224) and Father Pierre Jean DeSmet wrote, "The priests are generally agreed that, on principle, such an oath cannot be taken, because our authority does not emanate from the State, and we cannot, without compromising the ecclesiastical state, consent to take it. No Catholic priest in Missouri will take it." (Duane G. Archbishop Peter Kenrick felt that the oath took away religious liberty (Dictionary of Missouri Biography, p. There are no records of Father Cummings' views on the Civil War, but there is a clear record of the Missouri Catholic Church's response to the new Constitution. In September 1865, Father John Cummings was pastor of St. 353).Īnyone who attempted to hold specified positions without taking the oath was subject to a $500 fine and imprisonment and/or imprisonment for six months. An individual who took the oath and lied was subject to imprisonment for not less than two years. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1908, p. It did not sufficiently recognize different degrees of guilt." (Galusha Anderson, The Story of a Border City in the Civil War. "While the Convention designated the oath the 'Oath of Loyalty ' the people, seizing upon its exact intent, called it the 'Test Oath.' Its object was to test the loyalty of those who were required to take it. Louis lawyer, became such an important force at the convention that the constitution of 1865 is often referred to as the "Drake Constitution." Louis January 6-Apat the Mercantile Library Hall. The "Ironclad Oath," as it came to be called, was mandated by the Missouri Constitution of 1865. The oath states, "I _ do solemnly swear, that I am well acquainted with the terms of the Third Section of the Second Article of the Constitution of the State of Missouri, adopted in the year 1865, and have carefully considered the same that I have never, directly or indirectly, done any of the acts in said section specified that I have always been truly and loyally on the side of the United States against all enemies thereof, foreign and domestic that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the United States, and will support the Constitution and laws thereof, as the supreme law of the land, any law or ordinance of any State to the contrary notwithstanding that I will to the best of my ability, protect and defend the Union of the United States, and not allow the same to be broken up and dissolved, or the Government thereof to be destroyed or overthrown, under any circumstances, if in my power to prevent it that I will support the Constitution of the State of Missouri, and that I make this oath without any mental reservation or evasion, and hold it to be binding on me." Louis at this time: Manager of the Quarantine Hospital Superintendent of the Work House Repairer of Fire Alarm Telegraph Wood Master Southern District Superintendent of Public Lamps Inspector of Boilers City Translator Inspector of Vaults Deputy Meat Inspector and Dog, Hog, Goat and Cattle Catcher. This book dates from 1869-1871, and offers a fascinating look at some of the public positions that existed in St. It allowed no "bishop, priest, deacon, minister, elder or other clergyman of any religious persuasion, sect or denomination, to teach or preach, or solemnize marriages unless such person shall have first taken, subscribed, and filed said oath."( Cummings v. Signing this oath was required by the State of Missouri in order to hold "any office of honor, trust, or profit under its authority or of being an officer, councilman, director, trustee, or other manager of any corporation, public or private, now existing or hereafter established by its authority or of acting as a professor or teacher in any educational institution, or in any common or other school or of holding any real estate or other property in trust for the use of any church, religious society or congregation…" The constitution also required that members of religious communities take the oath before preaching in public. This Oath of Loyalty book consists of pages containing the text of the "test oath" and the signatures of men holding (or seeking) public office in the city. The artifact of the month for September is a fascinating reminder of the hostility and resentment that remained in the state after the end of the Civil War.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |