The last hours of the Old Year hasten rapidly to an end; and, although the beginning of the New is close at hand, its events, as yet, are shrouded in impenetrable obscurity. Another important epoch in our life is about to close; and it behooves us to imitate the merchant who, to-day, takes an account of stock, and balances his books, in order to ascertain the profits and losses of the past twelve months. Taking an account of the important business of salvation, each one of us should ask himself: "Have I spent the past year in such a manner as to increase my store of Christian virtues? Have I squared my accounts with my divine Master, with that great God, who, perhaps, before the expiration of another year, may summon me before His judgment-seat?" How shall we answer these questions? Self- love will be inclined to answer in the affirmative; but "many things are . . . above the understanding of men, and the suspicion of them hath deceived many, and hath detained their minds in vanity." Dearly beloved, if you judge yourselves impartially, you will find that you have little cause for self-complacency, or for esteeming yourselves upright and perfect, for you will discover that:

I. Many who are not honest in their examination of conscience, see, in themselves, only venial sins, which are not of much importance, and pray after the manner of the Pharisee: "O God, I give thee thanks that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, nor such as this publican." (Luke 18: 11.) But, are there no other sins beside those of glaring injustice and gross impurity? Yes, unhappy man, your hands may be free from actual robbery--but, have you not cherished in your heart a robber's desires, whenever you looked with envious and covetous eyes upon the more abundant temporal goods and advantages of your neighbor? What, too, of those dishonest practices in your business, which you denominate as means to increase your profits, but which the Eternal Judge calls sins--yea, sins of robbery? And what, O father and mother, of the want and misery you prepare for yourselves or your unhappy offspring, by your intemperance, gambling, extravagance, useless expenditures, or idleness?

You say you are no murderer. I grant you, that your hands are not stained with your brother's blood--but, yet, your slanderous tongue kills the reputation of your brother, causes the death of his good name; your seductive words destroy the innocence of youth; your impious speeches against religion and the Church, slaughter the pious reverence of your fellow Christians; your wicked example has led many to destruction.

You boast that you have not committed adultery--but do not these severe words of Christ, nevertheless, apply to you: "I say unto you, that whoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath already committed adultery with her in his heart--?" (Matth. 5: 28.) You say that you have never betrayed innocence, never brought to an untimely grave the unhappy parents of a violated daughter; but, have you not, by long acquaintance, secret meetings, and the impure words and actions which accompany them, given free entrance to thoughts which, in the sight of God, if not in that of men, have robbed your victim of her purity? Behold, thus may many sins be hidden in the secret recesses of the heart, of which, perhaps, you are not aware!

II. Thus, also, our virtues, at the best, are not so great, nor so numerous, as to justify us in any self-complacency or pride. Like the Pharisee, many Christians of the present day are forever extolling the small amount of apparent good they do. They say: I go every day to Mass; I receive the Sacraments so many times a month; I belong to such and such Confraternities; I perform every day these, or those devotions; I give abundant alms; I bring up my children very strictly, etc. Very good! I do not censure all these things, as Jesus did not condemn the good deeds of the Pharisee. But, beloved Christians, while you do all this, are there not other, and, perhaps, higher duties, which you neglect? Or, may not your actions be performed through an impure or imperfect motive which renders them altogether useless? Let us see!

You go every day to Mass, and say many special prayers--but, with how much recollection and devotion? Might not God, perhaps, say of you, as he said of the Jews: "These people honor me with the lips, while their hearts are far from me"? You often receive the Sacraments--but, where are the fruits of these holy actions? Do you not remain always the same sinner? You belong to many Confraternities and Sodalities,--but, do you also belong to the great brotherhood of charity, which, having one Father in heaven, binds its members to a sincere, mutual love and forbearance. Is not your heart filled with dislike, hatred, or enmity, thus rendering null the holy intentions of your Confraternities! You give alms,--but how? Always in a kindly spirit, so that the poor may not find the bread of charity too bitter? You give alms,--and why? To please God, or merely to be praised by men?

You say that you bring up your children strictly; but, in what does the strictness consist? In this, that your children are the victims of your wrath. You punish severely trifling faults, while you overlook grave offences. Yes, if teachers or pastors point out to you the imperfections of your offspring, then, you fall upon them in anger, and your strict education is changed at once into a perverted indulgence of your spoiled and self-willed children. Again, others plume themselves upon practices of bodily mortification, upon watching and fasting. These are praiseworthy; but test them, and see if the Lord may not apply to you the words which we find in Isaias: (58: 6-8.) "Is not this rather the fast that I have chosen? loose the bands of wickedness; undo the bundles that oppress; let them that are broken, go free; and break asunder every burden. Deal thy bread to the hungry; and bring the needy and the harborless into thy house: when thou shall see one naked, cover him, and despise not thy own flesh. Then shall thy light break forth as the morning . . . . and thy justice shall go before thy face; and the glory of the Lord shall gather thee up,"--that is, the Lord will admit thee into His glory.

