the catechism in examples - vol. 3

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CONTENTS

VOL. III. CHARITY: THE COMMANDMENTS

THE PRECEPT OF CHARITY THE VIRTUE OF RELIGION THE ANGELS AND SAINTS : RELICS AND IMAGES THE SECOND COMMANDMENT THE THIRD COMMANDMENT THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT FIRST THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT SECOND THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT THE SIXTH AND NINTH COMMANDMENTS THE SEVENTH AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT THE COMMANDMENTS OF THE CHURCH

THE PRECEPT OF CHARITY

I. WHAT is ENJOINED BY THIS PRECEPT (i) THE LOVE OF GOD.

CHARITY is a virtue infused by God into our souls, by which we love God above all things and our neigh bour as ourselves. Your first great duty, therefore, my child, is to love God. It is not difficult to love God ; all that is required of you is to do everything with the intention of pleasing Him, and in doing this you will love Him with your whole heart.

THE WORDS OF JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD ON CHARITY.

My child, always keep in mind, then, this great commandment of charity, which Jesus Christ Him self has given us.

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God," He says, " with thy whole heart, and soul, and mind, and strength. This is the first and the greatest com mandment ; and the second commandment is like unto it : Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

On these two commandments depend the whole law and the prophets."

Thou shalt love God that is His commandment ; for this we were made, in time and for eternity. " God made me to love Him." We must love God for His own sake, and we must love all men, whether friends or enemies, for the love of God. This is perfect charity, and greater than this there is nothing on earth nor even in Heaven.

This is what St. Paul says of charity : " Charity will never fail. Faith and hope will pass away, but charity will never pass away. There are three great virtues in this life," he says " Faith, Hope, and Charity, but the greatest of these is Charity."

In Heaven faith will disappear, because we shall then see things as they are in themselves, in the light of God s countenance ; there will be no need of hope there, for what the Saints hoped for they have attained the possession of God, the beatitude of Heaven ; but charity will there be found in all its perfection, for God is there, and " God is Charity," says the Apostle.

THE LITTLE SERVANT MAID.

A holy hermit was once troubled with a tempta tion of pride ; he had spent so many years in the practice of prayer and penance that he began to imagine he was the holiest person in the world.

While he was thinking of this, God made know T n to him that he was mistaken, and that he was not nearly so holy, nor so far advanced in perfection, and in the love of God, as a certain poor waiting-maid in an hotel in the city.

This astonished the good hermit. " How can it be possible," he said to himself, " that a simple maid in an hotel can be equal to me in virtue, since I have done nothing else for many years but fast and pray continually ? I must go and visit her, and ask her what she does that makes her more agreeable in the eyes of God than I am."

So he went to the city, and easily found the person of whom he was in search. When he had told her what God had revealed to him in the vision, he asked her to let him know what great practices of piety she performed that made God love her so much, and made her more perfect in His eyes than he was.

" My Father," she replied, " I do not know what God can see in me that can please Him so much ; I am only a poor simple waiting-maid, and I have no learning. All that I can say to you is that I endeavour to perform all my actions with the greatest care, in order that I may please God and do His blessed will. When I am carrying wood for the kitchen fire, I think of the love of Jesus in carrying His cross for me, and I tell Him that I love -Him because He is so good ; and in the same way, in all my other works, I always try to think of Him in some way or other."

The hermit returned home, thanking God for having put it in the power of even the simplest and lowliest of His children to love Him as much, and sometimes even more than those who have conse crated themselves entirely to His service.

Lives of the Fathers of the Desert.

BLESSED HENRY SUSO LOVES GOD ABOVE ALL THINGS.

Blessed Henry Suso was born in the year 1300. The place of his birth was Suabia, and he was descended from the noble families of the Bergs and the Saussens.

God called him to embrace the religious life from his infancy, for we read that when he was only a little boy of thirteen he received the religious habit in the convent of the Dominicans, in the city of Constance.

At first he was far from being perfect. It is true that he carefully avoided every grievous sin, as well as every other outward fault that might in any way injure his reputation, but he had a great attachment to the world, and to its opinions and customs.

Still, he did not feel that he was doing right, for something within him was constantly whispering to him that God had made him for something far higher than these empty things, and that he would never be quite happy until he had given himself entirely to God.

One day, as God was thus speaking to Him in his heart, he formed the resolution of becoming a Saint. " It is not generous in me," he said, " to serve God as I am doing ; He wants my whole heart, and I will from this time give it to Him, for I cannot divide it between Him and the world : He must have it all."

But Satan, who was watching what Henry was doing, put into his heart thoughts of despondency. " You must know," whispered the evil spirit to him" you must know that it is indeed a very easy thing to begin to lead a perfect life, but that it is next to impossible to continue in it to the end ; many have begun well, and have ended badly."

Henry answered : " The Holy Ghost, who has put these good thoughts into my heart, is as able to help me in difficult things as in easy ones."

But Satan was not to be so easily overcome. " What you say is quite true : no one can doubt the almighty power of God ; but that which should make you afraid to undertake that perfect life is the thought that perhaps you may not correspond with God s grace. It is not God s grace you are to be afraid of not receiving, but it is your own weakness that should give you cause to tremble at such a step."

Henry replied : " Do you think that God will forsake me, or leave me to myself, since He has called me to serve Him ? He has called me, there fore He will help me. If I throw myself into His arms like a little child, do you think He will cast me away ? Never ; He loves me too much."

But Satan still continued to tempt him. " At least," he said, " you must not think of trying to be a Saint all at once. If you are quite resolved to become a Saint, do so by degrees. Do not forsake the pleasures of the world all at one time, for you will never succeed."

" No," said Henry ; " Jesus Christ said that it was impossible for one to serve Him and the world at the same time."

Satan was vanquished, and retired for a time. He returned afterwards with greater force to tempt him, as we shall soon see.

But God consoled him in his trials, as He does every one of His children who place their entire confidence in Him. One day, as he was kneeling in the church at his prayers, he felt his soul, as it were, full of holy joy. " O my God, I wish to love Thee alone. My heart must love something, but there is nothing on earth that can satisfy it. Thou alone, O my God, canst fully satisfy it. Therefore from this moment it must belong to Thee alone."

It was now that Satan came to tempt him with the greatest violence. " What are you going to do now ?" he said to him in his heart. " What foolish ness it is for you to love what you have never seen ! Would it not be far better to love the things around you in the world, that you can feel and see, than those which may exist only in your own imagination ? Besides, if you really intend to serve that God whom you have never seen, you must consider well what it will cost you. You will have to go against your own inclinations always ; you will have to fast, and deprive yourself of your sleep, as well as to give up all your amusements and pleasures, which, indeed, would be the height of folly."

" The love of God," replied the holy man, " makes everything sweet and easy. Besides, look at the troubles and anxieties people of the world experience in attaining these enjoyments, and the remorse they feel when they are over."

This time also Satan was vanquished, and Henry persevered in his holy resolution to love God alone. He is now in Heaven with God, enjoying the eternal reward of those who have served God faithfully in this world to the end. Go, my child, and do thou likewise.

EXCELSIOR ; OR, " HIGHER STILL."

Some people imagine that, living, as they are, in the midst of a sinful world, and in a humble position of life, and occupied with their daily labours, they cannot become perfect. Others think that to be perfect they must live in some desert place, or in a convent, or in a monastery, and must be praying all day. Now, they are all quite wrong in this. For each one may easily become a Saint in the condition of life in which God has placed him. All that is required is to love God.

In the Desert of Thebaides there once lived a holy man named Paphnucius. He was the most holy and the most perfect of all the solitaries who dwelt there, by his austerities and prayers, his purity of soul, and all kinds of virtues and good works. Every day of his life he strove to become more and more perfect, to love God more and more, and to do more and more to increase his reward in Heaven.

Now, one day a thought came into his mind that perhaps he was the holiest man on the face of the earth, and he prayed to God that if there was any one in the world more perfect than himself, He would be pleased to show him where he was, that he might go and see him, and learn from him to serve God with still greater perfection.

God was pleased to hear his prayer, and let him understand that if he went into a certain city he would find a man much more perfect than he was.

So he left his solitude, and went to the city which God pointed out to him.

When he arrived, he went to the market-place. There he saw a very poor man playing a street organ, and a crowd of people round about him dancing to his music. God made known to him that this was the man who was more perfect than he.

The holy man was in amazement at this, and wondered in his own mind how it could be possible that one whose whole occupation was going about the streets playing an organ could be more perfect than he, who had spent his whole life in the desert in prayer and in all kinds of austerities. So when he got an opportunity, he took him aside, and said to him :

My good man, I am very anxious to know how you live. Would you tell me in what way you serve God ? for God has made known to me that you are doing so in a way which is very pleasing to Him/

" Reverend Father/ he answered, " I am a very great sinner, and I cannot see how God can be so pleased with me. One time I was a robber by pro fession, but by the grace of God I repented of my crimes, and now I am trying day by day to make reparation for my past life by this lowly occupation."

St. Paphnucius also learned from his conversation with him that even when he was a robber he had done many good works through charity towards his neighbours, and that perhaps God had rewarded him for them by giving him the grace of repentance.

So he returned to his desert again, and for many years more he studied how to please God better than before, by the practice of every virtue he could imagine ; and his continual prayer to God was this : " O my God, make me become as good in Thy sight as that man who plays the organ on the streets/

After a number of years spent in this way, he began again to wonder if there was in the world anyone who could equal him now in perfection. So God again was pleased to speak to him in his heart, and to let him know that there were, in a little village not far away, a man and his wife who were equal to him in virtue and merit.

So, having a very great desire to become ac quainted with them, he went to that village, and easily found out the worthy people of whom he was in search. The^f had not done anything great in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God they had obtained much merit ; for, during the whole course of their married life, which had been for thirty years, they had lived together in the practice of great virtues, good works, kindness to the poor and to strangers, and in perfect peace with each other, both labouring together at their daily employment, and doing all for the glory of God.

Paphnucius returned again to his desert home, ashamed to think that a poor man and his wife, living by the work of their hands and in the midst of a wicked world, should be equal to himself in merit before God ; so he resolved again to do even more than before, that he might become more and more agreeable to Him.

