“I am the light of the world” 

Vol 8 Issue 11 ~Editor: Rev. Fr. Courtney Edward Krier
March 14, 2015 ~Lenten Feria

1. Baptism: Means of Salvation (10)

2. Fourth Sunday in Lent

3. St. Clement Mary Hofbauer

4. Marriage and Parenthood (11)

5. Articles and notices

Dear Reader:

The reading from Daniel for this Saturday, before Laetare Sunday, is filled with instruction for Catholics today, especially our young ladies. It contrasts with the story of Joseph and the wife of Putiphar, who also sought an illicit affair that is provided for the young men. We read, then, of Susanna being in the following predicament and temptation to save her honor and her life:

Now when the maids were gone forth, the two elders arose, and ran to her, and said: Behold the doors of the orchard are shut, and nobody seeth us, and we are in love with thee: wherefore consent to us, and lie with us. But if thou wilt not, we will bear witness against thee, that a young man was with thee, and therefore thou didst send away thy maids from thee. Susanna sighed, and said: I am straitened on every side: for if I do this thing, it is death to me: and if I do it not, I shall not escape your hands. But it is better for me to fall into your hands without doing it, than to sin in the sight of the Lord. With that Susanna cried out with a loud voice: and the elders also cried out against her. And one of them ran to the door of the orchard, and opened it. (Dan. 13:19-25)

She placed her trust in God and God saved her. It is so tragic that so many young men and women, single and married, find it easy to place themselves in danger of sin and rationalize why they should consent instead of seeing the beauty of chastity and the honor contained in a chaste life where God loves His modest daughter and watches over her, be it Rachel, Sara, or Susanna. Today’s Gospel shows that he holds the responsibility more upon the man as He defends (that is a man’s obligation) the woman caught in adultery and in the story of Susanna He has the two men put to death through Daniel. In this text, let no man excuse himself with the pretext that the woman provoked him. The observance of the Lenten Fast teaches that it is doing what one is obliged and being able to say no to what one feels: I am obliged to fast even though I feel hungry. If I excuse myself, I don’t fulfill the fast and find out that I actually gained weight—because I didn’t need to eat, I rather convinced myself I need to eat. So becomes with all sin.

As always, enjoy the readings and commentaries provided for your benefit. —The Editor

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Baptism

Means of Salvation

Original Innocence Lost

The Original Sin (e) 

And the Lord God said to the woman: Why hast thou done this? And she answered: The serpent deceived me, and I did eat. (Gen. 3:13)

Naturally, the woman was required to confess her sin. Not solely that Adam had placed the blame on her, but as also made to the likeness and image of God, (cf. Gen. 1:26) she had to acknowledge and repent of her sin. She knew of the command, for she responds to the question of the serpent in these words: ‘Of the fruit of all the trees in the garden we shall eat, but of the fruit in the middle of the garden, God said, you shall not eat of it.’ [Gen. 3:2, 3]

She knew, therefore, that the command must be obeyed. Hence she said: We shall eat of every fruit which the Lord ordered, but God has given an order that one should not eat of the tree in the middle of the Garden, lest he die. Wherefore, she who knew that the command should be obeyed was surely aware that it was wrong not to comply with the command and that she would be justly condemned for her refusal to obey. (Ambrose, 6, 32)

She not only disobeyed the command of God and ate of the fruit, but she then went on to seduce her husband into eating the fruit.

The circumstances connected with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil were such as to convince us that both good and evil were recognized. We are led to believe from the evidence of Scripture that such was the case: ‘When they both ate, their eyes were opened and they realized that they were naked,’ [Gen. 3:6,7]  that is, the eyes of their mind were opened and they realized the shame of being naked. For that reason, when the woman ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil she certainly sinned and realized that she had sinned. On realizing this, she should not have invited her husband to share in her sin. By enticing him and by giving him what she herself had tasted she did not nullify her sin; rather, she repeated it. Certainly it stands to reason that she did intend to lure the person whom she loved to share in her punishment. She should be expected to ward off from one who was unaware of it the danger of falling into a sin of which she had knowledge. Yet this woman, knowing that she could not remain in Paradise after the Fall, seems to have had a fear that she alone would be ejected from the Garden. Hence, after the Fall, they both went into hiding. Being aware, therefore, that she would have to be separated from the man she loved, she had no desire to be deceived. (ibid. 6, 33)

