Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 2—THE BULLETIN, August 19, 1961
West Berliners Not Nervous
Over Crisis, Are Confident
Of Free World's Support
By Msgr. Francis J. Lally
(NCWC News Service)
BERLIN—All over the city
of West Berlin there are signs
which say “Ich bin bei euch”
(I am with you) a scriptural
asurance left over from the
Kirchentage (Protestant Days)
which just ended in this city.
Over 60,000 Protestants gath
ered in the great stadium that
housed Hitler’s 1936 Olympic
Games to close the conference
and to protest the absence of
thousands refused travel rights
by East Germany’s communist
government.
The Protestant motto, now
that the conference has passed,
has a double meaning which
Berliners understand very
well. “I am with you”, they
also interpret to mean that free
men everywhere stand behind
Berlin and what it means in
the present world situation.
President John F. Kennedy’s
speach electrified the popula
tion; but even before that,
confidence in U. S. backing ran
very high. Here they already
speak of a Kennedy visit to
Berlin.
Berlin is a city more than a
hundred miles behind the Iron
Curtain, a kind of free island
m a slave world. Berliners are
not unconscious of the fact that
they are surrounded with 300,-
000 Soviet troops. Annihilation
is at the very doorstep. Even
the visitor, if he has creden
tials, can ride along the bor
der between West and East
Germany.
As one passes slowly in his
car he sees the ever-alert
Russian guard lift his binoc
ulars to his eyes to catch the
car registration or to take a
picture for permanent refer
ence. Quite and emptiness, de
serted homes and streets lie
on the east side; only the Rus
sian soldier, his gun on his
back or across his knees,
watches, waits and records.
All the same, West Berlin
citizens are neither nervous
nor uncomfortable. No other
German city is more prosper
ous or more busy. The well
known Kurfurstendam is
crowded each night with strol
lers and those enjoying the de
lights of the many sidewalk
cafes. The shops are full of the
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and dancing couples moving
across the roof-terrace can al
most see the Soviet zone. With
all of this, they know that
they live on the edge of a vol
cano—but they rely on the
free world to prevent its erup.
tion.
A really impressive contrast
is allowed the visitor who-pass
es through the Brandenberg
Gate and spends a few hours
in ’East Germany. This is real
ly “satellite” territory and
Russian soldiers can be seen
everywhere. One goes duly a
few yards, but even this dis
tance marks “a hell’s depth,
and the height up to heaven.”
It is in every sense another
world. All the rubble of the
war still litters the Unter den
Linder, and the great and fam
ous museums, churches and
public buildings lie in ruin.
Only the Communist party
headquarters, the Karl Marx
school and the notorious Stal-
instrasse look like new.
By now everyone knows that
the Russians built up a whole
street in East Berlin with high-
rise Russian style apartments
around 1953. Now less than 10
years later the fronts are fall
ing off them and they look like
rapidly developing slums.
Meanwhile the Russians are
building new prefabricated
apartment houses further down
the- street. They are supposed
to be for the proletariat—but
all the best apartments go to
party functionaries.
The only really attractive
spot in East Berlin is the Rus
sian War Memorial. To pre
serve the memory of the 30,000
Russian soldiers lost in the bat
tle of Berlin, an immense cem
etery with hugh statues and
marble ornaments was built in
1948, wh^le Berliners were
still without food and shelter.
From all over East Germany,
buses still bring “pilgrimages”
and there are always Russian
soldiers paying their honor to
this place. Artistically inferi
or, it is all the same a strik
ing geographical arrangement.
More than a millian. Germ
ans still must live and work
in East Berlin and long for the
day when freedom will come.
In the meantime they can look
across at the prosperity of West
Berlin, and even decided one
day that it is worth the chance
of escape. If they are alone,
they may get by; but alas for
the family or friends left be
hind.
Berliners have lived since
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German Catholics, Protestants
Cooperate To Bring Christian
Principles Into Government
By Manfred Wenzel
(NCWC News Service)
BONN, GERMANY — The
party expected to sweep to its
fourth straight victory in
Germany’s September 17 par
liamentary elections springs
from a broad Catholic-Prot-
estant desire to bring Christ
ian principles into govern
ment.
