The Catholic times. [volume], December 17, 1954, Image 1

About The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current

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1 tn Christinas'
Vol. IV, No. 11
To the Reverend Clergy, Religious,
•nd Faithful of the Diocese of Columbus.
My beloved Brethren:
The love of God became incarnate in the coming of Our Lord
Jesus Christ on that first holy night in Bethlehem. The Expected
of the Nations came to be for all men the Way to Peace, the Light
of truth and the Life of holiness. Saint Paul expressed the true
meaning of Christmas in the eloquent words—"Christ has appeared
for the de.truction of sin by the sacrifice of Himself" (Heb. X, 26).
In order to insure for all men the purpose of His coming Our Divine
Savior set up the Church to guide, to teach, and to sanctify all
peoples till the end of time.
We who profess the holy Catlrolic Faith recognize the means
which Jesus Christ established for our salvation. We know what is
exacted of us to gain the Kingdom of Heaven. We plead constantly
for Christ's mercy in fulfilling the duties which will bring us to
the eternal happiness of His Kingdom.
The Christmas Feast is one of the great occasions in the year
to consider our true dignity and final destiny. Seeing the love of
God in the Divine Babe of Bethlehem should arouse us to imitate
the unbounding love of God for our Soul's salvation. Sin is the
destroyer of God's love in our souls. Sin is the disaster which
deprives us of the peace and joy which all Christians should ex
perience on Christmas Day and all days of the year.
We of the Diocese of Columbus cherish this holy Feast as the
occasion of giving a worthy gift to the orphans and dependent chil
dren who look to their holy mother, the Church for care and love.
We are now in the midst of trying to provide for f*em and the
Sisters of Saint Francis, who administer Saint Vincent's, a suitable
home. Certainly, from the motive of love to the Divine Infant every
man, woman and child of the Diocese will make-a worthy re
sponse to our Christmas appeal for the orphans. In Bethlehem the
love of uhrist appeared to all men so that all men might take cour
age in following Christ's way to holiness, which is the way of peace.
We shall go bravely along the way of Christ if we show love to our
brethren, especially to the motherless, homeless youngsters who
plead for our charity.
May the love of Christ fill your souls with peace and may
Christ's blessings abide in your homes on Christmas and throughout
the New Year.
Father Mack succeeds Father
"Francis McConville, O.M.I., who
whs
assigned to the mission
house of the Oblates of Mary
Immaculate in Tewksbury, Mass.
A native of Lowell, Mass., he
has served in the home missions in
Douglas. Ga., McCook, Neb., and
Seattle. Wash.
Father Galvin succeeds Father
Eugene Sweeney, O.M.I., chaplain
at the prison farm since Septem
ber, 1948. Father Sweeney, who is
ill, is a patient Mercy Hospital,
Urbana.
Born in Boston, Mass., Father
Galvin has served in parishes in
Grand Rapids. Jefferson, O., Buf
falo, N.Y.. and .McCook, Neb., as
chaplain of the state hospital in
Tewksbury, Mass., and in the mis
sions Douglas. Ga.
-------------------o-------------------
Bishop's Statement
Printed As Pamphlet
WASHINGTON—(NC—“Victory
Our Faith.” the 1954 statement of
the American Hierarchy which
points to atheistic materialism as
the world's No. 1 enemy, has been
published in pamphlet form. It is
available at the Publications Of
fice, National Catholic Welfare
Conference, 1312 Massachusetts
Ave., N.W.. Washington 5. C. The
office has listed the pamphlets at
five cents each, $2 per 100, and
$11. per 1.000.
December 14, 1954
Devotedly in Christ,
MICHAEL J. READY
Bishop of Columbus.
New Chaplains Are Appointed
At State School. London Farm
Appointment of chaplains for
Columbus State School and the
London Prison Farm was announc
ed this week by Bishop Ready.
The new spiritual leader of the
children at Columbus State School
is Father Walter Mack. O.M I., for
mer chaplain of the Massachusetts
State Hospital in Tewksbury. Mass.
New chaplain of the London prison
is Father Francis Galvin. O.M.I.,
formerly assistant pastor of Im
maculate Heart of Mary Parish,
Grand Rapids, Mich.
Protestants
Deplore Sag In
College Morals
KINGSTON. Ont. (NC)
—“Christian education is the
only answer to the present
tremendous
sag
in morals.”
a Toronto Protestant clergy
man. Rev. Canon F. J. Nichol
son, told the Canadian Coun
cil of Churches here.
