The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1917-05-12

school children to read!
Hawthorne must have place on
any list Of American classics. His
style is characterized by a distinctive
grace and charm suggestive and
imaginative. In fact he is one of the
few stylists of the first rank which
we have produced. His Scarlet
Letter is romance of rare power
The story, however, is far from edity'
ing and presents no moral aim that
can satisfy a. Christian. 1t is hardly
suitable for children, and, where there
are so many other unobjectionable
books of equal merit there is no
reason it should be chosen. Haw-
thorne can best be studied throusn
The Tanglewood Tales" The Blith-
endale Romance" or The House of
the Seven Gables" His Marble
Faun' is Objectionable to Catholics
on account of the offensive way he
treats Of Catholic practises in Italy
a people, which his thoroughly Phri-
IAN nature never in any way under
stood.
Is the book Lies MiserabIes," by
Victor Hugo, in which we meet the
character, Jean Val Jean, good book
to read? What is your opinion of the
story?
The book Les Mscrables," by Vic
tor Hugo was in 1864 placed by the
Congregation of the Index on the Off
vial list of books forbidden to Catho-
lies. Hence it is net a fit book to
read.
Victor Hugo is one of the worlds
great romanticists and his Les
NiscraDles" is sometimes regarded as
his masterpiece. 1t is however right
~ denied this place of honor because
of the gloom which fills most of it's
passes and because Of its hcterodoX
view of the rights of a lawfully gov
nrning power This false teaching
was the result Of Rousseau's inidel
theory of government and the occa-
sion Of the book being forbidden to
Catholics Only one other of Hugo's
works has been put in the same class
as Les Miserables," namely, "Notre
Dame de Paris" Hence there is am
pie opportunity to study his style
from his other and more brilliant
works.
Kindly state if the book "The
Woman Thou Gayest Me-" by Hall
Canc. is on the Index of forbidden
books. Where can get list of for
hidden books?
This book is not explicitly on the
Index since the Church never
places books of such ephemeral value
on her list. Hall Caine is a gcsticu-
Iating sensationalist, a literary Billy
Sunday" Thus far he has produced
nothing which a future generation
will care to read. He belongs with
Robert Chambers, David G. Phillips
and Rupert Hughes, to that class of
writers who have abandoned the
novel as an art form and have en-
ployed it as a social, political or re-
ligious tract. In The Woman Thou
Gavcst Me" he is following simply
the main trend of the times; for, at
present, it is the fashion to attack the
Sanctity of the marriage bond Such
a book is not fit to read; nor, from
any point Of view is it worth read
ing,
Evidently Catholics are forbidden to
read such books as we'll as all others
that are opposed to faith or morals
even though they be not on the
Index"
The last edition Of the Index" was
published in Rome ct the Vatican
Press in 1907. An excellent work on
the Index" and enc which contains
nearly q complete list Of the forbidden
books is The Censorship of the
Church of Rome" by George Raven
Putnam, published by Putnam.
Please give the addresses of the
different orders CT Sisters Of Charity
and their rules of life?
Sister Eugenia Fealy, r. R. 20
Wellston Sta, St Louis, Mo.
Mother Mary Florence, Mt. ST.
Joseph, Hamilton Co, Ohio.
Motherhouse, 800 Guy St, Montreal,
Pc.
Mother Mary of the Ascension, st.
Joseph's Convent, Mount Carmel,
Dubuque, Iowa.
Mother Rose Meaher, Nazareth,
Kentucky.
The rules of life vary with each
order and may be learned by writing
to the above addresses.
Is it true that Catholics were with
out a pope for seventy-five years?
This charge has been made to me by
a non-CathoIic.
It is probable that the non-Catholic
had in mind the period of time during
which the popes resided in Avignon,
France, instead of Rome, Italy, the
ordinary papal city. This change of
residence continued for seventy years,
from 1909 to 1878, during the reign
Of seven popes, Clement V, John XXI,
Benedict XII Clement VI Innocent
VI, Urban V, Gregory XI Dwelling
in a city distant from Rome does not
by any means imply an abdication of
power nor, did any one at the time
consider that the supreme authority
was lost to the Church, because the
none no longer resided in Rome On