<(ef>y/,yif^At .=A^<.. 1 ^ ■ i 1 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. SHOE T/S.E R M N S -^ Cy^ cM OTi c.\^-(r*~ eyc&X BEINa A PLAIN AND FAMILIAR EXPOSITION OP THE APOSTLES' CREED; THE LORD'S PRAYER; THE ANGELICAL SALUTATION; THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD; THE PRECEPTS OF THE CHURCH; THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS; AND THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. / BY H. J. THOMAS, CANON OF THE CATHEDEAL OF LIEGE, BELGIUM. S^ransiateb from \\\t Jrencl), BY EEV. G. A. HAMILTON. ■WITH AN INTRODUCTION, BY M. J. SPALDmG, D.D., BISHOP OP LOUISVILLE. LOUISVILLE, KY: WEBB & LEVERING. 1859. * . » t > Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1859, by WEBB k LEVERING, in the Clerk's Office' of the District Court for the District of Kentucky. Stereotyped by Hills, O'DiiscoU & Co, 141 Main St., Cincinnati. TO THE VERY REV. JOSEPH T. JARBOE, O.S.D, I>RKSir>ENT OB' SINSINAWA MOUND COLLEGE, THB TRANSLATOR BEGS TO INSCRIBE THESE SHOET SEEMONS, AS A SLIGHT TESTIMONIAL OF GRATITUDE FOR PAYORS RECEIVED. CONTENTS. PART I. Sermon. Paos Introduction, & I. — The Teachings of Religion, 15 II.— On Faith, 20 APOSTLES' CREED. III.— Existence of God, 25 IV. — Omnipotence of God, 30 V. — God is Everywhere ; God Knows All Things, 35 VL— Goodness of God, 39 VII. — Providence of God 44 VIIL— The World and the Angels, 49 IX. — Creation and Sin of the first Man, 53 X. — The Incarnation, » 58 XI. — Conception and Birth of Jesus Christ, 63 XII.— The Infant Saviour, 67 XIII. — Life of our Divine Saviour, 72 XIV.— Sufferings of Jesus Christ, 76 XV. — Resurrection of Jesus Christ, 81 XVI. — Ascension of Jesus Christ, 86 XVII.— On Heaven, 90 XVIII.— General Judgment, 94 XIX.— The Holy Ghost, , 99 XX.— The Church, 103 XXL— Marks of the Church 108 XXIL— Rule of Faith, 114 XXIII. — Communion of Saints, 119 XXIV. — Forgiveness of Sins and Resurrection of the Body, . 124 XXV.— The Two Eternities, 129 XXVL— Eternal Life— or Death, 134 V VI CONTENTS. PART II. Sermon. Page XXVIL— On Hope, 141 XXVIIL— On Prayer in General, 146 XXIX. — Conditions of Prayer, 151 THE LORD'S PRAYER. XXX.— First Words of the Lord's Prayer, 156 XXXI.— First Petition of the Lord's Prayer, , 160 XXXII. — Second and Third Petitions of the Lord's Prayer, 165 XXXIII.— Fourth and Fifth Petitions of the Lord's Prayer, 169 XXXIV. — Sixth and Seventh Petitions of the Lord's Prayer, 173 THE HAIL MART. XXXV.— The Hail Mary 178 XXXVL— Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, 182 XXXVII.— Imitation of the Blessed Virgin, 187 PART III. XXXVIIL— The Love of God, 193 XXXIX.— Love of our Neighbor, 197 XL. — The Commandments of God in General, 201 TEN COMMANDMENTS. XLI. — First. — Adoration of God, 205 XLII. Invocation of Saints, 210 XLIII. — Second. — On Taking the Lord's Name, 214 XLIV. On the Sin of Profanity, 219 XLV.— Third.— Sanctification of the Lord's Day, 223 XLVL Sanctification of the Lord's Day.— (Continued), ... 228 XLVIL— Fourth.— Duties of Children to their Parents, 232 XLVIIL Duties of Children to their Parents.— (Continued) 237 XLIX. Duties of Parents 242 L. Duties of Servants to their Masters, 247 LI. Duties of Masters to their Servants, 252 LIL— Fifth.— On Murder, 257 LIIL On Scandal, 262 LIV.— Sixth.— On Adultery, 266 CONTENTS. Vn Sermon. Page. LV.— SEVENTH.~On Theft, 271 L VI. On Theft.— (Continued), 276 LVII. Restitution, 281 LVIII.— Eighth.— False Testimony, 285 LIX. Detraction, 289 LX. Evil Suspicions and Rash Judgments, 293 LXI. — ^NiNTH AND Tenth. — Bad Thoughts and Desires, 298 PART IV. PRECEPTS OF THE CHURCH. LXII. — Precepts of the Church in General, 303 LXIII.— First.- Festivals of the Church, 307 LXIV. — Second. — Excellence and End of the Sacrifice of the Mass, 312 LXV. The Sacrifice of the Mass.— (Continued), 316 LXVI. — Third and Fourth. — Confession — Easter Communion 320 LXVIL— Fifth and Sixth.— Fasts of the Church 325 LXVIIL— On Grace, 330 PART V. SEVEN SACRAMENTS. LXIX. — On the Sacraments in General, 339 LXX.— On Baptism 344 LXXI. — Sacrament of Baptism. — (Continued), 349 LXXII. — Sacrament of Confirmation, 353 LXXIIL— On the Eucharist, 357 LXXIV.— Effects of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, 362 LXXV. — Dispositions for Communion, , 366 LXXVI.— On a Bad Communion, 370 LXXVIL— On Frequent Communion, 374 LXXVIIL— On the Sacrament of Penance, 379 LXXIX. — On the Examination of Conscience, 383 LXXX.— On Contrition, 388 LXXXI.— Firm Purpose of Amendment 393 LXXXIL— On Confession, 398 LXXXIII.— On Confession.— (Continued), 403 Vlll CONTENTS. Sermon. Page. LXXXIV. — On Satisfaction or Penance, 408 LXXXV.— On Indulgences, 413 LXXXVL— On Extreme Unction, 418 LXXXVII.— Holy Orders, 422 LXXXVIII.~On the Sacrament of Matrimony, 427 PART VI LXXXIX.—On Sin in General, 433 XC— On Sin.-— (Continued), .438 XCL— On Mortal Sin , 442 XCII.— On Venial Sin, 447 SEVEN DEADLY SINS. XCIII.— On Pride, 452 XCTV. — On Avarice or Covetousness, 455 XCV.— On Lust or Impurity, 463 XCVI.— On Envy, 467 XCVIL— On Gluttony or Intemperance, 472 XCVIII.— On Anger, 477 XCIX.— On Sloth, 482 C. — On our Inclination to Sin, 487 INTKODUCTION The Hundred Short Sermons of Canon Thomas, now pre- sented for the first time to the American public, may be said to constitute an epitome of Moral Theology, and of Dogmatic Theology also, so far as this is connected with Moral. The chief characteristics which mark these discourses are brevity, clearness, solidity, simplicit}^, unction, method and thorough- ness. The Canon Penitentiary of Liege has much to say, and he says it well, without superfluity of words or circumlocution. He goes straight to the point, and deals seldom or but slightly in incidental matter, or in illustrations not directly pertinent to the subject. When you have read one of his Short Sermons, you have before you the skeleton of a much more lengthy discourse ; with all its parts in their proper places, and the whole well knit together. He is terse and condensed, without becoming either dry or obscure. And withal, there is a sim- plicity and an unction in the style and manner, which attracts you onward, and prevents your growing weary. In a moral or devotional work this is a great recommendation. But what chiefly distinguishes the Short Sermons from many other works of the kind with which we are acquainted, are the qualities of method and thoroughness. The Canon's method is based upon correct theological principles, and he carries out his plan so thoroughly as almost to exhaust the (ix) INTRODUCTION. whole subject of Christian morals and doctrine; for many points in Christian morals can not be understood, much less developed, without a study and uufoldiug of the doctrines on which they are grounded. The Hundred Sermons are not on detached or disconnected subjects ; they follow one another in regular order, and form a compact whole, remarkable for a Catholic unity growing out of the admirable harmony of its various parts. One subject naturally leads to another, and this to the following, in regular logical sequence. Thus the series is complete, and the amount of matter embraced in so narrow a compass is wonderful. A few words on the method adopted by the author will more fully explain our meaning, and will, at the same time, serve as a not inappropriate Introduction to the work. The Canon's plan is based upon a theological principle which is not new, but, on the contrary, very old and very well known. It is this; that Faith, Hope and Charity are the elements of the inner Christian life, and constitute the soul of the Church. These three great theological virtues lift up man unto God, and keep him united with God. They con- stitute the bonds of union between the soul and its Creator ; thus carrying out the etymological meaning of the word Re- ligion, The first bond of union between the soul and God, knitted in the garden of Eden, was broken by the primeval fall of man ; the second bond, by which the manifold evils which followed the disruption of the first were repaired, was established by Jesus Christ, who by His abundant redemption thus hound man again to his God. The soul has three faculties in the natural order, and she may be said to have also three faculties in that which is supernatural. By Faith, she is taught of God ; by Hope, she is lifted up to God ; by Charity, she is united with God. The Doctrines, the Moral Precepts, and the Sacraments, delivered or instituted by Jesus Christ, constitute the divine aliment on which these three virtues feed, and by which they are kept alive and in vigorous operation ; while the solemn INTRODUCTION. XI warnings which He uttered against sin point to the poison which is to be carefully guarded against in the spiritual warfare. The method of the Short Sermons is based upon this idea. The series is divided into Six Parts, concerning each of which we will offer a few remarks. I. The First Part treats of Faith, which is " the beginning, the root, and the foundation of all justification," according to the holy Council of Trent. It embraces twenty-six Sermons ; the first two of which are on the nature and characteristics of Faith, and the remaining twenty-four furnish an exposition of the leading articles of Faith contained in the Apostles' Creed. II. The Second Part is on Hope, " by which we are saved." It contains eleven Sermons ; the first of which is on the na- ture and grounds of Hope, and the remainder on prayer in general, and on the various parts of the Lord's Prayer, and the Angelical Salutation. Hope, based itself on Faith, origi- nates and elicits trustful prayer to God, invoking His all powerful and all bountiful aid in our manifold sorrows, neces- sities and sins ; and it also inspires earnest and confident peti- tions to Her — *' Our tainted nature's solitary boast" — who is the sweet Mother of our Saviour God and Elder Brother Jesus Christ ; and who is, by the fact, our Mother also, ever ready to look down on us with a Mother's eye from her bright seat in the heavens, and ever prepared, with a Mother's readiness and a Mother's undying love, to extend to us in our necessities and dangers a Mother's powerful protection, by efficacious intercession in our behalf with her divine Son. He whom she bore, and who never refused her any thing on earth, will not surely refuse to grant her petitions in heaven. III. The Third Part ti-eats of Charity, in its twofold aspect ; the love of God above all things, and the love of our neighbor as ourselves. The test of love, given by our blessed Lord himself, is the keeping of the Commandments. Hence, after first treating in general of the love of God and of the neigh- bor, the author devotes the remaining Sermons of this part to Xll INTRODUCTION. a lucid explanation of the Ten Commandments of God, un- folding the nature of their divine precepts, the powerful motives for observing them, and the practical manner of doing so with a fidelity persevering even unto the end. This is accomplished in twenty-four Sermons. lY . The Fourth Part is a Sequel to the Third. It treats of the Commandments of the Church — which Christ commands us to hear — first in general, and then on each one of the Six in particular, thus containing seven Sermons. Y. Next to the Commandments come the Sacraments, which are treated of in twenty solid and well considered discourses. The Sacraments are the divinely constituted channels of grace, and, in a certain sense, the organs of the Church, through which its soul — consisting of Faith, Hope and Charity — lives and breathes in this outward world. "We say lives^ to denote that the Sacraments, though they somewhat resemble the organs of sense in the body, yet contain an internal life^ which the merely corporeal organs have not. It belongs to the essence of a Sacrament to have a body and a soul ; — an external form or organization, and an internal grace or life. The grace necessarily follows the external sign or emblem, unless an obstacle be interposed by human perversity daring to receive negligently or unworthily the holy things of God. It may be well to explain, a little more in detail, what we mean by denominating the seven Sacraments, in a qualified sense, the organs of Faith, Hope and Charity, which, as we have said, constitute the spiritual life of the Church. Baptism may be called the Sacrament of Faith. By the early Greek Fathers, it was called the Sacrament of Illumine ation. By it we are initiated into the body of true believers, the Church of the Living God. By it and through it, saving Faith is bestowed, either actually or in its infused elements, on the recipient who opposes no obstacle to the action of grace. In Confirmation, this infused faith is strengthened by the Holy Ghost, who thereby enters into our souls and hearts, to enlighten and strengthen them for the combat. By the INTRODUCTION. XlU Holy Eucharist, we are corporeally and sweetly united with Jesus Christ himself — the Way, and the Truth, and the Life, — and, at the same time, the Living Fountain of divine Charity. In the Sacrament of Penance, the wounds which we may have received after Baptism in the battle of life are healed ; while by Extreme Unction, the traces of these wounds — the remains of sin — are removed by the holy unction with prayer, and we are prepared to meet with Hope the Saviour God in judgment. By Holy Orders and Matrimony, we receive special graces for particular conditions and callings in life. Thus the Seven Sacraments abundantly supply all our wants, and afford us adequate divine aid for every necessity and for every emergency of life. They all thus feed the three great virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity. They strengthen our weakness, animate our Faith, enliven our Hope, and inflame our Charity. They all lift us from earth, and raise us up toward heaven. YI. After the lights come the shadows. After considering the aids to salvation comes serious reflection on the obstacles which may interpose. The work would be thus obviously incomplete, if it presented only the efliicacy of Faith, the con- solation of Hope, and the sweetness of Charity, with the arms of the holy Sacraments by which these virtues achieve victory over the devil, the world, and the flesh. It must exhibit along with the wholesome food the poison also, that we may beware of it ; and by the side of the armory of God, the weapons likewise of Satan, that we may be able skillfully to parry them, and to turn them away harmless. Without this neces- sary safe- guard. Faith, Hope and Charity would fail effectually to accomplish their noble work of redemption. We would be exposed to lose these virtues in the great battle ; we would liill mortally wounded, die in sin, and be lost eternally ! Hence the author of the Short Sermons devotes a Sixth Part to the consideration of Sin in general, and of the Seven Deadly Sins in particular. This Part contains twelve Ser- mons, and these complete the work. Xiy INTRODUCTION. We are quite sure that the traDslation will present, sub- stantially at least, these great elements of the original work. That it will reflect all its excellencies of style and manner, all its simplicity and holy unction ; — would be more than it would be reasonable to expect from any translation. Great care has been taken to make it as perfect as possible. Our own con- stant engagements have necessarily prevented us from attend- ing to all the details ; but we have relied on others whom we deem at least equally competent to superintend the publica- tion ; and we therefore cordially recommend the work to the patronage of the public. The Short Sermons will be found valuable, not merely to the priest who wishes to instruct others, but also to the people who are to be instructed, in the ways of salvation. They will form an excellent and most useful book for the family. Those who may not be able to assist at the Holy Sacrifice on every Sunday and Ilolyday of the year may usefully read one or two of these Sermons, either privately for their own profit, or in the family for the instruction of all under their charge. Every priest and every Catholic family in the Union should possess a copy of a work so very valuable in itself, and so strongly recommended by the highest ecclesiastical authorities in Europe. SHORT SERMONS PAET I. SERMON I. THE TEACHINGS OF RELIGION. "Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations, * # * teaching them to observe all things, whatsoever I have commanded you." — St. Matthew, xxviii : 19, 20. Whex the Apostles had received the Holy Ghost, they were mindful of the command which our divine Saviour had given them, and, dividing the world among themselves, went forth, publish- ing everywhere, the glad tidings of the Gospel — the heavenly doctrine of Jesus Christ, which is the only true doctrine, because it alone came from God. This sacred deposit of truth, which the Son of God revealed to men, has been intrusted to the care of His Church, which communicates it to all nations. It is this holy Church that sends me among you, to instruct you in the science of God. I know your faith, your piety, your great desire to please God in all things, and I am sure that you love the word of God, and that you will come to hear it with attention and alacrity. But, my Saviour! In vain do I plant, in vain do I water; the land which Thou requirest me to cultivate, will remain 1/arren, unless Thou, Sun of Justice, dei^n to warm it witli 'i'iiv rays. 16 SHORT SERMONS. and bedew it with the showers of Thy heavenly grace. Open then, Lord ! the hearts of my hearers, that they may thoroughly understand the advantages which Thy adorable Religion procures for them. This is the special grace I implore of Thee, through the intercession of thine own most blessed Mother. Religion flashes her divine light upon our eyes, illumines our judgment, and leads our reason with a sure and steady step along the road of truth. Whence am I come into this world ? For what end was life given to me ? And what is my destiny ? I see men, like myself; are we brethren? "What are the duties we owe to each other ? What is God ? Are we the creatures of His hands ? And does He watch over us ? What are the duties we owe Him ? What is the homage we should offer Him, and what worship should we render to Him ? These, my Brethren, are questions of the greatest importance, and they should be answered plainly, solidly, and truly. But do not expect an answer to these Cjuestions from unaided reason. It can give none. This is clearly proved by the fact, that the pagan philosophers of antiquity, otherwise learned and enlight- ened, plunged into the most deplorable absurdities ; and that the proud and conceited minds of our own age, refusing to admit divine revelation as a guide in their search after truth, have fallen into errors no less monstrous and absurd. Ask, my Brethren, your own reason and your own understanding, and what answer do you receive? None. The suitable answer can be found only in the teachings of the Religion established by the Son of God. Let us, then, give thanks to our Saviour ; He is the Sun of Justice and of Truth, that hath shone upon the world, and dispelled the darkness of error and superstition. Yes, my God ! it is Thy grace alone that makes us saints as well as sages. Thou alone canst inform us of our origin, what is our vocation, what are our duties to Thee, to others, to ourselves, and what is the high destiny that awaits us in eternity. My Brethren, if you love wisdom, if you cherish truth, listen to the teaching of the divine Religion of our Saviour, which is truth itself, without admixture of error ; it is the source of light to the mind, the inexhaustible treasure of peace and consolation to the conscience. I have duties to discharge toward my God, toward my neighbor. If I enter into myself and listen to the voice of conscience, I am THE TEACHINGS OF RELIGION. 