Page:Sermons by John-Baptist Massillon.djvu/265

 of our  gospel,  was  the  publicity  of  the  scandal  attending  the  corruption of  her  conduct. The scandal  of  the  law,  which  was  dishonoured in  the  opinion  of  the  Romans  and  of  so  many  other Gentiles, spread  throughout  Palestine,  and  who,  witnessing  the ill-conduct of  our  sinner,  took  occasion,  no  doubt,  from  it,  to  blaspheme the  name  of  the  Lord,  to  despise  the  sanctity  of  his  law, to harden  themselves  in  their  impious  superstitions,  and  to  look upon the  hope  of  Israel  and  the  wonders  of  God,  as  related  in  the holy books,  as  fictions  invented  to  amuse  a  credulous  people.

Scandal of  place. Her ill  conduct  had  been  conspicuous  in  the city, that  is  to  say,  in  the  capital  of  the  country,  from  whence  the report of  such  accidents  was  soon  circulated  throughout  Judea. Now behold  the  scandals  for  which  her  penitence  makes  reparation,— the  scandal  of  the  law,  by  renouncing  the  superstitious  traditions of  the  Pharisees,  who  had  adulterated  their  precepts;  and by confessing  Jesus  Christ,  who  was  the  end  and  the  fulfilment  of them. For, too  frequently,  after  having  dishonoured  religion  in the  minds  of  the  impious,  through  our  excesses  and  scandalous conduct, we  again  dishonour  it  through  our  pretended  piety;  we create  for  ourselves  a  kind  of  virtue  altogether  worldly,  superficial, and pharisaical;  we  become  superstitious  without  becoming  penitent;  we  make  the  abuses  of  devotion  succeed  to  those  of  the world; the  only  reparation  we  make  for  the  scandal  of  our  debaucheries, is  that  of  a  sensual  piety;  and  we  reflect  more  disgrace upon  virtue  through  the  weaknesses  and  the  illusions  which we mingle  with  it,  than  we  did  by  our  open  and  avowed  excesses. Thus the  impious  are  more  hardened  in  their  iniquity,  and  more removed from  conversion,  by  the  example  of  our  false  penitence, than  ever  they  had  formerly  been  by  the  example  even  of our  vices.

Lastly, the  scandal  of  place. That same  city  which  had  been the theatre  of  her  shame  and  of  her  crimes,  becomes  that  of  her penitence. She goes  not  into  retired  places  to  give  vent  to  her sorrows and  her  tears;  she  takes  no  advantage,  like  Nicodemus, of the  shades  of  night  to  come  to  Jesus  Christ,  nor  waits  the opportunity of  his  being  in  a  retired  corner  of  the  city,  in  order  to conceal  from  the  eyes  of  the  public  the  first  steps  of  her  conversion. In the  face  of  that  great  city  which  she  had  scandalized  by her  conduct,  she  enters  into  the  house  of  the  Pharisee,  and  is  not afraid of  submitting  to  have,  as  spectators  of  her  penitence,  those who had  been  witnesses  of  her  former  crimes. For often,  after having despised  the  world's  opinion  in  debauchery,  it  becomes dreaded in  virtue:  the  eyes  of  the  public  did  not  appear  formidable to us  during  our  dissipation;  they  become  so  in  our  penitence; our vices  are  carelessly  laid  open  to  view;  our  virtues  are  backward and cautious:  we  dare  not  at  first  declare  openly  for  Jesus  Christ; we are  ashamed  to  show  ourselves  in  a  light  so  new  to  us;  we  have gloried in  vice  as  if  it  had  been  a  virtue,  and  we  blush  for  being virtuous, as  though  it  were  a  shame.

As our  fortunate  sinner  had  not  been  timid  in  evil,  so  she  is  not