1-5.
Brethren:
I beseech you, by the mercy of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be reformed in the newness of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and the acceptable, and the perfect will of God. For I say, through the grace that is given me, to all that are among you, not to be more wise than it behooveth to be wise, but to be wise unto sobriety, and according as God hath divided to every one the measure of faith. For as in one body we have many members, but all the members have not the same office: so we being many are one body in Christ, and each one members one of another in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Gospel.
St. Luke ii. 42-52.
When Jesus was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast, and after they had fulfilled the days, when they returned, the child Jesus remained in Jerusalem; and his parents knew it not. And thinking that he was in the company, they came a day's journey, and sought him among their kinsfolks and acquaintance. And not finding him, they returned into Jerusalem, seeking him. And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his wisdom and his answers. And seeing him, they wondered. And his mother said to him: Son, why hast thou done so to us? behold thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said to them: How is it that you sought me? did you not know that I must be about the things that are my Father's? And they understood not the word that he spoke unto them. And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth: and was subject to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and age, and grace with God and men.

Sermon XVIII.
The Christian Home.

He went down with them and came to Nazareth,
and was subject to them. …
And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age, and grace
with God and men.
—Gospel of the Day.

In these few words, my brethren, the sacred writer raises the veil that conceals the mysteries of our Lord's hidden life, and gives us an insight into the domestic concerns of the Holy Family at Nazareth. Jesus lived with Mary and Joseph. He was obedient and subject to them, and so he advanced in age and wisdom and grace with God and men. The door of the holy house is opened to us, but only for a moment, so that we might get a glimpse of the domestic life of a model family. Joseph, the father, day by day works at his trade to support the family. He rises in the morning; gives his soul to God in prayer. He toils through the day. He comes home at night to enjoy his rest in the company of Jesus and Mary. He meets with trials, but he is patient; he is tempted, but he sins not; he leads a busy life, but he still finds time to pray. Mary, the mother, tends the household duties, with care and precision, and by her sweet, kind ways diffuses an air of peace and contentment throughout the home. Jesus, the child, is affectionate and submissive to his parents in everything. Here is the model of a true Christian home. Its ground work is the love of God; it is surrounded by an atmosphere of virtue, and to its members it is the holiest and dearest spot on earth. Such should our homes be.

The true Christian home is to society what the sanctuary is to the church of God. The parents are the priests in this sanctuary. It was God who ordained them priests when they stood before the altar with clasped hands and promised that they would be faithful to each other while life lasts. The Blessed Sacrament of this sanctuary is the Sacrament of Matrimony. It is the great treasure-house of supernatural strength to the married couple.

The perpetual presence of our Lord in this sanctuary is by his grace, which is never wanting.

The altar in this sanctuary is the hearthstone around which the family gathers. The communion-rail in this sanctuary is the family table, from which are dispensed the necessities of life.

There is about the sanctuary in the church of God an atmosphere of piety and reverence. It has a sanctity that no stranger dare violate; it has a privacy which no one but he who has a right dare invade. Such an atmosphere should be about the sanctuary of home. A priest would never allow a heretic or an infidel to sit in the sanctuary of God. He would never allow a corrupt man to stand on the altar of God. Take care, then, Christian parents, how you violate the sanctity of your homes. Take care what heretical or infidel books you allow to pass the gate of that sanctuary. Take care what bad newspapers you allow within its sacred precincts. Take care of the persons whom you allow to stand around your family altar. It is one thing, you know, to be obliged to meet a man in every-day life; it is a far different thing to invite him to your home, and permit him to violate its sanctity.

It is the duty of a priest on the altar of God, by his good example, to edify his flock; to stand at all times before his people a bright, shining light of Christian virtues. So, too, it is your duty, priests at the family altar, to be a model of all virtues to your children, so that they might learn from you what it is to be a Christian. Would it not be horrible for a man to come in on the altar and utter repeated curses? Would it not be fearful to see him stagger up to the altar of God in the state of intoxication? It happened once while Mass was going on, during the Elevation, while all heads were bowed in humble adoration, a drunken man rushed into the church, and in a loud voice uttered a horrible oath. It made the hearts of the good Catholic people stand still, and their blood ran cold in their veins. Is it any the less horrible for a father to come home intoxicated to the household sanctuary, or a mother, when anything goes wrong in the house, to give vent to her wrath in harsh language and sometimes even cursing?

