Vulcan 607 British Air Attack Falklands Revised

Updated Rowland White download

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-607-british-air-attack-
falklands-revised-updated-rowland-white-53831940

Explore and download more ebooks at ebookbell.com

Here are some recommended products that we believe you will be
interested in. You can click the link to download.

Vulcan 607 The Epic Story Of The Most Remarkable British Air Attack
Since Wwii Rowland White

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-607-the-epic-story-of-the-most-
remarkable-british-air-attack-since-wwii-rowland-white-37317464

Vulcan 607 Rowland White

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-607-rowland-white-47690730

Vulcan 607 Rowland White

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-607-rowland-white-231772738

Vulcan Units Of The Cold War Andrew Brookes

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-units-of-the-cold-war-andrew-
brookes-5685230
Vulcan Rafs Atomic Avenger Tim Mclelland Editor

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-rafs-atomic-avenger-tim-
mclelland-editor-6738710

Vulcan Test Pilot Tony Blackman

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-test-pilot-tony-blackman-47136756

Vulcans Forge Robert Mitchell Evans

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcans-forge-robert-mitchell-
evans-48910598

Vulcan God Of Fire Tim Mclelland

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-god-of-fire-tim-
mclelland-48930340

Vulcan Boys From The Cold War To The Falklands True Tales Of The
Iconic Delta V Bomber Tony Blackman

https://ebookbell.com/product/vulcan-boys-from-the-cold-war-to-the-
falklands-true-tales-of-the-iconic-delta-v-bomber-tony-
blackman-7419500
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
 [Footnote 86: Rom. xvi. 20.]

Now, how was Satan crushed under the feet of the Roman
Christians, if it were not when, by the conversion and victory of
Constantine, this great capital of the world and seat of idolatry was
changed into the capital of Christendom, the heathen temples
transformed into Christian churches, and the cross everywhere
erected in triumph over this proud and pagan city?

There is no event in history better established than the episcopate

and martyrdom of St. Peter at Rome. It is admitted by a great
number of the most learned Protestants. It is proved by the
catalogues of Roman Bishops in ancient writers all tracing back the
succession to St. Peter. It is proved by pictures, statues, and other
ancient monuments; by the pilgrimages which from ancient times
were made to the tomb of the Apostles, of which even Eusebius in
the fourth century makes mention. It is proved by the testimony of
St. Clement, the immediate successor of St. Peter; St. Ignatius,
Papias, St. Dionysius, St. Irenæus, Caius, Clement of Alexandria,
Origen, St. Cyprian, Eusebius, Lactantius, St. Athanasius, St.
Epiphanius, Julian the Apostate, St. Augustine, Palladius, and
others. Indeed, any one who would dispute the fact, that the
Bishops of Rome have succeeded each other in that see in a direct
line from St. Peter, might as well dispute the succession of the
Roman emperors from Julius Cæsar, of the English kings from
Alfred, and the kings of France from Charlemagne.

The fact that the Bishops of Rome succeeded also to the

supremacy of St. Peter over the whole Catholic Church is also
proved by a crowd of testimonies in every age. It is, as every one
will see, not convenient, in a discourse like the present, to cite and
explain at length those passages from the ancient writers,
especially after having already taxed your patience so severely. I
will therefore cite only a few passages as samples of the manner in
which ancient writers have spoken on this subject, and leave it to
yourselves to read over the testimonies more carefully in some of
the various works where they are collected.

St. Irenæus, Bishop of Lyons, who conversed with the immediate

disciples of the apostles, says: "With this Church, on account of the
more powerful principality, it is necessary that every Church, that
is, the faithful who are in every direction, should agree." [Footnote
87]

[Footnote 87: L. iii. c. 3. Kenrick.]

Tertullian, about the end of the second century, exclaims: "From no

other cause have heresies arisen and schisms sprung up, except
from a want of obedience to the priest of God, and because they
do not remember that there is one judge for the time being in the
Church, in the place of Christ." The great and general Council of
Nice, A.D. 325, in one of its canons says: "The Roman Church has
always held the Primacy." The Council of Sardica, in a letter to the
Pope, says: "This seems excellent and most suitable, that the
priests of the Lord from the respective provinces should report to
the Head," i.e., to the See of the Apostle Peter. In the fifth century,
all the Bishops of the province of Aries, in France, in a letter to
Pope Leo, say: "The Holy Roman Church, through the most blessed
Peter, Prince of the Apostles, has the principality above all the
churches of the world." The grand Council of Chalcedon, where six
hundred Bishops were present, mostly from the East, and out of
the limits of the particular patriarchate of Rome, when the letter of
the same Pope Leo was read, defining the faith of two distinct
natures, divine and human, in Christ, exclaimed with one voice,
"Peter has spoken by the mouth of Leo." At the beginning of the
sixth century, the Bishop of Patara said to the Emperor Justinian:
"There may be many sovereigns on the earth; but there is one
Pope over all the churches of the universe." Not only Christian
bishops and councils speak in this way of the Roman See, but
emperors, and even pagans, use the same language. In the year
268, when Paul, Patriarch of Antioch, was condemned of heresy by
a council, the pagan Emperor Aurelian directed that the Church of
Antioch "should be delivered up to those whom the Bishops of Italy
and the Bishop of Rome should appoint." Ammianus Marcellinus, a
pagan writer of the fourth century, affirms that "the Bishops of the
Eternal City enjoy a greater authority." The Christian Emperor
Valentinian, in a decree of the year 455, says: "The merit of the
blessed Peter, who is the Prince of priestly order, and the dignity of
the Roman city, the authority also of the Synod, strengthened the
Primacy of the Apostolic See." These testimonies extend from the
sixth back to the second century, when the disciples of the Apostles
still lived. They are not merely the testimonies of the Bishops of
Rome themselves, or of those who lived in the vicinity and under
the immediate influence of Rome, but they are collected from Italy,
France, Africa, and the whole Eastern Church, where those great
Patriarchs flourished who afterwards renounced their subjection to
Rome. Thus, it is evident, from these and a host of similar
testimonies, that, during the first six centuries, the Bishops of
Rome claimed to exercise the supremacy in the place of Peter, and
that this claim was universally acknowledged.

