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SEPTEMBER 23, 1933
THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
THE EDITOR ABROAD
ON BOARD THE CONTE DI
SAVOIA. — One of the great steam
ship lines advertises that it has the
longest gangplank in the world.
Crossing the gangplank of an Italian
liner in New York puts you squarely
in Italy. Deck A becomes Ponte A,
Sunday is Domenica, the purser is
the commissario, and to get glazed
veal shoulder you order spalla di
vitello glassata.
There is a thrill connected with
the sailing of an ocean liner not
found anywhere else. The piers are
black with people, bidding goodbye
to friends off for a short stay in Eu
rope or perhaps going never to re
turn. There is many a tear-stained
handkerchief waved by heartbroken
relatives and friends as the ship
heads for the Battery and toward the
Narrows and the open sea.
When you cross the gangplank on
this liner you are not only in Italy
but in Catholic Italy. The Conte di
Savoia has a chaplain, the Rev.
Giuseppe Carraro; it has a beautiful
chapel where the Blessed Sacrament
is constantly present, and it has ar
rangements for several masses each
day. The Rev. Bede Frederick, su
perior of the Salvatorian Fathers, St.
Nazianz, Wisconsin, who publish
Our Savior’s Call and Manna, a mag
azine for children ,two leading mem
bers of the Catholic Press Associa
tion, was our celebrant of Sunday
and daily mass. Father Bede read
the gospel in English and after a few
announcements, including one to the
effect that we were dispensed with
the law of abstinence on Friday.
Father Carraro then read the gospel
in Italian and preached in that lan
guage. We gather from his remarks
that he approved it.
It is a thrilling thought to think that
even out here on the seas the Sacri
fice of the Mass is being constantly
offered up to glorify God, to thank
Him for the blessings He has show
ered upon man, and to petition Him
for continued benefactions.
Among our fellow passengers are
three young men, Rev. Mr. Edward
Gira, C. R., Rev. Mr. Joseph Klek,
C. R-, and Rev. V. R. Lesiak, C. R.,
going to Rome for clerical studies of
from five to seven years. They are
candidates for the priesthood in the
Resurrectionist Order, and come from
Chicago.
Wiley Post went around the world
by plane in about a week and set a
record when he refrained from
writing a book on the political, so
cial, religious. and economic con
ditions of the countries over .which he
passed. We think that Wiley had the
right idea, and we are only going to
set down what we see.
One of the first things we saw was
a motion picture starring Harold
Lloyd, with Italian subtitles. Another
night we were entertained with an
Italian talking picture, with an Eng
lish subtitle thrown in just often
enough to let you know that we were
not so smart after all, and our free
translation of the dialogue was
about as accurate as the predictions
of a statistician in 1929.
The Savoia is a mighty ship, 48,500
tons, eight hundred and sixteen feet
in length. That is about the length
of three New York City blocks. It is
ninety-six feet wide. Its million dol
lar Sperry Gyroscopic Stabilizers—the
Savoia is the first and only ship so
equipped—had cut down the sale of
Mother Sill’s Seasickness Remedy.
The Savoia started on her maiden
voyage last November at about the
time that Franklin D. Roosevelt was
given a ticket to the White House.
It is one of the fastest ships afloat;
it sends it 81G feet of bulk racing
through the water at motor boat
speed; it maintains a speed of about
thirty-five miles an hour, if our
mathematicians are correct, and one
has a degree in mathematics.
To get to eight o’clock mass each
morning we leave our staterooms
about a quarter to eight. Finding
one’s way about the boat is better
than a jigsaw puzzle. There is a sus
picion that its interior was designed
by the Christians who built the cata
combs. The complicated machinery
necessary for such a ship is respon
sible. The ship is a city in itself,
with every possible convenience, in
cluding telephones to shore. One of
its features is a splendid swimming
pool and gymnasium.
And they have a bar. It is a most
unusual bar; it has about everything
but customers. We may explain this
by saying that Americans are in the
minority on board ship- Wine is
served like water at meals. But the
conduct of the passengers is what was
supposed to be in the United States
after the advent of the Eighteenth
Amendment.
We overheard one Italian passenger
ask another what the trouble was
with him. “Sick”, he said. “Malade.
Infirmo.” He must have been in bad
shape. Sick in three languages.
In our grammar school days we
were told that the Atlantic Ocean was
smaller than the Pacific. After sail
ing the mighty Atlantic day after day
we think the matter is slightly debat
able.
