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Criticizes Father Kueng
Bishop Says Theologian Is ‘‘Talking Nonsense”
SPRING LAKE,N. J.—Bishop
George W. Ahr has criticized
“a particular European theolo
gian" for speaking in the Unit
ed States on matters "out of
his field" and "talking non
sense."
The Bishop of Trenton did
not mention Father Hans Kueng
of the University of Tuebingen
Germany, by name, but it was
clear that the Swiss theologian
was his subject.
Father Kueng, who advocates
broad reform in the Church, has
spent five weeks in a cross
country lecture tour during
which he has discussed the
church and freedom.
Bishop Ahr spoke (April 18)
at the annual spiritual direc
tor's dinner of the Monmouth
County Holy Name Federation
here.
"We have been getting a lot
of advice from a particular
European theologian on how to
run the Church, on what is
wrong with the Church," he
said.
"This gentleman made his
reputation by writing a book,
which many consider a classic,
on Karl Barth, Protestant The
ologian. This makes him a n
authority on Karl Barth, not on
how to run the Catholic Church,
and therefore, when he tries to
tell us how to run the Church
and what we should do, he is
out of his field," the Bishop
said.
Bishop Ahr said he questions
the knowledge, experience and
prudence of the theologian.
The prelate said there have
been "contradictions" in some
of the reports of the theologian’s
remarks. He also said that some
of his remarks are not under
standable and the reason may be
that they are nonsense.
Referring to Father Kueng’s
remarks about "the nature
and the unnature of the Church
or the freedom and the unfree
dom of the individual," Bishop
Ahr told his audience:
"If you do not understand this,
don’t worry. There is a tendency
when someone comes from the
other side and talks in a lan
guage that we find a little dif
ficult to understand, to say to
ourselves that he is a smart
man; this must be very deep.
"I don’t understand it. May
be one of the reasons you don’t
understand it is that he is talk
ing nonsense. This is one of the
questions you should raise."
The Bishop told his aud
ience that they "need not ac
cept everything that is uttered
by theologians, foreign or do
mestic, no matter how good the
publicity agent is."
We are getting a lot of ad
vice about freedom," he said.
We are told that we shouldbe
free from the Index of Forbid
den Books. We ought to be free
from previous censorship of
books. Maybe it is true that the
Index needs a little revision.
Perhaps it is also true that
some people with proper safe
guards can read some things
that are on the Index without
personal harm to their spirit
ual lives.
"But we were told during the
council that the Church should
be pastoral in its activity and
must assume and exercise ma
ternal love for all its children.
It seems to me that our young
people and a lot of older
people need a lot of pastoral
care by way of protection which
is afforded by the Index of
Forbidden Books against the
assault s on their virtue and on
their Faith.
"it will always be necessary
for the Church to warn her
children, even in particular,
about things that are danger
ous to Faith or morals.
* ‘When we come to the ques
tion of censorship, the advice
(Continued on Page 3)
Vol. 43, No. 33
10c Per Copy — $3 a Year Charge “Public Immorality Involved”
WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
OP THE DIOCESE OF
SAVANNAH
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, SATURDAY, MAY 4, 1963
Columbus, May 11 & 12
Father Damien, Mrs. Ryan
DCCW Convention Speakers
COLUMBUS—Mrs. Mary
Perkins Ryan and the Rev. Da
mien Breen M.S. Ss. T. will
be featured speakers at the
Diocesan Council of Catholic
Women’s Annual Convention be
ing held here Saturday and
Sunday, May 11th and 12th.
Mrs. Ryan will speak at the
Saturday evening banquet with
FATHER DAMIEN
Father Damien Breen speaker
at the Sunday Luncheon.
Mary Perkins Ryan (Mrs.
John Julian Ryan), was born
and brought up in Boston, Mass.,
and graduated from Manhattan-
ville College of the Sacred Heart
in 1932. She was the first
American employee of the pub
lishing firm of Sheed & Ward
when they opened their Ameri
can office.
Her books include: AT YOUR
EASE IN THE CATHOLIC
CHURCH, SPEAKING OF HOW
TO PRAY, MIND THE BABY
(Sheed & Ward); BEGINNING AT
HOME, PERSPECTIVE FOR
Bishop’s
Council
Meetings
The Bishop’s Council Of
Men will hold meetings on
the Deanery level according
to the following schedule:
COLUMBUS
Sunday, May 12, 3:30 p.m.
—St. Anne's School Auditor
ium.
AUGUSTA
Sunday, May 19, 2:30 p.m.
—Sacred Heart Hall.
