Newspaper Page Text
PAGE'4—THE BULLETIN, March 7, 1959
JOSEPH BREIG
ti
IF ONE JUST MAN
Each week this column, of
mine is published in so many
Catholic newspapers that sev
eral million persons have the
chance to read it.
How many
do so, I have
no way of
knowing.
I am not
unduly con
cerned on that
score. If there
is any thing
that history
teaches in very large type, it is
the fact that the great changes
in the world usually are brought
about by the comparative few.
I try never to forget that God
was willing to spare a wicked
city from destruction if but one
just man could be found living
there.
That story is told in the Old
Testament. It was written about
people thousands of years ago.
Todayj you and I are living in
the midst of a similar story.
FORTY-TWO YEARS ago,
God sent the Virgin Mary to a
village in Portugal to tell man
kind how peace can be obtained
for our planet.
Nobody realized then how in
dispensable peace soon would
be. But now we know. A war
in our time, thanks to our new
weapons, could wipe out civili
zation.
Possibly it could even make
the earth uninhabitable.
One airplane today can stand
off, hundreds or thousands of
miles away, and unerringly
strike cities dead.
A submarine, lurking invisible
under the sea, can pour nuclear
devastation upon population
centers at great distances.
BALLISTIC MISSILES can
be loosed from underground
launching sites to carry atomic
explosives into the heart of a
nation.
These are some of the meth
ods of death and destruction
that we know about. There are
others that are “top secret” —
we can only speculate about
them.
There is no use trying to de
lude ourselves that these forces
cannot be let loose upon us. In
evitably they will be let loose
unless God restrains them.
The Virgin Mary, at Fatima
in Portugal, told us, through
three shepherd children, how
we can insure that the divine
restraints will. be ''applied and
will continue. She said:
"People inusl pray xhc Rosary."
She asked that individuals
and nations consecrate them
selves to her Immaculate Heart.
She urged that we make the
sacrifices necessary for our state
in life.
And she pledged . the graces
we need at the hour of death if
we : will receive Communion
and pray the Rosary on the first
Saturday of five consecutive
months, to make reparation for
mankind’s ! sins—and ours.
Our Lady entrusted three “se
crets” to the shepherd children,
to be made known at the ap
propriate times.
The two which have been re
vealed concerned the outbreak
of World War II and the com
munist persecution of the
Church, together with the pro-*
mise that Russia will be con
verted and an era of peace will
be granted to humanity.
THE LAST of the secrets was
written and sealed by Carmel
ite Sister Mary Immaculate, the
only one of the children, now
living. According to popular be
lief, it will be given to the pub
lic next year.
Between now and then, we
will be especially diligent in ful
filling the requests of Our Lady
of Fatima, if we are people of
good sense.
Some of us have done little
or nothing thus far. Some of us,
in other words, have been fool
ish, careless and slothful.
It is silly of us to be like that.
Indeed, it is uncharitable, it is
terribly selfish.
WE CATHOLICS have the
Church, the sacraments and sac-
ramentals, the Catholic devo
tions, because they were given
to us as free gifts from the Holy
Spirit, who “breathes wherever
He will.”
These gifts, valuable beyond
words, were not given for our
good alone. We have a duty
towards others — our neighbors,
our countrymen, our fellowmen
all around the earth.
It is our business to draw
forth God’s blessings and pro
tection for them as well as for
ourselves.
Very well, then; in nine or 10
months 1960 will be open upon
us. I hope that what I have writ
ten will move at least a few
to do their part in fulfilling the
urgent requests of Our Lady of
Fatima.
Theology
For The
Layman
By F. J. Sheed
Having reached this point, the
Catholic reader is usually anx
ious to get on to the story of the
Fall of Man. He feels that the
Fall is the really interesting
thing, Crea
tion being only
a necessary
p r e liminary.
There could
be no Fall till
Creation pro
vided the man
and the wo
man; but once
the man and the woman have
arrived, there’s no need to lin
ger: he wants to get on with the
story: what, he feels, are we
waiting for?