A daily newspaper is published
aboard ship, in English and Italian.
But some of the passengers complain
that they know nothing at all about
what Uncle Bim, Major Hoople and
Skippy are doing, not to mention
Orphan Annie.
There is not a boisterous person on
board, if those whom we have come
in' contact with are any criterion.
Each person attends to his or her own
business, but there is a spirit of com
radeship permeating the vessel. We
came into contact with an Italian
family, cultured, prosperous, which
had lost a great deal of money during
the depression. It disposed of its
possessions and is returning to Italy
to await better days. The young ^peo
ple of the family are typical Ameri
can college boys and girls. It is quite
a surprise, and a pleasant one to hear
them turn from perfect English to
fluent Italian. There should be a
law requiring parents who know an
other language than English to teach
it to their children.
We hope there is a novelist on
board; there is an abundance of
characters ready to step into an in
teresting book. There is, for in
stance, a white-haired elderly lady,
evidently in her seventies, dressed in
the most sedate and almost religious
style. Her days are spent knitting.
Evenings she sat in the lounge while
the orchestra played and the young
people danced, apparently wondering,
between stitches, what the world
was coming to when that sort of noise
is called dance music. But last eve
ning we saw her looking at the
dancing, with her knitting tucked
under her arm, and she calmly puff
ed away at a cigarette.
The first land sighted since leaving
New York, was the Azores, the half
way point for Balboa and his intrepid
band. The first island, if we are cor
rectly informed, is Flora, and it rises
precipitately from the water’s edge.
The question of its habitation is soon
answered by the appearance of culti
vated fields, and the houses perched
on the high hills like eagles’ nests.
Soon one sees additional houses,
glistening white on the hillsides, and
we are diown the Dominican convent
near the village. The Savoia does not
stop at the Azores, which belong to
Spain; some other Italian line ships
make it a port of call. For a nice quiet
life .removed from tickers and tele
phones an dmurderous traffic, we rec
ommend Flores in the Azores. One
of the passengers who had been
through the island said it was quite
large, but we agreed that whatever its
size, it would not be large enough to
hold us.
Having left New York Saturday,
and sighting the Azores Tuesday, we
reach Gibraltor Thursday evening,
where these few paragraphs will be
mailed. After going through the
Straits of Gibraltar, which separated
Europe and Africa, we shall enter
the Mediterranean headed for Rome,
the Eternal City, the Apostolic See,
toward which all Catholic eyes turn,
especially in this historic year, de
clared a Holy Year by the Holy Fath
er. Rome is the objective of thou
sands of pilgrims, but none ap
proaches it with greater joy, a joy
tempered .by humility, than the mem
bers of our party.
RICHARD REID.
Dr. Russell Leader
in Evidence Guilds
“Ave Maria” Commends
New Apologetical Work
The following article from the
Ave Maria on the Catholic Evidence
Guild work in Baltimore will be of
particular interest to the Southeast
inasmuch as the work is under the
direction of the Rev. Dr. John J.
Russell, a nephew of the late Most
Rev. William T. Russell, D. D.,
Bishop of Charleston:
“The Catholic Evidence Guild of
Baltimore, under the direction of the
Rev. Dr. John J. Russell, is making
real progress in the matter of ac
quainting non-Catholics with the
principles of the Catholic religion.
One of its most recent accomplish
ments is the public recitation of the
Stations of the Cross somewhat in
the manner in which they are pre
sented by the Catholic Evidence
Guild of London in the famous Hyde
Park of that city. Every Sunday
afternoon at 3 o’clock in front of the
band station in Patterson Park the
picture of each station is explained
by a priest for the benefit of non-
Catholics, and then the prayers are
lecited.
“Those instrumental in instituting
the practice have declared them
selves more than delighted with the
response of the generous-minded
people of Baltimore. Not only have
the workers found their non-Catho-
lic friends attentive and respectful in
their attitude, but they have found
many of them anxious for further in
struction about things Catholic.
“Without any doubt, there are
thosands of people who would be in
the Church today if they had any
idea of what She actually is. Since
a great many of these people do not
read religious literature and and will
not attend any strictly Church ser
vice, about the only way to get in
touch with them is by means of the
radio, or by some such expedient as
has been adopted by the Catholic
Evidence Guild. The response to
both has been sufficient to place
them in the classification of fruitful
missionary activities.
