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MAY 9, 1926. THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA 7 A PAGE OF CATHOLIC INFORMATION Why I Am a Catholic Eloquent and Scholarly Address DeEvered April 18 at Sacred Heart Church, Augusta, by Rev. D.J. Foulkes, S.J, Catholics and Lynching An Association Letter “Breathes there a man with soul so dead, ■Who never to himself hatli said: This is my own, my native land? Whose heart hath ne’er within him burned As honife his footsteps he hath turned From wandering on a foreign strand ? Is such there he—go! Mark him well! For him no minstrel raptures swell, High though his titles, proud his name. Boundless his wealth as wish may claim Despite those titles, power and pelf, The wretch concentred all in self, Living shall forfeit fair renown, And doubly dying—shall go down To the vile dust from whence he spruug— Unknown, unhonored and unsung?" These words of the Scottish bard arc an appropriate and fitting epi taph for one who is a despicable knight-errant, a man, with no coun try he can call his own, with no flag whose fluttering sends the blood of old age rushing madly through the veins or makes the infant’s sinews hard as steel; one invincible in peace, but invisible in war when free men are called to defend hearth and home and loved ones; one whose leaden soul remains untouch ed by the poetic beauty of the hill and dell and splashing steanflet or musical cascade of the land we call home, sweet home. Go! Write them on the marble slab that hides the remains of him who was not an enthusiastic son of that Church whose empire reaches from pole to pole. She, the mother who nurtured him in his infancy, strengthened him in his childhood blessed him in his irfanhood and stood at his bedside when in old age he looked anxiously toward the great unknown beyond the valley of the shadow of death. She is a virgin mother with the snows of 1900 winters on her unfurrowed brow; yet, a mother ever old, but yet ever young, the aureola of im morality encircling her fair form. She is the despair of poets, the. in spiration of artists, the undying theme of orators, the spouse of Him in whom we move and live and have our being,’ the grand old rock of ages, unmoved, immovable our own holy and Catholic and apostolic church, whose imprisoned king Jives and rules and commands as the visible vice regent of Christ Jesus, her divine Founder. She, the— “Elect from every nation, Yet one o’er all the earth; Her charter of salvation, One Lord, one faih. One birth. One holy name she blesses, Partakes one holy food, An'd to one hope shep resses With every grace endured." Why am I a member of that church? Why am I a Catholic? To have a reason for the faith that is in me in the most momentous problem propounded to the ques tioning soul and the anxious, yearn ing heart of man. Because the Cath olic church solves that problem in a. voice that never falters, my heart, my mind, my soul adhere to her with a tenacity naught can ever weaken or undermine. I am, a Catholic because I am a son of that soil baptised with the martyrblood of my ancestors—the isle of saints, the home of finished scholars, the cradle of heroes, the perennial spring of Christian mis sionaries, one of a race endowed with an aggressive steadfastness and passionate devoledness to the faith in Jesus Christ that could never be stifled. Nothing could kill it. Fire could not scorcli it, nor prison rot it, nor famine starve it, nor the gai lows choke it; the land of poetry the home of oratory, the isle sanctified and blessed by the heroic labors of tlie apostle of our love, the emerald of tlie Western sea, dear old Ireland •Far o’er the sea there is a little green island. Ireland, ’tis called, ’tis a sweet name to me, And while 1 live it willalways be my land, Tho’ many miles from its shore I may be. Home of my childhood, I’ll think of you ever, You’re in my thoughts every night every day. And, like my mother, 111 soc again never, My heurt Is with you so far, far away. Ireland I love you, Acushia Macrce, And ‘tlio’ your shores I may never more see, , Still will you e’er he remembered by me, Ireland, I love you, Acushia Maclirec! Alii Can you blame me for having that undying love for Ibis blessed isle? “Sure! A little bit of heaven fell from out tlie sky one day, And nestled in the ocean in a spot so far away. And when the angels found it, it look ed so sweet and fair They said: “Suppose we leave it, for it looks so peaceful there.” So they sprinkled it with star dust just to make the shamrocks grow. Tis the only place you’ll find them, no matter where you go ; Then they dotted it with silver to make its lakes so grand, And when they had it finished—sure, they called it Ireland.” I an? n Catholic because that church gave me the best, the truest, the staunchest friend a man can have. She is the embodiment of every virtue—a faith in Christ noth ing could weaken, a resignation to sorrow and adversity sublime in its pathos, a purity angelic in its spotlessness, a patience patterned after that of the Lamb emulated on Calvary, one whose private life was above reproach, whose public life was above reproach, whose public life was 5n inspiration to those who knew. Here was a life spent in do ing good. A friend was she to the homeless, a counsellor to wayward and tlie erring, a benefactress to the poor, yea, a mother to the mother less babe. She lived a sinless life, died a saintly death and today what ever