The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1911-10-07
Continued frompage
THE HOLY EUCHARIST.

number which might be adduced to
show that the early Christians sur
rounded the Holy Eucharist with the
best external marks of honor at their
command, but let the foregoing suf-
fee.
In the Middle Ages.
AS our minds sweep over the mid
die ages and as we view the thou
sands of stately Cathedrals, great
churches and gorgeous chapels in
every land of Christendom, those arch
itectural monuments with which Cath
olicity crowned the earth as with a
diadem of richest gems, we cannot but
be impressed with the luminous fact
that our forefathers deemed it their
highest privilege to be allowed to er-
ect beautiful houses of God and to
adorn them with the choicest gifts
of the visible creation and with the
noblest productions of human genius
The evidences of their zeal in the
construction, decoration, and multi
plication of cathedrals, churches and
chapels are legion No other work
was so popular with all classes OF
society as the erection of house of
God
All the people from the lowest to
the highest were deeply interested in
building, identifying and enrichlng
the "tabernacles of God with man"
Titled personages and kings and
queens We'd with one another in max
ing Gods sanctuaries brilliant with
their richest gifts.
Uppermost in the minds of all the
faithful was the query, what can we
render to the Lord that is worthy
of Him? and magnanimously did they
answer it by rearing in His honor
those countless, wonderful fanes which
were superior to all other contempor-
airy structures in beauty, majestic pro-
portions and wealth of splendors.
All from the great minister's and
Cathedral churches down to the poor
est little village sanctuary were in
those days simply overlooking with
wealth and objects of beauty which
loving hands had gathered together
to adorn Gods house and to make it
the best and brightest spot in their
little world and so far as their means
would allow the very pride of their
hearts" (Gasquet: The Eve of the
Reformation. p. 1922.
Who does not stand in admiration
of those artistic triumphs of other
lands and of other ages, which still
today, after centuries of pillage and of
spoilation, are unsurpassed? If they
are still the wonder and delight of
human genius, though in some cases
disfgured and despoiled of many of
their glories, what must they have
been when they came from the hands
of their master-builders and beauti-
f1ers!
The Explanation of Their Zeal.
AS this edifying panorama rises be-
fore us out of a glorious past we ma
turally ask the cause of it. What
was the secret of their enthusiasm?
What was the source of their zeal?
What was the controlling motive of
their willingness to make such sacri-
fees for the beauty of Gods house?
Say that it was a popular expression
of love for religion and particularly
for the Holy Eucharist that produced
those monuments and you give the
answer.
What was the rationale of their
beautiful churches? If you seek the
reason why they built their houses of
God so magnifcently and adorned them
so richly, my answer is that their in
spiration came prominently from the
Holy Eucharist Was there any other
influence powerful enough to bid those
medieval churches lift their wonder
full domes and mighty arches and
graceful spires into the skies as if to
bear the homage of earth to the zone
that stitch upon the throne" in heav-
en-? Emphatically no.
The Church, the Home of the Blessed
Sacrament.
Though churches had other purpos-
es then as now they were above all
else homes of the Blessed Sacrament.
They we're built" wrote the Vener-
able Bede in the Eighth Century, "as
houses of prayer where the Body of
the Lord is consecrated and where as
we cannot doubt the angels are ever
present, since, where the mysteries
of the Lords Body and Blood are
wrought we cannot but believe that
there are the hosts of heaven" That
was the idea The church was a ter
restrial heaven.
Penetrated through and through
with loving reverence for the Real
Presence; realizing wildly the near
ness to them of their Incarnate God;
and feeling strongly that the best
they could offer Him would be but
the least unworthy of Him, they gen.
erously devoted to His service the
most beautiful, the most precious, the
best things they possessed in nature