The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-01-27
@sTHE FRENCH CATHOLICS WOULD GLADLY
WELCOME SUCH Il SEPARATION OF CHURCH
AND STATE AS EXISTS IN OUR COUNTRY,


morals ana church management. The nc
OF separation takes away this authorit.
from The church and by creating the Wor
snip associations Imposes n now form o
organization entirely destructive OF churcl
discipline and government The essentials
of Catholicity are its code OF morals. III
dogma, and Its hierarchy. The very es
sence OF the hierarchy is the subordina
1lon OF the flock to tho shepherd Thi:
so-called act OF separation reveraes thi.
order Of things and makes tho shepherd
subject to the flock or q portion of It.
This Is not legislating for the church, but
destroying 1t. and vet Mr.. Watson says
that mo Catholic In all the broad scope
OF this American republic would think for
one moment of denying TO the constituted
authorities OF the state the right to use
the same legislative power which the
church Is now combating in France"
Mr.. Watson may be a careful historian,
he Is brilliant writer. but he Is utterly
wrong In the comparison he draws be-
tween tho situation In the United States
and that sought to be established in
France by the act of separation.
Method of Creation Vague.
The act itself is remarkably vague con-
corning tho method OF creation of these
committees; and tho limits to their
duliioiity hlG ny uO U1etllS ue1lIlcu, DUC
above all. the most serious defect Is that
there Is nothing in the act permanently
vesting the title to the church property
In the worship associations themselves, SO
that once Rome has Invested herself OF all
claim or title to the church property and
the management and control have devov-
ed upon the association. there is no pro-
tective clause or hint of one whereby the
perpetual use and enjoyment of even the
church buildings is guaranteed by the
state, which has shown itself in the past
to be lacking in common honesty. Does
any one wonder why the pope. remember
Ing the past action of tho French repub-
lie, hesitates to divest the church of its
title to all this property even though n
failure so to do has closed the doors Ot
every church In France. This Is the only
way "the pope has melted the people to
violate the law" according to Mr.. Wat
son. He tells them not to give away the
church property to these committees; that
is the head and front of his offending.
This act of separation. whereby tho
church and state are nearly separated as
they are in this country $50 says Mr..
Watson). provides in Article 4 that all
jurisdiction In church matters is practical
~ vested in tho lay committee, with no
mention of priest or hishon. ara ~ srticla
S a body of politicians, composing the
council of state. holding official positions
under the government, are constituted
the arbitrator In all questions of dispute
between the ordinary of diocese and the
committee to whom the management Of
the church property has been consigned,
should such dispute arise, just as it is
in this country, if we are to believe Mr..
AS matter of fact. the French Catho-
1ias pla .,
ton of church and state as exists in this
great country of ours-a real separation,
not a travesty upon one. The Catholic
church remembers and has always taught
the lesson impaired by Christ when He
looked upon the image of Tiberius Caesar,
read the superscription upon the Roman
coin and rebuked the Pharisees who tried
to entrap Him, saying: Render, there
fore, to Caesar the things that are Gaze
sars,'' etc. But Mr. Watson declares
that the situation In this country is what
the republic of France desires and that
this law will put it into operation. When
did any state or federal government in
the United States ever rob religious
community of its property in defiance of
law and common honesty? When has
any government attempted TO dictate and
control religious worship in this country?
When has any government in this country
ever taken or attempted to take from the
bishops of the various doceses or the
boards of church trustees the title to
church property and place it in the hands
of secular committees to be governed by
the state? When did any government in
this country ever shut the doors OF
churches and prohibit public worship be-
cause the church communities would not
surrender control of their property and
give up all direction and management
of same? And vet Mr.. Watson says that
"our forefathers already have done what
France is doino to-d1v.'
The abrogation of the concortlat and the
act OF shparation were nor caused Nv any
irresistible wave Of public opinion in
France. Rarely in the history Of free peo-
pie has there been a similar case of legis-
lation, SO radical, SO revolutionary. so
far-reaching in character, passed without
a strong popular demand. No such de-
mand has been made by the French peo-
pie, who have looked on with apparent
ignorance of the effect of the operation of
this act. The socialists. as the extreme
left wing of the anti-clercal radicals, have
been unrestraned in their atheistic ana
anti-religious zeal and are instrumental
in the passage of this law. vigorously
aided by the Free Masons of Franco. ut
may not be generally known that the
relations with tho French E'r.ea NIasons
when these Free Masons struck the name
of God from their constitution and their
rltuaD.
In Conclusion.
In conclusion, I can only repeat that the
anomalous feature of this act OF separa-
ton consists in it's not being a law OF
separation Of church ana state. 1t Is 4
law of establishment by virtue of which
tho church must formally acknowledge
title In the state to nearly all of It's pro-
perty, lose a revenue of about nine and
Of millions Of dollars ana
obtain the privilege Of nominating its own
bishops, who have no voice IN the man
agcment of either the parishes or the
churches. BY this law there is no real
liberty given the church. but irritating
Interference on all occasions, and to my
mind, the pope could not consistently for
one moment assent to such an arbitrary
substitution for the concordat, n contrast
dignitied by existence and operation for
more than one hundred years.
Yours truly
JNO. CARROLL PAYNE