THE HIGHER INTERCOURSE BETWEEN NATIONS. 85 



cietics must seek their unity, not in a bond of like nutiuc, but 

 in the higher bond of the religious order. Universal religious 

 soeiety alone can realize the organic unit}- of the nations, -svithout 

 infringing or even threatening their legitimate autonomy.] 



This universal society of souls and of nations is the 

 Catholic church. In evidence of this, I call to witness 

 its name, as illustrated by facts. Whereinsoever other re- 

 ligious communions are worthy of respect, I honor 

 them. Far from putting odium upon them, I liave 

 given ihem my hand — 1 give it still. . But they are 

 themselves the hrst to acknowledge — sometimes even to 

 claim it as a merit — that they have no pretension to 

 universality. Less absolute than we, they deem it a 

 duty to make terms with circumstances of time and 

 place, with the genius of races and the exigences of 

 governments. Some of therm — the unestablished 

 churches — appeal to individuals, or at most to families. 

 The others — State churches — seek to identify them- 

 selves with nations. Xone of them has the boldness 

 to proclaim itself the Church of Humanity, or to say, 

 like us, " Out of my pale, wilfully abandoned by one 

 who knows what he is doing and means it — out of my 

 pale there is no salvation." 



Ah I I have found at last the bond of national unity, 

 the tie of the perfect organization of mankind upon the 

 earth! I grasp it in my trembling hands. This bond is 

 not political, and consequently, sooner or later, tyran- 

 nical. It is a spiritual and unarmed bond, the strength 

 of which proceeds from God and has its seat in tlie 

 souL The nations have nothing to fear from it, and 

 everything to hope. 



When the immortal King of the Catholic churcli 

 appeared before Pilate, who represented the political 

 power of that time, the Roman governor anxiously in- 



