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I fabo TO karli Th >aud ; jEastei 'A post hg th jthe (Ig |battec Iheave time, 4the pi tt'Iock jrompl tnidal con so in the of Pa all, ai ■ '.;':.'*»'".' r> i\ J- > PASTORAL LETTER. ■>- .'f nr J vu: \yi fabottt of tf)e ^poi^tolCc ,9»re, ^ttpiciDoi. of TO THE CLERGY AND ARCHDIOCESS OF LAITY OF HALIFA}^. THE 1 early Beloved Brethren : — ' The holy season of penance and prayer is at |hand ; the great Lenten Fast and preparation for Jilaster is approaching, and the Successors of the 'Apostles throughout the Catholic world are sound- ing tho trumpet of the spiritual warfare in which ^ho devil, the world and the ilesh, are to he com- ^batted, and a sacred violence is to be offered to Jieaven itself. The recurrence of this acceptable Uime, and those daysof salvation, imposes upon us ^the pleasing duty of addressing our entire Beloved Unlock in a Pastoral admonition, and we cheerfully omply with this obligation of that high and for- nidable office which we unworthily fill, in the onsoling hope that the Shepherd's voice, speaking in the name, and by the authority of the " Prince of Pastors," may penetrate the heart of each and all, and that every wandering- sheep may bo ONK r^ t .•■ •■■•J i^'.. 3climck4¥hriiiK!.Iiltograph?r.; Edinljutgh. ONK . -*■ — ^'— ■ \nNKEY ^4 PASTORAL LKTTEH. t brought back to the fold by its attractive sound. Through oui' exalted Ministry God himself exhort§ you ; through our humblp agency, your anxious anc) holy Mother, tho Church, invites you to repen- tance. You are «ur joy, our glory, and our crown ; the beginning and end of all our thoughts, the constapjt objects of our paternai solicitude, To you we haVe consecrated our health, our time, our faculties, our life, and you may be assured, Dearly Beloved Brethren, that our pastoral heart wijl Qj^asp to beat when it throb$ not Ulost affectionately for your spiritual welfare. The " Beloved Son jn whom his Father was well pleased," and whom ho coirinnanded all mankind to hear, has enjoined you to listen to the voice 6f his Church and of her legitimate pastors ; and has solemnly declared tha^ in hearing thpm,you Hear him, and in despising them, you despise hin). Deriving our sublime ciofnmission from th6 august successor of Peter^ apd Vicegerent of J^sus Christ, we are the link whi(?h binds you to the great centre of Unity, and fastens you to that rock of ages upon which your faitl) so securely reposes. Our message is not of this earth, nor our commission fi'om *' the powers of this world." We are the Ambassador of Christ, the herald of His Spiritual Kingdom. We desire to scatter abroad that fire which He came to en- kindle, and to establish in your hearts the sweet doBiiniotj of His love. Wo wish to wean you for a time from the sfiductive allurements of tho world, and hijshing; into stillness the tempest of the p«s- sions, and tfie distracting noise of this life of care^ to lead you into th.^ desert after our Divine Mas- ter, for forty Hays of meditation and penance, M IS und, ort§ anc) )eii- wn ; the 1o our atly m\\ FrteJy )n in m he .you her tha^ PASTORAL LETTER. O - ns i - There^ God himself will speak to your hearts ; there you will " humble your souls in lasting," and '^ wash your hands amonjjjsi the innocent." In that spiritual armoury you will obtain the necessary weapons for your heavenly warfa^re ; the shield of faiih, tiie breast-plate of righteousness, the swonl of the spirit. In that arena, the glorious field of combat, you will, as soldiers of Christ, learn the discipline ol the Cross, and the infallible remedy of the wounded soul. From that sacred spot you will collect, not the food \yhich perisheth, but iho true manna coming down from heavbn which nourishes the soul to life eternal. .., c,.,rfr^.'vili reward your piety in the presence ot the as- PABTOilAL LETTEH. seniblcd world. Do not tremblt^, but rather re- joice at the approach of Lent, and tak(3 care fhat no empty pretext shall induce you to decline the powerful remedies whicli are now dispensed bv the Church, your Mother, for the health of the br»>^y no less than that of the soul. The whole- some austerities of fasting will compensate the hi- jutious excesses of past indulgence. The morti- fication of the flesh will weaken your most potent enemy, and " sin" will no longer "reign in your mortal bodies." The soul, weighed down by gluttony, and held in cruel liondage by degrading intemperance, will be restored to liberty and vigour, and the " clean heart," purified from its corrup- tions, will ** see God" more clearly, and adhere to him more closely, and become onrapttared with His adorable attributes of wisdom, justice, mercy and love. Temporal, as well as spiritual blessings, are ^^iierally ensured by wise moderation in our drink and food. That calm and placid state, free from unnatural and dangx^rous excitement, and which is no less necessary for the body than the soul, is chiefly the result of temperate abstinence. The heat oi bodily inflammation, just like the fever of the soul, is allayed by this refreshing balm. Health, length of days, cheerful spirits, an equa- ble temper, the vigorous possession of the corpo- real facul ies^ may be ascribed to its powerful effects; and the medical authorities, together with the voice of experience, alike proclaim the incon- trovertible fact, that for one iiidividual whose lifr- is shortened by fasting, hundreds are cut oiT by immoderate gluttony; so that accojiling to the k 1» A-S-TOn A L ' L*;T'i:i:fi . B7 er n?- e rhat le the 'd bv of the vhole- he jri- morti- )otent your vm by ading igour, orrup- idhere i with mercy ;s, are r drink I from hich is loul, is The !ver of balm. eq«a- corpo- werful r with incoii- 50 lifr, i(r bv u ihi' i 'i ^f)i^vorti which «nwraps the wisdom of ages: the i^hroa^ has killed more than the sward. And, if this be tfifft of intrmprrance in general, with what terri(»le efft^ct is it not realized when we come la consider the consequences of fntempprance in drinking? This briita) vice, now so unhappily prevalent in the world, is ilW prolific source of miseries innumerable to the hurman race. Drunk- enness suspends and i«i pairs the faculties of the soul, extinguishes the light of reason, defaces the beaw^-y of God's image, a«d consigns its hapless victim to the dominion of Satan and the fires of liftH. By drunkenness are perverted the fairest 'gifts of nature and grace ; and by the same terri- ble scourge reputation is destroyed, property is squandered, heajtji is impaired, life is shortened, society is deeply injured, whole families are ruin- ed, the dearest ties of kindred and friendship are rent asunder. It invades private right, and de- stroys the public peiioe ; it roams abroad like a mid-day devil, seeking whom it may devour, scan- dalizing the little ones ot Christ, and with its blasphemous obscenities corrupting the minds of the innocent, and the pure air of heaven. Idle- ness and injustice are iis handmaids ; poverty or disease, or both, its unfailing attendants ; whilst sacrilege and robbery, and murder, in their most hideous forms, are looming in the distance ; and appalling suicide, the prelude to eternal death, closes the life of crime, and opens the portals of hell. O, Dearly Belovtjd Brethren, we conjure vf)U *' through the bowels of the mercv ot our Ciod," and in the name of Josus Christ, vour future Judge, to lloe (roui this soul-destroying vice is PASTORAL LETTfiR. ^* as from the face of a serpent," or from the jaws Dl hell itself. We beseech joU mi His oVvn awful Words, ** not to let your heari^j be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness, lest that day of) terrific judgment) siiould suddenly come Ujxmi jou," and you should experiertce all the horror of *' falling unprepared into the hands of tho living God," without nnercy^ and without hope ! We lift up our voice, as we have on in numerable occa- sions before, to denounce \\\\i monstrous eVil, this uniiatural crimen, this pestilential plague, which is oating, like a gangrene, into the very vitals of society, and sapping the foundations of morality and virtue, liemember that the " Drunkard will never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven" ; that his impure lips will neve^' drink of the torrent of delights, nor his soul be "inebriated with the plenty of God's house." W^hilst there is yet time, ** whilst it is called To- Day," and the mercy pf God still shines upon you, resolve to extirpate, root and branch, this Tree of Death, and to remove from the midst of us so cryiOg an abomi- nation. Now is the time, now is the blessed sea- son, to make a holy, a generous, a determined resolution ; to confine yourselves within the bounds of Christinn moderation, or, where, from the, sad experience of your past frailty, yoii know this to be next to impossible, to abstain altogether from the tempting draught, to put away the occa- sion of sin, (o ^^cut oil the hand, and pluck out the eye" which are the fatal cause of scandal to your brother, and of ruin to yourselves. This is the time to commence a thorough reformation, and to cry out with the penitent Prophet : " I have o 111 V aws wful reed PASTORAL LETTEHJ I said, NOW I have begun : this is thechiingeof the right hand of the Most High." And, surely, when ill the coming Lent you will go up in spirit with- the Church to Jerusalepfi and Calvary, and con- templatcvthe Son of Man delivered* into the hands of the Gentiles,— when you-behold Him mocked and scourged, and spit upon, anct crowned with, thorns,— ^when you see his sweat of blood, and meditate oil the deadly anguish of his soul,-^ when, following in the Dolorous Way, that paiH.