The Catholic times. [volume], May 27, 1955, Image 4

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4—THE CATHOLir TIMES
Friday. May 27.1955
THE
CATHOLIC TIMES
Published Every Week by
The Catholic Times. Inc.
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Feast of Fire
flush Of vigor surges through Christendom
on Pentecost Sunday brilliant red are the vestments
of the priests at lhe altar of God that day as the
church commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit
upon the Apontles. Fot it is a feast of lire that is
celebrated: “tongues as it were of fire,” the Scrip
ture says, appeared and “settled upon each of
them a mighty fire of zeal blazed up within them:
a fire was kindled upon the earth that day that is
to spread its warmth and fervor until the end of
time. On that first Pentecost the Church, founded
by Christ, received its divine infusion from the Holy
Spirit and began its mission of leading men Io
salvation.
The people gathered in Jerusalem on that first
Pentecost, “men from every nation under heaven.”
were astounded tn hear the Apostles speaking in
words that all could understand, speaking “of the
wonderful works nf God even so the message of
the Gospel has been carried by the Church to every
land and to every nation, and in every language,
an that, as the Psalmist had foretold, “the spirit of
the Ixird hath filled the whole earth.”
Radiant with truth and wisdom is the fire of
Pentecost, bringing warmth and comfort, burning
away evil, melting indifference, dispelling the dark
ness of doubt and error, for it is a fire of love,
the divine love that conquers all. Draw close to
this fire, the Church admonishes her children, for
in it is grace, a stronger faith, a protection against
temptation. The fire nf Pentecost brings the gifts of
the Holy Spirit—wisdow, understanding, counsel,
fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of the Izird—and
how the world today suffers because of failure to
accept these gifts! Men’s minds are dark, because
they will not turn tn this divine light nations re
main confuted, because they have shut out this
•nurce nf wisdom and understanding weakness and
shameful compromise prevail, for lack of the forti
tude that is spiritual injustice and evils of all
kind* flourish, because they are not stemmed hy de
termination to serve God and by fear of offending
Him.
On that first Pentecost the faithful disciples “were
all together in one place." with Mary in their midst
and with Peter occupying the post of leadership for
which Christ had chosen him we, too, should he
united, in the company of Majy and in loyalty to
the successor of Peter When the tongues of fire ap
peared "they were all filled with the Ho|v Spirit,"
as we should be and ‘he fervor with which they
were inspired sent them out tn win the world to
Christ, a mission in which we should he similarly
Inspired to dn our part. And ceaselessly we should
repeat the great prayer of Pentecost “Come, O
Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and
kindle in them the fire of divine love.”
Going Steady Has
Many Liabilities
We have all heard the trite old phrase repeated
ad nauseam about marrying in haste and repenting
leisurely. Usually such incidents result from mo
mentary blindness, which is another way of saying
that certain types or kinds of love induce a tem
porary loss of intellectual vision
In some instances we can understand the lathers
smn concurrence in his daughter's elop
ment. The old comedy cartoon of the lather in his
nightshirt holding the ladder, while the somewhat
futile liothario struggled to carry the girl down the
creaking steps, is completely lost on II. modern
generation. Rut the point is that the Church does
have definite legislation about engagements,
and many and valid reasons for the same.
The other day a neighbor of Jewish ancestry
and religious conviction was discussing I is daugh
ter's future with me. 1-et us call him Jack. Jack
told me that his daughter had announced to his wife
and himself that she was engaged to Solomon. He
was a wonderful boy, eve., as she was a comely and
deservedly respected young lady. Roth were in col
lege. They announced one evening that they would
continue at the State university until graduation
three years hence, and get married
The Dad hlew his cork! To him it was strictly
Intolerable and indecent that an engagement should
continue beyond a year! When I asked him (with
tongue in cheek) why hA should remonstrate so
vehemently about the contemplated delay, he asked:
“Are you crazy'’ Such a engagement could ruin
my daughter socially, physically, and morally."
