The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1936-09-12
Early History Of Move.
nlent ChrOniCIed By
Father COnlOn,

gNNgeNNAS4 NAag OANI
York and it was proposed by
Father Dinahan 10 form . Do
cesar Union. This step gave
great impetus TO the movement
because new branches were form
ed and within q short while
Unions were established In Brook
lyn and Newark. Today there Is
q Diocesan Union In every do
cese in the United states.
AS the movement became popu-
lar many branches were organ
lied but there was an obstacle
that threatened to check the "a.
pid growth.
There was q Constitution 'Quae-
cunque' issued December 9, 1904
by Pope Clement VIII which fore
babe the existence Of the Holy
Name Society In more than one
church Of q single city. Father
McKenna went to Rome In 1895
to petition Pope Leo XIII to re-
woke this restricting legislation. It
was only after he returned to
America that he received a copy Of
the rescript from the Congregation
Of IndulgenceS dater May 20, 1895
which dispensed from the Glenn
entine Constitution and placed
the erection Of new branches Of
the Holy Name Society In the
hands Of the American hierarchy.
That privilege made 1t possible for
q canonical Holy Name Society to
be established IN every parish or
mission.
The past four decades have
witnessed q marvellous expansion
In the scope and influence Of the
Society. Some Of the Bishops fos-
tered this extension by command
ing the establishment Of the
Society in every parish IN their
dioceses. One Of the first acts of
Cardinal O'Connell after he be-
came Archbishop Of Boston was to
ask the establishment Of a Holy
Name Society in every parish Of
his Archdiocese.
Journal Edited
In 1907 the Holy Name move.
ment had reached the stage when
1t was deemed advisable to have
paper or magazine which would be
the official organ. In May Of that
year the Rev. =. q. Fitzgerald,
o. r., 8. T. L., as editor In -Cfief
brought out the first issue Of the
Holy Name Journal. Under the
fret editor and his successors with
the aid Of Holy Name men
throughout the country the
magazine has done much for the
movement.
Many insignia have been used
in the Holy Name Movement. In
1909 an American artist designed
an emblem for the society. which
portrayed Christ as q boy. That
emblem was approved by the Holy
See which granted special In
diligence to all who should wear
1t.
A flood Of inquiries On varied
subjects addressed to the offices
Of the Journal made It apparent
that a central headquarters was
needed II the movement was to
thrive. Thus In 1909 the National
Headquarters Of the Holy Name
society was established. The
founder and first national director
was the Most Rev. John r. Nc
Nicholas, D. D., who Is now arch
bishop of Cincinnati. From this
office the Movement Is directed
and advised and by q privilege
from the Holy See charters for
confraternities within its juris-
diction are issued. The first Of.
flee was q basement room in a
parish house, today three floors
Of o modern building are crowded.
Parades Popular
As the movement extended be-
You'd the limits ofthe single par
ishes or from an entire dioceses
were held. No church was large
enough to accommodate the
throngs and these meetings were
held In the open. Often the vari-
Gus units formed lines and par
AIDED to the place Of assembly and
in q short time well organized
parades were held In many
dioceses. Within the past few
years q popular rally has been
the solemn Holy Hour at which
the men gather In the evening,
each carrying q lighted taper.
The late Cardinal Gibbons
golden jubile in the priesthood and
silver jubilee In the episccpacy In
1911 was the occasion Of the First
National Congress Of the Holy
Name society. That rally was
held in the Cardinals episcopal
city, Baltimore. The principal
public demonstration was a parede
(which $1,000 men took part.
At the conference 1t was ar-
nounced that there were in the
country at that time 100000 men
enrolled as active members Of the
Holy Name society.
Second Convention
The Second National Conven-
ton Of the Holy Name society was
called In 1924 to commemorate
the 65oth anniversary Of the
Movement. To that assembly
which was held in Washington,
D. @. The Holy See appointed
as Papal Legate Extraordinary,
His Eminence william Cardinal
O'Connell, the Archbishop Of Bos-
ton. It was the greatest religious
gathering of men held up to that
time, for the membership had
mounted and more than 1900, 900
were on the rolls Of the society.
The climax Of the Second Ma
tional Convention was reached
when 100000 men marched down
Pennsylvania avenue In a drizzle.
That army was headed by the
national director, the Very Rev.
M. J. Ripple, o. r., p. c., whose
prodigious labors had made the
meeting possible. The great pro-