The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-11-10
FIR. sARRoN's JUBILEE
Continued from first page

words, we have not witnessed His
miracles, we have not heard Him
preach His doctrine; but the love of
Christ, living, breathing, palpitating,
has come down through the ages even
to us; and we give Him the purest
part of our existence-our hearts best
affection The apostles were thrown
into prison, tortured, beaten with
rods, and they go on their way rejoic-
ing, because they are counted worthy
to suffer for Jesus.
See that aged man in the amphithe-
atre-what fire in his glance, what
accents on his lips. Let every suf-
fering be mine, let me also become
prey to the tigers" but let me preach
Jesus Christ. See that young girl, so
beautiful, so pure-the son of the Ro'
man project has asked for her hand
in marriage Rome makes merry and
urepares fer the feast. But she re-
iects him, say ing that she is the
spouse of Christ, and she lays hel
head on the block See Won mother,
sur ounded by her seven children, the
first is killed and she offers him to
God, the second dies, the third, the
fourth and the fifth and the sixth are
taken from her and killed. She hands
them over with courage to the execn
toner. But, what. the very animals
defend their young, and she offers
them up. The seventh remains. She
grows pale and trembles; But why?
She trembles lest her child may be
wanting in courage. She kneels be
fore him and persuades him caressing-
" and almost leads him with her own
hand to martyrdom. She cries out:
my child farewell, but not forever;
be brave and patient on thy bed of
sorrow; quickly will pass the hour of
trial here, and | will meet you in hea-
ven tomorrow.
1.-THE love of Christ constraineth
me-" said St. Paul, and in this love
we find the compendium of all relig-
ion. This is the cry of the young
apostle, as he tears himself from the
arms of his desolate mother, bids
adieu to his own country, and goes to
foreign climes with the emblem of sal
walton. This is the cry of innocence
and repentance, which prefers the sill
ence of the cloister to the noise of the
world Look for a single sacrifice in
religion that has not been inspired by
the love of Christ Without this char
ity | could not understand our own
Father Damien who left home and
country to labor among the lepers of
Molokai; to become a leper and die in
the prime of life. And if we ascend
those heights, covered with perpetual
snow, upon the Mount st. Bernard,
what do we discover? 1t is night, the
church of the Hospice is full of lights,
sacred chants resound under the dome
of the temple; without, the hurricane
is let loose. which bowls and roars as
though it would wrest the editice from
it's foundations. Enter and kneeling
low upon the pavement you will see a
young man of warm heart with
flame kindled in his eyes, and before
him stands priest who thus address
es him. and do you still, my son,
persist in your design? ?" yes; OH
yes, father" Then you swear to
pass your life in this desert place and
to dedicate yourself to the task of
saving the poor wanderers lost in the
mountans?" Yes, father, I swear
it," THE peace of Jesus be with YOU
my child" And the youth rises, radi-
ant with Joy, and, in spite of icy cold
and falling SHOWS, begins his mission,
and if he can save from certain death
some one unfortunate traveller re-
turns to the monastery full of happi-
ness. But one day the avalanche
overtakes him, and the snow, SYM
Dol of the purity of his mind, serves
him as a funeral pail. The young
monk has died to save his fellow crea-
lures.
Ask these heroes what is the source
of their charity and they will answer
you with st. Paul "Caritas Christi ur-
get nos"-The love of Christ con-
straineth us" And this charity, in
the concrete, is due to the presence
among us of the Catholic priest, to
whom Christ has said: GO preach my
doctrine to every creature" He
who hears you hears me, and he who
despiseth you, despiseth me- And,
because OF the promises of Christ to
be with Him in His church even to
the consummation of the world, he
will carry on the work OF God when
the religions of parliaments or of men
will be forgotten; or remembered
only to convince in credulous poster
ity that legislatures have dared to in
wade the prerogatives OF God In at
tempting to dictate what people
should believe.
Furthermore, on the solemn night
before Jesus died, he remembers us
by means of the sweetest testament
which the heart of father could con-
ceive, or a dying mother, conceives
for her children. Il 60" said He to
His apostles, ito die a victim for you,
but | will not leave you Orphans" The
love which makes me die for you will
not permit of separation take
this" which present to you under the
species of bread; it is my body; and
this, which | present to you under
the species of wine; this is my blood.
The sacrifice which | am about to
make upon the cross, you will contin-
ne to the end of ages-"Do this in
commemoration of me-
The first emotion of the heart
makes us wish to remain with those,
whom we love; for this we are ready
to commit even folly and rashness;
for this, we study how to shorten dis
lance And if we feel this need---we
so cold, so selfish and Indifferent how
should not God have felt whose love