The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-03-11

power of the patriarchs they protect in general all the privileges of the great sees of Alexandria and Antioch, assert that, as the entire west was under the patri-
 archal sway of Rome, so the east would be divided between the patriarchates of Alexandria and Antioch. After the coun- cil of Nice, the Roman pontiff was re-
 garded as having jurisdiction over the patriarchs and the authoritative inter- preation of this canon Is found in the sixteenth action of the council of Chalce- don. Paschasinus, the papal legate, be- ing asked to produce the canon of Nice, which he had alleged against the coun- cils twenty-eighth canon, recited it thus from the codeX: That the Roman church has always had the primacy. Let
 Egypt, however, hold that the Bishops of Alexandria have power over all, be-
 cause such is the custom of the Roman bishops. Similarly also, for him who is constituted in Antioch, and in other prov inces, let the church of the greater cities have the primacy."
 | Against this reading not one protested but all answered, we declare that the primacy and chief honor according to the canons be preserved to the Archbishops
 of Ancient Rome" I will not quote Ge- lasius I or Boniface I, who in epistles plainly asserted that nothing derogatory
  rather that it's jurisdiction was admitted
 and acquiesced in. The council of Sar- dica, held in 342, is commonly held to be a continuation of that of Nice. est. Athanasius says that it's decrees were subscribed to by more than 300 bishops). This council honored the memory of the Apostle Peter by it's decrees respecting appeals from all the provinces, Ito the
 head, that is, to the see of the Apostle Peter
 As matter of interest to those of Eng fish descent, may mention here the stil. earlier council of Aries GA. D. 31D, at which several British bishops were pres- ent This council, in its synodical epistle to Pope Sylvester. calls Rome 'the place in which the apostles Peter and PauD continually sat in judgment and their blood without ceasing witnesses to the glory of God"
 I hope the Rev. MT. Lewis will pardon
 me if I here abruptly take leave of him l to greet the last letter writer, MT. Rust | Though his letter is much longer, must answer it rather briefly. I must say that believe he has only a slender pre- 1 text for his remarks as far as I am con- oerned. When I read his letter, I began ! to examine my conscience carefully, for was not aware that I had violated un-
 knowingly, I certainly had not knowing | ly, the beautiful virtue that St. Paul ex- | tolls in his letter to the Corinthians, and 1 that The Age-Herald editorial writer, who
 should, think, thank me for linking him
 with the great apostle of the gentiles, extolls in today's issue. had to read
 my own letter to find the offending ad-
 jective, and I finally found the same i within quotation marks, being in an ex-
 tract from Baptist publication, so I might, did I care to, refer MT. Rust to ! that religious body.
 However, as MT. Rust asks pointedly, l What harm has an agnostic ever done
 Father Coyle?' I will answer, None
 whatever, nor, on the other hand, has
 Father Coyle ever done harm to any agnostc I freely grant them the full est liberty to profess any belief or none
 and do not even mentally condemn. But 1 MT Rust may say, "The Catholic is into1- erant" True. Perfectly true. So is | mathematics so is science. The intoler-
 ance of the church means that truth is l its object and it cannot compromise with error. It detests and abhors error and sin, but has, as the Master had, charity for sinners and the erring. Moreover, it is
 the teaching of the church that God
 gives grace and help to attain eternal happiness, and that if men do not attain the same the fault is theirs. They did not correspond with the helps God of l fered. When we speak here of men we make no exception. place no limitation. Moreover we do not judge. Who dare say that such and such a one is on the way 1 of salvation or not? Is not human req son fallible? God alone is the searcher of hearts. He alone knows the state of mans immortal soul.
 | MT. Rusts statement regarding schools in South and Central American countries is, as my old professor would say, when i tried to conceal ignorance of the topic
 under consideration by answering some I thing else, non ad rem.
 \ Will MT. Rust quote the portion of the Ne Temere decree that asserts that the marriage of Catholics is sinfulo
 J MT. Rust's statement, or rather infer ence. that I rely on the existence of the
 church as a proof of it's being the true church is unwarranted. I have more
 reasons than that reason for the faitf that is mine.
 Finally, the sentence, Forget your lit itle differences. Father Coyle and MT
 Durant, and continue to lambast the az
 nostics'' is open to criticism. I do no believe the Rev. MT. Durant lambasti them. Indeed, believe he would prefel
 an agnostic any day to the individual h' labels, not over politely. as a good die , tionary will show, "Romanists"
 Speaking for myself, I simply say tha am not in the habit of lambasting an,
 one or anything, but golf ball, and ! am dub at that. for lambast it nin'