FRENCH CATHOLICS AND SOCIAL WORK

New Zealand Tablet, 23 January 1913, Page 11

FRENCH CATHOLICS AND SOCIAL WORK

(By Henry Y. Arkell, in the IJihbert Journal.)

THE STORY OF A RENAISSANCE

There are unmistakable signs that the powerful radical party which for twelve years has dominated the political life of France is losing its hold over the country, and that its work is done. What that work was is now manifest. As long as it was a question of attacking the Church, it was united and strong; as soon, however, as it became necessary to proceed to legislation of any other sort, it showed incoherence and incapacity. The writer, who has' passed the last twenty years in Paris as a newspaper correspondent, is of opinion that the moment is. ripe for a retrospect that will determine whether, even in the great work it had at heart, Radicalism has not proved a failure. For one of the most remarkable signs of the times is the progress made by the Roman Catholic Church in France since the separation.

When M. Waldeck-Rousseau founded the bloc, [the anti-Catholic party in the French Parliament] his idea was to punish the Assumptionists and the Jesuits for the part they had played in the Dreyfus affair, lie saw that a vast number of unauthorised religious congregations, by their wealth and influence, were a danger to the State. To aim at them, he introduced his Associations Bill, in which it was provided that every association that did not submit its statutes, the list of its members, and the nature of its property to. Parliament, and obtain the authorisation of Parliament, was an illegal association, and therefore to be suppressed. The eminent statesman disavowed any desire to touch the congregations that were recognised by the State as of * public utility.’ M. Combes, who succeeded him, put the Associations Law into operation in a way which shortened the days of Waldeck-Rousseau, whose last words in the Senate were words of reproach.

The Concordat Repudiated.

M. Combes, in fact, caused the Chamber of Deputies to reject all the demands for authorisation, without any exceptions whatever. At a single blow the non-authorised congregations were swept away altogether. The next step was to include the authorised congregations in the same drastic measure. This meant the abolition of the Christian Brothers, and the dispersal of the Church school-teachers. In 1904 it became the law that no member of a religious congregation could be engaged in the work of education, and especially of primary education. Thus it was that very soon M. Combes was able to declare in Parliament that he had closed 20,000 Church .schools.; In reality, the actual number was 16,000.

Severe as were these blows to the Church, the Radical Government had by no means finished its task. The rupture of diplomatic relations with the Holy See was

effected with an abruptness that indicated open' war. Not only did the French Ambassador to the Vatican leave Rome without observing the usual diplomatic courtesies, but the situation of Mgr. Montaguini, who was left in charge of current affairs after the departure of the Nuncio from Paris, was made intolerable. Eventually, M. Clemenceau had Mgr. Montagnini conveyed across the frontier as an undesirable. . The Concordat, the celebrated treaty concluded between Napoleon and Pius VII. on July 15, 1801, which as a bilateral contract could not be abrogated by one of the parties only, was treated by the French Government as though it had no existence. Finally, M. Aristide Briand’s Separation Bill, adopted in July, 1905, brought matters to a supreme crisis.

The Church Despoiled.

The Catholics were told in this Bill that if they wished to retain possession of the Church property they must form themselves into Associations for - Religious Worship. Probably, if the Pope had not interfered, those parish boards would have been accepted. The alternative was so appalling that many were of the opinion that no other course was open than submission. Pius X., however, was firmly pursuaded that the Association for Religious Worship, subject as it would be to civil authority, could only lead to servitude and schism, and the Pontiff’s attitude settled • the point onbe and for all. The non po.ssumns of Rome had the effect of irritating the Radical camp. The Bishops’ palaces, the seminaries, and the presbyteries were seized Pious foundations, valued at £20,000,000, were confiscated, and divided among the 36,000 communes. Careful inventories were taken in all the churches and chapels throughout the laud, so that not even, the most trifling object might be in the possession of the clergy,' To shut up the churches was found to be an impossible task, so the clergy were allowed to have the use of them. At first it was attempted to prohibit any priest performing any religious function without having first asked permission of the civil authority. It was no uncommon thing, in M. Clemenceau’s time, for the police to draw up a charge against a priest for saying Mass, but public opinion in the end made, its ■ voice heard.

