The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-02-07
SERMON SUBJECTS
OUTLINE OF SERMONS FOR FEB
RUARY FOR THE PRIESTS OF
THE ARCHDIOCESE OF ST. PAUL.

THE ARCHDIOCESE OF ST. PAUL
The Most Reverend Archbishop has
prescribed the following subjects for
sermons in the Churches of the Arch.
diocese of St. Paul on three Sundays
of the month of February.
/ |. The Remission of Sin.
(a) The most important, the most
practical question for each one of us
is-Are our sins to be forgiven, and
! through what means and conditions
We are sinners-consequent under
the ban of divine justice. Unless God
be merciful, and means are near by,
through which His just anger may be
averted, we are without hope in time
and in eternity.
(b) Yes, God is merciful- Because
with the Lord there is mercy, and
with Him plentiful redemption" The
purpose of the Incarnation of the Eter-
nal Word, was that pardon be given
| to the sinner-'For God sent not His
Son into the world to judge the world,
but that the world may be saved by
Him.
(c) The means through which sin
is forgiven are the merits of the In
| carnate Word acquired through His
sufferings and death. For there is
no other name (than that of Jesus)
given to men whereby we must be
saved" Only the merits of the In
carnate God could have satisfied fully
the justice of God for the offense Of
fered to Him by sin. Jesus, and Jesus
only, is the Saviour, the Redeemer,
in Whom and through Whom we may
be saved.
Cd Conditions required on our
part. The Saviour will not save us, in
spite of ourselves, or without our
selves. We are living, free beings: we
must cooperate with the Saviour by
doing what is in us to be worthy of
His Grace, by complying with the con-
ditions required in the nature of
things and the ordinances established
by the divine will. What those condi.
| L1OIS c1S l1S O1u1 O11 IC1S1OO. "
to learn what the Church does teach
as to the conditions upon which our
sins may be RENTED.
II. The Sacrament of Penance.
(a) The Sacrament of Penance is
the Sacrament instituted by Jesus
! Christ, through which sins committed
after baptism are forgiven. Each part
of the definition to be explained. The
name, penance, derives from the CHIEF
act required in a fruitful reception OF
the Sacrament-sorrow for sin, con
version from wrong-doing to a full
sense of duty to God.
(b) The institution of the Sacra
ment of Penance: "And he said tc
them (the Apostles) receive We the
Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall
forgive, they are forgiven; and whose
sins We shall retain they are retained
Jesus is the Saviour, having meriteG
| by His sufferings and death the re
mission of the sins of men. AS con
sequence, He is the dispenser of His
merits: to Him to mark the conditions
upon which those merits were to be
applied to souls: to us to comply with
those conditions, if we desire that oul
sins be forgiven.
(c) The ordinary means, estab
lished by the Saviour through which
the grant of remission is to be made
we find in the ministry of the Apos
ties, and of their successors, the
priests of the Church. Of themselves
priests are powerless in the dispens
ing of Divine graces; but, through the
Saviour's appointment, they are made
His agents, invested for this specia
purpose, with His authority, His pow
err What they do, within the limita
lions of their commission, He ratifies
what they do, He does.
(d) Why the employ of a human
agency as the ordinary means for the
remission of sin? 1t is for our sake
to bring the Redeemer nearer to us
to have Him, as it we're, speak fmme
diately to us, and help us to realize
the more surely in our hearts the
feelings of humility, love, and sorrow
necessary that our souls be fit to re
ceive the coveted grace of forgive
ness. All this will be explained more
fully, when we treat on the confession
of sins to the priest, as required In
the words of the institution of the
Sacrament of Penance.
Our duty is that of gratitude to the
Saviour and of joyful compliance with
the provisions made by Him for the
remission of our sins.
III. The First Part of the Sacrament
of Characterization.
(a) AS the Catechism defines, con
triton is a sorrow for sin, hatred Of
sin, a true grief of the soul for hav
ing offended God, with firm purpose
of SHINING no more Literally the
word contrition means broken
broken-hearted because of our intense
sorrow.
(b) The absolute necessity of con
triton that sin be forgiven. Never
in no case whatever, is sin forgiven
unless there is sorrow for it. Sin il
the turning away from God, the Civ
ing of self to what God forbids in
preference to what God demands. Sc
long as the soul is in such attitude
towards God, it is repugnant to the
divine attributes that sin be forgiven
To F0r~iuo Gin uIni1a Tho a0111 ram Tc