Cardinal Gibbons and the End of the World
A NEWS dispatch, under date of February 17, reports some comments made by Cardinal Gibbons on the war news from Europe which he spoke of as “terrible.” A few of his sentences are: “We cannot grasp its magnitude or what it means. Does it not seem that the Scriptures are being fulfilled—‘Nation shall rise against nation and there shall be sorrow throughout the world, and then shall the end come’? Loss of life in great numbers occurs only once in a while. But now in this greatest war of the world a thousand—nay, ten thousand—lives are being sacrificed every hour the war continues.” The impression is deep and strong among all classes of men, that the war of Europe has a momentous significance. This conviction is upon Catholic and Protestant and agnostic alike. God’s prophecies are very clear, and show the doom toward which this wicked world is rapidly driving. And God’s Spirit is impressing the minds of men with the meaning of the great events of this time. We may shake off these convictions if we will; we may have destruction if we insist upon it; but God is seeking to draw each and every individual to Himself, that He may give them the salvation that He has to offer, and thus save them from the destruction that Satan is offering instead. Statements of the character reported to have come from Cardinal Gibbons should make a deep impression upon Catholic people, and lead them to study God’s word for themselves, to see the clear light of prophecy that is shining from its sacred pages. There can be no question but that the end of this wicked world is almost come, but it will not be the end of the individuals who are prepared for it. It will be only the beginning of the eternal joys that will begin when Christ bestows upon them the crown of immortality at His second coming