The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1915-01-02
Venerable Brethren,
Health and the Apostolic Benedic.

Venerable Brethren,
Health and the Apostolic Henedic.
ton.
When by the inscrutable design of
Divine Providence, without any merit
on Our part, We were raised to the
Chair of the Blessed Prince of the
Apostles, considering as addressed to
Ourselves in the same way in which
Our Lord spoke to st. Peter the words,
Feed My Lambs. Feed My Sheep"
(St. John xxi. 1910, We Immediately
turned Our eyes, with the deepest
feeling of charity, to the flock en-
trusted to Our care-an immense
flock, in truth, because under one as.
pect or another it embraces all men.
For all for whom Jesus Christ of.
fered His Blood as price were freed
by Him from the slavery of sin; no
one is excluded from the benefits of
this Redemption. Wherefore the Di.
vine Pastor states that whilst part
of the human race is already within
the fold of His Church, He will low
ingly compel the others to come in:
And other sheep have which are
not of this Fold; them also must
bring and they shall hear My Voice"
(St. John X, 49,. We shall not conceal
from you, venerable brethren, that the
first sentiment We experienced in Our
soul, and which was assuredly excited
there by the Divine goodness, was a
certain incredible impulse of zeal and
love for the salvation of all men; and
in accepting the Pontificate We formed
the same desire that Jesus Christ ex.
pressed when He was about to be
crucified: "Holy Father, keep them in
Thy Name whom Thou hast given Me-
Est. John xvii, 1D.
A Sad Spectacle.
Now when from the height Of this
! Apostolic dignity We can, as II at one
glance, contemplate the course of hu.
I man events, and when We see before
Us the miserable condition of civil
society We are affected with acute
sorrow. And how could We, as the
common Father Of all men, not be
sorely troubled at the sight of Eu.
rope. and, indeed. of the whole world
the most terrible and most painful
spectacle perhaps that has ever been
presented In the course of history ?
Those days which Christ predicted
seem in fact to have come: "You
shall hear 3. of wars and rumors of
war For nation shall rise against
nation and kingdom against kingdom
Matt. xiv, go. The fearful appari
tion of war Is prominent everywhere
and nothing else engages mems atten.
ton. Great and fiourishing nations
are on the battlehelds. Can we won.
der that as they are we'll supplied with
those horrible means of destruction
which the military art has invented
|
awful butchery? There Is no limit
to the ruin and slaughter; every day
the earth is drenched with fresh blood
and is covered with the wounded and
the dead. And who would say that
such men, armed one against the 9th.
er, come from the same progenitor
that they are all possessed of the
same nature and that all belong to
the same human society? Who would
take them to be brothers, the sons of
one Father Who is in Heaven? Whilst
on every side furious battles are be-
Ing fought with vast forces, nations,
families, and individuals are oppressed
by sorrow; day by day the number
of widows and orphans increases I'M
mensely. Commerce languishes owing
to the interruption of communications:
the fields are empty; the arts are
neglected.; the rich are in poverty;
the poor in squalor, and all are in
grief.
Appeal to Rulers and Governments.
Moved by such grave evils, at the
very first step as it we're, OF the Sow
ereign Pontifcate, We considered 1t
our duty to recall the last words of
Our predecessor, Pontiff of illustri-
GUS and holy memory, and to com.
mence Our Apostolic Ministry by re.
peating them; and so We warmly, be.
seech rulern and GOVERNMENTS TO con-,
slider the. tears. and 'thr. blood already
shed and to hasten to restore. to. the
pep9lo the precious blessings OF peace.
May thu metcifal' God grant that, as
on the appearance Of the Divine Re.
deemer upon the earth, SO at the be-
ginning Of Our duty as His Vicar, the
angels voices may proclaim Peace
on earth to men of good will" luke
II, 1D, and We pray that they may
listen who have in their hands the
destinies of States. Assuredly there
are other ways and other methods by
which Justice can be done to injured
rights. Let the belligerents, laying
down their arms, have recourse to
these, animated by good faith and in.
tention. It Is through love of them
and of all nations and not from any