“Pray, Pay and Disobey”: Conflict and Schism in Catholic America, 1870-1939
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“PRAY, PAY AND DISOBEY”: CONFLICT AND SCHISM IN CATHOLIC AMERICA, 1870-1939 by Margaret J. Rencewicz BA, University of Pittsburgh, 2003 MA, University of Pittsburgh, 2009 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2015 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH DIETRICH SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Margaret J. Rencewicz It was defended on April 29, 2015 and approved by Katherine A. Lynch, Professor, History, Carnegie Mellon University Richard Oestreicher, Associate Professor, History, University of Pittsburgh Adam Shear, Associate Professor, Religious Studies, University of Pittsburgh Dissertation Advisor: Paula M. Kane, Professor, Religious Studies, University of Pittsburgh ii Copyright by Margaret J. Rencewicz 2015 iii “PRAY, PAY AND DISOBEY”: CONFLICT AND SCHISM IN CATHOLIC AMERICA, 1870-1939 Margaret J. Rencewicz, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2015 In late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century immigrant America, lay Catholics were not shy of turning to disruptive, even violent, means to solve disputes within their religious communities. They split into factions and fought each other in the church, on the street and in the courts. Often, the pastor was the key divisive figure in the conflict, with factions aligning in support of or opposition to him. Parishioners and even priests fought their bishops. Many lay Catholics employed militant, diplomatic, legal and schismatic strategies in order to secure what they most desired: control of the administration of parish finances and property. By examining their actions as strategic, this project seeks to restore agency to lay Catholics who are often presented in Catholic history as passive, submissive and blindly loyal to their priests, bishops and pope. In addition to strategic acts of militancy, such as rioting, lay Catholics made use of diplomatic conflict-resolution strategies, such as petitioning Roman Catholic prelates in order to secure a change of pastors. Sometimes, lay Catholics turned to the secular legal system for assistance in their efforts to secure control of parish property. When all else failed, conflicts begat schisms, such as the Polish National Catholic Church, which was established in 1897. Lay Catholics, however, shaped and transformed the Roman Catholic Church and Catholicism in America not only by schism, but also by the threat iv of schism. Therefore, in addition to schismatics, this study includes lay people and priests who neared and even dabbled in schism, but ultimately did not leave the Roman Catholic Church. By doing so, this project aims to uncover complexities of conflict within Catholic America. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS....................................................................................................x 1.0 CONFLICT AND SCHISM IN AMERICAN CATHOLIC HISTORY...........................1 1.1 Introduction...............................................................................................................2 1.2 Independentism and The Polish National Catholic Church...................................9 1.3 The “Battle for Control” in Catholic America........................................................14 1.3.1 Chapter Outline.........................................................................................16 1.3.2 Sources.......................................................................................................20 1.4 Conclusion...............................................................................................................25 2.0 MILITANT STRATEGIES............................................................................................27 2.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................27 2.2 Reporting Conflict in Catholic America.................................................................31 2.3 Collective Militant Strategies: Priest Lockouts, Mob Actions and Rioting.............................................................39 2.4 Individual Militant Strategies: Assault, Death Threats, Killings and Arson..........................................................53 2.5 The Significance of Lay Militancy and “Disobedience”.........................................58 2.6 Conclusion...............................................................................................................65 3.0 DIPLOMATIC STRATEGIES.......................................................................................67 3.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................67 3.2 Shenandoah, Pennsylvania....................................................................................71 3.3 Language.................................................................................................................76 vi 3.3.1 Confession..................................................................................................82 3.4 Rioting and “Bad Catholics”...................................................................................91 3.5 Ethnicity................................................................................................................100 3.6 Conclusion.............................................................................................................112 4.0 LEGAL STRATEGIES................................................................................................116 4.1 Introduction...........................................................................................................117 4.2 Trusteeism.............................................................................................................119 4.3 Property.................................................................................................................127 4.4 Civil Law Vs. Canon Law: Legal Strategies in Pennsylvania............................134 4.4.1 Scranton...................................................................................................138 4.4.2 Shenandoah.............................................................................................145 4.4.3 Mahanoy City..........................................................................................148 4.5 Canon Law: Crimes and Penalties.......................................................................152 4.6 Conclusion.............................................................................................................160 5.0 SCHISM.......................................................................................................................162 5.1 Introduction...........................................................................................................164 5.2 Schismatic Movements.........................................................................................165 5.2.1 Cleveland, Ohio (1894-1907)...................................................................166 5.2.2 Buffalo, New York (1895-1911)...............................................................170 5.2.3 Chicago (1895-1907)................................................................................175 5.2.4 Scranton, Pennsylvania (1897-today).....................................................184 5.3 Short-Lived Schism...............................................................................................192 5.4 Long-Lived Schism................................................................................................205 vii 5.5 Conclusion.............................................................................................................214 6.0 CONCLUSION............................................................................................................216 BIBLIOGRAPHY...............................................................................................................223 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. PNCC parishes in the Northeast and Central Midwest United States (active and inactive)........................................................................................................................22 Figure 2. PNCC parishes in the United States and Canada (active and inactive)........23 Figure 3. Administration Dates of Archbishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia.........................................................................................................................24 Figure 4. Shifting Territorial Lines of Roman Catholic Dioceses in Pennsylvania.......25 Figure 5. Shenandoah and Other Schism Locations in Eastern Pennsylvania.............72 ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I thank all the schismatics, near-schismatics and sympathizers in American Catholic history. This includes my great-grandparents Józef and Karolina Saltys (Saint John the Baptist PNCC, Toronto, Canada, est. 1933) and Ignacy and Michalina Rencewicz (Saints Peter and Paul PNCC, New Kensington, Pennsylvania, est. 1932). This work is for them, my late grandfather, Most Rev. John A. Rencewicz, Sr., who served as a PNCC priest for over sixty years (mostly in the Pittsburgh area), and especially my Polish babcia, Józia. Prawdą – pracą – walką – zwyciężymy! I thank everyone I came to know and befriend in the departments of Religious Studies and History at the University of Pittsburgh and the Department of History at Carnegie Mellon