DECOLONIZING CHRISTIANITY: GRASSROOTS ECUMENISM IN FRANCE AND ALGERIA, 1940-1965 by DARCIE S. FONTAINE A Dissertation submitted to the Graduate School-New Brunswick Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Program in History written under the direction of Bonnie G. Smith and approved by ________________________ ________________________ ________________________ ________________________ New Brunswick, New Jersey MAY, 2011 2011 Darcie Fontaine ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Decolonizing Christianity: Grassroots Ecumenism in France and Algeria, 1940-1965 By DARCIE S. FONTAINE Dissertation Director: Bonnie G. Smith This dissertation, “Grassroots Ecumenism: Christianity and Decolonization in France and Algeria, 1940-1965” is the first major study of how French Protestant and Catholic engagement in the Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962) reshaped Christianity in the modern world and influenced global religious movements like Ecumenical Movement and Vatican II. The moral questions that surfaced during the Algerian War, including the French military’s use of torture, the repression of civilian populations, and debates about the legitimacy of the Algerian nationalist positions forced Christians across the world to rethink the role of Christianity in imperialism and its future in a postcolonial world. This dissertation examines the shifting dynamics of Christianity’s role in the French empire, from the role that Christianity played in supporting the moral foundations for French colonialism in Algeria, to the ways in which Social Christianity, which emerged in France in the 1930s and 40s, undermined these same moral arguments, including the belief that French colonialism was both benevolent and the only means through which Christian interests could be protected in Algeria. ii Using private and governmental archives from France, Switzerland, Algeria, and Tunisia, this dissertation argues that the Algerian War, the most brutal and violent conflict over decolonization in the French empire, was a testing ground for the decolonization of Christianity itself. It traces a group of French Christians who used Christian theology and morality to argue for social justice for colonized peoples, and even political independence. Although many of these Christians were arrested and tortured for their support of the Algerian population, they worked toward a decolonization of the church in Algeria by initiating a dialogue with Algerian Muslims and working with them to solve some of the grave social problems that were at the root of Algerian discontent. This project thus traces the transformation of Christianity from its position as the moral foundation of European imperialism to its role as a radical voice of political and social change in the era of decolonization, and the complex tensions that resulted as Christians attempted to renegotiate their place in the emerging Third World. iii Acknowledgements The research and writing of this dissertation was made possible with the guidance and support of a vast number of people and institutions, and I am extremely indebted to them for their generosity. Financial support from a Fulbright-IIE fellowship in France, and fellowships from the American Institute for Maghrib Studies, and Rutgers University made research in France, Algeria, Tunisia, and Switzerland possible. A Bevier Dissertation Fellowship from Rutgers University gave me the time to write. In France, Dr. Amy Tondu at the Franco-American Commission helped smooth the way through many bureaucratic difficulties and became a wonderful ally. Professor Denis Pelletier of the École Pratique des Hautes Etudes generously guided me through the maze of French Catholic history and Nathalie Viet-Depaule offered useful advice on accessing Catholic archives. The first archive I visited in France was Cimade, and it was an ideal place to work, complete with amazing documents and the anciens équipiers who put the collection together. I especially thank Mireille Desrez and her team for their warm welcome and generous assistance. At the Mission de France, I thank Bernard Boudouresques and Michel Lepape for their assistance in answering my questions and helping me access the archives. I also thank the numerous archivists and librarians at the Centre historique des archives nationales in Paris, the Centre des archives du monde du travail in Roubaix, the Bibliothèque de la Société de l’Histoire du Protestantisme in Paris, the World Council of Churches archives in Geneva, and especially M. Daniel Hick of the Centre des archives d’outre-mer in Aix-en-Provence. This project really came alive when I had the chance to meet several of the individuals I write about in this thesis. In particular I owe an enormous debt to Mlle Nelly iv Forget who allowed me to access her private archives on her trial in Algiers in 1957, taught me nearly everything I know about the Centres Sociaux, and introduced me to a number of useful contacts