If God would have questioned only Adam, it would have appeared that the woman was not culpable, that only Adam was responsible, and that one could interpret that the woman was only an extension of the man or had no role, only man. But the woman is called to give her own account and that is not through the mediation of a man, but directly. It is the same attitude Holy Mother Church takes, for she does not overlook the role of the woman, but she understands very well what that role is and demands the woman to fulfill it. This role starts with Genesis, where God says: I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel. [3:15] It does not deny that as a punishment, God said to Eve: I will multiply thy sorrows, and thy conceptions: in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and thou shalt be under thy husband’s power, and he shall have dominion over thee. [3:16] St. Paul implies the continuation, bound with the relationship of Christ and the Church, of the man being head of the household in Ephesians 5:22. But just before, in verse 21, St. Paul makes it universal and therefore applies it to all, not just a woman to her husband, when he said all were to be subject to one another (cf. also Romans 7:2). And, it still does not bring one to understanding Genesis 3:15, where man is omitted. What does this mean? That Sara demands Agar leave with Ismael in opposition to Abraham (cf. Gen. 21:9ff).  That Rebecca has Jacob receive the blessing of Isaac against Isaac’s will and sends Jacob to her brother (ibid. chapters 27, 28). That Rachel hides her father’s idols (cf. ibid. ch. 31). That Miriam, the sister of Moses, prophesies (Cf. Exod. 15:20f). That Rahab, a harlot, helps the Israelite spies and is rewarded (Josue 2:1ff. That Judith saves the city of Bethulia (Book of Judith) and Esther the Jews of Persia (Book of Esther). God blesses each of their actions and is pleased to have them remembered to this day. Why? To remind man that just as it was through a conscientious decision of a woman that sin entered the world (cf. Ecclus. 25:33), salvation would only come through the conscientious decision of a woman. Therefore, Mary, at the Annunciation, is not subject to any man and she freely gives her consent to be the new Eve without a man:Mary said, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word. (Luke 1:38; cf. Luke 1:26ff). Joseph is told afterwards to take Mary as his wife for Divine Providence knew its necessity societal and economical (cf. Matt. 1:18ff).  As wife, Mary is subject to Joseph, going to Bethlehem (cf. Luke 2:3-4), fleeing to Egypt (cf. Matt. 2:13f), and returning to Nazareth with him (cf. Luke. 2:39f; Matt. 2:19ff).

Christ asked only once of a woman where was her husband, the Samaritan woman who was living in sin and not married (cf. John 4:16). Beyond this, He is never recorded as asking a woman to go first to her husband to get permission before healing or speaking to her. After Christ rose from the dead it was Mary Magdalene who He sent to announce to the Apostles that He had risen and would meet them (cf. John 20:17-18). After the Ascension, the Apostles are found together in the upper room and all these were persevering with one mind in prayer with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. (Acts 1:14).

It is not the intention of this author to promote a false feminism, which would be destructive of the true dignity of a woman. [It does seem some men are better Mohammedans and pagans than Christians when it comes to how they respect women, even their wives.] Rather the Scriptural passages oppose a false sense of dominance of men to the degradation of women. The hyperdulia paid to Mary should be sufficient that neither God Father nor Christ and His Holy Church have any sense of relegating women to a lower status. This can be seen throughout Church history. The Church, from the beginning, recognized the work of women. St. Paul, in his letter to the Romans mentions the deaconess, Phebe: And I commend to you Phebe, our sister, who is in the ministry [Greek: deacon]of the church, that is in Cenchrae: That you receive her in the Lord as becometh saints; and that you assist her in whatsoever business she shall have need of you. For she also hath assisted many, and myself also. [16:1-2] He goes on writing: Salute Prisca and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus… And the church which is in their house (Roman 16:3,5) Placing Prisca before her husband shows a mark of respect St. Paul is obliged to give that places her above the husband in the Church, possibly because she influenced her husband to allow their residence to be the meeting place of the faithful (cf. St. Thomas, Commentary on Romans). And not wanting to neglect the role of another woman in the forefront of the Church’s cause, St. Paul writes: Salute Mary, who hath laboured much among you (ibid. 16:6).

St. Paul, in writing to Timothy, also gives instructions on choosing those ministering in the Church, where he includes women:

Deacons in like manner chaste, not double tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre: Holding the mystery of faith in a pure conscience. And let these also first be proved: and so let them minister, having no crime. The women in like manner chaste, not slanderers, but sober, faithful in all things. Let deacons be the husbands of one wife: who rule well their children, and their own houses (1 Tim. 3:8-12) . . . Let a widow be chosen of no less than threescore years of age, who hath been the wife of one husband. Having testimony for her good works, if she have brought up children, if she have received to harbour, if she have washed the saints’ feet, if she have ministered to them that suffer tribulation, if she have diligently followed every good work (1 Tim. 5:9-10)

The Church has developed the role of women in the Church particularly through the introduction of Religious institutions, where women are entrusted with the care of the sick, the poor, orphans, in instructing the faithful and in missionizing pagan countries. The Church takes the words of Saint Paul to the Phillipians (4:3) to encourage the faithful in the endeavors of these Nuns and Sisters: And I entreat thee also, my sincere companion, help those women who have laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement and the rest of my fellow labourers, whose names are in the book of life. The history of Convents with their Abbesses and Mother Superiors reflect also what one reads in the Book of Proverbs, chapter 39.

