LOOK AT THIS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume III, Issue 127, 8 October 1875, Page 11

LOOK AT THIS.

*-} A day or two ago a friend placed in our hands a copy of the <New Zealand Christian Record' of last Saturday, and called our attention to page 11, and especially to the following passage : — 6

A Mons.gnor Zsivkovics, who was last year appointed Bishop of Cailstadt, in Austrian Croatia, has just completed a visitation of his diocese, and has published a pastoral which discloses a condition of the parish clergy almost impossible to conceive. The Bishop writes that he has come across many virtuous priests during his visitation,, but that the general state of the diocese was most deplorable. 'There were clergy who, under the mask of humility and patriotism, employed tLe most unworthy means and ways to destroy all flioral principles, and to ruin public authority, and peace and concord m the family and in the congregations These priests were a disgrace to themselves and their order by their lmniora and licentious lives; they openly mocked their spiritual cl-aracter and ecclesiastical institutions: clerical covetousness was draining the resources of the nor - they sold the most sacred office, administering the sacraments only for money, m order to indulge the better their scandalous drunkenness.' They neglected their clerical office, and education was utterly put an end to; they paid, no attention to the order or advice of the bishop; they sold dispensations which were even out of the power of the bishop to grant • they maae their own lists of surplice fees, and were the

causes of public scandal between clergy and people. It was no uncommon practice to marry, in the dead of night, a drunken bride to a drunken husband before drunken witnesses. The priests used their official position for purposes of private revenge, and excluded their personal enemies from the sacraments. Nor is this demoralisation ouly evident among the lower clergy, for as the bishop writes, • the licentious blaspheming clergy, lost to all sense of duty,' are certificated by their superiors as ' orderly, zealous, and peaceable priests.' One consequence of all this is that there are no fit candidates for the clerical office out of such a herd. The bishop turns up these sores to the light of day, and asserts his intention to purify by every means in his power the maß3 of corruption."

Now, wiiat is the impression produced by the reading of the above extract 1 Croatia belongs to the Austrian Empire, which every one knows to be Catholic. Is it not likely, therefore, that the readers of the ' New Zealand ChristianRecord ' have arrived at the conclusion that Catholicity is in a bad state, at least in Croatia? The writer of this extract has disingenuously kept back the fact that there is no Catholic Bishop of, or in Carlstadt. Why not tell the whole truth, if indeed the statements here made are true ? The Bishop of Uarlstadt is a Greek Schismatical Bishop, and not a Catholic. But we ask, could any one have arrive") at this knowledge from the disingenuous statements of the ' Record?' We are not in a position to say whether these statements are true or false, but us those who are disobedient and rebellious towards the Holy See very frequently fall into religious demoralization, we should hot be at all surprised if they were true. There is no excuse, however, for the suppression of truth and suggestion of falsehood contained in this 11th page of our contemporary last week.

Here is another elegant extract from this same 11th page of the ' Record.' It is in reference to Rome. — " The churches are open every day, from morning until noon, bat oh, how cold and solitary ! Af c w priests reading prayers, a dozen people kneeling here, there, and almost as many lazy beggars at the door, a monk or two with cowl and beads — what were these great ignorant fellows made for?— one or two ladies at the confessional, and a dozen tourists with their guide-books : This is the unvaried scene, the summary for Sunday and the re3t of the week. There are, in general, no seats ; there is but little sermonising."

Well, at all events, the Roman Churches, even on the showing of the writer of the above, possess some advantage over the churches patronised by the * Christian Record.' The former are open every day '• from morning till -noon," and some priests and people in them praying. These churches used to be open all day long, and we fancy such is the case" still, the authority of the ' Record' to the contrary notwithstanding But how is it in reference to Protestant churches 1 These are clused every day from morning till noon, and with tke exception of one day in the week, not counting Sunday, from morning till night — from Sunday till Sunday; and there are not even a few ministers and people found praying in them. May we not say in reference to these in. the words of uur contemporary — " but oh, how cold and solitary." ' Well may we ask our readers to look' at this, — it is a curious and suggestive picture.