Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1875-01-28
Church and SeAse-EermamY,s SefuR-
gle with she PAPal Power.
fDr. Holland in tho February scribner.l

Great public interest is concentrated upon the
present struggle Of Germany with the PapAl
power, and the free discussion Of the relations
Of that power to the allegiance OF the citizen to
his own Government now in progress in Eng
land. Mr.. Gadstone's manifesto has placed the
vital question involved squArely before the Eng.
| lish people, and not less plainly before all
| tho people OF Europe. The ingenious protest
and denial OF Archbishop Manning and other
adherents Of His Holiness have failed to
| do away with tho charge Of the ex-
Premier, simply because it cannot bo done away
with. The assumption Of supreme authority
over the consciences of men by a man who
claims infnlliblty, is one which no Government
| constituted like the Britisn can tolerate with
either dignity or safety. The German Govern
mont is right in principle on this question,
whether II be just and wise in its measures OF
not and Mr.. Gladstone occupies position that
| L impregnable. The dogma of PapAl infallibili-
| ty ~ an o6ense 10 TIE common sense Of the
world, and the doctrine Of supremacy which
grows out Of it rs naturally M tree grows out
OF the sol, III challenge and All insult to every
Government that holds and protects y Catholic
subject within its limits.
This would seem to be too PLAIN q matter to
call for augmentation. To claim supremacy in
matters OF conscience, and TO hold at the same
time, the power Of deciding on questions OF con-
rcience-of declaring what is right and what is
wrong, in all things, civil well religious-is
W cAAh tIio tupToU6 anu all HuDOftllDAttnG ALE
glance OF every man who belongs to the Catholic
communion in every country Of the world How
any fair-mnded man can deny this is beyond our
comprehension. and the only reason why
the matter does not make NJ great .
commotion in America as it does in Great
Britain and Germany, is that, as . State, we
have no connection with the Church. Practically
the matter is of very little Importance to u.s.
The Catholic Church has the same federation
here that the Methodist Church has-no more,
no less. Our Government simply protects il In
lts liberty, and sees that its own laws are obeyed
irrespective Of all church communions. We come
into no collision with it, because we assume no
church prerogatives and functions. England
has State church, and it cannot tolerate the
existence OF two authorities that assume
supremacy within the same kingdom but Eng
land is weak IN it's position, because itself
assumes to be an authority in matters OF re-
ligiou.
Theoretically, the Sovereign OF Great Britain
can do no wrong" Here IL is doctrine OF
e 'infallibility y and though it has no such a
range as that Of the Papacy, and il applied rath-
er to the breaking than tho making Of law, it il
Just ~ absurd as that against which Mr., Glad
stone inveighs 80 nightly. There the State
undertakes to meddle with the Church. 1t sup
ports and in many ways directs it, and exercises
functions that are just ~ llegtimate and pre-
sumptuous m those assumed by the Pope with
relation to the different States. The same may
be said OF Prussia ; and the Pope has good right
to say, IL he chooses to do 80 "Take your
hand from religion, and will take mine from
the State. SO long as You choose to make a
state affair OF religion you must not blame me
for doing the same, Give me back my kingdom
and my temporalities. Shape your policy to the
neces-ities OF my Church. Until you do so, l
VIII define the limits OF your power, and OF my
own, as il seems BEST to me, and best for the in
forests have in charge"
For ourselves, we rejoice to witness the pres
ent struggle. In the progress of the world, and
IN The free development Of the power OF Chris
tianity, it WAS necessary that il should come
and lts coming marks an epoch and demonstrates
an advance. just 30 soon AZ the nations Of the
world can comprehend the fact that the King
Tom OF Christ is not IA kingdom of this world;
hat it s within men, and is not in any way COM
pGated with civil organization and administra-
tlon,-jnst 30 soon will all strife between the
State aud the Church cease. The Pope il report
be true, has recently said that the only country
where he is truly and practically respected liz the
United States. The reason is, that the State
simply minds its own husiness, and lets him alone
When other States attend only to their civil
functions, and let the Church, in all its denom-
tiations, take caro- Of itself, they will care no
more about Ahe dogma OF Papa infAllibility than
they do about tho civil dogma OF regal infalhbil-
ty. They will not even take the trouble to "speak
diHrepectfully of the equator" 1t is now esseu-
tally fight between the head Of the greatest OF
the churches and the civil heads Of the smaller
churches. We have no such head in Ameri-
Wv, hAu tuerelofe We uOnt care. Iht.
ticIlarly, we do not care how soon
thc light proceeds to its predestined end-the
disestablishment OF vii the churches of Europe.
That is the natural solution Of the difficulty, and
tie only possible one 1t may come through "a
great religious war;" which the wise are fore
telling, but which real wisdom will avoid, by
putting away, ut once and forever, it's cause
The OK is strong and excellent beast, but he
cannot be yoked with the horse. who is equally
strong and excellent. The horse cannot work
according to his law without wearing out tile OK,
and the OK cannot work according to his law
without degrading horse and cheating him
of his power. The Church and the State can no
more be yoked together with natural advantage
than the OK and the..horse. To undertake to
unite the machinery of the State and the Church
is, IN the end, to degrade the latter. To make
the Church in any way subordinate to
the shifting necessities and caprices of politics
is II prsctica! desecrat.on of holy things. We
believe that no State church ever existed. .wheth-
or presided over by pope or king, that did not
become corrupt or 30 nearly dead as to lose its
aagressiveness aud healthfnlness az spiritual
power Mr.. Gladstone and his friends have only
TO labor earnestly for the disestablishment OF
the Church of England, to lose all practical in
terest i'll tho Papal dogmss and the Papal as
sumpIions. by doing this, they will at least be
II, II position, as Englishmen, to oppose them
with some show of consistency.