RECEPTION IN ASHBURTON OF THE CATHOLIC BISHOP.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1786, 10 March 1888, Page 2

RECEPTION IN ASHBURTON OF THE CATHOLIC BISHOP.

I To-day will be marked with a white stone and «*i'l long be reofembered with pleasure by fie members of tha Roman OtrhoHo Ohuroh. resideat m the town aid dwtriot of Aahburt m ih haviop <dcnflßa"d the Brat visit c f ihe 6 «t Bishop of the Dawly-crwated See of 0 irtatchuro'i— the Kt,iht Key Dr Grimis. . His Lordship, who has just retarded from a visit to the southern portion of bia rToceee, and who has received an aff otionate welcome by hia people m Timarn, Walmate, and all the plnoes he has visited, arrived by the 10.45 am. 1 train from Titnaru and met whh quite an ovation Snortlp befocn that hour the of the Aahbu-'t-in R fla*, nunanring 14 perf >rtners, node' Btndm^ter H Bkpn i ar had up to h > r»ilw*y a uti-in wh-ra a Urge or wi if p .pie various y eB im»te ' at f om 500 lo 800 paruom had nsaenu >led, a d atruoli up a strain of trelcome as the raid steamed m His Lordship, who w+a raet by the Ke7 Pviher Ohaa'a^non, on alighting fr-m th- train wos greetei wlh " Three cti-era for the first B<ah p of Ohria church," called for by M.<- D*nUl Brick, atid yNei with great hnartneas, and nf^r ackn iwiedt/in^ tha re«peo r fal of a brge number of hio fl o*, entered an opnn narouohe h<r■>esaad with a four m hand cVani by Air iNfwman, ani decorated profusily wito l>»Doif'»iinaa lilie*, a d **>» cv Father O^iastagnon aad vlea!>rs D B-lok and J Boyie i avtog taka:i seats m toe ca riige -i prdOPst-i n waa form^j. The b^ni led vhe wsy followed by the ctji'd en and m m tern of the oongregiiion on foof, next ttio Bishop's o*rn.K»f, > nd thou gentlemen m horaebuck, and the order of m»rch htv<n<; been, arranuel 'ht? pro^siin ptseialorg he Wukanui read to Ohbs ■soreec, theuca u> Vloor j atredt and theuoa y East street and Barne.t sirebtj to the Ohuroh. At the Ohuroh door oheera were again 'i-PD, -nd hi* L >rddbip, attended by the R-v Fathers Chaata.nou and Oummi« ga p occe eel ap (he <%^la to the aha-, the t^raud " M •gmfioai " oein^ snsg by the c^"ir at the u>ne.

