Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4—THE BULLETIN, October 4, 1958
JOSEPH BREIG
Men Who Can’t Lie
The world, I think, has never
seen a good humor more gar
gantuan than G. K. Chesterton’s.
Somewhere in his numberless
writings, this very great English
man once remarked that George
Bernard
could not tell
a lie unless he
thought it was
the truth.l
Then, with a|
roar of laugh
ter that came?
right through|
the printed page, G. K. H. add
ed: “I find myself laboring un
der the same intolerable handi
cap.”
Chesterton and Shaw dis
agreed about almost everything
except that they cared for each
other. Two men more unlike
can hardly be imagined; but
they were alike in this — their
tongues were not forked. They
were not false. They were sin
cere, as most men are, thank
God. Of the vast majority of us
it can also be said that we can
not tell a lie unless we think it
is the truth.
THIS IS THE BASIS without
which decent human relations
are impossible. This is the foun
dation on which stands the house
of mankind, in which we can
live together in reasonable
brotherly harmony, however
much we may disagree about
one or many facts, one or many
principles, one or many judg
ments. Honesty is what makes
the world go round, and pre
vents it from shattering into
fragments.
Loose on earth today, how
ever, there is a philosophy
which makes a dogma out of
malicious lying. Its disciples are
taught to be honest only when
honesty suits their wicked pur
poses better than dishonesty.
Thus even honesty is made dis
honest; thus even truth becomes
a lie in the mouth of the com
munist propagandists. Thus mal
ice becomes a way of life and
falsehood the very cast of a
man’s mind.
ERNEST HEMINGWAY, like
G. K. Chesterton, is a man of
huge good humor and luminous
sincerity. Like Chesterton and
Shaw, he is incapable of telling
a lie unless he thinks it is the
truth. That is to say, he cannot
lie at all. He is a man of in
tellectual integrity. And so he
took legal action not long ago
to prevent the republishing, in
an anthology, of several short
stories he wrote in the late
1930s.
At the time he wrote those
stories, Hemingway, like count
less other intellectuals of all
stripes, had been deceived by
a conspiracy of lies. His stories
concerned the Spanish “civil
war,” which was in fact the first
Soviet military a g gression
against what it is now fashion
able to call the West, although
intruth the right name for it
remains Christendom.
COMMUNIST INFILTRA-
TION, subversion, propaganda
and agitation triggered the war
in Spain in 1936, and kept it
raging until nearly a million
Spaniards were dead. Heming
way, then a newspaper corre
spondent, spent some time with
the so-called Loyalists. He was
gulled into seeing them as the
defenders of democracy, fighting
against “fascism.” He expressed
that belief in the stories he now
does not want republished.
Hemingway, like Chesterton,
like Shaw—and even as you and
I cannot tell a lie unless he
supposes it to be the truth. Un
like the communists, he is
honest. He now knows that in
1936-39 he was the victim of
lies that poisoned public opinion
throughout the English-speaking
world. He cannot tell a lie when
he knows it is a lie — and so he
does not want his Spanish war
stories to be reprinted.
The legal position taken by
Hemingway’s lawyer is that re
publication of the stories would
do “great injury and irreparable
damage” to Hemingway. In a
court of law, you’ve got to show
something of the sort. But from
what I know of Ernest Heming
way, my judgement is that his
strongest objection to republica
tion rests upon the fact that he
is a man of integrity, who hates
lies and does not want to do the
malicious work of liars.
By David Q. Liplak
Q.I'm fully aware that the
Church condemns artificial birth
control as being contrary to the
natural moral law, which, of
course, binds all men every
where, regardless of creed. So
that I'm not going to make the
mistake of arguing that the
Church's stand against con
traception is strictly ecclesiasti
cal (like the Friday abstinence)
and hence doesn't apply to non-
Caiholics. What I can't see,
though, is this: since contracep
tion is opposed to the natural
law, how explain the fact that
so many outside the Church fail
(or refuse) to recognize the prac
tice as sinful? And how can non-
Catholic ministers, who are sup
posed to know some Christian
theology at least, continually
make so serious mistakes in this
matter?
