The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-02-07

Father Burke never loses an occasion,
no matter where he may be, to honor his
native land. His patriot fervor is next in
earnestness of devotion to his religion, and
from both springs his wonderful eloquence.
At the Cathedral of St. Mary's in Cork, re-
Gently, he exhibited his love for his country
amid one of his bursts of eloquence. He
said
Ideas came into certain peoples minds
that the early original Church of Ireland,
the Church founded by st. Patrick, was by
no means the Catholic Church of to-day /;
that, on the contrary. she bad no connec-
ton with the Pope Of Rome till the eleventh
century or 80, but they quite forget the fact
that St. Patrick left words behind him
which totally destroyed SO ridiculous a
tLeory-they forgot that St. Patrick told
the people, the bishops, and priests, when
ever they had any serious difficulty amongst
them, not to settle it themselves, but to
apply to Rome-to the Pope and see what
he had to say. The attachment of the Irish
people to the Catholic faith, the religion
at their fathers, was known over the world.
He was once travelling in America, when
two strangers, seeing priest in the train,
proceeded to speak unexpectedly of the
Pope and of Catholics, but, observing a
fine, big man coming towards the carriage
at one of the aca,ions. they said, "Here
and they thereup"n left the carriage. The
person indicated, who proved, in fact, to
be au Irishman, sat opposite to him, and
when he was told what had happened, he
said-"If Your reverence had told me that
before tits smithereens I'd have made of
them"
Tho Incident illustrated the we'll founded
feeling that exists in the minds of people
throughout the world that an Irishman aud
a Catholic meant very much the same thing.
It was wonderful to consider how tene-
oionsly, through poverty, persecution and
gion, and that despite all that had happen
ed in her chequered history, the people
were more Catholic to- day than they had
ever been. Some person would say it was
because of the hatred which the Irish bore
to England and, according to that, if
England had become Catholic, Ireland
would be Protestant, simply to spite them.
That could not, however, be the reason,
for England had been as deeply hated be- |
fore she turned Protestant as she had |
been since. The fact of England becoming |
did not increase Ireland's hatred
the record of cruel injustice and tyranny
was slightly aggravated by the addition of
the element of religious difference. What
was it that kept Ireland Catholic, and
would keep her so to the day when the
Archangel would go forth to summon all
men to judgment7 The reasons chiefly
we're the grace of God and the deep sympa-
ny Of the Irish character for the truth of
he Catholic religion, and the wonderful
harmony between the Church and her doc
rines and the Irish aspirations. The great
gift of the people of Gods Church was faith,
which was Divine light by it they had
1slief in the Real Presence-a belief which
,ame as naturally as the air they breathed
and it was because they had faith that
hey were Catholics. God had given this
lift of faith in an especial degree to Ire
and she had never lost her original fideli
y to God. and the Catholic religion, bich
he treasured.