CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART, NORTHEAST VALLEY, DUNEDIN.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XX, Issue 17, 12 February 1892, Page 5

CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART, NORTHEAST VALLEY, DUNEDIN.

The opening of this chnrch took place on Sunday, but under rather unfavourable circumstances, owing to the setting in the evening before of an obstinate and heavy down-pour — which only now, on Monday afternoon, shows some faint but possibly deceptive signs of clearing up. The attendance, however, to all appearances was not interfered with, as many people being present as the church could conveniently accommodate. Among them we noticed his Worship the Mayor and Mrs Chapman, and several members of the congregations of St Joseph's Cathedral and St Patrick's, South Dunedin. The ceremonies commenced at 11 a.m., the Bishop of Dunedin acting as celebrant of the Pontifical High Mass. The Very Rev Father Vaughan, C.88.R , was assistant priest, and the Very Bey Fathers Plunkott, C.SS.B., and O'Leary were deacons at the throne. The Very Bey Father Mackay officiated as deacon of the Mass, and the Rev Father flunt as subdeacon. The Rev Father Newport was maEter of ceremonies, and the Bey Fathers Donnelly, Murphy, and Lynch were also present. The sermon was preached to the following effect by the Bishop of Christchuich. The most rev preacher took for his text the Third Book of Kings, chapix., verse 3 — "And the Lord said to him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, which thou hast made before me. I have sanctified thw house which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever, and my eyes and my heart shall be there always." He said he knew no more appropriate words in which to address the congregation on that solemn occasion, The words were those of the Almighty Himself. They had been addressed by Him to His annointed, and, through him, to his people. That great King had long prayed and uttered supplications that he might be permitted to build a temple worthy of Divine worship. At length his prayer had been heard, and he had not only been allowed to build a temple, but to dedicate it in triumph. God deigned to appear to him. He said, " I have sanctified this house which thou hast built, to put My name there for ever, and My eyes and My heart shall be there always." For many long years their devoted Bishop had prayed and made fervent supplication to the throne of grace that he might be permitted to build another temple, in that part of his episcopal city. He had seen wondrous things accomplished since his advent to Duoedin. Little more than 40 years ago a pioneer missionary wended his way from the diocese of Christchurch Southward. He made his jonrney partly on foot, and very near that spot he had offered the Divine Sacrifice. How he had yearned to see there a temple like that which was dedicated that day. Father Scon was the missionary, and in that place where he first offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, their devoted Bishop had prayed that he might build a church, and to-day his prayers had been heard. Almighty God to-day addressed their beloved pontiff in these words, " I have sanctified this house which thou hast built, to put My name there for ever, and My eyes and My heart shall ba there always." These words alone ought to be enough to fill their hearts with love and gratitude. They were no human words but thoße of the Almighty Himself. He (the most rev preacher) had been asked to say a few words to-day, and he had thought he could not do better than inspire himself with what these words contained. Three questions were to be asked : First, was it right and necessary to build material temples ; Becond, what was the origin of such erections, and third, what was a Catholic church more than any other material temple 7 Was it right to build temples ? The earth was the Lord's and the fulness thereof, the heavens showed forth the glory of God. Why was it not sufficient to pray on the mountain top, or on the hill side, or by the running brook ? No matter where it was uttered, a fervent prayer would always be heard. It was objected that the Lord of heaven and earth would not dwell in temples made by hands. He was everywhere, yet it had pleased Him to appoint certain places where he made His presence known. It had been thus with regard to Jacob and Moses, and other chosen persons. Men were human beings, hence a material temple was necessary to them. God required that human beings Bhould form a society, and be bound together by social ties. The stroDgeßt of those ties was religion. Men needed a place to meet together in worship. By a strong religious instinct they felt themselves children of one family united by the ties of religion. Man waa of a twofold nature, and God dealt with him according to the necessities of tnat nature. If he were of the nature of the aDgels God would manifest Himself to him as to a spirit only. Almighty God made known His truth, His light and grace, as to a being of a twofold nature. That men might hear an expression of God's truth a pulpit was necessary ; an altar was necessary for the Divine Sacrifice of the MaBS ; a confessional was also necessary, and for the pulpit, and altar, and confessional a priesthood was necessary. For all these a material church was needed, God did not manifest Himself to individuals. He could do bo if it pleased Him, but He did not ordinarily depart from the appointed order. A priesthood was necessary. The priest was the ambassador, and, as he might be called, the mediator. It might shock some people to hear him so

