Newspaper Page Text
THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
7
Art In Catholic Worship
By Rev. F. Joseph Kelley, Ph.D.
The place of Art in Catholic wor
ship is a subject frequently discuss
ed, and a considerable amount of
criticism has grown out of its
manifestations in Church architec
ture, ritual, music, and church decor
ation. Often, however, Art is looked
at “askance and strangely,” as
something foreign to worship, and
which under all circumstances,
should be applied with judicious cir
cumspection. '
So long as Art is thus viewed—as
a thing apart, as something to be
outwardly applied, or superadded
in the form of embellishment, it
must necessarily be false and mere
tricious, both in principle and in
form. For Art, in the true sense,
is simply a form of expression,
and, in its finest phase, a manifes-
F tation of beauty. This beauty does
not spring from an afterthought; it
is generic and structural, its roots
lying as deep as those of truth, of
■which it is but the pirfect bodying
forth in form.
If Art is expression, then perfect
Art is manifested in forms that per
fectly express the motive or the
thought, Prose is a form of Art best
fitted to express an order of ideas
constituting a plane - of exact
thought dealing with fact, in which
the reason predominates; but when
thought pierces deeper, penetrating
beneath the region of external fact,
it discovers a more interior sense
of truth having an emotional char
acter hot adapted to prosaic state
ment,' and in giving expression to
idea sthus more interiorly revealed
a form of Art that is more sugges
tive than prose is in demand.
This blending of thought and feel
ing in rhythmical expression is pro
foundly illustrated in the Psalms,
and very strikingly in the Gospels
and in the Epistles of St. Paul—not
ably in that passage on charity or
' love, in the thirteenth chapter of I
Corinthians. We cannot think that
St. Paul was conscious of this rhyth
mic tendency at the time; he must
have felt however, that his percep
tion Of truth was more interior at
that moment than when he was oc
cupied with questions of Jewish law;
that his mind was then dealing with
substance rather than with forms,
and the expression of a deeper emo
tional impulse determined the ex
pression instinctively and impera
tively. And the same may be said
of those extraordinary images
thrown out in Ezekiel and in the
Apocalypse—great vague shadows
of spiritual truths projected across
the horizon of the natural, too deep
for rational utterance, altogether in
capable of prosaic’definition.
Now this is not very far, away
from the root of the matter concern
ing expression in Art iif any form.
The principles underlying all forms
of expression are fundamentally the
same; they are all reducible to some
all-embracing law of manifestation
which, like the law of gavitatiou,
affects all bodies alike, be they great
or small, simple or complex—and
expression is simply giving body to
ideas, manifesting in outward form
some inward motive. If the beauty
of this form be outwardly determ-
.. ined or applied, superadded to some
simple form of expression as a mere
embellishment, it must necessarily
be false and obtrusive, as well as in
sincere, and meretricious. If the
mind, occupied with any form of
< Art whatever, is moving upon the
surface of things, the thought hav
ing no generic connection with fun
damental principles or interior con-,
vections, it must surely manifest
itself outwardly as a superficial or
expressionless form of “beauty” that
is without real merit, like that
which results from prevalent meth
ods of precedure in Catholic Church
“decoration” the thing being con
tracted for as J merely mechanical
operation.
If ideas of Art are derived from
what is best in Art, determining the
constitutents of excellence from di
rect observation of that which is
truly “fine” or beautiful in Art, it is
clearly preccivcd that the highest
order of beauty is more nearly re
lated to economy of means than to
lavish expenditure. A decadence in
Art is always marked by the sub
stitution of profuse and costly ma
terials for inventive thought.' If we
turn to the Greeks for illustration,
we find that their greatest epoch, the
age of Pericles, was marked by sim
ple yet perfect forms of Art, whether
in sculpture or in architecture. The
Parthenon is but an assemblage of
a few rhythmically related lines,
bounding solids, that may neither
be added to nor subtracted from
without marring the beauty of the
whole. The economy of the Art is
perfect; it is indeed a “purgation of
superfluities” in the bodying forth
of ah aspiration in the form of a
sacred temple expressive of pagan
beliefs. And the mediaeval cathe
dral is the outcome of a like sincer
ity of aim; with all its richness it
manifests a ture economy of means.
The task was a larger one, involv
ing more varied and complex ele
ments, of a part with a distinctive
character of the ideas that lay at the
root of the inspiration. For the
worship' of the one was centered in
nature; that of the other in spirit;
the aspiration of one was consum
mated in time the other incternity;
one was content with a healthy, ac
tive, open-aired, natural existence;
the other aspired to a world beyond.
Greek Art is consummated in real
ized ideal; while Mediaeval Art aim
ed to suggest something beyond the
form; that hovered unseen, as it
were, above the forms and was dis
cerned through them by an inward
spiritual sense.
