Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944)
Issue 3.4 of the Review for Religious, 1944.
محفوظ في:
| المؤلف الرئيسي: | |
|---|---|
| التنسيق: | Online |
| اللغة: | eng |
| منشور في: |
Saint Louis University Libraries Digitization Center
1944
|
| الوصول للمادة أونلاين: | http://cdm17321.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rfr/id/154 |
| الوسوم: |
إضافة وسم
لا توجد وسوم, كن أول من يضع وسما على هذه التسجيلة!
|
| id |
sluoai_rfr-154 |
|---|---|
| record_format |
ojs |
| institution |
Saint Louis University |
| collection |
OJS |
| language |
eng |
| format |
Online |
| author |
Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus |
| spellingShingle |
Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| author_facet |
Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus |
| author_sort |
Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus |
| title |
Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| title_short |
Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| title_full |
Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| title_fullStr |
Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) |
| title_sort |
review for religious - issue 03.4 (july 1944) |
| description |
Issue 3.4 of the Review for Religious, 1944. |
| publisher |
Saint Louis University Libraries Digitization Center |
| publishDate |
1944 |
| url |
http://cdm17321.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rfr/id/154 |
| _version_ |
1799674534485295104 |
| spelling |
sluoai_rfr-154 Review for Religious - Issue 03.4 (July 1944) Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus Jesuits -- Periodicals; Monasticism and religious orders -- Periodicals. Ellis Issue 3.4 of the Review for Religious, 1944. 1944-07-15 2012-05 PDF RfR.3.4.1944.pdf rfr-1940 BX2400 .R4 Copyright U.S. Central and Southern Province, Society of Jesus. Permission is hereby granted to copy and distribute individual articles for personal, classroom, or workshop use. Please credit Review for Religious and reference the volume, issue, and page number and cite Saint Louis University Libraries as the host of the digital collection. Saint Louis University Libraries Digitization Center text eng Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus JuLY I5, 1944.3 " De,~;o}ion to~fh~ .Pr~cibus BIood"~ : . .... Franclsk. .F..i.l.as E)owr) of Religious Women ,. ¯ .,. ¯ ; ... ¯ Adam C. Ellis ",,Sabred, HearfPi~ogram, ¯ ¯ ,. ¯ : ¯ .." ¯ App~ar=f=ons, af Faf=m ¯ ’ ;William A. ~Donaghy Worthmessm. Frequenf Communion ..... ,.. Communicatior~s Bo"o ~ks R ~evieWed -Ou’es fi6nsA n~s weecrJ~ ’" ~ ’ De s~ ioins of-÷~h e H~)¯I S e ye " " NUMBER :.4 VOLU~E III. ° JULy .15, 1944 ~" NUMBER,~ CONTENTS ’ .. :THE DEVOTION TO THE PRECIOUS~ BLOOD~Fran¢is L. Filas,, S J. BOOKS RECEIVED ~ , ~ ¯ ’ ¯ .... t .... "’ ....... " 223 THE DOWRY OF RELIGIOUS W, OMEN--Adam C.’Ellis, S.J. . .’ . 224 THE¯ SACR.I~D HEAI~T PROGRAM~-Eugene PM’. urphy, S.J ..... 240 "~HE. APPARITIONS AT FATIMA.---William A. Donaghy, S.J. ’~ 245 OUR CONTRIBUTORS . . ., . - ~ .......... t 251 SAFEGUARDING WORTHY RECEPTION IN THE PRACTICe" OF FREQUENT COMMUNION l~mile Bergh, ~.d. 552 DECISIONS OF TI-iE HOLY SEE OF INTEREST TO RELIGIOU2.S68 : COMMUNICATIONS (On’ Retreats) ........... "270 UNIFORM VERSION OF MASS ! "" 274 .;~BOOK REVIEWS (Edited by Clement DeMuth,"S.J,)-- Origen, His Life at Alex_andria; National Patriotism in Papal Teaching: ¯ Letters to. Persons in R,eligion:~ La Charte du Royaume Cr~tien; James . , Laynez, J~suit;\The, Christ: the Son of God: All for Jesus ’ 27~5- "QIJESTIONS AND ANSWERS-- ’ . 27. Portiuncula Indulgence-in Convent Chapels : ¯ ¯ . ..... 280 ~ 28. Mort;q-Sin against Justice and P,o~erty .~ 282- ’.2 2 Superior’s Power to Give Himself Permissions¯ ,. ¯ .’ ¯ ¯ -i ~ ~: Z- -*; - , ’ ,. _ REV, IEW FOR RELI.GIOUS. July. 194:4. Vol. III, No. 4-Published bi-monthly: _ January, March, May, July, September,. and November at the College "Press: 606 Harrison Street, Topeka, Kansas, by St. Mary’s’College, St., MarTs, Kansas. ",~ith eccle’~iastical approbation. Entere~d as second class matter Januar:’ 15; 1942. at the Post Office, To.pek,’a, ’Kansas, under the. a.ct of March 3, 1879. Editorial Board: Adam C. Ellis, S.J., G. AugustineoEllard, S.3..Gerald ~Kelly,.~ "S.J.’ Copyright, 1944, by Adam C. Ellis. Permission is’hereby granted for qubtltions of ~reasonable length, provided" due- credit be given this review and the author. Subscription, price:. 2 dollars ao yea/’. ~ o B’~fore writin9 to us, please consult notice on inside, back cover. Precious t~rancis L. Filas, iN ~-HE rich devotional !ire of the Church we are enc~ur- | ,_.,aged to honbr, our Lord s, sacred humanity under various aspects, gaining thereby a keener insigh.t into the.,attrac-,. °tire, compel!ing beauty of His character. All these-devo-tions that center ardund Christ hav~ the common aim of ?tr~n.gthening our lov~ and calling for our imitation, Most_ of them restrict themselves to a well-defined period or pliase of His life, such as the Holy Childhood, the Passion, or the Blessed’ Sacrament, but this ordinary ~ule.does not hold.~ i~a the case-of the devotions to the Sadred Heart and to the Precious Blood. These two can be applied to any period_ or phrase, of’ Christ’s life~, ~¢hether on earth, in Heaven, or in the Holy Eucharist. What ~s ~he essence o]~ the devotion to the Preciou~~ ,-~Blood?--The question does .not appear to be answered directlyqr~ any autho?itative document of the Church, but" we :can arrive at. a safe conclusi6"n by considering ~he’ lan-guage of Holy Scripture, the liturgy, and the°decrees o1~ various popes. These .sources indicate that the devoti6r~~ consistsbf the_..adoration of the blood of Christmas the sym- ,b~oI an_d particularly as the meang of our _~ed¢mption; th~ Precious-Blood is the spiritual drink which wins eve~lasting- ~life for our souls and° glorio~us resurrection ,for our bodies. " "~’hus, dfter the mirac-ulou~ feeding of tile’five thousand, des_us sa~d, "Amen, amen; I say to you, unless you e~t ihe flesh’ of the.Son of Man and drifil~ His blood, yoff shall-not have life in you. He who eats" My flesh and drinks My blood has.life, everlasting, and I will raise,him’ up on the l~is[ ~~ ~-2"~ F~^NCIS L. FIL/~S - ,~ o" "t Review for~Retigiott~ o d~y" (John. 6:54-55)i’-; and at the~ Last-Supper J, esus sol-~ -. o~:’. _ .emnly. affirrned~ "This is My blood..of the new covenant..~. which is b.~i.ng shed for ;haany Unto the forgiv#nes-sLof sins’.’ .~M;atthe-w 26:28) ,*-’ i " St.~Peter’s words are classic, "You know~that~ you ~. , were redeemed from the vain manner of life handed down ÷~ " from~your fathers~ not with perishable thing.s, w.ith silv~’~ or ~old, but with the ~precious blood of Chr!st, .as Of a lamb- -’~ .i-~ _witbdut blemish.and without .spot" (1 Peter 1:18-19). .Oo, in the AlSocalypse (5:9) one of th~ songs .of praise ~to. 0_ sthcreo Llla’amnbd otof oGpoedn bit,se gseinasls, ;" f.oWr-oTrhthoyu awrta sTt hsolaui nto’a t_ankd~- ht~het" - redeefiaed-us for God witl5" Thy blood.~’ St..Pau! purst.~es ~- .o the :sime._t.l?ought in the epistl~ to the Ephesians~ (1:7): - "Iff Him we have~r&lemption through His blo0~, ~the " remission of sins,~ acci3~rding to the riches of His grace.7 Iia the lit~ur~y the prayer for, the feast:of (he Precibus Blood ~calls the blood of.the Redeemer the,~"price,-of dur sa_lvhti’on," .and the mehns by which God in His ju.stic_e "willed t~ accept’satisfaction." Moreover, at every Mass (’which-is, of course, the" renewal of th~ sacrifice of Cal.vary.):the .Church sets forth the Precious Blood for our adoratidn. In 1’34.3 Pope Cle~e~at VI. declared that .a singl~ ~drop~’- -:of’the Precioug Blood wourd have sufficed to ~redeem us. al[hough as a matter of fact Christ in His generosity willed ~.2_ to atone for our sins" not~.lSy this one_ drop aldne but by a ~- ’.’eopi~us sheddihg of His blood.’’1 Almost a hundred ~ years ago, when.Pius IX~ex~effded the.feast of the~Precious [- ~Blood to the-whole Church, he officially stated that "we -~ _have-been redeemed in the blood of-our Lord Jesus;Chris’t .... .’. which cleanse~us frpmMl,stain. Antiif in Egypt the :.~ ~’houSes that were sprinkled w.it~a the blood of a lamb were - ¯ savedfrom the wrath of God, how much more w:ill~those aBhll, Un)geni~us Dei ~Filius; DB 550. " 218" ~ -~-d-l~t, i~9~14~ "~ " THE DEVOTIOn’TO THE PRECIOUS BE~D ~ ~,persons. escape -that:wrath’ "nay, they.will- 5e filled-with .~_ ~e~ and .gra~e ~wb~ ~enerate and adore the blood o~ our Savior ~ith ~peci~l devotibn.’’~ Finaliy,.in 1934 a decree~ ~o~ PiusXI again set forth this same doctrine’in i~s re~erence ’,~ to the "Precious Blood o~ Christ, ~by which we ,have been ~ed~emed."~ " ~ ~o appreciate the.devotion t~oroughly, we bugbt to :~’ understafid the p~ihciples on which it is based. To begin with-a ~ndamental-idea, we adore the human Bature of our blessed Lord becauseit was assumed by the Second Per- ~_ son o~ the Blessed Trinity; for whatever belongs to a per- ¯ "- son ~ubstantially, deserves the same respect as is accorded to ’th~per~on. In this case-the Person is God; there~bre, the human n~ture which He took to Himsel~ shouI~ be adored. In bri~est compass, the man 3esus Christ is God. ,~ -’: S~. Athanasius explains tBe matter in these.@ords: "By ~ no means do we adore a creature; this is an error o~,-tbe :~ ~. pagans-and the Arian .heretics. We adore the Lord o~ the creature,, the Word made flesh, for.although the flesh is o~ itse~ something created, it ha~-become the body of Go~d. "Who is so fbolish ,as to say to our Lord, ’Go out o~ Thy ~, body ip order that"I may adore T~ee’?"" .In honoring the Precious Blood .we honor Christ, for "" ~be’Precious’Blood is a p~rt of Hishuman nature. Here~ we follow a principle which i~ universally observed in -~daily life, "namely~ that "honor paid to a part o~a person ’" "i~ paid to the person to whom the part belongs." When people shake hands in greeting each other, no, one ~upposes that the greeting is nbt from person to person simply because the hands alone express it;- Or in~ thetraditional "" example of the beggar who kisses the hand o~ his benefactor ~."A~thent. CollecL Decret. ~. R. C. n. 2978. xaAAS, 26, 560, 4Letter to ~Adelphius. n: 3: MPG 261 1073. 219 AlqCIS L’. FILAS ~ Revi2u~ f6r Religious it is clear that the" hand is~only thd instrument of the g~ne’r-o~ ity o~f the benefactorl In_a certain sefise (though in an~ 0 imrh’easurably superior degree and more excelIent ma.z~ner) - we honor the.preciou~s Blood just as W~ honor the fingers° of the virtuoso or the voice of the opera star... The Church’has always exercised great prudence qn ~guarding the orthodoxy and propriety of the devo6c~ns that center around our Lord: For example, in 182-g andl~ 18635 the Congregation of Sacred Rites declared that relics .tinge~ with the blood of Christ were not to be a-dqred as was.the Blessed Sacrament, nor w~re they to..be placed in the tabernacle" ~ith the Sacred Host; they were" to be~ granted only such veneration as is accord’ed::relics of tlae~ ~True Cross. This wise regulation was based oia the fact. that if the blood was ~ctually the blood shed~by our Lor~l " during the Passiog, its separate existence now merely pioved that it was not reassumed into the glorified body of Christ when He arose from the dead. In other words.it v)as no lbnger the b1’ood’of the living Savior. St. Thomas A~uinas proposes a.nother, possible reason in his, belief that "the blood which is preserved in ceitain churehes as a reli did not flow from the side of Christ,.but is said ,to have flowed miraculously °from some ima~ge~ of ,Christ.’’~ Clearly, even blood from a-miraculou, sly bleeding :- image or Host cannot be the blood of the living 3esus, for-~ ’~We know thatChrist, having risen from the dead, dies now no more, death shall nO longer have dominion over.’; Him" (Romans 6:9), and He can. no longer shed His~.. blood. We posses, s the Precious Blood of’-the.living Chrisv only under the veils of the sacramental species. -~ " ¯ So rhuch for the theological¯ aspect of the devotion.~ His2 torically,’ the lives7 6f the saints of all ages sho~ h~w 5Authent. Collect. Decret. 8. R. C., n. 2660 and n. 3176. OSurama Tobeologica, 3a, q.54. art. 2. 220 ~ / ~ J’ul~, 1944 THE DEVOTION TO TH~ PRECIOUS BLooD - deeply.th.ey reveri~d ~th~’blood shed for our redemption. During the early sevehteenth century confraternities were ojganized in Spain whose purpose W~;s to venerate~ the Pre-~ cious Blood. Th2e forerunner of the present Archc6nfra-ternity Of the Most Precious Blood was established in-1"808 ’- y Msgr. Albertini; a priest ~of Rome. Its members were to meditate Often on the Passion and w, ere to offer the Precious Blood to God for atonement and for the dire needs of the times. "Plus VII raised it to the rank of arcbconfrat~erfi’ity in 1815. In 1850 an English branch was erected: in the London Oratory, and it was in commemoration of the tenth ,anniversary of this in, troduction in[o.London that Father° Frederick Faber wrote his choice work, The Precious Blood. For a full development of the place of the Precious Blood in our spiritual lif~ Father Faber’s ~book can be consulted with grea~ profit. Various women’s congiegations of the Precious Blood had their or.ig!n in the last century, but all of them are ante-dated by°the institute - oPredious Blood, founded by Blessed (3aspare del Bufalo in~ -18.15. The third superior-general of this institute,, Don Giovanni.M~rlini, ,was with Pius IX at the time of. his exile at Gaeta. He suggested to the Pope that the feast of the Pre~ious Blood be e~tended to the entire Church in order thalt God.might grant peace again t6 the papal-states. On the very day that Plus decided to take this step---June 30, 1849~--the insurgents in Rome s~rrendered. Grateful!y th~ Pope set the date of the feast on the next day, ~hich was the first Sunday of~ July, to be celebrated as a double ,of the second class. "£1uly 1st when th, e Breviary and Missal were reformed by Pius,X in 1913. In 1934 pius XI elevated it tS a rank of.~. double of the first class !n order to commemorate the nine-,,, ~Authent. Collect. Decret. 8. R. C. n. 2978. 221 te~nth,ce.ntenary of:our Redemption.~ Review /’or ReligiouS" Turning how to consider the place of th~ Pr?cious, Blbod in the contemplation c~f’Christ’s life, we find that it ~bears uni~’ersal applic~ition. At Bethelehem we can: behold_~ the Infant in the manger, in whose veins flows the bliJod~ that v)ill one. day. redgem us on Calvary. At the Circum-cision we see the first shedding°of the Precious BlOod; Jesus - sub.mits to a law- for human° beings in order to be like us in’ all things, sin alone excepted. Throfighout the Hidden and the Public Lif~ the Child and later the Man ~ontinues. to grow in the strerigth’and beauty which the Precious ~Blood nourishes iri His sac~ed body. ~ ~, In Gethsemani the prospect of. bearing’th4 weight’-,of. our iniq.uities-and of suffering in vain for so many men" ov~rcom~s~ur Lord. He voluntarily permits anguish and fear to seize Him to Such an extent that the Precious Blood-’- ;trickles in heavy drops, upon the ground. Durigg th~ S_courging,. the Crownin.g with Thorns, and the. three hours on ~he Cros.s,. He offers His blood in paying the price , for the sins of mankind. " Here there appears a striking characteristic of the devo-tion to the Precious Blood: it demonstrates the tremendoui realit~ of the Passion, the truth’that. Jesus actually did undergo suffering. For us the shedding of blood is an ffnpleasant sight, difficult to bear. We instinctively-stri~e to dismiss such a picture from our imagination; its pot- - trayal-o~ suffering is too vivid. But in the case of our Lord, ,-the sight of the shedding of the Precious Blood drives home the re.alization ~hat Jesus. bore actual disgrace and con.temp~ -and pain with utmost selflessness for love of us as iffdi-- v~duals, and we can more easily make our own the applica-~ tion of St. Paul, "He loved me and gave Himself up for me, (Galatians 2:20). 