See to it, then, dear parents; make your homes holy places—real sanctuaries, where you can do your duty as priests of our All-Holy God. Keep from them all evil influences, so that they might be places where even the Child Jesus would not be ashamed to dwell.

Sermon XIX.
Jesus Teaching In The Temple.

And not finding him,
they returned into Jerusalem, seeking him.
—Luke ii. 45

The Gospel of to-day tells us, my brethren, how our Blessed Lady and St. Joseph lost Jesus on their way home from Jerusalem, where they had gone with him to keep the feast of the pasch, and how in great distress they returned to the city in search of him. What fears and anxieties must have filled their minds as they thought of the many enemies which he had among the rulers of the people, jealous of his promised kingdom, and of the harm which they would try to do him if they recognized him for the child whom Herod had sought to destroy! And how perplexed Mary and Joseph must have been that he who had hitherto saved himself by their protection should at this tender age abandon them and remove himself from their care! Had they not shown enough love and care for him? Had they proved themselves unworthy of him? Surely it could not be his purpose when so young to begin his great work. Would he not at least have told them if such had been his plan?

No, our Lord did not propose to begin his mission then; for, though he was indeed God, he was also then a child, and that mission was not a child's work. But he did wish to show them that his great work even then filled his heart and soul; that the fire of love for us, which brought him to the cross, was consuming him even in childhood. "Did you not know," he said to them when they found him, "that I must be about my Father's business?" "How is it that you sought me?" "You might have known," he seems to say, "that, if I were not with you, I must be in the temple speaking to my people of their God."

He also wished to give them an opportunity of merit by showing the love of God which filled their souls, too. For their grief was not the common grief of parents who have lost a child, great as that trouble is. It was the loss of the Divine Presence which affected them beyond measure. God had been with them for all those years as never with any one else, and now he had left them, they could not tell why or for how long. They would not have spared him for an hour, even to their kinsfolk and friends, with whom they thought he was, except for charity; and now he had left them, perhaps for the rest of their lives, which were worth nothing without him.

Would that we loved God, my brethren, as they loved him; that he were the light and consolation of our lives, as he was of theirs! Let us think of this as we reflect on their pain and anguish in that weary search for the visible presence of him whose grace was, after all, always in their souls. How is it with us? Would we care for this presence which they so bitterly missed? Would it not, perhaps, even be a painful restraint? Do we care, as it is, to be near Jesus? Is his presence in the Blessed Sacrament of the altar a consolation to us? We revere that real Presence of our Lord, but do we love it? If so, why do we not seek it more?

Do we even care for his presence by grace in our souls, which they always had in its fulness, and never dimmed by the shadow of sin? To lose that, had it been possible, would have been a thousand deaths to them; what is it to us? How easily do we lose that grace; how little do we care to regain it!

Oh! let us at least imitate our Blessed Mother and her Holy Spouse as far as this. If we do not love to be with Jesus as they did, let us at least seek to have him with us by his grace. If we have lost him, let us seek him, and not be weary till we find him; let us not rest till he comes again to our souls, never to leave them again.

Sermon XX.
How Our Saviour Takes Away Sin.

Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who taketh away the sins of the world.
—St. John i. 29.

After our Blessed Lord was baptized by St. John the Baptist, beloved brethren, he retired into the desert, where he remained forty days in prayer and fasting. At the end of this time he directed his steps towards the river Jordan, where John was baptizing. Here a large concourse of the Jewish people had assembled to listen to the preaching of the forerunner of Christ. In the midst of these St. John, inspired by the spirit of God, and professing his deep and ardent faith, testified of our Lord that he is the Lamb of God, and that it is he who taketh away the sins of the world.

