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THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA 3 ticular duties that the Catholic layman faces at the very outset: namely, to be well-grounded in his fun damentals, to be free of selfish aims, and to be sure the end of his striving is in keeping with the dignity of the human person, for by this token is it permanent and lasting, and altogether pleasing to God, in whose image we are made. The Catholic layman has a distinct advantage in regard to his fundamentals. He has the advantage of being taught by the oldest institution now existing in the world; an institution, too, which extends to every part of the world, which embraces all races and tongues and men in every condition and walk of life, which has witnessed the rise and fall of em pires and the ebb and flow of civilization, for nearly two thousand years; which has lived through history, through war and pestilence and famine, with men struggling in poverty and men overburdened with wealth, among savage tribes and cultured classes, everywhere! for nearly two thousand years; which enters intimately into the most vital relations with the more than two hundred million persons dispersed over the world who form its loyal and devoted mem bership, taking account of their birth, keeping watch over their unfolding lives, blessing their union in marriage, comforting them when sick, giving them strength in that hour when the soul breaks through “the solid framework of created things. Such an in stitution must know history. It must be an expert in human nature. A more complete embodiment of knowledge concerning men and things does not exist on earth. It is, therefore, of incalculable advantage to have the benefit of the guidance of the Catholic Church in respect to the fundamentals of social jus tice and Christian civilization. Man has a dual nature; he lives in a dual order; his destiny is two-fold, and his everyday conduct plays back and forth between these two terms of his being like the shuttlecock in a loom, weaving the beautiful figure of a life well spent, or the caricature of a life wasted. Material and spiritual, natural and super natural, temporal and eternal these signify ever present co-ordinate realities. There is no escaping them, no denying them; they are real. God and humanity are the two great terms of the world’s equation. Any plan of life, any detail of human con duct, any thought, that deliberately omits one or the other of these terms, is an effort to throw the world out of balance, to disturb the universal harmony of creation, in which all earthly things were made for humanity, and humanity was made for God. The sunlight has its uses, and the darkness, too; and the summer’s heat, and the winters cold, and every little flower, and every blade of grass. The whole creation “proclaimeth the glory of God, but serves the needs of man. Shall man s handiwork, then, serve himself, without thought of his Maker? This, of course, would not be square, and, therefore, we owe it to our own personal dignity to put into our inventions and our work, into the things we make and do, into our business, our profession, our politics, our social relations, and into what we say and think, something of that dual service to God and man which we know is in every sunbeam that chases the shadows cf the night away. This is not an qppeal for unctious piety; it is a plea for poise in our lives. Balance is a perfect thing. Watch the balance between the material and the spiritual, the natural and the supernatural, the tem poral and eternal—between God and humanity and the more nearly perfect it is kept the more contented and peaceful and happy will be our lives and the lives of those around us, our neighbors, whom the Divine Master took special pains to couple with God in the one commandment that “fulfilleth all the law. The Catholic Laymen’s Association of Georgia has its very fountain spring in this spirit and purpose. It is a studiously planned and organized effort to restore the balance of things so violently disturbed by pro fessional bigots, who took advantage of the isolation and apathy of our Catholic people to exploit on a considerable scale the scheme by which prejudices are capitalized. Its first work was to check the raging flood-tide of calumny that threatened to engulf us; next, to soften the spirit of hostility that was rapidly crystalizing into set, permanent form. It has done these things. It remains to draw Catholic laymen out of their isolation and quicken their activity and their zeal. Without such an organization it must be difficult for the individual Catholic to find a means actively to champion the principles of justice and Christian civi lization, as so earnestly enjoined by Pope Leo XIII. V^ith it, the means are at hand, and no Catholic need be without his part in the work. It may at first appear to be but a small part, but nothing is small that is necessary; and it is necessary, before its highest use fulness can be reached, that every Catholic man and woman in Georgia become affiliated with the Lay men’s Association, contributing to its support now, taking part in its activities as they develop and un fold, helping in their daily lives to disseminate love among men by kindness, patience and disinterested service, for His sake whose image is stamped upon all our souls. It is a great thing to be a Catholic; it is a great thing to be an American citizen; it is a very great thing to be a Catholic American citizen. But it is not a great privilege only, it is a great responsibility; for both the principles of our country and the prin ciples of our Church, forbid us to be inactive when the glory of God or the welfare of humanity can by any means within our power be promoted. There fore, we can say with good Bishop Keiley, God bless the Laymen’s Association.