The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1954-03-05
Just Among Ourselves
Passing Comment Considered or ineonsiderats


dom finding firm place on direct center? Move
ment is right in pendulum for its business is to
mark the passing of time constantly changing
thing. But the human mind is to fix upon unchang-
ing truth There is indeed, wide field of opinion
as in matters of policy politics fecitious arrange
ment, style--n which fixed certtude cannot be
had. But in matters of opinion, expect a
person to hold steady at least long enough TO say
what his opinion is.
And the sad thing is that when he does hold
steady, he is off center He is the pendulum which
swings to its limit and sticks there. Then, if new
current of opinion Sways him, he Immediately
swings to the other extreme, and sticks again For
example who holds hard by the peculiar
doctrine of tolerance (Which indeed has It's good
aspects, and its kindly interpretations is apt to
think that the only other doctrine in the field is
intolerance. That is the pendulum sticking far out
one extremity, recognizes no position except the
far out opinion on the other extremity. And this
view of the matter is calamitously false.
To tolerate anything, or anyone, is to put up
with something. And to put up with something Is
always grudging agreement consent to endure
what would rather have otherwise than IT is. In
a word one tolerates what does not like. Now,
to say that such tolerance of fellow mortals Is not
a just or adequate human attitude, is certainly
not to say that intolerance of others is justified
right
II was Our Divine Lord who set the matter in
its just terms. He said, Lore your enemies do
good to them that hate you" He did not say, "Tol-
crate your enemies" And he did not say BE intof
Grant of your enemies" He said that we must lore
our enemies. Ana ii even enemies are to be loved,
there is question about duty to loving friends
neighbors, and people indifferent to
You sometimes must tolerate things,-noises
when you want quiet, horse opera when you wish
to view ball game boring conversation when
you have important problems to think out, and
thousand other common ills that flesh is heir to.
But tolerance is for things not for persons and not
for errors. If teaches false religion, there
is question of tolerance in the situation. You
must love the and not tolerate for an instant
the error he teaches TO tolerate error knowingly
is TO take poison into the mind OF course, you must
often tolerate the practice of the person who holds by
the erroneous doctrine He al least presumably does
moi know it error and his activity,-damaging
indeed but not Intentionally so.-must sometimes,
and in far as no acceptance or approval of the
is involved, be tolerated.
But il is a dire mistake to think that tolerance
is blanket virtue; it is still damaging mis-
take to suppose that there is alternative to toll
except intolerance And really If il
so-and ii is not,-a person would likely rather be
the object of intolerance than of tolerance Nobody
enjoys the idea OF being tolerated. Of being merely
permitted TO exist of being endured for the sake of
avoiding trouble or turmoil
And there is another matter suggested by this
business OF the sticking pendulum II is the matter
of proprety in speech, and in print and in pic
lures. People used to be called Victorian" if they
praetised fussy and artificial fincay in speech
or manners They we're the pendulum sticking fast
TO one extremity of its swing But the current opn-
ion seems to carry the pendulum to the other side,
and let il stick there For it is commonly believed
At tnaet 'opnn att
belief,-that RIGHTEOUSNESS and pronography are
normal in human expression, and that any objection
to these bad things is Victorian"
Current reviews even those which assume the
pose of serious and worthwhile magazines are
filled with what normal people, not Victorians must
call indecencies, For instance, these papers tell in
word and illustration, OF a curvaeeous actress "in
skintght purple evening gown" entertaining
If that is the just word-a group of soldiers in the
orient One wonders whether the home-folk of
these valiant men, who doing hard duty in
distant and foreign land are pleased at this sort of
entertainment" afforded their sons and brothers.
Yet to say word in protest is to label oneself
Victorian"
Between being Victorian and being indecent
there is only choce if this be the limited field
OF choosing, one must choose to be Victorian on
the principle that the lesser of two evils is to be
taken. But the choice is not thus limited. Decency
is not Victorian, and decency is the direct opposite
Of cheap sexineSs There is such thing as modeSty
splendid virtue wenigh unknown in our times.
This virtue neither assumes prssy attitude nor
iustifieS Righteousness
Normal people know that there is place in
human relationships for noble reticenSes. II is a
large place one occupies it much of the time. The
loud and uncouth vulgarian may cry out for what
he mistakenly calls "franknessH and calling a
spade spade" He docs not notice, in his zeal
for candor that there Is seldom necessity for linn
ting the conversation to the topic of dirty shoyels.
The reticence of decent people is modesty,
and very often it Is more it Is reverence. There are
topics that cannot be handled roughly without
disaster. just there are fine pieces of arr that
brutal treatment destroys In the lawful and dviney
ordered relationship of the seXes--whch has its
meaning only in marrage,--there are matters to
be kept carefully from rough and casual discus
sion, for these are sacred to saeramental state
and their common handling involves grave damage
Modesty and reverence alike make strong demands
And. by the bye one wonders whether the TN
people who talk glibly about their code" have
ever heard either of modeSty or of reverence.