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10 THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN'S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA THE CHURCH AND AMERICAN POLITICS One of the most interesting of recent letters came the other day from a Baptist minister. It is not often we hear anything from the ministers. Our rule is not to send them our literature, because it was the early sentiment of the publicity committee that to do so would be bad taste and would be misconstrued as to motive. But every now and then one answers our advertisements or through inadvertence we fail to strike a name from a new mailing list. This letter was out of the ordinary. It was a pretty com plete arraignment of Catholics and the Church. A part read like this: “You have a right to your re ligion and the free exercise thereof as much as I do. But you have no right to meddle with politics as a church. . . . When you become genuine Ameri cans and put American institutions above the Pope, k^ep your religion out of politics and quit trying to dominate American politics by your church, then we are ready to join you in a campaign for good govern ment and high moral ideals.” This was plain speech, frankly expressed, and to it we replied as follows: Now about politics. Only since receiving your let ter the other day I read where the Methodist Con ference appointed representatives to attend the two big national political conventions as spokesmen for the Methodists; where a Protestant minister running for congress defeated for re-election the author of the Volstead Act; where Dr. Jenkins, “a clergyman” (all I know is that he is not a Catholic), will nominate Mr. McAdoo at San Francisco; where Mr. Catts, of Florida, a Baptist minister, was defeated for United States Senator, after he had been governor for four years. You know that perhaps for ten years past the most powerful lobby at the national capital has been a body composed mainly of Protestant ministers. And I will ask you, when was there ever a legislature in Georgia in which there were not Protestant ministers? When was there ever a Baptist Conference in which matters of a political cast were not more or less dis cussed, in which certain legislation thought good and wholesome was not urged, in which solutions were not offered for questions and problems whose solu tion comes only through political forum? And yet you cry “Stop Thief!” Catholics are in the majority in nine States; in five or six they have been in the majority for years; but in none have they ever held anything like a majority of the offices. Only in three or four have they ever had a Catholic governor. With nearly 20 per cent, of the population of the country they have 5 per cent, of the United States Senators, and a slightly higher per cent, of the members of congress. Perhaps you have heard that foolishness about 75 per cent, of the Federal appointments being Catholic; it is spread about ever so often, by men who write anti-Catholic stuff and sell it, who make anti-Catholic speeches for a price, who organize anti-Catholic societies at so much per head, professionals, who would lose their inglorious means of livelihood if the time ever came that Barnum’s famous dictum did not hold. Socrates taught that the soul is immortal, and was accused of mixing in politics. Our Lord was found to be free of fault by Pilate, and then the wily Jews threw the question into politics. “Thou art no friend of Caesar!” has ever been the cry of those who had no other fault to find. You say of us: “You owe supreme loyalty to America.” Of course we do; we give supreme loyalty to America; do you happen to know of any of us who ever failed? You say the Pope has no business in American politics; you are right, and I can tell you that Catholics would be among the first to resent his presuming to take a hand in American politics. You say for us to get out of politics as a church. Let us see now; just where must we get out from? The House, where we have some forty members in around 400? The Sen ate, where we have five in ninety-six? The Cabinet, where we have none? The diplomatic service, where we have three ranking members? The Federal Ju diciary, where we have less than 5 per cent? The House of Governors, where we have 2 per cent? Or do you want that phantom 75 per cent to be thrown out? The bugaboo of the Catholic Church as such in American politics is perfect and has all the qualities that a bugaboo should have, the most characteristic of which is that you can not put your finger on it, can not point it out, can not see it. You might not believe it had any existence but for the vestige of that childish feeling we all have, which used to make us imagine things at night. Why, there has not been a Catholic ruler in Mexico in over fifty years; there has not been a Catholic cabinet in Spain during this century; the government of Italy has been unfriendly to the Church for half a century; and in all South America in a hundred years, do you know how many Catholic rulers have there been? Catholics do not get together in politics anywhere in the world, and the free-thinker, infidels, Socialists and members of secret societies of one kind or another, have managed to control the government in all those countries, as they have in France, as they did in Belgium until quite recently. No, there is no way for you to get a quarrel out of us on the matter of the Church being in politics, for it is not. As for what you say about our put ting the Pope above American institutions when a genuine American must put our institutions above the Pope, it is our view that it would be wrong to put either above the other; they should be kept sep arate a free Church in a free State. This is our ideal. I believe we can be friends and work together for the common good on that basis. Now, this is a long letter, with many statements of a very positive nature, which at first reading you may not be prepared to accept as entirely true, and if so, I hope you will have no hesitancy in saying your mind, pointing them out specifically, for I feel the confidence of a sure conviction that I can persuade you of their entire truth.