The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, 21 April 1910, Page 631

The Catholic World

CANADA—A Far-away Mission - Bound for Isle,. a la Crosse, in the Land of the Midnight Sun, two. Sisters of the Grey Nuns left Montreal in January. They proceed by rail as far as Prince Albert, and from there continue their journey by dog sled to a point 300 miles north, a Hudson Bay Company’s . post, known as Isle ala Crosse. There they will establish a mission for the children of the Indians, the trappers and the explorers. A mission was founded at that far-away post as long ago as 1846 by Fathers Tacho and Laffeche (says the Central Catholic of Winnipeg ). It has since been carried on by the Oblate Fathers, the Grey Nuns establishing a hospital and school there in 1860, when the whole journey from the Great Lakes had to be made with such conveyances as the fur-traders of that day could provide. At the present time the population of the mission at Isle a la Crosse is 1100 nomadic Indians, 800 Montagnais, and 300 half-breeds and Cree. Rev. Father Robert, 0.M.1., is in charge, and he is assisted' in his work by two priests and four Brothers. ' ENGLAND —Westminster Cathedral Monstrance . Lecturing before the members of the Royal Society of Arts, Mr. Omar Ramsden, dealing with the work of silversmiths and goldsmiths, incidentally made an interesting reference to the monstrance of Westminster Cathedral. Designed to be in harmony with the Byzantine fane, it was, at the same time, meant to bo representative of our own day. Although of large size and heavily jewelled, it is required to be carried in procession by the priest. Thus it is made up of layers of exceedingly thin metal, strengthened at the edges.. The combination of the wheel shape of the traditional monstrance with that of the cross should, ho thought, be specially noted. Describing its jewels, he. pointed out that the four crystal pomegranates are in allusion to the Old Testament, as the cross is to the New. Both are bound together with a circle of symbolical heavenly clouds. The four enamel panels represent the signs of the four .Evangelists, and those of the reverse, four scenes from the life of our Lord. The square of ornament immediately around the crystal cylinder containing the Sacred Host is a conventional illustration of the vine, while the similar part of the reverse has a design based on the wheat. The figures around the stem are those of St. Peter, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Clare, and St. Colette. St. Peter, the audience were reminded, is the patronal saint of the diocese. The monstrance is made from the gold, silver, and jewels obtained by melting up the persona] jewellery and household plate of the donor, who, some years ago, became a Colettine nun. Westminster Cathedral has, of course, a number of monstrances; the one above described is that in general use on Sundays. FRANCE— The Neutral School The Civil Tribunal at Rheims (says the Catholic Times) has given its support to the movement for suppressing opposition to the neutral schools —a movement which, it is currently believed, has, from the first, been engineered by the Government. As one of the signatories of the joint Pastoral condemning these schools and certain manuals used in them, Cardinal Lu?on. Archbishop of Rheims, was sued by the Federation of Teachers for five thousand francs, or £2OO, damages. The Tribunal has ordered his Eminence to pay five hundred francs, or £2O. It may be taken for granted that the members' of the French Hierarchy will not be deterred from the discharge of their pastoral duties;. How they meet persecution may be hiferred from the words which Cardinal Conllie, Archbishop of Lyons, addressed on February 24 to his Diocesan Congress. ‘Our faith,’ said his Eminence, ‘is the object of the fiercest warfare. We must don our armor for battle, for the defence of our liberties, of our. Christian homes, and the souls of our children. Be ready, then, for the fray, and let your courage be equal to any sacrifice.’ The Government will not take issue directly with prelates so firm and combative. But it will continue its policy of pin-pricks in the hope— vain hope—of wearying them and so reducing them to inactivity. INDIA— A ’Representative Catholic _The Hon.- P. F. X. Saldanha, of Mangalore, South India, a descendant of one of the converts of St. Francis Xavier, has. just been appointed by the Governor of Madras a member of the Legislative Council to represent the Catholic community of South India, in accordance with the Act conferring upon minorities the right of representation. The Archbishop of Madras, who presided over a special meeting of the South India Catholic Association, recently conveyed to Mr. Saldanha the felicitations of the people he has been called upon to represent. A nephew of the Hon. P. P. X. Saldanha, in the person of Dr. Gonsalves, is well known in London as a member of the medical faculty. ITALY—Preserving Works of Art True to the traditions of the Church in Italy (writes a Rome correspondent), the Cardinal-Archbishop of Milan

