Sermons and Conferences
3/10/93
Spiritual Exercises S2
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.
MP3 Disc 2 Received from Breslin
These Sermons were taped by Daniel Peper who
traveled and taped Fr. Hardon from 1990 to 1995
- Appearance to Peter and the Disciples of Emmaus: The Institution of the Sacrament of Confession
- Questions and Answers
At the same time they’re having religious communities of women
- for two hundred years - as again the Holy Father told a bishop friend of mine,
and the bishop told me, the Pope wept. Paul VI again, he wept.
What has happened to the Sisters in the United States? What’s
happened to them? In Detroit, one community - I’m sure I’ve told you this before
- who, then Cardinal Dearden, like in the mid-spring, very nice letter, font
letterhead, I know the community: “The enclosed list will give you the thirty-one
parish schools which we are leaving this Fall.”
Got nobody’s permission! Nobody! As one of them wrote - great,
big, full-page article in the newspaper: “We’re sick and tired of being nurse-maids
to other people’s children.” The wonder is it took so long for the forty parishes
to be closed in Detroit!
So I want to emphasize, in other words, the Holy Spirit is
teaching us something in our day. In other words, the power in the best sense
of the word of women to head: we men need the inspiration of women - brought
up by my own mother and women boarders until I was sixteen.
Appearance to Peter and the Disciples of Emmaus:
The Institution of the Sacrament of Confession
Finally, the twenty-sixth day. Appearance to Peter and the
disciples of Emmaus:
Institution of the Sacrament of Confession
Notice, Christ did appear to Peter, but later on, as you know,
our Lord appeared to, well, came to all the disciples, including Peter, which
we’ll take up in a later meditation. Then, selectively, Christ chose to appear
to Peter. And Peter needed that kind of encouragement. He was not discarded
by Christ because he had denied the Master.
Then the disciples at Emmaus. Remember, Easter Sunday, two
disciples walking along the road? Christ comes up behind them: What are you
talking about? As though He didn’t know. And they tell him: Jesus of Nazareth,
have you heard about him? Here we thought he was the Messiah, but our own leaders
killed him. And now some women said he rose from the dead. Who remembers what
Christ told them? “Oh you of little faith. Was it not necessary…”, that’s
the word, “for the Messiah to first suffer and then rise from the dead?”
And then Luke, who tells the narrative. Remember this. Then
St. Luke says, the evangelist describing our Lord, remember, shall he allow
himself to be persuaded to, well, sit down with the disciples - two of them.
And then, Luke’s favourite phrase for the Eucharist: “the breaking of bread”.
In other words, because you know our Lord celebrated the Mass - hear it - on
Holy Thursday night and Easter Sunday morning. How’s that? And they recognized
him. Then he vanished. And they rushed back to the others to tell them what
they had seen.
And finally and very importantly, the institution of the Sacrament
of Confession.
Twenty-first chapter of John’s Gospel. Pardon me, twentieth
chapter of John. There are certain passages in Scripture that the Church has
officially defined after their meeting. This is one of them. In other words,
the Council of Trent defined that Christ instituted the Sacrament of Confession
on Easter Sunday night when he appeared to the Apostles and told them, “Receive
the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven them. Whose
sins you retain or do not forgive they are not forgiven them.”
And the Church’s logic, first of all, confession of sins goes
to the first century.
There’s one resolution I’d urge all of you to make is frequent
confession. How frequent? At the very least, once a month. Better twice a
month.
And you know the Church’s law on indulgences tells us: To
gain a plenary indulgence which you can gain every day we must have received
Communion and gone to Confession within eight days either before or after whatever
the indulgence prayer or act of piety was.
And the problem there is, you know, is to find a priest.
Scout around. Now I’m telling you this and it’s being recorded. If I’m around
and you want to go to Confession - even not around. Course I should be in Detroit
- don’t ask me to travel to another city. I wish I could give absolution over
the telephone. Can’t be done. Find priests who are willing to hear your confession.
