St Andrews Seminary - Mapav Yearbook (Rochester, NY)

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1 9 3 9 The Augustan Poet The spirit of the Augustan Age survives in the works of a man who was equally distinf guished as a satirist, moralist, and poet. To Quinf tus Horatius Flaccus, the most complete repref sentative and interpreter of his time, the world owes its information regarding the life and cus' toms of the Roman people during the Golden Age. With equal mastery of poetry and common sense, he gives a detailed account of those years of the Augustan Age which deserve to live in the memory of men. The little that we know of Horace is based almost entirely on his own works. This eminent scholar was born on the eighth day of December in the year 65 B. C., at Venusia on the borders of Apulia and Leicania. His works imply that as a child he lived among the peasantry of his na' tive province, and that he appreciated their homely virtues and vigorous character. The most important moral influence on the personality of Horace was the solicitude of his beloved father. To his care, Horace attributes the advantage of the highest education attain' able. Not satisfied to send his son to the school at Venusia, his father took him to Rome, where the young Horace received the ordinary literary education under the severe discipline of Orbilius, a very fine grammarian and school master. But the enthusiasm for intellectual culture and the ambition to live among people of distinction forced Horace to leave Rome, and to complete his education at Athens. Here he received a course in ethical philosophy. In the year 43 B. C., after the assassination of Caesar, Horace joined the army of Brutus, land was given command of a legion of soldiers. With Brutus he took part in the Battle of Phillippi and ,shared in the defeat of the Republicans. Def prived of his paternal estate, Horace sought and obtained permission to come to Rome, where he served as a clerk in the treasury. Poverty soon drove him to writing. The grace of his finished art attracted the attention of Vergil and Maecenas, who became his intimate friends. Maecenas showed his appreciation of Horace by giving him the Sabine farm with its beautiful environs and inspiring vistas. Perhaps there was no material blessing bestowed upon Horace, which charmed him as this farm did. He delighted in country life, where he could live leisurely and completely, contemplating life in quiet and pleasant surroundings. JOHN LYNCH, '40 But Horace had never been of robust health. Whether from delicacy of constitution, or from exposure to hardships, his body was never able to withstand the demands of life at Rome. Horf ace died suddenly on the twentyfseventh day of November, 8 B. C. His ashes were buried on the Esquiline, near the remains of Maecenas, who had preceded him but by a few weeks. Horace's philosophy is calm and sereme. In his own words Nil admirarif' he sums up his whole outlook on life. He exhorts man to cheer up, to forget the troubles of today. He asserts that life has its vicissitudes, its evils and bitter end, but these, he says, are minimized for the one who faces them openly. To make life worth' while he suggests the solace of literature, the delights of the country, and, above all, the com' pany of friends, For what purpose, if not for enjoyment are the rose, the pine, the peaceful and healthful seclusion of the Sabine hills? The goods of existence must be enjoyed here, for death involves the loss of life's pleasures and possessions. In his Satires, Horace comments on the vices which were the festering sores of a sick world. Avarice with all its attendant evils, ambition to' ward a political career, and moral dissipationf these diseases he treats in a unique manner, He endeavors to induce men to guide their lives by reason, to be consistent, to avoid extremes, and to be masters of their own appetites. A dehnite purpose in life and moderate wants are the secret of contentment. He inculcates charitable indulf gence to the faults of friends and courage in def fending them. In the Ars Poetica, Horace assumes the office of literary critic. He proceeds to show from his own observation what is necessary for the making of a poet, and what constitutes good and bad taste in poetry. He emphasizes the importance of the unity of subject and simplicity of plot. Though this work is hardly to be judged as a systematic poem, nevertheless, the doctrines he expostulates bear the mark of having been long weighted and considered, Horace suits the greatest variety of modern tastes. He has an attraction for those whose lives are centered on other spheres than that of literaf ture. In the gaiety of his spirit and the music of his verse there is a charm which is appreciated by all. Few have been able to resist the temptaf tion of trying to translate the elusive beauty and the cleverness of his poetry. tllirtyfthree

