The Catholic times. [volume], May 03, 1957, Memorial Issue, Image 19

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

Image provided by: Ohio History Connection, Columbus, OH

                
Bishop Met Community’s
Spiritual, Material Needs
New Parishes
The number of new parish
es and schools since 1944
dramatically illustrate the
growth of the Columbus Dio
cese under the leadership of
Bishop Michael J. Ready.
The list of parishes and schools
established during the Bishop’s
episcopacy reads somewhat like a
litany.
The new parishes include St.
Michael's in Worthington, Our
Lady of Peace and Christ the King
in 1946 St. James the Less, St.
Christopher’s, St. Edward’s in
Granville, and Our Lady of Sor
rows in Shadeville in 1947 Holy
Spirit in 1952 St. Gabriel, Colum
bus, and Our Lady of Perpetual
Help in Grove City in 1954 St.
Agnes and St. Andrew in 1955
and St. Brendan, St. Matthias, and
St. Phillip tji« Apostle, in 1956 St.
Matthew, Mt. Gilead. St. Monica.
New Boston, Our I-adv of larurdes.
Otway, St. Paul Midvale, and Our
Lady of Sorrows, West Portsmouth.
New Schools
To keep up with the bulging at
tendance, which has increased al
most 40 per cent since the close
of World War II, Bishop Ready
established elementary schools at
St. Michael’s, Our l^ady of Peace.
Christ the king, St. James the
Less. St. Christopher. Holy Spirit,
St. Gabriel, St. Agnes and St. An
drew.
Moreover, the merger of St.
Mary’s and Holy Redeemer in
Portsmouth and St. Nicholas and
St. Thomas in Zanesville, produc
ed two new high schools, Notre
Dame in Portsmouth and Bishop
Rosecrans in Zanesville. Other
new high schools included St.
Mary’s in Dennison and Bishop
Watterson in Columbus.
Watterson, in fact, is the first
of projected new high schools to
be built from funds raised in the
Diocesan Development Drive of
1953. The second. Bishop Hartley
high school, will open in the fall,
•nd two new central Catholic high
schools are under construction in
Marion and Newark.
New buildings also have been op
ened at St. Vincent de Paul School,
Mt. Vernon St. Francis de Sales.
Newark Sacred Heart in New
Philadelphia Holy Name, Colum
bus. and St. Mary, Columbus. In
addition, expansion projects have
added more than 300 classrooms
to schools in the diocese.
Probably the most significant
fact in the six-million dollar build
ing program is the fact that nearly
3,000 youngsters” are enrolled in
Catholic schools which did not
even exist in 1944.
The necessity of the building
program, incidentally, is demon
strated by the more than 25.000
students enrolled in the diocesan
schools. Each September, a new
enrollment record is set.
Progress under Bishop Ready is
also mirrored in a score of other
school events. 'The Bishop called
for the organization of Parent
Teacher Associations in all dioce
san schools, established a Dioce
san Guidance Center, a federal
lunch program, a school lunch
workshop, and arranged for Cath
olic schools in Columbus to re
ceive city health services.
In one of his early pastoral let
ters, Bishop Ready expressed his
desire “to encourage the devoted
parents of our parishes with re
newed xeal in the cause of Chris
tian education." The record in the
last 13 years indicates that bis
wish was fulfilled.
Friday, May 3, 1957 THI CATHOLIC TIMES
Throughout his twelve and a half years as Bishop of Co
lumbus Bishop Ready foresaw and met the serious spiritual
and material needs of the Church in the area. He also planned
for the expansion of missionary activity both at home in our
own Diocese and elsewhere in the United States and in for
eign countries.
Charity
Bishop Ready recognized
early in his reign as Ordinary
of the Columbus Diocese the
need to modify and expand
the agencies and institutions
of the Diocese which concern
themselves with the mission of
mercy and charity.
Catholic Welfare Bureau
On Sept. 15, 1945, Bishop Ready
established the Catholic Welfare
Bureau, giving it responsibility for
coordinating and directing a pro
gram of charity to meet the needs
of the people of the Diocese.
Under his direction and the able
leadership of Monsignor William
Kappes, who was appointed the Di
ocesan director of charities, the
Bureau embarked on a child care
program.
In 1945, the Diocesan children’s
institutions were crowded. Chil
dren remained in them longer than
the time generally approved by
child care experts.
The institutions had been found
ed to care for orphans and chil
dren from indigent families. These
conditions had changed with the
years and the reasons why chil
dren needed care were chiefly
sickness of a parent, absence of
one parent from the hopie. inabili
ty of parents to control children.
Family counseling was the great
need so that distressed and bewil
dered families could marshal their
own resources to provide care for
themselves.
The Catholic Welfare Bureau
gave counseling the first consider
ation and accepted responsibility
for enabling parents to place their
children in St. Vincent's Orphan
age and St. Ann’s Infant Home.
Institutional population saw a
sharp decline as parents received
financial aid and counseling. Fos
ter homes also were found for a
number of children and an aver
age of 140 children now reside in
such homes.
The institutional population
went from an average of 300 chil
dren to 120 children who now live
In the newly built “family type”
housing units at St. Vincent’s.
By 1955 juvenile courts and
Child Welfare Boards of most of
the counties in the Diocese were
turning to the Catholic Welfare
Bureau for cooperative arrange
