The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, 18 May 1911, Page 927

The Catholic World

CANADA THE PAPAL DELEGATE. .Monsignor Stagni, the Papal Delegate to Canada, has arrived at Ottawa, accompanied by Monsignor Sinnott, his private secretary. He was met on arrival by the Hon. Charles Murphy, Secretary of State, Senator Cloran, and other officials, and was formally welcomed at the Basilica later by Archbishop Gauthier and leading English and French Ottawa Catholics. ENGLAND CATHOLIC CHURCHES IN LONDON. His Grace the Archbishop of Westminster, in tho course of an address at the Church of St. Etheldreda, Ely Place, Holborn, said that many were not aware of the number of Catholic places of worship in London, and foreign visitors were quite astonished at there being so large a number in the capital of a country that was regarded as Protestant. There were now no fewer than ninety on the north side of the Thames, and over fifty on the south side. Each church had its particular character and history, and each was the outcome of generosity, selfsacrifice, and devotion. Very few were erected a hundred years ago, most of them having been built after the restoration of the Hierarchy sixty years ago. That in which they were assembled had a history extending over many generations. It stood as a monument to the devotion of their forefathers, and brought back many memories of old Catholic England, memories that must stimulate all who visited it and worshipped within its hallowed walls. |; CATHOLICS AND THE EMPIRE PAGEANT. ■ : The fiction that the Catholics of the present day. are not the representatives of - tho ancient faith of England which was long kept up in some quarters'no longer finds favor amongst men of intelligence and knowledge (says the Catholic Times). Mr. Birrell reminded his audience at Manchester the other day that their forefathers professed that ancient creed, and tho action of Mr. Frank Lascelles, pageant master, in asking Catholics, through his Grace the Archbishop of Westminster, to take part in the Empire Pageant at the Crystal Palace, which will be opened in May by their Majesties the King and Queen, is another illustration of the change that has come about in this respect amongst non-Catholics. The scene reproducing the episode of ‘ the bringing of a fragment of the Holy Cross from Wales to Westminster ’ will be enacted by Catholics. To the number of four hundred they will appear in tho roles of monks, priors, and other ecclesiastics, choir beys, knights, and soldiers. This is as it should be, for only those who have preserved the traditions of the past unbroken can enter fully into its spirit and make it, so to say, live again. The work of preparing for' the pageant will be to the Catholics a labor of love, and we eel sure that they will prove themselves equal to the interesting occasion. WESTMINSTER CATHEDRAL. Slowly, like the almost imperceptible growth of an oak tree, but as surely and almost as incessantly, the great work of completing the vast interior of Westminster Cathedral proceeds. Nothing is being done in a hurry, and even the humblest part of the manual labor is being effected with painstaking care, as though each workman realised that he was working for posterity. At present the mosaic workers are concentrating their energies on' the arched roof of the side aisle, near the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament. Since the consecration of the Cathedral the marble workers, too, have added to the material enrichment of this stately fabric. The chapel of St. George and the English Martyrs bears testimony to this fact. Appropriately enough, the predominating colors of this chapel will be given by red and white marble, 'and in the marble work at the back of the altar the shield of St. George with its red cross takes a conspicuous place. The beautiful mosaic, panel which perpetuates the memory of Blessed Joan of Arc is practically finished. All that is now wanting is the inscription for the marble tablet beneath. It will be remembered that this, by no means the least lovely feature of the Cathedral, owes its origin to the Bishop of Clifton’s_ suggestion to the Catholic Women’s League, that that society should collect contributions from the women and children of England for the specific purpose of honoring- the Maid’s memory in the Cathedral. Before very long it is expected that the grilles will be finished which will serve to enclose the altar of St. Thomas of Canterbury in the Chantry Chapel of Cardinal Vaughan. The cost of providing this metal work is being defrayed by contributions from the priests of England. , The. Dowager-Duchess of Newcastle is providing four heavy bronze candlesticks, which will stand at the corners of the founder’s monument, while Lady Alice Fitzwilliam has presented a beautiful crucifix for the altar.

