Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1913-04-05
Church Given Liberty to Emerge
From Darkness of the
CatacOmbs.
A Jubilee Which Will Extend
Throughout the Entire
World.
OPENED LAST SUNDAY IN ROME

Last Sunday there opened in the
Eternal City of Rome the first of a
series of magnificeH religious fetes,
which our Holy Father Pope Plus X.
has proclaimed in commemoration OF
the sixteenth hundredth anniversary
of the promulgation of the famous
Edict of Constantine, whereby the
church was granted liberty to
emerge from the darkness of the
catacombs, whence she had unceas-
ingly sent forth her missionaries to
spread the light of truth and win the
martyrs crown, unto this glorious
day, when the dark clouds we're dis
persed and radiant and beautiful she
took the place which was to be hers
forevermore as the great, central
living fact of history and the ever
lasting guide of the human race.
This celebration, the Morning Star
says. commentaries that day when
the pagan ruler Constantine came to
the very gates of Rome, after crush
ing the army of it's ruler Maxentius;
he entered the city bearing not the
standard which for ages had been
the herald of his people, but new
banner which bore upon it the Cross
of Christ, and the inscription, I'm
this sign shalt thou conquer" Why
this symbol of victory? Why this
exaltation of the cross, which hither-
to had been the sign of shame and
ignomy, and whose display meant
the persecution and death of the
bearer. We all know the beautiful
story of Constantine, and how, on
the eve of battle, this sign of the
cross appeared to him radiant in the
heavens with the words blazoned in
letters Of light, ''In This Sign con-
quer." The glorious victory followed
in the battle of the Mivian Bridge.
upon its adoption as his battle flag
-bystAen0bla ,GonstantinesTh Therefore
did this great Emperor in thanksgiv-
ing to the God of the ~ChffstiansS
enter the city of the Caesars with
this sign as his banner. Therefore
did he issue that proclamation which
guaranteed to the struggling Church
OF Christ freedom to grow and
prosper.
From the darkness and gloom of
the catacombs the church emerged
and began at once to proclaim to the
furthermost ends of the then known
earth the truth of the living God.
The influence of Christianity upon
the pagan mind became more and
more marked Especially did it show
forth in the life of the Emperor,
who reared his children in the Cath
olic faith, invited the Bishops of the
church to his table and conferences,
promoted the erection of the great
Basilica of st. Peter, recognized ana
reverenced the authority of the Su-
preme Pontiff, and in the end died
glorifying the name of Jesus Christ.
The church failed not in her glorious
mission. She became the leader and
eivilizer of nations. She became the
promoter of art and science. She led
the millions wandering in the dark
ness of ignorance into the light of
the MONDAY sun. She erected great
Cathedrals and churches and uni
versities, to which she brought the
people, whom she taught the arts OF
civilization and the knowledge OF
God. She was the one tree spread
ing its majestic branches, and under
II every cline and every people came
to find peace, rest and food for the
mind and heart and soul.
Thus 1t was when the so-called
Reformation came. and Protestant
ism lifted its head, after thirteen
hundred years of struggle and effort
on the part of the church to bring
the people to the knowledge Of God
and the freedom, prosperity and civ
ilization and education which they
enjoyed. Then, as the great historian
Macauley says. speaking of the dawn
of Professionalism, knowledge, like
an ungrateful stepdaughter, turned
around and accused her mother of
depriving her of bread"
We will not recall here all the
evils that so-called Reformation has
wrought; how its fruits today are
shown in the loss of faith in God by
countless millions whom II led into
heresy, then into atheism and agnos-
ticism. Today we recall the glorious
fact of the freedom of the church.
Today We turn the pages of history
and recall all that the church has
done for the world. Today we see
that church triumphant, and In the
great festivities which now begin in
the ancient city of the Caesars,
where ST. Peter and his successors
fixed the seat OF government Of the
church, the present illustrious suc-
cessor of that long unbroken chain
of POntiffs has opened the memoir
able commemOration In the procla-
nation OF a jubilee which will
extend to the entire world.