Newspaper Page Text
V
V
M
I
PAGE 4 GEORGIA BULLETIN THURSDAY, MAY 19, 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
♦fss
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Rev. Leonard F. X. Mayhew
2699 Peachtree N. E.
P. O. 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.
Rights, Wrongs And Senators
Eighteen Southern Senators,
including our own Sen. Richard
Russell and Sen. Herman Tal-
madge, have addressed a plea to
the President of the United States
to nullify the desegregation
guidelines issued by the Dept, of
Education. In language the peti
tion is right out of the past:
“to protect vigorously the abuse
of power. „ .bureaucratic im
position. . .illegal, unfair and un
realistic action. . .an unfair if not
impossible, burden on local of
ficials. Scores of past politicians,
like Georgia’s Watson, Missis
sippi’s i Bilbo, South Carolina’s
Tillman, could have written with
musty pens this tiresome docu
ment.
But the real indignity of it
lies not in its style but in its
purpose. It demands that the
President, “right this wrong’’.
The three words are in their pro
per place. But what is “right’*?
“What is wrong’’?
It is right to walk in good
conscience before the Lord. It
is right to be just* compassio-
ie *nate ; - a a-nd i -hone«t; , It“i*‘“fct‘ir‘praise-
of God to see His Image in every
one of His children, whatever
their color. It is right to fight
for human equality.
- But it is wrong to speak
warmly of God, but treat His
creatures with cold contempt.
It is sinful to discriminate a-
gainst any man, deprive him of his
dignity. It is wrong to oppress
him. to lessen his chances to.a
full education, an honest wage,
a public hearing, a decnet nei
ghborhood, an equality of treat
ment.
The Senators, unwittingly, put
their fingers on the cause of our
widespread sickness; The di
sease that changes wrongs into
rights. Concerned Americans
(and some of these Senators have
been among them) remind our na
tion that a confused conscience
and an easy morality will destroy
not only the individual. If enough
Americans are affected, our cul
ture, tradition and society itself
can wither and die.
We all share responsibility for
this moral disease. But have not
the people a right to expect of
their political leaders a cry for
action, not an echo of futility?
Many white people are guilty of
the Negro’s situation, but those
who lead them, from sheriffs to
Senators, bear the greater guilt.
Their speeches and promises,
their publications and their ac
tions have supplied the initiative
for bigotry, and (after the fact)
the defense and rationalization
of it. America’s fight for free
dom is a, “contest of ideas as
much as machines and war fury*’.
It is indeed, and it was Senator
Talmadge who said it last week.
But surely this legislator does not
want the ideas of injustice and in
equality to prevail.
The guidelines are an honest
effort, twelve years after the
Supreme Court declared de
segregation contrary to law, to
require, public officials to do what
they should have been the first
to do. But too many of them are
still selling the same old dreary,
“ideas’*. Delaying. Stalling. Are
these steps mature legislators
propose in the plea, “to protect
our schools and the children who
will direct the destinies of our
states tomorrow ** ?
The churches (as well as news
papers, schools and community
leaders) must sp6ak more vi
gorously. Spiritual .leaders and
all dedicated Christian and Jew
ish persons, must fill this
vacuum of moral leadership. We
do not need to petition the Pre
sident. He and the Congress and
the Courts know where we stand.
Ours should rather be a “Plea
to the People’’ and we must not be
silenced by advice to “stay in the
pulpit’’. If the churches do not
speak up for justice, where indeed
can it be heard?
Hope, Thanks
And Unity
Atlanta’s historic first Con
gress of the Laity opens tomor
row night. It will never be pos
sible to measure the quantities of
study, time, hard work and hard
thinking that have gone into the
preparations for the Congress.
There can be no doubt about the
quality of all this work, how
ever, even from a reading of the
preliminary reports. The whole
Church owes, and ought to ex
press, sincere gratefulness to the
committee members, delegates
and priest advisors who have
paved the way for the upcoming
dramatic week-end.
The very fact of the gathering
of the elected representatives of
the laity of the archdiocese
around their chief pastor will be
a startling sign of the unity of
the Church. It will be moreover
a sign of the Church’s will to be
of service to the world and of its
will to grow into the measure of
Christ’s maturity,
There is natural uncertainty
about what the effects of the
Lay Congress will be in prac
tical terms. Nobody can fore
tell them in detail, because this
Congress will be a free, unfet
tered gathering of free Christian
men and women. About one thing
there can be no doubt, however:
Things will be changed. As each
major experience in a person s
life changes him, so this drama
tic, first experience of mature
responsibility on an archdiocesan
level will change and enhance the
laity who participate. The effect
will be felt in every parish .
There will not be agreement on
every matter that will be consi
dered. We do not and should not
expect that there would be. There
will be a spirit of charity and
unity in concern for the Church
and its mission. The final re
commendations of the Congress
will be an expression of the mind
of the laity and will merit, and
receive, the respectful imple
mentation of the whole Church.
Today’s mood is prayerful, hope
ful, challenging and grateful.
