The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-08-18
CATHOLIC CHURCH PROPERTY QUESTION.

Il
The cholera is raging at Copenhagen
CATHOLIC CHURCH PROPERTY QUESTION.
BUFFALO, July 80, 1853.
To the Editor of tie National Era:
| In the Era of the 2Sth instant, find an ed
toral comment on Senator Babcock's speech i
the New York Legislature, which somewha
surprised me- In the first place, the write
states that he has read the Senator through,
and that it is a loose, irrelevant incoherent
and inconclusive melange" However this ma
| be with the speech Of the Senator, when seel
through the critical optics Of the editor, b
shows most evidently, to one acquainted witt
the controversy in this State, that he does no
| understand its merits, and that his criticism i
upon anything but the true issue for he says
1t will not do to refuse common legal right
and powers to Catholic churches because tn
people of that communion choose to make o.
accept the bishops as their trustees for thu
management of their temporalties" True
every hberal-minded democrat would exclain
against prescription, against refusing Catholics
common legal rights which other denomina
tons enjoyed. But this is not the fact-this IL
not the complaint. There is no pretence thai
the Catholics are excluded from any lega
privileges enjoyed by the most favored religious
denominations in the State. We have stat
ute, equal and just, for the Incorporation of al
religious societies, without any distinction OF
prescription. Ii is founded, like all our insti
buttons, upon the democratic principle - &C
countability to the people. There is not the
slightest objection, under our statute, that the
people Of the Catholic communion" should
meet and elect their bishops and priests trus-
tees Of their temperatures The bishops and
priests are not prescribed by our statute but
they nor any other individuals are permitted
to usurp the management Of the church prop
erty. No; it is precisely because they are not
permitted to WELD power and to possess legal
rights that no other religious teachers WELD or
possess, that they complain. The great body
of the Catholics in this State do not desire a
change of our statute, so as to place the abso-
lutte control of church property out of the
power of laymen.
The main drift of the article in the Era ap.
pears to be to show that there is sectarian-
ism so narrow and bigoted in New York, that
it will not permit Catholics to manage their
church property with the same freedom as
,ther denominations for it says "Give every
y,
and actual, from the management of
ourselves, and we shall have every desired ad-
vantage" This is, fairly; what we have done,
IS the editor will zee by examining our statute.
But would it be just to those societies in Buff
alO, Rochester, and other places, to pass law
them to surrender their church
property and its management which they
ightfully enjoy under our present statute-to
he bishops, who have had such an overween-
ng desire to possess, that they have in many
ases, heretofore, endeavored to evade and
rample upon the spirit of the law Bishop
Dimon has demanded of the trustees of the st.
.ouis church, at Buffalo, that they deed the
hurch property to him, notwithstanding that
UGH deed would confer no legal right upon
i'm as he very well knows, but would be void
nder our laws; yet his desire is to get the
oSsession, which he no doubt considers more
nan nine points of the law in this case.
The controversy in this State has, no doubt,
aised in the breasts of many an unjust party
pirit; but there has been, generally, so far as
have observed, liberal feeling towards the
'atholics, and desire that they should possess
very privilege enjoyed by other denomina-
ons. But, above and beyond all cOnsidera
ions of religious opinions and creeds, there is
determination to resist, at the threshold, any
tempt to introduce the despotic exactions Of
foreign potentate into the government OF
nc temporalitics of the Church, as well US Of |
ne State.
The bill against which the Senator's speech |
7as made, proposed to make the bishops the |
ispensers of all the temporalities Of the |
hurch, without requiring an election by the |
nembers of the congregation and, further, the |
ishop might possess and control all the church !
property in his bishopric. His appointment |
ONES from the Pope. He is totally irresponsi-
lie to the members of his communion And
ct the tendency Of the article upon which
m commenting is to countenance the exercise |
# this irresponsible power.
Such has not been the position of the Era |
heretofore, and such, am confident, will not
De its position after getting at the true issue in
his state. "Our public schools are open to
hem, as fairly freely, and fully, as are our
market houses" Neither is the '"Bible insist |
ID upon as q school book because it is the |
Bible, and because ours is the better version of
t." The Bible is not forced upon schools not
excluded from them. Like every other book,
t is used or dispensed WITH according to the
,hoice of the schools The Catholics have every
advantage of instruction in our schools, which
8 possessed by any other citizens; but this is
not what they desire their determination is to
divide our common schools ALLEVIATE Catholics
from Professionals and set up exclusive schools
of their own. 1t is propagandism they desire,
not intellectual enlightenment and culture
Their designs are palpable, and their reviews
81 a loci tha
acy Of the Pope, and profess to submit to our
institutions for the present, only because they
must
will be welcome, will close, in the hope that
when you "next strike, you will hit the nail on
the head Truly yours, F.. WIS.
'The edtorn has examined the statute
OF New York relative to religious incorpora
hons, and the acts amending the same - and
answers +. w. s. that they do not "give every
right and privilege, and remove every restraint
technical and actual from the management of
ecclesiastical property rs fairly for them the
Catholics) as for ourselves the Professionally
The first section of the act provides for the
incorporation of Episcopal Churches only the
second, for the incorporation of the Reformed
Protestant Dutch Church--thc privileges and
advantages of which second section the bill
lately before the New York Legislature was in.
tended to extend to the Catholics of that State
according to their peculiarly of religious Or
ganzaton and goyernment-and the third Sec.
ton contains tho general provisions for the in
corporation Of all other churches, congreya.
tons, and religious societies. which is probably
the statute, or that part Of the statute. intend
cd 10y our correspondent, and described by him
equal aud just for the incorporation of all re-
hg'ous societies, without any distinction or pro-
scription." Other sections of this act of the 5tb
of April, 1913, and amendments of it. since
passed. designate certain other churches bv
name, enabling thcm to become incorporated
anport,pu tc ba u,,oo:,I