DIOCESE OF AUCKLAND

New Zealand Tablet, 14 March 1912, Page 23

DIOCESE OF AUCKLAND

CATHOLIC MARRIAGE LAWS A PASTORAL INSTRUCTION IN THREE PARTS (Continued from last week.) PART I.—Things more or less Fundamental. I. The Family in Relation to Society. 11. The Family; Duty in the Home. Grounds of such Duty—(l) As furnished by pagan Greece and Rome; (2) as furnished by modern Philosophies; (3) ‘parasitic’ Morality (4) grounds of Duty in the Home, as furnished by Religion. 111. Religion and the Family—(l) The Church; her Mission and Authority in regard to the Family and Society. (A) Why the Church was founded. (B) The Church’s Teaching Authority: (C) _ The Church’s Authority: Legislative, Judicial, Executive. (D) The { Church’s Independence in the Exercise of her Authority. (E) The Church’s Continuity. (F) Summary of Part I.

HENRY WILLIAM, by the Grace of God and the favor of the Holy Apostolic See, Bishop of Auckland: To the. Clergy, Secular and Regular, and to the Laity, of the said Diocese, Health and Blessing in the Lord.

111. RELIGION AND THE FAMILY. 1. The Church: Her Mission and Authority in Regard to the Family and Society. (A) Why the Church was Founded. Christ’s mission in regard to the moral law (human duty) is continued in the Church or organised society which He founded for that express purpose—namely, to carry on His work of sanctification (and, through it] of salvation) until the end of time. In the fourth chapter of his letter to the Ephesians (verses 12-15) St. Paul sets forth in fuller detail the nature of this work of sanctification for which the Church of Christ, with its central teaching and ruling authority, was founded. It may be summarised as follows: (a) True faith The true faith of Christ to be spread everywhere. (b) Unity in faith and spiritual rule: AH’ Christians to ‘ meet in the unity of faith ;’ and not to be ‘ tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine.’ ' (c) Faith working in daily human life- moving the Master’s followers to perform ‘ the truth in charity .’ so that ' we may in all things grow up in Him Who is the Head, Christ ’; and all for ‘ the perfection of the saints,’ for the lifting. up of each believer ‘unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the age of the fulness of Christ.’ In other words: The Church’s doctrine is not a mere teaching, not simply a speculative philosophy, but 5 a law, a discipline, a powerto raise up to the fulness of life true and perfect men and women, JJ we need them, to the image of Him who was Perfect Man as well as True God. The Church’s domain is, then, the domain of things spiritual, of faith and morals. Such is the object of the Church of God. He, the Eternal Wisdom, adapts His means to the ends He has in view. Every creature—down to the minutest microbe, to the least developed polyp in the ooze of the sea—mas its- place in the ordered plan of creation ; it is furnished with an organisation fitted for the work which it is destined to accomplish. The Church, in like manner, is fitted for the functions which, in the decrees of Providence, it is to perform. L: These functions require authority in faith and morals; —; ■ ■ >; " 1. Authority to teach in things spiritual. , . , 2- .Authority to rule in things spiritual (that is, ' legislative and judicial and executive power). - ’