0 o’" - ~ Julg, 1944 THE ’DE~rOTION-TO¢THI~ #REcIous BLOOD" " .Y~et the Precious BlOod’ is not~ connected sol~fy with tl4e PaSsion. "After the Resurrection it surges joyously through ~he "glorified body of Jesus, to show" us the ultimat~e tri-u, mph of Christ’s cross and the ultimate triumph of our, cross when we ~carry it, united, to Him. Jesus is,glgrified in Heaven now, ,but on earth none the less we can daily receive Hi~.~Preci~us Blood in Holy Communion, for we .r~ceive Chri~st whole and entire, body and blood, soul rind.divinity, *par[aking of the pledge of eternal life th~it’draws u~ to’look_: forward to the day when the pilgrimage and time of trial will be o~er, and body will rejoin soul for a blessed eternity. \ "" Books Received ~ (From April 20 to June 20) .~ B. HERDER BOOK CO,, St. Louis. Origen: His ~Li[e at Alexandria. By Ren~ Cadiou. Translated by "John A~ ~South~well. $3.25. James La~mez: Jesuit. B~y theReverend Joseph H. Fich-ter, S.J. ~3.00. St. Dominic and His Work. By the Reverend Pierre Man-donner, O.P. Translated by Sister Mary Benedicta~ Larkin. O.P. $5.00. Paul of Tarsus. By theRight Reverend Joseph Holzner. Translated by the Reverend Frederic Eckhoff. $5.00. An l~troduction to Philosophy. By the Reverend Paul J, Glenn, Ph.D.. S;T.D. $3’.00. _~THE NEWMAN BOOKSHOP, Westminster. Md. Letters to Persons in Religion. B’y St. Francis de Sales. Translated by the-, Reverend Henry Benedict Mackey, O.S.B. $2.75. The Eterf~al Priesthoo’d. BE Henry Edward Cardinal Manning. $1.50. All for Jesus. By the Rever-end Frederick William Faber, D.D. $2.50. Summarium Theologiae Moralis. " Auctore Ant6nio M. Arregui, S.J. $2.50. -ri~HE BRUCE PUBLISHING COMPANY, Milwaukee~ .M~ Father’~ Will. By the Reverend Francis J. McGarrigle, S.J., Ph.D. $2.75". LONGMANS, GREEN ~ CO., New York. The Christ: The Son of God. By the Abb~,Constant Fouard. $2.00. " FIDES, 3425, rue Saint-Denis, Montreal. La Charte du Rog~ume Chr~tien. Par le R~v~rend P~re A’drien Malo, O.F.M. :’223 The Dowry ot: Religious Women Adam C. Ellis, S.3. IN.T.HE middle ages monasteries of nuns were supported by income derived .from permanent revenues. At tha’t time, when all Europe was Catholic, popes, kings, and princes, as well as other devout and wealthy C~ith01~cs, considered the foundation of’a monastery an act of r~l.igion as well as a privilege. .By a foian~lation they understood not only the building of the monastery, but also an endow-ment. This endowment consisted ot~ lands and other reyenues to pr.gvide foJ~ the temporal needs of kthe com-mu. ni.t~. ~’hus the nuns ~ould devote ~hemselves~exclusivel~r .to the l~ife of prayer and contemplation ,which was the main purpose of their life. In the .course of time, however, various difficulties ~rose. oSnomlye. afo sumndaaltli onnus mwebreer r eolfa tnivuenl-sy. sMm~olrle a fcfadn cdoiudlda tseus.p wp0errte ~recei’ired than tlSe ordinary resou’rces of the convent cbuld maintain. Then too, in the course of time some founda: tions diminished in value and became" insufficient to suppqrt the number.of nuns originally intended. Finally, the diffi-. cult times of.the reformation were not propitious to ~he founding~of new mQnasteries, and, of the ol}t’offes, many had to be closed, while others continued to exist-ofily destitfftion. -Th~se difficulties ,eventually had to be solved ¯ by the religious dgwry: Saint Charles Borrbmeo is usually considered~ to b_e the first author of an ecclesiastical law exacting a dowry from women who wished to enter religion’. The;legislation he enacted in the First and Second Prdvincial Councils :.dr -~ . THE DOWRY OF RELIGIOUS WOMEN Milan .(156~; 1569~ became the basis for later papa.l enactrfients which, in turn, have been mcorporated,-~wlth some modifications, into the’Code of Canon Law. Meaning ot: Dowrg By "dowry is. meant a definit~ sum 6f money,.or its ": equi:valent, to be p~aid by a postulant to ~he cpmmuni~y in which she Wishes to make her reli~gi~us profession, the pri-mary purpose of which is her entire of a~t l~ast parti.al sup-o~ port as long as she remains a member of the Community.. The dowry, ther~efore, is not a price paid for admission into re_ligion. To accept or demand anything as a price for admission to religion would be to commit the sin of. slmofiy, as the Church has declared over and over figain. N~ither is the dowry to be confused with the paym.ent of a definit~ amount of money for board and clothing during the time of postulancy and novitiate as provided° for in can.on 570. This sum’of money a relatively .small’ ¯ amount.--is actua!ly speht on the postulant or novice~by feeding her and providing~er with the religious habit. The essential characteristic of the ~o~ry is that it is a ’capital sum which must be pre.served during the lifetime of : thd iel!gious (nun or sister) in order ~hat th~ income derived from it may wholly or partially supRort her. This i~ the primary purpdse bf the dowry. A’secondary purpose is ~0_prov~ide for her support in the evefit that she should~ return to the world. For this reason the dowry must be o returned .to her if she leaves religion. This secondary pur,- pose will be considered in greater detail later.- Need o~ Dowry/~or,Nuns Since the beginning of the seventeenth century the .Hgly ~See, has required that all ’mdnas(eries of riuns demand,a dowry for both choir nuns and lay sisters. The legislation of the Code is contained in canon 547, § 1 : " 225 .... ¯ b~D~/d ~. ELLIS Revie~ ~or ,Religious In the mona~fffr~es of nuns, the .pdsfulanf shall provide $h~. down,. fixe~ by the constitutions or determined by lawful custom. ~ ~ - Therefore, every ~ostul~nt~ in a monastery of nuns must-b?ing a dowry. There is no choice~in the matter. The amount to be provided. ~s 6sually determined~by the c0nsti ..... . ~tu~ions; but, if the constitutiofis are silent on the subject,~ ~then custom will ~etermine the amount. It is allowed to require a smaller amount from’la~ sisters than. from choir ¯ sisters; but the sum m~st be tbe same ~oc all tile members o~ " the same group. ~ .Wemight mention here ~a~ in this article we are using 226 ~ "the terms order,’congregation, nun, and sister in the ~trictly. tdchnical senses defined in canon 488. An order is an. lnstl:: " tut~ whose members make profession of-solemn vows;ca congrefqtion~is an_institute whose members make profes-~ sion of simple vows only, whether perpetUal or temporary.,~ ~ nun ts a religious woman with solemn vows or whose : . vows are normally solemn, but which, by a disposition tl’ie Holy See, are simple in certain regions--as is the cade with most nuns in the United States. gome monasteries of nuns have a few extern sisters who ¯ take care of the temporal needs of the’nuns and of all con-tarts with~the 6utside world. On’ 3uly 16, 1931,. the- Sacred Congregation of Religious issued a set of statut, es for such extern sisters, and thesd statutes are obligatory for all .. rrionasteries which have such sisters. Articl 51 Of these statutes reads as foilows: "No dowry is demanded for, e-xtern sisters ;" but-each aspirar~t shall bring ~uch go.ods a~a~l clothing as are prescribed by the" superior of the monasZ - tery. olt is forbidden, therefore, to demand a dowry from- ¯ extern sisters. Should a..candidate, however, freely offer a dowry, it may be accepted; and, if accepted, it will be sub-jecLto all the regulations of 0 the Code regarding the dowry. ,lulg; 194~ ’ ~~ THEDOWRY OF RELIGIOUS WOM~N ;~-’_ Necessit~l, of Dowr,~t_in Cofigregatiob~ of 8-[stets , ¯ " -Bef6re"the Code: legislation for congregations of ~eli-gious- wom~.n, as cofftrasted:with or_ders ~of nuns was con-~ tained ifi ~the Normae 6f 1901. Articl~ 91 of the Norroae required that every institute, of sisters" with. Simple vows= ~ . must determine the amount of the dowry to be proiridedby bot~ choir and lay sisters. The ~ub~tance of this article was embodied" in the constitutions of all congregations apl~roved by the Holy See before the Code. Exceptions were very rare. ~heCode, however, oleaves everything to the constitutions. " ~-I~n. lnstitut~s with simple vows, th~,prescrlptlo~s of the constitutions "must be ~ollowed wlthd’e~gard to the dowry o~: the rellcjious wom’~en [c~non $471 ~ ~). . . " Itfis~possible, therefore, that some ,congregatiOns o~ religio, us women may not.require a dowry, if there, are no provisions for~ the same in the constitutions. Canon 5#7 -do~s not, strictly speaking, ddmand that a dowry.must be ~p~ovided. As ~ matter offact, howeve~r,.the constitutions of’most congregations ~ppfoved by the Holy See have a provision for a dowry, even though the amoun’t may be ,small. - Since the.con~titutiofis, of ttiocesan cqngregatiohs are subject only.to the approval of the Idcal" Ordinaries,-~ moie frequent omission of the dowry is found in them. The rule, therefore, for all"institutes with simple vows; ~,~hether they be approvedby the Holy~.See or by the local "Or.dinary, is to follow whatever is laid down in th~ consti-tutions regardi..ng the dowry. ~ Condonatidn of t~e Dowrg Canon 547, § 4, gives the regulations regarding con- 2donatiqns Or dispensations in regard to the-dowry: "°~ The prescribed=dowry, in tl~e case of [nstltut~s appr~dved by Se~, cannot be°condoned either en÷irely or partially without an indult of the Holy See:~in th~ case of diocesan i_nstitutes, ~¢ithout the~ consent of the 16"cal Ordinary: -’~ - , 227 ADAM "C. E~,LI8. r-.,~-. :~" ~ Review fort Religi6u~ The’.term°’!institute’’ ~nclu~des bot~ orders of~nuns arid cofi~gregations b’f sisters. "- It is-evidenl~, therefore, th~t only the Holy _See can condone the-dowry entirely or in "part for an~ofd~r bf nu_n_s, ~ince only the HolyLSee can approve a religious order. "The same restriction-applies a-s well to all. "congr.egations of sisters appro~veffby the Holy See.. " - In-the case of a dioce~af~ congregation, ’ however, the.- local Ordinary is given the power to condone the dow.r~, in whole or in-part. :.., Sometimes the constitution’s~ contain a clause grantin-~..~ to the Mother Generaland her cbuncil the power .to con-hOaovne ea nt haecdadoevm~ircy.d, eagtr elee,a~sat itne apcahretr,’ si~no fra_vnuorrs eo’fs "p ocsetrttijlfaicnattse ,w-.ohro ~ some similar testimony of special training which Will make .their services more than ordinarily valuable ~ for "the om-. muni~y.-The Sacred Congregation of.Religious allows ’this exception to beowritten into the constitutions- which it approves. The reason for the exception lies ~in the fact ~.th’at such ~candidates .are ~ilre.ady ?ftil,!~r traihed in a professibn which will be of special service to the community; hence the community is saved the expenses ~’that would be invol.ved in xheireducation. Such a degree or certificate is not a -stitt~e fo~a dow~r~’, _but rather¯ a-reason for granting a dis-pensatlon’ln fayor bfa candidate v~h0 cannot afford a’mount of the dowry required be the constitutibns.- ’ The Code itself grants to the,local Ordinary the to dispense from the dowry in the" case of diocesan congre~ gations, but not in the case~of orders or of c0ngregatioiis/ approved by the Ho!y See. However, by reason of very -special faculties_ (ca)ked qtfinquennial faculties because they"~ mtist be renewed ~very fiv.e years) all .local_Ordinaries in the united States may "diSpense from th~ lack of dowry, ir~. -owh°le or in part, in._ the case. of .nuns .or sisters (of congrega- ._’tions approved by the Holy See) provided that the financial 228 , &ilg,_1944 THE DOWRY OF REEIG~oUS WOMEN~ - ¯ ~ .~ o(onditibn of the institute does~not suffe..r~thereby, and that- ~he applicants h~ve such i:l ~ualifications that they give certain ¯ -~pr.omise 6f,geing of 9rear .service-to° the institute." ~The Apostolic Delegate has still wider faculties "to dispense, ’ for a just,~cause, at the request of the community, as regauds the lack. of dowry .required for sisters or nuns in religi.on." °Alocal Ordinary must pass judgment on each case; the ~ _Ap.ost°lic Delegate can give.a ~enera! dispensation for aH cases in. which~ the same condition is fulfilled~ (cf. Kealy, Dowry1 of Women Religious, W~ashington, 1941, page 7’4.) ~ " Ih practice, therefore, it will nor be necessary to apply \. to the H6ty See for a dispensation from ihe dowry; since either the local Ordinary_or’the Apostolid Delegate will _be ~able ~o grant the condonation. , When a dispens~ition is granted unconditi6nalty to a ~po~stulfint who is unable to provide the dowry prescribed by the constitutions, she is tl-iereby freed once and forGll from ’--- " thd obligation,even though, l~iter on, she should, come into possession of m~oney or other goods. Hence.some authors ~dvise tha~ the dispensations should be granted conditior~- allg, that is, with the obligation of paying the~dowry later on, if th~ candidate should then be’able to do so. Pa~/ment of Dowrg ~ This dowry must be 9~ven fo the ~’monastery before the’ rec~ptlon ~f "~he habit, or at least its payme.r~t guaranteed i.n a manner recognlsed by civil law (canon 547, § 2)." Since~the habit is usually-gi~cen at the beginning of the novitiate, the dowry prescribed by the constitutionsmust .",f-~ be given to the institute before the.beginnin9 of the novi- ~tiate. It must be actually turned over to the monastery, or _-at least:its payment must be guaranteed in such a way that .the paymerit no longer depends on the will and intdrpreta- 229 ~- ADAM C. ELLIS- RevieuJ for Religiou~o~. tion of .the person’°who hai promised to pay it._:’~The form’ of the guarantee_ mus-t :’be - on? which is both valid .and enforceable in the civil law. of the p[a~e in which it is made. A simple promise.,based on the good vCill of the person ’making the p?omise is not sufficient,. In cases,in which a guarantee is. given fiefor~ the ’reception of-the habit, the ~.