The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, 1914-04-02
PAGE FIVE

into this question except brief reference to the
tolerant spirit of the Roman Catholic church.
Shades Of Caesar, what is tolerance? Is it to
declare no marriage is valid in the sight of God
except it be with the rites performed by Roman
Catholic priest? that more but Roman Catholics
can get to heaven? that freemasonery is to be
avoided as thing essentially evil, as the present
pope declared? Tolerance-the Roman Catholic
church tolerant? Well, cit is to laugh as the
Frenchman would say.
AS to the benefcence of Roman Catholic rule
make fair comparison between the Protestant
and Catholic countries of the world, and draw
your conclusions
The above is copied from The Teaas Free
mason.
l will add two statements which may be
worth while:
~ The Dark Ages did not begin until
the Roman bishops Cor popes) had burnt all
the books they could lay their hands ON, had
closed the schools, had forbidden the laity to
read the Bible. had deprived the lag members
Of the church Of their right to cote, had set
up the claim of universal dominion, had
united the Church with the State, and sue
cessfully advanced the doctrine that 'the secu-
lar arm" should put to death any person
whom the church condemned.
Men crouched in fear; Reign of Terror
set in; Reason surrendered to Superstition
Authority was supreme, Dubt, crime and
mental independence damnable heresy
punishable by death.
Then, indeed the Dark Ages set in; and
for thousand years men built churches, wor-
shipped idols ,knelt to priests, and hushed
their own thoughts.
o. The State was the Roman Catholic
church. under another name. The King was
the Pope's partner. The claws" reflected the
papal will. Every officer of the State owed
supreme ALLEGIANCE to the PODe
The Pope required that laws be made to
punish heresy with death. Happy was the
wretch who was simply hanged, shot,
beheaded, or cut down by the sword. More
frequently, the laws, dictated by the Church,
prescribed tortures with devilish ingenuity;
and when the limbs of the sufferer had been
pulled out of socket by the rack, or the bones
crushed by thumb-screWs, knee-jackets, and
leg wedges; or the feet burned almost off over
the Goals of slow fires the pitiable object of
popish hate would have to be toted to the
stake where he was finally to be burned to
death amid the rejoicing and the curses Of
msjtred dig1oita3fes representing the Pope.
So it was that the Church, acting IN its
capacity Of the State, wrote those diabolical
claws" which fixed the hideOus penalties
against free speech, free press, free conscience,
free worship, and the re lection Of popery
The Church made the law, for every law
maker was servile churchman, blindly obedi-
ent to the Pope.
Then, the Church seized its victim, ''tried"
him in secret, allowed him no chance to
defend himself refused him the knowledge
of the accuser and the witnesses against him,
denied him the right to crOss-eXamine; sub
jected him to frightful fortunes to force a
onfession-virtually acting all the way
through as accuser, witness, Judge and jury.
The defendant had no chance, and no
appeal.
The Church having in this Internal man
,no, W4n;nIn hn noonrnd nnd found hin nIilt1r