A. Artifical birth prevention
is, the Church teaches, intrin
sically opposed to the natural
moral law. Thus it is possible
to argue from reason alone that
contraception is absolutely im
moral, regardless of one’s per
sonal religious convictions. Re
duced to its simplest form, the
argument from reason against
artifical birth control is that the
practice consists in a deliberate
frustration of the natural effects
of the use of the generative
faculties.
HOW THEN explain the phe
nomenon that so many (certain
ly not all) non-Catholics fail
(Continued on Page Six)
How Do You Rate
on Facts of Faithl
(By Brian Cronin)
1. The object like a shepherd’s stick, carried by a Bishop
as a symbol that he is shepherd of the faithful, is called the:
(a) Crooks? (b) Wand? (c) Crosier? (d) Mitre?
2. Only one of the Apostles died a natural death. He was:
(a) Peter? (b) Philip? (c) John? (d) Simon?
3. “Blessed are the poor in spirit for . . . (a) . . . theirs is
the kingdom of heaven”? (b) . . . they shall be comforted”?
(c) . . . they shall be satisfied”? (d) . . . they shall possess
the land”?
4. In May 1917, the Blessed Virgin appeared to three
peasant children at: (a) Knock, Ireland? (b) Lourdes, France?
(c) Fatima, Portugal? (d) Guadalupe, Mexico?
5. When the Pope speaks “ex cathedra” it means that
he speaks: (a) Infallibly on matters of faith and morals? (b) In
Latin? (c) From a cathedral? (d) To private audiences?
6. The part of the Mass during which the priest washes
his hands is Called the: (a) Collect? (b) Lavabo? (c) Post-
Communion?
7. A series of 30 Masses celebrated on 30 consecutive
days for the soul of a dead person is called a: (a) Votive
Mass? (b) Missa Cantata? (c) Gregorian Mass? (d) Pontifical
Mass?
8. Which of these States has the highest percentage (over
60%) of Catholics per population?: (a) New York? (b) Mas
sachusetts? (c) Rhode Island (d) Maryland?
Give yourself 10 marks for each correct answer below.
Rating: 80-Excellent; 70-Very Good; 60-Good; 50-Fair.
ANSWERS: 1 (c); 2 (c); 3 (a); 4 (c);
6 (b); 7 (c); 8 (c).
5 (a);
Theology
For The
Layman
CT
L
JLA NOE BUT T R If
ittU-Known Fac»* for Catholic*
By M. J. MURRAY
E
OvrHlht mi XC W c. JTm
(By F. J. Sheed)
The distinction of action
among the Persons of the Bless
ed Trinity is a fact of the inner
life of God. It is within the di
vine nature that each lives,
knows, loves, as Himself, dis
tinct.
But the ac
tions of the
divine nature
upon created
beings — our
selves for ex
ample — are
the actions of
all three Per
sons, acting together as one
principle of action. It is by Fa
ther, Son and Holy Ghost that,
for example, the universe is
created and sustained in being,
that each individual soul is cre
ated and sanctified in grace.
There is no external operation
of the divine nature which is
the work of one Person as dis
tinct from the others.
Yet Scripture and Liturgy are
constantly attributing certain di
vine operations' to Father or Son
or Holy Ghost! In the Nicene
Creed, for instance, the Father
is Creator, (he Son is Redeemer,
the Holy Spirit is Sanctifier,
giver of Life. That the Son
should be called redeemer is
obvious enough: He did in fact
become man and die for our sal
vation. ’ ■ iH ' 1
But since all three Persons
create, why is the Father called
Creator? Since all three Persons
sanctify, why is the Holy Spirit
called Sanctifier? Why — to
use a theological term — is cre
ation appropriated to the one,
sanctification to the other?
If there is to be appropriation,
of course, we can see why it is-
done like this: we can see, in
other words, how these particu
lar appropriations are appropri
ate. Within the divine Nature,
the Father is Origin, Son and
Holy Spirit both proceed from
Him. Creation — by which the
world originates, and by which
each soul originates — is spok
en of as belonging especially to
the Father.