has taken an initiative * which will preserve for posterity the many works of art stowed away in-the religious houses of his diocese. In' the , churches and other ecclesiastical edifices ,of Milan and the surrounding countries : works of art are to be found in abundance. ; Many of these are unknown and neglected; for though the State has declared all to be national monuments and has hedged them in with rules, very little control is exercised over them. At the instance, of Cardinal Ferrari a Commission has been appointed to remedy this state of things. -' Four priests a I four laymen have been nominated to compose this Diocesan Commission which will watch over the artistic treasures of the archdiocese and bring under the notice of the episcopal Curia cases of damage or negligence on the part of those placed in charge. Perhaps the best result from the initiative of the Archbishop will be the fact that in future it will bo easy to lay blame on the . proper shoulders in case of loss or injury to hidden treasures. ROME—Gift of the Emperor of Germany Through the medium of the Prussian Minister to the Holy See, the Emperor of Germany has forwarded to' Mgr. De Waal, rector of the Teutonic Church beside the Vatican, the sum of 20,000 marks for the benefit of the library of that institution. The Teutonic library is one of the finest in Rome, and is open to students of all nationalities and religious persuasions. / SPAlN—Catholic Defence . The hierarchy, clergy, and Catholics of Spain are wisely preparing for future struggles (says the "Catholic Times). . The present Government will, it is expected, try its hand at legislation limiting the rights of the Church. Any such attempt is doomed to failure. But other opponents of the Church will succeed Senor Canalejas at some future time and will enlist the services of the Spanish enemies of Catholicity in a crusade against ecclesiastical liberties. It is well that the Spanish bishops and their flocks see the wisdom of making ready for the conflict. They are establishing ‘ juntas parroquiales,’ or parochial organisations which should be able to give a good account of themselves in the event of defence being necessary. Each parish is made a little theatre of social activity. The parish priest encourages his people to meet and to discuss the questions which most intimately affect the welfare of the people, and when resolutions have been adopted all heartily combine in carrying them out. In this way a network of parochial committees has been laid down in Madrid and other dioceses. and a new spirit of mutual helpfulness has been instilled into the breasts of the faithful. " Just now the Catholic bodies in Spain are holding meetings of protest against the re-opening of the so-called neutral schools, andsome of these assemblages, such as that of Valencia, have been so largely attended and so influential as to show beyond doubt or question bow Unwavering is the fidelity of the majority of the Spanish people to the Church. UNITED STATES—A Convert Mr., William H. Penn, a direct descendant of William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania, died on February 16, at his home in Newark, N.J., at the age of forty (says the Catholic Standard and Times). He was the seventh generation of the historic Penh family. He is survived by his father and mother, the former being William Penn 6th, and by his wife, two daughters and a son, William Penn Bth. Mr. Penn was born in Elizabeth, and was educated in the public schools there. He went to Newark twenty years ago, where he had since lived. He established the William Penn Lamp Company, of which he was head at the time of his death. He was converted to the Catholic faith about two years ago, and was a member of the Holy Name Society of St. James’ Church. Charitable Bequest The Convent of the Sacred Heart, St. Louis, through Mother Donnelly, has received 200,000 dollars, the whole estate of her uncle, Rev. Michael McFaul. Father McFaul’s father was a wealthy citizen of St. Louis, and the share of his fortune that fell to the priest was allowed to .accumulate. Much of it was dispensed in private charity, during his life, and the remainder he bequeathed to Mother Donnelly. Catholic Churches j The city of Chicago has more Catholic churches than any other city in the Union. There are 187 churches in Archbishop Quigley’s city, while New York proper, that is, Manhattan and the Bronx, has 138. The city of Brooklyn has 110, while Philadelphia boasts 99. In St. Louis there are 83 Catholic churches and in : Pittsburg may be found 68 edifices. There are 61 churches in the city of Boston and also 61 in Cleveland. In Buffalo there can be counted 56 Catholic churches; Baltimore has 47 and Cincinnati 46. Catholic Indians There are 299,870 Indians in the United States, of whom 55,771 are Catholics. One hundred and thirty-eight priests minister to their wants, and 197 chapels, 17 day schools, and 53 pay schools are for their exclusive use.

Fifty years ago (says the Geelong Advertiser) Mother Maguire left Dublin with a band of Sisters and founded the Order of the Sisters of Mercy in Geelong. The existing site with a cottage was purchased, and it was not -long before the institution grew under the fostering care and foresight of the Rev. Mother, who was a born administrator and organiser. To-day a fine pile of buildings adorns the site-a solidly constructed and commodious convent, a chapel with fine stained-glass windows, and a magnificently carved altar, a spacious orphanage for girls, and charmingly laid out grounds. There are about 120 girls in the orphana ß e >.the management of which has been praised from time to time by the Inspector of Charities. Newtown was only sparsely populated when the nuns first settled there, but now the convent is in a central residential locality. The jubilee was celebrated in the presence of a large and representative gathering. It was a time for rejoicing and reunion, and nuns and old boarders assembled from far and near.