The Church has also recognized the roles of women throughout her history also: St. Joan of Arc led the armies of France; St. Catherine of Siena demanded the Pope move back to Rome; St. Teresa of Avila led the reform of Carmel amongst not just women, but also the men; the introduction of Corpus Christi and the Sacred Heart were by women who worked with the Church Hierarchy to bring about these feasts. In the apparitions of Lourdes and Fatima one sees young ladies delivering the messages from Heaven to the Church that would bring about the transformation of many lives and cause the Universal Church to celebrate the Feasts commemorating the apparitions.

Pope Pius XII delivered these two Allocutions on the role of women Catechists: 

. . . We see here, too, many of those who collaborate with you, representatives of many thousands of others, whose apostolate is the more meritorious for being disinterested and hidden; the more admirable for being constant and full of self-denial; the richer in supernatural values because less apparent to the eyes of the world and of the flesh. Beloved daughters, yours is a most noble mission, for the Lord has called you to prove tangibly that the Christian society is one body, whose members cannot ignore one another, and in which in the final analysis, the definitive solution will be given by true love which makes of all one-of weak and strong, of sad and joyful, of rich and poor; true love which makes him who possesses something share it with his brother who has none. (Cf. 1 John, 3, 17) Never let yourselves be conquered by weariness or discouragement; never be disarmed by routine or boredom; never give in before difficulties and discomforts; but rather attract many others to your activities: demonstrate in this way how highly you prize the grace the Lord has given you in calling you to this work. [All. to the Spanish Congregation of Lady Catechists, October 17, 1957.]

And also:

A particularly affectionate and paternal welcome today to you, beloved daughters, who are taking part in the National Training Course for religious assistants to parochial and student Associations of the Young Women of Catholic Action.

The Church, who owes to your labour so much of her conservation, her growth and expansion, and who is ever more convinced of the necessity of your cooperation in her complex and multiform apostolate, expresses once more upon Our lips, her gratitude, and renews the trust she places in you, spouses of Jesus Christ, tender mothers of the most delicate and weakest members of His Mystical Body. To you who are most fitted for the task, is entrusted the cultivation of a flower-bed—thank God, fragrant with blossoms—which in the garden of the Church needs very special care. Though it is true that the priest, at the altar, from the pulpit, in the confessional, must look to the healthy and careful spiritual direction of the young girl because she, too, is a soul confided to his care, it is nonetheless necessary that he find in you his indispensable collaborators, collaborators who live in more intimate contact with these young girls, like their mothers or elder sisters, to accompany them, assist them, lend them support and strength, and comfort them. The Church, therefore, counts on you as the specific instruments which the priest must employ for the upright formation of young women.

. . . We bless you, therefore, beloved daughters, for this precious, indispensable work of yours. You are carrying on faithfully an unbroken tradition which is an honour to the Church, who was building schools and opening universities when the ancestors of her present detractors were not in the least concerned for the education of the people. [All. to religious assistants of Catholic Action, January 3, 1958.]

God is not duplicitous. Therefore, in reading 1 Timothy 2:9-15:

In like manner women also in decent apparel: adorning themselves with modesty and sobriety, not with plaited hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly attire, But as it becometh women professing godliness, with good works. Let the woman learn in silence, with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to use authority over the man: but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed; then Eve. And Adam was not seduced; but the woman being seduced, was in the transgression.  Yet she shall be saved through childbearing; if she continue in faith, and love, and sanctification, with sobriety.

One must look at it in light of the Church’s understanding. For definitely there is no obligation for a woman to bear a child, as though Saint Paul speaks of such in verse 15. And if he is speaking to married woman, than St. Paul also wrote: A woman is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband die, she is at liberty(1 Cor. 7:39). Finally, the Apostle is not giving a Divine command, because he would have contradicted what he wrote to the Romans above quoted and the choice of virginity in not marrying which he appears to promote in 1 Cor. 7:34-38 and 2 Corinthians 11:2.