Again, within the divine Na
ture, the Holy Spirit is Love, the
utterance of the Love of Father
and Son. Sanctification, grace—
these are gifts, and gifts are the
work of love: they are appropri
ated to the Holy Spirit. Grace is
a created gift of love; the Holy
Spirit is the uncreated gift of
love. By grace, Father and Son
express their love for us — as
eternally they express their love
for each other — in the Holy
Spirit.
Is there any similar appropri
ation to the Second Person? As
we have noted, He is called Re
deemer; but not by appropria
tion, since He did in fact redeem
us Himself: it was not Father,
Son and Holy Ghost who be
came man and died for us, but
the Son only (Redemption was
not an operation of the divine
nature but of the human nature
He made His own.) But He has
His appropriation all the same.
In the Creed, God the Father
is called creator, and we have
just seen why. But in the open
ing of St. John’s Gospel, the
Second Person seems to be cre
ator too. Creation, as a work of
origination, bringing something
into existence where nothing
was, is appropriated to the Fa
ther. But what was brought into
existence was not a chaos, but
a universe ordered in its ele
ments; it was a work of wisdom,
therefore, and as such appropri
ated to the Second Person, the
Word of God, who proceeds by
the way of knowledge. The
structure of the universe and all
things in it, the order of the uni
verse, is attributed especially to
the Son; and when the order
was brought to disorder by sin,
it was the Son who became man
to repair the disorder and make
the new order of redeemed
mankind.
But the perfect aptness of the
attribution of operations to one
or other Person, must not blind
us to the reality that in all these
operations all three Persons are
at work. Grace comes, says Our
Lord, from the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit in our souls; but He
also says “If anyone love Me,,
he will keep My word, and My
Father will love him, and We
will come to him and make our
abode with him.” So it is in fact
an indwelling of all three Per
sons. Then why have appropri
ation at all?
In order, one may assume, to
keep the distinction of the three
(Continued on Page Six)
P? w i fl l0D OF GORNHOt/^
U HAS FOUR.
FORTIFIED ROUND CHURCHES
700 y£#/?S OLD.
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) % 0 lf, lL sr^ e ^-we
f0tJ S £uO« r ' OF (NO£P£Wf^ t
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STJOACWM, FATHER.
OF OUR LADY, AND
ST JOSE PH, HER
Husband, were
members of me
ROYAL HOUSE OF
DAVID, AND AS SUCH
WERE ENTITLED TO
BE ADDRESSED AS
''RABANNA"
OR LORD.
SHARING OUR TREASURE
Good Example Helps Airman Win Wife
By REV. JOHN A, O'BRIEN, Ph. D.
. (University of Notre Dame)
Among all the influences
which help to lead persons into
the Church the most powerful
is that of good example. If that
is lacking, argument is seldom
convincing. If it is pjggent, logic
takes on a
new dimen-ii
sion and read
ily carries
conviction. In
deed a Cath
olic living an
upright life is
a walking tes
timonial to the
sanctifying character of his re
ligion.
With God’s grace he will not
find it too difficult to lead a
truth seeker into the Church.
The experience of Mrs. Kathleen
Hughes, 4123 77th St., Elm
hurst, New York, shows the
truth of the statement.
“I was born and reared in
England,” related Mrs. Hughes,
“and never dreamed I would
one day become a Catholic. Dur
ing World War II I met Harry
Hughes who was in the U. S.
Air Force. We became good
friends, and I soon learned that
Harry was a Catholic who not
only believed in his religion but
loved it as well.
“Our friendship blossomed in
to love and we became engaged.
The Catholic Church has a wise
rule, requiring non-Catholics to
take some instructions covering
chiefly her teachings on mar
riage and the family life. She
wants us to appreciate the se
riousness of the step we are
taking in entering into marriage.
“I went for these instructions
to Father Diamond at Norwich.
Never once did he urge me to
convert. After our marriage this
devoted priest continued to be
our friend, one in whom we
could confide and be assured of
his help at all times.
“I came to the United States
with my husband, and began
going to Mass with tpm:-'! didn’t
understand what was going oh
at the altar, but I went regular
ly, and I must say that I always
felt better attending Mass and
doing whatever praying I
could.”
