CATHOLIC CULTURE AND ENGLISH SPEECH

New Zealand Tablet, 24 April 1919, Page 33

CATHOLIC CULTURE AND ENGLISH SPEECH

(By the Bishop of Northampton.)

The Bishop of Northampton's recent pastoral deals with a topic of present and perennial interest, thus (says the London Tablet): The übiquity of the English tongue is an impressive fact which has “come home” to us very literally during the past four years. From all quarters of the globe, men of English speech have flocked to our shores, * from Canada, from Australia, from New Zealand, from South Africa, and elsewhere ; and last of all, but assuredly not least, have come the ever-growing hosts of the United States. It is conceivable that the British Empire may, some day, go the way of all other empires ; that it may break up, as others have broken up, and that its world-wide sway may shrink to the humble- proportions of its beginnings. But it is not easily conceivable that, within any calculable epoch, the chain of English speech, which now encircles the earth, will be severed : or that it will fail to grow stronger with the development of those young and vigorous nations whose vernacular it is, and who arc evidently destined for future greatness. This indisputable fact, flattering as it is to our patriotic sentiment, does not appeal so spontaneously to the religious sentiment of Catholics. For the English tongue, however closely identified with our ideals of democratic freedom, is hardly less closely identified with that evil thing which Cardinal Newman called “the Protestant tradition.’’ Our literature and the habits of thought it engenders and fosters are frankly non-Catholic, even when they are not openly antiCatholic. English theology is feeble and vacillating even .when it happens to be orthodox ; English philosophy is mostly sceptical and materialistic : English drama and fiction are mostly of the earth, earthy : and English journalism may be relied upon to be <jmtipapal. The Latin tongue once occupied a similar position. In the early days of Christianity, Latin was the imperial languagethe language of the Senate, the language of the Law, the language of official life, the language of polite society, the language of imperishable masterpieces in every department of pagan thought. For centuries the whole weight of Latin culture was cast against the servile religion of the Cross. As long as possible, the classical writers ignored it; and, when it could be ignored no longer, made their Latin the channel of the vilest calumnies and the most frenzied attacks upon it. Yet, in the course of Divine Providence, the Latin tongue came to be converted and baptised. It ceased to be the language of the court, only to become the language of the Church —the language of her liturgy, the language of her Councils, the language of her most illustrious doctors, the language of her Schools, the “lingua franca” of Christendom, from end to end, during the thousand years that Christendom remained one and undivided in faith.

Can it be “Converted”?

The conversion of the English tongue from the service of error, to the service of truth is an enterprise no less important for the future of civilisation. The nations outside the sphere of* Teutonic influence are already looking to the English-speaking. peoples for leadership in the political and social reconstruction which must follow the return of peace. What sound shall the trumpet give forth? The old strain of crude “naturalism,” with its appeal to our grosser and more selfish instincts? Or the clear call, which Catholicism alone can give, “to restore all things in Christ” ? Time was, and not so very long ago, when we might have despaired of making ourselves heard amid the hubbub of discordant and often hostile voices. Dr. Lingard complained, in his early days,- that a Catholic writer could expect no notice except from the verj limited circle, of Catholc readers. He hmself, by his epoch-making History of England , broke the blockade ana encouraged others, to follow , him. Newman, a

much greater name, had already, before:his. conversion, caught the public ear; and, when he became a Catholic, continued to pour out volume upon volume, so matchless in style and so characteristically English in manner, that he is read, and must always be read, as a classic wherever our tongue is spoken. After these, more and more writers could be mentioned who have made their mark in various paths of literature and journalism, and have utilized their popularity to serve their creed; while the Catholic Truth Society, and several younger societies formed on the same model, have spread broadcast cheap but scholarly tracts, exhibiting the Catholic view of public questions as they arise. The boycott against us has been sensibly relaxed. We believe that it can be made, to yield outright. Statistics alone should give us courage. Out of a thousand residential Sees in the Catholic world, more than a third are located in the British and American dominions ; and if many of these, at present, are like the cadres of an army before mobilisation, yet the Catholic subjects of these English-speaking Powers already number no less than forty millions , a total which will grow by leaps and bounds when the cadres fill up, as they are /filling up rapidly everywhere. We have shown ourselves numerous enough and united enough, each in our own country, to vindicate our political rights. Arc we not numerous enough, and can we not become united enough, to vindicate a hearing for Catholic views on reconstruction in the open fieM of public opinion ?

War Lessons.

