Emile Zola On Freemasonry.

EMILE ZOLA ON FREEMASONRY .

VIDE " BOMB " ( TBANSLATBD ) . ONE day the Cardinal spoke to him of Freemasonry , with such icy rage that he was abruptly enlightened . Freemasonry had hitherto made him smile : he had believed in it no more than he had believed in the Jesuits . Indeed he had looked upon the ridiculous stories that were current—the tales of

mysterious , shadowy men who governed the world with secret incalculable power—as mere childish legends . In particular he had been amazed by the blind hatred which maddened certain people whenever Freemasonry was mentioned . A very distinguished and intelligent prelate declared to him , with an air of

profound conviction , that on one occasion , at least , in every year each Masonic Lodge was presided over by the Devil in person , incarnate in a visible shape ! And now he understood the rivalry , the furious struggle of the Eoman Catholic Church against the other Church , the Church of over the way . Although

the former counted on her own supremacy , she none the less felt that the other , the Church of Freemasonry , was a competitor , a very ancient enemy , who claimed to be more ancient than herself , and whose victory always remained a possibility . The friction between the two was largely due to the circumstance that they

both aimed at universal sovereignty , and had a similar international organisation , a similar net thrown over all nations , and similar mysteries , dogmas , and rites . It was deity against deity , faith against faith , conquest against conquest ; and so , like competing tradesmen in the same street , they were a source

of mutual embarrassment , and one of them was bound to kill the other The last Eoman princes had thought themselves compelled to become Freemasons in order to render their difficult position more easy , and ensure the future of their sons . But was this true ? Had they not yielded to the force of

social evolution ? Again , would not Freemasonry eventually be submerged by its own triumph—that of the ideas of justice , reason , and truth , which it had defended through the dark and violent ages of history . It is that which constantly occurs—the triumph of an idea kills the sect that has propogated it , and

renders its apparatus both useless and ridiculous . Carbonansm did not survive the conquest of the political liberties it demanded ; and the day that the Catholic Church crumbles , after having accomplished its work of civilisation , the other Church , the Masonic Church across the road , will in a like wav disappear ,

its task of liberation ended . Now-a-days the famous power of the Lodges , hampered by traditions , weakened by a ceremonial which provokes laughter , and reduced to the simple bond of brotherly

agreement and , mutual assistance , would be but a sorry weapon of conquest of humanity , were it not that the vigorous breath of science impels the nations onward , and helps to destroy the old religions .

The Anti-Masonic Congress is placed under the guardianship of the Virgin Mary , Help of Christians and Eefuge of Sinners , of St . Michael the Archangel , and of St . Augustine , Bishop of Hippo , who , when a young man , having followed the teachings of the Manichees , whose errors have been revived , was converted to the Ghurcb . of Christ , and was one of the most ardent

opponents of the sect . Again , the Congress is to be essentially Catholic , and , therefore , guided by sentiments of charity towards all Brethren misled by passion , & c . No one can be admitted to its labours but those who profess absolute obedience to the Church and ins visible head on earth , the Eoman Pontiff . The Congress is to be held in the historical and charming town

of Trent , from the 26 th to the 30 th instant . A large cosmopolitan attendance is expected . The object of the Congress is to give a full report of- the evils , moral and material , inflicted upon the Church and society by the Masonic sect , and to seek a remedy in the establishment of a permanent international organisation against Masonry . National committees have been

formed in each nation—as yet not in this land—for the admission of members , the preparation of useful and critical propositions to be presented to the Congress , and the commissioning of competent representatives who are well acquainted with the dogmas and the working of Masonry . Each member pays a fee of eight shillings towards the expenses of the

Congress , and is entitled to receive gratis a copy of the acts of the Congress . A good number of priests are offering Masses , and many faithful are offering Communions and prayers for the success of the Congress and the conversion of Freemasons . Numberless adhesions to the Congress are sent in from all parts of the world , coming from cardinals , bishops , statesmen , religious

communities , and Catholic associations . The Holy Father has given his full approval of the coming Congress . The Emperor of Austria is going to be represented at the sittings of the Congress . One must bear in mind that the religious persecutions against the Vatican , the religious Orders , the Catholic schools , & c , almost all over the world , are the daily and perseverent work of

Emile Zola On Freemasonry.

the secret and overt enemies of the Church . Adhesions may be sent to the President , Commendatore Guglielmo Alliata , Via Fornari Nuo , 16 , Borne ; or to Father Clemente , Slough , Bucks , — " Irish News . " o o o A regular crusade against Freemasonry seems to have been

undertaken by Eome , and may have consequences on the Continent which are not altogether pleasant to contemplate . The Pope has blessed an anti-Masonic Congress . Freemasonry , he declares , is becoming more pernicious than ever . Another adjective which he attaches to the Freemasons is " malignant . "

" Secret societies , he lays down , " are everywhere a menace both to Church and State . " English Freemasons justly wonder at what they regard as the wild injustice of the Pope ' s accusations , and they marvel at Papal intolerance . They often ask themselves what is the real reason for the apparently

invincible hatred of the Eoman authorities for bodies which , in England at all events , are innocuous and even beneficent . It cannot be the secrecy which surrounds the society . The Order of Jesuits is a secret society , yet it is not suppressed . But all secret societies are swept up in one condemnation because the

societies were secret which helped to bring about the Italian revolution . Then comes the . question of Masonic ritual , which might be used by Eomanists and Anglicans and Nonconformists together , and this religious association becomes a positive sin in the eyes of the Roman Church . But the real hostility , we

imagine , has been provoked by the conviction of the Vatican that the Pope is a prisoner in his palace of ten thousand rooms , because of the activities of the Masons and other secret bodies which not only had a political policy inimical to the Temporal Power , but also , by their ceremonial , gave at least some

satisfaction to the religious instinct . Nevertheless , the attempted crusade against Masonry will be disturbing if it revive the ancient bitterness which once existed , and leads to the closer political reorganisation of the Continental Masons . They have shown before now that if they are attacked they know how to retaliate : — " Western Morning News . "

The letter from the Pope in reference to the Anti-Masonic Congress ends with an appeal to those Freemasons who were once good Catholics to return to the Church .

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