Letters From Rome on the Council Part 27

Les lettres du pape a Gueranger, Cabrieres, etc., traitant les eveques de l'Opposition en ennemis.

Les allocutions publiques roulant presque toutes sur l'Infaillibilite.

Les cadeaux faits aux Vicaires Apostoliques en les priant de ne pas l'abandonner.

Att.i.tude de la presse approuvee par le Vatican, exploitant ces lettres, et appelant les eveques a se retracter, en les denoncant a leur clerge.

Meme le journal officiel de Rome traitant la minorite d'allies des Franc-macons. Apres tout cela, il n'y a pas de liberte au Concile.

L'amba.s.sadeur que vous enverrez en recevra des preuves peremptoires. Les autres puissances sont deja plus avancees que la France: la Prusse, la Hongrie, meme la Turquie.

A nom de l'ordre publique menace par l'inevitable refus de reconnaitre ce Concile. Au nom de votre droit, ayant rendu possible la reunion du Concile, de proteger la liberte de vos eveques.

Dire-

"Ce Concile ne peut pas continuer dans les conditions actuelles.

"Nous protestons des a present contre la Non-liberte manifeste du Concile.

"Achevez ce que vous avez deja commence.

"Il y a des points sur lesquels vous pouvez esperer l'unanimite morale, sans violation de liberte.

"Tenez une session publique sur les _Schema de Fide_ et de Discipline a.s.sez pour sauver votre honneur.

"Et prorogez une a.s.semblee qui, aux yeux des eveques et du monde, ne possede plus ces conditions d'ordre et de liberte sans lesquelles ce n'est pas un Concile.

"Nous desirons que nos eveques retournent dans leurs dioceses jusqu'a ce que les conditions soient plus favorables pour la celebration d'un Concile."

APPENDIX V.

PROTESTATION CONTRE LE PROJET DE PReCIPITER LA DISCUSSION.

(_Presented early in May._)

Permettez, Monseigneur, que je proteste ici contre un tel projet, s'il existe, et que je consigne entre vos mains ma protestation. Saisir ainsi, irregulierement et violemment, le Concile de cette question, c'est absolument impossible.

Cette discussion immediate de l'Infaillibilite Pontificale, avant toutes les autres questions qui la doivent necessairement preceder, ce renvers.e.m.e.nt de l'ordre et de la marche reguliere du Concile, cette precipitation pa.s.sionnee dans l'affaire la plus delicate, et qui par sa nature et ses difficultes, exige le plus de maturite et de calme, tout cela serait non seulement illogique et absurde, inconcevable, mais encore trahirait trop ouvertement aux yeux du monde entier, chez ceux qui imaginent de tels procedes, le dessein de peser sur le Concile, et pour dire le vrai mot, serait absolument contraire a la liberte des eveques.

Comment une telle question, sous-introduite tout a coup dans un chapitre annexe a un grand _Schema_, le dessein de ceux qui nous ont ete soumis, pa.s.serait avant tous les schemata deja etudies, avant toutes les autres questions deja discutees, et non encore resolues par le Concile.

Des questions fondamentales, essentiellement preliminaires a toutes les autres; Dieu, sa personnalite, sa providence, Jesus-Christ, sa divinite, sa redemption, sa grace, l'eglise, on laisserait tout cela de cote pour se precipiter sur cette question, dont nous n'avions entendu parler avant le Concile presque qu'a des Journalistes, dont la bulle de convocation ne parlait pas, dont le _Schema_ sur l'eglise lui-meme ne disait pas un seul mot.

Et l'examen de cette nouvelle question, si compliquee, cette discussion, si necessaire, cette definition si grave, tout cela se ferait a la hate, violemment, au pied leve. On ne nous laisserait ni le temps ni la liberte d'etudier un point si important de doctrine avec gravite et a fond, comme il doit l'etre. Car aucun eveque ne peut, sans blesser gravement sa conscience, declarer de foi, sous peine de d.a.m.nation eternelle, un point de doctrine de la revelation duquel il n'est pas absolument certain. Ce serait, Monseigneur, dans le monde entier, une stupeur et un scandale. Ce serait de plus autoriser trop manifestement les calomnies de ceux qui disent que dans la convocation du Concile, il y a eu une arriere pensee, et que cette question qui n'etait pas l'objet du Concile, au fond devait etre tout le Concile. Ceux qui poussent a de tels exces...o...b..ient clairement toute prudence: il y a un bon sens et une bonne foi publique qu'on ne blesse pas impunement.