17 constrained to admit that I have not heen invariahly faithful to the holy law of the Lord ; that I have very often sinned. God is holy, God is just ; He must therefore hate sin, — he must punish it. Is it possible for me to merit pardon from God ? Is it possible for me to be re instated in his favor and friendship ? What must I do ? Ah ! if on this point we are in doubt, can our hearts be at rest ? No. Yet, in vain do I ask my reason, and take counsel with my intellect; they are powerless to give me an answer sufficient to dis- pel my disquiet and to calm my justly alarmed conscience. Ah ! well may I tremble ; for at any moment, death may summon me before the tribunal of the Sovereign Judge. But thanks to Thee, Jesus ! Thou hast proclaimed to me the hideousness, the enormity, and the danger of sin; but Thou hast also announced the great mercy and bounty of our heavenly Father, who will never reject the humble and contrite of heart. Yes, sin shuts heaven against us, opens a hell under our feet, where the wicked shall be forever punished. But blessed be Thou, Son of God ! who didst come among us and burden Thyself with our iniquities, which Thou didst expiate by Thy death on the cross. Blessed be Thou, Saviour of the world, for having left in the bosom of Thy Church a treasure of grace and mercy arising from Thy own divine merits, — the pre- cious sacrament of penance. The sinner humbles himself, con- fesses his crime, makes a resolution of amendment, and Jesus says to him, by the mouth of his priest: *'Thy sins are forgiven thee, go in peace," and peace and innocence reenter the heart of the poor sinner. When you witness the disorders which prevail in the world, you are troubled and confused, you murmur and complain at the unequal distribution of riches and enjoyments, of good and evil in this life. But listen to the teachings of Religion ; it is in this school you will learn to confide in divine Providence, and in the love of your heavenly Father, whose ways and designs are as far above the thoughts and designs of men, as heaven is above the earth. It is in the school of Religion, and here only, that we can learn to a certainty, the wisdom of God, who rules, disposes, regulates, and penetrates all things, from one extremity of the universe to the other, with an infinite power, with admirable sweetness, with an unbounded love for our greater good, and especially for our eternal salvation. Receive, 2 18 SHORTSERMONS. therefore, with all humility and submission, the lessons which Religion teaches us, and your discontents will cease, your murmurs will sub- side, peace and happiness will be restored to you, and in your pains and sorrows, you shall be favored with many heavenly consolations. And who is the man that does not stand in need of consolation ? Who is the man that has not to travel the road of affliction ? Ah ! how numerous, how various are our sufferings and our crosses? Who can enumerate the pains, both inward and outward, the afflic- tions of the body, the tribulations of the soul, and all the troubles which press so heavily upon mankind ? Groaning under the weight of sorrows, who will come to apply to us the balm of consolation ? You tell me to have courage ; but where shall we obtain this courage so necessary to support us ? Yes, you would come to inspire me with courage and give me strength, but you are unable. Religion is our only true comforter, the only source of consolation and of true courage. Religion tells me : Sufferings come from God ; He chas- tises you, because He loves you, that you may expiate your sins, and that you may be rich in merits before you receive the rewards of heaven. Ah ! if you knew the great value of the cross and of sufferings, you would be prepared to say with St. Augustine: "I weigh well what I suffer along with what I hope for, and I find the weight of my sufferings infinitely lighter than the weight of glory which my afflictions will procure for me. Here below we drink but a little drop of the bitter waters of tribulation ; but in heaven we shall be overwhelmed with the overflowing fountain of unspeakable delights." Thus it is that the adorable Religion of Jesus Christ pours into the suffering and afflicted heart the balm of consolation, fills us with a holy hope, and points us to heaven as the reward of our patience. Life is like a flower, which in the morning blooms, and in the evening fades. Every day, death strikes at us on every side, and it may at any moment arrest us in the midst of our career. Yery soon I shall descend to the tomb ; but am I nothing more than dust and ashes ? Is my soul as well as my body subject to death ? If my soul survives, whither shall it go, and what shall become of it ? The prince of philosophers has said with despair: "I do not know what will take place after death." But, my Brethren, the Son of God came down from heaven to reveal our future. No, no, the • THE TEACHINGS OF RELIGION. 19 existence of man is not confined to the limits of this short life. Do you believe that the only being of creation whom God has endowed with superior faculties, the only one who stands erect and looks toward heaven, shall be nothing but dust and putrefac- tion ! You have a soul Avhich is immortal, and which has nothing to fear from the corruption of the grave ; it came from God, and to God it must return. The darkness which surrounds us in death shall not be eternal, you shall rise full of life. Happy shall you be if j^ou are not attached to the vanities of the world; if you are faithful to God and to His holy Religion, if you live as true Chris- tians ; for then you shall inhabit the place where our divine Chief dwells, you shall participate in the glory of God, in the happiness of His elect. How consoling a hope ! And this hope is laid up in my heart ! 0, how I love and bless thee and the good things thou containest, 0, adorable Religion of my Saviour ! It is this Religion, built upon the word of God, which makes known to us the goodness of our heavenly Father, our own dignity and great- ness, and the felicity that awaits us in heaven. My Brethren, the teachings of the Religion of Jesus Christ, im- parts truth to our minds, gives a calm peace to the repenting sinner, reveals the future, and fills us with hope. In order to learn this wholesome doctrine, the people crowded with eagerness around our divine Saviour. These are the same precepts, which our Lord charges me to teach you. I shall acquit myself of my holy mission with all the zeal of which I am capable, and I shall do so with pleasure and success ; for you too are eager to learn the word of God. May the kingdom of truth be established in your hearts and minds, may you know God and His divine Son, your duties and your destiny ; may you know the way which will conduct you to the practice of virtue, to wisdom, to perfection, to heaven. My God ! bless my efforts. Let Thy grace accompany my words, or rather place upon my lips the words which will best make Thee known, loved and served, by every one whom Thou desirest that I should lead into the way of Thy adorable truth and commandments, that they may be found worthy of the infinite reward which Thou dost reserve for us in in a blessed eternity. — Amen. 20 SHORT SERMONS. SERMON II ON FAITH. " But as many as received him, to them he gave power to be made the sons of God, to them that believed in his name." — St. John, iv ; 12. The time of this our present life, is granted to lis, in order that we may know, love, and serve the Lord our God. If we employ, in this lioly exercise, the few days wMch we have to spend in this world, we shall most certainly merit and obtain an immortal life in the mansions of our heavenly Father. But those only know, love, and serve the Lord, who believe in the name of Jesus, the Son of God made man, follow His doctrine, do what He commands, and hope for what He promises. How important, then, it is for you to know this sahitary doctrine, this divine religion, the practice of which, enlivened and sanctified by the love of God, leads to celes- tial happiness. But Faith is the light, without which, as St. Paul teaches us, we can neither discover, invoke, nor serve our God. I shall, therefore, commence the course of instructions on Christian doctrine, which I propose giving you, by treating of Faith in general ; and afterward, I shall explain the principal truths which the Saviour has revealed to the world, and which are contained in the Apostles' Creed. What is Faith? Faith is a gift of God, and a supernatural virtue, by which we firmly believe in God and all the truths which the Church teaches, because God, who has revealed them, is truth itself. It is important, my Brethren, that you thoroughly understand the definition of Faith. I therefore proceed to explain all its terms and words : In the first place, I say, Faith is a gift of God, and a supernatural virtue: that is to sav. Faith comes not from ourselves, it is not our ON FAITH. 21 own production ; we can never have it in our hearts, except through an effect of God's goodness and liberality. It is a supernatural virtue ; we can not acquire it by our natural powers alone, it can come only from heaven. In fact, says the Apostle, "it is by grace you are saved through Faith, and this not of yourselves, for it is the gift of God; not of works, that no man may glory."* Faith comes from God, and without Faith we can not be saved. No, the Holy Ghost says, ''without Faith it is impossible to please God." The wrath of God falls with all its weight upon the children of incredulity. These words are but the development of what Christ himself teaches us, when He says, ''whosoever will not believe, shall be condemned;" he is already judged, he is criminal, his infi- delity itself is his condemnation, — he is dead before God. how happy are you, my Brethren ; you who have received the Faith, this precious gift of God ! It is a grace which the Lord has not granted to so many other nations, to whom he has not "made known his wonders. "f You have Faith ; God has given it to you ; but to what are you indebted for this privilege, this power of pleasing God? What have you done to render yourselves worthy of it? Did your works obtain this favor for you ? Or rather is not Faith the principle of all your meritorious works ? You are indebted for this precious gift to the goodness and favor of God. You can never be suffi- ciently thankful to the Creator, to Jesus, the Son of God, "for no man can go to the Father except through the Son." In fact, the very day on which you became Christians, and received the gift of Faith at the baptismal font, there were millions of children born through- out the whole extent of the earth, who had not the same happiness you had ; *they were born in barbarous and idolatrous countries, in nations where the knowledge of the true God is shrouded in the darkness of the most monstrous errors. Many are dead and they shall never see God ; others, blinde^d by superstition and vice, hurry on to their eternal perdition. Why were you not born in these countries ? Why did you not die in your mother's womb ? Why have you been preferred to so many others? "Virgin of Israel," saith the Lord, " I have loved thee with an eternal love ; behold the * Ephesians, ii : 3. f Psalm cxlvii. 22 S II O K T 8 E K M O N S . reason why, taking pity on thj misery, I have raised thee up even nnto myself." See Christians; even before you had power to think of Him, God loved you; this is the reason why ''he has snatched you fi'om the powers of darkness, that he might receive you into the empire of Jesus Christ, His well beloved Son, by whose blood you have been redeemed." Bless and glorify the hand which has heaped upon you so many favors ; return thanks to God for His goodness, who has so tenderly loved you, adore His word, and believe in Him, but believe ^rmZy. In the second place, I say that Faith is a gift of God, and a supernatural virtue, by which we believe ^rm^y. When a Catholic says : " I believe ;" it is as if he said, " I am sure there is nothing but truth in every thing which the Church of Jesus Christ proposes to my belief, and I believe the word of God more firmly than I would believe the testimony of my own eyes, and the judgment of my own reason. It is God who speaks and reveals the truth which is in Him from all eternity. Can I refuse to hear my God ? No ; I make my understanding captive unto the obedience of Faith, and my will unto the yoke of the law. " This word comes from God ; "* it must be believed; I bow down before God with a willing heart; His truth conquers me ; doubt is driven from my mind ; retreating before the certainty which God himself establishes in my soul. Yes, Christians, we must believe firmly, for it is in God we believe ; in God, who is supreme wisdom, infinite goodness, truth itself; who can neither be deceived nor wish to deceive us, and who, whilst conducting us by the hand of His infallible Church, will never per- mit us to fall into error and illusion. In the third place, I say by Faith we believe in God ''and all the truths which the Church teaches ; because God, who has revealed them, is truth itself." God expressly commands that we should believe all the dogmas and all the truths which he has revealed, and which the Church proposes to our Faith. He wishes and requires that we should believe with equal confidence every word He has spoken. For, he who refuses to believe even one single article of religion, no longer possesses the precious gift of Faith. What! Could God permit man to receive only some of His truths, and leave him free * Genesis, xxiv. O N F A I T H . 23 to despise and reject others with scorn ? No, the man that presumes to exercise a liberty so injurious to God, ceases to believe the word of God, the eternal truth ; he has no Faith, he follows his own opinion, and not the doctrine of God ; he grounds himself no lon- ger on the veracity of God, on the infallible evidence of His Church, but on the fallible testimony of his own judgment. He wishes to make God an impostor ; he has no real Faith ; the light of God no longer sheds its enlivening rays upon his mind. But, my Brethren, let us not deceive ourselves ; there are degrees of Faith. It may be more or less fervent, more or less strong, without ceasing to be the Faith that comes from God — the true Faith. The Faith of that father mentioned in the Gospel, who exclaimed, — **I do believe, Lord, help my unbelief," was weak, though true, and pleasing to God. Such also was the Faith of the disciples, when they said to their divine Master, "increase our Faith." Faith is a virtue, and, like all other virtues, it must be proved by trials in the heart of man. Hence, we can not but know that our minds will be frequently tormented by involuntary doubts, which come in despite of us, and render us a prey to violent agita- tions, by which our soul is oppressed and afflicted. The greatest saints have not always been exempt from these trials. Like them, let us courageously resist all such temptations which test, but do not lessen our Faith. Coming out of the contest victorious, we shall be dearer to the heart of God. Above all, my Brethren, let us guard and watch diligently over this precious gift of Faith which God has granted us, and let us never permit any willful doubt to enter our minds ; for by willfully doubting the truths of Faith, we call in question the veracity of God himself. To consent to doubts and entertain them in our hearts, would effectually expose our Faith to that sad shipwreck of which the Apostle speaks — a misfortune that would plunge us into, the abyss of eternal death. It is necessary to believe every thing that God and his Church propose to our belief, whether they are the doctrines found in the sacred books, or the truths which holy tradition has handed down to us. The Sacred Scriptures are the word of God, and they con- tain nothing but what is true ; but they do not embrace all revealed truth. The Sacred Scriptures themselves say that there are many things which om* Saviour and Apostles said and did which were not 24 SHORT SERMONS. written. Yet not one iota of these truths coming from the mouth of God is lost, or ever shall he lost. No, God has not permitted it ; on the contrary, he willed that all these words and truths should pass from mouth to mouth, and should be preserved in the bosom of his Church. These dogmas are all equally true, all equally the word of God, and when the Church of Jesus Christ proposes them to us, we ought to believe them firmly, without hesitating, without doubting, if we desire to keep the Faith which pleases God, and the Faith which comes from God. God grant, my Brethren, that the instruction which you have just heard may be deeply engraven upon your memory ; may you never forget that which, as Catholics, you are bound to believe in heart and soul ; may you never lose sight of the obligations you are under to God, for the great benefit of your vocation to the true Faith, for the preference which He has shown you in distinguishing you from so many others, who live and die in the darkness of error. O yes, praise the Lord all the days of your life ; let your hearts and tongues extol and glorify continually the goodness of the heavenly Father, who has bestowed this precious gift of Faith on you, who did nothing and could do nothing to merit such a divine favor. To know God ; the adorable mysteries of His Son made man, the riches of the glory He prepares for us, this is the science of the Christian, — the science which Faith teaches. Without this heavenly science we should be buried in misery and darkness, the melancholy sport of uncertain opinions and deceitful fancies which the spirit of man conjures up. May God preserve us from falling away from this divine, adorable Faith. It is in this Faith, my God, that I wish to live and die ; for it is only through it I can learn to do thy will. May Thy Grace, Lord, be always with me, that I may never cease to fulfill what Thy holy religion commands ; so that I may be one day admitted to the happiness of seeing Thee, face to face, such as Thou art in Thy eternal mansions, where Thou wilt fully recompense those who have known Thee, loved Thee, and served Thee in this world ! — Amen. E X I S T E N C K O F G O D . 25 SERMON III. FIRST ARTICLE OF THE CREED. EXISTENCE OF GOD. "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth." — Apostles' Creed. It is necessary to believe every thing that God has said and revealed to the world, all the truths which the Lord has intrusted to the guardianship of his Church ; for without faith it is impossible to please God ; without faith no one can be saved. How ardently, then, beloved Christians, do I desire that you would know well the truths which are the object of your faith. You find them, for the most part, contained in the Apostles' Creed, which is composed of twelve articles, the first of which is thus expressed: "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth." There are so many things contained in these few words, that I can not treat all of them in one instruction. I will, therefore, confine myself to-day to the explanation of these words: "I believe in God;" that is to say, my Brethren, what I wish to impress upon your minds, is, that there is a God, that there is but one God ; and what that one God is : There is a God : this is the first truth which we profess to believe when we recite the Creed, a truth which is the foundation of all the other truths of religion, and of salvation ; a truth which nature as well as religion alike inculcate ; a truth better known than all others, and which is as clear to our eyes as the light of day. Hence, we always regard as monsters, rather than men, that small number of wretches who arrive at such a hight of impiety that they dare deny or even doubt that there is a God. If they have the hardihood to say so, "it is only in their heart," saith the prophet. Indeed, the Corruption of their hearts makes them desire that there were no 36 SHOETSEKMONS. God, that they may with greater ease and freedom ahandon them- selves to the disorders of their passions ; but their intellect never admits such an absurdity, and always convicts them of their lying blasphemies. ' In fact, my Brethren, to convince us of the Existence of a God, it is not necessary that we should enter into tedious researches, and have recourse to laborious studies ; it suffices to contemplate our- selves attentively, to cast a glance over this vast earth, on the millions of creatures that inhabit the world. Yes, says Isaias, "Lift up your eyes on high; consider who has created the heavens, who caused the army of stars to move in such beautiful order, and who calls them by their names." Who, then, has fixed this earth upon its foundation ? Who has constructed the spacious firmament on high, — that wonderful ceiling dotted all over with stars, as so many precious stones? Did man give existence to himself? Did the sun and moon fix themselves in the firmament ? "Do you know who is the Father of the rain, or who begot the drops of dew?