Weekly North Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1850-1858, 1855-03-07
TOO BAD!-TOO BADl!

american OrSan, anu COpleO In tne NaieiSu CtaIs
says: -,
worse of them than do-they are not as bad as the
Roman Catholics. Horrid their superstitions,
they are not as shocking as those of the Romanists
not so revolving to revelation or to reason to NOR
ality, or to decency."
Can it be possible that such language this ena-
mated from Mr.. Rayner! Does that gentleman be-
lieve it to be true? Will he after mature reflection,
re-assert it? The Ch ,rch of GAsToN as depraved,
nay worse than the Mormon organization ?-worse
than den of thieves, polygamists, and murderers!
worse than the vile establishment Of Joe Smith
and Brigham Young, which is, of all frauds and i'm
postures the most consummate and blasphemous
known among men since the days of the prophet
Mohammcd! Can il be credited that such men as
Lafayette, and Charles Carroll, and William Castor,
born and raised as they were in that Church, could
have lived and died in ignorance of the existence Of
this depravity and corruption charged by Mr.. Rayn-
err? Or if informed of it. will any one believe that
they would have concealed it and continued Catho
lies? These are plain questions; who will answer
them?
We copy, in connection with the subject, the fol-
lowing excellent article from late number of the
Hartford Comm Courant, under the head of I" Su-
perstitions, east and west:
"A council of very grave and learned prelates,
under the direction of the Supreme Pontitf OF the
Catholic Church, have met lately at Rome to settle
fact which occurred nearly nineteen hundred years
ago and to decide whether that fact should be re-
ceivcd dogma of belief-that fact is whether
Mary the mother of our Saviour, was herself born
in sin. We all know how facts are proved among
rational men, We all know what kind of testimony
is employed to prove historical fact-an event that
took place in past ages But it seems that the I'm
maculate Conception of the Virgin Mary has been
settled, not by or testimony, but by the de-
ciSion of the Church! AS that Church claims to be
infallbe, and as Holy Father, the Pope, has
dvred, on the strength of that inaibty, the dogma
to be believed and received, We can now fearlessy
assert that Mary the mother of Jesus, and the wife
Of Joseph, was herself born free from the tant of
original sin inherited from Adam. \ comfortable
belief and full of practical results and saving faith!
The assembled prelatcS were not unanimous in
this decision. The Archbishop of Paris thought
that so important dogma should not be received
as doctrine of the Church without the assent OF
General Council. Now the question here arises
among outsiders whether the decision would have
been made had majority of the preates voted
against it, and how far church be called infa!
lbe that places an important doctrine Oh the votes
OF allible men? However, that is none of our busi-
ness.
The world can perceive the motive of this decree,
1t has been done to sanctfy and excuse in part the
,
lnent Of sin.
Now turn we to the West. At about the same
period when the Christian world called to
worship this woman because she was not born i'll
SIM a meeting held in large city III the midst
of the American Deserts, in which another Pontih,
under the claim of divine inspiration, uttered Il de-
cree in tavor of the dogma OF Poiygamy as suppor-
ted by divine authority. Elder Hyde. speaking as
he ass, rted by divine authority, declared that Jesus,
the son Of this dcified Mary, was poiygamist
that it was at his own ma riage at Cana III Gaee,
when water made wine, the miracle being
wrought by his authority as bridegroom. Fur
thcrmore he picked out Maj tia and Mary at Betha-
ny, and Mary Magdalene, and others of the women
that attended him, las toiCes! They call him
"Rabboni'' OF Master, which according to Elder
Uyde'S Interpretation means husband and Etdel
HvdeS claims the nfalibty of divine inspiration in
the same manner as his brother Plus the Ninth
does Thus those two facts claimed to be proved
We arc said to live i'm the eniightcne age of the
world-wc boast of the improvements of human
reason and the freedom of human will We talk o
progress and advancement. But is there not mucl
superstition existing in this age Of improvement as
in any former period OF the world? Have not dc
! signing men the same power over the human mint
that they had? We mcdtle not with any
mans abstract belief until that belief begins to TAXI
hold of his relations society and to puolc morals
i When dogmas the one hand, conduct to de
pendence foreign power for their reception; or. o
the other, lie I'd TO destruction OF the morates tina
| bind men together III society," then arc they To D.
| reprobated?'
Elder Hyde. speaking for the Mormons, uses Ian
guage in relation to the Redeemcr o. the world
which, according to all our notions Of Christianity
| exposes him a blasphemer to the damnation Q
hell; and this basphemy is indulged in with tn
! view of reconciling men and women to u condition
which will enable Mormon elders, under the cloa
of religion to crafty their passions, and to establish
sort of Turkish harcm Or the soil of this free Pre-
| testant Country. Worse than the MormUns TAX
| it back, Mr. Rayner-take it back. The shades G
Carroll and Gaston-the wronged spirits Of thos
noble Catholics of Maryland who fell fighting 70
the liberties of these States in the war of the reyc
lution appeal to you to recall those words.
There are but few Catholics in North Carolina
not more, probably, than two thousand out of
population of over eight hundred thousand. Th
organic law, in framing which MIR. Rayner in lS3
gave affirmative voice, tolerates and protects thcI
in their faith and entities them to hold office. The
could do us harm, If they would-they are wea.
prosecuted, and to great extent, dcspised. Let
them Justice though the heavens should fall The
hood OF the country revolts at the idea of tramp in
them down simply because their religious notion
| are erroneous and unpopular.
| We have indeed fallen upon harsh and uncEarit,
bic times GEORGE WAsnINGroN and the true me
of rs uttered 10 word of bitterness against Cstht
lies or adopted citizens but
"These days are dangerous!
| Virtue is chuk d with fuui ambition,