Prior Gregory Borgstedt and Dom Alban Baer at entrance
of old monastery, greeting visiting William F. Sands (1940’s)

We now are entering the 80th year since the end of the Second World War. This article is reprinted from the Raven of 1942-43, an issue with several articles about that war and which included condolences for several School families who had lost loved ones in action, including alumni of the School. Prior Gregory Borgstedt, writing at this time of war that so greatly affected the extended community of the then Priory and the School, presents us with a reflection on the sincere practice of faith in terms that continue to speak to our present day.

Every school, like every other institution in our country, is making a special effort to contribute something to the winning of the war. All realize that this means a victory of ideas as well as of arms. The war will not be really won so long as the attitudes which are largely responsible for it continue. These attitudes are based on false philosophies which are materialistic, individualistic and totalitarian. A philosophy of materialism looks at man and everything in the world from the point of view of this world only. It considers only the physical aspect and has regard only for physical well-being. It excludes the eternal, the spiritual and, of course, the supernatural. A philosophy of individualism holds exaggerated views of the rights of each man to unlimited self-expression and self-development at the expense of his duties to society. It dispenses with many of the restrictions on the individual which responsibility to others demands. A philosophy of totalitarianism maintains that man is valueless, except as a puppet of the state. In its view men have no inviolable rights; the state does not exist for its members, but the members exist for the state.

Unless these false theories are combatted and corrected by sound principles, the world will continue to be overwhelmed by the disasters of war which we now witness, even though some sort of peace exists for a time. It behooves us to use vigorously the best means in our power for establishing right view points and restoring sanity to society. As Catholics we have weapons for victory and peace which are peculiar to us. They are the unique contribution which we can make as Christians. We should, therefore, humbly but confidently and with a special pride—the right kind—bring them to bear on the present situation. If we neglect them, no one else will take them up. We have, therefore, a tremendous responsibility. What are these means which are ours alone to employ? They are the knowledge and practice of our religion. Of course, such a phrase includes a great deal, and may at first sight seem idealistic and unreal. The knowledge and practice of religion are the most important things for us at any time. The point is that they also have a direct bearing on contemporary conditions. It is more than ever the duty of the school to insist that the first place be given to knowing and living our Faith. It is the duty of every master and boy to appreciate this fact, to realize it, and so to fulfill his duty not only to God and himself but to his country and to human society the world over.
Dom Gregory Borgstedt in study hall with students (early 1940’s)To begin with, we must remember that the intelligent practice of religion has supreme value in itself and is not simply to be used as a means to achieve some other good. Ulterior motives are evil in religion, even when they may be for a good purpose. However, the doctrine of the Church is such that, if we do know and practice it, we shall as a by-product develop for ourselves and for all those with whom we come in contact a true philosophy of life which will affect every department of life, including political theory. Because the Church has man's spiritual and eternal, as well as material and temporal, welfare at heart, the Catholic can see everything in true proportion. He can appreciate things for what they are really worth. He can order all things to an end which is higher than the things themselves. Such a view is a strong antidote to the materialistic philosophy which underlies the present evils of the world, evils which flow from making idols of things despite their limitations and from treating as enduring things which of their nature are passing.

The Church has a perfectly balanced understanding of the individual, of society, and of their relationship. She safeguards the individual by her emphasis on the value of the person. She upholds the inviolable rights of the individual not only as a temporary measure but as a means necessary to spiritual development here, in view of eternal life hereafter. The Church stresses the duty of society to contribute to the entire good of the individual. At the same time she insists by precept and in practice that the individual realizes his full development only by contributing his share to the common good. The Church's very nature of Mystical Body of Christ, of which we are members, supports this teaching. In her Liturgy, the relationship of the individual part and the group activity finds its complete fulfillment. We see that the Catholic viewpoint is strongly opposed both to individualism and totalitarianism. This is but a very rough outline and gives only a small part of what the Church proposes to our minds. But we can see, even from this, that our religion will certainly help us to avoid errors into which so many have fallen. More important still, it would lead us and those who are influenced by us to sound views of life in all its phases. Knowledge, however, is only part of the contribution we can make. It is necessary, for right action depends on right know ledge. But knowledge may be sterile. We must see to it that ours is productive.
Dom Gregory Borgstedt meeting with student (early 1940’s)We may know all that has been suggested unless we put it into practice it will not contribute to the task at hand. It is the practice of our religion, based on knowledge, which will have the greatest effect in leading us to a right course of action and in impelling others to do likewise. How the practice of Catholicism can assist us may not be so easy to see. By "practice of Catholicism" is not meant simply the carrying out of specified devotions or the performance of acts of piety. Fulfilling the law, hearing Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation, and the rest, are not enough in themselves. Everything depends on how we hear Mass, on how we do our ordinary duty as Catholics. If we realize, for example, that hearing Mass is participating in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and that such participation logically demands heroism and sacrifice in our daily lives, then that practice of religion will lead in our day, as in the past, to the development of men who attract and lead the communities in which they live. The example of their self-denial, of their devotion to religious and civic duty, will first impress and then change society. If we have the courage which springs from the Holy Spirit's gift of fortitude received in Confirmation, if we use the strength of Christ of which he gives us a share when we receive him in Holy Communion, then we shall become soldiers of Christ who can face any trial or stand any persecution in our offensive against modern paganism and in our missionary work to bring Christ to modern life. If we realize the implications of religious practices, we shall find that we must love our neighbor in action, not merely in sentiment. We shall know that we must be just in our dealings with all men. Otherwise, the love of God which we proclaim in our prayers is hypocrisy. The exercise of these virtues of self-denial, courage, charity, justice, and others like them, will make it impossible for us to maintain a false individualism which is rooted in selfishness. At the same time, the encouragement to individual action which the practice of our Faith entails can preclude the rise of a situation in which men fly to totalitarianism as the only solution for accomplishing what is left undone when personal initiative fails.

We are met by a great challenge. We can take it up only if we devote our selves to a deeper study and more ardent practice of Catholicism. So many special measures are brought to our attention at a time of crisis like the present, that there is grave danger of missing what is fundamental. There is a further danger that while we recognize which things are fundamental, we are so preoccupied with details that the important elements become obscured. The intensification of religious life is the most practical step we can take at this very moment.

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Cover of 1942 Portsmouth RavenDom Gregory Borgstedt became Prior of Portsmouth in the 1940 before departing in 1950 to help found Mount Saviour Monastery in Elmira, New York. Born in Yonkers, New York, he had been trained as a monk of Portsmouth at Fort Augustus Abbey of the English Benedictine Congregation in Scotland. After serving as Sub-Prior and Novice Master at Mt. Saviour, Fr. Gregory went to Christ in the Desert Monastery in New Mexico, which had been founded by Portsmouth’s former headmaster, Dom Aelred Wall. Borgstedt served for several years there as Prior before returning to Mt. Saviour, where he died in 1975.