The Georgia bulletin (Atlanta) 1963-current, December 12, 1963, Image 5

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The Georgia bulletin, December 12, 1963, Image 5

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Newspaper Page TextPAGE 2 GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1963 JEWS-REUGIOUS LIBERTY Mystery Surrounds Schema Chapter Shelving In Meet By Msgr, James I. Tucek (N, C. W. C. News Service) VATICAN CITY — Whatever happened to the ecumenism sc hema's Chapters IV and V de aling with Christian relations with Jews and religious free dom? All the answers to that ques tion will remain one of the mys teries of the second session of the second session of the Sec ond Vatican Council-- for the majority of Council Fathers and for the time being at least. IF MANY council Fathers were left in the dark as to why the two chapters were never brought to a vote for accep tance, certainly no more light was shed on the question for this correspondent. What follows here, therefore, is a patchwork of a few facts pieced together with a few rumors heard from competent sources. It is an at tempt to give an answer to some inevitable questions until abet ter answer is supplied. The schema on ecumenism was introduced into the council on Nov. 13. On that day, with Gregorio Cardinal Agaglnaian, Prefect of the Sacred Congre gation for the Propagation of the Faith, serving as presiding mo derator, Papal Secretary of St ate, Ameleto Cardinal Cicogna- ni, gave a general presentation of the schema in the name of the mixed commission compo sed of the council Commission for the Oriental Churches and the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity. Archbishop Joseph Martin of Rouen, France followed with a presentation of the first two chapters. ONE OF the speakers on that day was Joseph Cardinal Rit ter of St. Louis, who remar ked that he was happy to hear that Chapter V dealing with re ligious freedom would be added to the schema. Quite apart from rumor, it was clear from that statement that there had been some thought prior to the in troduction of the schema that the chapter might not be inclu ded. The next day, (Nov. 19) Car dinal Agaglanlan announced that there would be no further dis cussion of the schema on ecum enism until the reports on the other chapters had been heard. Once again, a person with no other facts to go on could as sume this enigmatic statement meant that there had been a sug gestion that the presentation of some chapters — perhaps IV and V—should be held up while discussion on others contin ued. This was the day that Augus tin Cardinal Bea, S. J„ Presi dent of the unity secretariat, presented Chapter IV on the relationship between Catholics and Jews. It was the day also that Bishop Emile De Smedt of Bruges, Belgium, presented Chapter V on religious liberty. FT WAS commonly known that Chapter IV had been composed at the Insistence of the late Pope John. It was a matter of public information also that Arab nations had objected to it for political reasons and had been given assurances that the text held purely religious impl ications. It was a rumor, never confir med, that the World Council of Churches had made it known un officially that it would prefer that Chapter IV not be included in the schema on ecumenism for the simple reason that it did not seem to belong there. It was commonly said that se veral U. S. bishops had had a hand in the composition of Cha pter V. It was also no secret that Father John Courtney Mur ray* S. J., U. S. authority on Church-State relations, had helped in the composition of Bishop De Smedt’s masterful speech with which the chapter was presented to the council. Bishop De Smedt’s presentation was extraordinarily long and was received with extraordin ary applause. ON NOV. 21 a strange thing happened. The first three chap ters of the schema on ecume nism were submitted to a vote for their general acceptability, but Chapters IV and V were not. It was explained by the coun cil’s secretary general, Arch bishop Peride Felici, that these two chapters would be put to a vote "within the next few days." (His actual words were “proximis diebus,*’) The reasons for the split were apparent to all. The first three Chapters were more eas ily acceptable and stood a bet ter chance of passing without being imperialed by the less ac ceptable Chapters IV and V. Here another question was born. Granted that there was reason for the split and for se parate votes, why put off vot ing on the acceptability of the last two chapters? Why not now as well as another time? Some said the council Fat hers did not want to vote on the last two chapters when they had had their texts for only two day. Here was another question. Why were the texts of the first three chapters ready and prin ted long in advance, when the texts of the last two chapters had been delayed? Chapter IV had been ready for almost a ye ar, and Chapter V was said to have been submitted during the previous summer months. What had prevented their distribution until only two days before their presentation? OTHERS said the two chapt ers would stand a better chance of acceptance