The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1903-01-31


all that we claimed for them in the
eginuing-interestin and instructive.
The ease and style of the writer, to-
gether with his power of magnifying
and identifying even little things, is
really very captivating
AS we surmised last week, Father
John" made every effort to moderate
the extreme fanaticism and loose lib
eralism" of the disputants. He con-
tinues his work of reform this week.
Editorl
conversation | continued.)
but you find" remarked De Bon
neville, that faithful princes have
done much to defend religion against
its external enemies, and to facilitate
the conversion of heather nations.
Constantine the Great delivered the
church from persecution and gave her
peace and civil status. Charlemagne
defended her against the Saracens, and
from the combined forces Of paganism
in his wars against the Saxons. The
conversion of the Franks and the
Anglo SaXons began in the courts OF
the reigning princes. Catholic mon
archy has been and IS now the exter-
her main support: and where mon
archy has been weakened, Catholicity
has declined; where the monarch has
apostatized, the nation has apoStatized
with him, as in the case of the German
princes, the kings of Sweden and Den
mark, and the king of England. There
were republics in the middle ages, Ven
ice, Genoa, Pisa and Florence, etc, but
these republics in their glory were
sorry friends of the papacy
Yet better friends than were the
greater part of tn eemperors of Ger
many, the kings of France, of Eng
John. Indeed, there were times when
the papacy had no human power on
which it could rely to defend its indie
pendence, but the Republicans of Italy.
But for them, humanity speaking, the
Hohenstaufen would have absorbed the
spiritual power in the temporal. and
revived the old pagan order of Rome,
under which Caesar was at once en-
peror, sovereign pontiff and God Con-
stantine did little for the church but
undo the iniquity of his predecessors;
Charlemagne did nobly, 1 grant. but
his successors in France and Germany
are answerable in great part for the
Greek schism, besides other incalcula-
BILE evils to religion. The nations that
were first converted after the example
or through the influence of their princes
have for the most part apostatized;
only those nations, unless Ireland be
an exception, that were fortified by
the blood of martyrs and evangelized
by the humble missionary, are Cath
olic today. 1t is a bastard Catholicity
that is taken from the prince and Civ
en- up at his bidding. Not to princes,
but to humble fishermen. was given
the command to eVangeliZe the ma
lions. and they have injured more than
they have served religion by assuming
to themselves spiritual functions. The
best service they can render to religion
Is to maintain peace and justice in
their realms, and leave religion free
under the mana cement of those to
whom the Holy Ghost commits the
spiritual authority"
But" reioined WinsIow. IF there is
no incompatibility between Catholicity
and, Republicanism, how happens it
that all through Europe the enemies of
monarchy are the enemies of the
church and the stanch defenders of the
church, like Louis Veuillot. are at the
same time stanch defenders of mon
archy?'
That is question" added De Bon
neville, that 1 should like to have
Father John answer. Nothing is more
certain that the European liberals are
anti Catholic. They were so in the
Old French revolution; they were so in
1913; they were still more so in 1857.
they drove the Holy Father out of
Rome, and they would overthrow the
paEal government again tomorrow
were 1t not for the troops which France
generously sustains in the Holy city"
one extreme" replied Father John
Eegets another. Catholics have an in
fall1ble church. that by the assistance
or the Holy Ghost, teaches ,ntallibly
the truth in faith and morals. but
they are not themselves infallible. The
first thing for convert to learn is
that not all that is done by Catholics
Is Catholic, and the fact that We find
them welded to this or that ~olitical
regimen is no proof that it is a regimen
for which Catholicity has any special
affinity. The church recognizes every
legal government, whatever its form.
ana teaches her children to dAmean
themselves as loyal citizens or subisc.s
she prescribes and proscribes no mar
tlcular form of government. But Cath
ohcs' not as Catholics, but as men,
may nave, as other men. their pref
erences, and may support their pref
On the breaking out of the revoIu
tlon In 1889. the Catholic party could
do no better than to prove themselves
royaIlsts and link the defense of the
altar with that of the throne; but the
consequence of their doing so has
placed Catholics in dependence on the
soverefgns as defenders and protectors
of the church, and deprived them. ON
pain of being forced to Join the liner
ais against their church, of all free
dom to oppose absolutism, and given
the liberals an apparent reason for on
posing the church as the ally of des
potlsm. In fact, 1t has become, through
the force of circumstances. very nearly
Impossible to defend religion without
defending Caesarism. or to oppese
Caesarism without opposing Catho-
Lefty
I'm the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries absolute monarchy became
the ruling order throughout nearly all
Europe, IN Catholic as well as Protest.
ant states. There were rebelIions
against it, indeed. in Spain. France and
England-in France in favor of the no.
bility, in Spain and England in favor
of the commons; but they were sun
pressed and at the opening of the
eighteenth century absolute monarchy
had gained the victory. Caesarfsm.
unless Great Britain and Holland be
an exception. was triumphant under
the hegemony of France. A reaction
against this in favor of liberty could
not fail to follow. The triumph of
monarchy was followed by general
corruption of manners and morals in
the courts and upper classes while the
peasantry were ground down with ex-
Orbitant and still more Vexatio11S tava.
despised by the privileged classes and
neglected by the government. which
neglected almost every one of its du-
ties excent that of irnnnsinn aud col