S- 3. E C C L E S I A S T I C A L R E P O R T OF THE [ Me a th. / Number of Benrficci. V) *_ C u O IE ci o S £ df ^ 55 I « C < R » < u t* C A I. — \ Names of BENEFICES and DENOMINATIONS; Number of PARISHES in each Benefice; Their Diftance from each other; and. The eftimated Extent of fuch as are contiguous. Triillekerr'm Reftory. ICiilalton Fennor - -- -- -- -- -- - Reftory. Browrtstown - -- -- -- -- - Reftory. Dcnore A - - - - Reftory. Foneylystown - -- -- -- -- Reftory. ? StafFordstown - -- -- -- -- Rcftory. j Odder Reftory. Beftive - -- -- -- Reftory. 3tene Hall Reftory. Enniscoffey - -- -- -- -- - Reftory. Moyvore - - - : - - - Reftory. Newtown - -- -- -- -- -- Chapelry. Mornington Chapelry. INCUMBENTS, Whether having Cure of Souls ; whether Rcfident; if not Refident, for what Caufe; and by whom the Duties are difcharged. the Entirely impropriate in Marquis of Headfbrt. Entirely impropriate. Entirely impropriate. Entirely impropriate in Sir Marcus Somerviile. Thefe two entirely impropriate in John Dawfcn, efq. Entirely impropriate in Crow, efq. Entirely impropriate in L. Bol- ton, efq. Entirely impropriate in the Marquis of Headfort. Entirely impropriate in the Rcvd Dean Blur. dell. Entirely impropriate. BENEFICES, whether United, and by what Authoiity. The Diocefe of MEATH confifts of ninety- two Benefices, forty of which are Unions: on thefe Benefices forty- five Incumbents aftually rellde. Of the forty- feven who do not refide, ten have no Giebe Hcufes, but live fufficiently near to their refpeftive Benefices to difcharge their duties without inconvenience; nineteen have other Livings on which they refide, and hold by Faculty; thirteen are abfent with permifhon; two without permifiion; two Benefices are vacant, and one is a finecure. There are ninety Churches, thirty- feven Glebe Houfes, feventy- five GENERAL OBSERVATIONS: Containing ANSWERS to fuch QUERIES its relate to Matters cf Opinion; all the other Queries being anfwtred in the Columns. Query.— WHAT are the powers which now exift of enforcing Refidence, or which it may be neceffary to recommend to the Lcgiflature to provide for that purpofe. Atifwer,— The powers verted in the Archbifhops and Bifhopsby theCanon Law, as they have been uniformly exercifed in Ireland to the pieien! period, appear to be Sufficient to enforce Refidence, if not checked in their accuftomed opera- tion. But there a> c at prefe. it inllances in this Diocefe of great encouragement to refraftorinefs and oppofition in this eflential point of difcip! ine, taken from foic late decifions of the Court of Delegates, to which there lies an Appeal from Meath. J P R bv i N c E OF ARMAGH: I 3O6. 77 Number of CHURCHES; Whether in Repair, and in which of the Parifhes th - y ( land. 5- GLEBE HOUSES; In what ParUh;— what Glebe Lands Whether contiguous ;— How far removed from each other, and from the Church, or Site of the old Church. 6. CURATES Salary in Cafes of permitted Non- Refidence tf the Incumb.- r. t, and whether Reiident » r not. 7- LIVINGS of a Value toofmalf to afford Ci- mfort to the Incumbent. No Church. No Glebe. No Salary allowrd by tht Impropriator, for a Curate. Church in ruins. No Glebe. No Curate's Sa'ary allowed. Church in ruins. No Glebe. No Curate'i Salary allowed. No Church. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed.. No Church. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed. No Church. No Church. No Glebe. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed for either; No Church. No Glebe. No Cerate's Salary allowed. It j No Church. No Glebe. No Saiarv ; £. 4. per annum formerly allowed ; now with- drawn. No Church. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed. j No Church. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed. No Church. No Glebe. No Curate's Salary allowed. No Chapel. No Chapel, No Curate's Salary. No Curate's Salary. feventy- five Glebes, and feventeen Benefices without Glebes. There are twelve Benefices without Churches, fifty- four without Glebe Houfes, and feventeen without Glebes. N. B. There are likewife in the Diocefe of Meath thirteen Benefices of different denomi- nations, without Churches, without Glebe Houfes, without Glebes, and without any Ecclefiallical Income whatever. • i BENEFICES without GLEBES. INCUMBENTS actually Refidentupon their refpective BENEFICES. INCUMBENTS who have no Houfes in their ParifheSj but who live fufficiently near to difcharge the Duties. INCUMBENTS who Refide on other LIVINGS. INCUMBENTS who are abfent with Permiffion. —- » INCUMBENTS who are abfent without PerrrJlIion ; and Livings Vacant. Seventeen. Forty- five. Ten. Nineteen. Thirteen. Two; 