The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1916-02-26

Catholic, respect the name of the
Saviour, to Whom in baptism you
were sealed as very member of His
mystic body, Whose sacred blood
puppies your lips in Eucharistic EN-
brace, from Whom you hope the par
don OF your sins, the mercy without
which no salvation is allowed. Hear
ing the name of God, the name of Jesus
profaned, at once your face should
redden with fiery Indignation, at once
your hand should rise in defense OF
the divine honor. The appeal is to
the. chivalry of your faith. Every
sacrifice should be at it's service
every thrill of nobility of soul should
respond to its call But, Catholic
brother, what is it that in fact does
happen? Are not you yourself / at
times the aggressor against the holy
names, in overt war against them, by
your example provoking others into
like impiety? What is it, l ask, that
impels you to insult your God and
Saviour? Do you plead insanity?
Be that your explanation, if your sense
of manhood permits it.
| The name of father, of mother, OF
country, the name of friend or kind
neighbor, receives no such vile treat
ment as is meted out to the names
of the Creator and Of the Saviour.
This gentleman, the lady, among our
felloW-beings are spared the treatment
offered to God and to the Saviour.
Mortals, at least be as polite towards
| the names of God and the Saviour, as
you are towards those of the men
! with whom you hold daily converse.
am lowering, perhaps, my argument,
when i'll favor of the Infinite | appeal
| to the rules of our common polite
ness: but permit myself to say ought
that might cleanse tongues and ears
from the horrid dirt of blasphemy.
Men who make use of blasphemy are
not the gentlemen; nor are they &C
| counted as such by those of their
| felloW-men, who respect themselves
and deserve the respect of others,
| CursingN and swearing is absolutely
vulgar, and is SO considered in decent
society. In fact the man addicted to
cursing and swearing is as loW-minded
as he is foul-mouthed, and should
| have no access to association with
men, to whom the name of gentleman
can with smallest appropriateness be
applied. The man addicted to ours.
ing and swearing is banned into con.
tempt by his own fellow-men, unless
it be by those who rank with himself
in servile meaness.
| TO Catholics who curse and swear
there comes home the grievous scan.
dial, to which they give cause. They
disgrace their religion: they lower
its claims: they turn men away from
| it. While dishonor to God and to the
Saviour is the practice among sons
of the Church, is there not, it will be
asked, some radical defect in the
moral code of the Church that it is
not able to awaken in it's disciple,
ship, even the small sense of right
eousness which sufices to bring
ordinary reverence to the holy names.
People around us judge the Church
| from every day observation Of the say
ings and doings of such Catholics as
cross their pathways. They have not
| the will, nor the time to study the
Church in it's true life, that life which
translates itself in it's full beauteous-
ness into the manner of life of those
of it's children who lend themselves
to the spirit of it's teachings: they
value the Church from the records
that are nearest at hand. And, so
often, those records are those of con.
temptible yulgarity, of hideous bias.
| phemy To the disciples of Gods
Church who thus give scandal to those
outside the fold, the words are spoken:
Thou, that makest thy boast offhe
law, by transgression Of the law, dis
honorest God. For the name of God
through you is blasphemed amongst
the Gentiles." And those other words
spoken by the Lord Himself: "Woe
to the world because of scandals. For
it must needs be that scandals come:
but, nevertheless, woe to the man by
whom the scandal cometh.
Especially terrible in its malice and
| in its effects, is this scandal when put
before the little ones of the flock by
| their own parent! Says the Lord Him
self: But he that shall scandalize
| one of those little ones that believe
| in me, it were better for him that a
milestone should be hanged about his
neck and that he should be drowned
| in the depths of the sea-" | have in
mind the home of the family, where
the father is a blasphemer, where the
air that the little ones must breathe
| is lurid of curses and oaths. There
+! from earliest years children learn to
curse and to swear: and their teacher
| is their own father Few things are
more horrifying than. the habit OF
blasphemy in the mouths of children:
more horrifying, however, it is to be
| told by themselves that the habit is
an Inheritance Of their own homes.
Unhappy the home of the father where
blasphemy is heard: it is punished
because of his sins. The anger OF
God rests heavily upon it, in ret.
ribution for the insults he has offered
to the Divine Majesty; And he loved
cursing, and it shall come unto him:
and he would not have blessing, and
it shall be far from him."
We have told the evil of blasPhemy