SAVANNAH
Sunday, June 2, 4:00 p.m.
—Cathedral Day School Aud
itorium.
His Excellency, Bishop
McDonough plans to be pres
ent at each of these meetings.
Discussion will be encour
aged in relation to the de
velopment of the program
and effectiveness of the or
ganization.
RENEWAL and a pamphlet,
WHAT IS THIS "ACTIVE PAR
TICIPATION” (The Liturgical
Press); KEY TO THE PSALMS
and (with Dr. Cornelius Bou-
man) KEY TO THE MISSAL
(Fides Publishers). She has
translated THE MEANING OF
SACRED SCRIPTURE (Notre
Dame University Press) and
INTRODUCTION TO SFliUTU-
ALITY (Desclee Co.) by Rev.
Louis Bouyer, and prepared
for publication THE ART OF
TEACHING CHRISTIAN DOC
TRINE, by Johannes Hofinger,;
and WORSHIP, THE LIFE OF
THE MISSIONS, edited by Fr.
Hofinger (Notre Dame Univer
sity Press).
She has also written other
articles and pamphlets, the
mos t recent being a series on
the Church’s seasons, RE
DEEMING THE TIME, publish
ed by the Paulist Press. Mrs.
Ryan is a member of the Board
of Directors of the North
American Liturgical Confer
ence and National Chairman of
the Spiritual Development Com
mittee of the National Council
of Catholic Women.
In 1942, she married John
Julian Ryan, author of THE
IDEA OF A CATHOLIC COL
LEGE and BEYOND HUMAN
ISM (Sheed & Ward). Professor
Ryan is now teaching courses
in English and in Problems of
Christian Living at St. Anselm's
College, Manchester, N.H. The
Ryans have five boys and live
in Goffstown, N.H.
Father Damien Breen of Holy
Trinity, Alabama, is a Mis
sionary Servant of the Most
Holy Trinity. He is Master of
Novices for the Trinitarian Fa
thers.
Under a Capuchin, The Rev.
Father Bede, Father Damien
went through his own novitiate
in Holy Trinity after having
gone through the studies at the
St. Joseph’s Preparatory Sem.
which is now in Monroe, Vir
ginia.
After making his vows in
Holy Trinity, Sept. 8, 1932, Fa
ther Damien completed his stu
dies at Catholic University,
Wash., D. C. where he was or
dained.
Though he taught high school
a couple of years, in Rio Pied-
ras, Puerto Rico, at St. Augus
tine’s Military Academy and
spent a year at a parish in
Oklahoma City, Fr. Damien’s
longest assignment has been,
as he says, "raising baby Tri
nitarians in the Novitiate of
the Order, in Holy Trinity,
Ala., since Sept. 1942.
During that time he has nev
ertheless found time to give
missions, retreats, days of re
collection, and countless other
talks for jubilees, PTA’s and
many other occasions in most
the states along the eastern
shore.
He is well known for his talks
in the Columbus area "when"
(to quote him again) “they
couldn’t find anyone else."
MRS. RYAN
U. S. Catholic Total
Passes 43 Million
NEW YORK, (NC)— Catholics
in the 50 states, including all
families of the military, diplo
matic and other services
abroad, now number 43,851,538,
according to the 1963 Official
Catholic Directory.
The new total represents an
increase over last year of
969,273, and a 10-year increase
of 13,426,523 or 44.1 per cent
over the 30,425,015 in 1953.
There are now 28 archdioce
ses in the United States, with a
Catholic population of
18,669,040, according to the
directory published by P. J.
Kenedy and Sons of New York.
The establishment of the new
Diocese of Fairbanks, former
ly the Vicariate of Alaska brings
the number of dioceses to 120
with a Catholic population of
25,182,498. This figure includes
the two million Catholics re
ported by the Military Ordi
nariate.
The 28 archdioceses report
ed a growth of 150,875 and the
120 dioceses 818,497, the di
rectory discloses. The seven
archdioceses with Catholic pop
ulations in excess of one mil
lion are Chicago, 2,293,900;
Boston, 1,733,620; New York,
1,704,350; Newark, N. J.,
1,512,311; Los Angeles,
1,477,408; Detroit, 1,429,670,
and Philadelphia, 1,263,625.
INDEX
QUESTION BOX 4
EDITORIALS 4
MARRIAGES 6
YOUTHSCOPE 5
HERE AND THERE.. 6
OBITUARIES 6
Catholic Men Hit Tax
Paid Birth Control
“Lay Catholic
Has Obligation
To Aid Bishops”
BOSTON, (NC)—The lay Ca
tholic has an obligation to help
the Bishops in running the
Church, Richard Cardinal
Cushing asserts in a 12,000-
word pastoral letter issued
here.
