Catholic Problems in Western Canada Part 11

There are Catholics who make this blindness and consequent bigotry an excuse for their own narrowness and selfishness, for their neglect to share in the nation's work, for their refusal to co-operate in patriotic, civic and social undertakings as if they were none of our business. The nation's business is our business. If we serve the nation efficiently, we serve the Church. We take then the best means to open the eyes of our fellow-countrymen to the fact that Catholicism is not uncivic. If we make ourselves valued, anti-Catholic prejudice will be dispelled.

Cardinal Bourne in his letter on "Social Reform" speaks very pointedly of the duty of every Catholic in this matter. His p.r.o.nouncement and that of the American Hierarchy are the most notable declarations from Catholic sources on "Social Re-construction." "It is admitted on all hands," says the English Primate, "that a new order of things, new social conditions between the different sections in which Society is divided will arise as a consequence of the destruction of the formerly existing conditions.

"The very foundations of political and social life, of our economic system, of morals, of religion are being sharply scrutinized, and this, not only by a few writers and speakers, but by a very large number of people in every cla.s.s of life, especially among the workers."

The nation's business is our business. The true love of country demands from Catholics at this critical stage of our history to throw all their energies into the various social activities. Society throughout the world is shaken in its very foundations. This universal unrest in the political, social and economic spheres is a decided mark of the birth-throes of a new social order. Therefore, we will conclude with Cardinal Gibbons; "The Church cannot remain an isolated factor in the nation. The Catholic Church possesses spiritual and moral resources which are at the command of the nation in every crisis."

The reform or remodelling of the social fabric, if it is to be effective and abiding, must ultimately rest on the definite and unchanging principles of morality. These principles const.i.tute the moral law, as physical principles are the basis of the physical law. Ernest Fayle, in a very instructive article on "Reconstruction," in the October number of the "London Quarterly Review," makes a statement very pertinent to this matter; "The economic, political and social factors in human life are so inextricably entangled that if we accept quality of life and not mere power or wealth as the touchstone of national success we dare not, even in the consideration of economic or political questions, lose sight of the moral issues."

The Catholic Church has always been the teacher and guardian of that natural moral law which stands as the foundation and b.u.t.tress of the social edifice. Her plans of Reconstruction rest on the eternal principles of equity which G.o.d has engraved on the human conscience and which the teachings of Christ have sanctioned and perfected. In the light of Catholic doctrine moral laws are definite and unchanging, for they are the deliberate expression of the necessary and fundamental relations upon which rests human nature. They are the living, free expression of man's place in creation. The most elaborate schemes and powerful organizations are soulless without these basic principles of morality and have but an ephemeral existence.

Is it not, therefore, a great act of patriotism to try to throw into the scales of the nation's destinies the mighty weight of indestructible and tried principles? A growing respect is to be found for the soundness, the wisdom and the justice of Catholic social principles, even in circles where our beliefs have not yet found acceptance. True statesmen have always recognized the influence of the Catholic Church's doctrine in social matters, although they may not believe in the truth of her teachings. They always looked upon her principles of social life as the ballast that steadies the s.h.i.+p on heaving seas. To make the Church a spiritual ally, to recognize her moral power and her far-reaching influence has always been considered good diplomacy and clear-sighted statesmans.h.i.+p.

Catholic's Patriotism in Public Life

Reconstruction is the great work of the hour; co-operation is a duty every Catholic owes to Church and country. What definite and concrete form of co-operation will that responsibility a.s.sume? There is the problem. Our first duty, in the matter, lies, we believe, in a greater partic.i.p.ation in public life. Too long have we stood aloof from movements that aim at the social welfare of the community. A false timidity and an erroneous conception of our responsibilities have estranged us, to a great extent, from the various activities of national life. This isolation has been most prejudicial to our Catholic laity, for it has fostered in their ranks disinterestedness and often apathy. "With regard to the necessity of Catholics to obtain positions on public bodies, Cardinal Bourne stated that very often Catholics were urged to take part in public affairs, by becoming elected to public bodies in order that they might safeguard Catholic principles. That was a great good-a very laudable object-but it was not the highest object. The great object was that out of the fulness of their Faith they might give to their fellow-countrymen the principles that flowed from that Faith, so that little by little there might be built up in the consciousness of the nation that belief in and use of those sound principles of the Catholic Faith which contained the only solution of the difficulties with which they were faced."

