The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVI, Issue 24, 18 June 1908, Page 31

The Catholic World

BELOlUM— Catholic Societies The thirty-ninth Congress of the Federation of Belgian Catholic Societies was held on, M>y 26 at Warenne, near Liege. Two thousand persons were present. M. Woeste, leader of the Parliamentary Eight, spoke in favour of the annexation of the Congo, and was enthusiastically applauded. CHlNA— Death of a Bishop Cable advices from Sian-fu, in China, announce the death of Right Eev. Athanasius Goette, 0.F.M., Vicar-Apos-tolic of North Chen-si. Bishop Goette was formerly a member of the Sacre.l Heart Province of the Franciscans in America, being known as Father Athanasius. He was born on April 11, 1857, at Paderborn, in Germany. ENOLAND— Eucharistic Congress It is officially announced that the following Cardinals Archbishops, and Bishops have signified their intention of being present at the Eueharistic Congress in London next September :— Cardinal Moran, Cardinal Gibbons, Cardinal Logue, Cardinal Lecot, Cardinal Fischer, and Cardinal Mercier ; the Archbishops of Glasgow, Hobart, Paris, Seleucia, and Utrecht ; the Bishops of the Province of Westminster the Bishops of Aberdeen, Angers, Arras, Auckland' (New Zealand), Autun, Bruges, Burma (South), Canea (Auxiliary to Archbishop of Dublin), Cloyne, Cochin (India), Cork Elphin, Erythrea (Auxiliary to Bishop of Strassburg), Justinapolis (Port Elizabeth,- South Africa), Kildare, Kilmore Langres, Lismore, Luxemburg, Metz, Moulins, Namur Oran (Algeria), St. Brieuc and Treguier, San Luis Potosi (Mexico) Savannah (U.S.A.), Valleyfield (Canada), Verdun,' and Waterford. FRANCE— British and American Catholics in Paris British and American Catholics in Paris have united for social and religious purposes; and especially in order to be useful to the students at the art schools and at the University. They have formed a club and called it after Sainte Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris. GERMANY— A Sign of the Times A good deal of noise (says the 'Catholic Weekly') was made a few years ago about a "Los von Eome" movement m Austria. The main promoters of that movement, which has fizzled out, were German Lutherans. These gentlemen would seem now to have enough to do to look after their own folk at home. At least, we gather as much from a communication which appeared in the 'Daily Chronicle' from the pen of. its Berlin correspondent. 'It is noteworthy ' says this correspondent, 'that during the year 1906 over 12,000 persons deliberately and formally severed themselves ±rom the State Lutheran Church in Prussia. . There have always been persons willing to declare that they are not Christians in order to avoid paying the Church tax, but untd recent years their number has been limited to a few hundreds. The enormous increase in 1906, which it is stated, was still mors pronounced last year, is largely'due to the Socialist agitation, but serious newspapers assert that the intolerance of the orthodox Church has also contributed vO it. The Holy Father and the Poles A deputation of Poles (Prussian) was received in audience by the Holy Father recently. The deputation was by Mgr. Liskowski, who also read an address, in mIUS 7 55 ° hheh * cs * T- aS aSSUr6d ° f the 'alterable attachment' of the Catholics of Poland. In the course of his reply the Holy Father said that, as in a family, when a child » suffering, it is on this child that the tenderest affection of the parents is centred, so, also, for this reason, the Cathohcs of Poland were very close to his heart, for he knew their sufferings, and he knew, too, how they were always loyal and obedient children of the Church The deputation was deeply moved fc> the words of the Holy Father, many members of it giving way to tears. ITALY— Death of a Cardinal While Cardinal Portanova, Archbishop of Eeggio, was prepanng to celebrate Mass at six o'clock on the morning

of Apnl 25, he was seized with a paralytic stroke, and expired shortly afterwards. The sudden death of his Eminence lias produced a painful impression in the town. The late Cardinal was born in Naples in 1845, and received the Red Hat m '99. | ROME— The Revision of the Vulgate A great deal of interest (writes a Eome correspondent) has been taken in the audience which the Right Eev. Abbot Gasquet, President of the English Benedictines, has had with Pius X., relative to the progress made by the Commission for the Revision of the Vulgate. Abbot Gasquet, at the Pontiff's request, explained minutely each detail of the methods followed by the members employed in the work, and the why and wherefore of each step. Pius X was deeply interested in the Abbot's explanation, and re- - tamed a copy of part of the work done, 'because,' said the Pope, I want to show the progress we have made ' It was gratifying to Pius X. when the Abbot declared he was not m immediate want of money from the Holy See as so far private donations have proved sufficient to cope with all the expenses incurred. Before the Abbot parted with Pius X., his Holiness presented him with a photograph, copies of which bearing the words written by the Pope on the original, lithographed underneath, are being sent by Abbot Gasquet to all who have subscribed money or helped him in any way in the gigantic task entrusted to him. The following is a translation of ~the original Italian as written by the Holy Father .— 'To my beloved children who by their donations and by their studies render assistance to the holy work of the revision of the Vulgate, with a prayer that the Lord may generously repay them, we impart the Apostolic Benediction as a token of gratitude and special benevolence. ' UNITED STATES-Churches Destroyed During a recent great fire that laid much of Chelsea Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston, in ashes, three Catholic churches were burned to the ground. A Generous Donor wn n^ Ch IbißllOp1 biBllOp an > of Philadelphia, has announced that i^o,ooo has been given by a lady, believed to be Mrs Frederic Canficld Penfield, formerly Mrs. Anne WeightmanWalker, for a proposed Catholic High School for Girls in that city. The school is to be built "to commemorate the centennial of the diocese of Philadelphia. The Holy Father's Congratulations The Holy Father has sent autograph letters to Archbishop Farley, of New York, and Archbishop R yan of Philadelphia, congratulating them upon the one-hundredth anniversary of the erection of their Sees. His Holiness expresses his satisfaction at the progress made in the archdioceses, the zeal of the clergy, and the devotion and ability of the archbishops, and imparts the Papal Blessing to the prelates. & The President's Message President Roosevelt has sent his Grace Archbishop Farley the following congratulatory message in connection with the centenary of the New York Diocese :— 'My dear Archbishop : Let me take occasion, on the celebration ' of the one hundredth anniversary of the Diocese of New York to extend to you my hearty congratulations and my earnest good wishes for the future of yourself and of your diocese Again congratulating you, believe me, sincerely yours Theol dore Roosevelt.' • , J . GENERAL A Contrast . - The Chilian Government, unlike that of .France, seems deeply appreciative of the heroism of its Catholic nuns A Bill has just passed its second reading in the" Chilian Congress which appropriates £5,000 "for a monument at Santiago to the. three Sisters who gave up their lives during the ereat earthquake in effort to save the lives of the people. Pilgrims to the Holy Land The pilgrims who. visited the " Holy Land durW the year ending May 31, 1907, are estimated by the British Consul to have been about 18,000 in number. •