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NOVEMBER 27, 1948
THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
rivE
BOOK REVIEWS
EDITED BY EILEEN HALL
WITH OTHER EDITORS
HUMAN DESTINY: By Lecomlc
du Noiiy, 289 pages. New York:
Longmans Green and Company,
$3.50.
Great books, like great men,
are few and far between. Dr.
Locomte du Nouy is a great man,
and in Human Destiny, he has
written a great book. This work
will probably be read a hundred
years from now. Man is likely to
say in the years to come, here is
the book that returned man's mind
from the muddled and specious
thinking of the pseudo-scientific
age, to clear thinking and an
understanding of the funda
mentals of God and man's relation
to him. This book gives one a
greater sense and a deeper under
standing of the value of human
dignity. If one ever doubted one’s
absolute dependence on the Chris
tian religion for higher attain
ments and development of self,
there can hardly be any doubt
after reading this magnificent
book.
In his brilliant discussion of the
evolution of man, Dr. du Nouy,
takes science apart and looks at
it, as it were, and tags it for what
it is worth or is not worth. Like
wise, he points out the progress
man’s spiritual being has made,
some of its errors, and the great
possibilities the future holds for
our spiritual development. “Evolu
tion continues in our time,” he
says, ‘‘no longer on the physiologi
cal or anatomical plane, but on
the spiritual and moral plane.”
However, Dr. du Nouy says to
the timid and warns those who are
prejudiced against what we call
science, that, “any man who be
lieves in God must realize that
no scientific fact, as long as it is
true, can contradict God. Other
wise, it would not be true. There
fore any man who is afraid of
science does not possess a strong
faith.
Although a scientist of world
renown, Dr. du Nouy was an out
standing philosopher and a deeply
religious man. Rev. Gerald G.
Walsh, editor of “Thought”, Ford-
ham University, says “The book
seems to me the most remarkable
esr,ay in natural theology attempt
ed by any scientist of our age.”
Taking the position that the
strictly, materlialistic theory of the
Universe, and of man, is no longer
tenable, Dr. du Nouy says, is not
on this earth by chance alone;
neither are other forms of life
here by chance. He brings great
learning and deep insight in sup
port of his contention that man is
a creature of God, as is all forms
of life; and drives home the un-
escapable truth that man is begin
ning a great moral and spiritual
evolution. And this is another way
of saying man has and is evolving
spiritually and morally; and he is
traveling this highway toward the
Kingdom of God today In a way he
has never traveled it before.
Learning and living the truths
of Christianity, which is spiritual
and moral development, is not
easy, for as Dr. du Nouy points
out, "every man must wage his
own fight without which he can
not progress. There is no short
cut to truth. ... by laboring to
perfect himself, by building an
inner temple, by judging himself
without complacency, man un
consciously shapes a soul which
overflows and extends all around
him, ...xious to diffuse into that
of others. By seeking himself he
finds his brother. To progress he
must fight himself; to fight him
self he must know himself; if he
really knows himself he learns in
dulgence, and the barriers whicii
separate him- from his neighbors
crumble little by little. There is
no other way toward human
solidarity but the search and re
spect for individual dignity.”
Man has turned to his paterns of
economics, and to his world of
science, also various political
structures in his hunt for peace
and happiness: always with the
hurning hope o r possessing an
a’ ndance of this world’s goods,
. ach time these things failed him
and left him in despair and con
fusion. The basis of thaj. which
he is seeking is spiritual and moral
development without it, man ’ is
no more than the beasts of the
fields. Man’s hope, is as Dr. du
Nouy says:
“The only salvation of mankind
will be found in religion. How
ever, it must be a sound Christian
religion: vitalized by his own
primitive ideals; aware of the
progress of science, rid of prej
udices against fair speculative in
telligence, and soaring high above
frontiers. Never in her two tiou-
sand years has the Church had a
more urgent call and a nobler op
portunity to fulfil her obligation
as to the comforter and guide of
humanity.”
But the author reminds us that
in the final analysis it is individ
ual development and responsibil
ity, if man is to receive the bless
ings of Christianity, for he points
Convert
An ex-minister and former na
tional chaplain of the Ku Klux
Klan, Dr. Alton M. Young, 61,
has formally embraced the Cath
olic faith. Baptized four months
ago, the ex-Klan Kleagte received
the Sacrament of Confirmation
from Auxiliary Bishop James A.
McNulty of Newark, in St. Aed-
an’s Church, Jersey City, Oct. 17.
INP Photo. (NC Photos.)
out that “the gestures of faith,
assiduous attendance at church,
outward piety, signify nothing if
man does not conform his acts and
his life to the Christian ideal.”
And with ihs character of life,
will come the basis of peace which
“must be established by trans
forming man from the interior,
and and not by erecting external
structures . . . the source of all
wars, the source of all evil, lies in
us. No outside protection will be
efficient if the enemy cowering
at the bottom of our hearts is
authorized to live.”
