Since the revolution year of 1848, the liberal faction was dominant in Belgian politics.
There were Catholic cabinets, but these, generally, adopted the liberal agenda of Laissez faire, laissez passer.
According to this view, the free interchange of goods and services and personal freedom should not be restricted by interventions of the state, even though this principle was relaxed somewhat in times of crisis.
It's not justified, however, to see the Belgian liberalism only as an exponent of the bourgeoisie intent on extending their wealth and influence.
Part of this ideology was also a cultural ideal: to liberate the individual from the dogmatic fetters imposed by the clergy and promote personal development through the promotion of liberal arts.

In the case of Rolin-Jaequemyns, this was expressed in his chairmanship of the Van Crombrugghe Genootschap, a Flemish cultural society founded by teachers and students of the municipal school in Ghent to "praise major Van Crombrugghe, who had done so much good for the municipal schools of Ghent".

From 1850 onward, the controversy between the Catholic Party and the liberals deepened.
On the Roman Catholic side, the ultramontanists became the dominant faction, partly under influence of the papal Encyclical Quanta cura (1864) and especially the attached Syllabus Errorum in which the modern liberties were sharply condemned.

On the liberal side, mostly in circles of freemasons and the Université Libre de Bruxelles, the principle of "Free Research" (Vrij Onderzoek) gained influence, which, as it was interpreted there and then, was incompatible with catholic orthodoxy.
This sharpened the anti-clerical sentiment among liberals which evolved into a militant anti-Catholicism.
The complete secularisation of Belgian society became the liberals' prime objective.
In order to achieve this aim, they were forced to interventions of the state, since social life was completely dominated by Roman Catholic organisations.
The main battleground, however, was the field of education and the academic freedom of Belgian universities, where rationalism and scientific positivism were gaining ground.

First blows were exchanged over a parochial letter written by Mgr.
L. Delebecque, Bishop of Bruges, in which he accused Prof. Wagener of "blasphemous" and "heretical" teachings and strongly condemned the University of Ghent.
The letter was read in all churches in his diocese on Sunday 14 September 1856 and was followed by a similar action by the Bishop of Bruges, Mgr.
J.B. Malou.
The situation came to a head with the affair Laurent-Brasseur, two professors from Ghent who had, in the view of the clergy, made ex cathedra statements contradicting the official teachings of the Church.
The Church had, by means of the Convention of Antwerp, gained a solid influence in academic matters and used it.
This affair brought to light the deep divisions between liberals and Catholics and the country was divided into two camps: a clerical one and an anti-clerical one who battled each other in every way possible.
Since the revolution year of 1848, the liberal faction was dominant in Belgian politics. There were Catholic cabinets, but these, generally, adopted the liberal agenda of Laissez faire, laissez passer. According to this view, the free interchange of goods and services and personal freedom should not be restricted by interventions of the state, even though this principle was relaxed somewhat in times of crisis. It's not justified, however, to see the Belgian liberalism only as an exponent of the bourgeoisie intent on extending their wealth and influence. Part of this ideology was also a cultural ideal: to liberate the individual from the dogmatic fetters imposed by the clergy and promote personal development through the promotion of liberal arts.
In the case of Rolin-Jaequemyns, this was expressed in his chairmanship of the Van Crombrugghe Genootschap, a Flemish cultural society founded by teachers and students of the municipal school in Ghent to "praise major Van Crombrugghe, who had done so much good for the municipal schools of Ghent".
From 1850 onward, the controversy between the Catholic Party and the liberals deepened. On the Roman Catholic side, the ultramontanists became the dominant faction, partly under influence of the papal Encyclical Quanta cura (1864) and especially the attached Syllabus Errorum in which the modern liberties were sharply condemned.
On the liberal side, mostly in circles of freemasons and the Université Libre de Bruxelles, the principle of "Free Research" (Vrij Onderzoek) gained influence, which, as it was interpreted there and then, was incompatible with catholic orthodoxy. This sharpened the anti-clerical sentiment among liberals which evolved into a militant anti-Catholicism. The complete secularisation of Belgian society became the liberals' prime objective. In order to achieve this aim, they were forced to interventions of the state, since social life was completely dominated by Roman Catholic organisations. The main battleground, however, was the field of education and the academic freedom of Belgian universities, where rationalism and scientific positivism were gaining ground.
First blows were exchanged over a parochial letter written by Mgr. L. Delebecque, Bishop of Bruges, in which he accused Prof. Wagener of "blasphemous" and "heretical" teachings and strongly condemned the University of Ghent. The letter was read in all churches in his diocese on Sunday 14 September 1856 and was followed by a similar action by the Bishop of Bruges, Mgr. J.B. Malou. The situation came to a head with the affair Laurent-Brasseur, two professors from Ghent who had, in the view of the clergy, made ex cathedra statements contradicting the official teachings of the Church. The Church had, by means of the Convention of Antwerp, gained a solid influence in academic matters and used it. This affair brought to light the deep divisions between liberals and Catholics and the country was divided into two camps: a clerical one and an anti-clerical one who battled each other in every way possible.
Gustave Rolin-Jaequemyns