Sarah Mitchell
Catholicism in the 19th century was characterised by a major revival, termed Ultramontanism, which swept across Europe, North America, and South America. This revival was fostered by the Vatican and led to a deeper piety that emphasised miracles, saints, and new devotions. Catholic worship in the 19th century was influenced by various factors, including immigration, the establishment of parochial schools and colleges, the role of women in providing education and health services, the impact of the Industrial Revolution and changing social conditions, and the development of mariology, or the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Devotional practices | Daily rosary prayers, regular attendance at Sunday Mass, devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and favorite saints |
| Immigration | A wave of immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, France, Eastern Europe, and elsewhere swelled the number of Roman Catholics |
| Education | Catholics set up a parochial school system largely staffed with nuns, reaching about a third of the children |
| Politics | Catholic voters surged into the Democratic Party, and Irish Catholic politicians played increasingly dominant roles in major cities |
| Intermarriage | Intermarriage with Protestants was strongly discouraged, and only tolerated if the children were brought up as Catholics |
| Missionary activity | Catholic missionaries followed colonial governments into Africa and built schools, hospitals, monasteries, and churches |
| Social work | The 19th century saw a new flowering of institutes for women, dedicated to providing health and education services, such as the Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco and the Little Sisters of the Poor |
| Secularism | There was a general move away from religious observance in Europe, with a shift towards secularism and modernism |
| Personalized religiosity | A shift towards a more personalized religiosity that focused on the individual, with an emphasis on psychology and feelings |
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What You'll Learn
Catholic revival in Europe, North and South America
In the 19th century, historian John McGreevy identifies a major Catholic revival that swept across Europe, North America, and South America. This revival, called "Ultramontanism," saw a cluster of shifts that included a move to Thomistic philosophy, nurtured in Catholic parishes, schools, and associations. This led to a deeper piety that emphasized miracles, saints, and new devotions. Catholics in these regions practiced daily rosary prayers, regular attendance at Sunday Mass, and special devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary and favourite saints.
Catholic Revival in Europe
The Catholic Church played a prominent role in shaping the labour movement in Europe during the 19th century. The romantics of this period rediscovered the Middle Ages, emphasizing the role of the Church in the construction of European civilization. This idea of a Christianized Europe was accompanied by a political sense of protest against powerful states, with the Church acting as a restraining force. The Italian Jesuit review, La Civiltà Cattolica, founded in 1850, reflected this thinking and became the semi-official periodical of the Holy See.
Catholic Revival in North America
In North America, the Catholic revival was driven by a wave of immigration from Catholic countries like Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Eastern Europe, and French Canada. This influx led to a sharp increase in Mass attendance and religious vocations, especially among women. The immigrants brought with them large numbers of priests and nuns, leading to the creation of new parishes and dioceses. Faced with anti-Catholic politics and a lack of government funding for schools, Catholics established their own parochial school system, staffed by nuns and funded by religious parents.
Catholic Revival in South America
In South America, the Catholic Church had a long history of interaction with indigenous cultures, often mixing Catholicism with local customs. The Jesuit Reductions of the 17th and 18th centuries, for example, were Christian Native American city-states that protected natives from enslavement by Spanish and Portuguese colonizers. In the 19th century, anti-clericalism was a feature of liberalism in Latin America, with critics arguing that the clergy hindered social progress in areas like public education and economic development. Despite this, the Catholic Church remained a significant force, with countries like Mexico and Brazil having high percentages of Catholics today.
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Devotion to the Virgin Mary
In the 19th century, the Catholic Church underwent a revival known as Ultramontanism, which swept across Europe, North America, and South America. This movement fostered a deeper piety that included a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The 19th century also saw the growth of devotional articles associated with the Virgin Mary, such as icons, images, and statues. These devotional objects were believed to possess miraculous powers, leading to the construction of Marian shrines and chapels dedicated to the Virgin Mary, often called Lady chapels. The Black Madonna of Częstochowa in Poland and Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn in Lithuania are two well-known examples of these shrines.
Marian devotions were also expressed through hymns, liturgical poetry, and votive candles. The Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, celebrated on October 15, was a significant devotional event in the Anglican tradition. In the Catholic Church, special roles were designated for devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and her importance was emphasized during compulsory Sunday Mass attendance.
The Sisters of Mercy, founded by Catherine McAuley in Ireland in 1831, is another example of devotion to the Virgin Mary. This order of nuns established hospitals and schools worldwide, providing health and education services in line with Catholic social teaching.
In summary, devotion to the Virgin Mary was a significant aspect of Catholic worship in the 19th century, influencing both religious practices and cultural expressions through prayers, shrines, hymns, and social services.
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Catholic immigration to the US
In the 19th century, Catholic worship was characterised by a revival known as Ultramontanism, which swept across Europe, North America, and South America. This movement emphasised a deeper piety, with compulsory Sunday attendance, regular confession and communion, praying the rosary, devotion to the Virgin Mary, and meatless Fridays. There was also a push for Vatican supremacy, with more direct control over the selection of bishops. Catholics in the 19th century also established schools and hospitals, particularly through women's religious institutes such as the Sisters of Mercy and the Little Sisters of the Poor.
In terms of Catholic immigration to the US in the 19th century, there were several waves of immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Eastern Europe, and French Canada. A major factor in the first half of the century was the Irish Potato Famine, which began in 1845 and caused mass starvation, leading many Irish people to seek a new life in America. This, combined with difficult living conditions in Ireland before the famine, caused Ireland's population to decrease dramatically throughout the century.
