The spirit of the missions The Spirit of The Missions by Rev. Thomas J. McDonnell, National Director, Society for the Propagation of the Faith. Three addresses delivered in the Catholic Hour, produced by the National Council of Catholic Men, through the courtesy of the National Broadcasting Company and associated stations. OCTOBER 11 OCTOBER 18 OCTOBER 25 PAGE Pauline Jaricot’s Inspiration -. 5 St. Francis Xavier and the Missionary .... 14 St. Therese and the Missionary 21 National Council of Catholic Men Producer of the Catholic Hour 1312 Massachusetts Avenue Washington, D. C. Printed and distributed by Our Sunday Visitor Huntington, Indiana IMPRIMATUR: •b JOHN FRANCIS NOLL, D. D., Bishop of Fort Wayne. ftoacMifr’'' Dedicated to my co-laborers, the Diocesan Directors of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith in the United States. May the Great Missioner Himself, Onr Lord and Saviour, bless us in our efforts to assist His missionaries in home and foreign fields. REV. THOMAS J. McDONNELL, National Director. PAULINE JARICOT’S INSPIRATION Address delivered on October 11, 1936 During these days Christian people everywhere are being reminded of the world wide missions of the Church. Next Sunday, is Mission Sunday, a day dedicated to the cause of the Missions at home and afar. It is hoped that we who are blessed with the Christian Faith will catch the Spirit of the Mis- sions so that we may help others to come to the knowledge of the truths of Christianity. My subject matter for these three radio talks will be The Spirit of the Missions , which I think is exemplified in the life and deeds of three persons known for their zeal and devotion in the apostolate of founding God’s Kingdom here on earth. This evening’s talk will be The Spirit of the Mis- sions manifested in the life of Pauline Jaricot of Lyons, France. The Apostolate of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is the work of the entire Christian Church. In order that all may share in the spreading of God’s Kingdom on earth, the Holy Father has invited the full membership of the Church to share in the pro- gram of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. Consequently we should have a knowledge of the purpose of this Society, of its origin, its activi- ties, its field of labor. We hear it appealed for from our pulpits ; we read of it perhaps in our papers and journals; we receive its literature. What is it? How was it started ? What part does it play in the life of the Church? If someone asked you what the So- ciety for the Propagation of the Faith is, you might be inclined to answer that it is an important propa- 6 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS ganda agency of the Church, whereas it is more than that, it is an integral part of the mystical body of the Church ; it is the means of educating our people to the Catholicity of the Church. It was our Blessed Lord who inspired His first missionaries, the Apostles, with His spirit of the missions, when He commanded them “Going there- fore, teach ye all nations. . . teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” As a consolation to them in their work for souls and the spread of His kingdom on earth, knowing His mis- sion work must continue until the end of time Our Blessed Lord added the words: “Behold I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world.” These words have been the strength, the comfort, the consolation and the spirit of the mis- sions down through the centuries for the Mission- aries laboring in privation, hardships, misunder- standings, and the dangers of martyrdom, in home and foreign fields for twenty centuries. The Society for the Propagation of the Faith is the backbone of this mission spirit today. Fidelity to the commission spoken by Christ on the Mount of Ascension is attested in every age of the Church. In the earliest days the faith flourished through the zealous preaching of the Apostles and their successors. Even the brutal savagery of mighty Roman Emperors could not prevail against the heroism for the faith manifested by those early converts to Christ. After three centuries of perse- cution the Church came forth from the catacombs stronger and more confirmed in the necessity of preaching everywhere the gospel of her founder. The history of those and succeeding centuries re- PAULINE JARICOT’S INSPIRATION 1 cords the important services done for the Church by devout laymen and laywomen. Indeed it is edifying to know how many of the Church’s greatest activities had as their sponsors members of the laity. 