JESUITISM. (From the Edinburgh Witness.)

Otago Witness, Issue 19, 27 September 1851, Page 4

JESUITISM. (From the Edinburgh Witness.)

" Jesuitism," said Dr. Cunningham, in bis masterly speech at the great Edinburgh meeting, which, we are glad to find, is given to the public in a separate form, as a tract, — " Jesuitism is nothing more or less than the concentrated essence of Popery ; and the very same principles which apply to Jesuitism, apply more or less,— but of course not quite so fully, or plainly, in consequence of the greater concentration in the one case than the other, — to the system of Popery at the present." There is food for thought in the Doctor's statement here 5 nor do we hesitate to connect it with the view given by Thomas Carlyle, of the same principle, in the soliloquy which he puts into the mouth of Ignatius Loyola, and his subsequent explanation of the saint's mission to mankind. " ' Has there not lately been a sort of revolt against the Virgin, and the Holy Father who takes care of her ?' asks the remorseful Hildalgo. ' Certain infernal heresiarchs in Germany and elsewhere, I am told, have risen up against the Holy Father, arguing with terrible plausibility that he is an unholy phantasm ; he, — and if so, what am I and my outlooks ? A new light, presumably of hell, has risen to that effect ; which new light why cannot I vow here, and consecrate myself to battle against, and with my whole strength endeavour to extinguish ?' That was the task Ignatius fixed upon as his ; and at that he has been busy. He and his black militia, armed with this precious message of salvation, have now been campaigning over all the world for about three hundred years ; and, openly and secretly, have done a mighty work over all the world. Who can count what a work ! Where you meet a man believing in the salutary nature of falsehoods, or the Divine authority of things doubtful, and fancying that, to serve the good cause, he must call the devil to his aid, there is a follower of Unsaint Ignatius ; nor, till the last of these men has vanished from the earth, will our account with Ignatius be quite settled, and his black militia have got their mittimus to chaos again. They have given a new substantive to modern languages. The word ' Jesuitism ' now in all countries expresses an idea for which there was in nature no prototype before. Nor, till these late centuries, had the human soul generated that abomination, or needed to name it. Truly they have achieved great things in the world, and a general result which we may call stupendous. Not victory for Ignatius and and the black militia, — no, till the universe itself become a cunningly devised fable, and God. the Maker, abdicate in favour of Beelzebub, I do not see how victory can fall on that side ! But they have done such deadly execution on the general soul of man, and wrought such havoc on the terrestrial and supernal interests of the world, as ensure to Jesuitism a long memory in human annals."

The Society of Jesus has unquestionably given the new and most characteristic word — • Jesuitism — to the languages of all civilised naions; — most characteristic, we say ; for, while expressive of all that is truthless and dishonest in human policy, it is derived from the same source with that other word — Christian — which the English poet so well describes as indicating the " highest style of man," JESUitism, CHRlSTianity. Is Christ, then, divided ? asks the Apostle. No ; but here we have his name divided, — the one half of it transmuted into a vocable expressive of all that is mean and base ; the other half into a vocable expressive of all that is excellent and pure. And the only point of difference in the two derivations is simply this, that while term Christian has reference directly to our Saviour himself, the other term, Jesuitism, has reference to a certain order of His professed priests and followers, who commit the grossest iniquities, and perpetrate the most monstrous frauds, in his name, We recognise in the two words thus placed in juxta-position, a powerful argument in behalf of Protestantism. We see in the one word, Christ glorified in his Church, and "justified of his children," on the the principle of direct Protestant connection and union with Him ; we see in the other, his name degraded, — by coming to us Papistically, through the medium of a proud and dishonest priesthood, — into a sign for all that is, deceitful and base. How infinitely better, then, that our communications with Him should be immediate and direct, without the contaminating agency of priestly infallibility, and its necessary adjunct Jesuitism, — things that can convert even His name into a term of disgrace, and his religion into a lie ! Dr. Cunningham defines Jesuitism to be " concentrated essence of Popery ;" but passing on, in his masculine and vigorous address, to other matters, he does not pause to show how it is that Jesuitism truly is its essence, or how it must be produced in certain circumstances by Popery, as the deadly nightshade produces in certain circumstances the fatal berry which contains the " concen-

