Until recently, child development was accepted as the perspective through which children were understood and socialization the primary way in which sociologists thought about children. An increasing number of scholars now view childhood as socially constructed and children as actors in their own social worlds rather than simply as incomplete persons who are in the process of becoming adults. Courses using this perspective explore social constructions of childhood held by adults and embodied in institutions through time and across places, and how biology, gender, social class, and social location affect the everyday lives of children in families, schools, and other social contexts.Author recommendsJohnson, Heather Beth 2001. 'From the Chicago School to the New Sociology of Children: The Sociology of Children and Childhood in the United States, 1900–1999.'Advances in Life Course Research (Children in the Millennium: Where Have We Come From, Where Are We Going?) 6: 53–93.This article reviews the place of children in sociological research during the 20th century. Children were of interest as objects of socialization and when they engaged in deviant behavior, although they were largely ignored as unworthy of serious sociological attention until the last two decades of the century. Debates among recent scholars about what stance should be taken toward children in the 'new' sociology of childhood are outlined.Waksler, Frances Chaput (Ed.) 1991. Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings New York, NY: Falmer Press.In this classic collection, including several chapters by the editor, Waksler pulled together articles that provides evidence that sociologists' underestimate the capacity of children to make sense of their worlds and to act on them. Both theoretical statements and empirical research are included, as is a chapter that is the precursor to Waksler's book, The Hard Times of Childhood and Children's Strategies for Dealing with Them (1996, New York, NY: Falmer Press).Small, Meredith F. 2001. Kids: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Raise Our Children. New York, NY: Doubleday.Small, an anthropologist intrigued with 'ethnopediatrics', brings together scientific research on the capacities of infants and children and evidence of the way childhood is organized in various societies.Zelizer, Viviana A. 1985. Pricing the Priceless Child: The Changing Social Value of Children. New York, NY: Basic Books.This classic work in economic sociology provides a wealth of detail about how children's lives in the USA were affected by their changing value/social construction, especially in the early 20th century. Many current institutions and beliefs, which are now taken for granted, were developed during this period, for better or worse.Lareau, Annette 2003. Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.Findings from Lareau's extensive, ethnographic research on differences between the everyday family lives of middle‐class and working‐class children are reported in this book. The results of her analysis make clear that adults' social constructions of children shape the experience of childhood and that even within one society there can be systematic variation in the social construction of children that results in marked differences in children's everyday lives.Corsaro, William A. 2005. The Sociology of Childhood, 2nd edn. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.Corsaro has been conducting ethnographic research with preschool children in various forms of care and reporting on it for more than 25 years. His textbook focuses primarily on preschool children and how they interact with one another to form their own peer cultures. The book includes many episodes of interaction among children that ground his arguments.Adler, Patricia and Peter Adler 1998. Peer Power: Preadolescent Culture and Identity. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.This book presents findings from the Adlers' study of peer culture among elementary school‐aged children in a Colorado community. The importance of friendship and popularity to the children is examined, particularly in school, as well as the significance for children of extracurricular activities.Mayall, Berry 2002. Towards a Sociology for Childhood: Thinking from Children's Lives. Philadelphia, PA: Open University Press.Mayall brings together data from the four research projects she conducted with colleagues in Great Britain in the 1990s to write an overview of what she learned about doing research with children and from listening to their points of view. The book includes children's assessments of their lives and relationships.Lee, Nick 2001. Childhood and Society: Growing up in an Age of Uncertainty. Philadelphia, PA: Open University Press.Lee focuses on childhood as an institution in the late 20th century and explores the ambiguity of contrasting the social construction of adults as 'human beings' with the social construction of children as 'human becomings'. His perspective is both macro and global and includes information about how decisions made by such institutions as the United Nations and the World Bank affect children in various countries.Online materials http://www.childtrends.org/ Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that collects and analyzes data; conducts, synthesizes, and disseminates research; designs and evaluates programs; and develops and tests promising approaches to research in the field. For researchers and educators, this Web site includes a link to research that provides the latest data and information for developing, evaluating, and guiding effective programs and research relevant to the overall health and well‐being of children and youth (http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/) and includes key indicators of child well‐being. http://www.aecf.org/MajorInitiatives/KIDSCOUNT.aspx Kids Count is a national and state‐by‐state effort to track the status of children in the USA by providing policy‐makers and citizens with benchmarks of child well‐being. The Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN) is working with professors to introduce Kids Count data into social science courses through course modules, exercises, and access to other data available on their Web site (http://www.ssdan.net/kidscount/). http://www.hull.ac.uk/children5to16programme/intro.htm The Economic and Social Research Council Research Programme on Children 5–16: Growing into the 21st century, under the direction of Alan Prout from 1995–2000, funded 22 different research projects that examined children's lives by treating children as social actors. The Web site includes a description of the programme, research findings, and an extensive bibliography. http://www.childstats.gov/ The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics is a working group of federal agencies that collects, analyzes, and reports data on issues related to children and families. The forum's annual report, America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well‐Being, provides a summary of national indicators of child well‐being and monitors changes in these indicators over time. http://www.unicef.org/ The UNICEF Web site focuses on the well‐being of children in countries around the world, particularly on their health and their mothers' ability to provide for them.Sample syllabus Course Outline and Reading Assignments 1 Recognizing the capacities of newborn children Meredith F. Small, Chapter 1, Kids' World, and Chapter 2, The Evolution of Childhood, in Kids: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Raise Our Kids. 2 Social construction of childhood in different times and places a Children's place in the past Coldrey, Barry M. 1999. '"... a Place to Which Idle Vagrants May Be Sent": The First Phase of Child Migration during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries.'Childhood and Society 13: 32–47.deMause, Lloyd 1974. 'Infanticide and the Death Wishes toward Children;''Abandonment, Nursing, and Swaddling.' Pp. 25–39 in The History of Childhood. New York, NY: Harper and Row. b Children's place in other societies Schildkrout, Enid 2002 [1978]. 'Age and Gender in Hausa Society: Socio‐Economic Roles of Children in Urban Kano.'Childhood 9 (3): 344–68. c Changing value of children in American society in the 20th century Zelizer, Viviana 1985. Selected chapters from Pricing the Priceless Child. d Children's place in American society in the 21st century Zelizer, Viviana 2002. 'Kids and Commerce.'Childhood 9 (4): 375–96.Cook, Daniel Thomas 2000. 'Childhood is Killing "Our" Children: Some Thoughts on the Columbine High School Shootings and the Agentive Child.'Childhood 7: 107–17. 3 The 'new' sociology of childhood: Agency and competence Waksler, Frances Chaput 1986. 'Studying Children: Phenomenological Insights.'Human Studies 9 (1): 71–82.Alanen, Leena 1988. 'Rethinking Childhood.'Acta Sociologica 31 (1): 53– 67.Matthews, Sarah H, 2007. 'A Window on the "New" Sociology of Childhood.' Sociology Compass: http://www.blackwell‐compass.com/subject/sociology/section_home?section=soco‐social‐psychology (doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00001.x) 4 Collecting data from and about children Christensen, Pia Haudrup 2004. 'Children's Participation in Ethnographic Research: Issues of Power and Representation.'Children and Society 18: 165–76.Davis, John M. 1998. 'Understanding the Meanings of Children: A Reflexive Process.'Childhood and Society 12: 325–35. 5 Inside the black box of early childhood socialization Clawson, Dan and Naomi Gerstel 2002. 'Caring for our Young: Child Care in Europe and the United States.'Contexts 1 (4): 28–35.Corsaro, William 1979. '"We're Friends, Right?" Children's Use of Access Rituals in a Nursery School.'Language in Society 8: 315–36.Corsaro, William and L. Molinari 1990. 'From seggiolini to discussione: The Generation and Extension of Peer Culture among Italian Preschool Children.'International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education 3: 213–30. 6 Children's participation in everyday life a FamilyLareau, Annette 2002. 'Invisible Inequality: Social Class and Childrearing in Black and White Families.'American Sociological Review 67: 747–76.Dodson, Lisa and Jillian Dickert 2004. 'Girls' Family Labor in Low‐Income Households: A Decade of Qualitative Research.'Journal of Marriage and Family 66: 318–32.Nettleton, Sarah 2001. 'Losing a Home through Mortgage Repossession: The Views of Children.'Children and Society 15: 82–94. b School Sherman, Ann 1997. 'Five‐year‐olds' Perceptions of Why We Go to School.'Childhood and Society 11: 117–27.Adler, Patricia A., Steven J. Kless, and Peter Adler 1992. 'Socialization to Gender Roles: Popularity among Elementary School Boys and Girls.'Sociology of Education 65: 169–87.Adler, Patricia A. and Peter Adler 1995. 'Dynamics of Inclusion and Exclusion in Preadolescent Cliques.'Social Psychology Quarterly 58 (3): 145–62. c 'Free' time Lareau, Annette 2000. 'Social Class and the Daily Lives of Children: A Study from the United States.'Childhood 7 (2): 155–71.Rasmussen, Kim 2004 'Places for Children – Children's Places.'Childhood 2004: 155–73. 7 Children's rights/parental rights Smith, Anne B. and Nicola J. Taylor 2003. 'Rethinking Children's Involvement in Decision‐Making After Parental Separation.'Childhood 10 (2): 201–16.Van Krieken, Robert 1999. 'The "Stolen Generations" and Cultural Genocide: The Forced Removal of Australian Indigenous Children form Their Families and Its Implications for the Sociology of Childhood.'Childhood 6 (3): 297–311. 8 Current global issues a UN rights of the child Jans, Marc 2004. 'Children as Citizens: Towards a Contemporary Notion of Child Participation.'Childhood 11 (1): 27–44.Roche, Jeremy 1999. 'Children: Rights, Participation and Citizenship.'Childhood 6 (4): 475–93. b Children's place in the 21st century Penn, Helen 2002. 'The World Bank's View of Early Childhood.'Childhood 9 (1): 118–32.Bey, Marguerite 2003. 'The Mexican Child: From Work with the Family to Paid Employment.'Childhood 10 (3): 287–99.Aptekar, Lewis and Behailu Abebe 1997. 'Conflict in the Neighborhood: Street and Working Children in the Public Space.'Childhood 4: 477–90.Films and videosA Baby's World A Whole New World (ages newborn to 1 year) The Language of Being (ages 1–2 years) Reason and Relationships (ages 2–3 years)This series of videos, each approximately 1‐hour in length, summarizes and illustrates evidence of the remarkable and often misinterpreted capacities of infants and toddlers.The Orphan TrainsThis video is a good companion to Viviana Zelizer's book Pricing the Priceless Child. In addition to depicting conditions for some urban children in US cities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, interviews in old age with the last children who were shipped West in the 1920s highlight the vulnerability of children in societies that are unprepared to take responsibility for them when their parents are unable to provide care.Michael Apted's 7 Up through 49 UpThis documentary film series, which began in 1964 with 14 7‐year‐olds whom Apted has since revisited every 7 years to produce a new film, raises questions about the relationship between childhood and adulthood.Project ideas1. This assignment is intended to make students aware of the presence (or absence) of children in their daily rounds – when, where and under what conditions they share space with children.Choose two days on which your daily schedule is different (e.g., a weekday and a weekend day) and record every instance in which you come in contact with children. Do not go out of your way to encounter children. Just go about your daily rounds. Record the time, place (including who is present if it is not obvious), age of children, your relationship to the children, and what you and the children are doing. Include children whom you know well, children with whom you are acquainted, and children who are strangers. Concentrate especially on the last category because it is the one that you probably attend to least in your daily rounds. Also be sure to indicate what your role in each setting is. Once you have collected these data, write a summary of your contact with children in your daily life. What children do you encounter, how often, under what conditions? What is your relationship to the children in your life?2. This assignment is intended to explore how children are constrained by adult rules and power.Observe children in an 'adult' setting and identify adults' rules for children in that setting. Justify the choice of setting as 'adult', e.g., children are not 'supposed' to be there (a bar/pub), children are a disturbance (an exclusive expensive restaurant). Consider both adults' rules for children's behavior in the setting and children's options and resources. Address the questions: Where do children fit in adult worlds? What roles are they expected to play?3. This assignment is used in conjunction with Annette Lareau's work on differences in the way working and middle class children are treated by adults.Students choose two school districts whose borders correspond to a community and that have widely different percentages of children who passed the fourth‐grade proficiency test in a specified year. In Ohio, this information is available on the website of the Department of Education. Students then retrieve demographic data from the Web site of the US Census about the two school districts/communities, including but not limited to:
Proportion of School Age Children = Percentage of population age 5–17 Community Stability = Percent of rental occupied housing units Community Education Level = Percentage of population aged 25 and over with Bachelor's Degree or higher Community Income Level = Median family income Poverty Level = Percent of families below poverty level
In a paper, students summarize and interpret the findings. In addition, put the data from all the districts/communities into one table with the percentages of students who passed the exam in the first column in descending order.
FEBRUARY, J900 ■ Gettysbur Mercury CONTENTS. Puzzles and their Value in Men-tal Training, 261 How Obtain Equilibrium be-tween Production and Con-sumption, 265 Scene in the Forest, Orlando Soliloquizing, 271 Education more than a Means of Gaining a Livelihood, 272 A Comparative Study in Ruskin, 274 Editorials 278 Economic Results of Gambling, 279 Results of the Art of Healing,. 282 Public Control of Industries 285 The Power of Ignorance; 292 KAVOR THOSE WHO FAVOR US. For Fine. Printing go to p o ,,0 CARLISLE ST. GETTYSBURG, PA. C. B. Kitzmiller Dealer in Hats, Caps, Boots and . Douglas Shoes GETTYSBURG, PA. J. H. Myers Fashionable Tailor, Clothier and Gents' Furnisher. The best place in town to taaveyourCloth-ing made to order. All workmanship and Trimmings guaranteed. No charge for re-pairs and pressing for one year. Dyeing and Repairing a specialty. Ready-made Clothing the largest stock in town. Up-to-date styles. 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HINDS & HOBLE, Publishers 4-5-13-14 Cooper Institute H. Y. City Schoolbnohs of all publishers atone store. R. A. WONDERS, Corner Cigar Parlors. A full line of Cigars, Tobacco, Pipes, Etc. Scott's Corner, Opp. Eagle Hotel. GETTYSBURG, PA. JOHN M. MINNIGH, Confectionery, Ice, andIee Cpeankjj-* Oysters Stewed and Fried. No. 17 BALTIMORE ST. I .THE. GETTYSBURG MERCURY. Entered at the Postoffice at Gettysburg as second-class matter. VOL. VIII. GETTYSBURG, PA., FEBRUARY, 1900. No. 8 Editor-in-Chief. J. FRANK HEILMAN, '00. Assistant Editors. LUTHER A. WEIGLE, '00. S. A. VAN ORMER, '01. Alumni Editor. REV. F. D. GARLAND. Business Manager. JOHN K. HAMACHER. '00. Assistant Business Manager. CLARENCE MOORE, '02. Advisory Board. PROF. J. A. HIMES, LIT. D. PROF. G. D. STAHLEY, M. D. PROF. J. W. RICHARD, D. D. Published monthly by the students of Pennsylvania (Gettysburg) College. Subscription price One Dollar a year in advance, single copies Fifteen Cents. Students, Professors and Alumni are cordially invited to contribute. All subscriptions and business matter should be addressed to the Business Manager. Articles for publication should be addressed to the Editor. Address THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY, GETTYSBURG, PA. PUZZLES AND THEIR VALUE IN MENTAL TRAINING. [GIES PRIZE ESSAY, FIRST PRIZE.] OF all the powers of the human soul, the imagination is one of the most universal in its application and pleasing in its products, the earliest activity of the infant mind, and the last to cling to old age. Without the exercise of this faculty, the world would be a barren waste of material facts, in which would dwell the human race, passive recipients of objective im-pressions, without the power to revel in the beauties of imaged thought and conception of the Divine. Poetry, philosophy, art, science, invention, religion—all would be lost to mankind. L,ittle wonder, then, that the products of the imagination have ever been present and cultivated among men. The word "puzzle" has been variously defined, and the objects of thought and action to which it may be applied are widely different. But a common ground may be assumed—a puzzle is an invented contrivance, either intellectual or material, mtmllM - 262 THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. whose solution requires time and ingenuity. It will be seen that the puzzle is pre-eminently the product ot the inventive imagina-tion and in turn its highest application is in the exercise of that power for its solution. Intellectual puzzles are in many senses the most important and also most ancient, being generally cast in the form of riddles. From the earliest times of history we can find evidence of the existence of puzzles, either as a form of intellectual amusement or didactic discipline. Among the Eastern nations obscure forms of expression were the inevitable associates of their symbolical modes of thought. It is certain that such methods of statement were in use among the Egyptians, while several books of riddles exist in old Arabic and Persian. One of the most well-known of puzzles is the riddle which Samson propounded to the Philistines, and many other examples are found in the Bible. The proverbs of Solomon are at times excellent types of the didactic form of the riddle. The parables of the Savior were skillful methods of teaching important truths veiled under an interesting narrative which drew the attention of the crowd, and would be very accept-able to an Eastern mind. In Greece the riddle was a favorite mode of intellectual enter-tainment at symposia. To the active mind of the Greek nothing was more pleasing than a well-directed turn of expression which would give room for play of the imagination. There is abundant evidence of this among their writers. Some of their poets even did not hesitate to write whole books of riddles, and Kleobulus, one of the seven wise men, was especially noted for his composi-tions along this line. The famous riddle of the Sphinx as told in the Oedipus Tyrannus, is probably the best known puzzle of Greek literature, though the most interesting form was a part of their very religious life and character—the oracles of the inspired priests, on which hung sometimes the fate of nations, even of the world. The raveling of such obscurities of expression was a source of the keenest pleasure to the Greek mind, and, while a product of the imagination, was an efficient agent in bringing it to that perfection shown in attic literature, thought and philosophy. The Roman mind, more earnest and grave, found small pleas-ure in these modes of intellectual activity, and very little is known of their use of puzzles until the later republic and empire, when they were introduced with the passion for everything Greek, and ■■■■HH THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 263 professional riddle-makers soon began to take a prominent part in their entertainments and banquets. During the middle ages puzzles were cultivated more as a pleasant means of entertainment than for any other purpose, and until recently the same idea has clung to them. Many manu-script and printed editions of collections of puzzles, riddles and conundrums are in existence. Much of their content consists of coarse jests, but there are some real gems of wit and valuable aids to a true estimate of mediaeval life. The Reformation put a stop to this merry jesting for a time, but it soon crept into favor again, and during the eighteenth century the most brilliant minds of Europe were engaged in the intellectual pastime. At the present day puzzles are still in great favor with both young and old, and their educational worth is becoming more and more realized. As a mental training the value of the puzzle lies chiefly in its power of cultivating quickness and strength of the constructive imagination. An obscurity of expression or mechanical con-struction may require time to solve its intricacies, but the mind is certainly the better for having mastered it. All the faculties of memory and imagination are brought into play, and side by side comes development of the reasoning power as we attempt to deduce from our problem its elements, or to arrive by induction at the result of certain assumed forces. These are the things which made the riddle so attractive to the Greek, with his quick imagination and active reasoning power. When we solve a dif-ficult puzzle, we in fact repeat the very processes by which as children we began to learn, for then everything was a puzzle; and in doing so we strengthen the faculties of the mind which are most essential, and besides strength impart to them a facility and quickness of action, which is in itself most valuable. The subject-matter of the puzzle may be another source of con-siderable benefit. The didactic riddles of the East have already been mentioned as examples of what may be taught in this way. A truth given an obscure expression which requires mental effort to unravel will be impressed upon the mind when it has been gained. A mechanical construction whose every portion has been carefully studied with a view to its possible part in the function of the whole, will not soon be forgotten. In this fact alone may be grounded a strong argument in favor of the puzzle's part in mental training. 264 THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. Puzzles are beginning to play a more and more important part in the education of the child. Almost the first book placed in its hands, "Mother Goose," is full of simple riddles. Froebel's kindergarten method, so generally acknowledged now-a-days, em-bodies the puzzle idea to a great extent, developing as it does the powers of observation, invention and reasoning. As the child passes into school, puzzles of graded difficulty are used for several years, and his toys always include a number of puzzles and games, many of which contain subject-matter of educational value. Many firms now publish educational games, whose benefit to the child will be revealed by even a superficial examination. The use of puzzles may be carried too far, however; for they may be made an end in themselves. Men may become so infatu-ated with the delicacy of reasoning and exhilaration of discovery as to lose sight entirely of the practical use of the mind. So did the School-men of the middle ages, who waged long controversies on trivial and absurd questions merely for sake of the argument. Neither should puzzles take the place of more legitimate means of education, for it must be kept in mind that they are for the more developed merely an intellectual pastime which will benefit instead of harm ; and for the child a means of starting its mind upon the path which it must shortly travel with the more able guides of language, art and science. Puzzles seem to be trivial things, and are so in a certain sense. But they present wonderful capabilities to the student of Psy-chology and the teacher of the child's mind. Used within proper bounds, as a means and not an end, they may become, in devel-opment of strength and facility of the imagination and the reas-oning power, and in didactic force, a powerful factor in mental training. —L. A. W., '00. Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties; write its precepts in your hearts, and practice them in your lives. —U. S. Grant. A broken reputashun is like a broken vase—it may be mend-ed, but alwuss shows whare the brak waz.