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Dr. James Elliott
CHAPTER XXXVII
Catholicity and Science Considered
Perhaps more than at any previous period this age of the world is distinguished by its love of knowledge. At what time was science so generally, so earnestly and so advantageously cultivated? None will pretend that mankind has as yet even made the conquest of all science; but greater progress is made and greater results achieved. Was there ever a period when the pursuit of knowledge was held to be so honorable, or when its votaries were so universally encouraged and crowned with rewards? That science, above all, as difficult in its acquirement as it is important in its results-the science of man-is now more than ever an object of study ; and with good reason, assuredly, for is it not the groundwork of political science, the science of government, upon which depends the happi- ness of nations? Now, who in past ages, as well as at the present time, have shown themselves the friends of science! None more so than the Roman Pontiffs; deny this, and not only pages and volumes but all history since the dawn of the Christian era must be blotted out.
While it is not disputed that the Chief Pastors of the Catholic Church have in all ages of their long history adorned their high station by great talents and learning, some enemies of the Papacy say that "these treasures of genius and knowledge they have reserved
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for themselves-have kept their light under a bushel ; and in respect to learning," it is asked, "what has humanity, what has civilization to thank them for?" It is indeed true that letters were for a long time the exclusive possession of the Popes and of the Clergy. But this by no means shows that they took no pains to disseminate knowledge-to instruct man- kind. In their endeavors to enlighten the world, they met with formidable opposition. Custom, opinion, prejudice-everything was against them. War and pleasure engaged, in turns, the time and the thoughts of men. They could not afford to be idle! And the noble leisure of learning was in their estimation idle- ness! With exceptions sufficiently numerous to show that the Clerical Order had no wish to make a monopoly of knowledge, the study of letters, the pur- suit of science, was left almost entirely to the care of the Clergy. Meanwhile the Christian Religion, which was gaining ground so rapidly, could not be diffused among men, and deeply rooted in their minds, without communicating along with its more precious spiritual gifts some portion of the outward garb in which it necessarily clothed itself, and without which it was impossible that it should reach the mind. It was not indeed a matter of absolute necessity that the Apostles of the New Dispensation should be endowed with eloquence; and yet how often were they not so? How often from the days St. Paul ( who although he pro- fessed not to have come on his mission to mankind "with the persuasive words of human wisdom," was, nevertheless, in an eminent degree, possessed of that powerful eloquence which moves the soul to its depths), have there not been accomplished orators in the Church? And whilst, like Paul announcing
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truth to Governor Felix and King Agrippa, they preached with more than the power of human language to a rude and unbelieving world, they could not fail to impart some idea of that more refined and noble literature which arose so early together with the sublime Religion of which it is designed to be the handmaid.
The preachers of Catholicity as they conversed with men, not only taught them the Christian religion, but in like manner also "the humanities." But as this was only an incidental teaching-and of incalculable less importance than that to which it ministered- public schools and universities were founded, in which all branches of letters and of science were taught, not only to those who were destined to hold the sacred office of the Priesthood and to fulfill the high duties of Apostolic teachers, but to all who chose to come to quench their thirst for knowledge at these great, and pure, and never failing fountains. But as time advanced, these temples of learning were more and more frequented ; and from their ever open portals was constantly pouring forth a stream of truth which, in due time, renewed the face of the world, causing the stern and unconquered warrior even to sigh for the happy time when he too could share the repose, the elegance and the honors of a learned life.
