Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

I PAGE 6—THE BULLETIN, August 8, 1959 Services For L. F. Getzinger SYLVANIA, Funeral services for Louis Frank Getzinger were held July 25th at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Rev. Joseph Naegle officiating. Survivors are his wife, Mrs. Sara Williamson Getzinger; three sons, Louis Frank Getzin ger, Jr., Daniel Getzinger and Donavee Getzinger, all of Syl- vania; mother, Mrs. Barbara Getzinger; two sisters, Mrs. Mobley and Mrs. Charlie Jones, all of Atlanta, and several nieces and nephews. ROME CEREMONY RECALLS 750-YEAR-0LB HISTORY OF FRANCISCAN FRIARS JOHNSON TIRE SERVIC 1517 Roswell St. FINEST QUALITY RECAPPING Distributor Denman Super Safety Tires Expert Static & Dynamic Wheel Balancing EXPERT BEAR ALIGNMENT AND BRAKE SERVICE MARIETTA, GA. The author of the following article is a former professor of Church history at the Catholic University of America in Wash ington, D. C,, and the author of a number of books on Fran ciscan history. (By Father Raphael M. Huber, O. F. M. Conv.) (N. C. W. C. NEWS SERVICE) Last April His Holiness Pope John XXIII received the heads of the Franciscan communities to mark the Order’s 750th anni versary. The event commemorated the day in 1209 when St. Francis and 12 friars went to Rome to seek approval for the rule he had drawn up for himself and his followers. Pope Innocent III liked the idea of a preaching apostolate, but feared that the Franciscan renunciation of all worldly goods was impractical. He told St. Francis to try out his rule and then return for final approval. This is known as the first, or verbal, approval of the rule. In 1221, after his community had grown, St. Francis wrote a second rule, but it did not please all the ministers provincial. So in 1223, with the aid of Cardinal Ugolino—later Pope Gregory IX—he wrote a third rule which was given formal approval by Pope Honorius III. That rule still forms the basis for the life of all Friars Minor, Conventuals, Capuchins and members of the Third Order Regular. Down the centuries, PHONES 8-2686 — 8-2687 RALPH E, MARLER, Owner Marler Oil Company GASOLINE and OILS WHOLESALE and RETAIL Distributors: U. S. Royal Tires ATLANTA ROAD MARIETTA, GA. SPECIALTY Manufacturers PRODUCTION MACHINERY FOR THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY P. O. BOX 235, ACWORTH, GA. Bed Wish ie3 3 rom Unique Knitting Company MANUFACTURERS OF ENGLISH RIB & SPORT HOSIERY Acworth, Georgia however, each Franciscan fam ily has drawn up its own consti tution, statutes and bylaws. St. Francis founded his Order on absolute poverty and it was able to live up to this ideal as long as the community was small and St. Francis himself was present. After his death en thusiasm _ waned. As the Order grew the need was felt for fixed residences for novitiates, hermitages, rectories and houses of study, and these had to be secured by some kind of legal ownership. Futhermore, barter had ceased to be common and money had become the nor mal medium of exchange. But St. Francis had forbidden the use of money. What was to be done? Adhere strictly to the letter rule? Or seek a dispensa tion from the Holy See that would preserve the rule’s spirit, even if the letter had to suffer? As a solution the Church agreed to hold the friars’ prop erty in its name and to adminis ter their funds through repre sentatives known as “apostolic procurators” or “syndics.” The Popes who made these arrange ments were Gregory IX, Nicho las III and Clement V. Later certain zealots began to find fault with the papal decrees and financial regulations, even though they had been obtained by such ministers general as Blessed John of Parma and St. Bonaventure. These zealots were known as “spirituals” and “fraticelli” and both groups were eventually condemned by the Holy See because of their heretical or schismatic ten dencies. A third group in the Order striving for closer observance of St. Francis’ ideals arose to ward the end of the 14th cen tury. With the approval of the minister general, Brother Paolo Trinci of Foligno retired to a hermitage near Assisi. There he gathered followers who lived a secluded life devoted to their own personal sanctification rather than to the care of souls, which had been entrusted to the Order by Innocent IV in 1250. By the end of the century these reformed friars, mostly Brothers, numbered about 200 in 12 hermitages. They took the name of Observants. A few years later several French communities were or ganized with the same ideas of reform. They received permis sion from the Council of Con stance (1414-18) to live some what independently of the regu lar Franciscan superiors under vicars. They became associated with the Italian Observants and spread throughout Europe. Efforts for complete union be tween the Observants and other Franciscans, known as Conven tuals, failed. In 1517 Leo X separated the Conventuals from the Observants and about 10 other reformed communities, and gave each group an inde pendent minister general. Thus after 1517 there were two dis tinct Franciscan families. In the 15th and 16th cen turies other