St. Luke vii. 11-16.

The Gospel of to-day places before us a very touching instance of a mother’s affection for her son. Her tender-hearted interest in the young man’s welfare excited our Lord’s attention, and for her sake He worked a great miracle. He raised the widow’s son to life.

Dear parents, the practical way of manifesting an interest in your children nowadays is to secure for them a good, thorough-going education, which will not only enable them to fight their way through this world with honor to themselves, but will enable our Lord to raise them up at the last day to enjoy the glorified life of the blessed in heaven.

A thorough-going education consists primarily in the education of the heart — in teaching the child the doctrines of his religion, and instilling into his soul the fundamental principles of morality so that there may be developed within him a sturdy religious character with which he will be able to resist all the temptations to do wrong. It is a good thing to teach a child reading, writing, and arithmetic, and to give him a knowledge of the ordinary branches of learning, but it is a far better thing to teach him the difference between right and wrong, so that there will be developed in his soul a conscience that will be to him a practical judgment deciding the goodness or badness of his actions. Without such a conscience his ‘ know ledge becomes worse than useless to him. It is like a double-edged sword, capable of cutting both ways. It gives him greater facilities for doing evil. A child in whom a conscience is not developed by a good practical education is like a ship staunch and seaworthy, with long tapering masts and strong rigging and with beautiful sails set to the breeze, but without a rudder. Such a vessel can cleave the wave with mighty speed, but it is just as liable to dash itself to pieces on the rock- bound coast as it is to keep to the deep waters.

Conscience is by all means the most precious thing a man can have. It is worth to him a thousand fortunes. A child who starts in the battle of life without a cent in his pocket, yet with a good strong conscience in his soul, is far better off than the child to whom his parents have left mil lions but have never developed in him a practical conscience. If a parent had the choice between filling the child’s mind with knowledge on the one hand, and on the other of solidly anchoring his heart in the fundamental principles of morality, there is no doubt for a moment which the wise parent would choose. To impart to the child a knowledge, of right and wrong, to teach him the way through the intricate paths of this world to his real home in heaven, to give him a means of fighting the enemies of his soul, is to give him wealth beyond measure. To leave to him as a precious inheritance a good practical conscience is to equip him well for the struggle of life. With it he is as rich and can stand as firm as a king. The old principle that was laid down by the wise men of old is just as true to-day, that a handful of good life is worth a whole bushel of learning.

Five-minute Sermons for Low Masses on All Sundays of the Year
By the Priests of the Congregation of St. Paul, 1893