Finally, after some more years spent in this way, he asked God if there was anyone equal to him in merit now ; and God answered him that there was that there lived in a certain large city a good way off a merchant who stood behind his counter in his shop from morning to night, selling his goods to customers buying and selling all day long, and that that merchant was as rich in merits before God as he himself was, because he was doing all this for the glory of God, and because it was His holy will.

When Paphnucius saw that people in the world, occupied with the labours of their calling, could be come as perfect as a monk in his monastery, and even more so, he gave thanks to God, who has put it in the power of even the lowliest and the humblest person in the world to become so perfect, and to love Him so much. Lives O f tjie Fathers.

" THEE ONLY, O MY GOD, DO I DESIRE."

St. Thomas of Aquin could think only of God, could speak only of God ; nothing gave him any pleasure but to hear about God.

If sometimes he was in the company of those who were conversing about other things, he seemed to take no interest in their conversation ; it was evident his thoughts were on something very different from what they were thinking of.

Once, when residing in Naples, Brother Dominic Caserte beheld him, while in fervent prayer, raised from the ground, and heard a voice proceeding from the crucifix, saying to him : " Thou hast written well of me, Thomas ; what recompense dost thou desire ?"

He answered : " None other than Thyself, O

Lord. BUTLER : Lives of the Saints, Mar. 7.

FATHER ALPHONSUS OF SANDOVAL.

Father Alphonsus of Sandoval had a most tender love for the Divine Child Jesus. Christmas was the lestival he loved best, because on that day Jesus lay, a little child in the manger at Bethlehem. For the love of the Holy Child Jesus he, although born of a noble family, consecrated his whole life to be the servant of the poor and of the slaves, who were at that time very numerous at Carthagena, in America.

About the year 1615 he fell down exhausted in the midst of his heroic work ; and, afflicted with a painful illness, he lay for a long time suffering the most severe agony.

When anyone went to visit him, he was almost always to be found lying on his back, with his hands joined on his breast, and his eyes fixed on Heaven. In all his sufferings he never uttered a word of com plaint, but had always on his lips these beautiful words : May God be praised ! may God be praised !"

As the festival of Christmas drew near, he be came worse, and he earnestly prayed that he might die before that great day, that he might be able to keep it in Heaven. His prayer was heard, for, early on the morning of December 25, he died, full of good works and of merits, at the advanced age of seventy years.

Thus did God reward him for his long life of labour and sufferings, offered up through love for His Eternal Son Jesus.

ST. MARY MAGDALEN OF PAZZl s EJACULATION.

One day, as St. Mar Magdalen of Pazzi was meditating on the sufferings of her beloved Saviour, and was gazing on the crucifix she held in her hands, she was so much overcome at the thought of how much Jesus loved us poor sinners that she cried out again and again : " O love ! O love ! O love ! No, my dearest Jesus, my heart shall never cease to cry out, O love ! O love ! "

Jesus suffered and died for you, my child, as well as for her ; try, then, to love Him as she did : love Him with your whole heart.

THE BEAUTIFUL FLOWER DESTROYED.

St. Rose of Lima loved to be alone, that she might be able to speak continually with God. Her father had a large garden attached to his house, and this was to her a little Paradise. In a corner of the garden she built for herself a rustic cell, in which she loved to hide herself, and there, though in the midst of a great city, she lived as if she were in an un inhabited desert.

Around her little cell she planted the choicest flowers, and cultivated them with great care. There was one amongst them which she loved more than all the rest. This was the passion-flower. It grew up and covered her cell, and its beautiful flowers continually reminded her of what was dearest to her heart the sufferings ofjesus.

There was also another flower which she trained up with great care ; she called it her " delight," and she used often to stand beside it for a long time, admiring its beauty and inhaling its sweet perfume.

One morning, when she went as usual to water it, she found it pulled out by the root, and lying on the ground quite withered. This sight filled her with sorrow, and she cried bitterly :

" O my darling flower, who has done this to you ?"

Our Blessed Lord at the same instant appeared to her, and said : " My daughter, what is the matter with you, and why are you so sad ?"

" Don t you see, O Lord, that some cruel person has destroyed my beautiful flower ?"

" Some cruel person !" exclaimed Our Lord. " Well, then, know that it was I Who did it."

" And why, O Lord, did you pull it out ?"

" Why ? Because you are too fond of it. Did you not call it your delight, your darling flower ? And did you not say that it was the joy of your heart to look at it ? Now, my child, I want to be the only joy of your heart ; I want you to give your whole heart to Me ; for am I not the Flower of the field, and the Lily of the valley ?"

You see, therefore, my child, how much Jesus desires to live in your soul, and that nothing pleases Him so much as to see you living for Him.

When the hour of death comes, if you have loved God all your lifetime with a tender childlike love, death will have no terrors for you, for you shall then sweetly die in the arms of Jesus, Whom you have always loved.

BLESSED GERARD S LAST WORDS.

Gerard was a brother of the great St. Bernard, and had served God for many years in the monastery over which his brother ruled.

In the year 1138 he became very ill, and, knowing that his last hour was at hand, received the last Sacraments with great devotion. There was no sadness or fear of death in his soul, and his counte nance was radiant with joy.

Just before he expired he raised up his eyes to Heaven and said : " O my God, into Thy hands I commend my spirit." Then, turning towards those who were kneeling around him, he said : " Oh, how good is God to us in making Himself our Father, and what a glory it is for us to be able to call our selves His children !" Saying these words, he died, and went to dwell with his Father in Heaven.

My child, you can say with truth the same words. What a happiness this should be for you ! Love your Heavenly Father, then, with your whole heart.

ST. PHILIP S LOVE FOR JESUS.

St. Philip Neri was inflamed with the love of God. " How is it possible," he would often say " how is it possible that anyone who believes in God, and knows what the love of Jesus has done for him, can ever love anything else but God ?"

If at times he felt this love for Jesus less ardent than it usually was, he would complain to God in this manner : " O my God, Thou art so amiable, and Thou hast commanded me to love Thee. But why hast Thou given me only one heart to do this, and that heart, too, so very little ?"

We also read in his Life that he often received from God in return so many spiritual consolations that, unable any longer to endure so great a fire of love, he was forced to cry out : " No more, O Lord, no more." I know, my child, that you love God, but, ah ! how little is your love for Him when compared to that of St. Philip ! Beg of Jesus, then, to give you the great grace of loving Him daily more and more.

A FAVOURED CHILD OF JESUS.

There lived in Spain a very holy woman whose name was Jane Rodriguez, who from her infancy received from Jesus many miraculous marks of love for our encouragement and instruction.

One day, when Jane was only seven years old, and while she was praying with great devotion before a picture of the Holy Child Jesus, a dazzling brightness filled the room, and the Blessed Virgin appeared to her, holding the Divine Child in her arms. Jane bowed down in profound adoration, and contem plated with admiration the beauty of Mary and the majesty of Jesus.

Our Lady said to her : " My daughter, what do you think of my little Child Jesus ? Do you not think that everyone ought to love Him ? Would you yourself not like to have Him as your own dearest friend ?"

Yes, my Lady," answered Jane ; " that is my one only desire."

As soon as she said these words, Jesus stretched out. His little hands as if to embrace her, and Mary pressed her to her heart. Jesus then gave her His blessing, and the vision disappeared from her sight, leaving her soul filled with a happiness which it would be vain to attempt to describe.

Jesus is not satisfied with words only. He wishes you to prove by your actions that you really love Him. He says in His Holy Gospel : " If you love Me, keep My commandments."

THE YOUNG CHINESE MAIDEN.

In the year 1841, a Chinese mandarin caused several Christians to be arrested and brought before him, that he might make them apostatize. His promises and his threats were both in vain, and he knew by the firmness of their answers that they would all will ingly suffer every torture rather than deny their Faith. But what he could not obtain by words he hoped to obtain by cunning.

Amongst those apprehended was a young girl, who was kneeling at the feet of the mandarin, as is the custom in that country during the time of the trial. Without saying anything to her in answer to her firm refusal to deny her faith, he ordered one of his attendants to trace a circle with his spear on the ground around the girl as she knelt there. When this was done, he said to her : " If you rise up and go beyond that circle, I shall consider it a sign that you have renounced your Faith."

After this he left the place, and in a short time all the others present also departed ; none re mained except the girl, who knelt motionless on the ground within the circle.

Towards evening, the secretary of the mandarin, anxious to know how the girl would act when left alone, returned secretly to the place, and watched her for a time unobserved. She was Jmeeling as before ; and during all the time he watched her from his hiding-place, she seemed not to move.

Filled with admiration, he at last went over to her and kindly said to her : " My child, rise up now and go home/

" No," she replied ; " I will die rather than move from this spot."

" But the mandarin was not serious when he drew that circle around you," added the secretary.

That matters not," she replied ; " I heard his words, but I cannot know his intentions. I must understand his words just as I heard them."

The secretary continued to press her to rise up and iepart, but she always firmly refused. At length he himself blotted out the circle his master had formed ; and then only did the pious child rise from her knees.

Oh, what an example of constancy ! Would that all Christians womd imitate the example of that young Chinese girl! Then, indeed, would they show that they really loved God.

THE PILGRIM S DESIRE FULFILLED.

St. Bernardin of Siena tells us of a gentleman, well known for his fervour and piety, who made a pil grimage to the Holy Land.

He first stopped at Nazareth, where the mystery of the Incarnation was accomplished. He then pro ceeded to Bethlehem, to kneel at the spot in which Our Lord first deigned to visit this earth as a suffering Infant.

He next walked by the banks of the Jordan the scene of Our Lord s baptism, and went to the desert which had witnessed that forty days fast ; to the mountain where Jesus was transfigured; to the house at Jerusalem consecrated by the institution of the Holy Eucharist ; to the Garden of Olives and to Calvary, where Jesus died. He visited the scene of Our Lord s burial and resurrection, and finally ascended Mount Olivet, fondly recalling to mind the blessing which He gave to His Apostles before His ascension. After visiting every place which was in any way connected with Our Lord s life or death, with a heart glowing with love he exclaimed: "O Jesus, Jesus, my much-beloved Saviour, since I can no longer follow Thy footsteps on earth, take me to Thyself in Heaven, that I may see Thee face to face Thee whom I love with my whole heart."

