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I? AGE 4—THE BULLETIN, March. SI, 1962 THE BISHOPS' RICHT TO SPEAK Last week Mr. Westbrook Pegler, nationally syndicated columnist, at tacked the National Catholic Welfare Conference, calling it “an administra tive political agency of the Catholic Bishops of the United States,” thus re vealing his lamentable and totally in excusable ignorance concerning the nature of NCWC’s organization and activity. He accused the Conference of hav ing “the presumption to interfere in the secular political belief and activi ties of American Catholic citizens who oppose communism and for their cour age have been vilified, ridiculed and otherwise harassed by communists, fellow travelers, and socialists.” His diatribe was evidently inspired by a booklet written by the Rev. John F. Cronin, S.S., assistant director of the Family Life bureau of NCWC’s Social Action Department. And it is not unlikely that recent denunciations of the John Birch Society, which Pegler champions, by members of the Hierarchy and Clergy added fuel to the flames of his anger. Any Catholic is quite free to dis pute Father Cronin’s personal opin ions, such as “the basic threat of communism is external, not internal.” So far as we know, no one has pro duced any conclusive evidence to either prove or disprove such a con tention. But a Catholic is not free to throw “brick-bats” at the Bishops of this Country when they warn, personally or through the NCWC, which is their organization, that the social teachings of particular political organizations are in direct opposition to Christian Social principles. And, in spite of Mr. Pegler’s allega tions to the contrary, this is as close as the NCWC or its Administrative Board (the Bishops) has ever come to interfering “in the secular political belief and activities of American Cath olic citizens . ..” Now, for the instruction of Mr. Pegler, and to clear up any confusion caused in the minds of Catholics by his charges, the National Catholic Wel fare Conference is not “an administra tive political agency of the Catholic Bishops of the United States,” nor is it a “piece of political subterfuge.” The NCWC was established soon after the close of World War I, as the successor to the National Catholic War Council, one of seven welfare agencies recognized by the U. S. Government during that war. It is an organization of the members of the Hierarchy of the United States, for the purposes set forth in Pope Benedict XV’s Brief, “Communes,” is sued in 1919. It includes among its objects the unifying, coordination, and organizing of the Catholic people of the United States in works of education, social welfare, immigrant aid, civic educa tion, and other activities. Mr. Pegler’s assertions to the con trary, it does not now include, nor has it ever included among its aims or activities “interfer(ing) in the secular political belief and activities of Ameri can Catholic citizens.” Since NCWC is not a council or leg islative assembly, its resolutions do not have the force of law. But, though Mr. Pegler may “de spise the NCWC,” it is a rash Catholic indeed, who places his faith in the moral pronouncements of newspaper columnists and former preachers, gen erals, and FBI agents which are di rectly opposed to the teachings of the Church. For, it is the Church and the Church alone, which is Divinely constituted to interpret the Moral Law for indi viduals and society. And the right of the Church to speak out, through the Bishops, on the moral aspects of any given social or political action or or ganization does not yeild to the de mands of angry men who just can’t bear to be told that they’re wrong. LIBERALS AND THE RADICAL LEFT THIS YOU MUST HAVE It Seems to Me JOSEPH BREIG REV. JOHN B. SHEERIN. C.S.P. There is a great hue and cry- all over the country about the Radical Right but what about the Radical Left? It does exist. It is hard to distinguish a rad ical leftist from a gen uine liberal just as it is difficult to draw the line bet ween a real conserv ative and a radical right ist. One of the surest signs of leftist rad icalism, however, is a readiness to resort to violence. On March 7th, the Young Americans for Freedom staged a rally at Madison Square Gar den in New York City. Before the rally I was standing out side the Garden watching some 1200 young liberals pick eting the conservative rally. They carried signs protesting everything under the sun from racism to the John Birch So- ceity to “Uncle Tshombe.” But they were as well-be haved as a tea party in a con vent. One young A.D.A. lead er