CATHOLIC FEDERATION

New Zealand Tablet, 8 February 1917, Page 55

CATHOLIC FEDERATION

: | CHRISTCHURCH DIOCESAN COUNCIL. | . The eighth half-yearly meeting of the Christchurch * Diocesan Council was held in the Hibernian Hall on Tuesday evening, January 23. His Lordship Bishop Brodie presided, and was supported by the following members of the executive: —The Very Rev. Deans Hyland and Regnault, Rev. Father Cooney, Messrs. J. E. Doolan, P. F. Ryan, W. Hayward, jun., and F. J. Doolan (secretary). The branches were represented as follows: —Akaroa, Mr. W. Kearney ; Cathedral, Messrs., J. R. Hayward and W. Hallins; Darfield, Rev. Father Cronin, Miss M. Morrison, sand . Mr. J. Gill Hawarden, Rev. Father O’Connor; Lyttelton, Messrs. J. E. Doolan and -F. Lufaro ; Lincoln, Rev. Father Leen, Messrs. J. Cunneen and J. A. Henley; Methven, Rev. Dr. Kennedy; Rakaia, Mr. T. Staunton; Ross, Mr. A. P. Sharkey; Rangiora, Major Conlan and Mr. S. Ryan ; St. Mary’s, Christchurch, Messrs. J. McNamara and W. Hayward; Little River, Miss M. C. Cassidy ; Temuka and Pleasant Point, Rev. Father Kerley; Waimate, Mr. F. J. Glackin. Apologies were received from Mr. E. J. P. Wall (executive) and Major Conlan, Rev. Father O’Hare, and Mr. H. Sloan. The Right Rev. Chairman welcomed the assembled delegates,- and hoped that their deliberations would be of benefit to the Federation. -' After the roil was called the minutes of the annual meeting, held on August 1-2, were confirmed on the motion of Mr. S. Ryan, seconded by Mr. J. Cunneen. Report of the Executive Committee for the Half-Year Ending December 31, 1916. “ To the Right Rev. President and Members of the D’ocesan Council, —Your executive committee has the honor to present its report for the half-year ending December 31, 1916. The personnel of the executive is —President, the Right Rev, Dr. Brodie; vice-presidents— the Very Rev. Dean Hyland (Rangiora), Mr. J. E. Doolan (Lyttelton), Mr. P. F. Ryan (Weedons) ; treasurer, Mr. W. Hayward, jun (St. Mary’s, Christchurch) ; committee—the Very Rev. Dean Regnault, S.M. . (St. Mary’s, Christchurch), Rev. Father Cooney (Lyttelton), Mr. E. J. Wall (St. Mary’s, Christchurch), Mr. J. P. Leigh (Timaru), and Mr. F. J. Doolan (secretary). During the term five ordinary and three special meetings were held, the attendance being excellent. Early in October, Mr. T. H. Cape-Williamson (secretary) resigned, and was succeeded by Mr. F. J. Doolan. "v' . Papal Blessing.-The outstanding event of the half-year has been the receipt of the Papal Blessing of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XV., on our organisation. The beautiful paternal blessing should be an incentive to one and all to further the interests I of the Federation, as it not only includes the leaders . s and active workers within its loving scope, but to all . within its ranks the blessing is extended. 'v< Organisation.—Fairlie: Mr. J. P. Leigh, of '.Timaru, visited Fairlie in September and reported very favorably on the enthusiasm displayed by the local ■ branch. . 'Addington.—The Rev. Father O’Hare has reformed the, branch,« and, assisted by the Rev. Father Cooney and Mr. W. Hayward, had a most successful opening meeting, when officers and committee were

