730. Let us suppose (as is feasible) that the bishop were to become displeased with any order, or with any missionary. In such case he could maintain or remove the missionary against the will of his provincial by very specious pretexts. If necessary, he could even threaten the latter with censures, in order to make him submit to his authority. How fecund a source of perdition and total ruin that would be for the orders, any one can conceive; but only those who have experience in those islands could perfectly comprehend it. Let the regulars of América tell how they have to tolerate it through compulsion. If a religious is found lacking, and the offense has the appearance on one side of belonging to morals and life and on the other to the office of cura, the poor missionary is left in the sane position as those goods which the law styles mostrencos [i.e., goods which have no known owner], and shall belong to the first one who seizes them; and even he is in much worse condition, because of the contests that must necessarily ensue. For, if the provincial commences to form a process and it comes afterward to the notice of the ordinary, the latter will issue an act—and, if it should be necessary, a censure—ordering the said provincial to quash the entire process, to deliver it to him, and to desist from the cause by saying that he alone has the power to try it. The provincial appeals to the judge delegated by his Holiness and he, as he has entire jurisdiction of the case, commands the ordinary with the warning of censure to leave the cause alone and deliver up the acts. The latter not obeying, the matter may be carried to such an extreme that two ecclesiastical prelates excommunicate each other, and threaten each other with interdict and the cessation of divine service. This is not fancy, for that has happened in like case in Manila. That is the greatest danger since, because of the great distance, redress moves with very dilatory steps. But in the meanwhile the suits concerning the religious are proceeding from tribunal to tribunal, contrary to the clearly expressed privileges of his exemption.
731. But let us suppose that the regular parish priest is unworthy to persevere in his mission because of secret sins, and that, even if he remain in it, he may run some risk of his salvation. The provincial learns of the matter secretly. In such a case, justice requires two things—one, the punishment of the guilty person; and the other, that the delinquent shall not lose his reputation by the declaration of his fault. Charity urges him to remove his subordinate from danger. If that regular administers without canonical institution and subjection to the ordinary, everything will be settled very easily, and justice and charity will be satisfied without any infamy to the criminal or any dishonor to the order. But if he is subject to the ordinary, the provincial cannot remove him by his own authority; but he must have recourse to the ordinary himself, and to the vice-patron, and then those two agree on the removal. In that case, what can the provincial say to them? If he should say that he will impart to them in all secrecy the [nature of the] crime of his subject, that means is harsh and less safe. The ordinary and the governor, as the father and the master, may correct and punish the faults of their inferiors without the least wound to their honor; and must a provincial do so by dis-accrediting his subordinate with the heads of the community? If it is decided that the superior do not tell the kind of crime, but that he asseverate in general terms that there is cause to remove the religious from that place, the trouble is not avoided. First, they may think that he speaks thus in order to go ahead with his oldtime custom; second, because even though the cause of removing him be not a fault, it can easily be alleged to be one, and the fact that he does not offer more explanation in that case comes to be the same as manifesting its gravity by his silence. Finally, honor is very delicate and is lessened by rumor and suspicion. Since God made the religious exempt from the secular judges, and the apostolic see exempted them from the ordinaries, the religious, when they have not professed as curas, will find themselves without courage to assume that charge with so many dangers and burdens. And will the apostolic see force them to that?
