Quote found after 127 years!

In the afternoon of November 24th 1894, a steamboat of the Royal Marine entered the peaceful waters of the Grand Canal, stopping in the close vicinity of the Golden Cathedral of St. Mark. All the bells of the city announced the joy and triumph of the multitudinous throngs lining the canals and crowding at the windows of the palaces. They waved their white flags beneath the rich marble balconies and shouted a prolonged chorus of jubilation as the Cardinal in his scarlet robes passed by, blessing them as a father does his children.

The following day at the high mass of November 25th 1894, Cardinal Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, who later became Pope Pius the 10th, presented an address at the high mass of St Mark’s to the fanfare of the crowds. In that famous address he said the following which has been quoted for the past one hundred plus years:

“The Pope is not simply the representative of Jesus Christ. On the contrary, he is Jesus Christ Himself, under the veil of the flesh, and who by means of a being common to humanity continues His ministry amongst men … Does the Pope speak? It is Jesus Christ Who is speaking. Does he teach? It is Jesus Christ Who teaches. Does he confer grace or pronounce an anathema? It is Jesus Christ Himself Who is pronouncing the anathema and conferring the grace. Hence consequently, when one speaks of the Pope, it is not necessary to examine, but to obey”

These were great words no doubt from the little horn of Daniel 7:25 and the Man of Sin from 2 Thessalonians 2. The following year in January 1895, Evangelical Christendom published a protest about the quote which created a stir in the Christian world. (1)

Upon seeing the discussion, Publications of the Catholic Truth Society (2) responded by publishing a question and answer response with Pope Pius the 10th who responded by referencing a different sermon and wording from February 20th 1895 which was the anniversary for the election of the Pope. Any novice can see the problem, by referencing a sermon well after Evangelical Christendom had published their concerns, he clearly is avoiding the sermon in question and comes across as evasive.

In July 13th 1895, a Catholic Organ called the Catholic National published the quote and discussed it as well. To their credit, there were those within Catholicism who were aware of it and did not agree with the ultramontanists of Vatican 1. Nevertheless, for the past many years various websites have denied the existence of the catholic national and offered various suggestions all proving to be false as to what that newspaper could have been. (3) (4). When asked about its existence, even Pope Pius claimed to not know about it and brushed it aside as perhaps something associated with the German catholic priest Ignaz Von Döllinger. For years, Adventist bloggers like Michael Scheiffler (biblelightinfo.com) and others referenced secondary sources discussing about the Catholic National and meme’s have widely circulated social media for the quote but the original primary document was a bit veiled in mystery.

Well, after 127 years, The Catholique National has been located in Switzerland in the Stämpfli library in Bern. The quote July 13th can be seen here proving that these concerns so oft dismissed were indeed protested by both Catholics and Protestants. It can finally be confirmed that The Catholic National was indeed a real paper and the concerns were legitimate.

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James Bowen is a member of the Seventh Day Adventist church and graduated from Southern Adventist University in 2016 with a masters degree in nursing and hails from the state of Tennessee.