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PAGE 2—The Southern Cross, May 4,1972
ANNUAL CEREMONY
Blessing Of Fleet Set
For Brunswick, May 14
By Mrs. Irene Benton
The blessing of the fleet, an annual
event in Brunswick, will take place May
14. The ceremony, a traditional part of
the Catholic ritual, marks the opening of
the shrimping season.
In the morning, Our Lady of Fatima,
patron saint of Portugal, is honored in
special services. In the afternoon the
shrimping season is officially opened with
the annual blessing of the fleet.
Since 1917, May thirteenth has beem
celebrated in Portugal as the anniversary
of the day on which Our Lady appeared
to three shepherd children in the hills
near Fatima.
Since 1938, the Portugese
communicants of Saint Francis Xavier
Catholic Church in Brunswick have joined
their relatives and friends in far off
Portugal in celebrating both the
traditional Blessing of the Fleet and the
anniversary of the appearance of Our
Lady of Fatima. The Second Sunday in
May was appropriately selected for the
two rituals, a date near the opening of the
shrimping season as well as the Sunday
that usually falls nearest May thirteenth,
the anniversary of the Appearance. The
fact that it is also Mother’s Day adds to
the significance of the occasion.
In 1938 the first statue of Our Lady of
Fatima was brought to the country from
Portugal, a gift to St. Francis Church
from the Portugese communicants. The
statue was carved by a Portugese sculptor,
Jose Ferreira Thedium of Santo Tirso,
from a solid block of dry Brazilian cedar
and is delicately tinted in lifelike colors.
A delicately wrought crown of silver
adorns the head of the statue but on the
second Sunday in May it is replaced by an
exquisite jeweled crown of gold filigree.
The crown was presented in 1949 in
memory of three young men of the
Portugese community who gave their lives
in the services of the country in World
War II.
The ceremonies, which will be held on
May 14th this year, start at St. Francis
Xavier Church with High Mass, preceded
and followed by hymns and in
Portuguese. The service is followed by an
outdoor procession led by four
Portuguese men carrying on their
shoulders the statue of Our Lady of
Fatima on a flower-decked platform or
seda gestatoria. At the foot of the statue
is an anchor made from flowers.
Since 1938, the annual celebration
honoring Our Lady of Fatima has been
followed in the afternoon by the
traditional Portugese ritual of the blessing
of the fleet.
Directed and escorted by the Coast
Guard, the procession of boats forms at
the Sidney Lanier bridge at 2:30 in the
afternoon. With multicolor pennants
fluttering and with American and
Portuguese flags flying from the masts,
the long line of boats single-file up the
East River. On the deck are families and
friends of the owners as well as visitors
who accept invitations to come early and
ride in the procession.
This year Father Michael Collins,
wearing his ceremonial vestments and
with a vessel of holy water at hand, will
stand on Paul Moreira’s dock and bless
the boats as they pass by.
The crowds are hushed as the solemn
words of the age old ritual rings out
across the water:
“Lord . . .bless these fishing boats and
the fishermen. . .Guide their course
through calm water . . .When they have
had good success in their labors . . .bring
them back with glad hearts to their own
shores and homes . . .God, who willed
that man should have dominion over the
fishes of the sea; who miraculously filled
the nets of the apostles with fishes; grant,
we pray that your servants may have You
as their captain and so be delivered from
all perils, haul into their boats a good
catch of fish and shrimp, and come
finally to the port of everlasting
blessedness laden with the merits of good
works.”
After the fleet is blessed, each boat, as
it passes the Priest, is sprinkled with holy
water and given an individual blessing.
“May the peace and blessing of
Almighty God, Father, Son and the Holy
Spirit, come upon these boats and on all
who are to sail in them and remain
forever. Amen.”
After the Blessing, the priest boards
the Coast Guard Cutter carrying with him
the anchor taken from the statue of Our
Lady of Fatima. The procession will then
proceed to St. Simons Island where the
Priest will then throw the anchor into the
ocean in memory of all the men who have
been lost at sea.
