The Church in New Zealand

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 46, 2 December 1925, Page 19

The Church in New Zealand

(Lecture by Mr. D. L. Poppelwell.)

(Concluded.)

THE OLD CHURCH AT ROXBURGH. This historical building, still standing at Roxburgh, was built in 1869 by Father Ecuyer, who is mentioned by Mr. Poppelwell in the course of his lecture. Since the erection of the fine new Church of Our Lady of Peace by the late Father D. O'Neill, the old structure has remained in disuse. During the next two or three, years, at long intervals, the district was revisited by Father Seon, but the Catholics of Otago were anxious for a more regular visitation. Active in'vthis movement were the late Mr. N. J. B. McGregor, of Silverstream, North Taieri, and Mr. Edmond Peel, an early settler, Mr. Burk before mentioned, and my father who, ■about this time, took up a farm in the Tokomairiro district. A word or two about some of these pioneers of the Church may not be out of place. Mr. McGregor was a 'sturdy settler of the old type. As his name •, implies he was a Scotchman with all the shrewdness of that race. He wsa, I believe, ■ a convert to Catholicity, and a very strong Catholic who never spared either his time or money in the. interest of the Church he loved so well. Mr. Edmond Peel was also a convert. He was an, Englishman, a staunch Catholic, and a? nephew of the famous Sir Robert Peel who was Premier of England early last century. Among the letters that were burnt as before-mentioned was one from him written in the early years, about 1855, to- my father from Fortrose,- urging the taking of steps to procure land for Church sites and drawing attention to the right to acquire land at the upset price fpr this purpose. My father was English by parentage but was born at Sunwick, in Hutton parish, near Berwick, just beyond the romantic valley of the Tweed. He was educated at Ushaw, the famous Catholic College of Durham. This •• college prides itself upon being the direct I"descendant of Douay, in France, which has g'iven its name to the "Douay Version" of the Bible. Upon leaving school my father .went to sea. After some years he arrived

SOME EARLY OTAGO CHURCH HISTORY

in Wellington in 1840. He was a great reader and had learned both French and

Spanish before he arrived in New Zealand. He was the Captain of a schooner trading on the coast for some time. He was married in Wellington in 1842. He subsequently returned to England and later came to Otago in the Blundell as a permanent settler. My father was a very sincere Catholic and an active worker for the Church at all times.

In the year 1854,, some of the Catholics, after talking matters over, commissioned Mr. E. Peel to write to Dr. Viard with reference to their wish to have a more regular visitation from a priest. A letter was written accordingly on the 12th October, and on the 20th November Dr. Viard sent the following reply: Wellington, November 20, 1854. Dear Sir, — I have read with much pleasure your letter of 12th October, showing the good feelings of the Catholics of Otago. I will endeavor according to their wishes to send a priest twice or three times a year to visit your district. Let us pray the God of Mercy to establish one day a parish in your town. This will be the greatest blessing for that remote part of the district. Till that fortunate time let the Catholics of Otago live as true' Christians, loving each other and avoiding the vices too common in new colonies. I give my Benediction to all the faithful. (Signed) * Ph. J. Viard. In terms of his promise the good Bishop at different times sent priests to Otago whose ministrations were much appreciated by the Catholic residents. Among these priests I must mention Father J. B. Petitjean. He was a man of very different styie from Father Seon. He was an oldish man. very tall with broad shoulders' and whit- ha«r. Of strong will and tremendous energy, pushing, active, busy, and determined to build up the infant church on a solid foundation. On the spiritual side he was a good, holy man, zealous in the performance of his duties and of true missionary instincts. Shortly after this time there grew up a feeling among the Catholics of the South that they would like to have a resident priest. This feeling was probably strengthened by the arrival in Otago of Mr. Finlay Murchison, a sincere Highland Catholic who came from near Fort William in Scotland. My mother also came from Fort William whence Mr. Murchison brought her a letter-of introduction. Mr. Murchison was a welleducated man and was for many years a sincere Catholic worker until his death at Waikaia some time ago. When discussing the question of having a resident clergyman,

