New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1867-06-28
TILE GArHERLNG ~ ZONE.

Tomorrow there will come together in the
great Church of st. Peter at Rome one of the
most magnificent ecclesiastical asscmblages
that have been witnessed since the Council of
Trent. Many thousand priests and 400 bishops
have collected together in the Papal capital
from all quarters of the Christian world. Never
before probably have the ministers OF the
Catholic Church congregatcd around the throne
of the Pontff in such imposing numbers, and
never before have representatives, from sucn
widely distant congregations OF the faithful
met together ia the religions metropolis. AZ
the last great general council of the Roman
Catholic Church. that of Trent there w"r"
only about $50 members present. and many oil
the countries whose bishops are now IN Italy
had not then been heard of.
The aacrty with which the diWtaries of
the Church all over the globe have responded
10 the Pope's invitation TO visit Rome on tins
occasion is an evidence of the universal sym
pathy between the head Of the Roman hierarchy
and the higher orders of his clergy, aud OF
the personal esteem in which Plus TX is held
by his faithful children. For there is no great
business Of Church or State to be transacted
at their meeting. There are no canons TO dis
cuss, no dogmas 10 define, no theological DIS
putes to settle as there were III the days OF the
lannon's councils at Nice and Constantmoplc, OF
in the Lateran basilica ut Rome, or IN Florence,
when the separated Greeks seemed on the
point of renewing their spiritual allegiance to
the Pontin of the West, or at Trent,
when the Lutheran Reformation was
stirring up the whole of Europe This Is
not even council at all. The meeting has
not been formally summoned. and has no re-
cognizcd place in ecclesiastical law. The pur-
pose of the visit of the bishops is ostenslbly
two fold: TO witness the canOnzation OF seven
new saints, and to celebrate the 18th centen-
airy of the martyrdOm of the Apostles refer
and Paul On the 9Th of December last cir
cular letter was sent from the Holy See to all
the bishops of the world, inviting them, ac-
cording to ancient custom, to attend the so
IDENTITIES held in honor of these two events,
and to offer up their prayers in concert at the
tomb of the Apostles for the welfare OF the
Church in the straits in which she Is now
placed. But the invitation was not in
the nature of command, and the can0ni-
cation of q saint or the recurrence OF
centenary is not rare enough To awaken
the extraordinary interest which is felt in the
solemnities of Tomorrow We repeat that there
is hidden significance in the assembling OF so
many prelates. IL is more than probable that
they desire to testify in person their devotion
to the Papacy; and many of them carry large
sums of money, contributed by the people OF
their dioceses, TO relieve the embarrassment OF
the PontGcal exchequer. II is possible that their
advice will be asked about the best road out OF
the present Papal perplexities, the course to be
followed when Rome shall go the way OF all the
other Ecclesiastical States, and those feeble
hands loose their grasp of the temporal scepter
which external help has so long enabled them
to retain. There can hardly be regular
council, but there may be informal meet
ings in which these serious questions will be
submitted to the judgment of the whole Catho-
lie world, and a sensible, liberal, enlightened
policy, divorcing religion from secular COM
plications, and enabling the Church once more
to win the affections of the Italian people, may
be the result of the deliberation. Italian
cardinals and monsignOri, with their inveterate
habit of looking backward, cannot see that
such policy is not only wise but inevitable;
but in the multitude of good men from freer
countries who will sit beneath the dome OF
Michael Angelo tomorrow, the Pope may find
more salutary and fearless advisers.