Christopher Wendt: Good evening, everyone. Good evening, all members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Fatima, and all guests. Thank you for coming tonight. Tonight’s broadcast was pre-recorded. His Excellency is traveling, but he still took the time to teach us about the fifth commandment from the Roman Catechism, from the Council of Trent. Without further ado, I turn it over to him, and he will lead us in a prayer.
His Excellency: In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.
Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.
Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
Today, we will speak about the fifth commandment of God: Thou shalt not kill. The necessity of explaining this commandment is clear from the following. Immediately after the earth was overwhelmed in the universal deluge, this was the first prohibition made by God to man, saying, “I will require the blood of your lives,” he said, “and the hand of every beast, and at the hand of man.” Next, among the precepts of the Old Law expounded by our Lord, this commandment was mentioned first by Him, concerning which it is written in the Gospel of Matthew, “It has been said, Thou shalt not kill.”
There are two parts of this commandment. In its explanation, the Lord points out its twofold obligation. One is prohibitory and forbids us to kill. The other is mandatory and commands us to cherish sentiments of charity, concord, and friendship toward our enemies, to have peace with all men, and finally, to endure with patience every inconvenience.
The first part, the prohibitory part: There is one exception: the killing of animals. With regard to the prohibitive part, it should first be taught what kinds of killings are not forbidden by this commandment. It is not forbidden to kill animals, for if God permits men to eat them, it is also lawful to kill them.
When Saint Augustine speaks of the words “Thou shalt not kill,” he says we do not understand this of the fruits of the earth, which are insensible, nor of irrational animals, which form no part of human society. Another kind of lawful killing belongs to civil authorities, by the legal and judicious exercise of which they punish the guilty and protect the innocent. The just use of this power, far from involving the crime of murder, is an act of paramount obedience to this commandment, which prohibits murder. The end of the commandment is the preservation and security of human life. Now, the punishments inflicted by civil authority, which is the legitimate avenger of crime, naturally tend to this end: to preserve human life and to protect and secure it, since they give security to life by repressing outrage and violence. Hence, these words of David in the Psalm: “In the morning, I put to death all the wicked of the land, that I might cut off all the workers of iniquity from the city of the Lord.”
Then, killing in a just war: the soldier is guiltless if actuated not by motives of ambition or cruelty, but by a pure desire to serve the interests of his country, taking away the life of an enemy in a just war. Then, killing by accident: death caused not by intent or design, but by accident, is not murder. It can involve guilt when death is caused by negligence, carelessness, or lack of due precaution. Killing in self-defense: if a man kills another in self-defense, having used every means consistent with his own safety to avoid the infliction of death, he evidently does not violate this commandment.
The negative part of this commandment forbids murder and suicide. The above are the cases in which life may be taken without violating this commandment: self-defense, just war, and the death penalty by the authorities. With these exceptions, all other killings are forbidden, whether we consider the person who kills, the person killed, or the means used to kill. This commandment also forbids suicide. No man possesses such power over his own life as to be at liberty to put himself to death. Hence, the commandment does not say “Thou shalt not kill another,” but simply “Thou shalt not kill.”
Finally, considering the numerous means by which murder may be committed, the law admits no exception. Not only does it forbid taking away the life of another by laying violent hands on him, by means of a sword, a stone, a stick, a halter, or by administering poison, but it also strictly prohibits causing the death of another by counsel, assistance, help, or any other means. Sinful anger is also forbidden by the fifth commandment. The Jews thought that abstaining from taking life with their own hands was enough to satisfy the obligation imposed by this commandment, but a Christian instructed in the interpretation of Christ has learned that the precept is spiritual, and that it commands us not only to keep our hands unstained but our hearts pure and undefiled. Hence, when the Jews regarded it as sufficient, it was not sufficient at all, for the Gospel has taught that it is unlawful even to be angry with anyone.
But I say to you, says our Lord, that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of judgment, and whosoever says to his brother “Raca” shall be in danger of the counsel, and whosoever says “Thou fool” shall be in danger of hellfire. From these words, it clearly follows that he who is angry with his brother is not free from sin, even though he conceals his resentment, that he who gives indication of his wrath sins grievously, and that he who does not hesitate to treat another with harshness and to utter contumelious reproaches against him sins still more grievously.