Mr. Murchison stated he knew a certain Father Lament in Scotland who he believed would be willing to emigrate to Otago. He said this priest was a zealous young man who would be in every way suitable for the task. No doubt the prospect of obtaining the services of such a man who, from nationality and other reasons would commend himself to the people, helped the suggestion. The result of this movement was that a strong fund was raised for the purpose of paying the passage of Father Lamont .to New Zealand and obtaining a suitable equipment for him. The correspondence in this connection was left in my father’s hands and he wrote to the Bishop of the diocese in which Father Lament then was, making the necessary arrangements'. Copies of this correspondence were unfortunately among the letters destroyed as before mentioned. The letter which . was written stated that a draft for £2OO had been sent to, I think, an Edinburgh firm for the purpose of equipment, etc., and failing Father Lamont being able to come instructions were given as to how the money was to be disposed of. Nothing came of this proposal probably owing to some question as to whether a secular priest could be introduced to a Marist diocese. It is interesting, however, as showing the keenness of the earlier Catholics in Church matters. When the priests came to Otago in those days some idea of the hardships they had to undergo may be realised when their long journeys overland are considered. __ Among other letters which were burnt were a number from Father Petitjean referring to his missionary visits. One series in sequence described such a journey in 1857. The first was written to my father from the hotel at Tokomairiro. It was written in a hurry apologising for not calling at “Sunwick,” our then farm-house, as he had heard of a Catholic family at Popotunoa (now Clinton) and he was just starting to visit it. Of course this visit would be on foot, unless by some luck he got a lift on horseback. The next letter was written from on board the schooner Ann Jane at “Bloomfield Harbor,” Bluff. This harbor was possibly one of the small bays in Awarua, although I have been unable to locate it. The letter reported a trip to the whaling station at Riverton. It was quaintly written in rather French'style, and gave some account of his good luck in finding some Catholic families. Among other things this letter stated that the writer “By the Grace of God had the good fortune” to find some Catholic families and had been able “to baptise several of their children and at the same time give the Church’s .blessing to their marriages.” Here we have an example of the application, the provisions of the famous Ne, T entere decree so far as it applies to persons who, from their situation, are unable to be married by a priest, but themselves enter upon the marriage contract.

Between the years 1853 and 1861 our house at Sunwick, near Milton, was a sort of centre for the scattered Catholics in the country district of South Otago. There from time to time when a priest visited the district Mass was said and those within reach

attended when opportunity offered. During . the long intervals' when no priest was avail- -' able, it became customary for many church «s.« members to attend at 11 a.m. on Sundays I " when my father was in the habit of reading aloud the prayers for Mass while those pre- ■ sent joined in spirit with the more fortunate gatherings of Catholics elsewhere who were hearing Mass at that hour. At certain seasons such as Lent, Bishop Viard would send down a pastoral letter which my father 'would at the first opportunity read to the faithful of the district. One such document, hand engrossed in fine copperplate writing, was destroyed among my other papers. It was expressly devoted to the subject of devotion to the Blessed Virgin. . I well remember* being impressed when reading it, with the strong piety and Heal underlying its eloquent language and its earnest exhortations to all the faithful never to forget the duty of prayer to the Mother of God. Among other papers which were destroyed was the original subscription list for the purchase of the site of old St. Joseph's Church in Dunedin. I cannot recall all the names upon the list, but those of Messrs'. N. J. B. McGregor, C. Burke, my father, and others occupied a prominent place upon it. This short sketch of some incidents of an almost forgotten time will I hope have proved of interest to you. The finding of gold in 1861 at Gabriel's Gully soon changed the whole position of the original settlement of Otago. From that time on, new conditions arose and the large influx of a mixed population gave a general fillip to church matters. Soon there were resident priests in Otago and churches were built to accommodate the increased number of Catholics. The progress of the Church since then has been marvellous'. The pro- • gress of the new era is manifest, and abler pens have written of the work of Fathers Ecuyer, Williams, Martin, Belliard, Moreau and other good and faithful old-time "laborers in the vineyard." Mr. Poppelwell concluded amidst loud and prolonged applause. Very Rev. Father O'Donnell then held the interest of those present with an explanation of several hu- . morous incidents he had met with in the earlier days of the Church. Mr. W. McGoldriek moved a, hearty vote , ,of thanks (which was carried by acclamation) ' to Mr. Poppelwell. for the very line address given in connection with the club. Mr. Poppelwell, in reply, said if the address had met with the approval of those present he was more than satisfied. He stated, it had been a great pleasure to deliver it and he would always be Milling to do what he could for the furtherance of the Gore Catholic Club. The chairman then congratulated Mr. Poppelwell, stating the lecture was worthy of the man and also that those of the congregation who were not present could not realise the treat they had missed. A few songs and recitations contributed by the afore-mentioned persons brought the y most pleasant and interesting evening yet * held by the club to a close. i