The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-05-05
Government Without Religion.

Inc people Oh tno Ohiteu o'"S0o "
frst that ever dreamed of such nm aosnrol-
ty. Even Bismarck, with his hatred OF
Christianity, encourages the idea OF pop
ular religion. He knows that without some
such sentiment pervading people IL can
not be governed. The less perfect the re-
ligous idea among population, the more
difficult their government-the more des-
MOTTO and merciless must be the reign Of
force and repression. The Chinese gov
ernment is one after q fashion, for there 10
q strong religious sentiment among it's
population. That sentiment 10 gross ano
false in most of it's details, but it contains
the great radical truths of Divinity and res
possibility in future life. The moral
sense of the people is not however quick
ened by knowledge of the real attributes
of that Divinity and of the corresponding
virtues proper for man. So while their fears
of future punishment are strong enough to
render society possible, it is only with the
assistance of the most rigid and all-control-
ing inter ven ton of civil government.
The greatest liberty in human govern
ment is only possible with the most virtu.
ous population, and in exact proportion
with popular vice and immortality must
coercion and absolutism at the hands of the
government increase The form is nothing;
king may be as responsible as pres
ident, and popular majority may be as
wicked tyrant as a czar.
To come back to our first proposition, we
must insist th0t the people of this country,
that is, majority of them, have precisely
reversed the truth in their understanding
of this matter. They hold that free
government can make people virtuous,
instead of holding that virtuous people
can make q free government. In conse-
quence of this fatal heresy they drop God
and replace him with the Public School.
Education is to make people moral f; edu-
cation is to be the great missionary.
Fatal blindness! Wicked pride! God
does not choose to be eliminated from his
own creation. He never meant to make a
machine, wind it up and then leave 1t to
run of itself. His finger regulates every
| movement. He is himself the main spring
and the only one.
Americana have yet to learn that to make
| kUOu BOou AOP0ShSoho SAS
people must be virtuous, and that to be
virtuous they must be religious, and that
to be religious they must have the grace of
God, and that to have the grace of God
they must come to him through his Church
and not through the civil government.
But people are not generally open to
conviction priOri; they must judge q
| l. So oil ba
in schools cspecially-is bearing full
crop of fruit in this country. First we have
the tramps whose name is legion, then the
vast army of criminals embracing forgers
embezzlers and fraudulent bankrupts al
we'll as many others, and finally the Com
munists or organized anarchists. These
last are enemies of authority-all ant
every authority. Their fundamental prin
ciple ia revolt-revolt against the govern
ment, revolt against any government
They are looked upon now as something
of an exotic in America, European i'm
portaton that will not flourish here. Bu
accounts show that they are fourishing
: The moral climate suits them wonderfully
and will continue to suit them better, tn
more and the longer God is ignored an
the Republic worshipped.
Why should we, or any one else rais
our voice against such madnessf Itcomes G
human pride. and will go on until, out c
the very bitterness and woe that sha
flow from it, men will be forced back t
common sense. Let them fully taste th
fruits of anarchy, and in sackcloth and ashe
r religion and beg God to stretch forth HI
j hand and stay the storm of destruction.