It appears that in the early Church there were in some Christian communities those who had gifts and who would speak during the service, as witnessed by St. Paul speaking to the Corinthians (cf. 1 Cor. 12 and 14). There are no longer these gifts, but also there is no allowance for even men to get up and speak during Mass, except the ordained ministers. All members learn in silence in the Church. No woman has a liturgical or priestly function in the Church. St. Paul is giving instruction to Timothy, telling him and all Catholics, that women cannot be part of the Church sacerdotal, hierarchical,  or magisterial offices—but neither are non-ordained religious or lay men.

(To be continued)

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Week of Laetare Sunday

Benedict Baur, O.S.B.

WEDNESDAY OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

“I am the light of the world”

1. Today we accompany the catechumens to the Basilica of St. Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles. During the early years of Christianity, the catechumens were on this day subjected to a severe scrutiny to determine whether they could be admitted to baptism. On those who passed the scrutiny successfully, the ceremony of the “opening of the ears” was performed. They were then given the book of the Gospels, the confession of faith, and the Our Father, all of which remind us of our own baptism.
2. “At that time Jesus, passing by, saw a man who was blind from his birth” (Gospel). Born blind! Eternal night! The beauty of the world is entirely hidden from the blind man. How sad an affliction! But Christ happens to pass the blind man. He forms a paste out of spittle and dust, and rubs it into the eyes of the blind man, and commands him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloe.” The blind man does as he is told and returns with his vision restored. Spiritually we are all like the man born blind. Original sin has cast the spell of night over us. We are blind and deprived of all supernatural light. But Jesus passed us in the way and sent us to bathe in the pool of the baptismal font, and our spiritual sight was restored to us. A new world was opened to us, just as a new world was opened to the man born blind. The vision that was restored to us was the vision of faith, the vision of truth. In the light of faith we gaze into God’s world of thought, and we begin to think the thoughts of God. We now have the “light of life” (John 8:12). We can now understand the important issues of life in the light of God’s eternal wisdom. We are now in a position to understand whence we came, why we came, and where we are going. We know now with certainty why we dwell in this world, what we have to do while here, and what will be our destiny when this life is finished. We were blind, but now through baptism we have been made to see.

“I will pour upon you clean water [baptism]; you shall be cleansed from all your filthiness [sin]…And I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My spirit in the midst of you, and I will cause you to walk in My commandments and to keep My judgments and do them. And you shall dwell in the land [heaven] which I gave to your fathers, and you shall be My people, and I will be your God” (Epistle). Behold here the new man who has been cured of his blindness through baptism.

3. Jesus heals the man born blind and at once His enemies, the Pharisees, attack Him. They refuse to believe that the man had ever been blind. They call the parents of the blind man and they testify, “Yes, this is our son who was born blind.” Again they question the blind man. But he is no longer afraid of them. With a charming simplicity and with complete frankness, and without respect to persons, he tells them with joy and gratitude of the wonderful things that had happened to him. He becomes a confessor of Christ and a teacher of truth, an apostle of Christ. Because he has acknowledged Christ the Jews cast him out of the Synagogue. But Christ accepts him. “Dost thou believe in the Son of God?” The blind man asks, “Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him?” And Jesus answers, “Thou hast both seen him and it is he that speaketh to thee.” The man, falling on his knees, confesses, “Lord, I believe.”

“Blessed is the nation [the baptized] whose God is the Lord; the people whom He hath chosen for His inheritance. By the word of the Lord the heavens were established; and all the power of them by the spirit of His mouth” (Gradual). And this same God has chosen us for His special inheritance. “O ye nations, bless the Lord our God,… who hath set my soul to live, and hath not suffered my feet to be moved” (Offertory).

“The Lord made clay from spittle and anointed my eyes; and I went and I washed, and I saw, and I have believed in God,” the Church sings at the Communion of the Mass today. These are the fruits of Holy Communion: “I saw and I have believed.” May this fruit be realized in us also.

PRAYER

O God, who dost vouchsafe to the just the reward of their merits, and to sinners pardon through fasting, have mercy upon Thy suppliant people that the confession of our guilt may have power to obtain for us forgiveness for our misdeeds.

May the ears of Thy mercy, O Lord, be opened to the prayers of Thy suppliants, and that thou mayest grant their desires to them that petition Thee, make them ask the things that are pleasing to Thee. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

THURSDAY OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

“Young man, I say to thee, arise”

1. It is appropriate that the story of the raising to life of the youth of Naim be told in the stational church of St. Martin of Tours, for he also was gifted with the power to restore life to the dead. “Seek ye the Lord, and be strengthened; seek His face evermore” (Introit).
2. As Jesus was passing by the city of Naim with His disciples, they encountered a funeral procession at the gates of the city. A young man was being carried out to his last resting place. This young man had been the hope and the support of his widowed mother, who followed the bier in tears. Christ was moved with pity, and He approached the bier and commanded the dead man, “Young man, I say to thee, arise” (Gospel). The dead man sat up, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. Yes, that is the heart of our loving Savior, full of understanding and sympathy. He restores to the sorrowing mother the son she had lost. How good He is! He provides us with joy, help, and happiness. His arrival at the city at the time of the funeral appeared to be mere chance, but it was not mere chance. He came there with the intention of saving this young man and of raising him from the dead.