The German Catholic population in the US also grew significantly during this time, with one-third of Germans in the US professing Roman Catholicism. While there were few Catholics in the South, they were well-represented in cities, mill towns, and mining centres. They set up parochial schools, largely staffed by nuns, which served about a third of the children, as well as colleges.
Catholic immigrants to the US in the 19th century faced various challenges and prejudices. There was a brief flare-up of anti-Catholic politics in the 1850s, and they were often victims of poverty, low wages, poor healthcare, and discrimination in the job market. Additionally, federal bans and immigration laws, such as the one proposed by Senator James G. Blaine in 1874, further validated prejudices against immigrants. Despite these challenges, Catholics in the US were able to establish a strong presence, with Irish Catholic politicians playing dominant roles in major cities like Boston and New York.
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Catholic missionary work in Africa
The 19th century was a period of great revival for the Catholic Church, with evangelical zeal fuelling foreign missionary ventures. This revival was partly due to the industrial revolution, which facilitated greater colonial expansion. As a result, Catholic missionary work expanded to Africa, following in the footsteps of colonial governments.
In West Africa, the Portuguese were the first to introduce Christianity, but their departure from the West Coast in the 17th century meant that the religion only survived in Upper Guinea. It was not until the 19th century that Christianity was firmly established in West Africa, with the foundation of western-style education and the building of churches. The French, as a predominantly Catholic country, encouraged Catholic missionary work in West Africa from the start of their colonial activities.
In 1880, two Catholic priests, Father Auguste Moreau and Father Eugene Murat, arrived in Elmina, Ghana, and revived the Roman Catholic Church there. In Nigeria, Catholic priests had established missionary stations in Benin, following Portuguese contacts. However, it was the work of Spanish missionaries in Benin that led to the spread of Christianity among the Yoruba recaptives in Sierra Leone, who returned home between 1839 and 1845.
In the 19th century, there was an explosion of missions-minded individuals and societies in Europe, with Pope Leo XIII requesting that the White Fathers and the Holy Ghost Fathers enter black Africa. The Vatican's Propaganda Fide organization took charge of Catholic missionary activities, and at the end of the century, Catholic missionaries followed colonial governments into Africa, building schools, hospitals, monasteries, and churches.
Catholic women also played a prominent role in the 19th century, providing education and health services. Institutes for women dedicated to health and education services were established, including the Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco, the Claretian Sisters, and the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. The Sisters of Mercy, founded by Catherine McAuley in Ireland in 1831, established hospitals and schools worldwide.
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Catholic social teaching
In the United States, the 19th century saw a wave of immigration from countries like Ireland, Germany, Italy, and Eastern Europe, which significantly increased the number of Roman Catholics in the country. This led to the establishment of new parishes and dioceses, particularly in cities, mill towns, and mining centers. Catholics also set up parochial schools, largely staffed by nuns, to educate their children, as they were unable to secure government funding for their schools. This period saw a sharp increase in Mass attendance and religious vocations, especially among women. Historian John McGreevy identifies this as part of a broader Catholic revival, termed "Ultramontanism," which emphasized piety, miracles, saints, and new devotions.
In Europe, the Catholic Church faced challenges due to the Enlightenment and the rise of secularism. Liberalism and culture wars in countries like Germany, Italy, Belgium, and France led the Church to emphasize personal piety and oppose liberalism. The Vatican gained more direct control over selecting bishops, reducing the autonomy of local parishes. Additionally, colonial abuses by Portuguese and Spanish governments in their former colonies prompted Pope Gregory XVI to challenge their sovereignty and appoint his own candidates as bishops. He also condemned slavery and approved the ordination of native clergy.
In Japan, the 19th century marked a period of re-emergence for the Catholic Church after centuries of persecution and isolation under the Shogun. A Roman Catholic church was established in Nagasaki in 1865, dedicated to the martyrs of 1597.
Overall, the 19th century was a dynamic period for Catholic social teaching, with the Church adapting to social and political changes while continuing to emphasize piety, missionary work, and social welfare initiatives.
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Frequently asked questions
Catholic worship in the 19th century was characterised by a revival of religious life and a wave of immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Eastern Europe, and French Canada. This led to the creation of new parishes and dioceses. There was also a sharp increase in Mass attendance and religious vocations, especially among women.
Devotional practices included daily rosary prayers, regular attendance at Sunday Mass, and special devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary and favourite saints.
Catholic women played a prominent role in providing education and health services, in line with Catholic social teaching. The 19th century saw the founding of several institutes for women dedicated to these services, including the Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco, Claretian Sisters, and Franciscan Missionaries of Mary.
Catholics faced anti-Catholic politics and colonial abuses from governments. There were also concerns about the deteriorating working and living conditions of urban workers, which led Pope Leo XIII to publish the encyclical Rerum novarum, advocating for the regulation of working conditions and the right of workers to form trade unions.
Catholic worship varied depending on the region. For example, in the United States, Catholics set up parochial school systems and faced opposition in obtaining government funds for their schools. In France, there was a movement to defeat Catholicism, leading to the closure of parochial schools and the rejection of religious orders. In Japan, Catholicism had a minority presence due to persecution in the 16th century, but it continued into the 19th century with the establishment of a church in Nagasaki in 1865.
