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DIOCESE OF SAVANNAH EDITION
OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF SAVANNAH
Published By The
Catholic Laymen's
Ass'n of Georgia
Vol. 39, No. 22
PLAN EXPANSION AT ST. VINCENT'S—His Excellency the Most Rev. Thomas J. Mc
Donough. auxiliary-bishop and Very Rev. Andrew J. McDonald, Chancelor, approve plans for
school improvement offered by Sister M. Michel ! e, R.S.M., principal and Sister M. Bernadine,
R.S.M., Superior at St. Vincents Academy, Savannah.
Hdy Father's Easter Message
Calls Catholics To Sacraments
By Father James I. Tucek
(Radio. N.C.W.C. News Service)
VATICAN CITY — In his
first Easter message His Holi
ness Pope John XXIII called
Christians to a new life in the
sacraments, prayed for peace
and extended a special hand of
friendship to Balkan nations.
“This year it is the new Holy
Father who celebrates Easter
with you,” Pope John said. He
then spoke of the constantly re
newing, never dying life of the
Church and its visible head, the
pope, declaring that “the Church
is alive, as its Divine Founder
is alive!”
He compared the life of the
Church with the life of Christ,
saying that there have been
“enemies who have sought to
enclose her as in a tomb, boast
ing repeatedly of her agony and
death. But she, who has within
herself the invincible strength
of her Founder, is ever newly
risen with Him, granting par
don to all and providing for
the lowly and the poor, for
those in suffering and for men
good will, tranquility and
peace.”
He said that this is the mean
ing of Easter which he wanted
to put before his faithful sub
jects so that their fidelity of the
Church might never waver, but
remain “confident in her tri
umphant certainty.”
Another lesson of the Easter
season the Pope offered to the
faithful was that “Easter is for
all a mystery of death and of
life.’” He called the faithful to
the sacrament of Penance and
to reception of the Eucharist,
saying that in this sense “East
er is a mystery of death and
resurrection for every believer
. . . death to sin. to passion, to
hatred and enmities and to all
that is a source of disharmony,
of bitterness or of grief in ei
ther the spiritual or material
order.”
Calling Christians to the ex
pensive freedom that begets ho
liness, the Pope assured them
that “Christianity is not that
mass of restrieteions which the
unbeliever imagines. On the
contrary, it is -peace, joy, love
and life which, like the unseen
throbbing of nature in early
spring, is ever being renewed.”
He expressed the desire that
the message of Easter—“The
Lord is indeed risen”—could be
said of everyone, so that one
might also say: The sinner of
yesterday is indeed risen! And
those who doubted, who had
lost confidence, who were afraid
and whose fervor had grown
cold—they are risen!”
The Holy Father gave assur
ance of his prayers for all the
faithful, for priests and all oth
ers dedicated to God, for youth,
for the Christian family, for
students, teachers and workers
and for the sick. He added:
“We wish to assure all that
not only is Our speciacl affec
tion ever with them, but also
that their life, even if humble
and unobserved, is very pre
cious in the sight of God.”
He continued:
“We offer a prayer that peace,
the daughter of gentleness and
good will, may establish a last
ing rule among nations, made
ever anxious by the clouds
which repeatedly darken the
horizon. We pray for the heads
of state, joined with Us in rec
ognizing that their high calling
establishes them not as judges,
but as guides of the nations . . .
They are in duty bound to
guarantee respect for the fun
damental rights of the human
person. We pray for those who
are still suffering from the ef
fects of the past war, even 14
(Continued on Page 8)
Solemn Mass
larks Feast
Of St. Benedict
S A V A N N A H — His Excel
lency, Bishop Thomas J. Mc
Donough, auxiliary Bishop of
Savannah presided at a Solemn
Mass commemorating the Feast
of St. Benedict, March 21st.
The Mass was sung in Sacred
Heart Church, Savannah, staffed
by the Benedictine Fathers. Rev.
