by Fabian Parmisano, OP

CHAPTER 2 : Alemany and Vilarrasa: Uneasy Partnership

Continued

Such letters, writes John McGloin, are typical of many sent to the east from California in the 1840s. They together with other sources of information were a continual pressure on the U.S. bishops to petition Rome for a bishop for California. Initially the bishops expressed their concerns simply to each other. Eccleston, for example, writes to Bishop Francis Patrick Kendrick of Philadelphia, December 19, 1848. He refers to the letter he received from Colonel Jonathan Stevenson (quoted above), and goes on to mention his discomfort with the mounting Protestant influence in California and the uncertain state of Catholic Church property there. "The great influx of sectarian adventurers with their gold hunting parsons makes the sending of some representative indispensable. But it seems to me that anyone appointed for the purpose of securing the property of the Church should, if practicable, speak the English language and have a previous understanding with our government at home..." Bishop John Hughes of New York in a letter to Eccleston dated December 23, 1848, expressed similar views. He warned that the "country [California] is now inundated with Protestant missionaries to whom it would be a double triumph if they could plant themselves in the deserted habitations of the old Catholic missions. They are impudent enough to attempt it and, if there be no one to represent the church properly there or to advise the government reasonably here in regard to the matter, they may succeed." He concludes: "It strikes me also that, at the next Council, the Bishops should recommend to the Holy See the importance of appointing one or more Bishops for that and other recently acquired portions of United States territory."

Hughes also had written on December 12, 1848, to Don Jose de la Guerra y Noriega, a distinguished Catholic leader then residing in Santa Barbara, asking specific questions about the state of the California Church. The letter was long in arriving, for Don Jose did not answer it until April 18, 1849, just a few days, he says, after receiving it. He dutifully answers the questions the bishop had put to him. Yes, he says, the See of California should be occupied by a Spanish priest because "the Catholics of this country are almost all Spanish American." If not a Spanish priest, then one who is proficient in the Spanish language. As to the number of Catholics in California: "Before the discovery of gold, they could be calculated at about twenty-five or thirty thousand, but since then, the influx of people from the Spanish Americas, and such as are expected from every part of the continent, Oceania, Asia, etc... has made it impossible to form a judicious estimate of how many will be in this country within the next six years..." And finally, as to the clergy:

The whole clergy that at present exists in the Alta California consists of four secular priests, four outside priests, one Dominican religious and seven Franciscans. Of these latter, one is the Governor of the miter [Father Gonzalez Rubio], another is about to depart for Mexico City... and, of the remaining five, only two are capable of giving their all to the ministry, the others being too old and too infirm. The Dominican belongs to the missions of Baja California which province he left, so I am informed, because of some revolts there, for which reason I presume his stay here will be of short duration... Of the four secular priests, the one is always so sick that he is often unable to celebrate Mass, but the other three fulfill their ministry.

It may be "easily understood," concludes Don Jose, " how great is the need for an increase in the number of priests to administer to us."

Several of the bishops were independently trying to solve the clergy problem in California. Eccleston, for example, had been petitioning the Jesuit provincial to send some men west. He wrote to Bishop Kendrick that he had asked the Jesuit provincial for some men for California but to date (March 12, 1849) the provincial had not received the consent of the general of the Society for such a move. However, he adds, the "Superior of the Dominicans in Ohio [Alemany] had offered the services of Rev. Father A.P. Anderson to go to California in quest of souls with a view to the establishment of a permanent branch of their Society there."

But it was at the Seventh Plenary Council that the bishops as a body took up the matter of the California episcopacy and clergy. Out of this meeting came a petition and recommendation to Rome for a bishop of Monterey. Rome's choice fell upon Fr. Charles Pius Montgomery, O.P., former provincial of the U.S. Dominicans. December 21, 1849, Msgr. Alessandro Barnabo, secretary of the Congregation of the Propagation of the Faith in Rome, wrote to Archbishop Eccleston:

Since matters in California have reached such a state as to induce His Holiness to appoint a Bishop for Monterey immediately, he has authorized Apostolic Letters given at Naples, by which B.P. [sic] Montgomery is appointed to this task. Kindly see to it that these Apostolic Letters... are transmitted to the Bishop-Elect and urge him to accept consecration as soon as possible.

Montgomery declined, with reasons sufficient to induce the authorities to accept his refusal. Rome then asked for another list of nominees. Eccleston sent in his nomination to Cardinal Giacomo Franzoni, Prefect of the Propagation of the Faith, and asked that each of the bishops do likewise. Eccleston's nomination reads: "Joseph Alemany, a Spaniard, Dominican Provincial, of sufficient age and adorned with both piety and learning -- (he has just gone to Naples to assist in electing a General of his Order). Therefore, if it please the Holy See, he could receive episcopal consecration before his return to the United States." Not all the bishops agreed with Eccleston on Alemany as first choice, but all spoke well of him and saw him as a worthy candidate. Perhaps that which tipped the scales in favor of Alemany was the Cardinal Prefect himself. On May 19, 1850, Cardinal Giacomo Franzoni in an audience with Pope Pius IX explained Montgomery's refusal and suggested that Alemany be appointed to Monterey. The Pope acquiesced, and by an apostolic brief dated May 31, 1850, Joseph Sadoc Alemany was appointed Bishop of "the Church in Monterey in Upper California, United States of America."

