Week of August 13, 2003

`Charles Carroll of Carrollton' about only Catholic signer of Declaration of Independence

T. Jensen Lacey

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CNS) — Charles Carroll, as one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, helped establish democracy in America.

As the pre-eminent Catholic politician of his day and the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence, he worked much of his life to win political and civil rights for American Catholics.

"Carroll almost single-handedly obtained religious freedom and political rights for American Catholics, who formerly had suffered from oppressive penal laws which denied them the right to vote and to worship in public," said Scott McDermott of Nashville, the author of a new book, "Charles Carroll of Carrollton: Faithful Revolutionary."

McDermott hopes through his book Carroll's life will be remembered by more people, especially Catholics.

"He set a great example and, based on his contribution and that of the Catholic soldiers in the American Revolution, of whom there were many, Americans realized that you could be a Catholic and also a good citizen," McDermott said in an interview with the Tennessee Register, newspaper of the Nashville Diocese.

"Prior to that, Catholics were considered to be potential traitors, partly because of the number of infamous plots and rebellions when Catholics were involved. His example was crucial to what Catholics are today," he said.

McDermott is circulation librarian at the Vanderbilt University Divinity Library and a parishioner at the Church of the Assumption in Nashville.

"The book was proposed to me by my publisher, Scepter," McDermott said. "They had read some articles I had written, and asked me to write a book about Carroll — and this was their first work of American history."

After spending time researching the life and times of Charles Carroll, McDermott, who converted from atheism to Catholicism more than a decade ago, experienced a kind of revelation.

"As I got into my research," he said, "I realized how important it was for Catholics to have a role model for political involvement today, because both of the major parties now tend to ignore Catholic ideas; but I also wanted to show that at the founding of this country the Catholic tradition and the Christian tradition were very important."

Born in Maryland in 1737, Charles Carroll was sent by his father to Belgium, where he studied at the Jesuit Academy of St. Omers. It was there that young Carroll studied the writings of Thomas Aquinas, Robert Bellarmine and Francisco de Suarez, helping to shape his political philosophy.

After Carroll's return to Maryland in 1765, he began lobbying for repeal of the Stamp Act.

"The irony of this is that Carroll was prohibited from voting on any political issue because he was Catholic, and though many immigrants had renounced their faith he remained steadfast to the Church," McDermott said.

"When he was elected to the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, it was a profound victory for Catholic Americans, and was the beginning of religious tolerance on this continent," McDermott said.

Risking not only his fortune but his very life, Carroll signed the Declaration of Independence on Aug. 2, 1776.

"Had it not been for Carroll, all the new states might have created Protestant religious establishments," said McDermott. "This act exploded the theory that the United States had a Protestant identity."

After the Revolutionary War was over, Carroll had a seat in the first U.S. Senate, while working doggedly for Catholic emancipation as he supported the Bill of Rights with his cousin, Daniel Carroll, who was in the House of Representatives.

When John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826, Carroll became the only surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence. He spent his final years as a national hero, and died at the age of 95 in 1832.

McDermott said he hoped the book about Carroll would empower Catholics "to get involved with the political process, and support political candidates who are aware of the Christian tradition and are willing to support it."

"I feel a lot of Catholics now are disenfranchised in a similar way to Carroll's inability to vote," he added. "Catholics feel hopeless because neither party represents Catholic teachings. Reading this book may make more Catholics aware that the U.S. is still based on these founding principles and Catholics need to become more aware of this and realize that they, too, can be instruments of positive change."

McDermott added, "I think writing this book has actually turned me outward a bit more, and toward involvement in the political process.

"After my conversion I think I was very focused on spirituality," he said. "In doing my research and seeing how Carroll balanced his religion and his political activity and nation-building has made me more concerned about the social and political aspects of faith."

"Charles Carroll of Carrollton: Faithful Revolutionary" costs $24.95 and is available from Scepter Publishers by calling 212-354-0678, or on the Web at www.scepterpublishers.org.