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| Pope Pius XI: Mortalium Animos - On Religious Unity |
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Posted by: Stone - 01-02-2021, 03:04 PM - Forum: Encyclicals
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Mortalium Animos
On Religious Unity
Pope Pius XI - 1928
To Our Venerable Brethren the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops, and other Local Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See.
Venerable Brethren, Health and Apostolic Benediction.
Never perhaps in the past have we seen, as we see in these our own times, the minds of men so occupied by the desire both of strengthening and of extending to the common welfare of human society that fraternal relationship which binds and unites us together, and which is a consequence of our common origin and nature. For since the nations do not yet fully enjoy the fruits of peace — indeed rather do old and new disagreements in various places break forth into sedition and civic strife — and since on the other hand many disputes which concern the tranquillity and prosperity of nations cannot be settled without the active concurrence and help of those who rule the States and promote their interests, it is easily understood, and the more so because none now dispute the unity of the human race, why many desire that the various nations, inspired by this universal kinship, should daily be more closely united one to another.
2. A similar object is aimed at by some, in those matters which concern the New Law promulgated by Christ our Lord. For since they hold it for certain that men destitute of all religious sense are very rarely to be found, they seem to have founded on that belief a hope that the nations, although they differ among themselves in certain religious matters, will without much difficulty come to agree as brethren in professing certain doctrines, which form as it were a common basis of the spiritual life. For which reason conventions, meetings and addresses are frequently arranged by these persons, at which a large number of listeners are present, and at which all without distinction are invited to join in the discussion, both infidels of every kind, and Christians, even those who have unhappily fallen away from Christ or who with obstinacy and pertinacity deny His divine nature and mission. Certainly such attempts can nowise be approved by Catholics, founded as they are on that false opinion which considers all religions to be more or less good and praiseworthy, since they all in different ways manifest and signify that sense which is inborn in us all, and by which we are led to God and to the obedient acknowledgment of His rule. Not only are those who hold this opinion in error and deceived, but also in distorting the idea of true religion they reject it, and little by little. turn aside to naturalism and atheism, as it is called; from which it clearly follows that one who supports those who hold these theories and attempt to realize them, is altogether abandoning the divinely revealed religion.
3. But some are more easily deceived by the outward appearance of good when there is question of fostering unity among all Christians.
4. Is it not right, it is often repeated, indeed, even consonant with duty, that all who invoke the name of Christ should abstain from mutual reproaches and at long last be united in mutual charity? Who would dare to say that he loved Christ, unless he worked with all his might to carry out the desires of Him, Who asked His Father that His disciples might be “one.”[1] And did not the same Christ will that His disciples should be marked out and distinguished from others by this characteristic, namely that they loved one another: “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another”?[2] All Christians, they add, should be as “one”: for then they would be much more powerful in driving out the pest of irreligion, which like a serpent daily creeps further and becomes more widely spread, and prepares to rob the Gospel of its strength. These things and others that class of men who are known as pan-Christians continually repeat and amplify; and these men, so far from being quite few and scattered, have increased to the dimensions of an entire class, and have grouped themselves into widely spread societies, most of which are directed by non-Catholics, although they are imbued with varying doctrines concerning the things of faith. This undertaking is so actively promoted as in many places to win for itself the adhesion of a number of citizens, and it even takes possession of the minds of very many Catholics and allures them with the hope of bringing about such a union as would be agreeable to the desires of Holy Mother Church, who has indeed nothing more at heart than to recall her erring sons and to lead them back to her bosom. But in reality beneath these enticing words and blandishments lies hid a most grave error, by which the foundations of the Catholic faith are completely destroyed.
5. Admonished, therefore, by the consciousness of Our Apostolic office that We should not permit the flock of the Lord to be cheated by dangerous fallacies, We invoke, Venerable Brethren, your zeal in avoiding this evil; for We are confident that by the writings and words of each one of you the people will more easily get to know and understand those principles and arguments which We are about to set forth, and from which Catholics will learn how they are to think and act when there is question of those undertakings which have for their end the union in one body, whatsoever be the manner, of all who call themselves Christians.
6. We were created by God, the Creator of the universe, in order that we might know Him and serve Him; our Author therefore has a perfect right to our service. God might, indeed, have prescribed for man’s government only the natural law, which, in His creation, He imprinted on his soul, and have regulated the progress of that same law by His ordinary providence; but He preferred rather to impose precepts, which we were to obey, and in the course of time, namely from the beginnings of the human race until the coming and preaching of Jesus Christ, He Himself taught man the duties which a rational creature owes to its Creator: “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners, spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, last of all, in these days, hath spoken to us by his Son.”[3] From which it follows that there can be no true religion other than that which is founded on the revealed word of God: which revelation, begun from the beginning and continued under the Old Law, Christ Jesus Himself under the New Law perfected. Now, if God has spoken (and it is historically certain that He has truly spoken), all must see that it is man’s duty to believe absolutely God’s revelation and to obey implicitly His commands; that we might rightly do both, for the glory of God and our own salvation, the Only-begotten Son of God founded His Church on earth. Further, We believe that those who call themselves Christians can do no other than believe that a Church, and that Church one, was established by Christ; but if it is further inquired of what nature according to the will of its Author it must be, then all do not agree. A good number of them, for example, deny that the Church of Christ must be visible and apparent, at least to such a degree that it appears as one body of faithful, agreeing in one and the same doctrine under one teaching authority and government; but, on the contrary, they understand a visible Church as nothing else than a Federation, composed of various communities of Christians, even though they adhere to different doctrines, which may even be incompatible one with another. Instead, Christ our Lord instituted His Church as a perfect society, external of its nature and perceptible to the senses, which should carry on in the future the work of the salvation of the human race, under the leadership of one head,[4] with an authority teaching by word of mouth,[5] and by the ministry of the sacraments, the founts of heavenly grace;[6] for which reason He attested by comparison the similarity of the Church to a kingdom,[7] to a house,[8] to a sheepfold,[9] and to a flock.[10] This Church, after being so wonderfully instituted, could not, on the removal by death of its Founder and of the Apostles who were the pioneers in propagating it, be entirely extinguished and cease to be, for to it was given the commandment to lead all men, without distinction of time or place, to eternal salvation: “Going therefore, teach ye all nations.”[11] In the continual carrying out of this task, will any element of strength and efficiency be wanting to the Church, when Christ Himself is perpetually present to it, according to His solemn promise: “Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world?”[12] It follows then that the Church of Christ not only exists to-day and always, but is also exactly the same as it was in the time of the Apostles, unless we were to say, which God forbid, either that Christ our Lord could not effect His purpose, or that He erred when He asserted that the gates of hell should never prevail against it.[13]
7. And here it seems opportune to expound and to refute a certain false opinion, on which this whole question, as well as that complex movement by which non-Catholics seek to bring about the union of the Christian churches depends. For authors who favor this view are accustomed, times almost without number, to bring forward these words of Christ: “That they all may be one…. And there shall be one fold and one shepherd,”[14] with this signification however: that Christ Jesus merely expressed a desire and prayer, which still lacks its fulfillment. For they are of the opinion that the unity of faith and government, which is a note of the one true Church of Christ, has hardly up to the present time existed, and does not to-day exist. They consider that this unity may indeed be desired and that it may even be one day attained through the instrumentality of wills directed to a common end, but that meanwhile it can only be regarded as mere ideal. They add that the Church in itself, or of its nature, is divided into sections; that is to say, that it is made up of several churches or distinct communities, which still remain separate, and although having certain articles of doctrine in common, nevertheless disagree concerning the remainder; that these all enjoy the same rights; and that the Church was one and unique from, at the most, the apostolic age until the first Ecumenical Councils. Controversies therefore, they say, and longstanding differences of opinion which keep asunder till the present day the members of the Christian family, must be entirely put aside, and from the remaining doctrines a common form of faith drawn up and proposed for belief, and in the profession of which all may not only know but feel that they are brothers. The manifold churches or communities, if united in some kind of universal federation, would then be in a position to oppose strongly and with success the progress of irreligion. This, Venerable Brethren, is what is commonly said. There are some, indeed, who recognize and affirm that Protestantism, as they call it, has rejected, with a great lack of consideration, certain articles of faith and some external ceremonies, which are, in fact, pleasing and useful, and which the Roman Church still retains. They soon, however, go on to say that that Church also has erred, and corrupted the original religion by adding and proposing for belief certain doctrines which are not only alien to the Gospel, but even repugnant to it. Among the chief of these they number that which concerns the primacy of jurisdiction, which was granted to Peter and to his successors in the See of Rome. Among them there indeed are some, though few, who grant to the Roman Pontiff a primacy of honor or even a certain jurisdiction or power, but this, however, they consider not to arise from the divine law but from the consent of the faithful. Others again, even go so far as to wish the Pontiff Himself to preside over their motley, so to say, assemblies. But, all the same, although many non-Catholics may be found who loudly preach fraternal communion in Christ Jesus, yet you will find none at all to whom it ever occurs to submit to and obey the Vicar of Jesus Christ either in His capacity as a teacher or as a governor. Meanwhile they affirm that they would willingly treat with the Church of Rome, but on equal terms, that is as equals with an equal: but even if they could so act. it does not seem open to doubt that any pact into which they might enter would not compel them to turn from those opinions which are still the reason why they err and stray from the one fold of Christ.
8. This being so, it is clear that the Apostolic See cannot on any terms take part in their assemblies, nor is it anyway lawful for Catholics either to support or to work for such enterprises; for if they do so they will be giving countenance to a false Christianity, quite alien to the one Church of Christ. Shall We suffer, what would indeed be iniquitous, the truth, and a truth divinely revealed, to be made a subject for compromise? For here there is question of defending revealed truth. Jesus Christ sent His Apostles into the whole world in order that they might permeate all nations with the Gospel faith, and, lest they should err, He willed beforehand that they should be taught by the Holy Ghost:[15] has then this doctrine of the Apostles completely vanished away, or sometimes been obscured, in the Church, whose ruler and defense is God Himself? If our Redeemer plainly said that His Gospel was to continue not only during the times of the Apostles, but also till future ages, is it possible that the object of faith should in the process of time become so obscure and uncertain, that it would be necessary to-day to tolerate opinions which are even incompatible one with another? If this were true, we should have to confess that the coming of the Holy Ghost on the Apostles, and the perpetual indwelling of the same Spirit in the Church, and the very preaching of Jesus Christ, have several centuries ago, lost all their efficacy and use, to affirm which would be blasphemy. But the Only-begotten Son of God, when He commanded His representatives to teach all nations, obliged all men to give credence to whatever was made known to them by “witnesses preordained by God,”[16] and also confirmed His command with this sanction: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned.”[17] These two commands of Christ, which must be fulfilled, the one, namely, to teach, and the other to believe, cannot even be understood, unless the Church proposes a complete and easily understood teaching, and is immune when it thus teaches from all danger of erring. In this matter, those also turn aside from the right path, who think that the deposit of truth such laborious trouble, and with such lengthy study and discussion, that a man’s life would hardly suffice to find and take possession of it; as if the most merciful God had spoken through the prophets and His Only-begotten Son merely in order that a few, and those stricken in years, should learn what He had revealed through them, and not that He might inculcate a doctrine of faith and morals, by which man should be guided through the whole course of his moral life.
