New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-04-25
DIP. D0LIfyGERs POSITION.

From rumor that King Ludwig of Bavaria
purposes to support Dr. D0llinger ID his OPP
position to the dogma of Infallibility, to make
him Minister of Public Worship, and, as soon
as the necessary Liberal preponderance is Sc
cured in the Representative Chamber, to
abolish the concordat which has regulated
the relations of Church and State in
Bavaria since 1877, the expectations of a new
reformation within the pale of the German
! Catholic Church seem to have drawn great
deal of encouragement. A schism among the
faithful, a liberal Catholicism with its head
quarters at Munich or Fulda, rivalng cor
rupt and eflete system whose court snail be at
| Rome, new departure for the ancient creed
which no longer meets the wants of cviliza-
tiOn-such are the consequences which are
looked for from the protest whose lead
| ing points we published the other day,
and the accommodation which naturally
| followed it. We do not believe these
| expectations are well founded. The decision
| of the Vatican Council has made opposition to
the doctrine of lnfallibility, or any other DOGMA
new or old, impossible uithin the Church, be-
cause whoever protests places himself outside
the Church by the mere act of protesting.
drawing the line between Catholics and nom
Catholics; and nobody knows better than DR..
D0llinger himself that the corner stone of
Catholic faith is absolute, unconditional ac-
ceptance of every doctrine which has been
formally adopted as a portion of the creed of
the Church. DR.. D0llinger may satisfy him
self that the dogma of Infallibility is contrary
to reason and inconsistent with historical
facts; but then he must also satisfy himself
that the Church which announces this dogma
as an essential part of her creed is Church
teaching error. To be logical, therefore, be
must renOunce the Roman confession and de-
clare himself Protestant.
This inevitable consequence of his present
course is SO well understood in Germany, and
must be so plain to his own mind that we can
hardly anticipate any serious attempt to make
his accommodation the beginning of new
Catholic movement. What is commonly called
the Liberal Catholic party has never had much
theological significance, and in a movement of
this kind would probably be found on the
Roman side. 1t is party which has aimed to
reconcile the discipline and customs of the
Church with modern ideas of progress, and to
promote harmony between Catholicism and the
principles of political freedom but in all mat
tiers of doctrinal belief it has been Ultramon-
tame i'll its tendencies, and some of the bishops
who are accounted its leaders were among
the stoutest advocates of Papal Infallibility
i'll the Council. The opposition to the
new dogma came principally from prelates
who held Gallican theories of the rights of the
inferior hierarchy and the civil power as against
the Roman Court. Since the definition, there
is no reason to believe that the Munich pro-
fessOr will find many adherents in this party. |
His followers must be drawn from the few |
who, like himself, objected to the dogma on |
theological and historical grounds, and the |
multitude who, for one reason |