Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXX, Issue 20, 15 May 1902, Page 24

Catholic World

AUSTRIA— An Ancient Custom. Following an ancient custom, Emperor Francis Joseph on Holy Thiurs 1 clay washed the feet of 12 paupers. The Emjperor wasjhed and dried the feet of each and then hung a bag of silver coins around their nocks Next, assisted by the Archdukes, tihe Empeior served the paupers with a three-course meal. The sum total of the ages of those thus served was 1 1070 years. A Conspiracy. The f Kolnischa VoJkszeitiUing, ' calls upon the Catholics of Austria, to renounce for tlhe present the dis.cussion of abstract questions and to apply themselves to the formation of a defensive league against the ' Los von Rom ' movement. The tune is undoubtedly ripe for strong, action on the part of Catholics. The leaders of the Protestant agitation in Austria have diisclosed themselves in their true colors. Their lea(der, Herr Schonerer, by calling in the Austrian Diet for cheers for the Ho'henzjollerns has shown that he is a traitor and a disruptiionist. The ' North German Gazette ' has thought well to denounce his conduct in an official communique. The Berlin correspondent of the ' Times' who cannot be suspected of any prejudice in favor of Catholics, asserts that the ' JLos von Rom ' movement is assuming the aspect of a treasonable conspiracy ag-ainst the integrity and independence of the Austrian Empire. The ' Kreuz Zeitung,,' an organ of militant Protestantism, frankly acknowledges that/ it cannot greet with enthusiasm a movement which, under cover of an appeal to the national unity of all Germans, is untrue to its own fatherland. BELGIUM. The Belgian Chamber of Representatives has, by D 3 votes to seven, adopted in its entirety the AntiG ambling Bill in the form amended by the Senate. The Bill definitely provides for the suppression of g|ainbling clubs in Belgium, and is equally applicable to Ostend and Spa. ENGLAND. In honor of the now Cathedral at Westminster, the Holy See baa i\U'scdi thu number of the memibers of tho Metropolitan Chapter to 18, and seven new Canons ha\e been appointed. The new Canons are Right Rev. Mgr J . E. Crook, of Thorndon ; Right Rev. Mgr. John Vaaighan ; Very Rev. G . Delaney, St. John's Wood , Very Rev Langton Vere, Soho , Very Rev W. Fleming, Moorfields ,t, t Very Row Michael Fanning, Pro-Cathedral, Kensington ; Very Retv Thomas Dunn, secretary to Cardinal Va-ugihsui. Right Rev. J. L. Patterson, Bishop of Emmanus has been appointed Provost of the Chapter. Collections for the Holy Places. The collections from the various dioceses of England, Scotland, and! Wales for the Holy Land have this year amounted to £1081 18s 7d, a marked rincrensc on last year. Tho money lias been despatched to the Father Gustos of the lioly Places at Jerusalem. French Nuns. The Hastings Hydroputhir. a largp building in extensive grounds at Ol(d Town, Hastings, has been purchased by the Nuns of Perpetual Adoration, sixty of wihom are coining froiui France to reside there. Death of a Priest. Tho death is reported of the Rev. Francis Stephen Ffrench, rector of All Saints', Gloss-op, in his 45th year. Father Ffrench enjoyed a more than local reputation as an eloq/uent preacher, and for somo years he was diocesan inspector of

schools. He was a member of the great Irish family of Ffrenoh, of Mayo and Galway, a great-grand-nephew of the Liberator, and brother of County Cpurt Judge Ffrench. Temperance Work. Father Hay's temperance crusade is being taken up witth enthusiasm. His visit to Jarrow-on-Tyne a few weeks ago was an immense success. His Worship the Mayor, who presided ami welcomed Fatjher Hays, said it was ' the largest and most enthusiastic meeting of any kind ever held in the town for 25 years ' The doors of the Mechanics' Hall were opened at six, and before seven o'clock the spacious hall was completely .crowded in every part. Supporting the Mayor were the clergy of the various religious denominations in tlhe town, the Catholic priests of St. Bede's, many of the leading people and p,ubMc men from Gateshead, Stockton, Sputh Shields, Hepiburm, etc. Father Hays received a great reception, the audience cheering for several minutes. The rev. gentleman delivered a remarkable speech, which lasted over two hours. He pleaded for the moral and socnal uplifting of the people by the removal of the terrible deg^ra/dat'ions and temptations of social vice and misery. Their work for temperance was beset by many difficulties and enemies on all sides, but it was in the best interests of God and their fellow-men that they should succeed. The living God was on their side, and whatl did it matter if all the world! was against them. The lecturer proved from statistics that if intemperance was wiped out we might close half the asylums, mine out of every ten of the prisons and workhouses, and save the co.untry £260,000,000 every year. The speaker concluded with a burning appeal to his hearers, and, although he had spoken for two hours and five minutes, the vast audience, large nuixibers of whom had to stand in the passages and entrances, cheered and urged him to continue. Air. Hardy (Newcastle) proposed and the Rev. Mr. Pickering seconded, the vote of thanks. On the Mayor's invitation, Father Hays gfavc his blessing to tlhe people who afterwards ga\e him a great ovation. Blessing the Colors. ITis Majesty the King has invited the Right Rev. Dr. Brindle, D.5.0., Bishop of Nottinghiani to bless the colors of the recently-formed regiment of Irish Guards on June 24. Bishop Brindle was formerly an army chaplain, and until the beginning of the year was auxiliary to his Eminence Cardinal Vaughan. A Good Idea. A very interesting, scheme has been started by the Itev. Peter E5. Amig,o, of Walworth, England, who is founding a settlement where yaungj men of the world who feel drawn to a clerical life may, without leaving their daily pursuits, work among the poor and gain an experience which will decide them after a year or more of life in tins settlement as to whether their true vocation is tha priesthood. The novices, should they be considered to have a true vokcatt,on, wiifl L(e enabled to proceed to the seminary to undergo the regulation trainijng for the priesthood. FRANCE.— A Statue. A. colossal statue of tihe Blessed) Virgin sculptured by M. Godebski, who accepts no payments from the subscribers for his work, is to be placed at the point on the Breton coast nearest to the place where Sir Donald Curries Cape liner, the Drutmnnond Castle, went down six years ago. MEXICO.— An Album. The monumental album soon to be presented to Leo XIII., by the Catholic women of Mexico, now contains the enormous number of 50,000 names.

