"Tuda succeeded to this See; he had been educated among the Southern Scottish Clergy, and by them ordained Bishop."

"Upon the death of Tuda, according to some authors, Eata was appointed to the government of this See, united with that of Hexham; he had been Abbot of Mailros."

"

'St. Cuthbert was appointed to this See, in the year 685. He was originally," it is said, "a shepherd, near Melros, where he had a vision, and beheld the Spirit of Aidan ascending to heaven; which made such an impression on him, that he determined to lead a religious life, and immediately applied to the Abbey of Mailros, where in 651, he gained admittance and initiation under Eata, who, upon his own removal hither, persuaded Cuthbert to accompany him, and made him prior."

From these historical records, let us now proceed to grapple with certain statements, which are passing current at the present moment. We have referred to the conversation of the Italian diplomatist at the Court of St. James', which was held with the Commissioner of the American press. Let us, then, approach the subject with the greatest calmness, and examine it in its various bearings. We do not contemplate, indeed, to write a dissertation upon the question involved, but simply to state the case candidly, and then to face the objections. Let us, therefore, head the following chapter with the furnished startling title, which, if it does not invite consideration, must at least, of necessity, arrest singular curiosity, from its monstrously daring character.

THE "IMPIOUS DOGMA" OF PAPAL

INFALLIBILITY!

This, no doubt, is very bold, and, in Catholic estimation, very blasphemous language. Yet, it is the language of the day, the language of the Press, the language of the clubs, the language which obtains in the most fashionable circles. Yet, it is language which is hollow and deceptive, which is "the sounding brass and the tinkling cymbal," which is "vox et præterea nihil," which is "light as chaff which flits before the wind." What is its meaning, what its drift? The question at issue does not turn upon science nor art, upon politics nor diplomacy, nor upon those complicated subjects which, during the present session, are to be canvassed in either House of Parliament. The question is not of the natural order, and, consequently, does not touch upon the air we breathe, the bread we eat, the water we drink, or the clothes we put on. The question does not interfere with the post-office, which, to the horror of some old ladies, is in Catholic hands; nor with our police establishments, which are in non-Catholic hands. The question has no relation with insurance companies, steam engines, railway conveyances, electro wires, balloons, nor even with geology, astronomy, mathematics, metaphysics. The question does not affect our astute lawyers, nor even the sagacious medical faculty.

The one may issue as many prescriptions as Esculapius himself, and the others, without let or hindrance, may reedit as numerous editions of Blackstone and Erskine as may satisfy the most voracious legal appetite! What, then, can be the meaning of all this noise with which our ears

are dinned by the press, and which our Dailies, Weeklies, Monthlies, and Quarterlies are industriously keeping up, and thus making "confusion worse confounded." What is it, in reality? Why, it is simply a rebellion of the natural man against the supernatural-it is bringing the human order into antagonism with the divine order; it is, therefore, a trial of strength between Earth and Heaven-if we may be allowed the expression, it is a regular pitched battle between the creature and the Creator!

Heaven declares that the Creator speaks to his creatures in his own divinely-constituted way, and that that way is infallible! The Earth replies that there exists no divinely-constituted, unerring way, and that all infallibility here below is moonshine. The children of the earth, the men and women of fashion, the revolutionists and antiCatholics of the day, indorse the declaration that all infallibility-regal, imperial, and, above all, Papal-is absolutely preposterous. They proclaim aloud, in the language lately uttered in the Italian Senate by the Deputy Crispi, and which we transcribe from the unconquerable organ of Catholic opinion, the L'Unita Cattolica of the 25th February, 1871, who indulged in preposterous twaddle.

day.

"Catholicity, like every human institution, has had its Catholicity must come to an end, and then Christianity, which false ministers debase, purged of the vices of the Roman Curia, shall re-assume its ancient prestige, and shall easily become the religion of humanity. But as long as the Pope and the Cardinals remain in Rome, so long as in Rome the Pope and the Cardinals have political power, this reform is utterly impossible!"

Hence it follows that for the construction and consolidation of this chimera-the religion of humanity-it is necessary that the Pope and Cardinals should be driven from Rome, and that Catholicity, as an institution, should be utterly abolished !

Now, we listen with the most imperturbable composure to all this contemptible jargon, and we laugh it to scorn! It is mere idle frothy declamation; it is beating the air;

it is dashing itself against the rock of the Church in empty foam !

At present we enter not upon the question of the Pope's temporal power, which in the order of things is so necessary for the perfect discharge of the spiritual power, but we simply wish to inquire if Heaven can speak to the Earth-if the Creator can speak to the creature—if God can speak to man in an infallible way? If he has done so, it is a Fact, and against a fact there is no reasoning. Now, it is a Fact that God has thus spoken, and all Christians are obliged to believe it if they believe the Scriptures at all!

Yes, let it be proclaimed aloud, that God has ever spoken to man in the most infallible way. The great Creator has always addressed His creatures, in the manner in which they could not possibly be deceived. He spoke of old through Moses and the Prophets, and His Prophets were therefore infallible in their inspired utterances. Daniel and Osee-Isaias and Jeremias, were infallibly guided in announcing their divine predictions. The Prophet Balaam, it is true, was to all appearance willing to prophesy falsely, but was supernaturally protected from so great a calamity. In the work of prophecy he was, despite of himself, rendered personally infallible.

When the wicked King Achab attempted to force the Prophet Micheas to prophesy otherwise than what God had made known to him, he cried-" As the Lord liveth, whatever the Lord shall say to me, that will I speak.” (3 Kings xxii.) Thus were the Prophets infallible in their prophecies, because they were simply the mouthpiece of the Lord God himself.

Moreover, the priests of the old law were likewise infallible in their utterances, and the people were commanded to learn wisdom from their lips, which mandate could not have been given if their lips had been tainted with error.

Add to this, that the Synagogue of the Jews was infallible in its teaching, till the very coming of the Redeemer. Our blessed Lord told the people to observe the doctrines of

those who sat in the chair of Moses, but not to follow after their iniquitous example. The Synagogue having fulfilled its mission, went down into the grave at the advent of the Messiah, and then by the hand of the same Master Builder was upraised the glorious structure of the Christian Church. The Christian Church was the perfect realization of all the types of the old law. If the types were glorious, how much more glorious was that which was typified. If then infallibility attached to the predictions of the Prophets— to the teachings of the Jewish Priesthood, and to the announcements of the Synagogue-how much more should it attach to the teaching of the Christian Ministry, since the new law surpasses the old, and the Christian covenant eclipses all the glory of the Mosaic dispensation!

It would be idle to say that our blessed Lord was infallible, and we need not say that He constituted His Apostles personally infallible in their teaching. He declared His Church to be unerring, and that the Spirit of Truth was to teach His Church all truth, and to abide with His Church all days to the consummation of the world. The Apostles were therefore privileged to be personally infallible, and their successors are now collectively infallible, but their head and chief-the Pope himself-by nature of his primacy and supremacy-despite all clamour and opposition-is infallible in his public and official capacity.

If, then, infallible teaching was the rule in the old law, by a stronger reason should it be the rule under the new law, for the children of the Christian covenant are the objects of Heaven's choicest predilections, and this infallible teaching is here manifestly unfolded in the most palpable way. As no human power could have gathered together the assembled Fathers at the Vatican Council, to deliberate on the most important religious questions, so the very fact of their assembly must be attributable to a power which is divine-a fact which proclaims the intervention of a supernatural agency, and forces us to exclaim-" Digitus Dei est hic "the finger of God is here. For this fact is verily a living, palpable argument in favour of the supernatural order.