DIOCESAN SCHOOLS TO MERGE The ANCHOR An 'Anchor of the Soul, Sure and Firm-St. Paul
Fall River; Mass., Thursday, Jan. 7, 1971
Vol. 15, No. 1
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Foresee Record Attendance At Bishop's Charity Ball . Thousands of friends of the exceptional and underprivileged children in the diocese of Fall River will dance tomorrow night at Lincoln Park, North Dartmouth to the strains of the wellknown Vincent Lopez orchestra. The social set at the 16th annual Bishop's Charity Ball will comprise couples from all the sections of the 1,194 square miles of the diocese. There is every indication that the gathering for charity tomorrow night
will be the largest in the history of the outstanding southeastern Massachusetts Wintertime event. The highlight of, the evening program will be the presentation, of 38 young ladies from the various sections of the diocese to the new Bishop of the diocese, His Excellency Daniel A. Cronin. Socially, it will be the first opportunity for Bishop Cronin to meet his flock and others in this section of the state. Turn to Page Twenty· .
Pope Paul Stres,ses Dogma .As Answer to Doubts WASHINGTON (NC) - Pope Paul VI - warning that many Catholics are troubled in their faith by ambiguities, uncertainties and doubts-has called on the world's bishops to reaffirm authentic Christian teaching. In a statement released simultaneously .here and at the Vatican Jan. 5, Pope Paul stressed the bishops' duty to hand on the faith in its fullness and to proclaim the essential doctrines of Catholicism.
tolic exhortation, dated Dec. 8, 1970, and addressed "to all the bishops in peace and communion with the apostolic see," was issued to mark the fifth anniversary of the close of the Second Vatican Council. It was released in the United States by the, NaTurn to Page Six
Cassidy and Coyle High ,Schools of Taunton Unite Into (o-Educational Institution Monsignor Coyle and Bishop filled to capacity. Depending on Cassidy High Schools in Taunton the enrollment of the new school, will become one co-educational a few classrooms may be needed diocesan high school next Sep- in a nearby parish elementary tember. The' formal decision school. which has been under consideraThe Brothers of Holy Cross tion since last October was an- and the Sisters of the Holy nounced to students of both Union will continue to teach in schools Tuesday by the4' respec- the new school, along with the tive principals and Reverend Pa- present lay faculties. No final trick J. O'Neill, Superintendent decision has'been made yet as to of Diocesan Schools. possible future of the Coyle The naming of the newly form- building. ed school will be left to a com- , Father ONeill'stressed in,makmittee of faculty and students, ing the announcement that the but in the lJleantime the school move was being made to assure will be referred to as Coyle- the continuance of Catholic secCassidy High School. The new ondary education- for both boys school will operate in the pres- and girls in the Greater Taunton ent facilities of Cassidy High area. He stated that this was School, which is not presently "a positive step to strengthen
Three Fall River' Girls' Academies ('ombine To Form New Bishop Gerrard High School ,
Three Catholic girls' high schools in Fall River will merge next September into a single new school under the sponsOrship of the Fall River Diocese, it was announced Wednesday. The three schools ate Mount St. Mary's Academy, Dominican Academy and Jesus-Mary Academy. The new school will be called Bishop Gerrard' High School, after the auxiliary Bishop of the diocese, who has served several of the Fall River girls schools in various capacities. The school will operate in ,the former Mount St. Mary's Academy building, which will be taken over by the diocese. Sisters from the three former schools will serve on the faculty. The three schools would have
closed in June if the merger had not been successful. ,In making the announcement, Rev. Patrick J. O'Neill, Superintendent of Schools for the diocese, stressed that the diocese felt an obligation to the' 700 girls in the three schools, as well as to t1).e three Religious congregations whose service to the diocese totals 300 years. Father O'Neill stated, "We look on this as a move to strengthen Catholic education in Fall River, since it brings together the best teaching talent of three schools, a larger student body, and the management experience and support of the diocese. This will assure the best possible education for a large number of girls for years to come."
The Pope's 4,600-word apos-
Father Winsper Funeral Rites Conducted
Oedication For Parish Center
Most Rev. Daniel A.. Cronin, S.T.D., Bishop of the Diocese of Fall River bestowed the final absolution at the final rites for Father Winsper.
Turn to Page Eighteen
Discussions about a possible merger of the three 'schools have been underway fOf several years. Dominican and Jesus-Mary Academies have been hampCf'ed by small enrollments and mounting costs, along with' inadequate facilities which were Incapable of being extended, Mount St. Mary's Academy has enjoyed a large modern building, but enrollment has decreased to the point where the school was only half-filled to capacity and the debt on the new building was unmanageable. All three schools were considering' closing at the end of ,the present school year as a result of these problems. The feeling has grown over the past few years that great economies could be effected by bringing the three schools together and providing for better' use of the teachers and facilities. Diocesan Consultors Approve After a number of meetings between the religious communities and the staff of the Diocesan School Department, a defiTurn to Page Fifteen
S~t
Rev. Edward V. Winsper, S.J., 61, a teacher in the English department of Bishop Connolly High School, died unexpectedly Dec. 29 in North Andover..Born in New Bedford, he was the son of the late William and the late Julia (Brennan) Winsper.
At a concelebrated Mass offered on Saturday morning at 10 in the Holy Name Church, Fall River, Rev. Charles Mac-
Catholic education for the future, bringing together the best that each school had to offer." Both schools have something to gain from the merger. Coyle brings to the merger a forty year tradition of excellence, along with the reputation for expertise in the development of young men. However, Coyle has suffered from the decreased availability of Brothers, the number going from fourteen to eight Brothers within the past few years. As a result, the school has had to operate at considerably increased costs which have created a $20,000 a year deficit for the past three years, The Coyle building also lacks some of the Turn to Page Fifteen
BISHOP MEETS VlNCENTIANS: During the regular monthly meeting of the Fall River Particular Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society at the Immaculate Conception Church, Fall River, Bishop Cron~n"second right, discusse~ the organization's charities with James Gillet, president ,of the N)~t :paris~; Rev. Msgr. Arthur W. Tansey, pastor; and Edouard W. Lacroix, president of ,the particular council.
Bishop Daniel A. Cronin will visit the Immaculate Conception Parish, Fall River, this Sunday, Jan. 10, during his pastoral visitation of parishes throughout the diocese. The Bishop will celebrate the 11 :30 morning Mass and 'then dedicate the newly renovated parish c~nter that now contains four permanent and three portable classrooms for CCD instruction and a kitchen. Parishioners are then invited to avail themselves of the opportunity to meet their new Bishop in the parish center.