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4 GEORGIA BULLETIN, THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1967
BULLETIN
ARCHDIOCESE OF ATLANTA SERVING GEORGIA’S 71 NORTHERN COUNTIES
Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan
Chris Eckl
The Rev. R. Donald Kiernan
Publisher
Managing Editor
Consulting Editor
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
Published Every Week at the Decatur-DeKalb News
The opinions contained in these editorial columns are
the free expressions of free editors in a free Catholic press.
Begotten Again
It may sound peculiar to
mention it, but Holy Week
presents an editorial pro
blem to the Bulletin,
Since the paper is re
ceived in most homes on
Thursday or Friday during
the most sorrowful time of
Holy Week, what do you em
phasize—the Crucifixion and
death or the Resurrection
and life?
We chose to emphasize
the Resurrection, the
triumph of life over death,
because of what it must have
meant to Peter, the man cho
sen by Christ as leader, the
man who denied his Master
at the time of the Crucifix
ion and was redeemed by the
Resurrection.
Peter’s special role is
emphasized in the Gospel
of St. Matthew (Ch. 16, V.
13-18):
! “Now Jesus, having come
{into the district of Caesarea
Philippi, began to ask his
disciples, saying, “Who do
men say the Son of Man is?’*
But they said, “Some say,
John the Baptist, and others
Elias; and others, Jeremias,
or one of the prophets.’’
He said to them, “But who do
you say that I am?’’
Simon Peter answered and
said, “Thou art Christ, the
Son of the Living God.’’Then
Jesus answered and said,
“Blessed art thou , Simon
Bar-Jona, for flesh and blood
has not revealed this to thee,
but my Father in heaven.
And, I say to thee, thou
art Peter, and upon this rock.
I will build my Church, and
the gates of hell shall not
prevail against it...’’
This is the same Peter
who later was asked by
Christ during His agony,
“Could you not, then, watch
one hour with me?” This is
the same Peter who when
asked if he were with Je
sus of Nazareth replied, “I
do not know the manl’’
But again, it is the same
Peter who wrote in his first
epistle: “Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who according
to His great mercy has be
gotten us again, through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead, unto a living
hope, unto an Incorruptible
inheritance -- undefiled and
unfading, reserved for you in
heaven. ’
The example of Peter is
the best reason for choosing
the Resurrection. Without
the Resurrection, his denial
of Christ would have been
permanent. Because of it, he
was begotten again.
Letters
We received two letters-
to-the editor—both of them
taking us to task— which
were apparently typed on the
same typewriter and signed
by the same person. The
only drawback was whoever
signed the letters used two
names that could not be found
in either the city directory
or the telephone book.
We don’t mind the person
taking us to task for stories
that have been run in the
Bulletin, but we do think he
or she should have signed a
real name.
In the future, we ask per
sons who write letters to sign
their name and address so
we will be able to check
them, (list ing the phone nu
mber is also a help)
We would also appreciate
it if letter writers would
make their comments as
brief as possible because of
a shortage of space.
Good\ Friday
ISilfilS
GEORGIA PINES
‘Father Mac’
— By R. Donald a« ■
Our sister-newspaper in Savannah, THE
SOUTHERN CROSS, carried an article last
week which noted that for the first time
in the history of the Saint Patrick’s Day
parade in that city that a priest would be
the grand marshal. He was none other
than the rector of Savannah’s Cathedral
of St. John the Baptist, Monsignor T.
James McNamara.
Father Mac , as he is affectionately
called by Savannahians, is not as well
known iijthispartof,
t he state- as he is in
Chatham County.
This is due to the
fact that all but sev
en years of his
priesthood have
been spent at the
cathedral. He was
baptized at the cath
edral, made his
first confession
FR. KIERNAN
there, received his First Holy Com
munion and was Confirmed there, he was
ordained there too. And, except for the
seven years he spent at Milledgeville's
Sacred Heart Church, he has been on the
corner of Abercorn and Harris Streets.
A
3
"Father Mac's" honor came as a com
plete surprise to him. Although, I might
add long overdue. If any man can claim
the distinction of having literally given
himself to his people, it is "Father
Mac”. The son of one of Savannah’s
political leaders, Monsignor McNamara
followed his father’s leadership by active
ly interesting himself in various civic,
educational and community projects. He
was instrumental in having Negroes em
ployed by the city government; he wasone
of-the- founders.^, the• Catholic-Committee
of the South; and-he helped found a mental
clinic which resulted in the number of
cases being sent to the state hospital from
Chatham County being cut to one-tenth.
