The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-06-28
w. TO SAVE FRANCE
FUND OF TEN MILLION DOLLARS
WILL BE USED TO EVANGELIzE
CATHOLIC FRANCE-DR. MOTT
AND OTHERS OFFER HOPE FOR
BENlGHTED CATHOLICS-Y. M.
c. A. SHOWS TRUE COLORS.

Another onslaught on the Christian
faith of the French people is to be
made by the Y. M. c.. A, backed up
by wives and daughters of members
Of our present Federal government,
says the Pittsburgh Observer Pre-
liminary steps for it have been taken
at a meeting addressed by Wes-
leyan bishop, who explained the pur-
pose to which the sum of $10,00O,000
that is now being raised, is to be
devoted:
eve are going to restore these shat
tered homes, these great churches,
these great cathedrals in France, in
world ideals. 1t is not doors, and
walls and windows that we intend to
replace. The stones of France are not
crying out for windows and doors.
What we will do, what the stones of
the replacing of Christ, that He might
occupy the place where the Prophet
stood" In other words, as he subse-
quently explained, this other drive"
on Catholic France is to be made in
order that she may be lifted out of
the darkness of Rome" and placed in
the refulgence emanating from the
leading lights" of American 'evan-
gelism'!
Dr. Mott, head of the Y. M. C. A.,
whom President Wilson so much adj
mires that he offered him, few years
ago, the post of American ambassador
to China, was there too; and he made
these significant remarks: 'These are
testing times. | never saw straighter,
never was my mind more convinced,
my vision more thorough, than when
President Wilson wired the Y. M. G. A.
that the United States needed it in
the war Before I paid any attention
to athletics, to educational work, |
proceeded to form a committee of
evangelical work among the churches.
Week by week, this committee met,
and the result was the evolution of
religious program"
The Providence Visitor" tells us
some of the incidents that attended
the working out of this program when
it. says: ''The spectacle of mixing
religious service with social entertain
ments and thus forcing the attendance
of our Catholic men deserved censure
war or no war. One incident came
| under our notice where several Cath
Ollie sailors received public rebuff be-
cause they refused to hit the trail
| in a Y. NJ c. A. hut in this state.
| Charity does not demand us to be
silent about this nor about the efforts
of the Y. M. C.. A. to compel the
knights of Columbus to change their
| policy of free distribution nor the
attempts to keep the K. of G.. huts
| from being built in camps"
DR.. Mott went on to say: when
the story of the war is written if
the Y. M. C. A., yes, and the Y. w.
c. A., are not on record as the iden-
titled Evangelical Church of America,
then |, and many others, will hand in
our designations, for the " will have
lost its interest There never was a
time when $10,000,O00, to be given,
gathered, used, was more timely. more
/ pOtouIldl, uOIS ufSllIy InullIpliOu III
prospect, than the $10,000,000 we have
started to gather tonight
Sectarians who profess to be very
much opposed to any semblance of
connection between Church and State
ought to note-and Catholics also
should pay attention to this fact-that
this Y. M C: A movement is being
actively supported by, Miss Wilson,
daughter of the President; Mr.. Sayre,
son-in-law of the President; Mr.. Sharp,
son of the American ambassador to
France; Mrs. Lansing, wife of the Sec
rotary of State; Mrs. House, wife of
Colonel House, and many others prom
inently connected with our govern
ment.