The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1875-09-23

TaS not specially Welghly, TO lessen MS
influence, and diminish popular respect
or his office, when he came to speak Of
.hings purely spiritual.
The position Of Catholic bishop or
priest il widely different. He is in the
irst place appointed, or removable at
pleasure, by u foreign prince who claims
paramount jurisdiction, by divine ap-
pointment, over all the governments in
the world, in all matters which he chooses
to pronounce spiritual or Pertainlng,to
the spiritual, and who holds himself able,
when speaking uuder certain conditions
to the absence or presence oil when
nobody can testify but himself-to decide
on the right or wrong Of every
question of human interest. In the sec
ond place, the bishop or priest, though
nominally an AmericaH citizen, Is in his
character clothed with an
authority so tremendous and supernatur-
al, and belongs to an organization so vast
IL transcending the state in power, lmpor'
lance and duration that his citizenship
seems a thrilling and insigniti-
cant thing. lie has no fixed dOmlclle,
and cannot have. Neither his will, his
reason, nor his interest has anything to
do with determining the place Of his
abode. lie is in New York today, but
he may Tomorrow be transferred to Pata-
gonna or China by u power which in his
ewes bears about the same proportion 10
the State or the United States as Tod
Almighty to black beetle. Nor is he
bound to the political community, as the
Protestant minister Is, by those ties Of
family to which patriotism owes 10 much,
ii not all, OF its force. lie has neither
wife nor children nor home, and the great
object Of denying them to him Is to pre-
vent any distraction Of his devotion trOu
the interests Of the Church, or any strong
sympathy with the purely secular hopes
or ideals or pugnances OF the community
in which he il qlartered.
Moreover, he does not discuss in the
presence Of his congregation; he does not
debate with them or balance arguments
or scck to persuade or convince them. lie
hardly even instruCts them; he prOmnl'
gates The law in the name Of the Church
and the law armed with sanctions Of the
most terrible and imposing character
lie has no doubts on any Of the problems
Of the universe. II he refrains form
speaking on any knOIty question Of the
day, 1t Is not because he has nothing ia
say, or no solution to offer, but because
he considers the matter Indifferent, or one
around which the feeble reason Of bis
flock may be safely allowed to play freely
1t il true that when he speaks, he does
not always speak or profess To speak the
mind Of the Church; but then, even the
obiicr dicil Of persons who are the daily
and exclusive opponents Of the mind Of
the Judge Eternal are hints which wor'
shiper, even il strong-minded and educa
ted, will not feel it safe to disregard
They are hints which the ignorant wOr'
sinner is sure To take Us the utterance'
Of supreme wisdom. The conduct Of Il
good Catholic in the discharge Of his
public duties must make either for OF
against the interest Of the visible Church
II il makes against them, he is hindering
the sole means provided by Almighty
God for The salvation Of mankind from
everlasting damnatiOn; and Of these in
lcresls who knows 70 much rs the clergy
Who else, indeed, knows anything
Whenever, therefore, u priest advises 4
Catholic how to vote, or tells him what
the welfare Of the Church requires, even
II it be in the street, il is absurd to sup
pose that the laynan treats II rs the nd
vice Of fellow.ciIizen, to be taken
or left in his discretion. Common pru
,encc, II no other consideration were
present, would require him to regard Il
a. voice from the other world, which
might save or ruin him.
II will be, in short, a sore day for the
United States when the people Of this
country allow themselves to be seduCcd
into The belief that the Church Of Rome
has become recOnCilcd to republication
or to liberty Of thought, or to anything
else which recognizes the existence uI
any rule Of conduct, in small things or IN
great, not furnished by herself, or that
the Catholic clergy have the least inten'
ton Of putting themselves on the same
level with or using the same weapons ~
the Protestant clergy on the school qnes'
ton, or any other question Which is like
~ to effect their own power, either near
Is or remotely, directly or indirectly. Il
must not he forgotten that the Protestant
Church Is body Of sects, without iixity
Of organization or discipline or purpose
or dOctrinc-parl Of the State, and blend
ed with the State in Thousand ways
and changing in beliefs and composition
from generation TO generations; while the
Catholic Church is Il vast machine, be
longing To no country, submitting iiscl
to no authority, asserting itself against
all authority, and served by Il body OfCC
clcsiastics who have severed all earthly
ties In order to serve Il more elleCLually
and who are governed by orders more
completely than any army and that u
policy, and designs, and motives are veil
ed in the striciCst secrecy, and that NJ
pledge or promise Of any Of il,
agents can bind or conclude il III
any manner. The duty Of the
State towards these agents Is therefore
plain, and settled by much experience
and that IL, to legislate exnctly as the sec
ular interests may seem to require, but
To make no agreements or treaties with
them, aud to be affected by M concessions
Or compromises they may OIlGr, and not
to be frightened by any Use they may
make Of such phrases as Religious lib
erty" or "equal rights" The policy IL
which they have adhered for ages Is Il
AJAX for everything, including the govern
mcnt Of the country by m Archbishop
but To take what they Gun get, aud alway'
after rebuff to play the martyr, aud
when further gains are hopeless, to settle
down chcerfully until the public irrita
ton has subsidized, and then try again
The bishops and priests die, and come aud
90, but whsever they are and whatever
they may say, we know that they do and
must believe the whole Of our political
and social fabric, our Government, our
marriage, our education, our religion and
manners, to he a mOnstrUus and beastly
revolt against God and Ills ministers
Any priest who prOiesses he does not ~
regard them may be doing His duty, but
any American voter who IL led into care
lessncss or indulgence by these pro-
fessiOns Is not doing hsduty. No Church
occupies or can occupy the same relation
to the State rs the Roman Church, and II
may therefore be properly made the obeCt
nf Extraordinary viUilanrn nnl tliaIFIIsi