M> D. Brick read the following a-Jdreas, w: ioh had beea drawn np on behalf of •he congregation by Dr Leahy, . Meßara Mailer and AcUuaa. Mat it Please Your Lordship, — On eh* occciaioo of this your firat visit to cm* district, we, the 0 nholio Laity of Aahbar<on, hastea to bid you a warm and hearty We'come. From the time you were appointed to the spiritual government of this diocese .our hearts wont forch m affaotioa to yoa as a father, and at the solemn moment when the Consecrating Pout/iff imposed hia hands upon y«u at tit Aao'u (London) we, both Priest and people, joined In the pious ch<>rns of that great congregation, and poured for-h prayers with Bincere wishes for your succe»a and happiness In this land of your adoption. la. spirit we followed you also to the Eternal Oity, and when yoa knelt before the auguat aud supreme Pent iff we oouid well imagine the warnvh with which yoa exclaimed, from your heart, "Oh Lao 1 fe^oa art Peter, and from thee alona do I receive my m flaioa," and aa St Patrick and 8t Au^uatine went forth m the at ength of the blessiug of Ohrist'a ViOir so you also set out for this far distant shore of New Z aland. We watched likewise with great, acx ety for the safety of the chip which brought yoa to your new See aiid home, and uub^uuded were our rej aoiogs when y< v landed safely amont>B< your cUv ted flock. Whilst we pio we ct.mi g you to-day we cai not o r caul fn>m y»ur Lordahip the d«ep re^rt-t we f*el at parting from that 14 rent scholarly Archbiahop (Dr Kedwood), whom the Sydmy prths styles the oratui f.f the Auatrali vi C lurch; we are proud that Rome has chosen au Hcolesiastio of such m rl a and brilliant talents, to yr»ce .<%> d H'l!>ru th i iirat Metropolitan iSea oi New Zealand. Wo a, co, my L >rd, r«j >ics and thank A mighty God that you, too, niatinga «hed ny yoar merits. h»v« beec. oh sco by the Holy Sbi ir m «ra >ogst ihi memba<-s if the illuatrioud 53<-oitty of Alary, lorae of whose pi>os <md le^rood sons fave be n 'he pictuoera of he faith m t'nis beautiful laud, and have found d cou.'C <es, eoh Oi-, a< d c >v vents, from tiie uorhto the s uh of this coiimy, Htjd are wotkin^ to-day with 'ho sam.- z aI and euergy ao of yore, an» what should make ua revere these Holy m n iLe uio'e is h*i one of theu KUUibar had Bea'ei the F.ith of Ohrist b> thu eh-dding of his bioud m the Spujhern Hemisphere, and aha,tt soon bu pl<ioad as the first Kt-d Koeo <>f Martyrdom on Australia's A'tsrs (The Venerable Father Ouanel, <>f Futun. )> We, my L-rd. or at lu«st the mßJirity of us, pi o. idly clrtim to be the Gailurvu of the Isle of ftaiate, of the L*ud of th.cc great. Buholars, who held aloft t' e limp of faiSn and, knowledge, whan the other natioi a of Europe sat m darn tees hnd iv the shadow of death. W« are at»o the childien of mdrtyrs, who ehed their blood for the faith, wh », m the midst of" fieroe struggles and perßeooiions, thair hearts ever turned towards Home, the great centre, whe.uce flj«a the heart's blood of Christianity to its most distantmembers ; like thtra, we receive lovingly the womß and command' of Peters eucqessor . We hailyoqin our miUßt as iur Bjahop and Spiritual i^athar. St Patriqk, Ireland's Ap 'Btle, has ttuj?ht ua lovingly to accept whatever Kome has u't^red, and m voice and heart we exclaim this day—O Leo, thou are Peter, ani m ihy bark alone can we re- eh Heaven a bright chores. Therefore, my Lord, be not aorprlaed that we are so ove j yeJ to welcome you to-day, the rt»pr»B<-matiwe of the Holy Father, with a true •' Oead Mille Failthe." Probably you *ro avare that this pariah is pressed down by a heavy incubus of debt, but we are glad to asdure you, my Lord, that throng;a. the exertions of our st-lf BBonfioiitg Pistor (the Rev Father OhaßtagDon) wearestrainingererynetreto overcome uur difjSculties, and hope with the aaßistanco of At mighty God and your co-operation, we will be eoabled eventually to place the fjaan'oial ajfafrs of our pariah oo a B'a- is'f *pt'ory basis.' We do not intend, on this ausplplous occasion, to troab o you with our private »ff»irß. You will be glad, however, to learn that the good and gentle Sisters of the Mission have charge of the education of our girts, Oar boys sohool is on a good solid footing, yet it demauds from ua great sacrifice for its sapporfc. Wishing you ogatn a heaty welcome and begging y )ur Lordship's blessing we hare the honor to remain your devoted ohildren m Ohrist. i

I His Lordship replied to tha address In a epeeoh of ureat power and eloquence. Be referred m feeling tßrrns to the hearty welcome that bad bean *o>orde'l him, the warai upresaiou ot which was shoirn m t he words mar tha o oae of the address Gead Milk FAlfht. the feenle tranil«ri 0D oi which was a hundred thousa id -vruloumes. 1 ihere had Imbu any tniaijlviuds on his p*rt wheu o >minij here from a neiyliburiog parish, th«y were c implfltely diapeJed on hla «rci7il Ie w*a graiifytug io see Ashburton turn on 1 , m its hnudreda, mi^ht not he t>t,y tiioiisaVidß, and ijb was gratifyiug to hear the wartri w 'looma that had been aob >rded him. J 1 jih the bottom of hia heart ho return jd them a hundred thoi^*nd thanks Tuty had ceoeived him as a Bibhop, ao a Prtnoe uf the 0 «uron. H* »« not so pr fumproouj aa to think t <«c thta w a ou hcoouut of any p, r*u.al u.ecit he m gai p.-esoss ; ,h»t w..nld be folJy, and th« tact ihai he waa a s ai^er to theia w mta p-eolude ihu b»re idea An ne o*m > tnt » rhe «Jbuiuh »rd he*rd the " Ma^u.tioat " |)o hou^nt of the p»*ec of the Ohuroh aud its^vitulity, aud the words m which tba Lord brd P^ter gu for m ia Hts uaaa^, W&9O th« wlßiioo wn gtvon to the. tl tab

