The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, 20 April 1911, Page 735

The Catholic World

ENGLAND CONSECRATION OF A BISHOP. ■< In the presence of two hundred and fifty of the clergy and a congregation. drawn from all parts of London, the Right Rev. Mgr. Joseph Butt, D.D., was at Westminster Cathedral on Friday, February 24, solemnly raised to the dignity of Bishop, the consecrating prelates being his Grace the Archbishop of Westminster, the Right Rev. Dr. Amigo (Bishop of Southwark), and the Right Rev. Dr. Fenton (Bishop of Amycla).

DEATH OF A PRIEST. Sincere regret (says the Irish News) will be felt by a wide circle of friends and acquaintances, both clerical and lay, at the death of Rev. Canon Patrick Mulcahy, Rector of Halifax, Yorkshire, who passed away at the age of 62 years. The deceased was a member of an old and highly-respected Irish family in the, South of Ireland, being born at Kilkeeny, Co. Waterf in the year 1849. Even ' from his earliest years he ' displayed exceptionally brilliant gifts, and had a most distinguished educational course, being ordained in the College, Witerford, at the early age of twenty-five. After his ordination he was appointed to the curacy of a parish in the same diocese in: which he had since ministered. He was stationed in various parishes in the diocese, and his whole priestly career was remarkable for his zealous devotion to the sacred duties of his holy office. Ministering in the midst off, many thousands of Irish people, his efforts for both their spiritual and temporal welfare were unceasing, and the results of his labor and self-sacrifice are to be found in lasting monuments to his —churches and schools and other institutions in the erection of which he was instrumental. In every matter affecting the interests of his people ho took a laudable part. He was, above all, a sterling Irishman, and all that affected the welfare of his native country had his cordial sympathy and warm support.. He took a keen interest in Irish "organisations in his, district, and it is worthy of note that he was one of the pioneers of the Gaelic League, and an able authority on Gaelic literature. He was a brother of the late Very Rev. D. B. Mulcahy, P.P., Kilclief, Co. Down, and of Rev. Michael Mulcahy, who was also stationed in Yorkshire, and died there about two years ago.

THE DUKE OF NORFOLK. In the Acta Apostolicce Sedis appears a letter from the Holy Father to his Grace the Duke of Norfolk in recognition of the generosity shown bv that nobleman in the erection of a church at Norwich. His Holiness assures the Duke that his money could not be laid out at better interest, and recalls the munificence which has ever been characteristic of his Grace and his house. Finally, the Pope blesses the generous donor and his relatives, and expresses the hone that the majesty of the Lord may fill the house which he has built, and that His ears may be attentive to the prayers of those who pray therein.

FRANCE THE PREMIERES RESIGNATION. M. Briand's resignation is exactly what might have been expected (says the Catholic Weekly). You cannot harbor a serpent and hope to escape its fangs, nor can you play with fire with impunity. The Socialist faction whom the ex-Premier once sought to propitiate have profated, only too well by the lesson given them by the Government authorities. It was not without a certain dramatic irony that M. Bnand was accused by a deputy of too much; toleration for the religious congregations in a discussion which precipitated the Premier's resignation. Ihe edge of the weapon he himself unsheathed has been turned against himself, and M. Briand cannot complain it, after sewing the wind, he has to reap the whirlwind: It is, a harvest of his own seeking. If the present regime advances in I ranee, there will soon be no room for any authority of any kind, and constitutional liberties, as well as religious freedom for Catholics, will have become a dead letter.

PORTUGAL J ANTI-CHRISTIAN DICTATORS. , The Portuguese Dictators have been much disturbed by the joint Pastoral of the Portuguese Hierarchy Tho Bishops state that they detect an absence of religious sentiment and an antagonism to religious belief and to the doctrines of the Catholic Church in such measures as the expulsion, of the, religious Congregations, the Divorce Law the abolition of the religious oath, the suppression of saints days and of religious teaching in the national schools, and the projected separation of Church and State At the same time the Bishops advise the faithful to respect