Resurgens: Rising
Archbishop’s
Notebook
A PRIEST FOR ALL SEASONS
Some priests remind you of Spring-young, vital,
filled with hope and promise. Others are wintry
in their gruffness while some are like summer
in the full vigor of their outdoor apostolate.
Then there are autumn-priests, reflective, in
their middle years, confident of the harvest of
which they have been a part.
Occasionally there comes into the life of a
diocese a priest at once young in heart and sea
soned in years. His eyes are signs of mature
wisdom, yet his hands and voice are raised vi
gorously in the summertime of a dynamic life.
Such a man is Monsignor Joseph E. Moylan,
missionary, administrator, pastor and teacher. If
ever the title, “Emeritus" meant "earned" or
‘’•merited", it is the title this priest has accepted—
pastor Emeritus of Sacred Heart parish.
Last week, when eight “young fellows", in the
25th year of their priesthood observed this an
niversary, they chose as their speaker of the
day Monsignor Moylan. And his address, which
rattled the rafters of the Cathedral Center, was
a classic piece of priestly wisdom. He was speak
ing, of course, to the eight jubilarians. But be
yond them he was reaching for the minds and
hearts of all priests.
NOT NEW BREEDS, BUT NEW CHRISTS
His style was elegant and eloquent. Critics
more accustomed to the Huntley-Brinkey fash
ion would call it old-fashioned. But you listened;
you waited for the punch-line of the periodic
paragraphs; you tried to remember the phrases
that poured out like marks of punctuation. But
it was what he said, more than the way he said
it, that sent priests, sisters and laity home pray
ing for more men of God like this one. Take one
sentence for example: “Honest disagreement is
one thing; wilful disobedience is quite another”.
BY REV. R. DONALD KIERNAN
Last week in this column I wrote about the De
Soto' Hotel down in Savannah. After the news
paper was printed I ran into someone downtown
who is a great booster of “our town". In a
sort of friendlywhere Iwas accused of favoritism;
that is, of favoring Savannah over Atlanta, in view
of the fact that in the past month I wrote Jekyll
Island, Cumberland Island and finally Savannah.
Of course, I answered this “friend" in the
only way possible. “My friend", I said "It's real
difficult to write about Atlanta's growing scene
because before I could pgtSsibly write the article
and then haVe it,printed 3hf|v building has eiUje^,
been constructed or an old one torn dowxi".
But in order to keep a friend
ship, I will attempt to even the
score and at thesametimekeep
a subscriber.
My fifteen years here in north
Georgia have with them many
reminiscences about points of
of interest and places I .have
been.
I recall the very day I arrived in Atlanta. It
was on Friday, November the 16th, 1951. On
leaving Savannah, Monsignor Moylan gave me di
rections on how to get tofthe Immaculate Con
ception Church where I had been assigned as an
Assistant. The Monsignor told me to turn right
at High’s store which was on the corner of Hunter
Street. Today there is no longer a High's at t * lat
locaton because the building has been torn down.
Mv first Thanksgiving Day in Atlanta I was in
vited for dinner at the Cathedral rectory by
Monsignor Cassidy. What a marvelous boulevard
I thought Piedmont avenue was. In those days
the northeast expressway^ ran only as far as
Peachtree St.
My first visitor from Savannah was Solicitor
General Andrew J. Ryan. Joe knew as much about
Atlanta as I did so when he asked me to meet
him at the Piedmont Hotel, I had to take a taxi
cab there. They had a beautiful panelled dining
room in that hotel and it .gave me .ideas when I
redecorated the dining room at the Immaculate
Conception rectory. Today# dining room and hotel
both are gone as a new building will be erected
on that site.
The same might be said about the area around
the state capitol. I used to trade at a Pure Oil
Station on the exact same spot where the Agri
culture Building now stands. Roy Moss had a
barber shop, a favorite of state house politi
cians, where the Fulton County Delegation has its
offices. I suspect that during the Legislature
more business was transacted in that shop than
in the corridors of the state capitol itself.
Atlanta’s new Stadium now stands on the spot
where the old Piedmont Hospital was located.
Through the kindness of Doctor Paulin I used
to play fennis on the courts behind the hospital.
Of,,course, that was twelve years,ago and flso
jerfpr twelve poundp,j£ss,pn jpe,l ( ;-„
Georgia State College replaces old and un
sightly buildings, Grady Hospital replaced eye
sores and the Police Administration Building
meant the end of a group of shacks. That whole
area with the expressway forming a ribbon around
it is a remarkable improvement and the tangible
sign of progress in a growing metropolitan area.
A Brewery with a huge sign which read “Full
of good cheer” stood where the Heart of Atlanta
Motel is now. That whole area around Saint
Joseph’s Infirmary which now has the Mariott
Motor Hotel, the Parliment House and the Holi
day Inn was the unsightlyside of Atlanta.
Howard Johnson's (South) was a welcomed addi
tion to Atlanta’s Scene beautiful. The tumbled
down houses and the blighted area in front of
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Home was a real
eye sore before the AJ motel was erected.
