THE EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS

New Zealand Tablet, 17 April 1913, Page 11

THE EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS

MALTA AND ITS PEOPLE The first Eucharistic Congress owed its inspiration to Bishop Gaston de Segur, and was held at Lille, France, in June, 1881. The idea at first was merely local and met with few adherents, but it grew from year to year with an ever-increasing importance. The second gathering was at Avignon, in 1882, and the third at Liege in the following year. When the fourth Congress met at Fribourg in 1885, under the presidency of the famous Bishop of Lausanne and Geneva (Mgr, Mermillod), his influence and example drew to the platform members ■of the Cantonal Government, officials of the municipality of Fribourg, judges, army officers, and thousands of Catholics from all over Europe. Toulouse, in the south of France, was the place of meeting of the fifth Congress, which was held in 1886, and about 1500 ecclesiastics and 30,000 laymen were present at the closing exercises. Special importance was attached to the eighth Congress, which went to Jerusalem to hold its sessions in May, 1893. Pope Leo XIII. sent as legate Cardinal Langenieux, Archbishop of Reims. Here the reunion of the Orient was advocated, and an adoration of the Blessed Sacrament was preached on the very spot where tradition says the Agony in the Garden took place. Next year it was held at Reims, then at was held in succession at Paray-le-Monial (France), Brussels, Lourdes, Angers, Namur, and Angouleme. The sixteenth Congress was held at Rome in 1905. The Holy Father added to the solemnity of the occasion by celebrating Mass at the opening of the sessions, by giving a special audience to the delegates, and by being present at the procession that closed the proceedings. The seventeenth was held at Tournai in 1906, and the next one at Metz, in Lorraine, the following year. The nineteenth was held in London at the invitation of Cardinal (then Archbishop) Bourne. This was the first held under the auspices of, and among, English-speaking members of the Church.

As the most representative and important of all the Congresses, the whole Catholic world was at once interested in the nineteenth, which was held from September 9-13, 1908, and regarded as the greatest religious triumph of its generation. Cardinal Vincenzo Vannutelli was appointed by the Holy Father as his Legate, more than 350 years having elapsed since a Papal Legate was seen in England. With him were six other Cardinals, fourteen Archbishops, seventy Bishops, and a host of priests. No such gathering of ecclesiastics had been seen outside of Rome in modern times. It had been intended to carry the Blessed Sacrament through the streets on the Sunday which marked the close of the Congress, but, owing to a protest made by a small and noisy faction of bigots, this part of the programme was abandoned at the request of the Prime Minister. The procession without the Blessed Sacrament -took place, and the Legate, attended by a guard of honor comprising the Duke of Norfolk and eleven other English noblemen, the Duke of Orleans, and the Comte d’Eu, passed over the route, and finally gave Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament from the balcony of Westminister Cathedral. In 1911 the Congress was held in the capital of Spain, and in Vienna last year. This year it takes place in Malta from the 23rd to the 27th of the present month. It is an auspicious omen for the future of Catholicism that at the very moment when the Ottaman Empire is fast crumbling into ruins, Malta should be the scene of the Eucharistic Congress, as it was the ultimate refuge of the knightly champions of Christendom when the Turkish hosts were threatening to overrun all Europe, and the Maltese capital was actually founded 350 years ago as the Mediterranean bulwark of Christianity against the westward advance of Islam. Malta, perhaps the most Catholic jewel, even Ireland hardly excepted, in King George’s crown, has aromantic history that is closely linked with the rise of the Turks to sovereignty in Europe, and in its architectural magnificence the stately conventual Church

of St. John at Yaletta surely rivals the far-famed Byzantine Cathedral of St. Sophia -in Constantinople, where, Mohammedan insignia have defiled and obliterated the sacred symbols of the Christian creed. For Catholics all the world over, therefore, Malta and its religious history have a noble significance, especially at this juncture in the affairs of nations. In ancient days, the Maltese Islands, comprising Malta, Gozo, and Comino, were colonised by the Phoenecians, and at subsequent periods were held in turn by Greeks and Carthaginians. Towards the end of the fourth century- of the Christian era Malta became- a possession of the Byzantine Emperors, whose capital was Constantinople, or new Rome. Saracens and Normans next held the islands, which at last came under Spanish sovereignty, until 1530, when the Emperor Charles V., granted Malta to the famous Order of the Knights of St. John on their being driven from'Rhodes by Turkish invaders.

Knights of Saint John.

