11. RELIGION. There is complete sep ration of church and state in Mexico (,na and the reforms made in the cents tion in 1917 reaffirm with great emphags fact that the church, of whatever creed denomination, is constantly under the co strict government inspection and that ecclesiastical buildings, lands and other pr:; erty belonging to the nation, which uteri.• their use to the church. So, therefore, religious order or denomination can aogs land or other property or mortgages on same. This prohibition extends to school 17_ college buildings, asylums, charitable in:Ita tions and residences of ministers and prim and even to the property collected within 1 walls of the churches and other ecclesia:.:. buildings. Gifts of movable property ma, It made to the church; but even these at tx: automatically become the property of the r don. Every church or religious society ing property must elect an official bead to rep sent it before the government and to beam responsible for the national property is L possession. All ministers of whatever must be Mexican by birth. The provisions c the reforms made in the Constitution in IV shut out of Mexican religious institutions 2,500 Spanish priests of the Catholic tlin= alone, hundreds of French priests, principally in schools and colleges, and a Protestant ministers, mostly American, In had established numerous churches and many schOols throughout the land. While
religions not inimical to the interests of government and the laws of the land Li allowed to exist and to exercise their funs,. in Mexico, yet all public religious obsenna And ceremonies must be carried on within to church property and are subject to official n spection and regulation. The law does :. recognize the personality of any sett Th legislature of each state is empowered to rep late the maximum .number of churches r ministers within the state. No minister )11 have the right to vote, to hold any public ale or to be voted for, nor is he permitted to in ok, part, in any way, n public affairs. The esa: lishment of monasteries and nunneries and al taking of monastic vows are prohibited by Constitution, which asserts that the state a not permit the fulfillment of any contract Ps or agreement the object of which is the cr tailment, loss or irrevocable sacrifice of a liberty of man, whether for the purposes work, education or religious vows. Marne is a civil contract and no other marriage (Tr mony except the civil one is legal. There" there are generally two marriage ceremow performed in Mexico, the civil one by a Mar trate. appointed for that purpose by the r ernment, and a second by the priest or trinio of the Church of which the contracting parties are adherents.