Aspiration in Art.
We discover in the thirteenth cen
tury types of Christian Art a true
impulse fervently expressing itself
in outward forms, a devout aspira
tion which lies at the root of all
subsequent beauty. In that true
Christian Art we discover a pure
motive, a yearning for the heavenly,
a mystical hope, and a fervor of be
lief which fired the human heart.
The secret of that old fervor of
faith which fired the human heart
in the Apostolic Age, and in the
Middle Ages; which conquered the
might and majesty of the pagan
world, was above all the conscious
ness of the fact that the Kingdom
of Heaven is at hand. Its denizens
in the form of celestial visitors,
were believed—indeed they were
known—to hold commerce with man,
being actively engaged in the ad
vancement of God’s Kingdom on
earth. Thus the dreary common
place of toil, pain, and want, was
transfigured under the glow of a
celestial light, the days of which
descended visibly from above.
In the spirit of this conviction,
the zeal, the sincerity, the faith
of the mediavel impulse conceived
those vast and beautiful structures,
and wrought out their last delicate
traceries, even in obscure comers
with one and the same ardent iin
pulse of reverence and affection,
to the honor and glory of God. The
Giottos, and later on the Fra An
gelicos of the time, transfixed their
inspired visions in mural paintings,
breathing the ardent aspiration of
a pure and heavenly faith affirma
tive of all that is noblest and best
in life.
Views of the Moderns.
But the modern mind while con
fessing the beautiful Art which thus
mysteriously blossomed forth from
these “abnormal, overstrained, ex
pectant moods of mind,” regards it,
for the most part, as a mere effor-
esencc of fancy, not at all rooted
in fact.
Compared with mediaeval Art pa
gan Art is .like a cloudless noonday
when contrasted with the opulent
splendours of the sunset, or the
mystical glimmerings of twilight.
That other-world aspiration which
gave birth to medieval Art, was no
mere fancy, no half-hearted belief;
on the contrary it was a clear con
viction of the reality of that un-
scen*.world to which it ventured to
give beautiful expression.
The effort of Protestanism to nat
uralize the spiritual, by lowering it
to the plane of the natural, in the
place of spiritualizing the natural
by elevating it to the spiritual—a
reversal of the old order of progress
in religious thought, has resulted in
lessening the reverence for things
sacred, without yielding any mark
ed benefit to faith. It has put out
the eyes of the spirit very effec
tually by reducing the spiritual
world to an empty sphere of ab
stractions with which the common
mind has little sympathy from its
inability to think in that way. For
having experienced a more excellent
dispensation in times past, which
gave body and form to abstract con
ceptions, it is not in tile way of
progress to return again to that
which is formless and void.
Miscellany
The “Western Catholic” very pro
perly calls attention to a practice
which it says is degrading to the
Catholic press. It refers to “human
sharks” who travel around as agents
for “piety magazines”; people who
promise a free pass to heaven in re
turn for a subscription, and who,
when given a refusal, reply. “Surely
you wouldn t deny the Mother of
God by refusing to subscribe for her
magazine 1 ! ’ The existence of such
agents lias-a tendency to prejudice
the minds of Catholics against all
magazine agents. Mr. J. A. Harney,
circulation manager of “Extension
Magazine,” who has controlled as
many as three hundred agents at one
time, tells me that the only way
to rid the world of unscrupulous
agents is to induce people to insist
upon the production of credentials
when they are approached by agents,
and to report to the head office of
the magazine concerned any instance
of discourtesy or gross exaggeration.
The Oregon Law
As a Menace to American Liberty
Though isolated events may have
attracted a greater volume of visi
tors, no recurring event brings so
many people together as does the
International Eucharistic Congress.
The permanent committee of the
congress swept aside all traditions
in choosing Chicago as the rendez
vous of the 1925 meet; for no city of
Chicago’s youthfulness has ever giv
en hopsitality to so great an inter
national gathering. Yesterday Eu.-
ropc knew Chicago merely as the
center of the packing industry. To
day the world s eyes are opened to
Chicago’s social as well as its in
dustrial importance. A hundred years
ago (within the lifetime of old men)
Chicago was a small trading post.
Today it is the third largest city in
the world. But traditions weigh
more heavily than does mere bulk
in the world’s estimation of a city s
importance. The congress will give
Chicago an international prestige
that money could not buy. In spite
of this, ignorant little bigots will un
doubtedly arise in Chicago to regis
ter a puny against the coming of the
Congress.
At the time of writing the long
distance dancing record stands at
something like seventy-five hours,
and efforts are being made to break
it. This world has managed to think
out some foolish ideas in the ,course
of time, but the present craze is su
perior to anything in history. One
gentleman, whilst engaged in a long
distance dance, suddenly commenced
to hoot like an owl. The obvious
qestion is: “Why an owl?” If he
had begun to bray the situation
-would be comprehensible.