—Josh Billings. THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 265 MOW OBTAIN EQUILIBRIUM BETWEEN PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION. AS a matter of course, the first thing to consider in searching for a remedy for any evil, whether in economics or else-where, is to seek to find the causes of that evil, and to discover a means of removing these causes. Whether the means proposed be beneficial in other respects or advisable upon other grounds we do not need to inquire in this paper. All that is necessary is to find some measure which gives fair promise of bettering matters in this one department of economic life which we have under consideration, namely, of establishing a more stable and more nearly correct relation between the producer and consumer. Briefly and roughly stated, it seems to us that the whole difficulty arises from the fact that the producer is not able to foretell how much of a demand there will be for his goods and incidental to this, how many of those who create the demand will be able to pay within a reasonable time, provided he is willing to sell on credit. As to the second point, demand un-doubtedly is defined to be how much certain persons are ready to take at a certain price. But we must remember that an enormous part of economic operations are conducted on a credit basis and we cannot overlook this as it exercises such a potent influence in increasing or lowering the demand or supply at any time. For if a man believes the credit of his purchasers is good, he will be willing to sell a greater quantity of goods on credit and at a lower price than if he is doubtful as to their credit, and so we might illustrate further. This second point then is incidental to the first, but it is so important in the view we take of the matter that we mention it at once in connection with what we regard the leading difficulty, namely, the producer's ignorance of the con-sumer's future demand for his goods. For he must anticipate the future. It is possible in so few industries to carry on production by filling orders already filed, that we may almost neglect them. And where there are such, the difficulties which we find elsewhere between producer and consumer do not exist, since they work on a solid basis with regard to the future, and are not compelled to base their output upon a supposed state of the market. In other words, they know 266 THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. what the market will be and this is the element which is ordinar-ily lacking and which is the cause, as we believe, of the mis-understandings. Now it becomes important to try to answer the question "Why are these producers in ignorance of the future demand for their goods ?" Necessarily an important factor, in all economic life, is the large mass of natural products which are so dependent on the forces of nature, and as it is impossible to control the workings of these to any appreciable extent, the period between the planting for the future and the realization of it, between "seedtime and harvest," must always be one of doubt. It is apparently impossible to control the amount of production in this sphere, and, so far as this operates as an agent in causing misunderstandings between the producer and consumer, we do not attempt to suggest a remedy. As long as it is impossible for a man to know that he can meet a certain demand, even though he is sure that demand will exist, and that impossibility depends on the fact that the agents which cause the uncertainty are beyond human control, the cure seems also to be without the bounds of human power. From this class of cases where there is an impossibility for the producer to tell what supply he can put upon the market, we pass, by almost imperceptible gradations, to cases where the producer needs only know the demand and he can meet it with an ample supply. No doubt there are natural products which lie on the line between these extremes, as, for example, the output of mines which can be regulated to a fair extent, and there are products, not strictly natural, which are very uncertain as to the possible supply, but as a rule the further removed the product is from the soil, the more completely is the extent of its production within the control of man. It is to this class of products that we wish to direct particular attention. Assuming then that the demand could be met if it could be known, we come again to the question "Why cannot the demand be known ?" The producer can find from his table ofstatistics how many producers there are in the same business with him, how large an amount of their products has been sold during the year previous to that one, and the year previous and soon back, and then, by dividing his capital into the total capital invested in the business, he can find how much of that output should belong --. Sira :-:.'; . THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 267 to him. A simple problem, no doubt, but with no correctness in its application, and why not ? Simply because no one of his fellow producers, nor himself either, will be satisfied with the amount as he would thus work it out, but partly through natural aggressive-ness, partly though a desire to protect himself against aggressive-ness on the part of his competitors, he will seek to produce and to sell a little more than his share. He will devise new means by which he can bring his goods a little more in favor with the pub-lic than his rivals. He will reduce his prices, allowing himself a narrower margin of profits, hoping to make himself even by larger sales. No doubt in this way he will sell more goods than his slower going neighbor and will get some of the trade which would otherwise have gone to him. His neighbor's trade falls off and he finds that he provided for more trade than he is getting and is burdened with an unsalable stock. This is so much idle capi-tal and makes him so much less able to carry on a successful business. This single illustration, on a small scale, though it is, shows the inherent tendency of competition to make uncertain what share of a given demand will fall to a producer's lot. The same amount of goods may be sold, as he had anticipated, but he has not sold his share, for some one has succeeded in selling it ahead of him. We believe, therefore, that competition is the main reason. why the producer cannot foretell what the demand for his goods will be, and as it is this inability to foretell which leads to the mis-understandings between producer and consumer, the natural conclusion is that we should remove competition. We wish to make mention again that we do not argue that this is necessarily a beneficial or advisable means generally. ■ All we are concerned with is the question whether it will tend to remove the misunderstandings we have been speaking of. Of course it is not far to seek a means of accomplishing this. The means have been thrust upon us rather generously during the past few years. The tendency toward industrial combination, seeming to be the logical outgrowth of competition, appears, like Zeus, to threaten the reign of its progenitor. No doubt, it ap-pears startling to those economists who have been accustomed to regard competition with a kind of solemn awe, as containing a remedy for "all the heartaches and the thousand natural shocks 268 THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. that flesh is heir to ;" but perhaps its partial disappearance may be attended by some results not altogether detrimental. The trust can estimate the demand which it will be called upon to meet. The total demand for a given article during any given period, does not vary through so large a range as to render this estimate one of great uncertainty. No doubt seasons of unusual depression or excitement may render calculations imperfect, but, all in all, the total output which the consumer stands ready to dispose of, is a matter of far higher certainty than the numerous possibilities existing when the producers are multiplied. By the immense amount of capital invested, the trust is better able to adapt itself to an unusual season of excitement or depres-sion. For example, the American Sugar Refining Company a few years ago built a new refinery furnished with the newest techni-cal improvements, to serve only as a safeguard in the case of a suddenly increased demand, or of stoppage in other factories. President Hadley in an article on Trusts, says, " A consoli-dated company has advantages in its power of adapting the amount of production to the needs of consumption. Where several con-cerns with large plants are competing and no one knows exactly what the others are doing, we are apt to have an alternation between years of over-production and years of scarcity, an alter-nation no less unfortunate for the public than for the parties im-mediatety concerned. A wisely managed combination can do much to avoid this. By making its production more even, it can give a constant supply of goods to the consumers and a constant opportunity of work to the laborers; and the resulting steadiness of prices is so great an advantage to all concerned that the public can well afford to pay a very considerable profit to those whose organizing power has rendered such useful service. Morever, the consolidation of all competing concerns avoids many unnecessary expenses of distribution. Under the old sys-tem, these expenses are very great. The multiplication of selling agencies involves much waste. Competitive advertisement is often an unnecessary and unprofitable use of money. Delivery of goods from independent producers, whether by wagon or by rail-road, often costs more than the better organized shipmeuts of a single large concern. All of these evils can be avoided by con-solidation." The same writer compares the trusts with an army, and the THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 269 comparison is apt for more purposes than one. The effectiveness with which a thoroughly organized and wealthy trust can meet an unexpected crisis, as compared with a large number of disorgan-ized and quarrelsome companies or individuals,is well paralleled by the difference between the manner in which a thoroughly equipped and organized army will overcome a sudden and severe attack, where a host of stragglers would have been cut to pieces. The very organization constitutes an element of tremendous strength. It must be concluded, we think, then, that trusts, would, or rather do furnish a means by which the future demand for the goods of the producer may be rendered more certain and hence they tend to remove the misunderstandings between the producer and the consumer. And now, how would such a remedy apply when we consider the matter of selling on credit. The man who sells, necessarily is not satisfied merely because he can tell how many goods his cus-tomer will buy. He wants to know how many he can and will pay for. Here in addition to the fact that their superior mastery of all the details of their business renders them more capable of judging of the credit of their purchasers, we seem to find another and very important fact. When competition exists, the producer is all the time seeking to hold out more inducement than his com-petitor. One of the common forms these inducements take is a sale on credit, and then competition arises as to extending the time of credit. Now, when the backbone of competition is broken, the trust no longer needs to use such means to secure purchasers. It stands in a position to dictate, to a great degree, its own terms, and can provide much more fully against dangerous credit than can be done where competition has full play. It is worth while, too, to mention the indirect effects flowing from those above mentioned. As the future is more closely anti-cipated, and as the sales made are more fully realized on than formerly, the financial embarrassments of various producers, under the old regime become a gradually disappearing quantity in the disturbing influences on trade. Of course the increased danger from the possibility of the trust must be omitted, but we believe it is overbalanced by the failures due to competition. When we entered upon the analysis of the causes which ren-dered demand uncertain, we supposed for the time being that the 'JO THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. demand, if known, could be met. We now return to that point to inquire briefly how the trust would effect that side of the ques-tion, though we have already incidentally touched upon it. Necessarily, one thing which renders uncertain the ability of the producer to meet a given demand is the possibility of dissatis-faction among his employees, leading to a strike. The same argument applies here as applies to selling on credit. The employee is, to a certain extent, able to make more at the kind of work he is engaged in than at any other, for the simple reason that he knows more about it. Now when there are a number of producers in the same business he knows, if he leaves one, he can probably find work with another, while, where there is but one employer, he loses this advantage. But writers on Trusts and Industrial Combinations in the United States agree that the information given by the working-men, themselves, seems to prove that generally a reduction of hours for labor, seldom a reduction of wages and occasionally, an increase, have taken place, especially where the workingmen were well organized themselves. "It is pretty clear that the laborers in centralized undertakings have not been worse off than in decentralized ones." So that it appears that there is less likeli-hood of a strike under such organization than under the decen-tralized form, so that less opposition to the free course of produc-tion would be met with here. And again the indirect results would be beneficial. For, as the demand becomes more certain, and there is less waste from imperfect attempts to meet it, more and more the production of the trust becomes near to a uniform standard and thus tends to give the workmen steady employment at regular wages, which is a strong barrier against a strike on their part. From the direct and indirect results, therefore, of the consoli-dated form of production, we are led to believe that it presents a means of establishing a far better understanding between the pro-ducer and consumer. That in some minor details the result might be otherwise we do not deny, but looking at it in its broad out-lines and confining our attention carefully to theparticularsubject we have under discussion, we conclude that trusts furnish a method for removing much of the friction between the producer and the consumer. 'oo. ItttfSM&B&iSaSB THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 271 SCENE IN THE FOREST, ORLANDO SOLILOQUIZING. IS it so that in this guise she sought me? My heart is sick within me. I'll take me back to a wilder region in the forest and there the remainder of my days I'll spend in mourn-ing for my lost love. Aye, virtue is modesty and modesty is a virtue and in that is she lacking. Seek her ? Speak with her ? But strike me dead if I may speak one word with her, I'll write it, fold it, give it to her and fly. 'Twill be a testimony of my love that was, that is no more. She merits now nothing but my scorn. If I had wit, I'd make her blush for very shame, if shame there be in her. But my last breath is drawn. Oh how I loved her to distraction ! I ought to go, but how to move? What is this feeling within me that holds me back ? Is it because the road is long and I am tired. No, 'tis an accursed lingering of that love that once so filled me that I knew naught else. Will it never be in my power to shake it off? 'Twassent from Heaven and not from earth; 'twas given by God and not by man. And yet I'll rid me of it. Can one so unworthy hold my affections thus ? I have a dim vague unrest, can it be removed ? I hear a rustle in the autumn leaves. Ay, here she comes, do I love her yet ? I know not how strong my passion is. I faint from fear. I see her so plain, yet must seem to see her not. She speaks— Enter Ros. and Alia. Ros. (Dressed as a woman.) I am much distressed and faint for succor, must I fall with my true love standing near me and aiding me not ? Alia. Perhaps he sees us not. Shall I go touch him on the arm ? Ros. Yes, ask him if he loves me still. Tell him if when I need it his love fails me it is not love. ' Alia. (Goes up and touches him.) Rosalind has come to seek her lover. Do you not. see her ? She is in need of your aid ? What ails you ? Your eyes look wild and you seem to know me not. Orl. If any of pity exists in your heart for me leave me alone. Alas, I know not what I say; I want you to leave me and yet I fain would have you stay. Ros. (Coming up.) Pray pardon me for calling you my lover, you received it with such melancholy dignity, methinks 272 THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. you do not half appreciate the honor placed upon you. Can I relieve you of the burden of the title? But why do you look at me thus ? Have I done aught against you ? Orl. I show no bravery by standing before you thus. I would that I could die before your very eyes to let you know what havoc you have wrought. But I leave you now this very minute to go far into the forest, perchance to take of my abode with a shepherd and thus spend my remaining days. I leave yet I stay. I cannot stir an inch, (aside.) Sweet Rosalind, has turned my head, Howl love her! Despite her faults, despite her lack of modesty.' Why came you to me thus? Tell me wished you again with your wiles to torment my morbid feelings. Ah, Rosalind, I still shall call you mine. Ros. Orlando, why did you think so ill of me ? Could you not see in my glowing eyes the story of my love. I would rather have had you woo me but bashful man makes maidens bold and love will find a way. We were parted but I could not abide far from thee. Wherever fate led I followed swayed by love alone. And as the days grow brighter and our hearts grow lighter we shall sing for joy, yes, joy without alloy. EDUCATION MORE THAN A MEANS OP GAINING A LIVELIHOOD. THAT education is a means of gaining a livelihood is a fact that needs no proof. Almost every day we are brought into contact with those who are gaining a comfortable liveli-hood by means of their education. In our day there are many others who are striving to get possession of the same means for no other purpose than that of making a living. It is to be regretted, however, that too many look at education as if it were a mere instrument for easily securing the things which satisfy their physical wants. Through this motive men have lost sight of the real and lasting value of education. I would not say that it is wrong to consider education as a means of gaining a livelihood, but I think that it is a very grievous error to consider education as having no other use or value. Indeed, education without any other purpose than that of a means of gaining a livelihood would be of little value to beings created as we are. THE GETTYSBURG MERCURY. 273 Herbert Spencer in his work on Education says, "In education the question of questions is how to decide among the conflicting claims of subjects and determine the relative values of knowledge. Every one in contending for the worth of any particular order of information, does so by showing its bearing upon some part of life. All effort, either directly or by implication, must appeal to the ultimate test of what use is it?" In other words, the writer affirms that the essential question for us to ponder is "How to live." Not how to live in the mere material sense only, but in the widest sense. The general problem which comprehends every special prob-lem is the right ruling of conduct in all directions, under all circumstances. In what way to treat the body; in what way to treat the mind; in what way to manage our affairs; in what way to bring up a family; in what way to behave as a citizen; in what way to utilize all those sources of happiness which nature supplies—how to use all our faculties to the greatest advantage of ourselves and others—how to live completely! And this being the great thing needful for us to learn, it is, by conse-quence the great aim of education. The leading kinds of activities which constitutes human life are: (1) Those activities which directly minister to self preserva-tion; (2) Those activities which, by securing the necessaries of life, indirectly administer to self preservation; (3) Those activities which are involved in the maintenance of proper social and political relations; (4) Those miscellaneous activities which make up the leisure part of life, devoted to the gratification of tastes and feelings. Is it not education which prepares the individual for direct and indirect self-preservation, for parent-hood, for citizenship, and for the miscellaneous refinements of life? Of course ideal education is complete preparation in all these divisions. Some one has said that education is to the soul what sculpture is to the marble. As the sculpture brings out of the marble the god-like form, the symmetrical proportion, the life-like attitude of the finished and polished statue, so education brings out of man as an animal man, a rational being, making him a complete creature after his kind. To his frame it gives vigor, activity and beauty; to his senses correctness and acuteness; to his intellect, power and truthfulness; to his heart, virtue. r
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Issue 10.4 of the Review for Religious, 1951. ; A. M. D.G. ~o Review for Religious JULY 15, 19 51 Our Aged Religious . Sister Mary Jafie Redemptorls÷ Spiri÷uali÷y. . Joseph I~t. Coller~n Recollectio"n Day Ouestions " ° Winfrld Herbsf Elections and Appointments . Joseph F. Gallen Grow÷h through the Eficharls÷ Anselm Lacomara ins÷ruction on Sponsa Christi , List of Psychometric Tests Communications Book Reviews VOLUME X NUMBER 4 Rfi::::VII::::W FOR Ri:::LIGIOUS VOLUME X JULY, 1951 NUMBER Jr CONTENTS SOME PROBLEMS OF OUR AGED RELIGIOUS-~Sister MaryJane, O.P1.69 COMMUNICATIONS ': 173 OUR CONTRIBUTORS . 174 VACATION SCHOOL IN SOCIAL ACTION .1.7.4 REDEMPTORIST. SPIRITUALITY--Joseph M. Colleran, C.SS.R. 175 QUESTIONS FOR MONTHLY RI~CO~LECTION-- Winfri~l.Herbst, S.D.S . 185 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS--Joseph F. Gallen, S.J. 187 GROWTH IN GRACE THROUGH THE EUCHARIST-- Anselm Lacomara, C. P .200 HERESY OF RACE 204 INSTRUCTION ON 8PONSA CHRISTI . 205 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS-- 19. Sister Digna's List of Psychometric Tests . 213 BOOK REVIEWS~ Religious Life and Spirit: Living the Mass; Jesus.Christ; The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius . 217 BOOK ANNOUNCEMENTS " 222 FOR YOUR INFORMATION-- Morality and Alcoholism; The Good Confessor; Seventy Years 224 REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS, July, 1951, Vol. X. No. 4. Published bi-monthly: January, March, May, July, September, and November at the College Press, 606 Harrison Street, Topeka, Kansas, by St. Mary's College, St. Marys, Kansas, with ecclesiastical approba~tion. Entered as second class matter January 15, 1942, at the Post Office, Topeka. Kansas, under the act: of March 3, 1879. Editorial Board: Adam C. Ellis, S.J., G. Augustine Ellard, S.J., Gerald Kelly, S.J. Editorial Secretary: Jerome Breunig, S. J. Copyright, 1951. by Adam C. Ellis, S.J. Permission is hereby granted for quota-tions of reasonable length, provided due credit be given this review and the author. Subscription price: 3 dollars a year; 50 cents a copy. Printed in U. S. A. Before writ;ncj to us, please consult notice on inside back cover. Some Problems ot: Our Aged Religious Sister Mary Jane, O.P. THE problems of old religious are the problems of each and every one, for none of us is getting any younger. The proverbial old-fashioned rocker on the farmhouse porch where Granny could drowse away her honored last years has vanished, but Granny has not and neither has the aged religious. Never before our generation was the old age problem Sb great because there never were so many old folks. "Statistics tell us that today men and women sixty-five and overc~prise seven per cent of our population. Science has graciously presented another twenty years or more. Religious as well as others must plan what they are going to do. Sixty-Fiue is Young One wonderful and bright fact is that there are numerous reli-gious, both men and women, over sixty-five who are still,:bearing a large share of the burden of the community's w6rk. Dodge and Ford proved that old folks can work; they maintained old-age shops whose able personnel included men in their eighties. Long before either of the above thought of this, religious communities were taking it for granted. Sixty-five in a religious community is usually con-sidered young. Rarely does one find a religious who even considers retiring at that age, or at any age for that matter. How often one finds religious teaching school or doing other types of work at the ripe age of seventy-five and eighty. The author knows a religious who still goes out collecting alms for the community at the age of ninety-two. ~ During the past two wars employers in general were del~ighted with the oldsters' low accident and absenteeism rates,, as well as with their strategy in attacking problems. They were proud o'f the pro-duction power of that proportion of their workers. We, too, have every right to be proud of our aged religious. In the United States most old people subsist on some form ot~ organized "handout.," A few may enjoy adequate pensions from private sources,'frorr/civil service retirement allowances, Veteran allot- 169 SISTER MARY JANE Review [or Religious o merits, or old age relief or insurance. For others, an unfinanced senescence is likely to ,be dreaded: Often, it means ending up in a pub-li~ or private "nursing home." Not so our religious brethren; there is not this-fear for a member of a community. A few religious com-munities have a home for their dear ones, some with a'long waiting list. Waiting, yes, waiting for one or more to be called home for the longed-Ior eternal reward, but. waiting, too, to "occupy the places made vacant. What about the ~ged religious who cannot be admitted to these havens for some reason or other? The Housing Problem Where should these aged religious live? No one would deny them the balmy ease of Orlando, if they could have it. The public institution is out of the question. Some communities have done much but others have mad~ slight provision for their aged members either ih the past or at present. '~In many cases existing conditions and facilities are pitifully inadequate. It is undeniable that unless some corrective measures are set in motion, this already serious prob-lem'will become more acute as the average life expectancy climbs higher. Perhaps many more of the aged religious should be living with their communities, but, where this is not feasible, they ought to have a'special home ~where they may be left alone, but where they can obtain help when they need it. We all agree, that individualization in the care of o~r aged religious is preferable to institutionalization. There is hardly an institutional home for the aged which does not mingle the sick with the near-sick. More often than not, the latter need nothing more than custodial care. It is true that the pressure of modern .urban living makes domestic adaptability between age groups difficult and in many cases well nigh impossible. The aged find it difficult to change their habits so late in life. Nevertheless, many religious can and do get along together, particularly where th~ old religious remember the Golden Rule and the younger ones bear in mind that Our Lord said, "What you have done to these, you have done to Me." Some Symptoms o[ Age Old age is a gradual progression toward deterioration. It often shows symptoms of growing self-interest and lack of impressibility. Important events are no 19nger significant to old people as long as they do not touch directly upon their lives. There is usually a gen- 170 Jul~,1951 OUR AGED RELIGIOUS eral reduction in mental effidency, forgetfulness, arid loss of memory for recent events. Other symptoms include the tendency to reminisce and to fabricate, intolerance of change--routine must be observed and must never be disturbed lest irritability and tension rise--a rest-less desire to be up and about, to travel here and there, "frequently getting lost in transit (whether in or out of the monastery or con-vent) ; insomnia, and a tendency to putter aimlessly about the house and gardens. The t.endency to live in the pasi is very strong in some. Others show a total lack o~ interest in everything about them. Some are unsympathetic and indifferent, and the mood may ,change frequently and even without ~any apparent cause. Some ma~. be cooperativd, orderly, and quiet, and give very little trduble, .While others are untidy, meddlesome, 'and rcstless; Very.'often aged people become resistive when they think they a~.e: being coerced by those who are younger. One may even hear such expressions as "That fresh young thing!" Some Solutions The psychology of persuasion may have t'o called iflt.6.play to meet behavior problems that arise. Various stages of senility can effect disposition changes that necessitate parti.cular ~tre.atnlent and care. A great need is companionship. At its best old age is°a lonely existence, to say the least, and must be brightened by cheerful com-panions and a staff with a sense of humor. Everyone, we are told, comes into this life with three strong fundamental drives or needs: (1) the need of security; (2) the need fcr affection; (3) the need to do things for others or to mean some-thing to others. Frustration of these ftlnda~nental needs, even among religious, causes tension which makes the individual uncomfortable. The persistence of this tendency may be the beginning of a. nervous condition. Disability and chronic illness in the ageing and aged religious are increasing. The burden upon the communities, is already very large. It clearly threatens to increase year by year, unless something effective is done now to better conditions. . Nou) is the Time What can be done now with our young and middle-aged to make them strong, able, and competent to contribute to the general welfare and happiness during their declining years instead of being a burden to their fellow religious and themselves. This is a matter of concern 171 SISTER MARY JANE Reoieu~ [or Religious to each and every one of us. The time has come to speak out. It is not enough for y, ounger members to feel the wave of sentimental pity that sometimes sweeps over them today. It is not enough to provide the physical comforts of shelter, food, and clothing for these aged religious. These dear ones must be understood now by their fellow religious. Now,. too, they must learn to understand them-' SelVeS, The author is not bitter, but sometimes has to count to ten or perhaps whisper an "Ave Maria" to hold back angry words provoked by thoughtless acts, looks, and sometimes even just the tone of voice directed at some aged ~eliglous. If only everyone remembered how little they like. to be singled out as special beings! The attittide.of others is often a great handicap. It may be the lack of belief, the misdirected ~sympathg, sometimes the lack of sympathy, or the failure to regiird the aged one as an individual. Abrasions and fractures may heal, but a broken spirit will not. Often the feeling of younger religious towards the aged of their community combines pity and confusion. The pity may express itself in remarks like: "Isn't that sad?': "Too bad, we ought to be thank-ful." "She's old enough to die." "She served her purpose." Is there perhaps "no room" for the old religious? Again, why do some always make the mistake of thinking that all aged religious are deaf? Needless to say, over-hearing such remarks will hardly boost their morale. If this is what we ageing religious must look forward to as our life-span is extended, we may find ourselves agreeing that there are worse things in life than dying young or dying suddenly. Belonging What the aged religious wants more than anything is to be treated like everyone else, to feel that he belongs to the community, that he is stil! wanted. Belonging is the big thing. The penalties of old age are aggravated with rustication, particularly when undesir-ability, is felt. The aged religious should not be ruled out of any social life in the community nor excluded from recreations. Even when they cannot do the things the younger generation does, they like to watch. It makes, them part of what is going on. An occa-sional movie or a short excursion is sometimes most welcome. Ap-propriate occupations and recreations should be provided. Some religious are more efficient at seventy than others at fifty. Old people --religious are no exception--should be kept as active as possible to I72 ' duly, 1951 COMMUNICATIONS' make rise of their skills and preserve their morale. When they are occupied, they are happy. Properly selected bccupational .therapy exercises arthritic hands and encourages the use of affected extremltle~, preventing complete invalidism. Most activities tend to. stimulate normal functions and to counteract the tendency to apathy, brooding, and introspection. Anything that will preserve the self respect and dignity of old age should be appropriated .for the rise of our elderly religious. They should not be permitted to lose their identity in an atmosphere of depressing gloom and finality. Sickness or dependence of any kind is often a. degrading enough experience in itself. Above all, we must not call attention to their infi~rfiities, if they have any, not even with affectionate attention. Sur.~ly, .it is their right and privilege to have their few remaining years happy and free from worry. The aged are here td stay for longer periods th~n ever. The living and working conditions, then, of our dear aged religious should be a considerate concern of every one. And besides, none of us is getting any younger. Communications Reverend Fathers : In the March issue of the REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS, I read with consternation ,the letter of,Sister M. Catherine Eileen, S.H.M. Since one might be misled by Sister's optimism (justifiable in her particular case), I think a little more information on the fenestration operatiori is essential.' A.few of Sister's statements also should be clarified. Sister writes: "There is fenestration surgery now to cure the type of deafness known as otosclerosis." However, men who have dis-tinguished themselves in this work say that it is only an amelioration of this disease and a restoration of serviceable hearing in suitable cases and,the~results are not as yet individually predictable. There are some who would disagree with Sister when she sa'ys, "Any otologist can diagnose this most prevalent kind of deafness." They hold that there is no method upon which one can depend with absolute certainty for the diagnosis of otosclerosis and that surgery on one afflicted with pathology wbich simulates but is n6t otoscler-osis will not improve the hearing of the individual. 