trated essence "of its poison. Let us devote a few sentences to this special point. In the Popish controversy there has been more mind exerted, and more thought originated, than in perhaps any other ; but we are not aware that the inevitable link which unites Jesuitism to Popery has yet been demonstrated. Jesuitism has been'regarded rather as one of the accidental than as one of the necessary adjuncts of the quasi infallible Church ; but we think it will scarce fail to be seen, on reflection, that there is nothing accidental about Jesuitism, in connection with Popery, save its name, and that, as a theory or system, it must be inseparably united with it in every age of the world in which books prevail, and men are sufficiently enlightened to examine and think for themselves. As certainly, — to return to the figure just employed, — as the light and heat of the sun developes blossom and berry in the nightshade, did the light and heat of the Reformation produce Jesuitism in the Popish Church ; and so long as the causes remain in operation, must the fruit continue to be produced.

" The fundamental principle of the Roman Catholic system," says Robert Hall, in his masterly Fragment on Popery, "is the supposed infallibility of the Church of Rome." Save for this principle all that is peculiar in the doctrines and usages of this Church, — all that she has not derived from Scripture, or holds in opposition to Scripture, — form merely a superstructure erected without foundation. Her pretended infallibility is the one master principle on -which all her other principles rest. And be it remembered, that this pretended infallible Church existed during the dark ages, •when men's knowledge was exceedingly limited, and their judgment on many matters exceedingly erroneous ; that she frequently spoke in those times by Popes and Councils ; and that the decisions which she pronounced, in her character as infallible, are recorded in hundreds of instances, not merely in her own archives, but also in authentic history. Had she avoided error in all these many cases, it would be impossible for us to regard her as other than the infallible guide which she professes to be. It is, indeed one of the strongest arguments we can urge in proof of the infallibility of Scripture, that in circumstances similar to those in which Popery was placed during the middle ages, and in which, save to uninspired men, error would have been inevitable, there was yet no error committed ; and that the Bible, when it emerged into the light of the intellectual ages, stood in need of no crafty apologists or glazing commentators to accommodate it to the advanced knowledge, but had simply to be studied in integrity and good faith, in order to be recognised as unerringly just and true. But not thus did Popery emerge into the light. It bore upon its head the weight of a thousand unequivocally corrupt and palpably erroneous decisions, — a weight which, during the earlier years of the Reformation, threatened to sink it into annihilation. In short, one of two things had become essentially necessary to its very existence ; — either its claims to infallibility had to be renounced, — and, lacking these, its whole character would have so changed that it would have ceased to be Popery at all, — or there had to be devised some effectual means for cloaking the iniquities and errors which it had committed under the infallible character. The Presbyterian Church of Scotland has passed through no such long period of darkness and delusion as the Church of Rome ; but what would be even her present condition and prospects, if, in this enlightened age, its views and opinions being what they are, her members had to assert, as their Churches fundamental dogma, that all her decisions for the last two hundred and ninety years had been infallibly wise, just, and good ? We would still have to do what, within the last twenty years, the followers of Richard Cameron actually did, — raise our protest against the abrogation of the witchcraft laws, — we would have to denounce the toleration laws, — we would have to hold the somewhat anomalous belief that our early Reformers did right in struggling against patronage, — the Moderate Church leaders of the last century right in giving up the struggle, — the Church, during the commencement of a re-action period not yet twenty years' removed, right in taking part with patronage in a somewhat modified form, and ultimately right in renouncing it altogether. We would - have to hold further, that our Church was infallibly right in casting out Gillespie and the Erskines, — infallibly right in rejecting the overture oil missions, — infallibly right in shutting out from her communion all the other Churches of the world, — that she was infallibly right in her riding Committees,—infallibly right in her forced settlements, and the use she made of the military, — and, finally, infallibly right in all those acts of acquittal through which all ministers charged with what are termed the pleasant vices, were, as a matter of course, for many years together assoilzied at

her bar.- Comparatively brief as the period i s during which the Church of Scotland has existed, it would be impossible to profess believing in her infallibility, — were such ,'one of her dogmas, — without originating some system of Jesuitism, whatever the name it might bear, by which to cloak over her errors, inconsistencies, and contradictions. '