All craft are invited to participate in
this annual event.
MOTHERHOOD CONFERS ITS VERY SPECIAL BEAUTY on women everywhere in
the world. Here, a young Indonesian mother, Azz Pain Ratu, proudly holds her first
child, a daughter, Tjna. Both are parisioners on the island of Bali of Fr. Norbert
Shadeg, S.V.D. of Farming, Minn. Fr. Shadeg, who has served in several countries
during his missionary career, took this photo “because the look which Zaa bestows on
her tiny child is universal. That look is one of the strongest reminders I know of that
we are all members of the Family of Man.”
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Theology Statement
BY FATHER MICHAEL J. SHEEHAN
(NC Contributing Editor)
On March 26, thirty-four prominent
Catholic theologians in Europe and North
America released a statement on the
present status of the Church. The
statement was entitled “Against
Discouragement in the Church” and its
purpose was to encourage people who
have given up hope in the Church.
The theologians say that, although
there is a serious crisis of leadership and a
lack of confidence in the Church,
Catholics should continue to remain in
the Church and have hope in it. The
statement says that we should hope
because there are many leaders in the
Church who are working for change and
renewal and that recent polarization can
be overcome.
The fact that the theologians are
encouraging perseverence is a mark of
their love for the Church. Catholics are in
need of encouragement during these days
of uncertainty. However, it would seem
that the reasons for perseverance and
hope which the statement contains are
somewhat incomplete. Without entering
into the specific recommendations made
in the statement, I would like to add to
the reasons given by the theologians
another reason of a more ecclesiological
dimension.
We should continue to hope and
persevere as full, active members of the
Church, not just because there is some
renewal taking place, nor because there
are some good bishops and superiors here
and there, as the statement says. Rather,
we shoudl persevere in the Church
because it is our home. We are part of a
people who profess the same faith which
we see in the Acts of the Apostles. We
continue to be Catholics because Jesus
founded the Church and wants us to be a
part of it. In belonging to this people, we
are redeemed and our lives are enriched.
In an age in which many are looking
for meaning to their lives, the Church has
something to offer. The Church can help
us with the basic questions and problems
with which every person must grapple.
The meaning of death, the purpose of
faith, the gap between a man’s lofty
aspirations and the actual fulfillment of
these aspirations -- these questions and
many more find an answer in the richness
of our Christian thought.
Within our family, the Church, we are
taught the meaning of love and are
nourished on the word of the Lord and
have contact with Christ through the
sacraments which are signs of His
strengthening power. Institutionless
Christianity is impossible. Without a
people to embody the Christian message
it would surely die. The Church today
continues to pass on the basic teaching of
Christ as it was given by Him.
During the weeks following Easter, the
readings used at Mass describe for us the
early community of believers. The
Apostles were preaching the Risen Lord
and urging their listeners to reform their
lives and believe in Him. Christ, in a
reading from Luke, appears to two
disciples on their way to Emmaus. During
the time spent together, there was
scripture and an explanation by Jesus of
what the scriptures meant regarding the
Messiah. There was a profession of faith
in Jesus as the disciples’ eyes were
opened. This was followed by the giving
of thanks and the breaking of bread.
What took place while they were together
on the way to Emmaus was very much
like the liturgy we have today.
The people of which we are a part is
the same people about which these
readings speak. The Church has its roots
in evangelical times and the Church
continues to express the Good News in
every age and culture. Regardless of the
flaws-and there are many-the Church
remains our home and so we stay.
We must all continue to work for
renewal and improvement, both in the
Church and in our own personal lives. It
is in the context of the words of Psalm 27
that I prefer to read the statement of the
theologians: “One thing I ask of the
Lord; this I seek: to dwell in the house of
the Lord all the days of my life.”
(Father Sheehan, a priest of the Dallas
diocese, is assistant general secretary of the U.S.
