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THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
APRIL 22, 1944
WITH OTHER EDITORS
IRISH NEUTRALITY
At the moment the United States
wants Ireland to expel Nazi and
Japanese representatives and so
get out of her neutrality. Prime
Minister De Valera on his part de
clares that Ireland has given no
aid to Germany directly or indi
rectly and has kept strict watch on
her lines of communication from
and into Ireland. And our Secre
tary of State Hull has been report
ed over the radio to have said that
while this is true, he is doubtful of
Ireland’s power to maintain her
neutrality in the future- But if
Ireland, reply some overseas Irish
men, was able to preserve her neu
trality during the hard days when
the Nazis were triumphant, why
not in these less crucial days?
Again why is Ireland specifically
singled out? Switzerland, Swe
den, and other countries have cer
tainly not overtopped Ireland in
staying neutral. And at the mo
ment Russia maintains the Japan
ese ambassador even though the
United States is fighting Japan.
These evidences are cited to clarify
thinking. Historians will cite them
later ,when reflection will prevail
over emotion. On the other hand
it may not be practical for Ireland
not to meet the demands of the
United States. She will likely
have to suffer a tight blockade on
the material things she needs. And
there is no convincing reason why
she should renew the centuries old
martyrdom for either Nazi or Ja
pan. Mr. De Valera has stated his
position with dignity on a founda
tion off acts. Having done so we
do not think it dishonorable to
request Nazi and Japanese minis
ters to return home and save his
people from reprisals. It is for the
people of Ireland to decide.—The
Ave Maria).
of the book speedily made it a
classic monument to the impossi
bility of explaining away the mir
acles of Lourdes.
The columnist who has made
this belated, infelicitious discovery
of Zola confesses in his review that
he has not read Zola's novel, but
that he has "looked through” the
dated travesty on Lourdes. Had
he read it, he would have found
Zola’s “expose” a repetition of the
hackneyed case against the fact of
the miraculous. Zola contended
that the cures of Lourdes are the
result of hypnotism of the shock
caused by the cold water, of the
"healing inspiration of the crowd,”
and of the curative effect on dis
ordered nerves of the monotonous
roll of the Litanies and of the
Aves.
This shabby effort at rational
izing the imposing catalogue of
cures, physical and mental, spirit
ual and material, which occur in
the lives of some who go in crowds
and some who go alone, as well as
of some who never actually reach
ed Lourdes, is beneath contempt.
It was a bit of a shock to find
Zola’s least worthy book dragged
out of obscurity so many years af
ter its repudiation by Zola’s own
contemporaries. Even Huysman,
unsympathetic as he was with the
popular devotions which surround
ed Lourdes, felt obliged to single
out for his especial refutation the
absurd theories of Emile Zola. But
then, Huysman had himself been to
Lourdes and had seen for himself
the wonders that God has wrought
there, and so had lost the ’de
tachment” of the clever columnist-
—(The Pilot).
CHAPLAIN AT AUGUSTA
AIR BASE PROMOTED
Chaplain Robert L. Roster has
been promoted
from First Lieu
tenant to Cap
tain. C h a p 1 a in
Roster was com
missioned in
June 1943, after
serving s e v e ral
years as assistant
pastor of Blessed
Sacrament
Church, Trenton,
N. J. A graduate
of St. Joseph
College, Rennselaer, Ind., he was
ordained at St. Charles Seminary.
Carthegena, Ohio, as a priest of
the Society of the Precious Blood.
He has been stationed at Daniel
Field, the U. S. Army Air Base in
Augusta, for some months.
Pfc. John Roster, a brother of
Chaplain Roster, was stationed in
Shanghai, with the U. S. Marine
Corps, when the Japanese made
the attack on Pearl Harbor. He
was swiftly moved with his outfit
to the Philippines, and was taken
prisoner by the Japanese when
Corrigedor fell. He was last heard
from last September, and at that
time he was a prisoner of war in
Japan. Cpl. Louise Roster, a sis
ter of the chaplain, is serving in
the U. S. Marine Corps Women’s
Reserve. (Daniel Field Notam).
Sister de Lourdes
Dies in Charleston
BOOK REVIEWS
By W. L. SCHMIDT
THE MYSTERY OF LOURDES
The recent release of a film
transferring to the screen a best
selling novel about Bernadette has
focused the attention of an uncom
prehending world on the wonder
ful shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes.
