The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1903-04-04
English Church Troubles. j

THE New York Sun of recent date
commenting on the controvers!
now existing in the Anglican
church between the High and Low
church discipline and ceremonies
shows that the issue raised is Of para
mount Importance and can be settled
only in parliament which is the court
of last resource to decide religious dog
mas. To settle religious controversies
parliament has only one remedy, and
that is to withhold salaries from those
who are deemed heretics by that au-
gust body. The Sun rays:
On Friday the House of Commons
passed to its second reading a bill di-
rected against extreme ritlalistic
practices in the Church of England.
! During the debate it was made evident
that on both sides of the house the
prevailing sentiment was strongly
| against ritualism, and the motion for a
second reading was passed by the
great majority of 1S9 to 81 votes This
victory for the Protestant party was
obtained in the face of the bitter op-
position of the REPRESENTATIVES of the
High Church party and in spite of
the opinion expressed by Mr.. Falfour
that, although abuses exist and should
be removed, the bill is injudicious and
unnecessary.
The measure abolisbes the bishops
right of veto on proceedings against
contumacious ritualistic clergymen,
and provides that these may be de-
prived of their livings when they per-
sist in disobedience. The debate upon
it, one of the most exciting in the his
tory of parliamentary discussion of re-
ligious and theological questions, af-
forded striking evidence of the intens-
ity of feeling which has been provoked
by the spread and increasing agrees
iveness of extreme ritualism. 1t also
made manifest the continued domi-
nance Of uncompromislng Protestant
conviction in the Church of England.
Sir William Harcourt expressed this
sentiment in a speech of great vigor
and passion. Conditions, he said, have
reached a stage where if the right of
veto is left to the bishops and laymen
are without rights in ecclesiastical as
well as in civil matters, it will be bet
ter to disestablish the church.
Great as are the extremes to which
ritualism has been carried in this coun-
try, they have not yet gone so far as in
England. Gne London vicar has re-
signed his church rather than yield in
the matter of the Invocation of the
saints and the alteration of the Real
Presence, but there are five other Lon
don incumbents of the same spirit, who
persist in defying episcopal authority.
A vicar in Leicestershire instructed the
children in his schools to celebrate May
day as distinctively religious festival
Of the VirgiR Mary and to carry a gar
land in the Sacred Mothers" honor.
The head master of a national school.
at Davenport was told by the vicar to
add HALL Mary!' to the prayers he
was in the habit of reading at the
school. These are simply a few of very |
many illustrations we might give of the |
sort of practices which have aroused |
the bitterness of feeling that brought |
1Dout tAS 4eLidIhdDle IHdJOrlIy IN the |
house Of commons on Friday.
In this country also it has been made |
evident in the course of the discussion
If the proposed change of name of the |
Episcopal church, with view, primar-
ly, to getting rid of the term Protest
anti and substituting Catholic" that
he evangelical party in the church is
still powerful and that the aggressive
less of ritualism has increased the in
ensity of its Protestant sentiment.
md, apparently added to its numerical
strength by bringing into sympathy
With it many of the Broad Church"
nd also of the more moderate of the
High Church" schools.
The enthusiasm with which the Sec