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THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
THE BULLETIN
The Official Organ of the Catholic Laymen’s
Association of Georgia.
Published Monthly by the Publicity Department,
409 Herald Building, Augusta, Georgia.
Subscription Prices—$2.00 Per Year
ASSOCIATION OFFICERS FOR 1920-1921
P. H. Rice, Augusta President
Col. P. H. Callahan, Louisville, Ky Hon. Yice-Pres.
J. J. H;averty, Atlanta.., + .....First Vice-Pres.
J. B. McCallum, Atlanta Secretary
Thomas S. Gray, Augusta... Treasurer
Richard Reid, Augusta....Editor and Publicity Director
Miss Cecile C. Ferry, Augusta....Asst. Publicity Director
YOL II. AUGUST, 1921 No. 9
The Heart of Georgia
The Acworth Progress, a paper published in
North Georgia, and which boasted the motto:
“Swat the Pope,” is no more. Its editor, Rev. Lon
Davis, pastor of the Baptist Church there, has
been debarred from his pulpit, following charges
that he was convicted in Wise County, Texas,
some time ago of forgery and embezzlement, and
that he left his wife and children there to go
away with a woman who was supposed by his
congregation to be his wife. He has left the state.
The Progress started publication in April. It
repeated the old myths, termed President Hard
ing a tool of Rome, just as Wilson had been,, etc.,
etc. The Laymen’s Association believed it would
be out of existence from lack of support by next
Christmas. .
The action of the congregation of the Acworth
Baptist Church and the downfall of Mr. Davis
indicates that it is not possible longer in Georgia
to guarantee success for a paper by making it an-
ti-Catholic. There is a growing spirit of fairness
in the state. The disease racking its body will
wear away. The heart of Georgia is sound.
Archbishop Curley
The elevation of Rt. Rev. Michael J. Curley, D.
D., Bishop of St. Augustine, to the archiepiscopal
see of Baltimore, is of particular interest to Geor
gia and the Catholic Laymen’s Association.
Archbishop Curley, as Bishop of St. Augustine,
was actively interested in the work of the Catholic
Laymen’s Association of Georgia. He followed its
growth with interest and encouraging eyes, and
he later invited the first publicity director of the
Laymen’s Association, the late James J. Farrell, to
come to his diocese to organize a similar associa
tion there. The work of the organization was go
ing along successfully when Mr. Farrell died.
Rt. Rev. Bishop Keiley of Savannah was one of
the six Bishops who met with the late Cardinal
Gibbons in Baltimore in 1914 to consider the ques
tion of a successor to Bishop Kenney of St. Aug
ustine. The new Archbishop of Baltimore was se
lected. He was consecrated by Bishop Keiley of
Savannah. He was present at the consecration of
the Cathedral of St. .John the Baptist at Savan
nah in June, 1920. These and other considerations
make Georgia Catholics the more interested in his
elevation, and gratified because of it.
Bishop Curley was born October 12, 1879, at
Athlone, Ireland, also the native place of his boy
hood companion and lifelong friend, John Mc
Cormick. He was educated by the Marists at
South Kensington, the Jesuit Fathers at Mun-
gret, near Limerick, and the Royal Irish Univer
sity of Dublin. Although yearning for a mission
in the South Sea Isles, he was assigned to the
Diocese of St. Augustine, and was sent to Rome
for his theological studies.
Ordained on the Feast of St. Joseph, 1903, and
coming to the United States and Florida, he was
appointed by Bishop Kenny pastor of the Church
at De Land. As soon as possible, he became an
American citizen, and he remarked at the time
that he was born an American citizen in Ireland,
since there was no government there a decent
Irishman could recognize.
At the time of his consecration, Bishop Curley
was the youngest Bishop in the United States,
just as he is now the youngest Archbishop. His
departure from Florida will be deeply regretted
by his people and by thousands of Protestants
many of whom he has turned, since coming to
Florida, from determined opponents of the
Church to staunch friends.
Bishop Curley has accomplished an almost un
believable amount of work during his seven years
as head of the Diocese of St. Augustine. The
Catholics of Florida and Georgia, who know him
best, know that his work as Archbishop of Balti
more will shrink his former accomplishments into
comparative nothingness.. The South’s loss is the
gain of the Church of America.
Official Notice of Knighthood for
President Rice
BENEDICTUS PP. XV.
BELOVED SON, Health and Apostolic Benedic
tion.
Our Venerable Brother, Benjamin Joseph Keiley
Bishop of Savannah, most warmly commends you
to Us as a Catholic gentleman widely known for
your zeal in the cause of religion and of Christian
virtue. Especially does he praise to Us the work
which up to this time you have undertaken in the
Catholic cause, both as Deputy of the Knights of
Columbus and also as President of the Society of
Catholic Laymen which you have so especially
aided in forming in the State of Georgia North
America.
Because of these things, We, bending to the
wishes of the aforenamed Bishop, in considera
tion of your praiseworthy merits in the cause of
religion, by these presents do elect, make and ap
point you as a Knight of the Military Order of
Saint Gregory the Great. We concede to you,
then the right to wear the insignia proper to
this Order, military class—namely, the Golden
Cross, octagonal, with Red Background bearing
the Image of Saint Gregory the Great in the mid
dle, with silk ribbon of red color, and to be
worn on the left side of the breast according to
the custom of other Orders. That you may un
derstand and recognize the proper insignia, we
are sending you an illustration.
GIVEN AT ROME, at Saint Peter’s, under the
Seal of the Fisherman, the Seventh Day of June
in the Year of Our Lord One Thousand Nine Hun
dred and Twenty One, in the Seventh Year of
Our Pontificate.
(Seal) Benedictus XV. Pont. Max.
(Signed) P. Card. Gasparri, Sec’y of
State.
TO OUR BELOVED SON
PATRICK HUGH RICE, Knight.