The Hawaiian gazette., 1901-03-26

w HIS WlthdraWS, but he says nothing of
making up for the grants to the English,
American and Chinese clergy, from
whom the S. =. G.. has withdrawn GiO0
a year. The mission may, therefore go
TO pieces and a bishop 1000 miles away
will supervise the ruins There is no
property of the Church Of England in the
Islands to be transferred: II Is held by
the corporation of the Anglican Church
in Hawaii. That which does or did be-
long to the Church of England is the
metropolitical authority of the Church of
England over the See of Honolulu Did
this authority pass ipso facto in annexa-
ton, or was a formal cession required?
1T would appear to be plain duty of
the Standing Committee of the S. p. c.,
as the accredited organ of the Episco-
pate. to ascertain whether or no the
Archbishop of Canterbury has ceded his
metropolitan authority over the See OF
Honolulu, and to notify the Bishop OF
Honolulu accordingly
From this brief abstract OF the some
what Yoluminous printed and written de-
bate which has already taken place, it
will be seen that this subject can hardly
be ignored in the coming General Con-
vention. Nor ought it to be. Matters of
such serious Importance ought not to be
settled in corner, nor by any private or
personal authority. They ought to be
done openly, and with such manifest
conformity to constitutional catholic law
that no bad precedents may be establish
ed for the future misleading of the
Church. And we are confident that all
parties who have hitherto dealt provi-
sionally with this matter would desire
| 1t to be finally settled in that way, and
I in that way only.
| The danger as we have already said,
Is this, that matters of merely local and
temporary significance may be allowed
to obscure greater matters of fundamen-
tai Importance. We desire, then. to sub
NIT to the consideration of our readers
and the Church the following as the fun
damental points to be determined:
In the founding OF the See of Homo
lulu, there were only two parties the
Church of England, represented by, and
acting through. its chief Metropolitan,
the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the
Bishop of Honolulu. Afterwards, as the
work of the Church increased and the
See itself became a more and more Wis
ible entity, that See acquired certain
corporate ecclesiastical rights which no
external power has any right to take
away. Thus, before the Islands became
part of the territory of the United
States, there We're really three parties
in interest: the Church of England, rep
resented by the Metropolitan; the Bish-
op of Honolulu; and the See of Homo
lulu.
What was the effect of the acquisition
of the Sandwich Islands by the United
States? Did that change of civil juris-
diction ipso facto GUST the Archbishop of
Canterbury from his metropolitan au-
thority In those Islands? Did 1t ipso fac
to transfer the ecclesiastical allegiance
of Bishop Willis from the Church of
England to the Church in the United
States? Did 1t ipso facto subject the
See of Honolulu to the jurisdiction of the
American Church? We submit that each
and every one OF these three questions
hp In no
may be true, and it doubtless is true,
that, when the territory in which a see
Is situated Is permanently attached to a
different national Jurisdiction from that
under which II has previously existed.
the ecclesiastical jurisdiction ought to
follow the civil. But changes of eccle-
siastical allegiance are not effected ipso
facto by changes of temporal sovereignty
which, as history shows, may be caused
by cruel wrong or causeless rebellion as
often as by just and peaceful acquisi-
ton. In any such change. there will al
ways be rights of various kinds to be
respected; and in this case these rights
are OF three-fold character.
|. II Ia needless to argue that the met
ropolitical authority OF the Archbishop
OF Canterbury ought In some way TO be
renounced; for, until II Is In some way
withdrawn, the Bishop, and his See
along with him, win continue 10 be bound
by their settled ecclesiastical allegiance,
2. Again, the Bishop OF Honolulu is
fully possessed OF all the rights OF per-
manent Jurisdiction which belong to the
status OF catholic bishop; and OF no
one of those rights can he be lawfully
despolled because OF any change In the
temporal status OF the Sandwich Islands,
g. Again the See OF Honolulu, after 50
many years continuous existence Is an
entity mat cannot BIO ignored when it
is transferred 20 tho jurisdiction ~ tho
Protestant Episcopal Church MAT trans
Tor ought to hs made on conditions sat.
lsfaptay t1 the Sec ~ Honolulu w. Tor
example ils present status Is mat ~ an
autonomous soc, as u seems 90 be. We
should be- disposed 20 question The riHht .
~ thf Church ga ihr United states 90
TriHnr IA without ~ oNn consent 90
thn status ~ q missionary jurisdiction ]
Thrre. then. are Ihn three matters 30 .
no wisely arranged Thsfs may DO, ana .
there doubtless are, peculiar dinieullirs
in lu removed nf avoided tut in % faF