This is only a confirmation of the texts of Holy Scripture which I

have already cited, and was foreshadowed when Christ chose the
bark of St. Peter in preference to the rest, to preach from it to the
multitude on the shore. The conversion of nations through
missionaries sent by the Pope is Peter superintending the
miraculous draught of fishes and drawing them upon the shore. His
exercise of authority over patriarchs, bishops, and churches
throughout the world is only the fulfilment of the commission,
"Feed my lambs—feed my sheep"—be the pastor of my entire flock,
the prince of pastors, the Bishop of bishops. The might, the power
of the Roman See, is the fulfilment of the prophecy, "On this rock I
will build My Church." On the foundation of Peter, the Catholic
Church was built, and on this foundation she has ever rested. To
Peter was given the power of the keys, of binding and of loosing,
and his successors have ever exercised this supreme authority. If
time permitted, I should now go on to show that this authority
committed to St. Peter and his successors is the same, and equally
of divine right in his present glorious successor, Pius IX., as it was
in the times of the martyr popes of the first century; that the
Roman Church has never failed, never fallen, never forfeited her
supremacy, and never will while the world shall stand. But I must
waive all further consideration of the attributes and notes of the
Catholic Church. At present, I will only allude to the concluding part
of our Lord's promise to St. Peter: "The gates of hell shall never
prevail against it." Here there is the divine assurance that this rock
on which the Church is founded shall stand until the end of the
world, and the Church itself, on account of the firmness of its
foundation, shall never be overthrown. The supremacy of his
successors shall endure until the last day, and that Church which is
governed by the successors of St. Peter shall alone continue to be
the true Church. The gates of hell shall wage perpetual warfare
against it, but in vain. That rock shall remain immovable and
impregnable. By this rock it is that Jesus Christ has provided for the
preservation of the Faith and for the salvation of the world. Let us
recall to mind the object which we had before our minds at the
commencement of these discourses: it was to find the sure and
immovable basis of the Catholic faith and religion. And how
admirable is the provision of Almighty God for this purpose! He has
taken the greatest and most powerful city of the earth, the capital
of the world; there He has erected the beacon-light of faith; there
He has fixed the immovable seat of truth; there He has established
the capital city of Christianity, the chief city of His kingdom on
earth; there Jesus Christ has placed His Vicar, the pastor and
teacher of the world, that Rome, once the mistress of the world by
her arms, might rule by her faith as the Mother and Mistress of
churches, and that title of the Eternal City which was given her by
her pagan soothsayers might be literally fulfilled. Happy those who,
amid the storms and winds of error, doubt, and ever-changing
doctrine, take refuge within the walls of the Eternal City; whose
faith is built not upon the shifting sands of private judgment, but
on the immovable basis of church authority; whose wanderings
terminate, like those of St. Paul, at Rome, whence, like him, they
ascend to that celestial city whose builder and maker is God! Such
a person is like the wise man of whom our Lord speaks, "that built
his house upon a rock, and the rain fell, and the floods came, and
the winds blew and beat upon that house, and it fell not; FOR IT
WAS FOUNDED UPON A ROCK."
 Sermon XV.
The Thought Of Heaven.
(For The Fourth Sunday After Easter.)
Heb. iv. 9.

"There remaineth therefore a rest

for the people of God."

These words, my dear brethren, are full of consolation to each and

every one of us. They lift our minds, at this Paschal season, far
away from this earth, and fix them in contemplation on that happy
land, the heavenly Jerusalem, where there is no sorrow, no pain,
no sickness, and no death; they take us with the beloved disciple
to see that celestial country, the city of God, in which stands the
tree of life, and where flows the river of life, beside whose banks
are seated all those who have died in the Lord, and rest from their
labors. They open those pearly gates to allow us to behold the
white-robed army of saints who stand before the Lamb; and we
can almost hear their anthems of praise, set to music which no
human heart can conceive of, that swell the courts of heaven with
the celestial cry of, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty, who was,
and who is, and who is to come!"

Heaven, a rest after the toils of life are over! Heaven, a reward for
fidelity! Oh! how good is the thought of heaven! How necessary to
many as a stimulant to practise virtue and persevere therein! What
a reward for a good life! The thought of heaven is very good, for it
encourages us when we grow faint-hearted; the thought of heaven
is that which prompts a man to abstain from evil and do good,
because he knows that heaven will be his reward, and the loss of it
his punishment. It is necessary; for, without this thought being
before the mind of a Christian, he might give way to many an
enticing temptation. It is far more meritorious, also, than the
thought of hell, just as an act of contrition is more meritorious
than an act of attrition; for the former excites us to sorrow for
having offended a good God, who has created us for heaven, and
the latter excites us to fear lest we incur the displeasure of an
angry God and be condemned to hell.

