ARCHBISHOP REDWOOD

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1439, 14 May 1912, Page 6

ARCHBISHOP REDWOOD

JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS. TWENTY-FIVE TKARS AS METRO- ' I'OUTAN, | Yesterday was the twenty-fifth anniversary of the appointment by Papal Brief of "Archbishop liodwood to the Roman Catholic Arch-diocese of Wellington. The Catholic community in the ciiy propose to celebrate the festival as a jubilee, but tile actual celebrations are not lo take place until Wednesday, -May ii. The ceremollies will begin with Pontifical High Mass in the Basilica, Hill Street, to be celebrated by Archbishop Hedwood himself. The occasional sermon will he preached by the llight Reverend Bishop Grimes, of Christchurch. Bishop Cleary, of Auckland, Bishop Verdon, ol Duneiiin. and many of the clergy of the Arehdioceso will also be present in the sanctuary. At mid-day the Archbishop is to be entertained at luncheon by the clergy, and they will afterwards present him with an address and a testimonial in the shape of a of sovereigns. In the evening tho laity are to entertain his draco at a conversazione in the Town Hall, at which they also will present him with an address and a testimonial. It is intended that, the members of the Catholic Societies iu Wellington shall escort the Archbishop from his residence in Hill .Street to tho Town Hall. Tho Most Heverend I'rancis Redwood, first Archbishop of Wellington and Metropolitau uf New Zealand was born iu Staffordshire, England, on April 8, 183!). lie was but three years old when his parents, who sprang from a rac-e of sturdy yeomen, left llugiand lo make a new home in far-olf Mew Zealand, taking their little soli with them. The family settled i;i the Nelson district, and there the boy, Francis Redwood, was educated at father Uarin's school, lie was such a promising pupil that Father Cuiriu prevailed upon his parents to give him a better education than was obtainable in .New Zealand, and when he was a lad of 15 he was sent to France, ilo was tho first ecclesiastical student sent from New Zealand to prepare for the_ priesthood. After a distinguished course he was ordained priest, making his religious profession in the Society of Mary on January (i, ISIM. After entering holy orders he occupied important positions as Professor of Philosophy and Theology in Oundalk and Dublin. Dr. Kcdwood was called to the episcopate, and consecrated by his Eminence tho late Cardinal Mantling, then Archbishop, at the Church of the Marist Fathers, Spitalfields, London, on March 17, 1871, and at the same time he was appointed Titular Bishop of 'Wellington. He actually took charge of the See of Wellington in November of the same year. He was created Archbishop on May 13, 18S7, and was thus constituted Metropolitan of New Zealand, When Dr. Redwood came to take charge of it, the diocese extended from Wairoa and New Plymouth iu the north to the Waitaki River in the south,' which is to say-that it included the present diocese of Christchurch. In all this immense district there were then'3l priests, two" of whom' were invalids, and two of whom were resting in Sydney. There were '24 districts and about 58 churches. The total number of schools was 34, and at only five of them was the instruction given by clerks or nuns; in the others it was given by secular teachers. The growth of the religious institutions in Wellington since that timo bears some testimony to Archbishop Redwood's zeal and ability in administration. Now in the arch-diocese alone there are 85 priests, 30 religious brothers, and 39G nuns. The area is divided into 3!) districts, in which are 12G churches. Of educational auad ciiaritabie institutions controlled by the Church there are one col lege, one '.semitiary, fourteen high schools, fifty primary schools, three orphanages, and two homes for incurables:. There are being educated in the Catholic schools in the arch-diocese -JfiOO children, and the Catholic population is 53,000, From St. Patrick's College about 10 young men have entered the priesthood, and tliey are now at work in every branch of the Ministry iu the Dominion. Archbishop Redwood bears the reputation of being a 'preacher of uncommon gifts, a learned and cultured man, and an indefatigable worker. In his pastoral letters and official pronouncements he has frequently expressed his deep interest in religious education, and has often been instrumental in obtaining scholarships and exhibitions for tho benefit of Catholic children. St. Patrick's College is ono of the most notable monuments to his zeal in this direction, for it was he who conceived the idea that culminated in its establishment. An editorial congratulatory article in the "New Zealand Tablet" in April, 190;), stated: "The Archbishop's history is to an extent the history of the Catholic Church in New Zealand. He saw tho Church in this Dominion expand from the few scattered Catholics of his boyhood days, with the single pioneer Bishop Pompallier, down to the rich growth of the present year of grace."