Catholic Conference in Washington. He offers
these reflections on the theologians' statement
as his own personal view. From time to time
“contributing editors ’’ provide NC News with
their own opinions on various topics from
various perspecrives.)
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Bishop-'
CHICAGO (NC) - A leader of the
National Federation of Priests’ Councils
(NFPC) has accused the general secretary
of the U.S. Catholic Conference of
speaking “from incredible
misinformation” about the current
in Uinf MOIYI
Father Eugene Boyle, NFPC peace and
justice director, was describing Bishop
Joseph Bernardin’s April 21 statement
repeating the U.S. bishops’ 1971 plea for
a “speedy ending’ 7 to the war.
The priest criticized the bishop’s
statement that the North Vietnamese
initiated the new fighting. The real cause
of the escalation, Father Boyle indicated,
was the “massive equipping” of the South
Vietnamese by the United States and the
continuing use of U.S. air and sea power
in the war.
At their meeting last November, Father
Boyle said, the U.S. bishops had said: “At
this point in history it seems clear to us
that whatever good we hope to achieve
through continued involvement in this
war is now outweighed by the destruction
of human life and moral values which it
inflicts.” 4
“May we not hope,” the priest said,
“that our bishops could say at least as
much today, and say it loud and clear.”
In Washington, Bishop Bernardin said
that “to some extent” Father Boyle ha«i^^
misrepresented his position. The bishop^*''**
said that by saying he “trusts our
government will take the lead” he was
“only hoping” and not “assuming” that
this will happen.
“In implying that I am assuming what I
am really only hoping,” Bishop Bernardin
said, “Father Boyle is reading a meaning
into my comment which is not there.”
Bishop Bernardin also disputed Father
Boyle’s view of the cause of the new
fighting. While the fighting “is the result
of a torturous sequence of events,”
Bishop Bernardin said, “nothing that
Father Boyle offers persuades me to alfc^r
my view of what triggered at least this s 'N*
current siege of violence.”
Bishop Bernardin’s original statement,
which was authorized by USCC president
Cardinal John Krol, spoke of the
withdrawal of U.S. forces, “the renewed a
North Vietnamese aggression,” and
increased U.S. bombing and repeated the
bishops’ earlier plea to “the leaders of all
nations involved” to end the war.
The bishop asked for withdrawal of the
North Vietnamese, an end to the
bombing and a return to the peace talks.
The text of Bishop BernardmlN^
statement follows:
“Obviously Father Boyle and I share
the same concern for ending the violence
and the loss of life in Vietnam as soon as
possible. For that I am grateful. Beyond y
that, 1 consider it unfortunate that he has^r
chosen to make his statement of his view
of events an occasion for criticizing and
to some extent misrepresenting mine.
“For example I am accused of ‘naivete
and imperception’ for stating that “one
trusts our government will take the lead”
in the effort to achieve a peaceful
settlement in Vietnam. In ordinar
English, to say that “one trusts
something will happen is simply a way of
saying that one hopes it will happen. In
implying that I am assuming what I am
really only hoping, Father Boyle is
reading a meaning into my comment
which is not there.
“I am also taken to task by Father
Boyle for my ‘incredible misinformation’
in remarking that the immediate cause of
the latest round of fighting in Vietnam
was the North Vietnamese invasion. It is
of course true that the present situation
in Vietnam is the result of a torturous
sequence of events -- for which manj^^
ro
individuals and governments are
responsible - but nothing that Father
Boyle offers persuades me to alter my
view of what triggered at least this
current siege of violence.
“In any case, I believe that those who u
are concerned with the situation iq^^
Vietnam - including both Father Boyle
and myself - can find better ways of
expressing their concern than belaboring
each other over who is more anxious to
have the war come to an end. As I said in
my original statement, ‘the priority of
moment . . .is not to assign blame but to
find ways of ending the violence.’ I still
stand by that. And, as the Paris peace
talks resume, I wish to express again my
hope that they will provide a means for
restoring peace to Southeast Asia.
