How to Improve
by VP
Posted on Sunday October 29, 2023 at 12:00AM in Sermons
"He Who hath begun a good work in you will perfect it."PHIL. i. 6.
"Surely we are all wise enough and humble enough to know and confess that there is nothing good in us from ourselves. We have learned that from sad experience of our many failings and infidelities. We are full of love of self, and of ease and comfort; we are uncharitable, cowardly, ungrateful, and yet within us there is something good. Ah! that is from God. He gives us this desire for something better; this remembrance of His gracious goodness, how He has given us the faith; implanted the hope of heaven in our heart; and made us conscious that He himself, the great God, is asking and longing for our love. He hath begun the good work in us.
It is for us to treasure those graces. We must not receive them like an ungracious child, and never say a word of thanks to our Father. How many of His favors, His forgiveness, and opportunities for good have we sinfully wasted in the past! The proof of gratitude for graces is to make use of them and work with them. To receive blessings and favors is only the beginning: the work of our life is to correspond to them.
Then what does Almighty God expect from us? First to refer everything to Him. By a pure and holy intention to offer Him all our thoughts, words, actions, and sufferings. They may be poor things indeed, but coming from a child they are accepted and blessed by our Father. And this good intention would certainly keep us from anything unworthy and sinful, for how could we dare to offer that to our heavenly Father! Thus we see we have to renew this pure intention and offering to God many a time, for how often do sudden gusts of temper, of temptation sweep us from the path of perfection! But we must never despond. What God loves is that we should at once begin again, trusting that He will help us.
Another thing that God expects from us is that all we do for Him should be done with exactitude and promptness. Our work for God must not be done slovenly. Our self-respect would forbid us to act thus to our betters, even to one another: then how dare we treat God with disrespect! Duties have their fixed hours, and duties to God, then, must not be put off or curtailed. And punctuality is true politeness; then to Whom should we be polite if not to the Almighty? How many of our prayers and Mass attendances have been so spoiled by want of exactitude and punctuality! Promptitude shows a good and willing heart.
To persevere in acting up to grace requires, then, a pure intention, exactitude, and finally fervor. This is a devout disposition of heart, which enables us to offer to God our thoughts and our prayers with earnestness, zeal, and love. One devout Hail Mary from the heart is of more worth than a rosary hastily slurred over with a distracted mind. And here again, the good intention comes to our help. A moment's thought! and we should remember Whom we are addressing, and in Whose presence we are. We may be on our knees, but our hearts are not worshiping. The thought of our great needs and necessities; the thought that the great God in heaven is listening to us, the thought that we are supplicating help through Jesus Christ our Lord, Who died for us, Who purchased these blessings that we are imploring, and Who, perhaps, is present on the altar before us—this thought should make us reverent and fervent.
We have help, too, given us by our Blessed Savior, to keep us fervent and to increase our devotion. One such help that should spur us on is to remember purgatory. There all the penalties for remissness and carelessness have to be purged away in sufferings far greater than we can picture to ourselves here on earth. What a dreadful store of punishment are we, perhaps, accumulating for ourselves now! God knows. But would not this thought check us in our tepidity and sloth? Would it not spur us on to do our very utmost, praying and working, with zeal and generosity of heart?
Another and a more consoling help is to call on our Mother Mary," our life, our sweetness, and our hope." We offer up our prayers through her: surely, then, we should offer her of our best. And how transformed our poor prayers will be when they have passed through the hands of Mary Immaculate! She will not despise our petitions. She lovingly accepts every little prayer. And more than that: she prompts us to pray, and blesses our hearts with fervor and persevering love.
This life is the time for tilling and sowing the seed; the harvest-time comes later, when God perfects the good work. Look forward to that time, and we shall be strong and manly in acting up to God's graces and blessings. The wonder to us will be that our little efforts, our poor, faulty prayers, our beginning again at once after every failure, have been received and blessed by God; that day after day He has led us on to persevere, perfecting the good work, making us "sincere and without offense" until the day of recompense shall come. Our pure intention-all for God, our careful exactitude, our fervor have led us on safely to persevere "through Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God." Source: Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost. Short Sermons on the Epistles & Gospels of the Sundays of the Year By Rev. Fr. Francis Paulinus Hickey
Fraternal Charity
by VP
Posted on Sunday October 22, 2023 at 12:00AM in Sermons
"Shouldst not thou then have had compassion also on thy fellow-servant ?"-MATT. xviii. 33.
