St Johns College - Ozanam Yearbook (Toledo, OH)

Page 41 text:

'V Y i HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES First Row CTopD. left to right: Herbert Kiunee, I. Callanan, F. VVard, NV. O'Com1ell, F. Nally, R. VVolsilTer, G. Diethelm, T Trzaskalski. Second Row: Father L. Meyer S. J., Father F. Peacock S. J., Mr. john Mescher M. A.. C. Rober, F. Eisinger. D. Getz R. Tefft. A. Engel, C. Hermes, E. Mahoney, T Karpanty. Third Row: R. Schmitt, R. Tillman, D. McColl, T. Butler, C. Xkfalsli, G Lajiness. G Seren, Oscar Selz, J. Friend, M. Sauppe. Fourth Row: T. Petersen. M. Sherwin. E. Coleman, J. Miehls, J. Gelin, R Cowan. E. Zapiecki. C. Niess, C. Egle. j. Krusovski. Fifth Row :C. XVeinandy, J. Reiljey. M. Kendzierski, B. Campbell, G. Myers V. McKinnon, E. Blochowski, I. McGowan, I. Langeuderfer, G. Kujawski.

Page 43 text:

Catholic Writers By LEO W. KENNY Among certain of our Catholic laity there unfortunately lurks a decided dislike for the material contained in Catholic magazines. Some of our fel- low-worshippers would fain raise the tips of their sensitive noses when pre- sented with such publications, and deign to spend on them only time enough to say There's nothing in them but childish stories in which the hero becomes a priest, or amateurish essays that require two thousand words to preach 'go to church'. There the subject is droppedg the low stand- ard of modern Catholic writing is de- plored, but the cause of it is not in- quired into. Is the objection of these people true? Much as we dislike to admit it, we fear there is some little excuse for it. Some Catholics who write are, we fear, no more real writers than their attempts are works of art. The more ambitious among them conjure up from the shadowy recesses of their minds a few high-sounding phrasesg in their novels or short stories they take as a hero a young man who, with premature wisdom, walks disdainfully through the pleasure-mad world, scorning everything in sight and many things unseeng who has a hair breadth escape from death, a deadly tussle with the most wily of Satan's lieutenantsg and finally issues forth from combat with a supernatural intelligence to depart at length for the nearest monastery followed by the benedictions of all his acquaintances. Such stories, like green apples, may be enjoyed once in a lifetime. As a rule, romances of this nature are not the most interesting to the average Catholic, who is as human as anyone else, and detests to drink his pleasure in Puritan draughts, that is to say, generously diluted in angelic piety. We do not mean, of course, that real religion of the deeper sort should play no part in the works of Catholic writ- ers. Since man has recognized letters as a fine art, the greatest of his works, regardless of his creed, have evi- denced his native piety. On almost every page of Homer's Iliad, as well as of Virgi1's Aeneid, there is some reference to the gods. The works of both Dante and Shakespeare give evi- dent proof of the religion of these two great authors. And yet the writ- ings of all these men are probably the most widely read compositions to- day. Why? Is it because they re- ferred so often to things religious? It is rather because they depict man as he is, and a normal man believes in Godg but if he believes in Him he will speak of Him, not in the wishy-washy manner of some of our Catholics who write, but as a person of character who is not ashamed of his belief. Thus do the masters picture man, and because they write of man in this life-like way their works have become popular with a world that takes more delight in, and learns more from, the prob- able man than the impossible saint. So the objection is not unreasonable, but it would be much more effective if the plaintiffs had reason to object. The last statement seems absurd, but it is not. The objection itself is reasonable, but those who object have no right to do so. And why not? Sim-