1 wonder how many are aware that it was a humble French laywoman, Mile. Emilia Tamisier, who is responsible for the public devotion of the International Eucharistic Congress move- ment, now so well organized throughout the world? This woman of retiring disposition, with no pre- tensions of importance, born in Tours, November 1, 1834, conceived the idea of these public devotions in honor of our Eucharistic Lord which now enjoy the full approval of Holy Mother the Church. The Seraphic Mass Association of the Capuchin Order, which today is so helpful to the Capuchin Missions in home and foreign fields for the support of their worldwide missions, was organized in 1899 through the inspiration of Miss Frieda Folger now residing in her native Switzerland. She sacrificed all ambitions to assist the missions. She conceived the idea of forming an association of members who by prayer and sacrifice would help the Capuchin mis- sions. Many other instances could be mentioned of great activities of the Church founded on the zeal and piety of the Laity, which today are serving the Church and her progress so advantageously. dhis thought brings us back to the France of yesterday that Country which gave to the world so many saints of God—so many heroes of the Gospel who blazed the trail of Faith through virgin mission fields—that France which gave us Lourdes—Lisieux—Joan of Arc and countless other places and men, 8 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS and women, who have been the inspiration for the higher things in the ideals of our Holy Faith. The City of Lyons, France, was the native city of a young French girl, Pauline Jaricot, born July 22, 1799 of wealthy parentage. Although blessed with this world’s goods, favored with many friends in her early life, we see her ending her days alone, in poverty, and to the worldly minded finishing her life in failure. The members of her family died while she was still young. Those who sought her company when she was blessed with fortune desert- ed her—yes, and even betrayed her. Those whom she had befriended forgot her. A few friends re- mained true in spite of her crosses in life. Among these few friends were some who later were beati- fied or canonized by the Church. We may mention St. Madeleine Sophie Barat of the Madames of the Sacred Heart; Mother Euphrasia Pelletier; Pere Eymard of the Blessed Sacrament Fathers—all founders of religious congregations. One of her very best and devoted friends was the saintly Cure of Ars, whose name is inscribed on the imperishable headroll of the saints. She was the sixth child of a prosperous silk merchant of Lyons. During the French Revolution she suffered exile with her father and endured the hardships of extreme poverty. Her biographers tell us that her early life, after her father’s fortunes had been restored, was that of the girl of her day. She received a good education and was splendidly trained in her religion. Up till seventeen years of age she lived a very social life; she had admirers, many friends, and wealth. Suddenly her thoughts PAULINE JARICOT’S INSPIRATION 9 turned from the things of the world to the things of God. In 1820 Pauline Jaricot received a letter from her brother, who was a student at St. Sulpice, Paris, telling of the sad conditions of the missionaries of the Paris Foreign Mission Society. In passing I may say that this Society is perhaps one of the best known missionary societies of the Church—its priests and brothers having opened the way for the preaching of Christian truth in many primitive ter- ritories in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was my pleasure a few years ago to visit their headquarters and seminary on Rue du Bac in Paris, nearby to the historic house where St. Vincent de Paul organized the world famous Sisters of Charity. The letter from her brother awakened in Pauline Jaricot’s heart a love for the missions. From then on she thought of the needs of the missionaries and the struggles of the Church in mission lands during the time that followed the French Revolution. Deeply impressed, she planned to help in some way. She gathered around her a group of pious women and interested them in the missions by collecting from each one a penny a week and asking them to pray for the missionaries. She longed for the oppor- tunity of doing more. At last an inspiration came to her. In her writings she tells us that one evening while the family was playing cards and she was sitting by the fireside, she thought out what is known today as the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. She conceived the idea of grouping her friends into bands of ten members and placing them in charge of a promoter who would collect offerings for the missions. She would group the promoters to- 10 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS gether and ask them to send to a center or headquar- ters the offerings received from their neighbors and friends. She would multiply these groups as far and wide as possible. In this way the interest in the missions would spread. For fear she would forget the idea, she immediately wrote it down on the score pad of the card table. Throughout France this program became popular immediately. Priests, sis- ters, the laity, young and old, rich and poor, became deeply interested. The first offerings collected were sent to the Paris Foreign Mission Society in Paris. It happened that Bishop Dubourg, of New Or- leans, Louisiana, stopped off at