As Eccleston noted in his letter of nomination, Alemany was in Italy at this time. In the later months of 1849, he had been at the bishops' Plenary Council in Baltimore when Montgomery, his confrere (and critic), was nominated for the See of Monterey; and one of his final notations in the provincial register before his departure for Europe to attend the General Chapter in Naples reads: "1850. Feb. 25. Rev. Charles Montgomery has received a Bull from the Holy See by which he is chosen as Bishop of Monterey in California -- which [appointment] he has refused."

Before leaving for Europe Alemany appointed Fr. Dominic Bowling as vicar general to care for the province in his absence. That he intended to work abroad not just for the good of the Order as a whole but also for that of his province is evidenced in a letter he wrote to Bishop Purcell of Cincinnati on the eve of his departure:

I believe that my religious duty requires me to attend the General Chapter of our Order to be held in Naples about the middle of next May for the election of a new General and the transaction of other business of the Order. I would feel very grateful to you if you would recommend me, in the same or separate paper, to the charities of the faithful in general and, in particular, to the Associations for the Propagation of the Faith established in France and Germany.  We have at present 12 novices at St. Joseph's and 11 at St. Rose's. Our sisters, both in Ohio and in Kentucky, have several orphans under their care. I hope, Bishop Purcell, you will be so kind as to recommend me to the charity of the faithful in Europe.

When Alemany arrived in Paris the news greeted him that the General Chapter by order of Pius IX was cancelled, due to the political troubles in Italy at the time. Alemany found that he had not enough funds to get him home, so he humbly wrote to the Paris branch of the Propagation of the Faith to help defray his return journey and that of "my brother Dominican priest in Italy." But more than this, he says, he was in need of funds for the missionary work of his province: "I also respectfully beg the Association to be so good as to assign us some alms or contributions, to be divided among our Dominican establishments in the United States; so as to enable us to pay the debts which we necessarily contracted, to carry out better our Noviceships, our Academies, and all our Missions." The "brother Dominican priest in Italy" whom Alemany mentions in this letter seems to have been Fr. Vilarrasa, though Alemany speaks of this priest as though he had not yet been to America. At any rate, Vilarrasa was in fact in Italy at the time and for the express purpose of attending the Chapter. As he notes in his Chronicle, he had been "elected a definitor to the same General Chapter from the aforementioned Province of St. Joseph."

Though the Chapter had been cancelled Alemany felt it incumbent upon him to go to Rome anyway and present his problems before the commission of friars which Pius IX had instituted to rule over the Order until a chapter might be held and a new master general elected. After visiting his family in Vich he arrived in Rome in early June 8, 1850, and on June 11 Cardinal Franzoni informed him that he was to be the new Bishop of Monterey. Shocked by the news Alemany's first concern was to make a "humble and modest resignation" directly to the Pope. Within four days he had his audience but, as he later wrote in his diary:

Before allowing me to refuse, he said that it is necessary that I go to Monterey. "You must go to California; there is no alternative; where others are drawn by gold, you must go to carry the Cross. God will assist you."

"Holy Father, while it is not my wish to oppose the will of God, I must point out my lack of qualifications for the Bishopric and ask your holiness for permission to refuse the nomination." The Pontiff answered, "I appreciate the prudence which prompts your reply, but it is for me to judge in this matter. According to St. Thomas, prudence and obedience are equally necessary virtues and the wish of Christ's Vicar is the will of God for you. Do not ponder over what to say or do for the Lord will direct you at the proper time."

He requested the Dominican church of the Minerva for his consecration but it was at the time under extensive renovation and repair. Instead the consecration took place at the basilica of San Carlos al Corso on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, June 30, 1850. The consecrating prelate was Cardinal Franzoni, prefect of the Propaganda. After all the ceremonies and celebrations were over, the new bishop wrote to his mother:

Everything went off well, except the heavy book of the Gospels which the Cardinal placed on my shoulders weighed a little heavy, but I hope Our Lord will aid me in carrying it, as our Holy Father told me. The function lasted three hours attended by all the Dominicans who were able to come. Afterward the Cardinal gave us a wedding dinner. And now they want me to start as soon as possible for California, for the diocese has been three years without a Bishop... As soon as I finish my visits, I shall start for Paris, London, New York, Panama, and California, now my beloved bride, to live there the life of altar boy, vicar [of the new Dominican province], missionary, pastor, and bishop.

Alemany immediately set out for his new home, but he had much to do along the way. Before leaving Rome one of his first acts was to secure Fr. Vilarrasa as his companion in establishing the Dominican Order in California. His brother Dominican was quite willing to cooperate but only on the condition that his services would be for the Order alone. So Vilarrasa wrote in his Chronicle: "Bishop Alemany, before his consecration, invited me to accompany him to California. I freely gave my assent to this invitation, with, however, this express condition, that I should not go there for any other reason than that I might provide for the spread of the Order there." Alemany accepted the condition. Before leaving Rome, therefore, the new bishop and his companion visited Fr. Jerome Gigli, Vicar General of the Order, on July 18, 1850, and, as Vilarrasa notes in his Chronicle, the Vicar General "assigned me to the missions of California under the obedience of Bishop Alemany, giving power to the aforementioned bishop or to the temporary superior to assign me to any convent or house whatsoever within the boundaries of the aforementioned mission." Finally, by a rescript dated July 21, 1850, Fr. Gigli "granted authority to erect a new Province of the Order under the title of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of both Californias, and granted other things for the ruling of that Province..."

