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Vol. VL—No., 22.
Philadelphia, Thursday, May 20, 1839,
‘Whole Number 324,
‘THE CATHOLIC HERALD
IS PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY BY
M. FITHIAN,
No. 6L North Second Street, Philadelphia.
Terms.—Three Dollars per annum, payable half year-
ly in advance. Five Dollars will be received for 2 copies,
or J copy for two years. All arrearages must be settled prior
All Communica-
tions, except from Agents, or Subscribers enclosing remit.
tances, must be post paid, and addressed “To the Editor
of, the Catholic Herald, Philadelphia, Pa.”
DPoctry.
The following stanzas we publish by stealth, and under the per-
suasion that they will not meet the eye of the gentle and gifted being
who indited them—a child of ten years of age, residing in a distant |.
Stute—Gambier Observer.
THE OCEAN BURIAL.
* Not there in that cold dark grave!—not there—
Where the worm will twine in her silken hair,
And feast on that pale sweet face;—
The sod above is fair and green,
And there the cypress and willow are seen—
. Yet not there be her resting place.
But in the sea—the boundless sea—
Which, both in sadness and in glee,
Our lost one Joved so well;—
In her own loved ocean let her lie—
Where the moaning wave to the listening sky
Her sorrowful tale sha}l tell.
«And every plant of the ocean blue,
Shall shed from its long locks briny dew,
‘To hallow the place where she lies—
And trust me—such drops are worth many atear ~
‘That fal!s upon the rich Gne’s bier,
“From cold and feigning eyes.
te
Then fold around her form a shroud
As pure and soft as the noon-tide cloud,—
Lay sweet flowers on her breast,—
Cast one last look upon the brow
Where quiet reigns so deeply now—
sind leave her to her rest.
el
. From the Churchinan,
.AN EXTRACT FROM “AN EVENING SOLIOQUY.”
Lt BY 8. H.C | ite
Yon crowded churchyard! what a tale if tells
Of whithered hopes and prospects blasted here!
‘The young, the gay, the titled, and the proud,
Rich, wise, aspiring, learned, strong, and great,
All, all arrested in their high’ career,
By the stern summons of the monarch deuth,
Lie there entombed, their joys for ever fled ;
‘Thwarted their plans, their splendid projects failed,
And energies all dormant—there they lie ! ‘
Compassion mourns the doom; but ab, nor sighs,
Nor kind compassion’s tears can aught avail!
Fixed in profoundest sleep, there they repose,
And must for ever lie, till at the sound,
Loud and decisive, of th’ archangel’s trump,
Earth and deep seas afar give up their dead!
And is it true that nought beneath the sun .
Is proof against destruction? nought is sure? .
Do honors fade, and riches fly away,
And pleasures vanish as the cloud of morn?
Is victory a bubble, fame a dream,
And life itself the shadow of an hour?
What mean these pantings then? this restless toil,
And struggle for deceitful earthly prize,
That cannot satisfy, though full attained?
What means this raging, quenchless thirst fur gold,
‘Or power, or pleasure, or victorious swey?
‘These little lights may glisten for awhile,
And for awhile obscure far purer flame;
But soon they must expire, ah, very soon
Their glory will be faded; and thenceferth
For those whose trust, whose only guide they were,
Blackness of darkness ever must remain!”
Are fleeting hopes and transitory joys
Worthy the homage of immortal m nd?
Is happiness for threescore years and ten,
(Or rather half that period,) of account,
Compared with that unending, dreary train --
Of ages, that must rol} in sorrow o'er’
Man's abject head, if but this side the grave
He has well-founded hope? henceforth his life
Must equal the Almighty’s—is it wise,
Is it not madness, then, to suffer few,
Few solitary years t’ engross his thoughts,
And be the object of his highest care?
Yet chained to earth, man scarce assays fe rise! -
He idly paints imaginary joys
As real and substantial ; and content
With the illusive shadow, lives at ease
Amid the pomp and vanities of time,
Asif eternal blessedness were sure.
But oh, the storm errives; the tempest lowers,
And beats with fury on the airy pile!
Its elements are scatiered ; it dissolves ;
And every hope ingarnered disappears,
Not so the temple of the pious soul!
He sees far off the coming of the storm,
And when it comes, is ready ; his bless’d hope
Is anchored high in heaven, above the cloud,
The sway of tempest and the lightning’s wing ;
It shines in glory there, and through the gloom
Darts ever and anon its quickening beam -
Into the Christian’s heart, to guide and cheer,
And when the fury and the rush is o'er,
, Lights his rejoicing spirit to its home.
7
ESSAY ON CATHOLIC COMMUNION.
Of Images.