732. The fact that common law decides that the regular parish priest, as such, is subject to the visit of the ordinary furnishes no argument against my statement. For, leaving aside the fact that the supreme pontiff may abolish such a law—as in fact was done by Pius V, after the holy Council of Trent, while Urban VIII confirmed this action afterward; and various statements of the most eminent cardinals favor this when there is a lack of secular priests as happens in the Philipinas—it is answered that common law which orders such subjection is only in point when they wish to persevere in being parish priests; but does not order that they be so under compulsion. If a secular priest to whom the curacy has been given permanently by canonical institution can resign it, and the law does not therefor disqualify him, why cannot the regulars make that same resignation in order not to live with the risks from having so many superiors? The regulars are not curas for justice, but for charity, and they have taken charge of the missions for lack of other ministers. They do not administer them through right of proprietorship, but are removable at will. Consequently, they can be deprived of those missions even though they live like saints. Is it possible that when the will of another is sufficient to remove them from their curacies, their own volition will not suffice with the knowledge of the dangers which will follow from such a charge? Further, is the regular incapable of being a proper parish priest, or is he not? If he is, why, if the secular cura is perpetual—so that, if he does not become unworthy, neither the ordinary nor the vice-patron can remove him—will not the regular also remain a cura, supposing the incumbrance of collation and canonical institution? Why does that institution give all favorable things to the secular and deprive the regular of all relief? It imposes upon the regular the duty of feeding the sheep. It binds him to the territory, so that the provincial cannot remove him without the consent of the vice-patron and of the ordinary. He loses in great measure the privilege of the exemption, and with those duties does not have the comfort of being secure in his curacy, for he does not hold it for life. Neither is he master of the emoluments which the parish yields, unless it be imagined that he be dispensed from his vow of poverty. Consequently, he only gets the burdens by reason of the collation, and nothing to his advantage. If it be said that he is not capable of being a parish priest, why the pledge in this new form of administration?
733. Those who are striving for the subjection of the regulars as parish priests generally oppose the fact that that form of administration has been introduced into América, and that therefore it might serve as an example for the Philipinas Islands. But that argument is not convincing, and contains many remarkable disparities. First, because there are plenty of secular priests in Peru and Nueva España; therefore the bishops rightly compelled the religious either to abandon the administration of the parishes, or to submit to the visitation. For the motive of the privilege of St. Pius V was lacking, not by any revocation that he made of it, but because its force had ceased, its object not being realized. Second, because no one will say that the orders of América were obliged to remain in the charge of souls, with the insupportable burden of the visitations. On the contrary, they agreed to it willingly in order not to abandon the parishes. The fact that they consented to it there is no proof that they have to do the same in Philipinas. Third, because the experience of what happened in Mexico and Perú in regard to the diminution of strict observance by the regulars, which originated beyond doubt from that subjection, ought to open the eyes of the superiors of orders in Philipinas to prevent such harm in their houses. This is not to cast blame on those who are now enjoying the curacies in this manner in the said kingdoms; we ought to consider them all as very excellent religious. But it is an undoubted fact that, with the practice by which the missions are maintained, in a manner almost perpetual, the provincials not being able to dispose of their subordinates with complete liberty, that oldtime strict observance which was planted in those provinces at their first erection has been greatly obscured. Human nature is easily inclined to what promotes liberty; and as St. Bernard teaches, the same ones who love retirement because of their austere training in the rigors of the order from childhood, when they come to taste the life that is not so well regulated, desire, procure, and solicit it. Nothing of that has been seen hitherto in Philipinas, where, however much they have the parishes in charge, the holy orders flourish in the most strict observance—for no other reason than that, if a religious sins, the remedy is quite near at hand since it is administered solely by the head of the order.
734. Fourth, because there are things more to be wondered at than to be followed. Although the religious orders are alike, we see that, while the Church is also one and the same, one person elects one condition which the other does not adopt. From the same order some go to the Indias, and others do not go. Then why cannot the same thing happen in regard to being parish priests subject to the ordinary? Let the histories of the Indias be read. All of them consider earnestly whether the religious are to be curas of souls, and much more whether they are to be curas of justice. Resolutions of entire provinces will be found on the question whether they should abandon the missions; generals and illustrious men of the same orders will be found who approved it; and the reader will find bitter complaints for having admitted such a burden, recognizing it as the seminary of interminable discords. For, if those on the mainland, seeing a furious hurricane on the sea which is dashing the ships to pieces and endangering the lives of those who are sailing, fear to embark, how much should the regulars in Philipinas take warning from the new practice in América? How can one wonder that they follow the example of those who abandoned the missions joyfully, rather than of those who now live sorrowfully because they adopted the new method? The fact is, that no one can take it ill that each one procures what he thinks best so long as he uses means that are not unlawful in order to get it. This is what the religious are doing in the present case, taking care that no detriment follows to their estate and profession. For, before the souls of others, one ought to watch over his own. Let it not be (as says St. Paul) that we, preaching to others, behold ourselves in the irreparable danger of becoming reprobates.