This, however, is to be understood in cases where no just cause of anger exists. God and His laws permit us to be angry when we chastise the faults of those who are subject to us, for the anger of a Christian should spring from the Holy Spirit and not from carnal impulse. Seeing that we should be temples of the Holy Ghost in which Jesus Christ may dwell, our Lord has left us many other lessons of instruction with regard to the perfect observance of this law, such as not to resist evil. But if one strikes thee on the right cheek, turn to him also the other. And if a man will contend with thee in judgment and take away the coat, let go thy cloak also unto him. And whosoever will force thee to go one mile, go with him two, saith our Lord.
Let us look at the remedies against the violation of this commandment. From what has been said, it is easy to see how inclined man is to those sins which are prohibited by this commandment, and how many are guilty of murder, if not in fact, at least in desire. As the sacred Scriptures prescribe remedies for so dangerous a disease, we should know this danger very well. Of these remedies, the most efficacious is to form a just conception of the wickedness of murder. The enormity of this sin is manifest from many and weighty passages of Holy Scripture. So much does God abominate homicide that He declares in Holy Scripture that even the beasts of the field will be held accountable for the life of man, commanding the beasts that injure man to be put to death.
If the Almighty commanded man to have a horror of blood, He did so to impress on his mind the obligation of entirely refraining, both in act and desire, from the enormity of homicide. The murderer is the worst enemy of his species, and consequently, of nature. Through the abuse of his power, he destroys the universal work of God by the destruction of a man, since God declares that He created all things for man’s sake. As it is forbidden in Genesis to take human life, because God created man in His own image and likeness, he who destroys God’s image offers great injury to God and almost seems to lay violent hands on God Himself.
The positive part of this commandment inculcates love of neighbor. The mandatory part of this command, as Christ our Lord enjoins, requires that we have peace with all men. Interpreting the commandment, the Lord says, “If therefore thou offer thy gift at the altar, and there thou remember that thy brother has anything against thee, leave there thy offering before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.” Since hatred is clearly forbidden by this commandment, as whosoever hates his brother is a murderer, it follows as an evident consequence that the commandment also inculcates charity and love.
Since the commandment inculcates charity and love, it must also enjoin all duties and good offices which follow in their train. Charity is patient, says St. Paul; we are therefore commanded patience, in which, as the Redeemer teaches, we shall possess our souls. Charity is kind. Beneficence is therefore the friend and companion of charity, the virtue of benefit. When beneficence and kindness have a great range, their principal offices are to relieve the wants of the poor, to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, and in all these acts of beneficence, we should proportion our liberality to the needs and necessities of those we help. These works of charity and goodness, exalted in themselves, become still more illustrious when done toward our enemies.
For our Lord says, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, which also the Apostle enjoins in these words: If the enemy is hungry, give him to eat; if he thirsts, give him to drink. For doing this, thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil by good, says Holy Scripture. But the most important duty of all, and that which is the fullest expression of charity, and to the practice of which we should most habituate ourselves, is to pardon and forgive from the heart the injuries which we may have received from others. The Sacred Scripture, as we have already observed, frequently admonishes and exhorts us to full compliance with this duty. Not only do they pronounce blessed those who do this, but they also declare that God grants pardon to those who truly fulfill this duty, while He refuses pardon to those who neglect it or refuse to forgive.
As the desire for revenge is almost natural to man, a Christian should forgive and forget injuries. For the following considerations, however, demand particular exposition. First, the advantages of forgiveness; second, the two special rewards of those who, influenced by holy desire to please God, really forgive injuries. In the first place, God has promised that he who forgives shall himself obtain forgiveness of sins, a promise which clearly shows how acceptable to God this duty of piety is. In the next place, the forgiveness of injuries ennobles and perfects our nature. By it, man is in some degree made like God, who makes his sun to shine on the good and the evil and the bad man, and rains upon the just and the unjust.
The man whose heart this passion of revenge has once possessed, who thirsts for the blood of his enemy and is filled with the hope of revenge, will spend his days and nights brooding over some evil design, so that his mind seems never to rest from these malignant projects or even from thoughts of blood. Thus, it follows that, never or at least not without extreme difficulty, can he be induced generously to pardon an offense or even to mitigate his hostility.
