THE SOCIAL SYSTEM

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 250, 16 July 1920, Page 8

THE SOCIAL SYSTEM

GONE FROM BAD TO WORSE

ADDRESS BY ARCHBISHOP O'SHEA "GREED AND COMMERCIALISM" An address dealing with various topics of the day, including the subjects of industrial unrest and sectarianism, was delivered by His Grace ( Archbishop O'Shca to tho annual meeting of the Wellington Diocesan Council of tho New Zealand Catholic Federation, yesterday morning. His Grace said: — ,r I have once more to congratulate the Diocesan Executive on the annual report that it has presented of tho work and activities of the federation in t,hf> oruidiooese. Your able and zealous secretary has, as usual, contributed not a litElo to this success, and he deserves the best thanks of all for the excellent report before, us. Jiut, while you arc Solng so well in many things, there is much moTe vet to be done. I told you when I spoke to you last year, as I have told you Oil previous occasions, that one ot tie objects of the Cutholio Federation was to help all movements, even those not exclusively religious, that make for tho good of the country. And I told you then Hint as Catholic citizens you were in a better position than others t» help in till? great work of reconstruction, because Catholicism can unfold for you a logical coherent policy, based upon the laws of justice and the

lovo of our fellow-men for the social regeneration of the world; and that this policy only needs to be adapted to tho times in which we live, to bo the success it was before greedy Capitalism and greedy commercialism became tho power they arc to-day j and that it would provide the golden mean between the extremes of capitalism on the one side, and revolutionary socialism on the other. Since I addressed you last year, the Catholic Hierarchy of America lias drawn up a very powerful and able statement on the subject—a statement that has arrested the attention of all social reformers and of the thinking community in that great country. It has been most favourably commented upon by all sections there, and it would bo well worth your while to obtain the full text, so that you may be able to study it thoroughly. ■

"Hypocritical Pretence." "That something must be done—and done quickly—to remedy the existing state of things in the world, is the conviction of thoughtful men of every country. Matters have gone from bad to worse. They are infinitely worse than, they wiere twelve months ago. Tho Peace Conference at Paris has disappointed ns by the betrayal >of the high principles that the leaders of the Allied nations set before us during the war. Injustice and robbery and corruption stalk through thie world to-day as they never did in modern times.' There is more widespread robbery of the people, and their exploitation' is carried out on a . far grander scale than ever. Moreovor, this robbery and injustice going'on, while not perhaps being actually connived at bv Governments and people in high places, is being quite unnecessarily tolerated by them. It is idle for statesmen and ■ politicians to pretend that economic necessity, redumt production, ana the like, serve to account for the profiteering and exorbitant prices that rule to-day, and that they can do nothing to remedy the stato of things. Why not cast away all such hypocritical pretence, and admit that it is the spirit of greed and commercialism that is to blame: that religion and the Ten Commandments have been set aside in ell big business relations, and that might is hero, also, the only right? What iB the nso of setting up boards to inquire into these evils, that aio only ways to throw dust in the eyes of people and make them believe that Governments are doing something? Indeied, it is becoming more and more evident to the masses, that what was seen long ago by a few serious thinkers was true; and that tlw war has been really waged in tho interests of commercialism, and that now commercialism is reaping its reward. In tho light of what went on at Paris, in the light of what has happened since, tho professions of politicians appear to havo boen the hollowest hypocrisy. The human individual no longer seems to count, only profits and commercial relations. Possible Work for the Church.

"There aro not wanting signs either that tyranny is making a bold bid to reoovor somo of its lost position, by the unnecessary prolonging in peaeo times of thoso encroachments upon liberty that had place during tk* war; and by the attitude in high places towards all criticism—as shown by their striving to brand such criticism as disloyalty, or by calling it opprobious names. Now a return to tyranny has always marked th« ove of the dissolution of •Empires, anu it may' be that the signs showing in the. world are approximating thoso that heraldod the break up of the Roman and of previous great civilisations. History, we lenow, repeats itself, and kingdoms and Empires disappear. Another inrush of barbarians may be about to overwhelm our present society. Indeed, it is not impossible, in the neur future, and Christianity may again bo confronted with the task it had to undertake after tlio fall of Dome. The Church may be called npon again to do tho same work for the new nations that will arise out of the ruins that she had to do during the lliddla Ages for the fierce tribes that were the founders of the present great Powers of tho world; and that task ms not only to convert them, but to civuise them.

nowever, I hop© that things have not gone 60 far, and that neithier our generation nor any of the succeeding ones may have to face such a necessity. But it looks m| if the work of reconverting and recivilising must be straightway attacked vigorously if the crash is_to be averted. Catholics everywhere should therefore throw themselves heart and soul into every movement to •rescue tho world from heartless commercialism and materialism, and 6et their face against tho least encroachments ot tyranny. For if these things are not stoppod soon, there is nothing before tlio world but upheaval and red revolution. Religion and religious education must be 'encouraged and helped. In our own small part of the world, you, tho members of tho Catholic Federation, can do something to help. No matter howhopeless the outlook may appear to somo people, tho power of Christianity is extraordinary; and if only the Catholics of the world did what they might to make its influence felt npon til's semi-pagan society nround us, tlio miracle fflat it worked in the pagan world could be repeated. And while, of course, we should put forth every effort that wo nre capable of, wo must not neglect to ask for Divine assistance, and by striving to lead better lives, to make that assistance secure.

The P.P.A. "There is special work and there ara ' special needs for the federation in eacli I country, and wc havo our own here. One of fiio most important is education, ' another is the systematic study of social i questions as I havo urgied upon you before. With regard to education, there I will not only bo tho work of consolidat- ! ini; and strengthening our Catholic ' schools, but the work of defending them j irom attack may havo to bo taken in • hand.- Now I wish to apologise to you I lor referring in respectable company to ■ a movement against us, that has been in cvidenco for some little time. It touches the unsavoury thing called sectarianism, j It is with great reluctance that I refer to it at alt, but (he time has come when ! it must be dealt with, and dealt with ' vigorously. It seems that tho P.P.A,, as it is called, has been carefully organising a ..political drivo upon our schools. Now when I tell you Hint tho I'J'.A. is nothing more or less than that li'isti Secret Society which line done so much harm in the ol<l Country—and 1 whofl? loyalty to any Government is mensural by that Government's hostility to Catholics—you have the wholo thing in a nutshell. lam told that while I tvas away, they stampeded the now Minister of Education and his Department into disallowing some of tho veiy few rights which this and previous Governments had granted ■ to Catholics. They claim, also, to hava i