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PAGE 4 GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 1966
the
Archdiocese of Atlanta
SERVING GEORGIA'S 71 NORTHERN COUNTIES
Official Organ of the Archdiocese of Atlanta
Published Every Week at the Decatur DeKalb News
PUBLISHER- Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan
CONSULTING EDITOR Rev. R. Donald Kiernan
Wss
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Rev. Leonard F. X. Mayhew
2699 Peachtree N. E.
P. 0. Box 11667
Northside Station
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
Member of the Catholic Press Association
and Subscriber to N. C. W. C. News Service
Telephone 231-1281
Second Class Permit at Atlanta, Ga.
U. S. A. $5.00
Canada $5.00
Foreign $6.50
The opinions contained in these editorial columns are
the free expressions of free editors in a free Catholic press.
New Bishop’s Welcome
The episcopal consecration of
our new Auxiliary, Bishop Joseph
L. Bernardin, comes on the four
teenth anniversary of his priest
ly ordination. The priestly mis
sion that was begun in him at his
Baptism and grew in Confirma
tion and Priestly Ordination has
now reached its fulness as he
joins the apostolic college of Bis
hops. His youth and vigor, re
inforced by this new presence in
him of the Holy Spirit, will add
new vitality to a Church and
community marked by youthful
ness and dynamic activity.
Christ is present in the Church
in the Sacraments, the Council
has reminded t’" means that
every Sacrament is a property of
the Christian community. For
that reason all of us share with
Bishop Bernardin in the grace of
his episcopal consecration. The
Body of Christ, the body of God’s
consecrated and chosen people, is
enriched and sanctified as one of
our members is consecrated to
the awesome mission of the ful
ness of priesthood.
The people of the Church of At
lanta are one in joy and grateful
ness at this signal favor of God’s
grace. With love and faith we wel
come our new Auxiliary Bishop,
in whose person this blessing will
be among us.
Grass Roots Ecumenism
A joint project of the National
Councils of Catholic Men and Wo
men, “Grass Hoots Ecu
menism,’* promises to forward
the council’s program of renewal.
Ecumenism was a different
problem than liturgical renewal.
How to get started? What to do?
How to do it? The hierarchy and
many clergy have given a splen
did witness but there has been
limited lay participation and in
itiative, both of which are es
sential.
t The program sponsored by the
two national lay organizations is
well designed. It aims at parish
action and includes techniques for
the “open house’’ approach as
well as studies of other religious
beliefs and practices. The kit is
really first class and recom
mends itself mightily. *
In the light of this development
we look forward to real progress
in the programs of parish lay
groups. In place of talks on ath
letics and slide-filmtravelogues,
lay society meetings can get their
teeth into substantial programs of
dialogue and community involve
ment with our separated breth
ren.
Doom Prophet Answer
The big week-end crowds at the
Atlanta stadium answer the
“prophets of doom** that big-
time sports will be supported
here. There is no reason for At
lanta not to go first-class--in
a baseball crowd, or anything
else.
Big problems sometimes ac
company big undertakings. The
week-end traffic associated with
major league baseball games has
given us fair warning. Now is the
time for planning to save the
whole city from headaches later.
The city might well go unpatroll
ed if every available patrolman
is needed to guide traffic before
and after baseball games. Intelli
gent planning should be able to
avoid this undesirable situation.
He Was Our Friend
Another of the prophets of the
renewal promulgated by Vatican
II has died. Karl Adam, priest and
theologian, laid much of the
groundwork over the past genera
tion for the doctrinal and ecu
menical programs of today. His
books, written twenty and more
years ago, read today like the
most contemporary accounts of
the Council’s work. Particularly
his insights into the roots of the
Reformation remain not only a
monument to his wisdom but a
firm and sound guide to our un
derstanding of the Decree onEcu-
menism. A man whom we have
never seen and, perhaps, most
have never heard about has been
our friend, has died, and
has a right to our prayerful
remembrance.
For Citizens Benefit
Announcement has been made
of a new postal facility to be built
in Atlanta. We recommend that
the facility be located in the
southwest section of the city be
cause of its proximity to the air
port and the interstate highway
system and the economic value it
would have for an area heavily
dotted with urban renewal pro
jects.
To move blighted areas from
one section of the city to another
improves nothing. The proposed
facility would add much to the
southwest part of the city. The
payroll benefits alone would in
sure progress for urban develop
ment. The present residents of
this section, and those who would
be drawn there, would contribute
much to the renewal of the entire
area.
If this plan is adopted, it would
be an example to all of something
new and very welcome--coopera-
tion between government agen
cies for the benefit of citizens and
communities.
v;,.
