1. Don’t Know Much About American Church History?
Class 4: Reconstruction, WW I, Al Smith, FDR, JFK, WW II, Korean War, Catholic Culture, Vatican II

2. Last Week We left off with America at the end of the Civil War, 1865
Catholics distinguished by bravery
Irish more integrated
Problem of 3 million newly freed slaves

3. Church Response Second Plenary Council of Baltimore (1866)
Should we evangelize 3 million African Americans?
At the same time- how to deal with Catholic immigrants coming into the country.
Final session attended by President Andre Johnston
Dealt with a variety of doctrinal, disciplinary, and liturgical questions
Archbishop Kenrick almost causes the council to implode due to inflexibility

4. Church Response
Strategic decision made to hold onto the Europeans flowing in instead of evangelizing African Americans
Wanted something like the situation of the serfs of Europe- gradual emancipation
False belief that African Americans would like the pomp of the Church
Church really lacked small faith communities/revivals

5. Church Response
This does not mean that the Church totally ignored African Americans
Religious groups setup schools
Catholic parishes setup for African Americans
National collection for the Black and Indian Mission
Rome- foster African American vocations to evangelize other African Americans.
Failure- no cohesive plan put down- left to local ordinaries to decide
Kenrick threatened to resign when a personal diocese was proposed
Really left up to local bishops and religious communities
Really wanted their own parishes

6. Born in NE Missouri around Kirksville
Born in NE Missouri around Kirksville. Parents were slaves and Catholics. Son thinks about becoming a priest- Diocese of Alton Sent to Rome to study Bishop wants him to become a missionary in Africa- he says no- becomes a parish priest- first ordained for African American community Great homilist, but priests were very jealous that he was stealing parishioners, because he was a great homilist. Goes to Chicago- finds St. Monica- the gold standard of an African American parish in America. People in Quincy move to Chicago to be in that parish. Dies at 43- thinks life to be a failure.
Fr. Augustine Tolton

7. Conclusion African American Catholicism pretty much lay led
National Conference of Black Catholics

8. Sidebar: Developments 1870--1917
,347 nuns and 1,109 priests
,340 nuns and 11,636 priests
Catholic population 12,041,000
June 29, Pope St. Pius X issued apostolic constitution Sapienti Consilio
Removed from jurisdiction of Congregation de Propaganda Fide

9. World War I Begins War begins in Europe in August, 1914
United States stays neutral until 1917

10. World War I Bishops decide to meet about this new situation
First time since 1890 Catholic Church in America had met.
Meeting thanks to the singular vision of Fr. John Burke, CSP
Editor of the Catholic World
Founder of the Chaplains’ Aid Association

11. The Meeting
Burke and otherscalled the meeting to be held for two days, beginning on August 11, 1917 at the Catholic University of America
115 delegates from 68 dioceses attended
Establish National Catholic War Council
Burke appointed to lead this- executive council from other diocese
Placed on the committee of six- advisory body to Newton Baker- Sec. of War (religious matters)

12. National Catholic War Council
For the next year and a half, the council coordinated Catholic efforts to assist with the war.
At the end of the war, the Bishop of Rockford, Peter Muldoon, calls for a similar organization in peace
This organization, the National Catholic Welfare Council, first met in September, 1919
First time in US Church History that as an institution came together and work on something like this.

13. NCWC Meets Opposition Not all were happy about this
Some bishops go to the Vatican to protest- Benedict XV draws up a decree dissolving it, but dies
Pius XI signs the decree weeks later.
Bishop Schrembs of Cleveland rushes to Rome and wins approval for the council
1923- changed to conference
Forerunner to USCCB
Signed on Feb. 25, 1922
Conference-gives less weight to and no status in Canon Law.

14. Msgr. John A. Ryan Head of NCWC Social Action Department
A Living Wage, 1906
Social Reconstruction: A General Review of the Problem and Survey of the Remedies, 1919
Collective Bargaining
Minimum Wage Act
Social Security System
Unemployment and Health insurance
Child labor laws
Public housing
National Employment Service

15. Resurgence of Nativism
At the same time the Church was organizing nationally, a new wave of anti-Catholic propaganda began to be circulated

16. 1928 Presidential Election
2 factors- Catholics coming out and Americanism
These two factors come to a head in the 1928 presidential campaign
First major political party nominates a Catholic
Al Smith

17. Al Smith’s Biography Born in Brooklyn in 1873
Attends St. James School until age 14
At 30- Runs for NY State Legislator
At 40- Becomes Speaker of the Assembly
At 45- Elected Governor
Decides to run for President
Great respect due to knowledge of constitution.

18. Nominated Al Smith was nominated by FDR FDR runs for governor of NY
Base did not like him because he wanted to end prohibition.
Criticized personally greatly- unusual
Alcohol Smith
Newsboy Al
Degree from FFM
Base in the South
Personal criticism not prevelant after Civil War- politics was seen as the work of gentlemen
Newsboy as a boy- newsboy Al
Fulton Fish Market vs. Hoover, who had a degree in Electrical Engineering

19. GOP Nominee Herbert Hoover Quaker Greatly respected
“A chicken in every pot, a car in every garage.”
If Al Smith wins, “Rum, Romanism, and Ruin”
Called the “Boy Wonder”
Greatly respected due to the Belgian Food Relief of Woodrow Wilson sends him over and he literally fed the entire county.

