THE LATE BISHOP VERDON

New Zealand Tablet, 16 January 1919, Page 21

THE LATE BISHOP VERDON

OBSERVANCE OF MONTH'S MIND

AN IMPRESSIVE CEREMONIAL. The Month's Mind of the late Bishop Verdon was most impressively solemnised on Wednesday in St. Joseph's Cathedral, Dunedin. Representatives of the Hierarchy of New Zealand present were his Grace Archbishop O'Shea, S.M. (Wellington), his .Lordship Bishop Cleary (Auckland), and his Lordship Bishop Brodie (Christchurch). Representing the clergy of the Archdiocese of Wellington and the other three dioceses Wellington: Right Rev. Mgr. McKenna, V.G., Very Rev. Dean Holley, S.M. (Provincial), Very Rev. P. Whelan, C.SS.R. (Superior), Fathers Smyth, S.M., T. Gilbert, S.M., M.A., Daly, J. O'Connor, S.M., and B. Ryan, S.M. ; Auckland: Father Buckley; Christchurch: Very Rev. Deans Regnault, S.M., O'Donnell, and Hyland, Rev. Dr. Kennedy, Adm., Fathers C. Graham, S.M., M.A., J. Hanrahan, Peoples, S.M., and O'Leary, S.M. ; Dunedin: Very Rev. J. Coffey (Diocesan Administrator), Right Rev. Mgr. Mackay, Very Rev. Dean Burke, Fathers J. O'Neill, Hunt, O'Donnell, Murphy, P. O'Neill, McMullan, James Lynch, O'Dea, Howard, Delany, O'Reilly, John Lynch, P. J. O'Neill, Buckley, Corcoran, Liston, D. O'Neill, Kavanagh, Morkane, Farthing, Collins, Foley, Kaveney, Graham, Ardagh, Rooney, and Spillane. Commencing at 9 a.m. the Solemn Office of Requiem was sung, the chanters being Fathers Liston and O'Reilly. Pontifical Requiem Mass followed, Right Rev. Dr. Cleary, Bishop of Auckland, being celebrant, Right Rev. Mgr. McKenna, V.G., Wellington, assistant priest: Rev. Dr. Kennedy, Adm., Christchurch, deacon: Rev. C. Morkane, Holy Cross College, Mosgiel, subdeacon : and Father Buckley, Dunedin, master of ceremonies. The incidental music was splendidly rendered by St. Joseph's Cathedral Choir, assisted by the clergy, and students of Holy Cross College. Mr. A. Vallis presided at the organ, and at the conclusion of the solemnities played the "Dead March" from "Saul." The Cathedral and Sanctuary were draped in mourning. From the text, "Know you not that a Prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel?" (2 Kings iii., 38), the following panegyric was delivered by his Grace Archbishop O'Shea: In these words Royal David mourned the death of Abner, a valiant leader of the House of Israel who had been treacherously slain by Joab, one of David's own captains. And though the circumstances of our mourning are far different, how true it is that a Prince and a great man has fallen in the Church of God. This southern diocese of Dunedin has been widowed for the second time in its history, and the valiant Prince who for the past 22 years ruled it with gentleness, prudence, and dignity has laid aside for ever the cares aaid responsibilities of his exalted office. He had long since passed the allotted span of life, and the weight of four score years lay heavy upon his shoulders. But his mind was clear to the end, and his heart was young with the freshness that comes from God's grace and from intimate union with the Creator. It is not my intention, my brethren, to sketch for you the life of your late beloved Bishop. That has already been done. It will be, however, my privilege i.~ J„„ 4-« ««,•, « 4.„:U..4-„ „T,„„J- 4-1 I- -i. 1-_ J.- J.-L-------ra-uaj \AJ IJaJl Ja J a* Ui J.U'LIJJO, ouuit UJUUUgIi 1U uc, uu Lilt; memory of the saintly prelate whom I have known and revered ever since he came to New Zealand. His life stretched back over several generations of ecclesiastical history. It touched the days of the saintly Pius IX., whom the late Bishop knew intimately and of whom I have often* heard him speak. Then he lived also in the days' of the illustrious Cardinal Cullen, who was his uncle, and who played such a prominent part in the History, both ecclesiastical and political, of the last

