Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 8 GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1964
CATHOLIC PRESS- 4
Catholic Press And Public Opinion—Georgia Pioneers
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
''Bulletin" of the Catholic Layman's Association
for many years not only interested, informed and
encouraged Catholics, but its Influence among
non-Catholics — particularly in the secular week
lies of Georgia and among ministers of religion
as well as organizations — was mounmuental.
Finally, and most important: Madison Ave,
is frequently called upon to build an image in ord
er to sell second-rate goods, but our Georgia
friends were only trying to give away the real
goods: the good news of Catholicism,
The fundamental program enacted and spread
by Messrs, Farrell, Reid and their associates,
particularly the zealous members of the laity,
offers a pattern to Catholics of the Country, To
be sure, the issues have become different over
the years and in various localities; and at diff
erent times, different methods or policies might
be followed.
BUT PERSONAL dedication, educational
r romotion, joining in public welfare and distri
bution of truth through the Catholic Press offer
an unanswerable platform for rendering public
service, bringing people closer to God, and
building a structure that will protect and pre
serve our beloved Country and its people, ir
respective of religion, race or class.
Early last Fall, Pope Paul VI, in an address
to the members of the Union of the Italian Catho
lic Press, spoke earnestly and prophetically on
the work of our papers as a force for public
opinion. He said "We believe that the Catholic
Press has need of new impulsion, of new pro
gress, of new effectiveness. The Catholic Press
must flourish again in new and ample develop
ments!"
The Holy Father, after asking for greater sup
port for the Catholic Press, particularly stress
ed the necessity of "greater influence over pub
lic opinion." Read these words:
"WE WISHED that its voice were more con
cordant!. , . Not that it is desirable to impose
a uniformity of writing, but rather a more sub
stantial and spontaneous conformity of judgment
which would contribute to give greater credit
to the Catholic Press and greater influence over
public opinion.
'This would also keep its readers more con
vinced of the goodness of the ideas and atti
tudes proposed to them and make them more
jointly responsible and consistent in their con
frontations with public life.
"Lastly, -we wish its voice to be always ring
ing with a Christian tone. It already is, and this
is its glory, its characteristics, its reason for
being, and may it always remain thus, limpid
and frank!
"Nor should for this reason a newspaper limit
itself to give news and comments of religious
character, nor should it artfully stress its con
fessional and apologetic character to the detri
ment of its primary informative function.
'THE NEWSPAPER should always let its every
world be penetrated by Christian wisdom and al
ways aim at the effect that the reader must
draw from the reading of his newspaper; an ef
fect that strengthens his spiritial and moral sense
and his sound and strong sense of feeling and of
the will.
"Not rarely, newspapermen of other ideas that
are not sound are, from this standpoint, more
shrewd and combative than we, to the advan
tage of their thesis. It is not in vain that the
journalist is teacher and guide of his reader:
remember this!"
Now these observations — in fact directives—
have already been a motivating force in many
Catholic papers which help to form and inform
public opinion, but they should act as a challenge
for new and more adequate activity. And what
should be its basis? Let Pope Paul VI advise
us:
"NOW SUCH A function, exercised with Love—
and surely for love in many of you — of truth
on the one hand and of the reader on the other,
performed with vigor and strictness of spirit
and not only in the service of that fleeting truth
which is the accelerated succession of human ev
ents and our transient and mute chronicle al
most photographed and projected upon the public,
but also in the service of that truth that remains,
because it is divine and, like a sun suspended
in the sky, enlightens the scene of the world to
our Joy and to our salvation, such a function,
We were saying, is not only mediation — ins
trumental, passive, impersonal —
"It is a mission, active, apostolic and indeed
personal and deserving.-
"And because such is your function, mediat
ion and mission, We encourage and bless it
from Our Heart."
THIS GREAT regard for public opinon was
manifested on a broad scale at the recent sess
ion of the Ecumenical Council. Non-Catholic
observers spoke as one in testifying to the sin
cere, cordial and united friendship shown not only
to them and their organizations but to the world
wide press and other means of communication.
The Church was conscious of "public opinion"
not only among Catholics but particularly among
non-Catholics. Freedom of discussion, frankness
of expression, courtesy and hospitality were wide
ly noted. And, in turn, the Catholic Press of the
world took this as a cue not only to aim at an
informed opinon by telling the world of what was
transpiring at the Vatican but by promoting good
will and understanding at home.