A Century of Bondage.

In 1906, then, the French Church found itself absolutely denuded of everything. No congregations, no schools, no funds, no salaries, no church, buildings, no church treasurers, no seminaries, no residences for the clergy, no rank,-no position. In exchange, however, there was the gift of Liberty. The hundred, years under the Concordat were *{ century of bondage. Napoleon had, for .purposes of his own, added the Organic Articles to the Concordat. They were, he said, the logical interpretation of the Concordat. By these articles, it was forbidden for French Bishops to meet together, whether in council or otherwise. So minute were the details in all- that concerned what the clergy might or might: not do, that even the color of the stockings they wore was specified. Prelates and, parish priests were simply high officials, and had very little contact with the people. Rome was powerless to refuse the nominees of the French Government when dioceses were to be filled up, and hence the French Bishops came to be regarded as ‘prefects in purple.’ Even the nomination of a cure, or parish priest, required the permission of Government.

Facing a New Situation.

The separation created a completely different situation. To the wonder of Parisians, a council of eightysix French Archbishops and Bishops was seen to be Held in a stately chateau belonging to the Erard family adjoining the Bois de Boulogne. For the first time the voice of Catholic France was heard in tones of energy and independence. That was six years ago. ’ Since then, many prelates have passed away, their places being filled up by the Holy See. The Episcopate has been renewed in quite another form. His Holiness wants apostolic men, and canonical chapters never fail to send to Rome the best names they can select. The Bishops are free to appoint as parish priests the members of their clergy who have given signal proofs of earnest

living. Their own lives are shorn of the glittering externals of the past. They are content to reside in plain and unpretentious buildings, for which they pay rent like ordinary citizens, and their principle is contact with the people. The custom of holding a diocesan congress every year is gaining ground. The Bishop fills the chair, and he is supported by laymen distinguished in literature and the arts, in commerce and industry and agriculture. The Bishop of Orleans has set the example of joining in the ‘ popular banquets ’ that are held once a month in the parishes of his diocese, where, at two francs a head, the farmers and the . countrymen may share with ‘Monseigneur’ the humble fare and greet him as ‘ one of ourselves.’

Reconstructing the Catholic School System.

The question of the schools was of pressing importance. Although primary education is obligatory in Prance, the law of 1882 allows the existence of the church school, or free school, as well as that of the State school or lay school. By suppressing the teaching congregations, M. Combes evidently thought that French children who attended the free schools would be forced into the lay schools. The Bishops undoubtedly were" dreadfully harassed to find a solution. For a time a number of Church schools were kept on by the disbanded teachers, who after all had their diplomas, and were qualified as individuals to teach. In the meanwhile, training colleges were started; and gradually new Church schools sprang up, until at this moment there is fair prospect of lost ground being recovered. Nevertheless a vast number of Catholic children are obliged to frequent' the State schools, against which there would be no insuperable objection but for the fact that the neutrality promised by Jules Ferry is more honored in the breach than in the observance. It grew to be the fashion to teach in many of the State schools that belief in God and in future life was a superstition of the Dark Ages, and that religion and reason were contradictory terms. Hence, in 1910 the French Bishops published a collective letter condemning some of the text-books that were used in the State schools, and calling on Christian parents to protect the faith of their children. The answer to that appeal was the creation of associations'of heads of families, pledged to watch over the kind of instruction given in the State schools, and to take action accordingly. There are about 400,000 French fathers who take part in this movement a truly formidable result. As a consequence, although Government threatened repressive measures, and introduced two Bills to that effect to Parliament, two years have been allowed to pass without further action being taken, a proof that the Catholic party has grown strong enough to show effective resistance.

Many Priestly Vocations.