The Church would agree in every step of Jack's
analysis of the hazards, hut in the reverse order.
Unquestionably there are betrothals that must neces
sard. Iasi for years. War has made havoc of many
nuptial plans in our day, and economic and other
modified disasters have forced intolerable ri*lavs
in otherwise imminent tastes of connnubial bliss.
Rid the fact remains that the exceptions of tunc and
eireumstanc* do but mak» the more obvious the law
that demands common sense and tringent moral
aafecuavds for prolonged engagements.
In the olden days 1he Church demanded that
engagements he contracted somewhat in the same
manner as marriages The betrothals had to he set
tled in the nresencc of the pastor and a couple of
witnesses. The date of the marriage was set, and
1 am sure it was not delayed for a seeming eternity.
Other pertinent details were also resolved From
that time forward the lovely little ilossom of fem
inine beauty was not buzzed by anv other kingpin
than her betrothed, and neither did the knight in
shminc armor squire any other maiden than his
beloved
Perhaps a reversal to some of the ancient cus
toms would delay marriages and atteinnled mar
riages of todav until ch a time as knowledge
emild confirm the first impression, and not prolong
the betrothal until judgment was fogged hv senility.
The danger* ran he mitigated, the temptation* lim
lied and joys of the future made permanent hv
some measure nf sanitv and sanctity. Sanctitv will
begot «ani1v hy the simple expedient of dailv prav?r.
And if we need ideals, they are to hr found in a
thousand facets of the life of the Ples«ed Virgin.
Somebody Always Pays
No doubt th* popularity of the welfare state
arises from the human urge to receive without giv
ing. to profit without risk to earn witholt labor, tn
arrive finally at a state nf security where the gov
ernment provides a guarantee against worry and
scant.
I
But twee again the welfare state breaks down.
Its propaganda has resolved around the clever
malarkey that everything is “free” in the welfare
state. There is nothing free, inside government or
out of it. Someone has to foot the bill. And that
someone is old. long-suffering John Q. Public.
What the bureaucrat puts in one of his pockets
he has taken out of the other. There is no such
thing as "free” education, “free” medicine or “free”
anything else Someone pays. With Big Government,
the payment is always accompanied by waste.
The Monitor, San Francisco, May 6
list Among Ourselves
Passing Comment Considered er Inconsiderate
Comes now the magnificent Feast of Pentecost.
Pentecost is Greek for fiftieth the Feast comes
on the fiftieth day after Easter. It is remarkable
that the names of immeasurably great things are
often formed from fragments of expression, often
merely circumstantial in their meaning. The word
Easter is the name of a pagan goddess whose festival
gave way to the Christian celebration nf the Resur
rection. The name Mass is only part of a l-atin
verh which indicates the dismissal of the congre
gation after the Sublime Sacrifice. The word
Pentecost means only fiftieth.
This naming of things by unimportant details
of circumstance, is not restricted to matters re
ligious. It is a universal human habit. Consider, for
instance, our use of the word bus to indicate a pub
lic conveyance. The full word is, of juurse, omnibus,
which is Isatin, meaning for nil. We make the last
three letters serve for the whole word, although
those same three letters ar the terminal of thousands
of other Isatin nouns, and. taken hy themselves, have
no meaning at all.
Pentecost is sometimes called Whitsunday, that
is, White-Sunday. This name, long fading in popular
use. was given because of the white albs of candi
dates for ordination and the white garments of per
sons to be baptizeo on Pentecost Eve. Here again
we have a name framed upon circumstance, and
neither the word Pentecost nor the word Whit
sunday has any clear suggestion that it means the
Feast of the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the
Apostles.
Pentecost is sometimes called the Birthday of
the Church. For the Church. found’d and formed
by Our Ixird before His departure info heaven on
Ascension Day, first existed somewhat as an unborn
child, and was not delivered into manifest being
and function until is hurst forth from the room
where the Holy Ghost had come with a great wind
and tongues of fire, and the Apostles, hitherto sil
ent and afraid, proclaimed the truth of our Faith to
all th* world.
The descent of the Holv Ghost, with the outer
manifestation of wind and lire, was not only a great
miracle it was also the fulfillment of a repeated
prophecy of Christ. When the Holy Ghost comes to
us, as He does with each grace received, with each
sacrament, and especially in Confirmation, we do
not call His coming a miracle, for there is no outer
and striking sign then given. Nor does His coming
mean the wondrous illumination of mind that it
meant to the Apostles, nor does it bring the gift of
tongues which enabled all hearers of all nationali
ties to understand what the Apostles said.
Yet we receive the Holy Ghost as truly as the
Apostles received Him, and His coming gives us
as cor-plete an equipment for our own lives and
vocations as the Apostles received for themselves
and their work Of this fact, too, we ought to think
on Pentecost Day, and because of it we should stir
up in our souls the spirit of appreciation and last
ing gratitude to God. And we must pray that what
has been so generously bestowed uoon us may be
received by the millions who stubbornly close hearts
and wills against the entrance nf the Holy Spirit.
When one Divine Person of the Blessed Trin
ity is said to be sent, that word has a special mean
ing. Our Lord said that the Father had sent Him.
and that He and the Father would send the Holy
Ghost. St. Thomas Aquinas tells us that the sending
of a Divine Person is the coming present of that
Person in a new way. The Three Persons are One
God and God is everywhere. Yet God the Son came
present in a new way when He became Man God
the Holy Ghost came present in a new way when He
manifested Himself by the mighly wind and the
tongues of fire.
Certainly, we know that the Three Persons (who
are One God) are co-equal, and that One is not the
superior of Any Other, so as to send that Other
as a child or servant is sent upon an (Mirand. We
cannot, to be sure, express divine mystery with
adequacy in human speech we do our best, and
make constant check and reminder to keep our
best from being misleading or misled We say that
the Son is sent by the Father that the Holy Ghost
is sent by the Father and the Son we do not speak
of the Father as sent.
What an amazing change the coming of the
Holy Ghost produced in the Apostles. They had
hern timid now they were unafraid. They had
kept behind locked doors for fear of the Jews
now they stood before the world and proclaimed
our Catholic Faith, They had no plan of campaign
now they went about the business of winning all
men to Christ, and in a hort time they “changed
the face of the earth.”
Our Ixird had told His Apostles that the Holy
Ghost would come upon them, and would bring
to their minds all that He had taught them, indeed
every word that he had said to them Ry the grace
of the Resurrection, and by their ordination, the
Apostles knew the truth of the Faith. And still they
must have been foggy in mind on many of its details.
In the very hour nf Our lord's Ascension, they
had asked Him if He were then going to restore the
kingdom of God on earth, making Israel a great
and cnnquering power: the old notion of an earthly
triumph had not hern wholly cleared from their
minds.
The Apostles knew very well that the people
who had crucified Christ would put to death the
men chosen to preach His Resurrection and His
Church. They knew this before the Holy ost came,
and they knew it, with added clarity, after He
came to them. But once the Holy Ghost had come,
that knowledge made no difference. They went
forward to certain martyrdom, rejoicing that they
were found worthy to suffer contumely and perse
cution in the cause of Jesus Christ.
Thus Pentecost Day is really the birthday of
the Church. On that day the Church was set
before the world, like a city on a hill that cannot
be hid. On that day the Faith, like a tidal
wave, swept over the earth, despite the fact that
everything on earth was bitterly opposed to its
spreading. Overnight, the startled w.ir'd was aware
of this New Thing that had been but recently a
mere local movement and disturbance in and around
Jerusalem, and had been presumably topped and
destroyed by a public execution on Calvary. On
Pentecost Day, the Holy Spirit moved upon the
Church, as once it had moved over the waters, and
brought to Rirth and Bring the everlasting Kingdom
of God among mankind.
