The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1915-09-11
PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS FOR
COMPILING CATHOLIC
HISTORY.

Under the title, Preservation of
Catholic Documents" Lawrence M.
Flick, M. d., a prominent writer and
physician of Philadelphia, makes some
practical suggestions for the compila-
ton of Catholic history in the Rec
drds of the American Catholic Histor-
zeal Society,"" DR.. Flick says:
Catholics Of the present day, and
especially Catholic Americans, have
grave duty to perform in the preserVa-
ton Of contemporary documents and
in bringing to light documents of the
past which have been suppressed or
have remained hidden. For four hun
bred years at least history has been
conspiracy against the truth. The
world has suffered grievously from
this conspiracy and the shadow of
even greater suffering hangs over the
present generation from it. Gods
eternal truth as Christ taught it upon
earth is endangered by it; and whilst
Christ's assurance that His truth shall
never be lost to man will hold, many
of our generation and of future gener-
atoms will lose it unless mans spirit
ual inheritance of the views, expert
ences and acts of Gods saints be re-
stored to us in its fullness in history
and literature. What has been sup
pressed and what remains hidden must
be brought to light and what is edi-
flying in our own day must be record
ed and preserved for those who come
after us. What is false in history
can be corrected, but it will take a
long time to do it and it can only be
done by means of incontrovertible doc
uments.
Historical Misrepresentation.
Catholics have lain under false his
tory and have endured contempt and
ignominy from it since the Reforma-
ton. Thanks to the careful records.
which were inaugurated by the Catho-
lie world before the Reformation, and
which were kept everywhere during
the Reformation, and for a long time
after it, authentic and incontrovertible
documents exist to disprove the errors
of history in those matters in which
| the Catholic Church has been ma
ligned and misrepresented Moreover,
documents are available for a salts
factory explanation of the. motives
and purposes of those who conspired
against the truth and misrepresented
history. Both non-Catholic and Cath
Ollie investigators have brought to light
enough Of those documents to enable
the world to see how INSCRIPTIONS,
selfish people have conspired afro
ciously against the truth.
1t is easy enough to understand why
Catholics submitted to this conspiracy
during the first three centuries after
the Reformation, but it is hard to UNI
derstand why they have done SO dur
| ing the last century and why they
should do it now. In England and
in the greater part OF Germany indeed
in practically all of northern Europe,
Catholics were oppressed for centuries
after she Reformation and, having
been deprived of all their material re-
sources, were really incapable of do
ing anything to set the world Alright.
Not only did they lack financial re-
sources, but they we're seriously hand
icapped in matters of education and
were consequently weak in intellectual
resources. It is marvellous that they
were able to maintain the faith and
exc out physical existence. Mate
rial prosperity and intellectual devel-
opment were often available only at
the price of loss of the faith, and in
consequence those who got them
sometimes became conspirators against
the truth rather than defenders of it.
Inability to bring the truth to light
can no longer be offered or accepted
as an explanation of the indifference
of Catholics about the errors concern
ing the Catholic Church still embodied
in history and literature. The only
rational explanation of it now con-
ceivable is that Catholics have become
accustomed to the errors and all that
goes with them and no longer resent
them. A mitigation of the contempt
and ignominy which Catholics have
had to endure, this mitigation having
been brought about through documents
which have come to light, may have
something to do with this indifference.
Catholics are no longer prosecuted and
in most parts of the world at least
enjoy their natural rights. but they
still labor under political and intel
lectual disabilities on account of err
rors in history which have not yet
been corrected.
Reconstructing History.
Catholics now have the financial re-
sources, the intellectual resources and
the numerical strength to bring to
light and put before the world every
contemporary document which may be
necessary for reconstruction of the
history of the world since the dawn of
the Reformation. It is most remark
able that they are not doing it. Want
of thought and want Of organization
for higher intellectual purposes I'M
doubtedly are the reasons why they
are not doing it. Pope Leo XIII, real
izing the great importance of this
work, tried to arouse the Catholic
world from its 1ethargy. He stirred
up a momentary activity in this field,
but apparently Catholics soon forgot
his urgent appeal. The Catholic world
again needs to be aroused to realiza-
ton of its duty in this matter. The
movements which were started by the
LIaIv Eafhor,c call have almost come