Year: 1870

"ROMANISM as n POLICY"


Under this title. a correspondent makes GER
tain averments and citations, and insists that
we shall comment thereon. We comply, but
without a hope that our views, frankly eA-
messed. will give "Wiclifr any, satisfaction.


We have a horror of any infusion Oh .neo-
logical acrmony into our current poiitics'
Relieving that no person has any right to I'M
nose n creed on another, or to impose on an
other any penalty or privation because OF MS re-
lpious belief, and reveIencing that clause OF our
Federal Constitution which absolutely forblds
onv establishment of or interference with re-
lo;on NV Congress. we prefer to cherish our own
faith and leave every one else at perfect liberty
IN do the same. And if Roman Catholics or
any other shall attempt anything at war with
that religious freedom and equality which
Washington, Franklin, Hamilton, Madison and
their compatriots, secured to us in founding our
Federal Government, we shall resist them to
the utmost. But nearly all prosecutions have
been impelled by just such mistaken impress
sions and impulses as seem to be cherished by
our correspondent. Let us see if we can set
him right as to facts:


First, as to the power exercised by Roman
Catholics in our City. This is based, we pre-
sumo, on the fact that they are very numerous
here-far more so than formerly-far more so
than any other denomination, perhaps than a"
other denominations. We presume more Oath-
olic than Protestant votes have Deen poieu az
each of our last four State Elections. ana we
know no Republican principle on which Cath
olics can be precuded from ruling where they
are majority. They govern us-as white
sheen eat more than black ones-because there
are more of them. We heartily wish that, for
their own sakes as well as ours, they would
govern us better.


Wiclifs citation from Cardinal Wiseman is
a fragment. No intelligent judgment can be
based upon it, until we see what 1t is that
Cardinal Wiseman wished to secure or promote
by Catholic votes in Parliament. If it was re-
ligious equality and the overthrow of the
State Church, we regret that he has not yet
succeeded.


As to thirty-eight Catholics in Parliament
(out of 65S members) it is far less than their
fair proportion for the Catholics are at least
a sixth of the people of the British Isles, and
their due quota of NJ. P.'s would be at least
one hundred.


The Catholic World has notion of intimate
relations between I" the throne of God" and
"the chair of st. Peter" which we do not at
all share but the presumption is very strong
that it is generally accepted by Roman Catho-
lies. What then' Are they to be deprived of
all voice or share in the government which
they must obey and help support, because they
believe in Papal Infallibity, as Wiclif and we
do not Is that Wiclif's ideai If so, why not
frankly say so? Must a Catholic city be gov
erned by its Protestant minority exclusively,
because ii is Catholic, and cannot repeat Vic
lif's or our Shibboleth correctlyY If Wiclif
does MT mean exactly that, we cannot make
him out And, if he does mean that, we are
opposed to him unchangeably.


As to our Common Schools, we propose to
maintain them against all gainsayers. They
are the essential base of republican institu-
tions We have resisted, and must ever resist,
any attempt to supersede them by sectarian
schools, or to tax our people to support any
schools distinctively Romanist, Protestant
Hebrew, Infidel, or Mormon. If the Pope shall
ever try to break up our Common Schools, we
shall hold right on in their support but we
shall pick no quarrel with the Pope he must
pick quarrel with us if he wants one. We
do not believe he can Gf he wants
toy withdraw half the children of CathO-
lies from our Common Schools, provided
they are conducted in the spirit of this
article let Wiclif's spirit control their
management, and we apprehend a very different
result.


In short, we propose to 60 right on in the
ways of the fathers, and not turn aside to
charge furiously every red rag that may be
shaken at us from Papa OF other windows.
We are profoundly convinced that the great
body of the Catholic laity are satisfied with
our Common Schools we wish them to remain
so, and to have their children educated therein
If the priests want to withdraw them, we shall
not help them to do so, as Wiclif and his
crowd are plainly doing. And our way is to
let Rome and its policy severely alone.