The Sun.
London, England, 1868-01-07 00:00:00

'THE SUN, LOINN;ON, TUESDAY EvENiNG, JANUARY 7, 1868.

his soul, to emancipate his brethren, for whom
Christ had died."—(" Hist. Eng.," vol. 1.) After
this avowal of the abettor of the English Revolu-
tion, which is corroborated by Blackstone, let us
hear no more abuse of Churchmen by those who
value liberty. It is time, however, to lay before you
an Encyclical Letter, which his Holiness has deigned
to address unto us :—" Venerable Brethren,--
Health and the Apostolic blessing. Cast your eyes
around, venerable brethren, and you will see, and
with us you will grieve over, the abominations
which afflict unhappy Italy. For our part, we
adore the inscrutable judgments of God, who bath
pleased that we should live in these sad times,
when, by the action of men, and especially of those
who rule and administer public affairs in Italy, the
commandments of God and the laws of Holy Church
are utterly despised, and hill iety, unchecked, exalts
its head and triumphs. Hence flow all the crimes,
evils, and misfortunes which we se. Bence arise all
those bands Of men who walk in impiety and fight
under the standard of Satan, on whose face is writ-
ten Lying.' Called by the name of revolution,
and setting their mouths against Heaven, they
blaspheme God, they defile and contemn everything
sacred, they trample on all laws, human and divine.
Like ravenous wolves they pattt after their prey ;
they are shedders of blood, they are destroyers of
souls by their scandals, they seek the stipend of
their service by every injustice. They are robbers,
they afflict the weak and the poor, they add to the
number of widows and orphans, they deny justice
to the just, and for bribes spare the wicked.
Thoroughly corrupted, they strive at gratifying
every passion, at whatever damage to society itself.
By abandoned men of this sort we are now surroun-
ded. Animated by a spirit utterly diabolical, they
long to plant their standard in this our fair city,
beside the Chair of Peter, the centre of Catholic
truth and unity. The Subalpine Government,
which ought to keep them in check, is not ashamed
to cherish them, to provide them with arms and
provisions, and to protect their access to this
city. But let all such tremble, even of the highest
rank and place, for they are incurring additional
ecclesiastical penalties and censures. In the hu-
mility of our heart we earnestly pray God, who is
rich in mercies, to lead back all these unhappy
men to saving repentance and to the path of jus-
tice, religion, and piety ; but we cannot keep silence
on the grave perils to which in this hour of dark-
ness we are exposed. We wait calmly every event,
though procured by wicked frauds, calumnies, con-
spiracies, and falsehoods, for we place all our hope
and trust in God our Saviour, who is our health
and strength in all our tribulations, who never
suffers those who hope in Him:to be confounded,
who confounds the designs of the impious, and
breaks the necks of sinners. Still we are bound
to announce to you; venerable brethren, and to all
the faithful committed to your care, the affliction
and the great danger to which we find ourselves,
principally owing to the conduct of the Subalpine
Government. For though we are defended by the
valour and devotion of our faithful army, which in
its gallant exploits has displayed a courage almost
heroic, it is clear that it is not able long to resist
the far superior numbers of its unjust assailants.