Sans doute on peut pa.s.ser par dessus toutes les recriminations des ennemis de l'eglise; mais il y a des difficultes avec lesquelles il faut necessairement compter. Eh bien! eminence, si les choses venaient a se pa.s.ser de la sorte, je le dis avec toute la conviction de mon ame, il y aurait lieu de craindre que des doutes graves ne s'elevent touchant la verite meme et la liberte de ce Concile du Vatican.

Que les choses se pa.s.sent ainsi, on le peut, si on le veut: on peut tout, contre la raison et le droit, avec la force du nombre.

Mais c'est lendemain, eminence, que commenceraient pour vous et pour l'eglise les difficultes.

Par un procede aussi contraire a l'ordre regulier des choses, a la marche essentielle des a.s.semblees d'eveques qui ont ete de vrais Conciles, vous susciteriez incontestablement une lutte dans l'eglise et les consciences sur la question de l'issue c.u.menique de notre a.s.semblee: c'est a dire, tout ce qu'on peut imaginer aujourd'hui de plus desastreux.

Ceux qui essayent d'engager le Pape dans cette voie, en l'abusant et le trompant, sont bien coupables. Mais je ne doute pas que la sagesse du Saint-Pere ne dejoue toutes ces menees.

ADVERTIs.e.m.e.nT.

Third Edition, Crown 8vo, 7s. 6d.

_The Pope and the Council._

By Ja.n.u.s.

_Authorized Translation From The German._

Opinions of the Press.

"Had the book been, as its t.i.tle might at first seem to imply, merely a Zeitschrift evoked by the exigencies of the present controversy, we should not have noticed it here. It is because it has an independent and permanent interest for the historical and theological student, quite apart from its bearing on the controversies of the day, and contains a great deal of what, to the immense majority of English, if not also of German readers, will be entirely new matter, grouped round a common centre-point which gives unity and coherence to the whole, that it falls strictly within the province of this journal."-ACADEMY, _October 9_.

"In this volume the main idea of the writers, the long fatal growth of the principles which are now about to develop into the dogma of the Pope's personal and exclusive infallibility, is traced in full detail, with a learning which would be conspicuous in any of the divided branches of the Church, with a plain-speaking which few Roman Catholics have been able to afford, and with a sobriety and absence of exaggeration not common among Protestants."-GUARDIAN, _October 13_.

"A profound and learned treatise, evidently the work of one of the first theologians of the day, discussing with the scientific fulness and precision proper to German investigation, the great doctrinal questions expected to come before the Council, and especially the proposed dogma of Papal Infallibility. There is probably no work in existence that contains at all, still less within so narrow a compa.s.s, so complete a record of the origin and growth of the infallibilist theory, and of all the facts of Church history bearing upon it, and that too in a form so clear and concise as to put the argument within the reach of any reader of ordinary intelligence, while the scrupulous accuracy of the writer, and his constant reference to the original authorities for every statement liable to be disputed, makes the monograph as a whole a perfect storehouse of valuable information for the historical or theological student."-SAt.u.r.dAY REVIEW, _October 16_.

"It affords an opportunity for persons in this country to learn, on the most direct authority, how the grave questions which just now agitate the Church are regarded by members of a school within her pale, who profess to yield to none in their loyal devotion to Catholic truth, but are unable to identify its interests with the advance of Ultramontanism. Its aim is to show that the object in chief of the coming Council is to elect Papal Infallibility into an article-and therefore inevitably a cardinal article-of the Catholic Faith. It purports to investigate by the light of history this and other questions which are to be decided at the Council, as well as to serve as a contribution to ecclesiastical history."-MORNING POST, _October 20_.