reformed groups grew up within the Observant community—the Alcantarines, mostly in Spain and Spanish possessions in Italy and the Americas; the Reformed Friars in Italy, Germany and Austria; the Recollects in France, Bel gium, England, Ireland and Canada. Each reformed group strove to outdo the others in the “strictest” observance of St. Francis’ rule and some groups adopted penitential practices far beyond the rule’s provisions. While all these communities were subject to the Observant minister general, each had its own constitution and agent to look after its interests at the Holy See. Friction often arose between the communities and the Soanish Observants who, through their country’s king, sought comnlete independence from the minister general—if he was not a Spaniard—and Fran ciscan authorities in Rome. This situation lasted for nearly 200 years. In 1897 Pope Leo XIII united the communities under one head and one constitution. All were to drop their distinctive names and be known simply as Friars Minor, save when they were to he distinguished from the Friars Minor Conventual or Capuchin. In this case Pius X suggested in 1909 that they use the title of Friars Minor Leonine, Obser vant or some other term so that as Friars Minor they did not exclude either the Conventuals or Capuchins. Today the groups united by Leo XIII have more than 25,000 members. They have six prov inces in the U. S., where they aife commonly called Brown Fianciscans because of the color of their habits. They promote the work of the Third Order of St. Francis, staff schools, do parish work and publish Cath olic literature. Still another group of re formed friars grew out of the Observant community in 1528 when Father Matteo Bassi got permission from Clement VII to lead a solitary life of Prayer. He was later joined by two brothers, Raphael and Louis Fossombrone. The latter organi zed their first followers from the Observants into a special community. Thus began the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. The new community was placed under the care of the Conventuals until 1619 when Paul III gave them an indepen dent minister general. From that time on they made remarkable progress. Their missions spread all over the world and many Capuchin friars died a martyr’s death. Eventually many Capu chins took on parish work. According to the latest statis tics the Capuchins have 15,442 members and are in charge of 47 foreign missions. In the U. S. they have three provinces. They wear a chestnut-colored habit with a long pointed capuche (cowl) in back and are usually bearded. After 1517 the Conventuals, who up to then had been the ruling group in the Order, con tinued to live as before. But their numbers had been dimin ished by the separation of Leo X and many of their monasteries fell into the hands of the Obser vants. The Conventuals suffered from the Reformation and later political upheavals, but the Order was able to survive and produced many great scholars. All five Franciscan popes were Conventuals. Originally known as Grey Friars, today they wear a black habit and are therefore often referred to as Black Franciscans. They now number about 7,000 and have four provinces in the U. S. The name “Conventual” goes back as far as 1250 when In nocent IV gave the Franciscans the use of collegiate or “con ventual” churches for the care of souls. They always had charge of the basilica at Assisi where St. Francis is buried and the Basilica of St. Anthony at Padua. Reforming the human race is Too often a genius turns out a major project — especially To be a bird who can’t even fea- for only one person. ther his own nest. Most men figure they have influence to sell — the problem is to find a market for it. Sidney Clotfelter General Contractor • COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION © GRADING AND EXCAVATING © SWIMMING POOLS • CUSTOM KITCHEN CABINETS Marietta, Ga. Phone 8-3371 MARRIAGES O- -O MALOOF-IDRAU -O ATLANTA, — Gloria Diana Idrau, daughter of Mrs. Pachoud Idrau and Maurice N. Maloof, son of Mr. and Mrs. Nassir A. Maloof were married at St. John’s Melkite Church, Rev. William Haddad officiating. SMITH-MARKLEY O- -O ATLANTA, — Ann Mark- ley, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Leslie Markley, and Har old James Smith, son of Mr. and Mrs. Robert A. Smith of Manas sas, Va., were married July 25th at the Cathedral of Christ the King, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Joseph G. Cassidy officiating at ceremony and Nuptial Mass. O- -O ROGERS-FITTS -O ATLANTA, — Elizabeth Barbara Fitts, daughter of Mrs. Gertrude Shouse Fitts and James Perreca Rogers, son of Mrs. L. A. Rogers, Sr., and the late Mr. Rogers were married July 17th at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Rev. Harold J. Rainey officiating. Bed IBi^iied Fred and Harold Schilling PfW i SCHILLING'S Inc HARDWARE AND PLUMBING MARIETTA, GA. PHONE 3-7000 On “The Square" Over 74 Years, Now serving the Fourth Generation. Established 1885 Best Wishes From JOE'S STEAK HOUSE MARIETTA, GA. Best With ed 3 rom COBB EXCHANGE BANK MARIETTA, GEORGIA O. D. KEMP, Cashier