La separation de l'eglise et de l'etat dans le diocese de sees
Institution:
Université Marc Bloch (Strasbourg) (1971-2008)Disciplines:
Directors:
Abstract EN:
In his pastoral letters of 1903 and 1904, the bishop of sees, mgr bardel, underlined that the separation of the church and the state was, by nature, impossible. He specified that, because of its divine origin, the church has a number of rights on the state and on the citizens. And, by separating itself from the church, the stade would profess atheism. On their side, the upholders of secularity, who were in favour of breaking the concordat of 1801, considered that man could really acquire his liberty only if the state got free from any reference to the church. In view of this, the law of 9th december, 1905 - which separated the church from the state - was passed. The concordat stipulating that in compensation for the despoiling of the church property, the state should pay a decent salary to the clergy, was broken unilaterally. To remedy this state of things, mgr bardel, too, established the "church offering" in his diocese. The law of separation stipulated that the management of the property assigned to the cult should be carried on by church associations (to replace the parochial church councils). Most parish priests in the diocese of sees thought that it could actually be realized. But, as those associations were a threat to the church hierarchy, they were rejected by pope pius x. The implementation of the inventaries by the state gave rise to a lot of protest, in the diocese of sees as nearly everywhere in france. And with an aim to lay hands on the church property that was not directly assigned to the cult, the administration started to sequestrate the church property, which was clearly disapproved of, as the christians considered it a real despoiling. As a result, mgr bardel was ejected from his episcopal palace and the seminarians were expelled from their seminary. The separation inflicted a real injury to the church. But, in spite of it, a new apostolic impulse burst out in its heart.
Abstract FR:
L'eveque de sees, monseigneur c. Bardel, soulignait, dans ses lettres pastorales de 1903 et 1904, que la separation de l'eglise et de l'etat etait, par nature, impossible. L'eveque precisait que, de par son origine divine, l'eglise avait des droits sur l'etat et sur les citoyens. Et, en se separant d'elle, l'etat ferait profession d'atheisme. De leur cote, les defenseurs de la laicite pronaient une rupture du concordat de 1801. Ils estimaient que la liberte de l'homme ne pouvait etre reellement acquise que si l'etat s'affranchissait de toute reference a l'eglise. C'est dans cette perspective que fut votee la loi du 9 decembre qui separe l'eglise de l'etat. Le concordat prevoyait qu'en compensation de la spoliation des biens ecclesiastiques, l'etat verserait un traitement "convenable" au clerge : par cette loi, le concordat etait unilateralement rompu. Pour y remedier, monseigneur bardel instaurera, lui aussi, le denier du culte dans son diocese. La loi de separation prevoyait que la gestion des biens affectes au culte serait effectuee, en remplacement des conseils de fabrique, par des associations cultuelles. Dans leur majorite, les cures du diocese de sees estimerent que cela etait concretement realisable. Mais, du fait que ces associations portaient atteinte a la hierarchie de l'eglise, elles furent rejetees par le pape pie x. La mise en oeuvre des inventaires souleva un grand nombre de protestations, dans le diocese de sees comme un peu partout en france. Dans le but de prendre possession des biens ecclesiastiques qui n'etaient pas directement affectes au culte, l'administration proceda a la mise en place du sequestre. Celui-ci fut nettement desapprouve : les chretiens le percevaient comme etant une veritable spoliation. Il eut notamment pour consequence, dans le diocese de sees, l'expulsion de monseigneur bardel du palais episcopal, et des seminaristes de leur seminaire. La separation va porter un reel prejudice a l'eglise. Mais, malgre cela, jaillira de son sein tout un nouvel elan apostolique.