The Savannah morning news., 1902-02-10

act in this manner. During these days
of Lent, when the fast of our Lord is
again brought to our memory, let us
strive to initiate His example, the sight
of whose blessed face, we trust, may
one day be our sufficient reward in
Heaven.
"St. Gregory tells us that the sim
ner should deprive himself of things
permissible, since he has done those
things which were forbidden him. Let
us then during Lent also abstain from
even innocent amusements, and thus
merit reward from him, who gave up
all for love of us. Lent should also
make us more attentive to our religious
duties. The morning mass, the evening
devotions, visits to the Blessed Sacra-.
ment, afford us fruitful means of sane
tifying this holy season.
while bidding you heed the voice
of Mother Church, at this time it may
not be amiss to call your attention to
the obedience and respect which we all
owe to her. Our political institutions
here are based upon the principle that
all power comes from the people; and
that all holding office are but the rep
| resentatives or servants of the popular
Will. 1t is not our province or intent
to discuss this proposition as applied
to questions of civil government but
| no Catholic can, for a moment, admit
it when applied to matters of faith or
| morals. It has pleased God in his
boundless mercy to establish His
Church which is to endure to the end
of time. and which is charged with the
work of teaching all men all truth The
chief teacher or doctor of the Universal
Church, and the one to whom He has
granted most wonderful privileges, and
whose stability in faith has been guar
anteed by divine promise, is the Pope.
His decisions when teaching the church
of God in matters of faith or morals
are infallibly true. He and the bishops
united with him, and only by reason
of such union constitute the teaching
church. This is the plan of salvation
laid down by our Lord, and under peril
of separation from Christ, no man may
lay down another. From this teaching
authority and from no other, can men
secure certainty in matters of faith and
morals. The modern idea of a church
as an asesmblage of people who pro-
vide a more or less eloquent speaker,
who, for a satted sum of
money, will carefully avoid any
positive teaching, and confine
himself to philanthropic generalities,
was never contemplated by the Lord or
his disciples, except when they foretold
that divisions and sects would come
and warned their followers against
| Them
"The first pope, in his second epistle,
said: There shall be among you lying
| teachers, who shall bring in sects of
perdition' Nor are we to measure the
extent of our loyalty to the Church of
God In all questions of faith and NOR
ais she is absolutely supreme, and that
man who questions her supremacy
makes shipwreck of his faith. Nor
| is it enough to accept her teaching
| alone, when she solemnly proclaims
| doctrine of faith, we are also bound to
submit to her when she decides ques-
lions regarding Revelation and its linn
it's. When the Holy See decides what
Revelation contains; what doc
trines are opposed 10 IL
what teaching is moral; what
| immoral. and what must be done or
| avoided to gain everlasting life, its de-
| cisions must be accepted by all Cath
! olics. The Church does not derive her
authority from the people. but from
| Christ Himself. who founded her TO
| teach the people and not to be taught
by them. Hence the measure of our
loyalty to the Church is our loyalty to
| Christ. For he who hears the Church
| hears Jesus Christ as he expressly
! teaches. Luke x:16. While we should
ever pray that God may be pleased to
shorten the time so that the days may
| soon come. When there shall be but
| one fold and one shepherd; and while
we should carefully abstain from judy
| ing the motives or condemning the in
| action of anyone; yet, on the other
| hand, we should never compromise Or
| minimize our faith. The Church is one.
| One Lord one faith, one baptism.
| There can no more be two churches Of
! God than there can be two Christs.
! And this one Church of the living God.
the pillar and ground of truth, is the
! only ark of safety for men. This
Church is the Catholic Church, Of
| which the Pope is supreme head, and
of which we are. through the great
mercy of God. members. And even
! though an angel preached different
| gospel beside that which she teaches
let him be held as one accursed. Gala
tlans is.
"Be not deceived by the fallacious
| opinions of those that imagine that
the spirit of the church should accom-