Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-09-21
CONSUL ANSWERS
CATHOLIC BISHOPS
Denies Charge Gales Gov
eminent Is "TyrannicaI."
Reviews Mexican History.

Reviews Mexican History.
NEW YORK. September 2t-The
following statement was issued toda
by NJ. G.. Prieto, the acting consul
general of Mexico:
In the columns of the press ON
September Is appeared a statement
by the Catholic bishops OF the United
States. in which the adminst ration
of President Gales was referrssl to
as a tyrannical government. The
same article contained the statement
that the Mexican Catholics are tho
real champions in Mexico of religious
and civil liberty
In the interest OF fair play. I ASK
space i'll the press of the United
States, to place certain facts before its
people.
THE only possible basis upon which
the Catholic bishops of this country
can charge the Mexican government
with being n tyrannical one is nc in.
slStenCe upon President Gales part
that the sovereign will of tho Next
can people as expressed in its con.
Slttutton must he ohcyed ny every
one. irrespective of their position in
society: that the archbiShOps and
| bishops of the Catholic Church i'm
Mexico must obey the law just as the
hublest citizen must obey it.
Mexican Prclates' Position.
No statement has ever been mad,
by the catholic hierarchy of McNi,u
| that the laws which President Gales
insists must be- oheyed are in any way
extra leSal. They have. however. a!-
rOEated to themselves the right 10 >ul-
that these laws should never hate
been placed in the constitution. ard
not only have they refused to obc>-
them, but some of the bishops tavc
issued statements saying that m"
laws of tho church are superior .n
the civil laws Of the country. II was
this attitude of the Catholic hierarchr
that brought about the present -p-
called religious crisis
THE statement of the Catholic
bishops of the United States that tho
Catholic hierarchy in Mcvico is fear.
leSs!y resisting armed force in defense
of the inalienablc rights of man is
not IN ConSonauCe with the known
facts. Not one priest i'm Mexico v9s
! driven out of a single Ulac" of public
worship. Nor an attcmpt was mad
by the government 70 Interfere With
the spiritual functions Of the church
Upon President Gales REFUSED to an
| ro=ate the provisions of the CnnStittl-
ton, which. i'm his oath Of office h.
had sworn to 'ohev. the Catholic
hierarchy of Mexico left the churches
and refused to administer in public
places of worship the consultations Of
religion To the people
AS to the assertion that the Cath
Ole hierarchy of Mexico are the real
champions of religious and civil ill.,
erty. | beg leave to submit the fol
lowing facts. all of which can he veri-
! fled in histories of Mexico. written.
not by MeXicanS. hut by we'll known
writer's of the United States, such rs
! the historian. Bancroft
Refers to InquisitiOn.
"A quarter of a century after the
| people of the United states had
| achieved their independence and
! founded a Government in which
| church and state were absolutely di
vorced, the bishops of Mexico were
still conducting the inquisition.
"A half-century after independence
had come to the United States. the
bishops of Mexico We're supporting
the forces of reaction in that country
which guaranteed the church special
privileges. including responsibility
only to ecClesia Stical courts and rcCog-
ton of the Catholic as the only re-
ligion allowed to he taught in Mexico.
Nearly a century and half after
the United States had become IL free
Nation. the Mexican bishops were sup
porting the militarSt, NiCtOriauu
Huerta, and their spokesman in tn"
United States, Bishop Francis &. k"i-
ley, was publicly denouncing the pres
enCe of the Protestant ministers in
Mexico as an insult To its people and
charging them with making atheists
and infidels Of those influenced Ivy
their teachings.
Asserts Claims DisprOved.
"These facts disprove absolutely he
claims in the statement of the Amcri-
can Catholic bishops that the Catholic
bishops in Mexico are the real cham
pionS of religious liberty.
LAS to the record Of the Mexican
bishops on civil liberty, the following
incontrovertible facts are submitted:
"On the 10th OF September. 1910. Il
humble Catholic priest raised the ban
ner Of revolt against the Spanish
tyramtS. His name was Father ilidal-
go For this OffenSe he was eNc"m-
municated by the Catholic bishops.
and suffered a most cruel death at
the hands of the Spanish rulers.
Another Catholic priest. Father More
los. who took his place. was in turn
communicated and killed
when the Spanish power fell the
Catholic bishops of Mexico backed the
us,Irper ItIlrhide. who proclaimed
himself emperor and continued the
sDeciaI privileges of the church. For
the next 40 years the Mexican Church
hier:trrhV as a matter of absolute
record supported every reactionarv
government and attacked every lih-
eral one.
Regime of Macmillan.
"Nhen. in spite of all they could
do. it seemed that the liberal elements
in Mexico were to triumph under
.J,,arez. the Archbishop nf Mexico
went to Europe intrigued with Ma
poleon Bonaparte III, brought
French army to Mexican soil. and
placed Maximilan Archduke Of
Austria. on the throne Of Mexico as
emperor supported by the bayonets
of an alien army. For years the soil
of Mexico was drenched with the
blood of it's people by this French
army. whose presence there would
have beeh impossible without the in
nuencp of the Catholic hierarchy.
"Always their record has been one
of opposition to all enlightenment
that the statesmen of Mexico strug-
gled to bring to its people. Always
has the Catholic hierarchy been ar.
rayed on the side of the huge and
owners. who kept the poems in state
of virtual slavery. Every liberal
principle has been anathema 10 them.
The enlightened social legislation
which the Obregon and Gales admins
trations have sought to put int" oper-
alton has found in the Mexican hier-
archy the most bitter of opponents.
Being themselves the seekers OF Spe-
cial privileges for the church. they
have ,hampioned the special priv-
leges of the great land owners. the
| financial interests and what large IN
dustrialists there are In Mexico.