qualities her children possess, whatever good they do in the cause of suffering humanity, they owe it to her, the sweetest type of woman hood that ever lived. At her feet I lisped my first prayers, there I learned the meaning of justice, truth and morality that make me proud of the blood that courses through those veins. Yes, I am Catholic be cause I had an Irish Catholic mother, God bless her! Sweet Jesus, may she rest in peace. I am .Catholic because I boast of Protestant relationship. My Metho dist father was found like John Henry Newman and thousands of other seekers after truth, tossed a- bolit by every wind of doctrine. With Newman many a time and oft did he whisper that sweetest prayer: Lead kindly light amid the encircling f loom, thou me on! The night Is dark and 1 am far from home. Lead thou mp on! Keep thou my feet—I do not wish to see The distant scene—one step enough for me. Yes! The ‘“kindly light” like the scintillating star that led the Magi to the crib wherein nestled the Em manuel, the expected of nations, led him to the Church of Peter, and over his prostrate form from the day of his submission, in the person of her black-robed priest, she made the mystic sign that ushers the trembl ing soul into joys eternal. He lived an upright mail, a model, law-abid rag citizen, a loving husband a de voted father, a frienjrf tried and true —and there in the vale ’neatli the weeping willows that forever chant their sad, funeral dirge, with the wife lie loved witli a love stronger than .death, lie avails the dawn of the Judgment Day. The attention of the Catholic Laymen’s Association was di rected by a Georgia priest work ing among colored Catholjcg to an article in The Defender, a paper published in Chicago in the interests of the colored race, headed: “Catholicism, Silent as to Lynching, Fights Dry Law.” The title indicates the tone of the article. The following letter was written to the paper and pub lished in a recent issue: Dear Sir: Our attention has been directed to an article in your February 13 issue headed: ‘“Catholicism, Silent as to Lynching, Fighting Dry Law.” Enclosed is a pamphlet, written by the late RL Rev. Benjamin J. Keilcy, D D., for twenty years Cath olic Bishop of Savannah, who died within the year. Thousands of cop ies of this pamphlet were published and distributed free in Georgia and elsewhere by tlie Catholic Laymen’s Association of Georgia. Catholic papers such as' America, The Catholic World, The Common weal, Catholic Missions, The Ave Ma ria and other publications reflecting Catholic thought have all denounc ed lynching for the un-Christian thing it is. The Diocese of Savannah, which is co-extensive with the state of Georgia, and which lias but 20,000 white Catholics, has five schools for colored Catholics, almost entirely supported by whites, attended by 399 boys and 490 girls. Docs this not show real interest in the progress of the colored race? We Catholics have been victims of injustices and prejudice ourselves and we have found, that the worst way to try to remedy the situation is to stir up hatred in the hearts of one s own people against those working for the betterment of con ditions, as your publication is doing in carrying articles such as this one misrepresenting and reviling the Catholic church. \. But mere accident of birth is not the cause of mv Catholicity. My parents were Catholics for the same reasons that make me one, and the arguments 1 shall now adduce are precisely the ones they advanced to support their Catholic faith. I am a Catholic not because I have a blind faith in the Catholic church whose doctrines I do not clearly un derstand. Just the reverse is true. My faith is not blind at all. I am a Catholic because 1 see the truths that God has revealed so clearly that not the shadow of a doubt ever cros ses by mind. Hence ignorance, or lack of instruction or defective edu cation is not the reason for my Catholic faith. I am a Catholic not because Iam unfamiliar with the Bible. I have been reading and studying holy scripture from my early youth. The Bible ever held a place of honor in my own home. I have memorized many passages of it, read many parts of it and do so every day of my life, and I ant able to quote chapter ond verso for every funda mental doctrine of my faith. My knowledge of the Bible only streng thens my faith. I am a (lalliolic, not because of my lack of knowledge 'regarding the teaching of the other denominations claiming to he the church of Christ 1 am familiar with the basic princi ples of every Christian and non- Christian denomination. I have weighed, have balanced their respec tive doctrines, and I admire what- ecer truth there is found in them, with malice toward none and charity toward all; my moto is that of the great Augustine: “In necessary things let there be unity, in doubt ful things let there be liberty, but in all things let there be charity!” ’ I respect and bless the soul that claims any of any man nor minimize or condemn the efforts they make for the uplift of poor, suffering humanity, but I find, after deep study and well- balanced investigation, that none of them to my satisfaction',’ teaches in their fullness the same doctrines that were taught by Christ and His apostles. I am then a Catholic not because of a deliberate unwillncss to seek everywhere for the teachings ot Christ, but rather because I have investigated so exhaustively their claims to divine authorships. ■ r- I "ain' a