What a glorious testimony this, and how cheerfully received by the fervent Christian! Have you ever pondered over these beautiful words, and made them the subject of your meditation? Have you ever tried to find out their true meaning, and thus make them profitable to your souls? Yes, truly, Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God. He is the Lamb slain from the beginning of the world. For you and for me he voluntarily left the bosom of his Father, and lowered and even debased himself by assuming a nature like our own. For us he endured the sufferings and privations of his childhood; for us he sent up many heartfelt prayers to God the Father before the beginning of his public life; for us he labored and preached; for us he suffered the ingratitude of his disciples, the ignominies of the Jews, the insults of the soldiers, the hardships of the journey to Calvary, and, finally, ended his torments on the cross, with the cry "Consummatum est—It is finished." This, and much more, did our Blessed Lord gladly undergo for us all. And how have you, dear brethren, requited such infinite love? Fathers, are you solicitous for the little household which Almighty God himself has so fondly entrusted to your care? Then are you imitators of the patience and endurance of your Saviour during his bitter passion. Mothers, do you strive to make yourselves patterns of the Christian virtues of gentleness and forbearance? Then do you imitate the example of your Lord in bearing the defects of others and treating them with kindness and compassion. Oh! how watchful would we not be, dear brethren, could we but understand the infinite love our Lord Jesus Christ manifested for us during his life on earth! But St. John not only gave testimony to our Lord being the Lamb of God, but he further testified that it is he who takes away the sins of the world. He did not come simply to announce to the world the divine mission which he received from the Father; he also came to heal the infirmities of our souls by imparting to them the abundance of his grace. This office he performed himself during his mortal life on earth. He it was that purified the soul of Mary Magdalene and enriched it with sanctifying grace. It was he who gave the living water of eternal life to the sinful Samaritan woman. And what our Lord did for these and many others, beloved brethren, he is now effecting in the midst of us. It is not necessary to remind you of how our Lord chose a small band of apostles, and made them the beginning of his church; how he bestowed upon them and their successors the unheard-of and marvellous power of forgiving sins. Yes, brethren, the bishops and priests of the Catholic Church are the visible representatives of Jesus Christ; they are the comfort of the afflicted, the strength of the weak; they have an efficacious remedy for those who are living in the state of mortal sin; by pronouncing the words of absolution they restore to the penitent and contrite sinner his lost inheritance of sonship, and make him an heir of the kingdom of heaven. Oh! how thankful we should be for the mercy and goodness of our God! What a tender love we ought to cherish for the Church, the Bride without spot! What respect is not due to those who hold the place of Christ in our behalf! How sufficiently prize the inestimable blessing of the tribunal of penance! Let us remember and meditate upon those three precious graces, beloved brethren, that they may be the source of sweet joy to us now, and the earnest of a happy eternity hereafter.

Second Sunday after Epiphany.
Feast Of The Holy Name Of Jesus.

Epistle.
Romans xii. 6-16.
Having gifts different, according to the grace that is given us, whether prophecy, according to the proportion of faith, or ministry in ministering; or he that teacheth, in teaching; he that exhorteth, in exhorting; he that giveth with simplicity; he that ruleth with solicitude; he that showeth mercy with cheerfulness. Love without dissimulation. Hating that which is evil, adhering to that which is good; loving one another with brotherly love; in honor preventing one another; in solicitude not slothful; in spirit fervent; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; instant in prayer; communicating to the necessities of the saints; pursuing hospitality. Bless them that persecute you; bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that rejoice; weep with them that weep; being of one mind one to another; not high-minded, but condescending to the humble.
Epistle of the Feast.
Acts iv. 8-12.
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said to them: Ye rulers of the people and ancients, hear: If we this day are examined concerning the good deed done to the infirm man, by what means he hath been made whole; be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God hath raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was rejected by you, builders; which is become the head of the corner; nor is there salvation in any other. For there is no other name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved.

Gospel.
St. John ii. 1-11.
At that time:
There was a marriage in Cana of Galilee: and the mother of Jesus was there. And Jesus also was invited, and his disciples, to the marriage. And the wine failing, the mother of Jesus saith to him: They have no wine. And Jesus saith to her: Woman, what is that to me and to thee? my hour is not yet come. His mother said to the waiters: Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye. Now, there were set there six water-pots of stone, according to the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three measures apiece. Jesus saith to them: Fill the water-pots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And Jesus saith to them: Draw out now and carry to the chief steward of the feast. And they carried it. And when the chief steward had tasted the water made wine, and knew not whence it was, but the waiters knew who had drawn the water, the chief steward calleth the bridegroom, and saith to him: Every man at first setteth forth good wine, and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and he manifested his glory, and his disciples believed in him.
Gospel Of The Feast.
St. 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.

