THE AUCKLAND WEEKLY NEWS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume I, Issue 49, 4 April 1874, Page 6

THE AUCKLAND WEEKLY NEWS.

in its issue of the 21st ultimo, this paper has the following astounding statements :-" The Education question promises to become the field of a bitter battle, and may evoke dimculties of creed which prelates of the Catholic Church should haye the wisdom to fear. Bishop Moran is of the aggressive type ; and although many persons and numerous journals desire to avoid anything like a clerico -political struggle, yet by their injudicious speaking and writing priests of the stamp of Bishop Mobak appear to be forcing on discussion which, if it reach pitting of party against party can, in our opinion, end only in one way." What should the prelates of the Catholic Church have the wisdom to fear? What does the 'Weekly News' mean ? Persecution is it ; or fair -play and even-handed justice ? They ask for the latter, and cannot, therefore, be supposed to fear them. Our contemporary, therefore, evidently thinks persecution not only possible, but probable. So do we, in fact it has already commenced. To compel men to pay school rates in the distribution of which they are not allowed to participate, except at the sacrifice of their religious principles, is to persecute : and this is 7i°i! ie ?e? c ? r v everywhere now. But the prelates of the Church, in the discharge of their duty, ought not to fear persecution, on the contrary, they ought to be prepared tor it and should expect it. The servant is not above ! his Master, and that Master has said, " they have persecutd me, they will persecute you." The " Weekly News' goes ou to say what is most untrue,—" Bishop Moran is of the aggressive type." This prelate is defending the inalienable rights of the Church avid of his co-religionists ; and this is called aggression. Bishop Moran has never assailed, or attempted to assail, the rights of any man or community, and cannot, theretore, be guilty of aggression. But he has strenuously detended tne rights of the Church, of conscience, and of the people whom a truculent and tyrannical majority plunders; and it is very probable thia prelate will continue to do so —notwithstanding the forebodings and insinuated threats of the ' Weekly News/ and the ' Australasian,' whom it appears to quote with great approbation. The ' Weekly News' seems to think that the will of the majority should be the law for Heaven and earth ; that this

will can annul all previous laws, rights, duties ; that every, thing m Heaven and upon earth must be subjected to ft. Tl-iT 1 - i lfc a .PP ears » to be entitled to rob our children of the faith, to impress on their minds immoral principles, to authorise tax-collectors to put their hands in our pockets and take our money that it may be squandered on tancy systems of education, which can only end in the demoralization of the masses. And because Bishop Mobak objects to being robbed, and to the plunder of Catholics he is said to be aggressive ! This word has received a new meaning. In the modern acceptation, to be aggressive means to defend oneself: and in modern Ethics to defend oneself against a lawless majority acting under color of law is a high crime and misdemeanour! This, we suppose is' another specimen of modern progress. ' The ' Lyttleton Times' thinks that no one should object to pay the school-rate, because whether people have chil dren to educate or not, they derive indirect advantage trom the general education of the masses. This species of argument might be maintained were the masses properly educated, but as things are, it is simply begging the question. We say that such education, as it is proposed to give, will do more harm to society than good ; and we maintain our position not only on abstract reasoning but on experience. It is, therefore, absurd and immoral to call on Catholics to pay rates to maintain purely secular schools and consequently to render the establishment of Catholic and Christian Schools either extremely difficult or imtmßsible.

It is on us the aggression is made, on our consciences property and civil rights. And yet the Press, with truly wolfish instinct, turns round upon us and says, as in r « ference to Bishop Moban, that Catholics, who are only defending themselves, are aggressive. *