The record-union., 1897-09-02
BAN OF THE CHURCH.
WHAT 1T MEANS TO BE ExCoM-
MUNICATED.
The Royal Due1ists-Untl RestoP-
ed by Penitence They VIII Be
Refused the Saeraments.

The formal communication by the
Pope of the Count Of Turin and of
Prince Henri of Orleans, because of
their participation in the recent duel,
which has challenged the attention OF
the civilized world, renews interest in
one of the great Powers claimed for the
Papal see.
In its broadest sense excommunica alton
is an ecclesiastical censure by which a
Christian is separated from the COM
nlunion Of the church. Catholic au-
thorities hold that it is a power In
cluded in the power of the keys, or Of
binding and loosening. given by Christ
to Peter and the Apostles. They deduce
it from our Saviors words, He that will
not hear the church, let him be TO thee
as the heather and the publican" Matt.
xviii. ID For to treat a man as a
heather and a publican is TO repel him
from the church and all things sacred
that is, to excommunicate him.
The same authorities hold that st.
Paul put into practice the power of ex-
communication when he said of the in
cestuous Corinthian, Il have already
judged him that hath so done, in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ, you be-
ing gathered together and my spirit,
with the power of our Lord Jesus, to de-
liver such a one to Satan" q. Corinth-
ians, V, 81
St Augustine comments thus upon
this passage: Because outside the
church is the devil, as within it is Christ,
and accordingly he who is separated
from the communion of the church is,
as it We're, delivered to the devil"
There are two forms of excommunica-
ton recognized by the church, the major
and the minor. The minor is an ecclesi-
astical censure by which the Christian
is deprived of the right to participate in
the sacraments. This is a religious dis
cipline inflicted for relatively small
faults.
In former times the victim of major
communication was a pariah, an out
cast, from whose presence the faithful
fled shuddering. The sentence was pro-
ncunced upon him with the most solemn
and awful accompaniments. The
church was clothed in black, the priests
donned their most somber habits The
organ was silenced. All the assistants
held lighted candles in their hands. The
officiating clergyman solemnly read
from a book the curses which were TO
follow the offender sleeping, waking OF
diving. When he was through pell
rang. the assistants reversed thelr
candles and crushed the light out under
foot. a terrible symbol Of the fact that
the spiritual light had been extingulshed
in the soul of the condemned one
Hence the excommunication IS stlll
ncnularIv known as communication
by bell. book and candle.
If the victim We're a sovereign and re
fused to make submission, the Pope re-
leased his subjects from their vows Oh
allegiance. but made them in so far re-
spcnsible for the acts of their ruler that
services of all sorts were SUSPENDED
throughout the whole country. NO
,fiest could say mass, or celebrate q
marriage. or hear confessions, or grant
absolutions, or give the sacraments even
to the new born or the dying.
IF the sovereign finally reDented, ms
raception back into the fold was equally
solemn The Bishop, accompanied by
twelve priests in surplices, met him at
The door. of the church. There the
Bishop questioned the pentitent whether
he was truly contrite. Satisfied OF TINS
he and the assistant priests recited the
seven oentitential psalms, interrupung
themselves from time to time to ficg
the victim with a whip or a staff. Then
the formula. of absoluti3n was pro-
no,,nced and more prayers were SAID
NJ the end of which the penitent was re-
admitted into the communion Oh the
faithful.
The accommodation Of Robert L.
King of France, is perhaps the most IA
mons instance Of a wholesale eXcom-
munication Of this sort. 1t was pro
,,o,ncad bv . Roman council on the
ground that his marriage 10 ms louIth
cousin Bertha was incestuous. Cs'r0I-
nal Saint-Pierre Damien, his conIelh-
porary. in a letter written to the Appe
du Nont-Cassin. reports that the terror
felt by the people at thus saceIuotai
edict is so great that every poug mas
fed from the presence of the hlhs' anu
only two little slaves remain III llle
DaIace TO care for him. Even these look
11D0n the vessels from when ne uililhS
or eats as having been contaminated py
his touch and they throw them al once
into the fire. Robert. man OF a gen
lie and pious character, eventually
Welded to the PoDe's demands.
Many other sovereigns have suffered
from the Papal interdict with less and
less inconvenience to themselves as
the centuries succeeded one another
Nap0leon /. was naturally singled out
~ the time of his divorce and remar-
,iage. when he not only defied Papal
authorFty. but imprisoned His Holiness
The communication, however. did not
aTect him very grievously. He found
ouite enough complaisant clergy of his
own creation not merely to perform the
marriage in defiance of the Pope but
also TO administer the sacraments TO
himself and to his subjects. Napoleon
TN was also excommunicated at one
time for having connived at the inva-
sion Of the States of the Church. Vic
tor Emmanuel, as the active agent
in the final invasion. was of course un-
der the ban of the church until his
very deathbed. and King Humbert has
succeeded to his fathers ecclesiastical
condition. Hence the Count of Turin Is
only enjoying family privilege.
The attitude of the church toward
dueling is an uncompromising one.
1t is true that in early ages it was the
custom to permit accuser and accused
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