^ fu I passage traced out in His own blood, youy accom pahy Him to the Mount of' Sacrifice/ where, elevated upon the agonizing Cross, hi* dying thirst is satiated with vinegar, and his parched lips with gall, — -when, after having exhausted to the very dregs the chalicp of afflictioii: both in soul and body, you see Him consummaTi ting the glorious work of Infinite Love, by shed* ding every drop of his precious blood, and layiufV down his Yii^ for your ransom,— »- when you behold, all this, and consider for whom it was done, and: , for wlrat inestimable object this bloody ransom was paid-^surely, surely, D. B. Brethren, you wills think very little of any sj^crifice of your sensual appetite, which. His divine precept, and the law of his Church, and the salvation of your own souls will require you to make, ** You have indeed been redeemed at a great price. Glorify God, therefore, and bear Elim in your bodies" by offering them up as purified \'ictims of atonement, in union with His august immolation, and preser- ving them *' in sanciification and honour, and not in tlie passion of sinful desire, like the Gentiles who know him not.*' Remombering his bitter 10 PASXOUAL LET] Eft., ' sufft^rings, take care not to be numbered amongst those uiigrateCul sinners, of whom the Apostle &peaks, with tears in his ejes, as "enemies oi'tho Cross of Christ, vvliose glory is in th?ir shame, and? whose end is destruction," because instead of that Great and Merciful Being who created and redeemed them, " their belly 23 their God !" How much sa'er is it not, to drink pure water in this life, and with fasting Lazarus to be borne hy Angels into the bosom oi Abraham^ than to be buried in hell with the rich glutton,, and to ask in vain for one drop of that i>cver«ge so now despised, to cool its torturing flame ! 1^* the taste of intoxi- cating liquors is to you the proxiiFAate occasion of $^in, that fire of hell can be extinguished only by the water of abstinence. This v\ hblesome drink is rained from heaven^ and distilled by nature for man's use, in the secret chambers of the earth. When its swelling tide bursts the mountain veins in every part of the world, it gushes forth in joyr, ful and pellucid streams to minister to our ivant9, and to fertilize that soil from which, through pri- meval benediction, our daily sustenance is pro- duced. And so natural is its delicious refresh- ment, that when we suffer most severely from the pangs of thirst, water alone can slake it to our comfort. Water produces no quarrels, it foments no passion, it causes no pain, it propagates no dis- easeu Water does not destroy reason, nor obscure the judgment, nor injure the reputation, nor dissi- pate our wordly substance. The tilood-shot eye, the quivering lip, the bloated cheek, the faltering tongue, the palsied hand, the tottering stej), are not the offspring of water; holy ab.itincnce knows i )UgSt K>stle r tho ,and that and t5? PASTORAL iJiU'tmCi ft them not. The color of the abstemioas Christian is venerable ; it is not reddened with the flush of beastly excitement, but tinged with the decorous pallor of self-denial, an index of the whiteness of the soul. His counteriance is )3laeid, his looks are thou^htiul, his gait is composed, his speech is seasoned with the salt of wisdonr, his feelings are tempered by religion and reason, and his heart is pure. O what a fearfiil contrast does the intenii- perate sinner present both in his body andsoul^ in hisguiltj career through life, and above alt, at the awful moment of death, a moment that is so often preceded by days and nights of delirium and despair! _ ;; ; ! il Wherefore, intemperate christian, " en worthy member of a head croH^ned with thornis, ungrater<»' ful disciple of a ^Redeemer drenched with rirtegar and -gall. ** To-day, if you shall hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts^'* Do nstt ** treasure up wrath against tho day of wrath." Repounce your flesWy idols, and your brutal ap^ petites. Come oat courageously into the desert with the people of God, and from the suUtme ex> ample of your Crucified King, learn haw to tri- umph over Satan, and, what is still more diffietitr, how to triumph over yourself, and your irregular desires. Fasting, abv^tinence and prayer wiU obtain the precious gir;jce of your conversion. Pray that you may obtain the strength of fastings and fast that you nijay sanctify yotir prayers; Fast that ycu may atone for your past transgressions, and pray that you may commit them no iHorei Fast as a salutary remedy acaifwt fUttire sin; -and pray that yotf lie nbt " ted into tctt*ptation.'^ ti ^ASTOHAL LtitEIU ! i' M; ( h: 51! ■i • ii Fast that you may weaken your inclination to evil, and pray that your soul may be strengtheiied tn good. Fast according to your ability and strength, and the holy precept of the Church ; and estimate your obligation in this respect, not by your rank, or wealthy or position in the world) but by the catalogue of your sins ; for it frequently happens that those who stand most in need of Penance, are the first to claim exemption from its rigdm^Sj assigning with singular, inconsistency as grounds for indulgence, the very weakness or delicacy which have resulted from their crimes, and for which judicious abstinence may be the infal- lible cure. Such prevaricators are always weak when tempted to offend God, and still more feeble, when summoned to appease Him. Wiih all their alleged infirmity and frailty, they expose them- selves tospiritual danger as if they had the strength of lions, but when the trumpet of Penance is sounded in th^ir ears, all their courage forsakes them, and they have not power enough left to make the smallest sacrifice for God, or for their own souls*.' '):■] (>><)•]] '.nr .f;^-'^ 'I'n '-^']r-^'t '-^fh fl»r--r' -i'Jn these exhortations to holy fasting, from the Word of God, and the Venerable Fathers of onr Church, we have dwelt particularly, D. Beloved Brethren, on the necessity and advantage of tem- perance in drinking, because we know, from melancholy experience, how destructive the vice of drunkenness is, and what calamities it brings upoo the human race. We are likewise convinced of the inutility of the Lenten Fast for those who will not reform their lives In this essential particu- lar. The drunkard has no share in the sufferings hii thl is ?p m to leiied and and by vorldt eiuly. ed of )m its ot ss as or s,and infal- weak eeble, I their I the ra- re ngth mce is rsakes left to r their )m the of onr eloved f tem- from lc vice brings nnced e who articu* fenngs of Christ, and he cannot participate in His alory.; he dots not mortify his passions, nprdie to sin* and he can therefore have no part in thespiritUDtl joys of a happy resurrection. /», ' .'^'^ ^ ''*^' '**^ Vti We embrace this opportunity, Dearly Beloved Brethren, for the purpose of calling your attention to other points of Christian duty upon which ygvi shouM seriously nieditate durin^_^ the lioiy season that approaches. We have sometimes observeid, with regret, an indifference on the p&rt of thok^ who enter into the holy state of Marriage, to re*- ceive that Nuptial Benediction which the Church* imparts through her rninister, during the airgucfl mysteries which are appointed for the celebraiiort of Matrimony. When you assCimo such formida^ We obligations, and enter upon so perilous a. career, yon certainly require all thei assistatice ; which Religion can aflford, and every gfac^ Avblcb'Girtd vouchsafes to bestow throusih his Church. Wby^, therefore, deprive yourselves of this peduliaf ani| jfri^itful Matrimonial Ben^dictibt), which is ffive.ri by bis minister in the very prescftce of the. Bo^jr and Blood of Christ, at the speciai. Mas^ ot Mar^ •riage, vvkhin a few mbnnents after the solemn lite ot consecration, when our Incarnate Redeetner; by hisown divine institution, is called down from the right hand of his Father, and placed upon tbe altar of his unbloody sacrifice, to communicate the fruits of his passion to the children of His love? ,We have frequently inculcated the advantages of thi3 holy rite, and recommended that whenever it 13 practicable, the sacrament of Matrimony should be followed by the sacrifice of the Mass, the Massof Rfarriage,5o tfottbe Bride ani Bridegroom may not u fAStdRAL LfeTtETT. 'r**L ' I u te deprivut tliC peace of socteijf', ;utd thq security pf the State. In those Uhhapp^ i^QUAUi^s where the education of joutb has been pieglex^te^ or gblisedj the i^anke$t crojjs of infidelity ^nd vice \)AV^ sprun^j ujj ; .urbul^nbe has sue- qe^ded to spcial order, a,nd humanity i^nd religion j^v^, been Jbrc:ed to weep ovet crimes vVWcti are a d^raqq to both., Truly precious is tliB Safcred ^epjosit, whieh the Chrisiiian parent irebeiVes frdrii Gpd and Hiai Holy Church, on the day ii'^hen the i^faftt wUicb was born gi ** child of wrath" is rege- ftcrated in the purifyin:g waters of Baptis&r, arid ,\vashed clean frpiiji Original Sin in the Wxjod bf' tb^ l^atxib^ Fpr the redeemed art,d irtinit^rial sloul ll^ysi Qpjpn5»itte,d. to^ their gare, parents atti '^tritJtly f(?f|j,0ii;i5i hW to H im. who will demand bfob^ for ilpod, sp^l for soul. From that, daj cbmn^ericSS a J^^ era, q( rqsppjp^ibilitv — a responsibility so ffeiar- jft^, i)^at the, 9Mv:atiftnt of the fiaretit tp^j^ bpi JfiaftJ tq t^iq4J5iSPlMWy bwad ud lA'tlh Ih^t df the cHi^. O hbw the heart of Our Hbtv Mothisr the Chutth ll iili inedrc- (if the hmem deluge Rortf. s speak mhded bf tiife u'nlbn th ofl^ hiMrert ts, irttu s been is suc- rie^liglon \i are a Saered :;$ fi-dhi len the is rege- ita, 2iiid lood. bf ixd soul 3b3 for ,et\c^$ la so Sar- ins: liaW Church PASTORAL l^TYER. 1« U'QuId ff^joicc in tlie fiHiiifal iiMi^tijJicatioii of kei ^\n% 'lipaventsi tWxihiii^y coBxplied with th«s«i i^nsK'Qiial oi)li^nition« ; if ikey re9red up theif childreli hy edifying example^ devout adraonitiao, seasonable correction, and a iwly vvrmaus eduoa- tibu according to tb^ir ability ! But, the cryia^ Qm\ of the present day is, not \ke lie^le^t, hat the abuse of education, i( indeed i^: be proper to iCall any sy Site m an oducition which o^rlooks the inteifests of the soul, and sncrifices 4he inestimaMa tpeaMires o^f fahh and grace^ at the shrine of atfibi* tion, vanity, or mammon. The " scieape ut wbich it is impossible to please God ;'^ r—tbat Faith which the Venerable Fiiiheps of tiie last General Council so accuratelv described as *' tbe foundation and root of .all justification;"— tliiait Faitli is iiJii(ijpehUed, nay utterly saerifiqed, by ^naricmtfS calliing thenisolvirs christiianB, for fSontie f«iol is h caprice, or vain whim ; for hu0>«n re«peet« 16 rASTORAI. LETTER. II H base temporal advantage or prospect ivc gain. Do not deceive yourselves, Dearly Beloved Brethren; the pa rri hi who, under pretence of education, ex* poses his child in an^ position where his Fi^ith is seriously endangered, is a prevaricating hypocrite and traitor. No amount of advantage, no worldly )o^^, no specious reasoning, no emliarrassing posi- tion Will justify the iiiipious net. First, and before all, take care that the Holy Catholic Faith is nourished in the tender hearts of your children. Perish the world; perish a thousand times m tnaxims, its principles, its honours, its dignitiir?