9. These pan-Christians who turn their minds to uniting the churches seem, indeed, to pursue the noblest of ideas in promoting charity among all Christians: nevertheless how does it happen that this charity tends to injure faith? Everyone knows that John himself, the Apostle of love, who seems to reveal in his Gospel the secrets of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and who never ceased to impress on the memories of his followers the new commandment “Love one another,” altogether forbade any intercourse with those who professed a mutilated and corrupt version of Christ’s teaching: “If any man come to you and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into the house nor say to him: God speed you.”[18] For which reason, since charity is based on a complete and sincere faith, the disciples of Christ must be united principally by the bond of one faith. Who then can conceive a Christian Federation, the members of which retain each his own opinions and private judgment, even in matters which concern the object of faith, even though they be repugnant to the opinions of the rest? And in what manner, We ask, can men who follow contrary opinions, belong to one and the same Federation of the faithful? For example, those who affirm, and those who deny that sacred Tradition is a true fount of divine Revelation; those who hold that an ecclesiastical hierarchy, made up of bishops, priests and ministers, has been divinely constituted, and those who assert that it has been brought in little by little in accordance with the conditions of the time; those who adore Christ really present in the Most Holy Eucharist through that marvelous conversion of the bread and wine, which is called transubstantiation, and those who affirm that Christ is present only by faith or by the signification and virtue of the Sacrament; those who in the Eucharist recognize the nature both of a sacrament and of a sacrifice, and those who say that it is nothing more than the memorial or commemoration of the Lord’s Supper; those who believe it to be good and useful to invoke by prayer the Saints reigning with Christ, especially Mary the Mother of God, and to venerate their images, and those who urge that such a veneration is not to be made use of, for it is contrary to the honor due to Jesus Christ, “the one mediator of God and men.”[19] How so great a variety of opinions can make the way clear to effect the unity of the Church We know not; that unity can only arise from one teaching authority, one law of belief and one faith of Christians. But We do know that from this it is an easy step to the neglect of religion or indifferentism and to modernism, as they call it. Those, who are unhappily infected with these errors, hold that dogmatic truth is not absolute but relative, that is, it agrees with the varying necessities of time and place and with the varying tendencies of the mind, since it is not contained in immutable revelation, but is capable of being accommodated to human life. Besides this, in connection with things which must be believed, it is nowise licit to use that distinction which some have seen fit to introduce between those articles of faith which are fundamental and those which are not fundamental, as they say, as if the former are to be accepted by all, while the latter may be left to the free assent of the faithful: for the supernatural virtue of faith has a formal cause, namely the authority of God revealing, and this is patient of no such distinction. For this reason it is that all who are truly Christ’s believe, for example, the Conception of the Mother of God without stain of original sin with the same faith as they believe the mystery of the August Trinity, and the Incarnation of our Lord just as they do the infallible teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff, according to the sense in which it was defined by the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican. Are these truths not equally certain, or not equally to be believed, because the Church has solemnly sanctioned and defined them, some in one age and some in another, even in those times immediately before our own? Has not God revealed them all? For the teaching authority of the Church, which in the divine wisdom was constituted on earth in order that revealed doctrines might remain intact for ever, and that they might be brought with ease and security to the knowledge of men, and which is daily exercised through the Roman Pontiff and the Bishops who are in communion with him, has also the office of defining, when it sees fit, any truth with solemn rites and decrees, whenever this is necessary either to oppose the errors or the attacks of heretics, or more clearly and in greater detail to stamp the minds of the faithful with the articles of sacred doctrine which have been explained. But in the use of this extraordinary teaching authority no newly invented matter is brought in, nor is anything new added to the number of those truths which are at least implicitly contained in the deposit of Revelation, divinely handed down to the Church: only those which are made clear which perhaps may still seem obscure to some, or that which some have previously called into question is declared to be of faith.
10. So, Venerable Brethren, it is clear why this Apostolic See has never allowed its subjects to take part in the assemblies of non-Catholics: for the union of Christians can only be promoted by promoting the return to the one true Church of Christ of those who are separated from it, for in the past they have unhappily left it. To the one true Church of Christ, we say, which is visible to all, and which is to remain, according to the will of its Author, exactly the same as He instituted it. During the lapse of centuries, the mystical Spouse of Christ has never been contaminated, nor can she ever in the future be contaminated, as Cyprian bears witness: “The Bride of Christ cannot be made false to her Spouse: she is incorrupt and modest. She knows but one dwelling, she guards the sanctity of the nuptial chamber chastely and modestly.”[20] The same holy Martyr with good reason marveled exceedingly that anyone could believe that “this unity in the Church which arises from a divine foundation, and which is knit together by heavenly sacraments, could be rent and torn asunder by the force of contrary wills.”[21] For since the mystical body of Christ, in the same manner as His physical body, is one,[22] compacted and fitly joined together,[23] it were foolish and out of place to say that the mystical body is made up of members which are disunited and scattered abroad: whosoever therefore is not united with the body is no member of it, neither is he in communion with Christ its head.[24]
11. Furthermore, in this one Church of Christ no man can be or remain who does not accept, recognize and obey the authority and supremacy of Peter and his legitimate successors. Did not the ancestors of those who are now entangled in the errors of Photius and the reformers, obey the Bishop of Rome, the chief shepherd of souls? Alas their children left the home of their fathers, but it did not fall to the ground and perish for ever, for it was supported by God. Let them therefore return to their common Father, who, forgetting the insults previously heaped on the Apostolic See, will receive them in the most loving fashion. For if, as they continually state, they long to be united with Us and ours, why do they not hasten to enter the Church, “the Mother and mistress of all Christ’s faithful”?[25] Let them hear Lactantius crying out: “The Catholic Church is alone in keeping the true worship. This is the fount of truth, this the house of Faith, this the temple of God: if any man enter not here, or if any man go forth from it, he is a stranger to the hope of life and salvation. Let none delude himself with obstinate wrangling. For life and salvation are here concerned, which will be lost and entirely destroyed, unless their interests are carefully and assiduously kept in mind.”[26]
12. Let, therefore, the separated children draw nigh to the Apostolic See, set up in the City which Peter and Paul, the Princes of the Apostles, consecrated by their blood; to that See, We repeat, which is “the root and womb whence the Church of God springs,”[27] not with the intention and the hope that “the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth”[28] will cast aside the integrity of the faith and tolerate their errors, but, on the contrary, that they themselves submit to its teaching and government. Would that it were Our happy lot to do that which so many of Our predecessors could not, to embrace with fatherly affection those children, whose unhappy separation from Us We now bewail. Would that God our Savior, “Who will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth,”[29] would hear us when We humbly beg that He would deign to recall all who stray to the unity of the Church! In this most important undertaking We ask and wish that others should ask the prayers of Blessed Mary the Virgin, Mother of divine grace, victorious over all heresies and Help of Christians, that She may implore for Us the speedy coming of the much hoped-for day, when all men shall hear the voice of Her divine Son, and shall be “careful to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”[30]
13. You, Venerable Brethren, understand how much this question is in Our mind, and We desire that Our children should also know, not only those who belong to the Catholic community, but also those who are separated from Us: if these latter humbly beg light from heaven, there is no doubt but that they will recognize the one true Church of Jesus Christ and will, at last, enter it, being united with us in perfect charity. While awaiting this event, and as a pledge of Our paternal good will, We impart most lovingly to you, Venerable Brethren, and to your clergy and people, the apostolic benediction.
Given at Rome, at Saint Peter’s, on the 6th day of January, on the Feast of the Epiphany of Jesus Christ, our Lord, in the year 1928, and the sixth year of Our Pontificate.
REFERENCES:
1. John xvii, 21.
2. John xiii, 35.
3. Heb. i, I seq.
4. Matt. xvi, 18 seq; Luke xxii, 32; John xxi, 15-17.
5. Mark xvi, 15.
6. John iii, 5; vi, 48-59; xx, 22 seq; cf. Matt. xviii, 18, etc.
7. Matt. xiii.
8. cf. Matt. xvi, 18.
9. John x, 16.
10. John xxi, 15-17.
11. Matt. xxviii, 19.
12. Matt. xxviii, 20.
13. Matt. xvi, 18.
14. John xvii, 21; x, 16.
15. John xvi, 13.
16. Acts x,41.
17. Mark xvi, 16.
18. 11 John 10.
19. Cf. I Tim. ii, 15.
20. De Cath. Ecclesiae unitate, 6.
21. Ibid.
22. I Cor. xii, 12.
23. Eph. Iv, 16.
24. Cf. Eph. v, 30; 1, 22.
25. Conc. Lateran IV, c. 5.
26. Divin. Instit. Iv, 30. 11-12.
27. S. Cypr. Ep. 48 ad Cornelium, 3.
28. I Tim. iii, 15.
29. I Tim. ii, 4.
30. Eph. iv, 3.
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| NY Legislature [2021]: 'Removal of Contacts and Carriers of Communicable Diseases' |
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Posted by: Stone - 01-02-2021, 08:20 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular]
- Replies (2)
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Well dear friends, this is what Communism looks like:
Relates to the removal of cases, contacts and carriers of communicable diseases who are potentially dangerous to the public health
A416 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to the removal of cases, contacts and carriers of communicable diseases who are potentially dangerous to the public health
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2120-a to read as follows:
§ 2120-A. REMOVAL AND DETENTION OF CASES, CONTACTS AND CARRIERS WHO ARE OR MAY BE A DANGER TO PUBLIC HEALTH; OTHER ORDERS.
1. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE UTILIZED IN THE EVENT THAT THE GOVERNOR DECLARES A STATE OF HEALTH EMERGENCY DUE TO AN EPIDEMIC OF ANY COMMUNICABLE DISEASE.
2. UPON DETERMINING BY CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE THAT THE HEALTH OF OTHERS IS OR MAY BE ENDANGERED BY A CASE, CONTACT OR CARRIER, OR SUSPECTED CASE, CONTACT OR CARRIER OF A CONTAGIOUS DISEASE THAT, IN THE OPINION OF THE GOVERNOR, AFTER CONSULTATION WITH THE COMMISSIONER, MAY POSE AN IMMINENT AND SIGNIFICANT THREAT TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH RESULTING IN SEVERE MORBIDITY OR HIGH MORTALITY, THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE COMMISSIONER OR THE HEADS OF LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS, MAY ORDER THE REMOVAL AND/OR DETENTION OF SUCH A PERSON OR OF A GROUP OF SUCH PERSONS BY ISSUING A SINGLE ORDER, IDENTIFYING SUCH PERSONS EITHER BY NAME OR BY A REASONABLY SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION OF THE INDIVIDUALS OR GROUP BEING DETAINED. SUCH PERSON OR GROUP OF PERSONS SHALL BE DETAINED IN A MEDICAL FACILITY OR OTHER APPROPRIATE FACILITY OR PREMISES DESIGNATED BY THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE AND COMPLYING WITH SUBDIVISION FIVE OF THIS SECTION.
3. A PERSON OR GROUP REMOVED OR DETAINED BY ORDER OF THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE DETAINED FOR SUCH PERIOD AND IN SUCH MANNER AS THE DEPARTMENT MAY DIRECT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS SECTION.
4. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY INCONSISTENT PROVISION OF THIS SECTION:
(A) A CONFIRMED CASE OR A CARRIER WHO IS DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT CONTINUE TO BE DETAINED AFTER THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT SUCH PERSON IS NO LONGER CONTAGIOUS.
(B) A SUSPECTED CASE OR SUSPECTED CARRIER WHO IS DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT CONTINUE TO BE DETAINED AFTER THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES, WITH THE EXERCISE OF DUE DILIGENCE, THAT SUCH PERSON IS NOT INFECTED WITH OR HAS NOT BEEN EXPOSED TO SUCH A DISEASE, OR IF INFECTED WITH OR EXPOSED TO SUCH A DISEASE, NO LONGER IS OR WILL BECOME CONTAGIOUS.
© A PERSON WHO IS DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION AS A CONTACT OF A CONFIRMED CASE OR A CARRIER SHALL NOT CONTINUE TO BE DETAINED AFTER THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT THE PERSON IS NOT INFECTED WITH THE DISEASE OR THAT SUCH CONTACT NO LONGER PRESENTS A POTENTIAL DANGER TO THE HEALTH OF OTHERS.
(D) A PERSON WHO IS DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION AS A CONTACT OF A SUSPECTED CASE SHALL NOT CONTINUE TO BE DETAINED:
(I) AFTER THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES, WITH THE EXERCISE OF DUE DILIGENCE, THAT THE SUSPECTED CASE WAS NOT INFECTED WITH SUCH A DISEASE, OR WAS NOT CONTAGIOUS AT THE TIME THE CONTACT WAS EXPOSED TO SUCH INDIVIDUAL; OR
(II) AFTER THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT THE CONTACT NO LONGER PRESENTS A POTENTIAL DANGER TO THE HEALTH OF OTHERS.
5. A PERSON WHO IS DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL, AS IS APPROPRIATE TO THE CIRCUMSTANCES:
(A) HAVE HIS OR HER MEDICAL CONDITION AND NEEDS ASSESSED AND ADDRESSED ON A REGULAR BASIS, AND
(B) BE DETAINED IN A MANNER THAT IS CONSISTENT WITH RECOGNIZED ISOLATION AND INFECTION CONTROL PRINCIPLES IN ORDER TO MINIMIZE THE LIKELIHOOD OF TRANSMISSION OF INFECTION TO SUCH PERSON AND TO OTHERS.
6. WHEN A PERSON OR GROUP IS ORDERED TO BE DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION FOR A PERIOD NOT EXCEEDING THREE BUSINESS DAYS, SUCH PERSON OR MEMBER OF SUCH GROUP SHALL, UPON REQUEST, BE AFFORDED AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD. IF A PERSON OR GROUP DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION NEEDS TO BE DETAINED BEYOND THREE BUSINESS DAYS, THEY SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH AN ADDITIONAL COMMISSIONER'S ORDER PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND EIGHT OF THIS SECTION.
