Evening star., 1909-04-18
riots Flock to Rome to See Canonzaon of Joan of Arc Today

the secretary OF rites. read in the pres
ence Of the pope. of Cardinal Ferrata.
ponent of Joan's cause; Archbishop Ire
land of St. Paul and other high eccIesi-
astics assembled i'm the hall of the con-
sstory at the Vatican, the decree sol
emnly declaring that Joan was really In
spired by God; that through her God had
triumphed over the enemies of her coun-
try: that she showed supernatural pru-
dence in all circumstances; that she re-
ceived knowledge of arms by divine In
spiration and that she can now usefuly
invoke Gods aid for her country and
for the faith.
The ceremony of beatification of April
1S, which will be the solemn sanction by
the pope of everything already done, will
consist essentially I'm the reading of
pontifcal brief declaring Joan blessed.
First. Joan's postulator. Bishop Touchet
OF Orleans will say solemn high mass
at ST. Peters in the presepce of 10000
people, filling the basilica, splendidly dec
Grated for the occasion The pope, who
cannot say masses for -beatifcations, but
only for canonizations, will remain In his
apartments until this mass has been said.
and will then come through the secret
passage leading from the Vatican to ST.
Peters. stopping at his confessional and
generating the image of Joan. Then he
will proceed in solemn pontfical process
sion to the baSilica. wearing his tiara and
clad in his cope. seated In his sedia. pre-
ceded by garden mobiles and officials and
followed by twenty five cardinals and $50
bishops in the cortege. Then. in his
presence. the decree promulgating the
beatification of Joan will be read
One of the most interesting ceremonies
usually connected with Qualifications that
of the recognition of the body, must per-
force be omitted in this case. since not
even a relic remains of poor little Joan.
whose ashes were cast into the Seine by
order of Winchester, together with her
heart. which. bathed In its blood is said
to have miraculously resisted the action
of the flames.
In modern times beatification has come
to be a step toward assured canonization,
since the first honor of beatus Is not
conferred until positive proof has been
gathered that the venerable Is worthy OF
the final and complete conservation as a
saint. With Joan this is even more true
than of any other, for not only has her
character come spotless out of the cruci-
BILE of merciless examination but she is
furthermore martyr. The tardy atone
ment will, in way be given for the
cruelty of her premature end. dying in
agony at the stake, when all she asked
w
village. far from battles which she frank
ly said she feared and from court revels
which she forever stunned. Until now
the only consolation which her a1mirers
could find in her tragically closed life
was the consideration that she would
have lost nine-tenths of her glamour il
she had fingered on to a gray-haired old
age in an obscure cottage, instead OF
perishing young. charming, gifted and
proclaimed a saint by some of those who
had deliberately driven her to the stake
and who moaned over her ashes: Sure
ly we shall be damned for this!' Rarely
has cause been clear and at the very
first stage, IN 1894, Leo XIII exclaimed
significantly, upon reading the process or
the postulator: Joan is ours!
And so the few years which must
elapse according to usage before the
canonization is proclaimed leave no ap-
prehensions in the minds of Joan's de-
tenders. sure as to the ultimate fate OF
their heroine proclaimed in the papal de-
cree on her miracles as being Pure as
the angels strong as the lion In trials
and i'm battle, simple as a child and al
ways devoted to the service of God"
Copyright, 1909, by Curtis Brown.)