The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1915-12-25
WAR MAY FREE PAPE OF ITALIAN
INTERFERENCE

INTERFERENCE
When Italy became one of the bel
ilgerent nations, the question of the
holy fathers status could no longer
be ignored. The law of guarantees
theoretically secured him a uuasi.in-
dependence. He, however, is practi-
cally at the mercy of the Italian gov
eminent. The latter has the power
OF shutting him off from free and un-
interrupted intercourse with his spir.
ltual children in all parts of the world.
1t Is charged that that power has been
exercised since the outbreak of hos
tilities. Now, absolute freedom of &C.
ton is an essential prerequisite for the
untrammelled discharge of the most
+, sacred duties that ever devolved upon
mortal man. Catholics of all races and
of all nationalities have personal in
terest In the father of Christendom
being freed from trammels of any
kind. Between him and them there
should be nothing which in any way
interferes with carrying out the mis-
sion confided to st. Peter and his sue.
cessors.
Between him who sits in the chair
of Peter and the faithful, free COM
munication is necessary for fulfilling
the divine injunction in regard to the
teaching of all mankind. Hence the
vital importance of the holy father be.
ing placed in position in which no
secular government can intervene be-
tween him and his worldwide flock.
At the present moment the Italian
government can so intervene. Not
only has 1t the power of so doing, but
1t actually has exercised that power
in recent times.
The manner in which 1taly's rulers
have done this is set forth in state
ment issued by Count Hertling, prime
minister of Bavaria, who asserts that
German and Austrian diplomats have
had the greatest difficulty in communi-
eating with the pope on account of the
war. He adds that "the assurances
given by Italy when Rome was taken
by the Italians were repudiated the
first time they were put to the test "
German diplomats were not the only
ones who found it difficult to communi-
cate with Benedict XIV. German bish-
ops have experienced similar diff
Guilty. German papers charge that
members of the German hierarchy are
unable to communicate with the vati.
can and that letters to ana from the
holy father fail to reach their destina-
ton. A German newspaper, the ''Vos-
sische Zeitung," commenting on this
tampering with the vatican mail, says:
''The Italian law guaranteeing the
independence of the pope is worth no
more than the scrap of paper it is
written on. The Catholics of the
states have right to demand that
their rights be better safeguarded
than by single state, which, bandit.
like, has just now stabbed in the back
its ally of many years. standing"
The holy father, who is the chief
sufferer from this shameful treatment,
one year ago, Nov. /, 1914, made this
general appeal for putting an end to
a state of things that has become in
tolerable:
"All far and near who call them
selves children of the pope have the
right to demand valid assurances that
their common father, in the exercise
of his apostolic office, be free and ap-
pear to be free from the influence of
worldly potentates. Therefore, with
a sincere longing for peace to come
as soon as possible, we add our wish
that the head of the church should re.
main no longer in this unnatural posi-.
ton, position detrimental to the
peace of nations in more than one re-
: spect."
This appeal of Benedict XIV may
elicit a favorable response when the
terms of peace at the end of the pres
ent war come to be discussed at a
conference of the belligerent powers
A cablegram from it's Berlin special
correspondent in The New York Amer
lean few days ago foreshadows such
response. It reads as follows:
According to an exclusive state
ment given to me by the foreign office
the status of the pope will be fixed by
the peace negotiations after the war is
ended. A high state officer told me
officially that the world status of the
pontiff and the immunity from inter
ference by the secular powers will be
one of the most important matters to
be settled when peace is concluded
If this forecast be verified, the holy
see will once more possess the free
dom so necessary for the performance
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