Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-17

state Of New York the clergy and trustees
administering the great property of the
Trinity Church corporation and the clergy
and trustees invested with the direction of
the property of the Catholic Church would
be prompted to refuse obedience. not only
on religious grounds, but also by reason of
their conviction that compliance would in
volve a fragrant disregard of their moral
and material obligations as trustees. They
would look upon the law in question as
ubiquitous. as unconstitutional and would
therefore consider themselves justified in
doing nothing to express their submission
thereto.
at is inconceiyable to the American
people that the legislature of New York
Or indeed. of any other state of this
great and free republic should enact any
such laws of virtual spoliation. Yet that
Is precisely what the French government
has done.
What New Law Requires.
SIN word. the new Jaw requires of the
church the alienation of all it's property
to boards of laymen in the selection of
which 1t has virtually no voice; this board
to have full and perfect control, not only
over the funds, but seven over the religious
edfices and over the eercise of divine
worship itself Independent of pope, bish-
ops and canon law
THE property at stake consists Of about
10000 churches of which less than 800
have been built with the aid of the state
or municipality. and the property accu-
mulated by means of endowments and leg
acies during the last 100 years, since the
last cOnfiscation OF church property at the
time of the great revolution, and amount
Ing to considerably more than 100000, 600.
Only portion of this vast property Is
destined for purely ecclesiastical purposes.
the great majority of the funds being de-
signed and used for purposes of charity
and philanthropy. OF this property the
clergy. are the trustees. by virtue of the
conditions under which it was donated
and bequeathed Their acceptance of the
new law and their transfer of this property
of the trust to the associations cultuelles
world ALLEVIATE forever. the estate of the
church in reference to inquitous law
which may be repealed by another parlia-
ment.
States M. Brands Position.
''Arstide BRAND. the minister of educa-
ton in France and the author and execu-
tor OF this UBIQUITOUS law has solemnly
declared that without the written consent
Of the clergy to the establishment Of these
boards. associations cultuelles,' and
without the transfer by the clergy of the
property of the church to these bodies
there could not only be no public exercises
of divine worship. but there would also
follow the confiscation of the sacred edi-
fees. the rectories and the other ecclesias-
teal property by the state.
Like Free Kirk Fight, He Says.
There is no question of the differences
between the various religious denomina-
lions. The pope and the Roman Catholic
Church In France today are fighting with
far better justification and much greater
moderation the very war that Chalmers
and the other founders of the Free Kirk
waged in Scotland sixty years ago for the
crown rights of Christ
The clergy of France. in one word. are
fighting the battle RI Christendom and
should have the sympathy of every Chris
tian church. no matter what its denomi-
nation. which owns property and endow-
ments to be used for divine worship and
for the dispensation of CHARITY according
to it's own lights"