x elected; and everything points : to ’a” very > strong | branch f. coming. into existence. , , . 5 AhaurA.— f diocesan :> secretary : ;has; opened up correspondence with the Rev. Father Haurahan, of ■ Ahaura, who hopes jin the near future to i organise the Federation throughout his extensive parish. ’ -y\ -Catholic Congress. ihistory and progress of the Church in this diocese has been advanced another step by the brilliant and highly successful congress held on November 9, 1916. J. The suggestion emanated from his Lordship the Bishop, r and, assisted by " your executive and the : members of the Cathedral, St. Mary’s, and Addington parish committees, every effort was put;forth to make arrangements worthy of the occasion. The programme, consisting of carefully prepared and eloquently delivered speeches on our ideals and desires of Catholic education, and the many 'disabilities under which we suffer by the present system, have seldom, if ever, been heard under such favorable circumstances in this Dominion. The spacious building was crowded by an audience of close on three thousand, people, who followed the proceedings with keen interest, and freely punctuated with applause the paints made by the various speakers. Our sincere thanks are due to the following speakers, who came from a distance to assist: — Rev. Father Ainsworth (Napier); Mr. D. .L. Poppelwell (Gore), Mr. M. Doyle (Timaiu),.and Mr. ,H. F. Doogan (Greymouth), also ;to the Sisters of the Mission and Sisters of Mercy, and to the Marist Brothers, who trained the school children for ; the excellently rendered choruses, and to all who assisted to make the function a success. The reception given to his Lordship the Bishop was of a strikingly cordial and enthusiastic nature,, cheers being given with the utmost vigor, giving ample evidence of the deep affection existing between prelate and people. The object of the congress was achieved— magnificent gathering of Bishop, priests, and people was brought together, and the impartial and eloquent speeches expounded our views and made known our desires on educational matters. •/-■ Field Service Fund. —lnstead of canvassing for this through the branches, his Lordship made a diocesan appeal, with the result that the handsome sum of <£3so was realised. Hostel Report.—This question was referred to the incoming executive for consideration, and their report has been forwarded to all branches for their information. The question of Catholic girls belonging to other religious clubs and organisations was brought under the notice of the executive, and with the assistance of the president of the hostel it was found that a number of Catholic girls were attending the dressmaking classes of the Y.W.C.A., and that while no attempt was made to interfere with their religious beliefs, it must be acknowledged there is a certain amount of danger in the surroundings of such an organisation. Your executive intend during the next term to arrange a membership campaign, which it is hoped that all the branches will assist in, and when the whole diocese is thoroughly organised, then, and not till then, will the true worth of the Federation be known. The report was agreed to on the motion of Rev. Father Cooney, seconded by Rev. Dr. Kennedy. ’ -HiDiocesan Treasurer’s Report. —The treasurer (Mr. W. Hayward) read a statement for the half-year showing receipts from branches £l4O 19s lid, and expenses £ll3 4s. The returns were considered satisfactory and the efforts of the eighteen secretaries furnishing them were duly appreciated. The treasurer commented on the fact that tlje membership return and the dues forwarded did not always agree, and asked secretaries to watch this matter carefully in- the future. Adopted on the motion of treasurer, seconded by Rev. Father Kerley . . Special Report of the Catholic Girls’ Club and Hostel. In accordance with the resolution adopted at the annual meeting of, the diocesan council, your executive went into the question of the extension and development of the girls’ hostel. A sub-committee was set up to go into the question, and at the conference of the subcommittee with the hostel committee, it was. pointed out that the hostel was continuing to do its good work, and

waa justifying, its existence as a- curls’ club and , hostel. : From: a financial point of view, the;hostel was continu- ; in 3to i work a very successfully, f and was patronised by - a number of: permanent guests, . and - ,visitors from various; if parts •of f the* Dominion had ' availed themselves', of the • accommodation provided. ■ Discussing the development of the club side of the ; hostel work, the conference realised the necessity of trying to make the institution a home and meeting-place ; for the Catholic girls working \in : the city, and I this phase of the work will come up for further consideration. In view of the existing war conditions, it is not considered opportune to go into the question of the extension or development of the hostel. The executive would, however, commend it to the support of the various branches of the Federation, and country branches could help by securing honorary members and commending the hostel to their members. We would also wish to place on record our appreciation of the work of the ladies of the hostel committee, who have been of such help to the matron, and whose valued assistance has contributed so materially to the successful working of the hostel. His Lordship moved and Mr. P. F. Ryan seconded the adoption of the report. Reports from Branches. — Branch reports were received from Akaroa, Addington, Cathedral, Darfield, Hawarden, Lyttelton, Lincoln, Methven, Rakaia, Ross, Rangiora, Pleasant Point, Timaru, St. Mary’s, St. Andrews, and Waimate. In most cases the reports disclosed good work in the interests of the Federation and an increase in membership, but nearly all regretted the loss of many members who were on active service. Akaroa branch reports that their late secretary, Mr. M. Daly, is now at Trentham, and the good wishes of one and all follow him, as he proved a most capable and energetic secretary, and mainly due to his efforts al 1 the parishioners of Akaroa are now members of the Federation. At, this stage of the meeting the Very Rev. Dean Hyland, of .Rangiora, read an interesting paper on ‘ The Popes and Peace,’ which gave an historical sketch from the earliest ages of the Papacy down to the present reigning Pontiff, Benedict XV., whose name will be handed down to posterity as the Pope who did so much to bring about a better understanding among the nations, and to improve the conditions of those taking part in the great world war. The Very Rev. Dean Regnault proposed and Mr. W. Hayward seconded a very hearty vote of thanks to the writer of the paper for his interesting and instructive article, which was carried by acclamation. His Lordship the Bishop also supplemented the remarks of the two previous speakers, and offered his congratulations to the Very Rev. Dean. He considered this innovation was worthy of repetition at future meetings. Previous to the paper being read, the public were admitted, and the hall was filled with an audience that followed the speaker with the utmost attention and interest. Consideration of remits was then taken. 1. The Right Rev. Chairman moved — ‘That (he Dominion Executive consider the advisability of open- . ing up relations with Australian branches of the Federation with a view of. taking steps to forestall the exhibition of objectionable picture films.’ In speaking to the motion his Lordship contended that it was necessary to have a warning if possible before these offensive pictures were censored in New Zealand, as by that means we would be doubly sure of defeating their exhibition. He also stated that if notice had been received, at least one objectionable picture wouldt have been prevented . from being shown during the-past few months. * Seconded by Mr. J. R. Hayward, and carried. 2. Very Rev. Dean Regnault moved— ‘ That the Dominion Executive consider the advisability of initiating an active campaign to keep the Education question before our people, by the dissemination of literature bearing on Catholic principles in education, Catholic disabilities, etc.’ The mover made mention of the very able articles written by the Rev. Father Graham, S.M., the Very Rev. Father Coffey, the Very Rev. Father Roche, C,SS.R,, and others,, and also referred to the excdknb eontrihutiom from our omimnf’rm, md

