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Show THE DANGER OF CONTROVERSY. We have noticed of late in many secular newspapers throughout the country letters in which Catholic challenge chal-lenge certain bigots to debate in public pub-lic upon the doctrines of the Catholic Church. Several of the letters have demonstrated very clearly how painfully pain-fully Incompetent this or that challenger chal-lenger is to present the claims of the Catholic Church. The Ave Maria has noted these facts, and it remarks that In such cases as we speak of the Church needs to be saved from her friends. As our contemporary says, it is better far that our holy faith should be misrepresented misrep-resented by its enemies than that it should suffer by a bungling defens by those who have neither the dut nor the ability to champion its cause. A lumbering, heavy-handed brief will compromise the best case in law; and a dull, incompetent apology for th' Church is worse than a wmole broad side from the agnostic cannons. Th' glib-tongued Infidel makes an impres sinn it is true, hut the earnest seeke after truth, remembering that ther-are ther-are two sides to every question, holds hid judgment suspended, and thus remains re-mains open to conviction. On the other hand, when the position of the Church is feebly stated, in thousands of ignorant minds it is not the individual indi-vidual member, but the whole Church which has suffered defeat. Men of marked ability hesitate t engage in controversy with a bigot c an infidel, but those who are not suited to defend the Church hasten to O fray. They are the fools who rush in where disciplined scholars fear to tread. Cardinal Newman remarked once to one who wished to draw him into public argument against religion: "Debate with you? No; but I'll fiddle against you, if you desire." It is related re-lated that when this great man felt obliged to write his magnificent "Apo logia" he groaned in spirit at th thought of his responsibility, and his friends had to exercise all their influ work0 induce him to undertake th There is something, too. in consider ing the character of those who invite controversy. A certain class of professional pro-fessional defamers,- utterly without principle, have but one end in view-notoriety. view-notoriety. They are impervious to logic or reason, care nothing for facts and will cite pages of "damaging, testimony" testi-mony" never written. The persons who challenge , bigots and infidels to debate should realize the position they thus assume. As self-constituted spokesmen of.' the Catholic Church, what they say is regarded re-garded as a correct exposition of Cattw one doctrine, if they fan into erro-their erro-their opponents will not concede that fact, but, on the contrary, they will take advantage of it and use it tc further misrepresent the Church Thus, it is plainly the duty of Catholics Cath-olics to be wary of falling into traps If there must be controversy, let only those who are competent speak for the Catholic Church. |