The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1905-11-18
THE CHURCH AND THE Stage.

Champions of the drama take it as q good omen
that the ashes of Sir Henry Irving are suffered
to rest in Westminster Abbey. 1t Is now more than
a century and a quarter since the remains of an
actor have been placed in this historic burial place
The fact that Irving's are admitted is thought by
some to mark the beginning Of truce between the
church and the stage.
1t is hard to see, however, how this bestowal Of
the actors ashes can have such far-reaching ef-
feet. There never was d time when sane churchmcn
and decent actors were at war. The Catholic
Church has favored and blessed the stage, when
ever and wherever the stage has kept within the
bounds of sound morality. She had sympathy
for the Puritanical rigor which prescribed every
actor the son of the devil She had no part, on
the other hand, III the depravity of the Restora-
tion when playrights seemed to vie with one an
other in fnging filth into the faces of the ground
lings
For the morally clean and wholesome stage, the
Catholic Church, let it be repeated has nothing but
admiration and encouragement She recognizes
that her children need relaxation and sureease from
labor. And where they find this more effectu-
ally and more delightfully."- than in the theatre
where artists hold the mirror to nature-but to
nature ideazed rather than travestied; where they
behold vice condignly punished and virtue fttingy
rewarded even IN this life.
Far from condemning the stage the Church
rightly claims to be the mother of the English
drama. The miracle plays were of her begetting.
So were the moralities. She would employ the
stage to mculcate historical and moral truths and
she scorned not to make it her handmade in the ed
hcation and education of her children So long as
the English stage remained true to its birthright
1t was the much favored offspring of the church
But 1t is a truism to say that the drama has
sadly degenerated from its primal purity The
pages OF Congreve and Wycherly. of Farouhar and
Marlborough, as well as OF Drydens earlier works
are libel on Christian decency When the peo-
pie demanded such ofal and the stage catered to
their degeneracy. it was but natural that the
Church should Withdraw her sanction. Nor is it
dlthcut to place the responsibility for the breach
Just as soon as the stage returns to its legitimate
sphere, ceases to pander to the grosser side of hui
man nature, and seeks to elevate rather than de-
grade, 1t eau count on the cordial approval. noU
to say positive support of the Catholic Church.
The fact that Sir Henry Irvng's stage life was
consistent "nnsecrated to the moral redemntion
OF the stage, Is something for which every Chris
tan must rejoice. The placing of his remains in
westminster Abbey may we'll be taken as high rec
oenlton, on the part of its present possessors of
the great actors efforts and achievements. The
Catholic Church is the mother of legitimate Eng
llsh drama, the Abbey was built by her inspiration
and under her auspices. For centuries. both the
church and the stage have been lost to her. She
however, reJolces TO see the doors of her former
edice opened to receive the remains of one that has
done his share towards purifying and elevatinc an
institution which owes its establishment to her in
ltlatlye-Catholic Transcript.