Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-09
FRANCE To FACE
CRISIS IN CHURCH
RULE VERY SOON
Pope Plus Advice is for Manly
-. Resistance.
so THE PRESS TAKES IT
Newspapers Throw the Responsibility
on the French Government.
BISHOPS ADOPT WISEST COURSE
Some Journals Suggest the Acceptance
of the Separation Law for Fear
of Something Worse.

The Church of France is con-
fronted by the most serious con-
fict in its history, and the outcome
is awaited with intense interest all
over the world. The French press
is somewhat at sea, but the domi-
nant note is for opposition to the
government and its separation law.
The attitude of Pope Plus is taken
to mean resistance, so that the
French people may be awakened
from their lethargy in church mat
tiers. The great gravity of the
situation is conceded throughout
the republic.
Special Cablegram to The Star.
PARIS. September S.-The unanimous
opinion in government and Catholic circles
is that the French bishops in council adopt
ed the wisest course possible in face of the
crisis now before them. The directions of
the Vatican were that no positive action
should be taken by the bishops and that
they should wait until December II, the
day on which the government will turn the
bishops and parish priests out of their
presbyteries. seminaries and episcopal pal
aces and close the churches.
Mgr Sueur archbishop of Avignon de-
clares in pastoral letter that while the
situation is critical it is not desperate. and
that an understanding is still possible. In
these circumstances the bishops have a
heavy responsibility, but they will know
how to bear it courageously and without
finching.
The action of the plenary council was
conservation in the extreme, the advice of
the reactonaries being entirely ignored
Currents of Public Opinion.
Two currents of public opinion are mani
Testing themselves with growing clearness.
One is the effort of the clerical and mon
archst press to throw the responsibility for
the conflict which it anticipates upon the
French government and legislature and to
defend the pope against the anti-republican
tendencies of which he is accused by charg-
ing the majority with having begun the
struggle. On the other hand, all sections
of the genuinely republican element express
in different tones their profound regret and
dissatisfaction with the nature of the popeS
intervention in French affairs There Is
practically consensus of opinion among
the republicans that politics play too large
q part in the pope's decision, which are
greatly to the detriment of France. The
attitude Of such staunch opponents of the
separation law as the d ebats and the mod
crate republican Repubique Francaise is
highly significant of the dissatisfaction ex-
cited by the Vatican policy among its for
defenders. The latter newspaper re-
calls that for thirty-six years the one
thought of the reactionaries has been to
use religion as weapon and to secure the
support of the altar for the restoration of
the throne. The constant result of those
monotonous tactics has been the defeat of
the reactionaries and reprisals against the
Catholics 1t warns sincere Catholics to be
taught by the past and not to yield to the
dangerous indictments OF politicians.
NJ. de Lanessan, in the Steele, warns the
bishops that the position of the church was
perhaps never more critical than at pres
ent owing to THE encyclical, and that to-
day there is not a single republican who
does not regard the pope determined
enemy of the republic. 1t is for the bishops
to show the French people that they are
not more Roman than French. The church
in this country WILL he says, be forced to
return to its former galicanism if it is not
to succumb TO the mistrust excited by
utramontanism and the growing resent
ment against the papacy.
The Spirit of Cancellation.
in the spirit of conciliation is that made
by the liberal Catholic organ of Lyons, the
weekly newspaper Domain. This paper
Gays that inasmuch as all relations are
broken of between the Vatican and the
yrench government. the pope had no other
Sheans of attempting a discussion with the
Wrench state and of informing it of the
condition sine quo non of acceptance of the
new order of things by the church. Yet,
admits this journel, IL the French govern
ment were to agree to resume CONVERSE
tions with the Vatican. separation would no
. longer exist. and no government could agree
thus to violate the principle of a law ap-
proved by the country. This paper sug-
gests that an assembly of bishops should
judged Unacceptable by the Catholic
conscience and then send delegation to
the government to explain Loyalty the
Catholic demands The government can re-
whom ii ignores but II could not refuse to
receive and listen to French citizens repre-
sentng thousands of other French citi-
zens.
of Napoleon the Third. is absolutely con-
WINGED that the pope's encyclical signifies
resistance. IL Is. he says, pureile to sup
pose that secret instructions from Rome or
the decisions of the episcopale itself could
minimize or abrogate. the formal and irri-
vocable prohibition by the holy see against
accepting In any form the regime estab-
lished by the separation law. The assem-
bly, of the bishops and the latitude which
is accorded to them. far from opening up
an opportunity for an arrangement with
the law, show the firm determination to
ignore II since the organization which the
bishops Will have to form is not that pre-
seribed by the separation law, but that
which all citizens authorized to form
by the common law. A conflict can be
! avoided only by the government and not