* Ah ! the world is a great book, which speaks to us only of God ; the voice of the Supreme Being resounds from one end of the uni- verse to the other, and says : "I am the Lord ; that make all things ; that alone stretch out the heavens ; that establish the earth ; and there is none with me."f It is God, who has made every thing, and nothing was made without Him. Every man who does not recognize Thee, and who presumes to deny Thy existence, 0, my God, is blind, is an ungrateful wretch, is a monster without eyes, without ears, without intellect, and without heart. Yes, if he has eyes let him open them, and everywhere he will see evidences of Thy wisdom, 0, my God, and the wonders of Thy Omnipotence ! If he has ears to hear, why does he close them against the voice of every creature that proclaims the greatness of its Creator? Has he received from heaven the gift of intelligence ; he, who, more stupid than beasts, disowns Him to whom he is indebted for every thing ? And where, then, is his heart, since he is insensible to the ineffable bounty for all the blessings which he constantly receives from this adorable Provi- dence, that confers them on him ? * Job, xxxviii. t Isaias, xliv. EXISTENCEOFGOD. 27 Yes, my Brethren, there is a God, there is but one God, and there can be no more gods than one. In truth, God is the Being above all beings ; the Infinite Being ; the perfect Being. That per- fection can not be divided; infinity appertains to but one Being alone. Were there many infinitely perfect beings, none of them would possess perfection, since they would all be equal ; none of them Avould be superior to the others, none would be Sovereign Master; and we can with reason say, if there were many gods, there would be none, for a plurality of gods were an idle fancy, a thing that exists not. Says the prophet of God: "Hear, Israel, the Lord, our God, is the only Lord. I am, says he, the first and the last, there is no God besides me."* There is but one God. You must not however imagine, my Brethren, that the unity of God is opposed to the adorable mysteiy of the Most Holy Trinity. It is true, faith teaches us to acknowl- edge and adore three Persons in the Most Blessed Trinity, three Persons in one God ; yet, there is in this no contradiction. Indeed, we do not say, there are three Gods in one God ; but there are three Persons, who constitute but one God. In the Most Blessed Trinity there are not three divine natures, but only one and the same divine nature for the three divine Persons. Yes, my Brethren, always bear in mind, that the three divine Persons of the Most Blessed Trinity have but one and the same divine nature, and are but one and the same God. I know that this is one of those truths which reason of itself cannot comprehend, experience teach, nor the senses assist us to discover ; it is a mystery the depth of which, it belongs to God alone to fathom. "No one knoweth the Son, but the Father, neither doth any one know the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.f But what ought to set our minds at rest, and free us from all uneasiness, is, that God himself has revealed this august mystery, and His divine word is our guar- anty for this profound truth. He has said: "There are three in heaven who give testimony, — the Father, the Woixi, and the Holy Ghost, — and these three are one.| But what is God? The day will come when, in heaven, we shall know God and see His infinite perfections in the clearest light. In • Isaias, xl and xliv. f St. Matthew, xi: 27. $ St. John, v : 7. 28 - SHORT SEEMONS. this life we behold Him only through a glass and in shadows. Yet, however imperfect our knowledge may be, faith and reason throw sufficient light around us, to demonstrate to us that God is a Spirit infinite in all His attributes ; that He is self-existent, and that He is from eternity. God is infinite, therefore He wants nothing ; and there is in Him not even the smallest defect, nor the slightest im- perfection. He is perfect ; there is in Him neither sleep, nor hun- ger, nor thirst, nor anger, nor sadness, nor suffering, nor death; none of these imperfections are to be found in the infinitely perfect nature of God. GoS is from all eternity; He was not created by himself; neither could He have been created by another. If God created himself. He must have existed before He created himself, which is a palpa- ble absurdity. If God was created by another, tell me by whom this other was himself created ? How, then, does God exist ? The Almighty himself informs us, when He says to Moses: **IAm WHO Am" — that is to say, I am the necessary, infinite, eternal Being, the Source, the beginning of all other beings ; Life, and even Exist- ence itself. God is a being perfectly simple ; He is a perfect Spirit ; He has neither body, nor figm^e, nor form. He does not come under our senses ; He can neither be seen, nor touched. If the picture of God the Father represents Him under the form of an old man, it is to give us an idea of His adorable antiquity, and because He showed himself in this form to the prophet Daniel. If the Sacred Scrip- tures speaks to us of the eyes, the feet, and the hands of God, it uses such language only to accommodate itself to our weakness. These are no more than figures which serve to make us understand the perfections and attributes of God. By His eyes is signified that He sees all things ; by His hands that He made all things ; by His arms is understood His supreme power ; and we express as far as possible His dignity, by placing all creatures at His feet. But at the same time, the word of God warns us not to conceive a false idea of God, by supposing Him to have a human form, giving Him a human body and senses, or by believing that He is, as it were, confined within the vast and magnificent palace of this world. God is a Spirit ; and therefore He desires to be adored in spirit and in truth. He wishes that our minds should be constantly EXISTENCE OF GOD. 29 raised toward Him, and that our hearts should be penetrated with His love, when we contemplate and meditate upon His infinite per- fections. He wishes that, like generous children, we should have for Him the deepest respect and the most perfect submission to His ever adorable will. He wishes that, by a faithful discharge of all the duties of our state, we may merit His favor and His love. There is a God : He is perfect, He is infinite. my soul, bless the Lord, and may all that is within me praise His holy name ! Yes, Lord, I am the work of Thy hands, and my soul and my body shall never cease to publish Thy greatness and Thy goodness. Alas ! can it be possible that there are men who refuse to recognize Him, by whose omnipotence they were called into exist- ence ! Can it be, that there are others who, though acknowledging that there is a God, yet live as if they knew Him not ; do not love Him, nor serve Him, nor wish to do any thing to please Him. Let us not, my God ! be amongst the number of those ungrate- ful wretches ; on the contrary, let us bless Thee all the days of our lives ; let us praise and glorify Thee on earth, which is Thy foot- stool ; that we may merit the happiness of being one day admitted to praise, and bless, and love Thee forever in Heaven, where Thou hast established the ** Throne of Thy Glory." — Amen. 30 SHORT SERMONS. SERMOJ( IV. FIEST ARTICLE OF THE CREED— (conthtoed.) OMNIPOTENCE OF GOD. "I believe in God, the Father Almighty." — Apostles' Ceeed. There is a God, there can be but one, He is self-existent. He exists from all eternity, He is tlie principle and author of all things in heaven and on earth. God is a Spirit infinitely pui-e, has neither body nor figure, and he possesses every perfection in an infinite de- gree. Behold, my Brethren, what formed the subject of our last instruction. I most ardently desire that you would every day make some progress in the knowledge of the Lord our God, for the more you know Him, the more will you love Him, and the better will you serve Him. It is for this reason that I now proceed to explain some of the infinite and unspeakable perfections of our Creator. To-day I will speak to you of His Omnipotence, and I will show you how useful it is often times to meditate on this wonderful per- fection. God is Omnipotent, that is to say, He can, in one single instant and without labor, do whatsoever he pleases. This is a truth which faith does not permit us to doubt, and of which we can not help being thoroughly convinced, when we survey the vast and magnifi- cent expanse of creation, and contemplate the harmonious order which reigns throughout all nature. Who indeed among you can measure, with his sight, the im- mense extent of the canopy of heaven ; can consider the beauty of the sun, and of the millions of stars which adorn the firmament ; can fix his attention on the numberless beautiful animals, so varied in their different kinds and species, which move on the earth, fly in the air, or swim in the waters ; can even for an instant fix his atten- OMNIPOTENCE OF GOD. 31 tioii on the ftst.onisliing variety of trees, of flowers, and of fruits which cover and embellish the surface of the earth ; which of you, I say, can behold this magnificent spectacle without feeling himself constantly impelled to exclaim, Oh ! boundless grandeur ! Oh ! infi- nite Omnipotence of my God ! Yes, the Lord our God is all-powerful. Tlie Sacred Scriptures, which the Holy Spirit dictated to man, not only teach us that it is the hand of God which fashioned all we see, — every thing that exists, — all the wonders which challenge our admi- ration, but even that it has created them all, has made them all out of nothing. The human mind is no doubt, occasionally, capable of great things. Well ; now collect from the four quarters of the globe the ablest minds, men endowed with the highest degree of intelligence ; and certainly many such might be found. Then, when you have them all assembled, ask them to unite their efforts and work together, but without materials, without tools ; by the sole power of their minds and wills, and what will they produce ? A world ? No ; not even a grain of wheat, not the smallest atom of straw. What ? Do you think they could construct a new canopy for the heavens ? No, not even a hut. They w^ould labor for millions of years, and for millions of ages, and yet never produce one. The power of the Creator, is then infinite, for it needed not matter and instruments to construct this beautiful world. Without trouble and without labor He has created heaven and earth ; God wills, He spoke, and the universe sprang from the abyss of nothingness. ** I am the Lord," He says, "that made all things, that alone stretch out the heavens, that establish the earth, and there is none with me.* Yes, my Brethren, to execute the decrees of His wisdom, to realize the eternal plans of His infinite intelligence, God requires neither mat- ter, nor instruments, nor aid, nor help from any one. He speaks, and on the instant millions of creatures spring into life ; He has but to will it, and that very instant they would fall back into the nothingness from which His voice had called them. He created all things with equal ease, and it costs Him no more to produce a world than to form the smallest seed, — the tiniest insect. Without trouble and without labor, He has created the heavens and the earth ; without * Isaias, xliv : 24. 32 S n O R T S E E M O N S . trouble and without labor, He preserves the existence He bas given them, and maintains the wonderful order in which He has estab- lished them ; without trouble and without labor, His hand peopled the world with an immense variety of sentient, animated beings ; a word was sufficient for Him. By a single word, all these animated beings are multiplied and perpetuated on the earth. Another word issues from His divine mouth, and, faithful to the command of the Creator, the sun advances, shining in the heavens, the moon begins to shed her mild effulgence, and the stars bedeck the firmament ; a word, and not one of these stars ever forget the command, but will please God ; they will continue to move in the path which His divine hand has marked out for them. It is therefore true that God is Omnipotent, — His power is infi- nite, — knowing no limits ; He can do whatsoever he wills ! God is Omnipotent ! ! how consoling a truth for the suffer- ing, afflicted, disconsolate heart of man ! God, he can say, is all- powerful. He can do whatsoever He wills, and nothing is able to resist the strength of His arm ; it is then true that He can cure me of all my ills ; if I am sick. He can heal me ; He can extricate me from the miseries and oppressive sorrows beneath which I groan ; He can protect me against the repeated assaults of my enemies ; He can assist me with His power, and cast around me the shield of His divine protection in the daily contest which I have to wage against the world, the devil, and the flesh ; He can, in fine, give me the victory and confirm me in the pathway of virtue- and of piety. But where are the proofs of this consoling truth? Open the Sacred Scriptures, and they are full of striking examples more than suffi- cient to banish every doubt from your minds. Who was it that rescued Joseph from the dreary and shameful prison, wherein he had so long groaned ? Who broke asunder his fetters and elevated him to the position of chief minister to the powerful king of Egypt ? It was God. Every kind of misfortune was heaped on the head of Job ; deprived of his children and his wealth, plunged into the most frightful desolation, his body covered all over with a loathsome, con- suming disease. Who came to the assistance of this holy man, and restored him to health and to redoubled prosperity ? It was God. An impious king usurps the rights of God, and, in his folly, com- mands the people to adore hira. Three young men refuse to bend O M N I P O T E N C E O F G O D . 33 the knee before his statue, and they are cast into a burning furnace ; but behold, they walk uninjured in the midst of the devouring flames. Who was it that thus miraculously preserved their lives and deprived the fire of its power to harm them ? It was God, — the Omnipotent God. Famine spreads desolation over the land of Israel. The prophet Eliseus, flying from the enemies of the Lord, retires into the desert, there to die of hunger. But he dies not ; for behold, the Lord commands the birds of the air to provide for His servant, and every day tl^ey carry to him food to support his life. Two infamous old men drag the chaste Susannah before the judges of Israel, and accuse her of crime. Sentence of death is pronounced against her; but Susannah dies not ; for the Lord, the God of justice, enlightens the mind of the youthful Daniel ; the innocence of the chaste virgin is recognized, and the sentence which threatened her life falls on the heads of her guilty accusers. Behold what the Lord has accomplished, and the wonders wrought by Him, to whom nothing is impossible, and who can do whatso- ever He willeth. God is all-powerful ! But if this truth -abounds in consolation for the righteous and the just, it is no less terrible and afflicting to the wicked and impenitent sinner. For if God can do whatsoever He wills, if all things are possible to Him, He can punish the wicked in a terrible manner ; if He spare him, it is only because His mercy stays the arm of His justice. And what reason has not the sinner to tremble ? God beholds him advancing in the paths of iniquity. He sees him filling up the measure of his guilt, and to- morrow, perhaps. He will call him before His awful tribunal, to condemn him to everlasting punishment. Yes, sinners, God can and He has punished sin, and continues to do so every day. Do you doubt it? The Sacred Scriptures will inform you how severely God has often dealt with the sinner. Na- dab and Abiu, the sons of Aaron, contrary to the express prohibition of God, dared to set profane fire on the altar, and burn their incense upon it. God condemns them, and that very instant flames issue from the earth and destroy them. Forty-two youths follow and mock the prophet Eliseus, and at the command of God two bears from the depths of the forest rush on these forty-two wicked young men, and devour them. Heliodorus, jjossessed of all the power of 34 SHORTSEEMONS. an earthly monarcli, enters the temple of Jerusalem, to rob it of its treasure and desecrate the holy places of God; but the King of heaven gives the word, and immediately two angels appear, and strike Heliodorus so severely that he is carried away half dead. You see, my Brethren, how true it is that the Omnipotent hand of God can punish us even at the very moment we are abandoning ourselves to sin. Let us, therefore, be wise and prudent, and when temptation presents itself to draw us from the path of rectitude, let us raise our thoughts to heaven and call to mind the Omnipotent power of God, who can, the very instant we consent to the sin, most terribly punish us for all eternity. Beyond doubt, this recollec- tion of the judgment of an Omnipotent God will make us fear and avoid committing the sin. And when misfortune visits our home, when sorrow enters our hearts, and affliction presses heavily upon us, Oh ! let us not be discouraged, but let us remember that God is Omnipotent; that He can aid us, comfort us, and restore to our hearts and our homes the peace and the happiness we had lost. May this salutary thought never depart from our hearts ; so shall we be more patient, more re- signed, and more submissive to the holy will of God ; who tries us, it is true, but only with the view that when we shall have passed through this vale of tears, having borne our cross with patience in this life, we may at length arrive at that celestial home, where our Omnipotent God recompenses beyond all conception, the patience and the virtues of His saints. — Amen. GOD IS EVERYWIIEEE, ETC 35 SERMON V. FIKST ARTICLE OF THE CEEED— (continued.) GOD IS EYERYWHERE; GOD KNOWS ALL THINGS. " I set the Lord always in my sight, for He is at my right hand, that I be not moved." — Psalms, xv. God is all-powerful. Let us, tlierefore, always fear offending the Lord, for the very moment we become guilty, he can punish us. The Holy Ghost has said it is an awful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. God is omnipotent ; why then should we be discouraged when calamities and misfortunes weigh heavily upon us ? No, the Christian should never give way to despair, how heavy soever be the cross he has to carry, how excruciating soever be the pains he has to endure. Let us remember that our heavenly Father is omnipotent, that He watches over us, and His divine word is pledged that they who hope in Him, will not be confounded forever. Yes, we ought to have confidence in the all-powerful protection of our God, for it was not in mockery, it was not to deceive us, that He invited us all to come to Him, saying: "Come to me all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you." The omnipotence of God, the salutary influence which the thought of this divine perfection should have on our conduct, such was the subject of our last instruction. Let us advance in the knowledge of the Lord, and to-day let us sj^eak of His immensity, and of His infinite Omniscience. "O Israel," exclaims a prophet, " how vast is the habitation of God, how great are His possessions ! He is great, He has no limits. He is sublime. He is immense." To make us sensible of His im- mensity, the Lord God has himself told us, by the mouth of His prophets, that He is the Most High God, that He fills the heavens 36 SHORT SERMONS. and the eartii, that the heavens and the earth can not contain Him ; that He is higher than the heavens and deeper than the abyss ; that the place of His habitation is vast and boundless. David, filled with the spirit of God, cries out in a transport of admiration: ** Whither shall I go from Thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from Thy face ? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there ; if I descend into hell, thou art present. If I take my wings early in the morn- ing, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there also shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand shall hold me."