Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-10-28
PMS THE NINTH.
The POpe's Apostolic letter TO
PrOtes.ants and Nom
Catholic Bodies.

! Plus, Sovereign POntif, the NInth OF the MANS
to all Prcte5tants and non-Jatholics
You must already ali know that we
who. despite our unworthiDess, hRvI
been raised to the throne of Peter, anC
therefore have been advanced to the gu
IRENE government of the whole Catho
lie Church, snd to its administration
which has been intIusted to Us in Divine
fashion BY Christ himself, our L0rd-we
have ia gsd it is fitting to summon be.
fore US al our venerable brethren. the
Bishops of all the world, and to convene
them in an Geumenicsl Council, which
is to be celebrated next year in such q
manner that, with those same venerable
brethren who have been summoned TO
take part in the subject of our solicitude,
we may be able to adopt sll the most OPP
perfume asd necessary resolutions to dis
sipste the shadows of SO large q number
of pestiIential errors which daily are ex-
tending their power and license to the
grsat prejudice OF souls, and daily more
and more to establish and strengthen
among the Christian peoples committed
to our watchful care the reign OF the
true faith, OF justice, and OF the true
peace of God. Relying, thes, with firm
/ confidence upon the ciuse and affection
ate bond of union which united these our
! same venerable brothers to our person
and to the Apostolic See, and who have
never ceased at any period Of our Pom
| tificate to give to Us and to the Apostolic
See the most striking evidence Of faith,
Of love and of respect, We truly hope
| that, as it has been in times past with
| other general councils, so il may be In
| the present, and that this Gcumenical
! Cornell, cOnvoked by Us, may bring
/ forth, with the help Of the Divine grace,
! the most rich and the most fertile fruits,
| to the great glory of God and the eter-
nal welfare of man.
Therefore, in that hope, and instigated
and encouraged by the charity of our
! Lord Jesus Christ, who laid down His
| life for the salvstion of the world, we
| cannot foTbsaF, on the occasion OF the
meeting Of the next Council, addressing
our apostolic and psternsl word to sill
| those who, while recognizing that same
| Jesus Christ as cur Savior, and rejoicing
/ in the name OF Christians, yet still do
| not profess the veritsble faith of Christ,
or follow the communion OF the Catholic
| Church. And IL we do 50, IL is, before
all, to warn, exhort and supplieste them
with ell Gus al and all eur charity to
| consider and seriously examine If they
/ in truth follow the path prescribed by
/ our Lord Jesus Christ, and which leads
| to eternal happiness. ln fact, no one can
DENY or doubt that Jesus Christ himself,
! in order that all future human genera
tions should enjoy the fruit Of His re-
demptiOn, built up here below His church
in the person OF Pster-that is to say, the
Church, Cne, holy, Catholic and spos-
tolie-and that he granted to him ali the
necessary power in order that the faith
should be preserved in tact and entire,
and that tie same faith should be trans
mitted tc sil peoples, 10 all raees and to
all nations, in such manner that Sll
men sSonld be able to be united in His
mysti y body il baptism and always to
pres7Fve in Themselves, until the entire
development, that new life CT grace,
without which no one can ever meriFbr
obtain lie eternal, so that the same
chuf0s which constitutes the mystic
body shall reiaSin, uatil the end OF time,
firm and irdestruetible in its own eonsti-
tuition, developed in vigor, ard furnish
ing to lie children ali that is necessary to
life eternal.
Now, Whoever wishes well to consider
aud examine with attention the differ
ent religious societies divided among
themselves, and separsted from the Gath
olic Church, which, since the time OF the
Lord Jesus Christ and His Apostles, has
always uninterrGptedly exercised, and
still exercises, by means OF its legitimate
pastors, the power entrusted to her By
our Lord himself-whOsYeT wesay, shall
fhus examine will easily convince him
self that not one of those religious soci-
et,ts, nor sil the religious societies to-
gataar, constitutes, or iu any way csn De
considered as the one and only Catholic
Church which our Lord Jesus Christ
founded, constituted and desired-should
see that they cannot in any way be re-
gsrded as member or as part of the
same Church, because they are yisi6!y
separated from all Catholic unity. as,
IN fact, thOss societies are deprived of
that living authority established by God,
who pointed out to mankind, before all
things, the matter of faith and the rules
OF morality, who dilected and presided
over them in sIi things affecting their
eternal welfare; therefore, those socle-
ties themselves, constantly varied In
their doctrine, and thus this instability is
nncessing.
Every one can easily comprehend that
this state Of things is altogether opposed
to the Church established by Christ our
I,ord-a Church in which the truth must
always rest Unaitered, without being the
SUBJECT Of any charge, ss 8 charge in
trusted to that same Church in order
that she may preserve it In all its integ
rity, a charge for the care Of which the
presence of the Holy Ghost and its aid
has been Grsnted forever to this Church. /
No one can ignore the fact that these /
differences Of doctrine and opinion give
rise to the social schisms, and that there
from spring those innumersble seets and
communIons which are daily increasing,
to the detTiment Of Christian and civil
society.
Whoever, in fact, recognizes religion
as the foundation of human society, can
not refuse to admit and svow the in1u-
ence exercised over civilized society by
thoss divisions and dissgreements of
principles Of that nature, and OF reli-
gious societies struggling one with the
other and also with what power the de-
NAL OF authority established by God to
regulate the couvieti0ns of the human
intelligence, and to direct the actions Of
men, both in their social and private life,
has excited, has developed and has To-
mented those most unfortunate troubles,
those events and those disturbances
which agiIRte and affect almost sll Ds-
tions in 3 most deplorsble manner.
Therefore, in order that ell those who
are not ins;iiled with the principles Of
the unity ard truth OF the Catholic
Church should seize the occasion offered
to them by this Council, In which the
Catholic Church, to which their anees
tors belonged, shows proof Of its COM
plete unity, of its vigor, and of its unex
tinguishsble vitality; that they should
strive to bear themselves away from that
stale in which they cannot be assured of
their salvation.
That they should address without ceas-
ing the mcst fsTvent prayers 10 God that
He should dissipste the cloud of error,
and that He should bring them back into
thu bosom Of the Church, our holy moth
er, where tnelr sneestOrs received the
salutsry nourlshment OF life, eud alone
preserves in its integrity the doctrines of
Jesus Uarist, handing it down and dis
pensing the mysteries Of celestial grace. |
We, therefore, who ought most zeal |
ously to f. ill all the duties of good !
pastor, in accordance with the charge of |
our apostolic ministry, intrusted to US
by Christ our Lord himself, and who
ought to embrace all men in the world |
in our parental charity, we address this |
letter &c all Christians separated from US,
a letter In which we exhOrt and suppli- !
cate them to hasten to return to the fold |
OF Christ.
{S hooo,rsa xva Sasf-a