Time does not permit me to continue further this self-examination of the Christian, at the end of the year; but let the little that has been said, suffice to show you your whole duty on this point. Continue in this manner to examine all the actions of the past year, and the self-knowledge thus gained will preserve you from pride and vanity, and will produce in you that true humility, which is the growth of divine grace. "The greater thou art, the more humble thyself in all things; and thou shalt find grace before God: for great is the power of God alone: and He is honored by the humble." (Eccles. 3: 20-21.) On the other hand, Jesus tells us how God will exalt the humble: "Whosoever shall exalt himself, shall be humbled: and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted." (Matth. 23: 12.) Amen.

Between remembering the old year and looking forward to the new year, this day should be a busy one for the Christian. It ought to be a day of examination of conscience. Good Christians examine their consciences in some manner or other daily, and some are so vividly in God's presence that they scrutinize every act of their lives; and this is what it is to be thoroughly conscientious. Conscientiousness when cultivated is nothing less than habitual consciousness of the Divine presence. We know, to be sure, that some persons are overparticular in examination of conscience, and these are called scrupulous. But most of us are not scrupulous enough. The cultivation of the conscience tends to a constant realizing of the Divine presence, and when this becomes habitual the soul becomes perfect.

There are two kinds of examination of conscience, both of which are good. One is done at fixed times by some arrangement with one's self honestly adhered to. The other kind of examination is spontaneous. In this latter case the conscience won't let you pass an hour, or even a minute, without undergoing scrutiny. In the former casejw* examine your conscience, and in the latter your conscience examines you. I have met numbers of persons who need never examine their consciences when preparing for confession: they live habitually in the Divine presence and are ready at all moments to perform the highest spiritual duties. I think it was one of the St. Catharines who was kneading dough to make bread for the community when the bell rang for Communion; she went up and received our Lord with the dough sticking to her hands and then went back to her batch of bread: and she was excellently well disposed for Communion. St. Francis of Sales, from the evenness of character which he attained, must have had this gift of consciousness of the Divine presence in a high degree.

Brethren, I wish all of you had something of this high gift. But for most of us I may truly say that the examination of conscience which will benefit us will be that made at set times; of course, at confession. But no practice will produce better results for persons of good sense than having fixed times at which we shall go over the actions of the day. And on New Year's Day, of all days in the year, we should take account of our conduct towards God and our neighbor and ourselves, and make good resolutions for the future. The fact is that on a day like this the old year rises up and demands examination. Sometimes we say, "The past is gone." But in truth there is no such good luck as that. It would be a very good thing for some of us if the past could be politely bowed out with the old year. But there it is, fixed for ever. The past year is an account book turned over to God's court to witness for or against us; let us try and get a favorable balance out of it. At any rate, let us know the truth about it.

Let us face about, therefore, brethren, and look back over the past twelve months, and question the seasons of the old year. How did I begin the old year and how did I behave myself last winter? Did I make my Easter duty last spring? Did I attend Mass regularly and worship God through the summer, or did I make the Lord's Day one of carousing and picnicking and drinking? Have I used my tongue for blaspheming, my body for lust, my soul for slavery to the evil one? Have I unjustly gotten any of my neighbor's property? Have I been brutal to my family? These sound like ugly questions. But there's no happy New Year for you or me till we have answered them and many others besides, repented of our sins and make good resolutions for confession and Communion, and for a good life for the future.

The time to serve God is now, and the place to serve God is right here. Such, brethren, is the lesson of New Year's Day. This day is the startingpoint of the whole year, and we should appreciate that the day itself, the present time, is of greater value than the past and the future. We should start right. We should get our minds in a proper condition for the labor and suffering, the joy and sorrow, of the coming year; and that means that we should use the present moment for all that it is worth. Of course, brethren, this is the day of big wishes: "I wish you a happy New Year," we all have heard and said many times to-day; and that is a good thing. But good wishes don't put money in the bank, or pay off the mortgage on your home, or even put a fat turkey on the table. They are pleasant and charitable, and, we repeat, they are good things�all the better if, as a matter of fact, they are likely to be fulfilled.

