The Irish standard., 1917-10-20
Private Judgment Makes
National Religions.

National Religions.
Christs Church Converted Hydra
Headed Monster, Changing With
Race and Climate-kings Assume
Religious Prerogatives as Heads of
State churches-Yoke Of State Is
Placed on Neck of Church-Poten-
tates Become Pontiffs as Result Of
Private Interpretation of Scriptures.
When the physically blind but intel
lectually super-sighted poet, John Mil
ton, was confronted with the question
as to the suitability of the words Pres
byter" and presbyterian" to classify
sect newly started, he made the
Priest The Priest was to him a
bette noir," notwithstanding the Divine
origin of the Office and the title. This
was the condensation and spirit of the
Puritan theory of Christianity. In re-
ferring to the celebration of Luther's
fourth centenary recently we took the
liberty of declaring his accepted thesis
of s'the right of private Judgment to
be the true 'fons ct origo" of the
present awful cataclysm overseas. In
The Catholic World" for the current
month Mr.. Dudley G.. Wooten, a think
er and writer of singular power and
profound thought, begins treatise on
the effects of Luther's so-called Ref
ormation, which he entities 'The Prop
uganda of Paganism." Mr.. Wooten
traces the trouble that now scourges
all the EARTH in greater or less degree,
back to the proclamation of the false
doctrine of the right of private judg-
ment, for the first time preached, and
afterwards promulgated in heretical
conclave, by the renegade monk. In
the course of an admirably-stated sur
vey of the results of the Christian con-
quest of Paganism after the downfall
of the Imperial system of Rome, until
the end of the Middle Ages, the writer,
begins examination of the system,
which he likens to the vanished Pagan
ism of the Classic ages in the South
of Europe and Asia Minor. Down to
the Reformation" there had existed
a happy cooperation between Church
and State in many countries, which
resulted in orderly working of the laws
necessary for the everyday conduct of
the public veal The Reformation
changed all that. Says Mr.. Wooten:
The fundamental dogma of Pro-
testantism, that asserted the right OF
private Judgment in matters of faith
and conscience, necessarily implied
like liberty of decision in matters OF
morals of justice and of social duty
1t is not thinkable that man may
claim latitude of opinion and action
in his relations to God and eternity
that is denied to him in his relations
to this temporal life. We may pass
over, as both too paradoxical for
analysis and too theological for lay
mans skill, that companion dogma, so
dear to Lutheranism, that in the ex-
ercise of this indispensable right OF
personal judgment man neither enjoys
the privileges nor incurs the penalties
of free will Starting with the doc
trine that each individual is the judge
OF his own religious belief and the
sole arbiter of his moral responsible
ity, the evolution of the Protestant at
titude towards all questions. both sec
ular and sacred, became merely mat
ter of time and logical development.
If each person may thus investigate
and decide for himself, it must be that
every group of individuals similarly
situated and related may choose for
itself and establish by law it's par
ticular creed of worship and the re-
sultant moral and social code. This,
of course, at once transferred the con-
troversy between the Reformers and
the Church from the domain of relig-
ious dialetics to the realm of politics
and diplomacy, which we'll served the
designs of the leaders Of the move
ment."
This dreadful doctrine was seized
upon by the possessors of genius for
craftsmanship, concomitantly with a
vacuum as to conscience, in order to
fasten their rule indefinitely upon the
masses of the people, throughout the
length and breadth of Christendom.
The tyrant rulers of France and Eng
land, Philip the Fair in the one case,
Henry the Eighth in the other, began
quickly to demonstrate that Kings and
Emperors were as much above moral
laws as the barbarian, Germanicus,
felt himself above the laws of gram
mar. In each petty Kingdom as we'll
as in each vast Empire "the Lords
ancinted' grew in time to regard him
self as the Lord Himself, in GER
tain sense; and for daring to object
to this blasphemous theory, Sir Thorn
as Moore had to bare his neck to the
headman's stroke Mr. Wooten con-
tinues:
"Racial antagonisms, national preju-
dices and international rivalries were
:o,1od ~ old tho revolt against