Our God comes to us
Vol 7 Issue 49 ~Editor: Rev. Fr. Courtney Edward Krier
December 6, 2014~Saint Nicholas, opn!
1. Second Sunday in Advent—Benedict Baur, O.S.B.
2. Saint Ambrose
3. The Christian Family (30)
4. Articles and notices
Dear Reader:
As always, enjoy the readings and commentaries provided for your benefit. —The Editor
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WEEK OF THE SECOND SUNDAY IN ADVENT
Benedict Baur, O.S.B.
Our God comes to us
- “People of Sion, behold the Lord shall come to save the Gentiles. And the Lord shall make the glory of His voice to be heard in the joy of your heart” (Introit). This is the sign of the redemption: “The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor have the gospel preached to them” (Gospel). This is a consoling thought for us. In the mind of the Church we are the blind, the lame, the deaf. We long for the Redeemer and pray in the Mass today: “Thou wilt turn, O God, and bring us to life; and Thy people shall rejoice in Thee” (Offertory).
- “Thou wilt turn, O God, and bring us to life.” Never do we experience the longing for the Redeemer and feel the need of redemption as deeply as during this week of Advent. At no time in our lives do we feel so much like the blind, the lame, and the lepers, the deaf and the dead of today’s Gospel But now we are redeemed. Now we are inspired by the hope that we are in the state of grace and in union with God. We are living branches of that organism of grace, the mystical body of Christ. We acknowledge gratefully what grace has done for us. Nevertheless it is true that we are not all that we should be, and that we should make a better use of the abundant graces that we are continually receiving from Christ our head. We are by no means perfect. In many things we are still blind and are deceived by the false pleasures of the world, by the devil, and by our self-love. In many ways we are still lame, hindered by our passions, by human respect, by bad habits and other external influences.
We must rid ourselves of our inconstancy, of our ill temper, of our restlessness, and of the scruples that may worry us. We must purify our thoughts, our intentions, our motives. Even our prayers and our efforts at perfection are tainted by our vanity, our self-love, our ambition, and our complacency. There is much in us that is degenerate and unclean. From the depth of our misery we look up with trust and confidence to Him who is promised to the people of Sion at Christmas, and in the Mass and Communion. “Thou wilt turn to us, O God,” in Thy descent upon our altars and into our hearts, Send us all, the Church as a whole and each of us individually, Thy mercy and Thy salvation.
“And bring us to life.” From the fountains of the Redeemer we draw forth new blood, new strength, and new joy. These things flow to us from the altar, by the hands of the celebrating priest we lay our gifts on the altar at Mass. Our gift is bread and wine. With this bread and wine we mean to include our heart, our life, our whole person. In a few seconds the power of the Most High will overshadow the bread and wine. They are presently to be changed into the body and blood of the living, life-giving, and glorified Christ. What is done to the bread and wine in the Mass is accomplished in a mysterious way also in us. The Lord comes to us in the Holy Sacrifice, in Holy Communion, at Christmas, to fill us with this life. His life is the light that heals our blindness, the strength and refreshment that supports us in our lameness. His life is purity and innocence, and removes from us all uncleanness. His life of self-sacrifice and His subjection to the will of His Father heal our deafness. His life is immortality, endless fulfillment, and wakens us to the fullness of a holy life. “I am come that they may have life and may have it more abundantly” (John 10: 10). We are indeed possessed of grace and virtue, but not yet in its entirety. It will and it must grow in us, in our family, and in the entire mystical body of Christ. “He that is just, let him be justified still; and he that is holy, let him be sanctified still” (Apoc. 22:11). How much stronger and more gloriously should the life of grace flourish in our souls! So, too, our dedication to God, our self-denial, our obedience must become still more perfect. Our charity must increase. How acutely we feel this need during Advent! The fresher and more vigorous spiritual life that we need, Advent will awaken in us.
- Filled with ardent desire for this new and powerful life of grace, we turn, during these blessed days to Him who alone can give it to us. “Come, O Lord, and save us. Show us Thy face and we shall be saved.” “Show us Thy mercy, O Lord, and send us Thy salvation.”