Question. J, Whetker the church of Rome teaches
those in her communion, to pray toimages 2? | «~~
I have fully examined in this point, and find there
is no such thing taoght by the council of Zrent, nor in
their profession of faith, nor in their Catechisms pub-
lished for the instruction of the people. “On the con=
trary, the council of Trent declares, There is no di-
vinity nor virtue in the images of Christ, or the Vir-
gin Mary, for which they are to be worshipped ; an
that nothing is to be asked of them, nor any confi-
dence to be placed in them ; as was formerly done by
the heathens, who trusted in their idols. Sess 25. de
Invoc., And in their Catechisms I see the question is
asked, FFhether Catholics pray to images? and ’tis
positively answered, No, they do not: And this rea-
sonisadded, Secause they neither can see, nor hear,
nor help us.’ If then any canbe supposed so stupid,
as at any time to have done it, yet since that church is
so far from teaching it, that she teaches the contrary,
therefore this question ought not to be pressed, as any
obstruction to the Catholic communion,
I. Whether there be not some expressions in
their hymns, and especially those relating tothe cross,
which import as much asa prayer
Ihave seen such expressions, though very few,
which being in hymns, seem to me no more than poet-
ical liberties ; such are ugualin canticles, and are found
in scripture: «As Deut, 32.1. where Aloses speaks
to the heavens and to the earth, » And while those in
that communion, positively declare, they are no more
than figurative expressions, and their church declares,
that no images ought tobe prayed to, it seems rea-
sonable to expound theif hymns by their professed doc-
trine, and noton thé contrary ; since no religion,
nor book, nor even the scripture, can.stand the test, of
maintaining all that for professed doctrine, which can
be inferred from its literal expressions :+ It being cer-
tain in many instances, thatthe letter killet3: But if
this be not reason enough for waving this question, yet
from our second rule, itought to be laid by 5 since that
church imposes not the saying those hymns on any of
the flock, but they may/be all their lives in that com:
munjon, without ever |once repeating them.
Q. 11. . Whether those in. communion. with the
Roman church, are notidolators in the worshipping of
images? vo “
I have strictly enquired into this point, and by all I
can observe both in their councils, professions of faith,
catechisms, spiritual books, and other beoks of de-
votion, I cannot see, but they as firmly believe in one
only God, as we do in the church of Znglayd ; and
\ '
be
with as much constancy declare,‘That the honour of
God ought notto be given to another. ‘The .whole
body oftheir devotions and: breviary, is composed of
David's Psalms 3 in which is the so frequent confes-
sion of one God, and confusion pronounced against all
worshipping of idols. Ience they repeat every week
the 97th Psalm, v. 7. in these words: . Confundantur
omnes qui adorant sculptilia, and qui gloriantur in
simulacris suis, Confounded be-all they ‘that. serve
graven images, that boast themselves vf idols. Every
Sunday .at even-song, they repeat Psalm 115; in
which they profess one God, reproach idols, for. being
the work of mens’ hands, for having eyes and seeing
not, for having ears and hearing not; and then go on
with this verse, Similes illis fiant, qui: faciunt ea, et
omnes qui confidunt in eis, Which in. their. version
is more than ours,, even an imprecation or wish, That
all men may become like them, who make them, and
put their trust in them. From all which [must con-
clude, ‘That all the charge of idoltary, is only a eonse-
quence of ours, and such as they expressly disown, I
may say abhor, and therefore, according to our fourth
rule, ought notto be insisted on.as an obstruction to
communion ; especially, since that church imposes on
none the use of any images, but leaves all its members
at liberty of using them, if they think fit, or of wholly
letting them alone, which, according to our second
rule, is motive enodgh for waving this question, since
| imatever the idolatry be, they oblige none to be guilty
of it, . . : . fon
\ \
Q. IV. Whether those in the Roman communion,
are pot taught to honour and worship graven ima--.
ges
point, and the result of my enquiry is this: I Gnd
their council of Zren’,-declares (and *sis the same in ,
their profession of faiZ)) that due honour (or the hon-
our which is due) and, peneration, is fo be given to the
images of Christ.**Yhis isa very large expression,
and cannot well be excepted against, while it approves
no more than is due.’ And having considered their se-
veral explications of this honour, I find it comes tono
more than this, that:is, such honour as is generally
thought due to all holy things, which have any emi- +
nent, or particular relation to God, or to his worship
and service: Such as was due formerly to the ark of
the Testament, or to the temple; such as is now
judged due to the name of Jesus, to the Altar, to the
Books of the Gospels, to Holy Vessels, to the Sacra-°
mental Bread, to the Church, to the Ministers of the
Altar. Such honour a3 this, is, what, in, the. Roman
church, is judged due to the images of Christ. Which
being proper for moving pious affections, and rai: ng
devotion, are numbered amongst things consecrated to
God's service. . a
As to the honour given to the name of Jesus, see
Queen Elizabeth's Injunctions, an, 1559; whete ’tis
enjoined, That whensoever the name of Jesus shall
be in any Lesson, Sermon, or othewise in the church
pronounced, due reverence be made of all persons young
and old, with lowness of courtesy, and uncovering of
heads of the mankind, as thereunto doth necessarily
belong, and heretofore hath, been“ accustomed. Rein-
forced by the canons under King James I. an. 1663.
And surely-since this pronounced name is the same to
the ear, that the image is to the eye, whatever rever-
ence is lawfully given to one, may be as lawfully given
tothe other. 9° > SS :
Archbishop Laud was ‘for ‘reverence, not only be-
fore, and towards, bu\ to the altar; in his speech in
the Star-Chamber, the 14th of June, 1637.. And it
may not be amiss to observe how he there addressed
the Lords of the Garter: 1 hope, saith he, @ poor
Priest may worship God with as lowly -réverence as
you do, since you are bound by your-order and by your
:|oath, according to a constitution of Henry the Fifth,
(as appears in Libro Nigro Windesorensi) fo give due
honour and reverence; Domino Deo, and altati ejus, in
modum: virorum ecclesiasticorum :: That is, fo the
Lord your God, and to his altar; (for there is a re-
vérence due to that; to9,. though such as comes Sar
short of divine worship) and this in the manner, as ec-
clesiastical persons bot worship, dnd do reverence p,
49. Now if this honour may be allowed to the very
. i aan :
Thave with great application examined into this
WOR
tes
naar)
