The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1916-03-11
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE.
The Chief is not responsible for
views expressed by correspondents.

!
views expressed by correspondents.
The Roman Catholic Church on the
Dance Question.
Editor Chief:
/ Following the article on "Are the
Churches Narrow on the Dance CUES
ton" that you were kind enough to
publish last week in your Letters
from the People" column, | submit
the following quotations from the
1914 pastoral letter of Bishop Van DE
Ven Of Natchitoches as showing the
views of one Of the leading Roman
/ Catholics of the state on the same
/ subject. Among other striking
things that this leader of his church
says in this strong address to the par
ishioners of his diocese, we would sug-
gest that the Catholics of Donaldson
Vile, as well as all others, give care
full reading to that part of his letter
/ that says: ut is past all comprehen-
sion how some fathers and mothers
can be so blind and so wholly bereft
of all sense of parental responsibility
as to send their own children on the
/ downward road to ruin by allowing
them to frequent questionable COM
pany, and to spend nights in the ball
room under circumstances that mean
| the almost certain loss of their viz
tue.
1t would seem to the writer that
this one letter alone would answer
the intimation we have heard in Dom
jacksonville that only the Protestants
were opposed to the present day I'M
modest dance, and that the Roman
Catholics did not object to their men,
bers so indulging "the lusts of the
/ flesh" If this were SO, no greater
compliment could be paid to Protest
antism as. being worthy exponent of
Bible christianity, and scarcely could
the church of Rome receive more
scathing criticism; but according to
Bishop Van De Ven it is noticeable
that Romanism and Professionalism are
identical in their condemnation of this
form of amusement that is so de-
structive of both piety and the moral
sense trust your readers may
read and reread this article.
The quotations from Bishop Van De
VEINS pastoral letter referred to above
are as follows:
"And, dear brethren, much of this
worldliness and pleasure in which
people indulge nowadays is not only
unWise and disastrous, and opposed to
the spirit Of Christ's gospel, but posi-
lively wrong and sinful in itself, SO
that christian people cannot with a,
clear conscience partake of it. We
have warned you time and again
against the prevailing indecency in
dress, against the dangers of the the
atre and the picture shows, and
against the latest denominations in the
form Of those nauseating dances now
so widely in vogue.
I'm doing so we have only added
our voice to that of countless bishops
the world over, and of the Holy
Father himself, who have repeatedly
and unanimously denounced these re-
voting indecencies as being revival
of paganism and an open menace to
christian morality. Even secular
journals have arraigned them in the
severest terms, and both civil and
military authorities have condemned
and forbidden them. AS the partors
of your souls it is our duty TO warn
you with all the earnestness at our
command against all these forms of
indecency, against this degradation Of
Womanhood, and against all these nu-
merous agencies for the corruption of
morals.
We ask all our people to set their
face against them, to avoid them per-
sonally, and in as much as possible to
prevent and discourage them in 9TH
ers. We beg the parents especially
to forbid them absolutely to their
children and to guard and cultivate
most carefully in their sons and
daughters that delicate sense of mod
esty and those finer instincts Of
christian purity which will be their
safeguard against all those corrupt
ing influences.
It is past all comprehension how
some fathers and mothers can be SO
blind and SO wholly bereft Of all sense
of parental responsibility as to send
their own children on the downward
road to ruin by abetting and exciting
their sinful vanity, by allowing them
to frequent questionable company,
and to spend nights in the ballroom
under circumstances that mean the al
most certain loss Of their virtue. We /
appeal to all clean-minded people to /
take firm stand against all these
outages on public decency, to shun
them, to ostracize them, and to close
their doors against them. If all the
good men and women in community
would take a united stand, what a
purifying of the moral at
would be the result.
IF especially our women of the
better class, instead Of being the
slaves Of vulgar and ugly fashion,
would set an example Of independ-
ence and of good taste, many others
would be sure to follow, and many a
poor Weak-minded girl might be saw
ed from ruin. In several countries
the ladies of the best social standing
nave thus banded together to offset
every form Of public indecency and
and to uphold the rules
If propriety and christian morality in ,
social life. Let our Catholics do like ,
wise.
Let all the members of our ladies' /,
'odalities and societies be pledged to !,
nodesty in dress and to the careful !
hunning of improper anlusements.
Modesty is a woman's chiefest orna- I,
nent; purity is her greatest treasure. /
Without these she is like a faded lily, :
10 longer attractive. but reDulsiye.