The Irish standard., 1905-07-08

and [ will go further and say for the
maintenance of the religion of our
Lord in this world-as the Irish race.
And believe that the work of the
Irish race in that great cause has not
been properly appreciated. We have
scattered throughout the world, and
wherever we have scattered we have
carried the teaching of the Catholic
Church and the Christian Faith; anG
to-day, in America, in Canada, in Great
Britain itself, and in Australia and
New Zealand, whatever there is of
Catholicity is Irish Catholicity. And
I don't believe that there is any ma
tion, including France, which used to
be called the eldest child of the
Church-there is no nation of the
world on which the future of the Cath.
clio religion depends so mich as upon
the Irish race.
But, have the Irish race got the full
recognition for that? dent believe
they have; and think one of the
greatest of Catholic interests is to
bring home to all who take an interest
in the future of the Catholic religion
the fact that this Irish race, which has
been prosecuted, and hunted, and
treated with scant courtesy from some
quarters where better things might be
expected, is really the mainstay of the
Catholic Church Of the world to-day.
Therefore, hold. and have always
held since first began to think over
these matters, that one of the greatest
interests of Catholicity in the whole of
the world-and am speaking now not
from the point of view of Catholic in.
terests in Ireland alone-is the res.
toration to this motherland of the
greatest Catholic race now existing in
the world of her National rights and
her National prosperity.
We Irish Catholics have, l believe,
an enormous mission, a great mission,
and when I say we Irish Catholics
include all Irish Nationalists, Protest.
ants as we'll as Catholics, because we
Catholic Irish Nationalists have suf.
fered from malignant persecution un-
paralleled, suppose, in the history
of any other nation; and, as has often
been said, and truly said, with regard
to nations, as we'll as individuals. we
often learn wisdom from persecution.
Now, what is the lesson we have
learned or ought to have learned
from persecution? It is this that
you cannot build up any perma.
nent prosperity or National greatness
on basis of intolerance, narrow-mind-
edness, or persecution.
And, therefore, I say, one of the
great missions, to my mind, before
Irish Nationalism, and especially be.
fore Catholic Irish Nationalism, is to
set up before the world pattern and
example of broad-minded liberation
for every religious creed. 1t is in
that that our greatest strength lies.
True, it is, that the Penal Laws have
been repealed-repealed, might al.
most say, at the point of the bayonet-
because we have never got any con.
cession except by hard fighting-the
Penal Laws have been repealed; some
of the most CALLING restrictions under
which our ancestors suffered have
been done away with; but in spite of
that the spirit of the Penal Laws is
as much alive to-day as hundred
years ago, and so far as it is possible
and it is possible to very large ex.
tent, as you know only too well in
Belfast-there is spirit of persecu-
tion, of tolerance and exclusion, and
a determination to keep within the
limit of narrow Ascendancy faction
| every position of influence, of emolu-
| ment, and of power in Ireland, just as
strong as that which existed in the
l worst days of the Penal Laws.
We desire 10 destroy that system by
substituting for it broad-minded,
tolerant system ot government by the
people for the people In this land; and
we will never be a party, at least.
for my part, will never be party to