Life — July 1, 1926 — page 18: what you’re looking at

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JULY 1, 1926 | VOL, 88, 2278 “While there is Life there’s Hope” Published by LIFE PUBLISHING COMPANY 598 M. ison Avenue, New York Cuantes Dana Ginson, President R. terwoon, Editor F, D. Casey, Art Editor EMARK- ING on the — brilliant procession in C New York of ecclesi- astics on their way to the Eucharistic Congress, Arthur Brisbane observed: “The Roman Catholic Church goc on-its way, stronger to-day in this country than in any country of rope. There is no more ably man- aged organization.” Yes, yes, but does he think it is its management as an organization that keeps it going? His next topic was Sir Oliver Lodge, who men should quit hard work early and live longer. Noting Dr. Lodge’s excursions into spiritualism, he said politely that that often happens to men as they get old, and that “one who has con- tributed great things to real science has a right to play with foolish ideas for a rest.” Tut! tut! Wi ! What Brisbane calls foolish ideas are c brothers to the ideas that keep going the Roman Catholic Church. Without them it would go to pot in a few generations. They are the id that concern our relation to the visible world. They have to do with what we call supernatural, What we understand is natural; what we do not understand yet is supernat- ural, and though Brother B grunts gently at the propensity of old men to want to know about these matters, what better employment would he offer for their wits? Stand- ing on the farther boundary of life, what is more reasonable than that should inquire what lies over the frontier, put their minds on it if Cram Maxwrts, Vice-President Lancione Grimson, Secretary and Treasurer convenient, and get what knowledge they can? If they can afford the time for the exercise and do not spend too much money on it, they may get excellent entertainment; en- tertainment as wholesome and. bene- ficial as any that offers. Brother Brisbane at sixty-one still seems to find diversion in writing paragraphs and building tall towers, but perhaps as presently he sees the procession of his contemporaries gliding over the boundary of life, his mind may be turned to more spiritual undertak- ings, and if it is, he will doubtless be a good hand to expound them. Very likely his present disparage- ment of spirits is because they do not advertise. But perhaps if his tall tower does well he can afford in due time to disregard that, [ certainly the Roman Catho-ic Church does advertise. Perhaps that is why Brother Brisbane's ad- miration for it breaks out. The papers report its spectacles as being very handsome. One would say, pending correction, that they are advertisement pure and simple, and of course that is not necessarily disparagement. They make people think. They stir in thousands of minds the question: What is the Roman Catholic Church anyhow? and not many people know. They know the outside of it but about the inside of it have cloudy conceptions. All these cardinals in red clothes exhibiting themselves on a Sunday in New York and going to Chicago in afed train make for meditation on the Roman Catholic Church; what it is, what it does, what its claims are, what its aims are. Here it js, in our midst, and evidently going strong. Is it good for us? Is it dangerous? How dangerous? Here we are dwellers in a country that is for the moment full of murder, crime and sudden death. Is the Catholic Church a safe and efficient remedy for these disorders in our body poli- tic? What is the Mass? How many Protestants or Jews or other outsid- ers have a clear notion about that? The cardinals and other high dig- nitarics say Masses. Probably in the Catholic Church the main access to the invisible is through the Mass, and the Mass being said by priests only, control of the main road to the in- visible remains in their charge. That would explain the keys in the papal flag, and must be why the Reforma- tion objected so strongly to the Mass. And possibly it is at the bottom of the Catholic objection to spiritual- ism. The Protestants are strong for the open door in religion, and the spiritualists think they can communi- cate with the invisible through medi- ums. Naturally there is ecclesiastical objection, for when did two of a trade agree? If we get more and truer knowl- edge of the Roman Catholic Church out of the Eucharistic Congress, it may be worthy the attention it ex- acts from us, for that church is an important subject about which in- formation does not come easy. It scems to do best in Protestant coun- tries. Why is that? [Et us hope that Mr. Mellon as ~ disposer of taxes has an eye on the revenue accruing in Pennsylvania to voters at the primaries. Modern warfare, they tell us, is so costly it ruins even the victor. So apparently with senatorial elections in Pennsyi- vania, If senatorial primarics are to be mere auctions of votes, it is time they were abolished. The most shocking aspect of the Pennsylvania scandal is not that the candidates bought votes, but that such hordes of voters sold them, E. S. Martin. comicbooks.com