The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1888-11-22

|
| euce with the Catholic church seems to
be radical and irreconcilable. That
| church appears to hold that some meas
ure of control over the general school
! system of the country is necessary to the
proper performance of its own peculiar
work, and the public schools, supported
and paid for by all the people, regardless
of religious belief, legitimate channel
| through which to exercise it's influence.
| This is something | cannot approve Of,
or consent to under any circumstances.
| [ should feel equally bound to oppose
any similar claim on behalf Of the Angll-
| can church, or any other ecclesiastical or
| ganization whatever.
regret that my letter has extended to
so great length, and l am quite well
aware that much of it consists of re-
| statement of matters previously adj
vanced. My apology for this repetition
| is the seeming failure of the Bishop to
grasp my ideas as set forth in my two
| former letters. Otherwise there would
! have been no excuse for his writing as
| follows: "Our Protestant Layman is
against any concession to Catholics-nOt
| by dint of good reasons, for such he can
not find, but on the rather vague plea
that a concession, once granted, would
| be foundation for new demands"
This is not a correct statement of my
| position. 1t should have been clear to
| any one reading my second letter with
even ordinary care, that in addition to
the risk of future complications, which,
by the way, was put forward in man
ner quite the reverse of vague" [ OBJ
jected to making concessions, upon
grounds distinctly identical with those |
have indicated above. | could see no
argument of either necessity or equity
which required us to make any conces-
sions, when the church demanding them
was already receiving full Justice, and
enjoying perfect equality, both in theory
and in practice. The Catholic church
has, under our laws and public policy,
everything which any other church or
ecclesiastical organization has, every
thing which any one of them asks for,
and everything which can be granted
are as sacred to PrOtestants as any article
of his faith can be to the Catholic The
idea that the Catholic church has
superior rights of any kind, or has any
claim, moral or legal, to be treated differ
emily from other religious bodies, we
reject in toto, and rejecting the idea, we
reject, of necessity, all plans, and pro-
jects, and policies deducible therefrom,
or based thereon.
In view of the professions of intended
fairness and liberality which the Bishop
has made, and of his earnest appeals in
the name of the rights of conscience,
think it perfectly fair to ask him few
questions.
First. Supposlng the circumstances
were all reversed, and the Catholics were
as entirely dominant as he says the
Protestants now are, and the latter as
poor, as weak and as helpless as he
represents the Catholics to now be
would he consider that justice demanded
the granting, and would he be in favor
of granting to Protestants the same
concessions he now claims for his own
people?
Second. Should he be personally in
favor of so doing, will he tell us whether
the same would be in accordance with
the general rule and practice of the
Catholic church in such cases?
Third. If he is prepared to answer
this second question in the affirmative,
will he furnish some proof of the correct
ness of the statement, and point out the
countries in which, the Catholics being
as much in the ascendant as he says the
PrOtestantS are here, grant to the latter
the concessions which he in his turn is
now asking, or give them more liberty in |
any way, than he and his people are now
enjoying in these Islands?
If the Bishop is as fair and candid as |
he processes, and doubtless believes him |
self to be, he should be prepared to |
answer these questions promptly, square
ly, and without equivocation or evasion. |
Trusting that | shall see no occasion |
to again trespass upon your space, sub
scribe myself
A PROTESTANT LAYMAN.
The above communication has been
awaiting publication for some days, but
has been crowded out by the pressure of