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OVER SIMPLIFICATION
Good Guys, Bad Guys
BY REV. LEONARD F. X. MAYHEW
There is a tendency in many of us probably
derived from our childhood experience watching
cowboy movies to divide the world into good guys
and bad guys. This convenient division of the hu
man race is a staple of the classic western movie
and, to a lesser degree, of its television step-child.
It definitely has its attractive
ness, It does away with the nec
essity of doubt, for one thing.
There is only one side to every
question and it is crystal clear
what attitude to take.
This is fine for Saturday night
at the movies but it makes a
somewhat defective frame of
reference for more serious
considerations. It is surprising, however, how of
ten supposedly serious and well-informed analy
sts adopt such a mentality - even in matters of
Catholic life and thought. When Pope John burst
so refreshingly upon the scene, some enthusiasts
seemed hell bent on downgrading his predecessor,
Pius XII, Now - as is pointed out in another column
in this newspaper - some are attempting the same
maneuver with Pope John and Pope Paul, Unwar
ranted contrasts are being drawn between Pope
Paul’s first encyclical letter, Ecclesiam Suam,
and the great social documents of Pope John.
WE MAY leave aside, as of secondary impor
tance, the error of mind or will which leads to
such absurdity. In the matter of these papal teach
ings and the guidance they afford, the solution is
very easy. We may "go to the record" as a poli
tical leader of a generation ago used to advise.
We have the text of Pope Paul's message as we
have the texts of Pope John’s, Every seriously
committed Catholic with any aspiration to be well-
informed owes it to himself and to the Church to
read them for himself with an open mind.
Far from being any retrenchment, Pope Paul’s
letter - "this simple conversational letter of
ours" he calls it - is an excellent summary of
the present thinking and concern of those commit
ted to aggiornamento 1 - renewal and reform.
POPE PAUL was certainly aware that his first
encyclical letter might be interpreted as a direc
tive (or a ’corrective" in the minds of some) for
the Ecumenical Council. At the very start he
makes clear that this is not his intention: "It is
not our intention to express ideas that are either;
new or fully developed; the Ecumenical Council
exists for that purpose; its work.,.is to be com
mended and encouraged."
The Pope captures neatly the three poles of
Catholic thought most essential for a practical
analysis of the state and needs of the Church.
His words, in the first place, "ought to derive
from the attentive meditation of the teaching of
God." The knowledge thus derived from medita
tion on the faith must be applied to "the present
situation of the Church" and to "the contempo
rary state of humanity in the midst of which our
mission is to be accomplished," Nothing could be
more completely in the spirit of Pope John’s
mandate to the Church and the Council when he
called for renewal. Anybody who would doubt this
only needs to read further on as Pope Paul speaks
of the "necessary reforms" and the "sweeping
renovation" that must be accomplished in the
Church.
THE STARTING-POINT of Pope Paul’s teaching
is the revealed word of God and, in particular, that
part of divine teaching which conems the "nature,
mission and ultimate destiny of the Church." To
meet the changing conditions and needs of humani
ty, the Pontiff invites the bishops, their follow
ers and "the gathering of the faithful considered
as a whole, which is the Church" to "deepen its
consciousness of itself...to reflect on herself,"
In a deepened understanding of what the Church
really is there will be discovered the energy and
wisdom to fulfill most perfectly the supernatural
task which we - the Church - must accomplish
in this world.
The second step in Pope Paul's teaching and
program is to compare the "ideal image" of the
Church, distilled from meditation on God’s word,
with the "actual image which the Church pro
jects today." In this comparison we find the
Church faithful as always in essentials but also
as always imperfect. From this insight "there
arises the unselfish and almost impatient need
for renewal, for correction of the defects which
conscience denounces and rejects." This is the
keystone of the "renewal and reform" of Pope
John and Pope Paul-and of every faithful member
of the Church.
OVESTION BOX
All Men Equal?
Q? Will you please explain about "all men being
created equal?" I thought that ever since God
cursed Cain and His good moral man, Noah,
cursed Chanaan that there was some kind of dis
tinction. I didn’t connect it with color or race,
just ancestry or descendants.
A. God’s curse of Cain was a punishment for
sin, teaching a moral lesson; that man should
be his brother’s keeper. It does not imply that
Cain’s descendants were Inferior. They were
on the face of the earth; nomads, but so were the
Hebrews. Possibly the most severe criticism of
Cain, after his murder of Abel,
is in the simple words: "Cain
was the founder of a city which
he named after his son Henoch."