But we, who are studying the
ology, cannot go racing on like
that. If we do, we shall simply
not understand the Fall, or in
deed anything else that has hap
pened to man. We must linger
on Creation to see two things
principally. The first is what the
being was who fell —■ that is we
must look more closely at the
nature of man. The second is
what he fell from and why it
matters — that is we must stu
dy God’s plan for the race He
had created. Only then can we
go on to see what man made of
God’s plan. It will be s o m e
weeks yet before we come to
the Fall.
The souls, the life-principles,
of plants and animals produce
no vital activities which rise
above matter: they are marvel
lous enough, they animate the
body; in plants they make possi
ble movement and growth and
reproduction, in animals some
faint likeness of knowledge,
some faint beginning of social
life, as well.
“Breath,” remember, is the
name of the Third Person of the
Trinity, for the root meaning of
the word spirit is breath. Put
this together with another
phrase from Genesis: “Let us
make man to our image and
likeness.” What God breathed
into man w~as His own image
and likeness — a spiritual soul.
It is by our soul — partless,
spaceless, immortal, capable of
knowledge and love —- that we
resemble God. It is an improb-
(Continued on Page 5)
Question
Box
(By BARBARA C. JENCKS)
By David Q. Liptak
Q. When consecrating the host
at Mass, why is it that the priest
says: This is "my" Body, instead
of. This is "Christ's" Body?
A. During the Consecration of
Mass the priest says “This is My.
Body,” because at that very mo
ment he is mystically identified
with Christ, the Principal Priest
of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. The
celebrant, in other words, ac
tually takes Christ’s place at the
altar.
The rite of consecration is but
a repetition of the Savior’s
words and actions in the Upper
Room at the Last Supper. The
priest puts himself in the place
of Christ (a position he is em
powered and authorized to as
sume by virtue of his ordina
tion), and rehearses the very
words and gestures used by Our
Lord on Holy Thursday. The cel
ebrant of Mass takes a piece of
bread in his hands, as Christ
did; he glances heavenward, as
Christ did; and he blesses the
host, as Christ did. Then, still
mystically united with Christ,
he pronounces Christ’s very
words over the host.
The same procedure is follow
ed in the Consecration of the
wine.
Q, If one goes io confession
and receives Holy Communion
sometime during Lent, does he
thereby fulfill his Easter Duty?
A. One’s Easter Duty may be
fulfilled during Lent. The an
nual Easter Season, during
which Catholics are bound to
receive the Holy Eucharist
worthily, extends in this coun
try from the first Sunday of
Lent to Trinity Sunday, inclus
ive.
Q. Every now and then I come
across the word "oblate" with
reference to certain groups of
priests; i.e., "the Oblate Fathers
of the Blessed Virgin and St.
Ambrose." What does the term
(Continued on Page 5)
• WE ALL HAVE a longing
for something we cannot quite
explain. It surges over us often.
It comes to us at the end of an
unsatisfactory, day, often with
the winds and rain and when we
are away from familiar sights
and faces. We arc lonely. We
ire .discouraged. -Yet we try to’
escape it. In Lent rrtost especial-'
ly. with the dolorous notes of:
the Psalms, a recordant note is
struck in the very depth of our
beings. We think that we may
be sick or odd or wrong. We
want to loose this strange emp-'
ty longing. Each Lent somehow
I return to Bede Jarrett’s “No'
Abiding City” for somehow it
fills a need and gives the an
swers to Some of these restless
feelings which beset. We find
assurance that this restlessness,
this dissatisfaction, this loneli
ness for something or someone
is quite natural. We are not
mean! to be at, home in this
world, We: are travelers anc j pH -
grims and we have no abiding’
city here. The insatiable longing
is quite natural.
• ONE OF T. S. ELLIOT'S
characters in “The Cocktail Par
ty” Cries the eternal, need: “I
want to be cured of a craving
for something I cannot find and
of the shame of never finding
it.” There is no cure this side of
heaven. There is no shame. We
were meant id be lonely for we
are not complete without God.
We seek instead a lasting home
- here among friends, comforts,
sensual pleasures, food and
drink. We attempt to quench the
thirst and insatiable longing of
the soul in creating goods. Bede
Jarrett tells us that we should
not build on people and places
that come to us. If we were to
look on life as a journey, we
would not build roots and at
tachments that would hurt us
when they fail and spoil.
