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THREE CASES
Supreme Court To Rule On
Obscenity, Birth Control
WASHINGTON NC—The U.S.
Supreme Court has taken three
new actions in the area of sex
ual morality and the law.
Acting in rapid order on the
same day Pec. 7) the high
court:
—Agreed to rule on a chal
lenge to the constitutionality of
Connecticut's 85-year-old law.
against birth control.
—Struck down a Florida law
barring interracial cohabitation
but refused at the same time
to rule on that state's law
against interracial marriage.
—Rejected an appeal by three
California men seeking dis
missal of an obscenity indict
ment against them.
THIS IS the second time that
the Supreme Court has accepted
a case involving the Connecti
cut law that bars the use of
contraceptives and bans disse
mination of birth control in
formation.
The earlier case reached the
high court in 1961. But the
court refused at that time to
strike down the law, holding it
to be “dead words*’ because
there was no evidence of any
effort to enforce it.
The latest test case was laun
ched in November, 1961, when
the Connecticut Planned Parent
hood League opened a birth
control clinic in New Haven.
Authorities closed down the
clinic. Dr. C. Lee Buxton and
Mrs. Richard W. Griswold, me
dical director and executive di
rector respectively of the lea
gue, were arrested and fined
$100 each.'
IN APPEALING to the Sup
reme Court, Dr. Buxton and
Mrs. Griswold contended that
the anti-birth control law "ser
iously restricts physicians in
the practice of their profession
and jeopardizes the life and
health of their patients,*’
Last May the Connecticut Sup
reme Court of Errors upheld
the law for the fifth time in
the past 25 years. It called the
law a legitimate use of state
police power to protect public
health and morals.
The Connecticut law was en
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MARIETTA, GA.
acted by a predominantly Pro
testant 19th-century state le
gislature at a time when Pro
testant denominations generally
regarded artificial birth control
as immoral.
In the Flordia interracial co
habitation case, the Supreme
Court voided the conviction of
a Negro-white couple under a
state law which makes it a crime
for an unmirried Negro-white
couple habituallv to occupy the
same room at night.
SPEAKING for a unanimous
court, Justice Byron White said
the statute violated the 14th
Amendment's guarantee of
equal protection of the laws be
cause it "treats the interracial
couple made up of a white
person and a Negro differently
than it does any other couple.*’
Other Florida laws on sex
ual immorality require proof
that intercourse has taken place.
But this law does not require
such proof. Furthermore, it ap
plies exclusively to Negro-
white couples, not to couples
of the same race nor to ra
cially mixed couples of different
composition.
In overturning the law on
equal protection grounds, Jus
tice White said it was “un
necessary for us to consider*'
a challenge which had been
raised by the couple to Florida's
companion law against Negro-
white marriages. Eighteen
states besides Florida have
such laws.
THE OTHER members of the
court agreed. But Justice Pot
ter Stewart, joined by Justice
Willian O. Douglas, raised a
significant further point.
Stating that the court’s rul
ing implied "that a criminal
law of the kind here involved
might be constitutionally valid
if a state could show :some
overriding statutory purpose,*
he declared:
‘This is an implication in
which I cannot join, because I
cannot conceive of a valid le
gislative purpose under our
Constitution for a state law
which makes the color of a
person's skin the test ofwhe-
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GROUND-BREAKING ceremonies for the John F. Kennedy Center of the Performing
Arts (Dec. 2) were attended by President Lyndon B. Johnson, Attorney General Robert
F. Kennedy and Auxiliary Bishop Philip M. Hannan of Washington, who gave the invo
cation.
ther his conduct is a criminal
offense."
The obscenity case rejected
by the Supreme Court involved
Sanford E. Aday, Wallace De-
Ortega Maxey, and Jack A.
Lindsay, operators of a pub
lishing and distributing firm in
Fresno, Calif.
POLICE entered their estab
lishment on Sept. 16, 1960, and
seized a large quantity of ma
terial, although their search
warrant named only two speci
fic books.
