The San Francisco call., 1896-01-02
He Claims That the Church Is
Considered Superior to
:; the State.
OBJECTS TO SECRET WAYS
The Protestant Representative States
That He Desires to Be Per-
..*....-..> fectly Fair.
The following Communication to- The

in attempting 10 answer the question "Nhy
Roman Catholicism is under suspicion IN
America the writer desires TO be perfectly
fair toward Roman Catholicism rs Il system
and entirely free from prejudice against
The Catholic system can be treated. apart
from the individual members OF the Catholic
church just as clearly: as disease may be
treated without preludiCe against the paIeNt' =
or as any organization may be dealt with
without reflection on the membership OF that
organization.
Government to encourage the Christian re-
ligion under whatever peculiar type OF or
gauization it.hay appear. THIS country Goes
not profess athelSm nor paSanlSnl, but al stS
rulers from the President down 10 JHSttcc OF
the Peace stand on the Christian Platform OF
morals and fGl IN.
under our flag 10 teacn and organize the Chris
tian principles as Professionalism has. Soth are
limited TO the CHRISTIAN religion. Anarchy.
paganism. and all forms Of atheism are eN-
cluded This. Isuppo>e, both. sides in the con
troversy accept 4 simou-pure; heathen with
his toggery coUlG not BECOME an Amerlcan cit
izen in the true sense Of the term.
ProteStants 40 not hold that any particular
denominations. Is "the' church, hut that all de-
nominations, including Catholics, are! some
sort OF branches oil me lrNe universal
kingdom: OF .tEulh Of which Christ is the
only head., =Tbe Protestant statements of the
olOElcal doctrines, sn-Cailed creedS, dlner from
Catholic cTeedS IH that!Jhey co not attempt to
bind the. conscience. Only the Bible binds
Protestant Conscience
one OF The denominations he is ~ liberty 10 DO
50, and bears: with him the good VIII of all.
He thinks as hespleasGs both before and after.
Inc PROTESTANT church slmplY asSS Inc can
didate for membership ii he Is acting freely, II
he accepts Measurements OF fGlth as Biblical.
The private judgments absolutely supreme.
The Protestant church. claims no power TO
change the moral sIatuS,of any one. The trial
and exclusion OF a person from Protestant
church has: nothing 10 do with his personal
relation TO sod. It. does not Gnathematize,
curse and condemn people TO purSat0ry, nor
any place else, because il finds no such non
sense IN theBlble. Under the Protestant ban
ner eyery-Inan Is his own priest
The Protestant Idea OF the Bible is simple,
ana easy.to understand. 1t contalnSaIl things
necessary 10 SalVAtlOn.t
1t does not claim that all the characters in
the Bible were saints at all times. 1t does not
justify Abraham, Isaac: nor David in the sins
they committed, neither does the. Bible.
PToteStsuts even go so far astO denounce ST.
Peter for his lnchnation 10 dodge rather
plain proposition. They see and worship only
the one great character OF the Bible.
The working force Of Protestsnism is essen
TALLY different from that OF Catholicism.
semi-physlcal or mechanicaF standpoint. The
progress OF Christianity Is q sort OF material
istic infusion and prolongat0n Of the incar-
nation bv means of trsasuhS initiation in the
sacrament. q: The whole force of:Catholicism
is operated with the imperSonal precision OF
o Observation-Disclosures machine. You do
as You aye told and the result Ayill follow.
Professionalism holds that Christianity changes
the relaticn~of God's.will 10 mans will and
that the transaction Is purely personal and
direct; thaIe Individual has the absolute
right 10 appear:be God for himself and set
Tie his own case; that nelthCTth devils in the
neither region nor all the saints in the catalogue
can hindeE nor affect him in the least.
