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SERVING 88 SOUTH - GEORGIA COUNTIES
The Southern Cross
DIOCESE OF SAVANNAH NEWSPAPER
Vol. 53 No. 15
Thursday, April 13,1972
Single Copy Price — 12 Cents
Orthodox Hit
At Abortion
HELSINKI, Finland (NC) - The
bishops’ conference of the Greek
Orthodox Church of Finland said that
unrestricted abortion is “contrary to the
Christian view of life.” Abortion, the
bishops said, is “a destruction of life.”
The bishops’ views appeared in a
pastoral letter signed by Archbishop
Paavali of Carelia and all Finland and
Bishop Johannes of Helsinki. The letter
was published in Orthodox Church News.
The Orthodox bishops said that
confusion had arisen among some church
members over recent changes in Finnish
law permitting what amounts to
unrestricted abortion.
“For centuries,” the bishops said, “the
Finnish people have become accustomed
to regard the laws of society as ethically
right.” Now, however, in our society, we
cannot always count on having laws
founded on Christian ethics.
“Sometimes the secular law is
evidently contrary to the Christian view
of life. That is clear in the case of the
recently promulgated abortion law.”
The bishops reminded Orthodox
Church members that the faith and
tradition of the Church govern them even
in situations in which civil law imposes no
obligation.
With regard to abortion, they said, the
Church’s “basic principle is that abortion
is regarded as a destruction of life, and
that the one who performs an abortion as
W3ll as the woman who allows an
abortion to be performed on her are
guilty of that destruction.”
“The tradition of the Church,” they
said, “does not accept the idea that the
fetus does not become human until
several months after conception.
Immediately after conception new life
has begun, a life that must be protected
because it has the divine right to be born
into the world.”
FIRST TIME-ANYWHERE
GIFT FROM PRISONERS TO PRIEST. Willard Watts (left) and Edward Putmon,
prisoners at Schataluga Road Prison camp in Columbus, presented Father Michael
O’Keefe of St. Anne’s parish, there, with an oil painting of the Crucified Christ on
Holy Saturday (April 1). The painting is the work of Watts and was presented to the
priest “in appreciation of your weekly visits and ministrations to us” on behalf of
prison inmates. Watts has produced other oil paintings which will be shown soon in an
art exhibit in Columbus. (Photo courtesy of Columbus Ledger-Enquirer)
/VOTED BIBUCAL SCHOLAR TO ATTEND
Annual Theology Seminar At Savannah
Mother Kathryn Sullivan, R.S.C.J., a
noted Biblical Scholar, will be in
Savannah to lead the annual Theology
Seminar, which is scheduled for April
27th, 28th and 29th at St. Vincent’s
Academy.
Mother Kathryn is based at
Manhattanville College, N.Y., but spends
half of her year lecturing in Europe. She
has recently returned from travels which
took her around the world.
is “The Word Today.” In her talks she
will cover “The Word of History” (peak
experiences in the life of God’s people),
“The Word of Wisdom” (Job and the
Canticles), “The Word of Prophecy” (the
major Prophets), “The Word of God”
(the theology of Paul), and “The Word of
God” (the Gospel of John).
The Seminar will begin on Thursday
evening, April 27th, with a prayer service
and a reception. It ends about noon on
Saturday, April 29th.
teachers and all others interested are
invited to take part in the Seminar.
Overnight accommodation will be
available for out-of-town guests at St.
John’s Center. The registration fee is
$3.00.
Bishops Open Meetings
To Press, Radio, TV
The bishops of the United States opened their semi-annual meetings to press, radio and television for the first
time last Tuesday (April 11) in Atlanta. It marked the first time that such meetings had been held anywhere in
the world outside of closed sessions.
Newsmen included reporters from such well known dailies as the Philadelphia Inquirer, the San Francisco
Examiner, the Detroit Free Press and many others. In addition to Time magazine, both NBC and CBS television
and radio covered the event. Also on hand to report on the proceedings were representatives of dozens of
Catholic newspapers. Observers from both men’s and women’s Religious communities, as well as representatives
of the laity were also present.
The first proposal adopted was one
which requests Pope Paul VI to lower the
mandatory minimum age of candidates
for the permanent diaconate from 35, as
is now required, to 30.
As originally proposed to the bishops,
the resolution asked for a reduction to
age twenty-five. However, Five bishops
took the floor in support of the original
proposal, and five others announced their
opposition to age twenty-five as being too
low.
All of the bishops speaking in favor of
the twenty-five minimum age limit
emphasized the lack of candidates for the
permanent diaconate among minority
groups, especially among Blacks and
Mexican-Americans. They maintained
that bishops of dioceses where there are
great numbers of minority group
Catholics had found numerous men who
are, in their judgment, mature and
responsible but are under the mandatory
minimum age of thirty-five.
They also noted that the proposal
presented to them would not require a
bishop to accept candidates for the
diaconate who are not yet thirty-five
years old, but, if approved by the
Supreme Pontiff, would simply permit
them to waive the restriction.
Fear was expressed by some bishops
that lowering the age limit for the
permanent (and married) diaconate
would lead to an exodus of seminarians
studying for the priesthood, who would
instead of continuing their studies, opt
for the diaconate and marriage.
Other bishops, however, pointed out
that the proposal Defore them only asked
the Pope to grant them the faculty to
dispense from the age limit of thirty five
“required of married men, so that such
married men who have indicated maturity
in their family relationships and
community responsibilities - even though
they be as young as twenty-five years old
- may be ordained permanent deacons.”
The diocese of Savannah recently
initiated a Permanent Diaconate Program,
under the direction of the Rev. William
V. Coleman. Plans for training and
curriculum are already underway as well
as studies to determine the most suitable
location for program headquarters.