The Hebrew people had little
respect for those who lived in
cities, considering them im
moral.
In Noah’s curse of Chanaan
there is possibly a bit of in
feriority implied. Chanaan was
the ancestor of the Jews’ worst enemies: the
Chananltesi. To the author of the genealogies
of Genesis they were indeed accursed peoples.
And we must keep in mind that the people of
those earlier days did not have the concept of the
common brotherhood of all men, as children
of the same Father in heaven - a concept taught
by Jesus Christ, and frequently forgotten by His
followers.
When we enunciate the great principle of our
Declaration of Independence that all men are
created equal wemustkeepinmindits true mean
ing; that all men are endowed by their Creator
with the same inalienable rights, because they
all share the same human nature. We easily
observe that all are not equal in physical
strength, mental ability, beauty, wealth, environ
ment, or even spiritual opportunities.
Pope John XXIII clearly stated the true mean
ing of human equality in his Pacem in Terris;
"All men are equal in their natural dignity . . .
every human being is a person. . . endowed
with intelligence and free will. By virtue of this
he has rights and duties of his own, flowing
directly and simultaneously from his very nature,
which are there for inviolable and inalienable.
"If we look upon the dignity of the human per
son in the light of divinely revealed truth, we
cannot help but esteem if far more highly. For
men are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ.
They are by grace the children and friends of
God and heirs of eternal glory.’*
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
adopted* in 1948 by the General Assembly of
the UN expresses a similar concept in these
words; "All human beings are bornfree and equal
in dignity and in rights. They are endowed with
reason and with conscience and should act to
wards one another in a spirit of brotherhood."
PRECARIOUS PAKISTAN
Your World And Mine
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4
Islamic concept of a theocratic state with the
principle enunciated by the United Nations that
the rights of the citizen are not affected by his
religious allegiance. Its early attempt to create
at least partially democratic Institutions ran into
a stone wall. Conservative Islamic elements had
an absolute control of public opinion and they
Insisted on imposing their notion of a society
in which the non-believer would enjoy at best
a precarious toleration.
As in other Moslem states, the solution was
found in a military dictatorship which imposed
an iron control on the media of communica
tions. It has not yet solved any of the basic
problems, ideological or economic, but it keeps
substantial order and curbs the extremes of
fanaticism.
THE TINY Catholic minority of about 300,000,
although too small to be politically significant,
did not escape its share of pressures and tri
bulations. Today, however, it has reached a satis
factory equilibrium, as ( was assured by Arch
bishop Cordelro, first Pakistani Archbishop of
Karachi, when he received me recently in his
modest home. Pastoral work for the Catholic
community can be conducted freely, and there is
no objection to a quiet radiation of Catholicism
among non-Moslems. Accordingly, while growth of
the Catholic community is mainly by natural in
crease, there is also a gratifying number of con
versions. Adult baptisms in a recent year were
13,600 , more than four percent of the entire
Catholic population.
Pakistan recognizes its desperate need to ex
pand education in order to improve living con
ditions, and it welcomes the contribution whjch
Catholics are making. The country has more than
450 Catholic schools with 75,000 students. The
population of non-Catholic students is particu
larly high at the upper levels, so that the Cath
olic high schools and colleges provide a direct
service to the whole community.
ARTIFICIAL though the basis for the State of
Pakistan may seem, there is no likelihood of any
kind of federation with India, even against the
massive Chinese threat to the Sub-continent. The
emotional gulf between Pakistanis and India is
such as to destroy all reason. All of the help
they have received from the United States, for
example, is today forgotten, because of the sup
port we have given India to strengthen her de
fenses against China. All one hears Is the perfidy
of the United States for arming Pakistan’s enemy.
This violent reaction to every imagined slight
prevents the non-Moslem population from ever
feeling quite secure, The precarious ness of the
balance was again demonstrated recently by the
chain reaction to the disappearance of a venerated
relic, a hair of the Prophet’s beard. Though the
incident occurred in Kashmir, rioting soon spread
to distant East Pakistan. Tens of thousands of
peasants, most of them Christians (mainly Pro
testants), were forced to flee through the Jungle
to refuge in India. Such violence inevitably pro
vokes counter-violence. One lives for ever in the
shadow of a smoking volcano.
Saints in Black and White
ACROSS
1. Tab
5.
9.
13. v/Jtcyc
14. Of the shoulder
13. Aroma
16. The masses
17. Shear
18. Velocity per second
19. Press
20. Neckpiece
21. An arrangement
of troops
24. Flightless bird
23. Monetary unit of
various countries (pi.)
