Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-05-16
FATHER sAssrA,s LECTURE.
An Eloquent Address by an Able Catho
lie Divine.

An Eloquent Address by an Able Catho-
lie Divine.
The lecture at the Clunie Opera House
last evening, by the Rev. Joseph SASHA, s.
J., for the benefit of the Sisters of Mercy of
this city, was in all respects an eminent
success. There was a large audience of
mixed creeds, which listened with the most
wrapped attention. With such close atten-
ton the speaker lost not a syllable, and
each word seemed to find every nearer in
the crowded space. And well il might, for
the fame of the speaker has not alone been
heralded by enthusiastic admirers or iatter-
ing friends; it is built upon firmer founda-
ton. He is profound scholar, trained
logician, an accomplished rhetorician, and
IN his church Doctor of Divinity having
no superiors on this coast, and few equals
He was robed in the black cassock of his
order. and has the scholarly appearance
that betokens his calling.
Without any preliminary introduction,
Father SASHA dipped at once into his SUBJ
ject, Modern Warfare Against Catholic
ity." He spoke of the many attacks
made from age to age against her, vet
how she has withstood them all He re-
ferred extensively to history, sacred and
profane, to substantiate his position. He
held that the Catholic Church has ever been
the true friend of advancement and of good
government the advocate and protector of
all that is worthy in man and the relent-
less foe of all that is inimical to his best in
terests. There is at the present day, said
he, another enemy of the church that has
arisen to make war upon her, and she
seeks not to evade or avoid the responsible
ity, but is girded for the fray and counts
not the costs and fears not the result. He
meant the battle waged against religion by
the modern scientists. Tyndall, Huxley,
Spencer, Darwin and the host of others of
free thinkers and non-believers or infidels
came in for scathing arraignment at the
hands of the speaker. He showed in fore
ible phrase that the church had not only
never opposed the advance of science in
any one of Its branches, but on the con-
airy, has ever been the foster parent of
the arts and sciences, and counted among
her adherents some of the most illustrious
scholars in all the sciences written on the
pages of modern times. He went over the
extensive list of modern scientists who
were members of the Catholic faith and
whose writings have become authority on
the subjects of which they treated. He
claimed that there could be no conflict be-
tween science and religion, for if those gen.
tiehoh WIZ w uot ucHeVe III GOu assert
that there is such conflict. how can they
hold there is religion if there is no God,
as all religion must spring from God,
whose existence they deny?
But in brief space justice cannot be
done to this really eloquent lecture, nor is
it here possible to even give a synopsis of
its main features. 1t lasted about an hour
and quarter, and at no moment of the
time was it in the least uninteresting, nor
at any time, even in the heated flights of
the clergyman's most eloquent climaxes
and fervid defenses of his Church, did he
let fall syllable at which the most radical
non Catholic could be offended.
Though not sound interrupted him
during his lecture. and his hearers caught
every word that fell from his lips, at its
conclusion Father SASHA was loudly ap-
plauded, and gracefully bowed his acknowl-
edgments