r hoped that some means would .be adopted ;to ; make more }% S ' f use 3of ■: these valuable =? articles 'for the 4 benefit “t of 1 the Fif. whole of the Dominion. 7 V' : '’ r ' : - : ; ,. ;-V ■ / > ‘ , Seconded 'by Mr. F. J. Doolan,, who ’ contended that this .class ,of r : literature \i should be ? circulated as • much as possible throughout the Dominion ;in view of the next general election as a means of interesting our v own people and of educating the public on the great • principles of Catholic education, and to make known the disabilities under which we labor by the present"; system. Carried. : 3. The Rev. Father Kerley moved— ‘ That the Dominion Council consider the advisability of recommend- ’ ing to the various diocesan councils the necessity of holding a congress on similar lines to the one held in Christchurch in November last,-as a means of publicly expressing our views on the education question. Seconded by Dr. Kennedy, and carried. ' ? 4. Mr. J. A. Henley moved—' That this diocesan council suggest that the date of the annual ; and halfyearly meetings be altered from July and January to October and April respectively.’ The mover said that the month of January was a most unsuitable time for the country branches to send representatives to important meetings. The harvest was then in full 'swing- in ‘ Canterbury, and it was very inconvenient to attend. Pie pointed to the number of country branches unrepresented at that meeting from that cause alone. Seconded by the Rev. Father .O’Connor, who strongly endorsed the remarks of the previous speaker. —Carried. General Business. Mr. J. Cunneen (Lincoln) moved— ‘ That this meeting of direct representatives of the different branches of the Catholic Federation in the diocese of Christchurch desire to congratulate his Lordship Bishop Brodie and the executive on the success of the recent congress held in Christchurch, and on -the able manner in which it was conducted. Mr. J. A. Henley seconded the motion, and the Rev. Dr. Kennedy, in putting it to the meeting, said he felt quite certain that the motion was in accord with the feelings of all the country branches. Carried. His Lordship briefly acknowledged on behalf of the executive. The question of an alteration to Rule 10 C. was discussed on the motion of Mr, W. Hayward, and after several speakers had spoken, it was resolved on the motion of Very Rev. Dean Regnault— ‘ That the executive go into the question of proxy representation as dealt with in Clause C and to report at the next annual meeting, and if necessary prepare a remit bearing on same.’ Seconded by Mr. F. J. Doolan, and carried. A motion moved by Mr. A. P. Sharkey , (Ross) to increase the annual contribution to Is 6d was discussed by Dean Regnault, Dr. Kennedy, and Mr. W. Hayward, and was eventually withdrawn, as it was considered the time inopportune to interfere with the rate of contributions. \ Mr. W. Hallins (Cathedral) moved That it be a recommendation to the Diocesan Executive to take the necessary steps to have a census of Catholics of the diocese of Christchurch.’ Seconded by Mr. A. P. Sharkey.—Carried. His Lordship Bishop Brodie moved that the following committees be set up, viz. Education committee, Rev. Fathers Graham and Cooney and Brother Palladius; social , work committee, Very Rev. Dean Regnault and Mr. G. Hayward. Seconded by Mr. W. —Carried. , The delegates to the Dominion Council are Very Rev. Dean Hyland, Rev. Father Kerley, and Mr. J. E. Doolan. The location of the next congress was left to the executive to arrange. ' r A hearty vote of thanks was accorded by acclamalion to his Lordship the. Bishop for presiding, and the - meeting then terminated. Members then adjourned to the supper room, where ample - justice was done to a dainty repast prepared for them by the , ladies of the St. Matthew’s branch of the H.A.C.B, Society, to whom & very hearty vote of tha.nJri.. was mottled, ■ / ;