XVIII About the third kind of unworthy eaters, that is, the presumptuous
XVIII
About the third kind of unworthy eaters, that is, the presumptuous
A. (3) These are they who are not afraid to communicate or to celebrate in mortal sin.
You must know that the Body of our Lord has a twofold effect: an effect of goodness on the good, and an effect of severity on the bad. That Body is indeed changeless, and always good in itself; but by the just judgment of God its effect is changed in those who make a bad use of it. St. Augustin says, ‘Holy things can injure the wicked, for he who eats the Body of the Lord unworthily eats judgment to himself, not that the thing itself is bad, but because he is bad who receives badly that which is good. You have an example of this in the sun and in wine. The same light of the sun, which gladdens and strengthens an eye that is whole, pains and injures an eye that is weak. So wine delights and strengthens a healthy man; but if it be taken by one in a fever it makes him worse, and perhaps kills him.’ Thus three evils follow presumptuous communicants: 1, great guilt; 2, the offence of God; 3, a manifold wound.
1. First, there is great guilt. St. Isidore says, ‘They who live wickedly in the Church of God, and keep on going to Communion, thinking that thus they may be cleansed, should know that this can give them no help toward newness of life. When the prophet speaks of those who sin in the house of God, and says that holy meats do not take away their sins, he means that all this increases their sin.’ There is a threefold reason for this:
a. There is a triple root or principle of every voluntary action, that is to say, nature or virtue or lust. Every action of which the root is nature or virtue is good; but every action of which the root is lust is bad. But if any one, being knowingly in mortal sin, take the Body of Jesus, the principle of his action cannot be nature, nor could virtue by any means lead him to put in a filthy place or vessel anything so precious and adorable as the Lord’s Body. Hence the root of action in a sinner who receives Jesus with defiled lips and a defiled body is lust; that is, a darkened will in seeking for earthly gain, or vain-glory, or some other deception.
b. The second reason for this guilt is the transgression of the commandment of God. For as God gave our first parents in the state of innocence the tree of life for food, but forbade them to touch it in the state of guilt and death, so our Lord’s Body is given to us for food when we are in a state of grace, but forbidden to us when we are in mortal sin.
c. The third reason of their guilt is their frightful ingratitude. For what thanklessness can be greater? They have a Lord from whom they have received every good that is theirs. He has given Himself for them in every way. He died for them on the Cross. They betray this Lord, and take Him into a most filthy stable of His enemy. There they trample on Him, and again crucify Him. With such a depth and height of ingratitude do they sin who receive the Blessed Sacrament in deadly guilt. St. Ambrose says, ‘He tramples on Christ who sins freely without fear and without sorrow; so too does he sin who receives Him unworthily.’ Again, ‘An unworthy receiver of Christ is a slayer of Christ.’ St. Augustin says, ‘How fearful a thing it is to handle the Son of the sinless Virgin with blood-stained hands! What hearing of the ears could bear this? What eye would not be blinded at the sight? What mind would not be stricken almost to death when the price of the world’s redemption is thrown on a dunghill? Not less fearful is it to put the Son of God in a polluted mouth than to fling Him into the mud.’
2. The second evil is the offence against God. Sins against ourselves and sins against our neighbours are not so full of evil as sins against God. The greater His glory is, the greater is the offence against Him. Malachias speaks of polluted bread on the Altar. In his words God reproves negligent bishops and negligent priests of His Church, and, indeed, all who bear the name of Christ, for despising His name. To them He shows the cause of His anger, in that they offer polluted bread. Now, he pollutes this Holy Bread, that is, this Body of Jesus, who comes unworthily to the Altar and despises the table of the Lord, if not by wicked words, yet by wicked deeds. When the Holy Sacrament is dishonoured, He is dishonoured whose Sacrament it is.
3. Their third evil is manifold punishment. Heavy, indeed, is the just vengeance of God. In the old time the worst sin of the children of Israel and the cause of their heaviest punishments were that they cast away God by idolatry. Afterwards their worst sin was that they did not receive Jesus when He came. So, now, the greatest sin of Christians, and the reason for their punishment, is the receiving unworthily the Body of their Saviour. St. Gregory says, ‘The Maker of all things vouchsafed to visit Judea in the mystery of the Incarnation; but because she did not know the time of her visitation He gave her up often as a prey to the Gentiles. At last He gave her into the hands of the Romans; and there came upon her all the curses that are written in the book of the law. So to those who receive the grace of God with ingratitude there is sure condemnation. If a man broke the law of Moses he died without mercy; but how much greater are the punishments which he deserves who treads under foot the Son of God, and counts the Blood of the Covenant a polluted thing!’
N. These punishments may be called a triple wound: a, a great loss of spiritual gifts; b, barrenness of the earth or want of earthly goods; c, diseases and death.
a. Jeremias weeps because the enemy has laid his hand on the pleasant things of Israel, and because the Gentiles had trodden the forbidden sanctuary. It is said, ‘The old enemy lays his hands on the pleasant things of the Church; he takes from her children the ornaments of the Spirit; he denies their faith; he annuls their Baptism, that is, the grace given to them in Baptism; he corrupts their doctrine; he handles unworthily the Body and Blood of Christ; like a wolf he devours the precious vessels, that is, the sheep of our Lord. The reason for so fearful an evil is because Gentiles, that is, men who love the flesh and have not the circumcision of Christ are made ministers of the Altar.’
b. If we do not listen to the voice of the Lord our God, to keep His commandments, there come on us punishments of nature, as Moses threatens. Chiefly do these evils come on us when we break the command to treat our Lord’s Body with reverence.
c. St. Paul teaches us that for irreverence to the Body of Jesus many were sick, and many even slept the sleep of death.
