,the ,shepherd ,of ,my ,soul            
,by ,rev4 ,charles ,j4 ,callan          
,of the ,order of ,preachers            
,john ,murphy ,company1 ,publishers     
#ajj ,w4 ,lombard ,st4                  
,baltimore1 ,,md4                       
,printers to the ,holy ,see             
#aiae            ,,contents      ,psalm 
of the ,good ,shepherd  ,introduction4  
,i4 ,christ the ,good ,shepherd4  ,,ii4 
,shepherd ,life in the ,orient4  ,,iii4 
,the ,lord ,is ,my ,shepherd1 ,i ,shall 
,not ,want4  ,,iv4 ,he ,maketh ,me to   
,lie ,down in ,pastures of ,tender      
,grass2 ,he ,leadeth ,me  ,beside the   
,waters of ,quietness4  ,v4 ,he         
,restoreth ,my ,soul4  ,,vi4 ,he        
,leadeth ,me in the ,paths of ,justice  
for ,his ,name's ,sake4  ,,vii4 ,yea1   
,though ,i ,walk in the ,valley of the  
,shadow of ,death1 ,i ,will ,fear  no   
,evil1 for ,thou ,art ,with ,me4        
,,viii4 ,thy ,rod and ,thy ,staff ,they 
,comfort ,me4  ,,ix4 ,thou ,spreadest   
,before ,me a ,table in the ,presence of

 ,mine ,enemies4  ,x4 ,thou ,anointest  
,my ,head ,with ,oil2 ,my ,cup ,runneth 
,over4  ,,xi4 ,surely ,goodness and     
,mercy ,shall ,follow ,me ,all the ,days
 of ,my ,life2 and  ,i ,shall ,dwell in 
the ,house of the ,lord ,unto ,length of
 ,days4  ,footnotes              ,nihil 
,obstat3    ,m4 ,a4 ,,waldron1 ,o4 ,p4  
,s4 ,t4 ,m4    ,j4 ,a4 ,mc,h,u,g,h1 ,o4 
,p4 ,s4 ,t4 ,lr4    ,imprimi ,potest3   
,j4 ,r4 ,,meagher1 ,o4 ,p4 ,s4 ,t4 ,lr4 
,imprimatur3     ,j4 ,,card4 ,,gibbons4 
,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,good ,,shepherd    
,the ,lord is my ,shepherd1 ,i shall not
 want4    ,he maketh me to lie down in  
pastures of tender grass4    ,he        
restoreth my soul4    ,he leadeth me in 
the paths of justice for his name's     
sake4    ,yea1 though ,i walk in the    
valley of the shadow of death1 ,i will  
fear no  evil1 for thou art with me4    
,thy rod and thy staff1 they comfort me4
    ,thou spreadest before me a table in
 the presence of mine enemies4    ,thou 
anointest my head with oil2 my cup      

runneth over4    ,surely goodness and   
mercy shall follow me all the days of my
 life1 and ,i  shall dwell in the house 
of the ,lord unto length of days4       
,,introduction4      ,no types more     
beautiful could have been chosen under  
which to picture the  character of our  
,lord and the souls ,he came to redeem  
than those of a  shepherd and his flock4
 ,as nothing on earth could more fitly  
illustrate  the infinite love and       
sacrifice of the ,saviour than the      
enduring labors  and tenderness of a    
shepherd1 so nothing here below could   
better portray  the multiple wants of   
our spirits than the needful dependent  
nature of  sheep4 ,after the knowledge  
we possess of our ,redeemer1 only a     
slight  acquaintance with the           
characteristics of pastoral life1 as it 
exists in  oriental countries1 is needed
 to discern the charming fitness of     
these  comparisons4 ,the similarity is  
at once striking and most easily        
understood4 ,hence it is that our ,lord1

 as well as those who described ,him    
before ,he came1 so often appealed to   
shepherd life when speaking of the      
,messiah's mission2 hence1 also1 it is  
that ,he was so fond of calling         
,himself the ,good ,shepherd1 and of    
alluding to the souls ,he loved as ,his 
sheep4    ,it is the purpose of the     
pages that follow to trace some of these
  beautiful and touching resemblances of
 the shepherd and his flock1 on the  one
 side1 roaming over the hills and plains
 of ,palestine1 and the ,saviour  of the
 ,world with the souls of men1 on the   
other1 pursuing together the  journey of
 life4 ,we have taken as our guide1 in  
noting these charming  likenesses1 the  
,twenty-second ,psalm1 or the ,psalm of 
the ,good ,shepherd1  every verse of    
which recalls some feature or features  
of pastoral life1  and sings of the     
offices1 tender and varied1 which the   
shepherd discharges  towards his flock4 
,as this shepherd song was composed and 
written in the ,hebrew tongue1 the      

language of ancient ,palestine1 we have 
employed here a literal translation     
from the original language1 simply      
because it expresses much more          
beautifully and more exactly than does  
any rendering from the ,latin or  ,greek
 the various marks and characteristics  
of the shepherd's life and  duties4 ,the
 oriental languages1 like the people who
 speak them1 are  exceedingly figurative
 and poetic in their modes of           
expression2 and hence1  for our present 
purpose1 it is only by getting back as  
closely as we can  to the original that 
we are able adequately to appreciate the
 beauty and  poetry of that simple but  
charming life about which the ,psalmist 
is  singing4    ,although the ,shepherd 
,psalm refers1 in its literal sense1 to 
the human  shepherd attending and       
providing for his sheep1 it has also    
another higher  meaning1 which its      
author gave it1 and this has reference  
to ,christ in ,his  relations with the  
souls ,he has made and redeemed4 ,it is 

by reflecting on  this sense of the     
psalm1 and on all ,his gracious dealings
 with us1 that we  are enabled to       
realize how rightly and justly our      
,saviour is called the  ,shepherd of    
,our ,souls1 and how beautifully the    
,psalmist1 in the shepherd  song1 has   
depicted ,his relations with us4 ,and   
how important this is6 how  much it     
means for our spiritual welfare and     
spiritual advancement to  reflect on the
 many mercies of ,christ and on the love
 ,he bears each one of  us6 ,if the     
considerations that follow assist their 
readers to appreciate  more fully and   
love more ardently the ,divine ,shepherd
 of ,souls1 who daily  and constantly   
throughout our lives is ministering to  
our spiritual needs  and trying to      
further our eternal interests1 the      
desire and aim which  prompted their    
writing will be fully and perfectly     
realized4    ,,the ,,author4            
,i4 ,,christ ,,the ,,good ,,shepherd4   
,it was announced by the prophets of old

 that the ,messiah1 who was to come1    
should bear the character of a good     
shepherd4 ,he was to be a shepherd1 and 
,his followers1 the faithful souls that 
should believe in ,him and accept  ,his 
teaching1 were to be ,his sheep4 ,it was
 foretold that ,he would select  and    
purchase ,his flock2 that ,he would     
choose them from out the vast           
multitudes of their kind and gather them
 into ,his fold1 that ,he would  provide
 for them and guard them against every  
evil2 that ,he would lead  them out to  
green pastures and refresh them with the
 waters of rest4 8,he  shall feed his   
flock like a shepherd10 sang the        
,prophet ,isaias2 8he shall  gather     
together the lambs with his arms1 and   
shall take them up in his  bosom1 and he
 himself shall carry them that are with 
young407#a7 ,in like  manner did        
,jeremias1 referring to the comforting  
advent of ,christ1 liken  the offices   
which the ,saviour would perform towards
 ,his people to those of  shepherds     

towards their flocks4 8,i will set up   
pastors over them10 said  the ,prophet1 
speaking in the name of ,jehovah1 8and  
they shall feed them2  they shall fear  
no more1 and they shall not be dismayed2
 and none shall be  wanting of their    
number4444 ,behold the days come1 saith 
the ,lord1 and ,i  will raise up to     
,david a just branch2 and a king shall  
reign1 and shall be  wise1 and shall    
execute judgment and justice in the     
earth407#b7 ,the ,prophet  ,ezechiel    
also prophetically portrayed the        
,saviour's character when he  pictured  
,him in the capacity of a shepherd      
visiting and feeding his sheep3  8,for  
thus saith the ,lord ,god3 ,behold ,i   
myself will seek my sheep1 and ,i  will 
visit them4 ,as the shepherd visiteth   
his flock in the day when he  shall be  
in the midst of his sheep that were     
scattered1 so will ,i visit my  sheep1  
and ,i will deliver them out of all the 
places where they have been  scattered  
in the cloudy and dark day4 ,and ,i will

 set up one shepherd over  them1 and he 
shall feed them1 even my servant ,david2
 he shall feed them1  and he shall be   
their shepherd407#c7    ,and when at    
length the ,saviour did appear in the   
world1 ,he declared1 not  only by ,his  
life and example1 but in explicit terms1
 that ,he was the  fulfilment of these  
prophecies--that ,he was1 in truth1 the 
,good ,shepherd1  and that ,his         
followers were the sheep of ,his fold4  
,in the tenth chapter of  the ,gospel   
according to ,saint ,john we have ,his  
own words to this effect4  ,there ,he   
tells us plainly that ,he has not come  
as a thief and a robber1 to  steal1 to  
kill1 and to destroy2 that ,he is not a 
stranger1 at the sound of  whose voice  
the sheep are terrified and flee away2  
that ,he is not a  hireling1 who cares  
not for the sheep1 and who1 beholding   
the approach of  the wolf and the enemy1
 fleeth and leaveth the sheep to be     
snatched and  scattered and torn4 ,the  
,saviour is not any of these1 nor like  

unto them4  ,he is the ,good ,shepherd  
who enters the sheepfold by the door1   
and not as  the thief and robber who    
climb up some other way4 ,to ,him the   
porter  openeth1 and ,he calleth ,his   
sheep1 and they know ,his voice and     
follow ,him1  and ,he leadeth them out  
to pasture1 to rest1 and to abundant    
life4 ,nor is  this all1 for ,he        
protects and guards ,his sheep4 ,by day 
and by night ,he is  ever near them3    
when circling the green plains1 or      
beside the still  waters1 or when asleep
 beneath the silent stars1 the sheep are
 protected  by their ,shepherd4         
,faithfully ,he watches ,his dependent  
flock2 and at the  end1 as a proof of   
,his love and fidelity1 ,he generously  
lays down ,his life  for ,his sheep4    
,,ii4 ,,shepherd ,,life ,,in ,,the      
,,orient4      ,we cannot appreciate the
 beauty of this picture of our ,saviour 
under the  symbol of a shepherd1 nor can
 we later understand the detailed       
description  which is given of ,him     

through the spiritual meaning of the    
,good ,shepherd  ,psalm without first   
taking into account some of the features
 of pastoral  life as it prevails in    
eastern countries4 ,for us of the       
western world it  is difficult1 and at  
times next to impossible1 to represent  
to ourselves  the life and customs of   
the ,orient2 and in particular do we    
find it hard  to picture to our minds   
and to understand the simple poetry of  
that  shepherd life for which ,palestine
 has always been known4 ,time has little
  changed the scene of the ,saviour's   
earthly labors4 ,the people1 their      
manners and customs1 their life and     
occupations1 remain much the same now   
as when the land was graced by ,his     
sacred presence4 ,thus today1 as in     
those olden times1 all the level country
 east of the river ,jordan1 as well  as 
the mountains of ,palestine and ,syria1 
serves as vast pasture lands for        
innumerable flocks and herds4 ,the      
country throughout is essentially       

pastoral in its character1 and the care 
and raising of sheep constitute  the    
chief industry of the people4 ,from     
sheep the people are furnished with     
nearly all the necessaries of life--with
 meat1 clothing1 milk1 butter1 and      
cheese4    ,the care of sheep is a      
delicate and1 in many ways1 a difficult 
task4 ,not  that they are froward or    
hard to manage1 for of all animals they 
are the  most tender and gentle2 nor    
again1 that they need abundant          
nourishment in  the way of food and     
drink1 since they require water but once
 a day1 and  can maintain life and      
strength on a plain which1 to the naked 
eye1 seems  little more than a barren   
waste of sand4 ,but because1 in other   
respects1  they are exceedingly timid   
and helpless creatures1 especially in   
times and  places of danger1 the burdens
 which their welfare and safety impose  
upon  the shepherd1 while paternal and  
winning1 are1 nevertheless1 arduous and 
manifold4 ,there are the changes and    

hardships of the climate--the cold and  
frost in winter1 and the heat and       
drought of summer2 there are the long   
rough walks1 the steep and dangerous    
passes which they must climb and        
descend2 there are perils from robbers1 
from wolves and wild beasts1 which  not 
infrequently demand the shepherd's      
utmost watchfulness and care4 ,the      
oriental climate is such that they can  
graze nearly the whole year  through2   
and whether they be grazing on the wide 
open plains1 or huddled  snugly within  
the sheepfold1 it pertains to the       
shepherd to provide for  their varied   
needs4 ,his vigilance can never cease4  
,he must lead them out  to pasture and  
to water1 he must guide and protect     
them1 he must gather  them into the fold
 at night or into caves and enclosures1 
at times1 during  the day1 to shield    
them from great danger1 whether from    
enemies or violent  weather2 and upon   
all occasions he must be prepared to    
defend them1 even  at the risk of his   

own life4    ,the folds or sheep pens1  
it must be observed1 into which the     
sheep are  gathered for rest or         
protection are not roofed over or walled
 in like a  house4 ,they are enclosures 
left open to the sky1 and consisting    
simply of  a high wall of rough stone1  
to protect the sheep from the attacks of
 wild  beasts1 and from prowling        
marauders who threaten their safety by  
night4 ,it  often happens that several  
flocks1 belonging to different          
shepherds1 will  graze on the same      
pastures during the day1 and will be    
penned in the same  sheepfold at night4 
,while the sheep are sleeping1 and the  
shepherds near  by are taking their     
needed rest1 the door of the fold is    
carefully locked1  and another shepherd 
or porter is left on guard1 lest        
perchance a hungry  bear or wolf might  
scale the wall and destroy some member  
or members of  the sleeping herds4      
,early in the morning the shepherds come
 in turn and  rap at the door1 and to   

each the porter opens4 ,then each       
shepherd calls  his flock by name2 and  
they1 knowing his voice1 follow him1 and
 he leads  them out to their pastures4  
,there is never any confusion1 for each 
flock  knows its own shepherd and obeys 
him alone4 ,other shepherds they will   
not  heed2 and from the voice of        
strangers they flee4    ,it is a        
beautiful scene to see a shepherd with  
his flock4 ,first1 we must  remember    
that he never drives them1 but leads    
them2 and they follow him  with         
instinctive love and trust whithersoever
 he goes4 ,he usually carries  a rod and
 a staff3 the latter he uses1 when need 
be1 to assist the sheep  along dangerous
 paths and narrow passages2 the former1 
to protect and  defend them1 if assailed
 by enemies or beasts of prey4 ,another 
evidence of  their implicit love of     
their shepherd and trust in his         
goodness1 as also  of their obedience to
 his voice and commands1 is beautifully 
manifest when  several flocks are led to

 drink at the same stream or well4      
,although the  sheep need to drink but  
once a day1 the shepherds never forget1 
throughout  the day's roaming1 that they
 must lead their flock to water4 ,and as
 the  drinking places in ,palestine are 
comparatively few1 it often happens that
  several herds1 whether from the same  
or neighboring pastures1 will arrive    
simultaneously at the same spring4 ,but 
here again1 there is neither  trouble   
nor confusion4 ,when they have drawn    
near to the place of water  each        
shepherd gives a sign to his flock1 and 
obedient to his voice1 the  respective  
flocks lie down and patiently wait their
 turn to drink4 ,the  troughs are then  
filled with the refreshing water1 and   
when all is ready a  shepherd calls and 
his flock at once rises and comes       
forward to drink4 ,the  sheep being     
satisfied1 the shepherd gives another   
sign1 and they promptly  return to their
 previous place of rest1 or move quietly
 away to their  pasture1 as the shepherd

 may direct4 ,another flock is then     
called up1  watered and led away1 and so
 on1 in like manner1 till all have been 
duly  satisfied4    ,with this passing  
glance at shepherd life1 we can better  
understand and  better appreciate the   
likeness between the character of the   
,saviour and  that of the good shepherd4
 ,we can see how apt it was that our    
,redeemer  should choose a shepherd1    
with his multiple and tender cares and  
duties1  to illustrate ,his own         
watchfulness and loving kindness towards
 the many  wants and needs of our souls4
 ,for we are1 indeed1 ,his sheep4 ,he   
has called  us1 we have heard and       
understood ,his voice1 and ,he has      
gathered us into  ,his flock and fold4  
,he has literally vindicated for        
,himself in our regard  all the         
attributes and qualities of the good    
shepherd1 so far as  described1 and as  
still further depicted in every verse of
 the  ,twenty-second ,psalm4 ,this is   
called the ,psalm of the ,good          

,shepherd1  because in it the ,psalmist1
 under the symbol of a shepherd1        
prophetically  foretold the character of
 the ,messiah1 our ,saviour4 ,the psalm 
has1  therefore1 a twofold meaning3 in  
its literal sense it deals with the     
faithful shepherd1 ranging with his     
flock over mountains and plains1 and    
providing for their every want2 and in  
its spiritual and prophetic meaning  it 
relates to our ,creator and ,saviour1   
caring for our spiritual  necessities4  
,let us see how this is2 and that we may
 better perceive the  application in    
detail1 let us take this shepherd song1 
part by part1 and  see how beautifully  
it describes the whole person of ,christ
 as ,god1 and in  ,his capacity as      
,redeemer--in all ,his tender relations 
with us1 and towards  the various needs 
of our souls4            ,,iii4 ,,the   
,,lord ,,is ,,my ,,shepherd1 ,i ,,shall 
,,not ,,want4      ,how full of meaning 
and how comprehensive are these simple  
yet beautiful  words which introduce the

 ,good ,shepherd ,psalm6 ,they at once  
sum up the  whole round of the          
shepherd's life--his duties1 his        
solicitude1 his  ceaseless care of his  
sheep4 ,but here1 be it noted1 in this  
opening verse1  the reference1 so direct
 and unmistakable1 is not to an earthly 
shepherd2  it is to the benign and      
constant ,providence of ,jehovah towards
 ,his  children1 to the untiring love of
 ,god1 our ,father and ,saviour1 for the
  souls ,he has created and redeemed4   
,the ,psalmist is looking back1 in      
grateful remembrance1 upon the history  
of his race1 and upon his own life  in  
particular1 and he traces there at every
 step the goodness and  watchfulness of 
his ,creator4 ,he sees there has never  
been any want4 ,dark  days at times have
 come upon his nation1 sufferings and   
trials there have  been2 and in these1  
as in other respects1 his own individual
 experience  has mirrored the history of
 his people2 but throughout it all there
 has  never been any lasting want4 ,as  

the shepherd is ever near his sheep1    
whether at peace or in trouble1 to      
provide for their needs1 so1 sings the  
,psalmist in gratitude1 has ,god been   
near him and his people4 ,and his       
confidence is unshaken2 that which has  
been in the past will be in the  future2
 as sheep put their trust in their      
shepherd1 so will he put his  trust in  
his ,lord and ,god4 ,nor is this        
gratitude for past favors and this      
unshaken trust for the future to be     
restricted to the ,psalmist alone2 his  
words had meaning not only for himself2 
he knows the same ,providence  provides 
for us all1 and therefore he would have 
his words find an echo in  the hearts   
and sentiments of all4    ,the ,lord is 
my shepherd2 ,he ruleth me with the rod 
of gentleness4 ,i am ,his  creation1 ,he
 has bought me with a great price1 ,he  
has set me a divine  example and taught 
me the way to life4 ,there may be times 
of distress for  me1 brief periods of   
temporal need2 but surely1 since ,i am  

the possession  of my ,god1 and ,he is  
providing for me1 nothing can long be   
wanting to  me--permanent want there can
 never be4    ,the ,lord ruleth me1 and 
all my kind1 as a shepherd ruleth his   
flock4 ,what  a consoling thought to    
each one of us1 if only we be faithful  
souls6 ,how  unspeakable the thought1   
how surpassing the privilege to know and
 to be  assured that we belong to ,god6 
that out of countless millions of       
creatures1 far nobler than we1 to whom  
,he might have given the joy of  life1  
,he has chosen to select us2 to think   
that ,he has allotted to us a  short    
period of existence here below1 during  
which it is our privilege to  be able to
 merit and draw near to ,him for        
eternity2 and that after this1  our     
little time of trial1 we are to reign   
with ,him in everlasting glory6  ,of a  
certainty we are a favored people and a 
royal race1 for we belong to  ,god4 ,he 
has purchased our souls by creating us1 
,he has come down from  ,heaven to      

redeem and buy us back from the enemy to
 whom our race in folly  had surrendered
 itself1 ,he has borne our sorrows and  
our sufferings to  make amends for us   
and to teach us the way to life1 and    
finally ,he has  given ,his own life for
 our salvation4    ,since1 then1 ,god   
has created us1 it follows that ,he must
 have had us in  ,his mind from         
everlasting1 because nothing that is1 or
 can be1 is  unforeseen by ,him4 ,from  
the remotest dawn of eternity1          
therefore2 from the  very beginning of  
the eternal years1 ,he saw us as ,he    
sees us now1 clearly1  distinctly1      
lovingly4 ,we did not exist from        
eternity as we do now1 but we  were     
present to ,god before we were to       
ourselves1 ,he saw us mirrored in       
,himself4 ,and when1 in time1 ,he called
 our race into being and endowed it     
with life1 we know what happened4 ,this 
human nature of ours which ,he had      
loved from eternity1 and favored in time
 with existence1 turned its back  upon  

its ,god and strayed away to sin and    
death4 ,this was the disobedience  of   
our first parents1 and in their sin we  
all have shared1 for the very  reason   
that they were our parents and          
responsible for us as well as for       
themselves4 ,we became a ruined race1   
deserving punishment1 fit for           
perdition2 and yet ,god did not give us 
up4 ,he followed after us1 as it  were2 
,he pursued us1 as a shepherd pursues   
his chosen flock1 until finally  ,he led
 us back to ,his fold1 and to pastures  
of rest and plenty4    ,it was not      
enough for ,god's goodness to give us   
the gift of life1 and to  endow us with 
understanding1 will1 and freedom2 it did
 not satisfy ,his  bountifulness to make
 our life fair here on earth1 and to    
enable us to  reap much of the joys and 
pleasures with which even this world    
abounds--no1  far more than all this has
 ,he wished and prepared for ,his elect1
 for the  souls who belong to ,his      
flock4 ,it was nothing less than        

,himself1 ,heaven  and its rewards1 that
 the eternal ,father had in store for us
 when ,he  called us into being4 ,in    
order1 therefore1 that we should not    
lose our  destined crowns through the   
guilt and wounds of original sin1 ,he   
provided  for us a remedy1 ,he sent us a
 ,saviour1 who was ,his only son1 our   
,lord  ,jesus ,christ4    ,now since it 
is to ,christ1 the ,saviour1 that the   
spiritual meaning of the  ,shepherd     
,psalm refers in a particular manner1 it
 is in ,him especially1 and  in ,his    
earthly life1 that we discern and find  
fulfilled the chiefest  qualities of the
 good shepherd4 ,as ,god1 we see1 ,he   
has1 indeed1 been our  shepherd from the
 beginning1 creating and endowing our   
nature1 and  providing for us unnumbered
 benefits1 temporal and eternal4 ,but it
 is in  ,his human nature1 in ,his      
character as ,god and man1 that ,he     
draws nearest  to us and proves unto us 
in ways most gracious that ,he is1 in   
truth1 our  loving ,master and the      

