Notes

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXV, Issue 2, 28 February 1907, Page 22

Notes

Catholicism and Suicide : A Protestant View

1 Whatever may be the immediate incentive to suicides,' writes Cardinal Gifybons- in the- January "issue ci •' Th.c. Century "Magazine, 1 *' they r can -be primarily" traced to N moral cowardice and to the absence of re- : ligious restraints. ... I maintain, • then, that a sovereign antidote against suicide is to be found in a strict compliance with the lessons set before -us 'jby" the religion of . Christ.' • Curiously ejiough,- at the 1 same time a Protestant medico, Dr. C. W» Saleeby,i : writin.g in the Jafruiary number of ' Cassell's;' gives' expression to almost precisely . the - same view. Di\ ' Saleeby- sets out to investigate, the cause- of the in-_ crease in suicides, and-, he finds the- 'primei -factoi: is. worry, which has undisputed vsway over- the minds* «' of- > many, owing to the absence of their belief' in dogmatic" religion. . And-.he writes, thug -regarding .the , comparar tive influence of Protestantism and Catholicity, on. the question': — v - ",

-' As the belief ( in dogmatic 'religion undergoes ■ th a t "decline 1 -Iwhich 1 , whether 'for good of for :: evil, is un-jquesttonably-characteristic of our ; time, 14 the 'importance of worry, i increases: v A-. recent < has : shown how , the. increase in suicide- is* correlated with ' religious belief- andti disbelief r European countries taie'/proportion suicide > is"' least, where' the GatholitJ Churoh ' prevails;':, .-and- -highest •• amongst* -the' Protestants. The mnu<ber.- in ' Paris, ---as compared-" with .those • in all France, is enormous— the irtfeligrous'city- in a* partially ' .religious country;-. Italy and Spain are- examples of " less suicide in* countries- where Catholicism yet holds i her -own. a term ' here inclusive- of" ■ Lutheran 1 , Calvinlst,- and' ' other forms— invariably* has . a t high number as .compared with the Catholic Church.

This- probably points to the dark and" hopeless Calvinistic principle of predestination,- and ' also to- the need ; of guidance in mental disquietude,- the divine touch of. human -sympathy, of which every soul at some time ; is in need, being- met, more- or less well, "by the sys- \ tern of confession. --.'.. -.-... ' But the increase, of> 'Suicide is merely the most ' complete and important result* of the decline of dogmatic religion as an antidote, to worry. Many lives ; are -blighted by doubt, -or sorrow,- or fear, for which, . r 500 years -ago, the Church -would-- have- provided a re- ~ medy. . Hence it is* unquestionably true" that the can- ' sequences of worry, both as an individual -.and a-social phenomenon, become more apparent as men tend, to . , pass • further arid further from- beliefs and -practices— ( such as private and family, prayer — against which ; worry has been powerless* to prevail in times past.' Mr. W. Redmond on the Labor Party . \ The rise and development of the Labor Party 1 : in I the House of Commons forms the subject -of' a par l " tticularly interesting and instructive article from 'thepen of Mr. W.' "Redmond, M.P., in the Dublin^ ' Free- ' man ' of January 5. After tracing' with some detail the history of the. origin and- Jormation-of the party,. '. and paying a ' tribute to the excellent legislative work \ they have already accomplished, he deals', with' the re- ; lation of the Labor members -to the Irish Party. • 'As far as I know,', he says, 'and I think - 1- know all of them, there is not a single Labor mart of; either group who is not a staunch-.-fxiend- of the claim of ■ Ireland for self-government, and who is not prepared > to concede to the Irish" people, generously and as soon , as may be, all their just and reasonable claims for reform. Moreover, the Labor men are sensible of the \ fact that before their party entered the House of , Commons the. Irish Party, often lent their >■ J good services to the cause of Labor, as in" the case of the Trades Disputes Bill which was passed in. -the Commons, it will- be remembered, by Irish votes somefew years ago. This year . the Labor- men assisted Irishmen very effectively 1 -in passing the 'Laborers Bill: into ) law, and also '-the Town" Tena'rits Bill, which Was so '. maltreated by the House of 1 Lords. - I There- is ■ a great -deal, in' ctimhiori between the . Irish Party and the Labor Party,, and' much good may result from cordial" assistance - which may. be mut- . ualiy rendered i whenever, ihe -inlerests : '<of-<the! people are ; •at stake.' " - - ; On the crucial' point as to -the attitude of the La^ bor Party en . religious questions, Mr. -Redmond writes : ■ - •On religious questions again, the Labor men, as • far as> I-.knojy, • 'exhibit thef -toleration I ' and gocid feeling. Some ofithem- are- Catholics 'themselves. •All of- them- are, -. I believe, anxious -that' every religion •' should be v treated f with the -utmost' justice and fair play, though on educational > matters 1 ; most 6f<them are. secularists. On the Education Bill, of course, irfost :of the Labor men were' pledged to support some of ! . the; principles of the Government measure. But nevertheless' some few of them, notably Mr. Macpherson and Mr. O'Grady (the latter himself an Irish Cath'o-lic)-..voted; with i the' Irish- Party> and' they "were all anxious? that Catholics; in» every way should' be as well treated as Prbtestahts.' There can .be-n o dewbt that when" 1 the' qjuesition of " Irisih self-government is considered "in Parliament, a full and free- measure of reform, if only the Government have the wisdom to

pi>Opose~ if,-" will receive from the Labor men as s launch > support as it 'could receive from 'the Irish members- --themselves. Large numbers' ' of the" Irish elec-, tors" in Great" Britain voted for -the members of ••-the" present La'bor 'Party. , Many of the most necessitous' of the workers in Great Britain are Irish, • and in nearly every case, indeed I might almost say in- every-case, .the-- Labor men' on the hustings "gave their pledges to the- Irish electors "to -do their ■ best for Ireland.'