The Irish standard., 1902-02-01
A Baptist Editor Scored.

llrpr'
A Baptist Editor Scored.
The following letter, which explains
itself, was recently addressed by "A
Protestant" to the Catholic Telegraph
of Cincinnati:
"Sir: l observe that the journal
and Messenger, Of your city, is a
thoroughly implacable enemy Of the
Roman Catholic church. Very well.
The law allows it, yet implacable enc
mics are bound by the obligations of
good breeding. Still more are they
bound by the laws of truth and JUS
tice.
1T is known that a child of the
Hon. Levi P Morton has lately mar
ried Catholic. The Journal sneer-
ingly says that the Mortons, if they
want peace, will soon have to trans
fer Il good part of their wealth to
Rome to keep up the priests there in
their sumptuous living. Now, the in
stincts Of good breeding forbid pub
lie comment on the affairs of pri-
vate family. Only crime or scandal
can excuse this, and the marriage Of
Il Protestant to Catholic is not Il
crime or scandal. The editors of the
journal and Messenger may be
worthy men. have no doubt they
are, but they show themselves to be
no gentlemen. However, this is
rather their misfortune than their
| fault.
| "a violation of truth and Justice,
nevertheless, admits Of no excuse
And the Messenger has been guilty
of double sophism, and an obvi-
ously transparent one. in order to
throw Oh Catholics the burden of the
| Polish assassin'S crime.
| "First, it says as this Leon was
baptized the Catholics are bound to
own that he has been regenerated
Now, the editors know that their Bap-
tist readers believe that regenerate
man never loses his regeneration in
life or certainly never in death. They
take advantage Of this association of
IDEAS to convey to the minds Of their
readers the impression that Catholics
are bound to believe that the muir
Baptist sense, at the moment Of his
crime and at teh moment Of hi'
death. They know perfectly well that
Catholics, no more than Methodists or
--utherans, believe regenerating grace
to be inalienable. They know that
! Catholics believe the assassin to have
| been under condemnation of eternal
death when he murdered the presi-
dent, and when at the hour of death
he justified his guilt. Yet they take
advantage of the involuntary impress
| sion which the word 'regenerate'
would make on the average Baptist
to imbue the minds Of their readers
with malignant falsehood.
Secondly, which is the same thing
in substance, they say that Catholics
are bound to believe that the presi-
dents murderer was a Christian.
They know that Christian among
Protestants generally means what
practical Christian means among
Catholics, namely, map who is now
living in acceptance with God. They
know that Catholics abhor the charge
Of supposing the Pole to have been a
Christian in that sense. Yet they
know the misleading effect Of the
term Christian on Baptist minds,
and therefore they do not scruple to
involve their readers in a scandalous
fallacy.
Whatever was true of the Polish
assassin, these editors certainly are
not Christians as concerns the Roman
Catholics. Discourtesy, however
gross, might be passed over on the
plea of invincible coarseness Of ma
ture. Boorishness is very disagree
able, but not necessarily sin, al
tAouSA, VI COulSc, AO Ouc VIII UC uu-
mitted in the kingdom of heaven
without having undergone somewhere
or other process of refinement. Con-
scious and intended calumny, how
ever, insinuated through fallacies just
Opaque enough to deceive the simple,
is something which cannot be for
given, except after hearty repentance.
Whatever these two men may be
otherwise, they in one direction dwell
in the poisonous region of slanderous
lies. What will become Of them?
Catholics may charitably say: Let
us hope that the obliquity of their
moral nature in this regard may be
gradually Strengthened out in the
Statutory discipline of purgatory.
They themselves are not at liberty to
cherish such hope. If they are
slanderous liars, and die in such a
temper, even with the excuse Of in
vincible religious hatred, they are
obliged to believe that they are doomed