The present associate editor of the
“Tablet,” George Elliott Anstruthcr,
was one of the pioneers of the “lay
apostolate” which has now reached
such large proportions in England.
He used to go out into the parks
and public places and give lectures
on the Church when it required real
courage to do this work and when
hostility was the rule and not the
exception. In his early twenties he
spent all his leisure moments satu
rating himself with the history and
the teachings of theh Church, and his
week-ends imparting his knowledge
to crowds at street-corners. The
stalwart shoulders of a coal-heaver
furnished his first outdoor “plat
form.”
Joseph Rinn, a member of the So
ciety of American Magicians, has for
some time been throwing out chal
lenges to spiritualists with a view
to exposing the fraud which is being
perpetrated by many mediums. He
has offered to duplicate by the use
of magic, any alleged spiritualistic
manifestation. According to the
newspapers he has at last come to
grips with Conan Doyle, for whom
Rinn has undertaken to produce
“spirit photographs ’ under condi
tions similar to those imposed upon
Sir Arthur's favorite spirit photo
grapher, William Hope. Most of the
leading spirit photographers have
been detected in fraud, including
those (or, rather, especially those)
who have Conan Doyle’s confidence.
One of them was recently tested by
the Magic Circle—a society of magi-
cianas. Fourteen traps were set for
the photographer, who fell into
twelve of them. Professional magi
cians are our best asset in exposing
the fraud that disguises itself as
spiritualism. It is easier to fool the
public than to fool a magician, for
the magician lives by fooling the
public and understanding the busi
ness from every angle.
The pleasure of the Romans at the
action of the Cardinals in curia in
promoting the cause of the beautifi
cation of Pope Pius will be shared
by Catholics throughout the. world.
Every day that has elapsed since the
death of the saintly man who breath
ed his last when the world gave it
self up to strife in 1914, has added
to his reputation for sanctity. The
tomb of Pope Pins in the crypt of
St. Peter’s is constantly visited by,
pilgrims, and the Roman people telf
of numerous favors and graces re
ceived through his intercession.
When I saw the tomb seven years
after the Pope’s death, there were
fresh flowers on it, placed there by
beggars and other simple souls who
recognize sancity: people after the
heart of Pius the Tenth.
It is quite generally assumed that
the recently enacted Oregon law for
compulsory attendance of all chil
dren between the ages of eight and
sixteen years in the public schools
is cause for .concern only to those
conducting religious or private
schools.
There could be no greater mistake.
True, it is those who conduct re
ligious or private schools who will
be directly affected by-the law, but
it is only the ignorant and short
sighted who will delude themselves
with the notion that the conse
quences of the Oregon Act will be
confined to the closing of the
Oregon Act will be confined to the
closing of the private schools in
that state.
The simple truth is that the Ore
gon school law threatens the funda
mental liberty of all the people of
the United States.
We assert, and will endeavor to
demonstrate convincingly to any
open and intelligent mind that po
tentially there never has been a
greater menace to American liberty
than lurks in this fanatical and
iniquitous measure.
Fortunately, the law docs not be
come operative until 1926, and as its
constitutionality is to be tested in
the United States Courts, the dire
ful evils which would be certain to
arise from its operation may yet
be averted. If, however, its consti
tutionality should be sustained by
the highest tribunal, there will then
be no legal inhibition against the
spread of this baneful policy. Indeed
it would seem to be probable that
in such event other states where re
ligious fanaticism and bolshevistic
tendencies are prevalent would en
act similar laws, and the conditions
created by such legislation would be
come nation-wide.
Before, this situation arises, it is
well for the people of the United
States to have a thorough under
standing of the Oregon law, and to
realize just what the general adop
tion of such an educational policy
in the United States would involve.
The Oregon law affirms the right
of the state to dictate what the
education of the child shall be. The
responsibility of the parents for the
education of the child is by impli
cation denied and their authority
actually usurped. This is revolution
ary. Anything more in conflict
with the fundamental principles set
forth in the Declaration of Inde
pendence and embodied in the Con
stitution it would be difficult to im
agine. It is a denial of the right
which the founders of the American
Government considered inalienable
and which even despotisms have left
unquestioned. Not in modern times
has a state monopoly of education
been advocated anywhere in the
world, until the reds of Russia, in
pursuance of their challenge to God,
adopted it aS a means of excluding
religion from the hearts of men.
To reveal to Americans the vicious
and destructive nature of the edu
cational policy sought to be inaugu
rated in the United States by the
Oregon law, the National Catholic
Welfare Council’s Press Department
asked its European correspondents
for information on the educational
policy of their countries. Their re
plies will be published in a series
of articles which will be begun in
tha Service this month. These re
plies will givj all liberty loving
Americans cause for sober thought.
