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 GREGORY

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GREGORY

favourable, and that they would be wise not to press for a decision. In spite, however, of the representa- tions of Lacordaire, Lamennais persisted, with the re- sult that, on the feast of the Assumption, 1832, the pope issued the Encyclical "Mirari vos", in which were condemned, not only the pohcy of "L'Avenir", but also many of the moral and social doctrines that were then put forward by most of the revolutionary schools. The Encyclical which certainly cannot be considered favourable to ideas that have since become the commonplaces of secular politics, aroused a storm of criticism throughout Europe. It is well to remem- ber, however, that some of its adversaries have not read it with great attention, and it has been sometimes criticized for statements that are not to be found in the text. Two years after its jiuljlication, the pope found

Monument of Gregory XVI L. Amici, St. Peter's, Rome

it necessary to issue a further Encyclical, "Singular! nos", in which he condemned the "Paroles d'un croyant", the reply of Lamennais to "Mirari vos".

But it was not only in France that errors had to be met. In Germany the followers of Hermes (q. v.) were condemned by the Apostohc Letter, "Dum acerbis- sima", of 26 September, 183.5. And in 1844, near the end of his reign, he i.ssued the Encyclical, "Inter prircipuas machinationes", against the unscrupulous anti-Catholic propaganda in Italy of the London Bible Society and the New York Christian Alliance, which then, as now, were chiefly successful in transforming ignorant Itahan Catholics into crudely anti-clerical free-thinkers. While he was engaged in combating the Ubertarian movements of current European thought, Gregorv was obliged also to struggle with the rulers of States for justice and toleration for the Catholic Church in their realms. In Portugal the accession of Queen Maria da Gloria w.as the occasion of an out- burst of anti-clerical legislation. The mmcio at Lis- bon was commanded to leave the capital and the nunciature was siippresscd. All ecclesiastical privi- leges were abolished, bishoprics filled by the ex-king, Dom Miguel, were declared vacant, religious houses were suppressed. The pope protested in consistory, but his protest only led to severer measures, and no

efforts on his part were successful until 1841, when the growing popular uneasiness forced the queen to come to terms.

In Spain, too, the regent, Queen Maria Cristina, was able, during the minority of her daughter. Queen Isabella, to carry out an anti-clerical programme. In 1835 the religious orders were suppressed. Then the secular clergy were attacked: twenty-two dioceses were left without bishops, Jansenist priests were ad- mitted to the committee appointed to "reform the Church", the salaries of the priests were confiscated. In 1840 bishops were driven from their sees, and when the mmcio protested against arbitrary acts of the gov- ernment in power, he was conducted to the frontier. Peace was not restored to the Church in Spain till after Gregory's death.

In Prussia, at the very commencement of his reign, the question of mixed marriages was causing troul)le. Pius VIII had dealt with these in a Brief of 28 March, 1830. This, however, did not satisfy the Prussian Government, and von Bunsen, the Prussian aniiia.ssa- dor, exhausted every means, honest and dishonest, of bringing about a modification of the Catholic policy. The Archbishop of Cologne and the Bishops of Pader- born, Munster, and Trier were induced, in 1834, to enter into a convention not to put into execution the papal legislation. But the archbishop died the follow- ing year, and his successor, von Droste zu Vischering, was a man of very different calibre. In 1836 the Bishop of Trier, feeling his end approach, revealed the whole plot to the pope. Events moved cpiiekly. The new .Vrchliishop of (.'ologne announced his intention of obeying the Holy See, and was in con.sequence imjiris- oned Ijy the Prussian Government. His arrest caused general indignation throughout Europe, and Prussia endeavoured to justify its action by inventing charges against the prelate. Nobody, however, Ijelievcd the official story, and the Archbishop of Gncsen and Posen, wlio had imitated the courageous example of his l:)rother of Cologne, was also imprisoned. But this arbitrary action aroused the indigiuition of German Catholics, and when KingFrederick\\ilham Illdied in 1840 his successor was more ready to come to terms. In the end Archbishop Droste zu Vischering was given a coadjutor, and retired to Rome; the Archbishop of Gncsen was released unconditionally and the (|Ucstion at issue w.as quickly allowed to be decided in favour of the Catholic doctrine.

But no such success was possible in Poland and France. In the former unhappy covmtry the Catholic religion was, then as now, inextricably united with the nationalist aspirations. As a consequence the whole force of the Russian autocracy was employed to crush it. With monstrous cruelty the Ruthenian Uniats were driven or cajoled into the Orthodox communion, the heroic nuns of Minsk were tortured and enslaved, more than 160 priests were deported to Siberia. The Catholics of the Latin rite were no belter treated, bishops being imprisoned and prelates deported. Gregory protested in vain, and in 1845, when the Emperor Nicholas visited him in Rome, rebuked the autocrat for his tyranny. We are told that the Czar made promises of relorm in his treatment of the Church, but, as might have been expected, nothing was done.

In France, the success of the Catholic revival had been so great that the anti-clericals were infuriated. Pressure was brought to bear upon the Government to obtain the suppression of the Jesuits, always the first to be attacked. M. Guizot sent to Rome Pelle- grino Rossi, a former leader of the revolutionary party in Switzerland, to negotiate directly with Cardinal Lambru-schini (q. v.), who had replaced Bernetti in 1836 as secretary of state. But Gregory and Lamliru- schini were both firmly opposed to any attack on the society. Rossi, therefore, turned his attention to Father Roothan, the General of the Jesuits, and