The faith of our fathers - Carmel Apologetics

"414 THE FAITH OF OUR FATHERS.better safeguard against a relapse into sin than asimple internal act of contrition?Many most eminent Protestant, and even infidelwriters, who were conversant with the practicalworkings of the Confessional in the countries wherethey lived, bear testimony to the moral reformationproduced by Confession. The famous German philosopher, Leibnitz, admits that it is a great benefitconferred on men, by God, that He left in HisChurch the power of forgiving sins. 1Voltaire, certainly no friend of Christianity,avows that there is not perhaps a more usefulinstitution than Confession." *Rousseau, not less hostile to the Church, exclaims :does not"Howmany restitutions and reparationsConfession cause among Catholics "s!The Protestant authorities of Nuremberg, inGermany, shortly after the establishment of thereformed doctrines in that city, were so muchalarmed at the laxity of morals which succeededafter the abolition of Confession, that they petitionedtheir Emperor, Charles V., to have the practice ofConfession restored.It is a favorite practice for the adversaries of theCatholic Church to refer to the alleged loose moralsprevailing in France, and in other Catholic countries, as a proof of the inferior standard of Catholicmorality. This is a safe, and at the same time notthe most honorable, mode of attack, as the people*f those nations are too far off to defend themselves.1Systenia Tkeol.2Remarquee sui i Oiynipc Enuie,