RELIGION
Catholic religion.--Concordat.--Ownership of church
buildings.--Clergy.--Religious sentiment.--Shrines.--Religious customs
and holidays.--Religious toleration.--Protestant sects.
The Roman Catholic creed has been the dominant religion of Santo
Domingo from the time of the conquest. When Columbus arrived on his
second voyage he brought with him twelve friars, some of whom were as
holy men as their leader, the vindictive Father Boil, was a nuisance.
Others were not long in arriving and soon the country had as many
priests in proportion as Spain herself. Large estates came into
possession of the church, and in the city of Santo Domingo imposing
churches and spacious cloisters were erected, which still stand,
either in ruins or used for religious or secular purposes. There were
three monasteries, two nunneries, and some ten churches and chapels in
the capital.
As early as 1511 bishops were appointed for Santo Domingo and
Concepcion de la Vega and in 1547 the first archbishopric in the new
world was established in Santo Domingo City. From 1516 to 1519 the
island was governed directly by three friars, and the licentiate
Alonso de Fuenmayor, who governed thirty years later, was not only
governor and captain-general of the island, and president of the royal
audiencia, but archbishop of Santo Domingo as well. The Inquisition
was established in Santo Domingo in 1564.
With the decline of the colony the number of churchmen declined also,
and by the middle of the seventeenth century the majority of the
church buildings were closed and falling to ruin and the church's vast
country estates were abandoned. The revival of the country during the
eighteenth century affected the church as well, but the occupation by
Haitians and French during the beginning of the nineteenth century
caused its influence to wane, and restrictive legislation under
Haitian dominion and the expulsion of the archbishop for political
reasons in 1830, severed all connection with Rome for many years. The
first archbishop appointed after the independence of the Republic was
consecrated in 1848.
The Roman Catholic religion is now the recognized state religion. In
1884 the Dominican government entered into an agreement with the Holy
See according to the terms of which the archbishop of Santo Domingo is
to be appointed by the Pope from a list of three names, native
Dominicans or residents of the Republic, submitted by the Dominican
Congress, which in turn engaged to pay the salary of the archbishop
and certain other officials. The agreement as to the payments
incumbent upon the Dominican government had the same fate as other
financial contracts: it was observed for a short time and then
disregarded, so that for years only small appropriations have been
made for church purposes.
In the year 1908 a controversy arose with reference to the ownership
of the buildings and lands occupied by the church. The archbishop and
church officials claimed that such buildings belong to the church
absolutely; while the government officials alleged that they are the
property of the state, possessed by the church with the state's
consent. Previously few persons had ever given a thought to the
matter, the church having as many buildings as it could properly care
for, and more, while other former religious edifices were used by the
state. Contributions for the erection and repair of churches were
frequently made by Dominican towns without exciting discussion. The
controversy of 1908 was precipitated by the determination of the
church authorities to erect a mausoleum in the cathedral of Santo
Domingo City for the remains of the late Archbishop Meriño. The
Executive of Santo Domingo demanded that the government's permission
be first obtained, but the church officials refused to ask for such
permission, holding it unnecessary. Neither side lacked historical
grounds for its contention. In the old colonial days church and state
were united and the questions of ownership of the church buildings
never arose. When the Haitians assumed control in 1822 they considered
the church edifices as the property of the state alone and religious
services continued only by sufferance of the government. Upon the
establishment of the independence of Santo Domingo, the new
government, although friendly towards the Catholic Church, took a
similar view of the ownership of church edifices and property. By law
of June 7, 1845, of the Dominican Congress, all "censos" and other
perpetual rents established in favor of the church were declared
extinguished and by law of July 2, 1845, all property, real and
personal, formerly belonging to convents and orders no longer in being
in the country was formally proclaimed to pertain to the state. In
1853 burials in churches were prohibited by law of Congress as being
dangerous to the public health, but in exceptional cases the Executive
granted permission therefor on the payment of a fee which of late
years has been $300. On the other hand, it was argued that the church
has been in uninterrupted possession of its present buildings for
centuries; that these buildings are not comprised in the laws of
1845; that a law of 1867 granting the gardens of the archbishop's
residence to the municipality of Santo Domingo for the establishment
of a market and cockpit was repealed in 1871 as being a despoilment of
the church and unconstitutional; and that when the mausoleum of
Columbus was erected in the cathedral the committee in charge,
presided over by the vice-president of the Republic, applied for
permission to the authorities of the church. The dispute regarding the
mausoleum of Archbishop Meriño came to an end when the government
receded from its demand, but the main question is not regarded
as settled.