It is the Christian Demo
cratic party which has been in
power since 1949 under Cath
olic Chancellor Konrad Aden
auer.
The idea of interfaith coop
eration in politics goes back
to the 19th century, but is was
not realized until after World
War II.
Before the 19 th century
Germany’s Catholics and Prot
estants were to a great extent
divided geographically. What
is now Germany was split up
into many small states whose
people generally had to accept
the religion of their rulers. But
increasing industrialization and
the consequent growth of cities
the war side by side with com
munism; they know it better
than anyone else in the West
—and they don’t like anything
about it. Almost every family
has some personal experience,
and even kidnappings are not
unknown. Once, in the years
before the war, Berlin was
judged to be as much as 40
per cent communist; now com
munists are practically non
existent. No longer just in
words, they have seen this sys
tem in action all about them.
To be sure, the communists do
not like Berlin either; freedom
wiped out the sharp frontiers
between the faiths and, with
the expansion of Prussia into
the western part of the nation,
large numbers of Catholics
came under a Protestant sov
ereign.
In the first part of the 19th
century an effort was made by
a few Catholics and a small
number of conservative Prot
estants to organize a Christ
ian party to oppose the trend
toward liberalism and national
ism. The attempt failed. But in
the 1850s the Center party—
the forerunner of the Christ
ian Democratic party—was set
up in the Prussian legislature.
Although intended to be an
interconfessional group, the
Center party came to be the
spokesman for strictly Catholic
interests, particularly after
Germany was unified in 1870
and Chancellor Otto von Bis
marck launched an attack on
the new country’s Catholic
minority. It always, however,
had some Protestant support
at a time when Protestants as
has a way of being popular.
The President’s strong lang
uage recently on Berlin has
been a great support for Ber
liners. They feel quite confi
dently that they are a symbol,
and more than a symbol, of the
free West. If Berlin is lost,
Paris, London and the rest
must follow. The presence of
the British, French and Ameri
can forces in the West city
gives them real assurance.
They are quick to add how
ever that their real hope is in
the U. S. : —they seem to know
that we will not let them
down.
such were not politically or
ganized. During the same per-
riod there was Catholic-Prot-
estant cooperation in labor
matters through the establish
ment of interdenominational
trad© unions.
In the German government
set up after World War I—in
which a large number of small
parties competed for power—
the Center party grew in in
fluence because of its central
position between right and left.
It participated in almost all
the coalition governments and
supplied four chancellors be
tween 1920 and 1933 when it
was dissolved by Hitler. Dur
ing the early 1930s it regular
ly had the backing of the
Evangelical People’s Service
deputies in Parliament.
While the first steps toward
interfaith cooperation in poli
tics were taken during the 19th
and early 20th centuries, it
took Hitler’s persecution of
both Protestants' and Catholics
to make it a powerful force in
German life.
Mutual persecution, resist
ance and the common experi
ence of liberation from tyran
ny in 1945 created a strong
feeling of partnership which
led not only to theological
discussions between the two
religions and the strength
ening of the Christian unity
movement, but also the found
ing of the Christian Democrat
ic party.
The Center party was also
revived after the war, but it
won only three per cent of the
votes in the 1949 elections and
less than one per cent in 1953.
It no longer exists.
The Christian Democratic
Union (CDU)—as it is official
ly called—was organized with
in three months of the nazi
defeat by Adenauer and lead
ing Catholic and Protestant
leaders. The first paragraph
of its platform- spells out its
aim:
“The Christian Democratic
Union of Germany, recogniz
ing its duty toward the Germ
an nation and the German
fatherland, wants to form
public life in a democratic
manner out of a spirit of
•Christian responsibility in ac
cordance with the moral laws
based on personal freedom.”
At the national level the
CDU is allied with the similar
Christian Social Union (CSU)
of Bavaria. In the first post
war years the CDU also func
tioned in Soviet-occupied east
ern Germany. But party lead
ers there soon left for the west
or were arrested and replac
ed by communist agents. To
day the East German CDU is
a Red puppet and has nothing
in common with the West
German party but its name.
In the Federal Republic the
CDU-CSU has been the top
party in all three postwar
elections. Moreover, it has con
sistently increased its strength.