173 COMMUNICATIONS "Some'time to re~over" may mean a period of years accompanied by a discharging ear. Whether or not the operation is successful, the ear will require care for the remainder of the patient's life, i.e., peri-odic visits to the ear specialist. This perhaps is not too great a price if the hearing is improved but rather a steep one if no improvement has resulted. Sister's" c~se does seem successful and I don't wonder she is so enthusiastic. To those whose hopes might have been raised by Sis-ter's zeal, I should say seek the advice of one who has an enviable reputation in the field of ear surgery. May I quote'one such otol-ogist, "In a suitable case the decision between operation and a hearing aid is a question which should be decided by the individual." Anyone who is further interested may write to the American Hearing Society, Washington 7, D. C., and get a copy of Hearing NewS, March 1948, from which I have taken the information con-tained in this letter. The New York League for the Hard of Hearing did not have any later available data on the subject. --SISTER HELEN LOYOLA, C.S.J. ' OUR CONTRIBUTORS JOSEPH M. COLLERAN, the translator of St. Augustine's Greatness of Soul and The Teacher in the "Ancient Christian Writers" series, is a professor of philosophy at Mount St. Alphonsus Seminary, Esopus, New York. SISTER MARY JANE taught both elementary and high school' for twenty-five years before entering the fidld of nursing. She is now an affiliate at the Brooklyn State Hospital for the mentally ill. ANSELM LACOMARA, a missionary and writer, is from Our Mother of Sorrows Monastery, West Sprihgfield, Massachusetts. WINFRID HERBST, au-thor and retreat master, is on the faculty of the Salvatorian Seminary, St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. JOSEPH F. GALLEN is a professor of canon law at Woodstock Col-lege, Woodstock, Maryland. VACATION SC~HOOL IN SOCIAL ACTION St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, is offering a vacation school in social action for priests and seminarians from August 14-25. There will be lecture courses, combining exposition and opportunity for discussion, on the spiritual foundation of social action and on organizing the parish for social action. The director is the Reverend D. MacCormack. 174 Redemptorist: Spirit:ualit:y Joseph M. Colleran, C.SS.R. WHEN St. Alphonsus de Liguori, in 1732, gathered a groupof ¯ priests and brothers to form the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, he intended primarily to 6rganize a band of missionaries to evangelize the neglected country districts of his native Kingdom of Naples, and later, of other parts of the world, and everywhere to preach redemption and repentance to "the most abandoned souls." That its concentration upon this precise .field of apostolic activity constitutes the sole feature disting.uishing the con-" gregation from other religious institutes is the impression given, upon first reading, by the .explanatory constitutions which the saint added in 1764, and which, in this respect, remain the same today. "Every Religious Institute proposes to itself a two-fold end:the first is its own sanctification, the second the salvation of the people and the good of the Church. The former is general, the latter special, and it is by this that the various. Religious Orders differ from one. another . With regard to the second end, by which we ,are dis-tinguished from all other Orders and Religious InstitUtes within the Church, the Rule enjoins that . . . by preaching l~he Word'of God, we should labor to lead the people to a holy life~, especially those who, being scattered in villages and hamlets, are ,most deprived of spiritual help--and this is our specific end" (Constitutions 1 and 5). From the very beginning, howeverl Alphonsus himself practiced, and inculcated upon his spiritual family, a type'of spirituality that would best fit in with this apostolic purpose and would be a distinc-tive mark of his little congregation. This pattern of ascetical formation became more clear and systematic as time went on, and its principles were more exactly formularized as the saint undertook to publish for his followers and for the universal Church, his popular and practical treatises on ascetical and pastoral theology. St. Alphonsus realized deeply that fruitful apostolic activity and personal sanctity were inextricably connected. The sermon that is most effective is the one' that has been lived before it is preached. The asceticism that is most valuable to an apostle is the one that most readily overflows into works of zeal and charity. For that reason he insisted upon an exact proportion between the active labors of the 175 JOSEPH M. COLLERAN Revieud for Religious ministry and the retired contefnplation of.the monastery. He would have his priests be "Carthusians at home and apostles abroad." It was always his ideal that missionaries spend no more than six months of each year in the actual work of the missions, "lest the active life overbalance the contemplative, to their spiritual loss" (Const. 108). He:would have the Coadjutor Brothers, who are engaged in prayer and domestic work, as well as the Sisters of the co.mpanion institu'te, the "Redemptoristines,", not only consecrate themselves to self-sanctification, but also offer their labors and devo~ tions vicariously for the success of the missions. Thus, the saint's pastoral and ascetical directions are inseparable, and together they indicate the spirit of the institute that would continue his labors and copy his way of living with God. The Facets ot: Love Our Lord tells us that the great commandment, for the apostle to preach and for the religious to practice to perfection, is to Iove the Lord thq God u2ith thai whole heart (Mark 12:30),°and St. Paul likewise makes it plain that all Christians must above all things bare cbaritg, which is the bond of perfection (Col. 3:14). While some masters of the spiritual life propose the practice of the various spe-cific virtues as means toward the acquisition of love--so that morti-fication, for example, arises from penance and leads to love--others, like Saints Bernard, Bonaventure, Francis de Sales, propose love as the beginning, th~ seed out of which the other virtues grow. X~v'ithin this second, so-called "seraphic" school, Alphonsus must be num-bered. 1 Love, he recognized, includes and requires both hope and fear. Against Jansenism, whose rigoristic spirit, despite its condemnation, was still deterring sinners from approaching God with confidence and was influencing confessors to demand signs of perfect love before they would grant absolution and permit Communion, the Saint inveighed vigorously. For his more benign practices, he was accused of laxity.At the same time, be fell prey to charges of severity from writers who, holding on to relics of Quietism, were averse to strenu-ou~ ascetical activity, under the pretext of passive indifference. He insisted that his missionaries r~alistically set before the people, to incite them to conversion and fervor, the reality of hell. And out of :tCf. A. Desurmont, C.SS.R., Oeuores Completes, tome 1, L'Art d'Assurer Son Salut. Paris, Libraire de la Sainte Famille, 1906. Introduc~don, p. 23 f. See also C. Keusch, C.SS.R., Die Aszetik des hi. Alfons Maria v6n Liguori. Pader-born, Bonifacius-Druckerei, 1926. P. 236 f. 176 July, 1951 REDEMPTORIST SPI'RITU~ALITY his own missionary experiences,' he formed judgments that other saints and doctors would probably not have expressed so boldly for instance: "If God had not created be!l, wh6 in. the whole world would love Him? If, with hell existing as it really does, the greater part of men choose rather to be damned than to love Almighty God, who, I repeat, would love Him were there no hell? And therefore the Lord threatens those who will not love Him, with an eternal punishment, so that those who will not love Him out of love may at least love Him by force, being constrained to do so through fear of falling into hell.''-~ The keynote of all his exhortations is'salvation, the individual participation in the merits of Christ's Redemption, and salvation is to be. worked out with fear and trembling (Philipp. 2:12). This fear, or more exactly, this love that involves fear, has a function in every grade of the spiritual life. In sinners, Alphonsus aimed to awaken fear by warning them of the eventual limit to the sins that God would forgive, and the limit .to the graces that God would provide. He tirelessly reminds them of the imminence of death, the terrors of hell, the imperative need of conversion. He warns them solemnly" of the fearful dangers of the "occasions of sin." "In regard t9. those striving for perfection', he also has recourse to the motive of fear, although it is prin.c.i.i0Mly the filial fear of losing God and of losing the special graces that are attached to a higher vocation. He voices the warning that although vocation to the religious state is a free gift that does.not imply a strict obligation, yet because special graces are attached i!o this state, it 'is most difficult to attain salvation if one neglects his vocation. Because perseverance is a grace that can be lost by failure to pray, and by lack of correspondence with grace, there is still reason, even in the state of pe.rfeCtion, to fear. (In his own congregation, he added to the three customary vows, a vow and oath of perseverance.) In re~ard to religious, too, he strikds hard at "tepidity," which he identifies as the habit of deliberate venial sin, and which he considers a state to be avoided" with fear. If the saint seems at times encouraging and at times severe, it is only because he is presenting, one at a time and each in its own clarity, the facets of love: confidence and fear. It is, however, con-fidence that predo.minates: "If we have great reason to fear ever-lasting death on account of our offences against God, wfi have, on 2Ditzine Love, II, in The Way of,Salvation and of Perfection, part III. Brookl~n, Redemptorist Fathers, 1926. P. 311 f. 177 JOSEPH M. COLLERAN Review for Religious the other hand, far greater reason to hope for everlasting life through the merits of Jesus Christ, which are infinitely more able to bring tlon.ab°ut" ,,a°ur salvation, than our sins are to bring about our damna- The Practice o[ Love In complete harmony with the long tradition of saints and theo-logians, but with an insistence and clarity peculiarly hi~s own, Alphonsus points out that the measure and the practical test of love of God is conforroit~. , or better, uniformity, of one's will with the Will of God. "Conformity" ~.involves the acceptance of whatever God intend~ for us or permits to happen to us. "Uniformity" sig-nifies our blending our own will as it were, into the Divine Will, so that we .never desire but wh.'a~"[God desires, and there remains only the Will of God, which becomes our own. "The entire perfection of the love of God," the saint writes, "consists in making our own will one with His most holy will . The more united a person is with the Divine Will, the greater will be his love of God . This is the summit of the perfection to which we must be ever aspiring. This has to be the aim of all our work, all our desires, all our meditations and prayers.''4 For Redempto~rists especia.lly, as Alphonsus conceives their voca-tion, uniformity with the Will of God involves two essential require-me, nts. The first is negative: detachment from all created things. The second, more positive means, is imitation of Christ the Redeemer. Detachment While, of course, the conception of detachment is not new with Alphonsus, he gave it such emphasis and priority that he made it a distinctive characteristic of his ascetical doitrine. "Detachment" signifies the exclusion from the heart of everything that is inordinate and alien to perfection; it invplves the denial to self of anything material that does not serve sanctification; it implies the performance of unpleasant rather than of pleasant actions, and greater charity toward the ungrateful than toward the grateful, as signs and means of more ardent love of God; it even requires the sacrifice of certain 3Tbe Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Introd., III, in The Hol~t Eucharist. Brooklyn, Redemptorist Fathers, 1934. P. 285 f. 4Conformit£l with the Will of God, I, in The Way of Salvation and of Perfection, part-III, pp. 353, 358. 178 duly, 1951 REDEMPTORIST SPIRITUALITY virtuous actions when the higher demands of charity or obedience conflict with them.5 So important did he consider this purification of the heart as a preparation for advancement in perfection that in the little treatise, The True Redemptorist, which he wrote for his first members, he confines himself to this one point, and reduces the special requirements of any applicants to _a four-fold detachment: from the comforts of life, from relatives, from self-esteem, and from self-will. ¯ The practice of poverty he kept as strict and uncompromising as an active apostolate would allow; and the peculium and any other method of private control of material things, he excluded rigorously from the very beginning. The "common life" he. ev.e.r.,g.uarded jeal-ously, and he manifests his legal tr.aining in the deta~i'~'and precision of his enumerations of things allowed and forbiddeti." The things provided for common use, the amount of the portions at table, the size, number, and materials of various furnishings for the rooms be determined with exactitude and uniformity. Under the vow of poverty is incIuded the renunciation of a bishopric or any other ecclesiastical dignity or benefice outside, the congregation, unless the Holy Father commands its acceptance. Knowing from experience, sometimes from the bitter experience of defections from his infant institute, that the people of his time and land were often loath to permit their sons to make sacrifice of themselves in r~llgion, he was adamant about detachment from rela-tives. In answer to a request from a sick. subject who wanted to go home for the freshness of his native air, he replied that "home air is always pestilential to the religious spirit." When one who was ill offered to go to his relatives, to save expense to the community, he quickly answered that the congregation would sell ~ts books to take care of the sick. The strictness of the saint's rules and written'com-ments on detachment from seculars is balanced by his efforts to promote in his communities the hospitality and brotherliness of family life. Insistent as be is that individual desires be restricted to needs, he is even more insistent that .t.he community provide for every need to the extent that is possible. Self-esteem and independence of will he opposed as mortal dis-eases. Not only did be insist on individuals giving up all ambition for preferment and distinction, but he would have the'institute itself 5Detachment from Creatures in The Way of Salvation and of Perfection, part II, XLI; also Divine Love, ibid., pp. 317-19. 179 JOSEPH M. CoLLERAN Review for Religious humbly accounted the least of all in the Church. Although the work for which each must be ready is preaching, he deprecated'anyone's: putting himself forward to preach without waiting for designation by superiors. "He only has the spirit of the institute," he wrote, "who enters it with the desire of practicing obedience, and,of sub-mitting peacefully to be put away in some corner without having any employment, happy that the good is done by others, while he himself will only do that which is.directly imposed upon him by obedience, without having asked for it.''~ "Re-living the Redemption The imitation of Christ that he proposed to his members is not only the general one that is obligatory on all, but a concentration upon the formally redemptive phase of Christ's life, the motto of his congregation being Gopiosa Apud Eum Redemptio. This emphasis affects both the active apostol~te and the ascetical development of Redemptorists. " They are to be employed only in those tasks that have to do directly with the salvation of souls, and indeed, so far.as is ordi-narily possible, only in those that Christ and His ApoStles per-formed. Hence the principal field of labor is the conducting of mis-sions, in ~vhich the essential and fundamental truths are preached, with a view to converting souls from sin to the state of grace, from inconstancy to perseverance in virtue, and from ordinary fidelity to Christian perfection. Occupations that are not in harmony with the work of redemption ifi the strictest sense, such as t~aching secular subjects in schools, parochial work, the conducting of orphanages, and the like, were deliberately excluded by Alphonsus, and have tra-ditionally been accepted only rarely and temporarily, as need arose and higher authority commanded. The apostolate of red.emption extends to all classes of people, but preference is strictly to be given to the poor,,, to those who have been abandoned by others, and to those found far from those centers of population where the means of salvation are more readily within reach. The style of preaching set by the saint is affective, rather than argumentative; simple, rather than ornate; apostolic, rather than academic. It was his aim to set OThe True Rederoptorist. This short work, with slight alterations to .adapt it to all religious, and with preliminary chapters on detecting and preserving vocations, was also published by Alphonsus under the title Counsels Concerning a Religious Vocation. This treatise is available in English, in the volume The Great Means of Salvation and of Perfection. Broot').yn. Redemptorist Fathers, 1927. Pp. 381- 417. , The sentence which is here quoted from the Manua[e Presbyterorum C.SS.I~. does not appear in the reprint. 180 Jul~,1951 REDEMPToRIsT SPIRITUALITY up in the garden of the Church, not an exalted fountain that would impressively spray its streams on high, but a rivulet that would seep into the ground to nurture and fructify the lowly and the towering growths alike. Since He who saves is He who sanctifies, the Redeemer is the model of asceticism too. "The end of the Institute of the Most Holy Redeemer is no other than to unite priests to live together, and ear-nestly strive to imitate the virtues and example of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, devoting themselves kpecially to the preaching of the word of God to the poor" (Text of Ruie, Introduction). The Passion is proposed as the customary subject of all evening meditations, and the central act of R~edemption is the.core of all Redemptorist devo-tion. It is likewise the pattern of their personal efforts at self-sacrifice: "the members of our Institute, after the example of the R~deemer, ought to spend their lives in thb endurance of sufferings, and should have a great hatred of a comfortable and luxurious life." (Const. 489). True it is that Alphonsus taught in his writings and inculcated in his religious various devotions in honor of Christ; he was, for example, one of the most ardent proponents of devotion to the Sacred Heart, which, in his time, was "opposed by some writers'and often avoided in practice. But crib and cross and altar are the principal themes of his devotional exhortations, the cross being central, the crib its forerunner, and the altar its keepsake. To devotion toward the Blessed Sacrament he made a tremendous ¯ contribution by his Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, originally in-tended for his own novices but in time spread throughout the world with a popularity that P~re Pourrat compares to that of the Imita-tion of Christ.7 Adoration, thanksgiving, and reparation are the sentiments he would awaken in his followers in regard to the con-tinual presence of the R~deemer among us. He could conceive of no devotion to the Redeemer that did not include devotion to Christ's Persoflal Relic of the redemption. It is true of Alphonsian asceticism, as it is true of practically every modern school, that it is not so liturgically centered as that of St. Benedict. Nevertheless, Alphonsus quite definitely recognized the primacy among devotions that belongs to the Mass. For the laity he wrote The Sacrifice of desus Christ, expounding the doctrine of sacrifice and the meaning of the prayers; for priests he published "a 7Cf. P. Pourrat, La Spiritualit~ Chr~tienne, tora~ 4. Paris, Gabalda, 1947. P. 456. 181 JOSEPH M. COLLERAN Reoiew [or Religious book on The Ceremonies of the Mass, and another, a devotional one, on Preparation and Thanksgiving. The devout and affectionate prayers he composed have as their purpose the extension throughout the. day of the spiritual benefits of the Holy Sacrifice. He also recog-nized the importance of the official prayer of the Church, requiring the Divine Office to be recited in the various communities when the 'missionaries are not engaged in apostolic works. The Mother's Place St. Alphonsus was one of the principal expositors and defenders, in the dogmatic field, of the doctrine of the universal mediation of Mary. As a corollary of this teaching that all graces come through her hands, he taught that some devotion to her is morally necessary for salvation. In asceticism, also, he proclaimed that imitation of the Divine Redeemer involves, a wholehearted and practical devotion to His Mother. In both their personal lives and in their apostolic works, be would have Redemptorists Mary-minded. Preachers are urged to make mention of the intercession of the Blessed Mother in every discourse; every series of sermons or instructions is to include at least one talk devoted to her. From the time of Alphonsus until the definition of the dogma, Redemptorists were required to take an oath that they would defend and teach the truth of the Immaculate Conception; and under this title Mary is the principal patron of the congregation. The saint insists emphatically that Mary is the keeper of vocations; in his congregation the perseverance of every member is committed to the care of the Virgin most faithful. The Practice oF Virtues To facilitate and intensify the practice of virtues, Alphonsus pro-poses the method of concentrating explicitly on one at a time. His original rule was arranged in twelve parts, each of which set forth one virtue. Each "rule" wasit'self rather a short exposition of the relation of the virtue of the R~deemer and an application, rather ex-hortatory and devotional than diregtive and legalistic, to the life of a religious. Each rule is followed.by a "constitution" that gives more detailed and specific directions. In 1749, the Rules and Constitutions were put into a more formal a~d legal structure, but one constitution still directs the special practice of a single virtue each month. In the order of the months of the year these virtues are proposed: faith, l~ope, love of God, charity toward one another, poverty, chastity, obedience, humility, mortification, recollection, prayer, and self- 182 dul~ , 1951 REDEMPTORIST SPIRITUALITY denial with love of the Cross. These virtues, in turn, are to consti-tute the subject-matter of meditations, of particular examens, and of exhortations by superiors during the respective months. Such a division gives ease, simplicity; order, and solidity to the acquisition of virtue, and with all the members of the institute making an effort to concentrate upon one virtue at the same time, each individual is to find in the common activity a strong external support and example. Furthermore, since the different virtues are always considered as phases of the life of the Redeemer and as means of being united with Him, such repeated concentration upon each one serves to impress the mind with the richness of the Divine Model, and to strengthen the will to accept Christ's life as one's own. The Primacy/of Pra{/er The genius for simplicity and practicality that Alpbonsus .pos-sessed shines out pre-eminently in his teachings on prayer. The singular importance he attaches to prayer, he indicates succinctly in the title of one of his most famous works: The Great Means of Sal-vation and of Perfection. Well knovcn is the practical conclusion with which he cut through the learned and endless theological con-troversies on the efficacy of 'grace and predestination: "He .who prays is certainly saved. He who does not pray is certainly lost . Pray, pray, never cease to pray. For if you pray, your salvation will be secure; but if you stop praying, your damnation will be certain.''s No less does he insist that perfection depends upon prayer. He would have religious life a life of prayer, flowering into a continual "con-versation with God," where God speaks to the soul through His vis-ible creations and the impulses of His graces, and the soul responds with acts of love and gratitude. Prayer, for Alphonsus, is nothing less than the breath of super-natural life. Only by praying do we receive efficacious grace to per-form meritorious acts; only by pr~ying do we obtain the help to overcome temptations; only by praying do we acquire the light to know God's Will for us and thestrength to fulfill our vocations; only by praying do we acquire the grace of perseverance; only by praying, indeed, do we acquire the g~ft of praying sufficiently, and of being constant in making our requests. Mental prayer he considers morally necessary as a means to incite the prayer of petition, without which God does not grant the divine 8The Great Means of Salvation and of Perfection. Brooklyn, Redemptorist Fathers, 1927. Part I, ch. 1, p. 49 and Part II, ch. 4, p. 240. 183 ,JOSEPH M. COLLERAN helps, the lack of which, in turn, frustrates all attempts to observe either commandments or counsels. For mental prayer manifests one's spiritual n'eeds, the dangers to his progress, and the measures of improvement to be adopted; and all these stimulate him to prayers of petition. So far as the "meditation" itself is concerned, he reviews and recommends the usual methods that had been developed and proposed by the saints, especially by Theresa and Ignatius. His special and distinctive concern, however, is not with the method of meditation, but with the "affections, petitions, and resolutions" which are to follow upon the considerations as the thread follows the needle, for these constitute the real fabric of mental prayer. In the affections, he would have repeated acts of love, humility, gratitude, confidence, and contrition. Petition should be concerned, above all, with for-giveness of past sins, increase of love, and perseverance until death. Resolutions should be practical, specific, and usually limited to the near future. Petition is the most important of all, and this is the meaning of the saint's striking statement: "To pray is better than to meditate"--that is, petition is of much more .value thanconsidera-tion of trflth. This stress upon acts of the will-rather than on acts of the intel-lect, this priority of affections over considerations, the saint himself illustrates in all his writings and, most notably perhaps, in his familiar Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, where there is frequent and easy transition from description and exposition to fervent iorayer. This procedure facilitates progress from the more common discursive type of mental prayer to habitual recollection and the prayer of simple regard, which prepare the soul for infused contemplation. The school of perfection of~ which Alphonsus is master is thus a simple and practical trainings~ool in uniformity with the Will of (Sod, by imitation of the Redeemer on the cross and closeness to the Redeemer in the tabernacle, by0~etachment from creatures, by prayer of petition, and by tender deybtion to the Virgin Co-Redeemer. There is no favor the saint would ask for his institute but the privi-lege of continuing the effects of Calvary's Cross; for he prayed: "Per-fect Thy work, 0 Lord, and fo~ Tby glory make us all Thine own; so that all the members of this Congregation, even to the day of judgment, may continue to please Thee perfectly, and to gain for Thee a countless number of souls." 184 -Quest:ions t or Mon :hly Recoiled:ion Winfrid Herbst, S.D.S. yOU asked for it. You requested a series of questions for your monthly recollection~uestions that will elicit good resolves urging on to greater perfection in religious observance. And I am glad you realize there is no nobler ideal to strive for than perfect religious observance according to your constitutions. "Make an accounting of thy stewardship" (Luke 16:2). Do this in medita-tive self-examination. Take the following series, not exhaustive by ,any means, but sufficient for your purpose. Place yourself in the presence of Almighty God, before whom, at what hour you know not, you will appear for judgment, and in the presence of your guardian angel. Recall to mind the many graces and benefits bestowed upon you, an unworthy sinner, from the first mo-ment of your existence, and also during the past month. Then humbly consider the following points. 1. What is my service of God like? Do I render tribut~e of Mass and my Office devoutly, in a holy manner, in God:s presence, and without haste? Do I act on the principle that thoughtless haste kills all real devotion? 2. Do I do what is to be done before, at the beginning of, and after my daily meditation? 3. Am I able to look death in the eye without fear? How ashamed would I be to meet Jesus my Judge,now? What am I doing to make myself less ashamed, by living in continual recollec-tion and fraternal charity? 4. Do I try to increase in. personal[ love for Jesus by thinking often of His love for me? Can I, too, exclaim: ".In whatsoever, place Thou shalt be, my Lord and King, either in death or. in life, there ~ill Thy servant be"? (2 Kings 15:21.) o. 5. Whose room is the better, Jesus's (Bethlehem's cave) or mine? What can I do to make mine 19.ok more like His in poverty? 6. Do I recall that Jesus's hidden life says to me, "Family (com-munity) life means charity"? 'Am I trying hard to make others and myself happy in community life by adhering zealously to my prac-tice of increasing acts of charity and considerateness? 185 x,VINFRID HERBST 7. Am I giving to God what He so insistently asks of me: uni-versal, beautiful, fraternal charity and gentle helpfulness, especially in community life? Am I giving it all geneiously, despite the fact that. it is hard? 8. And am I giving Him this other thing for which He asks with similar insistence and which is equally hard: numerous ejacu-lations every day combined with the greatest possible recollection? 9. Have I the habitual disposition rather to suffer anything than commit a deliberate venial sin? Do I occasionally aspire to the third degree of humility, desiring to do and actually doing some hard things just because I want to be more like Jesus and out of love for Him, forgetting the reward? 10. Do I look upon all the rules, even the smallest, as the express will of God in my regard and observe them accordingly, realizing that I can save souls in this manner without even leaving the cloister walls? 