27. Form of address
28. Note of scale
29. Spar
31. Skin openings
32. Size or shot
33. Source
36. Shout
40. To summon
43. Energy
4'>. Scottish Explorer
46. I.and measure
47. Three (Italian)
48. Drown
50. Shabby
52. Court
53. Anti-aircraft; abbr.
55. He became one
56. A fish
oO. Old German; abbr.
62. List
64. Pin
65. Dampen
66. Mistv
69. Bite
70. Tune
71. Scorch
72. Space
74. wen
75. This (Spanish)
76. Vulctide
77. Smooth material
78. Dark grayish blue
79. Obscures
80. Jog
DOWN
1. He was born of
.... parents
2. Animal of the cat
family
3. Donkey
4. Comb, form: pus
5. He resumed his
monastic life in
6. Mohammed'S
son-in-law
7. Scruff
8. Tons Registered
(of a ship)
9. He practiced the
virtue of
10. Noble (German)
11. Blush
12. Danish coin
13. Skin: comb, form
16. Day (Latin)
17. He was born in ..
22. Cesium; abbr.
23. Strike
26. Japanese money
30. Crest
3J. Jetties
34. Rubbish
35. Pope called
him to Rome.
37. Stray
38. Loiter
39. Sheltered
40 Houston
41; Mist (Scot)
42. One of the Cardinal^.
43. Blessed bread given
to non-communicants
44. Germanic; abbr.
48. Rationality
<9. Eyes (Scot)
51. He was endowed with'
rare gifts
52. Invalid’s soft food
54. Bother
57. He lived as one
58. Airplantf; (French)
59. Costly
60. Attack
61. Silly persons
63. "The Quaker State”
67. Philippine servant
68. Branches
70. Vehicle
73. Stuff
M. Sailor
76. Ex dividend; abb/.
77. He became one
N
argon
'ip
ANSWER TO LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE ON PAGE 7
THURSDAY AUGUST 20, 1964 GEORGIA BULLETIN PAGE 5
ECCLESIAM SUAM
Favorable
Press Reaction
Greets Pope’s Encyclical
(N.C.W.C, News Service)
U. S. newspaper reacted
favorably to Pope Paul Vi’s
first encyclical, Ecclesiam
Suam, while noting that it re
presents a more "conserva
tive" approach to issues than
that of the late Pope John
XXIIL
Here is a roundup of
editorial comment on the
encyclical:
THE CHICAGO Sun-Times:
"To some, the message meant
a slowing down of the so-called
modernizing process associat
ed with Pope John. But the em
phasis actually was on a re
statement of the Church’s un
changeability in matters of the
spirit while adapting itself ex
ternally to changing times."
The Chicago American: "The
world has never been more in
need of guidance from religion
than it is now - with wars
brewing but not yet irretriev
ably started in the East and
West. The Pope’s offer to medi
ate these crises comes at an
opportune moment."
THE WASHINGTON Post:
"Even on a first and super
ficial reading one point seems
abundantly clear: the Pontiff
has drawn limits both to the
enthusiasm for Christian re
union generated under his pre
decessor and to the zeal for
aggiornamento, or the adapta
tion of the Church and its
methods to the moods and con
ditions of the contemporary
world."
The New York Herald Tri
bune: "He is not stressing
separateness, but unity; not
diatribe, but dialogue. It is a
stand that should find a sym
pathetic echo in many hearts
and minds; that could be of
immense value in lay, as well
as in religious, controversy."
THE BOSTON Globe: "What
the letter does is extend the
area of dialogue, with all that
implies, among the churches
and to non-Christian religions.
That dialogue, which has ex
panded with such marked dis
tinction here and in Europe,
was among Pope John’s chief
aspirations."
The San Antonio Express:
"If the ’circular* encourages
further discussion on ways to
ward greater agreement among
Christians, it may yet become
’extraordinary.’ **
THE ATLANTA Constitution:
"It was not a revolutionary
document by any means. Rather
it showed Pope Paul, a man of
keen intellect, to be a conserva
tive in the best sense of that
much misused word: seeking to
preserve the strength and good
of the past, while at the same
time taking note of historical
facts of life and demonstrating
compassion for human wel
fare."
The Cleveland Plain Dealer:
"Determinations of the third
session of the ecumenical coun
cil opening next month will
provide the real answers as to
where Pope Paul’s influence
will be directed, to the v liberal
wing of the Church represented
by a majority of the 2,300
prelates or to the curia, the
ultraconservative ruling body."