Doubtless to the surprise of even
the bigots responsible for the Oregon
law. these articles will make known
that in no other country in Europe
except Russia—not even in France
where religion so comparatively re
cently was persecuted and the re
ligious orders driven *out—is the
right of the pareitt to direct the
education of the child at present
denied, nor has it anywhere been
contested for a long period of years.
Education is compulsory in France
but the right of the father to select
the school to which he entrusts the
education of his child is not contra
vened by any French law. The most
recent law enacted in France relat
ing to education, the act known as
the “Wards of the Nation Law,” pro
vides that these wards (children of
war victims) shall be educated at
the expense of the state, but that the
parents, or if the parents be dead,
the next of kin, have the right to
select the school which the child or
children ar<j to attend.
The English statutq law recognizes
the jurisdiction of the parent over
the child and definitely places the
primary responsibility for the edu
cation of the child on the parent.
In numerous clauses the statute law
makes its perfectly clear that the
parents have a fundamental right to
be consulted and their wishes taken
into consideration in matters relat
ing to the education of their chil
dren. It is specifically provided
that where there is a dispute as to
the need of a new school, the board
of education shall regard “the wishes
of the parents as to the education
of their children.” The principle
of parental control over the educa
tion of the child is not only recog
nized in English law, but is thor
oughly grounded in English’ philos
ophy. Despite all of their other
differences of oypinion, both John
Stuart Mill and Herbert Spencer
were completely agreed in condemn
ing any monopoly of education.
Said (Mill:
“That the whole or any large
part of the education of the people
should be in state hands, I go as
far as any one in deprecating. All
that has been said of the importance
of individuality of character aiid di
versity of opinions and modes of
conduct, involves as of the same un
speakable importance, diversity of
education. A general state educa
tion is a mere contrivance ' for
moulding people to be exactly like
one another; and as the mould in
which it cases them is that which
pleases the predominant power in
the government, whether this be a
monarch, a priesthood, an aristo
cracy, or the majority of the ex
isting generation, in proportion as
it is efficient and successful, it
establishes a despotism over the
mind, leading by natural tendency
to one body over the body. An
education established and controlled
by the stale should only exist, if
at all, as one among many compet
ing experiments, carried on for the
purpose of example and! stimulus,
to keep the others up to a certain
standard of excellence.”
Nearly all of the other prominent
English writers who have dealt with
the subject of education have ex
pressed a similar view.
Parental right to control the edu
cation of the child has never been
questioned in Belgium since Bel
gium became a kingdom. When the
king of the Netherlands, 'William I.,
trespassed on that right in the early
part of the last century, his Bel-
giant subjects rose up in arms
against him and established the Bel
gian independent state.
hi Austria, the parent’s right to
control the education of the child
is incontestable. There is but one
legal restriction upon the parents;
they have no right to prevent their
children from taking part in relig
ious instruction. Even free Mason
associations, which established the
so-called “free School,” are, there
fore, ob.iged to provide for relig*
ions teaching in these schools, Cath
olic, Protestant for the Protestant
olic for the Catholic, Protestant for
the Protestant and Jewish fof; tlni
children of the Jews.
“Article 120 of the German con
stitution recognizes the will of the
parents as the highest factor in de
termining the education of their
children. This ar'iele states:
“Art. 120—The education of their
offspring to a state of physieval,
spiritual and social efficiency is the
supreme and natural right of the
parents, over the accomplishment of
which the state watches.”
Article 146 of the constitution
deals with the organization of the
public school system, which is to
lie composed of elementary, inter
mediary and high schools and stip
ulates that the admission of chil
dren to these schools shall not be
restricted by any consideration of
the social or economic conditions of
their parents, or their religious be
lief.
Paragraph 2 of this article states:
“Within a community, public schools
of the religious denomination or
opinion of those having a right
to education arc to be established'
upon their demand, provided this in
no way affects the regular school
system as established by paragraph
one. The desire of those having
a right to be educated is to be re
spected as far as possible. The ap
plication of this paragraph is to
lie decided-ojpon by the provincial
legislatures under the terms of the
nationa]? constitution.
Up 16 the passage of the Oregon
law, it was generally considered by
American Constitutional lawyers
that the law of our land with res
pect to education, and the only sound
and sensible pedagogic theory, was
that laid down by the court in State
ex. Kelly v. Ferguson, 95 Nebr. 63,
73—4, namely:
“The public school is one of the
main bulwarks of our nation, and
we would not knowingly do any
thing to undermine it; but we should
be careful to avoid permitting oiir
love for this noble institution to
cause us to regard it as ‘all in all’
and destroy both the God-given ao4
(Continued on page 8)