New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-11-24
r.s arcbbi-hsps Letter.


Progress Of the Human Race. Ills eccie-
siastical position. his National origin, ms
nersonal abilities and tact, have combined
to give him spiritual power among us
greater than that of any other living man.
His is the only fiat which could take Fifty
Thousand Children out of our Common
Schools and keep them, out with many thou
sand more, for an indefinite period to come.
He has mower to rekindle the fires of Tne-
olooical rancor among our People, such as
have hitherto ragged in some Countries of
FuroDe. and teach part to regard the res
idue as enemies to be vanquished and put
down because of their diverse convictions
respecting God, Revelation and our Future
Existence. Knowing his power to be
great, we are most anxious te see 1t ex-
erted on the side of absolute Religious
Freedom and Universal Education. Is cur
solicitude unnatural? And especially when
we see others propounding in the name OF
Catholicity doctrines which seem to us
calculated to inhame abstract theological
differences into active personal ard Ma
tional hatreds, and practically deprive MIL
lions of the blessings of Education, Is 1t
strange that we should anxiously wish to
hear his potential voice raised on the side
of Peace, knowledge and Liberty ! At
length he breaks silence, and his words
though wiser and more guarded than those
we have lately heard and dePloIed, seem
to indicate at least decided leaning to the
side which appears TO us wrong and per-
nicious. We frankly express the regret
we cannot but feel at that leaning and
this the Bishop represents as evincing
disposition to abridgo his liberty or inter-
fere with the expression Of his opinions
We certainly did not so intend it.
|. That we differ with the Bishop on GER
tain points of Religious Faith, is quite true /;
but we have no wish to abridge his liberty
on that account Whether in this country or
in Europe, in community traditlonaily
Catholic or PrOte slant, without the least
regard to existing Institutions or preJudlces,
we hold his right to Civil and Religious
Freedom as precious as our own. Whether
he chance for the time to be in New Ork,
in Paris, Rome, Calcutta or Pekin, we IN
sist on his perfect natural and moral right
to worship God according to his own con-
victions of Right and Duty, or to refrain
from worshiping at all without responsibility
therefor to any earthly tribunal. The Rights
of Conscience are to us before institutions :;
they transcend the proper sphere OF Civil
Government and Municipal Police.
Now when the Archbishop charges our
system of Republican Liberty with putting
8" God and the Devil, truth and falsehood,
on the same level" he surely miscOnceves
that system. Whatwe hold is that the be.
inc and nature of God, His attributes and
His requisitions, are themes above the
sphere and supervision Of the State, and
cannot properly be made the subject of in
QUESTION and discipline by civil magistrates
and tip-staves. We do not asking the
Archbishop's pardon) deny to God the right
to impose on Man any obligation whatever
but we deny to Man the right to determine
for others what obligations to acknowledge
and worship Him God has or has not I'M
posed. Is not the difference between our
position and that assigned us by the Arch
bishop very plain one
IL. The Archbishop, as we were quite
sure, is in favor of Civil and Religious Lib
erty-with difference. lie does not think
the Sovereign Pontifl' forced to throw his
States open for the preaching of every form
of Professionalism and Infdelity" Let us
think of this
There are at all times in the Roman
States. especially in their Metropolis, con-
siderable Aumber of educated. serious
minded, enlightened Protestants, to whom
their Religion and its ministrations are very
precious. There is probably no time when
there are not hundreds, while they some
times amount 1--WE think to thousands but
the number is immaterial, since the Rights
of Conscience are not dependent on Oum-
bers. Among there are generally several
eminent Protestant Clergymen who would
gladly minister to the spiritual needs of their
fellow-belevers, if that were allowed but
il is not Let those Protestants hire, or
buy, or even build, a suitable edifce and
proceed therein, even in language wholly
unintelligible to the Roman people, TO wor-
ship God and learn His will according to
their own convictions Of Truth and Dptv
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