The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1874-12-23
The True Peril If Professionalism.

While American Professionals do not share
the apprehensiOns expressed by Mr.. Glad
stone in relation to the designs of the
Catholic Church, they frequently express
concern at the evident increase of the Ro-
manist organization in this country, in
numbers influence and popular esteem
While heresy and free thought have thin
ned the Protestant ranks, and forced the
church to make concessions to liberal ideas
that would have been secuted half a CEN
fury ago, the Roman Catholic church has
remained intlexible upon all doctrinal
points. and steadily increased in moral and
material strength. However little appre-
hension this condition of affairs has given
rise to, it is unquestionable that it has not
failed to attract attention and excite curl
osity and wonder. It is SO paradoXical
that it would not be credited if the evil
dence were less plain and conclusive, and
the Professionals can find no rational theory
to explain it.
There is one cause which has exerted a
powerful influence in producing this effect,
and it has failed altogether to attract at
tention from the Protestant pulpit and
press. The disintegration and partial de-
moralization of the Protestant church, so
plainly manifest to day, is due more large
ly to the laxity Of the church upon mat
tiers of domestic life, than to any her
cause. This laxity extends not only to the
matter of marrige and divorce, but to the
secret sins of married people-to abortion
and infanticide. There is not Protestant
preacher in Chicago who cannot point to
members of his church who have been ha.
bitually guilty of this crime; yet for years
there has been no pulpit utterance against
it. No protestant preacher in Chicago
dare attack this sin us his honest, untet-
tered conscience would command him. It
has become such part of social life, and
so associated with the people whose money
builds religious edifices and provides for
preachers salaries, that united aud de-
termined onslaught upon it would disrupt
every church society," in Chicago. Imagine
pure man standing in the avenue pull
pits, hurting hot words of Indignation and
denunciation, and prophecies of the wrath
of God, at the women who destroyed their
unborn children! How soon that pulpit
would be closed to him!
The idea that the guilty silence Of the
Protestant pulpit on this point has had a
strong influence in debasing the church.,
receives force from the fact that nothing
has done so much to heighten the esteem
of all people for the Catholic church as its
welLknown position in this matter.
There is no evasion among Romanist
preachers on the point of abortion and in
fanticide. Every Catholic man and wo-
man knows that the wrath of the church
will surely follow its commission. 1t is a
sin that the church will in no wise tole-
rate. An abortionist cannot be Cath
Ole, while the Protestant church is a safe
refuge for such criminal. There is a
force in the bare presentation of this fact
that every husband and wife will fully
comprehend.
Here is the peril of Professionalism, the
true source Of the strength Of Catholicism
in the days when creeds are smashed and
theology derided. The old days when men
needed the aid of church to secure saliva
ton have gone; Professionalism as it exists
to-day, has no mission; the mission of Ca
tholocisnn is to save tile family institution.
So long as there remains true instinct in
human nature this mission will be Of living
interest to mankind, and Catholicism will
command respect. Professionalism must rec
Ognize this truth, or its crumbling temples
will fall to the dust long before Catholicism
shall have reached It's highest hOnOrs.
-lChicago Times.