Sermon XVI. The Clergy The Teachers Of The People, (For The Seventh Sunday After Pentecost.)

St. Matt. vii. 15. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves."

By the word prophet is meant a teacher or leader of the people; any one who sets himself up, or is commissioned by those in authority, as an expounder of the sense of the Scriptures, or of the principles of morality or of religion, so as to lead others to adopt his opinions, and act according to his directions.

The office of prophet, or teacher, is the most important of all in human society. For, if we are rightly taught and follow the teaching, everything goes on harmoniously, and conduces to the best result; the greatest amount of substantial happiness in this world, and the securing of our immortal destiny in heaven. If we are wrongly taught, our great blessings are turned into curses, and our lives are failures, both for this world and the next.

And our Lord Jesus Christ took especial pains to provide for this great need of ours. He selected His twelve Apostles, kept them with Himself during all the time of His public ministry, instructed them by word and example, and sent them out to teach with this full and explicit commission, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world." [Footnote 94]

If we desire to know them who are the true prophets, we have the means of finding out: they are the lawful successors of the Apostles, the priesthood of the Holy Church. And, on the other hand, we have the means of determining who are the false prophets or teachers: all those who are in opposition to this lawful body of teachers, commissioned by God Himself to teach us.

The priesthood of the Holy Church, then, are our teachers in the principles and practice of religion, and of morality, which is embraced in religion. They are the ones to teach us our duty, in all respects, as individuals, and as members of society; our duties to ourselves, to our fellow-men, to our families, to the government or state in which we live, as well as to God.

This is what many people do not seem to understand. They say, Let the clergy confine themselves to their own sphere, to the teaching of religion, and let other things alone. Why should they meddle with questions of politics or government? Why should they interfere with private or family affairs? Why should they say anything about a man's business, or try to interfere with his personal liberty to do this or that? Now, whence do these objections arise? From the mistaken notion that religion deals exclusively with the relations of the individual to his God, and has nothing to do with society or government; that there is divorce between politics and religion; that the law of God is separable from human laws.

Nothing can be more untrue than this idea. The divine law is the rule according to which all human laws must be conformed. These laws derive all their authority and sanction from the divine will. Religion cannot be divorced from politics, from government, from legislature, from the family, from business, or from any of the affairs of life. Wherever a moral question is involved in politics, there religion is involved. Every Christian is bound to carry the law of Christ into his politics. Every voter is bound to vote for those who sustain this divine law, and never for the opponents of it; and every legislator is bound not to make any law which is in opposition to it.

And the authorized teachers of the divine law are the ones to expound what the law is, and to lay down the duty of each one in reference to it. They are to teach, and to insist upon the observance of what Christ has taught them: in the state, the duty of obedience to the civil authority, and the wickedness of resisting it, in the lawful exercise of its power;—in the family, the sacredness of the marriage-tie, in spite of any human laws contrary to God's law, and the obligation of the religious education of children;—to the individual, the sin of unlawful or immoral combinations, and many other things which will readily suggest themselves to any one who will reflect.

Those, then, who try to depreciate the influence of the clergy, and to bring their teaching into contempt, or to set themselves up as independent judges of the morality and right of all questions relating to politics and society, are false prophets, boasting of their liberty, appealing to pride, worshipping themselves in place of God, and flattering the passions of others. They are ravening wolves, destroying the spirit of religion and the souls of men, and leading their victims to anarchy, riot, and bloodshed.

Do not misapprehend my meaning. I do not mean that the clergy should come down into the arena of party politics to advocate the claims of this or that candidate for office, or convert the Church into a political debating-room. Thank God, they have a better idea of their sacred office than that. But where the duties of the individual or the general interests of religion are involved, they are bound to speak out, and they should be listened to as the ambassadors of God.

"Let the clergy mind their own business," is sometimes said. Well, and what is the business of the clergy? It is to seek the salvation of souls. It is to keep the people, as far as possible, from any violation of the commandments of God; from the commission of sin, which leads to the destruction of souls. If they can foresee that this or that course of action will involve their people in sin, they are bound, disregarding all self-interest or any worldly consideration, to raise their voice in protest against it. If the people rush into any unlawful combination, which, perhaps, involves loss of property or loss of life, or, at any rate, is sinful and tends to the destruction of the soul, then, whether the thing is popular or not, they are bound, as far as they can, to set their face against this evil, and warn the people to keep from it.

If they do not do this, then they do not "mind their own business." They are no better than the "hirelings who flee when the wolf cometh."

But why are the clergy especially fitted to exercise this office of prophet or teacher? Because, in the first place, they are, as a class, men of education and thought. They have withdrawn from other pursuits, and passed many years in study. They have had particularly to study questions relating to morality; of right and wrong; of the meaning of the law of God, and are better fitted than any other class of men to give decisions on such questions.

This is reason enough why the mass of the people, who have not the time, the freedom from other occupations, the books, or the habit of reasoning correctly, should defer with great respect to the opinion of the clergy on any important question. It argues a great want of humility—an antichristian and unreasonable pride, when their opinion is treated with contempt and brought into ridicule.

