An address by historian Robert J. Morgan (1938-2011) to the Canadian Council of Churches, meeting in Glace Bay NS April 25-29, 1976 – used with permission

ROLE OF CHRISTIANITY IN THE

HISTORY OF CAPE BRETON

By R.J. Morgan

Bishop Plessis of Quebec visited Cape Breton in 1812 and came face to face

with a state of affairs that shocked him. He visited Port Hood and described

the chapel:

"Imagine 30 pieces of squared timber placed vertically, enclosing a space

of about 40 square feet, and supported with crossboards, nailed over

the whole edifice, with a half-foot opening between one board and

another, so that rain, wind, and hail could come in without obstacle,-

. . . and in front an old silk cloth, whose colour can no longer be

recognized, but whose stains are very visible and very repugnant, a cloth

which they call an altar frontal but which for 30 years has been

unsuitable for such use.

... a boat sail had been spread out on the roof, and the altar was

sheltered by a sort of cotton canopy, with the help of which it was

possible to celebrate protected from the rain that was falling that

morning.

If this chapel was indecent because of its shape, it was more so

because of the multitude of dogs within it and the babbling and bawling

of forty or more children in their mothers' arms. Several mothers

spanked their children noisily to prevent them from crying, but the

remedy only made them cry louder."

 A.A. Johnston, A History of the Catholic Church in Eastern Nova Scotia.

Vol. 1 (1611-1827), (Antigonish, St. Francis Xavier Press, 1960)

pp. 240-241

I sympathize with the Bishop visiting Cape Breton from a sophisticated and

different culture in Quebec, and wonder what he would think of mass being

said in Gaelic out-of-doors in an atmosphere much like that in Port Hood in

1812. Yet, this goes on in Cape Breton today.

Perhaps the good Bishop would not have been so scandalized had he realized

that Christianity in Cape Breton has been intimately tied to the daily and

often crude, life of Cape Bretoners. It has been the bearer of the island's

culture, especially when political power, usually remote in London, Halifax

or Ottawa, failed to give assistance or leadership to a people living in an area

which has never been noted for its wealth. Cape Breton has almost always

been a political or economic colony of other places: in the 18th and 19th

centuries the development of the island lay in the hands of Paris, then

London, then Halifax, then Ottawa. For only a brief period from 1784 to

1820 did Cape Breton exist as a separate colony with at least some of her

destiny resting in her own hands. In the 20th century, economic power has

rested with great corporations with headquarters in places like London,

England.

With leadership, understanding and power so remote, organized Christianity

has played the role not only of religious instructor, but also of comforter,

preserver of Cape Bretoners' values which are bound up with their old

culture, and finally as leader in shaping this island's history.

These roles go far back to 1632 when Anthony Daniel, a Jesuit, came to Cape

Breton where he worked among the Mi’kmaq, converting them and

making them the first native Christians of the island. Later, Father Maillard

devised an alphabet for the Mi’kmaq language, beginning its important role

of preserving the Mi’kmaq culture which the church still plays here.

With the construction of the Fortress of Louisbourg, the church's role

expanded rapidly. We can only guess at the hardships of the Recollets living

from a small trunk and stationed at Bras d'Or, or Fourchu and serving as

comforters, legal experts and teachers to French fishermen and Mi’kmaqs

scattered over the island. The inventories taken after the death of one of

these Recollets bears witness to their simple self-sacrifice: a few beads for the

Indians, a batch of holy cards, a coffee pot, old vestments, a cross and chalice.

Yet a good deal of the glory of Louisbourg was built on the work of the

Sisters of Notre Dame who taught the children; the Brothers of St. Jean de

Dieu who ran the hospital (though they would not treat venereal disease,

since it was sinful) and the priests who ministered to the people and

fortunately kept good records for future historians.

The fall of Louisbourg in 1758 led to the virtual disappearance of Europeans

from most parts of the island. Small settlements remained primarily around

Isle Madame in the area of Arichat, and at St. Peters. Most were French, but

in the 1760's fishermen from the Island of Jersey and Guernsey began to

arrive. These were the first Protestants to settle permanently in Cape Breton.

Yet, with the death of Father Maillard in 1762, there was no Christian

minister on the island. The Mi’kmaqs in particular complained of this and

were reponsible for bringing a priest to the island during this time.

