- Part 2 Correspondence
- 4 Bishop Scalabrini and Archbishop Corrigan (1887–1902)
- 69. Corrigan to Scalabrini New York, January 11, l902
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69. Corrigan to Scalabrini143
New
York, January 11, l902
Most Reverend and Dearest Bishop:
Your Excellency’s most kind letter comforted me
very much. Thank you
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for the report you made to the Holy Father
regarding the works of the American Episcopate and also regarding my
Archdiocese. I am certain that the word of Your Excellency brought comfort and
relief to His Holiness.144
Fr.
Ferrante thanks Your Excellency for the information given the Holy Father, and
he is happy that you have not proposed him for any honor. He thinks that it is
enough for the Holy See to know about the work of a priest. Promotion is better
left to the prudent discernment of the Holy Father.
Regarding
the Church of St. Joachim, a loan is being negotiated
with the Lincoln Bank in view of reducing the interest at 4%. Moreover, the
Diocesan Consultors, at my request, have agreed to contribute toward the
expenses for the necessary repairs of the roof of the same church. Probably
more than $2,000 will have to be spent.
I
have serious fears about the St. Raphael’s Society. I have reasons to believe
that the Italian Consul has given or will give a report that will not be at all
favorable to our project. Recently, the Consul visited the shelter and
expressed himself in such a way as to make us foresee that dispositions will be
taken not too favorable to the Institution. Fr. Gambera
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works
faithfully at the port and in a few days, he will publish a report of the work
of the Society during the year l90l. This will do some good.145
The Church of the Transfiguration,
due to the opposition of the American group, cannot be prudently handed over to
anybody. The Consultors, therefore, decided that the Diocese assume the
responsibility of this Church for now and appoint priests for the
administration of the sacraments to the mixed congregation, that is, English
and Italian.
Fr.
Ferrante sent to Your Excellency a letter of the Catholic Club of New York.146 I do not know if Your Excellency
has yet sent a line of acknowledgement. Forgive the freedom that I am taking in
daring to mention this.
Everything
in New York
proceeds normally. The new Municipal Administration gives evidence of being
very respectful toward Catholics. Perhaps it is all politics. In any case, it
is something satisfactory for all.147
I
renew my thanks and with sentiments of high esteem and true friendship I shake
your hand and remain
Your Excellency’s Servant and Friend,
Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York
The answer of Your Excellency has been received
by the Catholic Club with deeply felt gratitude.
143 AGS EB 01–07 (Original).
144 The pastoral visitation of Bishop
Scalabrini to the United
States had a profound impact on his thinking
about immigration in relation to the work of the Church, on the public image of
the Italian immigrants, and on the support for special pastoral structures and
services for them. In four months and a half, he covered almost ten thousand
miles, visited more than fifty cities, gave over 350 speeches. In interviews
Bishop Scalabrini gave in Italy
on his return, he confirmed that “the Holy Father had been very much interested
in his trip, that he had been received extremely well everywhere, that he was
optimistic about the future of this immigration. He was confident about his
Missionaries: “. . . notwithstanding some defect of character of some of ours,
the work goes on and our Missionaries are looked upon as true apostles, and not
only by our poor immigrants, but by the Bishops, the clergy and by the American
laity. Praised be God.” AGS AN 01–01, f.39, Scalabrini to Mangot, New York,
August 12, 1901. To the newspaper L’Araldo
Italiano of New York of November 19, 1901, the Bishop summed up his
impressions about the immigrants: “Grand is the future opened to us Italians,
provided (the immigrants) are unanimous and united and let themselves be guided
by faith. It’s exactly what I said to President Roosevelt: the Italian element,
provided it proceeds compact and remains above all religious, can become one of
the hinges of the American population. The press has to contribute to this
cohesion in a particular way. United and religious, that’s all.” On its part,
also the New York Archdiocesan paper The
Catholic News, reported on December 21, 1901, p. 5: “The Rome correspondent
of the London Tablet, writing from the Eternal City under date of Dec. 1, thus
describes the visit to the Pope of Bishop Scalabrini, the Italian prelate who
recently made a tour of this country in the interest of the spiritual welfare
of his fellow countrymen here: Monsignor Scalabrini, Bishop of Piacenza, who
has just arrived in Rome, is a very remarkable man. After paying his homage to
the Holy Father he visited Minister Prinetti and Senator Bodio, and it would be
hard to say which of the three welcomed him most cordially. Certain is that the
Holy father was delighted with the very hopeful account the prelate had to give
about the immigrants in America....”
145 Cf. St.
Raphael’s Society Records in the Archives of the Center for
Migration Studies of New York, Inc.: Rendiconto
della Società S. Raffaele dal 10 novembre 1900 al 10 maggio 1902. This is
the report prepared by Father Gambera.
146 In the name of Archbishop
Corrigan, Msgr. Gherardo Ferrante transmitted to Bishop Scalabrini on November
24,1901, a note from the President of the Catholic Club of New York, John A.
Sullivan, in which the Bishop was informed that “. . . at a meeting of the
Board of management of the Catholic Club held Nov. 12 you were unanimously
elected an Honorary Member. I am sending herewith our annual Club book just
published so you may see how exclusive and select our list of Honorary Members
is.” AGS BA 03–11. The answer of Bishop Scalabrini, requested by Msgr.
Ferrante, has not been found, but obviously it arrived when Archbishop Corrigan
was about to mail his letter.
147 After Archbishop Corrigan’s
death, Msgr. Ferrante wrote to Bishop Scalabrini on May 12, 1902: “I write
these few lines from the convent of the Sisters of Charity where I have been
for a few days to recover from the mortal blow of the loss of my archbishop. I
received the telegram with which Your Excellency joined in the mourning of the
diocese and I communicated it to the Administrator of the diocese. He charged
me to thank you in the name of the clergy and the people, but I was not able to
at that moment; I am carrying out my duty now . . . .” (AGS).
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