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.