&
p-
■f
i
WASHINGTON LETTER
WASHINGTON The whole
world will watch anxiously to
see what comes of the visit to
Yugoslavia by some of the top
communists of Moscow. No one
will be more interested than
our own officials here.
Marshal Tito, the avowed com
munist dictator of Yugoslavia,
has long plaved the East against
the West. After W'orld War II,
he broke with Stalin and Yugo
slavia was publicly expelled
from the Cominform in 1946. But
Tito continued to say on every
possible occasion that he was a
communist, and that he intended
to remain one.
The United States moved in
and began to woo Tito with enor
mous gifts of money and other
aid. Tito still let it be known
that he was a communist, and
would offer no assurance that
he would side with us in any
violent differences with Moscow.
Officials here tried to quiet the
misgivings of the American peo
ple about all this. In the press
and on the radio and television,
they said it was “O.K.” Sure,
they said, Tito is a communist.
They knew it. But, knowing it,
LOUIS F. RLDENZ
World events make more pert
inent what this column said some
time ago: If Mr. Eisenhower will
take a strong stand against So
viet psycholog
ical warfare,
he will be a
greater Presi
dent than ever
he was a Gen
era^
The direc
tives given the
concealed Com
munists in the
May issue of
Political Af
fairs reinforces
this thought. The chief article,
“Peace and the 1956 Elections."
is dedicated to the necessity for
the comrades to bring pressure
for the complete surrender hy
Washington to the current Soviet
program.
the validity of
Denouncing the "ecclesiastical
foxiness" of Secretary of State
John Foster Dulles, Political
Affairs orders the concealed
Reds to maneuver in both the
Republican and Democratic par
ties “against a Quemoy-Matsu
war” and for “Big Power negotia
tions” that will lead to the dis
arming of West Germany.
In-sult Apparent
Certain conclusions arise from
this important article and from
subsequent issues of the Daily
Worker which supplement its
theme. These are conclusions of
value to all of us. For one thing,
it is clear that the slight set
backs to Soviet strategy, which
the article reports, and the
exchange in Soviet maneuvering
are the result of such firmness
as we have recently shown. A
central point of attack in
Political Affairs is "Eisenhow
er's Formosa solution"—that is,
the resolution for the defense of
Formosa adopted bj Congress at
the President’s request.
Of this move Political Affairs
says: “The Administration and
its bi-partisan supporters regard­
Pentecost—Then, Now
7
Now, What's Tito up to?
and knowing that hp promised
us nothing in return for our
generosity, we knew where we
stood, and we knew how to han
dle the situation.
And now comes the visit of
Soviet Russian Premier Nikolai
Bulganin, Communist Party Chief
Nikita S. Khruschev, Deputy
Premier Anastasi Mikoyan and
other Red notables to Belgrade.
What does it mean? No one
here seems to know, as yet.
Tito’s Foreign Ministry has
sent word to our State Depart
ment that it does not mean any
change in his resolution to have
friendly relations with the West.
Why then does he receive the
top Reds from Moscow? It does
not seem at all likely that the
Red rulers of Russia would go
to Belgrade to see Tito, unless
they hoped to gain something
thereby. And they must have pret
ty good assurance of success for
some worthwhile project, or such
high-ranking “brass” would not
go, and the visit would not be
announced in advance with
such confidence.
Any betterment of relations
between Tito and Moscow must
'Negotiations' Chief Red Aim
ed this war provocation as es
sential to prevent further deter
ioration of American imperial
ism’s position in the Far East,
to improve Washington’s ‘bar
gaining* status' in future negotio
tions, and to strengthen the ser
iosly weakened Asian flank in
the global operations directed to
wards eventual world mastery by
force."
The insult to the United States
in this statement is apparent—
that a Soviet fifth column can
accuse u» of "world domination”
aims because of a minimum meas
ure of defense in the Pacific.