said, “We don’t think the Young Americans for Freedom are, fascists. We think they are conservatives. Calling them fascists would be like calling them a communist.” The most boisterous group seemed to be the Young Or ganizing Committee who chanted anemically, “One, two, three, four — we don’t want another war — five, six, seven, eight — we don’t want a fas cist state.” What roughnecks! SOUL OF PROPRIETY I engaged a bystander next to me in conversation. He turn ed out to be a North Korean student who had been con nected with student move ments in Japan .His English was not too good but he did convey to me his surprise that students could be so bland when staging a political dem onstration. In short, these young liberals were the soul of propriety. They wouldn’t say “boo” to a policeman’s horse. On the other hand, a group of liberal extremists did put on a violent demonstration at Times Square on March 3rd. They deserved the label of “radical leftists.” Protesting President Kennedy’s decision to resume atmospheric tests, they got thdmselves involved in a brawl with the police. They boldly sat down in Broadway. The police arrested 42 of them for obstructing just ice and causing a nuisance. An article entitled “New Styles in Fellow-Traveling” in Dissent, Autumn, 1961 says that the rise of the Radical Left has been encouraging for the communists. Why? Because they have been watching their party lose strength year after year in the United States but now “for the first time in some years there is accessible to them a small milieu in which to function with at least some freedom.” These radical leftists are a staggling, disorganized group but they can seem to get to gether and shout defiance against nuclear tests and our deterrence policy. In their en thusiasm they carry along with them a few naive house wives and Christian idealists who oppose the H-bomb. FORMER REDS In the recent past, they also staged demonstrations in fa vor of Lumumba and Castro. The hard core of the Radical Left seems to be former com munists who have been disil lusioned about Stalin, Khrush chev and Mao but who still re tain a certain amount of cyni cism about American democra cy. They are hopeful that com munism will eventually purge itself of* its tyranny and bru tality and in the meantime they busy themselves attack ing American foreign policy and American “materialism.” They claim that communism is here to stay and that though we dislike its present form, we should be ready to make a deal with it. The typical radical leftist is an intellectual or at least a “pseudo-intellectual.” He claims to be a realist and that it is better “to be Red than dead” but he is usually a dreamer who has bypassed the reading of history. William S. White calls them “the precious irresponsibles.” The Radical Left is not real ly a communist movement. It’s not really a movement at all— it’s a mood or an attitude. But it can be easily exploited by the communists. The Radical Left is, howev er, a negligible factor in the United States today. It com mands little influence. It would only serve the commun ist purposes if we were to focus all our attention on it and thus divert our attention from the real menace, communism abroad. Church's Universality Attracts Australian Sharing Our Treasure The divine origin of the Catholic Church, the authori ty conferred upon her to teach His truths to all nations, and the marks of her unity, sancti ty, Catholicity and apostolicity continue to draw sincere inquirers in to her fold as the magnet draws the steel. This is true not only in America but in other countries as well. This is il lustrated in the conversion of Mrs. Gertrude Chapman of Semaphore Park, Adelaide, South Australia. “As a child,” related Mrs. Chapman, “in a small village in England, and a considerable distance from the Anglican church, I was sent to a non- REV. JOHN A. O'BRIEN conformist chapel, where I at tended services and Sunday school. I know now that I owe much to the earnest people who did their best to instruct me. Later I joined the Angli can Church, but its services never seemed to meet my spi ritual needs or bring me close to God. “Coming to Australia, I married and lived far out in the country, at a great distance from all churches. For 13 years I attended no religious servic es. Once we were visited by a priest who had traveled 500 miles to offer Mass and admin ister the sacraments to a few widely scattered Catholic fam ilies. We were much impressed with the zeal which prompted the missionary to undertake such a long and arduous jour ney for such a few souls. “I admired