The Church and the Union: A Moral Tug-of-War in 1887
When the Knights of Labor came under fire from the Vatican, their leader had to scramble to prove that their fight for workers wasn't a precursor to anarchy.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The letter prepared by Cardinal Gibbons of the Catholic Church to the Knights of Labor, which has been awaited with great interest by the members of the order for over a year, was presented this month. Terence Powderly, head of the Knights, wrote: 'It has been represented to the ecclesiastical authorities that the Knights were seeking to revolutionize generally accepted fundamental principles by dictating to capital; that they were following the example of the Freemasons and arrogating to themselves the right of ordering strikes which led to loss of life and destruction of property.'
In a long interview, Cardinal Gibbons told the union leaders: 'After what we have learned, the present condition of the order is a comfortable indication that control of your organization still rests with a conservative element. The Catholic Church in America will take the side of the weaker against the stronger. We readily believe that to rescue the toiler from the grasp of the selfish is a work worthy of the noblest aim of our race. There is no need of secrecy where the ends and methods of the organization are justifiable. We condemn the work of the anarchists; like Samson of old, they would fain pull down the edifice of the institution which shelters them, even though they perish in its ruins.'
“The Catholic Church in America will take the side of the weaker against the stronger. We readily believe that to rescue the toiler from the grasp of the selfish is a work worthy of the noblest aim of our race.”
In 1887, labor unions were viewed with extreme suspicion by religious and civic power structures, often labeled as radical or anti-religious. Today’s labor revival in Seattle sees similar tensions, as modern unions grapple with balancing systemic reform with the need for public support in a polarized political climate.
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