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i PAGE j GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 1963 the Archdiocese of Atlanta GEORGIA BULLETIN SERVING GEORGIA'S 71 NORTHERN COUNTIES Official Organ of the Archdiocese of Atlanta Published Every Week at the Decatur Dekalb News PUBLISHER - Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan MANAGING EDITOR Gerard E. Sherry CONSULTING EDITOR Rev. R. Donald Kiernan ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Sue Spence Member of the Catholic Press Association and Subscriber to N.C.W.C. News Service 2699 Peachtree N.E. Telephone 231-1281 U.S.A. $5.00 P.O. Box 11667 Canada $5.50 North8lde Station Foreign $6.50 Atlanta 5, Ga. Second Class Permit at Decatur, Georgia Liberal Catholicism NEUTRALITY AWARDS THE ANTI-CHRIST LITURGY AND LIFE Perspective Of Redemption There has been much talk about Catholic Liberals in the past few weeks and it might be well to answer the question: “What is a Catholic Liberal?** There are some who deny his existence; in the same manner that they deny the existence of a Catholic Conservative. Bearing in mind that this is all part of a con fusing semantic tangle, we will endeavor to define the Catholic Liberal. First of all he is surely Catho lic. What about his liberalism? It is certainly not the liberalism of Locke and Hume, or the libe ralism of Rousseau. These men were European secular Liberals whose 17th Century political phil osophy has been improved on by modern secular Liberals. It has no religious connotation. Secular liberalism worships only man kind and its achievements. Catho lic Liberals do not follow this philosophy, and cannot be equated with the secular Liberals. There is a confusion of labels. To quote Bishop Robert Dwyer of Reno, “To the extent that liberalism in America has taken over the Hegelianism and Mar xism of European liberalism (and there is ample evidence that this process of conversion is in full swing), we are confronted with the same disastrous con fusion of language that has bed eviled the West for the past century.** For example; the 1961 state ment of the U. S. Hierarchy called for a reassertion of per sonal responsibility. Catholic Conservatives claimed that it was a slap at their Liberal coun terparts. But was it? Here again we quote Bishop Dwyer; “If words have ,meaning, can be defined according to historical context, are not subject to arbitrary inter pretation, this was essentially a Liberal document. It was based upon that concept of human free dom wherewith Christ has made us free. But it was understood by many commentators in the opposite sense as being an ex pression of an ultra-conservat ive viewpoint, as though the Bis hops were projecting themselves into the arena of national politics for the purpose of denouncing certain libertarian trends of government.** The Catholic Liberal is very conservative in his religion, but liberal in sociological and econ omic fields. He is for the free enterprise system, but is well aware of the Catholic principle of Subsidiary Function. He rests secure in the fact that the Divine Deposit has an unchangeable ker nel, but a very human shell. When the Catholic Liberal talks of vital Catholicism, he is not thinking about Communion break fasts or conventions. He is con cerned with day to day living. He is concerned not only with parish activities but also with community activities. He sees the Tabernacle, not only as a defense bastion, but also as a springboard for authentic witness to the God-Man. He is not inte rested in mechanical piety. After all, a crowded Communion rail means little unless the Christ bearers share Him with their neighbors. Catholic Liberals are notanti- Anti-Communism. It is true that they look suspiciously at the professional anti - Communist, This because while we must all be anti-Communist, it does not give us license to pillory this group or that group simply be cause we do not agree with its policies. So, too, it is found that many professional anti-Communists are also anti-Semetic and Anti- Negro. Alas, some Catholics are among them. The one great evil in this kind of anti-Communism is that it repudiates the very principles that Catholics are sworn by Baptism to uphold. The Catholic Liberal repudi ates any kind of supermarket patriotism. He denounces the ex treme nationalism of the ultra conservatives. He loves his country. But he realizes that to be a good Catholic he must also love his fellowman; that he must share his country’s spiritual and material wealth will all people throughout the world. He wel comes innovations which do not compromise his Faith. He sees dangers but prays for the cou rage to face them as opport unities for further witness. The Catholic Liberal realizes that there are other views with in the Church. He makes what he considers a prudential judge ment, understanding that there is nothing official about it. He realizes that he is fallible (in the same manner as in his Conservative counterpart) and has all the human limitations that grace alone can alleviate. His greatest hope is that no one will read him out of the Church simply because he holds a different point of view. Therein lies the basic difference. The Catholic Liberal is tolerant, if impatient. His greatest cross is the intolerance of fellow Catholics who equate him with the secular Liberals. The Catholic Liberal loves his Church and obeys competent ec clesiastical authority. By this means he pays heed to the authen tic teachers -- the Hierarchy. Finally, he cannot stand political quacks who further extremes of the right or left under the guise of Catholicism. GES BY FR. ROBERT W. HOVDA (Priest of the Pittsburgh Oratory) MARCH 17, THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT. The superiority of faith and of the supernatural or der to which faith introduces us over the powers of evil and even over human ties of flesh and blood is the