HCA Tutorial
Chapter III. SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE ENGLISH COLONIES

Catholicism was brought to what later became the original thirteen colonies by Cecilius Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore, who established the Catholic-ruled colony in Maryland. He arrived in 1634 and within five years had established parish centers led by Jesuits. Many Patuxent and Piscataway Indians were converted and gave land grants to the Jesuits.

Father White, who had been banished from England because of anti-Catholic rules, helped Lord Baltimore colonize Maryland. Calvert insisted on religious tolerance and no state religion was imposed. In 1644, a Protestant, Richard Ingle, invaded the colony, seized Father White and other Jesuits and deported them to England in chains.

Leonard Calvert recaptured the settlement but upon his death in 1648 William Stone, a Protestant, became governor. He enacted a Toleration Act, but it allowed less freedom than the Policies of Lord Baltimore.

Soon after Puritans captured Governor Stone, outlawed Catholicism, plundered Jesuit estates and executed Catholics. Normalcy returned in 1657 with re-establishment of Calvert Rule.

The first documented ordination of a priest in this country occurred in 1674 when Bishop Gabriel Diaz Vara Calderon of Cuba ordained seven priests in St. Augustine.

Religious turmoil was rife in New York under the English whose colonies recognized only the Anglican Church.

The Catholic Church was forced underground until the Revolution. Abusive laws were enacted in Maryland which banned Catholics from holding public office and even denied them the right to vote. Priests' properties were seized and Catholics were doubly taxed.

But priests would not be subjugated. "Mister" Thomas Mansell concealed his identity as a Jesuit and began buying land for a plantation named St. Xavier. An academy for boys was organized there becoming a source of Catholic education for a wide area. The establishment became known as Bohemia and has been restored as an historical site.

Father Ferdinand "Farmer" was another secretive priest who came t Lancaster, PA, in 1752 and formed congregations. He set up head-quarters in Philadelphia in 1758 and visited Delaware, New Jersey and New York City. He celebrated Mass on Wall Street in New York several times and the congregation there became a nucleus for Catholic immigrants.

During the Revolution he ministered to Hessian soldiers in the British Army and he was offered a chaplaincy by the occupiers of Philadelphia. Because of his loyalty to America, he refused. He has been termed "father of the Church in New York and New Jersey."

TIME FRAME
1634 - Cecilius Calvert established Maryland as a Catholic ruled colony.
1636 - Fr. Andrew White, the "Apostle of Maryland", worked among his people
c.1640 - Richard Ingle deported Fr. Andrew White and other Jesuits to England to be tried as criminals.
1648 - William Stone, a protestant, became governor of Maryland
1649 - Maryland Toleration Act
1657 - Religious peace return to Maryland
c.1700 - Catholic Church was forced underground in the colonies
c.1750's - "Mister" Thomas Mansell, a convert Jesuit priest, spread the faith in Maryland
c.1750's - Father "Farmer" secretly spread the faith in Pennsylvania and neighboring area

VOCABULARY
(12) dubbed
rampant
repression-free
(13) proliferation
reared
proprietor
bulwark
non-denominational
surreptitious
chaplaincy
illustrious

CHAPTER III FOLLOW-UP

1. CHALLENGE TO THINK
   1. Why would the Patuxents and Piscataways want to give land grants to the Jesuits as an act of gratitude?
   2. Fr. Steinmeyer was originally assigned to the China missions but a sudden plan change sent him to Lancaster, Pa. Describe a major plan change in your life or someone you know that changed your or their lives.
   3. Why did the Thomas Mansell plantation come under suspicion?
   4. How do you think Richard Ingle justified his punitive action against Catholics?
   5. Explain the Maryland Toleration Act.
   6. Compare Fr. Andrew White with Governor Thomas Dongan.
   7. Comment on each of the three abusive laws listed on page 18.
   8. Explain Fr. Farmer's "surreptitious" visits.
   9. Compare Fr. Mansell with Father Farmer. Give five similarities and five differences.
   10. Why was Father Andrew White called the "Apostle to Maryland"?
2. ACTIVITIES
   1. After researching, draw or construct the Thomas Mansell plantation. Be attentive to detail and prepared to explain the model.
   2. Send to: The Old Bohemia Historical Society, Warwick, MD 21912. ATTN. Joseph C. Cann. Get info on the restored "Old Bohemia". How does the restoration compare with the original.
   3. As Father Farmer, write a letter to the British commander explaining why you won't take a chaplaincy in the British army.
3. RESEARCH
   1. Why was Father Andrew White banished from England? Describe his ministry there.
   2. Prepare a biographical sketch on Governor Thomas Dongan during his years as New York's governor.
   3. Outline the abusive anti-Catholic laws that forced Catholicism in the English colonies to go underground until the Revolution.
4. RECOMMENDED READING
   1. A Brief Sketch of the Early History of the Catholic Church on the Island of New York . Bayley, Rev. James R. . Catholic Publication Society . New York, 1970.
   2. Catholics in Colonial America . Ellis, John . Helicon Publishers . Baltimore, Maryland, 19--.
   3. The Ark and the Dove . Ives, J. Moss . Longmans, Green & Company . New York, 193-.