Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-03-13
not enforce doctrine; IL disclsims all special guild.

church. The conclusion follows strictly from what
has been said. TIE infalilble teaching church ex-
ists; church dsclaiming infalibiity and author.
ity to teach can be that church; there ia but one
chur,h that makes no such disclaimer;
t tsse one chu eear0n rn sss Is bs ns
petitio principii Thoae who refuse the conclusion
wi have to prove that one Of the premises is false
not merely to assert its fslsehoed. The pivotal
tescnng church shall ASSERT her infallibilify. Is
1t not from what have said clear that this must be
the case, that denial Of infallibIity Is denial
Reputation, OF her mission?
TIE FRUITS OF AVAILABILITY.
Iafallibi i:y proves itself by its fruits. I have
often pointed them out IN the Catholic church
u1iy, through space and time. The Catholic church
In her unity Ia the most wondrous institution ever
seen upon the earth. Her enemies pause before her
ave- stricken, and confess that her mysterious power
passes theie understanding They should 60 farther
and admit that no human power could maintain her
thoroughly one, in her diffusion over time and
space The power Of empires, of schools of phil0so
ply of religious bodies has heen put to the test to
preserve political or doctrinsl oneness and what has
their power accomplished In space, river, chain
Of mountains would break the continuity In time.
later generation of men would annihilate the work
OF the preceding generation. Catholics cover the
globe. We have. o. other men, our national preju-
dices, our native stubbornnees. We actually differ
tho one-faith. In matters Of faith We are Q unit,
priest and layman, philosopher and peasant, Euro
pean and African. The church Is ancient on the
page OF history. Has she changed? AL her sur
the runs of thousand Kingdoms, and churches, and
schools have strcxn her path She taught Cloths
end Vandsls; she spoks to Celts and ssxons; she
iestsleted for the subjects Of Oharlemagne, and
hsresies Of Pelagians. Iconoclasts and In,
theraDs. Did she ever coDtradict herself?
Her voice was ever the same. What, at nrst hear
ing, would, to the uninittated. seem novelty, was
16W
afirmations and applications, as circumstances re-
quired them One clear contradiction In her teach.
ing of religion would damn her a. false claimant
of infahbility; has 1t ever been found?
The absence Of infal bility will produce CONTRARY
resulss-changes and divisions. Need tell you the
present condition OF Professionalism necessary
writer In the March number of the Nofh amer:
SGdn Review will speak for me: "The latter half OF
the Nineteeth century will be known to the future
historian rs especially the era OF the decomposition
Of orthodoxies Beople, as rule, do not now pass
over from church Into another, but they remain
In their own churches while modifying their theo
logical opinions and In this way tbs orthodoxy Of
every church Is gradually, but surely losing its con
can be said for the clergy, every nov and then, gel
them the example An eminent ConRregstionalis
minister IN Connecticut some years since, was askee
why he did not go over to the Unttarans, inasmuct
as he not only kept Strauss and Renan in his library
but even loaned them to young men, and went &c
far one day as to take part In the dedication or
Jewish Synagogue The quai.t and shrewd reply
was: 4 am unable to see why the Unitarians should
enjoy monopoly Of ali the free thinking; prefer
to carry my candle where 1t Ia darkest It is only
four or five years since . learned English bishop
completed his voluminous commentary on the
Pentateuch in which the sacred text is handled with
as much freedom as Mr.. Paey shows IN dealing
with the Homeric poems. And the history OF this,
as Of other less conspicuous acts Of heresy seems to
whatever doctrine he Unsupported, doubtless,
that he avoid certain obnoxious catch.words."
The Anglican church has certainly no more unity
OF faith among her members than any OF the ultra
Protestant sects. Her members are agreed on moth
ing-not even on 'sthe articles" which high church
men and r1tualists disown, nor THE Book OF Com
mon Prayer" which low church men despi.e 9.
