The New York herald., 1873-12-21
Catholicity Not Opposed to Common
schools.

To THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD
The Papa Syllabus Is frequently quoted as con-
demnatory OF our common SCHOOL system, but with
out reason.
The proposition referring to the common schools
is No. 49, extracted from q letter OF the Pope to
the Archbishop of Friburg, dated July IA, 1864 and
was applied to very different circumstances from
those OF our common schools. Here, FOR peace
sake, since their establishment by the Church, 1t
has been decided that no denominationa Sec
tartan doctrine shall be taught in common
tions attend them.
The system OF education condemned by the Holy
Father was being established on the ruins OF
schools under Catholic management, brought to
destruction through hostility to the Catholic
Church. And this overthrowal OF system under
Catholic management, to make way Tor system
hostile to the Catholic Church, had received the
approval OF some Catholics, on the plea that edu-
cation was the business OF the State
1t IS clearly the object Of the Holy Father to pro-
test against such substitution or In his own words,
against "the regulations that were making for
new management of public schools that in various
ways bring with them great danger to the instruc-
ton and education OF youth IN y. that they day by
trol OF the Catholic Church, He shows that the
schemes OF expellng the authority of the Church
from schools founded by her and fostered with care
proceed from spirit adverse 10 the Church ITSELF
and concludes that whenever such pernicious
plan Is taken in hand OF expeng the authority OF
the Church rom schools under her control and es-
tablishng in them a method of instruction that
proposes to deal with the knowledge Of natural
things and the ends OF this earthly social life and
to withdraw from truths revealed by God the faith
ul ought to be warned TO shun schools so evidently
hostile to the Catholic Church, while the Church
will the utmost endeavor to provide the
necessary Christian instruction and education lest
youth should be exposed to loss of what pertains
to lath Hence the proposition condemned In the
Syllabus that "Catholics may approve the system
or educating yOuef which Is dsjoned from the
catholic Iaith And the authority OF the Church,
aiming solely, Or at least primarily at the knowl-
edge OF natural things only and the ends OF earthly
social lie.D
the dsjoinng OF Catholic faith and the authority
| Of the Churcn from the system OF educating youth
is that positive expulsion OF them from schools
under her control, to substitute in their stead
system hostile TO her, which forms the object OF
the protest OF the Holy Father. The sense OF the
extracted proposition is determined by the context
or the letter.
| 1t does not affect our common schools where
for the sake of peace, not through hostility to any
religious denomination dcnominational or secta-
rian teaching is omitted.
The State as we'll as the Church would gain many
advantages from the denominationaf system, II a
pracAcal plan IL offered for It's establishment
| where there are countless sects.
Whle the burdens on actual churches ana
the greater need OF more churches aud charitable
institutions render II impractcabc for the church
70 erect SCHOOLS Tor the secular education 0f tue