Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1914-05-18

set His promise. Upon this rock
will build my church, and the gates
of hell shall not prevail against it..
In the light of this promise, 1 see
clearly that the Catholic Church alone
has a right to my allegiance, and
Professionalism has no valid excuse to
offer In justification of Its existence.
1t is practically built on the assertion
that Christ did not keep His promise.
But some one will say to me,
You surely must admit that there
have been a great number OF very
bad men in your church, even In It's
high places, filling the most impor-
tant and sacred Offices. Surely then
there was reason for a reformation
In the sixteenth century, Let us, for
the sake of avoiding useless argu-
ment, grant that all the wild state
ments ever made by prejudiced his
torians about sixteenth century cor
ruption, are true. Even in such a
case there would be no reason for the
invention of Professionalism. Reform
would be needed and justified-a boon
no matter what it cost in the shape
of human treasure, suffering or blood
All this is true, but it does not pave
the way for Professionalism, which IS
a very different thing from reform.
Church Built on Rock.
1.-THE Catholic view of the sins
which are committed even by those
who hold positions of authority, trust
and honor in the church is sensible
and in perfect accord with the
prophesies of our Lord that scandals
should come. Christ did not build
His church on the shifting sands of
humanity, but upon a rock, whose
stability He guaranteed and effects.
He foresaw all the human frailty and
sin Of His representatives; He COM
pared His church to a net which
drew forth from the sea good fish
and bad, and to a field in which both
wheat and cookie should grow to-
gether until the harvest. In the full
! light of that keen, sure, vast knowl-
edge He deliberately promised that
the gates of hell should not prevail
against His church. In that prom
Use we trust. How can any who be-
lieve In Christ do otherwise? Is II
not a proud, insulting, false thing
for men to say in either thought,
word or deed that, through the sins
of the Catholic priesthood and people
the church Christ built had been so
undermined as to be uninhabitable,
so weakened that it must of neces-
sity be torn down and another OF
entirely different plan and principles
erected in its stead? Unless you are
willing to make these assertions, un-
less you are willing to tell Christ to
( His face that His church has failed
despite His promises, you must ad-
nit that Professionalism is funda-
mentally and essentially a mistake.
Call it an honest mistake, one made
In good faith, If you will. 1t is for
all that a sad, grievous error, and
you who love Christ must free your
soul from its trammeling, deadly in
| f1uence."
Following the lecture, Rev. Samuel
B. Hedges rector of the church, was
the celebrant of benediction of the
blessed sacrament. The service con-
cluded with the singing of God Be
With You TIL We Meet Again"
| Father Harney and Rev. James n.
GILES, c. S. P, who had just finished
two weeks mission at the Sacred
Heart Church, Park avenue. left late
last night for Ottowa, Ontario, Can
ada, where a three weeks mission at
the Blessed Sacrament Church will
| be held