Sermon XXI.
Profanity.

To-day, my dear brethren, as you know, the church celebrates the festival of the Holy Name of Jesus; of that name which is above all other names, at which every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess the glory of him to whom this great name belongs.

Yes, the holy church does indeed reverence this holy name, and we, her children, do not fail to honor it. Following a pious custom, we bow the head when it is mentioned, and it is to be hoped that we also make at the same time with our hearts an act of homage to him who bears it, and thank him for all that he has done for us.

And yet, strange to say, some of these very Christians who pay to the name of their God and Saviour, at least outwardly, this tribute of honor on certain accustomed occasions seem to take at other times a pleasure in trampling it, if I may so speak, in the very dirt under their feet. To see them in church, you would think that they would hardly dare even to take at all upon their own lips this holy name which they hear from those of the priest; but outside, on the street, and even, it may be, in their own homes, they show a horrible familiarity with it. This name above all names is coupled with every foolish, passionate, and even filthy word which the devil can put into their hearts and on their tongues.

Do I say this is strange? Ah! that is far too weak a word. To one who will stop and consider, even for a moment, it seems incredible, impossible that a Christian, one who believes himself to have been created by the great God whose name he bears, and to have been redeemed by him from the power of the devil, at the cost of his own Precious Blood; who has knelt in prayer before him; who has received from him the pardon of his sins; who has received him in his real and true Presence on his tongue in the sacrament which he has instituted with such infinite condescension and love—I say it seems impossible, intolerable, inconceivable, that this wretched worm of the earth, on whom so many and such surpassing favors have been showered by the Divine Goodness, should, with this very tongue on which his God has rested, outrage and insult the name of this God, and that the name which above all others tells how good and merciful he has been. It seems as if even the infinite patience and love which our Lord has for us could not brook this indignity, this spittle cast in his face, not as at the time of his Passion, by one who did not know who he was, but by those who from childhood have known full well all the truths of their holy faith, and who well understand that it is the Divine Majesty which they despise.

Indeed, my brethren, believe me, even the infidel shudders when he hears in passing along the street the holy name of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, of him whom even he respects above all other men that have ever lived on earth, thus outraged, profaned, and defiled by those who profess to believe him to be far more than the best and greatest of men; who invoke him as the One who sitteth on the Eternal Throne, before whom the angels veil their faces, to whom is due benediction and honor and glory and power for ever and ever. Even the infidel, I say, shudders; and he wonders how it can be, if what Christians believe is true, that the God whom they thus insult suffers them to live.

But you may say it is a habit you have got; that is the excuse which seems good to you, and which you seem to think that God ought to accept. Sup-pose you had a habit of spitting on your neighbor's face or clothes by preference to any other place, how long would he endure it? It is a habit, yes; but it is one which you can amend and get rid of altogether, and which you are most urgently and seriously bound to get rid of, if you would not have to answer for it at the bar of him whom this insufferable habit outrages and defies. Take care, take care, take care, I warn and beseech you, for God's sake, for the sake of those who hear you, and for your own sake, that this habit come to an end. Watch, keep guard against it; punish yourself should you even inadvertently fall into it, that your offended God may not have to take the punishment into his own hands.

Sermon XXII.
The Sin Of Cursing.

Bless them that persecute you;
bless, and curse not.
—Romans. xii. 14.

These words are found in the epistle appointed for the second Sunday after Epiphany, and were read by the church long before the institution of the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, which is now always celebrated on this day, yet they contain a lesson most appropriate to this feast. For there is no way in which God's most holy name, which to-day is especially set before us for our veneration, is more frequently or more grossly dishonored than by cursing. To curse is to call down God's judgment or vengeance upon our fellow-men, and its worst form is when the holy and awful name of God or our Lord is made use of. Unhappily the fault has become so common, even among those who think themselves good Catholics, that its grievous nature is seldom realized or, perhaps, even thought of.

