St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1913-05-10
Religion IS Mans Only Salvation.
go
Continued from page II

we see in the case of the demon
and our worst criminals are By
no means taken from the rank
of the ignorant and illiterate Blu
rather from those who by thei
intellectual gifts are qualified t.
work greater ruin.
Material progress and CONNER
cialism are certainly not going t.
save us but are much more like
lily to extinguish generous senti-
ments and lofty ideals, to debase
the national character, and to in.
augurate a reign of luxury anc
RIGHTEOUSNESS. Thus it was thai
the great empires of antiquity
all came to perish.
Militarism may guard US from
invasion from without but can ii
protect us against corruption
from within? Behold intemper-
ance, immortality, dishonesty,
divorce, murder, self slaughter,
profanity, race-suicide and a
host of similar vices which like
so many greedy, rayenous vul-
lures are rending and devouring
the very vitals Of our land. Can
you pierce them with the pointof
your sabre or turn your heavy
artillery upon them or blast them
with your torpedoes? Vain and
futile ure such weapons for such
a purpose. It takes a spiritual
force for good to conquer such
spiritual forces for evil and this
spiritual force mighty and divine
is what is known unto men by
the sacred name of religion.
Such remedies then as are
commonly proposed as destined
to cure our social ills are abso-
lutely unequal to such a task
and it is a glaring popular falla-
cy to credit them with such a
power which belongs to religion
and to religion alone. But how
it may be asked will religion save
our land from SO many and such
formidable foes?
Religion will save US by going
to the very fountain-head of hu-
man operation that is to say the
minds and hearts Of men and
purifying society in its very
source. For religion is the
fruitful mother of wise resolves,
of high and holy thoughts, of
generous and noble deeds. Re-
is the mother of purity of
character, Of probity and Of all
other virtues and for this de-
serves the noble title of salt of
the earth.
Religion will save our land by
saving our families from which
the nation itself is made. It will
repel far from the threshold of
The home divorce, discord, in
temperance, lust and greed which
ike SO many demons lie in wait
to destroy it.
Religion will save our land by
oerpetually holding aloft before
The eyes Of men the bright torch
Immortality and thus nerying
hem to bear temporal ills by the
prospect of eternal bliss.
Religion will save our land by /
holding aloft the cross that great
emblem Of sacrifice and teaching
hem rather to sacrifice them
elves for others than to sacrifice
'thers to themselves.
Religion will save our land by
the part of the good Sa-
naritan, pouring the wine and
il of her charity and mercy into
he bleeding, gaping wounds of
umanity, offering a balm to
very bruise and q salve to every !
ore, multiplying her hospitals, !
sylums and charitable institu- 2
ons of every class. 2
Religion will save our land by )
litable appeals, in season and !,
ut of season, to rich and to poor, !.
ruler and subject, to learned :
.dignorant, to the weak and :
strong. :
Religion will save our land by
lie constant administration of
le sacraments which will intro :,
lce a spiritual and divine ele- !;
.ent into the lives of men puri- :
ing their souls, fortifying their :,
eakness and enabling them to /
We up to the dictates of their 9
'%nsciences and the higher aspir- +,
ions of their hearts. 6,
Religion finally will save our .,
nd by promoting by every .
cans in her power the observ- +,
Ice of the ten commandments. .,
} realize in some measure what ?
priceless boon this would be, :;
Ike if you will those ten COM f.
andments one by one and cal Il
late the practical results Or
itch would flow from their faith +
observance. With this sacred l..
de reduced to practice all vice a,
d wickedness would fly from
r shores and with them almost Nj
our misery and paradise would So