The preceding Commandments are supreme both in dignity and in
importance; but those which follow rank next in order because of their
necessity. For the first three tend directly to God; while the object of the
others is the charity we owe to our neighbour, although even these are
ultimately referred to God, since we love our neighbour on account of God, our
last end. Hence Christ our Lord has declared that the two Commandments which
inculcate the love of God and of our neighbour are like unto each other. 2
The advantages arising from the present subject can scarcely be
expressed in words; for not only does it bring with it its own fruit, and that
in the richest abundance and of superior excellence, but it also affords a test
of our obedience to and observance of the first Commandment. He that loveth
not his brother whom he seeth, says St. John, how can he love God whom
he seeth not? 3 In like manner, if we do not honor and
reverence our parents whom we ought to love next to God and whom we continually
see, how can we honor or reverence God, the supreme and best of parents, whom
we see not? Hence we can easily perceive the similarity between these two
Commandments.
The application of this Commandment is of very great extent. Besides
our natural parents, there are many others whose power, rank, usefulness,
exalted functions or office, entitle them to parental honor.
Furthermore.(this Commandment) lightens the labor of parents and
superiors; for their chief care is that those under them should live according
to virtue and the divine Law. Now the performance of this duty will be
considerably facilitated, if it be known by all that highest honor to parents
is an obligation, sanctioned and commanded by God. {a}
To impress the mind with this truth it will be found useful to
distinguish the Commandments of the first, from those of the second table. This
distinction, therefore, the pastor should first explain.
Let him begin by showing that the divine precepts of the Decalogue were
written on two tables, one of which, in the opinion of the holy Fathers,
contained the three preceding, while the rest were given on the second table.
This order of the Commandments is especially appropriate, since the
very collocation points out to us their difference in nature. For whatever is
commanded or prohibited in Scripture by the divine law springs from one of two
principles, the love of God or of our neighbour: one or the other of these is
the basis of every duty required of us. The three preceding Commandments teach
us the love which we owe to God; and the other seven, the duties which we owe
to our neighbour and to public society. The arrangement, therefore, which
assigns some of the Commandments to the first and others to the second table is
not without good reason.
In the first three Commandments, which have been explained, God, the
supreme good, is, as it were, the subject matter; in the others, it is the good
of our neighbour. The former require the highest love, the latter the love next
to the highest. The former have to do with our last end, the latter with those
things that lead us to our end.
Again, the love of God terminates in God Himself, for God is to be
loved above all things for His own sake; but the love of our neighbour
originates in, and is to be regulated by, the love of God. If we love our
parents, obey our masters, respect our superiors, our ruling principle in doing
so should be that God is their Creator, and wishes to give pre-eminence to
those by whose cooperation He governs and protects other men; and as He
requires that we yield a dutiful respect to such persons, we should do so,
because He deems them worthy of this honor. If, then, we honor our parents, the
tribute is paid to God rather than to man. Accordingly we read in St. Matthew
concerning duty to superiors: He that receiveth you, receiveth me; 4 and the Apostle in his
Epistle to the Ephesians, giving instruction to servants, says: Servants, be
obedient to them that are your lords according to the flesh, with fear and
trembling, in the simplicity of your heart, as to Christ: not serving to the
eye, as it were pleasing men, but as the servants of Christ. 5
Moreover, no honor, no piety, no devotion can be rendered to God
sufficiently worthy of Him, since love of Him admits of infinite increase.
Hence our charity should become every day more fervent towards Him, who
commands us to love Him with our whole heart, our whole soul, and with all
our strength. 6. The love of our neighbour, on the contrary,
has its limits, for the Lord commands us to love our neighbour as ourselves.
