Dominant Theme

U.S. Roman Catholics are so preoccupied with the threat of Communism that they may be drawing off some of their spiritual energy, says Father John C. Heenan, Superior of the Catholic Missionary Society of England. After his most recent trip to the U.S., Father Heenan reports in the current issue of the Paulist Fathers' monthly Information:

"America seems to have Communism on the brain. In particular, the Catholics of America seem to have a fixation on this subject." Catholics must be acutely conscious of the Communist danger to the world, says Father Heenan, but: "There is such a thing as crying 'Wolf!' too often.

"On recent visits to America I found it depressing that attacks on Communism should take up so much of the energy of Catholic speakers and writers. It was almost impossible to hear a speech from any priest or prelate in which Communism was not the dominant theme. I once saw a beautiful congress of children marred by a philippic against Soviet Russia. The thousands of children taking part might so easily have been stirred by a sermon on the beauty of the Church of God. Nor was it possible to doubt that a more certain blow would have been struck against Communism by deepening the faith of those children than by playing over the anti-Communist record for their parents. "Of course Catholics should refuse to sleep while the enemy is restlessly active. Catholics again should resolutely refuse to take the bromides offered by left-wing journalists. But the Soviet should not become an obsession. It should be possible just occasionally to have a Communion breakfast without Communism on the menu."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.