“I am come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly” (John 10: 10). It is for this reason, that in the moment of our baptism He allows us to be engrafted into Him, as a branch on the vine, so that His life may flow into us. The life that pulsates in the vine and its branches is one and the same. Thus we receive our life from the vine who is Christ, and this life flourishes untrammeled within us at Christmas time, in every Holy Communion we receive, and in a thousand and one inspirations of grace.
PRAYER
Thou wilt turn, O God, and bring us to life, and Thy people shall rejoice in Thee. Show us, O Lord, Thy mercy, and grant us Thy salvation. (Offertory.)
We beseech Thee, O Lord, spare us through our humble works and prayers; and since of ourselves we deserve nothing, grant us Thy protection. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Secret.)
FOR THE FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
“In the holy mountains”
- “Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array?” (Communion.) The dawn of redemption now appears in the person of Mary Immaculate, We greet her with joy. “I will put enmities between thee and the woman and thy seed and her seed; she shall crush thy head” (Gen. 3: 15).
- “Wisdom hath built herself a house” in Mary Immaculate. “She hath hewn her out seven pillars” (Gradual). They are the seven pillars of virtue and grace—the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity, and the four cardinal virtues: wisdom, justice, fortitude, and prudence.’ “The foundations thereof are in the holy mountains.” Our Lord’s whole human existence, work, and suffering were established by Him on a holy mountain in the person of Mary Immaculate, since He chose her as His mother and condescended to take His human nature through her. Mary is the holy mountain which towers immeasurably over all the other mountains and hills, men and the angels. Indeed, “The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the tabernacles of Jacob” (Gradual). He has greater love for Mary and does more for her than for anyone else, be it angel or man. Mary is to be His mother. We rejoice because of the greatness that God has bestowed upon our beloved mother.
“As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odor, and my flowers are the fruit of honor and riches. I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is all grace of the way and of the truth; in me is all hope of life and virtue. Come over to me all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits; for my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb. My memory is unto everlasting generations. They that eat me shall yet hunger; and they that drink me shall yet thirst. He that hearkeneth to me shall not be confounded; and they that work by me shall not sin. They that explain me shall have life everlasting” (Epistle).
- “Come and hear all ye that fear God” (Introit). Indeed, we come to you, O Mary, to congratulate you on all the great things that God has worked in you. “Hail Mary, the Lord is with thee. . . . The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also, the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:28-35).
“Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array?” Thus the Church sings when Holy Communion is distributed. Mary is as pure and as refreshing as the dawn. Through her we have received the tremendous privilege of Holy Communion.
“The foundations thereof are in the holy mountains.” God demands that every place in which He dwells be a holy place. What then, should be my condition if He should choose my soul as His dwelling place? For this reason I must fly to Mary and beseech her to obtain the grace of purity for me.
PRAYER
O God, who in a wonderful way didst preserve the mother of Thy only-begotten Son from all taint of original sin, grant, we beseech Thee, that, strengthened by her prayers and being made clean of heart, we may devoutly assist in the keeping of her holy festival. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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St. Ambrose, Bishop, Confessor, Doctor of the Church
- Ambrose was born of a noble family about the year 240, probably in Treves. After having studied law in Rome and begun a very successful practice there, he received from Emperor Valentinian the appointment as governor of Liguria and Aemilia, with headquarters in Milan. When this city’s Arian bishop had died and the people were gathered in the cathedral to elect a successor, Ambrose was assigned to keep peace between the contending factions. As he entered the church a child cried out, “Ambrose, bishop.” He was promptly chosen, though he had not yet received baptism. After he had been persuaded to accept the nomination, he was baptized and successively elevated through the various clerical orders, becoming bishop of Milan on December 7, 374. From that time forward he led an austere life, diligently studied the Scriptures, preached every Sunday and holy day, listened to the spiritual problems of the faithful, personally directed the care of the poor, wrote numerous letters, and, in all, exercised heroic charity; he was a bishop after God’s own heart. He nevertheless had to put up with much vexation at the hands of the Arian Empress Justina, who resided in Milan. Ambrose excommunicated Emperor Theodosius and exacted public penance of him for his terrible massacre in Thessalonica in 390, answering the Emperor’s plea of immunity with the famous sentence: “If you have imitated David in sinning, you must also imitate him in doing penance.” In the spring of 397, Ambrose fell ill. He died on the vigil of Easter, April 4. Since feasts are not celebrated during this season, the anniversary of his consecration, December 7, was chosen as the date for his festival.
