upon one sinner doing penance, as. the Gospel testifies (Luke XV. 10).
42. But is it not a mark of distrust in Jesus Christ when we address ourselves to the Saints?
No; for 1. We expect grace and salvation from God alone through the merits of Jesus Christ; and 2. If it were a mark of distrust, St. Paul would not have applied to the faithful, saying: ' I beseech you, brethren, through our Lord Jesus Christ, that you may help me in your prayers for me to God' (Rom. xv. 30).
43. Why does God grant us many graces through the intercession of the Saints?
Because it is the will of God that we should acknowledge our own unworthiness and the merits of His faithful servants. Therefore He Himself, in former times, commanded the friends of Job, saying: ' Go to my servant Job, . . . and my servant Job shall pray for you' (Job xlii. 8).
44. Whom should we in particular honor and invoke above all the Angels and Saints?
Mary, the Blessed Virgin and Mother of God.
45. Why should we particularly honor and invoke Mary?
1. Because she is the Mother of God, and therefore far surpasses all the Angels and Saints in grace and glory; 2. Because, for that very reason, her intercession with God is most powerful.
46. Should we also honor the images of Jesus Christ and of the Saints?
Yes, certainly; for if even a child honors the likenesses of his parents, and a subject the image of his prince, so much the more must we honor the images of our Lord and of His Saints.
How strictly the veneration of holy images was at all times observed in the Church, was shown in the eighth century, when the heretics called Iconoclasts [image-breakers], arose. They
