CATHOLIC FEDERATION

New Zealand Tablet, 31 January 1918, Page 21

CATHOLIC FEDERATION

ADDRESS BY VERY REV. DEAN REGNAULT, t| S.M. |. At the half-yearly meeting of the Christchurch Diocesan Council of the N. Z.- Catholic Federation,; held on Tuesday, January 22, the president, Very Rev. Dean Regnault, S.M., spoke as follows: —■ I wish to extend a most hearty welcome to the delegates who have made the sacrifice of their time and convenience in order to attend this half-yearly meeting and thus promote the interests of the Catholic Federation. A hearty welcome is also extended, not only by the president, but by all here assembled, to his Lordship the Bishop. He has often been present at the meetings of the diocesan executive, when his guidance has been to us of the highest importance. The continued interest his Lordship takes in Fedei'ation matters is an earnest of the future progress and final success of our organisation. Owing to the energy and zeal of our secretary and other members of the diocesan executive, especially Mr. J. Doolan, the Federation has during the last six months strengthened its position in various parts of the diocese, yet the structure is far from being complete. It has not yet obtained that solidity which it requires in order to shelter us against the storms which are raging around us and which threaten our rights and liberties. Catholics are believed to be united. The world at large respects them because of that belief and to the extent to which that belief exists, but we are not yet a united people. The world at, large believes that there is some secret bond between the Catholic people, some secret pact which binds them together, which makes them submissive to the" voice of some imaginary being, and ready to take up arms against the rulers of their country in response to a word from some far-off place. Those who so speak of the Catholic Church do not understand its mission nor its people nor its actual position. The Catholic people are united when they kneel before the altar, when they sing their creed, and profess one. faith, one Lord, one Baptism; the members of the various Catholic societies are united in order to promote their own spiritual interests; but when it is a question of protecting their rights and privileges from the encroachments of secularism, bigotry, or tyranny, our Catholic people are not united. The Catholic Federation of New Zealand has been established in order to insure and to foster such a union. Union and all that it means has gained victories*on the battlefields of Europe, in the Houses of Parliament, in the meeting places of commerce and labor, union alone will enable Catholics to conquer when they fight in vindication of their rights and liberties. The Catholic Federation as it is and inoffensive as it is— its opponents and its enemies; its opponents inside the camp and its enemies outside its-gates. ■ .-... ~ : :i,:- : - : ■:, Some people, for instance Catholics as well as nonCatholics,still view the Federation with "a h certain amount of misgiving and doubt, even perhaps with ; a spirit of fear. Let me state as briefly as may be what the Catholic Federation is not, what it was never intended to be. It is not a Catholic Political Association. It would be -suicidal if or the Catholic Federation to engage in partisan politics, because it includes within its ranks men of every shade of political opinion. The Catholic Federation is not inimical to any shade of t politics,, except that form of legislation which may interfere with or encroach upon . the civic rights of any section of, the community. It is -mot* inimical to any