The Holy Church, as a stimulant to the doing of good, as an

encouragement to persevere under many difficulties and
temptations, and as a reward for all our labors in saving our souls,
ever keeps the thought of heaven before our minds. In the
Sacraments she does this. The unregenerate cannot go to heaven
because there is an obstacle—original sin; it is removed in Baptism;
and the strength to fight in the spiritual warfare, is given by
Confirmation. She calls us to Confession, because something is
again between the soul and heaven, and that is mortal sin. She
absolves us, and sends us to Holy Communion, which is a foretaste
of heaven. She anoints the dying, that all the peculiar temptations
which attack them in the hour of death may be overcome. She
unites the "children of the saints" in Matrimony, because marriage
is a sign of the union of heaven and earth, and gives the grace for
the married couple to "marry in the Lord." She ordains her clergy,
that they may teach the way to heaven, and distribute all those
means of grace that are sure to bring us there. So you perceive
that this seems to be the leading thought in the mind of the
Church. It is the development of the response to the question that
every Catholic child can answer—Why did God create you? "That I
might know Him, and love Him, and serve Him here in this world,
and be happy with Him for ever in the next."

The thought of heaven conveys the greatest consolation to those

who in this world find but little happiness, and are surrounded by
peculiar difficulties in the practice of virtue. It gives strength to
those who grow tired of the spiritual life, and who would give up
were it not for this thought. Hence the thought of heaven is good,
necessary, and comforting.
The rest spoken of in the text is not for all, but only for the people
of God. Who are the people of God? They are the people of God
who are baptized and made members of the Catholic Church. But
not all will enter into that rest prepared for them, because
something more is necessary than simply being called by that
name. Baptism is a sacrament which requires those whom it admits
to be heirs of the kingdom of heaven, first to answer certain
questions, and imposes certain obligations to be observed. The
priest says to the person to be baptized, "If thou wilt enter into life,
keep the commandments, love the Lord thy God with thy whole
heart, and thy neighbor as thyself." So you see that, at this very
instant, the thought of heaven is suggested to the person, and the
way to arrive there is clearly shown. And, before the priest pours
the sanctifying water on the brow of the person, he says, "Dost
thou renounce Satan and all his works and all his pomps?" When
the person promises, "Yes, I do renounce them," then baptism is
administered, and that person takes his place in the world a
Christian. But not all who are called Christians are Christians
indeed. Many do not live as though they believed in a God, a
church, a heaven, or a hell. They follow the inclinations of their
own sinful hearts, and live up to the false maxims of this wicked
world. They do not walk according to the Spirit, but rather
according to the flesh. They look on life as something to be
enjoyed to the utmost, and when that is ended they consider all
ended, body and soul. Ah! foolish people! who thus deceive
themselves, who are ashamed of the religion of Jesus Christ, who
violate without any remorse their baptismal vows, who treat our
Lord far worse than did the Jews of old, for they never professed
to believe in Him.

The way, then, to be a Christian in deed as well as in name is to

live up to that "perfect law of liberty," that law which was made
and given by God, which allows the highest kind of freedom to its
observers, and which ennobles and elevates man rather than
degrades him. This law is simple, and, if it is observed, all things
will go on peaceably. As of old, the saying was, "All are not
Israelites that are of Israel," [Footnote 88] so they are not heirs of
the kingdom of heaven who do not walk in the path marked out for
them to follow, or who do not fulfil the conditions required for a
holy life. "Not every one that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter
into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doeth the will of My Father
who is in heaven." [Footnote 89]

[Footnote 88: Rom. ix. 6.]

[Footnote 89: St. Matt. vii. 21.]

And that will is made known to us all by the Catholic Church. She is
the ark that will bring us safe to the haven of rest. She sets herself
in array against the powers of this world and wicked men, because
she is holy; she is born of God, and divine; she does this by her
sacraments, her sacrifices, her laws, instructions, missions, and her
institutions of charity. She teaches men reverence for holy persons
and holy things; she teaches them to venerate the name of their
Creator; she tells them to sanctify Sundays and holydays; she
enjoins, under pain of eternal death—which includes the loss of
heaven—honesty, justice, purity, sobriety, and all the other
requirements of the decalogue. She is not conformed to this world
or its ways. The world says: "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a
tooth." "If your enemy strike you, strike him back; if he calumniate
you, never forget it; if he do you an act of injustice, if he slander
you, treasure it up, do not forgive, but pay him back some day with
interest." The world says: "Eat and drink, grow rich in this world's
goods, have a gay time, make the most of life: heaven is far away,
and you will have opportunity to prepare when the time comes for
it." "Make plenty of money," says the world, "no matter whether
the business be just or lawful, you may get to heaven after all;
others worse than you have had time to do penance before they
died." But the Holy Church says differently. She enjoins charity,
meekness, poverty of spirit, preparation for death. "If thine enemy
hunger, give him to eat; if he thirst, give him to drink." [Footnote
90] "If a man strike thee on one cheek, turn to him the other."
[Footnote 91] "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven." [Footnote 92] These are her lessons of
heavenly doctrine, which all must learn and put in practice, if they
would obtain entrance into the kingdom of heaven. And every day
she writes in letters of fire before our eyes: "In the hour that ye
think not, the Son of Man cometh."

