In the name of the Lord Jesus and protected only by the sign of the cross, without shield or helmet, I shall penetrate the enemy’s ranks and not be afraid.
Hitherto I have served you as a soldier; allow me now to become a soldier to God. Let the man who is to serve you receive your donative. I am a soldier of Christ.
Everything, even sweeping, scraping vegetables, weeding a garden and waiting on the sick could be a prayer, if it were offered to God.
Today, we are here to celebrate, and to honor and to commemorate, the dead and the living, the young men, who in every war, since this country began, have given testimony to their loyalty to their country, and their own great courage.
On this day of remembrance, let us pray in the name of those who have fallen in this country’s wars, and most especially, who have fallen in the First World War, and in the Second World War, that there will be no veterans of any further war, not because all shall have perished, but because all shall have learned to live together in peace.
And to the dead here in this cemetery, we say, they are the race. They are the race immortal, whose beams make broad the common light of day. Though time may dim, though death has barred their portal, these we salute, which nameless passed away.
Thoughtful men and women, with hearts craving the truth, have come to seek in the Catholic Church the road which leads to eternal life.
There is in the Sacred Heart the symbol and express image of the infinite love of Jesus Christ which moves us to love in return.
Our Lord came to the aid of each great tribulation with a special devotion. The present and future tribulations of the Church and of nations are greater than at any other period, and this persecution is more dangerous than those of previous times. Hence, the devotion which God sends to the succor of His Church and of the nations at the present time is the devotion to the Most Holy Eucharist. It is the highest of all devotions.
“Those who are called to the table of the Lord must glow with the brightness that comes from the good example of a praiseworthy and blameless life. They must learn from the eminent teacher, Jesus Christ who said ‘You are the light of the world’ (see Matthew 5:14). Now a light does not illumine itself, but instead it diffuses its rays and shines all around upon everything that comes into its view. So it must be with the glowing lives of upright and holy clerics. By the brightness of their holiness they must bring light and serenity to all who gaze upon them. They have been placed here to care for others. Their own lives should be an example to others, showing how they must live in the house of the Lord.“
St John of Capistrano
Uniquely among the responsible leaders on all sides of the First World War, Karl had frontline experience. After assuming power he strove to alleviate the horrors of war he saw, and took concrete steps to bring about peace. As emperor he understood peace to be his absolute, kingly duty. In his ascension manifesto, therefore, he named peace as his central goal. Only Karl took up the peace proposal of Pope Benedict XV, incorporating its principles in a set of proposed peace accords (which historians have evaluated as thoroughly realistic and having had great potential).
The life of Emperor Karl is an encouraging example of faith. His beatification gives encouragement to all who feel overtaxed by their duty – and it invites us to use his inherent qualities (yet also limited) for the pursuit of peace, freedom and loving responsibility.