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JUNE 25, 1949
TFft BULLETIN Of THE CATHOLIC LATMEWS ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
1 ELEVEN
Father Edward Joyce
Offers First Mass at
Spartanburg Church
(Special to The Bulletin)
SPAKTANBURG, S. C. —Father
Edmund Patrick Joyce, C. S. C.,
who was ordained on June 8, at
the Sacred Heart Church on the
campus of the University of Notre
Dame, Notre Dame, Ind., by Bis
hop John F. Noll of Fort Wayne,
celebrated his first Solemn High
Mass on June 12 at the Church of
St. Paul the Apostle here.
At the newly ordained priest's
first Solemn Mass, Father Thomas
J. Mackin, chaplain of St. Francis
Xavier Infirmary, Charleston, and
a former pastor of St. Paul’s
church here, was the assistant
priest; Father Charles J. Baum,
pastor of St. Paul’s Church, was
{[cacon, and Father Albert Siener,
assistant pastor of St. Theresa’s
Church, Memphis, Tenn., and the
son of Mr. and Mrs. John P. Siener,
of Spartanburg, was subdeacon.
Fathey Sydney F. Dean, assistant
pastor of St. Mary’s Church,
Greenville, was master of cere
monies.
The sermon at the Mass was de
livered by Father John J. Cavan
augh, C. S. C., president of the
University of Notre Dame.
Members of the Fourth Degree
Knights of Columbus, in full re
galia, acted as a guard of honor,
and the Mass was sung by the com
bined choirs of St. Mary’s Church,
Greenville, under the direction of
Father Ronald P. Anderson. The
Mass and sermon were broadcasted
over Stations WSPA and WSPA-
FM.
Father Joyce, the son of Mr. and
Mrs. E. P. Joyce, of Spartanburg,
was born in Honduras, January 26,
1917. He attended Spartanburg
High school and later the Univer
sity of Notre Dame, where he grad
uated in 1937. After his graduation,
he entered the practice of account
ing here, and in 1939 became a
certified public accountant. He was
associated with L. C. Dodge, C. P.
A., here until four years ago when
he entered the seminary at Holy
Cross College at the Catholic Uni
versity of America.
Father Joyce was ordained as a
member of the Congregation of the
Holy Cross, and order which is en
gaged in educational and mission
ary work.
Negro Priest Offers
First Solemn Mass
CORAL GABLES, Fla.—(NC)—
A Negro Priest, the Rev. Curtis
Thomas Washington, S. V. D., of
Coconut Grove, Fla., celebrated his
first Solemn Mass at the Church
of the Little Flower here on Penta-
cost Sunday.
Bom on April 5th, 1917, Father
Washington completed grammar
school in Coconut Grove and in
1932 entered St. Emma’s Military
Academy at Rock Castle, Va., own
ed at that time by the late Mrs.
Louise Drexel Morrell, a Catholic
benefactress, who helped thous
ands of negro youths to complete
their education. At the time of his
entrance into St. Emma’s, conduct
ed by the Benedictine Fathers of
St. Vincent Archabbey of Latro’. e,
Pa., young Washington was not a
Catholic, but was baptized and re
ceived into the Church in 1933.
After graduating from high
school in 1936, young Washington
was accepted by the Society of the
Divine Word at Bay St. Louis,
Miss. He was orJained a priest on
February 24, 1949, by Bishop Leo
C. Arkfield, S. V. D., Vicar Aposto
lic of Central New' Guinea, in St.
Augustine’s Church, Bay St. Louis,
Miss.
On Trinity Sunday, Father
Washington celebrated a second
Solemn Mass in the Church of St.
Francis Xavier, a mission of
Gesu Parish, Miami.
BROOKLYN, _(NC)— The Rev.
William J. Rodgers, first Negro
priest to be ordained for the
Diocese of Brooklyn, celebrated
his first Solemn Mass in St. Pet
er’s Claver’s Church here on Trini
ty Sunday.
Father Rodgers is the son of
John Rodgers and the late Mrs.
John Rodgers of Brooklyn. He
studied at St. Peter Claver School.