• FATHER JARRETT'S
words soothe but all too often
in the course of one day we for
get their wisdom: a friend dis
appoints, a plan anticipated goes
awry or most of all I disappoint
myself with the uncharitable re-
njark or the less noble decision.
Too often we look to those
around us for the standard in
stead of looking above. We take
on the custom and manner of
the majority around us. They
do this and that so we must do
likewise. We are only visitors
here, travelers and why do we
fret? As heirs of heaven, bap
tized Catholics, we m u s t be
apart and different. We are
lonely and we have another
martini. We are restless and we
must take a trip. We are dis
satisfied with ourselves so we
mix freely and fiercely shutting
out the Vision , which alone can
cure. Father Jarrett says that
the tragedy of living is losing
the living. With the dead, there
is complete union and no mis
understanding. In remembering
that here, we have no abiding
city, Father Jarrett says: “all
the troubles, joys, they pass but
that of which we were made
remains forever. Your heart is
restless today? It must be rest
less until it finds infinite rest.
To Him: we belong. To us: He
belongs. We were meant to be
One. In our moments of misery,
it shall be warmth to us. Feeble?
Tired? We were made for God.”
How Do You Rate
on Facts of Faith
r ^W)]
t
By Brian Cronin
1. Exactly 100 years ago The Blessed Virgin appeared at
Lourdes before a 14-year old girl whose name was: (a) Cath
erine Laboure? (b) St. Bernadine? (c) Mariette Beco? (d)
Bernadette Soubirous?
2. Who did the other Apostles choose by lot to replace Judas?
(a) Lot? (b) Matthias? (c) Matthew? (d) Philip?
3. The Decalogue is another name for: (a) The Ten Command
ments? (b) The Rosary? (c) The Holy Ghost? (d) The Bible?
4. The Cappa Magna of a cardinal is his: (a) Head-piece? (b)
Ring? (c) Seal? (d) Long flowing robe?
5. St. Joachim was the father of: (a) St. Joseph? (b) Our
Lady? (c) St. Peter? (d) Judas?
6. What is a Concordat? (a) A Church-state treaty? (b) A
Hymn? (c) A prayer for peace? (d) A choir?
7. A Novena consists of how many days’ prayer? (a) 1? (b) 3?
(c) 7? (d) 9?
8. The oration by the priest immediately before the Epistle
is called the: (a) Introit? (b) Collect? (c) Credo? (d) Confi-
ter?
Give yourself 10 marks for each correct answer below.
Rating: 80-Excellent; 70-Very Good; 60-Good; 50-Fair.
Answers:
1 (d); 2 (b); 3 (a); 4 (d); 5 (b);
6 (a); 7 (d); 8 (b)
Better TV Up To Viewer
THE BACKDROP
SHARING OUR TREASURE
'Bird Dog' Helps Win Family Of Five
By REV. JOHN A. O'BRIEN, Ph. D.
(University of Notra Dame)'
SELF-APPRAISAL
It’s impossible to push your
self forward by patting yourself
on the back.
ONE-WAY
You may overtake a lot of
people on the road to ruin, but
you never meet anyone return
ing.
Never judge an argument by
its sound — it may be all sound,
or it may not be sound at all.
Hunters of fowl rely heavily
upon bird dogs to locate their
quarry and flush them out in
the open. Without such help
they would be severely handi
capped. Priests are hunters of
souls and they
too need “bird
dog s.** The
help such
apostolic bird
dogs can give
i s illustrated
by the experi
ence of Mrs.
Patrick J.
Boner, 1933 East 34th S t.,
Tucson, Arizona, for such was
the role she played.
“I am a convert,” related Mrs.
Boner, “and I am so grateful to
God for the grace that led me
into His Church five years ago,
that I have often prayed that I
might be able to show my grati
tude by helping to share the
Faith with others. The oppor
tunity came when the Robin
son family moved from Shippen-
burg, Pennsylvania, and settled
next to me.
