Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

PAGE 8—THE BULLETIN, July 25, 1959 Ceylonese Archbishop Again Warns Against Nationalization Threat Facing Catholic Schools DATE SET FOR DEDICATION The great upper church of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D. C., will be dedicated on Friday, November 20. The Shrine, largest Catholic church in the United States, is the nation’s tribute to the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is the country’s patroness under the title of her Im maculate Conception. (NC Photos) Upper Church Of National Shrine In U. S. Capital To Be Dedicated Nov. 20 (N.C.W.C. News Service) NEGOMBO, Ceylon, — Cey lon’s only Archbishop has again protested against the continu ing threat of nationalization of Catholic schools here, and warned: “Do not touch our schools. We shall resist unto blood.” Archbishop Thomas B. Cooray, O.M.I., of Colombo spoke at Ave Maria High School here and called on the govern ment to make it clear that de nominational schools will be al lowed to continue. He said that there has been a relentless campaign to include religious schools in a “soulless, lifeless and godless . . . govern ment system of education.” He denied that this predom inantly Buddhist nation’s Cath olic schools seek to make con versions, and he called such claims “wild accusations.” Catholic schools in this coun try have been involved in con troversy for more than two years. In May, 1957, the gov ernment ruled that no new pri vate schools could be establish ed. Then a Buddhist commission proposed the nationalization of ail private schools. Later a so- called compromise proposal — backed by some members of the government — was put for ward by the Buddhist Advisory Council and the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress. The compromise called for the nationalization of all private schools in which more than half of the students were of a relig ious faith different from that of the school’s administrative authorities. The most recent calls for na tionalization have come from the Sasana Commission report and a Ceylon Daily News Ar ticle on June 20 by S. de P. Ku- laratne, president of the Bud dhist Congress. These demands came after Education Minister W. Dahana- yake said earlier this year that the government had no inten tion of nationalizing private schools. Observers here believe that the influence of Mr. Kularat- ne’s group has declined since the recent resignation of Marx ist . ministers from the cabinet. Three other Buddhist groups, BERLIN, (NC) — More than a score of persons were hurt and about 20 were arrested as a result of a clash between Pol ish Catholics and communist police in a Polish villiage near Lublin, according to reports reaching here. The clash occurred when the Red authorities decided to raze a chapel and shrine in Kraznik Fabryczny on the grounds where they had been erected without authorization. Some 300 Catholics, according to the reports, gathered at the chapel to protect it and battled Red police who tried to disperse them. Joined by hundreds of others, they later marched on the village hall and police sta tion. Police reinforcements were brought in from nearby Lublin and used tear gas and clubs to break up the crowd in a fight that lasted through the night. Krasnik Fabryczny is one of the communist-planned “new towns” and was built around a metallurgical plant. As is the custom, the Reds made no pro vision for a church. The vil lage's Catholics then set up a shrine and a chapel on a va- Scrviccs For M rs, Mary Knox SAVANNAH — Funeral serv ices for Mrs. Mary A. Knox, were held at the Church of the Most Blessed Sacrament July 8th. Survivors include three nephews, Thomas L. Odum, Jos eph F. Odum and James J. Mc Grath, all of Savannah; and one niece, Mrs. E. H. Giuffrida, of Miami. representing a majority of that faith’s adherents here, have come out against nationaliza tion. In his speech here Archbish op Cooray challenged anyone to prove that Catholics have used their schools to make conver sions. That has never been the policy, he said, and added: “Proselytizing non-Catholic children in our schools by hold ing out to them the bait of sec ular education is no part of our system of evangelization. Schools are with us not the proper means for the conversion to our Faith of non-Catholic children, but only a necessary agency for the instruction of those who are either already Catholic, or have made up their minds to become Catholic. “Hence when we are compell ed by the force of local circum stances to admit non-Catholic children to our schools, not only do we not begrudge them the guarantee of a conscience clause, but the rule in all our schools is not to admit such to attend religious instruction, or to take part in any act of relig ion except upon the formal re quest of their parents.” Archbishop Cooray answered the argument that the abolition of Church schools is necessitat ed by the need for religious in struction for non-Catholic stu dents attending Church schools. A good denominational school with living religious principles, he said, can create a sound mor al background on the natural law which is common to all hu man beings. It is to be doubted that a religionless state school can create