Evening journal., 1909-12-20
MISSION ENDS
AT CATHEDRAL
Fathers Elliott and O'Keefe
Concluded TwO-WeekS' Special
Services Last Night

The two-weeka' mission conducted at
the Cathedral by Paulist Fathers, ended
last night The late mass yesterday
morning Nas sung by Vicar-General
Lyons, ana Father Elliott preached on the
doctrine Of purgatory. lie said in part
"Ail know that there is a middle state
Of souls in this life; there are the per-
fectiy good, the utterly bad and great
mass Of men and women in the middle
state, who are the imperfect; not enemies
of God, but lukewarm friends. Now as
these three classes gradually pass the line
OF death what becomes OF them? The
small number OF perfect Christians go TO
heaven. the utterly bad go to hell. and the
third class they do not go TO heaven, for
nothing dehled shall enter heaven
Neither will God condemn a friend, luke
warm though he be, to hell. SO he goes
TO a place OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
At o'clock in the afternoon the So
dality OF the Blessed Virgin held recep-
ton in the Cathedral. Bishop Monaghan
presided. Eighteen new members were adj
mitted. The Rev. Henry OKeefe address,
ed the sodality upon the Dignity Of Wo-
man"
Solemn benedction Of the blessed sacra-
ment closed the service. Bishop Monaghan
was celebrant. assisted by the Very. Rev.
Father Lyons. Father Dougherty and
Father oKeefe.
At the s o'clock service Father Elliott
said farewell. and I'm doing so thanked
the press OF the city He said that the
Wilmington newspapers are filling their
vocation. Al all the services yesterday
the missionaries thanked the papers for
reporting the mission for those unable to
attend.
In closing the non-Catholic mission last
evening Father Elliott enumerated some
Of the reasons why he Is a Catholic:
because the Catholic or Universal
Church is Gods society on earth.
Because the church gives me God in
my interior life; It gives me an overmas-
tering consciousness OF God and makes
God supreme In my life.
'It gives me God in an inward light
guarantees my inward convictions. ex-
cludes fanaticism arouses mental slug
gishness and Is a criterion OF the validity
Of my personal faith Hence ST. Paul calls
e. The church Of tho living God. the
pillar and ground Of truth Tho unity OF
tho belief and the certainty OF it 10 why
am Catholic.
Because the Catholic Church conquers
my rebeilious passions II Is the sinners
church. the world-renowned school OF re-
pentance. The church humbles me I'm my
proudost moments to the sovereign ma
| iesty OF God. II was TO her minister Of re-
Cancellation that God first said; Whose
sins you shall forgive they are forgiven
them: whose sins you shall retain they
are retained. This has made tho con-
sciousness Of sin perfect by necessitating
confession IL has elevated the office OF
/ friendship to the divine uses of a sacra-
ment and has given us method and a
process for the externalizng Of our inner
sorrow for sin. thus developing It as a
plant is developed by removal to the open
sunlight Confession OF sin and absolu-
ton from It's guilt is, practically, and for
the common run Of humanity, a most con-
elusive argument for the church's divine
institution Therefore. because the Cath
olic Church RENTS or forgives sin.
After sin is remitted our souls Ions
to go deeper into union with God Now
union with God Is exclusively through the
man-God, Jesus Christ"