The Waterbury Democrat., 1933-04-24

tial, and in the teaching or them is there not often mixture of error? Do not the history of mankind and our own observation show that at it's best, the teaching of thurths that are only of the natural order
 is not sufficient to satisfy the in- tellect of man and to guide him
 aright, in his moral and religious life?
 Greater than the mysteries of the material universe are the mys- teries of God which He Himself
 has revealed, and in the revelation of which there can be no shadow of error, no denying or contradict ing, or lessening of the truths of the natural order. The truths of this revelation upon the lips of the priest, for he is Christ's ambassa-
 dor of truth, charged by Him to go and teach all things whatso- ever He has commanded.
 "For we'll night 2,000 years, the priest has attended unto the doc-
 Urine of the Master; in season and out of season he has been instant
 in dispensing the mystery of eternal and infinite truth that above and beyond this universe, but yet prevailing and sustaining 1t | by the continuance of His creative act, there is a God, one in nature, yet three is pensons; that He made
 man to His own image and like
 ness, endowing Him with intelli-
 gence and freedom of will and destined him to immortality; that He gave to him laws of conduct having a divine sanction in the | ne ,.1c ic1, t,oa ant
 to be received when this life is
 over; that to redeem mankind, fallen from It's state of original jus
 tice, He sent His divine son, the
 second person of the Blessed Trin-
 ity, co-equal with Him, the
 splendor of His justice. and the
 brightness of His glory; that the
 eternal Son of God. having taken
 our human nature to Himself was
 born in the time of virgin and
 lived among men three. and 30 years, that He died for us upon Q
 cross and was buried; that He rose
 from the tomb and ascended to
 take his place beside the Heavenly
 Father whence He will come to
 judge the world; that He estab-
 lished 8 visible but spiritual king
 dom on earth which shall finally be merged into the Heavenly Jeru- salem,' the blessed vision of peace,
 built of living stones. and circlcd
 round with a thousand angels; that
 his self imm olation for the sins of mankind is daily renewed upon the altars of this kingdom; that He survives in it by sacramental
 presence, and guides it through a
 vicar clothed with His authority and endowed by the Holy Spirit
 with infallibility in faith and
 morals; that in this. Kingdom there
 is heavenly banquet table to which all may come from the
 East and the West to partake of divine nourishment; that in the kingdom there is a perennial fount- ain from which through seven sacraments instituted by Him there flow as through seven channels, the waters of eternal life of, which he who will dispose himself may come and drink.
 These mystic waters are that great gift of God of which the merciful Jesus spoke to the sinful woman as they stood by the well in Samaria. They are that mys- terious divine quality by which the sinner is justified and sanctified, | by which he lives a supernatural life of faith, hope and charity, by which he is able to practice in the highest, even in 0 heroic degree | the virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, and f6rtitude, in all their varied and beautiful forms. stow this gift of grace where and | x,,h Ia tt ig v1o t.iIx pensed by Christ's minister of re- conciliation. Only to him have | been addressed the astounding | words of the savior, Whose sins | you shall forgive they are for given them; whose sins you shall | retain they are retained
 "Only to him, as to Christ's | representative on earth, does sin burdened man turn to receive an assurance of divine pardon. Only into his ear does the penitent | breathe an humble confession of | his sins. Only from his does he hear a pronouncement of absolu- ton that is ratified in that same | instant by the eternal high priest | in Heaven. Only from him does he thereupon hear the consoling | words of the loving savior bidding | him to go in peace.
 70 the dignity and the power of the Christian priesthood! Was 1t too much to say that the priest | is another Christ. And if this is true of the simple priest is 1t not much more true of Him who has received the fullness of the priest hood? Of him by whom the priest hood Is perpetuated?
 "To the apostles. Christ said. All power is given to me in Heaven ana on earth Receive ye the Holy | Ghost. As the Father hath sent | men, I also send you I will not ! cali you servants. but have called fl you friends; because all things whatsoever have heard of My '