I lie war has taught us many lessons and provided many unexpected opportunities. We have learned, for instance, the methods and vital importance of “propaganda.” In this, as in so many other ways, the enemy got the start of us : and before we realised what was happening, Prussia’s agents had managed to capture the press in the neutral, and even to some extent in the Allied countries. Everywhere, in the early months at least, we found the Prussian legend in possession : and it is only now, somewhat late in the day, that our propaganda has overtaken the enemy’s and begun to convert sympathy to our side.- Is the “Manchester ’ legend, with its sordid belief in money and material efficiency, less noxious or more impregnable than the Prussian legend, or indeed very different from it? And should it not be possible to oust the one by copying the methods that have been successful in ousting the other ? Tith/icily is all we want. Only secure publicity for the Catholic solution of the perplexing problems that confront mankind, and it will be instantly recognised as the right answer. Another lesson of the war is the necessity of combination to ensure success. By isolated efforts we can hope to make small impression on the long entrenched front of the anti-Catholic tradition. But when we have learned to marshal’and unify our, forces, we shall not have to wait for palpable results. This is the ulterior object of our visit to the United Stales, and the justification of our lengthy absence from the diocese. The special occasion, as you are aware, is the episcopal golden jubilee of his Eminence Cardinal Gibbons, the last surviving Father of. the Vatican Council, and, , as his people call him, “the first citizen of the Republic.” It is a privilege and an honor to be the bearer of our country’s homage and congratulations to him. But we are expected to “improve the occasion” by cultivating cordial relations .with our American brethren, with a view to winning the war, and co-operating with them in the re-fashioning of the world after the war. Held together as we are by the bond of faith ; drawn closer, at this crisis, by the unique tie of comradeship in arms; animated by the same ideals of political and religious freedom, our unity of speech should sweep aw«ty the last barrier to combined action in the interests of the Church and mankind. ". • Meanwhile, beloved brethren, quite unforeseen opportunities of furthering the same cause are offered to the Catholics of the Homeland. In normal times, if we were very much in earnest about it, we. should probably , try to gather a Congress of English-speaking

Catholics, assembling as many representatives as possible of our brethren from overseas. The grim chances of war have relieved us of that burden. Of its own accord, the English-speaking Catholic world has dumped itself in our midst and our brethren have come from overseas, not in tens or twenties, but in thousands and hundreds of thousands all the vigor of Catholic manhood in our colonies and in the mighty Republic of the West, They expect to grasp the hand of a fellow-Catholic wherever they find him they look to be welcomed in our family circles; they are keen to mingle in our religious and social life ; they radiate the enthusiasm and optimism of new civilisations; they are brimming over with that spirit of enterprise which is essential to business success, and no less indispensable to the success of our propaganda. Has there been ever before such an opportunity of extending and consolidating our influence? And, if we let it slip, can it be expected ever to return ?

A "Publicity” Campaign.

This appeal to emulate, in the matter of the English tongue, the triumphs of Tertullian, St. Cyprian, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine, in the matter of the Latin tongue, is based, not on insular prejudice or predilection, but on a plain fact. We do not contend for a. moment that English culture monopolises all that is worth having. We sympathise with those who cling passionately to some ancient culture, perhaps in danger of extinction? But we point to the growing predominance of English speech in the modern civilised world, and ask confidently whether it would not be the height of folly to neglect such an effective weapon, so providentially placed in our hands? For, if means can be devised for enabling the three or four hundred Englishspeaking bishops, not only to rule each his own flock, but to formulate a common policy of social and industrial reconstruction on frankly Christian lines ; if Eng-lish-speaking writers and orators can command .the attention of forty million fellow-Catholics, instead of as many hundreds ; if the leaders of Catholic opinion in the States and Colonies become household names here, and ours there ; if intercourse between our isolated and scattered churches can be made as frequent, cordial, and practical, as the intercourse between the still more isolated and scattered churches of the ancient Roman world; then we may face the uncertainties of the future in full confidence, for then the truth will be assured of that publicity which, as we have said, is the only human factor indispensable for its ultimate victory.

during which voyage -he said they experienced very heavy seas. The members present were glad to hear he was allowed sufficient time when he landed in England to visit his native land, before proceeding back, via Panama, to New Zealand. After' a month’s sojourn here, he again sailed for the Mother Country on one of the troopships, via Panama Canal, ,and after a short time in England proceeded to the war zone. The ships on which Father Murphy sailed were indeed fortunate in evading the vigilence of the menacing submarines,; etc. He remained in France until the signing of the armistice, and just when the boys were making the march to the Rhine he had the misfortune to fall ill and was sent to hospital. He expressed regret at not having had the opportunity of visiting Germany. The Children of Mary were impressed by his high opinion of the New Zealand boys, who, to his mind, were the finest men he had met in his travels, and-he vouched that they were among the best fighters who fought in France. He had many happy recollections of friendship which eventuated through association with our soldiers. In concluding his very interesting impromptu speech, he pointed out to the meeting our indebtedness to our soldiers who have done so much for us, and he appealed to the •womanhood of New Zealand . to now commence the reconstruction of this, “God's own country,” by helping in every way the brave men who so gallantly offered their lives for our safety and freedom. On behalf of the Children of Mary, the director (Father O’Byrne) thanked Father Murphy for his interesting and instructive, as well as entertaining, address.