In the main, the reaction both to
the novel and to the film appears
to be one of mingled reverence
and awe-
The point of Lourdes is two
fold: that God operates at His
pleasure throughout His creation,
and that God’s power is frequently
employed at the intercession of
that Mother of Christ whom Cath
olics hail as the Immaculate Con
ception.
It should not be any surprise,
therefore, if columnists, ignorant
of theology and without even the
beginnings of faith, frequently
miss the point of Lourdes and fail
to catch the higher harmonies of
the Song of Bernadette. One may
reasonably complain, however, at
such discussion of Lourdes and
Bernadette as occasionally appears
in the reviews. It is easy to under
stand the gdod faith bewilderment
of honest non-Catholics confronted
by the testimony of Lourdes, but
it is impossible to be patient with
the bad scholarship and tawdry
skepticism of such columnists as
one who last week published his
critique of Lourdes.
This columnist asserts that he
has long been seeking a ‘rational”
account of the famed place of pil
grimage. He does not indicate
whether he even knows of the in
numerable historical, medical and
apologetic volumes which have
been written with devout faith and
sober science about the wonders
there. One suspects, if only from
his silence in their regard, that he
does not even dream of their ex
istence. lie declares that at last he
has found a satisfactory book
about the shrine. It is, as it hap
pens, a novel, and it is by Zola!
Emile Zola’s novel on Lourdes
has had a remarkable history. Hail
ed for a very brief period after
its publication as a devastating
naturalistic explanation of the
miracles of Lourdes, the tedious
pettifogging atheistic rationalism
“CALL THE PRIEST”
When Plutarcho Calles was bit
terly persecuting the Church his
name appeared on the first page
of papers all over the world.
Last week in an interview he
endeavored to withdraw all that he
said and did. We have not as yet
seen this statement printed any
where in this country. It has al
ways been news to attack the
Church; to defend it or concede
defeat, is not often popular.
Calles is ufndoubtedlv approach
ing his end. Only recently, we
are told, the former President of
Mexico, who once sought to drive
the Priesthood and every sem
blance of Religion out of that
country, appealed for a priest.
The Church has outlived and
outlasted all the tyrants. Calles
is no exception. —(Managing Ed
itor’s Desk—-The Tablet.)
CHARLESTON, S. C. — Sister
Mary de Lourdes, of the Sisters of
Our Lady of Lourdes, died on
April 13, funeral services being
held in the chapel of the Convent
of Our Lady of Mercy.
She was the daughter of the late
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Boyle, of Nor
ristown, Pa., where she was born
in 1884. She entered the Sisters of
Our Lady of Mercy in 1912, and
has been since then a teacher in
various schools in the Diocese of
Charleston. At one time she was
director of Our Lady of Mercy
Academy, a member of the faculty
of Bishop England High School
here, St. Joseph’s Academy, Sum
ter, and St. Angela’s Academy,
Aiken.
CAPUCHIN FRIAR
CONDUCTS “TRE ORE”
AT RALEIGH CATHEDRAL
RALEIGH, N. C.—The Rev. Cyp
rian Truss, O. F. M. Cap., of the
Capuchin Franciscan Friary, Prov
idence, R. I., conducted the “Tre
Ore” devotions at the Cathedral of
the Sacred Heart on Good Friday.
Father Cyprian, who comes from
England, was formerly a pilot in
tbo RAF.
SPEAKS AT MEETING OF
CONGREGATIONAL GUILD
ATLANTA, Ga.—Mrs. James A.
Smith, a member of the Sacred
Heart parish, and also a member of
the May Haverty Study Club, was
the guest speaker at the meeting
of the Women’s Guild of the Cen
tral Congregational Church held
on April 17. Mrs. Smith gave the
club the Catholic viewpoint on the
establishment of a just and lasting
peace in a postwar world.
Wins Purple Heart
St. Leo College Prep.
School
Accredited High School
Conducted by the Benedictine
Fathers
Ideal Location
St Leo Pasco County. Florida
Owl
Cut Rate Drugs
VITAMIN SPECIALISTS
JA. 8063
36 Broad St. Atlanta
X.
