The San Francisco call., 1896-01-21
CHURCH AND STATE.
Father Yorke Replies to DIR. Wendte
the Position of His
Church.

fatner 1orke Replles Co DIR. Wendte
the Position of His
Church.
The Rev. Father Yorke contributes the
following reply to the Rev. DR.. Wendte:
SAN Francisco, January 20, 1896.
To the Editor Of the CGIl-DEAR SIR: The Rev.
DR.. Wendte grows more surprising every day.
understood that in this controversy we were
to discuss principles and arguments. / find,
however, that DR.. Wendte having started out
by demonstrating the nationality of his cook
clinches his contentious by demonstrating the
religious convictions OF his tailor In addition,
he provides me with a mythical biog-
r6phy, and to accentuate his triumph over
me endows me with the added advantages of
Protestant birth and training. What kind of
thing Protestant birth may be and what ad-
va tages it has over Hindoo birth or Mono
physite birth | cannot imagine.
However, this advantage l am COM
PEELED to discleim. l am afraid DR..
Wendte's ear bends too readily to the whis-
perrin OF gossip. The only Protestant blood
in m veins comes from my grandmother's
reat-great-great-great. grandfather. 1 need
hardly remark that this interesting old gentle
stand that he was one of Cromwell's troopers
cannot say that l regret his decease.
do not imagine thai your readers, Mr.. Edi-
biography or in DR.. Wendte's kitchen.
From my boyhood I have been on
terms of acqu aintance and friendship with
lS,
was received exclusively from Catholic
masters. would be the last in the world to
deny the immense services which converts
have rendered the church, but these converts
themselves are the readiest to repudiate the
monopoly of brains which DR.. Wendte would
force upon them. In every age God has chosen
his own instruments to do his own work out of
every nation and belief, but in age has the
church ceased to be the joyful mother of
children.
QUESTION, DR.. wENDTE.
come to the question at issue. In my last let
ter ] asked Dr. Wendte what he would do if
Unitarian congregation should come into
collision with state. That question Dr.
Wendte discreetly leaves unanswered. do not
intend, however, to allow him the subterfuge
OF silence: He insists that we Catholics shall
theoretically provide for every contingency
and turn our theologies into something like
these prophetic almanacs which are so popu-
lar in certain sections. All you have to do is
10 look up the date and there you viii find out
just what is going to happen, such as
marriages, balls, cotillions and other
forms OF war. battle and sudden
kinds of contingencies, and then demands
from us what we are going TO do. l put before
him only one supposition and I expect reply:
What would you do, DR.. Wendte if a Unitarian
congregation should come in conflict with
state? Remember, every civil government is
state, and let US hear your answer.
WHAT PROVED.
What DR.. Wendte wishes to prove by the few
disjointed remarks he makes upon my exposi-
ton OF Catholic teaching l cannot conceive.
That teaching was put as clearly as could
put it, and l tried hard to make my, words
sum up the chief points of my statement
l. stated that man had two kinds OF inter-
ests, temporal interests and spiritual interests.
2. To attain his temporal interests he organ
lied into states.
3. To attain his spiritual interests Christ or
ganized men into a church.
4. Church and state are, therefore, by their
very nature separate and distinct.
D. The church is supreme in spiritual mat
teTs, the state is supreme in temporal matters
b. The Pope claims no temporal power over
civil governments.
z. may now add that his indirect power
over civil governments. of which DR.. Wendte
seems TO be so afraid, is neither more nor less
than every man with conscience claims for
himself and grants to others. On this last
assertion l will not dwell now. When DR.
Wendte tells me what he would do in case a.
Unitarian congregation fell foul of q state
may go into fuller explanations.
DR. wENDTE's OBJECTIONS.
Against these statements what argument
does DR.. Wendte bring? Give ear, San Fran
cisco, and let Oakland hear!
What we do object to- what every American
and every Protestant repudiates and disclaims,
is the further dictum of the Roman Catholic
church that the Pope of Rome is the Supreme
representative of God on earth, and that all
human governments must subject themselves
Now let me ask DR.. Wendte where he found
this to be Catholic teaching. True he pro-
duced eatera of quotations from John S.
Hlttell, but have shown that ali these quota
tions are spurious, doctored or inapplicable
Does DR.. Wendte wish to prove me a traitor
on evidence that would put its concocter
IN San quentin If it were offered in a court of
law? Instead OF renewing his assault let him
attend to his demoraliZed witnesses. When he
has weeded out the manned, the halt, the
bind, the lame, he may plan another cam
paign. But as it is now, he is in decidedly
bad company and he, not the conduct of the
Pope, is under suspicion.
SERIOUS PREDICAMENT.
To me this is the most serious aspect of the
whole matter DR.. Wendte has been BETRAYED
into employing q number of quotations which
quotations have shown to be spurious garbled
or irrelevant. What is DR.. Wendte TO do? His
case depends on the authenticity or the peril
nence OF these excerpts from Catholic writer's.
II they fai! his case goes to the wall. He will
stand in the unenviable position of one who
attacked the character of his neighbor by the
same means the Sanhedrim used against
Christ-false witnesses whose testimony was
not agreeing.
Let me entreat him 10 face this question like
q man. 1t makes no difference what his pri-
vate opinions are or how charitable his dispo-
for charity; we demand justice. DR.. Wendte
has wronged us and he should repair the wrong
before speaking of "benedichons." Religion is
not sentimentality but fairplay. Our duty to
God is not performed by nursing an oppression
on our diaphragms. but by doing our duty to
man. If DR.. Wendte has brought false witness
against US, he should never rest until he has
retracted that testimony. If he has even rea-
sonable suspicion that his authorities have
m1sied him he cannot salve his conscience by
merely withdrawing from the controversy.
Dr. Wendte's reputation for good faith is at
stake, and he cannot afford to let judgment go
by default
THE CHURCH FOSTERS LIBERTY
To illustrate my assertions concerning Cath
Ole doctrine produced few quotations from
Catholic writer's as to the limit of the Pope's
power. DR.. Wendtes wild statement that the