Educate, instruct, enlighten is now the device of every civilized people. A nation cannot be more grievously insulted than by asserting that it is well pleased to remain in ignorance and takes no pains to educate its people; and yet, among what people can such views as these lay claim to antiquity? The learn- ing and civilization of ancient Rome once swept away, ignorance everywhere prevailed, and to such an
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extent that men knew not that they were ignorant. Christian civilization had already done battle for many centuries with the barbarism it found in the world, when even in the higher orders of society it was still the privilege of rank to be ignorant. The great and mighty were above learning, as they were by their rank above the rest of men; and simply because they were potent personages, they claimed exemption from the task of learning to read and write. That expiring barbarism should have clung to ignorance as its last hope need not astonish us; but it is indeed surprising that the Catholic Church and her Popes and Heirarchy should have been accused of fostering ignorance and even of exerting their great influence to retard the work of education, the march of intellect, the development of the human mind. If such were the case, how strangely have the Popes and Heirarchy misunderstood the true interests of the Catholic Church? Who does not know how favorable knowledge is to the Catholic religion? No sooner is that religion announced than men versed in all the learning of their time make haste to pay it homage and proclaim its truth to mankind. A genera- tion has not yet passed away when not a few among the votaries of science become not only its ardent admirers but its most fervent disciples. Who was that Paul whom "zeal consumed?" Evidently a man possessed of great knowledge. That he was so his very enemies bore witness when they declared that "much learning had made him mad." All were "mad," in the estimation of the vulgar, who in those days embraced the Religion of the Cross. No reputation of learning could save them from the stigma; and yet the learned, in defiance of the scoff of ignorance, press
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around the banner of Catholicity. The physician Luke, the statesman of Athens, Dionysius, are fol- lowed by many highly educated men whose minds were already prepared and adapted by science for the reception of that truth which contains within itself the knowledge of all things-whether of this world or of that which is to come.
The Catholic Church is the repository of all truth destined for man to know in order to fulfil the purpose of his creation; and it would be an error to suppose that true science could be opposed to revealed truth. All false systems of religion in past times have invaria- bly fallen before the light of true science. Such men as Socrates and Plato rejected the vulgar supersti- tions of their age. They held up the lamp of science to expose them; and false religion, panic struck, put Socrates to death. All history is the witness that whatever is false, whether in religion, philosophy or politics, must abhor the presence of true science. In modern times the sects that have accused the Roman Catholic Church of fostering ignorance have shown an instinctive dread of knowledge. The great Anglican sect has actually forbidden the diffusion of letters. During the palmy days of this sect was it not penal in Ireland to teach even the alphabet? Was not any Priest or schoolmaster who dared so to teach treated pretty much in the same way as Socrates was by the Athenian mob? In Protestant England, knowledge was, as regarded the great body of the people, proscribed. It was the idea of the time-and the True Religion was not at hand to correct the error-that it was unsuitable to educate the lower classes. These remained in ignorance whilst science kept its court in the two great Universities of the land. Science
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delights to be the handmaid of the True Religion; and whilst all erroneous systems necessarily grow dim and vanish in its presence, that Religion which alone is the one true revelation from on high only shines the brighter in the light which true science throws around it. And thus it has appeared in the eyes of many of the most learned men of those celebrated Universities in which the lamp of science had never ceased to burn, although that of True Faith had in an evil hour been utterly extinguished. The Catholic Church has no reason to dread knowledge. An eminent Scottish Presbyterian writer, Mr. Laing, in his "Notes of a Traveller," says: "The Popish Clergy have in reality less to lose by the progress of education than our own Scotch Clergy. Education is not only not repressed but is encouraged in the Popish Church, and is a mighty instrument in its hands and ably used. It is by their own advance and not by keeping back the advance of the people that the Popish priests of the present day seek to keep ahead of the intellectual progress of the community. In every street in Rome, for instance, there are, at short distances, public primary schools for the education of the children of the lower and middle classes. * Rome, with a popula- tion of 158,678 souls, has 372 public primary schools, with 482 teachers and 14,099 children attending them. Has Edinburgh so many public schools for the instruction of those classes? I doubt it. Berlin, with a population double that of Rome, has only 264 schools. Rome has also her University, with an average attendance of 660 students; and the Papal States, with a population of two and a half millions, contain seven Universities. Prussia, with a popula- tion of fourteen millions, has only seven. The *This comparison was made in 1837.
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statistical fact that Rome has above a hundred schools more than Berlin, for a population little more than half that of Berlin, puts to flight a world of humbug. It is asked what is taught to the people of Rome by all these schools? Precisely what is taught at Berlin -reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, languages, religious doctrine of some sort."
