My Prayer Book_LASANCE - the Catholic Kingdom!

178 Be Careful ilt thc Choice of Your Books
" But the tendency of to-day, reflected in the popular
novel, is to remove all thought of the claims of almighty
Cod, to substitute humanity a d philanthropy for religion
and Christian charity, and science for revealed
truth.
"The other day I was reading the pastoral letter of
one of our bishops on 'Christian Instruction.' This
is what he wrote: 'Every doctrine of our holy faith,
from the existence of God down to the least Catholic
practice of devotion, is denied or assailed. Sometimes
it is attacked by open hostility, but more often by a
chilling indifference, or by a bitter ridicule of all the
claims of religion.'
" Now if this be the actual state of things, let me ask:
Are we Catholics fully alive to the very grave dangers
that beset us from the literature of all kinds that is being
daily and hourly issued in such enormous quantities by
the ~ublishing houses of America?
"Too many of us seem to have a positive distaste for
the best, what has been written by Catholics. In fact,
many of us are utter strangers to our own authors, outside
of a few great names. We know little or nothing
of our greatest writers. Their writings are a sealed
book to many. The very name of a Catholic publishing
house on the title-page of a book seems to repel
rsther than attract the purchaser. That is the ptesent
situation; it is one to be dsplomd and must be entirely
changed before we Catholics come into the fulf possession
of the literary treasures that are our rightful
inheritance."
Says Bishop Hedley in his pastoral letter, "On Reading"
:
"Thm ought undoubtedly to be a great advance
on the part of Catholics in the knowledge of religion by
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