In South America This Is Not Generally Considered
Necessary.
Frequently he is found to be the worst man in the village.
If you speak to him of his dissolute life, he may tell you that he,
being a priest, may do things you, a layman, must not.
In Spain,
Portugal and Italy, next door to highly enlightened countries, the
priest cannot, for very shame, act as he is free to do in South
America. That great continent has been ruled and governed only by
Roman Catholics, without outside interference, and Romanists in other
lands do not, and would not, believe the practices there sanctioned.
"You ask about this nation and the Roman Catholic Church," said the
American Minister in one South American capital. "Well, the nation is
rotten, thanks to the Church and to Spain. The Church has taught lies
and uncleanness, and been the bulwark of injustice and wrong for 300
years. How could you expect anything else?" "Lies," said a priest to
a friend, who told the remark to us, "what do lies have to do with
religion." [Footnote: "Missions In South America," Robt. E. Speer.]
A missionary writes: "Recently the Roman bishop and several other
priests visited the various towns. It was a business trip, for they
charged a good price for baptisms, confirmations, etc., and carried
away thousands of dollars. In Santa Cruz a disgraceful scene was
publicly enacted in the church by the resident priest and one of the
visitors. Both saw a woman drop a twenty-five cent piece into the
pan; each grabbed for it, and then they fought before the people!
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