,shepherd of our souls4 ,marvelous1     
assuredly1 has  been the goodness of    
,god to create us at all2 and still more
 marvelous  that ,he should have        
destined us for a participation in ,his 
own eternal  blessedness2 but in no way 
has the heavenly ,father so stooped to  
us1 in no  way has ,he so manifested    
,his utter condescension towards us1 as 
in the  abasement of ,his ,only-begotten
 ,son1 8who1 being in the form of ,god1 
emptied himself1 taking the form of a   
servant407#d7 ,for let us reflect that  
to raise our race from its fallen state 
and restore it to the divine            
good-pleasure1 it was not necessary that
 the ,second ,person of the ,most  ,holy
 ,trinity should have come down to      
earth4 ,such extraordinary means were   
not of necessity to bring us back to    
,heaven's smile and favor4 ,as by a     
simple act of ,his omnipotent will ,god 
had called the world and us and all     
that is out of nothingness in the       
beginning1 so again by a single wish of 

the same divine will ,he could have     
restored us1 from a condition of        
bondage and sin1 to the realms of grace 
and peace4 ,and even when the ,son  of  
,god did condescend1 in accordance with 
the will of ,his ,father1 to  clothe    
,himself with our nature and visit our  
blighted sphere1 how simple1  really1   
,he could have made our redemption6 ,how
 easily could ,he have  blotted out the 
handwriting that was against us1 and    
presented our tearful  world1 all       
smiling and glad1 to the arms of ,his   
eternal ,father6 ,yes1  ,christ could   
have made our redemption easy4 ,he could
 have paid our debt to  ,god in a       
thousand different1 simple ways1 had ,he
 wished it so4 ,one drop of  ,his       
precious blood1 one tear of ,his eye1   
one sigh of the ,sacred ,heart  would   
have sufficed to redeem innumerable     
worlds like ours4    ,but the ,saviour  
wished it otherwise4 ,he was our        
,shepherd and ,he loved us1  ,his       
deceived and wounded sheep4 ,he was with

 the ,father when we were  planned and  
made4 ,he it was1 in truth1 who made us1
 for ,he and the ,father  are one47#e7  
,he1 therefore1 knew our nature1 since  
,he designed and gave it  to us4 ,he    
foresaw our yearnings and aspirations2  
,he knew the sublime1  transcendent     
possibilities of which1 with ,his help  
and divine example1 we  are capable2 ,he
 understood the heights of love and     
worship to which the  human heart can   
ascend1 when assisted from on high1 and 
hence to awaken  and kindle on earth    
these all-consuming fires27#f7 to stir  
the very depths  of our souls1 and      
elevate and perfect our gifted nature2  
to afford us the  utmost inspiration to 
climb with ,him the heights of ,heaven4 
,he stooped to  our own estate1 in all  
things made like unto us1 except1       
indeed1 our  proneness and ability to   
sin4 ,since ,he loved us1 ,he longed to 
be like us1  in as far as that was      
possible1 and not even our sin-stained1 
wounded  nature could stay the force of 

,his love4    ,there is another reason  
for the mysterious manner of our        
redemption1 a  further explanation of   
the extreme condescension on the part of
 our ,lord  towards the frail creatures 
whom ,he came to save4 ,had he come to  
us in a  foreign attire1 with a nature  
unlike our own1 would it not have been  
difficult for us to approach ,him1 and  
to put our confidence and trust in      
,him8 ,if ,he had appeared like an      
angel1 all bright and dazzling with     
glory1  if ,he had come as an earthly   
king and ruler1 crowned and clad in     
regal  splendor1 would it not have been 
hard for the poor ones of earth8 would  
it  not have been a trial for those who 
were in need of a shepherd's love and   
care8 ,already sorely oppressed and     
trodden down by worldly pomp and power1 
they could only have tried to shun ,his 
notice and draw back from ,him with     
feelings of fear and awe4 ,but our      
,redeemer came not only to save1 but    
also  to teach and to lead the way to   

life4 ,as a shepherd ,he was not to     
drive1  but to lead ,his sheep2 ,he does
 not point the direction1 but goes      
before  ,his flock1 and they follow     
,him1 and ,he leads them out to living  
pastures  and to bright1 sparkling1     
far-off waters4    ,because ,he was     
,god1 as well as man1 ,christ knew that1
 as a result of our  sinful state1 we   
should have to pass our earthly sojourn 
forever beneath  the shadow of the      
cross4 ,when sin entered into the world 
by the  disobedience of the first man1  
the handiwork of the ,creator was       
despoiled4  ,that which before had been 
a paradise of pleasure1 replete with all
  delights1 was wrecked and ruined1 and 
became a place of sorrow1 suffering  and
 death4 ,thenceforth1 pursuant to the   
divine decree1 the lot of man was  to   
labor1 to suffer1 and to die47#g7       
,knowing1 therefore1 that this was to   
be our portion1 the ,shepherd-,saviour  
of our souls must also teach us the     
secret of pain and toil1 and help us to 

bear our cross4    ,according1 then1 to 
our present state1 suffering and sorrow 
are  inseparable from us1 because we are
 born into the world with sin upon our  
souls1 and in the wake of sin follow all
 the evils to which the world is  heir4 
,and1 moreover1 under existing          
conditions1 it is necessary for our     
future happiness that our earthly life  
be largely spent amidst toil and  pain  
and tears4 ,it is only through these    
that we shall be able to atone  for the 
injuries sin has done1 and hold in check
 the disorders of our  nature4 ,the     
cross is before us and we cannot escape 
it4 ,it is ready for us  when we enter  
the world1 it follows us throughout the 
length of our days1  and finally bears  
us down in death to our graves4 ,this   
does not mean that  life on earth is    
entirely made up of pain and sorrow1 for
 the divine mercy  has mitigated even   
the stroke of sin1 and has caused the   
world1 in spite  of all its wounds1 to  
bloom with many delights4 ,nevertheless1

 our sojourn  here below shall always be
 fraught with diverse ills1 and we at   
last must  yield to death4 ,in spite of 
all the world can afford us1 in spite of
 its  pleasures and joys1 its sunshine  
and pleasing pastimes1 real1 though     
fitful and fast-flying as they are2 in  
spite of health and wealth and fame  and
 honor2 in spite of all the goods that  
life contains1 it still is ever  true   
that we live in a region of tears1 and  
that death and sorrow are sure  to      
follow upon the footsteps of joy and    
mirth4 ,it must be so1 for the  stains  
of sin are indelibly upon the world2 and
 not until the final  renovation comes  
can life on earth be made entirely      
happy4    ,all this our ,saviour knew   
when ,he chose our human nature and     
embraced a  life of labor and sorrow4   
,his divine foreknowledge took in our   
lives1 and  the lives of all our kind1  
until the end of all shall be4 ,our     
infant  tears1 our trials and pains of  
body1 the ceaseless pangs of mind and   

heart  that pursue us throughout life1  
were all before ,him as in a mirror1 and
 ,he  must needs instruct and assist us 
to fight this battle and walk this way  
of earth1 lest all should perish before 
the journey's end4 ,since we were  to   
suffer1 then ,he would suffer also2     
since our lives were to be amidst       
labors and trials1 then ,he would labor 
and travail also2 since we were to  feel
 the sting of pain1 be subject to heat  
and cold1 be in want1 in  poverty1 and  
in distress1 be misunderstood1 be       
thwarted1 be cast down from  our highest
 hopes1 and broken1 at times1 in every  
cheerful prospect--since  these and     
other countless ills were to be woven in
 our web of earthly  life1 ,he1 the     
divine ,master1 who came to save1 to    
teach a lesson1 to  suffer and die1     
would assume a body so sacred1 so       
delicate1 so pure and  sensitive that1  
when exposed to the rough and ruthless  
ways of life1 ,he  could truly cry out  
from the depths of ,his anguish3 8,o all

 ye that pass by  the way1 attend and   
see if there be any sorrow like unto my 
sorrow607#h7    ,how comforting1 then1  
it is for us to feel that we are not    
alone in  suffering1 and to know that1  
while all we suffer is but just and due 
to  our sinful state1 we can            
nevertheless make use of all our ills to
 attain  to joys unending in ,heaven6   
,if we must toil and struggle while on  
earth1  it is because these things are a
 result of our state2 if we must be     
subject to sickness1 to weakness and    
fatigue1 to cold and hunger1 to         
weariness and pain1 it is not because   
,god is pleased at the misery of ,his   
creatures2 neither does ,he rejoice on  
account of our misfortune4 ,we are      
simply reaping the harvest of sin and   
transgression1 and sin is the work  of  
our own free choice and that of our     
ancestors4 ,and even though it be       
objected that we are born into this     
inevitable condition1 and are made the  
unconsulted heirs of a heritage we      

loathe but cannot escape1 the solution  
of our difficulty is not far to seek4   
,we need but hearken to the  promptings 
of reason1 and lift our sorrowing eyes  
to the realms of faith  to be convinced 
that ,god's mercy and goodness are above
 all ,his works17#i7  and that for      
reasons not less benevolent than holy   
,he has called us into  life and        
permitted all our woes4 ,god could not  
have created us for  suffering and      
punishment1 because ,he is infinite     
goodness2 ,he cannot be  pleased at our 
misfortunes1 since ,he ,himself has     
borne our sorrows and  carried all our  
pains47#aj7 ,if ,he ,himself had not    
come into the world in  visible human   
form2 if ,he had not explained our      
purpose and destiny1 and  led the way to
 ,heaven2 if ,he had not1 by ,his words 
and divine example1  provided us with   
the solution for all life's             
difficulties1 then1 in truth1  we might 
object1 and sit and grieve and wonder4  
,but in the light of the  life of       

,christ all this is altered2 the picture
 takes on a different  coloring4 ,who   
now can rail at the crosses of life and 
think of the  sufferings of ,christ8    
,who can murmur at the injustice of     
pain1 and  remember the passion of      
,jesus8 ,who can say that ,god is deaf  
to our  pleading and unmoved at our     
tears1 and look upon the ,saviour dying8
 ,who  can believe that our lives are of
 little worth1 or of no account with the
  ,almighty1 and recall the price that  
was paid for our souls and ponder the   
death of our ,god8    ,thus it is with a
 bountiful goodness that the ,saviour   
has purchased ,his  sheep4 ,by ,his own 
free choice1 by a life of suffering     
entirely voluntary1  endured for our    
salvation and instruction1 through a    
bitter1 but willing  agony and death1   
,he has provided the means to free us   
from sin1 and has  bequeathed to us     
every blessing4 ,now we can truly say3  
the ,lord is my  shepherd1 and ,i shall 
not want4 ,if only we can look into that

 divine life  which has been given as   
our model1 if only we can ponder it1 and
 read in  it the lessons1 the hopes1 the
 inspirations it contains for us1 we    
shall  not be weary of our burdens and  
cares1 we shall not falter in any of    
life's battles4 ,rather1 rejoicing at   
our opportunities1 eternal as they  are1
 and with feelings of exultant gratitude
 over our condition1 as heirs  with     
,christ to the kingdom of ,heaven17#aa7 
we shall bravely welcome all the        
conflicts of life1 being assured with   
,st4 ,paul that 8that which is at       
present momentary and light of our      
tribulation1 worketh for us above       
measure exceedingly an eternal weight of
 glory407#ab7            ,,iv4 ,,he     
,,maketh ,,me ,,to ,,lie ,,down ,,in    
,,pastures ,,of ,,tender ,,grass2 ,,he  
,,leadeth ,,me  ,,beside ,,the ,,waters 
,,of ,,quietness4      ,our attention is
 now directed to a particular phase of  
the shepherd's  life1 and here we see   
some of the ways in which he actually   

provides for  his sheep day by day4 ,for
 it is not enough that the shepherd has 
purchased  his flock1 by means however  
difficult and labors however loving2 it 
is not  sufficient that he have procured
 for them1 in a general manner1 all that
  they need for their life and safety1  
he must also arrange for their daily    
care and provide for their separate     
wants4 ,sheep1 as we know1 are delicate 
creatures1 and they must be directed in 
their roamings1 and sustained by        
sufficient nourishment4 ,accordingly1 we
 have said that it belongs to the       
duties of a good shepherd to lead them  
out to pasture1 and to provide for  them
 every day adequate food and drink4     
,here again we behold the infinite      
kindness of the ,shepherd of our souls4 
,not alone has ,he deigned to stoop to  
our fallen state and restore us from    
death to life1 not only did ,he take    
upon ,himself our infirmities and bear  
our woes1 but tenderly also has ,he     
provided for our constant direction1    

and for the daily needs of our lives4   
,the level to which the ,saviour raised 
our lives and the dignity to which  ,he 
invites us are far1 indeed1 above our   
natural powers4 ,left to  ourselves1 we 
could never attain the heavenly heights 
to which1 in ,his  goodness1 ,he has    
called us4 ,through the infinite merits 
of ,his life and  sacrifice we have been
 redeemed and reclaimed from the enemy  
of our souls2  the gates of ,heaven1    
closed against us before1 have been     
opened wide2 and  our wayward race is   
again restored to the road that leads to
 our immortal  home4 ,but just because  
our celestial destiny is of so high and 
sublime a  character1 it is impossible1 
if left to our own abilities1 that we   
should  be able long to pursue it1 and  
vastly beyond our sublimest hopes that  
we  should ever finally attain it4 ,we  
have1 it is true1 ever before us1 the   
life and example of ,him who has saved  
us2 we know that ,his cross and death   
have delivered us from the wrath that   

frowned upon us4 ,but we are weak and   
fragile mortals4 ,with respect to things
 of the higher life--of the             
supernatural world--we1 of ourselves1   
shall always remain as helpless and     
frail as infants4 ,not less unable is   
the babe of yesterday to traverse       
unaided and explore the material world1 
than the wisest of men would be to  know
 and grasp by his natural powers the    
unrevealed good of the immortal  human  
spirit4 ,and as1 in our natural state1  
we could not know the true end  of our  
existence1 without a divine revelation1 
so likewise1 we could not  pursue and   
attain our spiritual destiny without    
special assistance from on  high4       
,how well all this was known to our kind
 and kingly ,shepherd6 ,how keenly  did 
,he appreciate our frailty and inability
 to walk alone the paths which  ,he had 
trodden6 ,not unmindful1 therefore1 was 
,he constantly to teach and  direct the 
way which leads to unending life4 ,when 
going before his flock  and teaching    

them by force of example1 ,he did not   
omit to give them that  saving doctrine 
which1 when ,he had disappeared1 would  
be their guide1 and  the guide to their 
future shepherds in the direction of    
safety and truth4  ,hence ,he propounded
 a teaching which should be to its      
obedient followers a  realization at    
once of all ,he had promised them1 and  
of all their heart's  desires4 ,not that
 it would make them rich or great in the
 eyes of the  world and according to    
human standards1 but that it would      
confer a truer  and a higher greatness  
by lifting them above their weak and    
natural level  and preparing them for   
eternal blessedness4    ,men had the    
,law before the coming of ,christ2 they 
knew the ten  commandments4 ,but the    
state to which the ,god-man called them1
 and the  eminence to which they were   
raised1 were quite beyond anything the  
world  till then had ever been able to  
conceive4 ,human nature1 under the ,new 
,covenant1 was invited to attain to     

perfection4 ,things which before were   
thought impossible1 were now to be the  
objects of our daily strivings4 ,it  was
 no longer an eye for an eye1 and a     
tooth for a tooth2 now not only was     
good to be done to those who were good  
to us1 but to those also who did us     
evil2 not only were we to love our      
friends1 but to love and assist our     
enemies also2 not only should evil deeds
 be avoided1 but evil thoughts  were    
likewise forbidden--yea1 we were asked  
to be1 in all our thoughts and  deeds1  
imitators of the ,shepherd who leads    
us47#ac7    ,poor human nature1 when    
raised so high above its natural powers1
 stood in  perilous need of a shepherd's
 tender care4 ,the new demands of every 
day  made indispensible new and special 
daily helps4 ,while our spirits can see 
and know the way1 under the light of    
heavenly teaching1 yet how weak and     
faltering is our flesh6 ,we have the    
will to do2 but to accomplish1 we  alone
 are not able4 ,therefore our ,saviour  

said1 8,of yourselves1 you can do       
nothing1 but in me all things are       
possible to you4 ,the branches are      
nothing unless they abide in the vine2  
,i am the vine1 you the  branches407#ad7
 ,thus ,he is our ,leader1 our divine   
,teacher and our source of  strength4   
,without ,him we can do nothing1 but in 
,him we are strong4 ,and  daily and     
constantly ,he is near us1 though we see
 ,him not4 ,it is ,he who  sustains our 
very life and moves us to all that is   
good4 ,like an  ever-present friend1 ,he
 offers us constant assistance3 ,he     
instructs and  guides and helps us1 and 
this is the strength and food of our    
souls4 ,god's  grace it is1 always ready
 for our use1 which makes possible all  
the high  demands put upon our nature4  
,without it we should faint and starve  
on our  journey1 and hence ,he who has  
planned our high perfection1 has        
provided  the help to attain it4 ,what  
are those seven wonderful sacraments    
which ,he  has left us1 but perennial   

channels of grace1 constant fountains   
from  which stream the life-giving      
waters that nourish our weary souls and 
make  them strong for life eternal6     
,through these sacred means we are      
brought  into contact with the life and 
merits of our ,shepherd-,redeemer4 ,they
  prolong ,his life and labors among us1
 they continue in our midst the         
strength of ,his sacred presence4    ,in
 a manner altogether special is this    
true of the ,holy ,sacrament of the     
altar4 ,by the ,holy ,eucharist1 ,christ
 still is with us1 and will so remain   
till the end of time1 as really and as  
truly as ,he dwelt on earth in the  days
 of ,his mortal life4 ,bound down as we 
are by the things of sense1 we  may1 at 
times1 be tempted to complain that      
,christ in this sacrament is all        
invisible to us4 ,we can not see ,him   
directly and immediately4 ,his voice is 
silent and we do not hear ,him2 we do   
not feel the caress of ,his hand4 ,but  
nevertheless we know ,he is present1 for

 ,he has said it1 and ,his word must    
remain1 though heaven and earth should  
pass away4 ,even were we privileged  to 
see the sacred humanity as it was seen  
of old in ,palestine1 we should  not    
then1 more than now in this sacrament1  
directly see the divinity  concealed by 
the human frame4 ,faith then was        
required as well as now--faith  in ,his 
sacred words1 made evident by ,his      
sacred deeds4 ,this is not  strange2 it 
is not too much to ask4 ,the same demand
 of faith is daily made  upon us in much
 of our intercourse with our fellow     
mortals4 ,much that we  do not clearly  
see we must perforce believe1 else life 
would be  impossible4 ,the same1 in a   
measure1 is also true in all our human  
friendships4 ,that which is most        
precious in our friends1 that which is  
the  source of life and beauty1 of holy 
words and loving actions1 of all we     
love and cherish in them1 is the soul1  
the spirit that quickens and moves2  and
 this we do not see4    ,thus ,christ in

 the ,eucharist is truly present1 though
 faith alone can  apprehend ,him4 ,he   
requires of us this faith--this humble  
subjection of our  sensible faculties to
 the power and truth of ,his words4 ,it 
is all for our  good that now ,he is    
hidden from our sight4 ,he is not the   
less truly  present1 not less truly     
kind1 not less loving1 not less merciful
 and  forbearing2 but ,he wishes to     
exercise our faith1 to prove our        
fidelity and  trust in ,his teaching and
 promises1 and hence ,he is hidden from 
the powers  of our senses4    ,in the   
sacrament of the ,eucharist the gracious
 ,shepherd of our souls  performs in    
particular three offices for us3 ,he is 
our sacrifice1 our  silent patient      
friend1 and in communion ,he becomes the
 actual spiritual  food of our souls4   
,as a victim ,he is daily and           
constantly1 from the rising  to the     
setting of the sun1 lifted up for us in 
the holy sacrifice of the  mass4 ,the   
mass is the perpetuation of the         

sacrifice ,he offered long ago  for our 
redemption4 ,all the altars throughout  
the world1 on which ,he is  ever born   
and dies again in mystic repetition1 are
 but an extension of the  one great     
altar of ,calvary1 where first ,he gave 
,his life for our  salvation4 ,and in   
this real and awful sacrifice1 forever  
repeated in our  midst1 ,he pleads again
 our cause with ,god1 the eternal       
,father4 ,again in a  mystic manner ,he 
suffers for us1 again ,he bleeds1 again 
,he is nailed to  the cross and raised  
on high1 and in that same abandoned1    
pitiable state1  to which ,his love for 
,his flock has reduced ,him1 ever and   
anon in our  behalf ,he pleads3 8,father
 forgive them1 for they know not what   
they  do67#ae7 ,holy ,father1 ,powerful 
,god1 stay ,thy avenging hand6 and save 
the  souls which ,thou hast created for 
,thyself1 and for which till the end of 
time ,i die60 ,he lifts1 as it were1    
before the great white throne1 ,his     
bruised and blood-stained hands1 ,he    

shows those wounded feet1 the scar of   
the spear in ,his sacred side2 ,he      
points again to the agony in the garden1
  to the scourging at the pillar1 to the
 cruel crown of thorns1 to the weary    
way of the cross1 and exclaims to ,him  
who sits upon the throne1 8,behold1  my 
,father1 and see the price of my sheep1 
the tears and sorrow and blood  they    
have cost me6 and spare them and save   
them for the sake of ,thy ,son60        
,through the holy sacrifice of the mass1
 identical as it is with the  sacrifice 
of ,calvary1 all the merits of ,christ's
 life and death are  applied to our     
souls4 ,by ,his physical and bloody     
immolation on ,calvary1  ,christ        
purchased for us infinite treasures of  
grace1 and it is ,his will  that these  
graces shall be dispensed to us1 even   
till the end of the  world1 through the 
august sacrament of the altar4          
,moreover1 except for the  mass1 we     
should not be blessed with the abiding  
actual presence of our  divine ,shepherd

 among us--that is1 we should not       
possess ,him in that  special1 intimate 
manner in which we now have ,him in the 
,eucharist4 ,for it  is only in the mass
 that the sacred species are            
consecrated2 and  consequently it is    
through the mass alone that ,he takes up
 ,his sacramental  presence in our midst
 and becomes our food in holy communion4
 ,he could1  indeed1 have ordained it   
otherwise1 but such has been ,his       
blessed will1  and such the condition in
 which we are placed by the direction of
 ,his holy  ,church4    ,besides being  
our daily sacrifice1 then1 under the    
appearance of bread and  wine1 besides  
ever prolonging in our midst that       
wondrous act of ,calvary by  which at   
once ,he liberated our race and reopened
 to us the gates of  ,heaven1 the       
bounteous ,shepherd of our souls enters 
into the tabernacles of  our churches1  
and there in silent patient waiting ,he 
craves the love of  our hearts and longs
 for our intimate friendship4 ,he is not

 content alone  to plead for us with    
,god1 ,his ,father2 ,he is not content  
continually to  renew in our presence   
the tragic mystery by which at the end  
of ,his  earthly labors1 ,he procured us
 every blessing--no1 over and above     
these  sovereign acts of kindest        
benediction1 ,he wishes to remain among 
us1 and  to converse with us1 each and  
all1 as a friend would converse with his
  friend4 ,this is what ,he meant when  
,he said by the mouth of ,his inspired  
writer1 8my delights are to be with the 
children of men407#af7 ,as a  ,shepherd1
 ,his chiefest pleasure1 as well as ,his
 supremest care1 is to be  with the     
flock ,he has purchased and loves4 ,yet 
it is a lonely life for our             
,shepherd-,king1 this abode in the      
silent tabernacle2 but it is all for    
love  of us4 ,he wishes to be there     
where we can find ,him1 where we can    
come to  ,him at any hour and speak to  
,him1 to praise and thank ,him for all  
,his dear  and endless gifts1 to tell   