ProteStAntism teaches thattiovernments are
free IN the exercise OF their functions. Rulers
may be just as close to the throne and know as
much OF ihe VIII OF God aS. the Pope. ProteS-
tsntS would just is soon. see the President
praying for the safety OF the Nation as 10 know
that prayer had been made in tie Vatican
Thn he's f-sty
ness and ruth are JgSt : accessible TO a con-
scientious clean-heartec bstiff as they are 10
an ordained priest or: minister. The idea of
any power being between the ruler and his
God is absurd: :..--
The Catholic doctrine, so far as it can be
understood, teaches That infInatters ofmorals
and religion the church is above the.Stals As
there can be no government without morals,
no morals WITHOUT Religion, IL puzzles plain
thinking people 10 know The boundaries OF
papal supremacy. The Protestant view: of a
Government leaves. il not only free but SUI
preme.s Every soul is. subject TO the Elgher
power" Governments founded on Justice aud
carried. on in righteousness are1 as daect from
God as the church: Il Catholics viii say as
much the conteltion ceases and all suspicion
dies out. -
1t is the claim, or the quasi claim of the Ro-
man church that there Is highly attenuated
but real sBpTcmgcy over the nations Of the
earth, with neacQ l%t1terS at Rome, that gives
rise 70 suspicion against that church,
There is another potent reason why puolIc
oninion is aFyavs Sndriing when the hand oi
Rome is Secn-ir poh5ical affairs Ii is the ali
OF secrecy about All their methods. There
seems 10 be sort OF drapery. between them
and the great open light of the world If they
do noU plotand scheme they are Unfortunate
in creating conditions which cause the public
TO think they do They are charged with sly
ambuScadlns meIhodS and the mOSt polished
logic WILL not dispel This feeling. The high
fences;the secret converts, the non com ~ uni
cative methods of the priesthood are tangible
proofs TO the public mind against those living
in half seclusI0n.. =
Il the terrible~oaths: charged against the
priests, Bishops and Jesuits are not true il
should have required no aflidayits To declare
them false. The life uf The church should
have been so we'll known as TO stamp them
with iIifamy. But unfortunately thousands oi
well-disposcd people Til} believe them true in
substance, il not III exact form; In spite OF the
affidavits, because the ogths are stronger. than
any affidavit can lie made by any person under
such oaths. The1ife of the Catholic church is
smothered in secrecy'and cannot resist slander
and calunny.
rible uaths can be setaSide, First..show: that
these parties take dsths at all: or second,
publish exactly the oaths tney do. take.
The functions of Christianity forbid secrecy
''In secret have spoken nothing,v said il
founder. Secret societies are limited to.%heir
own memberships in authority. and any at
tempt 10 tamper with or: touch matters OF gen.
eralinterest crosses the: universal ins tincts of
mankind based on fair Tlay, aud arouses public
feeling instantly. The Catholic church, other
things being equal can neVer appeal TO man.
kind with The iull scope of truth until it:aban-
dons secrecy
1t cannot escape the SUSPICION OF dealing in
petty intrigueS, cunningly mixing error with
truth, defily disgusting: error with truth, and
with smooth words trying TO miSlead public
sentiment, and in SOME deep underhanded
way trying 10 plot against the life OF the Ma
tion. Instead of the life of the church contra
dieting this suspicion of treason, IL is unfortu-
nate that the lite OF the church Is chosen as
the ground of the opposition. The opponents
of the Roman Catholic Church challenge that
church TO the bar of history and maintain
that the whole strength OF the argument
against Catholicism i'll America lies in It's
record in other countries.
Il is further unfortunate for our Catholic
citizens that those put forward TO explain the
exoteric principles of the church have been
unable 10 make themselves understood. The
resort 10 logical and rhetorical Illusions, the
drowning of all sense in n hubhub OF unmean-
Ing words. the attempt 10 lead people through
vast maze OF confusion and cansistry, bewil-
ders everybody and convinces no one,
The Pope'iS either ~infslibie or a common,
good old mistaken man. That is all there is TO
that. Everybody knows that he is not the
supreme court, and nothing like IT, unless ii
can be shown that he has much brains as
the whole OF. them. Such high-vRulting soph-
istry is entertaining. but not very assuring.
He is either the NlCpyprpnt Of God arfl