the unity and the universality of the Catholic Church. Unlike Anglicans who differ so much in liturgy and creed, Catholics everywhere attend the same Mass, receive the same sacraments, profess the same Faith and acknow ledge the supreme spiritual au thority. I remember a Catholic explaining to me that the word Catholic meant universal, and hence the term ‘Roman Catholic’ should not be applied to its members since it in volves a contradiction. “Later we moved to Ade laide where there are many churches. One day a friend in vited me to attend Sunday Mass with her. It was the first time I had entered a Catholic church, as I had often heard remarks about the supersti tious practices of Catholics — adoring statues and worshiping the Virgin Mary. Instead of such practices, however, the (Continued on Page 5) A highly intelligent and in formed answer is now at hand for those who have been ask ing what they could do about communism. “Communism: Threat to Freedom,” a booklet by Father John F. Cro nin, is an im mensely im portant pub lication be- cause it meets a very great need. The book let costs 50 cents. It can be obtained from Paulist Press, 180 Varick St., New York 14, or from National Catholic Wel fare Conference, 1312 Massa chusetts Ave., N.W., Washing ton 5. FATHER CRONIN is assist ant director of NCWC’s Social Action Department. For 20 years he has been informing himself about communism and communistic activities. No one is more competent on the sub ject. This booklet is vivid evi dence of the depth and breadth of his knowledge of the history of marxism and marxists, the advances and defeats of com munism, and the present situ ation. Father Cronin understands Americans, too. “A virulent form of disunity,” he writes, “is weakening us in the world struggle against communism.” It is doing so in the name of militant anti-communism. AMERICANS are confused. They are not extremists or crack-pots. They have been “misled by false prophets,” but they “desperately want to DO something about commun ism.” Their basic problem, says Father Cronin, is “frustration and even fear.” They have seen the Soviet Union “appar ently gaining” in its efforts to communize the world. Our na tional ego has been shocked by Soviet Missile and space achievements. Many feel that since we ap parently can’t strike at ene mies abroad, we should “root out subversion at home.” Such feelings have been “exploited by the so-called extremists of the right.” Father Cronin makes crystal clear what seasoned anti-com munists have been trying to get people to see — that the wrong battle is being fought by these extremists, at the wrong place and the wrong time. IN A MASTERPIECE of condensation, he reviews the bubbleheadness, the fellow- traveling, the dupery and the subversion of the 30s and 40s, and shows how theese evils were exposed and countered, and how they virtually vanish ed because of such events as the Korean war and the Soviet crime against Hungary. The problem now is for the the most part external, not in ternal. It is communist aggres sion abroad. To defeat that the U. S. and the western world must be united and confident, not suspicious and disunited. Father Cronin quotes FBI di rector J. Edgar Hoover in a statement last April: "There exists today in our land a vital 'rift' which the communists are exploiting. Certain people engage in reckless charges against one another. The label of 'com munist' is too often indis criminately attached to those whose views differ from the majority . . . "The job of curtailing and containing communism is one for legally constituted authorities with the steadfast cooperation of every loyal citizen. This is neither the time for inaction nor vigi lante action ... We must face the communist menace with deliberation, quiet cou rage and knowledge . . . These are the qualities against which communism can never succeed." Father Cronin warns that the impatient citizen who wants to “do something” must “learn to comprehend the mod ern world more accurately . . . There is very little that the average citizen can do about communism, if his only con cern is to root out traitors in our midst.” The “overwhelming portion of the struggle against com munism today, he writes, must be carried on outside our bor ders, and the prime agency is the national government. So what can we do? Father Cronin says: raise funds for scholarships for students in mission schools in Africa. Or for poor students from Latin America or Asia. Offer social (Continued on Page 5) Pro Deo et Pro Patria By BARBARA C. JENCKS “Up, up, the long delicious burning blue