«, its wealth, its knowledge, ** fasety so called," if thid kndwled^eol the World cannot be purchased unless Bt the sacrifice of Faith ! For, to speak with our Divine Redeemer, ** what will it pi^ofit a man to gain the whole world, if he lose his own soul? Gr, what t*an a man give in exchaufije for his soul ?** Not to speaK of the dreadfal punishment in thrt next life for such unnatural and unchristian parents; the anger of heaven may even uow be cirarlyob* served in the disorganized state of modern society, ^t\d the painfully anomalous relations which sulw sist bet\yeen the young and the okf ; between children and their Parents and superiors, especially on this continent. This is a great and a deplora* ble evil ; and, it will, wo fear, at no distant day» bo the fertile source of unparaUIled oalimities. For it cannot boidenied, that the order of reason and religion is inverted to a very great extent, and that in no particular, is the want of a truly ( hris- tlan education more felt, than in the demeanour of the young towards the old, and of children tofv^rxls their pa rears. Ago is fast losir\g its reve- t . Do thren ; m, ex* *aiih is poerite vorldly fr posi- aith i» fildrnn. ne» ns tiif?«. its if this I unless ith our man to son] ? I soul ?^* in thrt ja rents, !irly ob* society, ch sub* etween ppcially leplora* It day* Bs. For son and nt, and y ( hris- leanour ;hildren ts reve- PASTORAL LETTER. if TUDce ; or rather there is now no age, or all a^;^ are conf(»unded together. The innocence, 4be docility, the coiiiidiug spirit and obedicnc.^ of childhood have been suppliir)ted by all the inijpuc dent, and indt^pendentairsof precocious nianlioud, and precocious vice. Too frequently, the puj)il dictates to his master, and the child to his parent. The young almost universally enjoy a lilierty of speech and action, which was tc tally unknown even amongst the ancient Pagans^ and which is comparatively unknown in some oi' (he oldest coun- tries of modern Europe. At the very age wljen the precious seeds of humility and virtue should be planted in the soul, the mind of youth is suficr^'^ IQ run waste. For useful studies, nre substituted the cigar and the dram shop, the denioralizing Newspaper, and the still more poisonous romance, nvith all that flood of infideK immoral and tasteless literature which deluges America, and infests all ranks of society with plagues far more disastrous than those of Egypt. Thus, the youth grow.up without respect fur any sort ot authority, the parent is deprived in his declining yqars of histnost natural solace, and a withering system of cold sel« fishuess chills the heart of society. As a still, fur^ ther aggravation of the evil, the spirit of the law rather encourages than otherwise, this fatal ten^ 4ency, and the civil povvers seem xo forget that in weakening the respect for paterjial authority, they undermine the authority of Heligion^ ajid sap. tbo entire foundations of the social fabric. . ,; « We exhort you, therefore, Dearly Beloved, ^re^ thfeu, carefully to avoid in the holy educfitiqn of your children this worse than Pagan systeni. Trw 1 I' I If ir iii 1'^' ife PASTeitAfi LETTiC^. item up diligently in tft« fear of the Ldrtl,rWhents to otiiers which they abhor and disavow. We therefore deem it a part of our duty to seize every proper opportunity for the purpose of disabusing the minds ot our brethren *• who are wiihout*' tho fold, ancl we will refer to some of the points upon which wo are unfairly represented. i ,. . w , <>. ;• Wo believe, then, that there is but one True Faith, and one True Church, as there is but oik* Baptism and one God. We hold that there can- not be two contrary Faiths, or two contradictory lieligions, and both true. We maintain that this Onoi True Faith, is the principle, the source, the foundation and root of all justification, — that with^ !32 PASTORAL lALTTKfl^ i,. ■ V'J i i ^flli' • l! ! III;-' out Faiih man cannot Iw^ saved, nor perform an)? act meritorious of eternal life. W« know that *» a heretic is subverted, and simieth> condemned by his own judgment," but, that as the Apostle thus makes tie resy a crime, it must be voluntary, and that the heretical sinner is **one who, ifl deiiaiKje of the authority of the Churcii, inaintains impious opinions with pertinacity." (Catechism of the Council ot Trent, Art. ix. 1.) When, therefore, we declare that no one can be savxjd out of the Catholic Church, in which alone is True Farth, we suppose that the individual is wilful or obsti'^ nate in his error, that lie rejects the Faith wiihoot sufiScient reason, that he does not take sufficient pains to discover the truth, and is not sincerely disposed to embrace it when found ; and in declaT ring the salvation of such a one impossible, we merHy re-echo the solemn declaration of our Saviour just before his Ascension, wh^n in giving to his Apostles the great commission *' to preach the Gospel to every cr<»ature" he imposed upon all mankind the obligation to listen to their Voice; and profess tiieir doctrine, under the awful peoiaiiy of damnation. " Go preach the Gospel to every creature. Ho that believes and is baptized shall be saved. He that docs not believe shall be CONDEMNED." Hencc, we earnestly conjure our separated Brethren to weigh well the dreadful consequences of the loss of Faith ; to examine seriously and diligently the grounds of their pre* sent belief, and of their opposition to the most ancient, and most numerous Church in the world; not to rest satisfied with what they have heard of the Catholic Rdigion, Imt to seek for tb emsdves, > i: i,v PASTORAL LETTER. 25 e n any lat «* a ed by thus y, and ^fiance npioas )f the refore, of the Fahh, r obsti* viihoot fficient nee rely decla-r )le, we of our giving preach i upon r Voice, peaiahy every d shall ALL BE ire our 1 read All xaraine sir pre- le most world ; eard of i«elves, to apply for infortnacioa to the proper sources, and lb brnij^ to the solt?mn enquiry, sincere, candid, unprejudiced dispositions. There are those who hold that instances of what is called Invincible Ignorance of the True Faith, are extreoiely raio at the present day, it is so easy for the hone&t eifcjuirer to dtsGover the Ciiunch- oi Christ by hef visible irtarfcs ; but all Catholic Divines declare with one vcic© that oul&ide the pale of the True Church, and without the aid of those divinely- appointed channels of grace in her bosom, througlji which the merits of Christ's death are communi- cated to the soul, the remissiion of all other sins beco^iiej* most difificuik, and riiat thus the unbelie- ver in Truth, if not punished for want of faith, or the sin of heresy, is irremediably lost oa aoeount of her actual sins. Now, where eternity is at stake, and so many inierestis depending, what rational mind can i-efuse to examiae, andexamiiie most carefully, the tenets of that Church: which h^s visibly subsisted from the ttmte of Chriist^ which clearly traces her succession from the i^pos^ ties, and which, as the only Church that haa con* etantly maintained her infaliibility in teaehin^^ must likewise be the Onlv True Church, if Infal- libility be one of the iDarks and prerogatives of iha Church of Christ ? What sincere oppone^it of this calumniated Church of God can rvst coa- teivted with his present sjnritual condition, when be hears that the errors wliieh be ascribes to laer are as much condemned by her as by himself; when he is told tlwit in nine cases out of ten, her doetrines are untruly and unfairly stated ? For ahhough ^here h some humil^atm in making %, PAS Ton A I. l.ETTBnfl !i I %'M JilW those disavowals, we cannot refuse doing so, aji we are " debtors to the wise and the unwise." it is not true, then, that we Catholics believe the end justifies the means ; for we teach that the smnlle$t sin cannot be committed even to save the wholle world. It is not true that we hate or detest our neighbour of a different creed, and thibik it no sin to injure, deceive, or break faith with him> It is a cruel calumny ; for we are taught to love all mao;- kind as our brethren, and the children of our com> mon Father, and to deal truly and jus^tly with all men. To .error itself we are conscientiously' opposed, but we are commanded to love o^r erring brother, to increase our charity in proportion to his spiritual danger, to pray for him, and to edify hira by our good example. It is not true that; we pur- chase the pardon of sin or permission to commit it for money. We reject such a charge with horror. We know too well that without true repentance and sincere change of heart — without a grief of mind and detestation of past sin, joined to a firm resolution of offending God no more, and anefFec- tual reparation to the utmost of our power for all the injustice which we have caused by our offences, there is 110 pardon for sin. As for permission < to commit sin, the charge is so revolting and absurd that it scarcely merits a denial. It is not true that we adore Images, or Relics, or Saints, or Angels, or the Ever Blessed Mother of God. We adore nothing but God ; we ofifer supreme homage to non<; but Him, and the transference of this homage to