The knights of this great military Order had constituted themselves the valiant protectors of Crusaders and pilgrims and had fought the advancing Turks with ceaseless energy and courage. In Malta they held sovereign power and barriered with their dauntless swords all western Christendom ‘ against Mohammedan onslaughts. Then in 1565 came that glorious chapter in Maltese history when Jehan Perisot de la Yalette, Grand Master of the Order of St. John, resisted a four months’ soige by the Turkish forces of the Sultan Suleiman the Second. The successful issue of that great struggle went far towards keeping Mohammedan aggression in Europe well in check. The Order was .at the height of its renown, and its ranks were recruited by the flower of Europe’s nobility. In the midst of his triumph La Yalette determined to rebuild the capital of his island kingdom, to constitute a great Christian fortress, and to build a splendid Church. Thus did the city still called Yalette arise on the long narrow ridge of the Maltese coast. Jehan de la Yalette himself lived only long enough to see the laying of the foundation stones.

St. John’s Cathedral.

St. John’s Cathedral is a stately edifice that has not quite its like anywhere in the world. Half castle, half church, as it has well been termed, its gorgeous interior belies the massive and meagre exterior. Its nave is a barrel vault in shape, and is 187 feet long by 50 feet wide. Four hundred tombstones of dead and gone knights glitter with heraldic splendors emblazoned in marbles and enamels. The superb ceiling is decorated with painted panels illustrative of the history of St. John the Baptist, encircled by figures of saints and martyrs. The Order was at one time divided into ‘ langues ’ or national groups, to each of which was assigned a separate chapel in the conventual Church. The Oratory Chapel, once used as a place of instruction for the novices, because it was the shrine of the knights’ long-cherished treasure hand of St. John, a holy relic presented by the Sultan Bjarit to Grand Master D’Abusson. The relic was brought from Rhodes and was enclosed in a solid gold monstrance made in the shape of a gauntlet. .In the front of this lay a gold ring set with a gleaming diamond of great value. When, in 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte gained possession of Malta, by treachery, as it was believed, the setting of this famous relic aroused the Little Corporal’s cupidity. He tried the ring on his fat little fingers, sent the monstrance aboard ship for conveyance to France, and left the relic itself to the trembling care of Grand Master Hompesch, the last chieftain of the Order Malta was destined to know.

Napoleon’s advent led to the dispersal of the Order in its old-time form, and the Grand Master carried the relic of St. John to St. Petersburg, where, under the Emperor Paul, an attempt was made, in vain, to reconstruct the historic knighthood. Since 1814 Malta has belonged to Great Britain.

Another Account.

From early days (says a writer in the Universe), Malta was regarded as so valuable an acquisition that it was fought over, conquered, and re-conquered, and,

indeed, did not cease to be a bone of contention .until September 7, 1800, when it was delivered up to the English forces under the command of Major-General Bigot. History tells us that its earliest inhabitants were the Phoenicians, from whom it is generally thought it derived the name Melita (Malta), from the excellent honey found there. At a later period Carthaginians and Greeks disputed over it, and for some time they exercised a kind of joint ownership. The Romans were the next to occupy the island. -.ln the year 66 a.d., St. Paul, who had been im-prisoned-at Csssarea, was wrecked on the coast whilst on his way to Home to . appeal against his imprisonment. The saint remained three months on the island, and converted the inhabitants to Christianity. Years later, the -Saracens invaded and subdued the island, to be expelled in their turn by Count Roger of Sicily. The turbulent history continues. First the Germans, next the French, established themselves there. It was not until 1530, when the Emperor Charles Y. handed the island over to the knights of St. John, that any secure form of government obtained. This distinguished order of knights traces its origin to the middle of the eleventh century. It was a religious association, presided over by a grand master, and made up of members from various nations. Here we are mainly concerned with the work it achieved in Malta.

On October 25, 1530, Grand Master L’lsle Adam, with several members of the order, landed in Malta from Rhodes. Their advent was the beginning of a peaceful and prosperous period. The first matter of importance to which the order directed its attention was the fortifying of the island against possible incursions. In 1566, the City of Yaletta was founded, on Mount Sceberas, by the Grand Master La Yalette, and in this great work the inhabitants displayed great ingenuity, La Yalette died in 1568, and the work continued under the Grand Mastership of He Mont; and was completed in 1571. > The defence of the various portions of the island was entrusted to the knights of England, France, Italy, Castile, Germany, Arragon, and Auvergne. Outworks and fortifications were built from time to time. Fort

St. Michael, which is on the opposite side of the grand harbour, was erected by the Grand Master Claudio della Seniglea from whom the town of Seniglea takes its name. Further fortifications were constructed in 1638, a Dominican Friar with a turn for engineering being sent by the Pope for the express purpose. Grand Master Manoel devoted his energies to strengthening the harbors of Marsa Muscetto and Lazzaretto.