ROME.— Ordinations. At the ordination he|d at St. John Lateran at Rome, on March 15, the Rev. M W Cave, M.A., who was for fi\e yours curate at St. .John's Protestant Church, Tuebrook, Liverpool, was admitted to Minor Orders and the I lev. M. J. B. Richards. B.AJ., who, when a Protestant curate assisted the Rev. Mr. Underbill for a short time at St Thomas', Toxteth, Lneipool, was made a subdeacon Scots College. Aat the General Ordination held at St. JoJm Lateran 's on tho Saturday before Passion Sunday, Alexander Walton, Alexander Mackintosh, John Noonan, and Alfred Smith-Stein-metz, of Scots College, recened tho last two minor orders An Audience. Am/ongftt those recently received ht private audience by Loo Xlll was Bishop HJanlon, the Vicar-Apostoliic of Uganda, who gave the Holy Father a very encouraging report of tJhe progress m the province confided to his care. in taking his leave Bishop EPanlon propertied Loo Xllf ,with a superb walking-stick made out of one piece of solid ivory brought from Uganda. The King's Coronation. The Pope has chosen Mgr the Princo Gran i to di Belmonte, Nuncio at Brussels, to icpresent him at Kin\g Edwarld's coronation Disappointed. The trial of the four mon charged with complicity m the robbery of four hundred thousand lire sit the Vatican concluded about the middle of March. One of them named S<otlo was found g,uill.\, and sentenced to eight years' linpnsunnnMit The other prisoners weie acquitted The ' interesting revelations ' hoped for by tho anti-Catholics ;uul sensationmongers did not take place. An Envoy. An envoy from President Roosevelt is expected at the "Vatican l-lo will sipn the agreement conclhuied between the Hoiv Sop and 1 hi; Washington Government rel.\tiv<> to the, Philippines 'I ho onv o\ will at the same time pusem to the Il'oly Father IMI . li.oo-,e\elt s felicitation's on his recent anniveisaiv Tins is tho Jirsi tune Unit tho United States Government has been nidiiecL relations with tihe Jlolv See and sent a mission to the Pope SCOTLAND. Close upon .i thousand Catholics, met on Sunday afternoon \lauh Hi. m St Mary's school. Leith, to witness the making of pi esent at ions to Bishop Gaaighren on his leaving to take up iris duties in Souih Mrica The hist was that of a puise containing 11.") soveieinns cm. behalf of the congieigiation of Si Mai \ -. tjio next was an emerald episcopal ring, given hv the ladies of tin- Inunaculatn Conception Sodality, ami this was followed b\ a portable altai from the Young Men's Societ \

