The Enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 192?-1930, 1926-10-08
GUSTAvE B. ALDRIcH

Very early in the history Of the
Catholic Church, Africa began to
take precedence in many years. In
the first place, Alexandria was the
seat of learning, both Egyptian and
Greek. The regions bordering upon
the Mediterranean and Red Seas on
the African side became centers of
religious influences radiating out
north, west and south.
st. Peter, whom the Roman gee
ords show to have been very BUSH
nesslike Apostle, sent out Evange-
lists and other apostles from Rome:
To Alexandria went St. Mark, his
secretary, to Ancient Ethiopia went
st. Matthew. Turtullian, Origen,
Cyprian, Augustin, Athansias and
many of the great lights of that day
sprang from the African people. BY
the time of the great council OF
! Nicea in the 4th century, the Afri-
can bishops had secured prepon-
derance in the Church, and the Third
| Council of Carthage authoritatively
sealed the list of religious books that
were to be regarded as Sacred Scrip
ture. There were about eighty-two
African Catholic bishops at this time
and over fifteen hundred priests of
| African blood. Indeed, so great was
| the African influence in the Catholic
| Church of that day that certain
protestant historian says in his treat
ment of the period "the dark super
stitions of the Church of Rome were
derived from African heathenism.
This is of course, quite doubtful
compliment, but nevertheless 1t
shows that the race once stood for
something. Now, many American
whites and blacks also, look for the
word NEGRO" spelled with a small
an" in ancient history. This is not
so. 1t is well known that the Afri-
can people were black; it was not
considered in those days a sin to be
born black as too many great people
were black. The color was honor
able. Some writer sometime this
year asked certain paper whether
any of the popes were Negroes. The
answer was "No." Victor |, is plain
" listed as an African in the early
record, yet the paper denying the
fact of the Pope being Negro, stat
cd that Victor was a Roman, being
citizen of Roman province. The
Pope was a Roman only by politica
grant. His African origin was men
toned to exclude the Roman citizen
ship. Paul was a Roman citizen
but by race was a Jew. The wore
Negro was not used by the ancient!
in its present Specification in Amer
lea. An African of that day wal
the ordinary colored man of today
Bede's History of the Church in Eng
land, speaks of a man who was
bishop or priest in Europe, "wht
was an African by nation" Nov
! there was and is not now and nevel
was nation by name of Africa
Africa is a whole continent, not ;
nation. It's race is black. General
: " speaking, an African by natiol
means by birth and race. Whenevel
: it suits the prejudced American al
: African is everything else but .
black person; Cleopatra, the Pha
roahs, King Tut and other great per
sonages were all Africans, but it i
denied that they are Negroes, ever
though they be black Africans, blu
the whitest man in American is
: Negro il he shows the faintest trac'
of African blood.
: Many of the leaders in the earl.
church were colored men. In Nortl
Africa was great mixture of al
races, even so as today. In conse
quence many men of mixed African
and outside blood rose to prominenc
and our English and American au
thors and compilers have denied tn
African race any credit for the pro
duction of such men.
Even Alexander Dumas, pere
fills, has been denied to the race