At the present time the Republic is divided into fifty-seven parishes.
The episcopal head is the Archbishop of Santo Domingo. In 1903, when
old age had enfeebled Archbishop Meriño, one of his assistants,
Monsignor Adolfo Nouel, was made titular Archbishop of Metymne, and on
the death of the venerable churchman in 1906 succeeded him as
Archbishop of Santo Domingo.
In the olden days many religious orders were represented in the
island, but to-day the clergy is secular, with the exception of a few
friars brought over in recent years from Spain and France. The
majority of the priests are native Dominicans, graduated from the
seminary in the capital. There are in the clerical body a number of
black sheep, far too fond of the pleasures of the flesh. Of this stamp
was a noted prelate, of whom I was told when I asked whether he was
old: "Yes, quite old, his oldest son is over forty." As a general
rule, however, the priests of Santo Domingo are earnest, hardworking,
honorable men. The standard is being raised through the efforts of the
present Archbishop Nouel.
The unfortunate political history of the country has not been
conducive to the establishment of eleemosynary institutions or to
other philanthropic activity, and such work has devolved almost
exclusively upon the priests. The names of many of these are held in
grateful remembrance for their efforts in behalf of charity. Perhaps
the most celebrated was Father Billini, who, a member of one of the
foremost families of Santo Domingo, consecrated his life to helping
his fellowmen. He was a father to the poor and through his efforts the
insane asylum of Santo Domingo, an orphan asylum and a college were
established. His name became notable in other directions also, for he
was instrumental in the discovery of the remains of Columbus in the
Santo Domingo cathedral in 1877. At times the methods of the good
father were a little spectacular: thus on one occasion when
supplicating Heureaux in behalf of several prisoners sentenced to
death, he took off his hat and vowed he would not put it on again
until the prisoners were pardoned, but the order of execution was
carried out and ever afterwards Father Billini went hatless. In so
great esteem is his name held that the only statue in Santo Domingo
City, besides that of Columbus on the plaza, is erected to his memory.
Practically the entire population of the country is at least nominally
Roman Catholic. Among the educated classes in the cities the women, as
a rule, are devout; the men either openly acknowledge themselves free
thinkers or their religion is very superficial indeed. On one occasion
a Dominican earnestly assured me he was a Catholic and would always
remain one, "but," he added, "I cannot accept all the doctrines of the
church: thus I do not believe in the Virgin Mary, nor the saints, nor
the power of the priests to forgive sins, nor in the divinity of
Christ, but I feel almost certain of the existence of a God." The
fondness for display makes the ornate ceremonies of the Catholic
Church popular with all, however, and they are observed by officers of
the state whenever possible. The president always goes to mass after
taking the oath of office, and the army flags are solemnly blessed.
The less educated people of the cities and most of the country people
not only hold their priests in great respect, but are blindly
superstitious. It is common to find crosses in the courtyards of
country houses, placed there to keep evil spirits away. Frequently
also, three crosses are seen in conspicuous places near the roadside
or even in the middle of the road. They are supposed to propitiate the
Almighty, and pious persons mumble prayers as they pass them. When the
destruction wrought by the Martinique volcano became known here, the
dismay of the countrymen was responsible for more than one "calvario"
(calvary), as these collections of crosses are called. It is
especially desired by the country people to receive the last
sacraments from the priests before death. On one occasion far out in
the country I met a crowd of people engaged in transporting a dying
man many miles to the priest in the nearest town. When asked why the
priest was not called to the sick man, they explained innocently: "He
couldn't come. The priest is too fat."
There are in the territory of the Republic several shrines of more
than usual renown, which at certain seasons of the year attract crowds
of worshipers, some coming all the way from Porto Rico. Wonderful
cures of invalids are registered which recall the miracles of Lourdes.