What the Epistle and the Gospel relate of the past, becomes for the liturgy a reality of the present. For the liturgy the dead child of the Sunamite woman and the young man of Naim are figures of the souls of men who, through original sin or actual sin, are without the life of grace. Our ill-regulated passions, our sloth concerning the things of God, are carrying us out from our city to bury us with the eternally dead in hell. Our passions, our pride, our avarice, our self-love, the world, the flesh, and the devil, all join in the procession that would lead us to destruction. We are yet young men and should be in the full vigor of life, but these enemies carry us out as one dead. Weeping and sorrowful, our mother, the Church, follows this sad procession. She knows the sad state of these souls, for she gave them life, and they were her hope and support, and she would have led them to eternal life. But now they are dead in sin. Then Christ appears. He beholds her tears, and these tears touch His heart. “Weep not.” He approaches the dead soul in the sacrament of penance and commands the sinful soul, “I say to thee arise.” “I absolve thee from thy sins.” The soul lifts itself up, abandons the path of sin, and is given back to its mother. The mother rejoices particularly when these children are restored to her by their Easter confession.

3. This restoration of life is worked by the prayers and tears of the Church. The grace of repentance, the conversion from our evil ways, the forgiveness of our sins, have been obtained for us by the prayers, sacrifices, and works of penance performed by the Church. “She shed tears over each of her children, as if it were her only child. She suffers the most pain when she sees that her children fall victims to death through sin” (St. Ambrose).

The tears and prayers of our Holy Mother the Church have not been in vain. We rely upon the prayers of the Church when we intercede for those of our friends who have wandered from the straight and narrow path. Sin results in estrangement from God and induces death. The mouth is dead, for it is no longer open to prayer and conversation with God; the eyes are dead, for they no longer behold God, but only creatures; the hands are dead, for they work no longer for God, but against Him; the feet are dead, for they carry us not to God, but down the path of destruction. There is only one who can help us, only one who can restore life to our members. In the fullness of His divinity He assumes human nature and becomes like unto us in all things except sin (Heb. 4:15). He is a second Eliseus, He lays His mouth upon our mouth, His eyes upon our eyes, His hands and feet upon our hands and feet. He who is the origin of all life puts on the appearance of death; He sanctifies the dead soul; He opens the silent lips so that they may praise God; He restores light to the failing eyes so that they may behold the glory of God; He reactivates the stiffened hands so that they may be lifted to defend the honor of God, and the feet, that they may tread the way of salvation. The soul thus restored cries out, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and let all that is within me, bless His holy name” (Ps. 102:1). Jesus is for us the prophet Eliseus. How grateful we should be for our restoration to the life of grace!

The Church weeps for the sinner. With this holy mother we, too, grieve for our wayward brothers and sisters who through sin have died and are being carried slowly to their ruin. We share the anguish of the sorrowing mother, and join her in her impetuous prayer for their salvation. We, too, can share the redemptive work of the new Eliseus. We can take upon ourselves the burden of the sins, the errors, the blindness, and the perversity of our neighbors. With the prophet Eliseus we seek the dead man in his chambers and lay our eyes on his eyes, our mouth on his mouth, our arms on his arms, in heartfelt love and sympathy. We must not avoid him or despise him, for we see in him a soul sick unto death. We can offer for him our prayers, our sacrifices, our works of penance, with the intention of bringing him to salvation. We thus become all things to all men. “I desire not the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezech. 33: 11).

PRAYER

Grant, we beseech Thee, O almighty God, that chastened by the fasts of our devotion, the devotion itself may also gladden us so that, with our earthly affections subdued, we may the more easily lay hold on heavenly things.

