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Show T SIGN OF THE CROSS WITH trowel: Salt Lake, Aug. 2, 1900. Editor Intermountain Catholic: In describing the laying of the corner-stone you state that it was a part of your ritual to make the sign of the cross with trowel in said stone. What is your authority for 6uch ceremony? If you have no authority au-thority ie it not a superstition or a relic of the dark ages? The above difficulty dif-ficulty is propounded not to provoke controversy, but for the enlightenment of one who wishes to see matters honestly hon-estly explained. A SEARCHER OF TRUTH. The spirit displayed by our esteemed correspondent is fair and honest. To enlighten him and all who are groping in the darkness is one of the missions of The Intermountain which will always al-ways freely and cheerfully answer any difficulties that may suggest themselves. them-selves. First, the authority for making the sign of the cross is that of the church commissioned by her divine founder to do all things in His name. This authority as far as it goes is divine, di-vine, and, therefore, no higher could be given. All. who admit the divine origin of Christianity must also concede con-cede the same to the body of teachers or church selected and founded by the God-man. Did not He Himself say, "He that will not hear the church, let him be to thee as a heathen and a publican?" The obligation of hearing the church under such a severe penalty penal-ty necessarily implies that she has authority au-thority to legislate and regulate her own ceremonies and discipline. As to being a superstition the answer follows fol-lows from the explanation given. A superstition is an unauthorized irra- . tional fear of that which is unknown, ' or mysterious. In no sense could this be applied to what took place at the laying of the corner-stone. The third and last difficulty in the communication communica-tion is, that it is a relic of the dark ages, to which The "Intermountain pleads guilty. When studying its origin ori-gin we find as Maacully would express it. that "it carries the mind back to the time when the smoke of sacrifice rose from the Pantheon, and when came leopards and tigers bounded in the Flavian amphitheatre.' It dates farther back than what is known as the dark ages. It had its origin in Calvary, Cal-vary, where the Savior of mankind was crucified. Tertullian in the year 202 wrote his Liber de Sorona; and in C. Ill is this passage: "At every step and movement whenever we come in or go out, when we dress ourselves, or prepare pre-pare to go abroad, at the bath, at table, ta-ble, when lights are brought in, or lying or sitting down; whatever we be doing, we make the sign of the cross upon our foreheads." St. John Chrys-ostom, Chrys-ostom, who was Archbishop of Constantinople Con-stantinople from 39S to 407, whose fame, because of his sanctity and eloquence, has come down through the centuries, used these words: "Everywhere is the symbol of the cross present to us. On this account we paint and sculpture it on our houses, our walls and our windows,; win-dows,; we trace it on our brows, and we studiously imprint it on our souls and minds." (Ecloga de veneranda Cruce.) Many more of the early' Christian Chris-tian fathers nave written on this subject, sub-ject, and all In the same strain. From Apostolic times it has been encouraged by the Church, because the cross and its victim became "our peace . . . and both reconciled us to God in one body by the cross, killing enmities in Himself, and coming He preached peace." Ephis. xi, xiv, 17. a |