Part II, The Commandments: The Works of Mercy

1. The Value of Earthly Goods and the Use to Be Made of Them

1. Earthly riches do not of themselves make us better in God's sight.

It is not the possession, but the good use of earthly goods which makes us truly rich. It is in his moral qualities, in virtue and not in his wealth, that man's real dignity and greatness consist. Let not the rich man arrogate anything to himself because of the abundance of the goods he possesses. The grave teaches us the worthlessness of earth's treasures, for we can carry nothing with us out of the world (1 Tim. vi. 7). When Croesus, the rich king, showed all his treasures to the sage Solon and asked if he did not consider him a happy man, the sage replied : " No man is to be pronounced happy before his death." Croesus was displeased by this answer, but when, defeated and a prisoner, he stood beside the funeral pyre, he acknowledged the truth of the words. Let us not therefore strive eagerly to acquire riches on earth, but obey the injunction of Our Lord : " Lay not up to yourselves treasures on earth, where the rust and moth consume and where thieves break through and steal" (Matt. vi. 19). How admirable is Solomon's prayer : " Give me neither beggary nor riches; give me only the necessaries of life" (Prov. xxx. 8). St. Paul says : " Having food and wherewith to be covered, with these we are content" (1 Tim. vi. 8). Remember Christ teaches us to ask day by day our daily bread.

2. Earthly goods have their value, however, because with them we can earn eternal felicity.

On the one hand earthly riches contribute to our temporal welfare; they relieve us of many cares and anxieties, may render our life pleasant, and give us a certain ascendancy over our fellow-men. The man of wealth is a small potentate. They are also a means of salvation. This may be inferred from the words Our Lord will address to those on His right hand at the Day of Judgment (Matt. xxv. 34). "Your property was not given you," says St. John Chrysostom, " that you might live in luxury and revelry, but that you may help the poor." Money should therefore be regarded as a means of doing good, for it is only good when turned to good account.

3. God is the Lord of all earthly riches; we are only His stewards.

"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof" (Ps. xxiii. 1). " The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine, saith the Lord of hosts " (Agg. ii. 9). Thus when we give alms, we distribute what belongs to another, not to ourselves.

4. Earthly riches should consequently only be employed in accordance with the commands of God.

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We are not even at liberty to make what use we choose of the senses and members of our body; we must employ them as God or dains. It is exactly the same with our property. And how are we to employ our property according to the will of God ? We must employ it to His glory and for the welfare of our fellow-men. As the steward has to give an account to his master, so we shall have to give an account to God; He will reckon with us concerning the use of the talents entrusted to us (Matt. xxv. 14). At our death He will say to us : " Give an account of thy stewardship " (Luke xvi. 2).

2. The Precept to Perform Works of Mercy

I. Christ has strictly enjoined upon us to assist our neighbor who is in need with our earthly goods; for He will only grant everlasting happiness to those who have helped their fellow-men who were in need,

At the Last Judgment Our Lord will, as He tells us, set some men on His right hand and others on Ills left. To those on His right He will say : " Come, ye blessed of My Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in, naked and you covered Me ; sick and you visited Me ; I was in prison and you came to Me." Then shall the just answer Him, saying : " Lord, when did we see Thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger, and ministered to Thee ? " And Our Lord shall answer them : " Amen I say to you, as long as you did to one of these, My least brethren, you did it to Me." And to those on His left hand lie shall say : " Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire ! For I was hungry and you gave Me not to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me not to drink." Then they also shall answer Him in like manner as the just. And He shall answer them : " As long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to Me " (Matt. xxv. 31-46). The poor must win heaven by patience, the rich by works of mercy. One gladly parts with the lesser for the sake of keeping the greater; one submits to have a foot or an arm amputated in order to save one's life. So must you give up the lesser, in order not to lose the greater, which is eternal felicity.