MEMBER OF COLUMBUS
PARISH ENTERING NAVY
COLUMBUS, Ga. —Francis
Poster, a member of Holy Family
parish here, and one of the most
active local members of the Cath
olic Laymen’s Association of Geor
gia, is enlisting in the United
States Navy. Formerly advertising
manager for the Kirven Store in
Columbus, Mr. Poster is moving
his family to Atlanta for the dura
tion.
CONFIRMATION AT FOUR
AUGUSTA CHURCHES
AUGUSTA, Ga. — During the
week of April 18, the Most Rev.
Gerald P. O’Hara, D. D„ J. U. D.,
Bishop of Savannah-Atlanta, ad
ministered the Sacrament of Con
firmation at St- Patrick’s, Sacred
Heart, St. Mary’s-on-The-Hill,
and the Immaculate Conception
churches in Augusta. In all, more
than a hundred were confirmed, a
good number of them being adult
converts, with several of the mili-
tray personnel of the Army posts
in and around the city.
CAPT. JOHN II. SOWERS
A member of St. Mary’s parish
in Greenville, South Carolina,
Captain John H. Sowers, who was
wounded in action in the Italian
theatre of war during February,
and .who is now recovering accord
ing to the latest word received
from him, has been awarded the
Purple Heart decoration. Captain
Sowers is the son of John L. Sow
ers, of Greenville, where the young
officer’s wife and children are
now residing. Captain Sowers
served originally with the Nation
al Guard of South Carolina and
went into service with his unit.
BELMONT CADET CORPS
AIDS WAR BOND DRIVE
BELMONT, N. C.—The Belmont
Abbey College Cadet Corps took a
prominent part in the civic parade
which inaugurated the Fourth War
Bond campaign in Belmont. Led
by the military band from Morris
Field, the cadets formed the ma
jor unit in the parade. It was the
first time that the Abbey students
had made a public appearance in
their new cadet-grey uniforms, and
the corps drew applause from
spectators along the line of march-
MILWAUKEE will be host to
more than 175 member publica
tions of the Catholic Press Asso
ciation of the United States on
May 11, 12 and 13 at the 34th an
nual convention of that organiza
tion. Problems confronting the
American Catholic Press as a re
sult of the war will be the theme
of the discussion sessions.
Certainly since man ranks as the
highest of earthly beings and is
only a step below the angels in
heaven, to him must be attributed
the highest degree of excellence, a
worthiness surpassing that of*all
other earthly creatures, a noble
ness predictable to nothing else on
earth. All these qualities are sum
med up in the word dignity, the
dignity of man. This dignity has
been ruthlessly leveled by the ma
terialistic philosophies to the very
finite worth of lower material be
ings, and to rebuild and develop
genuine consciousness of man’s
real dignity in the minds of people
is a task that is of prime import
ance today.
It is the accomplishment of this
task that was in the minds of the
authors of the essays in DEMOC
RACY, SHOULD IT SURVIVE?
(Bruce Publishing Co., $2.00, is
sued by the Wm. J. Kerby Founda
tion) set out to accomplish. The
title is, therefore, a bit misleading
as to the contents of the book. But
the examination of man's inherent
worth within these essays and the
profession of this worth magnifi
cently incorporated into the Con
stitution of our government un
equivocally answers the question
that Democracy, in as much as it
holds man’s dignity uppermost,
should survive. Whether in govern
ment, labor, the sciences, educa
tion or what have you, man’s dig
nity should not be lost sight of, and
this is clearly stated in this work
by such outstanding men as John
A. Ryan, D.D., Luigi Sturzo, Wal
ter Lippmann, Philip Murray,
Jacques Maritain, and others. Of
particular interest in the field of
education is Walter Lippmann’s
"Man In American Education,”
which, though first appearing in
the winter of 1940 and later re
printed in the Catholic Digest, has
and still is receiving wide atten
tion-
Since man is the highest in cre
ation and is essentially a social be
ing with heaven his destination,
there are certain moral and social
obligations lie must fulfill. MOR
AL AND SOCIAL.QUESTIONS, by
Alexander Wyse, O. F. M., (St. An
thony Guild Press. $1.00) is a clear
cut presentation of these obliga
tions that will be of special im
port, because of its convenient tex
tual divisions and sub-divisions, to
High School and Religious discus
sion groups. The arrangement of
its contents is unique in its sim
plicity, presenting first a study of
Human Acts, Law, Conscience and
Sin, followed by the Ten Com
mandments, the Precepts of the
Church and ending with the
Church’s teaching on Human
Rights, Life, Property, Labor, Edu
cation and other social questions.