The Baltimore Sun: "In some
respects his point of view seems
more cautious and conservative*
than Pope John's. The two share
an intense fervor for world
peace, however, and among the
many points which will be
pondered in the new letter . . .
is the Vatican’s offer to assist
contending parties in finding
‘honorable and fraternal solu
tions’ for their disputes."
Seminary Fund
ARNOLD VIEWING
Island
Of Blue Dolphins
BY JAMES W. ARNOLD
"Island of the Blue Dolphins" has the distinc
tion of being the only <non-DIsneyr film recom
mended this year by the Legion of Decency as
superior family entertainment. An offbeat pro
duction by little-known professionals, it is an
uncommonly pretty, often moving tale about
a girl Robinson Crusoe, But it is simply an
excellent children’s movie, with insufficient depth
or skill to demand earnest adult attention.
The film is based on Scott O’Dell’s much -
praised 1960 novel, itself based on the true
story of an Indian woman who lived a'ne on one
of California’s Santa Barbara is
lands from 1835 to 1853, The
movie heroine (darkly pretty
teenager Celia Kaye) and her
young brother are accidentally
left behind when their tribe,
decimated by treacherous
hunters, is evacuated to the
mainland. She learns much
about life and death, love and
hate, good and evil before the
rescue ship comes.
THE TIME problem is a crucial flaw in the
movie. The girl does not age, and the way the
film is cut, the audience..could not think more
than a year or two has passed at most. The im
pact of her experience, and of the film itself,
is considerably softened.
The picture’s message, that there is a spirit
of benevolence in nature that may overflow into
the life of man, seems an optimist's answer to
"Lord of the Flies," There, of course, child
ren abandoned to nature were 'drawn irresistibly
to the powers of darkness. Yet "Dolphins" is not
all that profound. It merely suggests that through
her experience in the wilderness the girl comes
to accept human life with ita uncertain mixture
of goodness ajid savagery, joy and heartbreak.
The chief villains are a pack of nasty-looking
wild dogs, led by a big, ugly renegade hound
named Rontu, After the beasts kill her brother
(there’s scarcely a mark on him), the girl
wounds Rontu, but then pities him and spares
his life. The monster then becomes as genial as
any Hollywood good-guy dog. Later, Miss Kaye
learns that kindness also wins over the other
good-for-nothings in the pack. The moral is
wholesome • enough,- but a touch too refined and
pat for comfort.
DIRECTOR James B, Clark has two things
going for him. One is the spectacular scenery -
jagged cliffs; swirling waters, endless variations
in rock colors and formations - shot at Anchor
Bay, Calif. (150 miles north of San Francisco),
Cameraman Leo Tover ("The Snake Pitt") cap
tures every breathtaking vista in the vicinity.
Perhaps the best is a long shot from above o J
a canoe pulling onto a shimmering beach between
the blues of the Pacific and the browns and grays
of the sand.
A second asset are the dogs, scraggly, fear
some creatures expertly tutored by Frank
Weatherwax. The film’s best moments are in the
fast cutting and deftly chosen shots when the girl
attempts to bow-and-arrow Rontu, and later, when
he defends her against unruly subordinates in the
pack.
The acting (except for Ann Daniel, a haunting-
ly lovely child who visits the island and, luckily,
doesn't have to speak English) is on the amateur
side. Miss Kaye, Larry Domasin (the brother)
and Carlos Romero (as the noble chief done in
by a greedy white man) are compromised mainly
by the dialog. It is often a crude mixture of United
Nations rhetoric ("Let us respect each other’s
rights and learn to trust each other") and Santa
Monica suburbia-wlthout-contractions ("I do not
know, I do not want to talk about it").
WHEN DEATHS occur, they are sudden andun-
prepared-for, and director Clark tends to rely
heavily on the trite image of the survivor-
standing-sadly-by-the-fresh-grave. The closing
sequence, in which the girl gathers her belongings
and slowly passes the locations that will linger
in her memory, while a fresh wind tosses her
hair and the adjacent vegetation, is sensitively
done - a sign that this, with a bit more sustained
artistry, might have been much better than a
merely good picture.
Film-makers now have in their clutches for
immediate projects several famous works by
Catholic authors. The very next assignment for
Oscar-winning director Tony Richardson ("Tom
Jones") is an updated version of "The Loved
One," Evelyn Waugh's black satire of Holly
wood burial customs.
