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Show ' ; In last week's Xew York Freeman's Journal appears an interesting editorial under the caption, "A Creedless rrotcaiitisni." It treats of the 'marked tendency on the part of Protestant ministers min-isters to scoff' a L all idea of religious dogma, and ito view Christianity as a mere outgrowth of human sentiment and aspirations. That this tendency I forbodes the utter disintegration of Protestantism Protestant-ism there can be no reasonable doubt. It were perhaps per-haps well, viewed from the standpoint of Catholicism, Catholi-cism, Christianity in its divine and veritable integrityif in-tegrityif the logical issue of this "progressive," "evolutionary" or "rationalistic" 'Christ ianity" should reach an early culmination. The millions of adherents of Protestantism who are indisposed to relinquish their cherished faith in a divine, supernatural Christianity would thus be relieved re-lieved of all perplexing doubt "and could then return, with a soul-tranquiljzing certitude, certi-tude, to the "Faith of their Fathers." It has long been evident to the intelligently discerning dis-cerning mind that Protestantism, founded upon mere negaton, is utterly devoid of the divine es-seuf es-seuf of immortality; that it does not appeal to enlightened human reason, and that, therefore, its adherents must, sooner or later, yield to the inevitable in-evitable and discard it as unsound in principle and untenable as a religious system. As there will . then be no logical course fnr Protest nuts tn iiii-puno I save to content themselves with the cold comfort j of agnosticism or with heart and soul revolting materialism on the one hand, or to embrace the saving faith of the one true Church, we have every reason to hope that the civilized world will once more ho united in heart and mind under the glorious glor-ious Cajholic standard assuredly, "a consummation consumma-tion devoutly to be wished." - . Magnanimity of heart and mind is the peculiar attribute of great souls. Without some degree of responsiveness to the charms of this trait of "bigness," "big-ness," one's moral nature has not yet burst the bonds of that narrow selfness which marks the savage state of the human race.' Magnamity of soul is akin to that charity which "covereth a multitude mul-titude of sins." .- lT. , Socialist organs which have not the manly candor can-dor to openly avow their antagonism to or contempt con-tempt for religion, content themselves with ill-dis-guised inuendo, of which the following clipping is a specimen : "When capitalism is dead; when little children are no longer forced to labor; when. plenty is the portion of the worker; when the working class has unfettered the last slave and elevated the last parasite, par-asite, to the glorious dignity of useful work; then we will take a day off to spit hairs over the merits of this or that creed or philosophy of the hereafter or the heretofore, but until then: This is our busy day." ' How man Catholics are willing to barter their all for a nook in the "hog-wallow" here depicted? To do away with child-labor, it is not necessary to 101-ge tne irKsome letters ot a socialistic state; nor is this necessary in order that plenty be the portion por-tion pf the working man. To "unfetter the last slave" sounds grandiloquent, but Socialism would make every member of society the working man, of course, 'included the slave of a social system that inusK in the very nature of things, prove the most galling task-master that can well be imagined. imag-ined. - : ' Consistency is a jewel. A Socialist organ sarcastically sar-castically castigates The Intermountain Catholic for characterizing revolutionary Socialists as enemies ene-mies of religion and society. After attempting to convict us of manifesting a lack of Christian charity by our strictures, this organ seems to fairly fair-ly revel in the boast that its "constituency" is committed com-mitted to the one task of .consummating' the destruction de-struction of society. It is ominously silent as to its attitude towarf religion, discreetly leaving this to the inference of its readers. It seems to resent, particularly, the designation of its ilk as "mornl lepers,", but as it does not hesitate" to proclaim itself, it-self, infereiitially, the determined foe of all supernatural super-natural " religion, it should be equally frank by pleading guilty to this charge also. Christianity is the only efficacious conservator of the morals of the people, and it is but fair and just that its enemies ene-mies should be publicly branded, so that they may not contaminate society with. their loathsome mai-ady. mai-ady. The editor of this Socialistic organ should divest his mind of the absurd notion that Christian Chris-tian charity deters from using plain-and vigorous language when battling with iniquity in any form. Christ did not refrain from employing harsh words in denouncing the enemies of God. Charity at times demands recourse to drastic measures for the protection of the innocent and unsuspecting multitude from the nefarious machinations of the' unscrupulous enemies of society another designation designa-tion for mankind in a state of civilization. The most reprehensible attitude of the publication in question is, perhaps, its assumption of being the mouthpiece of the workingmen, collectively, of this community; but there is. really, no limit to the absurd audacityof the revolutionary Socialist. |