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Show nEARING THE WORD OF GOD e Who Is of God, Loveth His Word j Word of God, the Christian's Armor and Joy St. David, St. Paul, St. Jerome, St. ' chrysostom on Word of God Parable of ! the Sower, Its Application by Our Lord-Four Lord-Four Different Hearers of God's Word-Good Word-Good Dispositions, Good Fruit. Jii,. high mass in St. Mary's Cathedral was ; nut l'.y Uov. I). Slattery. At the gospel Father Bivini.'in preached a sermon on the ''Word of God," as lii? text, "Blessed are they who hear the w'rJ of God and keep it." St. Luke, XI Chapter, i Yotm He said in part : i Kvc rv good man, dearly beloved brethren, loves ,is ('(niiiiry. It matters not what vicissitudes of fortune he may experience, where his footsteps may AViin-lfT. there is in his heart ever a warm place for the oil laud. The pood man glories in his country's iriuniphs. he sorrows in his country's defeats. Speak to ihe dermon of the fair Ilhineland, to the Austrian Aus-trian f the blue Danube, to the Spaniard of sunny ! Spain, to the Frenchman of his own beautiful ' Franco, and to the Irishman of the green fields of ! Frin. and at once the light of love beams in their ! res at once the ejaculation rushes to their lips, .My own loved land." Dead, indeed, to every spark of the noble and the true is the heart that prows not warm at the mention of his country's name, and weak, indeed, thr pulse that lxats not quicker and stronger at tlio recital of his country's glories. And yet our country, though we love it and it is right and fit-ling fit-ling ve should is not for us our lasting land. Plan's true country is not found on earth. No, no, far beyond the bounds of earth man's true country lies, and it is lighted up by the Eternal Glory of Cod. The true man glories in the history of his country coun-try and its heroes. The true Christian man glories in hi (iod, and in the recital of that truth and that justice which place his eternal inheritance in his hands. "He that is of God heareth the words of ComI." Yes. yes, he that is of God and of that country coun-try lighted up with the glory of God ever gladly listens to the voice of God telling men to tread ever onward and ever upward to the land where there i- eternal day. To attain that heavenly land there are many difficulties to be overcome, many irials. many mortifications to be undergone", many temptations 1o be conquered, but the Christian man staggers not. At the bottom of the steep hills he hears the voice of God speaking through the Church. "Armed with faith and hope and charity, climb up, (lo.J is with you." When the thorny paths lie in the way and the thorns of the way pierce the very heart, the voice of God rings out clear and strong through the Church. ''Christ bore the Cross, take tip thy Cross and follow Him." When unholy nu n rush out from the byways and whisper to the Christian. "Stay with us. eat and drink and make merry, the voice of God bids the Christian linger , not. "The fruit of sin is everlasting death." When false sage and false philosopher shout from the little lit-tle hills of their own pride and conceit, '"Christian, thither climbest thou? After death there is no more iff.. a! (;(,, j oniv a mvth," the Christian man shouts out his credo, for docs not the voice of b'd n aeh him strong as the eternal hills? "I am tho Ke-urreetion and the life, he who believeth in Me. although he be dead, shall live, and everyone who liveth and believeth in Me shall not taste death iin'v !."" To the Christian the voice, the word of I. his stay, his hope, and the glad tidings con-cori'.iiig con-cori'.iiig ihat eternal kingdom and the means to ar-nve ar-nve there his consolation and his joy, "He that is oi Cod heareth the word of God." s the root is tiie principle of life to the tree ed its branches, so souls receive in the hearing of no word of God that spiritual nourishment whereby where-by they are strengthened against the assaults of t uo evil one. maintained in the paths of virtue, and impelled in all their ways and days to seek the hap-p:n hap-p:n s which is eternal. David likens the word of Cod t,, a bright light which shines in the darkness, pi! tiling us amidst the dangers that surround us, so t.iat wo may not stumble or wander away from the "'ay that leads to heaven. '"Thy word is a lamp to y Toot, and a light to my paths." Enlightened by '. 1 havei resolved never to be unfaithful to thy ''" "1 have sworn and am determined to keep the '- ments of thy justice." sc Paul likens it to a two-edged sword which ' .!' pu ree ibe heart of the most obdurate sinner wishes to hear it, and impels him to rise up jH night of his iniquity and seek the day 'h w of Cod. "The word of God is living and 'ml. and more piercing than any two-edged w'v"fd and reaching into the division of soul and j-irit." . .Jerome calls it the shield by which Chris-; Chris-; Can who hear it well, defend themselves from the vaults of devil and of man, and St. John Chrysos-I Chrysos-I em . the silver-tongued, likens it to those beautiful April showers that fall so gently and softly, making lture glad. It falls and moistens the heart, bring-. J-ig forth m that heart the verdure, the flowers of yd i es, yes, iti the words of the Psalmist, the "rd of Cod is the thunder that makes all tremble. storm wind that blends and breaks the cedars of -'banou. that is proud and obstinate spirits, a light i .iiit disjK Is the darkness of ignorance and a remedy that cures sin. We ,,Kn tlfl ciph(h ciiapt(ir of Sfi Luke an( wp mi this narrative about the Great Master. It was e occasion on which lie spoke to the multitude 1 arable of the Sower. The Sower, He' told ! Ho multitude, went out to sow seed and some fell the wayside, and it was trodden down and the j owls n tho air devoured it. Other some fell upon '' rock, and it withered away because it had no Jnoisture. Other some fell among thorns and the thorns growing up with it choked it. Other some KM upon good ground and being sprung up, yielded 3 nut a hundred-fold. Saying these things the Gospel narrative tells us, Christ cried ouL "Ha that hath ears to hear, let him hear." Why did Christ cry out? It was to show the multitude and the Christians of all time the importance, the necessity neces-sity