Enough as so many people have told me, go by the priest: “When did you say the
last time you went to Confession was?”
“Two weeks ago.”
“Are you serious?”, the priest asked. “Come around when you’ve
got something to confess.”
I think I’ve told you, haven’t I? I’ve gone to Confession
to priests that I hadn’t known. Go to Confession. Tell my sins. Then I wait
for absolution. He does not know the formula. I think I told you this, didn’t
I? More than once I tell the priest, “Repeat after me.” Now this is serious
because this is - I can talk this way to you people, but you’re in the world
as much as I am. You know what’s going on. Believe me I sure do!
And closing comment. The Sacrament of Penance one name. The
Sacrament of Confession another name. But the Sacrament of Peace! Peace! Remember,
I think on some occasion we did define what peace of heart means. Peace of
heart means that my will is conformed to the Divine Will. Then I’ve got peace
of heart.
If there’s anything that torments the human heart it is the
sense of guilt. This is where the sacrament is such a precious, precious gift.
Infallibly sure we are that what we may have done once we get absolution, we’ve
got to believe, but the priest was a sinner, being a priest myself, believe
me, priests are sinners, never-the-less have the power to forgive sins. And
the peace that results is simply indescribable!
Of all people, the unbeliever Sigmund Freud, I may have mentioned
this on some occasion, some twenty-five years of psychiatric practice, he said,
he does not remember a single person whom he ever treated or counseled whose
basic cause of emotional disturbance was not a sense of guilt. That’s Freud!
Now he did not even believe in a personal God! But we believe in God, believe
that God became man and instituted the sacrament. That’s why twice Christ told
the Apostles, “Peace be with you!” He repeated, “Peace be with you.”
Over the years I’ve told people - somebody separated from
God: “When can I see him?”
“He doesn’t want to go to Confession. He has nothing to do
with it.”
“Where is he?”
Well in the twenty-sixth day which I think carries us to Monday,
right? And now whom am I seeing this evening? One, two, three - Lana have
I? Would you people mind because I’ve got the call from Washington again at
9:00. But then, look that’s why I’m here, you know, to be of service. So if
it takes a little longer, so what. O.K.?
Shall we pray?
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed
art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the
hour of our death. Amen
O Mary, conceived without sin.
Pray for us who have recourse to thee.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
Now I noticed several of you put up your hands about, you
know, talking things over. I really mean it. I’ve had my Office almost finished,
so 11:00, 11:30…I’m here. O.K.?
Question and Answer
We’re not absolutely sure. In other words, six hundred and
thirteen of the laws which the Jews had, were they divinely inspired? Not necessarily.
No less than, we have to say, that polygamy, remember polygamy among the Jews
was it practiced? Yes. Was it part of the Mosaic Law. Yes. Was Moses acting
under divine inspiration when he allowed polygamy? We’re not sure.
What are the needs and/or opportunities to do catechesis
in co-operation with the Missionaries of Charity in Russia and Poland?
Well, that’s why I went to Russia. It’s wide open. In other
words as the Holy Father told Mother Theresa eight years ago, that he wants
her Sisters to become catechists themselves and to train other catechists.
That’s what I’ve been doing for eight years. That’s why we have Ignatian- Marian
Catechists. Because the Holy Father realizes there’s no way, no way the Faith
can be either preserved or promoted without involving the laity in depth.
So yes.
Now what I’m doing, for example, is teaching the Missionaries
of Charity and if I weren’t here, I’d be downstairs working on the explanations,
the manuscript. About six hundred pages finished, about at least three hundred
pages still to go and the pages should be finished by early March. Three hundred
pages written by yours truly. Because the Missionaries of Charity need the
explanations.
Now there’s two thousand questions. Whether they have a true
or false or multiple choice, somebody has to understand what’s behind the answer.
So, yes. And what the Missionaries of Charity are doing is,
well, training catechists. And they’ve got over forty-thousand under instruction
in Calcutta alone. So in other words, the Holy Father, he wants the Catholic
Church’s future to depend, and certainly numerically, mainly on lay catechists.
