POLITICS AND RELIGION.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 August 1916, Page 6

POLITICS AND RELIGION.

*' To the Editor. Sir,—ln of the 25ttl tiler's !s a letter signed "J. 0. Taylor," in which the writer, while speaking a great deal of what he believes to be true, yet puts his views crudely in speaking of the priests of Ireland and their wish to dominate. Now, lam out, not so much to answer Mr. Taylor, as to ask Catholics whether we are doing the right thing by allowing our holy religion, wihieh should be our most treasured possession, to be harmed by our political opinions. Not for U9 is the trite saying, "One religion is as good as another," because, believing ours to be the true religion, we cannot admit any other as being right. Now, then; being Catholics by the grace of God, but not through any merit of our own, we are custodians of the true faith, not our priests only, but the laity, too, a.nd we owe it to God to do all in our power to make that faith known and loved by all, irrespective of nation ality, and to share .lie wonderful consolations it affords with all. This we can do to far better effect by example than by precept, and while each giving that love to our mother country (whichever country that may lie), which is its due, and which -every true patriot foel-s, we -should never allow it to be detrimental to our religion. I quite agree with Mr. Taylor that it would be better for the-clergy to refrain from taking a leading part in polities, but my reason ii that (very rarely indeed) sometimes they go to extremes in expressing their views, and then, of course, religion suffers. In Ireland, of course. Cue people were in the habit many%years ago of looking to the clergy for gxiidaaee in matters political, because owing to their great difficulties in regard to education there wwre so few to guide them. Those diOculties are now removed, happily, and learned and able men may be counted by the thousand among the laity, thus leaving the clergy free to preach the Word of God and leave political strife far beneath tlic-m.—l am, etc., CATHOLIC FEDERATIONIST. Hawera, August 25.