The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-02-28
The New spoliation Bills in Prussia.

iation bills, on the general no"o'
anactments which have turned the Caeho-
,;ca of Switzerland out of the churches ou'i'
nv their fathers and guaranteed by treaeies' =,
has been drafted in Prussia for sln,'"'
purpose. The great Cathedrais OF oa."'
lie Germany, the remaining founoa''on'
which have escaped reformatlons anu 40
volutiops. are about to be taken away 'Fon
the faithful populations and handed over
70 a contemp tible handful of mendacio"s
beretcs. or retained by the State as secu-
lar;xsd monuments of discarded Cnrle-
tian civilization. AS in Switzeriano' .he
design is to be carried out under sne aoo'
minable hypocrisy of pretended oesire "
consult the wishes of the Catholic popu'a-
: fiona and "a in Switzerland the apparent
authority conferred on the Catholic parish-
toner's will be so clogged with hostile re
strictious and 90 nnllified by fallacious re-
servations, that while the Cathohcs arc
kent far from the polls, a gang OF fifty lnndeis
and profligates, the sweepings OF the taV
| ems. or the spies of the police, will be EN-
8 powered to vote away the ecclesiastical
Q property of a dozen Catholic PARISHES.
o Scenes of sacrilege and profanat'on' VI
: boundless and abominable crime, OF orazeh
d and insulting brigandage, are in prepar-
n alton. and on such a scale as have not dis
: orsced the Christian world since the days
of Luther, Calvin. Cranmer, and Knox
e The National Zeitung, the leading organ OF
d the iufidel Liberals of Germany, declares
al with exultation that sit is not too much to
D, sav that the proposed law will be the most
of important of all that have regard to the
r. regulation of ecclesiastical affairs in Prus-
US a;an Even if We had not the details of the
OF law, the furious JOY of the Church's aeao-
Id Hest and most unscrupulous enemies Wouio
ch Give us an idea of the new deviltries IN store
nd for our prosecuted brethren.
le- As in Switzerland, it will be under the
in pretence of granting powers of self-govern
ment and self. administration to the Catbo
lu- lie parishes that the Catholic ecciesi
ch, astical property is to be torn from ID
ks Church, AS in Switzerland, the Catholl
nee parishioners will be nominally empoWere
the to take over and control the local churche
as and church funds and as ia Switzerlan
by the Catholic parishioners will be prevente
OIL from taking any part IN the resulting e'ee
to tions of parish vestries and boards by res
son of conditions tantamount to repudlf
ton of the Catholic Faith. And even
by an impossible supposition the Cathol
narshioners should do violence to the
,try consciences by appearing to be non Cath
nv lics for a day, and should consequent
God nrocnre the election of Catholic chur'
@ of authorities, the law provides for the dlss
;nal luton of all parish boards which do n
the carry out the anti Catholic policy of tt
ZION Falck legis ation. Even were the Cath
and lie parish oners to bow their necks to In
del yoke in the hope of saving their church
ape by their sinful compliance, they would st
me- be outwitted by the far-reaching prov
ally sions of system OF enactments "hi'
ath. contemplate nothing less than the dehni
ton confiscation of the ecclesiastical proper
rep- of the eight million Catholics of Prussia.
that The point and gravameu of the spoil
false ton bills lie in the provisions that may
"a to summarized as follows
hris- lat. In every Catholic parish there shall
Tho an elected parish council and an elected p
'"0 ish delegation for the and managem
kfas o the ecclesiastical property of the parish.
in 2nd. All male, adult self-supportng r.
til in TONS of membership Of Catholic paf,sh-o
IMPLY dience to the Pope not being lawful col
tion-are the qualified electors of both
parish council aud the parish delegation.
away 3rd. Where either parish council or l
,once ish delegation obstinately neglect their la,
l"uce ohligations-by favoring "Ultramontani
hat a for instance-or deal with matters withdra
civi, by the ldc from their jurisdiction-if they
ject to "a hereto priest, for instance,-they
ne is be dissolred by the ODER President
Eng 4th. Where the bisnoP OF the diocese e REL
niger, delegation-as n the instance of a hereto
larck. intidel council OF delegation-such Bishop 5
receive warning of thirty days from
'VoiVe State authorities, and in case of continued
@ stu fusal the State authorities shall enforce
IT, r decision of the parish council or delega
Won VI according to the lawful professionalism
# any stance, hand over the cathedrals of Coll
and Strasbourg to Dollingerists and Rein
lists.
tied to 9Th. The parish council of four to tW
and members decides, subject always to the
an tue the parish church pronerty with the Coz
mister alton, in certain fixed cases of the paris