When we enter a well-cultivated garden, filled with flowers of every shade of color and every degree of beauty, it never enters into our minds that they grew so of themselves, or gave to themselves their delicate and exquisite perfumes. We know that the skill of the gardener had something to do with their growth and beauty; we know, moreover, that rain and sunshine, the quality of soil, and other natural influences, did what was totally beyond the power of the gardener; and finally we come to G.o.d, who is, ultimately, the sole Author of their very life, growth, and perfection.
We are now to enter G.o.d"s glorious garden to contemplate the beauty of the flowers which He has planted and beautified by His grace.
Every saint is like a flower, beautiful in proportion to the amount of grace he received, and in proportion, also, to the amount of his own free co-operation with this grace. Some received the grace of the apostleship, and all, except one, corresponded with that grace.
Others received the grace of martyrdom; others received the grace of the priesthood; others the grace of trampling under foot the honors and pleasures of this world, by consecrating themselves to G.o.d in religious communities; while others, again, received the grace of becoming saints, while living in the world. Thus every one, by corresponding with his own grace, which gave him a supernatural strength, reached the glory to which he is ent.i.tled. No one in the whole of heaven can say that he enjoys its happiness by his own natural endeavors; for, without the grace of G.o.d, we cannot even have a good thought, nor p.r.o.nounce the name of Jesus, so as to deserve a supernatural reward. Hence, the highest in heaven must say, with St.
Paul: "By the grace of G.o.d I am what I am: and His grace in me hath not been void: but I have labored more abundantly than all they: yet not I, but the grace of G.o.d with me."*
* 1 Cor. xv. 10.
It is by the aid of this grace that the blessed have reached the glory of heaven; it is by this all-powerful grace that they have deserved the unfading crown, whereof St. Paul speaks so boldly and confidently, when he says: "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. As to the rest, there is laid up for me a crown of justice, which the Lord, the just Judge, will render to me at that day; and not to me only, but to them also, who love His coming."* This is the glorious crown we are now to consider; and first of all, in Jesus Christ, who, in His human nature, is elevated and glorified far above all, in heaven.
* 2 Tim. iv. 7.
Jesus is the Son of G.o.d; but He is also "the Son of Man." As G.o.d, His glory is from everlasting to everlasting. It had no beginning, and it shall have no end. As its source is in His very essence, it can neither be increased nor diminished. But it is far different with the glory of the human nature which He a.s.sumed. That had a beginning, and could be increased, and, as a matter of fact, was increased, until He exalted it above all that is not G.o.d, in heaven. Let us now contemplate His bright glory, and rejoice with him in his surpa.s.sing blessedness.
See Him enthroned at the right hand of G.o.d his Father, clothed with "great power and majesty." The personal union of the eternal Son of G.o.d with the human nature gives Him, as man, undisputed pre-eminence over all, in power, holiness, beauty, and every other attribute communicable to a created nature. He is so completely possessed, embraced, and penetrated by the Divine Nature, that His adorable heart is the throne of the most perfect happiness ever enjoyed by man. That loving heart, which is purer than the sun"s brightest rays, is filled to overflowing with the most exquisite joys emanating from the very bosom of the most Holy Trinity.
While on earth, no one ever loved G.o.d and man as He did; and now there is none in all the heavens who is equally loved in return, both by G.o.d himself and the bright throngs that surround this throne. No man, therefore, ever did, or ever can enjoy a happiness so pure, so exquisite, and in so eminent a degree as He does.
While on earth, His soul was sorrowful even unto death; but now it is inebriated with torrents of joy, too great for poor human language to express. While on earth, He likewise suffered in all his senses.
He endured hunger and thirst, cold and heat, fatigue, and the numberless privations which His poverty entailed upon him. But it was especially during His cruel pa.s.sion that his sight, hearing, taste, and particularly his sense of feeling, were tortured to the utmost; and now His glorified senses have become the avenues of the most exquisite and refined pleasures. He now sees himself surrounded by the thousands whom His precious blood has sanctified and beautified; and he continually hears the sweet harmony of their grateful songs.
His sacred body, which had been bruised and mangled, disfigured and dishonored by the filthy spittle of His enemies, is now the most beautiful, perfect, and resplendent in the whole kingdom of heaven.
It is the very sun which, by its splendor, gives beauty and life to the whole of heaven. In a word, Jesus, as man, is above all in power, majesty, wisdom, glory, and enjoys the most perfect and complete happiness that ever came from G.o.d.