Little things betray the spirit of our hearts in this respect. It is no excuse that they are only little things. There is nothing that is really little, that is for God or against God. Besides, if we are resentful and bitter about small matters, how can we reasonably expect to be forgiving, kind, and charitable when we have serious reason to be hurt and offended? For the safety of our soul we have to watch small failings in this matter of fraternal charity.
Naturally we are very prone and ready to fail in charity. We are keen to notice; to think evil; to repeat and exaggerate anything against another; self-love easily takes offence, and the offence rankles, and brotherly love is ruined. Whereas, with the aid of prayer, and with the grace of God, we should constantly try to be charitable; thinking no evil; saying no unkind word; doing kindnesses even to those who have been unkind Above all, to be ready to forgive from the heart whatever may have been said or done against us. In this matter we have either to mean and try to be saints, or we shall, eventually, find ourselves reprimanded and punished by our Master, Jesus Christ.
Take what the saints have done and said. The great St. Teresa prays thus: "Forgive us, O Lord, not because of our prayers and good deeds, but because we have forgiven." When Blessed Juvenal Ancina was dying, poisoned by an enemy, he not only refused to mention the name of the assassin, whom he knew well, but strictly forbade that any inquiry should be made to lead to his punishment. And St. John Gualbertus, about to kill the murderer of his brother, at the sign and mention of the Cross, forgave him from his heart. And this was the turning-point-a proud young nobleman changed into a saint.
Not only were the saints ready to forgive, but they practiced active and kindly charity amongst the poor, the sick, and the afflicted. When we read the lives of holy men we cannot help but be struck by this humble and penitential habit. Even exalted personages and profound scholars steal time from their other labors to visit hospitals and the poor in their homes. This is one of the surest marks of real holiness. And others, again, devoted their whole lives to such work and founded religious Orders to perpetuate their labors. Oh! they had compassion on their fellow-servants. Call to mind St. Vincent of Paul. Who shall ever tell all that has been done in his life and since his death, by himself and those he taught to succor human misery? Their name is legion who have followed in his footsteps. And St. Camillus, the patron of a holy death, whose holy calling it was to tend the dying, winning poor sinners over in his hospitals to repent and die in peace. These are the heroes of charity, and so many more that could be named, and whom you of yourselves will remember. Heroes of charity, who loved to tend the most loathsome diseases, and whose touch wrought so many miraculous cures. We cannot be like them heroes, but we can and must pray to have a little of their spirit of kindness and compassion.
We must be determined and ready to meet the trials of life with resignation and serenity, and being kind to others in their necessities and miseries will bring this grace to our own souls. We cannot help it; suffering is like our shadow-we cannot get away from it. But being mindful and tender towards the sufferings of others will enable us to bear our own with fortitude and hope. St. Laurence the Martyr first saw to the poor and afflicted, distributed the Church's treasures to them, and with the sign of the Cross opened the eyes of the blind; and then when roasted slowly to death, God blessed him so that the flames were like roses to him, and happily and triumphantly he died for Christ. This is how God blesses compassion and fraternal charity.
For ourselves let us take consolation from this thought: God seems blind to our failings, as long as He sees kindness to others in our hearts. He gives us Himself as an example. He was meekness itself; He went about doing good to all; He loved to be amongst the poor; and of all that were diseased, do we read of one being sent away uncured? And His blessed Mother is like to Him, as we should expect. We salute her as Queen of Heaven, but a title she loves better is "Mother of Mercy." Mother of Mercy." How often have we stood in need of her pity and her help, and how often again shall we receive it, for she will ask our Lord for us, and she cannot be denied, if only she sees us striving to be to each other kind, and charitable, and merciful, and compassionate." Source: Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost, Short Sermons on the Epistles & Gospels of the Sundays of the Year By Rev. Fr. Francis Paulinus Hickey
The Calls of Grace
by VP
Posted on Sunday October 08, 2023 at 12:00AM in Sermons
Sacred Heart, Raleigh NC
'They that were invited were not worthy."-Matt. xxii. 8. "
"This gospel reminds us of the manifold invitations, the countless calls of grace, wherewith we are favored by our loving Lord and Savior. Here in God's church we cannot help but remember them. How often has He spoken to us those words, "Come to Me, all you that labor and are burdened: and I will refresh you (Matt. xi. 28). At another time, when He has seen us wasting the short and precious hours of life, He has bidden us, "Go you also into My vineyard, and I will give you what shall be just " (Matt. xx. 4). And when our souls have yearned for Him, wishing to give themselves devoutly to Him, He has said, as He did to St. Andrew, "Come and see" (John i. 39), and we have known where to find His home here in the tabernacle where He is waiting, always ready, to welcome us and bid us stay with Him.