1. The rich are chiefly bound to assist the needy.

To whom much is given, of him much shall be required (Luke xii. 48). The rich ought of their abundance to supply the wants of the poor (2 Cor. viii. 14). They ought to sustain the poor, as the elm supports the vine. The elm is a stately tree, but it produces no fruit ; the vine is a creeping plant, and unless it clings to something, its branches trail on the ground and its fruit is apt to be spoiled. But if it casts its tendrils ronnrl tbp elm, and clings to its trunk, it will grow up and flourish. The rich man is like the elm; his wealth alone gives him no claim to an eternal reward, but bv the help he renders to the poor he will purchase for himself everlasting treasures. But if the rich do not give willingly, they imperil their eternal sal-

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vation. Our Lord says: "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. xix. 24). The rich run risk of shipwreck, like a vessel that is too heavily freighted. They are reluctant to part with their money because they think the enjoyment of the present is real happiness; they mistake the shadow for the reality, and value the false more than the true. In the hour of death they will discover their sad mistake, as a bird resting upon a limed bough only finds that he is a captive when he attempts to fly away. The rich man, when the moment comes for him to pass from time into eternity, will feel how bitter has been his deception, like one who awakens from a delightful dream to find his happiness a delusion (Ps. Ixxv. 6). Therefore God has made the way to the attainment of riches a difficult and thorny path, as a farmer plants a quickset hedge round the field that he does not want trodden down.

2. Even the poor man can help his neighbor who is in need.

Tobias says : " If thou hast much, give abundantly ; if thou hast little, take care to bestow willingly a little" (Tob. iv. 9). If any one gives a cup of cold water out of charity to his neighbor, provided that is all he can give, it will count for as much as when Zacheus the publican gave the half of his goods to the poor. The poor widow in the Temple gave more with her two mites, than all the rich who cast their gifts into the treasury (Luke xxi.). The widow of Sarephta gave Elias the last remainder of her oil (3 Kings xvii. 12).

3. He who has not helped his neighbor who is in need, will find no mercy with God.

St. James says : " Judgment without mercy to him that hath not done mercy" (Jas. ii. 13). The rich man was buried in hell, because he gave no alms. " He that stoppeth his ear against the cry of the poor shall also cry and not be heard" (Prov. xxi. 13). He who refuses to relieve the necessitous defrauds them of their own. St. John Chrysostom says the rich man who is hard-hearted is no better than a thief, for he stores in his chests treasures that belong to others. He who keeps exclusively to himself the gifts Providence has bestowed on him, creates himself the murderer of those who perish from want. It is not enough to say we have never wronged the poor. By not giving alms we incur the penalty due to those who take from their neighbor that which is his.

2. The assistance we give to the needy, of whatever nature it may be, is an alms, or work of mercy.

These works are called works of mercy, because in performing them we are actuated by feelings of compassion or mercy.

3. The works of mercy are either spiritual or corporal, accord ing as the necessities we relieve are spiritual or corporal.

The corporal wants of our neighbor are : Food, drink, clothing, shelter, liberty, health, or life. What can we do to supply him with these? His spiritual wants, the needs of the soul, are: The knowledge of the truth (for which instruction or counsel is required) ; a good will, through lack of which he offends God or his fellow-man

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(which calls for correction, patient endurance or forgiveness) ; a joyful spirit (in lack of which he needs consolation). If we can do little or nothing to succor and solace our neighbor, we must pray for him, that God may come to his aid.

3. The Several Works of Mercy

1. The corporal works of mercy are: (1), To feed the hungry; (2), To give drink to the thirsty; (3), To clothe the naked; (4), To harbor the stranger; (5), To visit the sick; (6), To ransom the captive; (7), To bury the dead.

(1), To feed the hungry. Abraham entertained the three men; Christ fed five thousand people; St. Elizabeth of Hungary gave all the contents of her granaries to the poor in a time of famine; St. Louis of France provided a dinner daily for a hundred and twenty poor men, and sometimes waited on them himself. (2), To give drink to the thirsty. The Samaritan woman gave Our Lord water to drink at Jacob's well ; Rebecca drew water for Eleazar. Wine and medicine come under this category. (3), To clothe the naked. Tabitha at Joppe made garments for destitute widows ; St. Martin gave half his cloak to a beggar; Christmas gifts to poor schools are works of mercy. (4), To harbor the stranger. Hospitality is a duty enjoined upon us by St. Paul when he says : " Hospitality do not forget ; for by this some, not being aware of it, have entertained angels " (Heb. xiii. 2). Both Abraham and Lot were privileged to receive angels in human form beneath their roof. The Good Samaritan took the man who had been wounded by robbers to an inn. Martha and Mary received Our Lord into their house as their guest. The monks of St. Bernard perform a work of mercy when they rescue travellers who have met with accidents, and carry them to their hospice, where they nurse them until they recover. When travelling was more dangerous than at present, they were the means of saving many lives. (5), To ransom innocent captives. Abraham delivered Lot out of the hands of the robbers; the Christians in Damascus rescued St. Paul out of prison; in the Middle Ages the Order of Ransom was founded for the release of Christians taken prisoner and held in slavery by the Turks. More than a million Christian slaves regained their liberty on the payment of a sum of money, or by others taking their place. Cardinal Lavigerie also established a guild for the liberation of slaves in Africa.