His prayer was immediately heard, for no sooner was it uttered than he expired. The intensity of his love for Jesus, and his ardent desire of being with Him, had broken his heart ; and after. death these words were found engraven on his breast : " Jesus, my Love !"

ST. BENEDICT JOSEPH LABRE S INSTRUCTION ON HOW TO LOVE GOD.

One day St. Benedict Joseph Labre, having gone to see a poor sick man, spoke to him in words in spired by his own great fervour on the love of God.

When the poor man had listened to him in silence for a short time, he suddenly asked him : " My brother, tell me, I pray thee, how I can love God as much as I ought to do, and as He deserves to be loved."

The Saint said to him : " To love God as He de serves to be loved it is necessary that we should have three hearts joined together in one. The first one, all on fire with the love of God, ought to make us think on Him continually, and, above all other things, to bear with patience during our whole life the sufferings and trials He may be pleased to send us.

The second heart, made of flesh and blood, ought to make us come to the assistance of our fellow-beings, made as we ourselves are, and to help them in their temporal necessities by affording them all the relief in our power, and in their spiritual wants by instruction, by counsel, by example, and by prayer. This second heart of ours should in a particular manner feel compassion for poor sinners, and should unceasingly ask God to open the eyes of their souls to see the sad condition in which they are placed, and to induce them to do penance for their sins ; it also should be filled with a tender compassion for the poor suffering souls that are in Purgatory.

The third heart within us ought to be, as it were, of bronze, to be employed in loving ourselves in the manner God desires. It should resist all temptation to self-esteem, or thinking oneself to be of any importance ; it should make us go against our natural desires, and keep our flesh in subiection by fasting and abstinence.

The more you banish from your soul the thought of self, the more will charity reign in it, and the greater will be your recompense in the world to come."

This was the advice St. Benedict Joseph Labre gave him. SCHOUPPE : Instructions, ii. 322.

THE HOLY CHILD DOMENICA.

There lived long ago a young maiden called Domenica, who had the great happiness, v hen only about ten years of age, of having a vision, in which the most holy Mother of God appeared to her, bearing in her arms the holy Child Jesus.

This little girl had ever had an intense love for Our Lady. From the tender age of five years she had been accustomed to impose upon herself little acts of penance in her honour, and every Saturday she secretly gave to the poor part of the food her parents gave her for herself. On that day also she would go to the gardens and the fields in the summer time, and gather the most beautiful flowers she could find. These she arranged in exquisite bouquets, and placed on the altar of Our Lady in her room, on which stood an image of the most holy Mother of God, with the Divine Child in her arms.

One day, when this little servant of Mary stood at one of the windows of her father s house, and was looking down the road, she saw passing beneath a poor but beautiful woman, with a little child at her side. They both looked up towards her, and stretched out their hands to her as if requesting an alms. The little girl hastened at once to the store room to procure some bread for them, but when she returned to give it to them, behold, she saw them standing near her in the house, the doors of which had remained shut. The woman now wore an air of graciousness and majesty which quite overawed Domenica, and her wonder was increased when she beheld two wounds on the Child s hands, two on His feet, and one in His side.

" Who has had the cruelty to thus wound your little child ?" she asked of the mother.

" It is love that caused these wounds," she answered.

"Do these wounds give you much pain?" she added, addressing the child.

The child did not answer, but only smiled sweetly.

After these and other similar words they turned towards Our Lady s altar, which Domenica had re cently adorned with sweet-smelling flowers.

Tell me, my child," asked the unknown lady, " why do you always place beautiful and fragrant flowers before this image ?"

" It is on account of the love I have for the Divine Child Jesus and His most holy Mother," answered the girl with simplicity.

" And do you love them very much ?"

" I love them," she said, " as much as it is possible for me to do."

You do well, my child," answered the lady ; " continue to love them, and they will give you Heaven as a recompense."

An odour of the most exquisite perfume came forth from the wounds of the Child.

" Oh, how beautiful is the odour the wounds of your child give forth !" said Domenica. " What is the ointment you use, and where can it be pro cured ? Could I also buy it ?"

Yes, my child ; you can buy it by faith and by good works."

Domenica then offered them the bread she had gone to bring them ; but the Mother sweetly said :

The food my Child prefers is love. Tell Him that you love Jesus, and you will make Him happy/

At the mention of the word " love " the child began to leap with joy, and, turning towards Domenica, he said to her :

" And do you love Jesus very much ?"

" Oh yes ; I love Him/ she said " I love Him so much that I cannot think of anything else but Him day and night, and I always try to do all I can to please Him always, always/

"" You are doing well ; continue to love Him with your whole heart, and that love will teach you what to do to make Him love you also."

In the meantime the beautiful odour coming from his wounds seemed to increase. " O my God," she exclaimed, " this odour seems to fill me with love. How beautiful must the odour of Paradise be, since this is so exquisite !"

But in an instant the scene was changed. The unknown woman was suddenly surrounded with brightness and with radiant light. The little Child also shone like the sun in the heavens, and, taking the flowers which adorned the image on the altar, He scattered them over the girl, who had fallen on her knees before Him. Then the heavenly vision disappeared. u Enfant Chrtt., p. 6.

II. HOW GOD OFTEN TREATS THOSE WHOM HE LOVES MOST.

It is not always those who feel the greatest spiritual consolation that love God most. Some times, my child, those who love Him best, and whom

He loves with the greatest affection, are the ones who receive from Him, in this world, the least consola tion.

THE THREE YOUNG MAIDENS.

One day a pious lady went to a church to hear Mass. During the Holy Sacrifice God was pleased to grant her the following vision : After the consecra tion she saw our Divine Lord Himself present on the altar under the appearance of a little child. As she was looking on Him with great love, she saw Him come down from the altar, and go over to three young maidens who were also present at Mass.

When He reached the first one, He appeared to lavish on her many marks of tenderness, and to speak to her in words of endearment. After that, He went towards the second one and smiled on her, but did not treat her in the same affectionate manner in which He had treated the first. Lastly He went to the third one, and, raising up His hand, struck her a heavy blow on the face, which made her fall to the ground. He then returned to the altar and dis appeared.

The lady was for a time lost in astonishment at what she had just seen ; and the more she thought about it, the more anxious she became to discover what was meant by the vision.

And as she prayed to God that He would be pleased to manifest to her the meaning of it, she saw standing at her side the holy Child Jesus as she had seen Him on the altar.

" My child," He said to her, " those three young virgins are all most dear to Me ; they are My faithful spouses, and they all love Me with the greatest affection. The first one whom I went to, and to whom you saw Me show so many marks of affection, is only just beginning to advance towards perfec tion ; I must, therefore, treat her with great kindness, as a mother treats a young child. The second one loves Me with her whole sou), and although I did not treat her as I did the other one she did not complain, because she has more at heart My Divine pleasure than her own satisfaction ; still, from tin e to time I have to grant her some spiritual consola tion, that she may not grow weary in her life of piety.

" As to the third one," continued the holy Child, " she loves Me with the most perfect love, and is willing to receive from My hands afflictions and trials of all kinds, and does not look for any consolation. And although I send her crosses, she is willing to receive them all, not only without complaining, but even with the greatest joy, because it is My will to send them. Therefore I love her more than the other two, although I treat her with greater severity."

The lady was grateful to God for this beautiful lesson, which will be for you also, my child, an encouragement to love your Heavenly Father always, in afflictions as well as in times of joy.

VEN. CESAR DE Bus.

III. THE PRECEPT OF CHARITY COMMANDS us (2) TO LOVE OUR NEIGHBOUR.

My child, Jesus Christ tells us that the first and greatest commandment of the Law is to love God above all things, and that the second one is like to it : " Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

BEAUTIFUL WORDS OF ST. JOHN.

" Dearly beloved, let us love one another, for charity is of God. In this is charity : not as though we had loved God, but because He hath first loved us and sent His Son to be a propitiation for our sins. My dearest, if God hath so loved us, we ought also to love one another. If we love one another, God abideth in us.

" Let us therefore love God, because God first hath loved us. If any man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar : for he that loveth not his brother, whom he seeth, how can he love God, whom he seeth not ?"

ST. JOHN S SERMON.

When St. John, the beloved disciple of Our Lord, was a very old man, and not able to walk, the faithful used to carry him to the church, that they might hear him preach to them the heavenly lessons he had heard from the lips of his Divine Master.

He could not preach to them long sermons, be cause he was so feeble, so they listened to him with the greatest eagerness, that they might hear every word he said. St. John always said to them the same words : " My little children, love one another."

The faithful at length became weary of hearing the same thing so often repeated to them, so they one day said to him : " Master, why do you always preach to us the same words ?"

St. John answered : " My little children, it is the commandment of the Lord ; if it is done, it is enough." Histoty of the Church.

Our Blessed Lord Himself had long before said the same thing : " By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if ye have love one for the other." From these words, my child, you see what a great virtue the love of our neighbour must be.

THE MONK OF CITEAUX.

In the history of the Abbey of Citeaux, it is re corded that a certain monk of that Order was so good that every time he went to Communion he felt his soul filled with a spiritual sweetness, which lasted sometimes for the whole day on which he had re ceived the Holy Eucharist, and even sometimes for several days afterwards.

It happened that one day this good religious had occasion to reprimand one of the brethren under his care for a small fault he had committed. This he did with a little too much severity. Nevertheless, without considering that he had done anything amiss, but had only acted through zeal for the observance of the rule, he went next morning to the altar to receive Holy Communion as usual. But this time, instead of feeling within him that spiritual sweetness to which he had been accustomed, he was filled with sadness and great dry ness, so that he felt no devotion. This distressed him exceedingly, and he began to examine his conscience to discover what he had done to offend God that he should be punished in this way.

He soon remembered the words he had used on the previous night to the brother whom he had corrected, and he saw that it was on account of his want of charity to his neighbour that he was so punished. He repented of his fault, and did penance for it, and soon again recovered his accus tomed devotion.

IN PRISON FOR CHRIST'S SAKE.

St. Peter Paschal went to preach the Faith to the Mahometans of Grenada. He converted many of them to the true faith. This made the chiefs of that sect hate him. They caused him to be seized and bound with chains, and to be treated as a common prisoner.

His friends at home, hearing of his capture, and of the cruel treatment to which he was being subjected, sent a large sum of money for his ransom. But instead of spending it for his own deliverance, he spent it in freeing a number of women and children who were in danger of losing their Faith.