any of His creatures we justly denounce as most criminal and debasing Idolatry. At the sama time we honour and res^pect the Mother of God with a S, PASlOnAL LiriTEK. sa * so, as i." it he end malles^t J wholie est our t no sin ll is» 11 m^D,- Qi* qom> with all uiously' r erring n to his ify hiiu we |)ur- npniitit horror, qniance grief of a firm inefffjc- r for all offences, ission^to i absurd rue that Angels, ^e adore naga to homage 1 as most me time i >vith a « I'cculiar reverence, becauso she is His Mother, and for His sake ; because He loved and honoured heli* whilst on earth, and because we believe we hbubr Our Redeemer every limb that we show oiir respect for her of whom He was born in the flesh. But, if we honour her for her exalted dignity, and the sublime relation which she alone, of all crea- tures, bears tc tlie Deity, we still more particu- larly respect her for her virtues, for the plenitude of graces which adorned her holy soul, for her profound humility, her spotless integrity, her devo- ted attachment to Jesus Christ— in a word, for all those rare virtues which were the gifts ol God, the foundation of her august dignity, and of her imj)erishable crown in heaven. We lioriour the other Saints and faithfid servants of God on the same principles (though in a lesser degree), because they were His Saints, His friends. His faithful adorers. His enduring martyrs, His unshaken Confessors, His fervent imitators, thb dispensers of His graces, the preachers of His wordj the living exemplars of His doctrine, the bright reflec- tions of His holiness. We venerate their memo ries, and love them, because they loved Him, because in them he is wonderful and has displayed the prodigies of His grace: because for them He created, redeemed, and sustains the world ; because *' the death of His Saints is precious in His sight," and they are now irrevocably united to Him by divine love, and confirmed in grace and glory. VVe do not ask the Saints, nor the Queen uf Saints to have mercy on us, to pardon us, or for- give us our sins ; but we humbly solicit their in> tcrcession with Him whu alone is able to save and J3 V ■■ iu: 26 (loli PASroRAL life'd. from bcl th; Ij loiivcr us irom siii ; ociicving tnat as it was law- ilri to asK their prayers in our behalf whilst thej were still on earth, and eneompassed with the weakness ol the flesh-, it cannot be improper to do so now that they are established in charity and glory for ever. For, if the Angels themselves feel so much solicitude about us as to rejoice over our conversion, can we believe that those who were once partakes of our mortality, conscious of human frailty, and well acquainted with the trials and temptations of our earthly pilgrimage, are now in- ditlerent to our spiritual welfare, or that when as- sociated with the Church rriutnphant in heaven their love has been diminished for the members of the Church Militant on earth ? Neither do we derogate from the dignity or value of the Great Atonement of the **,0nly Mediator of God and man'' by asking the Saints to do for us in heaven tliat which they continually performed on earth by praying for their brethren ; for all our petitions are ultimately referred to Jesus Christ, anc} they cannot be injuriously affected by the muiistry of ttie bless- ed spirits through whom they are humbly conveyed to the foot of his throne. If it be not lawful to solicit such holy agency, how much more impro- })er would it "not be to ask the priiyers or sj)iritual assistance of our fellow sinners here below, who are still struggling witli temptation, who " kuow mh whether they are worthy of love or hatred," and of whose future lot we are uncertain ? , In venerating the Saints likewise, we are ex- cited to emulate their virtues. We strive to imi- tate them, as they were imitators of Christ. They iue ibr U5 living models as it were, and practical PASrORAI. LETTER. 07 1*^ i s law- it ihoy ith the ;r to do hy and ^es feel vcr oiir ► were human als and low iu- len as- heaven ibers of do we i Great )d and heaven arrh bv ons are cannot e bless- nveycd ful to inipro- puitual , who " kuow atred," ire ex- to imi- They radical V expositors of his (lospcl. The homage which we pay them is the homage which onii^htencd rehgion will always pay to heroic virtue. Their lives are a complete answer 10 all (he pretended difficulties ^ in the observance of the divine commands, and the view of their [)rilliant crcwns with the eye of faith " inclines our hearts to do the justifications of the Lord for ever, on account of the. glorious re- ward." Thus all our doctrine and obbervances regarding the Saints tend to make us holy, and well-pleasing in the sight of heaven, and so far from being o&ensive to God, are powerlully calcu- lated to promote His hont)r and glory, / ' ♦ VVitif regard to their Images and Relics we honou"" them on account of thwse whom they re- present ; but it is 7iot true that we believe they have any power or divinity in them, for which they should be reverenced, or that any thing is to be asked of them, or any confidence placed in them. An examination of our real doctrine on these points would at once satisfy the objections of every can- did mind. We are forced to pass over for the present many other important nrisrepresentations, in order to come to one of the principal charges against the Holy Catholic Church. We are confidently ac- cused of hating the Scriptures, of preferring human tradition to the inspired word of God, ot having concealed it most carefully from the people until the Religious Revolution of the sixteenth cen- tury. The Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible is the war-cry of our opponents. This is what is called the common platform of the muhitudinous sects who have separated from the 28 PASTORAL LF.TTER. i ancient Church, and who fancy that in the BiWo they discover a bond of union, although on all other points their disunion is painfully notorious. And yci, Dearly Beloved Brethren, it is deplora- ble to reflect, that thoge who talk so much abotU the Bible, seem to know little or nothing of its spirit, and that in no particular is tKe false testi- mony against us, npre visible than in this. Our Holy Churcl haseyer venprated rhe Scrip- tures as God's ivriUen VYord. She carefully col- lected them, and distinguishing the true from the ialse, and the genuine aqd authentrc from tho3o which were spurious, reduced them into a Capon, and announced them to her children as the in- spired works of the Holy Qhost, Her Confessors and Martyrs have endured all manner of torture, and resigned life itsell rather than deliver into the hands of their pagan persecutors the precious copies of the inspired volume. One of her most elo? quent, learned, and holy Doctors,* the Latin St'cre? tary of Pope St. Damasns consecrated a great portion ol his life to the study and translation from the original languages of the IJoly Scriptures, a^d twelve centuries before the so-called Reformation enriched the christian world with that splendid monument of learning, piety and perseverance, the Vulgate,— a version vyhich then iinlocked those divine treasures to all who were able to read, which has been since declared by a General Coun- cil to be an authentic exposition of the meaning of the Holy Ghost, and which, in fine, from its extraordinary merit has extorted the admiration * St. Jerome, who wai born in ^0, and died in 420. # PASTORAL LETTER. S9 i Bible on all orious. oplora- ?iboiU : of its ) Scrip- lly col- •om the n tho^o Capon, the in- nfessors torture, into the precious lost elo? 1 Secrer a great ion from res, a^d r mat ion splendid uce, the id those to read, d Coun- neaning ■rom its miration of our most bitter opponents. Previously to the invention of printing, the Catholic Church for fifteen centuries was the faithful guardian of this sacred Deposit. Copies of the Scriptures vvert5 multiplied in every direction by the patierit labours of her priests and monks^ and the cloistered scrip- torium was hallowed by the perpetual transcription of the words of Life. In that most useful depart- ment of every Religious Mouse, the faithful chil- dren of the Catholic Church toiled day after day with unwearied assiduity; and the "pen of the scribe, writing swiftly" the words of the Holy Ghost, was never idje^ And, amongst all the books, both sacred and profane, which they copied and preserved for the ungrateful sneerers of modern times, the Holy Scriptures engrossed their princi- pal care, and most diligent attention. Upon the Bible they exerted all their skill, and exhausted all their elaborate ingenuity. Not only Was the sacred page within most tastefully illuminated with gold and colours, but it was enshrined in a covering of the most costly materials, and adorned with gold and silver^ with jewels and precious irtonesi If we examine the lives of the Saints, the Doctors and Fathers of the Catholic Church we will find how thoroughly they were versed in the Holy Scriptures. The inspired words were sweeter to them " than honey or the honeycomb,'^ they meditated upon the Divine Law both day and night. They lived as it were in an atmos- phere of the Bible ; its precious words were to them familiar as household words ; they spoke in scriptural language, their thoughts and id'^as and illustrations were moulded in scrij)tural forms, and 30 PASTORAL LETTER. SO completely was the love ot Scripture inter- woven wilh llieir very existence, that in descrihini^ ordinary events, or writing historical annals, their idioni, their styhj, and their very words are scrip- tural. But with regard to iheir religious compo- sitions, even in what are so ignorantly ternned the Dark A, admit iges. every ehristian scholar must admii that the pure well of unde filed revelation is the living source and fountain of all their knowledge. For, not oidy is Scripture to be fbunj in the beginning, the middle, and the end of all iheir works, but every page, nay, almost every line bears testimony to their |)rofound, most varic^d, and most astonishing ac(piaintance with every part of the Sacred Volume. In the Catholic Church, the Bible is our text-book and our manuaL In the Daily OJice of her Ministers, in the Daily Liturgy of her temples, tlie Bible occupies the largest portion. Her Clergy, seven times in every day of their lives, are enjoined to repeat many por- tions of the Bible, and when they ofier the Holy Sacrifice of the New Law, the Fsalnis and PrO'^ phets of the Old, t. gether wilh the Epistles and Gospels of the New Covenant, invariably accorrt* jjany the celebration of the mystic rite. Nay, such is the profound reverence with which the Catholic Church would wish to inspire her chil- dren for the written revelations of God, that every time the Holy Gospel is said or sung in the Church she commands us to stand up and listen with at- tention and respect, as if Christ hims(lf were ?;f)eaking; she directs her Clergy to surround it with burnifig tapers; to incense the Sacred Book at the beginning, and to kiss the holy text at the \ iff i i rAaroRAL lictter. 