,him our needs and our sorrows1 to open 
our  breaking hearts to ,him and reveal 
the secrets of our souls4 ,this it is   
that ,he desires from us--the outpouring
 of our hearts and souls in ,his        
presence4 ,this it is which renders unto
 ,him that homage of faith and love  and
 devotion that ,he came into the world  
to inspire4 ,it will not do to say      
that1 being ,god1 ,he is acquainted with
 all our thoughts and aware of all  our 
wants1 for it is intimacy and confidence
 that ,he desires1 the intimacy  and    
confidence which alone can create a true
 and noble friendship4 8,i will  call   
you no longer servants10 ,he said to    
,his disciples1 8but ,i have called  you
 friends2 the servant knoweth not what  
his ,master doth1 but a friend is       
admitted to confidence407#ag7 ,christ in
 the tabernacle is our friend2 ,he  has 
loved us unto the end1 and ,he yearns   
for our love in return4 ,why is  this8  
,why are we so precious in ,his eyes8   
,what are we that the great  ,creator   

should at all be mindful of us87#ah7 ,we
 must remember and ever bear  in mind   
the lofty purpose which the ,creator had
 in view when first ,he  called us into 
being--the same purpose it was which    
prompted our redemption  and all the    
gracious dispensations that have        
followed thereupon--namely1  that ,god1 
while achieving ,his own eternal honor  
and glory1 might  communicate to us a   
portion of ,his own ineffable           
blessedness4 ,we were made  for ,god1   
and not for the world1 or for creatures1
 or for ourselves4 ,and  precisely      
because we are the possession and       
property of ,god1 ,he wants us1  soul   
and body1 for ,himself2 and in this     
blessed sacrament ,he calls to us       
individually1 8,son1 give ,me thy       
heart207#ai7 8come to ,me1 all you who  
are  burdened1 and ,i will refresh      
you407#bj7 8come to ,me and find rest   
for your  souls1 ,i will lead you beside
 the waters of quietness40    ,but the  
excesses of our ,shepherd's love and    

care do not stop with the  altar and    
with the tabernacle4 ,he is not         
satisfied with being our daily          
sacrifice and our abiding friend1 not   
satisfied until ,he enters into our     
very bosom and unites us to ,himself4   
,union with the beloved object and      
delight in its presence are             
characteristic of all true friendship1  
whether  human or divine4 ,that which we
 really love we desire to have1 to      
possess1  to be united with2 and hence  
it is that ,christ1 the lover of our    
souls1  has not only given ,his life to 
purchase us for ,himself and ,heaven1   
but has  so extended ,his               
loving-kindness as to become ,himself   
our actual food4    ,it is              
incomprehensible1 in a human way1 that  
the love of a shepherd for  his flock1  
the love of ,god for ,his creatures1    
should be so extraordinary  as to       
provide the wondrous benefits which     
,christ in the ,eucharist has  wrought  
for us4 ,we simply cannot grasp with our

 feeble minds the  prodigality of such  
enduring love4 ,but the ,saviour knew   
,his purpose with  us1 and ,he knew the 
needs of our souls4 ,as guests destined 
for an eternal  banquet1 and as heirs to
 celestial thrones1 it is needful for   
us1 amid the  rough ways and perils of  
life1 to be constantly reminded of our  
royal  destiny and strengthened against 
our daily foes4 ,this world of ours is  
an  arena in which each one must contend
 for his eternal prize2 and it is not   
possible1 considering our natural       
frailty and the enemies that oppose our 
forward march1 that we alone1 without an
 added strength1 should ever be  able to
 win the battle of life4    ,hence1 as  
the body1 to maintain its vigor and     
perform its work1 needs its  material   
and earthly food1 so the soul1 to live  
and be strong1 must be  nourished with  
the bread of ,heaven4 8,the bread that  
,i will give10 said our  ,lord1 8is my  
flesh for the life of the world 444     
unless you eat of this  bread you cannot

 have life in you 444 and he that eateth
 my flesh and  drinketh my blood hath   
life everlasting1 and ,i will raise him 
up on the  last day407#ba7    ,in order1
 then1 to sustain our spiritual life on 
earth and to make us  strong for our    
daily conflicts1 our heavenly ,shepherd 
has left us a food  which is none other 
than ,his own body and blood4 ,what a   
prodigy of love6  ,what could ,he do for
 us that ,he has not done8 ,but1 besides
 giving us  strength1 ,he had another   
purpose in becoming our food4 ,since ,he
 has chosen  us for ,himself1 and has   
provided1 in another world1 eternal     
mansions for  our souls17#bb7 ,he wishes
 to make certain1 not only the happy    
issue of our  lives1 but our            
ever-increasing resemblance to ,himself4
 ,he is therefore  preparing us1 ,he is 
fitting us1 through communion in the    
,holy ,eucharist1  for our celestial    
home1 and for visible companionship with
 ,himself4  ,intercourse1 communion1    
intimate relationship produce likeness1 

even here  on earth1 and it is a        
singular effect of ,holy ,communion     
that1 unlike  earthly food1 it changes  
into itself all those who partake of it4
  ,material1 natural food becomes the   
substance of our flesh and blood1 but   
frequent participation in the heavenly  
nourishment of ,christ in the           
,eucharist transmutes our whole         
being--our lives and thoughts and       
actions--into its own supernatural      
character4    ,thus by living much with 
,christ on earth1 by intimate converse  
with ,him1  by allowing ,him to enter   
into our lives and thoughts1 and shape  
our  conduct and actions2 and above all1
 by frequent and fervent communion with 
,him in the sacrament of ,his love1 we  
become like unto ,him1 even here in  our
 state of exile4 ,and this likeness to  
,christ1 which ,his faithful  servants  
assume here below1 is a forestate of    
future blessedness2 it is a  preparation
 for the great reunion and the eternal  
banquet which await us  in ,heaven4     

,already we are led beside the waters of
 rest2 we are directed  to pastures of  
sweetest nourishment2 and through the   
calm and vigor that  reign in the soul  
we experience even now a taste of joys  
unseen4            ,v4 ,,he ,,restoreth 
,,my ,,soul4      ,throughout the       
pastoral country of the ,orient there   
are numerous places of  great peril for 
sheep4 ,there are also1 here and there1 
private fields and  vineyards and       
gardens into which1 if a member of a    
flock should stray and  be caught1 it is
 forfeited to the owner of the land4    
,strange as it may  seem1 the sheep     
never learn to avoid these dangerous    
spots and forbidden  places1 and it     
behooves the shepherd to be ever on his 
guard for them1 and  to rescue them when
 wandering4    ,here we cannot fail to  
observe the striking resemblance between
 this  wayward tendency of the          
shepherd's flock and our own inclination
 and  propensity to wander from ,god and
 things eternal4 ,the world is full of  

occasions to evil2 at every turn of the 
road on our journey through life  there 
are fierce and crouching enemies who are
 waiting the chance to  capture and bear
 us away4 ,we know this2 we have often  
been warned of the  danger2 too many sad
 experiences and breathless escapes have
 convinced us  of the sundry perils to  
soul and body that lie along the way of 
life4 ,but  we1 like senseless1 erring  
sheep1 if bereft of the ,shepherd's     
guiding  care1 do not learn1 in life's  
sad school1 the way to keep free from   
harm4  ,though wounded repeatedly1 and  
scarred and worn1 and left1 perhaps1    
without human aid1 to waste and bleed   
our life away1 we do not see the        
lurking evils2 we do not discern beneath
 the mask the enemy whose purpose  is   
ruin and death4    ,the creatures of the
 world1 the things of sense take vicious
 hold of us1  and often drag us to the  
very verge of perdition before we are   
aware4 ,they  come to us unprepared1 and
 seek entrance into our lives and       

thoughts1 and  allure us by deception4  
,they tell us that the world is fair and
 beautiful  and full of promise2 that   
,god1 for the moment1 is not concerned2 
that the  soul is secure and safe1 and  
the body and its needs the only object  
of  present solicitude4 ,the process is 
gradual4 ,the turning away and the loss 
are not at once and from the beginning  
of seductive influences1 but slowly  and
 unobtrusively in the guise of hope and 
high expectation4 ,there is  ,ambition1 
with its glittering prospects1 with its 
proffered rewards and  castles of air4  
,to the young man and young woman1 just 
entering the arena  of life1 ,ambition  
says1 8,come and follow me1 and ,i will 
crown you with  glory and honor4 ,i will
 lift you above the common1 beaten paths
 of men and  seat you on a gilded       
throne4 ,i will introduce you to my     
sister ,pride1 and  we two will make you
 happy4 ,pride will teach you your true 
dignity1 your  place and position in the
 universe2 she will remind you of your  

gifts and  faculties1 and enable you to 
battle with the weak and the strong2 she
 will  give you the secret of knowledge 
and train you to soar above your        
fellow-creatures and probe the mysteries
 of ,god and ,heaven40 ,then  ,pleasure1
 with dimpled cheeks and laughing eyes1 
and words that sound like  music to the 
ears1 hurries out to greet the          
passers-by1 and charms them by  her     
shining gifts4 8,make me your object and
 your end10 she says1 8and ,i  will make
 you blessed4 ,forget your troubles and 
your cares1 your fears of  present and  
future ills2 rejoice and be glad1 eat1  
drink and be merry2  indulge and drain  
to dregs the cups of sense1 for this is 
all there is40  ,philosophy comes with  
another hope4 8,drink deeply10 she      
counsels1 8at the  spring of wisdom1 and
 fear not ,god nor man2 believe and     
trust in me1 and ,i  will steal away the
 sting of sorrow and pain2 ,i will      
restore you to man's  primeval state and
 land you safe on the shores of rest40  

,and when these deceivers--,ambition1   
,pride1 ,pleasure1 and the like--have   
plundered and sacked their victim's     
goods1 when these painted idols of a    
passing world have led away their       
worshippers as slaves1 and stripped them
  of all they possessed1 they give them 
over to evil habits and to masters  that
 scourge and tear them4 ,like other     
prodigals1 these pursuers of  earthly   
phantoms take leave of their ,father's  
house of comfort and plenty1  they give 
up virtue1 innocence1 honesty1 purity2  
they go into a far  country to waste    
their substance living riotously1 only  
to awake1 soon at  latest1 to a land of 
famine1 and to find themselves alone and
 in want4  ,instead of the honor and    
fame and high estate they sought to     
gain1 instead  of the escape from evil  
and pain and labor they hoped to find1  
they are  sent into fields to minister  
to swine--the swine of their own        
degradation4    ,so1 to a degree1 it is 
with us1 each and all1 who listen to    

other voices  and heed other calls than 
the voice and the call of ,god4 ,if we  
prefer to  stray to other fields and    
desert the pasture of our ,shepherd1 if 
we prefer  a far country to our         
,father's home1 if the world and its    
fleeting  pleasures are more to us than 
,god and ,his paternal rewards1 then we 
must  of necessity find ourselves at    
length in utter want and penury4 ,it is 
this  possibility of deserting ,god1 of 
seeking happiness outside of ,him1 of   
overturning the plans which ,he has made
 for our salvation1 that gives us a     
vision of the awful failure of human    
life4 ,the gifts of this world are by   
nature fleeting and fast-flying1 and if 
we allow them to take the place of  ,him
 who made them1 no matter how great our 
present boons1 in spite of  wealth and  
friends and all success1 we have missed 
our chance and our  purpose in the      
world1 and can only have at last a      
desolate and a ruined  life4    ,but how
 is it1 then1 one may ask1 that man can 

be so deceived8 ,how is it  that we do  
not learn from others' disasters to     
avoid1 every one of us1  those          
deceiving1 ruinous masters1 those false 
gods that can lead us away  from the one
 true ,shepherd of our souls8 ,it is1   
indeed1 a curious fact  that our        
deception is so easy4 ,surely a         
rational1 intelligent being1 who  stops 
to consider1 ought easily to distinguish
 between the great ,god of  ,heaven and 
the creatures of ,his hands4 ,it ought  
not to be difficult for us  to see the  
transient vanity of human things when   
compared with the eternal  mansions4    
,but the truth of the matter is1 that we
 are deceived1 we do  not at all times  
see the objects of our choice as they   
really are  objectively4 ,our vision is 
defective and blurred4 ,if ,god stood   
out in our  lives as ,he really ought to
 stand1 if ,he occupied that place in   
our  thoughts and plans which belongs to
 ,him by right1 it would not be possible
  that we should ever be led astray4    

,and that ,god does not always hold in  
our lives the place which is ,his due is
 partly the result of our fallen        
nature2 partly1 therefore1 in a way1    
excusable2 but more frequently and      
chiefly from our own perversity--from   
wilful neglect of our highest duties4   
,the blindness and perversity of our    
nature1 which have come from the  wounds
 of original sin1 make it easy for us1  
if we are neglectful and  careless of   
our higher spiritual obligations1 to    
mistake the false for the  true1 evil   
for good1 the creature for the ,creator4
 ,in the midst of the  world and its    
allurements1 it behooves us to be ever  
watching1 if we are  never to stumble   
and to fall4 ,had our nature never been 
corrupted by  original unfaithfulness1  
had our first parents never turned away 
from ,god  and transgressed ,his sacred 
precept1 all our present ills would     
never have  existed4 ,but now it is     
different4 ,we are born into the world a
 weakened  people2 each one of us has   

had an implicit part in the first       
transgression2 we all1 like erring      
sheep1 have gone astray4 ,and while this
  tendency to evil is part of our       
natural condition1 and therefore less   
imputable to us1 it nevertheless is true
 that our actual sins and  evil-doing   
are the work of our deliberate choice4  
,if1 at any time1 we  really turn away  
from ,god and break ,his law1 it is     
because we have freely  chosen so to    
act4 ,the native perversity of nature in
 a normal man can  never explain and    
excuse the grievous sins which he       
deliberately commits4  ,it is only true 
that a weak and wounded nature leaves   
one less able to  choose what is right1 
and more disposed to wrong4 ,and since  
we know the  state of things1 since we  
know that the fault is really ours when 
we dare  to stray to forbidden deeds and
 places1 how constant and unrelenting1  
if  we are truly wise1 should be our    
efforts to keep our vision unobscured   
and  our ears attuned to the voice and  

call of our heavenly ,shepherd6 ,we know
  that by following ,him our way will be
 certain and clear4 ,howsoever  enormous
 the evils of life1 and notwithstanding 
all our weakness1 we know  that in ,him 
we are safe and strong4 ,but we must    
hear ,him to follow ,him1 we  must be   
guided and directed by ,his gracious    
commands4    ,this failure to hear and  
obey the voice of ,god it is which more 
explains  the falls and sins of men than
 all their inherited frailty4 ,so long  
as ,his  words are heard and directions 
heeded1 mistake and error are           
impossible4  ,we see1 therefore1 why it 
is that so many actually do desert ,him 
and are  led by evil voices4 ,the cause 
chiefly lies in the wilfulness of human 
nature and in the abuse of human        
liberty4 ,we cannot stand unless ,god   
support us1 and we shall surely fall if 
,he withdraws ,his supporting hand4     
,but the choice of evil1 the beginning  
of unfaithfulness comes from  ourselves2
 for ,almighty ,god will never forsake  

us unless we first forsake  ,him4       
,if1 ever1 then1 we find our lives to be
 at variance with ,god1 whether in      
lesser or in greater matters1 if it     
should ever be our unhappy fortune to   
wander from ,him1 like another prodigal1
 and waste our lives with the  enemies  
of our souls1 we can be assured that the
 desertion is all our own4  ,we forget  
,god1 we deliberately wander from ,his  
sight and care1 and then we  fall4      
,engrossed in worldly affairs1 taken up 
with present vanities1 with  ourselves1 
our ease1 our temporal advancement1 we  
begin to neglect prayer  and communion  
with ,god1 we begin to rely on ourselves
 and to forge ahead  of our own accord1 
only to encounter complete defeat and be
 shorn of all  our strength4 ,the secret
 of our power and success is to keep    
close to ,him1  to speak to ,him        
lovingly and often1 to seek guidance and
 protection from  ,him1 and habitually  
to live in ,his comforting presence4    
,but such is the boundless kindness of  

our heavenly ,shepherd that1 no  matter 
how often we may have wandered from     
,him1 or how seriously we may  have     
grieved ,him1 ,he is ever ready to      
pursue our wanderings1 and to seek      
until ,he finds us4 ,he does not stop to
 consider the enormity of our guilt1  or
 our unreasonableness1 or our           
ingratitude1 but ,he seeks us4 ,he does 
not  pause to take an account of all ,he
 has done for us1 of the many graces ,he
  has given us1 of the tears and blood  
,he has shed in our behalf2 but ,he     
goes after our straying souls1 and ,he  
will not be appeased until ,he  restore 
us4 ,god does not will the death of the 
sinner1 but that he be  converted and   
live47#bc7 ,he knows all our frailties  
and our diverse  temptations2 ,he knows 
how alluring are the things of sense to 
a nature  perverted like ours2 ,he knows
 how easy it is for us1 blind and       
ignorant as  we are1 to forget ,him and 
our dearest interests1 and to obey the  
call of  other voices2 all this ,he     

understands1 and ,he has pity on us4    
8,he knoweth  our frame1 ,he remembereth
 that we are dust407#bd7    ,to bring us
 back1 therefore1 when wandering1 and to
 restore us to the  circle of ,his      
chosen flock1 our ,saviour has made     
ample provision4 ,through  those divine 
mediums of grace--the sacraments of ,his
 ,church--,he has arranged  to succor   
all our wants and to cure our various   
infirmities4 ,the  sacraments of        
,baptism and ,penance1 in particular1   
were instituted to raise  our souls from
 death to life1 and to heal our         
spiritual wounds4 ,baptism  may be aptly
 compared to the door of the sheepfold4 
,it is the gate through  which men must 
enter into the fold of ,christ1 it is   
the entrance to ,his  ,church4 ,it      
clears away the guilt and stain of      
original sin1 and restores  the soul    
from a state of enmity to the friendship
 and grace of ,god4 ,none  can really   
belong to ,christ1 none can be of ,his  
true fold who have not  entered by way  

of the door1 who have not been baptized4
 ,many there are who  pretend to belong 
to ,him and think themselves of the     
number of ,his flock2  they speak of    
,him as their ,master and ,shepherd2    
they pretend to be doing  ,his work2    
they call ,him ,lord and preach in ,his 
name2 but they have not  entered by the 
door of the sheepfold1 and ,he knows    
them not4 ,like thieves  and robbers1   
they have climbed up some other way1 and
 they neither know  ,him1 nor does ,he  
know them1 neither can they understand  
,his voice4 ,baptism  is the entrance1  
it is the door1 to the fold of ,christ4 
,and as it is through ,baptism that our 
bountiful ,lord first recalls us from   
the ways of sin and makes us members of 
his flock1 so in the sacrament of       
,penance ,he has provided a means by    
which we may at all times be recalled   
from our wanderings and restored to ,his
 friendship4 ,penance is an             
inexhaustible means of reconciliation   
between the erring soul and ,god4 ,it   

lasts throughout our lives1 it stretches
 even to the end of time4 ,if only  we  
are men of goodwill and have at heart   
our eternal interests1 we need  not be  
disturbed at our frailty1 or at repeated
 lapses into sin4 ,there is  no sin     
which cannot be forgiven by the         
sacrament of ,penance4 ,not that        
anyone1 knowing that he can be forgiven1
 should presume to abuse ,god's         
gracious sacrament1 and yield freely and
 without restraint to the voice of  sin2
 nor that we are not to be truly sorry  
to the end of our days for  having even 
once offended our benign ,maker and     
,redeemer2 but we must be  confident    
that1 whatever may have been our faults 
and failings1 however  prolonged and    
extraordinary our transgressions1 if we 
approach the  sacrament of ,penance with
 sincere sorrow and a firm purpose of   
amendment1  ,god will always lovingly   
receive us back to ,himself1 and        
remember no more  our unfaithfulness4   
,god hates sin1 because it is opposed to

 ,himself and is  the only evil in the  
world1 but ,he loves the wounded sinner 
who is made in  ,his own image and      
likeness4 ,precious in the sight of ,god
 is the penitent  sinner4 ,does ,he not 
tell us ,himself that1 like a good      
shepherd1 ,he leaves  ninety-nine just  
to go in search of one lost sheep8 ,yea1
 ,he assures us  that there is rejoicing
 among the angels of ,heaven over one   
sinner who  does penance47#be7    ,to   
make worthy use of the sacrament of     
,penance we must be truly sorry for     
having offended ,god1 and be resolved1  
at the time of confession1 to do  what  
lies in our power never again to turn   
away from ,him4 ,to these  dispositions 
must also be joined the intention of    
doing something to  repair the injury   
which sin has done to ,god4 ,given such 
conditions1 and we  need only speak the 
word to ,god's duly appointed minister  
and our sins are  no more4 ,the dark    
veil which hung around the soul like a  
cloud is lifted1  and we again rejoice  

in the smile of our heavenly ,father4   
,how simple1 yet  how potent are the    
means provided for our salvation6 ,none 
but ,god could  have thought of them1   
nothing but the love of ,god could have 
arranged  them6    ,but even before the 
sinner is brought to penance1 even while
 he is  wandering and reveling afar off 
in the vile delights of sin1 ,god is    
pursuing him1 ,god is seeking after him1
 calling him by name1 whispering to  his
 heart1 disposing him for repentance4   
,we cannot return to ,god1 once we  have
 deserted ,him1 without ,his help4 ,it  
is our awful power to be able to  leave 
,him1 but to return alone we are not    
able4 ,wherefore ,he comes after  us    
when we have wandered into the wilds of 
sin2 ,he pleads as it were1 with  our   
souls1 and offers us the grace to       
repent4 ,oh privileged are our souls  to
 be thus appraised by ,god1 and happy   
those who hear and heed the  appealing  
voice of ,his grace6            ,,vi4   
,,he ,,leadeth ,,me ,,in ,,the ,,paths  

,,of ,,justice ,,for ,,his ,,name',s    
,,sake4      ,the shepherd country of   
the ,east is full of walks and pathways1
 some  leading this way1 some that4     
,some lead to dangerous precipices over 
which  the sheep might fall and be lost1
 others would expose them to the attack 
of wild beasts1 while still others would
 lead them so far astray that they      
could not find their way back4 ,it is1  
therefore1 always needful that the      
shepherd go ahead of his flock and lead 
them in the right path4 ,the  ,psalmist1
 in the title of the present chapter1 is
 applying this  carefulness of the      
shepherd for his sheep to our ,lord1 in 
,his regard for  our spiritual welfare4 
,the ,saviour goes before us with the   
blessings of  ,his goodness to help and 
lead us aright1 lest perchance we become
 lost and  perish in our journey4       
,this solicitude of our ,redeemer in    
providing for the various needs of our  
souls is characteristic of ,him as      
,saviour4 ,it is implied in the meaning 

of  his name4 ,before ,he was born1     
before ,he was conceived in ,his        
,mother's  womb1 it was foretold of ,him
 that ,he should be called ,jesus1 which
 means  ,saviour1 for ,he would save    
,his people from their sins47#bf7 ,he   
exercised1  as we know1 this mission of 
saviour throughout ,his earthly career4 
,it was  for this that ,he came into the
 world1 for this that ,he was born in   
,bethlehem with a manger as ,his cradle1
 for this that1 at the age of  twelve1  
,he was found teaching in the ,temple1  
for this that ,he retired to  ,nazareth 
and was subject to ,mary and ,joseph1   
for this that ,he labored and  suffered 
and bled and died4 ,and with ,his       
passing from this visible scene  to the 
bosom of ,his ,father1 ,he did not cease
 to be that for which ,he had  been     
eternally anointed--the great ,high     
,priest1 the ,mediator between ,god  and
 man1 the ,saviour of the world4 ,his   
work is everlasting2 and now that  ,he  
has gone up on high1 ,he pleads for us  

ever more with the ,father4 ,we  belong 
to ,him1 ,he has purchased us with ,his 
blood1 and ,he must needs care  for our 
safety to the end4    ,inasmuch as we   
are heirs1 according to divine decree1  
to thrones beyond  the skies1 it was    
necessary1 as we have seen1 that ,he who
 is our ,saviour  and ,shepherd should  
have left behind ,him in this world of  
ours a doctrine1  a code1 or system of  
instructions and laws1 which should     
safely direct and  guide us to our royal
 destiny4 ,those who lived with ,him on 
earth1 those  who heard ,his assuring1  
life-giving words1 and felt the         
inspiration of ,his  example and visible
 presence needed not to fear for the    
direction or  safety of their course4   
,the divine1 living voice and sacred    
presence of  their ,lord and ,master    
they enjoyed1 and care and anxiety fled 
from their  souls4 ,but not for these   
alone had the ,redeemer come1 but for   
all mankind1  for all who in future were
 to breathe the breath of human life4   

