THE BLESSED CHANEL.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XVIII, Issue 4, 23 May 1890, Page 5

THE BLESSED CHANEL.

A TRIDUUM in honour of the martyr of FutuDa was celebrated at St. Mary s Cathedral, By dney.beginuin* on Sunday, April 27. The following is the report given by the Sydney Freeman's Journal of thi. discourses delivered by Cardinal Moran and the Bishop of Maitland : — The discourse of the Cardinal was, in a mauner of speaking, the key-note of the most interesting and impressive peries of sermons. Mis Eminence briefly sketched the life, and lab jura, an 1 characterises of the metk-mannr-red. courageous and devoted priest who, aftei labouring heroically amidst privations and perils innumerable at .b ntuna, finally met his death in the m^st tragic manner at the hands of the natives to whom in the fulfilment of hia self-sacrificing miswon of peace and charity he had been preaching the gospel of Christ. The Cardinal explained that Father Chanel was one of the little band of Manst missionaries who in 1836 enrolled themselves under the banner of Immaculate Mary before the altar at Fourvieres, in Lyons, and registered a vow to consecrate their lives to God's service in far-distant fields of labour and sacrifice. Father Chanel and his comrades, who elocted to go to the South Sea Islands, took with them little save their little crucifixes, a banner of Our Lady, and their rosaries, and in these emblems of their faith they placed their hope of subduing the pagan natives, cursed with all the worst vices of a Bavage race, and of winning them over to the fold of Christ. Upon the arrival of the little band of missionaries at their appointed field of 1-bour in " the lovely islands set in the soft and sunny waters of the Pacific," they were met with rebuffs by those in authority, and after being at first refused permission to carry on their mission, were eventually allowed to proceed to Wallis, which at that time was known only for the savage hostility of the natives towards strangers. Some time before the arrival of Father Chanel an armed expedition of Protestant missionaries had been massacred by the natives at Wallis. Without the aid of arms or force of any kind Father Chanel won the friendship of the chieftan and the natives of Walks and Futuna, and though suffering many hardships, enjoyed an immunity from personal violence. Father Chanel elected to labour at Futuna— a lonely man amidst a race of savages— leaving his brother missionary at Wallis, and at Futuna he lived for three years, making very few converts to Christianity, but at the sme time winning the friendly sympathies of the natives. Though the poor missionary was unable to make anything like progress in his work of evangelising the n&tivts— his converts in three years numbering only four or five— the king prufessed to entertain a fear that the miisionary would succeed in overthrowing their own pagan religion, and orders were given for the poor priest's death. How the pious missionary was attacked in hia rude hut, and the sentence of the king carried out with savage ferocity, was in a few pathetic words told by the preacher. The death of the pioneer missionary of the islands singularly enough was followed by results which afforded Btnkmg proof that in modem as in ancieut times " the blood of maityra is the seed of Christians." Father Chanel's heroic labours were rewarded by a golden harvest, for the whole of tne native inhabitants of Fuiuna and the neighbouring islands, some 4000 in number, embraced the faith for which Father Chanel had given his blood. The Cardinal went on to show how a church had been erected on the spot consecrated by the martyrdom of Father Chanel, and mention was made of the circumstance thar the four natives who, in the blind fury of their Paganism, were the instruments of the martyr's death, being converted to the faith, were among the moat devoted workers in the building of the chapel. la conclusion, the Cardinal said that all the Catholics throughout Australasia would rejoice with the Manst Fathers in celebrating the festival of one who had nobly won the martyr's palm and crown, and who had special titles to the veneration and affection of the membera of tho Australian Church. Assembled aroand the altar that day to pay homage for the first time to the saintly missionary who had now been enrolled among the glorious heavenly white-robed army, it was fitting in lifting up their hearts to God and seeking the intercession of Immaculate Mary that they should seek also the intercession and the blessing of the first holy manyr of the Southern Seas. Bishop Murray, m the course of his discourse on Tuesday morning, said that ia coming from his diocese to participate in the festival he experienced a twofold pleasure, for he he had come there not only to pay homage to the Blessed Chanel but also to show his regard for the devoted Marist Fathers, and to testify, as he could from some 24 years' experience, to the great and far-reaching good that bad resulted from their unsurpasaably zealous and self-sacrificing labours in the cause of religion and Catholic education. He had been privileged with a brother Australian Bishop, Dr. Corbett, to be present in Rome at the beautiful and imposing ceremonies in connection with the Beatification of the saint and hero whom the Marist Fathers by the best and dearest of titles could probably claim as their own ; and this fact intensified his sense of consolation and gratification in being permitted lo take an humble part here in Australia in the celebration of that holy and memorable event. He rejoiced that one of the Baintly Marist Missionaries had been raised to the honours of the aliar, and he was sure that in expressing this feeling of gratification he could speak not only in his own name, but on behalf of the Cardinal-Archbishop, andithe whole hierarchy and priesthood of Australasia, and, indeed, on behalf of all the membera of the Church in this part of the world. The Marist Fathers had won the affection and gratitude of the bishops, priests, and people, and be was glad that an appropiate opportunity had been afforded him to bear testimony to the value and fruitfuiness of their labours, and to give expression to the admiration he had ao long entertained towards tins devoted body of missionaries. He well remembered the introduction of the Marist Fathers to that important district, and he had been a witness to the perfect fulfilment of the pious hopes of the Venerable Archdeacon M'Kncrof, to whom the people of Sydney owed the blessing of the presence of thu Fathers in their midst. He was himaelf under heavy obligations of gratiiudc to tbe Marist Fathers, He could never forget the mission conducted in

his diocese for three months in 1868 by the saintly Father Mounier, the blessed fruits of which remained to the present day. As all present well knew, the Marists had laboured with great heroism in the southern islands, in which so many of their names were held in henedic ion. He had never had an oppir 1 unity of witnessing the wonderful rtsults of the labours of the Father in those island missions, but he hope i in a few mon'ha to visit one of the special fiel s of '.heir holy and successful labour*-. It would doubtless int'ie*tall who had raken part in thit glorious festival to know that preparations were being made for a festival of a somewhat similar character iv tbe island with which tbe Bleesed Coanel was in an i-special minner identified. A number of prelates and priests, with the Cardinal Archbishop at their head, intended in September next voting the island of Futuna wiih the obj ci of honouiing the martyr's memory on the very spot consecrated by hia holy death. He hoped to be privileged to join in that demonstration of veneration, and in paying homage to the Blessed Chanel at the scene of his martyrdom, he (the bishop) need hardly say, they would invoke his blessing on the whole Australian Church and on the labours both of priests aad people throughout the colonies. In conclusion, the preacher said that he knew no more effectual way of showing their veneration for the Blessed Chanel and of procuring the blessing of his intercession in Heaven than by imitating the saintly man now elevated to the glorious army of martyrs in his devotion to tho Blessed Virgin and in his daily piactice of the recital of the Holy Rosary.