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PAGE 2 GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 1963
BEATIFICATION SUNDAY
‘Triumph of Charity’ Marked
Life Of Blessed Mother Seton
S T R /
Little
ANGE BUT TRU
E
EXPERT SAYS:
-Known Facts for Catholics
By M. J. MURRAY Copyright, 1SS3, N.C.W.C .New* S mici
Mother Elizabeth Bayley Se
ton, the first native U. S. citi
zen to be declared Blessed,
squeezed into her relatively
short life of 47 years success
ful careers as a wife, mother,
educator, Religious and foun
dress of a religious commu
nity.
The foundress of the Sisters
of Charity in this country, who
is being beatified in Vatican
City on March 17, was the
mother of five children and is
responsible for establishing the
first free Catholic school in
the U. S.
THE KEY to the outstanding
life of this convert to Catholi
cism was her love for others.
“The triumph of charity is
the great poem of Elizabeth
Seton," said His Holiness Pope
John XXIII at the ceremony in
December, 1959, at which Mo
ther Seton was declared Vener
able.
Elizabeth Ann Bayley was
born in New York City on Au
gust 28, 1774, the year of the
first Continental Congress. Her
father, Dr. Richard Bayley, was
a distinguished physician and
surgeon. Her mother, Catherine
Charlton, was the daughter of
Mary Bayeux and Rev. Richard
Charlton, an Episcopalian min
ister.-
ELIZABETH was educated at
a private school in New York
and took a prominent part in
the social life of the day. But
she did not neglect her spiritual
development. Throughout her
life, as a Protestant and as a
Catholic, the Bible was a com
fort and joy to her. Later she
relied on it often in her con
ferences with her Sisters in •
religion.
In 1794, at age 19, Elizabeth
married William Seton, son of a
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interests. Three girls and two
boys were born to the couple,
and their home life was happy.
Anxieties and sufferings soon
afflicted them, however. Wil
liam Seton became ill, and his
business firm failed. In these
adverse circumstances, Eliza
beth became the support and
comforter of her husband and
the self-sacrificing provider
for her children.
WILLIAM Seton's Illness, tu
berculosis, became worse, and
doctors recommended that he
take a sea voyage. Accompan
ied by their oldest child, Anna
Maria, the Setons set out in
October, 1803, for Leghorn,
Italy, where some business
friends, the Antonio Filicchis’
had invited them.
Throughout her husband’s ill
ness, Elizabeth stayed close to
him and gave him spiritual con
solation. In a journal she kept
for her daughter, Rebecca,
there is the following entry for
November 24, 1803:
“How often I tell my Wil
liam; When you awake in that
world, you will find that noth
ing could tempt you to return
to this. You will see that your
care over your wife and little
ones was like a hand only, to
hold the cup which God Himself
will give if He takes you...”
WILLIAM Seton died on Octo
ber 27, 1803, and the Filicchi
family brought the young widow
and her child to their home. In
the midst of this devout family,
Mrs. Seton saw for the first
time the Catholic religion lived
and practiced.
The urgency of her desire to
believe in Catholicism is re
counted in a sentence she put
down In her journal in early
1804:
“The other day, in a moment
of excessive distress, I fell on
my knees without thinking when
the Blessed Sacrament passed
by (in the street), and cried in
an agony to God to bless me, if
He was there—that my whole
soul desired only Him.”
Elizabeth Seton was 29 years
old when she returned to Ame
rica in April, 1804. She had no
financial means, no preparation
for earning a living, and five
children to support, the eldest
eight years old.
IN ADDITION, her announce
ment that she was thinking of
becoming a Catholic caused a
shock in the genteel society of
the New York of 1804, where
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the unofficial “state religion”
was Episcopalianism. But Eli
zabeth Seton never wavered,
and on March 14, 1805, she was
received into the Faith by Fa
ther Matthew O'Brien in St.
Peter's church, New York.
In the meantime she had se
cured employment In school
work, and with her small in
come and the help of a few
friends and relatives she man
aged to keep a home for her
children.