"Along with the members of
the hierarchy, the laity are to
be considered coresponsible for
the Church," the Archbishop of
Boston says in the (April 28)
letter, entitled "The Church j
and Public Opinion."
The letter discusses pub
lic opinion within the Church
and outside of it; the role of
the hierarchy, clergy and laity
in this sphere; and re
sources for assisting public
opinion.
Cardinal Cushing defines
public opinion as "an existent
and visible force within the
Church which consists in the
confluence of many individual^
opinions on those matters which
touch upon the Christian life."
"Since the lay person in the
Church brings with him his
own abilities and talents," the
Cardinal continues, "these in
a particular way should find
constructive expression. The
scientist, the scholar, the
teacher, the doctor, the lawyer
the public servant, and all
the rest have something to say
which can make the Church
a more effective instrument
of grace for the good of souls.
When these voices are silent
the Church suffers from their
loss and the Christian has ab
dicated his responsibility to
ward the Kingdom."
He makes clear, however,
that he is not speaking
only of professional people, be
cause "all in the Church give
of their wisdom and it is often
‘out of the mouths of babes'
that the Lord speaks to his
people."
"Within his competence," the
Cardinal states, "the lay per
son has an obligation to make
himself heard and a right to
expect that his opinions will be
treated with respect and his
influence accepted when it is
constructive and helpful.
"Nothing can be more frus
trating to the apostolic Chris
tian than to find himself ig
nored or, even worse, abused
for having ventured to assist
the Church in adapting to chang
ing times. Because of his more
intimate engagement in the
world, the layman is likely to
bring insights and understand
ing which only such an existen
tial involvement can provide;
(Continued on Page 6)
u
Richard Reid
Award For
N.Y. Attorney
NEW YORK, (NC)—Thomas
A. Brennan, New York Labor at
torney and Catholic lay leader,
has been named first recipient
of the Richard Reid Award by
the Catholic Institute of the
Press here.
Brennan is the counsel of the
Catholic Press Association.
Reid, the late editor of the Ca
tholic News of New York and
for 20 years editor of the Bul
letin (Georgia), for whom the
award is named, was also a
counsel of the press as
sociation. Presentation of the
award will be made at the in
stitute’ s annual meeting on May
9 at the Hotel Biltmore
AT NCCM CONVENTION— Romeo Maione (left) of the Social Action Department,
Canadian Catholic Conference, chats with Martin Work, executive director of the Nation
al Council of Catholic Men, during the NCCM biennial convention at Atlantic City, N. J.
Mr. Maione was the speaker at the opening dinner meeting of the convention.—(NC Photos)
Dutch Cardinal Warns
Council “Shortcomings”
Could Lead To Deadlock
By Hans Bronkhorst
(N.C.W.C. NEWS SERVICE)
UTRECHT, The Netherlands,
April 27—Bernard Cardinal Al-
frink warned here that the Sec
ond Vatican Council might be
come a deadlock if some of the
obstacles it met during its first
session are not overcome.
The Archbishop of Utrecht,
who is one of the council’s 10
presiding cardinals, spoke of
the work on the council at a
press conference (in the last
week of April). Pointing in par
ticular to three problem areas
in the work of the council, he
said:
"If these shortcomings are
not repaired they could lead the
ecumenical council to a dead
lock. It will be the task of the
Coordinating Commission for
the interim period to solve these
problems.”
Cardinal Alfrink said that ac
tually the drawbacks of the
first session served to put into
higher relief "the wonderful
success of the council, which
gave so much joy to the whole
Church and the whole world,"
He said also that recent news
from Rome gives rise to optim
ism that the seven cardinals
of the Coordinating Commis
sion will overcome the obsta
cles of the first session.
The three big drawbacks at
the first session, according to
the Cardinal, were the great
mass of material prepared for
consideration, the lack of coor
dination between the various
(Continued on Page 3)
First Mass May 12th Savannah
Rev. Clement Porzio
Ordination At Belmont
SAVANNAH--The Reverend
Clement Louis Porzio, of the
Order of St. Benedict, will be
raised to the Catholic Priest
hood in the inspiring liturgy of
Ordination in Belmont Abbey
Cathedral, Belmont, N. C., on
Saturday, May 4th.
The Most Rev. Philip M.