Canon H. R. Hunt of Toronto,
chairman of the Council’s depart
ment of evangelism, said a study
by the Student Christian Move
ment, showed that only 30 per
cent of university students have
any church connections, and only
a minority of the 30 per cent could
be called mature Christians.
Canon Hunt, who is general sec
retary of the executive council
of the Church of England in Can
ada. said that the lives of a ma
jority of the students lack coher
ence.
"Many, even from Christian
homes, have come to look upon
the Christian religion as some
thing in which they need not
become seriously involved," he
said.
Prof. M. R. Powicke of Toronto,
chairman of the executive com
mittee of the Student Christian
Movement, termed the attitude of
college students toward Christian
ity as one of “caution verging on
apathy.”
He said that communism was a
dead issue on the campus because
students were too involved in oth
er forms of materialism. He said
there was a lack of responsibility
in academic, secular and religious
life, an increasing awareness of
personal problems and an ignor
ance of the Christian faith which
has reached "crisis proportions.”
Held By Chinese Reds
Of th* 26 Americana recently listed by Senator William Know
land as prisoners of the Chinese Communists, eleven were Catholic
priests and one was a Catholic Bishop. Pictured above, six of the
Catholic clerics on the list, are left to right: (upper row) Father
John A. Houle, S.J. Father Thomas L. Phillips, S.J. Father
Charles J. McCarthy, S.J. (lower row) Father John W. Clifford, S.J.
Father Harold W. Rigney, S.V.D. and Bishop Ambrose Pihger, O.F.M.
Keeping Christ In Christinas
‘O
At the beginning, there was one
crippled “boy ’, an attendant and
a cook. The census of the Home
has varied in numbers from one to
fourteen and could have accommo
dated many more when the facili
ties of the building were expended
but the scarcity of help made this
impractical.
November. 1954 witnessed the
expansion of the Brother Martin
Home. The building immediately
adjoining the Home on the east
was purchased by the Diocese of
Columbus. By request of the ad
ministrators of the Brother Martin
Home. Bishop Ready invited the
Brothers of the Good Shepherd to
assume the management and care
of the extended facilities which
are all now united under the di
rection of the Brothers.
In the new building, two of
the Brothers have taken up res
idence. They are Brother Mat
thew end Brother Kevin. Besides
added quarters for other handi
capped young men, a Chapel
dedicated to Our Lady of Lour
des, will soon be established
within the walls of the new
structure. God's Presence dwell
ing within the midst of the
guests at Brother Martin Home
will be their source of hope and
confidence in the destiny which
their Creator has assigned to
them.
The Brother Martin Home was
Red-Enslaved
Offer Prayers
For Pope Pius
VIENNA (NC) Despite
the failure of communist-con
trolled radio stations and news
papers behind the Iron Cur
tain to mention the Pope's ill
ness, the news is travelling
from house to house, from
village to village, and the peo
ple are expressing deep con
cern for the Holy Father.
A report from Szombathely,
^Hungary speaks of the overcrowd
ed churches all over Hungary with
special Masses being said for the
health of the Holy Father.
In the Western provinces of
Poland it is reported that priests
have requested the faithful to say
special prayers for the Pope. Ac
cording to another report reach
ing here, families in many parts of
Slovakia's countryside are saying
rosaries for the Pontiff. And a dis
patch from Trieste said that Croat
and Slovene Bishops have asked
the faithful to say special prayers
for the Holy Father
The vaiholic Times
Columbus 16, Ohio, Friday, December 17, 1954
Come, Let Us Adore Him'
Nothing is more appropriate and significant in the home during the Christmas sea
son than a Nativity scene similar to the one shown here. The tableau tells the story of
Christmas in such a way as to impress the youngsters in the family as well as the adults.
The high point of the various religious preparations for the spiritual celebration of Christ
mas in the home is centered in the Christmas crib. The custom of having a crib in a prom
inent spot in the home is becoming more popular every year, as Catholics continue to spear
head the campaign to "Keep Christ in Christmas." Devotion to the crib dates back to 1223,
when St. Francis of Assisi, with the approval of Pope Honorius III, constructed a Nativity
scene in a church at Greccio, Italy. Legend has it that St. Francis, after having sung the
Gospel, knelt down to meditate briefly on the sublime mystery of the Incarnation, and
there appeared in his arms a child surrounded by brilliant light. Devotion to the crib, es
pecially to those erected in Catholic churches, has since spread throughout the wgrld.