The new Exhibition Hall will undoubtedly get
first prize for improving a neighborhood. When
the city fathers' designed the Seal with Resur
gens (rising) as its motto I venture to say that
they had no idea that Atlanta, rising from Sher
man's ashes, would continue over a hundred
years.' it’s no wonder that our Mayor in a recent
welcome to some out-of-town delegates to a con
vention referred to General Sherman as our
director of Urban Renewal.
To think that all of this has taken place in just
one decade is . remarkable. My only complaint is
that the newspaper dispensers on <he sidewalks
have not improved at all. It still costs
me nearly thirty cents for a daily paper before
I can get the vendor to work!
Everyone was listening intently: young nuns,
young people, recently ordained priests, a Bishop,
an Archbishop. Monsignor Moylan had something
to say for all. The coin of service in the Church
has two sides. Authority must act reasonably;
obedience must be given freely. The brief dis
course had overtones of St. Paul. And you re
member that much of Monsignor’s life has been
like the Apostle’s. It was the speech of a deep
ly convinced man, tireless and perceptive all his
life, still loving the Church so much that, what
ever his title, he will some day go out withjiis
priestly boots on.
Those fortunate enough to attend the Jubilee
felt that they had heard a remarkable analysis
of the priesthood. Indeed, they sensed in the oc
casion a landmark of the Church’s long his
tory in Georgia.
EARNING A LIVING
Last week, I mentioned a point made at the
John LaFarge Institute on racial justice; “A
policeman arresting a young man for selling ma
rijuana, numbers or women, is not only prevent
ing crime, but is in fact stopping that young
man from earning a living".
(jf the letters I have received, that of a stu
dent at Georgia State made the most sense. She
wrote, “Perhaps I am misinterpreting this state
ment, but to me it implies that the end (earning
a living) justifies the means (selling marijuana,
numbers or women"). She asks that I explain.
She is right. As the sentence stands it needs
clarification. In the full paper of Mr. Bayard
Rustin, it made a very telling point. The po
liceman must arrest the young man because he
is acting against the law. But society must ac
cept the responsibility of helping exlude him for
the American process of formation: equal
justice, education, housing, employment, etc.
Every sin rests squarely on the guilty person.
Every crime rests squarely on the offending ci
tizen. Neither Mr. Rustin, nor I, nor any other
moral person can condone the selling of drugs
or illegal gambling devices or of prostitution.
In Rustin’s complete paper, this is quite clear.
In the excerpt I used, the sentence is liable to
misrepresentation or misinterpretation.
YOUR WORLD AND MINE
Church & Slate In Spain
BY GARY MACEOIN
Church and the member.
Unrest in Spain briefly hit the headlines (and
faded just as rapidly), when a Radcliffe junior,
granddaughter of former U.S. Secretary of State
Christian A. Herter, was‘one of several Ameri
can students clubbed by police during a clash
at the University of Madrid.
Students have been defying the regime over the
issue of freedom to organize their own associa
tions, and over general civil liberties. That is
i the newspapers explained
incident, and they were 4or-
:t as far as they went.; But
re are significant aspects to
situation which this sum-
ry left undisclosed. |
3 erhaps the most important
the part played by thelVa-
an Council. For everyone in
dn, and not only for thefCa-
lic Church, the Council served to sharpen
i vital issues. It has brbught new questioning
the relationship between Church and state,
the state and tha Citizen, between the
A great ferment is evident from top to bottom.
Cardinal Herrera of Malaga recently sent three
priests to Lyons, France, to study the worker-
priest mission. Other members of the hierarchy
have announced plans for elected councils in their
diocese. An institute of theology studies for the
laity has opened in Madrid.
While such actions reflect a widespread will to
advance, they also increase tension with those
who stand pat. The immobilists are strong on their
own account, but the belief is growing that they
would cease to be important if the Church could
free itself of state control, and especially of
the control exercised in the appointment of bis
hops.
The Council struck an important blow in this
sense, when it expressed its hope that states
would voluntarily renounce such privileges, a hope
echoed by Pope Paul at the closing ceremony.
Bishop Pont y Gol of Segorbe referred explicitly
to the matter in the pastoral letter on his return
home, and statements by government spokesmen
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 5)
But it Still leaves society (and that is both the
government and the governed) with a share of
responsibility for the world in which young men,
both white and black, search for a living. We can
deplore the riots of Harlem, the looting of Ro
chester, the violence of Watts. But Harlem, Ro
chester and Watts are not just towns; they are
warnings.
I appreciate the college student’s letter and
have tried to reply in the spirit of Our Lord’s
words of Mary Magdalele—“her sins, which are
many, are forgiven because she loved much".
Christians have always upheld the moral stance
of their nation: they have and still do condemn
these crimes. Now they are more conscious of
a larger duty—to share in society’s blame for
the injustice. They are asked to live by all the
words of Christ, including His scornful condem
nation of hypocrisy:
“Let him who is without sin cast the first
stone".
i