The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXV, Issue 4, 24 January 1907, Page 31

The Catholic World

BRAZlL— Present to the Pope

At the head of a- national deputation, - Monsignor Tonti, as late Nuncio to Brazil, recently presented to the Tope a superb gift- of the clergy and people as a thank-offering for- the creation o£ a Brazilian as the lirst Cardinal in Latin America. The gift is a superb medal of gold, set in. brilliants. ENGLAND— Statue to Mgr. Nugent

The unveiling of 'the statue to Monsignor Nugent in St.- John's Gardens, Liverpool, on December 8, drew together a great concourse of, people. A Memorial Church

The, memorial church erected by the • Catholics of England to "the memory of the late Cardinal Newman has been solemnly, opened at Edgbaston, Birmingham. The Archbishop of Westminster, who delivered the address upon the life and influence of the great Cardinal, said he was a witness at once o£ ' the necessity and supremacy of the -Catholic faith. He w,ais raised up to convey the old unchanging message, in new words and in a fresh setting which w"buld be acceptable to the Englishman of his day. No voice had fallen on English ears so persuasively as his. He had gained a heading for the Catholic Church in places where no one else could have obtained audience, and he had broken down prejudices that were deep-rooted ami centuries old. Franciscans at Oxford

The return of the Franciscans to Oxford, after 367 years, is (writes a correspondent in the ' Manchester Guardian ') a striking example of what has been called ' Rome's way of coming back again where she has, once established herself.' The Franciscans are now settled in a substantial building on CowTey HUH, and their brown habits are rapidly becoming familiar once more in the University city. The first grey friars set foot in England in 1220, almost immediately after the foundation of the Order, •* and' they entered Oxford in- 1225. The famous Order was, of course, very closely associated with Oxford history untiil the Reformation, but the thirteenth century was the golden period of its influence. Among the great names of Oxford Francis-" cans are Roger Bacon, Alexander Hales, and Duns Scotus— the mighty rival of Aquinas. ' The Brown Habit (says the ' Catholic Herald ') has many great traditions' in England. It was a Franciscan who boldly denounced to the^ King's face the corruption of Hdnry VIII. And in ha-llowed company of Reformation Martyrs the Franciscans had a glorious place.' FRANCE— More Plunder One of the most scandalous acts of ihe_ ' French Government under the- Law- of - Congregations (says the Dublin 'Freeman') is about to be perpetuated at Bourges. The Professor of Mathematics at the Seminary of BourgQS is the Abbe Moreux, and some. years ago, noting the exceptional transparency of the atmosphere in that town, he went to the trouble, and ' expense of erecting an observatory on the premises of .the institution. The observatory, according to M. Camille Flammarion, one of the most famous astrono-mers,-is almost as useful as the one established by Mr. Lowell at Flagstaff, on the Arizona Mountains, in the United Stajtes. Yet the Abbe has received notice* to quit: "He might build another observatory elsewhere in the town,", but he has not the capital .to 'do so even if he so desired. . M. Flammarion is appalled at the idea that the observatory is threatened, with extinction, and he is endeavoring to 'inter-. " est astronomers and others in the matter, and to raise the necessary funds. What- a comment- on the present Government of France— France, so long '"the leader of the world in the pursuit of Knowledge, and the nursing Mother of Science ! GERMANY— A^ Patriotic Archbishop A Reuter's telegram from Posen announces the death of Monsignor Stablcvski, the Catholic Archbishop of Posen. He was a leader in the Polish national movement ; in particular he protested strongly, against" the Prussian rules by- which religious lessons to Polish" children must be given in the German tongue. - ROME— A Golden Jubilee Cardinal Gotti, Prefect of Propaganda, celebrated the golden jubilee of his priesthood on Christmas Day.

