EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS

Greymouth Evening Star, 26 May 1928, Page 12

EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS

SYDNEY MAKING READY. ’rhe world Eucharistic Congress, to be held by the Catholic Church in Sydney next September, will be the outstanding religious event of the present year. An invitation has been issued to all members of the Sacred College. of Cardinals scattered throughout the world, and largo numbers will make the long journey to Australia to attend the Congress. His Eminence Cardinal Cerretti has hem appointed Papal Legate to the 1!)2S Congress by His Holiness Pope Pius XI. Cardinal Cerretti is well known in Australia and New Zealand, being a former Apostolic Delegate in Sydney. i The following will comprise the Court of the Papal Legate according to the official organ of the Vatican — L’Osservatore Romano: — Right Rev. Msgr. Respighi, Prefect of Ceremonies at. the Vatican. Right Rev. Msgr. Melia, di Sant’ Eli, Papau Chamberlain. Right Rev. Msgr. Grosso, Master of Pontifical Ceremonies. Count dott’ Mimbela. and Count Edward Heard, Supernumerary Chamberlains. Rev. Padre di Lorenzo, General- Secretary of the Italian Committee, and memb'ers of the International Committee of All Eucharistic Congresses. In addition, the Papal Legate’s private ‘secretary,- and some members of his household will travel with the party. New Zealanders will be sorry to learn that His Eminence Cardinal Cerretti will not have sufficient time at his disposal to visit New Zealand, as His Holiness the Pope, desires that the Legate and ail members of his party should be back in Rome about the end of October. The Cardinal will be accompanied by members of his Court at the functions . held in Brisbane and in Melbourne after the Congress. He will lay the foundation stone of Brisbane’s new cathedral, and open the addition to the Corpus Christi College at Werribee, Melbourne. His Eminence, accompanied by Count Hearn and a secretary will leave Sydney for U.S.A, after the Melbourne function.

France will be represented by several personages of noble blood, including Count De Yanville, permanent secretary of the Eucharistic Congress for the whole world. A prince, and two viscounts will come with the Belgium pilgrims. From Spain will come several marquises. Chika will lead the Roumanian pilgrimage. Prince Paul Sapeha will accompany the Polish representatives, 'and not the least picturesque of the visitors will be Mr Lo Pa Hong, a multi-millionaire, and one of the most powerful men of the East. The Righ Rev. Monsignor, the Prince De Croy, who is a prince of royal blood, will be among the Belgians. ( ’ An interesting personality to arrive with the Italians wil be the Rev. Professoi' Maurice de la Taille, S.J., of the Gregorian University, Rome. This University is the leading Catholic ecclesiastical institution in the world, and is under the direct control of the Pope. Constituting one of the most spectacular incidentals of the Congress will be the representatives of all the Pacific missions of the Church. From China will come six Chinese bishops who were consecrated at Rome last year by the Pope. From Japan there will bo one or two Japanese bishops. The congress will last only four days, but a number of functions will follow it.

ORATORS OF MANY TONGUES. The Palace Royal, the Town Hall, St. Mary’s Cathedral, the Australian Hall, and the Show Grounds have all been booked and reserved for the various sessions of the congress. There will- be two sessions daily in each of the halls and at the completed cathedral and at each one a celebrated ecclesiastical orator will deliver a discourse on the Blessed Eucharist and its various aspects, according to Catholic doctrine. A huge high altar and choir at a cost of thousands will be erected in the Show Ground, and at this altar the Pontifical High Masses will be celebrated each morning. Only the correctly liturgical music of the church will be rendered by the choir—works by the masters of Gregorian harmony and similar to those rendered at a Papal function at St. Peter’s, Rome. The sessional discourses will be delivered in the language peculiar to the nation concerned. For instance, the discourse to be delivered to the Poles, Germans, French, Belgian or English, will be spoken in that language..

The main religious ceremonies of the congress will be celebration of Pontifical High Masses at the mammoth high altar to be erected in the centre of the Show Ground ring. At the first of these open-air Masses the Papal Legate will officiate in full pontifical ceremonial and those present will witness the celebration of Miss with all the impressive solemnity of a High Mass celebrated in St. Peter’s, Rome. Other cardinals and archbishops will celebrate the other Masses of the congress. The expenses of the Papal Legate and the other cardinals, as well as those of the distinguished English visitors, will he paid by Australians. And to provide the necessary money, all the members of the church are being asked to do is to purchase a

congress badge for a guinea, and mis badge admits them to all the privileges of the Congress. Not the least important event of the concluding functions of the congress will be a dinner io be held at the Palais Royal. To this the Gover-nor-General, all the State Governors,, and members of the Federal and State |

Governments will bo invited. 'the Papal Legato, Cardinal Cerretti, will be the guest of honour. Another event of outstanding importance in connection with the congress will be Ihe big evening service in St. Mary’s Cathedral, the completion of which stately edifice is being hurried in view of the near approach of the function. Pilgrims are coining from all parts of the world to attend the congress. Practically every country will he represented. New Zealand will be represented at the congress. Besides the veteran Archbishop of Wellington, Dr. Redwood, and the rest of the Catholic Hierarchy, it is estimated that at least 500 New Zealanders will make the journey across the Tasman! Amoiip- those who will go from this diocese , attend the congress will be Bishop Brodie, Rt. Rev. Dr. Kennedy, Fathers Long, Hanrahan, O’Connor, and O’Connoll. There will probably be others of the clergy and laity accompanying them.