The Irish standard., 1907-04-20
THE CATH0LICPR PRESS
Is Fighting a Noble Battle, Says
Bishop Conaty.;
Duty Of; the Catholic Layman
-. =. Plainly Set Forth. !.

-. = Plainly Set Forth.
In recent address, Ri. Rev. Thomas
J. Conaty. Bishop of Los Angeles.
spoke as follows:.:- -. ...
The Catholic press is fighting a noble
battle: but how small the support it
receives from the laity! How many
feel, the sense of. duty to the. Catholic
newspaper and yet it is. one. of the
great instructors of the people-a de-
fender of faith and of the Church.
Every Catholic has. upon himself the
responsibility of building up the
Church of God, making. known the
truths of Christ, maintaining: intact the
true principles upon which our. social
and domestic life depend These re-
sponsibilities fall upon the laylnan as
we'll as on the cleric. What are our
Catholic laymen doing in. answer TO
this responsibility? How: can we ac-
count for. the indifference to the de-
velopment of. the Gospel, the unwil-
lingness to make sacrifices, the abso-
lutte .selhshness in feeling that their
responsibility. begins and ends with
their own personal observance of the
precepts of the Church in hearing Mass
and making their Easter duties?
We. need intelligent, energetic lay
men with the spirit of the ages of
faith in their souls, feeling a divine
calling to be not only members of the
Church. but to be partners in every
work of the Church. They shoulu ne
found not only: in their. places in
Church on Sundays and Holy days and
at the altar at regular times in the
year, but they should he found in the
works of charity and education, mem
bers of the Conferences of st. Vincent
de Paul or other associations of char
ity, deeply interested in the poor, con-
sulting how best their. conditions may
be benefited. sympathetic in reforlna-
ton and relief work, Jealous in the
cause of education, helping the priest
in his Church development, not only
by aid and advice, but also by readi-
ness to contribute.
A Catholic laynan of all men should
be the one always found practicing
and defending the domestic virtues,
his word and his life against the mon
ster which stands ready to destroy the
home, the giant evil divorce. He
| should be found in the work Of the
State. intelligently Informed upon tile
principles of government, incapable Of
dishonesty and untruthfulness, filled
with devotion to. the responsibility in
every field of life in which he finds
himself. ~
The tendency of the age is more in
clined to- evil than to good, to false
hood. than to truth, to dishonesty than
to- integrity. The duty of the Catholic
layman is an intelligent devotion to
truth and an unf1inching opposition to
falsehood and dishonor. The layman
in our American life should be pos
sessed of a citizenship which should
be the. public expression of his pri-
waite character and goodness of life
should be the: source of his public
service. -: The Catholic laYman should
be. and is, capable of being: a typical
model citizen. Our Church demands
the best Of life's service, our country
demands the same. The spirit of the
Church, the. character of our spiritual
aspirations. all should tend to make us
the best. Of men and the best man has
TN him the making of the best citi-
zen. The Catholic layman should be
a, helpmate to the priest. he should
be a partner in the Work Of God,
proud of his membership in the
Church, an obedient and loyal follower
of the Church. His loyalty should be
the soldiers loyalty to his commander,
he should have a sympathy for the
priest who, has not to perform the
sacred duties: of his office, but often
times to go out into the highways; and
byways to solicit means for the estab-
lisment Of the house Of divine wor-
ship. There should be consideration
for the priest and a. readiness to CO.
operate with him in all his demands.
The layman should be found ready to
make sacrifices for the decency of re-
ligious worship and for the placing of
the Church In respect and honor be-
fore his friends and neighbors. 49,
= 1t is unfortunate that with: many of
our people there appears to be an alb
solute selfshness in their. religion.
They are interested in that which inn
mediately concerns them and feel that
| outside their: OWL narrow circle of
| religious life their is nothing of partic-