na«ed, bat the term was not to be understood in the sense in which it was applied to the one true Mediator Chriat Jesus, through Whom alone eternal life was to be gained. To Christ it was laid that He was a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedech. But He had chosen others, that what was written might be fulfilled, " For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation, for my name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of Hosts." Each priest was to be accounted a Melchisedech. In performing the acts of hiß ministry he acted as Almighty God's deputy. His power was from God, but in giving absolution in the confessional, and in speaking at the altar the awful words of consecration he acted as the minister of Almighty God. Hence a material temple was necessary. What was the origin of a material temple. At the creation, no special place was appointed, the vast universe formed one temple, and man was its fitting priest and pontiff in offering to God the first fruits of his labour and his life. Every home was God's sanctuary. But faith diminished as men increased in number. Almighty God commanded that a special place should be set apart. He ordered the construction of the Tabernacle in the deserts of Arabia, and Himself deigned to describe how it should be made. It was to be made of choice woods, and Egyptian linen, and the skins of animals, and lined with gold and silver and precious stones, and when it had been set up, God came in a mysterous cloud to receive the homage of the people. Five hundred years later, the great king yearned to build a temple, and when he had obtained an answer, preparations were made for long years, and never did mortal eye gaze on so splendid a building. Eight days were spent in the dedication, and Almighty God spoke and said :— " I have sanctified this house which thou hast built to put my name there for ever, and my eyes and my heart shall be there always." Two men, Beseleel and Ooliab, had been endowed with wisdom as architects of the Tabernacle, and after Almighty God had commanded that victims should be offered, more than 20,000 beasts were sacrificed. The Tabernacle was as worthy of its object as anything on earth could be. Yet all its wonders were but figures and shadows of the church now erected and dedicated by their venerable pontiff. These were the words of Holy Writ. The Apostle declared that all these things were figures and types of the Catholic church. When their Blessed Lord was about to fulfil His promise of dwelling with His people, He sent two of His Apostles to choose a large place, well famished. Why did He deviate from Hi? usual custom? He had said that He had not where He might lay His head. Yet He now ordered a large placa to be fitted up. It was because He was going to give an example. When there was question of a church of God, no means should be spared of making it worthy of the presence of their Divine Lord. The early Christians for 300 years offered the sacrifice in the catacombs, but, when persecution ceased, the promptings of the Catholic faith led to the erection cf grand and glorious churches. As if by magic the towers of grand cathedrals arose. In the land from which they came the ruins of these churches were solemn but speaking witnesses to the Catholic faith.— Every village and every hamlet bad it church towering above all other buildings. The most rev speaker went on to describe St John's vision, related in the Apocalypse, of the New Jerusalem. The Catholic church, he continued , was not in the ordinary acceptation of the words a mere house of prayer. It was something more —it was the place in which the King of Kings resided. He was present there in the Blesied Sacrament. Many miracles were worked there. They who ministered in the confessional, the pulpit, and at the altar were witnesses of many marvels. The Samaritan woman came there ; the Magdalen came there, and the poor woman condemned by Pharisaical accusers, the paralytic came, and those suffering from every infirmity. Was it not rightly called a royal residence ? It was also a house of refuge, where the sin-laden soul came to find rest. The Catholic knew how he could find in the King of Kings a father and a friend. He knew how the weight of his sin was loosed in the confessional. Tbe foul fiend, if he could, would prevent his entering the church, but he gave no heed to his temptations. He entered there and he came forth forgiven. He found comfort there, amid joys too great to be uttered, at the door of the tabernacle. There he ate of the bread of life, which would raise him up on the last day. Was it not, then, a bouse of refuge, a home, and did not tbe Catholic feel himself at home there ? In the world outside there were distinctions in rank. The rich despised the poor, and the learned despised the ignorant. But in the church all such distinctions were forgotten. There was neither high nor low, rich nor poor, but all were equal — all were the children of God. All were united in the faith— all felt the meaning of the Credo. In former days all united in the work of building a Catholic Church, the prince laboured by the side of the peasant, the learned beside the unlearned. The priests, as generals, encouraged the people — there was no hurry among them, they worked for God, and felt the time was sufficient, and they banded on their task to their children. Faith inspired men of genius to guide them. They gave freely, and tbe children finished the work that their fathers had begun. This alone could explain the completion of those magnificent cathedrals. The