A grand jury indicted the
three men on charges of pub
lishing and selling obscene ma
terial. Subsquently, in a sepa
rate action, the California Sup
reme Court held that most of
the material confiscated by the
police had been seized illegally
but not the two books named
in the search warrant.
In light of this ruling, a
district court of appeal upheld
that part of the grand jury
indictment relating to the two
books. Aday, Maxey and Lind
say in their appeal to the high
court asked it to dismiss the
total indictment which is still
pending against them.
CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
Praise American Prelates’
Role In Jewish Statement
BUFFALO, N.YL (RNS)— A
Jewish leader lauded Augustin
Cardinal Bea and the American
Hierarchy for their part in the
vote on declaration on the Jews
at the third session of Vatican
II. Council Fathers, in a pre
liminary vote, endorsed a state
ment absolving the Jewish peo
ple of the charge of deicide.
Dr. Joseph L. Lichten, di
rector of the department of in
ter-cultural affairs of the Anti-
Defamation League of B'nai B*
rith, said at the Second Western
New York Conference on Cath-
olic-Jewish Understanding:
“CARDINAL Bea, in the face
of unceasing difficulties, in
cluding vituperative attacks on
himself, never wavered in hij£
determination to see an explicit
and complete declaration voted
by the Council. The American
hierarchy in a body supported
the statement so powerfully that
indeed they have led the Council
Fathers and their flocks, as well
as the Jewish people in all na
tions, to the threshold of that
unlocked door through which we
can see a new promised land.*’
He cautioned, however, that
forces opposing the declaration
still have time to marshal their
forces “to derail the state
ment," but added that “the will
of the Council was made abso
lutely plain** in the voting on Nov,
20.
The Jewish scholar said two
forces sought to modify the
statement. They were “con
servative" leaders of the
Church and the hierarchy of the
Near East countries. Explaining
the latter's opposition, Dr.
Lichten said:
“T IS tragic but true that the
political hostilities of the Arab
nations toward Israel have led
them to the preposterous con
clusion that a statement exone
rating ^hose of the Jewish faith
from guilt for Christ's death
is tantamount to political recog
nition of the state of Israel by
trfe Vatican state.
“I say "preposterous" not
only because such a construc
tion of the Council’s intention
is lunacy, but also because it
seems incredible that Arab
statesmen should deliberately
refuse to accept the Council’s
declaration in the spirit which
so obviously motivates it.
tive" wing of the Church hier
archy, Dr. Lichten said it is
made up of “a majority of the
Curia, the Near Eastern patri
archs and bishops, and some —
but surprisingly few — bishops
from the rest of Italy, the Eu
ropean continent, and other
parts of the world."
He added that the "conser
vative may ultimately welcome
a given change; however, his
habitual attitude is one of con
servation, of preference for the
status quo."
OTHER speakers during the
day-long proceedings included
Auxiliary Bishops Pius A, Ben-
incasa of i Buffalo; i Gerard
Sherry, managing editor of The
Georgia Bulletin, the Atlanta
archdiocesan newsweekly; Os
car Cohen, national program
director of the Anti-Defama
tion League; and Dr. Martin
A, Cohen, professor of Jewish
history at the Hebrew Union
College, New York City.
Mr. Sherry emphasized the
need for personal conviction
and practice by individual Jews
and Catholics if the result of
BOSTON (RNS)—The general
breakdown in public morality
is the reason for the majority
of the 2,500,000 crimes com
mitted in the United States last
year, in the opinion of Richard
Cardinal Cushing, Archbishop
of Boston.
The Cardinal, addressing
3,500 members of the Boston
police department at their an
nual ball here, said, "In this
era of luxry for some and pov
erty for others, the laws ofGod
and the country are being ignor
ed and the liberty of which we
boast is being interpreted as a
license to do what you want.
* *UNT IL we come back to God,
in whom our nation, from the
the conference is to be term
ed successful.
