"TODAY, I shall show you some views of the Vatican," began Father Potter, as the class gathered in the school auditorium. "It will be interesting for you to see where our Holy Father lives and works."

"Have you had these slides for a long time, Father?" asked Michael.

"Yes, a good many years. But this visual-aid machine is new. So, I thought we could use it to show slides for our religion class."

"Will these pictures have something to do with the idea of living for holiness?" inquired Lucy.

"Yes, indeed. The ones I have chosen for today have to do with the first three commandments, the commandments that tell us how to love God for Himself. This first slide ought to be a surprise for you," said Father, as he flashed it on the screen.

"This is one of the museums in the Vatican. All around the walls there are statues, the statues of pagan gods. Isn't that a surprise?"

"What are they doing there, Father?" said Johnny. "Is the pope allowed to have statues of pagan gods?"

"Well, there are not there for religious purposes, Johnny. The pagans thought there were many gods. They used precious marbles and metals to make the statues. They are kept in the Vatican Museum as works of art. They are of striking beauty," said Father.

"My mother read in the Catholic Digest that if all the museums in the world except the Vatican were destroyed, there would be enough of these wonderful things to give the whole history of pagan art," said Ellen.

"I heard that, too, Father," joined in Mary. "But, Father, isn't it possible that some Christian martyrs were put to death because they wouldn't burn incense before these very statues?"

"That's very likely, Mary. In those early days, Christians were intent on the keeping of the first commandment, 'Thou shall not have strange gods before Me.' They refused to give to these statues or to the emperor of the state the worship due to God alone."

"Are the bishops and priests and people who are in jails in Europe today, going to be martyrs for the first commandment?" asked Agnes.

"They will be martyrs if they are put to death for their faith, and others must endure a living martyrdom. In the meantime, as they suffer, they are confessors. The first commandment obliges us to confess our faith openly, whenever necessary," said Father.

"Sister read us an article about the monks and others in Manchuria and in China who were put to death by the Communists. They refused to associate with these enemies of 'the Church. They wouldn't submit to these atheists who hate the idea of God. They wouldn't sin by giving up their faith," said Charles, with great earnestness. "But, we're praying for these enemies of God, that He will change them."

"That's the right way to act, Charles," said Father, as he continued to show the pictures of Rome. There were views of the catacombs, the underground cemeteries. There were pagan temples made into Christian churches. There were ruins of homes and market-places. Father told the children they could ask questions at any time.

"With so many pagans and temples around, was there danger that some Christians might get mixed up with his old way of believing?" asked Thomas.

"Yes, there was always the danger of the sin of infidelity, or having some pagan ideas," answered Father. "But the bishops watched and warned the new Christians. They taught them that the worst sin was apostasy, or failing back into paganism. Next to that was heresy, or rejecting part of their new faith. At times, proud people would make up a religion, half Christian and half pagan."

"They probably thought that one religion was as good as another," said Robert. "My uncle said that's very common with a lot of people today."

"Your uncle is right," replied Father. "That is indifferentism. It sometimes infects Catholics. They think it is no sin to take part in non-Catholic services. Sometimes a Catholic may go to a marriage or funeral of one of his non-Catholic friends or relatives. That's just to show affection for the person, but not to show that Catholics think the two religions are equally good.

"Many false teachings are heard in our times. That is why our Holy Father and the popes previous to him have written their Encyclical letters. These letters, as you know, are sent to Catholics of the whole world to warn them of error and to point out the truth. The Holy Father, as successor to St. Peter, has this duty to

perform because our Lord gave a command to Peter, 'Feed My lambs; feed My sheep.'

"Man lives not by bread alone but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.

"So, as the shepherd of our souls, the Holy Father watches over us and speaks in the name of Christ."

"Father, what are those drawings on the walls of the catacombs?" inquired Marie. "I noticed an anchor, a palm and a dove on one wall. And in another place, a lot of words like mottoes."

"The anchor is the symbol of hope. That's a virtue which goes with the first Commandment. The palm is a sign of victory over death, so it is also a symbol of hope. The dove stands for the peace God gives to those who trust in His mercy. So, all the pictures are real lessons on the first commandment," said Father.