Human Destiny is destined to
become one of the most powerful
and relentless foes of Communism
and all other forms of regimenta
tion, ever written. The crux of
this brilliant presentation of man’s
place in the universe and his mis
sion, depends on man’s individual
effort to develop his spiritual and
moral being; but not at the ex
pense of his fellowman, but at the
expense of the evil in himself. For
convenience, we call human nature
evil, “for it was human nature,
and not religion, which bred in
tolerance and fanaticism in the
ancient days.” And the same old
human nature, is still working
over-time breeding intolerance
and fanaticism. If man is to
overcome this curse he must wage
a double fight constantly, using
his brain as both of his weapons:
“intelligence which protects his
body, and moral ambition which
guarantees evolution.” However,
Dr. du Nouy reminds us, that while
man must use his reason in cur
rent life in dealing with his fel
low man, “he will perpetrate fewer
errors if he listens to his heart.”
And again he drives his point
home forcefully against Com
munism when he stresses that “the
unanimity of individuals can only
emerge from the identity of moral,
spiritual, and intellectual instruc
tion, and can alone furnish the
concrete base on which to build a
stable and permanent society. The
state should be the servant of Man,
protect him in his free individual
expansion and be worthy of him.
It should not dominate him. The
value of a country is the sum of
the values of its children. Any
government which seeks to sub-
s ute its interests to the pursuit
of individual development is re
gressive and threatens human dig
nity.
“In the near future the world
will suffer above all from dis
trust,” Dr. du Nouy says. “We
all realize this, but what is done
to dissipate or to prevent this state
of things, from being perpet
uated? Few people worry about
it. Governments think only of
maintaining armies, alas neces
sary, and all kinds of barriers
which merely intensify suspicion.
Can we not find, among those
whose voice is heard, a few men
capable of looking beyond the
term of their activity, beyond the
miserable duration of human life,
and anxious to shape the future
by preparing clear-sighted coming
generations, imbued with self-
respect and free from the super
stitions which impede the flight
of integral progress? Can we not
find leaders of sufficient visoin to
conceive an international plan of
moral development spreading over
several generations, instead of
economic plans for five yeares?”
SILVER JUBILEE
The congratulations and best
wishes for many more years of
activity go forth from the com
munity today to the Rev. Father
Thomas A. Brennan on the oc
casion of the twenty-fifth anniver
sary of his ordination to the Catho
lic priesthood. The pastor of the
Church of the Most Blessed Sacra
ment is observing his silver jubilee
with the celebration of a solemn
high mass and later in the day
with receptions at which his many
friends among the clergy and laity
will greet him.
This is a splendid summation of
present day affairs and certainly
is indicative of things to come,
for the near future, at least.
In dealing with the greatest
drama of all time—the drama of
creation. Dr. du Nouy concludes
his profund and readable book on
a note of high hope and admoni
tion to all humanity, saying in
fine:
"Let every man remember that
the destiny of mankind is incom-
narable and that it depends great
ly on his will to collaborate in the
transcendent task. Let him remem
ber that the law is, and always has
been, to struggle and that the
fight has lost nothing of its vio
lence by being transported from
the material onto the spiritual
plane; let him remember that his
own dignity, his nobility as a hu
man being, must emerge from his
efforts to liberate himself from
his bondage and to obey his deep
est aspirations. And let him above
all ne-cr forget that the divine
spark is in him, in him alone, and
that he is free to disregard it,
to kill it, or to come closer to
God by showing his egarncss to
work with Him, and for Him. ’
Need one be urged to read this
great book?—W. A. Lufburrow.
“JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF
GOD,” by Archbishop Alben Qood-
ier. S. J., (Grail $1.25.
(Reviewed by Betty Jordan)
) True Man. Jesus Christ was. as
historians,i scientists, • critics, and
unbeliever all agree. That He was
and is also True God, Archbishop
Goodier proves in this book, one
of a number of his excellent spir
itual works which just recently
have been printed and made avail
able in America.
As is the case with most spirit
ual books, this divided into parts,
the first dealing with Belief in
Christ, based on His Person, in its
utter truthfulness and transcend
ency, at once humon and divjne!
His claim of being Very God, for
which He was put ot death; His
teaching of the fellowship of Him
self as the secret of Man’s true
progress; and the reward of peace
in this life and eternal happiness
in the next which he promised to
all who follow Him.
Part II, entitled "The Historic
Christ,” shows the vital part the
promise of a redeemer played in
the faith, tradition, events and
prophecies of the Jewish race, the
circumstances, and surroundings
into which Christ came, and the
fulfillment of the prophecies, not
only by the events of His life and
death, but also by the kind of
Man he was. Notable is the chap
ter, “The Character of Christ.”
Here, in words that all can un
derstand, that all will remember,
is a description of the Perfect Man
in His Sacred Humanity, the model
we must follow, the ideal we must
strive to become.
The various judges of Christ
are presented in the last part of
the book in character studies that
display human nature, then as
how, ,and its reasons for reject
ing Christ. Annas is the ma
terialist, Caiphas, a product of
Compromise, Herod is the lover
of vice, Pilate represents the re
fusal to accept truth, and the study
of the traitor, Judas, is a por
trayal. of sin, striking in its stark
expose of what mortal sin, strip
ped of all its excuses and pro
tests, really means and is.