To outstep these limits by loving our neighbour as we love God would be
an enormous crime. If any man come to me, says the Lord and hate not
his father and mother, and wife and children, and brethren and sisters, yea,
and his own life also; he cannot be my disciple. 7 In the same way, to one who would first attend the burial of his
father, and then follow Christ, it was said: Let the dead bury their dead;
8 and the same lesson is more clearly conveyed in St. Matthew: He
that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me. 9
Parents, no doubt, are to be highly loved and respected; but religion
requires that supreme honor and homage be given to Him alone, who is the
Creator and Father of all, and that all our love for our earthly parents be
referred to our eternal Father who is in heaven. Should, however, the
injunctions of parents be at any time opposed to the Commandments of God,
children are, of course, to prefer the will of God to the desires of their
parents, always keeping in view the divine maxim: We ought to obey God
rather than men. 10 {b}
After these preliminaries the pastor should explain the words of the
Commandment, beginning with honor. To honor is to think
respectfully of anyone, and to hold in the highest esteem all that relates to
him. It includes love, respect, obedience and reverence.
Very properly, then, is the word honor used here in preference
to the word fear or love, although parents are also to be much
loved and feared. Respect and reverence are not always the accompaniments of
love; neither is love the inseparable companion of fear; but honor, when
proceeding from the heart, combines both fear and love. {c}
The pastor should next explain who they are, whom the Commandment
designates as fathers; for although the law refers primarily to our
natural fathers, yet the name belongs to others also, and these seem to be indicated
in the Commandment, as we can easily gather from numerous passages of
Scripture. Besides our natural fathers, then, there are others who in Scripture
are called fathers, as was said above, and to each of these proper honor is
due.
In the first place, the prelates of the Church, her pastors and priests
are called fathers, as is evident from the Apostle, who, writing to the
Corinthians, says: I write not these things to confound you; but I admonish
you as my dearest children. For if you have ten thousand instructors in Christ,
yet not many fathers. For in Christ Jesus by the gospel I have begotten you.
11 It is also written in Ecclesiasticus: Let us praise men of
renown, and our fathers in their generation. 12
Those who govern the State, to whom are entrusted power, magistracy, or
command, are also called fathers; thus Naaman was called father by his
servants. 13
The name father is also applied to those to whose care, fidelity,
probity and wisdom others are committed, such as teachers, instructors masters
and guardians; and hence the sons of the Prophets called Elias 14 and Eliseus 15 their father. Finally, aged
men, advanced in years, we also call fathers.
In his instructions the pastor should chiefly emphasize the obligation
of honoring all who are entitled to be called fathers, especially our natural
fathers, of whom the divine Commandment particularly speaks. They are, so to
say, images of the immortal God. In them we behold a picture of our own origin;
from them we have received existence, them God made use of to infuse into us a
soul and reason, by them we were led to the Sacraments, instructed in our
religion, schooled in right conduct and holiness, and trained in civil and
human knowledge.
The pastor should teach that the name mother is mentioned in
this Commandment, in order to remind us of her benefits and claims in our
regard, of the care and solicitude with which she bore us, and of the pain and
labor with which she gave us birth and brought us up.
The honor which children are commanded to pay to their parents should
be the spontaneous offering of sincere and dutiful love. This is nothing more
than their due, since for love of us, they shrink from no labor, no exertion,
no danger. Their highest pleasure it is to feel that they are loved by their
children, the dearest objects of their affection. Joseph, when he enjoyed in
Egypt the highest station and the most ample power after the king himself,
received with honor his father, who had come into Egypt. 16 Solomon rose to meet his mother as she approached; and having
paid her respect, placed her on a royal throne on his right hand. 17 {d}
We also owe to our parents other duties of respect, such as to
supplicate God in their behalf, that they may lead prosperous and happy lives,
beloved and esteemed by all who know them, and most pleasing in the sight of
God and of the Saints in heaven.
We also honor them by submission to their wishes and inclinations. My
son, says Solomon, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law
of thy mother; that grace may be added to thy head, and a chain of gold to thy
neck. 18 Of the same kind are the exhortations of St.
Paul. Children, he says, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is
just; 19
and also, children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing
to the Lord. 20 (This doctrine) is confirmed by the example of the holiest men.