Feast of Joseph, Worker
GEORGIA PINES
Historian Is Thanked
BY REV. R. DONALD KIERNAN
THE TIMES I have stayed at The Cloisters
on Sea Island I have often seen the name Dick
Everett. Never having met this man I naturally
presumed that he was one of the executives of
the hotel and that was about all. Never did I
realize that this Glynn County native was such
a fascinating and interesting historian until about
a week ago. While visiting the Golden Isles right
after Easter I attended a meeting of the Saint
Simon's Rotary Club [held at
the King and Prince Hotel. Ro
tary Clubs, the world oygr, are
known for the fellowship, which
prevails at their meetings and
the speakers usually ajre the
best. This particular meeting
was no exception to the rule.
The suspense and interest
with which Mr. Everett held his
listeners was something to behold. The subject
was Cumberland Island,'and Mr. Everett displayed
not only his familarity with the subject but to
the listener it was easy to see that he too was
interested in hjg subject:;
Cumberland Island is one of the six islands
which go to make up the Golden Islands of Geor
gia. It is 18 miles long and its highest point is
only about ten feet above sea level. It is the one
island which is not accessible to the tourist by
car.
The island has been under five flags, and while
it is in territorial United States, it is, and has
been, virtually owned by individuals for centuries.
After Spain lost Florida to England, the Crown
began to give land grants to individuals for par
cels of property on the island. Following the
American Revolution when the property came un
der the American 'Flag, General Green
began to develop this eighteen mile long strip
of land. Before the General’s plans had progress
ed too far, he died.
The island more or less remained in a static
state and the only event in connection with the
island worth mentioning is the fact that its
population grew to 15,000 at one time when the
British Army occupied it.
During the late’80‘s agroup of men from Cin-
cinnatti purchased the northern end of the island,
.opened a hotel and made plans to develop the
island as a winter resort for people from the
north. Their plans partially succeeded but
World War 1 put an end to the venture.
About the same time (1881) Thomas Carnegie
bought the south end of the island from the
Green-Miller family. (General Green’s widow had
been remarried to a man by the name of Miller).
The Green-Miller mansion on the island had been
known as the Dungeness. Mr. Carnegie rebuilt
the mansion and built guest homes, servant’s
quarters etc. It is estimated that it cost the Car
negie family in excess of five hundred thousand
dollars each year to keep up the property which
the Carnegie family used only from November
to May. After Thomas Carnegie's death his widow
kept up the property until her death in 1926
and then it went to the heirs.
In 1959 the beautiful mansion Dungeness was
gutted by fire. Today granddaughter of Thomas
Carnegie still lives on the island, inaccessible
by car and virtually impossible to visit.
Recent newspaper articles indicate that the Fe
deral Government is interested in the island for
a game preserve. Others have advanced the theory
of a federally constructed scenic highway which
would pass over the island in sort of the same
fashion as the road crosses the Florida Keys.
Since Jekyll Island has been developed by the State
of Georgia, it is highly improbable that Cumber
land Island will be touched. Cumberland Island
for many many years will probably remain
an untouched spot, beautiful to the eye, abounding
in history and ever fascinating to the observer.
Thank you, Mr .Everett, for a most interesting,
informative and historical talk.
ANEW DIMENSION
Your World And Mine
BY GARY MACEOIN
AN EXPERIENCE I had in Cairo two years
ago made me read avidly a recent news item
which probably had little significance for many.
The news was that five "non-Chalcedonian
Churches’* had set up & secretariat to promote
closer union. The secretariat would also organize
a common center for theological study and re
search and explore the problems of relations
with other Christians.
The experience which made
this announcement meaningful
for me is as follows. I went
to Mass in Cairo one morming
in a Greek-Melchite Catholic
Church. The pastor, a ’ young,
enthusiastic ' and deeply spi
ritual man with a Western Eu
ropean education, told me after
wards that his congregation in
cluded many Orthodox Chris
tians, and that he welcomed them to the sacra
ments without attempting to separate them from
their own community. I understood from him
that this practice, subsequently approved by the
Vatican Council in the decree on ecumenism,
was already widespread throughout the Near
East.
Later, he took me to visit the Coptic Institute,
the seminary and center for higher studies of
the Coptic Orthodox Church, one of the five "non-
Chalcedonian Churches” that are now creating a
closer union. The others are the Syrian Ortho
dox of Antioch, the Syrian Orthodox of Kottayam,
the Armenian Orthodox and the Ethiopian Ortho
dox.
These Churches are called non-Chalcedonian
because they refused to accept the decrees of
the Council of Chalcedon held in 451. Forreasons
apparently more semantic and political than theo
logical, they have since then (practically speak
ing) been separated equally from Rome and from
Constantinople, the two great poles of Christen
dom. In these days of vast numbers, their com
bined membership of 15 to 20 million is not very
great. Nevertheless, they are important because
of the distinct image of early Christianity which
they reflect, and because of their amazing fide
lity in conditions which made survival humanly
impossible.