[Footnote 90: Rom. xii. 20.]

[Footnote 91: St. Matt. v. 39.]

[Footnote 92: St. Matt. v. 3.]

So we perceive that man needs to pay attention to that immortal

soul of his just as much as to attend to his mortal body. And a man
cannot attend to a business of importance in a short time, of which
he has been ignorant all his life, and in which he has had no
practice, and therefore very little experience. It would be a difficult
task, indeed, for a man who has been nothing but a salesman in a
store all his life, to become a scientific artificer, or to undertake to
discharge the duties that devolve on a professor of the higher
branches of science, because he has never given any thought or
study to these things. So will it be very, very difficult for that
Catholic to properly prepare for heaven after long years of neglect
of the means to obtain it, and, because he has never thought
about it, it will be hardly possible for him in his last hours to make
proper preparation for it. The mind will be so absorbed with the
past, and so perplexed as to the future, that he cannot give his
famishing soul the nourishment that it needs. The death-bed
scenes of worldly-minded men certify to the truth of this. They
have viewed heaven as something to be thought about in the
future, and intended to prepare for it, but all of a sudden sickness
prostrates them, and when told they will never hear another
sermon, never attend another Mass, the trouble begins not so
much about their soul as about their body and the business of this
world.
But thanks be to God! while there are those who are walking on
that broad and pleasant way which many, too many, find, and
which leads to destruction, there are many faithful Christians who,
even though some of them have but little or no comfort here, are
looking forward, and hastening unto that reward which awaits
those who love our Lord Jesus Christ. Heaven, to them, is no
gloomy word. Heaven does not make them regret leaving this
world, with all its fleeting joys, for heaven is a most interesting and
important subject to them. Heaven is the reason of all their hopes,
the reward of all their prayers, fastings, and other good works. To
the pious and virtuous, the thought of heaven is the polar star
which guides them to their eternal happiness, To the poor and
desolate, it opens the celestial country where flow milk and honey,
and where the foot is never weary, where all tears are wiped away
from their eyes, and where the sweetest consolation of an eternal
reward awaits them. The thought of heaven brings the young to
give their hearts early to God. It leads them to their first
Confession, and encourages them to make their first Communion,
so that, by keeping God's holy laws, they may receive the crown of
life. The thought of heaven helps the old, who are weak and
trembling, for they receive new strength when they see the evening
of their lives, and view the dawning of that happy land, the Canaan
of the children of God.

How comforting, indeed, then, is the thought of heaven, for then

all our hopes will be realized, and our love made perfect! O you
who thirst for human love! your desire is to love and be loved. Love
is the object of your life, the light of your hearts; but know this:
that no earthly love will ever bring you perfect happiness; and if it
should so happen that you should find a joy in possessing some
creature, tell me, how long will that joy last? Not long, for God
sends death, and He takes away the objects of your love, the idol
that you have placed between Him and your soul. A mother finds
the greatest joy in beholding the child to whom she gave birth. It
may be her first-born; she loves it, caresses it; she spends days in
caring for it, and, if at night she awakes, the first thought is of that
child: but some day death comes in, and lays his icy hand on the
life-strings of its tiny heart, and severs the link that binds it to this
life, and it is no more. But the Christian mother willingly gives it up
to God, for she knows that in heaven she will again embrace that
child. It is the thought of heaven that brings her consolation. A
friend has found unspeakable joy in living with his companion, they
were boys together, they grew up together, they received the Holy
Sacraments together, and, just as they suppose their happiness to
be complete, death terminates the existence of one, and the other
is left alone to learn the lesson all men must, sooner or later, learn
—all persons, all things are perishable, and "the heart," as St.
Augustine says, "is at unrest until it rests in God." No matter what
bereavement comes over the Christian, he is animated with hope,
and his joy speedily returns when he thinks of heaven as a place
where he will meet and recognize his loved ones. Here, my dear
brethren, we grow tired of the most costly and beautiful objects. It
is impossible for us to keep up our enthusiasm for a long time, as
we are creatures of change and chance. In heaven, we shall never
grow tired; for, in beholding Almighty God and all the glories of
heaven, we shall be so entranced that nothing will be able to
distract us. In heaven, time will pass away unnoticed, and its
events will have no power to weary us.

There is a beautiful legend told of a Franciscan friar, which will

illustrate my meaning better. He thought that he would become
tired of heaven itself and its occupations; for by his time of life he,
too, had learned the secret that nothing in this world can bring
real, lasting happiness. So, one day, his superior sent him out to
gather fuel for the fire. As he was picking up the wood, he heard a
far sweeter warble than ever came from the throat of a bird; but it
was not a bird of the earthly forest; it was some sweet strains of
celestial music that he heard. He must pause one moment to hear
the end of the song before making up his bundle of wood. So he
stood still, and the warbling went on, so full, so sweet, so rich, that
he almost held his breath in ecstasy. When it ceased, "How short it
was!" he said, then picked up the arm-load of sticks and returned
to the monastery. He rang the bell at the gate, but a brother came
whom he did not know. "Who are you that takes the place of
Brother John?" he inquired. "But rather who are you?" was the
reply. "Ah, I am Brother Francis." "Brother Francis! There is no
Brother Francis." Then the oldest monk in the monastery was
called, and he tottered in on his cane, and told how, when he was
a boy, he had heard some old gray-haired monks tell that, long,
long ago, when they were young, Brother Francis had gone, one
afternoon, for wood, and never returned: killed doubtless by the
wild beasts. So they counted the years, and found that Brother
Francis had listened to the bird's song one hundred and fifty years,
and thought that too short. Now, if the sweet singing from the
voice of an angel could so entrance this holy man that he thought
so many years to be but a moment, how much more will our soul
be enraptured with the sight of heaven, with the song of the choir
of the redeemed, and by the vision of the Blessed Trinity! In
heaven, the heart will stand still, and in the fulness of its joy
remain transfixed for ever.