31 ! inter- icril>inij; s, their e scrip- compo- ned I he admit is thu V I mi go. in the iheir rj line vari('d, Catholic iianuaL e Daily pios the 111 every my por- le Holy id PrO'' I OS and accorn* lich the ler chiU It every Church villi at- ( were out id it J Hook at the nid of th(; Gospel, to show her love and reverence tor the iiihle, and to inspire ns, Dearly Beloved Brethren, with similar sentiments of affectionate veneration. Jt is not true that she concealed it from the people before the Reformation. It is not true that Lutlior was the first to publish the Bil)le in the vulgar tongue. But it is a fact, as well au- ihenticated as any in history, a fact of which there are now existing indubitable proofs, that in all the principal countries of Europe there were many such versions of the Bible bi'iore the time of Luther. IJis German Bible appeared about the year 1530; but there was a (lennan version of the Bible pub- lished in 1466, that is, sixty-four years previously, and of this version no less than seventeen editions were published before Luther's Bible (A). It is a fact, and the celebrated Protestant historian, Hallam. admits, and proves it, (Hist, of Lit. i 96) that one of the urst books published after the dis- covery of printing, was a Latin Bible. Now this first printed book is supposed, with the greatest probability, to have appeared about the year 1455, and thus it is clear that in Luther's own c(»untry, a very early advantage was taken of the new dis- covery to publish the Bible in German in 1466, so utterly untrue is it that only for Luther the people of Gt)rmany would have been deprived of the Bible in their own lanp;uage, they huing had it before he was born. How many thousands of persons amongst us are ignorant of these things! How many are persuaded that but for the Refor-' mation, the Catholic Church would have locked up in a d-r^ad language the Bible, which for fourteen 32 PASTORAL LETTER. \ 9 ' niiic centuries, she liad preserved with so much fidelity and care ! But it is coniidentlj urged against us that the Catholic Church interdicts the reading of the Bible, and althongh this charge is false in the sense in which it is uttered, we will poslpone our refutation of it until we examine what the Bible is* The Biblcj the Bible is in every mouth ; but very few of those who rant and rave about it, and who think themselves fuilj qualified to sound its mysterious depths, know anything whatsoever of its real his- tory. People speak of the Bible as i( it were all one Book, written at one lime, by one writer, for one purposej in one langfiage, in one country, and in one familiar style equally intelligible to all. But what in reality is the Bible ? It is a volume writ- ten by many different pens. The labours of up- wards of Thirty different individuals have formed its materials. Some of those authors are known ; respecliu" others all is ignorance or doubt. The writers of the Bible were of different nations, but principally Jews. They wrote at different periods^ and frequently at long intervals. From thecoma position of the first Chapter in Genesis, to the last text in the Apocalypse, some two thousand yearsj nearly twtMity long centuries intervened ! Not one word of a most important portion of the Bible^ tinmely, the New Testament ; not one word of the Gospels, the Epistles, the Acts, or the Apocalypscj was written during the life of Christ. Not one advice or command, or direction was given by Christ to write any part of the New Testament. It is not recorded that lie ever wrote one sentence IJimsclf, except in one soliiaiy instance, upon the PASTOIIAI. LCTTEU, 1 fidelity hat the e Bible, lense in futation The ^ few of think sterious •eal his- kvere all iter, for fry, and 11. But le writ- of up- formed known ; . The )ns, but periods J lecoin- the last I yearsj ! Not I Bible* I of the alvpse, ot ono en bv ament* ntence [)on the gronnd, an'4 even these few words have not been preserved. He gave a solemn commission to his Apostles to |9reacA the Gospel, and to teach all Nations, but made no allusion whatsoever to the writing cr publishing of books. And when the Apostles met together for the last time, and dis* persed themselves throughout the world to fulfil their greatcommission, stranger still, not one word of the New Covenant was written. The Epistles and Gospels were written very many years after the death of Christ ; the inspired writings of St. John so late, as between sixty and seventy years after our Lord's Crucifixion. The Bible was written in different languages ; in Hebrew, Chaldean and Greek. The Hebrew, in which the earlier portions of the Old Testament Were written, was a dead and unknown language to the generality of the Jews, after the Babylonish cap- tivity, and yet it was the only version which was read in the Synagogue even to the time of Christ. As far as the New Testament is concerned, the Bible was all written in Greek, except St. Mat- thew's Gospel, which was composed in Hebrew or S)'ro — Chaldaic, and yet countless thousands of the early christians knew nothing whatsoever of Greek or Hebrew. The Bible is a series of, unconnected Trea- tises, and on a vast variety of subjects ; at one time prophetic, at another historical ; now doctrinal and again poetic ; a narrative, a code of morals, a genealogical tree, a natural his- I tory, a catalogue of names and numbers, a geogra- phy, a book of rites and ceremonies, an allegory, a mystery. Wo know not *ihe objects for which 54 PASTORAL LETTER. $ ■ li : 1 ■ mil I' I many of those treatises were written ; we know not the dates. Of tlic writers in the modern portions of the Bible, of the very Gospels themselves, St. Mat- thew and St. John were eye-witnesses of most of what they relate; St. Luke and St. Mark were not Apostles, and wrote from hearsay and and the testimony of others. Five only of the Epistles are termed Catholic or Universal, as bein* addressed to Christians in general ; six were written to individuals, and ten Others to Converts in various and distant countries, in Italy^ I ales- tine, Corinth, &c. Thus, so many treatises, and histories, and Epistles, written at so many places, by so many authors, and under so many circum- stances were floating about the world for hun- dreds ofyears before they were collected together in one Book, and authoritatively reduced to one Canon. This Book is the Bible ; and, taken as a whole, it must be admitted that it is the most abstruse, the most dilKlcult, the most mysterious volume that was ever published to the world, IS'ot one autograph line of its various writers is now extant, or has been known to e.»ist for more than a thousand years. Not even one copy of the original words in which St. Matthew's Gospel was penned, has been preserved. The Bible, such as we have it, comes down to us through the Catholic Church, and through her alone. It was in her keeping for many centnries. Its various versions were the translations of fallible men, the works of individuals upon whose capabilities it would be impossible for any one to pronounce a PASTORAL L[:TTER. ''>^ OfJ e kno\v s of the St. Mat- Of QlOSt 5t. Mark rsaj and y of tho as bein^ lix were I^onverts ■^ l.''ales- jes, and r places, circuiii- DF hun- logether to out? n as a he most steriouB 5 world, rriters is br more 1/ of the Gospel Bible, u^h the It was various len, the >ilitiesit ounce a j'.idgmont. The Bible liss come down to our rroU^stcint brethren through the Caiholic Ch.urch alone. The fu'st founde.s of ProtoslaiViisin did not receive tht; Sacred Book from Heaven, nor from the hands of Christ or liis Apostles, or from any ot" their eariy disciples : they did not receive it from the Jews; nor from the Greek Church, which never had any connection with them, which condemns them on almost tv^'ry point on which they ditfcT from us, and which still retains in the Bible, the very Books which Protestants are pleased to call Apocryphal, without })ossessinj>' any authority whatsoever (for they admit their fallibility) to decide upon the sacred Canon. Tluijf, with marvellous inconsistency, they accept the very foundation, and what they call the Onli/ Rule of their faith, from the hands of a Church against whom , they have rel)elled ; whom they accuse of idolatry and suj)ersiition, and pervenion of truth ; whom they hold up to the detestation of all mankind. And if they sincerely believe thai Jie Catholic Church has been such a hideous irionster, and for so many centuries, how can they receive the Bible from her ? IJow can thev be ci'rtain that this artful, wicked and unscrupulous .Churcli^ (as they are pleased to term her) has not grossly corrupted and mutilated the sacred volume during the many long centuries that it was in her custody ? How can they believe her on this one point, and reject her testimony on every other ? How very different was the conduct and rea- soning of the great Catholic Doctor of the African Church, the illustrious, iioly and learned Augus- tine ! He was ouo of the greatest pr(Kligies of SB rASiuR.u, M!;iTr.R. I .