"The concluding words of the volume, coming as they evidently do from a great leader of thought among German Catholics, are so startling and suggestive that we give the pa.s.sage as it stands, while exhorting our readers to lose no time in procuring and carefully perusing the whole volume for themselves."-CHURCH HERALD, _October 20_.

"It is our intention to deal with this book hereafter as it deserves, for we have reason to believe, we will not say to know, lest we should imitate the vicious example of Ja.n.u.s, that the work is a fabrication of English and German hands. Its name has been well chosen; Ja.n.u.s had two faces, which nationally may mean English and German, but in morals signifies a character not highly estimable for truth."-TABLET, _October 16_.

"This extraordinary work should be read by the millions of Protestant England, as the ablest and most authentic exposure of the ecclesiastical and political despotism of Popery which exists in any language or any country."-ROCK, _October 20_.

"We feel, as we have already said, that it is hardly possible in a review to give an adequate idea of the volume before us, considered merely as a storehouse of facts on the Roman controversy, a value enhanced by the circ.u.mstance that it is written by earnest but sorrowing members of that Church, who desire, by its publication, to avert the progress of corruption and to save the Church from the blundering threatened by the action of the Council. We had marked many pa.s.sages for extract in the course of our own examination. s.p.a.ce, however, forbids our indulging ourselves. We regret this the less because we feel a.s.sured that the book which we have so imperfectly noticed will soon be in the hands of most persons interested in the question which is debated."-JOHN BULL, _October 23_.

"It is of great importance at such a crisis that the public mind should be thoroughly informed as to the points on which the judgment of the Council is to be asked, or, to speak more correctly, as to the monstrous claims of the Papacy to which it is expected to give its formal submission.

Especially is it desirable to understand clearly the exact position occupied by the 'Liberal Catholics,' men who are not prepared to forsake their Church nor to declare war against all progress, and who, despite many discouragements, still cling to the belief that it is possible to find some mode of reconciliation between 'Catholic' principles and modern ideas, and who resent such fanatical outbursts as that of Archbishop Manning even more bitterly than Protestants themselves. We attach, therefore, great value to a little volume just issued on the 'Pope and the Council,' by Ja.n.u.s, which contains a more complete statement of the whole case than we have anywhere met with."-NONCONFORMIST, _October 27_.

"Beginning with a sketch of the errors and contradictions of the Popes, and of the position which, as a matter of history, they held in the early Church, the book proceeds to describe the three great forgeries by which the Papal claims were upheld-the Isidorian decretals, the donation of Constantine, and the decretum of Gratian. The last subject ought to be carefully studied by all who wish to understand the frightful tyranny of a complicated system of laws, devised not for the protection of a people, but as instruments for grinding them to subjection. Then, after an historical outline of the general growth of the Papal power in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the writers enter upon the peculiarly episcopal and clerical question, pointing out how marvellously every little change worked in one direction, invariably tending to throw the rule of the Church into the power of Rome; and how the growth of new inst.i.tutions, like the monastic orders and the Inquisition, gradually withdrew the conduct of affairs from the Bishops of the Church in general, and consolidated the Papal influence. For all this, however, unless we could satisfy ourselves with a mere magnified table of contents, the reader must be referred to the book itself, in which he will find the interest sustained without flagging to the end."-PALL MALL GAZETTE, _October 29_.

"It is very able, learned, compact, and conclusive. The subject of Papal Infallibility is admirably treated, with a thorough mastery of Church history. We commend it to the perusal of all who take an interest in the progress of ecclesiastical questions, and wish to become more nearly acquainted with the Romish Church, its doings, pretensions, decrees-especially with the conduct of its successive heads. It is a perfect storehouse of facts brought together with telling effect. Let the voice of these German Catholics be listened to by enlightened Englishmen of all creeds, and they will be in no danger of ensnarement from the plausible rhetoric of Ultramontanism, whose principles are opposed to our free inst.i.tutions-to the glory and strength of England."-ATHENaeUM, _October 30_.