2 vacant, and 1 Si. iecure- from the fentence of the Confilloria! Court. It is laid down in the books of the moil admitted Authority, that thefe Delegates or Commiflioners are, " ufually fome of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and comT. only one or more of the twelve Judges, and one or more Doftors of the Common Law; " and the nature of the cafe feems neceffarily to require that they fliould be perfons converfant in the Canons, and Conftitutions Ecclefiaitical, in the Civil Law and the eftablilhed ufagesand rules of the Ecclefialtical Courts. In the Courts of Delegates, who made the dccifions alluded to • there was neither a Spiritual Lord, nor a Doftor of Civil Law. Qliery.— WHAT is the bed mode of applying fuch Funds as arc now applicable, or hereafter may become Co, to th « purpofe of building or repairing of Churches or Glebe Houfes, or the improvement of Glebes, or otherwife? Anfwer.— The for applying the fund's „ rr r~ r , — u.^. uave been found, in general, to beefFetlual to thefe purpoles ; and the chief tiling that appears to be requifite is, that the e funds thould be made adequate to the exigencies of the Church in Ireland. But, where the Incumbents pay no regard to an injunc- tion to build, fomcthing fecms to be wanting to the powers veiled in the Archbilhops and Biihops, for applying a remedy. 73. v * In ; Regulations directed by the Board of Firfl Fruits, under the provifions of the flatutes in the feveral cafes funds applicable to the purpofes of building Glebe Houfes, and of acquiring and improving Glei es, have nprnl t- r » h ^ P frpAT 113 l |- r » t h P fr » nnrnnl( » c • a nrl t! i: n( v fk o r onnon- e ka < „ _ L , _ t 1 JtLCCLESIASTICAL REVORT OF THE * [ Meath. In all foch cafcs, after two years poflelfion. if the Benefice be of the yearly value of £. 150. per annum, or of three years poffeffion if of £ IOD the Bilhop is empowered, with the confent of the Lord Lieutenant, to fequefter a fourth part oi the orofits of the Benefice, till a fum not exceeding a year and a half's income be received, which the Archbilhop cr. iBifhop fhall caufe to be laid out in building, improving, & c. Befides the length of time it mull take, including the expences of the fequeflration, to colledt this fund, and its inadequacy, whr- n . collected, to build a Refidence fuitable to the Benefice, and t- o make necefi'ary improvements, initanccs have oc- £ 11 ed 1 r, this Diocefe, in which the Incumbents have exprefTed a determination to force the Bilhop to have reccurfe to this remedy, as exonerating themfeives from all troub'e and all the rifque of building, and throwing all the labour and r'Tponfi'dlity on him; a confideration they think well worth the temporary deduction from their income. If the powers were to b" ex tended to the fequellering a greater proportion of the profits, and to two years income, this remedy would be more efficacious. Somenmg alio feems to be wanting to the powers on which the Board has formed its Regulations for building and re- building Churches. By a ftutute now in force, the Trultees are reltridted from granting any money foe building or re- building Churches, except where no public fervice has been performed for twenty years and upwards. In this Diocefe are Churches threatening ruin, for the re- building or thoroughly repairing of which no adequate fund can be expedted to be raifed by a parochial cefs, from the fmall extent of the parifhes, or by contributions, from the poverty of the Pariftiioners. In all fuch- cafes, might it not be expedient that the Incumbent and Churchwardens, with the fandtion of the Archbi( hi< p or Bilhop, Should flate to the Truftees what proportion the parilh could afford to contribute, at a mode- rate cefs, towards the re- building or effectually repairing the Church, and that the Truftees fhould be empowered to give whatever fum might further be requifite, within the extent of what they ufualiy grant ? Furthe :— i "- re are miiances in which it would be highly expedient to change the fite of the Church from where the ruins ot the old Church are to be foun , to a more convenient fituation, and in which the wilhes of the Proteflant l'arifhioners coincide with thofe of the Incumbent and the Ordinary. But the confent of the Patron and of the Proprietors of land within the pariih being a legal requisite, and they, cither being abfer. t from the kingdom, or oppofing the wilhes of the majority of the refident Parifhioners, no Adt of Council can be applied for to change the fite. Might not the claufe re- q icing the ccrifent of the Proprietors of land be reftricted to refident