The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1954-08-06
As Matters Stand
Joe Breig Says.
Lines To A Golden Lady


something enters into the souls of
young men who choose her for
their princess.
What enters is a kind of knightly
obligation to be not unworthy of
her. She never stops demanding of
you a Christian manlineSs; and she
will not let you be comfortable if
you fall short OF it.
| do not mean that no Notre
Dame man ever has fallen low. But
in the depths he will hardly forget
Our Lady of the Golden Dome, and
Father Sorin.
Father Sorin founded Notre
Dame, and built the Main Build
ing which is topped by the Dome
and the Statue.
In fact, Father Sorin built the
Main Building twice. The first
structure burned to the ground
when nearly complete. Before the
bricks were cool, Father was there
in his cassock, cleaning and stack
ing them.
There was no money. Father
Sorin's only asset was sheer faith.
Some of the other Holy Cross
Fathers voted against erecting the
Dome and the Statue at that time.
After all, the university was hope
lessly in debt.
Father Sorin stalked off the cam
pus and refused to return until
the others saw things his way.
Notre Dame men remember Fa-
ther Sorin'S faith and courage.
They know that Our Lady will see
a man through no matter what diff
ficulties he faces. The magnificent
university of today is proof enough
of that.
1t makes you think to stroll
once again on the campus.
] was there with my wife and
our children, and our first son-in-
law.
thought of the young man who
had boarded the street car and
turned for a last glimpse of the
Golden Dome,
That young man didn't know it
then, but there was something that
he had to build, too.
He was going to fall in love with
another maiden named Mary, and
he and she were going to build a
marriage, build a home, build a
family.
They were going to build not
with cooling bricks, but with warm
flesh and blood and bone and spir-
it. They were going to build chill
dren - and perhaps some day
grandchildren and great -grandchil-
dren - for God and country and
Notre Dame, for time and eterni-
ty.
Things were going to burn down
more than once for that young
man and his maiden.
He did not know it, as he left
the campus that day, but the tim
bers of the world we're already dry
for the flames of the Great De-
preston. and of two catastrophe
wars, and of the slow conflagration
of communism.
Time after time, it was to seem
to the young man and his maiden
that all the universe was collapsina
around. them.
But their Lady stood forever
serene, forever comforting, forever
courageous.
Forever she demanded of the
young man Christian manliness,
and of the young woman Christian
womanlinesS.
She would allow no thoughts of
despair, no counsels of surrender
to the weak and vaccilating world
which said that children were an
evil to be avoided. that fidelity in
marriage was an impossible ideal.
Hand in hand with Our Lady, the
young man and his maiden walked
through flames and swamps and
catastrophes; stood upright while
around them things collapsed.
It makes you think, so it does, to
stroll the campus again, this time
with your wife and family.
1t makes you realize that Our La
dy of the Golden Dome does see
her men through.