The faith of our fathers - Carmel Apologetics

BELIGIOUS PERSECUTION-. 297And yst Rome has to bear all the odium of theInquisition !I heartily pray that religiousintolerance maynever take root in our favored land. May the onlyking to force our conscience be the King of kings ;may the only prison erected among us for the sin ofunbelief or misbelief be the prison of a troubled conscience; and may our only motive for embracingtruth be not the fear of man, but the love of truthand of God.II.What about the massacre of Si. Bartholomew fI have no words strong enough to express my detestation of that inhuman slaughter.It is true thatthe number of its victims has been grossly exaggerated by partisan writers, but that is no extenuationof the crime itself. But I most emphatically assertthat the Church had no act or partin this atrociousbutchery, except to deplore the event and weep overitsunhappy victims. Here are the facts briefly presented :1. In the reign of Charles IX. of France, theHuguenots were a formidable power and a seditiouselement in that country. They were under theleadership of Admiral Coliguy, who was plottingthe overthrow of the ruling monarch. The FrenchKing, instigated by his mother, Catherine de Medicis,and fearing the influence of Coligny, whom he regarded as an aspirant to the throne, compassed his