The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-02-08
!, SUNDAY, February 8, 1874.
Tho Armenian Question.
From tho New York Tablet

We alluded incidentally, in our leading
article last week, to the trials and tribula-
tions of the Church in the Turkish Empire.
The subject is one of engrossiDg interest,
and yet fails to receive that attention from
Catholics to which it is entitled. It may
not DO generally known, as it certainly
ought to be, that the Turko Armenian
Catholics are now without legitimate
head, the patriarch Kupelian being neo-
schismatic, and one of the most determined
and most malignant opponents of the Cath
Ole Church. Yet, this is the man who
pointment, the Turkish Government would
force the Catholic subjects of the Empire
to submit to as their lawful head, and this
under pain of FORGETTING their civil and re-
ligions liberty. The Ambassadors Of the
Catholic Powers at Csnstantinople have
Ottoman Porte in this matter, and very
fair promises are often made them to the
effect that speedy solution of the difficult
ty might be expected. AS yet these pro-
misses are all unfulfilled, and the faithful
Catholics of Armenia, and other provinces
same oppressed and persecuted state.
Quite recently, the Catholics of Fradisen,
in Bosnia, despairing of redress for their
grievances from the Turkish Government,
appealed to the Great Powers who bad
signed the Treaty of Paris. Austria, &C
cordingly, generously lnterfered, and . 1o,
encourage the other Catholic Powers to
exert their influence on behalf of a peace.
full Catholic people, SO flagrantly injured
and oppressed in their dearest and most
vital interests f-If the outrageous per-
secution of the Catholic Church by the
German Chancellor excites SO much indig-
nation throughout Europe and America,
why should the equally tyrannical Oppres-
sion of the Turkish Government, it's shame
full violation of the rights of the Church,
be passed over in silence q-Shall the Otto
man Porte be allowed to trample on the
rights of whole people, driving out their
lawful bishops and priests, and replacing
them by creatures of the schismatic patri-
arch 1.-THE following statistics, furnished
by correspondent of the Unirers, will
show how small a fraction of the Armenian
people the schismatics are la Adana,
there are dissenters to $50 Catholics
in Mardin, dissenters to :, 500 Catholics !;
in Trebizonde. 100 to 900 I'm Constan-
tinople, $50 to 5000 in Bzommar, to
II in Diarbekir, 80 to 5000 i'm Tarsus
there is not single schismatic and the
same may be said of the other twelve do
ceses.
names of many of the so-ealled schismatics
were inscribed on the list against their
| will, they being timid characters who
| shrank from undergoing the harsh treat
ment to which the Armenian Catholics are
subjected. These people frequent the
| of the schismatics. Thus it is that by
fraud and violence, by armed force, and
by the privation of civil and religious lib
erty, that the Turkish Government seeks
to subject one hundred thousand Armen-
| ians to a handful of neo- schismatics, whom
! it dignifies with the title Of the Armenian
Catholic Church in Turkey.
| After RDeakip0 at considerable length oil