"Too long have Catholics lived in isolation, allowing others to think and act for them. It is indeed, high time that they felt the pulse of life that beats in the real statesman, as distinct from mere politician. Duty demands that Catholics add their power of intellect and will to the similar power of other citizens anxious to help the commonwealth. We are not aliens in this land, not aliens by birth or principle. As to the latter, I may say with all truth, that no one has given clearer expression to the basic principles of democracy than the Catholic theologians, Suarez and Bellarmine." [2]

This att.i.tude of aloofness, during the coming period of reconstruction especially, would be profoundly un-Catholic. Our active partic.i.p.ation in public life will give us occasion to dispel prejudice, to offset subversive doctrines, to advocate in spite of failures and bigotry the principles of Christian sociology. We are firm believers in the prevailing strength of ideas. They are indestructible; they rule sooner or later. They may take time to crystalize into convictions, but the force of mental gravitation must ultimately prevail. And after all, Reconstruction, as Dr. J. J. Walsh stated, is more a question of remaking the map of man's mind than that of remodelling the map of Europe.

The Catholics of England give us, in this matter as in many others, a beautiful example to follow. During the war they formed a "British Catholic Information Society," having at its service "the Catholic War News Office." The result of their aggressive policy is the public recognition of the value of the Catholic Church by the English people in the national work of Reconstruction. We would here refer the reader to Father Plater's letter on "Catholics and Reconstruction" for further details in this interesting matter. Like our Catholic brothers of England, let us also take our place boldly in the broad daylight of public life. We have ideas to give to the Nation, let us give them. Canadian liberty, without doubt, exists for our doctrines as it does for the subversive theories of State-Socialism. We have no apology to make for our ideas. They stand on their own merits and have been vindicated by the great acid test of time. Yes, we possess the great curative and creative forces for social Reconstruction; We have only to call them into play.

The Catholic Solution

In season and out of season, in the press and on the platform, in private gatherings and public meetings, through every medium of social control, let the people hear the Catholic solution of the problems now facing the nations of the world. We have a message to deliver. That message, if it comes to the people s.h.i.+ning like a steel blade, sounding like the blare of a trumpet, if it wells up from a fiery heart and drops from burning lips-that message will be heard. In this period of strain and suffering the public mind is keyed to its highest pitch, ready to snap at any moment. Strong feeling has generated in many minds intellectual hysteria. "In war time," says E. H. Griggs, "there is a curious paradox of widening radicalism of thought, with constantly decreasing freedom of action and expression. When the discrepancy becomes too great, you have the explosion,-a revolution." Therefore in this time of intellectual ferment, the continued affirmation of truth, and the persistent statement of principles are in themselves a highly valuable service, which we are bound to give to the world. The thought of the human mind, like rays of sun-light, focused on one point, acquires the burning power of conviction.

Partic.i.p.ation in public life develops conviction; conviction repeatedly a.s.serts itself; continued a.s.sertion creates opinion; and public opinion is without doubt one of the most universal powers at work in the world. In every sphere of life you can feel the constant pressure of this tremendous influence. It may well be named the "current" of public opinion. Draining to its profit the latent and loitering powers of the individual thinker, silently, irresistibly it moves on; checked, it becomes an angry whirlpool of confused and gyrating waters; harnessed to the wheels of national life, it will transform its energies into light, heat and power.

The creation and the spreading of Catholic opinion in social matters should be in our mind, the ultimate goal of our activities, for it is the greatest a.s.set we can contribute to the vast work of Reconstruction. As Lord Morley said, "great economic and social forces flow with tidal sweep over communities half conscious of that which is befalling them. Wise statesmen are those who foresee what time is bringing and try to shape inst.i.tutions and to mould men's thought and purpose in accordance with the change that is silently surrounding them."

Time, you readily understand, will not allow us to dwell upon the various problems which Reconstruction will bring before the country. Our aim, now, is rather to awaken the sense of responsibility, stir the sleeping conscience into watchfulness, and give to our Catholic men and women the stimulating thought of co-operation. Our country is being re-created in its political, social and economic life; to be a living factor in that "re-creation" is the duty of the hour.

Before bringing these remarks of a rather general character to a close allow us to mark for your attention the leading problems. They will be as landmarks planted to guide you on the way. In the international order, the problem of resetting nations on a new basis by a "just and durable peace" now faces the world. Racial and language problems command our attention in the national order. In the political world ideas are to be readjusted as to the nature, powers and obligations of the State. Of late, the monopoly of the State has been a.s.serting itself so strongly that one is led to believe the old pagan principle of the supremacy of the State will once more reign supreme. When nations have ceased to give to G.o.d what belongs to G.o.d, they give to Caesar alone what belongs to Caesar and what belongs to G.o.d.

The social order will witness demobilization and immigration. Who cannot grasp the importance of these great problems with their various and intricate issues? The greatest transformations are, perhaps, reserved for the economic order; capital and labor, efficient and greater production of industry and agriculture, the living wage, and uplifting of the workman's status, etc. In the educational order the battle will be greater, for there is a great tendency to centralize, to federalize education, under the plea of "national schools."

The religious order will see tremendous efforts for union among the various non-Catholic denominations; "social service" will be their center of unity, the common field of action.