- “The Lord moved him to speak before the assembled people, filling him with the spirit of wisdom and discernment” (Introit). With these words we greet the priest approaching the altar, for we see in him the holy bishop Ambrose, a priest and teacher of noble stature preaching the word of God, “dwelling upon it, welcome or unwelcome,” even opposing the Empress and Emperor, whom he otherwise esteemed. He was watchful lest the false Arian doctrine poison his flock, and was prepared “to accept every hardship, to employ [himself] in preaching the gospel, and perform every duty of [his] office” (cf. Epistle). He was the “salt of the earth,” full of supernatural wisdom and possessing such powerfully attractive eloquence that even worldly-minded people were captivated by the magic of his words and won for Christ. Even the rhetorician Augustine was so deeply impressed by the force of Ambrose’s personality and preaching that he asked for baptism at Easter, 387.
Mindful of the Apostle’s admonition that a bishop ought not to seek gold and possessions but should be satisfied with little, Ambrose distributed his property among the poor and lived entirely for the care of souls. The work of grace in him is especially apparent in his inspired writings, but he was also an outstanding speaker, a master of graceful language and of noble poetry. Firmly rooted in faith, he possessed a strong but tender love of Christ. Ambrose preached on Christian virginity with such sincerity and fervor that the mothers of Milan would not let their daughters hear him lest they lose interest in marriage. The empress Justina, mother of the young Valentinian II and a rabid Arian, tried in every way to deprive Ambrose of his See. She assembled bishops agreeable to her for the purpose of deposing him. Ambrose appeared at the gathering surrounded by an excited crowd of his faithful. The Arian bishops found themselves completely overpowered and Ambrose calmed the people. Emperor Valentinian then demanded that one church be given up to the Arians, but Bishop Ambrose declared with finality: “The secular buildings belong to the emperor, the churches to the bishop. If you forget that you are a Catholic prince, I shall not forget that I am a Catholic bishop. I will not surrender the temple of God to those who falsify the Faith.” Fearless preaching, and effective, too.
“Every soul is in the hands of God, and Christ must be all to all. Perhaps you need a healing balm for your burning wounds: He is a physician. Or, you are being consumed by the fever of temptation: He is a cooling fountain. Or, the burden of sin on your conscience is oppressing you: He is holiness and justice. Are you seeking a remedy for your weakness? He will be strength and power to you. Are you afraid of death? He is life. You long for the bliss of heaven: He is the way. You wish to escape the darkness of error: He is the light. Is your soul hungry? He is bread. Come and see how loving the Lord is. Blessed the man who places his hope in Him.” For “the worst kind of ignorance is to be ignorant of Christ. Anyone who does not grow great on Christ remains small. He walks in deepest darkness who lives without Christ. Ignorance of Christ is death to the soul. Knowledge of Christ brings everlasting life, now, in a dark manner, hereafter in lightsome vision, face to face.” These sentiments reveal the faith and the life of St. Ambrose.
- The last words of the great Bishop were: “I have so lived that I need not be ashamed; I am not afraid to die. We have a good Master,” His fearlessness in the face of death was due to his conviction that he had exercised the spiritual and corporal works of mercy to the best of his ability. He had always been ready to help; the door of his room had always been open and everyone had found free access to the bishop without appointment. He had settled every type of case brought before him: helping the oppressed, widows and orphans; deciding questions of conscience for his people; reconciling enemies. When the Goths overran Thrace in 377 and set up slavemarkets everywhere, Ambrose sold even the precious vessels of the altar in order to redeem captives. One whose charity is so sincere and self-sacrificing surely heard at death the words of our Lord: “I was hungry, … a stranger, … a prisoner, and you came to me. . . . Take possession of the kingdom which has been prepared for you” (cf. Matt. 25:34).