Alexander Hamilton High School
and Cathedral College, Brooklyn,
and at the Immaculate Conception
Seminary, Huntington, L. I.
THE STORY of the first band of
Trappists who came to the United
States and how the forty-four
men built the Abbey of Our Lady
of Gethsemani in Kentuck is told
in “Burnt Our Incense” by Father
M. Raymond, O. C. S. O. The book
is being published by P. J. Kenedy
and Sons in New York coincident
ally with the 100th anniversary of
tho Abbey.
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Pastor in Athens
mmm.
FATHER DONOVAN
The Rev. Walter J. Donovan,
pastor of St. Joseph’s Church, At
hens, Georgia, who is also serving
as Director of the Resettlement
Program for Displaced Persons in
the Diocese of Savannah-Atlanla.
Assistant Pastor
St. Joseph's Athens
FATHER FRANCIS
The Rev. Francis X. Clougherty,
O. S. B., on leave of absence from
St. Procopius Abbey, Lisle, Illinois,
who is serving as assistant pastor
of St. Joseph’s Church, Athens,
Georgia, and as moderator of the
Newman Club at the University of
Georgia.
MISS JOAN RILEY WINS
THOMASVILLE D. A. Rj
GOOD CITIZENSHIP AWARD
THOMASVILLE, Ga—Miss Joan
Riley, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
John T. Riley, has been chosen to
receive the Good Citizenship
Award of the Daughters of the
American Revolution, in recogni
tion of her dependability, leader
ship, service and patriotic quali
ties. The award is made annually
to a girl in the graduating class of
the Thomasville High School, who
is chosen from three seniors se
lected by their classmates as pos
sessing in an outstanding degree
the qualifications mentioned.
Possessing a voice of exception
al quality, Miss Riley assists in di
recting the choir of St. Augus
tine’s Church, and also assists in
the catechetical instruction of the
children of the parish.
Pupils at St. Joseph
School in Waycross
Present Radio Program
(Special to The Bulletin)
WAYCROSS, Ga.—Pupils of the
primary department of St. Joseph
Academy in Waycross were pre
sented recently on the Knights of
Columbus sponsored “Columbus
Hour” over Station WAYX.
The children appeared in a nurs
ery rhyme recital under the direc
tion of Mother Cecelia Marie, O.
S. F., principal of the school, and
a talented member of the musical
department, Lyndon Woodside, of
fered piano selections.
FIRST COMMUNION AT
ST. JOSEPH’S, WAYCROSS
WAYCROSS, Ga.—In the class
which received their first Holy
Communion at St. Joseph's
Church this year were: Raymond
Fechtel, Blythe Nugent, Richard
Germano, Ann Hultz, Desiree Rey
nolds, Daphne Reynolds, Rose Ma
rie Nimmer, Catherine Cate, Karin
Armstrong and Carolyn Bolser.
The class -was instructed by Sis
ter M. Paul Francis, O. S. F., and
the first communicants were at
tended by Patricia Fechtel and
Martha Sue Hampton. The mass
was sung by the adult choir of St.
Joseph’s Church, under the direc
tion of Mother Cecelian Marie, O.
S. F., wth Mrs. C. O. Pharr at the
organ.
Essay Contest Awards
Made in Georgia by
Auxiliary of A. O. H.
SAVANNAH, Ga.—All three
prizes in the Irish History Essay
Contest sponsored by the local and
state divisions of the Ladies Aux-
liary of the Ancient Order of Hib
ernians were won in the high
school group by students at St. Vin
cent Academy, Miss Margaret Ann
Broderick, winning first prize,
Miss Rita Harper, second prize,
and Miss Shirley Mason, third
prize. The subject for high
schools was “American Lawyers
and Jurists of Irish Descent."
In the elementary school group
where the subject of the essay was
“Founding and Growth of the Sis
ters of Mercy,” Betty Jean Wolfe,
a pupil at the Cathedral School
here, was awarded first prize; Mar
gie Zettler of the Immaculate Con
ception School, Atlanta, second
prize, and Shirley Daniel, Sabred
Heart School, Augusta, third prize.