century.;i : He was thus a link between the past and the present: - He had lived in his younger days in a world that was far different from ours. He had lived through times that ~ were stirring ones both for the Church and: for his native, land. He had known and mixed with many of the men who had made the history of those days. And during all the years he had acquired not only a fund of knowledge and ecclesiastical science, but also a wonderful experience of men and affairs. And thus he brought to bear on all things not only a clear, well-informed mind, but a judgment matured by long and varied experience. This in later years, when he was raised to the Episcopate, made him a tower of strength to the Hierarchy of New Zealand, who found his advice and counsel of the greatest help in settling every difficulty and in dealing with every situation which arose during the past 20 years. His taking away is therefore a distinct loss to them and to the whole New Zealand Church. And the work he did in his own diocese is here to speak for itself. When Dr. Verdon assumed the reins of government in Dunedin he succeeded one of the most fearless and energetic Bishops that has ever ruled in these southern lands. The late Bishop Moran had laid well and truly the foundations of the young diocese. He had lived in troublous times, and when the secular system of education was introduced into the Colony he quickly saw its dangers, and took a prominent part in combatting it as far as Catholics were concerned, and in establishing that splendid system of Catholic schools that are to-day our hope and our pride throughout the length and breadth of the land. The new Bishop was altogether different in character and disposition from his predecessor. His nature was not such as would prompt him to go out into the arena and give as well as take hard blows. He loved quiet and peace. But none the less he,continued Dr. Moran's educational programme, and one of his first acts was to strengthen the ranks of the teaching nuns of the diocese by introducing the Sisters of Mercy. With steady persistence he saw that new parochial schools were opened wherever they were needed. And in this work of providing primary education on Christian lines he was entirely successful. Nor did he forget to provide for the poor and the unfortunate, especially for the little ones, of his flock. A splendid orphanage was erected in South Dunedin, and "hundreds of children have passed from its sheltering walls to become useful citizens and good Catholics. Then the aged poor found him solicitous for their temporal and spiritual welfare, and he introduced, some years ago, the world-famed Little Sisters of the Poor, who have now such a splendid, flourishing home at Anderson's Bay. The orphans and poor of the diocese he looked upon as the special charge of the Bishop, and well and nobly did he provide for them. I have said that there were great contrasts between the late Bishop and his illustrious predecessor. The one was a fighter and a man of action, the other skilled in the arts of peace. We do not always understand the ways of Providence, yet when he began what was really his great work, his masterpiece in New Zealand, we realised how wisely and wonderfully the choice of God had rested on Dr. Verdon. For the great work of his episcopate, one that was not merely a diocesan but a national work, was the establishment of a seminary for the training to the priesthood of the young men of New Zealand. In all new countries like this Dominion, the first clergy must of necessity come from older lands, and in our case the first missionaries who preached the Gospel and attended to it.- — ;_:+., «l „„,r,t o n.f +.VIO onrliT .rrwlnrnsts ftamfi from (DC o[)uiuuwi "i"»-~ "» j -- - the fair land of France. But the first Catholic settlers were Irish, and very soon Irish priests followed their people to the Dominion. But in the natural course of events the supply of clergy from France and Ireland and'other older countries can not go on for ever. New demands are constantly being made upon the countries - that are l so famed ■ for their missionary activities to far-off lands: New fields will call their sous, as they are now doing, $o it is that these younger countries,

