Newspaper Page Text
AUGUST 21, 1954.
THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
FIFTEEN
Word "Catholic" Can
Only Be Applied To
Church Christ Found
By Msgr. Joseph Clifford Fenton
Editor, The American Ecclesias
tical Review
(Written for N. C. W. C. News
Service)
Catholics in this country are
frequently startled^ at the efforts
of non-Catholics in this country
and in England to apply the word
“Catholic” to their own religious
organizations and conventions.
One such effort was made early
this month when “The American
Church Union of the Episcopal
Church” sponsored what it called
a “Chicago Catholic Congress.”
The Co-chairman, of this gather
ing is listed as the president of
the “Chicago Catholic Club.”
Participating in the gathering
were various Episcopalian cler
gymen and leaders from the Jan-
senistic- and “Old Catholic”
groups in Europe and the Polish
National groups in this country.
Real Catholics are instinctively
aware that the term “Catholic”; is
used improperly when it is used
to designate any religious group
other than the society which Our
Lord Himself instituted during
His public life on this earth. They
should know exactly why this is
so.
In the first place they should
know that the _word “Church”
itself has a very particular and
almost indescribably rich mean
ing in Christian doctrine. The
term does not mean merely “a
religious society,” or even “a re-
' ligious society which professes
some sort of attachment to Jesus
Christ. In its religious signifi
cance, the Greek word of which
the English term “Church” is the
translation signifies in the New
Testament nothing less than the
chosen people of God, the king
dom of God, the social unit which
is called in St. Paul’s Epistles, the
“Body of Christ.”
The people of Israel constituted
the “Church” under the old dis
pensation (see Acts, 7:38). The old
Israelitic religious commonwealth
lost its own privileged position as
the “ecclesia” or the company of
God’s chosen people by its rejec
tion of Our Lord. Thus, when Our
Lord died on the Cross, the society
into which He had organized His
disciples began to operate as the
kingdom of God on earth, pos
sessing this dignity in a much
more perfect manner than the old
Israelitic community had ever
possessed it.
This society was so organized
by. Our Lord that His Apostles
were given responsibility for and
authority over it, so that they, as
His instruments and ministers,
migth guide its members to their
eternal salvation. The Holy Fa
ther and the other Bishops of the
Catholic Church are the succes
sors of the Apostles, ruling and
teaching and sanctifying this
Church as the ambassadors of
Christ.
As the ecclesia or the kingdom
of God on earth, the Church is
necessarily one by the very force
of its diivne institution. It can
never become a part of any high
er religious unity into which it
and other religious organizations
might be expected to enter. Men
may legitimately desire to enter
the Church, but they are obvious
ly opposing the will of God when
they try to contrive a religious
unity into which the Church it
self would be expected to enter.
There are many other terms
GEORGIA STATE COUNCIL
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
Henry C. Taylor, Stale Deputy, Atlanta, Ga.
Joseph F. Kunze, Past State Deputy, Columbus, Ga.
George W. Hughey, State Secretary, Albany, Ga.
William O'Dowd, State Treasurer, Augusta, Ga.
R. H. Casson, State Advocate, Macon, Ga.
V. J. Rvan, State Warden, Savannah, Ga.
Ed. P. Daly, District Deputy, First District
James J. O'Shea, District Deputy, Second District
Patrick R. Mulherin, District Deputy, Third District
ATLANTA COUNCIL
NO. 650
MICHAEL F. WIEDL
Grand Knight
HENRY C. TAYLOR
Financial Secretary
Council Meefing 1st and 3rd
Wednesdays at 8 P. M. at the
Council House, 1290 Peachiree
Street, N. E. *.
Club House open every evening
at the above address
SAVANNAH COUNCIL
NO. 631
PETER SCHUSTER
Grand Knight
JOSEPH M. McDONOUGH
Financial Secretary
3 Liberty Street West
Savannah, Ga.
PATRICK WALSH COUNCIL
677
JAMES O. BENNETT
Grand Knight
DICK HESLEN
Financial Secretary
Meets 2nd and 4th Monday
Visiting Brothers Welcome.
2575 Henry Si„ Augusta, Ga..
MACON COUNCIL NO, 925
JOSEPH P. CASSIDY
Grand Knight
ROBERT J. HINSON
Financial Secretary
2986 Houston Ave.
Meets the First and Third
Tuesdays at 8:15 P. M.
541 New Street,
Macon, Ga.
BISHOP GROSS COUNCIL
HENRY THOMAS ROSS
NO. 1019
COUNCIL NO. 1939
PHILIP J. BATASTINI
R. L. BERNARD
Grand Knight
Grand Knight
JOE F. KUNZE
JOHN C. STILES
Financial Secretary
Financial Secretary
Meets 1st and 3rd Mondays
Meets Second and Fourth.