The most celebrated of these churches is the one on the Santo Cerro,
the Holy Hill, built on the exact spot where forces of Columbus
planted their cross when defending the hill against the Indians. After
the Indians had stormed the place all their efforts to destroy the
cross were unavailing, so the story goes, and they were finally driven
to precipitate flight by the apparition of the Virgin, sitting on the
cross. A church was founded on the spot and a convent near by. During
the dark years of the colony the convent was abandoned and fell to
ruin but at no time was a priest lacking to look after the site of the
miracle. In the time of Heureaux the humble wooden chapel then
crowning the hill was replaced by a larger but modest brick church,
the greater part of the bricks being carried up from the ruins of the
old city of La Vega which lie at the foot of the hill. The church
occupies an eminence overlooking the great Royal Plain. Its most
prized treasure, which is reverently kissed by the priest before he
shows it to the stranger, consists of two splinters about an inch
long, of black wood, parts of the original cross of Columbus, enclosed
in another small cross of gold filigree work. A larger piece of the
original cross is kept in the cathedral at Santo Domingo City, to be
exhibited on special occasions. The pieces of the original cross
carried away by the Spaniards were enough to make a score of crosses,
yet nevertheless there was always some wood left, which circumstance
was heralded as an additional miracle.
Within the church on the Holy Hill, in one of the chapels, there is a
hole in the stone floor a little over two feet square and deep, which
is pointed out as the exact place where the cross of Columbus stood.
There is nothing so coveted by pilgrims as to be able to kneel in this
hole and offer up their prayers. The soil from this spot is credited
with strange powers, such as that of healing wounds on which it is
laid, and that of causing floods to subside, when sprinkled on the
troubled waters. The late Archbishop Meriño assured me that the
miraculous nature of the spot is evidenced by the fact that however
much soil is taken out of the hole, the bottom thereof always retains
the same level, but my later inspection of the dry yellow earth at the
bottom disclosed nothing unusual. Near the Santo Cerro church is the
trunk of the nispero tree, gnarled with age, from which Columbus is
said to have cut the wood for his cross. All around are miserable
shacks, inhabited, so the pure-minded priest of the church sorrowfully
told me, by people the conduct of many of whom is quite at variance
with the holiness supposed to pervade the place.
The town of Bayaguana, to the northeast of Santo Domingo City, also
attracts the faithful, especially about the first of the year, by
reason of the fame of the "Cristo de Bayaguana," a very ancient figure
of Christ in the church of that town. In the same way Higuey in the
eastern part of the island is specially noted for its shrine of the
"Altagracia," a picture of the Virgin, of which tradition says that in
the early days of the colony it was given by an aged mysterious
stranger to the father of a devout maiden who had pined therefor. The
church is built on the site of an orange tree under which, it is said,
the picture was first admired by the girl and her relatives; the trunk
of this tree is shown behind the altar of the church. Pilgrimages to
this place take place preferably about the twenty-first of January and
the miracles ascribed to the Virgin are astounding. Miracles of quite
a different nature are attributed to an image of Saint Andrew, in the
capital. The populace confidently believe that as sure as this figure
is carried to the street an earthquake will follow.
There are always several altars in the churches, surmounted by figures
of the saints to whom they are dedicated. Some of these statues are
quite beautiful, others, in some of the poorer churches, are hideous.
As in other Spanish countries the churches are bare of seats, and
people who attend either send small chairs before the service, or
stand. It is not unusual to see well dressed ladies carrying their
chairs to church. Women are much more in evidence than men, and the
Dominican woman is not different from her sisters in other countries,
for a new hat or dress is apt to awaken in her an irresistible
yearning to go to church. Young men are fond of attending, too, but it
is to be feared that in many cases their object is to see the young
ladies rather than to hear the sermon.
The custom of celebrating the saint's day instead of the birthday is
followed, so that birthdays pass unperceived while the day dedicated
in the calendar of the Catholic Church to the saint whose name a
person bears, is the day which he celebrates and on which he receives
the felicitations of his friends.
Christmas tide is not a time when presents are exchanged, and
Christmas trees are not found, save rarely and where the foreign
influence is strong. There is no lack of celebration, however. On
Christmas Eve the churches are crowded and there are banquets and
dances going on everywhere. In the cities the small boys amuse
themselves by setting off fireworks. During the Christmas week dances
are frequent, and in the country they continue sometimes for days to
the lugubrious accompaniment of accordions and large drums. December
the twenty-eighth, Holy Innocents' day, is All Fools' day, instead of
April the first, it being argued that just as the innocents of Herod's
day were made to suffer, so the innocents of this age should be
persecuted. Many are the pranks perpetrated and the small boy is in
his glory. On New Year's Eve many families receive their friends;
there is generally some large ball, and the new year is ushered in
with fireworks and other noises.