735. Fifth, because the provinces of Philipinas are not, nor can they be, like those of América, but are as distinct as they are separate. The latter include, besides the ministries, many community convents where there are plenty of religious, who greatly exceed the parish priests in number. The former have but one convent apiece in Manila, which enjoys an adequate community as do the convents of Europa. The other houses are located in the villages of the Indians where those who have charge of the spiritual administration live, and there is no more community at times than the head of the house alone; and at the most he has one or two associates, if they are considered necessary for the exercise of the duties of the mission. Since that is true, an undeniable inconvenience will follow, namely: if they are subjected to the visitation and correction of the bishops all can call themselves not regulars—those outside, because they are parish priests; and those of Manila, because they have to go to take the places of the others in case of absence, sickness, or death. They cannot be excused from that by either the actual definitors of the outgoing provincials, and all to have to be employed if there is a lack of ministers. Since the provinces are composed of them almost entirely, and the consent of the ordinary and the vice-patron would be necessary for their removal, there would be some provinces which would have the name of religious government and in reality would be under the secular government, dependent on those two wills, to which they would make no vow of obedience. It is a fact that it would be a real change which those religious would have to endure, from free and unhindered evangelical ministers to seculars bound in justice to the care of souls. Can it be considered ill that they resist so great a transformation, and leave the missions if they find no other way?
736. Sixth, and last, because in América the practice of presenting three religious for each mission in the form ordered by the king can be easily observed, as there are many religious. But that presentation is mortally impossible in Philipinas because of the great scarcity of religious. For although the orders make the most painstaking efforts to get them from España, they succeed in this with difficulty. For lack of workers, they are often obliged to entrust the administration of many villages to one person, and sometimes to abandon districts in toto. Then how can three be presented for each ministry when there is scarcely one for each mission? Besides, since there are so many languages, there is no order which does not minister in four or five languages; and although all of them apply themselves to the study of the languages, few attain them so perfectly that they can explain entirely the height of the mysteries of our holy faith; and since there are so many missions, what order can present three times the number of ministers who will worthily serve the missions? Let us suppose a case also where there would be a sufficient number of capable religious. On that account there would be no assurance of better results; for of the three who would be presented, it is possible that the least capable would be chosen, as there would be no accurate information of his being less competent. That would be known better within his own order, where by continual intercourse it is learned who is most suitable for the ministry. Besides that, there might be a religious whom it would be proper to retire because of his demerits, but by virtue of the fact that the prelates have to present three religious for each mission, they are obliged to include him in the presentation for the sole purpose of completing the number. Who will prevent a froward one from slandering the electors, discrediting the worthy, and gaining the favor of friends and relatives by putting forth all his efforts to attain the desired liberty in order to escape from the observance and the cloister? Oh, beginning so full of troubles! If one had to describe all the troubles, it would be necessary to use much paper. Let the above suffice, so that it may be recognized that the reason why the holy orders resist subjection to the bishops is not so much for the sake of preserving their authority, as because they see the grave dangers that must ensue for them. Finally, they exercise their right in that, of which no one can complain, for they are doing wrong to no one.
§ III
Continuation of the matter of the preceding section, with especial bearing on our discalced Recollect branch.
737. The reasons thus far advanced touch all the orders in common. Let us now pass on to speak of our own in particular. There is no doubt that St. Pius V conceded the above-mentioned exemption to the regulars because they were employed in the conversion of the Indians, and so that they might proceed in their apostolic missions. That reason is clearly expressed in the bull; consequently, whenever it is found to exist, the orders ought to be maintained in the possession of that grace so long as it is not annulled by express revocation. Hence it is that, until the present, the bishops have not attempted to subject the missionaries who are laboring to allure the heathen to our holy faith and withdraw them from the darkness of their infidelity; for in order to effect those ends they acknowledge in its force the privilege of St. Pius V. I agree then that all the missions held by our holy reformed branch in the said islands ought to be considered as active missions, where the religious, although as parish priests they minister spiritually to those already converted, exercise also the arduous employ of missionaries, as the villages are surrounded by infidels, whose conversion they secure by the most diligent efforts. Therefore, the parishes of our jurisdiction ought to be considered not as villages of converts [doctrinas] already formed, where the only care is to administer the holy sacraments, but as new conquests where the flock of Christ is continually increased by apostolic attempts.