The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1905-03-04
WHY A CATHOLIC
Father Sherman, S. j., Reasons
With Non Catholics.
He Lectures Before An Audience
Of 1000 People.

Of 1000 People.
Before an audience of at least two
thousand non-Catholics, in Chicago,
the well known Jesuit, Father Thomas
Il. Sherman, son of General Sherman,
delivered the following interesting
lecture on the subject: "Why I am a
Catholic"
"Our Lord established a church, not
churches, and said that he that will
not hear the church, let him be to thee
as the heather and publican He
compared His church to one fold with
one shepherd. He speaks of it as His
body, and in many passages as one,
as His Father and He are one; and
the night before He prayed for His
people that they might be one in like
manner, in ORDER as He said, that the
world might believe that the Father
mad sent Him.
The Church Of Christ to be one
must have unity of government One
central government is essential to the
unity of the family, the state and the
nation, so also with the church Of
Christ. In what church do we find
such government as makes for unity
with perfect oneness? The Pope, the
Bishop of Bishops, is the successor Of
st. Peter, to whom Christ gave the
keys, saying: ''Thou art Peter, and
upon this rock 1 will build My
church," Without such headship there
is no unity even feasible. In this mark
of the church of Christ the Catholic
church has no rival in the field. With
out such unity no two of us would
agree, let alone hundreds of millions.
'"The true church must have but one
faith, one creed. We either believe a
doctrine or we do not. We must have
an infallible means of knowing what
God said and what He meant. God
cannot change. There can be an evolu-
ton of doctrine from within, there
can be no novelty, no accretion from
without There can be no reformation
of the creed or Of Gods message. Such
an idea is absurd on it's face. There
cannot be creed for the first century
differing from that of the nineteenth.
What church has but one creed?
Look at the history of the past three
hundred years, and even now look at
what is taking place among the sects.
In this congregation Of this church
unity of faith exists. 1t does likewise
among the 25O,OOO,OOO Catholics Of
the world. On the Incarnation and
Redemption, on the glories of Mary,
on the seven sacraments and on pur-
gatory and hell there is but one faith
among them. What do you see out
side the fold? Where can you find
five men outside the fold who agree
in doctrine? Some say Christ is God,
others deny His divinity. Some say
baptism is essential, others that it is
not But those Of the one faith cannot
deliberately deny any defined dogma
without ceasing to belong to the
church. They cease to be Catholics,
and the church does not claim them.
''The true Church of Christ must
have unity of worship. Sacrifice has
been the form of worship since the
dawn of the race. Cain and Abel Of
fered sacrifice. From their day to
this there never has been real re-
ligion that had not sacrifice. One
Christian church has a sacrifice, an
altar and priesthood. Take away
the sacrifice from the altar and there
is no need of this building.
"The church of Jesus Christ must
have unity of government, of faith
and Of worship, and I must therefore
be Catholic in order to keep my rea-
son and my faith.
"Catholicity is also mark of the
true church of Christ Catholic is the
proudest name in the world. For the
past nineteen hundred years every I'M
believer has tried to take that name,
but without avail. What st. Angus
tine said fifteen hundred years ago we
can echo today. Others may pretend
to be Catholics, but the world knows
what church is the Catholic church.
a generation ago we We're twitted
with being Catholics by those who
now try to pretend they are Catholics.
Where is the church that is universal?
The church that is known all over the
world is Catholic"
Here Father Sherman referred to
finding a Catholic church and no other
in every village in the Philippines. and
paid a tribute to the much abused
friars He also quoted an American
general as saying that certain large
church in Chicago would he considered
small in the Philippines. What church,
lie asks. is ut home in all the world :
We all know what one. It's univer-
salty is not of an hour nor of a day,
but of nineteen centuries.
Let me ask my Methodist friends
did John Wesley die OH the cross for
YOU: Was the church of Christ not
founded until about two hundred years
ago in England. and has it not eX.
tended much beyond England and
America? Was John Wesley infall.