This period of darkness for the church ended in 1787 when the Reverend

Ranna Cossit was appointed rector of the Church of England in the newly

established Colony of Cape Breton. From the Reverend Cossit we can date the

beginnings of the permanent establishment of the Church in Cape Breton. Of

even greater significance is Cossit's attitude to his ministry: he saw his

religious role as extending far beyond his normal priestly duties: to him it

included an active role in education and the political life of the colony. The

first teachers in Sydney were appointed by Cossit - his very home was given

up as a school; he sat in the Council of the Colony and furthered its

development. Besides this, it must be remembered that his parish included the

whole island and that he travelled to minister to his people at frequent

intervals. He also fathered 10 children whose descendants still abound here.

Yes, he was an activist - and landed in jail once for opposing a Governor

whom he considered unjust. I stress this because I see Cossit as firmly in the

tradition of the Cape Breton clergyman: active in all phases of life even to

opposing what they consider unjust authority and giving leadership in all

phases of life. From Cossit also springs a good deal of our educational

tradition on the island. As a mark of this man's importance to Cape Breton,

his home, the oldest in Sydney, is being restored and opened as an historic

house by the Nova Scotia Museum.

While Cossit was working in Sydney, the French Revolution sent refugees

from St. Pierre and Miquelon to Cape Breton. They settled around Isle

Madame, Sydney and the western part of the island. They brought their own

priest. Father LeJomtel, and with him came permanence to the Catholic

Church. The church and the French culture of Cape Breton have since that

time been closely bound together.

But other groups were also beginning to grow. The first Presbyterian minister

to visit Cape Breton was the Reverend James MacGregor who in 1798

travelled to Sydney from New Glasgow, N.S. (150 miles) to baptize the child

of a Scottish immigrant. His voyage extended along the Gulf of St. Lawrence,

to St. Peters. His boat was dragged across the isthmus there, where the canal

is now, and he sailed to Portage about 10 miles from Sydney. He then set out

on foot, but became lost, and fearing exposure and water monsters, returned

to his boat, sailed around Bras D'Or and thence to Sydney. Such dedication

to a call was soon to be tested again. In 1802, the first boatload of Scots

arrived in Cape Breton directly from Scotland. By 1850, over 50,000 Scots

came here, bringing population problems and the need for a greater ministry.

People's spiritual and temporal wants were to be taken care of: The

Edinburgh Ladies Association for example sent more ministers and also

supplied books and bibles, thus carrying on the church's role of education,

and bearer of culture. Hence around 1825 the Reverend Norman MacLeod

opened the first Presbyterian Church in Cape Breton, and with it a school. He

taught 100 pupils in the St. Ann's area: his fame as preacher and patriarch is

known far beyond Cape Breton and extends to New Zealand where he

eventually led his followers. The Edinburgh Ladies Association is a keystone

in the religious and intellectual fabric of the island and its work grew as the

number of Scots increased.

The majority of the Scots arriving spoke Gaelic and were Roman Catholic.

The numbers increased to such an extent, that in 1844 a separate diocese of

Cape Breton was established, with Arichat, then the largest town on the

island as its seat. By 1853 a seminary and college were founded there by

Bishop McKinnon. This college became St. Francis Xavier University, the

principal seat of learning in eastern Nova Scotia, and the grandfather, if I may

use the term, of the College of Cape Breton, the seat of learning and much

community leadership on this island.

The development of community and church put strains on all religious

bodies. The Church of England was divided into four parishes. The Methodist

and Baptist churches were organized; In 1846, the Reverend George

Richardson, the first Baptist Minister in Sydney had a congregation of 15

charter members, mainly old Sydney families. There is a story of the

Reverend Richardson's conversation with Doctor William MacLeod, a staunch

Presbyterian (as they say). During the conversation between the two friends,

Doctor MacLeod was heard to say "Well brother, you'll not be looking at me

as a Presbyterian, nor I at you as a Baptist when we get to heaven." "No",

replied Father Richardson, "We'll be better employed, our eyes will be fixed

on a Baptist to all Eternity".

Dr. A. Steele "Recollections of George Richardson", in S. Trew Essay

"1790-1878, Rev. George Richardson, First Minister of the Sydney

Baptist Church, 1846", p. 10.

