Albuquerque citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1907-1909, 1908-04-28
CARDINAL GIBBONS
DELIVERS SERMON
Reviews History of the See and
Men Who Were Prominent it it.
COnqratulatory Messages
From Pope. President
and Others.


this morning hundreds of priests
ANA dignitaries and thousands of
people we're on their way to s.. Pat
rick's cathedral to JON in the i'm
posing thanksgiving service in honor
of the completion of d hundred years
OF catholic progress in New York.
While the service did not begin be-
fore il the cathedral was filled to
ovcrfowing long before ten. Before
the service began there were fully six
thousand in the beautiful edifice and
as many more outside. Scores of
communications reached Archbishop
Farley. including congratulations
from the pope and President Roose-
Welt. Cardinal Gibbons preached a
long sermon.
He reviewed the history of the See
and the prominent men who had been
connected with it. In part he said:
Let us now make brief survey
OF the gigantic strides which this
archdiocese has made during the
century that has come to close. 1t
j. only by comparisons and contrasts
that we can form an adequate esti-
mate Of this growth and expansion.
According to a premier Catholic di-
rectory, preserved in the Baltimore
cathedral archives, published in 1913,
there were six priests ministerlng in
IN is diocese which then, as ] said,
embraced the whole state of New
York and a part of New Jersey.
There was only one Catholic church
~ the city. old st Peters and a few
modest houses Of worship scattered
far and wide over that immense area.
The Catholic population numbered
about 10000 souls. As for colleges
and academies, hospitals and asylums
there were none Of which any record
is preserved
What is the situation today? In
the same territory there are one arch
bishop and nine bishops including a
coadjutor ana an auxiliary bishop,
twenty-five hundred and thirty-six
priests, upwards of fourteen hundred
churches. ana q Catholic population
Of about three millions The whole
region is now adorned with colleges,
academies and schools, protectories,
asylums and hospitals and with all
the appliances that religion and ben
evidence can devise for the alienation
OF suffering humanity. New York is,
today. the. most important See in the
United states. and Is second to the
few. if indeed to any, In the whole
Catholic world.
But among the various institutions
that enrich this Metropolitan see,
there Is one structure which the hier-
archy ami faithful contemplate with
peculiar pride and eXultation; there
is one edifiCe which is your joy and
your crown, and that is the majestic
Cathedral in which we are now as
sembled.
In contributing to the erection Of
this church you have done honor to
yourselves II it is glory for citi-
zen 10 raise y monument to the father
OF his country, how Ich greater is
the privilege OF erect," a monument
10 our savior and fat -er in Heaven ?
50 great, indeed. is the distinction
attached to the construction Of a
house OF worship i}'at when there
was question an tE.t IA law OF build
ing temple to Got, the project was
conceived by one king, it was carried
into execution by "a second, and the
temple AS repaired by third. King
David conceived the plan; King Sol
omo2 carried out his fathers design
and King Josias renovated the house
Of pray -.
And ss three kinds took part I'm
erecting Jerusalem's temple so have
three princes Of the church united in
the construction Of this noble edihce.
Archbishop Hughes secured the
ground aud projected the idea: Card
inal MCClOskey erected the building.
and Archbishop Corrigan re-enfOrced
hy his successor. brought work to a
happy consummalion.
Aud even in the Christian itSu4D-