“Right from the start I liked
the Robinsons—Ned and Sara,
and their three children, Debbie,
Cathy and Sally Jane. Our baby
girls were but one week apart,
and that gave us an additional
common interest. At Thanks
giving her parents came for a
visit.
“Her father said that when
he was a small boy he had been
baptized a Catholic. But as
there was no Catholic church
in that small town in Pennsyl
vania he had drifted away. Sara
and her sister had gone to their
mother’s church and had been
baptized but not reared in that
faith. Two years ago the father
had returned to the practice of
the Faith and had been con
firmed.
“He was now eager to have
Sara instructed in the Catholic
Faith and his grandchildren
baptized in it. We took him,
Debbie and Cathy to Mass with
us.
“Two week later Legionnaires
of Mary called at our home. I
invited Sara over, and we in
quired if she would like to send
the giris to religious classes on
Sunday. She talked it over with
Ned and he decided it would
be well for both of them to take
instructions so they could an
swer questions which the chil
dren, would soon be asking.
“Thrilled by this good news,
1 phoned Father Thomas Boyle
at Al l Saints, our parish church.
I even suggested that he pay
them an informal visit as they
had never talked to a priest.
“Father was hesitant at first
for fear, as he said, that they
might feel obligated. But after
Christmas he called on them
and arranged for their instruc
tion. Sara and Ned would go
to the rectory one night a week,
while I baby sat, and Father
would come to their home one
night a week.
“The Robinsons had received
only two instructions when a
Southern Baptist minister, who
had just heard that Ned had
not been baptized, called on
them. Like other Protestant
ministers he did not let any
grass grow under his feet, but
made a beeline to their door.
He wanted to baptize Ned at
once, but Ned had already be
come interested in the Catholic
Faith and courtebusly declined
the minister’s invitation.
“After four months of in
struction the entire Robinson
family was baptized, and I was
the godmother of the three chil
dren. We were all radiantly
happy: I scarcely less than they.
With all my heart I thanked
God for letting me be His “bird
dog.”
“I handed a book, Father
Smith Instructs Jackson, over
a backyard fence. I asked a
priest to visit a family, and
helped out at babysitting. They
were only little things, but God
paid me great happiness and
three godchildren.”
The American people—a very
large number of them, at least—-
are doing a lot of grumbling
these days about the type and
quality of the programs they
watch on their television screens.
Yet, they
are doing very
little t o im
prove them.
Despite their
profession dis-
taste for a
high percent
age of the
shows offered
by the networks, the average
American family, according to a
study by the Fund for the Re
public, spends 42 hours a week
before its television set. It has
been estimated that the typical
American spends more time
looking at television in a given
week than he does working.
MAJOR COMPLAINT
The gripes of the average
television addict are varied. One
of the major complaints is that
there is too much stress on vio
lence. A sampling of New York
stations in 1952 found violence
the most frequent form of be
havior on 56 per cent of the
television programs. Firearms
were involved in almost half the
plays.
While some sociologists main
tain that there is no scientific
evidence to support the belief
that such programs have a
harmful effect upon children,
most parents believe otherwise.
They contend that the violence
seen on television screens
teaches children the techniques
of crime and inculcates dis-
By JOHN C. O’BRIEN
respect for law.
Although the networks shy
away from sexually suggestive
or obscene material to a greater
extent than many other media,
many viewers complain that too
many suggestive themes are
creeping into television pro
grams—too many, at least, for
children.
Lewdness and obsenity on the
television screen presents a
greater problem for parents than
in motion pictures. For, while
it is possible to keep a child
away from a motion picture
theater exhibiting a sexually
suggestive picture, it is next to
impossible to police the viewing
of television programs.
Another complaint is that a
high percentage of the offer
ings on television are banal,
“insulting to the intelligence,”
or downright boring. Too often,
viewers object, wholesome
shows are thrown off the air
and replaced by “sure-fire” fast-
gun and crime detection plays.
Yet, the odd fact is that only
a few dissatisfied viewers ever
take the trouble to communicate
their complaints to the net
works or the sponsor. Viewers
are so unaccustomed to writing
letters about television pro
grams that one of the country’s
top-rate programs, “Gunsmoke,”
with an average audience of
47,000,000 draws letters from an
average of less than one-tenth
of one per cent of the viewers.
