The Future of the Catholic Church.

Evening Star, Issue 8717, 8 January 1892, Page 3

The Future of the Catholic Church.

In the course of a recent Interview with Cardinal Manning the interviewer asked His Eminence his opinion concerning tue future of the Roman Catholic Church in England, to which this reply was given: “ In the last forty years since the restoration of the perfect organisation of the Catholic Church in England, the progress has been singularly great; but it w . a mistake to test it only by the number gathered into it, for though maDy.whataro they on the millions of this country? The true progress of the church m England is to be measured first by its immense material development in churches, clergy, colleges, convents, and schools. Everything is doubled, or trebled, and in some oases increased six or even tenfold. Next, its relation to public opinion and the feeling of the country is so absolutely changed that I leave it rather to you to estimate than express it myself. Thirdly, the immense increase of spiritual action of tho church upon its own people, and by its public acts of worship, by preaching and by administration of the holy sacraments, warrants my saying that I do not believe that even at the time of the Reformation—no called —there were ever so many receiving the holy sacraments of the church as at this moment, Tho whole population of England in Elizabeth’s reign may have been between three and four millions, tho number of Catholics now in England is over a million and a-half, and of those a very large proportion are in faithful practice of their religion; and if I add hundreds and thousands of children in our schools I believe I have understated truth. I believe I may say that the English have ceased to fear or to suspect the Catholic Church as a Papal aggression or a foreign religion. . . . Only very recently the Pope and three archbishops—those of Baltimore and Dublin and Westminster have shared in the labor question. The Catholic Church is profoundly with the millions of the people. Look at Ireland, look at America, and I hope I may add England and tho colonies.” “ Yes, your Eminence ; but how far does she concern herself with the absolute temporal welfare and condition of the poop*® ■ —" She is true to the example of her Divine Master, and lives among the people. And though,” added the Cardinal with a bright and humorous smile lighting np his ascetic features, “though I am not the church, yet i represent her here in England, and I believe her mind on the great labor subject to be simply this: the entire system is founded upon the principle of what is called profit-sharing, or what I would express as a definite and known proportion between profits and wages. This is too large a subject to be treated in detail now.butlmay say that I look upon capital (as it is called) and labor as equally essential to production, although labor can produce with & minimum capital, and the maximum of capital could not produce without labor. Labor in capital iu the highest and most vital sense of the word, and their co-operation ought to be upon just and known proportions. This I believe to be tho spirit and judgment of the church everywhere." “ And now, your Eminence, what is your opinion concerning the religious future of England? Is she drifting into Atheism, as some hold, or will she be tho future seat of Christendom ? In a word, has faith increased or decreased since you first took note of these matters ? " I have had a long experience of neatly sixty active years of religious life, I believe that faith and religion have eqormously risen and expanded in England, dating from tho time of John Wesley in the last century, which was the lowest and fewest religious condition of England. Religion had steadily declined _eiuce the time of Ei-’/ibeth until about 17C0. The reaction of Wesley and those following him both within and without the Established Church has restored _ tho fragmentary Christianity which remained. There is a certain development of Ralionaljsip among a small number of educated, and,” he very smilingly added, “for the most part idle people. There is also much freethought, which appears to me to be irrational Rationalism, or,” and here His Eminence fairly laughed, “or reason run to seed. There is also an immense amount of apathetic non-belief in the material mind of the middle claates, a good deal of acute scepticism among the educated artisans, and a sad amount of spiritual ignorance in the mass of the overworked population. But I d<> not account this to ba unbelief. When the truth is put befoie them they receive it with joy. I have faithful aud fervent believers among my working men.” And then the Cardinal gave me an interesting proof of this, which it is unnecessary to His Eminence in the face, I said with some hesitation; “ And about the Church of England—what do you say, and witji reference to ‘ Lux Mundi ? Fi Ob,” replied the Cardinal, with a smile, “you want my opinion on Anglicanism. But lam too old to throw atones now. I must not be a judge of those who are without. And, again, you do not specify which of tho many kinds of Anglicanism you mean, he humorously went on. “ And, again, we Catholics are disciples of a Divine teacher, whilst the Anglican Church disclaims infallibility—that is, a corporate Divine guidance. As to the book of which you speak— ‘ Lux Mundi ’—l will not criticise it, but I think jt is a counterpart of ‘ Essays and Reviews —that is, every school in the Church of England, and they are many, brings forth its own fruit. As I repeat, I cannot judge it; but it baa fallen away." “ Do you expect England will ever again be Catholic, your Eminence ? “ I know no example in Christian history in which a whole people having once been robbed of faith have ever returned to it as a whole. The return of Arian nations, as Lombardy and Spain, to Catholic unity is no e* am P le - But I have an unchangeable hope that both Christianity and the Catholic faith, which is its perfection, will continue to spread indefinitely among the English ; because they never rejected the faith, but were robbed of it, and have been born innocently into a state of privation.”