Archbishop Goodier writes with
depths of knowledge, understand
ing and love. His style is force
ful in its calm appeal to reason,
beautiful with the quiet dignity
of simplicity, reverent in the ten
der treatment of a sublime sub
ject. As he says—language— is
incapable of expressing human
ideas—how much less can human
words express the idea of God.”
Nevertheless, Archbishop Goodier
has given us a whole picture of
Christ and Ilis place in our lives
that should bring us nearer to
the realization of that love for
Christ which, in the closing words
of the book, is“that great, noble,
self-sacrificing. all embracing
thing that makes a man close akin
to the loving God Himself.”
A native of Savannah, Father
Brennan comes of a family long
identified with activities here.
Those who know him, both within
and without his faith, admire him
for his devotion to the duties to
which he has dedicated his life and
hold him in affectionate regard
for his geniality and pleasantness.
The church which Father Bren
nan now serves as pastor is one
of the outstanding new develop-
men' : in the diocese. Father Bren
nan, his associates and predeces
sors. have accomplished much,
spiritually and materially, in the
parish, and in his work, on this,
his silver jubilee. Father Bren
nan’s friends wish him continued
success and happiness.—(The Sa
vannah Evening Press).
CHURCHMEN’S GATHERING
Brunswick, we are glad to note,
has just come in for some gen
erous and interesting editorial
comment in the pages of The Bul
letin, official paper of the Cath
olic Laymen’s Association of Geor
gia. A major part of the current
issue is devoted to the Associa
tion’s thirty-third annual conven
tion scheduled here next Sunday.
As the paper points out, the
coming meeting will mark the
first time in the Association’s his
tory that the churhmmen have met
in souheast Georgia. But, The
Bulletin assures its readers, “As
sociation members are enthusiastic
over the prospects of going to
Brunswick, which has so many and
varied attractions. . .
The community is of course de
lighted to be so honored. And
there is every good wish from
Brunswick! ans that the convention
will indeed be, as The Bulletin
hopes, “one of the most important”
in the Association's efforts.
Of particular interes to stu
dents of local history is The
Bulletin’s discourse on the work
of Spanish missionaries and other
developments in this area. The
News is happy to pass along a few
excerpts, as follows:
“Years before the English sel
lers came to Jamesown, years be
fore the Pilgrims landed at Ply-
mouh, Spanish missions were es
tablished and flourished along the
Georgia coastline, from Florida
to St. Helena in South Carolina.
Priests of the Society of
Jesus were the first missionaries
shortly after St. Augustine was
founded in 1565. In 1573, the
Franciscans took the place of the
Jesuits on the missions in Geor
gia- . *
“Missions were built. The mis
sions of Santa Catalina on St.
Catherine's Island; San Jose, on
Sapelo Island, San Buenaventura,
on St. Simons Island; Santo Do
mingo Mission on the mainland in
Glynn County; Santa Maria, near
St. Mary's, and others.
"The Spanish missions passed
from the Georgia scene a*er the
Battle of Bloody March on St.
Simon's Island, 1742, when the
Spaniards were defeated by the
forces of General Oglethorpe.
“There does not appear to be
any record of Catholic activity in
the Brunswick area from that time
until 1791 when Jekyll Island was
purchased by a member of tne du-
Bignon family from France, and
visiting priests came to the island
to celebrate Mass. Priests con
tinued to visit Brunswick at inter
vals until Father Francis X. Mc
Cabe csablished a parish in Bruns
wick in 1875. For twenty-five
years it was served by priests
of the Diocese of Savannah. In
1897 the parish became a charge
of the Marist Fathers, who are
still serving in Brunswick and its
mission territory.
“In Brunswick, the Catholic
Laymen of Georgia will be remind
ed of a day when all of the Chris
tians of Georgia were Catholics.
Catholics in Georgia should be
proud of that remarkable era of
ltheir state’s history, a period when
Cahoiic faith and Chrisian cul
ture flourished here hundreds of
years ago.”—The Brunswick News.
BENEDICTINE SCHOOL
AUXILIARY SPONSORS
DANCE IN SAVANNAH
SAVANNAH, Ga.—A dance for
commissioned officers of the cadet
corps of Benedictine Military
School Auxiliary.
Serving as chaperons .were Mrs.
E. It. lleise and Mrs. J. M. Keat
ing, officers of the auxiliary.
The Auxiliary also sponsored
its annual bazaar, on November 3,
Iho committee in charge, headed
by Mrs. A1 Remler, including
Mrs. Charles Klene, Mrs. W. L.
Moody, Mrs. Herbert Johnson,
Mrs. E. R. lleise, Mrs. J. J. Owens,
Mrs. Joseph Frewer, Mrs. ’J. E.
Sykes, Mrs. R. W. Logue, Mrs.
Peter Ricks and Mrs. F. X. Bey-
tagh.
You trust its quality
torncD otioifl authof r*** coca-coca ocmpamy w
Coitatssbsss Coca-Cola Bottling Co.
COLUMBtUS,