New Britain herald., 1926-02-18

ny the soviet government was tbc
 s'hire Of church properties desired
 ana inc issuance of an order for in.
 'h'ory Of all holdings of the church.
 lFo,eN by the archbishop WAS un.
 aNalling, After a brief period of
 Pulet ana systematic seizure Of
 church properties was started and
 priests from all parts of tho country
 b'sloged tho prelato with petitions
 TOT further instructions. His reply was:
 "Demands arc unjust. Please TO.
 'lse tho demands of the soyiets for
 a detailed inventory list"
 A united front Of opposition was presented by the church al once, i m" movement was traced to tho
 prlmate and his arrest and incar.
 reration in prison was brought about, four days trial culminat- cd in hIs sentence to death, His speech following return of the yer. dict has found for itself a niche in
 the treasures Of Roman Catholic
 history, He said, addressing the tri- bunal.
 "l, who stand on the threshold of death, can only certify with my word Of honor as a clergyman tha' we have never attempted to organ iZo any secret society, nor have NC ever attempted to reach any politi- cal goal Eyn a thought Of count. er-revolution has never entered our minds. We have always been loyal citizens of the Russian Soviet Fed "ratod Socialist Republic and have compiled with the decrees of tn" government insofar as they were within the bounds of reason, We re- Jolced at the proclamation of the "pochal decree guaranteeing the freedom of conscience, because from that time on we were permitted to live in perfect accord with the laws Of our church, in which we were hamporcd during the czarist re- zine IL is the solemn duty of every Catholic 10 obey his spiritual advisors and 10 safeguard the laws Of the church. This duty has fallen upon m" in greater proportion than upon anyone else because Ii has fallen 10 my lot 10 stand guard over truth and faith and 1t was in- 'umbent upon me 10 give a good 'Xample 10 the clergy and the faithful, whose guardian I was ap- pointed. We have not inflicted or brought injury to the government. on the other hand I am of the . opinion We increased its value and . services by enlightening the people md bringing 10 them the true i aith instead of superstition.
 Defends His Faith
 "1t has been our cndeayor to preach and with our deeds mirror he truth of Gods teachings which lave been the light Of the world or 2'oQ9 years, which have been 4 acknowledged by the greatest i. progress. In recognizition of our la 'orS and efforts, In reward for our oil. they have brought us before his tribunal of justice and accused | s of instigating a counter-revolu- ion. My friends and I have en- haticaIly denied their accusations. 'ur activities never have had q ounter-revolutionary character,
 To-day I stand before the world 7 tribunal. Shortly l will appear be- ore the tribunal of God. have oped this tribunal would mete me lstice even as my Heavenly Father ill show me mercy" While he was awaiting execution le entire civilized world filed let ITS Of protest with the soviet gov and eventually the sentence death was lifted. He was next mt into exile from which, with the i'd of friends, he was freed and ent 10 Rome. There he was receiy- with rejoicing. By permission of e Vatican he came 10 America last ar to extend his thanks to those ho had aided him during his try X z times with the soviet Covern- ent.' He had planned 10 return to = ome Saturday and was to assume s duties as archbishop of Wilma, bland, this month. N~~NN1NNNN~<-~~~-N N%NNA~N~~>~<