Long before the age of Ecumenism,
"Father Mac” took a genuine interest
in the churches of other denominations. In
deed some of his best friends and fre
quent visitors to the cathedral were the
clergymen of other faiths.
When the area around the cathedral was
threatened with becoming a slum area
"Father Mac" formed a restoration
committee which interested people in fix
ing-up old homes and moving back to that
section of the city.
Saint Patrick’s Day in Savannah is a
holiday. Possibly New York is the only
other city in the nation that has a parade
large enough to rival Savannah’s. The day
begins with a Mass at the cathedral at
which the grand marshal and his two
aides receive Holy Communion and then
as these dignitaries leave the cathedral
the parade forms. The reviewing stand
used ~to be on the porch of the DeSoto
Hotel but this year the reviewing stand
was on the plaza in front of the cathedral.
But with all this activity "Father Mac"
was never thought of as being a politi
cian. Indeed, peoples of all faiths knew
1 him first, last and always as a priest
of the,Catholic Church.
Bad health in recent years has forced
"Father Mac” into a semi-retirement.
Though, from a hospital bed he directed
the renovation of the cathedral which in
his own words is, "...the barometer of
J Catholic prestige in Savannah.”
The day is topped off with two major
banquets; one, the Hibernian Society's,
the other is the Irish Jasper Greens.
Both of these affairs have topped a cen
tury with their annual meetings.
The Savannah papers carried a cartoon
and an editorial of "Father Mac” on
Saint Patrick’s Day. Summing it all up
as our own Atlanta newspaperman Ernest
Rogers puts it, "it couldn't happen to a
nicer guy".
‘BLOW UP:’ A Beautiful Film
By James Arnold
"Blow-Up” marks the first confronta
tion between intellectual Italian film di
rector Michelangelo Antonioni and the
mass American movie-going public. At
least one aspect of the collision is funny,
in a black sort of w,
Antonioni is cer
tainly one of the
world’s most cri
tically respected
film - makers. He
steadfastly pursues
his own artistic in
clinations, which
are toward pro
found and cerebral
Observation of the interior life of charac
ters - Subtle, careful, slow-moving, sym
bolic and often puzzling. By temperament
he stands against nearly everything asso
ciated with the "popular movie"; plot,
exterior action, emotional involvement,
simple answers to complex questions.
Working from this unique vision, An
tonioni has had a vogue in the art houses
(e.g., "L’Avventurea,” "La Notte,”
"L’Eclisse") and some modest profit.
But now, by an odd set of circumstances,
he may have produced (in "Blow-Up")
the most popular condemned movie in
film history.
The Catholic Film Office’s reluctant
condemnation doesn't have much to do
with the movie’s success (it is currently
third in national box-office receipts). Most
other Antdnioni films have also been
condemned; "Red Desert” (A-4) was the
first, in fact, that wasn’t. For the record,
Antonioni is no pornographer; he is a vic
tim of the NCOMP principle that some
content (sex, nudity) is unsuitable for a
"public entertainment medium” even if
handled with taste and integrity.
The real targets of this policy are not
the Antonionis, but commercial exploiters
who may be encouragedto do the same
thing without high purpose. The NCOMP
stand may or may not be logical (its
modification is predicted within a year
or two); regardless, Antonioni’s films are
studied as film art in many Catholic col
leges and seminaries.
The Antonioni of "Blow-Up" is no dif
ferent from the past: it is a difficult in
tellectual film with little to offer the
non-buff audience except two or three
sex scenes which are directly related to
the director's thematic purposes. (Per
haps they could have been done with less
frankness and semi-nudity, but it is aw
kward at best to tell an artist how he
could have done it better. Who would
tell Hemingway? Picasso?)
Why is it so strong at the box-office?
Possibly the publicity, including the di
rector’s Oscar nomination and the cri
tics' award as bestfilm of 1966; the break
down of the effect of the C-rating, even in
Catholic areas; the fact that it is made
in English with an attractive new star
(Vanessa Redgrave); the growing public
taste for sexual daring. Perhaps most
crucial: its showing in major downtown
outlets rather than in minority-oriented
art theaters.
