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PAGE 2—THE BULLETIN, October 15, I960
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The Catholic In America
By Rev. Peter J. Rahill, Ph.D.
This is one of a series of
articles reviewing the position
and. experience of the practicing
Catholic in the life of the
American c o m m u n i t y from
Colonial times. The author
holds a doctorate in American
Church History has taught in
various universities, and is pres
ently Archivist and Historian
of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
IGNITE CHARLESTOWN
CONVENT
The inauguration of Andrew
Jackson as President of the
United States in 1929 brought
a throng of his friends to
Washington from their homes
beyond the Alleghenies.
Nationalism and American
ism were no mere academ
ic ideas but woven into
the fabric of this administra
tion. To that extent it 1 could
be said to have been unfriend
ly to the strengthening tide of
immigrants, and many new
comers to our shores were irt-
evitably linked with Catholi
cism. Agitators labeled even
those incomers who declared
themselves Protestants as
“Jesuits in disguise.”
FIRST CATHOLIC
CABINET MEMBER
Except in this general sense
of some exaggeration of
Americanism Jackson’s admin
istration was not antagonistic
to the Church. In fact, the hero
of the Battle of New Orleans
named the first Catholic mem
her of a presidential cabinet in
the person of Roger Brooke
Taney.
The numerous newspapers
whose business was anti-Cath
olicism raged at the choice of
this Maryland-born jurist for
Attorney-General. The ranting
was as ineffectual against the
President’s determination as
the whisperings of the Wash
ington matrons against Peggy
Eaton. Taney went on to be
elevated to the bench of the
Supreme Court. Rejected once
by the United States Senate,
he was confirmed in 1836 as
the first Catholic Chief Justice
Needless to say, the wild
predictions that the Pope
would soon follow Taney to
Washington were not fulfilled
during the 28 long years the
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231 HITCHEli ST, S.W, ATLANTA 3. GA.
Established 1919 JA 2-9960 JA 1-0421
Marylander presided over the
nation’s supreme tribunal.
Both numerically and pro
portionately Catholics were
increasing in the United States
in these 1830’s, though the total
was still not much more than
one-half million. But it would
have seemed that there were
far more than one Catholic out
of every 25 Americans from
the abuse directed against the
faithful.
While back stairs gossip or
pulpit harangues cannot be
heard today, much of the anti-
Catholic literature may still be
read. Pamphlets written in
England against the Catholic
Emancipation Act of 1829 were
circulated on this side of the
Atlantic Ocean. Indicative of
the financial profit possible, as
well as the deepness of the
animosity, was the appearance
of numerous books.
The inventor Samuel F. B.
Morse frequently dipped his
pin in vitriol against the
Church. Probably not the cause
at all, but the immediate oc
casion for his hatred had been
his experience while visiting
Rome.
When he had not removed
his hat while watching a
Church procession, a soldier
had knocked off his indecorous
chapeau. It is not known if
Morse’s hat was damaged but
his dignity certainly was of
fended. For years the Church
in the United States suffered
from the abuse heaped upon
her because one soldier in
Rome decided for himself to
force a respectful demeanor
from an unbelieving visitor.
In 1790 George Washington
had told his Catholic country
men that “as mankind be
comes liberal they will be
more apt to allow that all who
conduct themselves as worthy
members of the government
are equally entitled to the pro
tection of civil governments.”
The first President’s optimism
was far from realization in the
Massachusetts of 1834.
At Charlestown, to which
Paul Revere had rowed from
Boston, the Ursuline nuns had
established Mount St. Bene
dict, a school for young ladies.
Those of the Catholics who
were recent immigrants had
little money to spend on high-
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MIKE & STEVE SERTICH
JA. 4-2053
er education for their daugh
ters. But with four-fifth of the
students non-Catholics the in
stitution expanded. The nuns
scrupulously adhered to their
promise not to impose their
own religious convictions on
those not of the Faith.
'BRIMSTONE CORNER'
As the academy prospered
and grew, bitter remarks were
directed against it by enemies
of the Church. Many non-
Catholic ministers were par
ticularly incensed that wealthy
Unitarians of the Boston area
patronized the school. Leaders
of the attacks was the Rev
erend Lyman Beecher, pastor
of Boston’s Park Street
Church. His fiery castigations
of Catholicism from that pul
pit earned for it the popular
designation of “Brimstone Cor
ner.”
Two unfortunate incidents
caused the bubbling cauldron
to boil over. A scullery maid
who had asked to be admitted
to the Ursuline order was dis
missed as unsuitable after
four months. A lurid account
of convent life was issued
under her name, but probably
would have been dismissed by
all save the overly credulous
had not an actual nun left the
convent school.
This overworked music
teacher temporarily lost her
reeason and fled to the home
of friends. When she had re
covered her senses the follow
ing day she was visited by
Bishop Benedict Joseph Fen
wick, for whom she had sent.
He readily granted permission
for her to return to the con
vent and she was brought back
by her Protestant brother.