(6), To visit the sick is only to be reckoned as a work of mercy, when the object of the visit is to afford spiritual or temporal relief to the sufferer.

The visit Job's friends paid him was no work of mercy. That of the Samaritan to the wounded Jew was on the other hand, most meritorious. Several religious Orders have been founded for the express object of nursing the sick in hospitals or elsewhere; witness that of the Christian Brothers, founded by St. John of God (1617), and that of the Sisters of Charity, founded about the same time by St. Vincent of Paul. The self-sacrifice of Catholic priests in taking the

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last sacraments to the dying, especially at the time of an epidemic, is most emphatically a work of mercy. We read of the Emperor Joseph II. that he was asked one day by a poor boy in the street for a florin, that he might get a doctor for his mother. The emperor gave him the money, and asked where he lived. He then went to see the sick woman, who took him for a doctor, and he wrote a prescription for her. Shortly after his departure the doctor whom the boy had called in made his appearance. On opening the paper to look at the supposed prescription, he read these words : " Woman, your visitor was the emperor. Take this paper to the palace, and fifty ducats will be paid you."

(7), To bury the dead. It is a particularly meritorious work of mercy to provide the dead with decent burial, to follow the body to the grave, or to erect a stone to his memory.

Tobias used to bury the dead at the time of the persecution of the Jews under Sennacherib. The inhabitants of the city of Nairn accompanied the bier on which the young man was carried to the grave. Joseph of Arimathea and ISTicodemus laid the body of Our Lord in the sepulchre. In burying the dead we do him a service which he can never requite. "We ought," says St. Augustine, "to show respect to the bodies of Christian people, because they have been the instrument employed by the soul." In some localities the pernicious custom prevails of making funerals an occasion for feast ing and revelry. This is most unseemly, and a waste of money which might be spent for the benefit of the soul of the deceased. Besides it is the means of stifling the grace of God, which exercises a salutary influence on the soul through the solemn ceremonies of an inter ment.

In addition to the seven corporal works of mercy already enumerated, there are others, e.g., the distribution of money, the rescue of one in danger of death, giving assistance in case of accidents, etc.

King Pharao's daughter performed a work of mercy when she saved the life of the infant Moses ; so did Veronica when she gave her veil to wipe Our Lord's countenance. In fact every kind word or act, if spoken or done to our neighbor because we see Our Lord in him, is a meritorious work. Our Lord Himself says that a cup of cold water given in His name shall not go unrewarded (Mark ix. 40).

2. The spiritual works of mercy are: (1), To instruct the ignorant; (2), To counsel the doubtful; (3), To admonish sinners; (4), To bear wrongs patiently; (5), To forgive offences willingly; (6), To comfort the afflicted; (7), To pray for the living and the dead.

One may instruct the ignorant either in religion or other useful knowledge either by word of mouth or by writing good books. The holy apostles, and the evangelizers of the different nations, performed a work of mercy, as in the present day do all the missionaries to heathen lands, besides all preachers, catechists, confessors, Christian writers and teachers. To co-operate with God for the salvation of

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Souls is the highest of all works. Those who impart religious instruction to others will have a more exalted place, and enjoy a greater degree of glory in heaven. Daniel says : " They that instruct many to justice shall shine as stars for all eternity" (Dan. xii. 3). Those who collect money for foreign missions also perform a work of mercy. To counsel the doubtful is another of the spiritual works of mercy; but the counsel given must previously be maturely considered, and not forced upon one's neighbor. Joseph gave good advice to Pharao; Christ to the rich youth; Gamaliel to the council.