“A missal or prayerbook,” I
remarked, “would have helped
a lot.”
“That’s true. My husband gave
me the good example of day-
to-day Catholic life,” continued
Mrs. Hughes, “but exerted no
pressure on me to become a
Catholic. In 1946 our son Rob
ert John was born. When he
came of school age, we enrolled
him at St. Mary, Help of Chris
tians parochial school.
“I was very proud of him
when he made his first Holy
Communion. What a wonderful
feeling he must have today, I
thought. I sadly recalled that I
never went through anything'
like that. I helped to prepare
him for his first Communion by
hearing his catechism. This in
turn helped me.
“I had come to realize that
the Catholic Church, alone of
all the Christian Churches, went
back to Christ, and alone could
claim Him as her founder.
Hence she spoke with divine
authority. I could no longer be
satisfied with a man-made
creed and determined to ask
for admittance into Christ’s true
Church.
“Both my husband and son
were overjoyed when I told
them of my decision. For five
months I went in all kinds of
weather.—rain, sleet and snow
—to a class of instruction con
ducted by Father John J. Egan.
He explained everything so
clearly that there could be no
misunderstanding. Right up to
the night before baptism he told
us we were under no obligation
to become Catholics unless we
were convinced that the Cath
olic Church is the one true
Church.
“Along with the other mem
bers of the class I was baptized
on May 31, 1957 and began a
new life in Christ. How happy I
am to know that I am a mem
ber of Christ’s Mystical Body
and am nourished with His body
and blood in Holy Communion.
My one regret is that I wait
ed so long.”
Father O’Brien will be grateful
to readers who know of anyone
who has won two or more con
verts if they will send the names
and addresses of such persons to
him at Notre Dame University,
Notre Dame, Indiana.
AN INTERESTED AUDIENCE
Exchange teachers visiting Washington under the sponsor
ship of the U. S. Government learn about the history of the
Catholic Church in the United States. Robert T. Murphy,
director of the N.C.W.C. Foreign Visitors Office, answers
questions about the picture of a letter of congratulations
sent to President George Washington in 1789 and his reply.
Pictured with Mr. Murphy in the Bishops’ Conference Room,
N.C.W.C., are, left to right: Miss Nilufer Tuzel of Turkey,
Mr. Hirofumi Okada of Japan, Mr. Ananta Dasgupta of
Pakistan and Miss Oretta Marchi of Italy. (NC Photos)
Social Security And Increasing Longevity
THE BACKDROP
/!■■“ an i mu iiniijt
By JOHN C. O’BRIEN
Amendments to the social se
curity act passed by the recent
Congress" increased retirement
payments and provided other
benefits for Americans in the
upper age brackets.
But already the Government’s
fiscal authorities foresee still
further pres
sure for ex
panding social
security cov
erage and in
creasing bene
fits. They are
beginning t o
ask them
selves wheth
er we can continue to devote an
ever-increasing proportion of
our national income to provid
ing benefits for our older popu
lation while producing a rising
standard of living for all of our
people.
The fact is that the number
of persons in our population
over 65 is increasing steadily.
Population experts predict that
the number of persons who have
attained the eligibility age for
social security payments will
inc ease from about 15,000,000
at the present time to about
21,000,000 in less than 20 years.
SHARP INCREASE
Between 1900 and 1955, the
chances of survival from birth
to age 65 has increased sharply
for both men and women. With
a breakthrough on such major
killers as heart disease and can
cer, the population experts ex
pect that by 1975, as many as
69 out of 100 male babies and
83 out of 100 female babies will
be expected to reach the age 65.
Further complicating the
problem of providing retirement
pensions is the increase in the
life span—the increase in the
number of years which a person
who has reached the age of 65
may expect to live.
In 1900, for example, about
seven out of 100 female babies
and five out of 100 male babies
could expect to reach the age of
85. By 1950, the number of fe
males out of each 100 who at
tained that age had increased
to 21 and the number of males
to 12. By 1975, it is expected
that the survivors of 85 years
of age will have increased to
30 for females and 17 for males.
