The Tablet Page 17, 21st January 1888

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)THE VATICAN. Saturday, January 14th, 1888.

On Sunday, January 8th, the pilgrims from  some twenty dioceses of France were received in audience in the Second Loggia of Raphael by the Holy Father, who, attended by the Cardinal Archbishops of Rheims, Sens, and Rennes, the Archbishops of Paris, Tours, Lyons, Aix, and Albi, with some twenty Bishops, admitted the various groups, classed according to dioceses, and presented each by its own Bishop to kiss his hand and foot, imparting to all the Apostolic Benediction. Among those specially distinguished were the delegates of the Catholic University of Paris, Mgr. d’Hulst and Professors Lapparent and Allix, presented by Archbishop Richard, who made an offering to his Holiness of a collection of thirty volumes, the works of the most eminent Professors of that Institute ; likewise the editor of Le Monde, Baron de Claye, together with the Baroness, to whom the Pope expressed his satisfaction and approval of the efforts of that journal in defence of the sacred rights of the Church and of her Head, and bestowed upon the Baron and the editorial staff of the Monde his Apostolic blessing. The several prelates presented, in rich coffers, the Peter Pence from their respective sees ; the Archbishop of Paris, 250,000 lire [£7.3m] ; a parish priest of that diocese, 80,000 lire [£2.25m]; the Bishop of Marseilles, 135,000 lire [£3.9m.], and a pious lady of that city 50,000 lire [£1.4m.] ; the Bishop of Aire, 30,000 lire [£878k]. At the termination of the audience, which lasted two hours, the Holy Father invited all the members of the French hierarchy then present to assist at the solemn reception, at a later hour, in the Hall of the Throne, with due ceremonial, of the French Ambassador to the Vatican, with the personnel of his Embassy, who in quality of Ambassador Extraordinary presented the autograph letter and Jubilee felicitations of the new President of the French Republic. The Cardinal Archbishop of Toulouse, the Archbishop of Chambery, and the Bishop of Tulle, were prevented by illness from taking part in either audience. In recent audiences the Secretary of the Sacred Congregation of Propaganda for Oriental Affairs made an offering in the name of the Rev. Rector of the Maronite College of St. Antonio, in Mount Libanus, of a sum of Peter Pence, of a valuable Narghill, in silver, the gift of the Chorepiscopus Siro Memarbasci, and of a Syrian Codex of the New Testament, on parchment, dating evidently from the seventh century, the gift of the Maronite priest Ahmar-Dakuo, of Mardin. Lastly, Mgr. Sinistri, Prefect of Pontifical Ceremonies, presented in the name of his colleagues their jubilee gift, of a magnificent Bugia,[a low candlestick with a handle] in silver, inlaid with gold, of fifteenth century character, provided with a rich and elegant case.

PAPAL CONSISTORY.

On Monday last, January 9th, a semi-public Consistory was held in the Vatican Palace  relative to the approaching Canonisation of the Seven Blessed Founders of the Order of the Servites of Mary, and of the three Blessed Members of the Society of Jesus, Peter Claver, John Berchmans, and Alphonsus Rodriguez. All the Archbishops and Bishops, in cutia, had previously received copies of the lives of those about to be canonised, and of the acts already accomplished relating thereto, to enable those prelates to give their rotum on the subject, as also the official intimation to present themselves at the Consistory in accordance with the ceremonial of the rite. The Pope, with his Court, entered the Hall of the Consistory at half-past nine a.m., and after a short Allocution treating succinctly of the Acta et gesta of the ten Blessed Confessors, and of his desire to inscribe them in the Catalogue of the Saints, he demanded the unbiassed opinion of all the Fathers of the Church then present. The Cardinals, Patriarchs, Archbishops and Bishops, each in order of precedence, then read their affirmative vote, the Orientals in their respective tongues, with the Latin translation, which votes, signed each with the name of the voter, were deposited, those of the members of the Sacred College in the hands of the Secretary of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, those of the other prelates in the hands of the Master of Pontifical Ceremonies appointed to receive them. The Pope then closed the Allocution with an appeal to the aid of the Holy Ghost for due light and inspiration—the Dean of the College of Apostolic Procurators kneeling at the foot of the throne, made urgent demand for the immediate drawing up of the solemn official documents, in re; the Dean of the Protonotaries Apostolic, with several of his colleagues, likewise prostrate before the throne replied, “Conficiensus,” and turning towards the Privy Chamberlains, participants attending on his Holiness, added, ” Vobis testibus.” Upon which the Pope, rising, blessed the assembly and withdrew to his private apartments. At a later hour several hundred French pilgrims were received in collective Papal audience. It is officially announced that the Holy Father in honour of his Jubilee has graciously conceded to all the archbishops, bishops, abbots, ordinaries, and all priests having care of souls who have come to Rome on the aforesaid happy occasion, faculties on their return to their respective dioceses, territories, and parishes, to impart, once only, to the faithful the Papal Benediction. The concession bears date January 7th, 1888.