Lyons on his way home from Rome to America, for the purpose of collecting alms for his American mission and to interest in the same cause a Mrs. Pettit, an Ameri- can lady then living in Lyons. Bishop Dubourg asked her to organize her friends for the purpose of helping his work in his new diocese. Mrs. Pettit gladly consented but her plans met with little success. In 1822 Bishop Dubourg sent Fr. Inglesi, a pas- tor of New Orleans, to Lyons to revive the interest of the friends of Mrs. Pettit in the mission of New Orleans. Fr. Inglesi during this visit heard of the success of the organization of Pauline Jaricot and studied her plans of organization. At first thought he considered forming a similar society for the in- terests of American missions. A meeting was called on May 3, 1822, by Father Inglesi and it was attend- ed by 12 ecclesiastics and laymen who were desir- ous of assisting the missions. At this, meeting after a long discussion it was decided to unite their efforts and take over the plan of Pauline Jaricot and form- PAULINE JARICOT’S INSPIRATION 11 one large society embracing help for the missions in America. The purpose of the new organization was to help all Missions without exception by prayer and alms. As soon as a mission was able to support itself funds would cease to be sent to that mission. In 1828 the Society was approved by the Holy Father, Pius VII. Its headquarters remained in Lyons, France, with a branch headquarters in Paris, each having 12 clergymen and laymen of recognized ability and knowledge of business affairs, serving on the com- mittee. This executive council would receive the offerings forwarded to the central bureaus. With conscientious care and impartiality the reports of Bishops and other superiors of mission districts were studied by the Council. After due considera- tion allotments were made from the funds collected in accordance with the extent and necessity of each mission. The united organization developed rapidly and all Europe was soon interested. In its first year, the organization, now known as The Society for the Propagation of the Faith, collected the sum of §4000 and this amount was divided among the mis- sions in the Orient and the missions of Kentucky and Louisiana in America. In 1922 Pius XI, known affectionately today as the Pope of the Missions, removed the headquarters of the Society from Lyons and Paris to Rome and nominated it the official mission aid organization of the Church. The Society does not send missionaries to the mission fields. Rather it is a vast organiza- tion of men and women, clergy, religious, and laity, whose members pray and work for the spread of the 12 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS Faith and assist in every way possible the mission- aries the world over. It was the mustard seed of this worldwide Pon- tifical Mission Organization that Pauline Jaricot most willingly and generously gave to that small group of devout men and women in the year 1822. It was this society that His Eminence, the late Car- dinal Gibbons described when he said: “If the grain of mustard seed planted in the virgin soil of America has struck deep roots and grown into a gigantic tree, with branches stretching from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the coasts of the Pacific, it is mainly to the assistance rendered by your admirable Society, that we are indebted for this blessing.” It was this Society that His Holiness Pius X re- ferred to when he said in 1904 : “If the messengers of the Catholic Doctrine are able to reach out to the most distant lands and the most barbarous peoples it is to The Society for the Propagation of the Faith that credit must be given. Through that Society salvation began for numberless peoples—through it there has been gathered a harvest of souls.” And to promote more efficiently and successfully the mis- sions of the Church Pius XI decreed that “there shall be established in every diocese and in every parish of every diocese a branch of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith because the spread of the Gospel is the primary object of the Church.” What an inspiration to us,is the zeal and love for the missions, exemplified in the life of this young French girl, Pauline Jaricot. Surely her heart and soul were on fire with the Spirit of the Missions. In imitation of her zeal, millions throughout the world PAULINE JARICOT’S INSPIRATION 13 are today united in prayer and sacrifice to promote the glory of the Kingdom of God on earth. In the year 1862 Pauline Jaricot was called to her reward at the age of 68 years. Her declining years were passed in obscurity. Her friends of the early prosperous days had forgotten her. But, in 1881 Leo XIII declared that “The memory of this pious virgin is for more than one reason a blessed one for the Church.” Perhaps someday the humble, friendless, old lady who died forgotten by the world will receive of the Church the joyous praise and grateful love reserved for the Saints of God. 14 