~’ dowry itself should be p~a!d before .the novice is permit,ted to pronounce her first vows. If this is not prescribed by the" constitutions, it should be’prox)ided for ifl the document ~hich guarantees the payment of the dowry. " " This canon regarding the time o~f payment applies only to monasteries of ’nuns. In the case of congregations of Women of ~imple vows, the constitutions should, specify,the tirfie. Constitutions approved by the Holy See usu.ally .require that when the dowry is onl~r guaranteed before tile reception of the habit, it should be paid before first pro-_ fession of vows. If the constitutions are silent on this mat-_ ’ter, then in pr~ictice actual payment of’ the dowry shouldbe re, quired before profession, in order that the investment of -the capital may be" made ira, mediately after profession, prescribed by canon 549. Con~stitution of the Dotur. y The Amount: In orders of nuns the amount of ~tl~’e" dow_ry usually is a fixed and absolute sum: Since n.un~s are° ~iven to a life of contemplation and are st.rictly cloistered, the am6unt fiked for~ the dowry will be rather large, and should provide an income sufficient to support the nun. Members of religious congregations are usually engaged in active apostdlic works such as teacl~ing~ and nursing, which bring ifi-a certain amount of remuneration. Hence theamount of the dowry is generally much smaller than in ,an order of nuns. For congregations approved b~r the Holy See before the Code, a fixed amount was prescribedin the 230 Jut~/;’l~4"4 TH~ DOWRY OF RELIGIOUS WOM~ - conStituti6ns; T.his fi~ed amount, however, v~iri~d in ea~ch _congregation according to~ the resources and the needs~’c~f the sam~. Because of the upheaval in economic conditions which ~esulted from the first world war,"the SacredCongre-" gation of Religious adoptedShe policy of allowi_ng the gen-eral- ch~ipter t~ determine the amount of the dowry. Hence, constitutions approved within-recent times cont~iin-this ’ the profession, of statement: "The aspirant shall bring a dbwry~ the am6unt bf which has been determin~d~ by the general chapter,~ according to localities arid times." Since the general.chap-ter meets periodidall3~,’every three~orfive or,six yea,rs, it may change the,amount of the dowry according to the needs of, tl2e times, raising or lowering it. In a large congregation which has provinces in various countries, it may vary the amount, of the, dowry for the~e different provinces or,court-tries; provided the amount is the same for all postulant.s in any partic’ular province or country. .Unless the constitutions-forbid it, a° post.ulant may give a qa.rger sum as her-dowry "than the amount spe.cified. Si~ould this be done, the total amount given must be sub-ject to the laws of the Code regarding the investment, administration, and t~ra.nsfer of the regular dowry. (~ualit~l: The general rule followed before the Cod~’, was tfiatothe dowry had to be giyen in 5cash or money. While~this rule,was not w.ritten i~i any formal documen~t Still .the.diSpensations granted.by the SacredCdngr~gatiofi of Reli,~i0us show that’it was the "accepted customary law. ¯ The Norrna~. of 1901 contain no specific legislation, on.the. subject, and the Code is-silent regarding it. . Commentators on the Code hold widely divergent~ opinions., Some few insist that ¯tile dowry must bepaid.in cash. ~A few others go so far as to allow productive real estat~ to be accepted as dowry, and even to’be retained ~,fter the-religious as the equivalent/of an 231 ~ Reoiew for R~ligious. "- ~i’nvestment. The retention of real estate a’i the:equivalent of an ifivestment does- not seem to be in conformity with the text oLthe Code and the practice of the Sacred Congre-’~ g~tion of Rel.igious. The vast majoril~y allow the dowry. to be made up of money dr its’equivalent, that is, of a.n_y movable capitM, such as stocks and bonds. In practice the following norms maybe safely fol-lowed" ~(1) If the cdnstitutions contain a specific regula-tion regarding the quality of the dowry, it must..be fol-lowed. (2) If there is no specific regulation, then either" money or equixialent securities such as stocks and bonds may be accepted. (3) If the postulant has no money,, but onry real estate, the title to the same should be transferred to the institute, and it should be" kept during the~novitiate. After°the novice, has taken her first vows the real’estate should be sold and the proceeds invested. If the r~al estate can’not be sold for a fair price, the matter.should be referred -~ to the local Ordinary. [nuestment.of Dowry "Since the psimary purpose of the dowry-is,to produce revenue for the support of the religious during her lifetime., it is evident thatit must be invested so as to produce an- After the first profession of the religious, the superioress with her council, and with the consent of the local Ordinary and of ’,the Reg’~lar Superior, if the house I~e~dependent on Regulars, must plac_e the ~l,0wry.in a safe, lawful, and productive investment (cahon 549): ~ Time of inuestment: The canon is clear. The dowery is not t6be’ invested while the aspirant is making her novi- ~ tiate. It should be put in a bank and the interest accrmng frqm the" deposit should be .given to the novice..If the novice leaves before making her profession, her dowry must be returned, to her. It may be invested only after she has taken her first vows. It should then be invested at once~" .3. [l£1y, 1944 ~ THE DOWitY Ol~ RELIGIOOS WOMEN ’ ~., but-& sho~t dela~ ~ma~r-be allowed if there is hopeof getting -’- a Safer orinore profitable in~restment. - " ". . Kind o~: investment: The dowry is to be invested in safe, }awful,. and productive securities. ’We may note-here in pa~sing that_the ti~xt of the authorized English transl.a-tion which we have give.n above is inaccurate. The term "nomina" used in the Latin. text is transla_ted as "invest- - "- m~nt." It is a historical fact that all the preliminary texts "" of°~he Code used the more general term xnvestlmentum, "~~ : but in the final text the more specific wo"rd noinraa "¯ Was "~-’ ~sUbstituted. This term is,..correctly given in other autho}.- ized transl~ltions as "titoli-securi," ".titres Stirs," and "tit.u.: r~ " " los seguros. The Latin term nomlna, as well as the cot- . rect English equivalent "securities,"; excludes real estate and other immovable goods. The Sacred Congregation of ~" Religious follows.this interpretation in practice. Asa~e investment is one which will not~ in all probabil- .,’ "i,ty, lose its val.ue.. -Usually the dowry will be .i~vested in ¯ stocks and bonds, of which there exists a gre~t ~rariety. The .~iSrst’obligation of ~uperiors is to choose a safe security, even though_it produ.ces a smaller income than one which is less ~afe. .~. A lawfulqnvestment i’s one .which does not violate-any "la~, either ecclesiastical or civil. Canon 142 of. the Cdde forbids clerics and’religious to engage in anjr business or "tra_ding,oeither personally~or through others. Howe~rer,.th,e - common opinion today allow~ them to invest in stocks of ; any lawful commercial or in’dustriai enterprise, provided that they do n~t own or ~ontrol the maj@i,ty of the stock, a~n~,that they take no active partin the management. A productive investment is one which brings returns or yields fruit. The purpose of the dowry is to produc~ i,ncome for tile support of the religious. This purpose. " would not be fulfilled by merely placing the dowry in_a 233’ ADAM C. ELLIS "" ~ Review,,for~Religi~us bank for safe k~eeplng. The rat~ o[’interest or income paid on ~-tocks and bonds is a variable quantify, and usually in inverse ratio to the safety 6f the investment. extent productivity must be sacrificed in favor of safety, as it is of supreme importance to see that the capital itself is not lost or diminished. ° "Persons’who make ~be investment: various persons are~. mentioned in the canon. For .nuns it will be the superioress of the_monastery; in the case of a congregation it will be the superior general or provinfial according to the constitw tions. The tanon requires that she "discuss the matter of the investment of the dowry with bet council. The text’of the canon-does not state that the~vote of. the council, d~cisive,.but many constitutions add a clause to that effect. In the absence of any such modifying clause, the vote’ of the council may be considered a~ consultative only. With the consent of the local Or, dinarg: The ter~ "local Ordinary" indludes the Bishop of the .diocese, his Vicar General, the Administrator of a vacant see, Vicars and Prefects Apostolic in missionary territories. The local Ordinary does riot make. the investment, but merely gtves his consent that it be made after he has satisfied himself that ¯ the investment proposed is safe, lawful, and productive in ac’cordance with the law. And o~ the Regular Superior: Some monasteries of nuns are subject to the supS.riots o£ the first order of inert. "In that case’they must obtain the-consent of the regular supe_rior in addition to that bf l~he local Ordinary. It may be well to,note here that "the same permissions required’bef6re the dowry may be invested by the superior and her council, are also required for euer~ chang~ of inuedt-merit. of the capital of the dowry (canon 533, § 2). -234 Prohibition.to Spend D~owrg o ~ Jt is ~¢rictly forbidden that, before th~ death of the rellg~ous, the . ,, d’uhjfi944 "~ 2"-" . =THE D(~WR~’._. OF RELIGIOUS..W. OMI~N’¯ d~>wr¥ b~ expended for~an’y’:purpose,.e~ven ~o.r the ~u~ldin9 of-a house o;~ t_he.llq uldation, of’debts (canon 549)~ . . .o ~ ~ This prohibition ~is undoubtedly a very grave one as_-" ~,a~. be.deduced from canon 2412, 1.°, which orders~the~ 10~al~Ordinary.to punish a religious superior; and even to ;r~move h~r ftotn office under certain circumstances, should; "s~e presume to spend th.e_downes,of ’her subjects cont.rarY~ tc~th;e prescription of canon 549. The building of a b~ous,e and the paymefit of a debt are given by wa_y 9f exahaples to_ exclude all simila_r pretexts. ¯ In case of ]grave necessit.f a ~disEensa.tion may be obtained from ~he Holy See. Such a dispensation will always impose~the obligation of restoring ~the capital of the dowry as soon as possible, as well as the-- obli~gation of givi!ig back ihe,principal of the dbwrY~to the _’°religious who leaves the institute.. _. ¯ "~dministr~ation o{ Dowry , ~ ~ .~ Th~ dowries mus~ b~ enrS{ull~ ~nd ~nte~rall¥ administered nt ~he-.. ~m~n~$t~r¥ or~llouse ~( hnbffu~l residence ~{ the Mother-~nernl "~ Mo~h~er-Pr~v~n¢inl {¢nnon ~50," § I}. ° - e,_ Administration in general includes" all acts necessar.y ;:~and 6sef.ul foi: the.. preservation and improvement oftem’- " poral goods: for fiaakin.gothem. . 15roduc{ive, for collecting the fruits, .and f0~ properly disposing of tl~~’ income. In t.6.the dowry two points are emphasized: care.arid int.egraI: ity: First of all; the dowry mtist be,invested iia°safe securi ties as We have seen above’..~ ;Then care mustobe"ex’~rcised to guard’against the dan~er ofloss or diminution in:value @anging the investment when securities, become ~anstable-of dangerous. Care also includes the ~ttentive ~ollection 0i~. the income at fixed times. ,The constitutions ng.t 5nfre-.-. --quentin; prescribe details regarding this administration of-the.. dowries. Integrillity means compieteness of-ai:lrriinis-~ :tration. Practically, in regard to the dgx~ry,,it means that ,th+~’e~tlre am0unt-of the dow’ry must be .invested, and the, ~/~DAM C. ELLIS ~ " Re~eu~ ~or Religious ~. . ~, :en~tire amount, of the fruits ’or. interest_ be c611e~:ted’. ~ Theplace fo~ th6 administration of:dowries is the mon~ ~ astery in the case. of nuns, t~eho~se ofhabitual residence ~ of the s~perior generaFor provincial in the case of congre: gi~ion~. While the obligationand responsibilityrestg on the~uperior, she need not necessarily administer the dowries ~personally, but she may delegate this duty to som~ 6ther ".prudent an’d experienced religious, such as~ the treasurer g~neral. In all cases a special account Should be-kept o~ the administration of the~dowri~s, distinct, and separate from that of the ~enedal funds of the community." This-is .required for various reasons, not~ th~ least of whic~ is the-report t~ be given at stated ti~es .to ~he local Ordinary.- Administration of dowries singlg or collectively. ~he-dow~ ies may be administered in either of two ways: tb~ first’is to keep each individual doy~y separate, and to inqest it by itself. In case a religious should leave,~the c~pital of her dowry will be retffrned to her in the.condition in wBich~ it is at that time." if it has-increased in value, ,the "gain is~ hers; ’if-it~has decreased, she ~uffers the loss. T~ second method i~ to pool all the. dowries into a7 common, fund, ~nd, then invest thatfund in various kinds of securities: Obviously it would be very’unwise to invest the ~e~tire fund in onl~ one class of securities, because of the- ’danger of grave loss ~n case that particular security should suddenly decrease in value. It is much more prudent to.dis-tribute the capikal in variofis safe, lawful, anff p’r0ductive’ s~Curities. There may be. occasional losses, but these, will beieihtively small. If this second method ~f~administra2- ti6n is adopted, the institute assumes the obligation returfiing to a ~relig~us who leaves merely ~the actual,.. amount of money .which she originally brought, as dowry; " regardle.ss of loss or gain. in value o.f th~ securities in which it w~ invested: o ~ ~ 236’ ";J"u l-~~, 1"" 9~4 ~-~ x " " THE ;DOWRY OF R~LIGIOUS WOMEN’" Acquisition of Do~¢~ bq]nst{t~te -~The dowry is irrevocably acqbired, by’ ~he monastery or ~he Instlfu~e on ,the death of the religious, even ~hough she had ~ade profession of only tempora~ vows (canon 548).~ " ~e have" seen that dufin~ t~e hov~fiate the dow~y remains ~be p~o~e~ty.of t~e no~ice~ Once,the novice h~ taken’her fi~st vows, the. 0~nership of the d0~ry, passes into the possession of the monastery or institute, not abso-lutely, but c6nditionally. -The condition is that the reli-. gious remain in the institute. During .the lifetime of the religious the income of the dowry goes to the monastery or insti:t~te’ ~or her support. After the death of the religious, even though she had made profession of tempdrary vows : Onl.y,~ the ownership of the dowry on th~ part of the insti-tute becomes absolute and the capital may be added.to its general funds.. ~n.the case of a novice who is allowed to take ~ows 0n her deathbed before the completion of the novitiate, the dowry does not become the property of the institute after bet death, but must be turned over to her heirs atlaw, ~inte i~this case the dowry never belonged to the institute even conditionally. It is 0nly after the normal professiofi of ~-first vows at, the end of a valid novitiate that the o~nersh~p ~asses conditionally to the institute. Return of Dowr~ to.Tfiose Who Leaoe,~ ,:1~, ~rom wh~ev, r cause,: a pro~#ss~d rdi~ious wi~h eHher kolemn-or simpl~ vows I~aves ~hs Institute, her dbwr~ mus~ b~ returned " We have. seen that the ownership 0f the dowry passes to "the institute c0nditionally on the. day on which the-reli- ~ gious, takes her first tempoyary, vows, Th~ condition is that the reli:gious remain aTmember of the institute. If she l~aves. ~for any cause whatsoever, either voluntarily with a dispen-sation or by’ reason of dismissal, her entire dowry re,st be 237 ADAM C. ELLIS ~ ~ ~ Reoieto, /~or Religious restored tO he~, but not the fruits or,income derived there-, .... f~om up. to the time of her leaving. Thus ,the secondary purlSose of the dow.r~y ii fulfilled. The Church wish~s that a woman who has spent some years in religion and then returns to the world should have~ the nece.ssary means to ret-urn home safely.and to support herself properly until ~’she "can°re.adjust h~rself in the world and find some means of support. If the religious was received without a’dowry,, -- canon 643 requires that the institute give her a charitable subsidy if she cannot provide for herself out of her ~wia resources: On March 2, 1924, the Sacred Congregatioh of "Religious declared that in a case in ~hi~b the dowry itself is not sufficient for this_ purpose, the institute is bouiad to supply the balance of the amount needed for her safe return _ ho~e ~ind for her supp6rt as ex.plained above. -Occasionally, tl?ough-rarely, the Holy See grants an indult to a profess.ed religious woman to transfer to another instithte. Then canon 551, § 2 is to be fo~llowed: But if, by virtue of ~n ~aposfolic indulf, the professed reli~iofis joins another Institute, the intereston the dowry, during her~ new novitiate, without prejudice to the prescription of canon 570, § I; and, after the ne~;~ ~ profession, the dow.ry itself, must be given to the laffer institute; if the~ relicjious passes to another monastery of the same Order, the dowry is due "~ to it from the day the change.takes place. No further" comment is given on this canon since the case is rare, and should, it arise, a careful study of cano.ns 632-636 will have to be made .regarding .the tra’nsfer to another institute.," . Vigilance Of l~ocal Ordinary The local Ordinaries must diligently see that the dowries of the rell-glou. s are conserved; and they must exact an acco~,nt on the ~ubject, especi.~lly at the pastoral visitation (canon 550, § 2). For every monastery of nun’s, even exempt: I. The s,~perior.ess~must fdrnish an account of h~r administration, to be exacted gratuitously once a 238 ’ " d~uly, 1944 THE DOWRY OF.RELIGIOUS WOMEN year, or. even-oftenerif th~ constitutionsso prescribe it, to theqocal Ordi-nary, as’well as to the Regular.