The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1913-05-17


THE STATE OF RELIGION AND
THE TIoN OF THE
CHURCH IN THAT DIOCESE
GREAT DEARTH OF PRIESTS AND
INsTITUTIoNs-THE 81 HooL
QUESTION
We have received from a priest OF
the Archdiocese of st. Paul, a letter
written to him by the Right Reverend
Bishop O'Doherty of zamboanga, in
the Philippine Islands, part of which
we reproduce.
Bishop O'Doherty is the first Bishop
of Zamboanga and was consecratec
in ireland on September 3, 1911. Fol
eight years prior to that time he was
Rector of the Irish College, Sala
manca, Spain. On his way to the PM
lippine Islands, he visited the United
States and spent some time in st
Paul as the guest of the Most Rev
erend Archbishop. He is known &c
many priests of the Archdiocese who
will be interested in reading the fol
lowing account of religious conditions
in his new Diocese.
zamboanga, P. l.,
March IA, 1918
Rev. Dear Father:
l sailed from San Francisco, July
or Manila AnOnS1
3Oth. The Archbishop, Bishop Mac
Ginley of Nueva Caceres and BishoI
Petrelli of Lipa were there to NEE
me and Bishop Dougherty of JarC
came a few days later. On Septem
Der 5th reached Zamboanga, m!
destination, where I was warmly re
ceived, not only by the Filipinos, bu
by the Americans without distinction
of creed or class. The Army peopl'
we're particularly kind, cordial ant
generous.
After a rest of two weeks, set ou
to visit the priests in the various part
of the diocese of which was in thi
way enabled to get a good idea.
was absent from September 18th til
october 23rd and had some thrilling
experiences, particularly towards tht
end of my tour / was in the towI
a of Surigao when the terrible hurricant
of October 18th swept it. The pastor''
house at which l was staying wa
struck and shattered, the roof beinj
completely carried away, while Is
houses in the vicinity were utterl
demolished. Two days later / narrow
ly escaped drowning at sea in AZ
ton steam launch, in a district wher
many ships were wrecked and owe
400 persons perished.
No Diocesan institutions.
When l returned to Zamboanga sc
about establishing the various depart
ments of a Diocese and when l meT
ton that l have no seminary, no hos
pital, no high school for boys or girls
no training school for teachers, n
Cathedral, no house-in a word, n
single diocesan institution of any kline
you will have an idea Of the diffcultie
under which | labor and the natur
of the work in which / am engaging
From the middle of January l hav
been holding visitations and confrms
ton in many places where Bisho
never put foot before. have returne
to Zamboanga for Holy Week afte
which / shall set out again and b
absent till the end of Septembel
Letter writing then, as you may infel
can come only in odd moments an
as a recreation, so that years mus
elapse before l can hope to have CON
municated with all my friends in tn
United States and in Europe.
The area of the diocese of ZambC
anga is nearly 10000 square mile:
measuring 600 miles from North t
South and the same distance froI
East to West 1t comprises thir
of the whole of the Philippine Island:
Within this scope there are abou
800 district islands, Mindanao alon
being larger than Ireland. In tn
other two-thirds there are eigh
Bishops and Vicar Apostolic. A
the Mohammedans and the maiorit
Of the pagans of the whole Archipe
ago live within the. confines of tn
diocese of Zamboanga, yet it is tn
only diocese in which the Catholic
are in the minority.
The Christians do not as a rul
penetrate into the interior for fear {
being killed by the Moros or othe
wild people. My people are simpl
and docile, though weak and incol
slant. They live from day to da!
never caring to amass wealth, a
money would be danger and invit
robbery by lawless neighbors. / hav
many Americans here, but, exceptin
the military, they are people VIII
have come to make money, and bC
lieve they are laying the foundation
of large fortunes. Taking things, how
ever, as they are today, there is notl
ing so scare as money in the PhiliI
pine Islands.
The School Question.
One of our greatest troubles is th
school question. The Council of Mar
lila insists on the establishment Of
Catholic School in every parish, an
the American government has con
manded the establishment of publ
school. The government, however,
= A