moat rev preacher concluded an eloquent, fervent, and touching sermon by exhorting the congregation, now that the church was opened, to visit it frequently, and to bring others with them— others who, by visiting the Bacred place, might be brought under its holy influences aa not unfrequently happened. He added a few words of appeal to those present to show themselves generous with regard to the collection. On the conclusion of the sermon the Credo was sung, and the Mass proceeded in the usual manner to the communion. When the chalice was covered the Most Bey Dr Moran addressed a few words to the congregation. His Lordship first returned thanks to the Bishop of Ohrifitchurch for the eloquent, classical, and beantif ul sermon with which he had favoured his bearers, and which he had come so far to preach. He also thanked the choir. Many of those present, he said. were better able to appreciate music than he was, but if all had been as mnch pleased and delighted as he wag, their delight mnst indeed have been great. He congratulated the people of the district on the completion of their church. He also thanked the architect, Mr F. W. Petre for the excellence of his plans, and the manner in which he had had them carried ont, and the contractor, Mr D. W. Woods, for the faithfulness with which he had performed his task. There wbb, however, one duty which he mnst not omit, that, namely, of giving thanki where tbanki especially were due. Father Lynch itwaawhohad collected the money, and taken upon himself the labour and trouble of erectiDg that building. They could not be sufficiently grateful to him for his great exertions. The most rev apeaktr had long desired and prayed to see this church erected, and his prayer was now at last granted. His part in the matter personally had been little. The whole credit was due to Father Lynch. The Bishop then went on to allude to the collection, which was to be made, exhorting his hearers each to give a little. If they did, he said, the total would amount to a goodly sum. It had been the custom, he added, from the earliest time, as ecclesiastical history narrated, to make a collection during Mass on an occasion of the kind , and in making it they were but conforming to the traditional usage of the Church. He explained that although it was hoped the sum now subscribed would clear off any debt remaining on the building, a sum still remained dne upon the site. Father Lynch, in undertaking to collect for the erection of the church, bad not become in any way responsible for this debt. His Lordship referred also to the desire that he had himself felt to take come part in a work done in honour of the Sacred Heart of Jesus —and which was now, in some degree, fulfilled. The collection was then made — the total resulting in the goodly sum of £230. Tbe choir, formed by a combination of members of St Joseph's Cathedral choir and those of St Patrick's choir, South Dunedin, was under the baton of Mr P. Lemon, and was accompanied by an orchestra led by Mr J. Coombs. The solo singers were Mrs Angus, who sang before Mass a hymn to the Sacred Heart ; Mr K. Eager, who took with admirable effect the leading tenor part in Zingarelli's " Laudate Pueri," and Mr Densem, who, in excellent style, Bang the " Pro Pecaatis " from Bossini's " Stabat Mater." Mrs Lemon and tbe Misses Mills, Morrison, and Drumm, and Messrs J. Blenkinsopp and Lemon, each and all did good s»rvice in the music of the Mass, which was Weber's in G, and which throughout was very finely performed, the " Gloria," if it were necessary to make a choice, being perhaps the piece de resistance. Some runs taken by the flute and a charming soprano passage seemed to give it particular distinction. Tbe orchestra, while the collection went on in the church, performed Handel's " Largo," and afterwards the duet "O Jesu," was sung by Mrs Angus and Mr Deneem. On the conclusion cf the ceremonies Crookall's "Te Deum " was sung. Besides Mr J. Coombs, the leader, tbe members of the orchestra were Messrs W. T. Ward, Stewart, Bobertshaw, H. Moss, B. Mois, Oorrigan, George, Knox, Dallas, and Buckingham. The names of these gentlemen are a sufficient guarantee of tbe nature of their performance, which was, indeed, remarkably fine and even all through. Miss K. Moloney, who has been appointed organist of tbe church, acquitted herself most creditably at the organ. Tbe church is decidedly an ornament to the locality where it stands, it is a graceful and pretty building, well proportioned, and in every respect Bpeaking highly foT its architect and builder. It is of brick and stone in the early English-Gothic style of architecture, with an extreme length of 90ft and a breadth of 50ft. Internally it has a nava 60ft by 25ft, two transepts each 20ft by 10ft, and sacristy, 12ft by 12ft, containing a strongroom. In addition to the above-mentioned accommodation, there is a choir gallery 25ft by 12ft, under which is the baptistery, 7ft by 7ft, inßide poich, 9ft by 7ft, and the confessional, 7ft by 4ft. The internal height of the walls from the floor level to the springing of the roof is 17ft, after which tbe coffered roof rises to a total height of 26ft from the level of the floor. The church when fully seated will accommodate ever 400 people, exclusive of the gallery accommodation. The walls throughout are constructed of brick kid in hydraulic lime mortar, with base, buttress weatherings, gable copings, and other dressings of cement concrete. The whole of the roofs are covered with slates finished with slate ridge roll and flaps. The front gable is surmounted with a fl&che, rising 64ft from the ground, in which the bell is bung, the lower portion being a belfry standing on four cast iron columns, which are surmounted on the four sides with cast iron tracery arches,