Rumors of the incident were
magnified by hostile elements
and within a week were
flaunted in two Boston news
papers. At first it was intimat
ed she had been cast into a
dungeon; then it was charged
that she could not be found at
the convent at all. Sunday eve
ning, August 10 the Reverend
Lyman Beecher called for ac
tion against “Popery” in vio
lent sermons delivered in three
separate Boston churches.
While some Catholic writers
have charged that these on
slaughts were responsible for
the devastation which follow
ed, it is probable that the weal
thy congregations addressed
by Beecher did not actually
participate in the foray. There
is evideence which apparently
indicates that lower elements
of the area’s population had
planned attacking the convent
for some time before the nun
had suffered her nervous
breakdown.
TARDY REFUTATION
A short time before Bishop
Fenv/ick had had a difference
with the selectmen of Charles
town over a Catholic cemetery.
“For health reasons” the coun-
cilmen had refused to grant a
permit, though non-Catholics
were being buried in the same
area without any apparent
contamination of air or earth.
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This may have accounted for
tardy action on the part of
the councilmen.
However, on Monday morn
ing, August 11, five selectmen
made a tour of the convent and
talked with the nun who had
left temporarily. They issued
a statement to the Boston
newspapers that nothing ob
jectionable had been found,
and that the young lady in
question “expresses herself to
be entirely satisfied with the
present situation, it being that
of her own choice.”
Alas! This complete refuta
tion of all charges was one day
too late. When it was printed
the convent already had been
attacked and burned to the
ground. In the nightdress the
nuns, together with the chil
dren and young ladies in their
charge, escaped through the
rear garden.
“Not content with all this,”
an investigating committee of
non-Catholics reported, “they
burst open the tomb of the es
tablishment, and exposed to
view the mouldering remains
of their tenants ... Not one
arm was lifted in the defense
of helpless women and chil
dren.”
The next day a mass meeting
of Protestants was held in
Faneuil Hall under the leader
ship of Boston’s Mayor Theo
dore Lyman, Jr. The destruc
tion of the convent was de
nounced as a “base and cow
ardly act.” Meanwhile from
nearby railroad construction
camps Irish laborers had start
ed on a mission of revenge.
When he heard this Bishop
Fenwick hurried six priests in
different directions to stay the
self-appointed vigilantes. Call
ing Boston Catholics together,
he urged his listeners to re
main quiet and allow the law
to take its course.
The Boston Gazette com
mented: “We hope the bishop
will furnish us with a copy of
his address for publication. It
would be read with a high
degree of satisfaction by his
Protestant fellow citizens.”
NO REDRESS
The trust of the bishop in
legal vindication was not ful
filled. Of the mob which par
ticipated in the burning, eight
were charged with arson. Au
thorities agree today that the
trials were decided before the
evidence was heard. All were
acquitted save one youngster.
He too, was released on the pe
tition of Boston Catholics, who
refused to allow the youth to
be scapegoat for those who had
planned and carried out the
felonious assault.
When Bishop Fenwick peti
tioned for funds to rebuild the
convent, the matter was re
ferred to the state legislature.
The deep seated hatred of the
assailants was mirrored in this
querrie from the American
Protestant Vindicator of Jan
uary, 1835:
“Any man who proposes, or
would vote for the measure,
which would rob the treasury
of the descendants of the Pur
itans to build Ursuline nun
neries . . . must be a raving
lunatic.”
The legislature rejected this
and all subsequent attempts to
give the Ursulines money to
rebuild on the blackened
foundation of their school. As
late as 1854 Benjamin F. But
ler of Civil War fame proposed
compensation to the nuns, and
his committee in the Massa
chusetts House enthusiastically
approved. Once more anti
OBITUARIES
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CE. 3-3505
Atlanta, Ga.
Savannah Services
Mrs. Beatrice Bart
SAVANNAH — Funeral
services for Miss Beatrice
Elizabeth Bart, were held Oc
tober 5th at the Blessed Sacra
ment Church.
Survivors are a daughter,
Mrs. S. J. Eason, Savannah; a
son, Eugene Bart, Savannah; a
sister, Mrs. Lurline W. McCall,
Jacksonville, Fla.; four grand
children and several nieces
and nephews.
Services For
R. W. Stembridge
MILLEDGEVILLE—Funeral
services for Roger W. Stem-
bridge, chief engineer at Mil-
ledgeville State Hospital were
held September 27th at the Sa
cred Heart Church, Rev. Jos
eph Ware officiating.
Survivors are his wife, a
son, Walton Stembridge, Mil-
ledgeville; two daughters, Miss
Catherine and Miss Gladys
Stembridge, both of Milledge-
ville; and three sisters, Mrs.
L. N. Callaway and Miss Thel
ma Stembridge, both of Mil-
ledgebridge, and Mrs. Edward
Deman, Laurenburg, N. C.
Catholic pressure was exerted;
for the last time the attempt
to indemnify the Ursulines was
defeated.
The immediate reaction of
fair-minded Americans was as
tonishment and horror at the
convent burning. In Boston a
group headed by Harrison
Gray Otis called on “all good
citizens to express individually
and collectively the abhor
rence they feel of this high
handed violation of the laws.”
