Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1870-03-03
Infallibility.

have been discussing the various ques
tons agitating the great Council nov
setting in Rome. Among these qnes
tons. perhaps no one causes greater
diversity of opinion among the Catholics
themselves, than that Of the Infalibilit,
of the Pope. Perhaps our readers viii
get a better idea Of what this creet
means. and the different opinions helC
in regard to it by reading the subioinc,
letters which we take from the New
York Evening Post, and which wer,
tclligent readers of the american viii
object to the length of these letters, be
cause they discuss points about whcl
the universal ecclesiastical body o.
Catholic Christendom" is divided. and
about which there is and will be much
discussion Tor months to come
Papal Infallibility.
To the Editors Of the Evening Post -
In your paper of this afternoon YOU
remark that "the dogma of personal inial-
lihilliiy suggests King Canutc and Mrs
Partingt
Will YOU kindly permit Catholic.
who would wish SO influential journal
a. yours 10 represent the true state of
the case, 10 make a brief answer to Your
sugges,ion.' The Catholic believes
that our Saviour established teaching
\ Church which he would ever guide.
| when he selected twelve of his diciples.
I to whom he communicated -upernatu-
raj gifts, and commanded them to go
and teach all nations, promising To he
with them 10 the end of time.
A. the Saviour could not fulfil tina,
promise in regard TO the Apostles them
selves. who, as mortals. We're in due
season to die. he must have meant that
their successors should be ALWAYS in
spired by the Holy Spirit, especially
when il = taken in connection with
what he said To st. Peter: Upon this
rock will build INV church, and the
gates OF hell shall not prevail against it. p"
Now, whether that inspiration j. com
muncated through multitude of sue
ceSsors of the Apostles, called Coun-
/ ell or through single individual. call
( cd a Pope. l. Of the smallest practical
consequence. Ii i, God, as the Catho-
lie believes. who speaks through the
. one A. well n through the other. aud
/ neither would speak 10 him with the
/ least pretencr To infallibilitv. except a.
the mouih-picce of God. Ii j. beauti-
fully said in lon
"rh' eoi.se-t reed that trcmbles In the marsh
II Heaven select It for it. In strnmrnt
Will yield celestial music To- the brccE,
~ swrrtiy rs the pipe whose virgin gold
Z Ischts the lips OF PhGbu>.'
I and bc the instrument Of iniallibility
\ Pope or Council, it, celestial sound ID
\ Catholics can only result from its having
Y in their conviction. been selected by the
Almighty.
A. to any instructed Catholics believ-
ing in personal iuiallibility that j. 10
,ny, III the iniallibiliiy OF the Pope out
side hi spiritual f:.nciion- lit i, simply
impossible II i; be- decided that thi-
doctrinal intallibility resides in tile Pope
that he j. the selected channel otGod' 4,
word 10 the faith.ul-thcn the Catholic
will NJ once acquie~ce. bcrau-. he be-
I lieves that he hear. the dicta OF omnis-
I cirnce, aud not ot the individual pom
( iiir although he might, hcrhap-. prefer
( the idea oi the Councils being that
/ chunnel--not for himself. bur for the
/ Protestant world. who seem deterniu
ed to contound poutiiical ininllibilitv in
dogma with personal exemption from
( the possibility of error in ANYTHING. A.
( man ic NAV bc IA Boreia or u Catiire -
~ Pope. it the inheritor of the Saviour's
( pre- mise. lac "cannot esr III matter, OF
/ faith. Nery respectfully, W.
IL Waverley Place, Feb. =. 1870.
Papal Infallibility The Other Side.
\ To the Editors Ofthe Ecepin1 Post:
You allowed yesterday Catholic to
explain in vour columns what he ami
I some others think on the question Of
the personal iafallibility ofthe Pope.
Allow me to speak in favor Of certain
. other Catholics who do not agree with
him.
All Catholics hold that the Churc h
/ Of Christ is under the guidance of the
I Holy Spirit. which preserves it from
error and mistake as to the truth OF re-
\ ligion The Church, as church. they
| hold to be infallible. But there is a
! difference among them. The clergy Of
France, for the most part, and the cler-
gy of Catholic Germany in general,
maintain that this infalibilirv resides
! in the Church oniy, and not in the
Pope The Catholic clergy of Great
Britain and the United States, of Spain
and Spanish America insist that the
Pope himself is infallible in all matters
of religion, or matters which have
any bearing upon it-that when
he proclaims a dogma. the Cath
olic world is Obliged to accept it. wheth-
er it appears to their minds to be right
or wrong. That is what We call per
sonal infallibility"-an impossibiitv
Of falling into error or mistake. which
attaches to the person of the Pope
instead Of the Councils of the Church.
Now the clergy who protest agains
this personal infallibility submit to the
decisions Of councils properly called
according to the ancient precedents-
such as the Council Of Nice. at which
the Nicene Creed was promulgated,
and other assemblies of the bishops and
high dignitaries of the Catholic Church.
They believe that these councils were
preserved from error by that Provi-
dence which has always watched over
the church, and that any other assem-
bly, of the ecclesiastics of our comnu,,-
ion properly convened and deserving
of the name of Ecumenical-that is to
say a council fairly representing the
Christian church of the habitable globe
would be equally favored and KEEP,
from error by the same divine superin-
tendence.
But We cannot surrender into the
hands of an individual bishop, however