The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1877-02-25
NUMBER 3
lHt GREATNESS OF THE PAPACY
IN THE MIDST OF TuB
Greatest Prosecutions,
ADMIRABLE LECTURE BY THE HON
TIlOS. j. SEMMES.

Last Saturday evening, 18th just at q
O'Clock, the Hon. Thos. j. Semmes leotured IN
81. fatricks Hall in honor of the approach;,r
httieth Anniversary of the Episoopal Con.e-
Grafton OF our Holy Father, Pope Plus TX. The
nail MAS elegantly decorated with a number of
american and irish flags. The stage was o.
cnpied by His Grace, the Most Rev. N. T.
ferohe' Aroh bishop of New Orleans, and n
number of the Rev. Clergy and prominent Law
Catholics.
His Grace introduced Mr.. semmes vho
| said:
The snblimity Of tho spectacle presented tn
the world by tho Vatican day eTcItes the
admiration Of friend and foe; for
1T HAS NO PARALLEL IN HISTORY,
ancient or modern
Upon the brow of that hill sits an august
pontfi tracing back his authority tbron1h an
m munotoken chain of succession to his Divine
nin7ter' thus constituting the link by which
thls world il, through Christ, connected with
iicaNeh hn octoBenarian king, strong only in
t"9 spiritual power infused into him by God
l'tH @ only III heavenly wisdom ard the love Of
nations; great in his ser vices I CIIri.tondono.
pnt' ABOVE all, great in his conduct az the
I"pFeSentalvo OF tights human and divine,
lLe Power" Of the earth have attacked or for.
5Akeh MN; an ungratofui word, in its roent
'Cs9 'H"ft TO G&termlna,e all that Christian
cFi.'z. ION huld- dear, has c3uCeptrRtrd ~,
ann iis rancor aud ia hate.
61ANnING AL"HE, WIN brow, sEnEYE
A'c d'nntlet4 henIt, he holds bis head erect
IHd ti'uly awaits thc is-ault of ihe Gnrco
u E.'n7 "t the mudcru IevOIuIiun; the more
u''II| TIE A'ite< tho ore does 10 manifest
-"H"Iu'o InvinC, Utility.
Iue Cuemy holds 10 his haDEs ALI tho ,str,,
neniS and nppira,crs of brute force. and in
rs service are cm!i-ted all the passions of
'rnte nature Tne enemy is to-day almost
n hAHtcr OF the CivIllZ Il world, vet hs cannct
Chq1er and rule thar venerable old man bant
!lth IAe weight Of eighty years, who
amos as hIGh in glory and authority as his
I1J
zen. Such is the spectacle hI=tori2nlIv pp1ono
! al lts accessories, which we have witnessed
Jr several years.
But a short while ago some of its mara o,r
i'll enemies, who admired the
NCIENT GRANDEUR or THE CATHOLIC CaURct.
I'd believed the throne Of the Vatican To
ave fallen into decay the result Of modern
iIture' were wIIIIug to pay "A tribute to her
parting greatness. Oue of them, Mr., Leokv
lh, thAt throne on which IL seemed as
pugh Tho c5AnRele1s Church had stamped
o Impre5s"f her own perpetutty-thAt throne
"HIcn, iOr 30 many centuries of anarchy
ID confusion, bad been the Sinai of A protect
ana aYeng'nG lAw-that throne, which
- once the centre and archetype NJ tho
llucAi- system o' Europe, the successor Of
periaI ltIme, the inherilor Of q double por-
IA OF her splrlt-the one power whloh seemed
moved above all the viCissitudes of politics.
ms above the cataract, unshaken amidst
hnc4 turmoil and so much damRge-that
one mas IN onr day sunk into a condition Of
pecss deere p'tude" etc.
ct he does not undertake To writa tho m;
lares THAT FN'obS
NO HUMAN PEN CAN WRITE IT'S RPlTAPU
no imagination can adequately realize its
RES In the eyes of those who estimate the
atnets Of a sovereignty, not by the ex-
I OF It's territory or by the vaIor Of its aol.
~, but by the iunuence which iC has eyer
a over mankind, the PapaI Government has
TlValp and can have successor"
thers acknowledge the service rendered In
KIND by tito CHURCH, as organized under
Popes, in restoring order after the devasta
. of the barbarian IrruptiOns, in recon
citing society aud in-Pteserying and Dro-
ing science and letters.
r. Gufz0t, in hIs History of Civilization
, Had Christianity not been a Church.
rot say what might have happened TO IL
the fali OF the Roman En- pre-. There
"d at that time none of those means by
n IN the present dav moral inhuenoes
1isl themselves or offer ressteDce inde-
entIy OF .lustitutlons; none of those
10 whereby a pure truth, pare idea oh.
GREAT EMPIRE OVER MINDS,
Cs actions and determines eyents Notb
the kIud existed in the fourth centurv
e a like authority to ideas and personai
ncuts II - clear that a society strongly
izeu and strongly governed wns indispen-
10 struggle against such disaster, and
ie VICTORIOUS from such q storm. do not
that say more than the truth in Affirm
at, OF the end of the fourth and the com
menE OF the nth centuries, it was the
ian Church which Hnvod NhrioffAniAv.