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What would the benefit of Redemption avail us, if it
had not been followed by that of justification,
through which the sovereign virtue of Redemption is
applied to our souls? For as the most excellent
remedies avail us nothing if not applied to our
disorders, so the sovereign remedy of Redemption
would be fruitless were it not applied to us through
the benefit of justification. This is the work of the
Holy Ghost, to whom the sanctification of man in a
special manner belongs. It is He who attracts the
sinner by His mercy, who calls him, who leads him in
the ways of wisdom, who justifies him, who raises him
to perfection, who imparts to him the gift of
perseverance, to which, in the end, He will add the
crown of everlasting glory. These are the different
degrees of grace contained in the inestimable benefit
of justification. The first of these graces is our
[baptismal] vocation. Man cannot throw off the yoke
of sin; he cannot return from death to life, nor from
a child of wrath can he become a child of God,
without the assistance of divine grace. For Our
Saviour has declared, "No man can come to me except
the Father, who hath sent me, draw him." (Jn. 6:44). St. Thomas thus explains these words: "As a stone,
when other forces are removed, naturally falls to the
ground, and cannot rise again without the application
of some extraneous power, so man, corrupted by sin,
ever tends downwards, attracted to earth by the love
of perishable possessions, and cannot, without the
intervention of divine grace, rise to heavenly things
or a desire for supernatural perfection." This truth
merits our consideration and our tears, for it shows
us the depth of our misery, and the necessity, under
which we labor, of incessantly imploring the divine
assistance. But to return to our subject: Who can
express all the benefits brought to us by
justification? It banishes from our souls sin, the
source of all evils. It reconciles us to God and
restores us to His friendship; for in truth the
greatest evil which sin brings on us is that it makes
us the objects of God's hatred. God, being infinite
goodness, must sovereignly abhor all that is evil.
"Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity," exclaims
His prophet; "Thou wilt destroy all that speak a lie.
The bloody and the deceitful man the Lord will
abhor." (Ps. 5:7). The enmity of God is evidently the greatest of evils
for us, since it cuts us off from the friendship of
God, the source of every blessing. From this
misfortune justification delivers us, restoring us to
God's grace, and uniting us to Him by the most
intimate love, that of a father for a son. Hence the
beloved disciple exclaims: "Behold what manner of
charity the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we
should be called, and should be the sons of God."
(1Jn. 3:1). The Apostle would have us understand that
we wear not only the name, but are in truth the sons
of God, in order that we may appreciate the
liberality and magnificence of God's mercy to us.
If God's enmity be such a terrible misfortune, what
an incomparable blessing His friendship must be! For
it is an axiom in philosophy that according as a
thing is evil, so is its opposite good; hence the
opposite of that which is supremely evil must be
supremely good. Now, man's supreme evil is the enmity
of God; therefore, his supreme good must be the
friendship of God. If men set such value upon the
favor of their masters, their fathers, their princes,
their kings, how highly should they esteem their
sovereign Master, this most excellent Father, this
King of kings, compared to whom all power and riches
and principalities are as if they were not! The
benefit we are considering is largely enhanced by the
liberality with which it is bestowed. For as man
before his creation was unable to merit the gift of
existence, so after his fall he could do nothing to
merit his justification. No act of his could satisfy
the Creator, in whose sight he was an object of
hatred. Another blessing flowing from
justification is our deliverance from the eternal
pains of Hell. Having driven God from him by sin,
having despised His love, man in his turn is justly
rejected by God. Inordinate love for creatures led
him away from the Creator, and, therefore, it is but
just that these same creatures should be the
instruments of his punishment. Therefore, he was
condemned to the eternal pains of Hell, compared to
which the sufferings of this life are so light that
they appear more imaginary than real. Add to these
torments the undying worm which unceasingly gnaws the
conscience of the sinner. What shall I say of his
society, demons of perversity and reprobate men?
Consider also the confusion and darkness of this
terrible abode, where there is no rest, no joy, no
peace, no hope, but eternal rage and blasphemies,
perpetual weeping and ceaseless gnashing of teeth.
