THIRD SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY;
OR, THE
TWENTY-FOURTH AFTER PENTECOST.
From Sermons for Every Sunday in the Year by Rev. B. J. Raycroft, A. M.
Published by Fr. Pustet & Co.
Copyright 1900 by Rev. B. J. Raycroft
Amen, I say to you, I have not found so great faith in Israel.
(Math. viii.--io.)
My Dear Friends: Faith is of two kinds: historical or human, and
divine faith. Historical faith rests upon the veracity of the
historian; divine faith centers in the immutable infinite Being, God.
History, in its principal features, must be considered true, although
written by fallible man. About articles of divine faith, there can be
no question, for these are infallible. The historian may err, but God
is truth.
Notwithstanding the fallibility of the historian, you believe the
authentic records of time. This is imperative; because should you
disbelieve history, you have no way of learning the accounts of events
occurring even one century ago. You never saw George Washington, yet
you credit history when it tells you such a man flourished in this
country. Monuments of marble and bronze, which are, indeed, only
history of the past in another form, confirm your belief. A man known
to you for his integrity will tell you of a fact coming under his
observation; and you accept his testimony—you rely upon his veracity.
If you go back over the great avenue of time, down which the human
race has travelled for thousands of years, you question not the notable
events seen on your way. You deny not that Albertus Magnus lived and
became renowned. In France, you behold Napoleon Bonaparte. More
distant, Charlemagne. Soon Cicero and Cesar, with a collection of other
notables, appear upon the arena of national contention, and far beyond,
enveloped by the mists of remote ages, are discerned distinguished
characters as well as important events. To the reality of these you all
give assent; why, then, should any one hesitate to accept the Sacred
Scriptures approved by the Church of God? Are they not at least
deserving of as much fidelity as other historical works? They are, in
part, historical; and therefore no sane person ought to refuse them his
confidence. There are some, nevertheless, who question not the
reliability of Gibbon's Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, but would
reject or doubt the revealed word of God.
If the human race clings to the memory of the past, and anxiously
labors for its preservation, can it consistently despise the Holy
Bible? But whether man despises it, or not, he cannot discard it. On
account of its vast interest to mankind, it is that so many doubts and
difficulties arise. Besides, the blind often lead the blind. A person
may be deeply concerned in perpetuating history; but the human race
will never be so solicitous for the perpetuity of profane history as
that of the sacred. The importance of the latter is as much greater
than the former, as the eternal interests of man are above his
temporal. He may say: " What matters 'it to me whether Philip of
Macedon ever lived, or Thomas Moore was beheaded. It is of no vital
importance to me whether Cesar had never been born, Henry VIII, had
never reigned. But the Scriptures contain an account of God's dealings
with the human race—of His justice and His mercy, of His beneficence
and His love. In these I find the record of man's origin; and from
their contents learn man's destiny. I perceive the condition of things
as they now exist, and it is not of so great concern to me who brought
about these conditions, as the awful thoughts of religion which disturb
my heart while they rack my intellect. Is the Bible reliable? is it
inspired? is it infallible? These are doubts which torture my soul. Is
there nothing upon which I can rest my hope 'for the future?
Nothing which will give tranquility to me now? I am worse off than
the sailor wrecked in mid-ocean, with the stormy billows breaking upon
him. He fears for his temporal safety I am tossed upon the mad sea of
doubt, in dread of the present, and alarmed for the future."
To such a one, a Catholic may reply: “Be composed. Do you not know
of the Catholic Church? Arise; the Bible is inspired, and her
declarations are infallible. She has authority to teach; consider these
teachings together with her claims,--indisputable in their source, in
their nature unchangeable, in every age unerring. So great has been the
faith placed in her, that St. Augustine said: I would not believe the
Scriptures, had not the Church moved me to do so.' “To this the other
answers: "What guaranty have I that your Church is the legitimate
teacher of the human race on matters of religion? Or what security have
I in placing both my temporal and my eternal destiny in her keeping?"
You may say to him: "Friend, the Catholic Church has endured the
storms of persecution for nineteen hundred years. Her own members have
often been rebellious, causing her grief and dividing themselves into
factions. Thrones have decayed, but she still survives. Her doctrines
have withstood the corroding influences of time and the opposition of
the world. Compare her with everything else, and you cannot fail to see
her divine prerogatives. Moreover, in the persons of the apostles, she
was present with Jesus Himself. She witnessed His death on the cross.
She rejoiced in His resurrection. It was to her He declared: I shall send you the Holy Spirit, who shall teach you all things, and I Myself shall abide with thee forever.'
As the Holy Ghost imparts to her all truth, she possesses the doctrine
with which she instructs; and since the Son of God cannot be associated
with the false, it follows that the Church never teaches error. But
Jesus has averred: I Myself shall abide with thee forever.'
