The age-herald., 1900-10-08
PRIESTS POWER
 CANNOT PARDON God Alone Can Pardon the
 Sinful. PRAYER BRINGS HAPPINESS It is Not the Priest But the Office of the Priest-Father O'Reilly's Able
 Sermon-Splendid
 Music
PRAYER BRINGS HAPPINESS

God alone can pardon; and they err grleV- ously who idly talk aobut the priesthood pardoning offenses against the laws of God" said the Rev Father OReilly at l late mass in St. Paurs church yesterday morning.
 The celebration of the high mass was re- sumed after the low mass of the hot months; the music was splendid; and the great Gothic church was crowded with worshipers The services were extraordi- l narily beautiful and impressive. The day being the 16th Sunday after Pentecost Father O'Reilly read the Cos pei according to St. Matthew And he entered into ship and passed over, and came into his own city And, behold. they brought to him a
 man sick of the palsy, lying on bed: and | Jesus seeing their faith said unto the 1 sick of the palsy; Son. be of good cheer; | thy sins are forgiven thee
 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves This man blasphemeth And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? For whether is easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, arise, and walk?
 But that ye may know the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, then saith he to the sick of the palsy, Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. And he arose and departed to his house.
 But when the multitudes saw 1t, they marveled and glorified God who had given such power unto men,"
 The eloquent priest spoke with calm fervor in his plea for righteousness, for the putting away of sin, for prayer. There is no sin that is unpardonable save sin against the Holy Ghost That means the sin of shining and refusing to ask Gods pardon. Men may sin and go to death unrepentant refusing to the end to seek divine forgiveness. That is the unpardon- able sin-the sin for which pardon is not sought.
 To His priests were given the keys to the kingdom of heaven; the promise that what
 soever ye bind earth the same shall be bound in heaven; whatsoever ye loose on earth, that shall be loosed in heaven.
 That power given to one man in the be- ginning was now given to thousands all over the world.
 It is not the priest; 1t is the office to
 which is given authority Priests have no power to pardon sins; God alone can par don; and they err grievously who idly talk about the priesthood pardoning offenses against the laws of God Priests are serv- ants of God to do His bidding under pre-
 scribed regulations. The confessional is essential because it is of Gods will. You come here and confess to God through His priest There can be no real happiness in this world outside the church of God Here you shall find spiritual comfort, and here alone. Here and here alone you can find forgiveness for the sins which you have committed. And pardon is for all sins and all sinners who will humbly and truly and faithfully seek it, with a determina ton to lead better lives; lives devoted to doing Gods will, not mans. Man cannot give the spirit peace. Seek peace of God through His church, through the office of His priest and you shall find it You shall find peace by petition, by prayer, by abution and in no other way known of man. Happiness comes alone in the name of the Father
 the Son and the Holy Ghost.
 The choir was large and well balanced and the work rendered was no less than Weber's mass in G, accompanied by organ and orchestra. And during the offertory
 MI, OHdIllouA pIdyeQ oH the VlOun III musicianly style Handel's Largo, drawing a steady bow and producing a round, full tone. Very classic then. and very religious, too, was the music at St. Pauls.
 The solo quartette consisted of Mrs Sat- ter1eld, soprano; Miss Ella Nolen, alto; MT. Frank Arrico, tenor, and MT. Charles Her bert, bass. MT P. Memol was the director and Miss Rabbit was the organist.
 Whilst Webers Mass Is exceedingly diff fcult for the musicians who execute it. the harmony is so rich and the melodies are so beautiful that the ordinary listener fails not to follow it and appreciate every part or number of it.
 The soprano and tenors go very high and the basses very low, but the singers had sufficient compass and skill to deliver the extreme notes in their respective parts, as a rule, clearly and effectively. If the Kyrie was little uneven here and there-the re- suit of nervousness, the noble Gloria with it's exacting fugue, was rendered with sin- gular smoothness and spirit. The tenor solo, In the Gloria, by MT. Arrico, was sung with excellent taste; in strong, resonant and m- passioned voice. Not in recent years indeed has better tenor been heard in Birming- ham.
 In the Credo the harmony was almost as complex and exacting as in the Gloria, but the chorus was fully equal to 1t. Mrs. Sat- terield's finest solo was perhaps the 'In- carnatus Est" Her notes were pure and sympathetic and her yocalizaton was high ly artistic.
 Miss Nolen made sweet impression in the Agnus Del. Her solo was most soulful tender and pathetic-and the accompani- ment to her voice was appropriately pas toral. It was just such a solo as plays gen. tly upon the heart strings and lifts the pure soul to God. tic appreciation, and added much to the beauty of the mass.
 So much pleased with weber's mass were the members of the congregation that there