Our Lord was so pleased with this heroic act of charity that He came once in person to thank him. It was one morning at Mass. A little Boy came to serve him. He was dressed in the garments of a slave. When Holy Mass was over the Saint, as usual, asked Him some of the questions of the Catechism, as was his custom.

The little Boy gave him the answers so correctly, and at the same time with so much ease, that the Saint was astonished. When he asked Him who Jesus Christ was, the child answered : " I am Jesus Christ ; look at My hands, and My feet, and at My side, and you will see the marks of the nails and of the spear. As you in your charity have willingly condemned yourself to be a prisoner .for the sake of My people, and have given liberty to them, I have made Myself your prisoner."

Saying these words, Jesus disappeared, leaving the Saint full of joy.

SHE LABOURED FOR GOD'S POOR.

A young lady, who had lived in great purity of heart, took the resolution one day of testifying as often as was in her power her love for God in the persons of His poor.

She was far from being wealthy, and consequently it was beyond her power to give great alms ; but she did that which was of as much benefit to them, and more profitable to herself before God : she spent all the time that she could spare from the duties of her state of life in mending the rags that covered them. This was her only recreation for many years.

One day, as she was passing along the road alone, she met a poor man whom she had never before seen, and who was never seen afterwards. This man, having saluted her respectfully, said to her : " My child, I have some news to give you, for which thank God : in six days you shall die."

This information, instead of filling her with dismay, gave her intense pleasure. She went in great haste to her brother, who was a little older than herself, and to her other relatives and friends, and related to them what the poor man had said to her. They one and all told her to pay no heed to his words, that it was all the effect of her imagination, and that she, who was then enjoying such good health, could naturally look forward to a long life.

But she would not be persuaded to think as they suggested, and from that moment made her imme diate preparation for death. She said : " What danger have I to fear in thus preparing to die ? All things must come to pass according to God s holy will, and not one of you will ever succeed in making me disbelieve that this is a warning God from Heaven has sent me. May His holy Name be for ever praised !"

She spent these six days as fervently as she would have done had she been certain that Jesus Christ Himself had spoken to her ; for in her own heart she was persuaded that it was really He who had assumed the appearance of a poor man, to forewarn her that He would soon come and take her to Himself.

She died on the sixth day, in sentiments of great piety, and with her last breath gave thanks to God for having inspired her with so great a love for His beloved poor. LAnnte des Saints, p. 319.

IV. OF THE REWARD PROMISED TO THOSE WHO LOVE THEIR NEIGHBOUR.

Our Lord has promised a most magnificent reward in Heaven to those who love their neighbours ; the reason of this is because He considers as done to Himself whatever we do to them.

BROTHER BERNARD'S REWARD

Brother Leo, one of the first companions of St. Francis of Assisi, had one day a beautiful vision. He saw coming towards him a great company of Friars Minor, all of whom were surrounded with a bright halo of glory. Their faces, too, were beaming with supreme happiness.

Amongst them there was one brighter and more glorious than all the rest. From his eyes came forth rays of light which dazzled the good brother, so that he could scarcely look at him.

Leo asked the others who this brother was who shone with so much splendour.

One of them answered : " It is Brother Bernard, the first companion of our Father St. Francis. God has rewarded him with this great glory, because when on earth he always thought and spoke well of others, and always judged his neighbour to be better than himself. If he happened to meet a poor man on the street, he would say to himself : Bernard, there is a man who bears up with poverty better than you are doing. If he met one who was clad in rich garments, and who appeared to possess much wealth, he would say : There is a man who perhaps is wearing under his fine clothes a rough hair-shirt, and in the midst of his riches is very poor in spirit ; he is certainly doing more for God than you are doing. As a reward for this charity, God has crowned him with so much glory in Heaven."

Lives of the First Comp. of St. Francis.

ST. MARTIN S CLOAK.

St. Martin was Bishop of Tours during the latter half of the fourth century. When he was a lad of fifteen, he was obliged to serve in the army. But although he had to live amongst those whose lives were spent in evil, young Martin was never seen to join them in any of their wicked deeds, but was always careful to shun their company as far as he was able.

He was not at that time baptized, but in his heart he believed in Jesus Christ, and tried in all his conduct to imitate His example, and to follow all the maxims of the Gospel so far as he knew them.

The virtue he loved best to practise was that of charity towards his neighbour. He loved the poor because he had learned that they were particularly beloved by Jesus Christ. Every day he distributed among them whatever he was able to save out of his pay ; and that he might make his alms more abundant, he kept for himself only what was strictly necessary for his support.

One day, when he had nothing in his purse, he happened to meet a poor man at the gate of the city of Amiens. The man was almost naked, and was trembling with cold. As soon as Martin saw him, his heart was moved with compassion ; but, having no money to give him, he stood for an instant thinking how he would be able to assist him.

Suddenly a thought came into his mind. He seized his sword, and taking the mantle with which he himself was covered, cut it in two, and gave one half of it to the poor man. With the other half he covered his own shoulders, and proceeded to join the rest of the soldiers, heedless of what they might think of him, or of the jeers they might throw out against him.

On the following night, as he lay asleep, Jesus Christ appeared to him, accompanied by a multitude of His holy angels, and clad in the half of the mantle he had given to the poor man on the previous day. Looking on Martin with a look of gratitude, Jesus said to the angels : " It was Martin who gave Me this garment."

In return for this act of charity Martin received the gift of the faith, became a great and holy Bishop, and is now high among the Saints of God in Paradise.

Life of St. Martin.

V. WE MUST HELP OUR NEIGHBOUR IN HIS NEEDS.

St. John says : " He that loveth not his brother, whom he seeth, how can he love God, whom he seeth not ?" (i John, iv. 21). We are all brethren, and children of one common Father, and we must love each other and help each other in all our needs.

" GOD ALONE FOR ME."

Long ago there lived a woman called Sylvia, who pretended to love God so much that she had no time to think about her neighbour.

" God alone for me," she used to say continually. " I need no one else : what have I to do with other people ?"

Hence she never assisted her neighbours in any of their difficulties, and seemed even to look on them as being quite unworthy of her attention, since she had given her heart entirely to God.

She even went so far as to look with contempt on her parents, her husband, and her most intimate friends, and when they tried to show her that those who really love God love also their neighbour for His sake, she would answer as before ; " What have I to do with you or the things of this world, since I am made for God in Heaven ? Oh no, I do not need you at all ; God alone is enough for me."

One day as she was walking in the garden near her house she fell into a pond full of water. Her screams for help soon brought her parents and her neighbours to the spot. They saw immediately that she was not in any danger, as the water was not deep, and thought that this would be an excellent opportunity for giving her a lesson.

Her mother stood near the edge of the pond, but without stretching out her hand to help her, or showing the least sign of emotion, said to her : " My daughter, don t be afraid ; you do not need my help, since God alone is always enough for you."

The father then came forward and said : " It would be a great act of folly, my child, for me to help you, since you always told me that God alone was sufficient for you at all times."

She next turned to some of her friends who were standing near her parents, and, stretching out her hands towards them, implored them to help her to get out.

But they said : " We are altogether unworthy to help you, for we are great sinners and you are so great a Saint, and always thinking of God and speak ing to Him. You must not, therefore, look to us for help."

Her husband, who had just heard of what had happened, came in great haste to the place. " Come out of the pond," he cried.

" How can I come out when no one will help me ? I cannot get out of myself."

" Ah, my dear wife, I hope you have learned to day that you do sometimes require the assistance of your neighbour. Come, give me your hand, and I will draw you out."

Saying these words, he dragged her out of the pond. " You see," he continued, when she was standing by his side " you see that although God alone is to be loved and served, yet it is His holy will that we should love our neighbour also, and help him in his necessities ; and it is by this mark that people will be able to know that we really love God/

From that day Sylvia remembered the lesson she had received, and although she continued to love God as before with all her heart, she joined to it the love also of her neighbour. Cesar Celina.

VI. WE MUST LOVE OUR NEIGHBOUR EVEN THOUGH UNGRATEFUL.

You must love your neighbour not only when he is good and kind to you, but also when he is un grateful, and does you an injury. Has not Jesus Christ said : " If you love them that love you, what reward shall you have ?" (St. Matt. v. 46).

ST. JOHN THE ALMONER AND THE RICH BEGGAR.

In a great city called Adrion, a certain rich stranger who had heard of the compassion of St. John the Almoner for the poor, wished to find out for himself if all that he had heard were indeed true. So one day he put on tattered garments, and stood by the side of the street through which the Saint had to pass in going to the hospital where the sick were, which he did several times every week.

When St. John had come to the place where he was standing, the pretending beggar cried out to him : " Have pity on me, for I am a wretched man just freed from prison."

St. John said to the servant who accompanied him and carried his purse : " Give this poor man six pieces of money."

When the stranger received the money, he thanked him and went away. As soon as St. John was out of sight, he changed his garments and ran by another street, and again met the Saint before he reached the hospital.

Assuming a different tone of voice, he said to him : Take pity on me, Father, for I am in great destitu tion."

St. John turned to his servant, and said to him : " Give the poor stranger seven pieces of gold."

The stranger took the gold and went away. When he was gone, the servant said to the Saint : " My Father, you have given alms to that man twice to day ; it was he who, in the dress of a beggar, met us a few minutes ago."

St. John pretended not to hear what the servant had said ; and when for the third time the same man came under a different guise to ask an alms, the servant said to him : "It is the same man again, Father ; this is the third time he has come to-day."

" Give him twelve pieces this time," was the reply, " for it may be Jes^is Christ Himself who has taken the appearance of this poor man to try me."

The stranger published everywhere what he had done to try the Saint s patience and charity, and returned home full of respect and veneration for one endowed with so much virtue.

Life of St John the Almoner.

A POOR MAN SAVES THE LIFE OF A JEW.

A poor charcoal-burner, passing through a wood on a bitterly cold day in the middle of winter, found lying on the ground a man who seemed to be frozen to death. From his appearance, he easily recognized him to be a Jew. Lying at his side was a little basket, in which he carried the small wares by the sale of which he gained his livelihood.

The poor man said to himself : " Perhaps this poor Jew may not yet be dead, and with a little care may revive. Although he is a Jew, he is still a man and my neighbour, and my duty is to do what I can to succour him."

