The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1915-02-13
THE CHURCH IN SCANDINAVIA

OF cATHoLlciTY IN THE
NoRTHLANDS-G ADUAL RE-
TURN TO THE TRUE FOLD.
Throughout the Scandinavian coun-
tries there is steady and rapid adj
vancement of the Catholic Church,
writes Morse convert in the San
Francisco Monitor. Denmark, which
was the first of these countries to
assume Christianity which then meant
Catholicism, was also tho first to
abandon it for the Lutheran doctrines,
and exercising then the political
sway over lbs sister countries in the
North, did much to bring about the
loss Of the Catholic faith there.
But Denmark was also the first to
make great strides toward a return to
Mother Church The arrival in Copen-
hagen some thirty or more years ago
of the Princess Marie of Bourbon,
an ardent Catholic, who became the
wife of Prince Waldemar, gave the
greatest impetus. The Princess
Marie had knack of making herself
popular She was a character, as the
saying goes. Her one hobby was the
fire department, and she became so
skilled in the handling OF fire by
honorary chief of the department.
When not positively prevented she
would attend every fire of any magni
tude, wearing a uniform and helmet
and closely watching the proceed
ings.
The fire department in most places
is a popular institution. 1t helps us
out of trouble and saves our lives
occasionally. And so the Princess
Marie became a most popular woman.
What she did must be comme-il-faut.
What she taught must be right. And
thus her very presence had a great
deal TO do with the rapid conversion
from the Lutheran church back to
Mother Church.
Religious Freedom in Denmark.
Historically speaking, the reintro-
duction and further spread of the
Catholic Church in Denmark dates
back to the year 1848, when King
Frederick VII gave his people Il
constitution in which was granted
and guaranteed not only political,
but also religious freedom to all. 1t
was at that time that the Catholic
Church was allowed to resume her
mission of saving souls in that nation
where Professionalism had reigned alb
solutely since the introduction of the
Reformation. Nevertheless, it was no
easy task for the first Catholic mis-
sionaries to penetrate this exclusively
Protestant domain. But these men
undertook that difficult work with a
fearless and apostolic spirit and there
fore they met with astonishing sue
cess.
When they arrived in Denmark they
found only two Catholic churches,
which were allowed to exist there as
exceptions to the above mentioned
rule. The one was in Frederick, a
little fortress on the east coast of Jut-
land, and the other in Copenhagen.
The former was the parish church Of
small Catholic community of about one
hundred and thirty members, the re-
mainder of an originally much larger
parish. These Catholic people were
allowed to remain in Frederick and
to worship in the old Catholic faith by
special permission.
The other Catholic Church tolerated
in Denmark was the. church OF the
Austrian embassy in Copenhagen,
where the Bishop of the Danish mis-
sions now resides. The priests of that
church were absolutely forbidden to,
spread the Catholic faith among the
Protestant population. They were for
hidden to preach in Danish to prevent
the people from learning anything
about the true religion. Even the
church building had to be constructed
in special manner; it could have
neither spires nor bells, nor windows
facing the street, from which, further
more, it had to be separated by an
iron fence. In short, it looked more
like Jail than church.
To-day things are very different.
Not only the civil government, but,
what is of more Importance, the
Protestant population itself shows a
federation towards the Catholic
Church, priests and people, which
is quite unusual in other non@Cath-
Ollie countries. Even the Protestant
ministers, with very few exceptions,
refrain from speaking in the pulpit
and writing in the press against the
ever-advancing Catholic movement.
And so where there were only two
Catholic churches at the beginning of
the missionary labors, there are today
more than thirty parishes in the diff
ferent cities of Denmark, to which
are attached converts, schools and
hospitals.
Condition in Norway.
As to the second northern country,
Norway, the Bishop of Christiania,
Mgr. Fallize, assures us that there is
no country where the Catholic Church