The Catholic Church. In the comrse of an article in the> Edinburgh ' Evening Dispatch on ' Catholicism in Scotland,' the writer says :— ' Not only has the influence of the Roman Catholic Cbjurch spread in a remarkable manaier, but what is oven more noticeable, is the tendency of Churches, not untder the sway of Rome, to adopt customs, pracricos and ceremonies in their Church worship which are essentially Romish. In tihese days when the Christian Church at large, when religion is struggling to maintain its influence on the peqple, when the vast amount of attention which ly paid to business matters is taking men's minds from the Church, when,' in fact religion is nothing more Lha;r> a bore to many, the Catholic Churcih seems to stand the test of circumstances better than any other. At any rate, the outcry in the Catholic Church against the decline of religion is not so much heand a.s in other churches, and the falling off in church attendance is nothing as compared with other religious bodies. It is the aim of tho Catholic Church to make its church functions as bpleiildid as possible In other Churches the centre of interest is the, preacher invariably, and the principal part of the service the sermon. Tho important service in the Catholic Church is, of course, the Mass,, and the principal Mass on Sundays, usually celebrated at mitiday, is in the larger ohjurches ji function of harmonious pomp and venerable ceremony The attention of the worshipper is attracted to the altar, where in tho small tabernacle reposes in golden vessels what Catholics recognise as the real presence of Christ, in the form of bread. The, Mass is simply a repetition of the Sacrifice of tho Cross, and the altar is the Calvary. One c.umot wonder, thorefore, that the aliar us in most cases a beautiful example of the sculptor's- and the painter's art, and the reason of the extensive floral decorations ajid the burning lights is at once understood.' Death of an Archbishop. When the last mail loft Scotland the venerable Archbishop of Glasgow, tho Most Kov. Dr. Eyre, was reported to be dangerously ill A cable message in one of our American Catholic exchanges, under date March 27, reports tho death of the distinguished prelate SPAIN.— The Religious Orders. The Spanish Government has decided that the decree of September 19. 1901, with regard to the religions Orders its to bo maintained. This decree requires all religious associations in Spain, excepting those authored by tho Concordat, to become registered within six months under pain of being dissolved Unauthorised religious houses will, it is aminouncod, be closed UNITED STATES. Bishop Fole\ , of Detroit, USA., has just s«a\od a bank from suspending The Dime Jiank of that city hajd paid out over i? 100,000 ownvg

to a false rumor, and the storm in~ creased. Bishop Foley then appeared at the bank and advised the depositors to retire and leave their m^ ncy> saying it was perfectly safe, mo alarmed depositors thereimoja departed. ' An Undesirable Visitor. The infamous Margaret Shephard, instead of going to Australia, acr cording to her aamoujneed ;ntoutio^i (t>a-is the Boston i'llot ') on her compulsory departure from Columbus, 0., went to Memphis, Term.., and secured a hall for one of her slanderous anti-Catholic lectures When, however, the history of her latest escapade, as detailed in the Oathohc Colmnbian,' wag laid before the Mayor by a .committee of CaUuolic gentlemen, he at once revoked her licenso and she had to leave the city. Through the same agency she was kept out of Nashville, Term., altogether, and when, she gets to Australiar-if, indeed, she will dare that country— she will still md the doors barred against her by the friends of truth and decency. Chicago. SSiST 1 in the wLte <* «- Catholic Statistics. th^V^ frolic directory places TTn % r P at o + Ol i c P°PWation of the Phw A ?* tates at 10.976,757, or Ca?hhiv alf a million less than the Catholic population of Russia There are 12,429 diocesan and rt gulai clergymen in the country The rliVr l iVh d T St \ tes cont^s also 10,681 Catholic churches. Seven universites are placed to their credit, and "which 0 <2no theol °e ic^ semtaaSS Drm-SVori f 2 . y° un S men are being ? h£n }v ° r the P ri esthood. Besides these there are 163 colleges for young men, and 629 academies for .young ladies. Three thousand eijht hundred a,nd fifty-seven parishes have parochial schools and these are a? tended by 919,378 children. ThSe figures rather indicate progress Archdiocese of St Louis. The Catholic population of St .Unas is now over 220,000. A Bequest. Word has reached the Catholic University that it has been mSe a beneficiary ujider the will of the late Mrs. Sojroih Ferris Devlin, of Bosto^ Mass., for the sum of £10,000. GENERAL. Rejoicings in the East. The Pope's Jubilee was celebrated aV\. , hant manner in Jerusalem All the hospitals and .convents of the Latin rite, as well as the Patriarchates and Consulates, were brilliantly illuminated. Bible Studies. So little is as yet exactly known (says a Catholic exchange) and so much has been said on the work that is set before the Papal Commission on Holy Scripture,, that it is well to

bear in mind the warning given in the 'American Ecclesiastical Review' for March. Addressing those Who expect the Commission to act as the Dous ex machina iaa a Greek tragedy aoid solve every difficult Biblical situation, the writer says : 'We mi&ht as well ask the Holy Office to edit an official course of theological textbooks as expect that the new commission should have a readv-mnde answer to every doubt concerning Biblical topics. Private research is not to cease ; but, in order to lighten its burden and responsibility, it has been considered prudent to erect a permanent Court, which must decide whether our recent methods anltf conclusions in the field of Bible stuldy lie within the limits allowed by the teaching of Holy Mother Chairch. Catholic scholars, therefore, have now a permanent information bureau where they may find out whether they have swerved from the path of truth in their views as to the identity of the Bible, or its authority, or again its exegesis.' This apparently «is to be the function of the Pontifical Commission, of which, by the way, no authoritative list of members has ,\el been. issued. Until some official pronouncement has been made, it will be wise to form no definite conclusions.