Saying this, and having hidden the basket under the snow, he placed the man on his shoulders, carried him in haste to the nearest inn, and employed the means at his disposal to reanimate him. In a short time he was rewarded ; to his great joy the Jew opened his eyes, and was soon out of immediate danger.

" Thanks be to God !" the poor man ejaculated. " My labour has not been in vain."

Then he gave the innkeeper what money he had, that he might give the Jew any little nourish ment he might need. He next went to the place where he had hidden the things that belonged to him, and brought them to the inn.

On his return the child of Abraham threw himself upon his neck, and from his inmost heart thanked him for having saved his life. He then requested him to accept, as a sign of his gratitude, the basket with all its contents.

But the charitable charcoal-burner would not take it, saying that what he had done was done for the love of God and for His sake.

The Jew continued to urge him io accept at least a little present from him ; but he did not allow him to finish what he desired to say. Placing the basket in his hands, he affectionately clasped them in his own, saying : " I have only done what was my duty to do ; everyone ought to do the same to his fellow- creature, whosoever he may be. May God be your guide, and lead you safely wherever you go."

Saying this, he left him. This good man, in saving the Jew s life, not only performed a good action, but made it more meritorious still by refusing to accept any reward in return. His charity for his neighbour was founded on disinterested love.

Cat. Prat., ii. 28.

THE VIRTUE OF RELIGION

I. IN WHAT THE VIRTUE OF RELIGION CONSISTS.

IT is not enough to believe in God, hope in Him, and love Him in our hearts ; we must also manifest these inward sentiments by some outward sign. This is done by the virtue of religion.

The virtue of religion, therefore, is that virtue which arises in our hearts from the consideration of the infinite greatness of God, and produces in them sentiments of the most profound respect for Him, as well as for all that belongs to Him ; which also manifests itself outwardly by certain signs, showing forth these interior sentiments of veneration and love.

ST. POLLIO, MARTYR.

Among the almost innumerable multitude of martyrs who sealed with their blood their fidelity to the law of God was one whose name was Pollio, belonging to the city of Rome a man remarkable for his great faith and piety, of which on many occa sions he gave manifest testimony.

Probus, the Governor of the province under Dio cletian, had scarcely reached the town in which the generous Christian then resided, when the latter was brought before him, accused of being one of the most zealous disciples of Jesus Christ.

The Governor immediately began to interrogate him, and learned from him that he was one of the lectors of the Church that is, one of those who at that time were ordained to read the Word of God to the people. The Governor, when he came to know this, began to speak in words of disparagement against the Faith of Christ, and of those who had the courage to embrace it and publicly profess it.

Pollio answered him : " Those only should be con sidered weak-minded and foolish who forsake the God Who created them, to adopt the superstitions you practise. As for those who listen to the words that we read to them, they become so firmly rooted in their faith that not even the direst torments in vented to afflict them will ever cause them to trans gress the commandments of their God and King."

" Of what King, and of whose commandments do you speak ?" asked Probus.

Pollio replied : " I speak of the commandments of the Eternal King, Jesus Christ."

" To what do these commandments oblige you ?" said the prefect.

Pollio answered : " They oblige everyone to adore one true and only God, and no other ; they teach us that idols made of wood or stone cannot be gods ; they show us how we ought to live ; they strengthen us to live virtuously ; they teach holy virgins how to tend towards the perfection of their state, and those who have the care of their homes and families to lead a life of constancy and virtue ; they teach masters how to treat their slaves and servants with mildness and humanity, and show these how to serve their masters with fidelity and love. They also instruct subjects how to submit to those who rule over them, and those who are in power to govern with justice. In a word, the com mandments of the King of Heaven declare unto us that we must honour our father and mother, assist our friends, pardon our enemies, exercise hospi tality towards strangers, help the needy and poor, love all mankind, never do injury to anyone, suffer patiently those who have been unjust towards us, never have any attachment to worldly things, never take from others unjustly what belongs to them, nor even desire them in a covetous manner ; and, finally, that a happy eternity hereafter will be the recompense of him who will have the courage to disregard the death you may inflict upon us."

This beautiful exposition of Christian morality, and the noble profession of faith which accompanied it, did not touch the hardened heart of the judge. The holy martyr, having over and over again refused to offer sacrifice to the idols, was condemned to be burned alive, and by this terrible death went to Heaven to receive the recompense promised to those who in this life prefer to lose all things, even life, rather than transgress the commandments of the Lord." Acfs O j the Martyrs ,

II. WE MUST ADORE GOD, AND HIM ALONE.

^ You must not forget, my child, that, although

God is our Creator and Father, and as such requires

that we should love Him with our whole hearts, He is also our sovereign Master, and, being this, requires that we should adore Him. " The Lord thy God shalt thou adore, and Him only shalt thou serve." The angels in Heaven are all on fire with the love of God, yet St. John saw them pros trate before His throne adoring Him.

ST. JOHN IN PARADISE.

" Behold there was a throne set in Heaven, and upon the throne one sitting. And He that sat was to the sight like the jasper and the sardine-stone, and there was a rainbow about the throne, in sight like to an emerald. And round about the throne were four-and-twenty seats, and upon the seats four-and-twenty ancients sitting, clothed in white garments, and on their heads were crowns of gold.

" And in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four living creatures, and they rested not day and night, saying : Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was, and Who is, and Who is to come ! And when those living creatures gave glory and honour and benediction to Him that sitteth on the throne, that liveth for ever and ever, the four-and-twenty ancients fell down before Him that sitteth on the throne, and adored Him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying : Thou art worthy, O Lord our God, to receive honour, and glory, and power, be cause Thou hast created all things.

" And all the angels stood round about the throne, and the ancients and the four living creatures, and they fell down before the throne on their faces and adored God, saying : Amen ; benediction, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, honour, and power, and strength to our God for ever and ever. Amen. "

THE ANGELS AT THE ALTAR.

St. John Chrysostom relates the following vision which God granted to himself :

" As soon as the Holy Mass began, I saw a great multitude of the blessed spirits come down from Heaven, clothed in shining garments ; their eyes were reverently cast down towards the ground, their feet were uncovered, and they bowed in profound adoration.

They stood thus around the altar in silence and awe until the Holy Sacrifice was ended ; they also accompanied the bishops or the priests who ad ministered Holy Communion to the faithful."

In another part of his writings the same Saint relates that a certain old man, to whom God had made known many of the secrets of Heaven, assured him that during the time of Holy Mass he had the happiness of seeing, as far as it is possible for mortal eyes to behold, a multitude of angels, clad in white and shining robes, surrounding the altar and bowing their heads in adoration.

MARDOCHAI AND AMAN THE FAVOURITE OF THE KING.

When Artaxerxes, King of Persia, had given orders that all the members of his Court and the subjects over whom he ruled should bow their knee before Aman, who was his favourite counsellor, and whom he had exalted to the second rank in his kingdom, Mardochai the Jew refused to obey his command, although he foresaw that Aman, who was cruel as well as ambitious, would avenge himself upon him. Mardochai in his prayer to God declared the motives which had caused him to adopt this reso lution. " O Lord, Lord, Almighty King . . . Thou hast made Heaven and earth, and all things that are under the cope of Heaven. Thou art Lord of all, and there is none that can resist Thy majesty. Thou knowest all things, and Thou knowest that it was not out of pride and contempt, or any other desire of glory, that I refused to worship the proud Aman (for I would willingly and readily, for the salvation of Israel, have kissed even the steps of his feet), but I feared lest I should transfer the honour of my God to a man, and lest I should adore anyone except my God."

Esther xiii I2 . I5

GEYSA, KING OF THE MAGYARES.

The celebrated King Geysa, who reigned over the Magyares towards the end of the sixteenth cen tury, became so favourably disposed towards Chris tianity, through the influence of his beautiful and heroic spouse Sarobta, that he granted permission to the priests, who were sent by the Bishop of Passau in Hungary, to exercise the duties of their office towards the Germans whom he had taken prisoners.

The zeal and piety of these missionary Fathers, and the devout attention of those to whom they minis tered, made so marked an impression on Geysa and some of his courtiers that he and they also desired to be instructed and to embrace the Faith.

After they had received suitable instructions, they were admitted to the Sacrament of Baptism. But Geysa afterwards still continued to offer sacrifices to the idols of his country, as he had done before. On being remonstrated with for doing this, and again told that he must worship only one God the God of Heaven he answered in his simplicity : " I do not see that in doing this I am doing what is wrong ; for am I not rich enough to offer sacrifices to them all ?"

This way of thinking may be in a way excusable in one who has been brought up in paganism, but should not be entertained by a person educated from his infancy in the truths of Christianity, much less in one who is a member of the faithful. But, alas ! nothing is so common as to see Christians who imagine they are rich in wisdom, virtues, and merits, endeavour to serve God and the world at the same time, and consecrate themselves to the service of both. My child, do not be led by their example, but, since you are God s child, serve Him and love Him alone.

THE OFFICER AND THE MONK.

One day a Capuchin Father was walking in the country, when he was joined by an officer of the army, a man noted for his bravery and skill in war, but who gave himself little or no concern about religion. The Father was about to retire, but the officer immediately spoke to him, and said :

" Why are you going away, Father ? Does my appearance make you afraid ? Remain with me a few moments ; you have nothing to fear. I am quite aware that persons of my calling are too often accustomed to find their amusement in speaking unbecomingly of men such as you ; but I am not one of these. Indeed, I would consider it a very cowardly act for anyone to insult another who is debarred from replying in a similar tone. It seems to me that such an act would resemble that of a man who would draw his sword to attack one who was unarmed. So, my Father, you need have no misapprehension on that matter. Far from de siring to give you any annoyance, I would, on the contrary, endeavour to offer you some consolation in the severe and laborious life you have chosen, for I know of no state that can be compared to it in hardship and desolation."

Thereupon he began to dilate on the various in conveniences, grievances, and the severity of life to which those of that Order bound themselves such as walking barefooted, being clad in the coarsest of garments, and subsisting on the plainest of food, as well as the obligation of begging from door to door to obtain it.

The Father permitted him to speak to the end without interruption ; then he replied : " Sir, I am indeed very grateful to you for the kind interest you take in my welfare ; but allow me to say that I am not so much to be pitied as you seem to imagine. I even make bold to say that you are much more in need of commiseration than I am. This may per haps surprise you ; you may even consider the assertion to be inconsistent. Let me endeavour to prove to you how true it is.