FURTHER AUDIENCES.

On Tuesday, January 10th, Baron Von  Franckenstein, the illustrious Catholic champion , of the German Reichstag, was admitted to private audience of the Pope, who, towards midday, received in collective audience a deputation of English Catholics, numbering some 500. The Bishop of Clifton, as the senior of the seven bishops present, presented the Peter Pence, nearly £15,000 [£12.3m.], the offering of the dioceses represented, and introduced to the Holy Father the ecclesiastics of the deputation, amongst whom the Moniteur de Bonze noted a descendant of the celebrated Lord Chancellor, Blessed Thomas More, the intrepid defender of Papal Supremacy, Canon Waterton, of the diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, whose grandfather espoused the daughter and heiress of the last descendant of Thomas More. The Bishop elect of Hexham was also present at the audience. The Duke of Norfolk, as President of the English Catholic Union, presented the laymen and ladies of the deputation, many of whom made personal offerings ; and Mgr. O’Bryen, President of the Association of St. Thomas, laid at the feet of the Pope a sum, in gold, in the name of that Society. Later, on the same day, the Italian Committee of the Pontifical Equestrian Orders were admitted to private audience, and presented Jubilee felicitations, together with their collective gift, a triptych, in crimson velvet, forming a splendid cross, in Byzantine style, modernised, blazing with gems, the most valuable of which, a large antique sapphire, bears graven thereon the Vullus Sanctus, amid the heads, in oxydized silver, of the four evangelists ; also a handsome album containing the names of the donors. Both triptych and album were ornamented with the Papal escutcheon and facsimile of the Pontifical decorations. In the afternoon the Holy Father visited the Gallery of the Arazzi, where are displayed the Jubilee gifts of Belgium and Holland ; and the Gallery of Geographical Maps, wherein are laid, in order, the offerings of all the Vicariates Apostolic. In this section, under the special surveillance of Prince Lancellotti, his Holiness met and blessed M. De Yough, Envoy from the Island of Ceylon, who presented an address, together with a sum of Peter Pence, from his compatriots of the island. In recent private audience Mgr. Canon Origo made presentation to the Pope of the yearly offering, known as “the Prebends of Leo XIII.” for 1887, receiving from the Holy Father the Apostolic Benediction for the several Metropolitan and Cathedral Chapters, subscribers to the work, thirty in number. M. Alexis Nevares, head of a large Catholic publishing house at Buenos Ayres, had, likewise, private audience, to present to the Pope 14,000 lire from the Archbishop of that see, together with a costly casket in velvet and Russian leather, containing a collection of gold coins of various lands, the gift of the Seminary of Salta, which sums, added to those already presented by the Jubilee Committee of the Argentine Republic, form a total of 70,000 lire Peter Pence. The Superior-General of the Congregation of the Mission and of the Daughters of Charity, accompanied by the Procurators General of Rome and of Paris, laid at the feet of the Pope the felicitations and Jubilee offerings of the devoted family of St. Vincent de Paul, while the Prior of Our Lady of Prime-Combe returned thanks to his Holiness for the recent coronation of the ancient picture of Our Lady of PrimeCombe, venerated in the sanctuary of that name. Thirty ladies of the aristocracy of Madrid, in private pontifical audience, made Jubilee offerings in the name of the Daughters of Mary and of the Apostolate of the Sacred Heart, of a gold chalice and pix of great value, richly encrusted with gems. The titular Archbishop of Trajanopolis, Abbot General of the Alechitarist Armenian Benedictines, presented in recent audience a most interesting literary work from the Orsini press, a the Isle of S. Lazzaro, in Venice, namely, The Interpretations of the Prophet Isaias, written by S. John Chrysostom, the original Greek of which was lost, save eight chapters preserved in the Works of the Saint, published by Montfaucon : the Mechitarist Congregation, possessing an ancient translation, in Armenian, of the work aforesaid, dating from the fifth century, had it translated into Latin and published in honour of the Papal Jubilee.

ITALIAN PILGRIMAGE.