* But these expressions, however sublime they may be, are neverthe- less mere human language, in which God condescends to address us, that He may not overwhelm our weakness ; for there is nothing in us nor around us which can exactly represent to us the immensity of God, such as it really is ; therefore, do not figure to yourselves, the Lord God as a great body, infinitely extended and covering the vast surface of the universe. No ; He existed before the world, which He himself has formed, and before He had created it, there was neither place nor space which could limit the infinite Being. God could have created other worlds a thousand times more vast than this ; and had He done so, He would still be everywhere pre- sent in them, as well as in our own. This world does not confine His infinite being ; God is not then inclosed within the limits of space ; but we and the entire world exist in God. We are in the immensity of God, like the fish in the water, or the bird in the air, as St. Augustine tells us, encircled as it were, by His divine Presence, for He fills the heavens and the earth. Go, then, where you will, traverse the open plain, or remain shut up in your house, perform your actions in the broad daylight, or bury yourselves in the thickest shades of darkness ; God is there ; He sees you ; nothing escapes his all-seeing eye, and He Himself says to you: *' What, then, are your thoughts ? Am I, think ye, a God at hand, and not a God afar off? Shall a man be hid in secret places, and I not see him."f Ah ! says the apostle, "there is no creature invisible to the eyes of God, before whom all things are laid open ; He sees all things. He knows all things, and His knowledge has no bounds." God knows not only the present, but the past and the future. * Psalms, cxxxviii. f Jeremias, xxiii : 23. ETC. 37 He knows not only wliat is outward, what appears to the eyes, but what passes even in the most secret and most intimate recesses of our hearts ; He hears our words, He sees our actions, and reads in their inmost depths the secrets of our souls. He knows what are our thoughts, and what desires occupy our minds. Yes, says He, by the mouth of his prophet Ezechiel : **I know the thoughts of your hearts."* He knows what you will do to-day; the future is present to Him, and nothing is hidden from Him. He penetrated our hearts, He foresaw what would be our ways, and He understood all our words a long time before they were uttered. Reflect, now, my Brethren, on this ; God is Everywhere, and He knows all things ; to Him there is no secret, no mystery. He is Everywhere, He is, then, near us. He is in ns; He knows. He hears, He sees every thing we do, every thing we say, every thing we think. How great, then, must be our audacity and rashness when we dare, under the very eyes of God, to harbor and foster so many sinful thoughts, to form so many criminal desires, to ntter so many guilty words, and commit so many culpable actions ! Would you dare do this sinful and shameful act in the presence of a man whom you respect ? Would you dare, in his presence, give utterance to that blasphemous or obscene word ? Where is the servant who would presume, under the very eyes of his master, to violate his orders and do what he had forbidden ? Where is the man who would insult and outrage one, who, in an instant, could strike him dead ? And yet, my Brethren, we fear not to sully our souls with the guilt of the most shameful crimes in the very presence of God, who will not only exact from us a most rigid account of all our conduct, but who can even plunge us into eternal torments the very instant we become guilty in his sight ? Is not this conduct, on our part, to say the least of it, imutterably rash and inconceivably wicked ? In acting thus, do we not declare that we have no respect whatever for the divine Presence ? It is not the same as if we said we no longer believe that God is Everywhere, that He sees all things, hears all things, and knows all things? In truth, my Brethren, were men thoroughly convinced that God is Everywhere, that they can not hide themselves from His sight, they never would be seen * Ezechiel, xi : 5. 38 SHORT SERMONS. seeking solitude and darkness to give themselves up to vice, and burden their souls with, the most criminal actions ; they never would be seen waiting with such impatience for the night, to abandon themselves to the most shameful disorders. Unfortunate man ! do you not know that the eyes of God are **more luminous than the sun?" You may withdraw yourself from the sight of man, but you can not escape the all-seeing eye of God ; wheresoever you go that eye is fixed upon you, — everywhere your sovereign Judge sees your bad actions, hears your improper conversations, sees your per- verse thoughts, your detestable projects; and the day will come when He will visit you with an awful retribution. In vain does the murderer, like Cain, seek to hide his crime ; in vain does the unjust man, like Achab, seek excuses to palliate his injustice ; in vain does the hypocrite, like the proud Pharisee, whilst deceiving men, wish to trifle with God ; in vain does the luxurious man, like the wretched accusers of Susanna, cast down his eyes, that they may not behold the heavens. Eemember, sinners, that there is a God who sees you, and a day will come when He will render to every one of you according to your works ; when they who have surpassed all others in crime, will likewise surpass all others in punishment. Oh ! how terrifying to the sinner is the remembrance of the divine presence, but how consoling and encouraging to the good? Can there, indeed, be any thing better calculated to inspire us, my Breth- ren, with a noble courage and an admirable patience in all our cares and sorrows ? Can there be any thing better fitted to fill us with heroic bravery in the contest we have to maintain against the enemies of our salvation ? What more - suited to strengthen us in our good resolutions, to impart to us perseverance in the exercise of virtue, and in the practice of good works, than this consoling thought, God is near me ; He knows what I need. He understands my wants ; my sorrows and my crosses are manifest to Him. He sees the good works I do to please Him, He witnesses the inward struggle I have to sustain against my passions and evil inclinations ; the sighs I heave forth from the bottom of my heart, are not hidden from His sight. ! yes. He will come to my assistance, and He will reward me. If I suffer with Him, I will be glorified with Him in heaven, where there are no more dangers, nor sorrows, nor vexations, noi GOODNESSOFQOD. 39 disappointments, nor tears, because all these things shall have passed away, but where there are unutterable delights and never ending happiness. My Brethren, let us never forget the divine Pres- ence after the example of the prophet, who had God always before his eyes. The Almighty has himself imposed this practice as a law upon us. "Walk before me," He says, "and be ye perfect." Yes, my Brethren, wait before the Lord ; Here is the means of strengthening yourselves, and of advancing in the paths of virtue and of piety. Man ceased to keep God before his eyes, and all his ways became wicked, and filled with iniquity. Jerusalem fell into crime, because she had forgotten her God. Forgetfulness of the divine Presence is the sure road to eternal ruin, while the remem- brance of it restrains man within the bounds of duty, and empowers him to bring forth fruits worthy of salvation, precious fruits, in re- compense of which the Lord promises and grants peace of heart in this world, and boundless happiness in the world to come. — Amen. SERMON VI. FIRST ARTICLE OF THE CREED.— (continued.) GOODNESS OF GOD. " Give praise to the Lord, for He is good : for His mercy endureth forever. — Psalms, cxvii : 1. The Lord God is an infinite Spirit who fills heaven and earth, and whom heaven and earth can not contain. He is everywhere. By His essence, He is the infinite Being ; by His presence. He is whole and entire in each place, as perfectly as He is in the entire universe ; by His power. He acts everywhere. God sees all things, — God knows all things. He knows our thoughts. He sees our actions. He hears our words. The recollection of these divine perfections is well calculated to penetrate our hearts with the fear of the Lord, 40 SHORT SEE MONS. and restrain ns from vice and sin. For, how can we dare commit sin when we know that God is everywhere, and unceasingly crying out to the sinner that his most hidden crimes are seen ? On the other hand, the remembrance of these divine perfections, is admira- bly suited to inspire us with a noble courage in the practice of virtue. For how powerfully must we not feel impelled to be faith- ful to the law of God, and how is it possible we could recede on the pathway of virtue, while calling to mind that we are under the eyes of our sovereign Master, who takes delight in encouraging His forgotten and despised servants, by assuring them that their virtues have a witness ? But you will be still more firmly attached to the service of the Lord your God, w^hen you become better acquainted with the most endearing of His perfections, His infinite Goodness, of which I intend to speak to you on this occasion. ** Praise the Lord, because He is good, for He is eternally good," says the royal prophet. Wheresoever you cast your eyes, you will meet proofs of the infinite Goodness of God,- — everywhere you may see and taste how good and sweet the Lord is.* On every side the voice of all nature may be heard, exclaiming : "He is a God, author of all good ; He is good and merciful ; the Lord is sweet to all His creatures, and His mercy and His Goodness are spread over all His works."! It was the boundless Goodness of our God, which from nothing created the world and the innumerable creatures that inhabit it. It is this boundless Goodness of God which fills Him with the sincere desire of making happy all His creatures, from the highest angel of heaven, to the meanest insect that crawls along the earth. **A11 expect of Thee that Thou give them food in season: What Thou givest them, they shall gather up ; when Thou openest Thy hand, they shall be filled with good."| But to us, especially, does it belong to praise with all our heart the Lord our God, and to glorify eternally His adorable name :§ for it is on us that the Lord has made flow the torrent of His graces, of His goodness, and of His love. My Christian Friends, can you count the graces, the favors, and the benefits which God bestows upon you every day and every hour of the day ? Oh ! every moment of our lives is an evidence of the Goodness of God toward us ! It is God * Psalms, xxxiii: i). f Psalms, cxliv. i Psalms, ciii:, 27, 28. § Psalms, Ixxxv. G00DNES80FG0D. 41 who is the principle and the source of all that we are and of all that we possess. To whom are you indebted for your existence, if not to the infinite bounty of God, who gave you being, in preference to so many others whom He might have created ? To whom do you owe your soul, with its faculty of reason, by which you are elevated above all other creatures, if not to the infinite Goodness of God ? Truly, God could have left you in the abyss of nothingness and not have created you. You did nothing and could not have done any thing to deserve the privilege of creation ; but the bounty of God has called you, has created you, and raised you up to the highest point of glory. He has made you the most excellent, the most noble, the most exalted of His creatures in this visible world. He has given you a body erect, and of wonderful structure ; He has fonned your soul after the most perfect of all models; **let us make man to our own image and likeness," said the Lord, — and you were accordingly made to the image and likeness of God ; and He gave you an immortal soul, a sublime reason, and a will free and powerful. Yes ! the hand of God is open, and you have been loaded with the favors and the treasures of His bounty ! But did the bounty of God cease when He had bestowed upon you this creation, so exalted, so privileged ? No ; the hand that formed you still continues to lead, feed, and support you ; it dis- poses all things with a view to provide for your wants in this world. The sun, the moon, the millions of stars that shine in the heavens, all animate and inanimate beings which fill the earth, the air, the water, for what purpose have they been created? For you, for your use, to serve and please you ! For you the grain grows in the fields ; for you the grape ripens on the hill-side ; for you the trees bend down with fruits; for you the flowers exhale their sweet fragrance; for you the whole earth is covered with overflowing riches. To provide you with raiment, to assist you in your labors or contribute to your support, God speaks, and the earth is inhabited with wild and domestic animals. It is the bounty of God which commands the strong horse to obey the voice even of a child. It is God who holds the proud, threatening head of the ox submissive to the yoke and the plough. But, my Brethren, does the Lord bestow these benefits, these graces and favors only on the wise, the virtuous, and the pious ? 42 SHORTSERMONS. No ; our heavenly Father permits even the most wicked of men to drink at the inexhaustible source of His bounty; even such as trample under foot the precepts of so good a God, and make it a point every moment of their lives to offend Him. It is because this Grood- ness becomes mercy and wills not the death of the sinner, but that he be converted and live. Therefore does it lavish on the good and the bad alike the blessings of health and strength. Yes, it is the divine Goodness assuming the visible character of mercy, that causes the sun to shed his light and fnictifying heat alike on the just and the unjust. It is this merciful Goodness that spreads over the fields of the pious Christian the fertilizing dews of heaven, and at the same time does not suffer the lands of the impious and wicked to be deprived of them. "Let us, then, praise and glorify the Lord, because He is good. Let us praise the Lord, for He is good !" Such is the lively sense of gratitude with which you should be penetrated when you call to mind the immense blessings God has heaped upon you. Yet, my Brethren, all I have hitherto said gives but a faint idea of the Goodness of God in our regard. Would you know where the bounty of God appears in its full extent ? you have received the true faith, my Brethren, — and I think I hear you answer me in the words of the Apostle : "We have seen the Good- ness of God our Saviour, and His love for men ; He has saved us by His mercy, by the baptism of regeneration ; in order, that hav- ing been justified by his grace, we may hope for the inheritance of eternal life." The Son of God loved us with a superabounding love; He came down from heaven and died for us ! Where is the king, who, to rescue from a justly merited death, a criminal, would order his own son — his only son — to clothe himself with the garments of a male- factor, and deliver himself up to the executioner, to suffer at his hands the most ignominous death ? Has the world ever furnished such an example ? 'No earthly father ever exhibited such gener- osity ; no : but God loves us. His Goodness is infinite ; and so much has He loved us that He delivered up for us His Son, His only Son in whom He was well pleased. He invested him with the garments of a sinner by clothing him with our nature ; He willed that He should become the Man of Sorrows, the reproach of the people, and that He should die on an ignominious cross. "Having loved His G O D N K S S O F G O D . 43 own, He loved them even to the end." Tlie Son of God died for us ! ! goodness of God ! ! mercy of the Lord ! Yes, I will praise Thee, Lord, for all time to come, with my whole heart ; "because Thou hast delivered my soul from death, my feet from falling, that I may please in the sight of the living."* ! bounty of God, can I ever be wanting in confidence in Thee ? Surely then, the confidence we place in the Goodness and mercy of God is just, because well grounded ; but is it not true, my Brethren, that the remembrance of the love which God bears you, the recollection of His precious favors and His infinite bounties, should have the efiect, not merely of exciting your confidence and admiration, but also of lighting up in your hearts a burning love, a sincere attachment for so tender a Father, for a God so good, who has. loved you so much? No, you will no longer offend this God of Goodness, you will no longer disobey this best of Masters, this kindest of Fathers ; and the resolution of walking henceforth in the way of His command- ments, will be indelibly imprinted upon your hearts. The Lord would not then say to you : ** I have raised up children ; I have fed them and they have despised me."f No, you will sin no more, and you will bear constantly in mind that "the grace of God our Saviour hath appeared to all men, instructing us, that renouncing impiety and worldly desires, we should live soberly, and justly, and piously in this world."]; You will remember the abounding Good- ness of our God, and you will contribute to His glory, walking in the practice of every good work, and thereby worthily preparing yourselves to be admitted into that delightful paradise to which He invites us all, and which He has opened unto us by His sufferings and death on the cross. — Ajiex. * Psalms, Iv : 13. f Isaias, i. i Titus, ii : 11, 12. 44 SHORT SERMONS SERMON YII. PROVIDENCE OF GOD " Know ye that no one hath hoped in the Lord, and hath been confounded." — EccLESiASTicus, ii : 11. It is tile creative hand of God which, drew from nothing the world and all that it contains, and it is His Providence which watches over and preserves all things. If the sun faithfully runs its course in the heavens, it is God who, as it were, leads it along. If that beneficent planet sheds light and fertility on the earth, it is because God so ordains it. If the earth supplies our wants and rewards the labor of man by yielding him his daily bread, it only obeys the commands of the Lord. If the air descends into our breasts and keeps us alive, it but follows the path marked out for it by Providence. Yes, my Brethren, the eye of Providence is always upon the works of creation, and from the crawling worm to the highest star, every thing is an object of the tenderest solicitude of the Lord. Oh ! " know ye that no one hath hoped in the Lord, and hath been confounded." Yes, we ought to have confidence in the paternal Providence of God, for He is all-powerful. He is infinitely wise, and His bounty knows no limits. You know it is of this Providence that I wish to speak to you to-day. It is a most inter- esting subject : listen then with attention. In vain would all the beings in heaven, on earth and in hell unite their efforts to oppose the exercise of God's power ; the will of the Lord must ever be accomplished. The reward will always be given and the punish- ment inflicted just as it pleases God. This is a truth supported by numerous examples drawn from the Sacred Scriptures or furnished by the experience of all ages. Joseph, while yet a youth, had attained the highest degree of perfection in the practice of virtue. I'ROVIDENCEOFGOD. 