It was confidentially anticipated by the adversaries of the Roman Catholic Church that few young men would be found disposed to become candidates for Orders once the Separation was effected. Undoubtedly there was reason for this conjecture, for vocations had fallen to a -very low ebb in the two or three years that preceded the abolition of the Concordat. But here again there was a great surprise. Last year, for example, the candidates for the priesthood seeking admission mto the Grand Seminary more than doubled the contingents of previous years. Strange to say, these vocations are not confined to youths, but include already-formed men, men of culture and ability, who, whether from disappointments, or from disgust of the world, prefer to devote themselves to the ecclesiastical career. As far as may be judged, there is no longer any real disquietude in episcopal minds on the point of priestly recruits.

Winning Men Back to the Church. - The fact remains that in the past few years 450,000 Parisians have been won over to the Church, who before lived without any kind of religion. Monsignor Pages, one of Cardinal Amette's indefatigable VicarsGeneral, is the head of an organisation that has constructed in the last few years no fewer than 54 places of worship, in and around Paris, of which 24 form new parishes. As soon as a new church is opened, it is crowded. The proofs afforded of this are so many,

that the fact is unquestionable. The Diocesan Committee, aware that country peasants are constantly flocking to Paris in the hope of doing better there than in their cottages, has had the idea of writing to provincial cures to inform the ecclesiastical- authority; of -Paris every time ,any of their parishioners migrate to the capital. They are thus prevented from becoming isolated and lost in the perils of a great city. _ Parish committees are formed in every parish, gathering the men together in a common purpose. These committees are said to -

The Work of One Apostle.

It requires a considerable amount of - courage for a priest to show' himself in certain low districts in and around Paris. A new commune called Pavillons-sous-Bois was erected five years ago. The Municipal Council took as. its programme, ‘Neither soldier nor priest for us.’ The inhabitants were wild, unruly people, who never set foot in a church or place of worship of any kind. The Archbishop of Paris sent for the Abbe Alfonsi, a young Corsican priest, and charged him with the mission of evangelising Pavillons-sous-Bois. That was in 1908. The Abbe hired a tumble-down house, and said "Mass in his dining-room. The landlord drove him away. The Abbe went elsewhere. • The Municipality immediately changed the names of the streets around the temporary chapel for! titles notoriously odious to Catholics. The revolutionaries swore , they would have the Abbe’s ‘ skin,’ but already a nucleus of well-meaning people were interested in his work. At last he opened his new church. A mob of apaches, headed by one of the Bonnot gang, surrounded the building while the inaugural - ceremony was going on, and kept up a discordant din of yells and cries, finishing up with the ‘ Internationale ’ and ‘ Down with the priest! ’ He has now a congregation of five thousand practical Christians. Among tho parish works of the intrepid Abbe are technical schools for apprentices, free registry-offices for working people seeking situations, a dispensary, conferences of St.- Vincent de Paul for assisting the poor and destitute, a corps of young men whose duty it is to escort and protect young girls from insult and outrage to and from work. Only those who know the perils of Paris can imagine what this means. It has been found that one man is sufficient to protect a railway compartment full of workgirls from molestation.

The Church Getting Close to the People.

One of the worst neighborhoods in Paris is that of Clichy, for long years abandoned and neglected. The pastor and his curates are now doing wonders in this vast parish of working people. The church is made the centre of social action, which gradually is forming a New Clichy. The registry offices are opened every day to all citizens, , without distinction and without payment. _ Every . Tuesday morning a doctor of the Medical Faculty of Paris, gives free consultations. Every Tuesday afternoon a properly-qualified surgeondentist offers his services. A Mutual Benefit Society groups together the families of New Clichy, and has been approved by Government. There is a Study Club for youths. Professor Faribault conducts gratuitously courses in mechanical design. There are recreation rooms, including a billiard-ropm, for working men and youths to pass their evenings. Every two months a theatrical performance is * given. . . The Action Sociale is the parish newspaper. The Fresh-air Colony is to give poor families a few days in the country or at the seaside every summer. The Co-operative Sewing Class is to provide poor dressmakers with work in the shops or at their homes, the system being carried out on co-operative lines. There is a bureau for gratuitous legal advice, given by a number of barristers belonging to the Paris Court of Appeal. Thus the poor people are protected from grasping landlords, and are made acquainted with the rights accorded them by tho law in cases of labor accidents! Lectures are regularly given on religious, social, or economic problems. There is a free library containing 3000 volumes, attached to which is a reading-room, where workmen find pen, ink, and paper to write their letters. The Conference of St. Vincent d© Pftul gives private aid to necessitous

