Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1896-10-01

I
10 the neyer.fading fulness OF light
from above, divInely conscious not
Only OF her mission, but of all the
circumstances necessary for its fulfil.
T, nlent.
| She counts her life by centuries, and
she lives TO see hard experience Justify
her prophecies and Intensity, Ii pos
sisble, her divine persuasions. Sac
the end Of this Nineteenth Century,
with it's mighty spreading unrest,
md the great heavings OF the human
breast, signing again for the marvel
GUS duty Of Christendom with lite
irresistible impact for true and perma-
nent progress! See the forced, un-
willing, oftentimes unconscious, con
fession on all SIDES that the non
Catholic worships are cold and barren,
and misunderstood the nature of man
See their necessary inconsistency in
restoring one by one the elements Of
Catholic worship, in response to the
lmperious demands of the human
heart, so that to-day it is possible for
even a priest to be deceived In not a
few OF our modern non Catholic
churches, 10 which, nevertheless,
wealth. culture and intelligence are
largely represented See the eyes OF
iden turning again instinctiveIy
towards the Catholic church as the
future savior of that society which lie,
after all. in all it's manifold beauty and
greatness, her own creation and handi-
work from Leo |. before Attila, the
genius of barbarism, to Leo XIII. be-
fore the genius OF modern democracy
Therefore, in the abundant symbol
ism OF her worship, the Catholic
church IN justified not only by the Old
and New Testament, not only by the
primitive traditions OF Christianity as
seem In the rich symbolism of the
Catacombs. hut by the cry of the
human heart, by the practice OF all
ages and societies, and by the final
admissions Of experience. We do not
admit thar the symbolism of our wor-
ship is cloaked materialism or sur
yival OF old idolatries. Matter is not
bad. 1t IL the work OF God and blessed
by Him with an immense passivity, an
inexhaustible Elasticity. 1t is the
basis of all that our senses perceive,
and through which our mind knows,
and our heart enjoys, and the whole
man is uplifted to his Maker
Now the Catholic church is the
spokesman before God of all creation,
and therefore she has the duty and the
right to honor God in the name of
matter no less than in the name OF the
Incompatible soul of man. Then
again, 10 the Christian view of the
world OF being all things created tend
by the law OF progress to final per-
fection, which is obtained when they
render God the highest possible praise
according TO the laws OF their being.
1t is through the symbolism of the
church that matter reaches this per-
fection, for il Is owing to her cere-
monies and their demands that the fine
arts, the highest expression Of matter,
have been preserved and developed.
those splendid creations OF human
skill which are only less beautiful than
the painting Of the skies and hills, tho
sculpture OF the continents, the music
OF the ocean, and that vaster harmony
OF the motion of worlds jnnumerable,
as they roll with order aud precision,
through the intricate grooves that the
Divine Hand cut out for them from
the beginning. mol There Ia no
materialism 10 these symbolic cere-
monies, no Is there any ignorance in
the mind Of her who fashions them as
the public expressions of love, gratitude
and alteration. Through these cere.
monies spiritual lessons are forever in
culcated, and through them barbarian
speoplee were first Withdrawn from their
COARSE naturalism and led, over easy
bridges, up to the altar of Christ and
the throne of God. There Is no ignor-
ence and no intention OF deceit in the
mind of the church which uses those
ceremonies. On the contrary, what a
wonderful dignity and majesty they
POSSESS What a sweet ressonableness
How free from all that is grotesque,
indecent, trivial! They are the result
OF long ages Of a. divine selection and
assimilation, and they are splendid
gem in the tiara of Mother Church
when we consider how many stages OF
culture she has dealt with, what null
titudes OF peoples, what differences Of
climate, race. ideals and needs; how
varied the men who made up these
ceremonies, and how easy 1t was for
the human element to disfgura the
work OF the Holy Spirit. No wonder
that the church esteems her ceremonies
40 highly, and deems their preserva.
tion and respect worthy OF a martyrs
blood!
We are here to-day to assist at one
OF the most charming ceremonies Of the
church, the blessing of a bell, one of
her most ancient and significant rites.
In the early History of the church
the people were summoned by previous
agreement or announcement, for they,
worshipped by stealth and in secret
places. Afterward, as the religion OF
Christ became more powerful, the
people we're invited to church by the
sound of trumpets, by drums, horns or
sounding plates Of brass. From the
Sixth Century bells have been in, use,
though in the beginning they were
apparently Of smaller size and portable.
AS thsir size was enlarged towers were
built for them, and this is the origin
of the graceful Campanili which adtrn
the churches of Southern Europe, and
also, according to many, Of tho Round
Towers of Ireland.
Since the Twelfth Century the use
of bells has been universal. Where 1t
Is possible to have them no church Is
without one; and il at times they arc
not found in Catholic churches it is
not because they are supertluous
furniture, but on account of the strict
necessity of providing first the more
essential things, such as churches,
converts and schools.
In the canon law of the church the
object and position of bells are
accurately defined, as we'll as the
proper number for churches of various
degrees. the hours at which they may
be rung, the purposes for which they
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