Fr Vincent McNabb writes to "The Tablet"

Just browsing the Tablet archive,  I found this gem:

6th May 1911

THE FEEBLE-MINDED

 

SIR,—In your issue of April 15, mention is made of a Home for Feeble-minded girls over 16 years of age, to be opened at High Wycombe. It will be under the charge of the White Sisters (daughters of the Holy Spirit) and an organising Committee. Nothing but thanks could be offered to the Sisters and the Committee for their timely effort to deal with a social problem. May their zeal receive the better thanks of imitation elsewhere throughout the country.

 

I wish every other contribution of your correspondent merited the like gratitude.

 

Let me set down some statements that seem to me to be pernicious.

It is hoped that girls will remain in the Home for the greater part of their lives for this very grave reason : when a feeble-minded girl arrives at maturity, and is not under organised supervision, she becomes a danger to herself and to the community, ending in the workhouse, an inebriate reformatory, a rescue home or a jail. Liberty to the feeble-minded is only liberty to lead a life of misery and degradation, whereas segregation means a life of happiness and utility. Without this segregation the British public must in time consist of more mentally deficient than normal people as the feeble-minded give the world more children than do the normal in the ratio of 7'3 to 4. This is a mathematical fact from which there is no escape.  

This is such an unveiled "casting of stones" at a self-defenceless class of the community that I, their brother, may be allowed on their behalf to call a spade a spade—with emphasis.

 

I. From internal evidence I conclude that your correspondent is either not a "White Sister—a daughter of the Holy Spirit," or she has forgotten of what spirit, and colour, she is. Her voice may be the voice of a daughter of the Holy Spirit, but her words are the wearisome fallacies of the Eugenists.

 

II. There is a confusion between the " feeble-minded " and the "sexually feeble-willed." To argue that the feeble-minded are a danger to the community lays your correspondent open to an overwhelming tu quoque. It would be such a display of lack-logic that a defender of the poor might be pardoned for calling it "feeble-minded." A witty defender of the poor might even suggest humorously that your correspondent's mental state deserves permanent custodial treatment—as a danger to the community.

 

III. I have underlined the passage beginning "without this segregation." A few days ago Mr. Chesterton, on a memorable occasion expressed our thoughts and relieved our feelings by the monosyllable "Bosh !" On reading the passage underlined, I fly for shelter to leeward of Mr. Chesterton's strong sense—and vocabulary.

 

IV. Your ordinary run of readers will be swayed by the "7'3 to 4," with its delicate air of scholarly precision. All the terrier within me yearns to rise up and worry this appalling assumption. Instead of anger I will be content with authority. Many might be brought to bear ; one will do my work.

 

In his evidence before the Royal Commission on the care and control of the feeble-minded, Sir J. Crichton Browne said :

No definite opinion can be expressed as to whether the number of idiots, imbeciles, epileptics, feeble-minded, and defective persons is increasing out of proportion to the population. . . . A consideration of the causes of mental defects might lead us to infer that they are a diminishing quantity ; for they are undoubtedly of more frequent occurrence where there is a low standard of health dependent on poverty and insanitary conditions. (Report of Royal Commission on the Care and Control of the Feeble-minded. Vol. I.)

I confess to the feeling that Sir J. Crichton Browne's wise ignorance is a more scholarly attitude than the precise "7'3 to 4."

 

V. I will end with two grave thoughts. If this custodial treatment and enforced celibacy bad been meted out to all the feeble-minded of the past century, how many of our reigning sovereigns would be in existence ?

 

To be quite consequent your correspondent would have given Francis Thompson permanent custodial treatment at Storrington, years before he went there to find himself a poet. We should thus have been without the "Hound of Heaven" ; though I agree we should have had the proceedings of the Eugenist societies and the long paralogisms on heredity.

 

I have the honour to be, Sir, your obedient servant,

VINCENT MCNABB, O.P.

Holy Cross Priory, Leicester.

 

 

The article Fr McNabb's letter refers to is here.

There's a further letter from him here.

The Agony of Jesus - Cardinal Bacci

The Agony of Jesus

1. While Jesus was praying in the garden of Gethsemane, His divine mind witnessed not only the torments of His approaching passion and death, but also the hatred of His enemies, both then and in later times, the ingratitude of His Apostles, and the countless sins with which men would repay His infinite goodness throughout the ages. He realised that He would be a sign of contradiction for many. Some would hate Him; others would desecrate His precious blood and His immaculate body. Many, forgetful of the Redemption, would commit sin after sin, while others would receive special graces and would return only coldness and indifference in exchange for such great love. Faced with this gloomy scene, Jesus was utterly dejected and was overcome by a mysterious, rending agony which caused Him to perspire blood. “He began to feel dread and to be exceedingly troubled.” (Mark 14:33) “And falling into an agony he prayed the more earnestly. And his sweat became as drops of blood running down upon the ground.” (Luke 22:43-44)

At that moment Jesus could see each one of us and all our wretchedness, coldness and sinfulness. If our hearts are not made of stone, let us weep for our faults and firmly resolve to improve.

2. Jesus suffered willingly and generously for us. First of all He endured this near-fatal anguish of soul which caused blood to ooze from the pores of His body. Then He suffered the cruelest of physical tortures. What must our reaction be? If we lack the heroic generosity of the Saints and are not prepared to look for suffering by scourging ourselves or by wearing hair-shirts or chains next to our flesh, let us at least accept our inevitable sorrows and trials with perfect resignation. Jesus was innocence itself, yet He suffered willingly for us. Why should we, who are unworthy sinners, be unwilling to submit to the punishments due to our sins? There are many who kiss the Crucifix and claim to love it but try as hard as possible to reject the cross which God has given them. This is an impossible state of affairs. Let us remember that if we wish to have a sincere love for the Crucifix, we must love our own cross as well, for this is the cross which God has given us.

3. While Jesus was praying and suffering in the garden of Gethsemane and the Apostles were unconcernedly sleeping, a group of hired ruffians approached, led by the traitor, Judas. Jesus went to meet them and quietly allowed Himself to be fettered by these rascals. He could have struck them to the ground in an instant or, as He said Himself, called more than twelve legions of Angels to His defence. (Cf. Mt. 16:33) But this was the hour of the power of darkness. “This is your hour, and the power of darkness.” (Luke 22:53) When the Apostles saw Him being bound and led away like an evil-doer, they deserted Him and ran away. “Then all the disciples left him and fled.” (Mt. 26:56) We also may have been guilty of shameful conduct on many occasions. Whenever God granted us the experience of His consoling presence by means of His grace or favours, we formed the most generous resolutions. But in the presence of difficulties or of bad example from others, we may have shamefully deserted Jesus. Let us reflect whether this is so and reinforce our good resolutions.