The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1900-05-19
Count John II. Creighton Foremost
Catholic LaVn1an Of Bis Cine


merely as representative Of providence
in dispensing some of the good things
with which God had blessed him.
shall not offend his modesty nor your
sense of propriety; but 1 feel justified
nevertheless in charactertzing what /
conceive TO be the spirit.
81 hold in my hand a little card.
Though I read in it's face no history, L
seem to hear it proclaiming with
hundred tongues the spirit which gives
soul to this ceremony. 1t is the pro-
fession of faith and Of principles on the
part of man who had met. somewhere
| in his travels this humanitarian SEN
! tence; and he was so struck with it's
| justice and truth that he had some
! hundreds of these cards struck off for
| presentation to his friends-and he
| acted up to his motto. The legend
| reads thus: Il expect to pass through
| this world but once. Any good things,
! therefore, that I can do; any kindness
| that [ can show to any fellow
human being, let me do it now:
let me not defer or neglect it. for
! shall not pass this way again" There
| is rim of gold on these beveled edges,
but there is a deeper rim of humanity
around the heart of man who isScour-
ageOuS enough to challenge the world
and declare unequivOcally that charity
should find place in the busiest life.
That represents the thought of John A
Creighton. Thrust into the arena of the
nineteenth century he has done well his
appointed work. and he never conSid-
cred himself absolved from works OF
benevolence during life, because he had
the intention of leaving some large en-
dowment to charity by his last will and
testament. There is many a slip 'twiXt
the cup and the lip" and good inten-
tons often fail when they are not fos-
tered by the living and ever active fire
OF present charity. Men are frequently
called away suddenly before they have
time to put their affairs in order; wills
are daily contested and broken, in ODE
dience to the delusion that he who
leaves much for charity has been
stricken with a most dreadful form of
insanity. and the persuasion that those
who survive know better what he ought
to have done and intended than he
did himself. Charity performed during
life is well done. because God demands
charity from the living more than he
has required it of the dead. He wishes
it bestowed by the warm touch of a
snatched from the skeleton fingers of a
corpse.
"All honor. then. to the recipient Of
the Laetare Medal! His example is an
inspiration. He has built his own mon
ument and has seen the good grow IN
der his own fostering hand. And
though he has paid the penalty of all
liberal men in being besieged beyond
measure by every form of application
for help, he has not stayed his hand in
well doing
"Al1 honor, too, to Notre Dame Uni
versity, whose hand We clasp in friends
ship. whose happy conception of the
Of showing appreciation of in4
dividual merit has filed a gap and re-
the reproach that Catholic lay
men must content themselves with the
appreciation of their conscience and
their God. the unexpressed satisfaction
OF the discerning, the silent approval
of the wise and prudent, the quiet
word of commentator passing from lip
TO lip. NOtre Dame University has
taught us that a more solemn sanction
Is possible. The merit of it's gift is en4
HANGED by the utter absence of mer-
cenary or interested. motive, by its en-
tire unselfishness. II it had any other
object in view than to reward COnspiC-
louS merit, the medal would never have
gone to some who received it, for it
would have been altogether outside
their power to offer any material rec
Ompense for the honor done them. It
S sometimes said in a spirit of envy
and jealousy that merit backed by
wealth is the only merit rewarded. But
Notre Dame has given an emphatic de-
hal to this statement; she has scanned
he field and with impartial hand be-
slowed her favor in this instance upon
me who has thought it his duty to cCA4
inc his efforts mainly to the upbuiIding
# the charities and educational Work in
lis own state and city, and who has
lever, perhaps, even visited the great
University of Notre Dame
Therefore, we welcome this recog-
ition given to our benefactor and we
ejoice in it not merely for his sake,
tut for ours, inasmuch as we consider
ny honor done to him as done to the
'reighton University, in which he has
lways taken a fatherly interest If,
hen, John A. Creighton thanks you.
o does Creighton University; so does
be Creighton Memorial hospital: so
oes the John A. Creighton Medical
ollege; so does the Convent of the
DOR ClareS. One and all we join in
ne rejoicing of his innumerable
'iends.''