Catholic because that church is apstolic—the church estab lished by Christ’s apostles and teaching the same doctrines which the apostles taught and with min isters deriving their authority from the same ajostles. By historical documents I can prove it is the only church built upon the foundation of the apostics and whose bishops and priests today derive all their powers in an uninterrupted succes sion from the apostles down to the present day without any gap or any intermission, and during all that time, just as today, it has taught every single doctrine taught by the apostles.. It is the only Christian institution in existence that can trace its history in a direct line from the present day back to the dim distance of the earliest anti quity — even to the very hour of Christ and the apostles. I am a Catholic because the Cath olic church has ever been the origin and source and conserver of the civilization of the present, day, yes, the source of freedom and liberty. Eighteen centuries before our gov ernment, built upon the recognition of the equality of all men, had seen the light of day, she thundered — there on the throne of the Caesars —the lesson of that equality born in Bethlehem’s cave, sealed on Cal vary’s summit and consummated in a fiery baptism on the first Pen tecostal sabbath. Even during those centuries, which it was once the custom to call dark, when the hu man intellict lay slumbering, it was the Catholic church that kept the lantern of science ever burning. Go through the aunals of the world’s history and you will see, that when not crushed by tyrants or throttled by penal laws, it was the Catholic church that founded libraries, open ed museums, endowed universities and schools, provided them with teachers, promoted scientific dis coveries, fostered intellectual culture and encouraged the manifold pro ductions of human genius. Diocese of Savannah Rt. Rev. Bishop Keyes in Letter to Clergy Announces Conditions For G-ainaing Jubilee Indulgence in Georgia April 14, 1926. Reverend dear Father: Please make known lo your, people that the Holy Father has extended the privilege of the Ju bilee Indulgence to the faithful throughout the world, and in at least one sermon explain to them lie nature of Indulgences, exhort ing them at the same time to avail themselves of the means of Grace so generously ‘granted them by the Holy See.’ Th e conditions for gaining the Indulgence are as follows: I. The worthy reception of the Sacraments of Penance and Holy Eucharist. Neither Easter Com munion nor annual confession will suffice. II. Four visits, for five days, which need not he consecutive, must be made to the church or churches designated. I’L At each visit prayers for the intentions of the Holy Father must be offered. These inten tions arc: Tlie propagation of the evangelical faith, peace and good will among peoples,’ and the pro tection of the Holy Places in Pal estine. IV. The Indulgence may be gained no more than twice: Once for oneself and once foir the Souls in Purgatory, or twice for the Souls in Purgatory. V. Members of Cathedral Parish should visit the Cathedral and any other three churches i% Sa vannah. Members of other par ishes in the City or Savannah should visit the Cathedral, their own church, and any other two churches. Outside the City of Savannah all the churches should be vis ited; and where there arc less than four churches, the visits re quired above the number of churches may be* made by re peated visits to any church. VI. Members of a religious community and all who live in a re ligious (bouse Or convent may gain the Indulgence by making the visits to their community chapel. This you will make known immediately to all religious com munities in your territory. VII. The sick and those who care for them, those who live a great distance from a church or whose parish church is a mission open only for a short time on Sunday, those over seventy years of age, prisoners, traveling men and women, and those who for any reason are unable to make the required number of visits may have the visits commuted to some other good work accord ing to their circumstances. All pastors and confessors in the diocese of Savannah are hereby delegated for this purpose. But even should the visits be omit ted, the prayers should if possible be said. For confession made as one of the conditions for gaining the In dulgence, extensive faculties aye granted to all confessors to the diocese to absolve from all sin and censure with the exception of a few cases. For these you are referred to the Ecclesiastical Re view, March 1926, pp. 300-301. Sis ters in religious comunities may make confession for the Jubilee to any priest who has faculties in the diocese. Faithfully yours in Crist, MICHAEL J. KEYES, -|- Bishop of Savannah. Newman and Orestes Brown son — who followed the lead of the “kindly light” and found in her the church of Peter, the rock, and of Christ, the founder. I am a Catholic because the Catho lic church is the only church in which there is a striking resembl ance to Christ by reason of the fact that it is constantly persecuted, ful filling in that particular the pro phecy uttered by Him centuries ago. Christ was a man of sorrows and the Church, his spouse, likewise must be ever afflicted. I am a Catholic, finally, because I am- not by any accident of birth— but by deliberate, flee choice, a partiotic American — and for me there is an emblem that speaks more eloquently than the