The irony is that the work of a major
artist is - being set before audiences who
do not understand him, who occasionally
even heckle the screen or stalk out in
mid-performance. This also sets exactly
the wrong tone for the sex scenes, which
to be morally successful must be seen
in the perspective of the film’s context.
Since many viewers don’t dig the con
text, they are free to react to the sex in
an isolated way, to get kicks from it,
to turn art into obscenity.
Objectively, "Blow-Up” is a beautiful
film about the soulstate of a London photo
grapher (David Hemmings) whose camera
has separated him from contact with rea
lity and other human beings. One may,
perhaps, take it as an allegory for mo
dern man and his notorious failure to
love or become involved with suffering
fellow humans - his tendency to respond
to the fake and make believe rather than
to the actual.
Antonioni’s photographer, who "lives”
mainly through his camera (he is clearly
more "alive” photographing a languo
rous model than in responding to the ad
vances of a real woman offering real
love), is akin to person who weeps at a
TV drama but passes through the slums
daily without a glance.
The trouble is that most audiences -
especially now, outside the art house
circuit - will not perceive this unity and
beauty. Most people don’t understand film
ANOTHER VIEWPOINT
The Silent Impact
Of Thomas More
By Kempton Haynes
Last night I saw the masterful film ver
sion of "A Man for All Seasons". Pro
bably you are reading this on Maundy
Thursday or Good Friday. I can’t think
of a better dramatic way to catch hold
of some of the more painful yet noble
realities of the human situation symbo
lized by Holy Week, with its sophistry,
intrigue, trial, suffering, death, and re
surrection, than by payinghomagetothoSe
persons who, like St. Thomas More oc
casionally touch our lives in living his
tory.
What is it about
religious and poli
tical bodies which
so often conflicts
with those who
would live without
guile? Whether it
be the ancient
threat of Socrates
to the gods and
youth of his theolo
gical and political REV. MR HAYNES
era or the silent impact of Thomas More
on the sixteenth century with its glan
dular theology and visceral statesman
ship, we see the ultimate drama of trial,
death, and resurrection re-portrayed in
every generation, and, potentially, in every
life.
"Good Master, what must I do to in
herit eternal life?” How am I to become
a man who can stand with the strength
of self-identity against the shoddy and de
structive forces which would make me
deny the sources of whatever New Cre-
tion I have known? How can I transcend
the idolatry of the particular time in
which I live by embracing the eternal
power which, grounded in the nature of
God, is incarnated in my experience?
Certainly the net-work of healing and
sustenance which permits and enables re
born, resurrected life is "The Church".
Jeremy Taylor suggests that we are all
dying men speaking to dying men. The
crucial question is what will spring forth
from the deaths of our daily struggles.
Resurrected men are men who have
begun to incorporate the life-giving rea
lities of faith, tasted in the beloved com
munity, and are becoming new creatures,
* * * *
The Rev. Mr. Haynes is minister of
the Methodist Church Of the Covenant.
A Hellish Trinity?
Baby, It’s Coming!
By Garry Wills
Some read the Birch publications to en
joy a liberal frisson. — anticipating ma
sochists who feel already the jackboot
heeling down on them. But I read the
pamphlets I run across primarily for
laughs. Mr. Welch is now, for instance,
explaining why the Communists — who
want us in Vietnam so taxes (and so
cialism) will go up, morals (and morale)
go down — sent their "fronts” out to de
monstrate against the war, thus tricking
its, iotothinfcing they,,
-P.RP9S& it;,-,n»akang.',,
us, therefore, es
ijlS l|||plpl
pouse it. That is;
K
the Communists
are using our
government’s anti
communism (which !
most of the time
Mr, Welch is as
A.
suring us doesn’t
WILLS
exist) for their own purposes, and Welch
somehow dances over to the side of those
liberals who say Lyndon Johnson is a mur
derer of American boys. It is a great
routine, and Mr. Welch is fun to watch --
a kind of mental Plastic Man.
