Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1890-04-06
SONGS OF PRAISE
To Be Heard in the City Churches
To-Day.
GLORIA IN EXCELSIS SUNG.
How the Lenten Season Was Brought to a
Close, Yesterday.
SOMETHING OF CASTERS HISTORY.

Yesterday with bright sunshine and
balmy air, as though Nature was in
haste TO greet the Easter morning, and
was disposed to show that with the pass
ing away of the season of sorrow in the
Church, there would come better and
brighter things.
The close of the Lenten season was
signalzed yesterday, in the Catholic
and Episcopal churches, by the services
incident to the day-the memorial fes-
tival of the Savior'S entombment in the
sepulchre. AT the Cathedral these ser
vices were particularly impressive, and
were witnessed by a large congregations
| Incident TO the services OF the day was
the blessing of the new fire, which was
employed i'm lighting the candles ana
/ lamps of the affairs, which were again
dressed with the ornaments that had
been taken away on Maundy Thursday
i'm authorization of the Passion. AT
/ the conclusion of these rites there
| followed the blessing of the Paschal
candle. which symboliZed the body OF
Christ. and not being lit at the com
mcncement of the services, showed Him
/ forth rs dead. Five grains of incense
! inserted i'm the candle tYpified the hVe
wounds of the Redeemcr, ana the aro-
matte spices used TO embalm His BODY.
The lighting of the Paschal candle AZ
! forwards was an Acknowledgements OF the
Redeemer'S resurrection to Il new life.
The singing of the twelve prophecies
/ took ND the greater portion OF the morn
ing service and proved a most interest
ing feature of the ceremonies. Sue
ceedng the singing of the prophecies
came the blessing of the baptiSmal font
and the Easter water, which, ut the
close of mass. was sprinklcd upon the
| heads of the congregation. During the
day the beautiful statues OF the Sacred
| Heart, the Madonna and Child and ~.
Joseph were placed in position, and
were greatly admired. Flowers were
scarce and difficult to obtain. but Mrs.
NJ. Reilly presented splendid floral
cross. and the flowers used i'm construct
ing the gates to the repository, furnish
ed by Mrs. John 5. Welty and others.
were beautiful and excited great deal
of well meritcd comment.
At ST. Matthews Church there were
services appropriate to the day, and
large congregation was present. The
ordinance of baptism was administered
by the pastor, Rev X. Rush Swope.
To-day the churches will be bright
with flowers. and will be filled with the
music of the musical programme,
printed in this paper yesterday morn
| ing. That the services will be well at
tended goes without saying. and that
the splendid weather OF yesterday may
be duplicated is the earnest wish of every
one. At the Cathedral there will be
services at half-paSt six, nine and half
past ten o'clock. At the latter hour
grand high mass will be sung, with the
Rt. Rev. Mgr. Sullivan as cclebrant,
Rev. Father McEligott as deacon and
/ Rev. Father Bauer as Sub-deacon.
Taking it altogether Easter will be
observed with more than usual earnest
ness. in Wheeling. There are two pre-
vailng ideas in the world regarding
Easter. One is that of the Church. and
/ the other is that OF society. Both are
valid. and when religion and society be-
come more Identical in their interests
than they are now. both Will be regard
ed from much the same point OF view.
| The day has been when the church gave
the tone to society, but at the present
time society often gives tone to the
Church. This is specially seen at the
present time. Lent imposes lis r"-
stratus upon society. and in the enforce
ment of its rules the CHURCH Is supreme.
/ The social world has given way To the
wishes of the people who keep the len
ten season, but the gay festivities of life
are to-day renewed i'm all the great cen
ters of fashion and influence. The
church has had its rule, but now the
world resumes its sway. On Easter day
the two stand cNpectant and joyous be-
fore the great legend of Christianity,
which reads that Christ is risen from
the dead: death hath no more dominion
over him The world does not To any
great extent keep Lent, but ''aIl the
world keeps Easter day.
Easter is the annual festival observed
throughout Christendom in commemora-
ton of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
There is no trace of the celebration OF
Easter as a Christian festival in the New
Testament or in the writings OF the
Apostolic fathers. The Sanctity of
special times or places was an idcaqulte
alien to the early Christian mind. The
historian Socrates states that neither
Christ nor his Apostles enjoined the
keeping of this or any other festival.
The diversity of uSuage with regard to
Easter which once existed among the
different nations was brought TO an end
bv the Church OF Rome. The Roman
Christians adopted the usage which
placed the observance of the CruciiXiOn
ON Friday. and that of the Resurrec-
ton on the following Sunday. Nothing,
however. was said as to the determina-
ton of the day. This was practically
left to be calculated upon at Alexandra,
the home Ct astronomical science, and
the Bishop that See was to announce it
annually to the churches under his iur-
isdiction and to the Bishop of Rome, by
whom it was to be communicated to the
Western churches.
The rule upon which the date for OBJ
serving Easter was finally established
may be briefly stated. yesterday Is
the first Sunday after the fOrty-fourth
day of the calendar moon, which hap
pens on or near March 2lSt. This cal
endar moon is not the moon Of the heaV-
ems nor the mean moon Of the aStrono-
mers, but an imaginary moon created
for ecclesiastical convenience in advance
of the real moon. After nine centuries
a discrepancy in the observance OF
Easter between the Roman and the En-
glish churches was caused by the re-
fusal in England to adopt the Gregorian
reformation of the calendar, 1882 APP
parently for no other reason than that
the calendar had originated at Rome.
This difference was put an end to in
1852. when what is known as 1.-The new
style" was adopted in the United King
dom.
The churches of Russia and Greece,
and the Oriental Churches generally.
adhere tenaciously to the unreformed
calendar, so their Easter is nearly "a fort
night later than that of the rest of the