45 and the most ardent piety adorned his beautiful soul. In the designs of God it was in consequence determined that he should be raised to honors and to wealth. Beloved by his father Jacob, he was for that very reason an object of aversion to his brothers, whose hatred increased when they learned that Joseph had resolved to reveal to their father, a heinous crime of which these wicked youths were guilty. But their hatred was changed into fury when Joseph in his simplicity,. made known to them the two dreams which the Lord had sent him, and which foretold that this holy son of Jacob would be invested with great authority over his brothers. In their unnatural rage they determined to take away his life, but God willed that Kuben, the eldest of the patriarch's children, should oppose their horrid design. His Providence brought along some Egyptian merchants, and to them Joseph was sold by his brethren. After that he became a slave to Potiphar, the captain of the king's guards, who at first recognizing the profound wisdom of this holy young man, treated him well, but being deceived by calumny, had him before long cast into a prison. Here he lay for some years, until the Providence of God in a wonderful manner, made him known to Pharao, the king of Egypt. His wisdom, and the fore- sight which the Almighty had given to him, enabled him to render most signal services to the king and all the people of -Egypt, and Pharao, in gratitude for these services, elevated him to the dignity of governor of his empire, and made him the greatest man in the kingdom next himself. Thus it was that God at length rewarded the virtues of his servant Joseph. From this same land of Egypt, the cry of the Israelites arose to the Lord to deliver them from the cruel slavery under which they had groaned for so many years. God commands Moses and his brother Aaron to go and inform Pharao that he must permit the children of Israel to leave the land of Egypt. Pharao hardens his heart, resists the command of God, and the hand of the Lord chastises him and his people with ten frightful plagues. The cruel king is forced to acknowledge the finger of the Almighty in the wonders which were wrought before his eyes ; he bows to the man- dates of heaven, and allows the people of God to depart. But he soon grows sorry and changes his mind. Then, at the head of a powerful army, he follows on the tracks of the Israelites : he sees 4:6 SHORT SERMONS. them, hastens his march, and resolves to massacre them on the shores of the Red Sea. But what can man do in opposition to the designs of God ? God commands ; Moses strikes the waters, and they rise like high walls on each side to give a passage to the poor fugitives. The king of Egypt presses on their steps in this road hollowed out in the middle of the sea ; once more Moses strikes the waters, the sea returns to its bed and buries in its waves the entire Egyptian army. Thus it is God punishes the wicked. God is all-powerful ; what he wills is accomplished in despite of all the evil designs and criminal projects of men. ** There is one most high Creator, Almighty, and a powerful King and greatly to be feared, who sitteth upon His throne, and He is the God of dominion."* Children of an all-powerful God, have confidence in your heavenly Father, and let yourselves be conducted by His holy and adorable Providence, which rules and disposes all things accord- ing to the councils of the most profound wisdom. God knows all things, sees all things, ordains all things ; nothing happens, nothing is done, but what the Lord wills or permits. "And all their works are as the sun in the sight of God ; and His eyes are continually upon their ways."! It is by dispensation of His will or permission of His wisdom, that good things or evil, health and sickness, success and misfortune, prosperity and misery come upon us. Every thing in the world moves along in the paths marked out by Providence ; it is the Lord who directs the steps of man, whether he be a scourge of God, who lays waste the land, or an peaceful ploughman who makes it fertile by his labor. Even the most minute events are balanced in the hand of Providence, for the Lord hath said, "not a sparrow shall fall to the ground without the will of your heavenly Father. The very hairs of your head are numbered. "J; Let your hearts, therefore, repose with the utmost confidence on the infinitely wise Providence of your God. Receive with gratitude the blessings He bestows upon you, but also accept with resignation, and bear with patience, the crosses He sends you ; murmur not against God, and arraign not His Providence. Ah ! my Brethren, how can we be so daring as to summon the Provi- dence of God to the tribunal of our weak reason ? Who are we * Ecclesiasticus, i : 8. t Eccles-iasticus, xvii : 16. t St. Matthew, x : 29,30. PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 47 that we would enter into dispute with the Lord ? And nevertheless we have the audacity to do so, when we criticise the conduct of God ; as for example, in the distribution of worldly goods. Why, we ask, are there some rich, and some poor? Tell me, my Breth- ren, if all were rich, who would he willing to labor ? Who would wish to be laborer, mechanic, or servant? If all were masters, who would obey ? Who would prevent crime and resist injustice ? If all were poor, who would assist the unfortunate ! The world would be like a vast hospital overcrowded with suffering beings without aid and without resources. Take the world then as it is, and acknowledge and adore the supreme wisdom of your Creator, for it is ever accompanied by His infinite bounty. This pious, up- right man, prospers in his enterprises, lives to a good old age, and enjoys happiness; why? because he is worthy of this happiness. His virtues deserved it, and he knows how to make a holy use of the goods which God gives him. On the other hand, I see another righteous Christian who is poor, unfortunate, pressed down with disease and with sorrows ; why ? because God desires that the heart of this Christian should not be attached to this world, but that he should aspire to the possession of celestial and eternal goods. Like the poor man Lazarus, he is in suffering, but if like Lazarus, he walks along the road of sorrows, like him also will he arrive at the heaven of joy. Death comes and takes away that fervent young Christian, as it took away in the flower of their youth Abel and Aloysius of Gonzaga ; why ? because God hastens to call him to heaven, there to reward his holy life ; or perhaps God, who loves him, took him from this world, foreseeing that a longer life would have caused his ruin and perdition. God strikes the impious and wicked with death in the midst of their career: why? because they are unworthy of life, and He is unwilling that their bad example should be any longer a tempta- tion te the just. But other wicked men live a long time on earth : there is no one, no matter how depraved he may be, who has not sometimes performed some good deeds. God grants him a long life, thus to reward on earth the few good works he may have per- formed, and also to give him time to be converted and to be saved. It often happens, that the Lord strikes a terrible blow, prostrates the wicked, and plunges him into misery, sickness and misfortune ; 48 SHORT SERMONS. thus to compel him to open his eyes to the true light, to acknowl- edge his crimes, to be converted, and to save his soul. Yes, my Brethren, the wisdom of God is displayed in all He does, ordains or permits. Therefore, it does not belong to our weak reason to penetrate the inscrutable designs of the Lord our God. Let us often say with the Apostle : " Oh ! how incomprehen- sible are the judgments of God ! how unsearchable are His ways !" How good God is, and how He loves to take care of us, who are the work of His hands ! God is good; He compares himself to a most tender father, saying: "As the father hath compassion on his children, so hath the Lord compassion on them that fear Him."* God is good, loving us with more than a mother's love and tenderness, for he says to us : *' Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb ? and if she should forget, yet will not I forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee in my hands. "f You see then that the Lord watches over you with more care, loves you with more affection, than the most tender mother loves her beloved child. Have confidence then in the Providence of God. How the millions of poor, who like the birds of the air sow not neither do they reap, and yet find their daily bread, proclaim the watchfulness of God's bounty, and the maternal solicitude of His divine Providence. How the poor little orphans, who deprived of father and mother, yet find at the hands of God, nourishment and raiment, exalt His divine goodness. God has seen their tears, He has heard their sighs. Surely He who hears so plainly and answers so benignantly the plaintive cry of the little famishing bird, cannot be deaf to the voice, or heedless of the misery of the creatures whom He has stamped with His own image and likeness ? After the example of all the true servants of God, let us, my Brethren, repose with confi- dence on the Providence of God. He is infinitely powerful, infi- nitely wise and good, and His care will never abandon us. But let us also endeavor to fulfill well His precepts and commandments ; let us discharge with diligence and cheerfulness the duties of the state of life in which the hand of God has placed us ; let us abound in good works, and thereby contribute to the glory of God ; this is * Psalms, cii: 13. t Isaias, xlix: 15. T HE W O K L D A N D T II E A N G E L S . 49 our vocation in this world. But it is from God that the desire and the strength to accomplish it must come. Let us, therefore, pray with fervor and with perseverance ; let us ask, and it will be given us ; God will be with us, and every day we will feel the truth of these words of the royal projihet : "hope in the Lord and do good, and all things will turn to your advantage." — Amen. SERMON VIII FIRST ARTICLE OF THE CREED— (continued.) THE WORLD AND THE ANGELS. " All ye works of the Lord, bless the Lord : ye Angels of the Lord, bless the Lord." — Daniel, iii : 57. We have had the happiness of meditating on the Lord, our God, and we know what are His adorable* perfections. We will adore Him and love Him, for He is the supreme majesty, Avhose power is without limits, whose knowledge is infinite, whose goodness is unbounded. We will have confidence in the providence of our God, for whatever it does, and whatever it ordains is good, holy and adorable. We know now that the blessings which heaven bestows upon us, and the evils wherewith we are afilicted, all proceed from the love of God for us, the love of a father for his children ; onr last instruction convinced ns of this. Let us then continue the explanation of the first article of our Creed, and let us speak to-day of the creation of the World and of the Angels. To create is to make out of nothing, to call into existence, to give being to that which was not, to cause a being to exist from nothing and by a single act of the will. ''Ibelieve in God, the Father Almighty, Crea- tor of heaven and earth;" that is to say: I believe, I confess, I acknowledge that in the beginning, whilst there was nothing, and when there was neither heaven nor earth, God, who is from all eter- 5 60 SHORTSERMONS. nity, called from nothing every thing which exits, hoth heaven and earth, and every thing which they contain. To create all things, He required neither matter nor instruments; He is himself the sole principle of all things, even of matter from which He made all things else. The general of an army says : let the army march, and forthwith the army marches ; let it make such an evolution, and the evolution is made. A whole army is put in motion at the command of one man, hy the simple motion of his lips : Feeble image of the power of God ! The Almighty has no lips to move ; His word is not like that of man, it is not a mere vibration of air which strikes the ear; the word of God is His will. He spoke, thatisto say. He willed. He has only to will in himself, and every thing which He wills, must be fulfilled as he willed it, and at the time which He marked out. ''Look upon heaven and earth, and all that is in them, and consider that God made them out of no- thing."'* He made all things in six days. It was not through dis- ability or weakness that God distributed the works of creation into six different days, neither was it through fatigue that He rested when He had completed it. But He wished, by dividing them, to make us more attentive to His wonders, and in some manner to. adapt them to our capacity, by showing them to us in parts ; He wished, moreover, to teach us that we ought to labor during six days of the week, but that the seventh should be spent in holy rest. Every thing which God created, was good and even perfect. *'He saw all the things which He had made," says the inspired writer, " and they were very good." Nevertheless, there were some of His creatures that far surpassed the others in excellence and per- fection. These privileged creatures were Angels and men. We are unable to say precisely on what day or in what instant of the creation of the World, it pleased God to create the Angels ; the Holy Scriptures do not mention it. No doubt, it was in the beginning; for the Lord says in the book of Job: ''When the morning stars praised me together, and all the sons of God made a joyful melody. "f They were certainly created before man received existence, since Eve was deceived by the devil, the chief of the fallen Angels, who took the form of a serpent in order to seduce her. ♦ 2 Machabecs, vii : 28, + Job, xxxviii : 7. THE WORLD AND THE ANGELS. 51 The Angels are pure spirits, endowed with a high degree of intelli- gence, and having neither body nor figure. They are not such as they are represented to us. We see them painted young, because spirits or pure intelligences, never grow old ; and with wings, to show the speed and quickness wherewith they execute the orders of God, for **they are all spirits appointed to be the ministers of the will of the Lord."* They were created in the state of grace and sanctity, enjoyed the friendship of God, were embellished with all the gifts of grace necessary and sufficient for their perseverance in good, and were appointed to merit by their perseverance the happiness of never falling. But the Angels were free, and like us, they had to merit by their fidelity, the happiness of being con- firmed in grace. All were not faithful ; there were some among them who abused their liberty ; who had the audacity to rise in rebellion against God, and revolt against their sovereign Master. But they lost for ever the ineffable happiness of seeing and of prais- ing, of adoring and of loving God in heaven. God did not pardon these rebellious and prevaricating Angels ; "but having cast them down into the place of torments, delivered them into the chains of hell to be tormented, to be reserved unto judgment. "f Thus it was, that God confounded the pride of these rebel spirits, who in the person of Lucifer, their chief, had the audacity to say: *'I will ascend ir^to heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars, and I will be like the Most High. "J See how they were hurled into the bot- tom of the abyss, which had been prepared for them, or scattered in the air, but bearing always within themselves the hell which burns them. It is the doctrine of all authors, the Apostolic doctrine, as St. Jerome and St. Augustine tell us, that the air, which is between heaven and earth, is full of bad Angels. '' Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood," says St. Paul; ''but against principalities and powers ; against the rulers of the world of this darkness ; against the spirits of wickedness in high places. "§ The demons hate us, for jealousy gnaws their proud hearts, as they know that an exceed- ingly great promise was made to us, and that we have it in our power, to attain those thrones in heaven which they have lost. Hence they spare no pains, but labor continually to drag us into * Hebrews,!. t 2 Peter, ii : 4. t Isnias, xiv : 13. § Epbesians, vi: 12. 62 SHORTSERMONS. sin, that they may thereby wrest ns from God. Wherefore, says the Holy Ghost, **be sober, and watch; because your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, goeth about, seeking whom he may devour/'* No doubt, the devil is full of craft and malice ; still, he can only entice and tempt, but he can not offer you violence. *' He is like a chained dog," says St. Augustine; ''he can bark, but he cannot bite any, except those who go near him, and rashly expose themselves to his teeth." The fault then always rests with ourselves, if we fall into sin ; for it is always possible for us, with the aid and the grace of God, to resist the most violent temptations. Great is the hatred of the devil, furious the envy which gnaws his heart ; far beyond that of men is his power ; and yet he can not hurt your souls, if you preserve in your heart a firm resolution of living well, if you place your confidence in God, if you pray, and follow the counsel of the good Angels who remained faithful to the Lord. But while on one side, the spirits of the abyss and the powers of darkness struggle with all their might to injure us, and make us unfaithful to the holy law of God, that we may one day suffer and blaspheme with them in hell ; on the other, the Angels of heaven are always ready to help us with their powerful assistance, to protect us, and defend us against the suggestions and temptations of om* enemies. In fact, it is not only that they might honor, praise and adore Him in heaven, that the Almighty created the Angels ; but also that they might minister to those who were to possess the inherit- ance of salvation, " and He hath given His Angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways."* Yes, these holy Angels, faithful to the divine command, constantly walk at our right hand and discover to us the snares which the devil lays for us. They are, unceasingly occupied inspiring us with a holy fear of God, and with a lively and constant love of virtue. ! who can tell the charity of these happy spirits ! their sympathy for our misfortunes, their attention to our wants ! their patience in supporting our weakness ! Certain of their own salvation, they have no uneasiness but for us. It is, therefore, that they manifest such great joy in heaven when a sinner is converted, and does penance ; hence they pray for us with such * 1 Peter, v: 8 f Psalms, xc : 11. CREATION AND SIN OF THE FIRST MAN. 53 great fervor. Hence comes that attention wliicli they still have in pre- senting before the throne of the Lord, our supplications and our vows. We will never depart from the way of wisdom and of duty, my Brethren, hut will ever advance toward perfection and happiness, if we keep closely united to these holy Angels, listen attentively to their good counsels, follow their salutary inspirations, and corres- pond to the care they take to conduct us to heaven. Let us do this, let us always do this, my Brethren, and thus guided, we are sure to pass safe and sound, through the dangerous desert of this life, and we shall infallibly reach the sublime goal, which the Lord hath marked out for us ; we shall reach heaven, for which the paternal hand of God formed us. — Amen. SERMON IX. FIRST ARTICLE OF THE CREED.