JOSHUA GREAVES,
Incumbent of St. Peter’s, Birmingham.
November 29, 1848.
Now I have no desire to act dishonourably or uncandidly, and therefore I
feel it to be my duty to read a document put forth by the body of Roman
Catholic Priests in this town, in reference to the above letter. It was
published in our local paper of yesterday morning.
“We, the Catholic Clergy of Birmingham, having seen it stated in a
letter from the Rev. Joshua Greaves, that one of our body had burnt a
copy of the Protestant version of the New Testament, found in the
house of a Catholic, have no hesitation at once to admit the fact;
but wish at the same time to add that the act was regretted
afterwards by the Clergyman by whom it was done, and strongly
disapproved of by his brother Clergy, as soon as known. Justice,
however, requires us to state that the Catholics of Birmingham had
suffered constant and great annoyance from the interference of
certain Protestant Clergymen or others, their agents, who frequently
intrude themselves into the houses of poor Catholics, unsought for
and uninvited, for the purpose of perverting their faith. It was
with the knowledge that such a system was going on, and under the
excitement of the moment, that the act, which it is not attempted to
justify, was done. We take this opportunity of stating that the
Catholic version of the Sacred Scriptures is considered by us as the
only one authorised for circulation amongst our own people.
BERNARD IVERS, THOS. M. LEITH, WM. MOLLOY. _St. Chad’s_.
GEORGE JEFFERIES, MICHAEL O’SULLIVAN. _St. Peter’s_.
J. P. BURKE. _St. Mary’s_. _Handsworth_.
St. Chad’s, Birmingham, Dec. 7, 1848.”