CATHOLIC CEREMONIES AT NELSON.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIX, Issue 14, 2 January 1891, Page 19

CATHOLIC CEREMONIES AT NELSON.

(The Colonist, December 15.)

Ybstebday morning High Mass was sung at Bt. Mary's Church by the Very Be* Father Mahoney, the Bey. Father Lewis being deaconf and the Be*. Father Lwdonar sub-deacon. Af *er Mass the Sacrament of Cocflrmation was given by his Grace the Aichbishop of Wellington and received by 45 males and 65 females.together exactly one hundred' some of the boys from the Stoke Orphanage being included in the number, these lads having walked to town under the supervision of the Marist Brothers. r

At Vespers the Church was literally crammed.the clergy already named officiating. His Grace the Archbishop delivered a masterly ■ermon, tak.ng his text from Br. Paul's epistle to the Hebrews— ' Faith is the substance of things to be hoped for the argument for things that appeir not.' Want of space prevents our giving a report of this discouree tc-day, but we add that ir was listened to with the utmost attention. At its close Cardinal Newman's hymn " L-ad kindly Light " was feelingly sung. The Church Choir was in force last evening, and the altar decorations were particularly beautiful this duty having, weheird, been performed by the MUses McGee and Mies Rosie Frank who also were entrusted with the floral decorations at the Mortuary Chapel and at the tomb of the Arcbpriest Garin It was announced last evening that ooutiibuikn3 towards the cost cf the Chapel would be gladly received by the Very Rev Father Mahoney; also that a ajlecn , & qutem Mtss for the late Archpriest will be on red on Wednesday morning at 9 o'clock. The offertories at the Church yesterday are to' ba devoted to the c»at of the Mortuary Chapel, aud we learnt tbat over £30 was given Yesterday afternoon the Mortuary Chapel erected in the Cemetery to the memory of the Yen Archpriest 'Jann, was blessed by his Grace Archbishop Redwood. A \urge number of people resorted to the Cemetery in order to bz prts^ntat the c;rermny, aad amongst those belonging to toe Church who were in atteada^cj there were country residents who hid driven in long distances Shortly after three o'clock h.s Grace the Archbishop, attended by the Very Rev Father Mahoney, the Revs Father Lewis, Father L nJouar. and Brother Marie, arrived at the Cemetery, aud having robed, bis Grace, in fruit of whom was borne his orosier, proceeded to the crypt, wherein rests tho mortal remains of tbe late Aicbpiies'. The coffin has been enclosed within massive stonework, in front of whico is a marbel slab bearing the following inscription :— •' In memory cf the Venerable Archpnett A.M. Garin, S. \l. Born, Ju y, 1810 ; died, April 1880. E.1. P." On the tomb was a crown of white lillus, and in front of it a cross of the same Mowers, while a number of caudlee burnt at head and foot.

Hih Grace, having proceeded to the crypt containing the tomb pronounced his blessing, while subsequently he blesee i the chapel which he dedicated to St. Michael, tbo archangel. Wa kirg then t) the front door, and standing on the step?, he addressed the multitude which had gathered there. He said he had to congratulate the Nelson people in genera), and the Catholics in particular, on tbe very beautiful chapel they had erected to the memory of one so dear to all who had nstded in that district. The building s^m d to bo a thorough success in every regard : it was not easy to imagine a better site while the structure possessed co idity, degree, appropriateness and every good quality. It was therefore a pleasing thin^ 10 congratulate them all, and eßpecia.ly the aichitect anl the builder for the way in which they Lad corned out their work, ai d those who had been able to give to he architect and buildtr ideas that had been carried out so weli. He the ptople oi Nelson felt proud in having such a handsome biilcing in the public cemetery. As to the purpose for whicu the chapel hid been erected, he desired to cay this -It stood as a memorial o'. tht ir e«te jm for one eminent in good work. He did not wish to del-ver a s-cond panegyric on the lute Arcbpriest, but ha ipanld not help, >n passing, taking a cursory glance of that beautiful life. His character was OLe of th rough genuineness, of straight forward truthfulness, and this was the keyhole of his power aod influence for all had been üble to sty of him, there is a genu ne Christian, there isageLUiceman. He was a man of high purposes, whose highest ids* of a good life was the performing his duty to his God and his Cellow nan. lie was a straightforward, true Christian gentleman

»nd it was owing to this he gained the heart of all who came in coni« IT 1 *° nis ehi racter, too, there was ao entire absence of selfishness— his whole life was that of a hero. He gave up bit home, his parents, and all the world holds dear, to preach Christ to remote barbarians, and through bis life they foand bis character the same. His one desire was to do what he deemed his duty, and to do it witn gentleness, benignity, and good will to all. He was a good man, a respected citizen, a devoted and holy priest. It was the memory of such a man they were perpetuatine, that the children of those around them, and their children's children, when they ask of him, might i now m f hl9 ood works « nd *»« thorough and perfectly Christian me. To come more particularly to the object in erecting that mor«»ry chapel, bis Grace said there were two leading ones, the Church honoured the bodies of those departed.and she did so because she believed in the immortality of the soul. Every baptised body possessed a certain sacredness, and though the soul had departed, the body was destined to rise again, the pure to rise in glory. The body was the temple of the spirit, the spirit of God, and with the soul glorified wouid sne Qod face to face through all eternity. Therefore they honoured the perishable temple, and as to the soul, they did not know whether it was admitted at once to heaven, for nothing impure could enter there, and it might have first to enter a place of cleansing, of purgation, and so they prayed for souls. .Long before Christ c une the goodness of prayer for those who died was believei in. lbe baviour said some sin was remitted, not in this life nor hereafter, so that some Bins were remitted after death. They never knew how pure a toul was, and they offered sacrifice, the sacrifice of Cbrist on their altars,, and this tbey called Mass, the same sacrifice as that on Calvary. They hoped that the soul of Father Garin was not in purgatory, but si ill it might be so, and they would offer Mass. The remains of many would be brought to that chapel, and their prayers wonld be offered there. They believed in the sanctification of the human J^y, which wonld to blessed in i's rising, and in the triumphant Ghorch in heaven, in the militant Church on earth, and the suffering Church in purgatory, and tbey prayed for the living and the dead. This sacrifice was offered for the living and the dead. Such in a few wcrds was the belief of the Catholic Church. Many benefactort had contributed to tbe erection of that beautiful Chapel, and thoogh he was not going to ask them for anything then, he would say that Father Mahoney wonld be glad to receive offerings at any time if any of them wished to aid in the erection of that memorial ,Jwhich he hoped would incite them all to every virtue. His own relations with the Venerable Archpriest had been too close to make it possible for him to make them known to the world, and he could never tell how much he owed to his old frien<». The present ceremony was a painful one to him, though happy in another sense, for he was always glad to spe.sk in praise of one he loved so dearly. The concluding portion cf the ceremony then took place. It was estimated tbat about a thousand persoos were piesent, and amongst these were the girls from St. Mary's Orphanage and a numof the boys from Stoke, Brother Cyril and two of bis coadjutors being ia attendance.