Isaac, when bound for sacrifice by his father, meekly and uncomplainingly
obeyed; 21
and the Rechabites, not to depart from the counsel of their father, always
abstained from wine. 22 {e}
We also honor our parents by the imitation of their good example; for,
to seek to resemble closely anyone is the highest mark of esteem towards him.
We also honor them when we not only ask, but follow their advice.
Again we honor our parents when we relieve their necessities, supplying
them with necessary food and clothing according to these words of Christ, who,
when reproving the impiety of the Pharisees, said: Why do you also
transgress the commandments of God because of your traditions? For God said:
"Honour thy father and thy mother," and "He that shall curse
father or mother let him die the death." But you say: "Whosoever
shall say to his father or mother, The gift whatsoever proceedeth from me,
shall profit thee." And he shall not honour his father or his mother; and
you have made void the commandment of God for your tradition. 23
But if at all times it is our duty to honor our parents, this duty
becomes still more imperative when they are visited by severe illness. We
should then see to it that they do not neglect confession and the other
Sacraments which every Christian should receive at the approach of death. We
should also see that pious and religious persons visit them frequently to
strengthen their weakness, assist them by their counsel, and animate them to
the hope of immortality, that having risen above the concerns of this world,
they may fix their thoughts entirely on God. Thus blessed with the sublime
virtues of faith, hope and charity, and fortified by the helps of religion,
they will not only look at death without fear, since it is necessary, but will
even welcome it, as it hastens their entrance into eternity.
Finally, we honor our parents, even after their death, by attending
their funerals, procuring for them suitable obsequies and burial, having due
suffrages and anniversary Masses offered for them, and faithfully executing
their last wills.
We are bound to honor not only our natural parents, but also others who
are called fathers, such as Bishops and priests, kings, princes and
magistrates, tutors, guardians and masters, teachers, aged persons and the
like, all of whom are entitled, some in a greater, some in a less degree, to
share our love, our obedience, and our assistance.
Of Bishops and other pastors it is written: Let the priests that
rule well be esteemed worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in
the word and doctrine. 24
What wondrous proofs of love for the Apostle must the Galatians have
shown ! For he bears this splendid testimony of their benevolence: I bear you
witness that if it could be done, you would hove plucked out your own eyes, and
would have given them to me. 25
The priest is also entitled to receive whatever is necessary for his
support. Who, says the Apostle, serveth as a soldier at his own
charges? 26. Give honour to the priests, it is
written in Ecclesiasticus, and purify thyself with thy arms; give them their
portion, as it is commanded thee, of the first fruits and of purifications.
27
The Apostle also teaches that they are entitled to obedience: Obey
your prelates, and be subject to them; for they watch as being to render an
account of your souls. 28. Nay, more. Christ the Lord
commands obedience even to wicked pastors: Upon the chair of Moses have
sitten the scribes and Pharisees: all things, therefore, whatsoever they shall
say to you, observe and do; but according to their works do ye not, for they
say and do not. 29 {f}
The same is to be said of civil rulers, governors, magistrates and others
to whose authority we are subject. The Apostle in his Epistle to the Romans,
explains at length the honor, respect and obedience that should be shown them,
and he also bids us to pray for them. 31. St. Peter
says: Be ye subject, therefore, to every human creature for God's sake;
whether it be to the king as excelling, or to governors as sent by him. 32
For whatever honor we show them is given to God, since exalted human
dignity deserves respect because it is an image of the divine power, and in it
we revere the providence of God who has entrusted to men the care of public
affairs and who uses them as the instruments of His power.
If we sometimes have wicked and unworthy officials it is not their
faults that we revere, but the authority from God which they possess. Indeed,
while it may seem strange, we are not excused from highly honoring them even
when they show themselves hostile and implacable towards us. Thus David
rendered great services to Saul even when the latter was his bitter foe, and to
this he alludes when he says: With them that hated peace I was peaceable.
33
However, should their commands be wicked or unjust, they should not be
obeyed, since in such a case they rule not according to their rightful
authority, but according to injustice and perversity.
