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4 GEORGIA BULLETIN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1968
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Most Rev. Thomas A. Donnellan D.D, J.C.D. - Publisher
Rev. R. Donald Kiernan - Acting Editor
Wendy Marris - Assistant Editor
2699 Peachtree N.E.
P.O. Box 11667
Northside Station
Member of the Catholic Press Association
and Subscriber to N.C.W.C. News Service
Telephone 261-1281
Second Class Permit at Atlanta, Ga.
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
U.S.A. $5.00
Canada $5.00
Foreign $6.50
Published Every Week at the Decatur - DeKalb News
Jean Paul Sartre, reflecting on his childhood, said
I needed a Creator; I was given a Big Boss.”
Catholic Education means a belief that God is
Creator
Father A
Love
And a hope that one dav all people will celebrate life
together in peace asonefamilyofGod
The opinions contained in these editorial columns are
the free expressions of free editors in a free Catholic press.
The Food Fund
GEORGIA PINES
The “in-thing” nowadays is to set up programs - programs for jobs,
housing, education, welfare, and so on. All of these things serve a
purpose. But when you look at them from the point of view of the
recipient you see that they tend to be degrading and impersonal.
They rob people of their pride and self-respect. This whole situation
is self-perpetuating - if your parents were raised on the welfare rolls in
public housing, and you were, how can your children be different? -
you do not know anything better so you cannot teach them.
In addition to the effects of the recipients, these programs of our
Great Society have a de-Christianizing effect on the average American
in that they tend to rob him of his awareness of the fact that, as a
Christian, he has an obligation toward these people. In his own
thinking he discharges all his obligations when he pays his taxes.
The Churches have initiated many programs to alleviate poverty.
The most significant thing they bring to their programs is the element
of Christian love. But in all cases these programs have involved only
the structure and a small group of volunteers, mostly clergy. It is time
that the Churches made an effort to bring all their people to an acute
awareness of their obligations and, at the same time, to give them a
way in which they can make a real contribution, however small,
toward solving the problems. As a principle it is true that if they are
not part of the solution they are part of the problem. But while their
money is vital, a little bit of their time and energy is even more vital,
and might very well change the face of society.
An available beginning place is the Food Fund which is designed to
be a first step in all these areas. It provides for a very real need. It will
make available a store of food which can be drawn upon by those
agencies that come into regular contact with poverty-stricken people.
At the same time it gives the members of the Churches an
opportunity to take positive action.
Participating Churches will have their members bring one can of
food one Sunday a month to Church. The food will be stored at the
St. Vincent de Paul Society warehouse at the corner of Baker and Ivy
Streets. The distributing agencies will use the store of food to
replenish their supply as it becomes necessary. These distributing
agencies are: St. Anthony’s Church; Georgia Avenue Presbyterian
Church, Emmaus House; Savannah Street Community Center; and
the Salvation Army.
It is hoped that each of the participating Churches will arrange for
volunteers from their congregations to take the food to the
warehouse and place it on the shelves. In the few cases where this is
not possible, the St. Vinceitf de Paul Society will arrange to have the
food picked up at the Churches on a regularly scheduled basis, and
deliver it to the warehouse.
One of the basic concepts of the Food Fund is that the giving o:
the food will be with a degree of anonimity, and that the distributer
°t it will not be accompanied by detailed record-keeping
“f *"'. reporting, or other information-gathering devices. It h
te t that this paper-work jungle has a destructive effect of the
self-images of those who are to be the recipients. True Christiar
chanty occurs when it is offered freely and lovingly, without thought
for personal cost or gain. If we can accomplish this, we will assure the
dignity and self-respect of the people we are trying to help.
Prelate Calls For Unity
i W \ S1 ™? TON ’ D ' C - Novem ber 5, - Patrick Cardinal O’Boyle
released the following statement: y
9nm ‘ R ®“" tly a nun ) ber of priests of the Archdiocese were relievec
Be™ f 611 Pn6Stly duties for reasons which known genera
unhv tl my f , contlnued concern for these fellow priests and
unity within the Archdiocese, I have asked Bishop Joseph
mshonf"; en S Vi ec J’ etar y of the National Conference ofCafil,
Bishops, to approach these priests on my behalf. It is my hope t
tto row coure of ,cU„» win p,ov« bc fniitful for XSSi
Bishop Bernard,n, who enjoys my full confidence has kin
accepted my invitation. I am leaving it to his good’judgment
determine the manner in which he will proceed.” 8
Lest We Forget...
'By R. Donald Kiernan ■■ ——
The first snow of the year, the chill that
snaps the leaves from the trees, the green grass
. turning to brown...all of these things, repeated
year after year, expected...but not really
wanted. Not wanted, possibly because with
them they represent death. Each year,
however, brings with it a distinctiveness,
something
individual. . .good
memories, pleasant
thoughts, sadness, and
often deep losses. But the
stage of life is set with
each spring and the
curtain call rings with the
last leaf falling off the
tree.
Parish histories carry
ty of nature. This issue of
the BULLETIN carries a story about the birth
of a new parish in Smyrna; vibrant, alive, active
and full of life. The history of this new parish
over the years will be dotted with personages
who fill a particular role, add to its
success...and some day will be recorded in its
history. Our downtown parishes today, faced
with dwindling congregations, carrying with
them a history too, and as we read this history
we are reminded that they too made their
entry on the stage of life with as much activity,
as much life, and as much interest as the new
parishes of today.
It seems to me though what is important is
that we do not forget those persons who were,
at one time, the important spokes which made
the wheels turn. Those persons who made
success what it was...those persons who were
the foundation stones upon which our
buildings of today are built.
As I read the news recently, readily there
comes to mind a lady of West End, Elizabeth
O’Neil, whose column “Ibb’s Corner” appeared
regularly in the old St. Anthony’s News. For
years St. Anthony’s had a monthly publication
which enjoyed a wider circulation than the
diocesan newspaper. Hardly a person read the
St. Anthony’s News without first turning to
Ibb’s Corner. She provided, through this
column, a link between the some 20,000
Catholics (in those days) spread over some
fifty thousand square miles. This was a heart
warming column, folksy, newsy, and provided
a service of friendship, a bond of unity, and
made for a feeling of one-ness throughout
the state.
Last week’s BULLETIN carried with it the
story of a young Army Leiutenant who had
given his life for his country in Vietnam,
Tommy Biddulph. A few months back the
BULLETIN carried a similar story about
another Army Lieutenant who too had been
killed in Vietnam, Richard Fox. These two
boys grew up in Saint Anthony’s parish
together. They attended the parochial school
together, served on the Altar together, and
went to Marist together. When St. Anthony’s
parochial school had military training, both
boys were Captains, and each commanded a
platoon of ‘soldiers’. Richard was killed first,
and it was his buddy, Tommy, who
accompanied his body back to the States for
burial from Blessed Sacrament Church. The
parishioners at Blessed Sacrament decided to
honor Richard Fox by dedicating a flagpole,
on the church grounds, to his memory.
On the day of dedication, Tommy’s body
arrived back home. Once more these two boys
were joined together.
In our fast moving world, where change is
the order of the day. I think it best that we
stop every so often and sort of “take stock”,
and at least give an appreciative nod to those
who make our spring of life something to live
for.
*
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