Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4—The Southern Cross, February 2, 1963
You Need The Catholic Press
\
»**•—
“Informed Catholics read
their Catholic Press” is the
theme for the 1963 Catholic
Press Month observance, and
the history making Vatican
Council II is the special focus
for this year’s observance.
Each year, Catholic maga
zines, newspapers, and book
and pamphlet publishers, and
their readers, set aside Feb
ruary for special attention to,
and promotion of, Catholic
publishing and Catholic read
ing.
This year’s special atten
tion to the Vatican Council--
now between sessions--is es
pecially fitting, because the
eyes of the nation and the
world have been turned to the
Council, and will again focus
on the Council’s second ses
sion beginning this September.
We want to call to your at
tention the special informa-
For Religious Freedom
Freedom of religion is un
doubtedly the most precious
right of mankind. For it in
volves the most fundamental
of all human relationships,
that of man to God.
And it is precisely because
of the sacred and transcenden
tal nature of this relationship
that any attempt to abridge it
produces the deepest, bitter
est, and most lasting divisions
in the family of man.
One of the aims of the Sec
ond Vatican Council is to bind
up the wounds which these di
visions have caused. And both
the Catholic and non-Catholic
world look forward, with pray
erful hope to the action of
...the....Council Fathers on ..the
project voicing the Church’s
belief in the right of religious
freedom, which will be sub
mitted for their consideration
at the session which begins on
September 8th.
In the meantime, surely all
who long for the cessation of
religious strife and bitter
ness may find comfort in the
words of Augustin Cardinal
Bea, President of the Secre
tariat for Promoting Chris
tian Unity.
Cardinal Bea sees, as the
cause of rancor and distrust
between men of differing re
ligious convictions, not mere
ly the desire for unrestrict
ed freedom in seeking truth
and proclaiming it in the
subjective manner in which
one perceives it, but in the ap
parent inability of men
who love God to place proper
emphasis on both the love of
Truth and the love of Charity.
tive role of the Catholic press
in connection with the Second
Vatican Council. You can get
day-to-day news of the Council
from your daily newspapers
and from radio and television
. . . but from the Catholic
press you get reporting on the
Council in depth and with spe
cial authority . . . you get
the background necessary to
understand many of the de
liberations by the Council fa
thers . . . and you get a true
Catholic interpretation of the
Council’s results, necessary
to help you keep yourself in
formed, and to form a right
conscience.
We urge continued and ex
panded use of THE SOUTHERN
CROSS and the Catholic press
generally, and we thank our
readers for their past, and
continued, support.
"Redemptive” Artists
NEW YORK-Artists, writers,
dancers and musicians attend
ing the first “Mass of the Ar
tists’’ in the Chapel of St. Fran
cis Xavier church here were
told that in a special way they
“shared in the work” of God’s
He does indeed, warn
against the danger of holding
that all assertions are.equally
true and equally false.
We do not, he says, “wish
to act as that judge of ancient
times who sat in court agree
ing in turn with both the con
flicting parties.
“And when his young son
who played at his feet . . .
observed judiciously: ‘Papa,
it is not possible that both
sides are right!’ he answered
calmly: ‘You also are right.’ ”
But he also scored the ob
jection of those who maintain
that “error has no right to
exist.” “Error,” he said, “is
something abstract and is not,
therefore, a question of right.
BUTT MAN IS, even when he
errs invincibly, which is to
say without being able to cor
rect himself, THE SUBJECT
OF RIGHTS. It is, therefore,
his duty and his right to fol
low his conscience and it is
also HIS RIGHT THAT THIS
INDEPENDENCE BE RE
SPECTED BY ALL.” (Em
phasis ours)
Cardinal Bea sees “real
charity toward one’s neigh
bor” as the best way to avoid
obstacles “that threaten love
and the quest for truth.”
“Take for example, mater
nal love, or the love of a real
friend,” he says. “See how
much this love teaches us to
place ourselves effectively in
the place of the other person,
to consider his point of view,
to endeavor to understand what
he thinks, what there is of truth
in what he thinks, to strive to
(Continued on Page 5)
'REMEMBER: YOU NEED BOTH TO BE FULLY' INFORMED!"
PENANCE AND THE COUNCIL
It Seems to Me
I doubt if there is any way of
making the business of going
to confession less of a problem
than it is for people like me,
but if there is, I hope that
somebody in the ecumenical
council will
think of it.
