The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1873-04-06
Holy Week.

To-day we enter upon the most solen"
season of the ecclesiastical year. FRO"
the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusa-
lem to the glorious moment OF his feSui'
rection, each day is fraught with q separate
and special interest of its own.
What panoramora of human life is IN the
history of that one week! 1t opens in
blaze of human triumph. The people
gather in thousands along the triumphai
route of Him, whom they acknowledge as
the Emmanuel. They throw their gar
ments under the feet of the animal when
He rides, and strew His road with fragrant
and beautiful boughs of trees. They shout
bosaupas to His name and bless Him.
But the hckleness of human popularity
is proverbial. Not one week has passed
and He before whom the multitude fell
down and worshiped, is pinioned, like the
vilest malefactor, to a cross and lifted up
Il he scorn and revilipgs of that same
multitude. Human wisdom has condemned
Him, human sympathy is against Him,
human governments tamely sacrifice HIM
to the mob and human society crucfies
Him.
Yet then, as now, could be found men
who whorshiped the powers of earth, who
lived only for human applause and who
made the world their God.
1t was also within Holy Week that was
accomplished the great tragedy OF Judas
Iscariot. In how few words his character
is sketched by the sacred Inner How
over jealous he was for the poor, how in
dignant at the wastefulness of Mary Mag
dalen with the costly spikenard Yet he
was q "thief in his heart" What pic
ture of the Pharisee and the bypocrite
just so there are men now a-days who
think it wastefulness and iniquity to pour
out treasures in the worship of God, and to
honor Him amid splendor and costly rites,
and sweet incense. These men preach SIM
plicity for the house of God, but desire lux
ury in their own. They all strive to "carry
tho purse" They too take grievous UNI
bragg at the Church, the representative of
Christ, for permitting this useless waste in
honoring Him, and they too go out and, 30
far as they can, betray her to the powers of
the world and to persecution.
Judas Iscariot was in his conduct the
prototype of heresy, and all heresies desire
to deliver Christ and His Church over to
crucfixion. He worshped the world and
its lucre, but though he enjoyed a tempo
rary success, the world could not save him
from suicide, any more than it could pre-
vent the triumphant resurrection of the in
noceut One whom he had sold and it had
slain.
1t may be remarked that Judas and his
betrayed Master died on the same day.
Not until the very last, did the unfailing
verdict of God decide between them. Men
are often surprised when God does not
smte the wicked in the midst of their days
and give temporal advantage to the just.
They think it strange that visible strength
and health and> prosperity surround the
old age of sin, as commonly as that OF viz
tue. aud even more commonly; that the
rain falleth alike upon the jast and unjust.
But God Wills that the contest between
good and evil shall be evenly waged, that
so faith may have greater reward. And
it is only when the race is fully run, that
the victory becomes apparent.
Thus heresy shall live as long the
Church and prosper as much or more, in
worldly things. The chief priests of error
and the ancients of tho people will join
hands with it and cruelty the Church but
at the end, it's terrible doom will come,
while the church shall shine as gold puri-
fed in the fire.
During the week all the churches of the
city will have the appropriate services,
masses, tenebrae sc. No doubt, all of
them will also be splendidly decorated on
the days when devout custom sends throngs
of pious visitors from shrine to shrine in
solemn worship. .
JOHN FARnELL.-Another old and well