The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-04-25


punishments, and at last, by a com
plete washing away of his guilt, to
render him happy, and to give him
back, pure and cleansed, the tablet oil
his manhood Thus prepared, and
purely set at rest by several sacra
mental acts, which on closer examina
ton branch forth again into minuteI
sacramento traits, he kneels down to
receive the host; and, that the mys
terry of this high act may be still en-
HANGED, he sees the chalice only in
the distance: it is no common eating
and drinking that satisfies, it is a
heavenly feast, which makes him thirst
after heavenly drink.
Yet let not the youth believe that
this is all he has to do: let not even
the man believe it. In earthly rela-
tons we are at last accustomed to de
pend on ourselves; and, even there,
knowledge, understanding, and char.
acter will not always suffice; in heav.
emily things, on the contrary, we have
never finished learning. The feeling
within us, which often finds itself not
even truly at home, is, besides, op.
pressed by so much from without, that
our own power hardly administers all
| that is necessary for counsel, consola-
ton, and help. But, to this end, that
remedy is instituted for our whole
life; and an intelligent, pious man is
continually waiting to show the right
way to the wanderers, and to relieve
| the distressed
And what has been so we'll tried
through the whole life, is now to show
forth all it's healing power with ten.
| fold activity at the gate of death. Ac-
cording to a trustful custom, incul
Gated from youth upwards, the dying
man receives with fervor those sym
bolical, significant assurances; and
there, where every earthly warranty
fails, he is assured, by heavenly one
of blessed existence for all eternity
He feels perfectly convinced that
neither hostile element nor malig
nant spirit can hinder him from cloth
ing himself with glorified body, sc
that, in immediate relation with the
Godhead, he may partake of the bound
less happiness which flows forth from
Him.
Then, in conclusion, that the whole
man may be made holy, the feet also
are anointed and blessed. They are
to feel, even in the event of possible
recovery, repugnance to touching this
earthly, hard, impentrable soil. A
wonderful elasticity is to be impaired
to them, by which they spurn from
under them the clod of earth which
hitherto attracted them. And so
through a brilliant cycle of equally
holy acts, the beauty Of which we have
only briefly limited at, the cradle anC
the grave, however far asunder the!
may chance to be, are joined in one
continuous circle.
But all these spiritual wonders
spring not, like other fruits, from thu
natural soil, where they can neithe
be sown nor planted nor cherished
We must supplicate for them from an
other region,-a thing which cannot b.
done by all persons nor at all times
Here we meet the highest of thest
symbols, derived from pious tradition
We are told that one man may b.
more favored, blessed, and sanctifiet
from above than another. But, tina
this may not appear as natural gift
this great boon, bound up with +;
heavy duty, must be communicated t,
others by one authorized person tt
another; and the greatest good tina
a man can attain, without his havin
to obtain it by his own wrestling o
grasping, must be preserved and pei
petuated on earth by spiritual inherit
} ance. In the very ordination of tn
priest is comprehended all that i
necessary for the effectual solemniz
! ing of those holy acts by which tn
multitude receive grace, without an
J other activity being needful on thei
: part than that of faith and implied
confidence. And thus the priest join
: the line of his predecessors and SUI
cessors, in the circle of those anointe
} with him, representing the highes
source of blessings, so much the NOR
gloriously, as it is not the priest, whor
: we reverence, but his office; it is nc
his nod to which we bow the knee
but the blessing which he imparts, an
! which seems the more holy, and t
: come more Immediately from HEAVIER
: because the earthly instrument canno
7 at all weaken or invalidate it by it
, own sinful, nay, wicked nature.
} How is this truly spiritual connet
r ton shattered to pieces in Protestan
4 ism, by part of the aboYe-mentione
} symbols being declared apocrypha
, and only a few canonical! and how
3 by their Indifference to one of thest
5 will they prepare us for the high di,
. nifty of the others?