in both France and Algeria. I also thank Paul and Josette Fournier for their warm welcome, helpful advice, and archival sources. Among those who kindly afforded me the time to talk them about their experiences, I especially thank Jean-Claude Barthez, André and Annette Gallice, Paulette and Simone Gallice, Jacques Maury, Paul Rendu, and Charles Harper. In Algeria, I came to appreciate the amazing work that Robert Parks and Karim Ouaras are doing at the Centre d’Études Maghrébines en Algérie and I thank them profusely for their tremendous support. At the Glycines, I thank Marie-Thérèse Mounier and Pères Michel Lombard and Jean-Marie Leclercq for their kindness and generosity. Mgr Henri Teissier assisted me in accessing a number of sources and individuals in Algeria. He has been an incredibly generous and thoughtful reader, for which I am profoundly grateful; there are many days when I wish I could just walk down the hill for a conversation with him. Jean-Pierre Henri gave me access to the archives in the Archdiocese of Algiers and engaged with me in many spirited conversations, and I thank him for all his assistance. I particularly thank Pierre and Claudine Chaulet and Denis Gonzales for their lively conversations with me, and the many, many others who gave us such a warm and generous welcome. Although we now have too many friends there to name, it is worth thanking Toufik, Souha, Feriel, and Rachid for making our time in Algiers such a pleasure. I thank Laurence Michalak and Riadh Saadaoui of the Centre d’Études Maghrébines à Tunis in Tunisia for their help and support during my time in Tunisia. I v also thank David Bond for his assistance at the Institute des Belles Lettres Arabes (IBLA), which has since suffered a tragic and devastating fire. Our time in Tunis would have been infinitely less pleasurable without the kind generosity of Laura Thompson, for which I am still profoundly grateful. Laryssa Chomiak and the other CEMAT scholars made delightful research and dinner companions. At Rutgers, I have had the privilege of working with a number of very gifted scholars and teachers. Special thanks go to Dawn Ruskai for helping me sort out all manner of complex administrative problems, particularly when I was abroad. I want to thank Temma Kaplan, Nancy Hewitt, and Alastair Bellany for guiding my path during my years of coursework and being inspiring scholars and teachers. Belinda Davis will always be the voice in my head when I write, keeping me on the straight and narrow and tamping down my tendencies toward passive voice. My dissertation committee was a delightful group and I particularly appreciate the chance to work with Barbara Cooper, whose work has long been an inspiration. Richard Serrano’s charm is matched only by his amazing breadth of knowledge and insight, all of which this dissertation benefited from in countless ways. Paul Hanebrink has been a great teacher, reader, and mentor and I sincerely appreciate his support for this project, even in its earliest inceptions. There is no better advisor than Bonnie Smith and I am extremely lucky to have had the opportunity to work with her. She seemed to understand the potential for this dissertation and what it was about long before I did, yet she also gave me the freedom to explore some of the more creative aspects of the project. Her astounding work ethic provides a model I strive to emulate and her professionalism and grace have constantly vi impressed me. I thank her especially for her patience and encouragement through this long process. Many friends and colleagues, both at Rutgers and elsewhere, made important contributions to the dissertation and to my life in general. I particularly thank the Rutgers Institute for Research on Women seminar during 2009-2010, who helped me clarify many of my ideas, and the New York area French Colonial/African History Reading Group, who read chapter drafts and helped me think through some theoretical problems. Within these groups, I particularly thank Michelle Pinto and Jennifer Johnson-Onyedum for their friendship and support. In Paris, dinners out would not have been nearly as much fun without Katie Hornstein and Viktor Witkowski. And I especially thank Susan and Emud Mokhberi for introducing us to several great restaurants and finding us at least one apartment. At Rutgers, I had the privilege of working with many delightful friends, several of whom were Terrific Hons. I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to Rebecca Tuuri, Rachel Schnepper, Laurie Marhoefer, Allison Miller, Johanna Jochumsdottir and Shamim Taherzadeh, Melanie Kiechle, Andrew Daily, Robin Chapdelaine, Sandra Mendiola, Svanur Pétursson, Kathleen Manning, and Rebecca Scales. I’m not sure I could have made it through without Julie Buck. My family has been incredibly supportive of this entire endeavor, even in my gloomiest hours. The Walkers have provided good-humored moral and financial support just when we needed it, for which I am profoundly grateful.