Even columnist Joseph Alsop,
who has been devoted to appease
ment, writes on May 10 that a
continued policy of “retreat and
appeasement" in Asia will lose
Japan and the whole Pacific.
Moral Evident
It is quite evident that the
“Formosa resolution” slowed
down Soviet designs on that is
land. It is because of this that
the cry which rises higher and
higher, “Get out of Quemoy and
Matsu,” has been raised by the
Reds. It is a big item in the
Political Affairs issue, where it
is frankly linked up with "the re
lated questions” of proposing
our betrayal of Formos: and the
admission of Red China into the
United Nations. As recent as
May 11, the plea of the Daily
Worker to the comrades to whip
up the campaign for giving up
the offshore islands is given
front-page place.
The moral is quite evident. If
the United Stales would take a
still stronger stand—by break
ing off relations with Soviet Rus
sio and the satellite regimes
there would be an even greater,
a permanent, halting of Soviet
aggression.
Another thing that comes out
of all of this is that the Reds
count on "Rig Power negotia
tions" tn defeat us. The leading
editorial in the Daily Worker
nf May 11, following up the Po-
&
mean a corresponding deteriora
tion of his relations with us. His
worth to this country has been
solely that he was “on the outs”
with his fellow communists in
Moscow. If he makes up with
them, and becomes friendly with
them his usefulness to us will
drop accordingly.
Some authorities have suggest
ed that Moscow hgs no advance
assurance of success. Its top
“brass”, they explain may be
going down to Belgrade to put
pressure on Tito, if they achieve
nothing constructive. And the
higher the “brass,” they contend,
the more the pressure exerted.
But, if that theory is the right
one, would the rulers of the
Kremlin try to exert pressure in
such a grand manner, if they
didn’t think it would work?
In either case, Moscow seems
to think it’s going to get some
advantage out of the visit. To the
extent it does, our very large in
vestment in Tito will decline in
value.
We’ve already got far more
cooperation and tangible results
from Spain and from far less
investment.
litical Affairs article, opens up
with these words: "President
Eisenhower’s agreement re
luctant though it was to a
top-level Big Four meeting will
be greeted by the American peo
ple.” By “the American people”
the Communists mean, of course,
themselves and their friends and
the newspapers susceptible to
the Communist line. It concludes
with the following: “The peace
cam? is winning a big victory.
Now it must nail it down by in
suring the holding of a Big Four
conference in the spirit of end
ing the entire cold war.”
Necessarily, this has to be read
with an understanding of the
Communist jargon. For a mo
ment’s consideration will recall
that “the cold war” was begun
and stimulated by the Kremlin,
and that every negotiation which
has led to American surrender
has heen brought about in the
name of “lasting peace.” Even
way back in the days of Yalta,
the betrayal of Poland and China
was represented as “insuring
peace.”
But if the United States does
enter into "Big Power negotio
tions” at what is called “the
summit", we can count on fur
ther American difficulties. The
Communists, as reflected in both
Political Affairs and the Daily
Worker, are confident that “our
allies” will maneuver us at any
such conference into surrender
ing Quemoy, Matsu. Formosa,
and even South Korea eventually.
These “allies" are also repre
sented as possible Soviet pawns
in other areas. The Daily Worker
of May 11 cites with approval the
reference in several papers, and
notably the New York Times, to
the fact that the British govbrn
e n brought “considerable
pressure” on Washington to
agree to a meeting of Govern
ment heads "at. the summit."
Every American, in such a cris
is, can do his part tn help the
President take a firm position.
Inquiry Corner
Q. 1 would like to know if there
is some place where I can get a
booklet of saints' names. We are
expecting a baby in August and
having a hard time finding a
name—especially for a girl.
A. Any good collection of lives
of the saints (such as the Bene
dictine “Book of Saints” or
“Lives of the Saints” by Engel
bert) would give not only the
names but some details as well.
A patron saint in Baptism should
be chosen for himself as well
as for the name itself. We choose
the patron saint rather than
merely the name of a saint.