Justly, therefore, is hatred compared to a wound in which the weapon remains firmly embedded. Moreover, many evil consequences and sins are linked to this one sin of hatred. Hence the word of St. John: “He that hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness and knows not whither he goes because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” He must therefore frequently fall, for how can anyone view in a favorable light the words or actions of him whom he hates? Hence arise rash and unjust judgments, anger, envy, detractions, and other evils of the same sort, which often involve those connected by ties of friendship and blood. Thus, it frequently happens that this one sin is the prolific source of many other sins. Not without good reason is hatred called the sin of the devil. The Devil was a murderer from the beginning, and hence, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, when the Pharisees sought his life, said that they were begotten of their father, the devil.
Let us look at the remedies against hatred and revenge. Besides the reasons already adduced, which afford good grounds for detesting this sin, other and most suitable remedies are prescribed by the Holy Scriptures. Of these remedies, the first and greatest is the example of our Lord, which we should set before our eyes as a model for imitation. For He, in whom even suspicion of fault could not be found, when scourged with rods, crowned with thorns, and finally nailed to the cross, uttered that most charitable prayer: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
And as the Apostle testifies, the sprinkling of his blood speaks better than words. Since the life and health of the body are of great importance for the life of the soul and for our eternal salvation, we are bound also to take precautions for the preservation of our earthly life and for health by means of cleanliness, temperance, regularity, industry, and the use of remedies. In case of sickness, health is worth more to us than vast riches, says the book of Ecclesiasticus, for the longer we keep our health in life, the more treasures we can lay up for eternity, where neither rust nor moth consumes, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
If we, thoughtlessly, do anything to shorten our life, we defraud ourselves of a part of our seed time. The eagle takes the utmost care of its egg, not for the sake of the shell, but for the young eagle enclosed in the egg. So we should take care of our body because of the soul that dwells within it. Cleanliness is to be observed in our person, our apparel, and the rooms we inhabit. Temperance in eating and drinking, abstemiousness, promotes health and prolongs life. Moderate fasting has advantages; many men of weak constitution naturally increase their strength by abstemiousness, which enables them to accomplish immense activity. St. Paul, in his epistles, often mentions his bodily weakness.
Regularity is to be observed in regard to meals, the time of going to rest and rising in the morning, in one’s work, and in the arrangement of one’s time. Above all, let us never be idle.
We may not only earn our daily bread, but also do much toward keeping ourselves in health. Work circulates the blood and gives us an appetite for food. Stagnant water becomes foul, and the blood of the idler is apt to get into a bad state. Yet we must not overtax our strength with work. Moderate labor invigorates, while excessive toil ruins the powers of our body. Finally, it is our duty to have recourse to remedies. In case of sickness, it is sinful for anyone dangerously ill not to call in medical aid and employ remedies.
So says the book of Ecclesiasticus: “Honor the physician for the need thou hast of him, for the Most High has created him, the physician, and He has created medicines out of the earth. And a wise man will not abhor them.” However, if the cure is too costly or involves acute suffering, it may be forborne. Our solicitude concerning the preservation of our health and life must not, however, be so great as to make us forgetful of our eternal salvation. The good things of time, such as life and bodily well-being, are intrinsically valuable and to be desired, but only insofar as they are conducive to our eternal salvation. The more the body is studied and pampered, the more the soul is neglected and ruined, says St. Augustine. Hence, our Lord admonishes us: “Be not solicitous for meat and raiment, for your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. He feeds the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field, though they labor not. Are you not of more value than they?” Furthermore, we are under strict obligation to do nothing that tends to destroy health or life.
Consequently, it is a sin to rashly hazard one’s life, even to endure poor health, or to take one’s own life. Suicides are generally men devoid of religious beliefs, who have got into trouble or committed some great sin, and who despair of God’s mercy and assistance. They are sometimes not accountable for their actions and, consequently, not to be blamed. King Saul lost all hope when he was grievously wounded and surrounded by his enemies; he then cast himself on his sword. The keeper of the prison at Philippi, greatly alarmed at seeing the doors of the prison open wherein St. Paul was confined, was about to kill himself. Judas, in despair over the enormity of his crime, hanged himself.