But the March issue of the Birch
magazine American Opinion is a dif
ferent matter. There is a review in it
which is enough to scare anyone. It is an
analysis, carried through with the febrile
deraciiiated insight some Birchers ac
hieve, of the phenomenon of George
Wallace. Wallace, we are told, is the
Coming Thing, 'though the author is a bit
unhappy at his pro-welfarism. He is
willing to swallow what Birchers normally
call a form of socialism, however, in
order to get Wallace’s patriotism and
anti-communism into the White House.
And to accomplish that, welfare is the key
ingredient.
Where do you find patriotic nationalism,
anti-communism, resentment of the Negro,
and a desire for heavy welfare programs?
In the rank and file of the labor unions.
The author argues that other right-wingers
have been unable to tap the unions* strength
because they were out of sympathy with
the welfare demands of today’s working
class. Wallace is not unsympathetic to
those demands, and never has been —
and the Bircher hints that his fellows
had better overcome their aversion to
"the dole” if they want to climb aboard
the winner's train.
The scary thing about all this is the un
easy memory that Hitler rose on the force
of just such a hellish trinity — nationa
lism, racism, and socialism. The author
does not shrink from recognizing this
fact — he does not ever regret the com
parison. After all, Hitler did rise, didn’t ,,
-- - n Wi jfti ii tfiinfii i ftfiifftii rinal fflftjnifltoiifr
blissfully dreams of the day when Wallace
will heal the national schizophrenia by
"politically liquidating the Establish
ment." (When he saw that passage, a con
servative friend of mine said, ‘This is
what they really want — and they’ll skip
the adverb”). Here is the Bircher’s vis
ion of the new goose-step; "Wallace and
homo Americanus vulgaris Caucasianus
versus Reuther, Rockefeller, and Martin
Luther King. Talk about realignment!
Baby, it’s coming!”
Frightening isn’t it? If the shrewd im
perturbable Wallace can extend his ten
tacles out from the South through the la
bor unions, if Bircher kooks can forget
their ideological purity and start plotting
the compromises necessary for a take
over, if the working man’s patriotism and
anti-communsim can be mixed with the
poison of racism, it could happen here.
The trains could be made to run on time —
and the kilns.
RELIGIOUS PAGEANTS COMMEMORATING
THE PASSION OF OUR IORD WERE ONCE
Common throughout southern Europe
LESS POPULAR NOWADAYS.THEY STILL SURVIVE
IN ALL THEIR MEDIEVAL SPLENDOUR IN PARTS
OF SPAIN AND IN MALTA .
language, even in popular thrillers, and
many refuse to admit that movies can be
art instead of entertainment, or do things
other than tell realistic dramatic stories.
(Even the sophisticated New Yorker maga
zine critic chides Antonioni for not putting
his ideas in the form of drama, as if that
were the whole nature of film).
lines, rather than in terms of conventional
movie drama, that "Blow-Up” is an ec
centric masterpiece.
‘Chippewa
To Antonioni, story is a minor matter;
the drama goes on inside the character.
'Thus* in "Blow-Up,” when Hemmings
accidentally films a real murder during
his random picture-taking in a park, the
writer-director is not interested in who
was killed, or why, or in tracking down
the i culprit.. He is interested only in
Hemmings’ reaction to the "intrusion"
of reality in his life; when Hemmings
finally decides what to do, the "story"
is over. But the murder mystery-min
ded viewer is puzzled and frustrated.
"Blow-Up" is full of virtuoso scenes,
both visually striking and tied to theme:
the photographer’s treatment of his models
and even the beauties of nature (flowers,
trees, birds) as mere objects; his covert
pursuit of the lovers through the exqui
site park; his meaningless use of sex
as a substitute for love and real human
contact. Every shot, even the colors, inte
rior sets and architectural backgrounds,
has something to suggest: it isalongsuch
Apostle 9
MARQUETTE, Mich. (NC)——'The first
formal session of the tribunal hearing the
case for beatification of Bishop Frederick
Baraga, first bishop of Marquette, took
place at the chancery offices here.
Bishop Thomas L. Noa of Marquette,
who presided, opened the process for the
cause of Bishop Baraga.
The first historical commission on
Bishop Baraga was named in 1952. in
1957 priests of the diocese petitioned
Bishop Noa to take formal steps to begin
the cause for beatification of the Sloven
ian-born pioneer-bishop.
Frederick Baraga died in Marquette in
1868. He was known as the "Apostle
to the Chippewa Indians."