of the doctrine which was contained in the parable. The seed, Christ went on to explain, was the word of God, and the ground upon which it fell portrays the state, the dispositions of those who hear it. There are four classes of hearers of the word of God, and in every congregation throughout through-out the world those four classes are to be found. The seed falling upon the highway represents the first class. They come to hear the word of God, but distracting thoughts sweep that word out, there is not in their souls that religious fervour which urges men on to seek above all things the kingdom of God and His justice. The Word of God is dry and insipid to such, and it falls on their souls as the seed on the roadside never to bear any fruit. The second class of hearers are those who are hardened by prejudices or repeated crimes. They are the intellectually proud who hear the word of God only to criticise it. They sit on judgment on the preacher, his maimer and his diction, and the humility reverence and attention which characterize character-ize the devout hearer of the Word of God are altogether alto-gether absent from their lives. In this class, too, are included those hardened sinners whose conscience con-science is totally dead to the evil of sin and its punishments, pun-ishments, and who in the words of the Psalmist drink in iniquity like water. This class of hearers of the Word of God are like the rocks, and the Word of God produces no more effect upon their souls than the seed upon granite or cement. The third class of hearers are those who regularly regu-larly attend the House of God and listen with rapt attention and the proper reverence to God's Word. They admit that the truths set forth by the preacher preach-er regarding the importance of salvation are strictly strict-ly true, and oftentimes urged on by these convictions, convic-tions, they make an effort to reform the evil of their ways, to rise to the justice, the peace of God, but alas, this good impulse is only for the moment, the words of salvation take not deep root in their hearts, they are drowned by the cares, the riches, the pleasures of life. In the words of the Gospel, ''they have bought a farm and they must go see it, they have a yoke of oxen and they must try them, they have married a Wife and they cannot come." Oh, Word of God ! hold me excused. It is the summer sum-mer of life for me now and I must enjoy it, but ere the winter of old age comes I will quit the gay whirl of society, I will not worry myself any more with the world and its transitory things. I will turn to my God. "And other some fell among thorns, and the thorns growing up with it choked it." This class of men are like those spoken of by St. James. ''They look into the mirror, and having looked go away, and presently forget what manner of man they were." The fourth class of hearers are they who in the words of the Gospel hear the word of God in a good and perfect heart, keep that word and bring forth fruit in patience. They are both the hearers of the word and the doers of it. They have a yearning yearn-ing for their God and their heavenly country, and their hearts are full of joy and gladness and peace when the truth and justice and love of God are spoken spo-ken about and the way to reach God, the sum of all their ambitions, the end cf all their hopes is pointed out. The Word of God is their shield and buckler in the hour of temptation. It is the light which shines out through the darkness of this world's night, leading the way home to God. A few short days ago all eyes were directed towards to-wards England, and men were wondering how the political struggle would end there. The king's speech from the throne will throw a light upon things and show us what the government intends doing. The speech from the throne was read and the report of it flashed to all the quarters of the earth. Ah, how anxious men are about the destinies desti-nies of countries and about those decrees and laws that make for their amelioration, and how they read with avidity the pronouncements of leading statesmen. There is another King's speech, another speech irom the inrone, and it treats not about earthly kingdoms and earthly laws. It is written not by human ruler, and for every race and age and clime is of eternal importance. We hear that speech often, we read it often. It is the mandate of the Great God to His creature man, that mandate which embodies everlasting love and peace and rest for all who follow its injunctions and everlasting sorrow, everlasting despair for those who refuse. ' It is the General's tent, and before the General stands a soldier booted and spurred. The General hands the soldier a dispatch, saying curtly as he does so: "Bear these dispatches to the commandant. command-ant. His tent lies a hundred miles away. Your journey will be a perilous one, for the country between be-tween here and his quarters is infested by the enemy. en-emy. These dispatches are important, but you are a soldier and I trust you." ' The soldier receives the dispatches, salutes his commander and is gone. A horse's hoofs are heard on the highway. Like a flash the rider passes. Bullets Bul-lets whistle by the rider's head and he heeds them not. Steep hills and foaming rivers stop him not. Beneath him lie the cities with their bright lights, their gay and feasting balls, and he sees them not. Stay there, no; the soldier's brows are knitted, the spurs are driven, deep into the horse's flanks, before be-fore him lie's the commandant's quarters and for him he carries dispatches and he is a soldier. It is the tent of the Catholic Church, and our great Mother hands us her soldiers, dispatches; these dispatches are the Word of God, and while she gives them she says to us, proudly and bravely and strongly: "Carry these to the Great Commander. Com-mander. On the way you will have difficulties to surmount, enemies to encounter, but you will fail not, falter not." And the soldier of Christ places the dispatches, the Word of God in his breast, and spurs past the glare of cities and their sin. the ambush am-bush and the bullet of the devil and his followers, on and on to the Great Comamnder's tent, for he is a soldier and carries the dispatches of the Christ. |