Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-12-18
WAR IN TRANCE
The Rev. John 6. Murray Ex, plains Situation in a Sermon.

| F
 pit of St Joseph's cathedral, at Hart
 ford at 9 o'clock and the 10:30 masses
 Sunday, on the trouble between the
 French government and the vatican l At the lO:30 mass the celebrant was the Rev Francis A. Jordan, who was
 a former curate at St Patricls's in this
 city. The Rev Thomas $. Duggan was the deacon and the Rev Edward
 NJ. Hayes sub-deacon. There was a Illarge congregation present.
 Father Murray announced that on
 next Sunday at vespers the present
 relations between the French govern ment and the vatican will be the sub Ject of the sermon in the cathedral
 Father Murray gave, in an interest. ing manner, the history of the con
 cordat between Napoleon I. and Pope Plus VII, by which the French gov ernment guaranteed to provide for the maintenance of the church ill France The property of the church
 had been confiscated by the govern ment during the French revolution. This concordat continued for almost a century. In 1901 the law of associa. tions was adopted under which many of the religious orders were deprived of existence in France and their members were expelled from the
 country, and subsequently came the
 rupture between France and the vatican on the point of the disciplin- ing of the bishops Of Laval and Di-
 jon, whom the Pope deprived of their
 bishoprics.
 The church maintained that the
 concordat implied bilateraI con.
 tract which could not De broken with
 out regard for the interests of both
 parties. She had relinquished her
 claim to certain properties which
 were hers by just title of proprle-
 torship, on condition that the state
 would contribute to the support of public worship. Hence, she consider
 ed the method of separation unjust,
 inasmuch as the interests of the sec ond party to the concordat were ig- nored. On the other hand, the French government maintained that 1t would not deal with any foreign power and treated the church, as mere political organization.
 The church by her very nature claims catholicity as a distinctive characteristic. She 2 cannot be. re- stricted by the practice of any par ticular country. She is universal but must have an authoritative head and 9 seat of government. and in adjust ing the relations between the reli- gious interests of her members and the state she should be treated as a complete society that has authority and her own distinctive constitution. In her dealings with France she de- sired not to be considered a political power but complete religious so- ciety. Her existence as such complete religious society during 10 centuries entities her to recognition by other societies. social or political, whose ex- istence she antedates. She claims in- dependence, in al. religious matters and asks only fair treatment in those relations which bring her into con. tact with social or civil power. Hence she could not justly permit her claims to be ignored and her property to be taken from her without a protest. X Catholic church by its very nature is the abode of the living Christ and is dedicated to religious worship for all time. Her sacred temples cannot be appropriated to any profane use and the pope as head of the church could not agree to any arrangement that was contrary to the organization of the church. The appropriation of the churches and the property of the church on the part of the state was an act of injustice.
 Father Murray said the second point at issue arose from the nature of law which was to be a substitute for the conoordat. The principle involved in the establishment by the state of associations for the exercise of pub- lie worship was directly contrary 10 the very nature and constitutions of the church. She claims that her doctrine and authority are based on a revealed religion transmitted through the properly constituted officers of the Hence the pope. the bishops and the clergy must be recognized in. the establishing of any governing body which Is to control the inter- esfs of the church. Her ministers are appointed the custodians of her doc. lrine. ner authority and all her prop critics, The associations established by the. government of France exclude all ecclesiastics from membership.