— (continued.) CREATION AND SIN OF THE FIRST MAN. " Let us make man to our image and likeness." — Genesis, i : 26. Of all creatures that are in heaven or on earth, the angels and men are the most noble, because being endowed with the gift of reason, thev bear a greater likeness to God. The angels were crea- ted in sanctity and justice, but all did not remain faithful to the Lord. Many of them were ruined through pride, and were driven by the justice of God from heaven. These rebellious spirits, jealous of the happiness to Avhich the bounty of the Lord calls us, endeavor by every possible means to deprive us of this happiness by render- ing us unworthy of it. But, if the bad angels seek our ruin, on the other hand, the good angels protect us, discover to us the snares of our enemy, and teach us how to avoid them. Such was the im portant matter which I unfolded to you in our last instruction 54 SHORT SERMONS . To-day I will recall to your recollection wliat religion teaches on the subject of the Creation and the sad fall of the first man. On the sixth day of Creation, every thing in nature was ready ; hut the world was like a state without a king, like a temple without a priest, and all creatures, insensible and inanimate themselves, demanded an interpreter, who could give glory for them to the Lord. Then it was that God said: **Let us make man to our image and likeness." He took a little of the slime of the earth, a little clay, and from it formed the body of man ; He breathed upon this body, that is to say, He created a soul which He placed in this body, and to His work He gave the name of Adam, which signifies man of earth, or red earth. If Adam had to remain the only one of his kind, or if he were to have for his companions only the irrational animals, there would have been no one with whom he could converse on the advantages of his happy state, and the blessings of his bountiful Creator. God therefore said : *' It is not good that man be alone ; let us make for him a companion like to himself." And at the same instant Adam fell into a profound sleep ; the Lord took from his side a rib, with which He formed the body of woman; infused into her, as into Adam, a spiritual and immortal soul, and gave to this woman the name of Eve, which signifies mother of the living. Such is the history of the Creation of our first parents, as the Holy Spirit has preserved it for us in the books of Moses. You see, my Brethren, man is a being composed of two parts, which are essentially different. He is composed of a body formed from the slime of the earth, and of a spiritual, rational, immortal soul, which is most certainly, the noblest portion of our being ; or rather our being is essentially the soul, and our body is but the clothing. It is by our soul and by it alone, that we take our place in the ranks of intelligent and rational beings. It is by our soul and by it alone, that we are made the images of God. It is by our soul and by it alone, that we are elevated even to the knowledge of our God, adore, love and serve Him. It is by our soul and by it alone, that we are enabled to see God in heaven, to contemplate Him, and, in this ineffable contemplation, to taste the supreme hap- piness. And what is our body ? A little slimy earth. It, there- fore, is nothing ; in the soul behold our real treasure, behold our true CREATION AND SIN OF THE FIRST MAN. 55 glory. It was not drawn from matter, tlie earth was not the place of its origin ; it came from God, i)ure, spiritual and immortal. Alas ! How little do we comprehend our dignity ! We carry in our breasts a soul on which God has engraved His own likeness, an immortal soul, and we carry it as heedless of the fact as the moun- tain is insensible to the treasure concealed beneath its surface. St. Bernard reproaches our folly, when he said, that it seems there is nothing more vile to our eyes than our soul. We see only our body, we love only our body, we do nothing good except for the body ; but our body comes from the earth, and it will return to the earth, while our soul comes from God, and it ought to return to God. Take care then that you do not dishonor, and that you do not lose this heaven-born soul ; take care that you do not descend even to the ranks of the brutes by making yourselves slaves of vile and shameful passions. ! such is not the destiny of man, no, — man is made for heaven. Man, so signally favored above all visible creatures, was placed in a garden of delights. It was his duty to love his God ; to serve Him by his love ; to bless that beneficent hand which heaped upon him so many favors, and to look for eternal glory as the recom- pense of his fidelity. Had he remained faithful, death ^vould not have come to separate his soul from his body ; but, without under- going the agony of death, after a certain time spent on earth, he would have been borne by the hand of God into heaven, there to enjoy eternal happiness. Such was the noble destiny of man, and to attain it, every means was given him. In fact, he went forth perfect from the hands of God : " God made man right ;"* ** He was created not to die," says St. Paul in his Epistle to the Romans. f No darkness obscured his mind ;_ no dangerous ignor- ance, no defect of judgment and reason tarnished the beauty of his soul. He possessed all the natural and supernatural lights of which he was capable, and which were suitable to him. He was free, but his will was upright and inclined to good, with no leaning toward evil. In the heart of our first father, there was none of that con- cupiscence which disorders our inclinations, there were none of those passions which disturb the serenity of our souls and the peace * Ecclesiastcs, vii. t Romans, v. 56 SnORTSEKMO:N^S. of our hearts. In Adam, the flesh was subject to the sjoirit, and the spirit might have been easily made subject to God. For so many great favors what did the Creator require from man ? That man should abstain from eating the fruit of a certain tree, which was pointed out to him, a token of his gratitude that he should have given with as much joy as fidelity. But behold, the devil enters into the serpent, presents the fatal fruit to Eve, addresses her with flattering words, and inspires her with a deadly pride. Eve eats of this fruit, Adam eats of it, and both are plunged into the lowest depths of misery. x\wful will be the punishment, for great has been the crime which they have committed. The sin of Adam was a sin which included in itself a vast num- ber of others ; it was a sin of pride and of the most insolent pride, by which man, not content with the degree of honor to which God had elevated him, wished even to make himself equal to God ; it was a sin of revolt, by which the creature sought to usurp that independence which belongs only to God ; it was a sin of criminal curiosity, of base sensuality, of black ingratitude toward a sover- eign benefactor ; it was an impious disobedience, by which man, despising the express prohibition of the Creator, refused to acknowl- edge him as his master ; it was a crime which embraced in itself every crime, since it reduced the human race to the slavery of ignor- ance and concupisence, from which all crimes proceed ; a crime by which the first man entailed death on all his posterity to the end of ages. Adam was the murderer of himself and of all his descend- ants, whom he deprived of the life of innocence, on the instant of their conception in their mother's womb. The sin of Adam was a sin unutterable in its enormity, an incomprehensible misfortune ! says St. Augustine. And this sin is also ours, it carries ruin to our souls, it sullies all the descendants of these first sinners: "Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and by sin death; so death passed upon all men, in whom all have sinned."* "And we were by nature children of wrath." j- Adam sinned, he committed a great crime, and punishment fell upon the guilty. The change which was wrought in Adam and in all nature, was frightful ; the flesh rebelled against the spirit, disorder * Romans v: 12. + Ephe?ians ii : 3. CREATION AND SIN OF THE FIRST MAN. 57 settled in the lieavt and in the body of man, thick darkness obscured his soul, his will became unruly, his j)a'S«ions usurjDed the place of reason and justice, and his propensities became corrupt, and inclin- ing him to evil. He is driven from the earthly paradise by the angel of the Lord ; he must suffer, groan, and eat his bread in the sweat of his brow. He lost the life of the soul, when he lost jus- tice, and when he separated himself from God : he may be justly regarded as dead, since for him death is inevitable, and the infirmi- ties and calamities to which he is henceforth subject, are the prepar- ation and forerunner of his painful death. Man committed a crime which should have caused his irreparable ruin, but Thou, my God, hast cast upon him a look of mercy. Oh ! how immense is the mercy which the Lord has displayed toward prevaricating man ! Learn, my Brethren, how grateful you ought to be to the pater- nal bounty of your God. The angels, it is true, sinned in heaven, but this sin defiled only those angels who were guilty, it matters not, for them there is no hope of pardon, and the justice of God, swifter than the lightning's flash, overtakes them, and precipitates them from heaven into the eternal torments of hell. Man also became guilty ; did God reject him forever ? boundless mercy ! God gave man time to enter into himself, to acknow^ledge his fault, to weep over his crime, to do penance, and to recover the heaven which he had lost. divine bounty ! man commits a crime unut- terable in its malice, an incomprehensible crime, and on the very instant God comes to him, seeks him, calls him, and promises to him a Saviour w^ho would die for man's sins. This Saviour will be the only Son of that great offended God, — Jesus Christ. — who, eighteen hundred and fifty-nine years ago, descended from the highest heavens into the virginal womb of Mary, clothed himself with our nature, and became man without ceasing to be God ; who took upon himself all our iniquities, and died on the cross to redeem us from hell. It is this divine Jesus who opened heaven for us, and who invites us to follow him in the pathway of virtue, which leads to supreme happiness. — Amen. 58 SHORT SERMONS. SERMON X. SECOND AND THIRD ARTICLES OF THE CREED. THE INCARNATION. "And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord." — Apostles' Creed. M.AN, created to tlie image of Grod in sanctity and justice, placed in the terrestrial paradise, and loaded with graces and with favors, had the audacity to transgress the law of his Creator ,• defiled with the stain of sin, he became unfortunate himself, and made all his posterity sharers in his misfortune. Such is the teaching of faith. But it would avail us little to know the origin and cause of our evils, if we did not also know their remedy. Now this so necessary remedy, religion teaches us, is to be found in the sacred mystery of the Incarnation, that is to say, in the mystery of the Son of God made man, a mystery which we profess to believe every time we recite the Creed, wherein we say; "1 believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary." It is this adorable mystery which will make the subject of our present instruction. Listen then to me, I pray you, with attention. That we may conceive a just idea of the great mystery of the Incarnation, let us first give ear to the Apostle St. John. *'In the beginning," he says, *'was the Word," that is to say, the Son of God, '*and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was made nothing that was made. . . . He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. . . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth."* * St. John, i. THK INCARNATION. 59 Beliold, my Brethren, the most sublime and most touching ex- pression possible of the mystery of the Incarnation. We see here the eternal Word, the only Son of God, the second person of the most Holy Trinity, in all the majesty, which becomes Him as God ; but this eternal Word, by -whom all things were made, and without whom nothing was made ; this great God who filled the whole world with His presence, and whom the world knew not, to what Avas He not reduced that He might come to dwell among us, and thus make himself known to the world ? " He was made flesh," that is to say, He is united to the flesh in such a manner, that Pie was made but one with the flesh. *'He is made flesh;" but the Son of God took also a soul like ours ; why then does the Apostle speak here only of the flesh, only of that body composed of flesh and bones, which had its origin from the slime of earth ? Ah ! my Brethren, it was that we might see more clearly the wonderful humiliation to which the Son of God reduced himself through love of us. Should a prince descend from his throne and put on the dress of the meanest of his subjects, that he might enter the dungeon of a poor prisoner and bear him words of consolation ; would he on that account cease to be prince ? Would he in his rags, lose any of his dignity and power ? assuredly not. Thus it was, my Brethren, that the Son of God clothed himself in our flesh and assumed the form of the slave, yet without losing any of His divinity, but con- tinuing to be after His Incarnation all that He had been before it. Nevertheless, since we are only dust and ashes, it is always true to say with the Apostle St. Paul, that in becoming like unto us, the Son of God humbled himself even to annihilation. "Tlie Word was made flesh," the Son of God became perfectly like unto us poor and miserable creatures ; in truth, sin and concu- piscence alone excepted, Jesus, the Son of the Eternal God, was as we are. Like us, He had a body subject to hunger, to thirst, to fatigue, to sleep, to pain and to death. Like us, He had a soul sen- sible of joy, sadness, fear, hope and pity. St. Paul admirably ex- presses this when he says that our divine Saviour "was tempted in all things like as we are, yet without sin."* The Word of God was made flesh, and the body which He » Hebrews, iv: 15. 60 SHORT SERMONS. assumed, He took in the chaste womb of the most holy Virgin Maiy, who was of the royal family of David. In her chaste womb He was conceived by the Holy Ghost in a manner, altogether mirac- ulous and divine. The same Grod who created heaven and earth, who formed from dust the body of the first man, and his soul from nothing, this great Grod, from the most pure blood of Mary, formed a body like ours, for which He created and to which He united a human soul, but a soul all pure and holy. At the very instant when God formed this body and this soul, the eternal Word, the second person of the most adorable Trinity, descending from heaven, without quitting the bosom of His Father, and becoming what until then He was not, without ceasing to be what from all eternity He was, came to unite himself to this body and to this soul, by a tie which even death could not sever. The Son of God became the Son of man! Although the three divine persons cooperated in this sacred mystery to produce this body and this soul, and the union of the eternal Word with this body and this soul, yet the Apostles and the Church attribute this miraculous operation to the Holy Ghost. Ah ! my Brethren, the reason for it is affecting. It is because the Holy Ghost being the essential love of the Father and the Son, the work of the Incarnation of the Word should be attributed to Him, inasmuch as it is the most manifest and most sensible proof of God's love for us: ''God," says the Holy Ghost himself, **so loved the world, that He delivered up His only Son, in order that all who believe in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." Guided by faith, let us penetrate as far as possible into the mys- tery of the Son of God, made man. Jesus Christ is at the same time perfect God and perfect man. He is God like His Father, and in all things equal to Him ; He is man like us, and in all things like us, except in sin. As God, says St. Augustine, He has a Father who begot Him. from all eternity, and He has no mother ; as man, He was created in time, and has no father, for Joseph, the spouse of Mary, was only the guardian of his infancy. As God, Jesus Christ is eternal, and was before Abraham had been created. As man, He was the descendant of Abraham. As God, He changed water into wine, He healed with a word, the most incurable diseases, restored the dead to life, and commanded all nature. As man. He THE INCARNATION. 61 was born in Bethlehem, fied into Egypt, drank, ate, rested, slept, was troubled, afflicted, suffered and died. Had then our divine Saviour, in His one person, two distinct natures, a divine and a human one? Yes, and each of these natures had a will and power of action proper to itself. But these two natures are united one with the other in such a manner, that they cannot be separated. They will and act togethei", and their wills and actions are always in perfect harmony. We can not separate these two natures, yet, one is perfectly distinct from the other, the sacred humanity of Jesus Christ and His divin- ity make but one and the same person ; the soul, the body and the divine Word, make but one Jesus Christ, but one Man-God, but one God, made man, Avho was both God and man at the same time. What follows from this mysterious union ? That Jesus Christ, being both God and man, every thing that He has said, done and suffered, belongs equally to one and to the other ; that the birth of Jesus Christ, perfect man. His tears. His sufferings, His blood and His death are no less than His most divine works, the birth, the tears, the sufferings, the blood and the death of a God. Why? Because it was not a part of Jesus Christ that did or suffered all these things, but it was Jesus Christ w^hole and entire, Jesus Christ, both God and man, Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and God like to the Father. What further follows from this mysterious union ? That the most holy Virgin is truly, really, properly, and in all the force of the term, the mother of God. It is true, she had no part in the eternal generation of Jesus Christ as God ; but Jesus both God and man was not less wholly and completely her son ; just as we are wholly and completely, soul and body, the children of our mothers, although they had no part in the creation of our souls. Mary indeed is really the mother of God ; to her alone be- longs the honor of having, in common with God the Father, a son who is at the same time both her son and the Son of God. This Son of God made man, this divine Son of Mary is called Jesus Christ. This is the name given Him by God before He was con- ceived in the womb of His mother, and to our divine Lord alone does it belong to bear this sacred name, for this name signifies Saviour, and Jesus was the only one who saved us, who delivered us from our sins and from the pains of hell which we had merited ; 62 S H O R T S E K M O N S . the salvation too wliicli He brought on earth, is the eternal salvation, the salvation which a God alone can give. Name of Jesus ! adora- ble name of my divine Saviour ! thou art above every name ! at the name of Jesus then, let every knee bow in heaven, on earth, and in hell. The name of Christ, which we join to that of Jesus, is no less divine, for our Lord has said " flesh and blood have not revealed it, but my Father who is in heaven." Christ signifies anointed or consecrated ; this is the reason our divine Saviour is called the Christ. He is in himself and by himself the Christ, for in Him the plenitude of the divinity dwells. It is this unction of the divinity that made Him at the same time priest, king and prophet. As priest. He offered himself for us on the cross, and still offers himself daily on our altars. As king, and King of kings, and Lord of lords, *'all power was given to Him in heaven and on earth." As prophet. He is the source of light; for He contains within himself all the treasures of the wisdom and of the science of the prophets, and it was not by measure, **but in all its pleni- tude, that Grod gave His Spirit to Him." Such, my Brethren, was He whom God raised up in the midst of His people to conduct them to salvation and happiness, who blotted out the sentence of condemnation pronounced against us, who reconciled earth with heaven, and broke down the thick wall which separated us from God. Glory, honor and thanksgiving to our good Saviour ! Ah ! let us never cease to praise and bless Him ! and let us never forget that this good Jesus came on earth to induce us to follow Him in the path of virtue, in the love of God, and the love of our neighbor. Let us follow this divine Saviour, for He is the way, the truth, and the life ; let us hear Him, He alone has the words of eternal life ; let us perform well what He has commanded, follow the example He has given, practice the heavenly doctrine He has taught ; and then truly will He be to us a Saviour, opening for us the gates of heaven, and conducting us into the bosom of God. — Amen. CONCEPTION OF JESUS ClIKIST. 63 SERMOiN XL SECOND AND THIRD ARTICLES OF THE CREED.— (continued.) CONCEPTION AND BIETH OF JESUS CHRIST. "Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Maiy." — Apostles' Creed. The most profitable, necessary and precious knowledge whicli we can acquire, is the knowledge of the truth which must enlighten us, of the life which must animate us, and of the way w^hich must lead us to happiness ; in a word — the knowlege of our Lord Jesus Christ, for He is the way, the truth, and the life. Call to mind then, my Brethren, the truths which I explained to you in my last instruc- tion. You should know now what our divine Saviour Jesus Christ is. He is both God and man. Son of God and Son of man. As God, Jesus Christ is the second person of the most holy Trinity ; as man. He is the son of the holy Virgin Mary ; as God, He has a divine nature ; as man, He has a human nature. In Jesus Christ these two natures are perfectly united, without being confounded ; they do not form two persons, but the sacred humanity of Jesus Christ and His divinity, united together, constitute but one and the same person, the person of the Man-God. To-day we will consider why and how the Son of God was made man. AVhy was the Son of God made man? "To work out our salva- tion," is the' short but significant answer of the Council of Nice. "It was for our salvation : " these few words suffice to make known to us the inestimable dignity of our souls, and the ineffable love of God for us. "As by one man sin entered into this world, and by sin death ; and so death j^assed upon all men, in whom all have sinned. .... And not as it was by one sin, so also is the gift ; for the judgment indeed was by one unto condemnation."