7. WHEN A PERSON OR GROUP IS ORDERED TO BE DETAINED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION FOR A PERIOD EXCEEDING THREE BUSINESS DAYS, AND SUCH PERSON OR MEMBER OF SUCH GROUP REQUESTS RELEASE, THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE SHALL MAKE AN APPLICATION FOR A COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING SUCH DETENTION WITHIN THREE BUSINESS DAYS AFTER SUCH REQUEST BY THE END OF THE FIRST BUSINESS DAY FOLLOWING SUCH SATURDAY, SUNDAY, OR LEGAL HOLIDAY, WHICH APPLICATION SHALL INCLUDE A REQUEST FOR AN EXPEDITED HEARING. AFTER ANY SUCH REQUEST FOR RELEASE, DETENTION SHALL NOT CONTINUE FOR MORE THAN FIVE BUSINESS DAYS IN THE ABSENCE OF A COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING DETENTION. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING PROVISIONS, IN NO EVENT SHALL ANY PERSON BE DETAINED FOR MORE THAN SIXTY DAYS WITHOUT A COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING SUCH DETENTION. THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE SHALL SEEK FURTHER COURT REVIEW OF SUCH DETENTION WITHIN NINETY DAYS FOLLOWING THE INITIAL COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING DETENTION AND THEREAFTER WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF EACH SUBSEQUENT COURT REVIEW. IN ANY COURT PROCEEDING TO ENFORCE AN ORDER OF THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE FOR THE REMOVAL OR DETENTION OF A PERSON OR GROUP ISSUED PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION OR FOR REVIEW OF THE CONTINUED DETENTION OF A PERSON OR GROUP, THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE SHALL PROVE THE PARTICULARIZED CIRCUMSTANCES CONSTITUTING THE NECESSITY FOR SUCH DETENTION BY CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE.
8. (A) A COPY OF ANY DETENTION ORDER OF THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE ISSUED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE GIVEN TO EACH DETAINED INDIVIDUAL; HOWEVER, IF THE ORDER APPLIES TO A GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS AND IT IS IMPRACTICAL TO PROVIDE INDIVIDUAL COPIES, IT MAY BE POSTED IN A CONSPICUOUS PLACE IN THE DETENTION PREMISES. ANY DETENTION ORDER OF THE COMMISSIONER ISSUED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL SET FORTH:
(I) THE PURPOSE OF THE DETENTION AND THE LEGAL AUTHORITY UNDER WHICH THE ORDER IS ISSUED, INCLUDING THE PARTICULAR SECTIONS OF THIS ARTICLE OR OTHER LAW OR REGULATION;
(II) A DESCRIPTION OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES AND/OR BEHAVIOR OF THE DETAINED PERSON OR GROUP CONSTITUTING THE BASIS FOR THE ISSUANCE OF THE ORDER;
(III) THE LESS RESTRICTIVE ALTERNATIVES THAT WERE ATTEMPTED AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL AND/OR THE LESS RESTRICTIVE ALTERNATIVES THAT WERE CONSIDERED AND REJECTED, AND THE REASONS SUCH ALTERNATIVES WERE REJECTED;
(IV) A NOTICE ADVISING THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT THEY HAVE A RIGHT TO REQUEST RELEASE FROM DETENTION, AND INCLUDING INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW SUCH REQUEST SHALL BE MADE;
(V) A NOTICE ADVISING THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT THEY HAVE A RIGHT TO BE REPRESENTED BY LEGAL COUNSEL AND THAT UPON REQUEST OF SUCH PERSON OR GROUP ACCESS TO COUNSEL WILL BE FACILITATED TO THE EXTENT FEASIBLE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES; AND
(VI) A NOTICE ADVISING THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT THEY MAY SUPPLY THE ADDRESSES AND/OR TELEPHONE NUMBERS OF FRIENDS AND/OR RELATIVES TO RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF THE PERSON'S DETENTION, AND THAT THE DEPARTMENT SHALL, AT THE DETAINED PERSON'S REQUEST AND TO THE EXTENT FEASIBLE, PROVIDE NOTICE TO A REASONABLE NUMBER OF SUCH PEOPLE THAT THE PERSON IS BEING DETAINED.
(B) IN ADDITION, AN ORDER ISSUED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND SEVEN OF THIS SECTION, REQUIRING THE DETENTION OF A PERSON OR GROUP FOR A PERIOD EXCEEDING THREE BUSINESS DAYS, SHALL:
(I) ADVISE THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT THE DETENTION SHALL NOT CONTINUE FOR MORE THAN FIVE BUSINESS DAYS AFTER A REQUEST FOR RELEASE HAS BEEN MADE IN THE ABSENCE OF A COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING SUCH DETENTION;
(II) ADVISE THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT, WHETHER OR NOT THEY REQUEST RELEASE FROM DETENTION, THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE MUST OBTAIN A COURT ORDER AUTHORIZING DETENTION WITHIN SIXTY DAYS FOLLOWING THE COMMENCEMENT OF DETENTION AND THEREAFTER MUST FURTHER SEEK COURT REVIEW OF THE DETENTION WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF SUCH COURT ORDER AND
WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF EACH SUBSEQUENT COURT REVIEW; AND
(III) ADVISE THE PERSON OR GROUP BEING DETAINED THAT THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO REQUEST THAT LEGAL COUNSEL BE PROVIDED, THAT UPON SUCH REQUEST COUNSEL SHALL BE PROVIDED IF AND TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES, AND THAT IF COUNSEL IS SO PROVIDED, THAT SUCH COUNSEL WILL BE NOTIFIED THAT THE PERSON OR GROUP HAS REQUESTED LEGAL REPRESENTATION.
9. A PERSON WHO IS DETAINED IN A MEDICAL FACILITY, OR OTHER APPROPRIATE FACILITY OR PREMISES, SHALL NOT CONDUCT HIMSELF OR HERSELF IN A DISORDERLY MANNER, AND SHALL NOT LEAVE OR ATTEMPT TO LEAVE SUCH FACILITY OR PREMISES UNTIL HE OR SHE IS DISCHARGED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
10. WHERE NECESSARY AND FEASIBLE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES, LANGUAGE INTERPRETERS AND PERSONS SKILLED IN COMMUNICATING WITH VISION AND HEARING IMPAIRED INDIVIDUALS SHALL BE PROVIDED.
11. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO THE ISSUANCE OF ORDERS PURSUANT TO § 11.21 OF THE NEW YORK CITY HEALTH CODE.
12. IN ADDITION TO THE REMOVAL OR DETENTION ORDERS REFERRED TO IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION, AND WITHOUT AFFECTING OR LIMITING ANY OTHER AUTHORITY THAT THE COMMISSIONER MAY OTHERWISE HAVE, THE GOVERNOR OR HIS OR HER DELEGEE MAY, IN HIS OR HER DISCRETION, ISSUE AND SEEK ENFORCEMENT OF ANY OTHER ORDERS THAT HE OR SHE DETERMINES ARE NECESSARY OR APPROPRIATE TO PREVENT DISSEMINATION OR TRANSMISSION OF CONTAGIOUS DISEASES OR OTHER ILLNESSES THAT MAY POSE A THREAT TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ORDERS REQUIRING ANY PERSON OR PERSONS WHO ARE NOT IN THE CUSTODY OF THE DEPARTMENT TO BE EXCLUDED; TO REMAIN ISOLATED OR QUARANTINED AT HOME OR AT A PREMISES OF SUCH PERSON'S CHOICE THAT IS ACCEPTABLE TO THE DEPARTMENT AND UNDER SUCH CONDITIONS AND FOR SUCH PERIOD AS WILL PREVENT TRANSMISSION OF THE CONTAGIOUS DISEASE OR OTHER ILLNESS; TO REQUIRE THE TESTING OR MEDICAL EXAMINATION OF PERSONS WHO MAY HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO OR INFECTED BY A CONTAGIOUS DISEASE OR WHO MAY HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO OR CONTAMINATED WITH DANGEROUS AMOUNTS OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS OR TOXIC CHEMICALS; TO REQUIRE AN INDIVIDUAL WHO HAS BEEN EXPOSED TO OR INFECTED BY A CONTAGIOUS DISEASE TO COMPLETE AN APPROPRIATE, PRESCRIBED COURSE OF TREATMENT, PREVENTIVE MEDICATION OR VACCINATION, INCLUDING DIRECTLY OBSERVED THERAPY TO TREAT THE DISEASE AND FOLLOW INFECTION CONTROL PROVISIONS FOR THE DISEASE; OR TO REQUIRE AN INDIVIDUAL WHO HAS BEEN CONTAMINATED WITH DANGEROUS AMOUNTS OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS OR TOXIC CHEMICALS SUCH THAT SAID INDIVIDUAL MAY PRES-
ENT A DANGER TO OTHERS, TO UNDERGO DECONTAMINATION PROCEDURES DEEMED NECESSARY BY THE DEPARTMENT. SUCH PERSON OR PERSONS SHALL, UPON REQUEST, BE AFFORDED AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD, BUT THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISIONS TWO THROUGH ELEVEN OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT OTHERWISE APPLY.
13. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT BE CONSTRUED TO PERMIT OR REQUIRE THE FORCIBLE ADMINISTRATION OF ANY MEDICATION WITHOUT A PRIOR COURT ORDER.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.
[Emphasis mine.]
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| Prayer to be Said on New Year's Day |
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Posted by: Elizabeth - 01-01-2021, 11:18 PM - Forum: Prayers and Devotionals
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Prayer to be Said on New Year's Day
O God, Heavenly Father of Mercy, God of all Consolation! we thank Thee that from our birth to this day, Thou has so well preserved us, and hast protected us in so many dangers; we beseech Thee, through the merits of Thy beloved Son, and by His sacred blood which He shed for us on this day in His circumcision, to forgive all the sins which , during the past year, we have committed against Thy commandments, by which we have aroused Thy indignation and wrath against ourselves. Preserve us in the coming year from all sins, and misfortunes of body and soul. Grant that from this day to the end of our lives, all our senses, thoughts, words and works, which we here dedicate to Thee for all time, may be directed in accordance with Thy will, and that we may finally die int he true Catholic Faith, and enjoy with Thee in Thy kingdom a joyful new year, that shall know no end. Amen.
Taken from The Church's Year by Rev. Fr. Leonard Goffine
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| Abortion Leading Global Cause of Death in 2020 with 42.7 Million Killed |
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Posted by: Stone - 01-01-2021, 06:45 PM - Forum: Abortion
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Abortion Leading Global Cause of Death in 2020 with 42.7 Million Killed
Breitbart | 1 Jan 2021
Abortion was once again the number-one cause of death globally in 2020, with a record 42.7 million unborn babies killed in the womb, according to data provided by Worldometer.
As of December 31, 2020, there were 42.7 million abortions performed in the course of the year, Worldometer revealed, while 8.2 million people died from cancer, 5 million from smoking, and 1.7 million of HIV/AIDS.
By comparison, worldwide deaths from the coronavirus in 2020 totaled 1.8 million, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Worldometer — voted one of the best free reference websites by the American Library Association (ALA) — keeps a running tally through the year of major world statistics, including population, births, deaths, automobiles produced, books published, and CO2 emissions.
It also registers the total number of abortions performed worldwide, based on the latest statistics on abortions published by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Globally, there were more deaths from abortion in 2020 than all deaths from cancer, malaria, HIV/AIDS, smoking, alcohol, and traffic accidents combined, according to Worldometer statistics.
The shocking number of deaths from abortion, in fact, has led certain observers to call abortion “the social justice cause of our time,” since the sheer magnitude of the problem completely overshadows other human rights issues.
The year 2020 also saw abortion legalized in Argentina, one of the last bastions in the world to recognize and protect the right to life of unborn children.
In their yearly Christmas message, the Argentinean bishops denounced the government of Alberto Fernández for its “feverish obsession” with extending abortion rights in the midst of a pandemic.
Instead of attending to the real needs of the people of Argentina, the government adopted an “incomprehensible urgency” with establishing abortion in Argentina, the bishops declared, “as if it had something to do with the sufferings, fears, and concerns of most Argentineans.”
“This Christmas we find ourselves in a historic moment calling for an arduous rebuilding of employment, education, institutions, and brotherly ties,” the bishops stated, and instead of addressing these urgent needs, the government chose to push the abortion agenda.
“In recent weeks, the panorama has darkened,” they wrote. The government should be defending the human rights of the weak rather than “denying them to the unborn.”
The abortion lobby also targeted Poland after a High Court ruling outlawed eugenic abortions performed on babies with Down syndrome and other disabilities.
The pro-abortion Women’s Strike movement organized demonstrations in major cities, with one group gathering in the center of Warsaw and then marching toward the house of Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the head of Poland’s ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS).
In early October, Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal struck down a provision permitting doctors to abort fetuses on the basis of congenital defects, ruling that the law violated the national Constitution, which guarantees the right to life.
In its decision, the court argued that aborting a child because of probable birth defects constituted eugenics, an effort to rid society of the weak and undesirable, notoriously practiced by the Nazis against Jews and disabled persons, and advocated by Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger against blacks and minorities in the United States.
Along with the capital of Warsaw, pro-abortion demonstrations were held in Poznan, Warsaw, Wroclaw, Krakow and other cities, and protesters invaded churches while service were taking place, “confronting priests with obscenities” and spray-painting churches with slogans and phone numbers of abortion providers, Associated Press (AP) reported.