Now, many a one says: "I cannot be as good a Christian as I should wish because I am too busy just now." So you see he takes it out in good wishes by saying, "I wish I could be a good Christian." He is one of those mentioned by our Saviour: "Not every one who says, Lord! Lord! shall enter into the kingdom of heaven"; and He adds, "but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." Thus our Saviour shows the difference between the one who says and the one who does--the good-wisher and the well-doer. Don't you see that by simply wishing you are putting your business above God? Can't you understand that you think more highly of the guest you entertain to-day than you do of the one whom you put off till to-morrow? First come, first served: and who comes before God? God the Father created you. God the Son redeemed you. God the Holy Ghost sanctified you. Is any business equal to creation, redemption, and sanctification?

But somebody might insist: Father, that is all true, and yet what I say is true. I am too busy to attend to my religious duties, and I cannot help it. My occupations force themselves upon me. I must work as I do, or I and my family will suffer. I answer: There must be something wrong about this. Is it really possible that you are compelled to work in such a way that you positively cannot receive Communion a few times a year; cannot say your night and morning prayers; cannot attend at Mass--is this really the case? If so, then you are a slave. There have been classes of men among us so situated, but they are not so now, because they rebelled against it, took effective measures to remedy the evil and succeeded in doing so. Have you tried? Have you asked leave to get off work to attend to your religious duties? Are you willing to lose a day's wages once in a while for the love of God? Think over these questions. Be honest with yourself. Do not blame your employer or excuse yourself until you have made your request and been refused.

The time to serve God is now, and the place is right here. That is the principle upon which our Sunday-school teachers act. They are busy, industrious young men and women. They find time, however, not only to take care of their own souls, but to help parents and priests to save the children of the parish. Much the same may be said of the members of the choir, the gentlemen of the St. Vincent de Paul Conference, the Altar Society, and all others who unite themselves with us in the good works of religion and charity in this parish. To such souls, active and practical, every day is New Year's Day. They are always beginning or carrying on some good work for God, their neighbor, and their own souls, and doing it right here and just now.

It is in this spirit, brethren, that I hope all the good wishes of a Happy New Year may be received by you to day, and that you may be truly happy in body and soul, in your families, and among your friends. Amen.

O merciful God, grant that I may eagerly desire, carefully search out, truthfully acknowledge, and ever perfectly fulfil things which are pleasing unto thee. Order all my state for the glory and honour of thy Name alone; and grant me to know what thou dost require me to do, and give me to do it as is fitting, and profitable to my salvation.

Grant that I may not fail or swerve either in prosperity or in adversity; that I be not lifted up by the one, nor cast down by the other. Let me joy in nothing but what leads to thee, nor grieve for any thing but what leads away from thee; let me neither seek to please, nor fear to displease, any but thee alone.

May all transitory things grow vile in my eyes, O Lord, and may all that is Thine be dear to me for thy sake, and thou, O my God, dear above them. May all joy be irksome to me that is without Thee, nor may I desire any thing that is apart from Thee. May all labour and toil delight me which is for Thee, and all rest be weariness which is not in Thee.

Grant me, O Lord, continually to lift up my heart towards Thee, and to bring sorrowfully to my mind my many shortcomings, with full purpose of amendment. Make me, O Lord, obedient without demur, poor without repining, chaste without stain, patient without murmur, humble without pretence, joyous without frivolity, fearful without abjeetness, truthful without disguise, given to good works without presumption, faithful to rebuke my neighbour without arrogance, and ever careful to edify him both by word and example without pretension.

Give me, O Lord God, an ever-watchful heart, which no subtle speculation may lure from Thee; a noble heart, which no unworthy affection can draw downwards to the earth; an upright heart, which no insincere intention can warp aside; an unconqnerable heart, which no tribulation can crush or quell; a free heart, which no perverted or impetuous affection can claim for its own.

Bestow on me, O Lord, my God, understanding to know Thee, diligence to seek Thee, wisdom to find Thee, a life and conversation which may please Thee, perseveranse in waiting patiently for Thee, and a hope which may embrace Thee at the last.

Grant me to be pierced with compunction by Thy sorrows through true repentance, to improve all Thy gifts and benefits during this my pilgrimage through Thy grace, and so at length to enter into thy full and consummate joy in Thy glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ thy Son, who liveth and reigneth, God, for ever and ever. Amen

O God, whose mercies are without number, and whose goodness is an inexhaustible treasure, we render thanks to Thy most kindly Majesty for the gifts Thou hast given, evermore beseeching Thy goodness, that whilst Thou hearest the prayers of those who ask, so deserting them not, do Thou prepare them for the blessings yet to come.