But you will, perhaps, say: Does not Jesus enjoy all this unspeakable glory, simply and exclusively in virtue of His high privileges? Is it not on account of the Hypostatic Union that He is thus exalted above all in glory? I answer: Although the Hypostatic Union, by its very nature, gives Him the right to the first place in heaven, it gives him neither the glory nor the rewards which are due to Him as the Redeemer of mankind. The Hypostatic Union is a high privilege, a free gift of G.o.d, which He did not merit; for that privilege, in the designs of his Father, involved the office of Redeemer. This was His vocation in this world, and he corresponded to it faithfully. He taught the world, first by example, next by His heavenly doctrines.
Then He submitted willingly, and even cheerfully, to all the indignities of his bitter pa.s.sion, and finally consummated the great work of man"s redemption by expiring upon the cross.
It is for all this life of poverty, suffering, and humiliation, that He is rewarded, and so wonderfully glorified, and not exclusively on account of the Hypostatic Union. Listen to St. Paul, and he will tell you why Jesus is exalted above all in heaven: "He humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. For which cause G.o.d hath also exalted Him, and hath given Him a name which is above all names, that in the name of Jesus, every knee should bow of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth."* Surely this is far from saying that Jesus enjoys the highest glory of heaven, exclusively on account of the Hypostatic Union. It is given Him by his Father as a "crown of justice," which he really deserved by his sufferings and obedience unto the death of the Cross.
* Phil. ii. 8.
It is, moreover, the beautiful canticle which forever resounds through the vaults of heaven. Listen to it: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to take the book, and open the seals thereof: because Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us in Thy blood, out of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation."* It is evident, then, that Jesus is rewarded in His human nature with the highest glory of heaven, on account of his own individual merits.
* Apoc. v. 9.
Let us now spend a few moments in contemplating the glory of the Blessed Virgin. Jesus is the King of heaven; Mary is the Queen. She certainly comes next to Jesus in dignity and merit, and her glory is, therefore, next to His in splendor and magnificence. She is the woman of whom the beloved disciple speaks when he says: "And a great wonder appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars."* This certainly expresses the highest glory and splendor imaginable. Human words can say nothing more; for our highest ideas of glory are borrowed from those beautiful worlds that shine above us in the blue ether. On her bosom she wears a jewel of unsurpa.s.sed splendor, whereon are written her three singular privileges. These are Immaculate, Mother of G.o.d, Virgin. These are high privileges which she alone enjoys, and which single her out at once as the Queen of angels and of men. The Eternal, by a.s.suming flesh from her, united her to Himself by a bond of intimacy which is second only to that of the Hypostatic Union. He shed His own bright glory around her, and enthroned her at the right hand of Jesus. The Almighty Father looks upon her with complacency, as his own beloved daughter, faultless in beauty and every other perfection. The Holy Ghost calls her His own spotless and faithful Spouse, over whom the breath of sin never pa.s.sed; while Jesus who, in all His glory, is still flesh of her flesh, and bone of her bone, calls her his own sweet and loving Mother. Can we conceive any greater glory unless it be that of the Hypostatic Union?
* Apoc. xii. 1.
In this world, a great king may see with grief that many other women surpa.s.s his own mother, daughter, or spouse, in beauty, intelligence, virtue, and other perfections; but, however grieved he may be, he is totally powerless to remedy the evil, and he must continue to see others outshining those who are the dearest to his heart. Not so in heaven. Never shall it be said there that there are women holier, purer, more intelligent, or more beautiful than the Blessed Virgin.
For G.o.d has the power to clothe her with attributes that will forever make her superior to any mere creature. Not only has He the power, but, as a matter of fact, he has adorned her by bestowing upon her every gift of nature, grace, and glory, in an eminent degree. She, above all saints, is "full of grace," and is made a partaker of the Divulge Nature, and, therefore, her Immaculate Heart, which is purer than crystal, is the home of the most perfect happiness ever enjoyed by woman.
But, remember well, she does not enjoy all this excellent glory exclusively on account of her glorious privileges. These are, like those of Jesus, free gifts of G.o.d, which she did not merit. But she freely and generously corresponded to all the designs of G.o.d, and, therefore, she is rewarded with the highest glory of heaven. She too, as well as Jesus, was obedient unto death. She too was submissive to the most trying dispensations of Providence. She too suffered patiently from every manner of privation; for she was poor. She too endured the most bitter anguish during the pa.s.sion of her beloved Son, and had her pure soul overwhelmed with agonies whereof we can form no adequate conception. Hence, G.o.d hath also exalted her, and given her a name which is above every name except that of Jesus.
