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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 2024
Pope St Pius X's Pascendi dominici gregis, denouncing modernism as ‘the synthesis of all heresies’, was promulgated in September 1907. The (false) suspicion that its intended target was Cardinal Newman – a suggestion promoted by George Tyrrell, among others – sparked a protracted controversy in the British secular and religious press, with modernists and anti-modernists both fighting to claim Newman. After narrating the early skirmishes of this debate, this paper explores the controversy in light of two main themes: popular views regarding Newman's standing and esteem in the eyes of the curia and magisterium; and his central, symbolic role in the construction of English Catholicism. Both, I argue, fanned the flames engulfing the letters pages of the Times. Particular attention is also given to the key (and perhaps surprising) role of another great English Cardinal in defending Blessed John Henry: St Pius’‘uncompromising ultramontane’ Secretary of State, Rafael Merry del Val.
1 Lash, Nicholas, Newman on Development (London: Sheed and Ward, 1970), p. 150Google Scholar.
2 See especially Lease, Gary, ‘Newman: The Roman View’, in Weaver, Mary Jo, ed., Newman and the Modernists (Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1985), pp. 161–82Google Scholar, at pp. 171–2; and Pierce, Andrew, ‘Crossbows, bludgeons and long-range rifles: Tyrrell and Newman and “the intimate connection between methods and their results”’, in Rafferty, Oliver P., ed., George Tyrrell and Catholic Modernism (Dublin: Four Courts, 2010), pp. 56–75Google Scholar, at pp. 64–8.
3 Ward, Wilfrid, ‘The Encyclical “Pascendi”’, Dublin Review, 142/284 (January 1908), pp. 1–10Google Scholar, at p. 1.
4 Letter to the Duke of Norfolk, 10 October 1907, quoted in Mary Jo Weaver, ‘Wilfrid Ward's Interpretation and Application of Newman’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 27–46, at p. 30. See also Nadia M. Lahutsky, ‘Ward's Newman: The Struggle to be Fair and Faithful’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 47–67.
5 The quotation is taken from Newman's famous biglietto address on the eve of his being made a cardinal in 1879. See, e.g., Paul Misner, ‘The “Liberal” Legacy of John Henry Newman’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 3–24, at p. 11.
6 Gabriel Daly, ‘Newman and Modernism: A Theological Reflection’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 185–207, at p. 185.
7 W. [J.] Williams, ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38480, 2 November 1907, p. 10. See also John D. Root, ‘William J. Williams, Newman, and Modernism’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 69–95.
8 Francis A. Gasquet, ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38482, 5 November 1907, p. 8.
9 For a useful summary, see Nichols, Aidan, Criticising the Critics: Catholic Apologias for Today (Oxford: Family Publications, 2010), pp. 8–18Google Scholar.
10 The translation used here may be found at: <http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_x/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-x_enc_19070908_pascendi-dominici-gregis_en.html> (Accessed on 23 July, 2010.)
11 George Tyrrell, ‘The Pope and Modernism. I.’, Times, 38451, 30 September 1907, p. 4.
12 Loughlin, Gerard, ‘Catholic Modernism’, in Fergusson, David, ed., The Blackwell Companion to Nineteenth-Century Theology (Oxford: Blackwell, 2010), pp. 486–508CrossRefGoogle Scholar, at p. 489.
13 ‘An Encyclical’ (From our own correspondent), Tablet, 110/3515, 21 September 1907, p. 453; ‘The Pope on Modernism’, Times, 38440, 17 September 1907, p. 3.
14 ‘De Modernistarum Doctrinis’, Tablet, 110/3516, 28 September 1907, pp. 481–3, at p. 481.
15 E.g., Jodock, Darrell, ‘Introduction I: The Modernist crisis’, in Jodock, Darrell, ed., Catholicism Contending with Modernity: Roman Catholic Modernism and Anti-Modernism in Historical Context (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), pp. 1–19CrossRefGoogle Scholar, at p. 2; and Anthony J. Carroll, ‘The Philosophical Foundations of Catholic Modernism in Rafferty (Ed), George Tyrrell, pp 33–55, at p. 40.
15‘An Encyclical’ (From our own correspondent), Tablet, 110/3515, 21 September 1907, p. 453; ‘The Pope on Modernism’, Times, 38440, 17 September 1907, p. 3.