And although we are much consoled by the filial
piety shown to us by the remnant of our subjects,
reduced in number as they are by wicked usurpers,
we have still to lament that they must needs incur
great danger from the savage bands of criminals who
continually menace them, plunder them, and op-
press them in a thousand ways. And we have to
deplore other evils, venerable brethren, evils which
we can never sufficiently lament. From our con-
sistorial allocution, delivered on October 29th,
last year, and from the narrative and documents
which we printed and published, you know with
what affliction the Catholic Church and her children
in the Russian empire and in the kingdom of Poland
are oppressed and tortured ; Catholic bishops and
ecclesiastics and laymen have been banished, im-
prisoned, persecuted, robbed of their property, and
made to suffer most cruel punishment, while the
canons and laws of the Church have been trampled
under foot. And, not content with this, the Rus-
sian Government continued in its ancient manner
to violate the discipline of the Church, to sever the
bonds of union and communion between the faithful
and ourselves and the Holy See, and to plot and
strive in a thousand ways utterly to destroy the
Catholic religion in those dominions, to tear the
faithful from the bosom of the Catholic Church,
and to drag them into a fatal schism. We inform
you with deep grief that two decrees have lately
been issued by that Government since our last
allocution above mentioned. By the decree issued
on the 22d of last May, the diocese of Pod-
lachia, in the kingdom of Poland, its college of
canons, its general consistory, and its diocesan
seminary, were utterly abolished, the bishop of the
diocese was torn from his flock, and compelled at
once to quit the diocese. And this decree is
similar to that which was published on June 3d,
last year, which we were unable to mention, as we
knew not of it. By this clause the Government, of
its own will and power, abolished the Diocese of
Kamenicz, dispersed its college of canons, its con-
sistory, and its seminary, and removed the bishop
from the diocese by force. As every means of
communicating with the faithful is obstructed, and
in order not to expose any one to imprisonment,
exile, or other punishment, we have been obliged
to insert in our newspapers the document by which
we decided on providing for the exercise of legiti-
mate jurisdiction in those vast dioceses, in order
that, by the aid of the press, notice of our decision
might reach thither. Every one sees at a glance
in what spirit and for what object the Russian
Government issues these decrees. To the absence
of many bishops it now adds the suppression of
dioceses. But our affliction is yet increased by
another decree of the same Government, promul-
gated on the 22d of last May, by which a board
was constituted at St. Petersburg, called the Ro-
man Catholic Ecclesiastical College, over which the
Archbishop of Mohilew presides. All petitions ap-
pertaining even to matters of faith and conscience
which are sent to us and this apostolic see by the
bishops, clergy, and faithful people of the Russian
empire, and of the kingdom of Poland, are first to be
transmitted to this board, and the board has to ex-
amine them and decide whether the petitions exceed
the power of the bishops, and in that case to see
that they be forwarded to us. And when our de-
cision arrives thither, the president of the college
is bound to forward it to the Minister for Home
affairs, that he may decide whether anything be
found in it contrary to the laws of the State and the
rights of the Sovereign, and may execute it at his
pleasure and discretion should nothing of the sort be
found in it. You see clearly, venerable brethren,
how worthy of blame and reprobation is this
decree issued by lay and schismatical authority.
It destroys the Divine constitution of the Catholic
Church, it subverts ecclesiastical discipline, it in-
flicts a great injury on our supreme Pontifical
power and authority, and on the power
and authority of this Holy See and of the
bishops, it impels the faithful towards a fatal
schism, and violates the very law of nature as
to matters which concern faith and con-
science. Moreover, the Catholic Academy of War-
saw has been destroyed, and ruin impends over the
Ruthenian diocese of Chelin and Belz. Most of all
we have to lament that a certain priest, Wajoicki,
a man of suspected faith, despising all ecclesias-
tical penalties and censures, disregarding the terrible
judgment of God, has dared to accept from the civil
power the government and administration of that
diocese, and to issue sundry ordinances opposed to
ecclesiastical discipline, and furthering a fatal
schism. Amid these misfortunes afflicting us and
the Church, we entreat you, venerable brethren, as
there is none to fight for us save the Lord our God,
to join your fervent prayers with ours, as becomes
your zeal for the Catholic Church and your affection
for us, and together with all your clergy and people
to pray to God without ceasing to be mindful of
His mercies, to turn away His wrath from us, to
rescue His Holy Church and us from those evils,
to help and defend by his Omnipotence our beloved
children of the Church in all parts, and especially in
the Russian Empire and Kingdom of Poland, ex-
posed as they are to so many snares, and visited by
so many crosses, to keep, confirm, and fortify them
daily in, the.posseesion of the Catholic faith and its