On December 28, Christians around the world celebrated the Feast of the Holy Innocents, commemorating the decree by King Herod that all male children in Israel under the age of two were to be slaughtered in an effort to kill the newborn Christ child. Pope Francis has compared the massacre of the Innocents to the modern practice of killing babies through abortion.
The 48th annual March for Life in the United States will take place in Washington, D.C., on January 29, 2021 with the theme “Together strong, life unites!”
The stated purpose of the march is to end abortion by “uniting, educating, and mobilizing pro-life people in the public square.”
The annual march commemorates the infamous January 22, 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade which, together with the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. Casey, invalidated 50 state laws and made abortion legal and available on demand throughout the United States.
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| February 2nd - The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, the Purification or Candlemas |
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Posted by: Elizabeth - 01-01-2021, 04:57 PM - Forum: February
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The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
The Purification, or Candlemas
The law of God, given by Moses to the Jews, ordained that after childbirth a woman should continue for a certain time in a state which that law calls unclean, during which time she was not to appear in public. This term was of forty days following the birth of a son, and double that time for a daughter. When the term expired, the mother was to bring to the Temple a lamb and a young pigeon or turtle-dove, as an offering to God. These being sacrificed to Almighty God by the priest, she was cleansed of the legal impurity and reinstated in her former privileges. A dove was required of all as a sin-offering, whether rich or poor; but as the expense of a lamb might be too great for the poor, these were allowed to substitute for it a second dove. Such was the case, Scripture tells us, for the Holy Family. (Luke 2:24)
Our Saviour having been conceived by the Holy Ghost, and His Blessed Mother remaining always a spotless virgin, it is evident that She was not subject to the law of purification, but devotion and zeal to honor God by every observance prescribed by His law, prompted Mary to perform this act of religion.
Besides the law which obliged the mother to purify herself, there was another which required that the first-born son be offered to God, and that after his presentation the child be ransomed with a certain sum of money, and specific sacrifices offered on the occasion. Mary complied exactly with all these ordinances. She obeyed not only in the essential points of the law, but had strict regard to all the circumstances. On the day of Her purification She walked several miles to Jerusalem, with the world's Redeemer in Her arms. She waited for the priest at the gate of the Temple, made Her offerings of thanksgiving and expiation, and with the most profound humility, adoration and thanksgiving, presented Her divine Son, by the hands of the priest, to His Eternal Father. She then redeemed Him with five shekels, as the law appoints, and received Him back again as a sacred charge committed to Her special care, until the Father would again demand Him for the full accomplishment of man's redemption.
The ceremony of this day closed in a third mystery — the meeting in the Temple of the holy prophets Simeon and Anne with the Divine Infant and His parents. Saint Simeon, on that occasion, received into his arms the object of all his desires and sighs, and praised God for the happiness of beholding the much-longed-for Messiah. He foretold to Mary Her martyrdom of sorrow, and that Jesus would bring redemption to those who would accept it on the terms it was offered, but a heavy judgment on all who would obstinately reject it. Mary, hearing this terrible prediction, courageously and sweetly committed all to God's holy Will. Simeon, having beheld Our Saviour, exclaimed: Now Thou canst dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, in peace, according to Thy word, because mine eyes have seen Thy salvation. The aged prophetess Anne, who had served God with great fervor during her long widowhood, also had the happiness of recognizing and adoring the Redeemer of the world. This feast is called Candlemas, because the Church blesses the candles to be borne in the procession of the day.
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| Litany of St. John Mary Vianney (Cure of Ars) |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 04:49 PM - Forum: Litanies
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Litany of St. John Mary Vianney, the Curé of Ars
Lord, have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us, Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us, Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Ghost, Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, Have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us.
Saint John-Mary Vianney, Pray for us.
St. John Vianney, endowed with grace from thine infancy,
St. John Vianney, model of filial piety,
St. John Vianney, devoted servant of the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
St. John Vianney, spotless lily of purity,
St. John Vianney, faithful imitator of the sufferings of Christ,
St. John Vianney, abyss of humility,
St. John Vianney, seraph of prayer,
St. John Vianney, faithful adorer of the Most Blessed Sacrament,
St. John Vianney, ardent lover of holy poverty,
St. John Vianney, true son of St. Francis of Assisi,
St. John Vianney, exemplary Franciscan tertiary,
St. John Vianney, tender friend of the poor,
St. John Vianney, penetrated with the fear of God's judgment,
St. John Vianney, fortified by divine visions,
St. John Vianney, who was tormented by the evil spirit,
St. John Vianney, perfect model of cerdotal virtue,
St. John Vianney, firm and prudent pastor,
St. John Vianney, inflamed with zeal,
St. John Vianney, faithful attendant on the sick,
St. John Vianney, indefatigable catechist,
St. John Vianney, who didst preach in words of fire,
St. John Vianney, wise director of souls,
St. John Vianney, specially gifted with the spirit of counsel,
St. John Vianney, enlightened by light from Heaven,
St. John Vianney, formidable to Satan,
St. John Vianney, compassionate with every misery,
St. John Vianney, providence of the orphans,
St. John Vianney, favored with the gift of miracles,
St. John Vianney, who didst reconcile so many sinners to God,
St. John Vianney, who didst confirm so many of the just in the way of virtue,
St. John Vianney, who didst taste the sweetness of death,
St. John Vianney, who dost now rejoice in the glory of Heaven,
St. John Vianney, who givest joy to those who invoke thee,
St. John Vianney, heavenly patron of parish priests,
St. John Vianney, model and patron of directors of souls,
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
V. Pray for us, blessed Jean-Marie Vianney,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let Us Pray.
Almighty and merciful God, Who didst bestow upon blessed John Mary Vianney wonderful pastoral zeal and a great fervor for prayer and penance, grant, we beseech Thee, that by his example and intercession we may be able to gain the souls of our brethren for Christ, and with them attain to everlasting glory, through the same Lord Jesus Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. R. Amen.
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| Sermons of St. John Mary Vianney |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 04:39 PM - Forum: Sermons by the Saints
- Replies (45)
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SERMONS OF THE CURE OF ARS
Book sold by TAN Books
Composed when he was young priest, The Sermons of the Cure of Ars constitute one of the most powerful Saints' writings in the literature of the Church. Covering a wide range
of vital moral and doctrinal issues for the average layman. St. John Vianney probes quickly, incisively and with total candor into the various sins we are prone to commit and that
we might make excuses for or cover up with various rationalizations. None of this mental sleight-of-hand escapes the Cure's exposure; therefore, we see sin for what it is, human
weakness for what it is, and how we need the Catholic truth to shed light on our hidden faults and God's grace through the Sacraments in order to be truly good.
Among others, St. John Vianney addresses the following topics: The Duties of Parents, Duties of the Mother, Duties of the Pregnant Woman, Annual Confessions, How Death Will
Reveal Thieves, Do you Want to be Happy, The Gift of Every Day, Purity is not Known, Be Religious or Be Damned, The Dreadful State of the Lukewarm Sour, Lost Works, Prayer
Commands All, Repairing the Wrong Done, Your Prayers Are only an Insult, It is Necessary to be Converted, You no Longer Control Your Children, The Sewer of Hell, Bad Company,etc., etc.
No one will read these sermons without realizing that his own moral subterfuges have been laid bare and that he needs to address the camouflaged sins and weaknesses lying buried
in this inmost heart. Though of simple education, the Cure of Ars was one of the most astute minds ever when it comes to moral issues, and the reader will soon realize why over
100,000 people journeyed to Ars every year to see first-hand this incredible Saint!
THE DREADFUL STATE OF THE LUKEWARM SOUL
Book "Sermons of the Cure of Ars" (St. John Mary Vianney) - Pages 1 to 10
In speaking to you today, my dear brethren, of the dreadful state of the lukewarm soul, my purpose is not to paint for you a terrifying and despairing picture of the soul which is living inmortal sin without even having the wish to escape from this condition. That poor unfortunate creature can but look forward to the wrath of God in the next life. Alas! These sinners hear me; they know well of whom I am speaking at this very moment.... We will go no further, for all that I would wish to say would serve only to harden them more.
In speaking to you, my brethren, of the lukewarm soul, I do not wish, either, to speak of those who make neither their Easter duty nor their annual Confession. They know very well that in spite of all their prayers and their other good works they will be lost. Let us leave them in their blindness, since they want to remain that way....
Nor do I understand, brethren, by the lukewarm soul, that soul who would like to be worldly without ceasing to be a child of God. You will see such a one at one moment prostrate before God, his Saviour and his Master, and the next moment similarly prostrate before the world, his idol.
Poor blind creature, who gives one hand to God and the other to the world, so that he can call both to his aid, and promise his heart to each in turn! He loves God, or rather, he would like to love Him, but he would also like to please the world. Then, weary of wanting to give his allegiance to both, he ends by giving it to the world alone. This is an extraordinary life and one which offers so strange a spectacle that it is hard to persuade oneself that it could be the life of one and the same person. I am going to show you this so clearly that perhaps many among you will be hurt by it. But that will matter little to me, for I am always going to tell you what I ought to tell you, and then you will do what you wish about it....
I would say further, my brethren, that whoever wants to please both the world and God leads one of the most unhappy of lives. You shall see how. Here is someone who gives himself up to the pleasures of the world or develops some evil habit.How great is his fear when he comes to fulfill his religious duties; that is, when he says his prayers, when he goes to Confession, or wants to go to Holy Communion! He does not want to be seen by those with whom he has been dancing and passing nights at the cabarets, where he has been giving himself over to many kinds of licentiousness. Has he come to the stage when he is going to deceive his confessor by hiding the worst of his actions and thus obtain permission to go to Holy Communion, or rather, to commit a sacrilege? He would prefer to go to Holy Communion before or after Mass, that is to say, when there is no one present. Yet he is quite happy to be seen by the good people who know nothing about his evil life and among whom he would like to arouse good opinions about himself. In front of devout people he talks about religion. When he is with those who have no religion, he will talk only about the pleasures of the world. He would blush to fulfill his religious practices in front of his companions or those boys and girls who share his evil ways....
This is so true that one day someone asked me to allow him to go to Holy Communion in the sacristy so that no one would see him. Is it possible, my brethren, that one could think upon such horrible behaviour without shuddering?But we shall proceed further and you will see the embarrassment of these poor people who want to follow the world without -- outwardly at any rate -- leaving God. Here is Easter approaching.
They must go to Confession. It is not, of course, that they want to go or that they feel any urge or need to receive the Sacrament of Penance. They would be only too pleased if Easter came around about once every thirty years. But their parents still retain the exterior practice of religion. They will be happy if their children go to the altar, and they keep urging them, then, to go to Confession. In this, of course, they make a mistake. If only they would just pray for them and not torment them into committing sacrileges. So to rid themselves of the importunity of their parents, to keep up appearances, these people will get together to find out who is the best confessor to try for absolution for the first or second time "Look," says one, "my parents keep nagging at me because I haven't been to Confession. Where shall we go?" "It is of no use going to our parish priest; he is too scrupulous. He would not allow us to make our Easter duty. We will have to try to find So-and-So. He let this one and that one go through, and they are worse than we are. We have done no more harm than they have."
Another will say: "I assure you that if it were not for my parents I would not make my Easter duty at all. Our catechism says that to make a good Confession we must give up sin and the occasion of sin, and we are doing neither the one nor the other. I tell you sincerely that I am really embarrassed every time Easter comes around. I will be glad when the time comes for me to settle down and to cease gallivanting. I will make a confession then of my whole life, to put right the ones I am making now. Without that I would not die happy."
"Well," another will say to him, "when that time comes you ought to go to the priest who has been hearing your confessions up to the present. He will know you best." "Indeed no! I will go to the one who would not give me absolution, because he would not want to see me damned either."
"My word, aren't you good! That means nothing at all. They all have the same power." "That is a good thing to remember when we are doing what we ought to do. But when we are in sin, we think otherwise.
One day I went to see a girl who was pretty careless. She told me that she was not going back to Confession to the priests who were so easy and who, in making it seem as if they wanted to save you, pushed you into Hell."That is how many of these poor blind people behave. I "Father," they will say to the priest, "I am going to Confession to you because our parish priest is too exacting. He wants to make us promise things which we cannot hold to. He would have us all saints, and that is not possible in the world. He would want us never to go to dances, nor to frequent cabarets or amusements. If someone has a bad habit, he will not give Absolution until the habit has been given up completely. If we had to do all that we should never make our Easter duty at all. My parents, who are very religious, are always after me to make my Easter duty. I will do all I can. But no one can say that he will never return to these amusements, since he never knows when he is going to encounter them.""Ah!" says the confessor, quite deceived by this sincere sounding talk, "I think your parish priest is perhaps a little exacting. Make your act of contrition, and I will give you Absolution.
Try to be good now."
