Los Angeles herald., 1906-10-15
DISCOVERY DAY
IS CELEBRATED
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS HEAR
SERMON
Attend Services at Cathedral Of st.
Vlbians and Listen to Eloquent
Address by Bishop
conaty

thronged yesterday with two of the
largest congregations in the history Of
the edifice At 10;S0 a. m. Rev. Francis
j. Conaty nephew of Bishop Conaty
celebrated his first mass in the diocese,
assisterd by Rev. J. A. Reardon as
deacon, Rev, Joseph McManus as sub
deacon and Rev. j. M. W. Beaudry as
master of ceremonies. Bishop Conaty
presided in the sanctuary.
Inc bishop preached the sermon on
The Christian Priesthood"
In the evening Father Conaty cele-
biated the solemn vesper service, at
which the anniversary Of the discovery
or America by Columbus was observed
by the knights OF Columbus who at
tended the service in q body. Bishop
Conaty preached the sermon at the
vesper service on Columbus" and in
his mastery style outlined the history
OF the great dscoverer from his birth
in 1446 through his school life, glories
and imprisonment to his death in 1906.
Was Pure Man
Bishop Conaty spoke of his character
and said:
HE was not only a. great scientist
and a skilled navigator but he was also
man of purity and faith. He loved
his God, his church and his king. II
his king was mean, Columbus was mag
unanimous. He gave his king a world
and received ingratitude, yet he never
murmured against his king even In
prison. He was a prudent and success
ful governor, humane to the natives and
kind to his own men.
Three great ideas dominated his life
the discovery of the new world the
circunnavigaton of the earth and the
redemption of the holy land. Even in
his will he thought of the holy sepulcher
and made provision for its redemption.
He was man of practical faith and
lived as he believed. He loved the
holy sacraments of his church and re-
ceived them regularly. The dominant
note in his mission was religious one,
His ambition was to extend the in
fuence of the cross of Jesus Christ. The
names he gave the new lands are marks
of his religious spirit.
Had Practical Faith
Columbus was a Catholic, a layman,
an apostle Of the cross of Christ. He
was a man Of piety and yet a man of
extensive knowledge. He believed in
religion as the soul of knowledge, un-
like many today who divorce religion
from knowledge in the superficial learn
ing they eliminate God and strive to
make themselves believe that religion
Is incompatible with knowledge, with
science or with progress.
columbus realized that the mariner,
the most sklllful geographer, the most
scientific navigator, the most learned,
needs a guide, whether it be of the
compass or the diyine teacher. He
realized that science should lead to a.
greater belief in God rather than to
disbelief in him. He believed that the
perfection of natures work argued the
greater perfection of natures creator.
1t argued perfect. mind giving, being.
life and law to all nature
Example to Knights
I'm commemorating the event for
which the world is eternally grateful,
the knights of Columbus should take
example from the character of their
great patron. Loyalty to his memory Is
expressed best by loyalty to all that
the Catholic stands for. Nothing
stronger could be expressed than by
their words "Catholic knight" They
mean gentlemen, brave because they
are manly, and true because they love
virtue and honor; their strength Is in
their Christian faith, which is their
richest possession.
1.-The Catholic knight is one who
should not be afraid to be virtuous,
who loves the church and is faithful to
all its precepts, whose sword is drawn
in defense Of those holy places of mans
true love, the home, the child, the
church, honor and virtue.
1.-The mission of Catholic laymen is
one of the most important. 1t has in
l. the character of the apostolate. 1t
is a call to battle for the truth in the
establishment of a kingdom of God
among men. 1t calls for an intelligent
knowledge Of religion and a thorough
Familiarity with the history of the
church.
Old Faith Diminished
1.-The layman should be prepared to
give an account of the faith that Is In
him. We cannot help wondering what
has become of much Of that wonderful
self-denial and sacrifice which char
acterized our fathers in their love for
the church. There seems to be cold
ness in the children of these grand old
sires. The old fashioned faith seems
to diminish and the vanities of the
world seem to have captivated the
children of the martyrs.
1.-The present condition of society calls
for an intelligent laity who live and
speak and work for Christ. Modern
society Is becoming dechristianized
and form Of paganism seems TO pre-
vail. Grotesque absurdties in religion
establish themselves on every side.
There Is an appearance of religious
anarchy which is causing multitudes to
slip away from positive religion and
settle down in compacancy in nom
belief. VI
1.-The old fashioned principles of jus
tice and honesty seem to be losing
their hold even among so-called Cath
olics; there is a tendency to become
eclectic in religion, to disregard the
precepts of the church, to violate even
some Of its most serious obligations.
The marriage tie is losing much of its
sacredness and home seems not to have
the old fashioned meaning. Youth dis
regards old age, irreverence and inde-
pendence seem to be characteristic re-
suits of much of our education. The
character by which Columbus was able
to succeed in fulfilling his scientific
anticipations of a new world is the
character that is needed to discover the
world for God and reconquer 1t from
sin and unbelief
Need Strong Appeal
1--WE need a strong appeal TO the
manhood of our Catholic life to rise I'm
\