-Superior, if ~fhe mon~sfery be subject t6~ Regulars (canon 535, § I). ~ "In other institutes of women, fh’~ account of the adminisfration of the property.constituted by the dowries shall be furnished to the local Ordl-nary off the occasion of the Vlsltation, and- even offeher if the Or.d;nary - conside~s if necessa~/(~anon 535, § 2). From these canons it is clear that the .superior "of a mon- -astery ~f nuns must give an annual account of the adminis- °tration of tl~e dowries to the 16cal- Ordinary, , as well as to the regular,superior, if the .monastery be subject to regu-lars. ~The constitutions may prescribe a more frequent accohnt. In the case of congregations of Migious w~m~n, wh~ther dioc~esa~n or approvCd by the Holy See, the account regarding the administration of the’dowries must be giv~en at least every five years on the occasion of the canonical .yis-itation on the part of the l~cal Ordinary. He may demand a more frequent account ~if he deems it necessary. This righ.t of vigilance given to" the lbcal Ordinary authorizes him to see that all the prescriptions of th’¢ law~- are observed in regardt0 the cai~ful administration of ~the .dowries in safe, lawful, and productive ~ecurities; and it includes the r’ight ;o demand an accounting of these fundS, as .explained above. The right of vigilance, however. -should not..be confused with the right of, administration’, which ~emains in-the hands Of the religious s~perior. r - 239 The Sacred l-lear!: Program Eugene P. Murphy, S.J.. IT ALL began in Golden Pond, .Kentucky, six years ago. -~ .|~ Several families of poor tobacco planters were ~athere_d one Sunday afternoon around t, he auto radio of the local ,. school teacher. They were listening to one of the fi~st -broadcasts of the Sa6red Heart Program, coming to them, from WEW in St. Louis. Missouri. "Listening to ,the Voick of the Ap6stl_eship of Prayer," they enrolled as mem- ~’b~rs o]~ this world-wide organization and became the first of tens of thousands .of radio listeners to join "the St. Louis Center. This was the picturesque beginning of the nation- " : wide Sac~ed ’HeartProgram. Thfs is the only Catholic Da~ily broadcast on the air today and traces it ancestry to a religious program sent out each Sunda) from Station -WEW, beginning April 26, 1"921. In May 1941 this broadcast beg.an~,to ~extend-to all .parts of the."country. Within a year and a half it has added a hundred and thirty-stations tO its lists in the United States, Canada, and the Republic Of Panama.- Behind the’Pr6gram is an effective organiZation_wi£h a central, office in St. Louis and. regional offices in Boston, Los Angeles and Toronto. @he National Director of ~the broad~ aast is the Reverend ~ugene P. Murphy, S.J., who is assisted by, the Reverend George H. Mahowald, S:J.; and the Rev-. ereffd Hugh E. Harkins, S.J., as Associate Directors. The Regional Director fgr New England and A, tlantic Coast ’States is the Reverend Matthew Hale, S.J., with the R4v- ’ erend Arthur D. Spearman, S.J., in charge of the West ¯ Coast Office in Los Angeles. The Canadian Director .is tlhe -Reverend E. G. Bartlett, S.J., whose offices are in Toronto. 240 ~,~.-°" . Each morning’in ~hi~ studios 6f WEW" is produced the ~,Dady Fifteen Minui~es. of Thought ~and. Praydf." A pri: rate leased telephone line brings th,e’Program to The "nisonic Recording Laboratories whe~ it is cut into wax,~ :Later these "cut;" are shipped to The Allied Recordings Iric., in Hollywood wher~ theya_re pressed into vinolyte. transcriptidns: ~ These transcriptions are then expressed to-various outlets .of the Program from Newfoundland to.. ’ AlaSka and. f~om cxnada to Panama. / The purpose ofthe Program is to’promote d’evotion-td- ~ " The.Sac-red Heart among persons of all ages and classes. . Miners, farmers, factory workers, college prgfes~ors, ,busi .nessmen, housewives,, and shut-ins, all derive spirit.uaL "strength from this period of prayer, hymns, anda six,min- ~ :ute conference. Radio station’managers in all parts, oLthe -~’ 0 United. States and Canada oha.ye been most enthusiastic in , % their commendation of the broadcast. The value of this broadcast as a force in social structioh, can hardly be over-emphasized. People 6f all. classes who are spiritually. unde.rprivileged,, living, oo.n ~ranches and farms far fr6m church, or in the tenement~ of "~,bu_sy cities, are {grateful for a message of superhatUral, truth coming to them every day by means of radio. It°is a most° _, effective medium for reaching the vast multittides of our ~..’-.n0n:Catholic neighbors who are starving for the realities of~ Faith. Liiteners write in from every state in the’ Unior~ in : the Sgme vein as this non-Catholic friend in Wiscoiasin! ;(I , am not of your Faith but cannot tell you,how much spir-it~ al,s.trength I derive from this daily broadcast. ~ May, God prosper your great work," From Nova Scotia comes the_ word,""The Program. has had a great effect on non- ’ ~_Catholics herd. Man~ of them are my friends and they’, ~’~ ~ha,ve told me how much they enjoy,the sermons." In prac-tically ev, ery mail our Ame~’ican liste’nBrs tell us of the" - 241 EUGENE P. MURP’~IY. " , ¯ " . Reui~o ior ,- e~thusiasm, 6f~ their non-Catholic frie£ds. "Per_hap.s som~,of ~ the.most interestif~g 1.etters<,however, come from Prot~esta.nt ° Ministers of all-denominations, o’- " " _.A most consoling phaseoof this work i~ the effecrit_.h~is_ on Catholics living in isolated and no-priest districts. Th:~:" r~esponse from our_liste~ners in New,foundland indicate~ this. ~ery clearly. "Itis an inspiration and spiritual ulflift which. -helps me through the day,’" one woman writes.- "We live-’- far from a church and ou~ priest comes to this. mission:o~ly, twice a~,ye~r. I:onb; wish there were more prbgrams like this .to listen to." Another Catholic mother re-echoes this thought: "In a pl~ace like. this, where there is no priest, .ygur sermons are eagerly looked forward .to by all." This sane ¯ jS.’trtie of many of our S~ates suchas-West Virginid, Ken-tu? ky, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Texas, Ore- . yon, and Washington. ’ManyCommunities of Sisters listen to_the Program ~ regularly," either during breakfast or in the evening or on,-~ -,Sudday a~ft,e’rnooh, de)ending on ~he tim, e ..’of the local-broadcast.- Hospital--:Sisters write~in in great numbers, : ,~elling us how much" it means, to the .patients’oin theft insti- -o_, rut.ions. One patient’, a Sister; recently sent us this note:" , , " "Ddar Father: For. over two years Ihit*e.been praying for the succes~ of your radio apostola, te. Until recently I; Had hevei hdard, a single ohe of the program~. HoG.ever, for cthe past. nine weeks I have been a. patient in~this hos-pital, and now I cXn,tell you from personal experience just ,- what .these brqadca~sts me,in to l~he sick. When you are so - weak and tired that you~ can hardly think of prayer, to have these beautiful meditations and hymns and prayers~,come to you is likea special, gift from heaven; I am sure the Sacred -Heart is usi’ng this great modern means of )adio to draw millions of’ hearts to Him <in their hour of suffering :and ,, tri~il." -- - ’ ° 242 ~ +. ~’ " ... - - ~ ] "7"+- " JulY} 19~ ,f . ~ ~HE SACRED HEXRT PR~RAM ’ Just ~hat is the contdnt of, the sixminute c3n4erence and m~itation give~’in ~tbe broadcast? . ~e~haps sample-se~ ie~ of these tal~s, will best answer this quesnon. For ’,instance, the series on Patron Saints included: What is a ~Pa~ron Saint; Sts. Imeld~ and T~rsisius, Patrons o~ First Communicants; St: Isidore, ~atrgn o~ Farmers; St. Johd of God, Pa.tron of the Sick; St. Apollonia, Patron of 6Sts: St: C~ris(opher, Patron of~Wa~farers; St.-Lh~e, Pat~on of Painters{ St; Brendan, Patro~of Sailors; St. Jo-seph, Patron of Workingmen; Sts, Cosmas anH Damien, ~"~- Phtrons of S~rgeons; St. Francis de-Sales, Patro~ 0f’J6~r-nalists~ ~ .Another ser~es, de~ling with thvsignificance of Lourdes ih.the modern world, included the following: The Mission of Bernadette; A T6wn; A River and g Grotto; Th%Appa-ri6on~ Wh~t is an ~pparition?; "’I am the Immaculate .~CQnception": The .Spring and Its Waters;~ Pilgrima.ges~ ~ Thbse of Loufdes; The Pro~ession of the Blessed Sacra-ment; The Faith of the Sick;:Fred Snite, an~Exa~ple; The . CgFes~A Challenge.to Modern Life; Whht is a MidAcle?~; Bernadette’s Way+of Sanctity; What isTh~ Song:of Be~- nadettd? These two series of talks Nere followed by the Radio Way of the Cross and the Prayer~ for Benediction medi-tated. To-maintain listener interest and avoid monotbny,~ a. great vaTiety of subjects is sought for in the different series. ’Bi6graphical sketches will ’be followed ,by the meditative. development of a prayer or a by _ran, then a dogmatic.expla: nation .say, of a Sacrament.,, This will be folio.wed by a sei:ie~ on "The Missions" or The Co,ntent of a Christi~ln’sr _Day, "Catholics You Would Like to Meet, and so forth.- An amazing fact is that it is hardly ever necessary to r,epeiit th’i~- subject-rhatter of any one series. 243~- V~EUGENE p’. MURPHY"~. _ : ~ ~ -" - Judgin ,from~,th~.resultsof the last fiv years, it.is safe to predict that~the function of The Sacred Heart Program ~’,,in the post-wa~r world will. 1,be one of extreme’imp0rtan~e. It strikes directly at the three greavthreats that donfront our Catholic program of. spiritual and social reconstruction: communism,¯bigotry and intolerance; and lax and unin-fdrmed Catholicity. Int6 the homes of the worl~ingclasses,. lt~bfi.ngs theideal of "Christ the Worker. Into the homes non-Catholics, it .brings simple explanations of the gre’a~t" doctrines of our ~aith. Into the homes of Catholics, both .fervent akid indifferent, it biings a~challeng’e to zeal" ~nd Catholic Action which caniao’t be-ignored. The members of the hierarchy have been mo~t encour-- aging in their approval of the broadcast; It has be~n given-" a cordial (velcome in practically every" diocdse. One illus.- trious prelate said of it: ’;~This’is one of themost effective~ ~prbgrams on the air. A number of bis.hops have adopted it as tl"ie official-radio project ot~ their di0cesd~s. It is hoped that within the’very near future the Sa~red Heart~ Program will be ~heard I~hroughout South America_. "~both in Spanish and Portuguese. Negotiations for _this are ~.~very near completion. Over five hundred broadcasts°-are,~" no@-bringing the message of Christ’s’love to~seZcen million -~listeners in North America. When millions of South Arherican listeners, have been added to these,-the radio apo~.tolate will seem to be well on the way to its goal of "bringin~ the Sacred Heart to the world, and the world tb the Sacred Heart.’: ¯ ~ , 244 ATA time when the whole countryis t.hrilling to Holly-wood’~ sup~.rbly reverent and tender portr~i,yal +.of +- Our Lady’s apparition to Saint Berna~dette eighty-six~ years ago, it is most appropriate that Catholics are daily growing+in knowledge of anoth.er gracious visitation+which Marry ma.de to the world during the last great war. As ~at L6urdes, she came not to th+ mighty, . the wise, or "the !earned, but to unschooled children tending their flocks a~ Fatirn_a, in Portugal. Because of recent publicity in ~he Catholic~press ai~most’ everyone is familiar with the details of the Fatima revela-’:~x+ tions. It was May 13, 1917., and fa~ from the’bitter battle-fields- whereexhausted armies struggled in a horn-locked stale-mate, two young .girls and a small boy watched their flocks in idyllic peace. At noon they ate their lunch under ’~a’brazen and brilliant ’sky; theft’ they’ cha’ttered.quickly through an abbreviated form of the Rosary and begari to play. ~Wi.thout.warning, a jagged sword of lightning split .the unclouded serenity of the sky. Fearing a storm, Lucili, who at t~n was-the eldest of the three, began to round-~p her bl~ating charges to bring them home. As they turned to .go, however, they saw a cand,en.t cloud standing over a tree and ~n’this bright pedestal’a_lady of breathless, beauty. From her hands hung a Rosar,y; o.n her face-was a wistful sadness as she"looked 6n_the ahaazed+ children. ~ith th’e unabashed" courage of the .innocent, Lucia asked the Lad~r~ who she ,was. She replied that ~he was from heaven, told the children to say the Rosary repeatedly and asked them if they were willing to be victims 245 " of .repar~iti~n forsin a~d .for.the, ~onversi6n o’f sinners~" -Qnce aga~in,..Wifh"the dauntlesgness of ~routb and purity, .r-Lucia affirmed.the willi~ngness 9f the threel The Lady then~.~ told thgm to be at the same spot onthe thirteenth day Of ~ th~ next’five months, and disappeared.i. ,From (hera untiFthe following’October, they saw her -on the thirteenth of each month, with the exceptiQn August. The news of:the miracle go.t abroad, of course, - and. the general reaction fomented by the vicio£~sly anti~ . clerical press was oiae of derision. On the thirteenth August, the three children, who had already experienced some of the repa.ratoty suffering .about which Our Lad~. had warned them, We’re in custody. Thus did man, in tiis stppid short-sightedness,,think to iiaterfere with the designs of heaven. But the very day after their, release, Mary a’gain appeared to the children. -- As the months wore on, increasing crowds- accom- -panied~-the three visionaries, oto the sheep-field. ~her~e ~ ~heaven.and earth’met. In Septe~nber ~bout forty thousa~nd ffitgesses wer~ there with them; °in Oct.0ber,about~seven_t’~ ~-th6usand. None but-l~he children sa~ the ~Lady, but all beheld the accompa~aying phendmena~ The sky darken_ed somewhat, a blizzard of white floweks ’fell, the- .~. children .were w~rappe~t m a shining clc;ud.- In }he October appa- ~:ritior~ tl4e sun’whi~led before.the eyes of the astounded mul titude, throv~ing out great spokes of colOredlight.. ’ That, in skeletal outline, is the history Of the appa, ritions. I~ haS;been confirmed by exhaustive examinations, arid on’Oct6ber 13, 1930, th(Bishop of Leiria, in whoge district the wonders occurred, published fi Pastoral Letter inwhich he declared the visions "worthy. of credence" .and ¯ offi]ially permitted "the devotion of Our Lady of F5tima.:’ ~On OctolSer 31, 1942, Plus XII sent a mess.age t6’the Por-:_ tuguese Bishops conve~ned to observe the Fatima, silver jubi~ 246". " July, 1944 . ~ .... tee; he likewise~cons~crated the.world "and Russia to tl’]e ,["Immaculate Heart of Mary--a consecration l~hat OurlL~dy" had requested of the three children twenty~five years before. ,, After ~a recd~t showing of the motion picture,,.~"Th, e Song-oLBernadette," a ma~n accosted a priest arid, remark- ’in~on the oppositio~n which Bei~nadette had encountered; added.: "The Church ’ does n6t believe very easily, Father."- The priest~agreed that, where private revelations are con- ’~cerne~d, the Church has to proceed very cautiously because opfo itnhtee dda o’nugt.etor othf.ee xmpaomsin tgh asta cthreed c _htahrigneg.s o tfo emaoscyk cerrye daunldi thye m~de so often again.st .the-~l~ur.ch is the emptiest of calum-" nies.-- In the ~matter of the Fatima revelations the Chukch has moved with’the same divine prudence. The reiterated i~urden of Our Lady’s admonition to the, _children was the continual recitation0f the Rosary. In her second.appearance she told them to insert a-special prayer at ° the-end df each’decade, after:the."’Glory be to the~Father"L ~;’~0 my Jesus, forgiv.e us our sins, deliver us from the fire of -h~ll, and give relief to the souls in purgat’bry, especially the ;~most abandoned souls.". , As in thefirst ,meeting, so in the third, ,,~Mary urged on the-children the necessity for penance arid reparation, telling them to say freqently the prayer: "O Jesus I offer this for the love of Thee, for the conversion of sinners, and " in..reparation__for all the wrongs don~ to_the Immaculati~.. Heart"of Ma~y." So, too, in the fourth visitation, she .insisted on the need of making sacrifices for sinners that0they~ may, cogperate with God’s grace and repent. To_the command that they should say the. Rosary she" added, in-the fifth apparition, a specifii motive for that - devotidn, which has real point in Our da) namely, othe,° c?ssation of the v, lar.