right reverend Board—that is to say, I have been placed without the pale of the Church, as an irreclaimable sinner.

and my fellow-citizens will not exclude me from communion with them. For millions of men have heard my simple word, and they have gladly received it because convinced that it proceeded from an honest heart. Millions have loved me on account of it, and their love has not allowed itself to be deceived by the disgusting calumnies of embittered opponents. Their love will still support me. I can give no other reply.-I am, my Lord Bishop,

"JOHANNES RONGE, Catholic Priest.

"BRESLAU, November 30, 1844.”

"BRESLAU, 4th Dec. 1844.

"In consequence of your reply, dated November 30, and received on the first day of this month, wherein you admit that you subscribed the Article On the Holy Tunic at Treves,' acknowledge it as your own composition, and refuse to recall it, I find myself reduced to the highly painful necessity, in pursuance of my Decree of the 29th October, and on account of the gross offence against the Church, contained in the said Article, to issue the sentence of your degradation and excommunication, in accordance with, and by authority of, the canonical statutes and decrees.

"I therefore charge you to return to me, without delay, your letters of holy ordination. As you have not complied with my injunction to appear before me in person,* and have thereby deprived me of the wished-for opportunity of convincing you, by fatherly admonition and friendly conference, of your false and heterodox views generally, and, in particu

* My Lord Bishop only called me before him in case I should be inclined to retract, or, if I were not the author of the letter alluded to; otherwise, as is shown by the document of the 29th of October, I was only called upon for an explanation. Why this perversion of the truth?!

As, however, I have conducted myself, in speech and action, in accordance with my calling and my duty as a teacher, as also in agreement with the Gospel; and have, in defiance of law and justice, by unrighteous and despotic fiats of the Romish Church, been deposed and excommunicated-I appeal to the justice of my countrymen against the Hierarchy and its slaves, and demand that the members of the Canonical Board at Breslau be forced to rescind their sentence. I do not prefer this accusation in my own behalf alone, but stand forth in vindication of the rights of the whole body of inferior clergy, which are trampled upon by their superiors-in vindication of the rights of congregations, which are trampled upon by the entire priesthood! Lastly, I stand forth for Christendom, and, in the name of all Christendom, arraign the Romish Hierarchy, which falsely calls itself the "Universal Church," because it does not fulfil, but directly opposes the Gospel call -the call to promote the perfect reconciliation of the family of man.

The Romish Hierarchy has reduced the Gospel

lar, regarding the worship of relics-as the adoration of the Holy Tunic,-I can only add to the sentence, which I most reluctantly pronounce, my fervent prayer, that by God's grace you may be led to a right understanding of the Catholic faith, and to a discrimination of that worship of relics, which is permitted and approved by the Church, from the abuse of it, of which alone you seem to think.-D. LATUSSEK, Suffragan Bishop, and Vicar-General of the Diocese.

"To the late Curate, Rev. Johannes Ronge."

teaching to a system of usury, compulsion, and oppression, profanely-prostituted religion to a revolting Jesuitism,—and, instead of promoting the improvement and the reconciliation of mankind, maintains in all their bitterness the antipathies of nations, and, kindling civil war, (look to Switzerland and other countries!) debases human nature by hypocrisy and vice.

It is the Roman Church which has to rend so wide asunder the yawning gulf which separates the higher from the lower classes, the ignorant from the educated, the poorer from the richer portions of all European nations; and it is she who is daily making that gulf still wider, by dint of Jesuitism and priestcraft. In order to escape from utter ruin, the overwhelming evil must be vigorously, resolutely met,-in compact phalanx. The nations and above all the German nationought to call a free ecclesiastical convention, composed of laymen freely chosen, and of honest priests, to sweep away for ever all Jesuitism and priestcraft-to establish freedom of conscience on the ruins of hypocrisy-to purify religion, and to show the Church her actual calling, imposed upon her by the spirit of the times, and the exigencies of our people-namely, the reconcilement of the higher and the lower classes of humanity-the reconcilement of the nations and the peoples of the earth, by improving and ennobling them-by universal love and freedom. By our regard to our neighbour, we show forth our love to God; for we

are told by John, that "If a man say I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar."

Arise, then, men of Germany and of France; men of Great Britain, Italy, and Spain, arise! Men of Europe and America! let us unite with our governments in the noble enterprise! To the work, like men—the work of peace and freedom! The hour is come! let us break the yoke of faith and conscience-drag down lying priesthood and the Hierarchy-annihilate disdainful Jesuitism, insulting God and man-and usher in the glorious reign of truth, and light, and righteousness of virtue, of freedom, and of love! Let us usher in the true reign of Christ upon the earth!

[This closes Ronge's Self-Defence, which, in all probability, would never have seen the light, had it not been for the subsequent excitement caused by the affair of the Holy Coat. For however triumphant has been his exposure of the authorities with whom he has had to do, still such cases of arbitrary tyranny are far too common to excite more than a mere passing, or, at best, local interest. It required such a fact as that of Treves first to awaken a general interest, and thereby to secure a proportionate degree of attention to the details of such a personal narrative as we have now given. People desired to know about the history of the man who had brought home to their hearts and experience the abuses of the system which had hitherto ruled them as with a rod of iron. But especially as charges the most base and unfounded had been directed against Ronge, with regard to the

real cause of his suspension, it became his duty to lay the whole facts before the public, and manfully to appeal to their sentence against that of the Church authorities of Breslau. We have inserted this Justification before noticing the movements which have taken place in consequence of the first letter, which, instead of appearing as a documentary part of the Justification, was inserted at a previous part of the narrative, and which gave its real personal and historical interest to his Self-defence.]

OPINIONS, ADDRESSES, &c., &c.

WE must now return to the first letter, and notice the excitement created by it over the whole of Germany, Protestant and Catholic. The following appeared in the Mannheim Journal :-"The greatest attention has been lately directed to the admirable and pithy statement of a Catholic priest concerning the Holy Coat. It is peculiarly the citizen-class who have been electrified thereby. Not to have read it, (and it is impossible to escape the question) is declared to be as bad as never having read anything. It is published in all the papers; and truly the spreading of truth and light in religious matters-and both it contains in rich