ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. 



fbrthor the bishop's duty and right to exclude the 

 offender* from communion with the Church, ami. it' 

 they ire ecclesiastics, to deprive them of their spir- 

 itual office, and forbid them to exercise any of the 

 function* of a priest. 



These three duties arc inextricably bound up to- 

 gether, so that neither can exist without the other. 

 The bishop cannot preserve intaet the body of Cath- 

 olic doctrine in faith and murals, he cannot rightly 

 and worthily guard and administer the means of 

 grace appointed by Christ, and dispense the same to 

 the faithful, if he cannot educate, superintend, send 

 forth, and place according to their merits and capaci- 

 ties, the clergy who watch over the purity of the 

 faith, and administer the means of grace to the peo- 

 ple, as his representative* and by virtue of his com- 

 mission. And he cannot do his duty in any of the 

 above-mentioned points least of all can be preserve 

 the Catholic faith from falsification, and the constitu- 

 tion of the Church from destruction if be has not 

 tliu power of rein -;il or schismatic eccle- 



siastics, such as have in other ways proved unworthy 

 of their office, and if he cannot exclude persistent 

 deniers of the Church's articles of belief, and oppo- 

 nents or enemies of the constitution and laws ot the 

 Church, from her communion. The proposed laws 

 attack and annihilate all those essential rights of the 

 Catholic Church, and of her bishop* ; rL'hts without 

 which the bishops will find it impossible to fulfill 

 their most vital duties. And the projected laws at- 

 tack and annihilate these in many respects." 



The laws were, however, passed and pub- 

 lished May 15th. By them the whole status 

 of the Catholic Church was changed. The 

 action of the Pope was abolished by the part 

 forbidding any foreign jurisdiction, and by the 

 establishment of a government court of appeal, 

 before which all ecclesiastical matters were to 

 be brought for final <! :-tic-il sem- 



inaries were placed under state control as to 

 professors and study ; candidates for the \ 

 hood were required to study at the state uni- 

 versities, and none wore to bo ordained by the 

 bishops nnless the candidates passed a stato 

 examination; and no bishop was to appoint 

 any priest to a church without consent of Gov- 

 ernment On the 26th of May the Archbishops 

 of Cologne and Posen, with MBvto bishops, and 

 the Vicar-General of Culm. a-ldi -.,.1 tn tin- 

 te lor Keel. -Mastic. d Affairs, a 

 declaration that it was absolutely impo- 

 for them to cooperate in the execution of 

 laws. Prosecutions were at onco ooramn 

 and numbers of priests arrest. -d. lined, and im- 

 prisoned for violation* of the Fa Ik laws. Arch- 

 bishop Ledochon-ski, of Posen, refusing to ap- 

 pear before a criminal court for appointing a 

 pastor, was fined; and under various sin , 

 ing fines ill liis property s.-i/ed. He was then 

 imprisoned at Ostromo. A brief of the I 'ope, 

 dated Nov. -i-ib, r :; I i m to con- 



stancy. Similar prosecution! \v. re he-rim against 

 the ArehbUttOp of Cologne and tin- I'.ishop of 

 Breslau. Other prosecutions were begun nr 

 those who condemned or cxcommimi'-at.-d tlie 

 Old Catholic*. The Catholic chaplains in the 

 army wore also abolish,. 1. and the whole ' 

 of adherents to that fnlth wore in 



vit.-ment. which continued injo the fol- 

 lowing roar. Out of this state, of things grow 

 the following correspondence : 



VATICAK, Auyutt 7, 187S. 

 Touit MAJESTY : The measures which have 



your Majesty's > 



ist nil iiiin more and more at the destr 

 of Catholicism. When 1 seriously pond- 

 causes which may have led to these very hard meas- 

 ures I confess that 1 am unable to disco\ 

 sons for such a course. On the other han.l. I mn in- 

 formed that your Majesty does not com;- 

 proceedings of your Government, and does not ap- 

 prove the harshness of the measures adopted u 

 the Catholic religion. If, then, it be true that your Ma- 

 jesty does not approve thereof, and the 1< ; 

 your august .1.4 addressed to i. 



inU'ht sufficiently demonstrate tha 

 prove that which i s now occurring if, I s; . 



Iocs not approve of your <..-, 

 ing in the path it has chosen of furi . ng its 



Xrous measures against the r.-li.-i 

 roby the latter is most inji; -will 



your Majesty then not bccon. 

 measures have no other effect than i 

 ing your Majesty's own throne ? I speak with trunk- 

 ness, for my banner is truth. I j>euk in order to 

 fulfill one of my duties, whicn 

 truth to all, even to those wh<> 

 every one who has been baptize. 1 belongs in 

 way or other, which to define mm. would 



be here out of place, belongs, 

 cherish the conviction that your Majesty will r 

 my observations with your usual goodness. un.l \\ ill 

 adopt the measures necessary in the p: 

 While offering to your most gracious Majest. 

 expression of my devotion and est. . God 



that lie may inlbl sty and nn 



and the same bond of mercy. ' i'l". 



His Majesty tlio Emperor replied in a letter 

 to be found in the article "GERMANY."' 



A second letter of the Pope to the Emperor 

 was not published by the latter, and has not 

 been made public at Rome. 



In Mexico the Catholic Church was also at- 

 tacked by legislation. Congress on the 

 of September passed a decree declaring Church 

 and State independent of each other ; making 

 marriage a civil contract under tin- 

 coinpetcMc.y of the State, and with filch validity 

 as it confers. No religions institution was to 

 be allowed to acquire funded property, oaths 

 were abolished, and an argumentative section 

 prohibited religious orders. Protests followed 

 this enactment, and even lisin 

 of Mexico, but the (Jovcniment put down all 

 Mion. The Feasis <>f All Saints' and All 

 S. nils' day were also replaced by tl 

 and Industry. 



In Brazil troubles .arose from another matter. 

 The rules of the Roman Catholic Church for- 

 bid its members to en- 

 principle is well established, an 

 have by name condemned the Kroem 

 and other similar bodies. A member of 

 societies forfeits rights as .1 Catholic. In 

 zil. however, there wore religious coiifraferni- 



* guilds, among which were meir 

 who also belonged to Masonic lodges. An at- 

 tempt of the bishops to enforce Catholic 

 cipline, led to a series of sin; [gles. The!-, 

 first in an ingenious addros '.d to win 



the favor nfthe bishops, and failing, began pros- 

 ecutions a-rainst thorn for refusing to permit 

 mosses to be said for deceased members of the 



