When TIA proposes that Catholics return to traditional customs and manners, I frequently hear the objection that, "You are following the patterns of European nobility. We Americans don't have anything to do with those habits. We are naturally more casual." So, we Americans have been perpetually sloppy in worn blue jeans, T-shirts and tennis shoes.

To put this pretext to rest, I am presenting to our readers a picture of a typical family in Ohio, above, going to an Easter party in 1961. The mother has carefully dressed her six children in an exemplary way. The girls are dignified and proper in ladylike dresses and hats, as is the mother; the boy wears a neat suit and tie.

In those good times, the winds of the Cultural Revolution of the '60s had not yet swept away almost every vestige of our family and social life.

Do we want to restore a Christian Civilization? Do we want to follow the advice of Our Lady of Fatima and reform the bad customs into which we have fallen? If you agree with me that we definitely must do this, then let's start at home. Follow the good example of this Ohio family.

Do dress your children well.

Alexis Reyes

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Posted January 23, 2009

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