The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-06-15
For the Central Presbyterian.
Rome and Civil and Religious
Liberty.
PETERSBURG, VA, May 18th, 81.

PETERSBURG, VA, May 18th, 81.
Messrs. Editors,-One of the most
amusing phases of the Romanism of to-
day, is seen in the strenuous efforts made
by its apologists to represent the Roman
Catholic Church as having always been
the friend of civil and religious liberty.
Arch ishop Gibbons, for instance, in that
very remarkable boob of his, "The Faith
of our Fathers, says on page 222:
here assert the proposition, which I
hope to confirm by historical evidence,
that the Catholic Church has always been
the Jealous promoter of religious and
civil liberty, and that whenever any en-
croachments on these sacred rights OF
man were perpetrated by PROCESSING mem
bers of the Catholic faith, these wrongs
far from being sanctioned by the Church,
were committed in palpable violation OF
her authority"
And in the same. strain we have had
of late several editorials in the Catholic
Visitor from which it would appear that
the seeds Of religious liberty in this coun-
try were planted not so much at James
town, or Plymouth Rock, or Manhattan
Island, as at ST. Mary's, under the au-
spices of the Roman Catholics who planted
their colonies on the sacred soil of Mary
land.
Now our readers will scarcely need to
be told that this is "new departure
altogether for the Roman Catholic Church.
A few years ago the language of its pub
lie press, even in this country, was very
different Let me give only few of
many examples that could quote.
In the ShepherdOfthe Valley published
at st. Louis, Mo-, one of the ablest and
most influential organs of the Roman
Catholic Church in this country, appeared
on the 23d of November, 1851, the fol-
lowing editorial paragraph
The Church is of necessity intolerant.
Heresy she inserts in her catalogue of
mortal sins. She endures it when and
where she must but she hates it and
directs all her energies to effect its de-
struction. If the Catholics ever gain
which they surely will do, though at a
Jority, religious freedom in this country
is at an end So say our enemies, SO we
believe"
In Brownson's Review for October,
1852, on page 456, are the following
words:
The liberty of heresy and by heresy
Roman Catholic writer's mean Protestant
ism and unbelief is not right. + = +
All the rights the seots have, or can have,
are derived from the State, and rest on
expediency. AS they have in their char
acter Of sects hostile to the true religion,
no rights under the law Of nature or the
law Of God, they are neither wronged nor
d prived Of liberty, if the State refuses to
grant them any rights at all.
In the Pittsburg Catholic Visitor in
1848 appeared the following in refer
en'e to the suppressions Of Protestant
chapel in Rome by Plus TX:
{" For our own part we take this OPP
portunity Of expressing our hearty de
light at the suppression of the Protestant
chapel at Rome. This may be thought
intolerant, but. when, we would ask, did
we ever profess to be tolerant of Pro
testantism, or favor the doctrine thai
Professionalism ought to be tolerated.
On the contrary we hate Professionalism
we detest it with our whole heart and
soul, and we pray that our aversion to il
may never decrease. We hold it NEE