Jesuitism proper, then, we take to be the veil of delusion and imposture, woven just as the Reformation light became strong, in order to conceal the grievous faults and gross errors of a Church which could neither own a fault nor confess an error without forfeiting her character of j infallibility.' It was essentially necessary, — Rome being what it was and is, — that Jesuitism should be called into being at the time when it began to be. It was the necessary consequence of the continued maintenance, in an age of light and inquiry, of the infallible claim. And well may it be termed the " concentrated essence of Popery." We find the Apostle referring to certain sins committed in ignorance, at which " God winked j" but at a system framed in an age of light and knowledge, to defend and homologate all these as infallibly just and good, it is impossible that He could wink. And yet such is the relation which the system of Jesuitism bears to the iniquities committed by Popery. It is a concentrated and exaggerated form of the error, seeing that it is wilfully and in the light what Popery proper was ignorantly and in the darkness. It will be found, too, that in almost every point in which certain orders of Churchmen in the Romish communion have held by the doctrine of the New Testament, the order of the Jesuits have adopted the antagonist error. Did the Dominicans assert a doctrine at least bordering on that of. free grace ? — the Jesuits adopted the opposite or Pelagian view. Did the nuns of the Port Royal de Paris restrict their adoration at the sacrament, not to a wafer or the Virgin, but to the Saviour himself? — it was the Jesuits, — above all others the asserters of Mariolatry, — who exerted themselves in dragging this restricted form of worship into light, and procuring its condemnation at Rome. Did the members of the Port Royal dcs Champs attach themselves to the leading doctrines of the Evangelistic Churches ? — it was the Jesuits, who, singling them out, and pursuing them with unrelenting hatred, at length, after a thousand efforts, succeeded in destroying, and finally in annihilating them. Nor were they less ready to sacrifice the interests of country than those of religious truth, to their devotion to Rome. Did a national Church of the Romish communion, such as that of France, contend for an independent national status ? — the Jesuits were invariably ultramontane in their views, and took part against it in the contest. Did Roman Catholics of the better and more patriotic type assert, in some season of great national danger, the rights of their country against the claim of their Church ? — the Jesuits were invariably found ranged on the opposite side. There occurred such cases in England in the times of the Armada and of the Revolution ; and the Beaumonts and Norfolks of these times at once approved themselves, as they do now, better Englishmen than Roman Catholics, whereas the Jesuits, on the contrary, invariably showed themselves better Roman Catholics than Englishmen. Never yet was Jesuit a patriot; for Jesuitism being the " concentrated essence of Popery," the Pope is the Jesuit's only Monarch, and his only country Rome. But it is chiefly in the department of morals in which Jesuitism has wrought most havoc, and approved the intensity of its Romanism by sacrificing to its allegiance every principle of right. It has, in the character of an anti-Paul, become "all things to all men," not in order that it might " gain some," but that the interests of Rome might be advanced, at whatever expense, by making it the one Church in the world, nominally Christian, of which it is possible for all men, whatever their character, to be at once good members, and yet hold by their besetting sins. Well, therefore, has it been remarked by Dr. Cunningham, that " Jesuitism is nothing more nor less than the concentrated essence of Popery."

A Lady Orator. — The last meeting of the Cranford Estate Agricultural Show was marked by the striking incident of a speech by the lady of the principal guest — in this instance, the baronet of that ilk, Sir John Guest. The Cranford estate is Sir John's property, and the " yearly agricultural show 5 ' is described as " more correctly the yearly encouragement given to his tenantry" by the liberal land' lord, who subscribes nearly all the piizes offered for competition. Mr. Divett, M.P., did the chief honours of speech-making ; but after the prizes were awarded, Lady Guest rose from beside her husband, and said, — " lam taking an unusual course, but I wish very much to propose to you the toast which lies to my heart — ' The prosperity of the labouring classes.' From a child I have had much experience of them. I passed some time with and lived among the mining classes, and certainly a finer body of

men does not exist any where than the mining classes. In my new home I am less acquainted, perhaps, with poorer people ; but I hope to become more acquainted with them day by day. My feelings are strongly in their favour, and I am sure they will be borne out by experience. There is no finer set of people anywhere than the labouring classes of this country. Look at France : look at Germany. You go into a cottage in England, and you see every attempt made to be as moral and decent as possible. Excuse me for making these remarks. To raise the condition and to expand the mind of our peasantry should be our aim ; for without these advances it is impossible 'that even the most experienced agriculturist can go on. Forgive me for trespassing thus unduly upon your time, and permit me to propose " the labouring classes." At so unusual but so admirable an incident the audience were extremely delighted, and the kind-hearted lady resumed her seat amid deafening cheers. — Chester Courant.

