Wash Away Each Sinful Stain

Besides the intelligence and the will, other faculties, though they are numerous and diverse, can be shortly grouped under the heading of the emotions. Sometimes they are called passions in the philosophic meaning of the word; that is to say, the movements of the non-rational portion of our being. Sometimes we speak of them as sentiments, especially when we wish to imply that they are to be considered weak and effeminate. Under both categories, there will be meditations on them, for they constitute, as will be pointed out, a very considerable force in human life.

Here, however, we have only to consider them as perfected by two gifts of the Holy Ghost. For this purpose, it will be necessary to say that these emotions, though various, can be themselves divided into two main headings: love and anger.

Under the heading of love, we place joy, desire, and other similar emotions—sentiments that have upon us the effect of drawing us towards something or some person and giving us expansive feelings towards all humanity. The chief result of these, even physically, is that they widen our sympathies.

Under the heading of anger, we would place fear and the other set of feelings, the effects of which are to chill the soul, to contract the emotions, and to produce upon us the feeling of numbness. We know from experiments of psychologists that the result is to stifle action, even physically.

One set shows that our mind has been attracted, the other that it has been repelled.