EIGHTH LESSON
On the Respectful Demeanor
We Ought to Have in Church.
"My house shall be called the house of prayer."—ST. MATTHEW 21:13
At that time, it was six days before his Passion, our Saviour entering God's temple, drove out of it all those who came there to buy and to sell, he overturned their tables and chairs, and said: "My house shall be called a house of prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves." We have much to learn from these few lines of the holy Gospel! Let us meditate on them, my children: they will teach us to know the sentiments and feelings we ought to have in going to church.
Jesus Christ, speaking of the temple, said my house. It was, in fact, in the temple of Jerusalem that the holy majesty of God had taken up his dwelling; it was there that God had chosen his abode, there he was to be adored by his creatures, there they were told to hearken to his voice. A Catholic church, my children, can be still more rightly named the house of the Lord, for Jesus Christ resides there truly in the sacrament of Eucharist. Our eyes cannot see him, but faith tells us he is really present amidst us. O my God, if our hearts were more fully persuaded of thy august presence, then indeed thy house would be really the house of prayer, of that prayer which consists in glorifying thee, in blessing thee, in imploring thy help, in confiding to thee our misery! Poor children, you who have such great need of God's blessing, and of his protection! when you go to church, how can you so often forget that you are in the presence of One who can do all he wills, and who is ever ready to grant all that is humbly asked of him by prayer.
If our Lord appeared now all at once in the temple, certainly, he would not find sellers like those that he once drove away in such wrath; but now, to how many Christians without fervor, to how many heedless children given up to all sorts of distractions, might not Jesus Christ still say in a tone of reproach: "My house is a house of prayer!" To let your mind run on thoughts that have nothing to do with devotion; to be occupied only in looking at the people who come into the church and those who go out of it; to examine with curiosity the demeanor, perhaps even the dress of the persons who surround you, instead of looking into your own hearts to see what may be there displeasing to God, is not that, my children, being wanting in the respect due to the holy temple? And this sin must be a very displeasing one in Jesus Christ's eyes, for it is the only one he punished with a severity not habitual to him, to him always so good, so full of indulgence and of gentleness. I know, my children, and God knows also, that at your tender age, the service must often seem long. It may also happen that sometimes the sermon is beyond your understanding. If, nevertheless, you lend it an attentive ear, you may now and then reap some simple advice, that God would make you understand quite well, in reward for the respect you show his holy word. This respect would assuredly be more charitable, and at the same time more beneicial to you, than the malicious and frequently improper remarks that you allow yourselves to make on the preacher's voice and gestures.
When the service is very long, it is not required of you, my children, to keep up your attention until you feel fatigued. When you have prayed a long time, you may close your book for a few moments, but at least you must maintain the pious thoughtfulness of your soul, and you must remain respectfully quiet so as to disturb no one around you. You may then examine the interior of the church, everything may be to you a source of useful reflections. Here first of all, at the entrance of the church, is the stone vessel which contains the holy water. This holy water used by the church in the greater part of her ceremonies, reminds us how necessary it is to be pure and without stain when about to appear before God: it contributes also to procure us that purity of heart which God requires of us, and that is why it takes a part in the principal religious ceremonies of our life. When we shall have left this world, Jesus Christ's ministers and our friends will come once more and sprinkle some on us.
At the further end of the sanctuary, my children, is placed the high altar: it is ornamented with wax candles and chandeliers, in the midst of which may be seen the cross, that precious sign of our salvation. A little lower down, guarded by cherubim with gilt wings, is the tabernacle, where Jesus Christ dwells in the sacrament of his love. The holy sacrifice of Mass is celebrated every day on the Altar; a stone railing closes the sanctuary, that is the holy table, where the people come to receive the Blessed Sacrament.
Do you see further on, that chapel which you cannot help remarking among and above all the others? It is the chapel of the Blessed Virgin; in which are placed the varied flowers of each season; you will always meet there young girls who pray to Mary as to their kind patron, mothers who come to implore Mary to protect the lives of their children.
Here is the pulpit of truth, from which the pastor explains the gospel to the people; the confessional, from which you come forth with a contented heart, after having obtained the forgiveness of your sins; further on, the altar for the dead, with its black curtains, its emblems of sorrow, its funeral ornaments; in front, the baptismal font, where little children become little angels. Above, near the arched roof, you may perceive the organ with its grave and religious sounds. And at last, under this arch begins the long winding staircase which leads to the elevated turrets of the church. There hang the bells which sound the call to prayer, and give pious thoughts to those Christians whom duty or illness keep away from the house of God.
May these reflections, my children, recur to your mind when you go to church; may you never, when there, experience a feeling of fatigue or weariness! Rather may you exclaim, like David: "I rejoiced when these words were said to me: we are going to the house of the Lord. A single day passed in your temple, O my God, is worth more than a thousand other days!"
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