FRANCE WARFARE AGAINST CHRISTIANITY. The warfare which the French Government are conducting against Christianity and the rights of conscience i$ becoming more and more intolerable. The plan of the enemies of religion (remarks the Catholic. Times ) is to force their detestable doctrines on the = children' 7 in the schools. The Bishops and priests are to be persecuted when they endeavor to protect the young. One of the books put into the hands of the children in the Government’s primary schools is the historical manual of Guiot, and Mane. It is a work which by its attitude towards the Church outrages the principle of neutrality on religious questions which the law is supposed to uphold. The Abbe Jacquot, parish priest of Dombasle, in the Vosges, speaking from the pulpit lately, said: ‘The children who do not use the condemned book, Guiot and Mane’s Historical Manual, will make their First Communion with solemnity on Easter Sunday. ' Those who use it will make their First 'Communion on another Sunday without any ceremonies.’ For. this notification the cure ; was prosecuted, and the Merecourt tribunal has condemned him to pay a fine of sixty francs and costs or to go to gaol for twenty days. His words, it was held, constituted ‘ a provocation to resist a legal act of the public authority.’ The abbe has gone to prison. The duty of safeguarding Catholic children from anti-Christian teaching is one which no Catholic priest can shirk. V * ““ *£•> ■ITALY | THE GOVERNMENT AND THE HOLY FATHER. In the course of a leading article the London Saturday Review says:‘The existing condition of Rome and the position of the Pope are standing reproaches to Italian statesmen and a trouble to the conscience of Europe. Fair-minded people cannot help asking themselves whether it is compatible with the dignity of a. great , nation, or of one that claims the title', and that has the privilege;pf harboring in its capital the spiritual head of so large" a part of Christendom, to allow a deliberate policy of menace and insult to be pursued against him by municipal 'officials, if not by the direct agents of the Government. It is not necessary to be a supporter of the Temporal Power, or even an advocate of its restoration in a very modified form, to understand this. Insulting speeches, the sale of filthy, libellous, and blasphemous journals, and other overt acts of hostility, to say nothing of the complaisant toleration of blatant atheism, make it difficult for a great sovereign who has any respect for the sentiments of large masses of his own subjects to give his personal countenance to these celebrations.’ The writer goes on to describe the members of the House of Savoy as ‘ merely exotics in Rome,’ and observes that no one can believe the Italian Royal House feels comfortable in the existing condition of things. The ceremonies which it was hoped would tend to produce the impression that the present state of affairs in Italy is likely to become permanent only suggest the conclusion that until the Roman question is solved dissatisfaction and uncertainty will inevitably prevail. ROME THE HOLY FATHER’S NAME-DAY. On March 18, the eve of the Feast of St. Joseph, the name day of Pope Pius X., the Holy Father received in audience, in his private library, the members of the Papal household (writes a Rome correspondent). The - Right Rev. Mgr. Billetti presented the various dignitaries to his Holiness, and addressed a few words of greeting in his own name, as the master of the household, and in that of all those attached officially to the Apostolic Palaces. The Holy Father replied briefly ; thanking all for their greetings. His Holiness had kind words for each of them as they knelt to kiss his ring before leaving. The members of the Sacred College of Cardinals also were received by the Pope in private audience. His Eminence Cardinal Serafino Vannutelli, Sub-Dean of the Sacred College, took the place of his Eminence Cardinal Oreglia, the Dean, offering the greetings and good wishes of the members of the Sacred College to his Holiness. On the Feast of St, Joseph his Holiness celebrated Mass in his private chapel, at which his sisters and a few others, together with some of the household, assisted. After the Pope’s Mass the thanksgiving Mass was celebrated, and after it had been finished the Pope went to his private apartments. His Holiness’s secretaries had been busy on the day before and .-ill the morning, receiving telegrams and letters of congratulation and greetings from Prelate Princes and personages and societies from various parts of the world. SPAIN BENEFACTORS OF THE COUNTRY. ' ' At a moment when the Prime Minister of Spain would have us believe the religious Orders are a burden to the country, it would be well if that gentleman and those who credit him would dip into the Annual published some time ago by the Minister of the Interior there, as it contains

some interesting information appropriate- to the crisis 1 of the hour. This '"official, document (writes a Rome correspondent) deals with the 1 work done for the Government and the poor of the kingdom. There exist in Spain 606 provincial and municipal; --hospitals which are confided to the charge 01 religious institutions. V;: Of these 253 belong, to the Sisters of Charity, 24 to the-Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation, 19 to the Carmelite Nuns, 16 to the Servants of Mary, etc. In 111 of these establishments the services of the religious are entirely gratuitous; while in 208 they are.each allowed the princely remuneration of 485 pesetas yearly (about £l6), from which food and 'clothing must be eked out. By the Little Sisters of the Poor 51 refuges are kept open and 5093 old people supported without one penny being asked or obtained from the Government. The Sisters of the Aged and Abandoned care for 3596 persons. I pass over various other beneficent works that flourish under the care of the religious Orders and Congregations and come to the 5 question of education. Let it suffice to say that the Spanish religious educate free no less /than 133,991 young people without any cost to the Government. Along' with this it is worthy. of mention that fifty economic kitchens established and supported, by the Spanish Government are administered gratuitously by the religious.

UNITED STATES

TWO MUNIFICENT GIFTS

Announcement is made of two most remarkable gifts made to the Catholic Church Extension Society, both received on the same day. One of the gifts consists of 90,000 dollars in, gold bonds,: which is intended to be the nucleus for a missionary college and seminary to be established later on for the purpose of educating priests for poor dioceses and missions of the United States. The name of the donor has not been made, public. Almost immediately after the receipt of the. first donation. the society received a telegram from a lady, living in the Central West, asking the privilege of building the twenty-five chapels referred to in the report of the general secretary of.' the society published in the March number of Extension Magazine. In publishing the report of the general secretary the president suggested that one person might have the privilege of building the entire twenty-five chapels in the diocese -of Baker City, Oregon, at a cost of 12,500 dollars to ''.-donor,- the people, of course, to make up the rest. A well known .Philadelphia Catholic, already a generous benefactor, of the Church Extension Society, notified Very Rev. Dr. Kelley. its president, that he would be one of ten to help raise the 12,500 dollars for the twentyfive chapels. By. return .mail he was informed of the action of the lady referred to in the foregoing paragraph, who telegraphed for the privilege of building all the chapels.