,he came to  save all1 ,he died for all2
 and thus the teaching which ,he gave to
 the  world1 and which ,he committed to 
,his chosen followers1 was for every    
human  being1 even to the end of the    
world1 that through it all might live   
and  attain to life everlasting4    ,the
 doctrine which the ,saviour left us1   
and the laws which ,he prescribed  were 
vastly different from the teachings of  
men4 ,guiding1 saving words of  a       
,shepherd to his flock1 they engendered 
safety1 comfort1 peace4 ,free from      
error or mistake1 sealed with the seal  
of ,heaven1 holding out a promise of    
future glory1 they exhaled the perfumes 
of the eternal city1 they told of       
mansions not built with hands4 ,and     
since this immaculate doctrine1 given   
for the souls of men1 was to last till  
the end of time1 there was need  that it
 should be shielded against the assaults
 of the world and protected  from the   
influence of our changing human         
teachings4 ,it could not be  corrected1 

because it contained no mistakes2 it    
could not be changed or  altered1       
because it came from the changeless     
,god2 it could have no  substitute from 
the part of men or creatures of any     
kind1 because it was  given by ,him who 
alone was the way1 the truth1 and the   
life4 ,consequently  the truths which   
the ,saviour declared to the world as   
the only means by  which we can be      
saved1 were at once infallible in       
themselves1 and so  provided for that no
 human agency1 no lapse of years or     
revolutions of  time and place should   
ever be able to infringe on their       
eternal1  changeless character4 ,it was 
to preserve these truths in their       
integrity  and freshness that ,he       
founded ,his unerring ,church and       
committed to it the  office of custodian
 and expounder1 under the guidance of   
,his ,holy ,spirit1  of all ,he had     
revealed for the salvation of human     
kind4 ,hence to hear our  ,shepherd's   
voice1 to understand what ,he says to   

us1 to know what we must  do to obey    
,his laws and save our souls1 we need   
but listen to the voice of  ,his        
,church4 ,before it was established ,he 
declared that ,he should build ,his     
,church upon a rock1 and that no enemy1 
or group of enemies1 not even the  gates
 of hell should ever prevail against    
it47#bg7 ,he established the  ,church as
 ,his mouthpiece1 and ,he said to the   
little band that constituted  it in the 
beginning1 8he that heareth you1 heareth
 me1 and he that heareth  me1 heareth   
,him that sent me207#bh7 and1 as if to  
emphasize this  declaration1 ,he added  
that any one who would not hear and obey
 the ,church  should be considered as a 
heathen and a publican--types of all    
that was  bad47#bi7 ,the ,church1       
therefore1 is the oracle of ,god1 it is 
,his  mouthpiece2 it possesses and      
guards the only revelation which ,god   
has made  to ,his rational creatures2 it
 alone has the words of eternal life4   
,thus it is that our divine ,shepherd   

goes before us1 leading us in the  paths
 of truth and justice1 preserving us    
from danger and error with  respect to  
our spiritual destiny4 ,we cannot go    
astray if we listen to ,him  speaking to
 us through ,his church4 ,in all our    
perplexities and  uncertainties1 when   
confronted by any doubt1 or confused and
 distracted by  the wrangling voices and
 conflicting opinions of men1 we can be 
calm and  at peace1 assured in our      
inmost souls that the voice which guides
 us  cannot err1 that it is easier for  
heaven and earth to pass away than for  
one word of ,his to fail47#cj7    ,he   
leadeth me in ways of justice1 in the   
ways of holiness1 in the ways  which the
 saints have walked4 ,how exceeding     
great1 indeed1 is our  privilege1 and   
how certain and individual our election6
 ,all that remains  to us is to listen  
to ,his words and to follow ,him1 and   
present peace will  attend our labors1  
while future glory waits upon our end4  
,but in the midst of abundant blessings 

and spiritual favors which have         
surrounded and sheltered us from        
infancy1 we are apt to be unmindful of  
our state of plenty and forgetful of the
 duty of gratitude4 ,we are apt to      
venture out like thoughtless children1  
trusting in our own strength to  battle 
with the foe2 or else1 on the contrary1 
we sluggishly presume that  a bountiful 
,providence will provide for us         
regardless of our own  co-operation4 ,we
 have never known what it is to want for
 spiritual food  and spiritual          
direction1 except when indolence1       
careless indifference1 and  our own     
folly have led us astray4 ,these are    
evils which continually assail  us1 and 
we often make friends with them1 not    
knowing what we are doing for  the most 
part1 until the blood of life has almost
 ebbed away4 ,we are not1  indeed1      
removed from a world where sin abounds  
and where deceiving voices  may allure  
us this way and that4 ,like the pastoral
 country of the ,orient1  the walks of  

life are fraught with perils3 false     
teachers1 false  doctrines1 false       
prophets1 pseudo-christs27#ca7 8perils  
from our own  nation1 and perils from   
abroad1 perils in the city and perils in
 the  wilderness1 perils in the sea and 
perils from false brethren07#cb7--;all  
trying to attract and lead us away from 
the paths of justice and deliver  us to 
the enemy of our souls4    ,it is       
necessary that we should know that      
wolves are abroad in sheep's  clothing2 
8false apostles1 deceitful workers1     
transforming themselves into  the       
apostles of ,christ407#cc7 ,they come to
 us with winning words and easy         
teachings1 with new creeds1 new forms of
 belief1 new ways to the promised  land4
    ,the doctrine and truths which      
,christ taught and which ,he entrusted  
to ,his  ,church are set aside or       
explained away by these modern teachers1
 and the  novel and the strange are made
 to assume the role of the old1 the     
familiar  and the true4 ,the harm done  

is incalculable4 ,how many innocent and 
unwary  sheep have been lost to the fold
 of ,christ by following the call of    
these  unworthy preachers and false     
shepherds6 ,what multitudes of precious 
souls  have been deceived by their      
polished words and led away into paths  
of  error1 into deadly ways of thinking1
 believing1 and acting1 never to  return
 to the path that leads to life6        
,this poisoning of the soul and the     
heart by erroneous doctrines is         
effected in many and diverse ways2 the  
victims of falsehood are variously      
captured4 ,there are the wisdom and     
sagacity of men1 there are the          
conquests of science and the learning of
 the philosophers1 the discoveries  of  
our day1 the strides of history1 the    
breakdown and overthrow of many  things 
held sacred by our forefathers--and all 
these changes and ruptures  in the order
 of a former generation are now used to 
beguile the flock of  ,christ and sway  
them from the paths of truth and        

righteousness4 ,but amid  all this din  
and uproar of conflicting voices1 amid  
the wrangling tumult  and confusion of  
converging opinions1 those who will may 
hear and discern  the loving voice of   
the true ,shepherd speaking to the world
 through ,his  ,church with the same    
calm1 assuring words which ,he uttered  
to living  witnesses two thousand years 
ago4 ,he has not changed1 neither has   
,his  teaching2 ,he has not deserted    
,his chosen flock1 but is with it all   
days1  even to the end of the           
world47#cd7 ,his love for us1 ,his      
watchfulness for  our needs1 ,his       
enduring care for our interests1 in     
spite of our enemies1  can never fail4  
,and while assured of this1 it behooves 
us also1 as appealing to our sense  of  
gratitude1 and as inducing to greater   
love of ,him1 to reflect that this      
abiding faithfulness of our ,saviour in 
caring for our wants is not from  any   
worthiness of ours1 or because of our   
merits1 but only for ,his ,name's  sake1

 because ,he is ,saviour4 ,it was ,his  
love for us that prompted our  creation1
 ,his love that provoked ,his passion   
and redeemed us1 ,his love  that made   
,him suffer for us1 ,his love that      
teaches and shall guide us to  life     
everlasting1 for ,his love endureth     
forever4            ,,vii4 ,,yea1       
,,though ,i ,,walk ,,in ,,the ,,valley  
,,of ,,the ,,shadow ,,of ,,death1 ,i    
,,will ,,fear  ,,no ,,evil1 ,,for ,,thou
 ,,art ,,with ,,me4      ,besides the   
paths and dangerous walks in the        
shepherd country that would  lead the   
sheep to destruction and death1 there   
are other paths all  encompassed with   
evils through which1 nevertheless1 they 
are at times  obliged to make their way4
 ,safety from all harm there cannot be  
for the  shepherd's flock4 ,they must in
 their journeys encounter many perils1  
even  while pursuing the proper paths4  
,there are deep and darksome valleys1   
walled round on all sides by towering   
rocky hills1 which at times the         

shepherd cannot easily escape4 ,and     
within these shadowy valleys and somber 
ravines there dwell not infrequently    
wild and ferocious animals that will1   
if aroused1 attack and kill the tender  
sheep4 ,the utmost care and caution  of 
the shepherd are called into service    
safely to conduct his dependent  flock  
through these places of deepest peril4  
,but in spite of all his  watchfulness  
it sometimes happens that a wolf will   
get into the very midst  of the sheep4  
,the timid1 terrified animals become    
wild with fright1 and  are scattered1   
running this way and that1 until the    
shepherd calls and  bids them collect   
together4 ,no sooner do they hear his   
voice1 than they  all rush swiftly      
together in a solid mass1 and either    
drive the enemy from  their midst or    
cripple and crush him to death4    ,thus
 in times of greatest peril the shepherd
 protects his sheep1 and  wrests them   
from the jaws of harm4 ,the sheep know  
this1 and they fear no  evils2 they know

 that their master is with them4 ,yea1  
though they walk in  the shadow of      
perils and dwell in the midst of the    
valley of death1 they  faint not1       
neither do they fear1 for they know that
 the shepherd is near4    ,the case of  
the sheep in the valley of perils is not
 unlike our own in the  midst of the    
evils of the world2 and the peace and   
safety which we enjoy  should be similar
 also to theirs4 ,we are assured1 first 
of all1 by an  unflinching faith in ,god
 and our ,redeemer that1 if we trust our
 ,master and  obey ,him1 we shall be led
 aright throughout our lives1 even to   
the kingdom  of ,heaven4 ,we shall be   
led in the paths of justice and love1   
and crowned  at length with the crown of
 glory1 if we but follow the voice of   
our  ,shepherd-,king1 and avoid the     
walks of disaster and ruin4 ,and to hear
 ,his  voice and to know it we have but 
to listen to the teachings of ,his      
,church1  which will hush to silence our
 troubled hearts1 and direct our wayward

  feet into the paths of heavenly peace4
    ,but1 like the shepherd's flock1 we 
have to avoid in our journey through    
life1 as perils to our safety and       
spiritual welfare1 not only the false   
shepherds and teachers and doctrines    
that surround us on all sides2 but we   
must also1 to pass to our reward1       
actually encounter inevitable evils and 
fight many necessary battles4 ,many of  
the paths of life through which we  must
 of necessity pass are hard and         
difficult1 and full of deadly perils4   
,we must remember that sin has ruined   
the primeval beauty of our earthly      
habitation and made our life here below 
a labor and a toil to the end4    ,we   
not only come into the world with sin on
 our souls1 and are thereby  exiles from
 the city of ,god1 but even when our sin
 is forgiven us the  remains of the     
malady continue as wounds in our nature 
as long as we live  on earth4 ,the      
deadly guilt is wiped away1 but the     
effects of the evil  remain4 ,and it is 

chiefly these wounds of our nature1 in  
ourselves and in  others1 that render   
life's journey1 even when pursued in    
accordance with  the law of ,god1 at    
times truly difficult and perilous4     
,fidelity to ,god and  to ,his law is   
not always a safeguard against the      
wickedness of the world  and of men2 at 
times1 in fact1 it is just the contrary4
 ,indeed1 is it not  a truth that many1 
perhaps the majority1 of those who      
endeavor sincerely  to please and to    
serve ,god must often suffer severely   
for their very  goodness and            
faithfulness8 ,are they not             
misunderstood1 and criticised1 and      
censured8 ,are they not frequently      
accused of all manner of wrong1 their   
work disparaged1 and their motives      
impugned8 ,are not persecution1 and even
  martyrdom1 often their portion8 ,now  
all this is the result of sin4 ,those   
who call into question the deeds and    
motives of ,god's saints2 those who     
upbraid1 and criticise1 and impute evil 

to the sincere1 faithful servants  of   
,god1 inflicting upon them dire evils1  
are but showing the effects of  sin in  
themselves1 are but giving exercise to  
the evil that rules within  them4 ,their
 particular acts and words may be       
without present malice1 they  may be    
inwardly persuaded that in reviling and 
condemning their neighbor  and doing him
 harm1 they are rendering a service to  
,god ,himself2 but in so  doing they but
 manifest the effects of earlier sin1   
personal1 perhaps1 and  original1 which 
has darkened their understanding and    
made perverse their  moral vision1 so   
that1 having eyes1 they see not1 having 
ears1 they hear  not1 neither do they   
understand47#ce7 ,following the         
corruption of their own  nature1        
bleeding from the wounds of original    
sin1 they are prone to  blaspheme       
whatsoever they fail to comprehend27#cf7
 and thus it is that they  often make   
life and the world for the servant of   
,god a truly perilous  sojourn1 a       

veritable valley of death4    ,this     
failure to be understood1 this          
misjudgment of actions1 motives1  deeds1
 are doubtless common evils from which1 
in a measure1 we all must  suffer4 ,but 
it is also true that the more elevated  
the life1 the higher  its aims1 the     
loftier the spiritual level on which it 
proceeds1 the  greater the difficulty of
 its being understood and appreciated by
 the  majority1 who always tread the    
common paths of mediocrity4 ,a saint is 
nearly always a disturbance to his      
immediate surroundings1 he is           
frequently an annoyance and an          
irritation to the little circle in which
  his external life is cast1 simply     
because he really lives and moves in a  
sphere which the ordinary life cannot   
grasp4 ,like a brilliant1 dazzling      
light that obscures the lesser          
luminaries1 and is therefore odious to  
them1 the man of ,god is frequently a   
disturber to the worldly peace of       
common men1 his life and works are a    

living reproach to their life and       
works2 and hence1 without willing it1 he
 becomes a menace to their society  and 
is not welcome in their company4        
,worldly1 plotting minds cannot         
understand the spiritual and the holy2  
sinful souls are out of harmony  with   
the virtuous2 the children of darkness  
cannot find peace with the  children of 
light4 ,and not only is there a lack of 
sympathy in the  worldly-minded for the 
men and women who are led of ,god1 but  
there is  often positive hatred for     
them--a hatred which spends itself in   
actual1  persistent persecution4 ,to be 
devout1 to refrain from sinful words and
  sinful deeds1 to shun the vain and    
dangerous amusements of worldlings1 to  
attend much to prayer and recollection1 
to love the house and worship of  ,god1 
to be seen often approaching the        
sacraments and partaking of the  bread  
of life at the communion rail--even     
these holy acts are sufficient          
frequently to draw down on the servants 

of ,god the curse and persecution  of a 
world which knows not what it does4     
,and that which happens individually to 
the faithful children of ,god takes     
place on a larger scale with respect to 
,god's ,church4 ,the children of this   
world1 those who have set their heart on
 temporal things1 or who1 through       
wilful error have deviated from the     
right path to things eternal1 never     
cease from pursuing and persecuting the 
,church of ,god4 ,they hate the  ,church
 and attack it unceasingly4 ,like the   
perverse and blinded ,jews of  old who  
reviled the ,saviour and ,his words and 
deeds1 who pursued ,him and  put ,him to
 death1 these ever-living and           
ever-active enemies of light and  truth 
never abate in their fury against the   
chosen friends of ,christ1 and  against 
,his holy ,church4 ,but need we be      
surprised at this8 ,was it not          
foretold8 ,did not our blessed          
,shepherd1 speaking in the beginning to 
,his  little flock1 warn them that men  

would deliver them up in councils and   
scourge them8 ,did ,he not say to them  
plainly1 8,and you shall be hated by    
all men for my name's sake2 but he that 
shall persevere unto the end1 he  shall 
be saved4 ,and when they persecute you  
in this city1 flee into  another4444    
,the disciple is not above the master1  
nor the servant above  his lord4 ,it is 
enough for the disciple that he be as   
his master1 and the  servant as his     
lord4 ,if they have called the good man 
of the house  ,beelzebub1 how much more 
them of his household407#cg7    ,it     
happens1 therefore1 that fidelity to    
,god1 and careful adherence to the      
paths of justice and holiness1 can      
frequently be the occasion of perils    
and sufferings for us individually1 as  
they also are the excuse for a  vaster  
persecution of the ,church in general4  
,all holy persons and holy  things are  
signs of contradiction4 ,they are not of
 the world1 they do not  fit in with it2
 and between them and the world there   

will be strife and  contention until the
 renovation comes4    ,but the enemies  
that lie along the ways of life1 that   
beset and threaten  even the most       
righteous paths of our pilgrimage1 are  
not all from  without--the most numerous
 and menacing are perhaps from within4  
8,the  enemies of a man10 says the      
inspired writer1 8are those of his own  
household407#ch7 ,that is to say1 the   
most potent evils which we suffer1 the  
chiefest foes to our present and future 
welfare are from ourselves--our own     
waywardness1 our tendencies to evil1 our
 wilfulness1 our self-love and          
self-seeking1 our own sins4 ,it is from 
these and like causes that we  suffer   
most4 ,hard and trying it surely is to  
bear persecutions and  contradictions   
from others2 severe is the strain to    
nature when1 in the  face of our noblest
 efforts1 proceeding from noblest       
motives1 we meet with  misunderstanding 
and even condemnation2 but to the       
upright1 religious  heart that is       

sincerely and truly seeking ,god amid   
the shadows and  pitfalls of life1 the  
sorest of all trials and the fiercest of
 all enemies  are one's own temptations 
and passions and inclinations to evil4  
,easier it  were to conquer the whole   
external world of foes1 than to reign   
supreme  over the little world within4  
,of ,alexander the ,great it is said1   
that  while he actually subdued the     
whole known world of his time1 he       
nevertheless yielded in defeat before   
his own passions4 ,he could overcome    
his external enemies1 but surrendered   
miserably in the battle with self4      
,this1 then1 is our greatest warfare1   
the struggle with ourselves2 and this   
our greatest victory1 a triumph over    
self4 8,if each year10 says the         
,imitation1 8we could uproot but one    
evil inclination1 how soon we should  be
 perfect men607#ci7 ,but it is not for  
us to be free from enemies and  perils1 
both from without and from within1      
during our earthly sojourn4  ,they are a

 part of our lot here below1 they are   
necessarily bound up with  the darkened 
regions through which the ,shepherd must
 lead his flock2 and  hence1 entire     
safety there shall never be before the  
journey's end1 until  we say farewell to
 present woes1 and hail 8the happy      
fields1 where joy  forever dwells40     
,in our present state1 therefore1 it is 
important for us to realize our  dangers
 and to be prepared for conflict4 ,there
 is no way of escape from  crosses1 and 
perils1 and dreadful battles for all    
those who wish to win  the crown of     
victory4 ,they must follow the ,shepherd
 as he leads the way1  and hence our    
,lord has said1 8if any man will come   
after me1 let him take  up his cross    
daily and follow me407#dj7 ,yes1 it is  
the following of the  ,shepherd1 it is  
his leadership1 his constant presence1  
that give comfort  to the sheep1 and    
dispel the dread and fear of perils4    
,and though we pass  through the valley 
and shadow of death1 we need fear no    

evil1 for ,he is  with us4 ,at times1   
frequently perhaps1 as we sail the sea  
of life1 the  waves roll over and deluge
 us so completely that we are all but   
smothered4  ,the clouds gather1 thick   
and black1 and overcast the sky of our  
souls2 the  sorrows of death surround   
us1 and the pains of the pit encompass  
us27#da7  we are overwhelmed with       
sadness and plunged in darkness4 ,we    
think of ,god1  we remember ,him1 but   
,he seems afar off4 ,the evil which     
weighs us down--the  pain of body1 the  
agony of soul1 the sadness and dejection
 of heart and  mind1 8the madness that  
worketh in the brain10 muffle the voice 
and all  but still the trembling pulse1 
and we are not able so much as to lift  
our  drooping heads and tear-dimmed eyes
 to see the gentle ,shepherd standing   
faithfully at our side4 ,it is our      
failure to discern and apprehend ,him   
that causes extreme agony4 ,if at these 
times of utter desolation1 when the     
soul is swept by the winds of sorrow1 we

 could only raise our eyes and  thoughts
 to ,him1 with faith and hope and       
child-like trust1 the spell would  be   
broken2 and we should see the clouds    
lift and part and float away on  the    
wind1 only to let in ,god's cheerful sun
 to raise the drooping spirit1  and warm
 and soothe the troubled soul4    ,but  
it is difficult1 when oppressed by      
sorrow and affliction1 to lift the      
heart and mind to things above4 ,nature 
of itself tends downward1 and  unless it
 has learned to discipline itself and to
 engage with the enemy in  sturdy       
battle1 it is not yet prepared for life4
 ,for the world is a  battlefield and   
life a warfare1 even from a natural     
point of view1 and  only they can hope  
to win in life's hard contest who have  
learned to brave  the battle1 who have  
prepared themselves for conflict4 ,but  
who is ready  for the struggle1 and how 
shall we be able to encounter our foes8 
,left to  ourselves and to our own      
resources1 we shall surely go down in   

defeat4 ,the  opposing forces are too   
gigantic1 too numerous4 ,they throng    
from near and  from afar4 ,they swarm   
from within and from without2 from our  
own nature  and from others1 from the   
world around1 and from our own          
household2 from  those at home1 and from
 them that are abroad4 ,frequently      
during life we  are1 of a certainty1    
encompassed round with perils2 we hardly
 know where  to turn or what to do1 we  
are breathless with fright2 but even    
then1 if we  have proper faith1 we shall
 grow calm1 like the shepherd's flock in
 the  midst of devouring animals and    
beasts of prey1 for our ,saviour and    
,shepherd is with us1 and no evil can   
befall us4 ,even when we think ,him     
farthest1 ,he is often nearest2 when we 
think ,him sleeping1 ,his heart is      
watching4 ,he loves us1 ,his weak and   
timid sheep2 we are the objects of ,his 
heart's affection and ever active       
solicitude2 ,he will not let perish1 if 
we trust ,him1 the price of ,his        

precious ,blood4    ,and the training we
 are to receive1 and the preparation we 
are to make1 in  order worthily and     
victoriously to engage in the battle of 
life are  nothing1 therefore1 but       
lessons of love and trust in the        
constant goodness  and faithfulness of  
our divine ,saviour4 ,unless we         
viciously drive ,him away  by           
deliberate1 grievous sin1 ,he is really 
never absent from us1 and least  of all 
when we need ,him most4 ,it is our      
fault1 if we do not by faith  discern   
,him1 if we do not feel ,his            
ever-gracious presence4 ,we need to     
discipline ourselves in acts and deeds  
of faith and love1 and then we  shall   
realize that ,he is always near us1 even
 in the darkness of the  shadow of      
death4    ,we must try to know our      
,shepherd1 first of all2 we must        
endeavor  intimately to understand ,him4
 ,for to have faith in ,him1 to trust   
,him1 to  believe in ,his power and     
goodness1 in ,his overruling care for us

 and our  interests1 presuppose a       
knowledge of ,him1 just as faith and    
confidence in  an earthly friend follow 
upon an intimate acquaintance with that 
friend4  ,but this close knowledge of   
our ,master1 so necessary to our present
 peace  and future happiness1 will never
 be ours unless we make ,him our        
confidant1  unless we accustom ourselves
 to live in ,his presence1 to look to   
,him1 to  speak to ,him often1 to listen
 to ,his gracious direction4 ,and this  
intimate  relationship with our         
,saviour1 this habitual communion with  
,him1 will  enkindle in our souls the   
fire of love4 ,once we know ,him1 we    
will trust  ,him1 and having faith and  
confidence in ,him1 we will link our    
poor lives  to ,his divine life by the  
strong cords of heavenly charity4 ,fear 
and  uncertainty will then be           
impossible1 even in the darkest hours4  
,it is love1 above all1 that directs our
 life--love1 indeed1 which is born  of  
knowledge4 ,we do not1 it is true1 love 

anything before we have some  knowledge 
of it2 this would be an impossibility2  
but once the soul has  caught the       
vision1 it is love that drives the life 
and stimulates and  enriches the        
knowledge4 ,the objects of our          
affections are the interpreters  of our 
life and actions4 ,if we love the world1
 we are led by the world2 if  we love   
,god1 it is ,god that leads and directs 
us4 ,where the treasure is1  there will 
the heart be also27#db7 and where the   
heart is1 thither will the  life make   
its way4 ,but if ,god is the object of  
our love1 we shall fear no  evil2 for   
8,god is charity10 says ,st4 ,john1 8and
 he that abideth in  charity1 abideth in
 ,god1 and ,god in him 444 ,fear is not 
in charity2 but  perfect charity casteth
 out fear1 because fear hath pain407#dc7
    ,it is only the love of ,god1       
therefore1 that will steady our lives1  
and  bear us up in the thick of         
tribulations4 ,it is the confident      
assurance  that we1 although so         

unworthy1 are the objects of divine     
complacency that  awakens in our hearts 
a return of burning charity1 and enables
 us to say1  with the ,psalmist1 when   
the day is darkest 8,the ,lord is my    
light and  salvation2 whom shall ,i     
fear8 ,the ,lord is the protector of my 
life2 of  whom shall ,i be afraid807#dd7
 ,we are not to fear men1 said our      
,lord1 who1  when they have destroyed   
the body1 can do no more27#de7 neither  
shall we be  in dread of our ,master1 if
 armed with the gift of ,his love1 8for 
fear hath  pain1 but love casteth out   
fear40 ,rather shall we1 like the       
martyrs of  old1 mindful of the gift of 
,god1 go bravely forth to the battle of 
life1  or to the slaughter1 calmly1     
hopefully1 cheerfully4 ,while humbly1   
but  steadfastly trustful of the        
,shepherd that leads us1 we shall not be
  disturbed or troubled2 the present    
shall be shorn of its terrors1 the      
future of its forebodings4 ,this truly  
is the triumph of life1 when love1  not 

fear1 has come to rule us4 ,this is the 
broader1 larger life--the  forerunner of
 life eternal in which our days are     
passed in calm  serenity--in which we   
press on with undaunted tread1 alike    
under frowning  clouds1 or under a      
star-lit sky2 alike with the joys of    
friendship around  us1 or alone amidst  
the graves of the dead4    ,we must not 
infer from this that the love of ,god   
which is our strength1  the source of   
our courage1 will blunt our feelings or 
harden our lives4 ,it  does not seal up 
the fountain of tears1 or make us       
insensible to the pains  and sorrows of 
life1 which belong to the lot of all4   
,in a certain sense it  is likely true  
that those suffer most in life who are  
most united to ,god2  for they feel most
 the coldness of the world and its      
desolation1 its want  of love and       
sympathy1 its degradation and its       
misery4 ,hence it would be a  mistake to
 think that the friends of ,god in this 
life are either exempted  from pain and 

sorrow1 or made insensible to them1     
either in themselves or  in others4 ,of 
these and other evils they are truly    
more keenly aware than  worldly men1 if 
for no other reason than because of the 
superior  refinement of their nature and
 the spiritual outlook of their vision4 
,it  is sin1 after all1 that hardens    
while it weakens4 ,sin closes the heart 
to  love1 it renders its victims cold1  
unsympathetic and selfish2 whereas the  
gifts of grace and holiness are         
tenderness1 mercy1 strength4 ,but though
  all have to suffer1 both the holy and 
the unholy1 the difference between  them
 is this1 that the ungodly are borne    
down and overcome by their  sorrows and 
crosses1 while the spiritual are always 
triumphing even in the  midst of        
apparent defeat4 ,to the foolish they   
seem to be vanquished1 yet  they        
conquer2 often they seem on the verge of
 surrender1 when they emerge  in        
victory2 they seem to die1 when behold  
they live67#df7    ,the spiritual man1  

then1 does suffer2 he suffers in the    
cause of ,god2 he  suffers for others   
and for himself4 ,more than this1 it is 
doubtless true  that he feels his       
crosses more keenly1 he grieves more    
profoundly1 than do  the children of the
 world2 but through it all he remembers 
his ,saviour and  is comforted4 ,he     
knows that the tribulations of the just 
are many1 and  that from all these the  
,lord will soon deliver him17#dg7 and he
 shall not  be confounded forever4      
,,viii4 ,,thy ,,rod ,,and ,,thy ,,staff 
,,they ,,comfort ,,me4      ,it is      
already plain to us that the sorrows and
 sufferings of the present  life are1   
without doubt1 the result and           
consequence of sin4 ,that we should     
pass our mortal days so full of pain and
 tears1 that our fellow-man1 that  the  
beasts of the field and the elements1   
which we need and use as helpers  and   
servants1 and most of all that our own  
nature1 with its passions and  evil     
tendencies1 should rise up against us   

and oppose us1 was assuredly  not a part
 of the original plan4 ,as a wise and   
all-powerful ,designer and  ,creator1   
,god founded the world after a masterful
 fashion--devoid of evil1  free from    
defect1 perfect according to the plans  
framed in ,heaven4 ,the  hills and      
mountains ,he founded and set on their  
bases2 the streams and  rivers and      
valleys ,he formed1 all rich and lovely1
 intended for the  comfort and happiness
 of man2 the blue deep ,he constructed  
and beautified  with its millions of    
shining wonders2 and in all these       
stupendous  creations1 in all the       
diverse works of ,his mighty1 omnipotent
 hands there  was in the beginning no   
trace of fault1 of defect1 of error or  
sin4 ,the  upheaval came when man       
disobeyed and wrought the commencement  
of all our  woe4 ,and hence it is to    
man's first disobedience and the fruit  
of that  forbidden tree1 that we owe all
 the evils from which our nature suffers
  and to which our flesh is heir4       

