MARIST BROTHERS’ OLD BOYS’ ASSOCIATION, WELLINGTON.

New Zealand Tablet, 15 June 1916, Page 13

MARIST BROTHERS’ OLD BOYS’ ASSOCIATION, WELLINGTON.

A social reunion of the Marist Brothers’ Old Boys’ Association was held in the Alexandra Hall, on May 15, to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the arrival of the Marist Brothers in Wellington. The following is the full text of the speech delivered by Rev. Brother Egbert, who presided, in replying to the toast of * Our Alma Mater ’:

In responding to,the toast of ‘ Our Alma Mater,’ so eloquently proposed by Mr. McKeowen, and so warmly received by you, I must, on behalf of the Brothers now in Wellington, and of all those who have gone before, thank most sincerely his Grace Archbishop Redwood (the founder of our school), his Grace Archbishop O’Shea, the clergy our old boys, and all the Catholics of Wellington, who have been the very soul of kindness and generosity to the Brothers during the forty years of their labors in this city. The present Brothers know most of our schools in Australasia, and ,we have pleasure in testifying that, nowhere can be found more pure-minded and warm-hearted Catholic boys; nowhere a more reasonable and grateful people; and nowhere a more considerate and helpful clergy than those whom we have here the privilege of assisting. In His merciful Providence, the good God desires that we should gain the eternal happiness He has prepared for us by conquering the many difficulties He permits to come our way, but He has given to everyone the means of enjoying the greatest luxury in this world— luxury of doing good —and it is the enjoyment of this luxury that soothes our little worries, and stimulates our interest in the otherwise fairly difficult work of Catholic education. From the time a boy is brought along to school by his mother we commence to care for him, and, though our work is mainly in the school, that boy is always, even when his school days are over, an object of brotherly interest, until he passes on to associate with the Brothers and old boys in God’s eternal home. Next year the Brothers will celebrate the centenary of the founding of their Order by that saintly Marist Father, the Venerable MarjCellin Champagnat, and during the ninety-nine years that have gone, over 5000 Brothers have given their lives .in the glorious cause of Catholic education—a cause which is worth all the sacrifices .any man can make; and, at the present time more than 6000 of

our members, in most countries of the world, are helping upwards of Too,oofl children to cut through, and trample on, the barbetPwire entanglements of their own passions, and to breathe the pure air of God’s grace, and so exclude the poisonous gases of atheism and infidelity, which pollute the moral atmosphere % which surrounds them. Every Marist boy, every ' Catholic boy, can regard every ; Marist Brother in any part of the world as a friend of his, and if there is anything we can do for any of you, between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m. of any day of the year, then we are out to do it. That is what we are alive for. When the ordinary boy leaves school and begins to sniff the air of freedom, he says to himself : ‘ Now, I’m going to have a good time.’ 1 Certainly,’ we say, ‘ my boy, have a good time. We want all our boys and men to have a good time.’ We want our men to enjoy life by enjoying the good things of life and cutting right out the vicious allurements of sensuality, which leave nothing but a nauseating disgust. Next to the pleasure we feel at seeing our young men enlisting in God’s special service as priests or Brothers, nothing gives us greater consolation than seeing our men receiving the Sacrament of Matrimony. Catholic clubs, of course.

the next day.’ Unfortunately for many, it rains the samo night. , Every man should have an object in life, and it is quite lawful to desire wealth to increase our power of doing good ; and I would advise all our men to earn all they can, give all they can, and save all they can. We want our men,to aid and -* co-operate with our devoted priests in every Church movement ; to study questions affecting religion, that they may be able to riddle with spiritual bullets the half-boiled theories of our pseudo-scientists, or the hare-brained schemes of our soap-box orators; to let their voices be heard in our universities to take an active and intelligent interest •in all the affairs of our grand little island home. To each and every one of you I wish in all the years that may yet be yours an abundance of God’s choicest blessings, pressed down, shaken well, running together, and flowing over, and please God, when in ten years’ time the golden jubilee is being celebrated, we and all our brave brothers now at the war will once more be gathered round the festive board. Six more decades of years will bring us to the centenary, 1976, when, may God grant it, every non-earthly Marist old boy will respond with a ringing ‘ present ’ to the heavenly

are very , good in their way, but as soon as possible

after a man has reached the age of twenty-one he should set about establishing a little club of his own—a club of which he may be the president, even if his wife is to be the speaker, and the bigger the membership the better, for we want all the votes we can get, One of the greatest services a man can render to his country is to conduct a well-ordered Catholic home; and we can best show our appreciation of the great gift of the true faith by handing down to others this glorious heritage which we have received from our illustrious martyred forefathers. On account of the penal laws, which for centuries manacled the aspirations of Catholics in the old lands, most of those who came to this country had nothing but their strong arms and stout hearts, but by their industry and integrity they blazed the track and gained a competence for themselves and their children. We have not yet, however, come entirely into our home. How are we going to do so? By the grace of God, by industry and thrift. None of our men should be like the young Yellow who, on being urged by his father to put something by for a rainy day, pleaded ‘ I do, father; but it always rains

roll call, and the newer generation, perhaps yet unborn, will make merry in our places, and bless the pioneer brothers of 1876, and recall our happy fortieth anniversary celebrations of this year.