The sea coast echo. [volume] (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) 1892-current, 1907-02-02
THE PERSECUTION OF
THE CHURCH In FRANCE
Paper Read at the Church of Our Lady of the
Gulf by Rev. Father j. M. Prendergast and
BY General Order of the Bishop-For the First
Time the Truth and Facts, as They Are, Given
10 the Pu5Iie-Paper Written by an Eminent
Jesuit of ST. Louis

| By order Of the Bishop, Rev. Fat he
j. NJ. Prendergast on Sunday last, a
the Church of Our Lady Of the Gulf
read the following paper, by an eminen
Jesuit of St. Louis, on the Persecution
Of the Catholic Church in France
This is the first time the truth and facts
as they are, have been given to th'
| public, and it would be we'll for every
| Catholic to acquaint him or herself
| and every person outside of the church
| with the facts.
AS there is much misinformation re-
garding the persecution of the Church
in France, the following facts will be O.
interest to those who care for truth ant
Justice.
1. This misinformation has come
from the newspapers. The newspapers
do not print the truth, because the truth
is not sent to them. For thirty-fiye
years the facts haye been suppressed
or falsif1ed. This has been done in the
German Persecution, in the Italian Per
secution, and in the French Persecution.
During this present week the news
agency has represented the war OF
France against the Church as the war
Of the Pope against France.
The fact is that there is a real and
bitter Persecution of the Church in
France; that this Persecution has been
going on since 1879; and that it is car
ried on by anti Christian organizations.
3. To understand the present Perse-
cution Alright we must look back one
hundred and fifteen years to the time OF
the Reign of Terror, in 1871, 1892 and
1893. After the dethronement of the
good King Louis Xvi, France was ruled
by revolutionary bodies: first, "Con-
stituent Assembly," then ''Legislative
Assembly,, and next, "National Con-
vention". After the King had been
beheaded and thousands of persons had
been put to death, it was found that the
killing went on too slowly. To make it
go faster, forty-four thousand guillo-
tines, that is, slaughter blocks, were set
up through the land, and then the chop
ping off of heads went on very briskly.
Altogether, two million persons were
5lau9 nt6red. A government decree was
passed against Christianity. And then
all property of every kind connected
with the Church, the converts, the
hospitals, the asylums, the schools, the
churches, the bequests and foundations
for the poor and sick that had gathered
during more than thousand years.
all was seized; and religion was replaced
by putting a depraved woman on the
altar Of the Cathedral of Notre Dame of
Paris.
4. Before that century closed, Napo-
leon Bonaparte had seized the reins of
government in France. Seeing that he
could not rule people without religion,
he addressed himself to the Pope to
have religion re-established. The Pope
was willing to enter into an agreement.
In 1901 there was signed the Concordat,
or Articles of Agreement. By the Con-
,ordat the Pope allowed such of the
stolen property of the Church as had
oeen sold by the government during the
en- years to remain undiSturbed in the |
lands of the holders. He thus relin- |
pushed the ownership of such churches, |
monasteries, schools, etc., as
lad been sold. But he relinquished no
light to any other of the stolen property |
which had not been sold. With few ex-
eptions, the churches had not been
old. These churches were to be put at
he disposition of the bishops. BY way
+ making a little restitution, slight
upport was to be given to the pastors,
= not even a small fraction of the in
crest due upon the property stolen and
old by the government.
5. In short time, then, the churches
gain had pastors. Very soon new col
'ges, seminaries, academies, lyceums,
ospitals, orphanages, homes for the
oor and the aged, etc., were once more
royided by the zeal and charity of the
eople; so that in the course of the hun
red years, up to the present time, more
ian one hundred million dollars have
sen contributed and put in trust with
riyate citizens, with the bishops and .
le pastors, for purposes of education,
charity, and of religious services.
+. Now, in this our Twentieth Cen
Try, one hundred years from the sign
g of the Concordat, the reigns of gov :
nment have again fallen into the
ands of men who represent the Reign !.
Terror.
I. These men set about their work
early as 1879, and in the next year, :
so, hundreds of Catholic churches.
lleges and schools were closed by
rec, and the religious teachers were
iven out of their homes. i,
s. Within the last three years, espe-
ally, at least sixteen thousand Catho-
schools, academies and colleges have 6
zen closed. The religious conducting a
ese establishments were told that they t
'uld ask for an authorization, and r
hen they asked for an authorization, i
elr requests were thrown into the t
lste basket. Between one and two d
lndred thousand religious convicted t
no crime. and without trial. were d