Archbishop James Morrison, Fourth Bishop of Antigonish
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“Cautious but Willing”: Archbishop James Morrison, Fourth Bishop of Antigonish by Peter Ludlow Submitted in partial fulfillment o f the degree Master of Arts in Atlantic Canada Studies Saint Mary’s University Friday, September 10, 2004 Approved; Dr^|hn Reidf^^erviwr Dr. Terry Murphy, R e a d ^ _ _ Uf DifJim Cameron, External Reader Dr, Mar^ret Harry, Coordinator Atlantic Canada Studies © Peter Ludlow, 2004 Library and Bibliothèque et 1^1 Archives Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de l'édition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre référence ISBN: 0-612-96129-X Our file Notre référence ISBN: 0-612-96129-X The author has granted a non L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive license allowing the exclusive permettant à la Library and Archives Canada to Bibliothèque et Archives Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of theL'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither thedroit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts from Niit la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou aturement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. In compliance with the Canadian Conformément à la loi canadienne Privacy Act some supporting sur la protection de la vie privée, forms may have been removed quelques formulaires secondaires from this thesis. ont été enlevés de cette thèse. While these forms may be includedBien que ces formulaires in the document page count, aient inclus dans la pagination, their removal does not represent il n'y aura aucun contenu manquant. any loss of content from the thesis. Canada Table of Contents Acknowledgments i Abstract iii Introduction 1-4 Notes on Sources 5-8 Chapter One: The Struggle: 1861-1912 9-34 Chapter Two: Antigonish: 1912-1914 35-58 Chapter Three: War Years: 1914-1918 59-82 Chapter Four: Gaining Control: 1919-1925 83-118 Chapter Five: A New Movement: 1926-1933 119-153 Chapter Six: Hanging On: 1936-1945 154-182 Chapter Seven: Final Days: 1946-1950 183-201 Conclusion 202-206 Appendix A: Map of Diocese of Antigonish 207 Bibliography 208-214 Acknowledgments There are many people who assisted me in preparing this work. I would like to thank, Bishop Colin Campbell and Bishop Raymond J. Lahey of Antigonish, for granting me access to the Morrison papers. A great deal of time was spent researching at the Antigonish diocesan offices and this usually meant that I was in someone’s way; however I was treated with great kindness and a lot of understanding. Many thanks to Sister Mary Rod MacMullin, Sister Hadiee MacLellan, Rev. Syd Mifflen and Linda Johnson. I am grateful to Bishop Vernon Fougere of Charlottetown, for granting me access to the Morrison papers located within the archives of the Diocese of Charlottetown. My research on the Island was made much easier thanks to the helpfulness of Charlottetown Diocesan Archivist/historian, Rev. Art O’Shea. Rev. O’Shea gave a great deal of his time and knowledge, and his assistance was much appreciated. I would like to thank my supervisor. Dr. John G. Reid, for his helpful comments and insights into the thesis. It was a privilege to work under such a accomplished historian. My internal reader. Dr. Terrence Murphy gave up a lot of time from his busy schedule to read and comment on my thesis. Dr. James Cameron of St. Francis Xavier University not only served as my external reader, but also, was gracious enough to give up his time in discussing various aspects of the thesis while I was in the process of researching. I would also like 11 to thank Dr. Peter Twohig, not only for his many helpful suggestions and comments, but for giving up many of his precious office hours for questions and discussion. I would like to thank Kathleen Mackenzie, the archivist at St. Francis Xavier University for not only coming up with the idea of Morrison as a thesis topic, but who has gone above and beyond the call of duty in assisting me with the many materials needed to study the life of James Morrison. She always acted as a springboard for ideas and her great knowledge of, and interest in, this topic has been a constant motivation. Thanks to Wade and Shane for the many entertaining evenings in which I was able to concentrate on things other than this thesis. Thanks guys! A large part of this thesis was written in the home of the Mullen’s and I am grateful for their hospitality and support. My parents, Basil and Dorothy Ludlow gave me a lot of encouragement. I also thank them for the money that found its way into my pocket from time to time. Finally, I might not even have attempted this work had it not been for Kerry. She has become as much an expert on Morrison as I have, and her constant patience and caring has not gone unnoticed. Ill Abstract “Cautious but Willing”; James Morrison, Fourth Bishop of Antigonish. Peter Ludlow James Morrison was Bishop of Antigonish from 1912-1950. He represented the last of the remote, powerful and austere 19* century style Catholic bishops who were modeled in a time when their power went unchallenged. He belonged to a generation of men, who directed the Catholic Church through a time of enormous social and economic unrest; who faced difficult challenges while trying to maintain their traditional grasp on the laity. He was a prudent, cautious and pragmatic bishop, but he was also aware of the issues that the diocese faced and was willing to step aside and allow those best suited to face the issues a chance to do so. Exceedingly afraid of debt, Morrison steered Antigonish through two world wars and a devastated Maritime economy and managed to keep the diocese in healthy financial condition. He supported the implementation of the Saint Francis Xavier University extension department and the actions of its workers. His abilities as an administrator were first-rate and although he was open to suggestions, he could be stringent if challenged. The understanding of the Antigonish Movement is incomplete unless one understands the actions and motives of Archbishop James Morrison. September 2004 Introduction In April of 1950, the dean of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in Canada passed away at the age of eighty-nine. Archbishop James Morrison, who was the Bishop of one of English Canada’s most important Catholic communities, was gone after thirty-eight years of service. His death represented a changing of the guard in the Canadian Catholic hierarchy. He represented the last of the remote, powerful and austere 19* century style Catholic bishops who reigned at a time when their power went unchallenged. He belonged to a generation of men, who directed the Catholic Church through a time of enormous social and economic unrest and who faced difficult challenges while trying to maintain their traditional grasp on the laity. In Morrison’s years in Antigonish (1912- 1950), much had been accomplished. By the time of his death, the Diocese of Antigonish and its priests had become world famous for their economic and social progressiveness known as the Antigonish Movement. As Bishop of the diocese, Morrison was ultimately responsible for everything that occurred. A native of Prince Edward Island, Morrison was bom into a community that was proud of its Catholic traditions. Educated in local schools and St. Duns tan’s University, Morrison entered the seminary at the Urban College in Rome and was ordained in 1887. The next twenty-five years were spent as a priest on Prince Edward Island where he held many important administrative positions. He was made bishop of Antigonish in 1912 and inherited a diocese that was socially and economically erratic. The increasing industrialization of parts of the diocese brought with it social difficulties which challenged Morrison’s rural background. A physically large man, James Morrison was domineering in almost everything that he did. He was a prudent, cautious and pragmatic bishop but he was also aware of the issues that the diocese faced and was willing to step aside and allow those best suited to face the issues a chance to do so. Exceedingly afraid of debt, Morrison steered Antigonish through two world wars and a devastated Maritime economy while managing to keep the diocese in healthy financial condition. His abilities as an administrator were first-rate and, although he was open to suggestions, he could be unyielding if challenged. When the Canadian Catholic community heard of his death they praised his ability to allow his socially minded priests to develop and implement their progressive ideas. The history of the Antigonish diocese and the esteemed Antigonish Movement would be a living testimony to the work of its cautious but accommodating bishop. History, however, has not been kind to James Morrison as he has been almost written out of the literature of the area. The overwhelming majority of the writing on the Antigonish movement mentions him as a footnote or leaves him out completely. He is used to enhance the struggles or personalities of other important Catholic individuals who served under him. He is most infamous for the transfer of Rev. James Tompkins from his position as Vice- President of St. Francis Xavier University to the post as parish priest of Canso, Nova Scotia, due to a disagreement over University federation in 1921.