AN ANCHOR OF THE SOUL, SURE AND FIRM -HEB. 6:19
t eanc 0 VOL. 21, ·NO. 46
FALL RIVER, MASS., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1977
End Excommunication For Div'orced, Rewed WASHINGTON (NC) - Acting on a request from the National Conference of Catholic ishops (NCCB), Pope Paul VI as lifted the automatic excomunication that had been imosed on American Catholics who divorce and remarry. Church officials emphasized, however, that the action does not allow divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the sacraments of ,Penance and Holy Communion, nor does it change Church teaching on the indissolubility of marriage. According to Bishop Thomas C. Kelly, NCCB general secretary: "The intention of the lifting of the penalty is pastoral - to extend a reconciling gesture to divorced and remarried Catholics and encourage them to seek regularization of their status. It is important that it not be seen as either more or less than that." Archbishop Jean Jadot, apostolic delegate in the United States, relayed the Pope's decision in a Nov. 4 letter to Archbishop Joseph L. Bernardin of Cincinnati, president' of the NCCB. The penalty of automatic excommunication had been asked by the Third Plenary Council
of Baltimore in 1884. At their spring meeting in Chicago in May, 1977, the NCCB voted to Turn to Page Two
Bishop Deplores Line Veto As spiritual leader of over 300,000 Catholics in Southeastern Massachusetts, Bishop Cronin has deplored Governor Dukakis' line veto of the anti-abortion rider to the supplementary state budget bill. The Bishop noted that the governor's action further eroded pro-life attempts to uphold the sacredness of all human life arid reminded diocesan Catholics that efforts to eradicate the fact of abortion on demand have been continuously frustrated by the pro-abortion stance of the Governor. rln expressing his disappointment at the line veto, Bishop Cronin reemphasized the Church's firm and unwavering position on abortion. "It is my responsibility to be forceful and effective in promulgating the teachings of our faith on the fundamental question of human life," declared the prelate.
This Weekend • Optional reception of communion in the hand begins in all parishes of the diocese.
1Sc, $S Per Year
Archbishop Quinn Is
NCCB
Archbishop John Quinn of San Francisco is the new president of the National Council of Catholic Bishops (NCCB), elected by • The Thanksgiving Cloth146 votes to 112 for Archbishop ing Appeal will begin, with John Roach of St. Paul-Minneaemphasis on the need for polis on the third ballot at this lightweight clothing, infant week's fall general meeting of apparel and blankets. Collecthe bishops in Washington. In tion directions will be given all there were 10 candidates for in all parishes. the top office. In an interview prior to the meeting Archbishop Joseph L. Bernardin, outgoing conference president, assessed its achievements in the past three years. Increased political involvement It had to happen. A pingpong in pro-life issues, a clear player at the Hyannis motel statement of the Church's views housing last week's CPA con- on sexual morality through the vention was heard to remark, pastoral To Live in Christ Jesus, between swats at the ball, "I "an excellent record" on questhought they were certified pub- tions of national and internatlic accountants, but 1 just found ional social justice, and the sucout it's the Catholic Press Asso- cessful resettlement of thouciation." sands of Vietnamese refugees are among NCOB major succes* * * Delegates from the Monitor of ses, he said. Trenton, N.J. had an abrupt beBut, although there have been ginning to the first day of the no "crashing failures" by the convention. Wandering sleepily NCCB during those years, the into the lobby in search of. American bishops still face coffee, they discovered their car "many serious, continuing, longhad sprung a fuel line leak and term problems which are not gothe Hyannis fire department ing to be solved soon or easily," Turn to Page Three the archbishop said. • The annual Campaign for Human Development collection will be held.
Convention Sidelights
Leader Among them are a "fundamental difficulty" among many Catholics in accepting the teaching authority of the Church; the continued legality of "virtual abortion on demand" in the United States; and the refusal of some Catholics to accept the Turn to Page Two
Funeral Friday For Fr. Galvin A funeral Mass will be offered at 10 tomorrow morning at St. Mary's Cathedral, Fall River, for Father William A. Galvin, who died on Monday. Bishop Daniel A. Cronin will be principal concelebrant and Father John Murphy, pastor of Holy Name Church, New 'Bedford, will be homilist. . Father Galvi~, 65, retired in 1971 for reasons of health. He was a native of Fall River, son of Michael Galvin and Elizabeth (Riley) Galvin, and graduated from St. Mary's grammar school and Durfee High School. Ordained in 1939 by the late Bishop James E. Cassidy, he had studied at St. Charles Seminary, Catonsville, Md., St. Mary's Turn to Page Two
• Catholic Press: Alive, Well, Living- In Hyannis
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The Catholic Press Association has put itself on record as opposed to a National Communications collection scheduled to be voted on this week by the American bishops at their fall meeting in Washington. At the Eastern Regional meeting of the Catholic Press Association (CPA) hosted last week in Hyannis by The Anchor, Robert L. Fenton, CPA president, announced that the following telegram had been sent to the National Conference of Catholic Bishops: "CPA board of directors urges tabling television collection proposal pending completion of thorough analysis of national collections and gift-giving potential. Collection as planned overwhelmingly emphasizes television to near-exclusion of press, endangering Catholic publications with 25 million circulation by enabling parishioners to say
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contribution to this collection covers Catholic press subscrip. tions. We urge further study assessing impact on Catholic press, your least expensive and most effective instrument of evangelization." Fenton explained that the collection, if approved, would be taken up in all U.S. churches. Half the money collected would be used for television and other electronic media purposes and the other half would remain in participating dioceses. The CPA contends that the allocation discriminates against the print media and points out that after contributing to such a collection most churchgoers would feel they had satisfied their obligation to the Catholic press. Representatives of some 31 diocesan newspapers, magazines and other services were at the Hyannis meeting. Turn to Page Seven
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