The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1904-07-16
CITY OF DENVER.
Retreat Brings Religious Affairs to
a Standstill-

last Of the week.
The retreat began at shutdown OF
Monday and viii close at the same hou
Friday evening. About fifty priests ar
in attendance, including Bishop Matz
The retreat is being conducted by Rev
Father Bowling. Sd, formerly rector
OF the Jesuit university at Omaha anc
man with a reputation for zeal anC
earnestness. The sermons given dali!
by Father Bowling are an interesting
and devout feature Of the retreat.
Besides the secular priests who are
expected annually at the retreat, there
are a number of those from religious
orders who are interested in the sub
jects which come up for meditation
The retreat is one of the largest evel
held in the city for the reason that
the clergy of Wyoming are also in at
tendance.
All Of the priests of that diocese, with
the exception of Bishop ]. J. Keane
are on retreat, for the first time with
the Denver clergy.
Sermon at Father Hagus' First Sol
emn High Mass.
During the week the newly ordained
priests, Father Louis +. Hagus and
Father bubble, have been in charge of
the cathedral parish. Father Wolohan,
who went to Leadville to celebrate his
first solemn high mass remained there
caring 70 rthe Church of the Annuncia-
ton, while Father Gibbons came to
Denver for retreat.
Rev. L. F. Hagus celebrated his first
solemn mass on Sunday morning at
1920 o'clock at the Logan Avenue
chapel During the week he said The
morning mass at various churches and
i
for the first high mass was a large one.
The sermon was preached by Rev. Cor
nelius O'Farrell
SERMON AT FATHER HAGUS' FIR
ST HIGH MASS.
After the Gospel, Father O'FaTell
assembled the pulpit and delivered the
following eloquent and appropriate SER
mon:
Every high priest taken from among
men is ordained for men in the things
that appertain to God, that he may Of
fer UP gifts and sacrifices for sins"
(Heb. v. -
My Dear Friends-On last Sunday it
was your great privilege to be present
at one of the most beautiful ceremonies
of the church. when two young men
Frustrated themselves before this altar
and in action and in word most solemn
ly pledged their lives to continue the
work of the Nazarene. You We're all
overpowered by the SOlemnity of the
occasion, so much so that many went.
for what reason they could not well ex-
plain. On Monday morning these two
young souls assembled the altar of God
and there they presented the first fruits
of their ministry to Him who said:
DO this in commemoration of me-"
Transport yourselves, dear friends into
nj
last Monday morning, when the awful
moment arrived to pronounce the SOL
emn words Of conservation, and when
his anOinted hands held for the first
time the pure virginia. flesh of the God
made Man. and you viii realize the
vivid faith, the profound alteration and
the glowing, rapturous love with which
he at that moment flung his heart at
the feet of his Redeemer. But no. dear
friends, you cannot realize the feelings.
the emotions that pass through a young
priests soul, as, vested with priestly
robes, he stands for the first time with
extended hands before his Lord and
God, whom he has just called down
upon the altar.
oh, great indeed is the dignity of the
priesthood. Behold in what honor and
esteem God in the OLD dispensation held
His prophets, who were the teachers
and eXpounders of the law, the vindi-
Gators of Jehovah's rights and domin-
ION anon gthe people and the watch
men on the tower Of Israel. They We're
endowed with gifts which We're not
bestowed on conquerors of nations. In
response to their prayers He suspended
the laws Of nature and wrought stupen-
dous miracles. He proclaimed their
persons sacred and inviolable. so that
ne who touched them touched the ap-
pie of His eye. Touch not" he said
my anointed, and do no evil to my
prophets" King Jeroboam raised his
arm TO strike one of the prophets and
straightWay his arm fell withered bv
his side. But, my friends, the priest
hood of the new law is as high above
that Of the old. as heaven is above
earth. He Himself has told US that we
should treat His priests as we would
His own person, for He says: He that
heareth you, heareth me, and he that
despiseth you despiseth me-" He who
honors priest, says st. John Chrysos-
tom, honors Christ, and he who insults
A priest insults Christ. Through re-
Spect for the Sacerdotal dignity the
venerable Mary of Ogna used to kiss
the ground on which a priest had
walked. Wherefore this profound re-
spect? Why this lowly reverence?
why but because of the exalted ma
ture OF the office Of the priesthood9
Yes, dear friends, high above prince
and president high above car and
pasta, high above king and emperor.
aye indeed, and high above angels and
archangels, the priest stands forth on
the watchDower Of the CITY of Cod.
giving honor as he alone can give. 10
the majesty Of the Divinity For by
the celebration Of a single mass in
which he offers Jesus Christ in sacrj-
flee, priest gives greater honor to
the Lord than if all men by dying for
God offered to Him the sacrifice of
their lives.
Christ died on Calvary. Why? To
institute the priesthood. it was not
necessary for Him to die i'm order to
save the world. one drop of His pre-
cious blood. or a single tear. was suf-
fclent to procure salvation for all
mankind. But to institute a sacrificial
priesthood the death of Jesus Christ
was necessary. Had He not died,
where should we find the victim which
this young priest Will soon offer in the
Mass? Had He not died. we would
not nave amongst us the Divine Pris-
oner of the Tabernacle
After the power Of consecrating the
Body and Blood Of our Lord. the high
est privilege ever conferred on man.
is that Of pardoning sin in the tribunal
Of penance. The prerogatfve is clearly
expressed in the scr1pJural words
Receive We the Holy Ghost; whose
sins you shall forgive they are for
given them, and whose sins you shall
retain they are retained" Herein once
more the priest eXcels in dignity and
in power the mightiest potentates on
earth A king can question. but the
outward acts of man, but the priest
peheuates into the sanctuary of the
soul. Earthly judges punish crime.
even though the criminal detests his
guilt; it is the priestly privilege to par
don the sinner who repents. The SEN
tence Of The earthly iudge is restricted