Catholic historians reflect on the Church’s role as America marks 250 years

As the United States prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its founding, two Catholic historians say the nationʼs story cannot be fully understood without recognizing the role Catholics have played in shaping American life.

In a July 3 “EWTN News in Depth” interview with Catherine Hadro, Kathleen Sprows Cummings of the University of Notre Dame and Christopher Shannon of Christendom College reflected on the complex history of Catholicism in the United States.

Cummings, director of Notre Dameʼs Global Catholic Research Initiative, said it is difficult for many Americans today to imagine the level of hostility Catholics once faced.

“It’s hard to imagine today the extent to which Catholics were seen as not welcome in the United States,” she said. Nineteenth-century Catholic immigrants, particularly those arriving from Ireland, Italy, and Eastern Europe, were often viewed with suspicion because they were poor, came from “undesirable” countries, and were believed to be “loyal to the pope.”

“Anti-Catholicism in the 19th century often meant anti-papist,” Cummings explained, noting that many Americans feared the pope harbored “imperial designs on the United States.”…