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PAGE 4—The Georgia Bulletin, September 1,1983 STATEMENT Are We Accepting Joblessness? (Following is an excerpt from the text of the 1983 Labor Day statement, f ‘Jobs and Justice, ” by Bishop. Mark J. Hurley of Santa Rosa, Calif, chairman of the U.S. Catholic Conference Committee on Social Development and World Peace.) In the midst of the current economic recovery, it is more important than ever to talk about unemployment. While many people are singing the praises of the rebounding economy, it must not be forgotten that for 10 million Americans the recovery has not occurred. Despite the rise in the economic indicators, almost one in 10 American workers cannot find a job. These numbers portray a human and social tragedy of immense proportions. They stand as a stark reminder that joblessness is still the nation’s number one economic problem. There are distressing signs that as a nation we are becoming accustomed to high levels of unemployment. Our sensitivity to the scandalous waste of human, social and economic resources that is entailed in joblessness seems to have become dulled. Most economists, even those who are optimistic about the future, predict that at the height of the recovery the national unemployment rate will not fall below 8 or 9 percent. As recently as 10 years ago those rates of unemployment would have been considered totally unacceptable in our society; now they are being projected as perhaps the best our country can effect. The fundamental assumption that underlies this approach - namely, that high rates of unemployment are a necessary element of our modern economy and that full employment is not a realistic goal -- are deeply troubling. They raise important questions not only about the current economic policies that are being pursued but also about the long-term status of the American economy. The temptation to become resigned to high levels of unemployment must be vigorously resisted. For the very foundation of a just economy is the right to a job for all who are able and wish to work. An economic system which does not have full employment as a major goal is basically flawed. The very title of the encyclical "On Human Work” clearly underlines the fact that human work, in Pope John Paul’s view, is at the very heart of all social life. Work is for the human person; not vice versa. It is the human person who gives value to work, and it is the worker s dignity that economic systems ought to serve. In the end, work is of supreme importance precisely because it is through labor that human beings realize their humanity. The pope’s teaching on work and economic justice implies some very deep challenges to conventional economic policies. For example, he argues that the position “ that defends the C .uU'lk AivIuIkxvsc of AlLwu.\ (USPS) 574880 Most Rev. Thomas A. Donnellan Publisher Rev. Monsignor Noel C. Burtenshaw Editor Gretchen R. Reiser Associate Editor Thea K. Jarvis Contributing Editor Member of the Catholic Press Association \ Business Office 680 West Peachtree, N.W. Atlanta, Georgia 30308 U.S.A. Telephone 881-9732 Canada Foreign $10.00 $10.50 $12.00 DEADLINE: All material for publication must be received by MONDAY NOON for Thursday’s paper. Postmaster: Send POD Form 3579 to THE GEORGIA BULLETIN 601 East Sixth Street, Waynesboro, Georgia 30830 Send all editorial correspondence to: THE GEORGIA BULLETIN 680 West Peachtree Street N.W. Atlanta. Georgia 30308 Second Class Postage Paid at Waynesboro, Ga. 30830 Published Weekly except the second and last weeks In June, July and August and the last week in December at 601 East Sixth St., Waynesboro, Ga. 30830 exclusive right to private ownership of the means of production as an untouchable ‘dogma’ should undergo a constructive revision both in theory and practice.” In his explanation of the key principle of the "priority of labor over capital,” the pope suggests a strong critique of economic strategies which tolerate high rates of unemployment as a means of achieving other economic goals. In his words: "The prime and fundamental preoccupation of all, of those in government, politicians, labor union leaders and owners of enterprises, ought to be to give work to all. “It is not realistic, hence it is not admissible to expect to find a solution to the crucial problem of employment as a more or less automatic result of an order of things . . . where employment is seen as only a secondary effort. Both the theory and practice of economics ought to have the courage to consider employment and its modern possibilities as a central element in its objectives.” While all sectors of society must work cooperatively to help achieve full employment, the pope suggests that ultimately it is up to the state to plan and organize the economy in such a way that all who are capable to work can find suitable employment. RESOUND Clergy Criticized To the Editor: For many years I’ve been a proponent of tax credits for parents choosing to send their children to Catholic schools but, after reading the Georgia Bulletin (August 4, 1983), I’m not sure I can continue to do so. In fact, if I thought recent activities of Catholic clergymen were examples of the results of Catholic education, I might favor abolishing the system. The priests quoted in your newspaper, propagandizing for, and advocating support of, Marxists-Communists in Nicaragua, are products of Catholic education. And the eight hundred brothers voting to support Michigan’s notorious ex-nun who defied the authority of the Bishop and the Holy Father by refusing to disassociate