The City of Yaletta.

The city of Yaletta is remarkable for many beautiful buildings, and these also owe their origin to the Order. Hospitals were opened, and medical and surgical attendance given gratis to the poor, the knights superintending the administration, at the same time attending to the sick. In 1760 a building, then known as the Conservatory, was opened as a library, a gift of 9700 volumes being made by Baily de Tenein. A large number of these buildings are now used as Government offices.

Some Ancient Customs.

Some of the ancient customs of the people are not without interest. It was, says an early history, the custom of the Grand Master, on the last day but one of the carnival, to give an entertainment to the people in the great square of Yaletta. Some large beams of wood were erected' in front of the Palace, the intervals of which were filled with rope ladders suspended to them. The whole was covered with branches of trees, on which were placed living animals and birds, garlands and oranges. This fabric was terminated by a globe of linen, on which was raised the figure of Fame holding in her hand a banner with the arms of the Grand Master. The square was filled with the populace, and a personage- armed with a staff was there to prevent the people from running at the prize. Battles were frequently the consequence of the scrambling, and the man who first reached the figure of Fame was presented with a prize. When he raised the standard to carry it to the Grand Master the globe of linen divided, and a number of pigeons were disclosed.

Quaint ceremonies attended the celebration of marriage. When the dower had been agreed upon by the parents of the contracting parties the young man sent to his intended bride a present of fish surrounded with garlands, and in the mouth of the fish was placed the ring. The mothers of the bride and bridegroom repaired to a small room, and there prepared a compound of aromatic plants mixed with salt and honey, with which the lips of the bride were anointed, that the words flowing from them might become pleasant and persuasive. But these are ancient customs, and have no doubt fallen into desuetude.

The Island and its Inhabitants.

• Malta is situated in the Mediterranean, 60 miles pouth of Sicily, and 180 north of Africa. It has a magnificent natural harbor. The, population amounts to about 225,000. In 1800, the estimated population was 80,000. Since then improved sanitation has considerably decreased the death rate, - while religion has kept up the birth rate as high as ever. About 5000 women earn their living by the manufacture of Maltese lace almost all women work lace for their own use.

, The Maltese of the present day are strict Catholics, and enthusiastic observers of all festivals, feasts, and ceremonies. Out of the civil population of close on 205,000, about 1500 belong to the secular and regular clergy, and about 500 women belong to different religious Orders. There are 27 religious houses of men and 36 convents and institutes of religious women. The beautiful Cathedral of St. John is built on the highest point of Yaletta.

Faith and Piety of the People.

Monsignor Heylen, the president of the permanent committee for Eucharistic Congresses, proceeded to Malta for the preliminary arrangements in October last. On his return to Luxemburg he said to a newspaper representative; —‘Never have I been so ed : fied as I was during my sojourn at Malta. Nowhere, in the course of my numerous peregrinations, have I ever met a population so fundamentally Christian, practising their, religion so frankly. The island of Malta contains barely the same number of inhabitants as Luxemburg. And all the peoplemen, women, and children — daily attend holy Mass, There are very early morning services, at which all the working men attend before going to work. These services are followed by others during the morning, which are attended by all classes; at nine o’clock, in particular, is the Cathedral Mass, which is attended by all the officials and employees of the Government. Frequent Communion is resorted to by a large number of ’ persons. The men do not content themselves, as is too often the case with us, with attending Communion at Easter and other great festivals; they go each month or oftener, each week very often. When the Holy Sacrament is taken to the sick, even if it is at night, the bells ring, the inhabitants get up, light up their houses, and a crowd goes out to accompany the priest as far as the sick person’s residence after that, they return in procession to the church to receive the Benediction of the Holy Sacrament. I had occasion many times to pass through the streets, in rich and poor quarters of the capital. Whether I went on foot or in a carriage, each time the passers-by stopped, remarking, The Bishop,” and bowed or knelt to receive the benediction.

Religion in the Schools.

‘ In the schoolswhere the teaching is in Italian, English, and Maltese conjointlyreligion occupies the place of honor in the programme, and the teachers show zeal and intelligence in teaching the catechism and sacred history; they teach, and cause to be daily recited, all the principal prayers. In the course of certain months, they recite, in addition, some special prayers to the Virgin or to the Sacred Heart. All the newspapers read are Catholic. In them one never finds a disrespectful phrase or word about the Catholic religion, dogma, ministers, etc. There is not a single bad journal in the island. And those from elsewhere lare firmly proscribed by the Maltese themselves. Everything there is pleasing. Have I not reason to tell you that rarely is it given to a foreign visitor to feel such joy, such occasion for edification?'