The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1877-04-22
Sly Dean Stanley.


the public as final and unanswerable upo
the topics therein discussed. 1t was in forr
q valedictory address delivered as Lor
Rector of the Scotch University of st. Au
drew's to the students of that institution
Mr.. Stanley's central proposition is tina
Religion is essentially progressive.
He takes immediate issue upon thu
point with Macaulay. That writer, sayi
the Dean, ia his review of Ranke's History
of the Popes maintains that theology DIFF
fers from all other sciences in being com
plete. Such as it was in the days of job
such it is now and must be forever. The
distinction between prophecy and fact, is
one of date only, not of principle. But to
this the Dean says: No. Doubtless there
is an element of permauence in religion,
"but in everything which relates to it's
form and in much which relates to its sub
stance the proposition of Macaulay in it's
regard is false.
In proof of this, Mr.. Stanley adduces the
following startling announcement -
Look in the face the fact that the faith of each
successive epoch of Christendom has varied
Be-
The variations Of the Catholic Church, both
past and present, have been almost If not
quite as deep and wide as the variations of
Professionalism, and these variations W bile they
Proclamation to the troth. and not the whole
truth itself, contain the surest indications of
vitality.
Now the Dean associates with royalty
and hob nobs with other nobs. 1t is there
fore with great diffidence that we find our
selves obliged to charge his Lord Rector
ship with acting, in this instance, the
charlatan and pettifogger. His Eminence
has actually made of himself a theological
shyster.
His Eminence, or reverence, was under
the most solemn and impressive circum-
stances lecturing concourse of theological
students. He was bound to give them fair
statement, at least, of the question. Now
it will be known that if his statement as
found in the above extract be correct, then
the Catholic Church is fraud. There
would no longer be a Catholic Church for
it's very basis is it's infallibility. If it were
true that the "faith of the Church had
varied enormously" or in the slightest
particular in any two epochs, then all pre-.
tense to infaIlibility would be gone from it
forever.
1t would be idle in us to discuss such
question. The Church simply says as it's
whole argument, "point me to one single
doctrine which l have ever taught that [
do not now teach, and / shall cease to
teach" The attempt to specify such
logma would be an absurdity or worse,
md for tho Hon. (or perhaps, Right Hon.)
md reverend Dean to assume the PROPOSE
ion as an ordinary historical truth, and
20 assume 1t in bis capacity of confidential
md trusted instructor of guileless Scotch
youth, was quite a low trick.
In exempliticaton of these "epormous'
variations, the Dean refers to what he calls
8 the terrible conflict between the
Burghers and antiBurghers, the now
United Presbyterians" We are not post
ID as to that great episode, but we are
confident the Presby terians can eplt up
more in one year than they can unite in
ten yesrs.
& Then the Dean, for another "enormous"
Of the once universal belief "that the
waters of baptism were an Indispensable
condition of salvation" We have yet to
learn that baptism, in one of it's forms, is
not Indispensable to salvation, and to init
mate that the Catholic Church has drifted
away from that doctrine is an outrage But
the pious Dean had asserted enormous
changes or variations" in the Catholic
Church and the doctrine of baptism was
perhaps the only one he could think of at
the moment.
Speaking of past religious issues, Mr..
Stanley says:
They are now dead and buried, and for u.s.
standing on their graves, it is idle to say that
theology has not changed. 1t has changed
Religion has survived those changes, and this
Is the historical pledge it gives, that it will
survive u thousand more.
The graves of all dead heresies were dug
BY the Catholic Church, and in standing
over them Mr.. Stanley is but visiting the
ashes of his fathers. In every solitary is
sue that has been formed in the history of
tho raliOinD on1 hoa ooa.ol