Behold the torments from which God delivers those
whom He justifies. Another benefit of justification, more spiritual and
therefore less apparent, is the regeneration of the
interior man deformed by sin. For sin deprives the
soul not only of God but of all her supernatural
power, of the graces and gifts of the Holy Ghost, in
which her beauty and strength consist. A soul thus
stripped of the riches of grace is weakened and
paralyzed in all her faculties. For man is
essentially a rational creature, but sin is an act
contrary to reason. Hence, as opposites destroy each
other, it follows that the greater and the more
numerous our sins are, the greater must be the ruin
of the faculties of the soul, not in themselves, but
in their power of doing good. Thus sin renders the soul miserable, weak and torpid,
inconstant in good, cowardly in resisting temptation,
slothful in the observance of God's commandments. It
deprives her of true liberty and of that sovereignty
which she should never resign; it makes her a slave
to the world, the flesh, and the devil; it subjects
her to a harder and more wretched servitude than that
of the unhappy Israelites in Egypt or Babylon. Sin so
dulls and stupefies the spiritual senses of man that
he is deaf to God's voice and inspirations; blind to
the dreadful calamities which threaten him;
insensible to the sweet odor of virtue and the
example of the saints; incapable of tasting how sweet
the Lord is, or feeling the touch of His benign hand
in the benefits which should be a constant incitement
to his greater love. Moreover, sin destroys the peace
and joy of a good conscience, takes away the soul's
fervor, and leaves her an object abominable in the
eyes of God and His saints. The grace of
justification delivers us from all these miseries.
For God, in His infinite mercy, is not content with
effacing our sins and restoring us to His favor; He
delivers us from the evils sin has brought upon us,
and renews the interior man in his former strength
and beauty. Thus He heals our wounds, breaks our
bonds, moderates the violence of our passions,
restores with true liberty the supernatural beauty of
the soul, re-establishes us in the; peace and joy of
a good conscience, reanimates our interior ; senses,
inspires us with ardor for good and a salutary hatred
of sin, makes us strong and constant in resisting
evil, and thus enriches us with an abundance of good
works. In fine, He so perfectly renews the inner man
with all his faculties that the Apostle calls those
who are thus justified new men and new creatures.
(Cf. 2Cor. 4:16 and Gal. 6:15). This renewal of
the inner man is so powerful, so true, that in
Baptism it is called regeneration, in Penance,
resurrection; not only because it restores the soul
from the death of sin to the life of grace, but
because it is an anticipation of the last glorious
resurrection. No tongue can express the beauty of a
justified soul; only the Holy Spirit, who is pleased
to dwell therein, can tell the sweetness, loveliness,
and strength with which He has enriched her. The
beauty, the power, the riches of earth fade into
insignificance before the unspeakable beauty of a
soul in a state of grace. As far as Heaven is above
earth, as far as mind is above matter, so far does
the life of grace exceed that of nature, so far does
the invisible beauty of a soul exceed the visible
beauty of this world. God Himself is enamored with
this divine beauty. He adorns such a soul with
infused virtues and the seven gifts of the Holy
Ghost, imparting, at the same time, renewed strength
and splendor to all her powers. Moreover, God, in
His boundless liberality, sends us the Holy Ghost
Himself, whilst the three Divine Persons take up
their abode in a soul thus prepared, in order to
teach her to make a noble use of the riches with
which she is endowed. Like a good father, God not
only leaves His inheritance to His children, but also
sends them a prudent guardian to administer it. This
guardian is no other than God Himself, for, as Christ
has declared, "If any one love me, he will keep my
word, and my Father will love him, and we will come
to him, and will make our abode with him." (John
14:23). From these words the Doctors of the Church
and between the Holy Spirit and His gifts, they
declare that the soul not only enjoys these gifts,
but also the real presence of their Divine Author.
Entering such a soul, God transforms her into a
magnificent temple. He Himself purifies, sanctifies,
and adorns her, making her a fitting habitation for
her Supreme Guest. Contrast this glorious state with
the miserable condition of a soul in sin, the abode
of evil spirits and of every abomination. (Cf. Matt.
12:45). Still another more marvelous benefit of
justification is that it transforms the soul into a
living member of Christ. This, again, is the source
of new graces and privileges, for the Son of God,
loving and cherishing us as His own members, infuses
into us that virtue which is His life, and, as our
Head, continually guides and directs us. How
tenderly, too, does the Heavenly Father look upon
such souls, as members of His Divine Son, united to
Him by the participation of the same Holy Spirit!