families of the parish. An organisation enables poor parishioners to purchase furniture, kitchen utensils, and garments at practically cost price. In the Mid-day Kitchen is the mid-day meal provided for the school children whose parents are out at work. The Villa du Nouveau Clichy is a big chateau in Brittany, turned into a convalescent home and place of rest for the sick and old people in the parish.

Social and Religious Work.

- In enumerating the many social enterprises undertaken at Clichy, the purpose here is to point out what can be done, and what is intended to be done, throughout industrial France. Clichy perhaps has made more headway than other parishes, but they are quickly following up. Of course the social action of the clergy is inalienably associated .in their minds with spiritual action. Sooner or later they are persuaded that they will get the men to come to church. It is slow work, but there is promise of success. In the diocese of Orleans, for example, some village cures have made interesting experiments. As a rule, in the small communes, not more than eight or ten men would put their foot in a church on Sundays, and then they would stand near the doors, indifferent and unconcerned. The pastor solved the problem by reserving a number of special benches near the sanctuary, and goodnaturedly inviting the farm-laborers and wood-cutters to take their places' there. Then they printed some very simple manuals, so that the men might follow the service without trouble.

Soon it was found that they took pleasure in joining in the Gregorian Chant of the Kyrie, the Gloria, and the Credo, and in singing the popular Christian hymns in the vernacular. To form these men into parish groups was but a step. Short and practical sermons on Essential Truths became the rule. The eight or ten men had grown into one or two hundred. They sang so lustily that the ordinary choir was no longer necessary. Once every month there was a special celebration for men only. A better feeling was seen in the communes, the saloons were less frequented, the children were sent to catechism more regularly, and the parish priest was no longer an object of insult.

The Housing of the Poor.

The Church will gain the hearts of the French people the day it is able to give them cheap and wholesome dwellings. The subject is one that is under serious consideration of Government and Parliament, but it is of such vast extent that legislators seem afraid to deal with it.' Mgr. Touchet, Bishop of Orleans, in a pastoral letter published last year, said : ‘ The question of workmen’s dwellings will shortly form part of our plan of operations. It is a national shame to allow these nests of fever and tuberculosis, for which so dear a rent is paid to exist. When will the towns and cities that devote so much money in the erection of school-palaces comprehend that it is not enough to give light and air to children in school hours, if for the rest of the twenty-four hours they are to be shut up in pestilential holes. When will the State Savings Banks be authorised by the law to lend money at 3 per cent, to the Society for Cheap Houses for Working People ? Here, then, is a useful and honorable campaign waiting to be taken up by our men’s association.’ This is sowing the right kind of seed, and the Catholic Social Congress just held at Limoges has adopted the Bishop’s advice.

A New Spirit in France.

Thus everywhere is seen the growth of a new spirit in France. The revolutionary Labor Confederation is powerless to conduct a general strike, because Catholic men belonging to anti-socialistic syndicates form a stronger body. The progress of anti-militarism, anti-patriotism and neo-Malthusianism is stopped. There is an awakening of public opinion that demands wholesome government and the impartial vindication c*xxv-4. uiiu Aiupar trai vxiiaaa\^cuUlUll of the laws. The Reign of Terror established by the Jacobinism of the last decade is over. ‘ The stars of heaven are extinguished,’ said M. Rene Viviani on a memorable occasion. They never shone more brilliantly than they do now. *