The great day of the year for the children is the sixth of January,
the feast of Epiphany, or Three Kings' Day, as it is called in Santo
Domingo. Just as the three wise men from the East brought presents to
the infant Christ in ages past, so they now make the rounds and leave
presents for deserving children, thus taking the place of our Santa
Claus. The receptacles they choose for the good things they deliver
are either the children's slippers or shoes, or boxes made ready by
the little ones. For weeks before the anxiously awaited day, letters
are written to the Kings, explaining what gifts would be acceptable,
and are given to the parents who undertake to deliver them. The
children are careful to facilitate the display of the Kings'
generosity by placing their shoes or boxes in conspicuous places and
filling the boxes with grass, so that the horses of the Kings can eat.
Their thoughtfulness is rewarded, for on the following morning the
visit of the Kings is attested by indubitable evidence, as there is an
abundance of toys and sweets and the grass is often quite strewn
about. Excited little ones are sure they heard the pawing of the
horses on the balcony. The Kings usually show a magnanimous disregard
of past offenses, but occasionally they leave a letter of advice or
warning, and they have even been known to place a switch in the box of
a particularly bad boy.
Easter is celebrated with great solemnity. In order to provide
opportunity for observing all the ceremonies prescribed by the church,
they are so arranged that the ceremonies corresponding to the
commemoration of the death of Christ are begun on Thursday at noon and
the celebration of the resurrection on Saturday at noon, and this is
the order of dates accepted by the people in general. On Thursday and
Friday soldiers form a guard of honor before the churches, and up to
Easter of 1906 there was a strict prohibition of any vehicle going
through the streets between Thursday noon and Saturday noon. Not a
wheel was permitted to turn in this period, giving rise to much
inconvenience and discomfort. Since 1906 a more liberal view has
prevailed. At this time as on certain other church festivals, solemn
religious processions wind through the streets.
The church has charge of several small hospitals and orphan asylums. A
few schools in the Republic are also under its auspices, but in
general religious education is much neglected.
Although the Catholic religion is the state religion and is professed
by so large a majority of the population, the influence of the church
in the government is no more than in many countries where no such
circumstances prevail. Discipline in the priesthood is limited almost
entirely to ecclesiastical matters and priests otherwise speak and act
for themselves. They frequently participate in politics and are often
to be met in municipal councils and in Congress, and in such cases
their acts indicate that they sit, not as priests representing the
church, but entirely as individuals representing the constituency from
which they were elected. Father Meriño, who later became archbishop,
was elected president and served out his term. President Morales had
been a priest, but had abandoned the priesthood when he was elected to
Congress. The present head of the church, Archbishop Nouel, has also
been president, under a temporary compromise.
Another peculiarity of Dominican Catholicism is its tolerant attitude
towards freemasonry. It is not unusual for persons who are recognized
as fervent Catholics to be at the same time enthusiastic masons.
There are instances even of devout families, where one of the sons
belongs to the priesthood and the other sons and the father are
zealous masons, but where all live under the same roof in absolute
concord. The first lodges were founded in 1858 and there are lodges to
be found to-day in all the principal cities. Several of them have
their own buildings, that at Santiago being especially worthy of
remark. They have done excellent work in behalf of charity and
education. The lodges of Santo Domingo City, Santiago, La Vega and
Moca maintain free public schools, and the lodge of Puerto Plata a
hospital. The lodges of oddfellows in the Republic have done similar
good work.
The absence of religious fanaticism is further exemplified by the
tolerance accorded other religious sects. These, it is true, are but
slimly represented. Of the Jewish faith there are probably not two
dozen persons in the Republic. The Protestants are almost entirely
negroes from the British and former Danish islands and other
foreigners, and descendants of the American negroes settled in Santo
Domingo. For these the Wesleyan Methodist Church of England maintains
a flourishing mission with chapels in Puerto Plata, Samana, and
Sanchez and a small branch in Santo Domingo City. The principal chapel
is in Puerto Plata, which is also the residence of the minister in
charge of the mission. The African Methodist Church also has small
stations at Samana and San Pedro de Macoris, though the word "African"
does not tend to make the church popular in Santo Domingo. There is
further an almost abandoned Baptist mission in Puerto Plata and Monte
Cristi. In all these churches, services are generally carried on in
the English language alone. In San Francisco de Macoris, Protestant
services are conducted in Spanish by devotees who do not seem to be
ordained by any particular sect.