Bishop of the Christian dispensation reoarred to his mind. He osma among ihem »8 a stranger, bafc be felt sure that he wou'd receive a welo ma because he als > came m the mmc of »he Lord. They were with him In aoir t when the couseorating Poauff itnpised hia h>mds opon him, appointing him to the Bpritual gov rnment of tats diocese, and he tfiaolced thtm for their pray ra. They toll) him that thy also Hcnotnuaoied him m spirit to the Eter lal Oiry, and Into the presenoa of the august aud snpreme Pontiff. He need not speak to tbeto of the emotions of an occasion like fhis ; they who were of the household could under- , stand what the Oatholia heart felt — that m entering the Vatican he was breathing another atmosphere to that of the world. He ft'lt indoed r,hat Peter wa* speaking through 'heaagujtand supreme Pontiflf, and fr un hia hean he oned : " Jh Leo t thoa *rt P-jcef, and fr m thee alooe do I receive my miss on." It wai a great Pont ft \rho seat Sr. P*trlok t» that deat land to which so nanny < f them owed their birth, He was thr*re reot-ived as a Prince of t'r c Ohiuoi, and he left behind him that a'taohme it aa ' r-^speat on the part of the people for the Priests of the Oharoh whioh ra^rks oat the children of tfyatraa*. I hey had brooght i »eae sentiments to this land, the l»nd "f their ani his adoption. < For thia was oov the laud of hrn adoption; God, at the hinds of the Pontiff, had sent h m here. Ie who had sent St Patrick to Ireland, at d S Augustine to England had sent him to thia land. They told him that they had awaited his oomttg with watchful anxiety, but the reason of big d-ilay was that ha had been detained •ome weiks through his eagerness to ibt^in some devoted men to teach m tha schools hare, a atep to which tha disin* t^rebta I ani Belf-saorificing men, who had oirriei on.th^t work for many yeus past) were the first to give their adherence. That detained him two or three weeks, and bis cul.tsion to Home kept him till: the time of hia departure. They told him that 'hey watohed with anxiety fir his coming. Ho kne* that the self-aaorfhlug Pfiasti aud Hevoted people were praying for him to come, and he thanked them f>r what they did. They expressed a fueling oZ

reg-et, which h? shared with them, at losing De Redwood, and he would nuke it a pleaßiag duty to remit to his Grace the expression of the feelinga they entertained towards him. There was mattsr for congratulation, however, that the Archbishop's connection with them, would not be broken, thmgh it would nob ba so close aud strong as it us-d to be. They spoke of his belonging to the Sooiety of Mary, a family that was very dear to him and for which their D*ator hid expressed his eßteem Th« Marlst fathers wire the pioneers of Christianity m this country, and it was only the other d*y when vlaitlug one of the remoter parts of his diocese that ha bad heard of the good work that had been done by tnena. They had sown and watered ; and It was for him, he hoped, to re»p. He referred to the hardships the Mariat fathers had to undergo, aud to come, not Oatholios, who gave the fathers hospitable shelter and weloome, even allowing O^thoiica to assemble at their houses, and he was sure Goi would reward these g icd people for what toey had done. Tne Marlst fathers had d>na well and their example all should follow, walking m their foo' steps as closely ag they ooald Referring to the Marlst father who was martyred at the inlands, His Lordship pointed oat a 'parallel between the resu ts that followed bis deatb and those that fallowed the deaths of the early Ohr atian Martyrs. During F.ther Oh *oiel'a life the savages refused co reoogn'se Christianity because of its restraints n their horrible vie- a; but when the Father was slain the blood of his mariyroi m became the seeds of ObriiJ tianity. The sav»geß were reclaimed from heathenism and the island was now on* of the model inlands of the episoopacyVi The address epoke uf the heavy Incubur of debt, on th« pariah Their pastor had : told him what they had done la this regard, and m tita and o'Cher things he needed not to mention, ha ear a proof of th«ir attaobnunt to the faith. He thanked «bern for what they "'"** h*d already done and he tbbnked them f>r tie \ rotni c they made that they wnqld a'-ain cv ry nnrvc to over* o me the r d ffi ul tea and he trusted that with A ; mii.»ht, God's meroy th-y would auco >ed Hia Lotaship <hen m*ae a few remarks m r.gard to il q aducation of the chrdren Tne children rtad the entry of the open hearts of all B shops and priests; Oarlst.himaolf, hadaho*i flia love for them and m spite of wh <t uncouth men said He bade them come nsar. He blessed them and olasped them to His sacred heart. They alt knew the blessings of a Oatholia reUgiom eduoaMon and they would reap the reward of their present aaonfioe. Their children would be an honor to th^ua aud t» their country. Train up tne children m th 6 way they should go, and the scored writer said that when they crew up they would not depart from it. As they loved their children's immortal soulb, A3 they were mindful of the account .they would have to render' for them, let them give their children a OhrUtlan education and teaoh them to know God. This they were doing and be uVged them to ftp on In the future ap they ha|d done m the p^st; 'After making a brief allasiou to the mlaaion that had been going on during the last week His Lord* ship m thanking them finally for the tfojal welcome they had given him said that he would pray God, every day, to bless the resolutions they had made. He asked | them to ponder ovor the lessons tbey had received, to think of the mercy of God and pray for power to keep the resolutions they had formed. Mr John Small, on behalf of the oongtegatlon, here presented his Lordahip with a purse of sovereigns. His Lordihip aaid that this was another surprise, and he thanked them very heartily. He took it as an earnest of what tbey would do for their Ohurob. The money would not be devoted to his own intereattut to the go'jd of the diocese, some of the institutions of which he had fouad were embarrassed a little. ' fo these he 'would devote money, unless they wished otherwise. ' His Lordship referred to the lervloej that would be held on Sunday. He then extended indqlgenoes tor forty days to the congregation, his oomnisaloa from Blfi Holiness, to do so, being read by Father Oummings. The episcopal blessing was pronounced, aud the congregation dispersed.