2. JESUS FORETELLS HIS SUFFERINGS, DEATH, AND RESURREC

TION

"Departing from thence," from the vicinity of the mountain, where they do not appear to have tarried more than one day, "Jesus and His disciples passed through Galilee; but He would not that any man should know it, for the Jews sought to kill Him. When they abode together in Galilee, while all wondered at all the things He did, He taught His disciples, and said to them: Lay up in your hearts these words: The Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. They shall kill Him, and after that He is killed, He shall rise again the third day. But the disciples understood not this word; it was hidden from them, so that they perceived it not; and they were afraid to ask Him concerning this word: they were troubled exceedingly. And they came to Capharnaum.

3. JESUS PAYS THE TRIBUTE MONEY

Carefully and gradually, like a most anxious parent, our Saviour prepares the disciples, little by little, for the sad days of His humiliation and suffering. And lest even this gradual revelation of the coming trial should weaken their faith, He encourages and comforts them by a manifestation of His great power. Thus, on the occasion of paying the contribution for the temple, a tribute that every Israelite was bound to pay annually, as a sign of his subjection to the law, but to which law Christ, the Son of God, and those whom He had called to the freedom of God, were not subject, He, in order to encourage them, revealed His wonderful power by a miracle.

"And when they were come to Capharnaum, they that received the didrachma1 came to Peter and said to him: Doth not your Master pay the didrachma? Peter said: Yes. When He was come into the house, Jesus, to whom nothing is unknown, prevented him, saying: What is thy opinion, Simon? The kings of the earth, of whom do they receive tribute or custom? Of their own children or of strangers? Of strangers, he said. Jesus said to him: Then, the children are free? But," added the Saviour, "that we may not scandalize them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and that fish which shall first come up, take; and when thou hast opened its mouth, thou shalt find a stater. Take that, and give it to them for Me and thee."

'This was a tribute paid by the Israelites of full age for the maintenance of the temple and its services. A coin worth four drachmas.

JESUS PREACHES ON HUMILITY, PATIENCE, THE SHUNNING OF SCANDAL, BROTHERLY COUNSEL AND FORGIVENESS

Matt. xviii. 1-19; Mark ix. 32-10, 1; Luke ix. 46-50

1. CHILDHOOD'S VIRTUES

"THERE entered a thought into the disciples which of them should be the greater. But Jesus seeing the thoughts of their heart, asked them, when they were in the house at Capharnaum: What did you treat of in the way? But they held their peace, for in the way they had disputed among themselves, which of them should be the greatest. Jesus, sitting down, called the twelve. The disciples came to Him. Jesus said to them: Who, thinkest thou, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? If any man desire to be first, he shall be the last of all, and the minister of all. And calling unto Him a little child, whom, when He had embraced, He set him in the midst of them." Then "He saith to them: Amen, I say to you, unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever, therefore, shall humble himself as this little child, he is the greater in the kingdom of heaven. And he that shall receive one such little child as this in My name, receiveth Me; and whosoever shall receive Me, receiveth not Me, but Him that sent Me; for He who is the lesser among you all, He is the greater.'

2. KINDNESS AND SYMPATHY

"And John answering, said to Him: Master, we saw a certain man casting out devils in Thy name, and we forbade him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said to him: Forbid him not, for there is no man that doth a miracle in My name and that can soon speak ill of Me. For he that is not against you, is for you. Whosoever shall give you, in My name, a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.' What a tender admonition for us to be lenient and merciful, and not to require too much from our fellow-man.

3. ON SCANDALS

On the other hand, we must combat scandal with vigor. "And whosoever shall scandalize one of these little ones

that believe in Me, it were better for him that a mill-stone were hanging about his neck, and he were cast into the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of scandals, for it must needs be that scandals come, but nevertheless, woe to that man by whom the scandal cometh. If thy hand scandalize thee, cut it off. It is better for thee to enter into life maimed than having two hands to go into hell, into the hell of unquenchable fire, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not extinguished. If thy foot scandalize thee, cut it off. It is better for thee to enter lame into life everlasting, than having two feet to be cast into the hell of unquenchable fire, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not extinguished. If thy eye scandalize thee, pluck it out. It is better for thee with one eye to enter the kingdom of God, than having two eyes to be cast into the hell of fire, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not extinguished. For every one shall be salted with fire; and every victim shall be salted with salt. Salt is good; but if the salt become unsavory, wherewith will you season it? Have salt in you, and have peace among you.