Various and important, as you see, are the problems that confront us in the realms of human activity. Now, bear in mind, the Catholic doctrine has a solution for each problem and it is your duty to give it. Knights of Columbus, as you helped the Church to solve the problems of the war, so will you also help to solve the greater problems of peace. If you wish to be the body-guard of the Church, your mission is to lend your n.o.ble and generous efforts to your spiritual leaders in this great work of reconstruction. For, of this reconstructive period and its great opportunities for militant and active Catholics, we may say what Carlysle said of the period that followed the French Revolution; "Joy was it, in that age, to be living-and to be young, was very heaven." The task indeed is enormous, but the incentive most inspiring.

We are bound to meet with the fluctuations and uncertainties of the human mind, particularly in such times of readjustment and intellectual unrest. Let us then never forget that since the coming of Christ and the establishment of His Church on earth the principles of His teaching are for all nations. The sun of truth has its meridian in Rome, on the rock of Peter. There it stands at its zenith, in the permanent blaze of a perennial mid-day; there it sets the time for the Catholic world amid the ever-changing and conflicting problems of human history. Stat Crux dum volvitur orbis.

[1] A speech delivered in the a.s.sembly Hall of the Knights of Columbus, St. John, N.B., December 22, 1918. "The Catholic Mind" of New York reproduced it in one of its issues.

[2] R. H. Tierney, S.J., Editor of America, at the Catholic Federation meeting, Brooklyn, September 15, 1918.

CHAPTER XIII.

WHOM DO MEN SAY THAT THE SON OF MAN IS? (MATH. XVI.-13.)-PUBLIC OPINION AND THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

What is Public Opinion-Its Power-How is it Formed-Public Opinion and the Catholic Church-Our Duties to Public Opinion.

Numerous and strong are the influences at play in human life. Acting and reacting on the free will of man they are ever at work moulding his character and shaping his destiny. Like the waves of an incoming tide they are beating the sh.o.r.es of our heart; their triumph is to carry away our liberty on their receding waters.

Surrounding influences for good or for evil are indeed, to a great extent, the determining factors of our moral life. Day by day they write our history and with it the history of the world; for, the life of every man is but a line on the great page of his nation's history and the history of a nation, but a chapter in that of humanity.

Of all the influences underlying human activities in the moral, social, economic, and political world, one of the most universal and most effective is beyond doubt, nowadays, Public Opinion. We may well name it the "current" of Public Opinion. In every sphere of life one can indeed feel the constant pressure of its tremendous power. Like the waters of a mill-race constantly and irresistibly the stream of Public Opinion sweeps on. It is very difficult to determine exactly where lies its strength; it is nowhere and everywhere. Unconscious of its swollen powers it spends its energies for the welfare of the community, or, unfortunately too often, loses itself in an angry torrent of destruction.

You thwart its onward march: it will bury your barrier under its laughing waters or ... sweep it away. You ride with it: it will gladly carry you. You check it: its troubled waves will rise angry around you and engulf you.

Such is the "current" of Public Opinion. To direct this great power, to harness its tremendous forces, to convert them into light, heat, and energy and set the wheels of moral, social, and political life running with greater smoothness, rapidity, and strength, should be the n.o.ble effort and the great task of every serious-minded man.

By no idle whim or sheer literary piquancy have we coupled Public Opinion and the Catholic Church. The inevitable relations that exist between Public Opinion and the various predominating factors of a nation should necessarily interest every true Canadian. Among these factors the Catholic Church stands pre-eminent. Her beneficial influences and her ready solutions to the various social and moral problems that confront the world, cannot, even to the most prejudiced, be pa.s.sed unnoticed. So no matter what our spiritual allegiance may be, the relation of Public Opinion to the Catholic Church should be of the greatest interest to any one who has at heart the common welfare. In Western Canada particularly, where Public Opinion has such a sway, this subject, we presume, must be of service both to those of the Catholic Faith and to those of a different persuasion.

What is Public Opinion-Its Power-How is it Formed?

1. What is Public Opinion?

Ideas rule the world, but various are the effects ideas have on the minds of men. On some minds they exercise only a pa.s.sing influence; they are then what we call "Impressions"; variable as lights and shadows over a summer lake they come and go. Impressions are indeed only on the surface of the mind, like foot-prints on the sand washed away by the next tide.

When ideas take a stronger footing in our intelligence and are accepted with a certain confidence, on their face-value or on the authority of some leader, they become "Opinions." Loosely entertained and readily exchanged, opinions are the ordinary mental pabulum of the ma.s.ses.