Commenting on the vote of the
bishops to seek a lowering of the
mandatory minimum age for candidates,
Bishop Gerard L. Frey told the Southern
Cross:
“Our program is, of course, just
getting off the ground. Some work
remains to be done before we either seek
or accept applications for those who wish
to become permanent deacons.
“However, when we are ready to
accept candidates, and if a reply to our
request has not by then been received
from the Holy Father, we will still accept
men who would be thirty by the time of
INSIDE STORY
NCEA Convention
Pg. 3
'Know Your Faith’
Pg. 5
Readers Reply
Pg. 8
their ordination. We would accept them,
though, with the understanding on their
part that in the event the Holy Father
does not grant our request, they could
not be ordained until they reached the
minimum age required by the Holy See.”
Bishop Frey vote ‘Aye’ on
proposal to lower the minimum age.
the
The other action proposal voted on by
the bishops moved acceptance of a plan
for the development of a National
Catechetical Directory to serve as an
over all guide to both the doctrinal
content of religious training programs and
the method of presenting church teaching
to children, young people, and adults.
The Directory Committee suggested to
the bishops would have consisted of 7 to
9 persons, only one of whom would have
been a bishop. Objections subsided,
however, after an amendment raising
membership on the committee from 10
to 12 persons, four of whom will be
bishops. The bishops then voted almost
unanimously to accept the plan.
It is expected that after extended
consultations to be completed by March
1973, a final draft of a Catechetical
Directory will be completed and offered
for approval by the bishops in time for
their spring meeting in 1974.
The bishops also took note of
recommendations of President Nixon’s
Commission on Population Growth which
included a suggestion for nation-wide
abortion-on-demand legislation, and
commissioned a panel of bishops to draw
up a statement on the “Dignity of Human
Life,” to be voted on by Thursday (April
13).
Cardinal John Krol, President of the
NCCB and chairman of the meeting,
urged participants to “speak up, and
speak up now.”
Catholic Women To Meet In Macon
Her topic for the forthcoming Seminar Priests, Sisters, Religious Education
A
HEADLINE
HOPSCOTCH
An outstanding group of speakers and
workshop participants are lined up for
the 33rd annual convention of the
Savannah Diocesan Council of Catholic
Women, which will be held this weekend
in the Macon Hilton Hotel. Mrs. J. Harry
Persse, Savannah, is president of the
Diocesan Council.
Participants include Mrs. Thomas J.
Burke of Carbondale, Pa., president of the
National Coundil of Catholic Women, who
will be the banquet speaker Saturday
night; Mrs. Edward Faust Jr. of Avondale
Estates, national director of the Atlanta
region, NCCW, to be speaker at the Sunday
brunch, along with the Rev. William V.
Coleman, pastor of St. Joseph Catholic
Church.
Miss Helen Turner, director of
volunteer personnel of the Southeastern
Area Red Cross Office in Atlanta will con
duct a leadership training program for
commission chairmen Saturday morning,
with a workshop on the Birthright
program and a review of the current
abortion laws also set for Saturday
morning. The latter participants will
include Mrs. Eugene V. Smith and the
Rev. Michael Morris of Atlanta,
representing the Georgia Right to Life
Commission, Mrs. Bernard Mulherin of
Augusta and Mrs. Terry Weaver of
Atlanta, representing the Birthright
program.
Mrs. Burke, elected president of the
national organization in 1970, will serve
until 1973. She has held numerous offices
in the Scranton, Pa. diocese, plus several
deanery and local posts.
These include presidency of the
Scranton Diocesan Council, public
relations chairman, national vice
Additional
Information On
Priests’ Senate
The Priests’ Senate of the Savannah Diocese will meet Thursday, April 27th at
Johnnie Ganem’s 12:00 noon. Proposals for inclusion on the agenda should be signed
by three priests and be submitted to a senator before April 20th.
Augusta School Statement
The School Boards of Augusta’s St. Mary’s and Immaculate Conception schools
would like to foster an exchange of students. The following interschool statement was
read from the pulpits of Augusta Churches last Sunday - “To allow our children to
better understand the pluralistic society that they will meet in high school and in adult
life, the school boards of Immaculate Conception and St. Mary’s on the Hill would like
to foster an exchange of students. To do this we ask some parents in both schools to
volunteer to have their children attend the other school.”
To Honor Married Couples
Bishop Gerard L. Frey will celebrate a special mass honoring married couples
celebrating their Golden and Silver Wedding Anniversaries at the Cathedral of St. John
the Baptist, Savannah, on May 7 at 3:30 p.m. The ceremony will be followed by a
reception at St. Vincent’s Academy. Couples wishing to participate should contact
their pastor immediately, or call the Family Life Commission in Savannah. The
number is 234-0601.
MRS. FAUST
Atlanta Province Leader
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MISS TURNER
To Conduct Workshop
MRS. BURKE
National President
Page 8
chairman of the Committee Cooperating
with Catholic Charities; diocesan
workshop co-chairman, and chairman for
her diocesan convention in 1968.
In the past 15 years, Mrs. Burke has
served her state and community in more
than a dozen volunteer areas, including
medical, community and charitable
organizations in the Lackawana County,
Pa. area. A former teacher librarian, and
dramatics coach, she is a graduate of
Marywood College, where she received
both her B.S. and M. S. degrees. She is a
member of St. Rose Church in
Carbondale.
Mrs. Faust, the brunch speaker, is a
member of St. Thomas More Parish in
Decatur, and a former president of the
Atlanta Council of Catholic Women. She
also is a past president of Sts. Peter and
Paul Ladiies Auxiliary and St. Thomas
More Council of Catholic Women. She
has been active in parish and archdiocesan
affairs, and currently is secretary to the
pastor of Holy Spirit Parish.