party of politics provided that party does not trample - upon the rights of Catholic citizens. Not only do' Catholics respect 'the political views and religious be- : lief of every man, but they strive for the betterment of all classes of society. They have no wish to grasp the reins of government, to take possession of the treasury benches, to guide the destinies of the Dominion. All they ask for is | that k the people of New Zealand be - governed within the limits of the Ten Commandments. ' The N.Z. Catholic Federation is simply an organisation " formed for the preservation of our liberties, the vindication of our rights wherever they are denied, and the' advancement of the civil, religious, and social interests of Catholics. This is the work that lies before us, a work which ought to be performed not only on the eve of a general election, not only when our rights are trampled upon, but throughout the whole year. Its ; session begins with us in June of one year and ends in June of the following year. Again, the Catholic Federation is accused of being a menace to what has often' been described as the most perfect system of education ever devised by the genius of man; It is not so. v True, the sacrifices made by the Catholic people in order- to provide their children with a system of education which is in conformity with the teachings of their faith, with conscience and parental responsibility is an evident proof that the Lrovernment system does not- meet with the approval of at' least one-seventh iof the population. The deliberations of the Anglican Synod, held last year in Christchurch, the pronouncements made by some of the leading clergymen of the Presbyterian Church from pulpit or public platform, the frequent complaints that secular schooling is not sufficient for the complete training of man, show plainly that many people who hold no brief for the. Catholic system as such are dissatisfied with* the kind of education provided for them by the State. These are a greater menace to the public school system ■of education than %■ the Catholic Federation. Moreover, other countries have adopted a system wherein religion is a part of the curriculum. Such a system is to be found in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, and even in Germany. 7 Within the Empirethat is, in New Foundland, Quebec, Ontario, and Great Britain,— religious schools are subsidised by the State. In Great Britain over 53 per cent, of the schools are denominational. Will any one • maintain that the education imparted in these countries has been a less efficient, preparation for life’s duty than a purely secular system ? Are the children brought up in those schools possessed of less grit, less moral force Are they less enlightened and devoted citizens, less loyal to their country, less brave on the battlefield? Yet, when all this has been said, the Catholic Federation repudiates the accusation that its existence is a menace to the present system of education. As Archbishop Ireland said, in his sermon at the opening of last year’s National Convention of the Catholic Educational Association of America: “Public opinion is resolute in its championship of the secularised school. To run counter to it in this regard is to incur, in no small measure, the suspicion of treason to the country. The secularised school, it is asserted, is the corollary of (the principles which none will deny, that universal instruction is necessary both to the welfare of the individual ■ citizen, and to that of the general commonwealth and so in the eyes of public opinion he who refuses for his children the secularised school is the enemy of universal instruction, the enemy of the country itself. Meanwhile, the Catholic Church . is convinced that, in loyalty to her mission to teach all nations the religion of the Saviour, she should not accept the secularised school as the fit nursery of -childhood and of youth. Hence she has erected and equipped her own schools, found her teachers, ; whatever the ? financial cost her system may entail, whatever the misunderstanding ,and misstatements it might awaken. This she has done, this she is doing.” l , Indeed, for Catholics, there is only - one .system of education possible, the system in" which religion and instruction go hand in hand in the upbringing ?of the

child. : But is it fair that « secularists alone should be provided with a system of education in conformity with their - principles, -whilst * the ~ same .rights and privileges are denied | their fellow-citizens who are 1 members of the .Catholic Church? Above all, T is it fair, on the part of secularists,.because they happen to be in the majority and; to possess the public purse and , power, to rob the Catholic body, in order ; to ; educate their own children ? Is it in; a spirit of 7 fair play or justice, that year after year, secularists put their hands into the pockets of the Catholic taxpayer, abstract from \ him \ the sum of £170,000, apply that sum to their own secular schools, and say to him : Now, you may build your own schools, educate your children at your own expense, and be thankful that your system of education is tolerated by the community? As the Archbishop of Melbourne says: "It is time that Protestants should- ask themselves at the bar of their own conscience and at the bar of God, if they are justified in compelling us to pay for the education of their children in the State schools, without giving us some relief in our own schools ? Can they with a clear conscience continue to deny 14 per cent, of, the population the rights and privileges they claim for themselves, and at the same time rob the minority for their own benefit?" No, the Catholic Federation does not demand the bursting of the State system of education, but when we contribute £170,000 —perhaps £2oo,ooo—yearly for education purposes, we have the right to expect our just share of the public revenue for the maintenance, of .our schools. Bare justice, if not the sense of fair play, which is said to constitute the cardinal principle of the Britisher's dealings with his fellows, shall entitle Catholics to this just recognition of their work. Or to put it in another way, the Catholic Federation demands that Catholic money paid into the State Treasury shall be expended in the secular education of Catholic children. In making such a demand, the Catholic Federation does not ask for one single penny of other people's money, but only what is our own. Surely no one can possibly think that if this meed of justice were conceded to us, it would mean the bursting up of the State system. It has not done so in other countries as progressive as New Zealand : it has not done so in the past, although the two systems have been running side by side for over 40 years, it is not likely to do so in the future. (To be concluded next week ) ADDRESS BY REV. FATHER McMANUS, PALMERSTON NORTH. At the half-yearly meeting of the Wellington Diocesan Council of the N.Z. Catholic Federation, held at ■Wanganui on January 16, the Rev. Father McManus (pastor of Palmerston North) from the text "So let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father, Who is in heaven" (Matthew v. 16), delivered the following address : Our holy faith teaches us that the Church cannot fail. She has behind her to sustain and support her the guarantee of her Divine Founder that in spite of the mistakes of her friends and the malice of her enemies she will last as long as time will last. "Behold I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world." But we lose sight of the fact that while her continued existence is guaranteed, her well-being, her welfare, the success of her work and the progress of her mission depend on the efforts and co-operation of those who enjoy the privilege of, membership , within her fold. The consequence of this oversight is that while our Holy Father and the - Bishops whom the Holy Ghost has appointed to rule the Church of God have to bear on their shoulders the tremendous load of the Church's: burden, the vast body of the Catholic laity is as so much ,dead ; weight, so , much "lumber in the barque of Peter." There are grand; and noble exceptions, it is true. The St. Vincent A de Pawl ggciety

