The Irish standard., 1902-04-26
But you may say to me some priests

But you may say to me some priests
have been bad and some do not live
up to these requirements. None will
deny this. st. Augustine said, "There
are bad sheep in every profession" l
am not surprised that some have fall
en-, but surprised that many more have
not, when we consider the temptations
and difficult surroundings and the
weakness of poor human nature. In
the United States there are nearly
twelve thousand priests. If one goes
! astray every newspaper from the At
lantic to the Pacific, from the Lakes to
the Gulf of Mexico heralds it in big
bold type. "a priest ran away and
got married" Such an interesting
piece of news! 1t shows that the world
itself is surprised. The world wonders
whenever one falls. Is it proper to
reason as some do. "Some have fallen,
therefore all are bad?" Some lawyers
take advantage of their clients, there
fore all lawyers do. Some physicians
abuse the trust of their female pa
tients. therefore all physicians will.
Some married men run away with
other mems wives. therefore all mar
ried men are adulterers. 1t doesn't go
down very well, does it? Well. the
pill is not bit sweeter to priest.
There was one Judas among the twelve
Apostles, therefore the whole twelve
were false!
1t seems from what is said some
times that If priests only married all
scandals would cease. Marriage would
cure this fault. If that were true
then among the married clergy we
would find nothing of evil in this mat
ter. 1 am not rejecting one iota on the
ministers. There are, l know, many
honorable, respectable men amongst
them. But let us take what we see in
the newspapers. Do we ever find mar
ried ministers going astray? Do we
ever find them tried for immortality
and dismissed? We find such cases
coming up repeatedly. Docs marriage
destroy that passion? Would it not be
wrong for me to say that marriage is
the cause of immortality, and is it not
wrong for you to say so of cclibacy?
Because the priest is single man,
must he give way to his lower nature?
How wise the Church has been in
making this requirement.! At a public
gathering of Methodists a minister
said that an unmarried man was
better worker, especially in the mis-
sions. He is ready to go at any time
to the poorest and most neglected
place. How is it where there are cAn-
tagious diseases? In n public pest
house attended by one Of our fathers
there have been five hundred cases Of
smallpox. Since the epidemic broke
out not one Protestant minister has
visited the stricken ones. They have
refused to come, not because they fear
for themselves, but for their families.
The priest almost lives there, and
when the minister refuses to come and
these poor Protestants come to die
many of them call on him and say
they want to die in his religion and are
baptized.
What prompts young men to enter
the priesthood? Is it pleasure. honor
or wealth? No; it is love of their
Savior, Jesus Christ. the love Of their
God and the love Of souls for which
Christ died on the cross. When dis
couraged during their novitate their
eyes are turned to the altar. and they
think of the day when they will stand
there and hold in their hands the spot
less body of their Savior. This en-
courages them, and when they enter
the sanctuary it is the happicst day
of their lives. They saw there Christ
suffering and dying for poor humanity,
and they felt no sacrifice could be held
back from Him. Every one of you in-
stinctively honors the priest, whether
YOU admit it or not. You recognize
that he is different from other men,
from other ministers, and like your
Catholic neighbors many Of you lift
your hats to him as you meet him. and
he accepts this respect not as meant
for him personally, but for his office.