CAMILE MOSSAD, an intense young man with
a B.A. in English literature, an M.A. in jour
nalism, and a diploma in education, gave me some
idea of what those conditions were, when I visited
the Coptic Institute.
Egypt had more than 16millionChristians when
Mohammed’s disciple, Omar, conquered it in the
seventh century. It took 600 years for the Moslems
to impose their beliefs on the majority, but from
about 1220 (when the mission of St. Francis
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 5)
SOCIAL REFORM
Public Opinion
And Unions
BY WILLIAM J. SMITH, S.J.
(Editor’s Note: Gerard E. Sherry's Reapings at
Random will resume next week.)
Msgr. Charles O. Rice of Pittsburgh is one of
the so-called "labor” priests from away back.
His sympathy and support of the labor movement
has been total and unstinted perhaps for forty
years. In a short article written for AVE MARIA,
January 1st issue, he begins his piece with a prob
ing question:
"Has the labor movement so changed that it no
longer deserves the ready and affectionate support
of liberals, rebels or reform
ers?
"There certainly have been
signs that it no longer gets this
support.
"How different it was in the
30's. I remember those days
when labor was “in" with the
whole liberal and intellectual
crowd. They criticized, but few of them doubted
organized labor’s importance, or its potential for
helping the masses and reforming society.
"That day is long over, but a residue of re
spect and support has lingered.
"Has the residue finally evaporated?"
It is significant, 1 think, that a man of Msgr.
Rice's known views on labor matters should even
ask the question. His own loyalty to labor’s
cause remains undimmed. But he does ack
nowledge the fact that fewer and fewer non-union
champions of that cause are publicly asserting
their advocacy of it.
To give adequate expression to what is both
“right” and "wrong" jwith the labor move
ment, one would have to undertake a research
job along the lines of a thesis. I presume such
work has been done and is being done in the col
leges.
One point seems quite obvious. What the unions
do and what their leaders say no longer stirs
up a spontaneous interest and enthusiasm on the
part of outsiders. For some reason or other
union officialdom has lost the common touch.
Except for political activities, official contact
with the membership brings little natural re
sponse. Groups of the rank and file in many
places, however, still show a definite interest n
their own plants and shops. But the ‘morale’
isn’t, there...,,Attendance at union meetings is
meager. As a matter of fact it is only the truly
dedicated union leader who makes the sacrifices
needed to maintain the interest of the entire
local membership. Why should the non-unionist
be more interested than the union leadership?
It may be that the public generally has lost
interest in the welfare of the labor unions be
cause union officials, political activity excepted,
do not seem to be much interested in what the
public thinks.
Some still cling to the antiquated notion that
the unions right or wrong must be defended. 1,
for one, have never conformed to this "all or
nothing" sort of philosophy and I certainly don’t
intend to acquiesce in it in my old age.
I am of the opinion, and have so expressed it,
that the Transit Strike in New York City did
untold harm to the labor movement as a whole.
Union officials, local and national, could not make a
forthright public statement on that strike without
being accused either of ’strike-breaking’ or of
actually further alienating millions of the public,
a good percentage of whom were voters. So
they kept a sublime silence. The least that could
have been expected would have been some show of
sympathy for the victims of that strike.
Even before any bill has been formulated which
would put some order into the negotiations of the
future, however, New York City union officials
publicly proclaimed that they were opposed to
any law that would modify the right to strike
in such circumstances.
Neither collective bargaining nor the right to
strike is an absolute right. The primary concern
is the common good and the public welfare.
That is the lesson labor leaders as a class do
not seem to have yet learned. Sooner or later
they must learn it or lose claim to the title of
champions of true and valid Social Order.
I would agree with Msgr. Rice’s sentiments
that unions are and always will be needed as “a
countervailing power against money and com
merce". They are-not too strong in this country.
But they will have to re-evaluate their concept of
the place of at least voluntary arbitration where
the issues involve potential danger and damage to
the public far out of proportion to the demands of
justice claimed by some minority of workers.
I am not as optimistic as the Monsignor when
he states "Idealism is the motive of the labor
leaders who are involved” in the organizing
and support of professional teachers. When the
day comes that academic issues in a collegiate
conflict can be determined by the Teamsters or
Maintenance Workers cutting off vital supplies,
some other word will have to be substituted for
the term "idealism".
Some very good friends of mine are union of
ficials. More than one of these friendships goes
back a good many years. For some reason or
other my interest in the movement now centers
upon a sense of loyalty to them rather than a
broader "affectionate" attachment to the move
ment itself. Perhaps I should have a dialogue
with Mike Quill.