A news program with an es
timated 6,200,000 viewers re
ceives an average of only five
letters a program. The dropping
of program of the highest qual
ity with an audience of 3,000,000
evoked only a trickle of letters
of protest.
NETWORKS SENSITIVE
Flagrant violations of the
moral code often go unprotested
by viewers. Not a single com
plaint was received when a pro
gram dealt with a woman who
planned to open a house of ill
repute with the proceeds from
the insurance collected after her
husband had been’ murdered.
Yet, the networks are ex
tremely sensitive to letters
from viewers. They maintain
staffs who give such letters close
study. Even criticism that is
felt to be unjustified often is
heeded. But the trouble is that
the viewers leave the networks
and the sponsors pretty much
in the dark as to what they
think of the programs they
watch.
The audience-rating, of course,
give the networks and the spon
sors a pretty accurate idea of
how many people are watching
their programs. But they don’t
tell them anything' about the
viewers’ reaction.
If the networks were informed
that a high percentage of the
viewers were critical, they
would do something to change
the programs. A recent survey
showed that one change audi
ences wanted most was more
“high level” shows, but they
weren’t doing a thing to get
them.
The conclusion of the Fund
for the Republic study was that
if people want better television
programming, the way to get it
is write to the stations and the
networks. Any industry as
aware of public opinion as tele
vision will respond to specific
complaints from the customers.
Latin Lingo
View From The Rectory
• FATHER WHARTON
We’re all used to translating
from other languages. If not
from Latin, French or Sanskrit
-—at least from American pro-
THE STORY LADY
Maureen Wenk Hanigan
MR. LONGFELLOW'S
LESSON
Once, not so very many years
ago, there lived a man whose
name was Mr. Longfellow. Mr.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
If you have ever taken a trip to
the city of Boston, you were
very near the place where Mr.
Longfellow lived.
Mr. Longfellow was a poet,
and he was also a Daddy. He
was very much like your Dad
dy. He liked to read, and he lik
ed to take trips, and most of all
he liked little girls and boys
who were good. He had three
little girls of his very own and
he wrote many lovely poems for
them. Once, he even wrote a
poem all about his little girls.
He told about the time each
day that they played with him,
just as your Daddy plays with
you. Mr. Longfellow gave his
poem a lovely sounding name.
He called it, “The Children’s
Hour.” Don’t you think that
sounds very nice?
His little girls had pretty
names, too. One little girl was
named Alice. Once he called her
“Grave Alice.” That meant that
she was very serious and quiet,
and that she thought very hard
about the game they were play
ing. She was Miss Alice Long
fellow.
One little girl he called
“Laughing Allegra,” because she
was so happy, and perhaps she
giggled just a little bit, too. She
was Miss Allegra Longfellow.
EDITH
His last little girl was named
Edith, and she had beautiful
golden hair. Miss Edith Long
fellow.
For many years Mr. Longfel
low went to work every day,
just as your Daddy does. His job
was to be a teacher. Of course,
being a teacher he always tried
especially hard to see that his
girls did things exactly right,
and that they spoke carefully
and correctly. That means that
they didn’t make any mistakes.
Now you know it is very hard
for little people always to speak
so carefully that they never
make a mistake, and one day
Mr. Longfellow was talking to
his daughters and listening very
hard to all the things that they
had to tell him when suddenly
he heard one of his girls make
a mistake. I don’t know which
one it was, for on one ever told
me, but perhaps it was Edith,
who had the beautiful golden
hair. She was telling him about
the tiny place on her face, right
between the tops of her eye
brows and her pretty hair. Do
you know what this place is
called? Of course you do? it’s
your forehead. But his little girl
called it her “4-head,” and then
Mr. Longfellow laughed.
“No, no sweetheart,” he said.
“You must say that word more
carefully. Some of the letters in
that woi’d are peeping and they
are very quiet, so when we say
it outloud it sounds just as if
we were saying “4-rid.”