3. Independence as to the proper affairs of its own spiritual order. (B) The Church’s Teaching Authority. 1. Christ came teaching * as one having power, and not as the Scribes.” l The nucleus of His teaching body was formed when, after a night of prayer, He selected His Apostles 2 -—of whom St. Peter was chosen to be ‘ the first,’ the key-bearer of the kingdom of Heaven, . the binder and looser in a special way, the one whos’e faith should not fail and whose duty it, would be to strengthen the faith of his brethren, 3 the feeder of the whole flock (lambs and sheep) of Christ, the firm rock 4 on which the Church was. built, and against which the gates of hell should never prevail. His teaching power He passed on to His Apostles. ‘All power is given to me in Heaven and on Earth ;’ and ‘as the Father hath sent me, I also send you ’ (John xx., 21). They were commissioned to'teach / all things whatsoever ’ Christ commanded. 5 He— ‘ the way, the truth, and the life ’ —promised to be with —not idly, but ‘ working withal and confirming the word ’ 6 — ‘ all days, even unto the consummation of the world ’ until death is ‘ swallowed up in victory’ 7 ; the Paraclete, ‘the Spirit of Truth ’ was to ‘ abide with (them) for ever,’ to ‘ teach (them) all truth 5 ; the gates of hell ’ (that is, of evil and error) should never ‘ prevail against her ’ (the Church) ; 9 she was ever to be ‘ the house of God, which is the Church of Christ, the pillar and the ground of truth’ lo ; all were commanded to hear her ll ; and even if ‘ an angel from heaven ’-were to preach a gospel different from hers, he was to be held ‘accursed.’ l2 In the ever-abiding Christ, the Church lives and moves and acts. On her divine side, the Church lives in Him; she has her light and life in His light and life. ‘Because,’ said He, ‘I live, ye shall live also.’ 13 And, in the order of grace, the faithful, as individuals, are united ,to Christ as members of the living body to their living head, as the living branches to the living parent stem of the fruit-bearing, vine; and as all the

1. Mark, i., 22. 2. Luke, vi., 12-16; 3. Luke, xxii., 31-2. V 4. In changing the Apostle Simon’s name to Peter (which means Rock), the Redeemer said : ‘ And I say to thee : That thou art Peter [Rock], and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven’ (Matthew, xvi., 1819). Old-fashioned members of Reformed faiths see in these texts only a reference to Christ, or praise of St. Peter’s faith, or a distinction (now ■, abandoned by the critics) between ‘Petros’ and * Petra.’ One of the most curious phases of the textual criticism of our time is the manner in which Protestant scholarship has been coming around to the Catholic interpretation of this text, as it has come down to us through the ages. Thus, Otto Pfleiderer says : ‘ln spite of all Protestant attempts at weakening it, it cannot be disputed that this text contains the solemn proclamation of the primacy of Peter’ (‘Das Urchristentum, seine Scriften u. Lehren,’ Berlin, 1902, i., p. 582, quoted in London ‘ Tablet,’ September 23, 1911, p! 483). Such noted Protestant critics as Boltzmann, Adolf Hausrath, Paul Wernle, Julicher, Schmiedel, Wellhausen, and Guignebert, are cited (pp. 483-4) in a like sense. In the following issue - of’ the ‘Tablet’ (September 30, 1911, p. 536), Dr. George Barker Stephens (Professor of Theology at Yale University) is quoted as follows: ‘ It is quite certain, and is now generally admitted, that the words ‘this rock” refer not to Christ, nor to Peter’s confession of faith but to Peter himself’ Theology of the New Testament,! p. 137)! Dr. Willibald Beyschlag (Professor of Theology at the University of Halle) is also quoted thus : ‘ Undoubtedly the exposition of Protestants of this text has not been happy. There can be no controversy amongst reasonable men in view of the words, “Thou art Peter and on this rock I will build ray Church,” that Jesus, by the rock on which He will build His Church, did not mean Himself, nor the confession of Peter, nor even the faith which Peter has just confessed, but the man himself to whom He has given the name : of rock, and to whom He now ' confirms it as deserved .(‘New Testament Theology,’ * vol. i., p. 173). When . the old adherent of a Reformed creed, who revered the whole- Bible as the Word of God— a text which apparently made for ‘ Roman ideas,’ he cast about for some explanation to break its force or twist it to a different meaning. Nowadays the * higher ’ Reformed critics have thrown the Bible into the melting-pot. . They no longer try to’force strained and 1 impossible Protestant interpretations upon ‘ Romanising ’ texts. They adopt a shorter and simpler course. Such texts make for ‘ Roman ideas ’; they are. therefore, to be treated as suspect or interpolated. Such methods leave the Bible a mass of tattered and doubtful fragments; they also leave the religion of , r ‘the Bible and. the Bible only ’ in a very bad way. 5. John, xvi., 6; Matthew, xxviii., 18-20. 6. Mark, xvi., 20. 7. Matthew, xxviii., 20; I. Cor., xv., 54. 8. John, xiv., 16-17, 26; xvi., 13-14. 9. Matthew, xvi, 18. 10. I. Tim., iii., 15. 11. Matthew, xviii., 17-18; 11. Peter, ii„ 7; 11. John 10 - , 12. Gal., i., 8. ’ ’ iU ’ : 13. John, xiv., 19.