The Church and public opinion found pioneers
in Jim Farrell and Dick Reid in Georgia, and
now all over the world this newer, greater and
wider development of this idea is being felt.
‘RESTORES NOTHING 9
OFFICIAL
MASS CENTER OF WORSHIP
Priest Asks Halt
To Death Penalty
BOSTON (RNS) — Father
Charles E. Sheedy, C. S. C.,
dean of the Notre Dame Uni
versity's College of Arts and
Letters, advocated abolition of
the death penalty at a hear
ing here of the Massachusetts
Committee of the Judiciary.
The committee is consider
ing several bills proposed to
alter the Massachusetts capi
tal punishment law.
FATHER SHEEDY emphasiz
ed that he spoke only as "one
Catholic priest, but, I hope,
reasonably trustworthy in
Altarians Meet
Very Rev. Vincent P. Bren
nan, S.M., will be guest speaker
at the Sacred Heart Altar and
Rosary Society meeting on Sun
day (March 1) following the 8:30
Mass. This meeting, scheduled
on Sunday for the especial con
venience of working members,
will be held in the assembly
room.
Coffee and doughnuts will be
served immediately following
the Mass. All women of the
parish are Invited.
moral theology." The Holy
Cross father is the former head
of Notre Dame's department of
religion.
He took issue with the argu
ment that murder is a violat
ion of the moral order that
must be restored by execut
ion of the offender. "Does the
death 'penalty," the priest
asked, "restore the civic
order?" Stressing that it is
"regrettable” that the al
leged slayer of the late
president John F. Kennedy
"was not kept alive and brought
to trial," he said, however,
that an execution of the assassin
would have "restored nothing"
to the civic order.
'THE THOUGHT of that
miserable life as a substitute
for the sparkling life of the
President is grotesque and re
pellent," he declared.
"And the inevitable public
fanfare over the execution,"
Father Sheedy added, "would
only have compounded the dis
order by arousing unwholesome
enjoyment of thoughts of re
venge and sick-minded Ameri
cans who love violence."
CATHOLIC
DIRECTORY
ARCHDIOCESE OF
ATLANTA
t<?64
PRICK
$1.00
Liturgical Constitution
Is Revolutionary Change
Devotions In Honor Of St. Anthony
AT ST. ANTHONY'S CHURCH EACH
TUESDAY MORNING AT 11:30
Attend Mass or Mail Petitions
To Monsignor J.E. King
928 Gordon St. S.W.
Atlanta 30310.
DEMAND FOR THE OFFICIAL Catholic Directory of the Arch
diocese of Atlanta has been such that additional copies are
now being printed. The Directory, which gives names, addres
ses and information about all parishes and Institutions within the
71 counties of the Archdiocese, also furnishes information on
sick calls, weddings, baptisms and Christian burial, as well
as regulations on fast and abstinence. Copies are available,
at $1.00 at the GEORGIA BULLETIN offices, 2699 Peachtree
Rd., NE Atlanta or, by mail, from the GEORGIA BULLETIN,
P. 0. Box 11667, Northside Station.
Teacher Publication
WASHINGTON frJC) — A new
publication concerning the
teaching of religion will appear
this April, it has been announced
here by the National Center of
1964 PILGRIMAGE
SHRINES of EUROPE
From July 21 to August 11,
Sponsored By
The Georgia Bulletin
Killarney • Dublin • Aylesford • Paris
Versailles • Lisieux • Lourdes • Rome
Assisi
Lisbon
Fatima
Rev, John J. Mulroy
Pastor St. Joseph's
Athens, Georgia
(Spiritual Director)
AlGInclusive Rate
$897.00
RATE INCLUDES: Air transportation Jet Economy Service on
group fare, comfortable hotels, twin-bedded rooms with bath,
all meals, sightseeing as specified in the itinerary, meetings,
transfers, and entrance fees.
FOR RESERVATIONS WRITE TO;
CATHOLIC TRAVEL OFFICE
DUPONT CIRCLE BUILDING
WASHINGTON 6, D.C.
Travel By
MUTMUM
~AIRLINES
©
IRISH
mmmm
minis
sis urns
the Confraternity of Christian
Doctrine.
The quarterly review, called
'The Living Light," will be
edited by Father Russell Neigh
bor, associate director of the
CCD. It will be concerned with
both theoretical and practical
aspects of teaching religion.