That is to say: Bow your head; you are going to trample in the adorable Blood of Jesus Christ; you are going to sell your God like Judas sold Him to His executioners, and tomorrow you will go to Holy Communion, where you will proceed to crucify Him. What horror! What abomination! Go on, vile Judas, go to the holy table, go and give death to your God and your Saviour! Let your conscience cry out, only try to stifle its remorse as much as you can.... But I am going too far, my brethren. Let us leave these poor blind creatures in their gloom.
I think, brethren, that you would like to know what is the state of the lukewarm soul. Well, this is it. A lukewarm soul is not yet quite dead in the eyes of God because the faith, the hope, and the charity which are its spiritual life are not altogether extinct. But it is a faith without zeal, a hope without resolution, a charity without ardour....
Nothing touches this soul: it hears the word of God, yes, that is true; but often it just bores it. Its possessor hears it with difficulty, more or less by habit, like someone who thinks that he knows enough about it and does enough of what he should.
Any prayers which are a bit long are distasteful to him. This soul is so full of whatever it has just been doing or what it is going to do next, its boredom is so great, that this poor unfortunate thing is almost in agony. It is still alive, but it is not capable of doing anything to gain Heaven.... For the last twenty years this soul has been filled with good intentions without doing anything atall to correct its habits.
It is like someone who is envious of anyone who is on top of the world but who would not deign to lift a foot to try to get there himself. It would not, however, wish to renounce eternal blessings for those of the world. Yet it does not wish either to leave the world or to go to Heaven, and if it can just manage to pass its time without crosses or difficulties, it would never ask to leave this world at all. If you hear someone with such a soul say that life is long and pretty miserable, that is only when everything is not going in accordance with his desires. If God, in order to force such a soul to detach itself from temporal things, sends it any cross or suffering, it is fretful and grieving and abandons itself to grumbles and complaints and often even to a kind of despair. It seems as if it does not want to see that God has sent it these trials for its good, to detach it from this world and to draw it towards Himself. What has it done to deserve these trials? In this state a person thinks in his own mind that there are many others more blameworthy than himself who have not to submit to such trials.In prosperous times the lukewarm soul does not go so far as to forget God, but neither does it forget itself. It knows very well how to boast about all the means it has employed to achieve its prosperity. It is quite convinced that many others would not have achieved the same success. It loves to repeat that and to hear it repeated, and every time it hears it, it is with fresh pleasure.
The individual with the lukewarm soul assumes a gracious air when associating with those who flatter him. But towards those who have not paid him the respect which he believes he has deserved or who have not been grateful for his kindnesses, he maintains an air of frigid indifference and seems to indicate to them that they are ungrateful creatures who do not deserve to receive the good which he has done them....
If I wanted to paint you an exact picture, my brethren, of the state of a soul which lives in tepidity, I should tell you that it is like a tortoise or a snail. It moves only by dragging itself along the ground, and one can see it getting from place to place with great difficulty. The love of God, which it feels deep down in itself, is like a tiny spark of fire hidden under a heap of ashes.
The lukewarm soul comes to the point of being completely indifferent to its own loss. It has nothing left but a love without tenderness, without action, and without energy which sustains it with difficulty in all that is essential for salvation. But for all other means of Grace, it looks upon them as nothing or almost nothing. Alas, my brethren, this poor soul in its tepidity is like someone between two bouts of sleep. It would like to act, but its will has become so softened that it lacks either the force or the courage to accomplish its wishes.
It is true that a Christian who lives in tepidity still regularly -- in appearance at least -- fulfills his duties. He will indeed get down on his knees every morning to say his prayers. He will go to the Sacraments every year at Easter and even several times during the course of the twelve months. But in all of this there will be such a distaste, so much slackness and so much indifference, so little preparation, so little change in his way of life, that it is easy to see that he is only fulfilling his duties from habit and routine .... because this is a feast and he is in the habit of carrying them out at such a time. His Confessions and his Communions are not sacrilegious, if you like, but they are Confessions and Communions which bear no fruit -- which, far from making him more perfect and more pleasing to God, only make him more unworthy. As for his prayers, God alone knows what -- without, of course, any preparation -- he makes of these.
In the morning it is not God who occupies his thoughts, nor the salvation of his poor soul; he is quite taken up with thoughts of work. His mind is so wrapped up in the things of earth that the thought of God has no place in it. He is thinking about what he is going to be doing during the day, where he will be sending his children and his various employees, in what way he will expedite his own work. To say his prayers, he gets down on his knees, undoubtedly, but he does not know what he wants to ask God, nor what he needs, nor even before whom he is kneeling.
His careless demeanour shows this very clearly. It is a poor man indeed who, however miserable he is, wants nothing at all and loves his poverty. It is surely a desperately sick personwho scorns doctors and remedies and clings to his infirmities.
You can see that this lukewarm soul has no difficulty, on the slightest pretext, in talking during the course of his prayers.
For no reason at all he will abandon them, partly at least, thinking that he will finish them in another moment. Does he want to offer his day to God, to say his Grace? He does all that, but often without thinking of the one who is addressed. He will not even stop working. If the possessor of the lukewarm soul is a man, he will turn his cap or his hat around in his hands as if to see whether it is good or bad, as though he had some idea of selling it. If it is a woman, she will say her prayers while slicing bread into her soup, or putting wood on the fire, or calling out to her children or maid. If you like, such distractions during prayer are not exactly deliberate. People would rather not have them, but because it is necessary to go to so much trouble and expend so much energy to get rid of them, they let them alone and allow them to come as they will.
The lukewarm Christian may not perhaps work on Sunday at tasks which seem to be forbidden to anyone who has even the slightest shred of religion, but doing some sewing, arranging something in the house, driving sheep to the fields during the times for Masses, on the pretext that there is not enough food to give them -- all these things will be done without the slightest scruple, and such people will prefer to allow their souls and the souls of their employees to perish rather than endanger their animals. A man will busy himself getting out his tools and his carts and harrows and so on, for the next day; he will fill in a hole or fence a gap; he will cut various lengths of cords and ropes; he will carry out the churns and set them in order. What doyou think about all this, my brethren? Is it not, alas, the simple truth? ....
A lukewarm soul will go to Confession regularly, and even quite frequently. But what kind of Confessions are they? No preparation, no desire to correct faults, or, at the least, a desire so feeble and so small that the slightest difficulty will put a stop to it altogether. The Confessions of such a person are merely repetitions of old ones, which would be a happy state of affairs indeed if there were nothing to add to them. Twenty years ago he was accusing himself of the same things he confesses today, and if he goes to Confession for the next twenty years, he will say the same things. A lukewarm soul will not, if you like, commit the big sins. But some slander or back-biting, a lie, a feeling of hatred, of dislike, of jealousy, a slight touch of deceit or double-dealing -- these count for nothing with it. If it is a woman and you do not pay her all the respect which she considers her due, she will, under the guise of pretending that God has been offended, make sure that you realise it; she could say more than that, of course, since it is she herself who has been offended. It is true that such a woman would not stop going to theSacraments, but her dispositions are worthy of compassion.
On the day when she wants to receive her God, she spends part of the morning thinking of temporal matters. If it is a man, he will be thinking about his deals and his sales. If it is a
married woman, she will be thinking about her household and her children. If it is a young girl,her thoughts will be on her clothes.
If it is a boy, he will be dreaming about passing pleasures and so on. The lukewarm soul shuts God up in an obscure and ugly kind of prison. Its possessor does not crucify Him, but God can find little joy or consolation in his heart. All his dispositions proclaim that his poor soul is struggling for the breath of life.
After having received Holy Communion, this person will hardly give another thought to God in all the days to follow. His manner of life tells us that he did not know the greatness of thehappiness which had been his.
A lukewarm Christian thinks very little upon the state of his poor soul and almost never lets his mind run over the past. If the thought of making any effort to be better crosses his mind at all,he believes that once he has confessed his sins, he ought to be perfectly happy and at peace. He assists at Holy Mass very much as he would at any ordinary activity. He does not think at all seriously of what he is doing and finds no trouble in chatting about all sorts of things while on the way there. Possibly he will not give a single thought to the fact that he is about to participate in the greatest of all the gifts that God, all-powerful as He is, could give us. He does give some thought to the needs of his own soul, yes, but a very small and feeble amount of thought indeed.
Frequently he will even present himself before the presence of God without having any idea of what he is going to ask of Him. He has few scruples in cutting out, on the least pretext, the Asperges and the prayers before Mass. During the course of the service, he does not want to go to sleep, of course, and he is even afraid that someone might see him, but he does not do himself any violence all the same. He does not want, of course, to have distractions during prayer or during the Holy Mass, yet when he should put up some little fight against them, he suffers them very patiently, considering the fact that he does not like them. Fast days are reduced to practically nothing, either by advancing the time of the main meal or, under the pretext that Heaven was never taken by famine, by making the collation so abundant that it amounts to a full meal. When he performs good or beneficial actions, his intentions are often very mixed -- sometimes it is to please someone, sometimes it is out of compassion, and sometimes it is just to please the world. With such people everything that is not a really serious sin is good enough. They like doing good, being faithful, but they wish that it did not cost them anything or, at least, that it cost very little. They would like to visit the sick, indeed, but it would be more convenient if the sick would come to them. They have something to give away in alms, they know quite well that a certain person has need of help, but they wait until she comes to ask them instead of anticipating her, which would make the kindness so very much more meritorious. We will even say, my brethren, that the person who leads a lukewarm life does not fail to do plenty of good works, to frequent the Sacraments, to assist regularly at all church services, but in all of this one sees only a weak, languishing faith, hope which the slightest trial will upset, a love of God and of neighbor which is without warmth or pleasure. Everything that such a person does is not entirely lost, but it is very nearly so.
See, before God, my brethren, on what side you are. On the side of the sinners, who have abandoned everything and plunge themselves into sin without remorse? On the side of the just souls, who seek but God alone? Or are you of the number of these slack, tepid, and indifferent souls such as we have just been depicting for you? Down which road are you traveling?
Who can dare assure himself that he is neither a great sinner nor a tepid soul but that he is one of the elect? Alas, my brethren, how many seem to be good Christians in the eyes of the world who are really tepid souls in the eyes of God, Who knows our inmost hearts.... Let us ask God with all our hearts, if we are in this state, to give us the grace to get out of it, so that we may take the route that all the saints have taken and arrive at the happiness that they are enjoying. That is what I desire for you....
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| Sermons of St. Alphonsus de Liguori |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 04:19 PM - Forum: Sermons by the Saints
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Book of Sermons of St. Alphonsus Liguori offered by TAN Books (pages 58-64)
SERMON V. SUNDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF THE NATIVITY
IN WHAT TRUE WISDOM CONSISTS
" Behold, this CHILD is set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel." LUKE ii. 34.
SUCH was the language of holy Simeon when he had the consolation to hold in his hands the infant Jesus. Among other things which he then foretold, he declared that "this child was set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel." In these words he extols the lot of the saints, who, after this life, shall rise to a life of immortality in the kingdom of bliss, and he deplores the misfortune of sinners, who, for the transitory and miserable pleasures of this world, bring upon themselves eternal ruin and perdition. But, notwithstanding the greatness of his own misery, the unhappy sinner, reflecting only on the enjoyment of present goods, calls the saints fools, because they seek to live in poverty, in humiliation, and self-denial. But a day will come when sinners shall see their errors, and shall say. “We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honour." (Wis. v. 4.) We fools; behold how they shall
confess that they themselves have been truly fools. Let us examine in what true wisdom consists, and we shall see, in the first point, that sinners are truly foolish, and, in the second, that the saints are truly wise.
First Point. Sinners are truly foolish.
1. What greater folly can be conceived than to have the power of being the friends of God, and to wish to be his enemies? Their living in enmity with God makes the life of sinners unhappy in this world, and purchases for them an eternity of misery hereafter St. Augustin relates that two courtiers of the emperor entered a monastery of hermits, and that one of them began to read the life of St. Anthony. "He read, ” says the saint, "and his heart was divested of the world." He read, and, in reading, his affections were detached from the Earth.
Turning to his companion he exclaimed: ”What do we seek? The friendship of the emperor is the most we can hope for. And through how many perils shall we arrive at still greater danger? Should we obtain his friendship, how long shall it last ?" Friend, said he, fools that we are, what do we seek? Can we expect more in this life, by serving the emperor, than to gain his friendship? And should we, after many dangers, succeed in making him our friend, we shall expose ourselves to greater danger of eternal perdition. What difficulties must we encounter in order to become the friend of Caesar!”But, if I wish, I can in a moment become the friend of God." I can acquire his friendship by endeavouring to recover his grace. His divine grace is that infinite treasure which makes us worthy of his friendship. “For she is an infinite treasure to men, which they that use become the friends of God” (Wis. vii. 14.)
2. The Gentiles believe it impossible for a creature to become the friend of God; for, as St. Jerome says, friendship makes friends equal. "Amicitia pares accipit, aut pares facit." But Jesus Christ has declared, that if we observe his commands we shall be his friends. “You are my friends, if you do the things I command." (John xv. 14.)
