The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1870-11-27

We make the following extracts from the
pastoral letter of his Eminence Cardinal de
Bonnechose, Archbishop Of Rouen, Primate
Of Normandy, ETC., protecting against the
invasion of Rome and the Pontifical States
by the Italian troops. After describing the
present position of the Holy Father, and
the hypocritical conduct of the italian
Government, his Eminence goes on to say /:
There is in this aggregation of monstrosi-
ties such a mixture of impiety, Of violence,
of rapine, and of folly, that we do not un-
derstand how Government which pre-
nations can dare seriously to propose to
| them the Maintenance of such state Of
things. Better would it 10 to have no
franchise; better would it be to say openly.
We will no longer have either Pope or
Catholic Church. At the bottom such is
the thought of the authors of the unworthy
plots Of which we to-day see the odious
| execution. But they feel the need to count
! with the Catholic faith still living in the
whole world; and thence those fallacious
forms by which they seek to clothe their
| outrageous iniqaity. Let ns beware, how.
ever, of believing that all the Italians take
part in this sacrilegious conspiracy. The
greater number of them, peaceab1e Chris
tians and full of faith, groan at these ex-
cesses, and bend with sorrow beneath the
iron rod of the triumphant Revolution.
Since the taking of Rome officers of the
Piedm0ntese army have been heard them
selves to avOw the fortunes of their con-
science, done violence to by tue military
discipline; and soldiers have been seen
kneeling beneath the roof of St. Peters,
secretly watering the pavement with their
tears, and asking pardon OF God for the
| instruments. Aud Europe Win she re-
main passive witness 4 The Catholic
powers! Will they not have cry where
with To reprove these crimes Will they
not feel that there are partners in the cause
of the Holy See, and that it is for them an
imperious duty to restore to the head Of
the Church his liberty of actiOn3 This
duty, my very dear brethren, will they full
fill it'll We do not know. But it is for us
to do our own; it is for us to prevent by
our protests the gaining of prescription
for such deeds. The Italian Gov
ernment,, in invading and appropriating
to itself, as it does, Rome and the Pontif-
cal States, acts without any kind of right.
That is why we protest, and we invite all
Catholics to protest. To whatsoever ma
ton they may belong, they have right in
Rome, and that sacred right is tramp1ed
under foot by the Italian usurpatiOn. We
ask all the Christian Powers to interfere,
their property, and to replace them
thereby in the condition necessary
for preserving the exercise of their
liberty Of conscience, by the liberty of their
spiritual head. And when we formulate
this demand, we do not restrain it to the
City OF Rome; we extend it to the integrity
of the Ponti6cal territory. This territory,
in its entirety, bore the name of States of
the Church, because, in fact, it had been
given to the Church in order to insure in a
suitable manner the independence and the
free action Of it's head. Divine Providence,
- yNln
had formed this little State, had assigned
to it it's dimensions, and had accurately
proportional it to the material needs of
the administration of the Church. No pop
ulation of Italy could arrogate to itself the
least particle without committing an act OF
spoliation and brigandage The Piedmon-
| tese, the Tuscans, the Neapolitans, have
! NJ more right to home and the Pontifical
territory than have the French and the
Germans. Rome must belong to all, and
| therefore, to no one except the Head of the
Church. Moreover we shall not cease 10
protest against the occupation of Rome by
the Italians as long az it shall last. With
all the energy of our soul we unite this
protest to that of the Sovereign Pontiff,
aud we protest with him as member of the
Sacred College, as Pastor of your souls;
and as q Frenchman. AS Member of the
Sacred College, we have to defend, even to
the shedding of our blood, the rights of the
Holy See, aud above all the liberty of the
Successor of Peter. AS Pastor of your
souls, we have need, in order to lead them
in the ways of salvation, to be i'll free COM
municaton with him who is the torch OF
the Church. AS FIenchman, we feel that
the national honor and the prosperity ol
our country are involved i'll this question.
Our ancestors, from the very cradles OF the
French Monarchy, have been prcdestincd
to support the Holy See. The Temporal
Power necessary for the free government
of the Church has been in some sort found
ed by us. 1t is to us that for Il thousand
wears sod has contided the care of CONSOLE
dating it, preserving and defending it; and
we could not to-day abandon it to the
avidity of foreign people without cover
ing ourselves with shame. More than this,
Divine Providence, in His mysterious de-
signs, has SO closely united the destinies of
the Holy See to those of the French nation,
that the services rendered by the latter to
the Papacy have always been the pledge OF
a special benediction and projections; as
also, on the other hand, France has never
been able with impunity to detach
herself from this sacred cause. Disas-
tiers, sufferings, and humiliations have al
WAYS been, for her and for her princes, the
consequence of their ingratitude and faith
#lessness towards the Holy See. History is
there to attest it. But it suffices not to pro-
Test, my very dear Brethren; we must make
use of the arms which God gives us, and
which were employed by the early Church
to obtain the deliverance of Peter whilst
he was in the prison of Herod. The
Church then, says the Acts of the Apostles,
[n..nN .x.l