CATHOLIC NEWS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XX, Issue 16, 5 February 1892, Page 27

CATHOLIC NEWS.

(From the Liverpool Catholic Times.')

The next Spanish Catholic Congress will be held on the 26th April 18D2, at Seville. ' The erection of the Church of St Patrick, Rome, is being rapidly ; proceeded with, thanks to the generous contributions sent by the Irish Catholics at Home and abroad. There are in Prussia, according to the recent census, 19,230,376 Protestants, 10,252,867 Catholics, 95 357 Christians of other denominations, 372,058 Jews, and 4,690 whose religion is not known or who have do religion. The Sisters of Charity in China having received damages for the destruction of their property have returned the money to the Viceroy of Nankin, asking that the money be given to the poor and that the offenders be not branded, according to the Chinese custom. Archbishop Ireland is taking steps to enconrage immigration to the diocese of fit Paul. He has appointed a committee of fifteen representative citizens to consider the question thoroughly and report. The Supreme Court at Leipsic has decided that, to publish statements stigmatising the exhibition of the Holy Coat at Treve* as humbug is a punishable offence, inasmuch as the veneration of relics is part of the ritual of the Catholic Church. Tbe Right Rev Dr O'Donnell, Bishop of Raphoe, speaking at the Donegal Federation Convention, referred to Lord Salisbury's recent speech, and as a representative Irishman and prelate of the Catholic Church, denied that the Celtic race in their long ecclesiastical history had tyrannised over Protestants. A fine of 500 francs was inflicted upon the proprietors of the Figaro newspaper on account of their having solicited and received

subscriptions for the payment of the fine imposed by the Appeal Court on the Archbishop of Aix. Those Trench Republicans have strange ideas of liberty: jf The news that MM n T Strossm-.yer, Bishop of Diakovar, has beg?ed the Holy Father to allow him to resign his Bee, has produced a painful impression amongst the Catholics of his diocese, who are earnestly devoted to the prelate. Owing to his Slavophile sympathies, Mgr. Strossmayer has not been in favour at the court of Vienna. Replying to the queiies of a correspondent, Mr Justin McCarthy M.P., says : "I have no hesitation in authorising you to tell anyone who feels any interest ia the subject, that I never was, am not, and never, please God, ehall be an Atheist. I am, as I always have been, a member of the Roman Catholic Church ." Some of Dr McGlynn'a clerical friends have been endeavouring to have his case reopened at Rome. Archbishop Corrigan has made public the conditions imposed by the authorities at Rome for the reopeninp of the case. These are that Dr McGlynn snould request a rehearing, condemn anything he has said or done of an insulting character against the Archbishop and the Holy Bie, and promise to abide by tbe judgment of Rome. A complete list of the ladies decorated with the Cross of the Legion of HoDour has just been published in Franca. Out of fifty who recieved decorations since 1852, there ware twenty-9ix religiewet, twenty-two of whom were awarded the Cross under the Republic. Surely inconsistency could not be better personified tban in the persons of the statesmen who direct the destinies of the French nation. They bear the highest possible testimony to the heroic conduct of the nuns in attending to the suffering and the dying, and they expel them from the hospitals.

The material for an important chapter in the history of the Papacy has been secured by the purchase of the Borghese archives, which are now in possession of the Holy See. These archives embrace Borne four hundred documents, dating from the time of Sixtua IV. covering the transactions of the Papal Court daring the critical period when the throne of Peter was transferred to Avignon, tiingalar to relate, the place in which these interesting papers have been preserved was quite recently unknown to tbe Papal authorities. It is supposed that they have been retained by the House of Aldobrandini since the Pontificate of Clement VIII., otherwise known as Hypolito Aldobrandini. The sum of £10,000 is the price which Leo XIII. paid for them. Leo XIII., an American Protestant paper says, seems to be rapidly winning his wiy to the respect and confidence of Protestantism. The current Evangelist declares that though the Pope is growing old he giveß no signs of the infirmiiie9 of a<?e in the Joss of mental capacity. He is still the w.se counsellor and leader a,id the astute diplomat in all matters rf civil and Church policy. His recent Encyclical to the Portuguese Bishops, which has elicite.) m ich comment in clerical and political cireL-8, gives clear evidence ih.t so far as the civil or reiigi >us interests uf his Church are concerned, he discerns very clearly thi pignt o f the timts. It shows that he has reached the point woere he is prepared to support a policy which is certain to bring the entire Churca of Rome into accordaice. with be policy and practice which have been found necessary for its establishment and perpetuation in the United States. We regret to find that tbe Citholic papers of R:>me are engaged in a sharp controversy with tho Cathol'C papers of Germany over the Triple Ahance. The Roman j mrna's maintjin that tbe Italian Government approached the diplomats of B rlio and Vienna mainly for dynastic purposes, and to prevent the Holy Father from solving the Roman Question. They, therefore, reproach tbe Germans with something like disloyalty to the Holy See for their approval of the Triple Alliance. Tu9 Germans retoit tl at the agreement between the three Powers is a safeguard against Russian agreßaion a id the

French policy of rtvtnclu ; that it by no means involves a derogation of the rights of the Holy See; and that in assailing it, the Catholic papers ot Rome are actuated not by the na\ for tbe Church, but by sympathy with France. Whatever may be the truth a3 to the beaiing of the AHiance oa the Holy Father's position from the purely national point of view, the Boman papers are quite as fully just.fi d in condemning it as tne Gtrmans ars in bestowing upon it their appiobation. The arguments adduced by Mr Gladstone clearly prove that i's only effects upon Italy can ba to burden and embarrass the country. As the Borghese at chives, which have just be^n purchased by Leo XIII., deal with the Pontificate of Sixtus IV,, th-y shed much light on the oiijin of ih; Inquis tion. It was Sixtus IV. who, by a Bull dated NcT^mb^r Ist, 1478, a ithorised thi sovereigns of Spain t > establish a tribunal for searching out and punishing heretics. >" Sixtuß 1V.," says Spaldiug in hia " History of the Church," " made a mistake is sanctioning tbe establishment of such an inquisitioD, ana he himselt was the first to see it. Shortly after issuing the Bull of authorisation, he declared that it had been obtained by an imperfect representation of the royal intentions, and that through a misconception of these he bad conformed a scheme which was contrary to the decrees of the Holy Fathers ani the general practice of the Cnurch."

This Pontiff and his successors adopted tbe policy of throwing obstacles in the way of the Spanish Inquisition and of striving to mitigate as far as possible the rigours of its punishments. In Spain and other countries tbe Inquisition became a name of ill-omen, not because of its use by the Church, but because it was employed by Governments as a political instrument. Spiritual weapons were called into requisition to crush political foes.

A downright thunderbolt has burat over poor Italy's political sky. In a discourse, pronounced before the Austrian Delegation, the Chancellor Kalnoky has admitted amongst other things, that the Boman question is always an open one, that Italy has corns to no understanding with the Pops, and that no one can say upon what basis such an event could possibly be founded. The declarations have completely disturbed the insolent tranquility of onr Italians, who pretend that the law of guarantees has just pat an end to the Boman question. How could Austria play such an unkind triok upon her dear Italian ally ? It would appear that this is Austria's little way of showing displeasure regarding certain fixations whioh Italy permitted herself to indulge in with France and Russia. We know that the very best way to effectually tease the intangible* is to revive the Roman question.