present institutions unreservedly. This is the purport of the news as it appears in the Times, but other papers or the same date thus described the episcopal action- 'The lortuguese Bishops (states a Reuter telegram from Lisbon) have issued Pastoral letters advising; the faithful to respect present institutions unreservedly, to obey the authorities, and 'to respect constituted power, "even if they should be unfavorable to us, and should show themselves hostile." Not a word about the Bishops' definite protest against the anti-Christian conduct of the Dictators. Did the Times correspondent's telegram get through by special favor or did he take some means to evade the authorities, and thus to avoid misrepresenting the Bishops Ihe course to be J ursued by the Government with regard to the Hierarchy's bold step in denouncing the policy of the dictators, without their permission—which, of course would have been granted if it had been sought!—was considered by the Council of Ministers,' and it was decided to suppress the Pastoral. We (Catholic Times) venture to predict that the Dictators will not venture to punish the Bishops. The elections are near, and they have quite enough of trouble on hand. In the joint Pastoral there is a sentence which must set every Catholic thinking. The Bishops affirm that the anti-Christian persecution is not in harmony with the will of the nation, for, according to the last official census, of 5,423,132 inhabitants of Portugal and the Portuguese island, 5,416,204 stated . that they professed the Catholic faith. That is to sav, there are nearly five and a half million Catholics in Portugal and they allow 6928 anti-Catholics to banish the Jesuits to abolish the other religious Orders within the limits cif the country, to do away with the taking of the oath in a religious form in the courts of justice, to forbid the observance of saints' days, to prohibit religious teaching in the schools to deprive the Coimbra University of its Catholic faculty to introduce a divorce < system not much different from a licence for free love, and to proclaim their intention of separating Church and . State. Less than seven thousand against five million four hundred thousand The millions who allow their religion and their •priests to be thus treated by a little body of unbelievers manifestly need some courage and training in the art of defence..

-ROME. THE HOLY FATHER AND THE ORPHANS. di,-!^ 8 !*?- 0 -^ 8 ?, rites the Rome correspondent of tho Philadelphia Catholic Standard and Times) continues to take the liveliest interest in the little orphans rescued by him from Messina and Reggio, Calabria, who are beinj; cared for in various parts of Italy, at his request. The little ones, as many will be glad to know, are reared and educated on the interest of part of the money subscribed by the Catholics of the world after the earthquake of 1903 and entrusted to the Pope. It was, then, with no small pleasure the Holy Father received a visit early in February from a small crowd of little orphan girls who came with the bisters to whom the Pope entrusted them from Naples. Chatting with the orphans and asking them questions the head of the Church thus obtained more genuine pleasure than he would if he were treating with kings. At the close of an audience that lasted much longer than is usually allowed, Pius X. returned to his private apartments accompanied by one or two gentlemen engaged in assisting the orphans. During the walk through the ante-chambers his Holiness, recounting little incidents of the day remarked: This morning I received by post a petition from an Italian family for a certain favor, accompanied by a photograph of the father, mother, and seventeen children. It is a family deserving of help and I will grant the favor with much pleasure. ' UNITED STATES

A FORTUNE GIVEN IN CHARITY. cr^J he Springfield Republican speaks as follows of the great prelate whose death created such sorrow not alone in the diocese over winch he ruled, but throughout the whole country: -The late Archbishop Evan of'Philadelphia was greatly beloved, and one V- the reasons for it appears in his will showing that his personal estate ,T r ° U " ted to f onl .y 4031 This, inclusive of his i P \lT tU ' ls bequeathed 'to my successor in office in trust for his use and to be transmitted for like for + L V? C ° eSS ? r -l . Th ? Philadelphia Press is authority tor the statement that since his consecration the Archbishop had been the recipient of more than 1,500 000 cSSL gIV ? t 0 Jfe P ersona "y by. his admirers bX Catholic and non-Catholic.- During his iubilee in 1903 he received 288,000 dollars. This fortune had been bestowed in charity during his life. Hundreds of thousands ornSf 8 en i f ° r - *fe s^P° rt of Catholic homes for !2&? ki and ,°? er inst jt«tions of the Church, and ' the venerable prelate was the constant resource of people in distress and whether they were Catholics or Son-CatS olics their treatment was the same.' The list of hi, private, chanties was only known to himself.