1919 Bishops' Plan: Documents

2. Letter from Rev. John O'Grady to Rev. Mgr. M.J. Splaine, October 9, 1918, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   In this letter Rev. O'Grady suggests potential members and an agenda for the Committee for Reconstruction. Suggested members include members of both labor and management. O'Grady emphasizes the necessity of the committee being public.

3. Letter from Rev. John O'Grady to Rev. Mgr. M.J. Splaine, October 16, 1918, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   In this letter Rev. O'Grady presents a revised budget for the Committee for Reconstruction and urges caution in choosing its members.

4. Letter from Rev. Mgr. M.J. Splaine to Rev. John O'Grady, December 6, 1918, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   Rev. Msgr. Splaine requests that Rev. O'Grady provide a detailed plan for the four bishops of the Administrative Committee.

5. Rev. John O'Grady's autobiography Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

   Here Father O'Grady describes how he acquired the work of Father John Ryan and submitted it as the Bishops' Program.

6. Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee on Special War Activities, December 10, 1918, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   These are the minutes for the meeting in which the Committee on Special War Activities approved and endorsed Ryan's Plan for Social Reconstruction. Note that the plan is accorded no special status in the minutes.

7. Report of the Committee on Social Reconstruction (Part 1), (Part 2), November 20, 1918, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   This the actual plan presented by the Committee on Social Reconstruction. The plan is called "a practical and moderate program." Though it deals with specific issues such as a living wage and vocational training, it does not provide specific solutions.

8. Letter from Rev. John Burke CSP to Bishop Peter Muldoon, December 10, 1918, enclosure of "Social Reconstruction" Program, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   Here Rev. Burke, CSP, asks that Bishop Muldoon support the "Social Reconstrution" program and expresses his desire to publish the plan as soon as possible.

9. Letter from Bishop Peter Muldoon to Rev. John J. Burke CSP, December 14, 1918 NC War Council Records, ACUA.

   In this letter Bishop Muldoon expresses his general support for the statement. He worries that the document is "a pronouncment on social problems" rather than a "social program." The lack of practical suggestions or methods, he fears, could lead to confusion and frustration among the clergy and the laity.

10. Letter from Rev. John O'Grady to Mr. Ralph Easley, April 9, 1919 NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    Rev. O'Grady responds here to criticisms of the bishops' plan published by Ralph Easley of the National Civic Federation Review. O'Grady reminds Easley that the Church does not necessarily support labor over business but seeks equitable treatment for all.

11. Letter from Rev. John J. Burke to Bishop Peter Muldoon, April 2, 1919, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    Writing to Bishop Muldoon, Rev. Burke expresses his excitement over public reaction to the Bishops' Program for Social Reconstruction pamphlet. He also notes with frustration difficulties with the New York Diocesan Council whose members are questioning the authority of the NCWC, even referring to these critics as "bolsheviki."

12. Letter from Archbishop Edward Hanna of San Francisco, to Bishop Peter Muldoon, April 4, 1919, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    In this letter, Archbishop Hanna expresses his enthusiasm for the bishops' plan. He requests a thousand copies of the pamphlet and states that he will be using the document in a sermon.

13. Letter from Rev. John J. Burke to Bishop Peter Muldoon, April 4, 1919, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    Rev. Burke passes on news of more responses to the Bishops' Program, celebrating the enthusiasm of Archbishop Hanna, as well as noting the critical reaction of the civic reformer Ralph Easley. Also reproduced here is a communication from the Secretary of the Knights of Columbus, William J. McGinley, to Burke concerning the activities the War Council in the war's aftermath.

14. Letter from Ralph Easley to P.H. Callahan, April 11, 1919 NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    Here, Ralph Easley claims that a Bishops' Program pamphlet was given to him by "important Catholics" who did not believe that the document had been authorized by the hierarchy.

15. Letter from Bishop William Russell to Rev John J. Burke, June 6, 1919, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    Transcription

    Here, Bishop Russell relays the fact that some members of the hierarchy had misgivings about the Bishops' Program.

16. "Social Reconstruction" published pamphlet, 1/1919, NC War Council Records, ACUA.

    This is the final, published form of the Plan for "Social Reconstruction" issued by the NCWC.

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