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APPENDIX, 5. 367
a separation of lay and clerical officers. I do not point out this
separation as subject of praise, but as the witness borne by the
Venetians against the principles of the Papacy. If they were to
blame, in yielding to their fear of the ambitious spirit of Rome
so far as to deprive their councils of all religious element, what
excuse are we to offer lor the state, which, with Lords Spiritual
of her own faith already in her senate, permits the polity of
Rome to be represented by lay members? To have sacrificed
religion to mistaken policy, or purchased security with ignominy,
would have been no new thing in the world's history; but to be
at once impious and impolitic, and seek for danger through dishonor, was reserved for the English parliament of 1829.
I am glad to have this opportunity of referring to, and farther
enforcing, the note on this subject which, not without deliberation, I appended to the " Seven Lamps;" and of adding to it the
following passage, written by my father in the year 1839, and
published in one of the journals of that year:—a passage remarkable as much for its intrinsic value, as for having stated, twelve
years ago, truths to which the mind of England seems but now,
and that slowly, awakening.
"We hear it said, that it cannot be merely the Roman religion
that causes the difficulty [respecting Ireland], for we were once
all Roman Catholics, and nations abroad of this faith are not as
the Irish. It is totally overlooked, that when we were so, our
government was despotic, and fit to cope with this dangerous
religion, as most of the Continental governments yet are. In
what Roman Catholic state, or in what age of Roman Catholic
England, did we ever hear of such agitation as now exists in
Ireland by evil men taking advantage of an anomalous state of
things—Roman Catholic ignorance in the people, Protestant
toleration in the government? We have yet to feel the tremendous difficulty in which Roman Catholic emancipation has involved us. Too late we discover that a Roman Catholic is wholly
incapable of being safely connected with the British constitution,
as it now exists, in any near relation. The present constitution
is no longer fit for Catholics. It is a creature essentially Protestant, growing with the growth, and strengthening with the
strength, of Protestantism. So entirely is Protestantism interwoven with the whole frame of our constitution and laws, that I
| Title | The stones of Venice - 1 |
| Creator | Ruskin, John |
| Publisher | J. Wiley |
| Place of Publication | New York |
| Date | 1889 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Title | 00000425 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | APPENDIX, 5. 367 a separation of lay and clerical officers. I do not point out this separation as subject of praise, but as the witness borne by the Venetians against the principles of the Papacy. If they were to blame, in yielding to their fear of the ambitious spirit of Rome so far as to deprive their councils of all religious element, what excuse are we to offer lor the state, which, with Lords Spiritual of her own faith already in her senate, permits the polity of Rome to be represented by lay members? To have sacrificed religion to mistaken policy, or purchased security with ignominy, would have been no new thing in the world's history; but to be at once impious and impolitic, and seek for danger through dishonor, was reserved for the English parliament of 1829. I am glad to have this opportunity of referring to, and farther enforcing, the note on this subject which, not without deliberation, I appended to the " Seven Lamps;" and of adding to it the following passage, written by my father in the year 1839, and published in one of the journals of that year:—a passage remarkable as much for its intrinsic value, as for having stated, twelve years ago, truths to which the mind of England seems but now, and that slowly, awakening. "We hear it said, that it cannot be merely the Roman religion that causes the difficulty [respecting Ireland], for we were once all Roman Catholics, and nations abroad of this faith are not as the Irish. It is totally overlooked, that when we were so, our government was despotic, and fit to cope with this dangerous religion, as most of the Continental governments yet are. In what Roman Catholic state, or in what age of Roman Catholic England, did we ever hear of such agitation as now exists in Ireland by evil men taking advantage of an anomalous state of things—Roman Catholic ignorance in the people, Protestant toleration in the government? We have yet to feel the tremendous difficulty in which Roman Catholic emancipation has involved us. Too late we discover that a Roman Catholic is wholly incapable of being safely connected with the British constitution, as it now exists, in any near relation. The present constitution is no longer fit for Catholics. It is a creature essentially Protestant, growing with the growth, and strengthening with the strength, of Protestantism. So entirely is Protestantism interwoven with the whole frame of our constitution and laws, that I |
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