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS ST. FRANCIS XAVIER AND THE MISSIONARY Address delivered on October 18, 1936. When the great missionary, Our Lord and Sav- iour Jesus Christ, gave the Divine Command to His Church, “Going, therefore, teach ye all nations”, the goal of mission work was there and then set. Our Saviour, in His divine plan, knew well that the tre- mendous task of converting the world to His divine teachings was not to be accomplished solely by the efforts of man, but was to be realized mainly by His presence in His Church, for He added to that com- mand, “Behold I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world.” What a comfort and consolation it is to know that man’s human efforts to evangelize the world are supported by the grace of God and His presence in the midst of His laborers. Again we learn, that the work of spreading God’s kingdom upon earth is not only to be accom- plished by the labors and sacrifices of active mission- aries, who leave homes, loved ones, and the oppor- tunities of the world, to go forth into distant lands ; but that that goal of the Master is also to be won by the charitable and necessary assistance of those who remain at home and support the mission cause by their prayers, their sacrifices, and by their zeal, in order that those on the firing line of the faith will be able to carry on their work for the extension of God’s kingdom and the salvation of souls. In God’s plan, His chosen ones of the sanctuary and His faithful ones of the laity were to form one ST. FRANCIS XAVIER AND THE MISSIONARY 15 large family, one strong army, all cooperating to bring to others the happiness and the consolation of the faith. As we read through the Acts of the Apostles, we learn how the first missionaries of the Church received the help and the assistance of the laity to enable them to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As an inspiration for the missionary priests, sisters, and brothers, who go forth to distant mis- sion fields, the Church has placed St. Francis Xavier as the patron saint of the missions. As an inspira- tion for those who stay at home, but who neverthe- less are missionaries in the strict sense of the word, because by their prayers and offerings they support the many needs of the missions, Pius XI has named St. Therese of the Child Jesus as the Patroness of the missions. The study of these two great saints of the Church is an inspiration to all interested in the spread of God’s kingdom, whether they go forth as missionaries or whether they remain at home. This evening we shall give our thoughts to St. Francis Xavier, the patron Saint of the active missionary. Next Sunday, we shall speak of St. Therese, the patroness of the religious and the laity who stay at home to help the mission cause by their prayers, zeal, and sacrifices. St. Francis Xavier had a struggle with himself, before he saw the light of God’s grace. But once Xavier saw the light, he was willing to give up his family and social standing, his wealth and the pros- pects of worldly honors, to serve under the banner of Jesus Christ. “What doth it profit a man to gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul” kept ringing in his ears, as worldly honors tried to dis- 16 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS tract him from pursuit of the one thing necessary, salvation. Thoughts of the pagan nations deprived of the teaching of Christ continually haunted him. “Give me souls, 0 Lord, Give me souls,” was his cry in after life. Once he embraced the religious life, his thoughts and deeds were only to make God known to those who knew Him not. As we read his life and go over the accounts of his labors we cannot help but see in him a chosen disciple of God. St. Francis Xavier is today the inspiration and encouragement of the heroic men and women who offer themselves for the life of a missionary. St. Francis Xavier left home surroundings of comfort, he gave up his home and family ties, he was willing generously to turn aside the bright opportunities of the world which were at his door. He knew he would never return to his loved ones again. He foresaw long and tedious journeys, the experience of the misunderstandings of pagan and heathen people. He looked forward to hardships, sacrifices, lonesomeness, the meeting of obstacles and human failures. He knew he must suffer the heat of the tropics and the biting cold of harsher climates. But because of the trust and con- fidence he had in God's divine providence, which must dominate the thoughts and deeds of every fol- lower of Jesus Christ, Francis also hoped for the joy and consolation that come from work generously done in the cause of the Master. As he lived and as he suffered, as he failed and as he succeeded, Xavier, the patron saint of the missions, seems to beckon us on to greater things for the extension of Christ's kingdom on earth. St. Francis Xavier was born of a noble family. He had the opportunity of a splendid education. He ST. FRANCIS XAVIER AND