8 P. M., 802 Broadway
Wednesdays at Knights of
K. C. Hall
Columbus Hail
Columbus, Ga,
Brunswick, Ga,
ALBANY COUNCIL NO. 3607
JOHN R. ROSS, Grand Knight
CLARENCE R. SHOEMAKER, Financial Secretary
Council Meets Second and Fourth Monday at 8:30 P. M.
400 N. Jefferson Street
Start New
Devotion
FRAMINGTON, Mass., (NC)—
The Sons of Mary, Health of the
Sick, whose headquarters and
novitiate are at the Sylvia Maria
here, are promoting a new devo
tion to Our Lady of Health, Hap
piness and Peace.
Occasioned by the Marian Year
and the Pope’s plea for special
devotions to Mary during the
year, the spiritual exercise gets its
title from three invocations in
the Litany of Loretto: “Health of
the Sick,” “Cause of Our Joy,”
and “Queen of Peace, pray for
us.”
The new prayers for the devo-
which are frequently and right
fully put with the term “Church.”
It must always be understood,
however, that these terms (such
as the word “Catholic”) are not
in any sense qualiifcations of the
term “Church.” Their use does
not mean that there is actually an
ecclesia which is God’s, but
which is not Catholic or univer
sal. The only reason why such
added words are used is for the
sake of greater clarity in the des
ignation of the ecclesia.
One of these words is “Catho
lic.” The first document which
has survived until our time and
which contains the expression
“Catholic Church” is the letter of
St. Ignatius of Antioch to the
Church in the city of Smyrna in
Asia Minor. It was employed in
this letter in exactly the same
sense as it is used today, to desig
nate the genuine Church of
Christ as something distinct from
the various dissident conventicles
which attempted to imitate it.
The word meant “universal.”
The expression “Catholic Church”
meant “the Church that is to be
found everywhere.” In the early
part of the second century, when
the followers of Christ who trav
elled were accustomed to bring
with them letters of introduction
to the Christian communities of
the cities they were going to visit^
one of the most remarkable
things about the true Church was
the fact that its members could
expect to be received every
where, while the members of the
various heretical sects, which had
come into existence long after the
establishment of the Church, and
which had only a very limited
geopraphical extension, would be
received only within the space of
a very restricted area.
The Creed of Nicea and Con
stantinople, the one recited or
sung in the Mass on Sundays,
designated the true Church as
“the one, holy, Catholic, and
apostolic Church.’-’
tion were written by Father Ed
ward F. Garesche, S. J., spiritual
director of the community. They
were approved by Archbishop
Richard J. Cushing of Boston.
To promote the devotion,
which consists in part of the re
cital of a special prayer for each
day of the week besides a general
daily prayer, an organization
called Our Blessed Mother’s
League for Health, Happiness and
Peace is being established. Each
of the special daily prayers are
in honor of one of the joys of the
Blessed Mother. Further informa
tion on the devotion may be had
from the Shrine of Our Lady of
Health, Happiness and Peace,
Framington, Mass.
The devotion will center in a
shrine now being erected to Our
Lady at Sylvia Maria here.
25 YEARS IN DECATUR DEARBORN 4483
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COMPLIMENTS
H. 0. HUBERT, JR.
DECATUR, GEORGIA
Greetings
WHEAT WILLIAMS
DECATUR. GEORGIA
All Good Wishes
MORRIS B. ABRAM
CREDITORS MERCANTILE AND
ADJUSTMENT AGENCY
"HARTRAMPF COLLECTION SERVICE"
Established 1914 Associated in Every City
NOW IS THE TIME TO COLLECT
YOUR PAST DUE ACCOUNTS
Grant Building Atlanta, Georgia
CARLISLE GRILL
PEACHTREE AT 10TH STREET
DRAFT and BOTTLED BEER
HOME COOKING
VE 9216 ATLANTA, GA.
The real name of the society
over which the Bishop of Rome
presides as the Vicar of Christ is
“the Church.” Also genuine
names, which apply to this re
ligious group and to no other,
are “the kingdom of God,” “the
city of God,” “the Catholic
Church,” and “the Mystical Body
of Jesus Christ.” Non-Catholics
may be expected to use these and
other designations of the Church
to designate their own religious
cults, but this use will always be
inaccurate and improper.
Compliments
CHARLES
HAMILTON
DeSOTO - PLYMOUTH
Harvey Motor Co.
1208-10 GLOUCESTER
BRUNSWICK, GEORGIA