The greater longevity of wom
en means that as time passes a
high proportion of surviving
women with a long life expec
tancy will be widows.
This will raise a new problem
for the social security system,
for the widow’s pension allow
ance under the present law is
only roughly one-half of what
a husband and wife receive.
Facing a prospective life span
of up to 20 years and having
reached the age when disabili
ties require medical care, these
widows will find their pensions
inadequate for their minimum
needs. Inevitably, the experts
concede, there will be pressure
to increase the survivor’s allow
ance.
LONGER WORK LIFE
In order to finance the in
creases voted by the last Con
gress, it was necessary to in
crease the social security tax.
Beginning in January, 1959, the
tax for both employers and em
ployees will be hiked from two
and one quarter to two and one
half percent. And after this year
the tax will be levied on the
first $4,800 instead of the first
$4,200 of earnings.
Even with the increase in tax
es, social security experts are
not certain that the social se
curity system is yet on a sound
financial basis. And if, as the
experts predict, the proportion
of elderly people to the total
population continues to rise, the
question arises can the economy
support further demands for re
tirement benefits?
When it comes to giving an
answer the economists are di
vided. One school, however, be
lieves further expansion of ben
efits can be sustained without
reducing the standard of living.
They base this belief upon the
fact that men and women, as
their life span has increased,
have worked more years than
they did in the past. This long
work life of the average worker,
these economists maintain, has
increased and will continue to
increase the national income.
•
Jottings...
(By BARBARA C. JENCKS)
• THIS IS the space age.
Man’s eye is focused upon the
heavens with new interest. In a
few days we mark the end of
Space Year I. We find our con
versations and our vocabularies
still filled with scientific termi
nology. We find our hearts still
awed and still fearful. The
world still defies the scientist
who can place a moon in the
heavens and send a rocket to the
moon. Many still turn their
backs upon the God who con
trols these very heavens and
who created a world. But,
moreover, He created man so
that one day he might gain the
victory of outer space for an
eternity in heaven. As Catho
lics, we know that the Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass is still the
greatest victory over space and
time. We know that our eyes
must center way beyond Sput
nik to God and our final desti
ny. Will man’s new interest in
the heavens bring him closer
to the God? Little has been said
about the spiritual aspects of the
space age. Man looms great in
this new role of creator. God
fails to figure prominently.
• SPACE YEAR I or not,
this is still the year of Our Lord
and this particular year is also
the Year of Our Lady of
Lourdes. Satellites may come
and go but this truth remains.
As Catholics, we have the op
portunity each day to assist at
Mass which, is offered on altars
in every part of the world. God
is still in His heavens and not a
moment of the day passes but
somewhere on earth, too, the
sacrifice of the cross, the great
est victory of Outer space, is
offered. In this age of uncer
tainty when new areas of con
quest are opening and men are
passing themselves off as gods,
it is more important than ever
that our sights be turned to God
each day in adoration, petition
and thanksgiving. We cannot
survive on our own if we would
win an eternity.
• BECAUSE of the mysteries
of science today and the re
ports which are taken for grant
ed, the mysteries of our faith
are perhaps easier than ever be
fore for young people to com
prehend, a Sister-teacher told a
class recently. If a youngster can
believe that man can put a
moon in the sky, why not even
more easily believe the won
derful accomplishments of a
God who made both heaven and
earth? Monsignor de Raeymae-
ker, internationally famous phi
losopher, has said that “Scien
tists of past centuries have prac
tically no impact on their mod
ern counterparts but even the
ancient philosophers continue to
influence the minds of men.”
Theologian Rev. James M. Egan,
O.P., said recently that “The
sciences vastly extend men’s
knowledge, helping them fulfill
the command of Gpd:, ‘Dominate
the earth’.” But he also caution
ed that they serve willingly the
evil purposes of men and that
the danger of standing at the
threshold of outer space is in
the fact that we still have so far
to go in living on this earth in
a human and Christian manner.
• THIS gigantic increase of
knowledge, the opening up of
new areas, new discoveries,
make it even more urgent that
we seek the Wisdom which
gives meaning and purpose and
unity. God is master of space
and of time and of man. As
Catholics, we have the Mass.
