The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1873-07-13
Uniifcation Movement.


Disagreeable as It Is we must return to
question in favor Of which nothing can be
said. against which more can be urged
than We need tosay.-
Besides, argument will not kill the new
movement. 1t will die of itself. Its Grad
die will be it's coffin, and those who gave
the Thing birth will be it's pall-bearers.
Sometimes absurdity wears a fascination
for certain class of minds,-but it's charm
soon passes away. In our dealing with
this new movement we have tried to be
fair. Against the men of it and the mo-
tives of them we have written not q word.
Nor dove 30 intend. And as the move
ment is even now dying or dead we have
very little to say,-and that little will be,
in charity and pity, spoken
But, first usual,-our position, by
the radical press, has been misrepresented.
We have been accused of being hostile
TO the colored people. The colored pso-
pie and creoles of Mobile know our rela-
tons to them. Here is our religious creed !:
"Before God and especially in the Catholic
Church,-in the sphere of religion-our
color makes us no better,-no higher-no
holier than others of different color. God
regards souls not faces. With God and
his church there is no distinction of per-
sons.
Our race is the came. Our Saviour the
same-our truth the same.-Our religion
the same.
In our Church--Black and wlite-pure
equal. Before the altar we stand not on
the order of onr color.-This we preach
from the pulpit;-tkis we practice in our
daily ministrations among all classes"
Our political creed is this sIn the
political order all men are not equal,-all
men ought not to be made equal. All men
cannot be made equal. We would not
allow all men to vote. We would, could
we, prevent large numbers of white men
from voting. Universal suffrage, we think
is farce and the history of this country
is going to illustrate that farce.-We do
not consider that every man who has
reached his twenty first year is our politi-
cal equal, or the equal of everybody else"
This muck in brief,--it is enough.
And one other word. Our ecclesiastical
superiovs have nothing in the world to do
with our political opinions, nor, for that
matter, with many of our theological,
and more of our philosophical opinions,
In the sphere of their jurisdiction we have
never been and never will be accused of
disobedience. But Catholic authority it.
self which exacts obedience also guards
free dom of opinion in those matters which
it has no right to touch
Bishops and priests do not, by any
means, hold the same political opinions,
In these matters they are the frcest men
on earth not only to hold but to express
their opinions.
Now to the movement of the Unifiers -
and only word or SO. q
They give up every point. They forego
every prejudice, they admit now as right
what they hitherto submitted to as wrong.
They have made every Concession, what do
they get in return f-Nothing. 1t is bad
speculation to give everything and get
nothing. For,-will tho radicals Of the
state and their followers forego ever one
prejudice They will not.
w III LILO CoioIeu people OF LOUISIANA
concede one inch of the position They
will not.
The men of the new movement have been
munificent in their concessions. They have
made the most absolute act of political
charity. For they have given away them
selves. That act Of charity Is too heroic
to be initiated by many. And this they
have done in order that they may become
a Majority and obtain possession of the
state. But it would be absurd to attempt
farther to show the palpable absurdity of
the. new movement. But grown men
sometimes become as artless as children
and amuse themselves by building houses
of sand to shelter themselves in tho storm.
Better and Drawer is it to stand, beaten
by The tempest, on the bare rock of princi-
pie, which may be deluged but can never
be destroyed by the 6illows of oppressio n.