•i! learuini: and laloiit in his own or anv o{Uv,r agr. Ho was well accjuainted wiili all the objections a^^ainst llie Cailiolic Church, and Jiad been for a long time hrr most violent enemj. But when ho c'Qibracod iho truefailhj he was too acute a rea- soner to build his faith on the shifting sand-banks of modern j)o!eniics. He saw from the sirongest testimony, iVom credible witnesses, from histori- cal and oral evidence corrol)orated in a tliousand difl'erent wa^s, that Jesus Christ came down frouj heaven, and taught mankind a new doctrine, and confumed thai doctrine bv wonderfid ihiiciclea. By a host of witnesses, and of :olla!eral facts ; bv evidence as clear as that which demonstrates to people who have never left America, the exist- ence of such men as Wellington or Napdeon, lie was convinced that Christ was publicly put to death, that according to his own prediction he arose again from the tlead, and was seen alive by hundreds, many of whom confirmed their belief by surprising miracles, and the shedding of their blood. He knew that Christ ascended to Heaven after having appointed some of his chosen follow- ers to preach and teach his doctrine to the world; that he invested them with power and preroga- tives to discharge their great conmiission. lie was aware that all which Christ had predicted of them, of their powers, their succ(\ss, their perse- cution, their death., the diffusion of their doctrine, was literally fulfilled. He saw^ how humble, how weak those insiruments were ; their simnlicitv, their poverty, their want of learning and of ail human assistance. Ho knew how universally they were despised by their own coiintrymenj as PASTORAL LETTER. Iior aoc. )jections en for a \\\\v\\ Ik: e a rea- d-banks irongest histori- housand \vn from ine, and niiaclea. 1 facts ; Ml si rates be oxist- Icon, iio y put to ction he alive hy V belief of their Heaven \ follow- e world ; preroga- )n. IJe lie ted of ir perse - loctrinc, )!e, how n|)licitv, id of all iversallv men, as well as hy Pagan nations. He rightly estimated the immense and formidable powers of those who persecuted and opposed them, at hom^ and abroad. He duly considered the nature of the doctriaes which Christ preached, and which those feeble men wert; to propagate through the world in the face of so many difficufties; — how revolting those tenets were to flesh and blood, how unpalatable to Jews and Gentiles, how slavish, absurd and ridi- culous in the eyes of pagan philosophy. He saw> therefore, in every country the corrupt passions and inveterate prejudices of human nature arrayed against this, new Heligion of humiliation and self- denial, and all the powerof pagan Rome, and all the bloody fierceness of imperial persecution brought to bear against it, but all in vain. The Catholic Faith was diffused throughout the world. Its progress astonished, alarmed and confounded the Pagans themselves. Its proselytes were io he found in every country, and in every rank of life. Its progress was accoinpanied by signs and woii- ders ; and the greatest wonder of all, the miracle of miracles was this triumph of Christianity over Paganism, this successful diffusion of the doctrines of the despised and crucified Galileaia. He saw the unity, which Christ foretold and t?stablished, in the midst of his followers, in the very heart of Imperial Rome itself, wh^rc he, (Augustine) could, and did trace every link of the Apostolic chain from the blessed Pete^;, the Prince ol ihe Apostles, down to the contemporarj^ occupant of the Prima- tial See. He saw the wonderful consent of dif- ferent nations in th€ profession of the same Faith; and the uaion of this vastly scattered flock iu one c M PASIOIUL I.KTTKri, I J5pirilual slicep-fokl, and undor One Slicpljcrd. All these nnd many other things he observed which forced him lo believe that the Catholic Church was a Divine Institution, that she had given proofs innumerable, and before tlnheard of, in ifavour of her heavenly commission ; and he felt like- wise, that if thus appointed to teach all mankind, her teachings must be free from error ; and there- fore,* without any Scriptural Rule of Faith, nay before he believed in the- inspiration oi Scripture^ before he credited the Gospel itself as a Divine composition, he believed in the Catholic Church; and as a consequence of his belief in her, and in her infallible teaching, he believed the Gospel and the Scriptures to be divinely inspired, On her authority; and as another consequence, he litterly disbelieved, rejected and condemned all who were opposed lo Her. All that vve have advanced is clearly proved from the history of his r!onversion, and his numerous writings. We shall here quote one or two remarkable passages from liis Book against The Epistle of the Foundation which contained a summary of the Manichean doctrines. " Not to speak then,'* writes he "of that Wisdom which you do not believe to be in the Catholic Church, there are many other things which most justly keep me in her bosom. The ronsent of Peoples and Nations keeps me in it. The Authority, begun by miracles, nourished by hope, increased by charity, and conlirmed by anti- quity, keeps me m it. The succession of Prelates from the very seat of Peter the Apostle, to whoin* Christ, aiicr his resurrection, coumiitted the feed- ing of his flock, to his present Episcopal Succcs- 'i^i PASTORAL LETTER. m jsorved 'atholjc be had d of, ill eltliko- inkind, [ the ro- ll, nay riptuic^ Divine rnoLic jhef iti ved the I spired, ice, he ned all e have of liis '^e shall s from idaiion lichean he " of ) be ill things , The B in it. led hy ►y ami- delates I vvhoin* e feed- ■*-.v sor, keeps me in the Catholic Church. In fine, The very Name of Catholic, which, not ^vith■^ out reason, amidst so many heresies this Church alone has so obtained, that although all Heretics would wish to be called Cathohcs, yet if any stranjijer should ask, where do the Catholics assemble, none of the Heretics would presume to point out his own Church or house" (.B). And in the subsecpient chapter of the same Book, he shews that his belief in the Catholic Church pre-* ceded his belief in ihe Gospel, for he well knew that the Church of Christ was long in existence before the Gospels were written, or the Bible finished. , > *' You know i am determined not to believe anything that is said by you, without sufficient "•rounds. I ask then : who is this Manicheus r You will answer me : An Apostle of Christ. I do not believe it. What can you then do or say for yourself? For, you promised me the knowledge of the truth, and now you compel me to believe what I know not. Perhaps you will quote the Gospel for me, and endeavour from (hence to assert the person of Manicheus. But, if you met any one who did not as yet believe the Gospel, what would yon do, il she should tell you : I da not believe it ? For, I myself would not nETJEVE THE GoSPEL UNLESS THE AUTHORITY OF THE Catholic Church had moved me to do so. Those, therefore, whom 1 obeyed when they said t<^ me. Believe the Gospel ; why should i not obey them when they say to me : Do not believe ihe'Manicheans. Take your choice of the argu- ment. If vou snv : Belkve the Catholics ; they 40 PASTORAI. LF/FTKH. warn me to give 7io credit to you, VVhereforo, if I belieTe them, I cannot believe yon. If you say : Do not believe the Catholics : you will not do well to oblige me to believe Manicheus on the autho- rity of the Gospel, because I believed the Gospel itself upon the credit of the Catholics, But li jou say : You did well to believe the Catholics when they praised the Gospel, but you did wroiifr to believe them when they dispraised Manicheus ; do you think me so infatuated as, without any reason, to believe what you will, and to disbelieve what you will not ? For, 1 act much more justly and cautiously (since I have once believed the Catholics), if I do not go over to you, unless you command me not to believe, but cause me plainly and manifestly to know something. Wherefore, if you will shew me reason, lay aside the Gospel. If you hold to the Gospel, I will hold to those who commanded me to believe it ; and, in obe- dieno to their commands, I will not believe you at all. But if perhaps you find anything most manifest in the Gospel concerning the Aposile- ship of Manicheus, you will then weaken in my eyes the authority of the Catholics, who command me not to believe you ; which being weakened, / cannot then believe the Gospel because I believed it upon their authority ; thus nothing that you quote from the Gospel will avail with me. Wherefore, if nothing manifest concerning the Apostleship of Manicheus is found in the Gospel, I will rather believe the Catholics than you. But, if you read anything manifest in it for Manicheus, 1 will be- lieve neither them nor you. 1 will not believe them, because they told me a lie concerning you ; jMR. lUSTORAL I.ETTKR. 41 eforo, if ou sav : do well aiitho- Gospcl But it atholics I wrons^ icheus ; )Ut any sbelievo e justly ^ed the ?ss you plainly ereforc, Gospel. those in obe- eve you g most ipostle- 1 ill my mmand ened, / ieved it I quote srefore, ship of raihrr )u read ^ill he- believe g you ; nor you, because you produoe me that Scripture to which I gave credit upon the authority of those who told me the lie. But, far be it from me not to believe the Gospel. For, believing it, I do not find how I can believe you ; because amongst the names of the Apostles therein contained, the name of Manicheus is not to be found." (C.) If we merely change the nameS; this cogent reasoning will prevail with equal force against the founders of all the modern Religions. It is certain then, and it cannot be denied that the Church existed before the Bible ; that the Church was established, was fully organii^ed, was furnished with every thing essential for the conversion of the w^orld; that the living, speaking, teaching Church was administering the Sacraments, and preaching the Gospel, and converting the Gentiles, and diffusing far and near the knowledge oi Saving Faitk, before a single line of the New Testa titjnt was written. It is certain that the Primitive Christians of the first century, includ- ing even the Apostles and disciples themselves, never saw, never tieard, never read the whole Bible. It is certain that many pagan nations were converted to Christianity without the Bible, and it is impossible to shew any one idolatrous country that has been so converted by the Bible alone. It is certain that if the Bible were the only Rule of Faith appointed by Him ' who Vi^ishes that all man kind should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth,' He would have revealed this essential doctrine, and made known in the clearest manner this cardinal point. He would have given directions and supplied means 42 PASTORAL LCTTKn. 