The National tribune., 1900-03-29
FRIARS IN The
PHILIPPINES.
Opposed by Native Catholics, who
Appeal to the Pope's Apostolic
Delegate.
Special correspondence to THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE

Special correspondence to THE NATIONAL tribune
MANILA, Jan. 21, 1900.
1t is not difficult to secure live questions
to write about Just now here i'll Manila;
for they are numerous and include much
more than the crushing out of the rebellion
IN the Islands. The Chinese question is
one of these. and another the labor question,
which, like the poor, is always with us; and
even the black plague" is a very live queS-
ton with residents here Just now.
A very old question which has been re-
Gently opened anew. and which seems to
attract more attention than any other just
now; Is that OF the treatment of the Friars-
shall they. be allowed to continue their
functions in the parishes throughout the
Islands. shall they be ignored entirely by the
authorities, or sent back TO Spain. This
subject was opened up afreSh through the
correspondent of Madrid newspaper, whose
letter was reproduced in a Spanish paper
here, the Progreso. from which it was trans
lated and published i'll the Tribune and the
Manila Times
This article, which was of considerable
length stated that an official letter had
been written and handed to the priests by
IJls. Chapelle. the Pope's Apostolic
Delegate. OH a visit to the Dominican Order
ot trIaTS. which was written in Spanish,
ana III which occur the following passages:
I'll Is forbidden hereafter forany member
cf the religious orders TO leave the Archi-
- - ~ i.IN
ii the triarS occupy parishes they will
," considered as elements OF order, and,
therefore. American agents"
AS America is thoroughly convinced of
the necessity for the retention of the Eriars
III Jhe Philippines, the monastIc orders will
he gwen the necessary prestige, which Will
he much greater than it was during the
Spanish regime" =
And. Father McKinnon who will be
appointed to high position in the Archi-
pelaeo, will protect the Friars. and be the
mediator between them and the American
authorities"
The next day. in an interview published
in the Manila Frecdom, the Archbishop
stated that there was not a word OF truth
in the article, except the fact that he visited
the members of the order 1t also stated
that he was not prepared at the present
and that no opinion would be expressed or
report made until he had made careful
examination of the situation.
VIEWS OF THE MANILA PRESS.
But this served TO open up the subject.
and the papers continue to be filled with
it. Strangely enough. nearly all the pa
pers printed III Spanish here. including
the PrOgrcso. COmerciO. Liberfds. La
Pdtrid and critic del Pueblo, seem to
favor the expulsion of the different mon
astic orders: while the papers printed i'll
WIN ilIt VI ilit L fDHpf.
seem to be equally opposed to the retention
irrthe parishes of the monks belonging to
organized orders as officiating priests.
One Filipino-Spanish paper. La Pdtrid,
in the course of long article says:
How can the people be reconciled to
those who have anaSSed enormous for
tunes by deceiving the good faith of our
ancestors. and by abusing their religion
in bringing about the deaths of our great
men. Burgos, Gomez. Zamora and Rial;
be reconclled. i'll fact. with those who by
their mischief brought, about the revolu-
ton of 1896? If, in spite of all. the Spanish
Friars are TO remain in the Philippines,
and retain all of their former privileges,
then the harm which the Catholic faith is
going to suffer in this part OF the far East
is incalculable."
Another paper, the,r Grafo del Pueblo,
which is printed part in Spanish and part
in Tagalo, in an extensive editorial says:
"An opposition to the firm resolve of the
people by reinstating those whom they
have thrown down. involves the danger of
a protest from the people put forth with
all their strength to defend their right,
even TO the sacrifice of human life if nee
essary."
These and similar expressions of the
press, and petitions from various towns
and provinces presented to Gen. Otis and
the Archbishop, have had some influence,
and public utterances have been made on
iilt ny DOtll SeIltielHtIl. SON.-
Gen. Otis said in substance that the United
States Government would never force upon
the people any ecclesiastical domination
contrary to their wishes; and Archbishop
Chapelle is reported as saying: IF the
Filipinos do not want the Friars to fill the
curacies Of the parishes, it will not be at
tempted to force them to do So."
NATIVE CATHOLICS PRESENT PETITION
The opposition to the Friars does not
come from the non-CathOlic element, as
outsiders not converSant with the con-
troversy might suppose. but from the
Catholics themselves. who desire their
native priests to officiate in the parishes
instead of priests Of the monastic orders.
suchas the Augustinlans, Franciscans and
Dominicans, and who are chiefly from
Spain. This is shown from the language
of the petitions presented one of which, as
translated from the ComerciO. coming
from the inha abitantS of the Santa Cruz
district, is as follows:
"To Mons. p. l.. Chapelle. Apostolic Del |
egate Of His Holiness Leo XII. in the Phi
lippine Islands: The undersigned, pro-
prietors, merchants, lawyers, physicians,
pharmaceutistS and other leading citizens |
of the Santa Cruz district of the City of Ma
Mia, present themselves before your Rev
erence with all due respect and veneration
and state: That they have heard it ru-
mored that the regular clergy, that is to
say, the members of the different religious
corporations now residing in these islands.
will be charged again with the salvation
Of souls. and will assume all the other
dignities which they ell
joyed throughout the Archipelago under
the long Spanish regime. Your Rev
erence cannot imagine what disagree
able effect this report has had on the Philip
pine people, who unanimously protest
against the pretension of such individuals,
who. by their hateful behavior caused to
"a great extent the revolution which shook
off the Spanish yoke in these islands.
''Ihe undersigned are stanch Catholics.
faithful sons of the Roman Church, but
they earnestly desire TO have all their
parishes and other ecclesiastical dignities
by their secular clergy with
out the interference OF the Friars in any
way.
"'The Friars are foreigners here, and are
everywhere rejected, even in Spain itself.
The best policy of the American Govern
ment, especially at the present juncture
would be not to admit5the Friars remaining
here. In making this respectful applica-
ton to Your Reverence, as the true repre-
sentative of the Common Father the under