The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1921-06-25

fallen away: IT am very sad, Breth-
rem, for him and his wife; may the
Lord grant them true repentance.
But you, be prudent in this case; do
not look upon them as enemies, but
call them back as suffering and err
ing members" st. Polycarp was q
disciple of st. John; little wonder,
then, that he knew so well the Cos
pei of love.
st. Ignatius, another disciple Of st.
John, in a text which he has left us,
might well have been advising us
how to deal with the bigots Of today:
pray without ceasing for them.
There is always hope that they will
repent and turn to God. Teach them
at least by your example. Be meek
in the presence of their arrogance,
humble in contrast to their boasting;
offer your prayers in return for their
Be steadfast in faith to
onset their error, put your gentleness
against their cruelty. While we take
care not to initiate their conduct, let
us be their brethren in all Kindness"
Social Excesses Of Early Period.
Today we hear much about fmmod-
esty in dress, painted faces, and other
social excuses. Clement, a priest of
Alexandria, has written a treatise
which shows that the same abuses
existed in his day. This text was
written toward the end Of the Sec
ond century; it is called the Pedago-
gus (The Tutor). In ancient times
the slave who was entrusted with
boys training, and education was
called pedagogus. Clement, in this
work, is teaching the art Of the Chris
tan life. Christ is our pedagogus.
Christian training, the author tells as,
must first lead us to love God and to
understand His love for us. We must
become as little children and live the
divine truth in all simplicity. We are
the children, Christ the Teacher.
Describing the faithful as children
at play, he says: "Christ from a win
dow above gazes down upon our
laughter" He refers beautifully to
Christ's love for us in the Holy Eucha-
rist: "The Word Christi is all things
to the child, father, mother, teacher,
nurse. Eat my fiesh,' He says, and
drink my blood est. John vi, $3.50.
The Lord indeed supplies us with it
ting nurture; He gives us His flesh
and He pours out His blood, and so
nothing is lacking to the growth Of
His children"
The author enters into the details
Of every day life, showing how the
Christian should live. There is
chapter on foods, one ON drink, one
on house furnishings, one on banquets
and other social functions, and one on
laughter. "Our speech should be po.
lite and agreeable" he says, ~but we
should not be carried away by laugh
ter. To laugh with moderation is a
mark of good breeding"
Good Manners Mari, OF Christian.
It is as we have always recognized
that politeness, good manners, and all
form of gentility are an integral part
of the Christian life. When well-bred
men lift the hat to ladies, rise when
they enter the room, offer them the
seat which they occupy, and concede
right of women to safety first I'm time
of danger, they are observing GUS
toms that have grown out Of our ven
GRAFTON for the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Good table manners, cheerful greet
ings, politeness in address, and many
little acts Of courtesy, such as holding
the door for others to pass, beg par
don" when passing before others, un-
are old Christian customs
that have their origin in the brother
ly love that existed among our ancient
brethren.
Many reprehensibie practices that
prevail today existed in the pagan go
ciety in which the early Christians
lived. Clement gives us remark
able chapter on true beauty. Then
he speaks his mind on the use Of cos
metics. 'The practice Of excessive or.
he says, belongs not
to ladies, but to women Of the street.
They season their flesh like sauce.
They spend the day shut up in their
rooms, lest they be discovered mix
ing the colors with which they are to
be adorned. In the evening this arti-
fetal beauty crawls forth from it's
dark corner into the light From the
use of these cosmetics they are pal
lid, subject to disease; their flesh,
which has been SO often painted with
poisons, is disintegrating. They insult
the Creator by acting as though He
had not given them all the beauty
that belongs to them"
Nothing escapes this Christian writ
or. He tells women how the hair
should be worn, how they should de-
port themselves at their social gather
lngs and at the games, and even how
they should walk. It is an adjustment
Of life to the teachings of Christ who
Is our Model and our Teacher. In con-
he cries out: 30 followers OF
q blessed teaching! Let us conform
to the beautiful person Of the Church,
and like little children, let us rum 10
our good mother. II we hearken to
her words we shall glorify the teach
ings whereby we are trained and sanc
tilted as little children Of God"