,but although we know the source of our 
sorrows and feel the guilt of our  sins1
 this does not make our burden lighter  
or shorten the path of our  pilgrimage4 
,we are confronted by the problem of    
labor and suffering as  soon as we enter
 the world4 ,no one is entirely         
exempted2 and1 strange as  it is1 we see
 that it frequently happens1 that those 
are most afflicted  who are farthest    
removed from the wickedness of the world
 and purest in  the sight of ,god4      
8,many are the tribulations of the      
just20 and how true is  it that the very
 fidelity of the servants of ,god is    
often an occasion of  their sufferings6 
,it is not wonderful that sorrow and    
fear should be the  portion of sinners  
throughout the length of their days1 for
 8contrition  and unhappiness are in    
their ways1 and the way of peace they   
have not  known207#dh7 but that all1    
even the saints of ,god1 should suffer  
alike and  be oppressed with miseries   
is1 at first sight1 a problem and a     

baffling  mystery4    ,it is something1 
indeed1 to feel in our suffering that we
 are paying the  debt of our sins1      
whether personal1 or original1 or both2 
it is much to  know that our crosses1   
severe and inevitable as they are1 are a
 curb to  our wayward nature1 and a     
restraint against further sins2 it is   
assuredly  a great privilege and a high 
honor that we1 unworthy and unfaithful  
servants of our ,master1 should1 through
 our tears and sorrows and  sufferings1 
be enabled to conform our poor lives to 
the tearful and  sorrowful life of our  
,saviour2 it is a comfort that words    
cannot tell to  be assured by our faith 
that in the midst of pains and perils   
the ,shepherd  of our souls is ever near
 to shield1 to guard1 and to save--all  
this is  surely much--enough to         
encourage and strengthen us daily to    
take up our  cross and joyfully follow  
our ,redeemer1 even to the hill of      
,calvary1 even  to the death of the     
cross4 ,but this is not all4 ,a deeper  

meaning lies  hidden behind the veil of 
tears1 beneath the cloak of pain and    
sorrow4 ,the  miseries of life are not a
 mere inheritance1 neither is their     
value of a  purely negative character4  
,we instinctively feel that somehow1    
somewhere  beyond the scope of mortal   
ken1 there is a higher explanation and a
 more  valid justification for all the  
failures and pains and sorrows of life1 
than that which appears on the surface  
of things1 or issues in results  that   
are only negative4 ,suffering for its   
own sake was never intended2 and  we    
were not made to suffer4 ,we were not   
created for misery1 but for  happiness2 
not for failure1 but for victory2 not   
for death1 but for life2  not for time1 
but for eternity4 ,and hence there is a 
deeper meaning1 a  higher explanation   
for all the failures and miseries of the
 present life  than those that are      
apparent to the casual observer4    ,in 
the title of this chapter the ,psalmist1
 referring to the shepherd's  care for  

his sheep1 says3 8,thy rod and thy      
staff1 they comfort me40 ,the  staff the
 shepherd uses1 as already explained1 is
 to assist the sheep  along their       
perilous journeys1 and the rod to       
protect them in case of  attack4 ,the   
rod and the staff are necessary for the 
welfare of the flock1  necessary to     
guide and shield them in their          
wanderings1 and to bring them  safely   
home4 ,so too1 it is with us1 the       
children of ,god4 ,to be properly       
protected and guided to our happy end we
 have need of the rod of  affliction and
 adversity1 and likewise of the staff of
 mercy4    ,although human              
miseries--pain1 poverty1 suffering and  
death--are1 as we  know1 the            
consequences1 just and equitable1 of    
original sin1 it is a  shortsighted     
faith and a defective vision that find  
in these crosses only  chastisement for 
sin4 ,truly1 they should not have been1 
had we never  sinned2 but as ,god1 in   
,his mercy1 draws good out of evil1 so  

has ,he made  these inevitable results  
of our transgression serve a higher     
purpose and  minister to noble ends4    
,the ,saviour came that we might have   
life1 that we  might progress and       
advance to ever fuller and more abundant
 life47#di7 ,his  aim1 and the aim and  
purpose of ,his heavenly ,father1 since 
the very dawn  of our creation1 has been
 to lead us to happiness--to perfect1   
abundant1  eternal happiness4 ,it would 
be of little account to be happy here1  
unless  we are also to rejoice          
eternally4 ,it would be a poor exchange 
and a paltry  satisfaction1 to be       
present at the feasts of men1 only to   
forfeit our  place at the banquet of    
angels4 ,but our heavenly reward and our
 celestial  crown are to be merited and 
won here below2 they are to follow upon 
our  earthly labors4 8,only he shall be 
crowned10 says ,st4 ,paul1 8who has     
legitimately engaged in the             
battle407#ej7 ,and did not the ,master  
say  ,himself1 8,let him who wishes to  

come after me deny himself and take up  
his  cross and follow me807#ea7 ,did ,he
 not declare that we must die to live8  
that we must surrender our life here1 if
 we would keep it eternally8  8,amen1   
amen1 ,i say to you1 unless the grain of
 wheat falling into the  ground die1    
itself remaineth alone4 ,but if it die  
it bringeth forth much  fruit4 ,he that 
loveth his life shall lose it2 and he   
that hateth his life  in this world1    
keepeth it unto life eternal407#eb7 ,we 
cannot serve two  masters1 we cannot    
serve ,god and mammon4 ,if we would seek
 to avoid all  pain and sorrow1 and     
spend our lives in the pleasures of     
sense1 we must be  prepared to forego   
the future joys of the soul2 if we would
 pass our days  indulging the flesh and 
chasing the phantoms of time1 we must   
needs make  ready for the death of the  
spirit and the forfeit of all that is   
lasting4    ,we have no choice1 then2 if
 we would succeed eternally1 we must    
follow the  way of the cross4 ,this is  

the only way to life--to that abundant1 
celestial  life which our ,creator has  
wished us to live4 ,and it is the       
bearing of our  cross1 patiently and    
resignedly to the will of ,god1 together
 with our  other good works1 that       
enables us to merit1 in so far as we    
can1 the joys  of the kingdom of        
,heaven4 ,but the sufferings and labors1
 so inevitable and  necessary to our    
earthly state1 which serve as a means to
 supernal  rewards1 have still another1 
deeper meaning1 and serve another       
purpose4 ,we  cannot evade them1 we must
 encounter them4 ,they are not only     
unavoidable1  but necessary to our      
dearest interests1 as we see1 since they
 are strewn  as thorns and brambles all 
along the narrow way that leads to      
eternal  life4 ,we cannot choose them or
 lay them aside at will4 ,we may1       
indeed1 if  we be foolish and impious   
enough1 refuse to walk the narrow way of
 the  just and choose the broad road    
that leadeth to destruction2 but we     

shall  not even thus escape the pains   
and perils inseparable from this mortal 
life4 ,or again1 we may1 in our folly1  
rebel against the crosses and labors    
that confront and pursue us2 but whether
 we go this way or that1 whether  we    
will it or not1 we can no more eschew   
all the evils of life than escape  from 
the air that we breathe4 ,the pressure1 
it is true1 is not always upon  us2 we  
are not1 without ceasing1 weighed down  
by our labors and groaning  to be       
delivered from the body of this death4  
,there is interruption1 there  is       
passing pleasure1 a rift in the clouds  
and a smile of the sunshine even  for   
the darkest and poorest life4 ,and yet  
withal1 we know and we are  conscious   
that we are ever under the sentence of  
death1 that life is a  fleeting shadow1 
that like          8,a flash of the     
lightning1 a break of the wave1         
,man passes from life to his rest in the
 grave40      ,there is no evading the  
conclusion1 therefore1 that the days of 

man in  this world are few and full of  
miseries4 8,the life of man upon earth  
is a  warfare1 and his days are like the
 days of a hireling4 ,he cometh forth   
like a flower1 and is destroyed1 and    
fleeth as a shadow407#ec7 8,for all     
flesh is as grass1 and all the glory    
thereof as the flower of grass4 ,the    
grass is withered1 and the flower       
thereof is fallen away407#ed7 ,to the   
natural man all this is appalling1 and  
how frequently it finds its  solution in
 unbridled self-indulgence1 in mental   
unbalance1 and  self-destruction6 ,but  
the saints1 and all the truly wise1 have
 viewed the  problem of human suffering 
in a vastly different light4 ,they have 
discerned it1 first of all1 as really   
distinctive of the road to ,heaven1  and
 as essentially pertaining to the royal 
way of the cross4 ,they have  understood
 that it extinguishes the wrath of the  
heavenly ,father1 that it  atones for   
sin and makes the soul conformable to   
our suffering ,saviour1  and therefore  

have they loved it4 ,and more than this1
 those who have been  led by the wisdom 
of ,god have found1 not only that the   
crosses of life are  essentially        
connected with the way of salvation1 but
 that by them and  through them alone we
 are often positively driven to ,god4   
,we may try to  avoid them1 and at      
times1 perhaps1 succeed2 we may flee    
from them or  endeavor to still the     
voice of their pain2 or1 when unable to 
escape them1  we may1 in our wrath and  
desperation1 rise up against them and   
rebuke  them3 but they persistently     
remain1 they continue to haunt1 as if to
 woo  and to win us to penetrate their  
deeper meaning1 and discover the        
treasure  that in them lies concealed4  
,the very breakdown of human things1 the
  severing of human ties and            
relationships1 the loss of health and   
wealth1  of treasures and friends1 and  
of all that life holds dear1 are really 
meant1 in the deepest sense1 to drive us
 to the divine4 ,this is the  meaning of

 those tears and sorrows1 those pains   
and sufferings1 that  loneliness1 that  
grief1 that agony of heart and soul     
which belong to this  world of tears4   
,all these are intended to teach us that
 here below1 on  this crumbling shore of
 time1 we have no abiding city1 or home1
 or life1  or love2 but seek a city1 a  
home1 a life1 a love that hath          
foundations1  whose builder and maker is
 ,god47#ee7    ,we need ,god1 we were   
made for ,god1 and our nature1 with all 
its longings  and powers1 cries out for 
,him4 ,and therefore has ,god so        
arranged the  world1 in spite of all its
 evils1 and in spite of all our         
sinfulness1  that1 if we do not prevent 
it1 it will lead us out to              
happiness--lead us  out to ,himself4 ,it
 was our sin that despoiled the face of 
the world2 but  ,god1 in ,his mercy1 has
 drawn good out of evil1 ,he has made   
the effects of  sin minister to our     
advantage1 if we will but have it so4   
,we may1  forsooth1 refuse1 because we  

are free2 we may object1 and rebel1 and 
oppose our lot2 we may take our destiny 
out of the hands of our ,creator  and   
attempt to shape it for ourselves2 we   
may deride and despise the  humble1 the 
lowly of heart1 the patient1 the        
mortified and the suffering2  we may    
upbraid the ,providence of ,god and its 
workings1 and refuse to  submit to the  
rule of the ,creator2 we may hold in    
derision and contempt  the little band  
that is sweetly marching the way of the 
cross1 preferring  for ourselves the    
company of the multitude that knows not 
,god--all this can  we do1 because we   
are free2 but if such be our choice1 and
 if we persevere  in it1 our portion is 
fixed1 and we shall have at last only to
 say with  the wicked3 8,therefore we   
have erred from the way of truth1 and   
the light  of justice hath not shined   
unto us1 and the sun of understanding   
hath not  risen upon us4 ,we wearied    
ourselves in the way of iniquity and    
destruction1 and have walked through    

hard ways1 but the way of the ,lord we  
have not known4 ,what hath pride        
profited us8 or what advantage hath the 
boasting of riches brought us8 ,all     
those things are passed away like a     
shadow1 and like a post that runneth    
on407#ef7    ,sufferings1 therefore1 are
 common to all1 to the good and the bad1
 to the  wise and the foolish1 to the   
children of light and to the children of
  darkness4 ,but only those who are     
directed by grace and light from above  
are able to pierce the deeper meaning of
 the cross4 ,all have to bear it1  but  
not all understand it2 all feel the     
weight of it1 but all do not know  the  
power of it4 ,like fortune1 it knocks at
 every door1 into every heart  it       
endeavors to enter and make known its   
deeper significance1 its hidden         
secrets1 lest any of us should suffer in
 vain1 and our lives be altogether  a   
failure4 ,to be able to suffer patiently
 and gladly for ,god's sake1 is  thus a 
great wisdom2 it is a sign of future    

blessedness4 ,it is the wisdom  of ,god1
 which is foolishness to men4 8,if thou 
hadst the science of all the            
astronomers10 says ,eternal ,wisdom2 8if
 thou couldst speak and discourse  about
 ,god as fully and well as all angels   
and men2 if thou alone were as  learned 
as the whole body of doctors2 all this  
would not bestow on thee so  much       
holiness of life as if1 in the          
afflictions that come upon thee1 thou   
art able to be resigned to ,me and to   
abandon thyself to ,me4 ,the former is  
common to good and bad1 but the latter  
belongs to ,my elect alone40    ,we know
 that our ,saviour took upon ,himself   
the cross of sorrow and  suffering1 not 
alone that ,he might satisfy for our    
transgressions and be  our ransom from  
bondage1 but also that ,he might be unto
 us an example and  a leader4 ,and      
knowing that our unfaithfulness had     
incurred severest  maladies from which  
none could escape1 ,he bore our         
infirmities and carried  our sorrows for

 us1 in order that we1 in our time1     
might bear our  inevitable afflictions  
for ,his sake1 for love of ,him1 and    
thereby attain  to unending glory with  
,him4 8,for the spirit himself giveth   
testimony to  our spirit1 that we are   
the sons of ,god4 ,and if sons1 heirs   
also2 heirs1  indeed of ,god1 and joint 
heirs with ,christ3 yet so1 if we suffer
 with him1  that we may be also         
glorified with him407#eg7 8,if you      
partake of the  sufferings of ,christ10 
says ,st4 ,peter1 8rejoice that when his
 glory shall  be revealed1 you may also 
be glad with exceeding joy407#eh7 ,the  
chains of  sorrow which bind us here    
below1 our ,shepherd thus would turn to 
golden  cords of love1 which draw and   
hold us to ,himself4 ,we cannot1 as we  
see1  ascend to ,heaven1 rise to        
blessedness1 except by the way of the   
cross4 ,and  our degree of glory in     
,heaven1 the eternal happiness which we 
shall enjoy1  will be in proportion to  
the degree of charity or love of ,god   

which our  souls possess at death2 and  
this divine charity1 which is to measure
 our  future beatitude1 is acquired and 
augmented by faithfully doing the will  
of ,god--by patiently and lovingly      
bearing the cross of life4 ,sacrifice is
  the test of love4 ,and hence the more 
we do and suffer for ,christ's sake1    
the more we prove our love for ,him and 
the greater shall be our happiness  in  
the kingdom of ,his ,father4 ,all holy  
writers1 all the masters of the         
spiritual life agree in teaching that   
,god particularly chastises those  whom 
,he loves with a special love4 ,he      
proves the elect to find if they are    
worthy of ,himself47#ei7 ,he does not   
spare them now1 that ,he may spare them 
hereafter2 ,he tries them for a time1   
that ,he may reward them forever2 ,he   
seems harsh with them here1 during the  
time of probation1 only that ,he may    
draw them closer to ,himself            
everlastingly4    ,the devoted friends  
of ,god and the ardent lovers of things 

spiritual have  deeply pondered these   
momentous truths4 ,they have realized   
that our days  here1 though few and     
fast-flying1 are really to determine our
 lot and  condition throughout the      
eternal years4 ,they have known that the
 passing  present is the price of the   
lasting future2 that this is the seeding
 time1  and hereafter the harvest4 ,and 
because our future happiness is to be in
  accord with our merits here acquired1 
jealously have they sought and  embraced
 every present occasion to increase     
their merits and their  worthiness for  
the glory that is to come4 ,this is why 
they have loved the  cross1 the symbol  
of salvation1 the emblem of victory2    
this1 too1 is why  they have felt       
disturbed and full of fear when the     
cross was absent from  them4 ,unlike the
 unenlightened sufferer1 who sees only  
punishment in his  pains1 the saints of 
,god have ever accepted their crosses as
 a sign of  special love1 a divine      
visitation1 a preparation for the great 

communion4    ,we see now how it is that
 the rod of chastisement and the staff  
of mercy  are able to give joy and      
comfort to ,god's chosen friends2 and   
thus are  they designed to console and  
comfort everyone who is truly led by    
faith  and love4 ,sufferings are really 
a blessing1 but the eye of faith alone  
discerns it4 ,they keep us from present 
pleasures1 from hurtful occasions1  from
 alluring vanities2 they direct us into 
the way of salvation1 they  drive us to 
,god1 they increase the glory of our    
eternal blessedness4 ,what  are the     
trials of earth when compared with the  
joys of ,heaven8 ,rather1 how  precious 
are they6 since1 if we use them aright1 
they lead us out into a  higher life1 to
 a closer friendship with ,god4 ,and if1
 through the mercy of  our heavenly     
,father1 we permit the cross to lead us 
to ,his knees and  enrich our lives with
 ,his love1 who can speak its infinite  
value8 ,what  treasure can be likened to
 it8 ,surely nothing that we know can   

surpass it  in worth4 ,we might1 indeed1
 enjoy all that life can give2 we might 
possess  all riches1 all health1 all    
success2 we might have honor1 fame1     
glory1  power2 the praise and love of   
men1 the treasures of earthly friendship
 and  earthly affection--the whole world
 we might gain and enjoy2 but if through
  all these1 or in spite of all1 we     
should not be led to the love and       
friendship of ,god1 we should know only 
vanity1 and life for us would in  its   
issue be nothing but a dismal failure4  
,but if1 on the contrary1 through the   
sufferings and losses1 the  deficiencies
 and limitations of life1 we have been  
led to make ,god our  dearest friend1 if
 we have been taught1 by the coldness   
and harshness of  men1 to take refuge in
 ,his love1 how blessed are we6 how     
cheaply the  purchase has been made1    
even though it has meant the loss of    
every passing  good1 of all that the    
world can give1 even the pouring out of 
our own  life's blood6    ,teach me1 ,o 

my ,master1 in the day of sorrow and    
tribulation1 to understand  the meaning 
of the cross1 to know the value of my   
sufferings1 to grasp the  power and the 
secret of ,thy rod and ,thy staff4      
,assist me to see ,thee  through the    
darkness that surrounds me2 and give me 
to feel1 in the midst  of loneliness and
 perils1 amid pain and desolation1 the  
nearness to my  soul of ,thy            
loving-kindness1 and the strength of    
,thy merciful presence4            ,,ix4
 ,,thou ,,spreadest ,,before ,,me ,a    
,,table ,,in ,,the ,,presence ,,of      
,,mine ,,enemies4      ,in the preceding
 verses of the ,shepherd ,psalm the     
,psalmist has described  the constant   
care of the shepherd for his sheep--the 
rest and refreshment1  the protection   
and comfort he provides for them4 ,and  
now1 in the present  verse1 he speaks of
 a feast he has prepared for them1 which
 is to be  likened to a bountiful       
banquet--a banquet which they are to    
enjoy1 a feast  which they are to       

consume1 in the sight of their enemies1 
in the presence  of the evils that      
afflict them4 ,he refers1 at first1 to  
the manner of  preparing or spreading a 
table in the ,orient4 ,often the custom 
of olden  times was not much different  
from that which prevails among the      
,arabs even  today4 ,to prepare a table 
means with them simply to spread a skin 
or a  cloth or a mat on the ground4     
,and it is to this kind of table that   
the ,psalmist refers when he sings of   
the feast of the sheep4 ,he means       
nothing more than that he has provided  
for his flock in the face of their      
enemies a rich pasture1 a spreading     
slope1 where they shall feed with       
contentment and peace1 in spite of the  
evils that surround them4    ,but the   
quiet and peace which the sheep enjoy1  
while partaking of their  spread-out    
banquet1 are entirely owing to the      
protecting presence of the  shepherd4   
,and it frequently happens that here    
again the utmost skill and  diligence of

 the shepherd are called into play in   
thus securing the peace  and safety of  
his flock4 ,the most abundant pastures  
are many times  interspersed with       
noxious weeds and plants1 which1 if     
eaten1 would sicken  and poison the     
herd2 while around the feeding places   
and grazing grounds  very often lie hid1
 in thickets and holes and caves in the 
hillsides1 wild  animals1 such as       
jackals1 wolves and panthers1 ready to  
spring out1 at the  critical moment1 and
 devour the innocent sheep4 ,the        
shepherd is aware of  all these evils   
and enemies of his tender flock2 and he 
goes ahead and  prepares the way1       
avoiding the poisonous grasses1 and     
driving away1 or  slaying1 if need be1  
the beasts that menace the peace and    
security of the  pasture4 ,the evils are
 not entirely dispelled1 but only       
sufficiently  removed or held in check  
so as not to imperil the flock4    ,such
 is the table prepared for the sheep by 
their provident and watchful  shepherd2 

and such is the feast of which they     
partake with quiet joy in  the sight and
 presence of their enemies4 ,but1 as    
just said1 the tranquil  joy which is   
theirs comes not from the fact that     
danger has been all  removed1 nor from  
the fact that they have become hardened 
and used to its  presence4 ,they know it
 is always near2 and they are conscious1
 as far as  animals can be1 of their own
 utter helplessness1 if left to         
themselves1 to  survive an attack of    
their powerful enemies4 ,but they do not
 fear1 they  are not disturbed or       
anxious1 solely for the reason that they
 feel their  shepherd is present1 and   
they know he will guard and protect     
them4 ,hence  the ,psalmist is speaking 
for the sheep when he says to the       
shepherd with a  tone of confident joy1 
8,thou spreadest before me a table in   
the presence  of mine enemies40    ,the 
spiritual meaning of this1 like the     
other verses of the ,shepherd  ,psalm1  
is peculiarly descriptive of our ,lord1 

the ,good ,shepherd of human  souls4    
,he1 in a manner altogether divine1     
precedes ,his elect1 and prepares  them 
the way of salvation4 ,he does not      
deliver them from enemies and  dangers1 
which would be unnatural in the present 
state1 but ,he makes use  of evils1 as  
said before1 to increase the perfection 
of ,his chosen souls4  ,gradually1 step 
by step1 from a natural ,he leads them  
to a higher  state--from diffidence to  
trust1 from fear to love1 from sorrow   
and anguish  to peace and joy4    ,the  
change in the soul is rarely at once and
 immediate2 it does not come  of a      
sudden4 ,at first it is difficult and   
repugnant to nature to find joy  in     
sorrow and pleasure in pain1 to see     
gladness in tears and rest in           
disturbance1 to find peace in the midst 
of our enemies2 but ,god1 in ,his       
omnipotent goodness1 so disposes and    
provides for the souls of ,his elect    
that sooner or later they penetrate to  
the meaning of things1 and find  there  

their hidden treasure4 ,when the fabric 
of life itself has crumbled  to its     
native dust1 when friends have gone and 
charms departed1 when the  very earth we
 tread seems trembling beneath our feet1
 and every dream of  earthly bliss is   
fled1 when enemies sit where loved ones 
sat1 and the  heart has all but ceased  
to beat1 then is the acceptable time and
  propitious moment1 for the devout and 
faithful soul1 that has washed its      
garments in the blood of the ,lamb1 to  
look up to ,heaven with expectant  joy4 
,the thrilling vision of eternal love so
 much desired1 so long perhaps  delayed1
 is then1 indeed1 about to dawn4    ,the
 sweetness of ,god and the peace of ,his
 spirit are not to be found in  the     
market place1 nor in the noise and      
clamor of the busy street4 ,it is  not  
at the banquets of earthly kings that we
 taste of the joys of the  ,saviour's   
feast4 ,it is not amid honors and riches
 and the pleasures of  sense that the   
calm dews of ,heaven refresh the soul4  

