American Catholics: One Past, Another Future
By CHRISTOPHER MANION A century ago, American Catholics had borne the brunt of years of fervid anti-Catholicism. In one wave after another, bigots assailed Catholics as unpatriotic papists. These charges came not only from fringe groups like the Ku Klux Klan, but also from many prominent members of Protestant society (and yes, some very prominent Protestants were members of the Klan as well). Yes, Cardinal Gibbons had to convince American Protestants that Catholics could be good Americans. However, in the face of such hostility, he had to convince a lot of Catholics too. Assimilation into American society was not a universal goal among Catholics, but Gibbons strongly endorsed it. And he had been working at it for years. German Chancellor…Continue Reading