Year: 1874

| ~A~A 90 @~O W ~ <APP~oA W - ~ AAOAs


The following letter from Pere Hya


cinthe Loyson relative to his retirement


from the cnracy of Geneva appears in


the Swiss press:


l wish to reply through the press to


the individuals who from various quar-


ters have urged me to explain my resig-


nation of Cure of the parish Of Geneva


and member of the Superior Council.
| This resignation explains itself. Those


who are familiar with the internal posi-
ton of the Liberal Catholic movement


of Geneva will be surprised at one thing


only, that is, that have not sooner rid


myself of responsibility as onerous as


it was illusory. My sole excuse is this:


| waited so long as my heart guided my
actions; broke silence on the day when
it was needful to listen to my conscience.


| will not enter upon useless discus
sions with men who confound, without
knowing it, Liberalism with dictatorial
Radicalism; Catholicism with the pro-
fession of faith of Savoyard vicar.
Clearly we cannot agree either upon the
tendencies OF the facts that eliminate
from a movement its right to be re-
garded as Catholic in religion and Lib.
eral in politics. But when the hour
shall have come-the present moment
breathes of sadness and of sileuee-I
will address myself to those religious
souls for whom our movement has been
something more than a political move
ment, or one of rancor. | have been
their spiritual guide for more than a
year, and | know that many among
them have retained their full confidence
in me. | should have wished to address
them from the pulpit Of st. German. /
have been informed that it will be
closed against me, and, in truth, after
the sentiments that have been uttered in
it since my retreat, | conceive that
should no longer be in my place there.
| will therefore explain, soon anG else
where, to those who have not sufficiently
understood wherefore, under the impulse
of decisive and matured determine
tion of my conscience, | have resigned
my official functions; and how, in acting
in this manner, | have maintained my
own consistency of action-as much OPP
posed to the infallibility of the State as
to that of the Pope as much an enemy
in the church to the domination of the
people as to that of the priests.


In the meantime, | say to all those who
continue to wish with me a truly Cath
olic and liberal reform, that / have no
intention of abandoning either this cause
or Geneva, where | came to serve it. l
propose remaining there in my recon-
quered freedom, to preach the gospel and
dispense our sacred mysteries. | shall
remain there awaiting the election of the
Bishop, who, with his Synod, is the sole
religious matters. | shall remain there
without engagements henceforth toward
a law to which | have kept my oath so
long as permitted myself to believe in
its practical results, but which | now see
clearly is impracticable to the same ex-
tent that it has not been applied in
the country districts and badly applied |
in the towns. | know too we'll what |
there is of intelligence and true Liberal.
ism in Geneva to presuppose, under |
such conditions, in the serious future of |
an establishment more political than |
religious, destined to close its career in |
a shorter time and with less honor than |
the constitutional Church of France, |
almost in the same way as the German |
Catholic Communes of Ronge and the |
French Church of Chstel closed their
careers 1t is my profound conviction
that the Catholic Church cannot perish, |
nor can it remain in the condition in
which the passing triumph of Ultramon-
tanism has placed it. 1t is not the crea-
ton of a new Church, still less Of new
religion, that is in question; it is a re-
form in the ancient Church that must be