| Show LEO XIII HIS WORK AND INFLUENCE dr K F coyle in september american to ly the work and of leo 11 II w muot oct tho standing of the roman church at his in its prestie e today A vast and worldwide decline of papal authority wa tho legacy which 1 ins IX left to his successor cuc cessor the vatar can had been shorn of it temporal pow er and there were anany who aw in that humiliation the beginning of the end the recently promulgated dogma of papal infallibility had alienated not a few of he faithful out ot it came the old catholic movement which for 0 time seemed to portend a large falling away isome which had always been regarded an the sacred capital of the pontiffs and headquarters of the popes temporal dominion was in possession of alie italian government insults to tho catholic faith were abetted and encouraged under tho very shadow of st peters germany was openly hostile alie republicans of prance were taught by leaders like gambetta to ee in their mo it dangerous enemy russia wan more than unfriendly and refused to receive th representative of the holy fee f ee the iberian peninsula wan filled with insubordination isolations with mot of the great powers were trained All Europe ana in a revolutionary mood here the cawing of pius IX attracted little attention but note the change history records few things more extraordinary tin quiet gifted indomitable leo lived to ee alie cloud dispelled by the penetrating light of his own and genius he came to his silver jubilee to find the spiritual sway of the papacy restored toward almost every of the horizon even in italy and france the church ii stronger in moral force today than at any timo bince 1870 while in great britain and the united states its growth of influence has been phenomenal the tolling bells that proclaimed the demise of pius IX seema to bo bounding the knell of the papacy those that announced the death of leo XIII rang with a note of triumph from the masterful man who was chiefly instrumental in effecting this tremendous reversal of attitude and sentiment no fair minded person can withhold hia admiration I 1 ebin do litile more within the limits assigned me than indicate two or three ot the directions in which alcoa great work and influence proceeded when he became pope hie most radical and revolutionary theories of society were spreading in europe tho powers were uneasy ane adoption t these theories meant the overthrow of existing institutions against them therefore leo issued the most vigorous and luminous pronouncements he aw how they were agitating the people fomenting discord promoting leading to danger to the world his famous encyclical dealing with the boccal and industrial leni he sought to produce a better understanding der between employers and employed and appealed to capitalists to deal so justly with labor as to leave neither room nor excuse for the professional agitator socialism communism and nihilism which ix cl Aed together were condemned in unstinted terms while he sympathized with alie poor and hard pressed and gave hi to labor unions invoking in their behalf chii protection of the state ho could not condone or tolerate revolutionary methods aili immense and inan ence with the abc nations were not slow to and hence for their own peace and preservation they deemed it wise to cultivate friendly relations with the head of the roman cathony church actuated by the mine lofty spirit lie pleaded with persuasive eloquence for the sanctity and unity of the marriage relation lie AW lle nodal chaba and ruin that dinst result from the growing laxity of divorce laws and the lowering ideals of bioly wedlock and called upon hn people to keep inviolate their catholic notions of family life the world cannot thank him too earnestly for his defense of tho homes for a the home is w will society be still more pronounced were hl work and influence in the of statecraft kecell hn notable victory over bismark Bi mark at alie zenith of his power made extra imperious by the easy triumph at sedan alie iron chancellor seemed eager to try conclusions with on the tiber ife defied papal authority proscribed the gavia ibe state supreme control over all institution s professing allegiance to the vatican and raised the intolerant cry no popery determined to curb e roman catholic power in germany to make 1 it subordinate to the empire and haughtily protested that lie would never play the role of henry IV and go to canossa Cano by which h meant that the prescriptive laws against the catholics would never be repealed but the deep quiet man in the vati tan bided hi time no one ever knew better bow to wait lie had the genius ot patience and the gift of foresight there was no protest no complaint of injustice or leo simply wrate a letter conveying the papal blessing and adroitly appealing to the chancellors better nature the man of granite was conquered by the arm and gra cloua gentleness of the pope bismack went to soon the falk laws were inoperative and dead ten years after lila acce wion leo had the satisfaction ot seeing the authority n established in germany and moat of the religious or def recalled the incident of the carolines lu which ata suggestion of bismarck the pope was asked to arbitrate the difficulty between germany and spain how completely kerlin and the vatican were reconciled aue armony wa still further emphasized by the recent journey of the emperor william to home scarcely les note orty wi tho popes influence in great britain de