Carolina watchman. [volume] (Salisbury, N.C.) 1871-1937, 1914-10-07
Wilson's Message 10 Rome
Does our Government Acknowledge Tem-
poraI Power of the Papacy.


From the Western Recorder.
President Wilson through Sec.
retary Bryan, sent the following
selegram to the Vatican: 1.-The
President desires to express his
sense of the great loss the Chris
t an world has sustained in the
death of His Holiness Plus X
By his pure and gentle character,
his unaffected plety. and his broad
and thcughstul sympathy with
his fellowmeu, he adorned his
~xalted station and attracted to
himself the affecionate regard all
all who felt his world wide influ.
ence."
This leads US to ask why should
our President teel called upon to
send such a message? Did he
send ths message as an expression
of his own fellings. or did he send
1t as the representative of a Pro
tessant nation? We have not
heard Of the President sci ding
massage Of sympathy for our gov
ernmeut upon the death of any
prominent man IN any other de-
uomination. Is is customary, to
be sure, for officials of one govern
ment to send such messages to
another govern ment, but we are
not aware that the Pope repre-
sented any particular government
or power. though this message of
sym pathy would indicate shat the
Pope represents temporal power
By addressing his message to
the Vatican, and not the ruler of
Italy, he cleary commits our gov
ernment to an acknowledgment
of the papal pretension TO spirit
ual and temporal authority. It
must be remem bered that the mes
sage was not sent from ons indi-
vidual to another, but from the
representative of our government
to the Vatican. 1t would have
been better had the message been
to the surviving sisters.
We should like for the President
to tell US just what connection
our government has with the Va.
bican that makes it necessary for
our Presideut to acknowledg, the
death of a pope. Several spirit.
ual celebrities have passed away
during the present administra-
ton, yet we havo not heard of
the President sending message
Of sympathy to the demo nina
SIC ns to which they belonged,
savs in the present instance.
Our government is not suppos.
ID to havs any relation, official
r otherwise, with the VatioaL
though from time to time, our
Presidents will iuslst on coquet.
ing with ecclesiastical cormor.
ant.
The Language used ir the mes.
sage is about as Objectionable as
the fact of sending it.
The President AYERS that the Pope
adorned his exalted station )"
These words would seem to imply
an endorse ment of the Vatican as
q piritual and political institu-
tion Doee cur President believe
the Pope occupies al "exalted
position
We must also deny that the
Christian world has sustained any
'grsat loss." as assorted by Presi.
dent Wilson. We would imagine
that the President would have
great difficulty in specifically
stating this "great loss." Possi-
bly, Mr. Tumulty might be able
to shed some light on the subject.
We may also be pardoned far
questioning the alleged "broad
and thoughtful sympathy" Of
Plus x. For while it is probable
thas he was more sympathetic
than many Of the predecessors,
this argues but little for the ex.
tent or quality of his sympathy
It is a sad fact that his sympa
thles were confined to the ranks
Of Rcmanism. In the present
conflict he constantly
pra yed for the success of the Aus
trian arms, AID for no other
reason than that the Austrians
we're Romaniste. 1t will be re.
called in this connection that the
papal blessing was given the
Spanish arms, in the Spanish.
American war. In spite of this