even this minimum of a sound moral atmosphere, he stated. . “If the teaching of religion is to depend on the state, with the change of views of each gov erning party, the policy regard ing religion will have to change. And if an ungodly or material istic government comes into power, then it will be the end of all religion. Tibet is a sad example,” he continued. The real solution, the prelate concluded, is for each religion that sincerely cares for relig ious education to have its own denominational schools for its children. cant lot. Visiting priests cele brated Mass in the chapel. Reports state that the inci dent has not been reported in the Polish press and quote the office of the Warsaw archdio cese as saying that more than 1,000 such shrines have been built in Poland recently with out official authorization. Services For Levi E. Miller SAVANNAH — Funeral serv ices for Levi E. Miller were held July 6th at Sacred Heart Church. Mr. Miller is survived by his wife, Mrs. Julia C. Miller; two daughters, Mrs. Edward J. Limehouse, Mrs. Earl Daniel Pardue and one son, Joseph L. Miller, all of Savannah and sev en grandchildren. Stamp of Faith This new West German 20- piennig postage stamp, marks the first exhibition in 25 years of the "Holy Robe” at the Trier Cathedral, July 19 to Septem ber 20. According to tradition, .the robe is the seamless gar ment worn by Christ at his Crucifixion for which the sol diers cast lots. (NC Photo) (N.C.W.C. News Service) WASHINGTON — The great upper church of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Con ception here will be dedicated on November 20. A religious edifice ranking among the most imposing in the world, and a project which has engaged the attention of Ameri can Catholics for 39 years, the shrine will then be ready for services. Announcement of the dedica tion was made by His Eminence Francis Cardinal,. Spellman, through the office here of the National Shrine. The Cardinal- Archbishop of New York is chairman of the shrine’s board of trustees. The shrine will be incomplete in some of its exterior details and will lack most of its interior ornaments planned for the fu ture, it was made clear in con nection with the announcement. The edifice is the largest Catholic church in the United States and one of the seven lar gest religious structures in the world. Archtecturally, the shrine has been described as being contemporary in style but in the spirit of the Romanesque and Byzantine. Its classical .lines harmonize with the monument al buildings of the National Capital, and the edifice gives Washington another great place of pilgrimage. The dedication will mark completion of the second of three stages in the construction of the shrine. The great church, massive in size and beautiful in the harmony of its proportions, has been built through the col lective effort of Catholics in all parts of the United States. Non- Catholics, too, have contributed to the great undertaking. The shrine has been built as an act of homage to the Mother of God. It is also a plea for her intercession and protection, as the Blessed Virgin is the pa troness of this country under the title of her Immaculate Conception. She was so chosen by the Bishops of the United States in 1846. In the first stage of the Shrine’s construction (1921- 1931) a crypt church and a crypt area were built. This crypt church, large and colorfully adorned, has been the scene of imposing religious ceremonies for some three decades. With the advent of the de pression, followed by World War II, there was a period dur ing which little new work was done on the edifice. In the second stage of con struction (1954-1959) the upper church has been built. The shrine has an over-all length of 459 feet, and its great est width is 240 feet. Its multi colored dome is topped by a cross, whose tip is 237 feet above the ground. The campa nile, or bell tower, also is sur mounted by a cross, reaching 239 feet above the ground. The shrine is located in the northeast section of Washing ton. Its campanile and dome dominate much of the National Capital’s skyline. Completing the first leg of a long journey, these five Korean orphans behaved like seasoned travelers upon their arrival at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport from the Columban Sisters’ hospital in Mokpo, Korea. There to greet the youngsters was Rev. Lawrence M. Willen- borg, Archdiocese of Seattle’s director of resettlement Accompanying the children was Sister Mary Enda, former hospital superior and now a member of the Mokpo hospital's medical staff. Sent to-the U. S. under the auspices of the Catholic Committee for Refugees, N.C.W.C., the chil dren have been adopted by families in three states. The children and their final destination are from left Hwa Sun Paik, 8, Quincy, 111.; Myong He Mae, 2, Calais, Me.; Sung Yun La, 3, Los An geles; Myong Soon Lee, 7, Chicago; and Kwang Myong Suk, 3, Santa Rosa, Calif. (NC Photos) More Than Score Injured, 20 Arrested In Battle Between Catholics And Polish Police Ruling Indian Party Charges Kerala Reds Stirred Agitation By Passage Of Education Law (Radio, N.C.W.C. News Service) NEW DELHI, India — India’s ruling Congress party charged here that the education law passed by Kerala’s communist government pushed tension in that state to the point where anticommunists had no choice but to start their campaign of agitation. Party leaders, headed by Mrs. Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s daughter, issued a 14-page statement con demning Red rule in India’s smallest and most literate state. Kerala’s communist regime, which has been in office since the spring of 1957, has repeated ly tried to make it appear that the current unrest in the state was stirred by Catholics. The All-Congress party said in its statement, however, that the real cause of the trouble is com munist misrule. It said that if the Reds are allowed to remain in power for the full five-year term, it will prove the “end to all democracy in Kerala and a grave threat to it in the rest of the country.” The Congress leadership also asserted that a broad section of Kerala’s population believes that the rule of the communists has “amounted to subversion of a)l vital things for which de mocracy and the Indian Con stitution stood.” Archbishop Joseph A. Fer nandes of Delhi and Simla also spoke here on the Kerala crisis. Noting that the anti-Red meet ings and demonstrations in Ker ala have been, going on since mid-June, he said they seem to have been of no avail. “T h e communists want to dominate the whole of India,” he said. “Things are now very bad in Kerala.” Archbishop Fernandes echoed a statement made earlier in the week by His Eminence Valerian Cardinal Gracias, Archbishop of Prayer Crusade Asked By Berlin Cardinal (Radio, N.C.W.C. News Service) BERLIN — Berlin’s Cardinal used the radio to urge a world wide crusade of prayer and work for international under standing, which he said could smooth the way to the peace that it sought by the Geneva foreign ministers’ conference. His Eminence Julius Cardinal Doepfner, Bishop of Berlin, made a special broadcast to his people on the morning of (July 13,) the day the Big Four for eign ministers resumed their efforts to solve the Berlin cris is at Geneva. Addressing the Catholics of his diocese — which includes West Berlin, Soviet-occupied East Berlin, and part of the Soviet Zone of Germany, Card inal Doepfner said; “The Geneva meeting has re sumed. Let us resume our pray ers too. All news of the misery of suppressed peoples longing for peace, and of the difficul ties in the negotiations (in Ge neva) with the Russians, we should understand as a call to prayers.” Speaking over Radio Free Berlin, the 45-year-old Prince of the Church said that, how ever far they are from the Ge neva conference table, Catholics have a mission to spread an atmosphere of peace in daily life, achieving brotherly love through justice and unselfish ness. Failure to realize Chris tian principles and brotherly love in itself fosters continual tion of the coldness in the inter national atmosphere, he said. “Let us send our prayers to Geneva, this town of so many disappointments and hopes,” Cardinal Doepfner said. “Let us go on with the work of pro claiming the peace of Christ everywhere.” (On landing at the Geneva airport the previous day, U. S. Secretary of State Christian Herter expressed guarded hope concerning the Berlin question. He said in a prepared state ment: (“I believe it is possible, with goodwill on both sides, to reach an agreement. Foremost in our minds, of course, is the freedom and future of the more than two million people of West Ber lin. (“Our earlier discussions here had revealed possible elements Bombay. Addressing a mass meeting in Bombay, Cardinal Gracias said the issue confront ing the people of Kerala is that of tyranny versus freedom. In Kerala, meanwhile, two more persons were killed by communists. They were among 15 persons attacked by armed Reds in Thuruthikkad. A Cath olic priest suffered serious stab wounds during the same attack, He is Father Jacob Eranakkal, who was hospitalized in Tiru- valla. The two deaths in Thuruthik kad brought to at least 18 the number of anticommunist demonstrators slain by the Reds in Kerala since mid-June. Six teen of the dead were known to be Catholics. In Alleppey, a Red stronghold in Kerala, Bishop Michael Arat- tukalam of Alleppey charged that communist rowdies were making repeated attacks on the local Catholics, and that the Red-controlled police were pro viding no protection. And in Trichur, two Catholic boys picketing a government school were attacked by a- com munist mob and had to be hos pitalized. The Kerala demonstrations got under way when the Cath olics and Hindu Nairs — who together run most of the 7,000 nongovernment schools in Kera la — announced they were keeping their schools closed. They charged the new educa tion law is aimed at letting the communists take over the schools, and said their schools will remain closed until the controversial clauses of the sta tute are repealed. All three major noncommun ist parties in Kerala — the Con gress and Socialist parties and the Moslem League — seized the occasion to launch a state wide campaign of passive re sistance to the regime. of agreement concerning spe cific arrangements for Ber lin . . .” (Resumption of the Big Four foreign ministers’ conference followed a three-week recess. The foreign ministers of France, Great Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union