The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, Volume 08, 8 October 1908, Page 31

The Catholic World

CANADA— Ecclesiastical Provinces Canada is divided, ecclesiastically, into eight provinces, nine —if we include Newfoundland. The ApostoHc Delegate, his Excellency Mbst Rev. Donatus Sbarretti, D.D., resides at Ottawa. The provinces are Quebec, five dioceses and one vicariateapostolic; Montreal, five dioceses; Halifax, five"; Kingston, four ; Ottawa,, two; Toronto,* three; -St. Boniface, two, and two vicariates-apostoiic ; Victoria, two, and one vicariate-apostolic'; Newfoundland, three dioceses.. There are ten archbishops,' twenty-seven bishops, and one mitred abbot; 3381 priests of whom 1 172,, belong to religious Orders. The "churches number 2552; the seimnaries fourteen'; universities and colleges sixtyeight ; charitable institutions 267. > The French- Canadians .. 7-he Prince of Wales had an opportunity on July 27 of learning something of the inner life of the French-Canadian habitant. He was the guest at luncheon of Monsignor Mathieu and the priests of Laval Uni«uf "and the Seminary of Quebec " at their country vacation retreat at St. Joachim, a lovely rural estate in the heart of the woods at the foot of lofty Cape Tourmente. The property, has belonged to the seminary ever since the time of Bishop Laval,, who founded it. The estate was .his own summer home. The Prince- and his suite, with the distinguished company, attending him, including the Duke of Norfolk, Lord Lovat, Lord Strathcona, Lord Ranfurly, Earl Grey, Lord Dudley and others, went down -by electric car. The retainers of the seminary and the other people of St. Joachim descendants of the very first Canadian settlers, were gathered around to greet the Prince, who shook hands with many of them, and grouped some of them around him to be photographed with him. The Duke of Norfolk and others of the party did the same thing. The Prince declared himself much charmed with the outing. On the way back to town along the picturesque Montmorcncy and Beauport road, one or two Jialts were made to call upon parish priests. At Beauport the cure presented to the Prince an old lady, aged too, with whom the 'Prince shook hands and chatted pleasantly in French. AH "along the route the country people gave him a most enthusiastic welcome. An Exodus An unusual exodus was witnessed in Montreal the other - day. lwo and a half centuries ago the venerable Margaret Bourgeois, with her little band of four devoted French women, iounded the famous teaching community of the Ladies of the Congregation of Notre Dame, and all these long" years the headquarters of that community have been on St. Jean Baptist street, adjacent to the time-honored Church -of Notre Dame de Pitie. The community has now moved into a magnificent new home, with its 150 novices and 200 professed members, of whom there are nearly 1500 in the Dominion. ENGLAND— The New Bishop of Shrewsbury The news of the appointment of Canon Singleton to the vacant see of Shrewsbury (says the Calhoiic Times) will be received with genuine joy by the Catholics of the diocese. There " could be no more popular appointment. Monsignor Singleton's hfe and labors have been most closely associated with the region over which he holds spiritual authority. Born at Birkenhead he belongs to a family which has long been distinguished for ' devotion-in promoting the public weal and Catholic interests No man was better known in Birkenhead than his brother, the late Alderman Singleton, and few did so much. to further the welfare of the town. Mgr. Singleton's qualifications and experiences fit him peculiarly for the responsible post in which he has been placed by the Holy See. His powers as an^ administrator are of exceptional- excellence, and it may be said with perfect accu- - racy that never has an undertaking failed to which he has set his hand In the discharge of parochial work he has been " keenly alive to the value of every opportunity ~ for extending Catholic influence, and the, flourishing condition' of the- Catholic ■ Young Men s Society and other organisations in connection with' St. Joseph s Church, Seacombe, of which he has been rector since 1887. is, in no small measure, due to his encouragement and energy. _ , GERMANY— Hfs First Mass Catholics in the Eternal City, no less than throughout all Germany, have been deeply interested" and impressed by an' event that occurred in Venloo, Holland, on the feast of St. Dominic (writes the Rome correspondent of the Dublin Freeman's Journal)

