Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1905-11-27
THE CARDINALS SERMON.
ON MERCY AND FORGIVENESS
AT ST. MARY'S.
His Eminence Appeals To The
Midshipmen-Says II Is
Unmanly To Re
sent Injury.

Before a congregation Of nearly a
thousand people His Emineuce Cardi-
nal Gibbons. of Baltimore, preached n
most excellent sermon Yesterday morn-
ing at st. Mary's Church. The Cardi
nal came Go Annapolis to confirm a
class that numbered over a hundred
boys and men and girls and women.
Before the rite Of confirmation was
administered the Cardinal preached a
sermon on the theme Mercy and
Charity. He took for his text
Blessed be God, the Father of Our
Lord Jesus Christ, who Comforteth
Us in All Our Tribulations. The
Cardinal said of all the virtues that
shine forth in the life of our Blessed
Redeemer, none are more striking
and none so prominent as His mercy
for humanity. Sympathy is a striking
characteristic and salient point i'm
Our Lords life, which was perfect
life.
The mercies of God are prominent
in all His works. His miracles all
show His mercy. They were as differ.
ent from Moses miracles as Gods life
was different from the strong law Of
Moses. God never turned rivers into
blood. nor like Joshua did He ever
command the sun TO stand still. The
miracles wrought by the Son of Man
were those TO do good to mankind.
He opened the eyes of the blind made
the dumb TO speak; raised the dead to
life again, and greater than this. He
raises from spiritual death all those
who lie dead in sin.
The Cardinal told the story of the
Good Samaritan and said the exercis.
ing of charity knows no race, no color.
N "a Al, l.. m
ing TO exercise our benevolence 10
humanity Ghe Cardinal admonished
the congregation 20 be not narrow or
contracted, but to be broadminded. IL
may not have been so intended. Tut
the Cardinals remarks to the mid.
shipmen seemed to hit Mt the "code Of
honor. He said "Christ had 70
spirit OF vengeance. / appeal TO the
midshipmen to borrow n lesson from
Christ our Saviour. Have in your
heart every fibre TO forgive your
enemy. Say not it is unmanIv 60 1e.
sent an insult or injury
DO not retaliate and give blow for
blow. The highest type OF courage Is
the courage OF self-denial. The high.
est types of manly character the world
ever produced were men Of forgivinR
disposition. That class Of men is q q
noblest who strive TO maintain prin.
ciples Of right and Justice, regardless
OF what Others may say. A midship-
man who plunges into the Severn al d
saves another from drowning receives
the plaudits of his fellows, but there
is less heroism in that than in listen
ing to and obeying the still small
voice Of conscience when & pleads for
the cause Of mercy
Christ came not only to save us. but
to shave Ia meroiful to our fellow
beings. We are social beings and de-
pend upon one another just as the
parts OF the human anatomy depend
upon each other. We are mutually
dependant one upon the other. We
might possess the Island Of Manhattan.
but what would it be if we had none
TO share it with Us We are orr
brothers. keeper, and we ought TO be.
Ii not, we would be cropping in infidel.
ity il the Apostles had refused TO
preach the gospel We cannot give
sight to the blind, but we can alleviate
the suffeTiugs of others. Never is the
work OF the children Of God more
effective than when they cause the
flowers Of JOY and gladness TO grow
in the desolate hearts Of others
The Cardinal closed his splendid SER
mon, full .of practical thoughts, with
a quotation from st. james: "Relig-
ion pure and uudeiiled is to keep ones
self unspotted from the world. "