Sm, — Dr J. A. Bryden and Dr Monica Lawlor have stated
in their letter in last week's number of the SPECTATOR that Fr L. Bright was not a Marxist. I am quite prepared to believe that he does not hold a membership card of any society which has Karl Marx as its prophet. Yet the fact remains that there are Catholics, both priests and laymen, who advocate the application of some principles of Marxism in solving contemporary social and economic problems. They are not Marxists, but approve of Marxism; they profess to be Catholics, but do not approve of Catholicism. That is a very interesting state of affairs which fits perfectly into the confosed and contradic- tory pattern of the ideas of Karl Marx.
To enumerate all the fundamental differences which make Christianity and Marxism absolutely incom- patible in philosophical, moral, economic and social questions is not here necessary. A careful reading of the writings of Marx and Engels would make it ob- vious to any unbiased intelligent reader. I invite the advocates of Marxism to do so. It may be a new and refreshing experience.
Simone Weil wrote in one of her essays: '... "dia- lectical materialism" . . . these two words are of an almost impenetrable emptiness. A very amusing game —though rather a cruel one—is to ask a Marxist what they mean.'
May I play the same game and ask the non- Marxists with Marxist outlook exactly which of the Marxist principles do they find so helpful and com- patible with Catholic social teaching?
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