The Mistakes of Secular Newspapers

New Zealand Tablet, 3 September 1908, Page 33

The Mistakes of Secular Newspapers

When secular newspaper writers (says the ' True Voice ') undertake to treat Catholic topics the result is generally misleading and often ludicrous. Perhaps they should not be blamed too much,' for this. The average sccula*- writer knows so little of Catholic usages and customs, Church laws and regulations, that it is very difficult for him to comment upon them without falling into many mistakes. As a rule any information in regard to new Church regulations out by secular ' papers should be accepted with great caution. ' ' An instance of misleading information turned out by. the press agencies is seen in the comments of Eastern secular papers on Bishop Scannell's Lenten pastoral on the new marriage laws. The Washington 'Star 'bases its comment on the following press despatch from Omaha : — • • ' Bishop Scannell has made' a formal ruling for his diocese that all marriage engagements must be made in writing, witnessed by, two persons, before priests will be permitted to perform a marriage ceremony.' - The above refers to one of the provisions of the new marriage laws that go into' effect at Easter. It is, of course, not a diocesan regulation, but" a general Church law, that engagements after next Easter must be in writing to be considered binding. But is is quite a different thing to say that no priest will be permitted to perform a marriage ceremony unless he is shown a written engagement duly witnessed. That was a wild guess at interpretation made by the scribe who wrote the paragraph. The editor who commented upon this bit of misinformation- went wide of the mark, as might have been expected. The Church has for centuries considered a valid engagement to marry between two persons an impediment to the marriage of either of them with another party. Since an engagement to marry was a promise binding in justice she refused to marry one so engaged to any one but the person with whom the valid engagement was entered into. But since owing to the levily of society in our day it is sometimes difficult to determine whether the engagement was entered into seriously, she now demands as a proof of validity a written agreement attested by witnesses. Otherwise the party who claims an engagement to marry cannot appeal to the Church for its enforcement. The Church will not consider any mere verbal engagement to be an impediment to marriage with -another. For this reason Catholics should be careful for the future to put in writing their promises to marry. __ It will probably take the ordinary newspaper writer some years to grasp the significance of the new marriage law. In the meantime it would be a good rule for all newspapers to quote directly the text of any Church law or diocesan regulation rather than trust to their own interpretation of it. Many of these wise scribes know a great many things that arc not so, and they are not slow about- making it known.