Bede Lightner, O. S. B. was
celebrant assisted by Rev. Ray
mond Geyer O. S. B., Deacon;
and Rev. Damian Muldownex,
O. S. B., Subdeacon. Rev. Fran
cis J. Donohue, Pastor of Our
Lady of Lourdes, Port Went-
woith delivered the sermon.
Music was provided by the Glee
Club of St. Vincent’s Academy,
under the direction of Sister M.
Fidelis R. S. M., with organ
accompaniment by Mrs. Jos
eph Schreck, Glee Club Organ
ist.
The Benedictine Fathers, who
staff Sacred Heart Parish and
conduct the Benedictine Mili
tary School, are members of a
religious order founded by St.
Benedict more than 1400 years
ago. St. Benedict is commonly
known as “The Father of West
ern Monasticism.” The Rule of
St. Benedict is followed not
only by the Order of St. Bene
dict but by scores of other Relig
ious Orders as well, at least in
modified form.
The man who is determined to
belittle his life work will never
accomplish anything worth
while.
U. S. BORN
PRELATE
IS NUNCIO
VATICAN CITY, (Radio,NC)
—A rchbishop Opilio Rossi,
American-born prelate who has
been Apostolic Nuncio in Ecua
dor since 1953, has been ap
pointed Nuncio to Chile by His
Holiness Pope John XXIII.
Born in New York in 1910,
Archbishop Rossi was taken to
Italy by his parents when he
was two years old, and grew up
in the Piacenza archdiocese.
Ordained in 1933, he entered the
diplomatic service of the Holy
See four years later. He served
for a time in the Vatican Secre
tariat of State, and subsequent
ly in posts in Belgium, France,
the Netherlands and Germany.
Named Titular Archbishop of
Ancira and Nuncio to Ecuador
by Pope Pius XII in November,
1953, he was consecrated in
Piacenza a month later by Arch
bishop Aloisius J. Muench,
Bishop of Fargo, N. D., and
Apostolic Nuncio to Germany
under whom he had served as
counsellor in the Bonn nuncia
ture for five years.
Port Wentworth
CYC Makes Trip
PORT WENTWORTH — The
Catholic Youth Council of Our
Lady of Lourdes Parish took
a most enjoyable trip to Ma-
rineland, Florida recently.
They arrived in time to watch
the feeding of the porpoises and
later a side show of various
tricks done with the fish.
Next, they visited Potter’s
House of Wax in St. Augus
tine. There they saw an edu
cational exhibit of the world’s
greatest men and women in
life size, gorgeously costumed.
While in St. Augustine they
also visited the oldest Cathedral
in the United States, and the
mission of Our Lady of La
Teche.
They arrived back in Savan
nah at 11:00 p. m. Accompany
ing the Catholic Youth Coun
cil was their Spiritual Advisor,
Rev. Francis J. Donohue, and
their adult advisors, Mr. and
Mrs. W. J. Chant.
The youths who made the
trip were: Ronnie Lane, Jeanie
Darcy, David Edgerly, Angela
Hebert, Butch Schroder, Billy
Muller, Larry Loncon, Gorden
Sullivan, Patty Demas, and
Marie Demas.
MONROE, GEORGIA, SATURDAY, APRIL 4, 1959
Georgia's "First Catholic School"
10c Per Copy — $3 a Year
Expansion Program Announced
For Saint Vincent's Academy
NEW BUILDING TO
DOUBLE ENROLLMENT
SAVANNAH — A new building containing 10 class rooms, a
science room, principal’s office, waiting rooms, teachers’ lounge
and other facilities is the goal of a new expansion program under
taken by St. Vincent’s Academy in Savannah.
Completion of the program and developed into an open-
will provide St. Vincent’s with air amphitheater. Building and
a physical plant completely ade
quate for a high school of 400
girls, enabling it to double its
present enrollment.
The Academy, opened in 1845
was the first Catholic educa
tional institute in the state of
Georgia. Founded by the Rev.
Jeremiah Francis O’Neill, the
cornerstone of the convent was
laid on December 19, 1842.
