The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-04-05
Keener In Mexico.

dist) from the city of Mexico, Of recent
date, In which complaints are made that
bad Catholics won't turn Protestant. We
are surprised at the innocence of the Bishop
on this point. The reason of their back
wardness is quite evident and is simply
this, that they cannot all be preachers aud
make money by it. If the good Bishop
would run the finger of his memory along
the list of distinguished converts from the
Church to heresy in tia country, from
Maria Monk down to the latest pulpit
tbumper, he will find them all on the
make. They either publish sensational
books of personal experience or preach
filthy, se nsational sermons, which draw and
pay. 1t is all on the principle of the Black
Crook, only Evangelical.
Now it won't do for all the bad Catholics
to go into that business; it can pay a select
few only, and the others have, of course, no
reason for calling themselves Protestants
and undergoing the annoyance Of keeping
up a perpetual false pretence aud hypo-
critical show.
The Bishop grieves over the vast harvest
upgathered. He says:
The process of appealing, not to men, but
to Gods word and to his Son Jesus Christ as
the true pattern for whatsoever is true or noble
eral diffusion of the Holy Scriptures. A few
men who could preach correctly and fuently
in tho Spanish tongue-n'en of faith and the
second to that Of the apostles in the dsys Of
tho Penteoost next after the death of our
lord. As yet we have no such men. But
we have some who are rude in speech, and
<rns hop mt tba chi 80 oc I'll
win show that his treasurers are entrusted
still to earthen vessels to the praise of the glory
of his grace
1t appears to rs that his Rev. gets things
somewhat mixed in this paragraph. If
We understand him correctly. he says that
reading the Bible is too slow way Of
evangelizing Mexico. It requires time.
The real thing would be to have lot Of
Evangelical men at work by word of
mouth /: these would come much nearer
the Apostolic plan. If this is what he in
tends, We agree with him entirely as to
the abstract principle. 1t is thoroughly
Catholic, and therefore We don't be.
lieve he means that at all. We think he
wants both the "diAusion of the Holy
Scriptures"s as q missionary power, and
the Apostles too.
But why does he improve on the plan of
the original Apostles Z They had no Bibles
to scatter broad cast by way of mission
aries, but employed living meu altogether
for that work. And is it not a work of
supererogation, to face the expense of
furnishing SO many bibles and the immense,
almost hopeless, labor of getting people to
read them, when few good preachers
could work such electrical effects. just
think oft. There are tens of thousands of
men, women and children who can't read
at all, and ninety cut of every hundred
who can read that won't listen to the sng-
gestion of reading the Bible they prefer
newspapers and novels. Is not this dis
hearteningf Brother Keener himself &C.
knowledges that the process takes time
he doesn't say how much, but we think he
means q good deal of time,-and yet he
tries to hold on to the Bible-reading sys
ten, of missions, while instinctively calling
for the Apostolic system too. He objects
in one breath, to the ''process of appealing
to men" for light on spiritual questions,
yet in the next sighs for the influence of q
A~N@
and says they would rival in works
the first Apostles at Pentecost. This is
what We call getting mixed.
II Mr.. Keener's little sect can furnish
men to rival the wonders of the Apostles,
they have an ample opportunity OF show
ing themselves right here at home. There
are plenty of people here just as bad as
tho Mexicaus, and plenty of Catholics too.
If he can produce the kind of men who
would do these mighty works, supposing
they could only speak good Spanish, why
not let them loose in good English
We fear that the trouble comes in just
here that Methodism has not the gift of
tongues, or ignorance of Spanish would
not long stand in it's way that it has not
the love for poverty of the Apostles, or it
would not make such large drafts of money
for small missions that it has not the
power Of signs and wonders from God,
whereby, in the healing of the lame and