“Here was a great priest whose life was acceptable to God . . . . Where shall we find another to keep the law of the Most High as he kept it?” (Gradual)
Collect: O God, who didst give blessed Ambrose to Thy people as a minister of eternal salvation, grant, we pray Thee, that we may be worthy to have as our advocate in heaven him who on earth taught us the way of life. Amen.
THE CHRISTIAN FAMILY
By MOST REV. TIHAMER TOTH
(1949)
XVI
THE FRUIT OF MARRIAGE
“Long live all good mothers!” It is not customary to begin a sermon by proposing a sort of toast.
This may sound strange, dear brethren. But whoever reflects upon the self-sacrificing life that good parents must live in the interest of their children would, I think, hardly find it strange if they were to see above the heads of parents who fulfil their duties, the radiance of a supernatural light.
In the hope that ideal parents may always increase, that parents may be able to cope successfully with the difficulties of their state in life, I offer this present sermon. The successful upbringing of children is undoubtedly a great challenge to parents. But their task will become easier if they know that the very first educational factor is their own example, and if they know which are the virtues that should be inculcated into the character of their children. To the discussion of these two questions I shall therefore devote this sermon.
I
PARENTAL EXAMPLE
Words that children hear, whether good or bad, are borne away by the wind, but the example set them by their parent’s remains. Of what worth are the most sincere warnings and encouragements from the lips of a parent whose deeds are in terrible contrast to his righteous words? The Virgin Mary and /183/ St. Joseph did not say to the Child Jesus: “Go, my son, to the temple”; but, “let us go to the temple.” Regrettably enough, any number of present-day parents forbid their sons to swear, but they themselves habitually use profanity. They forbid their children to tell falsehoods, but they themselves think nothing of doing so. And then they are surprised if the story of the crabs is repeated in their case.
An old crab once broke out angrily against the young ones: “It is not proper that you should always walk backward. Can’t you go forward once in a while?”
“We shall be glad to do so, as soon as we see that you go forward.”
- It is sad that parents do not realize how greatly their bad example affects their children, even though it may have been given with no bad intention, but only in thoughtlessness.
Once a father said to his son when he caught him stealing: “My son, do not steal, because God cannot be deceived. He sees everything.”
“God sees everything?” replied the boy. “Then that is really too bad, because He must have seen that you came home drunk last night, father.” Surely He saw it. But I wonder whether the father could make any reply to his son’s remark.
The most competent teachers of religion are often forced to admit that all their efforts to improve their pupils are rendered useless by the conflicting example seen at home. In an elementary school one day the teacher was discussing table manners. Among other things the teacher mentioned that at meals it is not proper to drink your tea or coffee from the saucer.
“You have often heard that at home, I am sure, haven’t you?”
“Oh,” said a little boy, “my daddy always does it that way.” Well, I now solemnly beg all daddies to drink their tea or coffee out of the cup. /184/
And that the ladies may receive instruction as well as their husbands, I mention the case of a schoolteacher who reproachfully said to a little girl: “But, my dear, are you not ashamed to come to school in such a short dress?”
The little girl burst into tears: “Please, teacher, I woke up late and had to hurry; and so, by mistake, I put on mamma’s dress.”
- On the other hand, we find countless examples in everyday life of the beneficial effect that good example offered by parents has upon the character of their children. It will perhaps suffice if I mention the parents of little Theresa of Lisieux. With what earnestness this worthy couple took their parental duties! When we read the letters of Theresa’s mother and see what self-sacrificing love and acquiescence in God’s will emanate from them, we involuntarily exclaim: “Yes, from such a marriage, a saint must needs be born.”
“But how can anyone be such an idealist! Today we are living in very different times. Today we have a World War behind us and all that it destroyed.”
