A Roman Catholic's Notion Of Freemasonry.

itan kingdom . In reference to these document .- ' , and the legislative enactments contained in them , the following questions may be raised .- — " 2 . First . —What are the secret societies condemned in tlie aforesaid constitution ? Answer . 1 ° . —The Freemasons are condemned by name in the constitutions of Clement and Benedict ; the Freemasons and Carbonari 3

in thc constitution of Pius . 2 . Leo , besides reneAving the constitutions of his predecessors , establishes certain specific marks , aud condemn all secret societies whatsoever , bearing those marks . See below , n , 5 , 3 ° , and n . 7 . " 3 . Secondly . —Has the Holy See designated any features in the constitution , end , or other adjuncts of these secret societies , as the grounds of condemnation ;

and , if so , ivhafc are they ? Answer . —Sevei * al grounds a . re given , from which I select the following : 1 ° The union of men of every or any sect or religious persuasion , and of men indifferent to all religion—heretics , deists , atheists , etc . ( Mark , there is question throughout , not of public or otherwise open assemblies , as at our fairs , elections , etc ., but of secret associations . ) It is manifest , as the constitution of Benedict affirms , that such associations are highly dangerous to the purity of Catholic faith and moral ' s . 2 ° . The dark , impenetrable veil of

secresy ivhich , by the constitution ' of these societies , is thrown over all that passes at their private meetings . 3 ° . The oath by which the bond of secresy among the members is scaled . The authorities both in church and state have a right , Avhich no oath of this kind can bar , to inquire and ascertain whether the proceedings of such secret associations are injurious to the welfare of the

state or of religion . 4 ° . These societies bear an ill repute ivith Avise and upright men , ivho look on those that join them as thereby tainted in character— -tainted , of course , in Catholic eyes , and from a catholic point of view . 5 ° . The oath taken by members of the higher orders in the societies , nofc to divulge their own secret transactions to members of the loAver and less initiated grades .

4 . As time rolled on , the true anti-christian and antisocial tendency of the secret society system developed and displayed itself more unmistakeably and more fully . Hence , among the grounds of condemnation in the constitutions of 1821 and 18 * 25 , Ave have , 6 ° , their furious and Satanic hatred of the Vicar of Christ ; 7 ° , their league of secret murder ; 8 ° , their avoived atheism ; 9 ° ,

their conspiracy against all legitimate authority , in the state as Avell as in the church ; etc . etc . These hideous and hellish developements the Sovereign Pontiff affirms were made known to him from the most authentic sources

of information . 5 . Thirdly . —What are the ecclesiastical censures incurred by the aforesaid constitutions ; and by Avhom are they incurred ? Ansiver . —The greater excommunication is ipso facto incurred ; 1 ° by Freemasons : 2 ° , by Carbonari ; 3 ° , by the members of any secret society , under Avhatsoei-er name it may exist , wheresoever or whensoever

it may exist , Avhich is , like that of the Carbonari , leagued against tlie Church and the supreme temporal authority ; 4 ° , by all Avho , under any pretext or excuse whatsoever , enrol themselves in such societies , or propagate or promote theni , or are present at any of their meetings , or give them any help or favour , Avhether openly or secretly , directly or indirectly , etc ., etc .

' •6 . Fourthly . —From what has just been said , it is evident that many forms of secret societies may exist , Avhoso members do not incur the above excommunication . In lacfc this censure is only incurred by Freemasons , Carbonari , members of secret societies organised against both the State and the Church , and the abettors , etc ., of the ' same . Hence a question arisesare other secret

, societies , not coming under any of these denominations , though nofc excommunicated in their members , neA ^ ertheloss condemned by the aforesaid Papal constitutions P Answer . —1 ° . Ifc is plain that any secret society , in which any one of the marks enumerated above , n . 3 , 4 , is found , comes , at least by implication and virtually , under tho

ban of the Papal condemnation . For it is manifest that these marks are not evil because reprobated , but reprobated because ei-il—evil , as being in themselves and intrinsically immoral ; or evil , as being in themselves or in the circumstances fraught with imminent danger to faith or morals , or both . Hence all secret societies , the members of AA'hich are pledged by oath , as above , n . 4 ,

are evil , on account of the danger ( supposing no other evil element ) of unsound doctrine or immoral principles creeping in and extending—the laAvful authority , whether civil or ecclesiastical , being all the while kept in utter ignorance of the growing disorder , and therefore unable to apply efficient remedies to check and distinguish it . Hence , also , all secret societies combined against the

legitimate sirpreme civil authority are evil , because this object is nofc merely in itself dangerous bufc sinful . 2 ° , It is equally plain that any secret society , whose end , means etc ., are in opposition to any laiv of God or of the Church , Avhether coming under the description of the secret societies condemned by the Popes or not , is , by the very fact , under the ban of the Church . " 7 . I subjoin a feAv sentences from the Papal Constitutions : —

" Inter gravissimas prasfafca ? prohibiiioms et damnationis causas . . . una est , quod iu hujusmodi sooietatibus et couventiculis cujuscunque religionis ac secta ? homines invicem consocianfcur . . . Alteram est arefcum et impervium secret ! foedus , quo occultantur ea qua ? in hujusmodi couventiculis fiunfc .... Tertia est jusjarandum quo se hujusmodi secreto inviolabiliter servando

adstringunfc : quasi liceat alicui cujuslibefc promissionis aut juramenti obtentu se tueri , quominus a legitima potestate interrogatus omnia fateriteneatur qua ? cumqua ? exquiruntur ad dignoscendum an aliquid hi hujusmodi conveutibus fiat , quod sit contra religionis aut reipublica ? statum et leges Ultima demun , quod apud prudentes et probos viros ea ? dem societates et

aggregationes ^ male audirent , eorumque judicio quicumque eisdem nomina darent , pravifcatis et perversionis notam incurrerent . "—BEXEDICT XIV . " Societates occultas omnes , tarn qua ? nunc sunt , quam

qua ? fortasse deinceps erumpent , et qua ? ea sibi adversus ecclesiam et supremas civiles pofcestates propouunt qute superius commemoravimus , quocumque tandem nomine appellentur , nos perpetuo prohibemus sub eisdem poenis , qua ? continentur prasdecessorum nostrorum litteris in hac nostra consfcitutione jam allatis , quas expresse confirmamus . " —LEO XII .

" PATKICK MXJRKAY , Piior . THEOLOGY . Coll . Maynooth , June 16 , 1862 . The first point which strikes us on perusing Dr . Murray ' s Appendix is the modern period at Avhich Preemasonry has been condemned b y the Papal authority . The earliest elate g iven is 1738 ,

and it is a remarkable fact that from A . D . 78 , the era of Anacletus , the first Pope , until 1738 , a period of no less than sixteen hundred and sixty years , no Avorcl of condemnation had escaped the A arious bishops , sitting in St . Peter ' s chair , until Clement XII ., in the decline of the Papacy , originated it .

For 1660 years , then , the Bishops of Rome had seen nothing to condemn in Ereemasonry , and it Avas not nntil long after the Pope had become to be regarded as a cypher in European politics that he , finding * himself shut out from ruling emp ires and kingdomscommenced warupon a small

, , scale , against the Preemasons , as Ave suppose , for the sake of keeping his hand in , AA ell laioAving that since the Council of Constantinople , . D . 869 , no general Council has been held ; and the Bulls