The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-02-15
Continued from page u
AMERICA IN The GREAT WAR

altar in Christendom and from the
hearts of millions of Christians are
proof of his faith and of the faith of
the world that God still rules the des-
TIMES Of men and nations Those
prayers have at last been heard The
papal peace proposals of August 1,
1917, were substantially embodied in
President Wilson'S famous Il propo-
sitions of January 8, 1918, and have
been accepted by all the belligerents
as the basis Of the peace conference
now in session. May a newly recon
structed world acknowledge its debt
of gratitude to Benedict XIV by joy
fully acclaiming him the Pope of
Peace.
Wilson.
And now comes that other shining
figure in the great world tragedy
| Woodrow Wilson, President of the
United States. Reelected because
''he kept us out of war; with the
weak and disorganized republic Of
Mexico, he was compelled to accept
the gauge of battle with the strongest
and most highly organized military
! power on earth---a power that for
three years had WithstOod and we'll
nigh defeated almost the whole world
in arms He would meet force with
| force. It would use force to the ut
! most, force without stint or limit, -
| but before using it he declared it
( would be ''the righteous and trium-
| plant force that would not only vim
dictate Americas violated rights, but
make right the law of the world and
! cast every selfish domination down in
! the dust" Before using it he served
/ notice that in the event of victory
/ America would accept no indemnities
/ and no remunerations, but would in
! Sist on securing for every nation,
whether great or small, the right to
govern itself. 1t was the battle cry
of democracy heartening oppressed
peoples everywhere to throw off the
! yoke of kaiserism-that royal abso-
| lutism which the papacy in the middle
ages had banished from the world,
but which Philip the Fair had rein
troduced contrary to the protest of
Boniface VIII, and which Luther and
the so-called reformers had finally
fastened upon the nations of Europe
The great victory is won. The rulers
Of the world under the leadership OF
our peerless President have accepted
the principle that justice and Chris
tan morality must be the basis OF
government as we'll as of individual
conduct. Autocracy is dead and a
new International order" is born
based on the broad and universal
principles of right and Justice
] After 600 years Wilson has cast out
the blighting policy of Philip the
Fair and of the so-ca1led reformers
from the councils of the nations, and
j Boniface triumphs in Benedict. 1t is
the new alliance of Christianity and
/ democracy. May they always work
together for the temporal and eternal
| welfare of mankind. E
I Our New Duties.
i Because ! of the great victory, OF
/ Americas glorious deeds and her eX
allied motives, of the noble opponents
of Christian idealism the war has
brought forth we congratulate the
hosts of liberated democracy the
world over But while we rejoice in
these things, we must look forward
to the new and greater duties" that
await us.
We have made the world safe fol
democracy We must now make de
mocracy safe for the world. And the
latter is more difficult task than
the former. To make the world safe
for democracy we had only to rouse
the passion of liberty which is Unborn
} in the breast Of every man and organ