Having explained the above matters, the pastor should next consider the
reward promised to the observance of this Commandment and its appropriateness.
That reward is great, indeed, for it consists principally in length of days.
They who always preserve the grateful remembrance of a benefit deserve to be
blessed with its prolonged enjoyment. Children, therefore, who honor their
parents, and gratefully acknowledge the blessing of life received from them are
deservedly rewarded with the protracted enjoyment of that life to an advanced
age.
The (nature of the) divine promise also demands distinct explanation.
It includes not only the eternal life of the blessed, but also the life which
we lead on earth, according to the interpretation of St. Paul: Piety is
profitable to all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that
which is to come. 34
Many very holy men, it is true, such as Job, 35 David, 36 Paul, 37 desired to die, and a long
life is burdensome to the afflicted and wretched: 38 but the reward which is
here promised is, notwithstanding, neither inconsiderable, nor to be despised.
The additional words, which the Lord thy God will give thee,
promise not only length of days, but also repose, tranquillity, and security to
live well; for in Deuteronomy it is not only said, that thou mayest live a
long time, but it is also added, and that it may be well with thee, 39 words afterwards quoted by
the Apostle. 40
These blessings, we say, are conferred on those whose piety God
rewards; otherwise the divine promises would not be fulfilled, since the more
dutiful child is sometimes the more short lived.
Now this happens sometimes because it is better for him to depart from
this world before he has strayed from the path of virtue and of duty; for he
was taken away lest wickedness should alter his understanding, or deceit
beguile his soul. 41. Or because destruction and
general upheaval are impending, he is called away that he may escape the
calamities of the times. The just man, says the Prophet, is taken away from
before the face of evil, 42 lest his virtue and salvation be endangered when God avenges the
crimes of men. Or else, he is spared the bitter anguish of witnessing the
calamities of his friends and relations in such evil days. The premature death
of the good, therefore, gives special reason for fear. {h}
But if God promises rewards and blessings to grateful children, He also
reserves the heaviest chastisements to punish those who are wanting in filial
piety; for it is written: He that curseth his father or mother shall die the
death: 43 He
that afflicteth his father and chaseth away his mother, is infamous and
unhappy. 44 He that curseth his father and mother,
his lamp shall be put out in the midst of darkness: 45 The eye that mocketh at
his father, and that despiseth the labour of his mother in bearing him, let the
ravens of the brooks pick it out, and the young eagles eat it. 46 There are on record many
instances of undutiful children, who were made the signal objects of the divine
vengeance. The disobedience of Absalom to his father David did not go
unpunished. On account of his sin he perished miserably, transfixed by three
lances. 47
Of those who resist the priest it is written: He that will be proud,
and refuse to obey the commandment of the priest, who ministereth at that time
to the Lord thy God, by the decree of the judge, that man shall die. 48
As the law of God commands children to honor, obey, and respect their
parents so are there reciprocal duties which parents owe to their children. {i} Parents are obliged to
bring up their children in the knowledge and practice of religion, and to give
them the best rules for the regulation of their lives; so that, instructed and
trained in religion, they may serve God holily and constantly. It was thus, as
we read, that the parents of Susanna acted. 49
The priest, therefore, should admonish parents to be to their children
guides in the virtues of justice, chastity, modesty and holiness. {j}
He should also admonish them to guard particularly against three
things, in which they but too often transgress.
In the first place, they are not by words or actions to exercise too
much harshness towards their children. This is the instruction of St. Paul in
his Epistle to the Colossians: Fathers, he says, provoke not your
children to anger, lest they be discouraged. 50 For there is danger that
the spirit of the child may be broken, and he become abject and fearful of
everything. Hence (the pastor) should require parents to avoid too much
severity and to choose rather to correct their children than to revenge
themselves upon them.