Visit of Bishop Grimes

,Writing on November 30 the Rome correspondent of the Sydney ' Freeman's Journal ' states that at the audience granted ' to the Right Rev. Dr. Grimes the Holy * Father asked about clergy and laity, arid said he knew of their deep attachment to his person, and to the Holy See. He sent a particular benediction which the Bishop will impart formally on his return, and Pius X. expressed the hope that Bishop Grimes will be spared for long to govern" the -diocese, which pros r pers so well under his rule. The Bishop informed the .correspondent that he was 'to leave Naples for the Holy Land on December 13, and that he was to set out from Port Said on his return to New Zealand' on January 4. ~ " SPAlN— Anticlericalism Foiled The British daily papers *(sa,ys the 'Catholic Times') cannot avoid giving the information that the fall of the Cabinet of Marshal Lopez Dominguez was-due to - the opposition 1 aroused by its anti-clerical" policy, but they told their readers little as to the strong feeling excited amongst the Spanish CathoiHcs by the Government's Associations Bill. On the contrary, pronouncements in favor .of the Bill were largely quoted day by 'day . and the impression ' produced in the case of the ordinary reader • must • have been that the power of - the Church .was slight in* Spain. The power _of 'the Church amongst the Spaniards is far" from ■being slight, awd anyo ne who has been reading impartial Spanish papers mush have been struck by the number and vigor of the_ Catholic protests. , They were made "b'v the Hierarchy, the clergy, and the laity of every class, and amongst the p.eople it has been recognised for some time past that the Government would succurmb to the formidable resistance which they" have been meeting. The fall of the Ministry has administered a lesson to the. so-called Liberals. During lVs brief term of office Sen or Mo ret proclaimed Ihat he favored a policy of conciliation in dealing with the Vatican, and it may he' taken for granted that . his successor will follow that line. SCOTLAND^A Noted Highland Priest The Catholics of Glenliyet assembled a few weeks ago to do ' honor to their revered pastor, Rev.- Wm. Stuart, who is a nal'ive of the famous Highland glen, and has ; ust celebrated his fiftieth birthday. Mr. Wm. Turner,- M.ains, presided, and Colonel - Smith Grant, of Minmore, made the presentation to FatherStuart, consisting of a purse of sovereigns and an illuminated address. A Rector of Stonyhurst A distinguished Scots ecclesiastic has (says the ' Glasgow Observer ') just been appointed to the important post of Rector of Stonyhurst College, in the person of Father Pedro Gordon, who was for some '.-•■ years' ai-very- successful prefect 'of- philosophers, and "has more, recently held the office of procurator. . Father Gordon,, who is- in his 54th year"" is the third son -of the late"" Mr. Charles I*. Gordon, ' of Wardbouse and Kildrummie, Aberdeenshire, one ot the oldest and most - distinguished Scots, Catholic 'houses. They are cadets of the noble family of Hrnvtly, and number the Setons of Seton, Boyds Earls of Kilmarnock, and Levingfifrones Earls of Linlithgow among their lineal ancestors. During the last century they have intermarried, and have been otherwise closely connected with*" Spain, _ and .three of -Father Gordon's sisters are -married -to- Spanish gentlemen, .another being Mrs. Lumsden.'Of Clova'. . The nresenfc laird of Wardhouse is Mr. Rafael, Gordon,-- the Rector's .nephew, but he no longer ' jowjis;- the ruins of Kildrummie ■Castle, which- were sold some years ago to an opulent soap manufacturer. •*. UNITED STATES— Catholic Advance The experience of the Sisters of .Charity in Mol- ' has just been, repeated in' the .United States.- The Gerj;ihan Presbyterian Seminary property at "Seventeenth a«d 7 lowa streets, Dubuque, concerning the proposed sale and -future use of- which several- rumors have been, current

"recently-, has been sold "to the Sisters of St. Francis for - 'acadPTTvy purposes. The -price was 20,000 ;. dollars ('£4000). * - _ , - • 'Catholic Education " In the State of New York there are 400 Catholic day. schools, attended by 172,000 pupils. These schopls -represent property 1o the" amount of £6,250,000, -and are maintained at an annual cost of £375,000. The schools are entirely free, being supported by voluntary offerings of the Catholic people. Many of their teachers, as the Right Rev. Mgr. Lavelle showed in his paper read be-

fore the University convocation held by the regents of the State of New York at Albany, hold a public school license, and there is. , a growing tendency to make all obtain that license- in order that there may be- no doubt in. the mind. of. -any one as to the efli'ciency of the teachers of the parochial schools. Monsignor Lavelte said that while established directly for-. Catholic children, the schools are not exclusive, many ' Protestants, Hebrews, and other lion-Catholic pupils being enrolled, while boys and girls of the colored race are 'also received. . - \