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

Soul may reap zoe aims OF prayer
from all who hear tho sorrowful appeal.
These are the passing bells. And when
the body is committed to it's narrow
tenement OF earth the bells OF Holy
Church are toiled in pious sorrow for
her departed child.
They are rung, also, in oil great pro-
cessions, In times Of public calamity,
or in Thanksgiving for signal public
benefits.
In Catholic lands they ring at night
fall the De Profundis or daily prayer
for the dead, and three timesa day,
morning. 1pon and at sunset, they
sound the Angelus Or antiphoti iof the
| Blessed Virgin Mary. At this sound
the toilers In the field, the merchants
in the city. the shepherds on the hill.
side, all rost TO reoite with Bonded
knee or bowed head the Scripture pas
sages which tell of the Incarnation OF
Christ
Those who know the marvellous his
tory OF ancient Irish culture and the
laborious apostolate OF religion and
civilization carried on by that nation
In Central and Western Europe in the
Seventh and Eighth Centuries. know
| that the old Irish missionaries carried
little bells to call the people around
them and that several Of these hand
bells have been preserved, notable that
OF st. Patrick, as very holy relics
They know, too, that where other
people swore on bodily relics In the
middle ages the Irish swore on the
symbolic bells of their teachers, and
looked upon such oathH ss the holiest
they could make.
1t is not wonderful, therefore that in
the eyes of the Church the hell is
consecrated object, and after the altar
and the consecrated vessels, among the
most cherished instruments oil her
material service. Every bell receives
the name OF some saint. Its oonsecra.
ton is frequently called a baptism.
Sponsors are often given to it. Not I'M
frequently these are little children,
dressed in white and ranged on either
side. 1t is decked with gay fowers,
and sometimes, after the conservation,
Is dressed in white, after the ancient
manner of baptism.
| 1t is forbidden to ring it for any
superstitious purpose, or for profane
meetings, or against the wish of the
| bishop, or to ring secular airs upon the
chimes, or to ring it outside the proper
hours. 1t cannot be rung for public
executions, nor ID an ipterdicted city,
but on the occasion of the public
visitation OF bishop all the bells Of
the church are ordered to be rupg, to
| give warning to the people that their
chief pastor 10 coming
The present solemn form according
TO which bells are blessed in the
| Catholic Church dates from the tenth
century. when PopeJohn XII blessed
the great bell of the Lsteran Church at
Rome. The bishop accompanied by
the clergy and vested in cope and Nitro
Of gold, takes his place near the bell.
While portion Of the Psalms is being
chanted he is seated, crozier IN hand.
After the chanting or reading OF the
allotted Psalms no rises and blesses
water and salt according to the very
ancient usage Of the Church. With this
blessed water he washes the interior
and exterior surfaces OF the bell. Then,
taking the holy oils, be forms with the
oil of the sick a sign Of the cross on the
| exterior OF the bell. Afterwards be
forms the same sign sever, times on
| the exterior with the same oil and four
times with holy chrism on the interior
OF the bell. He then soemny conse-
crates 1t to the services OF God, in the
name OF the Blessed Trinity under tho
invocation Of some saint. This is called
| the baptism of the bell, because it is
thus finally set aside from profane uses
as sacred thing.
| Beneath the bell is now. placed a
vase of sweet smelling incense, myrrh
and thyme The contents are ignited
and the fumes soon fill the interior OF
the bell. A priest then chants the
page of the gospel which tells of the
visit of jesus to Martha and Mary in
the house at Bethany. The bishop
makes the sign Of the cross on che bell,
and the beautiful rite is dons.
| What does all this mean? the by
stander will ask.
The bell, in the symbolism Of the
church signifies the pastor, always
visible, whose yoice is always to DO
heard and who must always be obeyed
| when he speaks as the minister of
| Christ. Cry cease moi, +" says Isas
Gift up thy voice like q trumpet. "
| (Lviii-l.)
The washing OF the bells Inside and
out signifies the purity Of life and the
soundness of doctrine which should be
found in both priest and people. The
single sign of the cross made by the
| bishop signifies that Christ is the
leader, the priest the standard bearer
of Christ, to whom he must look for
protection for himself and flock. The
seven signs OF the cross represent the
seven gifts of the Holy Ghost, and also
| the seven sacraments of Christ. The
| four signs oil. the cross signify the four
| quarters Of the universe in which the
| doctrine OF Christ, His name, His law
| and His promise must lie taught by the
priest. The burning perfumes indicate
| the prayers OF the faithful, whose repre-.
sentative the priest is at the altar of
Christ aud in the public Office of the
church.
The bishop performs the ceremony
because he is the divinely appointed
| head of tho priesthood and chief shep-
hera of the people. The sign OF the
cross is made frequently, because it is
| the visible sign OF our redemption, the
| distinctive mark Of Christians and our
sufficient hope OF salvation. ''In the
| cross. " says the Imitation, sis saliva.
| ton; in the cross is life; in the cross
| is protection from our enemies. " The
holy oils are used so that whoever listens
to the sound of the blessed bell may
i remain strong in the profession of the
faith of Christ.
| What lessons would the church
especially inculcate on us who assist at
| this blessed rite? ei'A.
| 1t seems TO me that her wish is
clearly expressed in the gospel which
she causes to be recited as the closing