eving the validity of american orders making no concession to ha nevertheless managed on hie of victorias jubilee to introduce a papal envoy the ficht ince the reforma bionto the court of st to re the in the and of jamba kaoe the same remarkable alev edem and ability are seen in his dealings with the united states without violence to american traditions or the antagonism of protestant people he succeeded in instituting quasi relation with the government at washington what a striking illustration 0 his political sagacity wag fur imbed by his attitude on the fkiara ques alon in the philippines by refraining from any defense of the fkiara on the hand and by giving to priests the prestige of papal approval in an american posse islon on the other he fadda to hit influence to ams re lie could scarcely have been more friendly if the people ot tace united states lud been all or mostly catho lica in the realm 0 letters we and his oa tb ing for breadth and freedom of tion to facilitate the M au h for lie gae unrestricted to the ait and treasures of alic vatican ho encouraged a thorough baudy of the the distribution of ane among alie common people of italy in their own language aud coun ced a inora impartial of yet over his i sevc it is to forget I 1 ilia condemnation of in england and bahm in america for espousing the philosophy of evolution fundamentally his work and influence were and always religious iho one froin which lie never swerved was 0 o promote the power and glory ot the cl to extend atio sway or roman catholic christianity deter mined all hn policies and was the secret of all his diplomacy and statecraft A benevolent desire to do good and as much good ag possible was doubtless the dominating motive of his pontificate but be inflated apon doing it in the truly papal way while there can be no question that the of bis reign operated to liberali xo Catholic hm to adapt it to new and manners and to align it the spirit of the age it Is impossible to discover in bis career any retreat from the essential principles of thal papacy and benignant in his private and official relations rela tiona ho waa unbending and autocratic in his capacity of pontiff urging his followers in frana and brazil to accept republican institutions he repudiated the principle of popular sovereignty freedom of and of worship in the protestant ho refused to admit liberty of and of teaching he declared to be an evil against civil control of public instruction st and of divorce and marriage laws ho protested in any conflict of and state he taught that the for nur must bo obeyed so that it is difficult to see wherein as the putative vicegerent of christ ho retreated a in alc hairs breadth from of his predecessors there is he bated one jot or tittle the presumptuous authority of the past or in the smallest degree emptied the word papacy 0 its agre long content yet by h n conciliatory by his sincere love for mankind and by hl christian great he brought about a larger feeling of human brotherhood among the people of all creeds and races in language which no pope before luiu ever used lie saoko of protest aneg as separated brethren and thus recognized their essential christianity the epherm of hia was worldwide and had influence algava made far peace and progress lie was the steadfast advocate of arbitration for settling disputes between na tiona and when liia history in written the with which he nought tho reign of good wilt among men will bo recorded as one ot liisi chief glories tha gentle spirit of alie man was averse lo 10 lie found it more with hi nature to love than to hole to speak word of chairty than to hun anathema A survey oricia career in the papal chair the fact that hl influence was not so enuch and as personal had aim IX been by one like himself alic prestige of Koni antini would have continued to decline it was not the rope fant the man inal made leos fin wholesome hat which won for liim tin respect of the non catholic and the homage of ii own people was not the sanctity of hia but lio Hs of hl pera entirely apart from enormous enor mou which have made 0 o many of the vainglorious and arrogant and from which he wat by no acan exempt one in leo the mild and humble demeanor of a true follower of hy hii own lic roe far above hit rn and alic tradition aind in titu under which be torta aice and nations felt the healing and pcr touch of ahls christly character acter ay lie nobility of his manhood by llie preponderance in him of the and by the away of H scepter that drew ita power from unseen lie agne abundant proof that temporal authority h a drag upon the advancement of alic church if hii seems to lieve been greatest in protestant counaris it ia not to alx lx inferred eliat the jenues of alie reformation are becoming obsolete or eliat convictions are boxing their the only tiling it U that the world is learning 0 o diabin beleen the wan and alie between the and alie non and to put the emphasis upon values rather than upon external pomp and so ang as a loep of liverty detira in human hearts BO long as icen know how to prize individual righta in matters of concie and religion ao long as kome flings to alio dogma of infallibility to her belief in other than christ end to the doctrines which led to the upheaval of yearn ago will remain in the field conquering and to conquer meanwhile it will join with all of every name in honoring the men no matter what their rc or creed or po who manifest the spirit and virtues of leo XIII |