persuasive words of the most gifted, golden- lounged orator; “Its stripes of red eternal dyed with heart streams from all lands, Its white—the snow-capped hills that hide in storm their upraised hands, Its hlue, the ocean waves that beat ’round Freedom’s circlet! shore, Its stars—the prints of angels* feet that burn forevermore 1 Y’ou have guessed its name— a This the flag of the free, Fairest to see. The flag of the brave, Long may it wave. Our flag, your flag and mine— the Stars and Stripes forever 1 There it if floating proudly o’er the land! Sec it flashing defiantly o’er the sea, a flag that has never known dishonor, one that has never yet been and never shall be lowered in defeat, its glori ous star and bar enshrined in the heart of hearts of every man who calls himself a Catholic American! and by consequence the highest typo of patriot must he the obedient son of this Church—tlie rock of ages—* must be he who wears entwined th^ cross and red and white and blue. What is the Catholic church doing today for the protection of our An> erican republic? She is shielding it as no other denomination can. She condemns and anathematizes any’ and every effort to main, undel‘- minc and destroy it. She allows no theory to be advanced that is’ sub versive of law and order. She coi>> demns any system that tends to weaken the respect we owe to right* ful authority ad the love we pay ouy flag. She stands for right 1 She stands for justice! She stands for; all those civic virtues that are the foundation of any genuine democra cy 1 I am a Catholic because the greatest intellects this world has ever seen were members of this same church. In theology, in philo sophy, in surgery, in the arts and in the sciences—everywhere the bright est minds were humble children of this same venerable mother; witness the greatest architect, Bramente, the greatest sculptor, Michael Angelo; the greatest painter, Raphael; the greatest poet, Dante; the most ac complished musicians, the leading inventors, the greatest discoverer— the man who guessed the greatest secret on rcord: The great immortal Genoese who spread the faith afar, The Genoese who gave our flag its every stripe and star, Who found the world and gave the world to youan d me; Gave all the land to smile benetli the banner of the free. Yes, Christopher Columbus was the proud offspring of the same Catholic church — and with these may we not enumerate those world renowned converts, John Henry Since the day when John Carroll of Carrollton signed the Declara tion of Independence, Catholics have ever been found ready to serve their country in time of peace or under the stress of war. From every Catho lic pulpit in the land, whether found in stately cathedral or lowly way- side chapel; whether in the busy marts of the East or the wigwams of the West; whether amid the snows of the North or on the boundless prairies of the South, everywhere, at all times even when we were fa sely accused—as wc arc today—of ’ ving allegiance to a for eign poter ile and branded as trai tors to thil banner; everywhere, say I, have we been taught all those virtues that make for genuine love of country, reverence for the flag and pure, untarnished, unadulterated unhyphenated patriotism and Amer icanism. We sons and daughters of such £ mother unpatriotic 1 We un-Amere. can! Call us to arms! Call us tqi arms! We enemies of the flag! Nol by the God of Israel. No, by the Catholic blood shed at Bunker Hill, Lundy’s Lane and Fredericksburg 1 No, by the memory of a Columbus who discovered this empire of the Western seas! No, by the Carrolls, the Barrys, the Moylans, the Roch- ambeaus, the Lafayettes, the Pu la skis, Casimirs! No, by the Sher idans, Shields, Meaghers, the poet, priest and patriot Abraham J. Ryan, the bard of the lost cause! No, by the black robes—priest, and nun— who spent their lives in civilizing the savages of our land or furthered the cause of Christ in pulpit, school and hospital! No, by the Catholic blood spilled on our beloved soil! That blood of heroes is the seed of patriotism, and the flag—our flag— our glorious flag—our immortal Hag that floats defiantly today o’er the hallowed dust of those deathless dead—speaks of the patriotism, un dying and enthusiastic, of every son of the Catholic church. Yes! I am a Catholic because I am an Ameri can. Yes, oh, yes! Our flag! Our glo rious flag 1 Onrs it is for the simple reason that the religion we profess makes for truth and justice and morality; for all those civic virtues that are the keystone of any form of government—carping critics, ig norant charatans, time-serving edi tors, bogus ex-priests, hired liars Ind unprincipled character assassins to the contrary notwithstanding — Yes! Oh, yes! Here before tbfi God of high heaven do I make the solemn vow, I wish to live a fervent, stanch member of the Catholic church and a patriotic, law-abiding citizen of this glorious republic of the United Stales—and when I die let nfy shroud be the black robe of tho Catholic priest that has never- known dishonor—and o’er my mod est grave erect a cross, unfurl tha immortal banner of the free and tha brave—there let it flutter until the trumpet call announce the last grand reveille of the eternal Easter day when measured time shall be merg ed into the endless years of a bless ed eternity and we shall all. J fervently pray, stand united undef! the cross triumphant and the imw moral banner of our glorious Cap* tain and King—Christ Jesusi _>