Should a fault be committed which requires reproof and chastisement,
the parent should not, on the other hand, by undue indulgence, overlook its
correction. Children are often spoiled by too much lenity and indulgence on the
part of their parents. The pastor, therefore, should deter from such excessive
mildness by the warning example of Heli, the high-priest, who, on account of overindulgence
to his sons, was visited with the heaviest chastisements. 51 {k}
Finally, to avoid what is most shameful in the instruction and
education of children, let them not propose to themselves aims that are
unworthy. Many there are whose sole concern is to leave their children wealth,
riches and an ample and splendid fortune; who encourage them not to piety and
religion, or to honourable employment, but to avarice, and an increase of
wealth, and who, provided their children are rich and wealthy, are regardless
of their good name and eternal salvation. Can anything more shameful be thought
or expressed? Of such parents it is true to say, that instead of bequeathing
wealth to their children, they leave them rather their own wickedness and
crimes for an inheritance; and instead of conducting them to heaven, lead them
to the eternal torments of hell.
The priest, therefore, should impress on the minds of parents salutary
principles and should exhort them to imitate the virtuous example of Tobias, 52 that having properly
trained up their children to the service of God and to holiness of life, they
may, in turn, experience at their hands abundant fruit of filial affection,
respect and obedience.
Endnotes
– The Fourth Commandment
1>
Exod.
xx. 12.
2>
Matt.
xii. 39; Mark xii. 31.
3>
1
John iv. 20.
4>
Matt.
x. 40.
5>
Eph.
vi. 5, 6.
6>
Deut.
vi. 5; Luke x. 27; Matt. xxii. 37-39.
7>
Luke
xiv. 26.
8>
Luke
ix. 60.
9>
Matt.
x. 37.
10> Acts v. 29.
11> 1 Cor. iv. 14-16.
12> Eccl xliv. 1.
13> 4 Kings v. 13
14> 4 Kings ii 12.
15> 4 Kings xiii. 14.
16> Gen. xlvi. 29.
17> 3 Kings ii. 19
18> Prov. i. 8, 9.
19> Eph. vi. 1.
20> Col iii. 20.
21> Gen. xxii. 9.
22> Jerem. xxxv. 6.
23> Matt. xv. 3-6.
24> 1 Tim. v. 17.
25> Gal. iv. 15.
26> 1 Cor. ix. 7.
27> Ecclus. vii. 33, 34.
28> Heb. xiii. 17.
29> Matt. xxiii. 2, 3.
30> Rom. xiii. 1.
31> 1Tim. ii. 2.
32> 1 Pet. ii. 13.
33> Ps. cxix. 7.
34> 1 Tim. iv. 8.
35> Job iii
36> Ps. cxix. 5.
37> Phil. ii. 17.
38> 2 Cor. v. 2.
39> Deut. v. 16.
40> Eph. vi. 3.
41> Wis. iv. 10, 11.
42> Isa. lvii. 1.
43> Exod. xxi. 17; Lev. xx.9.
44> Prov. xix. 26.
45> Prov. xx. 20.
46> Prov. xxx. 17.
47> 2 Kings xviii. 14.
48> Deut. xvii. 12.
49> Dan. xiii. 3.
50> Col. iii. 21.
51> 1 Kings iv. 18.
52> Tobias iv.
{a}
On the fourth Commandment see Summa Theol. 2a 2ć. cxxii. 5; St Alphonsus.
Theol. Mor. iii. tr. 3. c. 2.
{b}
On the love of God and of our neighbor see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. xxv-xxvii;
xliv.
{c}
On honor and reverence see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. cii. ciii.
{d}
On the virtue of piety see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. c. 1.
{e}
On obedience see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. civ. cv.
{f} On the honor and obedience due to
ecclesiastical superiors see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. cii. civ. 5; Code of Canon
Law, canon 119.
{g}
On the honor and obedience due to civil rulers see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. cii.
civ. 6.
{h}
On the promise attached to the fourth Commandment see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć.
cxxii. 5. ad 4.
{i} On love of parents for their children see
Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. xxvi. 9.
{j} On scandal see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. xliii.
{k}
On correction see Summa Theol. 2a. 2ć. xxxiii.; lxv. 2.