He devoted the first part of his sermon to the description of the torment of the soul alienated from God by sin,ñaltaMartayMarí and he drew a circumstantial and complete picture of the griefs and insults which we daily inflict upon the gentle Heart of Jesus. When he came to paint the sufferings caused by sin, he abandoned the beaten track of speaking of the material torments of hell and described nothing but the spiritual anguish, the pangs, and the heartbreak felt by the soul when it sees itself deprived through its own fault of the love of the Creator; but he painted them in such gloomy colorings, and with such power of expressions, that that infinite affliction, that depth of solitude, that silence and darkness made a greater impression on the imagination of the throng than the fire and the worm usually invoked.
Maria was filled with fear and sadness. She remembered her sins, and thought with horror that she might die suddenly and be lost forever. Thereupon she made a solemn vow to grow better. But how? To change her way of living meant nothing else than to break the bond which most powerfully fettered her to the earth and sin. She became the prey to a profound disturbance replete with tears, and she could not throw it off. The clear, musical voice of the priest resounded through the great room, unweariedly relating one by one the sufferings of the damned. The congregation listened motionless and terrified. Far away in the background, near the principal altar, the image of the Saviour, encircled with candles, looked like a great red blur whose rays cast fugitive shadows across the walls of the edifice.
"But the divine compassion is inexhaustible. There is no sin so enormous that it cannot be blotted out by the mercy of God. The Saviour's love for the souls that he has redeemed by his blood is not weak and limited like that of men; like a loving father, like an affectionate spouse, He is even ready to open his arms for the repentant sinner. Man sooner tires of sinning than God of granting forgiveness, for we have at His right hand an advocate who never wearies of interceding for us. Sin not, offend not the Divine Majesty, either with words or deeds; but if ye should give way to sin, be not discouraged, keep up good heart and return to God. _Sed et si quis pecaverit_, _advocatum habemus apud Patrem_, _Jesum Christum justum_, says Saint John.[9] If ye should sin, wash with repentant tears the Redeemer's feet after the pattern of Saint Mary Magdalene, and ye shall be saved. Remember that sad, sinful woman, who, worn out with grief, appalled with love, threw herself at Jesus' feet and washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair and anointed them with ointment, while not a word fell from her lips because she was consumed with the fire of love. Oh, tears shed for God! how much ye avail, how great your power, how mighty your results! In winning forgiveness tears are more potential than words; for tears, as Saint Maximus says, are silent prayers, and demand not forgiveness if forgiveness be undeserved. There is no deception possible with tears as with words, and thus it was Saint Peter to win forgiveness for his fault used not words, since with them he had sinned, had blasphemed and denied his Lord; but he wept with bitter lamentation and was believed and pardoned. Tears are money which cannot be counterfeited, our only refuge: they purge the spots caused by our transgressions, they appease the anger of God, they win us forgiveness, they enliven the soul, they strengthen faith, magnify hope, kindle charity. The divine Jesus himself has said, 'Blessed are they who mourn; for they shall be comforted.'"