message of the Gospel today. And the First Reading instructs us in some of the moral aspects of our thanksgiving for the gift of faith. The other texts of the Mass stress the baptis mal theme of our cleaving to the Lord, our de finitive choosing of "sides'* against Satan and evil. Whatever temporary victories the Tempter achieves, the Christiana's orientation is firmly Godward. ''Upon you, Lord, have I set my heart" (Entrance Hymn). We "fix our eyes upon the Lord, our God*’ (Tract). "Happy are they who dwell in your house" (Communion Hymn). BY REV. LEONARD F.X. MAYHEW We are now fully in the swim of Lent. More than any other season of the liturgical year, Lent is able to absorb our attention and to capture our imagination. Much could be said for Lent as a dramatic work of art, faceted and subtle, yet dynamic enough to elicit ever more intense and always varying responses from the participant. Of course, this demands an openness of mind and de cision rather than mere passivity on the part of the part of the participant, as does every work of art. As the Lenten liturgy marks its measured ad vance - repentance, reparation, divine mercy, new life, redemption - much of its meaning unfolds against the background of the Old Testament. Each weekday Mass of Lent contains a reading from one of the sac red books of the Old Testa ment. The steady succession of instructive selections from the Old Law recalls Our Lord's praise for the prudent householder who "draws out of his treasure new things and old". In the hands of the Church the Old Testament achieves its most striking effect because it is viewed in the perspective of Redemption and as applied to the "new Israel", the Mystical Body of Christ. This is the accomplishment of the pro phecy from Isaias read on the Tuesday of the first week of Lent; "as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and... soak the earth and water it... so shallmy word be, which shall go forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me void, but it shall do whatsoever I please and shall prosper in the things for which I sent it.** The most dramatic effect is achieved when the Liturgy juxtaposes the primary revelation of an Old Testament passage with its fulfillment in the Gospel. This may occur through typology, when an event or a person that foreshadowed Christ in the Old Law is shown next to the accomplish ed fact in Our Lord. On the Friday of the sec ond week, for example, we read the account of Joseph’s betrayal by his brothers before we hear in the Gospel Christ's prophecy of his own death, "he sent his son to them...but the vine-dressers, on seeing the son, said among themselves, 'TTUs is the heir; come, let us kill him.’ '* Sometimes the spiritual perfection of Christian doctrine is placed side by side with its anticipa- LITURGICAL WEEK The Lord's dominion is no uncertain thing, no momentary upper hand in a balance-of-power situation, but rather an eternal truth. We who have chosen, in Baptism, to "gather with" Him renew that choice in every celebration of the Eucharist, in every public and private prayer. MARCH 18, MONDAY, THIRD WEEK IN LENT. The rich baptismal symbolism of the story of Naa- man and Eliseus is evident in the First Reading. A spokes man for the living God sends a pagan to bathe in the Jor dan, and this figurative en - trance into the promised land brings cleansing, health, and, above all, faith. "Ihavelearn- ed...past doubt...there is ' no God...save here in Israel." The Gospel further emphasizes this event, making tion. Twice, on Ember Wednesday and the Wed nesday of the third week, the Old Testament lesson concerns the giving of the Commandments to Moses. In the Ember Wednesday Gospel, Christ shows himself as the new Lawgiver, binding us to an inward and total allegiance to the will of God in love: "whoever does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother". On the Wednesday of the third week, Christ con demns formalism and commands purity of heart as the only morality worthy of a Christian. Hearing the Old Testament read along with the words of Christ brings us very near to the ex perience of his original hearers. Jesus, as all re ligious Jews of his time, was educated in an at mosphere immersed in the history, prayer and doctrine of the Bible. Certainly, in his mind and in those of his hearers, the Old Testament formed a constant background to his own teach ing. A word, an allusion, a parallel story would evoke in the memory of those who heard him preach an entire pattern of associations, compa risons and contrasts. Sadly, the Old Testament is all too frequently unexplored territory for us. The Church re-creates the experience of hearing Christ through the Scripture readings of the Lenten Masses. Lent is in a very special sense a Eucharistic time. Much of the Church's efforts are directed toward renewal of our fervor in relation to this Sacrament. The Eucharistic message of Lent is not primarily concerned with the formal reception of Holly Communion, even frequently, so much as it is with a fully realized Eucharistic life resul tant from receiving Communion. The inner vitali ty of our religion is to be augmented to bring its full influence to bear on every part of our existence. This is only possible through a grow ing realization of the facts of our relationship to God through and in Christ. This nourishment of our faiths is particularly available in the Scrip tures. The lessons of the Liturgy are practical, ready-to-live applications of Christian doctrine, designed to be absorbed in experience. This is the kind of nourishment typified in the second reading of Ember Wednesday. Elias, ready for death, is provided supernatural food. And Elias "arose and ate and drank, and walked in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights, unto the mount of God." This is the pro mise of Lent - nourishment to walk these forty days - and the forty days and