Thus we see that even Jesus and Mary, the bright King and Queen of heaven, are exalted above all angels and men in glory, on account of the heroic virtue they both practised in this world, and not exclusively in virtue of their dignity and high privileges. They both labored for it, both suffered for it, and both deserved it as a "crown of justice," which a just Judge bestowed upon them as a reward of merit.
It is impossible to think of Jesus and Mary without, at the same time, thinking of the ill.u.s.trious St. Joseph. He is so intimately bound up with them, that we can neither forget him nor separate him from them. He was emphatically a hidden saint. He was truly "a just man," as the Holy Ghost calls him. He was so humble, so pure, so unspeakably charitable to the Blessed Virgin. Then, too, he loved Jesus so much, so tenderly, and took so great a care of Him during his infancy. Whenever he received a command, he always obeyed so promptly, without excuse or murmur, though at times the commands involved great privations and sufferings. In a word, St. Joseph, too, corresponded with the grace of his sublime vocation; and he now shines with exceeding glory near Jesus and Mary. He too is glorified on account of His tender love for G.o.d, for Jesus and Mary, and for his neighbor, and not exclusively in virtue of the glorious privilege of having been the guardian of Mary"s purity, and the foster-father of Jesus. Therefore, His exceeding glory is also "a crown of justice," wherewith a just Judge has encircled his brow.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE GLORY OF THE MARTYRS.
We shall now contemplate the glory of the vast mult.i.tude of the blessed, who surround the thrones of Jesus and Mary. I quote from the Apocalypse: "After this, I saw a great mult.i.tude, which no man could number, of all nations, and tribes, and peoples, and tongues: standing before the throne, and in the sight of the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands."* This glorious mult.i.tude represents all the blessed. They may be divided into eight cla.s.ses, namely, the martyrs, the doctors and confessors, the virgins, the religious, the penitents, the pious people, those of inferior virtue, and the baptized infants. In this chapter we shall consider the glory of the Martyrs.
* Apoc. vii. 9.
See that beautiful army of martyrs--these brave soldiers of Jesus Christ--who died or Him, and like him, in the midst of the most cruel torments. Theirs is truly "a crown of justice." They are represented as holding palms in their hands, in token of the victory which they gained over the world. Their intimate union with G.o.d, the dazzling splendor of their personal appearance, the high honors conferred upon them, single them out at once as those champions of the faith who, while on earth, served G.o.d in a heroic degree. And they certainly served Him with distinction; for they proved their love by laying down their lives for Him. Laying down one"s life for G.o.d has always been looked upon as the most perfect act of love possible; for "Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends."* Hence, the martyrs, as a cla.s.s, have always been considered as deserving the highest honors of heaven.
* John xv. 18.
The beautiful words of the Holy Ghost in reference to all the just apply with peculiar force to the martyrs: "But the souls of the just are in the hand of G.o.d: and the torment of death shall not touch them. In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die: and their departure was taken for misery: and their going away from us for utter destruction; but they are in peace. And though in the sight of men they suffered torments, their hope is full of immortality.
Afflicted in a few things, in many they shall be rewarded: because G.o.d hath tried them, and found them worthy of himself. As gold in the furnace, He hath proved them; and as the victim of a holocaust, he hath received them."*
* Wis. iii.
What a bright and beautiful crowd they are! As a garden is beautified by flowers, so is heaven made more beautiful by the radiant crimson-clad army of martyrs. Here is St. John the Baptist, the fearless precursor of Jesus. Here is the glorious St. Stephen, the first who laid down his life after the ascension of Jesus. Here are the holy Apostles, those intrepid soldiers of Christ, who went forth from the council, rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus. The prediction of their Divine Master was verified in them: "For they shall deliver you up in councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. And you shall be brought before governors, and before kings for my sake. . . . And you shall be hated by all men for my sake."* . . . "Yea, the hour cometh that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doeth a service to G.o.d."+
* Matt. x. + John xvi.
But in spite of all this hatred and persecution, they sowed the seed of the word of G.o.d in the hearts of men, and watered it with their own blood. They now enjoy a peculiar glory in heaven; for, besides the glory which belongs to them as martyrs, they also enjoy that which belongs to them as Apostles, promised to them in these words of our blessed Lord: "Amen, I say to you, that you, who have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit on the seat of His majesty, you shall also sit on twelve seats, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."*
* Matt. xix. 28.