O God, the Creator and Ruler of Thy people, drive away the sins which beset them, that being pleasing unto Thee, they may be secure under Thy protection. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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MARCH 15

St. Clement Mary Hofbauer, Confessor

1. On a Sunday in 1780 three women were about to leave the cathedral of St. Stephen, when a sudden shower compelled them to stop in the entrance. A young man offered to secure a conveyance for them, and they invited him to ride with them. They soon found out that the youth had a longing to become a priest but entirely lacked the necessary means. The women decided to help him. This young man was John Hofbauer, a native of Moravia. He was born December 26, 1751, ninth of the twelve children of a Czech meat cutter and a German mother. His father died six years later. At sixteen he was employed as baker’s apprentice in the Premonstratensian monastery. Before long his desire to become a priest took him to Rome. In nearby Tivoli he tried a hermit’s life, along with a friend, and then the bishop gave him the name Clement; but, within six months he was back in the monastery.

This time, however, he was permitted to begin the study of Latin, and spent four years alongside boys much younger than himself. Then he returned to Vienna and to his bakery job. It was at this time that the three women entered the picture and promised him the means to study theology at the University of Vienna. But John did not like the rationalistic flavor of the lectures there and went to Rome to complete his studies. One morning, in the Eternal City, he and his friend agreed to enter the first Church whose bells they heard. It happened to be that of the Redemptorists, near St. Mary Major. Clement asked a server to what order the priests belonged. The name evidently attracted both of the young men, for they at once applied for admission to the society. They were received and, on completion of the novitiate, both pronounced vows in 1785, and were ordained priests shortly after.

In the same year both new priests were sent across the Alps to make the Redemptorists known in other countries. Two other young men joined them and Clement acted as superior of the group. Circumstances were unfavorable to them in Vienna, and in 1797, they went to Warsaw. In the church of St. Benno there Clement developed a very active parish, but the Polish government put a stop to his work. After a number of other attempts he settled in Vienna, in 1808. There he died on May 15, 1820. On that same day Emperor Francis issued a decree approving the admission of the Redemptorists into Austria. Pope Leo XIII beatified Clement in 1898 and Pope Pius X canonized him in 1909. His body is venerated in a church of Our Lady, in Vienna.

2. “God, thou didst endow St. Clement with wonderful strength of faith and unflinching firmness” (Collect). It is significant that St. Clement rejected the spirit of “Enlightenment” prevailing among the theology professors of the University of Vienna. It was their claim that the most sacred mysteries of the Christian religion could be explained by the natural reason of men. Clement had an instinctive sense of what was truly Catholic, and on one occasion he interrupted a lecture by calling out: “Professor, what you are saying is not Catholic truth.” After his expulsion from Warsaw Clement tried to find a location in the diocese of Constance, but he was opposed by the Vicar General, who favored the “Enlightenment” movement and a state Church. The Saint would not submit, and soon after he left the diocese.

On coming to Vienna he found a fertile field for his labors. Emperor Francis provided him with a house and he soon had a large following. In 1813 he became spiritual director of the Ursuline nuns and rector of the Church of St. Ursula. It was a modest beginning, but, from this nucleus the great work of Catholic renewal spread to such an extent that Clement was called the Apostle of Vienna. How account for his success? What attracted people and converted them was his genuinely Catholic, uncompromising, sincere, unadulterated teaching, such as one could hear nowhere else in the city any more. This impressed his hearers deeply.

The deep faith of the Saint made him zealous for devotion to the Holy Eucharist, for Holy Mass, and for the reception of Holy Communion. Thus, he became the outspoken opponent of the prevailing Jansenism which, under the guise of reverence for the Blessed Sacrament, almost extinguished Eucharistic life. His spirit of faith also made Clement a fervent admirer of the Mother of God and a strong advocate of her Rosary. It was in his unwavering dedication to the work of saving and sanctifying souls that the strength of his faith shone most brightly. Little by little, especially after the wars of independence, the hearts of many people were filled with a more or less conscious longing for the Faith. St. Clement provided this important trend with solid doctrine and clear goal.

“With unflinching firmness” (Collect). As a young man Hofbauer clung tenaciously to his desire to become a priest, in spite of his lack of means. As a priest he never lost his fire or fervor, no matter how strenuous or how apparently futile his labor for souls became; poverty, absence of helpers, opposition, all through the years from 1785 to 1808—none of these could dampen his zeal. But then the storm of antagonism grew even more violent: “The Jacobins are spreading evil rumors about us everywhere. In the theater we are ridiculed. Publicly we are threatened with the gallows.” Lampoons were scattered about; moral breaches and political intrigues were laid at their door. It was a trumped-up charge that induced Napoleon to expel him from Warsaw in 1808. Hardly had they set foot in southern Germany when Wessenberg opposed them and forced them to abandon their houses, one after the other. At the Congress of Vienna (1814) Wessenberg again appeared, trying to force his un-Catholic, rationalistic view and principle upon the princes and diplomats. Clement remained in the background, praying and making sacrifices for the welfare of the people. Wessenberg was unable to influence the Congress; but the work and success of Hofbauer exasperated him.