In the face of these facts obfuscated indeed must be the mind that would undertake to maintain that the Papal Church is behind the age as regards educa- tion. Astonishing to relate! the facts recorded by Mr. Laing existed anterior to the time when the Church was robbed of her temporalities.
The sublime mission of the Church is to Christian- ize the world. Without instruction this mighty work could not be accomplished. The more progress made in knowledge, the fewer the difficulties with which the Church will have to contend. True Religion is as much impeded by ignorance as by the corruption of mankind. The eminent Protestant historian, Baron MacCauley says :
"We often hear it said that the world is con- stantly becoming more and more enlightened, and that the enlightenment must be favorable to Protestantism, and unfavorable to *Catholicism. We wish that we could think so. But we see great reason to doubt whether this is a well- founded expectation. We see that during the
*"Catholicism" is a self-contradictory term, a sort of fiction which should not be applied to the One True Universal Church, whose doctrines and teachings are "the same yesterday, to-day and to-morrow," and within whose fold ism is neither countenanced nor tolerated. Protestant writers may be pardoned for making such application. Catholic writers, however, should avoid the use of the word, even though Protestant compilers of lexi- cons may define Catholicism. "Adherence to the Roman Catholic Church," and "Universality of the orthodox faith of the whole church." Instead of "Catholicism," let Catholics employ the term Catholicity- a word which specifically expresses the universality which is one of the distinguishing marks of the One True Church, "the pillar and the ground of truth," with whom her Divine Founder promised to "abide all days," and that
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last two hundred and fifty years the human mind has been, in the highest degree, active; that it has made great advances in every branch of natural philosophy; that it has produced innumerable inven- tions, tending to promote the convenience of life; that medicine, surgery, chemistry, engineering, have been very greatly improved; that government, police and law have been improved though not to so great an extent as the physical sciences. Yet, we see that, dur- ing these two hundred and fifty years, Protestantism has made no conquests worth speaking of. Nay, we believe that, as far as there has been change, that change has, on the whole, been in favor of the Church of Rome. We cannot, therefore, feel confident that the progress of knowledge will necessarily be fatal to a system which has, to say the least, stood its ground, in spite of the immense progress made by the human race in knowledge since the time of Queen Elizabeth."
"the gates of hell shall not prevail against her." Hence a term expressive of ism is a misnomer in its application to the Catholic Church. What is the meaning of ism? Does it not signify a decayed branch cut off from the living trunk of the Tree of Truth? Therefore, if Catholics use Catholicism, is there not danger that some one of our separated brethren might be unintentionally strengthened in the erroneous ideas so often expressed, that "one church is as good as another"; that "all religions are alike" ; that "there is no difference between Catholicism and Protes- tantism"; that "Catholicism and High and Low Episcopalianism, Presby- terianism, Methodism and all the other denominational isms lead to the same place but by different routes"? The Apostle to the Gentiles advised Timothy to "avoid the profane novelty of words" ; and this admonition by St. Paul was not only intended for his disciple and the faithful of that period, but that it should be respected during all ages .- THE AUTHOR.
