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PRAY FOR
THE COUNCIL
diocese of Atlanta
SERVING GEORGIA’S 71 NORTHERN COUNTIES
VOL. 1 NO. 38 ATLANTA, GEORGIA THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1963 $5.00 PER YEAR
PRAYER
FOR THE ECUMENICAL COUNCIL
O Divine Spirit, sent by the Father
in the name of Jesus, Who dost in
fallibly assist and guide the Church,
pour forth the fulness of Thy gifts
upon the Ecumenical Council.
Kind Teacher and Comforter, en
lighten the minds of our Bishops,
who, responding to the invitation of
the Sovereign Roman Pontiff, will
gather in solemn assembly.
Grant that from this Council there
may come forth abundant fruits: that
the light and strength of the Gospel
may ever more widely influence hu
man society; that new vigor may in
fuse the Catholic religion and its
missionary task; that the Church’s
teaching may be better known and
Christian morality more widely prac
ticed.
Sweet Guest of our souls, confirm
our minds in truth, and dispose our
hearts to obedience, so that the de
cisions of the Council may find in us
generous acceptance and prompt ful
fillment.
We beseech Thee, too, on behalf of
those sheep who no longer belong to
the one fold of Jesus Christ, that they
also, glorying as they do in the name
of Christian, may finally regain unity
under one Shepherd.
Renew in our time Thy wondrous
works, as in a new Pentecost, and
grant that holy Church, gathered to
gether in unanimous, more intense
prayer, around Mary, the Mother of
Jesus, and guided by Peter, may
spread the kingdom of the Divine
Saviour, which is the kingdom of
truth, of justice, of love, and of peace.
Amen.
POPE CAUTIONS
Divine Presence
In Human Body
AT A RECENT meeting held at the school, plans were made for die forthcoming evaluation of
St. Plus X High School by the National Catholic Education Association. Shown, left to right, are
Sister Mary Joseph, S. N, D,; Fr. James L. Harrison principal of Plus X; Sister Sarita Clare,
C. S, J,; Fr, Koob, representative of the NCEA: and Fr. John W. Leahy, archdiocesan superin
tendent of schools. The evaluation will be completed by April.
PRIEST STATES
Birch Society, Black
Muslims Are Similar
Pontiff Urges
Vatican Curia
Modernization
VATICAN CITY, (NC)—His
Holiness Pope Paul VI has cau
tioned surgeons to be attentive
to the divine presence in man.
Speaking to participants in
the 20th International Congress
of General and Cardiovascular
Surgeons, he said:
"YOU ARE the benefactors
of mankind when the exercise of
your profession conforms, as
We do not doubt it does, to
MSGR. ELMER H. BEHRMANN,
A MEMBER OF President Ken
nedy's Panel on Mental Ret
ardation, will speak, Oct. 4
at 8 pm, at the Dinkier Plaza,
before Our Lady's Association
for Exceptional Children,
higher and permanent moral
laws.”
The Pope said that he is con
fident that the scientists did not
visit the Vatican out of simple
curiosity as tourists. He said:
"IF OUR spiritual diagnosis
does not deceive Us, it is a
secret awareness of the su
perior value of your studies
and especially of your efforts
against the physical evils which
afflict humanity that brings you
here.
"It is something which many
of you perhaps cannot adequate
ly define, something in your
science and in your art which
merits to be brought before
Our person because of what
We represent and because of
the mission that We exercise.
Your activity, though dedicated
to the well-being of bodies, is
worthy of being presented at the
door of the kingdom of the spi-
THE HUMAN body, whose
physical and biological secrets
the surgeons explore, is a holy
place where divinity resides, he
said.
CHICAGO, (NC)—The Black
Muslims and the John Birch
Society are matching symptoms
of social deterioration, a Ca
tholic priest experienced In so
cial welfare work told a Pres
byterian meeting here.
"There Is a great similarity
between Malcom X and Robert
Welch (major figures in the
Muslims and the John Birch
Society respectively),** declar
ed Msgr. John J. Egan, direc
tor of the Chicago Archdioce
san Conservation Council.
•THE ONLY obvious differ
ence in the makeup of their
movements is the social status
of their adherents," Msgr. Egan
said.
"Each offers to his followers
a simplistic path to Valhalla.
