The San Francisco call., 1896-02-08

University of California, and later in the
Catholic University in Washington, d. c.,
had preceded him, and among the more
enthusiastic participants in the present
intellectual movement there were many
who desired to see and hear him. Only
few years ago Father Ramm, then an in
dustrious student in the University of
California, went over to the Catholic
church with one of his professors, DR..
Greene, who occupied the chair of botany
there.
Every seat was taken last night in
Metropolitan Hall and large numbers of
people with tickets seemed quite satisfied
to find standing room in the aisles, while
Father Ramm delivered lecture on "The
Reunion of Christie endom.i
The speaker did not impress his audi
ence SO deeply with eloquence or oratory
as he did with his earnestness and the
able treatment of his subject. He said:
Certainly one of the most striking character
lstics OF the Christian world to-day is the very
general desire for reunion. The same spirit
which brought progressive order and unity
out OF the warning elements of the primal
chaos seems to be working to-day in the hearts
OF Christian men and women to bring about a
higher order and unity in the realm of Chris
tian thought and life. The babel of discord-
antsyo1ces which has SO long been the lament
OF the followers of Christ and the mockery of
inelr enemies, appears to be surely, if very
SAO"AJ, AhNAtAA5 lAltc a uldssltS udfuOHy.
He held that the signs of this slow
change are In the very air. Eastern
schismatics are returning to their mother
church, there are ruinors of reunion be-
tween the Latin and Greek churches, and
the Church of England has of late years
looked iongingly toward recognition by
the communions of the East. Continuing
in this strain the speaker said:
The Clerical Union-a very earnest and in
N q hndr ita fla Ecfa 1aa
headed by Lord Halifax-has for its avowed
OBJECT to effect the corporate reunion of the
Angiican church with the Church OF Rome.
Animated by the spirit of Christ that there
might be one fold and one shepherd, our holy
iather POPE Leo XIII, who has done SO much
for GOOD Will among men, has within the past
year addressed a touching letter on reunion to
the English people, and not long before an
other on the same subject to.the entire Chris
uan world.
These incidents, he remarked. argued
the existence of deep-seated aud wide-
spread longing for unity. He quoted
various reasons for this longing as a sense
OF the need of unity among earnest
Christians against antagonistic and solvent
forces which are either anti-religious or
nti-moral, or merely negative. Again
preludices, which for centuries erected
walls OF division between the different
sects OF Christianity, are gradually dis
appearing, and there is a growing con-
viction among Christians that there ought
to be unity; that Christ made his church
one, and meant it should always remain
so.
Among eyangelicals the same signs are
visible The Methodists and Presbyterians in
canada have partially. healed their family
quarrel. The old and new school Presby-
(Schaff.) o''
Perhaps. too, as sign of the desire for re-
union we may cite the late parliament of re-
Iglons, although 1t is obvious that other mo-
ives pesloes yearning for unity aided in
bringing about that heterogeneous gathering.
In his argument Father Ramm held
that Christ's church is an organism.
Christ had a plan whereby his purposa
mig Mt be carried out; he chose his apos-
Ties, VINO We're corporate body and re-
gardeo themselves as an organized society,
TO wn!ch was committed, in special way.
the mission of their Master. The church.
founded by Christ, then, was an organized
toouy, navlng one head; the unity there
lore lot was organic unity. 1t is obvious that
Onrlsts command to "teach all things
whatsoever l have commanded you
am with you all days. even to the con-
summation of the world,' would be i'm
possible OF execution if the unity of spirit.
.ne unity OF truth, which Christ gave his
apostles, were destroyed. They might
teach all things; they could not teach ali.
Regarding infaliibility he said:
When fall things" are brought to their
minds mil tne apostles can teach them as they
were commanded to do But the Holy Ghost
VIII VIII prlng nothing false to their minds. There
Iore, In teaching. ali things which were COM
inadoen tnem, they must teach infallibili ty
ana TINS infallibility, exercised within It's
proper held and insured by the Holy Ghost, is
ahe permanent living principle of unity in the
Alter dwelling at considerable length on
doctrinai and theological views of the SUBJ
lec. tne lecturer came to schemes of re-
union. He saw but one conclusion
Christendom must reunite in the Roman
church. She alone is one organism, hay