1 1 ■!, for the completion, the niuhiplication and diffusion of the Bible throughout the world. It is certain that He has not done- so; that He no where de- clared Faith was to come from the dead letter of Books, but irom the living voice of Apostles and Doctors. It is certain that * Faith comes from hearing' according to the Scripture; but it is not written that Faith comes from reading. It is notorious that the greater part of mankind cannot read ; that for fifteen centuries after the establish- ment of the Church, not one in a thousand was able to read, and not one in twenty or even fifty thousand could get a copy of the whole Bible, as the sacred volume could be multiplied during that long period only by the patienthibour of the copy- ist or scribe, and the price of a whole manuscrij)t Bible was so enormous in those times, that it was 'impossible for the great bulk of mankind to pro- cure one.* And can we believe that God was more indif- ferent to the salvation of his creatures in the second, third, fourth, fifth, or any succeeding century down to the invention of printing, than He has been since ? Or can we suppose that He who can^e to preach His Gospel to the poor, would deprive that beloved portion of His flock of any essential spiritual help, and give the rich and the learned all those necessary advantages which unlettered poverty coulf' not help to share ? No ; D. B. Brethren, Our Merciful Redeemer has not acted in this preposterous manner. In His sweetly— disposing wisdom He has })rovided fcir * * It id creii mentioned that in such a City as Milan, St. Augustine i?AS''ORAf. LKTTER. Whiist we tluis, Dearly fJeloved Brethren, in a sin- cere and christian spirit, and with no desire to wound the feelings of any in the least degree, conjure those who are unhappily estranged from us to search the • old paths, to look to the rock from which their fathers were hewn out, to examine the grounds of the ancient Religion, of which they know so little, and to listen to the voice of the Church ; we earnestly beseech yourselves to hasten the desired union of the family of God, by fervent prayer, by edifying exarnple, and the practice of all the duties of Christian Charity to ^11 your neighbours without exception. We also recommend to your prayers and generous "zeal, the great and glorious Institution for the Propa- gation of the Catho-ic Faith, in behalf of which you have already made so many creditable exertions, and from which Our beloved Clergy and faithful People have already derived-so much valuable assistance. We will make no apology for the length of this ad- dress, for reasons before stated. We are encouraged to believe that many will read this, who have few oppor- tunities of hearing any thing of Catholic Doctrine, and . we humbly trust that those who shall do so, not from vain curiosity, or a captious spirit, but with a sincero desire of knowing the truth, may receive the divine il- lumination of the Holy Ghost; lor our mission to speak to them is not from man, hut from God. O tnay wo all love each other, as Chriist loved us. JVlay we labour to preserve the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. May we be all one, as He and His Fatiicr are one, and mav there be no schisms or divi. sions amongst us ! May those *' other sheep" of our Divine Pastor ''who are not of this fold, hear His voice." May He ''bring them" into tho fold, so that there be but " one fold and one Shepherd !" To conclude, Dearly Beloved Breihren ; '-'Grace to yon and Peace be accomplished in the knowledge of God. and of Christ Jesus Our Lord. As all things o>f FAbTORAL LI:TTEII. 5^ liis divine power, which appertain to life and godli- ness, are given us through the knowledge of Him who hath called us by His own proper glory and vir- tue ; by whom He hath given us most great and pre- cious promises ; that by those you may b6 made par- takers of the divine nature ; flying the corruption of that concupiscence which is in the world. And yoU) employing all cafe, minister in your faith virtue : and in virtue knowledge : and in knowledge abstinence: and in abstinence patience : and in patience godliness : and in godliness love of brotherhood, and in love of brotherhood, charity. Per, if these things be with you, and abound, they will make yon to be neither empty nor unfruitful in the knowledge of Our Lord Jesus Clirist;' (2 Peter I. 2.9.) APPENDIX. A. ommen- Th] rcB Si'ckendorf, a yroat actorsEckand Fin[>stir piiblialicd another vcrstion in 1537. 67 irPEISDIX. How many tDillions of Protestants are ignorant of these facta, and are persimdinl that the Bil>le was hidden by the Cntholio Church, and that it would not be known in Germany but for Luther ! And what an awful responsibility rests upon the shoul- deis of those, who utter these and similar falsehoods, to decoivd credulous i>eople ! In Italy there were Two Ilalian version? of the Bible, long before the time of Luiher. One by Archbishop Voraj^ine of Genoa in 1290; and another by Malerinija Monk of CamaldolS, which was printed at Rome and Venice in 1471. Before 1525, Thbieen editions nf this translation were published. Within 43 years after 1525, it was reprinted FAght times more, and with the express permission o^The Holy Office. About the time of Luther's Bible Two other Italian versions were published ; one by Bruccioli in 1532, of which Ten Editions were published in twenty y*»nrs, and ar. other by Mannochino, printed at Venice in 153d, 154G, and 1547. In France, according to Usher, a vernacular version by Des- motilins was published about the year 1478. The Bishop of Angers (Kely) gave a corrected edition of it in 1487 ; and befora tlj<3 year 154G, it was successively reprinted sixteen times, twelve at Paris and four at Lyons. A new transia* lion by Lefevre, which was likewise edited several times, appear- ed in 1512. The Theologians of Lonviiin revised this version in 1550, and it has been reckoned that within a century and a half from that dale Thirty JSrinc different editions of it were printed in France and the Low Countries. At more recent periods new French versions \vere published by De Sacy, Corbin, Maralies, Amelotte, Godean, Hure and several others. The Bible was translated into Cnslilian by order of Alfonso the wise, aocordln'jto the testimony of Mariana, the Spanish historian. In 1405, Boniface Ferrer, brother of St. Vincent Ferrer, trans- lated the whole Bible into the Valencian dialect of Spanish; This was printed in 1478, and again in 1515, with the approba- tion of the Spanish liKpiisition. Montesma published a version of the Epistles and Gospels in 1512, which was reprinted fre- (jnently after at iVladri«l, Barcelona, Antwerp, &.c. Even in Flemish Usher docs uot deny that ther0 was a transla- tion of the Bible by Merland before the year 1210. It was printed at Colofrne in 1475, and seven new editions of it appeared before 1530, when Luther's Bible was published. Kendrick translated tie New Testament into Flemish in 1524, and within thirty years nf\ei', no less than Ten Ediiionsof it were published in Antwerp sloiie. New versions by De Wit, Schum, Laemput and others were made in the seventeenth century, and have been repeatedly printed. In th« beginning of the sixteenth century, a Slavonian version of tha Bible was prlni«d n\ (Jrrtcow j and ns early an the fourloentli APPENDIX. 58 I-*-- D«s- century li\Q Bil)le was tronslnted into Sweilisli by direction of St. Briil:;Rt In Iceland a translation of the Hilile whs inuiieuseorly a« 12/9. In 1488 a Bohemian Bible appeared at Prague, of which three other Eilitions were pulilished in Ul'S, 1506 and 1511. Very fnuny Eililions of the Bible in S} riac and Ara!)1o, havo l)een printed at Rome itself, and nlao nt Vetiice, for the us«5 of Eastern Churches. The well-known Convent of Aririeniitti Monks, at the latter city, has pubrtahed beautiful versions^ of the Bible iu Armenian. A versiuueveii in Ethio)>ic was publishiJ ut Rome in 1548. In Erigland there was a versio.i mado by Venerable Bule in tho eighth ceninry. In the year 70(5 A" IheliDus firrft Bishop of Salisbury translated the Psaltt;* into Saxon ; and by bis a<]vic8 Egbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne, translated the Four GoepeK*-. (Horn.) In the ninth century, there wrs a partial Iranslalion of the Psalter, snpi)osed to have been made by Alfred ibo Greet. Elfric Archbiiibop pf Canterbury translated i»:to the vulgar tongue the Pentateuch, Joshua, Job, tb.e Jndye?, Ruth, parts of the Book of Kings, Esther and the IMaccabfes. in 995: aixl in the year I'iQO a translation ot tha whole Biblu into the English of that day was made. In the fourteenth centiny a now vtision was written by J«hn de Trevisa. It ia unneressary to say any thing of the Douay and Rheinjs English versiotis in IdOO ar.d 1582, of which innumerable Editions have been publishtid in Jlo^land, Ireland and America. Even with regard to the Pulyglot Bible?, the only Protestant one was published at London so late as iho year 1(J58, whilst the other three wero all (witholic, and published long before, viz. that of Cardinal Ximenes at Alcala in Spain in 1515, that of Antwerp in 15/2, and that of Paris in 1(145. This protracted note nniy close with the reinaik that there were at least Twenty Two difTtircni Cathoiic versiotis of the Bible in various countries of I'AMOpe BEFORE the appearance of liUther's Bible in 1530, and that of tiivVM: versions no less iban Seventy Editions, or one for each year, wero published between 1460 and 1530. Simultaneously with Ltuher's Bible a jrreat number of other Catholic Translations appeared, which, tnj,fHtl>rr with the [jrevious versions were frequently reprinted at that peiiod. It must be reniecnbered likewise? in connection with the abovo important facts, well known to every Bildical scholar, that tho An of Priiitiutr was only gradtndjy {)rac'iised thrcnglunit Europe from the year 1440 or '45 to 1500, and that therefore, considerii»i( all the circninbtanccs of the times, the Caiholics made use of tho r.ew discovery with astonishing rapidity for the uiilnsit-n rf tba Jscriptnres in the living languages of Europe. Woidd to (Jod that this pi/nple exposure of a niost unfonnled ralumi y tuny induce m.