The record-union., 1896-10-15

| he claims, all Catholics would have to
submit to him. as he is infallibie.
| The speaker denied this. We all
know that the Pope goes down on his
knees daily to pray for his sins, and
that even as Lucifer fell from the sky,
so may the Pope fall from his high sta
ton. If there was a traitor among the
| few apostles Of Christ, how could it be
| deemed strange that out of the 26O
| Popes some should be bad-but they
1 could all be counted on one hand.
| This belief springs from the idea that
the Catholics believe the Pope to be In
fallible. No society can be formed with
| out giving it a government, and that IS
what Christ did when he founded His
church. Instead of three departments,
as we have in our Government, in the
! Catholic Church these three functions
are lodged in the Pope.
| The question then arises, can the Pope
| make a mistake when he lays down the
laws of the church? Take the practice
Of Friday abstinence, in which Cath
| olics simply abstain in remembrance OF
| Christ's sufferings. If he changed it to
| Thursday or Saturday, would he be in
fallble? Certainly not.
He may make mistakes, and although
Catholics may obey his mandate, as
we obey the law, whether we like 1t or
rot, they write and try to get re-
versal of the judgment. In legislative
affairs, then, he is not infallible.
Is he infallible as the Supreme Court?
He is and he is not. He may give
decision on questions dependent on evi-
dence brought before him, and in such
cases he is not infallible. But on ques-
IL t+,,ti v,nl
brought before the Supreme Court. he
is infallible. Take the Bible, for in
stance, on which the different sects do
not agree. Suppose that each citizen
were allowed to interpret it as he
thought right, how long would it last?
The Supreme Court has to decide these
questions. Christ very probably fore
saw that there would be differences in
the Interpretation of His Word, and
constituted the Bishop of Rome and
His successors, the Popes, the Supreme
Court to decide finally which was right
and that is what infallibility is.
The power to decide infallibility is
only given to the Pope in spiritual mat
ters, anG does not extend to temporal
or political affairs. If he should send
over word to the Catholics Of America
to vote for a certain candidate, they
would send back his letter unopened.
The Catholic Church in this country
has been accused of interfering in poll
tics.
The speaker had been accustomed to
appeal to the record when this charge
has been made. He was very sorry he
could not appeal to it now. He had read
| with sorrow the letter of Archbishop
Ireland, stepping into the arena and
| speaking in favor of one platform
against another. He thought the laity
of this country were perfectly able to
settle the question without any direc-
ton from any pulpit. He agreed with
Cardinal Gibbons, who refused to ex
press his opinion. The interference of
Archbishop Ireland had given his
friends deep pain, for they thought the
people could manage their own affairs.
! This was the only instance in which the
representatives of the church had in
terfered and in the civil war, when the
other churches were split up, the
Catholic Church remained intact, as
she did not divide her children.
In all this matter the A. P. A. has been
forced, from first to last, to rely on
hare, unblushing forgeries They are
confronted with the history of the coun-
try which shines with the names of
Catholics, who from the dark days of
the history of it's inception have stood
nobly by it Catholic France furnished
men and money to aid it. The sons of
st. Patrick were among its defenders.
The names Of Catholics shine out on
every page and there can be no doubt
as to their faithfulness and loyalty.
The death roll of our armies attests it.
He recalled the days Of the Know
Nothing excitement and the incidents
connected with it and spoke Of the ac-
ton of the Sixty-ninth Regiment in
New York at the time Of the Prince Of
Wales visit, when they refused to turn
cut to do honor to him and their
Colonel was court-martialed. They
marched to Washington, however, and
were decimated at Bull Run, and in
those days no one asked another's re-
ligion
1t is not the Generals, he said, who
: question their patriotism. 1t is the
camp followers and the coffee coolers.
Three of the great Generals Of that
war sleep in Catholic ground.
, The savage tribes of Africa spare
women and children, he said, in their
warfare, but it remains for these men
10 make charges OF the VlIeSt sort
, against the sisters and wives Of Cath
olics in the name of patriotism. If
there were any reason to be given
against that society, there it was He
denounced them as towards who had
not the courage to fight men and as
only ours with the courage to bark at
, them
The people, he said, should study and
learn the principles of the Catholic
, Church in order to repel the charge of
want of patriotism. Catholics had
5 come here to build their homes and live
in peace, and intended to defend them.
t They We're here by no mans permission
and no party with such principles as
the one he spoke Of could ever flourish