I am al
ways pro
foundly sym
patic o when
told, by
friends
thinking of
becoming
C a t h olics,
that this sacrament is what
chiefly gives many prospective
converts pause.
It can hardly give anybody
more pause than it has given
me ever since I was a boy telling
the priest in a breathless whis
per that I had gone and talked
back to my mother again.
MY TROUBLE then, and my
trouble ever since, has been an
enormous shyness. I can vividly
remember running to my bed
room and crawling under my
bed—so far under that nobody
could reach me—when visitors
came to our house in my early
years.
This s e 1 f-consciousness
sometimes has taken un
expected forms. I was hideously
embarrassed when my mother,
to whom I had confided that I
might possibly become a priest,
called me into the parlor one
day when the pastor had stopped
to see us.
“Tell Father Linus,” she
said with pardonable but mis
taken fond pride, “what you’re
going to do when you grow up.”
IT WAS ALL OVER in an
instant, and to this day I cannot
quite understand why I did what
JOSEPH BRElG
I did. But the fact is that I
looked the pastor in the eye and
blurted, “I’m going to drive a
garbage truck.”
Father Linus set me at ease
by bursting into a roar of de
lighted laughter.
This hypersensitivity of mine
about the inviolability of the
innermost man makes me hor
ribly awkward at moments of
the tenderest identification with
the difficulties and sorrows of
others.
I have a profound awareness,
for instance, of what it must be
like for a husband to lose his
wife, or a wife her husband, to
the kidnapper named to death. I
know what it would mean for me
to have Mary taken from me. I
would be worse than cut in half;
I would be cut to ribbons or
near nothingness.
TO EXPRESS this, however,
to somebody who has suffered
such a separation is nearly
impossible. On the one or two
occasions when I have tried, I
have been close to tears and
indeed to emotional break
down—and a man is expected
not to weep.
One of the problems about
confession, I suppose, is that we
do not have a precise theolo
gical knowledge about guilt.
When I told the confessor, timei
after time, that I had talked back
to my mother, was I really
confessing a sin?
I doubt it. We were an argu
mentative family. Almost every
meal was a debate. When I
“talked back” to my mother,
there was no intention of dis
respect, and so probably no
guilt.
BUT WHO am I to say? We
are poor judges of our own
cases. We may be too lenient
with ourselves; we may be too
harsh. That, no doubt, is one
reason for confession.
The root reason, of course,
is that Christ instituted the sa
crament; and being God as well
as man, knew exactly what He
was doing, and why. And so I
go to confession, even though
I’ve got to take myself by the
seat of the pants to do it.
Perhaps it is more pleasing to
Him than if it were easy for
me.
And perhaps not. Maybe what
is wrong is that I lack humility;
certainly I am not as humble as
I ought to be. But my difficul
ties may also be largely a
matter of temperament.
ODDLY or not oddly, I am
doubly embarrassed in the con
fessional when I am not con
scious of having sinned recent
ly. It seems boastful and self
blind to say that you know of
no deliberate infraction since
your last confession; and yet,
if that is the fact, it would
be dishonest to pretend other
wise.
My mother used to recom
mend this or that confessor
because “he gives you so much
consolation.” I used to reply
and still reply— that I do not
go to confession for consola
tion, but for absolution. That’s
my consolation.
I doubt that any homily could
add anything to my self-
condemnation; and I doubt that
it would be good for me to be
consoled. I’m more than suffi
ciently conceited as iris.
Absolution, however, is the
ultimate in consolations. To
know that God has cleansed
the soul through the sacrament
makes a chap come out walking
on air, even though he went
in disliking every moment of
it.
redemption.
All art has a redemptive, a
Christ-like function, preparing
souls to receive the grace of
Christ, said Father C. J. Mc-
Naspy, S. J., associate editor
of “America” magazine. “In
that sense, all art is sacred,”
he declared.
Televised Consecration
NEW YORK-The dual conse
cration of two bishops will be
featured on the ABC Television
network from 2 to 2:30 on Sun
day, February 3rd.
A film of the January 24th
consecration of Auxiliary Bish
ops John J. Dougherty and Jo
seph A. Costello of Newark will
be shown on the “Directions
'63: A Catholic Perspective”
program.
Teen-Ager To
Raise $10,000
NEWARK, N. J.-A 15-year
old Catholic school student here
has taken on a man-sized job —
raising $10,000 for the Dr,.