The clarity of the book cannot be
over-emphasized, and this is one
quality that will make it a valuable
book for every Catholic who should
know the Christian principles un
derlying morality and society.
For a still wider reading on the
subject of man, his rights and du
ties, and of God to Whom we owe
all, is the set of six pamphlets on
“God In The Post-War World” is
sued by the Paulist Press (401 W.
59th St., N. Y., 35 cents a set) en
titled, GOD — MAN’S FIRST
NEED, by Fr. Francis J. Connell,
GOD IN THE HOME, by Fr. John
A- O’Brien, GOD IN EDUCATION,
by Fr. Robert I. Gannon. GOD IN
SOCIETY by Fr. Gerald Treacy,
GOD IN ECONOMIC LIFE, by Fr.
Wilfrid Parsons, and GOD IN
GOVERNMENT, by Fr. James M.
Gillis. The titles speak for them
selves, and though each is sepa
rately obtainable, the set has a def
inite value in giving a more round
ed instruction.
Wm. Raymond Lawler, O. P., in
THE ROSARY OF MARY (St. An
thony Guild Press, $2.00) presents
for the first time in a single vol
ume form the Encyclical and Apos
tolic letters of Pope Leo XIII on
Mary and Her Rosary. The burning
love for Mary in the heart of this
great Pontiff was the force behind
intensifying and spreading devo
tion to the Rosary. And in his En
cyclical UBI PRIMUM he decrees
the manner in which the Confra
ternity of the Rosary is to be ruled-
The Encyclicals are invaluable in
their doctrinal content and inspir
ations, and are deep wells filled
with sermon ideas for the reli
gious.
FARMAL DANCE AT
AUGUSTA USO CLUB
AUGUSTA, Ga.—While social
functions were suspended during
Holy Week at the USO-NCCS
Club here, the club was open as
usual and offered many services to
the men and women of the armed
forces. The social program was
resumed on the Wednesday after
Easter with a formal dance, the
hall being decorated for the occa
sion by Mrs. Katherine Mobley,
and a committee of Army wives.
“BACKWARDS DANCE”
AT SAVANNAH USO CLUB
SAVANNAH, Ga. — A "Back
wards Dance” was featurfed at the
April Fools’ Day dance given at
the USO Club operated by the Na
tional Catholic Community Ser
vice. An orchestra from Camp
Stewart furnished the music and
many novelty features were intro
duced.
An April 2, the Breakfast Club,
headed by Miss Elizabeth Haynes,
served a country style breakfast to
service men, and on April 3 Pitch's
Kitch’n featured a pancake supper
with Mrs. William Leonard, Mrs.
Barbara Aimar and Mrs. W. Zoller
as hostesses.
Tailor Suits Cleaned
and Pressed
S. B. SIMS
PRESSING WHILE
YOU WAIT
Ladies Work a Specialty
250 Auburn Ave.. N. E.
Atlanta, Ga.
pfi' nCI 5
HIGHIH^ 5
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You will find the Dinkier Hotels
located conveniently on all prin
cipal highways in the South. In
each you will find a cordial wel
come by a cheerful, friendly
staff. The rooms are furnished
for comfort . . . each with pri
vate bath. Garage connections
are convenient and popular
prices prevail in dining rooms
and coffee shops.
The SAVANNAH
In Savannah
*The TUTWILER
In Birmingham
*The JEFFERSON DAVIS
In Montgomery
*The ANDREW JACKSON
In Nashville
*The ST. CHARLES
In New Orleans
The ANSLEY
In Atlanta
The 0. HENRY
In Greensboro
Moderate Rates
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DINKLER HOTELS
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300D Rooms m 50UTHERR HOTELS
'Life Insurance Company
or Boston, Maboacmusetto
SAVANNAH
George A. Rice
Citizens Trust Bldg.
Phones 3-5492—2-2911
COLUMBUS
O. E. Sturkic
First National Bank Bldg.
Phone 2-3852
Wm. D. Key
WALTER POWELL,
General Agent for
Georgia, 1403
William-OIiver
Bldg., Atlanta.
MACON
Edwin S. Davis
First National Bank Bldg.
Phone 1142
ATHENS
Howard T. Abney
Southern Mutual Bldg.
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