The Irish standard., 1909-04-10

do these two expressions utterly fail to
! convey their intended meaning, but
there are unfortunately still reople
, who use them deliberately in con-
tenptuous sense. Certain it Is they
are resented by Roman Catholics as
offensive and meaningless. That stur-
dy old Anglican, the late DR.. F. G. Lee
thus defines tRomanist' in his Gloss
airy of Liturgical Terms:
"a vulgar word, used chiefly ty the
uneducated to designate a member Of
the ancient and venerable Church of
Rome The Century Dictionary Cy-
clopedia' indicates that these terms
are used in an invidious sense and
chiefly (solely) by opponents of the
Catholic Church"
Let us now examine a little more
closely the meaning of the adjective
Roman" says the Rev. DR.. Faa Di
Bruno:
Seeing that it is useless to deprive
us of this mark of Catholicity. which
throughout all ages distinguishes the
true Church of God, they endeavor to
weaken the force of it by qualifying
it and saying: We grant that you are
Catholics, but you are not simply Cath
olics, you are Roman Catholics They
want thus to insinuate that there are
many sorts of Catholics-Koman,
Greek, Anglican, Russian, ana so forth
and that the word Roman is q speci-
flying term. They thus hope to get a
place in the Church Catholic and to
share with us this luminous mark of
Catholicity" .
But the adjective Roman is not a
mere specifying term, but an smpli-
flying word adding one attribute as a
fuller notion. This will oe made plain
by an illustration:
IF to the expression English Do
minion one were to add Queens Eng
lish Dominion, the Queens would not
indicate that there are different kinds
Of English nominions, but would only
express more fully the same thing,
/, adding notion which is already sup.
lposed in the former expression. Thus
/ the word Roman does not limit the
word Catholic. nut completes It, dA
, claring more: expressly that which ie
already supposed in the word Catho-
lie, namely. that the Catholic Church
has its center in Rome"
The contradiction, therefore, which
some Professionals profess to ses in the
words Roman Catholic Church. ex-
lists not in the expression as accepted
by mankind, but only In the mind OF
the Anglican who. regards himself as
a variety Of the same genus "Catho-
lic.''
| But Catholics are Roman, not b.
cause they are residents or citizens OF
Rome, or because they are Italians, but
because Rome is the center and the
Bishop Of Rome is the visible head OF
Catholicity, and no one is entitled to
be called Catholic unless he Is in COM
munion with the See Of Rome
Whether, therefore, a Catholic be an
Icelander. or a Hottentot, an American
or q Chinese, an Italian or an Indian
he is still Roman Catholic--a Follow
er of that universal religion which has
its headquarters in Rome. And just
as in the days of ancient Rome, but In
a better and wider sense, we have es-
tablished among us throughout the
world universal nationality Of all
tongues and nations, each member OF
whom may claim the proud distinction
of the Caesars "Civis Romanus Sum-
am. Roman citizen! Abolish Rome
: from the pages of history. and you
abolish Christianity. Rome is aloue
the center of unity. It is the hub OF
+, the wheel of Catholicity.
English Catholic" again. is but an.
other name for English Roman Cath.
Ollie, that is a self-contradictton In
terms, signifying as it does nation
altty and yet a universality-a limited
particular, and yet an unlimited gen.
eral. insomuch that Catholic means
that the Church has the whole earth
for her mission, but Anglican, that l,
has only portion. AS a matter of fact
the whole world decides accordingly.
| "Securus judicat orbis tsrral UNI, >
ETC.. says st. Augustine to the Dona.
fists. 1.-THE whole world Judges, with.
out the least fear of mistake. that
they are in the wrong, who in any
place separate themselves from the
whole world" ,
We see, therefore. that the sdjec.
tive Roman" is really come to oe the
tombstone Of Catholicity. III calling
the Church Roman" it is not by. way
of contrast to Protestant Episcopal
, to English" to Methodist" to "An-