Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1915-04-05

Bishop John j. O'Connor, head OF
the Newark Catholic diocese. ex-
pounded the significance of the cele-
bration of Easter by the Roman
Catholic Church before a congrega-
ton that thronged St. Patrick's Ca
thedral yesterday morning, saying
vinity of Christ and made clear the
duty of man to adore Him and be
submissive to His teachings.
Monsignor Isaac P. Whelan, rector
of the Cathedral, was arch-priest at
the solemn high mass at which the
bishop preached, with seminarians
from the Seminary of the Immacu-
late Conception acting as deacons
and sub-deacons, and Rev. Charles
A. Smith, chancellor of the diocese,
master of ceremonies. In the eye
ring Bishop O'Connor sang pontifcal
espers, assisted by the priests of the
Cathedral parish.
The edifice, which was thronged at
all the services, was profusely dec
Grated with lilies and cut flowers, and
elaborate programs of special music
were rendered both at the II o'clock
lass and at the vesper service oy
The choir, under the direction OF An
nor's sermon was In part:
"One of the most profoundly Sig
nificant events in the history OF the
lgorld was the resurrection Of Christ
fom the grave on the third day after
His crucifixion and death on the cross.
tt was the crowning act in the series
og incidents which God had designed
for the redemption of mankind. God
SO loved the world that He sent His
only begotten Son to save It that all
who would believe in Him might not
perish, but might find life everlast-
ing The birth of the only begotten
Son of God was accomplished by
miraculous interventions. His life
was replete with actions SURPRISING
al the powers of created nature and
Enthusiastically proceeding from a su-
pernatural source He appealed to
lis works as a proof of His asser-
ton that He was the divine and eter-
nal Son of God.
"But there was one fact to which
He referred as containing In itself
a complete and incontestable vindica-
ton of His claims, and that fact was
that az His death He would rise
again lphant over death and the
grave. i due time His prediction
was fulfilled. He died in agony on
the cross; He arose in glory from the
tomb. The human soul and body
which death had separated from each
other, though not from His divinity,
were reunited in the perfection of
glorified human nature. He was the
same Christ after His resurrection as
before. His divine personality and
His divine and human natures re-
mained the same as they were when
He was undergoing the humiliation
of His passion and death. But His
glory, which had previously been con-
cealed. was now made manifest. And
the truth was established beyond the
possibility of doubt that He who had
suffered on the cross was indeed the
eternal Son of God. Other prophecies
had been fulfilled and other miracles
had been wrought in confirmation of
that truth. But In His glorious resur-
rection Christ summarized, as 1t were,
and made resplendent in the eyes of
all mankind the evidences OF His
divinity and the proofs of His divine
right to the homage and obedience
of the whole human race.
Festival Of Divinity.
"rhe feast of Easter therefore is
HI a special manner the festival Of
Ehrists divinity. 1t is an occasion
of rejoicing at the triumph Of our
divine Lord over the forces of sin and
he'll. It commentaries the completion
OF the work of our redemption. It
affords US assurance that the sacri-
fee offered on Calvary was OF infinite
value. 1t emphasizes the magnitude
Of the debt of gratitude we owe to our
Saviour for the inexpressible con-
descension and goodness implied in
the fact that He Who had undergone
suffering and death for us and for
our salvation was none other than
the true and infinite Son of God.
''It is right that we should honor
Christ in His sacred humanity and
venerate the attributes and, charac-
teristics which distinguished Him as
man. The human qualities of Christ
elicit the admiration of mankind and
draw the hearts of men to Him by the
bonds of tenderest love and affection.
such is the tribute paid to Him even
by those whose minds have never
been illumined by the light of super
natural faith.
-''But the feast Of His resurrection
reminds us that such tribute.
though pre- emlnently deserved by
Him, falls infinitely short of Che ur-'
qualified homage of alteration and
submission due to Him as the Eternal
Son of God. Unless we look beyond
the human attributes of Christ and
behold in Him the divine attributes
of the Godhead we do not know Him
as He Is, we do not adore Him in