The Opelousas courier., 1894-08-11
o ON

ON SALOONS.
The Papal Delegate Sustains a Decis
ion condemning Catholic Liquor
Dealers.
From the New York Herald.
Mgr. Satolli, the Apostolic Delegate
has just rendered a decision of impor
lance which is calculated to delight thu
friends and confound the enemies o.
the temperance cause in all its aspects
in this country. 1t presents a strone
and unequivocal condemnation of thu
liquor traffic, especially as it is carried
on in the United States, and approves
of the expulsion of liquor dealers from
Catholic societies.
This remarkable decision Of the rep
lesentative of the Holy See was called
forth by an appeal from the ruling OF
the Right Rev. John A. Watterson, D
D., Bishop of Columbus, Ohio, and was
made by M of the Societies within his
jurisdiction, The judgment is unequi.
vocal ia its nature and capable of but
way, as it does, the ground assumed by
the Bishop.
The history of the contention, which
was ultimately placed before the Apos.
tolic Delegate for final and authorita-
tive determination, is interesting, and
the facts concerning it are known to be
but few. During the last Lenten sea
son Bishop Watterson, who is one of the
most ardent temperance reformers in
the Roman Catholic church, addressed
a letter to the clergy of his diocese to
be read before their several congrega-
tons. The letter dealt wholly with the
temperance problem, and in the course
OF this pastoral communication, Bishop
Watterson said:
BISHOP wATTERsoN's UTTERANCEs.
Il hereby withdraw my appreciation
from any and every Catholic society or
branch or division thereof in this do
cese that has a liquor-dealer or saloon
keeper at its head or anywhere among
it's officers, and l suspend every such
society itself from the rank and privi-
leges as a Catholic society until it ceases
to be SO differed. / again publish the
condition without which for some years
| have declined to approve of new So
cieties or new branches of old %organiZa-
tons in this diocese-namely, That no
n who is engaged either as principal
or agent in the manufacture or sale of
intoxicating liquors can be admitted to
membership. You will make this rule
known to the organizations in your par
ish and have it faithfully observed. 1t
is sure, however, to commend itself to
every right spirited and healthy asso-
citation Of Catholic gentlemen.
eff there are saloon-keepers in your
parish who call themselves Catholics,
and yet carry on their business in a for
hidden and disedifying way, or sell on
Sundays, either openly or under any
sort of guise or diguise, in violation Of
civil law. and to the hurt Of order and
religion and the scandal of any part of
absolution, should they %pefchance come
to receive the sacramento, unless they
promise to cease offending in these or
other ways, and to conduct their bust
ness blamelessly if they can, or get out
Of it and keep out Of it altogether."
To many of the people in the diocese
Of Columbus this attitude of Bishop
Watterson seemed arrogant and unjust,
and one of the societies there laid the
matter formally before Mgr. Satolli.
After a time the Apostolic delegate re-
turned an answer UNFOLDING the posi-
ton Of the Bishop. But still the socie-
ty was not satisfied, and it was said the
Delegate did not understand the case,
or he surely would not sustain a ruling
which they believed was in direct oppo-
sltion to personal liberty.
The Bishop heard Of the expressed
discomfort, and asked another society
to take the subject up and present it
himself to sign the appeal from Arch
bishop Satolli's decision in order that
the matter might be presented in the
strongest light possible and that there
might be no m%istaking the outcome.
ARCHBIsHoP sAToLLI's DECISION.
To this second appeal the Apostolic
Delegate has just responded. His
opinion reafirms his judgment, sus-
tanning the position Of Bishop Waiter.
son, and says:
/. Bishops have the right and duty
to guard faith and morals within the
limits Of their dioceses. They are the
divinely appointed judges in such mat
tiers, and hence no mere society or
individual layman has the right to set
such decision at defiance. The mere
fact that such decision may be the
cause OF temporal loss does not justify
opposition, as the temporal must give
way, to the spiritual good, and private
good must give way to public good:
~ Ss aaO AtuAOl blulAS1 III O6QCCxQlly
as conducted here in the United States,
is the source of much evil, hence the
Bishop was acting within his rights in
seeking to restrict it.
8. Therefore, thesApostolic Delegate
sustains Bishop Watterson's action and
approves OF his circular letter and reg
ulations concerning saloons and the ex-
pulsion of saloon-keepers from mem
bership in Catholic societies.
The Rev. Alexander P. Doyle, Of the
Pallist Fathers, the general secretary
of the Catholic Total Abo Union
of America, said yesterday that the
declaration of the Apostolic Delegate
In the case Of Bishop Watterson is the
most important ever pronounced by the
church in this country, and he thought
it's effect would be far reaching. Never
before in the history of the Catholic
church in the United States, he said, has
such an unqualified principle on the
temperance question been laid down.
AT the Third PIenary Council of
Baltimore, in 1885," he continued, " an
earnest effort on the part of Cardinal
Gibbons, Archbishop Ireland, and one
or two others was made for an en-
phatlc decree on the subject of the
liquor traffic. A determined opposition
to this measure developed, however,
some of the bishops who had
been brought up under the ideas Of the
Old World, and although the Council
put itself on record on the question, il
was only to declare that the traffic in
liquor was ~unbecoming, in these
We call upon all pastors to