The Tarboro' southerner., 1871-02-02
''' The Pope's Curse.p

TNe1NSsSt iTlS - uNug "S 6AfS
space for. the following ,commauioa-
tion from the Wilmington Star, on a
tsabisctthat is. now attracting eonsid.
erable attention in the couptry. ssss77
TIE popE's CURSE.
-MR.ssEDIToR :--In yoar paper. at
Friday Is b lust =. you publish. whof
you call the 6 Popes earsep with the
following introductory paragraph: }" -
"Victor Emmanuel King Of Italy
has taken 0possessioa liofr Rome. and
made it part of his kingdom. The
Pope has issued thesfanoBing anathe-
ma against him. ssssM s4a4 .g7sss.g
Of this anathema in which carsinq
and ddn,'ing. are heaped up. in, such
wild profession, more anon. must
observe before hand that it is aos true,
that the Pope has issued This or any
other form of anathema against the
Italian monarch. He has merely put
forth declaration to the effect, that
Victor, Emmanel by his own action
had fallen under the censures pro-
bounced three centuries ago by the
council of Trent against all invaders
and despoilers of the Patrimony of St.
Peter, No one who reads tho Euro
pean papers, or who is tolerably acs
quainted With the course OF events iu
Italy for the last four months, can be
ignorant of this fact. And few, /
hope, can be SO obtuse as not to per
ceive that it is one to issue sentence
of Recommendation, quite another to
warn the cul prit, that he stands ex-
communicated by sentance pronounce
ed long ago. .s
As to the curse against Victor
Emmanuel which you attribute to the
Pope, allow me to state distinctly ana
positively, that it's author is not. Plus
TX nor any other Roman Pontiff, but
licentious romancer, who disgraced
by his writings aud character the
clerical profession to which he belong
ed. It is to the Rev: Lawrance Sterne,
minister of the established Church
and to romance of" Tristan Shandy /"
that the English world is indebted for
this pretended curse" Some forty
five or fifty years ago it was again cir
culated in some American papers, as
the form Of excommunication pro-
nouuced by the Bishop of Philadel-
phla against Hogan and his adherents
And again during the politico religious
excitement which filed the country
some fifteen years since, it found its
way into many Of those papers which
sought to upIoose the whirlwind of
sectarian hate and bigotry ever the
land. And now the same forgery
though disproved and refate'l at each
successive appearance, is once more
sought to be circulated to the discred
it ola great and good Poatitf, who lies
(humauly speaking) PROSTATE at the
feet Of his enemies.
Tie Catholic Church has but two
forms of accommodation, the greater
and the solemn decentralization, both
Of which have remained unchanged
for over three hundred years. They
may be found in any copy of the Ro-
man Poutifeal; aud had | space to
copy them here, they would edify every
impartial Christian reader: SO tho
roughly Scriptural is their tone, SC
happily blended in them is maternal
tenderness with judicial severity.
The "curse of Lawrence Sterne. !
repeat, is not the anathema of the
Catholic Church. But. even were
every word Of it authentic, l would
entreat Bible readers, before reprov'
ing OF deridiug it, to compare 1t witt
the 29th chapter of Deuteronomy
where the most awful curses are pro
nounced against the transgressors o
Gods law. If honest and impartial
they must acknowledge that the 26tl
chapter of Deuteronomy has been cir
culated as . the Pope's curse agains
Victor Emmanuel, it would have al
forded as much matter for the laugh
ter and scorn of Deists and infdels
as Lawrence Sterne's forgery has don
for the amusement and riiicuie o
non Catholics. ..-..