in vi Few Words

Preacher's problems
WE all started out of our seats. all Sunday night's television play, when a character justified his behaviour on the ground of imitating that "sound Jesuit doctrine, he end justifies the means." However, at the time of writing, we have received no protests. Perhaps this is because the character in question was a Communist agitator, and could not be expected to know any better. The play, The Dark Wood, follows up a striking sequence of serious plays in which religion is a main theme. On this occasio n. Nonconformity in Wales was substituted for Catholicism, and I hope I am not being unfair in saying that the dramatic quality of the play fell far below the Catholic ones. Still, the play about a preacher who learnt through hitter experience that you must "play second fiddle to God" had its moments, especially towards the end. David Peel, as the preacher, and Rachel Gurney. as the local minister's wife, falling for the preacher's magnetic personality. rose above the play and the rest of the cast.
More bouquets for TV
yAM still interested in the possible effect of such serious religiousmoral plays regularly presented to millions of people at a time. I am not surprised that they are popular, since they do deal with what everyone in his heart knows to be the really important things, meaning of life, moral conflict, death. Whereas a play of this kind is glamorised on the screen and creates a "shy-making" effect in the publicity of the theatre. it can go home to the little group of family listeners. T hope very much that the television authorities will continue with this policy which, I am sure, is well liked and which must do a great deal of fundamental good, But probably there is a shortage of good material. and the kind of play which holds the attention dramatically of religious moral themes. without preaching and in terms assimilable by the general public, cannot be at all easy to write.
Country and town
AFTER the disastrous winter, last week-end seemed a portent of better days to come-or was it because I had arranged to live in solitude in a small country cottage in order to finish some work? As I s t in it little sitting room, with a fire on one side of me and the sun pouring through the opened french windo.rs. I felt as though I had escaped from London to France or Italy-yet 1 was only an hour's drive from home. Another oddity was that London is silent, the country filled with noise. A dry leaf blown across some paving, the chatter of the birds nesting in the ivy, a door or window rattling, these sounds were startling by comparison with the undertone of city noise you grow never to hear. But. my word. the bedroom was cold the first night!
Blind or deaf ?
IT is usually held that it is better to I be blind than deaf. This view is based on the fact that the blind always seem to be very cheerful people, whereas the deaf tend to be rather crusty and suspicious. But last week in the country I had lunch with a deaf priest who is invariably most cheerful. When asked whether he is not very lonely, he answers with a smile: "Oh. no! I find that Father X (his own name) invariably makes most pleasant company for myself." This priest cannot stand wearing a deaf-aid instrument, and the reason is that when he got one he was horror-struck by the appalling noises he heard in it-the thunder of cars and habitual bangs and the raucous voices of his fellow humans. I should add that 1 think he is very much of a contemplative (as well as very active), so perhaps the answer is there, as it so often is. If you are deaf, you will remain very cheerful if you develop a sufficient spiritual inner life.
Queer ideas about religion
AMONG the more nonsensical remarks made about King Baudouin (or Baldwin, as we should call him in this country) was one ie the Daily Telegraph in which it was said: He "is a practising Catholic, hut he is interested in science and not in religion." What did the writer of that observation suppose "religion" to mean? Not that Christians are without fault in the matter. "Churchman" has come to mean exclusively a priest or minister. Originally it was a proud appellation of all members of Christ's Mystical Body which is the Church, whether lay or cleric. Another crack at the Daily Telegraph. Does it suppose that Mr. Tom O'Brien was happy to see a gossip paragraph informing a million readers that he is giving up smoking and drinking during Lent? There lies the private side of religion.
YOUR DAILY MASS GUIDE
March 8-14
Sunday, March 8. Third Sunday in Lent, sd. Corn St. John of God. Lenten Prf. (Purple-) Monday, March 9. S. Frances, d. Coro feria. (White.) Tuesday, March 10. The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste, sd. Corn. feria. (Red.) Wednesday, March 11. Feria. (Purple.) Thursday, March 12. S. Gregory. dm. Corn feria, 3 pr. for the Pope. (White.) Friday, March 13. Feria. (Purple.) Saturday, March 14. Feria. (Purple.)
The answer
AWV! ER in a contemporary asks whether Catholics can "honestly assert that, were England inhabited by 47 million Catholics and 3 million Protestants. instead of by approximately 3 to:lion Catholics and 47 million Protestants. such a small British Protestant minority under such a large Catholic majority would have the freedom which the Catholic minority arc enjoying at present in Protestant England?"
The position he imagines actually obtains in Eire, where a small Protestant minority enjoys exactly the same freedom as the Catholic majority. If you want to see an example of intolerance, you simply cross the border into the Protestant north.
Lyre or Truth
IT SEE that Truth is changing hands, passing from the editorship of Collin Brooks to that of Vincent Evans. I wonder whether this change will bring hack Truth to the gay and irresponsible spirit of its founder, Labby, who made the paper a roaring success by breaking all the rules. To begin with. he wanted to call it "The Lyre," not "The Truth," hut he was not allowed to get away with that. Then he would write columns himself, as the fancy took him. In the middle of a financial article on Greek stocks, he would go on for paragraphs on travel in Greece. But perhaps the most irresponsible thing he ever did was to write some damaging lines in an article. His business associates implored him to cut them out. He undertook to do so. but the deletion on the proof was read by the printers as underlining. The lines appeared. and for more emphasis appeared in italics!
Fr. Martindale
FR. NIAR1 INDALE'S many friends will be sorry to hear that he has to return to hospital this week to have an Operation on his hands. As he will be unable to use his hands for a month or two, I feel sure I can say on his behalf that it will be an act of charity if correspondents who write to him will write not expecting an answer. I imagine he will be very much under the weather since at his age even an operation that is not grave in itself imposes a heavy strain. He will, I know, he grateful for the support of prayers.
Tyburn symbol
ALETIER reaches me, doubtless inspired by recent comments on the oneness the faith despite race divisions. The writer recalls a visit to Tyburn on the Feast of the Epiphany. Having finished her prayers before the Blessed Sacrament exposed, the writer noticed that on her right a Negro was praying, and on her left a Japanese girl. Colour bar seemed very far away just then.
JOTTER