France and the Vatican
By L. A. S.
REGARDING the prospective separation of church and state in France, we note the following statements in a recent issue of The Independent. It appears that papal diplomacy in connection with this contest between the Vatican and the French government, has not been marked by the skill which was characteristic of it in the days of the present pope’s predecessor:— The action of Premier Combes in recalling M. Nisard, the French ambassador to the Vatican, has been emphatically approved by the Chamber of Deputies by a vote of four hundred and twenty-seven to ninety-five. This is the first time that the government has received such general and enthusiastic support from all parties from the Conservative to the Socialist, so the maladroit note of Mgr. Merry del Val has resulted in strengthening the position of the chief enemies of ecclesiastical power. The demand of the radical Socialists for the revocation of the concordat and the immediate withdrawal of all representation at the Vatican was rejected in compliance with the wishes of M. Combes, who stated, however, that several plans for the separation of church and state were under consideration, and that the matter could be brought up after the passage of the budget next January. The position of the cabinet is thus stated by the premier:— “We will not allow the papacy to intermeddle in our international relations, and we intend to have done once for all with the superannuated fiction of temporal power, which disappeared thirty-four years ago. We will not withdraw the whole staff accredited to the Vatican, as we are bound by the concordat to maintain at the Vatican an agent of our government for carrying on business. Some speakers urge us to denounce the concordat without delay, but such a serious step should be preceded by measures guaranteeing the republican state against the political risks which would be entailed by such a radical change in its legislation and habits.” The committee on the separation of church and state has formulated a law providing for the abolition of the concordat and the disposal of the church property, which begins with the following words:— “The republic assures freedom of conscience, and it guarantees the free that exercise of religion without restriction, except for the preservation of public order. The republic will neither protect nor pay salaries nor subventions under any form whatever to any denomination. It will not recognize any minister of religion, and will not furnish any building for the service of any denomination or for the lodging of any of its ministers.” The papal nuncio at Paris, Mgr. Lorenzelli, has not been withdrawn, although it is reported that he may be made a cardinal at a consistory to be held in July, and his post left vacant. The statement published in the official organ of the Vatican, the Osservatore Romano, asserts that Cardinal Merry del Val did not refuse to answer the question of M. Nisard as to whether the text of the papal note, as published in Humanite, was correct, but only postponed his reply for further consideration. In the Italian Chamber of Deputies the Republicans, Radicals, and Socialists denounced the note to the powers as an insult to Italy and her king. In reply Premier Giolitti said that the note had, of course, not been sent to the Italian government, and that France had answered it as she thought best. Italy has no fear of the foreign congregations, as she has laws to protect herself, and if these are insufficient, new ones can be made. The state and church must be as two parallel lines which never meet; both must enjoy liberty. Through the French premier God is sending light to the nations of Europe touching the gospel principle of the separation of religion from the civil power.