State; it is certain that among those who preside over public business, many will embrace this thesis and be glad to seize the opportunity of the proposed decree in order to realise it. Now, whatever France does will in a short time be imitated by the whole of Europe; and I declare that it will not be without great prejudice to the Church and the clergy." 1

The decision was taken in spite of this eloquent protest and the firm resistance of the greater number of French Bishops. In France, dissentients submitted; a deferential and unanimous adhesion maintained Unity. But the crisis had not been less deep in Belgium, in Switzerland, and especially in Germany, and it had lasting consequences. And to what point did it not contribute to the European complications which ended in the defeat of France and in the suppression of the Pope's temporal power?

Through a remarkable synchronism, these same short years saw those events which might be most damaging to the Church. The Papacy, more than ever master of the Church and of souls, lost its temporal power. The defeat of France consecrated the hegemony of Protestantism in Europe. This double fact was hurtful, in proportions which it is still too early to appreciate, to the Roman universality and propaganda. In Rome, the Church was less free; abroad, it had less influence.

As Mgr. Darboy had foreseen, the position of Rome towards the Powers became difficult. Whatever palliative might be used, an antagonism now stood between the anathema of the Syllabus and

1 Emile Ollivier, L'Église et l'État au Concile du Vatican, vol. ii., p. 297.

the conditions of modern life. The latter are condemned; but a condemnation is not a solution. We must quote these words, uttered before the council: "What is the value of anathema if uttered by one whose authority is not acknowledged?"

The Church now no longer claims temporal domination over governments, nor has it done so for a long time. Pope Pius IX took care to proclaim, immediately after the vote, that the dogma of infallibility in no wise included the right of deposing Sovereigns, or of loosening nations from their oath of fidelity.1

In its relations with the Powers, the Church, through a striking evolution, appealed more and more to "liberty" and less and less to authority. Now did not the rigour of the dogmatic thesis create a contradiction of language? If the Church was resigned to accommodate itself in practice to the ideas of the time, were there not some serious disadvantages in meeting them with such arbitrary declarations of principle?

These grave problems, of which the germ was contained in the decisions of the Council, only appeared to those minds which had the most clear perceptions. A Montalembert, a Darboy, had foreseen them, but the mass of the faithful, carried away by the impulse of the country priests, who had cordially adhered to the Roman initiative, had yielded without so much reflection. Never, perhaps, since the crusades, did the Church seem closer to France than during this period, when wounded souls were drawing near for comfort and consolation.

VOL. II.

1 See Emile Ollivier, v. ii., p. 374.

673

X X

This union was such that politics made a compact with faith. The partisans of the monarchical restoration, the Conservatives, the representatives of "interests," demanded help from that which is authority itself. The majority of the National Assembly affirmed religious sentiments at every opportunity. The two parties were bound: Mgr. Dupanloup eagerly worked for the "fusion"; 140 Deputies took part in the Paray-le-Monial pilgrimage. The building of the Church of the Sacred Heart at Montmartre was an act of national devotion.1

But ethical direction, not politics, were in question here; now the Church never exerted it with more liberty, more confidence. Every hope seemed justified.

The vast edifice of the Church, erected by the secular piety of France, remained standing, more imposing than ever. Its resources were immense. The annual budget of Public Worship reached a sum varying from 52,216,074 francs in 1872 to 52,408,162 francs in 1880. The 36,097 Communes in France each had a public church, devoted to the celebration of the cult. In important centres, magnificent cathedrals, in the most modest villages, ancient and often precious monuments, preserved for the people the traditions of architectural beauty which had emanated from the soul of the nation.*

Here are the numbers of the ecclesiastical army. First, the secular clergy: 18 Archbishops and 69 Bishops, for 87 Dioceses; under their direction

1 See above, p. 83 and following.

2 The fund of the "fabriques" (ecclesiastical commissions) amounted to 94,000,000 francs, comprising a proportion of about 7-10 in rural property.

185 Vicars-General, 750 paid Canons, 130 unpaid, 3,413 Curés, 4,578 habited priests, 29,308 officiating priests in succursales, 10,670 Parish Vicars, 2,659 Chaplains, 3,589 Directors and Professors of the great seminaries and of ecclesiastical schools; altogether, 55,369 members of the secular clergy.'

The recruiting of this "personnel," in spite of the severe restrictions imposed on human nature, was assured by the Seminary annexed to each of the 87 Dioceses. These seminaries had in 1876 a scholastic population of 11,666 pupils, a figure rarely reached, and which had already fallen to 8,420 in 1880.

Each seminary, fed by the zeal of the curés, who in each village noted budding vocations, had from 100 to 150 pupils. The secondary ecclesiastical schools, adjoining the great seminaries and nurseries for the latter, had, in 1876, 1,970 pupils.

The Protestant cult (639 Reformed pastors and 67 Lutheran ministers), the Israelites (9 grand Rabbis, 26 Rabbis and 25 officiating ministers) can oppose but very small numbers to the army of 60,000 Catholic priests."

1 These are the official figures of 1876, including the ecclesiastical personnel of the three Algerian dioceses.

2 The Direction and teaching in seminaries was entrusted, besides secular priests, to special congregations, notably the Lazarists, Sulpicians, Oratorians and Eudists. In 1880, the Lazarists managed twenty-two great seminaries, and the Sulpicians twenty-four. The latter also directed the Seminary of Saint-Sulpice in Paris, the most important in France from the point of view of the number of pupils and the standard of the studies. Besides clerics of the diocese of Paris, this seminary also received foreign pupils, especially from Ireland, England, and North and South America.

3 Some time after the war a measure of unification was taken concerning the Reformed Churches in France: On November

But the secular clergy was insignificant in comparison with the army of monks and nuns belonging to authorised and non-authorised congregations. France, in an ever-continuous impulse of faith, offers the flower of her youth of both sexes to this vocation, for devotion and propaganda, which requires the full and entire sacrifice of existence.

The authorised male congregations or communities in 1878 numbered 32. They had in France 228 establishments (abroad, 109 only) and 22,843 members. For women, authorised congregations numbered 903 congregations or communities, 2,552 establishments, and 113,750 members.

29th, 1871, the Government issued a decree, dividing the 103 Consistories of the Reformed Churches of France and Algeria amongst twenty-one Synodal circumscriptions, and invited their representatives to elect delegates to a General Synod.

This Synod met, elaborated a project of reorganisation in sixty-one clauses and voted, on June 20th, 1872, a confession of faith in which it proclaimed "the sovereign authority of the Holy Scriptures in questions of faith, and Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, Who died for our offences and rose again for our justification."

The Government referred to the Conseil d'Etat, for examination, the project of a decree dated October 27th, 1873, and carrying the authorisation to publish the declaration of faith; this was ratified by the Conseil d'Etat in November 1873.

The Government, in the face of the division which had arisen between the two fractions of Protestantism, feared to provoke a schism and did not submit to the National Assembly the project of administrative reorganisation.

By a Ministerial decision of November 19th, 1873, the General Synod was called for a second session. At the sitting of November 21st, 1873, it was decided to demand without delay the authorisation to publish the declaration of faith of June 20th, 1872. By a decree of February 28th, 1874, the publication was authorised and the declaration transcribed on the registers of the Conseil d'Etat.