Another area where the Catholic Church and specifically Lamy worked on ending is Concubinage, defined as "a relationship between persons who are cohabiting without the benefit of marriage." This activity is disavowed by the Catholic Church. One way that Lamy looked to end these types of relationships was by ex-communicating 5 Spanish speaking clergy men for concubinage. For example, one clergymen that Lamy expelled was Jose Manuel Gallegos. Some would even argue that ending concubinage was one reason the Jean Lamy was sent to New Mexico. For example, one missionary who argued for Lamy to be sent to the United States is quoted as saying in regards to New Mexico, it "still pitifully calls itself a Catholic country, …. The few priests are without guidance or discipline. They are lax in religious observance, and some of them live in open concubinage."