Page:The Eternal Priesthood (4th ed).djvu/61

Rh vocation, next after the divine maternity of Mary and the foster-fatherhood of Joseph, ever bestowed on man: and with it the greatest grace, because proportionate to that vocation. S. Paul says to every one of us, "Be thou an example of the faithful in word, in conversation, in charity, in faith, in chastity. Neglect not the grace that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with imposition of the hands of the priesthood. Meditate upon these things: be wholly in these things—hæc meditare, in his esto: that thy proficiency (that is, thy growth in sanctity) may be manifest to all. Take heed to thyself and to doctrine: be earnest in them, for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." In this we see the exercitium perfectionis in se, et in alios, the exercise of personal and of pastoral perfection, first in his own life, and next in his actions upon his flock. Ut perfectus sit homo Dei.

The last three chapters and the present have all been directed to one end, namely, to show by how many and by how stringent obligations a priest is bound to the life of perfection. The notion of obligation has been so identified with laws, canons, vows, and contracts that, if these cannot be shown to exist, no obligation is supposed to exist. It is