The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1902-04-18


man, not to speak Of prince or king,
he might, if good and brilliant, hope
TO rise through the church to be
Pope with dignity and power far
above kings and emperors.
In spite Of all this, it still istrue
Il at the literature Of Europe, dur
ing the past 400 years, has been so
biased by caricatures of falsehoods.
or by suppressions Of truth, that
many men outside our fold lookup
on the Pore with dislike or hatred,
whoever he may be. We hear much
of the danger of union OF church
and state, as if the advocacy OF such
a union were essentially Catholic
tenet. In fact. many OF US abhor
it; and yet, in England and in Ser
many, generally called Protestant
countries, there is close union Of
church and state. The Catholics of
this republic certainly want no union
of church and state. We want each
free in its own sphere. We want
the church TO rest, not upon the ia
vors OF politicians, but upon the
loving offerings of its devoted peo-
pie; and in this wish we have the
approval Of Leo XIII, one OF the
most eminent in long line OF IL
lustrious men. Since st. Peter 5
day only Plus IN, has had longer
reign. Would that could. in my
brief time, do him Justice; but |
fear that | shall not be able to ex-
press fi,tingly the admiration, rev
erence and love due from US, and
from all high minded men, to this
great pontiff, who in his ninety
third year, after twenty-four me-
morable years of service in his high
office, in spite of ali sorts Of diff
cuIlies and dangers, in spite OF athe-
lists and hostile fanatics. in spite of
petty Italian politicians, and of in
Vulnerable enemies Of the church in
many lands, without any bayonets
to sustain him, still sits in majesty
on the imperishaole throne Of Peter.
His Influence in the world still out
weighs the power OF any king or
emperor, and because he relies, not
upon brute force, but upon con-
science and the word Of God.
"When he took his seat or March
8, 1878, the outlook Of the church
from a worldly point of view, was
far from bright. Discord and dis
loyalty in Italy and in France
threatened infinite trouble The
Falk laws in Germany, designed to
give the state complete control OF
the education Of the people and the
clergy, and of all appointments oi
priests and bishops, for the ulti-
mate destruction Of the church,
were unjust, oppressive and om-
inous of worse dangers. In spite ol
the efforts of great leaders like
Windhorst, Catholic schools we're
closed, churches were nailed up,
priests. bishops and archbishops
we're thrown i1to prison because
they would not concede the right oil
the state to usurp the authority OF
the church in its own sphere. The
power that had just then crushed
France 10 the earth, hoped to shat
ter the church in Germany a il had
been shattered in England by the
brutal Henry and the bloody Eliza
beth; hut Germany in the nine
teenth century was not like the Eng
land OF the sixteenth century; and
moreover, the nobility, the wisdom
the courage and the genius OF Lee
XIII, could not be successfully re
sisted in a plain fight for religious
freedom. No intelligent man car
deny that the church has now
brighter outlook than it had wher
the gentle Plus IN, laid down hi
heavy cross, and his stainless man
tel fell upon TIE shoulders OF Le'
MIL"