- ¯ In th.e ~eyastat~ng influenz, a epidemic ..of 1918, Fran- 247 WILLIAM A. DONAGH~. - Reuiew for Religioa~ ciscosand’his siste£ Jacinta~ the two younger" of the three favored’children, ~died.; but their cousin, Lucy, suryived to .become a nun. Years later she disclosed a hithert6 secret phase of ~he.third =visionof ,July 13, 19"17. cousins had been gra_nted a glimpse °hell in which the demon~ and the damned-forever writhe. Our .Lady-told them that to save souls from eternal damna-tion God wished "toestablish in the world devotion to my Immaculate. Heart. ° Then she made an a.m~izing i~redictio.n that:the first \[vorld, war would so, on-end but warned that if people[cg~- tinued-t0 offend God another, more terrifying w~,ar would~ ~f~are ~up. God’s chastisemenf, she said, would wither t.he earth; famine would dull the eye and gouge the cheek; per- ~ ~--secutions-would fall "upon Chris(s Church and Chrisfis ~’ Vicar. " Mary then requested that the world be consecrated to her Immaculate Heart and that Communions of reparation be’offered on the’ Fi~rst Satu~rday of each month. The Holy ~ ’Father was to consecrate R-ussia and the world f6~her,; Rus-sia, she prophesied would eventually be coriverted, and an era of peace would at length give rest to the tortured human race... As we have ’noted, Plus XII solemnly consecrated Russia and the World to- the Immaculate Heart of Mary ,on October 31, 1942~ - Since that time a church has ~een~ erected in" h~er honor ~ind the message of Fatima has flashed around~the Cath61ic world. ~ It is a message~6f self-dedication to that.Immaculate Heart which.Our Lady showed to the childrer~ surrbunddd with the thorns of man’~ ingratitude and blasphem~. It,is ~ of yit’al ilnp~)rtance to all the faithful but fiartic.ularly to religious, both fo~ ttieir own personal- lives- and for .the apostolic overflow of Marian "devotion i~to the lives ~of those wl~om’they teach and guide. 248 ~. .- ’~ duly, "19 4 4 " .~, ~ ~ THE~APffARITIONS AT FATIMA ..... Ch’aracter.isti~ of this devotion;-as of~ devotion to. Sacred Heart of Jes’us, is the idea df reparation. Our.Lady_ - ~herse-lf indicated to the fiildren that this reigara.t.ion is to be , made..by .prayer, by Voluntarily assumed penance, and by, ~willing a&eptance of trials. In-.particular, she asked- TLuc~: "See, my daughter, my Heart transfixed With thorri~,. pierced~ ev(ry moment by men with their blasphemies find ingratitude... You will at least seek t6 console me and will make known that I piomise to help at the hour of their:"~ "~deatfi Withthe graces necessary for ~eternal .salvations, .all d~ose-who on the first Saturdays of five consecutive months shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite a third part bfthe Rosary, and keep me company for.a quart.er .of’ an boutof ~prayer, meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me.m" Devotion to the Immaculat~ ’Heart of Mary is not new devotion. In the seventeenth century, St..John Eudes was a tireless apostle of devotion to Mary’s Heart. H~ wrote a book, The Admirable Heart or: the Holv Motile[" God; which spread~ the doctrine- throughout France, a.nd he founded the Eudists arid~the Congregation of Our La~y offChatity of the Refuge. At the. same time;~ ~(work by Father Gianpetro Pinamonte, S.J., The Sacred Heart or:_" iM~r~t t_fie Virgin, was inflaming. Italy to new love affd.zeal., The eighteenth century witnessed, the rise of religiotis insti- ’}utes.dedicated to the ImmaculateHeart; in the nineteenth, ;the i~evelati’on of the Miraculous Medal and the founding of ~he A.r.ch¢onfraternity of the Immaculate Heart of M.ary ¯ l~ave, new impetus to the devotion. Likewise in the nine/ tee.nth, century Blesseff Anthony Claret enkindled love’: for. Mary’S. Heart in Spain, .Cuba, Fraiace, and Italy, as’siste~M~n " ~lApproved handbook’~ of the devotion state that the confession may be~made within the eigfit, days preceding or following the first Saturday, provided the Comlnut~ion ~be re, ceived in the state of grace. The meditation may be made on one or several or all" 6f the mysteries of the Rosar}~. ~ ~ ~VILLIAM A. D~NAGHY --~ ~ Reoiew [or Religiou~ - the founding of several congregations.of Sisters dedi~;~ted tof. her Heart,. and" founded the Congregatign of the MiSsionary -Sdns of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. "" The Holy See, though moving withsustomary cautidn,~- has in many ways approved of the devotionto the Heart of ~Mary. Two aspirations (Sweet "Heart of Mar.g, be. mg~ .’Salvation; and 0 Heart most pure of the Btes~ed Virgin, ~M3rg, obtain for me~from Jesus a pure "and buinble heart) have been indul~encCd (cf. Preces et Pia Opera, 352 and ~353. ) Moreover, all the faithful,who-~)ffer prayers qr other - w~o.rks .of piety in honor oil the Immaculate Heart on any -~’day of the montlq of August cangain an ifidulgence of five ~years; and if they continue in this practice daily during the entire month of _August, they car~~.ain°a plenary indul-gence, under the usual-conditions. A feast with Mass ;~nd Office,-i~6 honor Mary’s ,Heart," though not yet ext~ended to tl’fe universal Church, has. be~n approved foimany pl.a~ces_ and~many religious societies.. Piu~s X, t.hroug~h the_ Congregation of the Holy Offi~~ (June. 1.3, 19~12), gran, ted a ~lenary indulgence, under,the ~ usual condition~, to all the-faithful who would pert~orm’-:- s_ome specia.1 ~exerqises of~levotion in hoflor of Mary, Immaculate on the first Sa.tu.rday of any month to make °reparation for the l~laspl~erhies committed against _Ma~y.Ss name and prerogatives. In November 1920, Benedict.XV, by. a Rescript in his own hand, granted a~ further plenary :i-ndulgence, to be gained at thee hohf of death, t6 all who "-wduld perservere in these pious exercises on the First Satur-day for eight consecutive month~. (Cf. Preces et Pia Opera /3.35). These grants, of course, are independent of Our" Lady’s own great promise concerning ~he Five First Satur- . days~, and the d~votions referred td are no~ specifically;f -directed to the Immaculate Heart. However, accqrdi.ng~to ~fofin Gilland Brunini, in his.pamphlet MarQ Rosaries, 6ur 250 ~ ¯ Ju1~/1944., T~E A~PARI~ONS’AT FATIMa". prdsent-Hol~ Father-did encourage t~e p[actlc~ df thd Eiv~ ~irst Saturdays " .:b~ establishing ~ series of fifteen minhte meditations on the Mysteries of the Rosary 0v~r the can Radio o~ ~he First Saturdays of the first five m~nths of 1943 " --" ~ No, devotion ~o Mary’s Heart is not new;~ but it should d~ive renewed strength and vigor today because of the Fatima revelations. Mary’s promise of the ultimate umph’of’~er Immaculate~Heart sho¢Id give us-all strength and hope.: ~er assurancd o’~ her help in th~ hour of death shduld~endow us:~with zeal for her honor and athirst to make the reparation she desires. She~ mentioned tO the children, as particularly.odious to God and’as a reason why many souls plunge down to.~ell, the sins of impurity wfiicB are so common in our day. A mogt e~acious remedy’for this spiritual leprosy is an intense, .rep~ratory devotion to ~Mary’s Immaculate Heait. "Bu~ many apostolic souls ar~ aeeded to bring to quick ,fruition the ,forecast 8f Blessed Grignon.de. Montfort that "for~t~e Heart 6f Mary, for its honor and glory ?.. hd~nity, grateful and free, will in ~the :near future intrease-its madifestations~of love and filial gratitude."z ~ .... ~A very informative booklet is Our Ldd~ of Fatima,. by Rev. Joseph Cacefia: 443 ~E. 135th St,,New York 54~ N.Y, OUR CONTRIBUTORS - FRANCIS L. FILAS is the ~uth0r of a new book on St. Joseph, The, Man Nearest ¯ to’Christ, now being published by Bruce. ADAM C. ELLIS ~vas actively engaged for se~ceral y.ea.rs as con~ultor tb, the Sacred Congregation of Religious. EUGENE P. MURPHY i~ National Director of the Sacred Heart Progkam. WILLIAM A. Do- NAGHY has been an associate editor of America and a regular contributor tothat: peri0dic~al. I~MILE BERGH, when we last heard of him was P~ofessor of,Mo-~a-I Theology at the Jesuit Theologate at Louv’ain. 2’51 Translated "from the French by Waiter d~. Ong, S.J. [EDITORS’ NO:i’E: Father Bergh’s article appeared originally under the title, "Pour t-~ "la saintet~ de la Communion fr~quente," in Revue d-es CoramunautEs Religieuses." 1939., pp. 119-126 and 141-145. The translation, is printed with the per~mission of-Father Creusen, Editor of the Revue ~ . .. " The arttcle contains an admirably prudent and clear explanatton of an Instruc~ tion.issud~l by the Sacred,Congregation Of the Sacraments on December 8. 19~8.: Wehave received a number of questions concerning the Instruction, but we hax;e~ hesitated to answer them p.ublicly because the Instruction is reserved. Hoivever, a~ ~ Monsignor’Bracci. Secret;iry to ~the Congregation of the Sacraments. himself --observed in a discourse to priests, "reserved" is not the same as ~.’secret." Moreover; ¯ the Instruction has been given considerable ~)ublicity in-recent years, as may be ’seen’ ~.fioth~the references included at the end of this article. The footnotes to this translatidn are our own. ~e dropped a few of Father ,,Bergh’s notes _because they_would be useless to most of our residers: the greater number ’of his notes are given with the text of the translation. :In 6ur own we.have. addSd certain points or made certain adaptations that we thought would be of Value to our readefs. Finally, that all may have some handy way ot~ referring to the ~ Ins’truction-itself, we are giving a brief summary of its contents ~n the "s_e~tion -entitled "Decisions.of the Holy See."] ,~iy/HO has not at-tifia~es been-astonlshed and dismayed by ° °’W tl~ese wordst hfer.Coomm m’ u n io"n ’o f th e ~ .Mass Of the Blessed Sacrament: ’-’As often as ye.ea~ thi~ bread, and drink, of the cup, you proclaim the death 6f t.13e .Eoyd, o-U_ntil he come. So that whoever eatetb thebrehd 6r. drinketh "of the cup’of the Lord dnwortb~tg, shall be guilty.o~f . the ~body and th, e blood of the Lord"?~ Indeed, is this text really in’pla~e in the midst of. the joyful cel~bration .of :the gr_eat mystery of divine love? --_-. And yet, one should remembe~ that a little more than. twent.y-.five years after the death of the SaVior, St. Paul -~o already thought it necessary to addressothis solemn .Warnin.g to the faithful at Corinth" (I Corinthians 11 !26-27). Bet--~ ter,.thafi we do ourselves, the Church takes a&i3unt of the ~langers which threaten our w, eakness, of the abuses to 1New Testament tex~s are cited from tl~e Westminster Versibn. . 2 252 . -,- , ,- ., ,-, -W , O R T H>INESS IN" FREQUENT (..fOMMUNION which, the: most sacred_ things areo p" en. Let us trust in hei" maternal wisdom and enter fully’into’ her ~pirit.~. T~is is :what we propose to do in’these pages, takin.~ our inspira~ tion from ,ia0 rather recent instruction:of the Holy" See which }b~ ~ordinaries imd the si~periors of major clerical instituse~:~ ~ha~e been commissiohed .to circulate among those whom..° it especially concerns: ~It is inevitable that the sl~read of the~ pr2ctice-of fre-~ ~luent Communion should .draw attention to the possibil-~ - .ity of unworthy Communion:. the multiplication.of Com-~ -reunions, among all sorts bf groups of the faithful, neces-thes~ canons. 253 o sariI~y" increases ihe-risk of sacrilege. But plainly, here as in riaany other matters, the possibility of abuse is not an argu- _m~nt ~igainst a .thing excellent ~ in itself. On.~this point~ again, l~t us keep well iia mind the procedure of°the ChurcI’i,o which since the pontificate of Plus X has ~xpressed in So’ ~fdrthright a fashion the wish to se~ th~ practice of receiving C~0inmunion spread, further and further. She expresses he~r wi.sh in these invitations: "According to the norms laid ttown in the decrees pf the. Apostolic See, the faithful shou.ld ¯ be.urged t0".~r~ceive tlSe Holy Eucharist frequently, e~en d~iily; and those who are assisting~at Mass.and are properly .Misposed should be urged,-not only to communicate .s.pir~, itually, but to receive our Lord sacramentally in thi~ .Holy Eucharist" ~canon ~"863).. "Superiors should" promote amongst their subjects the frequent, even daily, reception0f Holy Communion; .and liberty must be-given_to every pro~serly disposed religious to- approach- frequently;, even °dallier, the most Holy Eucharist" (canon 595; § 2).~" ’:The bishop should see to it that the seminarians receive th’e "Eticfia~rist often and with~due piety~’ (canon 1367; n. 2). ¯I~f .the Code has-not repeatdd explicitly thespecial irivitati0n ~Canons concerning,~eligious are cited from the authorized English translation of ~MII~E,BERGH - ~ " " ° Re~ieu~ ~id~tres~ed~to c~hildren in ,the decree Quam-Singuldri of 2 August8,. 1910, it has made its ~wn tl~e dis.dp]inar .sions Of this decree c.oncerning the dispositions to be fequired~of young communicants (canori 854). woul~dqdestion-the syrnphthyof the Church ments such_as that of the Children’s F-ucharistic~Crusade or for adults’ monthly Communion associations. ,. .But it i~ precisely because she loves these dear little ones and all s6uls which she sees.more des~irous of actively livinl~ -the li’fe of Chris~ that she wishes .to protect them against hnwo_rthy, or~ven simpl,y routi’ne, reception of .this sacra- -~mez~t. For freqtient~Com~m u" m" on she requires certain~d"i"s-~, pdsitions, which are beyond a d6ubt easy to attain to, but are~tbe none theless.indiSpefisab, le. She-wishes a fervent - ’p,repar.,ation and a serious thanksgi.~ing, oaccording,,to each oi~e’s abilities. She wishes that approa~ch~ to the Holy Table be_~ open ~o .all,~every day, but she se~rerely rep’roves~all-~o pressure or constraint; ghe. sugge~sts or imposes safeguards ag.ainst., abuses: We. mi~y group these various moral or canonical precepts of hers, these injunctions of pastoral ~th,e-o ~01bgy, under the fo’llowing four heads: I) ’Promote ffe_cluent C6mmuni0n intelligently and dlscre~tly. "- 2) Make frequent confession" as easy as possible. - 3) D? not "orcjanize" the reception of Holy Commuhlon. 4)~Do not draw distinctions" between communicants an;d non:com’. : munican~s. \ ; 1) PrDmote ,frequent Communion intelligenttg ahd di~c~ee~l~i.L-:,It is still necessary in. our day, m6re than thirty years after’ the decree Sacra Tridentina.Sgnodus of Pius X, to make clear the [he purpose and value of frequ’en~t arid daily Communion. This is certain. Prejudice,.enough Still exists, especiallyamong older persons. Earl~r and, fre-quent C~mmunion for clsildren has not yet enlisted the o _ ~sympattiy of all p, arengs. Communikants themselv,es some- ’25,4 ~ ,Iul~, 1.~44~o WORTHINESS II~ FREQUENT COMMUNIO~ ) tim&declare that their _~eal c6~Is, ~that~ their C0mmuni6ns f~come les~. fervent~ and it happens that,, after having-com~ " municated da~ily for months and even years, they graduaiy .... " fiill away from the piactice. To all"such, frequent and" .daily Communion must be preached. And this should be doni~-not by begging repeatedly, in season ando~ut 6f sea- - ~sdn, that a person communicate oftener, but by.providing .dogmatic and ascetic instruction adapted to the intellectual -:" and religious development of each one. To insistostron~ly-dn the proper intention required for frequent Cominun~6n.? -°to e~plain the effects of-the Holy Eucharist, to show ho.w ~hdy depend in part on the dispositions of the communi- " cant, on his.15reparation and thanksgiving, to point out’thd~ influence which frequent Communion should have on one’s ~" whole life, or/in other words, to urge personal cooperation, *~_ on the- part of the communicant with the sadramental g[a’ce ¯proper to the Holy Eucharist these’~rovidi~ the first and. -.most import;ant means" to avoid routine or sacrilegious Communions. [Translator"s Note: The reader is referred to other articles by Father Bergh, concerning Mass and’- "~o Communion, in Rev. den. com. tel., 1930, pp. 126 and. 157; and 1931, p. 114.] ~ To this positive explanation, it will be necdssa~y par-tic_ ularly under certain ~ircumstances, to add.other, espe- Cially negative,-instructions. Daily Communion ~s. not - obligatory. One should not accuse oneself in confession of having missed Holy Communion one day or another: it is Still communicating .frequently if one receives only five Or six times a week. But on this point, after all, one hardly, °meetk.with a badly, formed conscience except among chil- ~ l~According to the. Decree of Plus X, Sa~r’a Tridentind Sgnodas, "n~ 2, the right ~ intention consists "in this, that a p¢rson approach the Holy Table. not-from rou- ~- tihe, or vanity, o~ human motives, but because he wishes to please God. to be more closely united to’Him in charity, and to come with his infirmities and defects to that divine 1~hysician." I~MILE BERGH , " "~Re~iet°. for Reli#i~us~ dr’en, and’ever~ tlae~ the child himself wilFsuspect that this abstention from Communion was not a g~ave .matter. What may embarrdss some persons more andbe the cause of their receiving Holy Communion with at least a doubtful consdence,.is tl-ie~fact that no one has sufficiently showff them that there is nothing disgraceful in occasionally not. .receiving Holy Communion. Difficulty ~ith health, a-. broken Eucharistic fast, a special feeling of humility’~ there are plenty of reasons, plausible enough and id no way~ "disgraceful, for no.t, communicating. Perhaps even, in the case ~f a negligent and lukewarm soul "whiEh communicates with a certain amount of routine, voluntary abstention willhave the effect of bringing the soul back with new fervo~ ~o frequent and even daily Communion_ , Moreover, the danger~of being shackled by routine~ill .