Their works, therefore, are pleasing to Him, and
meritorious in His sight, since it is Jesus Christ,
His only Son, who lives and acts in them. Hence, with
what confidence they address God in prayer, because
it is not so much for themselves as for His Divine
Son that they pray, since to Him all the honor of
their lives redounds. For as the members of the body
can receive no benefit of which the Head does not
partake, so neither can Christ, the Head of all the
just, be separated from their virtues or merits. If
it be true, as the Apostle tells us (Cf. 1Cor. 6:15),
that they who sin against the members of Jesus Christ
sin against Jesus Christ Himself, and that He regards
a persecution directed against His members as
directed against Himself (Cf. Acts. 9:4), is it
astonishing that He regards the honor paid to His
members as paid to Himself? Pray, then, with
confidence, remembering that your petitions ascend to
the Eternal Father in the name of His Son, who is
your Head. For His sake they will be heard, and will
redound to His honor; for, as is generally admitted,
when we ask a favor for the sake of another, it is
granted not so much to the one who receives it, as to
the one for whose sake it was asked. For this reason
we are said to serve God when we serve the poor for
His sake. The final benefit of justification is
the right which it gives to eternal life. God is
infinitely merciful as well as infinitely just, and
while He condemns impenitent sinners to eternal
misery, He rewards the truly repentant with eternal
happiness. God could have pardoned men and restored
them to His favor without raising them to a share in
His glory, yet in the excess of His mercy He adopts
those whom He pardons, justifies those whom He has
adopted, and makes them partakers of the riches and
inheritance of His only-begotten Son. It is the hope
of this incomparable inheritance which sustains and
comforts the just in all their tribulations; for they
feel even in the midst of the most cruel adversity
that "that which is at present momentary and light of
our tribulation, worketh for us above measure
exceedingly an eternal weight of glory." (2Cor.
4:17). These are the graces comprehended in the
inestimable benefit of justification, which St.
Augustine justly ranks above that of creation.
(Super. Joan 72,9). For God created the world by a
single act of His will, but to redeem it He shed the
last drop of His Blood and expired under the most
grievous torments. St. Thomas gives a like opinion in
his Summa Theologica. Though it is true that no
man can be certain of his justification, yet there
are signs by which we can form a favorable judgment.
The principal of these is a change of life; as, for
example, when a man who hitherto committed
innumerable mortal sins without scruple would not now
be guilty of a single grave offence against God even
to gain the whole world. Let him, then, who has
attained these happy dispositions reflect upon what
he owes the Author of his justification, who has
delivered him from the multitude of evils which are
the consequences of sin, and overwhelmed him with the
benefits which we have attempted to explain. And as
for him who has the misfortune to be still in a state
of sin, I know nothing more efficacious to rouse him
from his miserable condition than the consideration
of the evils which sin brings in its train, and of
the blessings which flow from the incomparable
benefit of justification. The effects produced in
the soul by the Holy Ghost do not end here. This
Divine Spirit, not content with causing us to enter
the path of justice, maintains us therein,
strengthening us against all obstacles until we
arrive at the haven of salvation. His love will not
permit Him to remain idle in a soul which He honors
by His presence. He sanctifies her with His virtue,
and effects in her and by her all that is necessary
to win eternal life. He dwells in the soul as the
father in the midst of a family, preserving order and
peace by his prudent authority; as a master in the
midst of his disciples, teaching lessons of Divine
wisdom; as a gardener in a garden confided to his
intelligent care; as a king in his kingdom, ruling
and directing all; as the sun in the midst of the
universe, enlightening and vivifying her, and
directing all her movements. Possessing, in an
eminent degree, all the good that is in creatures, He
produces, but in a far more perfect manner, all the
effects of which these creatures are capable. As fire
He vivifies our understanding, enkindles our will,
and detaches us from earth to raise us to heavenly
things; as a dove He renders us sweet, gentle, and
compassionate to one another; as a cloud He shelters
us from the burning sensuality of the flesh, and
tempers the heat of our passions; as a violent wind
He impels our wills to good and sweeps all evil
affections from our hearts. Hence it is that just
souls abhor the vices which they formerly loved, and
embrace the virtues from which they formerly shrank.
Witness David, who cries out, "I have hated and
abhorred iniquity." "I have rejoiced in the way of
thy testimonies as much as in all riches." (Ps.
118:104,14). It is to the Holy Ghost that we are
indebted for all our progress in virtue. It is He who
preserves us from evil and maintains us in good. It
is He who is the principle of our perseverance, and
who finally crowns us in Heaven. This it was which
led St. Augustine to say that in rewarding our merits
God but crowns His own gifts. (Conf. 1,20).
The holy patriarch Joseph, not content with giving to
his brethren the corn which they came to purchase,
ordered also that the money which they paid for it
should be secretly returned to them. God treats His
elect with still greater liberality. He not only
gives them eternal life, but furnishes them the grace
and virtue to attain it. "We adore Him," says
Eusebius Emissenus, "that He may be merciful to us,
but He has already been merciful to us in giving us
grace to adore Him." Let each one, then, glance
over his life and consider, as the same holy Doctor
suggests, all the good he has been permitted to do,
and all the sins of impurity, injustice, and
sacrilege from which he has been preserved, and he
will comprehend in some measure what he owes to God.