,we were made for a  higher friendship1 
for a more intimate union1 for a sweeter
 companionship  than any that earth can 
provide4 ,and it is only when the door  
has been  shut to the outer world1 when 
the vanities of time have ceased to be  
sought1 that the soul is ready for the  
wedding garment1 and able to  prepare   
for the marriage feast4 ,it is in the   
inner sanctuary and alone1  divested of 
fleshy trammels and freed from the      
bondage of earthly  attachments1 that   
the soul is able to meet its ,god and   
hold intimate  converse with ,him4      
,there are few1 comparatively1 out of   
the multitude of souls that are  called 
to the feast which is spread for them1  
that ever sit down at the  ,master's    
table4 ,many are invited1 and the       
servant is sent out at the hour  of     
supper to say to them that were called1 
that all things are ready1 and  that    
they should come2 but they tarry1 they  
are not ready1 they begin to  make      
excuses and wish to be held excused4    

,some are entangled in perishable       
riches and cannot leave their           
possessions2 others are preoccupied with
  worldly affairs and must not neglect  
their business2 still others are        
pursuing the pleasures of earth1 and    
have no time for the things of  ,heaven4
 ,but the feast is not for these1 after 
all4 ,the ,master invites  them1 ,he    
calls them1 ,he sends ,his ministers in 
search of them1 ,he reproves  and chides
 them1 ,he thunders against them to make
 them hear and obey2 but  they will not 
come1 they shall never taste of ,his    
banquet4 ,he has not  spread a table for
 the proud1 the haughty1 the arrogant2  
,he cannot meet in  loving communion the
 worldly1 the sensuous1 the lovers of   
ease and hurtful  pleasures4 ,such as   
these are not prepared to meet ,him2    
they would be out  of place and ill at  
ease in ,his company1 they do not like  
,his society47#fj7    ,to be able to    
come to the ,master and to sit at ,his  
feast there is need of  preparation4    

,the garments of the world must be      
changed for the garments of  ,heaven1   
the ways of men must be made to yield to
 the ways of ,god4 ,for what  is wisdom 
with men is foolishness with ,god17#fa7 
the weak things of earth  are the strong
 things of ,heaven1 the outcast of the  
world are the chosen  of the ,father    
,almighty4 ,and hence our ,saviour under
 the figure of the  master in the       
parable who prepared a great supper1    
says of all those who  will not hear    
,him1 who neglect ,his divine           
inspirations and despise the  call of   
,his ministers1 that they shall never   
taste of ,his feast4 ,but who1  then1   
shall sit down at ,his table8 for whom  
has ,he prepared the banquet8  ,he tells
 us ,himself1 that those who shall      
partake of ,his supper are the  lowly1  
the humble1 the poor1 the lame1 and the 
blind2 the despised of men  and the     
outcast of the people2 those who have   
known sorrow and suffering  and penance1
 who have found the way of the cross and

 embraced it2 who1 for  the kingdom of  
,heaven and the love of ,christ         
crucified1 have given up  father1 and   
mother1 and wife1 and children1 and     
brethren and sisters2 yea1  and their   
own life also1 that they might inherit  
everlasting crowns that  fade not       
away47#fb7    ,st4 ,paul was one of     
these masterful spirits1 who surrendered
 all that he  had1 all that he prized   
most dearly for love of ,christ and ,his
 service4  8,the things that were gain  
to me10 he says1 8the same have ,i      
counted loss  for ,christ4 ,furthermore1
 ,i count all things to be but loss for 
the  excellent knowledge of ,jesus      
,christ my ,lord1 for whom ,i have      
suffered the  loss of all things1 and   
count them but as waste1 that ,i may    
gain  ,christ407#fc7 ,what a struggle1  
too1 was that which ,st4 ,augustine     
describes1  speaking of his own         
conversion6 ,the parting with those     
sinful delights  which had hitherto held
 him in chains was like the forfeiture  

of all he  possessed1 and it seemed to  
him that life thereafter would not be   
worth  living2 yet he generously and    
vigorously gave them up that ,christ    
might  become his possession4 ,he has   
also described for us the change4 8,how 
sweet10 he says1 8did it at once become 
to me to want the sweetness of  those   
trifles1 which to lose had been my fear1
 but which to have lost was  now a joy6 
,thou didst cast them forth from me1 oh 
,thou true and highest  sweetness6 ,thou
 didst cast them forth1 and in their    
stead didst enter in  ,thyself1 sweeter 
than all pleasure607#fd7    ,it is such 
as these1 heroic souls1 who for the sake
 of ,god and ,his  kingdom1 have made   
the world their enemy1 that compose the 
company of the  elect4 ,and for these   
alone it is that the ,shepherd of souls 
has spread a  table of rest and peace1  
even in this life1 of which they partake
 in the  sight of their enemies1 in the 
presence of those who think evil of     
them1  who despise and deride them1 in  

the sight of the world which hates them4
  ,these holy souls1 the elect of ,god1 
whom the ,father has chosen for         
,himself1 have learned1 through the     
trials and losses of life1 the lessons  
of peace and detachment which crosses   
are intended to teach4 ,they have       
learned1 by exclusion and retirement    
from worldly festivities and  pernicious
 delights1 to draw near to ,god1 out of 
love for ,his beauty and  mercy1 or if  
only to ease their breaking hearts and  
dispel the loneliness  of their forsaken
 lives4 ,in the words of the ,psalmist1 
they have tasted  and seen that the     
,lord is sweet1 and that there is no one
 like unto  ,god47#fe7 ,with the image  
of the ,crucified before their eyes and 
conscious  of the presence of their     
loving ,shepherd1 they greet with       
delight the  sufferings that oppress    
them1 and they feast in peace in the    
presence of  their enemies4 ,they know  
that all is arranged or permitted by the
 hand  that guards them1 and by the ,one

 that loves them2 and1 though ,he slay  
them1 yet will they trust ,him47#ff7    
,for what can happen to those that love 
,god8 what evil can befall them8 ,angels
 have charge over them to keep them  in 
all their ways47#fg7    ,it is          
confidence1 therefore1 in their ,saviour
 and ,god that gives peace and          
tranquillity to the souls of the just4  
,to know ,him1 to love ,him1 to trust   
,him1 to dwell in ,his presence and to  
please ,him1 throughout all the         
vicissitudes and evils of life1 are the 
objects of their constant actions  and  
the highest aspirations of their fervid 
souls4 ,confident of the favor  and     
protection of ,god1 and rooted in ,his  
love1 they despise all pain and  the    
threats of men2 and in the midst of the 
battle of life they rejoice in  a peace 
of mind and soul of which the worldling 
cannot dream4 ,the pasture  in which    
they feed1 the banquet of which they    
partake are nothing else  than the love 
and friendship of ,god which nourishes  

and refreshes their  spirits when to    
every mortal eye they seem destitute1   
abandoned and alone4  ,and this peace of
 ,god1 which surpasseth all             
understanding17#fh7 develops in  souls  
truly spiritual a habit of mind and a   
character of life that even  here below 
partake of the stability and calm sense 
of victory which1 in  their perfection1 
belong only to the state of the blessed 
in ,heaven4 ,they  feel that all things 
are possible to them through ,him that  
strengtheneth  them17#fi7 and that no   
temporal affliction1 no power of man or 
any creature  shall wrest from them the 
feast which they enjoy4 ,and hence they 
are able  to ask1 in the confident words
 of the ,apostle1 8,who shall separate  
us from  the love of ,christ8 ,shall    
tribulation1 or distress1 or famine1 or 
nakedness2 or danger1 or persecution1 or
 the sword 444 ,in all these things  we 
overcome1 because of him that hath loved
 us4 ,therefore we are sure that        
neither death1 nor life1 nor angels1 nor

 principalities1 nor powers1 nor  things
 present1 nor things to come1 nor might1
 nor height1 nor depth1 nor  any other  
creature1 shall be able to separate us  
from the love of ,god1  which is in     
,christ ,jesus1 our ,lord407#gj7        
,x4 ,,thou ,,anointest ,,my ,,head      
,,with ,,oil2 ,,my ,,cup ,,runneth      
,,over4      ,in these words the        
,psalmist alludes to one of the most    
touching offices  performed by the good 
shepherd towards his sheep4 ,the day is 
drawing to a  close1 the golden orb of  
light has sunk to rest1 and the shadows 
are  creeping up the hills4 ,the hush of
 night is falling round1 and the        
shepherd must gather his flock into the 
fold4 ,the labors1 the journeys1  the   
trials1 the wanderings of the day are   
over1 and now comes the time for  rest4 
,it is a scene full of peace1 and the   
sheep greet its approach with  feelings 
of restful anticipation4 ,many of them  
are foot-sore and lame2  many have      
received bruises and scratches during   

the journeyings of the  day2 some have  
gaping and bleeding wounds from the     
attacks of wild beasts2  while others   
are simply tired out and exhausted from 
the long walks and  steep climbing of   
hills4 ,the shepherd knows all this1 and
 before leading  them into rest he takes
 care to see that the wounds of all are 
dressed and  soothed1 so that nothing   
shall disturb the sweet repose of their 
sleep4  ,for this purpose he stands at  
the door of the fold as the sheep pass  
in4  ,he has olive oil and cedar-tar to 
use as healing ointments for their      
wounds1 and he has cool1 refreshing     
water for those that are worn and       
weary4 ,lovingly and tenderly he regards
 each member1 as one by one they  enter 
into rest2 and they that are wounded or 
over-weary he holds back  with his rod1 
till their scars and sores are duly     
cared for and made ready  for the       
night's repose4    ,how closely these   
offices performed for the sheep by the  
shepherd resemble  the care of our      

,father and ,saviour providing at the   
end for the souls that  ,he loves6 ,he  
has been with them all through life1    
leading1 guiding1  guarding1 shepherding
 them at all times1 going before them   
with the  blessings of goodness4 ,and   
when at length the end approaches1 they 
feel  the need of ,his loving-kindness  
perhaps more than ever before4 ,like the
  shepherd's flock1 their needs are many
 and various4 ,some souls there are     
who1 through the special grace of ,god1 
are able to pass their lives in         
innocence and holiness1 living in the   
world1 yet not of it1 dwelling in  the  
midst of men and in the sight of their  
wickedness and sin1 yet  undefiled      
withal1 beautiful witnesses of the power
 and love of ,him that  strengthens and 
preserves them4    ,but the majority are
 not thus favored4 ,notwithstanding all 
their graces1  they have been subject to
 falls--perhaps to many grievous falls2 
they have  suffered many wounds and     
bruises1 they have had many tears to    

shed4  ,multitudes there are1 in fact1  
who come down to the verge of life1 to  
the  very gate of death1 sin-stained1   
racked and wounded1 their life blood    
ebbing out through sores and wounds     
which they themselves have made by      
wilful open friendship with sin and     
vice1 the deadly foes of their souls4   
,we have many varying examples of these 
straying souls4 ,there is the type  of  
,mary ,magdalen1 of ,st4 ,peter1 of ,st4
 ,paul1 of ,st4 ,augustine1 who passed  
a portion1 brief or prolonged1 of their 
mortal days far from the ,father's      
home1 feeding on the husks of swine2 but
 who1 while yet in the vigor of  life1  
felt the touch of the merciful hand and 
heard the sound of the  loving voice1   
leading them1 calling them back to ,god1
 back to the 8beauty  ever ancient and  
ever new40 ,such souls as these1 it is  
true1 constitute  one class of erring1  
but repenting sinners2 but there is     
another class  whose plight is far more 
pitiable4 ,they are those long-delayed1 

but  finally repentant sinners1 men and 
women who have lived their lives away   
from the ,church and its sacraments1 who
 have grown old and gray in the  sins of
 their youth1 and now1 at the last1 when
 death is coming1 are  moved1 by a      
special grace from ,heaven1 to weep for 
their sins and wasted  years before they
 enter their eternal abode4    ,for each
 and all of these how important it is   
that the ,shepherd should  stand at the 
door of the fold and bind up their      
wounds with ,his tender  grace before   
they pass through the portals of death6 
,scarred and wayward  children1 victims 
of evil circumstances1 creatures of     
vanity and of folly1  they realize at   
the end how impotent they are1 how      
helpless in the  presence of the        
coldness of death to redeem or make sure
 the years that  are fled1 unless ,he   
draw near and assist them who has       
sustained them in  life1 and who is at  
once the author and the master of both  
life and death6    ,but for all1 without

 exception1 the need of the ,shepherd is
 imperative at  the end4 ,the victory1  
the happy issue of life's struggle1 8is 
not of him  that willeth1 nor of him    
that runneth1 but of ,god that sheweth  
mercy407#ga7  ,all may run1 all may     
strive1 indeed1 for the prize of eternal
 life1 but  none can be sure1 short of  
the mercy of ,god1 that he will be      
saved2 none  can merit this crowning    
glory of life4 ,whether young or old1   
whether  favored or neglected1 whether  
innocent or guilty1 whether the life has
  been dowered with special blessings   
and never known the stain of grievous   
sin1 or whether it has been eked out    
amidst deepest misery and defiled  with 
hateful crimes1 the same uncertainty for
 all remains as to the manner  in which 
the end shall come4 ,men may reason and 
conjecture1 from what they  see and     
know1 that this one or that is in ,god's
 favor1 and shall so  persevere to the  
end2 that the members of a certain      
family1 or class1 or  station in life1  

are sure to be saved1 and shall never   
fall short2 but  that those of another  
class or condition shall1 on the        
contrary1 die as  they have lived1 in   
the filth of their sins1 to be forever  
in torment4 ,but  these are the         
reasonings of men1 which are of no avail
 in the sight of  ,god4 ,it is only the 
,father in ,heaven who knows the elect4 
,he alone is able  to tell who shall    
remain to be crowned1 and who is to be  
condemned4  ,perseverance is a          
gratuitous gift of ,god1 we cannot merit
 it4 ,all our good  actions and holy    
deeds1 which are performed in the state 
of grace and out  of a motive of        
charity1 do1 it is true1 merit a reward 
in ,heaven1 they  tend to increase our  
blessedness hereafter2 but just as it is
 not in our  power to merit the first   
grace1 by which we are raised from a    
state of  sin1 so are we utterly unable 
to do anything which shall secure for a 
certainty the final grace1 by which     
alone we can be saved4 ,wherefore the   

,preacher said3 8,all these things have 
,i considered in my heart1 that ,i      
might carefully understand them3 there  
are just men and wise men1 and  their   
works are in the hand of ,god2 and yet  
man knoweth not whether he be  worthy of
 love or hatred4 ,but all things are    
kept uncertain for the time  to come1   
because all things equally happen to the
 just and to the wicked1  to the good   
and to the evil1 to the clean and to the
 unclean1 to him that  offereth victims1
 and to him that despiseth sacrifices4  
,as the good is1 so  also is the sinner2
 as the perjured1 so he also that       
sweareth truth407#gb7    ,this          
uncertainty as to the end of life1 and  
of the gift of final  perseverance1 all 
holy souls have felt4 ,to die in the    
friendship of ,god1  and thence to enjoy
 ,his presence forever1 is a gift of so 
transcendent a  nature1 so far above our
 natural powers and utmost deserts that 
no  creature1 which can at all conceive 
it1 would dare claim it as a right4 ,it 

was this conviction that made the saints
 tremble to think of it4 ,this it  was  
that prompted ,st4 ,paul to admonish the
 ,philippians to work out their         
salvation with fear and trembling17#gc7 
and that also evoked from the same      
,apostle those candid words concerning  
himself3 8,i chastise my body1 and      
bring it into subjection2 lest1 perhaps1
 when ,i have preached to others1 ,i    
myself should become a castaway407#gd7  
,and have we not sometimes witnessed    
instances which1 so far as man can      
judge1 give ground for this fear as to  
perseverance1 and emphasize the  great  
truth that to die in ,god's favor is1   
indeed1 a singular and a  gratuitous    
gift8 ,how many have we not known who   
started well1 but  terminated ill6 ,how 
many are innocent and holy in youth and 
give every  promise of splendid manhood1
 but fade and drop1 like poisoned       
flowers1 ere  the age of maturity has   
dawned6 ,how many are able to pass      
through the most  critical period of    

their lives1 unshaken and undefiled1    
full of faith1  hope1 love1 purity2 but 
who1 when the age of security is thought
 to have  come1 lose the grip which     
seemed so firm1 turn to evil1 yield to  
vicious  habits1 and die reprobates of  
,god6 ,look at ,king ,solomon6 ,who was 
ever more  promising than he in his     
youth8 ,who ever gave fairer prospects  
of  continued holiness and of a         
beautiful end8 ,he was so lovely1 so    
amiable1  so favored of ,god in the     
morning of life2 graced with such high  
perfections1 not knowing evil1 a        
stranger to vice1 a lover of sanctity1  
of  wisdom1 and of grace4 ,it would seem
 that he could never fall--he who was   
the object of such unwonted favors1 who 
dwelt so supremely in the smile of      
,heaven4 ,but lo1 and behold the end of 
him who had received so many graces1    
who chose wisdom as his handmaid that he
 might be guided aright6 ,behold  that  
youthful figure1 so full of promise and 
goodly hope1 praying to ,god  that he   

might never deviate from the ways of    
grace2 and then see the  gray-haired    
apostate tottering to the grave1 borne  
down by the weight of  his sins and of  
his years6 ,and how many more there have
 been1 like ,king  ,saul1 like ,renan   
and ,voltaire1 and numerous others that 
we ourselves  perhaps have known1 who   
were great and good in youth1 and for a 
term of  years1 but whose end was a     
miserable failure6    ,our perseverance1
 then1 or the favor to die in the state 
of grace1 is not  of ourselves1 not the 
reward of our efforts1 or of our good   
works1 8but of  ,god that sheweth       
mercy40 ,we must do all in our power to 
merit eternal  life2 we must press on to
 the mark1 waging ceaseless battle in   
behalf of  ,god and of our souls1 even  
to the last moment2 but for the happy   
end of it  all we must perforce rely on 
the tender mercy of ,god4 ,this is why  
our  ,lord1 before ,he departed from    
earth1 prayed to ,his heavenly ,father  
for ,his  disciples3 8,holy ,father1    

keep them in ,thy name whom ,thou hast  
given me2  444 ,i pray not that thou    
shouldst take them out of the world2 but
 that  thou shouldst keep them from     
evil407#ge7 ,this same truth the        
,psalmist also  had in mind when he     
prayed3 8,perfect thou my goings in thy 
paths1 that my  footsteps be not        
moved407#gf7    ,it is this appalling   
uncertainty about the end and outcome of
 life1  together with our own inability 
to make them secure1 that makes death so
  terrible to the minds and thoughts of 
multitudes1 even of ,christians and     
well-living persons4 ,they fear to fall 
into the hands of the living ,god4  ,for
 them the present life may be not so    
attractive2 on the contrary1 it is      
likely replete with pain and toil2 but  
somehow they wish to linger here1       
preferring that which is certain1       
although so miserable1 to that which is 
doubtful1 perhaps awful and irreparable4
 ,so long as they continue in this      
present world there is chance for       

change1 there is hope of improvement4   
,but when death intervenes1 and the soul
 is removed to the other life1 all      
hopes of change are swept away1 and the 
lot of the soul is fixed for  eternity4 
,there is1 of course1 a fear of death   
which is altogether  natural4 ,many     
dread death who pretend not to believe  
in a future life1 or  even in the       
existence of ,god4 ,and many there are  
whose lives are holy1 and  who have not 
whereof they ought to fear1 but for     
whom1 nevertheless1 the  very thought of
 death is fraught with all manner of    
terrors4 ,as some are  naturally afraid 
in the absence of light1 and tremble    
with fear at being  alone in a dark and 
lonely dwelling1 or spot1 or place1 so  
there are many  who1 without assignable 
reason1 other than a native tendency1   
are appalled  at the thought of death4  
,but when all due allowances have been  
made for the uncertainty of final       
perseverance1 and for the anxiety       
arising from natural temperament1 it    

seems not too much to say that1 for the 
most part1 the fear and dread of  death 
which haunts so many ,christians can be 
reduced to two causes3 a  defect of     
faith or a love of the world4 ,it is one
 of these causes1 or both  of them      
together1 which alone can explain1 in   
the majority of cases1 why  such numbers
 of ,christians and ,catholics are      
unwilling to surrender the  present     
life1 and are disturbed at the very     
thought of dying4 ,either they  do not  
realize by faith the surpassing glories 
of the life beyond--doubting  its       
reality1 questioning its nature1        
misunderstanding the goodness and  mercy
 of ,god2 or else they are so attached  
to the present existence that  all      
serious thought and desire for a better 
life are excluded from their  minds and 
hearts4 ,fenelon says that the condition
 of our spiritual life is  indicated by 
the answers we give to the following    
questions3 8,do ,i love to  think of    
,god8 ,am ,i willing to suffer for ,god8

 ,does my desire to be with  ,him       
destroy my fear of death80 ,we do not   
fear to meet or to be with one  whom we 
really love1 for 8love casteth out      
fear40 ,there is no dread at the  coming
 of the parent or friend whom we truly  
love1 unless1 perchance1 we  have       
offended him1 and lack full faith that  
we have been forgiven and  reinstated in
 his favor and friendship4    ,so it is 
with ,god4 ,if we are unwilling to meet 
,him1 or filled with fear at  the       
approach of ,his coming1 it seems of a  
certainty that our faith is at  fault4  
,why should we not wish to meet ,him who
 has made us1 who loves us1  who has    
washed away our sins with ,his own      
blood1 who alone can comfort our        
trembling souls and fill us with every  
good8 ,perhaps we have sinned and       
betrayed our ,maker many times and      
grievously in our lives1 and the voices 
of those sins are haunting us1 and      
bidding us beware of the hour of death  
and of the judgment that follows4       

