Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-03-24
CHURCH AND STATE.
Yesterdays Sermon at the Church of the Sacred Heart.

the Sacred Heart.
 At the church of the Sacred Heart yesterday, the Rev F. J. Murphy gave an interesting instruction. In referring to the gospel which told of the Jews casting stones at Christ he said''that the blind and obstinate spirit of the Jewish race is not dead, but lives nowadays even in the breasts of many so-called christians. When they can on longer throw stones at Christ, since he is with drawn from their eyes, and sits at the right hand of his heavenly father, they cast charges at the church which Christ established, and say that she is danger ous to the state and is the enemy of all progress. The state may never fear dan ger from the church, since she teaches her children to obey every legitimate ruler, be he emperor, king CT president. She submits to every existing form of government only on account of God, for she is taught by divine revelation that every lawful authority is from God, and that every rebellion against it, is re- belliOn against God.
 '.There is only one case in which the Catholic would be bound to refuse obe- dience to the temporal laws, and that is, if by such laws, something were con- manded or forbidden that would be con- trary to the law of God, and consequent ly sin. The church is the best and most powerful support of the state, be- cause she teaches that the state has its origin and power from God, and urges all her subjects to fulfill their duties towards the state conscientiously.
 ''The assertion that the Catholic church was the enemy of progress, was answered according to the sense in which the word progress was taken. A good, true, and useful progress was al ways approved of and promoted by the church. Who wt uld dare to assert that the Catholic church is opposed to the progress of natural science and the arts, and to the many modern inventions and works which are an honor to the human intellect :? Was it not the church that civilized tho rude and untutored d nations, that instructed them in agriculture, | trades, and arts, and taught them to lead regularly ordered life in the cities, towns and villages? Was it not the church that established schools every where, and founded institutions of learning? And is it not the church tha t to-day will support and save the state in the true christian education of the peo- pie, and especially of the youth? But the church will always be opposed to the false and bad progress which seeks to fill the world with mischief and ruin. This progress denies the exis- tence of God, says that the world originated from itself, that man is descended from an ape. It denies the immortality of the soul, and the rewards or punishments of the next life. According to it, there is no moral law, no difference between virtue and | vice. Another bad progress rejects the entire divine revelation, and will believe | nothing except what reason can cOmpre- V:tL~ :1-,,, o1 | know nothing of all the mysteries of our holy religion. If a person takes req son as the only rule of faith, he must re- .ject all christianity. The Catholic church
 will sanction everything that's good ,and condemn only that which destroys the christian faith, and renders man miser- able for time and eternity"