Each is a true demagogue. And
the ranks of such organizations
.••are rapidly gaining more ad
herents," he declared.
MSGR. EGAN spoke at the an
nual banquet of the Board of
National Missions of the United
Presbyterian Church in the U.S.
A.
He called for greater inter
church cooperation in coping
with the problems of modern
urban society, of which he of
fered the Negro racist Black
Muslims and the extreme right
ist John Birch Society as ex
amples.
WARNING OF a growing gulf
between rich and poor in the
modern American city, he said
the two groups "are rapidly be
coming polarized, and the terms
of the polarity are irrationality,
violence and hatred."
"This is the situation of ur
ban society in the 1960’s: a di
vided community, lacking in a
consensus of spiritual and so
cial goals, and divided into
camps of hatred accelerated
by an increasing breakdown of
communication," he said.
IN THIS "crisis of urba
nism", he declared, the chur
ches "must play a significant
role."
"They have not yet done so,"
he said.
Msgr. Egan cautioned reli
gious leaders that they run the
risk of irrelevance by failing
to speak hard truths to their
congregations.
"POLITICAL leaders can va
lidly argue that they must wait
for the electorate to catch up,"
he said, "We cannot wait for
our congregations to catch up
or we fall them,"
Msgr. Egan urged that chur
ches cooperate in promoting
community and neighborhood
CARDINAL CUSHING:
BOSTON, (NC) — Richard
Cardinal Cushing said here that
anyone who gives even "the
slightest impression" that Pope
John XXIII was soft on commu
nism is guilty of a "colossal
lie."
The Archbishop of Boston
said he had personally read
"correspondence the late be
loved Pope John XXIII had with
communist leaders." He did
not disclose the nature of this
correspondence.
HE EMPHATICALLY scored
what he said have been claims
that this correspondence "lea
ves the impression that a po
licy of co-existence or appease
ment with Marxism was advo
cated by Pope John."
"I can unhesitatingly write",
the Cardinal said in his regular
column, "News Notes" in the
Pilot, Boston archdiocesan
newspaper, "that any charge to
this effect is a colossal lie."
"TO SUPPORT this fact I
wish to add that I had the pri
vilege of reading all this cor
respondence prior to the elec
tion of Pope Paul VI. That pri
vilege was given to me so that
I would be in a position to deny
absolutely any such insinua
tions," he wrote
Cardinal Cushing also cited
the universally heralded ency
clical, "Pacem in Terris"
(Peace on Earth), issued by the
late Pontiff on April 11, 1963.
"I CANNOT find one sentence
in this encyclical that Justifies
such opinions," the Cardinal
wrote.
"Anyone who attempts to see
in the heart of Pope John or in
organizations, in special educa
tion programs, in joint research
and in ecumenical programs—
all aimed at dealing with prob
lems of urban society.
" We will make more rapid
strides toward Christian unity
as we work together in the task
of responding to the urban chal
lenge," he said.
his words or deeds a soft ap
proach towards communism
does not know the Christlike
love of this beloved Pontiff.
Anyone who would even give
the slightest impression that the
correspondence between Pope
John and communistic rulers
indicated a like attitude is guil
ty knowingly or unknowingly of
a colossal lie," he wrote.
• SEE TEXT, PAGE 2
VATICAN CITY, (NC)—His
Holiness Pope Paul VI has an
nounced he will simplify and de
centralize the Roman curia, the
Church's central administra
tive body.
Pope Paul said the curia has
"grown ponderous with its own
venerable age."
THE POPE announced his
plan to the cardinals, priests
and laymen of the curia at a
special audience. The reforms
of the curia, he stated, "will
be formulated and promulgated
by die curia itself."
He outlined some of the re
forms:
Members of the curia will
be recruited on a "superna
tional" basis. At present its
membership is predominantly
Italian.
—MEMBERS will receive
what the Pope called an "ecu
menical" education in prepa
ration for the curia work.
—Local bishops will take
over functions now performed
by the curia which can be hand
led more efficiently on a lo
cal basis.
--Local bishops may be
brought into the curia.