I’ve never put it so bluntly.
And the Missionaries of Charity, well, are… this is just one
evidence of the Holy Father’s concern, ordered the Foundress to change her constitutions.
So they’re still caring for the materially poor people, but the constitutions
now read, I may have told you: “the free and whole-hearted service of the spiritually
and physically poorest of the poor.” And first the spiritually poorest
of the poor.
So, that’s where the Missionaries of Charity are in one hundred
and four countries.
So just let me know if you’re willing and the sky is the limit!
Does it seem that most missionary priests
today are hooking their catechists into liberation theology?
I’m not sure… the question first had “many” missionary
priests, and now it’s “most”. I would say certainly quite a few. On the other
hand the Church has been very hard hit in mission countries. And that’s because
of the, well the Church has been hit, and the theory like the anonymous Christians
of Karl Rahner. Meaning that you need Hindus to be good Hindus. Moslems to
be good Moslems. Buddhists to be good Buddhists. You don’t try to, quote,
“convert” them to Christianity. That’s Karl Rahner. And that has penetrated
seminaries all over the world. And he’s done a lot of damage to missionary zeal.
So all the more reason - it’s not just the laity, because, look the laity can
be taken in as priests can.
Any signs the Jesuits may move into Russia to catechize?
Well I have visited my Jesuits in Moscow. He’s already on
the faculty of the University of Moscow. But as I told my Father General, my
man in Rome, that I didn’t put it quite in these words, but teaching in a Moscow
university is great. But to catechize the masses is greatly needed in Russia.
But of course, of course whether they’re teaching at the University of Moscow
or catechizing, it better be the true Faith!
For anybody who knows Father Jerome Palmer,
O.S.B., he passed away this morning.
Let’s say a Hail Mary for the repose of his soul.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed
art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary,
Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.
And may Perpetual Light shine upon him.
May he rest in peace.
May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed through
the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.
Some of my Protestant friends are arguing
that the Catholic Church is not at all the same as it was in the beginning.
How do we know that it is?
Well you can certainly say that not all Catholics who call
themselves Catholics are the same today as they not only in the beginning, but
as they were, even, twenty-five years ago. So that’s one thing. But as far
as the Catholic Church goes, of course, it’s the same. What’s the proof? There’s
nothing which the Catholic Church teaches—nothing, zero—now which contradicts
which she has been teaching for nineteen hundred years.
By the end of the sixteenth century, talk about Protestants
raising the objection. As they say in Rome, “Mama mia!” By the year 1600,
there were more Protestant churches, all kinds of them; there were two-hundred
interpretations of Christ’s words, “This is by body. This is my blood.” And
I would say the single, clearest proof of the Catholic Church being the same
today as she was in the beginning of the first century is that the Catholic
Church today teaches that abortion is murder and homosexuality is a grave sin
against chastity.
In your opinion is there much hope for a full scale revival
in Western civilization such as occurred in the thirteenth century and the sixteenth
century Counter Reformation, or are we headed inevitably for a new Dark Age
of barbarism? Are there any signs in our times similar to the eras which preceeded
past revivals?
Yes, and one sign is our meeting here. You people, I mean
it, for me, I don’t mean just you physically here in chapel, but the laity….this
is unknown, I think, in the history of the Church. And, thank God, the educated
laity who have kept the Faith and are concerned and strongly, I might almost
say, ambitious to learn their faith, to deepen their faith.
When I taught in a graduate school in Arlington, Virginia
(Notre Dame Institute) all total I taught there for thirteen years. Over these
years, most of my students, and I’ve have up to sixty, seventy in a class, graduate
class, with rare exception most of my students in these thirteen years were
lay people. Many in high positions in the government. And the real need is
to mobilize, organize, and this is what we’re trying to do here.