The first issue will be de
voted to the aims of religious
Instruction as clarified by the
liturgical formulations of the
Vatican council.
Pope On Lenten
Visit In Rome
ROME (NC)--Going out to be
with the people of his diocese
of Rome on the second Sunday of
Lent, Pope Paul VI told them
that the destiny of Rome is
such that Christianity must be
lived fully here or else it is
betrayed.
The Pope went by automobile
to the parish church of Our Lady
of Lourdes at Tormarancia, on
the outskirts of the Eternal City.
\
(Eph. 1:12), through the power
of the Holy Spirit.”
THIS DESCRIPTION of holy
Mass is far removed from the
routine and hurried celebration
that is still common—and in
which the mystery of God’s
great deeds in His people is
not revealed but made mysteri
ous. The description also shows
how the council preferred the
authentic language of the Bible
to the technical catechism
formulas and the abstract terms
of theology.
In the concrete, the Pope
and the bishops of the council
decided that the whole Mass
should be simplified: "Ele
ments, which, with the passage
of time, came to be duplicat
ed, or were added with but little
advantage, are now to be dis
carded; other elements which
have suffered injury through ac
cidents of history are now to
be restored to the vigor which
they had in the days of the holy
Fathers, as may seem useful
or necessary."
THIS REFORM of the Mass
prayers and rites, now under
way with the appointment of a
new commission by Pope Paul
VI, may involve cutting down
the Offertory prayers, restor
ing the Eucharistic prayer or
Canon to its former effective
ness, solemnly proclaimed
aloud, and improving the an
nouncement of God's word. None
of this is change for the sake
of novelty, but for the sake of
meaningful genuine worship.
The directives adopted by the
council for this work of reform
indicate facets of Catholic wor
ship that have been neglected
and now need to be reestablish
ed, if in fact as well as in theory
the liturgy is to be "consider
ed as an exercise of the priest
ly office of Jesus Christ" by
all His members.
FIRST, THE communal and
hierarchic nature of the Chris
tian liturgy is to be stressed.
The Church is the sacrament or
sign of unity. It is defined as
"the holy people united and
ordered under their bishops."
This must become evident,
much more evident, in the ways
of worship: the priest presides
and leads, but the people have
their full part.
Next, the very act of worship
is a lesson and a teacher. The
Constitution on the Liturgy ex
presses this by setting down
rules for future reform "based
upon the didactic and pastoral
nature of the liturgy. . .For
in the liturgy God speaks to
His people and Christ is still
proclaiming His Gospel. And
the people reply to God both
by song and by prayer."
THIS IS why the rites of
worship should be "short,
clear, and unencumbered by
useless repetitions. . .within
the people's powers of com
prehension." This is why the
council calls for a radical
change in preaching, drawn
"mainly from Scriptural and
liturgical sources," why the
language of the people will be
introduced after many centuries
of divorce between nave and
sanctuary.
Finally, the bishops adopted
a principle of adaptation, so
that there may be flexibility
and diversity in the liturgy
from place to place. Only God
and His teaching are unchang
ing. Human institutions and
human prayers must change and
be adapted to men’s understand
ing. A fundamental purpose of
the Second Vatican Council is
"to adapt more suitably to the
needs of our own times those
institutions which are sub
ject to change."
THE CHURCH is always
young, always alive. Its re
newal and reform affect people
in different ways. For some,
change seems to be a harsh
renunciation of the past, even
though the council has explain
ed the Christian Faith and its
purposes in the very words of
holy Scripture.
For others, including the col
lege of apostles, the council’s
first achievement is "a sign
of the providential dispositions
of God in our time, as a move
ment of the Holy Spirit in His
Church. . . a distinguishing
mark of the Church’s life, in
deed of the whole tenor of con
temporary religious thought and
action."
ABOVE ALL, the Constitut
ion on the Liturgy fulfills the
vision of Pope John XXIII, that
renewal of the Church might
be the first step toward the
unity of all who believe in
Christ. As a divine institut
ion, the Church is without spot
or blemish. As a human in
stitution, made up of sinful
men, the Church may be un
attractive and incompre
hensible—in fact the vast, vast
majority of men are unaware
MARIST SWIMMING TEAM, fourth in the Southeastern Inter scholastic Championship, lines up
at poolside. Tankmen are, left to right; Gerald Lambert, Victor .Alexander, John Chapman, Ed
Westlake, George Woelper, Ed Bosbyshell, David Murphy, Bubba Holland, Tony Saxon, Steve
Di Carlo, Nick Broughton, Bryan Starr and Coach Chester Graham,
of, or are indifferent to, the
Church.