and other kindred organisations perform with limited resources } miracles of ; mercy, but after -giving :,' to all these organisations all the credit that is due to them it is still true that the vast body of the Catholic laity remains uninterested in ,an undisturbed by the vital problems which daily confront our Holy Mother the Church. ~-\ ," :.-•,' .•.'.*•.' r '■. "" --f -". ■' •-; The great fundamental aim of the Federation is, I take it, to remedy this defect. It is an organisation of Catholic lay men who realise that our proudest privilege is our membership in the Mystic Body of Christ and our claim of citizenship with the Saints. This privilege, like every privilege, involves corresponding obligations, and our views of these obligations is summed up and expressed in the efforts and the sacrifices which we make in the cause of our holy religion. Our love for the Church as our mother should impell us in charity to labor for her welfare. Our love for the Church as a beneficient motheras a mother who. has given us of her best, should impell us in justice to labor for her welfare. For though we know that her existence is guaranteed independently of any interest or lack of interest on our part, her welfare, and the success of her labors are bound up intimately with our active co-operation. The Federation is essentially non-political. It opens its doors to receive with equal favor the representatives of all political parties. Like'the Church, it knows neither Jew nor Gentile, bond nor free. Christ our Lord enunciated a principle when He said "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." The Church and the State are each supreme in their own sphere and if we had uniform recognition of this mutual supremacy instead of conflict we would have co-operation, the State granting opportunities for the Church to carry on her work of enlightening and sanctifying her people while the Church in her turn would insist on the due observance of the laws of the State, and thus Justice, Enlightening, and Charity would mark the upward and onward mark of the human race. The Federation will not touch politics until politics touch religion. It will touch politics when and only when Caesar claims that we render to him the things that belong to God:- For, e.g., God creates the child to share with Himself in His own Immortal Glory. He says to the parents: "Take this child and rear him for Me," but the State steps in and says: "I will educate your child—that is, I will draw out and build up his character and I will do so exclusively with a view to his usefulness in the State. I will ignore his immortal destiny. I will send him to a school where the name of God will not be mentioned, where no hint will be ever dropped that the child has an immortal soul, where the highest ideal that will be set before him will be an utilitarian ideal of what he can do in after life for himself and for the State." As a system of education it is imperfect and incomplete; it cannot answer the simplest question that the enquiring mind of an intelligent child would ask. It cannot answer the why and wherefore of the child's existence because the answer would involve a reference to God and to an immortal soul. It cannot explain the meaning of the date on the child's copy book because such explanation would involve an explanation of the birth, the personality, and the mission of Jesus Christ. This is an admission that education in the proper sense of the term is not the function of the State, and when it undertakes the work it is usurping a task that has been divinely committed to the parents is claiming for Caesar something that belongs to God. In this sense, then, and in this sense only, is the Federation political that it deals with politics when politics touch religion. But though our organisation leaves politics alone as far as it can there are economic questions of vital importance to our national life and national welfare towards the solution of which it must make a contribution if it would justify its existence. These economic questions like the poor we have alwayss with us; but when the war is over, and we hope it '* soon will be, these

questions which in times of peace our politicians kept steadily in view, will clamor' for a solution, and the clamor must be answered. ' Other problems too, the nature and : character of which only a prophet could forecast, problems arising from the magnitude of imperial and national debt and other kindred causes, will demand swift and sane solutions. If the Federation is to make its influence felt for good in the solution of these problems it must not slavishly follow public opinion as it flows in the artificial channels created for it by a press that is often merely the mouthpiece of the party politician. It must help to mould and fashion public opinion on sound and healthy lines. It must emancipate public opinion from the spell that is cast upon it by the infallible utterances which emanate from the editorial sanctum. In an effort to do this the : Federation is sure to meet with opposition. It will be confronted with difficulties. It will be misrepresented and its aims and objects often honestly be misunderstood. But we must remember and take courage and consolation from the thought that "good is never done except at the expense of those who do it.” (To be concluded next week.)