"Unless you practice your in
dividual faith, unless you free
your home of prejudice, it will
be useless for you to talk about
understanding your neighbor’s
problems," he declared. "If
each Jew here and each Catho
lic here practices his individual
faith to the best of his ability,
then and only then will there
come an understanding and ap
preciation for each other's
problems.
“WE MUST not mistake each
other's intentions, either," Mr.
Sherry said. ’ It should not be
our practice to try to convert
each other. Rather, we should
be aware of each other 's convic
tion that we have a deep belief
in our own faith and this belief
is borne out by adhering to its
precepts."
The Conference was sponsor
ed by the Anti-Defamation Lea
gue of B'nai B'rith, Canisius
College and the United Jewish
Federation of Buffalo. Co—hosts
were the Very Rev. James J.
McGinley, S.J., president of
Canisius, and Joseph N. Des-
mon, chairman of the board of
the ADL.
time of its birth, has placed
its trust, crime will increase
and multiply. We must try to
lead the youth and others to
ward the right road." *
As for local police depart
ments, the cardinal said, “We
can’t expect the officers and
men of this police department
to keep the city clean and free
of crime unless we, the public,
stand behind them."
Cardinal Cushing declared that
the Ten Commandments ofGod
are considered antiquated and
no longer binding," adding that
“if the youths and adults ignore
these God—made laws, how can
we expect them to respect man
made laws?"
CARDINAL CUSHING
Blames Morality
Drop For Crime
The facts are otherwise.
The governments of Syria and
E gypt» Iraq, Lebanon, and Jor
dan indeed, the entire Arab
league — have spoken out
against the statement and have
issued threats, some veiled and
some quite open, against Catho
lics within their borders.
“NO ONE could help feeling
sympathetic toward the Council
Fathers from these lands, who
are being subjected to unvarn
ished blackmail." Dr. Lichten
held that it was because of
these blackmail threats that the
Near East hierarchy stood
against the declaration.
Concerning the "conserve-
Czechs Get Long
Holiday Period
BONN (NC) — The goverq^-
ment of communist Czechos
lovakia is granting a long
Christmas holiday to workers
and school children, the German
Catholic news agency has re
ported here.
Workers will be given free
days from Dec. 24 to 27, and
schools will be closed from
Dec. 23 until Jan, 4, The go
vernment has said it will pro
vide Christmas trees for all
families who want them.
HE described * the secular-
istic and materialistic society
in which we live" and said that
today it calls for "extraordi
nary personal heroism for po
lice to do their job."
Episcopal Bishop Anson
Phelps Stokes, Jr„ of Massa
chusetts told the police gather
ing that we sometimes forget
to say thank you to the people
who ^risk their lives in our be
half," saying he agreed with
Cardinal Cushing's sentiments.
Rabbi Joseph S, Shubow of
Boston spoke words of praise
for eight policemen who were
given medals of honor for hero
ism.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1964 GEORGIA BULLETIN PAGE 3
Archbishop’s
Notebook
• WHAT ABOUT CHILDREN IN NEED? THE ELDERLY?
Besides the sacramental role of the Church (the essence of
her being) there are great functions that she has always per
formed education and welfare, and of course the day to day
services of laity, religious and clergy, building and maintenance of
churches, and so on. The most pressing duty of an archbishop
and his priest-, and lay-advisors, is to determine the priority
of these tasks.
The Sunday Journal and Constitution this month gave a fine
account of the forward steps being taken by local Protestant
churches in building residential hotels for senior citizens. Be
tween state conferences and local congregations, about 1,000
can now be accommodated in modern apartments ranging in
cost from $160 to $150; one has rooms for $75. This movement is
progressive and timely, and surely in keeping with the counsels
of Christ.
Since the article appeared, I have had several marked copies,
“Every denomination but the Catholic. Can’t you do something?"
Frankly, we will. But here the old question of priority arises
again. Here are some of the facts;
1. Elderly people who are in need are cared for through
Catholic Social Services. Some of these men and women from
our Archdiocese are living in the Home of the Little Sisters of
the Poor in Savannah.