forty nights of our life span - "unto the mount of God**. the point of the New Covenant's extension to the Gentile nations. MARCH 19, ST. JOSEPH, HUSBAND OF OUR LADY. Protector of the Incarnate Word, Jesus, Joseph is also and consequently patron of Christ in His members, patron of the Church. Today's Mass hymns this just man who was providentially entrusted with the task of providing that family situation necessary for Christ’s total humanness. Who who ask God today to hear his prayers for us become in the process more aware of the Church as a family, of Its building as a home, of its public worship as a family celebration. MARCH 20, WEDNESDAY, THIRD WEEK IN LENT. The prayers and hymns of today’s Mass express our special Lenten consciousness of sin. Continued On Page 5 WE ARE SMUG? Catholicism And The City BY GERARD E. SHERRY Father E. James Peterson is a curate of a city y parish in a far western diocese. He is a young priest who often puts down his ideas on various things, but not always for publication. He once wrote down for .me some ideas on city Catholi cism. Here is the gist of what he has to say: Catholics are smug. We rest secure in the knowledge that ours is the true faith, that the priest can answer our questions, that we don’t have to go around "acting like a bunch of Jehovah’s Witnesses" to prove our faith. The facts are these: Last year the Jehovah's Wit nesses recruited one convert for every nine members. Ca tholics counted one convert for every 279 mem bers. Catholics are cold. Our Sunday Mass obligation is precisely that, an obligation. It's something that "has to be done". Consequently, we get there late and roar out of the parking lot as fast as possible. If the priest manages to unvest with the speed of a quick- change artist, he may be able to nail one or two parishioners after Mass to pass the time of day with. IF THIS doesn't give you much concern, con sider the convert - or possible convert - who has quite likely gone to a great deal of trouble to bring himself to the door of the church. What do you suppose are his reactions when he comes to realize that not one single person cares if he comes or not? His Protestant family has no doubt begged him not to become a Catholic. Where is the warmth and support he needs? Catholics are lazy. I guess that 60 to 75% of our parish goes to Mass regularly every Sunday. The University of San Francisco made a survey recently, and these are the facts* anywhere from 17 to 30% of the Catholics in any sizeable city attend Mass regularly. The rest (not counting the sick or those who are otherwise legitimately excused) miss Mass once, twice, or fifty times a year. Who's to blame if all of this is true? OFTEN the priest is to blame. He has an un necessarily great amount of unpriestly respon sibilities thrust upon him from the moment he is ordained. It is automatically assumed that he emerges from the seminary of a great organiz er, a towering intellect and a financial wizard. The plain fact is that he is rarely any one of these things. Consequently, he becomes entangled in a frightening schedule of "doing things." His time is consumed with tasks a layman should be doing, and who - more often than not - could be doing them better. The priest's real vocation, that of being a father to souls, begins to suffer. Realiz ing how unbelievably busy he himself is, he tends to make excuses for those under his spiritual care. AND THE laymen themselves are surely to blame. U they get the church and school built, they figure all the work is done. They can go to Mass, put their envelope in the collection and call it a day. Being a member of Christ's Mystical Body is reduced to something purely social. It is only slightly more significant than belonging to the Klwanls or the American Legion. Christian re sponsibility to our neighbors is a discomforting thought, one preferably forgotten. This is a distrubing (and admittedly one-sided) picture of the church in the United States. Where have we bogged down? We have failed to recognize the proper role of the layman in the church. WTien Jesus entrusted to His Apostles, His divine mission to teach, rule and sanctify, it was not to be a great secret known only to a few. The hier archy exists as guide, interpreter and - most important of all - as the custodian of the truths that are handed down from generation to genera tion. Bishops ami priests alone do not constitute the church. Paul-Emile Cardinal Leger, Arch bishop of Montreal, recently pointed out that to say that the laity shares the responsibility for spreading the Gospel is not a concession - it is a definition of precisely what the Church is. There are a number of simple, practical things that can be done to put this truth into action. • Know your faith. Your parish priest will quickly respond to an honest, level-headed re quest for more instruction for your family or - better still - for your neighborhood group. Be careful, though. He may faint. a KNOW your neighbors. Did you ever borrow a cup of sugar Just to make friends? Did you ever invite your bridge partner or golfing buddy to the convert class? Do you offer any help when the lady down the block has a sick child? Do you welcome newcomers to your neighborhood? Offer to introduce them to the pastor if they are Ca tholics? Did you ever explain the Mass to a Pro testant who has just attended a Catholic wedding or funeral? Ever introduce yourself to someone in the vestibule of the church? • DO you and your family attend Mass every Sunday without fail? Do you think going on a trip is a legitimate excuse for missing Mass? Do you think that gives good example to others? Do you bqlieve in the efficacy of the Mass? How often do you receive Holy Communion? If you bat a thousand with the above questions, chances are you're a member of an exciting, liv ing parish. If not, fhink about Judgment Day. Message Of Superiority Of Faith KEAPimS AT RANDOM.