THE CATHOLICFAMILY MONTHLY - Volume 32 - Good Literature in the Home

Sep 28, 2026

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A Catholic family magazine issue presents multiple articles and stories, including coverage of the Catholic Conference on Family Life and its fourth annual Family Life Essay Contest, listing participating institutions and prize winners. It also features a main essay titled “Good Literature in the Home” by Loretta Stich, arguing that informed, literate Catholic thinking depends on active reading rather than passive acceptance of easy modern entertainment, and calling families to provide and regularly use good books and fair-minded publications.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages36

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

Good Literature in the Home

Family Life Essay Contest Winners

Contributors

THE CATHOLICFAMILY MONTHLY $1.00 the Year Volume XXXII # GOOD LITERATURE IN THE HOME By Loretta Stich # SAINT JUDE CATCHES AFISHERMAN By A Sister # THE ASSUMPTION By the Rev.Wilfred G.Hurley,C.S.P. Other Articles and Stories of Interest toAl1 Members of The Family OUR SUNDAY VISITOR PRESSHUNTINGTON,INDIANA # THE CATHOLIC CONFERENCE ON FAMILY LIFENational Headquarters1312 Massachusetts Avenue,N.W.Washington,D.C. Winners of Family Life Essay Contest Exceptional interest was shown in the fourth annual Family Life EssayContest sponsored by the Catholic Conference on Family Life and open to allCatholic colleges and universities of the country.About 75 institutions par-ticipated,in some of them as many as 50 entering the contest. The three major prizes were awarded as follows:First prize:Miss Lo-retta Stich,Mt.Mary College,Milwaukee:Second Prize:Miss Mary NatalieSwann,Loretto Heights College,Loretto,Colo.;Third Prize:Miss HelenBokor,Marygrove College,Detroit. Ten additional prizes,consisting of a year's subscription to The CatholicFamily Monthly,official organ of the Catholic Conference on Family Life,wereawarded.The winners were:John Florence,Loyola University,Chicago;Miss Margaret Erbacher,The St.Mary College,Leavenworth,Kan.;SisterFrancis Borgia.The St.Mary College,Leavenworth,Kan.;Miss G.Fuhrmann,St.Francis College,Joliet,II1.;Dan O'Hanslon,Loyola University,Los An-geles;W.Ralston McGee,St.Vincent College,Latrobe,Pa.;Miss Beth Delaney,Marywood College,Scranton,Pa.;Mr.Thomas F.Sheehan,Providence Col-lege.Providence,R.I.;Miss Mary Elizabeth Dunlap,St.Mary's College,HolyCross P.0.,Ind.,and Romuald Verboomen,St.John's University,Collegeville,Minn. # Contributors Loretta Stich,Milwaukee.Helen Bokor,Detroit.Rev.Edgar Schmiedeler,0.S.B.,Washington,D.C. 0- # GooDLITERATURE IN THEHoME By Loretta Stich. If I might control the literature of the household,I uould guaranteethe well-being of the church and state.—Bacon We moderns of the twentieth cen-and we are,therefore,in danger oftury are,as a rule,very proud of our-slipping into our old practice of pre-selves.Rather,we are proud of the ferring the easy to the hard,therebyfact that we are living in an age inbecoming passive receivers of knowl-which scientific progress has reachededge rather than active acquirers ofa new peak of development.We lookit.condescendingly down on past centur-We cannot afford to let this hap-ies when there were no aeroplanes,nopen,least of all in our Catholic homes.high-powered motor cars,no long-Good reading is our most valuable in-distance telephone lines.And we toocentive to thought,and if ever theoften forget that sometimes progressworld needed good Catholic thinkers,means retrogression,that as we ad-it needs them today.Our Catholicsvance toward the attainment of onemust be sterling citizens who knowgood,we sometimes lose sight of an-how to think.They must be able notother probably just as valuable.only to understand their religion butFor instance,no one can doubt theto defend it against the onslaughts ofgreat value of easy communication,materialistic paganism.They mustmade possible to us through tele-be prepared to recognize the fallaciesphone,telegraph,and improvedin clever propaganda subversive totransportation.Yet it has cost usreligion,and to point them out tosomething.Today,letter-writing is aothers.They must be Catholics wholost art,one which cannot easily becan separate the chaff from therevived.One may count the cost aswheat,who can glean the true fromtrivial.Perhaps it is.But it is im-the false.They must be Catholics whoportant in this,that it indicates ourcan convince others that ours is thetendency to readily accept the easiertrue faith,that a Catholic sense ofand reject the harder.It shows ourvalues is the only rational one.willingness to bring into our livesthat which is more convenient,evenat a sacrifice of other advantages. Today,perhaps

FAQs

What is the Family Life Essay Contest and who can participate?

The fourth annual Family Life Essay Contest was sponsored by the Catholic Conference on Family Life and was open to all Catholic colleges and universities in the country.

How does the issue describe the importance of reading good literature at home?

It argues that good reading strengthens thought and religious conviction, helping Catholics know how to think, separate truth from propaganda, and recognize the fallacies in materialistic influences.

What does “Good Literature in the Home” suggest families should do?

Families should provide good books, magazines, and unbiased newspapers, then read them regularly and intelligently rather than relying on easy conveniences or neglecting reading habits.

Sep 28, 2026

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