3. How great then is the folly of sinners, who, though they have it in their power to enjoy the friendship of God, wish to live in enmity with him! The Lord does not hate any of his creatures: he does not hate the tiger, the viper, or the toad. ”For thou lovest all things that are, and hatest none of the things which thou hast made." (Wis. xi. 25.) But he necessarily hates sinners. ”Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity." (Ps. v. 7.) God cannot but hate sin, which is his enemy and diametrically opposed to his will; and therefore, in hating sin, he necessarily hates the sinner who is united with his sin. “But to God the wicked and his wickedness are hateful alike. ” (Wis. xiv. 9.)
4. The sinner is guilty of folly in leading a life opposed to the end for which he was created. God has not created us, nor does he preserve our lives, that we may labour to acquire riches or earthly honours, or that we may indulge in amusements, but that we may love and serve him in this world, in order to love and enjoy him for eternity in the next. “And the end life everlasting." (Rom. vi. 22.) Thus the present life, as St. Gregory says, is the way by which we must reach Paradise, our true country. ”In the present life we are, as it were, on the road by which we journey to our country." (St. Greg. hom. xi. in Evan.)
5. But the misfortune of the greater part of mankind is, that instead of following the way of salvation, they foolishly walk in the road to perdition,. Some have a passion for earthly riches; and, for a vile interest, they lose the immense goods of Paradise: others have a passion for honours; and, for a momentary applause, they lose their right to be kings in Heaven: others have a passion for sensual pleasures; and, for transitory de lights, they lose the grace of God, and are condemned to burn for ever in a prison of fire. Miserable souls! if, in punishment of a certain sin, their hand was to be burned with a red-hot iron, or if they were to be shut up for ten years in a dark prison, they certainly would abstain from it. And do they not know that, in chastisement of their sins, they shall be condemned to remain for ever in Hell, where their bodies, buried in fire, shall burn for all eternity? Some, says St. John Chrysostom (Hom. de recup. Laps.), to save the body, choose to destroy the soul; but, do they not know that, in losing the soul, their bodies shall be condemned to eternal torments?”If we neglect the soul, we cannot save the body"
6. In a word, sinners lose their reason, and imitate brute animals, that follow the instinct of nature, and seek carnal pleasures without ever reflecting on their lawfulness or unlawfulness.
But to act in this manner is, according to St. Chrysostom, to act not like a man, but like a beast. ”Hominem ilium dicimus" says the saint, "qui imaginem hominis salvam retinet: qua autem est imago hominis? Rationalem esse" To be men we must be rational: that is, we must act, not according to the sensual appetite, but according to the dictates of reason. If God gave to beasts the use of reason, and if they acted according to its rules, we should say that they acted like men. And it must, on the other hand, be said, that the man whose conduct is agreeable to the senses, but contrary to reason, acts like a beast. He who follows the dictates of reason, provides for the future. "Oh! that they would be wise, and would understand, and would provide for their last end." (Deuter. xxxii. 29.) He looks to the future that is, to the account he must render at the hour of death, after which he shall be doomed to Hell or to Heaven, according to his merits, ”Non est sapiens” says St. Bernard, ”qui sibi non est." (Lib. de consid.)
7. Sinners think only of the present, but regard not the end for which they were created. But what will it profit them to gain all things if they lose their last end, which alone can make them happy. ”But one thing is necessary." (Luke x. 42.) To attain our end is the only thing necessary for us: if we lose it, all is lost. What is this end? It is eternal life. “Finem vero vitam æternam." During life, sinners care but little for the attainment of their end. Each day brings them nearer to death and to eternity; but they know not their destination. Should a pilot who is asked whither he is going, answer that he did not know, would not all, says St. .Augustine, cry out that he was bringing the vessel to destruction?”Fac hominem perdidisse quo tendit, et dicatur ei: quo is? et dicat, nescio: nonne iste navem ad naufragium perducet ?" The saint then adds: ”Talis est qui currit præter viam." Such are the wise of the world, who know how to acquire wealth and honours, and to indulge in every kind of amusement, but who know not how to save their souls. How miserable the rich glutton, who, though able to lay up riches and to live splendidly, was, after death, buried in Hell! How miserable Alexander the Great, who, after gaining so many kingdoms, was condemned to eternal torments? How great the folly of Henry the Eighth, who rebelled against the Church, but seeing at the hour of death that his soul should be lost, cried out in despair: ”Friends, we have lost all!" O God, how many others now weep in Hell, and exclaim: ”What hath pride profited us? or what advantage hath the toasting of riches brought us? All those things are passed away like a shadow." (Wis. v. 8.) In the world we made a great figure we enjoyed abundant riches and honours; and now all is passed away like a shadow, and nothing remains for us but to suffer and weep for eternity. St. Augustine says, that the happiness which sinners enjoy in this life is their greatest misfortune, “Nothing is more calamitous than the felicity of sinners, by which their perverse will, like an internal enemy, is strengthened." (Ep. v. ad Marcellin.)
8. In fine, the words of Solomon are fulfilled with regard to all who neglect their salvation: ”Mourning taketh hold of the end of joy." (Prov. xiv. 13.) All their pleasures, honours, and greatness, end in eternal sorrow and wailing. “Whilst I was yet beginning, he cut me off." (Is. xxxviii. 12.) Whilst they are laying the foundation of their hopes of realizing a fortune, death comes, and, cutting the thread of life, deprives them of all their possessions, and sends them to Hell to burn for ever in a pit of fire. What greater folly can be conceived, than to wish to be transformed from the friend of God into the slave of Lucifer, and from the heir of Paradise to become, by sin, doomed to Hell? For, the moment a Christian commits a mortal sin, his name is written among the number of the damned! St. Francis de Sales said that, if the angels were capable of weeping, they would do nothing else than shed tears at the sight of the destruction which a Christian who com mits mortal sin brings upon himself.
9. Oh! how great is the folly of sinners, who, by living in sin, lead a life of misery and discontent! All the goods of this world cannot content the heart of man, which has been created to love God, and can find no peace out of God. What are all the grandeurs and all the pleasures of this world but "vanity of vanities!" (Eccl. i. 2.) What are they but “vanity and vexation of spirit?” (Ibid. iv. 16.) Earthly goods are, according to Solomon, who had experience of them, vanity of vanities; that is mere vanities, lies, and deceits. They are also a”vexation of spirit :" they not only do not content, but they even afflict the soul; and the more abundantly they are possessed, the greater the anguish which they produce. Sinners hope to find peace in their sins; but what peace can they enjoy?”There is no peace to the wicked, saith the Lord." (Is. xlviii. 22.) I abstain from saying more at present on the unhappy life of sinners: I shall speak of it in another place. At present, it is enough for you to know that God gives peace to the souls who love him, and not to those who despise him. Instead of seeking to be the friends of God, sinners wish to be the slaves of Satan, who is a cruel and merciless tyrant to all who submit to his yoke. "Crudelis est et non miserebitur." (Jer. vi. 23.) And if he promises delights, he does it, as St. Cyprian says, not for our welfare, but that we may be the companions of his torments in hell: ”Ut habeat socios pœna, socios gehenæ”.
Second Point. The saints are truly wise.
10. Let us be persuaded that the truly wise are those who know how to love God and to gain Heaven. Happy the man to whom God has given the science of the saints. "Dedit illi scientiam sanctorum” (Wis. x. 10.) Oh! how sublime the science which teaches us to know how to love God and to save our souls! Happy, says St. Augustine, is the man "who knows God, although he is ignorant of other things." They who know God, the love which he merits, and how to love him, stand not in need of any other knowledge. They are wiser than those who are masters of many sciences, but know not how to love God. Brother Egidius, of the order of St. Francis, once said to St. Bonaventure: Happy you, Father Bonaventure, who are so learned, and who, by your learning, can become more holy than I can, who am a poor ignorant man. Listen, replied the saint: if an old woman knows how to love God better than I do, she is more learned and more holy than I am. At hearing this, Brother Egidius exclaimed: ”poor old woman! poor old woman! Father Bonaventure says that, if you love God more than he does, you can surpass him in sanctity."
11. This excited the envy of St. Augustine, and made him ashamed of himself. ”Surgunt indocti," he exclaimed, "et rapiunt cœlum." Alas! the ignorant rise up, and bear away the kingdom of Heaven; and what are we, the learned of this world, doing? Oh! how many of the rude and illiterate are saved, because, though unable to read, they know how to love God; and how many of the wise of the world are damned! Oh! truly wise were St. John of God, St. Felix of the order of St. Capuchins, and St. Paschal, who were poor lay Franciscans, and unacquainted with human sciences, but learned in the science of the saints. But the wonder is, that, though worldlings themselves are fully persuaded of this truth, and constantly extol the merit of those who retire from the world to live only to God, still they act as if they believed it not.
12. Tell me, brethren, to which class do you wish to belong to the wise of the world, or to the wise of God? Before you make a choice, St. Chrysostom advises you to go to the graves of the dead! "Proficiscamur ad Sepulchra” Oh! how eloquently do the sepulchres of the dead teach us the science of the saints and the vanity of all earthly goods!”For my part," said the saint, ”I see nothing but rottenness, bones, and worms. ” As if he said: Among these skeletons I cannot distinguish the noble, the rich, or the learned; I see that they have all become dust and rottenness: thus all their greatness and glory have passed away like a dream.
13. What then must we do? Behold the advice of St. Paul: "This, therefore, I say, brethren: the time is short: it remaineth that . . . they that use this world BE as if they used it not; for the fashion of this world passeth away." (1 Cor. vii. 29-31.) This world is a scene which shall pass away and end very soon . "The time is short." During the days of life that remain, let us endeavour to live like men who are wise, not according to the world, but according to God, by attending to the sanctification of our souls, and by adopting the means of salvation; by flying dangerous occasions; by practising prayer; joining some pious sodality; frequenting the sacraments; reading every day a spiritual book; and by daily hearing Mass, if it be in ourpower; or, at least, by visiting Jesus in the holy sacrament of the altar, and some image of the most holy Mary. Thus we shall be truly wise, and shall be happy for time and eternity.
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| St. Bernardine of Siena and the Power of the Name of Jesus |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 04:07 PM - Forum: The Saints
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SAINT BERNARDINE OF SIENA
and the Power of the Name of Jesus
Bernardine of Siena was born on September 8, 1380, feast of the Nativity of Mary. He was a member of the Albizeschi family, one of the most renowned in the Republic of Siena. No one had any idea of the future glory of the child who, according to Saint Antoninus, was destined to become "a new star in the midst of the murky darkness of the earth; to shine with the brightness of Divine gifts; to beam far and wide the bright rays of his glorious life and teachings; to lead in the fear of God, by the holiness of his example, a people whose blindness had removed it from the straight path of the heavenly Homeland." He was Baptized on the very day of his birth.
When it came time to choose a vocation, Bernardine directed his thoughts toward the religious life. But toward what Order was he to direct his feet? He went into retreat in a solitary house, redoubled his fervor and prayed without ceasing until Divine grace dissolved his incertitude. One day while he was kneeling at the foot of his crucifix as usual and beseeching God, he suddenly heard Jesus say to him:
"My son Bernardine, you see Me hanging on the Cross, in a state of total denudation. If you love Me and want to walk in My footsteps, fasten yourself also to the cross, divested of everything."
These words made such an impression on him that he decided to follow them to the letter. On September 8, 1402, at the age of twenty-two, he was clothed in the habit of Saint Francis and entered the novitiate in the convent of Colombaio, not far from Siena. The new novice distinguished himself above all by his spirit of obedience. Understanding that this virtue was the pivotal point of the religious life, Bernardine became the model of the community. He had the joy of making his vows on the evening of another September 8, and to celebrate his first Mass one year later on the same date.
Bernardine's superiors commanded him to devote himself in the preaching ministry. His voice had a natural defect that prevented him from being heard by anything more than a very limited group: the intercession of the Blessed Virgin delivered him from this difficulty in doing good.
The new apostle was thirty-eight years old when he began to be famous in the major cities of Italy. Until then he had divided his days into periods of prayer, study, and several brief meditations. Diligent in the reading of Holy Scripture, he had penetrated its various meanings and knew how to apply them on every occasion, according to the needs of his listeners.
The Name of Jesus was the usual theme of the holy apostle's addresses. As a child he had been taught to venerate it in a special manner. Later, on reading the epistles of Saint Paul, he had found the Divine Name on almost every line. He had seen Saint Peter answer the leaders of the Synagogue that only in this Name could man be saved. So his decision was made, to adopt the Name of Jesus as his standard and his sole
weapon.