One Of City's Most Unusual Households
Brother Martin Home Noted
For Charity To Handicapped
“Charity Unlimited.” This is the unlettered sign which hangs over the doorway of
the Brother Martin Home. 526 East Rich Street. This is the motto of the Little Brothers of
the Good Shepherd who have come from Albuquerque to manage one of Columbus' most
unusual households. ’U
The Brother Martin Home began its existence on July 1, 1949 for the purpose of of
fering a normal home to seriously handicapped voung men whose minds were clear and
capable of functioning rationally. Doctor William Mitchell, a native of Columbus, a promin
ent physician in the community, and a veteran of World War II, conceived the idea of this
special care for an otherwise ne
glected group of young men and
began the work in the most hum
ble circumstances.
intended for those who had no
means and no family to care for
them. Although a few exceptions
have been made to this principle,
it has been the effort of those who
have managed the Home in the
past to make it a haven especially
for the poor but not exclusively for
them.
Doctor Mitchell began the work
with the knowledge that the par
ents of seriously crippled children
often live a life of constant anxi
ety and fear concerning the lot of
such children after the parent dies.
In a sense, this has been an ex
periment in the case of the handi
capped—small family-like homes
managed at a a minimum of ex
pense. Doctor Mitchell’s experi
ment in this field was a pilot proj
ect in the practical acceptance of
performing by personal service the
mandate of love given to all man
kind by Christ—providing a home
for the homeless, and physical and
spiritual care to the sick and help
less.
The motivating principle in
those early days of the Brother
Martin Home was lifted directly
out of the texts of the Sacred
Scriptures: "As long as you did
it for one of these, the least of
my brethren, you did it for me."
Doctor Mitchell recounts how
the stories of Saint Francis of
Assisi and Blessed Martin de
Porres were major factors in
establishing the Home.
The means of material suste
nance have come mainly irom wel
fare agencies which have contrib
uted approximately one-third of
the upkeep of the Brother Martin
Home, and the voluntary aid from
groups and individuals who have
given the greater amount of fi
nancial assistance. County, state
and federal welfare agencies have
provided help through the redemp
tion of Sales Tax stamps, rehabili
tation programs, etc.
The nature of the voluntary aid
has included gifts of money large
and small, building materials and
equipment, food, elothing, labor
skilled and unskilled, sewing, let
ter writing, canning, laundering,
personally entertaining the guests
at the Home by reading to them,
playing games and similar servic
es. With few exceptions, all this
help has come without solicitation.
The ordinary individual who wants
to help others in distress, various
religious groups, social and service
clubs who have become acquaint
ed with the wholesome effect the
Home has had upon those referred
to its care, have supplied much of
this voluntary aid.
Occasionally groups or individu
als solicit aid for the Home on
their own initiative. This is not
controllable even though it is 6on
trary to the conviction of the
Board of men and women who
manage the affairs of the Home.
Experience in the past four years
has proved that sufficient help
.J***’
is forthcoming without this solici
tation.
This Board of Trust®** ha*
consisted of Doctor WHIiam Mit
chell, its chairman Doctor H.
Sherman Manuel, Mrs. Ella F.
Penn, Mr. John Cantion, Mrs.
Frank Van Holte, Mr. Carl J.
Nappi and Mr. Harry Merz.
The “boys” at the Home are all
over eighteen. Most of them are
in their late twenties and are vic
tims of cerebral palsy. Most are
permanently and totally disabled
frorh a practical point of view. It
is hoped that they may be helped
to learn a few skills for their per
sonal needs when facilities are
available.
Lessons in reading and arithme
tic have been conducted regularly
by one of the boys who was not
handicapped until recent years.
Classes in speech and occupational
therapy are conducted under the
auspices of the United Cerebral
Palsy Association in a building
immediately adjacent to the Home.
(Continued on Page 2)
Thanksgiving
Clothing Drive
Breaks Record
Last month's Thanksgiving
clothing drive the most suc
cessful in diocesan history —,
is expected to net approximate
ly 46 tons of bedding, clothing
and wearable shoes for desti
tute and needy people through
out the world.
Msgr. William E. Kappes, dioce
san director of hospitals and char
ities. announced this week that
69.500 pounds of clothing has been
collected. This figure is expected
to surpass 92.000 pounds when
the remaining ten per cent of the
parishes report their totals.
Top collection to date was made
in St. James the Less Parish, which
contributed 4085 pounds.
