Final Perseverance

 

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.--2 Timothy 4: 7

It is not enough to be virtuous. To be firmly rooted in virtue, to possess virtuous habits, does not render us glorious in God's sight. Something else is still wanting. To be an object of glory to the eye of God we must possess the culminating virtue, the crown and consummation of all virtues, perseverance. No mortal being whatever, no matter how perfect He may seem, should be praised whilst he lives. Let a man be praised not because he has begun a good work but because he has brought it to a good and happy completion. "Perseverance is the end, acme and crown of the virtues, it nurtures and fits one for merit, it leads to and culminates in reward." Hence St. Bernard says : "Take away perseverance and nothing remains. For the fulfilment of duty, the performance of good deeds and the exercise of fortitude will not procure the grace sufficient to obtain eternal praise."

It will avail a man little to have been a religious, to have been patient and humble, devout and chaste, to have loved God and to have exercised himself in all the virtues, if he continues not to the end. He must persevere to win the crown. In the race of the spiritual life all the virtues run, but only perseverance "receives the prize." It is not the beginner in virtue but "he that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved (Matt. x, 22)." "What is the use of seeds sprouting if afterwards they wither and die?" asks St. Chrysostom. None what ever!

If then, dear spouse of Jesus Christ, your virtues are productive of good works, and I assume that this is so, be sure to continue in your good practices. Persevere in your virtuous habits. Make it a practice ever and constantly to increase in the performance of good works. Wage the war of Christ with all your might. Practise and increase in virtue up to the very moment of death. Then, when your last moment comes and your life is brought to a close, God will give you the crown of honour and glory as the prize and reward of your labour. Your best Beloved Lord Jesus Christ has assured you of this. These are His words, written for your instruction by the inspired writer of the Apocalypse: "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life (Apoc. ii, 10)." What is this crown if not the reward of eternal life? The heart of every Christian ought to burn with the desire of winning this reward. In value there is nothing comparable to it, it is priceless. It surpasses the mathematician's power, says St. Gregory, to count its varying parts and manifold possibilities. There is no limit to its duration. It is to be enjoyed eternally. It can never cease.

Your Beloved Spouse Jesus Christ invites you to win this prize, to gain this crown. Listen to what He says to you in the Canticle of Canticles: "Come from Libanus, my Spouse, come my friend from Libanus, come and thou shalt be crowned (Cant iv, 8)." "Arise at once," you who call yourself "the friend" of God, the spouse of Jesus Christ, the best beloved of the Eternal King, "come, make haste (Can ii. 10)" to the marriage feast of the Son of God (Apoc. xix. 9). "Every thing is prepared (Matt. xxii. 4)," the whole court of Heaven awaits you.

Prayer for Final Perseverance

Eternal Father, I humbly adore and thank Thee for having created me, and for having redeemed me by means of Jesus Christ. I thank Thee for having made me a Christian by giving me the true faith, and by adopting me for Thy child in holy Baptism. I thank Thee for having given me time for repentance after my many sins, and for having, as I hope, pardoned all my offenses against Thee. O Infinite Goodness! I thank Thee also for having preserved me from falling again as often as I should have done if Thou hadst not held me up and saved me. But my enemies do not cease to fight against me, nor will they until death, that they may again have me for their slave; If Thou dost not keep and help me continually by Thine assistance, I shall be wretched enough to lose Thy grace anew. I therefore pray Thee, for the love of Jesus Christ, to grant me holy perseverance till death. Thy Son Jesus has promised that Thou wilt grant us whatever we ask for in His name. By the merits, then of Jesus Christ, I beg of Thee for myself, and for all those who are in Thy grace, the grace of never more being separated from Thy love, but that we may always love Thee in this life and in the next.

Sweet Heart of Jesus, be my love,

Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation.

(300 Days Indulgence)

St. Augustine’s Sermon 46.9 on the Harmful Example of Wicked Pastors

 

In Sermon 46.9, Saint Augustine addresses the moral responsibility of pastors and the danger of setting a bad example. He warns that when a pastor lives in a way that is contrary to the Gospel, their actions can have a corrupting influence on the people they are meant to lead. Augustine emphasizes that the soul is not only shaped by doctrine but also by the visible conduct of those entrusted with spiritual authority.

He argues that a pastor’s life is a mirror to the congregation. If a pastor is dishonest, unfaithful, or morally compromised, the people who witness such behavior may be led astray. Augustine sees this as a form of spiritual harm — a “bad example” that can poison the moral life of those who see it, weakening their faith and drawing them into sin. This is especially dangerous because the congregation often looks to the pastor as a model of virtue.

Augustine’s concern is that the example of a pastor is not just symbolic but has real, lasting effects on the soul. He warns against the temptation to think that moral instruction alone is enough, when in fact the pastor’s own life must be consistent with the teachings they preach. If the example is bad, it can “kill the souls” of those who witness it — meaning it can destroy their spiritual vitality and lead them away from God.

Saint Augustine, in his celebrated *Confessions*, condemns homosexuality.

Pope Saint Pius V grants to all priests of the Latin Rite the right to celebrate the Roman Mass in perpetuity

 The Perpetual Indult of Saint Pope Pius V, *Quo Primum*, grants to all priests of the Latin Rite the right to celebrate the Roman Mass in perpetuity.

 Saint Pius V: “Quo Primum”

The Mass Explained by Leonard Goffine

Quo Primum of Pope Saint Pius V not only declared that the Mass must be kept permanently unchanged, but he prohibited the introduction of new liturgies of the Mass.

  “Destroy the Mass and you destroy the Church.”— Heresiarch Martin Luther

                        

"The devil has always attempted, by means of the heretics, to deprive the world of the Mass, making them precursors of the Anti-Christ, who, before anything else, will try to abolish and will actually abolish the Holy Sacrament of the altar, as a punishment for the sins of men, according to the prediction of Daniel,' And strength was given him against the continual sacrifice' (Daniel 8:12)." St. Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor of the Church. (1696-1787)

             Traditionis Custodes= those who imprison Tradition.

Romans 1:18

The World in the Wrath of God

Exchanging the Truth of God for a Lie. The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and wickedness of those who by their wickedness suppress the truth.

     Welcome to the synodal church

Even as an altar boy, Bergoglio hated and mocked the Latin Mass

Bergoglio's heavy-metal priest 

‘Tucho’ Fernandez bans traditional mass in the diocese of Buenos Aires

 Cardinal Sarah: “Banning or suspending the Extraordinary Form can only be inspired by the devil.

The Life of St. Pius V.

by Fr. Thomas Austin O.P., 1887

"The Sword of Saint Michael, Saint Pius V."

Saint Pius V, pray for us.