THE MISSIONARY 17 had the good fortune to meet the gallant Ignatius Loyola, the soldier saint who himself had forsaken the ways of the world for service to the Church. When Francis joined Ignatius in the newly found- ed “Company of Jesus”, he yearned for the oppor- tunity of preaching and teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. And soon that opportunity came to him. In his mission journeys he endured the hard- ships of dangerous travel. He experienced storms, and ail manner of appalling obstacles and sufferings from sickness and disease, which would have broken the heart of a less valiant man. But Francis Xavier had given up the world, not only to die for Christ but to live and work and fight for Him as a true sol- dier of the cross. Our missionaries today may well look to the life and deeds of St. Francis Xavier as their model. His ten years of missionary work were full of adven- ture, as he sailed the seas and penetrated the isles of the Orient. Under the steady flames of tropical skies—through typhoon and tornado, in shipwreck and sickness, in peril of the sword and peril of the sea, through fever and disease and weariness unto death—he passed gloriously and triumphantly, tire- lessly, his tremendous nervous force and seemingly inexhaustible energy of mind and body driving him on and on over almost unbelievable leagues of land and water ; ever quick with the burning rapidity of an unquenchable flame, yet ever patient with a God- like patience when tarrying and waiting in the ser- vice of souls. The mere list of places he visited and the tribes to which he preached would fill a book. Many a time his arm fell weary with the happy task of pouring the baptismal waters on the heads of his 18 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS unnumbered children. He was an organizer—he was an administrator—he provided for the native clergy and its training—he cared for the leper—he established hospitals—he built churches—he sent missionaries here and there—he was not only a preacher and a teacher, but also a civic reformer and a social worker. He traveled from Goa to Comorin—from Travancore to the pearl fisheries of Ceylon—from Malacca to Singapore—from Paqua to Cochin—until finally his journeys brought him to mysterious Japan—yea, to the very gates of for- bidden China. In Japan his work seemed of a dis- couraging nature because his conversions there were not in number to be compared with those in India. Yet when persecution ravaged Japan and Christianity was driven out, when not a priest or sister for three hundred years was allowed to preach or teach, the faith of Xavier was secretly kept and handed down from one generation to another in the recitation of the rosary taught to their ancestors by this great missionary. In the eyes of man his efforts were a failure but in the eyes of God his labors were not in vain. So Xavier spent the short years of his mission- ary life winning victories over Satan, capturing his tens of thousands, heaping up his heavenly booty of souls with the hope of a final conquest, China. To- wards China his face had long been set. He looked forward to at least five or ten years of work in that ancient empire. But God's ways are not our ways. It was a bright August day when he sailed from Singapore. On a dreary November day Xavier reached Sancian Island, off the southern coast of China, with no one but a Malabar servant and a ST. FRANCIS XAVIER AND THE MISSIONARY 19 young Chinese boy. The desire in his heart of reaching China was not to be realized. On Sancian Island Xavier was stricken with a severe fever. The Great Commander, Jesus Christ, was giving other orders. Xavier was to obey. With only a crucifix to comfort him and only his Chinese boy to watch him in his last agony, Xavier’s soul passed to eternity. It was my happy privilege a few years ago to visit Sancian Island and offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on the very spot where Xavier gave up his soul to God. Today a young American Mary- knoll Father is in charge of the Chinese Catholic community there. We are blessed in having such a patron for our brave missionaries. His life, his deeds, and his death, are an inspiration to every man and woman who give up the world and put upon themselves the habit of the priest or sister or brother to carry out that Command of the Master “Going therefore teach ye all nations”. The mission fields need more missionaries. The harvest is white but the laborers are few. From the various Catholic mission centers the world over, home and foreign, The Society for the Propagation of the Faith receives letters beseeching us to help find vocations for this work. Souls are being de- prived of God’s holy teachings because the Bishops have not the missionaries to take charge of these centers. Entire villages are asking for the priest to come to them—for the sisters to teach their children —for the brothers to build their chapels and schools. We pray that the Master will inspire generous souls to offer