In September of 1815 the zealous priest was forbidden to preach. It was, above all, his apostolate among students that his enemies wanted to stop. Police followed him and spied upon him; his house was searched. Finally, he was given the alternative of leaving his Order or leaving Austria. Now, it seemed that all his work was doomed; but God stepped in at this point. The affair was reported to Emperor Francis, and he hesitated to confirm the order issued against the Saint. Then, in an audience with Pius VII, the Emperor was induced to change his attitude and admit the Redemptorists into Austria. Thus the fervent wish of St. Clement was fulfilled, the fruit, no doubt, of his firm and fearless conduct.

3. In the Mass for this feast (Justus ut palma) St. Paul enumerates some of the hardships he and his helpers had to endure. Our Saint might have described his life in the same words: “We have been made a spectacle to the whole creation, men and angels alike. We are fools for Christ’s sake . . . we go hungry and thirsty . . . we have no home . . . working with our own hands. Men revile us, and we make the best of it, speak ill of us and we fall to entreaty. We are still the world’s refuse . . .” (Epistle; I Cor. 4:9 ff.). What firmness of faith! What unswerving constancy! It was only by such means that St. Clement, the Apostle of Vienna, could have fulfilled his mission to renew Christian faith and life.

“Do not be afraid, my little Hock. Your father has determined to give you his kingdom. Sell what you have and give alms, so providing yourselves with a purse that time cannot wear holes in, an inexhaustible treasure laid up in heaven . . .” ( Gospel). St. Clement vividly exemplified these words of our Lord.

Young Hofbauer persevered in his longing to become a priest. For years it appeared that all of his struggling, seeking, and suffering were to no purpose. But that very simple bit of courtesy and Christian charity toward the three women turned the seemingly impossible into actuality. The realization of his holy dream was, in the providence of God both the reward and the crown of his steadfast striving for the goal of the priesthood. This vocation is well worth all the sacrifices it costs.

Collect: God, Thou didst endow St. Clement Mary with wonderful strength of faith and unflinching firmness of purpose; we beg Thee, make us strong in faith and so ardent in love that we, too, shall obtain an eternal reward. Amen.

MARRIAGE AND PARENTHOOD

The Catholic Ideal

By the Rev. Thomas J. Gerrard

(1911)

CHAPTER IV

CHOICE OF A MATE

Thus it is that the Protestant married to a Catholic cannot avail himself of the teaching and the Sacraments of the Catholic Church which might be so effectual in fostering love between man and wife. Real love is that only which has faith for its foundation. But in the mixed marriage the faith is all on one side. It does not flourish with that fecundity which would be present were the parties united in one and the same belief. Further, this absence of faith-informed love on the part of the non-Catholic partner must in a measure react on the Catholic partner. Grace is very powerful, but it needs a nature upon which to act. And if the faith-informed love of the Catholic partner finds no response in the non-Catholic partner, if it receives an inferior love in return, or if it discovers itself misunderstood and unappreciated, then, if it does not dwindle away, it at least fails in its possible measure of fruitfulness.

The Church has her eyes wide open to the weakness of human nature when she tolerates a mixed marriage. A mixed marriage is a real Sacrament, and all the graces of the Sacrament are capable of being conveyed through it, though these graces may often fail in their effects through the want of disposition in the non-Catholic party. The Catholic party may do his or her best, as the case may be, but as human nature is so weak, there is naturally an ever-present danger of the Catholic losing the faith. Over and above the certainty of spoiling God’s ideal there is the disadvantage of risking the loss of faith altogether.

Therefore it is that the Church, when she allows a mixed marriage, insists on the condition that the Catholic partner shall not be hindered in the practice of the faith. The non-Catholic must give an explicit promise to this effect. He may not make any contrary conditions, either before or after the marriage. Any attempt to compel or persuade the Catholic to go to a Protestant Church, to stay away from Mass, or to abstain from Confession, is a dishonorable violation of the condition and promise.