~be less for adults than. for childr.en and adolescents. For the last named, a further distinction should be~draw:n. Chil-dren of less.Christian families attending secular schools anti having to make a real sacrifice to get to church in the mgrnin.g will doub~tless be better protected from a faulty intention than boarding school pupils mustered in ord,erly fashibn to the chapel by their teachers. 2) Mak~ frequent confession as easy as possible. T9 get a clear notion of th~ Church’s film stand on,this, point, it is enough to open the Code. The Church 15as placed on all priests who have the care of souls a grave obligatibn in just, ice to give to the faithful entrusted to l~hem the opp0r; tunity .for confession as often as these faithful-reasonably ask to have their confessions heard (canon 892). Although she thinks ~t well to place ordinary confessors in seminaries ;4Cf. The Following of Christ: Bk. I~. oh. x, n. 5:~With all deference to this ~classic source we might say that humility can. generally be much better fostered by *receiv)ng Communion than, by abstaining .from it. And .even if humility were increased somewhat by the abstinence, it is doubtful if this slight good would com-pensat_ e for the inestimable graces~attached to the reception of Conimuni~n. 256 " . dulg, 19 4 4~ ". ~oRTHiI~ESS IN FREQUENT COMMON[ON ~(~a~on q35B),.she ~m~d~atelY adds ~at ~-ou.gh~to be a( th~ disposal of the students; wh6.should be allowed~to go to these latter with the greatest-freedom (canon 1361). Need we dwell on tBe numberless guaran-tees given by ecclemast~cal legislation .to- facilitate. ~onfes~. sions in the religious life (canons 518-530) ? Let us recall only canons 51-9 and 522," which give religious m~n and women of every institute the right to go to a confessor other than the designated ones for their peace ofconscience. -ploin how far the responses of the Commission for ~he ’Interpretation of the Code have extended this right/for feIigious women: it is now, absolutely certain that if a t~r, for a ,grave reason of consciencei were to make ~her con-fession outside the place usually assigned, a confessor o~her th~n the.designated one would absolve her validly and licitly ....., ~ It is.perhaps n0t.shper~uous tO recall that after~having~ ~conceded~to religiofis womeff the right .to go tff a confessbr other than ~he.designated ones, Canon 522 adds: ’-:No~ may the Superioress ,~rohibit it or make .any enquiry, con: kerning it, even indirectly-[i.e., concerning the motive from-; which the sister acts] ;" -Neither may she show displeasure 9r. impatience. "Impeding this liberty would constitut~ for~ the ~uperior an offense,, which, according to canon 2414~ " o~gfit to be punished first by an admonition from the ~b~sfiop, and then, in case of recurrence, .by ~deprivation ~f o~ce. Mbreovef, the Sacred’ Congyegation of Religious will have fo be informed of the matter. " In certain institutes there exist very wise rule~ Which ~orbid religious to speak of the administration of the sacra-- ~ent of penance, or even to talk about theirconfessors. ~In~ the absence of a written p~escription, prudence and .natur~l delicacy should place on all religious the obligation to act 9S though they kneff nothing?about the ~tions of the other 257 I~’MILE BERGH / " , °~ s ; Review ?or Religious m~mbers 6f :true commuu.nity-ino such matteis. ~. Superiors .sh.ould consider it a dut3;’of their office to reprehend a reli-gious wBo,~ in o.ne way or another, lacks this discretion. in.general, it-is the business of the pries~ to whom’the spiritual care of the communi~y is confided ~o ~irrange.with superiorg wa~ys" Of guaranteeing grea’t facility for_ goin.g to ~onfession, especially before the Mass at whichCommun-. qon is received.~ He sbould-s’ee to it that the confessional is ngt, situated inn place difficult of access or in a place which .... makes those who come to it too conspicuot~s. The ndmber of persons, :’sucb as the pbrter or sacristan, who have to be seen to get the priest to the confessional should be kept to a ~,minimum. There must never be question of "asking per-mission" topresent oneself to a Cbnfessor oth’er than the° designated.ones. Of course, if there is question of some other time than at Mass, .it would be necessary, according to the circumstanc,es, to have the, proper authorizatio~ for" momentary absence from class, from stutly hall, and a forii-ori, from the bourse, .if it is necessary to go~o_ut~for conf~s-~ . These remarks whic~ refer toreligious communities.are -of much g~eater ifnportance ~for educationalS’insti~utions. ’As a general rule, one may say that’the more facilitiesfor~ c6nfession are bettered, the mote will frequent Communion ~, b~ promoted. Here, Whateve~ restri_ctions disciplin.e’ or routine demands, every consideration should, yield to that of pla~ihg conscience~ out of dan.ger. Why, for exarfiple, setone time for all and decide that on Sund~y ~and feast gaY mornings there will be no confessor available for the "chil-aThe Instruction made a great de.al of the point of pro~idin~ the opportunity to go to.confession shortly before Communion. From the text of the Instruction, it seems clear that the Congregation wished to urge this~particularly for children and adolescents. However, Father Berth is wise in si~ggesting it for religious, too: and if it can be done it is err_airily in keeping with the general;tenor of the Instruction. Very likely it is hardly possible m man~; of our religious communities ..... 258 - 2., " -:~ -" "-~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ : .... ~~ IN FREQU~ENT COMMUNION ,dren on the-plea that they hive had: every opportunityo-,to-gbto confession, at the appointed ~ime the _e~rening ~Sef6re? "’o [’-[’ranslator!s Note: The author adds in a foothote:" "I~, plaices where.pupils are given the opportunity to go to cdn- "fession before Mass every day, this oppoogtunity sho~id reg.hrded as a privilege calculhted to promote~frequent ~on-~ &ssion and Communion and should not,.-~bolish hearing of confessions at fixed hours on certain days."] ,Why not have. the ingenuity we use the word design-" , edly-;-, to find a priest who; during .the~children’sCommun: ion Mass, will _make his meditation or his thanksgiving or reci~e 15is office near the confessional .so as to be at the disr posa_l of. pdnitents? ~h,y..!ndeed, under tiae pretext of preventing careless use of.confession, say anything to a child who approaches th~ sacrament of penance several time~ ~i week? Teachers’~hb’ are not .priests~ should leave it to the confessor to prevent, .possi:ble abuses .here, or, if tl~ey believe tl4ese abuses to be real, they ’should mention their fears to theconfessor or to a cdmpetent superior. But, again, in this matter they, sh~su, ld conceal their awareness of the Children’s doings. But, sc;’meond will perhaps say, wby~such precautions. to insdre the opportunity...every day’for going to confesS. sion? Cannot a person, even if he has had the misfortune_ to commit a grave sin, approach the~Holy. Table after . having made an act of perfect contrition in case he h~is not the op’portunity to.. go to confession?" -. , ., We can answer this objection in no better .way-than.- by recalling the law of the.. Church (~anon 856):~-"No one, _who is conscious of mortal sin, no matter-how sorry, he ynay ;_ believe hir~self’to be, is allowed to receive H.oly CommUn ion without having previously gone.. ~o cdnfession.’. But if ~t is a.case of urgent necessity and no suitable confessor is at ¯ ~ ~ ,I~MILE~ BERGH ~ .... Revieto"fOr Religiotts - , _o ~hand, such:a one must firstI make :an actor perfect contri"_-,. ,tion [before r_eceivi.ng -Holy Communion] ." ~ Iv’is plaii~ that two conditions must be present .t~l~ther: the necessity,, :of receiving Holy Communion ~ind great :difficulty;-at l~ast moral, of going to confession. Such would be, for example, the case of a child who, on the morning of his ~ol~mn Com-munion, might find ~himself not in the state of-grace and, ~ who*would s~e the prac[ical impossibili.ty of getting tO con~- fession~ It must be said, thegn, as a very general,rule, that ~is~f~i~: "~ " ’as a religious c, ommu, nity or an~educational institution is concerned, canon 856 cannot be. appealed to, for there is no real necessity"of receiving Communion. If souls are at times found .who think, they are 0bliged’~o approach ~the Hoi,v Table in order to remove suspicion and .avoid gre~at dis- -grace, it will be necessary, without misinterpreting theirl possible good faith, tobring them to a healthier iinder-s’tanding of the matter. We ha~e indicated enough differ-_ ent motives fbr abstention which have no disgrace at’tacJ~ed -.’to theha. One can well imagin~ tl’ie progressive loss 0f respect for the’Holy Eucharist, the very serious ~anger of illusions coJacerning the necessity of Communion-or. coil- "" cerning the~sincerity of perfect contrition, if the use of that Whi~ch in the mind of l~he Church is an exception becomes of freiquent occurrence What about mentioning in religion courses this law of the Cfiurch which weha~re just briefly commented on? We believe this is advisable, in the hope-of preventing heri~ and there a formally sacrilegious Communion due-to .a.. poorl~ informed.conscience. But ~it is advisable only if the follow- .... ~ ing p~in~ts are stro~gly)nsisted upon: it is only in genuinely . rare circumstances that there will be the moral necessit~y- Of "reseivir~g Holy Communion, and it must be aft almost-u~i- _ ~versal ~ule that a person who is not in, the state of grace~ 260 " ~ " -]P, ~WORTHiNESS~IN FREQUENT COMMUNION" may ot receive o1¢ Comm~union until-after confesslon.6 3) Do not "’organize" the reception of HoltlCom-" rouriion. The freedom" not to" communicate :which has :~.,bee~ se~ forth in theory must be respected.in p~a~tice b~r avoiding everything ~hich would make it moie difficult°’f~r one ~ho desireg not to ieceiye Holy Communion and is ne~iertheless anxious that his abstention be n6t too notice-abl~, For some time many educ-ationa] institutions ha~e ~discontin~ed the practice of having the pupils’~approach: the Holy Table strictly according tO the places which they ,occupy. in. the chapel. When the priest goes to distribflte ;’’~Holy Communion, the pupils can.be seen leaving the,back .seatsag well~ as the front; others leave later" in brief, with~ out keeping a close Watch it is impossible"to say° exactly who ",has gone to Holy Communion and who has not. And ~lose ~;atch should not be kep.t at this tim~: Here again the pracnce o.f prudent teachers shows ingenuity.: if the~ are :not l~riests themselves, their direct the first comers towXrd the Communion raii and then become absorbed in their thanl~sgiving without noticing anything more. Or._~th y: even make it clear ttiat they w~sh-to avoid all control of the reception of Communion. But-the rush; the jostling to be feared, and the loveliness,-of lines advancing in perfect o’bder; making an impeccable gehufl~ction at the given sig-nal, and so forth, and so-forth? ’ Can;t wetelFthe children, 0Note the author’~ wise conclusion that it mu~t be an almdst universal rule that ofle who is not in the state of grace may not receive Communion until after confession. There will always be spm~ extraordinary cases when an act of- perfect contrition Will suflicF. This can happen in the case of religious: tt can happen also in the cas~ of ~children. And we believe with Father Vermee’rsch [Periodica, XV. p. (100]- that not only the law of prewous confession.’but, also thd exceptiotL should be prudently ~but clearly explained in classes of Christian Doctrine. "Of course, legal technicali-- ties cannot~be taught to children. Yet, surely even a child can be taught;that if he has committed a mortal sin. he must go to confession.before receiving Commun-~ ,ion: but if he cannot avoid going to Commi~nion and cannot get to confes~sion, ~hen he should m~ke an act of perfect contrition_. He might~also be told that, ifever he has to do this, it will be well to explain the case in the next confession and see if~he confessor wishes to give more specific advice for the.future. , 261 - I~MILE" BERGH Reoietv for Rehgto~s Once andfor all hoganor to~ bump i_nt~o, one a’notl~er and ..... how ~he~r ~hould’n0t be-distrac’ted in, goin..g to the. Com., ~~rhunion rail and in returning, and then legye .the rest to their own initiative? But. at least, someone will insist, ~rc~u do not intend to advise that all ~rderof-. precedence be abolished when reli~ gious men and women :approach the Holy ,Table: After all "i’t is unthinkable-that a’novice should °kneel down at th~~ C6mmunion rail’before Reverend Mother General.-- Well, v/hat if she does? We do’not hesitate to state Our mind ".clearly on this point.~ In communities where Holy Cdm’- munion is r~ceived after,the order of precedence, " why ~not have done with the practice? ..Aside from the adVan~ag~ which we have especially in view ~.here---complete freedom ~°’ to go to Holy Communion or not--there ~are othersof, an,- asc4tic-kind which are not lacking ih.imp.~rtance. It ,w;is 6n the occasion of the institution.of the Holy Eucharist that Our Savior:w]ashed the feet of his. Apostle, s,, and ~then e~plained the meaning of What he hac~ a&e:o Ifthere~fore I, the Lord-and Master, have washed you~ feet, y also ~_ought to wash one ahother’s feet... Arrlen, amen, I say to . y.o’u, a s.ervant is not greater than his lord" (John 13:14, 1_6). Can we not believe that the Heart of Jesus would [i16ok with love on superiors, dignitaries, and choir religious applying to the letter his instructions given at the Last Sup-per by,not claiming any precedence at the time of Corn- ’ munibn: ’.’If ye know these things, bless4d are ye if ye do. .;th~m" (John 13:17).o Besides the ’fruit of fiumilitf, "tFather B~e~gh speaks_his mind rather vigorously with regard to the order ofpre-cedence followed in many religious communities in receiving Comrhunion.. Notice,’ however, that in khis matter he gi~ies his own opinion: The Inst~’uction does not directlV touch’this point. Religious superiors might ponder the author’s arguuients, if they wish. The principal thing to decide is whether the’custom of preccdence interfeies with liberty to abstain from Holy Coim~union. It seems to us,that thoie most affected by the custom are the superiors themselves, who are thus "spot- "ligfi-tcd" in the piocession to the Holy Table. 