The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1871-11-05
CITY mrx1IIaxGcE.

umphant, With ono voice and ono accord thu
faithful on earth sent mp their praises TO thu
faithful in heaven and prayed their interoes-
sion before tho throne Of tho Most High. For
the information Of these who may have bean
led into error by some Of tho secular press
true account Of the origin Of this festival 10
subjoined: Pope Boniface w., in tho yeas
then temple built by Marcus Agrppa in honor
of all the gods) and dedicated it to the Blessed
Virgin and all tho martyrs. It was then
known as tho Church Of st. Maria ad Martyree
and commonly styled the Rotunda. The feast
Of the dedication was observed on the 18th of
May each year. The festival in honor of all
the Apostles was observed on the 1st of May.
About the year 731 Pope Gregory III. conse-
Grated chapel in st. Peters Church in honor
of All the Saints. Since that time tho festival
of All-Saints has been celebrated in Rome.
Gregory w., during his visit to France in the
year 1897, During the reign of Louis Debon
naire,) popularized this festival to great ex-
tent. Soon the observance of this holyday was
made universal, and now, ON the first of No
vember of each year, the priests of the Church
don their richest vestments, the holy edifces
| are decorated, anthems of praise ascend and
prayers go up to the righteous that have died
in the Lord, to the just that have gone before.
The change Of date for celebrating this feast
| was, we opine, not made without good reason.
Doubtless our spiritual directors thought it
meet and Just that the Church Militant, having
celebrated the feast of all the Saints, (the
Church Triumphant and having supplicated
their prayers, should, on the following day, ad-
dress themselves to the All-Mercifu1 God in
behalf of the Church Patient or Suffering. So
it is that we have All-Saints' Day followed inn
'mediately by All-Souls' day. Thus it is that
| the good Christian visits the graveyards on
both these days. For the eye of Faith regards
some that are buried there as beatified spirits,
| the voice of Hope whispers that many are on
probation, and Charity, blind to their faults
and dumb as to their misdeeds, with out
stretched hands invokes a prayer that all may
be saved. Holy indeed and beautiful is the
sentiment that of the dead nothing should
be said but good; but thrice holy and
consoling are the words, blessed are
they that die in the Lord" Reflect, then,
ye lukewarm, ye sluggish, ye nominal
Catholics, that death to all men comes soon
or late The quarried shaft, the stately
monument, whereon your virtues are record
ed, will not avail when the scroll of your deeds
is unrolled before the Great Judge. No better
homily could be devised than visit to the
i
of man is impressed upon the sinner, and even
the infdel becomes imbued with longing for
the infinite, the eternal. Hope thus kindles
the fro of Faith. Pride and vain-glory die
out, and in their stead god-like love must
supervene. Ages before the coming of the
Messiah, the Jews held it holy and whole
some to pray for their dead. st. Odile, Abbot
of Cluni, instituted the commemoration of all
the faithful departed in all the monasteries OF
his congregation. The whole Roman Catholic
Church soon adopted this pious custom. Here
in our own Crescent City all creeds unite on
this day in doing honor to the dead. Space
will not admit of onf giving an elaborate de-
scription of the various graveyards and the
decorations of the tombs therein, but we pre-
sent slight and hurried sketch.
st. Louis Cemetery No. AT each gate
delegation from the Portuguese Benevoient
Society stood ready to receive from tho living
their dole Of tribute for the orphans of the Third
District, those poor unfortunates whose natu-
raj protectors have been claimed by the grave.
Fronting tho Cont street entrance stands the
massive mausoleum of the Portuguese Benevo-
lent Society. Surrounding this structure,
which is twenty-four feet high is a statue Of
Silence. Poetical and typical! The voiceless
Gomu, buV oh, ho" OLo4ooh0' GSoA W. SNs
stands the mausoleum of tho volunteer COM
pany of Catalonians. Surrounding the solid
shaft that rears itself above this sepnlchre
was the Spanish flag draped in mourning.
The tomb belonging to the Italian Benevo-
lent Society is perhaps the finest to be found.
Circular in form, built of choice italian mar
BILE, each name inscribed in golden letters; IN
a niche On the southern face is statue OIL
I<tI,. ,1,,1 I'm
ern face statue of Italy, crowned with the
mural crown, bearing in one hand blossoms
and the vine and in the other the sword; on
top statue of Faith, bearing in her hand the
symbolic cross and with eyes appraised to
Heaven. The tomb of the Orleans Battalion
of artillery, was tastefully draped. Though
the Battalion has been disbanded by the war,
mourners, sincere and earnest were not want
~ ut nf he dead A hugo