Posted on 02/16/2009 9:37:41 AM PST by GonzoII
In 1789, America got its first President, George Washington, and its first R.C, Bishop, John Carroll. At the time of the former’s death in 1799, Bishop Caroll gave the following eulogy on the Founding Father’s passing:
(Excerpt) Read more at irishcatholichumanist.blogspot.com ...
Ping.
If only Americans could return to what Bishop Carroll said.
I found a story once that George Washington died a Catholic. Anyone?
Everyone dies a Catholic. ;^)
Beautiful. And succinct.
There is no evidence to support this, but the rumour does date back to the 19th century.
“May these United States flourish in pure and undefiled religion, in morality, peace, union, liberty, and the enjoyment of their excellent Constitution, as long as respect, honor, and veneration shall gather around the name of Washington; that is, whilst there still shall be any surviving record of human events!”
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Yes, well, there are those who are busy euthanizing the record of human events...
Don’t think so. I think the Jesuits say he venerated Mary to some degree. But never heard that he died a Catholic. That’s not to say his thinking wasn’t Catholic in character.
He was Anglican, so he was a “catholic” but not “Roman Catholic.”
Washington was a committed Freemason, which does not object to Roman Catholism, but RC objects to Freemasons, so I would strongly doubt it.
As an aside, after the revolution, Washington would leave prior to communion in Church. Enquiries were made, and the explanation was essentially that he could not forgive someone for something, so he deemed himself unfit for Communion.
You're out of date on that. RC's are now allowed to belong to masonic lodges.
Cool beans. I did not know that.
This makes sense, as the differences were historical/mutual misunderstandings.
>> You’re out of date on that. RC’s are now allowed to belong to masonic lodges. <<
No, it’s just some have become inattentive.
Frankly, I think it’s downright disingenuous to say RC objects to Freemasonry but Freemasonry doesn’t object to RC. I’d say that Freemasonry is subersive to Catholicism, and therefore, Catholicism excludes Freemasonry to prevent that subversion.
I doubt it.
If he had done so, he would have been buried as a Roman Catholic, which he was not.
The Rev. Thomas David, rector of Christ Church, Alexandria VA, John Addison, St John’s Broad Creek, MD and 2 other Anglican clergy officiated over the service which was conducted according to the prayerbook of the Episcopal Church.
Martha Washington asked the members of her husband’s Masonic Lodge to conduct Masonic rites at the funeral. Of the six pallbearers all but one were masons. Colonel Philip Marstellerwas the lone non-Mason to be a pall bearer.
I’m Anglican and I have a Marian icon and a small statue.
I have never heard that he was unforgiving toward anyone, do you have a source?
I have read that he was low church and was not accustomed to frequent communion. The Bishop of Philadelphia who took him to task for leaving early was high church and celebrated communion more fequently.
In Philadelphia, when he was president, George escorted Martha to services but he would leave after morning prayer before communion, Martha would remain to receive. The Bishop took exception to this becasue when George left, many of the other worshippers followed. After being chastized George continued to escort Martha to church but waited on her outside in their carriage.
An interesting study of colonial Anglicanism in VA is A Blessed Company by John Kendall Nelson.
” have never heard that he was unforgiving toward anyone, do you have a source?”
It was a biography I read long ago, so no, not really.
“I’d say that Freemasonry is subersive to Catholicism, and therefore, Catholicism excludes Freemasonry to prevent that subversion.”
That’s just not true (in the USA, anyway).
To the extent it dealt with religion (which, despite the rumors to the contrary, it does not) the fraternity is decidedly non-denominational, which forms the core of the issue, as it conflicts with the RC belief that it, alone, is the valid Christian church.
No, we still get the boot; Roman Catholics are still excommunicated for becoming Freemasons:
The Church has imposed the penalty of excommunication on Catholics who become Freemasons. The penalty of excommunication for joining the Masonic Lodge was explicit in the 1917 code of canon law (canon 2335), and it is implicit in the 1983 code (canon 1374).
Because the revised code of canon law is not explicit on this point, some drew the mistaken conclusion that the Church's prohibition of Freemasonry had been dropped. As a result of this confusion, shortly before the 1983 code was promulgated, the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a statement indicating that the penalty was still in force. This statement was dated November 26, 1983 and may be found in <Origins> 13/27 (Nov. 15, 1983), 450.
Copyright (c) 1993 Catholic Answers. Reprinted with permission from the June 1993 issue of <This Rock> magazine.
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