The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1899-01-12

WIN tuCn new HltlaUpn tnAt takes plstCe
within any reasonable distance OF us.
Since our organization year ago every
important center in Northeastern Penn
sylvania has given us n council, SO that
at the present moment IL may be safely
said that there are very few Catholics
OF any worth In this portion of our great
commonwealth who are not already
either full-fedged knights of Columbus,
or anXiously waiting for the order to
present themselves for the purifying
process Of the third degree
This of course. is source of pride
and joy and consolation to those who
have taken interest In our organization;
but to my mind IL cannot be less than
this to every upright man who Is capable
of wishing well to his fcllowncn, and to
every patriot capable of wishing well to
his country; for with us Catholics, true
patriotism, such as We gave unmistak-
able evidence of Santiago and Manila,
true personal integrity such as we give
unmistakable evidence of in every walk
of life, Is directly proportionate to our
fidelity to the watch-word, the heart
throb of every Knight of Columbus-lilial
devotion to the Catholic church.
BY tlial devotion ! do not mean the
blatant rudeness that seems to have its
sufficient reason for existence in speak
ing i'll Of those who differ from us; nor
the animal pugnacity that makes call
umny and riot, and persecution, the con-
stant remedies to be invoked for the re-
modelling Of conditions we permit our
selves to condemn nor the blind attach
ment to n cause which prevents our rec
ognizing the good our rivals may possess; ;
which prevents oug reading Alright the
truths Of history; and enables us to dis
tort the truths we reRd.
FTIJAT, Devotion
BY fliaI devotion to the Catholic church
mean such as only she will admit, and
only such as the upright heart can give
namely, that which is at once reasonable
intelligent, conscientious, nineteenth CEN
tury, American. In this l am not speak
ing at random, for | have seen over and
Iovcr again how intelligent and fair
minded non-Catholics appreciate the diff
ference between the Catholic who lives
UP to the teaching of his church and
the one who does not.
| have seen the Catholic who frcquentS
the sacramcnts preferred for position of
trust and emOlument before the one who
neglected them; not because the one who
frequented the sacramnts was expected
on that account to be better equipped
Intellectually but because of the obvious
conclusion that he was more sensitive
to the dictates of conscience.
And how can it be otherwise? Rea-
son itself will show us that the Catholic
who has grown from childhood to ma
turity guided at every step by the strong
unChanging, supernatural motives 10
which the Catholic mind is taught to
appeal-other motives than which cannot
speak to the conscience-other motives
:han which cannot obtain permanent
influence or sway; abandoning allegiance
TO the mother who reared him, he parts
company with the only motives capable
of controlling him, he has none other to
put in their place, and forever after be-
comes a changeing, as capable of veeI-
ing in his course from side to side, ac-
cording as interest or passion will sway
him, as the vane on the hOusetop, deli
cately poised, and rendered Indifferent
to the law of gravitation, is ready to in
dicate the slightest deviation i'm the di-
rection of the wind.
Remarkable examples of the truth OF
what have been saying may be found IN
the history of che sovereigns and priests
of Europe who seeded from the Catholic
church in the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries. Not one of them improved
morally by the change; rectitude, hon
esty justice morality were thrown to
the winds as impediments to progress,
aud crime in every shape became the
material the historian of those days is
compelled to record.
so WITH NATIONS.
And as with individuals so it has been
with nations-nations that once were
Catholic and then through some form of
deception or coercion practiced on them
were withdrawn from Catholic commun-
ion, the change has not been to the ma
tion's advantage. Germany was once
Catholic. she became Protestant, but
nowadays whatever is not Cathalic in
Germany is inhdel. Today Germany is
the hot-house Of infdelity. Is this an ad-
vantage? France was once Catholic
she never became Professionalism under
the influence of inCarnate demons she
tore the crucifiN from the altar and the
holy eucharist from the tabernacle, and
placed a woman of the streets on n throne
within the sanctuary, and compelled the
crowd to come and do her homage in
mockery of Catholic worship and adora
| ton. Was this an advantage? England
became Protestant, but, to maintain her
new position against the will of the ma
tion, she had to spend her time in bring
ing to the block the fairest of her sons
ana daughters, in order to the coniisca-
tion of their revenues and lands, Was
this an advantage? Italy and Spain are
Catholic countries still. but their govern
ments are in the grasp of secret socle-
ties-in consequence Italy is already BANK
rupt, and Spain must needs be banl<rupt
soon.
But if we would understand TO what
depths men may reach, who once were
Catholic and fell away. we need only ad
vert to the fact that an abnormal aver
sion and hatred for the figure of the
crucified Saviour characterizes the entire
species. A fearful illustration of his
sacrileeious tendency is afforded us by
the history of the Dutch in Japan in the
time of st. Francis Xavier. The Dutch
arrived on the scene for trading LLr-
poses after portion of Japan had be-
come Catholic. The success of the 'Inth-
olic missionaries was disp!easing TO
them, so they set to work to foment dis
cord between the Catholics and the
pagans, taking, of course, the side of The
pagans.
PERSECUTION FOLLOWED.
A persecution of the Catholics followed,
and one of the tests of fidelity rec
commended by the Dutch was that the
neophytes be forced to trampe upon the
image of the crucified Saviour laid on
the ground before them. The marvellous
history of those times shows that not
more than three persons out of one hun
dred thousand yielded TO the temptation
to save their lives by this horrible sac
rilege. Strange to say this very test
remains in force even to our own day,
for thirty years ago, during a local Ter-
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