We ought to admonish the sinner, provided we can do so without prejudice to ourselves, and provided a good result may be anticipated.

He would indeed be cruel, who seeing a blind man on the brink of a precipice, did not warn him of his danger ; and yet more blame worthy would be he who, having it in his power to save his brother from everlasting death, will not take the trouble to rescue him. God will require us to give an account for the soul of our neighbor, if we omit anything we might have done to further the work of his salvation. " We call a man's attention," says St. John Chrysostom, "to a stain upon his clothes, but we do not tell him of stains upon his soul; which, if not washed away, will be his eternal ruin." ISToe preached penance to the ISTinivites. The good thief admonished his fellow culprit. Admonition is like salt ; it makes the wound smart more, but it heals it. Thus reproof is not agreeable but useful. If by administering a rebuke we shall bring trouble 011 ourselves, we are not obliged to give it ; no one is required to love his neighbor more than himself. (It is however the bounden duty of those who are in authority to admonish those under them of their faults; justice, not charity, requires it.) Nor are we called upon to correct others if no good will come of it. Who would be so unwise as to rebuke a man who was intoxicated ? Rebuke him by all means, but wait until he is sober.

In admonishing sinners we should observe the rule Christ gave us.

First we are told to rebuke our brother when we are alone with him. If he will not hear us, we must rebuke him in the presence of two or three witnesses. If that is useless, we are to tell his superiors (Matt, xviii. 15-17).

"We must admonish our neighbor with gentleness and charity.

The greater the gentleness and tact wherewith a reprimand is administered, the more effect it produces. If our admonition is to be of use, it must fall on the heart like a gentle rain upon the earth ; for it is the still, quiet rain that sinks into and fertilizes the soil, whereas a violent, sudden downpour only breaks up the surface of the ground and rushes away. The bitterness of the reproof should be tempered with kindness and charity, as sour fruit is sweetened with sugar and cooked to render it digestible. Before rebuking any one, it is well to mention something praiseworthy in his conduct, and afterwards to speak a word of encouragement. If the rebuke is harsh

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and severe, it will do no good, only harm. Rough reproaches will not bring a man to a better mind, any more than kicks will put a wanderer in the right road. They will only drive him in the opposite direction. The sinner will not resolve to amend his ways unless he feels that the admonisher has his welfare sincerely at heart. The Christian %nust treat his erring brother as the coachman treats a timid horse, which is not to be managed by the violent use of the whip, but by a gentle hand on the rein.

" He who causeth a sinner to be converted from the error of his ways shall save his soul from death, and cover a multitude of sins " (Jas. v. 20).

We are told that the Evangelist St. John took the greatest trouble to save an unhappy youth whom he had converted, and who afterwards became a highwayman. He went after him to the mountain fastnesses, and called to him : " Why, my son, do you fly from your father, from a defenceless old man? Fear not; I will myself implore pardon for you of God, and make satisfaction for you." These kind words touched the heart of the prodigal. We cannot offend Christ more deeply than by robbing Him of the souls He has redeemed; nor can we honor Him more than by bringing back to Him those which have gone astray. There is nothing upon earth to compare with the value of a soul. " If thou wert to give vast sums to the poor," says St. John Chrysostom, " the merit would be nothing in comparison with that of having converted one sinner." He who converts a sinner deserves an infinitely greater reward than he who rescues a king's son from death; for he saves a son of the King of heaven, and saves him not from temporal, but from eternal death.

When we bear wrongs patiently, we benefit not ourselves only, but also our fellow-man; we prevent him from going to greater lengths, and make it easier to bring him to a sense of his wrongdoing.

David bore Semei's abuse patiently, and after a time he acknowledged his sin and implored the king to pardon him. We lose nothing if we suffer wrong patiently, for when our innocence is proved, our forbearance will be richly rewarded. It is also most meritorious, as St. Teresa says, not to justify one's self when one is blamed. Unhap pily too many people are like the hedgehog, which rolls itself into a prickly ball the moment it is touched, for at the first fault-finding word they break out into excuses and exculpations. However it is in cumbent upon us to protect ourselves from false accusations, when to bear the injustice in silence would be productive rather of evil than of good. Slight affronts should not be heeded, but one ought not to allow a heinous crime to be falsely laid to one's charge.