2. When the census of the Archdiocese was taken last year,
a surprisingly low number of our 43,000 Catholics were listed
over 65. The majority of these were self-providing or living with
their own families.
3. The most urgent need facing us in welfare is the care and
future of more than 60 dependent children, boys and girls (6-14)
who were the victims of desertion, divorce or death. Their futures
lie ahead of them. To them our most immediate attention is due
and closely allied is the next age-bracket, the youths 14-18,
who are our next largest concern. It is for these boys and girls
that the Archdiocese must firstplan, because outside of the church
and community agencies, they have no one.
4. The Catholic Church in Georgia is grow-ing in numbers,
but it is still less than 2% of the whole population. Its spirit
ual, educational and lay development must be planned and carr
ied out now by a small number, but we must build for greater
numbers.
Conclusion: In welfare, the most urgent priority is our de
pendent children. But working with governmental and private
agencies, as well as families that understand and love their
own, we must do all we can for the others — the aged, the men
tally retarded, the unwed mother, the distraught husband and wife,
the disturbed, the alcoholic the hundreds who need help for
their spirit as well as their mind and body.
We will do all we can — as needs, numbers and resources
increase.
• HARD-WORKING VICARS GENERAL
The most tireless vicars-general in the country are ours,
Monsignors Joseph Moylan and Joseph Cassidy. Besides their
heavy parish schedules, and frequent calls from the Arch
bishop for counsel, the year 1962 opened up a new area of work
for them.
Delegation to administer confirmation may be granted to priests
during the Vatican Council because of the long absences of the
bishops in Rome. Accordingly, the two monsignors have admi
nistered this sacrament in my absence many times. All over the
Archdiocese they have travelled untiringly, to large city par
ishes and small rural missions. Hundreds of children and adults
have been "sealed” by the special indwelling of the Holy Spirit
as a complement and completion of their Christian initiation
which began with baptism.
We are all grateful to these two priests who have administered
all the sacraments except two: Holy Orders and Matrimony.
P. S. If you think that priests administer Matrimony, take
another look at your old catechism,— or in the Epistles of St.
Paul.
• EVEN BETTER REASONS FOR A RETREAT
Recently, Father Hein, S. J. at Ignatius Retreat House sent
out an exceptionally fine letter on the connection between Re
treats and the new Liturgical Renewal. We are sure that this ap
proach will help our people to use God’s instruments to do God’s
work.
As in the new Constitution, the Church’s universal law on
worship, Father Hein emphasizes that "union with Christ in His
Worship of the Father" must be carefully wrought. “Prayer,
study and other spiritual exercises" are recommended*.
x icuci au lull;
mat i iciR.tr
_ uic iiocriy or repeating
in full his last paragraph on the “Summit of the spiritual life":
The Exercises of St. Ignatius are eminently suited to bring
ing about this understanding and this response, thereby giving
a man the possibility of participating more fully in the Sacred
Liturgy. In the Exercises the man is first confronted with the
reality of all creation — with his own creature - hood; he secs
God’s loving kindness in the Divine Adoption. The reality of Adam’s
fall and his own rejection of God’s grac, helps him to see his
own weakness, need of God’s mercy and forgiveness.
Meditations on- the whole Life of our Lord confront him with
the reality of God so loving the world as to send His only begot
ten Son. Further they challenge his integrity to respond tcGod’s
love by cooperating with Christ Our Lord in intensifying His King
dom. This union with Christ in mind, in will, in desire in His
worship of the Father is the Summit of the spiritual lif.,"
It is the hope of the Church that everything in our religious
life will lead to that summit. Certainly, the Retreats and St.
Ignatius’ Exercises are among the most direct and effec
tive ways of reaching it.
May Catholics, — and those of all faiths,
as their workshop of the spiritual life.
use Ignatius House
(/Lul? 9- v
ARCHBISHOP OF ATLANTA