The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1917-03-10
NEW MEXICAN CONSTITUTION

would blush that they ever called
Mexico a sister republic.
| During the presidency of Ignacio
Commonfort the Constitution of 1857
was adopted, which declared the
separation of Church and State. In
the years following innumerable laws
systematized the provisions of the
| Constitution enforcing the separation
and gradually deprived the Church of
every vestige of her rights or privi-
| leges. In 1850 law was promulgated
| which forbade public officials in their
| official capacity to assist at any re-
| ligious ceremony or entertainment in
| honor of clergyman no matter how
high in rank ne might be. In the same
year all male religious orders, what
ever their name or purposes, were
suppressed throughout the whole re-
public, as also all confraternities, con-
gregations or sisterhoodsl annexed to
| the religious communities, to cathe-
drals, or any other churches. The
foundation or erection of new con-
vents, under whatever form or name,
was prohibited The religious were
| forbidden to wear the garb or habit
of their order The books and manu-
scripts, the paintings and any other
works of art belonging to religious
communities were confiscated and
placed in the public museums. By q
law passed in the same year all prop
erty which under whatever titles had
been administered by the secular or
regular clergy became the property of
the State. From that time no relig
| iOus institution was permitted to ac
quire property or derive revenue from
any property.
In 1873 an article was added to the
Constitution which forbade religious
rites or demonstrations of any kind
whatsoever to take place outside of
! the church building in any part OF
the republic. Officials of the republic
were forbidden to recognize in their
official capacity any religious solemn
tiles. The priests and religious were
| forbidden to wear in public special
dress or insignia which would char
acterize them in any way. Conviction
Of violation of this law carried with
it a fine up to two hundred dollars.
A year later it was decreed that lega.
cies made in favor of ministers of re-
ligion or their relatives to the fourth
degree, who had rendered spiritual
aid to testators in their last illness,
or who had been their spiritual direc-
tors, were null and void. Two years
later all the hospitals and charitable
institutions under ecclesiastical au-
thority or managed by religious cor
porations were secularized and placed
under the immediate supervision of
the civil authorities. This law was
strengthened by an act of 1904, which
prohibited priests or religious from
being directors, administrators, or
even patrons of any charity.
| The whole history of Constitutional
Government in Mexico was a systema-
tized effort to wipe out of the country
!, every vestige of religion. In spite of
this we hear the charge that the Cath
; olic Church is responsible for the I'M
: happy conditions in Mexico Now a
| sacrilegious bandit completes the
| work of infamy. After sacking
! churches, looting converts, torturing
| and killing priests, debauching nuns,
; forgetting every instinct of decency
: and morality, the followers of Carran.
"a adopt a Constitution that will con.
f tinue the work, and they call their
7 Government Republic.