11. Do I, for love of Jesus crucified, practice little acts of morti-fication daily, in folding the hands, in kneeling, and in a score of other simple ways? Do I restrain myself at table when I would eat too eagerly? 12. Do I recall that the body of Jesus was placed into a tomb "wherein no man had yet been laid," and do I place His living body into a heart that is new every morning in its purity and fervor, into a heart that is prepared for Him? 13. Do I strive to maintain within myself that spirit of joy and holy gladness without which there can be no real progress in the spiritual life? Do I show it exteriorly, as I ought to? 14. Do I value my vocation as my pearl of great price? 15. Do I try to love God because He is the Supreme Good, of whom the goodness of all creatures is but a faint reflection? It seems to me that it is because of such striving after perfection there are so many beautiful souls in this world. These souls make one resolve not to be outdone in goodness even while they almost fill one with despair of keeping pace with them. PLEASE NOTE CAREFULLY The subscription price of REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS is now: $3.00 per year for Domestic and Canadian subscriptions; $3.35 per year for all foreign subscrip-tions. For further details please see inside back cover. 186 I:lections and Appointments Joseph F. Gallen, S.J. ELECTIONS a.nd appointments to office are not a daily occur- .fence in the religious life but they are of supreme and lasting importance. The observations that follow concern congrega-tions of Sisters and Brothers. The law of the Code of Canon Law and the practice of the Holy See in approving constitutions are almost the same for Brothers as for Sisters., These observations are not a complete canonical commentary but are limited to the more impor- ¯ .rant and, perhaps, more human elements of elections and appoint-ments. It is evident that each institute must follow it~ own consti-tutions, but some of the suggestions given below can be pondered by all congregations. They may not be contained in the constitutions, but they ycill not be contrary to the constitutions. I. The Elective Sgstern Religious chapters in virtue of canon 507, § 1 are obliged to observe the canonical norms for elections prescribed in canons 160- 182. The Code does not determine what religious in an institute are to be the members of a general or provincial chapter, and here we encounter the first difficulty in elections. Several diocesan congrega-tions of Sisters and a few pontifical institutes that retain the govern-mental structure of an independent monastery' of nuns have what is commonly called the direct vote. In other words every Sister of perpetual vows is a member of the elective chapters. The difticulty arises in this matter when the diocesan congregation wishes'to be-come pontifical or when the pontifical institute described above de-cides finally to conform its constitutions, to its actual life by a general revision. The direct vote must be g.iven.up. The Holy See demands the system of delegates for botl4?'the general and the provincial chapters. First of all, this difficulty is q.r should be practical for several congregations in the United States. The new quinquennial report for diocesan congregations is pellucid on the point that it is the will of the Holy See that very many of the diocesan congregations in the United States should become pontifical. The pontifical congregations alluded to above should institute a general revision of their constitu-tions. It does not seem reasonable to maintain that constitutions 187 JOSEPH F. GALLEN Review for Religious devised for the relatively small community of one house of enclosed nuns are suitable for a congregation of several hundred Sisters, scat-tered in various houses and cities, and laboring in the active life. A protest against giving up the direct vote is really futile and unreasonable. If the Holy See has now for more than half a century constantly demanded the system of delegates, what is the utility of wishing to retain the direct vote? The Holy See corrects the pro-posed constitutions and will insert the system of delegates if it is riot in the constitutions. Is it likely that a protes} against such a pro-longed and.constant practice of the Holy See is reasonable? The Holy See, in 1901, published a plan of constitutions, called the Norrnae, on which the constitutions of lay congregations that wished to be approved by the Holy See had to be based. These Normae are still in effect in so far as they have not been modified by the Code of Canon Law or the later practice of the Holy See. The Norrnae demanded the system of delegates and prescribed that the general chapter was to be composed, of the general officials, of all the superiors of houses of at least twelve religious and one delegate elec.ted by each of these houses, and finally of one superior and one non-superior delegate elected by smaller houses, which were to be united into elective groups of at least twelve religious. The constitutions could also make former superiors general members of the chapter. If the institute was divided into provinces, the provincials and two elected delegates from each province supplanted the superiors and delegates from the houses. The provincial chapter was to be composed of the provincial officials and the superiors and delegates from the houses as described above for the general chapter. Further-more, we have published corrections of constitutions which show that the Holy See was demanding the system of delegates at least as far back as 1887.1 Diocesan congregations also .should have the system of delegates. It is an admitted principle that diocesan constitutions should con-form to those of pontifical congregations except in matters that are proper to the latter institutes. The system of delegates is in no sense proper to pontifical congregations. The mind of the Holy See on this point is sufficiently indicated by the plan of constitutions pub-lished in 1940 by the Sacred Congregation of the Propagation of 1Analecta'Ecclesiastica IV (1896), 158, n. 12; VI (1898), 57, n. 1; Battandier, Guide Canonique, 4th edit., 1908, n. 300; Bastien, Directoire Canonique, 1st edit., 1904, n. 431. 188 Jut~, 1951 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS the Faith for diocesan missionary congregations. This plan pre-scribes the system of deleggtes. Reason itself manifests the necessity of the system of delegates. Some of the institutes that have the direct vote can have a chapter of four hundred religious and even more. This is obviously an inefficient number. The vote for the superior general can go to four ballots. Imagine the labor, difficulty, and weariness merely of counting six-teen hundred votes! Each vote must then be opened, examined, and recorded. Then follow six other elections, each capable of going to three ballots. How can a chapter of affairs be efficiently and expedi-tiously conducted when the assembly numbers several hundred? A pontifical congregation of twelve hundred religious divided into four provinces will have a general chapter, exclusive of former superiors general, of nineteen members. As opposed to this practice of the Holy See, a congregation of three hundred religious with the direct vote will have an elective chapter of approximately two hundred 'religious. The opposition of the direct vote to the practice of the Holy See, to reason, and efficiency is so evident that further argumen-tation would only torture the obvious. The principle of the system of delegates is not proportioiaal representation. A province of a thousand will have the same number of delegates as a province of four hundred. Proportional representa-tion is not necessary, since the purpose of a chapter is the good of the congregation as a whole. The capitulars should divest themselves of the narrowness of merely local interests, prejudices, and ambitions and consider only the interests of the entire congregation or prov-ince. It is of no import that the United States, or the East, or the West should get its turn at the office of superior general. Not only the one important principle but the one principle of the election is that the congregation should get the best possible superior general. A greater appreciation of and fidelity.".to this principle would not only effect better elections but would also' assure a more peaceful sequel to some elections. : The system of delegates brings to a chapter a sufficient and effi-cient number of capitulars, who are from all parts of the congrega- ¯ tion and can thus give the information necessary for a knowledge of the congregation as a whole. However, no elective system is an ade-quate substitute for the study, prayer, and purity of intention re-quired for a proper vote. Capitulars can rush into this most impor-tant matter unprepared, grasp at the first prominent name or most 189 " JOSEPH F, GALLEN Review for Religious striking personality, and give a vote that may be firm but not thoughtful. They should previously have studied all religious known to them who are possibly qualified for the consult one another on those qualified, but they are forbidden to electioneer. Prayer is never useless, but in preparation for an election it is especially necessary. Vital prayer brings a peaceful sleep to pre-judice and passion, and t~hese are the natural enemies of a proper election. The illumination and strength of prayer are required to vote for the one God wants rather than the one I like, to vote 'according to the will of God rather than according to the choice of any group. Prayer will bring purity of intention by which the vote will be given to the one most competent and will exclude self-interest, sectionalism, and nationalism. II. Elect Only When Necessary 1. General Officials. The designation of superiors and officials is a matter of internal government and thus appertains to the institute itself. The superio~ general must be elected by the general chapter, since this chapter is the only superior higher than himself in the insti-tute. The general councillors are also elected by the general chapter. This is the reasonable method of designation rather than appoint-ment by the superior general. No superior should choose his own councillors, since ther~ is danger that he would select only those of the same mind as himself or those who would be pliable to his own will. This would be opposed to the canonical concept of canon 105, 3°, which commands a councillor to give his opinion not only respectfully but also truthfully and sincerely. The purpose of a council is to preclude a government that would otherwise be purely individual. At least occasional dissent and opposition of councillors is inherent in the obligation of superiors of seeking the advice and consent of their council. In almost all congregations of Sisters and Brothers the general. chapter also elects the secretary general and the bursar general, but the Sacred Congregation of Religious in approving constitutions also permits that these two general "officials be appointed by the superior general with consent of his council. In my judgment this is the preferable method. The secretary and bursar as such have no part in government. The secretary is merely what his name implies, a secretary and an archivist. The bursar is a treasurer and a bookkeeper. No attribute of these offices demands an election by the general chap-ter. I think we can go further and maintain the following principle 190 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS as practical: an elective chapter is a sufficiently compet.ent judge of the broad human qualities required for government but is not a good judge of specialized abilities. Chapters have elected secretaries who ~ould not type and bursars who knew nothing of keeping books. What has been said of the secretary and bursar is much more true of the director of schools, or studies, the inspector general of hospitals, and, above all, of the novice master who are elected by the general chapter in a few congregations. The procurator general in congregations of Brothers is also an official of specialized abilities. 2. Provincial Ogicials. The Code of Canon Law does not de-termine the method of designation of the provincial superior, the provincial councillors, or the provincial secretary and bursar. In theory at least the constitutions may determine whether the designa-tion of these officials is to be by appointment of the superior general with the con~sent of his council or by election in a provincial chapter. However, many things that are left undetermined in the Code are determined by the practice of the Sacred Congregation of Religious in approving constitutions, although that is not completely, true in the present instance. Nevertheless, it is most worthy of note that the Normae described above mention only the appointment of provincial officials by the superior general. It is also significant that the two outstanding authors on the practice of the Sacred Cdngregation for the constitutions of lay congregations, Bastien2 and Battandier,"~ do not even mention the designation of provincial officials by election. Looking through thirty sets of constitutions of pontifical congrega-tions of Sisters and Brothers, I find that twenty-six appoint and only four elect the provincial officials in a provincial chapter. It thus ¯ appears more than evident that appointment is by far the preponder-ating method of designation in the practice of the Holy See. Reason itself commends the method of appointment. If the term of office of the provincial is three years, a provincial chapter is neces-sary every three years. Experience seems to prove that the election year is also a distracted year. This argument is not so fdrc~ful when the term of the elected provincial isosix years, as is sometimes pre-scribed in constitutions. The usual norm also is that the superi6r general or his delegate presides at a provincial chapter in which pro-vincial officials are elected. The territorial extent of congregation~ divided into provinces is usually very extensive. If the superior gen- 9Directoire Canonique, nn. 239, 3; 381; 387-389. 8Guide Canonique, n. 505. 191 JOSEPH F. GALLEN Review for Religious eral believes that he should personally preside at these chapters, he is faced with a burden of travel that can interfere with the duties of general government. It is to be remembered that he is already obliged to make a canonical visitation of his entire institute at least once during his term of office. It is also the ordinary norm of constitu-tions that the superior general with the consent of his council must confirm the election of the provincial officials. These cannot validt~t enter on their offices before they are confirmed. For example, if a religious who is elected provincial superior places any act as provin-cial before being confirmed, that act is null and void (canon 176, § 3). Furthermore, the superior general should, at least outside of an urgent case, assemble his council to secure their vote (canon 105, 2°). The members of a council, at least ordinarily, are to give their opinion in an assembly of the council and not by individual and separate replies to the superior. It is certainly somewhat contradic-tory, as also inconvenient and difficult, that the superior general should ordinarily preside over a provincial chapter and yet ordinarily be present with his council to confirm the election. 3. Is a prooincial chapter necessar~l? A provincial chapter always elects the delegates to the general chapter. It is almost universally true that these delegates are two in number. In some institutes the provincial chapter also decides on the, proposals that are to be sub-mitted to the chapter of affairs in the general chapter, and in a few congregations the provincial chapter may make financial and dis-ciplinary enactments for the province, which, however, are not effective until they are confirmed by the general council. A provincial chapter brings together superiors and delegates from the entire prov-ince. It thus entails the suspension of other works by the members for the duration of the chapter and also the expenditure of a sufficient amount of money for travel. The latter consideration is of no small moment in congregations of ~is~ers and Brothers. It is a safe pre-sumption that such institutes are so poor that economy becomes a basic principle of conduct. It must be admitted that in the practice of the Holy See the pro-vincial chapter is almost the universal means of electing the delegates to the general chapter. However, th~ Holy See has also approved the following method. Those of active voice assemble in each house under the presidency of their local superior. Each vocal writes on the one ballot the names of the two Sisters that she elects as delegates to the general chapter. The local superior encloses these in an 192 dulq, 1951 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS envelope with her own vote, seals the en,~elope in the presence of the vocals, and immediately forwards it to the provincial superior or superior general. A meeting of the provincial or general council is held after all the envelopes have been received, and at this meeting the votes are counted, examined, and recorded. The two religious with the highest number of votes are the delegates, the next two are the substitutes. It is difficult to see why this simple method is not preferable when the only business of a provincial chapter is to elect the delegates to the general chapter. The two other matters within the competence of the provincial chapter of some congregations can be taken care of in other ways. The disciplinary and financial enactments, which must be confirmed by the general council, can be procured by the exercise of the right of representation to higher superiors, especially at the time of the provincial and general visita-tion. Nothing also forbids an individual religious from suggesting to the provincial superior or either of the two delegates the matters that he believes should be proposed to; the general chapter. 4. Local o~cials. The election of local superiors, councillors, and bursars is blessedly unknown in congregations of Sisters and Brothers. A universal statement is dangerous in such a matter and does not exclude isolated exceptions. III. Reelections and Reappointments 1. Mother General. The legislation of the Code on the duration of office ot: higher superiors is found in canon 505 : "The higher supe-riors shall be temporary, unless the constitutions determine other-wise." Higher superiors in institutes of women are the mother gen-eral, mother provincial, and the superiors of independent monasteries. The Code does not abrogate a prescription of the constitutions in existence before the Codd which ordains~hat the office of the mother general is to be for life. One or two congregations of Sisters have perpetual mothers general. Outside of the preceding case the Code commands that the office of mother general be temporary, but it does not determine the duration of the temlSorary term nor does it forbid the continued and immediate reeiection o'f the same mother general. These principles of the Code a~e very severely limited both by the directives and the practice of the Sacred Congregation of Religious in approving constitutions. It is undeniable that the Sacred Congre-gation is opposed to the continued immediate reelection of the same mother general. The almost universa'l modern practice of the Holy See is to give the mother general a term of six years but to permit an 193 JOSEPH F~ GALLEN immediate reelection only for a second term. A few pontifical con-gregations prescribF a term of twelve years but do not permit imme-diate reelection. The Sacred Congregation manifested in a letter of March 9, 1920, that it is opposed to a reelection of a mother general c~ntrary to such limitations prescribed in constitutions of pontifical congregations and that it is also averse to granting a dispensation. All congregations of Brothers and diocesan congregations of Sisters whose constitutions prescribe the same term of office and contain the same limitations should follow this letter as a directive norm, since it manifests the mind of the Holy See. Some diocesan congregations assign a term of only three years to the mother general. This does not seem to be an efficient norm, at least in large congregations. It takes a mother general a year or more to acqu.ire full mastery of her extensive and detailed office. tions and the distractions of tion. A mother general who gibility. Some constitutions two six-year terms only when The three-year term also makes elec-elections too frequent in a congrega-has been out of office recovers her eli-ordain that she is again eligible after she has been out of office for six years. The matter of the reelection of the mother general has been taken care .of by the Holy See, and the mind of the Holy See at present is that the mother general should have a term of six years but she may be reelected immediately only for a second term. 2. The General Councillors. Ordinarily a congregation of Sis-ters has four general councillors. The first councillor elected is the mother assistant and vicar general. There is nothing in the Code of Canon Law concerning the duration of office or the repeated reelec-tion of the same general councillors. In the practice of the Holy See ¯ their term of office is the same as that of the mother general, but in this same practice it is almost universal that they may be reelected indefinitely. One consequence of this inde.finite elegibility is that in some in-stances and for a long period of time the mother general and the mother assistant have merely rotated in these two offices. Undoubt-edly the reason for this in many cases is that the two were the most competent religious in the congregation for these offices. It is diffi-cult to adcept this as a universal explanation of the fact. Rather fre-quently the impression can be gained that the capitulars did not carefully and thoroughly[ study the possible qualifications of other members of the congregation, and thus chose the effortless path of voting for those whose names were extrinsically prominent. To aid 194 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS such a study by the capitulars many constitutions prescribe that a list of all religious eligible as general officials is to be posted in a place accessible to the capitulars. This is done in many very large con-gregations. The two in question can be the most competent religious for the office, but we do not have to fall back on conjecture or imagina-tion to see a very talented, competent, and energetic mother general who would-not fit comfortably into the subordinate position of mother assistant. We can readily find a somewhat subdued person-ality who would be a success as mother assistant but who would not necessarily possess the vigor and firmness of will that all supe-riors general must at times exercise. A prolonged period of general government by the same two religious can also deprive a congrega-tion of the quickening influence of new ideas, a new approach, and a new enthusiasm that it may need. The difficulty in this matter could be solved by a more thoughtful, prayerful, and, perhaps, dis-interested choice by the capitulars of the religious most competent for the office. A law to preclude the rotation should be resorted to only if necessary, as can happen in a congregation in which the rota-tion has become ingrained to the detriment of the institute~ Some pontifical and diocesan congregations have enacted laws in this matter by directly forbidding that a retiring mother general be immediately elected mother assistant, and one congregation forbids even postula-tion in this case. The election of a retiring mother genera! as one of the other three general councillors can also create a problem. It is not difficult to imagine that the presence of her predecessor on the council would prevent a mother general from initiating or proposing to her council. a course of action at variance with that of her predecessor. Thus one congregation forbids a mother general to be elected general councillor before a lapse of six years. The continued immediate relection of the same four general councillors is justifiable and commendable when they are the reli-gious most highly qualified for these offices. However, the. repetition here also can be due rather to thoughtlessness than to a studied and prayerful choice. The study of tbe qualification~ for any elective office should go deeper than mere externals. General competence and not mere personality is the rational basis of selection. _An attractive personality is not always.the sign of a competent person. A careful study will also exclude a choice based on first impressions. The price 195 JOSEPH F. GALLEN Re~iew /:or Religious we pay for actions based 6n first impressions is usually delayed, but it is often exorbitant. It is a fact of experience that many people never free their judgment of the influence of externals and first im-pressions. Several congregations bare believed it necessary to place limitations on the repeated immediate reelection of the same four general councillors and thus include the mother assistant. These limitations take various forms: a)an immediate reelection for a second term only: b) reelection for a third term only after the lapse of six years out of office: c) at least at every ordinary general chap-ter two new councillors must be elected; d) a second immediate term only if they receive two-thirds of the votes, but not for a third term before the lapse of six years out of offce. These limitations are practically always applied also to the secretary and bursar general. Since these two officials as such have no part in governme~nt, it is most difficult to see any reason for limiting their tenure of office. 3. The Mother Prooincial. The law of the Code on the dura-tion of the offce of the mother provincial is the-same as that given above for the mother general. As far as is commonly known there are no perpetual provincials. The ordinary practice of the Holy See assigns a three-year term to the provincial and permits reappoint-ment or reelection for an immediate second and, in some instances, even for an immediate third term in the same province. Thus the Holy See has settled any question concerning the repeated reappoint-merit or reelection of the mother provincial. 4. The Provincial Councillors. The provincial councillors are ordinarily either two or four. The Code of Canon Law does not legislate on the term of office of the provincial councillors, and the practice of the Holy See permits their indefinite reappointment or re-election. However, we have here also the possibility of the same diffculties in the mere interchange of the offices of provincial and assistant provincial, in the presence of the former provincial on the provincial council, and in the protracted tenure of office by the same councillors. 5. Local Superiors. Canon. 