one© the faith has been planted by the missionaries from the Old World, must gradually, provide their own native clergy, if that faith is to strike deep and lasting roots in the soil. The French and Irish clergy of course realised this, and from the beginning they set about fostering, vocations to the priesthood among the youth of New Zealand. At first the candidates had to be sent many thousands of miles to Europe to be educated. This, however, had its disadvantages and difficulties, and the establishment of local seminaries . became a necessity. When the Bishops of New Zealand were assembled in Council at Wellington about 20 years ago this was one of the most important matters that they had to consider. Bishop Verdon offered to organise a seminary for the whole province, taking all, responsibility of it on his own shoulders. It was a noble offer for a man of his years to make, but it reveals to us the man of courage and self-sacrifice. At an age when most men think of laying down burdens he took up this work that was to have such far-reaching influence on the Church of New Zealand. Few men, of course, were better fitted than he for the work he undertook. He had spent the whole of his priestly life until his consecration in the seminaries of Home, of Ireland, and of Australia; and he knew what was . wanted. The work met with immediate success,, and from the day that Holy Cross College, Mosgiel, opened its doors it has made wonderful progress. The late Bishop watched over it with paternal care from its very inception to the day of his death. In the early years he lived there, and for a time he even took part in the work of teaching. In the course of a few years priests began to go forth from its walls to labor in the different dioceses. Speaking for my own Archdiocese of Wellington, I can testify to the excellent quality of the material that has been fashioned at Holy Cross College.. Some of our most promising young priests have been trained there, and the. first of the chaplains from New Zealand to give his life.-on. the battlefield received the whole of his . priestly training within its walls. The impress of the. late Bishop is upon the College and upon all who go forth from it. A splendid tradition has been established, and if Bishop Verdon had done no other work but this in New Zealand he would have earned our everlasting gratitude and that of succeeding generations. The work of visitation is one of a Bishop's chief, duties, for as the very name implies, a Bishop is an over-seer. Your late Prelate was faithful in its discharge, even to the last years of "his life, when-travel-ling for a man of his age was anything but a pleasure. He went into every part of the diocese administering. Confirmation and looking into the material and spiritual condition of each parish with close scrutiny. Thus he saw that all things were kept in a healthy condition and that the spiritual and educational needs- of each place were properly provided for. And perhaps it was this fidelity to the duty of being present at all important functions in his diocese-that hastened his death. He had arranged to preside at the re-opening of the fine church at Oamaru on a certain date last November, and to keep this appointment he attempted what was for him an impossible journey from the North Island. A frightful epidemic was raging, and all travel was ~ dislocated. "I did my best," he said when he reached » Wellington and found that he could proceed no farther. He loved the solemn liturgical ceremonial of Holy Church, and none could carry it out with more dignity or becomingness than the late Bishop. His glorious voice in the Church's' chant and his thorough knowledge of the ceremonies made a very great impression noon all who witnessed a.h'°. Pontifical function in which he took part. And he loved these' ceremonies not because of any personal liking .for display, for we all know that nothing could have been further from his thoughts, but because of the tremendous things that they enshrined. Nothing, to' his mind, could be"too grand or too magnificent either in music or ceremony for the House of God and the worship of the Almighty. These things, however, are but the externals of Catholicism, and if the Bishop W &B faithful t-P them he. was

none the less faithful to the essential things which are. not surrounded by pomp and circumstance. The sacred tribunal of Penance is one of these essentials, that sits in secret and in quiet, far removed from all display. And your Bishop week after week used to attend there for long hours at a time. God alone knows the amount of good he did in the Confessional. Think if you can of those who came in their numbers to lay their load of sin and sorrow at his feet and who went 'away comforted. You his own people know this far better than I, and for this reason alone his memory will be long held in benediction amongst you. Of his private life and constant union with God who shall dare speak ? That is known only to his Creator and Judge. Let it suffice to say that all who knew him, or had spent any time in his company, revered him as a saint. No self-seeking, no unworthy motive, ever prompted any action of his. He loved retirement, and he shunned notoriety, though whenever duty called him he was quite able to take his place with any one before the public and acquit himself with honor and credit. Personally I feel the loss of the late Bishop very keenly. However, this is not an occasion on which 1 may refer to personal matters, except to say that in the difficult times through which we had to pass quite lately he was ever a loyal, true friend and a wise and prudent counsellor. He is gone from - ' us, the saintly, cultured. Christian gentleman, and New Zealand is the poorer by his death. Rome, the Eternal City, Ireland, the land of disappointed hopes and broken promises, Australia, and our own fair land, have all borne witness to his labors. He died away. 1 from home, but not away from friends. Fitting it was that he who all his life loved quiet and retirement, should in" the end die amid the peace and solitude of. a monastic enclosure. In the years to come holy and . learned and distinguished Bishops will no doubt rule over this southern diocese, but no more lovable figure • will ev-r grasp the crozier of this Sep than Michael ■

Verdon, second Bishop of Dunedin. "Remember your . Prelates who have spoken the Word of God to you," wrote the great St. Paul, "whose faith follow." Yes,. remember your late Prelate, not merely by praying and ■ offering sacrifice for his soul, for this is a sacred duty on your part : but remember his teaching, and, above • all, his saintly example. "Whose faith follow." Yes, ' follow that faith of which Michael Verdon was both the Divinely commissioned teacher and the living exponent. Follow it no matter the difficulty, no matter , the cost, until the day when God will send His Angels, and they shall gather bishops, priests, and people into. His own beautiful Kingdom of "everlasting refreshment, light, and peace." Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.— Amen.

The Absolution at the Catafalque was given by his Lordship Bishop Cleary, thus concluding one of the most impressive ceremonials yet witnessed in Dunedin.,