I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace Where never lark or even eagle flew. And while with silent, lifted mind I’ve trod The high untresspassed sanctity of space Put out my hand—and touched the face of God.” —Author Unknown • AMERICANS of all ages are experiencing a renew al of faiih and patriotism. They are discovering emotions they did not they had. Colonel John Glenn's flight to outer space embraced us all. America had a hero again. This hero held within his capsule the hopes and fears of a nation. He was more than a home run king in a world series. This American victory was played before the eyes of a world, the stakes were higher. Americans seemed to become young boys again at a ball game and later like decorated war heroes. We were all part of the Colonel John Glen orbit. Many of us were not around when Lindberg flew the At lantic ocean in his plane, "Spirit of St. Louis." Those who were did not have the opportunity to witness the flight via the mass miracle media of television. During wartime when patriotism is at its highest pitch, a sadness permeates the pride in soldiers and victories. There was no sadness recent ly but a tremendous pouring forth, in Niagra Falls force, the pent-up lost faith and patriotism of youth and long ago. * * * • MOST OF ALL, America had a real hero for itself. Scotty Reston of the New York Times, being interviewed at the scene of one of the many parades, underlined well the appeal of Glenn. The famous columnist said that all the as tronauts were exceptionally fine men and that Americans had rather forgotten what a genuine person was. Glenn was a identifiable American, according to Reston. He was the freshman football coach type. If Americans were called upon to find the average American type, I think someone like Colonel Glenn would be selected: crew cut, midwestern twang, unsophisticated, generous, boyish, not handsome, but the nice look associated with ice cream parlors, Sundays, sports, back porches and cookouts. It was indeed refreshing to find with Scotty Reston an identifiable American hero. * * * • FOR ONE who traveled jet from Dublin to Boston in five hours, it is hard to conceive that within that same time span. Colonel Glenn orbited the entire world three times! I flew into three sunsets and was overcome with the beauty and the incredibility of flying at such speed. I saw a sunset over Shannon, another in Newfoundland and the final one as I came into Boston. It was an experience of a lifetime even more exciting than against night with the stars like diamonds strewn on black velvet everywhere you looked, as it was on the flight to Ireland. New lights on both time, space and speed are contemplated as a result of Glenn's flight. In regard to weightlessness, a religious with (Continued on Page 5) DORIS REVERE PETERS jboris rndwerS YOUTH WOULD SAVE FOR HORSE BY TAKING PAPER ROUTE Dear Doris: I was 12 years old in Octo ber. I love horses and want to save for one. I thought of a a way to save by getting a pa per route but there is only one problem — my dad doesn’t agree with me. He said I should wait until I am 13. We came to an agreement that whatever you say goes. Your friend. Marcio Well, Marcio, I think your Dad has a good idea. I would suggest you wait until you are 13 until you get the paper route. Maybe in the meantime you could do other things to save for the horse. How about chores for the neighbors? And in the spring and summer you can mow lawns. Keep busy and the time will pass fast. KINDNESS UNAPPRECIATED? Dear Doris: What makes people dislike you when you try your best to be as nice to everyone as you possibly can? I finished high school last year and had many enemies there. However, I thought I was disliked because I wouldn’t join the rest of the so-called popular group (alco hol drinkers, foul mouths, etc.). I recently got a job at a Catholic hospital, thinking that there I would be given a chance to lead my kind of life without anyone ridiculing me, only to find almost the same kind of treatment from the em ployees, (not the Sisters). My mother says she thinks it is jealousy. Please help me as I’m beginning to think that people don’t appreciate kind ness. A. People appreciate true kind ness. They do not appreciate having the ideals or ideas of others forced on them in the guise of kindness. And regard less of their faults — or vir tues — they want to be ac cepted as they are. When they are accepted, they will accept you. You do not have to agree with people or what they do to accept them. Acceptance is like charity. When you try to understand others as