And why all these merciful invitations? He has no need of us. He is supremely blessed and happy without us. There are so many countless multitudes better than we are. Have they been as favored as we feel that we have been? Then why these calls of grace to us? They are purely out of benevolence. "He is the Lord, who loveth souls."
If it were not our Lord Himself, Who tells us how His calls and invitations are received, we could not believe that human nature could be so perverse, so ungrateful. The gospel tells us first that some refused: they would not come." Others promised, perhaps half meant to accept, but " they neglected." Others - can it be possible? -insulted, outraged, and even put to death the servants who brought the Master's invitation.
How have we responded to the invitations of Almighty God? Please God, we have not outraged His mercy by insulting His ministers and by rebelliously disobeying His Church, as those do who neglect their Easter duties. Again, please God, we have not "refused," daringly saying, "I will not." But who is there that can plead not guilty to "neglecting"? Who is there that has not put God off? Another time will do for the service of God, at present the claims of the world are very pressing. Business has to be attended to; friends are importunate; health, leisure, pleasure all urge their claims. Some other time we will respond to God! He, Who gives us time and life, is begrudged a little of the time which we owe to His loving kindness. Sometime, as we know well, is repeatedly no time: tomorrow never comes! Today is the time to respond to God. Think for a moment the insult it is to keep God waiting for an answer. Every good resolution that, through God's grace, we have made, and that on looking back we see has come to naught, is a proof of our neglect. We began, but we neglected.
There are some who may try to excuse themselves by urging that many others have had better chances; more frequent calls of grace, opportunities of practicing piety denied to them; but none of us can truly say that we have not been invited and pressed to join God's service. Does not the gospel tell us, that the servants were at length sent out to bring in all that they could find, both good and bad? So we must have neglected or even resisted, or we should have found ourselves amongst the servants of God. Let us resolve now to take that word of St. Paul's, "I cast not away the grace of God" (Gal. ii. 21), and make it our own, and with a firm, resolute will promise, "I will never again cast away the grace of God."
Our Blessed Lord's parable tells us how the Master, hurt and grieved, complained, "They that were invited were not worthy." Let us pray for holy fear lest we be found unworthy; for a holy anxiety to look to ourselves carefully lest we neglect. We must beware of being self-satisfied. We see others, as we may think, worse than ourselves, but have they received as many graces and calls as we have? And if they are more negligent, more guilty than ourselves, how does that make us stand better in the sight of God? Again, let us not be self-satisfied by any little good that we may have done, which, very likely, is far outbalanced by our shortcomings and our faults. Take heed by the example of those who thought they would be well received by their divine Master. They had forgotten their neglect and putting God off till it was too late. The five foolish virgins came to the marriage festival after the door was shut. They were too late. The Gospel says, " But at last also came the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But He answering said, Amen, amen, I say to you, I know you not" (Matt. xxv. II). And remember those others of whom our Lord said: "Many will say to Me in that day: Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and cast out devils in Thy name, and done many miracles in Thy name? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you that work iniquity" (Matt. vii. 22).
Is not this enough to make us humble and ready to accept God's graces; to welcome His invitations; to be careful to respond to them; and to do our utmost day after day? If we do this and persevere loyally, zealously, we shall indeed hear a very different word from the Master, a blessed welcome indeed! "Then shall the King say to them, "Come, ye blessed of My Father, possess you the Kingdom prepared for you" (Matt. xxv. 34). (19th Sunday after Pentecost. Short Sermons on the Epistles & Gospels of the Sundays of the Year by Fr. Francis Paulinus Hickey
State of Grace
by VP
Posted on Sunday October 01, 2023 at 12:00AM in Sermons
"The grace of God that is given to you in Christ Jesus."I COR. i. 4.
