He Is a Catholic by K. C. Russell

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Washington, D. C. · Feb 1, 1906

“He Is a Catholic”

By K. C. Russell

“He is a Catholic. Ecclesiastical problems constitute so large a part of the difficulties of American administration that there is a strong feeling that an American Catholic would be better qualified than anybody else to handle these matters. At the very best, the government must frequently find its interests running counter to the concerns of the Catholic orders. It is thought that a Catholic would be able more effectively to enlist the co-operation of the church in meeting these difficulties.”

A Washington paper gives the foregoing as an “especial qualification” of General James F. Smith, a Roman Catholic, formerly of San Francisco, Cal., for the position of governor-general of the Philippines.

It is indeed significant that because a person is a Roman Catholic, it especially qualifies him for a position of public trust under the United States government. It certainly indicates a very great departure from the principle that is familiar to every true American: “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” But most of all, it shows again the tremendous influence that the Roman Catholic Church is having in the governmental affairs of the nation.

K. C. RUSSELL.