Thanks for the question because what I hope it brings out,
it’s really clear in my mind, otherwise I wouldn’t be here, that there are
people, and of course, I pray that you are among them - lay people who are so
aware of the revolution going on in western civilization.
There is no other way, no other way of saving western civilization
except by re-Christianizing it. Or better still, re-Catholicizing it. And
that we cannot depend on the clergy to do it. And not only because of their
numbers, because in so many ways they have been hit by the revolution.
So, oh yes, I am heartened.
This question comes from an evangelical
friend. She wants to know if the Jesuits are trained in military tactics or
have any kind of military training?
I’m going to save
this question. (Laughter) The answer is yes! But see, there are two kinds of
warfare, the lower kind of warfare: you know the kind of wars that people commonly
associate with the military. And the real warfare. This is what the Church on earth
is! And I’m not being symbolic, my friends, I’m not being symbolic.
Am I clear? We
sure? In fact, whether we realize it or not, these meetings are part of the
military tactics!
You’ve got to
know the enemy. And you’ve got to train your own personnel. And then you let
them loose.
They’ve got to
be organized. Got to be able to take orders. And the orders, well from the,
not just the General of the Jesuits, but the General of the Church Militant.
I’ve noticed that many Catholic publishers
are advertising themselves as co-publishers of the new Catholic Catechism which
will be out in March. Will these be accurate translations? Example: Daughters
of Saint Paul, The Wanderer, Alba House and so on.
Well, we had a
meeting with the publisher of Vatican Press, and I’m not sure how many were
there at the meeting, but I met with the editor and he invited me also. Which
you’ve got there, see we are agents for Vatican Press, Intermirifica. I use the word agents deliberately. And also for the Council for the Family.
So, and now, the
question about whether they’ll be accurate translations? Well as I’ve said before,
pray! Pray for the English translation. But there will be only one English
version for the whole English-speaking world. Barring such changes as the spelling
of Saviour, you know, “-our”, “favour” and so on. But, keep praying!
Thank you. I’ll pray.
Well, it’s 8:30,
but it is worth it don’t you think, even though we didn’t get into the heart
of the course, proper. Now I am home next Wednesday and now just to make sure
we’ve got our signals straight. Remember, these Wednesday night meetings, call
them conferences in chapel, are meant for Ignatian and, for some of you Marian
Catechists. I want to be clear about that. These are not classes in religion
or theology. And consequently, they have to be, I guess --- pray for me that
they have been so far --- that participating in these classes is meant for those
who want to be, by God’s grace, whatever your limitations of time and energy
are to work for the Church as Marian or Ignatian Catechists. Am I clear?
Now the two, among
others, the two conditions for becoming either Ignatian or Marian Catechists
are to go through the Course and secondly to have made a 30 - day Spiritual
Exercises. And so that, now if you don’t have the course material, what I gave
you therefore was to order the Course material. Understand?
Let me tell you.
There are by now, there have been, I mean it, thousands, thousands of hours
of dedicated labour given by people to make for the Ignatian –Marian Catechists
possible. And not one cent of pay! Am I clear? Because the one behind this
is the Vicar of Christ. So that, in other words, in fact it’s embarrassing
to put that - to call it tuition. The tuition here now at U of D now as an
undergraduate is close to $300.00 for a credit hour. One semester! So in other
words, and I have to be even more blunt, the people that the Church needs is
people who love Christ so much they’d give anything, I mean anything, to extend
His message to the world. They’re the kind of people that we want, and they’re
the kind that we need. So that those are not just as I say, advertising slips.
Am I still making
sense? O.K.?
Shall we close
with a prayer?
In nomine Patris,
et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen
Ave Maria, gratia
plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris
tui Jesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus nunc et in hora
mortis nostrae. Amen.
Regina sine labe
originali concepta
Ora pro nobis.
In nomine Patris,
et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen
Amen
Tomorrow is the
Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and … 1858…remember? Less than twenty years before
the definition of Papal Infallibility.
Next Wednesday.
Copyright © 1998 Inter Mirifica
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