In June, 1808, as the result
of the outcome of a plan sug
gested by Father (later Arch
bishop) Louis Dubourg, Eliza
beth Seton and her children
went to Baltimore, where she
opened an academy for girls.
Several young women soon
joined in her project.
ARCHBISHOP John Carroll,
first Bishop and Archbishop of
Baltimore, gave approval to
Mrs. Seton to consecrate her
self to God in religious life,
and on March 25, 1809, she
pronounced her vows. On June
2, 1809, she and her four com
panions appeared for the first
time in public in their conven
tual habit.
With the expansion of its
work, the group moved to Em
mitsburg, Md., where the foun
dation of the Sisters of Charity
in America began In its orga
nized form. Elizabeth came to
be referred to as Mother Seton.
There was some question at
first about harmonizing Mother
Seton's duties as a mother of
five children and as head of the
community. Under a special ar
rangement, she was permitted
to continue with the care of her
children.
MOTHER Seton opened two
schools at Emmitsburg, an aca
demy for girls and a tuition
free school that was the fore
runner of the Catholic parochial
school system in the U. S.
The early days of the commu
nity were marked by poverty,
hardship and long hours of work.
In addition, two of Mother Se
ton's daughters died. But
throughout the years of trial,
her courage and patience were
sustained by her faith and her
love of God. Formal ratifica
tion of the rules and constitu
tions of the Sisters of Charity
of St. Joseph’s took place on
January 17, 1812.
On January 1, 1821, three
days before her death at Em
mitsburg, Mother Seton said
to a nun who requested that
she drink hermedicine; “Never
mind the drink. One Commun
ion more—and then Eternity.**
And she kept the fast for the
sake of her last Communion
on earth. She died on January
4, 1821.
ABOVE THE spot that com
memorates her death there is
an inscription that includes the
following sentence. “She died
in poverty, but rich in faith
and good works.*’
How successful her efforts
were is attested by the fact
that today there are more than
10,000 Sisters of Charity in
six branch communities stem
ming from the Emmitsburg
foundation. The work of the
Sisters extends into many
areas, including nursing, child
care, education, hospital work,
care of the aged and mission
ary activities.
Mother Seton was declared
Venerable at a ceremony in
Vatican City on December 18,
1959. In an address for the oc
casion, Pope John XXIII said
that Elizabeth Seton proposes
“by the outline of her life the
theme of evangelical charity.”
HE ALSO said; “As a devoted
and faithful wife, as a wise
educator of her children, as a
patient manager of her house
hold tasks in prosperity and
adversity, she already appear
ed in an admirable, glowing
light. But when the bumingdart
of charity touched her heart
more deeply, then she knew no
other measure than the perfect
imitation of Him who out of love
for us became Man and died on
the Cross.”
In February, 1963, the Sac
red Congregation of Rites Is
sued a decree approving the au
thenticity of two miracles work
ed through the intercession of
Mother Seton.
The miracles were the heal
ing of Sister Gertrude Korzen-
dorfer of New Orleans of a can
cer of the pancreas on February
1, 1935, and the curing of Ann
Teresa O'Neill of Baltimore of
acute lymphatic leukemia in
April, 1952.
THE decree concerning Mo
ther Seton said that she “found
her delight in providing for
the needy and caring for the
sick,” following the example
of charity set by Christ.
It added that “in this exer
cise of chairty...the widow Se
ton applied herself with all her
might and moreover entrusted
it to the religious family she
founded.”
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CHARLES FOX, (iffi-lftX) WAS
ONE Of THE FEW POLITICIANS Of
hh day who favored concessions
TO EHGUSH & IRISH CATHOUCS.
POPE’S INTENTIONS
Pray For Fruitful Result
From Liturgical Change
VATICAN CITY (NC)—Pope
John XXIII has approved an ap
peal for prayers that adoption
of the liturgy to local cultures
— as the Second Vatican Coun
cil recommended — may lead
greater numbers to the Church.
