The sun., 1892-12-18
TIE rArA1 SCHOOL DOCUMENT
A Champion Of Mgr. sntoiii Presents the
Lessons to he Learned From Ills Mission.

- FFesSnt0
Lessons to Re Learned From His Mission.
| To THE Eprron OF THE suN-Sir: In com.
munication printed In THE Sry OF Sun.
day last under the above heading IL was
shown that American Catholics should
hail with Joy tho document entitled For the
Settling OF the School Question aud tho Giving
OF Religious Education" because In their
hands the decision OF tho Roman Curia con.
tained In It would be q powerful instrument
for good in convincing their Protestant fellow
citizens OF certain mistaken views held By
thom in regard to tho Catholic Church; be-
cause from the pamphlet It was evident:
l. That the Catholic world was misconc ceived
OF by thcm. Those OF us among American
Catholics who wora in sympathy with the
"Faribault Plan" and all that It entailcd. were
not las tho Independent Of May q. 1897, Put IL,
'"trying to liberalize the Catholic Church" nor
relieve it OF modiTvalism.' The fact was
that these American churchmcn were far more .
in sympathy with Roman and Continental
Catholicism than those amoni. us who opposed
tho views Of his Eminenco tho Cardinal Arch. I
bishop ireland. and likc-mindcd ccclesastics.
.. That Protesants did n grave injury to
the Church at largo by surprising Liberal"
tendencies in this country to 10 duo to
our broader scholarship and deeper learn.
ing. Tho document proved tina. there was not
one dmercdn thcoloEian OF note who was on
tho right side In tho recent dispute. Euro.
pean scholars lead us; wo were not 1T samples
of tho Roman Catholic Churchs crudtion. We
had not Satoll. neither did we have a
Bouquillon. except by courtesy. I've had
still to stand at the knees Of Europes master
minds to learn
3. That the vague hint given out that Catho-
lie authorities gauge questions not on their
merits. but By monetary considerations had
boen proved to be calumnous.
However. not only for removing tho preju-
dices of our follow citizens Of other beliefs Is
Archbishop Satoli's utterancs useful: it may
also be tho means OF teaching us Catholics q
very pregnant lesson.
This lesson is that wo have been very much.
astray in our notions OF orthodoxy So many
ot us have been very sure that DR.. BouQuillon
was n homo tcnprdrurS: there were evcn those
VINO would have 1t that his pamphlet should
be put UPON tho H,dcr. As tho issue shows,
this would have been equivalent to ipdexinR
the Pope. for his authorized teaching and DR..
BouTulllon's nre so much alike that one i'm.
plies the other 1T is greatly to be desired"
writes his Holiness s representative. "and will
be most happy arrangement. IL the Bishop
agree with the civil authorities or with the
members Of the School Board to conduct the
school with mutual attention and due consid-
GRAFTON for their respective rights" What the
rights OF the State are he indicates or takes
Tor granted In other paragraphs. for example
where he defines that speaking absolutely
and universally. there is no repugnance to
their Catholic children learning the first ele.
ments and the higher branches OF the arts and
tho natural sciences in public schools con.
trolled by the State. whose Office is to provide.
maintain. and protect everything by which its
citizens are formed to moral goodness. The
Catholic Church in general. and especially tho
Holy See far from condemning or treating
with Indifference the public schools. rather
desires that by the joint action OF civil and
ecclesiastical authorities there should be
public schools in every State" &c. DR..
Bouauillon words the same opinions in
this wise: The end OF civil society
and moral perfection Of the Citizen that is to
say. civilization. for true civilization com.
prises these three things. This being we'll un.
derstood we affirm without hositancy that the
State has the mission. that is a special duty.
of providing education In the letters. sciences,
and arts. Education. to whom does it belong2
is the question We started out with. We now
make answer. 1t belongs to the individual.
physical or moral. to the family. to tho State.
to the Church: to none Of these solely and ex-
clusively. but to all four combined in harmo.
nious working. for the reason that man Is not
an isolated but social being. Precisely in,
the harmonious combination Of these four fac.
tors in education Is the difficulty OF practical
application. Practical application is the work
OF the men whom God has placed at the head
OF the Church and the State. not ours."-Edu-
cation: To Whom Does 1t Belong2 Second edi.
ton. pages IS, u.
But how did it happen that We made so
grievous and vital mistake? There were two
chief causes for this
]. Our reading OF Catholic theology and
Nv Ind han on thot, ,tc-
took tho teaching Of a school for that OF tho
universal Church. We forgot that within tho
Church are many schools. and that genuine
Catholic learning sees room for them all. and
gives each Its proper place. Our mistake was
to know only ono school. and not know that
there were others.
. We overlooked an important considera-
tion. We forgot that it is characteristic OF
human nature for the uphoders OF q school.
in justifying It's existence. to go to an extreme
at times. and to make its rules and methods
and opinions the yardstick and plummet line
OF universal orthodoxy. The history OF theo.
logical opinions is an object lesson in this
truth. The Dominican Thomist anathema-
tized the Molinist Thomist. until the Pope dee
clared that both OF them taught equally
orthodox doctrine. Even aftcr this decara-
tion the old tendency would work. and within
forty years class OF students has heard the
exponent OF one syStom say: THE Pope has
said we must not call them heretics l do not
call them so. | give you the arguments. II
these call them so cannot help that" In like
manner We have still dogmatists who cannot
allow tho theological soundness OF the results
OF geologic inves, Gation nor OF palronto"g-
ical nor biological results. who believe that
the Catholic doctrine is that tho world WAS
made in six days OF twcnty-four hours each,
and that the other deductions mentioned arc