The New York herald., 1873-10-09
Tho Evangclical Alliance ana the
Roman Catholic Church-A Field
Day for sectarianism.

Alliance massed its forces to make an attack
along the whole line upon the Roman Catho-
lio Church. It was, of course, not to be ex-
pected that the Alliance would shrink from
this part of its plan of campaign With its
centre resting upon Association Hall, its
right upon the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian
Church and its left upon st. Pauls Methodist
Episcopal Church, the line of battle made an
imposing appearance. At ten o'clock three
rousing trumpet blasts were heard, and the
Protestant Church militant moved forward on
the foe, against which it has struggled since
the time its forces numbered no more than a
corporars guard. Yet we do not imagine
for an instant that the most enthusiastic
members of the Alliance believed that
they were making anything more than
what in fighting technology, is termed
denomination. The day of national conver-
sions has gone by. The peculiar mixture of
we are to suppose, by the special bene6cent
grace of the Divine Spirit, which were the
visible and invisible agents for the proselytiz-
ing of entire nations in the early ages, has no
longer its field for action. All Europe has
been Christian, and America, peopled from
Europe, is, in the great bulk, Christian too.
Since the last European heather died Chris
tianity has had divisions, greater or less,
among its members and, although one divi-
sion or the other has triumphed in various times
and various localities, it must be admitted with
regret that, counting by heads, Christianity
in Europe and America has only loss, by fall
ing away, to dread. If we look back to the
beginning of the seventeenth century we shall
find that, whereas the activity of Christian
sects may have altered in sporadic cases the
shades of Christian belief, European nations
and their direct ofshoots in America preserve
the same religious compilations to-day as in
the year when the good Queen Bess died.
The revocation of the edict of Nantes made no
conversions from the Huguenots it simply
transplanted believers in the Reformation.
The relapse Of the French revolutionists
from Catholicism to the worship of Reason
was only q French spasm, which, subsiding,
left France reigiously much as it found it.
In America, where European colonies have
survived, the religion of the colonists has
lived on. England Scotland, Germany,
Scandinavia and Switzerland contributed Pro-
testants in the great majority of cases. Spain,
Portugal, France, Ireland, Italy and Austria
sent Catholics in the greatest numbers. The
descendants of all these preserve generally the
same relative proportions of religious
beliefs. The real exception to the rule
in all countries is the comparative
growth of infdelity, free-thinking atheism,
positivism, or under whatever name those are
known whose starting point is the complete
negation of Christianity. They are the
common foe of all Christians; but while
agreeing that such is the case, the great sec
tartan divisions of Christendom have resolved
to tilt at each other first to find out who is to
blame for the existence of infdelity. As a
general statement of the case we may put it in
the following form: Catholicism says that
Professionalism is to blame because infdelity
has its parent in the reckless unbridling of
belief; it is sliding scale to infdelity. Prot
estantism says that Catholicism is to blame,
because its outrageous assumptions have forced
men into revolt against all revealed religion;
it acts like nauseating drug on the human
vessels containing faith. None but the atheist
can rejoice in these recriminatons, which,
diluted with words and spiced with pulpit
malevolence re-echo wherever the one church
can believe they will come to the ears of the
other. The great Christian issue of the day
is how infdelity is to be met yet at the meet
ing of the Alliance it has had but one or two
exponents of any ability. For the far narrower
and more vulgar fight between Professionalism
and Catholicism it could call forth almost
every man on its roll of members. Is this
consoling? Is this wise?
Yesterday the spirit of sectarianism was
rampant Agreeing to differ on all things
Protestant, the Alliance is at one in allowing
no such liberty to the Catholics Apart from
the interest inspired by the various papers
read we must look upon the attitudes of the
contestants as curious to impartial eyes. A
perfect statement of an opponents case when
religion is under dispute is something
very difficult to get, almost i'm
possible to expect. So much lies in
motive, which an opponent can never measure,
ana which he will never admit to be what the
other party states it to be, that religious po-
lernics are always suspect. Yet the Catholic
case was stated yesterday by dozen Protes-
tant gentlemen with the most surprising re-
suits. Professor Dormer of Berlin, said that
since the infallibility dogma Catholicism was
Casarism. Professor Fisher described it as
depressing, where his religion was exalt-
ing and despotism where his belief was
liberty. The proclamation of the aforesaid
dogma, according to Professor Hitch
cock, was an error and blunder, the
latter, we suppose, being the miserable
earthly quality Of inexpediency superadded
to the implied violence to right. 1t was, in