Othor top parishes (in th* or
order listed) are Holy Rosary,
3500 Marion St. Mary, 3410 Dov
er St. Joseph, 2653 Immaculate
Conception, 2500 St. Mary's, Co
lumbus, 2138 and St. Joseph Ca
thedral, 1900. These figures ara
subject to change, Monsignor
Kappes pointed out, since all to
tals have not yet been reported.
The clothing was sent to New
York City for immediate shipment
to poverty-stricken people abroad.
The diocesan drive was held in
conjunction with similar cam
paigns in more than 100 archdio
ceses and dioceses in the nation,
under the auspices of the War Re
lief Services of the National Ca
tholic Welfare Conference. The
drive was conducted at the request
of the Bishops of the I nited States
The dominant figure in the year
of Marian dedication was, of
course, the Holy Father himself.
Taken ill less than two months af
ter he had formally opened the
Year, Pope Pius nevertheless con
tinued to inspire the Catholic faith
ful to fervent devotion to the Vir
gin throughout the entire period.
He was sufficiently recovered to
take a personal part in some of
the most momentous events of the
Year. And even when he was again
stricken in the closing weeks of
Fifty Archbishops and Bishops
end almost the whole Romen
Curie were present et the cere
mony eleveting a man who has
been in th* Vatican Secretariate
of State for nearly three decades
and has served as one of the
Pope's closest collabo a 0 s
throughout his reign.
The Vatican diplomatic corps
and the full personnel of the Sec
retariate of State attended, as did
11 Cardinals, including Their Emi
nences John Cardinal Alton. Pri
mate of Ireland, and James Cardi
nal McGuigan, Archbishop of To
ronto.
Msgr. Joseph McGeugh of New
York an official of the Secretaii
ate of State, was among those who
assisted the new Archbishop dur
ing the ceremony.
At the conclusion of the conse
cration, the Holy Fathers voice
was heard in the Basilica, saying:
“We have been present in spirit
in this patriarchal basilica at the
ceremony of an episcopal consecra
tion which Our affection for the
one being consecrated had reserv
ed for Ourselves, but which the
adorable dispositions of Providence
did not permit Vs to perform
"It is none the less consoling
for the fether who has not been
Marian Year Response
Is Called ‘Magnificent’
ROME—The Marian Year has added a shining chapter to what His Holiness Pope Pius
X0 has called the “Age of Mary.” Only God and the Blessed Virgin know what the spiritual
benefits of the Year have been. But it can be said beyond question that the response of the
Catholic world to the Holy Father s call for special observances of the centenary of the def
inition of the Immaculate Conception has been truly magnificent.
This opinion is shared by the Central Committee of the Holy Year here headed by
Archbishop Luigi Trgglia. Viceger
ent of Rome. The committee is still
tabulating reports from the four
corners of the globe, but there is
already a wealth of information on
the Marian Year in parishes and
dioceses everywhere to prove the
literal truth of the prophecy in the
Magnificat: “All generations shall
call me blessed.”
the Year, his voice continued to
reach the faithfu 1 from his sick
bed.
When th
if people flocked
St. Mary Major
to the Bas If Ca ol
in Rome 0n the Feasi of the Im
maculate Loncep lion for solemn
rites closing the Vtarian eai the
enforced absence of the ailing
Pope imparted an added ferve
the devotions a the faithful linked
to their praises of Mary a prayer
for the Holy athei recoverv.
A reverent cc»ngr«nation knelt in
Pontiff Sends Blessing
On Day Of Archbishop
Montini's Consecration
VATICAN CITY (NC) Unable because of illness to
consecrate Archbishop Giovanni B. Montini of Milan as he had
planned. His Holiness Pope Pius XII sent a radio blessing to the
new prelate following his consecration in St. Peter's Basilica.
The papal blessing was heard over a European television
hook-up. which had carried the ceremony to all parts of West
ern Europe and the British Isles.
The consecrator taking the Holy
Father’s plage was His Eminence
Eugene Cardinal Tisserant, Dean
of the College of Cardinals. Co
consecrators were Bishop Dominic
Bernareggi. Auxiliary and Vicar
Capitular of Milan Giacinto Tredici
of Brescia. Archbishop Montini’s
home diocese.
A large delegation of more than
2.000 priests and laymen, including
prominent civic leaders, came
from Mtfan and joined delegations
from Brescia and ’he new Arch
bishop’s home town of Concesio to
swell the large crowd that filled
the apse of the basilica.
silence in and around the
basilica as the voice of the Pope
was broadcast from the Vatican
two miles away. In weak but clear
tones, he spoke of the whole world
“kneeling today like one family at
the feet of the Immaculate Vir
gin,*’ and went on to say:
"We er* grateful to th* Lord,
able to invoke the Holy Ghost
by the imposition of his hands to
raise them now in blessing upon
his faithful collaborator, who has
today become his brother in the
episcopal erabr.