" In the first place, do you yourself not find your position a trying one, when, at the first intimation of a war having broken out, you are called upon to tear yourself away from the bosom of your family, to whom justly you are so much attached, with the prospect of never again seeing them ? Then, during the time of war, does it appear to you to be sweet and pleasant to encamp, frequently in the middle of the snows of winter, with only a thin canvas tent to protect you from the cold blasts, and to march and countermarch continually over impassable roads and rugged mountains ; to bear the oppressive heats of summer or the biting colds of winter, and to pass the nights so often under the open canopy of Heaven ?

" But these are among the least of what you have to encounter. When, during a siege, you are com manded to occupy the trenches or to scale the walls, or when on the field of battle you are ordered to attack the enemy or to occupy a position exposed to the fire of artillery, without being permitted to retire or advance in a word, when the cannon- balls and the bullets from the guns of the enemy whistle past your ears, or their shells burst near you, striking and killing many of those who are around you, with the dread that the next minute you may share a similar fate, not to speak of the bayonets and the swords bringing death to so many, and on which you must rush forward tell me, I ask you, is not your position much more to be deplored than that of the poor Capuchin ? The Capuchin may have plain food and clothing, but his life is not ex posed to such dangers as these ; he runs no risk of being wounded or maimed. And I need not add, sir, what is well known to you, that many officers and soldiers, even although they may have escaped with their lives, return home to their families covered with wounds, and not unfrequently de prived of some of the members of their bodies."

Here the officer interrupted him. " And do you account as nothing," he said, with some warmth, " the glory which one acquires for having exposed himself to so many dangers for his Prince and for his fatherland ? It is the desire and the hope of obtaining this glory that sustains us in the midst of all these dangers you have so vividly described."

" I fully expected that this would be your answer," replied the Capuchin, " but I must turn it against yourself. In leading a life which is more severe than the one we live, and in exposing yourself to so many dangers, labours, and wounds, you aspire after a renown which is only temporal ; whereas the Capuchin, in submitting himself to his severe and mortified life, proposes to acquire for himself a greater recompense one that will never end. It seems to me, therefore, that you are more to be pitied in this instance also than he is."

Those who accompanied the officer assented to the decision of the religious : the officer himself could not deny how truthful it was, and was pleased when the conversation turned on some other matter.

My child, how many people there are who would become great Saints if they only did as much to please God and gain merit for Heaven as they do to please the world and gain the esteem of men ! Endeavour, then, to do as Jesus Christ tells you :

" Lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither the rust nor moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through and steal "

(St. Matt. vi. 2O). HAUTERIVE : Catechisme de Perseverance, v. 52.

III. THE NECESSITY OF BELIEVING INWARDLY AND PROFESSING OUTWARDLY OUR FAITH.

By the virtue of religion, my child, we believe without doubting all the truths that God has re vealed to us, and we also profess outwardly this belief as often as God s honour and our own or our neighbour s good require it. Jesus Christ has said : " He that shall confess Me before men, him shall I confess before My Father Who is in Heaven ; and he that shall deny Me before men, him will I deny before My Father Who is in Heaven." A good Christian will, therefore, be willing to suffer every thing, even to lay down his life, rather than neglect to confess his Faith when duty calls on him to do so.

THE THEBAN LEGION.

Towards the end of the third century the Emperor Maximilian placed himself at the head of an immense army, to wage war against the Begaudes, a people who dwelt among the mountains of Gaul.

In his army was a company of ten thousand soldiers, known by the name of the Theban Legion, because they came from the neighbourhood of Thebes, a country which had received the Christian Faith. All the soldiers in this immense company were Christians, and were renowned for being the bravest troops in the whole Roman army, and many of them had grown old in the service. This legion was commanded by a brave Christian captain whose name was Maurice.

When Maximilian had passed the Alps, he ordered the army to halt, that they might rest a little before engaging in battle with the enemy.

He also issued a command for all the soldiers to join in a solemn sacrifice to the gods to obtain from them a victory in the coming struggle. The Theban Legion alone refused to offer sacrifice.

When the Emperor heard of this refusal, he be came very angry, and ordered a thousand of the soldiers to be slain on the spot, in punishment of their disobedience, and as a warning to the rest.

Instead of being dismayed, the other soldiers only envied the fate of their comrades who had been so fortunate as to be chosen to die for Christ s sake, and exhorted them to lay down their lives courage ously rather than break the promises they had made to God on the day of their baptism.

When the Emperor was informed of this, he ordered another thousand of them to be put to death. Those who remained alive cried out that they, too, would rather die than disobey God. In the meantime Maurice and the other chief com manders went about among them exhorting them to remain faithful.

The Emperor sent a third time a messenger to tell them that if they did not at once offer sacrifice, they should all be put to death.

When this message was made known to them, these generous soldiers, with Maurice at their" head, sent back the following reply : " O Emperor, we are indeed your soldiers, but we are also the servants of the true God of Heaven. Order us to do any thing that is not contrary to His law, and our con duct in the past is a sufficient assurance of our obedience in the future. But it is not allowed for any one of us to obey the Emperor when our God, Who is also your God, forbids us. We know how to die for our religion, but we do not know how to deny it ; and following the example of our Divine Master, we will yield up our lives without offering any resistance."

This answer filled the Emperor with rage. He ordered the rest of the army to surround the brave legion that no one might escape, and then to fall upon them and cut them to pieces.

When the hour of combat arrived, all the soldiers of the legion, although they were powerful enough of themselves to put to flight those who came to attack them, calmly laid down their arms at their feet, and allowed themselves to be slain. Not one of them was found to deny his faith. The field was soon covered with the bodies of the martyrs, and the ground was saturated with their blood. On that day ten thousand glorious martyrs were joined to the Church triumphant in Heaven.

History of the Church.

THE NOBLE RELIGIOUS BROTHER.

During the terrible Commune at Paris in the year 1871 a company of armed Communists entered a house of a community of religious Brothers at Picpus, near that city.

As soon as they entered the house the first person they met was Brother Stanislaus, who was only twenty-six years old, whom they at once seized and brought before their chief.

He began by asking the trembling Brother many questions ; but one of the wicked men, thirsting for blood, suddenly put a loaded pistol to his breast, and cried out : " Swear that there is no God, other wise I will kill you."

The Brother, raising his eyes to Heaven, calmly but firmly answered : " I swear that I firmly believe that there is one God, and with my whole heart I love Him."

This unexpected answer, so like that made by so many of the early martyrs of the Church, for a moment paralyzed the miscreant, who, instead of firing, turned round to his comrades, and in a tone of rage and anger cried out : " Shall I shoot him ?"

" Yes, kill him," they all exclaimed together " kill him !"

The man turned to execute their orders, when his eyes met those of his victim, who stood before him calm and heavenly serene in the presence of death. He could not fire ; that gentle look disarmed him, and he lowered his pistol, saying in astonish ment : " Look ! he stands there so calmly to allow himself to be killed. What a madman !"

Ask yourself, my child, what you would have done if you had been called upon to die for God as that good Brother was. What answer would you have given ? R<s c its Contempor.

GABRIEL, THE PIOUS SCHOLAR.

A pious scholar called Gabriel had the custom every day when going to or returning from school to kneel at the foot of a crucifix erected by the wayside, as is the custom in Catholic countries, and there spending a few moments in pious prayer.

His mother being informed of this, and fearing that he might be performing this action from a motive of attracting the attention of others to him self, asked him one day why he always did what none of his other companions thought of doing.

" I have taken the resolution of doing this, that from my early years I may accustom myself to pro fess my faith outwardly, so that when greater trials come afterwards, or when I may be called upon to confess my religion before the world, I may not be unprepared. These are the words of the missionary Father to us during our last spiritual retreat."

In after-years he had occasion more than once to profess his faith on important and trying occasions, in the midst of a mocking world, and he found no difficulty in doing so, since from his youth he had accustomed himself to despise the railleries and opinions of men.

MARTIN THO, THE HEROIC MARTYR OF TONQUIN.

In the year 1840 there was arrested in Western Tonquin a virtuous father of a family whose name was Martin Tho. He was seized and imprisoned, not only on account of his faith, but also on account of the influence he possessed among the faithful.

From the day of his apprehension nothing seemed to find a place in his mind but the thought of how he would best prepare to accomplish the sacrifice of his life for God and his holy religion. His wife was still living, and there were eight children dwelling with her, for all of whom he had an affectionate, fatherly tenderness, and whom he had brought up in the fear of God ; but these he now left under the care and protection of their Father in Heaven.

This pious family, worthy of the admiration of all Christians, grieved indeed that one whom they all loved so well was so soon to be taken from them, and that terrible would be the sufferings he would have to endure at the hands of his impious murderers before death would bring him the palm of victory ; yet their united prayer was not for his deliverance from their hands, for they rejoiced in the thought of him being honoured with the martyr s crown, but that God would give him courage to remain faithful.

Four or five days after his arrest, the children asked permission from their mother to go and visit him in his prison.

She answered them in these heroic words : "My dear children, your beloved father is at present on the battle-field, and no one can tell if he will persevere in confessing his faith and the holy Gospel of Jesus Christ to the end. The thought alone of the terrible tortures they will inflict upon him is of itself a sufficient trial, without us adding to it more trying ones. If you go to visit him, perhaps the very sight of you, whom he loves so much, might unnerve him and make him waver in the faith, or cause him to forget the glory which awaits him. Nevertheless, if any one of you could find means of entering his prison, I will not hinder you, only you must be guided in this by the advice of our catechist : if he permits you to go, I will consent ; if he considers that your visit might prove dangerous, then you will return to me."

But when it was announced to her that the holy confessor had already generously endured most terrible tortures, she, filled with celestial joy, said to her children : " Your father has now gloriously confessed the name of Jesus Christ ; hasten to him, therefore, and give him all the consolation in your power, and by your loving words - encourage him to suffer more still, even death itself, for God s sake."

