St. Joseph's Church opened: Highgate people: First procession of Corpus Christi: Ordination.
St Joseph's Church, the foundations of which were laid last year, was ready to be opened for divine worship early in this. Seeing the unsightly, ugly brick barrack so uninteresting, the Provincial determined that the King's daughter should be beautiful within. An Altar was made, a tabernacle brought from Rome. Our laybrothers Alphonsus and John worked hard to lay foundations of good and ornamented joinery in the pencil of Mr. Sang's docorative powers.
The Sanctuary was very nicely finished. The benches and other 'addenda' very well made and ornamented. The walls and roof shone out in an excellent dress of ornament. Thus was the rectangular thing made to live by the display of art which set if off something after the manner that a good suit of clothes does a tailor's block.
There was a Catholic church restored to Highgate after nearly three hundred years. A hermit, in the olden time (who is supposed to have been a priest) lived thereabouts and made, in order to keep himself from idleness, the only road which then led to Islington. Some say he scooped out the ponds in order to get the material. The poor Passionists came after him, made walks in their garden and raised edifices on the hillside to beautify
the landscape for the profane and to show the road to heaven to the protestants. The Church was blessed by Fr. Provincial about half-past four o'clock in the morning and thirteen Masses were said in it before the grand ceremonies of the opening began.
The late Right Rev. Dr. Morris, bishop of Troy, was the chief officiant in the unavoidable absence of Cardinal Wiseman. His eminence, who was instrumental in bringing so many religious communities to London, paid us a visit as soon as he was better and looking at the place with admiration, said to us "una parizione veramente de Frati." He gave a curious disquisition on the choice of sites in former days and illustrated it with his rare fund of knowledge.
There were about 30 priests, secular and regular at the opening and 24 Passionists. The then Right Rev. Mgr. Manning, now his eminence of Westminster, preached. His eminence, with his usual felicity, utilized the figure of the planting of the Cross being a tree which having produced fruits of salvation, as sung in the Liturgy, would do the same on the hill where it
was planted anew. A prediction which he sees verified beyond his anticipations.
Father Anderdon, who preached at the laying of the corner-stone now preached in the evening and gave a course of lectures afterwards which attracted numbers, and, as it were gracefully introduced the new edifice to the protestants of Highgate. It is very well known now and few shrink from its doors, as they did in the beginning. We venture to say that thegreater number of our separated brethren in Highgate knew St. Joseph's Church better that they do their own.
It is instructive to record the change of sentiment in the people of Highgate during the last 20 years, towards St. Joseph's Retreat and its denizens.
When we came there first people eyed us as if we were ogres to devour everything young and beautiful in the neighbourhood. They peeped at us through chinks in the paling, as we walked in the garden, made jokes about us. One of us overheard two of them asking a third with a jerk of his thumb over his shoulder, "Bill, be they Jesuits?" "No, they beant, they be a worse kind." was the intelligent answer. One may imagine how we should be loved since we bore a worse name than the Jesuits.
Some one went and chalked "no poperty" all around the paling. Somebody took a piece of chalk and added "in hell " to each inscription.
Soon the wags and poetasters of the village went to work upon the theme of the monks. We were and are called "Holy Joes" to the present day, all through Highgate and its neighbourhood. The title is liberally given to all frequenters of the Church. The gamins are not particular as to age or sex, a schoolgirl may be a 'holy Joe' just as well as her grandmother, and although the name is half whistled, half sung - pronounced 'Howley Jow' always - it is uttered with the best good humour a cockney is capable of and seldom meant as an insult.
The grocers, butchers and other indispensable servants of the public rather liked Holy Joe, after a while. He did not run away and take their money with him. He paid his bills and was civil spoken. He might wear as broad a hat, and as long a coat as he chose, provided that in the matters of business he behaved like a gentleman. By degrees the old antipathy gave way
to a better understanding. It came to pass that, when anything of local importance was about to take place, we were sent invitations. We were asked to flower shows, to join in clubs for reading rooms, to meetings upon local improvements. In fact, we became part and parcel of the village and a very good feeling now exists between ourselves and the neighbours.
The village poetaster seems to have acquired more immortality than falls generally to the lot of his compeers. Poetasters live sometimes by their absurdity and sometimes by their coming so near to sense as to turn out nonsense. The Highgate composer seems to have both perfections. The clerical stranger - for even strangers in clerical garbs are 'Howly Jows'
in Highgate - may require a key to the hymn he hears chanted or recited as he approaches or leaves St. Joseph's Retreat. This is the immortal verse, which will live as long as a street boy exists in Highgate:
"Howly Jow, the King of the Jews,
Sould his wife for a pair of shoes:
And when the shoes began to wear
Poor Howley Jow began to swear."
