The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1911-04-05
AT the Catholic Mission and
Questions Are An
SWered.

Catholic church was preached las
Ieyening by Father Hayden. Tn,
burden OF the discourse was the say.
ling of Scripture, Remember tn,
last end and thou shalt never sin.
Numerous questions are placed II
the box nightly.
Among those answered last even.
ling were the following:
Prayer and Confession.
Question-christ said in Math,
6-6, When thon prayest enter into
thy closet. j. and pray to thy
Father in secret. j.. and He win re-
ward thee; and also James 5-16:
Confess your faults one to an
fother." Why do you ignore these
tnjuncttons, and make your confes-
sions to priest? fail to find any
Scripture sanctioning even the priest
hood, much less this kind of con-
fession.
Answer-You are evidently one OF
that rather large class OF men who
make the fatal mistake of hanging
onto one or two texts of Scripture,
building their own little religion
upon it, and ignoring all the rest.
Your text on prayer is plainly there
in the Bible;nthat is true, but from
the contest it is plain that what
Christ was protesting against was
that pride and se1f-conceit of the
Pharisees, loved to stand and pray
in the synagogues and corners OF
the street that they may be seen by
men land receive their praises. I"
Christ had rot the slightest inten-
ton of conGemning devout and hum
BILE public prayer.
las regards your second reference,
did 1t ever occur to you that the
zone to another" of st. James might
refer to the duly ordained priests or
ministers of the church referred
just before in VIVA? But If you
will not grant this, We have no OBJ
lection to people confessing their
sins to one another, provided there
is no scandal given. we have al
number Of instances in which Catho.
lies have done SO when they were
dying and there was no priest to be
had. They did 1t not because they
thought an ordinary person had any
dbsolving power. but because they
thought that 10y doing so their sor-
rcw for sin would be intensified, and
for the very relief there is in telling
some one.
Now, as you are lover OF Sacred
Scripture. and are willins to take
Christ at His word, allow me to ask
you to read carefully John 2O:19-24.
As the Father has sent me 4 also
sent you," for the same purpose;
with the same powers, with which
the father sent me into the world, Il
now send you. Go, continue my
work. Do what have done. Did
not Jesus forgive sin?
lBut Jesus 'ibreathes" upon them
and says, Receive We the Holy
Ghost" What are those words
which he is about to speak to them?
What the power HE is about to con-
fer upon them? Can We imagine
that after all this solemnity, after
this special infusion of the Holy
Spirit, now before the time, Before
the baptism by the Spirit Of Pente-
cost, the words that He will speak
to them. the power He will confer
upon them, will be forever unintelll-
grbie? Deny that He gave the Apos-
ties power to pass judicial iudg-
ment upon the sinner, a judgment
which He will hold in heaven, and
His words are utterly unintelligible.
Admit confession and they are clear
as words can be made: Whose
sins you shall forgive, they are for
given them; whose sins you shah
retain, they are retained The
Apostles and their successors in the
Christian ministry could not exer-
else this judicial function unless
confession be made by the sinner.
Catholics, then claim that in addi-
ton to fervent repentance Christ
has laid down as condition for
pardon of sin that the penitent
should submit himself to his min
lister here on earth. receive from
him the sentence of dissolution, and
Tile pied red Himself to hold this
sentence good in heaven.
You fail to find. any Scripture
sanction for the priesthood? This
shows that you are very poor stu
dent of the Holy Scripture. l have
slight suspicion that you do not