On Wednesday, January 11th, the reception by  groups of the great Italian pilgrimage commenced in due order with those belonging to the regions of Romagna, Emilia, Venetia, Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria,in the Second Loggia of Raphael. The Holy Father attended by the Cardinals, Patriarch of Venice, and Archbishops of Turin, Ferrara, and Bologna, entered at ten a.m., and the pilgrims, to the number of 3,000, were presented by their respective bishops, and made special offerings of Peter Pence and Jubilee gifts. The Archbishop of Udine, who a few days since fell in Bologna and broke his arm, persisted in continuing his journey, and reached Rome in time to take part in the reception of Wednesday last with his flock. The Osservatore Romano notes the remarkable display of police forces drawn up at the entrance to the Vatican, as well as the offensive rudeness wherewith the pilgrims on quitting the Apostolic palace were bidden to remove from sight the crosses of the pilgrimage, alleging the prohibition by law to display ostentatiously similar distinctive signs of the same. A lady declining to obey the arbitrary command, the police delegate on duty roughly tore the cross from her dress with his own hands. Thursday last was the turn of the pilgrims from the provinces of Naples, the Abruzzi, the two Calabria, the Puglie, and other parts of the ancient Neapolitan kingdom, as also from Sicily and Sardinia, numbering some 5,000, who were presented by the Cardinals Archbishops of Naples, Capua, Benevento, and Palermo, with the other Archbishops and Bishops of these provinces, and made their respective Jubilee offerings. All ranks and social classes were represented, and among the many interesting episodes related, is that of a peasant woman of Avellisso, who knelt before the Pope holding a common cornet of paper, such as used by grocers, which the Holy Father supposing to contain medals, &c., raised his hands to bless, but the good woman pressed the cornet into his hand, saying in a confidential tone : “Take it, dear Pope, Papa mio, it is filled with confetti (bonbons), I brought them purposely for you.” The Holy Father smiled, evidently moved, and handing the cornet to an ecclesiastic of his Court, said : “See that it be placed in my room ; I prize it highly,” and added, glancing at a valuable jewel, blazing with diamonds, the offering of a lady of rank, immediately preceding the peasant woman : “Possibly this gift is more radiant than the diamonds.” The Bishop of Acireale, Sicily, presented Peter Pence and other offerings from the various parishes and from many Catholic institutes of his diocese, together with an elegant album bearing the epitaph : ” Leoni XIII. P. M. quinto sacro decennalio facturo Ecclesiae Iaciensis dona gratulationes et vota.” A second album, containing the principal relics of the city, of Mount Etna, &c., with1,000 lire, was the Jubilee offering of the College of St. Michael, and finally two monographs of the Duomo of Acireale, and of the celebrated shrine of Our Lady of Valverde, in that diocese. The Bishop of Lacedonia, together with Peter Pence, made the valued gift of an original letter of St. Charles Borromeo, recently discovered among the archives of that diocese. The precious document bears date Rome, April 25th, 1562, and is addressed by St. Charles to Cardinal Jerome Seripando, Papal Legate to the Ecumenical Council of Trent. The first portion of the letter is in an unknown handwriting, but the conclusion is wholly autograph, with the original signature of St. Charles Borromeo, and treats of matters relative to the Council aforenamed, wherein the sainted Archbishop of Milan, and the celebrated Cardinal Seripando took so conspicuous a part. The letter is richly framed in silver, encrusted with gems, and bears the following inscription : ” Leoni XIII. P. M. — Feliciter absolventi annum quinquagesimum — Ab inito Sacerdotio — Hoc quodunum habebant — In sua dioecesi pretiosum — Autographum Caroli Sancti Barromaei — Ad Hieronymum Seripandum Cardinalem — Offerunt gratulabundi — Joannes Maria Diamare Episcopus — Capitulus et Clerus — Laquedoniae — Kalendis Januarii an. MDCCCLXXXVIII.” A proofs of St. Charles, recent excavations in Milan have brought to light in Via S. Prospero a column without capital, bearing an escutcheon blazoned with a dragon rampant, and this inscription commemorative of the plague, known as “that of S. Charles : “Crucis Signum A Carob o . Cardi. Archiefio . Benedictum. V. Cal. Juni MDLXXVH. Vicuna Peste Afflicta.” And was probably placed beneath the Croce del Cardusio, one of the numerous crosses erected by St. Charles in the squares of the City of Milan, known as the Compiti. Yesterday, the closing audience of the pilgrimage, the Pope received the groups from Tuscany, the Marches, Umbria, and the province of Rome, presided over by Cardinal Oreglia di St. Stefano in his quality of Suburban Bishop of Palestrina ; the pilgrims, some 5,000 in number, were presented by their respective bishops, and each, in common with those of the former audiences, received from the hand of his Holiness a handsome silver medal as a souvenir of the Jubilee. The Cathedral Chapter of Fabriano presented through their Bishop, as a Jubilee offering, a precious chalice, the gift to that church of Pope Nicholas V., on the Feast of the Assumption, August 15th, 1449, and a deputation from the see of Palestrina, among other gifts made an offering of a magnificent pen in gold, adorned with diamonds, rubies, and pearls, and bearing inscribed the initial letter of the Papal Encyclical On the Christian Constitution of States.