herself from allocating state funds for abortions, are products of Catholic education. Indeed, the two priests recently apprehended for illegally costuming themselves in U.S. military uniforms and breaking into Fort Benning for the purpose of dissuading loyal Salvadoran soldiers from fighting for their country, makes me wonder if these products of Catholic education are wearing the costume of clergymen, too? I was taught during my years in Catholic schools, and, the two thousand year history of the Church is further proof, that God guarantees His Church, not necessarily its ministers. Otherwise, I might wonder if the shortage of religious isn’t a blessing in disguise? Ann Svenson Roswell Leftist Influence To the Editor: As a student in Catholic grade school in the early sixties we regularly prayed for the conversion of Russia. I know my church has been significantly influenced by various leftist organizations and ideas in the past 20 years or so, but your three articles on Nicaragua, Thursday, August 4, border on hilarity were it not for the fact that many Catholics will read them as gospel. Gentlemen, and ladies, let’s be somewhat impartial. It is obvious how Father Gerry (Conroy) feels about the entire situation. Do they really wear halos, Father? ... It appears the Catholic publications and bishops are leading the hammer and sickle bandwagon around the world. Who financed Pol Pot? The British? Did we learn nothing from Poland, Hungary, East Germany and Cuba? Is it any wonder Catholics no longer listen to their leaders as they once did. We are not fools. Many of us do not believe in the unilateral disarmament our bishops propose, nor do we believe your radical left articles. Your articles and attitudes surely warm the heart and help Yuri Andropov and friends sleep better at night. You do their work for them. _ . . n T Dominic C. Lemma Braves -- We Still Believe There seems to be no end to Dodger Blue luck. Our West coast rivals have amassed wins galore, catching our Atlanta Braves and wiping out their comfortable lead. Good luck for the Dodgers. Rough luck for our Braves. But we will not yield. This is our year. The great comeback is upon us. We believe that the bats will speak and the Braves will streak. The Atlanta team has given us a summer of cheers and excitement. We love them, they are champions - each and every brave one of them. Come on Braves -- we still believe. - NCB The Week In Review NAMES AND PLACES - Pope John Paul II prayed publicly Aug. 28 for Emanuela Orlandi, the Vatican teenager missing since June 22. It was the first time he had done so in more than a month. The pope also said he always prays for Mehmet Ali Agca, the young Turk who tried to kill him in 1981. However, he did not mention Agca by name, referring instead to him as “the person of my attacker.” Letters claiming to be from those who kidnapped Emanuela said that she would be freed if the pope would say that “Mehmet Ali Agca is a human being like Emanuela Orlandi” and should be treated as such. MARYKNOLL FATHER Roy Bourgeois and Oblate Father Larry Rosebaugh, jailed in Columbus, Ga. for protests at Fort Benning against U.S. training of Salvadoran soldiers, remain in “good standing” with their Religious communities, the groups said Aug. 24. The two priests and an Army Reserve warrant officer from Salem, Ala., were each charged Aug. 23 with three counts of violating an Army exclusion order and two counts of impersonating an officer. The three refused bond and so have been held in the Mucogee County Jail in Columbus, where they undertook a fast from solid food which they hope to continue until the Salvadoran soldiers leave the fort in late September. They have been examined by a physician, according to a spokesman for Concerned Citizens for Latin America. AROUND THE NATION - The Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that under Missouri law a living fetus is legally a person. The court, in an interpretation of the state’s wrongful death law, said a husband and wife have the right to sue for damages on behalf of their stillborn baby because of alleged negligence in medical care for the pregnant woman and her fetus. The attorney for the parents said the decision had no direct bearing on abortion because most abortions are performed before viability and because the case before the Missouri court involved medical negligence rather than the intentional act of abortion. FEWER SUNDAY MASSES will be celebrated in the Archdiocese of Hartford, Conn, after Jan. 1, but those which remain should be of higher quality, according to a new directive from Archbishop John R. Whealon. The directives call for no more than one Saturday-night for-Sunday-obligation Mass in each parish, dropping most Masses at which the church is less than half full, scheduling Masses at least 90 minutes apart and eliminating Sunday afternoon Masses. Basing his actions on recommendations by the Archdiocesan Priests Senate, he cited as reasons the exhaustion level of priests called upon to celebrate “too many Masses” with insufficient attention to the quality of the liturgies. He asked for a “sympathetic understanding of the total picture” from those in the laity who may be upset by the changes. INTERNATIONALLY - Flare-ups in the 19-year-old civil war in Chad have hampered Catholic Church activities in the African country, especially in the capital of N’Djamena, according to FIDES, the news service run by the Vatican in mission areas. In the capital area, the most urgent problem is rebuilding structures, including the Catholic cathedral, destroyed by bombings, FIDES said.