Then why is it that we give way under our sufferings, our daily
trials and crosses? Why do so many grow faint-hearted, and think
that there is no rest, no peace, for them? Why do people despair of
ever being happy? It is because they forget the very object for
which they were created. They lose sight of the eternal joy and the
unending happiness that God has prepared for those who love Him.

At Holy Mass, whether it be a festival, fast, or funeral, these

sublime words are sung by the sacrificing priest at the altar,
"Sursum corda"—"Lift up your hearts," and the faithful answer,
"Habemus ad Dominum"—"We have lifted them up to the Lord."
Now, these words are kept before our minds, on a festival, to
remind us of the eternal joys of heaven; on a funeral, to call our
attention to that home above where there is no death, no parting,
and where all tears are wiped away from the eyes. Then let
"Sursum corda" when it is sung this morning, revive this thought
of heaven in your hearts—you who are sad, who are sick and poor,
you who are in the midst of severe temptations; and carry these
words with you through the week, and, whenever you are tempted
to murmur against your lot, "Lift up your hearts." Think of Paradise.
We were made for Paradise, and we ought always to remember
how joyful the thought of Paradise is to the Christian's heart. "O
most happy mansion of the city above! O most happy and bright
day, that knows no night, but is always enlightened by the
Sovereign Truth! The citizens of heaven know how joyful that day
is; but the banished children of Eve lament that this our day is
bitter and tedious. Oh! that this day would dawn upon us, and all
temporal things would come to an end!"

Then, at this time, let us all look up, and be more vigilant in the
service of God while on earth. Let us so live here that our lives may
be a foretaste of heaven. Let the Church on earth be the vestibule
of heaven in which we wait patiently for the time of our admission
therein. Let us be faithful to the laws of God and the Church:
"Laying aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset us,
by patience let us run the race set before us; looking unto Jesus
the author and finisher of our faith, who, having the joy proposed
to Him, underwent the cross, despising the shame, and now sitteth
down at the right hand of the throne of God," [Footnote 93] to
whom let us lift up our hearts, and offer that beautiful prayer which
the Holy Church is chanting throughout the world on this Fourth
Sunday after Easter: "O Almighty God, who alone canst make the
faithful to be of one mind: grant that they may love those things
which Thou dost command and desire, those things which Thou
dost promise, that so among all the changes of this world their
hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found,
through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen."

[Footnote 93: Heb xii. i.]

 Sermon XVI.
The Clergy
The Teachers Of The People,
(For The Seventh Sunday After Pentecost.)
St. Matt. vii. 15.

"Beware of false prophets,

who come to you in sheep's clothing,
but inwardly they are ravening wolves."

By the word prophet is meant a teacher or leader of the people;

any one who sets himself up, or is commissioned by those in
authority, as an expounder of the sense of the Scriptures, or of the
principles of morality or of religion, so as to lead others to adopt
his opinions, and act according to his directions.

The office of prophet, or teacher, is the most important of all in

human society. For, if we are rightly taught and follow the teaching,
everything goes on harmoniously, and conduces to the best result;
the greatest amount of substantial happiness in this world, and the
securing of our immortal destiny in heaven. If we are wrongly
taught, our great blessings are turned into curses, and our lives are
failures, both for this world and the next.

And our Lord Jesus Christ took especial pains to provide for this
great need of ours. He selected His twelve Apostles, kept them with
Himself during all the time of His public ministry, instructed them
by word and example, and sent them out to teach with this full and
explicit commission, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the
Gospel to every creature, teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo I am with you all days,
even to the consummation of the world." [Footnote 94]
 [Footnote 94: St. Mark xvi. 15 and St. Matt, xxviii. 20.]

If we desire to know them who are the true prophets, we have the
means of finding out: they are the lawful successors of the
Apostles, the priesthood of the Holy Church. And, on the other
hand, we have the means of determining who are the false
prophets or teachers: all those who are in opposition to this lawful
body of teachers, commissioned by God Himself to teach us.

The priesthood of the Holy Church, then, are our teachers in the
principles and practice of religion, and of morality, which is
embraced in religion. They are the ones to teach us our duty, in all
respects, as individuals, and as members of society; our duties to
ourselves, to our fellow-men, to our families, to the government or
state in which we live, as well as to God.

This is what many people do not seem to understand. They say,

Let the clergy confine themselves to their own sphere, to the
teaching of religion, and let other things alone. Why should they
meddle with questions of politics or government? Why should they
interfere with private or family affairs? Why should they say
anything about a man's business, or try to interfere with his
personal liberty to do this or that? Now, whence do these
objections arise? From the mistaken notion that religion deals
exclusively with the relations of the individual to his God, and has
nothing to do with society or government; that there is divorce
between politics and religion; that the law of God is separable from
human laws.