Dooley Foundation, which car
ries on the medical work inau
gurated in the Far East by the
famed doctor who died of can
cer at 34.
With money borrowed from
his father, he has engaged the
Kingston Trio for a per
formance at the 4,000-seat
South Mountain Arena in South
Cassian’s Grammar School and
his father has committed $6,500
to the project.
Conflict
Among Bishops
OMAHA, Neb.—Archbishop
Gerald T. Bergman of Omaha
blamed “newspapermen striv
ing for an exceptional angle”
for reports of conflict among
the bishops at the Second Vat
ican Council.
“You’d get the idea that some
bishops were wearing guns on
their hips from some reports,”
the Archbishop said. “I
may have looked for a bomb
under my chair because some
were set off in St. Peter’s be
fore the council began but I
never worried about the bish
ops. At their age, they wouldn’t
be sure shots anyway.”
KC’s To Meet
MIAMI BEACH—The Su
preme Board of the Knights of
Columbus voted to hold the or
ganization’s 1966 convention in
this resort city.
Bill To Aid
VA Chaplains
WASHINGTON—A bill to pro
vide that a portion of the pay of
Veterans Administration chap
lains be considered a tax free
rental allowance was introduc
ed in the House byRep. William
C. Cramer of Florida. It would
leave it to the Administrator of
Veterans Affairs to determine
how much of chaplains' pay
should be considered as a rent
al allowance.
Motto For
Public Schools
BROOKLYN, N.Y. —State As
semblyman Joseph R. Corso of
Brooklyn said he will introduce
a bill “that will require prom
inent display of our national
motto ‘In God We Trust’
in every school room of New
York State.”
She Aids Poor Parishes
CLEVELAND, Ohio—Mrs.
Joseph Ellis, a Negro convert,
has donated to poor parishes
here and to southern missions
$2,553 raised by operations of
a salvage store she conducts
in a poor neighborhood here.
Besides turning over to char
ity all profits from the store,
Mrs. Ellis also passes on to
parish priests the names
and addresses of visitors to the
store who express an interest
in the stock of Catholic liter
ature she keeps on hand there.
More Moslem Trouble
LONDON—Both the British
Commonwealth Office and the
Malayan High Commission have
declined to discuss reports in
dicating Islam will be the na
tional religion of the Federa
tion of Malaysia.
Maylasia will be composed of
Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak,
MOSCOW SAYS
North Borneo and Brunei. 57
percent of the population is
non-moslem.
But in Malaya some discrim
ination against Christians al
ready operates. Other Moslem
countries also impose restric
tions on the freedom of Chris
tians.
Protestant Monk
Praises Council
PARIS—The prior of a
French Protestant monastery
said that the second Vatican
Council has “exceeded our
hopes” in meeting the problems
of todays world.
Pastor Roger Schutz, prior
and founder of the Protestant
monastery at Taize said that
when he was leaving for Rome
he believed that * ‘nothing prac
tical would result from the
council for the contemporary
world” but that what he saw
at the council was an “epis
copate attentive to all the
needs of today's world and ready
to respond to them.”
IF YOU’RE SICK, WEAK,
BLAME YOUR BAPTISM
Catholic Press Coverage Of
Vatican Council Cited By CPA
President In “Month” Message
By Floyd Anderson
President, Catholic
Press Association
(N.C.W.C. NEWS SERVICE)
In February the Church in
America observes Catholic
Press Month, and we pause
for a brief evaluation of the
present position of our Catho
lic press today.
Catholic newspaper, maga
zine and book publishers have
distinguished themselves these
past few months by their out
standing coverage of what has
been called the greatest Ca
tholic news story of this cen
tury—the Second Vatican Coun
cil—the first session of which
was concluded in Rome last
December.
Week by week, Catholic dio
cesan weekly papers have
brought full coverage on council
developments to Catholic
America, Catholic magazines
have published many fascinat
ing background an interpre
tative articles, and book pub
lishers have produced helpful
of
to
and illuminating texts on past
councils and the present one,
their history and meaning.
America’s general daily
press, news magazines and
other media have also done
fine work in reporting the coun
cil. In fact, news about this
council has probably received
better coverage than any other
Church event in history.
When the second session
the council begins this Septem
ber, we can look forward
continued outstanding news and
background coverage by the Ca
tholic press and the general
press of America.