During the War Between the
States the daughters of many
prominent Southern statesmen
were placed under the care of
the Sisters of Mercy who staffed
the school. Among these early
students was Winnie Davis,
daughter of Jefferson Davis,
President of the Confederacy.
To make way for the new
structure, the existing Chapel
and connecting wing between
the Chapel and Convent will be
razed. A split-level, L-shaped
building will be erected, one
section three stories high and
the other, two.
Access to the new classrooms
will be from open corriders en
closed only by ornamental grill
work, and all facilities will be
lighted by flourescent equip
ment.
The courtyard will be lowered
to the present basement level
development plans are under
the direction of Thomas & Hut
ton and Associates, of Savannah.
Demolition work will begin in
May upon the closing of the
school year.
Construction of the new
Chapel, located at the Abercorn
Street end of the Convent
building has already begun.
Rambusch Company, Church
Designers, of New York have
been engaged for the interior
decoration of the new Chapel.
The altar will be a mahogany
table altar supported by a heavy
panel of cream and gold by two
ornately carved wooden up
rights, or balusters. Above the
altar will hang a suspended
crucifix with a corpus of hand
carved bleached-white wood.
The statues of the Blessed Vir
gin and of St. Joseph will flank
the altar on either side and will
be executed in lindenwood. The
altar will be illumined by con
cealed lighting fixtures and the
body of the chapel will be illum
ined by fixtures deep-recessed
in the ceiling.
The date of completion of the
new buildings has not been an
nounced, but it is anticipated
that the fall term will begin in
temporary quarters.
46 Is Average Age Of 1959
Graduates Of Rome’s Beda
Seminary For Late Vocations
(N. C. W. C. NEWS SERVICE)
ROME,—The 1959 ordination
class of Beda College, Seminary
for late vocations to the priest
hood, is proof that it is never
too late for a man who wants
to be a priest.
A class of 14 men ordained
by Archbishop Luigi Traglia,
Vivegerent of Rome, in St. John
Lateran basilica has an average
age of 46. Almost all of them
had careers before they began
studies for the priesthood.
A brief review of the list of
the newly ordained shows the
varied background of the men
who come from all over the
world to Beda College to pre
pare for an entirely new life
in the service of God. They are
Fathers:
Cedric Janvrin, 58, former
British army colonel, ordained
for the Diocese of Victoria,
British Colombia, Canara;
John Ramsay, 33, former
major in the Scots Guard, or
dained for the Archbishop of
St. Andrews and Edinburg,
Scotland;
Francis Hsu, 39, former
English professor at the Uni
versity of Nanking, China, or
dained for the Diocese of Hong
Kong;
William Erby, 52, former ad
ministrative official of a leper
colony in Nigeria, Africa, or
dained for the Archdiocese of
Westminster, Englad;
Robin Noel, 35, former Angli
can minister, ordained for the
Diocese of Portsmouth, England;
Dan Sexton, 55, lawyer who
ST. VINCENT'S — Historic St. Vincent’s Academy Convent
in Savannah. Opened in 1845 it has exerted tremendous influence
on Catholic life in the Diocese and has been the source of many
vocations to the Sisters of Mercy. Tall spire is one of twin towers
of Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, located on the next street.
practiced in Boston and New
York, ordained for the Diocese
of Steubenville, Ohio;
Walton Hannaw, 47, former
Anglican minister, ordained for
the Archbishop of Westminster,
on loan to the Archdiocese of
Montreal, Canada.
Edward Jerram, 42, former
accountant, ordained for the
Archdiocese of Melbourne, Aus
tralia.
John Armstrong, 46, former
employee of the Dublin Health
Department, ordained for the
Archbishop of Cape Town,
South Africa.
Francis Sharkey, 47, former
Marist, Brother, ordained for the
Archdiocese of Melbourne.