By forgiving offences willingly is meant that we do not seek to avenge ourselves on those who offend against us, but treat them kindly, and are ready to confer upon them any benefit within our power.

Joseph's conduct towards his brethren affords a beautiful example of this virtue; instead of revenging himself on them, he embraced

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them and kissed them and loaded them with gifts. If we willingly forgive those who trespass against us, God will forgive our transgressions, as we are told in the fifth clause of the Our Father.

We can comfort the afflicted by showing them heartfelt sympathy, by suggesting grounds of consolation, or by succoring them in need.

Evincing sympathy towards those in trouble is called condoling with them. We may suggest comfort to the poor and afflicted by reminding them of the watchful care of God's providence, of the happiness that awaits them in heaven ; to the sinner we may speak of the divine mercy and compassion. We shall do still better, if we relieve them in their distress. Thus Our Lord comforted the widow of Nairn, and the sisters of Lazarus. Grief is a mental malady : " The sadness of a man consumeth the heart " (Prov. xxv. 20). To console the sorrowing is as much a good work as to nurse the sick. Words of comfort in a time of affliction are as welcome as rain in the time of drought.

To pray for the living and the dead is a work well pleasing in God's sight. It benefits at the same time both them and us. God enjoins upon us especially to pray for our parents and benefactors, for the Pope, and the ruler of our country, for the bishops and clergy, and also finally for our enemies.

St. Paul declares that it is good and acceptable in the sight of God, that prayers be made for all men, for kings particularly, and those that are in high stations (1 Tim. ii. 2, 3). Furthermore we read in Holy Scripture : " It is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their sins " (2 Mach. xii. 46). Far from being losers, we are greatly the gainers if we offer prayer to God for others, for we thereby increase our merit, and draw down upon ourselves the blessing of God. Before Judas Machabeus gained the decisive victory over Nicanor, he caused sacrifices to be offered for the warriors who should faJl in battle. Prayers offered for others sometimes seem to be fruitless. On one occasion when St. Gertrude complained that no improvement was discernible in the persons for whom she prayed, Our Lord said to her : " No sincere prayers are in vain, although the effect they produce may be imperceptible to the eye of man." Abraham interceded for Sodom, Moses for the people, the Christians for St. Peter when he was in prison. At the Last Supper Our Lord prayed for His disciples and for the whole Church, and on the cross He prayed for His enemies. Let us follow the example He gave us. When we recite the Our Father we pray for all men ; we say, " Give us our daily bread, etc."

4. In What Spirit Should the Works of Mercy Be Performed ?

1. We ought not to do good to our neighbor in order to beseen and praised by men, for in that case we bave our reward on earth (Matt. vi. 1),

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Nor should we do good to our neighbor in the hope that he will requite our kindness (Luke xiv. 12).

Our Lord says : " When thou dost give alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right doth" (Matt. vi. 3). The saints, as a rule, gave alms secretly. St. Nicholas threw money to the poor out of his window at night ; others performed works of mercy under cover of the darkness. The less reward we get on earth for our good works, the greater will be our recompense after death. Hence, as Christ exhorts us, we should do good by preference to those who cannot repay us: the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind (Luke xiv. 13). Nor must we expect to be thanked. God is repaid with ingratitude and so are the charitable among men. Yet we ought not on this account to desist from doing good, for it is in showing kindness to the unthankful that true charity consists.

2. We must do good to our neighbor for Christ's sake.

Christ lives in His people. This we learn from His own words at the Day of Judgment. Thus we must see God in our neighbor. St. Magdalene of Pazzi placed works of mercy before prayer : " When I engage in mental prayer," she said, " God assists me ; but when I do good to my neighbor, I assist God, for He regards what I do to my neighbor as done to Him."

