The St. Johns herald., 1885-09-17
FAREWELL.

the church at Santa Fe, Archbishop John B. Lamy, encountered by the weight of years, and in the full re- alization of the growing weakness of h1s body, has resigned his sa- cred office, that the arduous labors thereof may be. performed by an- other whose strength and wisdom is yet equal thereto. The church has grown in godliness, and be- come purified, under the pious la bors of the archbishop. We might record instances almost without number, where his work had been of the most substantial benefit, not only to the church in its spiritual aspect, but equally beneficial to the city of Santa Fe in effecting a bet ter respect for civil government, and a more thoughtful, law-abiding peo- pie, We gladly place in our col umns this week, from the Santa Fe New Mexican, the archbishop's farewell to the faithful, read in Spanish at all the churches in the diocese of New Mexico on Sunday, the 9th ult.:
 For some years past we had asked of the Holy See a coadjutor in order to be relieved of the great responsibility that rested on our shoulders since the year 1850, when the supreme authority of the church saw fit to establish new diocese in New Mexico, and in spite of our limited capacity we were appointed it's first bishop. Now our petition has been heard and our resignation accepted. We are glad, then, to have as a success sor the illustrious Archbishop Morss. Salpointe, who is we'll known in this bishopric, and wor- thy of administering it, for the good of the souls and the greatest glory of God. What has prompted this determination is our advanced age that often deprives us of the necessary strength in the fulfill ment of our sacred ministry, though our health may apparently look robust. We shall profit by the days left us to prepare ourselves the better to appear before the tri- bunal of God, in tranquility and solitude.
 "We commend ourselves to the prayers of all, and particularly those of our priests, who, together with us, have borne, and still bear the burden of the day, which is the great responsibility of directing the souls in the road of salvation. Let the latter remember that, in or der that their holy ministry be of any benefit their example must ac- company their instructions. It is with pleasure that we congratulate the most of the clergy of this dio- cese for their zeal and labors and we desire that those who might have failed in their sacred duties may give henceforth better proofs of being the worthy ministers of God.
 {" We also commend ourselves to the prayers of the faithful, whose lively faith has edified us on many an occasion. We exhort them to persevere in this same faith, in their obedience to the church, in their faithfulness to their daily ob- in the religious freqence of the sacraments, and in the de- votion to the blessed Virgin Mary, which is one of the most cfficacious means of sanctifcation.
 Finally, we hope that the few religious communities that we have had the happiness to establish in this new diocese will offer some memento in their prayers for our spiritual benefit.
 ''We ask of all to forgive us the faults we may have committed in the exercise of our sacred ministry, and on our part we will not forget to offer to God our humble prayer for all the souls that the Lord has intrusted to us for so many years.
 f J. B. LAMY, Archbishop. Given at Santa Fe, N M., on the 26th