While thanking Catholic
America for its present sup
port, we suggest to America’s
Catholic readers wider use of
Catholic newspapers, maga
zines, books and pamphlets,
so they may keep abreast of
the important council news —
and the growing volume of other
Catholic information—through
the medium of our ever-
improving, ever-growing
American Catholic press.
Second Joyful Mystery
THE VISITATION
Our ^ Father
Now Mary went into the hill country./
And she entered the house of Zachary
and saluted Elizabeth.
Luke 1:39, 40
HaiUSv Mary
When Elizabeth heard the greeting of
Mary, the babe in her womb leapt./
And she was filled with the Holy Spirit.
~ Luke 1:41
Hail 2Sv Mary
And she cried out, ’Blessed are thou
among women/
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb! ’
Luke 1:42
Hail Si Mary
’And blessed is she who has believed,/
because the things promised her by
the Lord shall be accomplished.’
Luke 1:45
HailivMary
And Mary said, ’My soul magnifies the
Lord, and my spirit rejoices in
God my Savior;/
for he has regarded the lowliness of
his handmaid.’
Luke 1:46-48
Hail^Mary
Scriptural 3\osary
Part 2
’For, behold, henceforth all generations
shall call me blessed;/
for he who is mighty has done great
things for me.’
ry Luke 1:48, 49
Haill&Mary
’And holy is his name;/
and his mercy is from generation to
generation on those who fear him.’
^ Luke 1:49, 50
Hail ^ Mary
’He has shown might with his arm,/
he has scattered the proud in the
conceit of their heart.’
ry Luke 1:51
Hail J& Mary
’He has put down the mighty from their
thrones,/
and has exalted the lowly.’
, Y Luke 1:52
Hail X. Mary
’He has filled the hungry with good
things,/
and the rich he has sent away empty.’
Luke 1:53
Hail ^.Mary
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit./ As it was
in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be,
world without
end. Amen.
Editor’s Note: This is one of the 15 decades
of the Scriptural Rosary, a modern version
of the way the Rosary was once prayed in
the Middle Ages. We are presenting the
complete Scriptural Rosary in 15 install
ments as a service to our readers. You are
invited to save these meditations for future
use. Or you may obtain the complete set in
illustrated prayer-book form by sending $1
to the nonprofit Scriptural Rosary Center,
6 N. Michigan A venue, Chicago 2, Illinois.
BERLIN, (NC)—Are you feel
ing run down? weak? wretched?
Moscow Radio has found the
answer; You were baptized!
Moscow Radio told its listen
ers on January 20 that christ- 25 years
ening "can cause irreparable makes the
damage” to a child's health.
Besides, it has discovered that
people in communist Russia
today live more than twice as
long as Russians did before the
Red revolution, when nearly
everybody was baptized.
What’s more, Moscow Radio
has found that the awful effects
of the “barbarous religious
rite” of Baptism canbedrama-
tic--even years later.
If you are nervous or easily
upset, stop now. Don’t read any
further. Because here is what
“An ambulance, sounding its
bell, speeds through the streets
of a town. A man suffering a
heart attack is being brought to
a hospital. He is young, about
old, but his heart
doctors shake their
heads.
‘Did you have any illnesses
in childhood?'
‘Yes, when I was a small
baby,’ he replies in a weak
voice. ‘I was ill after the chris
tening. I do not know what the
illness was. My parents did not
like to talk about it.’
“The doctors examine the
patient, and they are sorry for
him. In spite of his age, he is
already an invalid. His heart
is hopelessly damaged. The
cause of this was a barbarous
the station’s “Man andNature” religious rite, the christening,
program had to say about the the purification of man from
whole lurid business: sin by water.
The Southern Cross
P. O. BOX 180. SAVANNAH, GA.
Vol. 43 Saturday, January 26, 1963 No. 19
Published weekly except the last week in July and the
last week in December by The Southern Cross, Inc.
Subscription price $3.00 per year.
Second class mail privileges authorized at Monroe, Ga. Send
notice of change of address to P. O. Box 180, Savannah, Ga.
Most Rev. Thomas J. McDonough, D.D.J.C.D., President
Rev. Francis J. Donohue, Editor
John Markwalter, Managing Editor
Rev. Lawrence Lucree, Rev. John Fitzpatrick,
Associate Editors