15‘De Modernistarum Doctrinis’, Tablet, 110/3516, 28 September 1907, pp. 481–3, at p. 481.
15 E.g., Jodock, Darrell, ‘Introduction I: The Modernist crisis’, in Jodock, Darrell, ed., Catholicism Contending with Modernity: Roman Catholic Modernism and Anti-Modernism in Historical Context (Cambridge: foundations of Catholic modernism’, in Rafferty, ed., George Tyrrell, pp. 35–55, at p. 40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16 Tyrrell, ‘The Pope and Modernism. I.’, p. 4.
17 See Lebreton, J., The Encyclical and Modernist Theology, tr. Goodier, Alban (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1908), pp. 41–2Google Scholar; O’Dwyer, Edward Thomas, Cardinal Newman and the Encyclical Pascendi Dominici Gregis: An Essay (London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1908), p. 4Google Scholar; and C. S. B., Modernism: What It Is and Why It Was Condemned (Edinburgh: Sands, 1908), pp. 71–3Google Scholar.
18 Tyrrell, ‘Pope and Modernism. I.’, p. 4.
19 Ibid.
20 George Tyrrell, ‘The Pope and Modernism. II.’, Times, 38452, 1 October 1907, p. 5.
21 See ‘A Deplorable Comment’, Tablet, 110/3517, 5 October 1907, p. 553.
22 See Lease, Gary, ‘Merry del Val and Tyrrell: A Modernist struggle’, in Lease, Gary, ed., “Odd Fellows” in the Politics of Religion: Modernism: National Socialism and German Judaism (Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, [1984] 1995), 55–76, at pp. 67–9Google Scholar.
23 James Moyes, ‘The Encyclical: A Criticism in The Times’, Tablet, 110/3518, 12 October 1907, pp. 561–3, at. 561.
24 Ibid.
25 Ibid., p. 562.
26 ‘The Pope and Modernism’ (From our own correspondent), Times, 38455, 4 October 1907, p. 7.
27 Robert Dell, ‘The Pope and Cardinal Newman’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38459, 9 October 1907, p. 13.
28 John S. Vaughan, ‘The Pope and Cardinal Newman’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38461, 11 October 1907, p. 12.
29 Williams, ‘Vatican’, p. 10.
30 ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Editorial), Times, 38480, 2 November 1907, p. 9.
31 Ibid.
32 ‘Notes’, Tablet, 110/ 3522, 9 November 1907, pp. 726–7, at p. 726.
33 Gasquet, ‘Vatican’, p. 8; and Francis A. Gasquet, ‘Roman Catholics and Modernism’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38484, 7 November 1907, p. 4.
34 John Norris, ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38481, 4 November 1907, p. 10; and John Norris, ‘Roman Catholics and Modernism’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38484, 7 November 1907, p. 4.
35 See ‘The Pope and Modernism’ (From Our Own Correspondent), Times, 38483, 6 November 1907, p. 7; and ‘The Vatican and Modernism’ (From Our Own Correspondent), Times, 38486, 9 November 1907, p. 5.
36 ‘Notes’, p. 727.
37 George Tyrrell, ‘The Condemnation of Newman’, Guardian, 3233, 20 November 1907, pp. 1896–7.
38 Letter to Ward, 6 November 1907, in Mary Jo Weaver, ed., Letters from a “Modernist”: The Letters of George Tyrrell to Wilfrid Ward 1893–1908 (London: Sheed and Ward, 1981), pp. 115–17, at p. 116.
39 Robert Dell, ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38488, 13 November 1907, p. 12.
40 Letter to the Duke of Norfolk, 10 October 1907, quoted in Weaver, ‘Wilfrid Ward’, p. 30.
41 Letter to Ward, 6 November 1907, quoted in Weaver, Letters, p. 115.
42 Tyrrell, ‘Condemnation’, pp. 1896–7.
43 E.g., Pierce, ‘Crossbows’, pp. 60–1; and Cornwell, John, Newman's Unquiet Grave: The Reluctant Saint (London: Continuum, 2010), pp. 99–100Google Scholar.
44 Quoted in Gary Lease, ‘Newman: The Roman View’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, 161–82, at p. 161.
