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DIOCESE OF SAVANNAH EDITION Serving Georgia's 88 Southern Counties Published By The Catholic Laymen's Ass'n of Georgia OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF SAVANNAH Vol. 41, No. 5 MONROE, GEORGIA, SATURDAY, AUGUST 6, 1960 10c Per Copy — $3 a Year OVERLOOK CHAINS OF SAINT PETER By James C. O'Neill (N.C.W.C. News Service) . HOME—Among Rome's most overlooked relics are the Chains of St. Peter. Although the Church has set aside August 1 as the feast of St. Peter’s Chains and although they are enclosed in a handsome reliquary in a church in Rome named for them, the chains are often overlooked by tourists and pilgrims. It is a curious trick of history that the chains should be hous ed in a church containing a masterpiece of Michaelangelo. At least nine out of 10 visitors who make the trip to the Church of San Pietro in Vincoli are intent on seeing not the chains, but the magnificent sta tue of Moses that Michangelo carved in the early 1500s. The statue is considered to be one of the most powerful and commanding works of art in the world. It was carved as part of the funeral monument for the tomb of Pope Julius II in 1513. The monument was never com pleted because of various obsta cles, and Michaelangelo himself called the uncompleted work “the tragedy of sculpture.” Whether it is a tragedy or a triumph, there is little doubt that Moses has overshadowed the iron chains that have been enshrined in the church since 440 A.D. The church was built on the site of the ancient court of jus tice where St. Peter was con demned. In 440 the Roman Em press Eudoxia built a larger church to enshrine the chains of St. Peter. There are two separate sets of chains. One set is reputed to be the chains that bound St. Peter while he was imprisoned in the Mamertine Prison in Rome. The other, believed to be those that held Peter prisoner in Jerusalem, was given to the Empress by her mother. One chain has 23 links, with an iron ring attached; the other has 11 links. Absolute certitude concerning the authenticity of the chains’ origin is not possible after so many centuries. The Italian Ecclesiastical Dictionary refers to them as the “presum ed” chains of the Prince of the Apostles. Nevertheless, the history of the chains has been fairly clear since the fifth century, and they have been among Rome’s most personal memories of St. Peter. The Chains Of St. Peter Enclosed in a handsome bronze reliquary, are the Chains of St. Peter (above) in Rome’s Church of San Pietro in Vincoli, placed there in 440 A. D. The Feast of St. Peter’s Chains is ob served on August L—(NC Photos). Religious Instruction In Parts Of Cuba Hampered By Castro Regime, Priest Says Brother To Visit Bp. Walsh (N.C.W.C. NEWS SERVICE) HONG KONG—A 70-year-old American waved good-bye fo his wife on August 1, crossed the narrow bridge connecting Hong Kong and Red China and started a visit to his imprisoned brother. Bishop James E. Walsh, M.M. William C. Walsh of Cumber land, Md., is the first American permited to visit Bishop Walsh since the imprisonment of the prelate, the last U.S. missioner on the China mainland. Bishop Walsh, 69, a veteran of nearly two decades of mission work in China, has refused to leave Red China, although com munists threatened him, and then offered him free passage out of the country. The Bishop believes his pres ence is an inspiration to Chinese Catholics who are not only re sisting the regimes physical punishment, which one author ity says has produced 14,000 martyrs, but also fighting Red efforts to split Catholics from the Holy See by illicit consecra tions of bishops of a “national Catholic church.” For several years, Bishop Walsh moved freely in Shang hai. He was then placed under house arrest and disappeared in October, 1958. In December, (Continued on Page 6) (By Marjorie L. Fillyaw) (N.C.W.C. NEWS SERVICE) MIAMI—Priests who attempt to organize religious instruction classes in Cuba's outlying areas are obstructed by supporters of Fidel Castro, a Cuban priest said here. “Mocking and jeering are common, and in areas where the Communist party is strong, matters are worse,” said the priest who insisted his safety depends upon anonymity. In his own parish outside Havana, he said, the local di rector of the juvenile militia holds drill practice on Sundays when the children, aged eight years and over, normally would attend Mass. In Havana itself, he said, the government posted notices ban ning the use of church-owned buses on Sundays. This was done before the present scare of an oil shortage, he said. The priest said the