New-York tribune., 1909-01-30
Literary Neavs and Criticism:

tude: have resOrted TO the principle OF Suffrage
for the establishment of a truth. as II truth
could be made the matter Of a vote or oe de>
pendent mere brute predominance But
Miss Petre inquiries, ''if the Church exists Tor
her children and not her children for the
Church, then why should she ask OF them any
thing but proof that they love and need her!
The sanctions of prophecy, like Imperfect gem
eralizations. are inexpensive and inferior SUD-
stitutes for certainty. but if the student or Con-
tinental Modernism feels justified in making
predictions about M Loisy's little book e9uel-
ques Lettres" then the reader Of Father Tyr
reIrs 'Medievalism" may venture to think that
the English priests reply to Cardinal Mercler
may to its own day stand forth impressive IN a
degree scarcely less powerful than did New
mans Apologize pro vita sua' to generatioh
now passed away. Before fncurring the oisap
proval of the Holy See Father George TyrreIi
had been a helper Of many in the HE OF Ihe
soul. and now prescribed priest he tncreas-
fnela engages the imagination OF his reno"
counirvmen Since at the present moment IT Is
unlawful for the faithful to speak in favor OF
the Modernists Father Tyrrell may be SAID 10
be the object of widespread retcent regard
Cardinal Mercier in his Lenten Pastoral thought
At to make mention of 'the English priest ISi-
rell' as representative of that Modernism from
been free. Answering the Belgian Pr1mate'
Father Tyrrell finds an antithesis to Modernism
in a preoccupation of the reigning orthodoxy
which he feels should be called Medievalisrn
He declares himself opposed 10 indivlduals1h'
whether IL be Protestant or Ultramontane' anu
Acknowledges the Importance for all men Oh
some objective rule of faith. At present thefe
;s the RibIe for Protestants. the Church includ-
ing the Pope for Catholics and the Pope exclud-
ing the Church for Ultramontanes. Under the
existing regime to obey the Pope and to ask
no questions is the whole of religion not ohly
for laynen but for priests and bishops. Con-
sderng the repressive measures OF the encSc
cal il is little wonder. says Father Tyrren, II
all that is earnest and generous and Chrlstiah
among the younger clergy is ready for revolt
Yet he cannot believe that from world embrac-
ing religion as wide as the heart Of Christ the
Church must shrivel herself up TO wasplsh
sect glorying as none other in her rigldity ana
exclusiveness. He says
My faith in the Church is. in its very different
way. blind your own 1t is part OF my lsI,iI an
nrate IN Tbe verv word Gaolic is music my
END sms Of him Who died for
the whole orbis terrarum. II the Roman Churcn
sectarian spirit that long oppressed her sle
cannot deny her fundamental principles; 6eca9se tds
body of corporate Christian experience; for the the
distant ideal Of a CathoIlc rellsioh.
ON the questions supposed 10 be involved
Rome has already spoken, in the Syllabus OF
Theological Errors and I'm more than one en-
cvclical letter. If these pronouncements have
availed 20 separate truth from error, 10 Uhl"is'
heavens white from the yellow fare OF the
worlds gross torch.' their work is done. But
+he question is being asked, what If they are
deemed a sheer travesty of opinions held by the
Catholic scholars in question and an authentlc
evidence that the Roman bureaucracy has set its
foot upon the light? In that their future
usefulness might come to be appreciated best by
the heretics against whom the pontifical censures
have been directed. However mistaken the
tenets Of the priests and laymen on whom the
Holy Father has conferred the opprobrium OF
Nodernists their temper is usually admirable
Catholics they are. from first to last with never
an inclination toward the outer void OF dissent
While Professionalism with its naked severity
and relentless ratonalism' is not TO their MIND
their ideal is the Church so Catholic as to make
Professionalism unnecessary. In their effort tow
ard that end they will be observed with deep IN
terest by all Protestants and Anglo-Catholcs
who may recognize the prerogative OF the
Church of Rome 10 be the centre of a reformed,
and If not reunited. at least federated and NUT
uaIiv intelligent Chrstendom" Admitting the
possibility that in the end Of the day the Mod
ernist rising may be only fash in the pan, IL
would not be ingenious to ignore the range OF
its present influence. Whatever their limita-
tions or the disabilities imposed upon them, these
men have the sustaining sense of something
coming on the world a confidence that the
Church as she should be is the Church that will
he and in their -schismatc intention, thefr
self-denying ardor and patient human sympa-
thies may be discovered the hidings of their
power.