if they were put off for a while. But how could their chances improve, in the council hall at least, if they could not even be discussed until they were sunmitted to the vote that would be discussed until they were submitted to the vote that would establish their acceptance for discussion? At this point there was still some hope. There were still se ven working days left in the se cond session. The last two days would be taken up with celebr ation of the fourth centenary of the Council of Trent. Another question here: Why take up a valuable working day with the celebration of Trent when it had been variously celebrated alre ady? — and with the solemn proclamation of the constitution of the liturgy and the decree on communications media. It was true that there would be a set of new members to be elected to the enlarged coun cil commissions, but it was hoped that discussion of the first three chapters of the sc hema would be cleared away in time to allow a vote on its last two chapters.- HOPES SOARED when dis cussion on Chapter II of the sc hema was terminated on Nov. 27, it was known that several high ranking prelates, some of them on the Presidency of the Council, were pressing that the chapters be brought to a vote before the end of the session. They were given assurances on this day that they would be. By the morning of Nov. 29 something had happened behind the scenes. Either there was a meeting of the moderators and the decision was taken by them to put off the vote until the third session, or a similar de cision had been taken elsewhe re. THE LAST working day ca me, Dec. 2. There were 13 speakers, the last of whom was Cardinal- Bea. The Cardinal, lacking his usual spirit in the delivery of his speech, thanked the council Fathers for passing the first three chapters, said he regretted that it was not pos sible to discuss the last two chapters and promised that they would be taken up in the third session. Cardinal Bea himself expla ined, in a departure from the text of his speech, that the two chapters were not submitted to a vote because there was not sufficient time. Whoever was responsible for the decision that the two chap ters should not come to a vote, the reason for the decision was still an open question. The best answer this correspondent cou ld find was that it was consid ered best to allow a period in which the matter of the two ch apters could be aired. It was felt that during the Interin pe riod between the second and third sessions explanations could be made, doubts could be cleared and perhaps opinions could be changed. All admitted that the two questions were Im portant enough for more study and discussion — outside the council hall at least, if for the present not inside. BEST WISHES DOWNTOWN RESTAURANT #9 E. PARK SQUARE MARIETTA - 427-9101 REYNOLDS DRUG STORE PRESCRIPTION EXPERTS 1910 N. ATLANTA ROAD HE 5-3271 SEARS ROEBUCK & CO. SATISFACTION OR YOUR MONEY BACK 1915 Roswell S». Marietta, Ga 427-4211 Sc RANGE BUT TRU ittl.-Known Fact* (or Catholic* E By M. ). MURRAY m 0*prrtffcU IHt, NC.WC H«w. I.rvlc. TRADITION HOLDS THAT THIS LIFE - SiZET STATUE OF THE CHRIST CHILD IN THE CRYPT OF THE SANTA MARIA IN AftACOCLI CHURCH IN ROME WAS CAftVCD 0V ANGELS FROM AN OLIVE -TREE in THE GARDEN OF ✓4 MfAf0A/AZ.7D\.GETHSEMANE. ST FRANCIS OF » -flrdWMH Assisi, man Rieti, 17»LyrW STANDS IN A MOUNTAIN CAMS THAT NAS FORMKD WHEN THE ROCK SPLIT, ON —. OCTOBER JQ 26 - TUE K S pgu ON WHICH THE SAINT DIED / “ W ' L** ENG LANDS 1 11 FAMOUS CHELSEA PENSIONS AS, ] WAS OPENED THCAC RECENTLY. - T?. ->**»*■ AFTER LENGTHy RESTORATION, THE FlCUAiSlN THIS FAINTING BY GIORGIONE fl477-ISlO)HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS ST ROCK AND ST ANTHONY. ST ROCK BECAME FAMOUS IN ITALY IN 7HE 14-V CENTURY FOR. NiS WORK IN NURSiNO THE S/CK THROUGH AN OUTBREAK OF PLAGUE . EXENVOY SAYS Religion Was Not S. Vietnam Issue JANUARY PILGRIMAGE Pope Focuses On Holy Land MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (RNS) — The unrest in South Viet nam, which led to the overthrow of the Ngo Dinh Diem regime, was not a conflict between Bud dhists and Roman Catholics, the father of Madame Nhu said here. Tran Van Chuong, former So uth Vietnamese Ambassador to the U. S., told an audience at the University of Minnesota that the conflict was between Buddh ists and a repressive govern ment. MR. CHUONG, whose son-in- law, Ngo Dinh Nhu, was killed in the revolt against the regime, had resigned as ambassa dor last August in protest aga inst the policies of the late Pre sident Ngo Dinh Diem. "The rebellion," he said, "has never been a religious conflict. The Buddhist demons trations were a protest against the repressive policies of the government rather than a pro test against religious intoler ance." Catholic students, as well as Buddhists, joined in the protest before the overthrow of the re gime, Mr. Chuong contended. Mr. Chuong is a Confucian ism his wife is a Buddhist, and his daughter, Madam Nhu, is a convert to Catholicism. (Ma dame Nhu, who had been in Rome since her husband's de ath, has established residence FRENCH SCIENTISTS PARIS (RNS)-—A request to bishops at the Second Vatican