Year: 1878




many of those who condemn the Catecbism


to banisbmeDt from the schools, have for


gotten or no longer choose to remem Der


what they learned from the Catecnlsm


when they were children. 1t would otner-


wise be very easy for them to understand


the value of teaching the child that ne


came forth from the hands of God, and is


the fruit of the love that God has freely


given him that everything he Gees is


ordained for him, King aud Lord OF crea'


tion that he is so great and SO valuable,


that the Eternal Son Of God did not dis


dain to assume human hesh to redeem nim ;


that the blood of the Man God flowed


upon his head In Baptism ; that ms ePi!i..


ual life 10 pourished with the flesh OF the


Divine Lamb; that the Holy Ghost Eeil-


ing 10 him as in His living temple, imparts


to him purely divine life and virtue, and


these give him e. fficacious assistance in pre- .
serving the glorious quality of child OF


God and in honoripg it by upright de-


meanor. They would, likewise, under.
stand that it is proper to expect great


things from the child who in school learns
from the Catechsm that he is destined for
such an exalted end as the vision and love
of God that he is reminded to watch over
himself constantly, aud that he is sus'ained


by ali manner of succors in the warfare
waged against him by the implacable en-,
envy that he lie taught to be docile and
submissi We, to honor in his parents the
image of his Father Who is in heaven, and
ia the prince the authority that comes
from God, and that it is from God that he
deriv es the source of bis msjesty and the
reason of existence who ls taught To re-
spect in his brothers the same divine like
ness that shines forth in his own coqnte
nance, and to recognize the Redeemer Him
self, under the rags of the beggar; that he
was early saved from doubt and uncer
tainty by blessing of Catholic teaching
that bears the impress of it's infallibility
and authenticity in its divine origin, in the
fact of its establishment upon
earth, aud in the abundance of the rich
and salutary fruits it has brought forth.
Finally they would understand that Cath
olic morals, quickened by the fear of pun
and the certain hope of the highest
do not run the risk OF that civil
ethics that men want to substitute for the
religious they would never have taken
the fatal resolution of robbing the present
generation of go many and such precious
the Catechism from the school.


1--WE say banish, because the deter
mination arrived at Of giving religious in
struction to such children only, whose
parents expressly ask for it. is entirely
illusory. It would be flcult to under
stand how the authors of this ill-ad vised
measure did not see the evil impression it
must produce upon the mind of the child
to see religious instruction placed under
conditions entirely different from all other
The child, to be stimulated
to diligent study, requires to understand
the Importance aud the necessity of what
he is taught. What incentives can he have
for q study towards which scholastic au
thority displays so much colduess or apa.
thy, only tolerating it by snferance
F Furthermore, if there happened to be pa
rents land it would not be difficult to find
them), who, through perversity, or rather
through ignorance and negligence, did not
Der to ask the benefits of religious
for their children, q large pro-
prived of the most salutary instruction, to
the great injury not only of pure souls, but
of civil society also. This being the stste
of things, does it not become the duty of
persons in charge of schools to make
amends for the malice or neglect of pa
rentsf Expecting advantages far less, no
doubt, than those we have indicated, it
has recently been dec ded to make elemen
tary instruction compulsory, and to compel
parents, under penalty of fine, to send
their children TO school and DOW how
can they have the heart TO rob Catholic
children of religious instruction, which lie,
beyond all doubt, the surest guarantee of q
wise and viItuous guidance to our life here
be!ow7 Ia it not cruel to ask that these
children grow up without an idea or feel
ing of religion, until having reached the
ardency of youth, they come in contact
with latteriug and violent passions, with
no arms to overcome them with, with no
restraint, and with the certainty of being
allured into the slippery road to crime. 1t
gives great sorrow to our paternal heart to
contemplate the lamentable consequences
of this Insensate resolution, and our sorrow
is all the more intense when we consider
that temptations to all sorts of vice are far
stronger and more numerous than ever
before. You, Signor Cardinal, who, be-
cause of your exalted position as our Vicar,
can, better than anyone else, closely fol-
low the developments of the war that is
waging in our Rome against God and His
Church, know full we'll without our speak
ing more at length, what, and how numer-
ous are the dangers of perversion for our
youth: doctrines pernicious and eubver-
sive of all constituted order, bold and viO-
lent propositions to the injury of all law
full authority, and finally, immortality
unimpeded and undisguised,
along every avenue, contaminating the eyes
and corrupting the heart.


When these and similar assaults are