John O’Connell, 43 former
bank clerk in the National Bank
of Dublin, ordained for the
(Continued on Page 8)
NAMED PAPAL
CHAMBERLAIN
DES MOINES, Iowa (NC) —
Father Raymond J. Conley, ed
itor of the Messenger, Des
Moines diocesan weekly, has
been named a papal chamber-
lain with the title of very rev
erend monsignor. Six priests of
the diocese were named domes
tic prelates with the title of
very reverend monsignor. Sev
en were named papal chamber
lains and two were reappointed
papal chamberlains.
AUGUSTA
DEANERY
MEETING
AUGUSTA — The spring
meeting of the A u g u s t a
Deanery Council of Catholic
Women will be held Sun
day, April 12th, at 4 p. m.
at Si. Mary's Parish Hall on
Monte Sano Ave.
All members of the Dean
ery Council are urged to at
tend.
At Augusta
To Dedicate Hall-Auditorium
For Immaculate Conception
AUGUSTA —The new Hall-
Auditorium of the Immaculate
Conception Parish in Augusta
will be dedicated on April 12th.
The ceremony will be conducted
by His Excellency, the Most
Reverend Thomas J. Mc
Donough, auxiliary Bishop of
Savannah at 4:00 P. M., it was
announced by Father Adolph
Gall, S. M. A. pastor of Immacu
late Conception.
After the Presentation of the
new American Flag and the
Blessing of the building by
Bishop McDonough, Father Gall
will deliver a welcome address.
Bishop McDonough will be the
principal speaker. The cere
monies will be brought to a
close by Pontifical Benediction
at a temporary altar erected on
the stage of the auditorium.
HALL-AUDITORIUM, IMMACU LATE CONCEPTION, AUGUSTA
Bishop Presides
At Philadelphia
Dinner April 2
PHILADELPHIA — Bishop
Thomas J. McDonough, auxi
liary Bishop of Savannah pre
sided at the eleventh annual
dinner of the Philadelphia Arch
diocesan Holy Name Union in
the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel,
Philadelphia.
The Dinner was tendered on
April 2nd, and was attended
by approximately 750 Holy
Name men. Bishop McDonough
also delivered the principal ad
dress.
PRAYER
FOR VOCATIONS
O God, hear our prayer
and let our cry come unto
Thee.
Bless our Diocese of Sav
annah with many priestly
vocations.
Give the young men You
call, the light to understand
Your gift and the love to
follow always in the foot
steps of Your Priestly Son.
—Indulgence of seven years
Mary, Queen of the Clergy,
pray for us.
St, John Vianney, pray for
us.
Imprimatur:
-f Thomas J. McDonough
Notre Dame
Book Shop
Seeks Members
SAVANNAH — The Notre
Dame Book Shop in Savannah
is in the midst of a campaign
to secure more members, and
therefore more users, of its
Lending Library. The library,
which was the principal reason
for the fouding of the shop more
than five years. ago, offers a
variety of fiction and no-fiction
for profitable as well as en
joyable reading.
The only requisite for mem
bership is a nominal yearly
fee—one dollar for an individ
ual, two dollars for an entire
family, and fifty cents for stu
dents, including college. The
library has, in addition to books
for home use, a large number
of Catholic reference works, in
cluding the newTwenlielh Cen
tury Encyclopedia of Caiholism.
published by Hawthorne.
New books are added regular
ly to the Lending Library.
Among titles which have re
cently appeared on the shelves
are My Story, an autobiography
by Mary Astor; The Woman
God Loved by Glenn Kittler;
Dear and Glorious Physician by
Taylor Caldwell;In Solf Gar-
ments by Ronald Knox; and
Fifly-iwo Fridays, a compilation
of Lenten menus by Ethel
Keating.
Miss Marie Ray is librarian
for the book shop, and is assis
ted by Mrs. R. L. Redmond and
Mrs. R. L. Holland.
The book shop cordially in
vites everyone to become more
familiar with its lilbrary, to
drop in and enjoy reading room
with its variety of Catholic
periodicals, and to become par
ticipating members.
World peace wouldn’t seem so
remote if we could manage to
have a little more neighborhood
peace.