Milan, Genoa, Tortona, Castel Nuovo, Florence, Volterra . . . all of them, one after another, heard Bernardine preach. At the end of his sermons, he would take a tablet with the Divine Name painted on it and show it to his listeners; then, having them kneel, he would invite them to beg the Savior of the world for mercy, promise to live in peace with God and men, implore the Heavenly Father, in virtue of that same Name which He had given to His only-begotten Son to have compassion on all Christians for eternity. Then, raising the tablet, he would bless just men and sinners alike, sending them off with their souls filled with generous resolutions for the future. Ordinarily, no one could resist this imposing ceremony.
Bernardine left the people of Volterra the little tablet on which he had personally painted the glorious Name of his beloved Savior, and which he had used during his sermons until then. It became a pledge of protection; in times of calamity it was carried in procession. If drought withered the earth, if rain threatened the harvest, if plague or war wreaked havoc, it was exposed for public veneration. And on many occasions, God was pleased to glorify the memory of His faithful servant. One year before his death, a church was erected in Volterra in honor of the Holy Name of Jesus and a pious association was established to guard the precious relic, which can still be venerated today.
On learning that there was a man possessed by the devil in the city of Alessandria in the Piedmont, where he was passing through, the holy preacher gave a child a piece of paper on which the glorious Name of the Savior was written, with orders to put it on the possessed person. The child had hardly done so when the unclean spirit took flight.
It was also Saint Bernardine who set up a hospital, known since then by the name of Old Lazaret, on the Isle of Santa Maria de Nazaret. He had the Name of Jesus engraved in various places; even today, the Divine Name engraved on the facade of the church reminds posterity of the Saint's touching preoccupation during the exercise of his apostolic preaching.
He had truly wondrous success in Bellune, a city in the Republic of Venice. The pulpit was set up in the city's largest square. There, after having won the sympathy of the townsfolk, our Saint drew a striking sketch of the woes of Bellune. Reminding them of what he had said elsewhere about the cruelties of various factions, the excess of ferocity with which they defiled themselves and the atrocious crimes of which they were guilty, he pointed out the painted signs of rival factions set above the doors of peoples' homes. Then, raising a tablet upon which he had written the Name of Jesus, he presented that adorable Name as the only one worthy of being engraved in hearts, on the doors and walls of homes, and on the facades of churches, citadels and public monuments: the Saint won a total victory. Never had a more striking triumph crowned his words.
The throng spread through the streets; paintings representing the insignia of rival factions vanished everywhere at once; even their slightest vestige was blotted out. The Name of Jesus was engraved on walls. Some people had it painted on their doors and inside their homes, surrounded with rays of light, whereas others used sculpture to immortalize the remembrance of that great day.
In Bologna, Bernardine put a halt to games of chance. One worker's exclusive occupation was painting playing cards. He had found this work sufficient to provide for his family needs, but now he was threatened with falling into need as a result of the reforms introduced by the Saint in his city. He came to speak of his worries to the very one who was causing them. Bernardine welcomed him with kindness and asked him if he really did not know any other trade.
"None, Father," answered the worker.
"Well then, will you try one that I will suggest to you? You will make enough for yourself and your family, I promise you."
"Gladly," said he, "I will do it at once."
Taking a compass, the Saint drew a circle on a board, then sketched the adorable Name of Jesus in the middle of it, drawing bright rays of light all around it. He showed the sketch to the worker and said to him:
"There, my friend, make similar paintings based on this model, and you will make an income great enough to meet your needs." The painter followed his advice, and soon people were thronging to his workshop; within a few short days, he had been largely compensated for abandoning his former industry.
One of our Saint's diligent listeners in Siena was Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, who later became pope under the name of Pius II. In his notes, the latter tells of the impulsion produced by Bernardine's addresses: "One day, as he was preaching in the square in Siena, a thick cloud formed and threatened rain. Everyone wanted to run off. 'Friends, remain in peace,' exclaimed the orator. He knelt down and prayed, ordering the cloud, by virtue of the Name of Jesus, to go away. Scarcely had he spoken when the cloud scattered without a drop of rain, and the weather turned as fair as it had been before."
To conclude his mission in that city, the Saint went to the pulpit holding the tablet with the Name of Jesus painted on it. Presenting the Divine Name to the crowd as the hope of nations and the joy of the elect, he delivered a warm address on the subject and then invited his listeners to kneel and make honorable amends and ask forgiveness for past sins. The moving voice of the preacher and the sight of that adorable Name, without which there is no salvation for the world, brought on tears and sobs. And this was no passing emotion, it was a public act that engaged them for the future, a new consecration in the Lord's service; it was the cry of the Prophet, repeated by thousands of voices: "I have sworn, and I do resolve to keep Your just ordinances." [Psalm 118: 106] Before dismissing the crowd, the missionary announced a procession on the following day in honor of the glorious Name he had just exalted.
At the hour he had set, an immense multitude pressed into Siena's great public square. Bernardine offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the procession unfurled through the city streets. Amid the lines of people was carried the sacred tablet representing the Name of Jesus, followed by one of the nails that had fastened the Savior to the cross, a relic religiously kept in the La Scala treasury. Never had a more majestic sight been offered to the citizens of Siena: fervor was at its height. Thus, as in Florence, the blessed preacher was able to crown his work by having the people publicly burn objects of vanity and games which men and women hastened to present.
Wanting to immortalize the remembrance of the Heavenly graces received on this occasion, the municipality had the glorious Name of Jesus painted on the facade of the palace of the republic and surrounded by rays of gold. The tablet carried in procession was given to the Franciscans in the city; the pulpit that had been set up in the square was brought back to the cathedral, where it has remained to this day.
The Name of Jesus in the hands of the holy apostle became the rainbow of peace; every knee bent, appeased, every sinner hastened to the wellsprings of pardon, wherever Bernardine set up that mighty symbol. The three letters [JHS] which represented that Name forever blessed became familiar to all the faithful; they were sculpted, engraved and painted everywhere; thus did the Catholic people acquire a new expression of their religion and their love toward the Savior of men.
We have seen Saint Bernardine of Siena at work, now let us listen to him speaking on the adorable Name of Jesus . . .
The Name of Jesus is the refuge of the penitent sinner, a refuge full of meekness in which majesty effaces itself, tenderness becomes sweeter, Divine mercy appears in Its grandeur. The Name of God is awesome; in it is found the ardor of the flame which consumes, the wrath which chastises, the weight which crushes; but all these things have been tempered in the wellspring of mercy by Jesus Christ Who was smitten with love for us in the womb of the Virgin Mary. There, that ardor has lost its violence, that wrath has become forbearance, that overwhelming weight has become light . . . "O my God," exclaims the Prophet, "say to my soul: I am thy salvation." [Psalm 34: 3] May Thy Name be heard by my ears; Thy voice is full of sweetness and Thy face full of beauty.
The Name of Jesus is the banner of combatants . . . We have three kinds of enemies: the world, the flesh and the devil. If the devil rises up against you, do not be afraid, but lift the banner of salvation against him by invoking Jesus. "In My Name," He says, "cast out devils." [Mark 16: 17] The Prophet says, "Holy and awesome is His Name." [Psalm 110: 9] Holy for the Angels, awesome for the devils and the godless. The flesh makes you feel its attacks? Well, in sorrow, may the Name of Jesus find place in your heart, may it rise from there to your lips, and by the light of that Name, every cloud shall scatter, serenity shall reappear. You have fallen into crime? Despair gets hold of you? Who, then, shall invoke that Name of life without breathing at once? Who, then, in the presence of that saving Name has not felt hardness of heart, dullness and laziness of soul disappear? Who, then, seeing his tears dry up, has not shed more abundant ones, wept sweeter ones, after invoking that Name? Nothing can halt the transport of wrath, nothing can contain the puffing up of pride, nothing can heal the wound of envy, nothing can resist the surge of sensuality, nothing can extinguish the flame of pleasure, nothing can temper the thirst of avarice, nothing can consume the rust of every dishonor like the Name of Jesus . . . The world declares itself against you; by a secret judgment of God, you are shipwrecked in the middle of the sea; you are exposed to its dangers; upon your path you find overflowing rivers, threatening enemies, ably hatched betrayals, thunder and lightning, ruination, accidents, unexpected fires? Invoke the Name of salvation, and may your heart and your mouth both call upon Jesus, hope in the help of the Most High. He Himself has said, "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in distress." [Psalm 90: 15] "I will deliver him; I will set him on high because he acknowledges My Name." [Psalm 90: 14] Indeed, "the Name of the Lord is a strong tower; the just man runs to it and is safe."
[Proverbs 18: 10]
The Name of Jesus is a remedy for our infirmities; it gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, nimbleness to the lame, speech to the mute, life to the dead . . . When you feel some suffering, you or yours, without neglecting natural remedies, have recourse to the Name of Jesus . . . I have learned from witnesses worthy of faith that in our days, many have laid their hands on the sick, according to the divine precept, and have invoked the Name of Jesus, and those illnesses were healed. As the Prophet says, "He saved them for His Name's sake, to make known His power." [Psalm 105: 7-8]
The Name of Jesus is the comfort of those who suffer. God does not let His servants fall in temptation, yet He exposes them to the pains of life. But then, far be it from us to despair! Let us not forget the sweet Name of Jesus, let us invoke it especially then. Saint Augustine says, "The Name of Jesus, written in the heart of the just, gives them an astonishing boldness to counter the blows of every woe." Before her judge Saint Agatha exclaimed, "If you threaten me with ferocious beasts, they will become tame at the Name of Jesus; if you use fire against me, at that Name the Angels will surround me with life-giving dew." By virtue of that Name, the Martyrs overcame every torment: "Through Your Name we trampled down Your adversaries; our help is in the Name of the Lord." [Psalm 143: 6; 123:8]
The Name of Jesus is the glory of those who believe. The main base of the Faith is the Name of Jesus; that Name upholds the edifice; upon it the pillars rise; upon it the summit of the monument rests, and that summit is Heavenly beatitude. The Catholic Faith resides in the knowledge of Jesus Christ; He is the light of the soul, the gateway to life, the foundation of eternal salvation.
The Name of Jesus is the torch of the word of God. Saint Bernard says, "How can you believe that a light so great, so sudden, so bright, would have shone in the whole world, if not by the preaching of the Name of Jesus ?" When wheat is taken from a field and the fire is lit, dry grass, useless brambles and thorns are soon consumed; when the sun casts its bright rays upon rising and the darkness has disappeared, thieves and nighttime prowlers go and hide. Thus when the tongue of Paul, like a thunderclap, like the sun at its brightest, made itself heard by the nations, infidelity was consumed, falsehood vanished, the truth cast forth its splendor, the world was like wax exposed to the heat of a violent fire. Then the Apostle, by his writings, words, miracles and examples, made the Name of Jesus penetrate everywhere; he bore it in the presence of kings, of nations and of the children of Israel as a torch, and with it he lit up all the lands of the world . . .
The Name of Jesus is the help of the weary soul. Saint Bernard says, "Each time you remember the Name of Jesus, do you not feel your strength reborn?" Who restores our mind like this remembrance? Who repairs our weary senses, reconfirms our virtues, vitalizes our good and honest actions, gives warmth back to our pure affections as much as He?. . . May the Name of Jesus be always placed in your soul, always borne in your hands: in Him you will find a remedy for your indolence, a remedy to correct your evil acts and lift up those that are imperfect, a remedy to keep your senses from corruption and heal them if they become corrupted . . .
The Name of Jesus is the glory of the blessed in Heaven. Those who have loved that Name will enjoy in their mind, as the reward of their faith, the perfect vision of the truth manifested in all its splendor; in their memory, as a fruit of their hope, they will have the eternal possession of the Supreme Majesty, and in their will as a reward for their love, the enjoyment of the most ineffable good. "Thou art the joy of those who love Thy Name." [Psalm 5: 12] Because of that Name of Jesus, the soul entirely shall live, entirely shall be endowed, entirely happy, entirely in its three powers made like unto God, Trinity and Unity, entirely united to Him, entirely enlightened, entirely plunged in peace. . .
O Name of Jesus lifted up above every name, triumphal Name, joy of the Angels, joy of the just, dread of Hell, in Thee lies all hope of forgiveness, all hope of grace, all hope of glory.
O most meek Name, from Thee we received forgiveness of sin, renewal of life; Thou fillest our souls with Divine delights, Thou takest away their vain imaginings.
O Name full of grace, by Thee the depths of miracles are disclosed to our sight; our hearts burn with Heavenly love, become strong in combat, escape every danger.
O glorious Name, delectable Name, admirable Name, Name worthy of our veneration, Name full of sweetness of Jesus our King, Thou doth transports above this earth by the abundance of grace, Thou ravisheth, in a way, the souls of Thy faithful even to Divine heights; may all who are devoted to Thee find salvation and glory in Thy virtue . . .
Whenever you hear His Holy Name pronounced, bow your head; do so likewise every time you say His Sacred Name.
