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Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta Vol. 28 No. 45 Thursday, December 20, 1990 $15.00 Per Year A CHILD IS BORN - The infant Jesus is astery at Conyers. Like the star of Bethlehem, it adored by Mary and Joseph, the three kings from is a magnet for many during the Christmas afar and shepherds as farm animals stand nearby season. (Photo by Michael Alexander) in this Manger scene on the grounds of the mon- Two Parishes Aided Ms. Long Audit Clears Diocese Of Fund Misuse BY GRETCHEN REISER An independent audit of the archdiocese of Atlanta shows that archdiocesan funds were not misused on behalf of Victoria Long while Archbishop Eugene A. Marino, SSJ, headed the archdiocese. From May 1,1988, when the archbishop was installed, through Aug. 31,1990, the audit found only one previous ly unidentified expenditure of $47 on her behalf in August 1989. The audit also verified, as had been announced by the archdiocese earlier, that medical bills amounting to slightly less than $15,000 were paid to doctors or institutions for her in the summer of 1990, when her involvement with the archbishop became known to the archdiocese. “The audit clearly shows that the archbishop did not use the funds of the archdiocese of Atlanta to assist Vicki Long,” said Bishop James P. Lyke, OFM, apostolic administrator of the archdiocese, in an interview. Of three parishes audited, a total of $6,540 in payments on her behalf was revealed. The bishop received a report Dec. 13 from an independent commission of four, headed by Donald R. Keough, president and chief operating officer of the Coca-Cola Co. The commission was named in August to oversee an unrestricted audit of the archdio cese and several parishes to determine whether funds were misused for Ms. Long’s benefit. The audit was conducted by Coopers & Lybrand, independent certified public accountants and took 1,500 hours, reviewing over 30,000 checks, according to the commission. The audit covered only archdiocesan accounts and did not in any way review the personal funds or accounts of Archbishop Marino. The $47 item turned up on a monthly bill from a florist, detailing a long list of complementary items sent from the archbishop’s office to a variety of people. Ms. Long’s item was a fruit basket, with the office notation ‘illness alongside it Bishop's Message Christmas Offers New Life To All BY BISHOP JAMES P. LYKE, OFM “In the 5199th year of the creation of the world, from the time when God in the beginning made out of nothing the heavens and the earth; in the 194th olympiad; the 752nd year from the foundation of the city of Rome; the 42nd year of the rule of Octavian Augustus, all the earth being at peace, in the sixth age of the world: Jesus Christ, the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, willing to consecrate the world by His most merciful coming, being conceived by the Holy Ghost and nine months having passed since His conception, was bom in Bethlehem of Juda of the Virgin Mary, being made man. The birthday of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.” My dear friends, with these words, the earliest fathers of the Church announced every year, the celebration of the anniversary of God’s birth in the world. Today, I greet f you with the same proclamation, in union with our Holy i ; f Father Pope John Paul II and all die Bishops, and in joyful celebration of the coming of the Messiah. Even though Christmas is an event particular to one specific world faith, I believe that many aspects of our seasonal joy can be shared by all men and women, regardless of denomination or personal belief. The many wonderful events of Christmas can only draw into further harmony all people of good will. My late colleague, Bishop Sheen, said of the events of Christmas, “The simple shepherds heard the voice of an angel and found their Lamb; the wise men saw the light of a star, and found their Wisdom.” Likewise, I pray this season that all people may find new birth in the Lord, and in doing so, find new life. I pray for the rich, who are most able to share the spirit of Christmas, that they may find abundant opportunities to take their bounty into the midst of the suffering and poor of Atlanta. I pray for the poor, whose privations are even more sharply felt during this season of gift-sharing. I pray for the bereft, who learn that sorrow and joy can come at the same time, even as Mary, the Mother of Jesus, experienced the joy of Jesus’ birth in the poverty and coldness of a stable. I pray for all men and women and (Continued on page 5) INSIDE Holy Family SVDP $32,000 in food for needy page 3 Three Families separated by Gulf crisis page 7 Memories of Christmases past ... pages 8 and 9 Suffering takes no holiday page 13 (Continued on page 16)