croqueted cornices, and tracery louvre canopies. L.siog from the belfry to a height of 18ft is the fl&che spire which is covered with ribbed copper, the whole being surmounted by a cast iron croBS.

Internally the church is finished with a cement dado 6ft from the floor level, the rest of the walls being finished in lime plaster. The roof is arranged in diagonal red pine panels with tracery ribs carried down one-third of the height of the walls, and abutting on to moulded wood trusses. The choir gallery front is tracery panelled in kauri and red pine, carried on kauri tracery trusses. The altar and reredos, tabernacle, and tabernacle canopy are all constructed of Oamaru stone moulded and carved. The windows throughout, including the two rose windows of the transepts, are all filled in with cathedral glass, in random colour*, set in lead quarries, excepting the three Banctuary windows, which will be filled in with stained glass, now on its way from Europe. Tbe plans for tbe church were drawn by Mr Frank W. Petre, architect. Mr D. W. Woods is the contractor. Mtssrs Burningham and Co provided the cast iron work, Messrs Anderson and Morrison the copper work, Messrs A. and T. Burt the bell, which for its size is one of special quality, and Mr D. Scott supplied the leadflight windows. Tbe painting was done by Mr C. Fottrell. To Mr Peddington, foreman of the wo;ks, a word of praise is also due.

Among tbe furniture of the church especially to be noticed are two handsome sanctuary chairs, made by Messrs Scnular and Chisholm ; a thurible made and presented by Messrs Anderson and Morrison ; the sanctuary lamp, presented by the girls of St Joseph's school, and the monstrance, the gift ol the Sisters .of Mercy at Gore. We have already spoken in our columns of the exquisitely worked vestments presented by tbe pupils of the Dominican Convent High School, and which were worn by the Bishop in celebrating Mass. Other gifts are lace albs, presented by a former member of the Dunedin Oatholic congregation, now resident in Wellington ; an altar-cloth, worked by the Children of Mary ; a bandeome benediction veil, worked and presented by the Dominican nuns at Dunedin ; tbe credence table, the communion cloth, and altar linen presented by different members of the congregation, and a pair of pretty statuettes presented by the boys of the Christian Brothers' schools. The church is further furnished with a handsome set of Stations of the Cross in Oxford frames with black chamfered edges, and other sacred pictures. A statue of the Sacred Heart stands on a bracket at tbe Gospel side of the sanctuary arch, and on the epistle Ride, similarly placed, is a statue of St Joseph with the Divine Infant. The whole building is eminently devotional and admirably adapted to the sacred purposes tor which it has been set apart. We would add our congratulations to those already received by the Key Father Lynch on the successful termination of his arduous undertaking.