The two oldest, therefore, a son and a daughter, set forth immediately, and visited him in his dungeon. The Christian hero threw his arms round them, and, embracing them with the greatest tenderness, said to them : " My children, your father will soon be taken from you, and you will see me no more till we meet before the throne of God. This is my last advice to you, my children, and you will repeat it in my name to your brothers and sisters at home. Remember that you have only one soul, and take the greatest care of it. Pray to God to grant you the grace of remaining faithful to your holy religion all the days of your lives, and above all things else, keep yourselves away from the contagion of this wicked world, pure and unspotted before God."

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His Saints.

Annals of the Prop, of tfie Faith^ No. 83.

IV. " OUR HELP is IN THE NAME OF THE LORD."

" GOD HAS FORSAKEN US."

There was once a young man lying dangerously ill. He was the only hope of his aged parents, who were very poor, and his brothers and sisters were all too young to work.

They tried every means to make him better, but all in vain ; he became weaker every day, and very soon it was apparent to everyone that there was no longer any hope of his recovery. As they were lamenting over this misfortune, a neighbour hap pened to visit them to inquire about the sick man

" Oh, he is dying," they said ; " there is no longer any hope. We have done everything that we could to make him better, but all in vain ;" and they continued to weep bitterly.

" Have you asked God to make him better ?" said the neighbour.

" Oh no," they answered, " God has forsaken us altogether."

" How can you say that God has forsaken you, since you have never asked Him to come to your assistance ? You believe in your hearts that God can help you, yet you have not asked Him to do so. Where is your faith and confidence ? It is not suffi cient to believe that God can assist you : you must also, by the daily practice of your lives, act according to your belief. Ask God, therefore, to make your son well again ; most certainly He will do so if He sees that it will be for his good."

After these words of gentle reproof, the unhappy parents knelt down, and prayed to God to restore their son to health if it were His blessed will. This they continued to do for several days, and at last they had the happiness to see him rise from his sick-bed. In a short time he became well, and was able to resume his work.

HAUTERIVE : Cattchisme de Perseverance, xii. 10.

THE SAINTS AT PRAYER.

St. Paul, the first hermit, although an old man, humbly and reverently knelt on the ground when speaking to God in prayer. It was in this position that St. Antony found him, even when his holy soul had taken flight to Paradise, his eyes arid his hands at the same time being raised heavenwards.

St. Antony, thinking that he was still living, knelt down beside him, and for a long time prayed at his side. But seeing, after a considerable time, that the Saint did not move, and that he did not hear him utter his usual ejaculations, he gazed upon his holy countenance, and saw that his spirit had gone to take its place among the Saints of God in Paradise.

With reverence he placed all that remained of him on earth in a grave, which two lions from the forest excavated to receive it, and returned home, himself to pray as his beloved master had done, and soon to follow him into the assembly of the Saints.

The Apostle St. James the Less, who was surnamed the Just even by his enemies, was so accustomed to pray to God on his knees that it is recorded of him that after his death they were found hard and rough like the skin of a camel.

When, at the time of his martyrdom, the Jews had cast him down from a pinnacle of the Temple, and when he was about to breathe his last, he col lected his remaining strength, and for the last time placed himself upon his knees. Like his dying Master on the cross, his last prayer was for his enemies who were putting him to death : " Lord, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Lives of the Saints.

THE YOUNG PRINCE AND THE OFFICER.

The Duke of Bourgoyne, grandson of Louis XIV. of France, was educated by the great Bishop of Cambrai, Fenelon.

He made so much progress under this learned and virtuous tutor that, as he grew up, he was the admiration of the whole kingdom, on account of those qualities which form great princes and prepare them to become eminent kings.

It was impossible, says a historian of the times, to observe him hearing Mass or receiving Holy Com munion, without being not only edified, but, more over, penetrated with profound respect for the holy mysteries. It was commonly said that the example of his piety had converted more people to God than even the eloquence of the great Bourdaloue.

An officer, who had all his lifetime served his king more faithfully than he had served God, and who happened to be at Versailles, w r here the Duke resided, frequently witnessed him performing these exercises of religion, and was struck by his devotion. But, imagining that it might be more as a matter of form and to attract attention than real piety, he thought he would secretly watch him.

But this only served to convince him that the Duke was really devout and in earnest whenever he performed his spiritual duties, and he became more and more edified. And as he was convinced of this, his conscience began to upbraid him with his own want of fidelity to God, and he resolved upon a change of conduct.

He went to one of the priests of the castle chapel, and kneeling humbly at his feet, said to him : " It is quite impossible to live in a state of indifference in religious matters when one has before his eyes daily the example of a prince so great and so young, in whose heart is rooted so deep and so real a piety."

It was hoped that a prince so accomplished as he was would one day occupy the throne of his ancestor St. Louis, and shed over the whole kingdom the lustre of those virtues which had adorned him, but a premature death put an end to these hopes, and deprived France of a king whose reign might have been recorded in the brightest pages of its history.

JADDUS THE HIGH-PRIEST, AND THE GREAT KING.

When King Alexander the Great was engaged in besieging Tyr, he wrote to the high-priest of the Jews, who was called Jaddus, to ask him to send provisions arid auxiliary troops to his assistance. Jaddus re fused, saying that his people had bound themselves by a solemn oath made to Darius not to bear arms against him, nor the nations over whom he ruled.

Alexander was very angry at this answer, and threatened that he would march against Jerusalem as soon as he had made himself master of Tyr. This he did, for as soon as he had acquired possession of Tyr, he marched towards the capital of Judaea, intending to pour out upon the inhabitants the terrible effects of his wrath.

At this information the high-priest offered sacrifices in the Temple, and ordained that public prayers should be offered to God to avert the awful calamity that threatened them.

God heard their earnest supplications, and ap peared to Jaddus in a vision, telling him to open wide the gates of the city, and to go out to meet him without fear, clad in his pontifical vestments, and accompanied by all the members of the sacerdotal order.

Jaddus instantly obeyed, and, followed by the priests and the people, he went out to meet Alex ander. When they reached a place called Sapha, from which the city and the Temple could be seen, they awaited the approach of the Macedonian King.

As he drew near the place a sudden change came over him. The sight of so many people clad in white, of the priests vested in the garments of their office, of the high-priest in his splendid robes, wearing his ephod and his tiara, on which the adorable Name of God was engraved in letters of gold, made so great an impression on the heathen monarch that he commanded his army to halt. Then, going forward alone, he prostrated himself on the ground in adoration of the sacred Name of God, and humbly saluted the high-priest.

"It is not this man whom I adore," said he to Parmenion, his chief officer, who was astonished to behold his invincible prince in this humble posture, " but it is that great God, whose high-priest he is."

He then accompanied the people on their return to the city, and ascended to the Temple, where he offered up the sacrifices appointed by the high-priest. On the following day, having assembled together all the people, he asked them what favours they might desire him to bestow on them.

The high-priest answered him in their name that their only desire was to be permitted to be governed according to the laws of their fathers, and to be exempted from paying tribute every seventh year.

Alexander readily granted their petition.

JOSEPHUS, Antiq., lib. xi.

V. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH OUR GUIDE TO THE WORSHIP OF GOD.

God has appointed His one true Church to teach us in what way we are to worship Him. Oh, my child, be careful to learn from it all that God wants you to do, and try with your whole heart to accom plish it.

ST. HERMENEGILD, KING AND MARTYR.

St. Hermenegild, King and martyr, died for Jesus Christ in the year 586, because he would not worship God as the Arians did.

He was the son of Leovigild, King of the Visigoths in Spain, and was brought up in the heresy which his father professed. He reigned along with his father over that nation, and was married to a pious Catholic Princess whose name was Ingonda. By her good example, and more especially by her earnest prayers, he discovered that the religion in which he was born was not the true one. At once, therefore, he abandoned it, and going to St. Leander, asked to be admitted into the one true fold of the Catholic Church.

" O Prince," said the holy Bishop, " have you considered the value of the true faith you wish to embrace ?"

" My Father," replied the King, " I know it well ; it is a treasure that contains everlasting life ; it is that pearl, to buy which one ought to sell all that he possesses in this world."

" But if the King, your father, who is an Arian, should try to force you to throw away this precious treasure, what would you do ?"

" With God s help," replied the young King, " I would willingly sacrifice everything that belongs to me rather than do so, because the Catholic faith is of more value to me than all earthly things."

" But he might even deprive you of your crown."

" That matters not," answered Hermenegild, " for the true faith promises me an eternal kingdom."

" He might send away to a distant country your holy spouse Ingonda."

" Both she and I are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of our holy religion."

" But he might deprive you of your liberty ; he might even take away your life," said the Bishop.

" I accept this also," he answered. " I am willing to go to prison and to death if necessary ; for the true faith contains my sovereign good, and the salvation of my soul, and I am resolved to embrace it at all cost, and to live in it and die in it."

The holy Bishop was satisfied with his answers, and received him into the Church.

When the King his father was informed that his son had become a Catholic, he became very angry. He threatened that if he did not at once return to Arianism he would deprive him of the title of King, take from him all his possessions, and if he still con tinued obstinate, his very life.

Hermenegild answered respectfully but firmly that he could not deny his religion, because to do that would be to deny God Himself.

Then Leovigild ordered the royal robes his son wore to be taken off, and that heavy chains should be put on him, and that he should be conducted to Seville, and there be confined in a tower. At the same time he gave orders that the darkest dungeon should be chosen as the place of his confinement, and that he should be treated with the greatest harshness, so that he might the sooner be brought to yield.

But the royal confessor of the faith was not to be conquered in this way. From the depths of his dungeon he wrote a letter to his father in these words : "I confess, my King and my father, that your kindness to me has been very great, and to my last breath will I always remember it, and will ever respect and love you. But you cannot imagine that I would ever prefer a greatness that must so soon pass away to my eternal salvation. No, I do not want to wear a crown that would cost me so much, and I am ready to sacrifice my life rather than renounce my faith."

The prison of Hermenegild became for him a school of virtue, and without ceasing he prayed to God to give him courage to be faithful unto death, and ever obedient to the teaching of His one true Church.

When Easter-time came, Leovigild sent an Arian priest to try to persuade him to yield to his wishes by forcing him to receive Communion at his hands. But the pious Hermenegild would not consent to receive it from one who was a heretic. Then the King, more furious than ever, resolved to shed the blood of his own son, through his hatred for the Catholic faith and the one true Church, and sent soldiers to the prison to put him to death.