TO BE SURE
Then to be extra sure that
they understood he sat right
down and wrote his three little
girls a poem. Perhaps you have
heard it. Maybe your Mother
says it to you sometimes. This
is how it goes.
There was a little girl, and
she had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her
forehead—
And when she was good, she
was very very good,
But when she was bad, she
was HORRID!
After he wrote the poem he
taught it to his little girls. Then
Alice said it, and Allegra said
it and Edith said it. Then Mr.
Longfellow told them,
“Now you know a little secret.
You can always remember that
the words forehead and horrid
sound the very same. If you
think you are. going to forget
just say the little poem about
the little girl who had a little
curl — and then you will hear
the two words and how very
much alike they sound, and you
will always say them correctly.”
Now you know the secret, too,
and if you learn the little poem
you can say the word forehead
just as nicely as Alice and Edith
and Allergra can!
fessional dialects. It takes quite
a bit of skill, for instance, to
interpret a letter from the Gov- ’
ernment. To show what I mean
in another case, here are com
ments teacher may write on
your little Quincy’s report card
—and a translation of her lang
uage:
Quincy does not socialize well.
This means Quincy is always
beating some other kid’s brains
out.
Quincy is progressing very
well for him. Quincy is a dope.
He’s 12 years old and has learn
ed two and two make four,
which, as the teacher points out,
is progress—for him.
Quincy's personality evidenc
es a lack of social integration.
This is a nice way of saying
Quincy is a stinker.
Quincy is well - adjusted,
wholesomely integrated child.
Jackpot! Quincy is teacher’s pet.
So, you see, another language
is no obstacle to understanding
if you put forth a little effort.
That’s why the Church has
stuck to her Latin down through
the centuries — despite the ang
uished moans of budding altar
boys and criticism from those
outside the Church.
It’s as if Protestants figure
there’s something sinister about
the Church’s use of Latin. We
can carry out our plans for
world domination better, they
think, if we use a lingo nobody
understands. That’s not true,
though. We could baffle ’em in
English.
Besides, what’s so mysterious
about Latin? Schools teach the
subject. And most schoolboys
know that all Gaul is divided
into five parts (or maybe four,
or six—well, several parts any
way).
And Latin is still earning its
own way in the world about us.
Lawyers use terms like “res
clamat domino”—which means,
roughly, “put it back, you thief."
Doctors’ prescriptions, too, are
written in Latin. At least I think
it’s Latin. Sometimes it’s hard
to tell. I heard of one man who
received a prescription from his ;
physician and decided not to'
have it filled. Instead, he used it :
as a complimentary ticket to the
ball park for a season, then as a
railroad pass, and finally turned
it over to his daughter to play
on the piano. You can’t pin the
blame for this on Latin, how
ever—it’s Doc’s penmanship.
Latin still retains Its popu
larity (with teachers) for a num
ber’ of reasons. Many of our
English words come from the
old tongue, for one thing. A
knowledge of it can give one a
better command of English. But
we won’t go into a complete de
fense of Latin in school. I’m
supposed to explain doctrine—
not make enemies among stu
dents.
The big objection to Latin in
the Church’s liturgy is that the
people do not understand it. The
complaint really arises from a
misunderstanding of t h e pur
pose of the prayers. The Latin
we use is addressed to God, and
He understands the language
very well. A sermon directed to
the people is another thing: this
is always in the vernacular.
And translations of the pray
ers of the liturgy are as abun
dant as humidity in Washing
ton. A Catholic may say his
prayers in English straight from
the book. Another consideration
is that most Catholics are very
familiar with many Latin pray-
(Continued on Page 5)
0% lullftin
416 8TH ST., AUGUSTA, GA.
LET'S FACE IT
Remember, you can’t expect
to win the game of life today
with hits you made yesterday.
MAN OF THE HOUR
Taking things as they come
and selling them at a profit is
another form of success.
COMMON SENSE
The secret of happiness seems
to depend half on what we do
and half on what we don’t.
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, March 7, 1959 No. 20
ASSOCIATION OFFICERS FOR 1958-1959
GEORGE GINGELL, Columbus President
MRS. DAN HARRIS, Macon Vice-President
TOM GRIFFIN, Atlanta 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