262 ~dFl~, ’I 9~ 4 ,~ , WORTHINESS IN. FREQUENT, COMMIJNION ,another- will grow~spontaneousl.y from-this practice: -that ofa more perfect c6nsciousfiess of thee u~nion of all the bets c;f one and the same family in the love of the divin~e Master, This union will find concrete expression.in the simpli~ity-with~ wl6ich ~all, without distinctiori of r~nk-- -superiors’and inferibrs, choir religious and lay, professed a~fl novices~meet at-’the Holy Table:."A new command: ment I give to yoh, that ye love one another; that as I have -16v.ed you, s,o ye also love one another" (John 13:34). ~-_ _:’ Moreover, we are~happy, here.as a!ivays, to be able to appeal to the experience of our readers. A year ago the Reverend Mother General of a largeinst’itute prescribed "[tha~t all the provinceschange their practice of~receiving Holy Cdmmuniofi in order of precedence..°In a fewdays all were ~aceustomed to .the new practice, ~from which everyone derived benefit. " Concerning_the practice of putting on the-choir mantle :tb go to Comunion,_similar conclusions must be drawn. -~This custom co~]Idoffer inconveniences to those religious .women wfio migh-.~ wish one d@ or another not to receive Holy Communion. In accord with the same line of thought, high.school an~ boarding, school cfij!dren should not be permitted to wear special .badges on occasions when they ale going to receive Communion. who are in full view during Communion Masses, thht there’ --is. no obligation for them to receive Holy Communion’. General.Communions, also, should:net be organized .. i’n -i ’such a way ~hat no .one will be allo~ei:l to refrain fr~om.: "Holy Communion on the appoifit~d day. If the expres-. 8The Instruction says there should be "no insignia to be worn by those who receive. Communiofi." Iti~ well to note these words. It is the wearing of a. badge as a ~’sion that one’is 9oin~ to receibe Communion that is condemned. missible, for instance, to have the members of a Sodality wear a medal on So-dality Sffnday, but the medal should be worn by all tl~e members of the ’group, whethei they receive Commufiion or-not. o ~ 263. L "’~MILE BERGH - - ~ ~" ’" :~" Reoiew ~or Religious. ’~ " sion "General’ Commun~c~n";is ~s~d, its- sense -sh6uld ~,- clearly explained:’the invitation "to receive Commdnion is ~- .~ ~more pressing tfian Usual, but no one is forced to receive. TNs is what.the Church.has wished to sta’te expressly rel.igi0us~ "If in any Institute, whether of solemn or simple ~ vows, the rules or the ~onstitutions 6r, even the. ~alendars assign ~r prescribe certain }ixed days for the reception of -~ Holy Communion, such ~egulatio.ns, ar~ to l~e rega, rded ~as ’ ~ merely directive;? (canon 595, § 4). _ :- " To guarant~ee the liberty of those who wish to abstain° - - o ~’ from Communion, is it not well, as it is still often enough _. said to be, to advise’ everyone, especially superiors td 6mit °~- Commtlnion occasionally sjmpl3iin the ’interests of this .. "~. -!iberty;? -- Father Vermeersch, after a detailedexamination of this, question [in Periodica XV;’p. (96) ], solves it as follows:~ After weighing all the pros and cons, such advice does-not, seem opportune to us. ’Indeed,.it is not necesary, it is: not-very s.er, viceable for i~he en, d proposed and it has serious in{onveniences. It is not.necessary because thdre are other’ ways of guaranteeingliberty. [We hope we have shown thissufficiently in the present arficle.] It is not very serv-’ iceable because in.large’communities there will alway~ be one or another abstention from other caiases; ifi~small and fervent orfimunitie~ tl~e danger of ufiworthy Co}nmunio~, " °being .much more limited, will not compensate for the los~ of fervent Communions systematically omitted by gbod~ religious. ~t has inconveniences because it will disturb many good souls or because their more or l~ss ~egul’ar abstention will end by disedifying their associatds. ~ The same question has been examined in great detail by~’ Father Creusen. For the rather subtle discussions the o~.i~, ""’ ’ q Cueosmtimon. ’Rraeils.e, s1, 9w3e4 ,r epfpe.r t5h6e- 6re7a)d.-er to his article (in Reo.,des 264" dulg, 1944 WORTHINES~ IN FREQ0~ENT COMMUNION 4) °Do not d~aw distinctions between communicants -and non-communicants.~If one has~ taken notice "of the s’uggestigns so-far proposed, it will scarcely be difficult to ~show prudehce in this matter. When one does not know or when one feigns, with good reason, not to know who has gone to Communion and who ha~ not, one will not make distirictions between such persons.. It would be a great, imprudence in an orphanage or a boarding school to give prizes, or ribbons to children wh6 have commu’nicated on such and such a day or who pledge themselves to communi-~ cate, let us say, three or five times a week. NOthing, how-ever, prevents giving a common and ordinary badge to all ~i~he members of a Eucharistic leaguel It would be just as ir~discreet to ask a_child who has not received Holy Communion for a week or two.the reason for ~his abstention. In our opinion; however, it would not seem forbidden to question a child discreetly or t’o call the mattcr to his" confessor’s attention if thi~re .~is a sufficiently pro- -longed change in his manifestations of piety.9 Without alluding to the frequency of his Communions, one could try to inquire into the difficulties which he is doubtless’ experiencing. ", At xhe same time, caution must be observed in semina-rids and other institutions of this sort (preparatory semi-naries, and so forth) where, at specified intervals, superiors express ~their judgment concerning the piety, studies, and deportment of the students. These superiors, when they give their opinion on the progress of a young man in piety should not take into acco.unt his’greater or lesser assiduity" "in going to Holy Communion. 9It is not clear to u~s just how’the author expects the confessor,to use the in.forma-tion that a child is not communicating re~gularly. Certainly we should not wish to suggest that a confessor use such information as a handle for questioning penitents. ~0The author is here citing t~he very words of the Instruction~wor~ds which we believe call for reasonable interpretation. - It seems to us that when the Congregation 265 I~I~ILE~ BE~GH "-~ Review for~ Religious Perhaps someone, willremarb that certain Eucharistic works for children ask of their member~ ~o establish-"spir-i~ ual treasuries"--a thirig which~ in the last analysis intro- ~ duces a certain control over the frequency of Communions: This is true; but the practice of-the "spiritual treasury which is very beneficial,_ is not on that account to be con-, demned. The~danger here can be-easily avoided by recom-mending that members turn in their slips unsigned, and by being careful not to t,ry to identify the slips. Thus, while safeguarding liberty, we still succeed in ari~using generosity and in-keetiing an account of the fervor of ~e group as a whole. Finally, "just as remarks must be a¢oided con&ruing the frequency of the confessions, made by ~ompanions or by religio.us brethren, so~ to&"no notice must be taken of their abstention from Communion. Delicacy and prudence in this matter cannot be too great. ¯ We sincerely hope we have not iia these pages occasioned .o astonishment or anxiety. But we have wished to draw to° the attention of al~l, superiors andinferiors, teachers and .students, the measures which prudence and charit~ demand in a matter as important as the present. We hope espe-dally to have contributed to the, a~pplicationoof the Church’s laws, which are both clear and seriously binding, in guaran-teeing individual freedom for confession and Comn~un- . ion.1: says that superiors are to take no account of a’seminarian’s greater or less assiduitg in going to Holy Communion, this should be referred to ~re¢uent or dail~ Com-munion, o Surely, in these judgments, they are not to disregard seminarians who do not communicate even once a week. This shows a serious lack of appreciation of the Blessed Sacrament, a bad sign indeed in one who is preparing for a life that cen- -ters around the Holy Eucharist. As Father Vermeersch [P~riodica, XV,~p. (97) ] remarked, such a seminarian is ordinarily "’to be treated as sick. ifi danger of losing his vocation, if indeed he has a vocation." liThe Canon Law ~)iqes~, II. p. 208, has a complete English translation of the Instruction. (Also ir; the 194.1 Supplement to the Diqest, p. 97.) " - Commentarium pro Religiosis, XX. p. 200; and XXI. p. 69 and p. 1~31 con- 266 July, 1944 WORTHINESS IN FREQUENT’COMMUNION, rains the Latin text and some ann~)tations by.’Father Larraona. Unfortuntately. the. war interrupted our communications with [taly before the annotations were com- ~pleted. , The Clerg~t Revietoi~ Vol. 17. p. 11 1. has a brief, but excellent, summary~0f the Instruction by Canon E. J. Mahoney. Among other things. Canon Mahoney points out that the Instruction need not occasion an "alarmist", reaction. It does not " say that abuse~ are widespread; its,main purpose is to prevent abuses. ~The American Ecclesiastical Review, Vol. 110. p. 162. has a vdry practical article ("Hofy Communi6ti through Coercion") by Francis J. Connell. C.SS.R. ~We think that Father Connell is rather extreme on one point, He writes: "To expel from a sodality those who do not approach the altar regularly--for example, once a mbnth--would certainly be alien to the spirit of the Instruction." We dofibt if it" is "coercing:’ a person to go to Communion if membersh~ip in a special society reqhirgs monthly Comumon. Of course, there might easily be an element of coer-cion if the Communion had tp be made on a certain day, or if memb~rsbrip in the ",pious societE were not left to the liberty of the individual The Clergg Monthlg (published in India). Vol. 6, p. 276. has ~ ques.tiqn con-cerning "precedence." The answer points but that the Instruction does not affect the law of litg~’gical precedence (iay serv,~r before others of ~he laity; clerics before ,lay servers; clerics in major orders before those in minor orders; and so forth). As for the "precedence" followed in many re.ligious communities, the. priest" w~ho answer~ the question" says that it would be according to the spirit of the Instruction to~’abolish "the rigid and almost sacrosanct order of approaching’ the Communion, rails (Mother Superior, the Assistant, senior nuns. etc.)’" because "in convents human respect may do more mischief than in m~n’s communities." La Vie des Communaut& Religleuses (published in Canada) Vol. 1, p. 92, also-answers ,a question ~:oncernmg "precedencd." Father Mo’ise. Roy, S.S.S., who answers the question, agrees heartily with Father Bergh concerning "precedence’~ in religious communities. In fact, Father Roy goes further and says that if Sisters and ~.~ schoc~l children communicate at the same Mass they should intermingle at the Com-munion rails. It would be hard" to prove that the Instruction calls for this inter-mingling. It is true that no liturgical law gives the Sisters the preference: Yet in many p!aces it is customary to allow the Sisters .such preference, and this custom seemsto us to be in accord with.sqund Catholic "instifict" if we may use the ~,’ord. Of course, the custom might easily embarrass Sisters who do not receive Com-mumon. Le Sacrement del’ Eucharistie. b~ Cardinal Villenehve. According to Father R~y, the appendix to the recent edition of the Cardinal’s book contains.almost the .complete tex.t of the Instruction. 267 December. 8, 1938:. The Congregatioh of the .Sacrament~ issued a~- " reserved instruction concerning precautions t6 be’taken against abuses of fh~,practice of frequent Communion. " An Engf!~h translation ’of. ¯ the complete text is given in The Canon Law Digest; IL p~’ 208. We ’ give’here a’brief synopsis, of the Instruction. Preamble ’ .Since the Decrees Sacra Tridentina Synodus (Dec. 20, 1905) Quam Singulari (Aug. 8., 1910) the p~actice of frequent and.daily "C0mmunion has happi~ly spr.ead. This practice is ,to be encouraged and further propagated_acc.ording to the rules laid down in those Decr~es. ".- The commendation of the practice of fr~equent~and daily ~munibnoshould always include insistence on the necessary conditions fo~ worthy reception and timely precautions against the dan~ers of unworthy reception. One source of danger is familiarity: that is, the ~t~n~nsy of, human nature to have little esteem for things t6 which it is accustomed b~r fr~equent use. A second source of danger is the reception’of HoiSt Communion in a body. Inothese group receptions, som’egne who is conscious of mortal sin might be led to receive-Com-munion. through fear that his non;reception will occasion astonish-. ment, and even serious suspicion, in. others, es~ecially~sup~iors’. To prevent "abuses, as far as possible, the Sacred Congregation" communi(ates the f0]lowing appr~opriate remedies .to pas.tors of soulS: i) Preachers and spiritual directors, while’exhorting theofaith-ful. partictilarly the young, to frequent, and d#ily Communion, shotild~aiso ~nform them that:. a) The practice is not obligatory..It is lef~ to each one’s .devotion and piety, and there should be no astonishment or suspicion if someone occasionally abstains. b) The practice is not even permissibl~, unless the necessary" c~nditions are fulfilled. The principal conditions, are the~ state ofo grace and a right ifitention. Prudence als_o ’dictates that frequent communicants seek the advice of their confessors. DECISIONS OF THE HOLY SEE’ , 2) Together°with frequent Communion,-frequent confession .’~ should also be rec6mmended, and the" opportu.nity of confessirig ~ ° ~should be extended as much as possibie, especially at times immedi-ately preceding, the reception of HolyCommunion. Therefore: a) Pastors of’souls should.do their best to provide conf~,ssors’ ~or everyone; the frequent, even daily, opportunity for confessing; and the frequent opportunity of going to "strange" confessors:- b) In seminaries, the provisions of canons 1358, 1361, and ~ 1367 should be faithfully observed. c) In religious communities, ,the prescriptions of canons ~ 18,523, and 528, are to be carried out. d) In all’communities of youths of both sexes, a confessor should.be provided, if at all possible, whenever Communio.n is dis-tributed to the community. -- 3) Shperiors of all communities are to employ other remedies_ that are suitable to the same end. (For examplef) ~ a)~ By word and action, the superior is to’.let his subjects know that, though he rejoices when they communicate frequently; he sees no reason for reproof in the fact thfit someone occasionally refrains from communicating. Superiors who have to give. their judgn~ent regarding the progress of a young man in piety, sh6uld take n.6 account of his greater or lesser_ assiduity in receiving "the Most Blessed Saci’ament. b). In communities of boys and girls there should never be aft announcement of a general Communion with gpecial solemnity. Even outside such communities, either the name, "General Com- "munion," sho’uld be avoided or, if it is .used, it should be explained as a "general invitation." 0" c) Pait!cularly in the case of young people, in going ,to Communion there should be no formalities that make absence from Com~munion very noticeable and therefore more difficult. Hence, let ,there be "no express invitation, no rigid and quasi-military order.in coming up, no insignia to be worn by those who receive Commun-, ion, .i~tc .... " d) Superi6rs," "sh0uld, see that Holy Communion is not b~ougHt to the sick unless they ~xp.ressl~; ask for it. "e) Finally, even ~outside communities, when many come t(~’ge~her’ to receive Communion in a grdup, there are likely to be the same dangers as in communlti~s: hence direktors and promgtor~ should: : (Continued on heist page) 269 L omm n catdons ~[EDITORS’ NOTE: Opinions expressed in these letters.are to their own merits: the editors assume no responsibility for them. We have other communications on retreats that will be published later. Readers are invited to send communications. Please ~ype them. if possible, and make them a~ brief as the con-tent’permits. Address letters to the Editors of Review for Religious, St, Maryls College, St. Marys, Kansas.] Reverend Fathers: -Here are a few suggestions concerning the annual retreat, for Sisters: cated:- /the fc abuse~, crept in. 270 .1. That there be no exercises on the. day’s program after the-~ eve.mng meal. " ¯ ~ 2. That the retreat master make the-morning meditation vcith the retreatants. ,(Tl~is ~;ives the Sisters.a grand start for the day..)’o~ 3. That there be two or more conferences during the retreat on-the big problems of the day. Such drastic changes are taking place "th-~se days, many of them vital to the ChurCh and the State, that the Sisters need to be well prepared on these issues. 