Nothing can be more untrue than this idea. The divine law is the
rule according to which all human laws must be conformed. These
laws derive all their authority and sanction from the divine will.
Religion cannot be divorced from politics, from government, from
legislature, from the family, from business, or from any of the
affairs of life. Wherever a moral question is involved in politics,
there religion is involved. Every Christian is bound to carry the law
of Christ into his politics. Every voter is bound to vote for those
who sustain this divine law, and never for the opponents of it; and
every legislator is bound not to make any law which is in opposition
to it.

And the authorized teachers of the divine law are the ones to
expound what the law is, and to lay down the duty of each one in
reference to it. They are to teach, and to insist upon the
observance of what Christ has taught them: in the state, the duty
of obedience to the civil authority, and the wickedness of resisting
it, in the lawful exercise of its power;—in the family, the sacredness
of the marriage-tie, in spite of any human laws contrary to God's
law, and the obligation of the religious education of children;—to
the individual, the sin of unlawful or immoral combinations, and
many other things which will readily suggest themselves to any one
who will reflect.

Those, then, who try to depreciate the influence of the clergy, and
to bring their teaching into contempt, or to set themselves up as
independent judges of the morality and right of all questions
relating to politics and society, are false prophets, boasting of their
liberty, appealing to pride, worshipping themselves in place of God,
and flattering the passions of others. They are ravening wolves,
destroying the spirit of religion and the souls of men, and leading
their victims to anarchy, riot, and bloodshed.

Do not misapprehend my meaning. I do not mean that the clergy

should come down into the arena of party politics to advocate the
claims of this or that candidate for office, or convert the Church
into a political debating-room. Thank God, they have a better idea
of their sacred office than that. But where the duties of the
individual or the general interests of religion are involved, they are
bound to speak out, and they should be listened to as the
ambassadors of God.
"Let the clergy mind their own business," is sometimes said. Well,
and what is the business of the clergy? It is to seek the salvation of
souls. It is to keep the people, as far as possible, from any violation
of the commandments of God; from the commission of sin, which
leads to the destruction of souls. If they can foresee that this or
that course of action will involve their people in sin, they are
bound, disregarding all self-interest or any worldly consideration, to
raise their voice in protest against it. If the people rush into any
unlawful combination, which, perhaps, involves loss of property or
loss of life, or, at any rate, is sinful and tends to the destruction of
the soul, then, whether the thing is popular or not, they are bound,
as far as they can, to set their face against this evil, and warn the
people to keep from it.

If they do not do this, then they do not "mind their own business."
They are no better than the "hirelings who flee when the wolf
cometh."

But why are the clergy especially fitted to exercise this office of
prophet or teacher? Because, in the first place, they are, as a class,
men of education and thought. They have withdrawn from other
pursuits, and passed many years in study. They have had
particularly to study questions relating to morality; of right and
wrong; of the meaning of the law of God, and are better fitted than
any other class of men to give decisions on such questions.

This is reason enough why the mass of the people, who have not
the time, the freedom from other occupations, the books, or the
habit of reasoning correctly, should defer with great respect to the
opinion of the clergy on any important question. It argues a great
want of humility—an antichristian and unreasonable pride, when
their opinion is treated with contempt and brought into ridicule.

In the second place, they are disinterested parties, and are able to
decide, for the most part, free from prejudice. The only prejudice
they can have is, that God's law be observed and His honor
vindicated. They are a body of men independent, free from family
ties, and cares, and obligations; freed in an unusual degree from
what prejudices other men—the desire of heaping up wealth. In
short, they have every inducement to love right and hate wrong.

Thirdly, they are the fathers of their people. Having no wives or

children of their own, the people are their children. The term
"father" by which they are addressed is a true expression of the
feeling which the people have towards them, because they have a
truly parental affection for them. That priest must be a monster
who does not love his people, as a general thing so devoted and
affectionate to him. Our Saviour says, "The good shepherd will lay
down his life for his sheep." The Catholic people are the flock of
the priest; it is his business and his happiness to look out for their
interests; to advise them and warn them of dangers; to go after
them and bring them back when they go astray; and it is only
natural for them to look up to him for advice, for counsel in doubt,
for consolation in trouble. There is no sweeter or more beautiful tie
than that which binds the priest and people together.

But lastly, and above all, the priest is the representative and agent
of Jesus Christ. This last reason includes and carries with it all the
others; they all grow out of it. Hear what St. Paul says: "And some
he gave to be apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists,
and others pastors and teachers. For the perfection of the saints,
for the edification of the body of Christ." [Footnote 95] All that
relates to the building up or edification of the faithful belongs to
their sacred office. In the direction of St. Paul to Titus, he tells him:
"Admonish them to be subject to princes and powers, to obey at a
word, to be ready to every good work." [Footnote 96] And again:
"These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let
no man despise thee." [Footnote 97] Once more he says: "Let a
man look upon us as the ministers of Christ, and the dispensers of
the mysteries of God." [Footnote 98] And when our Lord sent out
His Apostles, He used these emphatic words: "He that heareth you
heareth Me, and he that despiseth you despiseth Me."
 [Footnote 95: Eph. iv. 11.]

[Footnote 96: Ep. Tit. iii. 1.]

[Footnote 97: Ep. Tit. ii. 15.]

[Footnote 98: I Cor. iv. 1.]

