Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1870-02-01
False liberaIity,

Every religion but that Of Christ is of
necessity a system of idolatry. They who
reject Him have no God to whom the name
of right belongs, because they have no con-
ception OF the true God; and 50 they sub
stitute false object of worship and become |
technical idolaters. This is true of social |
ed irreligious men also. The term is
relative one, because all men have relig- |.
ion Of some kind or other, and some object |
of supreme affection which they worship !
In fact, supreme affection is the highest act
of worship. They who wander from the
law of the Gospel are perpetually changing
their idols. Sometimes they are passion
ately devoted to strictly scientific pursuits,
and then again their zeal is all for human
itarian speculations, and then they are mad
for Iiberality, and are bigoted in their adj
vocacy of broad and catholic views. Years
ago, Canon Melville said of the Church of
ROME, 'She Is sagacious enough to per-
ceiye that men are willing to be deceived,
that an excess of false charity is binding
them to facts, and that there is abroad am
ong them such an idolatry of what they
call lberality that they make it point of
honor to believe good of all evil, and per
haps evil of all good"
This is astriking portraiture ola tenden-
cy which is eminently prevalent today.
This idolizing Of liberality has already cost
this country very dear, and bids fair to be
still more expensive. With all the facts
of history in the foreground, with all the
knowledge of the indissoluble alliance of
Rome in the past, with all that degrades
the masses, and with the living evidence
before their eyes in the pauperism, brigan-
dage, and crime which today make the
Papal States the very hot-bed of immoral
ity and vice, we have thousands of infiuen-
tial men who believe, or try to believe, and
at all events practically give evidence to
the fair professions and promises which
Rome could not keep, if she would, with
out FORGETTING every attribute of her system.
1t seems to US these worshippers Of iber-
ality must have a hard time of it. What
with the Pope's syllabus of 1864 and his
encyclicals and pastorals, and the protests
of Roman Catholic Sovereigns, who speak
from experience and are weary of his AFRO
gance, and the last bull defining the order
: of the council, we should think that people
who desire to judge righteous judgment
would come to the conclusion that Roman
ism is the deadliest blight that can fallup.
on free institutions. But the very enormi-
ty of the system seems to constitute it.
strongest claims upon this marvellous lib.
-erality, which is the order of the present
! phase of the worlds idoatry. And We
this syllabus attacks the strongholds il
which these liberals trust, as well as thu
very central truths and institutions of tru
, religion. The syllabus of the Pope ISSUED
: in 1864 embraces eighty errors in tn
, church-growing out of Pantheism, Nat
uralism, Nationalism, IndifTerentism, Lat
itudinarianism, Socialism, Communism
Secret Societies, Bible Societies, and Civi
, Societies in their relation to the church
!. al of which are to be subjects of legisla
ton in the Ecumenical Council, whic
adjourned until the present year in orde
to afford time for the various topics to b
:. put into fitting shape
Charity is not the liberality which tn
world exalts and worships; for charity rt
; joiceth not in iniquity, but charity rejoic
: eth in the truth. Charity has no sympa
= thy with falsehood, and no fellowship wit
the false christianity which the world cal
= DECENTRALIZATION hteLigencer.