,perhaps there is a lurking suspicion   
that we have not been forgiven1 a       
temptation that we are not sincere1 a   
feeling that our sins are too grave to  
be pardoned1 a conviction that we  do   
not belong to the company of the elect4 
,we may have notions1 moreover1         
altogether severe1 of the nature of ,god
 and of ,his justice2 we feel ,his      
immensity and sanctity1 we have heard so
 much of ,his ineffable beauty1  that1  
weighed down with a sense of our        
nothingness1 of our poverty and  misery 
and sinfulness1 we cannot but shudder at
 the thought of appearing  in ,his      
presence4 ,these and similar terrors may
 take hold of us and fill us  with a    
dread of death2 but is it not clear     
that1 whatever their cause1  these fears
 are born of a lack of faith8 ,we do not
 trust1 as we ought1 the  ,shepherd that
 loves us1 we are not convinced of ,his 
mercy and kindness1 if  we do not       
believe with child-like confidence that 
,he stands ready ever to  forgive and   

bless the least of ,his children that   
humbly and sincerely seek  ,him1 asking 
for the help they need4 ,the severity of
 ,god toward sinners  endures only so   
long as they refuse to acknowledge their
 guilt4 ,his  harshness with them1 like 
that of ,joseph with his brethren1 is   
but love in  disguise2 and as soon as   
they are brought to own their guilt1    
that which  before was the anger of ,god
 is swiftly turned into ,his love and   
mercy4  ,christ did not come to destroy1
 but to save4 ,he will not crush the    
broken  reed1 nor extinguish the smoking
 flax47#gg7 8,as a father hath          
compassion on  his children1 so hath the
 ,lord compassion on them that fear him2
 for he  knoweth our frame1 he          
remembereth that we are dust407#gh7     
,but there is also the love of the      
world1 which enslaves so many4 ,so      
numerous and so bewitching are the      
attractions of the present life that    
they are loath to leave them4 ,it is a  
beautiful world1 this universe of  ours1

 so deep1 so wide1 so vast6 ,it is      
filled with pleasures and  allurements  
and graced with myriad charms2 and he1  
indeed1 seems cold of  heart who can    
easily turn from its enchanting         
beauties1 and close his ear  to its     
manifold voices4 ,ponder for a moment   
the richness of nature1 its  similarity 
and variety1 its sameness and its       
diversity2 consider the  abundance of   
the harvest--the glowing fruits1 the    
green and golden crops1  the            
sweet-scented flowers and gift-bearing  
grasses2 see the stars above  and the   
waters beneath--all the wonders of earth
 and sky2 and then when you  have ranged
 over fields and waves and mountains1   
when you have climbed up  the steeps of 
the sky and gazed on the marvels of the 
heavens1 descend  again to earth and    
consider the human form--the chiefest   
work of the  ,almighty hand1 and the    
crown of the natural world4 ,what       
beauties are here  concealed6 ,what a   
mingling of material and spiritual1 of  

human and almost  divine6 ,what words   
can express1 what lines portray the     
beauty of the human  countenance8 ,who  
can describe or adequately define the   
loveliness that  streams from human     
eyes1 or echoes from the human voice8   
,and yet these are  but the outer       
fringes and dimmest glimpses of the     
beauties of the soul  that dwells       
within4    ,how painful1 then1 it is for
 the worldly to forsake the beauties and
  pleasures of this present life4 ,bound
 down to their beds of clay by the      
things of sense1 they are grieved to    
part with a life so full of diverse     
attractions4 ,how can they think        
undismayed of closing forever their eyes
  and ears to these charms of color and 
sound6 ,it is such a difficult thing1   
and so hard to nature1 to abandon these 
scenes of enticing pleasure1 to  bid    
farewell to those that are dear and be  
hurried away alone and forlorn  to the  
chill and gloom of the grave4    ,so    
reason the children of the world2 but   

are not their reasonings and  feelings a
 proof of their little faith1 and of    
their poor conceptions of  spiritual and
 eternal interests8 ,they do not want to
 leave the world1  because they love it2
 and they love the world1 because their 
faith is too  weak to raise them to a   
vision of higher things4 ,the plain on  
which they  stand is too low clearly to 
see the things of ,heaven4 ,how poor and
  trifling at best is the earth and all 
it contains to ,him who beholds with  a 
vivid faith the world above that is to  
come6 ,how gladly does he lay down  his 
life and give up the struggle with      
ceaseless battles1 who sees by  faith1  
just beyond the portals of death1 the   
great home of the blessed1  spread out  
like a city on the mountains1 bathed in 
light inaccessible1  full of joy and    
unending gladness1 where 8death shall be
 no more1 nor  mourning1 nor crying1 nor
 sorrow shall be any more407#gi7    ,the
 man of faith1 therefore1 is in no wise 
straightened or disturbed by  the       

approach of death4 ,he has learned to   
know and to trust the good ,master  whom
 he serves4 ,like the ,apostle1 he is   
only concerned that ,christ should  be  
glorified in him at all times and in all
 things1 8whether it be by life  or by  
death20 for to him also1 8to live is    
,christ1 and to die is  gain407#hj7 ,he 
lives in the world1 but is not of it2 he
 treads the ways of  earth1 but he      
really belongs to the kingdom above4    
,hence his cup of  interior peace is    
ever running over4 ,though surrounded by
 many evils1 he  does not faint2 though 
tempted exceedingly1 he does not yield2 
but is  joyous and peaceful withal2     
because at all times and in all things  
he  feels himself to be the faithful    
servant of ,god1 8in much patience1 in  
tribulation1 in necessities1 in         
distresses1 in strifes1 in prisons1 in  
seditions1 in labors1 in watchings1 in  
fastings1 in chastity1 in  knowledge1 in
 long-suffering1 in sweetness1 in the   
,holy ,ghost1 in charity  unfeigned2 444

 as dying1 and yet living2 as chastised1
 and not killed2 as  sorrowful1 yet     
always rejoicing2 as needy1 yet         
enriching many2 as having  nothing1 yet 
possessing all things407#ha7            
8,precious in the sight of ,god is the  
death of ,his ,saints40 ,as they have   
lived for ,christ1 they gladly welcome  
the summons that calls them home to     
rest4 ,calmly and fearlessly they go    
down to death2 joyously and with        
feelings of exultation they hail the    
coming of ,him on whom their thoughts   
have rested throughout life1 of ,him    
whom they have ever seen by faith1  whom
 they have loved1 whom they have        
trusted1 whom they have chosen for      
their own4 ,confident of the power and  
goodness of their faithful ,shepherd1   
pain daunts them not1 the enemy frets   
them not4 ,the last hour for them is    
not one of darkness1 but of light2 it is
 not a time for lamentations1 but  for  
joyous and gladsome strains4 ,the end   
may be sudden1 or it may be  gradual in 

its approach2 it may come early1 or late
 in life2 it may be at  home or abroad2 
it may be in the winter1 or it may be in
 summer2 on the  sea or on the land2 but
 to the just and spiritual it can never 
be a  surprise1 it can never be lonely1 
never sad4 ,it is the time for which    
they  have always longed--a time of     
liberation1 of emancipation from the    
trammels  of earth and flesh1 the end of
 continuous dying and the beginning of  
lasting life4 ,what a supreme moment1   
what a joyous event is death for a  just
 and holy soul6 ,what sweet emotions    
must thrill the spirit1 as the  ,saviour
 stoops over the bed of death to wipe   
away forever the last of  earthly tears6
 ,mary is there to hush the voice of    
reproach and to whisper  words of peace2
 ,jesus has come to claim the soul and  
take it to ,himself1  and flights of    
angels are waiting to sing it to its    
rest4            ,,xi4 ,,surely         
,,goodness ,,and ,,mercy ,,shall        
,,follow ,,me ,,all ,,the ,,days ,,of   

,,my ,,life2 ,,and  ,i ,,shall ,,dwell  
,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,the ,,lord    
,,unto ,,length ,,of ,,days4      ,if   
the tender lambs and timid sheep of the 
shepherd's flock could speak  the       
sentiments of their innocent hearts1    
each one would certainly voice  the     
words which here the ,psalmist has      
uttered for them all4 ,throughout the   
live-long day1 throughout all the days  
of their lives1 they experience the     
shepherd's goodness1 they are the       
objects of his constant mercy4 ,he has  
been caring for them since their birth2 
he has led them out each morning1  since
 first they were able to walk2 he has   
provided them with food1 and  led them  
to water2 and he has ever been present  
to shield them from harm1  and to       
protect them from their enemies4 ,after 
such repeated experiences  and trials of
 his loving-kindness1 they have grown   
accustomed to his  faithfulness and are 
filled with love of his goodness and    
mercy4 ,and while  they have not the    

power of speech1 and cannot by words    
express their  feelings1 they do by the 
louder voice of action--by their quiet  
trust in  his care1 by their habitual   
mildness and gentleness and quick       
response to  his every word1 by the     
absence of solicitude and fear in view  
of his  presence--by these and all the  
other actions that speak their simple   
hearts  they show their love for their  
shepherd4 ,though often wounded and     
bleeding  and exhausted from the        
roughness and length of their journeys1 
they have  no distrust about the future1
 no fear for the morrow4 ,in the midst  
of  distress the shepherd1 they know1   
will provide4 ,the ,psalmist1 therefore1
  in the closing words of the shepherd  
song1 gives utterance to the feelings   
of the sheep when he sings3 8,surely    
goodness and mercy shall follow me all  
the days of my life1 and ,i shall dwell 
in the house of the ,lord unto  length  
of days40    ,but here1 as in the       
opening verse of the ,shepherd ,psalm1  

the words of the  sacred ,singer1       
although truly expressive of the        
sentiments of the sheep1  are more      
directly the expression of his own inner
 feelings1 and of the  feelings of all  
faithful souls towards the ,lord who    
rules and guides them4  ,all those whose
 lives have been really and sincerely   
led by faith1 have1  like the shepherd's
 flock1 grown trustfully accustomed1 in 
the course of  years1 to the goodness   
and mercy1 to the faithfulness and love 
of the hand  that provides for them4 ,as
 they look into their lives1 and retrace
 the  steps they have taken1 they cannot
 fail to see how ,god has been always   
with them1 patiently enduring their     
faults1 mercifully binding up their     
wounds and hurts1 and lovingly leading1 
drawing them to ,himself4 ,they can  see
 their advancement1 slow perhaps as it  
has been2 and they know it is  ,god who 
has given the increase4 ,looking now at 
their lives through the  perspective of 
the years that are gone1 how many       

problems they are able to  solve6 for   
how many apparent mysteries they have   
found an explanation6 ,all  those       
crosses and trials1 all those struggles 
and battles with the enemy1  all those  
attacks from within and assaults from   
without1 all1 in fact1  that they have  
ever endured1 their sins alone excepted1
 they now can  trace1 through the light 
of faith1 back to the hand of their     
,father in  ,heaven4 ,not everything1   
forsooth1 has yet been explained1 but   
enough1  indeed1 is sufficiently clear  
to remove every doubt from the faithful 
soul  as to the goodness and ,providence
 of ,god4 ,and hence she exclaims with  
the  ,psalmist1 out of the abundance of 
her faith and confidence1 8,surely      
goodness and mercy shall follow me all  
the days of my life2 and ,i shall  dwell
 in the house of the ,lord forever40    
,it is doubtless a lack of implicit     
trust in ,god and divine ,providence    
which1 more than anything else1 accounts
 for the unhappiness and spiritual      

barrenness of so many ,christian and    
religious lives4 ,poor and scanty is    
the fruit they yield1 simply because    
they have no depth of soil1 they are    
not deeply and firmly rooted in faith   
and confidence in ,god4 ,like reeds     
shaken by the wind1 like houses built on
 the sand1 they tremble and shake  with 
every blast1 they are all but overturned
 by every tempest that rises4    ,nor is
 it wonderful that this should be so4   
,the higher gifts of the spirit  come   
from ,god1 and hence the good fruit     
which the spirit yields is also         
traceable back to ,him4 8,we do not     
gather grapes from thorns nor figs from 
thistles2 and as a good tree cannot     
bring forth evil fruit1 so neither can  
an evil tree bring forth good           
fruit407#hb7 ,and just because the      
abundance  of the harvest of the        
spiritual life is dependent upon ,god as
 its giver1  is it strange that any     
distrust of ,him and ,his ,providence   
should be a  great hindrance to the     

soul's advancement1 and to the bestowal 
of the  constant help it needs8 ,can    
,god be pleased with those who do not   
confide  in ,him1 and who do not trust  
,him8 ,our ,lord's own chiding words to 
,his  disciples are a proof of ,his     
displeasure at any distrust in ,his     
power and  goodness4 ,how often did ,he 
rebuke them for their want of confidence
 in  ,him6 ,how often did ,he accuse    
them reproachfully of their 8little     
faith107#hc7 of being 8slow of          
heart107#hd7 of being an 8unbelieving   
and  perverse generation607#he7 ,he was 
constantly pointing to their lack of    
faith1 reminding them that it was the   
source of their weakness1 the cause  of 
their ignorance in things spiritual1 the
 reason of their powerlessness  in the  
face of difficulties and against the    
enemies of their souls4 ,it is  clear   
that ,almighty ,god1 being a generous   
and loving ,father1 must be  offended at
 those of ,his children who do not trust
 ,him2 and their want of  faith in ,him 

is consequently the reason for ,his     
denying to them the help  which is the  
life of their souls1 and without which  
they are powerless to  be useful        
servants in ,his vineyard4    ,and this 
failure to confide in the goodness of   
,god betrays itself in other  ways4     
,besides sealing up the fountains of    
special graces and closing the  door on 
divine generosity1 besides a general    
unfruitfulness in the  spiritual life1  
and the lack of all greater works for   
,god and for souls1  which are its      
immediate consequences1 it also         
penetrates into the interior  sanctuary 
of the spirit1 and weakens at their     
source the springs of  spiritual action4
 ,the results are manifest4 ,not only is
 there no yielding  of fruit1 but growth
 is likewise wanting4 ,and if1 under    
fairer conditions1  there has ever been 
any progress1 it is soon perceived to   
wither and wane  in a soul devoid of    
living faith4 ,all the exercises and    
practices of the  ,christian life       

participate in the baneful effects4     
,prayer and the use of  the sacraments  
are either seriously neglected or       
gradually given up1 and  the blighting  
influences of irreligion rapidly spread 
and overrun all the  departments of     
life4 ,the view one takes of ,god1 the  
faith or lack of faith  and trust one   
has in ,providence1 have their effect on
 the character and  give a direction to 
all one's ways of thinking1 feeling1    
acting1 in regard  to the world we live 
in1 in regard to mankind in general1 in 
regard to the  causes1 purposes1 and    
destinies of all things4    ,our        
conceptions of ,providence are vital1   
therefore4 ,they really determine  what 
our life is to be1 and they are an index
 to the life that is  finished4 ,it is  
impossible that we should be quite the  
same whether we try  to eliminate ,god  
from our lives1 or allow ,his blessed   
influence to cheer  and lead us on2     
whether we look upon ,him as a cold     
,master1 waiting to  exact and to       

punish1 or as a kind ,father and        
,shepherd1 seeking to spare  and to     
save2 whether we regard ,him as hid far 
in the heavens1 caring  naught for the  
creatures and the world ,he has made1 or
 whether we conceive  ,him as intimately
 bound up with all the works of ,his    
hands1 although  distinct from them1 as 
guiding and regulating everything1 as   
tenderly  loving and providing for all  
the needs of our souls4    ,another most
 harmful result of deficient faith and  
confidence in ,god is  that it leads us 
to trust in creatures4 ,it causes us to 
reverse the proper  order of things4 ,we
 are dependent beings1 and we           
instinctively feel our  deficiencies and
 the need of some one1 or something on  
which to lean1 at  times1 and to which  
we can look for assistance4 ,we may not 
be entirely and  always conscious of    
this tendency in us1 we may be too proud
 or too blind  to admit it1 or we may   
wish we could overcome it and rid our   
lives of so  constant a need2 but       

whether we see it and acknowledge it or 
not1 whether  we encourage it or try to 
repress it1 the need is always there1   
deeply  engraved in our nature as       
creatures1 and we cannot but seek to    
satisfy it4  ,there is none of us1 frail
 beings that we are1 who is entirely    
sufficient  unto himself4 ,sometimes1 of
 course1 the voice of our needs is      
silent1 and  we feel that we shall never
 want2 8,i said in my abundance10       
observes the  ,psalmist1 8,i shall not  
be moved forever207#hf7 but when the    
tide begins to  ebb and prosperity      
subsides1 how soon do we remember that  
we are dust6 ,how  frequently in times  
of trouble1 in times of illness and     
poverty and  suffering1 when face to    
face with our foes1 or when death steps 
in and  slaughters1 are we made aware of
 our insufficiency1 and of our utter    
helplessness to live our lives alone and
 meet single-handed the burdens  and    
misfortunes of earth6 ,it takes but a   
little frost to nip the root of  all our

 greatness1 and then when our high-blown
 pride breaks under us we  quickly      
realize how fragile and insecure are the
 personal foundations of  our lives4    
,naturally and reasonably1 therefore1   
did the pagan philosophers  conclude    
that friendship and friends were        
necessary to man4    ,profoundly aware  
of this fundamental need of help and    
support which is a  result of our       
nature1 we habitually stretch out our   
hands to others1 not  only during the   
years of infancy and childhood1 but to a
 greater or less  extent throughout the 
whole period of our earthly existence4  
,at first1 of  course1 it is to         
creatures that we necessarily look--to  
parents1 relatives1  guardians1         
teachers1 and later on1 to friends and  
acquaintances4 ,our needs  in the       
beginning and in early years1 though    
many and imperative1 are  comparatively 
simple2 they can be satisfied by those  
around us4 ,but as we  advance to       
maturity and take in more completely the

 meaning of our lives1  and consider not
 so much the needs of the body as the   
demands of the soul1  we find that the  
multiple requirements of infancy and    
youth1 which were  able to be supplied  
by those that were near1 have given way 
to the fewer1  but vast and unlimited1  
claims of age1 which express the wants  
of the  spirit4 ,it is when we appeal to
 creatures for the complete and         
permanent  satisfaction of these latter 
necessities of our being1 that we       
seriously  err1 and open the way to     
disappointment and sorrow4 ,not that we 
are to  have no cherished and chosen    
friends1 or that we should despise the  
needs  and gifts1 the privileges and    
blessings of friendship1 which in truth 
our  nature requires2 nor again that we 
are to regard with skeptical1           
disdainful eyes the world and human     
nature2 but we must not deceive         
ourselves by trying to find in any      
created being that which it does not    
possess4 ,we must not endeavor to get   

from any creature that perfect          
satisfaction which we need1 and which   
the ,creator alone can give4 ,neither   
must we seek to fill the unlimited      
capacity of our souls with those gifts  
only1 poor and defective at best1 which 
frail mortals like ourselves are  able  
to supply4 ,it is folly in the highest  
degree to expect from anyone  less than 
,god that which only ,god can afford4   
,the mistake1 therefore1 is made when   
creatures of any kind are allowed to    
take the place of ,god2 when they are   
sought and reposed in as an end in      
themselves1 and as sufficient           
satisfaction for the needs of the human 
spirit4 ,unwise1 indeed1 is this mode of
 action1 and bitter are the sorrows  of 
soul to which it inevitably leads6 ,one 
man trusts in riches1 another in  glory1
 another in the esteem of men2 one leans
 upon his friends and  companions1      
another upon his relatives--all         
forgetful of the frail and              
unsubstantial nature of every earthly   

prop4 ,frequently they never awaken  to 
the peril of their state until they find
 themselves face to face with  their    
doom and the awful disillusionment4 ,the
 crash may be delayed1 but  the day must
 come sooner or later for all of us1 who
 have advanced but a  little beyond     
maturity1 when all the natural lights of
 life go out1 when  every human prop is 
removed1 and we find ourselves out alone
 and in the  dark1 so far as depends on 
the world and creatures4 ,how miserable 
then  shall we be if we have put our    
trust in men6 if we have tried to make  
creatures play the part in our lives    
which only ,god can play6 ,when we need 
them most they fail us1 when we fain    
would find beneath their protection a   
shield against the fiery darts of life1 
behold they wither like the ivy of      
,jonas and leave us alone in our        
want67#hg7 ,how vain1 therefore1 and    
groundless is that confidence which is  
put in men1 and how wretched that  poor 
man that hangs on princes' favors6      

8,thou trustest in money10 says ,st4    
,augustine1 8thou holdest to vanity2    
thou trustest in honor1 and in some     
eminence of human power1 thou holdest to
 vanity2 thou trustest in some          
principal friend1 thou holdest to       
vanity4 ,when thou trustest in all these
  things1 either thou diest and leavest 
them here1 or in thy lifetime they  all 
perish1 and thou failest in thy         
trust407#hh7    ,it is no despisal1     
then1 of the needs and helps of earthly 
friends and of  our fellow-creatures to 
say that we should not put entire trust 
in them  for all the wants and demands  
of our being4 ,they are good1 they were 
made  by ,god1 they are oftentimes able 
to assist us--nay1 we need them to a    
certain extent2 but they are utterly    
unable to satisfy us completely1 they   
cannot if they would1 simply because of 
the extent of our wants4 ,and even  if  
creatures could give us a partial       
contentment1 as at times they seem to   
do1 we know that it cannot last1 and in 

the midst of our joy and pleasure  we   
are haunted by the thought that some    
day1 soon at latest1 it all must  pass  
away4 ,we are seeking for rest1 for     
peace1 for happiness1 and that          
unending2 we want something to steady   
our lives and satisfy the yearnings  of 
our souls forever3 but we must not look 
for these things in the world1  for the 
world at best is passing away4 ,there is
 no stability to human  things2 the     
cloud and the storm swiftly follow the  
sunshine2 we have not  here below a     
lasting habitation4 ,today we are       
sitting at the banquet of  pleasure1    
tomorrow we are draining the cup of     
sorrow2 today we receive the  applause  
of men1 tomorrow we may be the objects  
of their scorn2 today we  put forth the 
tender leaves of hope1 tomorrow there   
comes a killing frost  that ruins all   
our prospects4    ,such1 then1 is the   
lot of man when considered in his       
relations to  creatures and to the      
world4 ,it is a lot full of uncertainty1

 of  instability1 of vicissitude2 but   
this should not make us skeptical or    
cynical2 it affords no justification for
 pessimism4 ,it is a condition  arising1
 on the one hand1 from the very nature  
of limited beings1 and on  the other1   
from the vast potentialities of our     
souls1 which1 while they  are limited in
 giving to others1 cannot be appeased   
except by the ,god who  made them4      
,there is a craving in the heart of man 
for something which the  world cannot   
give4 ,he clutches for the things that  
are passing1 he toils1  he labors1 he   
struggles2 he strives for money1 for    
power1 for place1 for  honor1 not that  
any of these things are in themselves   
what he desires1 but  only because he   
conceives them as means and helps to the
 satisfaction1 to  the stillness of     
mind1 and peace of heart1 and rest of   
soul and body for  which his nature     
longs4 ,peace and happiness and         
contentment of life are  the objects of 
all our dreams1 of our persistent       

efforts1 of our ambitions  and aims2 but
 until we give up the hope of finding   
these things in the  world1 in our      
fellow-mortals1 in anything short of    
,god1 we shall never  know the          
blessedness for which we yearn4 ,if we  
would ever attain to the  state which we
 covet1 we must learn the lesson1 even  
though it be through  tears and sorrow1 
that ,god alone1 who made our souls with
 all their vast  desires1 is able to    
comfort us and steady our lives amid the
 storms and  distresses of earth4    ,it
 is futile to trust in men1 or 8in the  
children of men1 in whom there is  no   
salvation407#hi7 ,the peace and         
blessedness which we seek are 8not as   
the  world giveth207#ij7 and unless we  
turn away from the world and cease to   
torture our lives with its vanities1 our
 portion can never be other than        
heartaches1 secret loathing1 consuming  
thirst4 8,for many friends cannot       
profit10 says ,thomas a',kempis1 8nor   
strong helpers assist1 nor prudent      

counsellors give a profitable answer1   
nor the books of the learned afford     
comfort1 nor any precious substance     
deliver1 nor any place1 however  retired
 and lovely1 give shelter1 unless thou  
thyself dost assist1 help1  strengthen1 
console1 instruct1 and guard us407#ia7  
,such has been the  history of the race1
 and such is the experience of every    
individual in the  race that has placed 
his hope and trust in anything created4 
,we are confronted1 therefore1 on the   
one side by the inherent weakness of    
our own nature and the constant needs   
that arise therefrom2 and on the  other 
side1 we are assured by the history of  
the race1 if not by our own  experience1
 that so long as we strive to satisfy   
our wants by an appeal to  anything but 
,god we are doomed to disappointment and
 sorrow4 ,it is  unfortunate that most  
people must first be crushed by the     
world and  creatures which they serve   
before they grasp the fundamental truth 
that  creatures are not their ,god4     