The Church by a long experience knows that such attempts are only too common. Sometimes they are done openly and menacingly. Oftener, perhaps, they are done quietly and in a friendly way. Numberless are the occasions when the danger creeps in. The Catholic is perhaps too late for Mass on Sunday. Then the obvious suggestion of the non-Catholic is: “Oh, well, come to our Church for a change.” Or it may be merely a social gathering under Protestant auspices, a bazaar, a tea party, an excursion—surely one cannot be so narrow as to object to these! There would be less danger in them for a Catholic who was out and out a Catholic, a Catholic joined to a Catholic in marriage, and generally subject to Catholic influences. But for the Catholic who is the partner of a Protestant, and who is without all those helps which an entirely Catholic family provides, these social functions are so many pitfalls. They seem harmless enough in themselves, but they lead from one thing to another, from the social to the religious. Indeed, wherever one partner is Protestant, the opportunities of perversion are as persistent in their frequency as they are subtle in kind and degree. In this, as in all other dangers, prevention is better than cure. Foster a strong dislike for mixed marriages. Avoid company where you are likely to meet a partner of another religious persuasion. Reject the first overtures made by one who is not of your faith. Then, if circumstances have been too many or too strong for you, make up your mind at once that only by strict observance of the conditions laid down by the Church can your faith and your hope and your love be saved.

The fostering of mutual love, however, even the most perfect and most spiritual love, is not the chief end of marriage. The chief end of marriage is the begetting, and educating, of children for the kingdom of heaven. The Church, therefore, in her legislation for mixed marriages has a special care for the children that may be born of them. The child pertains to the ideal of the great Sacrament. In the mystery of the blessed Trinity it is the united love of the Father and the Son, in the person of the Holy Ghost. In the mystery of Christ and His Church the one is bridegroom, the other the bride, and they are united for the purpose of bringing forth children for the kingdom of heaven.

So, if the Sacrament of marriage must be true to its mystic types, it must be so ordained as to be an apt principle for the bringing forth and for the educating of children in the Catholic faith. The faith is so important for the child, that its influence should be felt at the first dawn of reason, and all through those impressionable days of childhood and youth. No demonstration is needed to show that only when both father and mother are united in the faith can those early impressions be efficiently imparted. A different faith, in either one or the other, must inevitably tell on the character of the child. In the interest then of the offspring the Church looks askance on the mixed marriage.

When, however, she permits it as something less good, and for the sake of avoiding some greater evil, then she places a special condition in favor of the children. The non-Catholic party must explicitly promise that all the children must be brought up in the Catholic religion. There must be no compromise. Oftentimes the non-Catholic party proposes to meet the Church half way, and suggests that the girls shall follow the mother while the boys follow the father. And the idea prevails in some quarters that the Church is willing to allow this. Let it be clearly made known that the Church knows nothing of such half measures. According to her law every child of a mixed marriage must be brought up a Catholic. The soul of a boy is just as valuable as the soul of a girl, and the soul of a girl is just as valuable as the soul of a boy, for both have been bought with an infinite price. In their education, therefore, there must be no compromise. All, without exception, must be brought up in the Catholic faith.

Further, the Church has also a cure for the non-Catholic party. He has already received the Sacrament of baptism and now he receives the Sacrament of matrimony. He is a subject of the Church, albeit a rebellious subject. His rebellious state may be due to no fault of his own, and he may not recognize his rebellious state. The Church, however, recognizes it and consequently makes a special effort to win him back to her obedience. She places a third condition to a mixed marriage—the Catholic party must strive to bring about the conversion of the non-Catholic.

The condition tends to the perfection of the ideal, tends to the preservation of the faith of the Catholic partner, tends to the preservation of the faith of the children, tends to the eternal salvation of the non-Catholic partner. The reasonableness of the condition is evident. Its application, however, seems at first sight to be fraught with considerable difficulty. How is one to know whether there is any hope of a professing Protestant becoming a Catholic? Does not the Spirit breathe where He will? Must the non-Catholic have already entered upon a course of instruction? The practice of the Church does not require the manifestation of such clear signs as suggested in the last question. But the two conditions concerning the faith of the wife and the children, if generously fulfilled, would seem to go a long way toward fulfilling the third condition. If the non-Catholic party willingly signs the declaration that his wife may have the free exercise of her religion, and that the children may be brought up Catholics, then that may be deemed sufficient grounds for hoping that he, too, may some day become a Catholic. Evidently he is not fighting against the Church. Evidently he has some good will toward it. Presumably he is not resisting grace. Under such conditions one may reasonably hope that the grace of God will some day prove effectual.

We must strive, then, to keep three things well to the front of the Catholic consciousness. First, the union of marriage is a great Sacrament, having its ideal likened to the union between the Father and the Son, and to the union between Christ and His Church. Secondly, mixed marriages are discountenanced by the Church because they spoil God’s ideal, because they endanger the faith of the Catholic party, and because they endanger the faith of the children. Thirdly, they are sometimes tolerated in order to avoid greater evils, and then only on the three conditions that the Catholic shall have free exercise of religion, that all children shall be educated as Catholics, and that there shall be a reasonable hope of the Protestant becoming a Catholic.

(To be continued) 

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