4. That the number of vo’c~l prayers be rather, diminisHed than " increased ~uring these days,-when so much concentration and reflec-" tion are in order., 5. That unlimited°~consideration be shown the retreat mastei, especially during the heat of duly and August. In most cases he, too~ has had a heavy year a~nd needs a break. If the convent grounds do -not afford private,walks for him. ~and no balcony is to b~ had for his leisure moments. do provid~ a few wholesom~ rec;eations on the go!f ,li~ks or on ~he water or somewhere away. from the c6nvent.> A Sister. from Can~ida ¯ [NOTE: Nismber 5 above was actually in the letter. We didn’t pu~ there~ED.]~* (Continued from precedirig page) guard against these by taking the/various precautions alread~ indi: ~ III. Local Ordinaries and major religious superiors are urged to take foregoing an_d any bther means they deem necessary to "prev.env abuses and to suppress such abuses, if perchance-they have alrdady Reverend Fathers: " i think that retreat masters tend to be. tob bashful about urging ¯ to high ~erfection. .,.. ~- TM ¯ (~ ~As some very~pra~tical subjects for meditations and.’conference.s, I’ suggest ’the following: (1) The necessity of truth and’ honesty in lout deglings with children and.others, Sisters included. (2), .Avoid ’~talki.ng about the character or fatilts of those in’our charge, employees. or children. (3) Secret ambition’for positio°ns of honor--the need b~"sinceri~y rather than policy. (4) The necessity of prayerful !iv.es at all times. (5) Unworldliness a greater esteem for’the things of God rather than for the w~rld. ~(6) Perfection of our ordinary a~fions. (7) Failing t~rough human respect.. (8) More meditations on the Passion of our Lord and on our Blessed Mother. A Sister " -2 Reverend Fathers: Instead of the traditional, topics--"The Eternal Truths," Sin, "The~ Vows,’; "Confession,".."Spiritual Exercises," and" so forth .I should lik~ to have a little v~irieiy no~ and’then. F~r instance, the following outline of topi.cs for anS-day retre~it might prove ..sug-ge’stive: - I. The Religious Vocation a Call to Sa,nctitg. (1) Sanctity v.~ersus me.d, iocrity. (2) The means to sanctity: vows, rules, imitation of .Christ. -- " II. Supernatural Lioin~. " .(1)-Faith--purit~r of int~ntio~i. (2) Grace--the Christ’-life. (3,) Divine 1dye. (4) The Mystical Bbdy. III. The Will of God. (1) Divine Providence." (2) Abandon- "ment. (3) Obedience. (4) Spiritual childhood--tr~st.-- .. IV. The Mass. (1) Its value and importance for rdigious. (2) How to live the Mass. (~3) The spirit of sacrifice--vi(timhood. V.. The’Paision of Christ. (1) "Self-crucifixion~mo’rtification and self-abnegation. (2) Patience and genero~sity. (3)TM Love of the Cross. VI. The Blessed Sacrament and the Sacred Heart. (1) Love and "reparatiOn. (2) The liturgy. (3) Zeal for souls.. ~-~-VII. Pra~ler: (1) The divine indwelling. (2) Recollection~° interior living. (3) Progress in prayer and divine union, - VIII., Our Blessed~ Mother : (1) Mary’s spiritual maternkty ’"f(.2) Spiritual motherhood in the life of, religious. (3) Childlike ~OMMUNICATIO~s -" ~ -. ~ Review [o? Religious .._,devotion to Ma~yi "(4) Imitation of her virtues, especially hmnility,~ charityl un~elfishness, and generosity. " -- o A Sister Reverend Fathers: ¯ " When I give a retreat I want my re’treatants_to show that they ar~interes(ed in what I am saying when I give c6nsid~ration’s an~b conferences. I ~¢ant them to be wide-awake. I want them to look a~ me a~ I speak to them. I want them to respond tolittle pleas~int_- ries that I~mayintroduce ’from time to time by smiling an’do, even bur~tin~ out into.reverent!y suppressed l;iiighter.. Sometimes I get a group of Sisters who are evidently i~redeterthined not to reipond:dn - any wa~r to’~my talk. Th’ere they sit, eyes downcast, featur_es imrgo- ~bile, like so many stathes of saints. ’,And.my pleasantries fall Not a facial muscle t.witch~s, not an eyelid is rai~ed. Are they raix.in ecstasy, I wonder, or absorbed in contemplation--or, horrors! are they v;’rapt in slumber,? Whatever it is, it is crushingly hard on n~e.. No onelikes’to talk to people who pay nb attention to him and.do not’even look at.him. Retreatants! Be responsive: smil’e when .~0ux are supposed to smile:-laugh~when you are’expected to laugh; weel5" _when you feel like weep{ng! . Agaifi, I want my .retreatants to meditate and a~ply th, ings to -.tbemselves’dur~ing the ball’hour or mgre that I speak to them..After. my talk.all I ask of them is to make a threefold colloquy, each lasting a few minutes and not more than five: one with our Lady, one with oi~r Lbrd,-and one with the heavenly Father. Go to’Mary., let Mary-take’you by ~he.hand and lead you to J+sus, then with Jesus arM~ Mary go to the heavenly Father. And tell each all about my con- _~ sideration and about your affection ~ind resolutions. Then the. ~-i~eriod-of meditation, is oyer! But until~the next meditatioh I wan~ tffem to liv in the atmosphere, so to speak, oof the last meditation, and to scatter ejacu!atory prayers and aspirations up and down -the ~stMrs, along the ha.llways, and s6 forth. When I m_ake.a retreat I want my retreat master, for heaven;s ’~ake, to speak loud enough and nbt to ospeak too rapidl.y; and if he put~a~little animation and°some gestures into his discourse i~ wiil be "all the, better.’ It does not make a good impression upon me~eithe-r,~ " .by the way, if he comes into the sanctuary and. mt~rfibles some pre-paratory p~ay.er in a’half-hearted and.hasty way. "I expect a good, a~d dev6ut preparator)i’prayer, recited d.istinct!y and ~ith~unetion. July, 1944 ’ o ~ - COMMUNICATIONS .o Ag~in,,I wahi my retreat master to give the last medita~ion,’~f-the da.y and big last talk of th~day before supper, so that after the evening recrehtion of those who are not making the retreat we can* have simpiy Benediction as’ihe close of,the day. I am tired by ~hat ’ time and wish to retire as.soon as possible after evening prayers. I decidedly do not like another meditation after Benediction,, given by way of points. And most decidedly I d.o not like too have’the retreat master tell us to make our own meditation in the morning, that he will not appear_ for th~it. " I want him to appear and talk longer than ever in the morning. .In fact, .the longer the retreat master talks, the" better ~I. like"it. Never’do I meditate better than °when somOne is .talking on religious topics. Again, ~ want my retreat master to illustrate his considerations ivith many stories, personal experiences in. the realm of souls.. A .serious word and then that driven home by a gripping and pertin.ent ~tale: then another serious word and another tale: then a little witti-~ cism to~ bre, ak the tension ~ih! that is, a’retreat master after t~he heart of me’! A Priest ,Revere’nd Fathers: ’ How disappointing to be asked to "preach" a retreat! The com-munity is not expected to meditate. The order-of the day includes three conferences, after which all betake themselves to the ordinar’y, ~occupations of the day sewi.ng, letter-writing and so forth; few read sl~iritual books. One meditati0ia is made, for a half hou~ before M~ss, and the retreat master is expected-to make that with the com-re. unity.’ No points are given the night before. All that might be done at this meditation, is either to present some truth slowly and simply, in the hope .there might be some heart reaction on the part of some of the members of the community, or make’some,colloquies but loud.o The sisters may possibly be entertained during this half hour. They have not made a meditation. Such retreats cannot bring God’s blessing~ on the. community. A Priest ReVerend Fathers: By all means, let us have short,, unread, interesting conferences reiterating the fundamental truths; and do, please include the mys-ticism of the Church. (May I remind your correspondent that the canonization rosters of the Church .list more feminine~ than mascu: -27"3" COMMUNICATIONS line exponents of m~rsticism? ~I have yet to meet a sincere Sister who is "mystified.") But must the banes of thee religious life alw~ays disregarded? For instance, espionage, tale-bearing, prying curiosity coupled with. gossiping which makes community life’unbearable: envy, jealousy,~ambition fo~ power, with r~lUctance tc; give it up ands. return to the ranks: the responsib.ility to keep promises; fhe types bf secrets and the sacredness of confidential and professional informa-tion.~ Many Sisters admit that the only real and~lasting help they froth,the retreat is that received in-the confession~il. °Would it onotASe worthwhile ,to-omit a conference a d~ay in favor of this type of help, either in the confessionai or in individual conferences held in com-fortable sur~roundings? Priests make a practice, of meeting lay folks - in this manner: why should th~ey fear to meet religious? My las.~ suggestion is to have a "Que.stion" or "Suggestion" Box. Many objective difficulties could be cleared up here, thus saving con-fessional time. " A Sister Reverend Fathers: Things I have disliked in retreat masters and have heard~ others say they disliked are: lack if practicality: lack of original orfimagina-tire method of presenting the truths; lack of psychol0gical approach ~o pr6blems:-qdoking on illustrations merely as sources of entertain-merit: a negative attitude towards life; lack of sympathetic under~ stan~ding of retreatants’ problems; failure to adapt the accidentals of retreat to spdcific hudiences. Things w~ have liked ar~: an instructive use of illustrations: a striking manner of expression: applicationd that fit the particular grohp making the retreat: good example from the retreat master. A Young Priest ~ UNIFORM VERSION OF MASS The Queen’s Work has recently published a new edition of Communit~ "Mass.~ a" ~ gooklet planned for the Dialogue Mass. The text ,of the Ordinary and Canon of the~ Mass conforms to the-new Editors’ Standard Text. a uniform version~bf thesd: , .prayers (with standardized pause-marks for Diai~gue Mass) that "is"being,adopted .o by, many publishers of Missals for’the laity. ~ 274 ~ ¯ ORIGEN, HIS LIFE AT ALEXANDRIA. By Ren6 C~diou. Translated from ~ ~he’French by John A. Southwell. Pp. xill St. Louls;~1944. $3.25. The works of (Jrig~n, that many-sided genius, were written for the learned. The same may be said of this masterly ~and"the books he wrote during the first half:century of his vigorous career. Readers in search of another facile bio, graphy of the type so popular, in out’day will discover little to hold their attention~ But"the 0 intellectually m, atu,re, wh9 possess .some knowledge of the history of thought and who desire t~o extend that experience, . will find the bbok of ehgrossing interest.- , , Origen, son of-the martyred St. Leonidas, never ~ealized the supreme ambition of his youth, to die for the faith.- But with a’ll the ardor of his restless nature he devoted his life to the intensification of spiritual perfection among the educated Christians of his environ-ment. His early years at Alexandria, the most active intellectual center of his time, coincided with the last" determined efforts of pagan and heretical Gnosticism’ to capture the minds of that metropolis. Origen -dreamt.of a Christian gnosiL or higher, esoteric learning, that ,would make the revelation of C_hrist prevail. As head of the famous Acfide-my of Alexandria, the first university of its day, he endeavored to impart an intellectual discipline which would give the educated Chris-tian a purer insight into the natureof God and be the basis of his spiritu’al progress. To.this end he devoted the decades of his brilliant teaching and his monumental labors" in the composing of,hi~ books~ Only late ih life did he come to esteem the value of the piety of th~ 10wly for the spread of God’s kingdom. ¯ U, nequipped with a sound philosophy, not always in touch with the mindof_the ChurchFan’d driven forward by his impetuous" genius, he.developed his own method of Scriptural interpretation and built upon it a system of theology that ihspired his pupils but har-bored~ trends of unorthodoxy which eventually led to his condemna-tion by Ecclesiastical authority. ,Many of the aberrations of "Ori-genism" do not reflect his own views, but were tenets formulated by later thinkers of heretical mold who were not evefi his °disciples; hbs- tile to the "restraints imposed b~r Christian Reoieto [or Religious (radition, they, claimed "Or_igen~ ~ho Would have disavowed them- as the champion of their doctrinal extremities. ’Nevertheless ~Origen was unorthodox in more than-one’!1~oint, such a_s the resurrection of the body, the. genesi.s of sin, ahd salvation as the uitimate lot of all. Mhny of his conjectures, thghgh not strictly Heretical, ba;ce always been regarded~in the Church as rash. .... The authoroof this book treats ill problem.s which occur in the career and teaching of Origen with great sympathy, but at the same time with ’evident impartiality and thorough Of the works, climaxing in Origen’s masterpiece, the De principiis, is penetrating, though not infrequently obscure. On the whole, the clarity and-order which we have come to associate with French authbrship are wanting. o The t_2ranslation i% generall~ good. "Foo often, however, t.he° reader is left in doubt as to the antecedents of personal, proriouns. A few sentences are U-ngrammatical, owing to the absence of words, or the wrong form of words, or defective punctuation. The l~ook is furnished with, a sufficiently complete inde~.--C. VOLLERT, NATIONAL "PATRIOTISM IN PAPAL TEACHING. By fhe Reverend John J. Wrlghf. Pp. liil .q- 358. The Newman Bookshop, Westmins÷er,~M~., 1943. $3.S0. . Iri the intrbduction to this book the author states: "The almost .universal illiteracy, so to speak, exposed, wherever question arises con~- cerni.ng the directives and doctrine of/he Pope on national and inter-naHonal° loyalties amounts to a challenge to Catholic writers "to -~c~uaint themselves more fully °with the papal teachings on these questions," The book might be called ~ monumental attempt to~ furnish the material for dispelling such illi.teracy. Father Wright stiadied the pronouncements of four Popes-- 7Le6 XIII, Pius X. Benedict XV, and Pius XI to.draw from these pronounc,efiaents the papal directives (that is, pastoral guidance specific[problems of patriotism) and the doctrine underlyin~ this guidance (,that is, the papal teaching .on .the virtue~of patriotism itsdlf)~. The author presents his findings in’this large work, divided .into three progressive parts, dealing respectively with the nature of " patriotism, the principal obligations towar~ the fatherland, and-the’~ -need of goi.n~, beyond a merely national 0utlook to build a moral~ 276 o ~internatio-nal order. -The entire study °is directed to: mo~terncondi-tibns and modern problems."~The’- re.~der is impressed with ~the fact ~ tha~t in this complicated modern world,~as in the more simplified world of.former days, the Church still has the recipe for national° anal i~ternational lqa.rmony. ~- ~ _ The book contaihs an impressive list of documents constilted, a lengthy bibliography, and an alphabetical index." Students of national and international City of Saint Louis (Mo.), http://www.geonames.org/4407084 http://cdm17321.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rfr/id/154 |