themselves, like Xavier did for the spread of His kingdom on earth. America is generously 20 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS answering this appeal. Almost every religious com- munity in our country is preparing missionaries to carry on this important work. Today there are about 1000 ; American-trained priests, sisters, and broth- ers, in the foreign mission fields. Here in America, even in the home missions at our very doors, thous- ands of heroic men and women are sacrificing them- selves among those who are deprived of the teach- ings of the Church, in the vast and scattered dis- tricts of the South and West, laboring on with the hope that the souls entrusted to their care will one day come to the knowledge of God’s true teachings. We know it is a special calling from God and those who are blessed with this vocation have a precious life to live, spending their years in fruitful sacrifice upon earth. May St. Francis Xavier, whose Apos- tolic life inspired the Church to set him as the model for the missionary, inspire numerous others to fol- low in his footsteps with loyal and daring hearts, so that the ambition of The Society for the Propaga- tion of the Faith may be realized: “The world for the Sacred Heart; the Sacred Heart for the world”. ST. THERESE AND THE MISSIONARY 2i ST. THERESE AND THE MISSIONARY Address delivered on October 25, 1936 My radio talk on Sunday, October 11th, was an endeavor to picture to my unseen audience the plan of Our Lord for His mission work on earth. The scene presented was that just before His ascension into heaven, when He commissioned the first mis- sionaries, the Apostles, saying: “Going therefore, teach ye all nations, . . . teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” ; and then consoled them with the words, “Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world”. We said the goal of the mission work of God’s Church was “One fold and one Shepherd”, which great goal was so often referred to by Jesus Christ Himself, when as a missionary He walked this mortal earth. This holy accomplishment was to be realized, first, by the everpresence of Christ dwelling in His Church : “Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world”; second, by the heroic lives and sacrifices of the mis- sionaries who give up all that life can offer; and third, by the faithful assistance of those devoted followers of Christ, religious as well as lay, who re- main at home but by their prayers, their sacrifices, their zeal, enable others to carry on the work of evangelizing the world according to the command of Christ. St. Francis Xavier, of whom we spoke in our last radio talk, that Great Apostle of the Indies, is the patron of the missionary who goes forth to labor 22 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS among those who know not Christ in the home and foreign missions. A heroine of our own time, St. Therese, the Little Flower of Jesus, has been designated by the Church as the Patroness of the Missions; and we should like to represent her as the Patroness of the third part of God’s mission family, namely the re- ligious and the laity who remain at home but cooper- ate to spread God’s kingdom here upon earth by their prayers and zeal. To dwell upon the inspiring life of St. Therese would be only repeating that which, I am sure, my radio audience has heard and read time and time again. The name of the Little Flower, is on the lips of every Catholic; the details of her saintly life have left an impression upon the minds and hearts of everyone; her humility, simplicity, piety, and patience are known to all; in a word, this young saint of Lisieux has completely captivated the world. It was my blessed privilege to be present at the canonization of St. Therese in Rome on May 17th, 1925. Seldom had the Eternal City witnessed such a gathering of people from all parts of the world as on that day when our present Holy Father raised the little Carmelite Nun to the altars of the Church. Cardinals, prelates, clergy, religious, and laity from the four corners of the earth, graced that memor- able occasion with their presence, in honor of this young saint who had been called to her reward less than twenty-eight years before. It has also been my blessed privilege to visit Lisieux on two occasions, where today a shrine is erected in her honor for the inspiration of all who know of St. Therese and who now desire to walk the very roads, to go thru the ST. THERESE AND THE MISSIONARY 23 very rooms, to kneel and pray in the very place, where this young saint was born, lived, and died. Her great love of God, her zealous love for souls, her intense interest in the labors and works of God’s missionaries, have prompted the Church to honor St. Therese as the example and inspiration for all who desire to have a part in the mission work of the Church but who, through circumstances, are un- able to go directly to the mission fields. So great was her love of God, that one evening, it is recorded, at loss for words to