3. We should do good to our neighbor promptly and pleas antly.

We ought not to postpone giving alms until the morrow, if we can do it at once (Prov. iii. 28). What is given promptly has a double value. He that showeth mercy, let him do it with cheerfulness (Rom. xii. 8). God loveth a cheerful giver (2 Cor. ix. 7). We ought not to upbraid the poor (Ecclus. xviii. 18). Those who are harsh to the poor are like a surgeon who in healing one wound makes another. We ought not to question the poor at too great length; we should rather give of our own accord, without waiting to be asked. Nor ought we to hold ourselves aloof from the poor. If almighty God permits us to proffer our petitions to Him at all times, and is always ready to grant them, surely we who are but dust and ashes, ought not to do less for our brethren. The Emperor Rudolph of Hapsburg used to say : " Every one can have access to my presence. I was not chosen emperor that I might live in seclusion."

4. We are only required to give alms of our superfluity.

In no wise are we bound to deprive ourselves of what is necessary for our subsistence or to keep up our position. Our Lord says : "Yet of that which remaineth give alms" (Luke xi. 41). Theologians are of opinion that it is sufficient to give a small percentage of one's yearly savings.

5. We must only give alms out of what is our own, and only give to those who are really poor or who are unable to work.

Some people think they will give alms at another's expense; they take from one what they give to another. Such almsgiving, which is an act of injustice, is abhorrent to God. Therefore let a

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man who is in debt pay his creditors, instead of giving alms to the poor. Justice conies before generosity. " How manifestly unjust it would be to take the coat off one man's back to give it to another; it is no less unjust to give in alms money which thou owest to another " (St. John Chrysostom). As well might a thief, when brought to trial, offer the judge a part of the stolen property; he would only insure his conviction. " And canst thou hope to gain the favor of God by giving alms of what is not thy own?" (St. Augustine.) To give to those who are known to be idle and addicted to drink, is to encourage them in sin; but it is better to err on the side of charity than of severity. When the Master of the house is so liberal, it ill becomes His steward to be niggardly. As all shipwrecked sailors without distinction are received in a port, so we should not sit in judgment upon those who have fallen into poverty, but hasten to help them in their misfortune.

6. In giving alms, preference should be shown to our relatives, our fellow Catholics, and those who are in the greatest need.

St. Paul exhorts us : " Let us do good to all men, but especially to those who are of the household of the faith" (Gal. vi. 10). For what we give to the poor we give to God, as we know from Christ's own words. The money bestowed in alms is lent to the Lord and He will repay it with high interest.

5. Of What Benefit Are the Works of Mercy

TO US?

1. Almsgiving obtains for us the remission of our sins; that is to say the sinner obtains the grace of repentance, while the just man receives the pardon of venial sin, and the remission of the temporal penalty.

Our Lord therefore says : " Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matt. v. 7). "Water quencheth a flaming fire and alms resisteth sins" (Ecclus. iii. 33). St. Ambrose exhorts the sinner to employ his money to ransom his soul. Daniel gives similar counsel to King Nabuchodonosor (Dan. iv. 24). By almsgiving the sinner obtains actual graces, which gradually bring about his conversion, or sometimes he obtains extraordinary graces. Cornelius, a heathen centurion at Csesarea, was the recipient of great graces as the reward of his prayers and alms ; an angel was sent to him, and he was converted by the preaching of St. Peter. " A merciful man doeth good to his own soul " (Prov. xi. 17) ; almsgiving is a means whereby we may escape eternal perdition. The archangel Raphael expressly told Tobias: " Alms deliver from all sin, and from death, and will not suffer the soul to go into darkness " (Tob. iv. 11). " He who has made the poor man happy," says St. John Chrysostoi i, "will not himself suffer misery." God will not allow a man who has shown mercy to be lost; He will grant him the graces necessary for his conversion. St. Jerome declares that he has never known one who in his lifetime was liberal to the poor, to make a bad end; for the charitable have many to intercede for them. The just man obtains the remission

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of what is due to his sins by almsgiving; for St. Thomas Aquinas says the satisfaction made by alms is greater than that which is effected by prayer and fasting.