Here are also so many holy Popes, and bishops, and priests, the worthy successors of the Apostles, who, like them, joyfully laid down their lives for the love of Jesus Christ. Here is also that countless mult.i.tude of holy missionaries, who, like the Apostles, went forth into all nations to preach the gospel. They, too, were "brought before governors, and before kings," and sealed their faith with their blood. Here, too, are holy virgins, who preferred death, in all its horrid shapes, rather than stain their souls, or have another spouse besides Jesus, to whom they had consecrated themselves. The grace of G.o.d changed them from timid, retiring virgins, into dauntless heroines, and enabled them to suffer death with superhuman courage and constancy. Here are also married men and women, fathers and mothers, who loved G.o.d more than they loved their children. Here, even, are little children, who astounded the heartless tyrants by the admirable patience and heroism which they displayed amidst the most refined cruelties. Here, too, are venerable old men and women, who, in spite of the infirmities of age, ascended the scaffold with a firm step, and suffered death with undaunted constancy. All these, like St. Paul, have fought a good fight, and all, without exception, have received a "crown of justice" at the hands of a just Judge. They all enjoy the high rewards which Jesus promised to His heroic followers, when he said: "Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice"
sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake: rejoice, and be exceeding glad: because your reward is very great in heaven."*
* Matt. v.
But, before leaving these to consider the glory of others, we must remark that, although they are all martyrs, they do not, on that account, all enjoy the same degree of glory. They are all stars; but "star differeth from star in glory." Each martyr is clothed in his own brightness, which is great in proportion to the intensity of his love for G.o.d, and the amount of suffering endured for Him. Some were simply put to death, without any additional torture. Others were imprisoned, scourged, and then put to death; while others again were tortured for days, weeks, and even months, with the most frightful torments. Again, some came to their martyrdom totally devoid of any previous virtue; some even loaded with sin, and unbaptized: but they received a baptism of blood--which made them pure, and deserved for them the high honors of heaven. Nevertheless, the glory that surrounds such is far inferior to that which surrounds those who, like St. John the Baptist, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Andrew, and a host of others, came to their martyrdom loaded with the merits of a life spent in the practice of heroic virtue.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE GLORY OF THE DOCTORS AND CONFESSORS.
Let us now turn our eyes to another bright throng. It is composed of the Doctors and Confessors of the Church. These too, as well as the martyrs, enjoy the high honors of haven. Here we meet again the Apostles, who were filled with the Holy Ghost, and instructed the infant Church in all truth. There, too, are their worthy successors in the ministry--such men as St. John Chrysostom, St. Augustine, St.
Gregory, St. Thomas, and a mult.i.tude of others--whose vast intellects were stored with the knowledge of G.o.d. They gained a signal victory over the devil--who is the father of lies. By their eloquence, and by their writings, they enlightened the Church, not only in their day, but for all time to come. They are now crowned with the peculiar glory which is promised to all such: "They that are learned shall shine as the brightness of the firmament: and they that instruct many unto justice, as the stars for all eternity."*
* Dan. xii. 3.
But you must not imagine that the great lights of Christianity, such as the Apostles, or a St. Augustine, a St. Thomas, and others, who have been proclaimed doctors of the Church, are alone in their glory.
This cla.s.s also includes the glorious confessors of the Church--all holy Popes, bishops, and priests, who have zealously and faithfully preached the gospel to their flocks. It comprises also all those holy missionaries who, like the Apostles, preached Jesus crucified to the heathens, and brought them into the one true fold. These holy confessors, though not proclaimed doctors by the Church, nevertheless shine "as the stars for all eternity."
But, besides these glorious confessors, there are still others who partake of the peculiar glory promised to them "that instruct many unto justice." These are the innumerable mult.i.tudes of men and women who compose the different religious orders of the Church--who spend their lives in the education of youth. There are, moreover, the writers, translators, and publishers of good books, and others, who, though not bound by any vows, devote themselves to the diffusion of religious knowledge. Among these, particular mention must be made of good parents, whose first care is to teach the knowledge and love of G.o.d to their children. In a word, all they who have, in any way, instructed others unto justice, partake of the peculiar glory of the doctors and confessors of the Church, though, no doubt, in an inferior degree. For the promise of a special reward is not made exclusively to a few gifted intellects, but to all, without any exception. "They that shall teach many unto justice, shall shine as the stars for all eternity."