A story for every day...
The exterior and interior of St. Peter's Dome.
A famous man once had an audience with Pope Gregory XVI, who asked him how he liked the Vatican basilica. “From the outside,” replied the foreigner, “it made a rather unfavorable impression on me, but after entering it and staying there for a while, I felt an excellent impression. – So it is, Sir,” replied the Pope, “with certain Catholic dogmas. When one stops at the letter, they repel, but when one meditates on the spirit, prejudices disappear.”
– A thorough knowledge of Catholic dogmas soon dispels the prejudices spread against them.
Francis Copernicus’ telescope.
Copernicus, the inventor of the cosmographic system that bears his name, was a canon of Frauenbourg in East Prussia. His collegiate church still contains many curiosities. One day a company of tourists visited them under the guidance of the sacristan, who drew their attention to, among other things, some relics. One of those present expressed doubts about their authenticity. The sexton told him that the tradition of the church gave sufficient assurance, but the other replied that the testimony of the church was not enough. The sexton continued the tour and showed in a drawer of the sacristy a pile of old things among which a tin tube. “Here, gentlemen,” he said, “is a curiosity of great value: the remainder of a telescope of Copernicus.” After examining it carefully, the incredulous one from earlier reproached the sexton gravely for leaving such a precious relic lying around among old junk. The sexton laughed and said: “Sir, although the telescope was invented only 60 years after Copernicus’ death, you believed on my word that this object, which is only a candle mold, was genuine, and just now you did not admit the secular tradition of this church because it concerns religious objects. I allowed myself this joke, which every educated man recognizes as such at first sight, to point out your inconsistency.” The doubter left the church covered with confusion.
– This trait proves how much some people who would not admit religious truths at any price, even if they were announced to them by an angel, believe the most absurd assertions with an unusual naivety.