The habit is often acquired in childhood, frequently from the example of parents, themselves given to cursing. Like all early-acquired habits, it grows stronger and more deeply-rooted with advancing years, until at last the habit is made the excuse for the sin. It is a vain excuse. You are guilty before God of mortal sin if you have formed this habit, and you are guilty of remaining in the state of mortal sin if you make no effort to break yourself of it. It will do you no good to go to confession and accuse yourself of cursing, unless you are contrite and follow the advice which your confessor gives you, and really make an earnest resolution and a serious effort to overcome this scandalous habit.

You should begin by making each morning a resolution to avoid cursing throughout the day, begging God's assistance for your efforts. If, during the day, you fall inadvertently into the old fault, you should impose some little penance upon yourself, such as the recitation of the "Hail Mary," or the pious ejaculation of the holy name of Jesus, with a prayer for God's forgiveness. And then at night you should examine your conscience as to how often you may have fallen into the habit during the day, and resolve to make the next day a better one in this respect. If you faithfully persevere in this practice you will soon be the master of your tongue, and able to restrain it from cursing by a little watchfulness; but if you do not adopt some such practice as this, and really set to work in earnest to overcome this habit, you are guilty before God of mortal sin, and your contrition at your confessions is not good for much.

I have spoken of this habit as scandalous, as this is one of its worst features. Besides the insult that is offered to God and his holy name, an incalculable amount of harm is done to our neighbor. Children, especially, learn to curse from their elders, and the extent of this fault among young children is frightful to contemplate. Those, too, who are not of our faith, when they hear Catholics cursing and swearing, are apt to set it down to some defect in our religion, and thus the true faith is brought into contempt.

But the habitual curser seldom thinks of these consequences of his sin. He rarely even attends to the meaning of the words he uses. If he could only be brought to stop and think of all that is implied in the expressions we so often hear upon our streets, he would shudder at the thought of using them. To ask Almighty God to send a soul to hell for all eternity, to utter that holy name whereby we are saved in a prayer for the eternal damnation of a soul redeemed by the Precious Blood of Christ, is an impiety so dreadful that we could scarcely believe it possible did not our ears tell us the contrary.

Yet there are those who not only say these things, but mean them, at least at the moment when they are uttered. How carefully, then, should we guard ourselves against those outbursts of anger in which we are led to make such a fearful abuse of the gift of speech, the noblest of God's natural gifts to man! Above all, we should try to realize the spirit of the Gospel as expressed in the words of St. Paul, "Bless them that persecute you," remembering that no affront that can be offered to us can even justify the spirit of revenge that is implied in a curse. "Bless," therefore, "and curse not," that so you may yourselves receive the blessing of the Lord.

Sermon XXIII.
Reverence For The Name Of God.

The Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, brethren, affords an opportunity for meditating upon reverence for the honor of God, especially in the person of our Blessed Saviour. Reverence for God is something different from the love of God and the fear of God. Have you not noticed that when a bad boy neither fears his father nor (as far as we can see) loves him, that he yet often keeps up at least a show of respect for him? I don't care much for him, he says, but after all he is my father; I must respect him. So with sinners. Many a sinner will break every commandment of God and the church except one or two, which he fancies he must observe in order to keep up appearances; that is to say, show at least some outward respect. The most atrocious scoundrel will not eat meat on Friday, because that would be a sign of losing all respect for religion. A wretch abandoned to every vice will say a Hail Mary or make the sign of the cross sometimes in order to persuade at least himself that he has not lost all respect for religion. He will not despise the piety of his friends, but rather respect it. Respect for holy things and holy practices is the last remnant of religion in the sinner's soul.

Well, brethren, let us ask if Almighty God has not set up any particular sign of reverence that we are to pay him? What is that, among all religious practices, which he would have us do as a token of inner and outer reverence? Of course you know what I mean; you know that it is reverence for his holy name.

The name of God, and especially the name of Jesus, are set up as the divine standard before which every man will prove his reverence for God. Cursers and swearers and blasphemers forget this. No sin is so common as profanity in its various forms. Yet it shows a heart not only void of the fear of God, and of the love of God, but also, and worst of all, void of even reverence for God. A man who habitually curses is penetrated with defiance of the Divine Majesty. Holy Scripture says that he has put on cursing like a garment; that it has entered in unto his bones. In the old law a blasphemer was stoned to death. And in our own times God often anticipates the wrath to come by sending sudden death upon profane men. I lately read in the papers that a man, standing at a saloon-counter, cursed his own soul, and instantly sank down upon the floor stone dead. Many of you have doubtless heard or even seen such visitations of divine justice.