Few minds see their ideas crystallized into "Convictions." Convictions are permanent, unchangeable ideas: based on facts and supported by satisfactory evidence, they rest on the bed-rock of truth. Few minds indeed, particularly on the larger and fundamental issues, can claim the right to convictions. For, convictions demand a breadth of vision and grasp of detail which are given but to few souls. These minds, few in number, are the minds of leaders. Their n.o.ble duty and great responsibility is to Awaken, Stimulate, and Organize the thinking of the people. Their thoughts, their ideas, are on the unchartered sea of truth as the tossing buoy or lighted beacon from which the unthinking ma.s.ses take their course. Rather than go to the pains of thinking for themselves the crowds leave this task to a few and content themselves with ready-made opinions, as these float by with the tide of the hour. Few make up their minds; they are made up for them.

The common opinion which reflects the mind of the great majority, embodies the prevailing idea, the universal sentiment, and directs the common action is called... Public Opinion.

2. Power of Public Opinion.

You readily see, by its very nature, the tremendous power of Public Opinion. It is the "reason why," the basis of appreciation, the norm of conduct of the great ma.s.s of the people. As we stated before, Public Opinion is like the stream that drains to its profit the loitering energies of the individual mind, and makes them tributaries that swell its volume and compress its course. Who can a.n.a.lyze the powers of this "Organized Thinking" of the people in a democracy? Who can measure the force of these sweeping currents, of these tidal waves of Public Opinion?

In fact, Public Opinion may be considered in our modern societies as the greatest driving power. For, Public Opinion is the vision of the unthinking mult.i.tude, and vision is the first and foremost of constructive or destructive forces. It lights the way and invites action accordingly. Marvellous indeed is the sweep of the tide of Public Opinion in various realms of human activities. Its ebb and flow-although frequently beyond a.n.a.lysis, are felt on every sh.o.r.e.

In the world of finance,-and this is the lowest in the scale of real values,-is not that fragile but mighty factor we call credit based on Public Opinion? For, credit is but the general opinion of the community on the possibilities of the industry or undertaking in which its capital is involved, and on the honesty and ability of the management.

What has weakened the moral fibre of our modern society so much that at times one wonders if we are living in the Christian era? If the home is now so often desecrated by theories of free love and trial marriages, if the cradles are empty, if the very sense of shame is a thing of the past, if the most elementary principles of morality are questioned, is it not because the public conscience is being warped, chloroformed, deadened by a frenzied propaganda of a corrupted Public Opinion?

Has not the politician and the legislator the ear to the wind, the eye on the running tides and cross currents of thought, to know and sound Public Opinion? Like the skilful and watchful pilot, he counts with the set of the tide and catches it at its crest. He knows the exact height of the rising tide that will float him and his cargo over the bar ... of a coming election-. This tide of public feeling has carried some to the high seas of success but left many stranded on the desert sh.o.r.es. Many public men indeed have set out on its angry waters to brave its fury ... and have never returned. "In our times of Democracy when the "compet.i.tive" principle has replaced the "hereditary," not the kings, princes and n.o.bles, but bankers, merchants, railroad magnates, capitalists, politicians, editors, educators, writers and artists occupy the high seats, hold the baton and beat the time for the great social orchestra." (Ross-Social Psychology.) "Power and influence," said Morley, "no longer reside in the Crown but in the strong, subtle forces called Public Opinion: and that Public Opinion is apt to involve fatal contentment with simple answers to complex questions."

In the great international life of nations Public Opinion also holds the reins. This power manifests itself particularly at the great turning points of History, such as we are now witnessing. There is always then resistance between conflicting forces; and resistance, we know, strengthens the current. What power was at work for the last fifty years and marshalled, on that fatal August day of 1914, the formidable army that swept over Belgium, France and Russia? Public Opinion created by the military caste in Germany! What secret and growing force made of the Allies' contemptible army of yesterday the crus.h.i.+ng victorious army of to-day?-The invincible power of Public Opinion!-It leaped from the very depths of the wounded heart and outraged conscience of nations, and created in a few months that unconquerable army of inexhaustible reserves upon which the Allies relied until their final triumph. It fired the morale of our armies and smashed the way to victory. For those who could not go to the battle-field, it kept the homefires burning and fringed with the silver lining of radiant hope the dark clouds that hung over our horizon for four long, dragging, weary years.

3. How Public Opinion is Formed.

You may ask how are the thoughts of the mult.i.tude so marshalled as to make the unit of Public Opinion. As we already remarked, the thinking power of the ordinary man does not go far, wide, nor deep. His facility of absorbing ideas is far greater than his power of valuating them. He generally accepts as real value any thing that bears the stamp of current opinion. His belief in the value and weight of number is without recall; his absolute trust in what Bryce calls "the fatalism of mult.i.tude" is beyond appeal. He lives and thrives on the surrounding mental atmosphere.

How is this atmosphere created? By the continued, persevering repet.i.tion of the same ideas; by the vesting of these same ideas in the attractive garb of self-interest, pa.s.sion, fancy and vogue. On this process, we all know by experience, is based the ever youthful power of Advertis.e.m.e.nt ... and of Fas.h.i.+on.