members of the body, whereas they are many, yet are one body, so also is Christ ’; indeed, so intimate is the union, between Christ and His members, that the Church is called by the Apostle the ‘ pleroma ’ or ‘ fulness ’. of Christas if, apart from His members, something were lacking to the Head, which is Christ. l4 When Christ gave to His Church the intrinsic commission to teach, tiiat commission was warrant, that He had fitted her for the work of teachingthat He would provide that she would declare truly the word of God. In giving the command to teach, and promising His abiding presence and the guidance of the Spirit of Truth, He still further made Himself voucher for the truth of her teaching. And, as there is no authority on the one side without the duty of obedience on the other, so, when Christ commanded the Apostles to teach all nations ’ and all individuals (‘every creature ’), 15 He thereby imposed upon all nations and upon all individuals the duty of hearing, believing, and obeying, Indeed, St. Paul definitely asserts that the Apostolic office carries with it a teaching authority which all are bound to recognise. God (says he) sent the Apostles to claim ‘the obedience of faith’ (Rom. i., 5; xv., 18). We have, moreover, the Redeemer’s specific command to ‘hear the Church,’ tinder penalty of being treated ‘as the heathen and the publican’ ; we have, likewise, the solemn warning of St. Paul, that even if an angel from heaven were to preach a different doctrine, he should be anathema. l6 These words of St. Paul (as well' as other Scripture texts already quoted) involve a claim to inerrancy or infallibility in the teaching of the revealed doctrines of Christian faith. For it would be revolting to our idea of the truth and justice and holiof God to say that He imposes upon all nations and individuals the duty of hearing, believing, and obeying a teacher that may deceive or be deceived. This would be making the God of truth and holiness not only the accomplice, but the instigator, in the teaching of falsehood in doctrine and the propagation of iniquity in practice. The freedom of the Church from error in faith and morals (in other words, her infallibility or inerrancy in these matters) arises not alone out of Christ’s promise and His commission to the Apostles; it is also founded upon her interior constitution and life. ‘ She is infallible, because He Whose life she lives, in Whom she abides, and Who abides in her, is infallible. As He cannot err, she cannot err.’ Her infallibility is, of course, restricted by the terms of her commissionwhich (as set forth above) is limited ’to the domain of faith and morals. Its wide scope, within these limits, is sufficiently indicated by the texts already quoted above. (C) The Church’s Authority : Legislative, Judicial, 1 Executive. 2. The Church’s right of teaching or manifesting revealed doctrine is a means to an end. That end is the sanctification and salvation of souls. She is thus a discipline, a force, a moral power. As a supernatural society, for a supernatural purpose, she has (like other societies) . k her laws, her rules, her executive officers." Holding ‘ the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven,” she possesses all the authority necessary to carry out her divine commission authority to press her teachings and such laws and regulations as are required for holy living and holy dyingupon the consciences and lives of her children. Thus, the Apostle St. -Paul did not merely teach, advise,* exhort ; he directed ; he pronounced judicial sentencehe* even inflicted the penalty of excommunication his sentences (like those of other Apostles) were at times confirmed by miraculous punishment ; and he wrote to his delegate Timothy : ‘Be instant in season, out of season; reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine.’ 17 * Wherefore,’ said the same Apostle to another ruler of the Church, ‘rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.’ lß