ments when Catholic children
needed placement.
By the end of 1955 the Welfare
Bureau was annually providing
care for approximately 20 pre
delinquent. and delinquent boys
and girls who needed training.
In addition to counseling the
Welfare Bureau almost from its
beginning helped unmarried moth
ers. The Bureau offered help ei
ther by arranging care at St. AntFa
Maternity Home and in private
homes or. when it seemed better,
at maternity homes in other cities
Even after the rush of problems
born of World War II had subsid
ed the Bureau continued to help
about 90 unwed mothers each year.
Branch offices of the Bureau
were set up in Newark and Zanes
ville in 1949 and 1950.
At St. Ann’s, an outpatient clinic
was opened during 1951 to provide
prenatal and postnatal care for
poor mothers. The clinie became
a resource for unwed mothers who
live at St. Ann’s Maternity Home
or in the area.
In 1954 St. Ann’s began an edu
cational program for young en
gaged and newly married couples
to give information and inspira
tion promoting wholesome and
happy family life. More than 200
Foresaw Diocesan Growth
'K'-
Bishop of the Cornerstones
Bishop Ready laid the cornerstone for the new St. Vin
cent's orphanage which is just a part of the gigantic build
ing program which tho Diocese experienced under the lead
ership of Bishop Ready. He was often referred to in the var
ious parishes of the diocese as tho "Bishop of the Corner
stones." They will remain a lasting material tribute to a
farsighted spritual leader.
couples have followed the course
of instructions each year.
St. Rita's Home for Working
Girls was converted into a home
for the aged and St. Ralphael's
Home was begun. Both homes are
entrusted to the ('armelite Sisters.
Both homes encourage the resi
dents to continue their interests
in community affairs and to visit
their friends.
Activities at St. Stephen and
Santa fjicia Community houses
were modified. Both agencies had
been established to provide help
for foreign born and foreign
speaking immigrants.
During the years their goal had
been achieved and the Bishop
transferred Santa Lucia to a neigh
borhood society, and the facility
continued to operate under private
auspices after that time,
St. Stephen's continued under
Diocesan control to aid the south
Columbus community.
One of the later charitable agen
cies established by Bishop Ready
was the Diocesan Guidance Center
begun in 1953 with the sponsorship
of the Catholic Welfare Bureau
and the Diocesan school office to
provide skilled professional exami
nation, evaluation and psychology
cal treatment for children showing
emotional disturbance or intellec
tual slowness.
Under the directorship of Sister
Francoise. SND, the Center secur
ed a staff of lay men and women
including psychologists, psychia
trists, a psychiatric social worker,
(Continued on Page 8)
-'S- ^r-
ST' k
Bishop Hartley High School
Above, tho lost achievement of the building drive of 1953 i* picture under construe
tion, the now completed Bishop Hartley High School In east Columbus. Bishop Ready
sparked the drive for other high schools in tho Diocese including, the now Bishop Watter
son, which is in its third year Notre Dame, Portsmouth and two central Catholic High
schools under construction in Marion and Newark.
7
Mission Activity
Soon after completing a
survey of the Diocese to
which he had been appointed,
Bishop Ready turned his at
tention to the relationship be
sween the Diocese end the mis
sions, both home and foreign.
His Excellency had been dioce
san director of the Society for the
Propagation of the Faith in the
Diocese of Cleveland and therefore
was well aware of the Pontifical
directives underscoring the par
ticipation in the missions necessary
for all Catholics worthy of the
name.
In particular he encouraged the
Society for the Propagation of the
Faith, the Church's official mis
sion-aid society for all the laity.
For the children he asked the es
tablishment of the Pontifical As
sociation of the Holy Childhood in
all parishes whereby Catholic chil
dren would help the children in
pagan lands.
In the high schools His Excel
lency encouraged the program of
the Catholic Students Mission Cru
sade. This very active Pontifical
Society organizes the mission
study, prayer and sacrifice of high
school students. Many missionaries
have come from the ranks of the
Crusade.
Bishop Ready expanded the dio
cesan office of the Propagation of
the Faith so that- all mission of
ferings. Mass intentions, and equip
ment for the missions could be for
warded efficiently.
He established the Missionary
Cooperation Plan whereby mission
aries would preach in each parish
on a Sunday, instructing the peo
ple in the. missions of a particular
area and asking for their alms and
prayers. ...
During the Episcopacy of Bisb
op Ready over a million and a half
dollars have been sent to the mis
sions. both home and foreign from
the Diocese, and five priests, one
Sister and one Brother have gone
to the service of the foreign mis
sions.
His Excellency established four
mission parishes in the Diocese—
Our lady of Sorrows. West Ports
mouth St. Matthew, Mount Gilead
St. Paul. Midvale, and St. Edward,
Granville, and raised four from
the status of mission to parish—
St. Therese, Wainwright St. Mary,
Waverly Our I^ady of Lourdes,
Ada, and St. Aloysius. Strasburg.
In addition new buildings have
been provided for the missions .at
Utica and, most recently. Card
ington.
One of his greatest decisions for
the advance of the Kingdom of
(Continued on Page 8)