tell Jesus how much she loved Him and how much she wished that He might be everywhere served and glorified, she re- flected with pain that no act of lovje would ever mount upwards from out of the depths of hell. Then she cried out “that willingly would she consent to see herself plunged into that place of torment and blasphemy in order that He might be loved there eternally”. So great was her zeal for souls ! She expressed it once in another manner, saying: “What draws me towards the Heavenly Country is the call of our Lord, the hope of at last loving Him as I have so ardently desired and the thought that I shall be able to make Him loved by a multitude of souls who will bless Him eternally”. So great was her interest in missionaries that on another occasion she said: “Like the Prophets and the Doctors, I would fain enlighten souls; fain would I travel the earth, 0 my well beloved, to preach thy name; to set up thy glorious cross in Pagan Lands. But one mission only would not suffice me would that I could at one and the same time proclaim the Gospel all the world over, even to 24 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS the remotest of its islands. I would desire to be a missionary not only for a few years, but to have been one from the creation of the world and so con- tinue to the end of time”. Is there any wonder that the Church was in- spired to elevate St. Therese as the Patroness of the missions, to an equal standing with the great St. Francis Xavier—Xavier the Patron of those who go to the mission fields, Therese the patroness of those who remain at home and do God’s work in their own limited way. We know Therese was barely 24 years of age when God called her unto Himself—she was only nine years a 'religious of the Carmelite Sisters at Lisieux ; her health was very poor, being a victim of severe physical suffering caused by pulmonary hemorrhages. She never left her convent walls to travel to far distant lands. Yet in spite of all these handicaps, the Little Flower was destined by God to become a heroic missioner, a missioner spending her days in a cloister offering to God acts of prayer and sacrifice. She was called to the apostolate of the missions to accomplish most heroic deeds by working through missioners. Like the Apostle of India her one cry of love was “Souls, Souls, Souls”. Her love for the missions filled her life with zeal and it truly can be said she was an apostle, for by asking her Master to preserve and help those who by word and example preach the Gospel to their brethren, she was saving souls through them. The missionary zeal of the Little Flower is strikingly shown in an incident related about her illness. The infirmarian had advised her to walk in the garden for a short time each day. This exercise ST. THERESE AND THE MISSIONARY 25 was a hard trial for her weakened frame. One of her sisters in religion, noticing the pain and suffering which it cost her, said to her, “Sister Therese, you would do much better to rest, walking can do you no good while you suffer so much; you are only tiring yourself”. “That is true”, she replied, “but do you know what gives me strength? I offer each step for some missionary, thinking that somewhere, far away, one of them is worn out with his apostolic labors, and to lessen his fatigue I offer mine to God”. When we recall this, is it not most wonderful to learn that her name today is known throughout the world; her autobiography extensively read in many languages ; her statue erected in favorite shrines of Christendom; her life honored publicly; her praises sung and heralded in every mission land, because she had a special love for mission- aries ? Is it not therefore an inspiration for God’s peo- ple at home, who love Him dearly, to know that like St. Therese, they can do great things for His honor and glory by helping His missionaries, in prayer and sacrifice and through membership in mission organi- zations which assist the priests and sisters in home and foreign mission fields to carrry on their work of saving souls and extending Christ’s kingdom on earth ? As we compare our lives at home, blessed with the knowledge of the eternal truths of Jesus Christ, with the heroic lives of His messengers laboring in missions at home and afar, trying to give to others what we possess in matters of Faith, surely we should be prompted, if we cannot go to the missions, 26 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS to be other Thereses, Apostles for the missions at home. What inspired St. Therese’s love for the mis- sions was her continual thought of those fearless messengers of the divine word, who at the peril of their lives hasten into every land upon which the sun rises and traverse every channel of the sea, having only one thought, that of gaining souls to God. Their zeal is so great it encompasses the earth. To save men whom they know not, they are prepared to endure the severest privations and the most toil- some fatigues. Nothing affrights them, neither the length of the