Who are the false prophets we have the most need to be warned
against at this present time? Not the professed teachers of heresy,
because they are too well known; their doctrine and their principles
have lost all attraction for Catholics. Their hatred and opposition to
the Holy Church and her doctrines is too violent and untruthful to
have any power of attraction for the Catholic heart. I should say
they are not wolves in sheep's clothing, but rather wolves in their
own skins. No, it is not they. It is rather the irreligious, unprincipled
newspapers which are sowing the worst principles broadcast in the
community, which are ridiculing all that we hold most sacred, which
make all religion to consist in the present and laugh at the future
world; which are prating all the time about clerical influence, and
extolling a purely secular education; which are talking everlastingly
about progress and enlightenment, and this nineteenth century, and
the dark ages and superstitions; whose infernal doctrine may be
summed up in one sentence: "Let us eat, drink, and be merry, for
to-morrow we die."

These are the false prophets who clothe themselves with sheep's
clothing, that is, with professions of liberty, enticements to
pleasure, and to the gain of worldly goods, as if there was no
hereafter, no responsibility, but each one was free to do as he
pleased.

And who are some of the other false prophets? They are leaders of
secret societies; interested persons who make a living out of
professions of patriotism and love of country; who live in luxury—
many of them, out of the hard earnings of the poor laborer and the
girls at service; who beguile the ignorant into unlawful and
forbidden ways, sinking them down deep in mortal sin, and
hindering them from getting out of it, because they impose a
distrust and dislike of the clergy and of the Church which condemns
them. Like the Pharisees, they "move heaven and earth to make
one proselyte, and, when they have made one, they make him
more a child of hell than themselves." Avoid them, for they are
truly "ravening wolves."

And lastly, avoid another false prophet within yourself: the spirit of
pride and self-will. Without this, all the others I have mentioned
above would be powerless to hurt you. This is the very evil one
himself who stirs up within you every evil passion. Be cautious,
weigh well the thoughts of your hearts. Try them by the standard
of the Gospel and of the example of Jesus Christ, and, if they
cannot abide the test, no matter how fair an appearance they have,
abandon them.

Ah! if we would only stop to consider calmly what we are about; if

we would only utter one sincere prayer to God for guidance, and to
obtain a good-will, this false prophet of self-will would be detected
and driven out, and we would be quickly delivered from
destruction.

Finally, give good heed to the Scripture which says: "Obey your
prelates, and be subject to them, for they watch as being to give
an account of your souls, that they may do this with joy, and not
with grief."

Obey the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the Pope, the Head of the Church
and Father of the faithful. When he solemnly pronounces his
judgment as to the lawfulness or unlawfulness of anything, obey as
you would if you heard it from the lips of Christ Himself. It is a
fearful thing for any one to put himself in opposition to Christ's
Vicar and the Successor of St. Peter, to whom our Lord gave the
charge to feed both His sheep and His lambs.
Obey your Archbishop, who is more immediately placed over you. It
is his place to judge what is for the good of religion, and to foresee
the evils likely to arise at any time among ourselves. Let those who
disregard his admonition look well to it, lest they implicate
themselves in grievous sin, and in inflicting great injury upon the
religion of Christ. Such men are a scandal and cause of ruin to the
faithful, and our Lord has denounced the anger of God upon those
who are guilty of it.

Obey your priests, who will have to give an account of your souls.
Give no cause of offence or scandal in your parish, but rather co-
operate with your fellow-parishioners in the extension of Christ's
kingdom upon earth.

It is by this spirit of docility and obedience you will break through

all the snares of Satan, and be delivered from error. Thus, walking
in the clear light of truth, you will finally be united to the Eternal
Truth, God, the fountain of all joy, forever.
 Sermon XVII.
Humility In Prayer.
(For The Tenth Sunday After Pentecost.)
St. Luke xviii. 13.

"God, be merciful to me, a sinner."

One of the chief lessons our blessed Lord intended to teach us by

the parable told in to-day's Gospel is the necessity and power of
humble prayer. Let us see this, and try to draw some useful
thoughts from it.

The great positive precept of prayer goes hand in hand with a

man's salvation. Nothing can excuse the neglect of it, nothing is
promised except through it, and therefore one cannot hope for
anything without it. Yet it is not every spirit of prayer that is of
God. In spite of a professed total disregard for it by some,
nevertheless men have an instinctive faith in prayer. The hardiest
blasphemer and scoffer at religion will often be found the first to
pray when in imminent danger of death. He prays in fear. Others,
with out any spirit of devotion, will be found praying at stated
times, like the Pharisee, because it is a highly respectable thing to
do, and keeps up their credit and good character, who apparently
regard prayer as a sort of business transaction with God, the
fulfilment of certain conditions of barter with Providence, by which
they may expect to hold their own, and be further well rewarded.
These pray in pride. Others are full of themselves and their own
desires. They wish to be happy, let others be as miserable as they
may. They want no sickness, no accident, no reverse of fortune, no
contempt, no temptation, let God try other souls with His
chastening hand as He pleases. These pray in selfishness. And yet
all these are the first to complain that their prayer is not heard and
instantly answered. They become petulant over delay, and utterly
discouraged if their desires are not fulfilled. God's will is nothing to
them. It is not "Thy will," but "My will" be done. Listen, my
brethren, to the true spirit of prayer, the only kind of prayer which
will infallibly be heard. It is the prayer of those who pray in
humility.