"Grace is the gift of God and the life of our soul. By it we participate in the divine nature. If we preserve our souls in the state of grace in life, we make certain of our everlasting reward and glory hereafter. Grace is given to us by God freely, lovingly, generously; our solicitude and daily endeavor must be to preserve it in our souls. But how few of us value it as we should! In the world how many do not believe in grace: reject it for a whim, a pleasure, an indulgence of their passions! And yet it is the all-important thing for each of us to preserve our soul in the state of grace. Yet can we know for sure whether we are in the state of grace? -for Scripture tells us that man knows not whether he be worthy of love or hatred -that is, whether he be in the favor and friendship of God, or whether sin has driven grace from his soul, and left it "poor and miserable and naked" in the sight of His heavenly Father.True, we cannot know for certain; but there are signs, which guarantee us a moral certainty, sufficient for a solid hope to be built on it, that we are friends with God, and have grace within our souls. "The grace of God that is given to you in Christ Jesus." Let us examine these signs, these tests, to help us to be solicitous and earnest in treasuring this heavenly gift.
The first is the testimony of our conscience. Conscience acknowledges that we have sinned, but can also claim that we have done that which is required for sin to be forgiven; that we need not fear that those sins of which we have repented can be our accusers at the Judgment. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity" (1 John i. 9). This testimony of our conscience is one of the greatest tests of grace, because we are only judged according to our conscience. We must "endeavor to have always a conscience without offense towards God and towards man " (Acts xxiv. 16).
The second sign or test that we are in the state of grace, given us both by St. Leo the Great and St. Augustine, is fraternal charity. Truly, if we have God within us by His grace, how can we not have a little of the love and charity of God towards our brethren, the well-beloved children of the same Father? St. John tells us," If God hath so loved us, we also ought to love one another. . . . If we love one another, God abideth in us, and His charity is perfected in us” (1 John iv. 11, 17). "We know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren " (ibid. iii. 14). And what is the life of our soul but the grace of God, given to us in Christ Jesus"? Fraternal charity indeed is the great sign, the moral certitude of predestination, that the grace of God exists supreme in our soul. "As fire produces heat," says St. Bruno, so grace produces charity." Charity diffuses itself to all and in all things, simply for the love of God. We see God in the poor, the suffering, the dying and the souls in purgatory, and it is to Him, through them, that we extend our sympathy, our kindness, and our help. And if we are thus charitable for God's sake is it not that we love Him, or, at least, are striving to love Him? And to love God - is not that a sign, a test, a sure proof that we are already in the grace of God?
Remember the example of that religious, an ordinary religious as far as man could judge, who, when dying, knew no terror or anguish. His eyes were raised upwards so calmly, so hopefully, there was evidence of such peace of soul, that his superior asked him, was there no cause of sorrow or fear from the past? It is very true, the dying man replied, I have been careless and tepid, yet in spite of past infidelities I die in peace, because I have never judged my brethren, and I have the word of Jesus Christ," Judge not, and thou shalt not be judged." My God, pardon me, as I have pardoned others; bear me no ill-will, as I have borne none to others; forget my sins and iniquities, as I have forgotten anything that others have done to me. Grant me measure for measure; pity for pity; kindness for kindness. What a testimony does fraternal charity thus bear to our souls, that we are in the state of grace!
The last sign to be mentioned is this, and it grows out of the two preceding tests. If our conscience has not to reproach us with sin; if the love of God is urging us to the practice of fraternal charity, a light, a heavenly light illuminates our souls, revealing to us the nothingness, the paltriness, the vileness of this world and of all that it can offer us; and revealing to us, on the other hand, the beauty of the life of grace, giving us a relish of the supernatural, our prayers, our Holy Communions, yea, even a love of patient suffering, and a longing desire for heaven. Thus the light of grace leads us safely along the humble path that leads to life eternal. Let us pray for holy fear, lest we should lose reverence and care for the preservation of grace within us. How this life seems to fade away and lose all fascination to attract us; and how near the brightness of heaven seems, because of "the grace that is given to us in Christ Jesus." [Short Sermons on the Epistles & Gospels of the Sundays of the Year By Rev. Fr. Francis Paulinus Hickey, O.S.B.]