When the soldiers entered the prison, they found the young King kneeling at prayer. He seemed to them more like an angel of God than a creature on earth. Instead of being kept back, however, by this angelic appearance, they rushed upon him, and with a hatchet struck him on the head and killed him. His glorious death took place on Holy Saturday, April 13, 586.

Life of Sm Hcrmencgild.

From the example of this King, my child, you will learn that you must worship God in the manner His holy Church ordains, and not in any other way.

VI. ON ATHEISM.

My child, you have, no doubt, heard of certain people who call themselves Atheists. An Atheist is one who professes to believe that there is no God. But, although such a person may say this with his lips, and try to persuade himself that he believes it, he cannot do so in reality, because all creation pro claims to him that there is a God. " It is only the fool that says in his heart there is no God."

THE GENERAL AT HIS DAUGHTER S DEATH-BED.

In the United States of America there lived, some time ago, a General in the army, who was known in all that country to be an Atheist, or one who does not believe in God or in the life to come.

His wife was a good Christian, and tried to bring up their daughter, who was their only child, in the fear of God ; and although her father endeavoured to instil into her mind his own wicked principles, the grace of God enabled her to remain firm in her faith, and in the practice of her religious duties.

It happened that she became very ill, and lay in danger of death. Her father, who loved her with intense affection, watched by her bedside continually; but even his love for her could not hide from him what everyone else saw, that she was gradually but surely approaching her end.

" O my dearest father," she said to him one day as he sat beside her, holding her hands in his and tenderly caressing her " O my dearest father, you see I am now at the point of death, and I must soon leave you. You have often told me that there is no God. and no Heaven hereafter ; and my dear mother has taught me that there is a God, Who will reward us, and make us eternally happy in the next life in His own home above, if we adore and serve Him here on earth. Tell me now, my own dear father, whether I am to believe her or you ?"

This she said, not because she doubted what to believe, but that she might gain her father from his unbelief, and make him a good Christian.

When she had said these words, the General sat motionless, as if struck by a thunderbolt, and for some moments he did not answer. He did not wish to say to his dying child what he knew in his heart to be false, and at the same time he did not want to acknowledge the existence of God in the presence of his associates in unbelief, some of whom were in the room at the time. The contest within him was only for a few moments. He looked on his darling child, and his eyes met hers. In an instant he ex claimed: "O my child, do not heed my words ; believe only what your mother has taught you."

Those in the room who heard these words looked at him in amazement. " Surely, General," they said to him, " you do not really mean what you have just now said."

He turned towards them, and, pointing to his dying child, answered, with a thrill in his voice which reached the depths of their hearts : " My friends, it is indeed more convenient to live according to what we had pretended to believe, but at the hour of death it is only the ancient faith in the existence of the one true God that will give us consolation."

Thus did that dying child bring back her father to the truth from which he had wandered, and he lived and died an excellent Christian.

Catech. Historique.

VII. ON IDOLATRY.

Idolatry, or the worship of idols, is a superstition so monstrous and absurd that we are compelled to ask ourselves, How can it be possible for a man endowed with the gift of reason to venerate as divinities the pieces of wood and stone which have been formed into statues by the hands of men ?

The answer to this enigma is that when man has once rejected the light of faith which he has received from God, he has only the light of reason left to guide him, and this, often extinguished by his passions, causes him to fall into the abyss of every error.

THE PROPHET ELIAS AND THE WORSHIPPERS OF BAAL.

God in His mercy, in order to open the eyes of the blind pagans that they may be able to recognize Him as their only God, has sometimes been pleased to work miracles in their behalf. One of the greatest of these is the one He performed through His prophet Elias on the summit of Mount Carmel, which we read of in the eighteenth chapter of the third Book of Kings.

And Elias answered Achab, King of Israel : " Send now, and gather unto me all Israel, unto Mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hun dred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, who eat at Jezabel s table."

Achab sent to all the children of Israel, and gathered together the prophets unto Mount Carmel. And Elias coming to all the people, said : " How long do you halt between two sides ? If the Lord be God, follow Him : but if Baal, then follow him." And the people did not answer him a word.

And Elias said again to the people : " I only re main a prophet of the Lord : but the prophets of Baal are four hundred and fifty men. Let two bullocks be given us, and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces and lay it upon wood, but put no fire under : and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under it. Call ye upon the names of your gods, and I will call upon the name of my Lord : and the God that shall answer by fire, let him be God. "

And all the people answering, said : "A very good proposal."

Then Elias said to the prophets of Baal : " Choose you one bullock, and dress it first, because you are many ; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under."

And they took the bullock which he gave them, and dressed it : and they called upon the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying : " O Baal, hear us." But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped over the altar that they had made.

And when it was now noon, Elias jested at them, saying : " Cry with a louder voice : for he is a god, and perh ; ., :.u is talking, or is in an inn, or on a j jtirney, or perhaps he is asleep, and must be awaked."

So they cried with a loud voice, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lances, till they were all covered with blood. And after midday was past, and while they were prophesying, the time was come of offering sacrifice, and there was no voice heard, nor did anyone answer, nor regard them as they prayed.

Elias said to all the people : " Come ye unto me." And the people coming near unto him, he repaired the altar of the Lord, that was broken down : and he took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying : " Israel shall be thy name."

And he built with the stones an altar to the name of the Lord : and he made a trench for water of the breadth of two furrows round about the altar. And he laid the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it upon the wood. And he said : " Fill four buckets with water, and pour it upon the burnt-offering, and upon the wood." And again he said : " Do the same the second time." And when they had done it the second time, he said : " Do the same also the third time." And they did so the third time. And the water ran round about the altar, and the trench was filled with water.

And when it was now time to offer the holocaust, Elias the prophet came near and said : " O Lord God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, show this day that Thou art the God of Israel, and I Thy servant, and that according to Thy command: lurf T have done all these things. Hear me, O Lord, hear me : that this people may learn that Thou art the Lord God, and that Thou hast turned their heart again."

Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the holocaust, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that Was in the trench. J<&q And when all the people saw this, they fell on their faces, and they said : " The Lord He is God, the Lord He is God." 3 Kings xviii> I9 _ 40<

VIII. ON SACRILEGE.

Sacrilege is the profanation of objects or persons or places consecrated to God. Hence, my child, when a person receives any of the Sacraments un worthily, or maltreats a priest or person consecrated to God, or makes a profane use of the sacred vessels, or treats with indignity the sacred emblems of re ligion, he is guilty of this great sin.

ST. FELIX AND THE ROBBER.

It happened that certain robbers went into the Clrurch of St. Felix at Girone. One of them stole a number of ornaments of gold and silk, as well as others studded with precious stones, and fled away with them.

After he had left the church, he met on the road a man who seemed to be a pilgrim, who asked him whither he was going.

The robber answered : " If you will only keep a great secret, I will show you a rich treasure."

The man promised to do so.

Then the robber showed him the valuable things he had just stolen, saying at the same time : " If only I could sell these things, I would be indeed very rich."

" I have a secret place not far distant," said the stranger ; " and I have many dear and steadfast friends in other places. If you will only bring them to my house, you will be able to dispose of them at your convenience."

The robber agreed, and followed him. But, strange to say, on looking up, he saw before him the town of Girone, from which he thought he had gone a considerable distance. When they entered the town, and were passing the church from which the things had been stolen, the stranger said : " This is my house ; you can go in and leave these things there."

The man raised his eyes in astonishment towards the pilgrim, but at the same instant he disappeared, and he then knew that it was St. Felix himself who had come to make him restore the things he had stolen.

The robber repented on the spot of his sacrilege, confessed his fault, and related to all the people what had occurred to him on the way.

RIBADENEIRA : Lives of the Saints, August i.

IX. ON THE CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH.

The ceremonies of the Church are the sacred rites and the symbolic actions which have been introduced for the purpose of giving greater solemnity to the Divine offices, and of aiding the soul to raise itself towards God. For when these solemn rites are performed outwardly, they bring before our minds more clearly the invisible things they symbolize, and make it more easy for us to meditate upon them.

ST. ELIZABETH OF PORTUGAL.

St. Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal, had nothing so much at heart as the promotion of those outward signs and ceremonies which are the ornaments of God s worship.

" To enable men to whom God has given a body as well as a soul to fix their minds on heavenly things," she used to say, " it is necessary that outward cere monies be employed, and that they be performed with all possible decorum and majesty."

She used her influence also in causing them to praise God in hymns and spiritual canticles, as St. Paul advises, that they might be thus enabled to join their voices to the heavenly choirs of the saints and angels, whose happiness for all eternity consists in singing the praises of God. She frequently, also, related what St. Augustine acknowledges in his " Book of Confessions " that the sweetness of the hymns of the Church contributed much to bring about his conversion.

In these pious canticles she took care that every thing should tend to edification, and carefully ex cluded anything that savoured of the frivolity of the world, or might in any way tend to gratify sen suality.

L ABBfc DE CHOISY.

X. ON OUR CONDUCT IN THE HOUSE OF GOD.

The virtue of religion requires of us that we should conduct ourselves with the greatest reverence in the house of God.

ST. JOHN THE ALMONER S REBUKE.

One day St. John the Almoner saw some people speaking in the church in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. He went up to them and told them to leave the church at once. They were very much offended at this order of the Saint. But without heeding their angry reply, he said : " My friends, God s house is a house of prayer. If you come hither to pray to Him, do not allow your tongue or your heart to be occupied with any worldly thing, lest you bring upon yourself the terrible punishments inflicted by Him on those who make it a den of thieves." From his Life.

THE DEVOUT STUDENT.

Claude de Pelletier was the son of a man who occu pied a high position in the world. As soon as he had learned to know God he seemed to be altogether penetrated with love and gratitude for Him, and his only thought was how he could make himself more and more agreeable in His eyes.

The sweetest moments of the day were those that he could spend at the foot of the altar ; he loved especially to attend those churches in which the ceremonies of religion were performed most per fectly and with the greatest piety. His very presence in the house of God was a lesson of edifica tion to all who saw him.

If in his walks he passed near a church, he would instantly recall to mind that God dwelt there, and he could not pass without going in to offer Him his homage. His first act on entering was to adore Jesus Christ in His humble tabernacle, and to offer Him all the affections of his heart. The profound respect he had for his Divine Lord s dwelling-place on earth could be read upon his count