While pondering the mystery of
the atom, the sputnik and the
rocket, we so often fail to com
prehend the full sweep of the
power and glory of our relig
ious heritage. Space Year I ends
as does the Year of Our Lady,
Queen of Heaven and Earth,
who bore Him “whom the whole
world cannot contain.” We as
mortals in this age of space can
each day tabernacle Him in our
hearts. Man’s greatest glory is
not that he has raised a satel
lite to the heavens or reached
the moon but simply that God
loves him.
Catholic Chaplains
Honor Howland Shaw
DETROIT — Former U. S.
Diplomat G, Howland Shaw was
honored by the American Cath
olic Correctional Chaplains As
sociation here. “His Brother’s
Keeper” award was awarded by
the Most Rev. Martin D. Mc
Namara, D.D., of Joliet, Illinois.
The honor was given in recog
nition of Mr. Shaw’s faithful
and efficient service for many
years in the Near East.
Weekly Calendar
Of Feast Days
(N.C.W.C. News Service)
SUNDAY, October 5 — St.
Placid and Companions, Mar
tyrs. He was born in Rome of a
patrician family in 515. At the
age of seven his father took him
to the monastery of Subiaco and
at 13 he followed St. Benedict to
establish a monastery. Five
years later the place was over
run by barbarians who burned
everything to the ground. St.
Placid, his two brothers, Euty-
chius and Victorinus; his sister,
Flavia, who had come to visit
them; along with Donatus, Fir-
matus, Faustus and some 30
other monks, were put to death
for their faith.
MONDAY, October 6 — St.
Bruno, Confessor. The founder
of the Carthusians was born in
Cologne about 1030 and studied
in Paris. He was made canon
of Cologne and later held the
same office at Rheims. With six
companions determined to for
sake the world, he retired to
Grande Chartreuse. There they
were welcomed by St. Hugh,
Bishop of Grenoble. Later St.
Bruno was called to Rome by a
former disciple, Pope Urban II.
The bustle of the city disturbed
him. He retired to the moun
tains of Calabria, where he
founded a second Charterhouse.
He died about 1101 and was
canonized 500 years later.
TUESDAY, October 7 — Feast
of the Most Holy Rosary. This
feast also commemorates St.
Mary of Victory, a day which
Pope Pius V instituted to be
kept each year in memory of
the victory granted to the Chris
tians in a naval battle against
the Turks after invoking the
help of the Mother of God.
WEDNESDAY, October 8 —
St. Bridget of Sweden, Widow.
She was a member of the Swed
ish royal family born in 1034.
She married Prince Ulpho of
Sweden and they had eight
children. Many years later she
and her husband separated by
(Continued on Page Five)
5ty* HuUrtitt
416 8TH ST., AUGUSTA, GA.
Published fortnightly by the Catholic Laymen’s Association of
Georgia, Inc., with the Approbation of the Most Reverend Arch
bishop-Bishop of Savannah, The Most Reverend Bishop of Atlanta
and the Right Reverend Abbot Ordinary of Belmont. Subscription
price $3.00 per year.
Second class mail privileges authorized at Monroe, Georgia. Send
notice of change of address to P. O. Box 320, Monroe, Georgia.
REV. FRANCIS J. DONOHUE REV. R. DONALD KIERNAN
Editor Savannah Edition Editor Atlanta Edition
JOHN MARKWALTER
Managing Editor
Vol. 39 Saturday, October 4, 1958 No. 9
ASSOCIATION OFFICERS FOR 1957-1958
GEORGE GINGELL, Columbus President
E. M. HEAGARTY, Waycross Honorary Vice-President
MRS. DAN HARRIS, Macon Vice-President
TOM GRIFFIN, Atlanta —1 Vice-President
NICK CAMERIO, Macon Secretary
JOHN T. BUCKLEY, Augusta Treasurer
ALVIN M. McAULIFFE, Augusta Auditor ,
JOHN MARKWALTER, Augusta ^ Executive Secretary
MISS CECILE FERRY, Augusta Financial Secretary