Proprietors ? Ar. d might it not be fufficient to ferve notice o the Patron, that an application for changing the fite of the Church is intended to be made to the Lord Lieu- ten - t and Council, and of the day on which it is to be taken into confideration, that he may have an opportunity of fta'ing his obj dtions, if any he have; the Lord Lieutenant and Council to judge of their validity. Another gre t evil is felt in thts Dioccfc from a fimilar provifion, as the La. v now ftands, relative to the uniting or difuj'uing 01 parilhes. The previous conftrt of the Patron and Incumbent is an effential requifite towards applying for an Adt o1 Council in either cafe. In this Diocefe are upwards of 45 parilhes in ihe hands of Impropriators and Lay Patron-, exciafive of tne Livings that are in the gift of the King, either with very fmall Vicarages endowed, or without anv ftioend w' itever allowed for cure of fouls. An arrangement of thefe parifhes, fo as to form them into perpetual Ui i. 1 , for ti e purpofe of procuring refidence, fupporting the churches, and the advancement of Religion and morals, is absolutely eHernial, But the neceffuy of procuring the previous confent of the impropriators and Patrons ftands in the way of the Bifhop, in limine, and if they refufe that confent he has no remedy. Might it not be fufficient, in all fuch cafes, that on th » application of the Archbiftiop or Bilhop to the Lord Lieutenant and Council, for an Adt either to unite ordifunite parifhes, notice Ihould be ferved, as in the former cafe, on the Impropriators, Patrons, and Incumbents, of the application, and of the day on which it fhould be taken into confideration, that they might fubmit their objedtions, if any they fnould have, to the Lord Lieutenant and Council. Query.— WHAT Regulations appear to be proper to be eltablifhed by Law or Othenvife, to prevent Unions, perpetual • or Epifcopal, from being henceforth improperly made, & c. ? Anfwer.— The Laws, as they now ( land, have made fuch Regulations relative to perpetual Unions, as feem to preclude every danger of having any made improperly. Should there be any apprehenfion of abufe from Epifcopal Unions, might it not fufHce, to guard againft it, if no fuch Union fhould he made without a reference to the Lord Primate, as in cafes of Faculties, Hating the reafor. s for making the Union, obtaining his confent, and regiftering the Union in his - Court ? \ I. Query.— WHAT can be fuggefted, in addition to the foregoing, for the improvement, protedtion, and fupport of the Church in Ireland ? - Anfwer.— Enabling Archbifhops and Billiops to maintain ftridt difcipline, and to exercife the powers veiled in them by the Canons, Confiitutions, and Ufages of the United Church, for enforcing Refidence, and for the faithful difcharge of all the Clerical duties;— increafing, by the bounty cf the King in Parliament, the Funds entrufted to the management of the B.^ ard of Firlt Fruits, for purchafing and improving Glebes, for building Glebe Hou.' es, for building and repairing Churches, for augmenting fmall Livings, and making fuch additional Regulations as may be found neceffary, to enable the Trultees to apply thefe finds with greater effedt;— The countenance " and protection of the tiurfing Father and Head of the Church, and the fupport of Parliament extended to her, as in all part times;— A declaratory Law, if neceffary, to eiiablifh the final, entire, unqualified Union, Incorporation, and Identification of the Churches of England and Ireland, fuch as has been fo exprefslv agreed upon and flipulated " As an effential fundamental part of the Union" between the two Kingdoms, by the fifth Article of the Adt of Union, declaring that thenceforth " The Church of " Ireland should be united with that of England, into « « Proteftant Epifcopal Church, the dodtrine. worfnip, difciplint " and government of which one Church, fhall be and fhall remain in fuil force for ever, the dodtrine, worfhip, dfciplinc and *' government" that were at the time, " by Law eflal. lifhe J for the Church of E gland; " that is, as they are to be found in the Articles of Faith agreed upon in the year 1562, as the Articles of Faith of that Church; and letting forth " her dodtrine and worfhip," and in the Canons and Conftitutions licclefialtical agreed upon i; i 1003, and fettirg forth her difcipline and government." Tiiele, it is apprehended, are among the means that, with the Divine aflillance, promife to be the moit efficacious for " the improvement, protection, and iuppert of the Church in Ireland." Ardbraccan House, October 3d, 1806. j ( Signed) T. L. Meath. N° 6. DIOCESE OF DROMORE,