The very essence of prayer consists in the acknowledgment of

God's supreme dominion and government over us, and our
complete dependence upon Him as the source of all blessings,
spiritual and temporal. The better this is acknowledged by the soul,
the more perfect must be the prayer; and, if this be the spirit
which inspires only a few words of prayer, or even a silent
aspiration of the heart, then more is accomplished than if hours
had been consumed in the recitation of forms of prayer, where this
high and reverent thought of God is wanting.

Now, this is also the fountain thought of humility: that God is all in
all to us, that it is He, and not we ourselves, who has made us,
and prospered us, and blessed us, and raised us up, and obtained
peace and forgiveness for our erring hearts; that He is the Truth;
that the true religion is His making, not what we may fashion to
ourselves. These are the thoughts to bring the heart into a proper
relation with God, the relation of an humble hope, trust, and
reverence for Him, and in this we need lose nothing of a proper
and just esteem for ourselves. It is the secret of the making of
great saints and heroes in religion (all of whom were renowned for
their humility), that a man is always the gainer by just so much as
he gives to God.

So we see in the case of the humble publican, that God regarded

him the more because he did not so much as lift his eyes to
heaven. God drew the nearer to him, the farther he stood off. God
comforted him, and justified him, the more he acknowledged his
own wretchedness, and condemned himself. Not without reason, it
is true, because he was a sinner. While he, who was not a sinner,
went up in his pride and sinned in his very prayers. The humble
sinner went away justified; the proud, just man went away
condemned.

And hence we may conclude that, if one does not pray in humility,
his prayer is of no value, and he moreover runs a great chance of
committing sin by praying, and of receiving curses instead of
blessings in answer.

"God resisteth the proud," says the Apostle, "but giveth grace to
the humble." [Footnote 99] He is, as it were, shocked and
indignant to see a man approaching him in presumption or pride.
He has no grace for such an one, and then without that he will
infallibly commit sin and be lost.

[Footnote 99: St. James iv. 6.]

For what happens? He who prays without humility thinks that he

has done a great thing, for which God honors him, and holds him
up as an example for the admiration and imitation of others,
especially for those who seldom or never go to their knees, or pray
so quickly and unobtrusively that no one notices them. So he rises
from his prayer puffed up with self-conceit.

Look at the Pharisee. He came to the treasure-house of God with a

large sack; he extolled its capacity, and stretched it out to its
utmost dimensions; he made his prayer long, wordy, and full of
self. As he really did not profess himself to be in want of anything,
God sent him away, with his sack empty of everything but his own
windy words, which God despised and returned to him for his
pains. His load was not heavy, and he could walk with head and
shoulders proudly erect.

As he passed out he gave a scornful glance at the miserable

publican, crouching in the porch, and thought within himself: What
bad people there are in the world, to be sure! The humble object
of his disdain followed him out with bent shoulders and downcast
head. He had come empty-handed to God's treasury. But something
had passed between him and God which the proud Pharisee little
imagined: and he might well go away still humbly bending to the
ground, for God's mercies and blessings lay heavily upon him. So
sang the humble Virgin: "He hath filled the hungry with good
things, but the rich he hath sent empty away."

Many imagine that the wealthy are the chief ones who pray like the
Pharisee; but this is a great mistake. There are quite as many poor
"rich Pharisees" as wealthy rich ones. Being in humble
circumstances does not make one humble. The Blessed Virgin did
not mean the rich in this world's goods, but those who were rich in
their own conceit. So we see many who have not much money to
boast of, yet will boast pretty loudly of their piety. They come to
pray to God for forgiveness of their sins; and what do they say? "I
don't do much. I don't curse. I don't steal. I don't slander my
neighbor." And if God did not rouse them up to a sense of the sins
they do commit by questioning their consciences, they would go
away fully persuaded that they were out-and-out saints, while all
the rest of the world were thieves, and liars, and extortioners, and
workers of all kinds of iniquity, especially that quarrelsome neighbor
who has just taken their place in the confessional, and who, they
hope, will meet with severe and righteous treatment. O self-
sufficient, rich Pharisee! it is true I have seen you in silk and
broadcloth, but I have seen you also in a cotton gown, and a coat
out at [the] elbows.

Not a few are found lacking in this requisite to make prayer of any
value, because they pray in fear. At first sight, fear would seem to
be almost identical with humility; but it is quite a far different thing,
for humility brings the soul nearer to God, while fear drives it away.
Humility recognizes the greatness and goodness of God, and, while
it reverences Him, holds Him for that knowledge in the highest
esteem; but fear hides itself, and, in place of esteem, holds Him in
slavish dread. Humility is hopeful; fear is full of despair. See those
sinners who find themselves in shipwreck, or in some imminent
Welcome to our website – the perfect destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. We believe that every book holds a new world,
offering opportunities for learning, discovery, and personal growth.
That’s why we are dedicated to bringing you a diverse collection of
books, ranging from classic literature and specialized publications to
self-development guides and children's books.

More than just a book-buying platform, we strive to be a bridge

connecting you with timeless cultural and intellectual values. With an
elegant, user-friendly interface and a smart search system, you can
quickly find the books that best suit your interests. Additionally,
our special promotions and home delivery services help you save time
and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Join us on a journey of knowledge exploration, passion nurturing, and

personal growth every day!

ebookbell.com