The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-04-14

she 9o'i1e VI A7posture or Illusion. while
other miracles are treated as totally UNI
historic. Nor is the portrait free from a
French and slightly sensuous cast From
the whole body Of Remains Histories OF
Israel" Of Christ and OF the early
Church, the supernatural is entirely ex-
cruded
The Roman Catholic Church has not
suffered from criticism. historical. liter
airy, or scientific. to the same extent as
the Protestant churches. al least Internal
~. because II depends not SO much on in
tellectual conviction as on ecclesiastical
organization. and rests comparatively lit
tie on the authority OF the Bible It's priest
hood has not been affected like the clergy
of the Church OF England or the minis
tries of the Protestant churches But Il
has everywhere been losing the educated
classes. or retained part OF them not
SO much from conviction. stIll less from
speculative conviction. as because it's
alliance is congeniaI to political and social
reaction. Its inability TO come TO terms
with science has been shown by the re-
cent case of ST. George Mivart, and
scientific eminence among Roman Catho-
lies is rare. In Italy, the centre of the
system, while the poorer classes stilI flock
to the iiquefaction OF the blood Of St.
Januarius at Naples or the emulation Of
the bones OF St. Andrew az Amalf, still
climb the holy staircase on their knees.
or make pilgrimages to the House OF
LorettO, the general tone Of intelligence
is described as skepticai though some
aristOcratie families. especially those OF
Papal creation. adhere to the Papacy on
political and social rather than on re-
ligious grounds. Near to the shrine OF
Ignatius Loyola stands the statue Of
Giordano Bruno, on the spot Of his mar
;yrdom by fire. dedicated 20 him BY the
age which he foresaw" Attempts have
been made to liberalize the Church %
Rome and enable ii to float with the cur
rent of the age, but they have failed
Pho Mono for a time put himself at the
head of the popular and liberal move
ment in Italy. But he soon found, as
Carlyle said, that it was an alarming
undertaking to govern by the rule Of
veracity in the chair of ST. Peter so long
after Luther. Lamennais' attempt at
liberalization ended, after long intel
lectual agony. in his own secession. The
combined attempt OF Lacordaire TO Iiber-
alize enthusiastically and Of MontaIembert
melancholy result: both OF them died
under the shadow of Papal displeasure or
OF that of the Jesuit party by which the
Papacy was controlled The almost in
sanely reactionary spirit of De Maistre
has prevailed. The Jesuit has ruled at
the Vatican. Under his guidance the
Papacy has proclaimed the infalIibility
of the Pope and the immaculate concep-
ton of the Virgin thus breaking COM
pletely and finally with reason and with
all who. like the ''Old Catholics In Ger
many remained In some degree within
that pale. IT has gained in it's own de-
spite in responsibility and influence by
deprivation Of it's temporal power, against
which the Prisoner of the Vatican still
hopeIessly protests.
In France the national religion, abolish
ed and prosecuted by the Jacobins, was
restored for political purpose by Napo-
leon. The new Charlemagne was requited
with the degradation OF the Pope, who
came to Paris to crown him on the NOR
row of the murder Of the Due d Enghien
and broke the best traditions Of the Holy
See by failing to veto the divorce from
Josephine. Identified with political reac-
ton under the restored Bourbons the
Church nearly suffered wreck in the rev.
olution by which they We're overthrown.
She remained the object of intense and
prosecuting hatred To the revolutionary
and republican party. Plaintively, when
the Orleans monarchy fell, she chanted
Domino salvum fac popuIum" Joyous
ly, when the Empire succeeded. she chant
ed Domino salvum fac Imperatorem."
But the Empire in it's turn fell. The
Church has continued 10 ally herself with
political reaction and aristocratic hostil-
ity TO the Republic. though she has lat
terly been receiving hints from the vati-
can that the Republic is strong. that the
and imperial pretenders are
weak, and that Providence is on the side
of the strong. The consequence is a vio-
lence OF hostility on the part of the Radi-
Gals and Socialists which assais not only
fraternities. but educational in
and even charitable institu-
lions. in clerical hands and has pro-
dueed an infidel literature carrying bias
phemy TO the height almost Of frenzy and
in comic Life of Christ
The official world of France is almost
infidel. and a religious express
sion would be very injurious TO politi-
clan. On the other hand the Church
braves and exasperates public reason
with apparitions of the Virgin and the
miracles of Lourdes. over most of the
women the priest still holds sway OF
the men, not many are seen in churches.
The general attitude of the educated to-
ward religion seems to be not so much
that of hostility as that of total indif-
q state Of enlargement more
hopeless than hostility itself
There is In France a Protestant Church.
Of which Guizot was an eminent member,
and which. in his time was renewing it's
life. But there was schism in il between
an evangelical party and a party which
was entirely nationalist. Guizot belong
ing to the first. his son-in-law TO the sec
Ond, and ratiOnalism seems TO have pre-
vailed. With the Protestant party OF
France was allied an evangelical party IN
switzerland of which Vinet was the most
eloquent divine But In Vinet as in liber-
al divines generally. we find an inclina-
ton to rest on the spiritual rather than
Dn the supernatural In the city of Cal
vim, generally opinions appear TO reign
more opposed TO the religion OF Calvin
han those for which he burned Servetus
But of the disintegrating forces, criti-
eism. the Higher Criticism as it is the
fashion to call it, has by no means been
he only one. Another, and perhaps I'm re-
,ent times the more powerful, has been
science. from which Voltaire and the ear