"Were there many things written and painted on the walls of these underground cemeteries?" asked Henry.

"Oh, yes. So many that men have devoted their lives to a study of them. But all of them come back to one idea. The early Christians knew that God must come first in all things. They loved their neighbour for the love of God. They tried to avoid sloth and envy and scandal. all the sins against charity. Their lives were acts of faith, hope and charity and adoration. They lived lives of holiness."

"Father, did the early Christians make statues to remember the martyrs?" asked Alice.

"I think not. But they were most interested in the relics of the martyrs. When a Christian was put to death for the faith, other Christians claimed his remains. These they buried with honour in the catacombs. After a while, the priests began to offer Holy Mass over the tombs of the martyrs. That's why we now have relics in the altar-stones of the altar," said Father.

"Is that why the priest kisses the altar, at the beginning of Mass," asked Eileen. "Yes, this is one way of showing honour to these holy persons and their relics. We do not adore them. Adoration is only for God. Statues and relics merely remind us of God and the saints. Now, I must go. But we learned much from these pictures. I'll have more of them soon," said Father.

"We enjoyed them very much, Father, and learned a lot," said Sister for the children, as they returned to their classroom.

"Father, some of those words on the walls in the catacombs were in Latin. Some were in another language. What other language did they use?" asked Kevin.

"Greek was used, Kevin. It was used especially as a symbol for the name of Our Lord. Here it is," said Father, as he flashed it on the screen.

"It looks like an X and a P, put together," said Helen. "How does that stand for the name of Our Lord?"

"What looks like an X is the same as our CH. What looks like a P is the same as our R. Put them together, you get CHR, the first part of the word 'Christ.' It is called a CHI-RHO, pronounced like KEE-RO," explained Father.

"I saw the CHI-RHO on the altar, in our church," said Neil.

"Yes. It is often used nowadays. It was frequently painted on the walls of the catacombs. The early Christians had great veneration for the Name of Christ, Our Saviour. They followed the second commandment which requires us to honour the Holy Name."

"Why is God so strict about His name?" asked Marian. "A name is a title of a person or thing. It stands for that person or thing. To disrespect a name is to disrespect the person or thing. To be reverent in saying the name of God, the words 'Jesus Christ,' is a sign of real religion," said Father.

"I can see why you couldn't live for holiness and be careless about the name of God. If you love a person, you love everything connected with him. People love to write the names of those they love," said James.

"Father, may I tell a story you once told us, about a man who loved God's name very much?" asked Jeremy.

"Indeed; do you mean about Saint Ignatius of Antioch?" "That's it, Father. He was one of the early martyrs. His disciples went to the arena to gather what was left of his body. They were surprised at what they saw. Sometime in his life, perhaps when he was a young man, he had done something to remind himself of his love for Christ. They saw it as they

gathered his relics. Right on his poor, torn chest, there was a scar, years old, where the saint had traced CHI-RHO, the name he loved most of all, the name of Jesus."

"Very well done, Jeremy. I am so glad you remembered it. Do you want to ask something, George?" said Father.

"Please, Father, one of the scenes you showed us, from the catacombs, was about a virgin, dedicated to God. She was wearing a white robe. You said she was like a nun. Did she take a vow? or make an oath?"

"She made a vow. She promised God to belong to Him alone. This was something pleasing to God, and she bound herself to it under pain of sin. She did not make an oath. An oath is calling on God to witness the truth of what we say. It is called swearing," said Father.

"I thought that swearing was getting very angry, and using harsh words to let off steam," said Michael.

"No, words like that would just be angry words. They are not called curses, either. When a person curses, he means to call down evil on some person, place or thing. Cursing is a sin against the majesty of God. It is like trying to take God's place and to settle things your way by condemning persons and things to eternal punishment."

"So, cursing and swearing are not too common. Most of the wild words that fly in anger are either vulgar or harsh, but not cursing or swearing. Is that right, Father?" asked Kevin.

"Yes, but a person should always watch his words and especially when he is angry. The great danger is to show disrespect for the name of God," said Father.

