Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-08
PHILIPPINE SCH|SM
The Division of the Insular
Catholic Church.
POPE PIUS' RECENT BULL
IT HAS NOT ALLAYED THE Ma
TIVE SUSPICIOUS.
Rather Has It Served to Foster the
Aglipay Movement-Text
of the Bull.
POPEPIUS' RECENT BULL

| James A. LIE Roy in the Independent.
There are various reasons why 1t is worth
while just now to pause and take stock
carefully of the religious conditions we have
| on hand in the Philippine Islands If we do
not, we may at any moment find ourselves
! surprised by a situation we ought to have
| foreseen but had not.
One reason is that the Catholic schism in
| the islands is by no means the unimportant
even amusing, movement that might have
| been expected from the character Of the
men who organized it in August 1902
Plainly told, the truth of the situation is
| that the Catholic Church in the Philippines
| is literally rent in two
Another reason, closely allied for turning
our attention to this situation is that Pope
Leo's Philippine bull of last December has,
where noticed at all in this country, been
| interpreted entirely too optimistically as
bearing on the settlement of the crucial
question in the Philippines, the friar ques-
ton. At any rate. however favorable some
of its paragraphs may have read to Ameri-
cans, in the light of Governor Tafts nego-
tiations at the Vatican, this much is GER
tain: The FilipinoS, even the more conSer-
vative. almost unanimously interpreted it
as a pro-friar document; and, whether or
not we should ascribe this mainly to their
attitude of deep-seated suspicion of every
must reckon with 1t as fact, and we
should realize that this opposition to the
bull has for nearly year back given the
schism, born of mere agitators, the moral
status of real popular movement
What of the FutureP
A third reason has to do with the future
A new pope is on the scene, and there are a
dozen reasons for expecting a more or less
new, and, at least, better defined, "Ameri-
! can policy soon to reveal itself. Confining
ourselves entirely to Philippine difficult
| ties, we might we'll frankly realize that
on our own part, we have practically broken
with our traditional policy of non-interven
| ton in church matters, and that we may
| have TO go still further in this direction be-
fore our hands are again entirely free. Gov
ernor Taft was not formally an "ambassa-
dor to the Vatican" and it is safe to say we
never shall have such representative
| there. But. far from being merely a bust
ness negotiation about friars' lands, his
mission was really diplomatic mission, by
whatever phrase we may choose to call it.
And far from implying criticism on it on
these grounds, 1t was the direct, practical,
businesslike, American way Of dealing with
a situation which whether or no, we had to
meet. Had the influence Of the orders not
been SO great at Rome and had the Vatican
accepted the drag-net protocol offered it.
along with a round sum for the friar lands,
conditioned as it was on the definite with
drawal of all regulars from priestly services
in the islands, there many reasons for
believing Rome would have preserved her
own prestige among the Filipinos, now
badly shattered and 1t is quite certain that,
! as government, we should, within a few
years, have been able to leave the church
question out of mind in the Philippines as
we do at home. But the Vatican would not
go further than to promise verbally to elm
mate the regular clergy from the Philip
pines as soon as possible" Between the
time of Governor Taft's visit and the writ
Of bull f,;o
serted themselves still more, and that docu-
| ment virtually confirmed the orders in their
tenacious hold on the islands where they
| are no longer welcome; since the publication
of that bull in the Philippines the schism
has grown till it comprises one-half of the
Christianized population; the orders have,
by so long holding their lands at exorbitant
| prices and by other defiant moves in the
face of the Filipinos greatly complicated
Mgr. Guidi's mission of conciliation-in fact
practically rendered it a failure to date; and
the outlook is good. present conditions
are, for our having the religious question
on our hands in the Philippines for quar-
ter century to come.
The Papal Bull.
The bull "Quae mari sinico' has never
been analysed or published in the United
States, except in one or two Roman Catholic
publications. and, stated. editorial COM
ments on it were few in number and wide of
the mark. 1t bears date of September II,
1902, and was published in the Philippines
in December; but it is worth while going
back to see what this new constitution of
the Apostolic Church in the Philippines is
like.
1t begins with a historic resume of the
Characterization of the islands and the
growth Of the Philippine Church under
Spain, refers to Mgr. Chappelle's mission as
one to obtain information merely and al
ludes with satisfaction to the negotiations
opened by Governor Taft, using these sig
nficant words in regard to the change of
sovereignty from Spain to the United
States:
but as the fate of arms not long since
changed the face of public affairs, SO, too,
it altered that of sacred affairs. This, be-
cause with the surrender of the Spaniards
of the sovereignty there ended also the
patronate of the kings of Spain; through
which the church has to acquire
greater liberty, and to regain, each entire
and unimpaired it's rights"
A graceful compliment TO the freedom of
religion under American rule but how will
Catholic Spain regard it?
Twelve clauses followed. Abstracted they
are:
Il. The metropolitan archbishopric of
Manila is retained, and, for better admin
istration, seven suffragan dioceses are
created in place of four, the bishoprics of
Tuguegarao, Capez and Zamboanga being
added to those of Cebu, Jaro, Nueva,
Caceres and Nueva Segovia. The Marianas
are made an apostolic prefecture"
American Bishops.
At the time the Increase in number of
dioceses was made the Vatican informally
promised the appointment of one or more
Filipino priests as bishops. Some months
ago it was decided to leave the dioceses as
they were before-viz.: four in number
Three American Catholics now fill the
bfshOprics of Cebu, Jaro and Nueva Sego-
via Cat Vigan). 1t was at first intended to
send Monsignor Rocker to Nueva Caceres
but at Monsignor Guidfs request he was
sent to Jaro, this at the moment when the
Iloilo clergy were threatening to secede if
Filipino was not made bishop. An Au-
gustinian friar Ramon Gonzalez, Span
lard, has been administering the diocese
of Nueva Caceres, and it is the general
superstition in the Philippines that he will
be formally appointed to this remaining
bishopric.
'2. Ties of amity and charity are en-
joined between the archbishop of Manila
and the seven subordinate bishops, and
frequent episcopal councils are recon-
mended.
IS. Attached to the metropolitan cathe-