* Yes, we were condemned to eternal perdition, for God must maintain the rights of * Romans v ; 12, 16. 64 SHORT SEE MONS. His justice, and He could not leave sin uniDunished. It was, there- fore, absolutely necessary, after the sin of our first parents, that the human family should be lost forever, and plunged into the tor- ments due to sin, or that a sufficient reparation should be offered to the Lord. But who could give that satisfaction which the justice of God demanded ? Will it be you, sinful man ? Ah ! if this reparation depended upon you, most miserable would you be, since your sin coidd never be forgiven ! All the reparation you could possibly offer to God would never bear any proportion to the injury which you had to repair. No, you could never satisfy for your sin ; for what is it to satisfy, unless it be to restore to the offended person as much honor at least as was taken away by the offence which had been committed? Now, what could you do, man, when you abandoned God by disobedience ? You committed against God an outrage of infinite magnitude. To efface this injury and to repair* this outrage, it was necessary for you to present to the Lord a satisfaction of infinite A^alue and merit. Could you have done so, sinner? You, who had nothing pleasing to offer to the Lord, but what was already His on a thousand other titles. Could an angel have come and satisfied for man ? No, an angel could not ; even his merits are not sufficiently great. Must man, therefore, perish ? Oh, no, the mercy of the Lord will not forsake him in his misfortune, *' that grace might reign by giving everlasting life through Jesus Christ our Lord." God has abundantly showered down His grace and His blessing. " He so loved the world that to redeem it. He delivered up His only Son."* Sin must be punished, but the sin- ner will be saved : behold how mercy and truth have met in Jesus Christ ; and it is in Him and through Him that justice and peace have kissed. God ordains, and His divine Son comes on earth to clothe him- self with our nature, to take upon himself all our iniquities, and to wash them in His blood, which for our redemption He poured out upon the cross, even to the last drop. Thus have we been redeemed from hell, our sin effaced, and satisfaction full and entire, nay, even superabundant satisfaction offered to the divine justice, by the human nature, in the person of Jesus Christ. This divine Saviour was * Romans, v. BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST. 65 bruised for our sins, and he was wounded for our iniquities. Be- hold, why the Son of God was made man, was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and was born of the Virgin Mary. When the time had arrived wherein He had resolved to save man, " the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David : and the name of the virgin was Mary. And the angel being come in, said to her : Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee : blessed art thou among women. And when she had heard, she was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said to her : fear not Mary ; for thou hast found grace with God : behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son ; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High ; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of David His father : and He shall reign in the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end. And Mary said to the angel : How shall this be done, because I know not man ? And the angel answering, said to her : The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee ; and the power of the most High shall over-shadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God. . . . And Mary said : Behold the handmaid of the Lord : be it done to me according to thy word. And the angel departed." At the same instant, the only Son of God descended from the highest heavens into the chaste womb of Mary, invested himself there with our nature, took a body and a soul like ours, and became like unto us, sin only excepted. Some time after, as Joseph was of the house and of the family of David, he went from Galilee in Judea, from the city of Naza- reth to the city of David, which was called Bethlehem, there to be enrolled with Mary, his spouse, ill obedience to the decree of Augus- tus C^sar. While they were there, she found the days of her delivery were accomplished, and she brought forth her first born son, and wrapping Him in swaddling clothes, laid Him in a man- ger, because there there was no room for them in the inn. No doubt, my Brethren, you are tempted to say that a place so mean and wretched, is by no means suitable to the grandeur and majesty of a God. Ah ! the love of our Saviour made choice of 6Q SHORT SERMONS . it, to make expiation for our pride, and to teach us humility. Yet, in the bosom of His humiliation, and the depths of His misery, this divine Infant was recognized as the sovereign Master of heaven and of earth. The heavens open, the angels descend all resplendent with light, and sing those magnificent words : " Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to men of good will." A bright star appears in the east, and calls the Gentiles to the cradle of the Desired of nations, to the crib wherein reposes the Saviour of the world. The wise men follow this star, which proceeds before them, they reach Bethlehem, and there prostrating themselves, adore their hidden God. Eight days after His birth, this divine Infant was circumcised and received the name of Jesus ; after that He was presented in the temple to His heavenly Father, and soon, to escape the fury of King Herod, was compelled to fly with Mary and Joseph into the land of Egypt, where He remained until the death of His persecutor. The Gospel preserves almost a profound silence con- cerning all the time which elapsed from the return of our divine Saviour into His country, until His thirtieth year ; only informing us that at the age of twelve years. He was found in the temple, astonishing the doctors of the law by the wisdom of His answers, and that afterward He dwelt at Nazareth, where He was subject to Joseph and to Mary. Thus, my Brethren, I have briefly related to you what it is neces- sary for you to know concerning the Incarnation, — the birth and childhood of the Son of God, made man. It is doubtless enough, to penetrate your hearts with the most lively sentiments of grati- tude at the sight of the ineffable love which God has manifested for us. Instead of overwhelming you and plunging you into eternal misery, behold how the Son of God, equal to His Father, the Word divine, by whom all things were made, comes into this world, to take upon himself our infirmities and our sins, — comes to pay our ransom to His heavenly Father, and becomes obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, to save our souls. Oh ! how precious is your spul, since, to redeem it, God made man did not think He gave too much, when He gave His blood and His life. Oh ! you who so heedlessly commit sin, who are so indifferent to the interests of your immor- tal soul, you who are so cold in the service of God, I beg of you, to remember that to redeem you, — the Son of God was made man, — THE INFANT SAVIOUR. 67 and that He suffered tlic most cruel torments, — the most shameful death, to expiate your sin and to satisfy supreme justice for you. May the remembrance of the great benefit of the Incarnation of the Son of God, and of the redemption which He brought to the world, never depart from your minds and hearts ! God, my Brethren, has conferred so many blessings upon us, let us show ourselves grate- ful, and let us return to the Lord love for love, heart for heart; let as be His unreservedly and entirely, — let us do well Avhat He re- quires, and He will requite us according to His promise, — He will receive us into heaven, and make us partakers of His eternal hap- piness. — Amen. SERMOIi XII. THE INFANT SAVIOUR " This day is born to you a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. — St. Luke, ii: 11. When our divine Saviour was born, "there were in the same coun- try shepherds watching, and keeping the night-watches over their flocks. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, .... and they feared with a great fear. And the angel said to them : Fear not : for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people : For this day is born to you a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying : Glory to God in the highest ; and on earth, peace to men of good will. And it came to pass, that after the angels departed from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another : Let us go over to Bethlehem ; and let us see this word that is come to pass, Avhich the Lord hath showed to us. And they came with haste : and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in a manger.* * St. Luke: ii. 68 SHOETSERMONS. Let me, my Bretkren, once more ask you to visit the manger wliere the Word made flesh reposes, and express to you the thoughts which the sight of this divine Infant excites in my heart. This Infant, horn of you, Mary ; this Infant so weak, so tender, lying in a manger on a little straw, poorer than the child of the poorest man, — is the Word of God, the Son of the Eternal, the Son of the Most High. Yes ; the Holy of Holies, the King of kings, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Lord' of lords, who poises the world in. His hand, — is here a helpless bahe, lying in a manger ; divine Jesus, Thou art my God, and I adore Thee. You too, my Brethren, should how down before the Saviour of the world, and say to Him : Thou art our God and we adore Thee. But, since Jesus is the Lord our God, the sovereign Master of heaven and earth, let us obey His word, keep His commandments, and submit our minds and hearts to His adorable doctrine ; let us walk in His footsteps, follow the example He has given us, for He wished to be our model. It would be but little use for us to prostrate ourselves at the feet of the Son of God, and say : Lord ! Lord ! What avail these tokens of adoration, and these fine words, if our hearts do not speak ; if we do not adore Him in spirit and in truth ? Now, does that man sincerely adore the Lord, who despises His law and refuses to comply with His holy will ? Certainly not. Ah ! my Brethren, placing our hands upon our hearts, let us examine ourselves ! Jesus commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves, to do good to those who injure us, to pray for those who persecute us ; and is it not true that our hearts and souls are filled with enmity and hatred, — that we are unable to bear the slightest offence, and seek continually to be revenged ? Is it thus that Jesus Christ is to be adored? He says to us : *'Be meek and humble of heart;" and we always seek to rule and to be exalted ; indignation and anger take possession of us, the moment we imagine that some one has failed to show us that respect which we imagine to be our due. Is it thus that we ought to adore Jesus Christ ? He would have us place all confidence in our Father who is in heaven, and who takes care of us ; and yet at the smallest pain or the most trifling annoyance, we have the hardihood to complain and murmur against divine Providence, as if God had forsaken us. The Lord warns us that he who does not carry his cross, and who refuses to follow Him, is not worthy of Him : and yet, my Brethren^ we THE INFANT S A V I O U K . 69 are unwilling to mortify our flesh, Avith its desires ; on the contrary, we know only how to follow our base propensities and yield to all the demands of our vile passions. Where then is our obedience to the Lord ? Where is our submission to Jesus Christ, our God, who will also be our sovereign Judge? For this divine Infant who reposes in that manger, so full of gentleness and sweetness, will, on the day of judgment, come borne on the clouds of heaven, full of glory and of majesty, surrounded by millions of angels, to judge all men, princes and peasants, and render to every one according to his works ; to some eternal glory, to others eternal pains. Divine Jesus, I adore Thee, my desire is to obey Thee, to follow and imi- tate Thee ; be merciful to me, my God ! my Saviour ! How many great and sacred things does not the word Saviour contain ! What a benefit that which the love of God has granted us ! Suppose, my Brethren, some terrible danger threatened our lives, — an immense conflagration, a frightful earthquake, or a vast inundation. What fear, what awe, what dread would it not cause in us ? But suppose that there comes a man who with authority controls the fire, the sea and the elements ; who delivers us from death and saves us ; who even does more, for he not only preserves us, but he heaps favors and riches upon us ; beyond all doubt we would love this generous benefactor, we would even kiss his foot- prints ! Well, my Brethren, this man so worthy of our love, is but a faint image of our divine Saviour. We had sinned in Adam, were children of wrath, heaven was closed against us ; we should have passed from this vale of tears into eternal woe, for we had violated the law of God, and were incapable of making satisfaction to His infinite justice. But God loved us, and He sent among us His only begotten Son, in whom He was well pleased. This divine Emmanuel came, clothed Himself with our nature, was loaded with our iniquities, and blotted them out by dying for us on the cross. We should have been lost, but Jesus has saved us ; we should have been utterly abandoned, and held in bondage by the devil ; we should have eternally suffered in the gloomy dungeons of hell ; but Jesus has restored us to the friend- ship of His Father, — He has made us children of God and heirs of the kingdom of heaven. No, my Brethren, we will no longer be ungrateful ; we will 70 SHORT SERMOKS. deliglit to recall to mind the blessings wHcli our bountiful Saviour has conferred upon us. But if gratitude reign in our hearts, must it not show itself in all our conduct, — in our whole lives ? There is no one among us who can not sometimes say : be Thou blessed, my Jesus, because Thou hast redeemed me, because Thou hast saved me ! But it is not words that the Saviom- asks of us, — He wishes to have holy works, — worthy fruits of gratitude, and this is the only means by which we can be saved. No doubt, our divine Lord renders salvation possible, even easy for us, but, to obtain it, we must cooperate with the graces which the adorable sacrifice of the cross has merited for us ; A^e must render ourselves worthy of this great blessing by constantly doing the will of God. Woe be to us, if at the end of our lives it be found that we have not profited by the blessings which the Saviour brought us in abundance, and if we be found wanting in gratitude and fidelity toward our best friend and greatest benefactor, who has done every thing that it was possible for him to do, to gain our love and win our hearts. If the most powerful monarch in the world were to descend from his throne and come to dwell among his subjects ; were he to seek out by preference the poorest; to speak to them with benignity; to sit at their table, eat of their bread ; wish to be accounted their friend, their brother; and beg them to bestow upon him these endearing names ; who would not love this good king ? Who would not be devoted to him, in life and in death ? My Brethren, what is this compared with all the King of heaven has done for us ? The Word was God, and the Word made Himself flesh, and came to dwell among us, poor sinners; He was rich, says the Apostle, and He made himself poor, to enrich us; He chose to be born of poor parents, in an old, decayed stable ; the first men from whom He condescended to receive homage vrere poor shepherds ; for thirty years He lived in the house of a poor carpenter, and was occupied at the trade of His foster-father ; He afterward had no place whereon to rest His head, and He lived only on the alms which some pious souls placed in the hands of His disciples ; at last, for us He became the Man of Sorrows, died on the cross, shedding even the last drop of His blood ; but not imtil He had instituted the adorable sacra- ment of his love, — the divine Eucharist ; for He wished to remain among those whom He loves, all days, even to the end of time, to T II E I N F A N T S A V I O U K . 71 be their consolation and their strength. Yes, my God, Thou didst love us to the end, — even to excess. My Brethren, love demands love ; love then your divine Saviour, who has so much loved you! Remember the consoling promise He has made us: "If you love," He says, "I will come to take up my abode in you." But let us also remember that He requires that we should prove the sincerity of our love by keeping His commandments faithfully : '' He that loves me, keeps my command- ments." Divine Jesus, Thou art the Son of the Most High, Thou art our Lord, our God : from the bottom of our hearts we adore Thee, and lay at Thy feet our solemn promise of remaining ever faithful to Thee, of obeying Thy divine word, and of walking constantly in the ways of Thy commandments. Thou art our Saviour; Thou hast died to save us from eternal death ; Thou hast blotted out sin and broken down the walls that stood between us and God ; Thou hast opened the gates of heaven for us. Be Thou then praised, O sweet Jesus, forever and ever ! bountiful God, how much hast Thou loved us ! And how have we repaid Thy love ? We have spent many years in lukewarmness, in sin and in impenitence, lost in the pursuit of earthly things, and forgetful of heaven, of the glorious paradise to which Thou invitest us, and where Thou awaitest us. Pardon, my Saviour, pardon us, that we begin so late to love Thee. Grant that the merits of Thy suf- ferings and Thy death may not be lost in our regard. Be our guide, our support, and our strength, that nothing may be able to separate us from Thee, who art the truth we must hear, the way we must follow, and the life wherewith we must be animated, if we would enjoy the life and the happiness of heaven. — Amen. 72 SHORT SERMONS. SERMON XIII. f OURTH ARTICLE OF THE CREED. LIFE OF OUR DIVINE SAVIOUR. "Who hath loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood." — Apoc- alypse, i : 5. The heavens have diffused their sweet dews, and the clouds rained down the Just One. The earth has opened its bosom and given birth to the Saviour. Jesus, the divine Redeemer promised to the world when our first parent sinned, has just been born. Angels announce to the poor the miraculous birth of the Messias ; kings come from the East, prostrate themselves at His feet and adore Him. But, behold another king, a cruel tyrant seeks to put Him to death : the God made man takes refuge in the land of Egypt, and lives in obscurity, until He has attained His thirtieth year. At length the important time foretold by the prophet, had come, when the divine Saviour was to commence His heavenly mission, to preach forgiveness of sins, to invite all men to repentance, to overturn the empire of Satan, and to immolate himself for the salvation of the world. I would gladly lay before you the entire life of Jesus, but I must content myself with recalling to your minds some of its principal events. Be sure that you attend well to what I say. Jesus leaves His retreat, quits His humble abode at Nazareth, comes to the banks of the Jordan, enters the river, and requests John to pour on His head the waters of baptism. My Brethren, Jesus did not require the baptism of penance, which John gave ; He was not obliged to do those penitential acts ; He who had come to blot out the sins of the world, could not be himself stained with sin. He was the pure and spotless Lamb, and if He chose to receive the baptism of John, it was to leave us a noble example of humility, and to sanctify the water, which was afterward to efface, in reality, our sins in the sacrament of baptism. Yes, Jesus humbled himself, LIFE O F OUK DIVINE S A VIO UR. 73 on the banks of the Joichan, but His Father liastened to glorify Him. The heavens open; the Holy Ghost, in the form of a dove, descends on our divine Saviour ; and a voice, the voice of God, the Father, is heard from the highest heavens, saying : "Thou art my beloved Son ; in Thee I am well pleased."