The Georgia Laymen
and Their Neighbors
Laymen’s Association Acti
vities ‘‘Beacon Light”,
Jesuit JJulletin Declares
(From The Jesuit Bulletin, St.
Mary’s Kansas)
The Catholic laymen of Georgia.
Their services to their fellow citizens
through the press stand out as a bea
con to the possibilities of Catholic
Action with the written word. Thru
a well planned publicity bureau, an
extensive campaign of enlightenment
was begun. Space was bought in
newspapers, offering to answer ques
tions of Catholic beliefs and prac
tices. All the letters that poured in
as a result of the ads, no matter how
bitter and sarcastic, were kindly an
swered. Pamphlets were published;
every misstatement corrected; a
newspaper was started. And the re
sults—the shapes of bigotry have fad
ed out under the calcium light of
truth.
Many are the other phases of Cath
olic Action and the Press. Thus, to
mention but a few, the handing on of
the Catholic- magazine to non-sub
scribing friends; the remailing of pe
riodicals for use on the mission field;
the collecting of Catholic literature
for distribution among hospitals,
prisons and asylums; the placing of
pamphlet-racks in such places, as
bus terminals, depots, etc. The field
is limitless—and so are the opportu
nities for bringing the saving truth
to hungering thousands.
Notre Dame Bulletin
on “Lay Cardinals’’
FATHER O’HARA
(Notre Dame University Prefect of
Religion, in his daily Religious
Bulletin)
You will find them in every parish.
They correspond to what Rockne
used to call in football his “Board of
Strategy”.
Like the Roman Cardinals, they are
not of Divine origin. L T nlike the Car
dinals, they are self-appointed.
The Cardinals meet the Holy Father
face to face and give him advice
when they are asked for it. The
lay cardinals give their advice to the
parish priests on their own initiative,
and usually behind his back.
The lay cardinals attend the Chil
dren’s Mass (which is quite fitting,
in a way) and when the parish priest
orders them out they say that his
spirit is not Christ-like.
They object to the way the pastor
spends the money they don’t con
tribute; they call him mercenary
when he lays before them the parish
needs that would not exist if they
did their share.
They eat meat at a Friday banquet
so as not to embarrass the Masons to
the right and left of them, but when
the Pope dispenses the whole Church
on a holyday of obligation they
say that religion is going to the dogs.
They speak a good word for their
pastor onlv when he has ceased to
be their pastor and his name and
fame are brought into the conversa
tion to the disaparagement of their
present shepherd.
Out of the wealth of their ignorance
and inexperience they broadcast their
views on Gregorian chant, homiletics,
hermeneutics, the Pauline privilege
and ecclestiastical art.
When they receive Holy Com
munion it is with the Young Ladies’
Sodality instead of the Holy Name
Society, when they come for confes
sion it is five minutes after closing
time, when they take a notion for the
Last Sacraments it is at two o’clock
in the morning.
But they are a godsend at a wake;
they keep your mind off the corpse.
Wesleyan Urges Holy
Year’s Observance
English Minister Says All
Should Cooperate With
Pope
(BY N. C. W. C. NEWS SERVICE)
LONDON.—A plea to all Christians
to respond to the Pope's Holy Year
call was made by a Wesleyan min
ister, Dr. Harold Roberts, in a ser
mon at the Wesley Memorial Church
at Oxford.
“The main idea of a Holy Year,”
he said, “is that men should turn
their thoughts from the pursuit of
material things to spiritual realities.
They should all welcome this oppor
tunity and co-operate with other
Christians.
“The state of the world today, with
its dissension between nation and na
tion, between class and class, be
tween man and man, should be re
garded by all as a call to turn their
thoughts to Him who brought peace
to men.
“Hence they should be grateful to
the Pope for inviting them to spend
the next twelve months In that way,
and even if they do not celebrate
the year in the Roman manner, there
is no reason why the major purpose
of the Holy Year should be disre
garded.” ,
“Lead, Kindly Light” >
Facsimile of Famous Hymn in the Handwriting of Its
Author, Cardinal Newman
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This is a reproduction of “Lead
Kindly Light,” ohe of the most fa
mous hymns in the English language,
in the handwriting of its author, Car
dinal Newman. This is not the origi-
AC. if
na.l draft of the hymn, but a copy the
Cardinal made subsequently, and ncv
inthc possession of J. J. Shechy,
Chicago, a friend of The % Bulletin
who leaned it the cut of the jhsem»
No Hen Ever Laid a Bad Egg
/ * <
(From a Leaflet Issued by the Catholic Information
League, Narberth, Pa.)