recent re port that the regime has urged priests in the provinces to or ganize a national church is “no fairy tale.” He said priests are described in other printed mat ter of the regime’s as “incapable of understanding the revolu tion.” The priest also said that Pre mier Castro is hampering Cath olic schools, such as those tradi tionally a part of the “company towns” occupied by sugar mill workers. The schools were sup ported by the sugar companies, he said, but that arrangement has now been ended by the re- Beginninq In September PLAN ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAM FOR VOCATIONS SAVANNAH — Beginning in September, every adult parish ioner leaving Sunday Mass in the churches of the diocese will be handed an attractive booklet on the all-important subject of vocations. This will mark the beginning of a diocesan-wide “parish sat uration,” adult education pro gram for vocations, sponsored by Most Rev. Thomas J. Mc Donough, Bishop of Savannah, and. directed by Rev. William Coleman, with the cooperation of the pastors of the diocese. The program, which was test ed in the Archdiocese of New York last year, was most suc cessful and aroused nation-wide interest. It consists of a series of ten fully illustrated, four- color booklets which cover ev ery aspect of the vocation prob lem. They will be distributed to all adult parishioners for ten consecutive months, September through June, on one Sunday Christianity Is "Only Force For Restoring Congo Tf gime and many schools have been forced to close. A young Cuban social worker and former teacher in Havana added io the priest's charges. She said all lay teachers for both public and religious schools are now selected by the govern ment and have io take summer courses to learn the regime's propaganda. In addition, she said, large educational centers are planned where youth can be trained as the regime sees fit, away from the influence of their parents.. One reportedly is operating in the Sierra Maestra, she said. Three newspaper editors who also did not want to be identi fied have charged that Fidel Castro is a tool used to further the goals of known communist Che Guevara, head of the Na tional Bank of Cuba; Raul Cas tro, leftist brother of the Pre mier; and a committee of com munist leaders. “You never see Castro sitting down at a desk signing his de crees into law,” one editor said. You never see him performing the normal functions of a head of state. "The decisions are made by his brother, Raul, who is the organizational genius and who reflects the Soviet brand of communism; by Guevara, the calculating head of Cuba's eco nomy, who mirrors a Chinese form of Marxism; and by Juan Marinello, head of the Popular Socialist (communist) party." Most Catholic Missioners Remain At Posts Only Whites Not Leaving East Congo AFRICAN PRELATE CALLS FOR TRUTH Propaganda Campaign Rapped a month. “This fine program has my whole-hearted approval,” states Bishop McDonough. “You will note the importance of the adult education appeal, for this pro gram is wisely aimed at parents, in whose hands the power to encourage or discourage voca tions rests. “This is the first time that an organized and concentrated pro gram for vocations, on an adult education level, has been launched on a diocesan-wide basis. With the help of the priests and faithful of the dio cese, and particularly of the parents who;receive the book lets and read them thoughtful ly, we may hope that God will bless our diocese with increased vocations to the priesthood and the religious life—for the future of our Church and its growing needs depend upon the generosi ty of our young people and the encouragement of their parents.” LEOPOLDVILLE, Congo — Most Catholic missionaries are remaning in the Congo despite the violent disturbances that have forced large numbers of whites to flee this country in panic. Some missionaries, particular ly Sislers, have had to leave their stations. They are victims of the antiwhite, not anli- Catholic, feelings of rioting Congolese. Native priests and nuns have not been molested. Although a number of indi vidual mission stations have been attacked and destroyed, and some missioners roughly treated, Catholic missions in general have not suffered great ly- The Congolese government has shown no hostility toward the missions, and some Congo lese have protected missionaries against attacks. The postindependence dis turbances began on July 5 - in Thysville, a town about 75 miles southwest of the capital city of Leopoldville. There white men were beaten and white women were raped by mutinous Congo lese troops. During succeeding