On this point St. Augustine well observes that God
shows no less mercy in preserving man from sin than
in pardoning him after he has fallen. (Conf. 2,7).
Indeed, it is a greater proof of love. Therefore, the
same saint, writing to a virgin, says: "Man should
consider that God has pardoned him all the sins from
which He has preserved him. Think not, therefore,
that you may love this Master with a feeble love
because He has pardoned you but a few sins. Your debt
of love, on the contrary, is greater for His
preventing grace which has saved you from committing
many. For if a man must love a creditor who forgives
him a debt, how much more reason has he to love a
benefactor who gratuitously bestows upon him a like
amount? For if a man live chastely all his life, it
is God who preserves him; if he be converted from
immorality to a pure life, it is God who reforms him;
and if he continue in his disorders till the end, it
is also God who justly forsakes him." What, then,
should our conclusion be but to unite our voices with
the prophet, saying, "Let my mouth be filled with
praise, that I may sing thy glory, thy greatness all
the day long." (Ps. 70:8). St. Augustine, commenting
upon these words of the prophet, asks, "What means
all the day long"? And he answers, "Under all
circumstances and without interruption. Yes, Lord, I
will praise Thee in prosperity because Thou dost
comfort me, and in adversity because Thou dost
chastise me. For my whole being I will praise Thee,
because Thou art its Author. In my repentance I will
praise Thee, because Thou dost pardon me. In my
perseverance I will praise Thee, because Thou wilt
crown me. Thus, O Lord, my mouth will be filled with
Thy praise, and I will sing Thy glory all the day
long !" It would be fitting to speak here of the
Sacraments, the instruments of justification,
particularly of Baptism, and the divine light and
principle of faith which it imprints on our souls.
But as this subject has been more fully treated in
another work, we will confine ourselves, for the
present, to the Eucharist, that Sacrament of
sacraments, which gives to us � as our daily food and
sovereign remedy � God Himself. He was offered once
for us on the cross, but He is daily offered for us
on the altar. "This is my body," Christ has declared;
"do this for a commemoration of me." (Lk. 22:19).
Oh! Sacred Pledge of our salvation! Oh! Incomparable
Sacrifice! Oh! Victim of love! Oh! Bread of life! Oh!
Sweet and delicious Banquet! Oh! Food of kings! Oh!
Manna containing all sweetness and delight! Who can
fittingly praise Thee? Who can worthily receive Thee?
Who can love and venerate Thee as Thou dost deserve?
My soul faints at the thought of Thee; my lips are
mute in Thy presence, for I cannot extol Thy marvels
as I desire. Had Our Lord reserved this favor for
the pure and innocent, it would still be a mercy
beyond our comprehension. But in His boundless love
He does not refuse to descend into depraved hearts,
nor to pass through the hands of unworthy ministers
who are the slaves of Satan and the victims of their
unruly passion. To reach the hearts of His friends
and to bring them His divine consolations, He submits
to innumerable outrages and profanations. He was sold
once in His mortal life, but in this august Sacrament
He is unceasingly betrayed. The scorn and ignominy of
His Passion afflicted Him only once, but in this
sacred Banquet His love and goodness are daily
insulted and outraged. Once He was nailed to the
cross between two thieves, but in this Sacrament of
love His enemies crucify Him a thousand times. What return, then, can we make to a Master who seeks
our good in so many ways? If servants obey and serve
their masters for a paltry support; if soldiers from
a like motive brave fire and sword, what do we not
owe God, who maintains us with this heavenly Food? If
God in the Old Law exacted so much gratitude from the
Israelites for the manna, which, with all its
excellence, was only corruptible food, what gratitude
will He not expect for this Divine Nourishment,
incorruptible in Itself, and conferring the same
blessing on all who worthily receive It? If we owe
Him so much for the food which preserves our bodily
life, what return must we not make Him for the Food
which preserves in us the life of grace? And,
finally, if our debt of gratitude be so great for
being made children of Adam, what do we owe Him for
making us children of God? For it cannot be denied,
as Eusebius Emissenus observes, that "the day we are
born to eternity is infinitely greater than the day
which brings us forth to this world, with all its
suffering and dangers." Here, then, dear
Christian, is another motive which should induce you
to serve God, another link in that chain which bind
you irrevocably to your Creator.
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