Often we read of people destroying themselves because they have lost everything at the gambling table, ruined their character by embezzling money, or cannot obtain the object of their illicit passion. But often madness or overtaxed nerves cause men to take their own lives without knowing what they do. Let us, therefore, beware how hastily we judge and condemn them. The prevalence of suicide is principally and generally to be ascribed to a lack of faith, a firm belief in a future life, and confidence in God’s willingness to aid the unfortunate and pardon the repentant sinner. Experience teaches that as religion decreases in a land, the number of suicides increases.
The ancients considered self-destruction dishonorable and blameworthy. They cut off the right hand of the self-murderer and buried it apart from the body. The Church denies Christian burial to one who has died by his own hand unless insanity rendered him irresponsible. The refusal of burial rites is not intended as a condemnation of the individual, but to express horror of the crime and act as a deterrent to others. A man’s life is not his own; it belongs to God, who takes it away at His will. He commits a great sin. Thus, self-destruction is a presumptuous encroachment upon the divine right and shows contempt for God. Life belongs to God, and the suicide also defrauds society, of which he is a member.
He wrongs his family by bringing sorrow and shame upon it. He cruelly injures himself and gives scandal to others. It is even worse to take one’s own life than that of another because, in the former case, one escapes the punishment of the law. Far from being a heroic deed, it is a most cowardly act. Real heroism is shown by bravely bearing the miseries of life. Besides, instead of obtaining relief from suffering, the suicide only falls into what is far worse. The godless press of our day will excuse the self-murderer, saying he expiated his crime with his life. Instead of expiating a crime, he, on the contrary, adds another crime to it.
On the other hand, it is not merely right, but even meritorious, to sacrifice one’s bodily health or life in order to gain everlasting life or to rescue one’s fellow man from physical or spiritual death. All the holy martyrs preferred to sacrifice their lives rather than commit sin. By so doing, they merited eternal life. For our Lord says, “He that shall lose his life for my sake shall find it.” So we have the witness of Eleazar the Maccabee and St. Lawrence the martyr. Many missionaries in pagan lands are in constant danger of death, and many of them ruin their health by the hardships and exertions they undergo. St. Francis Xavier, the apostle of the Indies, was at the close of the day so exhausted from preaching and administering baptism that he could scarcely speak or move his arm. Yet this is not wrong.
Strong but most praiseworthy. The same may be said of priests, doctors, and nurses who attend those with infectious diseases. St. Aloysius and St. Charles Borromeo sacrificed their health even through infectious disease. St. Aloysius even died of the plague caught while nursing the sick. It is also permissible to risk one’s life to rescue anyone who has, for instance, fallen into fire or water, or to expose oneself in battle for the defense of one’s country. A human soul is of such great value that all earthly goods, even life itself, should be sacrificed to save the soul for eternal life. Jesus Christ, our Lord, gave us an example by dying upon the cross for the eternal salvation of all humankind. And so we shall imitate our Lord.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Kyrie Eleison! Christe Eleison! Kyrie Eleison! Lord Jesus Christ.
You are the Good Shepherd! With Your almighty hand, You guide Your pilgrim Church through the storms of each age.
Adorn the Holy See with holy popes who neither fear the powerful of this world nor compromise with the spirit of the age, but preserve, strengthen, and defend the Catholic Faith unto the shedding of their blood, and observe, protect, and hand on the venerable liturgy of the Roman Church.
O Lord, return to us through holy popes who, inflamed with the zeal of the Apostles, proclaim to the whole world: “Salvation is found in no other than in Jesus Christ. For there is no other name under heaven given to men by which they should be saved” (see Acts 4:10-12).
Through an era of holy popes, may the Holy See, which is home to all who promote the Catholic and Apostolic Faith, always shine as the cathedra of truth for the whole world. Hear us, O Lord, and through the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of the Church, grant us holy Popes, grant us many holy Popes! Have mercy on us and hear us! Amen.
Dominus vobiscum. Et cum spiritu tuo. Et benedictio Dei Omnipotentis: Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sanctus. Amen. Praise be Jesus Christ!
Christopher Wendt: Always so thankful for His Excellency teaching us the true faith, especially from the Roman Catechism, the faith that comes to us from Jesus Christ through the apostles without human opinion, the faith that stays the same, based on the man who gave us the faith, Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Until next time, Ave Maria.