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S A T O R Papa Pius XII I-Iabemus Papam! Haec verba ante diem VI Nonis Martiis per totum mundum audita sunt. Eugenio Cardinalis Pacelli, successor Sancti Petri, sibi nomen, Pium XII, imposuerat. Erat maxima laetitia delectu Sancti Collegi Cardinaf lium Cardinalis Pacelli ubique ingenio suo coli' tur. Certe Spiritus Sanctus conventum guberf navit. Vere Papa Pius XII aptissimus suo muneri est. Novus Pontifex longus atque tenuis est. Quamquam robur consiliumque ei sunt, suae mores notantur summa suavitate benignitateque. Ad Cathedram Sancti Petri fert virtutes, quae eum, eruditissimum, peritissime versatum in rebus rei publicae, designant. Plerumque pietaf tem, humilitatem, benignitatem, profundam curam animarum, in quas ille primus pastor est, fert. In vita sua res gestas secundissimas perfecit. Erat insignis discipulusg ordinatus, professor constitutehatur. Serius, legatus ad Bojariam JOHN NORRIS, '41 missus est. In hoc officio inter nationes bellicosas, gerentes Magnum Bellum, pacem constituere conatus est. Post novas res in Germania, electus est particeps Sancti Collegi Cardinalium. Ref cusavit, autem, quod retrahere ducereque vitam sacredotis humilis vellet. At post paucos annos, contra desideria sua, Cardinalis factus est. In sermone, quam ea oc' casione praedicavit, Cardinalis Pacelli exclamf avit: Quamquam Dominus noster nostro tem' pose ab suis servis sacrihcium sanguinis non saepe poscit, ut prioribus diebus Ecclesiae. Jesus Christus ab eis cordis sacrificium semper cupitf' Secretarius Status, multa de terris mundi didicit, praesertim de Civitatibus Foederatis. Occasiones crebras habuit utendi linguis quas scit, apud quas sunt Anglica, Gallica, Germanica, Latinaque. Hic est homo qui nos, Catholicos, his annis in rebus ecclesiasticis moderatur. Defende eum, O Spiritus Sancte! Per Aspera Ad Astra Hortus est pulchrus 4 so started a Latin course six short year ago. Nominative, genitive, dative and the other cases, the position of the verb at the end of the sentence, the peculiar conf jugation of verbs f all these were once very mysf tifying. Subsequent courses were concerned with Caesar, Cicero, Vergil, Horace, Tacitus, Livy, and Saint Augustineg quite an imposing list. Each course grew out of the former with gaps that were easily bridged with a little application. If an outsider, that is, one not of our num' ber, were to glance at the list above, he would admit that he had no idea that there were so many Latin authors, undoubtedly his next im' pulse would be to release a deep sigh of relief that he did not have to go beyond Cicero. This would not be so in the case of a seminarian, for these courses are the background for serious studies in Latin. As a universal language Latin is no more' however its influence is still greatly felt in a modern world which speaks a variety of tongues. The Catholic Church uses it as she has used it from very early beginnings, as is shown by the writings of Saint Jerome, Saint Augustine, and the others of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church. Because Latin is no longer subject to change, because it is a dead language, the Church finds it most appropriate for her Divine Services and for her official communication throughout the world. thiftyftwo jERoME SCHIFFERLI, '39 The Latin language is still the necessary founf dation of onefhalf of human knowledge and the forms created by Roman genius underlie the whole of our civilization. In Greece man first learned to be human, under Rome mankind first learned to be civilized. Law, government, citizen' ship are all creations of the Latin race and the foundations of these have been handed down in the Latin tongue. The main sources of our tragf edies, comedies, poetry, drama, history, and lit' erature have their foundation in Rome, after Greece fell. Latin is highly essential for wordf building and is absolutely essential for a goodf working vocabulary as all of us well know. Latin, because it is such a flowing, beautiful, succinct, and brilliant language has been highly praised by many men. Among these praises there is hardly one more perfect than that by the master Latin stylist, Cicero himself, in his Pro Archia: Haec studia adolescentiam agunt, sen' ectutem oblectant, secundas res ornant, adversis perfugium ac solatium praebent. Delectant domi, non impediunt foris, pernoctant nobiscum, peref grinantur, rusticanturg . . . Nullam enim virtus aliam mercedem laborum periculorumque desidf erat praeter hanc laudis et gloriaef' Nothing more need be added to this masterf piece of oratorical skill, for enough motives can be gleaned from the quoted passage to make the study of Latin literature not a task, but a veritf able pleasure for everyone who seeks the higher culture in his life.

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