Some persons think like this, yet what sophistry it is! Behind Theresa’s parents was the Seventy Years War and all its scars. To bring a child into the world has always meant pain, and to bring it up always meant sacrifice, at all times. And the spirit of the parents, whether they accept this sacrifice or avoid it, has always depended upon their love of God and their faith in Him.
Alas for the poor child whose parents have become estranged from God! Alas for the poor boy who has an irreligious father! A child’s eyes see sharply, they see everything. At ten years of age a boy is scandalized by his father’s unbelief; at fifteen years of age he is accustomed to it; and at twenty years of age he forges arguments out of it to excuse his own immoral and irreligious life. /185/
Parents, never forget that the most important educational factor is the example you yourselves give. Only if this is irreproachable can you bring up your children successfully.
II
THE VIRTUES OF CHARACTER
It is no less important, however, to know which are the virtues that should be inculcated into the character of children with special care.
- In the first place I mention unquestioning obedience. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is just” (Eph. 6: 1), is St. Paul’s admonition to children. But immediately afterward he speaks to fathers thus: “And you fathers, provoke not your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and correction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4).
“To bring up in discipline” means to accustom children to silent obedience, modesty, and patience. Long ago this was a matter of course, so much so that in better-class families the children readily obeyed their parents’ slightest word. But when it became the fashion to have only one child, this correct educational principle went by the board, and since then parents have begun to obey every caprice of their one spoilt little tyrant. We can be quite sure of one thing that child either rules or obeys; either he obeys or he is obeyed. Listen to a typical case of such over-indulgent upbringing.
One evening a spoilt little boy was in the garden near a small pond, crying and shouting at his nurse: “Give it to me. I want it myself.”
Hearing the noise, his mother opened a window and called out angrily: “Clara, why do you exasperate Cyril? Give it to him.”/186/
“But if he stamps and cries until tomorrow morning, I cannot give it to him.”
“How can you say such a thing? Just wait. I will show you,” exclaimed the mother, and hurried to her husband.
The husband rushed out to the nurse: “What are you doing? Why do you not give the child what he asks for? My wife told you to do so. You can take your month’s notice!”
The poor girl quietly replied: “If you can do so, please give Cyril what he wants. The moon is reflected in the water and Cyril is stamping and crying because I cannot take it out of the pond and give it to him.”
Need I say what an unhappy creature this over-indulged child will be when he grows up?
1) “But what are we to do if the child stamps and cries and throws himself on the ground when we deny him something?”
Do anything. Only one thing do not do; do not give him what he asks for. Not at such a time. Let him learn that even if his parents are very well off, there are many things in this world that he must do without.
“But I am so sorry for the poor little darling, when he cries so bitterly. It is so hard to refuse him.”
If you do not consider the future, it is hard to refuse. Herod could not refuse his daughter’s request and, for her sake, he had St. John the Baptist beheaded. And remember the warning of Holy Writ: “Give thy son his way, and he shall make thee afraid. . . . Give him not liberty in his youth, and wink not at his devices” (Eccles. 30: 9, 11).
If a child becomes too obstreperous and will not listen to reason, remember the proverb, according to which “ships and children are steered from behind”; and the other saying, “a well-timed slap is often of greater value to a child than a /187/ hundred sermons.” And a third saying: “Rather should a child cry in childhood because of its parents, than the parents cry because of the child when it is grown.”
In regard to this question the Scripture is not as sentimental as are some present day educational movements. Because Scripture well knows that “folly is bound up in the heart of a child,” parents are plainly told that “he that loved his son, frequently chastised him” (Eccles. 30: 1). “A horse not broken becomes stubborn, and a child left to himself will become headstrong” (Eccles. 30:8). “He that spared the rod, hateth his son” (Prov. 13: 24). “Withhold not correction from a child, for if thou strike him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod and deliver his soul from hell” (Prov. 23: 13 f.). “The rod and reproof give wisdom, but the child that is left to his own will bringeth his mother to shame” (Prov. 29: 15).
To be continued.
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