,comparatively few of those who enjoy   
the  world are ever brought to realize  
the dignity and divine purpose of their 
souls until the world and its           
allurements1 like a false pageant on a  
false  stage1 give way beneath them1 and
 they fall helpless and alone4 ,it is   
commonly only after repeated awful      
experiences1 when worn out and          
exhausted by years of fruitless quest   
for peace and happiness and             
contentment1 that men wake up to the    
simple fact that the treasures which    
they seek are not in the world1 nor as  
the world giveth4    ,but it is one     
thing to turn away from the world       
disappointed1 disgusted  and betrayed2  
and it is quite another thing to turn to
 ,god and to  recognize ,him as our good
 ,father and ,shepherd1 patiently       
waiting to  receive us1 ever able and   
ready to satisfy our wants4 ,there are  
many  people who find the world a       
disappointment and a deception1 and who 
turn  from it with loathing and hate1   

but who fail ever to lift their weary   
eyes  to the proper object of their     
trust4 ,like the ,israelites of old1    
they  succeed at length in escaping from
 the hands of oppression and tyranny1   
but only to wander in a desert land     
throughout the length of their days4    
,this is the region where dwell the     
pessimist1 the skeptic and the          
cynic--miserable mortals that have      
wasted on creatures the talents they    
should have given to their ,creator1 or 
that have otherwise failed in their     
conception of life1 and have left       
unmultiplied the money of the           
,master47#ib7 ,there is plainly no      
middle course for us1 if we would not   
encounter disaster2 we are not negative 
as to the necessities of our  nature2 it
 is not enough for us to turn from      
positive harm1 from the  objects that   
deceive and disappoint us2 we must      
further turn to positive  good1 and to  
,him who alone can quiet and appease our
 yearning spirits4    ,one of the most  

evident and convincing reasons1 then1   
why we should put  our trust in ,god    
above all else is that ,he alone can    
satisfy and give us  rest4 ,only ,god is
 able adequately to respond to all the  
needs of our  being4 ,the simplest      
process of reasoning should assure us of
 this1 when  once we perceive the       
vastness of our wants and the           
impossibility of their  satisfaction    
through the medium of created things4   
,we know our nature1  which has come    
from the source and essence of truth1   
cannot be false4  ,neither can our      
unlimited capacities for knowledge1 for 
joy1 for happiness  be a deceiving      
mockery4 ,there is a way to peace for   
us1 and a source of  supreme            
contentment2 there is a fountain of     
living waters from which1 if  we drink1 
we shall never thirst again4 ,hence our 
,saviour said3 8,come to me  all you    
that labour and are burdened1 and ,i    
will refresh you207#ic7 and  again1 8he 
that shall drink of the water that ,i   

will give him shall not  thirst forever3
 but the water that ,i will give him    
shall become in him a  fountain of      
water1 springing up into life           
everlasting407#id7    ,but we shall     
never be able to come to ,god1 we shall 
never succeed even in  getting near the 
secret of interior peace and contentment
 until we are  able to grasp more or    
less comprehensively the great basic    
truths of our  existence3 that ,god     
loves each one of us with the love of an
 infinite  ,father1 and that ,his       
,providence is so universal and         
omnipotent as to  extend to all things1 
even to the numbering of the hairs of   
our head4 ,we  talk much about chance   
and fortune and accident1 we speak every
 day of  things happening1 as if by the 
sheerest contingence1 without warning or
  previous knowledge2 and so it is with 
reference to ourselves1 and to all  the 
world perhaps3 but with reference to    
divine ,providence it is not so2  there 
is nothing accidental1 nothing          

unforeseen with respect to ,god4        
8,without ,thy counsel and ,providence1 
and without cause1 nothing cometh to    
pass in the earth107#ie7 says the       
,imitation4 ,but what does this mean1   
8,god  provides80 ,it means that the    
will of the omnipotent ,father directs  
and  governs everything4 8,providence10 
says ,st4 ,john ,damscene1 8is the will 
of  ,god1 by which all things are fitly 
and harmoniously governed107#if7 and    
such is its power that nothing can elude
 or deceive it1 neither can it be       
hindered or baffled in any way4 8,for   
,god will not except any man's person1  
neither will ,he stand in awe of any    
man's greatness2 for ,he made the       
little and the great1 and ,he hath      
equally care of all407#ig7    ,and just 
as divine ,providence disposes and      
governs all the events of life1         
directing each to its proper end1 so the
 divine ,will is the cause of           
everything that exists4 ,just as it is  
impossible that anything should  escape 

,god's knowledge and directing hand1 so 
is it impossible that  anything should  
exist or come into being without the    
direct intervention  or permission of   
,his will4 ,there is nothing in the     
world which ,god has not  made1 and     
nothing takes place which is not        
according to ,his good-pleasure1  except
 the malice and guilt of sin4 ,even all 
the other evils of life1 such  as       
sickness1 suffering1 disease1 poverty1  
cold1 hunger1 thirst1 and the  like1    
,god actually and positively wills4 ,and
 precisely because these  things proceed
 from ,his will1 they cannot be bad4    
,god is the author of all  good1 and    
evil ,he cannot do4 ,so good1 indeed1 is
 ,he that1 if ,he were not  sufficiently
 omnipotent to draw good out of evil1   
,he would never have  permitted any evil
 to exist4 8,god has judged it better10 
says ,st4  ,augustine1 8to work good out
 of evil1 than to allow no evil407#ih7  
,we must  not argue in our foolishness  
and try to understand all the doings of 

,god1  for ,his ways are not our ways1  
,his thoughts not our thoughts47#ii7 ,it
 is  often beyond our power even to     
understand our fellow-creatures1 and how
  foolish it is to complain because we  
cannot comprehend the great ,creator6   
,enough for us1 if we be sincere and    
right of heart1 to know1 as we do1  that
 ,god is good1 that ,he loves us        
individually1 and that ,his protecting  
hand guides and governs all the events  
of our lives1 even to the smallest      
detail4 ,these are truths which we must 
take hold of and lay close to our       
hearts1 else we shall go the way of     
error and issue in ultimate disaster4   
,and from these truths1 so certain and  
unquestionable1 it further follows  that
 everything existing in the world1 so   
far as it affects us1 everything  that  
falls to our lot1 all that we encounter1
 all that we suffer1 all that  we do1   
aside from sin1 has been purposely      
arranged by ,almighty ,god for our      
greater spiritual good and eternal      

salvation4 ,this must be so1 since ,god 
is the universal cause of all things1   
and since ,he sincerely loves us and    
desires above all to save us4 ,if it    
were otherwise1 either ,he would not    
have omnipotent control of everything1  
or ,he could not be said really to      
desire our salvation4 ,how sadly we     
misunderstand these great truths in our 
daily lives1 when we murmur and complain
 at the evils that afflict us6 ,how     
narrowly we conceive the all-powerful   
will of ,god1 and the infinite abyss  of
 ,his goodness which would lead us to   
eternal delights6 ,we would like to     
escape all the evils of time1 we love   
our lives1 and we wish to save them     
from final wreck2 but when failing to   
trust to the will of ,god we forget  the
 words of ,christ1 that 8he that loveth 
his life shall lose it2 and he  that    
hateth his life in this world1 keepeth  
it unto life eternal407#ajj7 ,we  want  
to save our souls1 and we are1 perhaps1 
much disturbed about doing  many and    

great things in the cause of ,god and of
 ,heaven1 unmindful the  while of the   
,master's warning that1 8not every one  
that saith to me1 ,lord1  ,lord1 shall  
enter into the kingdom of heaven2 but he
 that doth the will of  my ,father who  
is in heaven1 he shall enter into the   
kingdom of  heaven407#aja7 ,it is       
doubtless our aim to draw ever nearer   
and nearer to  our ,saviour1 and to     
deepen our relationship with ,him2 but  
do we remember  that ,he said1          
8whosoever shall do the will of ,god1 he
 is my brother1 and  my sister1 and     
mother807#ajb7    8,yes10 you will say1 
8,this is all true2 ,i know it is so2 my
 faith is at  fault4 ,if ,i only had    
that beautiful faith and trust in ,god  
which many have  it would be easy for   
me1 and ,i should be happy6 ,faith is a 
gift and  favored are they that possess 
it40 ,but1 dear reader1 can you not     
pray8 ,can  you not ask from ,god that  
heavenly gift which will move mountains 
and  translate them into the sea87#ajc7 

,can you not overcome your indolence and
  your repugnance1 and patiently and    
persistently implore from on high that  
superior vision which pierces the clouds
 and sees in everything the hand  of    
,god8 ,surely you can say1 with the     
devout author of the ,imitation of      
,christ1 8,behold1 ,oh beloved ,father1 
,i am in ,thy hands1 ,i bow myself under
  the rod of ,thy correction4 ,strike my
 back and my neck too1 that my          
crookedness may be conformed to ,thy    
will407#ajd7 ,here again1 remember the  
words of your ,saviour1 8,the kingdom of
 heaven suffereth violence1 and the     
violent bear it away407#aje7    ,perhaps
 the greatest trial to our faith in     
divine ,providence is in bearing  what  
we call the wrongs of life4 ,that we    
should have any crosses to suffer  at   
all2 that there should be death and     
sickness and disease2 that there  should
 be poverty and misery1 distress and    
worry1 labor and sorrow2 that  there    
should exist any of these things1 is to 

our infirmity1 if we forget  our sins   
and the sins of our race that have      
caused these evils1 a trial  and a test 
of fidelity4 ,but still more is it      
difficult1 except to minds  that are    
deeply religious1 to meet with the      
gentleness and serenity of  faith the   
positive injuries--the injustice1 the   
scorn1 the ridicule1 the  pain and      
persecution which others1 needy         
creatures like ourselves1  actually     
inflict upon us4 ,it is easier1 we say1 
to bear poverty than  insult2 it is     
easier to suffer the inclemency of the  
elements than to  endure the unkindness 
of our brethren2 it is easier to put up 
with the  pain and weariness of bodily  
sickness than to come under the lash of 
the  tongues of men4 ,there is here1    
however1 no room for hesitation and     
question2 the rule is the same for all  
the crosses that come to us4 ,god  often
 permits us to be afflicted by the sins 
of others for our greater  spiritual    
profit4 ,since1 therefore1 all alike    

proceed from ,god1 either by  positive  
act or divine permission1 and since we  
know that ,he is supremely  good and    
loves us1 having given every proof of   
,his desire to save us1 even  to the    
delivering up of ,his only ,son17#ajf7  
we can never reasonably or  sincerely   
doubt that every evil and cross of life1
 with the sole exception  of our        
personal sins1 has been arranged for our
 good4 ,my ,god1 do ,thou  teach us the 
wisdom of the cross6 8,for this is a    
favor to ,thy friend1 that  for love of 
,thee he may suffer and be afflicted in 
the world1 how often  soever and by whom
 soever ,thou permittest such trials to 
befall him407#ajg7    ,it is helpful    
that here also1 in learning to discern  
the source and  meaning of our          
afflictions1 we have ever before us the 
examples of the  holiest souls4 ,we know
 that in all trials they steadfastly    
look beyond the  cross that presses them
 to the hand of ,him who has placed it  
there4 ,like  the shepherd's sheep1 they

 are convinced of the power and goodness
 of  their ,master1 and nothing can     
shake their trust in ,him4 ,without     
distinction or question they accept all 
as coming from ,god by special act  or  
sovereign permission1 to purify them1 to
 detach them from the world and         
creatures1 to increase their nearness   
and likeness to ,himself1 to multiply   
their merits for ,heaven and bring them 
to everlasting crowns4 ,they  discover  
the workings of ,providence everywhere1 
in things that are  painful1 as well as 
in things that are pleasant to nature4  
,thus behind  their pangs of body and   
mind1 behind the whips and scorns of    
time1 behind  the tongue that slanders  
and calumniates them1 behind the        
oppressor's  wrong1 the injustice and   
tyranny of princes and rulers1 behind   
all the  evils of life they see the hand
 of ,him who directs and governs all4   
,but  here we must not conclude that the
 ,saints and holy persons have never    
resisted evil and evil-doers1 and that  

consequently we must not4 ,this  would  
be a serious mistake1 as ,church history
 and hagiography plainly  prove4 ,who   
was ever more vigorous and fearless in  
opposing wrong and the  doers of wrong  
than ,st4 ,paul1 ,st4 ,augustine1 and   
,st4 ,jerome8 ,who was ever  more       
persistent in his efforts to prevail    
against the evils of sin in  others than
 ,st4 ,monica1 ,st4 ,teresa1 ,st4       
,dominic1 and ,st4 ,catharine of        
,siena8 ,after their example1 then1 we  
may and we must struggle against  evils 
of all kinds1 whether physical or       
spiritual1 whether from ourselves  or   
from others1 in so far as it is not     
certain that it is the will of ,god     
that we should submit to them4 ,but when
 we have exerted ourselves  reasonably  
and lawfully to rid our lives of that   
which afflicts us1 and  still it        
persists1 there can be no further doubt 
that it is the will of  ,god that we    
should patiently and submissively accept
 our condition and our  cross4 ,since1  

however1 we do not know how long it is  
the wish of  ,providence that we should 
be burdened and afflicted1 we may       
continue  patiently to use every        
legitimate means to be delivered1       
provided it be  done with humble        
resignation to the will of our heavenly 
,father4    ,the acceptance of injuries1
 therefore1 on the part of holy souls is
 not a  weak yielding to inevitable     
circumstances1 nor a willing consent to 
the  wrongs of others4 ,like ,st4 ,paul1
 they know whom they have               
believed17#ajh7  and they are certain   
that1 in due time1 divine justice will  
bring all  evil-doers to an evil end and
 will deliver the just from their       
troubles4  ,and further1 when the       
vengeance of the persecutor is turned   
upon them1 and  they are hunted down    
without reason by their kind1 even by   
the members of  their own household1    
they remember the words of their        
,shepherd1 8,the  disciple is not above 
his master1 nor the servant above his   

lord4 ,it is  enough for the disciple   
that he be as his master1 and the       
servant as his  lord4 ,if they have     
called the good man of the house        
,beelzebub1 how much  more them of his  
household607#aji7    ,and again1 when   
the servants of ,god behold the wicked  
prospering and the  just oppressed2 when
 they see the ambitious1 the covetous1  
the  unscrupulous preferred and honored1
 and they themselves plotted against    
and rejected1 their heart is not        
disturbed1 because they know first of   
all  that 8to them that love ,god1 all  
things work together unto good107#aaj7  
and  secondly1 they are persuaded that  
the efforts of sinners must finally     
fail4 8,for the hope of the wicked is as
 dust1 which is blown away with the     
wind1 and as a thin froth which is      
dispersed by the storm3 and as a smoke  
that is scattered abroad by the wind3   
and as the remembrance of a guest of    
one day that passeth by407#aaa7 ,in a   
word1 then1 those who are really the    

friends of ,god have faith and          
confidence in their heavenly ,master2   
and all  the perils of earth1 and all   
the powers of darkness cannot avail to  
daunt  them or turn them aside from     
their purpose4    ,this steadfastness of
 religious trust we1 in our turn1 must  
strive to  acquire4 ,it is the only way 
to peace and victory4 ,if we would ever 
rise  above the evils of our lives we   
must learn to look to ,god for every    
thing4  ,and this looking to ,god must  
be1 not only as to our bountiful        
benefactor1  but as to a kind master who
 knows how best to discipline his       
servants and  preserve them from        
irreparable harm4    ,there is a        
substantially correct translation of the
 final verse of the  ,shepherd ,psalm1  
which may be rendered as follows3 8,and 
,thy goodness and  kindness pursue me   
all the days of my life1 that ,i may    
dwell in the  house of the ,lord        
forever40 ,it is the special wording of 
the second clause  of the stanza that   

expresses the real purpose of divine    
,providence in  regard to the elect4    
,everything in life has been ordained   
and arranged for  their eternal         
salvation1 and for the increase of their
 heavenly rewards4  8,therefore10 wrote 
,st4 ,paul to ,timothy1 8,i endure all  
things for the sake  of the elect1 that 
they also may obtain the salvation1     
which is in ,christ  ,jesus1 with       
heavenly glory407#aab7 ,it is this firm 
conviction that infinite  love is at the
 bottom of all the workings of          
,providence1 doing everything  for the  
sake of the elect1 that consoles and    
steadies the souls of the  just         
throughout all the trials and crosses of
 life4 ,in the thick of the  battle they
 never lose sight of the faithful       
,shepherd that leads them1 and  they    
ever behold by faith the unspeakable    
delights ,he has prepared for  them that
 love ,him4    ,what joys are there in  
our faith and hope6 ,if by the mercy and
 goodness of  ,god we succeed in saving 

our souls1 how cheap will seem the price
 we shall  have paid for ,heaven1 and   
how benign and ineffably loving will    
appear the  ,providence of ,god which is
 leading us there6 ,at times now in our 
fervor we  can faintly and feebly       
imagine what it will mean to throw off  
forever this  veil of faith and see     
distinctly and continually the ,shepherd
 of our  souls4 ,but our liveliest      
conceptions here are infinitely inferior
 to the  vision to come4 8,to see ,god  
face to face1 as ,he is2 to gaze        
undazzled on  the ,three ,divine        
,persons1 cognizable and distinct in the
 burning fires of  their inaccessible   
splendors2 to behold that long-coveted  
sight1 the  endless ,generation of the  
,all-holy ,son1 and our hearts to hold  
the joy1  and not die2 to watch with    
spirits all out-stretched in adoration  
the  ever-radiant and ineffably         
beautiful ,procession of the ,holy      
,ghost from the  ,father and the ,son1  
and to participate ourselves in that    

jubilee of  jubilees1 and drink in with 
greedy minds the wonders of that        
,procession1  and the marvelous         
distinctness of its beauty from the     
,generation of the  ,son2 to feel       
ourselves with ecstatic awe1 and yet    
with seraphic intimacy1  overshadowed by
 the ,person of the ,unbegotten ,father1
 the ,father to whom  and of whom we    
have said so much on earth1 the         
,fountain of ,godhead1 who is  truly our
 ,father1 while ,he is also the ,father 
of the ,eternal ,son2 to  explore1 with 
exulting license and with unutterably   
glad fear1 attribute  after attribute1  
oceans opening into oceans of divinest  
beauty2 to lie  astonished in           
unspeakable contentment before the      
vision of ,god's  surpassing ,unity1 so 
long the joyous mystery of our          
predilection1 while  the ,vision through
 all eternity seems to grow more fresh  
and bright and  new3 ,o my poor soul6   
what canst thou know of this1 or of     
these beautiful  necessities1 of thy    

exceeding love1 which shall only satisfy
 itself in  endless alternations1 now of
 silence and now of song807#aac7    ,if 
regret were possible for the blessed    
hereafter1 they would never cease  to   
mourn over the loss of their            
opportunities on earth to increase their
  eternal beatitude4 ,it is only when   
the veil shall have been removed that   
we shall fully realize how the goodness 
and mercy of ,god have always  pursued  
us in this life1 that we might be saved 
and enjoy the rewards of  ,his house    
forever4 ,may ,god give us all that     
child-like trust in our  heavenly       
,master which the sheep display toward  
their shepherd2 may ,he  grant us that  
vivid constant faith of the ,saints     
which will enable us to  see in every   
event of life1 in adversity as well as  
in prosperity1 in our  pains as well as 
in our joys1 the designs of a loving    
,father who is ever  wishing and trying 
to lead ,his children to ,his home of   
eternal delights4                       

,,footnotes          #a ,isa4 xl4 #aa4  
#b ,jer4 xxiii4 #d1 #e4        #c       
,ezech4 xxxiv4 #aa1 #ab1 #bc4        #d 
,phil4 ii4 #f1 #g4        #e ,jno4 x4   
#cj1 #ch2 xii4 #de4        #f ,luke xii4
 #di4        #g ,gen4 iii4 #ai4         
#h ,lam4 i4 #ab4        #i ,ps4 cxliv4  
#i4       #aj ,isa4 liii4 #d4       #aa 
,rom4 viii4 #ag4       #ab #b ,cor4 iv4 
#ag4       #ac ,matt4 v4 #dh4       #ad 
,jno4 xv4 #e4       #ae ,luke xxiii4    
#cd4       #af ,prov4 viii4 #ca4        
#ag ,jno4 xv4 #ae4       #ah ,ps4 viii4 
#e4       #ai ,prov4 xxiii4 #bf4        
#bj ,matt4 xi4 #bh4       #ba ,jno4 vi4 
#eb1 #ee4       #bb ,jno4 xvi4 #b4      
#bc ,ezech4 xviii4 #bc2 xxxiii4 #aa2 #b 
,pet4 iii4 #i4       #bd ,ps4 #ajb4 #ad4
       #be ,luke xv4 #d1 #g4       #bf  
,luke i4 #ca4       #bg ,matt4 xvi4 #ah4
       #bh ,luke x4 #ag4       #bi      
,matt4 xviii4 #ag4       #cj ,matt4     
xxiv4 #ce4       #ca ,matt4 xxiv4 #bd4  
#cb #b ,cor4 xi4 #bf4       #cc #b ,cor4
 xi4 #ac4       #cd ,matt4 xxviii4 #bj4 

#ce ,ps4 cxiii4 #ac1 #ad4       #cf     
,jude #aj4       #cg ,matt4 x4 #ag1     
#bb-bf4       #ch ,mich4 vii4 #f2 ,matt4
 x4 #cf4       #ci ,bk4 i4 #aa4 #e4     
#dj ,matt4 xvi4 #bd4       #da ,ps4     
xvii4 #d1 #e4       #db ,luke xii4 #cd4 
#dc #a ,jno4 iv4 #af1 #ah4       #dd    
,ps4 xxvi4 #a1 #b4       #de ,matt4 x4  
#bh4       #df ,wis4 iii4 #c4       #dg 
,ps4 xxxiii4 #bj4       #dh ,ps4 xiii4  
#c4       #di ,jno4 x4 #aj4       #ej #b
 ,tim4 ii4 #e4       #ea ,luke ix4 #bc4 
#eb ,jno4 xii4 #cd4       #ec ,job vii4 
#a2 ,job xiv4 #b4       #ed ,isa4 xl4   
#f1 #g4       #ee ,heb4 xi4 #aj4        
#ef ,wis4 v4 #f-i4       #eg ,rom4 viii4
 #af1 #ag4       #eh #a ,peter iv4 #ac4 
#ei ,wis4 iii4 #d1 #f4       #fj ,luke  
xiv4       #fa #a ,cor4 i4 #be4         
#fb ,luke xiv4 #bf4       #fc ,philip   
iii4 #g1 #h4       #fd ,confess4 ix4 #a4
       #fe ,ps4 xxxiii4 #i2 lxxxii4 #b4 
#ff ,job xiii4 #ae4       #fg ,ps4 xc4  
#aa4       #fh ,philip iv4 #g4       #fi
 ,philip iv4 #ac4       #gj ,rom4 viii4 

#cc-ci4       #ga ,rom4 ix4 #af4        
#gb ,eccl4 ix4 #a1 #b4       #gc        
,philip1 ii4 #ab4       #gd #a ,cor4 ix4
 #bg4       #ge ,jno4 xvii4 #aa-ae4     
#gf ,ps4 xvi4 #e4       #gg ,isa4 xlii4 
#c4       #gh ,ps4 cii4 #ac1 #ad4       
#gi ,apoc4 xxi41 iv4       #hj ,philip  
i4 #bj1 #ba4       #ha #b ,cor4 vi4     
#d-aa4       #hb ,matt4 vii4 #af-ai4    
#hc ,matt4 vi4 #cj4       #hd ,luke     
xxiv4 #be4       #he ,matt4 xvii4 #af4  
#hf ,ps4 xxix4 #g4       #hg ,jonas iv4 
#hh ,in ,ps4 xxx4 ,exp4 #b4       #hi   
,ps4 cxlv4 #b1 #c4       #ij ,jno4 xiv4 
#bg4       #ia ,bk4 iii42 ch4 lix4 #c4  
#ib ,matt4 xxv4 #bd-ca4       #ic ,matt4
 xi4 #bh4       #id ,jno4 iv4 #ac1 #ad4 
#ie ,bk4 iii41 ch4 #a1 #d4       #if ,de
 ,fide orthod4 ii4 #bi4       #ig ,wis4 
vi4 #h4       #ih ,ench4 tom4 iii41 ch4 
#bg and ii4       #ii ,isa4 lv4 #h2     
,rom4 xi4 #cc4      #ajj ,jno4 xii4 #be4
      #aja ,matt4 vii4 #ba4      #ajb   
,mk4 iii4 #ce4      #ajc ,mk4 xi4 #bc4  
#ajd ,bk4 ,,iii41 ch4 l4 #f4      #aje  

,matt4 xi4 #ab4      #ajf ,rom4 viii4   
#cb4      #ajg ,imitation1 ,bk4 ,,iii41 
ch4 l4 #d4      #ajh #b ,tim4 i4 #ab4   
#aji ,matt4 x4 #bd1 #be4      #aaj ,rom4
 viii4 #bh4      #aaa ,wis4 v4 #ae4     
#aab #b ,tim4 ii4 #aj4      #aac ,faber1
 ,creator and ,creature1 ,bk4 ,,ii41 ch4
 v4