And it is in view of the sacred obligation of reverence to God in his chosen symbol—which is his name and his Son's name—that, although he had but ten commandments to give us, one of them was set apart to secure respectful speech when dealing with God: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Brethren, you and I in [the] future will be particularly careful to honor the sacred name of Jesus. Are you tempted? That name is a resistless charm against assaults of flesh, world, or devil. Are you tired out? The name of Jesus is a restful and soothing influence. Are you sick? That holy name will strengthen you with supernatural vigor. I hope that when you come to die your last breath may utter that name of Jesus with deep confidence, and that our Lord will answer your dying sigh with an affectionate welcome into his heavenly court.

Third Sunday after Epiphany.

Epistle.
Romans xii. 16-21.
Brethren:
Be not wise in your own conceits. Render to no man evil for evil. Provide things good not only in the sight of God, but also in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as is in you, have peace with all men. Revenge not yourselves, my dearly beloved; but give place to wrath, for it is written: "Revenge is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." But if thy enemy be hungry, give him to eat; if he thirst, give him drink; for doing this thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil by good.
Gospel.
St. Matthew viii. 1-13.
At that time:
When Jesus was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him; and behold a leper coming, adored him, saying: Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, stretching forth his hand, touched him, saying: I will; be thou made clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said to him: See thou tell no man; but go show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift which Moses commanded for a testimony to them. And when he had entered into Capharnaum, there came to him a centurion, beseeching him and saying: Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, and is grievously tormented. And Jesus said to him: I will come and heal him. And the centurion, making answer, said: Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed. For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me; and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth, and to another, Come, and he cometh, and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. And Jesus, hearing this, wondered, and said to those that followed him: Amen I say to you, I have not found so great faith in Israel. And I say unto you that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into exterior darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said to the centurion: Go, and as thou hast believed, so be it done to thee. And the servant was healed at the same hour.

Sermon XXIV.
Practical Faith.

Many shall come from the east and the west,
and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
in the kingdom of heaven;
but the children of the kingdom
shall be cast into the exterior darkness.
—Gospel of the Day.

These words, my dear brethren, were spoken by our Blessed Lord to the Jews on the occasion of the cure of the servant of the centurion. This centurion was an officer, like what we would call a captain, in the Roman army; he was not a Jew, so he did not belong to God's chosen people, his church of the old law. No, he was a heathen by birth; he had been brought up in error, in ignorance of the true religion; he had not the prophecies which the Jews had to tell him clearly that a Saviour was to come into the world. He was indeed in darkness compared with this favored Hebrew people among whom his lot was cast; but he saw our Lord, and that was enough for him. He saw the power of God, and he believed. He knew that this Messias, whom the Pharisees were rejecting, was the Master of life and death. "Lord," said he, "I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed." Immortal words these, which the Catholic Church has treasured up, and puts on thousands of lips every day, and which were rewarded by the divine acknowledgment, "Amen I say to you, I have not found so great faith in Israel. And I say to you that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast into the exterior darkness."

Now, my brethren, what lesson have we to learn from this praise of the heathen centurion, and this warning to God's own people, coming to us from the mouth of God himself? Simply this: that our salvation depends on the use which we make of the graces which he gives us; that the least will suffice, if we will but avail ourselves of them; but that the greatest will only serve for our eternal condemnation and ruin if we slight them and pass them by.

A simple and evident truth this surely, and yet how apt we are to forget and neglect it! We are Catholics from our infancy, we say; we belong to families which have always kept the faith. We are indeed the faithful, to whom the kingdom of heaven is promised. And if we have not been always so, but have been brought from darkness into light, then still more is the divine favor to us manifest. Will He, then, who has done so much for us, not complete his work? We believe his word, we are in his true church, we receive his saving and life-giving sacraments; how, then, shall we not be saved? Are we not indeed those of whom he said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them life everlasting, and they shall not perish for ever, and no man shall pluck them out of my hand"?