Announcement of the winners
was made by Mrs. Claudia R. Gan
non, president of the local auxil
iary. The judges were Miss Kate
A. Walsh, auxiliary historian;
Father John A. Morris; pastor of
the Church of the Nativity, and
John M. Brennan, member of the
executive board of the Catholic
Laymen’s Association of Georgia.
The prize winning essays have
been forwarded to Providence, R.
I., for entry in the nationwide con
test.
SAVANNAH VETERAN
IN CLASS OF ’49 AT
U. S. MILITARY ACADEMY
SAVANNAH, Ga.—Terence A.
Powers, son of Mr. and Mrs.
Charles F. Powers, was among the
cadets graduating from the U. S.
Military Academy, West Point, this
month.
A graduate of Benedictine Mili
tary School here, Mr. Powers also
attended Marion Institute, Marion,
Ala., and Cornell University. A
veteran of World War II, he served
in the Army for twenty-two months
as a sergeant in the 65th Infantry.
N. C. W. C. Declares Again to
Congress That Parochial School
Pupils Have Claim to Federal Aid
ST. MARY’S CHURCH, ELBERTON—Pictured above is St. Mary’s
Church, Elberton, Georgia, which is served by priests attached
to St. Joseph’s Church in Athens. The church was erected eight
years ag<>
WASHINGTON. —(NO—Speak
ing for America’s Catholic parents,
the National Catholic Welfare Con
ference has stated to the 81st Con
gress that parochial pupils, as well
as those in public schools, are
eligible claimants for Federal edu
cational aid.
The Conference set forth its
position that, at the minimum,
Federal aid legislation must in
clude a mandatory provision that
funds be appropriateto furnish
school services, such is transporta
tion, health and welfare aids, and
non-religious textbooks, to non
public school pupils.
Otherwise, the Catholic organi
zation insisted, Federal attempts
to assist the nation’s school chil
dren would be “unjustly discrimi
natory” and “should be defeated.”
This was a pointed reference to the
Senate-approved Thomas Bill and
to the Barden Bill, the major
House measure, which do not have
this minimum provision.
The N. C. W. C. spokesman was
Father William E. McManus, as
sistant director of the conference’s
Education Department. He appear
ed before the House subcommittee
on education shortly before that
group wound up three weeks of
hearings on proposed legislation.
The Senate did not hold hearings
on Federal school aid this year.
Father McManus suggested that
if Congress cannot bring itself to
guarantee some help for Catholic
school children in the legislation
it has before it, it should junk
these bill in favor of a school
house construction measure. This,
he said, would be the “safest” way
of helping the States out of their
current educational crisis because
it would not commit the Federal
government to a continuing role
in education.
Among others who testified in
favor of inclusion of aid for paro
chial school children were Selma
Borchardt, vice-president of the
American Federation of Teachers,
who represented the American
Federation of Labor, and Repre
sentative John E. Fogarty of Rhode
Island.
A vehement attack on Catholic
aspirations in the educational
field was made before the commit
tee by Elmer E. Rogers, of the
Southern Jurisdiction of the 33rd
Degree Scottish Rite Masons. He
was opposed to Federal aid to edu
cation, but much more opposed to
efforts to include parochial school
children in the program.
He said: “The Roman Catholic
culture, a medieval philosophy,
from which our pioneer settlers
fled ,to America, is foreign to our
early culture which prevailed, un
tarnished by the Roman Catholic
pagan culture, for 200 years. It
was during that period that our
free institutions were established.”
“To preserve our culture and the
political institutions established by
our forefathers we should awaken
to the grave dangers of this medie
val ecclesiasticism in our midst,
which is promoted and supported
by a sovereign church state, and
cease to allow its further infiltra
tion, much less support it from
public taxation,” he declared.
Miss Borchardt said that the 8,-
500,000 members, of the A. F. of L.
were interested primarily in two
things in any Federal aid measure:
that at least 75 per cent of the
funds be earmarked to raise public
school teachers’ salaries, and that
aid in the way of school services
be extended to all of America’s
school children, whether in public
or nonpublic schools.