Even several religious papers
which had been denouncing
Mount St. Benedict were sym
pathetic to the Ursulines and
repentant of the invectives
which they had printed.
Once released from the
bonds of law and conscience,
however, the mob spirit is dif
ficult to control. Despite the
protestations of influential
Protestants, episodes similar in
character were much too fre
quent in the succeeding
months and years. Assaults on
churches became so common in
New England that Catholic
parishioners took turns at pa
trolling the property. The dan
ger was indicated by the re
fusal of some insurance com
panies to issue policies on
Catholic buildings.
Hopeful omens were indeed
difficult to discern in the peri
od following the burning of
Mount St. Benedict Convent.
When the bishops assembled
again in Baltimore in 1837 they
approved a pastoral letter
written by Bishop John Eng
land in which the Charlestown
outrage was forcibly denounc
ed.
Notwithstanding, the pen of
the South Carolina bishop
wrote confidently of Catholic
belief in and reliance on the
freedom proclaimed in our na
tional Oonstitutjon. “Bloody
but unbowed” would be a
pungent description of the
Catholic in America in the
late 1830’s.
Next Issue: Archbishop
Hughes' Courage Halts Anti-
Catholic Riots.
“YVe Don’t Overcharge”
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GERALD
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• Furniture
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THIRTY YEARS IN
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Now Located at
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Brookhaven
Atlanta, Georgia
Phone — 233-8884
"GOOD FURNITURE
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— Store Hours —
9 a. m. — 5:30 p. m.
Friday evening til 9
Services Held For
M rs. Nettie Gossage
PORT WENTWORTH — Fu
neral services for Mrs. Nettie
Lund Gossage were held Oc
tober 4th at Our Lady of
Lourdes Church, Rev. Francis
Donohue officiating.
Survivors are her husband,
J. C. Gossage; a son, Lawrence
Gossage of Garden City; two
daughters, Mrs. P. J. Coffee
and Mrs. Hugh Zittrouer, both
of Garden City; a brother,
Alex Lund of Eason, Wis.;
three sisters, Mrs. Fred Schae
fer and Mrs. William Olden
burg, of Wausau, Wis.; and
Mrs. Carrie Baker of Milwau
kee, Wis.; and five grandchil
dren.
SERVICES FOR
MISS GODBEE
AUGUSTA — Funeral serv
ices for Mrs. Margaret Godbee
were held September 26th at
O O
| ALEXANDER-ICELLEY |
O O
ATLANTA — Miss Charlotte
Linda'Kelley, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Charles McRoy Kel
ley of Smyrna and James Wil
liam Alexander, Jr., of Atlan
ta, son of Mr. and Mrs. James
William Alexander of Atlanta
were married at the Cathedral
of Christ the King, Rev. Alan
Dillman officiating.
O O
ZUGAY-PULLIAM
O-
-O
ATLANTA — Miss Delores
Ann Pulliam, daughter of Mrs.
H. J. Thompson of Germany
and James M. Pulliam and
Michael L. Zugay, Jr., son of
Mr. and Mrs. Michael L. Zugay
of Harrisburg, Pa., were mar
ried at St. Anthony’s Church.
Rev. Leonard F. X. Mayhew
officiating.
O O
CONLEY-LANE
O-
O
SAVANNAH — Miss Jo Ann
Lane, daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Leo R. Lane and Joseph
Wayne Conley, son of Mr. and
Mrs. William Henry Conley,
DePere, Wis., were married
September 24th at the Cathe
dral of St John the Baptist.
Rev. Herbert J. Wellmier
officiating.
O— O
j GEABON-SCHUMAN |
O O
SAVANNAH — Miss Helen
Elizabertli Schuman, daughter
of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L.
Schuman and Francis Leon
Grabon, son of Mr. and Mrs.
Walter J. Grabon of Thorp,
Wis., were married September
3rd at the Nativity of Our
Lord Church in Thunderbolt,
Rev. Felix Donnelly officiating.
Death on our highways takes
no vacation — always remem
ber that.
St. Patrick’s Church, Rev. Ger
ald Armstrong officiating.
Survivors are three cousins.
Miss Maude L. Dosher, Mrs.
Sallie G. Wright and Mrs. Ruth
G. Robertson, all of Augusta.
Atlanta Services
Miss Mary Gwinn
ATLANTA — Funeral serv
ices for Mrs. Mary E. Gwinn
were held September 26th at
The Cathedral of Christ the
King, Rev. John Mulroy offi
ciating.
Survivors are Mrs. W. B.
Sharp, Mr. and Mrs. R. C. Sig
mon, Ft. Smith, Ark., Miss
Anne Kiely, Oklahoma City,
Sister Joseph Frances, Phila
delphia, Miss Ann Beth Sharp,
Mrs. Sam London, Ft. Smith,
Mr. Walter Sharp.
SERVICES FOR
W. T. ELLIS
ATLANTA — Funeral serv
ices for Mr. William T. (Bill)
Ellis were held September 21st
at the Immaculate Conception
Church, Rev. Leonard Kelly,
O.F.M., officiating.
Mr. Ellis was a Fourth De
gree Knight of Columbus and
also a member of the Holy
Name Society.
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