The Americanist Heresy in Roman Catholicism, 1895-1900

As America entered the twentieth century, a difficult question confronted the rapidly-growing Catholic Church: To what degree, if any, should religious practices be adapted to the American milieu?

The Catholic hierarchy of the United States in these years was sharply divided between conservatives and "Americanists." The former group believed that republican governments were, per se, opposed to religion. The "Americanists," on the other hand, not only saw democracy as the best possible government for a pluralistic society such as obtained in this nation, but were convinced that a pragmatic approach to cultural problems was an absolute necessity.

The controversy and its resolution, as here unfolded by Reverend Thomas T. McAvoy, C.S.C., provide rich material for a fascinating and hitherto little-studied piece of history. Father McAvoy, formerly Head of the Department of History at the University of Notre Dame, now functions as University Archivist while continuing on the History faculty.

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