05.24.73

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Freedom from ··Forced Abortions The latest development in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts concerning the ongoing abortion controversy is scheduled for de.:>ate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, June 5. The members will consider the various proposals drawn up by the Social Welfare Committee of the Legislature. The recent Supreme Court abortion decisions greatly limit the power of a State to protect unborn human life by forbidding or restricting abortions. However, it should not be alleged that these cases hold that a woman has a 'constitutional right to fGrce a doctor, hospital or the general public to provide her with an abortion. To hold that State legislatures are limited in their power to forbid abortions is not that same as holding that state legislatures are required to provide abortions. Recently Senate President Harrington and House Speaker Bartley proposed legislation.

that hospitals, health facilities, doctors, hos. pital staff persons and hospital employees be protected in matters concerning abortions and related matters.This legislation was referred to the Social Welfare Committee of the Massachusetts legislature. The Social Welfare Committee has amended the original proposals and has limited protection from compulsory anti-life activities to ~hose hospitals and health facilities said to be under the direction of a recognized religious order or group. One of the dangers of such limited protection is that it omits any hospital or health facility which might object to abortion and related anti-life activities for moral reasons (as distinguished from' religious reasons). Opposition to abortion is not limited to the ten:ets of one religious faith. A further danger is the contention that these . contemplated revisions may place any hospital

Appeal Nears $800,000; Closes Tomorrow Noon The 1973 Catholic Charities Appeal climbed to $791,882.68 today with many incomplete parish returns and special gift donations still to be reported. The official closing of the Appeal is 12 noon tomorrow. This should see mqre parishes exceeding their 1972 final totals. Appeal Headquarters in Fall River has issued the final' notice. Joseph H. Feitelberg of Somerset, this year's diocesan lay chairman, said: "All special gifts, priests' donations and parish contributions must be at the office' by 12 noon tomorrow to be included in the final official 1973 tabulation. I urge that all retl,lrns be made in person to insure proper accreditations. The final Appeal total will be published in next week's edition of The Anchor. I hope all the parishes will be "over the top" by tomorrow." 53 have surpassed their 1972 final totals in this year's Appeal. These parishes are members of the Honor Roll. The new members added to the Honor Roll are: Holy Ghost, Attleboro; St. Mary, Seekonk; St. Mary,

d;The8 ANCHOR

Norton; Holy Redeemer, Chat~ ham; St. Elizabeth" Edgartown; Sacred Heart, Oak Bluffs; St. Joan of Are, Orleans; Holy Trinity, West Harwich. Vol. 17, No. 21, May'24, 1973 Blessed Sacrament, Espirito $4.00 per year Santo, Our Lady of Health, Holy Price 10c Rosary, Immaculate Conception, St. Anthony of the Desert, St. Adult .Confirmation Elizabeth, St. John the Baptist, St. Joseph, St. Patrick, St. Stan- St. Mary's Cathedral, Fall River, islaus, St. William, Fall River; . Pentecost Sunday, June 10 at 11 o'clock Mass. Turn to Page Three

or health facility at the whim of a single antilife member of its staff. The possibility exists, opponents of the proposed revision maintain, that such hospitals and health facilities will be deprived of administrative flexibility. Opponents of the' revision proposed by the Social Welfare Committee are asking rightto-life groups to register their objection to the Social Welfare proposals and to register their support of a bill which states that no hospital or health facility need be required to perform abortions, sterilization or engage in related anti-life procedures and which also gives protection to conscience whether formed because of religious tenets or moral principles. A redrafting of the Social Welfare proposals would achieve, proponents contend, selfdetermination for the individual hospital. or health facility. Each hospital or health facility would decide by vote of its governing body whether its policy would be to perform abortions or not.

Sacred Heart in Taunton Marks 100- Years Sunday Excerpts from centennial booklet by Mary F. McDermott, a member of Sacred Heart Parish At the church of the Sacred Heart in Taunton, the celebration of a centenary is an exciting event, and means looking back into the past 100 years. What was Weir Vmage like a hundred years ago? Boats sailing up and down a

Bishop. Gerrard, Two J.letired Pastors Observe Golden Jubilee s Saturday F,ifty years ago this Saturday, in St. Mary's Cathedral, Fall River, three young prie~ts received the sacrament of Holy Orders from the Most Rev. Daniel F. Feehan, second Bishop of the diocese. In the half century since that time they have served the Church in a multitude of

capacities; two are monsignori, one a bishop..On Saturday, together ·in their retirement as they were together on that morning years ago, Bishop James J. Gerrard, Msgr. John A. Chippendale and Msgr. William H. Harrington will mark their golden jubilees in a quiet celebration at the Cath-

olic Memorial Home, Fall River. Born .in New Bedford June 9, 1897, son of the late William and Elizabeth (Livesey). Gerrard, Bishop Gerrard attended St. James' parish school and Holy Family High School. He studied for the priesthood at St. Laurent Turn -to Page Six

Teletype Service In ..Operati~n This Week WASHINGTON (NC)-A sophisticated wire transmission. service operated by the National Catholic (NC) News Service began sending news stories instantaneously to The Anchor and 77 other Catholic newspapers throughout the United States May 21. The wire system began operation with a special blessing from Pope Paul VI, the "warmest congratulations" of President Nixon, and the push of a button by Bishop James Rausch, general secretary of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Turn to Page Eight

GOLDEN JUBILARIANS: Rev. Msgr. John A. Chippendale, Most Rev. James J. Gerrard and Rev. Msgr. WilHam H. Harrington.

clear river. People strolling together in the quiet haze of summer or trudging through the deep winter· snows. A people intent on earning their daily bread, basing their lives on the premise "live and let live," and the in-' creasing Catholic population journeying to Mass every Sunday no matter how many miles they had to walk to get there. In 1873 a new parish was formed which included Weir Village, East Taunton, the Dightons and Myricks. Rev. Hugh J. Smith was the first pastor. Turn to Page Three

Name. Zukowski As Bishop Stang Vice-Principal Robert Zukowski, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Zukowski of 180 Warren St., Fall River, has been appointed assistant principal of Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth. A member of th~ Stang faculty, he is· a member of. the Student-Fa'Culty Senate and has served as a member of the Provincial Assessment Team for_the Sisters of Notre Dame who staff the diocesan high school. A graduate . of Bishop Stang High School, Mr; Zukowski teaches Spanish and Current Events in the Humanities Course. He taught at SS. Peter and pilUl 'Parish School for two years and has been on the faculty of Bishop Stang High for the past three years. The former Co-Captain of the Stonehill College Soccer Team, he is presently the Soccer Coach at the high school. Second in command at the diocesan high school which will also have a layman as principal, Mr. George A. Milot, Mr. Zukowski obtained his B.A. at Stonehill College and his M.A. at Providence College.


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05.24.73 by The Anchor - Issuu