14. I. Cor.. vi., 15; xi., 3; xii., 12, 20, 26, 27; xxii., 27; Epb., i.. 23; iv., 13, 16; John, xv., 5. We . are * affiliated ■to Him as to the Father" of reborn or regenerated humanity. - We have this new birth or regeneration through Christ," in His sacred humanity. And the medium of that new . birth is 'divine grace. 15. Matthew, , xxviii,, 18-20; Mark, xvi., 15. ' 16. Matthew, xviii., 17; Galatians, i.,’ 8. ’ / 17. I. Cor.,. v., 5; 11. Cor., ii., 10; I. Tim. i., 20; Acts. v.. RIOI. Tim., v., 19 sq; 11. Tim., iv., 2. ’ 18. Titus, i., 13. , t '

‘This/ remarks Dr. Bagshawe, ‘is not mere teaching; it is ruling, enforcing, commanding. It is plain, therefore, that the office for which the Church was appointed was threefold. ’ - It was to be a witness to the world, a teacher to Christians, and not only a teacher .but a ruler, having authority to'enforce teaching and carry out. discipline.’ The extent and cogency of this authority are strongly indicated in the following words of our Saviour: ‘He that heareth you heareth Me; and he. that despiseth you despiseth Me ; and he that despiseth Me despiseth Him that sent Me.’ 19 And again : ‘ If he refuse to hear the Church, let him be to thee as the heathen and the publican. Amen I say to you, whatsoever you shall bind upon earth shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed also in heaven.’ l2o Yet again; ‘ Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.’ 21 (D) The Church’s Independence in the Exercise op Her Authority. 3. In these words—as well as by the very nature of heii divine mission and commission—the Church is endowed with a great and comprehensive power for her office of teaching and ruling the flock of Christ. That power is not a grant from the State or civil Goverment. It came from God Himself: it was bestowed by Him Whose ‘ kingdom is not of this world.’ 22 —by Him who appointed His kingdom to the rulers of His Church as the Father had appointed it to Him. 23 The object of the State is the temporal wellbeing of the community ; that of the Church, the spiritual welfare and eternal happiness. The Church is, by her commission, a kingdom in the spiritual order—a sphere of independent action and control within her proper domain of faith and morals, of sanctification and salvation of souls. The' Church, as the whole society of believers, is what theologians and jurists call a * perfect community ’ —that is a moral or ‘ corporate body sufficient for itself in its own order, and not a mere part of some other body, nor dependent on any other.’ In the spiritual order the Church is thus complete and independent. ‘lt is not a mere part of any larger body in the spiritual order it is not, as such, a part of any State or number of States in the temporal order; it is not, at to the proper affairs of its own spiritual order, dependent on any temporal’State or number of States. It is a vast, independent kingdom or empire’ 24—comprising within it various subordinate communities (such as parishes, dioceses, ecclesiastical provinces, patriarchates, etc.), each approaching more or less to the condition of a ‘ perfect community,’ but none of them attaining to it. ‘The Church’s jurisdiction arises partly from Divine right, and is partly determined by ecclesiastical law. Like, the jurisdiction of any independent State, comprises legislative and judicial executive powers. The Church not only administers the divine law, but makes laws herself. Some of these are in great measure identified with her administration of divine law. She imposes on her subjects the obligation of receiving her declarations on faith and morals, under ecclesiastical penalties. 25 But, besides doing this, she imposes other obligations in connection with faith and morals. She commands and forbids acts that are not already respectively commanded or forbidden by God. All this she does for the better attainment of her own end, which is the salvation of souls. These laws of the Church are human laws, enacted by virtue of authority: received from God, but still human laws, liable to abrogation, mortification, and dispensation, where circumstances may so require, or render expedient.’ 26

(To be concluded.)

10. Luke, x., 16. 20. Matthew, xviii., 17-18. • i 21. John, xx., 23. 22. John, xviii., 36. Religion and its duties came before the organised State and the civil power. 23. Luke, xxii., 29. - --- . ' 24. O’Reilly, * The Relations of the Church to Society ’ (London, 1892, p. 154). , , ' ; . ... ‘ %r ' ■ 25. So Christ commanded His followers to ‘ hear the Church,’ under penalty of being treated as were the heathen and the publican (or oppressive tax-gatherer) of the day. * 26. O’Reilly, op,, cit., p. 54.