There are smaller publications
which simply list the names such
as one called “Is It a Saint’s
Name?” Likely you could pur
chase or order one of these at
the Cathedral Bookstore.
Q. Does the Church allow
her clergy to run for political of
fice? (Mayor, Senator, etc.)
May a priest run a business of
some kind on the side?
A. No. “Without permission
of the Holy See, the clerics are
not allowed to compete for. or ac
cept, the offices of senator or
representative in those countries
where this is forbidden by the
Holy See in other countries they
shall not accept these offices
without the permission of their
own Ordinary as well as of the
Ordinary of the places where the
election is to take place.” (Can
on No. 139) In the United States
it is not the custom for priests
to seek any public office and the
Third Council of Baltimore for
bids the priests to enter into po
litical affairs directly i.e. they
may speak out only on moral and
spiritual matters and issues,
which may sometimes be indi
rectly involved in politics. Canon
No. 142 forbids clerics “to en
gage either personally or through
others in any business or trad
ing.”
Q. What is servile work? Is
is ever allowed on Sunday?
A. Servile work is that which
is mainly physical or bodily.
Farming, mechanical, industrial
or business activities are includ
ed. Reading, writing, studying,
playing music, games, etc., are
not considered servile work. Un
necessary work is absolutely for
bidden and constitutes a mortal
sin if deliberate. Servile work is
permitted when the honor of
God, our own need or that
of our neighbor requir
es it Household duties, care
of the sick, work required for
public good (utilities, transporta
tion, police, etc.) are permissible
because they are necessary.
Kfcl. JOH V f. CRONIN, S.S.
Monsignor Higgins has as
guest columnist this week the
Assistant Director, Social Action
Dept., N.C.W.C.
Fifty-four years ago, Pope
Ixo XIII, in discussing social prob
lems, noted the opinion that “the
social question, as some call it,
is merely economic.” The Pope’s
reply to this view was sharp and
clear: "The precise opposite is
the truth. It is first of all moral
and religious, and for that reason
its solution is to be expected
mainly from the moral law and
the pronouncements of religion."
Even today too many persons
treat social questions as if they
were merely matters of economic
law. Still others may emphasize
the moral aspects of these prob
lems, but understate the
religious and spiritual side of
the situation. It is not enough to
remind men of their duties, they
must also be inspired to want to
do what is right. Their hearts
must be softened and their wills
strengthened, if they are to prac
tice justice and charity in the
bard .world of business.
For this reason we are happy
to note that a great leader in
Italian Catholic Action is being
considered for Beatification.
Church authorities are closely
studying the life •‘id teaching of
Giuseppe Toniolo, in the hope
that he may be declared among
the ranks of the Blessed.
Turbulent Background
Giuseppe Toniolo was born in
1845 and died in 1918. His life
spanned some of the most turbul
ent years of social change. He
was a child when Marx and En
gels issued the Communist Mani
festo. Shortly after his birth a
violent series of revolutions
swept throughout Europe. As a
young man, he read of the ex
cesses of the Paris Commune.
Against such a turbulent back
ground, it is extremely difficult
to choose a path of moderation
and sanity. When young Toniolo
was studying at the University
ofiPadua. two violent currents of
thought were prevalent in Eu
rope. The dominant view was the
extreme individualism, so sharp
ly condemned by Pope Pius XL
Advocates of this view held that
business was a law unto itself. Its
activity should be curbed neither
by moral nor civil law.
The result of this attitude was
the classic exploitation of labor
so well known to student:: of his
tory. Millions lived in slums and
hovels. Children were chained to
the machines in the new textile
factories, often beginning their
working career at the tender age
of six. W’omen likewise were
compelled tn work long hours at
exhausting toil, to ruin of health
and family life.
Father Healey-----------------
Q- I read some plarc that
there is an ancient tradition that
St. Joseph was a widower and
had children hy htx first wife
and that these are the “brethren
of the Lord” mentioned in the
Gospels.
