The record-union., 1899-03-06
THE POPE'S
LATE LETTER.
BY MoNsIGNoR cAPEL.

last official uIterance OF his holiness
to the Catholic Church in the United
States, made through his eminence,
| Cardinal Gibbons, has very special in
! terest The wealth of theological
| learning on which it rests might be ex-
pected from one who for sixty-two
years has taken an active part in the
| life of the church as Priest, Bishop,
Archbishop, Cardinal and Pope. The
letter is memorable model Of apostolic
charity and authority. It's dignity, its
tenderness, it's delicacy in correcting
forcibly remind us of the unique epis-
tie Of ST. Paul to Philemon.
! The Catholic Church is consumed
with the desire of making known to
every human creature the word of God,
and of dispensing the means of saliva
| ton. To save souls is her work, to
prepare men for eternal bliss is the rea-
SON of her existence. All else in her
action is subservient to enkinGling the
fire of the love of God in the hearts of
men. For her the soul of the lowliesr
human being is more precious than all
the empires and wealth of earth Her
! faithful children are inspired with the
| same desire. In the earnest zeal TO
do this, with no thought of wrong or
| guile, but deceived by the appearance
of right and acting on private impulse,
the workers in the Lords vineyard may
sometimes use methods that cannot be
approved by holy church.
| The life of Father Isaac Thomas
Hecker, deceased, an American, a con-
vert to Catholicism, and founder of the
community of the Paulist Fathers, has
given rise to heightened and heated
controversy concerning the means of
spreading the Catholic faith in the
United States. Some have contended:
First-That the church should shape
her teachings more in accord with the
spirit of the age, relax some of her an
Gent severity, and make some conces-
| sions to new opinions.
Second-That these concessions should
be made not only in regard to ways of
living, but even in regard to doctrines
which belong to the deposit of faith.
Third-That it would be opportune,
in order to gain those who differ from
us. to omit certain points of teaching
and to tone down the meaning which
the church has always attached to
! them.
| Fourth-That all external guidance
should be set aside for souls seeking
| Christian perfection, inasmuch as the
Holy Spirit pours richer and more album
| dant graces than formerly upon the
souls of the faithful, so that without
human Intervention Ee teaches and
guides them.
Fffth-That greater Importance and
stress should be laid on the natural
| virtues, as they respond better to the
customs and necessities of our times.
Sixth-That vows-and consequently
religious orders that make them-are
alien to our times, in that they limit
the bounds of human liberty; that they
are more suitable to weak than TO
strong minds; that, so far from max
| ing for human perfection and the good
of human organization, they are hurt
full to both.
These views. in their collective sense,
have been called "Americanism," and
their discussion has been a detriment
to the peace of many souls
Our Holy Father, Leo XIII, sue
cessor of SIT. Peter Supreme Doctor of
| the universal church. whose apostolic
office is to guard the integrity of the
faith and the security of the faithful,
condemns this so-called Americanism.
| such a policy" says his holiness,
would tend rather to separate from
the church than to bring in those who
differ. There is nothing closer to our
heart than to have those who are sep
arated from the fold of Christ return to
it. but in no other way than the way
pointed out by Christ"
The Pope's letter deals exclusively
with a religious question. To avoid
any misunderstanding the holy father
distinctly says: But If by this name
(Americanism) are to be understood en-
dowments of mind which belong to the
American people. just as other charac-
| teristicS belong to other various ma
lions, and if moreover, by it is desig-
mated your political condition and the
laws and customs by which you are
governed, there is no reason to take
exception to the name
Every loyal Catholic will, ex amino,
say with St Augustine: Rome has
spoken; the cause is finished" For the
Catholic holds with ST. Anselm: at is
certain that he who does not obey the
ordinances of the Roman pontiff which
are issued for the maintenance of the
Christian religion, is disobedient to the
Apostle Peter, whose vicar he is nor is
he of that flock which was given to
! Peter by God" The Catholic is con-
WINGED in the words of Cardinal New
man: Peter for eighteen hundred
years has lived in the world; he has
seen all fortunes; he has encountered
all adversaries; he has shaped himself
for all emergencies. If there ever was
! a mower ON earth who had an eve for
the times, who has confined himself to
the practicable Such is he
who sits from generation to generation
in the chair Of the apostles as the vicar
of Christ and doctor of His church"
Our non-Catholic countrymen will I'M
derstand the grounds of the Pope's con-
domination of so-called Americansim,
if they bear in mind the following
truths are held by Catholics:
First-The word Of God or revelation
could not have been discovered nor ere
ated by the intellect and reason of man.
1t was manifested by inspired prophets.
by Jesus Christ. and completed by the
Holy Ghost. 1t was placed as the de-
posit of faith in the church. No earth
ly power can add to nor take from it.
Second-The church was established
to guard this deposit of faith, to pro-
claim it in it's entirety to the whole
world She became a divine messenger
by the inbiding presence of the Holy
Ghost, and has continued and will con-
tinue to the end of time 'sin one and
the same doctrine, one and the same
sense, and one and the same iudg-
ment'
;r1 ION hxy fon 4,