The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1905-01-28


are said TO hate the light" SO that
light and God are so intimately related
that men understand easily what John
meant when he wrote that God 'dwells
Ia inaccessible light" Now we know
] t1at God is on our altar.
/ We adorn the altar with flowers. Now
everyone knows the language of flow
eIs. and by placing the beauteous off
Springs of earth in the presence of the
! Lcrd we intend each blossom to speak
] the Word-loVe gratitude, purity, hero
! ism, sorrow, of which we make them
J the symbol in the same way, too,
/ these flowers betQken the generosity
| which leads us to sacrifice all things
| 10 the love of our Savior. We call the
most beautiful creatures in existence
| about the shrine of God to let him
! know that there is nothing in life we
are not willing to relinquish when we
/ hear His voice commanding. Now
| flowers are the most assuring evidences
O. the goodness of God. Everything
else in the universe seems to have "a
necessary use. But man could easily
| continue to exist without the floral
world. Flowers do not sustain the
/ body. neither are they required by the
mind. So it seems as if God, having
created the world and having placed
! thereon what was necessary TO our
J /
/ thing more than what is actually re-
CURED and He threw in flowers, the
most beautiful gift of all. as testi-
mOny of how good and generous and
| munificent a Master is our Creator we
on our side wish to initiate his gener-
oSity by surrounding his dwelling place
with these bright treasures of the field
This that Cod may know that we are
] willing to give not only the service
- laaA
rifice of pleasure we viii not refuse 10
reInquish enjoyment when the surren-
der helps us toward salvation
The church is Gods house. where HIS
! living friends may come, but where de-
parted ones are not forgotten For
/ Just as your homes retain remem-
| b;anceS of friends and relatives VINO
! have died. in the form of portraits ana
photographs of the departed, so Coo
! house gives place to the statues ana
pictures of the saints who are our rel
atives in religion.
In consideration for us he has strip
ped Himself of His luminous glory lest
/ the sight of it's splendOr might strike
us dead-as was said: NO man can
g re upon God and live" In gratitude
| t. God for this condescension we seek
though with feeble effort, to create
with the artificial means at our COM
mand an abode of light TO serve our
| Cod as a dwelling We suTounl the
| ia bernacle with candles and taperS
| W hose tongues of flame whisper TO COO
/ and ask Him to disregard the imper-
/ fections in the design, but only TO con-
/ slider the bath which attempts to give
some outward expression to the
thought that the Godhead should De
! invested with brightest glory. rms Is
the central idea of adjoining the altdt
with candles. But the presence Oh
these lights may bear many announcer
Interpretation. In the language OF SYM
hol. light is faith and hope and love-
faith which sheds a brightness over
the mysteries of life and leads man
towards the goal of his destiny; hope,
| which springs eternal in the human
breast. like a reviving flame, in spite
OF all duenching breezes; love, when IS
consumed. like the candies wax, in the
service of a beloved one.
So the lights on our affairs are SYM
| rcls. or signs. of the belief the trust,
the charity which are centered in the
Lord about whom the candles encircie.
| The heat which the flame emltS Is the
ardent personal affection which burns
in ON. soul for Christ. the loving Sa-
yior. The substance of the candles, II
wax. the distilled beauty of the hover
! il the Offering of self5n1ade 10, GodEoy
! our honor. our greatness our qlsIluG-
! ton: if not wax, the Whltened form
! tells of the virginia. purity Whlcn we
shall endeavor to keep unsuliled JOE
clean oblation to our heavenly ID Ios ..
| groom. AS the candles weep down
vaXen tears we are murmurlng to 3Iod
acts of sorrow for the sins we nave
committed. When the candle is at last
consumed. we are begging the savior
tn be near us at the end when death
blows ont the light of the present lie
and ushers the soul into the shado"E
/ land of the eternal future.
God does not wish us to forget those
who have gone beyond the dlVldlng me
'tyixt the present and the hereafter.
TO wishes us to remember how many
+;ev were forced to combat agalnS.
| +,e self-same foes that we are calico
unon to encounter. The temptations
flat beset our path; the discourage
uents that roughen our way; the ms
and woes that strew the road WIN
srdness. were incidents IN their career
as they are occurrences IN our eNpeii,
ence The Lord desires that we shoulu
know that we may overcome the Cd
s,acIes and win the glory they now
nossess by initiating their example: 80
Tho Church keeps their memory treSh
Ii. orr minds by displaying their rep
rcsentations in places of worship. IL
la is right to initiate the virtues VI
these holy souls, if it is helpful 10 en-
tcrtain toward them a warm aftecJloil:
lien must we preserve the memory VI
their deeds and create THIS aHeclioli
- ON, hearts bv the same means that
60. -, 70 keen other friends alive in
Thought though they may be dead IN
vision AS pictures, photographs. stal-
res souvenirs bring departed relatives
near even after the lapse OF years, So
tie statues. ina ges, relics OF the Salills
recall them to our presence attef tle
RAISING of ages. ..;.;,,,o
And when we gaze upon these visible
sl,apes. the thought within us Is SURF
80 recall the actions which mace thS
originals worthy of hohor' a. a..
minded of the bliss they now ENJOY
INA .,,e are spurred on to emulate then
o1,omnIe If we pray before the statue
I nc tho saint il is not to cold marble or
nainted wood we address our words
- eo,,,a Of our non-CathoEc 1rienus
e,1sol,, Imagine. If l kiss the paper on
,hi,b my mothers face is drawn, my
afrection is not lavished on the Iass
t1tat make up the paper supsIal! .1
The portrait returns her TO MY Hiillo
and I seek to pour out my love 10 hef
hon the image brings back the
lint we speak to- him. knowing ne
ca,, hear and ask him to help US IRON
-, high in The struggle from which nc
came forth a victor. On this account
ltnerefore. we find our churches tenant
ing statues and pictures-the seiiS i,c1
-.rS7resentatives of former men. ana NO
men who. as saints now IN heaNel'' ca
iiieten TO our prayers when we are lee
NV these visible symbols to ADDRESS
tfem.NEdward Flannery in CatholiC
II anscript.
Young Men, Attention
. H. lact few DAYS several sig