The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1870-03-13

Opportuneness.

The result of the deliberate Judgment OF
an immense majority of the BlshoPs III
favor of defining that the Pope, as rope,
cannot teach the Church heresy or error, Is
now said by Protestant and Cathoiic olshns
alike to be inevitable. The Opportuncncss
is con sidered settled point for 1T appears
to be the mind also of the Pope, though we
believe he has pronounced no 1ormll ue-
cson. We have ourselves been eager OPP
portunists )" so also, for the matter OF that,
have been the leading Cathoiic JoIMI alannd
France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, heilaho'
Canada and the United States. Some per-
sons have thought that we have been a
little too earnest. We confess TO siaiins
the plain John Bull instinct, which, II
thing is true, likes to be told plainly taat
! it is true without paraphrase or Ambiguity.
Shrouding theory in silence conceai!nS
it and yet automatically urging 1T, hoidlng
it and yet not protesting it., is, to our TASTE
in natural things at least, simply an aoomi-
nation. We like it quite as iitti Io,h In
among the Bishops as to the doctrine; IT
is solely question OF opportuneness: II
| we have been Outspoken on this sup0ect,
we believe that our language has been In
harmony with the sentiments OF the great
mass of our Catholic readers. we say
this, not as presuming to speak IN their
name, but because they are guided, IKE
ourselves, by their Chief Pastors. w hat
their judgments are we have been able to
gather from several sources. ANA we
believe we are not mistaken in saying tnas
only three of the whole English and lrlsii
hieiarchies have signed the counter-mcmo-
rial of the opposition" OF the Preiates
from British North America, ten out or
thirteen have declared themselves strongly
in favor of n clear definition. All the
: Bishops of Australia and Oceauica, without
, exception, have done the same. They are
: Joined 10y nearly all the Colonial Bishops.
The whole Episcopate of Holland and Bel
gium are of one mind. All the PIelates OF
Spanish race, whether in Europe or America,
=, are said to- be equally unanimous. Nearly
, two thirds of the Bishops of France axe
no less urgent in demanding the definition
o These facts suffice to confound the menda-
o cious assertions of the enemies OF the
o Church We ask permission to make one
n reflection upon them. 1t is evident that
I. Janus" and his school would be less
IL likely to respect the Bishops in the future
$ than the Popes in the past, if through th'
y intrigues of diplomacy, or by any othe
= means, they could prevent the definition
- The success of this party would be far more
!, injurious in its results to the authority
IS Bishops than to that OF the supreme ron II
rs tiff And us to the world, we should b
told more plainly than ever by its organs
Of that the g surpliced rutans," and tn
in tonsurcd parasites of the Roman Court y
er to use the language of the Itmes-hav
IS even less title to respect than the iohti
| whose prefOGaUlNeS llc "oi ~ pSSoS ieiii .
- disparage by silence. They would Ia
u with their Head, but might find it NOR
difficult than he will to recover from til
e. fail. We cannot, therefore, but feel alart
TO at the probable result OF = silence. I'll
v. Archbishop of Malines avows this appr'
10 hension when he asks the Able Crafty
nd Would YOU wish the Council to be guilt
on of the error of IIonorius? If the Counc
Ter were silent, what would he the result
Another Silence would be the logical resu
sw -rcspecttul silencc-as the only submIssio
erf' due to the dogmatic Judgment OF the 10
y, See" How much submission would
tii given to those OF Bishops! The gift
~. Infallibility, as the Bishop of Tulle sa
- the other day, is not for the honor of t
,st Pope, but for our good the good of Bisho
ITO and their iocks. We only initiate the
Try Chief Pastors III contendlhS ZOE t"er ilS
-hn nd JIfDIPt