Decision and Strength op Character. — I have lived long enough to know that man makes his own fate ; and that the strongest in character the most single in aim and purpose, and the most direct in act, are the happiest from these very causes. The only real misery is weakness. Hegret, wavering — that kind of puerile idealism which demands all before it can be satisfied, and which will not find happiness or sufficiency in that which it has ; indecision, weakness in any shape is unhappiness ; a strong, bold, determined, energetic nature, must and does conquer events, and make life and all that surrounds it slaves to its own will. And when I hear men or women lament their fate, I often draw down their indignation by turning the balance, and showing them how, by their own want of nerve and muscle of character, they have made their misfortunes heavier, or transformed what in other hands had proved a blessing by weakness into a cause. Oh, above all, would' I inculcate on people these words :— Make your decision firmly, act promptly, and never look back to regret impossibilities, or waste a life so valuable and precious in re-arranging the past, and in futile reveries over a now impossible condition. Whatever is done, let the tones of the past hold it sacredly sealed. You cannot call it back to the living world ; and it is all labour to galvanise the corpse, hoping to make it reanimate. It is done ; then brave all consequences of the deed and be firm and unshaken. — Boston Evening Gazette.

Hip, Hip, Hurrah !— Originally a war cry, adopted by the stormers of a German town, wherein a great many Jews had taken their refuge. The place being sacked, they were all put to the sword, under the shouts of Rierosolyma estperdita ! From the first letter of those words (H. c. p.) ah exclamation was contrived. We little think, when the red wine sparkles in the cup, and soul-striring toasts are applauded by our " Hip, hip, hurra !'• that we record the fall of Jerusalem, and the cruelty of Christians against the chosen people of God. — Notes and Queries.

The Sense op being Married.— Our old friend, Lord Campbell, says that, in Seotlond, a man can scarcely tell whether he is married or not. How/ different is the case in this happier part of the kingdom ! Here, every moment of a husband's domestic life is a sensible assurance of the fact, that he is blest with a wife. When he comes down in the morning— if he can possibly have forgotten the fact — he finds his newspaper aired for him, his egg and toast ready, his tea made, and his kettle simmering on the fire. All these preparations for his comfort have been made by her. And there she-sirs, ready either to divert him with pleasant observations, or if he is inclined to read, to busy herself with the arrangements of the table, and not only remain silent herself, but also to keep the children, if there should be any, from disturbing him too. Should he have committed a slight imprudence overnight, and have a headache in consequence, she condoles with him, and administers his soda-water. When he rises to go out, his boot-hooks are at hand ; and so are his boots, probably warmed : when he returns, the best dinner the house can afford awaits him. If he expresses a wish, he finds that it has been anticipated ; if he makes a remark, he finds it is assented to. The stocking he puts on has been darned or marked by her : every change of linen reminds him that she sewed on the buttons. Yes ; well does the Englishman know that he is married, by feeling, at every turn, the sweet pressure of the conjugal tie. — Punch.

A Monster Ship. — We learn that Jabez Williams and Son, shipbuilders, of Williamsburg, are to commence next spring a clipper ship for a mercantile house in this city, engaged in the Liverpool trade, of the enormous size of 2,800 tons. Her length will be 238 feet, or seven feet longer than the United States ship of the line Pennsylvania. In this respect, however, her dimensions do not exceed those of the great ship which has just been commenced by William H. Webb, for N. L. and G. Griswold ; but, In consequence of an increasing depth and breadth of beam, she will be some 200 tons larger. No merchant vessel has ever been built at all approaching her in point of magnitude. She is to have three decks, and will be able to carry a vast number of passengers. — New Yorfi Journal of Commerce.

A Conservative View of London in 1851.— A dreadful fire, nearly half the city and a great part of "Westminster destroyed. Bands of foreigners organised for plunder ; devastation in every quarter. With a million and a half of people assembled, the -turmoil and destruction will prove the Exhibition of 1851 to be the greatest in the world's records. England has her deadly enemies, who cannot combat her in war, but who will have an opportunity of inflicting a heavy calamity upon her. Let the ministers of the Crown be prepared ; it is not impossible but that some drea dful conspiracy may now be concooting. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. — • Shropshire^ Conservative \