The Washington herald., 1913-11-19
MASS DECLARED
NOT OFFICIAL
Protestant Clergy Take Up
Alleged Statements IN
Catholic Publications.
ADOPT RESOLUTIONS
Mgr. Russell Says Only Purpose Of
Thanksgiving Celebration Is to
Foster Friendly Sentiments.

/ MISREPRESENTATION in Catholic publica-
tions of the nature Of the Pan-American
mass to be held at st. Patrick's Church
Thanksgiving morning is charged in
set OF resolutions prepared by Rev.
Randolph H. McKim. rector Of the
Church Of the Epiphany, that have been
indorsed by clergy OF several Protestant
denominations here
There is no intention. Rev. DR.. McKim
said last night. to criticise the President
for his reported intention Of attending
the mass Rev. DR.. McKim stated that
certain publications have seemed to inn
ply that the THANKSGIVING mass at st.
Patrick's Church Is the offlcial celebra-
ton.
ANY desire to lead persons to the belief
that the "officiaT' Thanksgiving service
is held each year at 81. Patrick's Church
was denied, following publication Of the
resolutions by Mgr. William T. Russell.
pastor OF st. Patrick's.
Purpose of Celebration.
q am very sorry that exception Is
taken by any one, especially by ministers
of the Gospel. to a celebration which has
for its object peace and good will to
n,
Of the Pan-American celebration is to
bring together prominent men Of the
American republics for the purpose of
fostering friendly sentiments among
them. /: is not a diplomatic celebration;
neither is it official
81 am not responsible for the views ex-
pressed by newspapers in regard 10 the
celebration. There Is no Roman claim
that this celebration Is now the official
tional Capital There is no such thing
as national Thanksgiving celebration
The celebration is. on the contrary. an
occasion when the reserve Of diplomats
and official life may be cast on. when
men may meet as friends.
President Taft saw the good that
would result from such celebration,
and always encouraged me by his pres
ence.
AT the first celebration the Secretary
of State, Mr.. Knox, asked me at the
dinner TO make the celebration annual.
The following year the dean Of the
LatIn-American diplomatic corps, Mr.. de
La Barra. reiterated the request.
- cannot understand why exception
should be taken to the Presidents at
tending services in a Catholic church,
any more than to his attending services
in any denomination to which Ne does
not belong He has attended services,
as he has a perfect right TO do. IL he
wishes, in other churches than his own,
and 1 am not aware that any one pre-
sumed to find fault with his action
because he is President OF the United
States. Mr.. Wilson does not forfeit the
right guaranteed him by the Constitution
to worship God as he sees hit. L cannot
understand how men who profess to
preach peace should go so far to stir up
strife as to dictate even to the President
of the United States his mode Of wor-
ship. and try to prevent him from en-
joying the right OF the poorest American
citizen"
Resolutions Are Approved.
The resolutions prepared by the Rev. DR..
McKim have been approved by members
OF the Episcopal Lutheran, Baptist. and
Disciple churches. They will be consid-
cred, and. II is expected, approved at
meeting of Presbyterian clergymen.
In part, the resolutions follow:
For the last three or four years there
has been celebrated in St Patrick's
Church, in this city, on Thanksgiving
Day a solemn high mass. at which the
President of the United States and some
members of his Cabinet. the Chief Justice
and several other Justices of the Su-
preme Court, with a number OF Senators
and members of Congress, have attended
as the guests of honor.
This service Is now called In the pub
lie press the official celebration OF
Thanksgiving Day. and is described In
the bulletin Of the Pan-American repub-
lies as having an official character. and
every effort is made by the Roman hier-
archy to give this Roman mass the color
of an official function-as II It were gen.
and as II the President and his Cabinet
by their presence wished 1t to be SO rec
ognized (Which we are sure Is not the
case).
"one of the organs of the Roman Cath
olic press (the Catholic Citizen OF Mil
waukee) states that the Pan-American
Thanksgiving Day high mass is now a
permanent institution at the National
Capital and says further, One day in
the year in which the Bountiful Giver o.
all good things is acknowledged by the
nation, as a nation-this expression Of
gratitude is made in a Catholic Church,
around a Catholic altar, by means of the
one Catholic worship that is worthy of
God, the sacrifice of the mass
Attendance of President.
The attendance of our Chief Magistrate
and members of his Cabinet not once,
but year after year, for three or four
years, has been made use of to give color
to the Roman claim that this service Is
now the oficial celebration OF Thanksgiv-
ing Day in our National Capital
This fact has been understood. both in
the United States and In foreign coun-
tries, to give the Roman Catholic Church
a prestige and a prominence over all 9TH
er churches, and has even been believed
by people in Brazil and in Italy to show
that America is not Protestant, but a
Roman Catholic country.
I'VE protest against the presumption
Of the Roman Catholic press in putting
forward the claims that the Roman mass
is the official celebration of Thanksgiving
Day in the Capital of the Republic.
We protest against the attempt to con-
vert our national Thanksgiving Day into
Roman Catholic festival, in a service
entirely out Of harmony with the history
Of the genius of our country and the
spirit and purpose of the day.
I'VE desire to give voice to the wide
spread feeling of indignation among the
millions Of Protestants in America against
the efforts of the Roman press and the
Roman hierarchy to exploit the attend
ance Of our Chief Magistrate and some
of his Cabinet (which we are convinced
has only been intended as an act of
courtesy and good Wild for the purpose of
glorifying the Roman Catholic Church
and giving this service an officIaI char
acter, which It does not and cannot