Newspaper Page Text
DECEMBER 7, 1957.
THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN'S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
FIVE
mr
j Jottings .
.8
(By BARBARA C. JENCKS)
e ANOTHER VIEW of Ameri
ca fr ' abroad was given in dis
cussions by two recent lectures
heard. One was Alice Curtayne
from. Ireland and the other was
Dr. Irik Huehnelt Lendihn.
Again it appears that America
suffers seriously' from bad pub
lic re • • ions. The Little Rock sit
uation did not enhance things, of
course Dr. Lendihn believes that
Americans are even more class
conscious than Europeans. We cry
democracy, as one whistling in
the dark, but we are impressed by
titles and our society pages, for
example, are evidence of a dis
tinct - rcial and class conscious
ness. The Protestant society, he
says, eyes, the success story in ma
terial accomplishments. A bank
er and business tycoon, for ex
ample, are the most respected of a
community. This is certainly the
case in American society, I would
say. On the other hand, a Cath
olic society is not so impressed
with tangible signs. The artist,
the writer, the musician are those
revered. This is the case in the
European outlook which is pre
dominantly a Catholic outlook.
• ALICE CURTAYNE. like
most Irish, is enthusiastic at what
she finds in America. She was im
pressed with the quality of quest
ions asked after her lecture. They
were serious questions, relevant
questions, scholarly questions.
She had expected to find the rah-
rah tyre of college girl but found
that the students here were far
more conservative than she had
anticipated. She did state in an
interview with the college news
paper that she believed that
American colleges were over
crowded. Too many students not
proper.y prepared are entering
college, she believes. She did not
elaborate on our superficialness
as did - 1 he German lecturer. In ad
dition to hearing and talking with
these two visitors from abroad, I
have also talked at length with a
Frenchwoman on the faculty. Her
opinions will be further presented
in subsequent columns as she was
the constant companion of the
philosopher, Simone Weil, in the
two years before her death. She
sees American Catholics in the
development stage. She says we
are still defenders of our faith,
we are on the defensive for we
have not the roots of the Church
in France and other European
countries.
9 THESE ARE only random
reports on America as a whole
and American Catholics in par
ticular. It is interesting to meet
these visitors and hear their com
ments on us. During the past
week, I have also assisted an as
pirant to the Fulbright scholar
ship in the writing of her essays.
She must tell why she wants to
study abroad. She wrote an elo
quent appeal saying' that she
wanted to become an articulate
spokesman for America in Europe
to counter-balance the bad prop
aganda we have received in such
heavy measure there. As a young
student at a French university
she wants to show that we are
alive to the cultural possibilities,
that we are not dead artistically.
She thinks that the student ex
change or fellowship plan will be
the antidote for misunderstand
ing between nations.
9 OBVIOUSLY our public re
lations with Europe are bad. Our
critics abroad delight in pounc
ing on occasions which only veri
fy their preconceived and unflat
tering opinions of us. Sometimes
they are right. We do tend to ca-
nozize the materialistic. But we
are a young country. Our contri
butions to the cultural in art,
music, poetry, and fiction have
not been neglected. It is the atti
tude of these who would scorn
art as useless that condemn us
in the eyes of Europe and give
us the name of intensive and
materialistic. We are young too,
as a Church. We are still a pio
neer or mission church. As my
friend from Europe says we are
still too busy defending her from
attacks to grow roots.
Wad
h^iewdlettc
unction
tewMerrcr,
(Continued from Page 4)
bidden. Especially undesirable is
permitting teen-agers to date old
er men.
12. No drinking, even of beer,
should be permitted at high
school parties. This rule, the doc
tor said, is frequently violated.
13. Petting (and necking)
should be absolutely forbidden.
14. Parents should cooperate
in the enforcement of school reg
ulations. For example, although
sororities and fraternities are
forbidden in most Catholic high
schools, parents cooperate in vio
lating this rule by giving their
children money for dues. Parents
should also insist that their chil
dren observe the Legion of De
cency list.
AAA CONCRETE PRODUCTS
CORP.
1190 Sylvester Road
Dial HEmlock 5-4454 P. O. Box 761
ALBANY, GEORGIA
BEST WISHES
SAVELLE
JEWELRY COMPANY
M. J. SAVELLE, JR., President-Treasurer
CHARLES MATHIS, Manager
ALBANY, GEORGIA
MARRIAGES
O-
-O
RYAN-KANE
O-
ATLANTA — Barbara Ann
Kane, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Joseph A. Kane, and Robert J.
Ryan, son of Mrs. B. E. Baker of
Coral Gables, Fla. were married
November 16th at the Cathedral
of Christ the King, Rt. Rev. Msgr.
Joseph Cassidy officiating.
0 O
1 LYONS-BESSMAN |
O —— —O
AUGUSTA — Miss Patricia
Anne Bessman, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. John Bessman of Au
gusta and A/2c William A. Lyons
Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. William
Aloysius Lyons of Augusta, were
married November, 21st at the
Sacred Heart Church.
O-
-O
BANICK-BARRETT |
O O
AUGUSTA — Miss Nancy
Strong Barrett of Augusta,
daughter of Mrs. James Tobin
Barrett and the late Mr. Barrett
and Mr. Cyril Joseph Baniclf of
Scranton, Pa., son of Mrs. Simon
Banick of Scranton, Pa. and the
late Mr. Banick were married
November 16th at St. Patrick’s
Church, Rev. Arthur Weltzer of
ficiating.
