The Irish standard., 1908-11-14

cf them. The Puritan distrustcd the
Anglican: he frankly hated the Cath
olic. The Puritan's love may have
been gloomy sentiment. but when
ho hated he hated cordially.
Now, it is not natural for man
to hate without cause. What, then,
was the cause Of this animosity which
the mere mention OF the Cathnlie
aroused in this man who certainly
feared God and tried in his own way
to keep His commandments? The cx-
planation is simple. The Puritan
had been persistently taught ny his
own sacred prophets, their grim and
stern preachers, welding almost an
absolute authority, that the Pope was
anti Christ and that the Mass was
abominable idolatry. This was open
ly preached from the pulpit as the
message of God. The texts were ad-
duced as proofs of it by their solern
divines, and the books, whose authors
were no mean theologians of tne!r sys-
tenn, covered pages on this Interesting
thesis. Here is beginning. We
must delve deeper into history to find
how this concept grew.
The schism between England and
Rome, the Spanish Armada, the hap.
less reign Of Mary Turcr, the bitter
one for Catholics OF Elizabeth,' the
fierce struggles of the Stuhrts-all
these various and prolonged conflicts
between the old religion of England
and the new, with the inevitable er1-
bittering Of party against party, each
thinking oftentimes NOR, of pollti.a!
ascendency than Of anv religious ad-
vantage; all these baneful influences
oPsned wider and wider tho fatal
breach. At last under Cromwell,
soldier ruler and prophet all in cne.
the common people Of England, from
whom our Puritans sprang accepting
as gospel truth the spes ii which was
in reality only the he:"s figurative
language Of bitter Political strife.
came sincerely to believe that Rome
was Babylon and the Papist an arch
fiend Of treachery and conspiracy.
Today honest historians on both
sides are tracing the forgeries which
passed at the time as genuine. Titus
Oates has been revealed in clear col"
oring and the Gunpowder Plot lucidly
put In it's true light. not by Catholic
apologists, but by Protestant i,npar-
tial students of real mist Dry, and not
by conners Of friction posing as un-
1iased historians. But all this is
recently. 1t Is only now that the
shole truth may be known by all.
The New England Puritan narrow of
mind and limited in education, was
not entirely to blame il he accepted
the current and seemingly plausible
view. All the more so that even
new with all the proofs come to
light. and the documentary evidence
discovered by Protestant scholars at
hand, even today these same fables
are repeated by fairly wcll-rcaa men
and honestly believed BY the ignorant,
who in their narrow environment have
slender means Of learning the latest
results of scientific research.
: 1t is perfectly safe to say not ono
In one hundred thousand who by
tabled story have accepted ready-mede
an antipathy to the ChHrch have over
taken the slightest pairs t, investi-
gate the truth for themsclvcs Such
even among fairly enlightened men is
the force Of prejudice. So what the
Catholic seemed in the mind " tine
Puritan was somewhat natural, and.
seeing him as he did. he closed his
heart to him and his kindred. He
was to be exiled first if caught, and
upon returning he was L, be hanged.
And yet the Catholic opened the
door Of this stern euery of his snd
ertered-entered and took his place,
and stayed. His lodging was far from
comfortable, for he came uninvitcd
and unwelcome. He we'll knew the
which followed him-well
realized the antipathy which s,lrround-
ed him. 1t was double antipathy.
The Puritan had for the Catholic of
any country little love- For the
French and Irish Catholic there was
the added ennity OF race And yet
1t was precisely the French and Irish
Catholic who knocked at his d,or, or,
rather, entered silently. fearing 70 an
nounce his advent. He was a hunted
exile this Irishman, poor child of a
wronged nation. The sneer and the
frown were no new things for him.
He had lost heavily in the fortunes
of war, but he knew his nations history
and loved even more than lis life o.
his fortunes the faith OF his fathers.
He had felt the bitterness of persccu-