505 legislates on the duration of office of minor local superiors. The adjective, "minor," is Used to distinguish local superiors from the superiors of independent monas-teries, who are higher superiors according to the Code, for example, the superior of a Visitandine monastery. The Code forbids a minor local superior to be designated for a term of more than three years. At the expiration of this time she may be designated, if the consti- 196 July, 1951 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS tutions permit, for a second, but not for an immedifite third term in the same house. In brief, the Code permits a local superior only two successive three-year terms in the same house. No furthe~ limitations are added in the general practice of the Holy.See in approving con-stinttions. If the Sister is local superior and also holds an office such as presi-dent of a college or supervisor of a hospital, she must be taken out of the post of local superior at the end of the second term. The six-year tenure can certainly create a difficulty in such a situation. The Code applies the law of canon 505 equally to active and contem-plative institutes. It is therefore reasonable to assert that the Code favors this temporary tenure primarily, if not exclusively, as regards the government of subjects in their religious life. The Code does not deny the principle that greater permanency in the direction of some. external works of religious institutes is desirable. The automatic six-year change of presidents of colleges and supervisors of hospitals can cause wonderment and lessened efficiency. It will not be easy for any institute and very difficult for a great number to find many able presidents and supervisors. The law permits only two remedies. A petition may be made to the Holy See to prolong the tenure as local superior. The difficulty of this solution is the prolongation of the six-year tenure in the government of the religious life of the com-munity, but experience seems to confirm the wisdom of the six-year tenure in this respect. The other solution is to separate the two offices and to have a superior of the community, who alone is bound by the six-year tenure, and a president or supervisor. The usual objection against this solution is that it creates a dualism of authority. The objection may really be founded on the fact that the system is some-thing new, but we cannot hold that change is of its nature evil and that the only good is the good old way. The greater extent and complexity in modern times of some external activity of an institute may demand a departure from the former method of direction. It is certainly nothing unusual in secular.life and in business for a .person to be subject to two authorities. Docility on the part of subjects and a reasonable working Out of the distinction of the two fields of authority by the superior and the president or supervisor can bring success to this system. A serious reason may exist for retaining a particular local supe-rior in office beyond the six-year tenure, for example, the completion of a buildi'ng whose erection was begun under this superior. The 197 JOSEPH F. GALLEN Review/or Religious Holy See will grant the dispensation for a serious reason. It is not in accord with at least the spirit and purpose of the law to make the asking for dispensations a general practice in the congregation. The constitutions of a few congregations emphasize this doctrine by pre-scribing: "Without a real necessity the mother general shall not" ask for a dispensation from a law so salutary for the religious them-selves and for the whole congregation." The limitation of the Code affects the reappointment of a local superior only in the same house. The Code permits indefinite reap-pointment to other houses, and constitutions approved by the Holy See rarely place any limitation on such reappointment. Subjects, however, have been known to grumble at the principle: "Once a superior, always a superior." It is also true that the volume of a grumble quite frequently exceeds that of the idea producing it. Higher superiors and their councils are obliged to secrecy, but evi-dently their justification for the repeated reappointment of the same religious is the dearth of others qualified for the office. This justi-fication must frequently be admitted. However, it is not true in a11 cases of protracted reappointment. We can at times suspect that general and provincial councils have not been at all thorough or per-severing in compiling a list of those qualified for government. Reap-pointment should also not be allowed to become so constant that the reappointment of every superior is expected and its absence is con-sidered a blot on her reputation. On the other hand, religious should remove even from the field of the sub-conscious the principle that a delayed or excluded superiorship bears the same stigma as a delayed or excluded profession, that every priest must have his parish and every Sister her house, that the one source of peace of soul of mature religious life is to be or to have been a superior, and that never to have been a superior is never to have been approved. These are in-sidious thoughts. They can and, perhaps, do cause great loss of peace of soul. It is a very evident but in no way dishonorable fact that all religious are not qualified for government. Few of us are in danger of psychic disorders because we cannot teach Hebrew, but it is most doubtful that the chair of Hebrew exacts the price of pa-tience, humility, charity, self-sacrifice, misunderstanding, and com-pletely unwarranted criticism that must be paid by the one who has the first chair in chapel "and refectory. General and provincial councils should not only prayerfully and perseveringly search for those best/qualified, but in this matter we 198 ! July, 1951 ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS believe it is a prudent and efficient principle that they should gen-erally incline to a new appointment rather than an immediate reap-pointment to another house of a. religious who has completed a six-year tenure as a local superior. A few congregations have legislated in their constitutions on the reappointment of local superiors to other houses. One form of such legislation is: "After bearing the burden and responsibility of supe-rior for six years, it is necessary (essential, very helpful) that the Sister enjoy for at least three (six, one) years the liberty of subjects and the merit of obedience and submission." It can be doubted that a six-year interval is either necessary or expedient. An interval of from one to three years would be sufficient. A second form of the same legislation is: "A third (and fourth) immediate term may be permitted in another house, but at the expiration of three (four) consecutive and full terms of office, a Sister cannot again be appointed local superior before the lapse of at least a.year (three years)." This law inclines against a third or fourth term, since it merely permits such a term. The limitation of this law of four terms with an interval thereafter of at least a year is a generally practical and pru-dent norm. It could well be followed by all congregations as a direc-tive norm. 6. Local Councillors. The Code of Canon Law does not legis- /ate on the tenure of office of local councillors, and the practice of the Holy See permits their indefinite reappointment. In congregations the influence of local councillors is not very great and thus a pro-tracted tenure of office by the same religious is not apt to cause any serious difficulty. However, a change could at times be helpful to give new life to the house, to avoid the monotony of the same old things in the same old way, to soften rigor, to broaden under-standing, to add stability, and even to quicken to activity a govern-ment that has confounded patience with passivity and tolerance with lack of courage. Conclusion The moral of our story has been frequently expressed above. Careful study, sincere prayer, and absolute purity of intenti6n will assure worthy elections and appointments. This extends to the in-dividual religious, who can more readily transgress these norms in the election of the delegates. The legislation that has been enacted in several congregations to secure better elections and appointments manifests that at least these congregations thought there had been 199 "ANSELM LACOMARA Reoieu~ [or Religiou~ a neglect of these norms. Law is a necessity and is born of an abuse. Law also can never be an adequate substitute for human knowledge andintegrity of will. Some things are highly capable of arousing unworthy emotions, and one of these is elections. The best advice to any elector whether of a delegate or of the superior general is first pray, then study, examine the purity of your intention before God, and then vote. Growt:h in Grace Through t:he ,l::ucharls : Anselm Lacomara, C.P. THE life of grace may be compared to a steep hill which has a great treasure await.ing the climber when he reaches the top. Like every such climb, progress in grace meets difficult portions which are apt to slow us down and give us a.little hardship before we finally continue up. At times like this we need a helping hand and an inward drive to propel us forward. In His divine foresight and infinite mercy, Christ has provided us with a help which enables us to take care of every difficulty and overcome every obstaclee. The divine help is none other than Him-self in the Holy Eucharist. He is the help and the helper. We are never alone in walking the road that leads to the heights. Christ's strength and companionship are ours whenever we need them. His company is ever at our disposal when we need a helping hand over the rough spots, ggception of the Blessed Sacrament brings divine help into our lives. Fervent reception of Holy Communion increases our spiritual vitality, for it unites us to the source of all grace. The fruits of this union with Christ are mutual charity and peace. The Holy Eucharist enables us to keep faith with Christ, and with Christ's brothers and sisters through charity. Christ's grace flows through us as the life of the vine flows through the branches out to the tiniest leaf. That it should be thus is clear from the cir- 20O GROWTH THROUGH THE EUCHARIST cumstances in which Christ instituted the Blessed Sacrament and from His prayer on the first Holy T-hursday. Revelation of Love As Christ reclined with the Apostles for His final Passover Feast, the time of prophetic fulfillment had arrived. The sacre~t Jewish ritual was about to be celebrated by its Author and Object. Jesus was at the head of the table. Nearby was John who would not for-get this holy night as long as he lived. Exactly as the Law prescribed, the Master passed the ritual cup, partook of the lamb, consumed the bitter herbs, chanted the Psalms. Suddenly an unexpected hush fell on the group. The Master paused, looked upon His own and silently took bread into His holy and venerable hands. His voice alone broke the reverent silence: "This is my body which is being given for you;',do this in remem-brance of me." In awe and profound humil!ty the rough men received their First Holy Communion. The Master then took the cup, saying: "This is the cup of the New Covenant in my Blood, which shall be shed for you." The Apostles, each with deep emo-tion, partook of Christ's Precious Blood. While He was yet in them by His sacramental presence, Christ revealed the infinite riches of love stored in His Sacred Heart. Hear His words: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled or be afraid . . . I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-dresser. Every branch in me that bears no fruit he will take away; and every branch that bears fruit he will cleanse that it may bear more fruit. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it remain on the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for without me you can do nothing. If you abide in me, 'and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wil1,'and it shall be done to you . . . As the Father has loved me, I also have loved you. Abide in my love . . . This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. These things I command you, that you may love one another." Thus did Christ reveal Himself as our friend and our food, the help and the helper in the life of grace. He has willed to remain with us all days so that we are never alone, so that we never have to 201 ANSELM LACOMARA Review for Religious face life and its burdens by ourselves. He. is with us always to bear us up and to give us strength. The Bread of Life St. Augustine, in one of his sermons on the Passion, put these words in0Christ's mouth: "I am the food of the strong. Have faith and eat me. But thou wilt not change me into thyself; it is thou who wilt be changed into me." And St. Thomas develops the same thought in his commentary on Lombard: "The matter of the Eucharist is a food; the proper effect, then, must be analogous to that of food. He who assimilates corporal food transforms it into him-self; this change repairs the losses of the organism and gives it the necessary increase. But the Eucharistic food, .instead of being trans-formed into the one who takes it, transforms him into itself. It follows that the proper effect of the Sacrament is to transform us so much into Christ that we may say, 'I live, now, not I, but Christ liveth in me.' " Christ is truly the food of the soul in the Blessed Sacrament. Holy Communion is the "Sacred Banquet in which Christ is re-ceived." The source of all life and grace comes to share that same life and grace. In His sermon promising the bread of heaven, Christ said: "I am the bread of life. He that comes to me shall not hunger. I am the living bread which came down frdm heaven . the bread which I shall give is my flesh for the life of the world . . . Unless you eat of the flesh of the son of man and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you . . . My flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood, abides in me and I in him." It is evident that Our Blessed Lord never intended that the Holy Eucharist to be a reward for goodness of life. It is a food without which we cannot live any kind of a spiritual life. Christ certainly indicated His mind on the matter when He stated with so much force: "Unless you eat of the flesh of the son of man and drink his blood you shall not have life in you." ;Faken simply as spoken, this can mean only one thing: just as physical life cannot continue with-out physical food, so also our spiritual life is unable to continue without the spiritual food of Christ's Sacred Body and Blood. Christ wants us to receive Him frequently and fervently that the life of grace within us may flourish and come to full flower. He has left Himself as the food of our souls'that we may abide in Him, and He in us, and all in the Father. Christ comes to us with His divin- 202 dul~,1951 GROWTH THROUGH THE EUCHARIST ity, His merits, and His infinite riches that He may become for the soul its light and its way, it wisdom and its truth, its justice and its strength. In short, He. who is life itself, comes to fill the soul with divine life that we may see things as He sees them and do things as He wants them done. Union with One Another in Christ The effect of sacramental union will make itself felt not only in the life of the individual religious but in the life of the whole reli-gious family. Christ said: "Love one another as I have loved you." When He gave that command, He and His own were united in a bond of love as they had never been united before. They had come together to worship the same God according to the same ritual. They had partaken of the same food, broken the same bread. Above all, they were united to Christ and to one another in Him because all had shared in Christ's Body and Blood. The supernatural vitality of the Eucharist made their souls throb (vith God's own life shared through divine grace. He in them and they in Him and all in the Father--a unity ineffable. This unity among the Apostles and the Master accomplished in the reception of Communion is a sign of the wondrous unity which exists in Christ's Mystical Body. St. Paul (I. Cot., 10:17) wrote: "XVe, being one, all partake of the same bread." Christ is still in the place of honor. The Pope and bishops are in their allotted place; priests, religious, and laity in theirs. All receive the same Lord; all are nourished by the same divine food. The life of Christ flows in a constant stream to all His members. He is still the vine, we the branches. The words of the Last Discourse still hold true: "the glory that Thou hast given Me, I have given to them that they may be one; I in them and Thou in Me; that they may be perfected in unity." ' Solidarity in Christ! This idea so permeated the early Chris-tians that their charity became their mark of identification. "Behold these Christians: how they love one another." They loved one another in Christ. They shared the same bread of life in conscious imitation of the scene which took place in the Cenacle. Their breaking of bread was a liturgical and ritualistic banquet at wlqich each received Communion. They were acutely conscious that the Master had promised peace and love to all who did in like manner. The secret of the intense love, that led them to sell what they had and give to the poor, was their mutua! love for Christ, their mutual 203 ANSELM LACOMARA life and sanctification in Him. Their reception of Communion was the strong bond which held them to one another in charity. Our first brethren knew that Communion was a vivid continuation of the Last Supper. Holy Communion is also our way of being ~nited with Christ as the Apostles and early Christians were. We partake of the same chalice, break the same bread. This cannot fail to produce the effect desired by Our Lord, our growth in grace and charity. When Jesus comes to us in Holy Communion, let us allow Him to work in us so that we may be truly one with Him. If we are one with Him, we will surely be one with our fellow religious,, for our hearts will be attuned to His words: "Love one another as I have loved you." If we are one with Him, His influence will make itself felt in our daily lives. The curt word will die in its utterance. The sharp reply will be softened on our lips. Our judgments will be kind. We will listen to and respect the opinions of others. Our outlook will be that of Christ, who "loving His own, loved them to the end." Christ wants ~to work wonders in our souls. He loves us more than words can say. His Body and Blood are given to us daily. He desires us to join Him in this Sacred Banquet that His spirit and His peace may fill our souls. If we receive Him in the same spirit of fer-vent generosity with which He comes to us, His priestly prayer, "Holy Father, keep in thy name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are," will have its glorious fulfill-ment in our souls. HERESY OF RACE One can scarcely mention any of the various ways in which Negroes are unjustly treated when he is confronted with the old objections: the-value-of-property-goes- . down-when-the-Negro-moves-in : the-parish-runs-down-if-Negroes-are-not-kept-out ; would-you-want-your-sister-to-marry-a-Negro? : the-black-baby-in-the-seventh-gen-eration; white-students-would-leave-the-school-if-Negroes-were-accepted; hospitals-would- go-bankrupt-if-Negro-patients-were-admitted ; white-patrons-would-boycott-the- hotels-if-Negroes-were-served; and so forth. "All these woulds and ifs," writes Sister Mary Ellen O'Hanlon, O.P., in The Heresy of Race, "and many more, so repeatedly rolled off loose tongues, are false conjectures for which no real or honeit experiences have ever given any proof/' The Heresy of Race. which deals with these old objections and other points regarding the true Christian attitude towards race relations, can be obtained from: Rosary College Book Store, Rosary College, River Forest, Illinois. Single copies, 50 cents. Reduced rates for quantity orders. 204 Ins :rucfion on Sponsa Christi [EDITORS' NOTE: We present here the Instruction of the Sacred Congregation of Religious on the practical application of the Apostolic Constitution, Sponsa Christi. This document was given at Rome under date of November 23, 1950, and pub-lished in Acta Apostolicae Seclis, under date of 3anuary 10, 1951, pp. 37-44.] I. Among the remarkable documents by which our Holy Father, Plus XII, by Divine Providence, Pope, has willed to adorn and crown the Holy Year as with so many precious jewels, assuredly not the least is the Apostolic Constitution, $loor~sa Christi, which deals with the renewal and advancement within God's Church of the holy and venerable institution of nuns. This Sacred Congregation; which as its appointed task, promptly and faithfully assists th~ Holy Father in all things pertaining to the state of perfection, has reverently and joyfully received from him the commission of putting into execu-tion this Constitution, truly remarkable from so. many points of view, and of making its application assured and ea.sy. II. To fulfill this honorable duty, the Sacred Congregation has assembled in this Intruction some practical norms for those points which offer greater difficulty. III. Now, the points in the Apostolic Constitution which offer difficulty and hence require special clarification are:. (I) those which refer to the major or minor cloister of nuns; (2) those which deal with the establishment of federations and the limitation of auton-omy; (3) finally those which have to do with obtaining and co-ordinating productive labor for the monasteries. I. MAJOR AND MINOR CLOISTER FOR NUNS IV. The Apostolic Constitution, Sponsa ~hristi (art. IV), pre-scribes a special cloister for monasteries of all nuns which differs from the episcopal cloister of congregations (c. 604), and which, according to the general ngrm of the law, is papal, as is the cloister of orders of men (c. 597, § 1). In fact, regarding a number of prescriptions dealing with both the entrance of externs into the limits of the cloister and the going out of the nuns from the same, the regu-lations are stricter than those which control the papal cloister of men. V. Hereafter there will be two types of papal cloister for nuns: the one major, which is reserved for monasteries in which solemn vows are taken and a purely contemplative life is led, even though the number of the nuns may have decreased; the other mirror, which 205 INSTRUCTION Reoieu3 for Religious as a rule, is applied to monasteries in which a life is led which is not exclusively contemi~lative, or the nuns take simple vows only. A. Major Papal Cloister VI. Major papa/ cloister is that which is described in the Code (cc. 600, 602) and accurately defined by the Sacred Congregation in its Instruction, Nuper edito, approved by the late Pop~ Pius XI on February 6, 1924. This cloister is fully confirmed in the Constitu-tion, Sponsa Christi, safeguarding the following declarations which the Constitution empowers the Sacred Congregation to make (art. IV, § 2, 1°) 'so that its observance may be prudently adapted to the needs of the times and to local circumstances. VII. Nuns bound by major papal cloister, after their profession, by reason of the profession itself and by the prescription of ecclesi-astical law, contract a grave obligation: 1° of remaining always within the precincts of the monastery which have been put within the definite limits of the cloister, so that they may not leave the cloister ~ven for a moment under any pretext or condition without a special indult of the Holy See, except in those cases only which are provided for in the canons and instructions of the Holy See, or which are envisioned in the constitutions or statutes approved by the Holy See itself. 2° of not admitting to the parts of the monastery subject to the law of cloister any. person whatsoever no matter of what class, con-dition, sex, or age, even for a moment, without a special indult of the Holy See. Certain exceptions, however, of persons and cases are expressly made in the canons and in instructions of the Holy" See, as well as in the constitutions or statutes approved by it. VIII. 1° Indults and dispensations to leave the major cloister after profession (VII, 1°) or to enter it or to admit others (VII, 2°) are reserved exclusively to the Holy See, and can be granted by it alone or in its name and by its delegation. 2° Reasons for obtaining dispensations should be proportionately grave, due consideration being given to the circumstances of cases, times, and places, keeping in mind the practice and style of the Roman Curia. IX. 1° The faculty to dispense may be given ab bomine, either for a definite period of time for all cases occurring during it, or for a certain number of cases. There is nothing; however, to hinder the granting of certain permissions habitually in particular law having 206 duly, 1951 SPONSA CHRISTI legitimate approval, for instance, in the constitutions, in the statutes of federations, and in similar documents.' 2° Whether granted ab homine or by general or particular law, indults and dispensations must determine, according to the instruc-tions of the Holy See affd the practice and style of the Roman Curia. the conditions and precautions .to which the dispensation is subject. X. The penalties against those who violate the laws of cloister remain as stated in toe Code (c. 2342, nn. 1, 3). B. Minor Papal Cloister ~ XI. Minor papal cloister: 1° retains intact the fundamental rules of the cloister of nuns, inasmuch as it differs greatly from the cloister of congregations (c. 604) as well as from that of orders of men (cc. 598-599) ; 2° must safeguard and facilitate for all the observance and care of solemn chastity; 3° it must protect and efficaciously rosier the contemplative life of the monastery; 4° The employments which the Church hag designedly entrusted to these monasteries must be so harmonized with the contemplative life within the confines of the minor papal enclosure that the latter may by all means be preserved while these works are properly and advantageously performed. 5° In monasteries which engage in approyed works, the pre-scription of canon 599, § 1 for the cloister of or'ders of men, which is likewise applied by canon 604, § 2 to the cloister of congregations, is to l~e strictly and faithfully observed, in such a way that a clear and complete separation be ever maintained between buildings or sec-tions thereof set apart for the living quarters of the nuns and for the exercises of the monastic life, and those parts made over to necessary works. XII: Minor papal cloister includes: 1° a grave prohibition against admitting into the parts of the house set aside for the community of nuni and subject to the law of cloister (c. 597) any persons whatsoever who are not members of the community, regardless of class, condition, sex, or age, according to canon 600; 2° another grave prohibition forbidding the nuns after profes-sion to leave the precincts of the monastery, in the same way as nuns subject to major cloister (n. VII-IX). XIII. 1 ° The passage of the nuns from the parts reserved to the 207 INSTRUCTION Revieu~ for Religious community to the other places within the precincts of the monast~ery destined for the works of the apostolate is allowed for this purpose alone, with the permission of the superior, and under proper safe-guards, to those who, according to the norms of the constitutions and the prescriptions of the Holy See, are destined for the exercise, of the apostolate in any way. 2° If by reason of the apostolate, dispensations from the pre-scriptions of n. XII, 2° become necessary, they may be given only to nuns and other religious who are lawfully assigned to the employ-ments, under grave obligation in conscience for superioresses, for or-dinaries, and for superiors regular, to whom the custody of the cloister is entrusted (c. 603). XIV. Admittance of externs to the parts of the monastery de-voted to employments of whatever kind is governed by these norms: 1 o Habitual admittance is allowed to, pupils, boys or girls, ot to other persons in whose favor ministries are performed, and to such women only with whom necessary contact is demanded by reason and on the occasion of such ministries. ' 2° The local ordinary should, by a general or habitual declara-tion, define as such those exceptions which must be made of necessity, for instance, those,ordinarily required by the civil law for the pur-pose of inspections, examinations, or for other reasons. 3° Other exceptions, should such at times seem truly necessary in individual cases, are reserved to the express grant of the ordinary, who is in conscience bound to impose prude.nt precautions. XV. 1° Nuns who unlawfully leave the precincts of the mon-astery fpso facto incur excommunication reserved simply to the Holy See according to canon 2342, 3°, or, by express grant reserved to the local ordinary. 2° Nuns who illicitly leave the parts of the monastery reserved to the community and go to other places within the precincts of the monastery, are to be punished by the superior or by the local ordi-nary, according to the gravity of their fault. 3° Those who illicitl.y enter the parts of the monastery reserved to the community and those who bring them in or allow them to enter, incur excommunication reserved simply to the Holy See. 4° Those who illegitimately enter the parts of the monastery not reserved to the community, as well as those who bring them in or permit fhem to enter, are to be severely punished according to the gravity of their fault by the ordinary of the place in which the mon-astery is located. 208 duly, 1951 SPONSA (~HRISTI XVI. Dispensations from minor papal cloister, except those ad-mitted by law, are, as a rule, reser~red to the Holy See. Faculties more or less broad, as circumstances seem to require, can be granted to ordinaries either ab homine or in the constitutions and statutes. II. FEDERATIONS OF MONASTERIES OF NUNS XVIL Federations of monasteries of nuns, according to the norm of the Constitution, Sponsa Christj" (art. VII, § 2, 2°), are earnestly recomrriended, both to avoid the harmful effects which both more grievously and more readily befall entirely independent monasteries, and which by union can to a great extent be avoided more effectively, as well as to foster both their spiritual and temporal interests. Although, as a rule, federations of monasteries are not imposed (art. VIII, § 2, 2°), nevertheless, the reasons which would recom-mend them in general, could, in particular cases be so strong that, everything considered, they would be deemed necessary by the Sacred Congregation. ~' : XVIII. Federations of mona~'teries are holt to be impeded by the fact that the individual monasteries which intend to form them are subject to superiors regular. Provision will have to be made for this common subjection in the Statutes of the Federati(~n. XIX. When, because of the intention of the .fou~de~ or for any other reason that may occur, there already exists some.kind of begin-ning of a union or federation of monasteries of the same order or institute, anything already done or outlined must be taken into ac-count in the development of the federation itself. XX. A federation of monasteries in no way directly affects the relation, already in existence according to the common or to the par.- ticular law, of the individual monasteries to the local ordinaries or to the superiors regular. Hence, unless an.express and lawful deroga-tion is made to this rule, the powers of ordinaries and superiors is neither increased nor diminished nor changed in any way. XXI. The statutes of a federation may grant certain rights over the federation to ordinaries and to superiors which as a rule do not beloiag to them, leaving intact generally the right over each individual monastery as such. xxII. The general and principal purposes and advantages of unions and federations are the following: 1° the legally recognized facuIty and the canonically sanctioned duty of a mutual fraternal assistance, both in the conservation, de- 209 INSTRUCTION Reoieu~ [or Religious lense, and increase of regular observance, and of domestic economy, as well as in all other th~ngs; 2° the establishment of novitiates common to all or to a group of monasteries for cases in which, either because of a lack of person-nel necessary for the directive offices, or because of other circum-stances moral, economic, local, and the like, a solid and practical spir-itual, disciplinary, technical, and cultural training cannot be given in the individual monasteries; 3° the faculty and the moral obligation, defined by certain norms and accepted by federated monasteries, of asking for and of mutually interchanging nuns who may be necessary for government and training; 4° the possibility of and freedom for a mutual temporary ex-change or ceding of subjects, and also of a permanent assignment, because of health or other moral or material need. XXIII. The characteristic notes of federations which are to be considered essential when taken together are enumerated as follows: 1 o From the source from which they spring and [rom the author-ity from which as such they d.epend and which governs them directly, federations of nuns are of pont[lical right according to the Code (c. 488, 3°). Hence not only their establishment, but also the approval of their statutes, and the enrollment of monasteries in, or their separation from, a federation, belongs to the Holy See exclusively. Provided all the rights over individual monasteries granted by the Code to ordinaries are safeguarded, federations are subject to the Holy See in all those matters in which pontifical institutes of women are directly subject to it, unless a lawful exception has been expressly provided for. The Holy See may commit certain items of its pre-rogatives, either habitually or in single instances, to its immediate assistants or delegates for federations. 2° B~t reason of territory or of extension, federations of monas-teries are to be established preferably along regional lines, for easier government, unless the small number of monasteries or other just or proportionate causes demand otherwise. 3° By reason of the moral persons which constitute them, inas-much as they are collegiate persons (c. i00, § 2), federations are composed of monasteries of the same order and of the same internal observance, though they need not necessarily depend on the same local ordinary or superior regular, nor have the same kind of vows or form of cloister. 