The Irish standard., 1917-07-07
CATHOLIC EDUcA-
TI0nAL C0nVEn-
ton AT BUFFALO
Bishop Dougherty's Sermon.

Never, perhaps, has there been a
gathering in this city with higher and
nobler aims than this convention of
the Catholic Educational Association
OF the United States. You have come
! from the North and South. from East
and West, with the sole purpose of in
creasing the effectiveness of your serv-
ice to the Church and to the country
by the training of our youth in the
ways OF true knowledge and of Chris
tan virtue. You have assembled here
with sincere desire to have a COR
rect valuation placed upon your work,
to face the difficulties of the modern
educational world and to combine and
coordinate your forces so that the
army OF Catholic educators may go
forward in unbroken ranks to win in
the future victories even more bril-
liant than those won in the past.
1t is not my purpose to take up the
general arguments for the need of
Catholic schools. AS you are aware,
these arguments are based on mans
triple nature, physical, intellectual and
moral. each of which must be trained
ii the whole man, and not a part of
his being, is to receive full and har-
monious treatment. These reasons are
too we'll known for me to dwell upon
them.
| But most emphatic stress should be
laid upon the imperative need Of Cath
olic schools for that systematic and
rigid training of the child's moral ma
ture, upon which alone genuine
Christian character, true personal in
tegrity and solid civic probity depend.
We all know that this sphere of edu.
cational effort is lamentably neglected
in the majority of non-Catholic
schools, colleges and universities, the
managers of which feel that they have
satisfied their duty to parents and to
the country If the student has been
| given certain amount of physical
training and If generous measures of
interesting information have been i'm
parted to him. Yet all rejecting men,
whether Catholic or Protestant, are
agreed that, unless the will is trained,
developed and strengthened in youth,
we cannot look for vigorous manhood
or blameless womannood, properly
reared in the practice of the funda-
mental principles of Christian civiliza-
ton. We must not forget the i'm
portance of having the mind trained
by those teachers whose philosophy
Of life rests for it's intellectual basis,
upon the teachings which have the
unqualified approval of those moral
leaders who are especially commits
stoned by God to safeguard the spir-
itual life. The Almighty Fashioner of
the Universe has, in His wisdom, or
daincd that there should exist a COM
plcte and close connection between
mans will, upon which his ethical and
spiritual life largely depends and his
reason by which the guiding principles
of conduct are mastered and presented
for active service. 1t is, consequently,
self-evident that mans dominating
power, the will, must rely for it's
choice upon the principles proposed
to it and hence the noble character of
a St. Louis of France cannot be built
upon the vagaries of Tom Paine;
the deep faith of Louis Pasteur can
not rest upon the teachings of flip
pant Ingersoll, and the sterling virtues
of Blessed Thomas More cannot
spring from the rawlings of Vol
taire. ..
We sometimes hear it asserted that
from residence at certain nom atholic
schools there are social advantages to
be derived which are wanting in our
Catholic colleges and universities.
Calm and broad Investigations along
this line have failed to discover a
single case in which these hopes were
realized
But even if social distinction fol-
lowed from such procedure, is that
sufficient reason for violating the
most precious rights of the young and
the most definite decisions of the
Church? Are the treasures of heaven
, to be bartered away for the baubles of
earth? Seek We first the kingdom Of
heaven, is still the true canon of con-
duct Let all Catholics realize that
they are seriously obliged to give to
each child the opportunity for a
rounded Christian education from the
primary grades to the university;
, from the simplest foundation to the
highest point of professional excel
lency.
Another difficulty not to be lightly
passed over is the danger to faith
, arising from the historical and phil
, osophical courses in non-Catholic in
, stitutions. No one who understands
life is ignorant of the tremendous in
fluence welded by fact and example.
n It is the concrete fact staring us in
J. the face that compels our attention
J. and EFFORTS our decision It is the
t. example of others that sets in motion
il those colossal energies which can
h make or wreck the fairest empire or
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