into error, that society I must avoid, and seek for the truth somewhere else. Now, Mr. Editor, I find it is the foundation-principle of every sect, society, and denomination of protestants, that, by following them, I may be led into error, or, at the very best, that I have no security against being led into error, because they all unanimously disclaim infalli ble individuals," whose cause he has attempted to advocate, are and were amiable in all the social duties of private life, no one has attempted to deny, or call in question; but if these private excellencies are to furnish a skreen for their public failings, and prevent any just remarks or animadversions on the latter, why then adieu to literary discussions, adieu to the censures of the church, adieu to the pride of Englishmeu, the liberty of the press.-CANDIDus has manifestly suffered his passionsbility; and by a necessary conseto get the master of his quence in reasoning they claim FALThere is no medium therefore strenuously recommend him, LIBILITY. in any future advocacy he may under- in revealed religion between infallitake, or in any subsequent dispute he bility and fallibility, as there is no may contest, never to lose sight of the medium between truth and falsemotto--Non quo sed quomodo, and he hood. will not then occasion his clients to reason; let me exclaim, "Oh save me from my friends!" WM. EUSEBIUS ANDREWS. N. B. In the first letter from AMICUS JUSTITIA, the word "superior" is printed by mistake for "suspicious."-See the number for October last, page 380, col. 1, line 3. For the Orthodox Journal. to follow any protestant system; Therefore, firstly, I am not obliged and, secondly, if I am not obliged to follow any protestant system of religion, it follows that none of such systems can come from God; since I am obliged, as I said before, under pain of disobedience to the Almighty Revealer of Truth, to believe and follow, or to seek sincerely and without guile, what He may have taught. Therefore 1819. MR. EDITOR,-Truth ought to be the first pursuit of every man; and error ought to be as studiously avoided as truth should be sought Dec, 9th, after. The very truth revealed by Almighty God, and the whole of that truth, ought evidently to be the primary object of study and Solicitude with every christian; since every christian is obliged, under pain of disobedience to the Almighty Revealer of Truth, to believe and follow, or to seek sincerely and without guile, whatever He may have taught and enjoined. From this I argue in the following manner: There must be some means in the reach of every sincere christian, for avoiding error, and for arriving at the discovery of the whole of revealed truth; but if there should be found any society, of whatever denomination, in whose doctrine is necessarily included this consequence, viz, that by following such society it is even possible for me to be led I am, Mr. Editor, Now and for ever, NO PROTESTANT. P. S. The above may be abridged in this logical form: Major,-Whatever system of religion may lead into error cannot come from God; Minor,-But every protestant system of religion may lead into error; testant system of religion can come Conclusion,-Therefore no pro from God. Proof of the Minor: Whatever system of revealed religion disclaims infallibility, thereby professes that it may lead into error; but every protestant system of religion disclaims infallibility; therefore every protestant system of religion may lead into error. LINES 35 POETRY. The Methodists, 'tis very plain, Addressed to the Dublin Bible Society, Ought his whole confidence to gain.— friend, "A bible I have brought you, He read, and he expounded too; And was a Presbyterian. Again he reads, with all his might, And Lutherans in wrong. The writer of these lines was assured of this circumstance by the surgeon of the hospital, who issued orders in consequence, that no lank-haired fellow, with a bible under his arm, should be permitted to enter again. To Newton he'll belong. Now underneath whate'er disguise What the scripture teaches, A lesson from this story take, Be sure you keep your breeches, Hibernia has this farce begun, When they begin to vend 'em : FR 36 EPITOME OF INTELLIGENCE. of the fanatics composing them, in the clouds of Egyptian darkness; and we particularly devoted three of our numbers, concluding the sixth volume, namely, Nos. 65, 66, and 67, to the review of a lecture, deli ROM circumstances which have situated, as we are, from the scene transpired since the publication of action, our conclusions can only of our last number, added to those be formed from a minute reflection we therein noticed, it is our firm on the information which reaches conviction that there exists, at the us through the public papers, and present moment, a dangerous con- we are convinced that, upon the spiracy to excite further prejudices whole, our inferences will be found against the principles of the catho- too accurate to admit of refutation. lics of this kingdom, both civil and Since the establishment of this pubreligious, in the public mind, for the lication, we have occasionally nopurpose of furnishing a cloak to the ticed the efforts of some of the relibigotry of fanaticism, and the turpi-gious societies established in this tude of political faction. To