The circumstances of the death of Cardinal Danielou (see The Tablet, 25 May) have given rise to insinuations in the scandal-mongering section of the French press which can no longer be overlooked now that the French episcopal conference has issued an official statement on the matter, printed on another page in this issue. It was first announced that the Cardinal died of a heart attack whilst dining with friends in the xviith district of Paris. Later it became known that he died from a broken blood vessel in the flat of a young cabaret singer whom he had visited on several previous occasions. That is the simple truth.
In Le Monde of 15 June there is a testimony from Professor Mandouze of the Sorbonne, an old friend and collaborator, which seems to us far better than any unprofitable, uncharitable and inevitably ignorant speculation. After reflecting on the cardinal's work for the Church, and in general on the relationship of a man's work to his own person, the professor goes on to say: "I hope I may be allowed to speak in a more personal fashion. The general public is doubtless ignorant of the fact that I was closely connected with Jean Danielou through our work in common on the fathers of the Church, and even more so through his collaboration with me when I was editor-in-chief of Temoinage Chritien? I even had to write an article defending him against the integrists of the time . . . On the other hand it is no secret that I was in profound disagreement with the positions which he chose to take up in these last years concerning the Church and its evolution, and particularly with his views about the priesthood and marriage.
"That being said I would affirm that nothing that Danielou did in his lifetime— whether it concerned his apostolate, his friendships, his scientific work, or the value or fallibility of his earlier or more recent positions—can be called into question through any interpretation that one might put on his death, whatever that interpretation might be. Let us face it, we are Pharisees and despite our pious references to the Gospel, our respectability has never allowed us to admit in the depths of our heart the 'scandalous truth' of a proclamation made by Jesus in Matthew (21, 32): 'I tell you solemnly, tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the Kingdom of God before you . . .' The saddest aspects of the 'Danielou affair,' where so many have rushed to conclusions, is that it has brought to the surface all sorts of 'evil thoughts' which one might have thought were long since dead, whether they come from clericalism or anticlericalism, which are two faces of the same coin.
"With the self-righteous gossiping of some and the exaggerated protests of others, we have yet one more example of the fact that there are still enemies outside the Church or out-of-date adherents within it ready to attack or defend it in the name of a moral system for which they are indebted• to the Church but which both wrongly identify with Christianity."
Musical exercises
The Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola must be one of the most unreadable books ever written. Imagine our surprise when we were told that they have just been set to music and recorded by a group of members of staff, lay and religious, from Stonyhurst College, the Jesuit public school. It seemed as bizarre an idea to us as using the odd page from Hansard as a libretto for an operetta, or reprinting London Classified Telephone Directory (North) as an epic poem. But then, to read the Spiritual Exercises is as much a misuse of what is essentially an experience to be lived through as it would be to treat them as a bluffer's guide to mysticism or as a "prayer made simple" teach-yourself book. Setting the key ideas to music is one way to communicate this experience. The venture comes in the form of a long-playing record of 16 songs entitled Cave of Living Streams, and an introductory booklet by the man who wrote the words of the songs, Fr W. Hewett Si. They are thoughtfully worded for use for reflection, and they are also musically worthwhile, which is •what sets this experiment above many a similar one. They are first and foremost good songs, a necessary condition for getting the words listened to, and one of the main aims of the enterprise is to get them used in conjunction with reflection on the ideas of the Exercises.
The title is intriguing and provides the key to the whole project: •the cave is the central motif, and is at one and the same time the cave of our own hearts, where we are alone with ourselves, it is Plato's cave, it is the cave in which Jesus was born and that other cave in which he was laid to rest. Most of all, it is the cave at Manresa where Ignatius himself first went through the experiences that were to provide the inspiration for his Exercises and for the spirituality of the Society of Jesus. The living streams which issue from this cave are those of water and light, the "fruit" of reflection and prayer.
But we shouldn't make the whole thing sound too grim. As the introduction to the songs makes clear, the melodies in their own right are an enjoyable experience. Basically, it would seem, you could say that the songs cash in on the insight that Godspell and Superstar provided, that the devil need not have all the best tunes, and they give music of a quality to rival that of those two musicals, with a content which in its depth and ability to •hit hard goes a good way beyond. Just what we might expect from Ignatius, who is after all the inspiration of the words. Some of them are slow and meditative, with excellent arrangements for string accompaniment, and others have brass, percussion or guitar support. The whole series is linked together by musical key to the Ignatian experience. They should prove a great use to retreat-givers and religious educationists, and they will also provide much pleasure in their own right.
The record, together with a booklet containing an introduction and the text of the songs, can be obtained price £3 post free from "Cave of Living Streams", Stonyhurst College, nr Blackburn, Lancs B136 9Pz.
Cardiff style
The main delight and surprise for the newcomer to Cardiff is undoubtedly the splendour of its civic centre: Portland stonefaced buildings laid out like giant wedding cakes on lawns which are now splashed with a psychedelic riot of spring colours. Thanks to the generosity and foresight of the Bute family, the city has a fine green lung, including the castle grounds forming Bute Park—a far cry from the dark valleys which gave the city, and the Butes, a far-off wealth.
The University College Art Group recently mounted a fascinating exhibition of Nigerian art in the main building in Cathays Park, bringing together out of private collections, including that of the university's principal who has maintained the close links he formed when engaged in academic work in Nigeria, works which had never been seen in public before. It was a haunting reminder of what art was truly like before it became self-conscious.
Yet, only a totter away from the university building, the National Museum proudly exhibits a recently acquired collection of paintings, drawings and glasswork by Maurice Marinot (1862-1960) given to the museum by the artist's daughter because she recalled that here in Cardiff we have one of the country's finest collections of the works of modern French artists. Yet again, from the royalties sweated out of the mining valleys, the Davies sisters were able to acquire things of rare beauty for the people of Wales to enjoy. And how pleasant it is, now that the iniquitous museum charges have been abolished, to see (and hear!) once again the schoolchildren swarming the spacious galleries on a Saturday morning—many of them on their way to one of the many field activities which the museum staff organise in the surrounding countryside.
And, touched perhaps with the same missionary zeal and vision, the Welsh Arts Council whose headquarters are tucked away in the backwater of Museum Place have burst into the main shopping centre of the city with a blazing blue, green and white painted building called simply Oriel (which is the Welsh for gallery). Here is a genuinely exhaustive collection of books, sound recordings, drawings and so on concerned with Wales; an excellent information centre and accommodation for poetry readings, lectures, recitals, exhibitions, talk-ins—and, vitally necessary for a Welsh shopping crowd, just talk !
At long last, Cardiff is moving out of its hitherto inexplicable practice .of never publicising anything about itself and is beginning to show off in style.