-tny a candid Protestant to examine KeriiuisI) otli^'S* timiUur ci.drgej against tho Catholic Church ! oO APPCNDIX. " Ut ergo lianc nmltinm sapifinthiin rjiinm in Ecclcsia eaaa Cntliolira iioti crcJitis, tniiltii stint :ilia quae in ejus ^rernio me jtiMtissinie tcneaiit. Tenet consensio popnloruni ut(|no yerktiuni. 'I'enet Aiictnrkus niiraculis incofioala, spo nntrita, rhnrituteuucla, vetUNlate firniatn. Tenet ul) i})sa t^fnio IVtri Apostoli, qui pascon- (lufl Oves Suits post resuirociionem Douiinns coinmendavitjUhquo ml pruesuiitein t^piscopatuni succhssIo Sucerdotum. Tenet pos- tii-mo IpsuM (yATHOLiCAE NoMf:x, i\uo(\ non sine rnnsa inter tani nioltas Maereses sic ilia t'oclesia Sola oblinnit, ut cmn omnes HaerHtici se CaJliolici (li«!i volint, quaeventi tamrn peregiino ulicni, ubi Jul CithdVnr.wti conveniainr, nitllus Ilaereticoruni vtl ])iih>iiicani snani vel donuuii aticlcat ostuiideie.'' S. Au^;nst. contrn Epist. Fundani. c. iv. "Nostia enim me stntnisse, nihil prolatutn toT.ere credere. Quacro ergo (piin s^it isle Manichneus ? Respondebitis, Aposto- JiiH Clnisli. Ncin credo. Quid jam flicaysint facias non habebis ; proniittebas enitn seieniiarn veritaiis, el nunc qnod nescio cogis Mf credain. Evunserniin rnilii fortasse Jeclurus es. el indo Muni- (;liaei porsonain tcntabis asserere. Si ergo invenires aliqiiein, (pii Evariift'lio nondtnn credit, qtiid (aceres dicenii tibi, non cretlo? E/ro vero Kvanoklio >••>- ckederkm, nisi meCATHOLicAE llici.ESfAK commowrtt Auctoritas. Qnibiis ergo obteni})eravi ilicenlibiis, crede Ev«n<_'elio; cur eis non olitemperenj diceniibns Diifii, noli credere ftlanichueis ? Elige qi-: I veliss. fc=i dixeris, erede Catbolicis ; insi me tnonent ut nullam fideni accofnmodeni vobis. Qua propter nno possum iilis credene, nisi tibi non cre- i ere. Si dixoris, iiich;'ei fidem, quia ipsi Evctngelio (^atl)Olicis praedicantjhiis credi(;i. Si auiem dixeris, recte credi- di>4ri Oatbolicis luucJantiltUK ExanfrelinmjSed non recte illis credi- disti vituperantibus Manichaenin ; usque adeo tne stullum putr.s, ul nulla reddita ratioiie, qsiod via, credam. quod non vis, non credani ? IVlidto enin? justius atque cautius tacio, si Catbolicis q:'.oniam semel credidi, «i! to non transeo, nisi me non cred(;ro JMss'.'ris, sed maniff^stiysiMifi nc npcrtiasime scire aliquid feceris. otius credam qii;ini libi, Si uutrni aliquid inde u.'.'i;iifeslUin pro Maui , chaeo leg( sunt : tibi credidora non crcdi* etiam tibi tur, nun it Some 1 out reaaoi been entii the Hook In our Tl '* Solomoi were a th ihose Boo of the Ac Book of ] and in th existence Chronici< first and the Seer, Book of day. Tl XX. 24), n "The B 18), and (3 Kintjs the Epis ho soys • Epistles the Old be foun Hotniliei have |;)ei that the: safely 811 as they the divi Amor spired, i " Th< mentior ^t Eph and ma «Th Hebrev u Th •♦Th APrilNDIX. GO sia esae mio nie (ieritiinri. iteuucta, it,iii.quo net poi- nter tani onines urn vtl t.coiitm credere. A posto- labehi:) ; o cogis le Muiii- aliqdeio, ilii, liOd HOLICAE irnperavi cemihiis dixeris, nirioderu lion cre- •ies per 'vangdio e ciedi- iscredi- n putr>8, v\s^ non uliolifis credfM'H feceris. .ijelinrn. JN prne- ornnino LTPd^ro va]obit, iitn de potius ) AJuni chaeo Icgcris, nee illis, iicc iii>i. IHi:*, quia de tn riiihi mcntiii sunt : tibi aiiteiD, quia earn Sctiptiirum mihi profers, ciii per illoR credidorain, qui inilii inentiti sunt. Scd ahsit lit ego Evnn^relio iiori crcdarn, llli enini credcius, non iiiveiiio (jnoniodo possiui etiatn tibi credere. Apostolorum enim nominn, quae ibi legun- tur, non intur 80 continent notnon Mnnichaei. ' h3. Aug. Ibid. c. v. Some learned Biblical Scholors are of opinion, and not witli- out' reason, that about Twenty different Books of Scripture havo been entindy lost. We read in Numbers xxf. 14 — " It is said in the Book of the IVars of the Lord." No sticb Book is now extant. In our Tliird Book of Kings (alias First) iv. l\2. It is said that " Solomon spoke three thousand Proverbs, and his Canticlra were a thousand and five." We have only a very sruall part of those Books. In 2, Chronicles ix. ^9, it is said : ♦• Now the rest of the Acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in tho Book of Nathan the Prophet, and in the Prophecy of Ahijah, and in the Vision of Iddo ?" Not one of these Books is now in existence. Again, we read at tho end of the First Book of Chronicles these words :^ " Now the Acts of David the King, first and las', iiehold are they not written in the Book of Samuel the Seer, and in the Book of Nathan the Prophet, and in the Book of Gad the Seer ?" We have no such Books at the present day. The same may be said of" the Acts of Josaphat" (2 Chron. XX. 24), and *',Tho Book of Jehu, the son of Mnnani"(lbid), and *' The Book of the Righteous, or Just" (Josh. x. 13. 2 Kings i. 18), and the Treatises on Plants and Animals written by Solomon (3 Kin^s iv. 33). St. Paul directs the Colossians (iv. 16) to read the Epistle of the Laodiceans ; and in his Ist to the Corinthians he says •' I wrote to you in an Epistle." There are no such Epistles now. Two quotations are piven by St. Matthew from the Old Testament (Matt. ii. 23, xxvii. 9) which are not now to be found in the Scriptures. St. Chrysostoin declares in his Homilies on St. Matthew, that many of the Prophetic monuments have perished through the carelessness and impiety of the Jews; that they burned some, and tore others in pieces. It may be safely said that they destroyed as n»any of the prophetic passages as they could, which had reference to Christ, or helped to prova the divinity of his mission. Amongst soveral Books which were believed by many to be in- spired, in the first centuries of the Church, we may reckon : "The Epistle of Our Saviour to Abigaris, King of Edessa," mentioned by Eusebius, Darius correspondent of St. Augustine, ^t, Epiireni of Edessa, Procopius, Evagrius, St. John Daniusceixe, and many others " The Gospels of the Twelve Apostles, or accordirij to tlie Hebrews." " The Goipcl of St. Petor." . . .\- ....'... . \ " The Apocaiyse of St. Peter." ■ .-r^-sirt?' ■Jt^ ■ ' APPENDIX* ♦■ The Acta of St, Peter." ♦* The Gospels of Sd. Thoma» and Matthi*s." " The EgvpJinn GospeVV , y» "The Acts of St. Paul."' .« .n5 " The Epistle of St. Barna1?as.^ ,/ ;; « The E >i8tle of St. Cloment." ' ^' The Pastor ot' Hermes," &c. &c. How can any private individual know, at this day, "ivhether these and similar worka were not inspired, for they were received by many of the Fathers, and even read in some Churches? t^",^.. '^.j- >«:fcV' %^' Pope Pius Vn., in 9. Rescript iddressed to the Vicars Apostolic in England, on the I8ih April, 18'20, exhorts them to encourage Iho people committed *o their care to read books of pious instruc- tion, and purlicularty the Holy Serif hires in translations approved by ecclesiastical authority. His immediate piedecessor. Pope Pius VJ., on receiving" a copy of the Bible translated into Italian by Anthony Martini, of Turin, afterwards Archbishop of Florence, addressed him a letter, from whicli the following is an extract : *« liELovED Son, — Health and Apostolical Benediction. At a time when a vast number of bad books whicix most grossly attack the Catholic Religion, are circulated oven amon.w the unleiirned, to the great destruction of souls, you judge e.xceedingly well that the faith- ful should be excited to the reading of the Holy Scriptures ; for these are the most abundant sources which ought to be left open to every one, to draw from them purity of morals and of doctrine, to -radicate the errors which are widely disseminated in these cor- rupt times. This you have seasonably effected, as you announce, by publishing the sacred Scriptures in the language of your country, suitable to every one's capacity ; especially when you shew and set forth that you have added explanatory notes, which being extracted from the Holy Fathers, preclude every possible danger of abase. Thus, you hav? not swerved oither from the laws of tho (yongrega* tion of tho Index, oe fromthc conBtitution published on tho subject by Benedict XIV., that immortal Pope, our predecessor in the Pon- tificate, and formerly when we held a place near his person, our ex- cellent master in Bcclesiastitfal learning.... We, thorofoi'e, applaud ycKir eminent learning aijd wo return you our duo acknow- ledgments for the Books which you have transmitted to us," Sko. •• Given at Rome, on tho Calends of April, 1778, in tho fourth year of our PoaUAcate," " In raultls erant mdouui TJaptisrhum habebainuB iitritjue ; in co «rant mecum Evangolium utrique Icgebanuis ; erant in eo mecum. Fosta mar ty rum celebrabamus ; ^rant ibi mecum. Paschffi lolomni- tutem frcquontabamut ; eiant ibimeoum, sed uon omnino mecum. In Schiamate non mecun, in Hnresi non mecum : in multis mecam, in paucir non meoum. Sad in his paucis in quibus non mecum, non ciB proflont multa in quibus meeum."— J?narra< in P$al. liv. i.::t "5\ .V« *'*'^'- " *' ^^