journey, the perils of the ocean, the ferocity of barbarians, nor the anticipation of tor- ture and death. St. Therese in her meditations pic- tured God’s missionaries in the East, pitching their tents beside those of the wanderingArabs ; in Africa, bathed in sweat amid burning sands; in our own missions of America, crossing rivers and penetrat- ing into the depths of the forest. She saw them tra- versing one ofter another the distant islands of Oceanica; and in China purpling the soil with their blood. And so did this little Apostle of the missions picture to herself the missionaries and their fields of labor in the vineyard of the Master. All we at home need is to be reminded of these heroic acts, to stir up our hearts to do something for the great cause of the missions. Surely Jesus, as we know Him from His life and words, has a special place in His Sacred Heart for His faithful ones at home who do as St. Therese did —who, without going to the mission fields, pray and labor for this most noble work. For this reason has the Church set up organizations like the Catholic Students’ Mission League of New York and the ST. THERESE AND THE MISSIONARY 27 Catholic Students’ Mission Crusade with headquar- ters in Cincinnati, so that the children and students of our schools and colleges may become interested in mission activities ; and The Society for the Propaga- tion of the Faith, the main organization in the hands of the Holy Father by which the laity, through their memberships, may help the missions in the spirit of St. Therese. To all you who love Jesus, who are devoted to His Sacred Heart, who long for the kingdom of Christ to be extended, who crave for a part in this great mission work, listen to the following words of St. Therese herself : “We have but life’s brief day to save souls, thus to give to Jesus proof of our love. The morrow of this day will be eternity and then He will render to you a hundredfold for the joys which you have sac- rificed for Him. He knows the extent of your sacri- fice. He knows that the grief of those dear to you in- creases your own still more, but to save our souls He has suffered this martyrdom. He, too, left His Mother; He saw the Virgin Mother stand at the foot of the cross ; her heart transpierced with the sword of sorrow. Ah, if the Divine Master would but grant to those whom you are going to leave for His sake, a foresight of the glory He reserves for you, the multitude of souls who in Heaven will form your train, they would be already recompensed for their great sacrifice in parting with you. There is but one means of compelling God not to judge us,” con- tinues St. Therese, “and that is, to appear before Him empty-handed ; this can be done by laying noth- ing by—spend your treasures as you gain them. Were I to live to be 80 I should always be poor; all 28 THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSIONS my earnings would be spend on the ransom of souls. Were I to wait the hour of death to offer my trifling coins for valuation, our Lord would not fail to dis- cover' in them base metal and they would certainly have to be refined in Purgatory.” So spoke the Little Flower of Jesus. These words of wisdom are in keeping with the advice of our Blessed Saviour Himself, when He said, “What doth it profit a man to gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul?” These words being told to St. Francis Xavier by St. Ignatius Loyola, prompted Xavier to give up a most promising worldly career and offer himself to Christ, thus giving to the Church of God that great Apostle of the Indies and the Patron of the Missions. So in a like manner must that young child of Lisieux have meditated upon the same sacred text and soon after given her- self to the Church’s garden as a Little Flower, blooming forth with her roses of love, from which the scent of the love of God still draws to the Master so many souls who, whether they go to the mission fields or stay at home, continue to labor for the spread of His kingdom on earth. May St. Therese, the Little Flower of Jesus, the patroness of the missions, shower down her roses of God’s blessing upon every man, woman, and child, as a reward for surpassing any sacrifice made by them, for their interest in the work so dear to the heart of Jesus—the salvation of souls and the ex- tension of His kingdom on earth. Hear and Help the Catholic Hour Produced by the National Council of Catholic Men, 1312 Massachusetts Ave., Washington, D. C. Presented by the National Broadcasting Company, and the following associated stations: Asheville, N. C. WWNC Atlanta, Ga. WSB Baltimore, Md. WFBR Billings, Mont. KGHL Birmingham, Ala. WAPI Bismarck, N. D. KFYR Boston, Mass. WEEI Buffalo. N. Y. WBEN Butte, Mont. KGIR Cincinnati, Ohio WSAI Charlotte, N. C. WSOC Chicago, 111. WMAQ or WCFL Cleveland, Ohio WTAM Columbia, S C. WTS Covington, Ky. WCKY Dallas, Texas WFAA Davenport, Iowa WOC Dayton, Ohio WHIO Des Moines, la. WHO Denver, Colo. KOA Detroit, Mich. 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