Pope Paul stated:
"AND WE shall say more:
Should the ecumenical council
show a desire of seeing some
representatives of die episco
pacy, particularly prelates who
direct a diocese, associated in
a certain way and for certain
questions. . .with the supreme
head of the Church in the study
and responsibility of ecclesias
tical government, the curia will
surely not oppose it."
The Pope spoke in the Hall
of Benedictions over the front
porch of St. Peter's Basilica.
Members and workers of the
Curia,-from cardinals to typists
—filled the vast room, which is
as long as St. Peter's is wide.
POPE PAUL began his 3,000-
word speech with a tribute to
the Curia. He said he had
brought the Curia members to
gether in an audience to give
them all his "cordial and reve
rent greeting."
He continued:
"We Ourself had the honor of
giving Our humble service in the
Roman Curia for many years.
In the ranks that compose it We
have had very worthy superiors
and teachers, excellent collea
gues, collaborators and unfor
gettable friends../*
NATION NEEDS
Federal
Private
CHICINNATI, (NC)—Federal
aid to public education that de
nies equal aid to parochial and
private schools "would Jeopar
dize the national interest," a
legal expert said here.
William R. Consedine, head of
the Legal Department of the
National Catholic Welfare Con
ference, Washington, D. C„ told
the Cincinnati Medievalists that
such a denial also "would sev
erely hurt the educational ef
fort of the American people,"
"IF THE FUTURE of our
country as a world leader lies
VISITOR REPORT
DAYTON, Ohio, (NCO — A
priest said here that "Jews
and Christians in Israel are
communicating on the basis of
mutual respect" despite recent
anti-Christian demonstrations
in Israel.
Father John J. Kelley, S.M.,
assistant professor of theologi
cal studies at the University of
Dayton, gave this opinion. He
spent the summer in Israel at
tending the "Land of the Bible
Workshop."
"THE ANTI-CHRISTIAN de
monstrations apparently are the
work of an orthodox minority,
who, though relatively few in
number are extremely vocal and
active," Father Kelley said.
The priest, one of a group of
15 educators to take part in the
summer workshop, said that
every religion which requests
recognition in Israel is "es
tablished," and there is no per
secution of any church, "al
though there is an occasional
manifestation of antipathy to
ward some church groups" by
a less well-educated segment
of the Israeli population.
"IN EARLY August," Fa
ther Kelley recalled, "a bus
load of Baptists was stoned in
Jerusalem for traveling on the
Sabbath. Those taking part in
the violence were prosecuted,
Just as Prime Minister Levi
Eshkol promised these more
recent demonstrators would
be."
HE TURNED then to the ecu
menical council now underway.
He said it had been desired by
"a Pope to whom in fact the
spontaneous acclamations of the
public voice apply the Gospel
words about the forerunner of
Christ: ’There was a man sent
by God whose name was John.*"
The Curia must "live" this
council, he said.
The Pope said that he has
made Pope John's heritage his
own, and that he is making of
that heritage a "program for the
entire Church/'
Aid For
Schools
in our schools," he said, "then
how can we safely exclude from
assistance a school system edu
cating almost five and one-half
million students at the element
ary and secondary levelsandan
additional one million or more
in our colleges?
After reviewing the recent
history of Congressional debate
and action on proposed Federal
aid measures, Consedine decla
red that the position of the Ame
rican Bishops amounted to "a
plea for Justice and fair consi
deration of the realities and the
rights of parents and students
alike."
Father Kelley noted that cur
rent Christian missionary acti
vities touch a tender spot in in
terfaith relations in Israel and
called for a "more subtle ap
proach to evangelism of non-
Christians."
He suggested encouragement
of a continuing cooperation be
tween Christian and Jew in such
civil matters as education of the
minority groups and aid to the
poor, and continuation of the in
terfaith dialogue in Scriptures
and archaeology.
NiWMAN FUND, Andrew P.
Maloney. New York banker,
who is president of the Na
tional Newman Foundation.
The Foundation is seeking
a 85 million fund to carry
out a nine-point program to
preserve and strengthen the
faith.
FOUR OUT OF 74 Marist seniors have attained to the rank of
semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.
The four qualifying cadets, shown avobe, are Lester Wright, Chri
stopher Arnold, Robert Bochman, David Govus and Paul Apple-
grath.
Pope John Never
Soft On Marxism
J e wish-Christian
Respect In Israel