effec-metropolis, for the purpose of intuate this purpose, the PRESS has fusing scriptural knowledge into the been put into requisition, and misre-benighted sons of Erin, so long enpresentations and falsehoods have veloped, according to the statements been circulated, the most discreditable and disgraceful to a people, who think themselves the only enlightened, either religiously or politically, of the creation. The reader will recollect the remarks which we made, in the epitome of the preced-vered by a Mr. Joseph Ivimey, an ing Journal, on the bungling tale re- itinerant secretary to a Baptist Sospecting the state of Ireland, insert ciety for promoting Native Irish ed in The Dublin Evening Post, Schools in the catholic provinces of in which it was represented that the Connaught and Munster, which leccounty of Roscommon was in much ture will be found in the first of the agitation, and that great efforts had before-named three numbers. This been made by some strange Eng- man, who styles himself reverend, lishmen to swear in the poor pea- with as little pretension to it, we santry of Mayo; which attempt had believe, as ourself, at that time had been frustrated, it was added, by been traversing this island, with the the active zeal of the magistrates, view of drawing as much fools'-pence aided by the clergy, protestant and (not peter-pence) from the pockets catholic; and the highest encomi- of his credulous and conceited auums were passed upon the catholic ditors, as his lying representations archbishop of Tuam, Dr. Kelly, and of the state of religion in Ireland his parochial clergy, who, at the could effect; and it would seem, by risk of their lives, resisted the in-subsequent events, that his labours trusions of these emissaries of dark- were but too successful. ness. To do The Post justice, we ing a sketch of the misery of Ireadmit the story was prefaced with land, in his own way, the " sovean acknowledgment that the ru-reign remedy to heal her maladies mours were exaggerated; but it and to remove her distress," the leccould not be pretended, it said, that turer suggested, "was, to provide they were all gotten up by the inte- her with schools for imparting scriprested and ultra-loyal. Distantly tural education in the Irish lan After giv guage, and by circulating the Irish scriptures, already provided by the zeal of the British and Foreign Bible Society." This work of pretended charity was so flattering to the gulls of protestantism, that, as I before said, the fools'-pence were so liberally bestowed, as to empower the missionaries to proceed in their work of dispelling the "infernal gloom" of popery. But, whether doubting the efficacy of their scheme, from the known zeal of the catholic clergy, and the ardent attachment of the catholic peasantry to their divine and immutable faith, or whether preferring the sneaking and wily ways of deceit and hypocrisy, the grand characteristic of protestantism of the nineteenth century, certain it is the missionaries, while they made a public boast of their intentions in England, did not dare to avow openly and honestly their designs on the spot where their operations were to be carried on. To entice children into their schools of fanaticism, and gain the consent of their parents and the parish priests, it was given out that the object of these establishments was by no means to interfere with the religious instruction of the pupils, but merely to give them an elementary knowledge of letters; and therefore no catechism or school. book containing a creed or confession of faith was to be used in the schools. Under this assurance, the children were permitted to attend these seminaries; but it was not long before the parish priests dis covered, that, although no printed catechism was allowed, living ones were occasionally introduced for the purpose of tampering with the scholars on religious matters. This insidious plan was effected by means of visitors, who were appointed to make occasional visitations, under pretence of preventing abuses, but actually to catechise and question the children on their knowledge of certain parts of scripture. On these proceedings reaching the ears of some of the catholic pastors, they forbad the further attendance of the children at these receptacles of proselytism; on which the" cloven foot" of the bible-missionaries, and their adherents, soon displayed itself, by holding out the rod of terror, as to their worldly interests, over the addicted heads of the luckless parents, by threats and intimidations of expelling them from their habitations, and sending them to wander, houseless and peunyless, where chance might direct their steps. This humane and pious mode of diffusing light among the catholic peasantry of the before-named provinces bears a strong resemblance to the method adopted by the biblesaints of the sixteenth century, of en forcing the reformation of religion by the power of the sword, and we are confident will be attended with similar success in the extirpation of catholicity. In spite, however, of the denunciations of their bigoted and bible-bitten landlords, the people preferred the advice of their faithful pastors, and the eternal welfare of their offspring, to the poor and miserable advantages afforded them in this world by their earthly masters, and