* Jesus leaves the banks of the Jordan, goes into the desert, fasts for forty days and forty nights, and afterward permits the devil to tempt Him. In vain does the infernal spirit exert all his malice, employ all his wicked- ness, and call in action all his cunning ; he prevails not over the spirit and heart of the Saviour of the world, who was soon to crush this serpent's head. But this temptation which Jesus suffered in the desert, on the eve of undertaking His divine mission, proclaims loudly to us that we must be on our guard against the artifices of the devil, and watch over ourselves, lest we be surprised by Satan, who did not fear attacking even the Holy of Holies ! Jesus comes forth from the desert and declares that He is the Messias promised to men ; He travels through villages, market- places and cities ; He preaches in the temple, on the highways, on the sea-shore ; He reveals to the people those sublime truths which are the object of our faith ; streams of enchanting eloquence flow from His divine lips ; He speaks with authority, He speaks as no man ever spoke before ; He shows us, that in God, we have a Father, in other men, brothers ; He demonstrates clearly the no- thingness of the things of this world ; He tells us the importance of salvation, the value of heavenly things, the happiness of the elect, and how we may attain that happiness ; He teaches us to sub- mit our minds and hearts to the word and the will of God ; to sub- due our passions, to practice virtue ; and to support the truth of His words He works the most wonderful prodigies, evidences indeed of His omnipotence, but no less proofs of His goodness. He speaks, and His word puts to flight the whole train of evils that afflict us. He speaks, and fever, leprosy, and all infirmities disappear. He speaks, and the blind see, the deaf hear, the dumb speak. He speaks, and the devil retreats in shame and confusion. He speaks, and the grave gives up its victims, and the dead come to life. While performing these wonders, Jesus at the same time pre- ♦ St. Luke, lii : 22. 74 SHORT SERMONS. sents himself to the world, as the most perfect model of the most exalted virtues ! Yes, divine Jesus, you alone can say: "I came that you may have a model." Jesus was humble : I came, says he, to serve, and not to be served. Often did He forbid the miracles He wrought to be published, and he imposed silence on the demons, who were forced to cry out that He was truly the Son of God. In a transport of admiration, the people were about to make Him their king, and Jesus retires and hides himself from their pressing solici- tation. He asks not His own glory, but that of His Father. Jesus was meek and bountiful, — He rejected. He repulsed no one. The Apostles wished to drive away the little children that were brought to Him for His blessing, and He said to them : " Suffer the little children, and forbid them not to come unto me ; for the kingdom of heaven is for such; . . . unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Two of His disciples ask that fire should come from the heavens, to destroy a city which had refused to receive Him. You know not. He says to them, of what spirit you are ; I came not to destroy men, but to save them. When they sought to make Him pronounce sen- tence of death against the woman taken in adultery; "he that is without sin among you," He says, "let him first cast a stone at her." He bore with patience the rudeness of the Apostles, and the importunities of the sick. What do I say ? He invited them to Him. " Come," He says, "come all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you." Jesus was tender and full of compassion. He wept for the death of Lazarus, His friend ; He shed tears over Jerusalem, and beholding that unfortunate city, He exjlaimed : "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered together thy children, as the hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and thou wonldst not !" He beheld the tears of the poor widow of Nain, and hastened to console her by restoring her dead son to life. He received with benignity the sinners who desired to turn from their evil ways, and He rebuked only those who were hardened in vice ; therefore it was that He denounced so severely the proud Pharisee and the hypocritical doctor of the law. His sole business was the glory of God and the salvation of men ; and He frequently spent whole nights in prayer, after having employed *he day in doing good to all, in glorifying His Father, extolling the LIFE OF OUR DIVINE SAVIOUR. 76 happiness of seeing and of loving Him, and in traveling about, on foot, under the burning rays of a scorching sun, in quest of His lost sheep. He was, in truth, the good shepherd, who laid down His life for His flock. He lived in great poverty, and well might He say to the Jews: "The birds of the air have their nests, and the fox its den, but the Son of Man hath not whereon to lay His head." Son of God, Master, and Lord of heaven and earth, Thou wast rich, and Thou hast made Thyself poor, to teach us that there are no true riches, but the riches of eternity ; and that all the wealth of this earth is nothing but vanity. Thou hast said : " Woe to the rich! blessed are the poor!'* because Thou wouldst have us know that riches too frequently are the fatal thorns which stifle in our hearts the good seeds of salvation. Behold, my Brethren, what the life our divine Saviour was while on earth: "He spent it doing good." How different from the con- queror, who estimates his days by his victories, that is to say, by the evils which he causes and the sorrow he increases ; — Jesus, on the contrary, the meekest of the children of men, reckons his days by His blessings. In the towns, the market-places and the cities, there are no blind, nor sick, nor lepers, because Jesus of Nazareth hath passed that way. Yes, He is the Holy of Holies, and He manifested His divinity as the Divinity is accustomed to manifest itself by acts of patience, of charity, and of love ; and yet notwith- standing all His blessings and wonderful virtues, He was hated by the world, by those corrupt men to whom He declared the truth which condemned them. Some of them, carnal men, who expected a Messias who should subdue the nations of the earth to his empire, would not acknowledge the Saviour of Israel, in the person of the poor and humble Jesus, whom they called with contempt, ** the son of the carpenter." Others, and above all, the Scribes, the Pharisees, the priests and the senators persecuted Him, calumniated Him, and despised Him, because He censured their pride, their avarice, their hypocrisy, and the numberless other vices which made these men like whited sepulchres, fair indeed without, but within, full of dead mens' bones and of all corruption. They hated Jesus, and yet they had nothing wherewith to reproach Him, for they observed silence when he publicly challenged them to convict Him of sin. Often did they try to surprise Him in His words, but in vain ; He always 76 SHORTSERMONS. detected their malice and ignorance, and confounded them by His answers. When the true Israelites, — whose hearts were right, — at sight of Jesus exclaimed : Blessed is He who comes to us in the name of the Lord, the hatred of the wicked, on hearing those praises and acclamations, knew no hounds, and they resolved to put to death, the Just One, the Saviour of the world, the Son of God. I will speak to you, in our next instruction, of the chalice of sorrows which our divine Saviour was compelled to drink, even to the dregs. I conclude, my Brethren, by repeating to you the words which our Saviour addressed to His disciples: **I come, that you might have a model." Yes, Jesus came to redeem us and to be our model. Let us therefore act, let us always conduct ourselves, in a manner conformable to that which this good Master has taught us. He was humble, meek, patient and charitable ; let us therefore be humble, meek, patient and charitable. He labored for His Father's glory in procuring our salvation; let us cooperate with the glory of God by advancing in the practice of good works, and let us do this with the more zeal and perseverance, as it is only by following this path, that we can arrive at heaven, where Jesus our Saviour reigns, to whom be all glory, honor and power forever and ever. — ^Amen. SERMON XIY. FOURTH ARTICLE OP THE CREED. SUFFERINGS OF JESUS CHRIST. *' He was obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."— Philippians, ii : 8 " And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us : and we saw His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father."* He came to recall us from the ways of error, — to reestablish us in * St. John, i : 14. SUFFERINGS OF JESUS CHRIST. 7T the path of truth. He has made known to us the God of heaven, and in our God He has revealed to us a Father and the most ten- der of Fathers. He showed us the worship we ought to pay to God, that of the spirit and of the heart. He revealed to us the sublime destiny which awaits us in eternity ; that immortal life, filled with inexpressible delights, when we shall see God face to face, such as He is in himself, and to which we can attain by the practice of the truths which He taught and of the precepts He imposed. To confirm the truth of His heavenly doctrine, Jesus performed great miracles, prodigies of His power, and still more prodigies of charity and mercy. He was the most amiable, the meekest, the holiest of the children of men, and yet He had enemies. To-day, I will speak to you of the chalice of sorrows which they made Him drink, even to the dregs. Jesus Christ had foretold to His Apostles that He would be deliv- ered into the hands of wicked men, — the scribes and chief priests ; that they would pronounce against Him the sentence of death; that He would be contemned and mocked, scourged and crucified. The time has now come when this divine Saviour is about to con- summate His sacrifice, and to lay down His life for the salvation of the world. Accompanied by His Apostles, He proceeds to the place wherein He had appointed to take His last supper, and eat His last passover with them. Before, however. He would depart out of this life, He wished to leave them the most precious pledge of His love and tenderness, — He desired to institute the adorable sacrament of His body and blood. He then ''took bread, and blessed, and broke, and gave it to His disciples, and said : Take ye and eat : this is my body which is given for you. . . . And taking the chalice. He gave thanks ; and gave it to them saying : Drink ye all of this, for this is my blood of the new testament, which shall be shed for many for the remission of sins. Do this in commemoration of me."* Many more things He said with the the most tender affection to His dear disciples. Seeing them op- pressed by a weight of sadness. He consoled them, by promising not to leave them orphans, and to send them the Holy Ghost, who would be with them all days, and would make them understand all » St. Matthew, xxvi, — St. Luke, xxii. 78 SHOKTSEEMONS. that He had taught them. He recommended them to the all-power- ful protection of His Father, whom He besought with all His soul to preserve them, to defend them against the temptations of the enemy, to maintain among them perfect union of hearts, to the end that not one of them might he lost, but that all might be with Him in the eternal happiness of heaven. We can not doubt, my Breth- ren, that it was not for the Apostles alone our bountiful Saviour addressed this fervent prayer to His heavenly Father, but also for us, who, converted by their preaching, have had the happiness of being called to the knowledge of the truth thi-ough the grace of Jesus Christ. Having sung a hymn, Jesus went with His Apostles to the mount of Olives, where He was accustomed to pray. Here He represented to Himself all He was about to suffer, during His pain- ful passion, and giving way to the feelings of nature, was seized with fear and excessive sadness. Thrice did He prostrate himself on the ground, and pray: My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass away from me ; yet not as I will, but as Thou wilt. A bloody sweat flows in large drops from every part of His body to the earth, while reduced almost to His agony, Jesus but perseveres the more in prayer. Then an angel from heaven appeared to strengthen Him: rising up, Jesus went to His disciples and said to them: "Watch ye, and pray that you enter not into temptation. Behold, he is at hand that will betray me." As He yet spoke, Judas, whom the money of the scribes and Pharisees had seduced, and who betrayed His divine Master, arrived, followed by a large body of soldiers. But Jesus, knowing all that was about to happen, said to them : " Whom seek ye ? they answered, Jesus of Nazareth : Jesus says to them, I am He ; at which word they all immediately went back and fell to the ground." No donbt, my Brethren, the Son of God could have escaped the fury of His enemies, for a word from His mouth was enough to prostrate them to the earth ; but He loved us. He wished to save us, and to reconcile us to His Father, He chose to die. Hence He permitted His enemies to seize His divine person, to load Him with chains, to drag Him, as a vile criminal, before the tribunal of the high -priest, Caiphas. Lying witnesses accused Him, and He spoke not. But when the high- priest bid Him, in the name of the living God, say, whether He S L F F i: li I N (j! S O K .1 E S U S C II li I S T . 79 was the Christ, the Son of God, He immediately answered: "Thou hast said it. Nevertheless I say to you, hereafter you shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of the power of God, and coming in the clouds of heaven."* At the same time, the high-priest rent his garments, saying : He hath blasphemed ; what further need have we of witnesses. And they all cried out. He is guilty of death. Our divine Lord was then delivered up to insolent wretches, who spit in His face, beat Him with their fists and buffetted Him, saying, prophesy unto us, Christ: who is it that struck Thee? The next day He was conducted to the house of Pontius Pilate, at that time the Roman governor of Judea. Calumny was the weapon employed by the enemies of Jesus, and here they made a horrible use of it, for they durst accuse the God of Sanctity of being a rebel to authority, and of having excited the people to sedition. Pilate discovered in the malignity of their accusations the shameful motive which actuated them. He perceived that all these charges were but the ofifspring of envy and hatred ; yet weak man as he was, he had not the courage to confound calumny and vindicate oppressed innocence. Nevertheless he desired to rescue Jesus from the death to which the Jews clamorously sought to make him condemn Him. He caused Him, tlierefore, to be scourged, a crown of thorns fastened on His head, an old purple robe to be thrown on His shoulders, in His hand a reed to be placed as a scepter, and thus arrayed, he exhibited Him to the people, hoping that the sight of Jesus reduced to this sad state, would excite their compassion. Vain hoiDC ! the criminal and cowardly expedient saved not the innocent. With greater fury did the Jews cry out : Crucify Him ! Crucify Him ! Let His blood be upon us and upon our children ! And Pilate gave up Jesus to them to be crucified. To die on the cross was the most painful and at the same time the most disgraceful of punish- ments: none were condemned to this death but slaves, assassins and highway robbers. Hardly had the sentence of death been pro- nounced, than the Jews placed upon the shoulders of our divine Redeemer the heavy cross on which He was to suffer. Like another Isaac, He bore to the summit of Calvary the wood, on which He was to immolate himself as a holocaust. The execationers extended * St. Matthew, xxxvi : 64. 80 S n O R T S E K M O N S . Him on tlie cross, drove large nails into His hands and feet, and to outrage Him still more, tliey crucified Him between two thieves. For many hours Jesus Christ remained suspended on the cross, a prey to the most excruciating pains, and exposed to the blasphe- mous insults of the wicked and abandoned crowd by which He was surrounded. At last, crying out with a loud voice, He said : My Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit. And bowing down His head He expired. To assure themselves of His death, a soldier pierced His side with a lance, and immediately there issued from it blood and water. Then Joseph of Arimathea hastening to the house of Pilate, asked and obtained permission to bury the body of Jesus. Aided by Nicodemus, a doctor of the law and a secret disciple of the Saviour, he took down Jesus from His cross, and having wrap- ped His body in a winding sheet, consigned it to a tomb, in which no one had been placed before. The chief priests and Pharisees did not forget that our Lord had foretold that He would rise again from the dead on the third day. To falsify this prophecy they went to the sepulchre, carefully closed it, and setting their seal on the stone, placed a body of soldiers there to guard it. All was con- summated ; the Scriptures were fulfilled : the Just One was put to death, — the devil was vanquished, the justice of God was satisfied, man was restored to the friendship of his Maker, heaven was open- ed, and it was now possible for man to attain it, for Jesus, the Son of God, had died for us on the cross. Oh ! how great and how terrible must be the injury offered to God by mortal sin, since, to expiate it. He willed that His only Son should suffer such excruciating tortures ! How great was the love of Jesus for men ! For us, my Brethren, to cleanse us from our sins, He suffered so much ! He suffered death, even the death of the cross ! My Brethren, let us never cease to love this bountiful Saviour, Avho has so tenderly loved us. And let us never commit sin, for it is the origin of all our evils, and the cause of all the sufferings of the Son of God. He that commits sin becomes the slave of sin, and hates his own soul, — that soul so precious, to redeem which, the Son of God did not think it too much to shed the last drop of His blood ! Whenever, then, temptation assails you, whenever yon perceive that sin is about to enter your heart, cast a glance at your Saviour, dying on His cross, and say to yourselves : "Ah! Jesus KESUiiliECTlO^' OF JKSUS CIUilST. 81 Christ died on the cross for me, — to wash out my iniquities, and cleanse me from my sins. How can I offend Him again, and be so ungrateful, and at the same time so senseless, as to lose the fruits of the sufferings and the death of my God! No, I will ratlier die, than sin again : death in this case will be to me a great gain ; it will be the beginning of life, — of eternal life, — when I shall see and adore my Saviour and my God for endless ages." Yes, my Breth- ren, in times of temptation call to mind what your soul has cost, — the blood of a God; see the enormity of sin, — it nails Jesus to the cross, it crucifies the only begotten Son of God. There was needed the blood of a God to open heaven for you, and mortal sin would clovse it against you once more. Be you then faithful, — sin no more, and God will be your reward exceedingly great for all eternity. — Amen. SERMOX XV. FIFTH ARTICLE OF THE CREED. RESURIIECTION OF JESUS CHRIST "He descended into hell ; the third day He rose again from the dead." — Apos- tles' Ceeed. Having spent on this earth about thirty years of a most pure and holy life, replete with every good work, Jesus our SavicJur, became a victim of the envy and hatred of the Jews, suffered the most painful and excruciating torments at their hands, and at last died on a cross between two thieves. JHe gave His life to redeem us from eternal death ; He died because He loved us. Behold, my Brethren, the grand and consoling truths which made the subject of our last instruction. To-day I intend to explain the fifth article of the Apostles' Creed : "He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead." Be attentive, I beg of you. When our Lord Jesus Christ die