“And as this blessing is filled
with the memories of long service
so is it bright with faith and
hope for the future of the new
pastor who is called to the chair
of St. Ambrose to rule over such
(Continued on Page 2)
Reds Call Halt
To Czech Anti
Religious Drive
V I E N N A (NC) The
Prague communist regime has
called a temporary halt to its
anti-religious camp aign. ac
cording to information reach
ing here.
The call to stop the long
standing, anti-Church cam
paign was reportedly given by
Czechoslovak Premier Viliam Siro
ky immediately after his return
from Moscow where he attended
the Iron Curtain “collective secur
ity conference.”
Siroky’s instructions to govern
ment offices and Red party offi
cials is said to have asked that no
obstacles be placed in the way of
religious Christmas celebrations,
particularly in the country side.
At the same time the militant
Red youth organization—for years
the nucleus of the anti-God propa
ganda has been told to cease for
the time being its anti-religious
campaign.
End Of Marian Year Observed
Eugene Cardinal Tisserant, dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, represented the ailing Popo
Pius XII «t the ceremonies in Rome's Basilic* of St. Mery Major, marking the close of the Marian
Year, December 8. His Holiness broadcast a Papal Blessing to the world from his bedside in the
Vatican apartments, two miles away. The Church is the oldest shrine to the Blessed Mother end was
the scene of the opening ceremonies last December 8 This a radio photo.
Help Fight TB
18M U CHRISTMAS SlfHIRtS IT UM
Buy Christmas Seals
Price Ten Cents $3.00 A Year
Who, es seal upon such* multi*
tude of prayer and good works
offered up to Him in this year
of grace, has asked of Us suffer
ing and sacrifice as an act of
love, and so, with suffering in
Our members, and sacrifice in
Our heart, We are glad to closo
His Marian Year by repeating
together with Our children scat*
tered throughout the world, 'Hail
Mary
The Pontiff, who began his talk
in Italian, went on to recite the
Hail Mary in Latin. His talk was
the climax of Pontifical Benedic
tion of the Blessed Sacrament at
which His Eminence Eugene Cardi
nal Tisserant, dean of the Sacred
College, officiated. It was in this
same basilica the world’s lead
ing Marian shrine that the Holy
Father himself had opened the
Marian Year twelve months be
fore.
The outstanding note of the Mar
ian Year program everywhere
seems to have been its popular ap
peal. and the depths to which the
Pope s call for return to Christ
reached into the hearts of peoples
everywhere.
Exemplifying the popular appeal
was the fact that Italy—accord
ing to Archbishop Traglia folks
everywhere learned the Marian
Year prayer by heart. There are
many prayers much older and more
familiar unknown by heart, yet
whenever the special prayer com
posed by the Holy Father was be
gun in public, the people picked
it up and easily carried it to a fin
ish.
Crowning events of the Marian
Year in Rome were the canonisa
tion of St. Pius on May 29 which
was witnessed by 500.000 persons
in St. Peter’s Square: the procla
mation of the new universal Feast
of the Queenship of Mary to be ob
served every year on May 31 an
international Congress of Marian
Congregations which heard an ap
peal by the Pope for a renewal of
sodalities the world over on the
basis of quality, not quantity and
an international Marian-Mariologi
cal Congress that attracted pre
lates. theologians and thousands of
pilgrims from many parts of the
world. Similar theological and de
votional gatherings were held also
in colleges, seminaries and univer
sities in various countries.
Observed in May was a worth
while Children's Day tf Prayer
for Peace tor which the Holy
Father composed another special
prayer. Other Days during the
Month of Mary were devoted to
prayers for the Pope's Inten
tions, for Catholic* suffering
persecution and for an increase
in religious vocetions.
These were amnng the special
intentions included in the encycli
cal, Fulgens Corona, in which Pope
Pius proclaimed the Marian Year.
A? the Matian Congress in Rome.
His Eminence Francis Cardinal
Spellman at the invitation of the
Holy Father, delivered a special
address exhorting Catholics tn the
Church of Silence to “hold fast to
your Faith.”
Highlighting the entire Marian
Year were a dozen national Marian
Congresses attended by Papal
Legates, as well as other Marian
celebrations which reached large
proportions even though they
were not attended bv a legate or
(Continued on Page 2)