10.14.88

Page 1

anco VOL. 32, NO. 41

Friday, October 14, 1988

FALL RIVER, MASS.

FAU RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSmS CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS Southeastern Massachusetts' Largest Weekly

$10 Per Year

463 arrested in

"Atlanta siege" WASHINGTON (NC) - Forty arrests at Midtown Hospital Oct. 8 ended what pro-life protesters dubbed the "Siege of Atlanta," a series of anti-abortion demonstrations that followed similar Atlanta actions when almost 800 people were arrested between July 19and Sept. 3. In .all, 463 people were arrested Oct. 4-8 after blocking entrances to four Atlanta abortion facilities. At least seven priests; a'nd many Protestant ministers, were among those am;sted in Atlanta during "Operation Rescue," non-violent protests at abortion clinics across the country. New York Auxiliary Bishop Austin B. Vaughan, who has been arrested four times for participation in the rescues, was not arrested in Atlanta, although he participated in sit-ins. "It seems to be an accident that I'm not in jail," Bishop Vaughan told National Catholic News Service in Washington Oct. 7. The first day he was among a small group of protesters at the back door of the Hillcrest Clinic, and "they never decided to arrest us." Among priests released from custody as of Oct. to were: Father William G. Hoffman, pastor ofSt. Jude Church in Sandy Spring, Ga., where Operation Rescue rallies and non-violence training sessions were held; Father Da-niel Stack, "associate pastor of Holy Family parish in Marietta, Ga.; and Msgr. Michael J. Regan, pastor ofSt. John Evangelist parish in Carrollton, Ga.

THE STATUE of Our Lady of Fatima, top, enters St. Aline's Church, Fall River, during the 14th annual diocesan peace procession, heM Monday. Bottom: A scene from the following peace Mass, which had Bishop Daniel A. Cronin as principal celebrant and homilist. The event, which includes a mile-long march from St. Mary's Cathedral to St. Anne's, traditionally attracts thousands of diocesans. (Gaudette photos)

Seminary role discussed COLUMBUS, O~o (Nq Catholic seminaries must teach a clear theology of the priesthood, including the value of celibacy and the reasons why only men can be ordained, said Cardinal William W. Baum. The remarks by Cardinal Baum, head of the Congregation for Catholic Education, the Vatican agency which oversees Catholic seminary education around the world, were in a speech marking the IOOth birthday of the Pontifical College J osephinum in Columbus, the only papally chartered seminary in the United States. The cardinal was unable for health reasons to attend the cele-

bration, and his address was read by Boston Cardinal Bernard F. Law. Cardinal Baum spoke about a Vatican-mandated study of U.S. seminaries, which is under the authority of his congregation. Emerging from the study, he said, was the fact that the "most important" problem any seminary might face today is to have only "a rather vague idea of what the priesthood is all about." "We are not asking each seminary to work out its own model of the priesthood on a sort of do-ityourself basis," he said'. "We are not asking each seminarian to formulate his own theology of 'the

priesthood .... We are asking each seminary and each seminarian to bring out clearly the church's understanding of the priesthood." He cited four "hurdles" a seminary must overcome to communicate a clear view of the priesthood to students: "the rather generalized concept of ministry, the new emphasis on the common priesthood of all the faithful, the crisis of confidence in priestly celibacy, and the influence of pressure emanating from the movement for the ordination of women." On priestly celibacy, Cardinal Baum's text warned that the excepTurn to Page Six

Juli Loesch, a spokeswoman for Operation Rescue, said that during the first few days of the protest, police "used force and inflicted pain" as they arrested protesters. Although the police said they used only the amount of force necessary to clear paths to the entra'nces of "legitimate businesses," by the final two days of the rescues they had stopped using "compliance holds" - twisting arms or fingers or applying pressure to sensitive spots on either side of the neck. Police said at least two protesters were hospitalized temporarily. Archbishop Eugene A. Marino of Atlanta issued a statement Sept. 29 which said using non-violent resistance "in an attempt to rescue innocent victims from the fate of abortion" is a "courageous response to injustice." "Individuals committed to the defense of human life have every right to express their revulsion at the unrestricted slaughter of innocent children throughout our nation," the archbishop's statement said. He cautioned, however, that the protesters must express their outrage "only in the most loving and gentle manner, remaining scrupulously non-violent in every way physically, verbally and emotionally." . , Now that the "Siege of Atlanta" has ended, organizers of Operation Rescue are planning a "nationwide day of rescue" Oct. 29 in at least 30 cities, Ms. Loesch said.

Europe's problems spiritual, says pope STRASBOURG, France (Nq - Europ~ans mUst rediscover their Christian' heritage in order to overcome their moral and material crises, Pope John Paul·II said during his visit to Strasbourg" Oct. 8-to. Europe~s problems - including materialism, environmental pollution, the "disintegration" of the family and the decline in vocations - are ultimately problems of the spirit, the pope said during a weekend of speeches and meetings in the medieval city. Pope John Paul's first stop on the pastoral visit was at the Assembly Hall of the Council of Europe. There he told the 170 delegates of the world's "first ever international parliamentary assembly"

that Europe shares a "common identity" which "Christianity has helped to 'forge." In a speech to the European Human Rights Court and CommissiolJ., the pope praised the 1950 European Convention for Human Rights and the two institutions which it spawned. "The court and the commission form a unique judicial reality in international law," the pope said, because the 21 nations signing the human rights convention agreed to submit to their judgments. An evening rally at Strasbourg's Meinau soccer stadium attracted 45,000 enthusiastic young people from throughout Western Europe. The pope urged them "to be present wherever the world is being, Turn to Page 12


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