TRUE ECUMENISM
Orthodox Prelate Queries Motives
The ANCHOR An Anchor of the Soul, Sure and Firm-St. Paul
Fall River, Mass., Thurs., March 16, 1972 PRICE 10¢ Vol. 16, No. 11 @ 1972 The Anchor $4.00 per 'year
Pope Paul Demands Care In Explaining Dogmas VATICAN CITY (NC)-Pope Paul VI defended and added his personal comments to a recent Doctrinal Congregation warning against those who question Christ's divinity and the external existence of the Trinity. Pope Paul ordered the Doctrinal Congregation to promulgate the warning, which listed some theological errors that it said affected traditional teachings of the Church. Speaking to crowds in St. Peter's Square for his Sunday noon blessing on March 12, Pope Paul said that the dogmas that the errors undermine are ."principal mysteries of our religion." He added that "lately, here and there, they were not properly interpreted or expressed by· various authors, with the grave danger of irreverence toward the mysteries themselves and of dis" tortion to our faith~" The Pope said that Catholics who have a "genuine concept of our religion" will realize the importance of the defense of these teachings and "will rejoice in their faith and in their piety in hearing them proclaimed to this day in their completeness." The Pope admitted that some question the usefulness of such dogmas and such defenses to,day: "Accustomed as we are to' assessing everything in terms of subjective utilty, it is possible that some may ask them'selves
whether such dogmas are useful for the solution of the many and pressing problems which beset our immediate and concrete experience. "We should answer, first of all, that religious truths are in Turn to: Page TWo
DOUGLASTON (NC) - Greek Orthodox Archbishop Iakovos of North and South America voiced a sharp warning to 300 Catholic seminarians here in New York that church mergers do not necessarily advance Christian unity. The archbishop spoke at an ecumenical service at the Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception. Christian unity, he said, "can not be achieved by any kind of Octave Prayer for Christian Unity," or by decrees, organic unions and the deliberations of ecumenical agencies if its "seal and trademark" of holiness is missing. "1 question the holiness and the ecumenical motives of all the 50-called ecumenical agencies," he said in the strongly worded assessment. "We have not as yet come to the realization that ecumenism is a very binding commitment ... "Mergers may be necessitated by crises or circumstantial inter" ests, but they do not necessarily advance the cause of Christian unity." The Greek Orthodox leader asserted that "true and total Christian unity" can. be understood only within the context of St. Paul's statement that Christ has made Christians one by breaking down dividing walls.
The primate chastised Christian leaders for not being true to this image of "the Church of Christ," atlding: "We avoid systematically be· ing true to ourselves and all we do is articulate, or expound, or insist upon the truths of our respective churches, dogmatizing in the most axiomatic way that unity can be realized only within this or that theological or eccle· siological domain. "In the meantime, the Third World (of underdeveloped na· tions) grows bitter and hostile towards a Christianity which either denies in action or contradicts ,in theory, its true self." Young people in the West and in Communist-controlled coun-
Progress Now Turns To Spiritual Val'ues PHILADELPHIA (NC) - Man is living at the end of the age of a~tomatic progress and in an age of supreme relevance for a religious vocation, according to Barbara Ward (Lady' Jackson), an Anchor columnist. The British economist spoke at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Overbrook, after receiving
Financing "of Schools, Role of Sisters Discussion Topics by Religious Head Although religious communi· Mary Regis, S.U.S.C., superior ,ties throughout the world are general' of the Religious of the feeling the ,pinch of' vocatiori Holy Union of the Sa~red Hearts, shortage, in no other (:o.untry. is that in other countries govern· are Catholic schools· experiElnc- ,ment aid to private schools is ing the financial pressures being taken for granted. suffered in the' United States. In Fall River on a formal visiThe reason for this, said Sister tation to diocesan houses of the
Holy Union community, Sister Mary Regis said that money problems are "unique to Amer· ican Catholic schools. "In France, Belgium and England our schools receive financial assistance. They need not Turn to Page Two
an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from LaSalle College. Lady Jackson said that the scientific, economic and political underpinnings of the age of' automatic progress have been removed and that there is a widespread search for a standard of· living that reflects not "gross national product" but spiritual values. A member of the Pontifical Commission for World Justice and Peace, Lady Jackson noted tliat only Christianity has the capacity to respond to the collapse of faith in scientifc ration· alism, in economic liberalism and in the political theory of automatic movement toward so,cial progress. In the midst of widespread despair and frustration as a de'cisive period in history comes to an end, Lady Jackson stated, the Christan message is that Christ Turn to Page Six
Mass, Banquet Set to Honor Fr. Medeiros
Bishop to Visit No. l)ighton Most Rev. Daniel A. Cronin will be principal celebrant of a 5 o'clock concelebrated Mass on Sunday afternoon at St. Joseph Church, No. Dighton. in celebrating the annual patronal feast of St. Joseph. The Bishop will then meet parishioners and participate in the 7 o'clock parish communal dinner to be shared in the parish center.
tries, he said, "join hands with the embittered and angered Third World demanding a Christianity which proclaims a crucified Christ as 'its God, despite the fact that the organized religions and philosophies of the time would call Christ a scandalous or foo:lish man." Archbishop Iakovos, commenting on a recent discussion of the Vatican Secretariat for Promoting Chirstian Unity on the vitality of the Christian Unity move· ment, said that in his view Christian leaders are "more reluctant" to initiate approaches to the risng ecumenical question of ministry in the Church. He reiterated that Church unity should be seen in another light than "the light of mergers."
VISITING DIOCESE: Sr. Grace Donovan, SUSC, standing, provincial superior of the Immaculate Heart province, welcomes Sr. Marie Regis, SUSC, superior general of the Religious of the Holy Union of the Sacred Hearts and her four councillors to the province. Seated: Sr. Anne Lucie, ,Sr.- Roberta, Mother Marie Regis, Sr. Alicia and Sr. Mary de Sales.
Most Rev. Daniei· A. Cronin, S.T.D., Bishop of Fall River, will preside at a special Sunday Mass and be a featured speaker at a banquet honoring Rev. Joao'de . Medeiros, retiring pastor of~ St. Elizabeth Parish, Fall River. ",. The special Mass will be offered at St. Elizabeth Church Sunday morning at 10:45. Rev. Joao de Medeiros. will be the principal celebrant. Joining him' as concelebrants. will . be: Rev. Daniel L. Freitas, new adPlinis~ trator of St. Elizabeth's; Rev: Joao V. Resendes, pastor of, Espirito Santo Parish, Fall River; and, Rev. Arthur C. dos Reis, pastor of Santo Christo parish, . Fall River. The homilist of the Mass will be Rev. Jose M. Bettencourt e Avila, pastor of Our Lady of Mt. . Carmel Parish, New Bedford. A retirement banquet wHl then be celebrated at Whites Family Restaurant, Westport, at 12:30 with Bishop Cronin again presiding and speaking.