A. It is true that there was
such a tradition, butzit was not
generally accepted and its origin
can be explained. There wore
some in the early Church who
did not know how to explain the
expression “brethren of the
Lord” without denying the per
petual virginity of Our Lady.
They hoped to safeguard the
accepted belief in the prepetual
Virginity of the Blessed Virgin
by ascribing these supposed
brothers and sisters of Our Ixird
to St. Joseph by a former mar
riage. We know now that the
word brethren presents no prob
lem for there are many instance!
of the word being used in He
brew and Greek to include
cousins and relatives other than
members of the immediate fam
ily. St. Jerome found the ex
pression no problem: we
understand as brethren of the
Lord not the sons of Joseph hut
the cousins of the Savior, chil
dren of Mary the Lord's ma
ternal aunt who is said tn be
the mother of James the Iss
and Joseph and Jude, who as we
read, were called brethren nf
the Lord in another passage. .”
Q. What should a Cathohe.
graduate do if the baccalaureate
service for graduation is held in
a nonCatholic church?
A. He must remain away from
such services. It is unfair that
such a situation should occur,
for as we are constantly remind
ed that we are supposed to have
separation of church and state.
A school function which is part
of the official school program
should not be carried out in a
sectarian institution. We are all
in favor of integrating religion in
education, but by that we mean
instruction in their own religion,
not compulsory attendance at
services of some other religion.
Catholics work and pray for pub
lic school interest in religious in
struction by “released time" or
any other workable system, but
never for subjecting the whole
student body to sectarian serv
ices. The Fifth Synod of the Dio
cese of Columbus (October A.
1952 explicitly prohibited partici
pation st i eh baccalauerate
service.
Send questions io Father Ed
ward F. Healey, Inquiry Corner,
The Catholic Times. Box 636,
Columbus (16) Ohio.
Saints, Social Action
Ladder te Heaven
In reaction to tha conditions,
the socialist movement arose and
attracted millions of followers.
There were many schools of So
cialists, but the prevailing view
was not too different from mod
ern communism materialistic
and atheistic. By contrast, the
dedicated leaders of the Catholie
social movement rejected both
extremes. They fought for justice
for the worker, but they rejected
the socialist solution of the prob
lem of exploitation.
It was natural that Toniolo sid-
♦d with the moves for Christian
social reform. He become a pro
found student of the Christian
Middle Ages, seeking to find
there a pattern which could b«
adapted to modern conditions. H«
found one central idea: that this
w’orld should be considered as a
ladder reaching up to heaven.
Everything in life must be view
ed from the aspect of eternity.
Economic life serves its purpose
only when it aids man in the pur
suit of his eternal salvation.
Toniolo was not content to re
main in the academic ivory tower.
Instead he became a world-re
nowned leader of Catholic Action.
He worked through the press
and through international con
gresses to spread the idea of the
Christian middle way. He pro
moted co-operatives and credit
unions to help the farmer.
Through his efforts, the work ot
social legislation and Christian
democracy was advanced in Italy
and many other countries of Eu
rope.
Social Exemplar
Although his life was enormous
ly active, he was always the man
of prayer and intense union with
God. His deep spirituality taught
him to be gentle in the midst
of strife, moderate when others
were divided into bitter extremes.
He was a loyal son of the Church,
working closely with the Hier
archy and under its guidance.
In these days of turbulent so
cial strife throughout the world,
it is consoling to consider the
pattern of Toniolo’s life. His life
and works deserve study here in
the United States. We can all
learn from him the spirit of gen
tleness and moderation which
can persuade men to work in har
mony and brotherhood. Those of
us who deal with social problems
may well pray that his faith and
reverence may be ours.
A monumental study of Ton
iolo’s life was published in 1954
by the Giuseppe Toniolo Commit
tee, whose headquarters are in
Rome. The author. Francesco Vis
talli, has rendered a real service
tn Catholic .social thinkers
throughout the world.