Servant of God Demetrius Gallitzin - A Prince In The Service of The Great King - Catholic Register

Betty Seymour brings to a conclusion her series of articles about witnesses to the heroic virtues of the Prince - Priest, the Servant of God Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin, with final reflections from the 1899 article about the Prince - Priest written by Pittsburgh journalist Julia Morgan Harding from the book "Souvenir Of The Loretto Centenary".

	"It seems almost incredible that the self-denying and beautiful spirit, whose personality at this distance of one hundred years is still felt as a benediction wherever his name is known, should have suffered such distress and torment at the hands of those for whom he was giving his life; and it is horrible to relate that at the critical point of the battle that raged so fiercely around him, personal violence was attempted, and that but for the stout heart and strong arm of one John Weakland, Father Gallitzin would have met the fate of Becket. But the civil courts and the head of the Catholic Church in America upheld his authority and rendered legal decisions in his favor; some of his tormenters repented, publicly retracting their accusations, and apologized for their behavior, and the long, wearisome contest was over."
	"...the solitary man who endured them (trials) and met his enemies point by point, though rejoicing in his victory and happy in the returning and radiant confidence of his people, was sadly broken in health and spirit when that chapter of his life was closed."
	"Financial obligations continued to harass him for many years, but his stern integrity, severely simple rule of life, and beneficent, loving spirit enabled him to dominate his entire jurisdiction, the leader and father of his people. His own life was one of extreme frugality, and his self-denials combined with the distress consequent upon his financial troubles, almost wrecked his health, which had never been robust, and led him to the brink of despair."
	"Though his debts were of a kind which at present time would be called Church debts and would have to be met by the congregation, he assumed them as his own, and the burden was all the more distressing since, had he received his rightful inheritance, he would have been able to pay them many times over."
	"...in response to a request from both pastor and people, Bishop Kenrick sent (in 1834) to the mountains a German priest...the Reverend P. H. Lemke. They lived together in harmony, the Prince recognizing Father Lemke's energy and spirit, and rejoicing in his vigorous manner of prosecuting his work. Thus relieved of responsibility and confident that his assistants were conscientiously prosecuting the work which he had founded and still directed, the venerable man of God entered upon the evening of his life...at home and abroad by a people who looked to him as a father, a priest and a king."