Reform laws

The Reform laws were a set of anticlerical laws enacted in Mexico between 1855 and 1863, during the governments of Juan Alvarez, Ignacio Comonfort and Benito Juárez that were intended to limit the privileges (fueros) of the Roman Catholic Church and the military. The laws also limited the ability of Catholic Church and indigenous communities from collectively holding land. The liberal government sought the revenues from the disentailment of church property, which could fund the civil war against Mexican conservatives and to broaden the base of property ownership in Mexico and encouraging private enterprise. Several of them were raised to constitutional status by the constituent Congress that drafted the liberal Constitution of 1857. Although the laws had a major impact on the Catholic Church in Mexico, liberal proponents were not opposed to the church as a spiritual institution, but rather sought a secular state and a society not dominated by religion.[1]

Allegory of the Constitution of 1857 shows a dark complected Mexican woman clutching the liberal constitution of 1857. Painting by Petronilo Monroy, 1869.

Historical context

Juan Álvarez

On March 1, 1854, the Plan of Ayutla was proclaimed against the dictatorship of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, indicting him for his sale of the Mesilla Valley to the United States, the Gadsden Purchase; acting as a repressive dictator, and eliminating democratic institutions.[2] The revolution was led by Florencio Villarreal, Juan Alvarez and Ignacio Comonfort spread to many parts of the country, achieving success in October 1855. Juan Alvarez assumed the presidency on an interim basis who in turn convened a congress. An important aspect of Juan Alvarez was taking in his cabinet young liberals, thanks to it so important for the history of Mexico and Melchor Ocampo, Benito Juarez, Guillermo Prieto and Ignacio Comonfort men had the opportunity to have an active political participation. In his administration, Alvarez was dedicated to make laws that keep the country under the ideals of liberalism, as the Juárez Law, and the provision of Melchor Ocampo depriving the right to vote the clergy. For personal reasons Juan Alvarez resigned in December 1855 and left Ignacio Comonfort as responsible for the country's presidency.

Promulgation

Government of Juan Álvarez (October-December 1855)

Juárez law or the Law on Administration of Justice and the Courts Organic Nation District and Territories: It was issued by Benito Juarez on 23 November 1855. This law was rejected by the bishops archbishops of Mexico, since it restricted ecclesiastical privileges (fueros).[3]
Lafragua Law or freedom of the press law: it allowed freedom of expression in print media, entered into force on 28 December 1855. It was promulgated by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Interior José María Lafragua.

Government of Ignacio Comonfort (December 1855-January 1858)

Decree abolished civil coercion of religious vows, promulgated April 26, 1856.
Decree that suppressed the Society of Jesus in Mexico, promulgated June 5, 1856.
Lerdo law or Law of Confiscation of Property Plots and Urban Civil and Ecclesiastical Corporations: forced the civil, such as Indian communities, and ecclesiastical corporations to sell houses and land to private individuals. It was drafted by Miguel Lerdo de Tejada (brother of Sebastian Lerdo de Tejada) and was promulgated June 25, 1856.[4] It is considered the most controversial of all the Reform laws, but it was part of a process that had been initiated during Spanish rule in the eighteenth century.[5]
Lafragua Law or Civil Registration Act. Through this law, the Civil Registry was established for births, marriages, and deaths, removing these from the Roman Catholic Church which had kept records of baptism, holy matrimony, and death. It was issued on January 27, 1857.
Constitution of 1857 was promulgated on 5 February 1857. Republican and Federalist liberal Valentín Gómez Farías, who fought for these ideals throughout his life, from the Cortes of Cádiz, the Independence of Mexico and the Constitution of 1824 had been repealed by the centralist regime and the dictatorship of Antonio López de Santa Anna.
Iglesias law or Rights Act and parochial perquisites: banned the collection of fees, parochial perquisites and tithe to the poor classes. It was drafted by José María Iglesias and promulgated April 11, 1857.[6] One of Comonfort's supporters, Juan José Baz, considered this law a provocation of the lower clergy who depended on such fees.[7]

Government of Benito Juárez

Nationalization Law Ecclesiastical Property: This law complements Law Lerdo confiscation of church property, with an important change: the goods no longer passed into the hands of rentiers. It was issued in Veracruz on July 12, 1859. The law makes explicit the connection between the national debt and disamortization, which early nineteenth-century liberal politicians and ideologues Lorenzo de Zavala and José María Luis Mora had written about. In fact, the church held more of its wealth in mortgages to private landowners than in property ownership itself.[8][9]
Civil Marriage Act: was issued in Veracruz on July 23, 1859, through this law was established that the religious marriage had no official validity and established marriage as a civil contract with the State, eliminating the forcible intervention priests and collection thereof by the churches.
Organic Law on Civil Registration: registration of civil status of persons was in charge of government employees and not the Church. births and deaths as a civil contract with the State declared. It was issued in Veracruz on July 28, 1859.
Decree of secularization of cemeteries declared the cessation of any intervention of the clergy in cemeteries and graveyards, was released in Veracruz on July 31, 1859.
Decree suppression of religious holidays: by this decree declared the days that were to be taken as holidays, prohibiting official assistance to religious functions.
Law on freedom of religion: this law Catholicism ceased to be the only one allowed. This law allowed each person was free to practice and choose the cult wished also conducting ceremonies were banned outside churches or temples. It was issued in Veracruz on December 4, 1860.
Expulsion decree: by which the exile Luis Clementi apostolic delegate, Archbishop José Lázaro de la Garza y Ballesteros and Pedro Espinosa, bishops and Davalos and Pedro Moreno Barajas and ordered. It was released in Mexico City on January 21, 1861.
Decree of hospitals and charity: for which they were secularized these properties. It was released in Mexico City on February 2, 1861.
Decree of secularization of nuns and friars by which throughout the republic cloisters and monasteries decreeing the exit of religious men and women living there, with the exception of the Sisters of Charity died.

Government of Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada

Act of September 25, 1874

Reactions and consequences

Through the issuance of these laws and decrees Mexico was achieved in the separation of church and state. The new constitution polarized society, in December 1857 the Conservatives ignored the government and the new constitution by the Plan of Tacubaya, which began the War of the Reform or Three Years' War. Liberals achieved victory, on January 1, 1861, President Juárez returned to Mexico City. It is for this reason that several of the decrees and laws were issued in the port of Veracruz. But the country's stability was again interrupted, the government had to suspend payments on foreign debt. By the London Convention, the governments of France, Britain and Spain decided to intervene in Mexico. an agreement with the British and the Spanish, but not with the French, who with this pretext and with the help of conservatives began armed intervention and shortly after the Second Mexican Empire was achieved. Juarez was forced to flee the capital holding his itinerant government. It was possible to Restore the Republic

References

Brian Hamnett, "Reform Laws" in Encyclopedia of Mexico, vol. 2, pp. 1239-1241. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.
Robert J. Knowlton, "Plan of Ayala", vol. 4, p. 420, Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.
D.F. Stevens, "Ley Juárez" vol. 3, p. 409. Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.
D.F. Stevens, "Ley Lerdo" vol. 3, p. 409. Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.
Brian R. Hamnett, "Reform Laws" in Encyclopedia of Mexico, vol. 2, p. 1239. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.
D.F. Stevens, "Ley Iglesias", vol. 3, p. 409. Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.
Hamnett, "Reform Laws" p. 1240.
Hamnett, "Reform Laws", p. 1240.
Robert J. Knowlton, Church Property and the Liberal Reform, 1856-1910. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press 1976.