The Irish standard., 1918-11-30
Holy See Is
Justified By Acts

Fay Of New York Gives a |
Definition and Justification for
Papal Action In the War.
In a statement to the Evening Post
Mons. Fay, New York, said that he
was unable to understand why the i'm
preston prevailed that the Pope had
said nothing on moral questions, or
that the Papacy had been dumb in the
fact of German atrocities.
"The Holy Father has protested"
Monsignor Fay said. 'He protested
against the rape of Belgium, against
the breaking of treaties, against the
use of the submarine, against the
bombing of unarmed towns, and also
against the deportation of the Belgian
population.
1T is true that these things were
done by diplomatic notes, except with
regard to Belgium, when the Holy
Father made his statements in open
consistory; but these notes are the
only way the Holy Father can ex-
press himself. What conceive people
would have him do would have been
the condemnation of Germany that
would have made it impossible for Ger
man Catholics to support their Gov
ernment.
cit must always be remembered that
when the Pope speaks he does not
express a personal opinion, or an ex-
alted official opinion, but he speaks
as the head Of the only international
religious body in the world, and he
speaks to be obeyed. He must, there
fore, be much more careful than the
heads of other religions who do uot
have the same authority over their
followers that he does.
eff he had threatened Germany, he
would have been absolvings German
Catholics from, allegiance to their SOW
ereign. The Hody See has not used
this authority since the sixteenth cen
tury, and it is the general opinion of
Catholic theologians that it is not in
herent in his place as pastor, and the
Catholics Of the English-speaking
world obtain exemption from Papal
laws by protesting that the Pope has
no such power.
"It would have been horribly dis.
honest if the Pope had used the cir
cumstances of this war to have
claimed this power again. 1t could
have been said, and not without JUS
tice, that the Pope had used the po-
sition of the Allies to claim an ad-
vantage which he could not have
gained in normal times. 1t would
| have put German Catholics in the
position Of declaring that he was using
the same circumstances to embroil
them with their Governments and
make their lives impossible.
"The Church is supreme in her own
domain, and the state is supreme in
it's own domain, and therefore the
Pope must be most cautious in ex-
pressing views when those views have
political complexion. He used his most
efficacious means of protesting against
Germany's actions, without imperiling
the relations of any Catholic to any
government, whatever it might be.
And, indeed, as the German newspa-
pers have not failed to point out, his
condemnations have fallen on them,
and not on the Allies.
| Even in the first days of the war,
when the triumph Of Russia, as then
constituted, would have meant the
destruction of the Catholics of East
ern rites united to the Holy See, only
once did he speak, and then directly
to the Russian Government, about the
exile and Imprisonment Of the Arch
bishop Of Lemberg, and the attempt
to destroy the Catholics of Ruthenia
/ by placing over them a bishop out
Of communion with Rome. This was
not a condemnation of the Allies, but
simply a condemnation of the Govern
ment Of Russia.
Catholics do not distinguish be-
tween the Papacy and the Catholic re-
ligion, although in past times they
have often distinguished between q
reigning Pope and the Papacy. The
Papacy is a necessary and constituent
part Of our religion.
christianity must show united
front at this time, we all agree to
! that, but at time when unity was
never more necessary, we must not
make invidious distinctions which are
, not borne out by facts"
The announcement that Rev. Fran
els T. Moran, DID,, pastor of st. Pat
rick's church, in Cleveland, O., had
been chosen chairman of the Federal