Religion in Society

and their flocks seek an asylum in the Immaculate Heart whose ineffable purity is never tarnished by a breath of impurity. As children in extreme peril, they are not satisfied with pressing around their mother and taking refuge in her arms, but they throw themselves upon her bosom.

My beloved separated brethren, for a moment impose silence upon prejudices which are no less repugnant to the feelings than the understanding of the Christian, and ask yourselves if that is not the true family of Christ, where his Divine Mother is most reverently cherished and honored.

• Arch-confraternity of the Holy and Immaculate Heart of Mary.

CONTENTS OF VOLUME II.

CHAPTER.

I. WHAT it is to be a Christian,

II.-Idea of faith.-Its necessity,

III.-Powerlessness of reason.-Pretensions of the phil-

osophy of the present day.-Necessity of reve-

lation,

IV. Existence of revelation.-Extravagance of Ration-

alism,

V. Sketch of Christian communions.-Could they all

be the work of Christ ?-Latitudinarian system.

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VI.-Absurdity of the first hypothesis.-Nature and neces-

sity of mysteries,

VII.-Falseness of the second hypothesis.-Doctrinal intol-

erance of Christ and his Apostles,

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· 25

VIII.-Necessity of doctrinal intolerance.-Absurdity of the
third hypothesis,

IX. Rule of Faith.-Protestant rule.-Catholic rule,
X.-The Protestant principle finds nothing which does
not condemn it in the bible, and in the history
of the apostolic times,

XI.-Worthlessness of passages of scripture cited in sup-
port of Protestant principles.-Its true origin,
XII.-Difficulties of the Protestant principle in practice;

first difficulty: Every Protestant must make a
Bible for himself,

XIII. Second difficulty of the Protestant principle.-Every
Protestant must read the Bible in the original,
XIV.-Third difficulty: Every Protestant is bound to read
and examine the Bible in all its parts,

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CHAPTER.

PAGE

XV.-Fourth difficulty: Every Protestant must assure him-
self that he has read the whole Bible,

XVI. Can the Protestant principle produce Christians?
XVII. What men does the Protestant principle form?-
What would a Christian be according to its
method,

XVIII.-Application of the Protestant principle to the con-
version of Infidels.-Circulation of the Bible.-

XIX.-Why have there been, and why are there still be-
lievers in the bosom of Protestantism.-Con-
clusion,

XX.-Catholic principle.-Its immoveable foundations in
the Gospel,

XXI.-Harmony of the Catholic hierarchy with biblical
principles,

XXII. Exaggerated contempt of the reformers for tradition.
-Faithlessness of their historians.-Historical
foundations of Catholicity,

XXIII.-Harmony of the Catholic principle with the general
system of the divine government,

XXIV. Mysterious character of truth.-Weakness of the in-
tellect. Necessity for an infallible authority.
XXV.-Absurd task which Protestantism imposes on youth.
-Disavowal of its theory in practice, and the
homage which it renders to the Catholic prin-
ciple,