02.26.82

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FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ~SLANDS

t eanc 0 VOL. 26, NO. 8

FALL RIVER, MASS., FRIDAY, fEBRUARY 26, 1982

20c, $6 Per Year

Bishop raps hudget cuts WASHINGTON (NC) - Testi­ fying twice in one day, a repre­ sentative of the U.S. bishops told Congress Monday that the Rea­ gan administration's budget cuts are "difficult to justify moraHy." Auxiliary Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan of Brooklyn, N.Y. said government has the responsibil­ ity to preserve "the dignity of the human person" when private efforts cannot. "The harsh reality of America's present economic system is that, without substantial and effective government intervention, people wiH go hungry, families will be homeless (and) mothers and chil­ dren will be without basic health care," he said. . Bishop Sullivan, testitfying on behalf of both Catholic Charities and the U.S. Catholic Conference, public policy arm of the U.S. bishops, appeared first before the House Budget Committee's task force on entitlement pro­ grams. In the afternoon he moved across Capitol Hill to testify on food stamps before the nutrition subcommittee of the Senate Agri­ culture Committee. Bishop Sullivan, a former na­ tional president of . Catholic Charities, told the House task force, "Decisions about the fed­ eral budget and about the econ­ omy are not devoid of moral content," Reports from Catholic Chari· ties offices and other Catholic agencies around the country, he said, show that last year's cuts "hurt the poor severely," Requests for financial assis­ tance have doubled and tripled and lines at soup kitchens are longer than ever, he said. "For the first time we are seeing in these lines not only the chroni­ caHy destitute but many new faces - for example, the re­ cently unemployed, the working mother who has lost AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent Chil­ dren) benefits. The dignity of the human per­ son is a key element of Cath­ olic social teaching, he said, and generates obligations and rights, such as the right to food, cloth­ ing and shelter. Last year's cuts and further Turn to Page Two

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I

L. From left, Theresa Lee and Suzette Emsley, Theresa Van Horn, !Eleanor IEmsley

In a millio'n

a By Pat

MCGOWWll

"It's no big deal," says Eleanor Emsley of her unique family. But many would disagree. Her comfortable house in Taunton's St. Joseph's parish shelters adopted daughters Theresa Lee and Suzette and foster child Theresa Van Horn, as well as her 91-year-old grand­ mother. Theresa Lee, 15, and Suzette, 12, are natural sisters. Theresa Lee has Down's syndrome, Su­

zette is normal. Theresa Van Horn, severely retarded, cannot speak and also has many sur­ gical problems. She has been in and out of hospitals all her life. Miss Emsley is assistant direc­ tor in charge of nursing services at St. Anne's Hospital, Fall River, succeeding Sister Thomas More, OP. The position includes super­ vision of three associate directors and ultimate responsibility for the nearly 300 nurses at the 200­ bed institution.

Pope returns from By Father Kenneth Doyle

NC News Service In the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna about 1,000 lay peo­ ple crowded into tiny St. Jo­ seph's Cathedral to see Pope John Paul II. Many were dressed in maroon cloaks covered with printed por­ traits of the pope.

She came to the position from St. Luke's Hospital Center in New York City, where she was director of nursing and associate vice-president. A Taunton native, she is a 1963 graduate of the nursing school of Sturdy Mem­ orial Hospital, Attleboro, leav­ ing that hospital in 1969 as superVisor of nursing services. She returned to Taunton last November, she said, for the sake of her three girls and she "loves being back," Her Cedar

Africa~

As the pope walked up the aisle, the people vigorously sang the psalm "All my Life I Will Bless his Name," Animal horns pounded against home-made metal drums. People slapped hands. as a basketball team does at the buzzer, after a winning shot. They swayed in unison to the

Street home is within walking distance of school, downtown shops and dancing lessons for lively Suzette, while the two Theresas have an easy bus ride to 'their special education classes. From a large family, most of whom have settled in the Taun­ . ton area, Miss Emsley says an­ other advantage of her move has been the availability of nieces and nephews as babyTum to Page Six

plans new trips

music and the vibration shook the wooden floor. In a corner of the church, a policeman cast a sideward glance to see where his sergeant was, then, convinced that he was not being watched, he set down his rubber billy club and clapped to the rhythm. That scene crystallized the

purpose of Pope John Paul's African trip. For eight days from Feb. 12 to 19 the pope asked the people of Nigeria, Ga­ bon, 'Benin and Equatorial Guin­ ea to set aside other pursuits and to focus on God. Throughout the journey the pontiff emphasized in 35 talks Tum to Page Ten


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