45 See, e.g., Val, Rafael Merry del, The Truth of Papal Claims: A Reply to the “The Validity of Papal Claims” by F. Nutcombe Oxenham, D.D. (London: Sands and Co., 1902), pp. x, 128–9Google Scholar.
46 Gary Lease, “Odd Fellows”, p. 247 n. 131.
47 See Holmes, Derek J., ‘Cardinal Raphael Merry del Val: An Uncompromising Ultramontane: Gleanings from his Correspondence with England’, Catholic Historical Review, 60/1 (1976), pp. 55–64Google Scholar.
48 See Holmes, ‘Cardinal’, p. 63.
49 Walsh, Michael, The Cardinals (Norwich: Canterbury Press, 2010), p. 190Google Scholar.
50 Holmes, ‘Cardinal’, pp. 65–6.
51 Lease, ‘Merry del Val’, pp. 66–9.
52 Letter to Broadhead, 17 January 1907, quoted in Holmes, ‘Cardinal’, p. 60.
53 So persistent were such rumours, that Billot was brought to publicly deny having had any part in Pascendi's composition. See Hinsley, A., ‘Who Wrote the Encyclical?’ (Letters to the Editor), Tablet, 111/3532, 18 January 1908, p. 99Google Scholar.
54 See Vidler, Alec, A Variety of Catholic Modernists (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1970), pp. 16–19Google Scholar.
55 See Tyrrell, ‘The Pope and Modernism. I.’, p. 4.
56 Quoted in John S. Vaughan, ‘Cardinal Newman and the Late Encyclical’ (Letters to the Editor), Times, 38503, 29 November 1907, p. 9.
57 Acta Sanctae Sedis 41 (1908), p. 200.
58 Ibid., p. 201.
59 Lease, ‘Roman View’, p. 174.
60 See ‘The Modernists and Cardinal Newman. An “Osservatore” Article’, Tablet, 110/3523, 15 November 1907, pp. 784–5Google Scholar, at p. 784.
61 See Reardon, Bernard G., Roman Catholic Modernism (London: A. & C. Black), p. 45Google Scholar.
62 See Mary Jo Weaver, ‘Preface’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. v-viii, at p. vii.
63 Nicholas Sagovsky, ‘“Frustration, disillusion and enduring, filial respect”: George Tyrrell's Debt to John Henry Newman’, in Weaver, ed., Newman, pp. 97–115, at p. 97.
64 Lease, ‘Merry del Val’, pp. 65–9.
65 Vidler, Variety, p. 177.
66 Wells, David F., ‘The Pope as Antichrist: The Substance of George Tyrrell's Polemic’, Harvard Theological Review, 65/2 (April 1972), pp. 271–83, at p. 277CrossRefGoogle Scholar.
67 Ibid.
68 Sidenvall, Erik, After Anti-Catholicism? John Henry Newman and Protestant Britain, 1845 – c. 1890 (London: Continuum, 2005), pp. 3–4Google Scholar.
69 See, e.g., Norman, E. R., Anti-Catholicism in Victorian England (London: Allen and Unwin, 1968), pp. 23–52Google Scholar.
70 See Sidenvall, Anti-Catholicism?, pp. 156, 29.
71 Williams, ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’, p. 10.
72 See, e.g., Norman, Anti-Catholicism, pp. 14–15.
73 Quoted in Holmes, ‘Cardinal’, p. 62.
74 ‘Editorial’, Times, 29567, 14 May 1879, p. 11.
75 Quoted in Norman, Anti-Catholicism, p. 91.
76 Quoted in ibid., p. 101.
77 ‘Coronatus, Non Pileatus’, Punch, 76, 1 March 1879, p. 87. See also Sidenvall, Anti-Catholicism?, pp. 108–9.
78 Quoted in Sidenvall, Anti-Catholicism?, p. 156.
79 James Froude, quoted in Cornwell, Unquiet Grave, p. 61.
80 ‘The Vatican and Father Tyrrell’ (Editorial), p. 9.
81 Gasquet, ‘Vatican’, p. 8.
82 Tyrrell, ‘Condemnation’, p. 1896.
83 Ratzinger, Joseph, ‘Newman belongs to the great teachers of the Church’, in Jennings, Peter, ed., Benedict XVI and Cardinal Newman (Oxford: Family Publications), pp. 33–5Google Scholar.
