Hayti; or, The black republic.St. John, Spenser, Sir
History
Hayti; or, The black republic.
St. John, Spenser, Sir
Haiti; Haiti -- History
The concordat consisted of seventeen articles and two additions, which
provided first for the special protection of the Catholic religion;
the establishment of an archbishopric at Port-au-Prince, and as soon
as possible other dependent bishoprics, paid by the State; nomination
by the President of three bishops subject to the approval of the
Holy See,--the clergy to take an oath of fidelity to the Government;
establishment of seminaries and chapters; nomination of priests by
the bishops of persons approved of by the Government, and a few other
arrangements of lesser importance.
The Roman Catholic Church, however, although the religion of the
State, has never been popular in Hayti. Amongst the upper classes,
disbelief, among the lower the influence of the Vaudoux, and the
fanatical opposition of the Catholic priesthood to Freemasonry, have
combined to prevent the Church from gaining either the confidence or
the affection of the nation. Even over the women the priests exercise
less influence than in other countries.
Although the Roman Catholic religion is that of the State, all others
are tolerated, and many Haytian Ministers have felt inclined to
encourage the Protestants, not only to counterbalance any political
influence of the priests, but with the object of creating a rivalry
in the performance of their missionary duties. These passing fits of
enlightenment, however, have been but of short duration, and little has
been done to encourage any form of religion.
At present Hayti is divided into five dioceses; but at the time of
the last report I have seen, there were only one archbishop and two
bishops; these were aided by four vicars-generals.
Port-au-Prince, being the capital, is the seat of the archbishopric,
where Monseigneur Guilloux still worthily holds sway, and he is aided
in his duties by a vicar and chapter. He has always had a difficult
part to play, and during the civil war of 1869 ran many risks, and was
nearly expelled the country.
The budget makes allowance for one archbishop at £800 a year; two
bishops at £480 a year; the vicar of Port-au-Prince at £160 a year;
three other vicars at £120 a year; and sixty-seven parish priests at
£48 a year.
Besides this regular pay, the Government is bound to furnish the clergy
with suitable residences. The Archbishop has a very comfortable and
spacious house, sufficiently furnished for the climate, and situated in
the healthiest quarter of the town. The clergy receive also many fees,
the amount for baptisms, marriages, and funerals having been fixed by
arrangement with the Government. When I was in Port-au-Prince there
was a very warm discussion as to whether the fees were to be employed
towards the payment of salary, each party accusing the other of wishing
to violate the concordat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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