fellow human beings with strengths and weaknesses, made in the image and likeness of God, it is easy to accept them. And it is easy to get along with them. It is necessary to be honest with yourself. This means pre senting yourself as you really are. Maybe you are trying too hard to be just “nice.” This is not necessary. When you try too hard in any situation you appear to lack sincerity and others doubt your motives. Your motives are good. But obviously, your approach is poor. Is your attitude one of superiority, or of condemning? Anyone would react unfavor ably to this. You have an excellent op portunity for exercising a good influence by not drinking, or using foul language. But the opportunity will be lost and the influence ridiculed if you, in any way, brag or exhibit a superior attitude. A genuine interest and con cern for others is the basis for kindness and charity. So let your interest, your feelings and your charity shown by not condemning, in any way, those less fortunate than you. STATRING CONVERSATION Dear Doris: I am a sophomore in high school and belong to a Catholic club. I have always worked hard in school and never had the time for nor an interest in . boys. This past fall I met a Jj junior at one of the meetings. ’* My problem is that in five meetings he hasn’t said a word to me. I find him looking over my way a lot, but he refuses to even smile. I hope you can give me some hints on how to get into a conversation with him. Laura Don’t the club members ga ther in small groups before or after the meetings to talk things over. Well, join his group. Smile at him. Try not to be so tense with anxiety that your smile comes across half frozen. Keep it natural. Ask him a question about the club, or his part in it, or the next meeting, anything. Since you belong to the same club you can do this 1 without being obvious. And the club activities provide top- \ ics of mutual interest. This is an opportunity losts of girls would love. And Laura, maybe this boy isn’t refusing to smile. Maybe he is shy. Lots of boys are. At the next meeting you smile, and you ask a question and he will be in the conversation in no time at all. Devout Russians, Longtime Residents Of China, Find Freedom In British Colony HONG KONG, (NC) — A White Russian family of four who had kept their holy icons hidden in communist China displayed them in freedom in Kong Kong. On a peeling wall of a shab by hotel here, 44-year-old Eu gene Shvetsoff and his family hung two small faded icons, long concealed in their old home in Manchuria and dur ing their trek to this Western outpost on the border of Red China. One icon portrays Christ holding a tablet inscribed with the Russian words: “I give you a new commandment, to love one another.” The other por trays St. Nicholas, a patron saint of Russia. . Shvetsoff, his wife Mary and their children Vasily and Da- piana roused the sympathy of the world when they were stranded for four days at the gates of Portugues Macao, which refused to admit them without an entrance visa. By the time they arrived here, money had come for them from an American they never heard of. “Enclosed find thirty dol lars,” said the letter from Har ry Lewandowski of Duluth, Minn., to Hong Kong’s Catholic Social Welfare Bureau. “There is a Eugene Shvetsoff who with his wife and chil dren, refugees from Harbin,' Manchria, are outside, the bor der gate of Macao. I hope en thusiastically your office may be able to forward them the money. I pray that by the ar rival of this letter they may be in Hong Kong.” The money was brought to them by Father Henry Aerts, (Continued on Page 5) 411 ©Iff Hullrtitt •TH ST.. AUGUSTA. GA. Published fortnightly by the Catholic Laymen’s Association of Georgia, Inc., with the Approbation of the Most Reverend Bishop of Savannah; and the Most Reverend Bishop cf Atlanta. Subscription price $3.00 per year. Subscription included in membership in Catholic Laymen’s Association. Second class mail privileges authorized at Monroe, Ga. Send notice of change of address to P. G. Box 320, Monroe, Ga. REV. FRANCIS J. DONOHUE REV. R. DONALD KIERNAN Editor Savannah Edition Editor Atlanta Edition JOHN MARKWALTER Managing Editor REV. LAWRENCE LUCREE, REV. JOHN FITZPATRICK, Associate Editors, Savannah Edition. Vol. 42 Saturday, March 31, 1962 No. 22 ASSOCIATION OFFICERS GEORGE GINGELL, Columbus President MRS. DAN HARRIS, Macon Vice-President NICK CAMERIO, Macon Secretary JOHN T. BUCKLEY, Augusta Treasurer ALVIN M. McAULIFFE, Augusta Auditor JOHN MARKWALTER, Augusta Executive Secretary MISS CECILE FERRY, Augusta Financial Secretary