days the rioting spread throughout the country. (In Rome, Fides, mission news agency, said ihal communis! in fluence is a cause of the dis turbances. It staled that "the procommunist tendencies of several members of the Congo government cannot be doubt ed." The flight of many whites from the country, Fides con tinued. will deal “a serious blow to important sectors of the eco nomic, social and cultural life of the country.”) Since communications be tween Leopoldville and the rest of the country have frequently been interrupted, it is import ant to give a complete picture of the mission situation. The following reports, however, have been received here; Missionary priests and Bro thers are remaining at Matadi, f r o m which all other whites have fled. Sisters in that west Congo city on the Congo River have boarded boats which, how ever, are remaining at their docks. At Kongolo in the eastern Congo the only whites remain ing are missionaries. Sisters there have also boarded river boats. Nuns from Kisantu, Lemfu, Ngidinga and Banza Mboma in Leopoldville province have come to the capital at the re quest of Auxiliary Bishop Kim- bondo of Kisantu. Sisters from Thysville have also been brought here, but the Redemp- torist Fathers are remaining there. Nearly all missionaries in Kasai province in central Congo are at their posts. Only a few elderly nuns have left to return to Belgium. In Equator province several mission stations have been de stroyed and Sisters have been mistreated. The missions at Boende and Djobu have been temporarily evacuated. In the Boma diocese in west ern Congo missionaries remain at their posts. LEOPOLDVILLE, Congo (Ra dio, NC) — A Congolese pre late has denounced distorted news reporting in this newly in dependent African nation as a means of enslaving its people. Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Mal- ula of Leopoldville also con demned foreign propaganda broadcasts beamed from com munist-dominated areas to this strife-torn country. The Bishop spoke in a letter addressed to all Catholics of the Leopoldville archdiocese. The letter was published (July 19) in the newspaper, Courrier d’Afrique. (In Paris the daily, Le Monte, reported that Bishop Malula’s life was threatened after pub lication of his letter.) The text of the letter follows: My dear brothers: When free dom of information no longer exists in a country, one speaks no longer of democracy but of dictatorship. Now dictatorship leads to slavery, to the enslave ment of man by man. After hesitating for a long lime, I find myself compelled as a bishop to raise my voice to defend the most elementary and inalienable rights of man: the right to truth and the right to freedom. For the past few months I have preached in all the church es of our diocese about the, right of man to life — inviting the whole population of Leo poldville to respect the life of his neighbor — and to charity. Today non-objective news re porting persists in an effort to chloroform arid strangle my people. I cannot be silent. I solemnly claim the right of my people to the truth, to the whole truth. The future of this country and of the whole African conti nent depends upon it. . The whole world has* in fact, recorded that in the past 18 days a well conducted propa ganda campaign has been un leashed upon our country by radio reports which are direct ed, controlled and distorted. The same rights are attribut ed to the truth and to lies. Nay, greater rights are given to lies than to truth, for the truth is hidden and systematically dis torted. No, lies do not have the same rights as truth. It is inadmissable that one should have io listen to a for eign radio station to know what is happening within our own frontiers. In a free world, infor mation services must enable the people to know the objective reality of facts so that they may make their own judgments with full knowledge of events and choose freely. To deprive man of the truth in order to poison his mind with lies constitutes a lack of respect and an injury to the dignity of free men. My brothers, we have no mes sage to receive from other gov ernments which do not grant even to their own people the elementary liberties which we have won. I therefore solemnly appeal to you, my brothers, now while there still is time, to claim our most sacred rights, to put an end to a systematic propaganda campaign in which bad faith no longer knows any limits. Proud and jealous as you are of your newly won rights, you must prove that you are not ready for a new form of slavery. In these particularly grave hours, it is with great emotion that I give you my