Representative Fogarty com
mented that “Congress is on the
way to committing a serious error,
in discriminating against certain
school children. He said that a bill
which he proposed would make
bus transportation, for one thing,
available to all children under the
School Lunch Act formula.
“It might be said that this con
stitutes interference with State
authorities in their conduct of edu
cational affairs. I contend that this
is not so. Rather it is a recogni
tion of State authority and a re
fusal to tamper with that authority.
If in any State it is determined
that tax money cannot be expend
ed for nonpublic school children,
then the Federal government
merely withholds a proportionate
amount of the funds,” he explain
ed.
“If we acknowledge that there
is bound -to be some Federal inter
ference or some Federal directives
relative to the expenditure of
these Federal fund$, then f am yn-
able to understand why these ser-
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vices must be denied to children
whose parents have elected to send
them to a school which is support
ed by the parents themselves rath
er than out of tax funds.” Mr.
Fogarty said at another 'point.
“It seems to me that all of us
will acknowledge the paramount
right of parents to select a school
in which he wishes his child to be
educated. Having acknowledged
that right, I fail to see why that
parent and his child must be dis
criminated against. You know
there is more to a right under our
system of government than the
printing of it in a book or repeat
ing it in a speech. In some parts
of the world the enjoyment of a
precious right is made so difficult
that there is, for all practical pur
poses, a denial of that right. We
don’t want that here,” the Con
gressman declared.
Father McManus told the sub
committee that the two bills which
have been given most attention,
the Thomas Bill and the Barden
Bill, “violate the very premises for
Federal assistance to the nation’s
school children.”
“The bills arc supposed to equa
lize educational opportunity; ac
tually, they would produce greater
inequalities of opportunity. The
measures presumably would bene
fit all American school children;
actually, the proposed bills prohi
bit any form of assistance to non
public school pupils and at least
tolerate the denial of this help to
educationally under - privileged
children of minority groups,” he
stated. "The two measures explicit
ly prohibit any federal official to
interfere with the curriculum or
the teachers of any school assist
ed with Federal funds; but the
very same bills allow state educa
tion officials full discretionary
power, even to the extent of con
strolling curricula and teachers in
local or county schools assisted
with Federal money,” he said fur
ther.
“Under the formula in S.246,
(Thomas Bill), the maximum
amount of funds which would be
used to guarantee a minimum edu
cation and for guaranteed equaliza
tion comes to less than $25 mil
lion. To my mind, it is inconceiv
able that' the Federal government
would pass out the balance, $250
million, without any definite un
derstanding about the manner in
which the funds will be used,” ho
stated.
“We must remember that
throughout the world citizens of
other nations are closely watching
the progress of this legislation. Af
ter long experience with the cen
tralized and bureaucratic control
of education, these people are wait
ing to see whether we in the Uni
ted States will safeguard our fu
ture generations aaginst even the
remote danger of educational dic
tatorship by incorporating into our
first basic law for Federal aid an
unmistakably clear statement
about the rights of parents to con
trol their children’s education.
Europeans know that totalitarian
governments, determined to sup
press all parental control of edu
cation repeatedly have captured
complete control of a nation’s
schools on the pre'ense of equaliz
ing educational opportunity,” the
priest declared.
“There is much more at stake
here than a few million dollars.
All parties to the controversy ad
mit this fact. The amount of Fed
eral aid to be granted or denied
to nonpublic school pupils wilt
neither make nor break them.
Around this dispute over a few
million dollars revolve serious con
troversies on the rights of parents,
the status of private schools in a
democracy and the relationship of
government to education.
“I dare say that any person who
wants to restrict parental rights,
to jeopardize the security of pri
vate schools, and to concede to
government an increasing amount
of control over education will be
in- Section 6, of the Thomas Bill a _
vindication of his point of veiw. '
For that reason I say that the bill
is dangerous. In its preesnt form
it may establish a precedent which
in the end may ruin our whole
American school system.”
A BUILDING which formerly
served as a Benedictine Sisters
convent in Richmond, Va., has
been turned over to the Richmond
Catholic Resettlement Council for
use as a stopover place for DP’s
arriving in that city. A committee
of laymen has furnished and deco
rated the building
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