210 dulq, 1951 SPONSA CHRISTI 4° Confederations of regional federations can be allowed if need, or great advantage, or the traditions of the order recommend them. 5° From the standpoint ~f the independence of the monasteries, the bond which holds the federated monasteries together should be such that it does not interfere with their autonomy, at least in essen-tials (c. 488, 2°, 8°). Although derogations from autonomy are not to be presumed, they can be granted with the previous consent of each monastery, provided that grave reasons seem to recommend or demand them. XXIV. All ~ederations of monasteries of nuns must have their own statutes subject to the approval of the Holy See before they can be established. The statutes must accurately determine the following: l° the aims which each federation proposes to itself; 2° the manner in which the government of the federation is to be regulated, either with regard to constitutive elements, as for ex-ample, president, visitators, council, and the like; or as to the manner of appointment to these offices; or, finally, the power of this govern-ment and the manner of conducting it; 3° the means which the federation should use that it may be able to carry out its aims pleasantly and vigorousl~; 4° the conditions and means to be used in putting into execu-tion the prescriptions regarding the mutual interchange of persons laid down in art. VII, § 3, 2° of the Constitution, Sponsa Christi: 5° the juridical standing of nuns transferred to another mon-astery, whether in the monastery from which the transfer takes place, or in that to which it is made; 6° The economic help (o be given by each monastery for the common enterprises of the entire federation; 7° The administration of the common novitiate or of other works common to the federation, if there be such. XXV. 1° In order that the Holy See may be able to exercise a direct and efficacious vigilance and authority over federations, each federation can be given a religious assistant, as need or usefulness may suggest. 2° The religious assistant will be appointed by the Sacred Con-gregation according to the statutes, after all interested parties have been heard. 3° In each case his duties will be accurately defined in the decree of appointment. The principal ones are as follows: to take care that the genuine spirit of a profoundly contemplative life as well as the 211 INSTRUCTION spirit proper to the order and institute be securely preserved and in-creased; likewise, to see that a prudent and exact government be established and preserved in 'the federation; to have regard for the solid religious training of the novices and of the religious themselves; to help the council in temporal matters of greater moment. 4° The Holy See will delegate or commit to the assistant such powers as may seem opportune in individual cases. III. MONASTIC LABOR XXVI. 1° Since, by the disposition of Divir~e Providence, the temporal necessities of life are at times so pressing that nuns seem morally compelled to seek and accept labors beyond their accustomed ones, and even perhaps to extend the time given to labor, all should as true religious submit themselves promptly and humbly to the dis-positions of Divine Providence, as the Christian faithful do in like circumstances. 2° They should do this, however, not anxiously or capriciously or arbitrarily, but prudently as far as may seem truly necessary or .suitable, seeking with simple hearts a balance between their under-standing of fidelity to the letter and to tradition, and a filial subjec-tion to the permissive and positive dispositions of Divine Providence. 3° Keeping these directives in mind, let them submit to ecclesias-tical or to religious superiors, as the case may require, whatever ar-rangements seem advisable. XXVII. Ec~iesiastical and religious superiors must: 1° by all means seek and obtain profitable labor for the nuns who need it, and, should the case require it, also employ committees of pious men or women, and, with due caution and prudence, even secular agencies established for such purposes; 2° maintain a careful supervision of the quality and orderly ar-rangement of the work, and require a just price for it; 3° to superintend diligently the coordination of the activities and the labor of individual monasteries so that they may help, sup-ply, and complement one another, and see to it that every vestige of competition is entirely avoided. PLEASE NOTE CAREFULLY The subscription price of REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS ~s now: $3.00 per year for Domestic and Canadian subscriptions; $3.35 per year for all foreign subscrip-tions. For further details please see inside back cover. 212 uesUons and Answers In the March issue of the Review Sister Digna wrote about men÷al and other.tests for candidates aspiring to the religious life. Would you kindly 9ire "Fhe name and address of the publishers of these tests? Sister Digna prepared the detailed description of the following tests which she suggests as helps to'Ocarry out the program outlined in her article. Since we received these lists some tiptoe ago, a number of the prices may have been changed. ~; 1. American Council on Education Psychological Examination for ttigh School Students. This is a time-limit test. Time: 54 min- o" utes. Norms: Comprehensive norms for e~ich annual edition are pub-lished in series V of the American Council on Education Studies for. April of'the school year in which the test is current. Authors: Louis L. Thurstone and Thelma Gwinn,Thurstone, University of Chicago. Publishers: The American Council on Education, 744 ,IacksowPlace, Washington, D.C.; distributed by Science Research Associates, 1700 Prairie Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. Cost: $.07 per test, including test booklet and answer sheet. Additional answer sheets, $.02 each. Manual, scoring keys, and norms, $.25. ~ ,, 2. The Otis Self-Administering Tests of Mental.Abilit.~. These are time-limit tests, consisting of a Higher E~amination designed for grades 9-12 and for college students; and an Inter~edlate t~xamina-tion designed for grades 4-9. Norms: Age and grade norms fur-nished in the manual, as well as charts for .translating raw score to percentile rank, or to Binet Mental Age and I.Q. Author: A. S. Otis. Publisher: World Book Company, Yonkers-on-Hudson, New York. Cost: $1.25 per package of 25 tests, including manual, scoring key, and norms; specimen set, $0.35. Four alternate forms of each test are available. 3. Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Scale by David Wechsler. An individual examination including eleven tests for use at all ages from adolescence (age 10) up to 70 years. Five tests are verbal: Similari-ties, Comprehension, Information, Arithmetic, and Memory for Numbers. Five are nonverbal performance tests: Object Assembly (profile, Manikin, and Hand in Form I; face, horse, and auto in Form II), Block Design, Picture Completion, Picture Arrangement, and Digit-Symbol Substitution. An alternate test of Vocabulary is QUESTIONS AND .,~NSWERS Re~ieu~ for Religious provided. A feature of the test is that the IQ can be obtained from as few as eight tests without serious loss in reliability. Scores on each test are converted into star~dard scores. The total of these scores is converted into IQ equivalents by means of a table which takes into account the age of adults. The materials appeal to testees at all ages and levels of ability and are well-suited for classification of .both normal and abnormal individuals. Text, "The Measurement of Adult Intelligence," $2.60. Form I. Test Materials, including 25 Record Blanks, $14.00. The text contains the administrative man-ual for Form I, and must be ordered separately. Form II. Test Ma-terials, including 25 Record Blanks and the manual required for ad-ministering this form, $15.50. Manual alone, $2.00. Specify Form I or Form II. Record Blanks, sold only in packages of 25 and 100 copies. Packages of 25--$1.25 each. Personality Tests . 4. The Adjustment Int~entorg by Hugh M. Bell. A diagnostic tool to .aid the counselor and guidance worker in discovering the sources of personal and social maladjustment in students and adults. The separation of adjustment into four types (home, health, social, and emotional) aids in the location of specific adjustment'difficulties. Scoring requires about three minutes. Tentative norms are given for high school students, college students, and adults of both sexes. Adult form also has scoring fbr occupational adjustment. Untimed. Forms: Student and Adult. Specify form desired. Sold only in packages of 25, $1.85, and. packages of 100, $5.75. Manual and keys included. Specimen Set,'~cluding both forms, 35 cents. Regular IBM answer sheets--for use with regular booklet of questions. Same answer sheet used for both Student and Adult forms. Sold only in packages of 50, $1.10, and packages of 500, $7.75. Stencils for both hand~ and machine-scoring; Student form, $1.10 per set, Adult form, $1.30 per set--specify form de-sired. Nontimed. Author: H. M. Bell, Chico, California, State Col-lege. Publisher: Stanford University Press, Stanford University, California. Cost: $1.85 per 25; $1.75 per 100 machine-scorable answer sheets; specimen set, $0.15. 5. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality InuentoW by Starke R. Hathaway and J. Charnley McKinley. A diagnostic test con-structed entirely on the basis of clinical criteria. At present the au-thors have made available nine scales: Hypochondriasis, Depression, Hysteria, Psychopathic Deviate, Masculinity and Feminity, Paranoia, 214 dul~,1951 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS " Psychasthenia, Schizophrenia, and Hypomania. Four other scores are ascertained: the Question score, the Lie score, the Validity score, and the K score (a suppressor variable refining the discrimination of five of the clinical variables)i Untimed. Individual Form Forms: Individual and Group. Spec.ify form desired. Individual Form ("The Card Set"). Box of 550 item cards with three sorting cards marked True, False, or Cannot Say. Sturdy wooden box. $12.50. Manual, containing description (including complete list of questions), the6ry, administration, and norms, with supplement ex-plaining how to use the K score. $1.00, when ordered separately. 75 ccfits each when ordered in lots of 10 or more for class use. Keys. Eleven transparent guides made of map cloth, one for each of the nine scales, one for the F or Validity score, and one for the K score. $7.50 including manual. Recording Sheet for recording the subject's sorting and the profile of his scores. One sheet needed for each case. Sold only in packages of 50. 1-9 packages--$2.50.each. ¯Group Form Group Form ("The t~ooklet Form"). The Group Form has been prepared for use witb~IBM answer sbegts, thus permitting either hand-scoring or machineT~coring. The,authors recommend that the Group Form be used only with person'S~°who are still in school or who have had recent contact with test materials in group form. For clinical cases or small groups, the Individual Form is considered de-sirable. Booklets for Grghp Form are printed on heavy stock and will stand repeated use. 1-24 booklets, 25 cent~;e0db; packages of 25, $5.50 each. Manual. This is the same as for the Individual Form but has a supplement. $1.00 when ordered separately. 75 cents each when ordered in lots of 10 or ran.re for class use. Key:;. Envelope contains manuaI, supp!ementary manual, and 16 hand-scoring stencils, $4.00. Similar envelope with machine-scoring stencils, $4.00. Specify which i~ desired. Answer Sheets. IBM answer sheets which can be either machine- or hand-scored. One copy needed for each testee. For each answer sheet ordered, one Pro-file and Case Summary form is. included. Answer sheets are sold onIy in packages of 50, $3.00 each, and packages of 5~)0,.$23.00 each. Extra Profile and :Case Summary forms, for duplicate reports, $1.60 per package of 50. 6, Minnesota Personality Scale by 3ohn G. Dadey and Walter 3. blanks, $:50 per 25;-scoring keys, $1.10 for one key, $.80 for 2 to 215 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS McNamara. ' Five aspects of personality are measured: Morale, Social Adjustment, Family Relations, Emotionality, Economic Conserva-tism. These are based on a factor analysis of several pers6nality tests. Each item is scored for only one scale and each scale is highly reliable. Norms are based on almost 2000 university students. The questions are in reusable booklets. The answers are marked on IBM answer'sheets which can be either hand- or machine-scored. Grades 11 through college. Time, no li,mit, about 45 min. Forms: Men and Women. Order booklets, answer sheets and scoring stencils separately. Specify form (Men's or Women's) and quantity of each. Booklets. Sold in packages of 25. 1-9 packages--S2.50 each. 10 or more packages--S2.25 ',each. Answer sheets. Sold only in packages of 50, $1.80 each, ~tnd packages of 500, $15.00 each. Same sheet is used for either Men or Women. Manual and hand-scoring stencils must be ordered separately, 50 cents. Specify form desired. Manual and IBM machine-scoring stencils, $1.25 a set. Specify form. desired. Specimen Set, either form, 60 cents. Specify form desired. Men's or Women's. 7. The Perso, nality Inuentor~ by Robert G. Bernreuter. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California. Designed to measure six as-pects of personality at~one administration: Neurotic Tendency, Self-sufficiency, Introversion-Extroversion, Dominance-Submission, So-ciability, Confidence. Norms for both men and women have been established for h.igh school, college, and adult ages. Untimed. Sold 'only in packages of 2.5, $1.85, and packages of 100, $5.75, with manual, norms and set of keys. Individual Report Sheets, sold only in packages of 25, 35 cents. Specimen Set, 35 cents. IBM answer sheets available. Sold only in packages of 50, $1.10 each, and packages of~500, $7.75 each. Machine-scoring keys, $2.60 per set; cannot be used for hand-scoring. 8. Stronfl Vocational Interest Blank, (for Men and Women) Author: E. K. Strong, Jr. Publisher: Stanford University Press, Stanford University, California. Cost: Tests, $2.10 per 25; .report 9 keys, $:72 each for 10 or more keys; machine-scorable answer sheets, $2.72 per 100. The Psychological Corporation, 522 Fifth .Avenue, Neb¢ York, N. Y. 9. Kuder Preference Record. Form A and Form BB. Publisher: Science Research Associates, 1700 Prairie Avenue, Chicago. Cost: Form BB-test booklets which can be used many times, $.48 each; answer pads, $.08 each; profile sheets, $.02 each. '216 RELIGIOUS LIFE AND SPIRIT. ByRev. Ignaz Waffero÷,O.M.I. T~rans-lated by Rev. A. S{mon, O.M.I. Pp. vff~ ~- 408. B.Herder Book Co., S~'. Lou~s, Mo. $6.00. Community exhortations and conferences are an important means to spiritual perfection. Just as by the will of Christ the trde Faith was to be preached and propagated mainly by the living w,ord, so also Christian perfection. Christ¯ Himself set the exa'mple¯ in the Ser-mon on the Mount; the apostles and first bishops taught the more perfect way by word of mouth; virgins, ascetics, andoreligious from ¯ the earliest days were instructed and encouraged to ever greater perfec-tion by exhortations; witness, fc~r example, the monks of the desert. Spiritual conferences soon became traditional ~ in the Church; they went down the centuries, from Cassian to Bernard, to Teresa, to Francis de Sales, to Faber, Marmion, and Leen. ¯ Today canon law prescribes them as a regular spiri'tual exercise for religious and semi-narians (cf. canons 509"and 1367), and the rules of almost all reli-gious communities make provision for them. H~nce, they are not something boring, to be minimized and neglec'ted, .but rather a spir-itual element, to be valued and put to good .use. Their purpose: to enlighten the mind b~'instruction and to sup-ply motives and warmth to the will, leading to virthous action. ' For this spiritual energizing the living word is far more effective than the printed page. Of-course, the. person giving the exhortation should posse.ss certain qualities: he must be a man of prayer, self-abnegation, virtuous life, and prudence: .he must have the requisite knowledge derived from study, prayer and experience; he must make careful preparation and adapt his .conference skillfully t.o his audi-ence~ Orat?ry and rhetoric are of sec6ndary importance; simplicity and sincerity are more efficacious for this work. The listener, too, must come to the conference prepar.ed; hi must have a good intention, a desire to profit spiritually from v~hat he hears; he must not be criti-cal, but humble and receptive, diligently making practical applica-tions, not to his neighbor, or tothe speaker, but to himself. Such in brief is the doctrine of the spiritual masters on the exhortation with which religious are so familiar. 3udged in the light of the above doctrine the present collection of conferences for religious stands up quite well, though 'it is by no 217 BOOK REVIEWS Reoiew for Religious means perfect. The author, Fathe~ Ignaz Watterot, O.M.I., was competent to give these cbnferences to nuns, having been for many years a successful superior and counsellor of religious. He knows the religious life, both theoretically and practically; he has put his mes-sage in a concrete way, well-suited to his hearers. Hence, it is not su_rprising to learn that the book has been often reprinted in the original and can be found in almost every German convent. It merits the enthusiastic reception given it by the reviewers when it first appeared. There are forty conferenc~es on forty different topics, averaging ten to twelve pages in length, each one neatly and logically divided by means of sub-headin'gs. The subject-matter covers the excellence and dignity of the religious state, the duties, difficulties, and means to perfection in the religious state, its weakness and defects, its joys and consolations. Almost every important point of the ordinary life of religious receives due consideration. However, there is a surprising and inexplicabl~ dmission, daily~Holy Mass. The conferences are doctrinal and psychological. Holy Scripture, both Old and New Thstament, is cited profusely. Canon law and selected instructions of the Holy See are utilized. The principal ascetical sources are the works of Augustine, Chrysostom, Bernard," Bonaventure, Thomas Aquinas, Teresa of Avila, Ignatius Loyola, Alphonsus Liguori, and above all thos.e of St. Francis de Sales and. St. Jeanne de Chantal. Among the more recent" writers we find Alban Stolz, Albert W.eiss, and Clara Fey, foundress of the Sisters of the Poor Child J~sus, whose cause, for canonization has been intro-duced. The author is also well acquainted, with feminine psychol-ogy, and his conferences abound with practical, even homely, ex-amples and illustrations. The chief drawbacks of this American edition are two. First, the book has not been brought up to date. It was first published some forty years ago. Pertinent official documents of the Holy
Siempre me pregunté por las razones de ciertos quebrantamientos sociales. El derecho representa mayormente una estructuración invencible que si bien admite conculcaciones unitarias, previstas por la ley, no acepta contradicciones estructurales que pongan en riesgo al sistema en sí, y con él, al imperio del estado para delimitar las conductas individuales. Sin embargo esta negación confrontada, exhibe un universo jurídico disociado, toda vez que la realidad se encarga de echar por tierra tamaña aspiración. Las aristas no sólo se circunscriben a razones cualitativas, sino que además la cantidad reconocible de marginales o asistémicos crece día a día, y los gobiernos se consumen en la impotencia ejecutoria. Extrañamente no abundan estudios dirigidos a encontrar las causas de un dilema repleto de significancias y creciente hasta el desasosiego. Sospecho que equívocamente en la autoridad ronda la idea de que esa dedicación podría representar una aceptación o reconocimiento inconveniente o directamente inadmisible. ¿Por este tiempo y en este lugar, se acata la ley? Para el caso esperable de una respuesta negativa, ya sea animada por razones experimentales o por simples sensaciones mayoritarias, ineludiblemente sobreviene el interrogante: ¿Por qué? Es que, cuando hablamos de ley ¿A qué nos referimos? ¿Sólo es posible considerar a la realidad jurídica desde el carácter positivo de sus normas? Más allá de las valoraciones doctrinarias, existen evidencias contundentes desde la mera observación, que hay vastos sectores sociales sobre los que mayormente el derecho positivo tiene incidencia mínima o nula. A la vera de cualquiera de estos caminos inciertos por transitar, o algún otro posible, seguro es que descubriremos que el contrasentido impera y la duda insistente aparece inagotable. Es por ello que como estudiosos del derecho, y aún a costa de los riesgos que ello implique, merecemos aventurarnos a encontrar algún fundamento explicativo frente a una materialidad ostensible. Si bien este es un trabajo perteneciente al campo jurídico, por esa razón así vista, y desde una nueva perspectiva, debemos acostumbrarnos a un enfoque global, integrador e inclusivo, una mirada en la que las disciplinas no se segmentan sino que se complementan, no se subordinan sino que se coordinan; prefiero anticipar y hacer parte desde su inicio al lector de esa decisión deliberada en su confección: la de desestimar las jerarquías y los sectarismos técnicos. La interdisciplina es una herramienta esencial para el diagnóstico y la incidencia material. Siendo así y tratándose de un principio ineludible para la intervención en el conflicto social, es entonces la modalidad elegida para el encuadre en la construcción o afirmación reflexiva de las páginas que siguen. Las características de diversidad, fraccionamiento y hasta neotribalización de nuestro tiempo, la posmodernidad, le conceden al derecho rasgos consecuentes con su origen y reconocen en su ejercicio, a la costumbre como ordenador social, equivalente y cuando no con preeminencia respecto a la ley positiva. La realidad social se ha vuelto extremadamente compleja y muta de manera constante; desde múltiples categorizaciones, las diversas herramientas disciplinarias propuestas para su abordaje y con certeza aptas, de inmediato pierden su validez. Eso presagia que las que concienzudamente se descubran con posterioridad, con el tiempo también se tornen inútiles, como en un ciclo maldito, infinito y vano. El ser humano, es una totalidad con su contexto, en la que sus múltiples facetas a la vez, se vinculan con el medio en el que se desenvuelve o desarrolla. Cualquier ciencia o disciplina científica, humanística o social que se precie entonces, y como su reflejo natural, debe repetir ese esquema complejo. El estudio de los comportamientos humanos, en el caso del derecho para regularlos, no debe abstraerse o escindirse de su contexto. Por el contrario merecen conjugarse, interpretárselos, como la unidad que son: hombre y realidad social. Contenido de la Investigación ¿Cómo entender racionalmente que algo pueda cambiar de apariencia y seguir siendo la misma cosa? Con la asistencia conceptual de la ipseidad tal vez, cuya virtud temática consiste en explicar cierta evolución para la superación de algunos antagonismos o trascender la paradoja. Esa presión antitética, la del desencuentro o resistencia de las nociones, es un motor de cambio constante que no impide u obsta a la identidad. Se trata de la cronología misma, la del incesante movimiento histórico y siempre inconcluso. En el fondo la diferencia no es otra cosa que la manifestación del todo. De esa coexistencia, incluso con la nada. Desde la mismidad entonces somos y no, porque estamos en un proceso de cambio interminable y continuo. Mutamos, pero no por eso dejamos de ser el mismo, aunque no lo mismo. En la posmodernidad, el pensamiento dialéctico dialoga incluso con el monoléctico. Inductivismo y deductivismo. La tesis dialoga con la antítesis. Pero la síntesis también lo hace con sus antecesoras. La identidad aparece más estática. La ipseidad es movimiento. La antítesis naturalmente no aspira a síntesis, sino a tesis. Y aunque así no se lo proponga, parece su destino inevitable. El de la mutación y la nada. La posmodernidad aporta a la realidad, la contradicción, la diferencia, la desafiliación, los desacuerdos y una simultánea coexistencia de la compatibilidad con la incompatibilidad, en dosis tan altas que aunque mal vistas, se han nivelado con la coherencia, la consecuencia, la congruencia -magnificadas y reclamada a gritos para el "beneficio" del o en el sistema-. Lo que demuestra que la realidad no siempre establece vínculos lógicos ni tampoco resulta dependiente de las definiciones o consideraciones doctrinarias. Y todo esto desde una conciencia cabal, con un alto sentido de empirismo y una conexión intensa con el sujeto social como protagonista de la trama. Es que el derecho es una disciplina científico social. Sin cortapisas o discusiones. Porque se trata nada menos que de un regulador de conductas humanas, un ordenador singular y colectivo, que desde esas cualidades impregna al concepto mismo de la juridicidad, en sus antecedentes, realidad y destino. Lo contrario, un conocimiento segmentado, corrompe la disciplina de que se trate. La limita, restringe su potencialidad, la desconecta de la teoría misma y de la praxis. En el caso de la juridicidad fundamentalmente porque se trabaja con una realidad para cuyo análisis se requiere de otros instrumentos cognitivos. De lo contrario la praxis se vuelve carente, anémica, desvalida. Sin perjuicio de ello y en la inclusión coincidente deberá impedirse que la ciencia de que se trate, en el caso el derecho, no se diluya ni pierda su autonomía en la multiplicidad fronteriza con el resto de los saberes, particularmente las disciplinas sociales. El puente establece la comunicación suficiente sin la desaparición contradictoria. Sus razones entonces, exceden el marco meramente normativo. Exigen entendimientos e integraciones mucho más comprensivos. Cuando menos de la realidad y sus influencias resultantes. Porque entre las tres -norma, sujeto social y su convergencia- conforman de mínima, toda consideración jurídica que se precie o contenga valor doctrinal cierto. El derecho es un saber complejo que nunca se agota en la estrechez teórica ni en las apreciaciones amojonadas. En su núcleo constitutivo germina hasta ocupar un lugar preferencial -sino abarcándolo todo- el conflicto. Porque sin conflicto social e individual no hay universo jurídico válido. Es el que le otorga sentido, razón de ser. Quiero decir que el conflicto no es algo externo a la juridicidad, al revés, lo integra desde su entraña misma, es justamente aquello que le da vida a la letra. Ciertos desentendimientos de esas partes integrantes, como la realidad, los resultados de las interacciones, el desacuerdo, obedecen a miradas sesgadas, recortadas. Deseosas de una condición científica absolutista -concepto muy en crisis- y para cuya adecuación no se escatima en forzamientos e incomprensiones. Porque si bien la norma permite las condiciones de objetividad deseadas por algunos, tales certezas se vuelven inútiles cuando se topan con la irracionalidad o alienación -imprevisión si se prefiere- de las conductas humanas. Es por eso que un enfoque incluyente de la trasgresión, que no deje por fuera a lo fortuito, a lo incierto de los comportamientos, es tan importante como el de la observancia fiel. Claro está que el sistema tiene un carácter reactivo más que activo. Responde al suceso al que intenta adecuar a la racionalidad. Normal viene de norma, ser normal es estar alineado, ajustado a la norma y por ello sano, natural. El problema es que el derecho si bien aspira a ese objetivo normalizado se nutre en realidad de su opuesto, del conflicto, de la trasgresión, de la irracionalidad así vista. La normalidad se perfila como una idealidad y como tal se hace inalcanzable. Trabajar desde semejante utopía con estrictez implica sesgarse, de algún modo volverse una expresión social inadaptada, una falacia mediante la que el desajuste se convierte en una medida absurda para ajustar, enderezar, alinear, normalizar. Es que las conductas reprochadas por el orden jurídico ya no obedecen a los patrones y variables que su construcción previó. La realidad ha concitado un vértigo, una velocidad imposible de alcanzar con una normativización constante, recurrente y harto criticada también, por la variabilidad permanente de las reglas del juego. Quiero decir en cuanto a la mal entendida solidez jurídica que existe la jactancia en algunos sectores de la doctrina a favor de aquellos Estados capaces de sostener leyes estructurales. Esto significa que está bien visto decir o aseverar por ejemplo, que hay normas históricas esenciales que deben mantenerse casi sin modificaciones, el caso de la Constitución, cuya condición ideal es la de pocas y mínimas reformas. Sin embargo se exige a la par la modernización y adecuación recurrente del Estado la más de las veces señalado por su lentitud e inoperancia. Las leyes suelen terminar corriendo arduas carreras detrás de los acontecimientos, porque el dinamismo y la velocidad del suceso exceden la posibilidad del anclaje o el monopolio en la respuesta. ¿Qué se impone entonces? ¿O es que la norma se antepone a la conducta y la condiciona, o es que la conducta determina la creación de la ley? ¿Y los intereses sectoriales? ¿Y los grupos corporativos como usinas del poder? ¿En cuánto influencian e inciden en aquella interacción? Todo influye, todo juega, todo contribuye. Es que La efectividad de la norma exige un sistema sólido pero a la vez maleable como para mutar en su realidad aplicativa. La solidez del sistema estaría conferida por su existencia misma, precedida por la vocación general de coordinar las conductas individuales para la convivencia social. Para ello habrá de valerse de las herramientas básicas, necesarias y sostenidas en la intensidad; pero con las variaciones suficientes en la calidad y cantidad como para otorgarle la plasticidad requerida. La dosis exacta. Sin embargo esta aspiración dista mucho de conquistarse. Y con los recaudos típicos, vemos en la cotidianeidad, que los resultados y el discurso por sí -no obstante su efecto disociador y constructivista-, en la generalidad de los Estados no alcanzan estándares tolerables de aceptación en la demanda de justicia. Sobre todo y porque como ya aduje, la ecuación de acción y reacción -norma y caso- mayormente no guardan coherencia o contienen a la lógica prevista en el origen. En ese sentido los medios de comunicación y las nuevas tecnologías juegan un papel preponderante. Sobre todo porque la subjetividad alcanzó un nivel de expansión científica tal que ya no se puede contener en un cuadrado mediático. Eso también exige alguna devolución desde los espacios de poder. En este caso no es la censura o el retaceo de la información como lo fue en otros tiempos, sino su exceso. La cantidad de datos circulante es también un buen modo de ocultamiento, vuelve aún más compleja a la realidad y desdibuja los límites en la convivencia social. Esto asimismo tiene un impacto directo en las prácticas jurídicas. Porque la incertidumbre se pronuncia, y con ella la impredecibilidad científica. Consecuentemente se avanza también en los atrincheramientos positivistas. ¿Cómo juzgar ante semejante cuadro? Algunos -que son muchos- proponen limitar la ponderación del juez, su ampliación subjetiva, sus posibilidades de interpretación. Desde la disociación con la realidad, el distanciamiento del caso, el abrazo eterno con el derecho como fin en sí mismo. Porque la deontología asumida, independientemente de su resultado, asegura, ampara, regala ciertos eximentes en la responsabilidad de los funcionarios encargados. Tal como lo adelanté y referí a lo largo del texto, el propósito de esta investigación fue en esencia, la afirmación de que el derecho no puede escindirse de su condición social, y la intención decidida de contribuir a cimentar un modelo interdisciplinario, de bases jurídicas, y con juicio amplio para el acometimiento del conflicto humano. El reconocimiento aplicativo de la valoración en la interlocución, del otro y el proceso mismo de investigación, dejaron una impronta en serie de importantes variaciones prácticas y metodológicas que se transcriben a continuación y que así también se reflejan en los cuadros estadísticos posteriores: 1. La aspiración en la realización de una investigación cualitativa que coseche una información primaria sobre la realidad social , en contextos de riesgo, fue validada con amplitud. Por su parte, el método investigativo y sus principios éticos, que implicaron un acercamiento pronunciado del investigador a la realidad concreta de estudio, fomentaron la intervención de un otro en diferentes etapas y sustentó el inicio de acciones para el planteamiento y encuadre de la problemática causal. 