The victims sacrificed in the old law were strewn with salt. The cast-off sinner, as a victim of divine justice, will be salted with fire. The Apostles are to endeavor, by the good and wholesome salt of their preaching, to save men from this dreadful fate. They must therefore preserve within themselves the salt of wisdom, and not wrangle imprudently about their respective rank and position.

4. THE VALUE OF THE SOUL

"See," Jesus said to them, "that you despise not one of these little ones; for I say to you that their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. What think you? If a man have a hundred sheep, and one of them should go astray, doth he not leave the ninety-nine in the mountains, and goeth to seek that which is gone astray? And if it so be that he find it, Amen, I say to you, he rejoiceth more for that, than for the ninety-nine that went not astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish."

5. FRATERNAL CORRECTION. ECCLESIASTICAL PENALTIES

"If thy brother shall offend and sin against thee, go and rebuke him between thee and him alone. If he shall hear

thee, thou shalt gain thy brother; and if he will not hear thee, take with thee one or two more; that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word may stand. And if he will not hear them, tell the church; and if he will not hear the church, let him be to thee as the heathen and the publican. Amen, I say to you: Whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose upon earth, shall be loosed also in heaven."

Christ, in these remarkable words, entrusts His Apostles with the right of inflicting ecclesiastical punishments, a right to be exercised only when love and forbearance have been exhausted. He also prepares His Apostles for the institution, after His resurrection, of the sacrament of Penance.

"Again I say to you, that if two of you shall consent upon earth concerning anything whatsoever they shall ask, it shall be done to them by My Father who is in heaven; for where there are two or three gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them."

6. WE MUST FORGIVE. THE HARD-HEARTED SERVANT "Peter," who desired to be enlightened on this point, "then came unto Jesus, and said: Lord, how often shall my brother offend against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? Jesus saith to him: I say not to thee, till seven times, but till seventy times seven times. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened to a king who would take an account of his servants. And when he had begun to take the account, one was brought to him that owed him 10,000 talents. And as he had not wherewith to pay it, his lord commanded that he should be sold, and his wife and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. But that servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant, being moved with pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. But when that servant was gone out, he found one of his fellow-servants, that owed him a hundred pence; and laying hold of him, he throttled him, saying: Pay what thou owest. And his fellowservant, falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not, but went and cast him into prison till he paid the debt. Now his fellow-servants, seeing what was done, were very much grieved, and they came and told their lord all that was done. Then his lord called him, and said to him: Thou wicked ser

vant, I forgave thee all the debt, because thou besoughtest me; shouldst not thou, then, have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had compassion on thee? And his lord, being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. So also shall my heavenly Father do to you if you forgive not every one his brother from your hearts."

This is a fundamental doctrine of Christianity. "With what measure you shall mete, it shall be measured to you again" (Mark iv. 24). You wish to be freed from the burden of your sins! Then you must first forgive those who have offended you. This is an indispensable condition. You find it hard to pardon a fancied offence against yourself, impossible to treat your enemy with patience and forgiveness! Then first throw yourself upon your knees and begin to reckon up your account with God. Count over the many squandered graces, all the despised warnings of the Holy Ghost, your preference of the creature to the Creator, the exposing of your faculties to the temptations of the devil, your disobedience to the laws of God. Add these all together, and looking to heaven, say, if you dare: "Lord, forgive me my trespasses. Certainly in such a moment, it must become easy for you to forgive your bitterest enemy.

'And it came to pass, when Jesus had said these things, rising up from thence, He departed from Galilee, and cometh into the coasts of Judea beyond the Jordan, and the multitude flock to Him again. And as He was accustomed, He taught them again and healed their sick."

CHAPTER XXXVII

JESUS IS REJECTED BY THE SAMARITANS. THE DEPARTURE AND RETURN OF THE SEVENTY-TWO DISCIPLES

Luke ix. 51; x. 24

1. THE INJUDICIOUS ZEAL OF JOHN AND JAMES

"AND it came to pass when the days of His assumption were accomplishing, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem. And He sent messengers before His face and