The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1869-06-19

'~DciffI anil Ehfg.iffSg ffuSSfIs--l'e 'eTs0it0t.
New YORK, April /, 1869.
Passion Week has been celebrated this year
with more than usual soIemnity. The increase
OF the Roman Catholic element gives annually
more and more sIlcndor to the various religious
festivals Of this season Of the year. Ii may yet
happen that travellers Will come to New York rs
now they 20 to Rome 20 spend the Holy Week
Let me picture for you some OF the obsery-
ances of the present Easter Season, n they have
come uusIcr my notice, beginning with the - black
week" or the week before Easter.
The principal soIcmnitics Of this week began
on Wednesday. ON which and the two following
days the Office Of the - TenebTas - performed
IN the vari,us Catholic churches. On Maundy
Thursday $50 called from the Hlalfiids or baskets
in which the King Of England formerly distributed
charities ON this day,) the great church OF st.
Stephens, the largest and most numerOusly at
teudcd place Of worship IN New York, was kept
open until n late hour in the evening. The altar
toward the right hand trausepS was ornamentcd
with flowers, gliding. and images, and illum-
mated with scores ct wax candles, which threw
a broad and steady beam Of light into the gloom
Of the nave-for the spacious interior WIS other
church emerged from it, darkness into that soft
spIendor. By thousands the SPECTATORS came. en-
tcring at the eastern sud passing cut at the west
ern door-a crowd II the poor-a majority Of
them labgrers and servant girls and a. they passed
LETT their contributions in baskets which stood,
in the charge Of acolytes, before the affairs About
one in four contributed. The thrUng moving
from right to left, bowing and crossing it pass
ell each altar reached the altar toward the west
eru nave and here a dread and sombre object
appeared. the life sized eiTsy OF Christ upon the
cross hut heavily shrOuded in black Grape; 1t
had an appalling look, and | lInried that the
people shuddcred rs they passed before it. Ii
seemed like glllOws set up IN the church The
doors leading 70 the basement hall Of the church
were left open, and PORTION Of the audience,
following the impulse oi curiosity, found their
way down stairs instead ef emerging with the
crowd into the street. Four or five men We're
there. members Of n religious society, occupying
4 small Room and apparently waiting for their
presiding oicer To arrive und call them to order
and a. each new conner rccrc,i in ut the door they
scanned him closely. ~ IL expecting new addi-
ton 10 their number. The office Ol the .. Tene-
br:e." which consists in the repetition Of peni-
tentiaI Scriptures and the extinguishins, one by
one, OF che light. around thc altar, was not per-
formed A. usual upon this day; but on Good
Friday il WI celebrated at the same church in
thc evening. after n bong discourse in English
frum a rather tiresome preacher The crowd
was great ON both occasions.
Vt IT. Alban's (f.ciprmci Catholic or AnsIi-
can,) the services upon thi- day were after the
following elaborate order
At y. IS. Mathis. Litany. Eeproaches, Pro
au1phorll Servirr. with Sermon
Service the Thrcv-hours' Agony NJ 1880 p. ~
Even--5ng anil sermon nc 7sD p. 81
The liJtlc chapel was crowded during the three
hours .ervIre, which consisted oF scrptural read
ing-, sermon anil hymns. During the -insin. Of
;hc hymn .. Rock Of Ages the choir stopped at
the third serse and the chapel bell tolIeI during.
the pause with q peculiar and startling ELECT
Singing wa- resumed in about a minute. The
interior Of It. Albau's was hung with crite dur
ing the day /. anil botlr on Friday and Saturday
solemn services were held in this and in the
CathoIic Churches.
Easter ~uudly fell ON the 2Sth Of March. The
earliest possible day ON which it eun fall, in any
year, j. the I'D Of March and the latest. the
18th OF April. lt lcll ON the aforementioned date
in isis, anil viii not occur again upon that day
until = ID. 22~j. The present rule, Ordaining
that Easter SHOULD De kept ON the SUNDAY which
falls upon, or next after, the first full moon
after the yeruaI equinox, was established n lpn.
ag1 as the first Council Of Nice, held in the year
%. The very antiquity Of tins festival gives To
it certain charm in the eyes Of those who OBJ
serve il but, to iuvert old prDycrb It must be
a good xind that blows nobody any Ill Easter
itself WIS is al times black diy for Ou. class 0f
European eitizcus-she Hebrews In the reign
Of CharleaIange, sO9-sI+ \. D., custom was
iEst.tutcd IN the city Of 1Sulouss that Faster
any Carissiau might box tlrs ears of jew wher-
ever b. cianrld ~ meet hiE, o. show his con-