Blunt Warning

The Roman Catholic Bishops of the U.S., gathered in Washington for their annual meeting, last week issued a candid and eloquent appraisal of U.S. morals, with emphasis on morality in politics. For a nation shamed by a year of exposure of scandal in public office, the bishops' statement made sober reading. Excerpts:

"An alarming parallel exists between the situation facing us today and that which faced the Roman Empire 1,500 years ago ... barbarism on the outside, refined materialism and moral decay within . . . The lessons of history are evident to those with eyes that will see. The Roman Empire disintegrated from within, and moral corruption was the main cause .. ."

God & Man. "Morality involves the correct and careful regulation of three relationships: man to God, man to himself, and man to his fellow men . . . When rightly used and directed, the human intellect can discover certain fundamental spiritual truths and moral principles which will give order and harmony to man's intellectual and moral life . . .

"Man's social life becomes intolerable, if not impossible, unless justice and benevolence govern the operations of the state and relationships between individuals and groups . . . Expressions such as 'my life is my own affair,' ... or 'in politics anything goes' are all too common today. They betray a gross misunderstanding of the moral order . . .

"Man is a creature. As a creature, he is subject to his Creator in all that he does. God's will has ... a bearing on everything that touches human rights and duties. No state, no group of educators may reject a truth of the moral order to suit the claim of convenience.

"Morality has its place in business and industry, because the conditions under which men work, the wages they get, the kind of work they do, all are subject to the jurisdiction of the moral law. When economic conditions are such that the raising of a family by working people is made dishearteningly difficult, then those responsible are guilty of breaking God's law, and they are also accomplices in the sins resulting from their injustice."

Dishonesty & Slander. "In politics, the principle that 'anything goes,' simply because people are thought not to expect any high degree of honor in politics, is grossly wrong. We have to recover that sense of personal obligation on the part of the voter and that sense of public trust on the part of the elected official which give meaning to political life. Those who are selected for office by their fellow men are entrusted with grave responsibilities. They have been selected not for self-enrichment, but for conscientious public service. In their speech and in their actions they are bound by the same laws of justice and charity which bind private individuals in every other sphere of human activity.

"Dishonesty, slander, detraction and defamation of character are as truly transgressions of God's commandments when resorted to by men in political life as they are for all other men . . . One and the same standard covers stealing from the cash register and dishonest gain derived from public office. It will not do to say . . . that the latter can be excused or condoned because it occurs in the political order. One and the same standard prohibits false statements about private individuals and false statements about members of minority groups and races. It will not do ... to say that [they] can be excused because of long standing prejudice...

"We exhort Americans in every walk of life to rededicate themselves to the wisdom of our Founding Fathers ... a wisdom so memorably expressed by the Father of our Country in his Farewell Address :

" 'Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensable supports . . . Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principles.' "

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