The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-10-06
THE CHURCH OF ROME
AND gnE AMERIoAN oArnoLIcs.
The pscrsss OF the Third Pi.nA.y Council
Acknowledgements Change, Ia the Gov
srumeut of the chureh-Provi.ioas
Regarding Parishes and EdueaaOu.


r ernmeut of the Chureh-ProyiSions
Regarding Parishes and EdueatOu.
BA1TtxoRE, Oct. 5.-The american Il
, day publishes letter from Rome, date
t September %. regarding the DEGREES {
the Third Plenary Council. In the ne'
dioceses it is provided that no such thin
} IS parishes and parish priests, in the oil
: canonical sense OF the term. will exist il
the United States. 1t, however, doas no
indicate that pastors who have create,
and fostered congregations will be harshl,
treated or removed from the places the!
have built up. There will not be an ab
solute removability Of pastors. A certail
percentage OF them will be declared i'm
movable, and this holds good, except IL
cases where faults are ascribed to tht
pastor. and these faults and their conss
quences will be determined by trial
a certain amount Of liberty OF action, thI
letter says, Is required in the United
States, both by bishops and clergy, and il
is not advisable to remove or curtail tha
liberty.
The progress which the Church OF the
United States has male in the past is q
fair ground for pursuing a similar coursC
OF liberty in the future. The dignity and
authority will be increased and brought
more prominently into relief. They will
have their courts over those OF bishops, In
which appeals will be received before
such appeals can be sent to Rome. In
future bishops will have = permanent
board or council, which they will assemble
at certain intervals during the year. They
will also give some views to the clergy in
the election OF bishops.
JUDGMENT UPON SOCIETIES.
o:herinportant decision Of the Bal
t;more Council refers to societies or asso.
Citations. A stop is about to be put to in.
discriminate, injndicious or conflicting
condemnations Of societies. Hencefor.
ward the condemnation Of any secret so.
ciety will be reserved to a permanent
board OF all the archbishops Of the coun.
try, and all cases Of such nature must be
referred to them for their Judgment and
decision. The greatest safeguards will be
thrown around the contraction oil church
debts in the future. hesanctityo OF Chris.
tian marriage will be specially guarded by
suitable and effective regulations. Much
was said on the holding Of ecclesiastical
property; but, as different laws exist in
different dioceses, it was left to each bishop
TO adopt the means bett suited to each
particular case. These DEGREES will form
the basis OF the Council about to be held
in Australia and Ireland. Thus the initia-
tive of the United States will be felt
Throughout the world.
The DEGREES OF the Council were brought
Ito Rome by special messenger sent by
Archbishop Gibbons. On the lst of March
they were presented to Cardinal Simeon,
project Of the Propaganda, which has
charge OF Catholic missions throughout
the whole world. From that time up till
Thursday, the 10th OF September, when
Pope Leo XIII signifed his approval oi
these DEGREES, the attention OF the Propa-
ganda was occupied almost exclusively
with them. The examination of them
/
ties entering into every detail and express
sion contained In these DEGREES. Three
American bishops-Right Rev. Drs.
Moore, Of st Augustine, Fla; Davengsr,
OF Fort Wayne, and Gilmour, Of Cleve.
Iland-came over TO Rome to support and
explain these DEGREES before the Propa,
ganda, and after this heightened scrutiny
and careful examination they are nov
confirmed, very little change having been
made in them, so that they will return in
almost the same condition as they were In
when brought to Rome.
CHANGES IN CANON LAW.
The DEGREES will do very much for the
church in the United States Their inau
ence will be felt throughout the whole
country, and to beneficial purpose. The
canon, law, which took its origin in me.
diaeval times, was medieval institu'
Ition, founded on and constituted for q
civilization that has almost passed away
These laws and regulations, which consti
tute the body Of 8 canon law, are insult
ed for civilization such as that which
Hourishes in the United States and which
lis Of late growth, and therefore cannot be
governed by laws made for another
condition OF society. The new de-
crees cut into the canon law OF former
times> The methods OF the past, the life o.
three or four centuries ago, have dfsap'
peared, sndthe necessityof making special
laws to suit the new circumstances Of the
country was felt by the American bishops
at the Baltimore Council and acted upor
accordingly. The legislation OF the church
accommodates itself in the present case
as it has always done in all other cases, Il
the state and conditions Of civilization
which exist in the countries dealt with
These new DEGREES will constitute Law
suitable for the time. Tie education o
the clergy will be elevated to the wants o
the time, Tho Christian civilization o
the people will be made to keep pace will
the material civilization OF the time
Christianity will be hroughtinto harmon!
. with the education and civilization Of tn
present age.
Regulations have been made for the es
tsblishment Of schools for children, nor
NAL schools for teachers and university
. for priests and for those laymen who de
vote themselves to the pursuit Of hiehe
knowledge. It Is not by "benefces," tha
ereatfeature Of the Middle Ages, by which
while education was assisted, it was ais
/ hampered, that these results are to be OBJ
tained. "Benefices" will not be brough
In as means Of support. The Catholi
! church in the Uuited States wants no sub
: Eidy from the State, and thu
!. It will not become q servan
q or rather slave, Of the State
as It has so often been in European coun
tries, such as France and Austria. Tn
! Church in America prefers to depend 70
; her support upon the Iree offerings Of th
/ people. This has not failed her in tn
past, and she has no fears that it will iai
her in the future. On this means ot sup
port she has already progressed in de
gree unprecedented In the world up to tx
i, present time, and the extraordinaT
growth Of the Catholic Church Throughout
the United States, and her eonstan