The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1873-03-07

that "nationalities must be MADE
subordinatet to religion, and We must
learn that ace are Catholics first and |
o,Iiaens neat" The head Of Cathol-
;cism is in Rome, and to that head
the Catholic must yield his first al
lepiapce. In a subsequent letter,
called out BY criticisms of his pas
toral, the Bishop seeks to "white-
wash" this conclusion, bat after
beating about comes back to it thus:
aAs the Church represents the spiritual, and
the spsritual, (Which is the soul and God,) is
above the temporal, so in this selse it is true
10 say the church is above the State.
'When the State goes out of its sphere ana
assumes to do what the church has assumed 70
do, then the church resists and says 70 the
State, mind your own business.
Exactly, and when the State re-
ouires a service who shall decidef
First tbe Priest, then the Bishop,
then the Archbishop, and last of all
the Pope--the Roman Pontiff whose
will directs the operations of the
Church.
On the School question, he advises
the faithful to vote for no man
for any Office who is not pledged
to give them their 'Just share of the
School fund" This result can only
be accomplished by recognizing their
claim to be The Church, and pro
nounciDg all others hereto, just what
it pronounces them. The genins of
| our government recognizes them as
just what they are, body of pro
fessed Christians, or a denomina-
ton the same as the rest, and ae-
cords the same rights and privileges,
no more. All are admitted to the
public schools, and numerous Cath
clio teachers are employed, which
shows no discrimination against
them. Their church property is ex-
/ empt from taxation the same as all
others, but unlike all others, the title
to their church property is concen-
trated in the Bishop, with the right
of transmission TO his "heirs or as
signs" And all this vast property,
owned and controlled by one man, is
exempt from taxation simply be-
cause it is claimed as church proper
ty. This vast power he exercises to
promote his viii, and the congrega-
tion which disputes him is shut out
from its church until it becomes
tractable, penitent and submissive.
How would the Bishop enjoy a tax
upon all church property alikef
Perhaps that would be a case where
the Church would tell the State to
"mind its own business" refer the
matter to the Pope, and on his de
cision pronounce it a case Of 'cled,!y
marked injustice" ," to which the Cath
olic citizen 'is not bouud to submit,
and, If able, would be justified in
resisting as the Bishop puts it in
bie eacond Iaffnr
But the arrogance and authority
of his demand that "eyery Catholic
in the diocese shall support and send
his children to a Catholic school, y
and refusing them the sacraments if
they do not, if recognized by the
body of Catholics, is marked proof
of the slavery to which they are sub
jected. Then, again he says: "Pa-
rents SIN, who in their pride send
their children to the public schools .
and they "need not wonder if they
are denied the sacriments." Upon
this point, the Bishop, however, in
his second letter, seeing perhaps that
he hed put his foot in it, says:
81 honestly believe that the education of the
child belongs to the parent, not to the State,
yet if the parent likes TO yield his rights to the
State that is the parents business"
| But if it is the parents business,
why deny them the sacraments for
exercising a right admitted. The
Bishop is either not honest in this
latter declaration or else has exper-
fenced Paul-like conversion.
But we have not space to pursue
his pastoral further. We believe it
an i'll advised epistle to his church,
containing views repudiated by many
of its adherents. But as an epistIe
designed to awaken the mass of peo-
pie to resist its encroachments, it
may be regarded as a success. Read
b..