By Henry Aloysius Barry
The Council of Trent calls the hierarchy of the Church, "an army set in battle array." Obedience is its law. It has its commander-in-chief, its generals, its captains, its lieutenants and its soldiers of the rank and file. What a wonderful army! It keeps the field against the world; it has its deserters, of course, through mixed marriages—for which our weak women are responsible—and leakage from other causes, but, it also has its recruits, that often more than counterbalance the defections. Popes pass away, bishops die, priests vanish from the scene of life, the faithful live out their day; the places of all are taken by others— the Holy Spirit abides with her "all days" unto the end. This is the conquering army that will enter the gates of heaven and seize the throne of God. It is the army organized by Jesus Christ and inspired with a heavenly patriotism by the Holy Ghost. The battle-song of the Church is the Veni Creator] "He that will be proud and refuse to obey the commandment of the priest.... that man shall die and thou shalt take away the evil from Israel." (Deut. xvii, 12.)
The Emperor Basil addressed the Fathers assembled at the Eighth General Council to this effect: "As regards us lay people, whether we be titled dignitaries or not, all I have to say is that we have no right whatever to mix ourselves in church affaire or to resist the whole Church or set ourselves up in opposition to the General Council, inasmuch as the examination of such questions belongs to the pontiffs and priests who have the care and governance of the Church, who have received the power to sanctify, bind and unbind, and who hold in their hands the keys of the Church and heaven, and not to us whose condition demands that we should be governed, sanctified, bound and unbound by them. Howsoever pious and wise a layman may be, were he endowed with all manner of virtues, so long as he is only a layman he ceaseth not to be a sheep; on the other hand, no matter how wanting in religious or personal piety a bishop may be, how void he may be of every manner of virtue, so long as he is a bishop and preaches the word of God with exactness he does not part with his pastoral qualities nor with the privileges of his dignity. What right then can we, the poor sheep of the fold, have to oppose our quibbles to the teaching of our pastors and to seek after what is above us out of sheer ambition? We should, consequently, gather in their words with a sincere faith and respect and show our veneration for them as minister's of the all-powerful God and depositaries of so great a power, and right here we should stop and claim for ourselves nothing beyond this. In place of doing so we find to-day a good many laymen letting themselves be carried away by their perversity to such a degree of folly that, forgetting their positions and paying no attention to the fact that it does not belong to the feet or nether members to direct the eyes of the head, they go in an opposite direction to the fitness of things and, whilst displaying an extreme negligence in the matter of correcting themselves on the point of vice, with which they might very well reproach themselves, they show an extreme ardor in drawing up accusations against those who are above them. I warn and pray all who are of such character to set aside all envy and malice and instead of making themselves judges, aye, judges, to amend their own ways by taking for their rule the will of God. But if they refuse to do so they cannot escape from judgment on high or the anger of heaven or the just vengeance which the Sovereign Judge will exercise toward them." Sound advice! God and Caesar, the tiara and the crown—there must be no conflict here. "For matters earthly I have my sword," said Napoleon, "this is enough of power for me. For the things of heaven we have Rome, and, Rome will pass judgment upon such things without consulting me, and she will be within her rights in so doing; this is part of her rights." (Rome 1848, 9, 10.)
In nations where the authority of the hierarchy and clergy is upheld, respected, carefully and sensitively obeyed by the faithful we find a deep catholicity, a pure faith and a solid holiness. I might cite Ireland and the Tyrol as shining instances of this hallowing and hallowed disposition. The direct fruitage of this disposition is the Holy Ghost's pouring Himself out in corresponding measure. Let us then always respect the divinity of religious supremacy like the noble Fenelon in France and the illustrious liberator and statesman O'Connell in the little Green Isle.
The Council of Trent calls the hierarchy of the Church, "an army set in battle array." Obedience is its law. It has its commander-in-chief, its generals, its captains, its lieutenants and its soldiers of the rank and file. What a wonderful army! It keeps the field against the world; it has its deserters, of course, through mixed marriages—for which our weak women are responsible—and leakage from other causes, but, it also has its recruits, that often more than counterbalance the defections. Popes pass away, bishops die, priests vanish from the scene of life, the faithful live out their day; the places of all are taken by others— the Holy Spirit abides with her "all days" unto the end. This is the conquering army that will enter the gates of heaven and seize the throne of God. It is the army organized by Jesus Christ and inspired with a heavenly patriotism by the Holy Ghost. The battle-song of the Church is the Veni Creator] "He that will be proud and refuse to obey the commandment of the priest.... that man shall die and thou shalt take away the evil from Israel." (Deut. xvii, 12.)
The Emperor Basil addressed the Fathers assembled at the Eighth General Council to this effect: "As regards us lay people, whether we be titled dignitaries or not, all I have to say is that we have no right whatever to mix ourselves in church affaire or to resist the whole Church or set ourselves up in opposition to the General Council, inasmuch as the examination of such questions belongs to the pontiffs and priests who have the care and governance of the Church, who have received the power to sanctify, bind and unbind, and who hold in their hands the keys of the Church and heaven, and not to us whose condition demands that we should be governed, sanctified, bound and unbound by them. Howsoever pious and wise a layman may be, were he endowed with all manner of virtues, so long as he is only a layman he ceaseth not to be a sheep; on the other hand, no matter how wanting in religious or personal piety a bishop may be, how void he may be of every manner of virtue, so long as he is a bishop and preaches the word of God with exactness he does not part with his pastoral qualities nor with the privileges of his dignity. What right then can we, the poor sheep of the fold, have to oppose our quibbles to the teaching of our pastors and to seek after what is above us out of sheer ambition? We should, consequently, gather in their words with a sincere faith and respect and show our veneration for them as minister's of the all-powerful God and depositaries of so great a power, and right here we should stop and claim for ourselves nothing beyond this. In place of doing so we find to-day a good many laymen letting themselves be carried away by their perversity to such a degree of folly that, forgetting their positions and paying no attention to the fact that it does not belong to the feet or nether members to direct the eyes of the head, they go in an opposite direction to the fitness of things and, whilst displaying an extreme negligence in the matter of correcting themselves on the point of vice, with which they might very well reproach themselves, they show an extreme ardor in drawing up accusations against those who are above them. I warn and pray all who are of such character to set aside all envy and malice and instead of making themselves judges, aye, judges, to amend their own ways by taking for their rule the will of God. But if they refuse to do so they cannot escape from judgment on high or the anger of heaven or the just vengeance which the Sovereign Judge will exercise toward them." Sound advice! God and Caesar, the tiara and the crown—there must be no conflict here. "For matters earthly I have my sword," said Napoleon, "this is enough of power for me. For the things of heaven we have Rome, and, Rome will pass judgment upon such things without consulting me, and she will be within her rights in so doing; this is part of her rights." (Rome 1848, 9, 10.)
In nations where the authority of the hierarchy and clergy is upheld, respected, carefully and sensitively obeyed by the faithful we find a deep catholicity, a pure faith and a solid holiness. I might cite Ireland and the Tyrol as shining instances of this hallowing and hallowed disposition. The direct fruitage of this disposition is the Holy Ghost's pouring Himself out in corresponding measure. Let us then always respect the divinity of religious supremacy like the noble Fenelon in France and the illustrious liberator and statesman O'Connell in the little Green Isle.
