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from the passions of the flesh, because "the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the
flesh."[60] The third is rest from the occupations of the world: "Martha, Martha, thou art careful
and art troubled about many things."[61]
THE HEAVENLY SABBATH[62]
And then after all these things the soul rests peacefully in God: "If thou call the Sabbath delightful .
. . then shalt thou be delighted in the Lord,"[63] The Saints gave up everything to possess this rest,
"for it is a pearl of great price which a man having found, hid it, and for joy thereof goeth and
selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field."[64] This rest in truth is eternal life and heavenly joy:
"This is my rest for ever and ever; here will I dwell, for I have chosen it."[65] And to this rest may
the Lord bring us all!
(For "Questions for Discussion" see Chapter 6.)
ENDNOTES
65
1. St. Thomas also treats of this Commandment in the "Summa Theologica," I- ll Q. cii, art. 4, 10;
"ibid.," II-II, Q. cxxii, art. 4.
2. II Peter, iii. 3-5.
3. Gal., vi. 15.
4. Rom., vi. 4-5.
5. "The Apostles, therefore, resolved to consecrate the first of the seven days of the week to the
divine worship, and they called it 'the Lord's Day.' St. John makes mention of 'the Lord's Day' in the
Apocalypse (i. 10), and St. Paul commands collections to be made 'on the first day of the week' (I
Cor., xvi. 2). . . . From all this we learn that even then the Lord's Day was kept holy in the Church. .
. . The Church of God has thought it well to transfer the celebration and observance of the Sabbath
to Sunday. On that day light first shone on the world when the Lord arose on that day, and the gate
of eternal life was thrown open to us and we were called out of darkness into light. . . . We also
learn from the Holy Scriptures that the first day of the week was held sacred for other reasons, viz.,
on that day the creation began, and on that day the Holy Ghost descended upon the Apostles"
("Roman Catechism." Third Commandment, 7, 18).
6. Ps. xv. 9.
7. "Ibid.," 10.
8. Isa., xiv. 3.
9. "Ibid.," xxxii. 18.
10. Matt., xi. 28-30.
11. Ecclus., li. 35.
12. Wis., ix. 15.
13. Ps. xxxiii. 2.
14. I Thess., v. 17.
15. Ps. cxviii. 164.
16. Isa., lviii. 13-14.
17. Job xxii. 26.
18. This is a reference to the great public spectacles and games.
19. Deut., v. 12-14.
20. I Cor., vi. 11.
21. Jerem., xvii. 22.
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22. Levit., xxiii. 25.
23. John, vii. 22-23.
24. Jerem., xviii. 21.
25. Ps. xxxvii. 5.
26. John, viii. 34.
27. Levit., iii. 25.
28. St. Thomas' comparison of sin and servile work follows from the words: "Whosoever
committeth sin is the servant of sin," quoted above. This does not mean that commission of sin on
the Sabbath changes the species of the sin or gravely increases its malice.
29. This refers to the celebration and special sacrifices offered on the first day of the month. The
Lord here is displeased not with the external ritual itself, but with the lack of proper internal
dispositions on the part of the Jews.
30. Isa., i. 13.
31. Ecclus., xxxiii. 29.
32. "Ep. ad Rusticum."
33. Ps. xcviii. 4.
34. I Mach, ii. 31-38.
35. Lam., i. 7.
36. I Mach., ii. 41.
37. For the Catholic, of course, the great Sacrifice is that of the Mass. And we are bound to assist at
Mass on Sundays and Holydays of obligation unless we are excused for serious reason. "The pastor
should not omit to teach the faithful what words and actions they should perform on the festival
days. These are: to go to church and there with true piety and devotion assist at the celebration of
the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass; and to approach frequently the Sacraments of the Church which
were instituted for our salvatlon" ("Roman Catechism," "Third Commandment," 25).