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| Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 04:03 PM - Forum: Litanies
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The Litany of the Sacred Heart
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven,
Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
Have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Son of the Eternal Father,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Formed by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mother,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Substantially united to the Word of God,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Of Infinite Majesty,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Holy Temple of God,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Tabernacle of the Most High,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, House of God and Gate of Heaven,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Burning Furnace of charity,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, abode of Justice and love,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Full of goodness and love,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Abyss of all virtues,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Most worthy of all praises,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, King and Center of all hearts,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, In Whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, In Whom dwells the fullness of the Divinity,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in Whom the Father was well pleased,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Of Whose fullness we have all received,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Desire of the everlasting hills,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Patient and most merciful,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, enriching all who invoke Thee,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Fountain of life and holiness,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, loaded down with reproaches,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Bruised for our offenses,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, obedient unto death,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Pierced with a lance,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Source of all consolation,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Our Life and Resurrection,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Our Peace and Reconciliation,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Victim for sin,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Salvation of those who trust in Thee,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Hope of those who die in Thee,
Have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Delight of all the Saints,
Have mercy on us.
Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of heart,
Make our hearts like unto Thine.
Let us pray.
Almighty and eternal God, look upon the Heart of Thy dearly beloved Son, and upon the praise and satisfaction He offers Thee
in the name of sinners and for those who seek Thy mercy; be Thou appeased and grant us pardon in the name of the same Jesus
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen.
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| Litany of the Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 03:47 PM - Forum: Litanies
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The Litany of the Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us, Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Blood of Christ, the only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, save us.
Blood of Christ, the Word of God incarnate, save us.
Blood of Christ, the new and eternal Testament, save us.
Blood of Christ, falling upon the ground during the agony, save us.
Blood of Christ, flowing at the scourging, save us.
Blood of Christ, gushing forth at the crowning with thorns, save us.
Blood of Christ, poured out upon the Cross, save us.
Blood of Christ, the price of our salvation, save us.
Blood of Christ, without which there is no pardon, save us.
Blood of Christ, quenching and washing souls in the Eucharist, save us.
Blood of Christ, river of mercy, save us.
Blood of Christ, vanquisher of devils, save us.
Blood of Christ, the strength of martyrs, save us.
Blood of Christ, support of confessors, save us.
Blood of Christ, bringing forth virgins, save us.
Blood of Christ, comfort of those in danger, save us.
Blood of Christ, help of the afflicted, save us.
Blood of Christ, solace of the sorrowing, save us.
Blood of Christ, hope of the penitent, save us.
Blood of Christ, consolation of the dying, save us.
Blood of Christ, comfort and peace of hearts, save us.
Blood of Christ, pledge of eternal life, save us.
Blood of Christ, deliverer of souls in purgatory, save us.
Blood of Christ, most worthy of all honor and glory, save us.
Lamb of God, Thou who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Thou who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Thou who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
V. Thou hast redeemed us, O Lord, in Thy Blood.
R. And Thou hast made us for our God a Kingdom.
Let us pray.
Almighty and everlasting God, Thou hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world and hast willed to be appeased by His Blood; grant us, we pray, so to venerate the price of our salvation and to be defended by its power against the evils of this life, that we may enjoy its fruits forever in heaven. Through the same Christ, Our Lord. R. Amen.
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| Litany/Chaplet of the Holy Name of Jesus |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 03:44 PM - Forum: Litanies
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Litany of the Most Holy Name of Jesus
The Litany of the Most Holy Name of Jesus is one of the three main litanies in honor
of our Lord, the other two being, the Litany of the Sacred Heart and the
Litany of the Precious Blood.
This Litany carries a partial indulgence.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Jesus, hear us.
Jesus, graciously hear us.
God, the Father of Heaven,
have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the living God,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Splendor of the Father,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Brightness of eternal Light,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, King of Glory,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Sun of Justice,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, most amiable,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, most admirable,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, the mighty God,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Father of the world to come,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Angel of great counsel,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, most powerful,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, most patient,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, most obedient,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of heart,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Lover of Chastity,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, our Lover,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, God of Peace,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Author of Life,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Model of Virtues,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, zealous for souls,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, our God,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, our Refuge,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Father of the Poor,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Treasure of the Faithful,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, good Shepherd,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, true Light,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, eternal Wisdom,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, infinite Goodness,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, our Way and our Life,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, joy of the Angels,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, King of the Patriarchs,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Master of the Apostles,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Teacher of the Evangelists,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Strength of Martyrs,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Light of Confessors,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Purity of Virgins,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, Crown of all Saints,
have mercy on us.
Be merciful, spare us, O Jesus!
Be merciful, graciously hear us, O Jesus!
From all evil,
deliver us, O Jesus.
From all sin, etc.
From Thy wrath,
From the snares of the devil,
From the spirit of fornication,
From everlasting death,
From the neglect of Thine inspirations,
Through the mystery of Thy holy Incarnation,
deliver us, O Jesus.
Through Thine Nativity, etc.
Through Thy Infancy,
Through Thy most Divine Life,
Through your Labors,
Through Thine Agony and Passion,
Through Thine Cross and Dereliction,
Through Thine Sufferings,
Through Thy Death and Burial,
Through Thine Resurrection,
Through Thine Ascension,
Through Thine Institution of the Most Holy Eucharist,
Through Thy Joys,
Through Thy Glory,
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
spare us, O Jesus!
Lamb of God, Who takeest away the sins of the world,
graciously hear us, O Jesus!
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us, O Jesus!
Jesus, hear us.
Jesus, graciously hear us.
Let Us Pray.
O Lord Jesus Christ, Thou has said, "Ask and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" mercifully attend to our supplications, and grant us the grace of Thy divine charity, that we may ever love Thee with our whole heart, and with all our words and deeds, and may never cease from praising Thee.
Make us, O Lord, to have a perpetual fear and love of Thy Holy Name, for Thou doth never fails to govern those whom Thou solidly establishest in Thy love. Thou, Who livest and reignest forever and ever. R. Amen.
Chaplet of the Holy Name
Make an Act of Contrition
On the large bead:
Incline unto my aid, O God,
O Lord, make haste to help me.
First Decade:
Lord, Thou hast said:
"Ask and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find;
knock, and it shall be opened unto you,"
I seek, I knock, I ask this favor [Name it].
Repeat 10 times:
Incline unto my aid, O God,
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Second Decade:
"Amen, I say unto you, if ye ask the Father anything
in My Name it shall be given unto you." It is of the
Father and in Thy Name, Lord, I ask this favor.
Repeat 10 times:
Incline unto my aid, O God,
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Third Decade:
Lord, Thou hast said:
"Heaven and earth shall pass away,
but My Word shall not pass away,"
Thou wilt grant me this favor because
Thou hast said it and Thy word is true.
Repeat 10 times:
Incline unto my aid, O God,
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Quid ad te? Tu Me sequere.
What is it to thee? Do thou follow me.
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| Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales - January |
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Posted by: Hildegard of Bingen - 01-01-2021, 03:33 PM - Forum: Doctors of the Church
- Replies (26)
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Teachings and Examples from the Life of the Saint by Salesiana Publishers
Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales
THE TITLE: Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales (changed from the Italian Buon Giorno . . . Teachings and Examples from the Life of Saint Francis de Sales). This replaced the previous title and subtitle: Saint Francis de Sales in Teachings and Example . . . A sacred Diary Extracted from His Life and Works by the Vistandines of Rome. This title was taken from the first edition (Ferrari, Rome, 1953).
CONTENT AND STRUCTURE: Every page contains a thought from the works of Saint Francis de Sales and a brief account of some event of his life which took place on that date. The first taken from the Oeuvres d'Annecy with an indication of volume and page and then the work form which the passage has been taken (e.g. Sermons, Treatises, Letters). As far as the two major woks are concerned, the book or part and chapter have been added, for further clarification. This will allow the reader to refer to the passages for personal consultation or greater understanding. The anecdotes have been taken from the work Anne Sainte, with an indication of both volume and page. Because of the brevity of the selections chosen, we have added a maxim taken from a book by an anonymous author, Massime di S. Francesco di Sales (Salesian Press, Milan, 1929).
TEXT AND FORMAT: The Italian revision of the book made necessary the rereading of the selections chosen and a comparison with the original French. Every effort has been made to keep the gentle tone of Saint Francis de Sales.
ABBREVIATIONS AND REFERENCES:
A.S. Annee Sainte des Religieuse de la Visitation Sainte Marie, (12 vol. ed.)
D.S. Diario Sacre extracted from his life and works, compiled by the Visitandines of Rome. (Ed. Ferrari, Rome 1953)
INT. Francis de Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life
Hamon P. Hamon, Vie de St. Francois de Sales, (2 vol., Paris 1854)
O. Oeuvres de St. Francois de Sales, publiees par lessouis des Religieuses de la Visitation du Premier Monastere d'Annecy (26 vol. , Annecy 1892-1932)
SOL. Francis de Sales, Meditazioni per la Solitudine
T.L.G. Francis de Sales, Treatise on the Love of God
Please note: If you buy the book, the bible quotes are not from the Douay Reims, in putting these meditations online for The Catacombs, I have changed the Bible Quotes to reflectthe Douay Reims Bible.
Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales
Teachings and Examples from the Life of the Saint by Salesiana Publishers
January 1st (page 1)
We must begin the year with Christ and His most holy mother. So today, with all the affection I can muster, I have recourse to the Son and the mother: O Jesus, fill our hearts with Thy divine name, so that Thou gentle kindness may influence all our senses and perfume all our actions. O glorious name which the mouth of the Divine Father pronounced from all eternity, be ever written in our souls. Since you are our Savior, we will be eternally saved. Virgin Mary, who among all human creature pronounced this name of salvation for the first time, inspire us to use it profitably, so that all that is in us may rejoice in that salvation which Thy Child brought us.
(Letters 739; O. XV, p. 143)
Francis de Sales employed the first and last hours of every month and every year for an examination of conscience, to ask pardon for the past and resolve to do better in the future. In his letters to his spiritual children, he often mentioned this practice and recommended its use.
On January 1st, 1613, the religious of the Visitation began to recite in common the litanies of the name of Jesus, and the founder instructed them always to write at the top of all their letters the sacred motto, Long Live Jesus (Abbreviated V+ J).
(A.S.I, pp 1-2)
O how beautiful it is to see a person free of every attachment, ready for all sorts of acts of virtue and charity, indifferent to this or that exercise, consolation or tribulation, happy as long as God’s holy will is being done.
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| St. Vincent of Lerins: Why Eminent Men are permitted by God to become Authors of Novelties |
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Posted by: Stone - 01-01-2021, 08:44 AM - Forum: True vs. False Resistance
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In his Commonitorium, St. Vincent asks the question:
Chapter 10. Why Eminent Men are permitted by God to become Authors of Novelties in the Church.
[27.] But some one will ask, How is it then, that certain excellent persons, and of position in the Church, are often permitted by God to preach novel doctrines to Catholics? A proper question, certainly, and one which ought to be very carefully and fully dealt with, but answered at the same time, not in reliance upon one's own ability, but by the authority of the divine Law, and by appeal to the Church's determination.
Let us listen, then, to Holy Moses, and let him teach us why learned men, and such as because of their knowledge are even called Prophets by the apostle, are sometimes permitted to put forth novel doctrines, which the Old Testament is wont, by way of allegory, to call "strange gods," forasmuch as heretics pay the same sort of reverence to their notions that the Gentiles do to their gods.
[28.] Blessed Moses, then, writes thus in Deuteronomy: "If there arise among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams," that is, one holding office as a Doctor in the Church, who is believed by his disciples or auditors to teach by revelation: well — what follows? "and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass whereof he spoke,"— he is pointing to some eminent doctor, whose learning is such that his followers believe him not only to know things human, but, moreover, to foreknow things superhuman, such as, their disciples commonly boast, were Valentinus, Donatus, Photinus, Apollinaris, and the rest of that sort! What next? "And shall say to you, Let us go after other gods, whom you know not, and serve them." What are those other gods but strange errors which you know not, that is, new and such as were never heard of before? "And let us serve them;" that is, "Let us believe them, follow them." What last? "You shall not hearken to the words of that prophet or dreamer of dreams." And why, I pray you, does not God forbid to be taught what God forbids to be heard? "For the Lord, your God, tries you, to know whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul." The reason is clearer than day why Divine Providence sometimes permits certain doctors of the Churches to preach new doctrines — "That the Lord your God may try you;" he says.
And assuredly it is a great trial when one whom you believe to be a prophet, a disciple of prophets, a doctor and defender of the truth, whom you have folded to your breast with the utmost veneration and love, when such a one of a sudden secretly and furtively brings in noxious errors, which you can neither quickly detect, being held by the prestige of former authority, nor lightly think it right to condemn, being prevented by affection for your old master.
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Later, in Chapter 33 (and indeed, throughout this whole treatise), St. Vincent reminds us repeatedly:
"... it is incumbent on all Catholics who are anxious to approve themselves genuine sons of Mother Church, to adhere henceforward to the holy faith of the holy Fathers, to be wedded to it, to die in it; but as to the profane novelties of profane men — to detest them, abhor them, oppose them, give them no quarter."
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