THIS WILL be the first Waugh novel ever
filmed, although M.G.M. purchased the rights
to "Brideshead Revisited" in 1945 f->r $40,000.
Rod Steiger willplay Joyboy, proprietor of a
cemetery for pets, and the cast will include
Robert Morse, Jonathan Winters and Sir John
Gielgud. If one doesn’t expect too much fidelity
to Waugh, he can count on something strange
and delightful from Richardson, currently the
hottest director around.
Less certain are planned screen adaptations
of G.K. Chesterton's philosophical thriller, "The
Man Who Was Thursday," and Graham Greene’s
theological drama, "The Potting Shed." The Ches
terton work will be done in modestly hig bugget
style ($5 million), with a script by veteran Richard
Maibaum, who has warmed up for the task by
scripting the first three James Bond movies.
Unlike most of Greene’s novels, "The Potting
Shed," originally a play, is something less than
cinematic. The director will be Ted Post, whose
current contribution to mass uplift is the forth
coming TV series, "Peyton Place."
Remetnber the SEMINARY FUND
of the Arohidocese of Atlanta in
your Will. Bequests should be made
to the “Mpst Reverend- Paul J.
Hallinan, Archbishop of the Catho
lic Archdiocese .of Atlanta and his
successors in office*'. Participate
in the daily prayers of our semi
narians and in the Masses offer
ed annually for the benefactors of
our SEMINARY FUND.
God Love You
BY MOST REVEREND FULTON J. SHEEN
Why are there over 100 conversions a year per priest in many
mission lands, when in the United States priests average only a
little over two conversions a year? Because we are busier and
must teach in schools? But the priests in the Missions have more
work. In some parishes in Africa, the priests hear confessions
five hours a day, four days.a week, in addition to caring for many
missions and converts. The
reason is probably this: here,
we want people to come to us;
in the Missions, they go out
after the people. We are
canonicals, that is, our re
sponsibility is measured by
those who are subject to Canon
Law; Missions are pastoral, in
the sense that "others who are
not of the fold must be brought
in that there may be one fold and one Shepherd."
Just say that there were three conversions per priest per year
in the United States, which is above the average. Is there a single
priest who does not know twenty who left the Church during the
year to follow one of the three concupiscences: sex, egotism and
greed? Are we really growing, except by baptisms of Infants born
to Catholic parents and by adding building to building? However
one answers the question, those who love Christ can plainly see
that we have to go out to those who are not coming in. The Com
munists do not limit their zeal to Communists, politicians
buttonhole voters and kiss babies, salesmen ring doorbells, and
dog-food manufacturers hire town criers. Shall we have Christ
huddle together in pews and be the keepers of the Light of Heaven
and not cast fire on the earth?
Welcnow that you faithful have worried about this complacency.
You ask, "What can be done?" For one thing, you could imitate
the girl in a dentist's office who makes thirty converts a year. . .
and all with toothaches! Talk about Our Lord with others, invite
them to pray with you. Go out into the suffering world where Christ
is. If you have failed in this, then send missionaries, help edu
cate a priest, deny yourself a luxury to pay for a catechist in
Africa, take up a collection in your office for lepers. . .and send
it to one who is responsible to the whole Church, namely, the
Holy Father.
GOD LOVE YOU to T.C. for $20 "Please accept my prayers
and sacrifice to support a catechist for one month in the Mis
sions.** ... .to Lori, Robin, Dicky, Kathryn and Barbara for
$4.30 "We had a carnival to raise money to help the lepers. We
hope this will help save all the little children who have leprosy."
to Mr. and Mrs. F. K. for $150 "Last night we decided to
forego our planned vacation trip so that our offering could travel
to the Missions. At least we have a place in which to "stay home."
. . . .to A.K. and D.B, for $10 "My fiance and 1 used to have din
ner out. once a week. Now I have proposed that 1 cook the dinner
and we send our savings to the Missions. You will be hearing from
us every week."
Find out how an annuity with The Society for the Propagation
of the Faith helps both you and the poor of die world. Send your
requests for our pamphlet on annuities, including the date of your
birth, to Most Rev. Fulton J. Sheen, 366 Fifth Avenue, New York,
New York 10001.
Cut out this column, pin your sacrifice to it and mail it to Moat
Rev. Fulton J. Sheen, National Direc^r of the Society for the Prop
pagttion of the F%ith, 366 Fifth AVenue, New York lx, N. Y. or
your Archdiocesaa Director, Very Rev. Harold-J* Rainey P, O.
Box 12047 Northside Station. Atlanta 5, Ga.>