On that day an> aged man ascended the altar for the first time to celebrate Mass ; and the strange thing was that he was Prince Karl von Lowenstein-Wertholm Rosenberg, one of the most brilliant Parliamentarians of the German Reichstag. On , St. v Dominic's day last year this Prince, to the surprise of the' political world of Germany, as veil- as to .the whole feudal aristocracy of that country, entered into the religious Order of St. Dominic as a. novice. After having- spent his life,- which has now passed the ordinary span of three' scoreyears and ten in v the service of the Church and of the State, he comes now, at the. age of 74, to devote himself to the service of God in the religious State. He' has been a man' of action rather than a man of contemplation all his life. In the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 he fought like a hero for his country. The persecution of the Catholics of Germany which" followed that war found a strenuous opponent in. him, working in harmony with Windhorst, Reichcnspergcr, Schorlerocr-Alst, and Malinkrodt, and others. In fact, in every gbod yvork his presence and his name were prominent; and now, at last,- he has taken the white habit of the Dominican. - ' Catholic Congress j ' . The Catholics of the whole world '(remarks the.- Catholic Times) are proud of the practical workvdoiie^by/ their- German co-religionists in the interests of Teligionf ancHook forward- with pleasant anticipations each year to the proceedings 6"F the annual Catholic Congress. This year the Congress has been held" at Dusseldorf, and it would have been 'difficult to select a town better suited to be the theatre of such an assemblage. Twentytwo miles from Cologne, it is one of the finest towns on the Rhine, the streets being broad, planted with avenues of trees, and containing splendid shops. The seat of many manufactories,' it is about the most densely peopled portion of the Prussian dominions. It was peculiarly appropriate that a Catholic gathering which devotes itself so earnestly to the consideration of social and labor questions should have taken place in such ,> large centre of population, where some four-sevenths of the inhabitants are Catholics. The. speeches, discussions, and resolutions were well up to 'the best level of former . Congresses. The German Catholics have proved biice again that their enthusiastic loyalty to the Holy See is not on .the wane, that their unity is firm as ever, and that their methods of solving the problems of the day, whilst in harmony with Catholic doctrine "and- sentiment, are admirably adapted to the promotion of the people's welfare. ROME— Anniversary Celebration The anniversary of the Holy Father's coronation was a gala day at the Vatican (writes the Rome correspondent of the Catholic Times). The Papal troops were early at work putting up flags and bunting in their various quarters, and the quiet majesty of the halls and cortile was made bright 'by the~ addition of many colors. The band of the.. Gendarmes played' in the cortile -of San Damaso before and .after the Solemn Mass of Commemoration, and also in the afternoon. The procession of Cardinals, Bishops, Generals of religious Orders, Chamberlains and others formed outside the Papal' apartments and moved through the Sala Regia and the Sala Ducale towards the*Sistine Chapel. The Pope, attended by Cardinals Segna and Delia Volpe, came last, and his Holiness frequently blessed the crowds who lined the passages. The Holy Father presided at th* Pontifical Mass celebrated by his Eminence Cardinal Merry del Val, who was assisted by Canons representing the Chapters of three great Basilicas of the city. The Sistin.e choir, under the direction of. its beloved Maestro, Don JPerosi, "seemed exceptionally good, and rendered the Mass of Palcstrina and other selected pieces with wonderful sweetness and devotion. There were twenty Cardinals present, including his Eminence Cardinal Gibbons ; many Bishops were also at the Mass, as well as the Diplomatic Body and some strangers. The Pope gave' the Benediction and a special, indulgence, and appeared -fresh and vigorous notwithstanding the many duties of the morning, as he returned to his" private apartments. * ' UNITED STATES— A New Seminary Mr. John J. McGrane, one of the leading Catholic laymen -in Brooklyn, has purchased a large building from the Lutherans at Hawthorn, Westchester County, at a cost .of and . presented it to the Salesian Fathers as. a novitiate for Italians studying for the priesthood. The Hawthorn institution will be known as Christopher Columbus Hall, in honor of the Knights of .Columbus. • A Temperance Advocate , - - The Rev. Daniel F. McGillicuddy, pastor of St. Stephen's Church, Worcester, Massachusetts, famous throughout the United

States as a leader of the Catholic Total Abstinence Union of America, and widely known as a traveller and lecturer on foreign countries, has ■ passed away at_CharJesgate Hospital, Boston. Father McGillicuddy had explored practically all parts <3f tho earth except Africa, to which he was planning a visit within a few years. "He was one of the first white men to penetrate the sacred city of Lassa, Thibet. An Example of Zeal ~ An incident showing the zeal and' devotion of .Cardinal Gibbons occurred several days ago '(says the Baltimore,- Sun). With the exception" of the staff of the Maryland. General Hospital there are few persons _ who have heard qf it. About 9 o'clock one night a sick call came to the Cardinal's residence. A woman - who had been operated on at the hospital was dying, and a priest was asked to come to her bedside immediately.' Unfortunately, all' of the priests at the Cardinal's hous.e -were out at the time, and the Cardinal ordered -his' messenger .to go to a neighboring church- -arid- ask : one . of . the clergy there -to- -"answer ' the call. A few minutes later the messenger returned. ' Fearing, however, the priest" would not reach the. hospital in time", the Cardinal hurried there. A^The Sacraments were administered to the. dying woman, who expired the- next morning. . •" ' GENERAL Venerable Prelates Archbishop Colgan, of Madras, India," is now - stated" to be the oldest Catholic prelate. - He' was born at Donore, County Westmeath, Ireland, April 1,- 1824.' The next oldest prelate is Bishop Cameron, born at St. Andrew's, Antigonish County, Nova Scotia, on February 16, 1827. Acrhbishop Colgan landed in India" in 1844, and Bishop Cameron entered fhe College of Propaganda, Rome, in the same year. Dr. Colgan exchanged his title of Bishop of Aureliopolis for that of Archbishop of Madras in 1856, the year in which Dr. Cameron exchanged histitle of Bishop of Arichat for that of Bishop of Antigonish. The Church in Korea The Vicar-Apostolic of Korea has given an interesting account . of the progress of the Catholic religion in the ' Hermit Kingdom ' (says the Universe). Mgr. Hutel, who was recently in Paris, said : ' When I reached Korea in 1890^ there were 13,000 native Catholics ; there are now 65,000. There arc, on an average, 3000,. adult baptisms every year; we have 50 priests, of whom 'ten are natives. Our progress would be immense if I could open more schools. The Koreans understand that the Japanese owe their victories to education. If I could .open" a college at Seoul, all the families of the higher classes would send their children to it.