THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10494, 4 December 1911, Page 5

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

ITS ATTITUDE IN RECAR- TO PROHIBITION. At St. Patrick's 'Church, Masterton yesterday, the Very Rev. Dean McKeama, who conducted the ceremonies throughout thie day, read to (the congregation an announcement authorised""7>y Has urace Archbishop iai reference to the question, of Pihohiibition.' _ The Rier Deani announced that a. similar announcement {to that which' was read had! been, ordered to be. read in every Catholic Church throughout the Diocese on that day. He stated l that the subject matter of the announcement, mnanely, tflile object, and. effect of the pitoliribitxuoni vote, was 1 one of very great importance and. far-reaching efifeet as far a« the Church was condenied. The announcement, which was. read, stated that the accredited! leaders of the Prohibition movement dm. oiew Zeadandj hadl openly declared tlhjat the use of wane Bar any pairpose was 1 in itself wrong, and that their aiim and object was to finaiLly banish it from. the country altogether, and 1 further, that within ten, years froim now, wine would not be allowed into the Dominion even for religious or medicinal purposes. Wine being an essential' and indispensable commodity in the Choir eh, both in the cdLhratitan of the Mass and in the administering of the Sacirameait> the prohibition! of wine and the assertion that the use of wine is' in itself wrong, not only meets, with the, dieapproval of the . Catholic Church, j&uit aJlso threatens to endanger its existence in this Pqmamon, and) to prevent its administering its sacred rfttes to its people in.'New-; Zealand, peaai- McKenna declared that it was {therefore the duty of every member of the Catholic Church to guard Bnost zealously, audi by every meanis' an the/ill* power, against any such attempted inundation of their faith, and that the Catholic Church, wittJh this object in, view, enjoined upjoni /its memlbers to vote agaiin&t prolbibiition. The ehtuircn had, he saad, ever advocatedi temperance. He exhorted his congregation to istrive for temperance an all things, but prohibition or the abolition of the gifts of God ion account of the mis-aise or abuse iby a few, never were; nor ever could Ibe, the. teachings of the CatWoloc (Church. THE CHURCRES AT PALMERSTON. THE iLRXXHDEACON'S CIRCULAR, (By Telegraph — Press Association.) PALMERSTON N., Last Night v Tli© No-flicense crusade is being carried oni most Vigorously here by nearly aM. the clergymen,, excepting •the Anglicans and* Roman Catholics. X<ast Sunday evening the <Rev. DouiL. at Sit. Andrew's Church, J preached strongly in-Jravour of pro- ! ihibiition. Other Ministers have ailso j idOne so. The Rev. Rosher, of the I Anglican. Chnrch, however, recently j referred in a sermon to temperance asi against prohahrilfcion, and to-day, at St. Patrick's. Church, Father Oostello read a letter from Archbishop Redwood! in. reference to a statement of the- Rev. Hammond, of Sydney, who is touring the country for thte •No-license League. The circular begins:— "The leaders of the No-lic-ense Party have publicly declared! itQuat if national) proMbition is l cardied, one of- the result® will be that, after about ten years, no wine, even for medicinal or sacramental purposes, will be allowed into the Dominion.. As thiiß would lender the celebration of Mass impos'sdMie, w» feel obliged to warn our people against prohibition, and to waa*n them not to vote for it." Father Costelo said that he would not have referred to this matter otherwise, though in. some other ch/wcliesi here sermons favouring prohffbitioii had been, preached. The Catholic dootrimte was one of temperance. _ Men, who preached that wane was in itself an evil must preach that Christ was a had man,. HSis first miracle was to convert water into wine at the request of his workers, which His steward declared'to be the best wine kept to the la-si. The elements istituting goOd wine and good spirits were not evil, but were created by God Himiseli. Ht was not their use, but their abtuse-, that the Qhiurch condemned. There was no haT*m' in taking wine in moderation, and for those who "could not take it in moderation, bv their owai free will, men. teetotallii&m was the remedy. Ttaf was a. free country and reform shouild .be a free-wiilH reform, not an enforcI ed one,