rks of nature show
God's work; but that there are some truths which the deepest intellect
of man can never fathom. Hence she teaches that God has revealed certain
truths; such as the mysteries of the Holy Trinity, the Incarnation, and
the Blessed Sacrament. When we know that God has revealed these truths
we are acting reasonably not only in believing them, but also in showing
our belief by practices of respect, adoration, and love.

The Church teaches that we must not only believe, but practise our
religion. For faith alone will not save us. "Faith without works is
dead." To have these works we must "keep the commandments." We must love
God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. All the commandments
are comprised in this. In fact, the essence of Christianity is charity.

Where will you find charity practised in reality except in the Catholic
Church? If you wish to see the truth of this, visit our larger towns and
cities, and you will find hundreds of hospitals, asylums, schools, and
other charitable institutions in which are thousands of the children of
the Catholic Church, who have left everything to alleviate every ill
that flesh is heir to, and follow the meek and humble Jesus in His
mission of love.

The Catholic Church alone teaches, as Jesus taught while on earth, the
duty of penance. "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself,
take up his cross and follow Me." According to Christ's teaching, the
Church sets aside the penitential season of Lent and other times of
mortification.

The Church also teaches that we must not only be faithful in the
observance of the practices of religion, but that we must also live in
peace and justice and charity with all mankind, and die with a hope
beyond the grave. If we love God we will faithfully observe the
practices of the Church; these practices will assist us in keeping the
commandments, by which we will enter into life.

We have seen that the various ceremonies and practices of the Catholic
Church are dictated by right reason; that they are the rational
deduction from Christ's teaching; that they obtain for us divine grace,
excite pious thoughts, and elevate our minds to God; and that a true
Christian is one who not only believes but also practises the teachings
of Christ and His Church. The observance of these pious practices of the
Church makes us Christians in fact as well as in name. They assist us to
keep the commandment and to live in accordance