Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-03-05
FATHER wALsH's ADDRESS.
Celebration of the Anniversary OF
the Birth of Robert Emmett.


of the Anniversary OF
the Birth of Robert Emmett.
The 112th anniversary of the birth of
Robert Emmett, the Irish patriot who
was executed in 1903, was celebrated at
the rooms of the Young Mems Catholic
Literary association last night. The
Martin Scully, who read biography of
Emmet written by Michael Wallace,
and recited an appropriate poem. Short
addresses were also made by Fathers
Mulcahy, ODonnell and Fleming, w.
c. keenan,, E. p. Riordan, James Lynch
and other members of the association.
The principal address of the evening
was by Rev James Walsh, who read an
interesting and instructive historical
the So Called Dark Ages" He said:
perhaps no period of christianity has
been more misjudged than the dark
ages. The general tradition was that
these ages were almost wholly barbaric,
ages of ignorance, superstition and gen
eral misery. From pulpit and platform,
from press and Sabbath school, that cry
has gone forth times without number.
Clear sighted observers and readers of
men and times, keen-witted and richly
| talented Protestant scholars, with, as
hearts of courtesy began to ask the
question, How comes it that if all is
true that we hear derogotory to the
character of the church of the medieval
days, how comes it that the church of
| to day comes to us not in weakness but
in strength sublime? Researches, close,
critical and accurate, into the archives
of the middle ages were instituted and
tho so-called dark ages were subjected
to the piercing, penetrating and all
luminous light of intellectual minds
and what has been the result? In the
of words McCauley, himself Protestant,
during period of $50 years the church
Of Rome produced innumerable inven-
tions that medicine and engineering
greatly improved. and that the church
has made great advances in every branch
of natural philosophy. But we see that
during those years Professionalism has
made no conquest worth speaking of.
Recall the words of Rev Heber Newton,
whose a sermon on the Catholic church
caused such a sensation in New York a
few Sundays ago. He said; But for
the Catholic church the modern world
would have been an impossibility.
Through the dark ages the church pre-
served what little there was left of cul-
ture' Rather strong testimony coming
from me whose utterances on many
occasions have been in bitter opposition
| to the church.
who is not seized with astonishment
at beholding the architectural monu-
ments of these ages Then too, hospitals
arose for the first time, and asylums
for all kinds of human misery were es-
tabli,hed. Paper, clocks and the tele-
scope were invented the power of the
loadstone aud the polarity of the needle
were discovered, and during this period
the greatest problems of mathematics
were defined. The ancient Chronicle
of Ely atfirms that these were golden
ages of the world, when pure faith,
peace and true love llourished.
I'm those ages it must be remembered,
slaves formed large majority of the
human race. The first thing that the
/ church did for slaves was to destroy the
errors which opposed not only their
universal ~en arcipation, but even the
improvement of their condition. The
first force she employed was the force of
ideas. And when the emancipation of
the slave was effected we found in
Europe learned, law abiding, God
fearing class. ready and able to take
their place in society and the halls Of
legislation.
The Catholic church of the so-called
dark ages made tho existing prejudices
against woman vanish forever. 1t
made her equal to man by unity of
origin and destiny and in the partic1pa-
ton of the heavenly gifts. The sanctity
of the christian home has the church of
the middle ages for its propogator. but
not only in the preservation of the mar
riage tie has the church labored. but she
sought and right gloriously has she sue
ceeded in showing to all, tae irnpor
lance which belongs to the contrary vir-
tue, by browning with peerless splendor
-virginity. Yes, the Catholic church
in the middle ages well as to-day,
while she watched over the sanctity OF
the marriage tie. lille she created in
the bosom of the family this admirable
dignity of the natron, covered with u
mysterious veil the coun1enance of the
christian virgin, and the whole world
| has been better for 1t