The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1876-06-18

CAu as WIN d mOnarCDlCAl form OF government
San Marino aud Venice are the Oldest Repub-
lies, and existed even in Italy before any one
dreamed of the French Republic or that of the
United States
WHAT has the Church to do with purely poll
| tical and worldly forms of government, il they
only recognize her rights as Church, and con-
| cede to her what she in justice can ask, with
all other religious Institutions in free coun-
| tryf Americans il is not your protection, IL
is not your money, that the Church quests of
| you: it is free light, free air, free country
| religious freedom in the the full sense of the
| term, as yon promised to her one hundred years
ago in your Declaration of Independence.
Let her live and labor in her element for the
work of salvation among you, and she will be
| the first to pronounce an anathemR against
those who dare to attack your republican in-
stitutions and change tbem into q monarchy.
Let the party which now guides the Ship Of
State, and which calls itself Republican, make
| this day q platform for the approaching cleo
tion aud say " Catholics, you are on the field
of your religious movements, as free as the
Consttution of the United States has assured
you you should be; and this freedom We will
guard with the whole power of the Govern.
ment 80 long o. you are loyal citizens of the
Republio. so long we will protect you, and not
o hair of your head shall be touched. We, as
free Americans, do not belong to the hordes
| commanded by Bismarck, nor do We COVER aud
| crouch before the despot of Prussia. Let them
drive bishops and priests and nuns from Ger
| many: there is place and work for them in
America. They may all come over to us they
will find here o free country, free speech, free
duties. aud no other secret police than their
own conscience"
Let them say this, and neither the Church
nor her servants, the priests will say one word
to prevent every Catholic vote from being cast
for tho Republican ticket. / myself might use
my privilege to do so, for too am q Citizen of
greatly emphasized the words Girls Romanus
sum And it may be my lot to proclaim to the
perst cItors of priests: "CIvIs AMERICANUs
SUM M"
am an AmeIican citizep jr at an much a any
o her.
Allow me to relate to you on this occasion
what happened to ma in Cincinnati, when L
took my oath of allegiance. ] went into the
new Court houss, and the Judge directed the
clerk to administer the oath to me. Turning
towards me, the clerk asked If would take An
oath to be'a loyal citizen of the United States.
smiled and said Sir, l do not perhaps quite
clearly understand what you mean by loyal
citizen of the United States Bat one thing
may declare under oath. will he ss good an
American citizen as you are. Will that do"
The clerk laughed and said: "Of course that
will do'
Before concluding this point let me make one
remark more. Citizens of the United States,
celebrating just now the Centennial of your
Republic, tell me. was it not the ,rs of Cath
olio nation who she'd their blood fighting side
by side with your forefathers in your struggle
for independence, and this against Protestant
powerf
And is it not somewhat ignifcant that there
| was no Protestant prince present at the open
| ing of yonr Centennial, but there was Catho-
| lie to show his sympathy, which may indicate
to you bo W silly are your anti Catholic political
apprehension.
i come now to the third, and at this moment
| the most interesting question. In what reia-
| ton stands the Catholic Central Association,
which you, gentlemen, represent, to the especial
| duty which we Catholics have to perform in the
| United Stat6sf
Before answer this, must in order not to
be misunderstood, give the following explans-
ton 1t is not at all my wish to see any thing
| changed in the fundamental tendencies of the
Association. The Catholic Central Assosi alton,
| as the history of it's foundation shows, and as
you gentlemen know very well, was est8b-
ished for the mutual assistance of Catholics
| in the United States, especially in the interest
| of travellers and emigrants. In this, it's fund
amental principle, the Association stands to
| the Catholic Church as endeavoriDg by it's ef-
forts to preveut Catholics from seeking tenn
poral assistance from secret societies, and
| thereby being excommunicRted and cea-lng to
be Catholics. 1'he temporal assistance which
| Catholics give each other does not in itself
| bear the sign of Cathoicity, for to mite for
mutual temporal assistance may be done by
| heathens, Turks jew ana .otestants. These
can and indeed f' q1ently do, US -cccnot of
the greater means at their disposal, much more
than the Catholic Central Association has ever
done, or perhaps ever will be able to do. l re-
| peat that the fund 3mental object of the asso
citation is very praiseworthy, and it is far from
me to attempt IL modification of it; and e1-
perience has shown that it would be fruitess.
! Lst therefore leave the Catholic Central As
sociation to follow its original purpose under It's
| wise Constitution.
| But it does not follow from this that the As
socation, in conf ieraton of its numbers and
moral strength could not, nor ought not to use
| it's power to further the direct interest of the
Church. and thus act up to its name, and be in
reality what it is regarded in America.
l hall elucdate the above by the following
facts: All the great and powerful institutions
of what call the " world" in opposition to
the kingdom of Christ, not only assist their
men: bere, but also turn their exertions to other
pnrposes especially to attacking the Church.
These institutions have not without reason
secret meTnod OF working. They culmiuate, as
is well known, n the order of the Freemasons,
| the tendency of which is to substitute for
Christianity the so called reign of humanity.
The order of Freemasons, with all it's affiliated
secret societies, preteuds to be nothing but
| nniOn for mutual assistance, and hundreds of
| Freemasons of the lower degrees look upon
it only in this light. But how industriously
and how effectually the order works towards
the above-named end is sufficiently manifested
by the history of the day.
| We need only to turn to Prussia, Italy, Spain,
and study the workings of the FreemssonB and
their affiliated societies to ruin the Church.
| Look even to the whole globe. Look at Mex
| ico, Brazil the whole of South America, and