New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-04-21
ClsHOHIc AND ANGLICAN EECNIoN

'Thc announcement n few months ago that Pope
Leo M had decided To- issue IN Encyrlical to
fin. Anglican church urging upon # The duty Of
rcunliing with ihr Roman Catholic church. has
thus far provoked little discussion because III"
idea ~ reunion j. generally regarded ~ vision
ary. Indeed. English Catholics themselves. who
ought 20 hc most familiar with III" conditions
surrounding The question. are convinced that III"
Popc's appeal viii have 10 effect. And not long
ago Cardinal Vaughan ~ England went express
is T., Rome 10 tell the Pope SO What the Angl-
can church thinks u The possibility IL reunion
j. pretty clearly indicated 10y the declaration HE
other day II the Archbishop II Canterbury: Il
have no hesitation in saying that In my opin
zion. any corporate union with Rome, 50 long aS
she retains her distinctive and erroneous doe
.rrnes and advances her present unprimitivc
"and uus,rlpiural claims. is absolutely visionary
",nd impoSs.blr" These words breathe the
spirit of Welt Ridley and IhtImer; and In spit"
81 the alleged Komrward tendency In The Angli-
can Communion they truly express lis ATTITUDE
To- the church ~ Rome to-day
Eui though the venerable Pontins hope Of re-
union may be visionary lis expression just now
in official form Is worthy Of notice While ther"
is II, doubt that the so.cacd ritualistic party in
within the tolerated limits ~ opinion in thoS"
Churches 1t has become evident during The last
few wears that a small wing Of that party has
made great advances toward the 'hur'h oil
Rome lis members virtually accept all the
tcnots 81 Roman Catholicism with III" poSSlb"
exception Of Plpal infallibility. few months
ago one ~ H. organs In this city explicitly az
serted that the ultra Catholics in the Episcopal
and n..fh .sr
journal II the same type advocated invoratlohS
To the Virgin Mary There may YET be walls of
partition that scparat" such AngicanS from
Rome; hui If 50, they are exceedingly t"nu"uS III
their texture. and II would not require inn'h
effort 10 sweep them away In the opinion OF
such advanced Catholics. the schism between III"
Roman and the Anglican 'onnlnions was
huge blundrr They dcnouncc The English
Reformation ~ II Satanic movement and many
of It's leaders as rascals Of the deepest dye. II
hardly nr,.ls 80 be- said that II a reunion could
be. Effected ON terms honorable 10 both Churches.
these men would greatly rejoice.
So far as the Church of Rome il concerned, II
is "A wcllknown fact that until now 1t has looked
with somewhat ~ contempt mingled with dislike
ON rh. oxford movement in The Anglican Church.
lis representative men have been wont 10 re-
gard II IL a hlndrancr to the spread OF tathol-
icism I'm the Anglican Church. since. rs they OK
dressed H. it gave Catholic-mindcd Anglcans
fair substitute for the true Catholic doctrine und
ceremonial For This reason on andout Prot
estants IN the Church Of England have generally
been treated with more consideration by Roman
Catholic ,hcologians than the men whom they
accused of masqunrading ~ Catholics In Prot
estant Church. The old Roman Catholic cpigram
about Rtuasjs that they preferred 80 be-
"apsts' rather than Papis's, has had wide cur
rency and has pretty fairly expressed the Roman
Catholic view Of the question
Bnt the Encyclica If the Pope Is one of several
indications that the Roman Church Is coming 10
recognize the extreme wing ~ the Rtualistc
party as friends and allies aud therefore no
longer To he snccrcd at Not long ago The
Catholic Review" OF this city, noted this change
matter Of policy IT declared that the tone OF ridi
Guile adopted toward The Rtuasts was II mis-
take Indeed. IL went further, and implied that
il was unjust, since the Episcopal rltualists ac
ccpt all The essentials Of Catholic faith except
the authority Of the Holy See 1t disccrns among
English speaking people to-day an undoubed
movement toward the Catholic Church: and ~ II
looks upon the Procstan, Episcopal Church as
the leader and centre Of this movement, 1t be-
ness and consideration, that so they may be final
ly led back 10 the unity Of one fold and one
shepherd" IL is because the Popes Encyclical
will give official expression to this new attitude