Is this not evidence enough to convince you of her divine commission?
No less should you be persuaded to confide your soul to the care of
that Church whose credentials were irrevocably sealed by the Divine
Person, Jesus Christ."
"All this is well," remarks the skeptic. “But, ah, the awful thought
rushes in upon me, is Jesus Christ God? Are all Christians deceived? Am
I only a dupe of blind, relentless fate? Does the faculty called
reason, only act according to some law over which I have no control? Is
vice and virtue only the result of an inborn wickedness or goodness,
predisposing man to evil or good as tyrannical inclinations dictate?
An answer to all these doubts is found in the Gospel of to-day.
Everyone must admit that it required superhuman power to purify the
human system of leprosy; nor was it any ordinary power which healed the
Centurion's servant. In last Sunday's Gospel you learned how Jesus
called forth the Ruler's daughter from death. In the performance of
this miracle, divine power was necessary. Had our Saviour not this
power, He must have received it from heaven. But how could God impart
to Him this power, if Jesus was not His Son. Our Lord said: “I and the
Father are one," thus maintaining His own divinity. Were He an
impostor, could God have favored by His co-operation such infernal
imposition? By such an act, He would favor deception and injustice.
Easier it is to believe that there is no God, than to admit His
existence and at the same time attribute to Him such infamous acts; for
God cannot act contrary to His eternal attributes. Such conduct would
involve a contradiction, and be equal to a denial of God's existence.
But the skeptic is as deficient in his belief in God, as in his
belief of the divinity of Christ; and exclaims: " I know not whether
there is a God or not! Every fiber of my being wryest under the
influence of this terrible condition of my mind! I have thought,
reflected, endeavored to fathom the depths of these hidden mysteries of
Nature, of these human phenomena coming often under my
observation, until I am engulfed in a whirlpool of doubt." Again, he
should find sufficient proof of God's existence in the Gospel to which
I have referred. Divine power was manifested in the performance of
these stupendous works. The skeptic cannot explain them except upon the
admission of the existence of God. He seizes every opportunity to
increase his unbelief, while he blindly bars out every convincing fact
of the supernatural. Were he as studious in the acquisition of proofs
in support of religion as he is assiduous in misconstruing phenomena to
oppose divine faith, he would be happy and content in the consciousness
of God's friendship.
There are, furthermore, many arguments derived from the nature of
things, to demonstrate the existence of God. To consider them to-day
would carry us beyond the scope of a sermon. To one argument, however,
I invite your attention. It is brief, and as cogent as brief. The
skeptic may deny that there is a God. He may deny that the sun is now
shining in the heavens. He may deny that you are now present in this
church. He may even deny his own existence. But when he comes to deny
that he denies, then he admits there is a God; that is when he knows
that an operation is going on in his mind by which he denies the
existence of everything; lie acknowledges that the knowing faculty
exists; and this faculty must be finite or infinite. All things must be
of these two classes or divisions. Now, if the faculty is infinite, he
admits the existence of an infinite something; but an infinite
something is God. If he argues his knowing faculty is finite, he also
admits the infinite; for the finite is always dependent upon some other
being for its existence; and because there are only two classes of
beings: since one is the finite, the other must be the infinite.
My Christian friends, you may be somewhat incredulous in accepting
this presentation of the skeptic's mental state, and consider it only
fanciful. But if any of you have conversed with an honest unbeliever,
you know the views given are no exaggeration. and you know,
too, that to give an accurate description of the workings of his mind
in reference to religion. Approaches close to the impossible. Outside
of the; Catholic Church, everything in religious matters is confused-.
Scarcely does a conversation turn on religion, when doubts are
exchanged, and it is easy to judge from the ensuing discussion, how the
faith of non-Catholics is disturbed. I have often spoken with the
skeptic and agnostic. They were sincere, intelligent men, but had no
faith in revealed truths. They desired to penetrate into the unknown
and in-explainable. Because they could not comprehend some things, they
doubted almost everything. They seemed to be men desirous of acquiring
faith; but their method was one of research beyond their power of
apprehension; instead of prayer, almsgiving, fasting, and a humble
confidence in God. They believed they were greater when they soared,
than when they stooped; and here it was they made their first mistake.
We should rejoice that we are blessed with the inestimable blessing
of faith in God. We ought never to abuse this great gift. You must
always remember, and I must never forget, that faith is a gratuitous
gift from our Heavenly Father. If you misuse this gift, God will
withdraw it from you. You will, then, be like those bad Catholics whose
inflamed tongues breath forth wrath, lies, and venom against that
Church in whose bosom they once found peace and contentment. Pray to
God often, that He may ever preserve in you an ardent faith. Imitate
the Centurion; and when the eternal Ruler will say to you: “As you believe, let it be done accordingly to you,"
may the reward of your faith be heaven!
