Untitled article | AdventAI

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Third-day, November 5, 1867

FromAdvent Review and Sabbath Herald, Vol. XXX, No. 21

The Pope and the Roman Catholic Monarchs.

THE hopes which have been raised by the new effort of the Italian people to shake off the temporal power of the Pope, seem, for the present, to be doomed to disappointment. The King of Italy has submitted to the dictation of Louis Napoleon, and given new pledges that he will carry out the September Convention in the sense which Napoleon understands it, by not only refraining from any attack upon the Papal territory, but by preventing the overthrow of the temporal power through the subjects of the Pope. Such an attitude of the Italian Government makes it, of course, impossible for the insurgents to continue their operations, and they therefore, have laid down, or soon will lay down, their arms.

Thus, it seems that the temporal power has, for the present, been saved from the destruction which appeared to be so imminent. But it has had a narrow escape. The Pope himself, his advisers, and his most fanatical partisans, are fully aware that but for the intervention of Louis Napoleon, the downfall of the temporal power would have been not only certain but instantaneous. Even with the continuance of the strictest neutrality on the part of Italy, the success of the revolution was universally regarded as certain until the moment when the determination of France, to uphold the temporal power at all hazards, was announced. Nothing else could have saved it, for no other Roman Catholic prince had either the power or the mind to do what Louis Napoleon has done. Thus, the very existence of the temporal power depends on the disposition of one prince. “Trust in princes” is generally supposed not to have a very solid foundation, and it is not likely to turn out differently in the present case. Louis Napoleon patronizes the temporal establishment of the Pope, not from any religious attachment to the cause, but from considerations entirely political. He has himself urged upon the Pope reforms of administration, which in Rome are considered contrary to the true spirit of the Church. The legislation on Church affairs in France frequently collides with the demands of the Pope and of the ultramontane party. With the death of Napoleon, the protection of the Papacy by France may altogether cease. The Roman policy of the Government is not only opposed by the entire Liberal party, but by a large portion of the Napoleonic party; and Prince Napoleon, (who, if the only son of Louis Napoleon should die before his father—as, from his sickly constitution, it is generally expected he will—will succeed to the throne), is known for his thorough hatred of the temporal power. The chief support of the Papacy may, therefore, be taken away at any time.

The Pope can expect no aid from any of the other Catholic princes of Europe. Austria, which from 1855 and until recently has been the zealous champion of the temporal claims of the Popes, is now returning to the liberal legislation of Joseph II. The Parliament of Vienna and that of Hungary have almost unanimously declared against the Concordat of 1855, which gave to the Church of Rome an extensive influence upon State affairs; the Emperor has formed a ministry, of which the leading opponents of the Concordat are members, and more recently has publicly censured the bishops who, at a meeting held at Vienna, passed resolutions in favor of the Concordat. Whatever the personal opinion of the Emperor may be, he finds it necessary to withdraw all support from the secular authority of the Pope. It is not likely that this policy will be changed, as the Austrian Government is too weak to risk another conflict with the unanimous opinion of the Austrian people.

The King of Italy has been at open war with the Pope ever since the annexation of part of the Papal dominion to Italy, in 1859. He has thereby incurred the censures of the Church, and but recently has drawn forth a new thunderbolt from the Pope by sanctioning the law for the confiscation of the Church property. The very existence of the kingdom of Italy must cease before peace can be re-established between the family occupying the Italian throne and the Pope.

The Queen of Spain is the most fanatical supporter of the Papal power among the Roman Catholic monarchs. But her offer to aid in the support of the temporal power excites only ridicule, for the throne of Queen Isabella is fully as insecure as that of the Holy Father himself. All the other Roman Catholic princes of Europe are too insignificant to be of any service to the Pope. The kings of Belgium, Portugal, and Bavaria are all bound by liberal institutions, and the two latter are regarded as being personally opposed to the ultramontane party. The King of Saxony is entirely powerless, as he rules over a country almost wholly Protestant.

Thus it is by no means probable that the Papacy can much longer depend on any support from the Roman Catholic princes. Still more unfavorable are its prospects when we look at the sentiments of the Roman Catholic nations of the world. These we intend to review briefly in another article.—Methodist.