Hannan, J.C.D., the Auxiliary
Bishop of Washington, D. C.,
will confer the Sacrament of
Holy Orders on Father Cle
ment and on the Rev. Dominic
J. Pecoraino, O.S.B., of Fay
etteville, N.C., and the Rev.
Bonaventure J. Denk, O.S.B.,
of Chicago, Illinois.
These three young monks of
Belmont Abbey will become
priests surrounded by their
monastic confreres and in the
presence of their Abbot, the
Right Rev. Walter A. Coggin,
O.S.B., D.D.
Father Clement is a native
of Savannah where he was born
in 1936 the son of Mrs. Louise
A. Porzio of 720 East 52nd
Street, and the late Mr. Por
zio. He attended Blessed Sacra-
REV. CLEMENT L.
PORZIO, O.S.B.
ment School in Savannah and
graduated from Benedictine
Military School. He studied at
Belmont Abbey College where
he graduated with the Bachelor
of Arts degree in 1959. He en
tered the novitiate of Belmont
Abbey on July 10, 1956, made
his first monastic profession on
July 11, 1957, and his solemn
profession on July 11, 1960.
For the past four years Fa
ther Clement has pursued his
theological and scriptural stu
dies at Belmont Abbey Semi
nary. In the meantime he has
done graduate work in the
summer sessions at the Univer
sity of Notre Dame in the field
of Educational Guidance.
Father Clement will cele
brate his First Solemn Mass
on Sunday, May 12th, in the
Church of the Most Blessed
Sacrament in Savannah. Assist
ing him in this solemn service
will be Monsignor Thomas
A. Brennan, pastor of that
church, as Assistant Pirest; the
Rev. Martin Hayes, O.S.B.,
Deacon; The Rev. Jude Cleary,
O.S.B., Subdeacon, and the Rev.
Oscar Burnett, O.S.B., Master
of Ceremonies. The Very Rev.
Bede Lightner, O.S.B., Priot
of Sacred Heart Priory, will
deliver the sermon.
By William E. Ring
(N.C.W.C. NEWS SERVICE)
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J., —
The "alarming" growth of ar
tificial contraception, steril
ization and abortion by states
to lower rolls of public aid
recipients was condemned at
the National Council of Cath
olic Men convention here.
In a set of "guiding princi
ples for the layman in an age
of Christian renewal, “the del
egates also took a stand in sup
port of Federal aid to Church-
related schools and called on
all laymen to bring their "own
personal conduct into line with
the requirement s of Christian
love and the natural rights of
man’’ in the racial relations
field.
In other "guidingprinciples"
the delegates stressed:
—The spiritual and social
plight of the migrant farm work
er and his family—a situation
that calls for our establish
ment of special lay apostolate
groups to make spiritual and
social aid available to them."
—The threat posed to moral
as well as social stabiMSjj >f
a growing unemployment prob
lem resulting from automation
and from the increasing number
of youths and displaced farmers
entering the labor force.,
—The increasing burden of
taxation and the "staggering
growth of government costs,”
which impose a "moral obli
gation" on public officials who
should exercise "constant vig
ilance in the proper expendi
ture of public funds both at home
and abroad.”
In the stand against contra
ception, sterilization and abor
tion by states, the convention
"guiding principle" condemned
"the legal acceptance of such as
constituting an approved public
policy of the state, especially
in respect of public aid re
cipients."
"We oppose these and all
other denials of the sacredness
of human life and the human
person, and we call on all gov
ernments to disassociate them
selves from the public immor
ality involved in sanctioning
such methods,” it said.
The "guiding principle" on
Federal aid to schools called
attention to “the pressure be
ing exerted on parents whose
consciences require them to
send their children to schools
which teach religion in addi
tion to the secular subjects."
"They should not be penaliz
ed as taxpayers for excercising
their natural and constitution
ally guaranteed right to do so,
but should be equitably includ
ed in the allocation of public
monies, if any, made available
for education. Equal rights for
children are as much a matter
of just concern as equal rights
for racial, economic and re
ligious minorities."
The "guiding principle" on
the racial issue cited "the per
sistence of racial discrimin
ation in our society,” saying:
“Such a condition insistently
requires each of us to bring
his own personal conduct into
line with the requirements of
Christian love and the natural
rights of man.”
PRAY FOR OUR
PRIESTLY DEAD
REV. JEREMIAH O’HARA
May 6, 1940
VERY REV. DANIEL J.
McCarthy
May 8, 1957
Oh Cod, Who didst give to
thy servants by their sacredotal
office, a share in the priest
hood of the Apostles, grant,
we implore, that they may.
also be one of their company
forever in heaven. Through
Christ Our Lord, Amen.
