The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1906-12-08
Its Causes and Its Cure Briefly Set Forth
From Most Practical and Intel
ligent Standpoint
Never Can Be at Peace, Never in Reach Of
Perfect Happiness While There
is Suffering in the World.

tho light. There ls aso running IN.
tho mind of the great mass Of ths
people r. memory Of the days Of hard-
ship and misery endured by ihs
peasant classes OF Europe, when tl1~
grand seigneur III the castle on this
hilltop looked down ON his tenants.
t'ln lower classes, as lle called them
who, under the hardest possible cou-
ditiols, eked out r. scanty livelihood
Another sort of social discomfort
is tho daughter or religion. IT con.
! sists of a. general desire, Never so
| universal in the world as said this
late Pope Leo NIIT, 'on the part OF
! every man 10 do all and everything
| that can be done for the betterment oS
each member of the human race"
| How s-on this bettarment be BROUGHT
about.."
'There are ~ thousand and o,1e
theories advocated, from the Widest
most fantastic, and Utopian dreams.
to the divinest love, Expressing itself
in the spirit exenlplifed by His Holi.
ness. the Pope. desiring at all times
to lift the dropping head, bind up the
broken heart, and to pour the oil and
balm OF religion and love into TIL.
wounds OF suffering humanity
Others, who would be, reformers---
the extreme school-forgetting that
If they tear down the present social
fabric it must be all builded again
out Of the same materials, preach the
doctrine Of iconoclasm. This is sheer
folly. for if the present social systena
is the best that humanity could do
after centuries Of painful effort and
struggle. we cannot hope to improve
conditions by any radical and un~
precedented remedy. You might just
as we'll tear down our beautiful capi-
tol. and after having broken the ma.
terial of which it was constructed,
hope to increase it's beauty by plac-
ing again the broken marbles in tho
wall ....
eve must build up. not tear downa
We must seek to remedy, not to up.
root; to cure. not to kills, our efforts
must be positive. not negative: con-
structive, not destructive reform
must come, not through hate, but bA
love. ... ...
Tho radical vice Of the extrema
socialistic school. developing into an~
archy and eliminating in hatred, can
never remedy social evil or calm the
spirit Of discontent.' ....
"Wllat is to be the attitude Of Chris-
tianity toward this movement? What
!. Is the duty of religion? What is the
attitude Of the Church toward the
social problem and what part is the
Christian man to play in its solution ?"
I'VE must first of all,' says rather
Stafford, approach the question with
profoundest sympathy in direct ac-
cordance with tho fundamental prin-
ciples OF Christianity-sympathy love.
liberation. The love Of God for man:
the love OF man for God; tho love OF
man for fellow-n1an. Remember that
no matter how impossible OF realiza-
ton may be the scheme Of regenera-
ton advocated by socialist, anarchist.
reformer-call him what you will:
however wild and visionary the theory
expressed, however, hateful even the
solution proposed, it may be advo-
Gated by a man blinded by error, per-
haps, but with a heart that desires
only to benefit mankind; by a soul
that is striving nlanfully toward the
light as he sees II. AZ
I'VE must never answer hate by
hatred, and we must come fully to
understand that among men who hold
the widest theories concerning tins
correction Of our evils there is a gem
eral and widespread desire to benefit