Volume Tells History
of U. S. and Vatican
Diplomatic Relations
(BY N. C. W. C. NEWS SERVICE)
WASHINGTON. — A collection of
documents illustrating the dmlomatic
relations between the Papal States
and the United States from 1848 to
1868 is contained in a volume just
issued by the American Catholic His
torical Association and published by
the Catholic University Press. The
volume is edited by Rev. Leo Francis
Stock, who is well known for his his
torical research work.
The documents presented have been
reprinted from those in the files of
the Department of State. Of particu
lar interest are those exchanged in the
period just before the taking of Rome
by Garibaldi and preceding the Am
erican Civil War.
Among the important documents
are the invitation of Archbishop Ec-
cleston, of Baltimore, to Pope Pius
IX, then in exile, to come to Ameri
ca to preside over the Ecumenical
Council, and those concerning the
mission of Archbishop Hughes to
France in Civil War days.
Doctor Stock says in his preface
to the volume, “It was thought that
such a volume would serve two pur
poses; it would bridge a gap that
has existed in the diplomatic history
of the United States, and it would
record a chapter of American Cath
olic history which, because of the
recent agreement between Italy and
the Vatican and because of present-
day curiosity respecting Catholic loy
alty to Church and &tate, assumes new
interest and importance.”
N. C. W. C. Thanked
for Aid to NRA
(By N. C. W. C. News Service)
WASHINGTON.-Gratitude for the
“splendid cooperation” the National
Catholic Welfare Conference is giv
ing President Roosevelt’s reemploy
ment campaign is expressed in a let
ter directed to the Very Rev. Dr. John
J. Burke, C. S. P., general secretary
of the N. C. W. C., by Louis J. Alber,
Chief of the Speakers’ Division of the
National Recovery Administration.
MOST REV. EDWARD A. MOO
NEY, was at Seattle hurrying to Van
couver to sail for Japan and his post
as Apostolic Delegate at Tokyo, when
word reached him that he had been
named by His Holiness Pope Pius XI
to be Bishop of Rochester.
The first egg that Ezra Hardhead
ever ate was bad—unquestionably
bad!
That was years ago, but with Ezra
the memory has become an obsession*
“All eggs are bad!” he cries. “Away
with them! Away with the hen that
lays them!” No use reasoning with
Ezra. He’s an egg bigot.
Unfortunately “bad eggs” are not
confined to the breakfast table. Hu
manity too has its quota—all races,
all classes, all religions. But the
Catholic “bad egg” seems to smell
worse, taste worse and reflect most
on the hen that lays it. Why is
this, when the Catholic Church claims
to be holy? Can a bad egg come
from a good hen?
Certainly not! But bear in mind
that no hen ever laid a bad egg. The
egg that makes you run for dear lif~
was, when first just as fre
as the delicacy that delights your
ate and nourishes your body. No
fault of the hen if a few of its prod
ucts roll out of their place in the
scheme of things, into the corruptin
heat of the world.
In like manner the Catholic Churc
never produced a bad man. The “ba
egg’ ’Catholic was, immediately af
ter Baptism, just as pure as the saints
and angels. No fault of the Church
if a few of its members, disregard
ing its teachings, step out of their
place in God’s plan for them, into the
corrupting influences of the world.
The hen was made to lay fresh
eggs; and it does. It fruits are th
source of great benefit far man a -
the propagation of the chicken tribe
The Church was made to bring man
back to God; and does. Its fruits
of the past are the saints who rose
to heroic heights of sanctity because
they followed with all their hearts
and wills the teachings of the Church
Its products of today include many
who, for the same reason, will b
saints of the future; while of its
more than 300,000,000 living memberc
the vast majority are sincere believ
ers and doers of God’s every com
mand. There will always be bad eggs,
bad Catholics and bad red-headed fa
men; but worse—far worse—ther
will always be Ezra Hardheads! -
DEAN AELRED CARLYLE, who,
20 years ago, stirred all England by
leading practically a whole com
munity of Angelican monks into the
Catholic Church and becoming * a
Benedictine Abbot, has just entered
the famous Carthusian monastery
Miraflores, Burgos, Northern S
as a postulant.