IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY

Greymouth Evening Star, 19 January 1944, Page 5

IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY

NEW ARCHBISHOP’S ADDRESS

(Recd. 10 a.m.) LONDON, Jan. 19. Archbishop Bernard Griffin was enthroned at Westminster Cathedral today as the sixth Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, in the presence of over eight thousand clergy and laity. In his sermon, the Archbishop made a strong plea for the revival of the Christian family life. His Words were probably the most outspoken ever delivered at such a service. He touched on divorce, birth control, Beveridge report, family allowances, and the new education bill. “Divorce courts and means to easier divorce are a menace to the stability of the family. The manufacture and sale of mechanical birth control devices should be prohibited, stricter censorship should be exercised over films and books extolling evils and attacking the sanctity of the marriage bond and the sacredness of family life. One of the most pressing needs of the Church and nation in Britain is the revival of the Christian Catholic life, which suffered through the forced absence of the father, removal of the children from the influence of parents, and the absence of the mother from the home in outside employment for long periods. The proper place for the mother with a young family is the home, looking after the children. The greatest possible contribution she can make to the nation, even during war, is the unbringing and the physical, moral and spiritual education of her children. History has shown that a nation’s decline always began with the disintegration of the family.”