The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1903-11-07

by the new birth. the birth of grace. which intro
duces them into supernatural society"
But God commands all men and nations to
hear the church, said Winslow, land none of them
has has permission to remain out of her communion.
The law does not cease to bind because men refuse
to obey It, the court lose its jurisdiction because
the criminal refuses to acknowledge it,
Yet it does not follow said Father John. that
cur Lord has given his church authority to Judge
those who are without. or to punish all offenscs
against his law. We know he has not given her
authority to compel any to come into her com
munlOn or to be baptized. because he has wicd that
the reception OF the faith should be Il voluntary
act. She has no authority over those without and
has only the right of self-defense against them
and to compel them, not to come into her COM
mumon, but to leave her free to fulfill her apos-
tolic mission"
But as the natural survives the supernatural,
and subslsts in all its rights and powers as well
as duties and obligations, under It," said De Bon
neville. natural society in Catholic society must
mold to the supernatural the same relation that it
holds to it outside of Catholic society. Since nat
ural society is represented by the state. princes
even when Catholics, hold independently of the
church. and can, in respect to their principaliy in
no case be accountable to her. justiciabe by her
1T only follows that those princes who hold UNI
DER the natural law can be judged only by that
law said Diefenbach. "The fallacy is in assum-
ing that the state represents the whole natural So
". DrlPStIV
functions of the patriarch, and therefore represents
the seculariy, not the spirituality of natural So
ciety"
Princes" said O'Connor who hold from God
through natural society alone, even though per-
sOnaly Catholic are not iIsticiabIe by the church
as princes. but only as Christians She may Judge
and punish them as Christians, but she cannot de
prlve them of their principality, for she has not
conferred it,
Say that she does not, not that she cannot"
SAID Father John, for it is more becoming i'm us to
leave her to define her own powers than it is to nm
dertake to define them for her. | have found in her
history no instance in which she has ever deprived
prince who, by the constitution of his state holds
from God through natural society, and not through
the supernatural society. But l am not prepared
to say she cannot deprive even such prince. With
regard to princes who hold from God through the
church. and who by the constitution of their states
and their own coronation oaths, are bound to pro-
TESS protect and defend the Catholic religion there
can be question They hold under the law of
supernatural society, and The pope as the supreme
judiciary III that society, may undoubtedly deprive
them for cause he has done more than once.
The prince though he hold under the law of natural
society, holds from God through the spiritual, and
as the church, for all Christians, represents the
spiritual element of natural society originally rep
resented by the patrlarchs, and the prince may
forfeit his right to reign under the natural law as
we'll as under the supernatural, [ do not see very
clearly since she has jurisdiction under both laws
why she has not the right to declare for the faith
full the forfeiture, if it has been incurred, under
the one law as we'll as under the other But her
uniform practice throughout her history inclines
to believe that she does not interpret her pow
ers as extending to the deprivation of the prince
who, by the constitution of his state, holds only
under the law of natural society"
However that may be, said O'CQnnor, IF the
supernatural recognizes and confirms the natural,
the state in the bosom of the Catholic society must
have all the rights and powers, well as all the
duties and obligations it has in natural society"
Therefore" said Father John, ,'theocracy does
not introduce the intermeddling and vexatious sys-
tenn of Calvnsm, and one which makes religion a
burden too great to be borne. have indeed only
duties before God for [ am his creature, and be-
long to him in all I am, in all have, and in all [
can do. But this absolute dominion of God is my
absolute freedom None but God, or one really
by him to declare his will and repre-
sent his authority, bind me to obedience. [
obey the church, only because in obeying her. am
obeying him; | obey the state when it commands
me nothing repugnant to the law of God because
it is his minister; but man, of his own right,
can bind me- or lay under the moral obligation