This call is the December,
1964, missionary intention of
the Apostleship of Prayer. The
intentions which the Pope ap
proved are;
JANUARY: That the Gospel
may be freely preached in Budd
hist countries.
FEBRUARY: For more voca
tions to the missionary brother
hood.
MARCH: That newly inde
pendent nations may work to
gether to set up political sys
tems based on justice and peace.
APRIL : For leprosy patients.
MAY: For the Christian edu
cation of girls in Africa.
JUNE: That the message of
Christ’s love and justice may
bear abundant fruit in Japan.
JULY: That the number of
seminarians may grow and that
the Catholic community may
help needy seminarians.
MOTHER SETON
Alumnae Group
Donates Casket
AUGUST: That the number of
zealous and gifted priests in the
missions may keep pace with the
demands for their spiritual ser
vices.
SEPTEMBER: That the num
ber of well-trained catechists
may grow and that their liveli
hood may be assured.
NEW YORK (NC)— The mar
ble sarcophagus in which the
remains of Mother Seton will
be placed after her beatificat
ion at the Vatican March 17,
is a gift of the International
Federation of Catholic Alum
nae.
Mrs. John F. Hennessy, IFCA
president, who 1s leaving March
10 with a group of federation
members to attend the beatifi
cation ceremony, said: "The
IFCA executive committee
agreed to call upon members
to contribute the fund for the
sarcophagus and its installat
ion. It is a privilege to pro
vide the permanent casket for
the foundress of the American
Sisters of Charity who have
educated so many of our mem
bers.”
THE IFCA was founded in
1914 by two alumnae of St.
Joseph's College, Emmitsburg,
Md., on the site of the mother-
house and school begun by Mot
her Seton where her remains
have rested since her death in
1821.
In 1930 IFCA began a cam
paign for Mother Seton's ulti
mate canonization. The fede
ration’s Mother Seton commit
tee secured 152,000 signatures
requesting consideration of her
cause, which were presented
to Pope Pius XI in 1931.
The IFCA presented a bronze
commemorative tablet for the
wall of St. Peter’s church, New
York City, where Elizabeth Se
ton, a convert, made her pro
fession of Faith. She also was
memorialized by IFCA on a
column in the National Shrine
of the Immaculate Conception
in Washington, D. C.
PRIOR TO the annual meet
ing of the U.S. Bishops in 1931,
the committee wrote each mem
ber of the Hierarchy summariz
ing its work and asking for the
Bishops’ cooperation. At that
meeting the Bishops sent a
resolution to the Pope in the
interest of Mother Seton’s
cause.
For more than 30 years the
IFCA urged recitation of the
prayer for canonization at con
ventions, meetings and in pri
vate devotions.
Mrs. Hennessy will be ac
companied to Rome by Jose
phine T. Amend, Bronxville,
N.Y.j chairman of the IFCA
Mother Seton committee; past
presidents Alice R. May and
Mabel R. Wingate of Baltimore
and Mrs. Walter J. Whelan of
Coral Gables, Fla.; Adeline M.
Camarota of Philadelphia, IF
CA first vice president; and
Mary Rita Byrne and Mrs. John
J. Coakley of New York, Mae
J. Manogue of Washington, D.C.,
and Lea Sain of St. Louis.
OCTOBER: That interest in
the missions may increase in
Catholic countries.
NOVEMBER: That Asia and
Africa may resist the spirit of
materialism introduced by the
West by studying and applying
the teaching of the encyclical
Mater et Magistra.
DECEMBER: That the litur
gy, in a form adapted to the'
mentality of the people — as
recommended by the council —
may lead greater numbers to
the Church.
NOW IN 20 COUNTRIES
BROOKLYN, N.Y. (NC)—An
organization founded a century
ago to pay honor and repara
tion to the Sacred Heart today
is officially established in 20
countries.
In the United States, the Guard
of Honor of the Sacred Heart
Dominican
Angelicum
Elevated
VATICAN CITY (NC)—The
Angelicum, the Dominican Or
der’s center of higher studies
in Rome, has been raised to
the rank of a potifical univer
sity.