had conferred together for six weeks without reaching agreement when they recessed.) Pope Blesses Our Lady Of Fatima Statue (Radio, N.C.W.C. News Service) VATICAN CITY — His Hol iness Pope John XXIII has blessed a statue of Our Lady of Fatima that is destined to stand on the edge of the New York state freeway. The nearly 60 - foot high bronze statue, by American art ist Martin Winter, was carried into Vatican City by freight car for the ceremony. The Pope and part of the pa pal court were joined for the blessing by Americans, Arthur McNamara, of the Knights of Columbus of Westchester Coun ty, and August F. Stavarsky, president of the Madonna of Fatima Committee of New York, who was the principal or ganizer of the project. Also pre sent was Father Christopher O’Toole, C.S.C., Superior Gen eral of the Congregation of Holy Cross. The statue will stand on the grounds of the Good Counsel College, conducted by Sisters of the Divine Compassion, at White Plains, where it will ov erlook the freeway. It will be surrounded by Stations of the Cross whose construction will be supervised by Mr. Winter, who made the five-ton marble tomb of Father Isaac T. Hecker, founder of the Congregation of St. Paul (Paulists). The tomb is in the facade of the Church of St. Paul at Lincoln Square in New York. The Fatima statue, costing $50,000 and weighing 22 tons, was designed at Italy’s religious art center of Pietrasanta and cast at Castoria. It was trans ported by railroad car to Vati can City. Because of its size it had to be brought in through the little used rail gate of the Holy Office. Mr. Winter, who is also work- Christian Democrats Regain Political Leadership In Sicily PALERMO, Italy (Radio, NC) ’ •—The Catholic-oriented Chris tian Democrats have regained political leadership in Sicily. Ferdinando D’Alcontres, Christian Democratic candidate, has been elected president of the Sicilian regional assembly. It is the first time that Christian Democrats have been able to win majority support since last winter, when Silvio Milazzzo, head of the Christian Social Union, bolted from the party. He formed a majority with the help of the communists, Social ists, monarchists and neo-fas cists. President-elect D’Alcontres defeated the Millazzo-backed candidate, Benedetto Majorana della Nicchiara, by a vote of 45 to 41. The victory was achieved through support drawn from Monarchist and Neo-fascist dep uties. It came despite a rebellion on the part of some of the 34 Chris tian Democrats who had object ed to the alliance with the Mon archists, most of whom had supported Milazzzo. Milazzo will not be represented in the re gional government’s cabinet of ministers. The victory of D’Alcontres is a significant one for the Chris tian Democrats because it fol lows regional elections in June which apparently had tipped the balance of power to Milaz- zo’s Christian Social Union, the dissident group that had co operated with the communists. The Union split from the Christian Democrats several months ago. It formed a coali tion with parties of the extreme right and left, including the communists. The Union’s action in coope rating with the Communist par ty is believed to have prompted the Holy See’s recent decree warning persons against voting for candidates of noncommunist parties who have collaborated with the Reds. JOElcNEIL NEW MACON GRAND KNIGHT MACON — Joe G. McNeil is the new grand knight of Macon Council No. 925, Knights of Columbus, succeeding Irvin F. Impink, who commences a three year term as trustee. The Rt. Rev. Msgr. Thomas I. Sheehan, pastor of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, is chaplain of the coun cil. Other officers are Robert M. Hobson, deputy grand knight; James G. Ryan, chancellor; Phil ip F. Powell, warden, Frank X. McFague, recorder, Sam Vullo, treasurer; R. H. Casson, advo cate; Jack Kemper, inner guard; William Syme, Jr., outer guard; and N. J. Camerio, lecturer. Charles J, Schroeder and J. Thomas McGoldrick are the oth er trustees serving with Impink. The Six Point Program will be led by James G. Ryan, as gen eral chairman. Heading the six committees will be Jack Guglieri and Carl B. Perry, Catholic Ac tivity; Johnny J. Deep and Nor man B. Smaha, Council Activi ty; Irvin Impink and John J. McCreary, Membership - Insur ance; Thomas M. Carr and R. H. Casson, Fraternal Activity; Wil liam Keenan and Jack Kemper, Youth Activity; Public Relations and Chatter Editor, George Lan dry, John J. McCreary and W. Pat Von Benken. Semi-monthly meetings on the first and third Tuesday evenings at 8:15 o’clock are held at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 538 High Place. ing on designs for a 30-foot sta tue of St. Joseph for the White Fathers’ St. Joseph Seminary in New York, said his concept of the Fatima statue “is more con temporary than most.” “It’s a bit ahead of its time,” he stated. “Its size is not its most important aspect. Speak ing as an artist, I can say that the experience of working on it has been the most important ef fort in my work up to this point.” After the statue was bless ed, it was transported immedi ately outside of Vatican City. It will be shipped to the U. S. at the end of July, and is ex pected to be dedicated in early September.