38. I Paral., xxix. 14.
39. Ps. l. 19.
40. Ps. cxl. 2.
41. St. Thomas here refers not to the "fast of affliction" ("jejunium afflictionis") but to the "fast of
joy" ("iejunium exultationis"), which is a joyful lifting of the mind to higher things and proceeds
from the Holy Ghost who is the spirit of liberty (cfr. "Summa Theol.," III, Q. cxlvii, art. 5).
42 Rom., xii. 1.
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43. Ps. xlix. 23.
44. Heb., xiii. 16.
45. II Esdras, viii. 10.
46. Acts, xiii. 27.
47. John, viii. 47.
48. Eph., iv. 29.
49. Jerem., xxiii. 29.
50. I Cor., xv. 33.
51. Ps. cxviii. 11.
52. "Ibid.," 105.
53. Ps. civ. 19.
54. "The spiritual Sabbath consists in a holy and mystical rest wherein, the carnal man (vetus homo,
Rom., vi. 4) being buried with Christ, the new man is renewed to life and carefully applies himself
to exercise the spirit of Christian piety" ("Roman Calechism," "Third Commandment," 15).
55. Ps. xxxiii. 9.
56. Ps. xxx. 3.
57. Heb., iv. 9-10.
58. Wis., viii. 16.
59. Isa., lvii. 20.
60. Gal., v. 17.
61. Luke, x. 41.
62. "The heavenly Sabbalh, as St. Cyril observes on the words of St. Paul, 'There remaineth
therefore a day of rest for the people of God' (Eph., v. 8), is that life in which, living with Christ, we
shall experience all joy and all sin will be wiped away ("In Joan.," lib. 4). And in this vision of God
the souls of the saints shall obtain every good" ("Roman Catechism," "loc. cit.," 16).
63. Isa., lviii. 13-14.
64. Matt., xiii. 44-46.
65. Ps. cxxxi. 14.
THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT: "Honour thy father and thy mother, that thou mayest be long-
lived upon the land which the Lord thy God will give thee."[1]
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Perfection for man consists in the love of God and of neighbour. Now, the three Commandments
which were written on the first tablet pertain to the love of God; for the love of neighbour there
were the seven Commandments on the second tablet. But we must "love, not in word nor in tongue,
but in deed and in truth."[2] For a man to love thus, he must do two things, namely, avoid evil and
do good. Certain of the Commandments prescribe good acts, while others forbid evil deeds. And we
must also know that to avoid evil is in our power; but we are incapable of doing good to everyone.
Thus, St. Augustine says that we should love all, but we are not bound to do good to all. But among
those to whom we are bound to do good are those in some way united to us. Thus, "if any man have
not care of his own and especially of those of his house, he hath denied the faith."[3] Now, amongst
all our relatives there are none closer than our father and mother. "We ought to love God first," says
St. Ambrose, "then our father and mother." Hence, God has given us the Commandment: "Honour
thy father and thy mother."[4]
The Philosopher also gives another reason for this honour to parents, in that we cannot make an
equal return to our parents for the great benefits they have granted to us; and, therefore, an offended
parent has the right to send his son away, but the son has no such right.[5] Parents, indeed, give
their children three things. The first is that they brought them into being: "Honour thy father, and
forget not the groanings of thy mother; remember that thou hadst not been born but through
them."[6] Secondly, they furnished nourishment and the support necessary for life. For a child
comes naked into the world, as Job relates (i. 24), but he is provided for by his parents. The third is
instruction: "We have had fathers of our flesh for instructors."[7] "Hast thou children? Instruct
them."[8]
Parents, therefore, should give instruction without delay to their children, because "a young man
according to his way, even when he is old will not depart from it."[9] And again: "It is good for a
man when he hath borne the yoke from his youth."[10] Now, the instruction which Tobias gave his
son (Tob., iv) was this: to fear the Lord and to abstain from sin. This is indeed contrary to those
parents who approve of the misdeeds of their children. Children, therefore, receive from their
parents birth, nourishment, and instruction.
WHAT CHILDREN OWE PARENTS
Now, because we owe our birth to our parents, we ought to honour them more than any other
superiors, because from such we receive only temporal things: "He that feareth the Lord honoreth
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