2. Los datos recogidos trasuntaron en una "base" -line-, obtenida con flexibilidad metodológica y participación de los actores involucrados y utilizada como medida cualitativa y cuantitativa de la respuesta social a escala local. 3. Los instrumentos de investigación dispuestos fueron validados en el contexto sociocultural aplicado (Partido de Malvinas Argentinas de la Provincia de Buenos Aires) y se exhibieron como herramientas facilitadoras tanto en la recolección de información como en el favorecimiento de la cercanía sensible y profunda de la problemática investigada. 4. El proceso de investigación, desarrollado en forma sistémica y holística permitió el desarrollo de destrezas, conocimientos y su transferencia a los equipos interdisciplinarios dedicados a la resolución de la conflictiva social impulsora. 5. Se constató que, aunque de una gran riqueza y utilidad, una investigación cualitativa es compleja y costosa en términos humanos y materiales. El tiempo programado originalmente para realizar el estudio se dilató. Y el proceso de transcripción de informes técnicos, así como su análisis, resultaron ser tareas complejas según la correlación entre sus ejes temporales y las problemáticas planteadas. 6. El proyecto de investigación, con un diseño apropiado en su calidad y cantidad cumplió así con su doble cometido, el de ser una herramienta para la producción de información y conocimientos, y el de convertirse en un instrumento para la movilización e intervención social. Con prescindencia de la eficacia o resultados, la objetividad parece ser el remedio más común entonces, porque a decir de la mayoría garantiza un considerable rigor científico y resguarda desempeños profesionales. Sin embargo desde esa exaltación objetiva -que no es ingenua- no se hace otra cosa que reincidir en el error madre o base: el de conferirle a la ley un carácter absoluto, un fin en sí mismo y desinteresado de sus destinatarios. La complejidad nunca se resuelve con pura objetividad, también requiere de la subjetividad. En todo caso la desconfianza en el juez, recortándole facultades interpretativas para juzgar, no debiera ser mayor a la que inspire el legislador. Salvo que se entienda a la condición general -legislar para todos indistintamente- que contiene la norma y en la que reposa la actividad del legislador, como más segura al resultado del lobby corporativo, que la cualidad particular que supone el caso concreto en la que el juez deba decidir. Este tema requeriría una profundización tan extensa como impropia, empero vale rescatar aquí la legitimidad democrática del legislativo y el carácter pseudo contramayoritario que doctrinalmente se le endilga al derecho y que este trabajo aspira a poner en crisis mas allá del método o proceso electivo. Paradójicamente mientras que el legislador, la más de las veces desprestigiado por su condición de tal en la consideración social y de los medios de comunicación, goza sin embargo de un respeto absoluto por el producto de su labor en el establecimiento de marcos generales para los comportamientos -casi una sacralización positiva-; a la inversa, el juez, más prestigioso por su rol, está atado a una manda, por la que debe acotárselo empero en los márgenes interpretativos durante su desempeño para las sentencias en cada caso particular. Parece que así dadas las cosas, de los dos operadores jurídicos por excelencia, se confía a la hora de valorar los resultados mucho más en el legislador que en el juez. Los motivos son múltiples, pero uno ciertamente considerado es que lo inductivo -valoración micro- se hace menos seguro a la "fidelidad" al sistema, por tratarse de una operación sobre el conflicto en directo, en crudo, según el reclamo de las partes por sus derechos; que lo deductivo, en que un pronunciamiento macro establezca las pautas para la sujeción de las conductas sin individualizaciones o particularismos. ¿Y por qué es que se somete al particularismo a semejante desdén, cuando tiene tanta incidencia en lo general como a la inversa? Así lo evidencia la experiencia científica más avanzada; las leyes de la física por ejemplo, que como noción menos discutida perfectamente puede asimilarse en este caso a las problemáticas sociales. Es que desde alguna perspectiva y más allá de la vocación por las disociaciones, no están tan disgregados como algunos nos quieren hacer creer el orden universal con el desarrollo humano -ironía que cabe-. Algunas lealtades entre lo abstracto y lo social, se evidencian tan ciertas como equívocamente desmerecidas. Y bien sirven en ese sentido, así considerado más cientificista, los valiosos estudios tendientes a la unificación o complementación de la cosmología -orden general- y la física cuántica -orden particular-. Resultan considerables las influencias y el uso analógico de tales relaciones, a priori y apresuradamente descartadas, con en el resto de las disciplinas o campos del saber . La retroalimentación de las variables extremas entre lo micro y lo macro -tan infinitos uno como el otro- potencia ambos canales positiva o negativamente. En la medida en que en la valoración sistémica se desatienda a alguno de estos dos aspectos predominantes la idea inevitablemente se devalúa. Porque son pilares de cada construcción que se precie y todo método debe necesariamente devenir de esa actuación interactiva. Vayamos al caso del derecho. Para la validación efectiva de un sistema jurídico es requisito ineludible considerar los hechos más graves, los grandes marcos normativos, las conductas más representativas; pero también, aquellas violaciones menores, más cotidianas, típicas de los orígenes de los comportamientos sociales. La postulación así vista, de alguna manera formula un gran observatorio en clave de evolución por el aporte esencial que otorgan los observados y destinatarios, tanto a la actividad legislativa -segmento de imposición de reglas para los condicionamientos conductuales- como a la judicial -segmento aplicativo-. Convengamos que el minuto, el instante, es la verdad más larga. No parece tan descabellada entonces la aspiración a una justicia de la realidad, de los pequeños actos. Que particularmente considere a la contingencia humana. Y que empero tan propia, a la primera de cambio no termine descalificada por apuros innecesarios, prejuicios e inexactitudes. A ver. Cuando hablamos de la mayor injerencia estadual a través de cualquier dispositivo, incluso el judicial, muchas veces se hace una asociación inmediata de esta posición con cierta "derechización" o "izquierdización" como concepciones más rigurosas e ideológicas. Se argumenta sobre la afectación a la autonomía de la voluntad, el principio de reserva, etc. desde las consideraciones más liberales, como mecanismos propios de las conquistas históricas del derecho y la civilidad en general. O al avance represivo del Estado para salvaguardar los beneficios sectoriales a espaldas del pueblo y de las conquistas sociales, para el caso de una noción de corte más socialista. En el sentido más ortodoxo y desde una clasificación típica, se podría pensar al derecho público sólo como marco genérico social y al derecho privado como camino y resguardo de la individualidad. Esto es, las conductas sociales, lo macro, genérico, bajo la órbita del derecho público y las individuales, micro, particulares, del privado. Sin embargo los planos de realidad no se subsumen a las abstracciones categóricas de los escalas del conocimiento. Así pues, sucede que disciplinas clásicas de lo público como el derecho administrativo hoy se miden mucho más desde la individualidad que de la generalidad, y a la vez, aquellas propias del mundo privado, como el derecho comercial, lo hacen desde su impacto social. Por lo que esa delimitación de los campos está absolutamente desdibujada. Para lidiar con tantos males se subraya o pronuncia más aún la importancia de la ley escrita, el guión, y el intento inútil y denodado de condicionar la realidad al libro. Todo problema se resuelve con una reforma legal que en lugar de integrar al conflicto, lo expulse. A decir verdad esa es la principal "anormalidad" y verdadera enajenación, la de la reducción del hecho a un texto y no la sindicada como irracionalidad por contradecirlo. De este modo es como se sucede el desencuentro histórico; desde una relación dialéctica no asumida entre la palabra y el suceso, entre el discurso y la realidad. El derecho por lo tanto, sufre hoy en su argumentación, una relación más estrecha con el discurso que con la realidad. Las reformas encierran siempre un reconocimiento tácito de variables corrompidas. Sobre todo a partir de la disociación de las instituciones con la historia. Y la verdad no está contenida ni en las instituciones, ni en la historia, sino fundamentalmente en el desarrollo social. Aunque cierto es que la palabra es el medio más propicio para alcanzarla. Porque somos hijos de un relato y es éste el que nos ubica en una perspectiva de superación. La integración dialéctica de la palabra y el suceso como síntesis ascendente. Detrás vienen las cavilaciones, el miedo a la variación paradigmática, porque se reconoce que cambiar el relato, el texto, el libro, es sinónimo de una revolución. Quizás se vuelva interesante en el mismo orden lógico echar mano a modo de ejemplo a la mitología griega. Se cuenta que Procusto era un bandido y posadero del Ática o de las afueras de Eleusis. Tenía una casa en las colinas en la que ofrecía posada a los viajeros solitarios. Allí los invitaba a tumbarse en una cama de hierro donde, mientras el viajero dormía, lo amordazaba y ataba a las cuatro esquinas del lecho. Si la víctima era alta y su cuerpo más largo que la cama, procedía a serrar las partes sobresalientes: los pies y las manos o la cabeza. Si por el contrario era de menor longitud, lo descoyuntaba a martillazos hasta estirarlo. Según algunas versiones, nadie coincidía jamás con el tamaño de la cama porque Procusto poseía dos camas, una exageradamente larga y otra exageradamente corta. Este hijo de Poseidón, esposo de Silea y padre de Sinis, continuó con su reinado de terror hasta que se topó con el héroe Teseo, quien estratégicamente invirtió el juego. Así es que retó a Procusto a comprobar si su propio cuerpo encajaba con el tamaño de la cama. Cuando el posadero se hubo tumbado, Teseo lo amordazó y ató al mullido y una vez allí, lo torturó para "ajustarlo" como él hacía con los viajeros, cortándole a hachazos los pies y finalmente la cabeza. La alegoría vale. Porque al modo de Teseo, a esa ciencia procústea, que exige que la realidad se adecue de lleno a sus dictados, hay que redoblarle la apuesta. Ponerla de espaldas en su propio lecho y medida. Demandarle que se espeje en la consideración de las mayorías y su efectividad concreta. Es que el derecho, en su caso, supone una concepción compleja y superadora del fondo y la forma considerados individualmente, y aún en su conjunto, toda vez que se nutre de una variable tan atendible como generalmente minimizada, la realidad individual y social, que se instala sucesivamente en el comienzo y fin de su existencia relacional. Esto exige una transformación según los términos en que hoy se plantean las cosas. Si bien y tal como antes lo expresara, sabemos que cualquier modificación radicalizada o revolucionaria implica un corrimiento del viejo libro, cierto es que también en clave de posmodernidad cualquier mutación previsible, exige uno nuevo y ninguno a la vez. La página en blanco que materialice el suceso posible. De hecho, la última gran transformación histórica más lineal -a diferencia del sentido anárquico que propone este tiempo-, la modernidad, emergió y se potenció de la mano de la escritura que acercó distancias sociales y espaciales. Un libro nuevo y una época diferente a modo de codo civilizacional que hace rato entró en crisis y cuyo argumento aislado deviene tan inconsistente como inapropiado. Insisto, el diálogo entre la palabra y la realidad hizo a la historia. La escritura sensorialmente responde más al ojo que al oído, a la imagen, que a la vez se cimenta en la ideología. La topía mutó de las ciudades, de los espacios físicos, primero a la palabra autónoma y segmentadamente a los cuerpos que las emiten, para luego completarse en una síntesis dialéctica. El científico moderno en su momento copó el centro de la escena convencido de que la verdadera transformación de la sociedad encontraría como causa principalísima a su texto, a su ley. La posmodernidad echó por tierra la idea e inversamente, nos enseña que justamente el libro se vuelve desintegrado sin su correlato social. Retomo. Objetividad pero también subjetividad. Cuestión otra que se declama tanto como se incumple. Aquel argumento del reemplazo de las ideologías generales, por las unitarias o aquellas devenidas de la individualidad, también extensivas a los credos o fe religiosa, finalmente constituyen una explicación tan común como falaz. Suponen un truco de ilusión de discurso y acción, aparentando una subjetividad exaltada o su preponderancia, cuando en realidad el destino individual está normalmente jugado y sometido de antemano. Fundamentalmente al servicio de la producción so pretexto del desarrollo económico y la concreción de los derechos individuales. Nunca mejor referencia insistente que la de la preeminencia del mercado bajo el escudo del derecho privado. Allí se pondera la libertad, el individualismo y la iniciativa privada hasta el hartazgo, cuando lo que abunda verdaderamente es la tendencia a la masificación, al arreo cultural generalizado -razones de consumo, perfiles ideológicos, orientaciones políticas, etc.-, al monopolio, en síntesis; a la anulación o la relativización de las subjetividades. Y a la subsunción de la persona física en la persona jurídica. Moraleja: Lo que se enarbola en el discurso se invalida en la práctica. La exaltación auténtica de las subjetividades en los procesos históricos, por ejemplo, implica una vindicación o concesión que dota de mayor autenticidad a sus resultados. Fundamentalmente porque permite una interrelación vinculante entre las estructuras dirigentes con las bases sociales. Un diálogo más puro y menos viciado entre representantes y representados. Un mayor empoderamiento de éstos últimos. Hay dos nociones destacables en ese sentido, las de libertad y necesidad. Y no es lo mismo construir en la vinculación de las instituciones con su pueblo partiendo de una de ellas que de la otra. La libertad permite la maduración social, hasta por los propios errores en su devenir, mientras que la necesidad y por la urgencia, normalmente echa mano a la respuesta repentina y en la mayoría de los casos extraída de contextos ajenos y diferenciados. Es que la verdadera fortaleza de un sistema no está en su rigidez, sino en su mayor nivel de flexibilidad -sin quebrarse, claro-. La informalidad, para mejor decir, la irregularidad instituida -personas no inscriptas, empleo en negro, falta de registros dominiales, ausencias de documentación identificatoria, etc.-, son todos aspectos promotores de la violencia marginal, así como del control y la dominación de los factores de poder. Especialmente porque frente al abuso se dificultan en extremo las posibilidades de denuncia y reclamo, y las instituciones previstas para esos destinos consecuentemente se desvanecen en una ficción. El apoderamiento o lo que se da en llamar la colonización de la subjetividad es la moneda de cambio para la sumisión. El empoderamiento o la autoliberación subjetiva, es la respuesta natural para ese método opresivo. Por eso y desde una perspectiva política de la violencia, el permiso legal se vuelve de eficacia relativa. Subyace en el inconsciente la necesidad de liberación -etapa asociativa-. La anomia y la desautorización emergen como mecánicas defensivas mediante las que el sujeto se admite pensar que no es que le tienen que permitir, sino que es él quien debe autorizarse a sí mismo. La plenitud subjetiva hace a la diferencia. Y el campo jurídico es tan propicio para incidir en su concreción. Para ello resulta imperioso su reconocimiento y validación. Y ese ejercicio ha de cumplirse con la inclusión del sujeto como unidad y en la interacción con sus pares. Ley, norma y su resultante en clave de integración. Conclusiones Según los objetivos propuestos: 1) Se ha probado que el derecho no puede escindirse de su contexto social. Vista así la realidad como un suceso histórico. 2) Que la interdisciplina es un recurso indispensable para el abordamiento del conflicto, incluso desde una perspectiva fronteriza del y para el derecho. 3) Que es entonces la visión crítica y a modo falsacionista la que aporta una mejor respuesta a las exigencias cientificistas. 4) Que un sentido de tipo más funcionalista o pragmático, goza de una mejor condición para la desactivación del conflicto. 5) Que aun tratándose de una labor científica con condiciones de objetividad asumidas, esa razón por sí y sola no es suficiente y requiere además de la subjetividad típica de la condición humana. 6) Que el derecho es una expresión del poder y la anomia, la ruptura del pacto inicial o fundacional. 7) Que la esencia del derecho se anida en la dificultad de la interrelación humana por lo que es hijo del conflicto. Así también se logró concretar una elaboración amplia de criterio, desde la disciplina misma y con posibilidades de fluctuación con otros campos, particularmente humanísticos. El destino de la ciencia social es el hombre, según el encuentro de esa subjetividad con los desdoblamientos cognitivos. Párrafo especial, merece la incorporación empírica porque más allá de la multidisciplina y las miradas trascendentes del campo disciplinar, esta tesis indiscutiblemente es derecho porque nace comprobadamente de la praxis judicial. No obstante esa consideración, cabe destacar la necesidad en la amplitud prevista porque así es como se instituye y disemina el sistema de poder, y el derecho fue concebido también para ser su guardián. La valía de este trabajo de investigación se inscribe, principalmente, en un aporte para la adaptabilidad jurídica desde su reafirmación y a la mutación histórica, transparentada en el vértigo y la aceleración de nuestra realidad contemporánea. Es que la realidad concreta, la materialidad, es parte ineludible no sólo del concepto de derecho, sino también de su ejercicio efectivo. El derecho es un saber complejo que no tiene autonomía posible del suceso sobre el que opera, porque entre ambos se alimentan y son constitutivos. De esa dialéctica surge un tercer elemento, la síntesis que muta y alimenta las transformaciones constantes de aquellos dos primeros. Esa síntesis así vista, y si bien consecuencia, es parte integrante pero ajena a la vez de las dos variables originales. Conserva su individualidad justamente porque asume una condición distinta, no obstante permitir la modificación repetida e infinita de las otras a través de un diálogo sostenido. Encuentros y desencuentros que singularizan y perpetúan el vínculo. Entre los elementos para la definición conceptual del derecho entonces, están la norma, el ser humano sumido en la realidad social y la conclusión o síntesis de ambas que cambiante se multiplica infinitamente en el sistema. No incluyo al valor, tal como lo proponen algunos postulantes de la tridimensionalidad clásica, porque se trata de una cualidad humana integrada.
Invariablemente, y aunque no haya sido su propósito, en muchas ocasiones, en distintos estudios que hay sobre narrativa criminal, policíaca, el espionaje y el thriller se observa un hecho innegable: una confusión teórica sobre lo que son estas cuatro literaturas. Esto ha derivado en una prolongada discusión que no ha ayudado a disipar dicha confusión, sino todo lo contrario, la ha acentuado. Como bien apunta Rodríguez Joulia Saint Cyr (1970: 9) gran parte de los críticos y teóricos reúnen bajo la denominación de una serie de géneros y subgéneros que no corresponden a él. De ahí que dentro de la literatura hispanoamericana se considere novelas policíaca a Ensayo de un crimen (1943-1944) de Rodolfo Usigli, El túnel (1948) de Ernesto Sábato, Yo maté a Kennedy (1972) de Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, La cabeza de la hidra (1978) de Carlos Fuentes o Linda 67: historia de un crimen (1995) de Fernando del Paso, cuando ninguna de ellas lo es. Pero ¿por qué se da esta situación de confusión? Este conjunto de textos, junto a otros más, poseen un gran intercambio de tipologías discursivo-textuales criminales, policíacas, de espionaje y del thriller traspasando las fronteras de estas cuatro literaturas y provocando la ruptura del límite entre lo criminal, policíaco, espionaje y thriller, lo que, finalmente, lleva a toda una serie de confusiones y dudas: si un texto tiene como investigador a un criminal ¿es policíaco? Es indudable que la confusión entre estas cuatro narrativas tiene causas que van más allá de una lectura inadecuada por parte de los lectores: el problema se encuentra a un nivel profundo, en la enorme dificultad por delimitar las fronteras genéricas de ellos y de analizar debidamente las fluctuaciones de los elementos genéricos de cada una. Por tanto, se abre la posibilidad de estudiar el problema del límite entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller. Sin embargo, ¿es necesario un estudio de este problema? El problema de la ruptura de las fronteras de las literaturas criminal, policíaca, de espionaje y thriller ha sido estudiado de manera secundaria y casi desapercibida, ya que el denominado «género policíaco» ha «monopolizado» buena parte de los estudios como podemos ver a continuación "The Art of the Detective Story" (1924) de Austin Freeman, Le detectitte novel, et l'influence de la pensée sciéntifique (1929) de Regis Messac, Le roman policier (1941) Roger Caillois, The Art of the Mystery Story (1946) de Howard Haycraft, Petite histoire du roman policier (1956) de Fereydoun Hoveyda, Breve storia del romanzo poliziesco (1962) de Alberto del Monte, Le roman policier (1964) de Thomas Narcejac y Pierre Boileau, "Typology du roman policier" (1966) de Tzvetan Todorov, The Pursuit of Crime (1981) de Dennis Porter o Histoire du roman policier (1996) de Jean Bourdier, entre muchos otros. Mientras tanto, en lengua española se observan trabajos como "Leyes de la narración policial" (1933) y "Los laberintos policiales y Chesterton" (1935) de Jorge Luis Borges, Ensayo sobre la novela policial (1947), el prólogo a Los mejores cuentos policiales mexicanos (1955) y "Qué es lo policíaco en la narrativa" (1987) de María Elvira Bermúdez, Biografía de la novela policíaca (1956) de Juan José Mira, La novela policíaca: síntesis a través de sus autores, sus personajes y sus obras (1973) de César E. Díaz, De la novela policíaca a la novela negra (1986) y La novela policíaca en España (1993) de Salvador Vázquez de Parga, La novela policíaca actual (1990) de Carmen García Pardo, La novela criminal española (1991) de José Valles Calatrava, así como su prólogo "La novela criminal" que realizó Sánchez Trigueros, La novela policíaca española. Teoría e historia crítica (1994) de José T. Colmeiro, El cadáver en la cocina: la novela criminal en la cultura del desencanto (1997) de Joan Ramón Resina, Los héroes de la novela policíaca (2006) de Sergi Echaburu Soler o Poética del relato policíaco: de Edgar Allan Poe a Raymond Chandler (2006) de Iván Martín Cerezo, entre otros. Sin embargo, es posible apreciar investigaciones sobre lo criminal, el espionaje y el thriller: La novela de intriga (1970) de Carlos Rodríguez Joulia St.- Cyr, Bloody Murder. From the Detective Story to the Crimen Novel (1972) de Julian Symons, Thrillers, la novela de misterio (1978) de Jerry Palmer, Le Roman d'espionnage (1983) de Gabriel Veraldi, Panorama du roman d'espionnage contemporain (1986) de Jean-Paul Schweighaeuser, Diccionario de la novela negra norteamericana (1986) y La novela negra (1986) de Javier Coma, The literature of crime and detection: an illustrated history from antiquity to the present (1988) de Waltraud Woeller y Bruce Cassiday o La novela de espías y los espías de novela (1991) de Juan Antonio de Blas. Ahora bien, ya sea en lo criminal, policíaco, espionaje o thriller una gran parte de estas investigaciones se orientan a revisiones historiográficas –sobre todo de lo policíaco– e intentos por definir estas literaturas. Si bien, es cierto que en algunos de ellas existen análisis socio-críticos, semánticos y pragmáticos, sin olvidar algunos hermenéuticos, intertextuales o paratextuales. Realmente son pocos los estudios, y algunos muy desconocidos, respecto a las continuas fluctuaciones de elementos entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller. Su evolución ha propiciado que los límites establecidos en ellos se hayan ido desdibujando, en gran medida por el «realismo noir norteamericano», el polar y «neopolar francés» y por disrupciones entre las cuatro narrativas que ha llevado a la aparición de vertientes como la literatura policíaca metafísica, la narrativa psicológica crimino-policíaca, el nuevo realismo socio-crítico criminal o policíaco, el thriller político o la nueva narrativa de espionaje, pero también por narrativas nacionales como la alemana, la escandinava, la italiana, la española, la japonesa, la mexicana, la argentina, entre muchas otras, las cuales han aportado o variado los elementos de lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller a tal punto que difícilmente se percibe una marca divisoria clara y precisa entre ellos cuatro. El hecho concreto es que con estas nuevas vertientes en lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller, los distintos elementos discursivo-textuales que los componen van a transitar libremente entre uno y otro género, violando continuamente la «frontera genérica» entre ellos. El enigma ya no se referirá exclusivamente a quién era el asesino o si el espía/agente secreto podría trastocar los planes del enemigo. Las motivaciones psicológicas, la crítica social, lo fantástico o la metafísica influirán notablemente en ellos. Ahora bien, el propósito de esta investigación se centra en varios objetivos. Primero, un estudio que incluya lo criminal, policíaco, espionaje y thriller dentro de un concepto que hemos denominado «narrativa sensacional de suspense», aunque este esfuerzo no es el primero que se realiza. Ya en el 1970, Carlos Rodríguez Joulia St.- Cyr lo había intentado con La novela de intriga, un estudio de lo policíaco, lo criminal, el espionaje y el misterio, en el cual el propio investigador deja ver un hecho indiscutible: la confusión en torno a qué es lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el misterio, y la cercanía que hay entre estas cuatro narrativas. Sin embargo, Rodríguez Joulia St.