The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1920-02-28
BIS HOPS Il ETTER5

the home and corrupt our social rela-
tons at the source.
The Catholic Church does not and
will not sanction divorce in the abso-
Lutte sense which permits either of
the separated parties to remarry dur
| ing the lifetime of the other The
ease and frequency with which di-
vorce of this kind is granted, make it
national scandal. The bond, which
ought to be most sacred, is regarded
by too many as a trivial circumstance,
as something of less Importance than
an ordinary business agreement. So
far as this idea prevails, it removes
I the one safeguard Of decency and
purity in the sex relation In per-
manent union, that relation possesses
a human character; in temporary
| arrangement, it falls to the level of
| animal impulse. -. ..... ,%
! This degradation of marriage leads
to more intense selfishness by MAX
ing individual pleasure or whim the
| one decisive factor. 1t consequently
tends to deaden the spirit of charity
just where, naturally, love should be
strongest. " y
The sense of justice also will be
dulled. If the obligations assumed
through marriage can be so lightly
cancelled, it is hard to see what value
shall attach to other covenants when
these are not enforcible by law.
The Wider Social Relations.
Social intercourse, in the usual
sense, responds to a demand of our
human nature. 1t is an effectual
| means of drawing more closely the
bonds of charity. And it often gives
occasion for joint endeayor in fur
therance of the common good
To attain these worthy ends, social
enjoyment must remain within rea-
sonable limits. When it interferes
with the duties of home, it defeats
its own best purpose. When it be-
| comes extravagaEt and develops a
craze for pleasure, it is likely to per-
| vert the whole meaning of life. A
people that lives on excitement and
sensation will soon lose it's moral
| fiber. The power of endurance is di-
| rectly proportioned to the power of
! self-restraint. And this we surely
need at the present time when Amer
lea is passing through the gravest
crisis in its history.
In this matter we appeal with all
possible earnestness to Catholic
women. We urge them especially to
| counteract, with the force of example,
i those tendencies to excess whereby
| the prescriptions of plain decency,
and even the slightest restraints of
convention too often are disregarded.
AS every Catholic understands, So
ciety, no less than its individual mem
bers, is subject to Gods law. Neither
custom nor fashion can justify sin.
If we are prompt to remove the
! causes of bodily disease, we should
be at least equally energetic in ban
| ishing moral cOntagion.
Frequently, it is the craving for
notOriety that unbalances certain
| minds. In others, fondness for dis
play leads to lavish expenditure,
arcuses the envy of the less fortunate
classes, spurs them to foolish imita-
ton, and eventually brings about con-
fiict between rich and poor.
Industrial Relations.
Tho 5;ct,,rhopo f,o,,, -,,1,;o1, $500,
industries are suffering bring home
to all the people, in direct and prac-
teal form, the need of thorough re-
adjustment. In part, the present stu
alton is due to the war; but it's real
causes lie further back in our indus
trial history. It is not merely that
unwise policies have been adopted,
but rather that these have been
framed upon wrong principles and
baseless assumptions.
1t is an error to assume that the
issues involved are purely economic.
They are, at bottom, moral and relig-
ious. Their settlement calls for
clear perception of the obligations
which justice and charity impose.
In urging their respective claims,
the parties, apparently, disregard tho
/ fact that the people as whole have
a prior claim. The first step, there
fore, toward correcting the evil is to
insist that the rights of the COM
munity shall prevail, that law and
order shall be preserved and that the
public shall not be made to suffer
while the contention goes on from
one mistake to another
The failure to: reach an agreement
| is due, in large measure, to the sup
position that class is naturally hostile
to- class. In truth, each needs the
| other, Capital cannot do without
Labor, nor Labor without Capital.
This is obvious; but the more i'm
| portant point is that Capital and
Labor are bound by mutual obliga-
tons, not simply by mutual needs or
interests.
In this whole question, the moral
value of man and the dignity of hui
| man labor are cardinal points. By
treating the laborer as a man, not as
a machine, the employer will make
him a better workingman. By re-
| specting his own moral dignity as
man, the laborer will compel the re-