1. What is the CHI-RHO? What does it mean? Have you ever seen this symbol? Where?

4. How did Saint Ignatius of Antioch show reverence for the name of Our Saviour?

6. Are an oath and swearing the same thing? If so, prove it. If not, why not?

8. Are cursing and swearing the same thing? If so, prove it. If not, why not?

Sennacherib (se nak'er ib) the tyrannical king of Assyria attacked Ezechias (ez e ki'as) the young king of Judah, plundered farms, burned towns, murdered or carried off into slavery thousands of Jews. Ezechias made valiant efforts to drive out the enemy, but he failed. Then, Sennacherib sent two messengers to sneer and to jeer at the good young king and his soldiers because they trusted in God. Their blasphemies against God were horrible. Ezechias went into the temple to plead with God for help. Isaias, the prophet, sent him word that God had granted his prayer. Sennacherib and his blasphemous hordes would never shoot so much as one arrow into the holy city of Jerusalem. An angel of the Lord passed over the Assyrian camp one night, and in the morning one hundred and eighty-five thousand Assyrians lay dead. If you wish to read the whole story you can find it in Isaias, chapters thirty-six and thirty-seven.

"Before we look at the next group of scenes from the Vatican and Rome, let's review a few points about the first three commandments," said Father. "Someone tell me about them."

"Father, the first three commandments are God's way of telling men how to love God for Himself. Holiness is doing God's will out of love," said Michael.

"And what does each commandment specify, Henry?" "The first insists that God's rights come first. The second obliges us to revere His Name and everything connected with God and holy things. The third tells us when and how God wants us to worship Him. It tells us to keep a day a week for God."

Father flashed on the screen a picture of a chapel. He told the class it was four hundred years old. It is called the Pauline Chapel and is right in the Vatican Palace. Next, he showed two great paintings in the place. One was the Conversion of Saint Paul. The other was the Crucifixion of Saint Peter. He told them that people living in the Vatican City State may go to this Chapel for Sunday Mass. It is like their parish church.

"Does the Pope say the Mass for them?" asked Agnes. "No. Our Holy Father usually offers his Mass in this little private chapel, where the Blessed Sacrament is kept. Sometimes, guests are allowed there to receive Holy Communion from the Pope," said Father.

"My cousin, a seminarian in Rome, received Communion from the Pope. Would it have been in this chapel?" asked Robert.

"Either there, or in this very beautiful one, the Sistine Chapel."

The children were nearly breathless when Father showed a colour slide of this famous chapel.

"I would like to go to Mass in that chapel every Sunday," said Ita.

"So would we all. It is very beautiful. It is almost five hundred years old. The picture on the rear wall-I am showing it now-is a painting of the Last Judgement. It is one of the great works of Michelangelo. Along the side walls, thirteen other artists added their work. In this chapel the election of the pope, and many special ceremonies take place."

"I think I would want to stay there all Sunday. if I had the chance," said Johnny.

"That may be. But whether the church is beautiful or not, the Sunday Mass obligation still remains. We go to Mass on Sundays not to please ourselves. We go to honour and worship God. We are never excused, unless we have sufficient reason," said Father.

"My aunt is a nurse. Sometimes she has to stay on duty," said Muriel. "She is excused from Mass, isn't she?"

"Yes, and anyone else who has necessary work to do. You are allowed to do servile work if God's honour, the need of others, or our own requires it."

"My father has to work some Sundays, but he gets up very early and goes downtown to a Mass. He makes a sacrifice," said Henry.

"Good for him. He has the real spirit of religion. He wants to love God and show his love. There are many like him, too. That's why our churches are crowded on Sundays. But many people, sad to say, do not go," said Father.

"Why is that, Father? Are they lazy?" asked Kevin. "Some of them may be, but I think that others have lost some of their faith. They do not see that the Church makes Sunday the Lord's Day because God wants special worship.

Then, Our Lord rose from the dead that day and on that day, too, the Holy Ghost came upon the apostles. The Church makes it a law that we go to Mass on Sunday to help us fulfil our obligation to worship God."

SELF-TEST ON UNIT II

12. Do we honour Christ and the saints when we pray before the crucifix, relics, and sacred images?

Collect pictures of the paintings and statues in the Vatican, St. Peters, and other centres of Catholic art in Rome. Have an exhibit and invite the Seventh Grade.