20. The October Surprise
Charles C. Marshall wrote an article challenging Smith
How do we know you aren’t going to turn the country over to the pope?
Primacy of pope or constitution?
Where will you come down on issues, e.g. marriage, divorce, education, censorship?
Atlantic Monthly

21. The Response Al Smith has one week to respond
Meets with Jesuits to respond
Governor of New York for four terms- never choose religion over constitution
Favor public education
I do not read encyclicals
“In this spirit, I join with fellow Americans of all creeds in a fervent prayer that never again in this land will any public servant be challenged because of the faith in which he has tried to walk humbly with his God.”

22. Looses the election-> Joke that sends pope a telegram to “Unpack!”
The Result

23. Catholic Culture
After this defeat, 20 million Catholics make a conscious decision to build their own culture and organizations, which would stay in contact with the culture, but they would not.

24. Examples Newspapers “The Catholic Hour” Life is Worth Living
Catholic Digest
Catholic Associations of Professionals
Knights of Columbus
Era of Catholic Films
Life is Worth Living television show- Began in Broadcast on Tuesday evenings in prime-time on ABC. Audience of 30 million. 30,000 fan letters in one day.
Put against him the Texaco Comedy Hour with Milton Berle- lost.Radio program “The Catholic Hour”
Formula Entrance- Always begins with a joke, followed by the nights question- topic of the hour. Questions that all people are interested in. Next 10 minutes- explain the problem. He appeals to a broader audience- never appeals to the sacraments, the Church, or Catholicism. Goes 27.5 minutes
Era of Catholic Films- handout

25. Work of NCWC Takes on Hollywood Originally a Catholic town
Bishop John Cantwell becomes bishop- horrified
“Fatty” Arbuckle
WC Fields
May West
William H. Hays Office formed- censorship
Legion of Decency
“Fatty” Arbuckle- builds a palace for himself- becomes a house of ill-repute with alcohol and sex.
Generally an open secret- people looked the other way
WC Fields- Pushed the envelope in terms of innuendos. May West- Infamous for her double meanings.
Hays office- no teeth
Legion of Decency-> Catholics watch and give their opinion on the film. Code No Nudity- Hays Office successful hereNo homosexual discussion No profiting from crime- crime doesn’t pay. No graphic violence. “Be careful”Crime. Vice, esp. adultery- has to be done in good taste, and with heartbreak. Legion- very successful- able to tell CatholicsA-1 and A-2- Ok for children (A-1) or A-2 (adults), B (Bad), and C (condemned)

26. FDR Realigned the country politically with his new deal coalition
Key in this coalition were Catholics

27. American Catholics and WWII
Archbishop of Detroit, Edward Mooney, wrote President Roosevelt two weeks after Pearl Harbor, assuring him of Catholic support
NCWC writes a letter in “Victory and Peace”
Saw US and Allies in a deadly conflict with nations bent on enslaving the world

28. Archbishop Spellman
Archbishop Spellman, the Archbishop of New York was also head of the military chaplains
3,036 military chaplains
Traveled to Africa after the disaster at Kasserine Pass
25-35 percent of total US military Catholic
Friend of FDR

29. End of the War
American Catholics were concerned as more people fell behind the Iron Curtain
Many Catholics were in these countries
Toward the end of the war- a concern about bombing cities
Yet after the atomic bombings, 53.5 percent of Catholics approved of the bombings and many bishops said nothing.
One of great levelers- GI Bill- Catholics go to college
Bishops write a pastoral letter expressing their concern
Theologians condemn bombing- no proportionate reason

30. Korean War
We shall see the Korean War through the eyes of a chaplain who has local connections and has now been proposed for sainthood
Fr. Emil J. Kapaun

31. Fr. Kapaun Born in Pilsen, Kansas, on Holy Thursday, April 20, 1916
Attended Kenrick Seminary and ordained for the Diocese of Wichita, Kansas on June 9, 1940
Entered US Chaplain Corps. in 1944, discharged in 1946, and reentered in 1948

32. To Korea July, 1950- ordered to Korea November 2, 1950- POW
Over the next seven months, served his fellow prisoners without distinction heroically
Got a blood clot in his leg and was soon sent to a “hospital”
Died on May 23, 1951

33. John F. Kennedy, 1960 Democratic Candidate for President
Again, another anti- Catholic response
Kennedy responds
Stop c. 4:30

34. Second Vatican Council
1959- Pope John XXIII calls the Second Vatican Council
United States part of the “change” countries, along with Germany, France, England, Canada, and Australia
216 bishops at Vatican II
Ecumenism, hope of new unity of Christians, cooperation on social issues

35. American Contribution
Dignitatis humanae- Declaration on Religious Freedom
Often referred to as the American Document
John Courtney Murphy, SJ
Views on Religious Freedom got him on the outs with the Roman authorities
Brought to the council by American bishops

36. Dignitatis humanae
At the third session, Murphy began to tutor the American bishops
During debates- all the American bishops began talking off the same points
Approved 2,308-70

37. Reflection Questions
Anything strike you?

38. Until Next Time...