Some future Dryasdust will find the three vows of Poverty, Chastity and Obedience in these lines. He will give a disquisition as to how the Lord spoke through the lungs and voice of a Highgate power just as he did through Balaam's ass. 'Howly Jow's' swearing is his chanting in the choir, be it known to all future chroniclers and not his making of the aforesaid vows.
The Fathers considered now, that having asserted our right to live and breath in this place, although our voices might seem as echoes from the Middle Ages and our saturnine garb a vision of the Inquisition, we might proceed to bring the ceremonies of the Church into notice. The beautiful garden attached to the Retreat, with its fine walk all round and finely shaded by trees, offered a tempting stage, in the month of June, wheron to display a scene to which Highgate was long a stranger. A procession of the Blessed Sacrament was to take place on the Sunday within the Octave of Corpus Christi. Doubts and difficulties were proposed and discussed. It was a dangerous thing. Those who loved the monastic adage of being unknown and wishing to live in peace, feared offending our neighbours by too great a display of popery.
We were tolerated already and was not that something. There were no stones flung through our windows and no processes to stop our bells. If we flaunt our colours in their face we may cause a revulsion and then .... who is to answer for the consequences?
Thus spoke the wise ones, the sensible ones, those who knew the people and who were not inexperienced foreigners. Our inexperienced foreigner, Fr. Ignatius Paoli, remembered the glory of 'Corpus Domini' in his native city of Florence. As said before, the grandeur of the Medici, with which he was inoculated in youth, broke out in him, and he would have a display, cost what it might. A display accordingly took place, and pleased the very enemies so much that they came in hundreds, every year to witness it and wonder at its beauty.
At four o'clock of the afternoon of June 2nd, the first procession started from the Church of St. Joseph. The most notable of our friends, from all parts of London, whose contributions had helped to bring this event to take place, assembled 'en famille'. Carriages were emptying their living freights at the door for a considerable time. Invalids were carried out to rest on couches on the terrace in order to have a view of the procession. It went on in all its panoply. The air was rent with the notes of sacred catholic music from enthusiastic throats, and the Brazen harmonies of a band seemed to threaten destruction to the old walls of Highgate's Jericho.
At the bottom of the garden we rested to sing a few hymns and have Benediction given from the little Oratory erected there. The procession went on again, entered the Church and was concluded by a sermon from a then promising young orator, Fr. Alphonsus, and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.
It was remarked by Dr. Eyre, now Archbishop of Glasgow, that nearly all nations were represented at this first procession. We could distinguish English, Irish, Scotch, Italians, French, Spaniards, Belgians, Dutch, Germans, Swiss - Brazil, and other portions of North and South America had their representatives. A Greek knelt in the procession and a half-convert Mahommedan looked on with awe.
A similar event took place in Broadway, of which an account appeared in a Puseyite newspaper. The royal family of Louis Philippe who resided at Wood Norton, formed a grand feature in the ceremony, as much as they succeeded in edifying the people of Broadway by their reverence and devotion.
The Congregation felt an increase in its members this year. Six priests were ordained together in Highgate : Frs. Michael Drysdale, Austin Sins, Clement Doran, Paul M.Ryan, Pius Devine and Columban O'Grady. This was the largest batch we had ordained together since our coming into England and great rejoicings were made thereat.
Besides this proof of spiritual vigour, there were 10 novices professed. One laybrother, Brother Anthony, died and no one left the Congregation. It was, upon the whole, the most successful year we had hitherto had.
A great and unusual stir took place in Broadway during this year. Fr. Alphonsus, who was then Vice-master of Novices received the charge of the parish and worked it up wonderfully. The people flocked to hear him preach and many converts were received by him. A sort of famine came upon the village. The parson destrained and summoned for his tithes or dues, and the monks gave the people food and clothing. Altogether there seemed to be a rush towards religious discussion in this most torpid of villages, which was sure to bear good fruit in its time. Our Superiors in their wisdom, or unwisdom as it seems now, thought proper to remove the chief actor in the matter to Sutton and make him director of students.
Retreats were given, during this year, in Birr - Woodchester - Broadway - Spetsbury - Dundalk - Downpatrick - Cabra - Stillorgan - Clonliffe. Missions in Newry - Newport S.W. - Coalisland.