Council that they issue a dec laration for world peace and for the banning of war and ar maments is being circulated in Rome by a group of French atomic scientists and econo mists, it was reported here. The group's statement de clares that "in no case should the defense of the faith be in voked as a pretext for arming for war or the possible use of atomic weapons." CITING THE "universal ec ho” of Pope John XXIII’s ency clical, IPacem in Terris,, the: statement appeals to the Catho lic hierarchy to stress the mo ral aspect of peace. "We do not need a theology of war, but a proclamation of the Gospel," the statement adds. It was reported here that members of the French group in Rome have been received "f favorably by a large num ber of bishops, and that the African episcopate has asked for "several hundred" copies of the request. THE STATEMENT contains a detailed analysis of world ar maments and describes techni cally what a nuclear war would mean and what economic con sequences result from large ar mament expenditures. In France with her three chil dren.) POLICY steps taken by the new Vietnam government are "encouraging,” Mr. Chuong asserted. 'The new govern ment has understood the neces sity of national union. It has, for instance, released political prisoners and students and the Buddhists who had been arrest ed and impriosned.” South Vietnam has a tradition of religious freedom, Mr. Ch uong declared. "Even under the last regime, there was relig ious freedom," he said. The former ambassador, commenting on the assassinat ion of President Kennedy, said his death has been deeply re gretted by the South Vietna mese, "As far back as 1952, the name of Senator Kennedy was one of the first American names that I noticed," he said. "Sen ator Kennedy at the time spoke of Vietnam, and he had a very clear idea of what was going on there.” • "HE WAS one of the very, very few Americans who under stood the situation in Vietnam, as he was one of the first to understand the situation in Al geria,” Mr. Chuong said. ‘The name of President Kennedy is one of the most respected in South Vietnam," It maintains that the total spent on armaments in 1961 by major powers was equivalent to about 80 per cent of the total income of underdeveloped coun tries and that it could have pro vided schooling for 250 million children. Workshop For Music Teachers A MUSIC WORKSHOP for elementary teachers on Sat urday, December 14 from 10:00 to 11:00 A.M. at Saint Joseph High School has been announced by the Archdiocesan Catholic School Of: ice. Teachers who will take part in this in-service program are Mrs. Joanna Black, Christ the King School; Sister Miriam Raymond, Saint Thomas More School; and Sister Celeste Ma rie, Saint Anthony School. The main purpose of this workship is to demonstrate to the teachers how the music pl ans sent to them each month can be utilized in their class rooms as well as to give pra ctical suggestions in carry ing out the various steps out lined in the plans. Visit Of Interest The surprise announcement of Pope Paul VI that he will visit Jerusalem next month fo cuses attention on the situation in the , Holy Land and on the work of U. S. Catholics there. The Holy Land proper is Pa lestine, a name no longer on the map. It disappeared in May, 1948, with the creation of the State of Israel. The core of an- cien; Palestine is the land be tween the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. THE TERM “HOLY LAND” also can apply to an area much broader than Palestine. It cov ers the overall area in which Biblical events took place— present-day Jordan and Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Egypt. Prior to World War I, Pales tine was part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1920, by a league of Nations mandate, the coun try came under British ad ministration. The mandate en ded in 1948, and the British troops withdrew. PALESTINE AGAIN became a battle field. War raged for months between the newly- proclaimed State of Israel and the Arab States. Casualties on both sides mounted into the tho usands. About 900,000 Pales tinians—Arabs who had centur ies-old roots in Palestine—fled into neighboring Arab states. These Palestinians are still refugees — and their number has increased, with new births, to 1.2 million. It is estimated that half of them are under 17 years of age. More than 400, 000 still live in refugee camps provided by the United Nations. IN 1947, BEFORE the British mandate ended, the United Na tions General Assembly had de creed the partition of Palestine into a Jewish State and an Ar ab State. The UN stipulated that Jerusalem should be an international city, under spec ial international rule. At stake, of course, was the protection of, and the right of free access to the shrines and holy places. JERUSALEM IS sacred, not only to Christians, but to Moslems and Jews as well. For the Mosiem, Jerusalem is the place from which Mohammed was transported into Heaven. As such, it is the third holi est site of his religion. For the Jew, Palestine is a Promised Land, and Jerusalem, the City of David. For the Christian, Jerusalem and other places of Palestine