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CHAPTER XXXVIII
Catholicity is Essentially Liberal
The Catholic Church is not that stern despotism over the minds of men which its enemies unceasingly represent it to be. It cannot be otherwise than liberal. As there is no system of rule or constitution in the world that has endured so long, so there is none that can claim to be so perfect. Many governments have followed in its track and copied and appropriated what appeared to them good in its Constitution, but none has as yet surpassed or even equalled it in excellence. An institution that was not in every way admirably adapted to the wants of mankind-that was not by its organization and its teaching calculated to meet the real wishes and aspirations of the human mind-could not, as it has done, have existed and flourished throughout so many centuries without any diminution of its original power. Its enemies even acknowledge that it exhibits not as yet "any sign which indicates that the term of its long dominion is approaching." "It saw," quoth Baron MacCauley, "the commencement of all the governments, and all the ecclesiastical establishments, that now exist in the world; and we feel no assurance that it is not destined to see the end of them all. It was great and respected before the Saxon had set foot in Britain, before the French had passed the Rhine, when Grecian eloquence still flourished at Antioch, when idols were still wor-
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shipped in the temple of Mecca, and it may exist in undiminished vigor when some traveller from New Zealand shall, in the midst of a vast solitude, take his stand on a broken arch of London Bridge to sketch the ruins of St. Paul's." When there was question of reorganizing society after the effete despotism of Pagan Rome had passed away, men found in the Church a model of government than which nothing more excellent could be devised. "The Christian Councils," says another distinguished Protestant writer (Sir Archibald Alison-History of Europe, Vol. II.), "were the first examples of representative assemblies. There were united the whole Roman world. There a Priesthood which embraced the civ- ilized earth assembled by means of delegates to delib- erate on the affairs of the Universal Church. When Europe revived, it adopted the same model. Every nation by degrees borrowed the customs of the Church -then the sole repository of the traditions of civiliza- tion. It was the clergy who instructed them in the admirable system which flourished in the Councils of Nice, Sardis and Byzantium, centuries before it was heard of in the Western world, and which did not rise in the 'Woods of Germany' but in the Catacombs of Rome during the sufferings of the Primitive Christians."
And yet, the enemies of Catholicity, violative of the Divine Command, bear false witness-accuse the Catholic Church of fostering ignorance! Not only that, but Catholics are poor benighted people whose intellect is enslaved by wily priest-craft! Second only to the protection of Divine Providence is the excellence of the Constitution of the Church in securing that vitality and permanency which can
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never fail to be a subject of astonishment. In an order of things in every way so admirable there could not be any narrowness of view-anything mean, petty and illiberal. Such things are repugnant to the genius of Catholicity. The Church is divinely appointed to bear witness throughout all time to certain truths, which it is of the highest importance for mankind to know. She can neither add to these truths nor diminish them; neither can she interpret them in one way today and in another way tomorrow. She is the witness of what has been committed to her keeping; and that she will always be a faithful witness, the WORD That deceives not is her guar- antee : "Behold I am with you all days," and "The gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church."
But beyond the range of Revealed Truth, to which the Church can never cease to bear testimony, there is a wide field of enquiry; and, so long as the sacred deposit is not touched, the utmost freedom of dis- cussion may rightfully prevail. Why should charity between disputants be so urgently recommended- nay enjoined-if no disputation were permitted? In regard to manifestly essential points of doctrine, the belief of Christians must necessarily be one: "In necessariis unitas." But in those things that are not clearly a portion of that truth to which the Church bears unerring testimony, opinion is at liberty : "In dubiis libertas." Who shall say that there is not thus presented to the human mind, with the full sanction of that authority which is not infrequently accused of wishing to enchain it, a field of investigation sufficiently extensive for the exercise of all its faculties? But, in all disputations, as stated, charity is not only urged but enjoined : "In omnibus caritas."
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Contrasts with other institutions, highly favorable to the Catholic Church, might here be established. Discarding many fabulous and exploded accounts of imaginary persecutions, a few well authenticated facts might be produced which would exhibit, in no amiable light, the heads and founders of opposing systems. Usurpations are necessarily tyrannical- are often cruel. Since Geneva herself now deplores the errors of her Calvin, it were unnecessary here to bring into parallel his cruelty on the one hand, and on the other the moderation, the kindness even of a tribunal of the Catholic Church, which, while it declared to be contrary to the testimony of all ages the doctrines, spared the person of the unfortunate man who afterward became the victim of the stern heresiarch.