In 1949 it won 31 per cent of
the popular vote. It raised its
share to 45 per cent in the 1953
elections and in 1957 won an
absolute majority of 50.2 per
cent.
The CDU-CSU’s chief rival
is the Social Democratic par
ty, which won 31 per cent of
the 1957 vote, its best effort
to date.
It is characteristic of postwar
German politics that the peo
ple are more and more con
centrating their support on a
few large parties. The Bundes
tag—lower house of Parlia
ment-—elected in 1949 had dep
uties from 11 parties. Only five
parties were represented af
ter the 1953 elections. In 1957,
18 parties put up candidates,
but only four succeeded in
winning seats: CDU-CSU, the
Social Democrats the Free
Democrats and the German
party.
A year ago the conservative
German party ceased to be an
official parliamentary group
entitled to seats on Bundestag
committees. To have such a
status a party must hold 15
seats in the Bundestag. By
1960 all but five of the Germ
an party deputies elected in
1957 had gone over to the
CDU-CSU.
At present Bundestag mem
bership is: CDU-CSU, 287
seats; Social Democrats, 181;
Free Democrats, a moderate
rightist group, 45, and the
German Party, 5.
More than a dozen parties
are again vying for seats in
the September 17 elections.
Small parties must overcome
the handicap of having to win
at least five per cent of the
total vote before they can seat
a candidate.
Since 1957 the main opposi
tion to the CDU-CSU, the So
cial Democrats, have drastic
ally revised their platform and
no longer adhere to- Marxist
policies. The party even claims
to be as Christian as the CDU-
CSU, an assertion strongly de
nied by Catholic groups.
With a man of great public
appeal as their candidate for
chancellor, Mayor Willy
Brandt of West Berlin, the so
cialists are adopting a new
method of campaigning. Up to
now they have always empha
sized their platform. In the
current campaign—in which
television is playing a bigger
role than ever—they are stres
sing the personality of Brandt
and other candidates.
The Christian Democrats too
are relying on the popularity
and experience of their lead
er, Chancellor Adenauer, and
the record they have made
during 12 years of almost un
paralleled prosperity. They are
also making a major point of
their platform, whose major
points are:
—Protection of the Federal
Republic from all enemies, for
eign and domestic.
—Freedom for the German
capital, Berlin, and the reuni
fication of the German nation
in peace and freedom.
—European integration and
the strengthening of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO). ,
—Controlled general disarm
ament, including atomic weap
ons.
—Western cooperation in
aiding emerging nations.
☆ ☆ ☆
Christian
Democrats Form
World Union
SANTIAGO, Chile (NC) —
A new Christian Democratic
World Union has been set up
here at the third international
congress of Christian Demo
cratic parties.
The congress, attended by
delegates from Europe, Africa
and the Americas, voted at its
closing session to combat Sov
iet totalitarianism and all
forms of dictatorship.
The new world union of par
ties, most, of which are Cath
olic-oriented, will be a loose
coordinating organization to
ensure “political solidarity
among all parties and various
movements of Christian Dem
ocratic inspiration to defend
the principles of freedom, de
mocracy, social justice and re
spect for the human person.”
Each national party, howev
er, will remain free to draw
up programs suited to condi
tions in its own country, the
congress said.
In a final statement the con
gress urged increasing partici
pation of the working class in
the benefits of culture and na
tional wealth and the exercise
of political power.
Christian Democratic parties
are in power or members of
coalition government in a
number of nations, including
Germany, Italy, Belgium, Aus
tria, the Netherlands and Ven
ezuela.
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SEEK GERMAN LEADERSHIP Rival candidates for
the office of chancellor of West Germany in the coming
September parliamentary elections are Chancellor Konrad
Adenauer (left) of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
and West Berlin’s popular Mayor Willy Brandt of the Social
Democratic Party. The CDU, in power under Catholic
Chancellor Adenauer’s leadership since 1949, is expected to
sweep to its fourth straight victory. The CDU, organized
by Adenauer within three months of the Nazi defeat, has
been the top party in all three postwar elections winning
an absolute majority of 50.2 in the 1957 elections. (NC Photo)