- Cyr se concentra de manera exclusiva en buscar los orígenes literarios, así como su desarrollo a nivel histórico. Dos años más tarde, el británico Julian Symons en Bloody Murder realiza interesantes apuntes y acotaciones en torno a lo que llama «sensational literature» y que engloba a textos con "violent ends in a sensational way" Symons (1992: 4) y en el que encontramos textos criminales, policíacos, de espionaje y thrillers, así como nuevos híbridos literarios. Desgraciadamente, Symons no lo estudió con mayor detalle. Hay que precisar que son los estudios de este investigador y autor británico los que sirven como punto de arranque de este estudio. El diseño y empleo de un término como «narrativa sensacional de suspense» no es al azar, responde a una necesidad que aparece debido a una serie de confusiones que se dan alrededor de las definiciones que hay en torno a lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller. En más de una ocasión se hace mención al denominado «género negro» sin especificar debidamente qué es o confundiéndolo: ¿Se trata de la literatura sensacional norteamericana de la primera mitad del siglo XX que incluye la obra de autores como Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain o Mickey Spillane? ¿O, tal vez, es un híbrido literario, producto de las fluctuaciones y combinaciones tipológicas criminales, policíacas, del espionaje y del thriller? El hecho es que ese clima de confusión ha llegado a tal punto que, incluso, se ha llegado a considerar la obra de autores clásicos, como Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, como olvidando el verdadero significado que Todorov (1966) acuña y que se relaciona directamente con la literatura norteamericana sensacional de la primera mitad del siglo XX. Es decir, se cae en un grave error al denominar la obra de Poe, Gaboriau, Christie o Wallace como novela negra, ya que no poseen ninguna característica de esta. A esta confusión se le suma el desconcierto que plantea la narrativa de espionaje y el thriller: ¿dónde incluirlos, en lo policíaco o en la llamada «novela negra» como varios estudios hacen, o es posible plantear que se trata de narrativas con características históricas, semánticas, pragmáticas y genéricas propias? El segundo objetivo es dejar de lado las confusiones en torno al empleo del término «novela negra» al cual sustituiremos por «realismo noir norteamericano». El primero hace referencia a esa literatura norteamericana sensacional que comienza a gestarse a principios de los veinte, y se ajusta al concepto de «realismo» que Raymond Chandler señala en su artículo The Simple Art of Murder (1950) y hace referencia directa a la denominación noir acuñado en la Série Noire, dirigida por Duhamel, a finales de la década de los cuarenta del siglo pasado. El tercer objetivo se centra en una serie de necesidades de la teoría literaria que solo en ocasiones, y de manera secundaria y casi desapercibida, han sido analizadas: la distinción conceptual entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller que lleva, inexorablemente a otro objetivo: al problema del límite y las fluctuaciones fronterizas en la «narrativa sensacional de suspense», es decir entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller, sin olvidar los nuevos híbridos literarios tales como el thriller de espionaje o policíaco o la narrativa psicológica crimino-policíaca. A través de un grupo de obras estudiadas observaremos cómo lo que denominamos «límites fronterizos genéricos» son traspasados en dichos textos por las continuas fluctuaciones comunicacionales de los elementos genéricos canónicos que componen lo criminal, policíaco, espionaje y al thriller. No obstante, es necesario establecer ciertos límites al conjunto de textos por analizar, ya que de lo contrario se correría el riesgo de exceder la propia investigación. Son siete las novelas elegidas: El complot mongol (1969) de Rafael Bernal, Noviembre sin violetas (1995) de Lorenzo Silva, Plenilunio (1997) de Antonio Muñoz Molina, Deudas pendientes (2005) de Antonio Jiménez Barca, Ojos de agua (2007) de Domingo Villar, El baile ha terminado (2009) de Julián Ibáñez y La soledad de Patricia (2010) de Carles Quílez, las cuales comparten un elemento temático en común: la investigación. La obra del mexicano Rafael Bernal se extiende a lo largo de más de veintiocho años de trabajo y en él queda constancia de sus grandes inquietudes: el mar, al cual plasma en el libro de relatos Gente de mar (1950) y en El gran océano –inédito hasta 1992–; la selva, la cual cobra vida en el libro de relatos Trópico (1946), en las novelas Su nombre era muerte (1947), Caribal, el infierno verde (1955) y en Tierra de gracia (1963); y lo policíaco, aunque, paradójicamente, este fuera una simple distracción para este autor, ya que solo le dedicaba ciertos momentos para descansar de proyectos más serios, desde su punto de vista. No obstante, Bernal puede ser considerado, con toda justicia, como una de las piedras fundamentales en la aparición y desarrollo de la narrativa policíaca mexicana, sin olvidar el crimen, el thriller y el espionaje, comenzando su periplo en la revista mexicana Selecciones Policías y de Misterio, fundada en 1946 por Antonio Helú, donde se publicarían relatos suyos como La muerte poética o La muerte madrugadora, sin olvidar otros cuentos como Un muerto en la tumba (1946) y La media hora de Sebastián Constantino (1946). Asimismo, Bernal nos presenta a uno de los primeros personajes investigadores amateurs mexicanos: Teódulo Batanes. En Un muerto en la tumba (1946) se descubre en la zona arqueológica Montealban el cadáver de un senador con un puñal de pedernal clavado en el pecho. Uno de los antropólogos, Batanes, es el encargado de resolver el misterio. Resulta curioso observar a este detective miope, desgarbado y que tiene el vicio de usar sinónimos de cuanta cosa dice. Un personaje basado, indudablemente, en la figura del padre Brown de G.K. Chesterton y que aparecería, nuevamente, en la novela corta De muerte natural (1948), en donde Batanes esclarece el homicidio, en un hospital, de una adinerada viuda. Otros textos policíacos de Bernal son El extraño caso de Aloysius Hand y El heroico Serafín, ambas incluidas, junto a De muerte natural, en el libro Tres novelas policíacas, las cuales observan ese estilo clásico de la «novela enigma». Es en 1969 cuando Bernal cambia radicalmente su estilo, alejándose de los esquemas clásicos gracias a la influencia del «realismo noir norteamericano», ofreciendo la obra maestra del thriller de espionaje mexicano: El complot mongol. Respecto a Lorenzo Silva su nombre es ya reconocido dentro de la literatura policíaca gracias a la pareja de guardias civiles conformada por el brigada Rubén «Vila» Bevilacqua, y la sargento Virginia Chamorro, una singular pareja de frustrados: el primero, un psicólogo que jamás logró ejercer como tal; la segunda, hija de un militar, que no logró acceder a ninguna de las academias de los ejércitos –tierra, mar y aire– y que encontró en la Guardia Civil el único resquicio para salvar la tradición militar familiar. El lejano país de los estanques (1998) es el nacimiento de la sociedad conformada por el entonces sargento «Vila» y la novata guardia Chamorro que deberán esclarecer el asesinato de una adinerada joven austriaca en los ambientes nocturnos de un pequeño centro turístico de Mallorca. La pareja aparece de nuevo en El alquimista impaciente (2000) en donde exploran el tema de la corrupción urbanística. En La niebla y la doncella (2002) Vila y Chamorro parten hacia la isla canaria de La Gomera para resolver el asesinato de un joven y que destapará un escándalo para la Guardia Civil. En la antología de cuentos Nadie vale más que otro (2004) Vila y Chamorro se enfrentan a cuatro distintos asesinatos que lo único que les demuestra es que el crimen se da por las situaciones más simple y absurdas. En La reina sin espejo (2005) la pareja de guardias civiles se enfrentan a un caso multipublicitado: el asesinato de una célebre periodista de Barcelona casada con un consagrado escritor catalán. Un caso que abandona los terrenos del crimen pasional y que lleva a Vila y Chamorro por los entresijos de la pornografía, la prostitución y la trata de blancas en Barcelona. La estrategia del agua (2010) nos enseña a un Rubén Bevilacqua ya ascendido a brigada, pero también profundamente decepcionado del sistema judicial español, que tiene que investigar, junto a la también ascendida sargento Virgina Chamorro, el asesinato de un criminal de poca monta y que entraña profundos lados oscuros que deberán averiguar los dos guardias civiles, acompañados de un nuevo compañero: el guardia Arnau. Sin embargo, el contacto de Lorenzo Silva con lo policíaco, y en general con la , no se da exclusivamente con la serie protagonizada por Vila y Chamorro. En La sustancia interior (1996) observamos un thriller histórico, mientras que en Muerte en el "reality show" (2007) dos nuevos investigadores aparecen: la juez Tortosa y el comisario Fonseca, los cuales deberán esclarecer un asesinato cometido «en directo». Asimismo otro texto del escritor madrileño sobresale enormemente: su primera novela Noviembre sin violetas (1995) la cual mantiene un pulso intertextual con La llave de cristal (1931) de Dashiell Hammett. Beatus Ille (1986), la primera novela de Muñoz Molina, recorre ampliamente los terrenos policíacos gracias a su discurso de investigación. No obstante, el texto no pertenece al género policíaco. La interdiscursividad que se presenta en este caso, por sí sola, no es elemento de peso para considerar Beatus Ille una novela policíaca. Hacen falta personajes, temática, ambientación, atmósfera y otros elementos para considerar el texto dentro de lo policíaco. Todo lo contrario sucede en El invierno en Lisboa (1987). Esta novela presenta características mucho más cercanas a lo criminal y a lo policíaco: hechos, acciones, personajes y temática, entre otros elementos, van construyendo una historia que, sin embargo, presenta serias dificultades: ¿es criminal o policíaca? Indudablemente la novela recuerda mucho los antiguos textos del «realismo noir norteamericano», como Cosecha roja o El halcón maltés de Dashiell Hammett, que, en muchas ocasiones, son tan difíciles de definir y clasificar. Una situación que se repetirá en Beltenebros (1989) solo que con mayores dificultades: el texto discurrirá entre lo policíaco, lo criminal, el thriller político y la narrativa de espionaje. En el caso de Los misterios de Madrid (1992) Muñoz Molina ofrecerá una parodia de lo policíaco a partir de un investigador –Lorencito Quesada– que poco o nada tiene que ver con los legendarios private eyes del «realismo noir» o del polar francés. El dueño del secreto(1994) regresa a la problemática presentada en El invierno en Lisboa y Beltenebros: ¿es un texto criminal o policíaco? Cualquier afirmación tajante puede estar errada, ya que, aunque posee algunos elementos propios de ambos géneros, como el discurso, la ambientación y la atmósfera, la novela está en estrecho contacto con la narrativa de espionaje y el thriller político, haciendo muy difícil una clasificación. Dentro de la obra de Muñoz Molina relacionada con lo criminal y lo policíaco, así como con otros géneros afines, encontramos los cuentos Te golpeare sin cólera (1983), El hombre sombra (1983), La colina de los sacrificios (1993), La poseída (1993), Borrador de una historia (1993), La gentileza de los desconocidos (1993) y la novela corta Nada del otro mundo (1993). Pues bien, con Plenilunio (1997) el escritor giennense explora el relato criminal y policíaco de un modo complejo: se adentra en el conflicto psicológico del investigador y del criminal, como lo lleva a cabo el norteamericano Thomas Harris en El dragón rojo (1980-1981) y El silencio de los corderos (1988), pero enlazando también elementos del thriller, el espionaje y el terrorismo. Por lo que se refiere al periodista Antonio Jiménez Barca su obra literaria se traduce en una sola novela: Deudas pendientes (2006), un texto que encierra ciertas complejidades propias del thriller y de lo policíaco. Domingo Villar es un autor gallego que saltó a la palestra en el año 2006 con la publicación de Ojos de agua, protagonizada por el inspector de policía Leo Caldas. Un texto que, como la siguiente aventura de Caldas, La playa de los ahogados (2009), mantiene un esquema clásico: un crimen se ha cometido y es necesario investigarlo y solucionarlo. No es de llamar la atención que este esquema siga siendo popular en la narrativa policíaca en general, ya que dicho esquema es actualizado por los escritores y adaptado a las necesidades de cada texto. Finalmente, la narrativa policíaca en este siglo XXI sigue manteniendo la máxima clásica de . Así pues, tanto en el caso del asesinato del músico Luís Reigosa como el del marinero Justo Costelo, el inspector Caldas continúa con los esquemas clásicos, pero lo interesante es que Domingo Villar le ofrece al lector una visión del complejo entramado psicológico gallego. Es interesante señalar dentro de la obra de Villar el cuento Las hojas secas, incluido en la antología de cuentos La lista negra (2009), compilada por Àlex Martín Escribà y Javier Sánchez Zapatero. En pocas ocasiones se tiene la oportunidad de escribir sobre el personaje-arquetipo del testigo. Pues bien, Domingo Villar es de los pocos que logra hacerlo a través de un ex-presidiario, testigo involuntario de un crimen que lo acosará hasta el día de su muerte. El santanderino Julián Ibáñez comienza en 1980 su andadura por el «sensacional de suspense» con la novela La triple dama, protagonizada por Ramón Ferreol, una antigua estrella de fútbol, un texto que se mueve entre el thriller y lo policíaco. Al año siguiente Ibáñez entregaría La recompensa polaca, pero es en 1983, con No des la espalda a la paloma, cuando Ramón Ferreol vuelve a aparecer en medio del suicidio de un agente de aduanas. En 1986, con Tirar al vuelo, Ibáñez sorprende con un investigador que se aleja totalmente de las convenciones policíacas respecto al personaje del investigador, ya que Novoa no se acerca en lo mínimo a ello. Él es un simple ciudadano común y corriente, un contable, que ve cómo el peligro se aproxima y tiene que tomar cartas en el asunto. Un personaje que protagonizaría Llámala Siboney (1988), Mi nombre es Novoa (1994) y ¿Y a ti, dónde te entierro, hermano? En la década de los noventa, Julián Ibáñez abordaría el espionaje gracias a Bar Babilonia (1991) y continuaría con otras dos novelas policíacas: Doña Lola (1991) y No hay semáforos para los pumas (1995). Ya en el año 2001, Ibáñez ofrece dos nuevos textos. En Manuela Scarface el escritor santanderino aborda la temática criminal de los asaltos bancarios a través de Paco Peña, un joven que trabaja en una sucursal de la Caixa, que una mañana de finales de agosto se ve sorprendido, junto al resto de empleados y clientes, por unos atracadores, por una banda de asaltantes. Pero la verdadera sorpresa de Paco será la de reconocer, a pesar de los disfraces de los delincuentes, a su novia Manuela. Una situación que puede hundirlo, ya que la policía y sus compañeros lo considerarían un cómplice. Mientras tanto, en Entre trago y trago observamos el bajo mundo del crimen, con sus ambientes turbios y corruptos, a través de Maza, un delincuente de poca monta que regenta El Oasis, un club de mala muerte perdido en una carretera de la Mancha. Un texto que nos recuerda los ambientes sórdidos del «realismo noir norteamericano» y el polar francés de los cincuenta. Resulta interesante ver esos ambientes deprimentes en la siguiente novela de Ibáñez: La miel y el cuchillo (2003), de la mano de otro delincuente menor, Florín, un cuarentón con humor crudo perteneciente a ese Madrid tenebroso, por el que este personaje deambulará golpeando y robando. En Los gorilas no bromean con la corbata (2006) observamos a Viriato Ansorena Ruiz, un chico común y corriente que por las noches se transforma en un fotoperiodista de sucesos que busca la noticia que lo encumbre a él y a su padre, sin pensar siquiera que ese descubrimiento puede costarle la vida. Por su parte, Que siga el baile (2006) es un regreso a esa temática policíaca híbrida, en la que el policía Barquín, testigo directo del extraño robo al bar Boom Boom, se verá implicado en una peligrosa investigación, en la búsqueda de las dos extrañas atracadoras. Con Crimen supertranquilo (2007), Ibáñez parece adoptar las convenciones del best-seller: quinientos años después de la expulsión de los judíos de Sefarad –la España hebrea– Rebeca viaja con su padre a Toledo en busca de la casa de sus antepasados. Pero, sorpresivamente, el hombre muere en el Servicio de Urgencias del Hospital. La historia se complica ya que existe la posibilidad de que el padre de Rebeca haya sido asesinado por causa de una antigua llave de oro que se encontraba entre sus pertenencias, robadas, supuestamente, por Pedro, el celador del hospital donde murió el viejo judío. El baile ha terminado (2009) muestra a Ruano Peredo, un policía del Grupo de Localización de Fugitivos, con sede en Gijón, que se verá envuelto en una compleja trama de espionaje en el que estarán involucradas la Guardia Civil, la Ertzaintza y ETA. En El beso del samurái (2009) la temática policíaca continúa dentro de la obra de Ibáñez. Pedro, el ayudante del detective de un hotel, se hace amigo de Helga, una joven alemana. Una amistad que le llevará a involucrarse en una misteriosa trama criminal. La búsqueda de Julián Ibáñez por romper los esquema y paradigmas policíacos la encontramos en Perro vagabundo busca a quién morder (2009) un extraño relato policíaco que, aparentemente, no encierra ningún crimen dentro de la forzada investigación que realiza el misterioso . En 2010, Ibáñez entrega tres nuevos textos en donde la investigación y el crimen se entrelazan de la mano de policías corruptos y delincuentes pragmáticos: Giley, un relato que explota al personaje del sospechoso, encarnado en el policía Cobos; Calle intranquilidad, un viaje hacia ese Bilbao testigo del tráfico de inmigrantes y el negocio de la prostitución y El invierno oscuro, la visión de un joven inmerso en el peligroso mundo de la kale borroka etarra. Por lo que respecta al barcelonés Carles Quílez, su acercamiento a lo «sensacional de suspense» comienza con Atracadores (2002) una antología en la que se observan once distintos cuentos basados, en clave periodística, en los crímenes de las principales bandas de atracadores de Barcelona en los últimos veinticinco años. Una interesante antología que nos enseña una ciudad oculta y sombría, que nada tiene que ver con el destino turístico que de ella se presenta. En Asalto a la virreina (2004), Quílez saca a relucir su identidad periodística al reconstruir un evento criminal sucedido en Barcelona en 1991: el intento de robo de la colección de monedas del Gabinet Numismàtic de Catalunya, instalado en el palacio de la Virreina. Ese rasgo del escritor barcelonés por reconstruir historias a partir de una visión periodística se repite en dos de sus siguientes novelas: Psicópata: un relato basado en personajes y situaciones (2005), en donde un periodista recibe el encargo de componer la historia de un psicópata encarcelado, un trabajo que se transforma en un sombrío reto que nos acerca a la problemática psiquiátrica de los asesinos seriales y su complejo mundo interno y La soledad de Patricia (2010), un texto que se mueve entre el espionaje y el thriller. Piel de policía (2006) se ajusta más a lo policíaco. Lacruz, ex policía que regenta un bar de mala muerte en Barcelona, ve cómo su vida cambia radicalmente a partir del asesinato de Castán, su ex compañero en la policía. Así pues, la elección de El complot mongol (1969), de Rafael Bernal, Noviembre sin violetas (1995), de Lorenzo Silva, Plenilunio (1997), de Antonio Muñoz Molina, Deudas pendientes (2005), de Antonio Jiménez Barca, Ojos de agua (2007), de Domingo Villar, El baile ha terminado (2009), de Julián Ibáñez y La soledad de Patricia (2010), de Carlos Quílez, no es al azar, sino meditada. En estas novelas se puede observar el traspaso de las diferentes fronteras que «separan» lo criminal, lo policíaco, el thriller y el espionaje, es decir la «narrativa sensacional de suspense», lo cual plantea la posibilidad de que no exista alguna frontera. Y, aunque en Ojos de agua se aprecia el esquema policíaco clásico, esto se debe a una razón: es necesario un texto policíaco para que pueda compararse este con uno criminal, un thriller o uno de espionaje y se ponga en evidencia las diferencias entras estas narrativas. Ahora bien, ante la situación de traspaso de fronteras genéricas por parte del grupo de novelas seleccionadas, surge una duda en especial ¿cómo llevar a cabo esta investigación? Una gran cantidad de hipótesis aparecen de inmediato, pero lo cierto es que lo más importante es poseer un método. Generalmente, muchos estudios de lo criminal y lo policíaco, sin olvidar los del espionaje y el thriller, son históricos, compendios a través de los cuales observamos la historia literaria de ambos géneros, así como su desarrollo y evolución. Investigaciones interesantes y valiosas, dado que rastrean obras y autores que habían sido olvidados o estaban ocultos bajo algún seudónimo. Sin embargo, una visión histórica no es suficiente para abordar un problema como el del límite entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller que se plantea a partir de El complot mongol, Noviembre sin violetas, Plenilunio, Deudas pendientes, Ojos de agua, El baile ha terminado y La soledad de Patricia. Para ello son necesarias más herramientas de investigación y por eso emplearemos directrices y pautas de análisis histórico, pragmático-hermenéutico, discursivo-textual, semántico y de la teoría del género. En el primer capítulo reflexionaremos sobre los aspectos históricos y para eso se llevará a cabo una revisión histórica literaria de lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller, solo que de una manera algo distinta: separando estas cuatro narrativas Como ya hemos señalado, existe una confusión entre ellas que puede llevar a pensar, como de hecho ocurre, que criminal es sinónimo de policíaco o viceversa, o que el espionaje está supeditado a lo policíaco, todo esto falso. A partir de esta visión histórica apreciaremos cómo se gesta cada narrativa de manera independiente haciendo ver que se trata de manifestaciones literarias distintas. Esto nos permitirá, por un lado, ver dónde se sitúan las novelas estudiadas, es decir, de dónde vienen, cuáles han sido los antecedentes históricos, sus antepasados literarios. Por otro lado, vamos a observar cómo una idea que venimos gestando desde hace varios años ve la luz. La inmensa mayoría de los críticos e investigadores consideran a Edgar Allan Poe como el padre de la novela policíaca, pero se olvidan o no le dan la importancia a un nombre clave sin el que el género, muy probablemente, no habría comenzado a popularizarse y establecerse: Charles Dickens. La labor de Dickens es enorme y, aunque desgraciadamente no podemos analizar su obra criminal y policíaca, es un objetivo claro revalidar su enorme labor haciendo mención de su trabajo. En el segundo capítulo emplearemos la pragmática-hermenéutica como uno de los pilares de análisis del problema del límite de la «narrativa sensacional de suspense» y la fluctuación tipológica en las novelas estudiadas, lo cual hará ver cuáles de estos textos se acercan más a formas híbridas. De igual modo, la pragmática-hermenéutica nos ayudará en otros dos objetivos: analizar las relaciones intratextuales de las novelas de Rafael Bernal, Lorenzo Silva, Antonio Muñoz Molina, Antonio Jiménez Barca, Domingo Villar, Julián Ibáñez y Carles Quílez, pero también las extratextuales, aquellas en las cuales se puede generar la confusión, en las relaciones que mantendrá el texto no solo con el lector, sino con mediadores que pueden resultar nocivos en el proceso comunicacional al generar dicha confusión. Asimismo, y aunque no realizaremos un profundo análisis comparativo, estableceremos relaciones comparativas entre los siete textos elegidos con el fin de evidenciar las diferencias entre lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller. Por lo que se refiere al capítulo dedicado al discurso y al texto es necesario aclarar que se transita por terrenos en los que no hay acuerdos respecto a la definición de ambos conceptos. No es nuestro propósito buscar una definición de ellos, sino reflexionar sobre ambos en base a las definiciones de un grupo de especialistas, y de este modo abordar el problema del límite en base a una confusión ya algo antigua: ¿existe un discurso policíaco, uno criminal o uno de espionaje? ¿Si es así ¿por qué un texto con un discurso policíaco como El maestro de San Petersburgo (1994) de Coetzee, no puede ser catalogado como policíaco? Nuestro interés se centrará en analizar el discurso criminal, policíaco, de espionaje y del thriller y ponerlo en referencia a El complot mongol, Noviembre sin violetas, Plenilunio, Deudas pendientes, Ojos de agua, El baile ha terminado y La soledad de Patricia junto a otros textos para observar cómo aparece el problema del límite, de la mano de una serie de elementos textuales que se mueven de una narrativa –lo policíaco– a otra –el thriller–. Otro pilar fundamental para esta investigación es la semántica. Empleando la semántica de «mundos posibles» y dos teorías de ella, la de Tomás Albaladejo y Lubomír Doležel, se observará cómo se va construyendo un texto ficcional, en este caso las novelas estudiadas, a partir de parámetros comunicacionales. Gracias a este análisis se confirmarán las impresiones pragmáticas: las novelas de Bernal, Silva, Muñoz Molina, Jiménez Barca, Villar, Ibáñez y Quílez se construyen a partir de eventos diametralmente opuestos: el crimen e investigación, terrorismo y espionaje contraterrorista, amenaza y seguridad, pero no bajo regímenes estrictos, sino como un texto en el que dos submundos, de acuerdo a la terminología de Albaladejo, el de los protagonistas y antagonistas de las obras estudiadas se enfrentan. Es imposible cerrar esta investigación sin tocar un tema espinoso en el que no hay grandes acuerdos: el del género. En el último capítulo tenemos el propósito de señalar los elementos genéricos de lo criminal, lo policíaco, el espionaje y el thriller y ver cómo se combinan, ofreciendo las señales del desplazamiento de la frontera entre estas narrativas y el problema de la confusión. También, y gracias a dos modelos genérico-comunicacionales, el de Kurt Spang y el de Jean Marie Schaeffer, tendremos la ocasión de vislumbrar cómo, de manera genérica, tratamos de ubicar las obras estudiadas y de confirmar su carácter híbrido. No obstante, es inevitable que en este capítulo hagamos mención al problema de la definición del género. Es claro que no se pretende dar una respuesta a dicho problema, ya que esto es imposible, pero lo que sí se llevará a cabo será, gracias a las propuestas de Spang, Schaeffer, García Berrio y Huerta Calvo, construir una definición que sea práctica para esta investigación. Igual de importante será observar en este último capítulo un concepto diseñado para esta investigación: el «sensacional de suspense». En ningún momento buscaremos defenestrar a la «novela negra», pero sí analizaremos el problema que aparece al utilizar dicho término, y las bondades que hay en torno al concepto «sensacional de suspense». Hay que aclarar que este estudio no está divido en dos secciones, una de metodología y otra de aplicación. Por el contrario, lo llevaremos a cabo in sito, es decir realizando la metodología y la aplicación conjuntamente. El motivo de esta elección es de carácter práctico, pues en anteriores trabajos de investigación nos ha funcionado correctamente.
"1918" bezeichnet mehr als das Ende des Ersten Weltkriegs. Der Jahresbezug begründet häufig auch bildungsgeschichtliche Narrative. Hingegen fragt der Band nach Gleichzeitigkeiten von Zäsuren und Tradierungen, Brüchen und Kontinuitäten in regionalen, nationalen, europäischen und globalen Perspektiven. Er untersucht vielfältige Paradoxien vermeintlich alter und neuer pädagogischer Kulturen und Praktiken ebenso wie Ambivalenzen der Jugend zwischen Aufbegehren und Anknüpfung an Bildungsideale. Auch die Infragestellung von Schule und Pädagogik, ihre Relegitimierung sowie die Verflechtung von Sozialdemokratie und Sozialismus mit Bildungsreformen und -traditionen werden fokussiert. Damit zielt der Band auf den vielfach beschriebenen «Kampf der Ideologien» in der Zwischenkriegszeit und auf die Zirkulation konkurrierender Wissen, sodass er bildungshistorisch die komplexe Offenheit von 1918 diskutiert. (DIPF/Orig.)
This technical note reviews with the status access to finance for enterprises in Montenegro, identifies key bottlenecks, and provides recommendations on how to address main challenges. In particular, the note focuses on SME finance by assessing (i) bank SME lending, and (ii) current constraints facing further development and deepening of the non-bank credit sector. The note develops key findings presented to the authorities during the FSAP mission and summarized in the aide-mémoire. The Montenegrin financial sector has yet to recover from the collapse of the real estate bubble in 2008. The crisis has exposed important weaknesses in the financial sector's governance, oversight and infrastructure which had fueled years of unsustainable credit growth leading up to the crisis. The resulting balance sheet deleveraging and restructuring process has reduced the banking sectors' ability to finance the corporate sector, which continues to suffer from slow economic growth and remaining weaknesses in the business environment.
The longstanding "cash versus food" debate has received renewed attention in both research and practice. This paper reviews key issues shaping the debate and presents new evidence from randomized and quasi-experimental evaluations that deliberately compare cash and in-kind food transfers in ten developing counties. Findings show that relative effectiveness cannot be generalized: although some differences emerge in terms of food consumption and dietary diversity, average impacts tend to depend on context, specific objectives, and their measurement. Costs for cash transfers and vouchers tend to be significantly lower relative to in-kind food. Yet the consistency and robustness of methods for efficiency analyses varies greatly.
This paper surveys empirically the broad features of trade policy in goods for 31 major economies that collectively represented 83 percent of the world's population and 91 percent of the world's GDP in 2013. It addresses the following five questions: Do some countries have more liberal trading regimes than others? Within countries, which industries receive the most import protection? How do trade policies change over time? Do countries discriminate among their trading partners when setting trade policy? Finally, how liberalized is world trade? The analysis documents the extent of cross-sectional heterogeneity in applied commercial policy across countries, their economic sectors, and their trading partners, over time. It concludes that substantial trade policy barriers remain as an important feature of the world economy.
Since the Constitution (2005) provided for decentralizing powers and functions for the Governorates, the government of Iraq has enacted several legal, policy, and institutional reform initiatives, the intent of which is to shift political and administrative powers and responsibilities from the Central Government to the Governorates. The legal and policy framework for decentralization is yet to be followed through with efficient implementation. The Government of Iraq and the World Bank will like to assess the current status of decentralization and its implications for improving service delivery at the Governorate level. The objective of the assessment is to take stock of the current state of decentralization in Iraq with a view to identifying factors that contribute to weak service delivery performance at the governorate level. The assessment will also make recommendations for policy and process reforms that are deemed necessary to moving forward the decentralization process, thereby helping to improve service delivery performance by the Governorates. The assessment was carried out through a combination of desk reviews and field level consultations. This assessment provides a snapshot of the current status of the decentralization process. It identifies policy and process reform measures that are necessary to strengthen service delivery by the 15 Governorates of Iraq. Strengthening local accountability should be the key to strengthening the service delivery performance of the Governorates.
This Technical Note was prepared in the context of a joint World Bank-IMF Financial Sector Assessment Program mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina during October-November 2014. Financial inclusion in Bosnia and Herzegovina performs relatively well compared to peers, but gaps remain for selected market segments. Financial sector development and access to finance for firms is constrained by weak domestic demand, high collateral requirements and inadequate credit enforcement mechanisms.
