The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1908-09-26
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE.
Tae Chief is rot responsible for
views expressed by correspondents.
fAs 10 Catholicism


headed "Religious COMMENT has
come to our knowledge. We trust you
will consider US still in time to venture
some criticisms upon the gentleman's
views derogabory to Christianity in
general and TO the Catholic church in
particular. Mr.. Arceneaux seems to
consider that Cardinal Gibbons is
secretly in pursuit of union between
church and state in this country. Let
the gentleman rest easy. There Is one
preliminary to union between church
and state, in more modern days, to
which Catholics in this land object
and which they will not tolerate. That
preliminary is union between the state
and all of the church Is property, re-
ligious, educational and charitable;
In the same fashion as the lion is
united TO the lamb, when the former
has made meal for the latter. The
second step is the allowance by the
state to the church, by way of stipends,
of some part only of what the interest
should be on the value of the stolen
properly; this, however, on the con-
dition OF large measure of state con.
troll over ecclesiastical affairs. Your
CORES pendent bears French name;
he ought TO know the history of the
French concordats.
The gentleman presents list OF
questions: about the massacre on ST.
Bertholomew's Day; the present at
titude OF the French government to-
wards the church; the crusades against
Culdees and Waldenses. All of these
events Mr.. Arceneaux sets down as
the results of union between church
and state. The gentleman should read
history more carefully, before present
ing himself as an enlightener. He
speaks Of "bloody crusades in the
Alps, when the w aldenses and Culdees
were torn at the rack, etc. Now any
popular encyclopedia would have in
formed him that the Culdees were not
religious sect; that they were merely q
Catholic religious fraternity; that they
were located in Ireland, Scotland and
Wales, aud not in the Alps; that they
never suffered from any crusade; were
not torn upon racks, etc.
As TO ST. Bartholomew'sD Day, fright
full as It was, the accounts of certain
Protestant and skeptic authorities
grossly eAaggerate the losses. Further
more, the sufferers were not .spoor
Huguenots, II by such expression 1t
is meant to intimate that they were all
harmless and inoffenaive citizens. His
tory shows that the followers of Cend6
and Co1igny were violent and sangui-
nary, on occasions when it was in
their power to Cypress Catholics.
Candid historians are agreed that
this dreadful affair was conceived and
executed by Charles TX, king of
France, and Catherine de Medicis, his
mother, on their own responsibility;
and that neither of these had any more
VI NAy 1O4ASAO AOGp 0plK4s huGA 4hF0 C&tSs
The Catholic church is no more re-
sponsible for the massacre in question
than she is for the Stcilian Vespers,
or the massacre of Glencoe.
Mr.. Arceneaux speaks of the Wal
denses, with the Cuidees, as God-fear-
ing men, women and children. We
prefer TO the gentleman's opinion on
this subject, that of Humphrey j. Des-
mond, who, in his work aMooted
Questions of History p. 90, has this
to say concerning these sectaries:
"The Waldenses, who were also
termed Vaudois and Poor Men of |
Lyons, were followers of Peter w Waldo,
a merchant of Lyon. -
In teaching that malefactors ought not
to be condemned, but should be al.
lowed to go at large after the manner |
of the tares described IN the parable
The Waldenses came into conflict with |
the civil power. They denounced oaths
as. sinful and advocated Communism. |
They thought the clergy ought to own
no property. Ultimately some of them
drifted into the immoral and pagan
practices of the Albigenses. !"
What does Mr.. Arceneaux mean,
when he says: Yet this alleged divine
Henry VIII. was at the time official |
head of the church of Christ, and had |
confidential cardinals at his CON-
mand. Does he mean that, prior to |
Rome's refusal to sanction q divorce
from his lawful wife, Henry disowned
spiritual allegiance to the Pope? If he
does mean to say this, the statement is |
simply ridiculous.
The following wild announcement
and wholesale libsl is startling: 1.-THE
shepherds have allowed the raging |
beast Of greed to take possession of
their better selves. And upon the
flock, Gods poor people, the shep-
herds satisfy their lust
The writer has been thrown in con.
tact with numerous Catholic prelates
and priests 10 various parts of the
United States and in Canada. If Mr..
Arceneaux's description be, to his own
PERSONAL knowlege, correct. the priests
and prelates he has been in contact
with must have been of very different
sort from the ones whom the writer of
this present communication has had
the honor OF meeting and knowing.
SOCIETY or THE HOLY SPIRIT.