The Church is not afraid of
the present or of the future.
It welcomes growth and pro
gress. The people celebrate
the memorial of the Lord's
death and triumph, Passion and
Resurrection—and in that cele
bration they commit themselves
to live as Christians and to bear
witness to Christ.
THE COUNCIL of renewal
does not hesitate to express
the Christian hope with glad
ness: "We eagerly await the
Saviour, our Lord Jesus Christ,
until He, our life, shall appear
and we too will appear with Him
in glory."
\
NEW K. OF C. HEAD—John
W. McDevitt, (above) for may
years a public school official
in Massachusetts, was elected
(February 22) Supreme Knight
of the Knights of Columbus. He
has been Deputy Supreme Knight
since 1959, (See also page 1)
INDIA: A BADLY NEEDED CHAPEL
The Visitation Sisters in the diocese of KOTTAYAM in
southern India after many sacrifices have succeeded in building
a novitiate. The money received
wasn't enough however to finish the
the building. Even the small dowry
fund of the Sisters was used with
♦he special permission of the Bishop.
’ r h?ir other convents were asked for
” help and sent what they could but
stflt it wasn't enough. It has been
impossible for them to get enough
money to finish the chapel. They
need a very modest sum: $2,700.
„ . - . . Ui „- A J The Bishop of KOTTAYAM has
Tb.H*l,F.,h",M,u.on Aa >sked us , 0 h( . lp 0n ^ reMnt vbu
/or ti* Ontnial Church to Rome, he personally appealed for
this project. Will you do what you can to help him and the
Sisters? Please send your help now. Any amount—$1. $5, or
more. Thanks.
1854
In this year tho dogma of the Immaculate Conception w’as
promulgated by Pope Pius IX. Since then, there has been a
tremendous increase in missionary zeal in the Church. "Can
you name one encyclical published before that time? One
Church historian has noted that by mid-century the Gospel
had been preached to every nation, although not, of course, to
everyone in the nations . . . When you help our association, you
are bringing Christ’s message to those remaining ones who
haven’t heard it in the 18 Middle East and Near East countries
in our care. We do need your help in so many ways, such as:
□ Giving a STRINGLESS GIFT for an urgent mission need.
□ Building a chapel or school for the missions. Cost: $2,000-
$6,000.
0 Sending us a DOLLAR A MONTH for one of our mission
clubs. They look after lepers, orphans, aged, vocations,
chapels, etc.
□ By taking out a membership in our association. The cost is
so small. $1 a year for a single person. $5 for a family.
0 By giving a sacred gift for a chapel In the missions.
Mass Kit ... $100 Chalice
Altar 75 Ciborium
Vestments .. 50 Statue . •
Monstrance .. 40 Crucifix
$40 Stations
40 Censer
30 Linens
25 Sanc’y Bell
. .$23
20
13
5
INDIA
Nowhere perhaps in the whole Church is there a place where
▼or«tf*ms a** •« nwmernu*. w h»u you helo educate a semina
rian Uke VITTORE DA ASMARA or a Slster-to-be like SR.
KORDULA you are making those vocations come to fruition.
The cost is so mall for so great a good. $2 a week for six years
educates a seminarian and $3 a week for two years trains a
Sister-to-be. You can pay l n installments.
FEBRUARY’S SPECIAL INTENTION is for an understanding
of the Lenten Liturgy. You know of Michael and Gabriel and
Raphael, the archangels who watch over the Liturgy. Do you
know about Uriel. Sealtlel. Jehudiel and Barachiel, the other
four? . . . When you send a MASS STIPEND to one of our
priesta, he offers up the Mass for your intention in the presenco
of these mighty ones. These MASS STIPENDS arc often his
sole daily material support.
Dear Monsignor Ryan:
Enclosed please And
Name
Street
for
r'w
Zone
State
(Mlliear “East Olissionsi^
HANOI CARDINAL SHUMAN, FresUert
M«ff. Joseph T. lyes, Neel See*f
f| IMMIlllltlggi ^ .
CATHOLIC NKAR CAST WELFARE ASSOCIATION
4i0 Lexington Avo. at 46Hi St. Now York 17, N. Y.