refused to comply with their intolerant injunctions. Ashamed, we presume, at this defeat, and fearing that the reproaches of public opinion would soon be heard against such disgraceful and oppressive conduct, recourse had to the usual system of calumny and misrepresentation, by setting up a cry of illiberality against the catholic clergy, and accusing them of being "the introducers of religious dissensions." Really, accustomed as we have been to the shufflings and tricks of protestantism, much as we have witnessed of the subterfuges reserted to for the purpose of concealing her deformity and invidiousness, was this act, on the part of her bibleschool apostles, of accusing a vonerable body of men of the offence which they themselves had committed, surpasses every thing we have met with, and must consign the actors to infamy and shame. Whilst these things were going on, in the most catholic counties of Ireland, the venerable hierarchy made application to the see of Rome on the peculiar dangers which threat ened the catholic church in that island; to which the sacred congregation for the propagation of the faith returned the following answer, which appeared in The Dublin Evening Register, of the 24th of December last, together with the subjoined pastoral charge from Dr. Kelly, catholic archbishop of Tuam: CIRCULAR. Extract of the Pope's Letter to the Irish Prelates on the subject of Bible-Schools. MY LORD-The prediction of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the parable of the Sower, "hat sowed good seed in his field; but while people slepi, his enemy came, and sowed tares upon the wheat," is, to the great injury indeed of the catholic faith, seen verified in these our own days, particularly in Ireland. For, information has reached the ears of the sacred congregation, that "bible schools," supported by the funds of the heterodox, have been established in almost every part of Ireland, in which, under the pretence of charity, the inexperienced of both sexes, but particularly peasants and paupers, are allured by the blandishments and even gifts of the masters, and infected with the fatal poison of depraved doctrines. It is further stated that the directors of these schools are, generally speaking, METHODISTS, who introduce bibles, translated into English by "the bible society," and abounding in errors, with the sole view of seducing the youth, and entirely eradicating from their minds the TRUTHS of the orthodox faith. Under these circumstances, your lordship already perceives with what solicitude and attention pastors are bound to watch and carefully protect their flock from "the snares of wolves, who come in the clothing of sheep." If the pastors sleep, the enemy will quickly creep in by stealth and sow the tares, soon will the tares be seen growing among the wheat and choak it. Every possible exertion must therefore be made to keep the youth away from these destructive schools-to warn parents against suffering their children, on any account whatever, to be led into error, But, for the purpose of escaping the "snares" of the adversaries, no plan seems more ap propriate than that of establishing schools, wherein salutary instructions may be imparted to the paupers, and illiterate coup try persons. *** mercy) of our Lord Jesus Christ we exhort and beseech your lordship to guard your flock with diligence and all due discretion from those persons, who are in the habit of thrusting themselves into the fold of Christ, in order thereby to lead the unwary sheep aways; and mindful of the forewarning of Peter, the apostle, given in these words, viz, there shall also be lying teachers among you, who shall bring in sects of perdition,' do you labour with all your might to keep the orthodox youth from being corrupted by them--an object which will, I hope, be easily effected by the establishing of catholic schools throughout your diocess. In the name, then, of the bowels (of the And, confidently trusting that, in a matter of such vast importance, your lordship will, with unbounded zeal, endeavour to prevent the wheat from being choaked by the tares, I pray the all good and omnipotent God to guard and preserve yon safe many years. Your Lordship's most obedient F. CARDINAL FONTANA, Prefect, C. M. PEDICENE, Secretary. Rome, Court of the sacred Congregation for the propagation of the Faith, 18th September, 1819. To the Roman Catholic Clergy and Laity of of the Archdiocess of Tuam. Dearly beloved brethren and children in Jesus Christ,-To guard the sacred deposit of religion, and to promote the happiness of the flock committed to my care, are importaut duties imposed upon me, and the dearest objects of my pastoral solicitude. To these my thoughts and labours are at all times directed. With this view have I frequently visited the parishes of this extensive archdiocess; exhorting every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. (Col. Ist ch. 23d v.) That I might be directed and strengthened to perform my duty to Christ, the su preme Pastor of Souls, and to you, my beloved flock, I have implored the light and grace of heaven by humble prayer, and I have sought the advice of my brethren, fellow ministers in the church of God, in whom I have found faithful co-operators in cultivating the vineyard of the Lord. I |