O-
-o
McCLEAN-GOSS
O-
O
COLUMBUS — Miss Virginia
Joyce Goss, daughter of Mrs. Ers-
cle Melton Goss of Tallassee, Ala.
and Lt. Raymond James McClean,
son of Mr. and Mrs. Vincent An
thony McClean of Dubuque, La.
were married November - 23rd
with a Nuptial Mass at the
church of the Holy Family, Rev.
John R. McClean. brother of the
groom, assisted by Rev. J. Dei-
mel, officiating.
O-
-O
HEWETT-SMITH
-O
O
SAVANNAH — Miss Patricia
Marie Smith, daughter of Mrs.
Frank W. Smith and Carl Anson
Hewett, son of Mr. and Mrs. Sid
ney Hewett. of Wilmington. N. C.
were married November 23rd at
the Cathedral of St. John the
Baptist, Rt. Rev. T. James Mc
Namara officiating.
O-
CIUCEVICH-QUINN
-O
O-
-O
BELMONT, N. C., — Miss Mary
Ellen Quinn, daughter of Luke P.
Quinn and the late Mrs. Quinn of
Belmont, and Mr. John Robert
Ciucevich of Savannah, son of
Mr. and Mrs. Frank N. Ciucevich
of Savannah were married No
vember 23rd with a Nuptial Mass
at the Belmont Abbey Cathedral,
Rev. Dennis Bryne, O.S.B., offfi-
ciating. Rev. Gabriel Stupasky,
O. S. B., and the Rev. Martin
Hayes, O.S.B., officiating.
f YOU CAN WIN CONVERTS j
► <
► How Belloc Helped Chesterton
£ By REV. JOHN A. O'BRIEN, Ph. D, «
► <
(University of Notre Dame)
Hillaire Belloc and Gilbert K.
Chesterton met for the first time
in a little restaurant in Gerrard
St., Soho, London. Belloc was
then 30, Chesterton four years
younger. They hit it off well from
the very start, and celebrated
their meeting
with a bottle of
wine.
Their close
and unbroken
friendship was
one of the most
notable among
English men of
letters. Toward
the end of his life, Chesterton re
called vividly that first meeting.
“It was from that dingy little
Soho cafe,’ he said, “that there
emerged the quadruped, the
twiformed monster Mr. Shaw has
nicknamed the Chesterbelloc.”
An ardent Catholic, Belloc hun
gered to share the precious treas
ure of the Faith with his friend.
They talked about politics, eco
nomics, literature and almost
everything under the sun. Why
then shouldn’t he tell G. K. about
this desire which had grown ever
stronger in the seven years since
their first meeting?
There is at times, however, a
strange reticence which prevents
friends from telling of the things
deepest in their hearts. This was
the case with Belloc. But he
found a way to get around it.
Since he couldn’t talk to Chester
ton about it, he would write to
him.
Coming into the Reform Club
in Manchester on December 11,
1907, he sat down at a desk and
wrote the following letter. “My
dear Gilbert, I am a man afraid of
impulse in boats, horses and all
action, though driven to it. I
have never written a letter such
as I am writing now, though I
have'desired to write some six or
seven since I became a grown
man.
“In the matter we discussed at
Oxford I have a word to say,
which is easier to say on paper
than by word of mouth, or rather,
more valuable . . . Now if we dif
fered in all main points I would
not write thus, but there are one
or two on which we agree. One is
‘Christ truly suffered and died on
the cross for our salvation.’ An
other is in a looking up to our
Dear Lady, the Blessed Mother
of God.
“I recommend to you this, that
you suggest to her a compre
hension for yourself, of what in
deed is the permanent home of
the soul. If it is here you will see
it, if it is there you will see. it.
She never fails us. She has never
failed me in any demand . . .
“If you say ‘I want this,’ as in
your case, to know one way or
the other — she will give it to
you: as she will give you health
or necessary money or success in
a pure love. She is our Blessed
Mother. I have not used my judg
ment in this letter. I am inclined
to destroy it, but I shall send it.
Don’t answer it. Yours ever. H.
Belloc.”
Years passed. G. K.’s reverence
for Mary deepened into devotion
and love. He wrote poems in her
honor. When at last he made his
decision to embrace the faith,
“it was in front of a guilded and
very gaudy little image of her in
the port of Brindisi.” The lovely
Lady, to whom Belloc had urged
G. K. to turn for help, guided him
safely into the fold in the summer
of 1922, and thus gave the Church
an able advocate and valiant de
fender.
The seed Belloc had planted
18 years before bore a precious
harvest. The whole moving story
is told in Gaints of Ihe Faith,
Doubleday & Co., New York, fea
turing six famous converts. It is
an ideal book to lend to a sincere
inquirer. You too may start a
truth-seeker on his way by writ
ing him a friendly thoughtful
letter — and backing both with
your prayers.
Father O'Brien will be grateful
to readers who know of anyone
who has won iwo or more con
verts if they will send the names
and addresses of such persons to
thim at Notre Dame University,
Notre Dame, Indiana.
SCHOOL OF LIFE
Experience may be a good
teacher, but few people realize it
until they are too old to learn.
HODGES OFFICE EQUIPMENT
COMPANY
1011 BROAD AVENUE ALBANY, GEORGIA
PHONE: 6-4863
• Auihorized Sales and Service Agency
For Remington Rand
BEST WISHES
ANDERSON
ROOFING CO.
Post Office Box 567
ALBANY, GEORGIA