In a decree dated March 7,
His Holiness Pope John XXIII
stated the institution will from
now on be known a** the St.
Thomas Aquinas Pontifical Uni
versity in Urbe. The phrase
“in Urbe” refers to the city of
Rome.
The Angelicum—named for
St. Thomas who is known as
the Angelic Doctor—was found
ed as the College of St. Thomas
in 1580.
numbers 480 confraternities af
filiated with the national center
here.
THE GUARD of Honor was
founded at the Visitation Mo
nastery in Boug, France, on
March 13, 1863. Before the end
of that year the devotion had
spread to Belgium, England,
Italy and the U. S.
Today there are 20 nation
al archconfraternities of the
Guard of Honor. The devotion
flourishes particularly in Italy,
Spain, the U. S., Switzerland,
England, Mexico, Uruguay,
Canada, Germany and Portu
gal.
Four popes have been mem
bers of the Guard of Honor —
Pius IX, Leo XIII, St. Pius X
and Pius XIL
THE DEVOTION seeks to pay
honor and reparation to the
Sacred Heart, particularly by
the daily “Hour of Guard” dur
ing which members direct all
their thoughts, words and ac
tions to atone for the sins of
the world.
Visitation monasteries are
the official centers of the devo
tion and membership requires
registration at one of them.
The U. S. national center is at
the Visitation monastery in
Brooklyn.
Vatican - Soviets
Could Exchange
Official Consuls
VATICAN CITY-NC—Could
the Holy See and the Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics ex
change consuls without enter
ing into diplomatic relations?
Yes. So could the Holy See
and the United States. That
answer is implicit in a forth
right assertion by the chief
of protocol of the Papal Secre
tariat of State, Msgr. Igino
Cardinale.
Msgr. Cardinale made his
point in an article published
in the Rome periodical, Studi
Cattolici. Its appearance just
a week before the visit to Pope
John XXIII by Alexei Adzhubei,
son-in-law of Soviet Premier
Nikita Khrushchev was, Vati
can observers insist, purely
coincidental. But it inspired
immediate speculation that
establishment of a Vatican coi>-
sulate in Moscow might be an
answer to a possible reapport
between the Soviet Union and the
Holy See.
The American - educated
Msgr. Cardinale stated: “Since
the Holy See is a perfect juri
dical personality which is re
cognized by international law,
it has the right to send con
suls to different countries and
to welcome them at the Holy
See, even apart from Vatican
City, the nomination of whose
representatives to foreign
governments for the conclus
ion of agreements and for dip
lomatic relations is made by
the Supreme Pontiff.”
The Vatican chief of protocol
said also that “consular re
lations can be established even
where no diplomatic relations
Infirmary Group
The regular meeting of the
Auxiliary of St. Joseph’s In
firmary will be on Monday,
March 18, at 11 a.m. Final
arrangements for the Madonna
Show which opens March28will
be discussed. An entertaining
and instructive skit, “Please
Pass The Rules” will be pre
sented, and refreshments will
be served.
exists.” His article traced the
Holy See’s use of consulates
back to the year 1075, at which
time special faculties were
given to foreign consuls in
Rome.
MSGR. Cardinale recalled
that in 1879, on the eve of the
fall of the Papal States to the
Kingdom of Italy, 32 nations
had consulates in cities of the
Papal States. Among those re
presented were the United
States and Russia.
Msgr. Cardinale wrote that
“the resumption of the appoint
ment of consuls (by the Vati
can), can be justified by the
new circumstances created by
the recognition of the papal
temporal power in the Later-
an Treaty (of 1929).” He ob
served that currently, consul
ar duties are being performed
by diplomatic representatives
of the Holy See and by those
diplomatic missions received
by the Holy See.
The Cardinale article was
occasioned by an international
conference on consular relat- »
ions which opened in Vienna
on March 4 under United Nat
ions auspices. The Holy See
was invited to participate, and
was represented by Msgr.
Agostino Casaroli, undersecre
tary of the Sacred Congregat
ion for Extraordinary Eccle
siastical Affairs.
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