most pater nal blessing. Atlanta Aug. 16-18 National K. of C. Convention (By Damon J. Swann) ATLANTA—Georgia’s Capitol city, Atlanta, will be the scene of the 78th Supreme Convention of the Knights of Columbus. While the official dates of the convention will be August 16th through the 18th, the official hotel for the convention — the Atlanta Biltmore—will be wel coming officers, delegates, and guests as early as the 11th of August. Official messages of welcome have been extended to all Knights and guests by His Ex cellency, the Most Reverend Francis E. Hyland, D.D., J.C.D., Bishop of Atlanta; the Honor able S. Ernest Vandiver, Gover nor of Georgia; and the Honor able William B. Hartsfield, Mayor of Atlanta. His Excellency, Bishop Hy land, will be host to the conven tion, and both His Excellency and the Supreme Knight, Luke C. Hart will address the dele gation at the States Dinner in the Exhibition Hall of the At lanta Biltmore on the evening of Tuesday, August 16. While early arriving delegates and guests have a planned pro gram of entertainment before Tuesday, August 16, it is on the on this date that the convention will officially open with a Solemn Pontifical Mass at the Cathedral of Christ The King, with Bishop Hyland as cele brant. The sermon will be de livered by His Excellency, the Most Reverend Vincent S. Wa ters, D.D., Bishop of Raleigh. Over and above the business of the convention, the Knights in Georgia have planned a pro gram of especial appeal to the ladies and Catholic youth at tending. Historical and religious places of interest are pointed out in the program for all to consider, and there will be plan ned tours scheduled. A most gracious host, Bishop Hyland has scheduled a 6:00 P.M., Mass at the Atlanta Bilt more on Monday, August 15th, the feast of the Assumption, for the convenience of those attend ing the convention. Bishop Hy land will be celebrant. (Knights and guests attending check hotel bulletin boards for the place of the mass, on this Holy Day of Obligation.) Tribal Custom Still Governs Congo Society (N.C.W.C. News Service) BOSTON — A missionary priest from Elisabeihvills, cap ital of the Congo's secessionist Katanga province, said here that Christianity is "th9 only force" that can restore the new nation's stability. But the priest, Father Martin de Wilde d’Estmael, O.S.B., Vi-, car General of the Archdiocese of Elisabethville, warned that tribal rivalry, communist influ ence and lack of trained native administrators are tremendous threats to the country. Father d’Estmael declared in an interview that “there are constructive forces in the Congo which can overcome the de structive ones.” However, disruptive Ijtial and political conditions in the former Belgian colony place its stability on a perilous balance, he said. Father d’Estmael was in this country seeking support for the Center for Community Devel opment, an agency of the Elisa bethville archdiocese which seeks to promote research, teaching and social action for the development of the terri tory. Father d’Estmael, a Benedic tine missionary from Bruges, Belgium, who has spent 13 years in the Congo, said that Congolese independence “struck a responsive chord among all the peoples of the world.” "It was a reason for joy for those who took it for a victory of what they think to be a right —the people's right of self-de termination," he said. However, he added, just as individuals make good use of their freedom “only when they are really grown up,” so “a nation, a people, can only exist when sufficiently solid ties link the citizens together.” “First and foremost they must have a soul in common — that is to say, spiritual values which give birth to a culture and a civilization,” he declared. Father d'Estmael said Congo lese society is still "regulated by the customs of the clan or tribe." While the social feeling within the clan is well-develop ed and largely benevolent, ha said, the relationship between tribes is one of rivalry. He explained; “The exclusive, fantastic attachment among the members of a clan constitutes an obstruction to the constitu tion of a strong, prosperous country. “This also explains why all the political parties in the Con go are tribal parties. All the (Continued on Page 6) ST. MARY'S SCHOOL, AUGUSTA—The above photo shows how construction on the new St. Mary’s School is progressing. Plans call for the completion of the 12 classroom school in time for Fall classes.—(Staff Photo). Book Reviews 3 Calendar of Feasts 6 Editorial Comment 4 Marriage Notices 2 Obituaries J 2 Youth Column 5 Don't Forget to Read 3rd Installment of "The Catholic in America" 2