Again and again has the right OF private Judgment
in opposition to what had been thought her cardi.
nal doctrines, been presupposed aud affirmed by the
authorities Of the Anglican church, until it has come
to pass that in tbs language of an Anglican prslate
that she is the most lautudiusriar
Of all churches, and throws her she'tering mantle
over men Of all opinions. Her present divisions in
serious her changes in the past have been.
Gan there be infalhbility amid changes and divis
iona? Yet, according t. conclusions upon ~hici
We are agreed Christ's infaliible church lives snt
man. puts 1t 30 well. "has precisely the same char
ter the same trust and mission, the came power and
authority and the same assurance OF divine gut
dance and support as it had when first organize;
She is in the world Where? When can she be
If the Catholic church with her claims to infalibi
ty her positive inexibe teaching, her unity In tim
and space, Is not to-day .'the church OF the living
God, the pillar and ground Of truth"
IKFALLIBILI1Y-A QUESTION OF THE DAY.
TO what purpose, some will say, this discussion O
infallibility? Why stir up among Christians doc
trinsl controversies? The answer LIZ easily given
To what purpose was revelation itself? a.
INT in frr1 f, k,nu
to them revelation of tyuths to be believed and
precepts to be observed under penalty Of the loss
their souls SO it Is in pOvtant for them to know vba
the channel is through which these truths and thss
precepts are to reach them In their entirety Out
side of this channel they can have but fragments.
Tho preaching Of Christ includes the prea ching Of
his church. And at no time since the fatal sep ara
ii n Of the eixteenth century, was the occasion &c
propitous for putting before men tbs infsbity OF
the church 1t is Que Of the questions of the day
The total destruction Of doctrines in Professionalism
tho inevitable result Of the fund ntal principle Of
the system; blu. Protestants geeraly denied and re
| scented the Inspiration. To-day the facts are tos
broadly before their eyes, and it is well to eek the1
eation, they WILL we hope thun thu fatal dis Dive
ent, which has reduced reyelstion to an In
soluble riddle, to q mass OF rcins
Moreover, under pretence that nothing ii
materialsts are clamoring to heed their systems, o.
earth earthly, and they point to the divisions Of Prot
estanism as their argument The argument ie
strong If Protsstanlsm we're the Christian religion,
and lest our Protestant bre hren In despair should
listen to 1t, must show them that in religion there
certa nty, that for revelation have an icfalhble
expounder, under whoss teaching thers is security
The guidance of this Teaohsr Will keep them
far away from the shoas aud chilling blasts Of 81
unbelievag world and lead iuto the fainess Of truth
and grace.
The writer In the North american, whom have
already quoted, viii not admit th4t men will turn
from the dissolving views Of Professionalism to tht
Catholic church ~ hardly need argue" he ssys
"thst any revival of the methods Of Catholicism
could never occur, except as the cone0mitant OF
wholly improbable retrogresson of society TOWARD
the barbAric type. The very conception Of an In
faltbe church is 80 clearly survival from primitive
religious idsa', that to imagine such 9,
the future involves a most grotesque anachronism
Mr. Fiske-that is the name Of the writer forgets
that infaibity lie divine institution, and IS such
1t will reign over the future as 1t has reigned oye
the3past
And what win he give us, since rotestanism II
disappearing, and, In his opinion, Catholicism vii
not control the future? Nothing establishes better
the necessity Of infallfble church than his reply
He offers us perpetual searchings and doubttngs
and consoles us by eaying that ever searching an6
never finding is best for Unity OF belief" hi
says, lis no longer possible or Desirable
To feel that the last has been said on any sub
jact is not desideratum with the true philoso
that unity Of belief is not desirable, and that 1t II
not boon to know the last word on matters affecting
our eternal salvation. We accept his statement tha
security in faith Is not to be had without nfsHblt
church, and We feel the more strongly assured thai
the master Of truth, who came TO teach truth to al
en and willed that all should be saved, has left u
for guidance an infalible teacher Of his reyea-