In the second place, they are disinterested parties, and are able to decide, for the most part, free from prejudice. The only prejudice they can have is, that God's law be observed and His honor vindicated. They are a body of men independent, free from family ties, and cares, and obligations; freed in an unusual degree from what prejudices other men—the desire of heaping up wealth. In short, they have every inducement to love right and hate wrong.

Thirdly, they are the fathers of their people. Having no wives or children of their own, the people are their children. The term "father" by which they are addressed is a true expression of the feeling which the people have towards them, because they have a truly parental affection for them. That priest must be a monster who does not love his people, as a general thing so devoted and affectionate to him. Our Saviour says, "The good shepherd will lay down his life for his sheep." The Catholic people are the flock of the priest; it is his business and his happiness to look out for their interests; to advise them and warn them of dangers; to go after them and bring them back when they go astray; and it is only natural for them to look up to him for advice, for counsel in doubt, for consolation in trouble. There is no sweeter or more beautiful tie than that which binds the priest and people together.

But lastly, and above all, the priest is the representative and agent of Jesus Christ. This last reason includes and carries with it all the others; they all grow out of it. Hear what St. Paul says: "And some he gave to be apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and others pastors and teachers. For the perfection of the saints, for the edification of the body of Christ." [Footnote 95] All that relates to the building up or edification of the faithful belongs to their sacred office. In the direction of St. Paul to Titus, he tells him: "Admonish them to be subject to princes and powers, to obey at a word, to be ready to every good work." [Footnote 96] And again: "These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee." [Footnote 97] Once more he says: "Let a man look upon us as the ministers of Christ, and the dispensers of the mysteries of God." [Footnote 98] And when our Lord sent out His Apostles, He used these emphatic words: "He that heareth you heareth Me, and he that despiseth you despiseth Me."

Who are the false prophets we have the most need to be warned against at this present time? Not the professed teachers of heresy, because they are too well known; their doctrine and their principles have lost all attraction for Catholics. Their hatred and opposition to the Holy Church and her doctrines is too violent and untruthful to have any power of attraction for the Catholic heart. I should say they are not wolves in sheep's clothing, but rather wolves in their own skins. No, it is not they. It is rather the irreligious, unprincipled newspapers which are sowing the worst principles broadcast in the community, which are ridiculing all that we hold most sacred, which make all religion to consist in the present and laugh at the future world; which are prating all the time about clerical influence, and extolling a purely secular education; which are talking everlastingly about progress and enlightenment, and this nineteenth century, and the dark ages and superstitions; whose infernal doctrine may be summed up in one sentence: "Let us eat, drink, and be merry, for to-morrow we die."

These are the false prophets who clothe themselves with sheep's clothing, that is, with professions of liberty, enticements to pleasure, and to the gain of worldly goods, as if there was no hereafter, no responsibility, but each one was free to do as he pleased.

And who are some of the other false prophets? They are leaders of secret societies; interested persons who make a living out of professions of patriotism and love of country; who live in luxury—many of them, out of the hard earnings of the poor laborer and the girls at service; who beguile the ignorant into unlawful and forbidden ways, sinking them down deep in mortal sin, and hindering them from getting out of it, because they impose a distrust and dislike of the clergy and of the Church which condemns them. Like the Pharisees, they "move heaven and earth to make one proselyte, and, when they have made one, they make him more a child of hell than themselves." Avoid them, for they are truly "ravening wolves."

And lastly, avoid another false prophet within yourself: the spirit of pride and self-will. Without this, all the others I have mentioned above would be powerless to hurt you. This is the very evil one himself who stirs up within you every evil passion. Be cautious, weigh well the thoughts of your hearts. Try them by the standard of the Gospel and of the example of Jesus Christ, and, if they cannot abide the test, no matter how fair an appearance they have, abandon them.

Ah! if we would only stop to consider calmly what we are about; if we would only utter one sincere prayer to God for guidance, and to obtain a good-will, this false prophet of self-will would be detected and driven out, and we would be quickly delivered from destruction.

Finally, give good heed to the Scripture which says: "Obey your prelates, and be subject to them, for they watch as being to give an account of your souls, that they may do this with joy, and not with grief."

Obey the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the Pope, the Head of the Church and Father of the faithful. When he solemnly pronounces his judgment as to the lawfulness or unlawfulness of anything, obey as you would if you heard it from the lips of Christ Himself. It is a fearful thing for any one to put himself in opposition to Christ's Vicar and the Successor of St. Peter, to whom our Lord gave the charge to feed both His sheep and His lambs.

Obey your Archbishop, who is more immediately placed over you. It is his place to judge what is for the good of religion, and to foresee the evils likely to arise at any time among ourselves. Let those who disregard his admonition look well to it, lest they implicate themselves in grievous sin, and in inflicting great injury upon the religion of Christ. Such men are a scandal and cause of ruin to the faithful, and our Lord has denounced the anger of God upon those who are guilty of it.

Obey your priests, who will have to give an account of your souls. Give no cause of offence or scandal in your parish, but rather co-operate with your fellow-parishioners in the extension of Christ's kingdom upon earth.

It is by this spirit of docility and obedience you will break through all the snares of Satan, and be delivered from error. Thus, walking in the clear light of truth, you will finally be united to the Eternal Truth, God, the fountain of all joy, forever.