Yes, my dear brethren, we think that we shall be saved because we are Catholics. But the truth is, that our being Catholics only gives us greater means of salvation; it is far from making our salvation sure. We have greater means and helps to save our souls; but woe be to us if we abuse them! And when we look around, and see many good and earnest souls, similar, as far as we can see, to that of the Roman centurion, deprived of the light that we have, not by their own fault, but by that of their fathers; when we see them trying to do their best with the little knowledge and the few helps that they have, must we not fear that God will take away from us the graces that we despise; that we, the children of the kingdom, will be cast into the exterior darkness, while others shall come from the east and the west and take the place which we have but do not deserve?

Let us, then, each and every one, if we have been unfaithful to the great graces which we have as Catholics—and which of us has not been so?—rouse ourselves to our danger. Yes, having the faith and the sacraments is a great privilege, but is one for which we must give a most strict account when we stand before the throne of God.

Sermon XXV.
Living Up To Our Faith.

Jesus, hearing this, marvelled;
and said to them that followed him:
Amen I say to you,
I have not found so great faith in Israel.
—Gospel of the Day.

The love and care of the heathen centurion for his servant should certainly put to shame many Christian masters and mistresses of to-day, who not only do not encourage their servants to approach our Lord at Holy Mass and in the sacraments, but even put obstacles in their way. However, the lesson to which I wish to direct your thoughts this morning, and which it is the primary object of the Gospel narrative to teach, is the immense importance of living up to the grace and light which God has so bountifully given us.

A few weeks ago we kept the Feast of the Epiphany, the manifestation, that is, of our Lord to the Gentiles, to those who had not till then formed part of the church of God. The Jews alone, as you are aware, were God's chosen people. To them had been given the law and the prophets, the temple and the sacrifices, and—that to which everything else led up—the promise of the Messias. And all these privileges led them to think that they were individually very excellent people, and to look down with contempt upon the rest of the world and everybody in it. Now, here was a Roman, born and brought up in heathenism, taught, doubtless, to say his prayers to Jupiter and Venus and other vile creatures like them, a man holding, too, high office, commanding a garrison of soldiers, whose duty it was to keep down a conquered race. Well, this man, notwithstanding his bad education, notwithstanding the pride which, on account of his position, must naturally have been his, had made greater progress than the self-conceited Pharisees, with all their advantages, had ever made or were ever to make. While they lived and died in unbelief, he had already recognized in Jesus Christ the power of God; and, laying aside prejudice and pride of place and birth, he sends humbly to our Lord to ask him to heal his servant.

So clearly did he recognize our Lord's divine power that he did not think it necessary for him to come to his house. Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, as you will remember, would not be satisfied unless our Lord came down to his house; the centurion, on the contrary, stopped our Lord while he was on the way, saying: "Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof; but only say the word and my servant will be healed." So that our Lord, on hearing it, marvelled, and said: "Amen I say unto you, I have not found so great faith in Israel."

Now, how does all this apply to us? What lesson can we learn from these events? The answer to this question is easy and obvious. We are by God's grace the members of the church of God, and, as such, we are in possession of the means of grace—the sacraments, the word of God, the intercession and prayers of the saints, and of innumerable privileges and spiritual treasures. Above all, and as the source and spring of all spiritual life, without which everything is valueless and worthless, we have the gift of faith. Now, faith is necessary; but faith is not sufficient. Without faith no one can be saved. But we must have something more than faith. The shipwrecked man clings for his life to anything within his reach; but unless the plank, or whatever else he has got hold of, is washed ashore, or a boat or some other means of help arrives, his plank only prolongs his agony. So is it with us. Faith is our plank; but unless this faith works by charity it will only add to our condemnation. More than this, it will, if not acted upon, get weaker and weaker, and be scarcely strong enough to move us to action. What, then, must we do? Why, we must live as our faith teaches us. First, we must learn our faith: learn the truths of our religion; next, we must practise them. If we do not do so we shall, perhaps, see what those Jews of old saw: the heathen and those who were outside of the church entering and taking their places. What our Lord said of them may, perhaps, be said of us: "I say unto you that many shall come from the east and from the west, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac in the kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into the exterior darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Sermon XXVI.
The Sacrament Of Matrimony.