are consecrated and set apart through association with the earthly life of Jesus Christ. THE UNITED NATIONS par tition plan, although adopted by a majority of member-nations, has never been realized. The Palestine of old—part of which is now in Jordan, part in Israel—is today an arm«d camp, manned by the troops of nations technically still at war. Thus, the sacred shrines are cut off from one another: Beth lehem is in Jordan, Nazareth is in Israel. ORDINARY TOURISTS may pass from Jordan into Israel (via the historic Mandelbaum Gate), but they may not return. Christians in Israel may visit the holy places in Jordan at Christmas and Easter, but only for a few hours. Jerusalem itself is a divided city. Jordanian and Israeli sol diers, armed with sub-mac hine guns, face each other on the alert 24 hours a day. Free access to both parts of the city is available only to a handful of diplomats and UN truce ob servers. IN 1948-49, when war rava ged the city, Pope Pius XII spoke out in three encyclicals. He spoke of the "sorrow which sears our soul at the thought that the blood of men continues to flow freely on the soil on wh ich Our Saviour, Jesus Christ, shed His Blood." He urged nations to "give an international character to Jerusalem and its vicinity." He stressed the necessity of as suring "with international gu arantees both the right of free access to the holy places sca ttered throughout Palestine and the freedom of religion and the respect for customs and relig ious traditions." The American Bishops also appealed for a “real and effe ctive internationalization of Je rusalem and its environs” in a joint statement in November, 1950. MEANWHILE, THE plight of 900,000 Arab refugees from Palestine—most of whom had found refuge in Lebanon, Syria, and the Gaza Strip--reproached the conscience of the world. Most of these refugees had left Palestine on short notice, lea ving everything behind. Re duced to beggary in countries foreign to them, they were in desperate need of food, cloth ing, housing, and the other nec essities of life. At the request of the Vatican, and American priest, Msgr. Thomas McMahon, of New York, went to the middle East in 1948 to assess the needs of the refugees. Early in 1949, through the instrumentality of Msgr. Giovanni B. Montini, now Pope Paul VI, the Holy Fat her established the Pontifi cal Mission for Palestine. MSGR. JOSEPH T. Ryan, who became president of the Pontifical Mission three years College Aide N. American ROME (NC) — Archbishop Martin J. O'Connor, rector of Rome's North American Col lege, has announced the appoint ment of Msgr. James F. Cham bers of the Buffalo diocese as prorector of the College, The Sacred Congregation of Seminaries and Universities made the appointment at Arch bishop O’Connor's request so that he can devote more time to the other responsibilities he has been given by the Holy See. Archbishop O'Connor will continue as rector. ago, reports that U. S. Catho lics have provided the Pales tine refugees with “up to $20- -million" in money, goods and services since 1948. The money —collected in a once-a-year appeal—pays for clinics and hospital-care, clothing and food distributions, schools, care for the aged, and even chapels and convents. More recently, the Pontifical Mission has opened a small li brary in the old city of Jeru salem, the only Catholic public library in all Jordan. MSGR. RYAN ALSO is the national secretary of the Cath olic Near East Welfare Asso ciation which, under the presi dency of Francis Cardinal Spel lman of New York, helps to finance the training of priests and Sisters, and support missi onary activity in 18 countr ies, some of which are in the Holy Land. Catholics in the Near East countries are., in large numb ers, members of the Eastern Rites with their liturgy and ri tes, laws and customs, differ ent from Roman Rite Catholics in theWest. Christians in these countri es, with the exception of Leba non, which is 51% Christian, constitute a small minority of the total population. The maj ority of people is the Near Ea st generally (Israel excepted) are Moslems. Catholics in Jor dan make up only 2.7% of the total population; in Turkey, .07%, in Egypt, 1.2%. U. S. CATHOLIC welfare ag encies operate in these count ries serving the poor "on the basis of need, not creed.'' Ca tholic Relief Services-Nat- ional Catholic Welfare Confer ence, for Instance, provides food, clothing, and medicines in Turkey, food and vocational- training scholarships in Jor dan, Last year alone, close to one million Egyptians in medi cal institutions received, th anks to CRS-NCWC, dieta ry supplements of flour, corn meal, powdered milk, vegetable oils and beans donated from U. S. surplus food stocks. ECONOMY CLEANERS fir LAUNDRY CORNER FAIRGROUND AND ROSWELL STS. 8—3770 U Cconomy" marietta, ga. SEASONS GREETINGS COBB EXCHANGE BANK Member Of F.D.I.C. 1311 ROSWELL ST. 428-3351 MARIETTA, GA. 4 ^ jt£22M DRUGS SMYRNA Cobb Center 436-4 N. Atlanta Rd. 435-' S. Atlanta Rd. 435-c MARIETTA N. Park Square 428-2641 1300 Churth St. 427-5341 537 Fairground 428-3374 2322 Roswell Rd. 427-5361 *Dg tyowi j4t ‘DtOUUMU Ask That Council Take Peace Stand