R. Against these wounds and all the aforesaid evils there is a triple remedy: a, amendment of life by voluntary penance; b, correction of malice by the discipline of superiors; c, changing the incorrigible person by unerring justice.
a. When the field is wasted, and the harvest of things spiritual and temporal fails, the prophets exhort us to gird ourselves with the girdle of penance; to mourn in confession and prayer; to seek by sorrow what we have lost by sin; and by austerity of life to lessen God’s anger against us, that is, the anger with which He is angry because of the evil pleasures and the delicacies in which we have often lived.
b. By just bishops God comes like a flaming fire to purify the ministers of the Altar, that His anger may be turned away.
c. He will cast away the wicked and transgressors who persevere in their sin, that is, the incorrigible, that the just may be put in their place.
The Voice of the Holy Ghost
(3) About receiving our Lord unworthily; He that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself. 1 Cor. 11:29.
1. Their great guilt; What is the meaning that My beloved hath wrought much wickedness in My house? Shall the Holy Flesh take away from thee thy crimes in which thou hast boasted? Jerem. 11:15.
b. Disobedience; Give not that which is holy to dogs, neither cast you your pearls before swine. St. Matt. 7:6.
Whosoever of thy seed through their families hath a blemish, he shall not offer bread to his God: neither shall he approach to minister to Him. Lev. 21:17, 18.
c. Great ingratitude; They repaid Me evil for good, and hatred for My love. Ps. 108:5.
My enemies have trodden on Me all the day long. Ps. 55:3.
How much more do you think he deserveth worse punishments who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the Blood of the Testament unclean by which he was sanctified, and hath offered an affront to the Spirit of grace? Heb. 10:29.
2. Great offence of God; I am angry with a great anger against the wealthy nations: for I was angry a little, but they helped forward the evil. Zach. 1:15.
If one man shall sin against another, God may be appeased in his behalf; but if a man shall sin against the Lord, who shall pray for him? 1 Kings 2:25.
To you, O priests, that despise My name, and have said, Wherein have we despised Thy name? You offer polluted bread upon My Altar, and you say, Wherein have we polluted Thee? Mal. 1:7.
3. Manifold punishment:
N. Triple wound; a. Spiritual loss; The enemy hath put out his hand to all her desirable things: for she hath seen the Gentiles enter into her sanctuary, of whom Thou gavest commandment that they should not enter into Thy church. Lam. 1:10.
b. Barrenness of earth; If thou wilt not hear the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep and to do all His commandments.… cursed shall be.… the fruit of thy ground, the herds of thy oxen, and the flocks of thy sheep.… The Lord will send upon thee famine and hunger, and a rebuke upon all the works which thou shalt do. Deut. 28:15, 18, 20.
To Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat, cursed is the earth in thy work.… thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee. Gen. 3:17, 18.
c. Pestilence and Death; Therefore are there many weak and infirm among you, and many sleep. 1 Cor. 11:30, 31.
While yet the flesh was between their teeth, neither had that kind of meat failed, behold, the wrath of the Lord was provoked against the people, and He smote them with an exceedingly great plague. Numb. 11:33.
R. The triple remedy; a. Amendment of life; The country is wasted; the ground hath mourned, for the corn is wasted, the wine is dried up, the oil hath languished. The husbandmen are ashamed, the vinedressers have howled for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field is perished.… Gird yourselves and mourn, O ye priests; howl, ye ministers of the Altar; go, lie in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God; because sacrifice and libation are cut off from the house of your God. Joel 1:10, 11, 13.
b. Correction; Behold the day shall come, kindled as a furnace, and all the proud and all that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day that cometh shall set them on fire, saith the Lord of hosts, and shall not leave them root or branch. Mal. 4:1.
Behold He cometh, saith the Lord of hosts; and who shall be able to think of the day of His coming? and who shall stand to see Him? For He is like a refining fire and like the fuller’s herb: and He shall sit refining and cleansing the silver; and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and shall refine them as gold and as silver, and they shall offer sacrifices to the Lord in justice. Mal. 3:1–3.
c. Rejection; I will judge you, saith the Lord; and I will make you subject to My scepture, and will bring you into the bands of the convenant; and I will pick out from among you the transgressors and the wicked, and will bring them out of the land where they sojourn; and they shall not enter into the land of Israel, and you shall know that I am the Lord. Ezech. 20:36–38.
I will turn My hand to thee, and I will thoroughly purge away thy dross and take away all thy tin; and I will restore thy judges as they were before, and thy counsellors as of old. Is. 1:25, 26.
He (Judas Machabeus) considered about the Altar of holocausts that had been profaned, what he should do with it; and a good counsel came into their minds to pull it down, lest it should be a reproach to them, because the Gentiles had denied it. So they threw it down, and they laid up the stones in the mountain of the temple in a convenient place, till there should come a prophet and give answer concerning them. Then they took whole stones according to the law, and built a new Altar according to that which had been before; and they built up the holy places and the things that were within the temple; and they sanctified the temple and the courts. 1 Mac. 4:44–48.
Prayer
O Holy Ghost, fill me with the fear of the Lord, and drive far from me all thoughts of presumption. Save me from guilt like this. Keep me from offending God; and keep me from the wounds of His anger. Make me feel His goodness, and fill my heart with thankfulness. If I am faithful to Thee, Thou wilt give me much grace; if I am unfaithful, Thou wilt give me little grace, or, it may be, none at all. Dwell in my soul more and more, that I may be faithful with a great faithfulness, and inherit the fulness of Thy promises. Lead me up to the table of Jesus, that I may receive Him, my King and Spouse, with great love and great reverence, with much confidence, yet with much holy fear. I long to receive Jesus in His most Holy Sacrament; Thou, beloved Spirit, wilt help me to receive Him as I ought.