2. By almsgiving we obtain an eternal recompense, provided that at the time we are in a state of grace.

It is related of the German Emperor Louis II. that he lost his way in a forest when hunting one day. Late at night he reached a village presbytery, and begged the priest to give him a night's lodging. The priest entertained the stranger most hospitably; the next day the latter took leave, after thanking his host. Some weeks later a messenger presented himself at the priest's humble dwelling, and handed him a letter stamped with the imperial seal; it announced his nomination to the see of Minister. In like manner your heavenly King will reward your alms hereafter in a manner which you little anticipate. Alms are like seed cast into the ground; they are not lost, but yield an abundant harvest. The ant lays up a store for the winter ; by giving alms we lay up treasures for the life to come. Thus we exchange what is temporal for what is eternal ; we purchase everlasting possessions with our earthly pelf. Success in trade consists in buying cheap and selling dear; we too are engaged in commerce, and for a mere trifle, a piece of bread, even a cup of cold water, we purchase for ourselves heaven. When the new continent was discovered, the aborigines exchanged silver and gold for things of no value to the Europeans who landed on their shores. So we obtain the good things of God in return for the worthless goods of earth. " Give, then, to the poor that which thou canst not keep, in order to obtain that which thou canst not lose" (St. Augustine). Even in this life almsgiving produces a feeling of happiness. A youth was one day walking through a wood with his tutor, when he saw a pair of boots which a woodcutter at work at a little distance had taken off. The boy wanted to hide them, but his tutor suggested that rather than do that, he should put a piece of money in each. When the poor man went back to get his boots, he found the coins, and falling on his knees, thanked God and invoked blessings on the unknown benefactor who had helped him in dire distress. The money was the exact sum he needed to pay his rent. The boy, who had watched what occurred, turned to his tutor and exclaimed : " I never felt so happy in all my life." Truly a blessing attends works of mercy.

3. Almsgiving brings down upon us temporal blessings: God increases our means and gives us bodily health.

"He that is inclined to mercy, shall be blessed" (Prov. xxii. 9). "The blessing of the Lord maketh men rich" (Prov. x. 22). God declares that he that giveth to the poor shall not want (Prov. xxviii. 27). Our Lord says: " Give, and it shall be given to you" (Luke vi. 38). The widow of Sarephta gave generously to Elias. For this she got back far more than she gave to the prophet, for her little store of meal and of oil was not diminished until the time of scarcity was over (3 Kings xvii. 14). A nobleman of Granada, who had bestowed a large alms on St. John of God, went to him the same day disguised as a mendicant, and asked for money. The saint gave him all that he liad received from him a few Jiours before. Thereupon the noble-

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man restored ten times the amount, and was his greatest benefactor during the rest of his life. God acts in a similar way; if we give to the poor even a portion of what He has bestowed on us, we shall receive it again with interest. A tree grows all the better for being pruned; so the rich will increase in goods if they part with some of their wealth, in acts of charity. St. Paula gave a great deal to the poor, though she was the mother of five children; when her relatives remonstrated with her, she said : " The best inheritance I can bequeath to my children is the blessing of heaven, which almsgiving draws down on us." God gives bodily health to those who are bountiful to the poor. The archangel Raphael was sent to heal Tobias because he had performed so many works of mercy (Tob. xii. 14). Tabitha was raised from the dead by St. Peter because of the good works and almsdeeds which she did (Acts ix. 36, seq.). David exclaims: "Blessed is he that understandeth concerning the needy and the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the evil day" (Ps. xl. 1). Throughout the Scriptures we constantly find instances of blessings being the reward of almsgiving.

4. Almsgiving is a means of obtaining a speedy answer to prayer.

The angel said to Cornelius : " Thy prayers and thy alms are ascended for a memorial in the sight of God" (Acts x. 4). Listen to the voice of the poor, if you would have God listen to your voice. By nothing do we gain access to God so readily as by showing mercy. Alms, like fasting, is one of the wings on which prayer soars to heaven.

5. By almsgiving we make the poor our friends; they pray for us, and their prayers have great power with God.

The ancients of the Jews besought Our Lord on behalf of the centurion at Capharnaum who had built them a synagogue; and immediately He complied with their request (Luke vii. 3-5). The poor of Joppe prayed for Tabitha ; she was restored to life (Acts ix. 39). God Himself declares that the prayer of the poor is always heard (Ps. xxi. 25; Ixviii. 34). The petitions of those who are in heaven are, however, more effectual. Thus Our Lord bids us : " Make unto you friends of the mammon of iniquity, that when you shall fail, they may receive you into everlasting dwellings" (Luke xvi. 9). Therefore never refuse an alms to the poor.