d the support of its
institutions. Even during their lifetime kings and princes sometimes
gave the Church large donations of lands and money. The Church then was
supported by these gifts and the income or rents of the lands, and did
not need to look for collections from the people, as it has to do now.
Here, then, is how Luther got many to follow him. He told greedy princes
that if they came with him they could become rich by seizing the
property of all the churches, and the greedy princes, glad of an excuse,
went with him. Then he told the people--the bad Catholics--that fasting
was too severe; going to confession too hard; hearing Mass every Sunday
too difficult; and if they renounced their faith and embraced his new
religion he would do away with all these things: so they also followed
him. He himself broke his solemn vows made to God, and the people easily
followed his example.

Those attending the Protestant churches in our times are generally rich
and refined people, but you must not think that the first Protestants of
three hundred years ago were just like them. No. Many of them were from
the lowest and worst--I do not say poorest--classes in society; and when
they got an excuse, they went about destroying churches and
institutions, burning beautiful statues, paintings, music, books, and
works of art that the Church had collected and preserved for centuries.
This you may read in any of the histories of the Church and times. The
Protestants of the present day praise all these works of art now; but if
their ancestors had had their way every beautiful work of art would have
been destroyed.

Some persons say they would not be members of the Catholic Church
because so many poor people attend it. Then they do not want to belong
to the Church of Our Lord, because His Church is the Church of both poor
and rich. When St. John the Baptist sent his disciples to ask Our Lord
if He were really the Messias, Our Lord did not say yes or no, but told
them to relate to John what they had heard and seen (Matt. 11:5),
namely, that He (Christ) cured the blind, the lame, and the deaf, and
preached to the poor. Therefore Our Lord gave preaching to the poor as a
proof that He is the true Redeemer; and since Our Lord Himself had the
poor in His congregation, the Church everywhere must have the poor among
its members, for it must do what Our Lord did. So if you see a church to
which the poor people never go, in which they are not welcome