Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1871-02-02

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in the luxury Of Pope julius Caesar
was High Priest while deepest in the
cesspool Of Roman politics Until a re-
latively late period the idea of entirely
dissociating civil and ecclesiastical gov
ernmnnt had not occurred to the human
mind, or, if it had, it was branded by
common consent AS an insane vagary
1t was the Dutch in their prime who hit
upon the absolute novelty Of leaving
every man free in his worship, and every
church free from political interference
in its discipline.
When our Republic came into exist
ence this principle was adopted in all its
length and breadth. We may even say
that the entire dissertation of Church
and State was the corner stone of our
political institutions The ancients had
| taken hold of the idea of self-eovern-
ment The principle OF democracy and
the republican system we find in classic
| annals Even the voluntary federation
of several States had been practiced by
the Greeks, if by no other people.
There has never been any direct de-
| parture from this non~interventon pol-
| icy. The Knows Nothing mania brought
us to the verge Of the precpice-at least
near enough to hear the catara ct 8 roar
| The Bible in schools question has devel-
oped some latent embers of the old spirit
of intolerance judicial reports the
ponderous tones that even studious legs
! lists seldom disturb in their dusty reposa
tell the story Of now and then, here
| and there, an attempt to coax the State
into return to its walIowing in ecclesi-
astical mud But, to the great credit Of
American iurists be it said, those at
tempts have always failed, or, if success.
full at all, only temporarily.
During the present week the Supreme
Court Of Illinois has reaflirmed the true
doctrine upon this point most emphatic-
q llv in case that attracted the deepest
interest of the intelligent public, of what
ever ecclesiastical sympathies. We re-
fer. of course, to the Whitehouse>C Cheney
case. The latter objected to the tribunal
summoned by Bishop Whitehouse for
his trial for nonconformity to all the
rules of the Episcopal Church When
the controversy first became public we
expressed the keenest sympathy with the
rector of Christ Church, believing then
as now that in his struggle with the
Bishop of Illinois he was, and is, the
supplied champion of progress in the
Episcopacy but, in denying his appeal
for interference, the Supreme Court rose
grandlv above oil personal and immedi>
ate considerations Better that one man
should suffer injustice tnau that the
principle Of religious liberty should be
impaired by State Judicial or Leeisla-
tive interference with sects, creeds, or
systems Of church government 1t seems
! harsh for the State to say through its tri-
bunal Of final resort to the clergy, as il.
did, virtually: "You voluntarily enter
ed the clergical profession, and must
submit to all which your ecclesiastical
superiors mete out to you, whatever it
is, or else throw up your profession, even
though it be your one means Of support )"
hut such must always be its Language, if
it would escape relapse into the despot-
ism of less enlighten med times.
There is almost an endless variety of
ecclesiastical governments At one ex-
IRENE stands the Romish Church, in
which every COMMUNICATE, from the Carr
dnals down to the humblest laymen, is
under the absolute, unquestioning sway
of His Holiness. From that ausocracy
we have a gradually descending scale,
until in the most democratic churches
the theory is that each individual organs
ization is sovereign and distinct In
them ALL no wevcr, we find wide practical
den,rtures from the theory adopted, and
that, WEATHER that theory be pontilical
or congreA stional, the real decision of
nearly every case of discipline is vested
in council, whether permanent or tenn
porary, and by whatever name called
And every upright IL I'd intelligent Judge
takes the position of /. putty uaii'o when
he refused to interfere in the famous
Sosthenes>Paul case, so. 'ething over
eighteen hundred years ago
We may hope that this VII. tehouse>
Cheney case, now entirely settled as TAR
DC the civil courts are concerned, VIII
put iinal quietus upon efforts, often as
we'll meant as ill>adyised, to induce, tn
State to trench upon the province of the !,
Church, Legislation, hardly less than
litigation, must take to aeart this princi-
pie Of non-interference. 1t is the one
solvent for the question Of Bible>readjng
in public schools, and all kindred points
that may come UP in the progress of
oyents. We have only to hold fast by
what we may titly call the Dutch Ameri-
can idea of religious liberty, to steer en-
Irely clear Of all the ecclesiastical snags
hat may lay in the future course Of this,
" any other of the United States - CHI
cdyo Journal
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