In a letter written from San Francisco, December 14, 1850, Fr. Vilarrasa detailed their travels and principal events from their departure from Rome to their arrival in San Francisco. While Alemany went to Paris with the intention of establishing contacts with the French branches of the Propagation of the Faith, Vilarrasa stopped off at Toulouse. There he was joined by two Dominican Sisters -- Rose Courbatier and Catherine Cope -- of the convent in Albi who wished to go to Somerset, Ohio. On August 26 they left Toulouse and met Bishop Alemany in Paris two days later. With the bishop was Sr. Mary Goemaere, a Belgian-born novice about to make profession at the Dominican convent of the Holy Cross in Paris. She had agreed to go with Alemany to Somerset in order to teach French there. On August 30 Alemany departed for Ireland, hoping to obtain some clerical recruits for his diocese. On September 3 Vilarrasa together with Sr. M. Goemaere and the two other nuns set out for Boulogne and from there sailed for England. After a few days in London they went to Liverpool where they met Bishop Alemany on the eleventh and the following day embarked for New York on the Columbus, a sailing ship. The day preceding departure Alemany wrote to the superior of the convent of Albi-Toulouse:

Reverend Mother Superior,

Sister Rose, Sister Catherine, Sister Mary of the Cross, Father Vilarrasa and I, with two others, are now on our ship called Columbus, and we will begin our voyage for New York tomorrow morning. The sisters are very well and content; They finished chanting religious hymns, many times, and are quite happy to be on the ship, as we are. The captain is very good, and has told us that he will make our trip as comfortable as possible. He has children with the Sisters in New York, and his wife is Catholic. The Sisters have their English books, grammars and dictionaries, and we have begun our first lesson. Sister Rose and Sister Catherine wish to be remembered.

"God alone" ["Dieu seul"]

Father Vilarrasa greets you and begs you to greet all the Sisters of Toulouse; I beg you to do the same for me. Pray for all of us.

The trip was uneventful. The two priests were able to say Mass "the greater part of the time" and on Sundays the bishop preached to some 500 passengers and crew.  They disembarked in New York on October 11. Vilarrasa with the sisters went directly to Somerset and spent some time at St. Joseph's Priory gathering his and Alemany's belongings. Once Alemany arrived and conferred with the sisters, it was decided that Sr. Mary Goemaere would give her life to California instead of Ohio, and that the two Albi novices would remain in Somerset as planned but that two other sisters from St. Mary's who knew English and the American ways would go to California. They -- Srs. Francis Stafford and Aloysia O'Neil -- would follow Sr. Goemaere to California as soon as the younger of the two, Sr. Aloysia, made her profession. Meanwhile the bishop traveled to Baltimore for a visit with Archbishop Samuel Eccleston. He rejoined Vilarrasa and Goemaere in New York on October 27 and the following day the three missionaries boarded the steamer Crescent City for the Isthmus of Panama. They arrived at Chargre during the night of November 6 and the following morning set out on the river in a small boat "guided and worked by three Indians." They were three and a half days on the river, traveling by day and spending the nights in Indian huts or small inns. Before dinner on the tenth they arrived at the town of Las Cruces and on the following day departed on muleback for Panama City, arriving on the twelfth. They stayed at the seminary there and Vilarrasa sang a solemn Mass at which the bishop preached. On the sixteenth they sailed on the steamer Columbus, reached Acapulco on November 24 and after a few hours' stop sailed again, arriving in San Francisco Bay at eleven o'clock on the night of December 6, 1850. >>>

Partial Endnotes

[7] For this section of our history pertaining to the religious situation in California on the eve of Alemany's appointment as Bishop, together with the appointment itself, I rely almost entirely upon McGloin, pp. 66-95.  (Click Endnote Number to Resume Reading)

[8] the Dominican, of course, was Fr. Ramirez de Arellano, as described in ch. 1.

[9] For Sept. 11, 1850 Alemany recorded in his diary: "Pay Captain McCarran of the ship Columbus, ninety pounds sterling for the passage of seven people, and leave for New York..." Apparently, the others besides the five Dominicans for whom Alemany paid (on loan?) were the two he mentions in his letter as of their party ("with two others"). They seem to have been Sister Francisca Vindevoghel, listed on the ship's roster as a Dominican, though she was a Poor Clare on a begging trip to the States, and Father (?) Joseph Ballofit, also listed as a passenger aboard the Columbus. I am indebted to Sr. Martin Barry, O.P., archivist for the San Rafael Dominicans, for the details regarding the sisters in the company of Vilarrasa and Alemany, and for Alemany's letter quoted here.

[ Purchase Mission West ]