The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1894-01-20
A NOBLE DEFENSE,
An Episcopalian Minister Scores
the A. p. A. for AspersinR
the Catholic Sisterhood.
TRAITORS TOTHEIR COUNTRY


The Roman Catholic Church Will
Live and Bless the World in
Spite of Them.
Rev. Geo. A. Carstenson, rector Of St.
Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church Of
Indianapolis, recently preached a sermon
to his congregation in which he paid a
grand tribute to the Catholic Church
and scored it's enemies RS follows;
The Roman Church is the home of the
workingmeL. Go and attend any Of
their services, let it be even St. Patrick's
ON Fifth avenue, in the center Of the
wealth Of New York, and you will see
kneeling side by side the millionaire and
the Washer-woman, the occupant Of the
palace and the denizen of the tenement
all bowling humbly before the common
Maker of them all. Not oncs Or twice
but four or five times on Sunday large
congregations 60 in and out OF her courts,
congregations made up OF sons end
daughters of toll, with their careworn
faces and their coarse garments kneeling
side by side with those attired in silks
and velvets, and the rich and poor eet-
ing together because the Lord is the
maker Of them all. Unreaecting Prot
estants say that Romanism is made up
principally of just such people, and they
fippantly tell us that incense which
steals from the censer is good neutral
izer Of the aroma Of garlic and onions
which fills the Roman sanctuary. I grant
you that many Of the poor, whom we do
not receive to our drawing rooms, are
welcome in Roman Catholic churches.
But where are the Protestant poor? The
confession may humiliate us, bu5 let us
acknowledge the fact; the Protestant
poor are very few; we have shut them
out Of our churches, that are open only for
few hours one day in the week. Their
place is not there, and they know IT..
As pertinent to this point read these fig
ures, which do not lie: In 1910 there
was in New York city one church for
every 1858 Protestant inhsbitants; in
1880 one church fer every LASS. In Chi
Cage in 1851 there was one church for
every 774 people; in 1885 one church for
every 1854 of it's people.
The Protestant poor. have no room in
the church, and they are not found there.
An enterprising reporter Of a metropoli-
tan journal once donned the garb of a
workingman and went from one to an
other of the most prominent churches of
Brooklyn, pre- enainently the city Of
churches. In some of them he was
treated with absolute rudeness; in 9TH
ers with cold politsness. In only two
was he received with a cordial welcome.
But in every one Of the thirty-six his
presence was noted with surprise There
are 200,00O more inhabitants below Four
teenth street in the city of New York to-
day than there were ten years ago, but
the number of Protestant churches in
that district has decreased by thirty.
These figures tell solemn truths, and the
facts are very stubborn. Statistics show
that in Protestant England per cent OF
the births are ileg1timate; in Protestant
Scotland, 9 per cent; in Roman Catholic
Ireland but 3 per cent, aud the most of
these in Protestant districts. Where
does there exist the greatest degree of
morality? When we cry out against the
Roman priesthood, let us think OF the
sins and inconsistencies among our own
clergy.
The sneaker directed two Of the choir
boys, to pass down the aisles bearing
large reproductions of two cartoons
which recently appeared in the local A.
P. A. paper, entitled, ''rhe mother supe-
rior," and 1.-THE superior mother" The
former was a nun ct her devotions in
her cell, knesling before the crucifx, the
latter was matron1y- looking woman in
her cosy home, babe upon her breast
and an elder child leaning upon her
shoulder.
Here the words and manner Of. the
speaker became very impressive and
couli not fail to carry conviction to all
present of his earnest contempt for men
who oswould stoop to such methods, Said
he:
The animus Of this picture is only too
evident. l have one belief in the ''supe-
rior mother but I also believe ID the
amother superior, :. because ] believe that
the world would be poorer without such
women as st. Catherine, ST Elizabeth
and st. Margaret- Bdt any poor blum
dering shot like this only reacts from the
object Of attack to him who tries q
mi alb khn fnnn1oran0 9ar ~ = - -