The church's involvement in community affairs came to the fore in the

mid-nineteenth century with the growth of the Temperance Movement. With

the development of coal mining on a large scale in the 1840's and 1850's, the

inhuman life of the coal miner turned many men to drink. The first

Temperance Society in Sydney was not church organized: its members were

not bound by total abstinence, their pledge involved not drinking more than

four glasses of rum a day, one at each meal, and one before going to bed.

However in the 1840's total abstinence came to Cape Breton when

Protestants as well as Catholics took the pledge: it was an example of

interfaith co-operation with all religions realizing the evils of drink. There is a

story of a gentleman who went on a drunk and lost his watch in Sydney. He

had two boys search for it, and told his wife that he had sent the watch to be

repaired. The boys meanwhile could not find the watch, and the man in

despair went to St. Patrick's Church and took the pledge. He went home and

presented the ribbon indicating total abstinence, to his wife, whereupon she

presented him with his "lost" watch. Old Sydney, pp. 73-74

Before we laugh we should recognize

the importance of the Temperance Society in this area, for it prepared

churchmen for more difficult days to come, when the old tradition of church

involvement would be put to the test.

In 1900, the steel industry opened in Cape Breton. Along with this, coal

mining became a big business. This turned eastern Cape Breton into Industrial

Cape Breton, and thousands of people who had lived in rural areas of the

Island, and who spoke mainly Gaelic, flocked to this area for work. There

were no unions and mining conditions were inhuman; already in 1882 a strike

had taken place at Ljngan mines, but soldiers were brought in from Halifax

and miners from Scotland, and the strike was crushed. I do not want to

discuss the labour history of Cape Breton here, but the same type of situation

was repeated in 1909 and again in 1925. Mounted troops, militia, and death

followed in the wake of these strikes - and the churches were put on the spot

as it were. Again, they became involved. Their involvement has caused

controversy which still rages. As I said earlier, the seats of power rested far

away - both union and management leaderships lay in places remote from

these shores - and the churches assumed natural leadership - people demanded

it. Some priests and ministers were activist, some were cautious: but the

problem was then as now - how far can the churches become involved in

matters which are ephemeral, yet so vital to a community at one time? An

understanding of the development of trade unionism in Canada is

inconceivable without an understanding of what happened here in Glace Bay,

and the role of the churches as controversial as they may be, were vital in the

development of trade unionism in Cape Breton.

If the role of churches in the strikes of the early part of this century is

controversial, their role in the co-operative movement is not. The Revs. M.M.

Coady and J.J. Tompkins attacked the problems of miners, steelworkers and

fishermen not by strikes, but by co-operation among these people. As Father

Coady put it:

The co-operative technique is the people's ticket to the great economic

show; it is the people's way of getting into business.

Old-line private enterprise has long ceased to be an individualistic

thing, and through joint stock companies, corporations and cartels, is

today a collectivist affair.. If the people are going to maintain their

democracy, they will have to match not only individualism with

individualism but collectivism with collectivism.

AF. Laidlaw, ed. The Man from Margaree, p. 126. quoted in L. Hellier,

"The Cooperative Movement in New Waterford" (Essay), pp. 2-3.

Meetings, discussion clubs, sometimes in barns, were organized and eventually

co-ops were established throughout industrial Cape Breton, and then the

whole island. Credit Unions, co-op housing - now bye words owe their

development in Canada largely to far-seeing churchmen from Cape Breton.

(Church involvement - this is our theme in Cape Breton). Certainly, many

outside events have occurred that have influenced Cape Bretoners: the

development of the great United Church of Canada united and divided us, but

paved the way for ecumenism which influences us here this very day.

However, our churches in Cape Breton are not empty, because, I think, our

churches have remained involved in our communities and reflect the culture

of our island. The preservation of our Gaelic-Scots culture is due largely to

our churches. The Gaelic sermons at Mira; the ceilidhs and concerts at places

like Broad Cove or Big Pond take place on church grounds and are sponsored

by local congregations - our ministers and priests speak Gaelic, step dance

and play the fiddle just as they represent us in parliament, teach us, lead us -

one was recently chosen citizen of the year in Sydney.

An understanding of Cape Breton past and present is impossible without an

understanding of the role Christianity has played here.