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Rev. Daniel G. Durning First person born in New Jersey elevated to the Priesthood
CHAPTER XXXIX
Some Distinguished Newark Lawyers
When Newark became a city in 1836, she had many distinguished citizens of extraordinary legal ability, including Chief Justice Hornblower, Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, (father of Frederick Frelinghuysen, President of the Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company), Governor William Pennington, A. C. M. Pennington, Oliver Halstead (afterward Vice- Chancellor ), John Whitehead, Charles L. C. Gifford, Amzi Armstrong, Jabez Hayes, Amzi Dodd (who became Vice-Chancellor of New Jersey and afterward the second President of the Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company-succeeding Lewis C. Grover), William K. McDonald (father of James C. Mc- Donald), Archer Gifford (father of Phillip A. Gifford), and Joseph P. Bradley, who was appointed an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
Hon. Frederick T. Frelinghuysen filled the unexpired term of Senator Wright in the United States Senate, and was a candidate to succeed him- self, but the Legislature being of an opposite political complexion, a Democrat was chosen. President Ulysses S. Grant, without consulting former Senator Frelinghuysen, nominated him for Minister to the Court of St. James, and the nomination was
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unanimously confirmed by the Senate without reference. Minister Frelinghuysen declined the Mission. Mr. Frelinghuysen was Attorney General for New Jersey for some years; and, the Legislature being Republican, he was sent back to the United States Senate. Afterward he became Secretary of State in the Administration of President Chester A. Arthur.
Secretary of State Frelinghuysen, on behalf of the American Government, vigorously protested against the unwarranted confiscation of the American College at Rome by the Italian
Government. The boasted free institutions of Italy to the contrary, the government had ignored the moral law, violated at pleasure individual rights, and, just as convenience might seem to require, changed Churches and religious houses, as well as sanctuaries of learning into stables for the cavalry and hunting steeds of the Savoyard dynasty. The Italian robbers might learn a profitable lesson from Mohammed the Prophet of the Sword, who commanded that his followers should everywhere respect places in which they found the people assembled for prayer. Not so the Savoyards. Covetous eyes were set upon the American College at Rome; it was marked out for confiscation and desecration, but Secretary of State Frelinghuysen calls halt! The American College is an American institution, built by American money and owned by American citizens; and the prop- erty rights of Americans at home and abroad must be conserved. Hence, the Italian government was constrained, by force of circumstances powerless to control, to respect in that case the article of the Moral Code: "Thou Shalt Not Steal !"
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The author had an interview with Secretary of State Frelinghuysen at his home in Newark in reference to the arrest of Editor Meaney of the New York Star. The editor, after an absence of thirty years from Ireland, returned to his native land on a visit to his aged mother; and, a few hours after landing in Queenstown, he was summarily arrested and cast into prison. Secretary Frelinghuysen, on hearing the facts in the case, said he would telegraph immediately to the Assistant Secretary of State at Washington instructing him to cable the American Minister at the Court of St. James. This was done, and within twenty-four hours the prisoner was liberated.
In the early days also there were two bright young lawyers of great promise-Theodore Runyon and Cortlandt Parker. Young Runyon became Mayor of Newark, a Brigadier-General of Volunteers in the Civil War, Chancellor of the State of New Jersey, and President Grover Cleveland appointed him Ambassador to the Court of Berlin. General Runyon was the first Ambassador from the United States to Germany. This Nation had hitherto been represented by Ministers. Ambassador Runyon was held in high favor by the Emperor, who requested the United States Government to permit him to appear at Court wearing the uniform of his military rank-a request which was granted. The Ambassador died in the Embassy at Berlin. At his bedside were the wife of the Ambassador and three daughters, Mrs. Molly R. Haskins, Julia B. Runyon and Helen Louise Run- yon, the latter of whom is the wife of President E. Alvah Wilkinson, of Wilkinson, Gaddis & Co. The two sons of the Ambassador, Frederick Theodore
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Runyon and L. Chauncey Runyon were at home in Newark. His remains were brought home and interred in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery. Ambassador Runyon was a bosom friend of the late Archbishop Bayley and Monsignor Doane-friendships which lasted without friction until death. The half-tone picture of Bishop Bayley which is used in this work is taken from a portrait painted from life by Hagney in 1869. The original oil painting was kindly loaned to the author by Mrs. Clementine B. Runyon, the widow of the late Ambassador.
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