OCR Text |
Show 20 j . t THE INTERMOUNTAIN CATHOLIC the most sublime the world had ever known; they were going forth to preach a gospel so pure that man could not understand it; they were going forth to preach this gospel in the midst of the mightiest empire the earth had ever known, an empire that extended from sea to sea. They were to preach this gospel in the face of the power and intelligence and culture of Rome. One emperor after another tried to extinguish this growing flame, but ere three centuries passed the followers of Christ had been triumphant, and the banner of the risen Christ floated oer the heights of Romes capitol. Then came the internal dissension in the Church and men stopped and asked: Is Christ divine? Men questioned the divinity of the spirit, he divine maternity of her whom we call our Mother. The Bishops gathered at Nice, at Constantinople, at Ephesus, and established the truth that was in Christ, and the storm passed again and the Church was triumphant. Then came from the north the Hun, Goth and Vandal and attempted to include the Church in their mark of devastation;1 but Leo met the Hun at the bank of the river and turned him back, while angels from on high threatened him and that storm passed, and the Church out of this medley moulded the nations of modern Europe. Then came the Mohammedan from the east, and he in the end was vanquished. Then came the days of the Western Schism and man in despair looked to God and asked had this mighty fabric that had grown up through the ages passed? These indeed were the hardest days that the Christian Church encountered in her voyage across the sea of life. But that passed, too, and the Bishops and Council of Florence brought about unity and peace. Then came the Reformation; whole nations that Europe knew were swept away from the bosom of the Church, while in far off places the Church made new conquests and triumphed as before. But for the past hundred and fifty years or more the battle has not been merely against the truths of the Church, but against the very foundations upon which all religion rests. Voltaire gave thirty years unto the Galilean, but he is dead and the Chprch still lives in her Bishop and her priests. Then came the worlds conflict, and the white-robefigure that sat on Peters throne was the only man, seemingly, in the world who, rising above party strife and national greed, spoke to the world of justice and of peace. After, the smoke of battle rolled by and man asked: Is there nothing stable in the world; is there nothing upon which we can build again our civilization unto greatness? Men looked up and saw Christ on the summit of the ages teaching sacrifice and love that makes all the world new, and the Vicar of Christ, working with his Bishops throughout the world, proclaims unto the man of today that the only hope that the world knows is in Christ, the Christ who teaches man his dignity, the subject the law of observance, the citizen the spirit of sacrifice for the common good. On this day, therefore, when in love we greet a new , pastor of our souls, it is well to remember the past; it is well to remember that the Church has met every crisis that the world has known, and after the crisis has passed has given to the world new wisdom, power and strength. Go back over the years since the missionaries. trod these mountain paths and ask what power has made wisdom and strength available, and the answer comes back, the power of the whole Church against which the gates of hell have not prevailed, the wisdom which came from the strength of her teachers. It was this power that made Scanlan great and made him the idol of his people, and it was this power that touched the heart of Glass and made him a missionary in this vast jurisdiction, and this same wisdom from on high and that same strength that will give your new Bishop his place when he begins his life work of saving souls redeemed in Christs precious blood and destined to life eternal. Dear Bishop, in behalf of this western world into which you have come, we extend to you this morning a lordly welcome. The future of our country is bound up very largely with the mighty undeveloped spaces, and the future of this land will lie largely in your hands and in the hands of those who here strive for Christ by the sunset sea and in the f d . White Renewed Supplies and Repairs for all makes Machines for rent Hemstitching White Console Model Electric is a beauty come in and see White Sewing Machine Company 72 So. Main St. Singer Renewed $20 to $35 |